For example, mobile numbers beginning with 166, 122, 199, and 188 will be replaced by those prefixed by either 80, 30, 50, 40, or 70, depending on the carriers.

Mobile numbers currently prefixed by two-digit carrier codes will remain unchanged.

The move, scheduled for September, is part of a wider effort to clean up the disorder in telephone numbering which got underway last year with the rollout of standardised local dialling codes for landline numbers.

The area codes for landline numbers in all provinces and cities are now in the form of 2xx.

Minister of Information and Communications, Truong Minh Tuan, said the plan for the mobile phone number prefix change was already a year behind schedule.

He has requested that mobile operators finalise the details of their plans by June 1.

Under the law, subscribers must be notified of any such change 60 days in advance and they can use both the old and new prefixes for a transitional period of 60 days from the date the new codes take effect.
We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message.
Will YOU be Deceived by ANTICHRIST?

Events are plunging toward the eventful climax of Christs return. Will you recognize the REAL CHRIST when he returns?

by David Jon Hill

Is THE pope ignorant of the plain Bible statements that label him the Antichrist? What deception will Satan use to keep the world from realizing the popes true identity?...

God Permits Evil

God COMMANDS obedience and righteousness, but He PERMITS EVIL! Jesus reference to Judas is applicable in principle to todays fast-moving prophetic events. Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that offences come; BUT WOE TO THAT MAN BY WHOM THE OFFENCE COMETH ! (Matt. 18:7).

The human instruments Satan the Devil is preparing to serve him are aware of what Gods Word says regarding the returning Christ and the Antichrist who is to oppose Him! They know enough prophecy to perform their abominable deeds with knowledge and vigor. They know, and have known historically, enough prophecy to prepare a perverted prophecy to deny the true prophetic warning broadcast by The WORLD TOMORROW!

Catholic Interest in Prophecy

God declares that the endtime pope will be a false prophet, yet the pope has never declared himself to be a prophet. When will he deceive the world into thinking that he foresees future events? What events will he foretell? How will these prophecies affect you? How can you keep from being deceived?

A recently published book reveals a startling Catholic interest in endtime prophecy. This book, together with tradition and the writings of some of the early church Fathers, brings to light an eye-opening preview of the false prophecies that are about to be preached!

Satan knows Gods general Plan. He has been at work in the minds of evil and deluded men throughout the ages to lay the groundwork of the GREAT DELUSION ! Though the vials of the wrath of God are poured out on sinful men, their impenitence remains--AND THEY REPENTED NOT (Rev. 16:9). They will flee from Christ--even calling for rocks to fall on them, hiding out in caves--RUNNING AWAY FROM GOD!

WHY?

Because ...THAT MAN WILL TELL THE WORLD THE BIGGEST LIE EVER TOLD! Into the ears of those who do not have a love of the truth he will pour the LIE that our returning King, Jesus Christ, is the ANTICHRIST! And they will believe him because God will have sent them a strong delusion, that they should believe a LIE! (II Thes. 2:3-11).

But upon what will the pope base this claim?

By its own admission, the Catholic Church bases its definition of the articles of faith on its own interpretation of the Scriptures AND TRADITIONS as explained in the writings of the early church Fathers! And then it was approved by all, that the traditions should be received as of equal authority with the Scriptures (History of the Council of Trent, page 145).

Any attempt to dispute their interpretation by use of plain Scripture is greeted, as it was at the time of this declaration, with the cry of HERETIC and branded as Anathema! . . . the holy Scripture cannot be expounded against the sense held by the holy Mother the Church, nor against the common consent of the Fathers (History of the Council of Trent, page 152).

Catholic Definition of Antichrist

Here now, for the professed prophecies in the Catholic Churchs recently published book, Prophecy for Today:

Towards the end of the world Antichrist will overthrow the Pope and usurp his See! (Prophecy of Abbott Merlin Joachim, died 1202; see also Catholic Encyclopedia, article Antichrist.) Because they will not admit the truth, the Church believes the Antichrist will be the one to unseat the pope, while every Bible prophecy commissions the true Christ with that job.

Antichrist will fight a successful battle at Mageddo [Armageddon) in Palestine after which. . . he will hereafter become lord of the world (Ibid; Anna Catarina Emmerick, d. 1824). It is almost impossible to see how they could believe this! But there it is! And here is more! The Kings will send armies to the Holy Land, but the Antichrist will slay them all! (Ibid.; Venerable Maria of Agreda. d. 1665.) Compare this with Revelation 19:19.

But to continue. Antichrist and his army will conquer Rome, kill the Pope and take the throne. . . The Jews will come from everywhere, and accept Antichrist as the Messiah. (Ibid.; from a prophecy by Venerable Bartholomew Holthauser, d. 1658.)

Just one more quote to illustrate their satanic definition: After the destruction of Rome, Antichrist will appear and exalt himself above pagan deities and the Trinity. . . Coming to Jerusalem, he will succeed through false preaching, miracles, gifts, terror, aided throughout by the devil. An evil spirit will come out of the air and descend upon his followers. He shall feign a resurrection from the dead, cause rain to fall. . . and perform other wonders, all through the power of the devil. . . . The Jews will welcome him. (Ibid.; Richard Rolle of Hampole, d. 1349.)

Compare With Your Bible

Hippolytus is one of the early church Fathers upon which the Catholic Church depends for inspiration and dogma. Get your Bible, and compare the plain statements of Scripture, the Word and authority of Almighty God, with the blasphemous prophecies made by Hippolytus about the year 170 A. D. Satan very cleverly inspired this early writer to pen these prophecies just a hundred years after the True Church of God had to flee to Pella. Since that time there have been scattered prophecies by many important men and women in the Catholic Church on this subject of greatest importance-even up to as recently as 100 years ago.

Hippolytus begins by saying, Believe not the enemy who is to come and be seen; for he is an adversary and corrupter and son of perdition, and deceives you; and for this reason he will kill you, and smite them with the sword (Ante-Nicene Fathers; Hippolytus, section XXIX).

GODS Word says, Behold, he {Jesus Christ) cometh with clouds; and EVERY EYE SHALL SEE HIM . . , and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him (Rev. 1:7).

And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God (Rev. 19:15).

Hippolytus goes on to say: . . . at that time the whole earth will bewail the life of anguish, and the sea and air in like manner will bewail it; and the sun, too, will wail; and the wild beasts, together with the fowls, will wail; mountains and hills, and the trees of the plain, will wail on account of the race of man, because all have turned aside from the Holy God, and obeyed the deceiver, and received the mark of that abominable one, the enemy of God, INSTEAD OF THE QUICKENING CROSS OF THE SAVIOR (Ibid.; section XXXIII).

Gods clear revelation shows that the time when the families of all the earth are going to bewail for anguish is the time of Christs return. And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise anymore: the merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones. . . fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and SLAVES, and SOULS OF MEN. . . . The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, WEEPING AND WAILING! (Rev. 18:11-15).

Hippolytus: And in the presence of all he exhibits himself as taken up into heaven with TRUMPETS and SOUNDS, and the MIGHTY SHOUTING of those who hail him with INDESCRIBABLE HYMNS; the heir of darkness himself shining like light, and at one time soaring to the heavens, and at another descending to the earth with great glory, and again charging the demons, like angels, to execute his behests with much fear and trembling. For he will show forth his demons brilliant like angels, and he will bring in hosts of the incorporeal without number (Section XXXIII).

The Holy Spirit through the revelation of YOUR BIBLE says: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a SHOUT, with the VOICE OF THE ARCHANGEL, and with the TRUMP OF GOD: and the DEAD IN CHRIST SHALL RISE first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to MEET the Lord in the air! (I Thes. 4 : 16-17.)

As for Hippolytus demons brilliant like angels, Daniel tells us that the resurrected and changed saints shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars (angels) for ever and ever! (Dan. 12:3). See also 1 Corinthians 15:50-53).

And the indescribable hymns-- And they sung as it were a new song before the throne.. .and NO MAN COULD LEARN THAT SONG but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were REDEEMED from the earth . . . the FIRSTFRUITS unto God and to the Lamb! (Rev. 14:3-4).

More From Hippolytus

Then that abominable one [if this is not blasphemy against the very God of Heaven, what is?] will send his commands throughout every government by the hand at once of demons and of visible men, who shall say, A mighty king has arisen upon the earth; come ye all to WORSHIP him; come ye all to see the strength of his kingdom: for, behold, he will give you corn; and he will bestow upon you wine, and great riches, and lofty honours. For the COMMAND. Come ye all to him (Ibid., section XXXVII).

Revelation 14:6-7: And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and WORSHIP him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters [and therefore the whole EARTH AND SEA OBEYS HIS COMMAND].

When these false prophecies are read from pulpits into the ears of gullible people and they begin to see Gods intervention come to pass, THEY WILL BELIEVE THE ONLY MEANING THEY HAVE EVER LEARNED ABOUT THESE SIGNS AND WONDERS, AND BE CONVINCED THAT THE GLORIOUS CHRIST RETURNING IN TRIUMPH IS IN TRUTH THE ANTICHRIST!

A more modern prophetess of the Catholic Church has this to say about this time of preaching: Whole nations will join the Church shortly before the reign of the Antichrist. These conversions will be amazing. Those who shall survive shall have to conduct themselves well. There shall be innumerable conversions of heretics, who will return to the bosom of the Church (Prophecy For Today; from Anna Maria Taigi, d. 1837).

These false doctrines and false prophecies are going to be preached with ALL DECEIVABLENESS, and are truly going to deceive ALL THE WORLD. You and I, when we enter Gods Kingdom at His return, are going to have to coiiviiice these people of the TRUTH.

Being Gods Born Sons Not an Easy Job!

The whole world will be up in arms AGAINST Christ. The chaos from years of pestilence and plague, the devastation of hydrogen and nuclear wars of cosmoscide will have to be CLEANED UP. Complete anarchy will take over in all the countries of the world as the earthly governments collapse; order will have to be restored. This cannot be done overnight.

It will take painstaking effort, even after the complete co-operation or the population of the earth is gained! Human nature will resist the Government of God to the bitter end!

Its not going to be easy to convince these hysterically frightened, demoniacally deceived, pitifully desperate human beings! This last generation, sinful as it is, will need the full compassion and mercy you will be able to give as Gods Sons. You will need every ounce of spiritual power and wisdom God will give you to perform the JOB of rehabilitating millions of crazed, completely deceived men left on this earth.

They will be gaunt, wild-eyed! They will have seen more horrible things happen in their lifetime than all the pages of history have yet recorded.

Driven in stark, raving FEAR AND OPEN TERROR from their homes, they will seek to hide from the newest and most overawing manifestation of world-shaking POWER that they have yet seen--the only thought in their tortured minds will be that HERE IS YET ANOTHER ENEMY IN THIS SICK...TORN EARTH . . . HIDE, HIDE, HIDE ! ! !

HIPPOLYTUS agrees with what will happen, but he calls the one who causes it to happen the ANTICHRIST and not the TRUE CHRIST! Then will he send the cohorts of the demons among MOUNTAINS AND CAVES AND DENS OF THE EARTH, to track out those who have been concealed from his eyes, and to bring them forward to worship him (Ibid., section XXIX).

The Bible tells us from whom men will hide in the rocks, And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb (Rev. 6:15-16).

You, as a born son of God, may have to be one of those who is sent out to track down these frightened people. You may have to counsel with them and assure them that the true living God has returned to the earth and that there will be peace from that time forward.

Remarkable Prophecy

Here is another false prophecy from Hippolytus.

And by reason of the SCARCITY OF FOOD, all will go to him and worship him; and he will put his mark on their right hand and on their forehead, h a t no one may put the sign of the honorable cross upon his forehead with his right hand; but his hand is bound (Ibid., section XXVIII).

Now turn to the book of Zechariah in your Bible, and read what the Lrue, triumphant, returning Christ will do to the nations of this earth in order to get them to worship Him. And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the families of the earth unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain. And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain; there shall be the plague, wherewith the Lord will smite the heathen that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all nations that come not up to keep the feast of tabernacles (Zech. 14:16-19).

The Eternal God, at His return, is going to cause the nations of this earth to recognize Him as Ruler and to worship Him through the means of controlling the weather, causing drought and famine-SCARCITY OF FOOD-until ALL NATIONS COME UP TO KEEP THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES!

Giant Rehabilitation Program

The mop-up operation that will follow the return of Christ, in which you may be employed, will be the greatest in all history!

It is difficult to realize the total chaos that will exist! The truth of your Bible revealed in the pages of Revelation is not just apocalyptic writing- but these revelations are from the Almighty God who foresaw this cnd of civilization and realized as He told us Himself in Matthew 24:22 that, Except those days should be shortened, there should NO FLESH BE SAVED ALIVE!

So let your mind dwell for a moment on the REALITY of this. Let the truth sink in! This will be a time such as the earth has NEVER FACED BEFORE.

No ships are plying the sea, no forests cover the mountainsides, no grass clothes the plains, whole islands have disappeared into the sea, mountain chains have been wrenched out of shape, peaks have become valleys and valleys have become plateaus. Even the earth itself is not circling the sun in its proper orbit, but reeling like a drunken man through the solar system!

In a situation such as this only those who have Gods Truth could be expected to be sane! The public service of God shall be extinguished . . . at that time silver and gold shall be cast out in the streets, and none shall gather them; but all things shall be an offence (Ibid. Hippolytus, section XXXIV).

The public service, the Catholic Mass, will not be allowed! Silver and gold wont be worth anything to man, because you cannot buy God--only repentance will be worth anything in that day! And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. In that day a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats! (Isa. 2:19-20.)

The supreme government on earth is the Government of God. Christ Himself, with all of the saints born into His Kingdom with Him, and the multitudes of Israel coming out of captivity are abiding in peace at Jerusalem. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that they shall no more say, The Lord liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; but, The Lord liveth, which brought up and which led the seed of the house of Israel out of the NORTH COUNTRY, and from ALL COUNTRIES whither I had driven them: and they shall DWELL IN THEIR OWN LAND (Jer. 23:5-8).

The first twenty-six verses of Jeremiah 31 repeat again the establishment of peace and Gods rule at Jerusalem over Israel and over His born-again Sons. Read it yourself!

During this same time, He shall judge among many people, and rebuke STRONG NATIONS AFAR OFF; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more (Mic. 4:3).

Millennial Pioneers

Then, after a period of time-including the three and one-half years of the ministry of Jesus Christ which He has yet to finish as a personal ministry to Israel--those of us who are the born Sons of God and the physical seed of Israel will go forth from Jerusalem to establish government, peace and prosperity. The laws of God will be taught to all the peoples of the earth, beginning at Jerusalem. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast (Jer. 31 :27).

When you come to them and say, This is THE WAY, WALK YE IN IT! (Isa. 30:21), when you begin to explain to them that the Christianity they have known is FALSE, that the Sabbath is the seventh day of the week-even when you are able to read the thoughts of their minds-it is STILL GOING TO SENSES! They will have been deceived ahead of time by a clever satanic-inspired prophecy. They will believe that you are teaching exactly these things which they have been told are false! Yes, believe it or not, Satan knows the Scripture-he TREMBLES AT GODS WORD BECAUSE HE KNOWS IT WILL COME TO PASS! And he will have tried his best, by his method of CONFUSING THE FACTS, to so deceive this last generation as to frustrate the Plan nf God in setting tip His government in the Millennium. Even though Satan himself is restrained at this time from further deceiving the nations, HE HAS BE DIFFICULT TO BRING THEM TO THEIR ALREADY DECEIVED THIS LAST GENERATION!

Listen to this satanic delusion: Antichrist will be an iconoclast [against idols). Most of the world will adore him. He will teach that the Christian religion is false, confiscation of Christian property is legal, Saturday is to be observed instead of Sunday, and he will change the Ten Commandments [that is, restore them in their ORIGINAL FORM, including the declaration against idols). All his wonders could not be written in a book. They will be more wonderful than the Old and New Testaments! . . . he will read peoples minds, raise the dead, REWARD HIS FOLLOWERS AND PUNISH THE REST! (Prophecy For Today; from Dionysius of Luxemberg, d. 1682.) AND, . . . He will begin by affecting RESPECT FOR THE LAW OF MOSES(Ibid.; from Frederick William Faber, d. 1863).

The Popes Prophecy

Here we see in full the prophecies this endtime false prophet will preach. He will attribute Jesus Christs intervention in world affairs to the person and the workings of Antichrist!

Christ is the One who is AGAINST IDOLS! Christ is the One who will show how perverted this worlds Christianity has become-that it is a FALSE RELIGION! Christ is the Lord of the Old Testament whose day of worship is the seventh day, INSTEAD OF SUNDAY! CHRIST is the One who gave the Ten Commandments in their ORIGINAL FORM, and will restore them. CHRIST IS THE ONE WHO WILL RAISE THE DEAD AND REWARD HIS FOLLOWERS. . . HE IS GOD, AND THERE IS NONE LIKE HIM!

So we see here the diabolical plot hatched by this professed Christian leader. Here is the age-old attempt of Satan the Devil to arrogate to himself and to his deceived minions the OFFICE OF GOD; while he attributes the intervention of the True Christ in his returning glory to the PERSON AND ACTION OF ANTICHRIST!

This charges the office and work of the Holy Spirit as having its origin as a WORK OF THE DEVIL, AND CONSTITUTES UNPARDONABLE SIN!

These diabolical thoughts, ensconced in the fear-ridden minds of completely deceived human beings, WILL BE DIFFICULT TO DISLODGE! You will need all the power God bestows on you as His born son to do the job He will give you to do.

Peace At Last!

Egypt is an example of all the nations who refuse to come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, to recognize God as the Ruler of the earth. Then we see the last rebellion put down as those from the far corners of the earth up in Siberia, and in the provinces of China-the farthest spot on earth from Jerusalem-will swoop down upon in a vain effort to take away the great riches that God has bestowed on His peace-loving people. A thousand years of peace and prosperity, health and happiness stretch beyond that time that cannot be imagined in your mind.

And think of it, brethren, YOU have been called to help God bring His peace to this earth! You are offered a sonship in the Kingdom of God to teach other people how to become God ! By overcoming yourself daily. By getting close to God in prayer and Bible study. By learning how to live yourself. By setting a Christian example in overmming the petty sins that weight you down.

As one last illustration of the reality of this fact please turn to Isaiah 19, and begin reading in Verse 16, In that day shall Egypt be like unto women: and it shall be afraid and fear because of the shaking of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which he shaketh over it. . . In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land: whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, BLESSED BE EGYPT MY PEOPLE, AND ASSYRIA THE WORK OF MY HANDS, AND ISRAEL MINE INHERITANCE! (Isa. 19:23-25.)

This is real, brethren, and you need to realize it!

THE REWARD OF THE RIGHTEOUS IS NOT ETERNAL RETIREMENT, BUT A REAL, DOWN-TO-EARTH, 24 - HOUR - A - DAY JOB. . . . EMPLOYMENT FOR ETERNITY, JOYFUL WORK!

Originally published in the Good News magazine, October 1964 by the Radio Church of God without known copyright renewal. It is shown here for educational purposes. I, COGwriter, would add that while certain Catholic prophecies suggest that the Antichrist will be a pope, that others misidentify that Antichrist and several of those are in this article by David Jon Hill.

The article was an update of one from 1961: Here is a link to that Christ or Antichrist?

Many more details about the use of Catholic prophecies can also be found in the article Satan's Plan.

Back to home page
She made the remark at a meeting with the Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Health Minister Le Quang Cuong on the sidelines of the 71st World Health Assembly (WHA) held in Geneva, Switzerland, from May 21-26.

The Director lauded Vietnam for quickly and effectively applying new technologies to fight tuberculosis in a short time span.

She pointed to Vietnam as an example in implementing the WHOs strategy to end the global TB epidemic.

Vietnam has also been realising the contents of the Moscow Declaration to End TB adopted at the first WHO Global Ministerial Conference in Russia in November 2017.

The WHO also appreciated the countrys sharing of its experience in fighting TB, such as its hosting of a policy dialogue on accelerating actions to prevent TB and multi-drug-resistant TB in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) region in August 2017.

The WHO recognised the contributions of Director of the Central Lung Hospital, Nguyen Viet Nhung, who is the Manager of the National TB Control Programme, for his active participation in strategic advisory councils, and guidelines for the development and research orientations of the WHO for many years.

The organisation asked the Vietnamese government and Ministry of Health to attend the first-ever high-level meeting of the United Nations on ending TB, to be held in New York in September this year.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Egypts Al-Azhar, the world's foremost institution of Sunni Islamic learning, sent medical convoys through the Rafah border to the Gaza Strip on Sunday to ease the burdens on Palestinians there, Al-Ahram reported.

Palestinians in the strip have been actively demonstrating for their right of return to their homes in territory now occupied by Israel since March; Israeli forces have killed more than 100 protesters and injured thousands since the Great Return March began.

Al-Azhar's Grand Imam Ahmed El-Tayyeb has instructed that the convoys be sent immediately to the brotherly country Al-Ahram reported.

The convoys are carrying about 10 tons of medical supplies needed for emergency departments and surgical operations.

El-Tayyeb stressed the importance of providing all the support and help to Palestinians in Gaza.

Egypt has also been sending aid and medical convoys to Gaza through the Rafah crossing border in recent weeks.

On the first day of Ramadan, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ordered the opening of the Rafah border for the entire month.

The Rafah border crossing is the main gateway to the outside world for 1.8 million Palestinians living in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi received a phone call from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Sunday to discuss several regional issues, including developments in Libya.

The two leaders also discussed ways of enhancing bilateral cooperation and other regional issues, El-Sisiss spokesman Bassam Rady said in a statement, with Macron praising Egypts efforts to restore stability and to unify Libya's military.

Libyan factions are set to meet on Tuesday in Paris to agree on a political roadmap to resolve disputed issues, to pave the way for UN-backed elections this year.

The Egyptian president affirmed Cairo's commitment to supporting efforts to reach a political settlement in Libya, stressing the importance of good preparation and of holding the Libyan elections this year.

El-Sisi and Macron also affirmed the necessity of combining international efforts to push forward the political settlement efforts in Syria and end the humanitarian suffering of the Syrian people.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Beware of attempts to smear and undermine the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow. They are dangerous and wrong. I dislike much about Mr Bercow, from his drippy politically correct opinions to his scorn for tradition. On the other hand, I know him to be intelligent, original and thoughtful.

Full disclosure: he once gave me a lift to a public meeting in his Buckingham constituency, during which we had a fascinating conversation. He did not call anyone stupid, or attempt any form of harassment or bullying.

But thats not really the point. The point is that the Government is far too powerful, and the House of Commons is far too weak. And Mr Bercow has made the Commons a tougher place than it was. By using his fairly limited powers, he has repeatedly forced Ministers to come to the House to face urgent questions on topical matters.

This is doubly good. First, it brings Parliament back to the centre of national life, instead of being a snoozy, mostly empty room in which the Government plods through its business and hardly any topical matter ever gets in. Few who have not worked there realise just how little happens in the chamber, most of the time, and how totally the Government gets its way.

By using his fairly limited powers, House of Commons Speaker John Bercow (pictured) has repeatedly forced Ministers to come to the House to face urgent questions on topical matters

Second, it forces Ministers, who quickly become arrogant in office, to come and explain what is going on, immediately, while the issue is still hot and the public are still angry about it. They really dont like it, and they also dont like the way Mr Bercow lets question sessions carry on until the awkward squad have had a chance to bowl difficult balls at Ministers.

In the pre-Bercow age, it was easy for front-benchers to blather on, use up the minutes and so prevent these troublesome questions from ever being asked.

I have no knowledge of the various allegations against the Speaker, so cant comment on them. But I thought it was a very grave mistake on the part of the Metropolitan Police last week to give substance to stories that Mr Bercow was being investigated by them.

The police, in London and elsewhere, are obviously obliged to pay attention to serious allegations against anyone. But oughtnt they to stay quiet about them until they have something to report to the Crown Prosecution Service? People wrongly take their involvement as a sign of guilt. They seem far too willing to allow their authority and reputation to be used.

As for the claim that Mr Bercow was rude under his breath about Andrea Leadsom, the Leader of the House, I call as my witness that wise old Tory parliamentarian Ken Clarke, a man who has a good sense of humour and a good sense of proportion (much the same thing). He says: If action were taken every time a Member of this House felt moved to say under his breath something rather abusive about another Member, the chamber would be deserted for considerable lengths of time.

Of course this is true, and with all these allegations you have to ask yourself this simple question: If Mr Bercow was the fawning favourite of Downing Street, and didnt make life harder for Ministers, would you be reading so many damaging stories about him, and so many prissy articles from in-the-know Government stooges, attacking him? Of course you wouldnt.

It may well be that Mr Bercow has sat too long on his big green-leather throne. It may well be time for someone else to take over. But if he is attacked in this way, then he must stay and we must support him even if we dont like him. Its a matter of principle. Downing Street is quite powerful enough already. We are a free country because Speakers and MPs, from time to time, have been ready to challenge King or Premier.

Proud prose transformed... into UHT drivel

One of the most powerful and beautiful passages in English literature is from St Pauls First Epistle to the Corinthians. It ranks with Hamlets To be or not to be soliloquy and with the superb poems of George Herbert and John Donne.

I havent room for it all, but it begins: Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And it ends And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

At its heart are the words Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Prince William gives a reading at a memorial service for the Manchester bombing victims

No British person should be ignorant of it. It is part of us. Yet at the moving memorial service to the Manchester bombing victims, Prince William read instead a filtered, homogenised, UHT version, for example: Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. Why? Who decided? Are we considered to be so thick that we cannot work out that on this occasion the word charity does not mean Oxfam?

Those present were rightly expected to cope with Philip Larkins lovely poem The Trees.

Why were they denied the full force and comforting power of the English Bible that helped to make us who we are?

Another twisted attack on Christianity

The nasty TV drama The Handmaids Tale opened its new series on Channel 4 with another direct, explicit attack on Christianity, including lots of scenes of almost pornographic cruelty involving chains, muzzles and torture, plus a profanity flecked mockery of the Lords Prayer. They used up all the material in Margaret Atwoods original book last time, so now they can really let rip. Id love to hear the makers actually explain why they attack Christianity, portraying it as a religion which brutally and sadistically oppresses women in the modern world, which it does not do.

A scene from the drama The Handmaid's Tale which opened its new series on Channel 4

An extraordinary moment on the usually right-on BBC Womans Hour on Friday: the historian Fern Riddell, interviewed about her new book Death In Ten Minutes  about the suffragette Kitty Marion  declared without hesitation that, yes, the suffragettes were terrorists. She warned against sanitising history.

We need to understand the actions of these women, however uncomfortable we find them, she said, adding that many of their bombs were placed on crowded commuter trains or in busy public streets and it was mere blind luck that nobody died as a result.

This very much backs up the work of the historian Simon Webb in his fascinating book The Suffragette Bombers.

But it may be a while before the BBC admits the other part of the truth  that suffragettes were highly unpopular for their dangerous violence, and probably delayed the granting of the vote to women, rather than speeding it up.

What I remember best about the whole Jeremy Thorpe episode, now a perhaps slightly too farcical TV drama, is the blazing fury in the newsroom of the national daily newspaper where I then worked, as news of his acquittal came in that day in 1979. We knew all that stuff. But we couldnt print it, and nor could anyone else for more than 30 years.

Hugh Grant as Jeremy Thorpe in the slightly too farcical TV drama A Very English Scandal

If anyone but The Rolling Stones publicly sang the songs Brown Sugar and Under My Thumb (look up the lyrics), theyd probably be arrested for multiple offences against Equality and Diversity. Do they get away with it because theyre basically thought to be part of the cultural revolution? Or just because theyre rich?

If you want to comment on Peter Hitchens click here
US and Saudi sanctions against the Iran-backed Hizbullah group and its allies may lead to wider changes on Lebanons political map

Following the Shia group Hizbullahs success in consolidating power inside Lebanons parliament after the recent elections, the US Treasury Department imposed new sanctions on the Iran-backed group and its allies last week, including secretary-general Hassan Nasrallah and other key figures.

In a statement, the US Treasury said the punitive measures were directed particularly at MP Nasrallah Naim Qassem, Chairman of Political Committee Ibrahim Amin Al-Sayed, head of religious committee Mohamed Yazbek, and Nasrallahs assistant for political affairs Hussein Al-Khalil.

The US sanctions had earlier targeted Hizbullahs financial networks in February, when six group members and seven affiliated financial institutions were sanctioned.

A White House official said the sanctions were part of a campaign against Hizbullah and were aimed at curbing the regional influence of Iran. The latter gives the group $700 million a year to finance its operations around the region.

White House officials also said the Trump administration was changing its approach towards Hizbullah and ending the lenient attitude adopted by former president Barack Obama after the signing of the nuclear agreement with Iran in 2015.

On 8 May, US President Donald Trump decided to withdraw the US from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iran nuclear deal.

The names on the list of US sanctions would have included more Hizbullah allies had it not been for major international mediation efforts earlier this year.

In line with the US sanctions, Saudi Arabia announced the inclusion of 10 key Hizbullah members on its list of those supporting terrorism. It said the groups Shura Council was its decision-maker and the de facto voice of Irans supreme guide in Lebanon.

Besides Nasrallah, Qassem, Yazbek, Khalil and Al-Sayed, Saudi Arabia added the names of Talal Hemyeh, Ali Youssef Sharara, the Spectrum Group, Hassan Ibrahimi, and the Maher Company for Trade and Construction to its list of those supporting terrorism, accusing them of financing Hizbullah from within the kingdoms territory.

The Saudi move was unexpected before parliamentary consultation had taken place in Lebanon and a new government had been formed under the leadership of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri guaranteed by Saudi Arabia.

The move will no doubt make Al-Hariris task of forming a new government more difficult and will delay its seeing the light.

The US and Saudi sanctions will also likely trigger reactions from Hizbullah and Iran, with Iran likely to try to find some way to retaliate and Hizbullah stepping up efforts to increase its share in the Lebanese government.

Hizbullah has in the past contented itself with holding two service-oriented portfolios in the Lebanese government, among them youth and industry, while working on securing a bigger share for its allies.

It is now expected to demand three ministries because the US and Saudi administrations have targeted Nasrallah and prominent Hizbullah figures directly in addition to financial figures who have no direct ties with political circles.

Saudi Arabia has also declared that it considers the groups political and military wings to be identical in what may be a Saudi rejection of Hizbullah being part of any future government in Lebanon. Should this happen, the kingdom might declare Lebanon to be a country that provides cover for terrorism.

Hours before the announcement of the US and Saudi sanctions, US officials stated that the US would continue supporting Lebanon and its institutions and that cooperation programmes would remain in place despite the election results.

They added that Washington was placing its bets on the role of the Lebanese army, which would receive additional aid worth $250 million to help it consolidate its power on the ground, especially in the south of the country.

The US and Saudi sanctions might be the first in a series of retaliatory measures to the results of Lebanons legislative elections. Others may follow, since the Saudi statement also mentioned measures to freeze the assets of those on its list in addition to anyone related to them or to the group.

The developments will affect the process of government formation in Lebanon, where Hizbullah and its allies have the majority of the seats in parliament at more than half of the 128 seats.

The group could appoint one of its close allies to form a new government, but it may choose not to do so depending on how the present storms play out.

It also remains to be seen how Lebanese President Michel Aoun, a Hizbullah ally and member of the Free Patriotic Movement, and head of the Future Movement Al-Hariri will react to the developments. For Al-Hariri, the US and Saudi sanctions augur ill for his return at the helm of the government.

How Hizbullah will react to the sanctions is unknown, even though the group is used to such procedures and is already enrolled on certain terrorist lists.

The timing of the sanctions, in line with Washingtons withdrawal from the JCPOA and after the announcement of the results of the Lebanese elections, makes them a punishment for the group whose major figures maintain a distance from the worlds financial order.

Lebanese media reports said Hizbullah might respond by putting forward one of its members, mentioned on the sanctions list, to head a government ministry.

Lebanese ministerial sources told the media that the US escalation against Hizbullah will mainly reflect not on the governments formation but on its preparations for ministerial appointments.

The announcement of the sanctions at this juncture is a message that the development and investment projects promised at the Cedar I Conference in France and other forms of aid might now be postponed pending the governments formation, they said.

Lebanese banks announced their commitment to the US sanctions, bearing in mind the political composition of Lebanon. According to the sanctions, Lebanese banks may not open accounts or deal with Hizbullah members.

The punitive measures have not shaken Hizbullah, however, even if they have affected the outlook for investment in Lebanon. The countrys credit ratings have nosedived every time a new list of sanctions has been announced, but things go back to normal once the situation is resolved.

Some observers believe the sanctions were announced to prevent Al-Hariri from forming a government, pushing Hizbullah into composing a government formed entirely of its allies. This would lead to more opportunities for the US to impose more sanctions on Lebanon.

The US knows that any direct targeting of Hizbullah inside Lebanon would likely result in an economic crisis that would harm the country.

Riad Salama, governor of the Central Bank of Lebanon, said as much during a visit to Washington in February, and the recent moves by Washington may be evidence that the US does not want to harm Lebanons economy.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 May 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly with headline: The aftermath of sanctions

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Jeremy Corbyns pledge I will never be anything other than a militant opponent of anti-Semitism has been exposed and discredited

Two months ago, Labour MPs, their supporters and members of the Jewish community gathered in Parliament Square to protest against anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. Their voices were loud, the pledge passionate and clear. If they could not reclaim their party, they would at least reclaim its soul.

A cesspit of anti-Semitism was engulfing Labour, they said. Its proud heritage as the leading, progressive, anti-racist force in British politics was being subsumed beneath a tidal wave of anti-Jewish hatred. The time had come to drain the swamp. Enough is enough was the rallying cry.

But now the truth has finally emerged. Indeed, it has come slithering and belching out of the Labour cesspit, oozing red slime.

Far from being confronted, anti-Semitism is being entrenched. Jeremy Corbyns pledge I will never be anything other than a militant opponent of anti-Semitism has been exposed and discredited.

And far from rededicating Labour to its historic, anti-racist mission, he and his spokesman are loudly defending the right of his party and its activists to be openly and brazenly anti-Semitic.

The official minutes taken by leaders of the Jewish community during their April meeting with Corbyn and his team have been obtained by The Mail on Sunday. And they are instructive.

There are the usual platitudes. The nostalgic reminiscences of anti-racism campaigns past. But then comes the key passage, and the moment when Seumas Milne, Corbyns senior apparatchik, explains why Labours leader is unable to sign up to an internationally recognised definition of anti-Semitism drawn up by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), an inter-governmental organisation supported by dozens of countries.

Milne said the problem lay with those [in Labour] who viewed the creation of Israel as a catastrophe, the minutes of the meeting explain, he referenced racism and the foundation of the state. Then they cut to the chase. Milne finally clarified that the problem lay with the clause [of the IHRA definition] that referenced the creation of the state of Israel being a racist endeavour.

That clause is a key part of the IHRA definition that says it is anti-Semitic to claim the creation of Israel was a racist project.

A global description of anti-Semitism has been defined. It has been accepted by the British Government and 30 other nations. Yet Jeremy Corbyn and his advisers will not accept it. Given the choice between siding with the Jewish community, or those the IHRA has identified as anti-Semites, they have elected to stand shoulder to shoulder with the anti-Semites.

Someone Corbyn will not be standing shoulder to shoulder with any longer is Ken Livingstone. But again, that is not because he was moved to act against Livingstone for his persistent taunting of Britains Jews with the spectre of Adolf Hitler. Instead, he allowed him to ride off into the political sunset, stepping down from Labours ranks with a warm tribute, and his thanks.

Another Corbyn ally who received a tribute last week was Margaret Osamor. Described  inevitably  by Corbyns office as a veteran anti-racist campaigner, Osamor was nominated for a peerage for her commendable service to the Labour movement.

This service included signing a letter defending several party members suspended for alleged anti-Semitism, including Jackie Walker, Tony Greenstein and Livingstone himself.

There was a brief, shining moment two months ago when it looked like we had genuinely reached a turning point. That a red line was finally being drawn that all Labour MPs and members of good conscience would stand astride.

But we now have to face reality. That moment in Parliament Square was actually a bright, shining lie.

Those Labour moderates who said enough is enough werent being honest. Either with the Jewish community, or with themselves.

Yes, they had been prepared to bear witness to the racist flood consuming their party. And for that they deserved, and still deserve, praise. But they did not say they would simply take on the role of observers.

They pledged they would force action from their leader. Decisive action. There has been no action from Jeremy Corbyn against the scourge of Labour anti-Semitism.

Actually, thats not true. There have been a series of actions, all of which have increased the insecurity and anger of Britains Jews.

There was the snub to Jewish community leaders. We are extremely disappointed that, one month after we issued a very sensible and well-thought-through series of proposals, not one of them  not one of them  has been given to the Jewish community, they were forced to admit to journalists after their disastrous April meeting.

There was Corbyns decision to break bread with Jewdas, one of the few Jewish groups to condemn the Parliament Square demonstration. And then there was the revelation Corbyns aides had planned a victory parade through the streets of Barnet if Labour had seized control of the council in the local elections.

Just picture that scene for a moment. Corbyn, flanked by the zealots of Momentum, marching through one of Londons most populous Jewish boroughs, toasting their electoral success.

That the parade didnt happen was not down to the actions of Labours moderates.

Throughout the local election campaign, their insistence enough is enough, and that Corbyn must clamp down on anti-Semitism, were quietly shelved.

Anti-Semitism was still a problem, we were all told. But we had to look beyond it and see the big picture. Like who we wanted to be responsible for emptying our bins.

Fortunately, the voters of Barnet were not prepared to look at the big picture. There was only one picture they were focused on. It was that giant Nazi-style mural of hook-nosed Jews getting rich off the backs of the workers of the world that the leader of the Labour Party had defended.

Union boss burns his rail bridges Hard-left chief of the Transport Salaried Staffs Association, Manuel Cortes, blasted last weeks appointment of former Civil Aviation Authority boss Andrew Haines as the new chief executive of Network Rail. A lazy culture of crony capitalism is alive and flourishing, Cortes roared, after it was revealed Haines is also a non-executive director of a private rolling stock company. But a mole informs me that had Cortes checked his unions records, he would have seen that for 22 years Haines was a loyally paid-up member of  you guessed it  the TSSA. Talk about burning bridges with the new boss of thousands of your members before he has even started, moans my source. Advertisement

This morning, Labours moderate activists and MPs need to focus on something else  themselves.

And they need to answer a few simple questions.

When they say enough is enough, do they actually mean it? When they say the time has come for words to be replaced by action, what action are they actually contemplating? In fact, are they contemplating any action at all?

Maybe the answer is no. Which is understandable. As the polls continue to drift, the campaign of abuse and intimidation levelled at those who dare stand against Jeremy Corbyns cultist army is intensifying. And self-preservation is the most basic of human instincts.

But Labours moderates owe it to the Jewish community to be honest with them. To all of us.

Are they really going to drain that swamp? Or are they simply going to drown in it?
Chancellor Philip Hammond has known Prince Harry since long before he met his US bride Meghan, holding heart-to-hearts with the Royal when he was fighting in Afghanistan. Hammond, then Defence Secretary, says he told Harry how important it was to maintain the Anglo-American relationship, adding: I just didnt realise he would take my words so seriously.

Chancellor Philip Hammond has known Prince Harry since long before he met his US bride Meghan, holding heart-to-hearts with the Royal when he was fighting in Afghanistan

Labour moderates have forced party general secretary Jennie Formby to scrap plans inspired by the youth-dominated pro-Corbyn Momentum movement to run elections to Labours ruling NEC by email only and to stop sending postal ballot forms. Some of our oldest members hate Jeremy the most, chortled a smug Labour lag, and they dont have computers.

Kensington Labour MP Emma Dent Coad is trying to axe her local councils subsidy for Opera Holland Park  arguing the money would be better spent on benefits. But who is currently wowing HPs well-heeled audience with his performance in Strausss Ariadne Auf Naxos? Patrick Milne, the world-class piano virtuoso  the son of Seumas Milne, Jeremy Corbyns most senior adviser.

David Cameron left his 25,000 shepherds-hut retreat, where he is failing to write his memoirs, to attend a racy lunch in Norfolk with Prince Harrys ex Cressida Bonas, left, and thespian Mark Rylance. Writing in The Spectator magazine, Ms Bonas teased that the conversation was anything but conservative. Sounds like posh code for sex, drugs and rock n roll.

Charlie Elphicke argued passionately at a private meeting of Tory MPs against calling an early General Election to get a mandate for a hard Brexit. Small wonder: Elphicke is suspended from the party while police investigate sexual-assault claims against him. So if an Election is called he would have to stand as an independent  against an official Conservative candidate.

Corbyns trip to Northern Ireland last week was pure Keystone Cops. Downing Street security advisers were horrified when they heard the Labour leader planned to hire a car at Belfast Airport for the drive through Ulsters badlands. Er, not wise, said No10 when told by team Corbyn. Given his long-standing association with IRA sympathisers, it was decided to lay on a Government car for his own sake.

A pal of John Bercow (yes, there are some left) says a scene in the TV film A Very English Scandal, about the Jeremy Thorpe affair, showing a black Commons Badge Messenger was grossly inaccurate. In those days parliamentary staff were whiter than the Dulux dog, says the Bercow ally. It is thanks to John that they are now truly ethnically diverse. He has a point.
Meghan mania reached fever pitch this month, with millions of viewers around the world tuning in to watch the royal wedding.

And along with eagle-eyed fashion fans hanging on her every outfit choice, it seems royal watchers are even going under the knife to emulate the 'Markle sparkle'.

While Kylie Jenner's dramatically voluptuous pout has been all the rage in recent years, beauty-conscious women are now opting more natural-looking lips inspired by Meghan, according to an expert.

Celebrity cosmetic doctor and star of Body Fixers, Dr Tijion Esho, has revealed that patients are increasingly asking for Meghan-esque lips, with the Duchess representing the 'perfect' 50-50 upper to lower lip ratio, with a defined Cupid's bow.

Scroll down for video

Beauty-conscious women are now moving towards more natural-looking lips inspired by Meghan Markle, and a new 'two-step' lip filler technique has emerged for the trend

Dr Esho has trialed a new lip filler technique, which uses two syringes and is said to achieve an 'undetectable' result (seen on Love Island's Cally Jane Beech- before left and after right)

Following the influx of requests, Dr Esho has trialled a pioneering new lip filler technique, using two syringes for the lip body and lip line, said to achieve an 'undetectable' result.

Speaking exclusively to MailOnline FEMAIL, Dr Esho said: 'Since Meghan came to the UK she has become the new fashion and beauty influencer, overtaking the likes of Kylie Jenner.

'Rather than bringing in photos of various Kardashian members, patients are now pulling out pictures of Meghan Markle and her most sought after feature- her lips.

'The perfect lip ratio used to be where the bottom lip is slightly larger from the top. But with new influencers like Meghan, the shift has moved across to a 50/ 50 ratio with a defined Cupid's bow'.

In line with changing tastes, Dr Esho was soon approached by the Merz family of Merz Pharma, a German leader in the aesthetics, dermatology and neurosciences markets.

'The Mertz family approached me to invite me as a guest to their Evaluation panel to review their two new lip products in the Belotero lip range before its release last week,' Dr Esho explained.

The new technique, shown on Love Island star Cally-Jane Beech, uses two 0.6 syringes as opposed to one 1ml syringe, one for the lip line and one for the body of the lip.

Rather than asking for Kylie Jenner's dramatically voluptuous pout (seen above), patients like Cally are now asking for subtly plumped lips with a more even 50:50 ratio like Meghan

The new lip filler technique

'Less is more when it comes to filler, [so] I developed a signature Nano Droplet technique, a treatment that enables you to get an undetectable yet fuller pout,' Dr. Esho explained.

'For the best and most natural results I combine this technique with the Cupid's Bow method, which is all about enhancing the shape of the cupid's bow rather than plumping the entire lip area.

'The technique has been a great success among celebrities and every day women, and I see roughly 150 clients a week.'

To achieve a 50:50 ratio and Meghan's natural lips, Dr Esho uses two products- one 0.6 syringe for the lip line to contour, and another 0.6 syringe for the body of the lip

His technique focuses on enhancing the shape and volume of the lip by distributing minimal amounts of dermal fillers at varying depths and points for a finish free from lumps and bumps

He uses the 'contour' syringe for the lip line and the 'shape' syringe to perfect the body of the lips (seen on Cally)

Award-winning celebrity cosmetic doctor and star of Body Fixers Dr Tijion Esho, based in Harley Street, is a favourite among celebrities and has worked on various TV show

The new 50:50 ratio

'Meghan's lips capture many of the features now sought after by today's patients and by looking at her photos from the wedding you can see why,' Dr. Esho added.

'Traditionally the perfect lip ratio was the 'golden ratio' where the bottom lip is slightly larger from the top.

'Over time and with new influencers like Megan the shift has moved across to a 50/ 50 ratio.

'With this there is also a very defined Cupid's now and a slight resting pout to the bottom lip.

'To replicate this ratio you first needs an understanding on the patient's face, a good injection technique and the correct filler to give natural but also full results.'
A woman started her own cookie business when she was after a change from her corporate career.

Stephanie Chan, 29, from Melbourne, was working as a financial accountant when she started Sugar Rush by Steph through Instagram and she now has SmoothFM and GO-TO Skincare as her clients.

Her feed is filled with colourful delights but Ms Chan told FEMAIL she isn't the strongest talent in the kitchen.

'Im a terrible baker. Prior to this, I have zero experience in baking and I still cant bake a cake except cookies!' she said.

Ms Chan's Instagram feed is filled with colourful delights but she told FEMAIL she isn't the strongest talent in the kitchen

At the beginning most, of her business came from Instagram, as people would come across her fun creations through their scrolls.

Stephanie Chan, 29, from Melbourne, was working as a financial accountant

'I did a lot of collaborations with influencers, PR agencies, food bloggers for brand awareness and exposure. We started getting a lot of orders from then on,' she explained.

'Instagram and Facebook would be the key to find my business. However, word of mouth is also important.

'I have been so blessed with amazing clients, business partners, social media influencers and friends who recommend my cookies to their network.'

She also has corporate clients, one of which recently ordered 2,500 cookies for a new project launch.

Her ongoing clients are mostly cafes, and they are currently supplying up to seven cafes between Melbourne and Sydney.

'I used to work full time as a financial accountant and started Sugar Rush as a side business,' she explained.

At the beginning most, of her business came from Instagram, as people would come across her fun creations through their scrolls

'However, sales started to grow and I decided to spend more time growing my business,' she said.

Now Ms Chan works around the clock to ensure every cookie that is sent out is absolutely perfect.

The reason she started Sugar Rush by Steph is because she wanted to start something on her own, instead of working in the corporate world.

'I did a lot of collaborations with influencers, PR agencies, food bloggers for brand awareness and exposure,' Ms Chan said

Her ongoing clients are mostly cafes, and they are currently supplying up to seven cafes between Melbourne and Sydney

'I used to work full time as a financial accountant and started Sugar Rush as a side business,' she explained

'I have always been passionate in art and my husband suggested that I should try baking,' Ms Chan said.

'I didn't mean mainstream cakes, but to try something different, hence the cookies. I started small and realised that there is a market for decorated cookies.'

Although she knew the products could sell, like starting any small business there was uncertainty and doubt.

'One thing was certain though, I was passionate about art and passionate about baking and drawing, in this case decorating the cookies,' she said.

'As long as you go down a path that makes you happy there is always something to be gained.'

The reason she started Sugar Rush by Steph is because she wanted to start something on her own, instead of working in the corporate world

Now Ms Chan works around the clock to ensure every cookie that is sent out is absolutely perfect

As they are only in the first year of their business, Ms Chan said their monetary figures are hard to judge.

'With every business there are moments of great income and others not so however, it would be more than sufficient as earning a full time income at a corporate job currently,' she said.

'But I do envision this being much more than that, it will depend on how we scale.'

As they are only in the first year of their business, Ms Chan said their monetary figures are hard to judge

For those who are wanting to create their own delectable cookies at home, Ms Chan said you need to ensure you use high quality ingredients.

She also recommends that you dont do shortcuts and follow the recipe word for word.

'If you want to be an entrepreneur, my advise would be to work hard towards your goal, calculate your risks, do lots of research and understand the market,' Ms Chan told FEMAIL.'

'Most importantly, be passionate in what you do, be organised and have an excellent support structure, companies are about people and you cant do everything alone.

'Believe in yourself that anything can happen if you put your heart and soul into it.'
Advertisement

British actress Thandie Newton complained on Saturday that Posh had mistaken her for U.S. star Zoe Saldana.

But then Ms Beckham's not the only one who might get confused by transatlantic twins...

Despite starring roles in Hollywood action thrillers and TV fantasy hit Westworld, British actress Thandie Newton, 45, (left) was mistaken last week in an LA gym by Victoria Beckham for U.S. actress Zoe Saldana, 39, (right) - who coincidentally has starred in remarkably similar fantasy projects such as Star Trek, Avatar, and Guardians of the Galaxy

Atlanta de Cadenet Taylor, 26, (left) daughter of original Sloane Amanda de Cadenet and Duran Duran bassist John Taylor, is as dreamy as you might expect. A Tatler cover girl, she is gorgeous, cool and clever  and has a Californian drawl to match her doppelganger, actress Rachel Bilson, 36, (right) who played Summer Roberts in the cult teen drama series The O.C.

Action man and warrior with ginger beard and blue eyes, Carson Wentz, 25, (right) is star quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles American football team  and the spitting image of Prince Harry, 33 (left) But not even a Superbowl can rival a Royal Wedding for spectacle.

With multiple nominations for Golden Globe and Oscar awards, British actress Keira Knightley, 34, (left) has certainly made an impact on the other side of the pond. However, her elfin good looks make her a dead ringer for U.S. Star Wars star Natalie Portman, 36, (right) another red carpet regular.

Both are stars of film, television and the Broadway stage  and known for their celebrity marriages. British actress Carey Mulligan, 32, (left) is married to Marcus Mumford of pop group Mumford and Sons while her Los Angeles-based lookalike Katie Holmes, 39, (right) was famously married to superstar Tom Cruise.

Actor, singer, dancer and fashion icon, Jennifer Lopez, 48, (right) is regarded as the most successful and influential Latin American star in Hollywood. But Britain's own Rita Ora, 26, (left) who was born in Kosovo but raised in Notting Hill, bears an uncanny resemblance and is well on the way to emulating J-Lo's meteoric rise to fame.

There can be few actors more unmistakeably British than Colin 'Mr Darcy' Firth, 57 (left). But have you ever noticed his resemblance to Kyle MacLachlan, 59, (right) of seminal US series Twin Peaks?

Strange and unworldly, 32-year-old Emily Kinney's (left) character Beth Green is one of the good guys in the hit series The Walking Dead  a part similar to 26-year-old Evanna Lynch's (right) Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films. Their physical similarity is equally uncanny
A first-time mother who was told she had just 'weeks to live' after giving birth to a baby daughter has tragically lost her battle to cancer.

Diana Sevealii, 36, from New Zealand, was diagnosed with stage four cervical cancer five weeks after welcoming her little girl Brooklyn on March 2.

Her daughter needed to undergo an open heart surgery to survive after she was born prematurely with a heart defect.

At the time, the mother had refused chemotherapy because she wanted to spend her final weeks building fond memories with her baby.

And on May 20, the mother-of-one died peacefully shortly after she gave little Brooklyn three kisses on the cheek, NZ Herald reported.

Diana Sevealii, 36, (pictured with her baby) has died after she was tragically diagnosed with stage four cervical cancer five weeks after giving birth to her little girl Brooklyn

Six weeks ago doctors told Diana Sevealii, 36, living in New Zealand, she had stage four cervical cancer and had 'weeks to live', which came after the birth of her daughter

Her brother Benna Sevealii said before she took her last breath, she got to see her daughter one final time.

'Di passed away peacefully. We were all in her room. She was struggling to breathe so we brought Brooklyn to see her,' he said.

'She kissed baby and then Mum. Seconds later she drifted off and that was that. It was her last breath.'

It was a clear wish of Ms Sevealii's that Brooklyn was there with her until the end and she spent her last week's making special memories with her newborn daughter.

In April, Ms Sevealii shared her anguish, telling the Herald on Sunday: 'It breaks my heart knowing I am leaving her. I have only just got her.'

The 36-year-old was forced to confront her own mortality as well as the reality that she will not be there for the challenges Brooklyn will face in the future.

More than $40,000 has so far been donated to a Givealittle page to assist with Brooklyn's care and treatment now that her mother has died.

'Our family wants to thank Auckland Starship, Heart Kids and all the friends and strangers who have rocked up to the hospice and hospital  it's absolutely amazing a community has come together and done that for our family and Di,' Ms Sevealii's brother said.

More than $40,000 has so far been donated to a Givealittle page to assist with Brooklyn's care and treatment now that her mother has died

Last month Brooklyn went under an intense three-hour operation to allow blood to be pumped through her lungs.

Previous scans showed the little girl was deteriorating, but now she is over four kilos and continues to grow.

Once Brooklyn recovers from the open heart surgery that the family hopes she has next month, she will be flown to New York to be raised by Diana's sister Moira and husband Evan.

'Already we have been overwhelmed with a great outpouring of help from family and friends and for this we are humbly appreciative,' the page reads.
A 35-year-old woman has revealed how she drank her own urine to survive in a searing desert after she was left stranded for four days.

Claire Nelson, from New Zealand's Auckland, was hiking through Joshua Tree National Park in southern California when she slipped off a boulder.

The writer was unable to move as she sat in agony after she shattered her pelvis when she landed on a rock on Tuesday morning.

The terrified woman said she desperately used a twig to protect herself from the scorching sun, with temperatures reaching 40C.

Her hope of survival nearly slipped away until she heard her name called out over a megaphone on Friday - as a rescue helicopter hovered above her after they spotted her makeshift flag made out of a t-shirt and hat, which was tied to a stick.

Claire Nelson, from New Zealand, has revealed how she miraculously survived in the desert by drinking her own urine after she was left stranded for four days

The 36-year-old was hiking in Joshua Tree National Park (pictured earlier this month) in southern California when she slipped off a boulder on Tuesday

Ms Nelson said she decided to drink her own urine in a desperate attempt to keep herself hydrated in the heat wave after getting the idea from movies.

'It tasted like really bad flat beer - it is not pleasant but it is not the worst thing,' she told Stuff.

Taking to Twitter, Ms Nelson - who's currently in hospital waiting to undergo surgery - shared her terrifying near-death ordeal.

'I nearly died this week. On Tuesday morning I was on a solo hike in the Colorado desert when I fell off a boulder, landed on a rock, shattered my pelvis, and was unable to move, or sit up or anything,' she said.

'I just lay there, using a stick to help cover me for the long hot parts of the day when the sun was burning, and at night tried to keep warm and not get panicked about rattlesnakes.

'My water ran out Wednesday night and I survived by drinking my own urine.'

A missing poster was made after her friends alerted authorities when they noticed she hadn't been active on social media

Taking to Twitter, the woman shared her terrifying near-death ordeal after she was rescued

She explained how her friends alerted authorities when they noticed she hadn't been active on social media.

'By a random stroke of luck, the friends I'm house sitting for, who are in Morocco, sensed something was unusual when I'd been offline and was unresponsive... so they called search and rescue,' she said.

And four days later, Ms Nelson was found badly injured, just days from dying.

'The guys on the chopper said they never would have found me if I hadn't made a flag to wave. Nobody could hear me scream. I would have died by the weekend. I cannot believe I am alive,' she said.

'Now I'm in hospital; my pelvis is in pieces and it's the most agonising pain I've ever felt, but they're going to operate on Monday and piece me back together with pins. I'm so grateful to be alive.'
Trinny Woodall has revealed that she has taken a big financial risk with the make-up business she started in 2016.

The 54-year-old television host, who has re-branded herself into a beauty expert, says that she has 'huge debt' on her Notting Hill home, school fees to pay and that her business is effectively her pension fund.

Speaking to the Sunday Times Magazine, Trinny explained that despite 2.7m in financial backing from numerous investors - including her multi-millionaire art dealer boyfriend Charles Saatchi - she has concerns that if the company fails she will be left with 'nothing'.

She said: 'I don't even have a f****** pension fund, because this has to be my pension fund. There is a lot on the line.'

The mother-of-one added: 'If this business fails, what have I got? Nothing.'

Scroll down for video

Trinny Woodall has revealed she has financial worries about her beauty brand and could be left with 'nothing' if it fails

Trinny Woodall and her partner Charles Saatchi, who has invested in her beauty brand, seen out for dinner at a swanky seafood restaurant earlier this week

'Trinny London' was launched in 2016 with backing from numerous investors including Trinny's partner multi-millionaire art dealer Charles Saatchi

Trinny, a regular on This Morning, revealed that she's 'self-sufficient' in spite of sharing her life with Saatchi, who's said to be worth around 100million.

Her West London home is rented out and she has private school fees to pay for her daughter Lyla.

Her brand got off to a stuttering start, losing 800,000 alone in set-up costs shortly after it was launched two years ago.

In February, it was revealed Trinny's beauty company is being propped up by a host of wealthy and well-connected backers.

The style icon launched her make-up business, Trinny London, in a blaze of publicity in 2016. The company is being kept in the black by investors, who have poured in almost 2.7million.

Trinny has reinvented herself as a beauty expert with her new make-up brand which within a few months of it launching had lost 800,000

Backers include a combination of heavyweight financiers, such as fund manager Olaf Siedler, investment banker Ramzi Youssef Rishani along with multinational company Unilever.

Trinny's the biggest shareholder while former ad exec Saatchi has four per cent of the shares.

The television personality is no stranger to financial woes and previously explained how she went from earning a six-figure sum at the height of her fame in the early noughties, when she was working alongside Susannah Constantine on TV hit What Not to Wear, to next to nothing.

The former What Not to Wear host, pictured alongside Susannah Constantine in 2011, went from earning a six-figure sum to next to nothing

She told Daily Mail's You Magazine in 2017 that she solved her problems by renting out her Notting Hill house to cover the mortgage and the rent on a smaller property as well as selling off her wardrobe.

'Ive always been very independent. Yes, I have a lovely holiday and Charles pays, we go out to dinner and Charles pays, but my life is my life.

'Ive had periods of real extravagance and times when money has been tight, so I manage.'
A British-based designer who claimed Meghan Markle's wedding gown was 'identical' to one of her own creations has had her Twitter account mysteriously suspended.

New Zealander Emilia Wickstead, a favourite of the Duchess of Cambridge, last week commented that the new Duchess of Sussex's stunning wedding dress was very similar to a 7,000 gown in her own collection - and sparked a backlash on social media.

Meghan's dress was actually created by Givenchy's Clare Wright Keller, costing 200,000, and kept firmly under wraps until the big day.

Scroll down for video

New Zealand designer Emilia Wickstead, a favourite with the Duchess of Cambridge, caused a media stir last week when she said Meghan Markle's bridal gown had been 'identical' to one she had designed

The Twitter social media account of the designer @emiliawickstead has been suspended

Comparison: Meghan Markle in her 200,000 Givenchy dress (left) and designer Emilia Wickstead's 7,000 gown (right)

Wickstead also said of the gown: 'If you choose a simple design the fit should be perfect. Her wedding dress was quite loose'

Ms Wickstead triggered the storm after she reportedly said: 'Her dress is identical to one of our dresses. Apparently a lot of commentators were saying, 'It's an Emilia Wickstead dress.''

She continued: 'Her dress is identical to one of our dresses. Apparently a lot of commentators were saying, "It's an Emilia Wickstead dress.'"

The designer then went on to have a bit of a dig at Meghan's look. She said: 'If you choose a simple design the fit should be perfect. Her wedding dress was quite loose.'

And she didn't approve of the bride's relaxed hair style: 'I was like, 'Hold the wisps [of her hair] back  it's a Royal Wedding for God's sake.'

Emilia Wickstead, who claims Meghan's wedding dress is identical to one of her dresses

The comments have seen Wickstead, who has seen her designs worn frequently by the Duchess of Cambridge, chastised by social media users.

@megananomous wrote: '#EmiliaWickstead has a lot of nerve talking rudely about the #DuchessOfSussexs wedding dress! Emilia actually works as a designer for the royal family!! Highly unprofessional!'

@kmcghee617b added: 'Emilia Wickstead is a very successful designer. She has dressed the Duchess of Cambridge on more than one occasion. It's a shame that she has elected this forum to voice her complaints concerning the dress origin. Why wouldnt she have went straight to Givenchy?'

@MeadhbhMcGrath added: 'Deeply unprofessional comments from Emilia Wickstead on Meghans Givenchy gown! Will Kate Middleton sever ties with one of her favourite designers over this?'

@pookiesmith2424 added: 'Emilia Wickstead May just have lost her Royal customers!'




After the pomp and ceremony of last week's royal wedding, the Queen looked relaxed and rested as she arrived for church at Balmoral today.

The 92-year-old, appearing radiant in a favourite bright turquoise wide-brimmed hat and matching tweed coat with pearl earrings, was joined by Prince Edward and his daughter Lady Louise.

The Queen appeared to enjoy chatting to her 14-year-old granddaughter, who joined her on the backseat, while her youngest son sat in the front passenger seat of the royal car.

Scroll down for video

The Queen, looking elegant in a bright turquoise hat and matching coat, chats to granddaughter Lady Louise while Prince Edward sits in the front passenger seat as the royals head to church in Crathie Kirk

HIghland quiet: Lady Louise sat alongside her grandmother on the back seat of the royal car as they took the short drive to church

The royal family members were spotted on their way to and from nearby Crathie Kirk for the traditional Sunday service.

Following Prince Harry's nuptials with Meghan Markle at St George's Chapel last weekend, the Queen has retreated away from the post-wedding spotlight to spend a few days in the Scottish sunshine.

Prince Philip, 96, who attended the wedding of Harry and Meghan at St George's Chapel last Saturday - just six weeks after having a hip replacement operation - was not at the church service.

The Queen spends her summer months at the private residence and is frequently joined by other members of The Royal Family.

Crathie Church lies next door to Balmoral and the Queen is a regular presence at services during her annual holiday.

After last week's excitement, the Queen has retreated to the rural confines of the Balmoral Estate for her annual summer break

It's the second time the Queen has been spotted since the wedding of the year took place.

Last Sunday, the monarch, who regularly attends the Royal Chapel of All Saints in Windsor Great Park, was seen travelling in a Range Rover past the entrance of Windsor Farm shop.

The Queen was later spotted being driven back to the castle soon after the morning service had finished, with her car sweeping into a side entrance onto the estate.
Washington had bet on a friendly government in Baghdad following the May elections in Iraq, but the gamble may backfire

Shortly after the results of the Iraqi elections on 12 May began emerging last week, the US treasury designated an Iraqi politician and banker as a global terrorist for funnelling money to the Lebanese group Hizbullah.

To many Iraqis, the move to blacklist Aras Habib on charges of smuggling Iranian money to proxies of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard through his Al-Bilad Islamic Bank was hardly news.

In 2004, an arrest warrant was issued by the US occupation authorities in Iraq against Habib, a close associate at the time of US-backed politician Ahmed Chalabi, for allegedly passing intelligence to Iran.

He was never arrested or tried, and he is believed to have spent years in Iran until the US troop withdrawal from Iraq in 2011.

The big surprise, however, is that Habib was at the top of the list of Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi in the recent elections, since Al-Abadi is seen as a rare ally of Washington in Baghdad.

When the results were announced last Friday, Habib was declared as the seventh winner on Al-Abadis ticket in Baghdad.

Washington has reimposed sanctions against Iran after its withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, but it is not clear if the Trump administration was aware that Habib was running for the Iraqi parliament as part of Al-Abadis bloc.

However, the move illustrates once again the failure of successive US administrations since the 2003-led invasion of the country to understand the context in which they are acting in Iraq and their propensity not to look before they leap.

Put in a wider context, the blacklisting of Habib and the Trump administrations eagerness to see Al-Abadi reelected clearly show the extent to which Washington is again missing the point in Iraq.

Washingtons new sanctions against Tehran are part of the Trump administrations broader strategy to isolate Iran and to contain its influence in the Middle East, starting with Iraq.

The strategy which was disclosed by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday shows that in addition to its demand to eliminate its nuclear programme Washington wants Tehran to end its support for its regional allies.

The State Department said earlier that the aim of the strategy is to bring together a lot of countries from around the world with the goal of confronting Irans destabilising activities.

In his sweeping list of a dozen demands for Iranian policy reversals, Popmeo spelled out, among other groups in Lebanon, Gaza and Yemen, Iraqi Iran-sponsored Shia militias which he accused of infiltrating and undermine the Iraqi security forces and jeopardise Iraqs sovereignty.

However, in order for any US bid to roll back Irans influence to succeed, the Trump administration should begin with Iraq and first and foremost with enlisting the cooperation and collaboration of a friendly new government in Baghdad.

But as the results of Iraqs elections began to be released last week, showing that a less friendly government might emerge following the 12 May elections, doubts have begun to cloud US plans to contain Iran through Iraq.

In a surprising result, the main victor was the influential Shia cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr, whose On the Move Alliance, a coalition of Al-Sadrs own Islamic-oriented faction and communist and nationalist groups, defeated a coalition led by US favourite Al-Abadi, who finished third.

Al-Fatah, or the Conquest Alliance, a coalition of mostly Shia para-military groups led by the Iranian-backed militia leader Hadi Al-Amiri, finished second.

Al-Sadrs victory in the elections and Al-Abadis unexpectedly poor third-place finish were a disappointment to Washington, which must now deal with an Iraqi government chosen by an anti-American firebrand cleric.

Even if a small chance remains that Al-Abadi will join with Al-Sadr in the formation of the new government and will probably stay on as prime minister, it will be hard for Washington to make a deal with a long-time nemesis of the United States such as Al-Sadr.

Furthermore, the Al-Fatah list of Iranian ally Al-Amiri, a political umbrella for the Iran-backed Shia militia, will be a formidable force both inside and outside the government, especially if it forges a broader Shia coalition with former prime minister Nouri Al-Maliki, another ally of Iran.

This pro-Iran alliance, which will have a combined total of 73 members in the 329-seat parliament, should make Washington less hopeful about the possibility of a friendly government in Baghdad that would be able to ease the path to further tightening the noose around Tehran.

Some lobbyists and pundits have suggested that the Trump administration may resort to putting maximum pressure on the Iraqi political factions, but it is unlikely to achieve buy-in from any new government in Baghdad to toe its anti-Iran line.

Take the case of blacklisting the head of the Bilad Islamic Bank case, for example. Habib who was intelligence chief of Chalabis Pentagon funded the Iraqi National Congress (INC) which spearheaded the US-backed exiled opposition groups against former dictator Saddam Hussein had turned against the Americans soon after the 2003 invasion.

Numerous reports in the US media in 2004 quoted CIA and FBI officials as charging Habib with passing American classified intelligence on Iran to Tehran.

The Al-Bilad Islamic Bank, founded by Chalabi himself, has long been known as one of the key instruments for channelling Iranian money abroad.

Nevertheless, Habib was a top candidate on the same list as Al-Abadis bloc, which US Iraq strategists had convinced themselves would make up the next government in Iraq and help the administration to isolate Iran.

Another fools errand demonstrated in the Trump administrations pinball trajectory was Washingtons underestimation of the Shia militias, which will now combine their military force with their newly acquired political power to torpedo any attempt to contain Iran.

To be sure, the Shia militias are among Irans key assets in Iraq, and they are seen as Tehrans instrument to consolidate its influence in the country and even beyond. Some of their leaders have also warned that they will join Iran in its struggle with the United States.

Washington is also betting on dividing the Iraqi Shias, who still care more about their political empowerment in a hostile regional environment than allying themselves with the Trump administration to roll back Irans influence in Iraq.

What is even more worrying is Washingtons attempt to influence the results of the elections in Iraq without bothering about the future of democracy and stability in the war-battered nation.

For an administration that is itself being investigated for cooperation with foreigners suspected of being involved in the last US presidential elections, attempts to influence the Iraqi elections could be routine, but the impact of the collusion in Iraq will be devastating.

Iraqs dysfunctional political system was imposed by the US occupation authority after the 2003 invasion. It has not created a democracy in Iraq, but instead has given rise to sect-based politics and a corrupt political elite that has thrust the country into confusion.

The Trump administrations attempts to meddle in Iraqi politics for the purpose of advancing its wishful-thinking strategy on Iran leaves little doubt as to where the fantasies and myths of the American planners stand on the future of this beleaguered nation.

From the perspective of the United States and its regional allies, Iran could be a threat, but escalation against Iran can end up bolstering its proxies in Iraq by allowing them to appeal to their Shiaism, which will be a recipe for growing sectarian tensions.

Iraqs recent elections were certainly imperfect, and in a way farcical, because they simply recycled the same smothering ruling elite in Baghdad.

By continuing to manipulate Iraqs political system, Washington will sabotage the countrys democratic opportunities and its stability.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 May 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly with headline: America gets Iraq wrong again

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Generations of parents have worried that bedwetting could be caused by their children suffering from stress or being unhappy  but new research has revealed it could be a physiological rather than a psychological problem.

Academics who carried out a study in Denmark discovered a genetic combination that made young people 40 per cent more likely to wet the bed.

Youngsters are expected to be dry at night from around the age of five, but at the age of 10, one in 20 is still having trouble and one in 50 teenagers are affected.

Dr Soren Rittig of Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, who was involved in the research, said: It has been suggested over many years that bedwetting is down to psychological problems. But the evidence of this is poor.

He and his colleagues looked at 40,000 young Danes, of whom almost 4,000 were affected by bedwetting or had been prescribed medication for it.

By looking at DNA from both groups, they identified six genetic variants in two areas of the body that increased the chance of the problem occurring.

Dr Rittig said that among those with genetic variants in both areas, the risk of bedwetting was 40 per cent higher.

He stressed the findings cant explain all bedwetting but added: This research is important because it speaks to support that bedwetting is not a psychological problem or something you should blame the child for.

The research will be presented at a meeting of the International Childrens Continence Society in Rome this September.

Childrens bowel and bladder charity Eric said being wet at night isnt caused directly by psychological issues. However, it added that stress can explain why children start to wet again after a long spell of dryness.
Sainsburys has admitted it will slash management jobs as part of its 14.1billion merger with Asda.

In a letter to MPs, Sainsburys chief executive Mike Coupe confessed that a very small number of well-paid managerial roles will be duplicated across the group.

It is not known how many jobs are at risk but they are likely to be in head offices where two of the same roles exist.

Promise: Sainsburys boss Mike Coupe has said that no shop-floor jobs will be lost as part of its tie-up with Asda

So far, Coupe has promised that no shop-floor jobs will be lost as part of its tie-up with Asda, which will turn the merged group into the UKs biggest supermarket, valued at 14.1billion.

Sainsburys confirmed it will keep Asdas head office in Leeds open for a year if the Competition and Markets Authority approved the deal, but it is understood it could face closure in future.

Asda employs around 2,000 people at its head office in Leeds, while Sainsburys has several thousand staff at its headquarters.

Last year Asda cut 300 roles at its main office while earlier this year Sainsburys revealed thousands of jobs were at risk as it slashed the number of store managers.

Coupe was responding to concerns raised by MPs on what the deal would mean for employees.

In a letter to Rachel Reeves, chairman of the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee, Coupe said: No company can guarantee that absolutely every job across its business will stay unchanged forever.

We would expect that a very low number of well-paid managerial roles will be duplicated across the group. It is too early to speculate on where these will be and we would aim to manage these via natural attrition where possible.

He added that Sainsburys 1.4billion takeover of Argos in 2016 has created 1,000 shop floor jobs. However, duplicate roles across the groups central offices have been removed.

Last week Sainsburys employees lashed out at greedy bosses over changes to pay and conditions that could mean more than 9,000 are left out of pocket.

Some employees are expected to be 3,000 worse off a year under changes to contracts that will see paid breaks scrapped, additional pay for working Sundays cut and night shift overtime rates slashed. Sainsburys has offered to top up staffs salaries for 18 months but will review contracts again after.

Windfall: Coupe pocketed 1.8million of shares

Earlier this month Coupe pocketed 1.8million of shares, shortly after he was caught singing Were In The Money as the Asda deal was announced.

Sainsburys and Asda have also pledged to put the squeeze on larger suppliers like Unilever in a bid to give shoppers a 10 per cent price cut on household items. The merged group is targeting 500million worth of cost savings.

Reeves urged the competition regulator to look closely at the impact on consumer choice and jobs. The likely effects on the supply chain must be seriously examined, especially when small and medium suppliers are already under pressure on prices, she said.

Over the coming months, Sainsbury and Asda need to spell out much more detail on what this deal will mean for jobs at the Leeds office and at all levels and give greater reassurance to their existing workforce.

A spokesman for Sainsburys said none of the job losses would result from closing stores or warehouses. We have no plans to close stores as a result of the merger and believe colleagues will have more opportunities within a larger and more resilient group.

'There are no plans to close any offices and Asda will continue to be based in Leeds after the merger.'
On the up: Tim Steiner with model Patrycja Pyka

Ocado is poised to enter the FTSE 100 for the first time this week after its share price more than trebled in just six months.

The online grocer is worth 5.8 billion, making it valuable enough to join the ranks of the UKs biggest listed companies in a FTSE 100 reshuffle on Wednesday.

Its share price has soared from around 240p per share to 887p in the last six months after it was boosted by deals in France, Sweden, Canada and the US to provide supermarkets with its pioneering robotic technology.

Despite trading at a loss, Ocados success with deal making means chief executive Tim Steiner, 48, is in line for a record 110m share-based bonus next year.

Steiner already has 236million in shares but has used 68million worth to cover the cost of his divorce from Belinda, 47, his wife of fourteen years.

He has since moved in with the Polish lingerie model Patrycja Pyka, 29.
Labour's plot to renationalise industry is a mistake that would drag Britain back to the chaos of the 1970s, Sir Richard Branson has warned.

The billionaire entrepreneur said that young voters only support public ownership because they never lived through the strikes, power cuts and inefficiency the country suffered before Margaret Thatchers wave of privatisation.

Warning: Sir Richard Branson said that young voters only support public ownership because they never lived through the strikes, power cuts and inefficiency of the 1970s

The 67-year-old, who now lives in the British Virgin Islands, said: Im old enough to remember when we had British Gas, British Coal, British Airways, British Rail - everything was run by the Government. It was a dire time for this country.

There have been a couple of generations now of people who didnt live through that time.

The Labour Party has called for energy, rail and water companies to be returned to public ownership.
Advertisement

Motels generally share the same characteristics - a dated interior, stiff bed sheets and a supply of biscuits to have with the complimentary tea.

But these images demonstrate the eerie but beautiful side to budget roadside motels.

Artist Brett Patman has spent his evenings capturing the essence of Australia's hotels and motels over several weeks.

He listed, visited, and photographed 101 motels in the dead of night.

He ventured from the Hume Highway in Sydney to the Blue Mountains and down the South Coast.

Brett Patman spent his evenings capturing eerie images demonstrating the beautiful side to budget roadside motels starting from the Hume Highway in Sydney, over to the Blue Mountains and down the South Coast

Mr Patman described the project as a 'concept of making the ordinary, extraordinary'. He spoke of the repeated motel characteristics such as 'the attached restaurant, 10am checkout, faded backlit road signs, drive-through reception and so on'

Mr Patman described the project as a 'concept of making the ordinary, extraordinary'.

He spoke of the repeated motel characteristics such as 'the attached restaurant, 10am checkout, faded backlit road signs, drive-through reception and so on'.

'On paper, it would seem that every motel would look the same, and from one viewpoint they do. If you take a closer look beneath the surface of the seemingly basic facades, you begin to notice distinctly unique characteristics of each motel.

'Each establishment is different in its style, colour schemes, quirks and upkeep.

Australian motels generally share the same characteristics - a dated interior, stiff bed sheets and a supply of biscuits to have with the complimentary tea

'On paper, it would seem that every motel would look the same,' the photographer said. 'If you take a closer look beneath the surface of the seemingly basic facades, you begin to notice distinctly unique characteristics of each motel'

'Some appear more traditional, while others are apparently dated. Some are more modern businesses with newer architectural hardware and a more minimalist presentation. Some have a warm and inviting presence while others are colder and more utilitarian in their appearance.

'As a child, all of the small traits and characteristics that make a motel are overlooked in the adventure and exhilaration of the new home away from home,' Mr Patson wrote for Lost Collective.

'However, as an adult, all these minute details stand out a little more. In fact, it is what attracted me to the idea.'

'As a child, all of the small traits and characteristics that make a motel are overlooked in the adventure and exhilaration of the new home away from home,' Mr Patson wrote

Mr Patman at first shot these images at night for convenience but said the night photography soon formed in to something more meaningful

Mr Patman at first shot these images at night for convenience but said the night photography soon formed in to something more meaningful.

'I think that the darkness speaks the sense of an overnight stay,' he said.

'When you view the facade of each room, you cant help but wonder what it resembles beyond the door, but also what stories have happened in that room.

'Are the lights on? Who is staying in the room? Why are they there? What are they doing? Where did they come from? What is their story?'

Some motels appeared more traditional, while others seemed more dated. Some are more modern businesses with newer architectural hardware and a more minimalist presentation

'When you view the facade of each room, you cant help but wonder what it resembles beyond the door, but also what stories have happened in that room,' Mr Patman explained
Few crimes in recent Australian history have stirred more community anger and fear than a series of pack rapes committed by more than a dozen young Lebanese men in Sydney's west 18 years ago.

That group, which became known as the 'Skaf gang' after their leader, Bilal Skaf, went on a 20-day rampage in which four young women were violated in three pack rapes shortly before the 2000 Olympics.

One of the victims, an 18-year-old woman, was raped 40 times by 14 men over four hours in an attack coordinated by mobile phone. She was then dumped at a train station after being hosed down.

During her ordeal the woman was called an 'Aussie pig', told she was going to get it 'Leb-style' and asked if 'Leb c*** tasted better than Aussie c***'.

Many of the rapists have never been identified and police fear there were more victims who did not come forward.

Scroll down for video

Railway worker Bilal Skaf led a gang of young Lebanese males who went on a rampage of pack rape in western Sydney shortly before the 2000 Olympics. He was jailed for a record 55 years

Pack rapist Bilal Skaf (pictured) is now serving his sentence at Goulburn's Supermax prison. He has never shown any remorse for his crimes, which a judge compared to wartime atrocities

Bilal Skaf's brother, Mohammed Skaf, (pictured) was originally sentenced to 32 years in prison. He lured a 16-year-old girl he knew from school into being pack raped in August 2000

The gang's ringleader, Skaf, denied his role in the crimes despite overwhelming evidence of his guilt and showed no remorse even after he was sentenced to 55 years in prison.

Michael Finnane, the judge who imposed that record sentence - which was later reduced after several appeals - was widely celebrated for his stance at the time.

Now retired from the District Court and back in private practice, Finnane has written about this terrible chapter in the country's criminal annals in a memoir about his life on the bench and at the bar.

The Pursuit of Justice chronicles Finnane's legal career and lifelong campaigning for for social justice, particularly the treatment of those disadvantaged by the legal system.

For most of his career, Finnane was not well known outside legal circles but that changed rapidly and forever when he presided over the Skaf rape trials.

Finnane dealt with sadistic rapists before and after the Skaf cases. None generated anything like the public attention these trials drew.

'There were other sexual assault cases I heard, some of children, some of adult women,' Finnane writes. 'All of them were examples of depravity and cruelty.

'Many of the victims, I am sure, will be affected by these crimes for the whole of their lives. However, although these cases attracted some media attention while the trials were proceeding, they passed largely with little comment.'

Michael Finnane, QC, has written a memoir called The Pursuit of Justice which includes a chapter on the notorious Skaf rape trials he presided over as a NSW District Court judge

Bilal Skaf was cocky and contemptuous when he faced trial in 2001 over a string of pack rapes

Mohammed Skaf, like his fellow rapists, never showed public remorse for his terrible crimes

But to this day Finnane is regularly asked about the Skaf case, sometimes by strangers, at social functions and on other unexpected occasions.

'What caused the unprecedented public interest in the Skaf trials, what set them apart from all other sexual assault trials, was the repeated attacks in a short time frame by a gang with a carefully planned strategy,' Finnane writes.

'These were not random attacks and, in my view, they were aimed at creating terror in the community.

'Sexual intercourse without consent must be the worst crime after murder, because it involves a person invading the body of another, usually violently. It is a crime that assaults human dignity.

'During the sentencing process at the end of the Skaf trials, I expressed the view that what this gang did was worse than murder. I continue to hold that view.

'What the Skaf gang did was to enable multiple men to defile and degrade four young women. None of these young women will ever forget their experience at the hands of this gang.'

Finnane has compared the Skaf gang's depravity to outrages committed by invading armies in times of war.

One of the young women pack raped by the Skaf gang speaks to the media after Mahmoud Chami was sentenced to 18 years' jail with a minimum term of 10 years in August 2002

The Skaf brothers, Mohammed (left) and Bilal (right) were the two most prominent members of a gang of sadistic pack rapists who rampaged across western Sydney in August 2000

'It seemed clear to me that these men were sending out a message to the community in Sydney,' he writes.

'Skaf and the members of this gang clearly wanted public recognition for what they had done.'

Finnane had been a judge of the New South District Court for a little more than a year when appointed to hear the Skaf gang trials, the first of which commenced on December 13, 2001.

On that day Bilal Skaf, Belal Hajeid and Mohammed Ghanem sat behind bullet-proof glass in the dock of a court room within Sydney's Downing Centre complex.

Prospective jurors were told the trial might last a month and would involve allegations that the three accused men, with several others, sexually assaulted two young women against their will.

Finnane told these citizens that evidence might come out showing that those on trial were Lebanese by origin but that was irrelevant to the question of whether they had committed any offence.

He told them they could expect there to be media publicity and that they should ignore anything they read outside court. There were other standard instructions then the trial began.

Former judge Michael Finnane, QC, has said of Bilal Skaf and his fellow pack rapists: 'Skaf and the members of this gang clearly wanted public recognition for what they had done'

The following is an edited extract of The Pursuit of Justice by Michael Finnane, QC:

THE FIRST TRIAL

All three accused were Australian citizens whose parents had come from Lebanon. The three of them lived with their parents in houses in the suburbs surrounding Bankstown. Bilal Skaf was the eldest and was about 21 years of age. Skaf was a small man, rather thin, with black hair and a sharp face. The other two were also fairly small, but with the sorts of faces that could easily be forgotten. Skaf clearly was the leader. His demeanour in the court room said that.

The two victims were schoolgirls who were wandering around a shopping centre at Chatswood on 10 August 2000 about nine o'clock at night. Skaf and the other two men made their acquaintance by speaking to them politely in the shopping centre. Skaf did all the talking and suggested a trip in a car and puffing some marijuana.

Apart from the three men I have indicated who were on trial, there was also in the car they were travelling in, which was a white van, a young man with an intellectual disability, fourteen years of age, who later pleaded guilty to a series of sexual assaults. I directed that he be known only as 'H', but his identity was not revealed in this first trial. Many months later he pleaded guilty to a series of sexual offences that included the events of this night.

There was another man, later identified as Y, who took part in the events on this night. He later pleaded guilty to some of the offences and when he did, I directed that he not be identified by his name. I had good reasons for doing this.

Another four men were in a red van that followed the white van. When they got into the white van, the two girls discovered the presence of the other two men. The identity of the four men in the red van has never properly been revealed. The two girls were unaware of the red van until sometime after the men in the white van conveyed them to a park at Greenacre some hours later.

A woman who was 18 when raped by the Skaf gang leaves the NSW District Court after the sentencing of Mahmoud Chami; she is supported by the Salvation Army's Major Joyce Harmer

Pack rapist Bilal Skaf, wearing orange prison overalls, hides his head between his knees as he is taken from the NSW Supreme Court after one of his sentencing hearings in July 2006

These two girls did not expect to be driven over the Harbour Bridge. They believed they would be driven around Chatswood, have a few puffs of marijuana and would then go home. They had hardly ever been over the Harbour Bridge and were quite concerned when that happened.

The people in the white van went through the city and stopped at a McDonald's in Stanmore. The girls in the car were very concerned at this point, but too scared to get out and run away. Skaf was talking on a mobile phone to other people in Arabic. This also caused these girls great concern. However, when the van finally stopped, it was at a park in Greenacre. The girls had no idea where they were and were obviously terrified. It was nearly midnight.

Bilal Skaf did most of the talking to the girls and called himself 'Adam'. He made and received most of the Arabic language phone calls, which were used to tell the men in the red van who he had with him and where they were going. He remained the dominant figure and was the person who directed everything that later happened on that night in the park at Greenacre.

In the park, each girl was dragged by the neck to a different part of the park and forced to let these men have oral sex with her. In other words, each man forced his penis into her mouth and ejaculated. Skaf used condoms and threw them on the ground. The gang also crash-tackled, punched and kicked these girls and stole items of jewellery that they had on them.

The men in the red van also sexually assaulted them in the same fashion, as well as punching them and kicking them. The two girls were then abandoned in the middle of the night in an area they did not know and forced to humiliate themselves by seeking assistance at around midnight from two people who were returning home from a social event.

Nine of the Skaf gang rapists who were convicted over crimes committed in western Sydney

The plan was to kidnap, degrade, sexually assault and humiliate. It seemed clear to me that these men were sending out a message to the community in Sydney. They wanted wide publicity.

The evidence of the two girls was probably sufficient in its own right to identify Bilal Skaf because he had many conversations with them on the night and he left a condom full of his semen in the park where he and others sexually assaulted these two girls. However, the victims' descriptions of the other men who attacked them were quite vague, as could be expected.

The trial was quite tense. Each girl was questioned by the Crown prosecutor first and then cross-examined by each of the counsel for the accused.

The evidence of the two girls was given in closed court hearings but I permitted the press to have access to the transcripts of the evidence on the basis that the names of the two girls were not revealed and no photographs were taken of them. I also prohibited the taking of any photographs of the accused, two of whom were on bail. The press was also prevented from providing any likenesses or descriptions of the accused or their racial origins.

Because the two complainants could only give vague descriptions of Hajeid and Ghanem, their counsel cross-examined the complainants to establish doubts about their identification. The complainants clearly identified Skaf, whose counsel suggested to each complainant that she had consented to having sexual intercourse with him.

Former District Court judge Michael Finnane believes pack rape gang leader Bilal Skaf (pictured) will remain a danger to the community; he originally jailed Skaf for a record 55 years

Each girl denied this and gave evidence that Skaf, and those with him in the white van, persistently put pressure on them to engage in oral sex in the van on the way to Greenacre. Each of them also denied agreeing at any time, in the van or in the park, to oral sex with these men and the men in the red van.

At the end of the Crown case, the case against Skaf looked strong, but the case against Ghanem and Hajeid looked weak because of the identification problems.

Bilal Skaf, however, elected to give evidence. Apart from denying that any offences had happened and claiming that the two girls consented to everything, his evidence also placed Ghanem and Hajeid at the park in Greenacre and confirmed that they also had taken part in sexual activity with the two girls. This surprising evidence was used by the Crown to bolster its case about identification. There was no doubt about Skaf's involvement because, apart from his own admissions, the DNA evidence linking him to the events was very clear. At no point, however, did he identify the men in the red van.

Another curious feature in the trial was Skaf's bold assertion that he was a man of good character. This meant that the Crown could seek my consent to cross-examine him to show that he was a man of bad character. He had convictions for offences of dishonesty and it was thus easy for the Crown to establish that he was a man of bad character. I gave that consent. Counsel for each of the other accused, as well as the Crown, then attacked Bilal Skaf in cross-examination, suggesting he was a liar. Thus, the Crown Prosecutor and the counsel for Hajeid and Ghanem joined forces to attack Bilal Skaf. Conviction of Skaf was inevitable.

Crown Prosecutor Margaret Cunneen, SC, helped put the Skaf pack rape gang behind bars. Former judge Michael Finnane writes that Bilal Skaf was 'almost contemptuous' of Cunneen

Neither Ghanem nor Hajeid gave evidence and their cases were run on the basis that the girls could not identify them but that, of course, became very difficult for them when Bilal Skaf gave evidence that placed them at the park. They could not suggest the girls consented to sexual intercourse because they claimed not to have been there.

Skaf, through his counsel, suggested the two girls consented to everything that happened but that, of course, had difficulties since he not only sexually assaulted these girls, but those in the gang, including him, assaulted them and robbed them of their jewellery, their watches, their mobile phones and their money. There was also evidence that each of the accused and the men in the red van abused the girls, calling them 'sluts' and threatened retribution on them if either of them had VD or AIDS. Who could believe anyone would consent to being assaulted, robbed, abused and threatened?

When he gave evidence, Bilal Skaf was cocky in his manner and almost contemptuous of the Crown prosecutor. Frequently, whilst sitting in the dock, he clicked his fingers towards his counsel, summoning him over. He also clicked his fingers towards my court officers, ordering them to get him water. When they obliged, he crushed the foam cups and spread the debris onto the court floor. He acted throughout the trial as someone who wanted to be noticed. His co-accused on the other hand, were quiet and restrained in their manner.

Former District Court judge Michael Finnane has written: 'During the sentencing process at the end of the Skaf trials, I expressed the view that what this gang did was worse than murder'

A criminal trial commences with the Crown prosecutor calling evidence, after making a short opening address, then each of the accused in turn calls evidence in his case if he wishes to do so. In this case, only Bilal Skaf gave evidence. I cannot recall any other evidence being presented by him or on his behalf.

Following this, the Crown prosecutor made a closing address dealing with all aspects of the case and putting forward arguments as to why there should be convictions in each case. Counsel for each of the other accused addressed the jury then. Each of Ghanem and Hajeid's counsel put forward arguments that they had not been properly identified and were not present. I then summed up the entire case, dealing with all the evidence, all the arguments and the law that applied.

When I commenced the summing up, I said this: This is the twenty-first century since the birth of Christ; we are not in the nineteenth, eighteenth or seventeenth centuries. Whatever they might have done in those centuries, the law is now perfectly clear - any woman is entitled to refuse consent to sexual intercourse at any time. There is no concept in our law that there is a category of person called loose women who are deemed somehow to consent and certainly there is no law that merely because a young woman might give an indication that she was friendly with someone and didn't protest too much when they were laying hands on her that she therefore was consenting to anything. That is not the law.

Two victims, aged 17 and 18, were driven in a white van through the city and stopped at the McDonald's restaurant at Stanmore (pictured). They were too scared to get out and run away

I considered that I should say these words because it was important that the jury and anyone listening to the trial, including the accused, have a full realisation that a woman has to do nothing more than refuse consent. She does not have to fight to the death to protect herself from sexual assault. It was important that I told the jury this because each of the girls had certainly agreed to get in the white van.

I also told the jury that 'this is not a court of morals' and explained that they might not approve of the conduct of some of the participants because they thought they were acting immorally, but that was not the question at all. What they were asked to decide was whether these three men, or any one of them, had committed the criminal offences with which they had been charged and they could only decide the accused had committed those offences, or any of them, if they were unanimously satisfied of that beyond reasonable doubt.

I also told them to put out of their minds any religious or racial views they had. There was no evidence that any offences were committed because of religious or cultural or racial reasons and, in fact, there had been no mention of religion at any time in the trial.

I then had to give them quite complex directions about the facts in the trial and the law, which has its complexities. For example, I had to explain that sexual intercourse was not, as many people might think, only penetration of the vagina of a woman by the penis of a man, but extended to penetration of any part of the body of a person by any part of the body of another. So that putting a penis in the mouth of a woman, in law, was sexual intercourse. If the Crown proved to the satisfaction of the jury and beyond reasonable doubt that it was done without consent, then the Crown case on that charge was established.

Skaf gang member and rapist Mohammed Sanoussi is released from prison in October 2013

There were a series of instances of forced oral intercourse by each of the accused men and H, as well as Y and the men in the red van. Bilal Skaf was charged with every instance of forced sexual intercourse by anyone in the gang on the basis that he was an accessory before the fact to every crime and was just as responsible as the man who carried it out. This was also the position for the assaults and the robberies committed on the two victims. He was the gang boss and the organiser of everything that happened.

The jury considered this very carefully and were out considering their verdicts for a number of days but, when they came back, they convicted the three accused on all charges. I remanded all of them in custody. Until this point, Hajeid and Ghanem had been on bail.

At some time after this first trial began, I was informed that there were other trials involving the same men and other men in which kidnapping, forced sexual intercourse and other assaults were involved. I was the judge who dealt with these trials.

When the verdicts came in after the conclusion of this trial, I informed counsel that I would not sentence their clients until all trials concerning them had concluded. There was no application that I should do otherwise.

Convicted pack rapist Mohammed Ghanem was released from prison in December 2015

Mohammed Sanoussi (pictured) pleaded guilty to his role in the Skaf gang rapes in 2000

What made this trial startlingly different from most rape trials of which I was aware were four matters: 1. None of the accused or the victims had been drinking alcohol and none had been taking drugs, even though having marijuana was an inducement offered to the two girls. 2. This was a criminal conspiracy involving two groups of men, that was carefully coordinated by mobile phones. 3. It was obviously carefully planned and skilfully executed. 4. Sexual intercourse without consent was the principal crime contemplated and committed. The gang assaulted the two girls, by punching and kicking them and, of course, by dragging them across a park by the neck. They also robbed the girls. However, these crimes were of secondary importance.

THE SECOND TRIAL

The second trial had two accused only, Bilal Skaf and Mohammed Skaf, his younger brother. This trial concluded on 11 July 2002 and concerned events of 12 August 2000, only two nights after the attacks on the two girls from Chatswood.

At the time, Mohammed Skaf was still a schoolboy and attended the same school as the victim, to whom he was known as 'Sam'. They were quite friendly at school and he suggested that she come with him on a drive to go and look at the Harbour Bridge on a Saturday. Both Mohammed Skaf and the victim went and saw her mother and got her consent as the trip was going to be on a Saturday night. The girl was just sixteen years old.

Gang member Mahmoud Sanoussi (left) was convicted with his brother Mohammed (right)

Skaf gang members Mohammed (left) and Mahmoud Sanoussi (right) were jailed for pack rape

When the victim went to get into the car, however, she saw two other men there whom she did not know and did not expect would be there. It was about 9pm at this stage. Instead of taking her to the Harbour Bridge, Mohammed Skaf drove her to a park in Greenacre. All three men put pressure on her to agree to have sex with them but she refused. This went on for some time and eventually Mohammed Skaf used a mobile phone to summon his brother Bilal.

Bilal Skaf and up to eleven other men who were never identified, then turned up in a van sometime later. This large group of men got out of this van. Bilal Skaf was one of the people who then approached the victim whom he grabbed by the hair. He and the others who accompanied him then dragged the unfortunate girl to the middle of the park where they pulled of her clothes and proceeded to run their hands over her body. A number of the men penetrated her vagina with their fingers. Bilal Skaf raped her vaginally and another man, whom she could not identify, also raped her vaginally.

The victim managed to break free and run across the park to a telephone box. Meanwhile Bilal Skaf and others with him got into the van in which they had come to the park and drove around to the telephone box where one of them produced a gun and ordered her to get inside. By this time she was hysterical. Luckily, a man came around the corner, saw her plight and approached her. The men in the van departed quickly and the man took her to his flat, calmed her down and helped her call a friend who eventually came and took her home.

Belal Hajeid was part of the Skaf gang of teenagers who raped girls and young women in parks and public toilets in western Sydney during the build-up to the 2000 Olympic Games

Mohammed Skaf was charged, like his brother Bilal, with two counts of sexual intercourse without consent because he had arranged for the girl to be made available to his brother and others to have sexual intercourse with the victim. The evidence showed Mohammed Skaf to be a treacherous bully who betrayed the trust of the victim and made her, a sixteen-year old school girl, available to his brother and ten or eleven other men.

The young girl who was the victim of these rapes could identify Mohammed Skaf, whom she knew well. She was able to identify Bilal Skaf because he made a point of shoving his face close to hers and saying, 'I'm Sam's brother, Sam.'

Both of the Skafs were convicted. Evidence was presented to show the layout of the park, the positioning of lights and buildings in the park and evidence was given by the complainant that these events happened at night time.

THE THIRD TRIAL

In the third trial, the accused were Bilal Skaf, Mohammed Skaf, Mohammed Ghanem and Mahmoud Chami. This trial concerned violent sexual assaults on a young woman of 18 who was travelling home by train on an afternoon on 30 August 2000. She was reading a book of English literature, when a group of men led by Mohammed Skaf surrounded her and commenced to assault her indecently. After being indecently assaulted on the train, she was then forced off the train and was taken up the steps of the Bankstown railway station.

An 18-year-old woman was forced off a train at Bankstown station after being indecently assaulted by a group led by Mohammed Skaf. She was later raped 40 times by 14 attackers

The victim was taken from the station area and forced into public toilets where four men in this group sexually assaulted her, with one of them assaulting her twice. A mobile phone was then used by someone in this group to secure the attendance of another group who arrived in a car. The victim was then taken by car to a car park near the Bankstown Trotting Club where she was vaginally raped once and orally raped twice.

Then another car arrived with the offenders Chami and two other men, one man known as Nike Sam. When later interviewed, Chami claimed that Bilal Skaf told him, 'There's a slut at the Bankstown Trotting Club.' There was no doubt in my mind that when Chami and Hajeid arrived, they both knew that this unfortunate young woman had already been raped in the toilets at Bankstown and in a car in the car park at the Bankstown Trotting Club.

In this next car, the victim was repeatedly indecently assaulted, threatened with death when something that looked like a gun was held to her head and raped vaginally three times and orally five times. She was also raped vaginally by another man who also forced oral sex on her. Bilal Skaf again had vaginal sex with her.

Another car then pulled up which had in it, amongst others, Mohammed Skaf. The four men in this other car all raped this unfortunate young girl, who was then hosed down until she was soaking wet and forced out of the car that she was in near the Catholic Club at Lidcombe. Skaf and the members of this gang clearly wanted public recognition for what they had done. By this time, she had been kidnapped and raped vaginally, orally and anally more than forty times by fourteen men.

Pack rapist Bilal Skaf (left) was caught with a number of sick cartoons he had drawn in Supermax, including this depiction of his ex-girlfriend being raped at gunpoint (right)

The trial for these ofences was particularly horrifying. The young girl was subjected to extensive questioning by counsel for each of the accused and repeatedly it was suggested to her that she had consented to everything and/or was exaggerating or lying. I thought she was a particularly brave young woman who refused to give in to any of these suggestions. Her evidence was very powerful. In the witness box, she clutched a small doll in her hands and gave firm and clear evidence. Major Joyce Harmer of the Salvation Army was in court as a support person for her and I am sure this helped her greatly when she was giving evidence.

The same trial process occurred as happened in the first trial and during my summing up I made the same remarks about the entitlement of a woman to say no. Ghanem was convicted of various offences at this trial but was later acquitted by direction of the Court of Criminal Appeal, which ruled that certain evidence tendered by the Crown, and allowed by me to be given in the trial, should not have been admitted. This was evidence of incriminating phone calls between him and Chami. This then meant there was not sufficient evidence against him of identification. The complainant, who had been sexually assaulted by fourteen men something like forty times over four hours, could not identify him. Ghanem's convictions for his participation in the attacks that were the subject of the first trial, however, were confirmed.

Michael Finnane (far left) with the Salvation Army's Major Joyce Harmer, who supported rape victims during the Skaf trials. Major Harmer is next to her husband Major Hilton Harmer

When I came to reflect on the facts of this trial, I again found myself wondering what it was that caused Bilal Skaf and the others with him to behave in such a depraved and violent fashion against a completely helpless girl. As well as these men who went to trial, there were four other men who subsequently pleaded guilty to participating in this spate of sexual assaults. One of them was a fourteen-year-old boy with an intellectual disability who was known, following directions by me, as H, and two brothers, Mahmoud Sanoussi and Mohammed Sanoussi.

The last person to plead guilty was a friend of Mohammed Skaf. Those who pleaded guilty, were given lesser sentences than those who pleaded not guilty, because the law provided for this. If a person who is guilty, pleads guilty, anxiety and stress to the victims is removed and it is reasonable to give lesser sentences. The law provides that a discount of up to 25 per cent is appropriate to be given if the plea of guilty is given at an early time.

There were others who have never been brought to trial. The identities of the men in the red van on 10 August have never been established. Those accompanying Bilal Skaf on 12 August, perhaps ten, perhaps eleven men, have not been brought to trial and many of those involved in the horrific spate of sexual assaults on 30 August 2000 have not been brought to trial. In my view, all of these men remain a continuing threat to the Sydney community and particularly to young women.

Those involved in these crimes committed them between 10 August and 30 August 2000 on three separate occasions. Mobile phone technology was used on each occasion to coordinate the attacks, which were well planned and carried out with determination by young men, one as young as fourteen, the oldest being Bilal Skaf at twenty-one years of age.

Michael Finnane has written a memoir after leaving the New South Wales District Court

When I came to sentence Bilal Skaf, I sought submissions from his counsel who told me that he had a psychologist's report but was instructed by his client not to present it. It is a common matter during the process of sentencing criminal offenders that their counsel would present psychological evidence, sometimes psychiatric evidence and other evidence to create as strong a subjective case for the offender as could be presented. It came as a surprise to me that nothing was going to be presented to me by counsel for Bilal Skaf.

I pointed out at the time that he was likely to get the biggest sentence ever imposed for these sort of offences and surely he would want to present something to ameliorate his part in these crimes. His counsel acknowledged the force of what I had said but again said that he would be presenting no evidence. He put to me in submissions that the offences had taken place over a twenty-day period and I should impose a sentence that ensured his client spent no more than twenty years in jail. He agreed that his client showed no remorse and no contrition.

Bilal Skaf sat throughout the sentencing process looking as if he could not care less about any of it. His attitude was the same throughout the trial. Indeed, when he was being taken away after I imposed sentence on him, he turned to me and said, 'And I am innocent, you c***t!' This reflected his complete contempt for the court process and his rejection of any notion of contrition or remorse.

To my mind, the community deserved to be protected from Bilal Skaf for many years. I do not believe he will ever acknowledge the seriousness of what he did. He will remain a threat to the community.

Gang rapist Bilal Skaf pictured in Goulburn's Supermax prison with his mother Baria who was banned by prison authorities after she smuggled letters from her son out of the jail

Pack rapist Bilal Skaf, pictured with his mother Baria (in head scarf) at Goulburn's Supermax jail, was attacked by two other inmates in April 2015 and sustained 'serious facial injuries'

My sentence on him was substantially reduced by the Court of Criminal Appeal, which also reduced the sentences on some of the others involved, but not all of them. I have no intention of attempting to justify my sentences. My views on sentence were not those of the judges of the Court of Criminal Appeal, but their sentences prevail.

What is still difficult for me to understand is why this serious criminal conspiracy involving so many young men was launched. There was no obvious reason. Unlike many of the rape cases of which I am aware, there was no previous contact between any of the perpetrators and the victims, except for the second one in which Mohammed Skaf selected a sixteen-year-old from his school to be a victim. However, Bilal Skaf and the other actual rapist had never met her before. Why did the gang first of all go to a shopping centre at Chatswood? Why was the third victim plucked from a train?

The fact is that right up to the present, none of the perpetrators have ever said why they became involved in these crimes. They were an attack on society, but why? What was it that caused Bilal Skaf to carefully plan this series of attacks on young women in Sydney? Why did those who joined him, become involved? These are questions that will probably never be answered.

Skaf gang member Mohammed Sanoussi is released from Silverwater Correctional Complex

Finnnane sentenced Bilal Skaf to a maximum sentence of 55 years in prison with a minimum term of 40 years.

That sentence was modified several times upon appeal. Skaf is now in Goulburn's Supermax prison serving a 31-year sentence with a minimum of 28 years.

While Finnane's sentencing of the Skaf gang members was widely lauded and drew praise from many politicians, he was criticised privately by some other judges.

He writes that one suggested if sentences as large as that imposed on Bilal Skaf were allowed to stand rapists would in future murder their victims.

'I have thought of this over the years,' Finane writes. 'I do not think it is correct.

'One thing was obvious to me - Bilal Skaf wanted the victims to talk about what happened, to pass on their terror. He did not believe he would be caught. Murder was not in his mind; terrifying people generally was.'

Some experienced criminal lawyers also expressed disagreements with Finnane's sentences, claiming he had no regard to the Skaf brothers' rehabilitation.

'I reject this complaint as well,' he writes. 'Each sentence was framed so that there could be some hope of release but, in my mind, the protection of the community was more important than early release.'

Then Labor premier Bob Carr has said of the original 55-year sentence: 'It was certainly a headline grabber, it met community expectations, it sent a powerful message to any punk with violent tendencies on the margins of gang activity that this was very dangerous behaviour.'

Former New South Wales premier Bob Carr said of the 55-year sentence Judge Finnane imposed on Bilal Skaf: 'It was certainly a headline grabber, it met community expectations... '

EXTRACT: After the sentences were imposed, many people would say things like, 'I'm glad you got those Lebs,' but I found myself trying to explain that I did not 'get those Lebs' at all. I merely imposed sentences on a number of offenders. In no sense were the members of this gang representing other Lebanese people.

I consider my sentences imposed on the members of this gang were warranted. Not one of them showed that fear of criminal proceedings or of jail was ever in their minds. They made very little attempt to cover their tracks. After they were raped, the victims were just abandoned. Perhaps the offenders did not believe any of the victims would ever tell the police. It is also possible that there were other victims who have never come forward.

I think the sentences struck a chord with the public generally because the attacks were predatory and carefully planned. All except Bilal Skaf are now out of jail. I hope that those who have been released do rehabilitate or, at the very least, that they do not re-offend.

It is often difficult to predict whether there will be rehabilitation. I was always hopeful that the people I sentenced in other cases might see the point of rehabilitation and, undoubtedly, some of them did.

I cannot say what will happen to these men. Without Bilal Skaf leading them, perhaps they will come to see that there is a way forward. A number of family members of the gang members, other than the Skafs, gave evidence and it seemed to me that they were decent, honourable people, who were troubled about the criminal involvement of these young men. If these men, who are all still young, take notice of their brothers, sisters and cousins, they will settle down to a normal life and the criminal justice system will not see them again. That is my hope.

The Pursuit of Justice, published by New Holland Publishers, RRP $35, is available from all good book retailers or online at New Holland Publishers.
John Jay Smith, 60, has been charged with four felonies for threatening a group of Egyptian exchange students

A father unleashed a foul-mouthed tirade on five Egyptian exchange students outside of a Florida McDonald's, threatening them with a knife and stun gun.

John Jay Smith, 60, was arrested in St Augustine on Wednesday and charged with aggravated assault after he allegedly threatened the group of men he believed to be of Muslim or Middle Eastern descent with a switchblade and a stun gun.

He also reportedly yelled: 'Get the f**k out of here, you don't deserve American food.'

A police report indicates that the 60-year-old may have been intoxicated during the incident, and that his comments were religiously motivated.

Smith is facing two third-degree felony charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, one first-degree felony charge of burglary with assault or battery and a third-degree felony charge of trespassing, according to the police report.

A spokesperson for the St John's County Sheriff's office said Smith may be also slapped with hate crime charges.

The incident occurred Wednesday in a McDonald's parking lot in St Augustine, Florida, above

Smith reportedly yelled: ''Get the f**k out of here, you don't deserve American food' at the men

The five Egyptian exchange students between the ages of 19 and 23 told authorities that Smith confronted around 1.30am, asking: 'Are you American boys?'

'The truth is, we didn't even look at him,' victim Omar Abdelmoaty told the Washington Post.

'We didn't respond. We didn't say anything.'

Smith then allegedly pulled out a pocket knife and began shouting at them to leave.

'At this point we thought we were going to die,' said Abdelmoaty, 23.

The men told Smith that they were leaving and headed over to their cars, at which point the 60-year-old allegedly grabbed a stun gun out of his truck to 'make this quicker', according to a sworn affidavit from 20-year-old Mohamed Galal.

Smith charged toward the men while pulling the stun gun's trigger to 'show us that his electric shocker is working,' Abdelmoaty told police.

As one of the victims, Gasser Elkady, opened the back door to Galal's sedan, Smith shoved the 'zapper' into the 19-year-old's back.

Police say Smith then stuck his hand through the car window and attempted to use the stun gun on Elkady before reaching through the driver's-side window and thrusting it in Galal's face.

As he frantically tried to escape the situation Galal put the car in reverse and slammed his foot down on the gas pedal, accidentally hitting a pole before peeling out of the parking lot.

The men called 911 and deputies soon arrived on the scene to interview Smith, the victims and a restaurant employee.

In her official report deputy Kristin Pamies wrote: 'John had the smell of an alcoholic beverage emitting from his person and he was slurring his words.

'John made spontaneous statements advising: 'I am an American and the guys by the vehicles were making ruckus so I told them to get out of here and one of them pulled a gun and they left in a red vehicle.''

As Smith was placed in a squad car he reportedly kept muttering: 'They killed my son,' claiming that his son was a Marine killed in Afghanistan.

Smith is currently facing aggravated assault charges and could be charged with a hate crime

When Abdelmoaty spoke to the Post the morning after the incident he said that he and his friends are 'in a state of fear' that's made it difficult just to go out in public.

He said the men had never experienced anything like Wednesday's attack in the seven to 10 months that they've been living in the US.

'This is the land of the free, so we didn't think one day that we would encounter something like this,' he said.

'We didn't do anything to anybody. We're just students. The basic idea that he charged us and attacked us for this, for our religion, for our home country and background, it's kind of scary. In the first place, we're just human beings  names and descriptions came afterward.'

'We don't hate him for what he did,' he said. 'We're just sad.'
Power lines that came into contact with trees caused four Northern California wildfires that burned across more than 14 square miles last fall and incinerated 134 buildings, state fire officials said Friday.

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection indicated three of the October fires might have been prevented if Pacific Gas and Electric Co. had made more effort to keep trees clear of its power lines.

CalFire said it is turning the findings over to local prosecutors in the counties where the blazes occurred.

State fire officials blamed power lines coming into contact with trees for sparking four Northern California wildfires last October that incinerated more than 130 buildings

PG&E said it is reviewing the agency's conclusions, adding safety remains its paramount goal.

'Based on the information we have so far, we believe our overall programs met our state's high standards,' the utility said in a statement.

The utility said it inspects and monitors every overhead electric transmission and distribution line at least once a year under its Vegetation Management Program.

No one was killed or injured by the four fires the agency addressed Friday.

The blazes in largely rural Nevada and Butte counties were among more than 170 that broke out across California last October, consuming more than 380 square miles of forest, farmland and vineyards. Some of those fires were deadly.

Devastating damage occurred in California's wine country, where dozens of lawsuits seeking tens of millions of dollars have been filed against PG&E.

CalFire said it is continuing to investigate the other fires and will release its findings as they become available.

The La Porte Fire in Butte County covered 13 square miles and destroyed 74 structures.

It was blamed on tree branches falling onto power lines, but investigators concluded there were no violations of state law and PG&E was not to blame in that blaze.

However, the Honey Fire, also in Butte County, was caused by inadequate clearance of tree branches near PG&E power lines, the agency concluded.

In Nevada County, which encompasses California's Sierra Nevada Gold Rush Country, two fires burned across a mile and a half, destroying 60 structures.

In one case, fire officials said, PG&E failed to remove a tree near a power line. In the other, agency investigators said the utility did not provide proper clearance between trees and power lines.
A drunken vandal has badly damaged a famous painting in one of Moscow's most famous museums because he believed the scene to be 'historically inaccurate'.

Ilya Repin's renowned depiction of Ivan the Terrible cradling his dying son was attacked with a piece of metal tubing on Friday night after breaking smashing through its protective glass casing.

Staff at the city's historic Tretyakov Gallery said the piece had been 'badly damaged' by the attacker with the canvas torn in three places.

An unnamed 37-year-old man from the town of Voronezh was arrested by police shortly after the incident.

The painting portrays Ivan the terrible after killing his son - an event which most historians agree took place

The Tretyakov State Gallery museum in Moscow where Ilya Repin's famous painting was on display

Local media reported that the man had drunk several shots of vodka in the museum's cafe shortly before the rampage.

After eventually being restrained by officers, the suspect told them he had acted because of what he called the 'falsehood of the historical facts depicted on the canvas.'

The painting - titled 'Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan on November 16, 1581,' depicts Russia's first czar cradling his dying son after striking him in a fit of rage. Media reports say the suspect said he damaged the painting because he thinks it is historically inaccurate.

Russian media say Repin's 1885 canvas received several holes, but the faces of the czar and his son were undamaged.

'The painting is badly damaged, the canvas is ripped in three places in the central part.... The falling glass also damaged the frame,' the gallery said in a statement.

'Luckily, the most valuable images, those of the faces and hands of the tsar and prince were not damaged,' the statement said.

The famous painting was completed by Russian artist and naturalist Ilya Yefimovich Repin in 1885
Damage to the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu was worse than expected and it will remain closed indefinitely, officials said.

Boat transportation to the attraction was suspended May 6 after one of the vessel operators noticed a crack on the outside of the memorial.

Tourists were allowed to disembark at the memorial after crews completed interim repairs.

But the cracks reappeared hours later, indicating a more serious issue.

Scroll down for video

Damage to the USS Arizona Memorial (pictured) at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu was worse than expected and it will remain closed indefinitely, officials said

Tourists were allowed to disembark at the memorial after crews completed interim repairs. But the cracks reappeared hours later, indicating a more serious issue. Pictured are remains from the battleship

Engineers are working to figure out possible long-term solutions. Pictured is the stack of the USS Arizona at the memorial

'There is a brow or an edge where the visitor ramp meets the memorial, and at that point, there's been some fissures located on the exterior,' said Jay Blount, a spokesman for the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument.

'After further investigation on the interior, it was determined that the structure is not supporting the loading ramp the way that we need.'

Engineers are working to figure out possible long-term solutions.

'The amount of time needed to implement the repairs is unknown, but the (National Park Service) will continue to provide information to the public as our team of specialists works together to restore access as soon as possible,' memorial staff said Friday in a news release.

During the course of repairs, the free USS Arizona Memorial programs will proceed on schedule. The Pearl Harbor Visitor Center will also remain open.

According to the USS Arizona Memorial Facebook page, visitors will continue to see the 25 minute documentary film followed by a harbor tour of Battleship Row in close proximity to the memorial.

This photo shows the USS Arizona passing out to sea under the Brooklyn Bridge on her first voyage after being put in commission in 1916

Crowds gathered at the 96th Street Pier to watch the USS Arizona leading the fleet in a naval review for Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels, upon the fleet's arrival home at the end of the First World War in New York in December 1918

'The National Park Service (NPS) will provide live or recorded commentary during tours to enhance our visitors experience to the greatest extent possible,' a statement read.

The news of the memorial's closure comes just days before Americans across the nation prepare to honor the more than 1.3 million servicemen and women who have died in the United States' wars.

On December 7, 1941, Japan launched more than 350 fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes against the US naval base in Hawaii, plunging America into World War II.

The Japanese assault began around 8am, resulting in the deaths of thousands of Americans, numerous injuries, and the sinking of four battleships, and damage to another four.

Hundreds of Marines and sailors went down with their ships, others were burned beyond recognition in explosions and fires.

The USS Arizona tragically lost 1,177 crewmen out of 1,512 who perished while on the ship during the attack.

On December 7, 1941, Japan launched more than 350 fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes against the US naval base in Hawaii, plunging America into World War II. The USS Arizona (pictured) lost 1,177 crewmen out of 1,512 who perished while on the ship during the attack

Overall, 2,403 Americans were killed on that day in just 90 minutes. Pictured is the USS Arizona burning after it was bombed

Of the tens of thousands of servicemen who survived, between 2,000 to 2,500 survivors are thought to be still alive. This photo shows the USS Arizona Memorial's listing of fallen servicemen from 1941

Navy fighter planes were blown up without the chance to take off and hangars were set ablaze during the surprise assault.

Of the 402 American aircraft in Hawaii, 188 were destroyed and 159 damaged.

Almost none were ready to take off to defend the base when the attack started, and just eight managed to get airborne during the attack.

The attack was part of a campaign of Pacific expansion undertaken by Imperial Japan that was intent on carving out an Asian empire to rival those of Europe.

Overall, 2,403 Americans were killed on that day in just 90 minutes.

Of the tens of thousands of servicemen who survived, between 2,000 to 2,500 survivors are thought to be still alive.
Four Russian military personnel were killed in fighting in eastern Syria's Deir al-Zor province, Interfax news agency reported on Sunday, citing the Russian Defence Ministry.

The fighting erupted after several groups of rebels attacked an artillery battery of the Syrian army, the ministry said.

Two Russian military advisers who directed the fire of the Syrian battery were killed on the spot. Five other personnel were injured and taken to a Russian military hospital. Two of them died from their wounds.

The ministry said that 43 rebels had been killed in the same fighting, Interfax reported.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


A father has been arrested for storming onto an elementary school bus and holding a knife to the driver's head in front of about a dozen children in Southern California.

The driver reportedly saw Matthew Barker, 37, approaching on Friday morning and assumed that he was a parent trying to hold the bus for a child who was running late, local police in Campo, California, have said.

Barker ignored orders from the driver not to enter the bus and tried to push past him toward the children, triggering a struggle.

Matthew Barker, 37, was arrested on Friday morning in Campo, California, after he allegedly threatened the driver of an elementary school bus. Police said the parent is a known drug user who has had interactions with law enforcement in the past

The driver saw Barker approaching and assumed he was a parent trying to hold the bus for a child who was running late

'He turned around and I saw the knife,' sixth-grader Jesus Jimenez told the San Diego Union Tribune.

The 12-year-old immediately sprung into action, opening the rear exit of the bus and ushering out the 10 to 12 screaming children who fled to their parents outside.

One students grandmother saw what was happening on the bus, recognized the man and got on board to help.

A passing driver pulled over to help pry the knife out of Barker's hands.

Authorities have had interactions with the 37-year old in the past.

'This is not even related to school violence, per se,' Sgt William Uelen said in a statement.

'This is a parent who has a drug issue. He's known in the community. Campo is a small community. We've had interactions with him in the past.'

Jesus Jimenez, 12, left, opened the rear exit and ushered the screaming children out as a grandmother jumped on board the bus to help

Barker is currently under investigation for assault with a deadly weapon.

Jesus' mother, Dania Jimenez, said she's proud of her son's quick thinking and action to help get people out.

'Imagine if they hadn't opened the door,' she said. 'They would've been stuck in the bus.'

Uelen told OnSceneTV that the children were 'shaken up' by the incident.

'They were all brought to school and brought to a classroom where they could be talked to and calmed down,' he said.
President Donald Trump accused The New York Times on Saturday of inventing a source for a story who, in fact, was a White House official conducting a briefing for reporters under the condition that the official not be named.

Trump tweeted that the Times quoted an official 'who doesn't exist' and referenced a line in the story about a possible summit with North Korea, which read: 'a senior White House official told reporters that even if the meeting were reinstated, holding it on June 12 would be impossible, given the lack of time and the amount of planning needed.'

Said Trump: 'WRONG AGAIN! Use real people, not phony sources.'

President Donald Trump points to members of the media as he arrives on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, May 25, 2018

Trump tweeted that the Times quoted an official 'who doesn't exist' and referenced a line in the story about a possible summit with North Korea (Pictured: N. Korean leader Kim Jong-Un on the right and South Korea's president Moon Jae-in)

The Times reported in a story about the tweet that it had cited 'a senior White House official speaking to a large group of reporters in the White House briefing room.'

Audio of the off-the-record meeting later surfaced along with the name of the White House official, identified as Matt Pottinger, an official on the National Security Council.

Journalist Yashar Ali was the first to identify Pottinger, who clarified why he outed the White House official in a tweet.

'To be clear, the only reason I tweeted Matt's name is because I'm not a White House reporter and I was not on this call. I do not believe reporters should violate off record or on background agreements under any circumstances. Not my agreement, so I can tweet,' Ali wrote in the post.

Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah can be heard in the audio introducing Pottinger, along with terms and conditions setting out what can be quoted in the background brief.

Matt Pottinger, Special Assistant to US President Donald Trump and National Security Council (C) was outed as a source who gave a briefing to reporters on Saturday

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the use of unnamed sources and labeled information related by unnamed officials 'fake news.'

Still, his White House regularly arranges briefings with officials who demand anonymity before relaying information, a practice also used by previous administrations.

While Trump asserted the official did not exist, he also took issue with how the Times paraphrased the remarks.

Trump has repeatedly criticized the use of unnamed sources and labeled information related by unnamed officials 'fake news' (Pictured: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo)

When asked at the briefing, which was attended by The Associated Press, if it was possible for the summit to go forward by June 12, Pottinger cast doubt, but did not give a definitive answer.

'I think that the main point, I suppose, is that the ball is in North Korea's court right now. There's really not a lot of time,' Pottinger said.

'There's a certain amount of actual dialogue that needs to take place at the working level with your counterparts to ensure that the agenda is clear in the minds of those two leaders when they sit down to actually meet and talk and negotiate and hopefully make a deal. And June 12 is in ten minutes.'

The White House press office invited reporters to the background briefing, both to attend in person or to call-in and insisted that the official not be named.

The AP reporter in attendance questioned why the briefing was not on the record - meaning that the official's name could be used.

The official said the president had been talking publicly during the day, as well as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and that the briefing was intended to provide 'background context.'
Queensland's top cop has revealed the one case that still haunts him today - the freak Dreamworld tragedy that claimed four lives and tore apart a community.

Two years on from the fatal accident, outgoing assistant commissioner Brian Codd said he thought the Gold Coast theme park accident could have been a terrorist attack when news of the incident first broke.

'Around that time there was still international discussions about places of mass gathering being potential targets to terrorism,' Mr Codd told the Gold Coast Bulletin.

'It was still going through my mind and the minds of our senior people at the time, when we didnt know what we were facing, is to wonder, what are we dealing with, is this a deliberate attack?'

Scroll down for video

Police boss Brian Codd reveals the one case that still haunts him, the 2016 Dreamworld tragedy

Two years on from the accident, outgoing assistant commissioner Mr Codd said that he thought the Gold Coast theme park accident was a potential terrorist attack

Just after 2pm on October 25, 2016, a suspected malfunction on the Thunder River Rapids ride flipped one of the rafts on a conveyor belt, crushing two and leading to the drowning of two others.

Of the four who died, two were mothers Kate Goodchild and Cindy Low. Both women had a young child on board with them.

In what has been described as 'miraculous', both children managed to free themselves from the ride when the raft flipped on its side.

Ms Goodchild's brother, Luke Dorsett and his partner Roozi Araghi were also killed in the horrific incident.

 Slide me  Just after 2pm on October 25, 2016 a horrific accident occurred on Dreamworld's Thunder River Rapids ride. A water-based raft had collided with another which led to the deaths of four people

Mother Kate Goodchild (left) left behind a husband, daughter, and newborn baby girl. Luke Dorsett (right) died at the scene along with his partner Roozbeh Araghi

To this day, pictures of the four people who died in the Dreamworld accident still haunts the outgoing commissioner.

'This all happened in a place that you dont for one moment expect to be a risk to somebodys life, it was an enormously confronting job,' Mr Codd told the Bulletin.

He said that in 2016 the national terrorist threat level was 'probable.'

Just two years earlier from the Dreamworld tragedy, the Lindt cafe siege made the threat of terrorism on Australian soil very real.

In December 2014 gunman Haron Monis took six hostages in the Martin Place cafe - holding them captive for over 16 hours.

From June 8, Mr Codd will be leaving his post as assistant state commissioner and will be next in charge of the State Crime Command overseeing organised crime investigations.

Mr Codd said: 'Around that time there was still international discussions about places of mass gathering being potential targets to terrorism

To this day, the pictures of the four people who died in the Dreamworld accident still haunts him

Mr Codd said: 'We were in a national threat level of probable' in 2014. Just two years earlier from the Dreamworld tragedy, the Lindt cafe siege made the threat of terrorism on Australian soil very real (pictured)




Family members, foster carers and the community are furious that the killer of 12-year-old foster child Tiahleigh Palmer will be eligible for parole in 18 years.

Rick Thorburn pleaded guilty to the 2015 murder of his foster daughter in Brisbane's Supreme Court on Friday.

Thorburn killed Tiahleigh Palmer between 8pm and 10pm October 29, hours after his son Trent, who was 18 at the time, confessed to having sex with her, telling his parents he feared she was pregnant.

Scroll down for video

There is community anger that the killer of 12-year-old foster child Tiahleigh Palmer will be eligible for parole in 2036. Tiahleigh's mother Cindy Palmer (pictured) will reveal her anger in a 60-minutes interview to air Sunday

'They were acting a part,' she told the Nine network, remembering Thorburn carrying her daughter's coffin.

Thorburn killed Tiahleigh Palmer (pictured) between 8pm and 10pm October 29, hours after his son Trent, who was 18 at the time, confessed to having sex with her

Bravehearts chair Hetty Johnston told the Nine Network nobody wants Thorburn out of jail.

Another man interviewed by the network said the murder should 'never see the light of day'.

'There's no way Rick Thorburn deserves any second chances here, ever, nobody wants him out of that jail ever.'

Tiahleigh's biological mother Cindy Palmer has relived the fury she felt watching her daughter's killer carrying the coffin in an emotional interview with 60 Minutes.

'They were acting a part,' she said. 'He wanted to be the victim.'

Rick Thorburn (pictured) pleaded guilty to the 2015 murder of his foster daughter in Brisbane's Supreme Court on Friday.

Cindy Palmer (centre), the mother of murdered schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmer, and her supporters are seen leaving the Supreme Court in Brisbane

The court heard Tiahleigh was first placed into care in 2010, aged seven, and in January 2015, the Thorburn family became her full-time carers.

Tiahleigh's badly decomposed body was found by fishermen on the banks of the Pimpama River six days after she went missing while in the Thorburn family's care.

In a letter penned by Thorburn (excerpt pictured), who pleaded guilty to the 2015 murder in Brisbane's Supreme Court Friday, the 57-year-old also claimed he still loved her

Thorburn, 58, was sentenced to life in jail for murdering 12-year-old (pictured) and will be eligible for parole in 2036

In a letter penned by Mr Thorburn, obtained by ABC News, the 57-year-old claimed he still loved her.

'There is not a day go by that I am not haunted by what I have done, the torment I live with is unbearable,' he wrote.

'It did not matter about her occasional naughtiness, you could not help love her and I still do.'

Thorburn has been sentenced to life in jail and will be eligible for parole in 2036.
A Utah man who has spent the last two years in a Venezuelan jail has been reunited with his family and flew to the White House to meet President Donald Trump on Saturday.

Joshua Holt, 26, was arrested on weapons charges nearly two years ago, after going to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a woman he met online while looking for Spanish-speaking Mormons to help him learn the language.

Speaking to the President on Saturday night, Holt told a group of politicians and family inside the Oval Office it had been a 'very very difficult two years'.

'Not really the great vacation I was looking for,' he joked.

The 26-year-old said he was 'so grateful for what you guys have done and thinking about me and caring about me'.

Scroll down for video

Freed Venezuelan prisoner Josh Holt, 26, met President Trump on Saturday after his administration arranged for him to be released back to the US

Holt had gone to Venezuela to meet a woman he had met online when the pair were arrested. Holt's Venezuelan wife and her daughter were also brought back to the US

Holt's wife was told the US was now 'her country' by a Senator, as she and her daughter Marian sat with Holt's parents beaming at the good news

Holt hugged the politicians who worked to free him from the Venezuelan prison

The President said Holt was the 17th prisoner released during his administration, but noted Holt's case was 'a tough one'.

'I just want to welcome you to the Oval Office, welcome you to the White House,' he told the 26-year-old.

'You've gone through a lot, more than most people could endure.'

Holt's Venezuelan wife, Thamara, was arrested alongside him, and was also freed on Saturday and brought to the US with her daughter. Thamara was told in the Oval Office the US was now 'her country'.

Video taken earlier on Saturday shows Holt crumble into his mother's arms as they are finally reunited, and the pair stay holding each other for some time, while Thamara and her daughter embrace Holt's father.

Josh Holt is the 17th prisoner to be released under the Trump administration

Holt's mother Laurie thanked the President and administration for bringing her son home

Joshua Holt, who has been imprisoned on weapons charges in Venezuela for nearly two years, was reunited with his parents on Saturday

His parents were seen greeting him and his wife Thamara, and her daughter in an emotional video shared to social media by a Senator who spent years fighting for his release

Republican Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah said after two years of hard work, Holt would soon be reunited with his 'sweet long-suffering family', and was there when he finally was.

'We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle,' Joshua Holt's family said in an earlier statement.

President Donald Trump took to Twitter to share his excitement. 'Good news about the release of the American hostage from Venezuela. The great people of Utah will be very happy!' he wrote.

Coming home: Joshua Holt, his wife Thamara and her daughter, board a plane at the airport in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday. Holt and his wife, who also jailed, were reunited with her daughter from a previous relationship at Caracasi airport where the three boarded a jet to DC

Holt was Jailed in Venezuela on weapons charges nearly two years ago but was released Saturday after a U.S. senator pressed for his freedom in a surprise meeting with President Nicolas Maduro

President Trump tweeted early this morning about Joshua Holt's return to America

President Donald Trump tweeted that it was 'good news,' adding that Holt 'should be landing in D.C. this evening and be in the White House, with his family, at about 7:00 P.M

Their release came after Tennessee GOP Sen. Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, met with Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, on Friday, two days after the embattled socialist leader kicked out the top U.S. diplomat in the country.

His release was the outcome of months of secret, back channel talks about Holt between one of the senator's aides and close allies of the Venezuelan president.

But Holt's release looked unlikely a week ago, when he made an emotional plea for Americans' help in getting him out of the Caracas jail, saying in a clandestinely shot video that his life was threatened during a riot in the country's most-notorious prison.

In retaliation, socialist party boss Diosdado Cabello, a powerful ally of Maduro, said on state television that Holt was the CIA's top spy in Latin America.

Holt had planned to spend several months in Caracas in the summer of 2016 with his new wife, Thamara Caleno, and her two daughters, to secure their visas so they could move with him to the U.S.

Venezuelan Minister of Communication Jorge Rodriguez delivers statements in Caracas confirming the release of US citizens Joshua Holt and his wife Thamara

Instead, the couple was arrested at her family's government housing complex on the outskirts of Caracas.

Authorities arrested him on June 30, 2016, and accused him of stockpiling an assault rifle and grenades, suggesting his case was linked to other unspecified U.S. attempts to undermine Maduro's rule amid deep economic and political turbulence.

His wife also was jailed on allegations of being Holt's accomplice.

They had been held in a notorious Caracas prison run by the secret police that's also home to dozens of Maduro's top opponents who have been jailed during the past few years of political unrest in the country.

Their trial was set to begin this month after repeated delays that led the Trump administration to question the motives for his detention, although until Trump's tweet Saturday, the U.S. had stopped short of publicly calling Holt a 'hostage.'

US President Donald Trump says Venezuela has freed an American being held 'hostage' and he should arrive back in Washington on Saturday evening

It's not clear if Holt's release portends a thawing of relations between the two normally hostile governments. The Trump administration has threatened crippling oil sanctions on Venezuela for Maduro's decision to go forward with presidential elections last week that the U.S. has called a 'sham.'

The Maduro government has yet to comment on the reasons for the release.

Senator Marco Rubio, R-Florida, who has Trump's ear on Latin America, said the couple's 'release will in no way change U.S. policy towards the dictatorship in Venezuela.'

Holt and his wife were believed to be at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas awaiting transportation to Washington in a chartered flight.

The U.S. government at first avoided ratcheting up public pressure on Venezuela amid already strained relations between the two countries, but eventually raised Holt's case to the highest levels of the Venezuela government.

Hatch and Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah, also lobbied on behalf of Holt and decried his poor treatment in prison.

Laurie Holt holds a photograph of her son Josh at her Utah home - taken in July 2016

His wife Thamara Candeloalso was also jailed on allegations of being Holt's accomplice

Holt's mother, Laurie Holt, said all along that her son and his wife were wrongly accused.

She worked feverishly to bring attention to her son's incarceration, hosting rallies, fundraisers and doing media interviews.

Laurie Holt said her son has suffered numerous health problems in jail, including kidney stones and respiratory problems.

He was depressed and at one point lost so much weight that he dropped several pant sizes, she said.

In their statement, the Holt family said, 'We thank you for your collaboration during this time of anguish.

We ask that you allow us to meet with our son and his wife before giving any interviews and statements. We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle.'

During Trump's meeting with Holt, he announced he was still planning to meet Kim Jong-Un on June 12 in Singapore.
The first woman to join an infantry regiment since defence chiefs lifted a ban on females serving in combat units has quit after just two weeks of training, The Mail on Sunday can reveal

The first woman to join an infantry regiment since defence chiefs lifted a ban on females serving in combat units has quit after just two weeks of training, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

The recruit dropped out of an 18-week course this month after falling behind her male counterparts on endurance marches and failing other physical tests at a training base in Suffolk.

It is understood that when the woman resigned, she admitted having underestimated the physical requirements of being an infantry recruit. She also told officers that living in female-only accommodation made her feel like an outsider and weakened her resolve. Her resignation is a huge blow to officials who are determined to integrate women into fighting units in the Army, Royal Marines and Royal Air Force.

In 2016, then Prime Minister David Cameron said it was essential that the make-up of the Armed Forces reflected society and he lifted the ban on women serving in combat units.

His decision remains controversial because many commanders fear that women are incapable of withstanding the rigours of infantry training, in particular the requirement to carry heavy equipment and weapons over long distances.

Last night, the Ministry of Defence refused to name the recruit, but it is understood she was a steward in the RAF who wanted to transfer into the RAF Regiment, an infantry unit that fought with distinction in Afghanistan and Iraq. Its primary roles are to guard air bases and provide troops to support Special Forces operations.

The recruit dropped out of an 18-week course this month after falling behind her male counterparts on endurance marches and failing other physical tests at a training base in Suffolk

She is understood to have been one of just three women who applied to join the RAF Regiment and the only one considered fit enough to start the course at RAF Honington alongside 44 men.

A source at the base said: Even though she was way off the pace of most of the men, she gained a lot of peoples respect. She tried her best and was honest enough to admit the course was too tough for her.

She was a bit isolated outside training hours because she lived apart from everyone else.

There was a lot of secrecy surrounding her participation. The guys were surprised to see her. There was pressure on her instructors to help her to pass the course. I think the RAF wanted good PR out of it.
Paul Younger, 53, an NHS executive from Kent, has throat cancer caused by HPV and started chemotherapy and radiotherapy in March.

In the second harrowing extract from his journal to be published by The Mail on Sunday, he tells of his final weeks of treatment  and of the unbearable pain that still plagues him.

Paul Younger, 53, (pictured with his partner Helen Powell) an NHS executive from Kent, has throat cancer caused by HPV and started chemotherapy and radiotherapy in March

April 1, 2018 The Mail on Sunday has published [the first part of] my blog. My phone has been pinging all morning with messages of love and support.

I feel quite humbled. I have to face this illness head on but by raising awareness I hope it encouraged the Government to offer the vaccine to boys. Several friends send me messages to say they are having their sons vaccinated.

April 2 The pain in my mouth is descending into my throat. The back of my neck is blistering. I chat with my fellow patient Darren, who is unable to swallow anything.

We're both non-smokers, occasional drinkers, attenders of a gym three to five days a week. This demonstrates how indiscriminate throat cancer is.

April 9 My partner Helen is cooking meat and the smell makes me want to throw up. My neck is getting sorer by the day. I feel sick, my gums bleed and I feel like I'm reaching breaking point.

April 12 Not being able to speak properly is quite embarrassing as the clinical team ask questions which strain my throat. Just quoting my date of birth and first line of address is difficult.

I go for radiotherapy at 1pm in a panic as I'd just eaten and the thought of being sick with my mask on is terrifying.

April 16 I am in excruciating pain. I spend most of the night on the settee, in an upright position. My tongue has black patches where blood has seeped during the night.

April 20 My last day of radiotherapy treatment. I should feel elated but the period of 'cooking' when I'm told my symptoms will get worse will now kick in.

My prescribed pain relief causes extreme pain when I take it. It has me coughing and spluttering on the floor. My neck wound has broken open. I have massive ulcers in my mouth.

April 27 It's a week since my last treatment, but my neck remains extremely hot to touch. I can't hold a normal conversation and have no appetite.

May 7 I'm up at 2.15am for morphine and feel convinced I'm dying. I'm so angry about the potential robbed years after a lifetime of working. It's eight weeks since I started treatment and I pray the tide will soon start to turn.

I keep prodding my neck, convinced the tumour is still growing. I worry about my future quality of life and my life with Helen  who never bargained on becoming a carer.

I never thought that this treatment would be so harrowing. I've developed a real hate of food and drink. I'm not sure I can live like this much longer.

May 11 There's an ulcer as big as a penny under my tongue. It's three weeks since the end of treatment and things aren't much better. I spend all afternoon and early evening spitting in a cup. The secretions are awful, blood-splattered.

May 14 I have a feeling I have a ball of hair stuck in my throat which makes me gag continually.

May 18 Helen and I went to the shops. I so wanted to stop for a drink and a cake but would be mortified at displaying my eating habits in public. I have to carry a paper cup everywhere in which to spit my secretions. Literally every mouthful I eat attacks the roof of my mouth.

May 19 After dressing, I note a 3in gap between my waist and my jeans. I'm also on the last hole of my belt.

May 21 The pain in my mouth I would describe as 9/10: the worst it's been, yet I'm more than four weeks post-treatment. When eating, the pain goes up my left cheek, through my left nostril and into the top of my head.

May 22 Mum makes a chicken casserole which takes me an hour to eat with two litres of cold water. My throat's dry and throbs all evening. Going to bed around 1am. I just hope tomorrow sees some improvement.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is one of the highest-paid politicians in the world - earning almost 10 times the average Australian wage.

Mr Turnbull, 63, takes home more money than any politician from Canada, the United States, Germany and Switzerland, according to new figures published by IG.

He gets a pay packet of $527,854 which is more than any other head of government in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Second after Turnbull among global politicians comes Switzerland's president Alain Berset who earns $482,958 a year, while U.S. president Trump sits comfortably in third place with $400,000.

Thumbs up for Turnbull: Australia's Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is the highest-paid politician in the world, according to the latest figures

Good Fortune: Malcolm Turnbull earns $527,854 which is more than any other head of government in the OECD

U.S. president Trump gets paid less than PM Turnbull. Trump sits comfortably in third place with $400,000

World leaders' wages Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull $527,854 Swiss president Alain Berset $482,958 U.S. president Donald Trump $400,000 German chancellor Angela Merkel $369,727 New Zealand PM Jacinta Ardern $339,862 Source: IG Advertisement

They are followed by German chancellor Angela Merkel earning $369,727 and New Zealand's prime minister Jacinta Ardern in fifth place with a salary of $339,862.

The findings published by also compare the political leaders' salaries to the average national wage.

The latest figures reveal Turnbull gets ten times the average Australian wage which is the second-highest disparity between leaders and workers in the developed world.

Turnbull also earns $0.44 for every million dollars of GDP produced in Australia.

Australians have taken to social media slamming the prime minister's hefty pay packet.

One man wrote: 'There was a time not all that long ago where we accepted the argument that if we payed our politicians more wed get better quality in Parliament. Clearly that was wrong.'

In fourth place among OECD countries, German chancellor Angela Merkel earns $369,727

Second after Turnbull among global politicians comes Switzerland's president Alain Berset who earns $482,958 a year

Turnbull earns 10 times the average Australian wage which is the second-highest disparity between leaders and workers in the developed world, new figures reveal

'Just converting to Aussie dollars doesnt give an accurate comparison because the cost of living is higher in Australia so we get paid more generally compared to other countries,' another social media user added.

Not only does Turnbull get a healthy pay packet, but he also receives a golden retirement package once's he leaves parliament.

Australian politicians have the advantage of having 15.4 per cent of their income going towards their superannuation, according to the Parliamentary Superannuation Act 2004.

Top five heads of state's base pay packets in the OECD. From left to right: Australian pm Turnbull, Swiss president Berset, U.S president Trump, German chancellor Merkel, and Kiwi prime minister Ardern

That is in comparison to most Australian workers who get just a 9.5 per cent super contribution.

While Turnbull is the best paid out of most developed countries, it is interesting to note that Singapore's prime minister Lee Hsien Loong earns a staggering $1.7 million a year in U.S. dollars.

Singapore is not a member of the OECD so the prime minister's salary was not included in the survey.

Among the rich and famous: Turnbull gets a pay packet of $527,854 which is more than any other head of government in the OECD
A large-scale police search for a missing grandfather has been called off after eight days, but the 65-year-old's family say they will not giving up on finding him.

Ian Collett, the 65-year-old grandfather-of-ten, suffers from dementia and was last seen hitchhiking along Albany Highway at Mouth Cooke in Perth on May 19.

Collett, who was wearing someone else's jacket at the time, was helped to a 7-Eleven by a concerned passerby but then disappeared.

Ian Collett, a 65-year-old Perth grandfather, has been missing for over a week now (pictured)

Perth residents were told to be on the lookout should there be any sightings and to report any leads to the police.

'It is still possible that Ian has hitched a ride so we want this message spread far and wide,' the Colletts said in a statement on Saturday.

Residents in Mount Barker and Albany have also been alerted, since it is also possible that Ian may have ended up in these regional towns.

Aside from the family, the State Emergency Service (SES) of Western Australia, local police, and other community volunteers have also helped in the search for the grandfather.

The family has expressed their gratitude to all parties who have helped them in the search, while police say they will continue to chase up any new leads.
Drug use in the Pacific Northwest is so prevalent that scientists have found trace amounts of narcotics in the systems of sea creatures in the area.

While tracking pollution levels in the waters of Puget Sound, researches said that trace amounts of oxycodone were recently discovered in the tissues of 'native bay mussels from Seattle and Bremerton area harbors'.

Oxycodone is a powerful narcotic used to treat severe pain and is highly addictive, possessing many of the same euphoric properties as heroine and morphine.

While tracking pollution levels in the waters of Puget Sound, researches said that trace amounts of oxycodone was recently discovered in the tissue of mussels

Oxycodone (file photo) is a powerful narcotic used to treat severe pain and is highly addictive possessing many of the same euphoric properties as heroine

The data was gathered via the Puget Sound Mussel Monitoring Program, which transports uncontaminated mussels from nearby Whidbey Island to 'highly urbanized' areas away from any commercial shellfish beds.

The program was conducted by researchers at the Puget Sound Institute, an arm of the University of Washington, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

'Mussels, which are filter feeders, concentrate contaminants from the local marine environment into their tissues,' explains managing editor of the Puget Sound Institute, Jeff Rice, who posted a recent analysis of the findings.

As human beings dispose of biological waste into the surrounding environment, the mussels use the discarded material as a source of nutrition and sustenance.

Managing editor of the Puget Sound Institute, Jeff Rice (pictured), said that the mussels are 'filter feeders' and consume particles present in the environment

Rice said that after two to three months at the transplant site, data showed that oxycodone present in the marine creatures 'were thousands of times lower than a therapeutic dose for humans.'

Although not enough to have an affect on the mussels of Puget Sound, Rice said the real concern was for fish in the area which are known to respond to opioids.

Researchers at the University of Utah have recently shown that zebrafish will willingly dose themselves with opioids, and scientists believe other types of fish like salmon may have a similar response.

It is not unusual to find pharmaceuticals or narcotics like cocaine in the systems of mussels, according to the Puget Sound Institute, but Rice said this was the first time opioids have been discovered in the freshwater creatures.

'It's telling me there's a lot of people taking oxycodone in the Puget Sound area,' Washington Fish and Wildlife biologist Jennifer Lanksbury told local broadcaster KIRO-7 News.

'Those are definitely chemicals that are out there in the nearshore waters and they may be having an impact on the fish and shellfish that live there,' Lanksbury said, adding 'What we eat and what we excrete goes into the Puget Sound.'








Two U.S. Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two U.S. officials told Reuters, in a move likely to anger Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.

The operation was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijing's efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.

While this operation had been planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a particularly sensitive time and just days after the Pentagon uninvited China from a major U.S.-hosted naval drill.

The U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

The U.S. military vessels carried out maneuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.

Trump's cancellation of a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has put further strain on U.S.-China ties amid a trade dispute between the world's two largest economies.

Critics of the operations, known as a "freedom of navigation," have said that they have little impact on Chinese behavior and are largely symbolic.

The U.S. military has a long-standing position that its operations are carried out throughout the world, including in areas claimed by allies, and that they are separate from political considerations.

Satellite photographs taken on May 12 showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.

Earlier this month, China's air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs in the South China Sea as part of a training exercise in the region, triggering concern from Vietnam and the Philippines.

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region.

Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, "Cold War" terms.

China's claims in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The United States has said it would like to see more international participation in freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


He was the hugely successful British actor who made surly professor Severus Snape one of the most watchable characters in the Harry Potter films and garnered widespread critical acclaim.

But behind the scenes, Bafta-winner Alan Rickman grew frustrated with his Hogwarts role and was racked by doubts over his impact in the blockbuster films.

The actor, who died in 2016 aged 69 from pancreatic cancer, reveals his misgivings in his archive of personal papers covering more than 40 years on stage and screen.

The collection, with a price tag of 950,000, is being sold by the TV actor Neil Pearson, who has another career as a seller of rare books. The archive reveals how Rickmans concerns about the role emerged in 2002, soon after he finished the second film in the series, Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets.

Daniel Radcliffe wrote a postcard to co-star Alan Rickman wishing him a Merry Christmas

Nicole Kidman wrote a letter to Alan Rickman saying a stage performance was 'inspiring'

A card from Harry Potter author JK Rowling to Alan Rickman who played Severus Snape

In a postcard, David Heyman, the producer who cast Rickman, told him: Thank you for making HP2 a success. I know, at times, you are frustrated but please know that you are an integral part of the films. And you are brilliant.

RADA-trained Rickman, who rose to fame with the Royal Shakespeare Company, was still having doubts about the character while working on 2009s Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince, the sixth film. On the set, he queried the characters narrative and character development by writing down his thoughts under the heading Inside Snapes Head.

He wrote: Its as if [the director] David Yates has decided that this is not important in the scheme of things i.e. teen audience appeal.

The star kept all eight of his Harry Potter scripts and they are in the sale. The archive reveals how Rickman built close relationships with author J. K. Rowling and his young co-star Daniel Radcliffe.

Rickman with Emma Watson, Rupert Grint and Daniel Radcliffe in the third Harry Potter film

Shortly after the 2011 premiere of Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2, the last film in the series, Rowling wrote: Had to send a line about what you wrote in the souvenir programme for Hallows II. Made me very tearful. Thank you for doing justice to my most complex character.

His archive also includes touching letters from co-stars including Kate Winslet, who starred with him in 2014s A Little Chaos, which he also directed. She wrote: Dearest Al with thanks for your guidance. I loved every second.

Rickman was also an acclaimed stage actor, and another of his archived letters was sent by Hollywood star Nicole Kidman who watched him from the audience in a London production of Private Lives and later wrote: Such a great performance  inspiring.

Rickman starred in a host of other hit films, including Die Hard, Truly Madly Deeply, Robin Hood Prince Of Thieves and Love Actually.
Emily Green, 21, is being investigated by police after being escorted out of HMP Humber

A prison nurse has been suspended over allegations she smuggled the 'zombie' drug Spice to inmates.

Emily Green, 21, is being investigated by police after being escorted out of HMP Humber.

A Prison Service spokesman said: 'A contractor has been removed from active duty at HMP Humber. There is an ongoing police investigation into this matter and it would be inappropriate to comment further.'

Spice, a synthetic alternative to cannabis, has been dubbed the 'zombie drug' because users are often left virtually unable to move. It can also cause hallucinations.

The psychoactive substance used to be a so-called 'legal high' but is now a Class B drug, with those found in possession of it facing up to five years behind bars and an unlimited fine.

Green had been working at the prison as a nurse for nine months, employed by Hull-based City Health Care Partnership, before she was suspended on April 12.

Speaking from the doorstep of the rented Hull home she shares with her boyfriend, Green denied having any involvement in smuggling drugs inside the prison.

She also claimed she had not been suspended, adding that 'no police have been at my door'.

Drug use at HMP Humber, a Category C jail for men, is rife. Prison inspectors found that more than a third of inmates tested positive for banned substances last year.

The problem became so severe that the prison, near Everthorpe, East Yorkshire, began photocopying inmates' mail in an effort to prevent drug-soaked letters being smuggled inside.

The prison watchdog report found that 63 per cent of HMP Humber inmates said it was easy to get illegal drugs. Nearly a third of prisoners at the jail, which holds more than 1,000 men, said they had developed a drug problem since being there.

In March, 49-year-old prisoner Alan Tyers died after reportedly taking an overdose of Spice.

A spokesman for Humberside Police declined to comment on whether Green had been arrested or questioned.

He said: 'We do not confirm or deny whether a named individual is under investigation. If a referral was made to us, we would investigate appropriately.'

A spokeswoman for City Health Care Partnership refused to confirm whether or not Green was still employed.

She added: 'In order to preserve confidentiality and data protection, City Health Care Partnership CIC cannot comment on cases concerning individual colleagues.'
President Donald Trump has announced the summit with North Korea will take place as planned on June 12 in Singapore

President Donald Trump has announced he still intends to meet with Kim Jong-un on June 12 in Singapore, as originally planned, despite earlier indicating the meeting would not go ahead.

Speaking to reporters after a press conference on a US man freed from a Venezuelan prison, he said they were doing 'very well' in terms of the summit with North Korea.

'I think there's a lot of good will,' he said.

'People want to see if we can get the meeting and get this done. We are looking at June 12th in Singapore.'

On Sunday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in told a news conference he and the North Korean leader had agreed the summit should go ahead, and that the Korean peninsular should be denuclearized.

'Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean peninsula's denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted,' Moon said in Seoul.

He said the summit would not be an easy negotiation for either country, and declined to define 'complete denuclearization' when asked - a point of contention between Washington and Pyongyang.

'Even though they share the same resolve, there need to be discussions regarding the roadmap for how to make it happen, and that process could be tough,' Moon said.

'The White House pre-advance team for Singapore will leave as scheduled in order to prepare should the summit take place,' White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters on Saturday.

Kim Jong Un was scheduled to meet with Trump in Singapore for historical talks on denuclearization

South Korean President Moon Jae-In told reporters on Sunday during a meeting between himself and Kim Jong-un on Saturday they had agreed the meeting should go ahead

The pair recommitted to their 'quest for the Korean peninsula's denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime'

Trump had cancelled the meeting on Thursday, blaming 'hostility' shown by a North Korean official who threatened nuclear war for the change, but appeared to have been calmed by apologetic communications from Pyongyang.

He explained his reasoning, and threatened a nuclear showdown with North Korea, through a letter sent to leader Kim Jong Un.

'Based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting,' he wrote.

'Therefore, please let this letter serve to represent that the Singapore summit, for the good of both parties, but to the detriment of the world, will not take place.'

Pictured: The letter President Trump sent Kim Jong Un after 'hostile' remarks from a North Korean official

Jae-In said negotiations would not be easy, and also declined to define 'complete denuclearization', a sticking point between Pyongyang and Washington

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in met for the second time in a month earlier on Saturday to discuss peace commitments they reached in their first summit.

They also talked about Mr Kim's potential meeting with President Donald Trump next month.

South Korea's presidential office said Mr Moon will personally announce the outcome of Saturday's summit with Mr Kim on Sunday.

The presidential Blue House did not immediately provide more details.

North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un, left, and South Korean President Moon Jae-In are pictured embracing ahead of a summit in the north side of the demilitarised zone

The pair of leaders, pictured shaking hands before their meeting in Panmunjom, have been discussing peace commitments agreed at a previous summit last month

They were joined by aides in a meeting room in the border village and a detailed account of their discussions will be announced on Sunday, according to the South Korean government

This is the second time in a month they have met to discuss peace commitments

The meeting at a border truce village came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a summit between President Trump and Mr Kim.

This was following a whirlwind 24 hours that saw the US leader cancel the highly anticipated meeting, before saying it is potentially back on.

Trump later tweeted that the summit, if it does happen, will likely take place on June 12 in Singapore as originally planned.

In their first summit in April, Kim and Moon announced vague aspirations for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and permanent peace, which Seoul has tried to sell as a meaningful breakthrough to set up the summit with Trump.

But relations between the rival Koreas chilled in recent weeks, with North Korea canceling a high-level meeting with Seoul over South Korea's participation in regular military exercises with the United States.

It insisted that it will not return to talks unless its grievances are resolved.

South Korea, which brokered the talks between Washington and Pyongyang, was caught off guard by Trump's abrupt cancellation of the summit in which he cited hostility in recent North Korean comments.

Moon said Trump's decision left him 'perplexed' and was 'very regrettable.' He urged Washington and Pyongyang to resolve their differences through 'more direct and closer dialogue between their leaders.'

President Moon was also pictured shaking hands with Kim Jong-Un's sister Kim Yo Jong ahead of the discussions

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects the construction site of the Wonsan-Kalma coastal tourist area in Gangwon-do

In their first summit in April (left and right), Kim and Moon announced vague aspirations for a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and permanent peace, which Seoul has tried to sell as a meaningful breakthrough to set up the summit with Trump

Trump's back-and-forth over his summit plans with Kim has exposed the fragility of Seoul as an intermediary.

It fanned fears in South Korea that the country may lose its voice between a rival intent on driving a wedge between Washington and Seoul and an American president who thinks less of the traditional alliance with Seoul than his predecessors.

Trump's decision to pull out of the summit with Kim came just days after he hosted Moon in a White House meeting where he openly cast doubts on the Singapore meeting but offered no support for continued inter-Korean progress, essentially ignoring the North's recent attempts to coerce the South.

In his letter to Kim, Trump objected specifically to a statement from senior North Korean diplomat Choe Son Hui.

She referred to Vice President Mike Pence as a 'political dummy' for his earlier comments on North Korea and said it was up to the Americans whether they would 'meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown.'

North Korea issued an unusually restrained and diplomatic response to Trump, saying it's still willing to sit for talks with the United States 'at any time, (in) any format.'

Trump's back-and-forth over his summit plans with Kim has exposed the fragility of Seoul as an intermediary

'The first meeting would not solve all, but solving even one at a time in a phased way would make the relations get better rather than making them get worse,' North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan said in a statement carried by Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency, which mainly targets external audience.

Analysts say Kim's diplomatic outreach in recent months after a flurry of nuclear and missile tests in 2017 indicates he is eager for sanctions relief to build his economy and the international legitimacy the summit with Trump would provide.

But there's also skepticism whether Kim will ever agree to fully relinquish his nuclear arsenal, which he likely sees as his only guarantee of survival.

Comments in North Korea's state media indicate Kim sees any meeting with Trump as an arms control negotiation between nuclear states, rather than a process to surrender his nukes.

The North has said it will refuse to participate in talks where it would be unilaterally pressured to give up its nukes.
Clifford Bartholomew served less than eight years in jail after committing mass murder

One of Australia's worst mass murderers who shot ten members of his family served less than eight years in prison before changing his name and remarrying.

Clifford Bartholomew shot his wife Heather and their seven children aged one to 17 along with his sister-in-law and her child in Hope Forest, South Australia on September 6, 1971.

He was initially sentenced to hang but was instead imprisoned for life before being released on parole in 1979 because he had been a 'model prisoner.'

The abattoir slaughterman changed his name to Clifford Palmer and lived in Victoria and Queensland from 1990 where he remarried.

Nobody knows if he ever told his second wife, who died in 2012, of his grisly past.

Bartholomew died aged 71 in 2002 but his niece was only told last week.

Noeleen Paltridge was at the family's Fathers' Day gathering just hours before the murders - but had a lucky escape when her stepbrother drove her away from Bartholomew's farmhouse instead of staying the night because 'something wasn't right.'

She has been living in fear ever since, worried that her uncle would come after her to complete his crime.

After finding out about his death, the 55-year-old told The Sunday Mail: 'I just hope he died a horrible death like my family did.

'I'm glad he's dead but there are a lot of questions I'd have liked to have asked him, face-to-face.'

She said she was shocked the killer had remarried and that his release was a terrible mistake.

Clifford Bartholomew shot his wife Heather, their seven children aged one to 17 along with his sister-in-law and her child in Hope Forest, South Australia on September 6, 1971

'He got out in seven years for killing 10 people including eight kids he stole their lives away and he stole mine, too,' she said.

Bartholomew was said to have killed his wife after their relationship broke down when a younger man moved into their house.

She denied having an affair but Bartholomew's jealousy built up until he exploded with rage and killed her with a 22-caliber single-shot rifle.

It was said he killed the children because 'he could not bear to leave them behind.'

Bartholomew's killings are the worst incidence of a mass family killing in Australia.

Earlier this month Peter Miles, 61, shot dead his wife, daughter and her four children before turning the gun on himself at his farmhouse near Margaret River, Western Australia.
Three teenage boys who were caught drifting down Melbourne's Yarra River in a water taxi they allegedly stole have been arrested.

Witnesses reportedly called police after spotting the boys floating down the river on the boat at 4.30am on Sunday.

Two of the boys, aged 16 and 13, jumped into the water and started swimming away when police arrived in an attempt to make an escape.

A third boy, 18, was reportedly tackled by a passerby while trying to run along the wharf away from officers.

Three teenagers were caught stealing a water taxi in the Yarra River in Melbourne (pictured)

The two younger teens were eventually pulled from the water, before being taken to hospital for treatment.

The 18-year-old was taken into custody by police but released shortly after.

All three boys were arrested, but are yet to be charged with anything.

It is believed the trio were unable to start the water taxi's engine.

Further details of the incident have yet to come up as police investigations are still continuing.

Police intervened immediately and the boys were pulled out of the water taxi
Utah Senator Orrin Hatch told President Donald Trump on Saturday he deserved the credit for bringing home 26-year-old Josh Holt, who had been held in a Venezuelan prison for nearly two years.

In an emotional speech to the President in the Oval Office, Hatch told Trump: 'You know, I was the one guy who really supported you 100 per cent, and I do now'.

In his breathless praise, he said Holt's repatriation showed why Trump had the support of his administration.

'This wouldn't have happened without you,' he said.

Scroll down for video

Senator Orrin Hatch (sitting right of Trump) praised the President profusely for his role in helping bring Venezuelan prisoner Josh Holt home to the US

Hatch (pictured) has been a devout supporter of Trump since he came into office

'We just want you to know that when you look over your tenure in the Presidency, this is one of the many great things you're doing.

'To know we can rely on you, count on you, talk to you and meet with you - these are all very important things.

'We love you boy and we want to support you any way we can.'

Hatch also praised fellow Senator Bob Corker and his aide, Caleb McCarry, for their part in repatriating Holt.

'We have good people working with us, and the folks in this delegation all very sincerely wanted to get Josh out of there,' he said.

'And the parents are just as good a people as I've ever met in my life.'

Turning to Josh, the Republican senator cracked a smile and said: 'You'd better really live a good life, is all I can say'.

Hatch, 84, said repatriating the 26-year-old 'wouldn't have been possible without [Trump]'

Holt (left) has been locked up on weapons charges since June 2016 and was brought home on Saturday

Holt was arrested on weapons charges nearly two years ago, after going to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a woman he met online while looking for Spanish-speaking Mormons to help him learn the language.

Holt's Venezuelan wife, Thamara, was arrested alongside him, but was also freed on Saturday and brought to the US with her daughter. Thamara was told in the Oval Office the US was now 'her country'.

Authorities arrested him on June 30, 2016, and accused him of stockpiling an assault rifle and grenades, suggesting his case was linked to other unspecified U.S. attempts to undermine Maduro's rule amid deep economic and political turbulence.

His wife also was jailed on allegations of being Holt's accomplice.

Hatch said the President had been approachable throughout the lengthy process it took to get Holt home

Holt, his wife (sitting left of Holt) and her daughter were all invited to the Oval Office on Saturday night, as were Holt's parents

They had been held in a notorious Caracas prison run by the secret police that's also home to dozens of Maduro's top opponents who have been jailed during the past few years of political unrest in the country.

Their trial was set to begin this month after repeated delays that led the Trump administration to question the motives for his detention, although until Trump's tweet Saturday, the U.S. had stopped short of publicly calling Holt a 'hostage.'

Secret back channel talks about Holt between Caleb McCarry and a close ally of the Venezuelan President had been ongoing for months before Tennessee Senator Bob Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, met with Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, on Friday, and secured his release.
Michael Baror was allowed join the NYPD despite warning signs discovered during a psychological review

A New York City cop accused of assaulting a motorist in a fit of rage should have never been allowed to become a police officer, a psychological evaluation revealed.

However the concerns raised in the evaluation were dismissed by a supervisor who allowed Michael Baror to join the NYPD, according to The New York Post.

Baror's mental evaluation in December 2014 paints a picture of a man who lacked 'anger management skills' and had 'a tendency to behave in an impulsive, reckless and careless fashion' - clear red-flags that should had made the department pause.

But those warning signs appeared to have been ignored, as a second evaluation conducted by different psychologist attested that Baror would 'be an asset to the department'.

A source who spoke to the Post said that Baror's case was indicative of an unfair system that grants favors to individuals with connections in the force.

Records attained by the Post show that on the night of December 31, 2017, Baror was involved in a traffic incident while off-duty that ended with him allegedly pistol-whipping another driver and beating him with handcuffs.

On the night of December 31, 2017, Baror was involved in a traffic incident that left a man with 10 stitches on his face (Pictured: street where alleged altercation took place)

The incident began at 10.30pm, when Baror attempted to bypass a vehicle driven by James Nacmias on a Brooklyn street and instead rear-ended him. Nacmias' girlfriend, Jaclyn Araiza, was also traveling in the vehicle.

That's when Baror allegedly got out of his vehicle and left Nacmias with 10 stitches to his face, at one point shouting: 'Don't you know who I am? I'm NYPD!'

An investigation was open following the alleged altercation and eventually led to the Brooklyn District Attorney's office filing an 11 count indictment against Baror earlier this month.

'We never expected anything like this to happen, especially with New York's Finest,' Araiza told the Post. 'The man attacked us both. It's been a traumatic experience.'

Baror's admission to the NYPD isn't an aberration, the source who spoke to the Post said, revealing that NYPD officials occasionally get requests to help a friend or relative overcome a hiring obstacle.

Joseph Giacalone (pictured), an ex-NYPD detective who teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the NYPD should have been more cautious

'The whole appeals process is a mess. There are different paths that candidates are moved along, depending on who wants to see them qualified or disqualified. And there are people you internally 'go to' to have an NQ [not-qualified] overturned if they want it that way.'

Just nine days after NYPD department psychologist Benjamin Appel expressed concerns over his history of violent altercations and short temper, Baror was given a 'rejection review' by Edward Fitzsimmons.

Fitzsimmons found character witnesses that described the now 24-year-old cop as 'a well-behaved young man who poses no behavioral difficulty' and a 'professional'.

That sterling evaluation helped Baror get over the edge and into a uniform.

'It sounds like he [Baror] was prepped for the second [evaluation]  he said all the right things,' said Joseph Giacalone, an ex-NYPD detective who teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

It remains unclear if Baror had any connections to senior NYPD officials that would have granted him a second evaluation.

The Brooklyn DA has charged Baror with assault, fleeing the scene of an accident, weapon possession, reckless driving and menacing.

Baror faces up to seven years in prison if convicted. Despite the charges, the NYPD has not suspended Baror, who is currently serving on desk duty.

His gun and badge have been taken away pending the criminal case.
A leaked Pentagon report has revealed new details about the UFO encounter that shocked Navy fighter pilots above the Pacific.

The 2009 report does not bear any date or agency logo, but four officials confirmed that it was written as part of a Pentagon program with input from multiple agencies, KLAS reported.

The Las Vegas news station obtained the unclassified report while visiting Washington, DC for a debriefing arranged by former Senator Harry Reid.

The report reveals stunning new first-hand accounts of the November 14, 2004 encounter, which was documented in video that emerged in December of last year.

The incident unfolded as the Nimitz carrier group was conducting training exercises off the coast of southern California and Mexico ahead of a deployment to the Arabian Sea.

The USS Princeton (seen in file photo) made multiple radar contacts with the objects in 2004

The location of the incident as given in the leaked report is seen in the above map

Beginning around November 10, the USS Princeton, a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser, made multiple radar contacts with what the report calls an Anomalous Aerial Vehicle (AAV).

The senior chief fire controlman on the Princeton, which was equipped with ultra-advanced AN/SPY-1 multifunctional phased-array radar, reported that the AAV appeared from above 60,000 feet - the radar's scan ceiling - and descended 'very rapidly' to about 50 feet above the surface of the ocean.

They would hover for a short time and then depart at high velocities and turn rates demonstrating advanced capabilities, the senior chief said.

The senior chief, who had 17 years of experience in fire control on cruisers, said he never obtained an accurate track on the AAV, because they exhibited speed consistent with a ballistic missile, but the radar was set to air intercept mode rather than ballistic missile tracking mode.

Then on November 14, the Princeton again detected an AAV around 11am and called it in two F/A-18 Hornets that happened to be returning to the USS Nimitz from a training exercise.

An E-2C Hawkeye surveillance plane was also operating in the area and attempted a radar contact on the AAV, but made only intermittent contact as was unable to gain a track.

On November 14, the Princeton again detected an AAV around 11am and called it in two F/A-18 Hornets that happened to be returning to the USS Nimitz (pictured) from a training exercise

An E-2C Hawkeye surveillance plane (like the one seen above) was also operating in the area and attempted a radar contact on the AAV, but made only intermittent contact

The skies were clear and blue with unlimited visibility that day, and the sea was calm, according to the report.

The first fighter jet to investigate, a USMC single-seat F/A-18C, flew within five to 10 nautical miles of the AAV's location, but could not see it. Instead, he reported seeing a circular disturbance in the water about 50 to 100 meters in diameter. It reminded the pilot of something rapidly submerging in the ocean, like a submarine.

The report hypothesizes that 'it is possible that the disturbance was being caused by an AAV but that the AAV was "cloaked" or invisible to the human eye.'

The Marine pilot was called off after the controller asked a plane carrying ordnance to respond, which he was not. When he returned to the USS Nimitz, his intelligence officer asked him if he'd seen the 'supersonic Tic Tac'.

The next jet to respond was a Navy F/A-18F piloted by Cmdr. David Fravor and Lt. Cmdr. Jim Slaight, who made visual contact with the AAV that they have since publicly discussed, corroborating the report.

Fravor was piloting an F/A-18F Super Hornet like the one seen above in a file photo when he reported making visual contact with a hovering object shaped like a 46-foot Tic Tac

Fravor (left) has publicly discussed seeing the object, corroborating the report

Fravor also spotted a disturbance in the water, almost as if it were boiling. But this time, hovering above the disturbance was a strange object.

The object was shaped like an elongated egg or a "Tic Tac", according to Fravor, and was 'holding like a Harrier', the jump jet that can take off vertically.

Slaight, whose name is redacted from the report, described it as 'solid white, smooth, with no edges. It was uniformly colored with no nacelles, pylons or wings.'

He described the exterior of the object as 'like it had a white candy-coated shell, almost like a white board.'

When Fravor attempted to make a close pass of the object to attempt visual recognition, the object appeared to react, realigning its axis to point at the approaching plane. The AAV then ascended quickly and departed at supersonic speed.

When Fravor and Slaight returned to the Nimitz, the sailors in the intelligence center donned tin-foil hats to greet them, asking eagerly about their 'UFO flight'.

Later in the day, another plane made the video that has since been released, according to the report.

Around 3pm, another Navy F/A-18F tracked a remarkable object on FLIR, which Fravor's plane had not been equipped with.

The pilot said he couldn't confirm whether he had tracked the same object seen by Fravor and Slaight, because he never made visual contact, only tracked it through FLIR.

The report notes that the USS Louisville nuclear fast-attack submarine was operating in the area, and detected no unusual undersea activity over the duration of the incidents.

The incident was filed in a regular training mission report and it is unclear if it was reported up the chain of command, the report finds.

The aircrews involved made and kept a copy of the FLIR recording, but were subjected to a 'high level of ridicule' over the incident, the report found.

Whatever the AAV was, the report stresses that it was 'no known aircraft or air vehicle currently in the inventory of the United States or any foreign nation.'

Former Senator Reid, now recovering following cancer surgery, and others have urged Congress to create a new Pentagon program to study similar incidents as a matter of national security.

Another highly classified version of the leaked report was also written, but it is unlikely to ever be released.
A veteran newsreader has broken down on live television while recalling the traumatic moment his home was devastated by Cyclone Tracy.

Ron Wilson, who presented the Channel 10 news for nearly 40 years, burst into tears while describing the lasting impact Salvation Army had on his family on Sunrise.

Cyclone Tracy was Australia's most destructive cyclone, killing 71 people on Christmas Day in 1974 as it tore through Darwin.

Veteran newsreader Ron Wilson (pictured) broke down on live television while recalling the devastation he suffered during Cyclone Tracy. Presenter Monique Wright is pictured right

Wilson appeared on the show to promote The Salvation Army Red Shield appeal, which has so far raised more than $1 million to help people in need.

Sunrise presenter Monique Wright rushed to his comfort as he broke down in tears recalling how the charity organisation helped with accommodation and rent in Sydney.

When asked how the Salvation Army helped him, then 19, and his family after the cyclone hit, Wilson said: 'I'm going to get blubbery'.

When asked how the Salvation Army helped him, then 19, and his family after the cyclone hit, Wilson said: 'I'm going to get blubbery'. Ron Wilson's destroyed home is pictured

'They were there for us,' he said.

'This was in the days before mobile phones so to apply for jobs you had to go and stand there.'

As he continued to look teary, he was asked how $20 notes provided by the Salvation Army to him and his mother helped in the aftermath of the cyclone.

'You spent the money on the public phones to make calls to get jobs,' he said.

'We came out of Darwin wearing shorts and a t-shirt and that's everything we had.'

The first helicopter from an Australian navy relief convoy drops supplies several days after Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin on Christmas morning 1974
Former NXIVM member Sarah Edmondson has described the bizarre way cult-leader Keith Raniere would greet members when he first met them.

Edmondson said the 57-year-old was 'good at getting a rapport and connecting eye to eye' with people, but had a special trick that would help seal the deal.

'He kisses everyone on the lips,' she said in the clip from an episode of A&E's Cults and Extreme Belief due to air on Monday obtained by The Daily Beast.

The former actress, who was a member of NXIVM for 12 years was explaining how she fell for Raniere's charms as host Elizabeth Vargas said she didn't see the appeal.

Edmondson said she had encountered Raniere before the allegations were made, and did not have the same tainted view of him.

Scroll down for video

Sarah Edmondson, a former top recruiter for sex cult NXIVM said the leader Keith Raniere had an incredible rapport with people and would 'kiss everyone on the lips'

She explained when she met him, she held him in an 'elevated status'.

'Every day we're going 'thank you Vanguard' and 'this curriculum is so amazing and it's all cause of Keith', so you have people saying thank you and revering him before you even meet him,' she explained.

Members called Ramiere 'Vanguard' because it was the word for a leader of a philosophical movement, which is what Edmondson believed she had signed up to, The Daily Beast reported.

Believing the initial five day course she had paid $2,000 to attend had genuinely changed her life for the better, she became a top recruiter for NXIVM.

Edmondson, who was part of DOS, the women's only group, was even branded with Raniere's initials by the cult last year, describing the experience, which took up to 30 minutes and was done without anaesthetic, as 'a bad horror movie'.

'We were crying, we were shaking, we were holding each other,' she recalled.

'It was horrific. I felt petrified. I felt, every part of my body was like: get out of here. Run.'

Edmondson was a member of the group for 12 years before she was branded with Raniere's initials and fled the cult

The women were branded with the two-inch mark near their pubic region by a family doctor who was allegedly in the sisterhood.

Once indoctrinated, members had to follow strict rules, including texting back their 'masters' within 60 seconds of receiving a message.

On one occasion, when one group of 'slaves' failed to adhere to the rule, their 'master' said she would be paddled and locked in a cage by her own master - Raniere - and the punishment offered to the 'slaves' was even worse, Edmondson said.

'They paddled each other, videotaped it, naked, and sent that to Lauren who sent it to her master, who now we know is Keith.'

Because there were no other DOS groups in Vancouver, only the one Edmondson had set up, she avoided the same painful fate.

Edmondson said looking back, Raniere had treated women like pawns and was a 'sociopathic, narcissistic, nut job'

Edmondson said she was disgusted that Raniere had been sleeping with women in high ranking positions and students in his company.

'It's a conflict of interest, because they're there to learn. And then you have the person who's teaching them having sex with them as part of their growth?

'If that's what he wants to do, that should be on their fucking website.'

While initially enamored by Raniere, Edmondson said her views had changed since leaving the cult.

'In retrospect, Keith doesn't care about humanity and ethics, we were all pawns to him in his little chess game - especially women,' she said.

'[He is a] sociopathic, narcissistic, nut job.'

Raniere, 53, was arraigned on sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit forced labor last month. He faces life behind bars.
Donald Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, met with a Russian oligarch and discussed U.S.-Russia relations just 11 days before Trump was inaugurated as president.

That's according to a person familiar with the meeting held at Trump Tower in New York who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the meeting publicly.

This person said the oligarch, billionaire Viktor Vekselberg, met with Cohen for about 20 minutes in Cohen's office. The two men were joined by Andrew Intrater, Vekselberg's American cousin, who heads a New York private equity firm that manages his financial assets.

Soon after the inauguration, Intrater's firm, Columbus Nova, paid Cohen $500,000 for consulting work. Vekselberg was targeted in April with U.S. Treasury Department sanctions, citing his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Olympic Skier Gus Kenworthy shared his heartbreak over his dog's death in a long Instagram post.

He shared with his one million followers that Beemo, the dog he rescued from deplorable conditions in South Korea during the Olympics in Pyeongchang, died on Thursday.

Beemo was not eating, so Kenworthy and his boyfriend Matt Wilkas took her to the vet where after a series of tests it was discovered that 'her lungs were deteriorated and that her heart was too big for her body - a birth defect we had no way of knowing about'.

Skier Gus Kenworthy shared the heartbreaking news in a long Instagram post, accompanied by an adorable photo of Beemo

Just last month Kenworthy shared this adorable selfie with Beemo, who had hidden health problems

She died after having having respiratory distress. According to the vet there was nothing that could have been done for Beemo that she was 'living on borrowed time'.

In the gut wrenching post, Kenworthy writes a tribute to his puppy: 'Beemo was truly the best thing that ever happened to me and I feel so fortunate for our borrowed time together. I've never loved anything or anyone in the way that I loved that dog and she is and will always be deeply missed.'

Kenworthy and Wilkas announced that they were adopting Beemo when they visited one of an estimated 17,000 dog farms in South Korea, where dogs are being raised for food.

At the time, Kenworthy was careful to note that he is not in any way trying to change the Korean culture of eating dog, writing 'while don't personally agree with it, I do agree that it's not my place to impose western ideals on the people here.'

Kenworthy, right, holding Beemo and his boyfriend Matt Wilkas visited a dog farm during the Pyeongchang Olympics in February

Kenworthy, holding a very tiny Beemo, and seen with other dogs as he surveyed the scene

Dogs in Korea are sometimes raised as food, and the conditions they live in are horrible as Kenworthy saw firsthand.

The dogs that they visited in Korea were all scheduled to be sent to the US and to Canada and would be adopte

Instead he railed against the inhumane treatment at these farms, saying that 'the dogs here are malnourished and physically abused, crammed into tiny wire-floored pens, and exposed to the freezing winter elements and scorching summer conditions,' and goes on to describe the 'excruciating' way they are put to death.

Kenworthy and Wilkas along with Humane Society International talked the farmer they visited into stopping the farming of dogs, and all the dogs they visited were to be sent to the US and Canada-- including Beemo.

Beemo had her own Instagram account which now carries the simple tribute, 'the candle that burns twice as bright burns half as long. RIP Beemo - you were and always will be very loved!'

A sweet picture of Beemo on her own Instagram page, accompanies a moving tribute from Kenworthy
A British-born man who helped master-mind the famous kidnapping of two children from Australia to Malaysia now wants to become an Australian citizen.

Brian Wickham, now 80, helped Prince Raja Kamarul Bahrin, a Malaysian politician abduct two children Iddin 9, and sister Shahira, 7, from Australia in 1992.

Wickam was sentenced to 18 months jail in 1993 from his role in the plot to take the children from TV journalist Jacqueline Pascarl.

Brian Wickham, now 80, helped Prince Raja Kamarul Bahrin (middle), a Malaysian politican abduct two children Iddin 9 (pictured left), and sister Shahira, 7 (right), from Australia in 1992

Pascarl is now back in contact with her children and was invited to her daughter's wedding in 2009, according to Malaysian media.

In an interview with Prince Bahrin to air on a A Current Affair on Monday night, the Prince attack's Australia's lack of compassion.

'Doesn't Australia have any compassion for an old man like (Bryan)?'

Wickam (pictured) as sentenced to 18 months jail in 1993 from his role in the plot to take the children from TV journalist Jacqueline Pascarl nee Gillespie

Under Australian law, criminals who have been sentenced for one year in prison cannot become citizens of Australia.

Wickham, who helped smuggle the children from northern Australia in a leaky boat, was also interviewed by the network.

Asked what it was like to be on Australia's most wanted list before he was arrested for the kidnapping in America, he said 'very interesting'.

Abducted son Idden, who is now grown up, also features on the program and described his journey in the world as 'weird'.

'I've had a very weird life,' he said.
A man has been charged with stabbing his 69-year-old mother to death.

The woman's body was found at her home in Werribee, Melbourne on Friday morning.

Police were today searching for the murder weapon while detectives interviewed the woman's 38-year-old son for hours before laying the charges.

Police (pictured) were today searching for the murder weapon while detectives interviewed the woman's 38-year-old son for hours before laying the charges.

Investigators are now appealing for anyone who may have seen a silver Kia, small SUV type vehicle, on Black Forest Road in Wyndham Vale about 1.45pm on Thursday

Investigators are now appealing for anyone who may have seen a silver Kia, small SUV type vehicle, on Black Forest Road in Wyndham Vale about 1.45pm on Thursday.

The vehicle is believed to have travelled past the Wyndham Vale reserve creek area.

Detectives would also like to speak with a young male and female, possibly aged in their teens, that appeared to be doing a door knock on Taworri Crescent around 3.15pm on Thursday.

The male was wearing dark-coloured long sleeve top and shorts, a cap and shoes.

The female has long hair and is wearing dark-coloured long sleeve top and pants.

Detectives do not believe the pair are involved but may have seen something.
Advertisement

Britain's volatile weather continued today as parts of the country experienced 80F conditions while others saw flash floods and lightning storms.

Britons have warned to baton down the hatches tonight as more thunderstorms are set to bellow throughout homes across the UK, as pictures show bolts of lightning piercing the night sky - narrowly missing a plane.

Despite the ominous yellow weather warnings and rumbling across the south, the UK could be set for the hottest day of year tomorrow, with the sun reemerging in time for Bank Holiday barbecues, all day drinking and al fresco dining.

Scroll down for video

Pictured: Storms over the Isle of Wight. A cluster of 17 flood alerts has been issued for parts of the Thames Valley, while West Midlands and Bedfordshire fire services warned motorists of the risks of driving on flood-hit roads

The 62,000 strikes contained 15million kWh of energy - enough to boil water for 600million cups of tea, lightning and energy data showed. Pictured: Storms over the Isle of Wight

Despite the ominous yellow weather warnings and rumbling across the south, the UK could be set for the hottest day of year tomorrow, with the sun reemerging in time for Bank Holiday barbecues, all day drinking and al fresco dining

Residents in Birmingham were caught in flash floods as torrential rain poured down across the Midlands, while crowds descended on Weymouth beach in the South East as families raced to secure prime sun bathing real estate.

More than 62,000 lightning bolts blitzed Britain in the lightning show of a lifetime. Thunderstorms will return today but are not expected to be as strong, making way tonight for a sunny Bank Holiday Monday at 84F (29C).

Lightning hit the south east before midnight with thunderstorms then striking Wales and the rest of England in the early hours of today.

One house in Stanway, Essex, had its roof completely destroyed when it was struck by lightning and erupted in flames.

Residents on Sir Johns Road in Selly Oak, Birmingham had to be rescued by firefighters using boats as one red Ford Focus was pictured close to being engulfed by the rising waters

Passengers have been left stranded on planes for hours at Stansted airport after flights were cancelled and grounded following a lightning strike hitting a fuel tank.

Scotland and Northern Ireland escaped the worst of the bad weather, however temperatures are still expected to reach 77F (25C) in the South East.

At least 17million journeys are expected to be taken over the long weekend but plans to enjoy outdoor barbecues could be hit by more potential thunderstorms, heavy rain and even flooding in parts of central and southern England.

Britons have been sweltering in 80F heat today with clear skies and stifling humidity replacing last night's lightning strikes - but the Met Office have warned to baton down the hatches tonight as more thunderstorms loom

Residents in Birmingham were caught in flash floods as torrential rain poured down across the Midlands but the wet weather failed to put a dampener on the spirits of some Pride festival goers

People feed goslings from pedalos on the Serpentine in Hyde Park, London

One house (pictured) in Stanway, Essex, had its roof completely destroyed when it was struck by lightning and erupted in flames

On arrival fire crews discovered that the 'entire roof of the detached building was alight' and had to spend three hours at the property

The roof has been destroyed while most of the house itself has also been affected by fire damage. No-one was in the property at the time of the lightning strike and it is believed the home owners are on holiday

Lightning dramatically hit The Shard in London in the early hours of this morning as the Bank Holiday weather took a turn for the worse with heavy rain

At least 17million journeys are expected to be taken over the long weekend but plans to enjoy outdoor barbecues could be hit by more potential thunderstorms. Pictured: Lightning strikes on Kent Coast

A fantastic display of lightning has taken place above the skies of Birmingham in the West Midlands whilst heavy rains soaked the area

Amazing images show the true power of storm clouds that passed over Birmingham. The lightning lasted for hours over Saturday night into Sunday morning whilst rain lashed down soaking anyone who could not get to cover

Pictured: Lightning strikes above Wembley Stadium in London (left) and over Northolt in west London (right)

A deluge hit the south east before midnight with showers or longer spells of rain promised for Wales and central and southern England today. Pictured: This bolt found its target on the outskirts of the City of London

The crew of the RNLI station at Tower Hill posted this photograph on Twitter showing these dramatic scenes last night

Met Office: The science behind lightning strikes As tiny water droplets form inside a storm cloud, they are propelled towards the top of the cloud by strong internal winds (updraughts) where they turn to ice. Some of the pieces of ice grow into hail, but others remain very small. Some of the hail that forms becomes too heavy to be propelled by the updraughts and so begin to fall back through the cloud, bumping into smaller ice particles as they do so. During these collisions, electrons are transferred to the hail giving the hail a negative charge, while the ice particles that have lost electrons gain a positive charge. As negative charge builds at the base of the cloud, the electrons near the ground's surface are repelled. This leaves the ground and the objects on it with a positive charge. As the attraction between the cloud and the ground grows stronger, electrons shoot down from the cloud cutting through the air at around 270,000 miles per hour. Source: The Met Office Advertisement

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service sent three vehicles to attend the fire in Stanway last night at 1:38am after lightning hit the roof of a property.

On arrival fire crews discovered that the 'entire roof of the detached building was alight' and had to spend three hours at the home.

No-one was in the property at the time of the lightning strike and it is believed the home owners are on holiday. The roof has been destroyed while most of the house itself has also been affected by fire damage.

The 62,598 lightning bolts that hit Britain in a 24-hour period recorded until 9am today is 20 times more than an average lightning storms 3,000 strikes, Met Office data shows.

Weather experts said it the best lightning storm of their lifetime. BBC weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker tweeted: 'Mother of all #thunderstorms now over London. Oh boy! This is utterly insane.'

He added: 'That was one adrenaline-gagging-meteorologically-sickening-bonkers-conkers-electrifying sky show. Ive never seen a storm with such frequent lightning in my life.'

The London Fire Brigade said it had taken more than 500 weather-related calls as the warm and humid bank holiday weather broke down into an 'utterly intense' storm.

In Warwickshire, the fire service said five properties were struck by lightning in the early hours of Sunday, while in Dawlish, Devon, a telephone box burst into flames after a BT pole was hit on Saturday evening.

A cluster of 17 flood alerts has been issued for parts of the Thames Valley, while West Midlands and Bedfordshire fire services warned motorists of the risks of driving on flood-hit roads.

Western Power Distribution said nearly 1,000 properties had been left without power across the Midlands, with the majority of outages down to lightning.

The 62,000 strikes contained 15million kWh of energy - enough to boil water for 600million cups of tea, lightning and energy data showed.

As torrential rain fell in Birmingham this evening many roads became unpassable due to flooding

As torrential rain fell in Birmingham this evening many roads became unpassable due to flooding

Made In Chelsea star Binky Felstead reveals her daughter India's nursery is 'ruined' after her London home floods during thunder storm Damage: Binky Felstead have revealed the devastating effect Saturday night's thunder storms had on her London home Binky Felstead, 27, has revealed the devastating effect Saturday night's thunder storms had on her London home. The former Made In Chelsea star shared photos on Instagram on Sunday of flood damage at the house she shares in the capital with her partner Josh Patterson and their daughter India, eleven months. Binky told fans her daughter's nursery is 'ruined' after water flooded into the lower floor of the property during the 'mother of all thunderstorms' across the country on Saturday. Binky has been holidaying on the Isle of Wight with her daughter and friends over the weekend, while Josh is working on a photoshoot in Capri, Italy. While the family have been away though, their recently renovated house has suffered severe damage. Taking to Instagram on Sunday afternoon, Binky shared a happy snap of her daughter India playing in the sunshine on holiday, only to reveal in the caption the 'nightmare' that awaited them back home. 'At least someone has no idea of the nightmare thats going on back at ours ... her nursery is ruined as is all of the bottom floor of our place. Thank you for that last nights storm.' In photos of the house shared on her Instagram stories, thick black mud and water can be seen covering the floor of the hallway and India's room, with the carpet and the tot's toys destroyed. Binky captioned one of the photos: 'Happy bank holiday to me,' while the nursery snap was accompanied by the words: 'Cheers to last night's storm.' The reality star also took to Twitter to plead with Thames Water to help her, sending the message: 'Sorry @thameswater getting worried no one is going to show up ... can you let me know how long youre going to be to sort this out.' A representative for Binky has been contacted by MailOnline for comment. Binky previously revealed that she completed work on India's nursery a matter of days before her daughter's birth on June 12 last year. Ruined: The former Made In Chelsea star shared photos on Instagram on Sunday of flood damage at the house she shares in the capital with her partner Josh Patterson and their daughter India, eleven months Advertisement

BBC weatherman Tomasz Schafernaker tweeted: 'Mother of all #thunderstorms now over London. Oh boy! This is utterly insane'

Passengers are stranded on planes at Stansted airport as flights are cancelled because LIGHTNING 'struck fuel tank' Passengers have been left stranded on planes at Stansted airport as flights are cancelled after lightning struck a fuel tank. Flights were forced to remain grounded after the lightning strikes reportedly ruined the airports fuelling system. Scenes of chaos broke out this morning at the terminal as passengers arrived to find their planes were cancelled. Scenes of chaos broke out this morning at the terminal as passengers arrived to find their planes were cancelled The dramatic thunderstorms from overnight are apparently to blame and flights are likely to be affected throughout the day The dramatic thunderstorms from overnight are apparently to blame and flights are likely to be affected throughout the day. One passenger tweeted: All we been told is no fuel in Stansted due to fuel tank being struck by lightning. Another wrote: Plane getting hot and stuffy as we wait for fuel as Stansted Airport fuel system broken. And Cathy Winston wrote on Twitter: Airport now closed to incoming planes, nothing has taken off today & still no fuel available for the dozens sitting by gate. Apparently engineers working on the problem but no word on when/if they might succeed. An airport spokeswoman reportedly confirmed to the Mirror Online this morning that the aircraft fuelling system had been restored. An airport spokeswoman confirmed this morning that the aircraft fuelling system had been restored. Yet flights could still be diverted, delayed or even cancelled, with passengers being advised to check with their airline for updates Yet flights could still be diverted, delayed or even cancelled, with passengers being advised to check with their airline for updates. Twelve cancellations have been listed so far and only four out of 50 journeys listed to depart before 8.15am have flown. A statement from the airport said: Due to an earlier lightning strike, the aircraft fuelling system was unavailable for a period this morning. Engineers have been on site and have now restored the system, however flights may still be subject to diversion, delay or cancellation. We apologise for the inconvenience and advise all passengers to check with their airlines for their latest flight updates. Advertisement

The Met Office has issued a yellow rain warning between 12am on Sunday and 6am on Monday amid concerns that the conditions will put a dampener on the weekend.

Thunderstorms are likely to continue to affect parts of Wales, southern and central England through Sunday and into Monday morning.

But anyone in Scotland, which will see 'the best of the sunshine', could enjoy hot temperatures this bank holiday without the threat of thunderstorms.

Met Office forecaster Emma Salter said: Thunderstorms looked widespread in the South, before becoming fewer on Monday.

It will feel really warm, and muggy and humid. 29C is a 40 per cent chance on Monday or Tuesday, with 27C still being seen on Wednesday.

Bizarrely, hot air is coming to us from Scandinavia - and we never normally say that.

It would have been bitterly cold a couple of months ago. But now the landmass has heated up with highs 10C above average in Scandinavia, with their air coming to us via Denmark.

The Weather Outlook forecaster Brian Gaze said: Beating 29.1C for the hottest day of the year is possible by Monday.

A Big Issue seller braves the bank holiday rain in a wetsuit and a pair of flippers during the Hay Festival in Hay on Wye, in South Wales

The Met Office has issued a yellow rain warning between 12am on Sunday and 6am on Monday amid concerns that the conditions will put a dampener on the weekend. Pictured: Thunderstorms & torrential rain over Northolt in west London

Britain's bank holiday weekend has been rudely interrupted by torrential rain, thunder and a spectacular display of lightning. Pictured: This fork of lightning stretched across the sky towards the city of London

There were incredible scenes over the City of London with lightning streaking across the darkened skies

A map (pictured) shows where the 62,598 lightning bolts hit around Britain in the 24 hours period to 9am Sunday

Lightning lit up this mosque (right) in east London as the bank holiday weekend's good weather broke in dramatic fashion. In Portsmouth (left), the lightning lit up the sky above the Solent as several ships made their way out to sea

Numerous people filmed the forked lightning last night which was spotted across London around midnight

Lightning is seen from a bedroom window as it strikes above a street in south London

A black Mercedes caught in flash flooding just after Wandsworth Bridge following broken pipes near Latchmere Hill tunnel

It will still be a 'warm to very warm' bank holiday weekend for most and hopes that temperatures could tip 30C (86F) are now possible.

London could hit 79F (26C) to 84F (29C) - just a little shy of the warmest day of 2018 so far which was the 84.4F (29.1C) recorded at London's St James's Park on April 19.

The warmest late May bank holiday weekend on record is officially 91F (32.8C), set on the May 29 1944 bank holiday Monday in Horsham, West Sussex, and Tunbridge Wells, in Kent, together with London's Regent's Park.

It will feel warmest across southern England and Wales, where temperatures could rise into the 80s Fahrenheit (high 20s Celsius).

Meanwhile Southampton can expect 77F (25C) to 79F (26C) and Bristol may get 77F (25C). Further north it may reach 66F (19C) in Aberdeen and 64F (18C) in Newcastle.

But Southern England, the South West and Wales are set to be cloudier, very warm and hit by more thunderstorms.

Train or bus services could face delays, while spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and road closures. Pictured: A car splashing through a puddle in Northolt in west London

Forecasters also warned that flooding or lightning strikes could also bring power cuts and loss of other services, with thunderstorms this afternoon possibly bringing up to 1.2in (30mm) of rain. Pictured: Vehicles splashing through the rain in Northolt in west London

The Met Office has warned that thunderstorms will continue throughout the rest of the Bank holiday weekend (Pictured: A map of where rainfall will strike)

However, while the sunshine might be eclipsed by the harsh weather, high temperatures are still expected to occur

The Met office reports that flooding could happen quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds.

Train or bus services could face delays, while spray and flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and road closures.

BUSIEST TIMES ON BRITAIN'S ROADS DATE PLANNED LEISURE JOURNEYS BY CAR EXPECTED BUSIEST TIME ON ROADS Today 4.45 million 4pm to 7pm Tomorrow 3.82 million 10am to 4pm Sunday 2.86 million 10am to 4pm Bank Holiday Monday 2.86 million 12pm to 4pm Planning a trip between May 22 and 29, but no date set 4.77 million afssaf

Forecasters also warned that flooding or lightning strikes could also bring power cuts and loss of other services, with thunderstorms this afternoon possibly bringing up to 1.2in (30mm) of rain.

The Met also says: 'Fast flowing or deep floodwater is possible, causing a danger to life'

One Fulham home has suffered flooding hell after the long night of thunderstorms with the property seeing torrential rain damage in some rooms.

A Met Office spokesman added: 'Very warm and humid conditions will lead to thunderstorms developing across parts of Southern England, the South and West Midlands and Wales on both Saturday and Sunday.'

'Thunderstorms will produce torrential rain and hail in places with up to 30mm (1.2in), while some places may miss the worst of the heavy rain.

'A north-south split will see Scotland and Northern Ireland get the best of the weather while England and Wales suffer problematic weather with sunshine but heavy showers and thunderstorms.

'The west of Scotland will see some of the best of the sunshine this weekend.'

Monday will see less chance of thunderstorms and rain - with temperatures expected to reach 86F (30C).

Traffic hotspots are expected to include the M25 between Gatwick Airport and the M1, the M3 south west of London, the M4 west of London and between Cardiff and Swansea, and the A47 Swaffham to Great Yarmouth.

One Fulham home has suffered flooding hell after the long night of thunderstorms with the property seeing torrential rain damage in some rooms
Senior Tory women have demanded Theresa May (pictured today in Maidenhead) act to change the law on abortion in Northern Ireland after the landslide referendum in the Republic

Theresa May today congratulated the Irish people on their landslide vote to liberalise abortion laws as Tory women demand she extend the reforms to Northern Ireland.

Mrs May said the result was an 'impressive show of democracy' but she made no mention of the result would mean for Northern Ireland.

Equalities Minister Penny Mordaunt has led calls for reform north of the border as the referendum will leave Northern Ireland with among the least liberal rules in the western world.

But any change will be bitterly opposed by Mrs May's socially conservative DUP allies, who prop her up in Downing Street.

Amid the tension today, Mrs May said on Twitter: 'The Irish Referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result.

'I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of Together4Yes on their successful campaign.'

The Prime Minister is reluctant to force through change for fear of antagonising the DUP, the socially conservative Northern Ireland party propping up her government.

With devolution on ice in Belfast amid local political rows, Mrs May could legislate directly from Westminster to liberalise abortion in the province, despite it being a devolved issue.

Following the Irish vote, Ms Mordaunt - who is responsible for the women and equalities brief in Government - said the referendum signalled a 'historic and great day for Ireland' and a 'hopeful one for Northern Ireland'.

'That hope must be met,' she added.

Writing on Twitter today Mrs May said the result was an 'impressive show of democracy' but made no mention of the result would mean for Northern Ireland

Former women and equalities minister Nicky Morgan said the referendum result was 'a huge milestone in the history of the Republic of Ireland and, I believe, the right decision'.

Mrs Morgan and three other former holders of the women and equalities role - Amber Rudd, Justine Greening and Maria Miller - all back Ms Mordaunt in support for reform in Northern Ireland, the Sunday Times reported.

But DUP MP Ian Paisley said Northern Ireland 'should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand'.

'The settled will of the people has been to afford protections to the unborn life and protect the life of the mother,' he said.

Equalities Minister Penny Mordaunt is leading calls inside Government for a free vote in Westminster to change the law in Northern Ireland

Sarah Wollaston, the Tory chairwoman of the Commons Health Select Committee, said: 'I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK.

'As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland on this issue.'

Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth today said he would back reform of Northern Ireland's strict abortion laws in a free vote, but did not promise Labour would bring a bill before the Commons if the party was in charge.

But DUP MP Ian Paisley said Northern Ireland 'should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand'.

Women should have the same rights as those elsewhere in the UK, he told Sky's Ridge on Sunday, but stressed Labour must 'tread sensitively and be aware of the realities of devolution'.

Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O'Neill said she would like the decision to be taken in Northern Ireland, but in the absence of a Stormont executive 'we have to find a way to deliver rights'.

She told ITV's Peston On Sunday: 'I think the fact there is a recognition even here in England that the law needs to change in the North of Ireland is a good thing.'

Justice Minister Rory Stewart played down the prospect of a Westminster intervention.

He told Sky News show Ridge on Sunday: "It would be very, very dangerous for British politicians to be seen to be telling people in Northern Ireland how to vote.

"One of the reasons why we have a more peaceful situation in NI is because we have delegated.

Mr Stewart added: There isnt a parliament in Stormont at the moment so that puts a huge degree of trust and response on the Westminster government to have an interim government but that mustnt be used to make fundamental constitutional ethical changes on behalf of the people of Northern Ireland.

"It should be seen as a caretaker situation. Those kinds of decisions need to be made by the Stormont parliament when that is up and running again.

Sarah Wollaston (pictured today on the Sunday Politics), the Tory chairwoman of the Commons Health Select Committee, said: 'I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK.

Labour MP Stella Creasy claimed more than 140 parliamentarians had already signalled support for an effort to change the law in Northern Ireland.

And Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable said the Prime Minister should take advantage of the current lack of a devolved administration in Stormont and push for reform from Westminster.

Senior civil servants have been taking the majority of decisions within departments in Northern Ireland since the powersharing administration at Stormont collapsed 16 months ago.

Sir Vince told the Press Association: 'The position in Northern Ireland is now highly anomalous and I think, probably, action will now have to be taken.'

Asked if Mrs May should intervene, he said: 'Since there is, effectively, direct rule from Westminster, the Government has responsibility and it can and should take the opportunity to deal with this issue properly.'

Walthamstow MP Ms Creasy, who led a campaign to allow Northern Irish women to access NHS terminations for free in England, said '21st century abortion laws' should be extended across the British Isles.

Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O'Neill (pictured today on Peston on Sunday) said she would like the decision to be taken in Northern Ireland, but in the absence of a Stormont executive 'we have to find a way to deliver rights'.

In a message to the DUP she said the people of Northern Ireland 'consistently support change' in the abortion law and it was 'time to put them, not power in Westminster, first'.

The forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill promised by ministers could be used as a vehicle for MPs hoping to change the law in Northern Ireland.

Abortions are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.

While political leaders south of the border were at the forefront of efforts to liberalise the law during the referendum campaign, a majority of politicians in Northern Ireland do not favour the radical law changes now proposed in their neighbouring jurisdiction.
New figures released by the NHS have revealed the shocking north-south divide in alcohol problems in England.

They show that Salford is the booze capital of England, with 1,403 out of every 100,000 residents given prescriptions for alcohol issues.

On the other hand, Horsham and Mid Sussex has the lowest rate of prescriptions with just 24 in every 100,000 - around 58 times less than Salford.

And the the figures, which were revealed in a table of local clinical commissioning groups, highlight the shocking north-south divide in alcohol problems.

The North of England saw 75,000 prescription drugs handed out last year, working out at 486 per 100,000 people.

In comparison, London recorded 189 prescriptions per 100,000 residents, while the South saw 238 and the Midlands saw 251.

New NHS figures have revealed that Salford is the alcohol-prescription capital of England

In fact, the ten CCGs least affected by alcohol problems are all in London or the South.

Meanwhile, nine of the bottom ten are in the North.

173,000 drugs were dispensed in England in 2017 and cost the NHS 4.42 million.

This a significant increase from ten years ago when the cost was 2.4 million.

The figures also showed that there were 5,507 alcohol-specific deaths in 2016 and 337,000 hospital admissions caused by alcohol.

The shocking figures have also highlighted a wide divide between the north and the south when it comes to alcohol-related issues

Professor Colin Drummond, an expert in addiction psychiatry at King's College London, told the Mirror Online: He said: 'Alcohol problems are associated with deprivation, which we know to be worse in the North than in the South.

'Until treatment becomes a priority for governments, the gap is not going to get any narrower.'

A spokeswoman for Salford City Council told the Mirror that local substance misuse services were rated 'outstanding' following the latest inspection.

Areas in England with the highest number of alcohol-related prescriptions The NHS figures revealed how many prescriptions for alcohol problems were dispensed at CCGs in England last year. Salford: 1,403 North Cumbria: 1,120 Norwich: 1,111 Manchester: 962 Rotherham: 931 Sheffield: 900 North Tyneside: 877 Trafford: 834 Blackpool: 813 Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale: 747 Advertisement
A woman who fainted after armed crime squad officers stormed her house has been found not guilty of trying to attack them with a piece of jagged glass.

Wafa Wazer, 52, had her house in south-west Sydney raided by Middle Eastern Organised Crime Squad officers in May last year.

She was found not guilty of assaulting an officer and being armed with intent during the raid after she smashed a vase and held a shard in front of her - leading one officer to pull out her weapon.

Scroll down for video

Wafa Wazer, 52, had her house in south-west Sydney raided by Middle Eastern Organised Crime Squad officers in May last year

She was found not guilty of assaulting an officer and being armed with intent during the raid (pictured) after she smashed a vase and held a shard in front of her

Police were at the property to serve a firearm order on Ms Wazer's daughter Amany Hamid, 30, a mother of one, the Daily Telegraph reported.

Ms Wazer said she was suicidal when she grabbed the glass, and police believed she intended to harm them.

An officer pulled out her weapon and told Ms Wazer to drop the glass, and she was then handcuffed.

A magistrate in Bankstown Local Court last week found Ms Wazer not guilty, saying she probably only meant to harm herself.

'I came here to Australia from Lebanon when I was 17 years old, I worked seven days a week, made a life,' she said outside court.

'For the police to be at my house every week, three or four times, and all my neighbours looking at me like a stranger. I had enough. I thought why should I live? I had no friends, no support.'

Ms Wazer said she was suicidal when she grabbed the glass, and police believed she intended to harm them

Senior Constable Aaron Jelfs told the court Ms Wazer asked to go back into the house during the raid.

After being told she may be arrested if she continued to act in the same manner, she then fainted.

CCTV footage shows Ms Wazer wearing a dressing gown while officers raid her house. She falls to the floor before being carried inside by a family member.

Lifeline - 13 11 14
An alpaca found itself in a strange situation this week after it became stuck in a muddy dam, unable to wriggle free.

After the alpaca, named Magnum, become stuck a NSW Fire & Rescue crew were called to the dam in Londonderry, in Sydney's north-west, early on Sunday morning, 9News reported.

Station Officer Bill Smith said the crew soon spotted the animal standing in the dam with mud up to its waste.

Scroll down for video

An alpaca named Magnum had to be rescued after it got stuck in a dam

A NSW Fire & Rescue crew was called to the dam in Sydney's north-west

Firefighters used lassos to help free the animal.

Images of the rescue show a crew of eight pulling on the ropes tied around the alpaca's body to heave it out.

Magnum appeared quite claim during the ordeal and was even pictured chewing on grass throughout the rescue.

However, it's owner, Brock Cauchi said Magnum had probably been stuck in the dam for hours and was quite stressed.

'He was really stressed at the time, but he's out and running around,' Mr Cauchi said.

Eight firefighters used three lassos to heave the alpaca out of the mud

Mr Smith said the team had accomplished the rescue smoothly.

'It was a successful rescue,' he said.

Magnum appeared to be in good health after the rescue but will be checked by a vet.

Owner Brock Cauchi was given the animal as a 14th birthday present in 2011.

After they got it out one firefighter pulled the twigs and grass that had become stuck to it's body while in the mud
Advertisement

Bank Holiday revellers looked worse for wear as the second day of the long weekend saw thousands of carefree party-goers flood the streets of Britain.

A horde of Brits, keen to make the most of the break, streamed into nightclubs and bars - throwing caution to the wind as they were snapped getting into all sorts of bother.

Pictures taken in Blackpool and Birmingham show several bleary-eyed clubbers falling asleep in the middle of the street and being hauled off in ambulances as emergency services struggled to cope with the carnage.

The fun looks set to continue throughout the rest of the weekend which is set to be a scorcher with temperatures of up to 30C predicted over the coming few days.

Anyone in Northern Ireland, which will see 'the best of the sunshine' with Scotland, could enjoy record bank holiday temperatures. The current record for Northern Ireland is 77.4F (25.2C), set in Strabane in 1978.

An amorous couple locked in a passionate embrace on the steps of a late night venue in the centre of the Lancashire town of Blackpool

Some clubbers dressed down more than others as they hit the streets on the second night of the May bank holiday weekend

A man is helped onto a stretcher by emergency services and volunteers as authorities responded to a spike in alcohol related callouts

This man looked a little worse for wear as he was carried away over the shoulder of a friend while holding the hand of another man

A worried reveller comforts a woman who seems to have enough of the enormous Rosies nightclub in Birmingham city centre

A man is handcuffed and taken away in a police van by officers trying to quell tempers in the buzzing centre of Blackpool

A barefoot woman wearing her shoes on her hands as she strides away down the road in Blackpool dressed in a sparkly outfit

A high-heeled woman walks past a sleepy partygoer who takes a nap on a step near a popular nightclub in Blackpool

A man is helped back to his feet by passers-by after falling over in the middle of the street at the end of an eventful night out

A man helping his weary friend down Birmingham's Broad Street as both men stagger home after a night of partying

Two women receiving medical advice from an ambulance team outside the PRYZM nightclub in Birmingham on Saturday night
A squadron leader who launched 'off the cuff' airstrikes on ISIS mortars with only minutes of fuel left has been given a gallantry award.

Matt Axcell, 40, planned the complex strikes in just 20 minutes using a pencil, an A5 pad on his knee and a pair of night-vision goggles.

His plane, an RAF Tornado and two Typhoons launched strikes to take out 12 ISIS mortars defending the so-called Black Stadium in the city of Raqqa, Syria, where thugs torture and kill prisoners.

An attack of such complexity had never been attempted before in Syria, and Mr Axcell has been given a Mention in Dispatches gallantry award for his efforts.

Squadron leader Matt Axcell, 40, planned a complex strike on ISIS mortars defending the so-called Black Stadium in the city of Raqqa, Syria, in just 20 minutes

He said: 'Obviously, you consider the implications of the attack but you don't have a chance to think: "This is something we haven't tried before"'

Mr Axcell told the Sunday Times: 'Obviously, you consider the implications of the attack but you don't have a chance to think: "This is something we haven't tried before."

'We were right on the line of getting the aircraft back to base. There was no more fuel available for us that night.'

Each of the planes involved in the strike in July 2017 had been in the air for more than four hours and had already been given their last final refuel.

After the attack, they had just enough fuel to assess the damage from the bombs before returning to base in Cyprus.

Footage released by the Ministry of Defence shows a huge explosion near the stadium after Mr Axcell bombed the ISIS targets.

The mortars had posed a threat to fighters in the Syrian Democratic Forces.

An attack of such complexity had never been attempted before in Syria, and Mr Axcell has been given an Mention in Dispatches gallantry award for his efforts
Truck owners removed their vehicles from some key roads in Brazil overnight and early on Sunday as local and federal governments worked on a new proposal to end a nationwide protest that has caused wide disruption to transporting grains and fuel.

President Michel Temer met with government ministers and with some state-level officials early on Sunday in Brasilia to discuss proposals to resolve the trucking strike.

The proposals include a 10 percent discount on diesel prices for at least 60 days. The federal government would compensate state-run oil company Petrobras SA for any losses from reducing prices.

Truck owners also want toll operators not to charge rear axles that are not in use, such as when trucks pass by the tolls unloaded.

Some trucker groups hinted at accepting those terms late on Saturday in a meeting with the local government in Sao Paulo, home to some of the largest protests.

As a goodwill gesture, trucks started to leave blockades at the Regis Bittencourt federal road, the main corridor linking Brazil's southeast and south regions.

Local media reported on Sunday morning that fuel was starting to reach gas stations in some major cities in the country.

But there were still several blockades in key roads in the nation, hurting the flow of basic supplies and hampering basic services such as trash collection.

Oil workers, who say they support the protests and oppose Petrobras pricing policy that closely tracks international oil market, announced a strike at refineries for Wednesday.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


John Hemingway, 98, who was born in Dublin, is one of the last nine surviving fighter pilots who saved Britain from a Nazi invasion

A Battle of Britain hero who was presumed dead is in fact alive and well, after his family pointed out that he is enjoying a quiet retirement in his native Ireland.

John Hemingway, 98, who was born in Dublin, is one of the last nine surviving fighter pilots who saved Britain from a Nazi invasion.

He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for bravery and shot down four times in the Second World War.

However for many years the war hero had been thought to be missing and presumed dead based on the official roll of honour naming the airmen that are still alive.

It was only until a member of Mr Hemingway's family got in touch with the Battle of Britain Fighter Association to point out the oversight, that their information was amended.

This now means that there are now nine Battle of Britain heroes living in Britain as opposed to eight as what was previously believed.

These nine men are the only survivors of around 3,000 British and allied pilots whose heroic defence of Britain was described by then Prime Minister Winston Churchill as: 'Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so Few.'

Mr Hemingway's son, Brian, 66, from Guildford, Surrey told The Mirror: 'He's not particularly interested in the past. Like so many of his generation, he doesn't feel as though he did anything special.

'But he likes the idea he's one of the last nine and he's tickled by the fact that he's the last known Irishman to have fought in the Battle of Britain.

'He's loved and he's not forgotten and that's the way he likes it.'

After joining the RAF in 1938, Mr Hemingway was posted to France when war against Germany was declared to provide air support for the British Expeditionary Force.

After drowning his first enemy plane in May 1940, which was a Dornier bomber, his Hurricane fighter plane was targeted and hit by anti-aircraft fire and had to make a forced landing.

Battle of Britain hero Mr Hemingway (pictured in his younger days) who was presumed dead is in fact alive and well

And between July and October 1940, Mr Hemingway had to bail out first after intercepting a flight of German Junkers over the North Sea, where he was saved by a ship that had been passing by.

The second time saw him jump for his life after firing on German planes above the Essex coast.

After he was posted to Italy as a squadron leader, his Spitfire was hit by German ground fire in April, 1945 and he bailed out again.

The years following the war he continued to serve in the RAF before retiring as a group captain in September 1969.

Other post-war RAF jobs included stints at Nato in Paris and the Air Ministry.

After the death of his wife Bridget, Mr Hemingway now lives at a nursing home on the outskirts of Dublin.

John Pulfer, head of the Battle of Britain Historical Society, said: 'His nephew wrote asking why his uncle wasn't on the list of the Few left alive.

'We were not aware he was alive. It's a great thrill to have another veteran to add to the list. It's not often you get to say we've got one more of the Few.'
Cancer cases relating to breast implants have skyrocketed in the last year-and-a-half - as the companies responsible for the defective implants allegedly refuse to compensate those affected.

Cancers linked to breast implants have increased by 56.5 per cent in the last 18 months, mostly related to providers offering cheap implants after getting them at discount prices.

In that time, 72 women have contracted cancer related to their breast implants and three have died.

Many of those affected had implants put in after mastectomies and face dealing with another cancer scare.

Cancer cases relating to breast implants have skyrocketed in the last year-and-a-half - as the companies responsible for the defective implants allegedly refuses to compensate those affected (stock image)

Stacey Franks, 50, was told last month that she had cancer, 10 years after she had Allergan implants put in.

After her left breast swelled to double its size, an ultrasound showed the implant had ruptured.

Eight days after it was removed, the mother-of-two was told fluid around the implant had tested positive for a lymphoma.

The cancer had not spread, but she refused to get new implants, saying 'vanity is not worth it'.

The experience cost her $7,700 in medical expenses and she lost a $2,000 deposit on a birthday holiday to New York.

Half of the 120,000 women who had breast implants in the six years from 2010 to 2015 were given Biocell devices made by Allergan and Silimed, which have a higher risk of cancer, according to Macquarie University plastic surgeon Professor Anand Deva and Associate Professor Mark Magnusson.

Their research found the risk of developing cancer is 23.4 times higher for women with the rough textured Silimed implant and 16.5 times higher for women with Biocell implants compared to those with smoother Siltex implants.

Cancers linked to breast implants have increased by 56.5 per cent in the last 18 months, mostly related to providers offering cheap implants after getting them at discount prices (stock image)

Together with Brazil, Australia has the highest rate of using the implants in the world.

The risk calculations the two professors came up with have been challenged by the Australasian College of Cosmetic surgery.

ACCS chief censor Dr Patrick Tansley said analysis of the data carried out by 'the college and others' found their claims to be 'substantially incorrect'.

Medical watchdog Therapeutic Goods Administration has refused to ban the implants but has convened a panel to advise it.

Professor Deva's research suggests bacteria in the fluid around breast implants is causing the cancer.

An Allergan spokesman told Daily Mail Australia they were the first implant manufacturer to add breast implant associated-anaplastic large cell lymphoma to their global breast implant warranty.

'The warranty provides out-of-pocket surgical cost assistance toward the removal of the breast implant(s) and the associated scar tissue (complete capsulectomy). Allergan will also provide replacement implant(s) at no charge.'
Lisa Wilkinson has criticised Barnaby Joyce's reported acceptance of a $150,000 deal with the Seven Network to tell his story in an exclusive interview.

The Project host accused the former deputy prime minister of being a hypocrite because he begged the media for privacy during his highly publicised affair with his former staffer Vikki Campion.

'He can't insist he wants privacy for his new partner and baby - and then sell his story to the highest bidder for $150K, as he has reportedly done with Channel Seven,' the former Today Show presenter wrote in an article for Ten Daily.

Lisa Wilkinson (pictured) has hit out at Barnaby Joyce for reportedly agreeing to a $150,000 deal with the Seven Network to do an exclusive interview about his affair with Vikki Campion

The Project host accused the former deputy prime minister (pictured) of being a hypocrite because he begged the media for privacy during his highly publicised affair

Mr Joyce urged the media to 'move on' in an unpaid interview with Fairfax in February and asked to be left alone.

The proceeds of the sit-down interview, where he is expected to go into detail about his relationship with Ms Campion, will be passed on to their son, Sebastian, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

Ms Wilkinson took aim at Mr Joyce's recent moves toward resurrecting his reputation in parliament and his apparent dedication to helping win the next election.

'He can't maintain that all he wants now is to focus on seeing the Government win the next election - and then re-open one of the most personally icky, politically and morally hypocritical, troublesome and damaging episodes in the life of the Turnbull era,' she wrote.

Sebastian Joyce is only six weeks old but the son of Mr Joyce (right) and Ms Campion (left) is set to pocket $150,000 from his first on-air interview

Mr Joyce and Ms Campion (pictured) will still have to declare the proceeds of the interview on the parliamentary register of members' interests

The opinion piece detailed how she believed Mr Joyce didn't have the right to both 'be a working politician, still living off the public purse' and run 'a money-making operation on the side'.

'He can't say he wants to work hard to rehabilitate his image and credibility with the public, with a view to remaking himself - and then invite the media circus back into town, while he helps them sell tickets to the Big Show.'

Speculation circulated over Mr Joyce's increasing financial costs after his pay was reduced by more than $200,000 a year - from $416,000 to $203,030 when he resigned from the role and returned to the backbench.

However, an industry insider told The Telegraph the money had gone into a trust fund for Sebastian 'to be independently administered at a future date'.

Ms Wilkinson (pictured) said she believed Mr Joyce didn't have the right to both 'be a working politician, still living off the public purse' and run 'a money-making operation on the side'

Mr Joyce, who urged the media to 'move on' in an unpaid interview with Fairfax in February and appealed for privacy, has agreed to sell the story of his relationship to Seven

'Lawyers ultimately get to decide if it should be accessed for the child's education or if it will go to the child as a lump sum when he gets to 18 or possibly older,' the insider said.

'The baby's parents have no say in it and cannot access it.'

Ms Wilkinson was not convinced the money would be kept for the youngster, saying she'd 'heard it all before'.

'And yes, yes, yes, there are claims that he won't personally benefit from the money, that it will all be put in a trust fund that he won't control etc. Please. We have heard it all before. For decades,' she said.

The presenter took one final dig at Mr Joyce, encouraging him to evaluate whether the interview would be a smart move for him long-term.

'Barnaby, you really can't have it both ways. If you'll sell yourself, your family and your government out in that manner, what won't you sell?.'
Jacob Rees-Mogg arrived at TV studios today flanked by his lookalike 10 year old son Peter.

The Tory backbencher and his Mini Me arrived at the BBC studios early this morning before Rees-Mogg senior was interviewed by Andrew Marr.

Peter was dressed identically to his father in a dark suit, tie and smart shoes.

In his interview, Mr Rees-Mogg told the Prime Minister to threaten the EU with cancelling Britain's 40billion Brexit divorce deal to secure a trade deal.

The Brexiteer ring leader warned the negotiations so far have been 'all one way' but insisted Britain retrained a strong hand in the negotiations.

He warned Mrs May had made an 'error' by ruling out Britain unilaterally leaving the Irish border open regardless of the outcome of negotiations.

Mr Rees-Mogg - who arrived at the TV studios with his son Peter today - said the major issues in the talks remained simple and should be seen as no more than an exchange between Britain's exit payments and a trade deal.

Mr Rees-Mogg arrived at the BBC studios with his son Peter ahead of his Marr interview this morning

Jacob Rees-Mogg today told the Prime Minister to threaten the EU with cancelling Britain's 40billion Brexit divorce deal to secure a trade deal

Despite his stern warning to Downing Street, Mr Rees-Mogg insisted it was 'ridiculous' to suggest he would challenge Theresa May for power

He told the BBC's Andrew Marr all other issues would be resolved once this deal was confirmed in negotiations.

Despite his stern warning to Downing Street, Mr Rees-Mogg insisted it was 'ridiculous' to suggest he would challenge Mrs May for power or approached his dealings with 'menace'.

Mr Rees-Mogg said: 'I very much support the Prime Minister's approach in remaining within the negotiations.

'We are paying 40billion and in return we want a trade deal. The 40billion is of great importance to the EU.

'Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.'

He added: 'Basically, the deal is very simple - we are paying a very large amount of money, 40 billion, and in return we want a trade deal.

'Everything else is essentially incidental to that.'

Mr Rees-Mogg warned Remain supporters that even if Mrs May were to defy his wishes and agree an effective extension of the customs union, it would not solve the dilemma around the Irish border.

Mr Rees-Mogg said the major issues in the talks remained simple and should be seen as no more than an exchange between Britain's exit payments and a trade deal

He said the necessary regulatory alignment would amount to staying in the single market and frustrating Brexit.

Mr Rees-Mogg said Mrs May had made a mistake over her approach to the Irish border issue, one of the most contentious aspects of the negotiations, by ruling out the prospect of unilaterally keeping an open frontier after Brexit.

WHEN WILL BRITAIN BE OUT OF THE EU? Britain triggered Article 50 on March 29, 2017, starting a two year process for leaving the EU: March 2018: Outline transition deal agreed, running for about two years June 2018: EU summit that Brussels says should consider broad principles of a future trade deal. October 2018: Political agreement on the future partnership due to be reached Early 2019: Major votes in Westminster and Brussels to ratify the deal March 29, 2019: Article 50 expires, Britain leaves the EU. Transition is expected to keep everything the same for about two years December 31, 2020: Transition expected to come to an end and the new relationship - if it has been agreed - should kick in Advertisement

Mr Rees-Mogg said: 'The Prime Minister said in her Mansion House speech that she wasn't going to do this, I think that is a mistake.

'I think it is the obvious negotiating position to have. Bear in mind the Irish economy is heavily dependent on its trade with the United Kingdom, it is overwhelmingly in the interests of the Republic of Ireland to maintain an open border with the United Kingdom.

'I think, if you are going into a negotiation, you should use your strongest cards and just to tear one of them up and set hares running on other issues is, I think, an error.'

The MP vowed his European Research Group - a lobby of Brexiteer Tory MPs - was determined to back the Prime Minister in enforcing her red lines.

And he paid tribute to Mrs May as the 'most impressive and dutiful leader that this country has had' as he dismissed claims he could challenge her for power.

Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith told Sky's Ridge on Sunday that anyone plotting to overthrow Mrs May should 'shut up' and get on with delivering Brexit.

Deputy Labour leader Tom Watson said no decision had yet been made on whether Labour MPs would be whipped to oppose membership of the single market when the Commons votes on the issue in June.

'We haven't decided our whipping arrangements yet,' he said on ITV's Peston on Sunday, adding: 'We haven't made a decision yet, but we've been pretty clear that there are deficiencies in the Norway model that might not work for a bespoke UK deal.'
Former senator Jacqui Lambie has jumped back into the dating scene after 15 years of being single.

The 47-year-old Tasmanian documented her quest for love, from speed-dating to raunchy sex-toy themed parties with her girlfriends, on Channel Seven's Sunday Night.

'So I don't have a bloke, first of all, because I guess I've been by myself for so long, I've just switched off on that side of life, and I'm actually finding that quite difficult,' she told the program.

Scroll down for video

Before her quest for love begins, Ms Lambie attended a vibrator party with her girlfriends. 'My cheeks were still hurting the next day from laughing.'

'I think that what I'm looking for is just a good Aussie bloke, can hold his own. Um, you know, doesn't have too much drama in his life. Preferably none at all.

Before the manhunt begins, Ms Lambie attends a vibrator party with her girlfriends, during which she checked out toys and lacy lingerie.

'I tell you what - that's the most fun I've had in years,' she said.

To meet eligible men, Ms Lambie attended a speed-dating event, downloaded apps like Tinder and Bumble and hired a matchmaker, who also gave the 47-year-old a makeover.

She even travelled to NSW to attend a Bachelor and Spinster Ball with a girlfriend.

During the series of dates, she found chemistry with a fly-in, fly-out mine worker, an IT worker originally from Mexico and a successful single father.

Despite the popularity of dating apps, Ms Lambie appeared uncomfortable flicking through the profiles of numerous men.

'So when it comes to these online apps, they are very sketchy. I basically don't know who's who in the zoo,' she said.

'They're worse than what Facebook is at the moment, and I'm quite disgusted in the way some of these apps are running.'

Set up by matchmaker Samantha Jayne, Jacqui Lambie's blind date with Gregg was a success and resulted in her being invited to dinner at his home with him and his son (pictured)

In an opinion piece penned for The Sunday Telegraph, Ms Lambie called for a Senate inquiry into those apps, saying they're 'just not all they're cracked up to be.'

'If you ask your mates, everyone has had a tough time meeting people online or via Bumble and the rest of them,' she wrote.

Ms Lambie's televised quest to find love sparked a mixed reaction on social media.

'We worked so well on worthy legislation. Wish you were back. Tonight's TV was cringeworthy. Vomitville. You're so much better than that,' federal senator Derryn Hinch tweeted.

Another man added: 'Jacqui Lambie sitting with a table full of dildos and vibrators next to her is hands down the weirdest thing I've seen in 2018.'

During the series of dates, she found chemistry with a fly-in, fly-out mine worker, an IT worker originally from Mexico and a successful single father

But the feedback wasn't all critical.

'This episode of all about Jacqui Lambie looking for love is actually fantastic,' one man tweeted.

Ms Lambie said her search for Mr Right is in its early days but the three real-life dates gave her hope.

'I just want somebody that is going to not just be my partner, but my best friend as well for the rest of my life. That's what I'm looking for.'
A police officer whose leg was amputated after a car accident while he was manning a random breath test unit stands to lose hundreds of thousands of dollars - all because he was working while it happened.

Policemen Jonathon Wright and Matthew Foley were working a random breath test site in Sydney's southwest in February when a distracted driver plowed into the pair, trapping them between a car and police van.

Constable Wright's leg had to be amputated after the smash, and now he faces losing a significant amount of money because of a conflict between compulsory third-party insurance and the workers' compensation scheme, the Sunday Telegraph reported.

An amendment to the law made in December means anyone injured in a car accident while working can receive workers' compensation for medical treatment and financial loss.

Scroll down for video

A police officer whose leg was amputated after a car accident while he was manning a random breath test unit stands to lose hundreds of thousands of dollars

Constable Jonathon Wright's leg had to be amputated after the smash, and now he faces losing a significant amount of money because of a conflict between compulsory third-party insurance and the workers' compensation scheme

Driver Jakob Thornton, 22, appeared in court accused of ploughing into the policemen at 60km/h while looking at his phone

They can also ask for a payout for loss of earnings and damages under the compulsory third party scheme - however if they do both the victim is obliged to repay treatment expenses to the workers' compensation insurer, and they are unable to claim future medical expenses.

Because of this, Constable Wright - a husband and father to three young children - will lose 'hundreds of thousands of dollars', according to Australian Lawyers Alliance state president Andrew Stone.

Constable Wright was on duty at a random breath test site in west Sydney when a Fiat van driver allegedly smashed into him and colleague Matthew Foley.

He was rushed to hospital where his leg was amputated 15cm above his foot.

Constable Wright - a husband and father to three young children - will lose 'hundreds of thousands of dollars' according to Australian Lawyers Alliance state president Andrew Stone

One of the constables is pictured being taken into hospital by ambulance after the crash

Driver Jakob Thornton, 22, appeared in court accused of plowing into the policemen at 60km/h while looking at his phone.

He faced Parramatta Bail Court via video link, charged with dangerous driving offences, including dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm and using a mobile phone when not permitted.

The court heard Mr Thornton lost his licence four times in four years, and was fined in 2016 for using his mobile while driving, The Daily Telegraph reported.

Mr Thornton then admitted to police officers he was looking at his phone for 10 to 20 seconds when he crashed into the two officers, the court heard.

'Ten to 20 seconds at 60 kilometres an hour, that is a few hundred metres,' magistrate John Favretto said, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Prosecutor senior sergeant Leesa McEvoy told the court police lights and safety measures were in place as the constables set up the road side breath testing site.

'The strength of the prosecution case is nothing short of solid,' senior sergeant McEvoy added.
A newly married couple were left heartbroken after returning from their honeymoon to find a 6ft fence had been erected around their dream home.

Thomas Entwistle, 27, and his wife Rebekah, 24, described the enormous wooden fence as 'like the Berlin Wall' as it has spoiled the view from their house in Blackburn, Lancashire.

Music teacher Thomas was dumbfounded to discover the wooden barrier standing just 2ft from their front door and living room windows.

It is believed the eyesore was erected by a nearby farmer who is in a long-running legal dispute with the developer who built the home.

Thomas Entwistle standing between the fence and the front door of his home in Blackburn, Lancashire

Thomas Entwistle, 27, and his wife Rebekah, 24, had both returned from a ten day honeymoon when they found it

The fence at the front of the house which was built by property developer giants Persimmon

Thomas and Rebekah moved into the 220,000 four-bedroomed property on Persimmon Homes Brook View, just before Christmas.

They arrived home from an 11-day honeymoon in the Dominican Republic earlier this month to find their home's outlook blocked by the intrusive wooden panel.

And they say that since their return, their lives have been ruined by the fence - and they are even considering moving out.

Furious Thomas understands the fence was erected by the owner of nearby Upper Mickle Hay Farm in a dispute with Persimmon over land borders.

However, Persimmon insists that none of its development encroaches on land it does not already own.

Thomas said: 'This was our dream home and now it's turned into a nightmare - it feels like we are imprisoned in our own house by this fence.

'We are being held hostage in a land dispute which is nothing to do with us.

'Rebekah and I have just started our own business and had to fight to get a mortgage and then to get this house.

Mr Entwistle was shocked to find that the enormous fence stands just two feet from his living room window

The couple compared the structure to the Berlin Wall as it obscured their view of the surrounding countryside

'We bought it because of the view which has now been replaced by a huge wooden fence nailed to our own little one.

'Rebekah is always in tears. She is in despair - there was no warning and the fence just appeared.

'It is 2ft from our front window and front door - it's like having the Berlin Wall in front of our home.'

Now exasperated Thomas and his wife, who married in July, say they would not have even considered the property if they had known the trouble in store for them.

Thomas said: 'We're not even sure we want to live here now.

'Even if the fence gets taken down there is no guarantee it won't come back later or even be extended around the back - we are in fear of that.'

The couple moved into the 220,000 four-bedroom home just before Christmas last year

Thomas Entwistle and Cllr Sylvia Liddle who are petitioning the developer to do something about the fence

The couple, who had moved from rented accommodation, have considered employing their own solicitor.

Thomas added: 'At first I was tearful but now I'm angry.

'We specifically bought this house, beating off a lot of competition, for its beautiful views and now they've gone.

'We now keep the curtains closed in the front room and spend most of our time upstairs - Rebekah is too upset to be in the living room.

A neighbour, whose front path has been obstructed by this new 4ft wire fence put up by the farmer has said: 'When we first bought the plot before we moved in, we were told our fence would be about 4ft tall. It is smaller than that

'Two weeks ago I came out and saw him putting up this wire fencing. He claimed he was setting his boundaries. He only went so far up because the metal fencing put up by the builders is still up too,' she said

'If my cat was still alive, he wouldn't have been able to get out because of the fencing,' the neighbour added

'We just want it sorted out quickly and permanently so we can enjoy our new home in peace.'

A spokesman for Persimmon Homes said: 'We are confident none of our development encroaches on land not legitimately within our ownership.

'We understand planning enforcement action is being taken against the neighbouring landowner to address the fence, which has been erected illegally and in breach of planning regulations.'

The owner of Upper Mickle Hey Farm has been contacted for comment.

A neighbour, whose front path has been obstructed by this new 4ft wire fence put up by the farmer has said: 'When we first bought the plot before we moved in, we were told our fence would be about 4ft tall. It is smaller than that.

'Two weeks ago I came out and saw him putting up this wire fencing.

'He claimed he was setting his boundaries. He only went so far up because the metal fencing put up by the builders is still up too.

'He already has a cattle grid so I doubt any of his animals would get down here anyway.

'If my cat was still alive, he wouldn't have been able to get out because of the fencing.'
There are sharia law whippings, the looming threat of hanging and murderers, thieves and drug runners crammed into crowded cells.

Welcome to the sprawling Malaysian prison complex where an Australian grandmother may spend her final days - after she was sentenced to death by hangman's noose.

Maria Elvira Pinto Exposto, 54, was handed the morbid sentence this week during a rare trip outside the walls of Kajang Women's Prison, at Selangor.

Welcome to the sprawling Malaysian prison complex where an Australian grandmother may spend her final days - after she was sentenced to death by hangman's noose

Maria Elvira Pinto Exposto, 54, was handed the morbid sentence this week during a rare trip outside the walls of Kajang Women's Prison, at Selangor

Ms Exposto is one of 2000 female prisoners behind its pale walls and razor fencing

The female inmates are packed in about 'six or seven to a cell' and eat simple, nutritious meals 'including chicken and rice', a prison official told MailOnline

And a former prisoner, Emma L'Aiguille, has previously told media that life behind Kajang's bars involved 'being crammed (together) like sardines' and sleeping on mattresses just 5cm thick

Food is delivered several times a day on trays with a plastic mug of tea

Ms Exposto is one of 2,000 female prisoners behind its pale walls and razor fencing.

She is not even the most well known, with the two women accused of murdering North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's half-brother with a toxic nerve agent last February also calling Kajang home.

The female inmates are packed in about 'six or seven to a cell' and eat simple, nutritious meals 'including chicken and rice', a prison official told Daily Mail Australia.

And a former prisoner, Emma L'Aiguille, has previously told media that life behind Kajang's bars involved 'being crammed (together) like sardines' and sleeping on mattresses just 5cm thick.

'I was freaked out because I didn't know what was happening,' said Ms L'Aiguille, an Australian whose drug charges were dropped after four months in 2012. 'I was scared of never coming out again.'

Food is delivered several times a day on trays with a plastic mug of tea.

Prison staff often spend most of their day behind the jail walls, with many workers living in units elsewhere on the complex, which includes a large men's jail.

Prison staff demonstrate how a caning process is carried out at Kajang prison

Staff often spend most of their day behind the jail walls, with many workers living in units elsewhere on the complex, which includes a large men's jail

School groups made up of troubled children often visit to watch presentations about whippings and the gallows as a warning not to fall into a life of crime

Well behaved prisoners read books and play games to pass the time. Some low-risk female inmates even work at a beauty spa

Ms Exposto was arrested at Kuala Lumpur airport in December 2014 after authorities found 1.1kg of methamphetamine stitched into the lining of her bag

School groups made up of troubled children often visit to watch presentations about whippings and the gallows as a warning not to fall into a life of crime.

Well behaved prisoners read books and play games to pass the time. Some low-risk female inmates even work at a beauty spa for locals and prison staff located on the prison grounds.

Less well behaved prisoners face the threat of punishment. In 2010, local media reported that three Muslim women were caned at the jail after they were found guilty of engaging in illicit sex.

'The punishment is supposed to be symbolic and a deterrent rather than aimed at causing pain,' an AsiaOne news account explained.

There is little doubt life in prison has been an eye-opening experience for Ms Exposto.

Less well behaved prisoners face the threat of punishment. In 2010, local media reported that three Muslim women were caned at the jail after they were found guilty of engaging in illicit sex

There is little doubt life in prison has been an eye-opening experience for Ms Exposto

Aside from court appearances, her brushes with the outside world are rare

Aside from court appearances, her brushes with the outside world are rare.

Visitors include her Australia-based son, Hugo, a local Malaysian man known as Max and her legal team.

Ms Exposto's representatives have claimed in court she was just a 'naive and innocent mule' when she picked up a bag laced with crystal methamphetamine and brought it to Malaysia.

Ms Exposto believed she was in an internet relationship with a 'Captain David Smith' of the US Armed Forces, courts have heard.

She flew to Shanghai, China to meet him, but claimed 'Captain Smith' never showed up and a man instead asked her to take a backpack to Melbourne on his behalf.

Visitors include her Australia-based son, Hugo, a local Malaysian man known as Max and her legal team

Ms Exposto's representatives have claimed in court she was just a 'naive and innocent mule' when she picked up a bag laced with crystal methamphetamine and brought it to Malaysia

Ms Exposto believed she was in an internet relationship with a 'Captain David Smith' of the US Armed Forces, courts have heard

She was arrested at Kuala Lumpur airport in December 2014 after authorities found 1.1kg of methamphetamine stitched into the lining of her bag.

Ms Exposto had not been required to walk through immigration at the time and reportedly volunteered her bags to Customs for inspection.

It was the beginning of the nightmare that would bring her to Kajang.

But things could soon change for Ms Exposto behind jail walls.

A prison source claimed inmates on death row are generally moved to individual cells.

Ms Exposto will appeal her sentence, and no doubt hopes Kajang is not the last place she calls home.

Ms Exposto had not been required to walk through immigration at the time and reportedly volunteered her bags to Customs for inspection

A prison source claimed inmates on death row are generally moved to individual cells
Gordon Brown will wade back into the Brexit debate this week to demand a second referendum on the final deal.

The ex-Prime Minister will join the Labour Against Brexit campaign seeking to frustrate the 2016 vote to quit the European Union.

Mr Brown's speech will heap pressure on Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn who backs the Government on delivering Brexit. Labour has its own demands for the deal but opposes a second referendum.

He will be introduced by his wife Sarah Brown, the Sunday Express revealed, in the pair's first joint appearance on the political stage since he was PM.

Gordon Brown will wade back into the Brexit debate this week to demand a second referendum on the final deal

In comments made last year, Mr Brown predicted that by now voters would be clamouring for another referendum.

He said there would be a 'crisis point' this summer when 'the public will have made up their mind that the four red lines that the Government had actually set in place are going to be crossed.

'So we will not have proper control of borders. We will not have proper control of our money. We're still going to pay loads of money to the EU.'

Mr Corbyn spent two days in Northern Ireland this week promoting his own vision of how to make Brexit work.

He addressed a meeting of business leaders in Londonderry: 'Please, to the parties in Stormont: you have to come together to re-form a government there.

'It is impossible to go through a period so crucial as Brexit negotiations without a voice for Northern Ireland being made at the table by the political classes in Northern Ireland.

'I hope they understand that message and I hope that we can make very rapid progress on that.

'There is to be a transition period but the transition period is not unlimited, that we well know, and crucial decisions are going to be made in the next three months and I understand very clearly the message that you have given me here this morning.'

Mr Brown's speech will heap pressure on Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn who backs the Government on delivering Brexit

A 'backstop' border option if no other deal was reached with the EU would see Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK follow Brussels regulations relating to co-operation on the island of Ireland to protect frictionless all-island trade.

The British Government has said it is focused on securing a customs deal which would avoid the need for such a backstop and has ruled out anything which would create a regulatory difference between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

Mr Corbyn walked the Lifford bridge between Northern Ireland and the Republic, close to the Co Tyrone town of Strabane, and took selfies with passers-by.

He supports a customs arrangement with the EU to protect trade and ensure no regulatory barriers after Brexit.

The British Government is examining whether a customs partnership or a technological solution to border checks can be made to work.

The Opposition leader added: 'Any kind of border, physical border, virtual reality border, technological border, whatever, would be very damaging to the economy.'
A woman has been hauled off a flight by federal police after hurling abuse at passengers and crew members.

The Queensland woman, 47, was on a Jetstar flight from Melbourne to Brisbane on Sunday.

About 20 minutes after the flight had taken off, she began singing and chanting loudly, Nine News reported.

A woman has been hauled off a flight by federal police after hurling abuse at passengers and crew members

She was making so much noise that children around her began to cry.

Cabin crew and passengers attempted to intervene and calm the woman down but she swatted them away with a Bible she was holding.

Members of the Australian Federal Police boarded the plane after it landed in Brisbane and escorted the woman away.

The Queensland woman, 47, was on a Jetstar flight from Melbourne to Brisbane on Sunday

She continued to shriek once inside the airport.

'Once in the terminal, the woman allegedly became agitated and aggressive and refused to comply with directions from AFP officers,' an Australian Federal Police spokesperson said.

'For the welfare of the woman, an ambulance was called and she was taken to hospital for physical and psychiatric assessment.'

In a statement, Jetstar confirmed a 'disruptive' passenger was removed from one of their flights after she 'refused to follow crew instructions'.
Egypts improved economic performance has created more jobs, but experts say still more are needed

Egypts unemployment rate fell to 10.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2018 from 11.3 per cent in the same period in 2017, according to statistics from the Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS). This figure is also an improvement over 2016 when unemployment reached 12.5 per cent.

The number of people in employment rose to around 26 million, while the number of those looking for jobs stood at around three million, representing 10.6 per cent of the total workforce. The latter is estimated at about 29 million, according to CAPMAS.

The present unemployment rate is the lowest seen over the past four years, and it is expected to reach 10.4 per cent during the third quarter of the current fiscal year. The government hopes to cut unemployment further to 8.5 per cent by 2021-2022 and four per cent by 2030.

The drop in the unemployment rate is an important positive development since unemployment is not only an economic problem but also a political and social one, said Ihab Al-Dessouki, head of the Economics Department at the Al-Sadat Academy for Administrative Sciences in Cairo.

However, tackling unemployment still needed a lot of efforts, he said. The number of unemployed is likely to be higher than the official figure, which does not include seasonal or temporary workers.

According to the Ministry of Manpower and Immigration, the number of temporary workers who have recently registered their data for the governments new insurance programme has reached two million.

The insurance programme provided by the public-sector banks aims to provide a source of income in the case of the death of policy-holders to the families of seasonal labourers, farmers, and other workers who do not have regular social security coverage.

Egypt needs one million job opportunities at least every year to address the unemployment problem, Al-Dessouki said.

Labour-intensive industries needed to be established to create the needed jobs, he said, adding that the issue should not be just about providing employment, but also about creating productive jobs that can help to boost the economy.

He attributed the unemployment problem to the failure of the educational system to provide the market with needed skills.

Subjects taught at school and universities were too often not compatible with job requirements, he said, and there needed to be more attention paid towards providing quality technical education.

The private sector had a role to play in providing jobs, Al-Dessouki added, but it was the role of government to create a suitable business environment to attract more local as well as foreign investments.

Although it is a fundamental right for all citizens to be employed, many people continue to struggle to find a job and make a living. This has negative repercussion on society, Al-Dessouki added.

Mohamed Sherif Dawoud, a consultant to the Arab Labour Organisation, attributed the reduction in the unemployment rate to the national mega-projects that are currently underway and have helped to absorb large portions of the workforce, especially in construction.

The construction sector had helped to provide around 3.7 million jobs representing 10 per cent of workers in the domestic market, according to Planning Minister Hala Al-Said.

She said the sector was expected to achieve 12 per cent growth in the coming fiscal year, meaning that it could provide more jobs. Dawoud told Al-Ahram Weekly that faster economic growth was the best means of generating jobs.

Egypts GDP growth for the third quarter of the 2017-18 fiscal year rose to 5.4 per cent from 4.3 per cent in the same period last year, the best growth rate in seven years, Al-Said has said.

The higher growth rate is attributed to the economic reform programme that the government put in place in November 2016, which is tied to a $12 billion three-year Extended Fund Facility from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

To induce growth further, the government has other projects up its sleeve. The Ministry of Planning has announced that LE26 billion will be allocated to finance investment projects in Upper Egypt and that LE3 billion will be directed to develop south and north Sinai in the budget of 2018/2019.

In parallel to the governments mega-projects, Dawoud said that the private sector had also been working to expand already established projects and make new investments to benefit from the economic and political stability achieved over the past two years.

He was optimistic that Egypt was on the right path towards achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals such as reducing unemployment and poverty rates and improving healthcare and food security by 2030.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 May 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly with headline: Unemployment down

Search Keywords:

Short link:


The Electoral Commission has earmarked more than 800,000 to run elections to the European Parliament next year despite Brexit.

The election watchdog admitted it was unlikely to ever run the polls because Britain is not supposed to ever elect MEPs again.

But it insisted that it had to prepare for the possibility of polls, which would have been due next spring if Britain had not voted for Brexit.

The 73 current MEPs are due to end their terms early on March 29 next year when the Article 50 process expires. Laws for new elections still need to be repealed.

The Electoral Commission has earmarked more than 800,000 to run elections to the European Parliament next year despite Brexit

After the 829,000 contingency plan was revealed, the Commission said: 'A provision in our budget was made so that the commission has the necessary funds to deliver our functions at a European parliamentary election, in the unlikely event that they do go ahead.'

Adding that none of the money had been spent, the Commission added: 'No money has been spent on preparing for European parliamentary elections in 2019 and the commission does not anticipate spending any money, pending the UK government repealing the necessary legislation.'

Any provision to go ahead with European elections will fuel fears among some Brexiteers that the Government and wider political establishment is not committed to delivering on the 2016 referendum.

Andrew Bridgen, Tory MP for North West Leicestershire, attacked the commission, which he claims has a pro-remain bias after four board members made public statements criticising the leave campaign or backing calls for the referendum result to be overturned.

The 73 current MEPs - including Nigel Farage - are due to end their terms early on March 29 next year when the Article 50 process expires. Laws for new elections still need to be repealed

He told the Sunday Times: 'Members serving on the board of the Electoral Commission have made no secret of their contempt for Brexit.

'Are we to believe it's an accident that it has budgeted for next year's European parliament election with the support of the Speaker, John Bercow, who is a staunch remainer?

'Unfortunately Bercow has been given the opportunity to waste a huge amount of taxpayers' money by the government's delay in dealing with the House of Lords wrecking amendments to the EU withdrawal bill.

'We need to reject the amendments and send the prime minister off to the June European Council summit with a strong Brexit mandate from parliament.'
Advertisement

Works on the enormous Spire London building have ground to a halt after it was revealed residents on the upper floors of the skyscraper will only have access to one escape stairwell.

At 67-storeys tall, the tower was set to be the tallest residential skyscraper in western Europe when opened in 2020 - but the revelations about its lack of safety provisions have raised questions over what the completed project will look like.

Safety experts have warned that the building will need at least two staircases for the hulking structure in order to make it safe for future residents.

Russ Timpson, secretary of the Tall Building Fire Safety Network, said: 'I am reminded of the Titanic and the fact there were not enough lifeboats for the passengers. "Don't worry," they said. "It will never sink".'

The skyscraper is set to become the largest residential tower in western Europe when it is completed in two years time

The location, height and design of the building means there will be stunning views across the capital including the City of London

The apartments have been designed with 'cool living' at the heart, with large, open plan living areas, like this lounge and dining space

Residents will have views across the capital of the River Thames, Canary Wharf, and the City of London and its numerous landmarks

Current regulations mean that tall commercial buildings are required to provide two or more exit stairwells in case of a fire or emergency.

But residential properties are not subject to the same stringent conditions and are only required to provide one exit route.

'If you're building an office block in this country over 36ft, you need two stairwells, but you can build a residential tower to infinity with one stairwell,' another fire safty consultant told the Sunday Times.

The Chinese developer behind the scheme, Greenland Group, said this week they would be launching a review of the design in order to determine 'the most up-to-date design specification'.

The developer was also said to be reviewing the economics behind the project because of recent turbulence in the London property market.

Sir David Amess, a Tory MP, said: 'I would now urge the developer to ensure that there are two vertical escapes for all residents. Common sense tells you that it's not sensible to rely on one stairwell with these enormously high buildings.'

Spire, in Canary Wharf, will stand at a jaw-dropping 771ft tall if completed to plan and is rumoured to be costing around 800 million to construct.

Once built the block will contain 861 opulent apartments offering panoramic views across the whole of London.

Flats will include designer kitchens with breakfast bars, walk-in wardrobes and private roof terraces, all in an airy high-ceiling space

The high ceilings and floor to ceiling windows give the rooms an open and airy feel and help residents make the most of the incredible views
TV presenter Ben Fogle was among a record number of climbers who tried to scale Mount Everest when oxygen gear failed 20 times in one day.

On what was the busiest day that the world's highest mountain had seen, oxygen equipment failed a number of times in the 'death zone' above 26,000ft.

TV presenter Ben Fogle was among a record number of climbers who tried to scale Mount Everest when oxygen gear failed 20 times in one day

Summit Oxygen, the equipment supplier, claimed that in six years its devices had never failed however on this occasion 20 did so in one day

This happened as a record amount of people took advantage of the calm climbing conditions to reach the mountain peak.

Equipment supplier, Summit Oxygen, claimed that in six years its devices had never failed however on this occasion 20 did so in one day.

As around 140 people reached the Nepalese side of the mountain and more arriving at the summit from Tibet disaster began to strike.

The failures are said to have potential of being the biggest disaster since Everest's worst day in 2015 where an earthquake caused an avalanche which killed 22 people.

TV's Fogle says that his oxygen devices failed on two occassions.

The first time his life was saved was by a Sherpa handing over his equipment and the next by his expedition leader, Kenton Cool.

Fogle told the Sunday Times: 'It felt as if I was suddenly stepping into an Everest horror book.'

Team leader of the climb David Hamilton, also told the newspaper that the event on May 16 could be described as 'a lot of people in their private hell.'

He added: 'Each has a bottle of oxygen which will keep them alive for a couple of hours, but if the guy in front gets into trouble you can't give them yours.'

According to Summit Oxygen, climbers on the Tibetan side there were 18 or 19 device failures that day.

Fogle said of the incident that: 'It felt as if I was suddenly stepping into an Everest horror book'

For the teams on the Nepalese side, which included Fogle's, the number of failures is still under investigation.

Fogle, 44, had just passed the Hillary Step, which is the last hurdle on the way to the summit.

It was at this point that he heard his device 'explode with a huge noise.

He told the Sunday Times: 'I did start to panic and hyperventilate.

'It felt like losing my scuba tanks under water and I only had one gulp of breath. My head just dropped into my hands.'

Cool then removed his mask and bottle then gave it to him. After struggling he managed to find a spare set.

This came after Fogle had already suffered oxygen failure earlier on summit day where his first device blew at 27,500ft.

Ming Dorji, a Sherpa, had handed over his set and descended.

A week following the climb, Fogle said he still feels 'emotional and fragile'.
Judge Nic Madge (pictured) has called for a drastic rethink on the way we use knives in kitchens

A judge has called for a drastic rethink on the way we use knives in kitchens in a bid to reduce the number of young men dying on our streets because of knife crime.

And he has come up with an idea for a scheme that could be rolled out across the UK where members of the public could take their kitchen knives to be 'modified' and the points ground down into rounded ends.

This comes from Judge Nic Madge, who last month jailed Jordon Worth, of Stewartby, Bedfordshire, for seven-and-a-half years after she inflicted a catalogue of injuries on her boyfriend Alex Skeel.

Petite Worth, 22, stabbed him with a knife, scalded him with boiling water, banned him from their bed and decided what clothes he should wear.

Judge Madge has now come out to say that the use of headline grabbing Rambo knives and samurai swords was relatively rare and it was was the points of ordinary kitchen knives that was causing the soaring loss of life among youngsters.

'But why we do need 8' or 10' kitchen knives with points? Butchers and fishmongers do, but how often, if at all, does a domestic chef use the point of an 8' or 10' knife? Rarely, if at all,' he said.

At the moment police forces hold 'amnesties' where bins are placed outside police station and members of the public can get rid of lethal weapons - no questions asked.

Judge Madge's idea is for everyone to be able to take the knives from their kitchen drawers to centres where the points could be filed down.

Judge Nic Madge, jailed Jordon Worth (pictured) for seven-and-a-half years after she inflicted a catalogue of injuries on her boyfriend Alex Skeel

'I would urge all those with any role in relation to knives - manufacturers, shops, the police, local authorities, the government - to consider preventing the sale of long pointed knives, except in rare, defined, circumstances, and replacing such knives with rounded ends,' he said.

He went on: 'It might even be that the police could organise a programme whereby the owners of kitchen knives, which have been properly and lawfully bought for culinary purposes, could be taken somewhere to be modified, with the points being ground down into rounded ends,' he said

Judge Madge made his remarks on Friday at Luton crown court during a ceremony to mark his retirement.

During his 'valedictory' speach in court attended by fellow judges, barristers and court staff he spoke of the concern now felt him and his colleagues at the frequency with which youths in Luton carry knives and how in some circles it was now routine.

He said 'In the last three months, I have had three trials involving serious stabbings of young teenagers. Two were conveyed in the air ambulance to the Royal London hospital with life threatening injuries These offences often seem motiveless - one boy was stabbed because he had an argument a couple of years before at his junior school.

Judge Madge said that in the last two months in Bedfordshire there have been 77 knife related incidents.

'Tragically three stabbing victims have died,' he said.

Present measure in place such as shops putting knives on shelves out of reach of customers and mandatory minimum custodial sentences for anyone convicted of a second knife offence are having 'almost no effect on the availability of knives to youths,' he said

He went on: 'A few of the blades carried by youths are so called Rambo knives or samurai swords. They though are a very small minority.

'The reason why these measures have little effect is that the vast majority of knives carried by youths are ordinary kitchen knives.

'Every kitchen contains lethal knives which are potential murder weapons.

'Accordingly, it is very easy for any youth who wants to obtain a knife to take it from the kitchen drawer in his home or in the home of one of his friends.

As a result said the judge the most common knife a youth will take out with him in around eight to ten inches long and pointed which is likely to have come from his mother's cutlery tray.

'But why we do need 8' or 10' kitchen knives with points? Butchers and fishmongers do, but how often, if at all, does a domestic chef use the point of an 8' or 10' knife? Rarely, if at all,' he said

Judge Madge said that any blade could cause an injury, but 'slash wounds were rarely fatal.'

He told the court: 'It is the points of such knives which cause life threatening and fatal injuries.'

Outlining his idea for kitchen knives to have rounded ends instead of pointed ends he said 'If such measures were taken, in time, the number of fatal and life-threatening injuries caused by knife crime would reduce substantially.'
Peter Atherton, pictured, was one of three ringleaders in a gang which song 9million worth of cocaine in Merseryside

One of the ringleaders of a gang flogging 9million worth of cocaine was caught going to see Liverpool FC play in the Champions League.

Peter Atherton went on the run to Spain after Merseyside Police detectives rumbled a massive cross-country Class A drugs conspiracy.

His fingerprints and handwriting was on ledgers which revealed the Wirral-based group moved up to 303kg of cocaine in just five months.

But the brazen crook couldn't resist the temptation of watching Jurgen Klopp's men firing the Reds towards European Cup glory in Kiev.

Liverpool Crown Court heard the 43-year-old criminal was arrested in Spain on a European Arrest Warrant on November 21 last year.

The drug dealer was captured in Seville, at the 3-3 group stage draw between Sevilla and Liverpool.

Goals from Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane fired LFC into a three-goal lead, before a second half collapse saw the hosts rescue a point.

However, it was an even worse night for Atherton, who was arrested then dragged back to the UK in December to face justice.

In total officers seized 1.4million of drugs including more than 9kg of cocaine, 7kg of heroin, 10,000 MDMA pills and 11,000 diazepam tablets.

In total officers seized 1.4million of drugs including more than 9kg of cocaine, 7kg of heroin, 10,000 MDMA pills and 11,000 diazepam tablets

Atherton went on the run but was caught in Spain after travelling to see Liverpool FC play against Sevilla in the Champions League

The court heard they also recovered 200,000 in cash, as they pieced together the Wirral gang's international operation back in 2016.

Atherton was one of three men who controlled the gang's ledgers and his home in Heswall, Merseyside, was raided on July 12, 2017.

He arrived shortly after officers entered the property and was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply controlled drugs.

Police seized a large quantity of diazepam, electronic scales, multiple mobile phones and a PS/9-Pro 7000 FX handheld Bug Detector.

Officers also recovered a gold coloured iPhone and luxury Rolex and Audmars Piguet watches, before interviewing the crook.

Atherton was described in court as one of 'the three principals in the conspiracy' by Nicholas Johnson, QC, prosecuting.

He and Christopher Thomas, plus a third man, were responsible for supplying hundreds of kilos of drugs between January and July 2016.

Drugs seized by police sported designer logos or stamps and 'LV' and 'Burb' appeared in the ledgers as references to Louis Vuitton and Burberry.

Police also recovered 200,000 in cash as they pieced together the Wirral gang's international operation back in 2016

Mr Johnson said Atherton previously flew to Dusseldorf in Germany to meet an 'upstream cocaine supplier' for the gang, nicknamed 'Belly'.

The day after he was interviewed by officers, he travelled from Manchester to Malaga in Spain and failed to answer police bail on December 6.

Mr Johnson said Atherton was involved in buying and selling 'on a commercial scale' and had substantial influence on others in the chain.

Atherton pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class A drugs in England and Wales and was jailed for 18 years and nine months.

Thomas, 41, from Orrell Park, admitted conspiracy to supplyClass A drugs in England and Wales and was jailed for 16 years.

Speaking after the case, Detective Sergeant Katherine Ashburner said: 'Working alongside our partners with Europol and the NCA, we were able to bring Atherton back to the UK to face justice. We will be relentless in tracking down those who think they can run and hide in other countries.

'These offenders, as with others involved in serious and organised crime, never gave a second thought to the effects of their involvement in the supply of Class A drugs.

'Their own ledgers revealed that they moved cocaine to the value of 9m, destined for UK streets, where these drugs cause harm and misery in communities.'

Anyone with information on suspected drug supply is asked to call 101, or contact independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously and for free on 0800 555 111.
A former Missouri trucker is living a glamorous life in her new $11.5million apartment in New York City.

Trudy Jacobson recently moved to the Big Apple from the Midwest where she and her husband, John, founded TransAm, a premier trucking company, in 1987.

Jacobson's company, which started with a fleet of 170 18-wheelers before growing to 3,600, now rakes in an annual revenue of nearly $250million.

Since founding the company, the 'modern socialite' has been living her best life by moving into her new 3,000-square-foot digs at the Plaza Hotel that overlooks Central Park.

Former Missouri trucker, Trudy Jacobson, is living a glamorous life in her new $11.5million apartment in New York City after moving from the Midwest

Jacobson recently moved to the Big Apple from the Midwest where she and her husband, John (left), founded TransAm, a premier trucking company, in 1987. Jacobson is pictured (right) in New York City with philanthropist Jean Shafiroff in February

Since founding the company, the 'modern socialite' has been living her best life by moving into her new 3,000-square-foot digs at the Plaza Hotel (pictured) that overlooks Central Park

Jacobson said she and her husband are still married, but he stayed back in their Kansas City mansion (pictured) while she moved to New York

'Moving here has been my personal liberation,' she told the New York Post.

She and her husband are still married, but he stayed back in their Kansas City mansion while she moved to New York to 'find' herself.

Jacobson told the Post that her usual truck routes in the 1980s would consist of driving from Missouri to the Meatpacking District in Manhattan.

She used to haul up to 45,000 pounds of bone meal, a mixture of finely and coarsely ground animal bones and slaughterhouse waste.

'[Trucking] is the hardest thing I've ever done in my life,' she told the newspaper.

Jacobson, who has a 29-year-old son with her husband, said she lived the tame life while raising her son, serving on the local chamber of commerce and as a community leader in the Jewish Federation.

Jacobson's usual truck routes in the 1980s would consist of driving from Missouri to the Meatpacking District in Manhattan. She used to haul up to 45,000 pounds of bone meal

Jacobson is currently TransAm's (file image) chairman of the board and she heads the Jacobson's Family Foundation, which focuses on curing juvenile diabetes and veterans' causes

'[Back home] I could not express myself. I was limited  by society, by family values, by upbringing.'

But now, she's ready to finally let her hair down.

'I raised my kid, I [did] the volunteer work, and now it was time for me to have an adventure and [gain] a sense of purpose that would make me feel good about living,' she told the Post.

Now, Jacobson is finally ready to let her hair down in the Big Apple

Jacobson is currently TransAm's chairman of the board and she heads the Jacobson's Family Foundation, which focuses on curing juvenile diabetes and veterans' causes.

The former trucker has always wanted to move to New York City and was the self-proclaimed 'wild child' growing up to her nurse mother and father, who worked in manufacturing.

Since moving to Manhattan, Jacobson has hired an image consultant, who has her wearing looks from Alice and Olivia and Tiziano Zorzan, an upgrade from the shirts and shorts she used to wear while trucking.

'I'm doing a lot of things I've never done,' she told the Post.

'Trucking teaches you never to be stagnant. If you stay in one place, you wither and die.'

But Jacobson did admit that when she was a trucker the job was a 'totally wild environment'.

And that feeling of expression should work well for her new life in New York, where you can be anyone you want.
A missing teenage girl last seen boarding a Eurotunnel train out of Britain could be on her way to visit her mother, who lives in Poland.

Serena Alexander-Benson, 13, was last seen in her school uniform with an 'older person, believed to be a female Polish national and friend of her mother's.

The teen lives with her father in London, while her mother lives in Poland - where Mother's Day was celebrated on May 26.

Serena Alexander-Benson, 13, was last seen in her school uniform and has been missing from the New Malden area. The police want anyone who has seen her to call 999 immediately

The girl has been missing from the New Malden area, south-west London, since 7.30am on Friday.

She was travelling in a car with a female friend of her mother's who is a Polish national that lives in London.

A police statement said: 'She was travelling in a car with a female friend of her mother's who is a Polish national who lives in London.

'CID officers based at Wandsworth are investigating.

'Active lines of inquiry are being pursued by officers, working with the National Crime Agency and the Polish authorities.

'Detectives are not releasing further details at this stage of the route Serena and the woman have taken, nor of how it has been established that they are in Poland, where Serena's mother lives.

'At this stage, the priority of officers is to confirm Serena's exact whereabouts and confirm that she is safe. Any potential offences will be considered in due course.'

A police statement said: 'Serena has not been missing before. She lives with her father in Wimbledon, while her mother lives in Poland.' Inquiries have established that the 13-year-old left the UK via Folkestone on the morning of May 25, on a Eurotunnel train

In an earlier statement, the Met Police said they are 'concerned about her welfare' and urged anyone with information to get in touch.

'Serena was last seen by her father leaving her home address in SW19 at around 7.50am on Friday, May 25. She was dressed in her predominantly green school uniform and had told her father that she was going to school.

'However, Serena did not arrive at school and has not been seen since.'

The statement added: 'Serena has not been missing before. She lives with her father in Wimbledon, while her mother lives in Poland.'

After the teenage girl went missing on her way to school, police in south London have been tweeting for help, above. It was originally thought she went missing from 8.30am

The Met said that police inquiries 'have established that Serena left the UK at Folkestone on the morning of 25 May on a Eurotunnel train. Active lines of inquiry are being pursued to locate her.

'Anyone who may know Serena's whereabouts or who may have seen her as she travelled through Folkestone - probably in the company of an older person - should call officers at Wandsworth CID on 020 3276 2588.'

She was wearing a green blazer  part of her Holy Cross School uniform  and had her dark brown hair tied up.

The Met Police said they believe she may have left the UK on a Eurotunnel train (file picture)

Holy Cross School has today issued a statement in relation to its missing student.

You may already be aware that one of our Year 8 pupils is missing. The pupil and her family are in our thoughts and prayers at this difficult time, said head teacher Andrea Lucas and Anna-Marie Boyd, chair of governors.

The situation is being managed by the police and we are in liaison with them and the pupils parents.

If you have any further information please contact the police urgently.
David LeValley, who joined the Atlanta office in September 2016, died on Saturday

The head of the FBI's Atlanta office has died from cancer linked to his weeks working on the World Trade Center site in the aftermath of 9/11.

David LeValley, who joined the Atlanta office in September 2016, was a first responder when terrorists struck the Twin Towers killing almost 3,000.

He spent weeks on the site of the attack, being exposed to toxic contaminants, as part of the response efforts.

On Saturday, he became the latest victim of the 2001 terror attack when he died of an illness related to the exposure those dangerous contaminants.

His son, Justin LeValley, said he died surrounded by family and friends.

'This week he has been fighting harder than anyone I have ever seen,' he wrote.

'The greatest man I have ever known. I am so proud to have been raised by such a Godly, Christian man. Well done, Dad. What a legacy you have left behind.'

LeValley was a former Marine and Pennsylvania police officer before spending 22 years with the FBI. He joined the agency in New York in 1996, investigating drug trafficking from the Caribbean and Colombia before holding positions in the Criminal Investigative Division and the Washington field office.

LeValley, who joined the Atlanta office in September 2016, was a first responder when terrorists struck the Twin Towers killing almost 3,000

His son, Justin LeValley, said he died surrounded by family and friends (pictured, his flag draped coffin is wheeled out of hospital)

The married father joined the Atlanta office as chief in 2016.

'Our hearts are heavy at FBI Atlanta as our leader SAC David J. LeValley paid the ultimate sacrifice today,' the FBI tweeted.

'He died in the line of duty after sacrificing for his country as a first responder to 9/11. We will always be grateful for your sacrifice and your leadership.'

The FDNY reports 159 9/11 related deaths in the years since the attack, while the NYPD report 24 as of last year, New York Daily News reports.

LeValley was a former Marine and Pennsylvania police officer before spending 22 years with the FBI (pictured at a press conference in January)




President Donald Trump bemoaned the human toll that special counsel Robert Mueller's probe has taken on his former aides  complaining their lives have been left 'in tatters.'

The Mueller probe, now in its second year, has already resulted in five guilty pleas  including that of former national security advisor Mike Flynn, former foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos, and former deputy campaign chair Rick Gates.

All three have pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and are cooperating with the probe.

In a Sunday morning tweet, Trump focused not on the criminal offenses that occurred, but on the 'young and beautiful' lives that have been harmed.

President Donald Trump tweeted about the human toll of special counsel Robert Mueller's probe

'Whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt?' Trump wrote.

'They journeyed down to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes and wanting to help our nation...They went back home in tatters!'

The probe has brought dozens of Trump aides to testify, and required many of them to lawyer up as they face investigators.

Former campaign advisor Michael Caputo is among those who have complained about the financial toll. He has said he had to tap into his child's college fund.

On Saturday, the New York Post, a paper Trump is known to read, published an interview by former advisor Carter Page, who was the subject of 2016 surveillance warrant over his Russia ties.

Former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page claims that FBI surveillance ruined his life, costing him business, income and even his girlfriend

Page said the media frenzy over his Russia ties cost him business in his consultancy and even prompted his former girlfriend to dump him.

He said when he visited her she was 'freaking out with the fake news about me.' He added: 'Talking with her later in the evening after dinner, she told me that she didnt want me staying there anymore, and that our relationship was over.'

'Whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt?' Trump wrote. Here Trump meets with his foreign policy advisors, including George Papadopoulos, third from left, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI

Later Sunday, Trump returned to the issue that has drawn his attention for months  why the FBI did not seize the server of the Democratic National Committee after it suffered a campaign hack believed to be directed by the Kremlin. At the same time, the FBI was in the early steps of a probe to examine any collusion between the Trump campaign and Russians.

'Why didnt the 13 Angry Democrats investigate the campaign of Crooked Hillary Clinton, many crimes, much Collusion with Russia? Why didnt the FBI take the Server from the DNC? Rigged Investigation!'

Former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort is under indictment for alleged fraud and tax evasion charges

Attorney Alex van der Zwaan (L), who formerly worked for the Skadden Arps law firm, arrives at a U.S. District Courthouse for his sentencing April 3, 2018 in Washington, DC. Alex van der Zwaan pleaded guilty in February to lying to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigators regarding his communications with Rick Gates, a former partner of former Donald Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort

Trump's tweets are just the latest in a string of attacks on Mueller.

On Saturday he wrote: 'This whole Russia Probe is Rigged. Just an excuse as to why the Dems and Crooked Hillary lost the Election and States that havent been lost in decades. 13 Angry Democrats, and all Dems if you include the people who worked for Obama for 8 years. #SPYGATE & CONFLICTS OF INTEREST!' he wrote.

In another tweet, he fumed: 'When will the 13 Angry Democrats (& those who worked for President O), reveal their disqualifying Conflicts of Interest? Its been a long time now! Will they be indelibly written into the Report along with the fact that the only Collusion is with the Dems, Justice, FBI & Russia?'

Trump has labeled the FBI's use of a confidential informant who made contacts with at least three campaign aides as 'spying.'
A Cambridge graduate accused of being a serial seducer of spymasters and the key to alleged links between the Trump administration and Russia has hit back at such claims.

Svetlana Lokhova, 37, spoke with Michael Flynn at the Cambridge Intelligence Seminar, a gathering of former intelligence officials hosted at Cambridge University in 2014.

Moscow-born Miss Lokhova showed the Presidents former national security adviser a number of historic Russian documents  including an erotic postcard that Joseph Stalin sent to a woman in 1912.

It is claimed the two remained in email contact afterwards and swapped messages on an unclassified channel  Mr Flynn allegedly signed himself General Misha, Russian for Michael.

Yet Miss Lokhova has now refuted such claims and insisted that she had no such relationship with Mr Flynn, who was forced to resign from his post as US National Security Adviser after just 24 days in office last year.

Scroll down for video

Svetlana Lokhova, 37, spoke with Michael Flynn at the Cambridge Intelligence Seminar, a gathering of former intelligence officials hosted at Cambridge University in 2014

It is claimed the two remained in email contact afterwards and swapped messages on an unclassified channel  Mr Flynn allegedly signed himself General Misha, Russian for Michael. Pictured: Michael Flynn with Donald Trump

He had allegedly failed to be honest to the US about contacts with a Russian Ambassador during the transition to the Trump administration.

After his resignation in February, there were reports that Mr Flynn's supposed contact with Miss Lokhova allegedly caused alarm among British and US intelligence officials who saw it as evidence that Mr Flynn was behaving in a worrisome manner.

Miss Lokhova, a British citizen, was seen as a Russian spy or a 'honeytrap' by social media users.

Yet the mother says: 'I owe everything I've achieved to this country, I just don't understand how I've become the enemy,' in an interview with the Sunday Times.

Mr Flynn was forced out as Mr Trumps national security adviser after less than a month for lying about his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the US.

Mr Flynn and Miss Lokhova, a Cambridge graduate and historian, are said to have been introduced to each other at the end of the dinner in Cambridge.

At the time Mr Flynn was director of the Defense Intelligence Agency under President Obama and had access to highly classified information and military secrets.

What alarmed intelligence officials was that Miss Lokhova appears to have gained rare access to previously classified Soviet-era material in Moscow for her forthcoming book, The Guardian reported.

Yet she insists that while Soviet intelligence files 'will never be declassified', she spent 'a very long time' in other communist-era archives to research for her new book.

After his resignation from the Trump (right) administration in February, there were reports that Mr Flynn's (left) supposed contact with Miss Lokhova allegedly caused alarm among British and US intelligence officials

Adding to the intrigue, Mr Flynn did not tell the US authorities about his meeting with Miss Lokhova, who used to work for the London branch of Russias state-controlled Sberbank.

However, Price Floyd, a spokesman for Mr Flynn, previously said the meeting between him and Miss Lokhova was an incidental contact.

In 2015 she won a 3.2million payout after winning an employment tribunal case in London against Sberbank CIB for sex discrimination and harassment.

The hearing was told her bosses branded her crazy Miss Cokehead and forced her out of her 750,000 a year job as an equity saleswoman.

Workmates falsely accused her of being a cocaine user and said she was hired only because of her looks.

The tribunal ruled that she had suffered disgraceful harassment and victimisation.
Bahrain lifted on Sunday a ban on imports of fresh guava from Egypt, and will resume imports starting next export season (2018/19), Egypts agriculture ministry announced.

Egyptian Agriculture Minister Abdel-Moneim El-Banna said that Bahrains Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning has officially informed Egypt that its agriculture affairs committee, which falls under the ministrys Agriculture and Marine Resources agency, recommended in a meeting last week that the ban be lifted.

El-Banna said that Bahrains decision came following talks between Cairo and Manama, where Egypt presented its new regulations and inspection measures to ensure the quality of its agricultural exports.

The Egyptian minister described the lifting of the ban as a new success for Egypt, adding that his ministry is continuing to demonstrate to different countries Egypts more stringent inspection regulations.

Bahrain is the second Gulf country in recent months, after Saudi Arabia, to announce that it has lifted a ban on specific Egyptian agricultural products.

Egypt has been imposing stricter regulations on agricultural exports, introducing a new system under which crops are inspected several times while in the fields, after harvest, and finally after they are prepared for export.

In April, Saudi Arabia lifted a temporary ban on imports of fresh and frozen guava from Egypt, nearly 75 days after the ban was implemented in January 2018.

The ban on guavas was implemented over what the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) said was the presence of pesticide residue that was higher than the global limit.

Egypt is still in talks with Saudi Arabia to lift a ban on Egyptian strawberries, which was implemented in July 2017.

Around 50 percent of Egyptian agricultural exports are to Arab countries, amounting to 1.8 million tonnes of product worth $1 billion annually.

Egypt recorded a 13.9 percent increase in its exports of agricultural products during the first nine months of 2017, with the total amount of exports reaching 4.1 million tonnes compared to 3.6 million the year before, according to official data

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Jeremy Floyd, 39, allegedly held his girlfriend captive for two days and beat her endlessly

A quick-thinking Florida woman managed to escape her abusive boyfriend after slipping a note to the staff at an animal hospital, police have revealed.

The 28-year-old woman, Caroline Reichle, was allegedly beaten for days and threatened with a gun by Jeremy Floyd.

Floyd, 39, has been charged with aggravated assault with a firearm, false imprisonment, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, and simple battery.

Floyd allegedly wouldn't let the woman leave their home in Deland, Florida for two days straight.

He beat her all of Wednesday and pointed a gun at her, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

The woman managed to escape after slipping this note to the staff at the Deland Animal Hospital on Friday

Earlier that week the pair had fought and Floyd allegedly pointed a gun at her and fired two shots into the wall

At one point during the fight they both struggled for the gun and two shots were fired.

Both of the bullets hit a wall and no one was injured by the gunfire.

The woman spent all of Thursday in bed with a head injury from the beating, according to police.

On Friday she managed to convince Floyd to allow her to take their dog to Deland Animal Hospital.

Floyd insisted on escorting the woman to the hospital and brought a loaded handgun, police said.

The woman had convinced Floyd to let her take their dog to the Deland Animal Hospital (pictured). He escorted her with a loaded handgun

During their drive to the hospital Floyd pointed the gun at her once again and threatened to kill her and her family, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.

When they arrived at the hospital, the woman passed the staff a note that read: 'Call the cops. My boyfriend is threatening me. He has a gun. Please don't let him know.'

Officers arrived a the scene and took Floyd into custody. His gun was also confiscated.

The woman, who was 'visibly injured', was treated at the hospital for a black eye, head injury, and bruised arm.

Floyd is being held without bail at the Volusia County Jail.
An inmate has been on the run since Saturday night after he escaped from prison.

Brett Gregory Norris, 30, is understood to have absconded from the minimum section of the Darwin Correction Centre at Howard Springs in the Northern Territory.

Norris was last seen wearing his prison attire  which consists of a yellow T-shirt, grey or blue shorts and thongs.

Police released this picture of Brett Gregory Norris, 30, who escaped from the Darwin Correction Centre Saturday

When he was last seen he was wearing his prison clothes which consist of a yellow t-shirt and thongs

Northern Territory Police released a statement about his escape on Sunday, notifying the public that he was missing.

'The 30-year-old man appears to have left the facility around 8:00pm,' police said over Facebook.

He has a number of connections in the Darwin and Palmerston areas, police said.

Members of the public are advised not to approach Norris, but to report sightings of him immediately.

Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is urged to call 131 444 or Crime Stoppers.
Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani said President Trump is 'adamant' he wants to meet with special counsel Robert Mueller  even as is convinced the Russia probe 'rigged' against him.

'He is adamant in wanting to do it,' Giuliani said, even as he called the inquiry 'rigged.'

'We are more convinced as we see it that this is a rigged investigation. Now we have this whole new 'spygate' thing thrown on top of it, on top of already legitimate questions,' he said, using Trump's slang for the FBI's use of a confidential informant.

He also acknowledged his own role, which has included an onslaught of media appearances bashing the Russia probe  and where Mueller has either declined to respond or is prohibited from doing so  is designed to color public opinion against it.

Rudy Giuliani said President Trump is 'adamant' he wants to meet with special counsel Robert Mueller

'It is for public opinion,' he told host Dana Bash on CNN's 'State of the Union.'

'Because eventually the decision here is going to be impeach, not impeach,' he said, raising a possible course of action should Democrats take the House.

'Members of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, are going to be informed a lot by their constituents. So our jury  as it should be  is the American people,' Giuliani continued.

Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani said the American people were the 'jury' in any presidential impeachment

'And the American people are, Republicans largely, many independents, even some Democrats now question the legitimacy of it. Democrats I would suggest for their own self interest, this is not a good issue to go into the congressional elections,' he added.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has urged Democratic colleagues not to stress impeachment before the elections this year.

He also defended the president's right to be briefed on elements of a probe about which he is a subject.

Even as Giuliani told CNN Trump was adamant about talking to Mueller, he told 'Fox News Sunday' how his entire legal team was counseling against it.

Giuliani said on CNN that Trump was 'adamant' about wanting to give an interview that Mueller is requesting

'When you look at the backdrop of this rigged investigation, when you look at how they treated [former campaign chair Paul] Manafort, how they spun off into [Trump lawyer Michael] Cohen. How they're chasing things in the Middle East. The reality is, we are not going to sit him down if this is a trap for perjury. We're convinced of that. And if they don't show us these documents, we're just going to have to say no,' Giuliani said.

He was referencing documents about the use of and FBI informant that Trump and congressional Republicans are demanding be made available.
Guitar maker Fender and four top keyboard firms are said to have been raided in a price-fixing probe.

The five companies have not been officially named but Fender is believed to have been included, reports the Sunday Telegraph.

Dawn raids at their British officers were reportedly conducted by staff from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

The CMA website has five separate cases open relating to 'musical instruments and equipment: suspected anti-competitive agreements', with each one beginning on April 17, 2018.

Guitar maker Fender and four top keyboard firms are said to have been raided by staff from the Competition and Markets Authority in a price-fixing probe (pictured: Jimi Hendrix with his Fender Statocaster guitar)

The pages state that 'this investigation is at an early stage and no assumptions should be made that competition law has been infringed'.

They also state that the initial investigation is due to last until Autumn 2018.

It is believed that the inquiry will focus on whether or not any attempt has been made to manipulate sales of musical instruments and pro-audio equipment, according to the Sunday Telegraph.

A music insider source told the Sunday Telegraph that up to 10 staff members from CMA visited offices for as many as four days during searches.

A CMA spokeswoman told the Sunday Telegraph: 'We are in the initial, informal evidence gathering stage of five investigations in the musical instrument sector.'

The CMA can issue formal requests to interview people related to cases, and can enter businesses without a warrant in some circumstances.

Any company that breaks competition laws can be fined up to 10 per cent of their global turnover, company directors can be disqualified for up to 15 years and can face up to five years in prison.

Fender has been contacted for comment.
A Soho restaurant that has been the scene of 65 years of Labour party history and Westminster history will close next month amid plunging lunchtime trade.

The Gay Hussar is set not to survive an evolution of Whitehall culture that has seen sharp falls in the number of long alcohol-fuelled lunches.

The Hungarian restaurant was for decades a favourite of senior Labour politicians and hosted Michael Foot's 90th birthday at the height of the Blair era.

But its owner Corus Hotels has decided it can no longer run the eccentric restaurant while business rates and rents rise inexorably.

The Gay Hussar will close on June 21 despite protestations it still does busy trade in the evenings, despite a collapse in lunch business.

Soho restaurant the Gay Hussar that has been the scene of 65 years of Labour party history and Westminster history will close next month amid plunging lunchtime trade

The three-storey establishment has already escaped closure once when in 2013 a group of 160 politicians and lobby journalists campaigned to save it by forming a group called the Goulash Co-operative.

The Guardian said a formal announcement would be made by Corus in the coming days but that meetings had already taken place with staff.

The Cc-operative is rallying to try and save the Greek Street restaurant for a second time.

Spokesman John Goodman said: 'We believe now is the time to create a new Gay Hussar, and are in talks with possible partners who agree with us that this unique establishment must be saved.

The Hungarian restaurant was for decades a favourite of senior Labour politicians and hosted Michael Foot's 90th birthday at the height of the Blair era (pictured is Alastair Campbell arriving for the party)

'It's showing its age. We have lots of exciting plans to renovate it, including installing a dumb waiter and a downstairs toilet.'

Neil Kinnock, the former Labour leader, told the Guardian: 'The action of Corus Hotels is deplorable and must be resisted.

'Supporters of the Gay Hussar have already raised a large sum with big and small donations.

'Now we must do that again to give us a fighting chance of securing the future of a restaurant which is part of political history.'

The Gay Hussar's general manager John Wrobel, who has ruled the roost there for more than 25 years, said: 'This is the end of an era and a big shock for me personally.

'The lunch trade has taken a dive, and although we have put lighter options on the menu and offered special deals, it has not led to the boost we needed.

'Yet evening trade is always very busy and we are getting great reviews on TripAdvisor and with a younger clientele.

'With all the development around Crossrail [the new rail link] in the area it would be a shame if we were not able to take advantage of the increased footfall.'
InfoWars' Alex Jones has given Michael Rotondo, an unemployed 30-year-old, $3,000 to move out of his parent's house.

Michel flew to Texas for an hour-long interview with the right-wing conspiracy theorist Friday where he revealed Alex 'made it possible' for him to move out with the help of a $3,000 check.

Michael was ordered by a judge to move out of his parents' New York home after he repeatedly refused his folks' request to leave.

It's unclear if the money was for his appearance on InfoWars or a gift by the host, but when Michael landed back in New York he told Syracuse.com he had a 'very large check to cash'.

Controversial conspiracy theorists Alex Jones gave Michael Rotondo $3,000 to finally move out of his parent's New York home

Michael flew to Texas Friday for an hour-long interview with the InfoWars' host. It's unclear if the money was given for his appearance on InfoWars or as a gift

Michael Rotondo, 30, spoke with DailyMail.com after he was ordered out of his parents' home by a judge in Onondaga County, New York court on Tuesday

His parents,Christina and Mark Rotondo, are pictured on the right. They say they have been trying to kick him out of their house for months

'So what is it you want?' the host asked Michael in the interview. 'Because you ain't going to be alive forever... You're now famous as the guy at 30 being evicted from his parents' house in court.'

'I want to get out of my parents' house' he said, 'Which you made possible,' referring to the check given off camera.

The host, who's infamous for his conspiracy theories regardint 9/11 and school shootings asks: 'So that $3,000 made that possible?'

'Yeah,' he responded. 'It's going to happen. I'll get my things out of there in the amount of time I have and it will allow me to continue to pursue the things I need to pursue without significant interruption as a result of the mandatory relocation. And that means a lot to me.'

Days ago Michael, clearly upset by the judge's order, told TMZ that his parents, Christina and Mark Rotondo, are not good people for forcing him to vacate their Camillus home.

'I just think that when you attack someone you love  I don't think good people do that,' he said.

The father-of-one also told the outlet that coming back to his folks' house after their hearing was 'the same'.

'We didn't talk before, we don't talk now. It's not much different,' he said, adding that they 'don't really' have a relationship.

'The only thing that we really deal with now is them trying to get me out. And myself saying I don't think it's really fair I have to all of a sudden be without a place to live.'

On Tuesday, Rotondo was ordered to leave his parents' home, although he has not yet been given a specific date for when he has to vacate the property. Rotondo had been living rent-free at the home for nearly a decade.

He told TMZ that once he does leave there will be no relationship at all with parents.

In an interview with DailyMail.com after the hearing, Michael said that his issues with his parents are tied to his custody battle over his son.

Michael says he lost custody of his son, whose age he wouldn't disclose, back in September. The boy now lives with his mother full time, who Michael says he was never married to, or in a relationship with.

He says he immediately filed an appeal as a 'poor person' so that his court fees could be waived going forward. But he says his parents complicated matters when they said he needed a job and health insurance if he was to continue living with them.

The Rotondos say their son has been living with them for the past eight years, without paying rent or contributing in any way

Michael says his troubles with his parents are connected to the custody battle over his son

Michael, seen leaving court on Tuesday, lost custody of his son last year but wouldn't say why

Michael refused, saying that his job at the moment was getting his son back.

When they offered to pay for his health insurance, Michael explained that he couldn't take that money because it would compromise getting the 'poor person' status.

Shortly after, he says his parents stopped providing food for him, and cut off his cellphone. They also said he couldn't use the laundry machines in the house anymore.

His parents also went to court to try to get visitation of their grandchild. Michael says it was two days after that hearing that he got his first letter, in which his parents said they had 'decided that you must leave this house immediately'.

The went on to send him four more letters, but Michael refused to budge.

Michael says he hasn't always lived at home. He says about eight years ago he lived in an apartment for a year and a half. He says it was around that time that he became a father.

He eventually moved back in with his parents though when he lost his job.

When asked where he was working at the time, Michael said he didn't 'want to disclose' his work history.

DailyMail.com did discovered that he used to work at a Best Buy, and that he is suing the company for discrimination, saying he was fired when he said he couldn't work Saturdays since that is when he had visitation with his child. He is seeking nearly $340,000 in damages, pay and attorney's fees from the big box store.

He said he went to college, but didn't finish his degree. He started off studying engineering at Onondaga Community College, but switched to business when he 'couldn't hack the math'.

The couple have written five letters to their son over the past three months, informing him that he must leave the home

The couple are now trying to get their son kicked out of their home through an ejectment proceeding

In his letter, written on February 18, the couple offered some advice to their son to help him find a new place to live

On March 5, the couple threatened that they would 'take any appropriate actions necessary to make sure you leave the house as demanded'

The most recent letter regarded Michael's car, which they say they want off their property

Michael also wouldn't go into detail about how he lost custody of his son, but insists he is a 'great father' and that the court ruling was 'unreasonable'.

The judge in that case said he could see his son, but only in therapeutic environments. And the boy's mother has to approve.

Michael said he doesn't think his son is 'better off in any way' over the decision.

DailyMail.com tried to reach out to Michael's parents on Tuesday, but whoever was at the home hung up the call.

FAILURE TO LAUNCH SYNDROME According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly one in three millennials are living with their parents - a situation that has coined it's own term, 'failure to launch' Failure to launch isn't a diagnosable mental health illness, but it describes a commonaility among millenials who find it hard to start their adult lives. There are many reasons why this happens, from economic reasons to poor work ethic and low self-esteem. Failure to launch appears to impact men more than women, many of whom are not taught the sort of skills needed to live alone - such as cooking, cleaning and laundry. In extreme cases, children can become depressed and start abusing drugs and alcohol if they find a lack of job prospects and continue to have to live at home. This can make it even harder for them to fly the coop in the end. Dr. Michael Ascher, a clinical associate in psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania, wrote an article about the issue for the Huffington Post in 2015. Dr. Ascher said parents can help their failure to launch children by giving them responsibilities, hiring a life coach to help them with achieve their goals, getting them a therapist and buying medications to help with any anxiety or depression they might have. Advertisement

In court on Tuesday, Michael argued that there was a legal precedent that his parents had to give him six months notice in order to kick him out.

The judge said that precedent had been overturned in another case, and said six months was an 'outrageous' amount of time to ask for. Michael responded that it was 'outrageous' to evict him.

The judge also ordered adult protective services to investigate.

Michael left court frustrated, refusing to speak to his parents and saying he didn't think the judge read the case fully, according to CNY Central.

'I am just so outraged,' he said outside court, adding that he has been taunted by conservative groups for being a 'liberal millennial'.

It was not decided in court on Tuesday when Michael must be out of the house. But he says he plans to appeal, so any enforceable order likely won't be written until that case is over.

His parents home is owned by his mother, who bought it in 1988. The four-bedroom home is worth an estimated $218,000 according to Zillow.

Over the past three months, the Rotondos have given their son five written notices to move out, but he has ignored their orders.

They initially tried to get him evicted, but learned that since he is a family member, he would have to be removed from their home through an ejectment proceeding.

In a response to his parents' court filings, Michael - who turns 31 in July and is acting as his own lawyer - says his parents have not given him a reason why he is being kicked out, or enough time to find a new place.

He claims in his response that in the eight years he has lived with his parents, he 'has never been expected to contribute to household expenses, or assisted with chores and the maintenance of the premises, and claims that this is simply a component of his living agreement'.

In a redacted filing, Michael also said he runs his own 'successful' business, calling it 'the overwhelmingly superior choice for the economic well being over the working of a full-time job'.

Michael is pictured center right with his parents and sister in happier times

The Rotondos first asked their son to leave in a letter written on February 2

His father wrote that 'after a discussion with your Mother, we have decided that you must leave this house immediately'. They gave him 14 days to vacate, saying he 'will not be allowed to return'.

'We will take whatever actions are necessary to enforce this decision,' the letter read.

When he had not moved out two weeks later, his parents followed up with another letter, telling him he had been 'evicted'.

'You have heretofore been our guest and there is no lease or agreement that gives you any right to stay here without our consent,' they wrote.

They then gave up another 30 days to leave.

The couple wrote a third letter five days later, offering Michael $1,100 to find a new place to stay and some advice on how to get a new apartment - such as selling 'any weapons you may have' for rent money (he later said he took that money and used it for expenses).

'There are jobs available even for those with a poor work history like you. Get one-- you have to work!

Rotondo's son is pictured left and right. He lost custody of him last year

'If you want help finding a place your Mother has offered to help you,' the letter reads.

On March 5, the couple wrote a fourth letter saying they 'have seen no indication that you are preparing to leave'.

'Be aware that we will take any appropriate actions necessary to make sure you leave the house as demanded,' they wrote.

Their most recent letter was written on March 30, concerns Michael's car, offering him money to fix it so that it can be taken off their property.

'I feel bad for both of them, because he's not learning anything by staying at home and he's just wasting their time and money,' one neighbor said, according to WRAL.

Michael appears to be no stranger of the civil court system.

In a separate case, he claimed his rights to due process were violated in family court, but that case was thrown out in November of last year.
President Donald Trump confirmed Sunday that U.S. negotiators have arrived in North Korea to make preparations for planned June 12 summit with dictator Kim Jong-un.

Trump tweeted about the diplomatic move hours after a report that a top U.S. diplomat had crossed the DMZ to begin preparations for a summit that was on, then off, then potentially on again.

'Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself,' Trump tweeted Sunday afternoon after spending four hours at his Virginia golf course.

'I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!' he wrote.

US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim, who previously served as a nuclear negotiator with the North Koreans, has crossed into North Korean territory in advance of a possible summit

In the latest signal that the U.S. is determined to push ahead with a possible summit between President Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in June, a seasoned U.S. diplomat crossed the DMZ Sunday to begin preparations the talks.

The move came just days after President Donald Trump announced he was withdrawing from the summit planned for June 12, only to reverse himself after the North Korean side came back with a surprisingly conciliatory response.

Sung Kim, the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines who has led nuclear talks with North Korea in the past, crossed into the hermetic country on Sunday in order to begin preparations, The Washington Post reported, citing a person familiar with the arrangements.

Sung Kim was born in South Korea and previously served as the U.S. ambassador to that country. President Barack Obama nominate the career diplomat to his top posts in both South Korea and the Philippines, and the Senate confirmed him to both.

Choe Son-hui, Head of the North America Department of North Korea's Foreign Ministry, issued a statement calling Vice President Mike Pence a 'political dummy' and slammed him for 'ignorant and stupid remarks'

Both Pyongyang and Washington are pressing ahead on plans for a meeting between the two leaders after Trump pulled out of the scheduled June 12 summit on Thursday, only to reconsider the decision the next day.

The movement by the U.S. side came as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reaffirmed his commitment to meet with Trump. He provided the assurance to his South Korean counterpart after a spontaneous meeting in the DMZ following Trump's announcement he would pull out of the summit.

President Donald Trump has announced the summit with North Korea will take place as planned on June 12 in Singapore

Sung Kim crossed into North Korean territory with Allison Hooker, the Korea expert on the White House National Security Council.

They met with Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister, the Post reported.

It is she who issued a statement blasting Vice President Mike Pence for 'ignorant and stupid' remarks  an event that triggered Trump's letter announcing his decision to withdraw from talks.

Pentagon official Randall Schriver is also in Seoul currently, the Post said.

The meetings are expected to continue on Monday and Tuesday and are focused on the issue of North Koreas nuclear weapons program, it said.

The latest action in the improvisational move toward a possible summit comes as the former head of the National Security Agency, Michael Hayden, said Trump hadn't 'done his homework' on North Korea's nukes.

'Kim Jong-un knows his program inside and out, Hayden told ABC News 'This Week' on Sunday.

I think he knows what he can concede and what it means and what he cannot concede,' Hayden said.

I don't know that the president has done the kind of homework" said Hayden, who also served as CIA director.

Trump said Saturday after an event with reporters that things were going 'very well' in terms of the summit with North Korea.

'I think there's a lot of good will,' the president said.

LETS TALK: US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim looks inside a Cessna-208B Grand Caravan Intelligence, Surveillance and Recoinnaissance (ISR) aircraft acquired through grant programmes by the the US government to the Philippine Air Force (PAF) during a formal turn-over ceremony at the PAF headquarters in Manila on July 27, 2017

Choe Son-hui, Head of the North America Department of North Korea's Foreign Ministry, issued a statement calling Vice President Mike Pence a 'political dummy' and slammed him for 'ignorant and stupid remarks.' Here she arrives at the 2017 Moscow Nonproliferation Conference at the Centre for Energy and Security Studies.

(L-R) Philippine military exercise director Lieutenant General Emmanuel Salamat, US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Philippine military chief, General Carlito Galvez, and US military exercise director Lieutenant General Lawrence Nicholson link arms during the opening ceremony of the joint US-Philippines military exercise opening ceremony in Manila on May 7, 2018. Sung Kim has crossed into North Korea for talks

'People want to see if we can get the meeting and get this done. We are looking at June 12th in Singapore.'

Trump had cancelled the meeting on Thursday, blaming 'hostility' shown by a North Korean official who threatened nuclear war for the change, but appeared to have been calmed by apologetic communications from Pyongyang.

He explained his reasoning, and threatened a nuclear showdown with North Korea, through a letter sent to leader Kim Jong Un.

Kim Jong Un was scheduled to meet with Trump in Singapore for historical talks on denuclearization

'Based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting,' he wrote.

'Therefore, please let this letter serve to represent that the Singapore summit, for the good of both parties, but to the detriment of the world, will not take place.'

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said earlier that he and North Korea's Kim agreed at a surprise meeting on Saturday that the possible North Korea-U.S. summit must be held, Moon told a news conference in Seoul.

The pair recommitted to their 'quest for the Korean peninsula's denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime'

Pictured: The letter President Trump sent Kim Jong Un after 'hostile' remarks from a North Korean official

Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete" denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to a planned meeting with Trump, Moon told a news conference in Seoul.

"Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean peninsula's denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted," Moon said.

The meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the leaders of the two Koreas are trying to keep the on-again off-again meeting on track.

While maintaining that Kim is committed to denuclearization, Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what that means and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

A statement from North Korea's state news agency KCNA said Kim expressed "his fixed will" on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Trump said on Saturday he was still looking at a June 12 date for a summit in Singapore and that talks were progressing very well.

"We're doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea," Trump said at the White House. "It's moving along very nicely. So we're looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed. So, we'll see what happens."

A White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the possible summit, a White House spokeswoman said on Saturday.

Moon, who returned to Seoul on Thursday morning after meeting Trump in Washington in an effort to keep the U.S.-North Korea summit on track, said he delivered a message of Trump's "firm resolve" to end the hostile relationship with North Korea and pursue bilateral economic cooperation.

Trump said in a letter to Kim on Thursday he was cancelling the planned Singapore summit, citing North Korea's "open hostility."

The Trump administration has demanded that North Korea completely and irreversibly shut its nuclear weapons program. Kim and Trump's initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over the program.

American officials are skeptical that Kim will ever fully abandon his nuclear arsenal, and Moon said North Korea is not yet convinced it can trust security guarantees from the United States.

(Reporting by Hyonhee Shin in Seoul and Doina Chiacu in Washington Additional reporting by Josh Smith, Soyoung Kim, Choonsik Yoo and Jeongmin Kim in SEOUL, and Ben Blanchard and Elias Glenn in BEIJING Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan, Paul Tait and Frances Kerry)
Barnaby Joyce and his girlfriend Vikki Campion have filed a complaint against the media for allegedly invading their privacy - as they prepare for a interview with Channel Seven worth a reported $150,000.

Ms Campion - Joyce's former press secretary - gave birth to their baby Sebastian in April. The news of Ms Campion's pregnancy led to Mr Joyce's downfall as deputy prime minister.

Following the media coverage, Ms Campion has made a complaint against the Daily Telegraph for what she claims was an invasion of privacy, the newspaper itself reported.

Barnaby Joyce and his girlfriend Vikki Campion have filed a complaint against media for invading their privacy - as they prepare for a interview with Channel Seven worth a reported $150,000

Ms Campion - Joyce's former press secretary - gave birth to baby Sebastian in April

She claimed the reporting of her pregnancy breached the couple's privacy.

The Daily Telegraph plans to defend the complaint lodged by Ms Campion.

Coalition MPs were reportedly unhappy about Mr Joyce's reported decision to sell his story to Channel Seven's Sunday Night program.

'To seek privacy and then on the other hand to seek an interview deal seems to reek of hypocrisy, doesn't it,' a Coalition backbencher said.

'This is a clear case of double standards and that's regrettable,' another MP said.

Labor's Anthony Albanese said he didn't support politicians being paid for media interviews.

Mr Joyce's salary is $203,000, and while he was deputy prime minister he was making $400,000 per year.

The proceeds of the sit-down television interview, where he is expected to go into detail about his relationship with Ms Campion, will reportedly be passed on to their son Sebastian.

Coalition MPs were reportedly unhappy about Mr Joyce's apparent decision to sell his story to Channel Seven's Sunday Night program

An industry insider told The Telegraph the money had gone into a trust fund for Sebastian 'to be independently administered at a future date'.

'Lawyers ultimately get to decide if it should be accessed for the child's education or if it will go to the child as a lump sum when he gets to 18 or possibly older,' the insider said.

'The baby's parents have no say in it and cannot access it.'

The Project host Lisa Wilkinson slammed Mr Joyce's decision to agree to the television interview, accusing him of being a hypocrite.

'He can't insist he wants privacy for his new partner and baby - and then sell his story to the highest bidder for $150K, as he has reportedly done with Channel Seven,' the former Today Show presenter wrote in an article for Ten Daily.

It is believed Seven out-bid Nine's 60 Minutes and agreed to pay the pair $150,000 for the interview, the Australian reported.

The couples' baby Sebastian will be featured on the segment which is set to be a ratings hit.

Mr Joyce has also said he is writing a political memoir for Melbourne University Press, adding to the speculation over his increasing financial costs.

The interview is said to be conducted by senior Sunday Night reporter Alex Cullen, who worked for months to secure the deal.

Mr Joyce and Ms Campion were reportedly directly involved in the bidding negotiations and did not use an agent to negotiate the deal, network sources and insiders have claimed.
Telstra has come under fire for the second time this month after Queensland's Triple-Zero line received around 600 blank calls in just two hours on Saturday morning.

The states Emergency Services Minister Craig Crawford has demanded that the company explain how the hoax calls got through.

A spokesman for the company said they were seeking answers from an Australian based provider over whether it was a planned attack through their network or a system error, The Courier Mail reported.

Telstra CEO Andy Penn has had to deal with the copmany coming under fire twice this month

'The other provider is yet to advise what the source of these calls might be, but has indicated it will block calls from suspect numbers if any further activity occurs,' he said.

Regardless of which telecommunications company a person is with, if they call Triple-Zero Telstra is the operator responsible for answering the call and transferring it to emergency service.

Mr Crawford said the problem put lives at risk and that he'd met with Telstra officials to determine how it was caused.

'Telstra is a critical component in the triple-0 process. While Queensland Fire and Emergency Services does have contingencies in place, I am concerned that if network outages continue, then lives could be at risk,' he said.

Mr Crawford also said there were concerns over the security of the network and that he would be asking the company to assure it was adequately protected.

Telstra hit back at the remarks, saying they were just the operator of the line.

Queensland's Triple-Zero line received around 600 blank calls in just two hours on Saturday morning and the state government is demanding answers off Telstra

The hoax calls come just weeks after the company came under under fire for Triple-Zero calls dropping out for 10 hours across five states.

In early May, the company said it believed a lightening strike hit a cable pit in the NSW central-west, which resulted in issues with calls to emergency services in NSW, Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania.

The government is formally investigating the outage.
A ten-year-old orphan and asylum seeker would be under threat from gangsters if he was deported back to the country of his birth, it has been claimed.

Giorgi Baikhadze, whose mother died a few months ago, would be in danger in Georgia, according to his grandmother Ketino.

Mrs Baikhadze's daughter Sopio fled to Scotland with her son seven years ago because her late husband had allegedly owed money to gangsters.

Giorgi has lived in Glasgow since he was three.

Giorgi Baikhadze, 10, with his grandmother Ketino in a church in Scotland, she is now his legal guardian after his mother's death

Sopio, known as Sophie, had appealed for asylum in the UK and was waiting for a decision when she died in February, after a long illness.

Grandmother Mrs Baikhadze is now the legal guardian of her grandson, who has lived in Glasgow since he was three.

They are now waiting for an initial decision on their applications for asylum.

Mrs Baikhadze said: 'Giorgi doesn't understand a word of the Georgian language.

An undated photo of Giorgi with his mother Sopio, also known as Sophie, who passed away a few months ago

'He only speaks English and has grown up in Glasgow where all his friends are, so it would be very hard for him to go there.

'Sometimes I use Georgian words and I ask him ''why don't you understand?'' and he says ''because I am Scottish''.'

Mrs Baikhadze has lived illegally in Glasgow for 14 years and said she always intended to return to Georgia, but decided to stay after her daughter, who was a freelance translator and spoke four languages, fell ill.

In a direct appeal to the UK Government and politicians, she said: 'Please help Sophie's family.

'Her son is a good boy and she just wanted to give him as normal a life as possible in Scotland.'

The Baikhadze family fled to Scotland seven years ago because Sopio's late husband allegedly owed money to gangsters in Georgia

Ms Baikhadze's funeral was held in Springburn Parish Church in Glasgow and was led by minister Brian Casey.

Rev Casey said the family's story had touched many people.

He said: 'He is such a happy wee boy and I could not in good conscience stand by and watch him being sent back to a country that he doesn't know and where his life is potentially in danger.

'Giorgi is, by all intents and purposes, a Scottish boy and I would appeal to the Home Office to examine this case with love and compassion'.

Solicitor Andrew Bradley is representing the Baikhadze family.

He said: 'It is difficult to imagine what Giorgi is going through.

Sopio died after a long bout of illness, leaving her son Giorgi an orphan who is now facing deportation

'For many people, the grieving process takes months or years.

'While trying to recover from the loss of his mum, his future hangs in the balance.

'He faces the possibility of being taken away from his home and friends in Scotland to what must now be a strange country.

'If the Home Office saw fit to make a decision in his favour, it would no doubt be a huge weight off his mind.'

Pictured is Ketino Baikhadze, with her late daughter Sopio, who has appealed to the UK government to allow Giorgi to stay in the UK

It comes as the Sunday Mail reported that a student nurse who served in the Scottish Youth Parliament and carried the Commonwealth Games baton in the lead up to Glasgow 2014 is also facing deportation.

Denzel Darku, who moved to the UK from Ghana nine years ago as a 14-year-old, is fighting to stay in Scotland having seen two appeals rejected.

A Home Office spokesperson said: 'The UK has a proud history of granting asylum to those who need our protection and every case is assessed on its individual merits.'
Egypts Interior Minister Magdy Abdel-Ghaffar called Sunday on policemen to continue with their efforts and sacrifices to ensure stability and security in the country, state owned MENA agency reported.

The minister made the comments at a meeting with a number of his deputies and other security officials.

Minister Abdel-Ghaffar called on his deputies to continue with efforts to secure vital state facilities and border crossings in light of the security challenges in the country, stressing the importance of maintaining tight security measures along roads leading to state institutions.

Abdel-Ghaffar also called for an immediate, decisive and firm response to any assault on security services.

Search Keywords:

Short link:


A kangaroo that was shot through the back with an arrow will hop away from the ordeal after the weapon was safely removed during life-saving surgery.

The four-year-old eastern grey kangaroo was found by Nancy O'Brien on her Bradleys Lane property in North Warrandyte.

Earlier in the day she had taken pictures of a group of kangaroos sunning themselves on the grass but when she looked back over the photos she realised one of them had an arrow sticking out of it's back, The Herald Sun reported.

The four-year-old eastern grey kangaroo (pictured with arrow) was found by Nancy O'Brien on her Bradleys Lane property in North Warrandyte

The roo was rushed to an animal shelter where it underwent life saving surgery

'I recognised the one who was shot with the arrow. I can't understand why anyone would want to harm them,' she said.

She called immediately after she found the kangaroo but first attempts to catch it were unsuccessful.

The roo was eventually located by wildlife rescuer, Manfred Zabinskas, who tracked her down before tranquillising her.

The injured animal, which was carrying a two-month-old joey, underwent life-saving surgery to remove the arrow from her back.

The operation was a success and she is expected to make a full recovery. Her joey remains in good health.

She will be placed in the care of a wildlife shelter for 10 days before being released back into the wild with her joey.

The operation was a success and she is expected to make a full recovery. Her joey remains in good health

She will spend ten days recovering at the animal shelter before being released back into the wild

Mr Zabinskas said the arrow was lodged right next to some of her vital organs.

'She is very lucky. They have done X-rays and miraculously the arrow was millimetres away from her spine and other vital organs,' he said.

'Her joey is way too young to survive without her so I will take her home where she can recover.

Police have described the act as cowardly and are searching for the shooter.
Tiahleigh Palmer's mother has revealed the reason she put her daughter up for adoption was the fear of being killed by her partner and leaving her children to fend for themselves.

Cindy Palmer told 60 Minutes on Sunday she handed her daughter over to authorities at age seven to save her from being brought up in an abusive household and to give her a chance at a better life.

'I didn't murder my daughter. I did everything I could to try and get her back. I wanted our family to be whole again,' she said.

Scroll down for video

Cindy Palmer (pictured) told 60 Minutes on Sunday she handed her daughter over at age seven to save her from being brought up in an abusive household

Ms Palmer said she handed her daughter (pictured) over to authorities at age seven to save her from being brought up in an abusive household and to give her a chance at a better life

Ms Palmer said she has faced accusations she was the reason for her daughter's after the 12-year-old killed by her foster father, Rick Thorburn.

'I was suffering through a very severe domestic violence situation,' Ms Palmer said.

'So, I actually went to the department for help because I realised that one day I was just going to die and (she) was just going to be left there by (herself).

Despite her daughter's tragic death, Ms Palmer said she still believes she made the right decision asking for help.

'It's not what I wanted and it wasn't the outcome any of us wanted, but at the end of the day I thought it was the safer option.'

Thorburn pleaded guilty to the murder of his foster daughter and has been sentenced to life in prison for her murder.

He killed Tiahleigh between 8pm and 10pm October 29, 2015, hours after his son Trent, who was 18 at the time, confessed to having raped her - telling his parents he feared she was pregnant.

Rick Thorburn (pictured) pleaded guilty to the 2015 murder of his foster daughter in Brisbane's Supreme Court on Friday

Thorburn, 58, was sentenced to life in jail for murdering 12-year-old Tiahleigh Palmer (pictured) and will be eligible for parole in 2036

Ms Palmer said she had an instinctual bad feeling about the Thorburn family and initially refused to allow her daughter into their care because of their two teen sons.

'Straight away, I said no,' she said.

'The first ever time that I met Rick, the first words that came out of his mouth were about how he was in a gang when he was younger and he was running guns and prostitutes. And he was proud of this.'

She relived the fury she felt watching her daughter's killer carrying the 12-year-old's coffin in the emotional interview on Sunday night.

'They were acting a part,' she told the Nine network, remembering Thorburn carrying her daughter's coffin

'They were acting a part, to be the victim. He loved it (the attention) - he went to great lengths.'

Ms Palmer said Tialeigh was better off without her when she applied for her to be taken into foster care.

Ms Palmer said her daughter began wearing padded bras and was having her eyebrows waxed while living with Rick Thorburn.

After Tiahleigh's body was found washed up on the banks of the Pimpama River south of Brisbane, Rick Thorburn carried the girl's casket at her funeral.

Cindy Palmer (centre), the mother of murdered schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmer, and her supporters are seen leaving the Supreme Court in Brisbane

Looking back, Ms Palmer said it was 'disgusting'.

Six months after her death police still had no strong leads in the investigation - until a tip-off call was made to Crime Stoppers, detailing a Facebook message sent from Trent Thorburn discussing how he had sexually abused Tiahleigh and feared she was pregnant.

The Thorburn's house was bugged by police, and their callous conversations in covering up the sexual abuse were recorded.

Talking to police, Josh Thorburn said his father told him that Tiahleigh was dead.

'His exact words were ''Tiah is no longer with us... I hope you know what that means''.'

Ms Palmer spoke of how Trent Thorburn emotionally embraced her at Tiahleigh's funeral, while keeping the family's secret.

'He danced, hugged me and wept,' Ms Palmer said.

The court heard Tiahleigh was first placed into care in 2010, aged seven, and in January 2015, the Thorburn family became her full-time carers.

Tiahleigh's badly decomposed body was found by fishermen on the banks of the Pimpama River six days after she went missing while in the Thorburn family's care.

Thorburn killed Tiahleigh Palmer (pictured) between 8pm and 10pm October 29, hours after his son Trent, who was 18 at the time, confessed to having sex with her

In a letter penned by Mr Thorburn, obtained by ABC News, the 57-year-old claimed he still loved her.

'There is not a day go by that I am not haunted by what I have done, the torment I live with is unbearable,' he wrote.

'It did not matter about her occasional naughtiness, you could not help love her and I still do.'

Thorburn has been sentenced to life in jail and will be eligible for parole in 2036.

In a letter penned by Thorburn (excerpt pictured), who pleaded guilty to the 2015 murder in Brisbane's Supreme Court Friday, the 57-year-old also claimed he still loved her
A pair of prominent Sydney DJs have slammed Sydney's strict lockout laws, claiming they have made it almost impossible for musicians to earn a living.

Nick Drabble and Stu Turner, who perform as Set Mo, said they were able to make a steady income before the lockout laws were introduced.

'We wouldn't be in the position we are today if Sydney was like it is today back then,' Mr Drabble told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Nick Drabble and Stu Turner perform as Set Mo, and say before the lockout laws were introduced they were able to make a steady income

The New South Wales government announced last week it was planning to exempt new live music and arts venues in the CBD and Kings Cross from a four-year freeze on new liquor licences

Set Mo will give evidence to the NSW parliamentary inquiry into live music, and say the strict lockout laws have negatively affected musicians (Pictured: a deserted Kings Cross)

The New South Wales government announced last week it was planning to exempt new live music and arts venues in the CBD and Kings Cross from a four-year freeze on new liquor licences.

Set Mo will give evidence to the NSW parliamentary inquiry into live music, and say the strict lockout laws have negatively affected musicians.

'It's very sad to Sydney in such a crisis. On our travels around Australia and the world, one of the first questions people ask us is: 'What the hell is going on in Sydney ?''

According to statistics provided by Liquor and Gaming NSW, 418 licensed premises have been closed in the CBD and Kings Cross since 2014.

John Graham, a member of the parliamentary inquiry, said there had been a net loss of 176 venues since the lockout laws were brought in.

The NSW government is set to spend about $1million on contemporary music in 2017-18.

According to statistics provided by Liquor and Gaming NSW, 418 licensed premises have been closed in the CBD and Kings Cross since 2014

The inquiry will be chaired by Paul Green from the Christian Democratic Party.

Mr Graham said the inquiry had been told there is a need to get around obstacles that prevent venues from staying open in the city.

City of Sydney councillor Jess Scully said jobs in live music had gone down but there were more opportunities for employment in gambling.

'They've made the easiest, most viable option for venue owners just to chuck some pokies in there. That has a damaging social effect that goes well beyond the impact on the creative economy.'
Advertisement

Hawaii has been struck with 270 earthquakes in just one day as the Kilauea volcano continues to billow toxic ash and spout lava across the island.

More than three weeks after the eruptions first began, Mount Kilauea is showing no signs of stopping.

Photos of the island show a landscape devastated by red hot lava flows and burning trees and shrubbery.

Yesterday's volcanic activity sent ash clouds up to 14,764 feet into the atmosphere, sparking concerns that dangerous levels of sulfur dioxide gas and ash could combine with moisture and dust in the air to cause volcanic smog, or 'vog.'

Hawaii has been struck with 270 earthquakes in just one day as the Kilauea volcano continues to billow toxic ash and spout lava across the island (rivers of lava snake its way toward the sea in Hawaii)

Yesterday's volcanic activity sent ash clouds up to 14,764 feet into the atmosphere, sparking concerns that dangerous levels of sulfur dioxide gas and ash could combine with moisture and dust in the air to cause volcanic smog, or 'vog'

Massive rivers of lava from several fissure eruptions stream downslope toward the coast, while one progresses to the east, toward the Puna Geothermal Venture's facility Pahoa on Sunday

Fissure 22 continues to erupt, sending a river of lava snaking toward the coast, and into the sea, leaving several areas totally surrounded by flows on Sunday

A noticeable increase in volume of lava being produced by fissure 7, has huge rivers of lava snaking its way toward the sea, and a massive flow headed toward the Puna Geothermal Venture facility, Pahoa, Hawaii

More than three weeks after the eruptions first began, Mount Kilauea is showing no signs of stopping

Community members who lost their property to the volcanic activity looking watch the fissure at dusk on Hawaii Island

Residents watch as lava from a Kilauea volcano fissure advances on a roadway in Leilani Estates, on Hawaii's Big Island, on May 25

The vog carries tiny drops of sulfuric acid which cause respiratory problems, even triggering asthma attacks in sufferers, and cause damage to the lungs.

Winds are set to shift early next week, which could push higher concentrations of vog northwest where it could affect more populated areas, Bravender said.

U.S. Marine Corps and National Guard are on standby to evacuate for coastal residents

Meanwhile, lava streams have spread more than 5,400 acres destroying 82 homes in the process.

Lava erupts from a Kilauea volcano fissure in Leilani Estates, in Pahoa, Hawaii, where an estimated 40-60 cubic feet of lava per second is gushing from volcanic fissures

Yesterday's volcanic activity sent ash clouds up to 14,764 feet into the atmosphere, sparking concerns that dangerous levels of sulfur dioxide gas and ash could combine with moisture and dust in the air to cause volcanic smog, or 'vog'

Leilani Estates resident Bill Hubbard inspects a crack from a Kilauea volcano fissure while checking on a friend's property, on Hawaii's Big Island

Onlookers and media gather as lava from a Kilauea volcano fissure erupts in Leilani Estates, on Hawaii's Big Island on Saturday

Hundreds of earthquakes shook the island in just 24 hours on Saturday

The extent of the destruction can be seen from space, with incredible satellite imagery showing glowing streams of lava flow from the volcano into residential areas nearby.

One image, taken during the daytime by the European Space Agency's Earth Observation satellite, shows the bright orange and red lines streaming from Kilauea towards the ocean.

A similar picture taken at night by NASA shows the streams as purple, still contrasting brightly against the otherwise calm backdrop.

In comparison with all of Hawaii's Big Island, the lava streams appear small, but they're creating devastating scenes for people who call the volcano and its surrounds home.

Roads have been cut off, an estimated 2,000 residents have been evacuated by road and by air, and as the lava continues to spill, some of it hitting the ocean, the air is becoming more toxic to breathe.

As the area heads into the fourth week of eruptions,another 2,000 people living in coastal communities may be forced to flee as lava flows threaten to cut off their escape routes.

Flames and boiling hot lava erupt from a fissure in Leilani Estates, on Hawaii's Big Island, on May 26

A Kilauea volcano crack stands in a roadway in Leilani Estates, on Hawaii's Big Island, one of eight main islands that make up Hawaii state

Members of the Hawaii National Guard Public Affairs Team monitoring the press as they cover the activity at fissure number seven during a media escort mission on Sunday

US Marines Corps helicopters are standing by to evacuate communities in the event that State Highway 130, their last exit, becomes blocked.

Explosions early on Saturday morning pushed ash clouds up to 11,000 feet above sea level, and the US Geological Survey says additional explosions are possible at any time.

A list of hazards published by the USGS suggests potentially lethal concentrations of sulfur dioxide gas could be present within a one kilometer radius downwind of the vent areas, and explosive blasts in active areas are could see massive pieces of debris and lava bombs go flying.

'Explosive eruptions in the summit lava lake can throw fragments of rock and molten lava up to six and a half feet in diameter on to the rim of Halemaumau Crater, an area that has been closed to the public since early 2008 due to volcanic hazards,' the warning read.

The USGS tweeted earlier that a lava flow had erupted near the Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV) geothermal plant. Fissures 21 and 7, burst open with fresh lava again yesterday putting the plant in the line of danger.

Officials have already shut down the power plant and moved 50,000 gallons of flammable chemical pentane, as well as deactivating wells that tap into steam and gas deep in the Earth's core.

Earlier this week rare blue flames were photographed coming out of cracks in the pavement created by the earthquakes

Kilauea's ongoing eruptions have been captured in hundreds of dramatic photographs, including some of rare blue flames coming out of cracks in the pavement earlier this week.

The blue flames are created when underground methane gas, produced by the volcano, escapes through cracks created by volcanic quakes and ignites from burning lava and vegetation.

US Geological Survey scientist Jim Kauahikaua said this is only the second time that he's seen the blue flames during an eruption.

'It's very dramatic. It's very eerie,' he told reporters.

The volcano-related earthquakes have caused cracks to open up across the Big Island's southeastern region.

In one case, a heartbroken family who evacuated during the early eruptions returned home to find their property perched dangerously on top of a massive 10-foot wide crack.

Noah Friend, his fiance Shantel Pacarro and their two children Naiah, 12, and Nainoa, 11, found the huge crack, which runs 500-feet through the backyard and directly under the home, threatening to swallow the property whole on Monday.

'It's just heartbreaking. There's so many memories in that house. This is very devastating for our whole family, even our children. They grew up there. It's the only home they knew,' Pacarro said.

'We're all heartbroken.'

On Saturday, residents, the media and national guard flock to what is now the end of Leilani Avenue to take in the fiery show at fissures 2, 7 and 8 of the Kilauea volcano near Pahoa
A remote Brazilian island welcomed its first baby in 12 years after a local woman broke the rule against giving birth there.

The baby girl born on the Atlantic outpost of Fernando de Noronha on Saturday came as a surprise to everyone - including the parents.

Tiny Fernando de Noronha - an archipelago famous for its wildlife preserve and with a population of just over 3,000 - doesn't authorise births because there's no maternity ward, O Globo newspaper reported.

The baby girl born on the Atlantic outpost of Fernando de Noronha (pictured, file photo) on Saturday came as a surprise to everyone - including the parents

Expectant mothers are told to travel to the mainland, where the nearest big city is Natal, 227 miles across the ocean.

But the 22-year-old mother, who has another child who was born on the mainland, told O Globo she was left 'dumbstruck' after going into labour.

She said this time she 'didn't feel anything' during her pregnancy.

'On Friday night I had pains and when I went to the bathroom I saw something coming down between my legs,' she said,

'That's when the child's father came and picked it up. It was a baby, a girl. I was dumbstruck.

Tiny Fernando de Noronha doesn't authorise births because there's no maternity ward

'I did not know I was pregnant,' she said, adding that she had taken pregnancy tests that came back negative.

'The mother, who does not want to be identified, went into labor at home,' the island's administration said in a statement to the O Globo.

'The family says it wasn't aware of the pregnancy.'

The statement added that the newborn has been transferred to a hospital to receive further care.
A Russian billionaire showed off his spectacular superyacht during the Monaco Grand Prix.

Andrey Melnichenko's Sailing Yacht A drifted along the coast of Monaco on Sunday as Daniel Ricciardo won the crown jewel race on the Formula One schedule.

The tycoons 360million grey yacht  the largest sailing yacht in the world  is a 468ft-long vessel that boasts eight floors, a pool and a helipad.

It is powered by a 'hybrid diesel-electric package with controllable pitch propellers' and is designed to accommodate 20 guests as well as a crew of 54.

The yacht is said to have been named Sailing Yacht A as Melnichenko likes his vessels to be first in shipping registers.

Sailing Yacht A was built in Kiel, Germany, by Nobiskrug for Melnichenko, who controls the Russian fertiliser producer Eurochem.

The 46-year-old industrialist is worth $13.8billion, according to Forbes, putting him in the top 100 richest people in the world.

Melnichenko also owns the 240million Motor Yacht A, a custom Boeing 737 private jet as well as properties around the world, including a penthouse in New York City and a villa in the French Riviera.

He lives a jet-setting lifestyle with his wife Aleksandra, former model and pop star from Serbia.

The pair married in an opulent wedding in the south of France in 2005, which featured performances by Whitney Houston and Christina Aguilera.
The wife of Nemesio Oseguera (pictured), one of Mexico's most wanted drug lords, has been arrested

The wife of one of Mexico's most wanted drug lords has been arrested.

Rosalinda Garcia was detained in the Guadalajara suburb of Zapopon in the Western state of Jalisc. The reason for her arrest is currently unclear.

Garcia is married to Nemesio Oseguera, the leader of the New Generation Jalisco Cartel (CJNG) who is also known as El Mencho.

Oseguera and his cartel have been blamed for rising heroin shipments to the US and waves of bloody executions.

Officials have claimed that the CJNG and Sinaloa Cartel supply most of the illicit heroin market in the US, according to Sky News.

In March, Oseguera was named the 'top target' by the US Drug Enforcement Administration after El Chapo (pictured) was extradited to the US to face trial

The cartels have been fighting for control of the American market since El Chapo, the former head of the Sinaloa Cartel, was arrested in 2016 after escaping twice from prison.

Rosalinda Garcia, Oseguera's wife, was detained in the Guadalajara suburb of Zapopon in the Western state of Jalisc. The reason for her arrest is currently unclear

In March, Oseguera was named the 'top target' by the US Drug Enforcement Administration after El Chapo was extradited to the US to face trial.

It claimed Oseguera has used 'extreme violence, corruption, and extortion' to expand his cartel's share of the heroin trade.

The US State Department said Oseguera turned his regional organization into an 'international organized crime power involved with the production and distribution of narcotics throughout the world'.

It is offering a reward of up to $5million for information that could lead to his arrest or conviction.
Advertisement

Thousands of demonstrators for and against the far-right faced off in mass rival rallies in Berlin on Sunday, where calls of 'We are the people' were countered with 'Go away, Nazis'.

The march organised by the anti-immigrant, anti-Islam Alternative for Germany (AfD) drew over 5,000 supporters while the counter-demonstrators numbered more than 25,000, police said.

The rallies passed off largely peacefully, although Berlin police said on Twitter that they had to use pepper spray to stop 'demonstrators from trying to break down barriers' at one square.

AfD supporters kicked off their march 'for the future of Germany' shortly after midday at Berlin's main train station, before walking to the Brandenburg Gate, with many waving Germany's black, red and gold flag.

Police on horseback keep the peace by the Brandenburg Gate in the centre of Berlin during today's AfD demonstration

AfD demonstrators waving German flags during an anti-immigration and anti-Angela Merkel protest in Berlin today

A police officer watches on as counter-demonstrators take to the river near the Bundestag in Berlin today

AfD leader Alexander Gauland (centre) marches with party member Beatrix von Storch (right) and other protesters in Berlin

Police break up a clash between protesters and opponents of the right-wing Alternative for Germany party in Berlin

Georg Pazderski (second left), the chairman of the German AfD joins co-leader ALexander Gauland (fourth left) at the march

Police arrest a protester at Friedrichstrae station in the centre of Berlin after the anti-immigration march today

People with sticks clash on the platform of Friedrichstrae station in Berlin as AfD supporters and opponents gathered

People hold up German flags and a calling for an end to the days of an 'open door' immigration policy in Germany

A demonstrator shouts slogans during the AfD's march through the centre of Berlin in protest at the German government

Along the route, their chants of 'Merkel must go' and 'We are the people' were occasionally drowned out by whistles, jeers and outstretched middle fingers from counter-demonstrators in side streets blocked off by police.

At last year's elections the AfD became the third-largest party in the Bundestag, winning 92 seats. Because of the 'grand coalition' between the two major parties the AfD is currently the largest opposition party.

Founded as an anti-EU party during the euro crisis in 2013, it reinvented itself with an anti-immigration stance after Merkel's decision to open Germany's borders to more than a million refugees in 2015.

'Now we know that many Islamists were among the refugees and they have no respect for women,' 41-year-old AfD member and teacher Christine Moessl told AFP.

Addressing the crowd, AfD chairman Alexander Gauland said: 'Merkel is not Germany. We love our country. And we want to pass it on to our children the way our grandfathers did for us.'

AfD deputy leader Beatrix von Storch, the granddaughter of Adolf Hitler's finance minister, told demonstrators that Germany was 'a prime example of failed integration'.

Some of the counter-demonstrators were from the city's club scene, with one group aiming to 'Bass the AfD away' with music blasting from speakers mounted on trucks.

'We want to be loud enough to drown out the racist speeches,' an activist named Rosa told RBB public television. The thudding techno beat echoed across the city centre on Sunday afternoon.

Another group of anti-AfD protesters were on a boat on the Spree river holding up placards saying 'You stink!'

A marcher shouts to protesters as AfD supporters and counter-demonstrators took to the streets of Berlin today

An anti-AfD marcher holds up a sign saying 'Stop the AfD' and reading: 'Our alternative is called solidarity'

Police drag a man away from the protests while demonstrators hold up German flags in the centre of Berlin today

Police on horseback patrol the area by the Brandenburg Gate in the centre of Berlin during today's demonstrations

Police officers drag a man away from the protests near the Brandenburg Gate in the centre of Berlin today

Party co-leaders Alexander Gauland and Alice Weidel, both elected to the Bundestag last year, marching in Berlin today

Thousands of demonstrators waving German flags march from Berlin's main railway station towards the Brandenburg Gate

People dance in a protest against the AfD's anti-immigrant demonstration on the streets of Berlin today

A woman holds a flag as counter-demonstrators sought to stifle the AfD's anti-immigrant protest in Berlin today

AfD supporters wave German flags as they walk alongside the river in Berlin. One placard calls for the 'protection of borders'

Police patrol the area near the Brandenburg Gate to keep the peace during the AfD demonstration in Berlin today

Left-wing protesters shout and hold up signs saying 'Stop the AfD' as they joined a counter-demonstration in Berlin

A protester waves the German flag in the centre of Berlin today where AfD supporters clashed with counter-demonstrators

A couple embrace near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, with the woman holding a sign saying: 'Stop hate'

Police arrest a man at a railway station in Berlin during the demonstrations for and against the AfD today
One man hit the bottle a little too hard at the BottleRock festival in Napa, California and soon found himself calling 911.

But there was no terrible injury or vicious brawl to be found. The only thing that had attacked the man was a shrub.

The man, who police identified as Alexander Valenzuela, called for help after he tumbled over a bush and then fell into more bushes around 1.30am on Saturday.

Napa police implied that Valenzuela was likely in the bushes to pee.

Alexander Valenzuela (pictured with a Napa Police Department officer) called 911 after he fell into a bush at the BottleRock festival. Police said Valenzuela was drunk and likely peeing

Officers from the Napa Police Department and Napa Fire Department arrived to help Valenzuela.

'Fortunately, Alexander was not hurt and we ended up giving him a ride home!' the Napa Police Department wrote on Facebook.

'He most likely didn't follow our BR [BottleRock] safety tip about restrooms, but luckily did about having a charge on his cell phone.'

Valenzuela called for help after he tumbled over a bush and then fell into more bushes (pictured) around 1.30am on Saturday

Valenzuela took a picture with an officer after and the police said he was a 'good sport'.

'We are happy he wasn't hurt,' the department added.

The bush was also unharmed in the incident, the police noted.

BottleRock Festival is an annual three-day festival that takes place in Napa Valley.

This year's headliners included Bruno Mars, the Killers, and Muse.
This shocking video shows the moment a New Jersey officer repeatedly punched a bikini-clad girl in the head during an arrest on Memorial Day weekend.

In the 50-second video, two officers are seen trying to restrain Emily Weinman, 20, of Philadelphia, who said in a Facebook post that she did nothing wrong.

'Stop resisting!' one of the officers yell before the other is seen hitting her twice in the head before body slamming her on her back.

'I'm not resisting. I didn't do anything wrong,' Weinman is heard saying as she kicks her legs at the officers.

This shocking video shows the moment a New Jersey officer repeatedly punched Emily Weinman in the head during an arrest on Memorial Day weekend

'You're not allowed to hit me like that,' Weinman repeatedly tells the officers who continue to hold her down and proceed to handcuff the young woman.

Beachgoers are seen standing around recording the incident on their phones, as a baby is heard crying in the background.

That baby is believed to be Weinman's 18-month-old daughter who was being held by her father when her mother was arrested.

Weinman, who went to the beach with her family and a friend, posted the incident on Facebook with a lengthy description of what she says happened.

She claims the incident started when the cops approached her on their four wheelers and asked her and her friend for their ages because there was alcohol near them.

'I had alcohol, its Memorial Day weekend and 90 per cent of people are underage drinking on the beach, without a doubt,' she wrote.

The pair cooperated with the officers and gave them their ages before getting breathalyzed.

'It came back negative. I told them I wasnt drinking and the alcohol was clearly closed/sealed, which the cops seen,' she wrote on Facebook.

'You're not allowed to hit me like that,' Weinman repeatedly tells the officers who continue to hold her down and proceed to handcuff the young woman

She claims the incident (pictured) started when the cops approached her on their four wheelers and asked her and her friend for their ages because of the alcohol near them

Weinman said the cops still stayed near them, with one even following her when she walked away to make a phone call.

'I asked them dont they have something better to do as cops than to stop people for underage drinking on the beach, saying to that theres so much more serious stuff going on... the cop said, "I was gonna let you go but now Ill write you up" and he asked my name.

Weinman said that she didn't 'do anything wrong and anything couldve been written down on that paper so I wouldnt give it to him'.

She said the officers told her that they were going to arrest her despite her telling them that she was at the beach with her young daughter.

'He told me hes arresting me and started coming towards me to put handcuffs on me. I cautiously was backing up from him (facing him) and yelled for my daughter's father,' Weinman wrote.

Weinman said that she 'tripped and fell and the cop tackled me to the ground and smashed my head into the sand'.

Weinman admitted that she should've just given the officer her name to avoid the incident, but 'the whole situation was iffy and I didnt trust it' she said. She also said that she is underage, but she hadn't been drinking

Weinman, who has an 18-month-old daughter (both pictured) said she shared the video because the 'situation was handled wrongly and blew out of proportion'

Within moments, Weinman said she blacked out and tried to get up and push the officer off of her.

'That's when he head locked me by [putting] his arm around my neck, punched on me in my head and then he head locked me again but this time choking me, I was gasping for air,' Weinman claims.

Weinman admitted that she should've just given the officer her name to avoid the incident, but 'the whole situation was iffy and I didnt trust it' she said.

She also said that she is underage, but she hadn't been drinking. She said she shared the video because the 'situation was handled wrongly and blew out of proportion'.

Weinman said after she was handcuffed, the officers didn't bother to take the beer that was next to her.

She believes they were just 'there to stir the pot'.

Her video, which was posted on Saturday, has more than 130,000 shares on Facebook.

The officers in the video are from the Wildwood Police Department.

Officials confirmed that the video took place on a beach near East Schellinger Avenue, but they also told NBC 10 that Weinman was arrested after she assaulted one of the officers by kicking him in the groin and then running away, which the video does not show.

Authorities also said she spat at one of the officers before she was restrained.

Weinman was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, aggravated assault by spitting bodily fluids at/on a police officer, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstruction and minor in possession of alcohol.

Wildwood Police said Sunday that they are conducting an internal investigation.

The officers involved were reassigned to administrative duty pending the outcome.
US President Donald Trumps decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal with Iran has led to a breakdown in US-European relations

Withdrawing from the nuclear deal with Iran was on US President Donald Trumps election agenda, as he had expressed his discontent at its contents since its signing in 2015.

It was thus only a matter of time before he found the right moment to announce his decision to unilaterally withdraw from the deal made by his predecessor Barack Obama.



The deal that Obama held up as a glorious moment of his presidency was in tatters in less than a year and a half of Trumps presidency.

Trump believes that the deal, while it has temporarily halted Irans nuclear ambitions by limiting its nuclear centrifuges to about 5,060 and disposing of 98 per cent of its enriched uranium reserves for 10 years, is not enough to curb its unbending determination to acquire nuclear weapons in the future.

While the international community applauded the nuclear deal with Iran in 2015, many countries objected, and these countries, among them Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, have now applauded Trumps breaking the deal.

There have been many opposing views to Trumps decision in the US, especially from the Democratic Party, which believes that it could be a mistake of historic proportions.

On the other hand, others say that Trump may have had valid reasons for breaking the deal, despite the unorthodox method he chose to do so.

The nuclear deal did not encourage Iran to adopt a more peaceful and cooperative stance towards its neighbours in the region, these people say, and in fact the opposite has been true.



Since 2015, Iran has taken up a hostile stance in the region that has led it to be involved more directly in the domestic affairs of countries including Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen as well as Gulf States such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain.

This was done while fomenting violence and supporting terrorist activities in the region, with countries such as Syria and Yemen that host Hizbullah and the Houthi rebels receiving large amounts of money and weapons to carry on their fight against Irans opponents.

European Union countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom and France have expressed their disapproval of the American withdrawal from the deal and declared their commitment to preserving its terms with Iran.

This stance, which appears as a political decision, also has an economic perspective behind it. France would lose an oil contract for exploration in Iran amounting to $5 billion, for example, were it to abandon the deal, as well as a potential deal for 100 Airbus passenger planes that Iran has ordered.

Similarly, Germany and the United Kingdom have forged many economic agreements with Iran based on the deal.

As a result, the EU countries involved in the deal are keen on preserving it as they could lose out heavily if it were cancelled. Trump has also not presented viable alternatives to the deal, even though the US may also lose a $20 billion deal for planes signed with the US giant Boeing.

However, Trump has vowed that his administration will target companies and countries dealing with Iran in six months time as a warning of how things may proceed, though it is unclear if he will carry this through if his European allies continue to abide by the deal.

The UK, Germany and France are the cornerstones of the US-European alliance, and a feud with them will find the United States in a diplomatic war with all the major powers in the world, including the Russians and Chinese who have also condemned the deal breaking.



There could be a showdown between the US and Europe in a similar manner to what occurred over Cuba when the US imposed a blockade against the island in 1962.

In 1996, the EU issued a blocking statute aimed at countering US sanctions against Cuba, and EU officials are said to be modifying this for use in the current crisis with Iran, thus countering US restrictions on EU firms conducting business with the Iranians.

On 18 May, the president of the European Commission said that we have a duty, the commission and the European Union, to do what we can to protect our European businesses, especially SMEs, from US sanctions against Iran.

This clear statement clarifies the fact that business is the first priority of the European Union and security issues are secondary.

The EU has also allowed European investment banks to finance projects in Iran, and it has urged European governments to conduct one-off transfers to Irans Central Bank to assist Iran in receiving oil revenues.



The European stance means that a possible war against Iran targeting its nuclear facilities will not be conducted through Americas traditional European allies.

At the same time, it will face resistance from superpowers such as Russia and China, especially the former which has been a major contractor and technology provider for all Irans nuclear facilities.

This means that any potential war on Iran will only be possible through US regional allies such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and possibly Israel. That said, a war on Iran may not be on Trumps immediate agenda, as he would rather weaken the Iranian regime than become engaged in a fully-fledged war against it without international support.



Trumps decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal was not as haphazard as it may appear because he realises that the US does not possess some casus belli against Iran at present, even with Irans rampant interference in the region.

Accordingly, he would rather weaken the Iranian regime by depriving it of the means of financing its hostile activities in the region than of risking all-out war.



However, the latter goal is unlikely to be attained without EU support, and accordingly Trump might have to resort to other options, including presenting a modified deal to Iran that guarantees that the Iranian regime will not pursue its nuclear weapons plans as soon as the ten-year deal is over as well as stopping its ballistic-missile development and funding terrorist activities in the region.



These will be hard goals to reach without EU support, but it is also not in the best interests of the European Union, with all its vast economic, political and military ties with the United States, to ignore US demands in favour of economic ties with Iran.

The writer is a political analyst and author of Egypts Arab Spring: The Long and Winding Road to Democracy.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 24 May 2018 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly with headline: Divided on Iran

Search Keywords:

Short link:


Steven Russel (pictured)l, 42, was distracted by his mobile phone when he ploughed into Robert Morris, 57, who was crossing a road in Coventry at 11.20pm on December 17, 2016

A Jaguar driver who had previously been sacked from his job for using a mobile phone at the wheel has been jailed for killing a man - moments after sending a text.

Steven Russell, 42, was distracted by his mobile phone when he ploughed into Robert Morris, 57, who was crossing Antsy road, Coventry at around 11.20pm on December 17, 2016.

The Jaguar hit Mr Morris in the nearside lane, throwing him into the air, and he landed in the road behind the car, after which Russell stopped and called 999.

Mr Morris was rushed by ambulance to University Hospital, suffering from 'multiple and severe injuries' from which he died three days later on December 20.

Morris had been on a night out with his three brothers celebrating the holidays.

At an earlier hearing, a jury took seven hours to find the former HGV driver guilty of causing death by dangerous driving.

He also pleaded guilty to harassing his daughter's partner by threatening him with phone calls, texts and turning up at his home.

Russell, of Adelaide Street, Coventry, appeared at Warwick Crown Court on May 25 where he was jailed for seven years.

The 42-year-old was also was banned from driving for eight years.

Sentencing Judge Andrew Lockhart QC called the collision 'utterly avoidable'.

Mr Morris was rushed by ambulance to University Hospital, suffering from 'multiple and severe injuries' from which he died three days later on December 20

He said: 'This offence began when you left home that night and you were in constant text contact with two women.

'You were distracted throughout this whole journey, you were texting backwards and forwards throughout.

'I utterly reject your evidence that the texts were only received or sent at traffic lights.

'You were driving along using your telephone as if you were sitting at home.

'You are a man with a proven propensity to drive while distracted.

'You were only dismissed a few days before this offence.

'It should have been at the very forefront of your mind that mobile phones and transport do not mix.

'You were concentrating on your phone more than on your driving.

'You could and should have been able to take every step to avoid him.

'Had you been paying attention even mild braking could have avoided that collision.'

Prosecutor Cathlyn Orchard said: 'He had done nothing to avoid the collision, he hadn't braked, he hadn't swerved, he simply drove straight into Robert Morris.

'He was on his way to meet another brother at Walsgrave Social Club when he was hit by a car as he crossed the road.

'The defendant could and should have taken action to avoid Mr Morris.

'The only explanation is that he was not paying attention, that he had been distracted in some way.'

Defending Russell, Delroy Henry said: 'He has expressed to me that no sentence will compensate for the heartache and pain that will be felt by Mr Morris's family.

'He tells me he's truly sorry for the pain he has caused, and says to me he wishes it was him who had died that night.

'He does not ask for forgiveness, because he can't forgive himself.'
A Malian immigrant dubbed Spiderman for scaling four storeys to save a child dangling from a balcony in Paris will be made a French citizen after meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron this morning.

Mamoudou Gassama, 22, was hailed a hero for single-handedly hauling the four-year-old to safety after scaling the facade of an apartment block in the capital's 18th arrondissement.

The dramatic rescue, which saw Gassama clamber from balcony to balcony and reaching the child in less than 30 seconds, was captured on video and widely shared on social media. He has since been compared to the Marvel superhero Spiderman.

Gassama, who said he arrived in France a few months ago 'dreaming of building his life' in the country, was pictured meeting French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace this morning.

Macron said the migrant will be made a French citizen and will also be offered a place in the fire brigade.

Malian immigrant Mamoudou Gassama (right), dubbed Spiderman for scaling four storeys to save a child dangling from a balcony in Paris, has met French President Emmanuel Macron (left) this morning

Mamoudou Gassama (pictured today), 22, was hailed a hero for single-handedly scaling the facade of an apartment block in the capital's 18th arrondissement, and hauling the four-year-old to safety. He is pictured this morning displaying a certificate of courage and dedication signed by Paris Police Prefect Michel Delpuech

This is the incredible moment that Mamoudou Gassama scaled four storeys - using just his bare hands - to rescue a young boy dangling from a balcony in Paris

The four-year-old was filmed hanging on for his life outside an apartment on Rue Marx-Dormoy on Saturday afternoon, having been apparently left home alone while his father was out shopping

"All the (Gassama's) documents will be put in order," Macron told the sporty 22-year-old who has become a national hero, referring to his immigration status.

In the meeting, live footage of which was carried on the president's Facebook page, Macron gave Gassama a medal for bravery.

Without a thought for his own safety, Gassama took just seconds to reach the child in a spectacular rescue captured on film and viewed millions of times on social networks.

"I was not thinking of anything. I went straight up", Gassama, who wore jeans and a short-sleeved patterned shirt, told Macron, recounting the episode.

"Bravo," Macron replied.

"I'm pleased because it's the first time I've received a trophy like that," Gassama, who arrived in France in September 2017 and lives in a hostel for immigrants, said after receiving his medal.

The incident took place at around 8pm on Saturday in northern Paris.

Film of the rescue shows Gassama pulling himself up from balcony to balcony with his bare hands as a man on the fourth floor tries to hold on to the child by leaning across from a neighbouring balcony.

On reaching the fourth floor Gassama puts one leg over the balcony before reaching out with his right arm and grabbing the child. Firefighters arrived at the scene to find the child had already been rescued.

One witness told Le Parisien: 'There is a fence and a gap between them... The neighbour could not afford to lean back to get the child himself.'

The only injury sustained by the child was a torn nail. Gassama suffered a few scratches. An investigation into the incident is now underway.

Gassama, 22, took less than 30 seconds to reach the child, and has since been compared to the Marvel superhero Spider-Man

Asked why he took such a risk to save the boy, Gassama (above) told Le Parisien: 'I did it because it's a child'

'Luckily, there was someone who was physically fit and who had the courage to go and get the child,' a fire service spokesman told AFP.

Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo praised the young migrant on Twitter for his 'act of bravery' as well as phoning him personally to 'thank him warmly'.

'He explained to me that he had arrived from Mali a few months ago dreaming of building his life here.

'I told him that his heroic act is an example to all citizens and that the city of Paris will obviously be very keen to support him in his efforts to settle in France,' she added.

After effortlessly making his ascent, encouraged by a crowd of onlookers, Gassama, originally from Mali, grabbed the boy and took him to safety

A crowd of onlookers gathered on the streets below to watch the drama unfold

Tracked down by reporters 24 hours after the heroic rescue, Gassama said he had acted without thinking.

'I saw all these people shouting, and cars sounding their horns. I climbed up like that and, thank God, I saved the child,' he said.

'I felt afraid when I saved the child... (when) we went into the living room, I started to shake, I could hardly stand up, I had to sit down,' he added.

According to initial inquiries by the authorities, the child's parents were not at home at the time.

The father was later held for questioning by police for having left his child unattended and was due in court later, a judicial source said. The child's mother was not in Paris at the time.

Gassama's story instantly drew comparisons with that of another Malian migrant who was feted as a hero, and given citizenship, for helping save lives during a January 2015 terror attack.

Lassana Bathily helped hide hostages in the freezer during an Islamist jihadi attack on a Jewish supermarket, in which four people were killed.
In the latest leak to emerge from the tumultuous Trump White House, aide Kelly Sadler reportedly identified her own boss as a leaker when confronted by President Trump about who was spilling internal secrets.

Sadler's name burst into public view after reports leaked that she had made an insensitive crack about Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain, who is battling brain cancer.

McCain's opposition to CIA Director Gina Haspel (whose confirmation was imperiled by her time running a secret Thai prison where waterboarding occurred) didn't matter because 'he's dying anyway,' Sadler reportedly said at an internal meeting.

The leak caused a blowup that lasted days, and prompted the president to call four people: Chief of Staff John Kelly, Sadler, director of strategic communications Mercedes Schlapp, and press aide Raj Shah into the Oval Office, Axios reported.

Mercedes Schlapp, left, pictured with her husband Matt Schlapp, was identified as a leaker in a small meeting with President Trump

Trump told Sadler at the time he wouldn't fire her  a position in keeping with public support Sadler got from the top of the White House press shop.

Trump added 'separately' that he's no fan of McCain, according to the leaked report. He added, separately in the conversation, that he's no fan of McCain.

Then the president told Sadler he wanted to know who the leakers were. 'Sadler then stunned the room: To be completely honest, she said, she thought one of the worst leakers was Schlapp, her boss,' according to the report.

According to the account, Schlapp vigorously defended herself during the meeting.

The account is noteworthy in part because Schlapp was quoted defending Sadler during the initial furor over the McCain comment.

The White House didn't respond to a request for comment Sunday.

Kelly Sadler, who reportedly joked that John's McCain's opposition to a nomination wouldn't matter because 'he's dying anyway,' reportedly identified Schlapp as a leaker

White House Chief of Staff John Kelly wants to root out leakers

White house Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah was leading the meeting where the McCain crack got made

'You can put this on the record: I stand with Kelly Sadler,' she said, according to an earlier Axios account.

Her husband, Matt Schlapp, also defended Sadler. The American Conservative Union Chairman said Sadler was 'a little bit of a victim.'

'Kelly is my friend. I feel bad she is going through this. She immediately called to apologize. She's also a little bit of a victim here,' Schlapp told CNN.

President Donald Trump has signaled to his top communications aides that he's ready to send some of their less senior staffers packing  a move he hopes will cut the White House's culture of leaking off at the knees.

Chief of Staff John Kelly has signed off on the plan, according to a Politico report last week.

But it wasn't immediately clear when the axe will swing at mid-level and junior employees, or how many Kelly plans to fire.

But it appears press and messaging leaders like Press Secretary Sarah Sanders and Mercedes Schlapp are safe.

Senior Trump-whisperer Kellyanne Conway said last week, however, that the White House had identified some secret leakers, and 'they're not all junior folks.'

The report comes days after an official told DailyMail.com Trump would 'take out the trash' and get rid of mid-level leakers.
Rev. Mike Oenbrink said 'Your children have been denied because you're homosexual. If we admit your children, it will send a bad message to the other families'

A priest in North Carolina denied the children to a Catholic school because their female parents are married.

The decision has sparked controversy among other parents Hilton Head Island, North Carolina, The Charlotte Observer reported.

The two mothers have been legally married since 2009 and applied to St. Francis Catholic School earlier this spring.

They received a rejection email so one of the mothers called up the priest and said: 'Your children have been denied because you're homosexual. If we admit your children, it will send a bad message to the other families.'

Rev. Mike Oenbrink said Friday that he rejected their application because they were married.

He said 'We reaffirm the dignity of all human beings, regardless of their beliefs. At the same time, our Catholic schools exist not only to promote academic excellence, but also to build a community of faith and prayer.'

A priest in North Carolina denied the children to a Catholic school because their female parents are married

'Based on Biblical and traditional teachings, we believe that God wills marriage to be a vowed, loving union between a man and a woman. We celebrate such a union as a Sacrament and, after prayerful deliberation, I reserve the right to admit to our parish school families which actively support that belief.'

These types of decisions are traditionally left to the local pastor. Maria Aselage, director of media relations for the diocese, wrote in an email: 'The Catholic Diocese of Charleston does not currently have a diocesan-wide policy in place when same sex couples wish to enroll their child in our schools.

'Unless there should be a change in the diocesan approach, the decision of enrolling a child will remain up to the pastors of parish schools.'

For centuries, the Catholic church has opposed homosexuality. However, earlier this month Pope Francis told a gay man, 'God made you this way and loves you this way, and the pope loves you this way.'
Manchester bomber Salman Abedi was able to buy materials for his suicide device on Amazon, the Mail can reveal.

Counter-terrorism chiefs believe the 22-year-old extremist used fake names to buy key components on the online marketplace.

He then assembled the bomb at home before detonating it at an Ariana Grande concert in May last year, killing 22 people including seven children.

Last night Amazon was in the dock after it emerged there were no proper security checks and officials were not alerted about the purchases.

Manchester bomber Salman Abedi (pictured) was able to buy materials for his suicide device on Amazon, potentially by using fake names, the Mail can reveal

The online retailer faced further questions after the Daily Mail was still able to buy several components which could help make a device like the one used by Abedi a year after the attack.

The ingredients, which are used with other chemicals to make an improvised explosive device, were purchased within ten minutes and without any security questions. It is not clear whether Abedi bought his materials directly from Amazon or through one of many third-party sellers on the site.

But Government sources last night said they want the web giant to alert the security agencies when customers are filling up their baskets with bomb-making materials.

Abedis Amazon history and that of people close to him have formed part of an police and security service investigation lasting months.

One line of inquiry is that he bought one item on the website as far back as January last year  five months before the attack  using the name of a family member.

The explosive device has been described as being a relatively sophisticated construct made with nails, nuts and bolts. It was revealed last year that he used hydrogen peroxide to make the explosive TATP  dubbed the Mother of Satan for its instability  and the same as that used in the 7/7 attacks on London. The Parsons Green attacker, Ahmed Hassan, 18, also used Amazon to make the bomb he left on a crowded London Tube train in September.

His trial earlier this year heard how he detonated a device made from TATP, after packing it with metal items bought from Aldi and Asda and had hydrogen peroxide delivered to a friends address to avoid suspicion.

Emergency services respond to the attack at the Manchester Arena last year after Abedi had bought chemicals online and detonated the device at an Ariana Grande concert

Another ingredient was bought from Amazon. TATP is typically used by terror groups because it can be made using commonly available chemicals. Along with hydrogen peroxide, which is used in hair dyes, it includes other chemicals which the Mail will not name.

Three of the ingredients used to make up TATP were purchased by the Mail on Thursday within minutes without warnings or security checks that may have halted the transaction. Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, former head of Natos Rapid Reaction Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Battalion, said Amazon needed to step up security checks. He said: For Abedi to be able to buy this stuff on Amazon seems crazy to me. There needs to be more regulation to stop this happening.

Amazon should really have a role to play in making sure these items are not sold to people who could then fashion a bomb.

Admiral Lord West, a former security minister, said: Surely there are some things where if someone wants to buy them it should flag up a warning. Amazon needs to look at this and monitor what is being bought on its site. Former security minister John Hayes said: It is time these companies such as Amazon step up to the mark and put the national interest ahead of any commercial interest.

They should be encouraged to do and if this doesnt work they should be made to do so.

Last December David Anderson QC, the former independent reviewer of terror legislation, published a report on the four terrorist attacks in Britain between March to June 2017. He said there needed to be increased cooperation between MI5 and the police and the private sector to improve the detectability and even the preventability of purchases of potential explosives precursors by would-be terrorists, as undertaken before the Manchester and Parsons Green attacks.

Abedis Amazon history and that of people close to him have formed part of an police and security service investigation lasting months

Although he did not specifically mention Amazon, it is understood the Government is now working with the web giant to help stop attacks using items bought online. As well as using Amazon, Abedi downloaded material from other websites about the chemical compound used in the bomb.

And he also watched a bomb-making tutorial on YouTube before the attack. The bomb-making video cookbook showed a masked extremist in a kitchen explaining how to build explosives with easy to obtain ingredients.

The products Abedi purchased were both legal and widely available. An Amazon spokesman: We share suspicious transaction reports with the Home Office counter terrorism team, but we cannot comment on the specific security measures that we have in place.

Earlier this month it emerged Amazon was selling terrorist recruitment material and bomb-making manuals on its site, including books by Osama Bin Laden.
In 1968, nearly five years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, his younger brother Bobby was shot dead as he sought nomination as the Democrats presidential candidate. On Saturday, our serialisation of a gripping new book revealed why its authors are convinced the man jailed for 50 years for his murder couldnt have done it. Today, they provide compelling evidence that the CIA was behind the shooting...

Once he was safely behind bars, the man whod apparently shot Senator Robert F. Kennedy proved surprisingly co-operative. In the eight months leading up to his trial in 1969, Sirhan Sirhan patiently answered all the questions put to him by a battalion of psychologists and psychiatrists. All except two.

He didnt know why hed shot Bobby Kennedy. And he had no recollection of anything hed seen or done in the hours leading up to the assassination, or even of pulling out his gun.

His amnesia seemed to be genuine  and inexplicable. So, in a final bid to unlock his frozen mind, an eminent psychologist was asked to put him into a hypnotic trance.

Scroll down for video

Murdered: Bobby Kennedy lies dying at the Ambassador Hotel in LA after being shot in 1968

Dr Bernard Diamond, a professor of psychology, law and criminology, found 25-year-old Sirhan very easy to hypnotise, though he still remembered nothing about shooting Kennedy in the early hours of June 5, 1968 at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

The professor eventually decided to prompt him under hypnosis to re-live the event. So, in January 1969, he began by taking him step by step through the hours leading up to the murder.

Under hypnosis, Sirhan described having four Tom Collins cocktails at the hotel before walking to his car with the intention of driving home. Realising he was drunk, hed changed his mind and returned to the hotel for a coffee.

There, he met a girl in a polka-dot dress, who was also looking for coffee. He didnt know her name, but remembered finding her sexy.

In 1969, Sirhan Sirhan - the man whod apparently shot Senator Robert F. Kennedy - was put under hypnosis and described meeting a girl in a polka dot dress in the hours leading up to the murder. Elayn Neal (above) has been identified by eyewitnesses as that elusive girl

Next, Diamond told Sirhan that he was back in the hotel pantry. Kennedy had just given a victory speech, having won the Democratic primary that took him a step closer to running for President. And now the Senator was walking through the hotel pantry, accompanied by aides 

Who was with you when you shot him? asked the professor.

Sirhan wrote on a piece of paper: Girl, the girl, the girl.

His only other recollection was of being choked by someone on a table in the pantry. This had indeed taken place: one of the men escorting Kennedy had grabbed him in a headlock to try to stop him pumping out more bullets.

But Sirhan couldnt recall shooting the Senator. Nor could he remember ever writing anything about wanting to kill him.

This also struck Diamond as strange. Not long after the shooting, police had found a notebook at Sirhans home, in which hed written: RFK must die. RFK must be killed. Robert F. Kennedy must be assassinated.

Still in a trance, Sirhan started making scribbles on the paper. When asked why he was doing this, he wrote: Practice, practice, practice, practice, practice.

Practice for what? asked the professor.

Mind control, mind control, mind control, mind control, wrote Sirhan.

Dr Bernard Diamond, a professor of psychology, law and criminology, found 25-year-old Sirhan (above) very easy to hypnotise, though he still remembered nothing about shooting Kennedy in the early hours of June 5, 1968 at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles

Who was with you when you shot him? asked the professor. Sirhan wrote on a piece of paper: Girl, the girl, the girl. His only other recollection was of being choked by someone on a table in the pantry. This had indeed taken place: one of the men escorting Kennedy had grabbed him in a headlock to try to stop him pumping out more bullets

Diamond wasnt sure what to make of this. Above all, he was puzzled by the fact that whenever Sirhan came out of a trance, he was unable to remember anything about the shooting.

At further sessions, Diamond used a technique called post-hypnotic suggestion to implant instructions in Sirhans mind.

I said: Youre asleep now, and when you wake up Im going to take my handkerchief out... And you are going to feel that youre going to climb around the bars [of the cell] like a monkey,, he recalled.

This worked like a dream. As soon as Diamond took out his handkerchief, Sirhan started climbing up the bars of the cell all the way to the ceiling and perched himself up there.

Afterwards, he had no memory of either being hypnotised or performing a monkey routine.

To Diamond, the strength of Sirhans memory blockage, together with the ease with which he could be put into a trance, suggested only one possibility. Before shooting at Kennedy, he must have undergone previous  and much deeper  hypno programming.

In his conscious mind, there was no awareness of such a plan, or that he, Sirhan, was to be the instrument of assassination, said Diamond. The mirrors in the hotel lobby, the flashing lights, the general confusion  this was like pressing the button which starts [a] computer. Above, Sirhan Sirhan is arrested at the scene of the assassination

But who could have done it? The professor concluded that Sirhan had hypnotised himself, using mirrors and candles. On the night of the assassination, he theorised, the camera lights and mirrors in the Ambassador Hotel must have triggered a trance.

And then, for whatever deeply buried reason, hed pulled out his gun and shot Senator Kennedy.

In his conscious mind, there was no awareness of such a plan, or that he, Sirhan, was to be the instrument of assassination, said Diamond. The mirrors in the hotel lobby, the flashing lights, the general confusion  this was like pressing the button which starts [a] computer.

Professor Diamond was fully aware that most people would think hed strayed into the realms of science fiction. Indeed, when he took the witness stand at Sirhans trial, he told the jury: I agree that this is an absurd and preposterous story, unlikely and incredible. However, these are the psychiatric findings in this case.

They are absurd, preposterous, unlikely and incredible because the crime itself was a tragically absurd and preposterous event, unlikely and incredible.

But I am satisfied that this is how Sirhan Bishara Sirhan came to kill Senator Robert F. Kennedy on June 5, 1968.

The jury evidently shared Diamonds pessimistic assessment of his own diagnosis: they found Sirhan guilty of murder.

Yet his theory had been largely correct. Before apparently committing the crime that sent shockwaves round the globe, Sirhan Sirhan had almost certainly been hypnotised.

Unknown to the professor, however, just one organisation possessed the necessary know-how to make an ordinary man commit an act of extreme violence  and remember nothing about it. And that, as we shall see, was the CIA

So who was the girl in the polka-dot dress? While under hypnosis, Sirhan had recalled meeting her just before the shooting, so she was clearly worth tracing.

In fact, the police had been flooded with sightings of a young white woman in a black and white polka-dot dress.

Twenty-five eyewitnesses at the Ambassador Hotel had mentioned her in their statements  and 13 of them had reported seeing her with a man matching Sirhans description.

So, within hours of arresting Sirhan, police started hunting for Miss Polka-Dot. Then, a few weeks later, they abruptly abandoned the investigation.

The search for his female accomplice, they announced, had been a wild-goose chase. She was merely a mirage  invented by an overwrought 20-year-old Kennedy campaign worker.

But there was far more to the story than the police were prepared to admit.

The allegedly overwrought campaign worker was Sandy Serrano. On the evening in question, which was very hot, shed stepped out onto one of the hotels external staircases to cool off. It was sometime after 11.30pm.

Five minutes later, Sandy saw two young men and one woman walking towards her up the stairway. As they passed her, the woman said: Excuse me.

Sandy noticed that one of the men  thought to be Sirhan looked as if he needed a haircut. The other was Mexican-American, clad in a gold-coloured sweater. And the dark-haired woman was about 5ft 6in, and wearing a white dress with black polka-dots.

Both went into the Embassy Room, where Kennedy was about to give his victory speech, and Sandy thought no more about them. Then, half an hour or so later, the girl and one of the men rushed back to the staircase.

The girl in the polka-dot dress practically stepped on me, Sandy Serrano told detectives. And she said: Weve shot him. Weve shot him. Then I said: Who did you shoot?

Elayn Neal's husband, Jerry Capehart, told his son that he'd worked for the CIA  on mind-control experimentation - in the Sixties. Did the CIA programme Sirhan Sirhan to kill Bobby Kennedy (above)? The short answer is that theres no definitive proof of agency involvement

And she said: We shot Senator Kennedy.

And I says: Oh, sure. And she came running down the stairs and the boy in the gold sweater came running down after her.

Startled and upset, Sandy then ran into the Ambassador Room, asking everyone she met if it was true that Kennedy had been shot. People looked at her blankly, unaware that elsewhere in the building, hed just taken a bullet in his brain.

Five minutes later, Sandy found her flatmate Irene Chavez in a hallway outside the Ambassador Room. In a police interview, Irene later recalled that her friend was crying as she told her about seeing a man and a woman run down the stairway where shed been sitting. The woman said something about they had shot Kennedy.

Immediately after speaking to Irene, Sandy ran to a payphone and called her parents in Ohio. They, too, would later tell police that she was crying.

Meanwhile, the first police officer to respond to a radio alert about the shooting had arrived at the hotel. As he came in, he was approached by an elderly couple with a story remarkably similar to Sandys.

As the officer duly noted, the elderly couple were on the balcony outside the Embassy Room when a young couple, early 20s, came running from the direction of the Embassy Room shouting: We shot him, we shot him. When asked who, the young couple replied: Kennedy, we shot him.

The old couples names later disappeared from police files.

Sandy was later interviewed again by the homicide division. The only detail she could add was that the polka-dot girl had a funny nose, turned up like a pixie.

Police also interviewed Vincent DiPierro, a student, whod been watching the polka-dot girl in the moments before Bobby was shot. Shed caught his eye when she came into the hotel pantry, he said, because she was very shapely.

With her was a young man  Sirhan  who climbed onto a tray stacker. According to DiPierro, the girl was almost holding him.

Sirhan said something and turned to look at her with a stupid smile. The girl just smiled in response. After that, everything happened very fast.

I thought he was going to go and shake [Bobbys] hand, said DiPierro. And then he kind of swung around and he went up on his tiptoes and he shot.

Another witness, whod also been in the pantry, reported that immediately after the shooting, hed seen a man and a girl in a white dress fleeing through a side corridor. Hed tried to pursue them, but there were too many people in the way.

Others could also testify that Sirhan had been with the girl in the pantry. And there were also simply too many near-identical sightings of them with the man in the gold sweater to be dismissed as mere coincidence.

Was she perhaps a Kennedy aide? Unlikely. Conrad Seim, a 50-year-old press photographer, said that the polka-dot girl had approached him twice that evening, asking to borrow his Press pass.

Hed refused. But shed somehow got into the Embassy Room anyway  because another witness recalled seeing her without a pass and wondering how shed got in.

In a thorough police investigation, all these eyewitness accounts should have strongly suggested that Sirhan was not alone on the night of June 4-5. Yet the search for the polka-dot girl was quietly abandoned.

Some witnesses were told that theyd been mistaken. Others were dismissed as phonies or unreliable. As for Sandy, the police asked her to take a lie-detector test.

These are meant to take place in an atmosphere of complete calm  which is crucial for accurate results. A transcript of the test, however, shows that the interviewer was hectoring and brutal, accusing Sandy among other things of shaming Kennedy with her lies, which must have left her unable to sleep at night.

Predictably, Sandy  who was reduced to tears  failed the test. Two days later, the police called off their search for the polka-dot girl and announced that Sandy Serrano had invented the entire story.

Today, however, she still insists that she told the truth.

Genuine conspiracies happen. Watergate was a conspiracy. And its undoubtedly true that the CIA engaged in a succession of very real conspiracies, such as attempting to assassinate dictators and masterminding coups detats.

So maybe we shouldnt be too surprised to learn that the CIA also launched a top-secret project to turn ordinary men into robot-assassins.

Millions of dollars were spent on the project during the Fifties and Sixties. Then, in 1973, in one of his final acts as director of the CIA, Richard Helms ordered the destruction of all records relating to what the agency referred to as Artichoke.

By accident, however, several boxes containing records of the agencys mind-control experiments have survived. And these reveal that the CIA conducted hundreds of experiments with hypnosis, at first using its own staff as volunteers.

Can we create by post-H[ypnosis] control an action contrary to an individuals basic moral principles? reads one CIA memo. Could we seize a subject and in the space of an hour or two by post-H control have him crash an airplane, wreck a train, etc?

Another memo reports that hypnotised volunteers had been able to produce automatic writing. After being awakened, theyd been amazed and startled by what theyd written.

Even more pertinent to Sirhans case was an experiment involving two CIA secretaries. Both were hypnotised, then one was sent to sleep while the other was ordered to fly into a rage and shoot the sleeper dead with a pistol.

These instructions were carried out to the letter, though happily the pistol wasnt loaded. And neither woman could recall a thing when they woke up.

Project Artichoke had worked: the CIA now knew how to create hypno-programmed assassins whod later be unable to recall their actions.

In 1969, while at San Quentin State Prison, Sirhan Sirhan was examined by the jails psychologist.

Dr Eduard Simson met him regularly and concluded that far from being a lone and politically motivated assassin, Sirhan had been hypno-programmed to be a distraction.

He was put up to draw attention while experts did the work, said the psychologist. He would be easily blamed. He was programmed to be there.

And Simson swore under oath: Sirhans trial was, and will be remembered as, the psychiatric blunder of the century.

In 1997, Americas leading expert on hypnosis, Dr Herbert Spiegel, reviewed the case. In a sworn affidavit, he noted that Sirhan could be programmed to carry out crazy actions  such as behaving like a monkey.

The speed at which he could be put into a trance, he said, suggested hed been hypnotised before the assassination. And it was also telling that Sirhan had an automatic tendency to repress any memory of being hypnotised.

This, of course, precisely echoed the aims of Project Artichoke.

In 2008, Sirhans lawyers asked Dr Daniel Brown  another world-authority on hypnosis  to investigate their client. His work with Sirhan would go on for eight years. Finally, he began to unlock more of Sirhans memories under hypnosis  and again they centred on the girl in the polka-dot dress.

That evening in 1968, shed overheard him asking a bartender for coffee and started talking to him. They could get coffee in the room behind the platform where Kennedy was speaking, she said.

There, they discovered a large silver coffee urn. As they flirted over their coffee, Sirhan decided he wanted to have sex with the girl later.

They were interrupted by an official who told them they couldnt remain in the room for security reasons and should move on to the hotel kitchen.

Sirhan then recalled what happened next. I followed her. She led  I was like a little puppy after her. She went straight to that pantry area  with my being so attracted to her, I was just glued to her.

As we were coming in [to the pantry], Im still sleepy, very sleepy. The place was darkish, a deep place to get romantic with that girl.

Then she sat up on the table with her back to the wall. I am just looking at her, trying to take her beauty in. I am trying to figure out how to hit on her. Thats all I can think about.

All of a sudden, shes looking over my head. Then she taps me or pinches me. Its startling, like when youre stuck with a pin. She says: Look, look, look.

I turn around. There are people coming through the doors. I am still puzzled about what she is directing me to. Then all of a sudden, she gets more animated.

She put her arm on my shoulder. Then I was back at the target range  a flashback to the shooting range.

I thought I was at the range more than I was actually shooting at any person, let alone Bobby Kennedy. Then everything gets blurry.

To Dr Brown, these recollections pointed to an entirely logical conclusion.

The way the girl touched Sirhan, he said, was suggestive of the kind of mind-control done in that era  in other words, her touch had triggered the hallucination that he was merely practising his target shooting.

It is my opinion, stated Dr Brown firmly, that Mr Sirhan did not act under his own volition and knowledge or intention at the time of the assassination.

And the girl in that polka-dot dress? Over the past 50 years, a succession of researchers has assembled a long list of possible candidates, but none could identify her.

And then, last year, my co-author Brad finally traced her.

Hed started the quest by tracking down seven surviving eyewitnesses and asking them to look at a photographic line-up of possible contenders.

Among the 12 photos, he included one of a woman whose family had contacted one of Kennedys aides, but whod never been publicly associated with the day of the shooting.

It wouldnt be her, thought Brad, but he added her picture just to make up the numbers.

To his astonishment, each of the seven witnesses independently picked her as the closest match to the girl in the polka-dot dress. Her name was Elayn Neal, and shed died five years before.

After contacting her family, Brad discovered that shed married in 1966 but used to disappear from home, without explanation, for long periods.

Her children recalled that shed always seemed haunted by something, and often expressed fears that she was being followed.

They also talked about her obsession with a white dress with black polka-dots, which shed often take out of storage just to look at it.

But it was only after her death that a nephew wrote to one of Bobby Kennedys aides, enclosing a photo of Elayn and asking if she could possibly have been the girl in the polka-dot dress. The aide had then asked Brad to investigate further.

So, after all seven eyewitnesses apparently recognised Elayn, he dug a little deeper. Her husband, Jerry Capehart, he discovered, had refused to let her wear the polka-dot dress, and this had caused explosive rows between them.

But the most spine-chilling discovery of all was what Capehart had done for a living in the Sixties. Just before his own death, hed told his son that hed worked for the CIA  on mind-control experimentation.

Did the CIA programme Sirhan Sirhan to kill Bobby Kennedy? The short answer is that theres no definitive proof of agency involvement.

However, its a matter of record that, as one-time U.S. Attorney General, Kennedy had clashed with both the FBI and CIA. Its also a matter of historical record that there was a long and dishonourable history of co-operation between organised crime and the CIA, including joint attempts at political assassination.

One of the most powerful mobsters at the time was Jimmy Hoffa, leader of the Teamsters Union and a sworn enemy of Bobby Kennedy. He was serving an eight-year jail sentence for jury tampering and attempted bribery and a concurrent sentence for fraud at the time of the assassination.

Two weeks after the killing, a former prison inmate contacted police to report a conversation hed overheard the year before. Hoffa, who was talking to two friends, had apparently said: I have a contract out on Kennedy and if he ever gets in the primaries or ever gets elected, the contract will be fulfilled within six months.

And Hoffas name came up again in the hours after the assassination. A woman had walked into the LA County Sheriffs office to report a conversation with Hoffas son. If Kennedy were elected president, he told her, hed be rubbed out.

Does this prove that the CIA plotted with mobsters to murder the man thought by many to be on his way to the White House? No, it does not.

But we believe that there are strong grounds to suggest that the assassination was the result of a conspiracy.

Its now overwhelmingly likely that Sirhan was acting under the influence of hypnosis. Plus, as we outlined on Saturday, theres a wealth of evidence  from eyewitness testimony to ballistic impossibilities  that contradicts the official version of Bobby Kennedys assassination.

Even 50 years on, there are compelling grounds for a thorough re-investigation. Los Angeles law enforcement, however, has vehemently refused to re-open the case.

Now aged 74, Sirhan remains in jail. Since he doesnt remember shooting Kennedy, successive parole hearings have concluded that he cant have sufficient remorse to justify parole.

Its a classic Catch 22: he could be deemed suitable for release but only if he admits that he intended to commit a murder he cant remember carrying out.

Adapted by Corinna Honan from The Assassination Of Robert F. Kennedy by Tim Tate and Brad Johnson, to be published by Thistle on June 6 at 11.99.  Tim Tate and Brad Johnson 2018.
A retired Atlanta schoolteacher has corrected a presidential letter and sent it back to Donald Trump so he can learn from his mistakes.

Yvonne Mason had written to Trump in the wake of the Parkland, Florida mass shooting, asking him to meet with the families of the victims and questioning him about school safety.

The former English high school teacher says that the letter she received his response, dated May 3, was full of grammatical errors.

A retired Atlanta schoolteacher has corrected a letter from Donald Trump (pictured)

'When you get letters from the highest level of government, you expect them to be at least mechanically correct,' Mason told the Greenville News.

Mason posted a photo of the letter, printed on White House stationary and bearing President Trump's signature, on which she has made her own corrections.

'Have y'all tried grammar style check?' she wrote across the top of the note.

She also picked up grammatical errors such as 'nation' and 'states' being incorrectly capitalized. The former teacher circled both and gave brief explanations why they were wrong.

Another sentence, talking about how Trump had introduced a 'rule' banning devices into machine guns was branded unclear.

'Explain 'rule,' she wrote.

'Poor writing is not something I abide,' said Mason, who retired from teaching English in South Carolina last year and admitted she was still in 'grading-paper mode.'

Yvonne Mason had written to Trump in the wake of the Parkland, Florida mass shooting, but says his response, dated May 3, was full of grammatical errors

'If my students turned that in they would get exactly the same marks,' she told the New York Times.

Mason also says that the letter failed to address her concerns, but merely listed actions that had taken place after the shooting, such as listening sessions and the STOP School Violence Act.

Photos of the letter, which has since been mailed back to the White House, has attracted hundreds of shares and likes since it was posted on Facebook last week.

The response has been divided, with some criticizing the teacher for mocking the president, and others praising her for tackling the poor grammar.

Mason said she often corresponded with politicians, however, Trump's response had stood out.

'Lindsey Graham, or his people, writes exquisite letters,' Mason told the Greenville newspaper. 'I give him credit for that. They are far more on-topic. I understand the nature of form letters, but Graham's are written as if they're addressing your particular concern.'

Mason is also continuing her New Years resolution to write a postcard to the White House every day since January 1.
The British Museum should have a Supermarket Sweep where countries have two minutes to take back their artifacts, a BBC historian has suggested.

David Olusoga said there was a moral imperative for relics to be returned and that it could help our relationship with the Commonwealth after Brexit.

Born in Nigeria, he said he felt strongly that the Benin Bronzes should be given back to the country of his heritage after they were seized in violent raids in the late 19th century.

The BBC Civilisations presenter, who also called for the Elgin Marbles to be given back to Greece, said: Its just such a stark case of theft.

The British Museum should have a Supermarket Sweep where countries have two minutes to take back their artifacts, a BBC historian has suggested. David Olusoga (above) said there was a moral imperative for relics to be returned and that it could help our relationship with the Commonwealth after Brexit

Born in Nigeria, Mr Olusoga said he felt strongly that the Benin Bronzes (one of them, pictured) should be given back to the country of his heritage after they were seized in violent raids in the late 19th century

The museum has faced criticism for its vast collection of treasures taken over centuries of exploring.

For years, debate has raged between the UK and Greece about whether the Parthenon Marbles, taken by Lord Elgin during the stripping of the Acropolis in 1801, should be returned.

Speaking at the Hay Festival, Mr Olusoga said: A friend of mine, a TV producer, once came up with a brilliant solution: he said we should have a special version of Supermarket Sweep where every country is given a huge shopping trolley and two minutes in the British Museum. Maybe hes right, maybe thats the way forward.

He said it could even help Britains trade and relations moving forward after Brexit, adding: If our relationship with the Commonwealth after Brexit is going to be more important, remembering they remember what happened, and they remember the things that were taken  and there are real senses of loss in those countries  its beneficial to us as a nation to listen to those appeals.

The BBC Civilisations presenter, who also called for the Elgin Marbles (one of them, above) to be given back to Greece, said: Its just such a stark case of theft

The historian and broadcaster, who arrived in the UK as a young boy, was particularly invested in the return of the Benin Bronzes.

They decorated the royal palace of the kingdom of Benin, now southern Nigeria, until most were seized during a British military expedition in 1897.

Some 200 bronzes were given to the museum, while the rest were scattered across Europe.

Mr Olusoga said: I think its a very, very clear case of appropriation and theft. The palace was destroyed, they were taken and then sold to pay for the cost of the military adventure.

Everyone was open about this  steal this stuff, send it to pay for the cost of the bullets. Its just such a stark case of theft.

'The idea that your national treasure would be in the museum of another country is something that as British people we would find absolutely impossible to get our heads around, but thats what Nigerians have to think about.

Mr Olusoga's comments come as several of Europe's most prominent museums were accused of hoarding artifacts 'stolen' from African countries during colonisation.

Last month, the V&A Museum's director, former Labour MP Tristram Hunt, raised the possibility of some of its items being returned to Ethiopia.

In 2016, the students' union at Jesus College, Cambridge, voted for a bronze cockerel taken in the 19th century from Benin City in present-day Nigeria  worth as much as 1 million  to be removed from the college's dining hall and sent back to the country it came from.
Theresa May was last night on a collision course with her DUP allies over abortion rights in Ulster.

The Prime Minister congratulated the winning side after the Republic of Irelands referendum, which she praised as an impressive show of democracy.

Her tweet led to speculation in Westminster that Mrs May could be pushed by prominent female Tory colleagues into imposing a change in the law in Northern Ireland, or calling a referendum there.

But the Democratic Unionist Party made clear that the province would not be bullied on the issue, which it insisted was for local politicians to decide on.

The Prime Minister congratulated the winning side after the Republic of Irelands referendum, which she praised as an impressive show of democracy

Mrs May is managing a difficult balancing act between those in her own Cabinet, who want abortion made legal in Northern Ireland, and the DUP, whose votes she needs in the Commons to keep Brexit on track.

Arlene Foster, the DUP leader, last night said the Irish abortion referendum will have no impact on law north of the border.

However, Mrs May faced a chorus of demands from Tory women to resolve the anomalous situation in Northern Ireland following Saturdays referendum result, which saw 66 per cent of voters back liberalisation.

A string of Tories signalled they would be prepared to work with Labour to rewrite the law banning abortions in Northern Ireland in the absence of a devolved government in Stormont, which collapsed more than a year ago. Labour last night said it was now looking at legislative options to see how that could be achieved by Westminster. The forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill, promised by ministers, could be used as a vehicle for MPs hoping to change the law in Northern Ireland.

In a sign of the pressure from within Mrs Mays own party, education minister Anne Milton suggested she would back liberalisation if there was a free vote.

The current situation does feel anomalous, she told ITVs Peston on Sunday. But it is understood the Government believes the Commons Speaker should not accept an abortion amendment to the Bill as it is a devolved issue.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar posted this picture on Twitter showing crowds celebrating the referendum result, which saw 66.4 per cent of voters back repeal of the abortion ban

Law could be named after 'martyr' Savita The new Irish abortion law may be named Savitas law after the woman who became a martyr for the cause of legalising abortion. Savita Halappanavar, pictured, was a 31-year-old dentist who was denied an abortion in 2012 after her first pregnancy ran into difficulties at 17 weeks. Medics at University Hospital Galway decided that a miscarriage was certain  but refused to terminate the pregnancy because the heart of the foetus was still beating. Savita Halappanavar, who died in 2012 Her husband Praveen said his wife had said she was in pain and had asked for a termination. He said she was told that unfortunately its a Catholic country. Mrs Halappanavar, a Hindu, developed an infection and then septic shock, and died seven days after being admitted to hospital. Her husband said there was no doubt that she would have lived if a termination had been allowed. An inquiry found that there had been an over-emphasis on the need not to intervene until the foetal heart had stopped. The death provoked protests and also led to the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013, which allows a termination if there is a substantial risk to life, including risk of suicide. Mrs Halappanavars father Andanappa Yalagi told the Irish Times yesterday that the new law should be named for her. Advertisement

Last night Tory MPs suggested Mrs May could instead call a referendum in Northern Ireland so the people could decide on the issue directly while the Stormont Assembly is suspended.

Former Cabinet minister Maria Miller, chairman of the women and equalities select committee, said: No one should deny the people of Northern Ireland a referendum for the opportunity to have the same rights on abortion as the rest of the UK.

Sarah Wollaston, the Tory chairman of the Commons health select committee, added: If an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at the very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland.

Cabinet minister Penny Mordaunt, who holds the women and equalities brief, on Saturday hailed the result as an historic great day for Ireland and a hopeful one for Northern Ireland.

She added: That hope must be met. Justine Greening, the former education secretary, yesterday tweeted: Its clear its now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for NI women that we have as women across the rest of the UK.

But justice minister Rory Stewart warned against the Commons intervening. He told the BBCs Sunday Politics the Government was acting as a caretaker administration in the absence of Stormont, and that must not be used to make fundamental constitutional changes.

Yesterday, Mrs May tweeted: The Irish referendum was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result. I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of #Together4Yes on their successful campaign.

But Downing Street insisted Mrs Mays priority was to restore the power-sharing deal in Northern Ireland.

Mrs Foster last night issued a statement saying: The legislation governing abortion is a devolved matter and it is for the Northern Ireland Assembly to debate and decide such issues.

The DUP is a pro-life party and we will continue to articulate our position. It is an extremely sensitive issue and not one that should have people taking to the streets in celebration. I want to see the Northern Ireland Assembly restored and put no preconditions on the immediate establishment of an executive.

A Whitehall source said: Everything is a red line for the DUP, but this is genuinely a red line.

Theresa May's minority government is supported by the DUP and Arlene Foster (right)
Four people have been killed and 13 injured after an avocado truck crashed and burst into flames on a busy Louisiana highway.

Police said the 18-wheeler truck failed to stop as it approached congestion on the I-12 near Covington on Saturday at 4pm and resulted in a pile up with nine other vehicles.

The truck, which was hauling avocados, managed to jackknife during the crash and caught fire before quickly engulfing three other vehicles.

Scroll down for video

Police said the 18-wheeler truck failed to stop as it approached congestion on the I-12 near Covington, Louisiana on Saturday at 4pm and resulted in a pile up with nine other vehicles

Mother and son Yoland and Keland Simmons, of Baton Rouge (left), both died at the scene after their 2014 Lexus IS 350 was struck by the truck. Another victim, Rachel Lehmann of Mandeville (right), was taken to hospital where she later died

The 18-wheeler driver died at the scene but police have not yet been able to confirm their identity.

Two other people died at the scene, including mother and son Yoland and Keland Simmons of Baton Rouge - the driver and passenger of a 2014 Lexus IS 350 that was struck by the truck.

A fourth person Rachel Lehmann of Mandeville, who was the driver of a 1997 Toyota 4-Runner, was taken to hospital where she later died.

Several others were taken to local hospitals suffering varying degrees of injuries.

A St Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office deputy was also injured and treated but is expected to make a full recovery.

The truck, which was hauling avocados, managed to jackknife during the crash and caught fire before quickly engulfing three other vehicles, including another 18-wheeler

The crash forced the highway to be shut down for several hours as fire crews battled the blaze

Photos shared by the Louisiana State Police showed the aftermath with piles of ash covering the highway

The crash forced the highway to be shut down for several hours as fire crews battled the blaze.

Photos shared by the Louisiana State Police showed the aftermath with piles of ash covering the highway and the front cab of the trailer completely burned.

'This was a horrific crash. We are praying for all who have been affected by this tragedy and are grateful to the many who have expressed their concern,' the St Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office said.

Investigators say they have not yet determined whether the truck driver was impaired and toxicology results are pending an autopsy.

Authorities are still investigation the crash.

The driver of the 18-wheeler died at the scene along with two other people. A fourth person later died in hospital
A breast cancer patient has been forced to pay $16,000 for life-saving surgery, despite having private health insurance.

Madonna Buiter and her husband was forced to use their home deposit savings to pay for repeated unexpected fees and charges throughout her treatment.

Ms Buiter and thousands of others are being hit with hefty medical bills due to laws which prevent private health insurance paying for costs incurred outside hospital.

Madonna Buiter (pictured) and her husband lost their home deposit savings after being slugged with repeated unexpected fees and charges throughout her treatment

The issue is known as bill creep, and occurs when patients are forced to undergo multiple consultations, accruing costs not covered by insurance.

'They say, "Oh well, you should shop around and find a cheaper surgeon",' Ms Buiter told an investigation by Four Corners.

'Well, that sounds great in theory, but on this side of my journey I can say now, when you're given that diagnosis, you have breast cancer, you need surgery. I don't know that that's realistic or reasonable at that time.'

The mother-of-two said it was hard enough to keep up with the process of seeing doctors and booking surgeries let alone find out what the charges would be.

Ms Buiter and thousands of others are being slugged with hefty medical bills due to laws preventing private health insurance from applying to out of hospital costs (stock image)

Other patients told of paying illegal booking and administration fees, with one one needing to pay $6000.

How to avoid out-of-pocket costs - Ask your GP about specialists' fees - Find a surgeon in a no gap scheme - Question tests not covered by Medicare - Query everything you don't undestand - Be honest about what you can't afford - Refuse to pay booking fees, administration fees or nursing fees - Report such fees to your health fund - Get a second opinion Advertisement

Surgeons can get higher insurance rebates for not charging gap fees, and some then charge 'booking fees' instead.

Stephen Duckett, director of health with the Gratton Institute, blamed doctors for charging 'outrageous' amounts.

Doctors are able to charge what they like, Mr Duckett said, making it hard for health funds to set premiums.

The Four Corners investigation, which looked at the bills of 700 patients, found most did not blame surgeons.

Policy consultant Terry Barnes said private health insurers were often unfairly blamed for out-of-pocket costs, even when the fault lay with surgeons.

In order to avoid such costs, patients should query any fees they don't understand and be honest with surgeons about what they can afford.

After talking about specialists' fees with their GP, patients should then find a surgeon in a no gap scheme and refuse to pay any booking or administration fees.
A Frontier Airlines jet from San Diego to Tulsa, Oklahoma, has been diverted to Phoenix, Arizona, after an unpleasant odor was smelled onboard.

The Airbus A320 aircraft took off from San Diego International Airport at 6.50am Sunday but just over an hour later into the three hour flight it made an unscheduled landing at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

Fire crews evaluated 17 people at the gate who felt ill from the odor with a 62-year-old man being taken to nearby hospital for additional treatment.

A man is in hospital after a flight heading to Tulsa, Oklahoma was diverted to Phoenix's due to an odor onboard (file photo)

Passengers described the unidentified smell as passing 'through the plane and was then gone' according to AZCentral.com.

The airline is now investigating the cause of the odor.

Frontier Airlines has released a statement: Frontier Airlines flight 238 from San Diego to Tulsa landed in Phoenix this morning after an odor was detected by a member of our crew. Safety is the priority at Frontier and the decision to land in Phoenix was made out of an abundance of caution.

As is standard procedure, anyone requesting a medical evaluation receives one. Arrangements are being made to allow passengers to continue to their destinations.'

Frontier Airlines flight 238 took off from San Diego but landed one hour later. Its flight path is seen above

The diversion is remarkably similar to one that happened last week when a plane on the same route but travelling from Tulsa, Oklahoma, to San Diego was forced to make an emergency landing in New Mexico after flight attendants smelled an unknown odor.

On that occasion Frontier Airlines Flight 1839 made an emergency landing at the Albuquerque International Sunport last Sunday night because of the unknown smell in the cabin.

Frontier Airlines says the flight landed safely and no injuries were reported among the 129 passengers and six crew members.

Frontier reportedly gave passengers a $200 flight voucher, put them in hotels overnight, and rescheduled them on a flight Monday morning.

The flight is part of a new route from Tulsa International Airport to San Diego
Two US Navy warships sailed provocatively close to the South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, raising protests from Beijing.

The operation was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as the country's efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.

It also comes just days after the Pentagon pulled China's invitation to join maritime exercises in the Pacific because of its 'continued militarization' of the islands.

While this operation was planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a particularly sensitive time between the two nations.

Two US Navy warships sailed provocatively close to the South China Sea islands on Sunday, raising protests from Beijing (pictured is Woody Island in the South China Sea)

US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands.

The area is among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

US military vessels carried out maneuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.

Critics of the operations, known as a 'freedom of navigation', have said that they have little impact on Chinese behavior and are largely symbolic.

The US military did not directly comment on Sunday's operation, but said US forces operate in the region daily.

'We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future,' US Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

The Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands (pictured is the US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen in a file photo)

China's Defense Ministry expressed its anger, saying it had sent ships and aircraft to warn the US warships to leave.

It claimed the US had entered the country's territorial waters without permission.

The move 'contravened Chinese and relevant international law, seriously infringed upon Chinese sovereignty (and) harmed strategic mutual trust between the two militaries,' it said.

In a separate statement, China's Foreign Ministry urged the United States to stop such actions.

'China will continue to take all necessary measures to defend the country's sovereignty and security,' it added, without elaborating.

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region.

China's claims in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

It comes just days after the Pentagon pulled its invitation for China to join its Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercises (A Royal Canadian Navy frigate steams alongside the USS John C Stennis during the 2016 Rim of the Pacific maritime exercise)

Satellite photographs taken on May 12 showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.

And earlier this month, China's air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs in the South China Sea as part of a training exercise in the region, triggering concern from Vietnam and the Philippines.

It was the latter act that caused Defense Secretary James Mattis to withdraw China's invitation to the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercises.

RIMPAC is held every two years and involves more than 20 countries, including Japan, India, and the UK.

China was invited to join the RIMPAC, which the Pentagon is the biggest military exercise in the world, under the Obama administration as a way to boost relations with Beijing and encourage the country to stop the militarization of a group of disputed islands in the South China Sea.

But China will miss out on the exercises this year, which are held in Hawaii, following Mattis' decision.

'China's continued militarization of disputed features in the South China Sea only serves to raise tensions and destabilize the region,' Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Chris Logan said.

China's Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi (pictured with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo) said the US decision to exclude it from RIMPAC was 'very non-constructive'

'We have disinvited the PLA Navy from the 2018 Rim of the Pacific Exercise. China's behavior is inconsistent with the principles and purposes of the RIMPAC exercise.'

China's Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi said the US decision to exclude it from RIMPAC was 'very non-constructive.'

'It's also a decision taken lightly and is unhelpful to mutual understanding between China and the US,' Wang said at a press conference with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo after the two met in Washington.

Pompeo did not comment on the matter, saying only that the pair had had a 'good discussion' about American concerns of militarization of the South China Sea.

Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, 'Cold War' terms.

The decision to pull China's invitation comes amid new tensions between Beijing and Washington.

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he was not satisfied with talks aimed at averting a trade war with China.

Trump also escalated tensions with North Korea after he called off a planned nuclear disarmament summit with Kim Jong Un after the communist leader insulted VP Mike Pence.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has deleted a tweet which recommended an article critical of the media that was written by a web site linked to NXIVM, the alleged sex cult.

In recent days, the billionaire entrepreneur has been active on Twitter denouncing the press for what he feels is unfair coverage of his electric car company.

Musk has suggested the creation of a site where the public can rate the core truth of any article & track the credibility score over time of each journalist, editor, & publication, he tweeted last week.

He then added that he was considering naming the new site Pravda - which was the name of the official propaganda organ of the defunct Soviet Union.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has deleted a tweet which recommended an article critical of the media that was written by a web site linked to NXIVM, the alleged sex cult

To back up his claim that the press is not reliable, Musk retweeted a link to an article written by The Knife, a web site that is a rebranded version of The Knife of Aristotle

To back up his claim that the press is not reliable, Musk retweeted a link to an article written by The Knife, a web site that is a rebranded version of The Knife of Aristotle, according to Slate.

The Knife of Aristotle is affiliated with NXIVM, a self-help organization whose founder, Keith Raniere, was arrested in March and charged with crimes that include forcing followers to have sex with him.

One of his followers was Allison Mack, the actress who is alleged to have helped steer women to Raniere.

The Knife article which Musk linked to is an analysis of how news outlets distort information.

The Knife of Aristotle is affiliated with NXIVM, whose founder, Keith Raniere (left), was arrested in March and charged with crimes that include forcing followers to have sex with him. One of his followers was actress Allison Mack (right), who allegedly helped steer women to Raniere

It assigned objectivity ratings to articles from various news sites who have covered Musks recent campaign against the press.

The Knife gauges the accuracy and objectivity of articles based on what it perceives as spin or slant.

It then calculates these markers in order to come up with a final objectivity rating.

When Musk was informed on Twitter that the article was written by a site affiliated with NXIVM, he deleted the tweet.

Yet, Musk still defended the article in a subsequent tweet, saying that it had better critical analysis than most non-cult media.

Musk appears serious with his intent to monitor the press.

He hasn't let up on his promise to create 'Pravda', a website aimed at rating the credibility of specific journalists and media outlets.

The SpaceX and Tesla boss tweeted on Friday that he registered the domain name 'Pravduh.com', a play on words of the state-run Russian news agency, Pravda.

'Game on...,' Musk added, continuing a Twitter tirade that has gone on since Wednesday.

Musk took 'big media companies' to task in a series of tweets earlier this week, particularly over the headlines surrounding his electric car company, Tesla.

Musk appears serious with his intent to monitor the press. He hasn't let up on his promise to create 'Pravda', a website aimed at rating the credibility of specific journalists and media outlets

The SpaceX and Tesla boss tweeted on Friday that he registered the domain name 'Pravduh.com', a play on words of the state-run Russian news agency, Pravda

He said the public doesn't respect the media anymore because of their 'holier-than-though hypocrisy' and because they 'claim to the truth, but publish only enough to sugarcoat the lie'.

After a reporter from the Verge retorted by calling him a 'media-bating Trump figure,' Musk sharply replied by saying President Donald Trump was elected because no one believes the media anymore.

He rounded out the spectacle by saying that he plans to create a site called 'Pravda', a reference to the state-run Russian news agency, where people can rate journalists.

Now, it appears Musk is doubling down on his promise to create the site.

After discovering that Pravda.com was already a domain name purchased in Ukraine, he went ahead and registered Pravduh.com.

Musk was asked whether the site, which would rate the 'core truth of any article and track the credibility score over time of each journalist, editor and publication', was just a joke.

The site itself seems to be serious, but Musk acknowledged that the 'Pravda' name is satire.

'It is named after the most pernicious propaganda machine in history specifically to highlight what we want to avoid,' Musk explained in a tweet.

'It's called satire...,' he added.

Still, that didn't seem to satisfy some members of the media, who said the Pravda website would be 'an attack' on the profession.

Musk defended his move by saying the website is necessary to protect truthfulness in the media

And again, Musk defended his move by saying the website is necessary to protect truthfulness in the media.

In a separate tweet on Wednesday, Musk agreed with it being akin to a 'Yelp for journalists'.

'If you're in media and don't want Pravda to exist, write an article telling your readers to vote against it,' he added.

Coincidentally, the SpaceX and Tesla boss incorporated a business by the name of Pravda Corp. in California last October, reporter Mark Harris pointed out in a tweet.

Musk seemingly acknowledged this by replying to the tweet with an emoji.

The rant, which totaled 19 tweets, was ignited by a report from electric vehicle-focused news website Electrek, which cited a recent report from Robert W. Baird analysts.

Baird analysts noted that 'increasingly immaterial' headlines had been flooding the news media, but that Tesla may still be able to recover from the 'negative coverage/sentiment'.

Tesla has been hit with a number of hurdles in the past few months, as it has struggled to meet production goals for the Model 3 and continues to burn through cash.

Additionally, concerns have continued to grow around the safety of Tesla cars, as well as the working conditions at the firm's Fremont, California-based factory.

Just this week, Consumer Reports decided not to recommend the Model 3 sedan after it determined that it had the worst braking distances 'of any contemporary car'.

And Musk has repeatedly complained on Twitter that media organizations dedicate more attention to covering crashes related to Tesla's self-driving cars than it does to crashes from regular automobiles.

Wednesday's tirade also isn't the first time Musk has voiced an interest in creating some kind of media-related entity of his own.

In the recent past, the SpaceX boss poached several writers and editors from satirical news publication The Onion to work on a secret project he's funding,according to The Daily Beast.

Possibly giving credence to the report, Musk sent out a pair of cryptic tweets early Wednesday, beginning with one that simply said 'Thud!'
Advertisement

Roaring flash floods that struck a Maryland city have toppled buildings, swept away dozens of cars and turned streets into raging rivers that reached as high as six feet.

Dramatic footage and photos showed the sudden and violent floodwaters surging through Ellicott City, about 13 miles outside of Baltimore, on Sunday as torrential rain soaked much of the state.

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for the city late in the afternoon and Maryland Governor Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency soon after.

'This is a catastrophic and life-threatening extremely dangerous situation,' the weather alert warned.

Scroll down for video

Dramatic footage emerged of a man desperately trying to escape flash flooding in Maryland on Sunday as torrents of brown water swept away a building and multiple cars around him

Dramatic photos and video emerged showing fast-moving torrents of brown water rushing down Main Street in Ellicott City, just outside Baltimore, on Sunday

Footage taken by one witness showed the town's historic stone cottage being completely swept away and destroyed by the turbulent currents.

A man was captured in one video desperately trying to reach safety as half a dozen cars floated near him. The woman who shot the video, Natalie Walterhoefer, said the man was rescued moments later and was safe.

Other videos showed waves of water rushing through the city's Main Street as it surged as high as six-foot at the height of the flash flooding.

It prompted emergency rescues as the raging waters engulfed cars and rose above the first floor of some buildings.

The community set along the west bank of Maryland's Patapsco River was stricken by deadly flash flooding two years ago.

Authorities had urged residents on Sunday to seek higher ground, while motorists were told not to attempt to navigate flooded roads.

After the floodwaters receded, emergency officials had no immediate reports of fatalities or injuries.

By nightfall first responders and rescue officials were still going through the muddied, damaged downtown, conducting safety checks and ensuring people evacuated.

The flash floods prompted emergency rescues as the raging waters engulfed cars and rose above the first floor of some buildings

Footage taken by bystanders showed waves of water rushing through the city's Main Street as it engulfed cars and reached as high as six-foot

The horror flash flooding in Maryland transformed streets into raging rivers as torrential rain soaked much of the state

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency for the city, warning that it was a catastrophic and life-threatening situation

The Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services tweeted that multiple rescues were carried out, and rescue swimmers had been called in to help.

The department also said swift water units from as far away as Northern Virginia were coming to help.

'If you are trapped, we are coming,' they tweeted.

The National Weather Service said nearly eight inches of rain flooded the town.

Meteorologist Mike Muccilli said the worst of the rain appeared to be over by about 8.30pm on Sunday but authorities were just beginning to assess the damage in Ellicott City.

Meanwhile, some roads were also flooded in neighboring Baltimore County.

A spokeswoman in Baltimore County said the fire department has received dozens of calls about cars stuck in high water and flooded basements.

After the water receded later on Sunday, wrecked cars were strewn across Main Street in Ellicott City

Rescue personnel examine damage on Main Street after a flash flood rushed through the historic town of Ellicott City

By nightfall first responders and rescue officials were still going through the muddied, damaged downtown to assess the damage

After the floodwaters receded, emergency officials had no immediate reports of fatalities or injuries

Authorities urged residents on Sunday to seek higher ground immediately and people were being warned to avoid downtown Ellicott City

Water rushes through Main Street in Ellicott City on Sunday as it swept away multiple vehicles

Authorities started to carry out water rescues in the streets with one fire department receiving dozens of calls on Sunday

Authorities said they had no immediate reports of any fatalities but rescue crews were still checking flooded buildings and streets

Main Street, where the devastation occurred in Ellicott City on Sunday (pictured above), is the same area struck by flash flooding in July 2016

Main Street, where the devastation occurred in Ellicott City on Sunday, is the same area struck by flash flooding in July 2016. In that flood, Ellicott City received 6.6 inches of rain over a two to three hour period.

Some residents of Ellicott City told The Baltimore Sun the flooding appeared to be worse than a storm two years ago that killed two people and destroyed local businesses.

The governor on Sunday signed an executive order declaring a state of emergency in response to the recent severe flooding. Hogan said the order would allow the state to efficiently coordinate support and provide additional help to localities experiencing flooding.

He added that the residents of Ellicott City 'went through a horrific ordeal' in 2016 and they are facing a similar emergency now.

'They say this is a once every 1,000-year flood and we've had two of them in two years,' Hogan said.

Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman said he considers the damage worse than the flooding two summers ago.

'They are faced with the same daunting task again,' Kittleman said of the the city's residents and business owners. 'We will be there for them as we were in 2016,' he said.

Mike Muccilli, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sterling, Virginia, said it was too early to make comparisons between the two floods but said both were devastating.

'In a normal heavy rain event, you wouldn't see this amount of flooding, where you see cars floating down the road,' Muccilli said. 'This was a true flash flood.'

Cars were engulfed by the torrents of water rushing Ellicott City on Sunday afternoon
Jeremy Hunt has launched a review into why male doctors typically earn 10,000 more than their female counterparts.

On average, a male doctor is paid a basic salary of 67,766, compared with the average female doctor who earns 57,569.

Health Secretary Mr Hunt said this 15 per cent pay gap is 'unacceptable' and has no place in the NHS, nor modern society as a whole.

The figure is even bigger among consultants, the most senior doctors, with full-time men earning 14,000 more than women.

Jeremy Hunt (pictured) has launched a review into why male doctors typically earn 10,000 more than their female counterparts

Mr Hunt has asked Professor Jane Dacre, President of the Royal College of Physicians, to carry out the review.

Male consultants are also four times as likely to be paid 'Clinical Excellence Award' bonuses for extra work or research.

These sums are worth up to 77,000 a year and some doctors receive them throughout their careers.

The review will try to establish whether the bonus scheme unfairly favours men.

Mr Hunt has asked Professor Jane Dacre, President of the Royal College of Physicians, to carry out the review

Although women make up just over half of all students starting out at medical school, they are much less likely to reach senior roles.

That is partly because it takes up to 16 years to qualify as a consultant during which time many female doctors leave to have children.

Some struggle to return to full-time work as the hours are long and decide to continue their careers as mid-ranking doctors.

Professor Dacre will look into the impact of motherhood on female doctors' careers and whether there are any other obstacles hindering their progression.

Mr Hunt said: 'The NHS holds a unique position in both British and global society as a shining beacon of equality among all, and so it is unacceptable that 70 years from its creation its own staff still face gender inequality.

'Even today, there remains a 15 per cent gap between the pay of our male and female doctors. This has no place in a modern employer or the NHS and I'm determined to eliminate this gap.'

Professor Dacre is expected to report back at the end of the year.
They regularly make headlines for their 'adventurous' relationship.

But Charles and Christa Billich's latest endeavour, revolves around expanding their art empire, having teamed up with Paris' Salvador Dali Museum.

Christa told The Daily Telegraph's Confidential on Sunday: 'We are amazingly excited.'

'We are amazingly excited': Ageing Swingers Charles and Christa Billich revealed to The Daily Telegraph's Confidential on Sunday, that they're expanding their empire

'It is the first time the Salvador Dali sculpture museum has been set up outside Paris and will certainly provide an impact on our Rocks area [in Sydney], Christa, 70, told the publication.

Sculptures from the museum will be set up in Charles' Sydney gallery, following the couple's return from a month-long trip in Europe.

It marks a change of pace for the couple, who often make headlines thanks to their 'adventurous' relationship.

Having been married for over three decades, the couple opened up about their raunchy life, in an interview with journalist Karleigh Smith in August last year.

Latest venture: The couple will feature sculptures from Paris' Salvador Dali Museum in Charles' Sydney art gallery, with Christa telling Confidential: 'It is the first time the Salvador Dali sculpture museum has been set up outside Paris'

'Toyboys come and go - they are not meant to be kept. You enjoy a lovely short-lived romantic affair and then you stay friends for the rest of forever,' she explained.

Meanwhile Charles said that despite his wife's liaisons, the couple still lead a very 'creative' sex life.

'We have tantric, eccentric sex. It's a totally consensual relationship with a few frictions here and there. We have the freedom and the release and the relief,' he said.

Adventurous: Christa, 70, previously opened up on her raunchy love life: 'Toyboys come and go - they are not meant to be kept'

Despite being the instigator of their open relationship  he even famously cheated on Christa on their wedding night with the photographer  Charles takes a more traditional approach to their arrangement, and usually only sleeps with his painting muses.

'Before me, Christa would have slept with hundreds, maybe thousands of men!' he said with a chuckle.

'But in my lifetime I would have slept with less than 100 women. I go for quality rather than quantity, so I can't really boast about having slept with hundreds of women.

'I have a penchant for rotation. They become old flames but still flames,' Charles went on to say.
He's been open about his on-going battle with addiction and depression.

And now Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody has admitted to The Daily Telegraph on Sunday, that he could have suffered the same tragic fate as the late superstar DJ Avicii.

The troubled Swedish hitmaker - real name Tim Bergling - was found dead last month in Oman's port capital Muscat.

'I would be dead by now!' Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody [L] admitted that he could have suffered the same tragic fate as the late superstar DJ Avicii [R]

Confirmed by his family, the EDM producer, 28, took his own life after a long-term battle with mental health and substance abuse issues.

Having struggled with similar demons, Gary was rocked by the shocking tragedy.

'One hundred per cent, that would be me,' he told The Daily Telegraph, adding: 'I would be dead by now.'

Gary continued: '[When I heard the news] I became very emotional. I didn't know him at all. But I felt very connected to him. It's heartbreaking when that happens.

Chart-toppers! Following a string of smash hits with Snow Patrol including Run, Just Say Yes and Open Your Eyes, the 41 year-old descended into addition and substance abuse

'I am very grateful that didn't happen to me but it's very sad that it did happen to him.'

After a string of chart-topping hits with Snow Patrol including Run, Just Say Yes and Open Your Eyes, the 41-year-old spiraled into a black hole of addition and substance abuse.

Unable to focus on new material since the release of 2011 album, Fallen Empires, it took a shocking seizure days before his 40th birthday to force Gary to confront his demons for good.

It was a wake-up call for Gary who quit alcohol immediately after, thanks to support from friends including bandmate Johnny McDaid and his fiancee, Courteney Cox.

Duet! Despite his health woes, the Northern Irish performer still wrote music for a selection of A-list stars including Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran [pictured here with bandmate Johnny McDaid]

Despite his health woes, the Northern Irish performer still wrote music for a selection of A-list stars including Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran.

But Gary admits the 'co-writes' were just distractions from producing new material for his band.

Snow Patrol's new album, Wildness is out now.

If you're struggling with mental health, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or beyondblue on 1300 22 4636.
Maya Jama was oozing utility chic in camouflage combat trousers as she took to the stage to host Radio One's Biggest Weekend in Swansea on Saturday.

The 23-year-old DJ flashed a hint of her toned abs in a sequinned crop top as she put on an energetic display ahead of a slew of acts performing under the blazing sunshine.

Maya was hosting the star-studded lineup which saw those such as Sam Smith, Liam Payne and Emeli Sande deliver stellar performance.

Sensational: Maya Jama oozed utility chic in camouflage combat trousers and a sequinned crop top as she took to the stage at Radio One's Biggest Weekend in Swansea

Maya was rocking an eclectic yet stylish ensemble as she presented the showcase alongside Radio 1 mainstays Scott Mills and Chris Stark, teaming a bronze sequinned top with the printed trousers.

The girlfriend of grime superstar Stormzy finished her look with olive green lace-up welly boots and a leather striped biker jacket, keeping her dark tresses out of the way with sunglasses perched on top of her head.

Maya was presenting the showstopping lineup taking to the stage in Wales as part of the multi-city Radio One festival, with shows also taking place in Perth, Coventry and Belfast over the Bank Holiday Weekend.

Gorgeous: The Radio presenter flashed a hint of her toned abs in a sequinned crop top and striped biker jacket as she hosted the live festival

Maya recently spoke out over her controversial 'dark-skinned b******' 2012 Tweet for the first time, appearing on the Receipts Podcast to talk about the controversial topic.

The star, who is half Swedish and half Somali, said she understood the feeling of people 'taking the p***' of your heritage, and apologised again for 'not understanding the seriousness' of her joke.

Maya caused outrage last month when one of her Tweets from 2012 was unearthed, reading: 'Dark skin b***** shaving their head expecting to look like Amber Rose, when really they end up looking like Micheal Jordan.' Looooooooool.'

Energetic: Maya hosted the show alongside Scott Mills and Chris Stark in Swansea's Singleton Park

Speaking about the controversy on the podcast, Maya said that she understood where her offended followers were coming from, as she was subject to racist bullying in her youth.

She explained: 'There were these boys and they were so horrible to me when they found out that I was Somali. When they asked me where I'm from I used to be like 'yeah I'm Spanish and Jamaican' or something like that.

'And just made a whole completely new background because I didn't want people to judge me from where I was from.

'So I get it. Its not the same thing, but I understand the feeling of people being rude and taking the p*** out of where you are from, or your race or skin colour. When its something you cant change.'
Six finalists in the competition to find Britain's best crime novel of the year, supported by The Mail on Sunday, have been announced  including a book that imagines a secret department of MI5 rejects.

Spook Street by Mick Herron, the fourth in his bestselling Jackson Lamb series, featuring the misfits of the Secret Intelligence Service, is shortlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award.

Herron's writing was praised by author and critic Barry Forshaw for 'the spycraft of John le Carre refracted through the blackly comic vision of Joseph Heller's Catch-22'.

Spook Street by Mick Herron, the fourth in his bestselling Jackson Lamb series, featuring the misfits of the Secret Intelligence Service, is shortlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award

Herron's writing was praised by author and critic Barry Forshaw for 'the spycraft of John le Carre refracted through the blackly comic vision of Joseph Heller's Catch-22'

The other finalists are Insidious Intent by Val McDermid, The Long Drop by Denise Mina, A Rising Man by Abir Mukherjee, The Intrusions by Stav Sherez, and Persons Unknown by Susie Steiner.

The winner will be announced at an award ceremony hosted by broadcaster Mark Lawson on the opening night of the 16th Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate on July 19.

Jack Reacher author Lee Child is chairman of this year's festival, with US authors John Grisham and Don Winslow among the star writers appearing.

The 2018 Crime Novel of the Year Award is run in partnership with T&R Theakston Ltd, The Mail on Sunday and WH Smith. Scottish author Chris Brookmyre won the coveted award last year for his novel Black Widow.

Jack Reacher author Lee Child (pictured) is chairman of this year's festival, with US authors John Grisham and Don Winslow among the star writers appearing

The other finalists are Insidious Intent by Val McDermid and The Long Drop by Denise Mina

Simon Theakston, Executive director of T&R Theakston, said: 'The shortlisted authors are already rich in awards, but there's only one Novel of the Year, so it will be fascinating to see which of these remarkable titles prevails. All are simply outstanding.'

The shortlist will feature in a six-week promotion in libraries and in WH Smith stores nationwide.

The overall winner will be decided by the panel of judges and a public vote that opens on July 1 and closes on July 14 at theakstons.co.uk.
They are currently in Nairobi, Kenya at the Giraffe Manor.

And on Saturday, Ellen DeGeneres shared a series of clips of her adventures at the property with her wife Portia de Rossi.

The daytime host, 60, fed a Rothschild's giraffe in one video and shared a snap of herself as Portia, 45, took her turn giving snacks to the magnificent animals.

Scroll down for video

Amazing: Ellen DeGeneres shared a series of clips on Saturday of her adventures at the property with her wife Portia de Rossi

The host sat at a breakfast table as she said to the giraffes: 'Your eyes are so pretty,' adding: 'You're so pretty.'

Ellen captioned the clip: 'Flirting with a giraffe. #giraffemanor #discoverthesafaricollection.'

At the manor, giraffes poke their heads in the open windowa; they peek in to enjoy snacks available at feeding time from guests.

It is a small hotel in the Lang'ata suburb of Nairobi where people can stay at to view, observe and feed the endangered giraffes.

Once in a lifetime: The daytime host, 60, fed a Rothschild's giraffe in one video and shared a snap of herself as Portia, 45, took her turn giving snacks to the magnificent animals

Snack time: At the manor, giraffes poke their heads in the open window; they peek in to enjoy snacks available at feeding time from guests

In another clip, Ellen filmed Portia as she sat at a breakfast table and gave snacks to two giraffes; the actress beamed ear to ear in the video.

Ellen wrote: 'Portia hasn't met a giraffe she didn't like.'

The last video showed Portia ordering breakfast with giraffes seen in the background poking their heads into the property.

So cool: In another clip, Ellen filmed Portia as she sat at a breakfast table and gave snacks to two giraffes; the actress beamed ear to ear in the video

Making memories: Ellen wrote: 'Portia hasn't met a giraffe she didn't like'

Portia said: 'I would like some pancakes and coffee' while Ellen panned her phone to film giraffes distracting them.

Ellen captioned it: 'Just ordering breakfast on our vacation. '

Ellen and Portia are on their way to Rwanda to the TV host's foundation - the Ellen DeGeneres Wildlife Fund - which was her 60th birthday gift from her wife.

So incredible: Ellen and Portia are on their way to Rwanda to the TV host's foundation - the Ellen DeGeneres Wildlife Fund - which was her 60th birthday gift from her wife

The wildlife fund's first project is building a permanent home for the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund for the wild, endangered gorillas of Rwanda.

Portia's surprise gift of a foundation to Ellen moved her to tears during the February episode; she said at the time that it was 'the best gift.'

The star added that during their 2008 wedding Portia had said '"It's good to be loved. It's profound to be understood."'

Ellen noted that 'She understands me because that is the best gift that anybody could have given me.'

Last week, Ashton Kutcher and Hollywood manager Guy Oseary donated $4 million to her foundation to help save even more mountain gorillas.

Starting their day: The last video showed Portia ordering breakfast with giraffes seen in the background poking their heads into the property
She will star in Sunday's grand series finale of TOWIE.

And Lauren Pope looked like she was celebrating in style as she headed for a night out in Manchester on Saturday night.

The reality star, 35, put on a stylish display as she teased a peek of her surgically-enhanced cleavage in a tight white vest top.

Letting her hair down: Lauren Pope looked like she was celebrating in style as she headed for a night out in Manchester on Saturday night ahead of TOWIE's grand series finale

She teamed the look with high-waisted denim jeans, cinching in her waist with a thin black belt.

Shrugging a leather jacket over her shoulders, Lauren looked in high spirits as she headed to Neighbourhood bar with her pals after a lavish dinner at Rosso restaurant.

The DJ toted a soft pink Chloe bag and added a boost to her leggy frame with a pair of nude heels.

Busty: The reality star, 35, put on a stylish display as she teased a peek of her surgically-enhanced cleavage in a tight white vest top

Stylish: She teamed the look with high-waisted denim jeans, cinching in her waist with a thin black belt

Touch of pink: The DJ toted a soft pink Chloe bag and added a boost to her leggy frame with a pair of nude heels

Styling her long ombre blonde tresses in soft waves, the TOWIE star amped up the glamour with a bronzed make-up look.

The beauty is known for her impressively toned physique, and has previously admitted to working out four to five times a week in the gym.

However, Lauren has always remained adamant that she would never reveal her biggest hang-ups or insecurities, as she accepts her body with all its flaws.

She told the Daily Star last year: 'I never tell people the parts I don't like about me as thats just noting out your flaws, I've learnt how to work with what I've got and accentuate the good parts, lets put it that way.'

The reality star is no stranger to sizzling social media snaps, having recently returned from Dubai - where she modelled an array of saucy swimsuits and bikinis for fans.

Glowing goddess: Styling her long ombre blonde tresses in soft waves, the TOWIE star amped up the glamour with a bronzed make-up look

Incredible figure: The beauty is known for her impressively toned physique, and has previously admitted to working out four to five times a week in the gym

However, the topless snap was more eye-popping than usual, despite Lauren choosing to remove her E cup implants - the result of a second boob job - last summer.

Speaking to MailOnline at the time, she said of the move: 'I'm back to small boobies! I've thought about it for a long time. It's really hard to explain but it's not a big dramatic decision. It's just I feel like I am taken seriously now in the world of business.'

Lauren rose to fame glamour model and embarked on a career as a DJ over a decade ago, but became a series regular on TOWIE in 2010 when she started dating show original Kirk Norcross.

She has since gone on to launch her successful extension line Hair Rehab London.
She's the star of the Netflix women in prison hit Orange Is the New Black.

And Lea DeLaria has revealed that she considers herself to be like a certain Hollywood icon.

With a penchant for younger women, the 60-year-old joked to Sunday Life magazine: 'I think of myself as the lesbian Jack Nicholson.'

Revelation: Orange Is the New Black star Lea DeLaria, 60, revealed to Sunday Life magazine, that she considers herself to be like a certain Hollywood icon

'I think of myself as the lesbian Jack Nicholson, in that I am going to go out with a lot of young girls,' Lea explained.

Going further, Lea admitted that Jack was an idol in her eyes, thanks largely to his Lothario ways.

'Jack is my idol,' she gushed before joking: 'When he was 60 he got two women in their twenties pregnant, so that's my goal.'

Age gap: 'I think of myself as the lesbian Jack Nicholson, in that I am going to go out with a lot of young girls,' Lea told the publication

The actor's history with younger women is well documented, having embarked on dalliances with the likes of Lara Flynn Boyle, Kate Moss and Paz de la Huerta.

Lea, who split with her fiancee Chelsea Fairless, 33, in January last year, after announcing their engagement in 2016, also admitted that she wasn't looking to walk down the aisle anytime soon.

'I am not the marrying kind,' she said. 'I got close but don't think it's something I will ever do. I'm all about being a lesbian bachelor and having fun.'

Singleton: Lea, who split with her fiancee Chelsea Fairless,33, [pictured] in January last year, after announcing their engagement in 2016, also admitted that she wasn't looking to walk down the aisle anytime soon

Lea, who plays Big Boo in Orange Is the New Black, went on to reveal she wasn't completely honest about her sexuality until her late teens.

The Netflix star returns to Melbourne and Sydney in June as part of her comedy tour.

Lea made an appearance at Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras this year.
She welcomed her third child, son Reign, on December 14, 2014.

And on Saturday, Kourtney Kardashian shared a throwback image to her Instagram account of herself while pregnant with Reign.

The reality star, 39, was pictured in a gold bikini with daughter Penelope resting on her stomach.

So sweet: Kourtney Kardashian shared a throwback image to her Instagram account of herself pregnant with Reign; pictured with daughter Penelope resting on her stomach

Kourtney captioned the adorable image simply with 'Time flies.'

She shared the photo the same day as her ex partner and the father of her three children - Scott Disick - turned 35 years old.

While Kim and Khloe Kardashian wished him a happy birthday, Kourtney stayed mum.

Kourtney and Scott are parents to three children together: Mason, age eight; Penelope, age five; and Reign, age three.

Memories: Kourtney captioned the adorable image simply with 'Time flies;' pictured on Friday stepping out in LA for lunch

On Thursday, Kourtney celebrated her one year anniversary with boyfriend Younes Bendjima, 25.

The gorgeous brunette posted a snap of a bouquet of red roses, adding: '365 days of love,' tagging her beau.

Younes is a former boxer turned model from Algeria.

Thoughtful: On Thursday, Kourtney celebrated her one year anniversary with boyfriend Younes Bendjima, 25

Together: The gorgeous brunette posted a snaps of a bouquet of red roses, adding: '365 days of love,' tagging her beau; they've been together for one year

Kourtney and Scott were in a relationship for nine years before they split in summer 2015.

Scott is currently in a relationship with 19-year-old Sofia Richie; they were first linked in May 2017.

The teenager posted a picture with her boyfriend Scott on her Instagram Saturday in honor of his birthday.

Sofia captioned it: 'Happy birthday babe! Thank you for being you. Love you.'
Kim Kardashian held nothing back as she attacked the co-founder of a charity created in memory of Kanye West's mother after it called for a boycott of the rapper.

Kardashian unleashed a slew of tweets directed at Rhymefest on Saturday night, after the Donda's House co-founder claimed West said 'f**k the youth of Chicago'.

Rhymefest, whose real name is Che Smith, and West co-founded the nonprofit to help serve Chicago's youth four years after Donda West died in November 2007.

But on Saturday the organization attempted to separate itself from West, releasing a statement condemning his recent - and very public - support for Donald Trump.

Kim Kardashian held nothing back as she attacked the founder of a charity founded in memory of Kanye West's mother after it called for a boycott of the rapper on Saturday

Kardashian unleased a slew of tweets directed at Rhymefest on Saturday night, after the Donda's House co-founder claimed West said 'f**k the youth of Chicago'

'While we cannot and do not speak for Kanye West and his views, we can and will speak up for the youth that we serve,' the statement, obtained by Rolling Stone, read.

Rhymefest (pictured) and the organization attempted to separate itself from West, releasing a statement condemning his recent - and very public - support for Donald Trump

'We ask that those who feel hurt, angered by or frustrated with Kanye West not penalize or throw away their support, respect, and advocacy for us.'

The foundation also claimed that West had not offered any recent financial support to help Donda's House convert his childhood home into a museum, learning space, and studio.

'We have been unable to secure the financial support of Kanye despite multiple attempts, and despite those early conversations about his plan of support and advocacy for the youth in our programs'.

The foundation went on to ask that people 'boycott and protest' West and send their support and donation to Donda's House instead.

'We do not want your rejection of Kanye West, to be a rejection of Dr Donda West and the thousands of lives she impacted including her own son,' it added.

'The youth are watching, and we want them to know that despite whatever their favorite celebrities are doing, or not doing, we are here for them and we will continue to serve and uplift them.'

Rhymefest, whose real name is Che Smith, and West co-founded the nonprofit to help serve Chicago's youth four years after Donda West (pictured in 2006) died in November 2007

The foundation also claimed that West had not offered any recent financial support to help Donda's House convert his childhood home (pictured) into a museum and learning space

Just hours later Kardashian launched her own defense, slamming Rhymefest and even claiming she would take back the foundation.

'U havent been right since u got kicked out of the studio in Hawaii wearing fake Yeezys,' she wrote in her first tweet directed to the songwriter.

'Youre over levergenging Kanyes name & asked Kanye to donate money to u so stop w your fake community politics & lies (sic).'

'Truth is you havent been able to sustain the foundation.'

She then claimed Rhymefest had been at the studio with Kanye just weeks ago, asking 'Why didn't you bring this up then?'

'You were trying to get Kanye to listen to your sub par beats. You have the audacity to use Kanyes mom name to try to shead a negative light on Kanye (sic).'

Rhymefest also claimed on Twitter that Kanye abandoned the foundation he had helped create in honor of his mother in 2011

'You didnt say this when Kanye paid you up front then you disappeared during Pablo #RealFriends'.

Kardashian then went on to proclaim that she would make it her 'mission' to take Donda's House from him and 'let my children run it the way it should be run'.

The reality TV star ended her barrage of tweets by telling Rhymefest his flight to Wyoming, where West is currently working on his upcoming album, was cancelled.

'You thought you were really worthy to be on this album,' she wrote, adding an emoji of a face crying with laughter.

Rhymefest hit back at Kardashian's tweets with a long letter, in which he said West cared more about his record than helping Chicago

'Sorry to all of my followers for flooding my timeline I know you have no idea who Rhymefest is,' Kardashian then added as her final parting shot.

Rhymefest has won two Grammy Awards - including for a song written for Kanye - and won an Oscar with John Legend and Common for the song Glory in 2015.

Following Kardashian's tweets, the foundation revealed it would no longer use the name Donda's House.

'This has been an incredibly difficult decision but the social media quotes from Kim Kardashian West, as well as the expressed intent of her family running the organization, has brought up to this decision,' it wrote in a statement.

'We will continue to support youth in our endeavors. We encourage Kim and Kanye to indeed pick up the baton of service.'

Following Kardashian's tweets, the foundation revealed it would no longer use the name Donda's House

Rhymewest also released his own statement to Kardashian, telling her: 'I dont care if no one on your timeline knows who I am. The people in my community and in my city do, and thats what truly matters to me.'

The songwriter also claimed it was West who had come to him and asked for help with his new album.

'I spoke to your husband about peace, and balance, as well as about the work that we have been doing in Chicago regarding Dondas House,' Rhymefest wrote.

'He was more interested in his record.'

'Understand that the mission of Dondas House has always been the value of collaboration, community, and empowering youth to pursue their creative goals and dreams. What part about that would make it worthy of you or anyone else destroying it?'

Rhymefest also asked his followers on Instagram to donate to Donda's House rather than buy Pusha T's new album, which was produced by West

Rhymefest then asked Kardashian how she could criticize a foundation that she has never physically visited.

'We will continue from our home on the South Side of Chicago to do what we can to support the community weve worked five years to build in spite of you and Kanyes lack of interest or support,' he concluded.

Earlier that day Rhymefest had tweeted at Drake to ask him for donations, writing: 'Asking @Drake to help the part of Chicago Kanye has abandoned'.

'Will you please help us rebuild Kanyes mothers house for the youth of Chicago,' he asked Drake in another tweet.

'I spoke to Kanye about it. His response was "fuck the youth of Chicago"'.

Rhymefest also asked his followers on Instagram to donate to Donda's House rather than buy Pusha T's new album, which was produced by West.
His documented struggle to survive while wife of twenty years Sylvie is away has featured a poorly-stocked fridge and admissions of Weetbix for dinner.

And it appears things have gone from bad to worse for The Morning Show's Larry Emdur admitting that he's getting by on just cold pizza for breakfast.

The sorry situation has forced the 53-year-old to plead for his wife's return.

'Sylvie, please come home!' Things have gone from bad to worse for The Morning Show's Larry Emdur, 53, who has struggled to survive in his wife's absence

Taking to Instagram on Sunday, he wrote: 'SYLVIE please come home!!

'I'm having pizza for breakfast and weet bix [sic] for dinner.'

Looking mournfully into the camera while holding up the half-eaten slice, the Channel Seven personality complained about a reversion back to his teenage years.

'I'm having pizza for breakfast!' The TV personality revealed he's surviving on cold takeaway treats

Troubling: Larry shared a photo of his poorly-stocked fridge to Instagram earlier this month, showing fans it contained just a jar of Vegemite, barbecue sauce and a single onion

'I've just bought drop-crotch pants and booked my ticket to schoolies,' he said before begging for his wife to come home.

'I'm falling apart here bub, I don't know what's happening to me. Please come back soon,' Larry hilariously added.

Recently Larry shared a photo of his poorly-stocked fridge to Instagram, showing the contents to be just a jar of barbecue sauce, a single onion and a novelty jar of Vegemite with his name on it.

'When Sylvie's away dinner be like...': It's not the first time the Channel Seven personality has poked fun of his diet while his wife Sylvie is away

Prior to that revelation, Larry poked fun in another Instagram post at his dinner menu which now consists of bowls of Weetbix.

He captioned the photo: 'When Sylvie's away dinner be like...'

Married to his Polish-born wife for nearly 23 years, it also appears Sylvie will be arriving home to a chaotic household after Larry posted another pic on Instagram of a vacuum cleaner asking fans what it was.

'WTF is this,' he enquires, pointing at the appliance with a perplexed look on his face. 'I've never seen it before. I Just found it behind the pot plant. I wonder what it does.'

'WTF is this?' It appears Sylvie will be arriving home to a chaotic household after Larry posted another pic on Instagram of a vacuum cleaner asking fans what it was.

One helpful follower commented: 'I love the pot plant holder, please ask Sylvie were she got it from?'

Larry and Sylvie have two children, Jye, 24 and Tia, 19, and recently sold their lavish Dover Heights home in Sydney.

They traded in their record-setting $11.5million property for a smaller $3million cottage in The Rocks.
She's typically seen donning head-to-toe designer wear, no expense spared.

But on Sunday, Roxy Jacenko, 37, tied her hair back and popped her ponytail through a chicken shop cap as she voluntarily flipped burgers.

Offering a rare domesticated sighting to her otherwise fabulous life, Roxy's ambassadorship with Chargrill Charlies saw the PR queen get 'hands on' as she celebrated World Burger Day.

'This is NUTS': Roxy Jacenko spends her Sunday flipping $5 burgers as she flaunts her toned figure in active wear and a chicken shop cap

In one snap, the blonde-haired beauty is seen donning active wear as she packaged freshly-made burgers with gloves on.

Captioning the post, Roxy enthusiastically wrote: 'Mornings well spent flipping burgers with the team @chargrillcharlies.'

She added: 'In celebration of World Burger Day it's $5 burgers all day TODAY.'

Say cheese...burger! Offering a rare domesticated sighting to her otherwise fabulous life, Roxy's ambassadorship with Chargrill Charlies saw the PR queen get 'hands on' as she celebrated World Burger Day

Shortly following the first post, Roxy posed in her festively navy-and-white active wear, smiling with her chicken shop hat fasted securely on her head.

Holding a chicken burger in hand and standing next to staff members Daisy and Ryan, Roxy captioned snap taken in the Rose Bay store's kitchen: 'This is NUTS.'

She added: 'On the grill at @chargrillcharlies celebration World Burger Day! $5 today only on chicken and beef burgers.'

Bye bye burger: Meanwhile, Roxy's lifestyle proves she's mastered the art of balance, having shown off her toned and tight figure during a punishing workout on Friday

Meanwhile, Roxy's lifestyle proves she's mastered the art of balance, having shown off her toned and tight figure during a punishing workout on Friday.

Taking to Instagram, the mother-of-two took to Instagram to document her enviable figure and showcase her impressive strength throughout a rigorous workout routine.

In a recent interview with Women's Health, the blonde bombshell explained why she prefers to do weights, resistance and TRX training over cardio.

'I'm not interested in being the fittest person. I want to be ripped and I want a four-pack,' she told the publication.
Love Island Australia isn't set to premiere until Sunday night, but it looks like sparks are already flying on set.

In photos from the first episode, 'international male model' Justin Lacko is seen in what appears to be a very heated exchange with Josh Moss.

Justin, 27, angrily points his finger at Josh, who is seated with the rest of the cast on an outdoor lounge.

Drama! In photos from Love Island Australia, male model Justin Lacko is seen in what appears to be a very heated exchange with Josh Moss

Josh seems frustrated too, pointing back and appearing to argue with the New York-based catwalk king.

It's unclear what the fight is about, but earlier Justin can be seen chatting to the female cast members, including beauty pageant princess Tayla Damir and brunette babe Millie.

Eden Dally is later spotted flirting up a storm with Tayla and lifting her up in the air, which may have led to some jealousy.

Annoyed: Justin, 27, angrily points his finger at Josh, who is seated with the rest of the cast on an outdoor lounge

Hitting back: Josh seems frustrated too, pointing back and appearing to argue with the New York-based catwalk king

Love Island Australia host, Sophie Monk has offered fans a closer look at the Spanish villa ahead of the raunchy reality show's premiere on Sunday.

During a segment on A Current Affair on Thursday evening, Sophie unveiled the hidden spots where sexy singletons are set to get themselves into trouble.

'See how you can't really notice any cameras. That's what you forget. That's when you totally let go,' Sophie told the Channel Nine reporter.

Girl talk: It's unclear what the fight is about, but earlier Justin can be seen chatting to the female cast members, including beauty pageant princess Tayla Damir and brunette babe Millie

Love Island Australia will premiere on Sunday, May 27 at 8:30pm on 9Go! And 9Now.

The irresistible series will screen every night from Sunday to Thursday, giving viewers plenty to talk about.

Furthermore, each episode will be filmed 24 hours before screening.
She's never been shy in flaunting her figure in an array of skimpy ensembles.

And Lauren Goodger, 31, upped the ante on Sunday as she shared a pulse-racing shot of her showcasing her pert posterior on Instagram.

The TOWIE star, who dined at Mayfair's Sexy Fish on Saturday night, posted two shots of her clad in her bardot top and black thong to her 792,000 followers.

Pulse-racing: Lauren Goodger, 31, upped the ante on Sunday as she shared a pulse-racing shot on Instagram

Resting her arms above her head, Lauren highlighted her taut abs and gym-honed figure with aplomb as she stood in her orange crop top and semi-sheer underwear.

The ITVBe star sported a pair of metallic gold slingbacks for the sultry shot which elongated her lean legs.

Turning to display her rear, Lauren seductively peered over her shoulder while the sunlight hit her perky derriere, which she previously admitted to having liposuction on.

Captioning the head-turning shot, she simply wrote: 'Mood'.

Cheeky: Turning to display her rear, Lauren seductively peered over her shoulder while the sunlight hit her perky derriere, which she previously admitted to having liposuction on

Her Instagram post comes after it was revealed yesterday that her on/off jailbird beau Joey Morrison was welcomed home by his family from prison.

And Lauren appeared in a celebratory mood on Saturday night as she stepped out in all her glamour for a fun-filled dinner in Sexy Fish Mayfair.

The reailty flashed her gym-honed figure in a striking orange bodycon dress which flashed a glimpse of her taut stomach with it's cutout midriff panel.

Her form-fitting skirt hugged her thighs and showcased her slender pins as she left the venue in her nude slingbacks.

Stepping out: Her Instagram post comes after it was revealed yesterday that her on/off jailbird beau Joey Morrison was welcomed home by his family from prison

Lauren's vibrant bardot look drew attention to her shoulders and decolletage while she worked her brunette tresses into a sleek high ponytail.

Letting her dress do the talking, the reality star opted to keep her accessories to a minimum and held onto a patent leather clutch back with stud detailing.

The Essex native sported a glamorous beauty look with a defined brow and boasted a deep golden glow for her night out on the tiles.

She can stomach it: The TOWIE star flashed her gym-honed figure in a striking orange bodycon dress which flashed a glimpse of her taut stomach with it's cutout midriff panel

Walk this way: Her form-fitting skirt hugged her thighs and showcased her slender pins as she left the venue in her nude slingbacks

Lauren's head-turning appearance comes after her on/off beau was released from prison after serving nine years of his 16-year sentence for a string of violent offences.

Joey was welcomed home by his sister who took to her Instagram to share the news in an exclusive image obtained by MailOnline.

The convicted criminal's sibling shared a photograph of herself, with a purple heart over her face, on FaceTime with her brother, who appeared to be busy as he was also on a phone call as he held a mobile to his ear.

Clearly excited to have her brother home, she captioned the snap with: '&&&& he's home,' followed by tongue out emojis. MailOnline has contacted Lauren's representative for comment.

Mane attraction: Lauren's vibrant bardot look drew attention to her shoulders and decolletage while she worked her brunette tresses into a sleek high ponytail

'He's home!': Lauren's on-off boyfriend Joey Morrisson was welcomed home by his sister who took to her Instagram to share the news in an image

The picture comes after Lauren appeared to fight for and protect her feisty relationship with Joey Morrison on Instagram last week.

Although she seemed to accept their love wasn't 'perfect', the reality star stood by claims that couples who fight are 'stronger' than lovers that don't.

Lauren shared the lengthy post which read: 'Couples who fight often are most likely stronger than couples who do not. But it's not the fighting makes them stronger. It's what takes place after the fighting; the making up.

'It's coming to the realisation that your relationship is more important than your differences. It involves acts of forgiveness and acceptance of one's mistakes.

Past: Morrisson was convicted of a string of offences back in 2010, including possession of a firearm, kidnapping, blackmail and actual bodily harm

'You fight, and you learn something new about this person. That's how it works. Real relationships aren't perfect, and perfect relationships aren't real.'

Lauren penned 'This taken' across the meme in neon writing with a smiley face and a drawn heart which seemingly confirmed her romance was back on with Joey.

The busty star's defensive post shortly follows reports Joey was using Bumble following his release from prison  which Lauren claimed was a fake profile.

She had hinted at reunion with her on/off beau when she shared a snap hiding a mystery man.

All in the details: Letting her dress do the talking, the reality star opted to keep her accessories to a minimum and held onto a patent leather clutch back with stud detailing

Heading off: She sported a glamorous beauty look while she waited in the car

Morrisson was convicted of a string of offences back in 2010, including possession of a firearm, kidnapping, blackmail and actual bodily harm.

He was sentenced to 16 years at HMP Highpoint South prison. His sister Charlotte first shared news of his release.

The Instagram post was captioned: 'Words can't explain the feeling of my brother home after 9 years... love you always my joey'.

Lauren enjoyed a short-lived romance with Morrisson and called it quits after 15 months together in September 2017.

Back together?: She had hinted at reunion with her on/off beau when she shared a snap hiding a mystery man

Despite their relationship coming to an end, Lauren remained in touch with her ex while she awaited his release from his prison cell.

In her Now Magazine column, she wrote: 'Joey and I are still in touch, which I have never denied. For now, he is focused on coming out and after such a long time I was to protect him so I'm not discussing him or our situation. People have to respect that.

'The number plate thing seems like a big deal but it's not. They were ordered ages ago and not being used so I decided to put them on my new car to save him from being fined for not using them and - let's be honest - it's a wicked plate!'
Sam Frost stepped out for the Logies nomination party in Queensland on Sunday.

The former Bachelorette showed off her trim pins in a flirty frock while attending the star-studded bash.

The 29-year-old was among the creme de la creme of Australian TV, who gathered at a swanky Broadbeach venue on the Gold Coast for the prestigious event.

Monochrome chic! Home and Away's Sam Frost flaunts her trim pins in a polka dot frock at Logies nomination party after scoring a nod for Most Popular New Talent

This year's Gold Logie nominations sees The Living Room's Amanda Keller, Family Feud's Grant Denyer, A Current Affair's Tracy Grimshaw, actors Jessica Marais and Rodger Corser, and lifestyle presenter Andrew Winter all in the running.

Sam, who is a first-time nominee this year for her role on Home and Away as Most Popular New Talent, oozed confidence as she posed for snaps at the event.

The former reality star opted for an eye-catching black-and-white mini-dress which featured billowing sleeves.

Stunning: Also showing off her toned pins was Love Child's Jessica Marais, who opted for a figure-hugging frock

For the event, the bronzed beauty opted for a dewy style of make-up and finished the outfit with a pair of matching black strappy heels.

Also showing off her toned pins was Love Child's Jessica Marais, who opted for a figure-hugging frock.

The 33-year-old South African-born actress paired her monochrome dress with black suede heels.

Elegant: Today's Sylvia Jeffreys channelled old Hollywood glamour in a metallic green satin gown

The Wrong Girl actress opted to wear her brunette locks slicked back in a high ponytail.

At one point, the Packed to the Rafters star posed next to a pool, surrounded by views of Brisbane's skyline.

Today's Sylvia Jeffreys channelled old Hollywood glamour in a metallic green satin gown.

Suits you! Also in attendance was former Bachelor Matthew 'Matty J' Johnson, who looked dapper in a tailored suit

The blonde beauty turned heads in an elegant wrap dress, which featured long-sleeve detail and showed off her bronzed pins.

She completed the look with metallic silver pumps and a silver Chanel bag, which appeared to be in the shape of a miniature hat box.

She opted to wear her long blonde locks in an elegant up-do.

Sharp: Former Bondi Vet and host of I'm A Celebrity Dr Chris Brown looked sharp in a blue blazer and black pants

Also in attendance was former Bachelor Matthew 'Matty J' Johnson, who looked dapper in a tailored suit.

The 30-year-old appeared to be in high spirits as he posed for snaps.

Proving that winners are grinners, the reality star completed the look with a pair of high-gloss brown lace-up shoes.

No Feud here! Channel Ten host of Family Feud Grant Denyer was all smiles in a cobalt blue suit at the Brisbane event

Former Bondi Vet and host of I'm A Celebrity Dr Chris Brown looked sharp in a blue blazer and black pants.

The blonde hunk added a crisp white shirt to the smart look.

Family Feud's Grant Denyer wore a cobalt blue suit with a crisp white shirt as he posed on the red carpet.

Looking good! Star of Doctor Doctor, Rodger Corser, 45, showed plenty of flair at the event, wearing a textured blazer with a white shirt and black suit pants

Veteran 60 Minutes reporter Tara Brown looked chic in an all-black ensemble, which featured a sheer overlay.

The hard-hitting journalist completed her outfit with a stylish silver clutch and statement watch.

A Current Affair host Tracy Grimshaw looked radiant in a monochrome outfit.

Sheer delight: Veteran 60 Minutes reporter Tara Brown looked chic in an all-black ensemble, which featured a sheer overlay

The critically-acclaimed presenter, who is in the running for the coveted Gold Logie this year, wore a billowing white blouse and a pair of black slacks.

She finished the outfit with peep-toe shoes.

Familiar face: A Current Affair host Tracy Grimshaw looked radiant in a monochrome outfit

The Living Room's Amanda Keller opted for a floral-print dress at the event.

The blonde beauty added glossy black heels and statement jewellery to the look.

Flower power: The Living Room's Amanda Keller opted for a floral-print dress at the event
She's been busy carving out a big screen career, finding success with The Bad Batch and Jonathan.

And Suki Waterhouse proved her rising star credentials as she confidently bared all for James Franco's dystopian drama Future World - released to US theatres on Friday.

The 26-year-old model-turned-actress stripped completely naked for the sci-fi flick as Ash, an android who serves Franco's Warlord leader as an assassin and sex slave - and found herself in a steamy scene with Lei, played by Margarita Levieva.

Baring all: Suki Waterhouse stripped completely NAKED as sex android Ash in James Franco's Future World

Confidence: The London native flaunted her perky posterior for the film as she shared intense scenes with the maniacal gang leader

The London native flaunted her perky posterior for the film as she shared intense scenes with the maniacal gang leader.

Suki's sleek straight blonde locks provided the only coverage for some of her exposed figure, while vibrant blue contacts heightened her robotic characteristics.

James - himself shirtless with only a studded khaki jacket and matching trousers - circled the vulnerable android as she stood motionless without a stitch of clothing.

Tormented: James - himself shirtless with only a studded khaki jacket and matching trousers - circled the vulnerable android as she stood motionless without a stitch of clothing

Intense: Suki's sleek straight blonde locks provided the only coverage for some of her exposed figure, while vibrant blue contacts heightened her robotic characteristics

Suki's robotic nature soon crumbled as she found herself in a saucy scene with Revenge star Margarita.

The pair appeared to lock lips in the heat of the moment, with Suki lovingly holding Margarita's face in her hands before the intimate smooch.

The R-rated drama marks James' 15th directorial project, with Making A Scene collaborator Bruce Thierry Cheung also behind the camera.

Expert: The R-rated drama marks James' 15th directorial project, with Making A Scene collaborator Bruce Thierry Cheung also behind the camera

Vulnerable: James' maniacal Warlord goaded the android in the expansive desert

The highly varied cast boasts a plethora of famous names, including Snoop Dog and Method Man, along with Charlies Angels star Lucy Liu and Mark Wahlberg's nephew Jeffrey.

Jeffrey plays a young man who has to travel to a desert wasteland to find a fabled medicine that could save his mother's (Lucy Liu) life, but ends up crossing paths with James' psychotic Warlord, Suki's Ash and the ruthless Druglord, played by Milla Jovovich.

The thriller was filmed back in 2016, before James made his first mainstream directorial success with The Disaster Artist, for which he won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor.

Steamy: Suki's robotic nature soon crumbled as she found herself in a saucy scene with Revenge star Margarita.

Raunchy: The pair appeared to lock lips in the heat of the moment, with Suki lovingly holding Margarita's face in her hands before the intimate smooch

Passion: Suki embraced Margarita for the steamy love scene

Since the films release in the US on Friday, the film has been highly criticised for its similarities with fellow apocolyptic dystopia thriller Mad Max.

The Hollywood Reporter snubbed the film, labeling it: 'A low-rent, post-apocalyptic sci-fi tale that doesn't succeed as either homage or parody of such obvious inspirations as the Mad Max series, proves as original as its title.'

Elsewhere, Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com wrote: 'One can imagine Franco and his buddies seeing The Bad Batch or watching Mad Max: Fury Road, renting some motor bikes and dirtying some clothes, and then realizing they forgot to write an actual movie.'

Suki can next be seen in biographical crime-drama film Billionaire Boys Club, with based on the real-life Billionaire Boys Club from the 1980's, where group leader Joe Hunt (played by Ansel Elgort) led a group of wealthy boys in Angeles come up with a plan to get-rich-quick with a Ponzi scheme.


She revealed last month that she was expecting a baby girl with her partner Danny Fujikawa.

And Kate Hudson, 39, showcased her blossoming baby bump as she ran errands around Los Angeles on Saturday with her musician other half.

The daughter of Goldie Hawn swapped her usual stylish bohemian threads for a stomach-skimming vest top and matching gym leggings for the outing over Memorial Weekend.

Blossoming: Kate Hudson, 39, showcased her blossoming baby bump as she ran errands around Los Angeles on Saturday with her musician other half

Looking radiant, the Almost Famous actress wrapped a denim shirt around her hips which accentuated her ever-growing stomach as walked back to her car.

The Something Borrowed star attempted to remain incognito as she covered her trademark blonde pixie crop with a noughties-inspired trucker cap and large yellow-framed shades.

Keeping to her low-key theme, Kate opted to forgo make-up for the outing and instead showcased her flawless complexion while holding onto her purchases.

The actress revealed last month she was expecting her first child with boyfriend Danny.

Glowing: The daughter of Goldie Hawn swapped her usual stylish bohemian threads for a stomach-skimming vest top and matching gym leggings for the outing over Memorial Weekend

Low-key: The Something Borrowed star attempted to remain incognito as she covered her trademark blonde pixie crop with a noughties-inspired trucker cap and large yellow-framed shades

The news was made even more sweet as she learned that after having two boys - Ryder, 14, and Bingham, six - from previous relationships, she was finally going to have a baby girl.

Recalling the day he found out the happy news, her brother Wyatt Russell told People magazine: 'I was happy. I was teary-eyed because I know how badly she wanted a girl.'

Kate's good friend Erin Foster also revealed that the Bride Wars star was desperate for a daughter, and was overjoyed when her gender reveal party saw her showered in pink confetti.

Out and about: She was pictured with her other half Danny during the afternoon

Wrapped up: Later in the afternoon, Kate was pictured covering her bump in a fringe-detailed cardigan

She said: '[Kate] wanted a girl so badly and they really didn't know until they popped the balloons and pink came out, so it was really exciting.

'I don't know if you saw Sara [Foster, Erin's sister] jumping on top of Kate like a psychopath but we were just so excited about her having a girl.'

The How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days actress revealed her pregnancy news on Instagram with a video of the moment she popped a set of black balloons which were filled with pink confetti and smaller balloons.
She's been recently spotted spending time across the pond in New York with her musician beau.

And now Sophie Turner was back on home soil and ready for a night out on the tiles with her pals as she stopped by London's Sexy Fish on Saturday.

The 21-year-old Game of Thrones star showcased her signature style for her girls' night out at the Mayfair eatery as she slipped into a semi-sheer tartan printed mini dress.

Stepping out: Sophie Turner was back on home soil and ready for a night out on the tiles with her pals as she stopped by London's Sexy Fish on Saturday

Her high-neck and long sleeved number highlighted her slender frame as she was joined by her pals for a fun-filled evening.

Protecting her modesty, Sophie layered her semi-sheer look over a simple black slip which accentuated the red tartan print.

The 5ft 9' star's thigh-grazing look showcased her lean legs while she strolled to the venue in a pair of white trainers.

Accessorising her ensemble, she draped a Lavin bum bag across her shoulder and sported a pair of hooped earrings as well as a number of gold chain around her neck.

Sheer thing: The 21-year-old Game of Thrones star showcased her signature style for her girls' night out at the Mayfair eatery as she slipped into a semi-sheer tartan printed mini dress

Fun-filled: Her high-neck and long sleeved number highlighted her slender frame as she was joined by her pals for a fun-filled evening

She worked her blonde locks into a chic top knot and sported a glowing beauty look.

Sophie has been happily engaged to DNCE frontman Joe Jonas since October, after a year of dating.

Joe, who's a judge on The Voice Australia, told that country's TV WEEK that he and Sophie, 'haven't dived into planning' their wedding yet, but it's a priority.

'In due time, we'll get into it - and then get a lot of help! But we're very happy,' Joe said a few weeks back.

Plaid's nice: Protecting her modesty, Sophie layered her semi-sheer look over a simple black slip which accentuated the red tartan print

Dazzling: She worked her blonde locks into a chic top knot and sported a glowing beauty look

He told the publication that he and Sophie couldn't resist going public with their engagement last October, figuring that her blingy ring would give away the obvious.

'We knew it would get out if she was walking around with the ring on her finger so we tried to be timely about it, but the emotions took over,' Joe revealed.

Meanwhile, Season 7 of Game Of Thrones wrapped on August 27 and Season 8 isn't due to bow until 2019.

But the beautiful Brit isn't giving away any new plotlines, according to Joe. 'I'm a big fan of the show but they don't tell anyone anything  not even her. They keep a tight lock on it,' Joe said.

But he did reveal he'd 'love a cameo' on the show, which has featured surprise performances from musicians Ed Sheeran, Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody and Will Champion of the band Coldplay.

Chilled out: She relaxed in the back of a cab with her pal
Gordon Ramsay is known for his hot-headed antics in the kitchen.

But on MasterChef on Sunday, it was the Michelin-starred chef's fans who didn't mince words while mocking his hair on social media.

Tiwtter users savaged the UK chef's hairstyle, which could almost be likened to Cameron Diaz's character in the movie There's Something About Mary.

'Does Gordon Ramsay's hair have its own Twitter handle?': Viewers mock celebrity chef's hairdo after making his debut on MasterChef Australia. Pictured (left) with his previous hairstyle and (right) with a new look on Sunday night

He made his debut on MasterChef alongside Matt Preston, George Calombaris and Gary Mehigan.

'Gordon Ramsay has a serious hair flick happening at the front. Must be using some very good hair products. Wonder why specifically?' a fan tweeted.

Another fan wrote: 'OMG, what's with Gordon Ramsay's hair? lol.'

'Does it have its own Twitter handle?': Fans savaged the celebrity chef's hairstyle

'OMG, what's with Gordon Ramsay's hair? lol': They certainly didn't mince words while mocking the star

'Serious flick at the front': While his food has garnered plenty of awards, his choice of hairstyle on Sunday night's show raised eyebrows

'What's with the hair': Viewers did not hold back on Twitter

Something in common with Cameron Diaz? Viewers compared it to Cameron Diaz's character in There's Something About Mary

Posting above a snap of Cameron Diaz in the film There's Something About Mary, one user wrote: 'Gordon Ramsay's hair,' then adding the Masterchef hashtag.

Another wrote: 'Does Gordon Ramsay's hair have its own Twitter handle?'

Despite the talented chef's hair being mocked by viewers, it wasn't all bad news.

Some viewers hailed his uncharacteristically 'nice' demeanour on Sunday night's episode.

The British chef hosts the US version of Hell's Kitchen, and is known for his unrivaled popularity.
Holly Willoughby has given fans a taste of what to expect from her forthcoming lifestyle website by sharing a racy black and white snap with Instagram followers.

The This Morning presenter, 37, who launches new blog Truly in the Autumn, posted a snap of herself in frilly black lingerie while wishing her loyal fan base a happy Bank Holiday weekend on Sunday morning.

Captioning the shot, she wrote: 'Live, love, LACE! ... hope youre having a Truly beautiful bank holiday... silk chemise coming soon.'

Here we go: Holly Willoughby has given fans a taste of what to expect from her forthcoming lifestyle website by sharing a racy black and white snap with Instagram followers

Holly also urged followers to find out more by following a link to the Truly site, which she claims is 'about beautiful things of the highest quality, designed to make your life easier.'

The popular TV presenter is hoping her own digital empire can replicate the success of Paltrows Goop website.

Holly has already asked her 3.5 million Instagram followers  she has a daily fashion post and many of the clothes she wears sell out within minutes  to sign up to the blog.

Coming soon: Holly has set her sights on stealing Gwyneth Paltrows crown as an online lifestyle guru

It will incorporate six lifestyle areas  home, fashion, baby, wellness, living and travel.

The website is expected to promote a new clothing range, as well as a homeware line similar to one she set up with Dragons Den businessman Peter Jones.

The lucrative project, launching in the autumn, is tipped to double Holly's fortune, which already stands at 10 million.

Popular: Gwyneth Paltrow, whose website Goop - which she set up in 2008 - has been enormously successful

The new project closely mimics Goop, the website set up by Gwyneth in 2008.

Goop also has six lifestyle pillars wellness, travel, food, beauty, style and work.

In addition, the Oscar-winning Hollywood actress sells her own skincare products alongside fragrances, vitamins and a fashion range.

A friend of mother-of-three Holly said: This is a big deal for Holly. She is creating a lifestyle site  a one-stop shop for all you need to lead a good life.
She recently returned to the UK from her blissful getaway in Bali with her pal Georgia Harrison.

And Gabby Allen proved to be the jet-setter as she was spotted on Marbella's Plaza Beach with her fellow reality star Chloe Goodman and her sister Lauryn on Saturday afternoon.

The Love Island star, 26, boasted her peachy posterior and slender waistline in a bright yellow two-piece, teamed with a trendy crochet crop top.

Wow! Gabby Allen proved to be the jet-setter as she was spotted on Marbella's Plaza Beach with her fellow reality star Chloe Goodman and her sister Lauryn on Saturday afternoon

The TV personality ensured onlookers got a good view of her perky assets as she paraded her envy-inducing frame along the sandy shores.

Injecting even more colour into her vibrant appearance, the blonde beauty teamed her look with a pair of gold hooped earrings.

Gabby tied in her appearance with the scenery as she wore her tresses in beach waves, and opted for shimmery make-up.

Striking: The Celebrity Big Brother star, 24, soaked up the sun with her older sister, 27, as they pranced around the beach in skimpy attire

From all angles: The TV personality ensured onlookers got a good view of her perky assets as she paraded her envy-inducing frame along the sandy shores

Show-stopper! Injecting even more colour into her vibrant appearance, the blonde beauty teamed her look with a pair of gold hooped earrings

Meanwhile, Celebrity Big Brother's Chloe, 24, commanded attention in a heavily-sequined swimsuit, embellished with a plunging keyhole detail which flashed her busty cleavage.

The brunette bombshell swept her tresses into a high ponytail, which revealed her striking beauty - enhanced with heavy strokes of bronzer and nude lipstick.

Lauryn, 27, turned up the heat in an animal print one-piece, which she paired with a sparkling netted cover-up.

Stunning: Gabby tied in her appearance with the scenery as she wore her tresses in beach waves, and opted for shimmery make-up

Sizzling: Meanwhile, Celebrity Big Brother's Chloe, 24, commanded attention in a heavily-sequined swimsuit, embellished with a plunging keyhole detail which flashed her busty cleavage

Chic: The brunette bombshell swept her tresses into a high ponytail, which revealed her striking beauty - enhanced with heavy strokes of bronzer and nude lipstick

Gabby looked as if she has left her troubles - and her ex Marcel Somerville - well and truly behind her in the UK, having confirmed her split from her Love Island beau on Instagram, after he admitted to cheating on her.

The Liverpool beauty was seen a few days ago taking a turn around Soho with a male pal, clearly trying to sweep her heartache under the rug.

Speaking to MailOnline earlier this month, a spokesperson for Marcel explained that the Blazin' Squad star understood his wrongdoings and hoped that one day Gabby would forgive him.

Equally glamorous: Lauryn, 27, turned up the heat in an animal print one-piece, which she paired with a sparkling netted cover-up

Moving on: Gabby looked as if she has left her troubles - and her ex Marcel Somerville - well and truly behind her in the UK, having confirmed her split from her Love Island beau on Instagram

Fresh start: The Liverpool beauty was seen a few days ago taking a turn around Soho with a male pal, clearly trying to sweep her heartache under the rug

His rep said: 'Sadly the rumours are true, Gabby and Marcel have split up. Marcel can't really defend his actions as he knows he did wrong and will regret it forever.'

They said: 'Marcel is upset that he broke the heart of someone he loves and someone that he shared so many special moments with, but with all the good times there are difficult times, and sadly Marcel and Gabby had been in a bad place at this stage.

'Gabby was a special part of my Marcel's life, and he hopes one day she can find it in herself to forgive him. He knows what he did was wrong and is extremely sad about how he has hurt Gabby.'

Beach bums: Gabby, Chloe and Lauryn were joined by a group of pals as they posed up a storm

Having fun: The trio put their pert bottoms on full display as they relished on the beach

His comments come shortly after Gabby confirmed their 'tough' split and revealed she is 'in shock' from the relationship break-up.

In an Instagram post the blonde beauty thanked her friends, family and fans for their support during the difficult time as she deals with the end of her romance.

She wrote: 'Thank you to everyone for your kind messages, love and support. It's been tough couple of days, I think I might still be in a bit of shock! But I'm sure in time I will be OK. I have the best family and friends around me. I'm a lucky girl.'

Trendsetter: Chloe's little sister Amelia is reportedly set to follow in her footsteps as she is tipped for the latest season of Love Island - set to return on June 4

Runs in the family: Amelia is in the midst of studying Chemistry at a London university, yet she appears to be plotting a 'long, hot summer' as she prepares to hit screens

Gabby and Marcel met on the 2017 series of summer smash Love Island and quickly forged a romance.

But their seemingly rock-solid relationship was rocked by claims of infidelity during their Mexican getaway last month.

New allegations by The Sun state that Marcel cheated on Gabby multiple times with different women over the course of a few months.

It is also revealed that the rapper kissed another girl during a night out - but when Gabby's suspicions arose, he managed to convince her that nothing occurred.

The publication claims that Gabby had her doubts when it came to Marcel remaining faithful in their relationship.

Meanwhile, Lauryn and Chloe's little sister Amelia is tipped to be heading to the Love Island villa next month.

As excitement for the upcoming series reaches fever pitch, it is not only rumoured contestants hitting headlines but Mirror have now claimed the aspiring stars of the show are being forced to pay their own expenses during the show.

Reality star: Chloe has long-tried to forge a career in TV, after a stint on EOTB's inaugural series in 2014, before returning in 2016 fifth season, while also appearing in CBB in 2015

Hmmm: Chloe's reality appearances have always been steeped in controversy, starting with her locking lips with Ashley Cain in the inaugural series of Ex On The Beach. She was ejected from the fifth season of the show for her aggressive behaviour

Amelia is in the midst of studying Chemistry at a London university, yet she appears to be plotting a 'long, hot summer' as she prepares to hit screens.

MailOnline has contacted representatives for Love Island and Amelia for comment.

Chloe has long-tried to forge a career in TV, after a stint on EOTB's inaugural series in 2014, before returning in 2016 fifth season, while also appearing in CBB in 2015.

Chloe's reality appearances have always been steeped in controversy, starting with her locking lips with Ashley Cain in the inaugural series of Ex On The Beach. She was ejected from the fifth season of the show for her aggressive behaviour.

Unfortunate: During her time on Celebrity Big Brother, she hit the headlines following a devastating incident, in which she was groped by fellow housemate Jeremy Jackson

During her time on Celebrity Big Brother, she hit the headlines following a devastating incident, in which she was groped by fellow housemate Jeremy Jackson - after which she revealed she felt unsafe living in the house.

In the infamous scenes from the series, Chloe was seen running out of the bathroom in tears after heading in to comfort the worse-for-wear Baywatch star. She later revealed he had pulled back her robe to indecently expose her.

Reflecting on the incident, the Ex On The Beach star explained on This Morning: 'It affected me because I was really comfortable, you're in a show that you've got security, you've got producers, you know you think nothing can touch me in here.'

She continued: 'Then to feel so secure and safe, then to go... I felt like my kindness was seen as weakness a little bit with Jeremy.'
They reportedly broke their decade-long engagement earlier this year.

But Alessandra Ambrosio and Jamie Mazur were both glimpsed Saturday night heading to the celeb flypaper restaurant Nobu Malibu.

Jaime was spotted with their children in the parking lot - where Alessandra, 37, was surrounded by a claque of friends.

Stepping out: Alessandra Ambrosio (left) and Jamie Mazur (right) were both glimpsed Saturday night heading to the celeb flypaper restaurant Nobu Malibu

RE/DONE founder Jamie and ex-Victoria's Secret Angel Alessandra share nine-year-old daughter Anja and six-year-old son Noah.

Alessandra, who announced late last year that she was giving up her Angel title, slipped into a tan dress with enough sheen to faintly resemble a nightie.

The Brazilian bombshell matched the dress to a comfortable-looking coat, teetering on nude stilettos and wearing her luxurious brown hair down.

Chatting: Alessandra was surrounded by a claque of friends in the parking lot

Meanwhile: Jamie was out with his and Alessandra's two children - he is pictured here holding hands with their six-year-old son Noah

Walking beside him: Alessandra and Jaime also share a nine-year-old daughter called Anja

One of the friends accompanying her on her night out was her silver fox publicist Milan Blagojevic, who had slipped into a black leather bomber jacket.

Alessandra folded herself into the front passenger seat of a gleaming black car with a couple of her friends, running a hand through her hair as they headed off.

In the driver's seat was Brazilian movie producer Raul Guterres, whom she has been seen out with more than once since her purported split from Jamie.

On the move: Alessandra, who announced late last year that she was giving up her Angel title, slipped into a tan dress with enough sheen to faintly resemble a nightie

Balance: The Brazilian bombshell matched the dress to a comfortable-looking coat, teetering on nude stilettos and wearing her luxurious brown hair down

That night, Jamie threw on a splashily colorful checked shirt over a tee, slipping into a pair of jeans and some black and white Nike sneakers.

Neither Jamie nor Alessandra, who got engaged in 2008, publicly confirmed the breakup reports when they surfaced this March.

A source had gossiped to Us Weekly that the pair were 'trying to keep their split on the down low, but Alessandra has been out and about ready to mingle and hasnt been taking Jamie to anything.'

Folded arms: One of the friends accompanying her on her night out was her silver fox publicist Milan Blagojevic, who had slipped into a black leather bomber jacket

Heading off: Alessandra folded herself into the front passenger seat of a gleaming black car with a couple of her friends; Brazilian movie producer Raul Guterres was driving

Keeping it casual: That night, Jamie threw on a splashily colorful checked shirt over a tee, slipping into a pair of jeans and some black and white Nike sneakers

Yet the day after this claim hit the Internet, Alessandra was pap-snapped heading to the gym with a ring on her engagement finger.

Around the middle of 2016, she gabbed to British Vogue: 'I actually lost my engagement ring a few years ago, so I do want to replace it.' She quipped of Jamie: 'I don't know if he's going to make me replace it myself since I lost it!'

Also in 2016, Alessandra confided in Cosmopolitan: 'If I have been engaged to him for eight years, then its not my priority.'

Quoth the model, who was still an Angel then: 'I have a lot of things going on, and I havent got married because Im so busy. Ill think about that when I have time off.'

Mystery: Neither Jamie nor Alessandra, who got engaged in 2008, publicly confirmed the breakup reports when they surfaced this March

A source had gossiped to Us Weekly that the pair were 'trying to keep their split on the down low, but Alessandra has been out and about ready to mingle....'
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are headed to Australia for a 'romantic getaway,' according to reports.

Meghan's former Suits co-star Gabriel Macht and his Australian actress wife Jacinda Barrett have offered the newlyweds their home in Noosa, Queensland, for some downtime, news.com.au claims.

The pair, who attended the Royal Wedding, have a $880,000 property in the pristine beach side town, where the Duke and Duchess of Sussex can relax and unwind after Sydney's Invictus Games in October.

Coming soon: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are headed to Australia for a 'romantic getaway,' according to reports

Pals: Meghan's former Suits co-star Gabriel Macht and his Australian actress wife Jacinda Barrett have offered the newlyweds their home in Noosa, Queensland, for some downtime

'Harry and Meghan have a window free and Gabriel and his wife have invited them to their beautiful Queenslander-style house,' a source told the news site.

The source added: 'It's an incredible place and will be perfect for them to chill out before they go on what is likely to be a fairly non-stop tour.'

Noosa is a resort area on southern Queenslands Sunshine Coast and known as a perfect vacation spot.

With a population just over 52,000, it's an idyllic region surrounded by beaches, national parks, everglades and lakes.

Love nest: The pair, who attended the Royal Wedding, have a $880,000 Queenslander style property (similar to the one pictured) in the pristine beach side town of Noosa

Nice getaway: Noosa is a resort area on southern Queenslands Sunshine Coast and known as a perfect vacation spot, an idyllic region surrounded by beaches, national parks and everglades

There is plenty to do in the tourist area, with kayaking, water sports, swimming, hiking and shopping at local boutiques all at hand.

Meghan is friends with the couple, both of whom appeared on Suits, with Jacinda playing her husband's love interest on the drama between 2012 and 2013.

American actor Gabriel, 46 starred in Suits as Harvey Specter and is best known for playing comic book character of The Spirit in the big screen adaptation of the graphic novels.

Down time! 'Harry and Meghan have a window free and Gabriel and his wife have invited them to their beautiful Queenslander-style house,' a source has revealed

Close: Gabriel and wife Jacinda Barrett were esteemed guests at the Royal Wedding

Work buddies: Meghan is friends with the couple, both of whom appeared on Suits, with Jacinda playing her husband's love interest on the drama between 2012 and 2013

His wife Jacinda, 45, is an Australian actress, known for her roles in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason and the TV series' The Following and Bloodline.

The pair were married in 2004 and have two children, a daughter, Satine, 10 and a son, Luca, 4.

The source added: 'It's an incredible place and will be perfect for them to chill out before they go on what is likely to be a fairly non-stop tour'




Their relationship is set to reach fever pitch on Sunday's episode of TOWIE.

But Gemma Collins put any romance drama behind her as she joined boyfriend James 'Arg' Argent after a night out at Brighton's Shooshh nightclub in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The outspoken reality star, 37, flashed a beaming smile to cameras as she met up with her beau, 30, and opted for a glamorous black wrap jacket for her evening out.

Good mood: Gemma Collins, 37, partied the night away with James Argent...as their relationship hit on the rocks following explosive TOWIE row

Gemma paired the sophisticated outerwear with matching cigarette pants, but caught all the attention in her electric pink Givenchy sliders.

The blonde beauty was in top-to-toe designer as she toted a chic Louis Vuitton clutch bag.

Gemma styled her trademark blonde tresses in glamorous corkscrew curls, with smokey make-up to add extra drama to her elegant ensemble.

Accessorising with only a delicate pink watch and a matching mani-pedi, the meme-queen stopped to chat on her phone as she was followed closely by Arg, who donned his own sharp look for the night out.

Looking glam: The outspoken reality star, 37, flashed a beaming smile to cameras as she met up with her beau, 30, and opted for a glamorous black wrap jacket for her evening out

Sharp: Carrying his own Loius Vitton bag, the reality stud wore a flamboyant patterned silk shirt and classic black summer shorts

Carrying his own Loius Vitton bag, the reality stud wore a flamboyant patterned silk shirt and classic black summer shorts.

Arg stepped out in casual black trainers but amplified his night time look with a silver chain and matching time piece.

With his signature brunette locks lightly tousled, Arg followed the Celebrity Big Brother beauty as they bundled up into the back of the cab looking slightly worse for wear following their raucous evening.

Beaming: Gemma styled her trademark blonde tresses in glamorous corkscrew curls, with smokey make-up to add extra drama to her elegant ensemble

Stylish: Gemma paired the sophisticated outerwear with matching cigarette pants, but caught all the attention in her electric pink Givenchy sliders

On the rocks? Their night out comes as the feisty couple will be at the centre of drama in the series finale of TOWIE on Sunday, after having an explosive row at the airport

Their night out comes as the feisty couple will be at the centre of drama in the series finale of TOWIE on Sunday, after having an explosive row at the airport following their Tenerife holiday.

With Arg leaving Gemma to race back to Essex, Gemma is left crestfallen and admits her doubts about the relationship are resurfacing to Chloe Sims and Georgia Kousoulou.

Meanwhile her beau tries to explain his side of the story to Tommy Mallet, revealing Gemma has blocked him on social media.

Smiles: The blonde beauty was in top-to-toe designer as she toted a chic Louis Vuitton clutch bag

A bit tired? Gemma looked slightly worn out by the fun of the evening as she leapt into the front of the cab

Chatting: Accessorising with only a delicate pink watch and a matching mani-pedi, the meme-queen stopped to chat on her phone as she was followed closely by Arg

Casual chic: Arg stepped out in casual black trainers but amplified his night time look with a silver chain and matching time piece

On their way: With his signature brunette locks lightly tousled, Arg followed the Celebrity Big Brother beauty

Fun times: Gemma couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she left the swanky nightclub to return home

The next day at Tommy's birthday, Gemma has a renewed positivity, leaving her future with her reality star boyfriend in doubt.

With Georgia telling Arg where Gemma's head is at, he finally has the chance to speak to her at the end of the party to try and patch up their fractured relationship with her and his former friend Chloe Sims.

Their explosive row occurred after their romantic break in Tenerife, where they shared a slew of loved-up snaps on social media.

In an video obtained by The Sun, the couple were pictured rowing at London's Southend airport, with Gemma grabbing Arg's arm.

While it's not clear what the tiff was about, Gemma begged her boyfriend to talk to her, but he's not having any of it as he shouts back and tries to get away.

Bust-up: Gemma and James' relationship will reach fever pitch once again on Sunday's episode of TOWIE
She's living the dream after opening her second beach bar in Greece.

And Lindsay Lohan, 31, looked delighted as she hung out with pals while celebrating the opening of her LOHAN Beach House Mykonos on Friday.

The redheaded beauty was surrounded by admirers as she was photographed hanging out in a beachside cabana.

New venture: Lindsay Lohan celebrated the opening of her beach bar in Mykonos on Saturday

Lindsay wore a cream tank top and summery maxi skirt to which she added a dark belt.

She beamed a big smile as she chatted to friends hiding behind some mirrored aviators.

The actress is based in Dubai these days but has a fondness for Greece, regularly island hopping during her summers.

The actress also lent her name to LOHAN Beach House Rhodes and is co-owner of LOHAN nightclub in Athens.

Congrats: Lohan received gifts and cards from well wishers at LOHAN Beach House Mykonos as she hung out in a cabana

Summer chic: Lindsay wore a cream tank top and summery maxi skirt to which she added a dark belt

Her good pal Dennis Papageorgiou, a Greek millionaire and restaurateur, named the hotspot after the Mean Girls star.

Papageorgiou is the sole owner of the club but gives Lindsay co-ownership rights and some of the profits.

In a recent interview on The Kyle and Jackie O radio show Lindsay revealed she is terrified of going back to California.

'I'm terrified of going to LA. Just landing at the airport scares the s**t out of me,' Lindsay told hosts Kyle Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson.

'When I do something good, they [the press] just bring it up,' she added, referring to her past legal troubles while living in LA.

Sun-seeker: The red headed beauty shaded her eyes with some large mirrored aviators

Idyllic getaway: Beachgoers get to relax on plush sunbeds as they gaze out to the ocean

'I'm nearly 32 years old. This is so long ago,' Lindsay explained.

The Mean Girls actress relocated to Dubai in December 2016, having previously lived in London, England.

Lindsay told W Magazine in February that she feels a sense of calm living in Dubai.

'There's a certain calmness that I find there. There's no paparazzi, no cameras. That's a big deal for me,' she said.

Shop on site: The beach house includes a boutique for beach supplies and summery garments

Paradise found: Pictured is one of the very stylish dining patios

'I do really appreciate having the life where I can just go outside and not have to worry.'

During her twenties, Lindsay often found herself in the tabloids as she struggled to adjust to life in the spotlight.

The former child star was in and out of court after a series of arrests for driving under the influence, among other offences, and even served a few hours in jail.
She looks ready to welcome her first baby any day now - even though she still has a month to go.

And that may be why a heavily pregnant Eva Longoria was spotted leaving a salon in Los Angeles on Friday.

The 43-year-old mother-to-be may have been taking the chance to pamper herself just in case her little one arrives early.

Bumping along nicely: A heavily pregnant Eva Longoria was spotted leaving a salon in Los Angeles on Friday

She shares her baby with TV tycoon husband Jose Baston, the president of Televisa, Latin America's largest media company.

The Desperate Housewives star kept her salon outfit simple in a black long-sleeved T-shirt, dark cropped leggings and flip-flops.

Eva's long, glossy brunette tresses spilled over her shoulders as she walked carrying a folded up blanket, a large tote and a small quilted purse.

She and Jose celebrated their second wedding anniversary on Monday and he sent his wife a beautiful arrangement of red and white roses that Eva didn't post, with an apology, until Wednesday.

Mother-to-be: She still has a month to go before the arrival of the baby she shares with Jose Baston, but the 43-year-old may have been enjoying a pamper session ahead of the birth

She captioned the snap: 'I didnt forget, I was just too sleepy to post! My wonderful husband sent me these gorgeous flowers and Im giving him a baby!

'Im the luckiest woman in the world to have a husband like Pepe and I pray we have 50 more years of many blessings, much laughter and endless happiness! Happy Anniversary Amor Mio!'

And the pampering continued throughout the week, with Jose taking the actress to lunch at upscale Beverly Hills eatery Wally's on Thursday.

All aglow: The actress shared a snap of the bouquet Jose sent her to celebrate their second anniversary captioned, 'My wonderful husband sent me these gorgeous flowers and Im giving him a baby!'

Hand-in-hand: Eva and Jose at an event in Los Angeles earlier in the month

Eva, who is now at the stage in her pregnancy when very little feels comfy, wore a dark outfit very similar to the one she donned on Friday.

But she still has a sense of humor about her state.

On Saturday the Overboard star posted a shot of her fluffy white fur baby laying across her burgeoning belly that she captioned: 'Big brother on baby bump watch! Thx Jinxy Baby!'
She has traveled all over for work and pleasure.

And this Sunday, Emily Ratajkowski was feeling reminiscent of a trip she took to Paris last July - as she demonstrated for her 17.7 million Instagram followers.

Emily sizzled in a cleavage-baring split Thierry Mugler gown as she posed in front of Honore Picard's sculpture Protection And Future in the Palais Galliera.

Throwback Instagram snap: Emily sizzled in a cleavage-baring split Thierry Mugler gown as she posed in front of Honore Picard's sculpture Protection And Future in the Palais Galliera

Placing her hands behind her on the artwork's plinth, Emily closed her eyes evocatively as flashed her sculpted left leg from the dress' thigh-slit.

She had been visiting the Palais Galliera for a fundraiser the Vogue Foundation threw in aid of the 16th arrondissement fashion museum.

Derek Blasberg snapped her there for Vanity Fair in front of the same statue, though his photo was in color, whereas Emily's latest throwback snap was black and white.

Emily, who has a penchant for showing off her figure on red carpets and social media, told the new June issue of Marie Claire her breasts are 'a key to my sexuality.'

Snapped by Derek Blasberg: She had been visiting the Palais Galliera for a fundraiser the Vogue Foundation threw in aid of the 16th arrondissement fashion museum

The Gone Girl supporting player told the magazine: 'Boobs are funny. They hurt sometimes, and sometimes theyre the thing that makes me feel the most powerful.'

I remember there was some article like: "Emily Ratajkowski Is the Mozart of Breasts." What was so bad is someone sent it to my dad, who sent it to me,' she recalled.

'My dad still sees me as a little kid. I love my boobs. I love other peoples boobs. Boobs are kind of great,' rhapsodized the I Feel Pretty actress.

The actress, who while showing Vogue around her vast apartment in 2015 said she was for a platform to 'redistribute wealth in this country,' is a newlywed.

'Boobs are funny': Emily, who has a penchant for showing off her figure on red carpets and social media, told the new June issue of Marie Claire her breasts are 'a key to my sexuality'

Emily made a splash with her surprise courthouse marriage to producer Sebastian Bear-McClard in New York in February, wearing a $200 Zara trouser suit.

Though they only became a couple weeks before the wedding, a source told Us Weekly that 'Emily has known Sebastian for years.'

The London-born model and actress recalled to Marie Claire: "People came after my marriage, like: "Wow. I give it three weeks." Im like: "What?"'

Emily groused: 'No one can take women seriously on any choices that they make, especially if theyre unique to them and they dont play into the way we think women should get married. It's a constant writing-off.'
The Handmaid's Tale

Rating:

A Very English Scandal

Rating:

Never explain, said Benjamin Disraeli. Queen Victorias favourite smooth-talking Prime Minister would have made a great TV writer, and not just because his hobby was penning racy melodramas.

Too many serials get bogged down in turgid exposition and long-winded commentaries. Even shows that delight in confusing viewers will suddenly panic and unload a stodgy dollop of dialogue.

In the past week weve seen over-explanation in Humans, Westworld and The Bridge. Do you know whats going on? demands one character. Another adopts a grim and urgent expression: All I know is . . . update, background, reprise, more update.

Full marks to The Handmaids Tale (C4), which followed Disraelis dictum by dispensing with dialogue altogether in several long scenes, letting the actors and the action tell the story while a clever soundtrack added layers of foreboding.

The Handmaids Tale is often praised for its visual majesty, and some of the tableaux this week had an epic, Biblical quality. But we cant fully appreciate it without listening as well as looking

On the run from the suburban dictatorship where she has been kept a sex slave, June (Elisabeth Moss) took shelter in a derelict building. She was jumping at shadows, crouching behind vast bales of paper when she heard police sirens, while a synthesised grumble throbbed in the background.

We watched Mosss subtly expressive face flinch and snarl at what she discovered  empty desks, a womans shoe, scattered pens and notepads . . . and a row of nooses, beside a printing press.

The opposite wall was black with bloodstains and pitted with bullet holes. This was a newspaper building: the journalists were murdered when the dictatorship took power. All this was conveyed without a word being spoken.

Director Mike Barker was confident enough to repeat the technique, not once but repeatedly, when we first saw the concentration camp that will be Junes fate if she is caught, and in a flashback as academic Emily (Alexis Bledel) discovered a university colleague had been lynched for being gay.

It was most effective when Emily, who is also gay, tried to flee the country with her wife and baby only to be stopped by police at the airport. As Emily watched her little boy being carried away, knowing she would never see him again, all noise ceased and we heard only soundtrack music.

The Handmaids Tale is often praised for its visual majesty, and some of the tableaux this week had an epic, Biblical quality. But we cant fully appreciate it without listening as well as looking.

A Very English Scandal (BBC1) would actually be easier to follow if it dispensed with the explanatory captions that roll across the screen every time the scenery shifts.

As a nervous Norman Scott (Ben Whishaw) and his Great Dane Rinka were given a lift across bleak countryside by a hitman in a Cortina, we really didnt need a giant label to tell us this was Exmoor  or another, as the car pulled up outside a pub, to explain we were now in Porlock.

A Very English Scandal (BBC1) would actually be easier to follow if it dispensed with the explanatory captions that roll across the screen every time the scenery shifts

Writer Russell T. Davies is too enamoured of all the ironies and the improbable details in this true story to let any of them go  so, for instance, he used more captions to tell us that one of the go-betweens in the murder plot was called John Le Mesurier who lived in Bridgend. Too much explanation, Russell.

Whishaw was simply brilliant, though, as the fey, awkward, vain young man who might not find women sexually attractive, but is skilled at manipulating them.

The actor gave us quiet reasons to like Scott, too  his willingness to accept hardship without complaint, his love of animals. None of it needed explaining.
She was lauded by fans when she put her ex-boyfriend firmly in his place after discovering he had cheated on her.

But Courtney Green infuriated viewers on Sunday's finale of TOWIE as Myles Barnett finally won her affections.

Meeting up with her ex-beau, the Essex beauty, 22, was left starry-eyed after he offered to whisk her away on a romantic holiday to Mexico.

Scroll down for video

Reunited: Courtney Green infuriated viewers on Sunday's finale of TOWIE as Myles Barnett finally won her affections

Meeting up with Myles for dinner, she told him: 'The thing I'm scared about is giving my heart back and you breaking it in again.'

Insisting the rumours that he had slept with a girl in Wales weren't true, he said: 'In the last year I havent been proud of the way I've acted.

'I'm asking and I'm not putting any pressure on you but I have booked a holiday to Mexico and there's a spare seat.'

Loved-up: Meeting up with her ex-beau, the Essex beauty, 22, was left starry-eyed after he offered to whisk her away on a romantic holiday to Mexic0

Cautious: Meeting up with Myles for dinner, she told him: 'The thing I'm scared about is giving my heart back and you breaking it in again'

While Courtney asked: 'Are you joking?' Myles dropped the bombshell that the flight was the next day.

She later told Chloe Meadows: 'I think my heart's telling me one thing, and that is to go to Mexico.'

Viewers took to Twitter to blast her decision, with one writing: 'When you dump your boyfriend cuz he cheating and treating you like an absolute piece of poop but then he offers to take you to mexico... of course your going to go you are that much of a mug... what is wrong with these girls (sic)'.

Another furiously typed: 'Too soon Courtney, typical as a controlling person to say that they are not pressuring u but they have booked a holiday to Mexico the next day.'

Grand gesture: He said: 'I'm asking and I'm not putting any pressure on you but I have booked a holiday to Mexico and there's a spare seat' before telling her the flight was the next day

Smitten: She later told Chloe Meadows: 'I think my heart's telling me one thing, and that is to go to Mexico'

'Courtney's gonna let this holiday blind her, he's taking you out the country so you can't hear anymore information' another wrote.

However, some viewers stuck up for her, with one fan writing: 'So what if Courtney gets back Myles its her choice, lifes not perfect everyone makes mistakes.'

Their reunion comes weeks after Courtney was praised for dashing Myles' hopes of rekindling their romance, telling him 'you can't change who you are'.

Furious: Viewers took to Twitter to blast her decision to reunite with her ex-boyfriend

Courtney and Myles' romance has been plagued with strife ever since he was accused of mentally abusing the starlet when he branded her a 'f**king s**g' and a 'dirty dog' due to an alleged flirtation with new boy Jordan Wright.

Following the split, Courtney was filmed tearfully explained the reason for their break-up with her pals Amber Turner, Chloe Lewis and Yazmin Oukhellou.

Courtney shared: 'I was just so unhappy. In the whole relationship I was so worried the whole time about making him happy that I forgot about myself.

'And I've realised that I wasn't happy, cos I was so much concentrating on him.'
Chris Hemsworth set pulses racing as he attended the inaugural running of the Indy 500 on Sunday.

Fans flocked to catch a glimpse of the hunky Thor star as he toured the famous track in Indianapolis, before waving the green flag to start the race.

The strapping actor sizzled in the soaring heat, wearing an unbuttoned white linen shirt that showed off a hint of his famous muscles.

Ladies, start your engines! Hunky Chris Hemsworth attended the inaugural running of the Indianapolis 500 on Sunday

Throughout the day, Chris had several meet and greets with fans and caught up with other famous faces.

The father-of-three was even spotted taking a selfie with controversial US Bachelor stars Arie Luyendyk Jr. and Lauren Burnham.

Chris watched fellow Australian Will Power race to victory at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

An IndyCar series champion and four times runner-up, Power delivered a cool, calculated drive to reach Victory Lane and give owner Roger Penske his 17th Indy 500 success.

The first Australian to reach Victory Lane at Indy 500, Powers win capped a monumental day for Australian motorsport, with Daniel Ricciardo triumphing on the other side of the Atlantic at the Monaco Grand Prix.

'Unbelievable to be the first Australian to win the 500; maybe they will recognise me down there now,' Power said following the race. 'I don't think people know who I am down there.'

Power, who started on the front row, was on the charge after the final caution, coming home ahead of polesitter Ed Carpenter and 2008 winner Scott Dixon of New Zealand.

Lets get this party started! Chris waved the green flag to start the 102nd running of the race
She was deported from Bali, Indonesia one year ago after serving almost a decade behind bars and three years on parole for drug smuggling.

And while Schapelle Corby was finally able to return home to Australia in May 2017 after her 13-year ordeal, she was forced to leave behind her Balinese boyfriend, Ben Panangian.

But according to Woman's Day magazine on Monday, Schapelle and Ben have reunited for a romantic rendezvous in Southeast Asia.

They're back together! Convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby (left) has reunites with her Balinese boyfriend Ben Panangian (right) for a romantic rendezvous in Southeast Asia

Ben and Schapelle, 40, reportedly met up in Singapore - a country with some of the strictest drug laws in the world - before heading to a beach resort in Vietnam for a two-week holiday.

An Australian tourist staying at My Khe Beach, near Da Nang, apparently spotted the infamous cannabis trafficker and her boyfriend during their secret getaway.

They told Woman's Day that the couple, who had been separated for the better part of a year following Schapelle's deportation, looked more loved-up than ever.

'She seemed so happy, and wherever she was he was by her side. It was actually really nice to see,' the source said.

'If I hadn't realised who she was, I would've just thought they were a couple of young honeymooners. He seemed to dote on her.'

'He seemed to dote on her': A fellow holidaymaker in Vietnam told Woman's Day on Monday that Schapelle and Ben looked more loved-up than ever at the beach resort

Schapelle was arrested at Bali's Ngurah Rai airport on October 8, 2004 after customs officers found 4.1kg of marijuana wrapped in plastic inside her boogie board bag.

The Gold Coast local has always maintained her innocence, denying the drugs belonged to her and insisting they were planted without her knowledge.

She was sentenced to 20 years at her 2005 trial in Denpasar District Court, but spent less than a decade behind bars due to receiving sentence reductions.

Behind bars: Schapelle was arrested at Bali's Ngurah Rai airport on October 8, 2004 after customs officers found 4.1kg of marijuana wrapped in plastic inside her boogie board bag

Schapelle and Ben met in Kerobokan Prison in 2006 while both serving sentences for drug-related crimes. She has previously described Ben as her 'soulmate'.

Last year, an 'insider' told Woman's Day that the couple were trying for a baby before Schapelle was deported.

'They were desperately trying to get pregnant before she left  that way she'd have an Indonesian baby and it would make her path back to seeing Ben a whole lot easier,' the source said at the time.
More than half-a-million Australians with severe breathing difficulties from chronic lung disease will have the price of a life-changing drug slashed.

The Turnbull government is listing inhaler Trelegy on the PBS for those with moderate-to-severe obstructive pulmonary disease.

It will mean instead of paying $1200 per year, patients will pay a maximum $39.50 per script from Friday.

Concession patients will pay $6.40.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says the condition is the second most common cause of avoidable hospital admissions in Australia.

It is also a leading cause of death and disease burden after heart disease, stroke and cancer.

"Six hundred thousand Australians will have access to medicine which otherwise they might not, that will literally make a profound difference to their quality of life," Mr Hunt told ABC TV on Sunday.

Australians with type 2 diabetes will also have access to Trulicity for less than $40 a script from June 1, saving patients about $1700 per year.

Simponi will be listed for Australians suffering from ulcerative colitis, saving them around $15,800 per year.

While about 500 patients with Stage IV clear cell variant renal cell carcinoma will be able to access Cabometyx, which without the subsidy would cost around $129,800 a year.
Rick Thorburn has begun his life sentence for the callous and calculated murder of his foster daughter Tiahleigh Palmer after admitting to her shocking 2015 death in the Brisbane Supreme Court.

Thorburn was supposed to protect and care for the 12-year-old Logan schoolgirl but he killed her in a cold and sinister plan to cover his son's crimes.

He and his family had taken full-time care of Tiahleigh in January 2015 but almost 10 month's later he would murder her, dump her body on the secluded banks of a Gold Coast river and leave it to decompose.

Three fishermen found it five days later, almost naked and partially submerged, and an investigation into her death commenced.

Eventually, it would lead to charges against Thorburn, his wife Julene and two sons Trent and Joshua.

As Thorburn was sentenced to life behind bars for Tiahleigh's murder the court heard he had killed her after learning Trent had sex with her and feared she was pregnant.

Once he had murdered her, he tried to hide her body along the banks of the Pimpama River and developed a lie for the family to stick to.

Thorburn said Tiahleigh had stayed in bed on the night she was murdered and the next morning he drove her to school and saw her greet a friend.

The ruse came undone when police bugged the Thorburn family home and for about a month eavesdropped on conversations they believed were private.

Rather than protect his family, Thorburn's actions resulted in his wife and two sons serving stints behind bars and him facing at least 20 years in a cell.

In sentencing Thorburn on Friday, Justice David Boddice described his actions as despicable.

"You murdered this defenceless child who relied on you for protection," he said.

"Your offending involves truly appalling conduct."

Tiahleigh's biological mother, Cindy, lamented that Thorburn killed a beautiful girl with her life ahead of her.

"Rick Thorburn took that away from me, from our family and most of all Tiahleigh," she said outside court.

No sentence would ever be enough, she said.

"Today marks the end of a long fight for justice for Tiahleigh."

Thorburn will first be eligible for parole in September 2036.
Senior Turnbull government ministers insist a push to lower company tax rates will go ahead despite Pauline Hanson backflipping on her support for the plan.

The One Nation leader and her two other senators had second thoughts on the 10-year plan to cut the tax rate for all companies to 25 per cent last week, reeling off a list of reasons why she was pulling out of an agreement with the government and putting the package in jeopardy.

The government was already two votes short in the Senate, where it doesn't have a majority, when the deal was debated just before Easter.

Human Services Minister Michael Keenan said the government must continue the make the case for the cut.

"We can't have a business sector in Australia, a sector that creates jobs and opportunities for the Australian people being so wildly uncompetitive in relation to our international peers," he told Sky News on Sunday.

Labor and the Greens and some other crossbenchers are against the reduction from 30 per cent, although independent senator Derryn Hinch has said he would back it for companies of up to a $500 million turnover.

A reduction for firms with a turnover up to $50 million passed the upper house last year.

The Senate will next sit in the final two weeks of June.

"There is still hope in this, people do posture in the lead up to these votes but they can be persuaded by the facts and the facts are pretty compelling in this case," Mr Keenan said.

Health Minister Greg Hunt agreed, saying the government was able to achieve the first round of small business tax cuts in the Senate and many other different policies.

"I remember when we worked to abolish the carbon tax, there were ups and downs with the crossbench, but we got there," he told ABC television.

But Opposition Leader Bill Shorten believes it is not a matter of if the government will give up on its "rotten corporate tax plan" but when.

"We are a strong opposition to help put the nail in the coffin of this rotten corporate tax giveaway for the big banks and mega businesses," Mr Shorten told the Victorian Labor conference in Melbourne.

The Senate will also debate in June the government's personal income tax cuts that featured in this month's budget.

While the seven-year plan passed the House of Representatives last week, Labor will only support the reductions that begin from July 1 - a new low- and middle-income tax offset, which will provide $530 relief each year and lift the 32.5 per cent tax bracket from $87,000 to $90,000.

They do not back further cuts due to start in 2022 and 2024.
Where Labor stands on the Turnbull government's tax policies.

SEVEN-YEAR, THREE-STAGE PERSONAL INCOME TAX CUTS.

Stage One

* Labor SUPPORTS new low and middle-income tax offset worth up to $530 a year from July 1, 2018.

Stage Two

* Labor SUPPORTS a lift in the 32.5 per cent tax bracket from $87,000 to $90,000 from July 1, 2018.

* Labor does NOT support the remainder of Stage Two:

- An increase in the existing low-income tax offset from July 1, 2022.

- A further lift to the 32.5 per cent tax bracket from $90,000 to $120,000 from July 1, 2022.

Stage 3

* Labor does NOT support Stage Three:

- The removal of the 37 per cent bracket from July 1, 2024

- Extending the 32.5 per cent tax bracket from $120,000 to $200,000 from July 1, 2024.

TEN-YEAR ENTERPRISE TAX PLAN

* Labor only SUPPORTS a tax cut from 30 per cent to 25 per cent for small businesses with a turnover of up to $2 million.

- It has yet to decide whether in government it would reverse the legislation that gives a tax cut for businesses with a turnover of up to $50 million.
A man has been shot and killed by police in Western Australia after allegedly threatening an officer with a knife.

Officers found the man, who was armed with a knife, early on Sunday in Wannanup, south of Perth, after responding to reports of a man acting suspiciously.

The man allegedly advanced towards an officer, ignoring repeated requests to drop the knife, before police tasered him. When he still failed to stop a firearm was discharged.

The officers administered CPR before the man was rushed to Peel Health campus where he later died.

Homicide squad and Internal Affairs are investigating the incident.
A manhunt is underway for an armed and "very dangerous" 30-year-old man in Western Australia.

Police are seeking urgent public help to find Malcolm Stirling Blurton, who is described as dark skinned, of medium build and about 175cm tall with short hair and a possible rats tail. He was last seen in the Armadale and Gosnells area in Perth's south driving a silver hatchback or SUV.

The man is believed to be armed with a firearm and may behave unpredictably, with police warning people who spot him not to approach but call authorities immediately.
Dozens of anti-mining protesters have targeted Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's Sydney home to rally against taxpayer funding for the Adani coal mine.

Activists chanted, waved placards and threw beach balls at the colourful Stop Adani rally, held at Lady Martins Beach in Point Piper on Sunday morning.

The group says the government is exploring the possibility of using the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC) to help the Indian mining giant's project.

It comes after Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk vetoed an almost $1 billion concessional loan through the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility.

Businessman Geoff Cousins, a neighbour of Mr Turnbull's, said the lobby group was responsible for Ms Palaszczuk's decision and pledged to also stop the "back door" EFIC method.

"Not only because that mine will greatly affect the (Great) Barrier Reef and contribute enormously to global warming ... but also because Adani itself is a corporation rotten to the core," he told the crowd.

After a similar protest at the Gold Coast office of Steve Ciobo this week, a spokesman for the Tourism Minister dismissed the suggestion about EFIC as "complete rubbish".

"The minister can not 'order' EFIC to fund loans to resources companies on its commercial account," the spokesman told AAP.

"He can not order them to fund anything on the commercial account - it's completely at arms length. And there are no proposals for Adani to receive funding on EFIC's National Interest Account."
A head-on collision in the NSW Riverina has claimed the life of one driver and left a passenger with serious injuries.

The two cars collided near Tumut about 8.40am on Sunday, police said.

The driver of one of the vehicles died at the scene while a passenger was airlifted to Canberra Hospital in a serious condition.

NSW Police were not able to provide the age or gender of either patient.

The driver of the second vehicle will undergo mandatory testing at Wagga Wagga Hospital after suffering non-life threatening injuries.
Queensland State of Origin hopeful Jai Arrow will be better prepared for the next Kevin Walters phone call than he was the last.

Arrow, who has shot to fame at the Gold Coast this year, will learn his Origin fate on Monday when Walters announces a new-look Maroons team that could include up to three rookies.

The 22-year-old forward played under Walters as an assistant at Brisbane last year, and was as shocked as anyone when he received a call from the Maroons mentor earlier this month as he edged closer to selection.

"I didn't have his number and at first I just went along with it just trying to figure out who it was," Arrow said.

"He called and just said you're doing well, keep it up.

"I was trying to work out who it was and then I did realise and I was like, 'oh crap!'. I started freaking out.

"But I've definitely saved it now and I'm hopefully waiting for that call."

Whether Arrow makes his Origin debut in 2018 could depend on the availability of the likes of Josh McGuire (ankle) and Matt Scott (possible suspension).

Brisbane prop Joe Ofahengaue could be another option on the bench, as Walters and fellow selectors Darren Lockyer and Gene Miles consider the next generation of Maroons.

But what's more certain though is that the 22-year-old has shown in the past three months months that he's made for Origin.

Despite battling constant rib, back, sternum and now shoulder injuries, Arrow has gone from a Broncos reserve grader during part of last year to becoming the leading metre-eater of all Queensland-eligible forwards.

"That's what I love. I love the dirty work," Arrow said.

"I love getting a lot of dirty work that no one wants to do done. I love the contact side of it. I wouldn't change my game for the world.

"I came down here to try and prove myself in the NRL. To have my name thrown up in Origin is pretty special and something I'm relishing and taking day by day and still pinching myself about.

"I've been to a few Origins and sitting in the crowd - it's pretty special. Being out there playing would be ten times better."
Penrith youngster Jack Hetherington faces the second suspension of his short NRL career after being charged with dangerous contact in the win over St George Illawarra.

Hetherington was assessed with a grade-one offence by the match review committee for a leg pull on Dragons forward Paul Vaughan on Saturday night.

He will miss the ladder leaders' round-14 clash against Canberra with an early guilty plea, but would spend a second match on the sideline if he fights the charge and loses at the judiciary.

The 21-year-old has only played five NRL games and he was also charged with a dangerous contact offence earlier this month.

In total, he has been charged five times in the past two years, with his offences dating back to his time in both NSW Cup and under-20s.

Gold Coast forward Keegan Hipgrave collected the third charge of his nine-game career after the Titans' loss to the Sydney Roosters, cited for a careless high tackle on James Tedesco.

He'll escape with a fine, reduced to $1500, if he pleads guilty.

South Sydney's Tom Burgess (tripping) and the Dragons' Blake Lawrie (dangerous contact) were also charged with lesser offences out of Saturday's games and will avoid bans.
A man has been arrested and charged after allegedly punching two Sydney police officers in the head.

Officers arrived at a licensed premises on Mary Street in Surry Hills following a fight when they were assaulted, police say.

A leading senior constable was allegedly punched in the face by a 53-year-old man, who then punched another officer in the head before he was pepper sprayed and arrested.

The alleged offender was charged with two counts of assaulting police and affray.

Meanwhile, three other men, aged 24, 55 and 53, were charged with a range of offences, including affray and common assault.

All four men were granted conditional bail and will appear at the Downing Centre Local Court on June 21.
Indigenous leader Noel Pearson says Australia could achieve "proper recognition" before the next election, with a constitutionally enshrined indigenous voice in federal parliament.

Mr Pearson told ABC TV on Sunday night he wanted to resurrect the Uluru Statement from the Heart to parliament, but it needed bipartisan support.

"Bipartisanship is crucial for referendum success. I see daylight in the door," he said.

"We should have a voice that is enshrined in the constitution."

But it's been about a year since the Turnbull government rejected Aboriginal leaders' calls for a constitutionally enshrined indigenous voice in parliament after labelling it a "third chamber".

Mr Pearson said the committee - headed up by Labor senator Pat Dodson and Liberal MP Julian Leeser - needed to consider the original proposal and an alternative akin to an "idea of small platoons".

Mr Pearson said a declaration - to run alongside the constitution - would "define a mutual agreement of who we are as Australians" and could be recited in schools an at civic functions.

"Indigenous, British institutions and multicultural triumph. We are three parts in a whole," he said on Sunday.

"The opportunity to achieve proper recognition is the one before us. It has to be done before the next election."
Almost three-quarters of Australian men diagnosed with "low risk" prostate cancer are not being actively monitored to detect disease spread, a study has found.

A decade ago there was a greater tendency to treat men with low-risk prostate cancer with surgery or radiation.

Nowadays the data suggests about 50 per cent are put on active surveillance.

The objectives of active surveillance is to avoid unnecessary treatment, but patients must undergo regular testing of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels.

PSA is a protein produced by both cancerous and non-cancerous tissue in the prostate; high levels can indicate the disease has spread.

A biopsy should also be undertaken within 12 months of diagnosis.

With the practice of active surveillance increasing, researchers analysed patient adherence among a group of men diagnosed with prostate cancer between August 2008 and December 2014.

The study, published in the Medical Journal of Australia on Monday, found of the 1635 participants, just 433 (26.5 per cent) adhered to the active surveillance protocol of at least three PSA tests and at least one biopsy within the first two years of diagnosis.

"Active surveillance was not implemented according to published protocols in 73.5 per cent of men diagnosed with low risk prostate cancer in this Victorian cohort study," the authors wrote.

They warn men risk dying of the disease if they are not monitored appropriately.

"If they are not being followed appropriately according to active surveillance protocols, men may miss the opportunity to be treated with curative intent," they wrote.
Nick Kyrgios has withdrawn from the French Open in Paris with an elbow injury, denying fans a spicy first-time showdown with fellow Australian Bernard Tomic.

Kyrgios had been under a fitness cloud having not played a singles match for six weeks and returning home last month for cortisone treatment for the chronic injury.

The 23-year-old on Saturday said he remained only "about 80 per cent" fit after teaming with American Jack Sock to land his maiden ATP doubles crown in Lyon.

He went behind closed doors for a practice session with Sock at Roland Garros on Sunday before pulling the pin.

Unfortunately I have to withdraw from this years French Open," he tweeted.

"Having consulted with my team and medical experts it is deemed too risky for me to step out and potentially play 5 sets on clay, especially as I have not played a singles match in nearly two months.

"I've worked hard to be ready and desperately wanted to play Roland Garros, which is very special to me but I literally ran out of time.

"A dramatic spike in load on my elbow could potentially put me back to square one and with the grass court season around the corner it is something I can not and will not risk.

"The good news is I'm finally pain free, working hard and enjoying my training and I'm looking forward to being back in singles action in Stuttgart.

"I'm sorry to those fans who bought tickets to watch me play but am also grateful for the continued love and support."

Kyrgios's scratching leaves Tomic, who successfully qualified after missing direct entry, to face a lucky loser on Monday night.

Should Tomic win his opener, the world No.206 will play either Romanian Marius Copil or Italian Marco Cecchinato for a place in the last 32 in Paris for the first time.
An outspoken Aboriginal leader wants a constitutionally enshrined indigenous voice in parliament before the next election.

Noel Pearson wants to resurrect the Uluru Statement from the Heart and the Voice to Parliament with bipartisan support, he told ABC's Patricia Karvelas on Sunday night.

"Bipartisanship is crucial for referendum success. We should have a voice that is enshrined in the constitution," he said.

The Turnbull government rejected the call for a constitutionally enshrined indigenous voice in parliament about a year ago and labelled it as a "third chamber".

Mr Pearson said a committee, headed by Labor senator Pat Dodson and Liberal MP Julian Leeser, needed to consider the first idea and an alternative akin to an "idea of small platoons" rather than being a monolithic organisation.

He said a declaration to run alongside the constitution would "define a mutual agreement of who we are as Australians" in three parts: indigenous, British institutions and multiculturalism.

"The opportunity to achieve proper recognition is the one before us," Mr Pearson said.

"It has to be done before the next election."
An 18-storey Melbourne high-rise was flooded, with thousands of litres of water pouring out the front door, after a resident opened all the fire hydrants on the first floor.

Residents fled the Southbank building on Sunday night as firefighters worked to control the deluge. The resident had locked themself in a room and police had to be called to deal with them.

The building was emptied, with 120 occupants forced out, as firefighters worked to stop further water damage and deal with the electrical risk from the large volume of water.

The building will remain unoccupied until the Municipal Building Surveyor inspects it.
The South Australian opposition wants tougher parole conditions to thwart the potential release of a notorious pedophile.

Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas will introduce legislation to parliament, requiring an offender to demonstrate they are willing and able to control their sexual instincts before a court is able to grant their release on licence.

It comes after the Supreme Court ordered the release of the notorious pedophile, Colin Charles Humphrys, who has served multiple jail terms for abusing young boys, dating back to the 1980s.
Nationals senator John "Wacka" Williams insists he will not judge Barnaby Joyce and his partner Vikki Campion for pocketing $150,000 for a tell-all interview about their new family.

Senator Williams, a good friend of the former deputy prime minister, said he would instead judge Mr Joyce on his work for the people in his New England electorate.

"What he does with his private life with him and Vikki and his son Sebastian, that's up to him to decide, it's not for me to judge," Senator Williams told ABC radio on Monday.
The mother of murdered Queensland foster child Tiahleigh Palmer says she put her daughter into care to protect her from a violent domestic environment.

But Cindy Palmer's decision ultimately left the 12-year-old in the care of a man who would murder her, and involve his entire family in a complex plot to cover up the crime.

Tiahleigh's foster father Rick Thorburn was sentenced to a minimum 20 years in jail on Friday, after admitting he killed the girl because his own son, Trent, had been having sex with her and feared she might be pregnant.

Trent was ultimately jailed for incest, while Thorburn's other son, Joshua, and wife Julene, also served jail time for coving up the murder.

Ms Palmer says she still believes she did the right thing when she went to Queensland authorities, seeking a safer home for Tiahleigh, who was seven at the time.

She felt the "very severe" domestic violence situation she was living in at the time could get her killed, and wanted her child to be safe.

"... I actually went to the department for help because I realised that one day I was just going to die and (she) was just going to be left there by (herself)," Ms Palmer told the Nine Network's 60 Minutes program.

But having put her daughter into foster care, the separation compounded Ms Palmer's problems and she turned to drugs and ended up homeless.

She told of her concerns, a few years later, about Tiahleigh living with the Thorburn family, including Rick Thorburn's boasts about his previous criminal exploits and the fact there were teenage boys in the house.

"The first ever time that I met Rick, the first words that came out of his mouth were about how he was in a gang when he was younger and he was running guns and prostitutes. And he was proud of this," she said.

Ms Palmer said she'd received death threats over her decision to put Tiahleigh in care, but says she didn't kill her daughter.

"I've worked really hard not to be that person anymore, but I guess maybe it is a little bit of guilt because obviously I was meant to be a mother and I should have made better choices."

The interview included recordings of the Thorburn family finally admitting to police that they'd lied to cover up the schoolgirl's killing.

Josh said his father showed no emotion after murdering Tiahleigh and dumping her body in a Gold Coast river, where it was found six days after she went missing in October 2015.

"He didn't cry. He seemed quite assured and defensive of what he'd done and why he'd done it," he said.

"Obviously, it was to protect Trent."
Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise meeting in a bid to get US-North Korea talks back on track

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is committed to "complete" denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and to a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump, South Korea's leader said Sunday, as Trump announced that plans for the meeting are moving along "very nicely".

The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship that had sent tensions soaring.

Trump rattled a sabre on Thursday by cancelling the planned June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump told reporters when asked for an update. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed."

Trump's unpredictability sparked a surprise meeting on Saturday between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in -- only the fourth time leaders from the two countries have ever met -- as they scrambled to get the talks back on track.

Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations.

Moon said Kim reached out to him to arrange the hasty meeting "without any formality", a stunning development given that the Koreas only reopened a defunct hotline between the two nations last month.

The North Korean leader described the Singapore summit as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation.

"He... expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters on Sunday.

Moon added that Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete denuclearisation" but was uncertain "whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime" if he gave up those weapons.

Pyongyang's state-run KCNA news agency said Kim "expressed his fixed will" to meet Trump, adding South and North Korea would hold another round of "high-level" talks on June 1.

- Shaky detente -

There was a further signal of progress Saturday as White House press secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed a team of US officials was leaving for Singapore "in order to prepare should the summit take place".

Trump's original decision to abandon the summit initially blindsided South Korea, which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang in a desperate bid to avoid a devastating conflict.

South Korea's Moon said Kim Jong Un described the Singapore summit with Donald Trump as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation

Last year Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to date and missiles which it said were capable of reaching the US mainland.

Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a rapid detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang.

But the flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks with increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang.

There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve.

US President Donald Trump said plans for a landmark summit with Kim Jong Un are moving 'very nicely'

Washington wants North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible in return for sanctions and economic relief.

Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look like and remains deeply worried that abandoning its deterrent would leave the country vulnerable to regime change.

- 'Back on track' -

Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a village that straddles the border between the two countries, where the 1953 armistice was signed.

North Korea remains deeply worried that abandoning its nuclear weapons would leave the country vulnerable to regime change

The two leaders had met in the same village only last month.

Kim Yong-hyun, professor of North Korea studies at Dongguk University in Seoul, said Moon and Kim moved quickly to defuse the crisis after Trump's shock cancellation.

"Moon essentially helped relay messages from Trump to Kim and vice versa, to further smooth the process and to resume negotiations," he told AFP, saying the Singapore meeting was "clearly back on track".

In Seoul Sunday most people whom AFP spoke to appeared to welcome Moon's move to talk to Kim.

"I think it was a good thing if meeting in person and having a direct conversation about each other's intentions helps us proceed to the next step," said Lee Tae-kyoung.

Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only told later that it had taken place.

Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South.
Violence between armed separatists from the English-speaking minority and government forces has occurred almost daily in Cameroon since a political crisis erupted in late 2016

Twenty-two people have been killed in clashes with the army in Cameroon, an opposition MP said Saturday, in the latest violence to hit the restive northwest, where separatists from the English-speaking minority are fighting for greater autonomy.

The identity of those killed was not immediately clear, with the army describing them as "terrorists" and villagers saying they were criminals.

The clashes come after the US ambassador to Cameroon accused government forces earlier this month of carrying out targeted killings and other abuses in the fight against the independence-seeking militants.

"Twenty-two people were killed Friday in Menka during a confrontation... (between the army and) a group of people that were presented as criminals," said Nji Tumasang, a member of the English-speaking opposition Social Democratic Front (SDF) in Santa, the area in which the town of Menka is located.

Violence between insurgents and government forces has occurred almost daily in the region since a political crisis escalated in late 2016.

An army official confirmed the incident, speaking of "several neutralised terrorists".

"A group of terrorists was reported in Menka" and the military intervened to surround the hotel where they were, army spokesman Colonel Didier Badjeck said on Facebook.

He added that a "watchman alerted (the occupants of the hotel) which gave rise to long exchanges of fire lasting several minutes".

Several weapons and ammunition had been seized, he added.

An SDF delegation led by leader John Fru Ndi visited Menka on Saturday, Tumasang said.

"The people in the village confirmed that there was an exchange of fire, and some bodies were found in the motel rooms," Tumasang said.

"In the village, people do not think they were separatists, but rather criminals", he said.

He added that families in Menka had told him that 18 people were also killed on Thursday. The bodies of eight young men had been found, according to witnesses.

The presence of a large English-speaking minority -- about a fifth of Cameroon's population of 22 million -- dates back to the colonial period.

It was once a German colony and was divided between Britain and France after World War I.

In 1960, the French part gained independence, becoming Cameroon, and the following year, the British-ruled Southern Cameroons was amalgamated into it, becoming the Northwest and Southwest Regions.

For years, resentment built among anglophones, fostered by perceived marginalisation in education, the judiciary and the economy at the hands of the French-speaking majority.

Demands for greater autonomy were rejected by 85-year-old President Paul Biya, in power for more than 35 years, leading to an escalation that saw the declaration of the self-described "Republic of Ambazonia" in October last year.
Jho Low led a high-rolling lifestyle after allegedly stealing huge sums from 1MDB, reportedly spending vast sums in New York's hottest nightspots

Baby-faced playboy Jho Low, a financier at the centre of Malaysias 1MDB mega-scandal, may find his days of hobnobbing with celebrities and splurging on property and art are numbered as the new government pledges to bring him to justice.

Suspected of being a key figure in one of the world's biggest frauds along with ousted leader Najib Razak and his cronies, the chubby, bespectacled businessman has become a lightning rod for public fury at the controversy.

He led a high-rolling lifestyle after allegedly stealing huge sums from 1MDB. He hung out with celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio, partied with Paris Hilton, and reportedly spent vast sums in New York's hottest nightspots.

As investigations into the controversy accelerated, the Malaysian took to a luxury yacht allegedly bought with stolen cash and sailed around Asia, until the vessel was seized off Bali recently as part of 1MDB-linked probes.

The Wall Street Journal reported that he was on the Thai holiday island of Phuket earlier this month awaiting the election results. His current whereabouts are unclear.

But time could be running out for the flamboyant 36-year-old after Najib's scandal-mired coalition suffered a shock defeat at the May 9 poll in large part due to public anger at 1MDB.

The new government, headed by Najib's ex-mentor Mahathir Mohamad, has reopened probes into the sophisticated fraud and wants to haul Jho Low -- whose full name is Low Taek Jho -- back to Malaysia.

Abdul Razak Idris, a former senior officer from the anti-graft agency which led probes into the scandal until they were shut down under Najib, said he believed Low was the mastermind.

"He must be arrested and brought back to Malaysia so that we can bring back all the money parked abroad," he told AFP.

Low, who held no official positions at 1MDB but is believed to have exerted great influence over the fund, has previously denied any wrongdoing. He could not be contacted for this article.

- Precarious position -

In a first move aimed at pressuring him, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng on Friday instructed tax authorities to probe Low and his family -- many of whom remain in Malaysia -- over 1MDB.

Malaysian social media lit up with delight at the prospect that a man who allegedly plundered state coffers was now being aggressively pursued.

Jho Low took to luxury yacht Equanimity, which was allegedly bought with stolen cash, and sailed around Asia until the vessel was seized off Bali recently as part of 1MDB-linked probes

"Jho Low is the key to all this 1MDB debacle," read one post on Facebook. "Catching him is like catching the one ring that rules them all."

Low's current precarious position is a far cry from the image he once projected of an urbane, well-connected investment manager.

He was educated at elite British school Harrow, and during his time in England befriended Riza Aziz, Najib's stepson, a friendship that helped him get close to Malaysia's former ruling family.

He studied in the US and moved to New York, where reports of his profligate spending began to multiply.

The Department of Justice, which has launched lawsuits to seize assets allegedly bought with stolen 1MDB cash in the US, alleges $400 million from the fund was sent to America "for the personal gratification of Low and his associates".

This is just one part of the vast fraud. The DoJ claims that some $4.5 billion was stolen from the fund, which was set up in 2009 and overseen by Najib. Najib and 1MDB deny any wrongdoing.

As well as the yacht, Low is alleged to have used stolen cash to buy artworks by Monet and Van Gogh, high-end real estate and to give gifts to celebrities including DiCaprio and Australian model Miranda Kerr.

They have both turned the gifts over to US authorities and are not accused of any wrongdoing.

In a rare media interview with Malaysia's Star newspaper in 2010, Low complained of being depicted as someone who led "an excessive kind of lifestyle".

"Ultimately, I am Malaysian," he said. "I am one who does not forget my country and I think there is a lot we can do for Malaysia."
Starbucks has sought to contain outrage after the arrest of two young black men at one of its outlets in Philadelphia

Can you teach employees not to be racist? Coffee giant Starbucks will shut stores around the United States on Tuesday to conduct an unprecedented training exercise at its more than 8,000 American outlets.

The initiative, which is expected to last four hours and reach 175,000 employees, was announced by Starbucks management on April 17, as it sought to contain outrage over the arrest of two young black men at one of its cafes in Philadelphia.

The incident five days earlier sparked outrage, protests and anguished soul-searching about America's lingering problems of discrimination and racial tensions that have deteriorated under the presidency of Donald Trump.

After the two black men arrived at the Starbucks one of them asked to use the bathroom but was told it was for paying customers only. The pair then sat down to wait for a third person before ordering drinks.

The manager called police.

A video that went viral showed uniformed officers questioning then handcuffing the two men, who put up no resistance, while a white client repeatedly asks an officer, "What'd they do? What'd they do?"

"Whether in stores, on trains, implicit or explicit bias, you see it all the time," says James Bell, 47, a counsellor in a mostly black school in Brooklyn and a Starbucks customer.

"As a black male, you have workers in the stores excessively asking, 'Do you need anything, may I help you?'" he tells AFP. "You see a young black man and you immediately think crime."

Bell points to other recent examples of discrimination broadcast on social networks, such a student calling the police in May when a black graduate student at Yale University fell asleep in a common room.

- 'Historic' -

Camille Hymes (C), a Starbucks regional vice-president, addresses media and protestors in a Philadelphia outlet of the coffee chain on April 15, 2018 after the police arrest of two black men sparked outrage and the company apologized

Then there are instances of police brutality toward, and killings of, black male suspects, also often captured by witnesses armed with smartphones, that in recent years have spawned protests.

Given the context, Bell isn't convinced that the Starbucks initiative will change much, but says it's "good they are trying." "At least they make the effort," he said.

Like him, there has been a cautious welcome from black officials and activists, who are nonetheless waiting to see what happens and whether anything actually changes as a result.

"I do think this is historic," Sherrilyn Ifill, president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, America's first civil and human rights law firm, has said.

"I don't know of another company as ubiquitous as Starbucks... that has stated their willingness to directly confront racism and bias within their own company."

In taking responsibility, she said, Starbucks has "created an important window for retail corporations in America to begin to honestly and forthrightly tackle racial inequality."

Ifill is one of those from whom Starbucks sought advice in drawing up the curriculum. As with the others, it was conditional assistance.

"We've made it clear that we wont be a rubber stamp to validate their programming if we don't believe it's not effectively delivering," said Heather McGhee, president of Demos, a public policy organization that works to reduce political and economic inequality.

"We are going to be issuing a report later on at the beginning part of this summer about a more comprehensive set of items that we think they need to address to really lead on this issue," she said.

Starbucks seems to have heeded concerns.

- 'First step' -

"May 29 isn't a solution, it's a first step," says the company on its website.

"This first training will focus on understanding racial bias and the history of public accommodations in the United States, with future trainings addressing all aspects of bias and experiences," it added.

So what will employees actually be taught on Tuesday? Starbucks has refused to grant media access to the training sessions, but has released a short video ahead of time.

They are due to watch a film from documentary maker Stanley Nelson on the history of African Americans, and discuss in small groups their experience of racial discrimination.

There will also be taped addresses from Howard Schultz and Kevin Johnson, the chairman and CEO of Starbucks respectively.

Sharon Rush, a law professor and expert in race relations at the University of Florida, is another of those who is uncertain -- even if she applauds Starbuck's initiative.

She hopes that the coffee behemoth will set an example and encourage other companies to step up training on racial discrimination, as is currently the case on sexual harassment.

"If other companies say 'I should be doing this,' that would be a real positive outcome," she says.
Moroccan minister of Moulay Hafid Elalamy, who heads one of his country's largest conglomerates, is one of several figures criticised for blurring the line between politics and business

More than a month after its launch, an unprecedented boycott campaign in Morocco against three well-known brands has revived criticism against links between the country's business and political elite.

Spreading like wildfire across social media, the campaign is targeting Afriquia service stations, Sidi Ali water and Danone milk -- leaders in their sectors -- and calling for a drop in prices.

Despite brand communication efforts to curb the campaign, AFP saw its popularity in cafes, shops and deserted Afriquia petrol stations in several Moroccan cities.

Some 57 percent of Moroccans are actively engaged in the boycott, according to a survey of 3,575 mostly middle class Moroccans published this week in the country's L'Economiste newspaper.

The Afriquia group belongs to billionaire Aziz Akhannouch, the richest man in Morocco, minister of agriculture since 2007 and head of the National Rally of Independents (NRI) technocrat political party.

The boycott carries "a symbolic message from the middle class" against the marriage between political power and big business, political analyst Aziz Chahir told AFP.

Ahmed Bouz, another political analyst, said the campaign shows "awareness of the need to separate politics from business".

- 'Conflicts of interest' -

The Moroccan press frequently covered conflict of interest throughout the 2000s, placing a sharp focus on the royal family and the National Investment Company -- since transformed into a holding company and renamed Al Mada.

The enrichment of the country's ruling elite resurfaced in 2011 as the popular revolts of the Arab Spring swept across the region.

Consitutional reform that year fuelled hopes for change, but the current government -- formed in 2017 by the Islamist PJD party -- brought in more technocrats and businessmen, along with accusations of conflict of interest.

Moroccan media and activists accuse Trade Minister Moulay Hafid Elalamy -- who heads one of the country's largest conglomerates -- of helping to pass a favourable tax provision for the transfer of his Saham insurance company to South African giant Sanlam.

Elalamy says he has complied with the law and asked for an inquiry into the transaction to prove his innocence.

"Nothing in the law prohibits businessmen from holding government positions," Abdelali Benamour, head of Morocco's Competition Council, told AFP.

Fouad Abdelmoumen of Transparency Moroc said: "The state has not put in place mechanisms that define conflicts of interest and that contain excesses."

Excessive profits in big business -- especially fuel distributors like Afriquia -- has also stoked anger among Moroccans.

A mid-May parliamentary report on the evolution of fuel prices since their liberalisation in 2015 caused an uproar.

The final version of the report -- its most glaring figures redacted -- put the sector's profit margins above $1.5 billion (1.3 billion euros).

The alliance between business and politics appeared again in headlines Tuesday, when Salaheddine Mezouar -- former finance minister, trade minister and head of the NRI -- was elected head of Morocco's private business sector.
A man wearing a t-shirt that says "Pay Your Tax" in Nigeria, where tax is no longer a laughing matter

Paying income tax used to be a joke in Nigeria which, no wonder, has the worst tax to GDP ratio in sub-Saharan Africa.

As one banking executive put it: "In Nigeria, the government pretends to tax people and people pretend to pay. That's the Nigerian social contract."

But these days it's no laughing matter, as an ambitious government scheme designed to make the executive class pay up draws to a close.

Millions of people for the first time are now coughing up taxes as President Muhammadu Buhari's government conducts one of the country's most vigorous collection drives in years.

The money is desperately needed. Widening Nigeria's tax base will help boost non-oil revenue in Africa's largest economy, which is limping out of its worst recession in 25 years.

And Nigeria has a long way to go. Its current tax-to-gross domestic product ratio is just 5.9 percent, according to the International Monetary Fund.

In Lagos alone, there are 6,800 millionaires and 360 multi-millionaires, according to a 2017 report by AfrAsia Bank. But top earners hardly lead by example.

In 2016, just 241 people paid more than 20 million naira ($55,600, 47,400 euros) in personal income taxes, the Nigerian finance ministry reported.

- Plug leaks -

It's not hard to see why Nigerians would be reluctant to pay tax to fund public services, when there has been no visible return.

Infrastructure in most cities is disintegrating. Roads between states are crumbling. People pay for their own electricity and water.

An ambitious Nigerian government scheme designed to make the executive class pay up is drawing to a close

Endemic corruption is partly to blame, said the Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi II, one of Nigeria's leading Islamic figures who served as central bank governor in the previous administration.

"Improving transparency and public financial management is critical to improving revenues," he said this week at a meeting of the African Development Bank Group in South Korea.

"Make sure the taxes actually get into the government's pockets and you don't have all these leakages."

Though difficult, tax reform isn't impossible in Nigeria.

Lagos state, home to the country's commercial capital, has successfully mobilised a tax base whose contributions represent over a third of internally generated revenue collected in all Nigeria's 36 states, said transparency organisation BudgIT.

That has allowed it to finance a growing number of projects, including a cable-stayed bridge linking the upmarket neighbourhoods of Ikoyi and Lekki that is now a city landmark.

- Tax awareness -

Buhari, who is seeking re-election at polls next February, wants to double the tax-to-GDP ratio by 2020.

To do that, his finance minister Kemi Adeosun has followed in the footsteps of Turkey and Indonesia and launched a tax amnesty programme.

The Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) has a two-part strategy.

First, it offers Nigerians a period of grace to regularise their tax affairs or else face a prison term of up to five years, financial penalties and possible forfeiture of assets.

Second, it uses data to link land registry records and tax receipts to root out defaulters.

The government enlisted the help of international asset recovery firm Kroll to troll bureau de change networks, WikiLeaks and even the Panama Papers to identify negligent high net worth individuals.

The programme was launched in June last year, with the government declaring every Thursday "tax awareness day".

Tax officers were stationed at airports and a massive digital billboard advertising of the scheme flashed over the Lekki bridge toll gate in Lagos -- a not-so-subtle threat to the denizens of the affluent suburb.

In May, Adeosun -- a former chartered accountant and auditor with PricewaterhouseCoopers in London -- said Nigeria's tax base had risen from 14 million people in 2016 to 19 million in 2018.

- 'Name and shame' -

But Adeosun's promise to "name, shame and prosecute" defaulters lost some bite after the government pushed back the closing date by three months, from March 31 to June 30.

Still, those familiar with the programme say that it is well on track to deliver on its target of more than one billion dollars.

That amount may be modest but it's a step in the right direction, said Yomi Olugbenro, West Africa tax specialist at Deloitte in Lagos.

There's something to be said for launching the scheme, which "definitely has more people talking about taxation", he said.

The key is to make sure the amnesty programme is built upon in the future and isn't just a once-off windfall. Otherwise Nigerians will revert to old habits.

"It's a chicken and egg thing," Olugbenro said. "The government will tell you, 'We need the money to provide all things that aren't there'.

"Taxpayers are saying, 'I need to be convinced'."
Deutsche Bank is one of two of Germany's biggest banks that avoids Iran completely after being slapped with harsh fines in 2015 over their dealings there

Germany's biggest lenders have shied away from business with Iran after past penalties for breaching US sanctions, but smaller banks have leapt on opportunities afforded by the nuclear deal rejected by Donald Trump.

There are just months to go until a November deadline issued by Washington after the US president abandoned a hard-fought agreement that loosened business restrictions on the Islamic Republic in exchange for Tehran giving up its pursuit of nuclear weapons.

But some firms plan to press on in their dealings with Iran despite the looming threat of penalties.

"We will continue to serve our clients," for now, said Patrizia Melfi, a director at the "international competence centre" (KCI) founded by six cooperative savings banks in the small town of Tuttlingen in southwest Germany.

The centre, which supports companies operating in sensitive markets like Iran or Sudan, has seen demand "rising sharply in the last few years, from firms listed on the Dax (Germany's index of blue-chip firms), from all over Germany and from Switzerland," she added.

German exports to Iran have grown since the nuclear deal was signed in 2015, adding 15.5 percent last year to reach almost 2.6 billion euros ($3.0 billion) after 22-percent growth in 2016.

Such figures remain vanishingly small compared with Germany's 111.5 billion euros in exports to the US -- its top customer.

Nevertheless, the KCI will "wait and see what the sanctions look like" before turning away from Iran, Melfi said.

- Walking on eggshells -

Already, firms dealing with Tehran must take great care not to fall foul of US restrictions.

Transactions are carried out in euros, and the KCI does not deal with businesses that have American citizens or green card resident holders on their boards.

What's more, products sold to Iran cannot contain more than 10 percent of parts manufactured in the US.

One of the most important inputs for the business is "courage among our managers" given the high risks involved, Melfi said.

Germany's two biggest banks, Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank, avoid Iran completely after being slapped with harsh fines in 2015 over their dealings there, with Deutsche alone paying $258 million in penalties.

DZ Bank, which operates as a central bank for more than 1,000 local co-op lenders, is withdrawing completely from payment services there, a spokesman told AFP.

That left KCI to seek out the German branch of Iranian state-owned bank Melli in Hamburg.

Even that linkage could break if Iran's biggest business bank appears on a US list of barred businesses as it has before.

Meanwhile, among Germany's roughly 390 Sparkasse savings banks, business with the regime is mostly limited to producing documents linked to export contracts.

"We will be looking even more closely at those" in the future, a person familiar with the trade told AFP.

Elsewhere in the German economy, the European-Iranian Trade Bank (EIH) founded in 1971 is another conduit to Tehran.

Also based in Hamburg, it for now remains "fully available to you with our products and services", the bank assures clients on its website, although "business policy decisions by European banks may result in short term or medium term restrictions on payments".

- 'Effectively protected' -

Neither does the Bundesbank (German central bank) believe that much has so far changed for business with Iran.

"Only the European Union's sanctions regime will be decisive", if and when it is changed, the institution told AFP.

Any payment involving an Iranian party would have to be approved by the Bundesbank if things return to their pre-January 2016 state.

German banking lobby group Kreditwirtschaft has called on Berlin and other EU nations to clarify their stance -- and to make sure banks and their clients are "effectively protected against possible American sanctions".

KCI's Melfi said time is running out for EU governments to act.

"Many firms just want to stop anything with Iran, since they can't calculate the risk of staying," she noted.

On Friday for the first time since the Iran nuclear deal came into force in 2015, China, Russia, France, Britain and Germany gathered in Vienna -- at Iran's request -- without the United States, to discuss how to save the agreement.
Residents of Alongo village use a boat to transport the Zangbeto, a traditional voodoo guardian, not, as once, to maintain law and order, but to help protect the rich mangrove ecosystem

In a wooden canoe on the waters of the Mono River in southwest Benin, a strange cone-shaped effigy in purple raffia and topped with horns sails back and forth through the mangroves.

The Zangbeto -- the traditional voodoo guardian of the night -- once policed the streets to maintain law and order and scare away its enemies.

But the revered deity, which is still feared and rules on village disputes, is now working to protect the rich mangrove ecosystem from threats from humankind.

The nightwatchman drifts along the shoreline in torrential rain to the rhythm of traditional chanting. A group of followers hangs two smaller representations of the god from the trees.

Residents of the village in a region battling the effects of over-fishing and shrinking forests dance near the Zangbeto

The mangrove in the delta acts as a spawning ground for fish and crustacea but is at risk from overfishing and the hunt for firewood.

Between 1995 and 2005, the maze of forest has shrunk from 13,000 to 9,000 hectares (32,000 to 22,000 acres).

Since then, some has been reforested by local non-government organisations, including Eco-Benin, a local non-profit which uses indigenous beliefs to promote conservation.

Alongo, a narrow strip of land that separates the river from the Atlantic Ocean, is home to 200 people who have become devout conservationists.

"From today, no one can enter this forest," says Jean Koukpomi, the voodoo priest conducting the ceremony.

"People used to come with their machetes to take the wood. They picked up the crabs, birds eggs... Now it's forbidden."

- Talisman -

Next to the priest is village head Damien Egbenou, with a pagne loincloth tied around his waist.

Deploying the revered Zangbeto voodoo guardian figures to aid conservation appears to be working -- local official Dossou Viho says "there is no disorder where the deity is present"

"If you go into the forest, you will be punished by the laws of our talisman. You can be beaten in front of everyone. He is feared."

It was residents of Alongo who decided to use the Zangbeto as a conservation tool.

"It has been a participatory process," said Sylvain Daavo, who worked on the project. "They told us if you want it to be sustainable, the deity must intervene," he said.

"Local people already practised sanctification, which is called 'vodounto' and which means 'this part of the river belongs to voodoo'.

"That allowed the resources there to be protected."

Eco-Benin has been working in the area since 2011.

"If you come early in the morning, there are thousands of birds, there are migratory species and it is very valuable for the environment," said the group's national coordinator, Gautier Amoussou.

Two years ago, the non-profit created a biosphere reserve recognised by the UN cultural and heritage body UNESCO covering 17 villages, including Alongo.

Zangbeto has already "sanctified" eight sites over 500 hectares.

On the walls of the houses in the village, posters remind the inhabitants of the new rules: no hunting manatees or using chemicals in fields near the river.

- Divine sanction -

For years, conservation efforts have been at odds with the traditional way of life in Benin, where poor communities survive off fishing and cook over wood fires.

Fear of divine sanction appears to be much more persuasive.

The national plan for the sustainable management of mangroves approved by Benin's government also advocates using traditional beliefs as a means of protecting biodiversity.

The Mono River delta reserve is divided into three categories: protected zones, sanctified zones reserved for research and ecotourism, and buffer zones where human activity is regulated.

"We accept the initiative because we are given the opportunity to live in our own environment," said Dossou Viho, president of the Doukpo association, which manages the reserve and carries out patrols in coordination with the authorities.

"There is no disorder where the deity is present. Today we know that we must save our mangroves for the well-being of our locality."

At the same time, the community is focusing on tourism development with the recent creation of an eco-lodge and training for environmental supervisors.

Residents transport a Zangbeto ahead of a traditional Yoruba ceremony

Julien Kassa is a fisherman but now also offers tours to tourists visiting the Mono River.

In his yard, where the walls are covered with philosophical writing, he says his work protecting the mangrove has got him on the wrong side of some villagers.

But his efforts to raise awareness and voodoo have found in his favour.

"It is a great wealth," he says. "It's good for our development."
Jokhir Ahmend, one of the 700,000 Rohingya Muslims who have fled to southeast Bangladesh from Myanmar in the past nine months, says he is concerned about the lack of materials available to help prepare his shelter for the upcoming monsoon season

Marooned on a dusty slope in the world's largest refugee camp, Osiur Rahman looked to the hill where a Rohingya girl was buried in a landslide just days earlier and contemplated his chances should the earth give way beneath his feet.

"Our families would be killed. There are children everywhere around here. We constantly fear that rain could trigger a landslide," the 53-year-old told AFP on the steep embankment where he lives with nine family members in a bamboo shack.

For the 700,000 Rohingya Muslims who have fled to southeast Bangladesh in the past nine months, the approaching monsoon season poses the most serious threat since they were violently expelled from Myanmar.

Close to one million of the stateless Muslim minority live in the Cox's Bazar district but the new arrivals, stranded on unstable hills in bamboo and plastic shacks, are especially vulnerable.

A massive operation to shore up the camps against disaster is in overdrive, with bulldozers levelling hills and refugees bunkering down however they can.

But as the rains approach, the young girl's death this month in a torrent of mud and rock has heightened fears of a much greater tragedy.

There is a dearth of safe land to relocate the estimated 200,000 refugees in direct danger of floods and landslides, and just 21,000 have been moved so far.

Rohingya refugees carry sandbags in preparation for the upcoming monsoon season in Kutupalong refugee camp

"We could literally have lives lost as people slide down hillsides and valleys are flooded with water," Kevin J. Allen, head of the UNHCR refugee agency's operations in Cox's Bazar, told AFP.

"They could face yet again another emergency, this time driven by mother nature."

The camps' makeshift homes are predicted to receive more than 2.5 metres (eight feet) of rainfall over three months starting June -- roughly triple what Britain gets in a year.

Cox's Bazar has been battered by cyclones for three years running, having already suffered astonishing devastation in the past.

Cyclones have killed tens of thousands along the Bangladesh coast in recent decades and countless more have been swept to their deaths in floods and landslides.

This time, nature is on a collision course with refugees who have nowhere to run -- no higher ground and no cyclone shelters.

- Nowhere to go -

The first storms underscored the fragility of the camps: the brief rains turned roads into quagmires, crumbled hillsides and flooded low-lying areas.

The huge endeavour to prevent disaster has seen slopes vulnerable to collapse flattened and extensive canal systems carved throughout the camps.

Bangladesh has restricted the use of sturdy materials for shelters, fearing it may suggest the Rohingya plan to stay

Toilets are being fortified with sandbags to prevent a major disease outbreak should floodwater meet overflowing latrines.

But there are limits to how much can be done.

Bangladesh has restricted the use of sturdier materials for shelters because it may suggest the Rohingya plan to stay, contrary to Dhaka's desire to return them to Myanmar.

The roof was blown clean off Noor Mohammad's shack in a recent squall. He had gathered chunks of wood and rocks to weigh it down but was "scared of what could pass" when Bangladesh's wild weather barrels through.

The Rohingya are no strangers to the monsoon, he said. But in Myanmar, villages were built to withstand its ferocity and trees provided a bulwark against the elements.

"Here, there is nothing to stop the wind," he said, gesturing to the deforested hills stretching for miles.

Bangladesh has freed up hundreds of hectares (acres) but most is hilly and was prone to landslides even before the Rohingya uprooted trees for shelters and firewood.

- 'We will die' -

Mosques and community centres could shelter 150,000 people if needed, said Kazi Abdur Rahman, acting district administrator of Cox's Bazar.

"But if there is a big cyclone, and all these people need relocating, there is not a system for that yet. It is not possible to shift one million people," he told AFP.

The Rohingya, who have fled persecution time and again, fear being on the run once more.

Rohingya refugees make bamboo fences in preparation for the upcoming monsoon season in Kutupalong refugee camp

"Everybody is afraid, wondering where we'll go if our houses are destroyed," Rohingya imam Muhammad Yusuf told AFP.

Aid groups say a cyclone or devastating storm could cut access to the camps for a week -- restricting food and supplies to a tent city with a population greater than San Francisco.

The World Food Programme's emergency coordinator Peter Guest said thousands of porters were being assembled to carry food on foot if access roads were cut.

Those left homeless or starving will have nowhere to run anyway: the Rohingya are encircled by military checkpoints and prohibited from leaving.

"What else can we do? If Allah does not protect us, we will die," said 60-year-old refugee Dil Mohammad.
African statues, plundered by French troops in 1892 from the kingdom of Dahomey -- modern-day Benin -- are displayed in Paris' Quai Branly museum

Half-man, half-beast, the tall African statues dominate a busy gallery in Paris' Quai Branly museum. But few of the visitors are aware they are looking at what might be considered stolen goods.

The three imposing wooden carvings were plundered by French troops in 1892 from the kingdom of Dahomey -- modern-day Benin.

"I came here to learn about how these objects were intended to be used, more than how they were brought here," said Michael Fanning, a student from New Orleans, peering up at the statues.

"But it does make me think we should give them back to whoever made them."

From London to Berlin, Europe's museums are packed with hundreds of thousands of colonial-era items. Increasingly, they are facing the awkward question of whether they should be there at all.

The "Scramble for Africa", as Europe's 19th-century land grab came to be known, brought with it a clamour for trinkets from conquered territories, so exotic to the eyes of the colonisers.

Bought, bartered and in some cases simply stolen by soldiers, missionaries and anthropologists, they ended up in museums and private collections all over Europe.

The controversy is hardly new, nor does it concern Africa alone.

Star lawyer Amal Clooney, wife of Hollywood actor George, has advised Athens on its bid to reclaim the Parthenon marbles, vast sculptures which have been in Britain since the 1800s.

The massive Koh-i-Noor diamond, part of Britain's crown jewels and claimed by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan, is another spectacular example.

But in Africa, a speech by French President Emmanuel Macron has spurred hope that things may be about to change.

"Africa's heritage cannot just be in European private collections and museums," Macron said in Burkina Faso in November.

He charged two experts with working out how to give African artefacts back within five years, prompting speculation that museums across Europe could be pressured to follow suit.

"Suffice to say that he'll have made European curators quake in their boots," said Pascal Blanchard, a historian of French colonialism.

- Tangle of problems -

Emmanuel Macron has charged French art historian Benedicte Savoy and Senegalese writer Felwine Sarr with investigating how to give colonial-era African artefacts back

French art historian Benedicte Savoy, one of the experts appointed by Macron along with Senegalese writer Felwine Sarr, described her new job as "a hell of a challenge".

Museums have long wrestled with a tangle of legal and ethical problems concerning who really "owns" such objects.

Even in well-documented cases of pillaging, the law often prevents countries from giving them back.

Last year France flatly refused Benin's bid to reclaim its treasures, saying they were exempt from seizure as state property.

European conservationists have also raised practical concerns, worrying artefacts could be stolen or handled improperly if given to inexperienced museums in politically unstable countries.

Blanchard said countries like Nigeria, with well-established museums, had "all the ingredients for solid restitution claims".

But others as poor as Chad "do not currently have the museums and cultural heritage services capable of restoring and displaying these objects", he said.

- 'These objects belong to us' -

Ethiopian officials have demanded Britain give back treasures seized by Britain in 1868, such as the wedding dress of Queen Terunesh

Yet many African officials say these treasures should be at home, attracting tourists and boosting national pride.

Few cases inspire more outrage than the Benin bronzes, hundreds of exquisite metal plaques seized in 1897 by British troops from the Kingdom of Benin, in modern-day Nigeria.

Most are now in the British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

For Crusoe Osagie, spokesman for the governor of Nigeria's Edo State, it is simply wrong that his children must go to Britain or Germany to see their heritage in a glass-fronted cabinet.

"These objects belong to us and were forcefully denied to our possession," he told AFP.

As for suggestions that Africans might not look after such objects, he finds the idea insulting.

"It's like asking me how to look after my child," he said. "We are ready to look after them with great care."

- Echoes of Nazi looting -

Macron said on a trip to Burkina Faso in November that Europe needed to right historical wrongs by giving African artefacts back

Some colonial-era artefacts have been handed back over the years on an ad hoc basis, and UN cultural agency UNESCO has mediated successfully in several disputes since the 1970s.

European and US museums have also been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 seeking a solution for the Benin bronzes, but with few results.

The idea of loaning the bronzes, as well as Ethiopian items displayed in Britain, has been floated, but some African officials are affronted by the suggestion of "borrowing" what they see as their own property.

For want of better solutions, many museums are simply trying to approach the issue more sensitively.

German museums have taken a lead -- mindful of their previous experience with Jewish-owned artworks looted by the Nazis.

At Berlin's new Humboldt Forum, labels are set to include details of how colonial-era items came to be in the collection.

And Hamburg's MKG museum is running an exhibition which focuses not so much on its three Benin bronzes, but the fact that they were looted.

Its curator Silke Reuther said visitors appreciate the museum's honesty.

"We are not afraid to show something which is not a beautiful story," she said.
The Koh-i-Noor diamond changed hands between South Asian elites for at least two centuries before it became part of the British crown jewels

Europe's museums are full of items taken from Africa during colonisation, but many other objects on their shelves also carry an uncomfortable history.

Here are five examples of historic artefacts which have caused bitter ownership spats between nations:

- Benin bronzes -

So intricate that some Europeans of the day did not believe they could have been made by supposedly "primitive" Africans, thousands of these plaques were plundered from the Kingdom of Benin by British troops in 1897.

The British ransacked what is now Benin City in Nigeria, torching it and stripping it of its artwork in revenge for a massacre of their troops.

Showing scenes of court life, the "bronzes" date back to the 16th and 17th centuries and are in fact mostly made of brass.

Brisk trade scattered them around Europe, and today the biggest collections are in London's British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

British pensioner Mark Walker, whose grandfather was part of the 1897 raid on the Kingdom of Benin, handed back two of the so-called Benin bronzes to Nigeria in 2009

European and US museums have been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 but have thus far struggled to find a solution.

Last year, museums floated the idea of a permanent loan, but "many issues remain, not least whether or not a loan is agreeable to the Nigerian authorities", according to the British Museum.

- Royal treasures of Abomey -

King Ghezo's throne of Abomey, capital of the Dahomey kingdom in modern-day Benin, is displayed at the Quai Branly museum in Paris

Like the British, French colonial troops also pillaged objects from conquered African lands which were considered the spoils of war.

They returned from the 1892 capture of Abomey, capital of the Dahomey kingdom in modern-day Benin, with a wealth of thrones, royal sceptres and statues.

Benin's government says an estimated 4,500-6,000 royal items remain in France, including in private collections. The finest are in the Quai Branly museum in Paris.

France last year refused to return the artefacts but appears set to re-examine the issue after President Emmanuel Macron said Europe needed to return Africa's heritage.

- Elgin marbles -

Britain has held a collection of superb marble sculptures from the Parthenon since the 1800s, to the great displeasure of Athens

This superb collection of ancient marble sculptures once stood at the Parthenon temple overlooking Athens, but have been in Britain since the 1800s -- much to the chagrin of the Greek government.

British officials have argued Lord Elgin removed them with the permission of Greece's then Ottoman rulers, and that the British Museum has protected them from the ravages of time.

The museum refused a UNESCO offer to mediate in the dispute in 2015, saying the sculptures were its inalienable property and on display "for the benefit of the world public".

- Nefertiti bust -

With her high cheek bones and elegant long neck, this bust of the famed ancient Egyptian queen became an icon of feminine beauty.

Sculpted around 1340 BC, it was discovered by German archaeologists in 1912 and is today displayed in Berlin's Neues Museum.

Egyptian authorities have sought the return of the bust of queen Nefertiti for decades

Egyptian authorities have sought it back for decades. German officials have argued that it was obtained legally and is too fragile to be transported.

- Koh-i-Noor diamond -

Thanks to a murky history this giant diamond, on display at the Tower of London along with other British crown jewels, has been claimed over the years by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan.

It changed hands between elites on the sub-continent for more than two centuries before being ceded to Queen Victoria when Britain annexed the Punjab in 1849.

Despite being one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, it initially failed to impress Britons who went to see it on display in London.

Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, ordered it re-polished -- shrinking it by a half, but giving it a brilliant dazzle.

Even critics who argue it was taken by force have struggled to determine which country would hold the best claim to it.
Dozens of drag queens and kings marched through Itaewon on Saturday, a suburb of Seoul best known for its nightlife and a nascent but vibrant gay scene

South Korea held its first ever drag parade this weekend, a small but significant step for rights activists in a country that remains deeply conservative when it comes to gender and sexuality.

Dozens of drag queens and kings marched through Itaewon on Saturday, a suburb of Seoul best known for its nightlife and a nascent but vibrant gay scene.

Carrying rainbow flags, they cheered and strutted their best outfits, receiving shouts of support and the odd baffled look from those they passed.

While homosexuality is not illegal in South Korea, same-sex marriage is not recognised and people cannot legally change their birth gender.

South Korea is home to a large evangelical Christian community and LGBT people often feel pervasive pressure to to stay closeted

The country is home to a large evangelical Christian community and LGBT people feel pervasive pressure to to stay closeted.

"When it comes to South Korea, human rights guarantees for sexual minorities are insufficient," Yang Heezy, a drag queen and the organiser of Seoul Drag Parade, told AFP.

"Today's drag parade and more queer culture festivals should take place to bring attention to sexual minorities and help those who are not from those minorities learn more," he added, sporting a flame red wig and floral dress.

Both South Koreans and foreigners participated in Saturday's parade.

One participant, who gave her drag queen name Lola Bank, said there was a feeling of exhilaration among marchers.

"The fact that we are able to be in public in drag is a huge milestone to queer acceptance in Korea," Lola enthused, dragging on a cigarette.

"Ive always struggled with my masculinity and my femininity. And when I get in drag Im saying kind of like a 'fuck you' to societys expectations of how I should behave as a male."

Gay pride parades have been a fixture in South Korea for years but have often been protested by religious groups, who have held rival anti-homosexuality rallies while trying to physically block marchers.

Even left-leaning South Korean President Moon Jae-in -- a former human rights lawyer -- said he "opposed homosexuality" during a campaign debate last year.

Gay pride parades have been a fixture in South Korea for years but have often been protested by religious groups

Gay rights activists claim that some progress has been made in recent years, with surveys showing increasing tolerance -- particularly among young people -- and growing participation at gay pride events.

Saturday's small parade saw no counter-demonstration.

Lee Hyang-soon, an elderly street vendor, smiled and waved to participants as they passed.

"It's really cool. Seeing all the foreigners join in, it feels like Korea is becoming world famous," she said. "I'm happy. It's fabulous."
Palestinian mourners carry the coffin of 28-year-old Islamic Jihad member Abdul Haleem al-Naqa during his funeral in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip on May 27, 2018, after he was killed by Israeli tank fire targeting an observation post

Israeli tank fire at an Islamic Jihad observation post killed three Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday, Palestinian officials said.

The incident happened east of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, a spokesman for the health ministry in the Palestinian enclave said.

The ministry identified those killed as Hussein al-Amour, 25, Abdul Haleem al-Naqa, 28, and Marwan al-Amour, 25.

A statement from the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, the Al-Quds Brigades, claimed two of them as members. It was not yet clear if Marwan al-Amour, who died from his wounds later in the day, was also a member.

Islamic Jihad is the second-most powerful armed group in the Gaza Strip after Hamas, which runs the blockaded Palestinian enclave.

Israel's military said in a statement that the tank fire came after soldiers detonated an explosive device that had been placed near the border fence, targeting its troops.

It said the device had been hidden inside a pair of fence cutters.

Separately on Saturday night, Israeli aircraft struck two targets belonging to Hamas, but there were no reports of casualties.

The military said the operation was in response to a brief incursion across the border earlier in the day by Palestinians who immediately fled back into Gaza.

It added that the strike was also in retaliation for repeated Palestinian attempts to damage the border fence and "security infrastructure" during ongoing border protests.

At least 119 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the Gaza Strip since mass protests and clashes broke out on March 30, according to figures from the Gazan health ministry.

No Israelis have been killed during that time.

Low-level demonstrations along the border have continued since protests peaked on May 14, when at least 61 Palestinians died as tens of thousands of Gazans protested and clashes erupted over the US moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Israel says its actions are necessary to defend the border and stop mass incursions into its territory.

It accuses Hamas, with whom it has fought three wars since 2008, of seeking to use the protests as cover to carry out violence.

sa-jod-az-mjs/par
Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas speaks to the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank city of Ramallah on May 14, 2018

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas could leave hospital soon after a week of treatment for pneumonia, a source close to him said on Sunday.

The hospital director however said no date had been set for his discharge.

A Palestinian official and a medical source earlier said Abbas could be released from hospital on Sunday afternoon.

But the source close to him said later doctors were still considering whether the 83-year-old's condition would allow for it.

His release Sunday "is not confirmed", the source told AFP.

"It could be today or tomorrow (Monday). Most likely tomorrow," the source added, on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity surrounding Abbas's hospitalisation.

Hospital director Saeed Sarahneh told official Palestinian news agency WAFA that Abbas's health was rapidly improving, but that no date was set for his discharge.

Abbas was admitted on May 20 to the Istishari Arab Hospital near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank with complications following an ear operation, including high fever.

Officials have since confirmed he was being treated for pneumonia.

His extended hospitalisation has led to widespread speculation over his condition, particularly with no successor publicly in line for the Palestinian presidency.

Pictures and video of Abbas walking around the wards and reading a newspaper were published last Monday, in an apparent bid to calm rumours that his condition was more serious than reported.

In February, he underwent what were described as routine medical tests in the United States.

Abbas won a four-year term as president in 2005, but he has since remained in office without further elections.

Abbas argues the split between his Fatah party and Islamist movement Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has made elections politically impossible.

A moderate, he has been involved in decades of negotiations with Israel but is unpopular among Palestinians, with the majority wanting him to step down.
A Russian soldier standing guard in a central street in Deir Ezzor is one of a rumoured 4,000 or 5,000 Russian military servicement stationed in Syria

At least 26 Syrian regime forces and nine Russian fighters were killed in an Islamic State group attack earlier this week in Syria's eastern desert, a monitor said Sunday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the jihadists had targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in Deir Ezzor province on Wednesday.

"There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

The Russian military is backing Syria's army with air strikes and troops, but there are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground.

The defence ministry in Moscow said Sunday four Russian servicemen had been killed in clashes with militants in Deir Ezzor.

It did not give a date or precise location, but the Observatory said it was the same incident as the IS attack near Mayadeen.

Two of the servicemen were "military advisors commanding the Syrian artillery" and were killed on the spot, the defence ministry said.

It said two more Russian soldiers died later in a Russian military hospital following the fighting. Three other troops were wounded.

The ministry said the fighting lasted around an hour and left 43 militants dead.
Animal Husbandry department and Forest officials inspect a well to catch bats at Kozhikode earlier this month

Another patient has died in India from the Nipah virus, taking the number of fatalities from an outbreak of the rare disease to 13, authorities said Sunday.

Officials in the southwestern state of Kerala said that in addition to the latest fatality two patients have tested positive for the virus spread by fruit bats, which induces flu-like symptoms that lead to agonising encephalitis and coma.

Emergency measures have been imposed across Kerala to curb the spread of the virus, with dozens of patients quarantined since the outbreak was detected this month.

Health experts have been flown to Kerala to help contain the virus, which has a mortality rate of 70 percent and no vaccine.

"One man died today from Nipah virus, taking the overall death toll to 13," Sarita R.L., director of Kerala's health services, told AFP.

"There are two other confirmed Nipah patients undergoing treatment."

Nipah has killed more than 260 people in Malaysia, Bangladesh and India since 1998.

The World Health Organization has listed it as one of the eight priority diseases that could cause a global epidemic, alongside Ebola and Zika.

Nipah is named after the Malaysian village where it first appeared in 1998. It spread to Singapore and more than 100 people were killed. On that occasion, pigs were the virus hosts but they are believed to have caught it from bats.

In India the disease was first reported in 2001 and again six years later, with the two outbreaks claiming 50 lives. Both times the disease was reported in West Bengal state bordering Bangladesh.

Bangladesh has borne the brunt of the disease in recent years, with more than 100 people dying of Nipah since a first outbreak was reported there in 2001.

Four victims from the latest outbreak in Kerala hailed from one family. Dead bats were found in a well at their home in Kozhikode district, the epicentre of the viral outbreak.

A nurse treating one of the victims also succumbed to the disease.
Protesters said they were marching to ensure the bloody crackdown was not forgotten

Hundreds marched through Hong Kong on Sunday ahead of the 29th anniversary of China's crackdown on democracy protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

Semi-autonomous Hong Kong is the only place on Chinese soil where the anniversary is openly marked with a famous vigil in Victoria Park on June 4 each year. The march is an annual precursor to the main event.

Organised by a group of veteran democracy activists, protesters demanded justice for the victims of the crackdown and also urged the Chinese government to release Liu Xia, widow of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, who continues to be under house arrest since her husband's death in custody last year.

Protesters shouted "Accountability for the massacre! End one-party dictatorship," and held banners reading: "Mourn June 4, Resist Authoritarianism" as they walked from the business district of Wan Chai to Beijing's liaison office in the city.

The disqualification of pro-democracy lawmakers from parliament and the banning of some activists from standing for office has heightened concern that Hong Kong's cherished freedoms are being steadily eroded by Beijing.

Pro-Beijing figures have said recently that calling for an end to one-party dictatorship is "illegal" and that anyone who does so could run the risk of being disqualified from running for election.

"This is our freedom, our right, and also our belief. We do not hesitate to continue saying our slogan. We believe that only by ending the one-party dictatorship can we build democratic China," said Albert Ho, chairman of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organised the march.

Ho said that around 1,100 people attended the protest.

Residents said they were marching to ensure the bloody crackdown was not forgotten.

"If nobody talks about it, the next generation will never know about this history," said a woman who gave her name as Mrs Ho, and attended the protest with her son.

"China's Communist Party will not listen to citizens and people's voices. Although I was not born at that time, I heard my parents talk about it and I knew Hong Kong people went on the streets... to fight for their democracy and rights," added another protester who gave his name as Kelvin.

However, the turnout figures for the march and vigil have dropped in recent years as many young Hong Kongers are frustrated by the lack of progress on political reform in the city.

They disagree with the vigil's main message of democratisation in China, saying the focus should be on Hong Kong, not the mainland.

Student unions will not attend the longstanding vigil in Victoria Park this year and have boycotted it for the past three years.

Hundreds -- by some estimates more than a thousand -- died after the Communist Party sent tanks to crush demonstrations in the square in the heart of Beijing on June 4 1989, where student-led protesters had staged a peaceful seven-week sit-in to demand democratic reforms.
A file picture shows damaged buildings in the Syrian town of Mayadeen where Russian fighters were among dozens of pro-regime forces killed this week

Russian fighters were among dozens of pro-government forces killed in eastern Syria this week in a deadly wave of attacks by Islamic State group jihadists, Moscow and a monitor said Sunday.

After the collapse of its so-called "caliphate" last year, IS now only holds tiny pockets of Syria, mainly in the vast desert stretching to its eastern border.

This week, the jihadists ramped up their hit-and-run attacks on regime positions there, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.

The deadliest was on Wednesday, when IS targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor.

"There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

A steadfast ally of President Bashar al-Assad, Moscow has helped his army recapture swathes of territory since 2015 by providing air strikes and ground troops.

There are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground.

Moscow's defence ministry said Sunday four of its servicemen were killed in clashes in Deir Ezzor.

Two were military advisers supporting Syrian artillery operations and died immediately, and another two died of their wounds in a Russian-operated military hospital in Syria.

Three others were wounded.

- IS claims attack -

Russia did not specify when, where, or whether IS was involved, but it appeared to be the same incident as the IS attack reported near Mayadeen.

IS attack on Syrian, Russian forces

The jihadist group itself claimed it attacked regime forces in eastern Syria on Wednesday.

The assault was the largest in series of IS guerilla raids on regime positions this week.

On Tuesday, 26 regime forces were killed in a surprise IS attack in desert areas of the neighbouring province of Homs, according to the Observatory.

And a pair of IS assaults between Saturday night and Sunday morning killed at least 11 pro-regime forces in Deir Ezzor.

"The latest attack brings to 76 the number of Syrian troops and allied Iranian and Russian forces killed since the escalation," Abdel Rahman said Sunday.

He said the uptick came the day after the last IS fighters were bussed out of southern parts of Syria's capital Damascus, including the ravaged Palestinian camp of Yarmuk, in a negotiated withdrawal.

Many headed towards the Badiya, the stretch of Syrian desert extending from Homs province through Deir Ezzor to the eastern border with Iraq.

The Observatory said the evacuated fighters were actively involved in the recent attacks.

"IS is trying to take the initiative and show it can still threaten the regime and its allies despite the losses it suffered in other areas," said Abdel Rahman.

Government positions in the Badiya make for an easy target: they are few and far between, so reinforcements take a long time to arrive.

- 'Hinder' army -

Russian-backed Syrian troops hold the western half of Deir Ezzor province, which is divided diagonally by the Euphrates River. US-backed fighters hold the east bank.

The river is meant to serve as a de-confliction line to prevent the two sides from clashing as they pursue separate assaults against IS.

Russian-backed Syrian regime forces took control of Deir Ezzor city on November 3, 2017

A Syrian military source based in the east told AFP that Assad's troops had cleared large parts of territory from IS, which was now lashing out.

"Daesh wants to hinder the army's combing operations in the Badiya by waging these intermittent attacks," said the source, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

It confirmed Russian military advisers were present during Wednesday's attack and were among those killed.

Russia's government officially acknowledges that 92 soldiers have been killed in Syria, although some estimate the number is even higher.

The highest casualties were in March, when a transport plane crashed at Hmeimim airbase where Moscow's airforce is based, killing all 39 people on board.

On Sunday, a local Russian newspaper in the Siberian city of Chita reported on the funerals of four soldiers it said were killed in Syria on May 23.

The international group Conflict Intelligence Team said up to six Russian soldiers could have been killed in the attack, quoting social media reports of a funeral for a Russian soldier that took place in the Western Russian city of Smolensk this week.
Merzoug Touati was convicted over a Facebook post and an online video interview. File photo taken on April 29, 2018

An Algerian blogger has appealed against a 10-year prison term, his lawyer said on Sunday, after global rights groups condemned the severity of the sentence.

Merzoug Touati was convicted on Thursday of providing intelligence to "agents of a foreign power" likely to damage Algeria, by a court in Bejaia, east of Algiers.

The 30-year-old blogger submitted his appeal the following day and was feeling "optimistic", his lawyer Boubakeur Esseddik Hamaili said.

"I have seen my client, he is doing well and is a tower of strength. He proclaims his innocence as he has done nothing but exercise his rights guaranteed by the constitution," the lawyer added.

Touati has been in prison since his arrest in January 2017, over an online video interview with an Israeli foreign ministry spokesman and a Facebook post in which he called for protests against a new financial law.

During his trial the court dropped three additional charges including incitement against the state, which his lawyer said carries the death sentence.

The 10-year jail term was described us "utterly shocking" by Amnesty International, which said Touati had been convicted "solely for expressing his peaceful opinion online".

Reporters Without Borders condemned the sentence as "disproportionate and unjustified" and said a social network post should not lead to imprisonment.

Prosecutors had called for the blogger to be given a life sentence, while his lawyer urged the court to throw out the charges.

Hamaili did not confirm when his client's appeal would be heard in court.
Then President-elect Donald Trump and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani are pictured at the Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey in this November 20, 2016 file photo

A top lawyer for Donald Trump on Sunday resumed the president's all-out attack on the investigation into possible collusion with Russia as being "illegitimate," while acknowledging a concerted effort to turn public opinion against the probe.

The comments from former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani came as Trump lashed out again at what he called "the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt."

For months, Trump has attacked the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller as politically motivated and without foundation.

His latest line of attack, which Giuliani emphasized, was the assertion that a confidential FBI informant, who met with some Trump campaign advisers in 2016 while the bureau was investigating their possible Russia contacts, was a "spy" intent on subverting the Trump campaign.

Those meetings took place during the Obama administration.

Asked on "Fox News Sunday" what was wrong with the FBI "trying to figure out what Russia was up to," Giuliani replied: "Nothing wrong with the government doing that. Everything wrong with the government spying on a candidate of the opposition party."

"That's a Watergate, spygate."

- 'The FBI's job' -

"I'm not saying Mueller is illegitimate," he said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I'm saying the basis on which he was appointed was illegitimate."

Democrats have pushed back hard at the attacks on the Mueller inquiry, which began several months after the informant's involvement. They said it had already produced real results.

Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, tweeted: "I hate repeating myself Mr. President, but let me remind you again: Special Counsel Muellers investigation has either indicted or secured guilty pleas from 19 people and three companies - that we know of."

And a Republican senator, Marco Rubio of Florida, told CBS that while spying on a political campaign would be wrong, "if there are people operating in this country trying to influence American politics on behalf of a foreign power, it is the FBI's job to investigate."

But what Democrats describe as a blunt and concerted effort by the president to delegitimize the Mueller inquiry may be having an effect, to judge by recent polls.

A Monmouth University poll released early this month said the number of Americans who favor Mueller's probe continuing had dropped from 60 percent in March to 54 percent.

Other polls show many Americans are unaware of the indictments and guilty pleas secured by Mueller's team.

Giuliani effectively admitted that the frequent attacks on the probe were designed to influence public opinion and take the air out of any push for impeachment.

- 'It's for public opinion' -

"Of course we have to do it," he said on CNN.

"It's for public opinion," he added. "Because eventually the decision here is going to be impeach or not impeach... And so our jury -- and it should be -- is the American people."

Giuliani on Sunday said Trump was "adamant" about wanting to sit down with Mueller to answer questions. But, he added, "that depends on how comfortable we are with them having an open mind."

The timing of any such interview was being heavily influenced by the possible Trump summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, he said.

Giuliani also said Trump had no intention of firing people to force an end to the Mueller inquiry. That, he said, would draw comparisons to President Richard Nixon's handling of the Watergate scandal.
Two gunmen killed two traffic police before being killed by other officers who rushed to the scene in an attack that has not been claimed by any group

A shootout in Pakistan's southwestern Quetta city on Sunday evening left two police officers and two militants dead, officials said.

The incident occurred around sunset when two gunmen riding a motorcycle opened fire, killing two traffic police.

Officers on patrol nearby heard the gunshots and rushed to the scene.

"They engaged the attackers in firing and killed them on the spot," Abdul Razaq Cheema, a senior police official in the city, told AFP.

He said that another militant on a separate motorcycle was wounded in the clashes before fleeing.

Ghulam Ali Baoch, home secretary of Balochistan province of which Quetta is capital, confirmed the incident and announced a reward of one million rupees ($8,644) for any information on the militants.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

Islamist militants and separatist groups have waged violence in mineral-rich Balochistan, which borders Iran and Afghanistan, for more than a decade.

Balochistan is the largest of Pakistan's four provinces but its roughly seven million people have long argued they do not get a fair share of its vast gas and mineral wealth.
South Korea's President Moon Jae-in (R) and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (2nd R) walking together after their summit at the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) dividing the two Koreas, on May 26, 2018

US and North Korean officials met Sunday at a border truce village as preparations resumed for a high-stakes, high-drama summit that President Donald Trump suggests could help the North realize its "brilliant potential.

"I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day," Trump said on Twitter.

"Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!," the president said, confirming that a US team "has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the summit" between himself and North Korean leader Kim.

His upbeat language contrasted sharply to that of only three days earlier, when Trump canceled the planned summit, citing "open hostility" from the North. An extraordinary flurry of diplomacy since then -- much of it led by South Korea -- appears to have put the meeting back on track.

Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in met Saturday at the Panmunjom border truce village, in a surprise bid to salvage the June 12 summit planned for Singapore.

Announcing the lower-level talks held Sunday, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said, "We continue to prepare for a meeting between the President and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un."

The Washington Post reported that the US delegation to the Panmunjom meeting -- in the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea -- was led by Sung Kim, a former US ambassador to South Korea and former nuclear negotiator with the North. It said the Americans met with North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui.

Tokyo stocks opened higher Monday on the news, although trading was thin.

"Excessive worries receded as efforts resumed for a summit between the US and North Korea," Okasan Online Securities strategist Yoshihiro Ito said in a commentary, which added that uncertainty remains.

The United States currently has no ambassador to South Korea, even as it takes up one of the most delicate diplomatic challenges in years.

It remains far from clear how Trump and Kim might be able to bridge what appear to be vast differences in their expectations for what would be a historic meeting. But analysts on Sunday expressed increasing confidence that it will take place.

- Days of brinkmanship -

The apparent progress in the on-again-off-again talks followed a tense and turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship.

Within 24 hours of cancelling the summit Trump reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump said at the White House on Saturday. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed."

His abrupt decision to pull out of the meeting had blindsided South Korea and Moon, who had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang in a bid to avoid a devastating conflict.

But Trump accompanied the cancellation with a letter to Kim that mixed tough language with an almost beseeching plea to get things back on track. Some critics mocked the letter's tone, but it may have achieved the desired result.

- Kim 'met his match' -

James Clapper, director of US national intelligence under former president Barack Obama, told CNN: "I support the letter that President Trump sent... In some ways, Kim Jong Un may have met his match here with our very unconventional president."

Victor Cha, who was President George W. Bush's top advisor on North Korea and was briefly expected to get Trump's nod as ambassador to South Korea, said Sunday he was now confident the summit will take place.

The Moon and Trump administrations very much want the meeting, he said, "and Kim says he wants a summit, so it's going to happen."

There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve.

Washington wants North Korea to quickly give up all its nuclear weapons in a verifiable way in return for sanctions and economic relief.

Pyongyang has a different view of denuclearization and remains deeply worried that abandoning its deterrent would leave the country -- and its leader -- vulnerable, especially while the United States maintains a robust military presence in South Korea.

Kim "has almost an emotional attachment and a personal psychological attachment to these nuclear weapons," US Senator Marco Rubio said Sunday on ABC's "This Week." "They make him feel prestigious, they make him feel powerful."

If Trump is unable to negotiate those weapons away and unwilling to live in a world where North Korea poses a nuclear threat, then "you're going to have to do something to go after them at some point," the senator said.

jm/bbk/it/mdl
Kilauea is the world's most active volcano and one of five on Hawaii's Big Island

Haze from the Kilauea volcano eruption in Hawaii blanketed the Marshall Islands 3,700 kilometres (2,300 miles) away on Sunday, as officials warned it would continue moving west.

The haze, a phenomenon known as "vog" or volcanic smog, "is spreading across Micronesia," the US National Weather Service based in Guam said.

The volcano on Hawaii's Big Island is now in its fourth week of eruptions.

Meteorologists advised residents on the Marshall Islands with respiratory problems to stay indoors while airlines and shipping companies were warned to be aware of "lower visibilities".

The Guam weather office said haze produced by Kilauea would spread farther westward and reach Kosrae, Pohnpei and possibly Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia over the next few days.

Kilauea is the world's most active volcano and one of five on Hawaii's Big Island.

It started erupting on May 3, prompting about 2,000 people to flee from their mountainside homes.

Scientists believe the volcanic activity may be a precursor to a major eruption similar to the one that shook the island in the mid-1920s.
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Latest on President Donald Trump and North Korea (all times local):

9 p.m.

South Korea says it feels relieved about the revived talks for a summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un over the future of Kim's nuclear weapons program.

Protesters attend a rally to denounce the United States' policies against North Korea near the U.S. embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, May 25, 2018. North Korea said Friday that it's still willing to sit down for talks with the United States "at any time, at any format" just hours after President Donald Trump abruptly canceled his planned summit with the North's leader Kim Jong Un. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

The statement by Seoul's presidential office on Saturday came hours after Trump welcomed North Korea's conciliatory response to his Thursday letter withdrawing from the summit, and said the meeting might be getting back on track.

Trump tweeted later Friday that the summit, if it does happen, will likely take place June 12 in Singapore, as originally planned.

Seoul's Blue House says it's "carefully" watching the developments between Washington and Pyongyang.

__

8:45 p.m.

President Donald Trump says the U.S. is "having very productive talks with North Korea" about a summit next month with Kim Jong Un, and says it could happen June 12, the date that was under consideration before Trump abruptly canceled the summit Thursday.

Trump is tweeting that if the summit happens it "will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date."

Trump had said earlier Friday that the potentially historic summit might be getting back on track.

On Thursday, Trump had canceled the summit, citing the North's "tremendous anger and open hostility."

The North Korean government said Friday it is still "willing to give the U.S. time and opportunities" to reconsider talks "at any time."

__

2:30 p.m.

Vladimir Putin says finding a solution to the North Korea nuclear tensions is of great importance to Russia and says North Korea's sovereignty should be guaranteed.

The Russian president said Friday that "a full denuclearization of North Korea" should involve giving "North Korea a guarantee of their sovereignty and inviolability."

Putin said that "if you don't behave aggressively and if you don't corner North Korea, the result that we need will be achieved faster than many would think, and at less cost."

Nothing that North Korea borders Russia, Putin said resolution "is of critical importance, especially when the situation is on the brink of war."

His comments came as President Donald Trump said the U.S. was talking with North Korea about putting the summit back on track. On Thursday, Trump had canceled the summit, citing the North's "tremendous anger and open hostility."

__

10:30 a.m.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says there is "possibly some good news" about a U.S.-North Korea summit.

Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon on Friday, Mattis said diplomats are working to get the summit back on track.

Mattis called the recent back-and-forth between President Donald Trump and North Korea, which seemed to indicate the summit would not happen as planned on June 12, the "usual give and take."

___

9:30 a.m.

President Donald Trump says the United States is "talking to" North Korea after he canceled a planned summit with leader Kim Jong Un (kim jawng oon). He told reporters Friday that "everybody plays games."

Asked about the summit, Trump said Friday: "We'll see what happens, it could even be the 12th," referring to the June 12 date originally set.

Trump, who spoke to reporters at the White House before heading to the Naval Academy graduation ceremony, stressed that both sides would like the summit to happen. He said: "They very much want to do it, we'd like to do it."

Trump withdrew from the summit Thursday, but has left open the possibility that the two leaders could still meet.

__

8:23 a.m.

President Donald Trump says North Korea's latest statement on nuclear talks is "good news" and that "we will soon see where it will lead."

The North Korean government on Friday said it is still "willing to give the U.S. time and opportunities" to reconsider talks "at any time, at any format." The statement was issued in response to Trump's abrupt cancellation of the June summit between the two countries in the U.S. bid to get North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapon.

Trump tweeted Friday: "Very good news to receive the warm and productive statement from North Korea. We will soon see where it will lead, hopefully to long and enduring prosperity and peace. Only time (and talent) will tell!"

__

1:08 a.m.

For President Donald Trump, Kim Jong Un (kim jawng oon) may be the deal that got away.

Trump and his team weathered insults, tolerated unanswered phone calls and waited hours for negotiating partners who never showed up as they sought to keep the planned Singapore summit with Kim on track.

With prospects dimming and aides increasingly skeptical, Trump at first clung to his plans to meet with the North Korean leader, seeking to pull off what the president saw as a history-making nuclear deal. Trump could envision Nobel laurels.

Eager for a bold accomplishment, Trump agreed to Kim's March overture for a summit in less than an hour, ignoring warnings of seasoned advisers.

But on Thursday morning, Trump determined that - for now anyway - the meeting was an unrequited diplomatic dream.
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - The Latest on hit-and-run crash in Portland, Oregon (all times local):

10:36 p.m.

A man suspected of crashing into three women on a downtown Portland, Oregon, sidewalk and then leaving the scene has been identified.

Officials gather at the scene where pedestrians were hit by a motorist in Portland, Ore., Friday, May 25, 2018. Police say three women have been injured in a hit-and-run crash near Portland State University. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

Sixty-one-year-old Greg Phillip Porter was arrested within hours of the crash. He is being held at the Multnomah County jail on several counts, including three counts each of attempted murder and assault.

Portland police Sgt. Pete Simpson said police haven't determined a motive.

Simpson says someone called 911 after spotting a blue sport utility vehicle that matched the description of the car.

The crash happened Friday morning near Portland State University. Two of the three women were seriously injured.

___

1:25 p.m.

Police have arrested a driver suspected of crashing into three women on a downtown Portland sidewalk and then leaving the scene.

Portland police Sgt. Pete Simpson says someone called 911 after spotting a blue sport utility vehicle that matched the description of the car.

Simpson said police haven't determined a motive and know little about the man. Authorities are getting a search warrant so they can seize the car as evidence.

The crash happened Friday morning near Portland State University. Two of the three women were seriously injured.

___

1:05 p.m.

Police say they have found the vehicle involved in a hit-and-run crash in downtown Portland that injured three people walking on a sidewalk.

The announcement Friday came shortly after police said they were looking for a blue 2005 Mazda Tribute with gray bumpers.

Footage from news helicopters Friday shows officers arresting a man from that type of a vehicle. The car has significant damage to its front end. Police haven't confirmed if he's the suspect.

Two women were seriously injured in the crash.

___

12:10 p.m.

Portland State University student Kat Caputo was talking to a friend by the light-rail station when she heard a commotion and turned around.

She says she saw two women lying on the sidewalk and another leaning against a brick wall.

Others were shouting that a car had jumped the curb, struck the women and sped away. Caputo says one of the women had a huge bruise on her back and screamed when the paramedics touched it.

Caputo says she was shaken because she was running late and might have been hit herself otherwise.

More than an hour after the incident, a green sweater, a pair of sneakers, a pink slipper and one black bike glove lay scattered on the sidewalk near a small splash of blood.

____

11:20 a.m.

Police say three women have been injured in a hit-and-run crash near Portland State University.

Portland police Sgt. Chris Burley say the vehicle hit the women while they were on a sidewalk Friday morning and left the scene. He says two women suffered life-threatening injuries.

Burley says police are still looking for the driver. He did not provide a description of the vehicle, but witnesses have described as a blue SUV.

He declined to say whether investigators believe the driver intended to hit the pedestrians.

__

10:55 a.m.

Authorities say paramedics are tending to "multiple patients" after a hit-and-run driver struck pedestrians in downtown Portland.

Portland Fire and Rescue says the crash happened Friday morning near Portland State University.

Police have not said how many people have been hit, or describe the extent of their injuries.

Chris Tinnin, who works at Portland State, tells The Oregonian/OregonLive he saw at least two women on the ground.

CORRECTS TO MOTORIST-Clothing is strewn on the sidewalk at a scene where pedestrians were hit by a motorist in Portland, Ore., Friday, May 25, 2018. Police say three women have been injured in a hit-and-run crash near Portland State University. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)
A man is in police custody for spray painting swastikas on as many as 200 gravestones at an Illinois cemetery.

Authorities in southwestern Illinois arrested a 34-year-old unidentified man Saturday who has yet to be charged.

The man is also suspected of spray-painting the Nazi symbol on several homes in the Edwardsville area.

'We haven't seen anything of this magnitude in the 30 years that I've been here,' Mark Johnson, the grounds superintendent of Sunset Hill Cemetery, told KMOV.

Nearly 200 gravestones were vandalized with swastikas in Glen Carbon, Illinois

Police have arrested a 34-year-old man but not charges have been filed

The Sunset Hills Cemetery in Glen Carbon is the resting place for more than`1,300 veterans.

Johnson says the vandalism was discovered Saturday morning and now cemetery officials are working to wash the headstones before a Memorial Day event planned for Monday.

'It's all hands on deck to try to get this thing cleaned up by Monday,' said Johnson.

'To disrespect the dead like that...I mean, it just ain't right,' John Lake told KMOV.

Lake said he stopped by the cemetery to see if his relatives' headstones were among those vandalized.

Edwardsville police Sgt. Justin Towell said multiple homes in a subdivision were also vandalized.

He said the suspect in custody may be responsible for both incidents.
DETROIT (AP) - Tim Anderson is having quite a weekend in Detroit.

Anderson homered twice on his way to a career-high four RBIs, leading Hector Santiago and the Chicago White Sox to an 8-4 victory over the Tigers on Saturday.

Anderson and Jose Abreu each hit a solo drive in the fifth, tying it at 3. Daniel Palka led off the sixth with a tiebreaking shot off Francisco Liriano (3-2), and Anderson's three-run homer against Louis Coleman made it 7-3 White Sox.

Chicago White Sox's Tim Anderson hits a solo home run in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Detroit, Saturday, May 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The 24-year-old Anderson also connected during Friday night's 5-4 loss to Detroit. He is up to 10 homers so far this season.

"I'm having a hot streak right now," he said. "It's always nice when you get any kind of RBI, so I'll take it."

Santiago (1-2) allowed three runs, two earned, and seven hits in five innings in his first win since May 9, 2017, for Minnesota against the White Sox. He had gone 0-8 with an 8.61 ERA in his previous 11 starts.

"It's definitely nice to get that first win, and hopefully put a lot more on (the board)," Santiago said. "Overall, I felt pretty good."

Jeimer Candelario homered twice for Detroit and drove in three runs. Liriano struck out eight in five-plus innings, but was charged with five runs and six hits.

"I have to learn from my mistakes and get better next time," Liriano said.

Candelario, who had the winning RBI single Friday night in his first game back from the disabled list, belted a two-run shot off Santiago in the first. He added a solo drive in the third, making it 3-1.

"I always prepare myself to the game, always prepare (for) who I'm facing," said Candelario, who had been sidelined with left wrist tendinitis. "I feel really awesome right now ... with my wrist."

Candelario walked and scored on an error by Anderson in the bottom of the ninth. But Joakim Soria got Niko Goodrum to fly out to end the game.

CANDY MAN

Candelario seems to enjoy hitting in the No. 3 spot in the Tigers' order, where he excelled Friday and Saturday. Before the injury, he was batting No. 2, followed by Nicholas Castellanos, who moved to the second spot.

"He had a good day, swung the bat really well," Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said of Candelario. "He's on the ball."

TRAINER'S ROOM

White Sox: DH Matt Davidson was scratched due to back tightness after he missed the previous three games with the same ailment. Jose Rondon replaced him in the lineup.

Tigers: 1B Miguel Cabrera (right hamstring strain) could return Sunday. He has been out since May 4. After finishing their series with the White Sox, the Tigers host the Angels in a four-game set at Comerica Park.

UP NEXT

White Sox: RHP James Shields (1-4, 4.62 ERA) is expected to start Sunday's game against the Tigers.

Tigers: LHP Blaine Hardy (0-0, 3.46 ERA) is scheduled to face Shields.

Chicago White Sox's Daniel Palka (18) celebrates his solo home run with Alfredo Gonzalez in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Detroit, Saturday, May 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

Detroit Tigers pitcher Francisco Liriano stands on the mound waiting to be pulled in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox in Detroit, Saturday, May 26, 2018. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
MEXICO CITY (AP) - Workers at a Canadian-own silver and gold mine in northern Mexico say they are afraid to leave the mine encampment because of threats by armed groups.

A worker told The Associated Press that supposed members of an organized crime group have set up checkpoints at access points to the mine which has about 400 employees inside. They beat some employees earlier this week, making others afraid to leave the mine camp located in Chihuahua state.

The worker, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of safety fears, said three Spaniards were among those inside the encampment.

This 2012 courtesy photo shows a view from the Dolores mine, a gold and silver operation run by the Canadian company Pan American Silver, in Madera, Chihuahua. Since Tuesday, May 22, 2018, tension grew when some 400 employees, at least three foreigners among them, began fearing threats from organized crime bands. (AP Photo)

"We are afraid that they are going to enter," the worker said via WhatsApp, referring to the armed groups.

The open-pit Mina Dolores belongs to Pan American Silver. The company has not spoken publicly about the situation but the employee said that while mine activities continued Saturday they could be suspended on Sunday, adding that some employees had been evacuated on private planes.

The state government in Chihuahua said security at the mine is guaranteed and the prosecutor's office said it has not received a complaint from Pan American.

"We have been in contact with the management of the mine; we have insisted to them that it is not necessary to suspend work," Chihuahua Gov. Javier Corral told reporters on Friday. "We have offered to guarantee, through a special and permanent operation, the functioning of the mine."

State security commissioner Oscar Alberto Aparicio said 50 state police, 50 federal police and military personnel are posted around the mine.

The worker who spoke to the AP said the security situation in the area began to deteriorate about a month ago when rival gangs began fighting for control of the region. Parts of northern Mexico are plagued by powerful drug cartels.
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) - Colombia's presidential election on May 27 is the first since the government signed a peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia leading to the disarmament of some 7,000 fighters. Five candidates are running and if none gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers will head to a runoff in June. Here's a glance at who's running and what's at stake:

WHO'S RUNNING?

Polls indicate that the two leading candidates are Gustavo Petro, a leftist running on an anti-establishment platform, and Ivan Duque, a conservative lawyer and former senator who has promised to change some provisions of the 2016 peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

An electoral worker sets up a polling station in Bogota, Colombia, Saturday, May 26, 2018. Colombians will go to the polls on May 27 for a first-round presidential election. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Duque has aligned himself with U.S. drug policy, promising to resume a controversial program of spraying coca fields with herbicide that President Juan Manuel Santos ended over health concerns. A former bureaucrat at the Inter-American Development Bank, Duque lived in the U.S. for more than a decade. He promises to stimulate the economy by decreasing taxes on businesses and boosting oil production. His critics point out that the 41-year-old has almost no managerial experience.

Petro was a member of the disbanded M-19 guerrilla movement in his youth and later was elected to the Senate, where he led corruption investigations into the links between right-wing paramilitary groups and regional political dynasties. He also served as mayor of Bogota, but was removed in what he says were politically motivated disciplinary actions related to his overhaul of the city's garbage collection system. Petro's critics accuse him of being a populist, pointing to his past support for Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez.

Besides Petro and Duque, ex-Vice President German Vargas and ex-Medellin Mayor Sergio Fajardo are also running as centrists hoping to beat one of the front-runners and force a runoff. Both candidates promise to implement market friendly economic policies. Trailing farther behind in the polls is Humberto de la Calle, who was the government's chief negotiator in the peace talks.

WHAT'S AT STAKE?

Colombia's next president will have to oversee the implementation of the peace deal, ensuring that former guerrilla fighters are able to participate in politics and integrate into civilian life. That is already proving to be a challenge as some former FARC fighters have formed dissident groups or joined criminal gangs that are sowing violence in remote areas.

Colombia's next president will also have to build up the state presence in areas where drug trafficking gangs exert power over farmers and local governments. President Donald Trump has threatened to decertify Colombia as a partner in the war on drugs as coca cultivation has doubled since 2012 and now exceeds 188,000 hectares, according to U.S. estimates

The incoming president will also have to decide if he wants to continue ongoing peace talks with the National Liberation Army, a smaller guerrilla group that is still active in some parts of the country. And the arrival of more than 1 million Venezuelan migrants in the past two years has strained public resources and fueled resentments in Colombia.

COLOMBIA THE COUNTRY

Colombia is Latin America's third most populated country, after Brazil and Mexico, and is one of the world's largest exporters of flowers and coffee, though its economy relies largely on oil and mining. It is also Washington's staunchest ally in South America. Despite great strides made in security, it continues to be the world's top cocaine producer.
ISLAMABAD (AP) - Pakistan says it will hold parliamentary and provincial assembly elections on July 25.

It will be the first vote since Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was removed from office by the Supreme Court for concealing financial assets abroad. His party is expected to do well, despite coming under pressure from anti-corruption authorities, and despite Sharif's recent criticism of the powerful military's role in politics.

The National Assembly will finish its term on May 31. It is only the third time in history that the lower house of parliament has finished its five-year term. The constitution mandates that new elections be held within 60 days of the term ending.

A statement from the office of the presidency late Saturday says President Mamnoon Hussain approved the election commission's suggested date.
MULTAN, Pakistan (AP) - Police in Pakistan say they have killed six "terrorists" behind a bomb attack in the eastern city of Lahore last year.

Police spokesman Salim Khan says counterterrorism police ambushed the suspected militants early Sunday as they were traveling on motorcycles near the city of Gujrat, setting off a shootout in which three of the men escaped.

He says they were members of the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar group and were behind a bombing in Lahore last year that killed 26 people, including nine police. He says police seized weapons and explosive vests from the scene of the raid.

Islamic extremists in Pakistan have carried out scores of attacks in recent years, mainly targeting security forces and religious minorities.
SANAA, Yemen (AP) - Heavy fighting in Yemen between pro-government forces and Shiite rebels has killed more than 150 people in the last four days, Yemeni officials and witnesses said Sunday.

Government forces have been trying to seize rebel-held areas along the western coast, while an allied Saudi-led coalition has been targeting the rebels with airstrikes in the northwestern Saada province, a rebel stronghold.

The offensive is being waged by ground troops carrying sophisticated weapons, including shoulder-fired missiles, with air cover from the coalition, the officials said.

People stand in front of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

Security officials say a Saudi-led airstrike near a gas station in the capital, Sanaa, killed four civilians on Saturday and wounded 10.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, while the witnesses did so for fear of reprisals.

In March, an international rights group said fighting along Yemen's west coast has displaced 100,000 people in recent months, mostly from the Red Sea port city of Hodeida. Amnesty International warned that the "the worst could be yet to come."

The port is a vital lifeline from which most of the Yemeni population's food and medicine comes. The coalition accuses the Houthis of using Hodeida and other ports to receive weapons and ammunition from Iran, which denies arming the rebels.

Yemen has been embroiled in a civil war pitting the coalition against the Iran-backed Houthis since March 2015. The coalition aims to restore the government of self-exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

The three-year stalemated war has killed more than 10,000 people and displaced more than 3 million. It has also damaged Yemen's infrastructure, crippled its health system and pushed it to the brink of famine.

The U.N. considers Yemen to be the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with more than 22.2 million people in need of assistance. Malnutrition, cholera and other diseases have killed or sickened thousands of civilians over the years.

The remnant of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

A Yemeni man walks among the rubble of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

A Yemeni man stands on the rubble of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

The remnant of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

A Yemeni man looks at the rubble of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

A Yemeni man walks on the rubble of a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)
CAIRO (AP) - Egyptian security officials say a prominent activist has been detained, the latest in a new wave of arrests since presidential elections earlier this year.

The officials say Hazem Abdel-Azim was taken from his home in a Cairo suburb late Saturday on accusations that include disseminating false news and belonging to an outlawed group.

Abdel-Azim has been known for his harsh criticism of the government since he left President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi's campaign in the 2014 elections.

The officials spoke Sunday on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak to media.

Egypt has arrested a number of secular activists since el-Sissi was re-elected in March in a vote in which he faced no serious challengers.

The latest arrests come amid a wider crackdown on dissent in which thousands of people have been jailed.
NEW YORK (AP) - Politicians seizing on immigrants as an election issue. Newspaper headlines calling for action. Talk of legislation to institute a ban.

If viewers of "The Chinese Exclusion Act" documentary end up with a sense of deja vu between the film's subject, a law from 1882 that barred Chinese people from coming to the United States, and current events, that's pretty much the point, according to its filmmakers.

"The 'A-Ha!' for anybody coming to it ... is oh, there's a history to how we have decided who can come and when they can come, who's a citizen and who's not a citizen," said documentarian Ric Burns, who made the film with Li-Shin Yu. It airs on the PBS television series "American Experience" on Tuesday.

In this May 15, 2018 photo, filmmakers Li-Shin Yu, left, and Ric Burns discuss their new PBS documentary "The Chinese Exclusion Act," during an interview, Tuesday May 15, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

The Chinese Exclusion Act was America's first and only immigration act that barred people from a specific country from coming to the United States. After its initial enactment for a 10-year period in 1882, it was regularly renewed and then made permanent in 1904. It was finally repealed in 1943.

Making the documentary was an eye-opening experience for Burns and Yu, who had never heard of the law and believe most of the American public isn't aware of it either, but should be.

"This is the DNA of American immigration policy," Burns said. "It is not A story about immigration, it is THE story about immigration and you're not going to understand any of the other aspects of it without understanding this thing: In 1848, you got off the boat and disappeared, in 1882 suddenly there was a racially invidious distinction being made."

The documentary, which Burns and Yu initially started several years ago, starts several decades before the law's enactment on May 6, 1882. The Chinese had started coming to the West Coast, primarily California, in the middle part of the 19th Century, drawn by the possibilities of the California Gold Rush and looking to escape the unrest in China in the wake of the Opium Wars over the West forcing China to open to trade.

They became targets of prejudice by white miners and other Californians as gold became more difficult to come by, as well as politicians appealing to nativist sentiments and those concerned immigrants were depressing wages. But they were also vital labor in the building of the Western half of the transcontinental railroad, forced to work for lower pay and in worse conditions that white workers.

The documentary shows how, even though estimates put the Chinese population at about 100,000 or so when the overall country's population was about 50 million, there was a rising sentiment that the Chinese were a problem. That lead to local laws around the West Coast limiting their livelihoods as well as acts like the federal 1875 Page Act, which instituted regulations on women attempting to come to the United States from China that were onerous enough that they were almost completely excluded. There were also acts of violence, like the October 1871 massacre in Los Angeles, when a mob went to Chinatown and 18 Chinese immigrants were killed, many of them lynched.

When the exclusion act was passed, it prohibited most Chinese workers from coming, and preventing Chinese already here from ever becoming naturalized citizens.

But the anti-Chinese sentiment already stoked in the U.S. didn't abate with the law, and the documentary shows how acts of violence continued to be perpetrated against Chinese communities, as in the Snake River massacre in 1887, where almost three dozen Chinese miners were killed in Oregon.

The documentary also shows how Chinese immigrants and the next generation of Chinese Americans born in the United States fought back, filing thousands and thousands of lawsuits in the courts to push back against the limitations of the laws they were living under.

Some of the cases established principles that Americans now take for granted and assume have been part of the country since its founding, Burns said. He pointed to the case of Wong Kim Ark, born in America to Chinese immigrant parents. He was returning to the U.S. after a visit to China and was barred from re-entry. His case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, and the judges decided that he was a citizen because of being born here, in accordance with the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment, thus clarifying the precedent for birthright citizenship, regardless of whether a person's parents were citizens.

"The Chinese who came here and Chinese Americans saw more clearly what's best about our system and helped secure it," Burns said. "Every American who is born here assumes they're American because of something Thomas Jefferson wrote, not that Wong Kim Ark took his case to the Supreme Court."

With immigration a current hot-button issue, Burns and Yu hope the documentary gives viewers a clearer sense of America's immigration past, away from the romanticized notion that the country has always opened its arms to people from other nations, so that issues of today can be grappled with more accurately.

Americans are attached "to an idea of a kinder, gentler understanding of an American past," Burns said. "That kinder, gentler past, if it's wrong, isn't going to help you steer accurately in the present and the future."

___

Deepti Hajela covers issues of race, ethnicity and immigration for The Associated Press. Follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/dhajela. For more of her work, search for her name at https://apnews.com

In this May 15, 2018 photo, filmmaker Ric Burns discusses his new PBS documentary with Li-Shin Yu,"The Chinese Exclusion Act," during an interview, Tuesday May 15, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)
BEAVER DAM, Wis. (AP) - Southern Wisconsin cattle farmer Diane Mills-Frank just wants to know who her party's candidate for governor will be.

She and other frustrated Democrats are having a hard time navigating the glut of candidates - 10 serious and a half-dozen not as much - who are looking to take on Republican Gov. Scott Walker in November.

"People are just popping up," said Mills-Frank, whose 100-acre cattle and hay farm rests along the Beaver Dam Lake, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) northeast of the state capital, Madison. "They fill out the paperwork to run for governor and everyone's like 'Who's that?'"

In this May 22, 2018, photo, farmer Diane Mills-Frank poses for a photo in Beaver Dam, Wis., Mills-Frank says she hopes the large field of more than a dozen Democratic candidates looking to challenge Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker will start to shrink ahead of the Aug. 14, 2018 primary. (AP Photo/Scott Bauer)

There's no sign any of the main Democratic candidates will drop out before the Aug. 14 primary. They are gathering Friday for the Wisconsin Democratic Party convention in Oshkosh, where they hope to win over hundreds of party activists - many of them undecided.

Democrats are angling for money from donors wary to commit, attention from a public that hasn't really tuned into the race yet, and endorsements from key groups and Democratic allies looking for the field to settle.

Meanwhile, Walker continues to dominate the airwaves and stockpile resources as he seeks a third term. He had $4.2 million cash on hand in January, which has helped pay for his current $1.4 million television ad buy - good for three positive spots with no counter from Democrats.

Until someone emerges with enough money and savvy to capture the imagination of Democratic primary voters, people like Mills-Frank and Denise Hutchison, of Green Bay, just have to be patient.

"It's a big field. It's a really big field," said Hutchison, a 62-year-old Democrat who was active for years in advocating for the statewide teachers union. "I do wish the field were narrowing itself."

Jim Congdon, 74, said he's worried that a long, divisive primary will weaken Democrats' ability to defeat Walker.

"I really hope those who don't have a chance of winning drop out," said Congdon, who lives in Horicon and worked 40 years for the state Department of Natural Resources before retiring in 2011, one year into Walker's rule.

"I would have a lot of concerns if there's 10 Democrats on the primary ballot and nobody gets a majority of the vote," Congdon said.

None of the top-tier candidates have a clear path to the nomination. The wide-open Democratic primary and the belief that Republicans are vulnerable in the midterm elections contributed to the large number of candidates.

The highest profile candidates in the race are state Superintendent Tony Evers; Madison Mayor Paul Soglin; state Sen. Kathleen Vinehout, of Alma; state Rep. Dana Wachs, of Eau Claire; former state Rep. Kelda Roys; state firefighter union leader Mahlon Mitchell; former state party director Matt Flynn; political activist Mike McCabe; Milwaukee businessman Andy Gronik; and corporate attorney Josh Pade.

None of them have called for any of the others to drop out.

The party does not endorse a candidate at the convention and the large field is unlike any that's come together to take on Walker. By this time in both 2010 and 2014 there was a clear Democratic front-runner with only token opposition. In the 2012 recall, five Democrats were on the primary ballot.

Several Democratic voters predicted that Democrats will start to coalesce around a smaller field of candidates after the convention.

Hutchison said she's confident that Democratic voters will support whoever wins the nomination in August, even if that person isn't their favorite at the moment.

"People aren't saying if so and so isn't the nominee, I'm going to stay home. I'm not hearing that," Hutchison said. "In fact, just the opposite. I'm hearing whoever is the nominee, I'm going to go out and work for them."

___

Follow Scott Bauer on Twitter: https://twitter.com/sbauerAP

___

Sign up for "Politics in Focus," a weekly newsletter showcasing the AP's best political reporting from around the country leading up to the midterm elections: https://bit.ly/2ICEr3D
President Donald Trump can do many things on Twitter. He can call a former FBI director "slippery" and a former president "cheatin'." He can spontaneously SWITCH TO ALL CAPS and claim media organizations are "fake news."

But now there's one thing a federal judge says Trump can't do: Block users because of dissenting political opinions.

U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald in New York ruled last Wednesday that Trump violates the First Amendment when he blocks critics on Twitter. The decision is the most prominent among a string of similar cases against public officials and could mark a turning point for constituents who interact with government employees on social media.

FILE - This April 3, 2017, file photo shows U.S. President Donald Trump's Twitter feed on a computer screen in Washington. President Donald Trump violates the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment when he blocks critics on Twitter for political speech, a judge ruled Wednesday, May 23, 2018. (AP Photo/J. David Ake, File)

"The First Amendment is designed to encourage the greatest amount of freedom in communicating with public officials of all kinds, and that's why this is such an important decision - because it sends a message to all politicians," said Chris Finan, executive director of the National Coalition Against Censorship.

Kerri Kupec, a spokeswoman for the Department of Justice, said in an email after the ruling: "We respectfully disagree with the court's decision and are considering our next steps."

Though the ruling stopped short of ordering Trump to unblock users, it made clear that people have a right to reply directly to politicians' accounts when they are being used as public forums to conduct official business.

But though the courts may be striking up a conversation about what an official's online presence means for free speech, tech companies are unlikely to take sides.

NOT JUST TRUMP

Trump has blocked both celebrities - including author Stephen King and model Chrissy Teigen - and lesser known social media users.

The case decided last week was brought by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University on behalf of seven critics of Trump whom his account blocked.

When someone like Trump blocks people, it prevents them from seeing his feed and replying to his tweets. It's also possible for Trump to mute accounts, after which he would simply no longer see tweets and replies from those accounts -an action that some say has fewer First Amendment implications.

Trump is far from the only public official who has blocked opponents. After filing a public records request with 22 federal agencies and all 50 U.S. governors last year, news organization ProPublica found the offices that responded had blocked 1,298 social media accounts.

When a Virginia official blocked one Facebook user for 12 hours, a federal judge ruled the move was unconstitutional. The case is under appeal in the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

In Kentucky, a federal judge denied a preliminary injunction to stop the governor from blocking constituents on Twitter and Facebook.

A case in Maryland settled when Republican Gov. Larry Hogan agreed to adopt a new social media policy that would not discriminate against commenters' viewpoints after he blocked several critics.

Though last week's ruling puts officials using social media for policymaking on notice that they can't block people who disagree with them, attorneys said it leaves room to bar commenters who are inhibiting productive discourse.

TWITTER AND THE CONSTITUTION

According to the U.S. Constitution, the president must provide Congress with information about the state of the union. Otherwise, his obligations to communicate with citizens are fairly nebulous.

But First Amendment experts say members of the government cannot impede free speech in public forums or keep people from petitioning their grievances, including on social media.

"If the president doesn't want to hear from his critics, he should stick to press releases," Finan said.

Attorneys warned that if Wednesday's ruling had gone differently, it could have set a precedent for elected officials tempted to rid themselves of their online critics.

WHAT COMES NEXT

Jameel Jaffer, the Knight Institute's executive director, said none of the people his group represents have been unblocked yet.

Twitter probably won't intervene as social media juggernauts have kept out of the issue. The tech company did not respond to requests for comment.

Jaffer said it would be extraordinary if the White House disregarded the court's decision, but says he'll be back in court if it does.

___

Villarreal reported from Philadelphia and Ortutay from New York.
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - Vermont's fiscally conservative Republican Gov. Phil Scott is clashing with the state's famously liberal Legislature.

Scott has vetoed a series of bills dear to many lawmakers. One would have created a paid family leave program and another would have gradually raised the minimum wage to $15.

Democratic leaders said the measure would have made the state more affordable for workers. They suggested his vetoes will be a central issue when Scott faces re-election this fall.

The tense standoff over fiscal matters comes after a legislative session where Scott was able to find common ground with Democrats and progressives in the Legislature.

Scott and Democratic leaders are also in a standoff over the best way to use an unexpected budget windfall.

Lawmakers will continue a special session to pass a budget.
MASSACRE BAY, Attu Island (AP) - EDITOR'S NOTE: The following story was written by war correspondent William L. Worden, on his arrival as an eyewitness to the Battle of Attu in Alaska 75 years ago . It was dated May 13, 1943, but didn't appear in newspapers until May 23, 1943.

Worden joined The Associated Press in Tacoma, Washington, but established his reputation as a war reporter after accompanying the first American troops to Alaska's Aleutian islands. After he left the AP, he was a staff member for the Saturday Evening Post and wrote several books. He later worked for The Boeing Co. as head of its news service, retiring in 1972. He died in 1982.

___

FILE - In this May 26, 1943 file photo released by the U.S. Navy, American soldiers and equipment land on the black volcanic beach during World War II at Massacre Bay on Attu Island, part of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. May 30, 2018 will mark the 75th anniversary of American forces recapturing Attu Island in Alaska's Aleutian chain from Japanese forces. It was the only World War II battle fought on North American soil. (U.S. Navy via AP, File)

NEWSMAN DESCRIBES LANDING ON ATTU

This correspondent reached Attu after seven days on a hatch cover. The hatch cover was below decks on a crowded transport ship and also was inhabited by some 20 junior officers and casuals, sleeping side by side on makeshift cots. On that ship, only men with rank of major or better - or who arrived very early - had permanent bunks.

For the rest, holds were home.

At that, the correspondents were lucky. Most of the hatch cover residents had been there 17 days when the headlands of Attu were sighted shortly after dawn on a day when everyone aboard the transport was awakened at 3 a.m.

FOG ENSHROUDS ALL

The landing forces began to leave the ship in mid-morning. At 9 p.m., the second wave, of which this correspondent was a part, also departed. The conveyance was a tank lighter which carried a 10-ton tractor and a 5,000-pound field gun, plus miscellaneous gear and about 25 other men. The lighter had been imperfectly loaded and had a definite list to starboard; but it did not quite ship water.

From the transport, the lighter with the assistance of a hand pump to keep it afloat, followed other landing boats for two hours while the shore-bound convoy was gathered in under the stern of a destroyer operating as a guide ship. The fog was so thick that a boat a hundred yards away was invisible.

The destroyer's fog horn and one small light guided more than 50 small boats for miles into the rock-infested bay, stopped only when water became too shallow for it to go closer. Then a last long hoot of the whistles sent the boats on their own toward the beach, which was still invisible. A blinding guide light ashore came on, but served only to indicate direction and illuminated nothing beyond dozens of milling boats.

Our lighter came up astern of another boat which did not get out of the way. Backing with full speed, the heavily-loaded lighter missed the second boat by inches, while from the craft a coxswain shouted, "Look out rocks ahead."

The water under our snub bow was full of men. Life jackets floated singly, and men without life jackets beat against the sides of boats, trying to clamber into them. Our craft grounded with a crunch against a rock below the surface.

SOAKING MEN STRIPPED

Eventually the lighter succeeded in backing off the rock. The nose touched shore, the ramp went down and the tractor snorted into water hip deep.

The beach was littered with soaking men just pulled from the surf. They were being stripped and wrapped in dry blankets at improvised medical stations while their clothing was dried. One huge technical sergeant pulled from the water half-drowned, shook off doctors, went looking up and down the beach for his men - though he himself was dripping, his teeth chattering so he could hardly ask questions.

For those with no immediate job up the valley, beds were tundra hummocks a few hundred yards from the beach. There was no sign of the enemy except sporadic machine gun fire barely audible above the roar of tractors and shouts of men on the beach.

In the morning, the beach was a hubbub. Boats had continued to operate all night, and now parties ashore immediately went inland to reinforce the front lines. Medium artillery set up a few feet from the sand began to pump shells up the valley.

The command post was a gully, the intelligence section at one end, the general's staff in the other. Lt. Col. Glen A. Nelson of Los Angeles, commanding a part of the front line troopers, told us the commanding general already was well ahead, looking over the front lines. When the general returned, he held all observers at the command post until an artillery barrage had been completed.

Troops then moved up from the beach in battle skirmish lines, accompanied by medical units and light artillery. The valley at Massacre is wide, and troops were moving all through it.

At a dressing station, a doctor pointed out the first casualty. He had a thigh wound and was thoroughly disgusted. "I had two hand grenades and an M-1 rifle," he said, "but I didn't get a chance to use any of them. Now I don't suppose I will ever get a chance to shoot any of those guys."

Col. Wayne C. Zimmerman gave permission to go forward. "There has been a lot of mortar fire on the ridge," he said, "so look out for it."

The ridge was neatly pock-marked with holes about four feet in diameter. The Japanese mortar fire had started at the forward regimental headquarters and "walked" its way down the ridge. But accurate as it was, it had caused only one casualty so far as I could learn.

At the left, a deep river valley cut into the mountains almost at sea-level. A similar gully at the right was cut off from a clear view by intervening humps. Ahead, on a snowy slope, a company of infantry moved slowly up into the fog.

"They just got one sniper up there," a passing private said. "They think there's another." Somewhat later, there was rifle fire in the fog above and the company came back down. There had been another sniper.

In the valley to the left, a company came on a Japanese captain and two men in a half-finished hut, killed them as they raced toward a machine gun. In the captain's pocket was a note. Interpreted it read: "Dear Wife: This is the last letter I expect to write to you. ---"

The letter had never been finished.

At regimental headquarters, the general received reports of bad sniping and enfilading machine gun fire from the forward units. Here the valley on the left of the ridge widened, then divided. The two arms of the Y thus formed, moved upward as the beginnings of the passes leading to Holtz Bay and Chichagof harbor. The general ordered an artillery preparation for both valleys from their confluence upwards for several hundred yards.

Behind us, the bench batteries opened up a steady fire, and behind them, the men-of-war lent it authority. The shells from the beach and those from destroyers chuckled as they went overhead. A bang, a long-drawn chuckle and another bang, in that order. The fire of the heavier ships was a bright flash, a long wait, a thundering overhead and then destruction.

The barrage continued to work up and down the valley. All evening it worked. I bedded down in a small depression on the hilltop and the last thing I remember hearing was the half humorous gurgling of another shell overheard, the hysterical sound of a Japanese machine gun which still had not been silenced.

___

The AP Corporate Archives contributed to this report.
HELENA, Mont. (AP) - For more than two decades, Montana's lone U.S. House seat has been a sacrificial altar where Democratic candidates' dreams are squashed. Not only have all 12 Democratic candidates since 1996 lost to Republicans, but only two of them have since gone on to win any election at all.

But the five candidates competing for the Democratic nomination in the June 5 primary election say this year is different.

The voters who gave President Donald Trump a huge win two years ago may be having second thoughts now, and Republican U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte appears to be more vulnerable than past incumbents, the Democratic contenders said in recent interviews and public forums.

In this May 3, 2018, photo five Democratic candidates for Montana's U.S. House seat from left, John Heenan, John Meyer, Jared Pettinato, Grant Kier and Kathleen Williams listen to a question during a candidate forum in Helena, Mont. (AP Photo/Matt Volz)

It's an opportunity the party hasn't seen in nearly a quarter-century, and one of the keys to capitalizing on it will be deciding who will take on Gianforte and Trump.

"Do you fight Trump with Trump, or do you fight Trump with integrity and respect?" said candidate Grant Kier, a former land-trust director. "I think people are trying to figure out, do we want a candidate who uses the same Trump-style vitriol or do we want somebody who restores dignity and integrity?"

Kier's banking on the latter. The Democrat said he'll sit down with anybody who has good ideas and wants to disprove the cynical view that nothing good can happen in Washington's hyper-partisan atmosphere. "I think people are looking past parties right now and are looking at the person," Kier said.

Billings attorney and restaurant owner John Heenan takes a different approach. The Democrat has a populist message that he believes will be familiar to people who voted for Trump and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Drain the swamp, reduce the influence of corporations, reform health care - all promises Trump made but hasn't followed through on, Heenan said.

"A lot of that resonated with me and the people in Montana," Heenan said. "Those are things that I've been really disappointed haven't played out."

Heenan and Kier have raised the most money among the five candidates, four of whom are making their first run for office. The fifth, Kathleen Williams, is a former state legislator who is looking to be the first woman to win Montana's House seat since Jeannette Rankin did it for the second time in 1941.

"Women have been doing incredibly well across the nation," she said. "Women are winning."

Attorneys Jared Pettinato and John Meyer have lagged far behind the other candidates in fundraising, but each says that it will be ideas, not cash, that will draw voters.

All five believe Gianforte is beatable only a year after winning a special election to fill Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's term. They point to the 2016 elections, when Republicans swept every statewide office in Montana except one: Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock won re-election against Gianforte after the former technology entrepreneur spent millions of his own money to campaign.

That shows Gianforte is vulnerable even if there is still strong support for Trump among Montana voters, Kier and Williams said.

The National Republican Congressional Committee, which is supporting Gianforte's re-election bid, dismissed the Democrats' criticisms.

"(House Minority Leader) Nancy Pelosi's army of clones can regurgitate these talking points all they want," NRCC spokeswoman Erin Collins said. "In just one year in office, Congressman Gianforte has proven himself to be a steadfast advocate for Montana, putting what's best for his constituents at the forefront of every issue."

The Democrats also cite Gianforte's voting record supporting big businesses, his adherence to the Republican party line and his reluctance to appear in town halls or other forums where he might be criticized.

Then there's Gianforte's attack against Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs last year before the special election, for which Gianforte pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault.

It's probably what Gianforte's most known for outside Montana, and Democrats don't intend to let voters forget it. Last week, Montana Democratic Party Executive Director Nancy Keenan formally requested a congressional ethics investigation into statements Gianforte made after the attack stating Jacobs was the instigator.

All of those factors should give the Democrats a shot at the long-coveted House seat this year, Heenan said.

"If the people of Montana say we'd rather have a guy that's a convicted criminal that votes on behalf of payday lenders and Wells Fargo and Equifax because he has an 'R' on his jersey, at least they've been given the choice," Heenan said.

__

Sign up for "Politics in Focus," a weekly newsletter showcasing the AP's best political reporting from around the country leading up to the midterm elections: http://apne.ws/3Gzcraw

In this May 3, 2018, photo Grant Kier answers questions during an interview in Helena, Mont. Kier is one of five candidates running for the Democratic nomination for Montana's U.S. House seat on June 5. (AP Photo/Matt Volz)
MEXICO CITY (AP) - Mexican authorities have arrested the wife of the leader of Jalisco New Generation, one of the country's fiercest drug cartels, as well as a top lieutenant for the organization, setting the western state of Jalisco on high-alert for possible reprisals.

Interior Minister Alfonso Navarrete said at a Sunday press conference that marines took into custody Rosalinda Gonzalez Valencia, the wife of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," the night before in the city of Zapopan. Gonzalez is accused of managing the cartel's finances.

At the same location, the marines also captured Gerardo Botello Rosales, aka "El Cachas," who is believed to run the cartel's operations in the states of Guanajuato and Michoacan. Botello is accused of homicide, kidnapping and extortion. He has an outstanding order for extradition from the state of Oregon for a 2002 homicide, Navarrete said.

Saturday's arrests are part of the "siege" on El Mencho, said Alejandro Hope, a Mexican security expert. "They have been hunting him with greater intensity since the end of last year."

Navarrete declined to speculate on whether government agents were close to detaining the cartel leader. But he said he hopes to soon have news.

"I once heard that they arrived at a place and that he had just left because the coffee was still steaming," said Navarrete.

Jalisco New Generation has a reputation for battling with government agents. Navarrete said he anticipates a "violent reaction" from the cartel, adding that government officials have taken precautions to prevent or respond to possible aggressions.

The cartel brazenly shot down a Mexican military helicopter with a rocket launcher in 2015, prompting Mexican officials to declare an all-out offensive against the criminal group. Tensions spiked again this past February, after the cartel allegedly abducted and murdered two federal agents in the Pacific state of Nayarit.

Jalisco state Gov. Aristoteles Sandoval said earlier Sunday that the state is "calm" amid stepped-up security.

Jalisco New Generation is believed to primarily traffic methamphetamine while also selling cocaine, heroin and marijuana. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency said in its October 2017 National Drug Threat Assessment report that the organization has distribution hubs for illicit substances in Los Angeles, New York and Atlanta.
PARIS (AP) - France is set to host a U.N.-sponsored conference on Libya aimed at securing elections in the North African country and commitments to a joint political roadmap from its warring factions.

French President Emmanuel Macron's office said the conference at the Elysee Palace on Tuesday will bring together key Libyan players and representatives of two dozen countries and international organizations.

Macron's office says Libya's rival leaders are expected to adopt a statement calling for presidential and parliamentary elections, "if possible" by the end of the year.

The agreement would also provide for a plan to unify the country's rival security forces and to clarify the roles of competing Libyan institutions.

Libya has experienced political instability since the overthrow of Moammar Gaddafi in 2011.

Macron hosted a meeting of the rival leaders at a chateau in July 2017.
NEW YORK (AP) - A man who fled the country 25 years ago while facing a prison sentence for attempted murder was arrested when he arrived at a New York City airport.

The Daily News reports Freddy Guerra was taken into custody on Tuesday night at Kennedy Airport. He had been living in the Dominican Republic and working as a mechanic.

Authorities said Guerra was 18 when he and two friends shot the owner of Willie's Hardware and Building Supply Store in Queens on Sept. 16, 1992, stealing cash and spray paint cans. The owner, Lieb Zaban, survived being shot in the chin.

Police arrested Guerra a month later and charged him with attempted murder.

He pleaded guilty to the charge in December 1992 and was freed on $50,000 bond. He skipped a February 1993 court date and was later sentenced in absentia to six to 18 years of prison time.

Guerra was in custody at Rikers Island and is awaiting a June court date.

Zaban died in 2015 at the age of 91 and had sold the store some years after the robbery. His widow, Lea Zaban, who now lives in Pennsylvania, said, "That's good. That's good," when told of Guerra's arrest.

___

Information from: Daily News, http://www.nydailynews.com
WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Polish media are reporting that a fire broke out in the building where a prominent Polish opposition lawmaker lives, and the politician says he fears he could have been the target of an arson attack.

The Gazeta Wyborcza daily reported on its website Sunday that the fire broke out Saturday in the apartment building where lawmaker Krzysztof Brejza lives in Inowroclaw, a city in north-central Poland.

Brejza, who belongs to the centrist Civic Platform party, is considered one of the most effective opponents of the populist ruling Law and Justice party. For months, state-run television has run critical reports about him.

Brejza is reported as saying the fire spread through walls where gas pipes ran, creating the threat of an explosion had neighbors not noticed the fire and extinguished it.

"I would like to believe that it was a coincidence, a hooligan prank with no relation to me, but the truth is that people know where I live, so I have to take deliberate action into account," he said.
ELLICOTT CITY, Md. (AP) - The Latest on Sunday's flash flooding in Maryland (all times local):

9:20 p.m.

A Maryland official, Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman, says authorities aren't aware of any fatalities or missing people after a devastating flash flood struck a community in that state.

Water rushes through Main Street in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. After the floodwaters receded, emergency officials had no immediate reports of fatalities or injuries. But by nightfall first responders and rescue officials were still going through the muddied, damaged downtown, conducting safety checks and ensuring people evacuated. (Libby Solomon/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Kittleman spoke at an outdoor news conference after Sunday's flooding in Ellicott City, Maryland. He says he toured the historic county seat after the flash flood receded and was "heartbroken" by seeing it so severely damaged again since flooding in 2016. As he spoke, Maryland Lt. Gov. Boyd Rutherford put a comforting hand on Kittleman's back.

Kittleman says he considers the damage worse than the flooding two summers ago that claimed two lives.

Of the city's residents and business owners, Kittleman says "they are faced with the same daunting task again." But he says: "We will be there for them as we were in 2016."

Gov. Larry Hogan also toured the area and promised "every bit of assistance we possibly can" to Ellicott City. Says Hogan: "They say this is a once every 1,000-year flood and we've had two of them in two years."

___

8:55 p.m.

The National Weather Service says nearly eight inches (centimeters) of rain flooded a Maryland community that was devastated by an earlier flash flood just two years ago.

Meteorologist Mike Muccilli said the worst of the rain appeared to be over by about 8:30 p.m. Sunday. But authorities were just beginning to assess the damage in Ellicott City.

In July 2016, Ellicott City received 6.6 inches (17 centimeters) of rain over a 2- to 3-hour period. On Sunday, most of the rain fell during a 3-hour period. Muccilli said Sunday's rain created "a true flash flood."

___

8:25 p.m.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan says he has signed an executive order declaring a state of emergency in response to severe flooding in Ellicott City and areas across the state.

Hogan said the order will allow the state to efficiently coordinate support and provide additional help to localities experiencing flooding.

Hogan said the residents of Ellicott City "went through a horrific ordeal" in 2016, when the community was struck by flash flooding that killed two people and destroyed local businesses. He said they are facing a similar emergency now.

Hogan urged people to monitor the weather, pay attention to all warnings and avoid flooded areas.

Hogan signed the order while receiving a briefing in Ellicott City from state and local emergency management personnel.

___

7:20 p.m.

A witness says she watched cars being swept by flash flooding through a downtown street in Ellicott City, Maryland.

Jessica Ur, a server at a cafe on the city's Main Street, told The Baltimore Sun she saw the gushing brown waters carry three or four parked cars down the street.

The newspaper reports that the swirling waters reached the second flood of one building at its height.

But by about 7:30 p.m. Sunday, the newspaper reports, much of the water had subsided and rescue officials were walking around the downtown area while making sure people evacuated.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan earlier declared a state of emergency in the flood-stricken area. Hogan says he has directed the Maryland Emergency Management Agency to assist Ellicott City to recover.

___

6:45 p.m.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has declared a state of emergency in a community west of Baltimore hit by flash floods.

Hogan says on Facebook that he is heading to Ellicott City, located about 13 miles (22 kilometers) west of Baltimore, after Sunday's flash flooding form recent heavy rains.

Authorities have no immediate report of any injuries or fatalities though information is still preliminary.

Numerous water rescues have been reported after heavy rain drenched the state and sent raging brown water surging down Main Street in Ellicott City and past vehicles.

Authorities say Ellicott City, on the west bank of Maryland's Patapsco River, is prone to periodic flooding.

Some residents of Ellicott City told The Baltimore Sun the flooding appeared to be worse than that from a storm two years ago that claimed two lives and destroyed local businesses.

___

6:15 p.m.

Authorities in an area hit by flash flooding west of Baltimore say they have no immediate reports of any fatalities.

Spokeswoman Karen Spicer in Howard County says she has no immediate information of any deaths after flash floods coursed through streets in Ellicott City, Maryland on Sunday.

Information still is preliminary, however, and authorities say they are still checking flooded buildings and streets.

Footage of Sunday's flash flooding in Ellicott City, Maryland, shows water surging around cars and pickup trucks. The Howard County Fire & EMS agency also tweeted that waters had risen above the first floor of some buildings at the height of the flash flooding.

Some Baltimore County roads also have been flooded. A spokeswoman in Baltimore County said the fire department has received dozens of calls about cars stuck in high water and flooded basements.

___

5:40 p.m.

Flash flooding and water rescues are being reported in Maryland as heavy rain soaks much of the state.

News outlets on Sunday showed photos and video of brown water rushing down Main Street in Ellicott City, just outside Baltimore. That's the same street devastated by flash flooding in July 2016.

A flash flood emergency was issued in Maryland's Howard County at 4:40 p.m.

Some residents of Ellicott City told The Baltimore Sun the flooding appeared to be worse than a storm two years ago that killed two people and destroyed local businesses.

Emergency management officials urged people to avoid downtown Ellicott City.

Gov. Larry Hogan also asked people to avoid area roads. On Twitter, Hogan urged residents to seek higher ground if their area is under a flash flood warning.

A parked car is flooded in a lot near Main Street and Ellicott Mills Road as a heavy storm caused flash floods in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Roaring flash floods struck the Maryland city Sunday that had been wracked by similar devastation two years ago, its main street turned into a raging river that reached the first floor of some buildings and swept away parked cars, authorities and witnesses say. (Kenneth K. Lam/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

A damaged vehicle swept away by floodwaters stops by a utility pole in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Roaring flash floods struck the Maryland city Sunday that had been wracked by similar devastation two years ago, its main street turned into a raging river that reached the first floor of some buildings and swept away parked cars, authorities and witnesses say. (Libby Solomon/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Rescue personnel walk along Main Street in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Roaring flash floods struck the Maryland city Sunday that had been wracked by similar devastation two years ago, its main street turned into a raging river that reached the first floor of some buildings and swept away parked cars, authorities and witnesses say. (Libby Solomon/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Floodwaters rushes through part of Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Roaring flash floods struck the Maryland city Sunday that had been wracked by similar devastation two years ago, its main street turned into a raging river that reached the first floor of some buildings and swept away parked cars, authorities and witnesses say. (Kenneth K. Lam/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Water rushes through Main Street in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Flash flooding and water rescues are being reported in Maryland as heavy rain soaks much of the state. (Kenneth K. Lam/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Water rushes through Main Street in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Flash flooding and water rescues are being reported in Maryland as heavy rain soaks much of the state. (Kenneth K. Lam/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Flash flooding covers the intersection of Rogers Avenue and Main Streets in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Flash flooding and water rescues are being reported in Maryland as heavy rain soaks much of the state. (Kenneth K. Lam/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Flash flooding covers Rogers Avenue and Main Streets in Ellicott City, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Flash flooding and water rescues are being reported in Maryland as heavy rain soaks much of the state. (Kenneth K. Lam/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

A car is being towed off of Ruxton Road in Towson, Md., Sunday, May 27, 2018. Flash flooding and water rescues are being reported in Maryland as heavy rain soaks much of the state. (Jerry Jackson/The Baltimore Sun via AP)
Irelands health minister has pledged to push forward with new abortion laws after the country voted decisively to remove a constitutional bar on terminations.

Simon Harris will seek cabinets backing on Tuesday to draft legislation that would allow abortions within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, subject to medical advice and a cooling-off period, and up to 24 weeks in exceptional circumstances.

The new legal framework will be drafted over the summer and is set to be tabled in the Dublin Parliament in the autumn.

Its passage is not expected to meet significant resistance, with a number of prominent anti-abortion TDs acknowledging that the will of the people must be respected.

The Government hopes the new abortion regime will become law by the end of the year.

Those campaigning for liberalisation secured a stunning victory on Saturday, after it was confirmed that 66.4% of voters in Fridays referendum backed repeal of the controversial Eighth Amendment of the constitution, which bans abortion in all but exceptional circumstances.

Called into my local count in my hometown of Greystones. Have always known my constituents to be compassionate. Results bear that put - 82% in Greystones box, 83% in Delgany box and around 75% throughout all the county #togetherforyes  Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) May 26, 2018

 will sleep tonight in the hope of waking up to a country that is more compassionate, more caring and more respectful. It has been an honour to be on this journey with you and to work #togetherforyes . See you all tomorrow!  Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) May 25, 2018

The vote did not set new laws in itself, rather gave politicians the freedom to do so unhindered by a constitutional prohibition.

The Government made clear ahead of the referendum campaign the type of abortion regime it would seek to introduce if the Eighth Amendment was consigned to the history books.

As the result was announced on Saturday, Mr Harris, who was at the forefront of the Yes campaign, told thousands of celebrating pro-choice advocates at the Dublin Castle declaration venue that Ireland would support women in crisis pregnancies.

Under the Eighth Amendment we used to say to women in crisis: take the boat or take the plane, he said.

Today we say, take our hand.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said Saturday would be remembered as the day Ireland embraced our responsibilities as citizens and as a country.

The day Ireland stepped out from under the last of our shadows and into the light, he added.

The day we came of age as a country. The day we took our place among the nations of the world.

Fantastic crowds at Dublin Castle. Remarkable day. A quiet revolution has taken place, a great act of democracy. pic.twitter.com/MLtzkSkdLw  Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) May 26, 2018

The referendum delivered a conclusive consensus for reform among men and women, nearly all age groups and across most counties in Ireland.

The only constituency among 40 to vote no, narrowly, was Donegal in the north-west.

The result has also shifted focus to Northern Irelands similarly strict abortion regime, with Prime Minister Theresa May facing calls to act.

Northern Ireland will soon become the only part of Britain and Ireland with an almost blanket ban on terminations.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable was among those telling Mrs May to take advantage of the current lack of a devolved administration and push for reform from Westminster.

North Antrim MP Ian Paisley claimed the unborn child was the big loser of the referendum, while a leader of the No campaign, Cora Sherlock, said it was a sad day for those who believed in genuine human rights.
A new wave of national parks could be created after Environment Secretary Michael Gove announced plans for a review of the protected areas.

The review, which will also consider areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs), will look at how they can boost wildlife, improve visit access and support the people who live and work there.

Mr Gove said the UKs growing population and a decline in certain habitats meant it was time to have a fresh look at the system in England.

Officials stressed that existing protections would not be weakened and indicated the review would consider whether there is scope for the current network of 34 AONBs and 10 National Parks to expand.

Amid a growing population, changes in technology, and a decline in certain habitats, the time is right for us to look afresh at these landscapes. #MichaelGove on the launch of our review into #NationalParks and #AONBs. Read more about our plans: pic.twitter.com/NzkriRDwdF  Defra UK (@DefraGovUK) May 27, 2018

Mr Gove said: The creation of national parks almost 70 years ago changed the way we view our precious landscapes  helping us all access and enjoy our natural world.

Amid a growing population, changes in technology, and a decline in certain habitats, the time is right for us to look afresh at these landscapes.

We want to make sure they are not only conserved, but enhanced for the next generation.

The review will be led by journalist and former Downing Street aide Julian Glover, who said: Our protected landscapes are Englands finest gems and we owe a huge debt to past generations who had the wisdom to preserve them.

The system they created has been a strength, but it faces challenges too.

It is an honour to be asked to find ways to secure them for the future. I cant wait to get started and learn from everyone who shares an interest in making Englands landscapes beautiful, diverse and successful.

Today we are launching our review into #NationalParks and #AONBs looking at how these iconic landscapes meet our needs in the 21st century pic.twitter.com/iVWDsUzuBJ  Defra UK (@DefraGovUK) May 27, 2018

Margaret Paren, chairwoman of National Parks England said: We very much welcome the announcement of the review and intend to play a full part.

Our National Parks offer so much to the country.

And as we approach the 70th anniversary of the founding legislation we look forward to a future where their beauty is enhanced; they are loved and accessible for everyone; and they continue to support thriving communities in these working landscapes.
Police in Pakistan say they have killed six terrorists behind a bomb attack in the eastern city of Lahore last year.

Police spokesman Salim Khan says counter-terrorism police ambushed the suspected militants early on Sunday as they were travelling on motorcycles near the city of Gujrat, setting off a shootout in which three of the men escaped.

He said they were members of the Jamaat-ul-Ahrar group and were behind a bombing in Lahore last year that killed 26 people, including nine police.

(PA)

He added that police seized weapons and explosive vests from the scene of the raid.

Islamic extremists in Pakistan have carried out scores of attacks in recent years, mainly targeting security forces and religious minorities.
Theresa May must take a tougher line with Brussels after making errors in her Brexit negotiation strategy, Jacob Rees-Mogg has urged.

The chairman of the influential European Research Group, tipped as a potential future Tory leader, insisted there was no menace in me at all over his actions.

But he claimed the Government had proposed over-complicated solutions to the customs problem and must be prepared to tell Brussels it will walk away without paying the almost 40 billion Brexit divorce bill  potentially leaving the bloc in the red.

Jacob Rees-Mogg says Theresa May has made a mistake (Jeff Overs/BBC)

On BBC1s Andrew Marr Show Mr Rees-Mogg said Mrs May had made a mistake over her approach to the Irish border issue, one of the most contentious aspects of the negotiations, by ruling out the prospect of unilaterally keeping an open frontier after Brexit.

The customs union on its own, says @Jacob_Rees_Mogg does not solve the seamless border issue. pic.twitter.com/Q3ojjNVqff  The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) May 27, 2018

Mr Rees-Mogg said: The Prime Minister said in her Mansion House speech that she wasnt going to do this, I think that is a mistake.

I think it is the obvious negotiating position to have. Bear in mind the Irish economy is heavily dependent on its trade with the United Kingdom, it is overwhelmingly in the interests of the Republic of Ireland to maintain an open border with the United Kingdom.

I think, if you are going into a negotiation, you should use your strongest cards and just to tear one of them up and set hares running on other issues is, I think, an error.

He said the Governments plans for a backstop which would see the whole UK potentially tied to European Union rules in order to avoid a hard border  if no other way of solving the issue is possible  was a real problem and could leave the UK a vassal state for an indeterminate period.

Mr Rees-Mogg added: Basically, the deal is very simple  we are paying a very large amount of money, 40 billion, and in return we want a trade deal.

Everything else is essentially incidental to that.

The UK should make clear to the EU that if we dont get the trade deal we want, you dont get the money.

Without the UKs money the EU faces a real crisis next March  when the political situation in Italy meant it was already facing other problems.

"The Prime Minister is the most impressive and dutiful leader that this country has had," says @Jacob_Rees_Mogg pic.twitter.com/dtmp6AbbjK  The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) May 27, 2018

Playing down his own ambitions, Mr Rees-Mogg insisted he believed Mrs May  the most impressive and dutiful leader this country has had  was crucial to the Brexit project.

Of course I wouldnt challenge Theresa May, thats a ridiculous idea, he said.

Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith told Skys Ridge on Sunday that anyone plotting to overthrow Mrs May should shut up and get on with delivering Brexit.

Deputy Labour leader Tom Watson said no decision had yet been made on whether Labour MPs would be whipped to oppose membership of the single market when the Commons votes on the issue in June.

We havent decided our whipping arrangements yet, he said on ITVs Peston on Sunday, adding: We havent made a decision yet, but weve been pretty clear that there are deficiencies in the Norway model that might not work for a bespoke UK deal.
Theresa May congratulated the Irish people on their decision in the abortion referendum amid pressure to liberalise the strict laws in Northern Ireland.

Ministers  including within her own Cabinet  have indicated their support for liberalisation of laws to resolve an anomaly within the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Scores of MPs across the Commons have indicated they are prepared to act to rewrite the current legislation given the absence of a devolved administration in Stormont.

Calls for Northern Ireland abortion reform pose a political headache for Theresa May (Steve Parsons/PA)

The Irish Referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result. I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of #Together4Yes on their successful campaign.  PM @theresa_may #repealedthe8th  UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) May 27, 2018

But the Prime Minister faces a political headache over calls to act because her fragile administration depends on the support of the 10 Democratic Unionist Party MPs  who strongly oppose any reform to Northern Irelands strict laws.

And Westminster intervening in a devolved issue could also lead to wider concerns about the political situation in Northern Ireland.

In a post on Twitter, Mrs May said: The Irish Referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result.

I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of #Together4Yes on their successful campaign.

Downing Street is understood to believe that any reform in Northern Ireland is an issue for Northern Ireland.

It shows one of the important reasons we need a functioning executive back up and running, a source said.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said: The legislation governing abortion is a devolved matter and it is for the Northern Ireland Assembly to debate and decide such issues.

Some of those who wish to circumvent the assemblys role may be doing so simply to avoid its decision.

The DUP is a pro-life party and we will continue to articulate our position. It is an extremely sensitive issue and not one that should have people taking to the streets in celebration.

But in a sign of the pressure from within Mrs Mays own party, Education Minister Anne Milton suggesting she would back liberalisation if there was a free vote.

.@AnneMilton says she thinks there will be an amendment put forward to liberalise abortion in NI following the Irish referendum. #Peston pic.twitter.com/N86YcZuVr1  Peston (@itvpeston) May 27, 2018

The current situation does feel anomalous, she told ITVs Peston on Sunday.

Cabinet minister Penny Mordaunt  who is responsible for the women and equalities brief in Government  said the referendum signalled a historic and great day for Ireland and a hopeful one for Northern Ireland.

That hope must be met, she added.

Former women and equalities minister Justine Greening said: Its clear its now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for NI women that we have as women across the rest of the UK.

Its clear its now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for NI women that we have as women across the rest of the UK. #repealthe8th https://t.co/OsJWTDw5nO  Justine Greening (@JustineGreening) May 27, 2018

Sarah Wollaston, the Tory chairwoman of the Commons Health Select Committee, said: I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK.

As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland on this issue.

I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK. As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in N Ireland on this issue.  Sarah Wollaston (@sarahwollaston) May 27, 2018

But Justice Minister Rory Stewart warned against the Commons intervening on the issue.

He told BBCs Sunday Politics the UK Government was acting as a caretaker administration in the absence of Stormont, and that must not be used to make fundamental constitutional, ethical changes on behalf of the people in Northern Ireland.

DUP MP Ian Paisley said Northern Ireland should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand.

The settled will of the people has been to afford protections to the unborn life and protect the life of the mother, he said.

Labour MP Stella Creasy claimed more than 140 parliamentarians had already signalled support for an effort to change the law in Northern Ireland.

In a message to the DUP, she said the people of Northern Ireland consistently support change in the abortion law and it was time to put them, not power in Westminster, first.

DUP broke seal on devolution as a reason to refuse human rights when accepted free vote on same sex marriage and seat at Theresa mays table. People of Northern Ireland consistently support change in law on abortion - time to put them not power in Westminster first #trustallwomen https://t.co/fgLk7ZqCCX  stellacreasy (@stellacreasy) May 26, 2018

The forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill promised by ministers could be used as a vehicle for MPs hoping to change the law in Northern Ireland.

Abortions are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.

Shadow Health Secretary @JonAshworth says that "women should feel supported when they are making difficult choices" and isn't against updating abortion laws in England #Ridge pic.twitter.com/Q36qUKC9yx  Trevor Phillips on Sunday (@RidgeOnSunday) May 27, 2018

Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said he would back reform of Northern Irelands strict abortion laws in a free vote, but did not promise Labour would bring a bill before the Commons if the party was in charge.

Women should have the same rights as those elsewhere in the UK, he told Skys Ridge on Sunday, but stressed Labour must tread sensitively and be aware of the realities of devolution.
The head of the Catholic Church in Ireland has said he will pray for the courageous no campaigners in the abortion referendum.

Archbishop of Armagh and primate of all-Ireland Eamon Martin declared that every human life was precious and the lives of the unborn also needed protection.

The archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has said the church, which campaigned for a No vote, was seen by many as weak in compassion.

Archbishop Eamon Martin (Niall Carson/PA)

Archbishop Eamon Martin said: This weekend at Mass I will give thanks in prayer for the many courageous missionaries for life who made such a huge effort to remind us that in pregnancy we are dealing with two lives  both in need of love, respect and protection.

He added: Every human life remains beautiful, every human life remains precious. Every human life remains sacred.

This weekend at Mass I will give thanks in prayer for the many courageous missionaries for life who made such a huge effort to remind us that in pregnancy we are dealing with two lives - both in need of love, respect and protection. pic.twitter.com/gcWw6KIN7G  Eamon Martin (@ArchbishopEamon) May 26, 2018

Irelands traditionally conservative and Catholic-dominated society has been transformed in recent decades, with referenda since 1980 voting to accept divorce, same sex marriage and now abortion.

Contraception has also been legalised.

The church has been rocked by a series of clerical sex scandals and the endemic abuse of young people in religious-run institutions over many decades.

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said: The challenge of witnessing to Jesus Christ in todays world is not an easy one.

Many will see the results of Fridays referendum as an indication that the Catholic Church in Ireland is regarded today by many with indifference and as having a marginal role in the formation of Irish culture.

The Church that is called to make present the Jesus who is full of mercy and compassion is seen by many as somehow weak in compassion.

The bishops played a low-key role during the referendum campaign, but made clear they believed the practice was immoral.

Proponents of reform, including Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, characterised it as the compassionate choice for thousands of women who travelled to the UK for terminations or took illegal pills obtained without Irish medical advice.

The archbishop of Dublin said: The Irish Church after the referendum must renew its commitment to support life.

He said it must be pro-life in deed, bestowing loving care for human life at any stage.

That loving care includes support to help those women who face enormous challenges and who grapple with very difficult decisions to choose life.

He said pro-life meant helping those whose lives are threatened by violence, who cannot live full lives because of economic deprivation, homelessness and marginalisation.

Pro-life means radically rediscovering in all our lives a special love for the poor that is the mark of the followers of Jesus.

Reshaping the Church of tomorrow must be marked by a radical rediscovery of its roots.

The Church of Irelands Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Michael Jackson, envisaged an outworking of democracy which can initiate a real and lasting acknowledgement of the unborn in Irish society, an acknowledgement that needs to extend over many decades when stigmatisation has too often been the default setting of response.
Irish pro-choice campaigners have vowed to stand with and support advocates of abortion reform in Northern Ireland.

The Together for Yes coalition said the result of the Irish Republics abortion referendum, where two-thirds of citizens voted to end the states near-blanket ban on abortion, has lit a beacon of hope for campaigners calling for change across the globe.

Northern Ireland will soon be the only part of Ireland and Britain where an almost complete ban on abortion is in operation.

People celebrate in Dublin Castle as Ireland voted to repeal the Eighth Amendment of the Irish Constitution (Niall Carson/PA)

Laws on terminations in the region date back to the 19th Century and theoretically a woman found guilty of having an abortion could face life in prison.

Prime Minister Theresa May has been resisting calls from fellow Tory MPs to push for reform of Northern Irelands abortion laws in the wake of the Irish referendum.

Grainne Griffin, a co-director of Together for Yes, said the world had been watching the referendum campaign in Ireland.

We revealed a changed Ireland to the world and, more than that, I think we lit a beacon of hope for countries all over the world where people are working toward similar change, she said.

First of all I know our minds and our eyes turn to the north, where there is a need for clear, comprehensive abortion legislation to be introduced to give the women in Northern Ireland access to the care that they need.

We have received huge support and solidarity from the women of Northern Ireland and I know that everybody in Together for Yes will say that we stand with you now and we look to you, to work with you and to help you in achieving the same change in Northern Ireland as we saw here yesterday.

Ms Griffin also expressed solidarity with pro-choice campaigners advocating reform in other countries, including Argentina, Chile and the Philippines.

To countries who maybe think that sometimes with a background quite similar to ours that this kind of change is not possible, I think yesterday that we showed this change is possible and I hope that those women will look to us as a sign of what they will achieve in their own future, she said.

I think to a world that over the last number of years in terms of Trump and of Brexit where people have sometimes, where we have sometimes lost hope and where it seemed that positive change may not happen, I think yesterday what the women of Ireland and what the people of Ireland did  we defied expectations and I think we lit that beacon of hope and I hope that it extends far and wide and we will see change from it.
Grigor Dimitrov found himself facing an unexpected opponent but still got his French Open bid off to a solid start with a straight-sets win.

The fourth seed opened proceedings on Court Philippe Chatrier as he began his latest attempt to win a maiden grand slam.

After Viktor Troickis late withdrawal through injury, lucky loser Mohamed Safwat was only informed he was Dimitrovs new opponent an hour before the match was due to commence.

Grigor Dimitrov won through in Paris (Gareth Fuller/PA)

The world number 182 from Egypt looked out of his depth in the first set but eventually found his feet, although he could not stop Bulgarian Dimitrov running out a 6-1 6-4 7-6 (7/1) winner.

Making history today.



Mohamed Safwat is the first Egyptian player to contest a Grand Slam main draw since 1996...#RG18 pic.twitter.com/Mmn6yIXser  Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 27, 2018

I finished warming up at 9.30. Then at 10 they told me, do you know the news? said Safwat.

I never saw the inside of that court before. Its different to the courts outside.

Second seed Alexander Zverev wasted little time joining Dimitrov in round two. The highly-fancied German, 21, breezed past Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania 6-1 6-1 6-2 in just over an hour.

Former semi-finalist Gael Monfils shrugged off a typically sluggish first set to triumph against fellow Frenchman Elliot Benchetrit 3-6 6-1 6-2 6-1.

Another home hope, 15th seed Lucas Pouille, beat Russias Daniil Medvedev 6-2 6-3 6-4.

Japans Kei Nishori, seeded 19th, was also a straight-sets winner over Maxime Janvier of France.

Eight seed David Goffin survived a major scare after finding himself two sets down to Dutchman Robin Haase.

However, the Belgian dropped just five more games as he turned the match around to win 4-6 4-6 6-4 6-1 6-0.
Italys premier-designate has told the president he has been unable to form what would have been western Europes first populist government.

A presidential palace official said that Giuseppe Conte has given back the mandate to try to form a government that President Sergio Mattarella gave him four days earlier.

Italian premier designate Giuseppe Conte arrives at his home in the centre of Rome (Fabio Frustaci/AP)

Mr Conte said he tried his hardest to form the countrys next government and had full cooperation from would-be coalition partners, the populist 5-Star Movement and League parties.

The University of Florence law professor said he gave the maximum effort, attention, to carry out this task with the full collaboration of the 5-Star Movement and League.

Mr Conte, who has no political experience, received the mandate last week from the pro-European Mr Mattarella.

Assembling a Cabinet acceptable to both Mr Mattarella and the populist partners foundered on League leader Matteo Salvinis insistence on a Eurosceptic economy minister.

League leader Matteo Salvini tweeted on Sunday that he would keep fighting to the end for the anti-euro candidate he wants to be the minister.

Paolo Savona has likened Italy to being in a cage of austerity restrictions favoured by fellow eurozone member Germany.

Mr Salvini and 5-Star Movement leader Luigi Di Maio, a fellow Eurosceptic, joined forces in the hope of giving Italy its first populist government.

After inconclusive March 4 elections, they proposed Mr Conte as their choice to lead the next government.
Darren Till won his hotly anticipated hometown UFC fight on a unanimous points decision after lasting the full five rounds with Stephen Thompson.

The 25-year-old Merseysider edged an evenly matched and technical welterweight encounter at Liverpools Echo Arena, knocking his American opponent down with a big left hand in the final round.

Judges scored the bout 48-47 49-46 49-46 in Tills favour to the delight of a crowd of more than 9,000, leaving him unbeaten in 18 MMA contests, including six in the UFC.

In his city, he rose to the occassion.



What a night for the pride of Liverpool, @DarrenTill2. #UFCLiverpool pic.twitter.com/GIZijMrXtc  UFC (@ufc) May 27, 2018

I usually like to be more aggressive with my fighting style but I wasnt able to do that, said Till following his victory.

Stephen Thompson is an incredible fighter and I couldnt quite figure him out the way I wanted to but here I am, the winner.

I dont care who is next. I want anybody. I want everybody. I dont care if I get a title shot next. I want to fight all of these guys.

Everyone will get it from me. Now Im going to celebrate with my city. Liverpool, we did it.

Darren Till was a unanimous victor on points (Martin Rickett/PA)

Thompson, the number one-ranked welterweight contender, retained his record of never suffering a stoppage defeat as he instead endured the third points loss of his career.

The 35-year-old, nicknamed Wonderboy, was on the backfoot for much of a cautious affair, with aggressor Till launching numerous low leg attacks.

Underdog Till had never previously fought beyond four rounds and he finally got the better of Thompson in the final round with a powerful punch which left his opponent on the canvas.

He celebrated euphorically with his fans at the end of the contest, before the judges ruled in his favour.

Victory for Till came after the high-profile contest was thrown in to doubt when he was 3.5lbs overweight at Saturdays weigh-in.

He was given an additional hour to make the weight after citing a family emergency as a reason, but still came in too heavy, resulting in him giving 30 per cent of his fee to his opponent by way of a fine.

Thompson refused to blame the weight issue for his loss.

I thought I edged it out but it is what it is. Hes a big boy, Thompson told BT Sport 2.

Darren Till celebrates after victory against Stephen Thompson (Martin Rickett/PA)

Every time I would come in, he was right there in front of him. But no excuses, back to the drawing board and be better next time.

Im going to go back and definitely learn from this but hats off to Darren.

Earlier on Sunday evening, Liverpools Molly McCann suffered disappointment on her UFC debut after she was defeated by Gillian Robertson.
Pressure on Theresa May to reform Northern Irelands strict abortion laws has intensified with Labour calling on the Government to back fresh legislation.

The Prime Minister had already faced calls from MPs across the Commons  including within her own Cabinet  to resolve the anomalous situation in Northern Ireland following the overwhelming referendum result in Ireland in favour of liberalisation.

Labour said it was now looking at legislative options to see how that could be achieved by Westminster.

(PA Graphics)

Scores of MPs across the Commons have already indicated they are prepared to act to rewrite the current legislation given the absence of a devolved administration in Stormont.

But the Prime Minister faces a political headache over the issue because her fragile administration depends on the support of the 10 Democratic Unionist Party MPs  who strongly oppose any reform to Northern Irelands strict laws.

In a post on Twitter, Mrs May said: The Irish Referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result.

The Irish Referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result. I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of #Together4Yes on their successful campaign.  PM @theresa_may #repealedthe8th  UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) May 27, 2018

I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of #Together4Yes on their successful campaign.

Downing Street believes that any reform in Northern Ireland is an issue for Northern Ireland, a source said, adding it shows one of the important reasons we need a functioning executive back up and running.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said: The legislation governing abortion is a devolved matter and it is for the Northern Ireland Assembly to debate and decide such issues.

Some of those who wish to circumvent the assemblys role may be doing so simply to avoid its decision.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said abortion was a devolved issue for the Northern Ireland Assembly to debate and decide (Yui MOk/PA)

The DUP is a pro-life party and we will continue to articulate our position. It is an extremely sensitive issue and not one that should have people taking to the streets in celebration.

Setting out Labours position, shadow women and equalities minister Dawn Butler said: Fifty years ago, abortion was decriminalised under a Labour government but women in Northern Ireland are still denied this fundamental right, having to travel to mainland UK or faced with potential prosecution and imprisonment at home.

This is an injustice. No woman in the UK should be denied access to a safe, legal abortion.

Great news that the Republic of Ireland has voted to #Repealthe8th to support a womans right to choose.



Congratulations to everyone who has taken part in this inspiring campaign and to everyone who travelled home to vote. A fantastic victory for womens rights.  Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) May 26, 2018

She said the changes should be made by the Northern Ireland Assembly, but women should not have to suffer in its absence therefore the UK Government should act.

We call on the Government to support legislation to extend abortion rights to Northern Ireland, she said.

Labour is looking at legislative options for achieving this and urge the Conservatives to work with us to make it law.

Labour MP Stella Creasy claimed more than 140 parliamentarians had already signalled support for an effort to change the law in Northern Ireland and called on Mrs May to say you will give a free vote on 21st century abortion laws.

And now not to leave the million of our own citizens behind without access to their reproductive rights @10DowningStreet? Say you will give a free vote on 21st century abortion laws and our democracy can do the rest to show in this day and age we #TrustAllWomen  https://t.co/D0fSOivRFA  stellacreasy (@stellacreasy) May 27, 2018

The forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill promised by ministers could be used as a vehicle for MPs hoping to change the law in Northern Ireland.

In a sign of the pressure from within Mrs Mays own party, Education Minister Anne Milton suggesting she would back liberalisation if there was a free vote.

.@AnneMilton says she thinks there will be an amendment put forward to liberalise abortion in NI following the Irish referendum. #Peston pic.twitter.com/N86YcZuVr1  Peston (@itvpeston) May 27, 2018

The current situation does feel anomalous, she told ITVs Peston on Sunday.

Cabinet minister Penny Mordaunt indicated her support in the wake of the Irish vote and former women and equalities minister Justine Greening said: Its clear its now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for NI women that we have as women across the rest of the UK.

Its clear its now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for NI women that we have as women across the rest of the UK. #repealthe8th https://t.co/OsJWTDw5nO  Justine Greening (@JustineGreening) May 27, 2018

Sarah Wollaston, the Tory chairwoman of the Commons Health Select Committee, said: I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK.

As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland on this issue.

I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK. As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in N Ireland on this issue.  Sarah Wollaston (@sarahwollaston) May 27, 2018

But Justice Minister Rory Stewart warned against the Commons intervening on the issue.

He told BBCs Sunday Politics the UK Government was acting as a caretaker administration in the absence of Stormont, and that must not be used to make fundamental constitutional, ethical changes on behalf of the people in Northern Ireland.
Police are increasingly concerned for the safety of a missing pregnant mother and her two young children.

Krystal Gibbs, 25, her daughter Sienna, three, and son Jayden, four, were last seen on May 20 at their home in Tottenham, north London.

The young family, from Northumberland Park, are believed to be with Ms Gibbss boyfriend Martin Kelly.

Martin Kelly is the boyfriend of Krystal Gibbs (Met Police/PA)

Concerns were raised after Jayden did not attend school and Ms Gibbs, who is six months pregnant, missed a maternity appointment.

Many of the childrens clothes and belongings have been left at their home, the Metropolitan Police said.

A spokesman said: Officers are increasingly concerned for their wellbeing and would urge anyone with information on their whereabouts or sightings of their car to call police.

Police are concerned about Jayden and his sister Sienna (Met Police/PA)

Ms Gibbs is described as a white female with dark hair.

Sienna is mixed race with brown eyes and dark brown afro hair.

Jayden is mixed race with brown eyes and short brown hair.

They are believed to be travelling in a silver Nissan Micra which was last traced in Hampshire, registration KB53 DZF.
Relatives of a student abducted and murdered in Ireland have met the family of the man suspected of the crime.

Mark Hennessy, 40, was shot dead by a Garda officer south of Dublin last weekend, a little over 24 hours after he is suspected of kidnapping and strangling 24-year-old Jastine Valdez in an apparently random attack in Co Wicklow.

Ms Valdezs body was discovered in thick undergrowth in the Pucks Castle area of Co Dublin last Monday afternoon.

The body of Jastine Valdez, 24, from Enniskerry, was found in Co Dublin (Garda Press Office/PA)

The accountancy student, originally from the Philippines, lived in Enniskerry in Wicklow while Hennessy lived with his partner and two children in nearby Bray.

Gardai released a joint statement from the two families on Sunday evening.

In the midst of our grief both the Valdez and Hennessy families met on Friday morning where we exchanged sympathies with each other on the tragic circumstances that resulted in the loss of our respective loved ones.

Both families request privacy at this very difficult time.

Irelands police watchdog, the Garda Siochana Ombudsmans Commission, is investigating the incident that led to Hennessy being shot dead.
ISTANBUL, May 26 (Reuters) - Turkey and Russia have reached a retroactive agreement for a 10.25 percent discount on the natural gas Ankara buys from Moscow, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

Speaking at an election rally in eastern Turkey's Erzurum, Erdogan said a $1 billion payment will be made to Turkey under the deal, which followed a Turkish request for a discount on gas first made in 2015.

Turkey had gone to arbitration after its request was not met, Erdogan said.

"After long talks, we reached agreement on a 10.25 percent price discount on the natural gas we receive from Russia, covering the years 2015 and 2016," he said.

"With the agreement which we have reached, a payment of $1 billion will be made to our country to cover the discount for the natural gas we received in those two years," he added.

Turkey is the biggest consumer of Russian gas after Germany. Russia's Gazprom, which has a de facto monopoly on Russian gas exports by pipeline, supplies gas to Turkey's Black Sea coast via an underwater pipeline called Blue Stream with a capacity of 16 bcm per year.

Gazprom did not respond to a request for comment. (Reporting by Daren Butler; additional reporting by Maria Kiselyova; Editing by David Dolan and Toby Chopra)
The Austrian government agreed to extended its support to the Sri Lanka Police to develop a systematic public security programme in modern technology, Public Administration and Law and Order Ministry said.

During a meeting between Austrian Deputy Consul in New Delhi Christophe Maienberg and Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara at the Public Administration and Law and Order Ministry, it was revealed that the programme is being implemented as a concessionary loan scheme and the Austrian government expected to provide the loan in several stages.

In the first phase, the Austrian government agreed to provide a sum of Euro 10 million which has been proposed to install CCTV cameras in the entire Western Province.

The Ministry said during a recent visit of President Maithripala Sirisena to Austria, the President had stressed Austrian government about the necessity of such programme in Sri Lanka. Meeting between the Minister and the Consul took place following the request of the President, the Ministry said.

In the second stage, another 10 million Euros will be provided for the development of the 119 emergency call service.

In addition,the Austrian Deputy Consul informed Minister Madduma Bandara that the Austrian government in collaboration with the Spanish government will also grant a soft loan of Euro 30 million to enhance the police communications sector.

The ministry said Austria as a security communications partner for a number of leading countries in the world, can also be identified as a strong country in the international telecommunications field.

Austrian Global Cells Groups Deputy Director Bernard Novak, Ministry Secretary Padmasiri Jayamanna also participated in the meeting. (Darshana Sanjeewa)
Family urges for reasonable relief, not blood money as in Rizanas incident

The employer says Priyanka was shot dead by a mentally unstable person; family says she never talked about such a person in the house

A mother, who engaged in an employment ambitiously to bring prosperity to her family ultimately destined to arrive in the country in a coffin, after being a target of gunshot of a mentally retarded Saudi Arabian national.

She was Priyanka of Katumburawa, Wanduramba, Galle.

She married Upul, 22 years ago and they became loving parents of three daughters.

When died, Priyanka Jayasekera was 38, while her husband Lelwala Guruge Upul is 48.

Their elder daughter Chamila Asiri (21) is now married and a mother. Her second daughter Amitha Keshani (12) a grade eight student at the Urala Vidyalaya and youngest, Nethmi Pamodya (08) is in Grade three of the same school.

As the children were growing, the young couple thought of a good future for their children- to educate them well and build a house.

About nine years ago, Priyanka was offered to go for employment abroad with the blessing of her husband, with the hope to usher in a better future for the children.

On May 12th Upuls phone rang, knowing it was a foreign number, he anxiously began to speak to his wife. But from the other end he was told it was not Priyanka. The voice demanded: Withdraw the complaint made to the Foreign Employment Bureau.

Stunned Upul asked:

Why?

The other end repeated the same demand.

"On May 12th Upuls phone rang. Knowing it was a foreign number, he anxiously began to speak to his wife but from the other end he was told it was not Priyanka..."



Madam might have withdrawn the complaint by now, Upul replied.

There are doubts about the official version on the death of Priyanka.

However, the Saudi Police reported that Priyankas death had been caused by a gunshot fired by a mentally unstable man.

According to a statement of the Saudi Embassy Priyanka had died after being shot by the mentally retarded 31-year-son of the household.

Foreign media reports said that the domestic aide was killed with a gun used for hunting

Her body was brought to the Al Ras Hospital in Saudi Arabia. The gunman also had shot himself.

Whether the suspect is actually mentally retarded or not, can one believe the official version of that country?

These doubts linger over her death.

Whatever the cause of death, it is a loss of a kind mother of three daughters and an affectionate wife to a husband.

My wifes death left us helpless. I earn for the sustenance of our family with hard labour. What she earned working in a foreign country, is some relief for our family. But now she had left us in misery, Upul said.

Priyankas body has not been sent yet. It is likely to come after few months.

Upul said that he had appealed to the Ministers and officials to intervene and take actions to punish the murderer and to compel relevant officials for compensation for the children.

The Sri Lanka Foreign Employment Bureau (SLFEB) said that procedures related to foreign employment services had been now improved to a satisfactory level.

But still, thousands of Sri Lankans are subject to harassment and abuse at the hands of their employers in the Middle East.

Priyanka of Wanduramba seems to be another victim of such abuse.
re-monsoonal rains by May 26 have resulted in 16 deaths and 138,292 persons from 35,129 families being displaced. The monsoon proper has not even commenced, but the number of deaths and displaced continue to rise

According to the Disaster Management Centre, in May 2016, 301,602 people were affected by the floods and landslides. 104 people died and 99 people went missing.

An estimated 623 houses were destroyed and 4,414 damaged. Due to a landslide in Aranayake, in the Kegalle District which devastated three villages, at least 104 people are known to have died and 99 reported missing.

In the aftermath of the floods in May 2016, media reports quoted Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe and then Finance Minister Ravi Karunaratne, as saying affected persons would be compensated through disaster insurance which the government purchased the previous year.



Unfortunately though government officials visited affected homes and entire villages which were badly damaged, drew up lists of the quantum of damages incurred, most of the the victims of the May 2016 flood still await the promised compensation for the damage they suffered.

A year later, in May 2017, according to statistics provided by the Red Cross and the UN, over half-a-million million people were de-housed after two days of incessant rain, with 46 deaths reported in Ratnapura alone. By 21 June that year, according to UN estimates 415,600 people were affected. A total of 213 deaths were confirmed and 76 people remained missing. Over 3,000 houses were destroyed, 21,000 partially damaged. Over 3,400 people remained temporarily displaced even after the floods subsided.

According to the Disaster Management Centre 213 people died as a result of flooding and landslides caused by heavy rainfall and strong monsoon winds that hit on May 25 and 26, 2017.



The worst damage has been taking place in the hilly areas of the country as a result of landslides.

Landslides are not new to this country. Statistics over the past two years show ever increasing numbers of deaths, damage to house and numbers of people displaced. Yet again on May 20 this year, the National Building Research Organization (NBRO) issued a landslide warning for districts of Kalutara, Kegalle, Nuwara Eliya, Badulla, Kurunegala, and Galle - the hilly regions of the country. Landslides keep occurring with monotonous regularity, year-in-and-year-out .

Much of the hill country was heavily deforested to make way for export crops such as tea and rubber, leaving the near treeless hillsides exposed to possible landslides. The NBRO has pointed out that 4/5th of landslides occur due to continuing human activity.

While villages in hilly areas have been subjected to landslides during the monsoon seasons, city dwellers and those living in sub-urban areas too have on an annual basis been subject to flooding



Back in May 2016, the Acting Director-General of the Irrigation Department pointed out a major contributory factor to floods in the city has been the filling of marshlands for development purposes, shrinking open spaces, illegal constructions, the lack of proper waste disposal and inefficient drainage systems.

A government survey in 2006 shows 54% (647,100 persons) of Colombo citys population live in slums; in illegal constructions. Most of these shanty dwellings are built up in low-lying areas which get flooded during heavy rains, a result of migration from villages, in search of employment in Colombo. With the low status afforded to agricultural workers and the poor economic returns for their labour, even today, more and more people keep coming to the urban centres to better their economic prospects and social standing.

Many of these unfortunate people end up in the city slums in overcrowded dwellings and some of which are built beside canals, or river banks on state-owned highway/railway reservation lands.



The 2006 survey found that 43,462 families in Colombo do not have access to clean drinking water. The shanties often suffer from inadequate drainage and accumulated garbage. The majority of the residents do not have any form of solid waste collection service.

The solution to the problem of landslides in the hill country districts and flooding in the urban areas, calls for massive tree-planting programmes and planned storied housing in the urban areas. But the government has insufficient funds to implement such programmes. Corruption on a massive scale drains funds which could be used for these purposes into private pockets.

Unless stern action is taken to root out the unbridled corruption taking place in the country, there is little chance that the cause of landslides or flooding could be tackled in the foreseeable future.
The critical comments made by the Attorney-at-Law Suganthika Fernando on the conduct of a judicial officer and the happenings at Marawila Magistrates Court should prompt us to take a realistic and dispassionate look at the whole judicial process of this country. Her allegations which are of serious nature would have tremendous negative impact on the image of the whole judicial system. Therefore in fairness to all those who are involved in the judicial process without rejecting her allegations outright, I would urge that a fair and impartial inquiry be held to determine the truthfulness or otherwise of the allegations made.

In any realistic appraisal of the judicial system, we cannot overlook its shortcomings and weaknesses. Therefore in the light of the critical comments made by her, the following considerations are clearly warranted.

Today, we live in an age when all our traditional institutions are under close scrutiny and attack. In an age when our traditional institutions are under close surveillance by the media and the members of the public, only a rational and dispassionate appreciation of how our judicial system works can protect its integrity and survival of the system which we have nurtured and developed over several centuries.

It must be admitted that the Judges today unlike in the past, live and work in full glare of publicity and is no longer immune from constructive and reasonable criticism by the members of public and media. As any other institution, the judicial institution and the men who work it are critically watched, observed and assailed by the members of the public and the media. Their decisions and judgements are subject to scrutiny, analysis and evaluation by them. Therefore, it is of paramount importance that nothing should be done to diminish the prestige of the judicial system.

It cannot be said that criticism levelled against some aspects of the judicial system are unjustified, as Judges are not infallible and they are not beyond reproach. It is said that justice is not cloistered virtue and she must be allowed to suffer the scrutiny and outspoken comments of the ordinary men who are interested in the system. (Lord Atkin in Ambard vs. Attorney General of Trinidad and Tobago 1936 AC 322 at 335).

The Judges today unlike in the past, live and work in full glare of publicity

Criticism levelled against some aspects of the judicial system are unjustified

This country is still blessed with distinguished tradition of judicial independence and excellence and our judicial system has inbuilt qualities of objectivity, independence and impartiality. If the public is to retain their confidence in the judicial process, nothing should be done to undermine its credibility.

The confidence placed by the public in the judicial system and its process is the most precious asset. The forfeiture of that confidence will inevitably lead to the end of the ordered society.

It is in the lower courts that the citizens most often have contacts with the judiciary. From the moment an accused is presented to court by the police, until final determination of the case the accused faces the Judge whenever decisions affecting his life and future are made.

It is there that the public form their first impression of the whole judicial process. Public impression of the whole system is moulded and shaped to a great extent by the conduct and the demeanour of the Judge. Lord Denning observed When a Judge sits to try a case, he himself on trial before his fellow men, Therefore it is on his conduct and behaviour that they will form their own opinion about the system of justice prevailing in the country. It is the Judge who must bring honour to the seat of justice. The quality of justice depends greatly on the quality of those who dispense it. As the American Jurist Benjamin Cardozo once observed in the long run, there is no guarantee of justice except the personality of the Judge.

When the workings of the Magistrates Courts are examined it would be evident that there are extreme variations and differences between their own practices and that of others. There are in fact considerable variations in the way different magistrates use their authority and powers.

The quality of justice depends greatly on the quality of those who dispense it

Judges should display some degree of rationality and coherence in the orders they make



Even within the same court vast disparities and differences are seen in such matters as sentencing and approach to bail applications. People assume that the law is something that is clear cut and the remedies applicable to violations are clearly laid down. When we really look at the workings of Magistrate courts it becomes clear to us that this assumption that the law in a given situation is clearly laid down is completely erroneous and misconceived. For some judges most of the law is a matter of discretion and discretion is whatever they think is right. Even authoritative decisions handed down by some of our eminent judges of the superior courts are of little relevance to them. Substantive and procedural law are also of little significance to them.

In this connection, I am reminded of the great American legal realist Karl Llewellyn who observed in his writings the theory that rules decide cases seems for centuries to have fooled not only library ridden recluses, but Judges. He believed that the focal point of legal research should be shifted from the study of rules to the observances of real behaviour of law officials particularly of Judges.

Jerome Frank another radical realist in his writings argued that judicial decisions are conditioned by emotion prejudices, tempers and other irrational factors and the knowledge of substantive and prescriptive law would be of little help in predicting the decision of a particular Judge. He further observed no one knows the law about any case with respect to any given situation, transaction or event until there has been a specific decision with regard thereto. For him what the Judges do in court is the law. Therefore it is evident that the assumption that the law is something that is clearly laid down and remedies applicable in a given situation in belied by their own conduct and practices. It is true that comparisons of cases and offences may be difficult as facts in one may be dissimilar to another case. Disparities and lack of uniformity in the orders made by Judges can be justified as long they are within the parameters of the law and based on strictly legal criteria. But it is important that Judges should display some degree of rationality and coherence in the orders they make.

As far as the bail system in many magistrate courts is concerned it should be stated that it is far from the ideal. Purpose of bail is to ensure the presence of suspect in court to answer the charges and submit to trial. In matters concerning bail Criminal Procedure Code and other laws relating to bail now govern what should be done to a suspect awaiting trial in court.



Despite the general rule which strongly favours pre-trial release pending trial setting unattainable and excessive bail which suspects cannot afford even in circumstances where they could be released on their own recognizance is an abusive judicial practice some Judges resort to in order to make them plead guilty to charges which sometimes they did not commit. Although a great weight is traditionally attached to the fundamental principle of the presumption of innocence some Judges often seem to be guided and influenced by the principle of guilt in the process of making orders from the time a suspect is presented to court. For them what the police say is the gospel truth.

Corruption and perception of corruption in court is also an enduring problem. It is pervasive and none can deny that corruption and other irregular practices exist in the field of office administration in courts. It must be remembered that judges functions are not primarily concerned with presiding over courts but their work extends to other parts of judicial process such as administration of the office work. Therefore, it is their responsibility to see that corruption and other irregular practices are completely eliminated or at least minimised in their courts.as it leads to the erosion of the public confidence of the whole judicial process.

Criticisms have also been levelled against certain Judges for the use of inelegant inappropriate and abrasive language in the course of judicial proceedings. Judges should treat all parties equally with utmost courtesy and they should be restrained in their speech when addressing lawyers and other litigants before them. It has to be remembered that use of unrestrained language by a Judge in judicial proceedings tends to diminish fairness and effectiveness of judicial process. In the course of judicial proceedings, a Judge may honestly err which is pardonable, but he should not consciously and deliberately deviate from the correct path.

Finally, in regard to the critical comments made by the attorney, I must state I can neither discount nor accept what she uttered in regard to the conduct of the judicial officer or the alleged happenings at this particular court, as I was not an eye witness to the incident, which can only be proven at an impartial and fair inquiry.

My primary objective in writing this is neither to castigate the judiciary as a whole nor even to impugn the conduct of a particular Judge. I write this solely in the interest of an institution, which we have nurtured and preserved for generations.
The Government should be ashamed as the underworld had raised his ugly head so as to assassinate public representatives, Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) Leader and MP Udaya Gammanpila said.

He said despite the promises of good governance, today it had given the control by weapons.

He said public representatives will fear and hesitate to talk to peoples issues if they were threatened by underworld thugs.

During the tenure of Gotabaya Rajapaksa as defence secretary, once in a blue moon we hear of underworld activity. He was able to sweep the underworld members and drug kingpins.

However, at present not even a single day without a media report of underworld activity, he said.

He said during the past month 37 murders had been reported and was at an average of one murder per day.

MP Gammanpila said it was questionable who rules the country whether its President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe or the Underworld leaders.

The country is now seeking a strong, brave leader such as Gotabaya Rajapaksa who is capable of making stern decisions to drive the country towards a better place. We wish the government will receive enough strength to curb the underworld, he added. (Thilanka Kanakarathna)
The police had failed to provide the necessary security to the citizens of the country as they were busy hunting Rajapaksa family, MP Namal Rajapaksa said yesterday.

He said the officers do not have the time to curb underworld activities as they always visit Rajapaksa houses looking for Lamborghini cars and golden horses.

MP Rajapaksa accused the government for providing security to underworld leaders at weddings and protecting them without protecting the public.

The public knows the Governments failure to navigate the countrys economy and today it had been proven the Government also failed in protecting its own people, he said. (Thilanka Kanakarathna)

Video by Buddhi
Diploma in Strategic Brand Management (DSBM) is the foremost strategic branding qualification in Sri Lanka introduced by the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM), the national body for marketing.

DSBM students are bestowed with the knowledge on theories of Branding and how to apply that knowledge on the Brands that they work on. Students will eventually be groomed to become Brand Managers who will rub shoulders with their rivals in the present exigent marketing arena. A unique and integral part of the SLIM DSBM programme is that students have to carry out a practical brand unveiling session as their integrated assignment. With this innovative approach, SLIM has made a unique reputation to itself as the leading professional body who creates future brand leaders to Sri Lanka.

The 12 month part time DSBM programme is ideal for young executives interested in branding, trainee brand managers and professionals/marketers in the corporate sector as well as entrepreneurs who want to develop brands to the nation.

SLIM had the first inauguration of the Diploma in Strategic Brand Management (DSBM) for 2018 at SLIM Home, which was attended by a cross section of prospective DSBM students and personnel in the corporate sector. Intakes are now on and prospective students are welcome to enrol at their earliest to avoid disappointment of limited seats. Students may complete the course at SLIM Business School in Colombo.

The theme of SLIM-DSBM 2018 is The Art of Branding, and covers vital areas such as the role of a brand manager, brand marketing, brand planning and strategic implications in branding and managing brands overtime.

SLIM President Pradeep Edward, the CEO of Lanka Hospital Diagnostics, said that DSBM endows necessary skills in marketers to build valuable brands by utilising internationally proven, innovative branding strategies and best practices. Branding not only helps position products and services but also individuals. One specialty of SLIM DSBM is that the students are able to experience practical aspects of learning. They will go through hands-on experience of practically launching a new brand. Such fresh and innovative brands have made them employable and created many opportunities in the corporate sector.

He further said, The cream of marketing personnel in the country, who hold senior positions in the corporate sector with vast experience, are employed by SLIM as resource persons to conduct DSBM lectures that are benchmarked with global standards. In addition, visiting lecturers will share their industry experiences with students.

SLIM Vice President Education, Suranjith Swaris shared a special message with the prospective students. In his speech, he demonstrated the power of branding and its manipulative effect on consumers. Branding is a vital tool which marketers can use to surpass competitors and have an edge over rival products. Brands such as Fedex, Coca Cola and Nike have made unique reputations. They have become top-of-the-mind brands, while earning reputation and recognition. As the National body for Marketing we want you to develop many brands to the Mother Nation.

Lanka Grills Proprietor Remo Issac Rajamoney who is a SLIM-DSBM past student attending the inaugural session made an insightful presentation on how the DSBM programme helped him to excel as an entrepreneur and start his own brand, Lanka Grills. Rajamoney commended I followed DSBM and today I have developed my own brand. There were many DSBM students like me who started their own brands after following DSBM. The courage, enthusiasm and confidence given throughout DSBM learning, definitely pushes you to build your own brand one day.

SLIM CEO and Executive Director Sanath Senanayake expressed, We enhanced the practical value and real world application of DSBM by identifying industry needs to ensure that we produce marketers who could cater to the demands of modern marketing and branding. He noted that the SLIM- DSBM course content, syllabus and text books are benchmarked with the evolving global marketing atmosphere while feasibly catering to current local industry requirements.
TRIPOLI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Violent battles in Libya's eastern city of Darna killed two Libyan army soldiers and four militants on Saturday, as the army progresses towards taking over the city.

"Our forces have made significant progress in Al-Fata'eh heights east of Darna. Our forces are now very close to controlling those heights after violent battles since earlier in the morning until later at night," an officer in the army's Darna operation chamber told Xinhua later on Saturday.

"Two of our soldiers from the Tobruk military zone were killed, and we killed four terrorists," said the officer, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

"From a strategic point of view, controlling those heights means that we will be occupying a large part of Darna. Thus, we would be able to maneuver in the remaining military operations," he said.

Maria Ribeiro, humanitarian coordinator of the UN Support Mission in Libya, on Thursday called on the army to allow humanitarian aid to enter Darna.

The army is launching a military operation to take over Darna from the militants who control the coastal city.

The fighting has so far killed 30 army soldiers and wounded more than 40 others, according to medical and military sources.

Since 2015, Darna has been besieged by the army, which demands the Shura Council of the Mujahideen in Darna, a coalition of Islamist militias, leave the city. The army accuses the armed group of being loyal to al-Qaida.
SriLankan Airlines UL flight 167 with 228 passengers and 12 crew members on board made a safe landing at the Cochin International Airport this evening due to adverse weather conditions, but there was damage to two lights on the runway.

In a statement it said the flight originated from Colombo and made a safe landing at 3:30 pm when there was intense rain caused by the onset of the monsoon.

Accordingly, due to the prevailing weather conditions, strong winds and heavy rain, the aircraft veered toward the runway edge and caused damage to some ground lights.

However, the flight was successfully landed with no injuries to passengers or the crew.

The aircraft was given a thorough inspection and certified as undamaged by SriLankan Airlines engineering staff.

SriLankan Airlines affords the highest priority to the safety of its passengers and crew members at all times, the Airlines said.
Illustration: Liu Rui/GT

By Xu Liang

India and Vietnam kicked off their first-ever joint naval exercises in the South China Sea on May 21, in an attempt to improve bilateral ties. Less than four months ago, they held military exercises for the first time at Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh, India. India has also offered BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles as well as the Akash surface-to-air missile defense systems to Vietnam.

The joint navy drill is regarded a significant step in India's Act East policy. New Delhi has approached Vietnam with an eye on China. Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang, at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, visited India from March 2 to 4, the first trip to India by a Vietnamese president in seven years. The two agreed to expand their oil and gas exploration in the continental shelf and Exclusive Economic Zone of Vietnam.

Also, in early March, India conducted a mega naval exercise along with leading maritime powers of the region, including Vietnam, on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The naval drill with Vietnam this time in the South China Sea waters will bolster Vietnam's South China Sea stance.

By stirring up the currently calm and tranquil South China Sea, the primary goal of India is to contain China.

Not only has India opted for maintaining tensions along the border with China, but it has also offered military support to Vietnam, at a time the friendly atmosphere brought about by Modi's recent visit to Wuhan hasn't fizzled out. This risks India's reputation.

China is happy to see two neighboring countries cooperate without targeting any third party. It's unwise for India to interfere in disputes between China and its neighbors under the banner of its Act East policy.

For decades, India has been pursuing hegemony in South Asia, which has not only failed to win the country prestige but also undermined its status. Resistance against Indian intervention has become an important source of nationalism in many South Asian countries. This deserves introspection by Indian strategists.

Indian media hyped up that naval exercises with Vietnam are aimed at checking "a confrontationist and expansionist" China. But it's well known that China has insisted on a diplomacy that emphasizes building good-neighborly relationships and partnerships. India has been making up an imaginary "China threat" and it has taken an aggressive stance against Beijing. It has played an active role in reviving the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or "Quad," an informal security forum consisting of the US, Japan, Australia and India that was launched in 2007 but eventually fell apart. It has strengthened ties with France, Mongolia, got deeply involved in Afghanistan's reconstruction and crackdown on terrorism, and participated in the construction of Iran's Chabahar port. India's "Look West" and "Act East" policies in fact are draining its overstretched national strength.

It's understandable that India is eager to become a powerful country. China is willing to see India play a larger constructive role in international affairs rather than seek self-interest at the expense of regional peace.

India should actively participate in Asia's economic development and promote peace in the region to be a responsible power when advancing its Act East policy. It shouldn't always take China as an enemy. Rather the two should respect and learn from each other. A relationship of mutual respect is beneficial to long-term stability of both China and India.

The author is executive director of the Indian Studies Center from Beijing International Studies University.
Home  Just In  82,235 Nepalis to sit for Korean language test this year

Kathmandu, May 27

As many as 82,235 Nepalis looking for work in South Korea will sit for the Korean language proficiency test this year.

The exam is scheduled for July 10-11.

Around 60,000 examinees will take the exam in Kathmandu and remaining will take the test in Pokhara, informed Shobhakar Bhandari, spokesperson for the Employment Permit System (EPS), Korea section.

Sixteen examination centres have been chosen in Kathmandu, eight in Lalitpur, and four in Pokhara. The South Korean government says it will recruit around 7,100 Nepalis this year.

South Korea will check the exam papers using OCR technology. Hence, the results will not take time, added Bhandari. Every year, thousands of Nepalis take the Korean language test to register themselves with the EPS and lang a job in South Korea.
Home  Just In  Parliament passes annual policy and programme for new fiscal year

Kathmandu, May 27

A meeting of Parliament passed the governments annual policy and programmes on Sunday.

The annual policy and programmes was passed after Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli addressed various issues raised by MPs during a discussion in the House recently.

Though the Nepali Congress and the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal did not revoke their proposal to amend the annual policy and programmes, the parties did not vote against it either.

Nepali Congress leader Dr Minendra Rijal and RJPN lawmaker Anil Kumar Jha refused to withdraw their amendment to the annual policy and programme.

Federal Socialist Forum Nepal leaders, however, withdrew their amendment proposal.
FLAGSTAFF, Arizona, 21 May 2018 (Center for Biological Diversity)  A new Trump administration plan proposes to auction off 4,200 acres of public land for oil and gas development in northern Arizona. The lands straddle the Little Colorado River, are within three miles of Petrified Forest National Park, and are near habitat for a federally threatened fish called the Little Colorado spinedace. Drilling and fracking would threaten to deplete and pollute groundwater in the Little Colorado River Basin. The Bureau of Land Management is planning the September auction  which would convey development rights to fossil-fuel companies  without any site-specific public or environmental review, as required by federal law. Planning documents cite Trump policies that forego National Environmental Policy Act analysis to fast-track fracking on public lands. According to BLM, about 90 percent of new oil and gas wells on public lands are fracked. This dangerous plan puts national parks, precious groundwater and wildlife in the crosshairs. Well do everything we can to stop it, said Taylor McKinnon with the Center for Biological Diversity. Fracking is a dirty, dangerous business that consumes enormous amounts of water and threatens wildlife and public health. Northern Arizonans wont tolerate public lands being sacrificed as gifts from Trump to the fossil fuel industry.The BLM is using a shortcut to bypass the analysis of frackings harm to the land and water that is required under NEPA. The sweeping determinations of NEPA adequacy, or DNAs, presume that oil and gas development complies with the agencys 30-year-old resource management plan, which predates the U.S. fracking boom. The agency is also foregoing tribal consultations, stating that tribal consultation was adequate for the [resource management plan]. By deferring all analysis until the drilling-permit stage  after industry has the right to develop the land  the bureau is unable to deny subsequent drilling plans. Fracking or drilling development could be catastrophic for the regions groundwater, said McKinnon. This is Trumps energy dominance policy at work, where nothing matters except fossil-fuel interests.Trump policies issued in January require the BLM to auction lands nominated by the fracking industry, skip site-specific environmental review and limit public input. BLM records show that since 2014 the fracking industry requested 145 parcels in northern Arizona for oil and gas leasing, most near the Hurricane Cliffs and Big Valley north of Grand Canyon National Park.The Center has sued the BLM for using DNAs to plan oil and gas auctions in Ohio and Colorado. In April the Center sued the Trump administration over its January policy encouraging their use.
Major newspapers published in Kathmandu Valley have given priority to various issues from political, economic, and legal spaces on their front pages. Most newspapers have given priority to the issues raised against the annual policy and programmes for the upcoming fiscal year.

Likewise, few newspapers have published reports on socio-cultural and economic issues on their front page today.

Important

Prime Minister to address issues MPs

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli will answer queries from lawmakers on the governments annual policy and programmes. For the same, a Cabinet meeting will be held at 11:00 am on Sunday, reports Gorkhapatra. The Prime Minister will also respond to issues raised during a discussion in the House recently.

Ignored

Duration of tourists stay declines

Foreign tourists coming to Nepal are spending a lesser number of days in the country than in the past three years. While an average tourist stayed in the country for 12.6 days in 2017, the number was 13.16 days in 2o16.

Nippa virus risk in Nepal

A story published in Naya Patrika says that Nepal is at high risk of Nippa virus. A study carried out on bats for six years showed that Nepal is also at high risk of a Nippa virus outbreak. The virus is currently seen in India and Bangladesh only. Meanwhile, experts are working to find a cure.

Supreme Court headless

The Supreme Court has become headless after the resignation of Chief Justice Gopal Parajuli. The post still remains vacant after the Judicial Council failed to appoint a suitable candidate to the post, according to Rajdhani. Parajuli was relieved of his position after it was found that he had crossed retirement age. As per the law, the vacant post must have been filled within one month.

KMC removes shops near Dharahara area

Kathmandu Metropolitan City, with help of Nepal Police, has removed shops on the premises of Dharahara. This comes after the KMC issued a notice on Friday stating the shops be removed within 24 hours. The shops were removed after 24 hours using excavators, according to Nepal Samacharpatra.

Rs one billion allocated for free medicines

The government has not been able to buy most of the medicine that was to be provided for free.

The government provides seventy different types of medicine to the public for free. However, the government has failed to buy 44 doses form of 43 different medicine. This has resulted in a scarcity of medicine in the public hospitals, according to Naya Patrika.

The government had allocated Rs 1.05 billion for procuring medicine in the current fiscal year.
Country

United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of Cambodia, Kingdom of Cameroon, United Republic of Cape Verde, Republic of Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad, Republic of Chile, Republic of China, People's Republic of Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia, Republic of Comoros, Union of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, People's Republic of Cook Islands Costa Rica, Republic of Cote D'Ivoire, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Cyprus, Republic of Czech Republic Denmark, Kingdom of Djibouti, Republic of Dominica, Commonwealth of Ecuador, Republic of Egypt, Arab Republic of El Salvador, Republic of Equatorial Guinea, Republic of Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faeroe Islands Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Fiji, Republic of the Fiji Islands Finland, Republic of France, French Republic French Guiana French Polynesia French Southern Territories Gabon, Gabonese Republic Gambia, Republic of the Georgia Germany Ghana, Republic of Gibraltar Greece, Hellenic Republic Greenland Grenada Guadaloupe Guam Guatemala, Republic of Guinea, Revolutionary People's Rep'c of Guinea-Bissau, Republic of Guyana, Republic of Heard and McDonald Islands Holy See (Vatican City State) Honduras, Republic of Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China Hrvatska (Croatia) Hungary, Hungarian People's Republic Iceland, Republic of India, Republic of Indonesia, Republic of Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq, Republic of Ireland Israel, State of Italy, Italian Republic Japan Jordan, Hashemite Kingdom of Kazakhstan, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Republic of Kuwait, State of Kyrgyz Republic Lao People's Democratic Republic Latvia Lebanon, Lebanese Republic Lesotho, Kingdom of Liberia, Republic of Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein, Principality of Lithuania Luxembourg, Grand Duchy of Macao, Special Administrative Region of China Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Madagascar, Republic of Malawi, Republic of Malaysia Maldives, Republic of Mali, Republic of Malta, Republic of Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania, Islamic Republic of Mauritius Mayotte Micronesia, Federated States of Moldova, Republic of Monaco, Principality of Mongolia, Mongolian People's Republic Montserrat Morocco, Kingdom of Mozambique, People's Republic of Myanmar Namibia Nauru, Republic of Nepal, Kingdom of Netherlands Antilles Netherlands, Kingdom of the New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua, Republic of Niger, Republic of the Nigeria, Federal Republic of Niue, Republic of Norfolk Island Northern Mariana Islands Norway, Kingdom of Oman, Sultanate of Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Palau Palestinian Territory, Occupied Panama, Republic of Papua New Guinea Paraguay, Republic of Peru, Republic of Philippines, Republic of the Pitcairn Island Poland, Polish People's Republic Portugal, Portuguese Republic Puerto Rico Qatar, State of Reunion Romania, Socialist Republic of Russian Federation Rwanda, Rwandese Republic Samoa, Independent State of San Marino, Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe
Kathmandu, May 27

The newly-formed Nepal Communist Party on Sunday obstructed the provincial assembly proceedings and withdrew its support to the government of Province 2.

Despite the withdrawal, the Province 2 government still has a majority as it is backed by the Federal Socialist Forum and Rastriya Janata Party Nepal.

The days events unfolded with the Chief Minister Lalbabu Raut asking permission from the Speaker to address the assembly. But, the lawmakers from the communist party protested.

NCP lawmaker Rup Narayan Mandal, addressing the assembly, said that the government has been working at snails pace. The government has not been able to live up to expectations of its supporters.

Likewise, another lawmaker Ram Chandra Mandal also said that the government has disappointed the people during the 100 days it has been in power.
If youre using Trumps language, youre helping him

Either corporations waste trillions of dollars repeating their advertisements at you or youre helping Donald Trump every time you retweet him or use his words.

This is true even if youre owning him with your comment attached to the retweet or accusing him of being the swamp or telling America to Make America Bright Again.

Damn. I just helped him.

See. This is isnt easy, but this week we all saw through Trumps very conscious attempt to distract and confuse the public about swelling investigations around his administration that have gotten in more than 100 indictments or guilty pleas against 19 people and three companies by pretending that the real scandal was that his campaign was being investigated at all. He even made up a name for this fictional scandal and implored the press to use it. In this case, most everyone, even the media, saw through the ruse.

But theres a reason Trump repeats words, phrases and ideas that would embarrass most people who have adult friends. A YouGov poll earlier this month found that 75 percent of Republican regard the Mueller investigation as a witch hunt. Their evidence for this is largely Trump repeating the those two words in tandem, often on Twitter. As a result only 43 percent say the investigation legitimate, compared to 37 percent who dont.

Sooner or later we all have to face that we in many cases act as Donald Trumps viral marketing army. We cant control how the rest of the world treats him but we have to recognize that our outrage feeds him. And when were earnestly debunking, fact checking or dunking on him, were often helping him.

Tts time to start trying something new.

Legendary cognitive scientist George Lakoff has long chided Democrats for our inability to stop repeating their opponents messaging, whether its tax relief or helping Republicans brand themselves pro-life. (You see they only care about forcing birth and not actually life-saving things like keeping mothers alive and kids with their parents, even if theyre asylum seekers fleeing gang members in their home countries. See! Our Enlightenment brains love debunking GOP logic. But what this mostly does is just spread the branding, especially to people, which are most people, busy with their own lives.)

Our bad habit and the medias cowardice when it comes to calling out lies have become a huge advantages for the man we want to help least.

When you repeat Trump, you help Trump, Lakoff explains. You do this by spreading his message wide and far.

This just makes sense:

Quick: dont think of an elephant. Now, what do you see? The bulkiness, the grayness, the trunkiness of an elephant. You cant block the picture  the frame  from being accessed by your unconscious mind. As a professor of brain science, this is the first lesson I give my students.

This is literally how Russian and ISIS propaganda works, according to cyberwarfare expert Haroon Ullah:

Recent research into both the Russians and the Islamic States models of propaganda, as well as interviews with defectors, unveil that: 1) people tend to believe something when it is repeated, 2) Russia and Islamic State fanboys gain the advantage when they get to make the first impression and 3) subsequent rebuttals may actually work to reinforce the original misinformation, rather than dissipate it.

As liberals, you probably think youre exposing and debunking Trump but this reveals two biases that have hurt us in our effort to defeat this guy, which no politician alive has ever done.

First, were assuming that the things that offend us offend everyone. Lakoff believes this was key error the Clinton campaign made:

They used negative campaigning, assuming they could turn Trumps most outrageous words against him. They kept running ads showing Trump forcefully expressing views that liberals found outrageous. Trump supporters liked him for forcefully saying things that liberals found outrageous. They were ads paid for by the Clinton campaign that raised Trumps profile with his potential supporters!

This seems obvious to me now but, at the time, my liberal brain thought it could only help Clinton, and obviously Clintons team did, too.

Second, we dont want to admit that Trump is good at anything because hes so vile and incompetent in his role as a leader. But he does understand how to sell crap people dont need. Hes a master pusher of crap and the crap hes selling is racism, division and a chance to burn your enemies.

And theres an audience of 30-40 percent of American voters that wants that brand and that number grows when we help spread his messages and own the conversation.

What should we do otherwise?

Stop retweeting and repeating him as much as you can. When you feel the urge to do that, focus instead on boosting the message of someone you want to win this November. Maybe set up a sort of swear jar, where you punish yourself every time you accidentally repeat him by making a donation you can afford to a candidate you back.

But dont some of his messages need to be pushed back on?

A strong media would be protecting the truth for us, but the right has long been playing the refs to prevent this. If you feel you want to join the pushback, consider doing a quote retweet of people who do a nice job of getting framing out first as they rebut Trump instead of Trump. On Twitter, @ACLU, @ThePlumLineGS, @sarahkendzior ,@JamilSmith and @RVAWonk constantly do this well.

I hate to hector anyone. We all have our role to play. As journalist or activist, you cant let his lies go unchecked. But I bet youd agree that were not yet doing enough to limit Trumps toxicity. So we have to at least consider not spreading his messages for him.
Blog Archive June 2021 (1) May 2021 (77) April 2021 (77) March 2021 (82) February 2021 (68) January 2021 (64) December 2020 (67) November 2020 (66) October 2020 (66) September 2020 (67) August 2020 (74) July 2020 (83) June 2020 (92) May 2020 (86) April 2020 (104) March 2020 (105) February 2020 (74) January 2020 (75) December 2019 (75) November 2019 (70) October 2019 (89) September 2019 (69) August 2019 (81) July 2019 (77) June 2019 (73) May 2019 (110) April 2019 (110) March 2019 (102) February 2019 (85) January 2019 (123) December 2018 (116) November 2018 (112) October 2018 (121) September 2018 (107) August 2018 (150) July 2018 (163) June 2018 (190) May 2018 (145) April 2018 (112) March 2018 (124) February 2018 (113) January 2018 (164) December 2017 (150) November 2017 (144) October 2017 (169) September 2017 (171) August 2017 (135) July 2017 (131) June 2017 (147) May 2017 (160) April 2017 (138) March 2017 (156) February 2017 (143) January 2017 (203) December 2016 (208) November 2016 (185) October 2016 (173) September 2016 (194) August 2016 (232) July 2016 (225) June 2016 (238) May 2016 (231) April 2016 (215) March 2016 (246) February 2016 (226) January 2016 (252) December 2015 (230) November 2015 (250) October 2015 (234) September 2015 (222) August 2015 (253) July 2015 (275) June 2015 (279) May 2015 (223) April 2015 (226) March 2015 (243) February 2015 (258) January 2015 (281) December 2014 (292) November 2014 (296) October 2014 (413) September 2014 (472) August 2014 (506) July 2014 (483) June 2014 (488) May 2014 (512) April 2014 (497) March 2014 (531) February 2014 (482) January 2014 (535) December 2013 (482) November 2013 (441) October 2013 (416) September 2013 (491) August 2013 (521) July 2013 (491) June 2013 (470) May 2013 (457) April 2013 (426) March 2013 (420) February 2013 (414) January 2013 (489) December 2012 (433) November 2012 (504) October 2012 (469) September 2012 (430) August 2012 (427) July 2012 (360) June 2012 (336) May 2012 (362) April 2012 (322) March 2012 (263) February 2012 (224) January 2012 (291) December 2011 (295) November 2011 (325) October 2011 (330) September 2011 (319) August 2011 (333) July 2011 (318) June 2011 (387) May 2011 (373) April 2011 (389) March 2011 (375) February 2011 (335) January 2011 (400) December 2010 (445) November 2010 (395) October 2010 (312) September 2010 (262) August 2010 (277) July 2010 (323) June 2010 (386) May 2010 (360) April 2010 (333) March 2010 (351) February 2010 (336) January 2010 (384) December 2009 (353) November 2009 (300) October 2009 (308) September 2009 (350) August 2009 (298) July 2009 (255) June 2009 (203) May 2009 (193) April 2009 (186) March 2009 (197) February 2009 (173) January 2009 (148) December 2008 (181) November 2008 (197) October 2008 (236) September 2008 (304) August 2008 (314) July 2008 (273) June 2008 (27) May 2008 (1) April 2008 (6) October 2007 (1) May 2007 (1) April 2007 (6) March 2007 (2) February 2007 (1) October 2006 (1) September 2006 (1) August 2006 (4) July 2006 (4) June 2006 (1) July 2005 (1) May 2005 (2) March 2005 (1) June 2004 (2) May 2004 (1) April 2004 (4) March 2004 (2) February 2004 (2) July 2003 (2) June 2003 (5)
Latest News

CS June 2021 results expected tomorrow, know more here Candidates need to use their login details to access CS Foundation, CS Professional and CS Executive results

Alert: Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana Fellowship exam admit card released KVPY Aptitude Test 2021 will be held online in various cities across India on November 7

Alert: AICTE PG Scholarship 2021-22 applications open, know the details here Candidates who are selected will receive Rs 2,400 per month for 24 months or for the duration of the course


By The Hill , May 23 , 2018





The Utah man freed Saturday after being imprisoned for nearly two years in Venezuela told reporters he was "overwhelmed with gratitude" for his safe return to the U.S. during a White House meeting with President Trump.





Joshua Holt told onlookers at the White House that he was gratified that the Trump administration, as well as Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) had intervened on behalf of "just a normal person."

Read More:



Join us - become an Elderado today at: LarryElder.com

Follow Larry Elder on Follow Larry Elder on Twitter

"Like" Larry Elder on Facebook




Scuderia Ferrari has been cleared of suspicions of cheating by the FIA following an investigation into the team's energy recovery system.

Ferrari's rivals, namely Mercedes and Red Bull, had expressed concerns over the team's management of its battery system, suspecting the Scuderia's engineers had found a way to deploy more energy than allowed by the rules.

The FIA submitted Ferrari to extra monitoring of its ERS in Monaco, but has finally cleared the Scuderia of any transgression of the regulations.

"We had some concerns in Baku that were difficult to explain and we worked through it with them," explained FIA race director Charlie Whiting.

"(The rulebook) says that it is the duty of the competitor to satisfy the FIA that their car complies at all times and they were having difficulty satisfying us. Here, we are now satisfied."

Whiting revealed that Mercedes' tech boss James Allison, who left Ferrari in 2016 to join the Silver Arrows squad, had approached the FIA before the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and raised question about Ferrari's ERS.

"The matter was exacerbated by unsubstantiated speculation that went through the paddock like wildfire," added Whiting.

The FIA race director admitted however that the governing body's representatives were left confused by Ferrari's initial explanations of how its sophisticated battery system was managed.

Some things in the data we could not quite explain...," said Whiting.

"We went through it with Ferrari and they gave explanations which were not particularly convincing.

"We wanted to really get to the bottom of it and in Spain, they took some measures to make sure we understood it more and that we were seeing things that we were happy with."

FIA president Jean Todt lamented the fact that speculation about Ferrari's conformity was left to simmer in the press, insisting any suspicions expressed by a team should have been addressed by an official protest.

"If a team has some doubts, they could have made a protest," he said.

"It would be much more healthy rather than to manipulate the press to address the problem."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
The Blue Earth Area and United South Central School Districts recently announced they received nearly $150,000 in financial assets from the dissolved Faribault County Development Corporation (FCDC).

The funds will be shared by both school districts to increase current instruction and training in pathways that lead to manufacturing careers. The additional opportunities will be embedded in career and technology curriculum, which includes courses in the areas of science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM).

Specifically, the funds will be used to purchase CNC computerized manufacturing machines and other related manufacturing equipment. Each high school will purchase different machines and provide collaborative opportunities for students to learn on all of the machines and other equipment located at each high school. The machines will also be made available to train community members through future community education courses.

The funds will also be utilized for staff training along with curriculum development. In addition, funds will allow both high schools to purchase the necessary supplies and materials to operate the machines as well as provide for travel and other related expenses.

Both school districts are excited for these new learning opportunities and ability to collaborate within the county and between the two schools. These programs will be available for our students and community members for many years to come.

I cannot foresee a better or more effective way to invest back into our county and communities. This will provide an effective platform for educating and training our youth with the needed skill sets that our communities and manufacturing businesses need, especially in terms of a trained workforce, Michael Gustafson, FCDC board chair, commented. This will also provide the needed education curriculum and equipment to allow us a viable chance of retaining the trained workforce within our county.

FCDC dissolved at the end of 2017. It had been handling the economic development duties for the county and several cities.
IT was an eagerly awaited interview with Merredin manufacturer Laurie Phillips recently.

Having been told he had bought a 3500 Phoenix 4WD articulated tractor, Torques mind went into overdrive flooded with the who, what, where, when, why and how questions.

And knowing Laurie had designed the Phoenix, added a little icing.

So the interview went a little like this:

T: Where did you get it from?

LP: A couple of farmers south of Hyden.

T: Who were they?

LP: The Buktenica brothers.

T: When did you get it?

LP: Last year.

T: Why did you buy it?

LP: I was driving to Esperance with my grandson and saw it parked in the open. So I stopped and had a look at it. I could tell it has been well looked after so I left a note saying, if you want to sell this, give me a call.

A couple of years later, I got the call and I bought it.

T: But why?

LP: I just wanted it.

T: What do you have to fix to restore it?

LP: Nothing. It was in working order when I got it and it was being used as the main tractor.

T: How many hours has it clocked?

LP: About 7000 hours.

T: What did you do when you got it?

LP: I just washed it down. Theres nothing on it thats not original and the only blemish is a cracked windscreen.

T: And what are you going to do to it now?

LP: Id like to strip it, sand blast it, re-condition it and paint it. It will be a future labour of love for me when Ive got some time. Jump up and lets go for a drive.

It took an instant for the V10 423 Mercedes motor to fire up and we were off as Laurie expertly worked the hand throttle, with the writer comfortably sitting in a buddy seat in the spacious cab which would rival todays modern tractors.

Lauries penchant for sourcing the best components was clearly evident with the smooth Twin Disc 12-speed powershift transmission having a top speed of 17 kilometres an hour  which was fast enough, hooning around outside the distinctive Phillbourne shed in a tractor still capable of pulling an air seeder.

I dont know the hydraulic flow but its got eight remotes and it would have no difficulty pulling an air seeder, Laurie said.

In its day, as the flagship of the then Farmers Tractors Australia company, it competed mainly against popular tractor brands such as Steiger, Versatile, John Deere, Case/White, Massey Ferguson and International.

But the story behind the Phoenix is the Acremaster, the first tractor Laurie designed and manufactured in a period between 1975 and 1982, with nine models available with power ratings between 141 kilowatts (190 horsepower) and 384kW (515hp) offered with either Mercedes or Cumming engines.

The Acremaster  there are still models being used today throughout Australia  was highly regarded but the tough 1980s was not kind to budding manufacturers and Laurie remembers his company biting the dust as he lost control to other business interests.

In 1987, his resolute and never-say-die attitude saw him re-emerge from the ashes, so to speak, with an appropriately-named Phoenix tractor, based on the Acremaster design.

The Phoenix was named after the Greek god which gained new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor.

Laurie gained support from a group of local farmers who were keen to maintain a tractor manufacturing business in the town and so, the Farmers Tractor Company was formed with the Phoenix as the flagship product.

Laurie also invented the Phoenix harrows which were also sold by Farmers Tractors Australia until the company was dissolved in 1992.

In that year, Laurie formed Phillbourne Manufacturing (now re-named Phillbourne Merredin) and concentrated on canola pick-ups, first building the Canadian-designed Swathmaster under licence and then designing his own, called the Rollerdown pick-up front.

Two years ago he introduced the Retro Feed Drum to the market as a retro-fit for draper fronts.

This unit is designed for new model fronts from John Deere, Midwest CNH, Honey Bee and older MacDon models such as the 2052.

Weve had a great response to the Retro Feed Drum, Laurie said.

We put a few out for testing last harvest and farmers and dealers gave the unit the thumb-up.

We got a lot of comments about the ability to harvest faster in canola, tall barley and wheat and one farmer told us the Retro Feed Drum was like having a second harvester in the paddock.

We believe it is the cheapest way to increase harvesting capacity while eliminating a lot of hassles associated with poor crop feed due to drum malfunctions and breakages.

According to Laurie, a dealership network has been established in South Australia, Victoria and New South Wales for the unit which was re-modelled from his popular Rollerdown drum.

The last burning question relates to the Acremaster.

Yes, Id love one, Laurie said.
Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release

SubCategory Select Sub-Category
.      .   1           .           .           .                  ,     ,  ...
Australian driver Will Power won Sunday's Indianapolis 500 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway -- after he took the lead with four laps to go, and never looked back.

"He was so determined for this one, and he did it," his wife, Liz Power, said. She was later seen embracing her husband before he drank from a celebratory glass bottle of milk and poured some on his own head.

The new champion also spoke about his big win in the 102nd running of the world-famous race. "This is just, I can't believe it," he confessed.

Ed Carpenter came in second, while Scott Dixon finished third.

Power sped into the lead in the final laps of the race after Oriol Servia and Jack Harvey had to pit for fuel. Power then held off pole winner Carpenter for the victory.

It gave team owner Roger Penske a 17th win in the Indy 500 and it was Power's second straight victory this season. He won the road-course event at Indy earlier this month.

He has 34 wins in IndyCar now, tying him with Al Unser Jr. for most on the career list.

"He hated ovals and now he loves them," Carpenter said. "He and I love racing together. Maybe someday he'll race for me. I don't know if we have a tampering rule in IndyCar, but congrats Will."

Power's win also drew attention from a famous Indiana native: Vice President Mike Pence.

"Congratulations to @12WillPower  the Winner of this year's Indianapolis 500! Great Win for Will & the No. 12 @verizon Chevy Team!" he tweeted.

Earlier, Danica Patrick ended the last race of her professional career by crashing out on lap 68 of the race, in Turn 2 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The crash can be seen in videos posted to Twitter.

"She has been checked, released and cleared from the infield hospital," Indianapolis Motor Speedway tweeted.

Last week, the 36-year-old qualified seventh for the final start of her career. She hadn't competed in an IndyCar since 2011.

INDIANAPOLIS 500 DRIVERS, RACE TIME AND WHAT TO KNOW

"Qualifying at Indy is a thing," Patrick wrote in an Instagram post. "It's special. Stressful. Rewarding. Depressing. Scary. Easy. Fast. It can change from day to day. Lap to lap. Year to year. You just never know....so I dont take the good days for granted."

Patrick, who shot to prominence by finishing fourth as a rookie in 2005, announced months ago that she would step away from racing after Sunday's race. It was supposed to triumphantly cap her "Danica Double," which began at the Daytona 500, where she also crashed out well short of the finish.

"I mean, today was really disappointing for what we were hoping for and what you want from your last race," she said, "but I'm grateful for all of it. I just wish I could have finished stronger."

In the lead-up to Sunday's race, Patrick shared a photo on Instagram.

"This is just a chapter in the book," Patrick captioned the post. "Today feels heavy, but only because the chapter finishing has meant so much to me. Thank you for the memories. I am at a lack of words today."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
CNN contributor April Ryan is being criticized for alerting her 336,000 Twitter followers to a story in The Root that asks if the Trump administration is involved in child sex-trafficking.

Among those condemning Ryan for the tweet is first lady Melania Trumps spokeswoman.

If youre a journalist w many followers & a @CNNPolitics contributor...is it ok to retweet any headline you want, regardless of if its true? Stephanie Grisham asked on Twitter. Remember: 'The core purpose of a journalist is to research, document, write, & present the news in an honest, ethical, & unbiased way.'

CNN'S APRIL RYAN MISQUOTES SARAH SANDERS TO IMPLY SHE WANTED PHYSICAL FIGHT: 'IT WAS STREET'

Grisham may have been most disturbed by the headline of The Root article: Is the Trump administration running a child-trafficking ring or nah? Follow me down the rabbit hole.

Ryan responded later Sunday in a tweet: So apparently fox just wants to slam me for clicks. and never read the article I retweeted either. Lol! So sad! Hello it said the conspiracies were unfounded. You just need me to hate. Thank you!!

She also tweeted a link to her book.

Ryan, who is also the White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks, initially tweeted the article without comment. The Root is an online magazine of African-American culture.

So why should alt-righters have all the fun peddling disproven and unfounded conspiracy theories, writes The Root political editor Jason Johnson, who goes on to suggest one of his own.

Now it turns out that the Trump administration may have an equally implausible conspiracy on its hands: Is the administration involved in child sex trafficking or just white nationalism? Follow me down the rabbit hole and see for yourself, Johnson says in the article, published Friday.

Many of those who bashed Ryan on Twitter questioned how a professional journalist could associate herself with such a story.

April Ryan has gone pizzagate on Trump, tweeted Steve Robinson, who produces the Howie Carr radio talk show.

CNN'S APRIL RYAN HIT FOR SAYING MELANIA TRUMP IS 'NOT CULTURALLY AMERICAN'

This is a horrid excuse for journalism, Carmine Sabia tweeted. To quasi accuse the president of the United States of running a child trafficking ring is low even for her.

Case solved, Michael Sheridan tweeted. He pointed out that The Root is owned by Univision, whose president and CEO criticized Trump during the presidential campaign.
A 60-year-old man was shot twice during a robbery attempt at a fast food restaurant in California.

The shooting happened about 12:45 Saturday morning in Santa Ana, Calif., when the unnamed masked robber threw a bag at the cashier at the Cozy Corner Drive-In and demanded she fill it with money.

After the man grabbed the bag, a customer at the drive-thru window reportedly took out a gun and started shooting at the robbery suspect.

DENNY'S CUSTOMER ARRESTED AFTER ALLEGEDLY SLAPPING WAITRESS' BUTT

According to the Santa Ana Police Department, the robbery suspect was shot twice in the upper torso area, NBC 4 reported. Another shot hit the drink machine in the restaurant.

The shooting suspect drove off following the incident. The robber tried to flee, but collapsed outside the restaurant where police apprehended him.

The robbery suspect was taken to a nearby hospital where he was treated for gunshot wounds.

The restaurants manager, Francisco Reyno, told NBC 4 hes happy none of his employees were hurt during the shooting. He is also relieved the stolen $274 was immediately recovered.

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS

Police are investigating the incident. According to surveillance video and employee interviews, the shooter was alone in a silver sedan, NBC 4 reported.

A cook that was interviewed at the scene said he did not believe the shooting suspect knew the robber or had any connection to the incident.

Al mejor el carro quizo ayudar, employee Acevedo said to CBSLA, believing the people in the car were trying to help, at best.

The restaurant remained open for business Saturday.
The vintage look just got a whole lot more expensive. A buyer in Southeast Asia has purchased a pair of 125-year-old Levis for almost $100,000.

And you thought your jeans cost a pretty penny.

The jeans, originally bought in 1893 by Solomon Warner, a storekeeper in the Arizona Territory, have a drastically different look than todays Levis. Warners jeans had but a single rear pocket, a button fly and no belt loops -- remember, men favored a good set of suspenders back in the day.

The denims, size 44 with a 36-inch inseam, suggest that Warner was no small man.

Warner, it turns out, had a colorful history that had nothing to do with his jeans. He established one of the first stores selling American dry goods in Tucson, and survived being shot by Apaches in 1870.

The jeans were in good condition when they were purchased earlier this month because Warner had only worn them a few times before becoming ill.

The identity of the buyer and the exact amount of the sale have remained under wraps, because the Levis were sold through a private sale and not by way of an auction.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

Editor's note: Taya Kyle is the widow of former U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, who served four tours in the Iraq War and was awarded the Silver Star and four Bronze Star medals for heroism in combat. He became well-known after the publication of his best-selling book American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History in 2012, which was the basis for a 2014 movie. He and a friend were shot and killed at a gun range in Texas in 2013 by a military veteran who they were trying to help. The Chris Kyle Frog Foundation (CKFF) was created after Chris was killed based on the mission he and Taya talked about together to give back to military and first responders. Taya continued the work that the two were just getting started on when Chris was killed. Find out more about CKFF here.

May 8th was such an emotional day in Odessa. The dedication of the second Chris Kyle Memorial Highway was a lovely tribute to Chris. I felt blessed to be invited.

So many good people have worked so hard and donated so much of their time and money to honor Chris and all who serve. Senator Kel Seliger imagined years from now, after we are all long gone, there will be a child who sees the memorial and asks his or her parents Who was Chris Kyle? Thats when my heart clutched and the tears sprang up.

I hope they will see the handwritten notes from family carved into the stone at the base of the breathtaking sculpture and see he was man loved by his family.

I hope they will see the flag and know he was a man who offered his life to defend his country.

I hope they will see all branches of service represented, the wellness center next door -- a testament to the price of service.

I hope they will see the visitors and memorabilia left behind and know Chris Kyle was a humble man and he inspired others.

I hope they have a moment to meet one of the many veterans who visit the plaza and I hope they take a minute to talk with them. I did. The man pictured on my Facebook page with served in Vietnam.

He shared with me a time when he went into a VFW location and had WWII veterans tell him Vietnam wasnt a real war and he wasnt welcome there.

He told me about relatives who believed he should have gone to Canada rather than fight in a war they didnt believe in.

His marriage ended.

He sacrificed much.

He wasnt complaining. He was sharing the truth of his life with no grudges.

Hes made peace with people who dont agree or understand his beliefs and life of service.

Hes fought his way through pain to find happiness. He is a warrior in life. He also shared with me his happiness today with a wife he has loved for many years; his bright blue eyes twinkled as he talked about her.

He shared his desire to continue serving today in ways he could do from a wheelchair and the sting of the young people who dismiss his desires because they have other people who can do the work.

Then, he pulled out his wings and told me that although he had many, these were the actual wings he was given in Vietnam. He has carried them with him for a long time. He placed them in my hands and told me he wanted me to have them.

Thats when the ugly cry started. I was overwhelmed with the magnitude of service, sacrifice and a warriors deep desire to understand and be understood.

This warrior has a happy life. That in itself is a battle, a valiant fight for one who has endured much.

The overwhelming spirit of Chris, healing and service is palpable in the hot dry winds of Odessa blowing across the memorial plaza. Odessans have outdone themselves. This memorial says much about Chris and it says so much about the people in Odessa and what Odessa stands for.

To KDC Associates who donated their service to design the plaza, Vic Payne who sculpted the masterpiece of Chris so thoughtfully and lovingly, State Representative Brooks Landgraf who thought of and championed the Highway naming, State Senator Kel Seliger who pushed it through the Senate, the Odessa Chamber of Commerce who has tirelessly worked to represent their community with this effort and to the generous donors who made it all possible.... Well done.

My heart is full for all the lives you will continue to touch.

To Kirk Edwards, thank you for bringing me out to Odessa for the afternoon.

To the Steens, thank you for the much needed laughter afterward and to Chris...I felt you there. I can only imagine what it must feel like for you in heaven seeing the mark your earthly life has made on so many.

I am happy for you. I ache with missing you. I love you. I always will.

Adapted from a Facebook post published on May 9, 2018.
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

The current Robert Mueller-Justice Department-Russia mess is almost impossible to understand because it is made up of five parallel scandals.

For months, as I wrote my new book, Trumps America, I tried to better understand news as it emerged from the Justice Department  and I still am trying. There are so many moving parts, personalities and dates that it is difficult to track. However, as a trained historian, I began creating an orderly outline for people, dates and events.

I realized that the scandal is so big, so complex, and involves so many people with power that codifying it really required me to draw from my experience writing novels. There are so many egos and there is so much manipulative behavior, dishonesty (and dishonesty about the dishonesty) that it is very difficult to explain it as a straightforward history. It could be more easily explained as a narrative of ambition, illegality and criminal plotting.

Finally, it hit me that the real problem is that there are five parallel and often interlocked scandals going on in concert:

1. The Clintons have been breaking the law and getting away with it at least since Hillary Clinton made nearly $100,000 from a $1,000 investment in cattle futures in 1978-1979. For 40 years the Clintons have acted as though there were no laws that applied to them. They have surrounded themselves with lawyers and simply muscled their way through every scandal. The scale of Clinton illegal activity is so large and so widespread that no one has been able to fully describe it  although Peter Schweizer made a pretty good start with his book Clinton Cash.



2. The extraordinary deep state defense of Hillary Clinton, combined with the systematic avoidance of exposing and dealing with her illegal behaviors while protecting her staff members when they support and participate in her illegality, is beyond anything we have seen in American history.



The reason for this deep state resistance is simple. Transparency is going to get a lot of people in trouble  and it goes to the very top.

3. The calculated effort to undermine and discredit then-candidate and now-President Donald Trump is actually a continuation of a deep anti-Republican bias in the Justice Department. This Justice Department tradition is well catalogued in Sidney Powells stunning book, Licensed to Lie: Exposing Corruption in the Department of Justice.

If you have any illusions about the Justice Departments objectivity, keep in mind that employees of this department gave 97 percent of their 2016 campaign donations to Hillary Clinton  while the department was supposedly investigating her for illegally using a private email server to send and receive classified information as secretary of state. With each passing week, we are learning more about the extraordinary abuses of power designed to undermine President Trump and punish his supporters (a direct contrast to the treatment of Clinton and her staff). The aggressive abuse of power has led both Alan Dershowitz and former Clinton adviser Mark Penn to warn that limitless police power is a danger to all of us.



4. The scandal of the deep state resistance to accountability and transparency has also been astounding. As a career deep state member, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein has consistently resisted inquiries by Congress. Documents requested by the Senate Judiciary Committee were heavily redacted for supposed national security reasons  which turned out to have nothing to do with national security (including the fact that the FBI had spent $70,000 on a conference table).

Meanwhile, more than 1 million documents were withheld from the House Judiciary Committee for so long that the committee had to issue a subpoena. The reason for this deep state resistance is simple. Transparency is going to get a lot of people in trouble  and it goes to the very top. When Lisa Page wrote Peter Strzok in September 2016, POTUS wants to know everything, there is good reason to believe President Obama was the one she was referring to as POTUS. If President Obama wanted to know everything, given the way his White House worked, it is very likely his senior adviser Valerie Jarrett knew everything. The more we learn, the bigger the scandal web gets.



5. Panic is breaking out among senior people who engaged in illegal activities because they thought President Hillary Clinton would protect them. Suddenly, they find themselves in danger of criminal charges. That is why people like former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former CIA Director John Brennan grow increasingly hysterical in their TV appearances.

I did my best to succinctly capture this moment in American history in Trumps America, but each one of these five scandals is worthy of its own detailed book. Taken together, they are a mound of illegalities, abuses, dishonesty, and manipulation  on a scale that has never before occurred in America.

I suspect when all these scandals are unraveled, a political and cultural reckoning in Washington will follow.
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

I believe that everybody has a purpose in life. For as long as I can remember, Ive known my purpose is to serve our country. Even when I was a little boy and my friends wanted to be firefighters or rock stars, I always wanted to be a soldier.

When I became old enough, I followed my fathers footsteps and enlisted in the U.S. Army. I had the honor of working as a bomb disposal expert under the elite Joint Special Operations Command.

Bomb disposal experts have a saying: initial success or total failure. But even in the most stressful situations, we drew strength from working together. It didnt matter where people came from, how much money they had, or who they voted for. The only thing that mattered was working toward our common goal.

I loved every minute of it. Then my life changed forever on Sept. 19, 2010. That night we were on a mission near Kandahar in Afghanistan when we came across a river. As I was clearing the way for my fellow soldiers along the riverbank, I stood up to give our two snipers the signal that I was going to move ahead. Just as I started to move, a bomb ripped through my legs and the left side of my torso.

I woke up in Walter Reed Army Medical Center about a week later missing both of my legs and a finger. But the hardest thing for me was confronting the reality that Id never be an asset on the battlefield again.

Thats when my dad gave me the most important piece of advice Ive ever received:

Brian, I love you. Im glad youre OK. Im glad youre alive, he told me. Then he said very seriously: You cant let this keep you down. Youve got to find a way to get out there.

I may have lost my ability to be an asset on the battlefield, but I didnt lose my purpose. With the support of my family, I set out to find a new way to serve our country, and in 2016 the people of the 18th District of Florida gave me the tremendous opportunity to represent them in Congress.

I havent been in Congress long, but its become clear in my brief time in Washington that our politicians could learn a thing or two from the Army.

First, if you want to fix an issue, youve got to be present for the problem. I know that as a result of our war scars, both physical and mental, veterans have unique health-care needs that we must do a better job of caring for.

Thats why I still do and always will get my health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). I experience the issues firsthand, and when things go right, I also am there to celebrate the successes.

Second, we need to spend less time fighting each other and more time fighting for the American people.

The men and women served by the VA are not all Republicans or all Democrats, but they are all patriotic Americans who put their lives on the line and have earned the best care we have to offer. We must work together to deliver on the promise we made to care for them when they returned home.

These two lessons led me to open the first-ever congressional office inside a VA facility at the West Palm Beach, Florida in a shared space with the rest of the bipartisan congressional delegation from my area.

This office has allowed us to help veterans on the spot: when and where theyre having an issue.

Weve held more than 250 meetings and opened more than 100 new cases to help veterans in less than half a year.

I believe every single member of Congress should do the same at his or her local VA. Not only will it help veterans in their communities, but it will force those members to be present for the successes and failures at the VA.



If we ever hope to deliver on our promise of excellent care for veterans, members of Congress are going to need a much better understanding of the issues than they have right now.

That's why I introduced The Improving Veterans Access to Congressional Services Act to pave the way to make that high level of service a reality for our veterans all across the country.

My bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to make space available for congressional offices during normal business hours in a location that is easily accessible to the members constituents.

This is a commonsense, bipartisan way to make serious progress for veterans. Heres another: as primaries take place across the country, lets choose nominees who are willing to make the simple commitment that one of their offices will be in their local VA.

And this November, lets get more veterans elected who understand the dire needs of this one-of-a-kind community.

Even in this era of hyper partisanship, support for our veterans should be a litmus test that we can all get behind.
President Donald Trump on Saturday said talks regarding a possible summit with North Korea were going along very well, just days after he canceled next months highly anticipated meeting with the rogue nation.

Were doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea, Trump said at the White House after welcoming home Joshua Holt, who returned to the U.S. on Saturday after being incarcerated in a Venezuelan jail. Looks like its going along very well.

Trump said meetings were ongoing and they were still looking at June 12 in Singapore, that hasnt changed.

He added that if it would be a great thing if they were successful in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

NORTH AND SOUTH KOREAN LEADERS MEET FOR SECOND TIME IN A MONTH

The presidents remarks followed a surprise meeting Saturday between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, during which the pair agreed their countries would have high-level talks next month and Kim expressed his fixed will on meeting with Trump, according to Yonhap News.

On Sunday, Moon told reporters that Kim committed to meeting with Trump and to a "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," the Associated Press reported.

Moon said he assured Kim that Trump has a "firm resolve" to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic coooperation if Kim implements "complete denuclearization."

The two Korean leaders met on the North Korean side of the demilitarized zone in the village of Panmunjom to discuss peace commitments made during their historic first summit last month. They also reportedly talked frankly about how they could make the potential summit between Kim and Trump a success.

The meeting came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a summit between Trump and Kim following a whirlwind 24 hours that saw the U.S. president cancel the meeting.

"Kim Jong-un thanked Moon Jae-in for much effort made by him for the DPRK-U.S. summit scheduled for June 12, and expressed his fixed will on the historic DPRK-U.S. summit talks," Yonhap reported, citing the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). "Kim Jong-un told Moon Jae-in to positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve the DPRK-U.S. relations and establish mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

TRUMP WELCOMES STATEMENT FROM NORTH KOREA, SAYS TALKS TO REINSTATE SUMMIT PRODUCTIVE

The leaders of the neighboring countries said they would hold high-level talks on June 1 and also promised to meet frequently in the future to make dialogue brisk and pool wisdom and efforts, expressing their stand to make joint efforts for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Yonhap reported.

The talks between North and South Korea was initially supposed to occur earlier this month until it was called off by the North, citing military exercises conducted by the South and the U.S.

Prior to Kim and Moons meeting, Trump suggested that his summit with North Korea may still go ahead.

We are having very productive talks with North Korea about reinstating the Summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date, Trump tweeted.

Fox News Kathleen Joyce and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
During a wide-ranging interview to promote her latest book, Chelsea Clinton said that President Trump degrades what it means to be an American and said she would protest his planned July visit to the U.K. if she was British.

The former first daughter, who just published "She Persisted Around the World," blamed the Trump administration for having mainlined hate and cited reports of a rise in hate crimes  as documented by organizations like the Southern Poverty Law Center and the FBI.

Not just the hundreds, but now thousands of instances in schools across America, where children are citing the president as theyre demeaning a little girl, or theyre chanting Build a wall in an attempt to demean and degrade brown children, she told the Guardian.

Trump made building a wall at Americas southern border a cornerstone of his 2016 presidential campaign, and, despite the fact that it has become comedic fodder for late-night talk show hosts the wall is being built.

I think those of us who have platforms to do that have to say this is wrong and unacceptable, so we dont normalize it but try to detoxify what has been unleashed. Because if we dont, we leave a vacuum. And I think the darkness fills that vacuum, she added.

When asked by the Guardian how British people should respond to Trumps planned visit in July, Clinton referenced her children, saying:

Well, Ive been to multiple protests since the election. Charlottes been to at least three, maybe four. Aidans been to one. If I lived in Britain I would show up to protest, because I dont agree with what hes doing to degrade what it means to be an American.

Of her reported friendship with Ivanka Trump, current first daughter and assistant to the president, Clinton said the two havent spoken in a long time and implied that Ivanka is fair game in terms of her advocacy for her fathers policies.

Shes an adult. She can make the choices for herself. I mean, shes 36. We are responsible for our choices. In 2008, I was really proud to support my mom  but I disagreed with her fundamentally on a few things, particularly her then opposition to equal marriage rights for LGBTQ Americans, she explained. I never defended that position, because it wasnt what I believed was the right thing to do.

Clinton said that liberals have been too focused on tolerance when it comes to different minority groups. In her view, that's not enough.

People tolerated casual misogyny, but casual misogyny is maybe the gateway drug. We have freedom of speech, which I do think is hugely important  and yet people thought you couldnt dispute hateful things, because theyre like  well, its freedom of speech. Well, freedom of speech doesnt mean there is freedom of consequences.

The 38-year-old, who serves as vice chair of the Clinton Foundation and has two children with her husband Mark Mezvinsky, remains focused on electing Democrats but said the country will have a long way to go to repair the damage thats been done.

I think the wreckage that were seeing at this moment is one that will, I hope, be repaired on the policy standpoint when we elect Democrats, Clinton said. But I think we will still then have work to do on repairing the tone in our country, the exposure of the real racist and sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic and anti-Semitic feeling which is on the rise in our country  a rot that has been exposed.
Former President George H.W. Bush was taken to the hospital in Maine on Sunday after he experienced low blood pressure and fatigue, his spokesman said.

Bush, 93, who is in Maine to spend the summer at his Kennebunkport house, was taken to Southern Maine Health Care and will remain there for a few days for observation, spokesman Jim McGrath said.

The former president is awake and alert, and not in any discomfort, McGrath tweeted.

The 41st president was hospitalized in late April  a day after the funeral for his wife, former first lady Barbara Bush  and treated for an infection that spread to his blood. He was released earlier this month and was happy to return home, McGrath said.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH ARRIVES IN MAINE FOR THE SUMMER, FAMILY SAYS

On Saturday, Bush was also pictured meeting with veterans for a pancake breakfast at American Legion Post 159. He posted several photos from the event of him smiling on Twitter.

Delighted to join the veterans, including my dear friend Gen. Brent Scowcroft, at the @AmericanLegion Post 159 monthly pancake breakfast in Kennebunkport today, Bush wrote. This weekend we remember, and thank, all who have given their lives for our great country.

GEORGE H.W. BUSH SAYS HE MET WITH VETERANS AT PANCAKE BREAKFAST IN MAINE

The former president arrived in Maine last week. Bush has spent part of every summer in Kennebunkport since his childhood, except while serving as a naval aviator during World War II. Friends of the 41st president have said he'd been eager to get to Maine after Barbara Bushs death.

Fox News Elizabeth Zwirz contributed to this report.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. revealed he doesnt believe Sirhan B. Sirhan, the man convicted of killing his father Bobby Kennedy in 1968, had carried out the assassination and believes a second shooter was involved.

In an interview with the Washington Post published Saturday, Kennedy said he met with Sirhan for three hours after spending months reviewing autopsy results, police reports and interviewing witnesses who was there when his father was killed. Its been nearly 50 years since Bobby Kennedy was killed in Los Angeles Ambassador Hotel, but the 64-year-old said he reached a point where he had to talk to the man convicted of killing his father.

I went there because I was curious and disturbed by what I had seen in the evidence, Kennedy said, not disclosing details of their conversation. I was disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father. My father was the chief law enforcement officer in this country.

He added, I think it would have disturbed him if somebody was put in jail for a crime they didnt commit.

Sirhan had admitted during his 1969 trial to shooting the then-Democratic presidential candidate, but repeatedly said he didnt remember pulling the trigger. An autopsy report also showed Bobby Kennedy was shot in the back  when Sirhan was standing in front of him.

Reports through the years also indicated 13 shots were fired that day when Sirhans gun only held eight bullets. Several witnesses said Sirhan wasn't close to the senator.

Kennedy is now supporting a call for a reinvestigation into his fathers assassination. His doubts of Sirhan, who is serving life in prison, killing his father follows the belief that a second shooter was also at the scene.

Paul Schrade  who was shot in the head while walking behind Bobby Kennedy  said he also thinks Sirhan didnt shoot the politician. He believes Sirhans bullets hit him and four others wounded that day.

Yes, he did shoot me. Yes, he shot four other people and aimed at Kennedy, Schrade told the Washington Post. The important thing is he did not shoot Robert Kennedy. Why didnt they go after the second gunman? They knew about him right away. They didnt want to know who it was. They wanted a quickie.

Schrade, 93, had convinced Kennedy, a lawyer and environmental activist, to look into the assassination after showing him the autopsy report. Kennedy, the third oldest of 11 children, was 14 when his father was killed.

The court has refused to open a new investigation into the assassination, the Washington Post reported. Sirhans appeals have been rejected multiple times, including as recently as 2016.

Other members of the Kennedy family did not comment on the report.

This isnt the first time Kennedy has backed a controversial theory. He argued last year that certain vaccines were unsafe for children.
President Trump on Sunday lashed out at the Mueller probe -- suggesting the investigation is rigged with partisan bias and questioning why it didnt investigate the rival 2016 presidential campaign of Crooked Hillary Clinton.

Why didnt the 13 Angry Democrats investigate the campaign of Crooked Hillary Clinton, tweeted Trump, in an apparent reference to the 1950's courtroom drama Twelve Angry Men. Many crimes, much Collusion with Russia? Why didnt the FBI take the Server from the DNC? Rigged Investigation!

Trump tweeted minutes after personal attorney Rudy Giuliani told Fox News Sunday that special counsel Robert Muellers team investigating Russia meddling in the 2016 presidential race had 13 Democrats and that it was rigged.

Trump in recent weeks has called for a second special counsel -- to investigate whether the Justice Department surveilled his campaign.

The DNC, or Democratic National Committee, has acknowledged that its server was hacked during the 2016 race. But the group apparently did not seek help from the FBI.
President Trump on Sunday blasted former President Obama and his former political rival, Hillary Clinton, claiming Obama did nothing to stop the so-called Russian Meddling ahead of the 2016 election.

Why didnt President Obama do something about the so-called Russian Meddling when he was told about it by the FBI before the Election? he asked.

Trump continued, Because he thought Crooked Hillary was going to win, and he didnt want to upset the apple cart! He was in charge, not me, and did nothing.

The presidents remarks came several hours after he lashed out at special counsel Robert Muellers probe on the social media platform.

GIULIANI SAYS MUELLER PROBE 'RIGGED,' FOCUSING ON THINGS THAT DIDN'T HAPPEN

Why didnt the 13 Angry Democrats investigate the campaign of Crooked Hillary Clinton, tweeted Trump, in an apparent reference to the courtroom drama Twelve Angry Men. Many crimes, much Collusion with Russia? Why didnt the FBI take the Server from the DNC? Rigged Investigation!

Trump tweeted minutes after personal attorney Rudy Giuliani told Fox News Sunday that Muellers team investigating Russia meddling in the 2016 presidential race had 13 Democrats, and said it was rigged.

Trump in recent weeks has called for an additional special counsel -- to investigate whether the Justice Department surveilled his campaign.

Trump referenced the "phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt" in another Sunday morning tweet.

Whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt? he asked. They journeyed down to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes and wanting to help our nation...They went back home in tatters!

Trump didnt mention any specific names regarding whose lives might have been destroyed.
President Trump said Sunday that U.S. officials had arrived in North Korea for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, in perhaps the strongest indication that the much-anticipated meeting could be back on.



Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen! Trump tweeted.

A U.S. delegation is in ongoing talks with North Korean officials at Panmunjom, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement about the meeting, reported first by The Washington Post. We continue to prepare for a meeting between the President and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

On Sunday morning, Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt, a top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, commended Trump for trying to get North Korea to meet and agree to dismantling its nuclear arsenal, but warned all sides must first agree on the terms and warned that tactics last week are right out of the North Korean playbook.

Were in the three generations of that playbook now, Blunt told Fox News Sunday. Act like you want to negotiate and come up with some outlandish view of what that negotiation means.

He suggested the tactic is an attempt to extract a concession in exchange for a promise that isnt kept.

Blunt also said all three sides  the U.S., North Korea and South Korea  must first agree on the terms of the summit, including what exactly is the denuclearization of North Korea.

And, he lauded Trump, whose presidential campaign he supported, for his efforts toward such an historic summit.

I think the president has got the North Koreans in a place that any other president might not have managed to get done, Blunt said. Hes very willing to reach out in new directions through the South Korean president, willing to meet with the North Korean president but also willing to walk away.

A meeting Saturday between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, a U.S. ally, renewed optimism.

Their quickly arranged meeting, the second in a month, appeared to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the worlds most heavily armed border.

Moon, who brokered the summit between Washington and Pyongyang, likely used Saturdays meeting to confirm Kims willingness to enter nuclear negotiations with Trump and clarify what steps Kim has in mind in the process of denuclearization, said Hong Min, a senior analyst at Seouls Korea Institute for National Unification.

Trump said Saturday that conversations about a potential summit were going along very well.

They were still looking at June 12 in Singapore, that hasnt changed, Trump said at the White House Saturday.

He added that if it would be a great thing if they were successful in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

He announced on Thursday that he was withdrawing from the scheduled June summit in Singapore. The cancellation apparently followed Secretary of State Mike Pompeo setting some strict ground-rules ahead for the meeting, which in turn resulted in North Korea vice foreign minister reportedly saying that Pyongyang could make the United States taste an appalling tragedy and that a stalemate could lead to a nuclear-to-nuclear showdown.

Based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting, Trump wrote in his letter to Kim. Therefore, please let this letter serve to represent that the Singapore summit, for the good of both parties, but to the detriment of the world, will not take place.

He called the imploded summit a sad moment in history.

You talk about your nuclear capabilities, but ours are so massive and powerful that I pray to God they will never have to be used, Trump wrote to Kim. If you change your mind having to do with this most important summit, please do not hesitate to call me or write. The world, and North Korea in particular, has lost a great opportunity for lasting peace and great prosperity and wealth.

On Friday Trump said that the meeting might be back on.

He told reporters Friday that everybody plays games, and said: They very much want to do it, we want to do it, well see what happens.

Fox News Rich Edson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A NASA photographer was able to salvage a camera's memory card and watch the final moments before the device was engulfed in flames while filming a launch at a California air base.

Longtime NASA photographer Bill Ingalls wanted to shoot the launch of Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-on, or GRACE-FO, at Vandenberg Air Force Base last Tuesday and set up six cameras around the launch pad, the agency wrote in a blog post Friday.

"I had six remotes, two outside the launch pad safety perimeter and four inside," Ingalls said. "Unfortunately, the launch started a grass fire that toasted one of the cameras outside the perimeter."

The camera that was placed a quarter of a mile away from the launch pad, the farthest location, was engulfed in flames from the brush fire, destroying the devices body in the process. Ingalls returned to the site hoping there was one salvageable piece of the toasty camera.

The memory card not only survived the fire, but also captured the final moments of flames approaching the area and slowing melting the lens. NASA released the fiery footage that showed the plastic casing melting over the lens until it stops recording.

The four other cameras closest to the launch pad were undamaged. The other camera placed outside the launch pad was also not impacted by the fire.

The melted NASA camera will mostly likely be displayed at the agencys headquarters in Washington, D.C.
This is a rush transcript from "Fox News Sunday," May 27, 2018. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

BILL HEMMER, FOX NEWS: I'm Bill Hammer in for Chris Wallace.

The on-again, off-again summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un, will it still happen?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed, moving along pretty well.

HEMMER: We'll discuss the about-face by the president just day after canceling the high-stakes Singapore summit with two top senators, Republican Roy Blunt of Missouri and Democrat Chris Coons of Delaware.

Then, President Trump and his legal team call into question the Mueller investigation, suggesting the FBI improperly spied on his campaign.

TRUMP: If they had spies in my campaign, that would be a disgrace to this country. That would be one of the biggest insults that anyone has ever seen.

HEMMER: The president calls it spygate. What impact does this have on an interview with a special counsel? We'll ask one of the president's personal lawyers, Rudy Giuliani.

Plus, we'll ask our Sunday panel about a new warning for Tehran.

MIKE POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE: To the ayatollah and to the President of Iraq Rouhani and to other Iranian leaders -- understand that your current activities will be met with steely resolve.

HEMMER: All, right now, on "Fox News Sunday".

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: And to our viewers and to our veterans on this Memorial Day weekend, welcome to Fox News in Washington.

There are fresh signs that the push is on to revive the historic summit between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Since Mr. Trump called off the meeting early Thursday morning, the sides have apparently been back in contact. North Korea and South Korea held a surprise second meeting on Saturday, along the DMZ, and a White House advance team is expected to leave possibly today for Singapore just in case.

Also this, the president saying last night, there is still a chance meeting on June 12th could still happen.

Correspondent Kevin Corke starts our coverage live from the White House.

Kevin, hello.

KEVIN CORKE, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Bill, hello. From the North's previous release of three American captives to its apparent decommissioning of a nuclear test site, the historic talks between the U.S. and North Korea appeared all but certain, and then unraveled, but perhaps now will happen after all.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CORKE: Take you back to Wednesday night, following U.S. references to the so-called Libyan model of denuclearization which in turn led to a letter from the North threatening a possible nuclear showdown with the U.S., President Trump huddled with his national security advisor John Bolton. It wasn't long after, in fact, Thursday morning that we all read the president's letter canceling the summit, adding that the U.S.'s nuclear capabilities were massive and that he prayed to God they never have to be used.

Then Friday, a mere 24 hours later, a glimmer of hope as both the president and defense secretary Jim Mattis seemed to signal optimism the talks could happen after all following conciliatory statements from Pyongyang. All that just ahead of Saturday's report that the leaders from the North and the South met and announced that Pyongyang's commitment to the meeting and full denuclearization remains resolute, about which President Trump said this last night.

TRUMP: I think there's a lot of goodwill. I think people want to see if we can get the meeting and get something done. If we've got that done and if we can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula that would be a great thing for North Korea, it would be a great thing for South Korea, it would be great for Japan and great for the world.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CORKE: Bill, advanced teams from Washington and Pyongyang are set to be heading to the region perhaps as soon as today, in advance to that meeting. By the way, that date is an interesting one, June 12th, 1987. You may recall President Reagan famously told Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down this wall. Perhaps we'll see a repeat of history this June 12th.

HEMMER: And we'll see if it happens. Thank you, Kevin. Kevin Corke reporting from the White House today -- Kevin, thanks.

Joining me now is one of the president's personal lawyers, Rudy Giuliani.

Mr. Mayor, welcome to "Fox News Sunday."

(LAUGHTER)

HEMMER: I understand you spoke with the president just a few hours ago. Is he too eager for this moment to happen?

RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S ATTORNEY: Well, sure he is, and I think he's positioned it brilliantly. Even his opponents think (ph) of that.

I mean, he wouldn't submit to that ridiculous comment about a meeting on the nuclear battlefield. He canceled it and now we have Kim Jong-un back where he was before, talking about wanting to do it, meeting with the leader of South Korea. So, I don't want to raise expectations, but I think the president's strategy has played out really brilliantly in the most remarkable thing, he can do it with all these interruptions that I have to bring to him and Jay Sekulow, you know, this totally rigged investigation.

HEMMER: Yes, but did he express a level of optimism with you? And just back to my question, is he too eager to make the summit happen?

GIULIANI: Well, no. I mean, somebody who's too eager to do it wouldn't have turned it down, wouldn't have canceled it. I mean, he's playing this like Ronald Reagan played Reykjavik and I think his achievement would be as great or greater when it's all finished.

Let's hope.

HEMMER: OK.

GIULIANI: And it might take six months. Reykjavik didn't happen in a day.

HEMMER: Right. You are right about that and there will be stops and starts along the way and we should be certainly aware of all that. But you said the summit needs to be decided before the Mueller matter moves forward, so let's move to the Mueller now.

This weekend, you said you would not go forward with Mueller until you understand what was happening with an informant with the Trump campaign.

So, sir, what was this person doing with the campaign?

GIULIANI: Well, I mean, I don't know that yet. I haven't been told that.

I mean, it just further reiterates what I've come to conclude after two months of being in this and the president obviously knew from very early on, which is this is rigged. I mean, you got 13 Democrats. You've got a focus on things that didn't happen, no Russia collusion, no obstruction, just defending yourself. And now, we are into the basis of it being illegitimate.

Look at Professor Calabresi's article just a few days ago about his question whether there should even be an investigation because of the fact that they switched over from counterintelligence to criminal, and we don't -- I want to know, did they get in the evidence in that counterintelligence probe? I think they didn't. So, you know, that was -- casts doubt.

(CROSSTALK)

HEMMER: So, you know, when you say they you don't think they did or they did not as you just referred to there. Do you have that on good information?

Because there were two classified briefings just on Thursday this week and I'm told no documents were shown, no one has talked about the briefing. There was a short statement that was given by Adam Schiff and he read it off of a piece of paper.

So, I -- what can you learn or perhaps now, what do you know about this informant?

GIULIANI: What I know is just what I speculate, not anything that has been said to me. No one has shared it with me. I'm positive they shared it with the president. But probably at this point, it's better that we don't know.

We have to know, however before we can recommend to the president whether to be interviewed (ph). When you look at the backdrop of this rigged investigation, when you look at how they treated Manafort, how they spun off into Cohen, how they are chasing things in the Middle East -- I mean, the reality is, we are not going to sit him down if this is a trap for perjury. And until -- we are convinced of that. And if they don't show us these documents, well, we are just going to have to say no.

Let me emphasize, he wants to explain that he did nothing wrong. It's us the lawyers who have to convince him that this is a trap.

HEMMER: So, take us inside that meeting with the president. What do you tell him? What does he ask you? What is that interchange then?

GIULIANI: First of all, my job has been to try and negotiate grounds for an interview. And we've been doing it. I mean, we have a team now not only with Jay, but with Jane Raskin and Marty Raskin. She's taken -- she has taken the load really of doing the negotiating with the Mueller people.

But the reality is that we have all become convinced, even though we began with the hope that this would be done in good faith that there's too much here. Now, some of it is Mueller's fault. Some isn't. The whole thing with this investigation that was going on which we consider spying was done before Mueller got involved. But it completely taints his investigation.

HEMMER: Entirely you believe?

GIULIANI: Yes. I mean, what's -- you've got to ask, what's the basis of the investigation. That and how about a leaked Comey report that turns out to come from a guy who is one of the biggest liars in the history of Washington.

HEMMER: Well, let me get back to Comey in a moment. James Clapper said this about what you are referring to on this informant this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES CLAPPER, FORMER DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: No, they were not. They were spying on -- a term I don't particularly like -- but on what the Russians were doing, trying to understand were the Russians infiltrating, trying to gain access, trying to gain leverage and influence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Well, you call it a spy, they call it an informant. What's wrong with the government --

(CROSSTALK)

HEMMER: What's wrong with the government trying to figure out what Russia was up to?

GIULIANI: Nothing wrong with the government doing that. Everything wrong with the government spying on a candidate of the opposition party. That's a Watergate, a spygate. I mean -- and without any warning to him.

And now, to compound that, to make it into a criminal investigation, Bill, that's why this is a rigged investigation. That's why the president has been right from the beginning. Way back when the president said there was surveillance of his campaign, it turns out he was right. It was -- it was human surveillance rather than technical surveillance, but surveillance nonetheless.

HEMMER: All right. So, strategy became clear back to James Comey. You're going to put the credibility of the president up against the credibility of James Comey. In almost every day this week, the president has referred to Comey. He said this just on Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The FBI is a fantastic institution, but some of the people at the top were rotten apples. James Comey was one of them. I have done a great service for this country by getting rid of him by firing him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: So, on that same -- on that same day James Comey tweeted this. He said: Facts matter. The FBI's use of confidential human sources, the actual term, is tightly regulated and essential to protecting the country. Attacks on the FBI and lying about his work will do lasting damage to our country. How will Republicans explain this to their grandchildren?

So, you are putting James Comey on trial and now listening to your talk today, you are also putting the government on trial based on that investigation saying it's not legitimate. I understand where you're coming from, Mr. Mayor, but how does this end?

GIULIANI: Well, first of all, it isn't the government. It's James Comey, Clapper, Brendan, the people took this investigation and turned it on a candidate.

Look, you can't say you're spying on the Russians if what you're trying to do is to show the Russians are colluding, whatever the hell that means, with the Trump campaign. So, the spying turned on the Trump campaign.

When it did that, the president should have been briefed. If he wasn't, it'd be an outrage. And then at that point, the Trump campaign should have been briefed and be asked to cooperate, not treated like criminals when there was no proof of any collusion.

Now, we're a year and a half later and there's no proof of collusion. So, stop the investigation. Stop spending $20 million more.

HEMMER: If they do not -- if they do not do that, does the president have to fire someone?

GIULIANI: The president is not going to fire him because that'd be the playing into the hands of playing the victim, Watergate. They are the Watergate. The other people have committed the crimes.

What we have to do is go to court and seek protection from the court, if we have to do that. Our first thing is we sure as heck are not going to testify unless it's all straightened out, unless we learned the basis of that Russian investigation.

They are not going to tell us because the basis is going to turn up when expected to Trump to be unethical or illegal. They're going to have to tell us what they have found so far, the basis of the investigation -- Russian collusion.

Here's what they found: zero. Nada. Nothing.

The president -- gee, maybe they should wake up and realize the president is innocent. That's why he wants to testify and because of them, we don't want him to testify because they're not fair. They have rigged this investigation against him. Thirteen Democrats angry as heck and some of them there at Hillary Clinton's funeral --

(CROSSTALK)

GIULIANI: I mean, when she was supposed to have a victory party.

HEMMER: We are a long way from an interview, aren't we?

GIULIANI: Well, maybe we're not a long way from deciding we won't have one. And then they're going to have to go on what they have and everybody's going to find out there's not anything (ph).

HEMMER: Yes. But other than the week -- early in a week, you said if the summit matters decided, you could sit down in early July and may be part of Mueller's report comes out early September. Is that timeline still viable?

GIULIANI: It is if we could get over what seems to be fairly monumental problems that keep growing. Not -- we don't create them, Bill. They created the problem of this, what you want to call it, spygate, investigation, improper investigation of a candidate.

Why does everybody get all upset when they invade the Democratic National Committee, Republicans do, and now they've invaded the Trump campaign, nobody's angry?

HEMMER: Yes --

GIULIANI: They're not -- didn't warn (ph) them.

HEMMER: If you sit for an interview, you could walk into a perjury trap. If you delay or if you say no based on your description today, Democrats can use this against Republicans in the midterm. Are you essentially boxed in on that schedule?

GIULIANI: Well, could be, but I don't think so. I mean, here's where we are. We have to be lawyers. The four of us, five of us have to act like lawyers and we have to give him legal advice.

He can make the political judgment. Look, I could put a different hat on and talk about that too. His approval rating is the highest it's ever been.

I believe the Democrats are going up a wrong alley here. Republicans did this to Clinton and it backfired.

The reality is the American people have come to the conclusion everybody else has -- this investigation is rigged, it's unfair, and if they have to choose on impeachment or not, the president is going to be making peace with North Korea, God willing, and we should all be rooting for that, they are not probably, but we are. I don't see -- this could really turn on them and they are not going to have their impeachment congress that they want.

HEMMER: I have two more questions for you in that time I have left here. If you don't sit for an interview you could face a subpoena. And I know you said you'll challenge that subpoena all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court where you believe you will win because you believe you have the votes.

Who is the fifth vote at the Supreme Court for you today?

GIULIANI: Well, I think on the constitutional issue it's a close question. I think we win it, as does Ted Olson, who wrote an article about it in Weekly Standard, I think it was last week.

However, on the OLC question, mainly do they have the authority to do it? We can't lose. I think we get all votes, because the Justice Department defines the authority of the independent counsel. He doesn't have his own authority. The Justice Department says, cannot issue criminal process to a sitting president. That's the law basically all over the world for a head of state.

I can't see how we lose that, Bill. I mean, maybe in the ninth circuit, not in a fair court.

HEMMER: I pick one of your comments during the week, and you said he's more likely to sit with Chairman Kim then he is with Bob Mueller.

(LAUGHTER)

HEMMER: Listening -- you talk --

(CROSSTALK)

HEMMER: You described that as Korean perjury. I mean, just listening to, I don't believe this interview will ever happen. Am I wrong, sir?

GIULIANI: No! If they can satisfy us, it could happen. He wants to do it. So far, since I've been in this, all I see are obstacles that they are putting in the way. Starting with Cohen. I mean, what's that all about?

And then going off about something about the Middle East, which turned out to be a software that was turned down by the campaign. I mean -- and now the spygate, wow, we got to get -- and I don't think they're going to want to tell us about it because it's so damn embarrassing.

HEMMER: Last question.

GIULIANI: I want to emphasize one more time --

HEMMER: Yes.

GIULIANI: Not to the FBI, leadership at the time.

HEMMER: Yes. Last question: do you think you'd give instruction to his defense since you came on board?

GIULIANI: Pardon me?

HEMMER: Do you have --

GIULIANI: I do. I think I did. I think I took over a good situation. I think Ty and John Dowd had really done a good job. They got out of the way, all the disclosure of documents, and now, we can sit in a position and say, you don't need them, also a way to resist the subpoena.

And I think they had -- they have pretty much defined the fact that this interview had to be on our terms or we can't do it.

So, I think maybe I gave it more structure. I kind of have knowledge of him probably better than they do. I mean, he and I are very good friends for 30 years.

HEMMER: Yes, very interesting.

GIULIANI: And I worked very heavily on his campaign, so I know -- I know this great desire he has to testify. But I also know this is an intelligent man who's got a lot of other things to do and I can't stand it, as this interview is over, late today, I will wait for them to call me. I can't interrupt what's going on with -- I can't interrupt a briefing with Bolton and Pompeo. This is not important enough.

HEMMER: Mayor Giuliani, thank you for your time. Thanks for spending part of your Memorial weekend with us.

GIULIANI: Thank you.

HEMMER: Thanks.

Up next, two key senators react to the uncertainty of whether or not the Singapore summit will or will not happen.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: This week, President Trump canceled a long-awaited summit with Kim Jong-un, but hopes are still high that the two will meet. In a moment, we'll talk about that with Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, but first in studio with me here in Washington, Missouri Republican Senator Roy blunt on the Senate Intelligence Committee.

And, Senator Blunt, welcome back to "FOX News Sunday."

SEN. ROY BLUNT, R-MO., SENATE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: Good to be with you, Bill.

HEMMER: You were just listening to Rudy Giuliani. What did you hear in there that you think is important, Senator?

BLUNT: Well, you know, I did hear Rudy Giuliani mention again that the president is not going to do -- going to try to stop the Mueller investigation. He'd just like to have a come to a conclusion and I think that's pretty much where I am and the whole country is right now.

Let's get the facts, let's get this done, find out what there was to find out and move on. And I heard him once again say that just like I've said, I don't think we should make it impossible for the president to fire Mueller by congressional action because I don't think we have the right to do that. But I think it would be a foolish thing for the president to do to take that action that he probably has under the Constitution.

HEMMER: The mayor suggested he's not going to fire anyone.

BLUNT: Absolutely.

HEMMER: The president refers to this FBI informant matter as spygate. Should the government have an informant connected with the national campaign?

BLUNT: I think it would be fine to find out what the Russians were doing. It would not be fine to find out what the campaign was doing. I'm frankly concerned about a lot of the things we saw happen between the FBI and both campaigns, getting involved with the Clinton campaign at two different times, both of which I thought reached questionable conclusions.

And then if you actually did have someone trying to find out from the campaign what was going on in the campaign and who they were talking to as opposed to legitimately having reasons to believe that they should be there, we'll see. It's taking a long time to get this information from the FBI and frankly from the national security team.

HEMMER: Yes. On North Korea, you said this past week that the North Koreans like to pretend to negotiate. What was all of this about this past week, was that just pretend?

BLUNT: Well, who knows? You know, it's right out of the North Korean playbook. We're in the three generations of that playbook now. Act like you want to negotiate and come up with some outlandish view of what that negotiation means and try to wind up with early benefits to your side and not following through on what you have agreed to do, so, it's not surprising I don't think.

What was probably surprising to them was the president's agreement initially to meet and then his willingness to say, hey, if this is the -- it is not a serious meeting, I don't want to have it. I do think some things need to happen here before we meet and hopefully they will.

HEMMER: May be the Korean leaders meeting yesterday was another one of the surprises in a long list of surprises. Your colleague, Democrat Bob Menendez, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, this came up on Thursday with Mike Pompeo and he said this about the Korean summit.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BOB MENENDEZ, D-NJ, RANKING MEMBER, SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: The art of diplomacy is a lot harder than the art of the deal. The reality is, is that it's pretty amazing that the administration might be shocked that North Korea is acting as North Korea might very well normally act.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Sometimes I think that sounds like you would describe it. Is he right about that?

BLUNT: Well, I think the quote is not all that surprising that you'd suggest that somehow the president isn't reaching out the way he should.

I think the president has got the North Koreans in a place that any other president might not have managed to get done. He's very willing to reach out in new directions through the South Korean president, willing to meet with the North Korean president, but also willing to walk away. And I do think some things need to be decided before we have that meeting.

There needs to be a strong understanding of what both sides, what all three sides, frankly mean by denuclearization. We've got -- the South Korean president I believe providing a great benefit in this discussion, unless we are not all communicating in the same way. You know, what does denuclearization mean? What do they expect to see happen?

And I think these talks can produce results. We need results and they need to be very visible before the United States creates any benefits.

HEMMER: It's a very interesting comment, I think you need a bit of trust here to get that back on track. We'll see whether that happens.

On Iran, quickly, Mike Pompeo set out a dozen items that he wants the Iranian regime to go ahead and meet. Put them on screen, here's a few of them, and these are big issues too. Abandon the nuclear program. Provide full access to inspectors, end support for terror groups, and ballistic missile program, release U.S. citizens and on and on the list goes. A lot of demands.

Iran has said it has no incentive to negotiate with the U.S. government that rips up a nuclear deal. That seems like it's a stalemate.

If it is, what's plan B?

BLUNT: Well, first of all, the nuclear -- the agreement with Iran was an agreement that would allow them to eventually have a nuclear weapon and it was an agreement that our government ever entered into in the way government entered into agreements. It was an agreement that the president said he was for understanding the Congress would never verify the agreement we had just entered into and we have to learn from what's happened in 20 years with North Korea, what we don't want to allow to happen with Iran.

We do not want them to be able to have a nuclear weapon. The current deal allows that. We do not want them to be testing ballistic missiles, which they are doing. And they have to stop this worldwide effort to create terror activity all over the world.

HEMMER: And you pressure the Europeans to go along with that?

BLUNT: Well, we'll see how aggressive the president wants to be with the sanctions. It actually will depend on what we decide. Our sanctions will be against governments and businesses that deal with this Iranian government. It's the number one state sponsor of terrorism and frankly for the last several years, they have been financing that terrorism with the pallets full of money that we gave them back.

HEMMER: Senator, thank you for your time, especially on a holiday. Roy Blunt from Missouri, thank you, sir.

With me now from Wilmington, Delaware, Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat on the Foreign Relations Committee.

And just to continue on Iran for a moment -- Senator, thank you for your time.

You've said the nuclear deal is not a perfect deal. But do you see what Iran has been doing? And you her what the senator just listed off here, what's wrong with putting pressure on Berlin and Brussels and Paris?

SEN. CHRIS COONS, D-DEL., SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: Well, Bill, I agree with Secretary Pompeo and Senator Blunt that a lot of Iran's behavior outside the nuclear deal in recent years has been alarming and compels us to take action.

What I had wished the president had done is to recognize the benefits we've gotten from the Iran nuclear deal in constraining their nuclear program and getting us searching inspections of Iran's nuclear activities and work more closely with our European allies, with the Germans, the French, the British to reach a second deal, a bigger deal that would rein in their ballistic missile program, their human rights violation in their support for terrorism.

I completely agree that Iran is a bad regime that threatens our allies and conducts itself in ways that are unacceptable. I just disagree about whether causing greater distance with our European allies by sanctioning them and some of their biggest companies is the right path forward.

HEMMER: But perhaps you could change minds, yes or no, Senator, on that?

COONS: Well, I hope that we will see President Trump end up proving himself to be a dealmaker and not a deal breaker. But in this instance, I've heard from the ambassadors from our key European allies that they are concerned that "America First" is turning into America alone and whether it's in the path towards the Singapore summit with North Korea where our South Korean close ally was not consulted before the announcement was made, or it's in the path forward towards trying to ask restrain Iran's behavior and Russia's behavior that the close relationship we use to enjoy with Germany and France and the United Kingdom is fraying a bit.

HEMMER: Well, all these stories intersect as you just indicated there, too.

On North Korea now. Mike Pompeo said this on Thursday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE: I think the American team is fully prepared. I think we are rocking. I think we are ready. I think we are prepared for this meeting. I think President Trump is prepared for this meeting. We were fully, fully engaged over the past weeks to prepare for this meeting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Well, you know, it's not easy stuff and Kim has since taken a different tune of sorts. Do you think this summit can be put back together, Senator?

COONS: I think it's possible to have a constructive and positive summit, and I certainly prefer President Trump's choice now of diplomacy over threatening fire and fury, and I commend him and Secretary Pompeo for gaining the release of three Americans held in North Korea and recently another American released from Venezuela, and I certainly hope that he is successful.

But I would caution that if we go ahead without using every ounce of leverage we have over China, we're making a mistake. I was really struck that President Trump this past week was tweeting that he was going to work with Xi Jinping to release some of the pressure on ZTE.

Let me explain how these two connect. North Korea critically relies on China. If we don't have China putting maximum pressure on North Korea, I don't think the summit will succeed. ZTE is one of China's biggest telecom companies. They have repeatedly and intentionally violated our sanctions against North Korea and Iran, and the Department of Commerce just imposed a powerful sanctions against ZTE blocking them from getting U.S. material for six years. This is a moment where President Trump has China's attention and should use it to extract concessions both on North Korea and on China's ongoing theft of our inventions and innovations.

HEMMER: But you will agree --

COONS: I hope President Trump will show himself able to do that.

HEMMER: Yes.

You would agree, though, with -- with the Chinese cooperation thus far, with James Mattis' pressure and the pressure from this president, we would not even be talking about a summit had all three of those things not even come together, correct?

COONS: That's correct. It is a significant concession to North Korea to offer a summit. They've never had an opportunity to meet with an American president. It's something they've long wanted to elevate them to an equal to the United States.

And it's important that North Korea has given up a number of American prisoners as a confidence building measure.

HEMMER: Understood. Yes.

COONS: But -- but let's be clear, twice before North Korea under Kim Jong-un's father, committed to full denuclearization in six party talks in 2005 in 2007, as Senator Blunt just referenced, only to then change their tune. So we're going to have to be very focused, very engaged. I am hopeful that Secretary Pompeo will brief and engage Congress. And I'm hopeful that we'll work together to make sure that this summit is a success.

HEMMER: Two more questions quickly.

If the president's correct, should the FBI have an informant connected with any national campaign, Democrat, Republican or otherwise, senator?

COONS: A critical role that the FBI provides its counterintelligence. And when they began getting evidence that the Russians were engaged in a broad campaign to try and influence the 2016 election, I think it was appropriate for them to use a confidential informant to investigate with the Russians were up to.

I'm struck that Rudy Giuliani continues to talk about 13 Democrats, 13 Democrats in a rigged election -- in a rigged investigation, as he just did on this show. Let me remind you, Robert Mueller, Rod Rosenstein, Chris Wray, this is the special counsel, the FBI director, the deputy attorney general, all lifelong Republicans, Robert Mueller, the special counsel, a decorated Marine combat veteran, someone who's been unanimously confirmed by the Senate for senior law enforcement positions under both Republican and Democratic positions. To continue to undermine the credibility of the FBI and the Department of Justice in this way does not serve (ph) the interest of law enforcement or the rule of law.

HEMMER: But his point was that President Trump -- yes, I apologize for the interruption, I'm trying to squeeze in one more question.

His point is that President Trump should have been told about it. What's wrong with that?

COONS: Because President Trump and his actions in the campaign are potentially the focus of an investigation into obstruction of justice and collusion. I don't think it would have been appropriate for there to be the revelation of investigatory information to President Trump or his personal lawyers, particularly classified information about a human intelligence source in advance of there being any decision about whether to move forward with any final conclusion by the Mueller investigation.

HEMMER: Well, final point here.

In a week where Jared Kushner was given his permanent security clearance returned to him, you were calling for Donald Trump Junior to come back to your committee and testify. You believe he's lying. That is a strong charge.

COONS: Well, I'm --

HEMMER: About what, senator?

COONS: I'm concerned that in reviewing the transcript of Donald Trump Junior's questioning by a staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee, that there's a clear tension between his firm answers that there was no efforts by a foreign power to provide assistance to the Trump campaign at recent reporting that there were meetings that he participated in where representatives of gulf states were offering some assistance to the Trump campaign. I do think that's worth our questioning Donald Trump Junior again in front of the judiciary committee and it's my hope that on a bipartisan basis we'll continue these investigations.

HEMMER: OK.

COONS: As Senator Blunt just said, it is in everyone's interest for these investigations to continue without interference.

HEMMER: Senator Coons, thank you for being here today, especially on this Memorial Day weekend.

COONS: Thank you.

HEMMER: Thank you.

COONS: Thanks, Bill.

HEMMER: In a moment here we'll bring in our Sunday group to talk about the state of that North Korean summit in the new terms for that Iran nuclear deal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: Coming up, will they or won't they? Just how serious are President Trump and Kim Jong-un about holding their historic summit?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE: I think the American team is fully prepared. I think we are rocking (ph). I think we're ready.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: We'll ask our Sunday panel what gets the meeting back on track. That's next here on "Fox News Sunday."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're talking to them now. They very much want to do it. We'd like to do it. We're going to see what happens.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: President Trump striking a more optimistic tone on Friday, only 24 hours after he canceled that planned summit with North Korea.

Time now for our Sunday group.

Bret Baier, anchor of "Special Report," author of the new book "Three Days in Moscow." Adrienne Elrod, former director of strategic communications for Hillary Clinton's campaign. Gerald Seib from The Wall Street Journal. And Jonah Goldberg of The National Review.

Good to have you all on a Sunday and a holiday weekend at that.

ADRIENNE ELROD, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: (INAUDIBLE), Bill.

HEMMER: Happy Memorial Day.

Gerry, I think the question of the weekend is whether or not this summit happens.

What do you think?

GERALD F. SEIB, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL:: Yes, and nobody knows. Somebody in the administration told me yesterday it's back on track. I said, well, does that mean it's going to happen? He said, who knows. But I think it more likely than not because I think the one thing we've learned in the last 72 hours is that both of the leaders, Chairman Kim in North Korea and President Trump here really want this thing to happen. And so that's probably the most important thing and the dynamic.

Look, I think what was going on was the two sides were talking past each other in preparation for this and then they stopped talking to each other at all. Now they're back to talking to each other. So, I -- I don't think it's a certainty, I think it's a likelihood that it's going to happen.

HEMMER: I think your piece in The Wall Street Journal on Thursday said "lost in translation."

SEIB: "Lost in translation," yes.

HEMMER: A lot has happened since Thursday, Gerry.

SEIB: Exactly.

HEMMER: Jonah, to you. I think the second biggest question is probably what Senator Blunt just referred to, and that is, can you get all three sides, North, South and the U.S., to agree to something before you sit down? Can that happen?

JONAH GOLDBERG, NATIONAL REVIEW: Yes. So I think it was Monday, which seems like a thousand years ago, I was on this little show you might have heard of called "Special Report" and the host, I forget his name, asked what was the likelihood the summit's going to happen and what was the likelihood that they'll get something out of it. And my prediction was 90 percent, which was probably too optimistic that we get the summit, and then it was canceled two days later. But also 90 percent they don't get any meaningful agreement that gets rid of nuclear weapons out of this thing. And I definitely stand by that.

North Korea has, for 20 years, defined denuclearization as basically getting America off the Korean peninsula for good, because, you know, America is a nuclear power. That's what they mean by it. The administration, except for John Bolton, publicly has been harping on the word denuclearization as if it means North Korea unilaterally just get rid of all of its nukes day one.

That ain't gonna happen. This has been the central driving, defining issue of North Korean foreign policy and domestic policy for over three decades. It's just -- you can't talk a nation out of abandoning what it sees as its strategic self-interest that way.

HEMMER: OK, so here is the president, Bret. He doesn't need a name tag here. You've got that. Here is the president on Thursday on this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our very strong sanctions, by far the strongest sanctions ever imposed, and maximum pressure campaign will continue.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: My point to Senator Coons was, without this president leading on this, without James Mattis with the military aspect of it, and without the Chinese agreeing to crackdown on trade, we're not even talking about a summit with North Korea.

BRET BAIER, CHIEF POLITICAL ANCHOR, FOX NEWS CHANNEL: Well, that's right. And some of the more aggressive language and some of those speeches get you to the point where possibly North Korea changed its attitude. But I think the China part was the linchpin and its three-dimensional chess here. You're talking trade with China, you're talking these sanctions against North Korea and all of that is a pressure campaign that continues if they don't sit down. I think they do sit down. But I agree with Jonah, North Korea's inherent existence is because of the weapons. So something dramatic we would have to change to change that scenario.

HEMMER: And what about that calculous? Adriane, do you give this administration points for trying?

ELROD: Sure, of course I give this administration points for trying. And, look, I mean, as an American citizen, there's a lot of things that I don't want President Trump to succeed at, as in his hardline immigration policy being one example. But I think all Americans want him to succeed in this, which is why we want him to go at this in a very smart way. Consult with your advisers. Don't wing it, like we've read in some reports that he was thinking about doing going into this summit. Like, let's actually make this work and let's try to solve this problem once and for all.

HEMMER: I think when we woke up on Saturday morning I think we were all surprised with the fact that the Korean leaders had a surprise second summit. I mean that's an indication I think to all of us that they -- they want something to happen here or something to move. What that end, I do not know.

Just quickly to all four of you.

Bret, you think they do sit down.

BAIER: Uh-huh. And I don't know --

HEMMER: So you think a summit happens?

BAIER: Yes, I do. And I actually think it might actually happen June 12th, which is hard to believe, but I think that there is a warrant by both President Trump and Kim -- Kim Jong-un to move this forward. Now, if they can do it quick enough, you wonder the results of that from a U.S. perspective.

HEMMER: Quickly, do you think it happens?

SEIB: I think it probably is going to happen. Again, nothing is certain in this business, least of all with these two leaders, but I think it's more likely than not.

HEMMER: Just to quickly --

GOLDBERG: I think it happens and I don't think it produces what we want it to produce.

ELROD: I think it --

HEMMER: Does not?

GOLDBERG: Yes.

HEMMER: OK.

ELROD: And I think it happens. But I think there's going to be multiple cancellations along the way.

HEMMER: Well, Mayor Rudy Giuliani reminded us that Reykjavik took six months just to negotiate before they sat down. There's a good book about that. I've heard about that. And it wasn't three days in Reykjavik.

All right, Gerry, on the Iran matter. Mike Pompeo laid out a dozen things that they want the Iranians to do. It is a big, tall order. Can this administration squeeze the Europeans to come around to their side of things?

SEIB: Well, look, there's two -- two answers to that question. The European governments are not going to just fall in line and say, yes, we're with you on this. But on the ground, this is already happening. We had a story a few days ago that said European companies are already pulling back from Iran. They're starting to pull back on investments already made and they're not making new investments because they know that they could be sanctioned by the U.S. and they don't want to get caught between doing business with the U.S. and doing business with Iran.

So I don't think it's likely the European governments say, yes, we agree with you, let's -- let's ditch this deal. That's not going to happen. But on the ground, there is already a kind of a freeze in European, Iranian business happening.

HEMMER: Very interesting. We'll wait 90 or 180 days depending on the schedule as it's laid out now. Thank you.

Panel, let's get a break here. When we come back, President Trump and his team set their sights on James Comey. Can they derail the Bob Mueller-Russia investigation?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S ATTORNEY: This is rigged. Comey had to be fired. Rosenstein recommended it. Mueller starts off with some pretty serious conflicts of interest. Some of which haven't been explored yet, including some personal ones that he -- that maybe he's disclosed, maybe he hasn't. But the main -- one of the main ones being, he was in a room the day before with the president of the United States and Rosenstein, got rejected for the job of FBI director, and then gets chosen the next day to run the most sensitive investigation in America. I don't get it. Against the president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: That's Rudy Giuliani earlier this hour. President Trump's personal attorney with us here. And we're back now with the panel.

And, Bret, you had James Comey on "Special Report" two weeks ago. What you think about what we heard from Rudy Giuliani?

BAIER: Well, I think a couple things. One is saying that the president is not going to fire anybody, that's pretty definitive I think in what Rudy Giuliani has said. Some of these interviews he says a number of different things about the investigation overall and what's going to happen, whether the president will sit for an interview or not, or it sounded like it's not leaning that way at this moment.

I'd be interested to know specifically what he's talking about on the conflicts of interest for Mueller. And something tells me that will play itself out either on Twitter or another interview.

HEMMER: It's clear they're going after James Comey. They're putting his credibility on the line. And as the mayor said, we're not going after the government, just certain individuals in the government.

Does that strategy work for them?

GOLDBERG: I think it's working this week. Look, I -- I think a lot of the things that Rudy Giuliani said this morning to you were factually, logically almost grotesque at times. And -- but the point is, is that he's not playing -- he's calling himself a lawyer, but what he is doing -- what he really is, is he's a -- this is -- this is war by other means. It's spin war. You've got -- he has very effective spin. This is the first time in a long time I think the Trump administration is actually starting to win some of these fights. I don't think it's necessarily grounded in a lot of facts.

And I think some of the things that Rudy Giuliani was doing today would not hold up to scrutiny saying, you know, of course we don't know -- he says, you know, Mueller hasn't found anything about collusion. And he may not have. But how would we know that? He says it as if we have already been -- that we already know that he's found nothing. The whole point of the investigation is waiting to see what the investigation finds. Giuliani is very effective a spinner her. I don't think he is a very effective debater on the facts.

HEMMER: With the argument on the informant, I thought he asked a very interesting question, what -- did the informant find anything? And they're -- they're waiting for that answer.

GOLDBERG: That's a good question.

HEMMER: Yes.

Gerry, on Thursday, the president, as he is apt to do, gave us a nickname. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We now call it spygate. You're calling it spygate. A lot of bad things have happened. I want them all to get together. They'll sit in a room. Hopefully they'll be able to work it out among themselves.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: So there may be an IG report that comes out this week. It could be Tuesday or Wednesday, which could throw all of this back up in the air.

Is there a way, referring to Jonah's point he was making there, that they can turn this against Bob Mueller and his team effectively?

SEIB: Well, that's why I think we're at kind of an inflection point here because whether they can or they can't, clearly the effort by the president and Rudy Giuliani is to do exactly that, to -- and he used in the -- in the conversation with you, he used "illegitimate" and "rigged" multiple times as terms to describe what's going on here in reference to the Mueller investigation as much as anything else. So I think they believe if they can get the spygate narrative going, that discredits Jim Comey, it discredits Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, and by extension it will eventually discredit the Mueller investigation.

HEMMER: But it could be a problem for the Mueller side that you get there.

SEIB: Right. Exactly. Although you have to keep in mind that almost a year passed between the time this informant was used and Bob Mueller even came into existence as special counsel. So I -- on the -- on the merits of it, I think Mueller is not tainted by this. But in the -- in the public perception eyes, that may be a big problem.

HEMMER: Yes.

There was an intelligence briefing, two of them, on Thursday of this week and you had members of Congress come out and no one's talked. Adam Schiff read from a piece of paper, Adrienne. This is what he said after that hearing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADAM SCHIFF, D-CALI., HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE RANKING MEMBER : Nothing we heard today has changed our view that there is no evidence to support any allegation that the FBI or any intelligence agency placed a spy in the Trump campaign or otherwise failed to follow appropriate procedures and protocols.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HEMMER: Now, Adam Schiff has done hundreds of interviews on cable news since the president was elected, and he's reading from a piece of paper and no one has suddenly leaked in this town. Suddenly Washington, D.C., is quiet. What are we to make of that?

ELROD: Well, I think, first of all, Adam Schiff is trying to be very careful in the words that he's using here. But he is simply saying, what we learned, what the Democrats, what Leader Pelosi and I learned in this meeting, for example, is that this was a very standard operating procedure that the FBI uses when they are investigating somebody. So in this case they sent in an informant because they had every reason to believe that they might gain something, might learn some information by sending somebody into this -- to the Trump campaign.

So, again, this is not a spy. This is an informant that the FBI uses all the time when they are investigating people, when they are investigating campaigns. Very standard operating procedure.

HEMMER: Jonah, quickly, what do you make of this or what are we to --

GOLDBERG: I think it's very interesting. It does feel like no one quite got what they wanted out of this meeting and that someone was told there's a reason why we want to keep this stuff quiet.

HEMMER: What do you think?

BAIER: Yes.

First of all, it's not usual to have somebody in or around a campaign while it's happening. I think the argument is that they were trying to figure out what Russia was doing. That's the argument. But we don't know all that he or she got from that.

HEMMER: No.

It's good to see all of you.

Bret, Gerry, Jonah, Adrienne, have a great holiday weekend.

GOLDBERG: Thank you.

ELROD: Thanks, Bill. Take care.

SEIB: Thank you.

HEMMER: In a moment here, our "Power Player of the Week," honoring America's fallen with 24 musical notes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HEMMER: American flags by the nearly quarter million grave markers at Arlington National Cemetery.

It is a holiday tradition here when we profile a man who created his own special program to make every day and Memorial Day for our fallen heroes.

Once again, he is our "Power Player of the Week."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM DAY, BUGLES ACROSS AMERICA: When you're playing it, it's only 24 notes, but it's so meaningful to that family.

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX ANCHOR (voice over): Tom Day is talking about playing "Taps" at the funerals of military veterans, and he should know.

He's the founder and president of an organization called Bugles Across America.

WALLACE: (on camera): All told, how many funerals have you done since you started Bugles Across America?

DAY: At 200,000.

WALLACE: Really?

DAY: In ten years. Right.

WALLACE (voice over): It started back in 2000, when Congress gave every vet the right to a funeral with military honors, including two uniformed officers to present a flag and play "Taps." The problem was, the military only had 500 bugler's, so they sent someone to play a recorded "Taps" on a boom box or an electronic device inside a bugle.

Tom Day, who played in the Marines in the '50s, didn't like it.

DAY: I call it stolen dignity that these veterans can't get life "Taps" when we are out there ready to perform life "Taps."

WALLACE: So he started his organization, recruiting 400 horn players within

a year.

DAY: Now we have 6,270 horn players. And we're doing 2,200 funerals a month.

WALLACE: It's become quite an operation that Day runs out of his basement near Chicago. Families can go on his website to ask for a bugler. A message is sent to every horn player within 100 miles of the funeral. Day gives away bugles and helps with uniforms. While they get support from foundations, he runs a deficit every year.

WALLACE (on camera): How do you make up for the shortfall?

DAY: I kind of make it up myself.

WALLACE: $15,000, $20,000 a year?

DAY: Probably ten. You finish. You're the last of the 24 notes, you put the horn down and the flag has been presented and then the family comes over. The kisses, the handshakes from these families, there is nothing -- no amount of money could ever buy the feeling that I get from the family once I've finished the 24 notes.

WALLACE (voice over): With soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, plus 1,800 veterans of World War II dying every day, there is a flood of military funerals. Day, who is 69, says he wants to keep going until he dies, then leave his organization in solid shape to carry on.

DAY: I want every family to have life "Taps" at that going away presentation of their veteran. And it kind of tells the Marines who are guarding the gates in heaven, live "Taps," we're going to let this veteran right in.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HEMMER: Since we first ran that story nine years ago, Tom Day's organization has grown to more than 5,000 active members who play at 4,000 funerals every month.

If you want to learn more, go to our website, foxnewssunday.com and there is more information online for you now.

Chris is back next Sunday.

And that does it for this day. But on this day, take a moment to remember all the men and women who have given their lives defending our freedom. And we'll see you on the next "Fox News Sunday."

END

Content and Programming Copyright 2018 Fox News Network, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Copyright 2018 CQ-Roll Call, Inc. All materials herein are protected by United States copyright law and may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast without the prior written permission of CQ-Roll Call. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content.
A single engine airplane made an emergency landing on the southbound lanes of I-15 in Riverdale, Utah, Saturday morning.

According to Utah Highway Patrol, a student was conducting touch and go exercises with an instructor when they experienced mechanical issues and the aircraft lost power, Fox 13 reported.

They experienced some mechanical problems with the airplane, said Sgt. John Ely of Utah Highway Patrol to Fox 13. The flight instructor took control of the airplane and shes the one that landed it on the interstate.

DELTA FLIGHT REQUESTS EMERGENCY LANDING DUE TO ILL FLIGHT ATTENDANT

The plane was forced to land on the interstate just before 8 a.m. No injuries were reported in the aircraft or on the ground.

"After takeoff we were not climbing and we started to descend and so we did emergency gear down and hit the runway... uh, not the runway I hit the road," the pilot said in a recording to the control tower at Ogden-Hinckley Airport in nearby Ogden.

Officers said the plane collided with one vehicle on the ground, but injuries were not reported.

The pilot can be heard in the recording to the Ogden airport asking for help as they make the emergency landing.

"...the freeway, going down," the pilot said in the recording. "Now we're on the freeway... we're going to need some help getting off the freeway."

FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS

Right lanes of the freeway were closed immediately following the incident.

Highway Patrol reported the plane was taken back to the airport in good condition, Fox 13 wrote.
The governors of Alabama, Florida and Mississippi have each declared a state of emergency in their states as Subtropical Storm Alberto spreads north and west.

The storm was expected to make landfall as early as Monday morning or as late as Monday evening, AccuWeather reported.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey made the declaration for 40 counties. Florida Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency for all 67 counties. Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said Saturday that he also signed a proclamation declaring an emergency in his state.

The storm is expected to bring significant rain, threatening the start of the summer tourist season for beach towns along the Gulf Coast.

The executive orders from the governors make resources available to state and local governments as they prepare to deal with the storm and its aftermath. The orders allow for the deployment of National Guard personnel, if necessary.

As of 5 a.m. EDT Sunday, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said Alberto was about 330 miles south of Apalachicola, Fla., and moving north-northeast at 13 mph. The storm had top sustained winds of 40 mph and was expected to strengthen as it moves over the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

In Gulfport, Miss., on Saturday, several residents lined up under overcast skies and occasional drizzle to fill 10- and 20-pound bags with sand they will use to block any encroaching floodwater expected as a result of Alberto.

Tommy Whitlock said sandbagging has become a regular event in his life because he lives next to a creek.

"I'm doing this because every time we have a hard rain, it floods at my house," Whitlock said. "We get water from other neighborhoods, and water can get up to a foot deep in some places."

Eddy Warner, a retired consultant for a construction company, filled bags while waiting for his nephew to come help transport them home to protect his garage.

"I'm 65 years old and too old to be doing this," he said, laughing.

In Florida, Scott talked about the importance of the emergency declaration.

As we continue to monitor Subtropical Storm Albertos northward path toward Florida, it is critically important that all Florida counties have every available resource to keep families safe and prepare for the torrential rain and severe flooding this storm will bring, Scott said in a news release.

Today, I have declared a state of emergency in all 67 Florida counties to make sure that our state and local governments are able to coordinate with federal partners to get the resources they need.

Scott urged Floridians to get ready for the storm and develop an emergency preparedness plan.

Remember, the track of these storms can change without notice, Scott said. Do not think that only areas in the cone will be impacted  everyone in our state must be prepared.

Alberto, the first storm to be named ahead of the official June 1 start of hurricane season, is expected to gain strength until it reaches the northern Gulf Coast by Monday night, the National Hurricane Center said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Three police officers in Wisconsin were treated after they were exposed to suspected fentanyl in two separate incidents on Friday, officials said.

The officers, one from Milwaukee and two from the suburb of Greendale, were treated with Narcan after encountering the deadly drug. The Greendale officers were exposed to the unknown substance after searching a stolen vehicle Friday night. They had arrested two suspects prior to the encounter.

You get that on your skin and that could be deadly, Milwaukee Fire Departments Lt. Darin Peterburs told FOX6. We have this chemical suit that will protect us from any solids and liquids getting onto our skin.

3 GEORGIA POLICE OFFICERS SICKENED AFTER ENCOUNTERING DEAD BODY IN MOTEL ROOM

Two squad cars, part of the garage and equipment were decontaminated after the incident.

A Milwaukee police officer was also taken to the hospital after being exposed to suspected fentanyl on Friday.

"The amount of fentanyl that can be deadly is so small that you couldn't even see it," Petersburs said.

"It's all over the city, the surrounding areas," he added.

Officials are now investigating both incidents. Suspects were taken into custody for both cases.
Advances in DNA technology have resulted in an arrest in a Texas cold case rape and murder that took place almost 40 years ago.

An indictment unsealed Thursday accuses Michael Galvan, 64, of capital murder in the death of 18-year-old Debra Sue Reiding in her apartment in Austin, Texas, in 1979, according to FOX7.

Galvan was always a suspect but Austin police never had enough evidence to arrest him, according to the television station.

He was positively linked to the crime after his DNA was found on a semen-stained robe Reiding was wearing when she was killed, KXAN-TV reported. The DNA test was performed last year.

I've always known the person of interest needed to be pursued, Reiding's younger brother, Rodney Wilt, told the station.

After I've worked on this for so many years, it's just now finally starting to sink in that it might actually be coming to a close, he said. My whole life has been dedicated to getting to the bottom of this and letting my sister rest in peace.

The station reported that Galvan and Reiding were co-workers at an Austin restaurant. He gave her rides home after work.

DNA LEADS TO ARREST IN WASHINGTON COLD-CASE MURDER OF YOUNG COUPLE

Reiding's husband found her body in bed, under the covers with a pillow over her head, police said.

Galvan has worked for years as a barber in Austin, KVUE-TV reported.

He left the barbershop suddenly the day he was arrested, according to the station.

Click for more from Fox 7 Austin.
A Florida woman was rescued Friday after she slipped a note to a veterinarian saying she needed help because her armed boyfriend was beating and threatening her, police said.

Jeremy Floyd, 39, was arrested after allegedly holding his girlfriend, Carolyn Reichle, captive in their home in Volusia County for two days, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said. The alleged incident began Wednesday when the 28-year-old woman said Floyd repeatedly beat her and threatened her at gunpoint. At one point, they struggled over a handgun that fired inside the house.

Reichle spent the Thursday recovering from a head injury. The next day while thinking of an escape plan, she convinced Floyd, a convicted felon, to allow her to bring her dog to the DeLand Animal Hospital, police said. Floyd insisted on going with her.

On the drive to the vet, Floyd reportedly again pointed the gun at Reichle, threatening to kill her and her family, police said.

Fearing for her life, Reichle was able to slip a note to a vet that read: "Call the cops. My boyfriend is threatening me. He has a gun. Please don't let him know."

The vet called police, who responded and took Floyd into custody. Authorities also recovered a handgun.

Reichle was taken to the hospital and treated for her injuries that included a head wound, a black eye and bruises, according to the sheriff's office. Authorities also discovered two bullet holes inside the couples home.

Floyd was charged with domestic violence -- aggravated assault with a firearm, false imprisonment, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of ammunition by a convicted felon and simple battery, police said.

He is being held without bail.
A former commander of the USS John S. McCain pleaded guilty Friday to dereliction of duty when the destroyer collided with a commercial tanker, killing 10 sailors and injuring five in the Straits of Singapore last August.

Cmdr. Alfredo Sanchez, who has served in the Navy for more than 20 years, testified during a special court-martial at the Washington Navy Yard, Stars and Stripes reported.

I am ultimately responsible and stand accountable, Sanchez said. I will forever question my decisions that contributed to this tragic event.

Per disciplinary proceedings, Sanchez agreed to retire from service, forfeit $6,000 in wages, and was issued a letter of reprimand.

Sanchez claimed responsibility for the deadly collision. He said had failed to put a well-rested, well-trained crew in place to steer the destroyer into the Straits.

The former commander, who was immediately reassigned after the collision, initially faced negligent homicide charges, CBS News reported.

According to Sanchez, an 18-year-old undertrained helmsman had been navigating the destroyer, known as "Big Bad John," leading up to the collision.

The Navy judge, Cmdr. Charles Purnell, who presided over Fridays court-martial, singled out the failure to navigate the console as the overarching failure.

Sanchez acknowledged his failure to provide a more rigorous training.

More than a dozen relatives of the fallen crewmembers attended Fridays hearings, reading impact statements, and calling out the Navy for negligence, Stars and Stripes reported.

I am haunted by it every day, said Karen Doyon, mother of Petty Officer 3rd Class Dustin Doyon, 26, of Connecticut. This is a tragedy that should have never happened.

The USS John S. McCain is named for the father and grandfather of U.S. Sen. John S. McCain III, R-Ariz., who like the senator had distinguished careers in the Navy.
The first named storm of the 2018 hurricane season intensified Sunday off the west coast of Florida, as the threat of rain and rough surf kept some vacationers off beaches along the eastern Gulf Coast during the busy Memorial Day Weekend.

The National Hurricane Center said in its 8:30 p.m. ET advisory that Subtropical Storm Alberto now has top sustained winds of 65 mph, and is located about 195 miles west of Tampa, moving northwest at 10 mph.

"On the forecast track, the center of Alberto will move over the northern Gulf of Mexico tonight and cross the northern Gulf Coast in the warning area on Monday," the center said.

Forecasters also warned of potentially dangerous storm surge as high as 4 feet along much of Florida's Gulf Coast, from Crystal River to Navarre.

A subtropical storm like Alberto has a less defined and cooler center than a tropical storm, and its strongest winds are found farther from its center. Subtropical storms can develop into tropical storms, which in turn can strengthen into hurricanes.

TRACK THE STORM AT MYFOXHURRICANE

Gusty showers were to begin lashing parts of Florida on Sunday, and authorities were warning of the possibility of flash flooding.

The governors of Florida, Alabama and Mississippi all declared states of emergency ahead of the storm.

Beaches in Florida were largely empty ahead of Memorial Day as Alberto approached the northern Gulf Coast carrying brisk winds and heavy rain.

The storm disrupted long holiday weekend plans from Pensacola in the Florida Panhandle to Miami Beach on Florida's southeastern edge. Lifeguards posted red flags along the white sands of Pensacola Beach, where swimmingand wading were banned amid high surf and dangerous conditions.

It also triggered mandatory evacuations of some small, sparsely populated Gulf Coast barrier islands in one Florida county: The Florida Division of Emergency Management said in a statement Sunday that a mandatory evacuation has been issued in Franklin County for all barrier islands there and those in the county living directly on the coast in mobile homes or in recreation vehicle parks.

A news release from Florida Gov. Rick Scott said that for Taylor County, "Voluntary evacuations have been issued for those in coastal zones and beach communities (Keaton, Dekel, Cedar, Dark Islands), mobile homes, RV parks and low-lying areas."

STORM ALBERTO PROMPTS EMERGENCY DECLARATIONS IN ALABAMA, FLORIDA, MISSISSIPPI

Many who had made plans for the holiday weekend in Pensacola told Fox News on Sunday they have no plans to cut their vacations short.

"Just another day of living in Florida, hurricane season starting up here soon," Kissimmee resident Nelson Humphrey said. "It's a little early, but it looks like it's going to be a lot of rain."

Pensacola resident Lisa Perks told Fox News the surf was "extremely rough."

"We have been in the water, and it is extremely rough, a lot worse than we thought it was. Not only was it hard getting in, but it was worse getting out of the water," she said.

Under overcast skies and occasional drizzle, several Gulfport, Mississippi, residents lined up on Saturday to fill 10- and 20-pound bags with sand they will use to block any encroaching floodwater expected as a result of Alberto.

2018 ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON TO BE 'NEAR OR ABOVE-NORMAL,' NOAA SAYS

Tommy Whitlock told the Associated Press that sandbagging has become a usual event in his life since he lives next to a creek.

"I'm doing this because every time we have a hard rain, it floods at my house," Whitlock said. "We get water from other neighborhoods, and water can get up to a foot deep in some places."

Fox News' Jonathan Serrie in Pensacola, Florida, Mike Arroyo, Zoe Szathmary and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
An upstate New York city best known for thoroughbred horse racing is hosting its final gun show over the Memorial Day weekend before a ban goes into effect.

The Saratoga Springs City Council voted unanimously in March to prohibit gun sales on a city-owned property, after the February massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Antique shows will still be allowed on city properties, but gun shows will now have to be held at private venues.

"I feel that it's a terrible ending. We should still be allowed to be here," President of New East Coast Arms Collectors David Petronis told WTEN.

Petronis has been bringing gun shows to the Saratoga Springs City Center for more than 30 years, organizing more than 100 gun shows, which have become an annual tradition in the area.

"We've made a lot of friends, a lot of money up here, brought in a lot of money to Saratoga," Petronis said.

The show has brought some controversy in the past, including at one time planning to display Hitler artifacts.

"It was just becoming this constant sort of barrage media affair circus," City Commissioner of Finance Michele Madigan told WTEN.

Madigan said that between prior incidents and community reaction to recent mass shootings across the country, the city had no choice.

"This one was pretty clear cut," she said.

SEATTLE PLAN WOULD FINE GUN OWNERS FOR NOT PROPERLY STORING WEAPONS

Some residents of the city located about 40 miles north of Albany cheered the decision.

"There's too much gun violence in this world and I think that, that show promotes it," Carol Squillacioti said.

But others think the council's decision is an infringement on their rights.

"We believe in the Second Amendment and we just think New York is just trying to unarm its citizens," William Minner of Albany told WTEN.

Dealers who also rely on such shows for a living slammed the decision.

"The loss of this show will probably put about a 10 percent dent in my show business, my show revenue for the entire year, Paul Ackermann said.

PAWN SHOP TROLLS DICK'S SPORTING GOODS WITH SIGN ADVERTISING AR-15s

Petronis told WTEN he won't be deterred by having to change his venue, because hes not leaving the business anytime soon.

"Things change. Life goes on," he said. "I'll be wheeled out on some stretcher from a gun show and that's in my blood, and that's the way it'll be."
A new lava flow spewing from a fissure caused by Hawaiis Kilauea volcano crossed onto the geothermal plant property and continued its slow advance as officials worry that the molten rock could block more escape routes, trapping residents in several nearby neighborhoods on the Big Island.

Lava flow from fissure 21 crossed onto the Puna Geothermal Venture, known as PGV, and continued advancing east on the property, USGS reported. The flow continued its slow advance eastward early Sunday morning, but has not moved significantly closed to Kapoho Road.

"County, State and Federal agencies continue to monitor Hydrogen Sulfide levels and no Hydrogen Sulfide has been detected. Again, no Hydrogen Sulfide has been detected," officials said on Sunday.

GEOTHERMAL PLANT IN HAWAII VOLCANOS CROSSHAIRS BELIEVED BY SOME TO BE ON SACRED GROUND

Residents have been concerned about the lava rupturing wells at the plant, causing deadly hydrogen sulfide and other gases to be emitted, Reuters reported. Authorities already shut down the plant and removed 60,000 gallons of flammable liquid at the start of the volcanic activity. The wells were also deactivated.

At least 82 structures, including dozens of homes, have been destroyed since the volcano began erupting three weeks ago. About 2,000 people have fled their homes as lava encroached on neighborhoods.

Authorities are concerned about lava cutting off escape routes on the Big Island. Highway 137 was shut down after lava flows crossed the road and entered the ocean, creating a deadly plume of gas called laze. Highway 130 is now the only way in and out of towns such as Kalapana, Kaimu, Kehena and Opihikao, Hawaii News Now reported.

HAWAII VOLCANO LAVA FLOW REPORTEDLY NEARS GEOTHERMAL PLANT'S PROPERTY

The highway, however, also poses a risk of shutting down. Officials covered the road with heat-resistant plates after large cracks began appearing.

"Even though the steel plates have slightly heated in the areas of Highway 130, the steel plates are heat resistant and are still safe," Tim Sakahara, spokesman for Hawaii Transportation Department, said. "No problems have been reported or associated with the plates."

Lava could also begin approaching Highway 132.

If the lava flows cut off the highways, officials may resort to air evacuations to get residents trapped in the area out.

"Our tasking is essentially to take 400 people within four hours from the furthest most LZ [landing zone] south up to Hilo to be evacuated," Marine Maj. David Bachta said.
Two Purple Hearts and other medals awarded to a Marine killed in Vietnam were posthumously presented to the fallen hero at a ceremony Saturday in Pennsylvania.

Lance Corporal Jimmy Reddington, a Scranton native, was 19 when he was killed on March 23, 1967. He had been in Vietnam all of three months.

The ceremony-- held in downtown Scranton in time for Memorial Day-- attracted a large crowd, including Marines who served with Reddington in Vietnam in Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, the Scranton Times-Tribune reported.

We remember today not just the Jimmy Reddingtons, but all who gave their life with honor for this country in all wars and all conflicts, Ernie Preate Jr., a Marine veteran of the Vietnam War and chairman of the Friends of Jimmy Reddington Memorial Committee, told the crowd, according to the paper.

DON'T FORGET WHAT MEMORIAL DAY IS REALLY ABOUT

Reddington was killed when he charged an enemy position, the paper reported. His friend and fellow soldier Joe Silvestri had just been badly wounded in an ambush.

"I never wanted Jimmy to do that! I never wanted him to be that loyal to me but he was and not just to me but to the whole squad!" Silvestri told WBRE-TV Thursday.

Reddingtons parents and sister are dead so the medals were presented to the Marine Corps League in Scranton.

The Times-Tribune reported that a memorial service for Reddington with full military honors will be held Sunday at 11 a.m. at his grave in Cathedral Cemetery in Scranton.
One of the first female Marines was honored at a luncheon in Ohio on Thursday and called her decision to join the military the "best thing" she's ever done.

Barbara Kruse, 95, was part of a group of veterans at the Columbus VA Ambulatory Care Center who were honored at the luncheon for those over the age of 95.

"The first question people usually ask is, 'Why did you go in the Marine Corps?' Because I wanted to be a Marine," Kruse told WSYX/WTTE.

Kruse joined the Marine Corps when she was just 20 years old, in February 1943, and was motivated after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

POPPY MEMORIAL DISPLAYED ON NATIONAL MALL: 'YOU CAN'T HELP BUT BE INSPIRED... AND SAD'

"All of the boys were leaving high school to go into the service," said Kruse. "I can't put my finger on it, but something about those that went into the Marine Corps, I wanted to be a Marine."

During her time served with the Marines, Kruse worked in recruiting and enlistment in New Orleans and Oklahoma City. She later went on to work as an occupational therapist for the Northport VA Medical Center on New York's Long Island.

"The best thing I ever did," she said of enlisting.
Police say a North Texas woman falsely reported that her car had been stolen with her 10-month-old baby inside so that officers would more quickly hunt down her missing vehicle.

Grand Prairie police say an Amber Alert was issued after Margarita Levrie contacted authorities about the theft. Officers later determined her car had been stolen but that no child was inside. Police say Levrie doesn't have a 10-month-old child.

She was jailed and charged with making a false police. The Amber Alert on Saturday was cancelled.

Police believe Levrie made up the story in the hope that authorities would more quickly track her missing car. Her car hasn't been recovered.

Police Chief Steve Dye says he won't tolerate erroneous spending of money and resources or diverting resources from people who really need them.

Grand Prairie between Dallas and Fort Worth.
Florida authorities say a woman who was beaten and held captive for two days at gunpoint by her boyfriend escaped when she convinced him bring their dog to an animal hospital - and then slipped a note to a staff member.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal quotes the Volusia County Sheriff's Office as saying 39-year-old Jeremy Floyd was arrested at DeLand Animal Hospital. He is being held without bond on domestic violence and other charges.

The report says Floyd beat the woman Wednesday and refused to let her leave their home. Two days later, she convinced Floyd to let her take their dog to a veterinarian, although he wouldn't let her go alone.

It's unclear whether Floyd has retained an attorney.

___

Information from: Daytona Beach (Fla.) News-Journal, http://www.news-journalonline.com
On Monday night, a bar in Portland, Oregon hosted people of color and gave them $10 as they arrived  a symbolic gift funded primarily by white people who were asked not to attend the Reparations Happy Hour.

A local activist group, Brown Hope, wanted the event to be a space for people of color in a mostly white city to meet, organize, discuss public policy and potentially plan various actions.

The notion of full-scale reparations  sought by some as compensation for the horrors of slavery, Jim Crow and the large wealth gap between white and black U.S. households  was supported by 58 percent of black people and 46 percent of Hispanic people in a 2016 poll.

However, 68 percent of white Americans do not support reparations; when the topic was brought up during the 2016 presidential campaign, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders said it was divisive and unlikely to get through Congress.

The economist Robert Browne once estimated a fair value for reparations of $1.4 trillion to $4.7 trillion and wrote that reparations should ''restore the black community to the economic position it would have had if it had not been subjected to slavery and discrimination.''

Eric J. Miller, a professor at Loyola Law School, said the case for reparations involves a reckoning with the country's history.

Part of our history is our grandparents participating in these acts of terrible violence [against black people], he told HuffPost. But people dont want to acknowledge the horror of what they engaged in.

The cognitive dissonance of learning that your property is got and preserved on the back of the misery of others is not an incredibly nice thing to live with. So people would rather discount it, Miller said.

Cameron Whitten, the 27-year-old activist who organized the event, said that attendees felt seen and valued by the Portland event  but noted there are much larger goals.

Were creating a platform to make sure our leadership is being seen and honored, Whitten told Blavity. This isnt just, Were here to socialize. Were here to do the work. In a place like Portland, where our community is so fractured  our first step is to bring us back together, and then from there organize and mobilize to create policies to create justice in our communities.

There was enough interest in the idea, which was funded by about 100 people who were mostly white, to hold other happy hours, which will be called "Reparations Power Hour" to accomodate those who don't drink.

Whitten anticipated some of the criticism he's faced, telling the New York Times the event is not meant to diminish the seriousness of reparations.

In 2014, the writer Ta-Nehisi Coates made the case for reparations in the Atlantic. H.R. 40, which was introduced in Congress in January 2017, would study various reparations proposals.
Joshua Holt, who flew back to the U.S. on Saturday after being jailed in Venezuela since 2016, met with President Donald Trump at the White House following his return.

Trump said it was "a great honor" to have the Holts there after "a very tough ordeal in a Venezuelan prison."

It's "amazing that you were able to take it," Trump said.

The president praised the lawmakers involved in securing Holt's return, including U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., who said in a statement earlier in the day that he was accompanying the Holts back to the U.S.

We're home, Corker tweeted Saturday evening. Honored to greet Josh Holt's parents at the airport. So happy for them.

The 26-year-olds long-awaited arrival comes after he spent roughly two years incarcerated in Venezuela after traveling to the country in the summer of 2016 to marry Thamara Candelo. The pair planned to return to the U.S. after their nuptials, but were jailed in El Hilcolde on what human rights groups said were largely trumped-up charges.

UTAH MAN INCARCERATED IN VENEZUELA JAIL IS ON HIS WAY HOME, OFFICIALS SAY

While at the White House, Holt said he was "overwhelmed with gratitude" to those who worked for his freedom. He also thanked his wife for supporting him through the "very difficult two years."

Holt's mother, Laurie, also thanked Trump and the lawmakers who brought her son home.

Following Holts return to the U.S., the office of U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, who previously said he had worked for the last two years on securing a release, shared an emotional video of Holt reuniting with his family.

An earlier video was also shared by the office showing Hatch hugging members of Holts family before going to the tarmac.

The family was expected to meet with President Trump at the White House Saturday evening, according to the president, who earlier tweeted that he was looking forward to it.

A senior administration official confirmed to Fox News that nothing was offered in exchange for Holts release.

Early Sunday, the office of White House press secretary Sarah Sanders released the following statement:

"The United States thanks the Maduro regime for releasing the unjustly detained United States citizen, Joshua Holt, and his Venezuelan wife.

"The release of Joshua Holt does not change United States policy. The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution. The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate. The regime must allow all Venezuelans and political parties to participate freely in new elections and the democratic process. It must release all political prisoners, and must accept desperately needed international humanitarian aid for Venezuelas dying citizens.

"The release of Joshua Holt does not change United States policy. The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution."  White House statement

"As demonstrated by the Presidents Executive Order of May 21, the United States will continue to use all available tools and options to pressure the Maduro regime to abide by democratic norms, and will continue to build a broad international coalition of like-minded partners who want to see the return of democracy to the people of Venezuela."

Venezuelan authorities claim Holt and his wife were stockpiling weapons, and have suggested they were part of a U.S. plan to overthrow President Nicolas Maduro. But witnesses say they saw Venezuelan police, accused of demanding $10,000 from Holt and Candelo, plant weapons just before arresting the couple -- and announcing the discovery of the arms.

UTAH MAN IN VENEZUELAN JAIL SAYS PRISON HAS FALLEN, TAKEN OVER BY PEOPLE WANTING TO KILL HIM

Laurie Holt, Joshuas mother, told Fox News in February that her sons ordeal has taken an emotional and physical toll on her. A week ago, the 7-year-old daughter of Candelo from a previous marriage arrived in the United States on a humanitarian visa to live with Joshua Holts parents in Utah.

Upon Holts return, Vice President Mike Pence tweeted, saying he was very glad that Josh Holt is now back home with his family  where he has always belonged.

Sanctions continue until democracy returns to Venezuela, Pence added.

U.S. Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah, also tweeted after Holts flight landed.

Josh Holt is on American soil again! Love tweeted. His flight just landed in DC. Looking forward to seeing him!

Fox News Matt Leech and Kathleen Joyce contributed to this report.
Colombia's presidential election on May 27 is the first since the government signed a peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia leading to the disarmament of some 7,000 fighters. Five candidates are running and if none gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers will head to a runoff in June. Here's a glance at who's running and what's at stake:

WHO'S RUNNING?

Polls indicate that the two leading candidates are Gustavo Petro, a leftist running on an anti-establishment platform, and Ivan Duque, a conservative lawyer and former senator who has promised to change some provisions of the 2016 peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

Duque has aligned himself with U.S. drug policy, promising to resume a controversial program of spraying coca fields with herbicide that President Juan Manuel Santos ended over health concerns. A former bureaucrat at the Inter-American Development Bank, Duque lived in the U.S. for more than a decade. He promises to stimulate the economy by decreasing taxes on businesses and boosting oil production. His critics point out that the 41-year-old has almost no managerial experience.

Petro was a member of the disbanded M-19 guerrilla movement in his youth and later was elected to the Senate, where he led corruption investigations into the links between right-wing paramilitary groups and regional political dynasties. He also served as mayor of Bogota, but was removed in what he says were politically motivated disciplinary actions related to his overhaul of the city's garbage collection system. Petro's critics accuse him of being a populist, pointing to his past support for Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez.

Besides Petro and Duque, ex-Vice President German Vargas and ex-Medellin Mayor Sergio Fajardo are also running as centrists hoping to beat one of the front-runners and force a runoff. Both candidates promise to implement market friendly economic policies. Trailing farther behind in the polls is Humberto de la Calle, who was the government's chief negotiator in the peace talks.

WHAT'S AT STAKE?

Colombia's next president will have to oversee the implementation of the peace deal, ensuring that former guerrilla fighters are able to participate in politics and integrate into civilian life. That is already proving to be a challenge as some former FARC fighters have formed dissident groups or joined criminal gangs that are sowing violence in remote areas.

Colombia's next president will also have to build up the state presence in areas where drug trafficking gangs exert power over farmers and local governments. President Donald Trump has threatened to decertify Colombia as a partner in the war on drugs as coca cultivation has doubled since 2012 and now exceeds 188,000 hectares, according to U.S. estimates

The incoming president will also have to decide if he wants to continue ongoing peace talks with the National Liberation Army, a smaller guerrilla group that is still active in some parts of the country. And the arrival of more than 1 million Venezuelan migrants in the past two years has strained public resources and fueled resentments in Colombia.

COLOMBIA THE COUNTRY

Colombia is Latin America's third most populated country, after Brazil and Mexico, and is one of the world's largest exporters of flowers and coffee, though its economy relies largely on oil and mining. It is also Washington's staunchest ally in South America. Despite great strides made in security, it continues to be the world's top cocaine producer.
The Latest on migrants in Europe (all times local):

12:40 p.m.

Spain's maritime rescue service says it has rescued 366 migrants attempting the dangerous crossing of the Mediterranean Sea this weekend.

The service says that its rescue craft has intercepted 73 migrants traveling in four small boats on Sunday, adding to the 293 migrants it pulled from nine vessels on Saturday.

Driven out by violent conflict and extreme poverty, tens of thousands of migrants attempt to reach Spain and other southern European countries each year by crossing the Mediterranean in smugglers' boats. Most of the boats are unfit for open water, and thousands drown.

The U.N. says 636 migrants have died crossing the Mediterranean so far this year. A total of 22,439 migrants reached European shores, with 4,409 arriving in Spain, through the first four months of 2018.

___

10:55 a.m.

Austria's chancellor says European border guards should be allowed to go to north Africa to prevent migrants from setting off across the Mediterranean Sea in rickety boats.

Austria will take over the European Union's rotating presidency in July. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz's governing coalition took office in December after a campaign in which both partners talked tough on migration.

Kurz told Sunday's edition of German newspaper Welt am Sonntag that a new mandate for EU border protection agency Frontex should allow it "to act in third countries, with the permission of their governments, to end smugglers' dirty business model and prevent smugglers' boats setting off on the dangerous route across the Mediterranean."

Each year, tens of thousands attempt to reach Europe in vessels that are mostly unfit for the open sea.
The next time you go to tip a street performer on the streets of London, go for your credit card instead of some cash.

The city is rolling out a contactless pay system in what is being billed as a world first, giving performers card readers to allow them to set a fixed amount of money to donate and accept from passers-by.

The Busk in London project, an initiative by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, has partnered with the company iZettle for performers -- known as buskers -- to now accept payments through cash, contactless cards, and wearable technology, according to Sky News.

"Busking helps emerging artists to hone their talent and gives them the chance to perform in front of huge numbers of people," Khan said in a statement. "I'm delighted that iZettle has chosen London to launch this innovative scheme -- allowing artists to accept donations by card payment, as well as cash."

The pay system also aims to increase the amount of money that buskers receive, according to organizers.

Full-time busker Charlotte Campbell, who has been part of a trial group using the system, told Sky News it's already had a "significant impact" on the amount of money she's received over two weeks.

"More people than ever tap-to-donate whilst I sing, and often, when one person does, another follows," she said.

UNITED KINGDOM SEES MORE THAN 60,000 LIGHTNING STRIKES DURING THUNDERSTORMS

The tech company looks to roll out the contactless pay system to additional charity organizations after the debut on London's streets.

Campbell told Sky News the tech upgrades will do more than just boost the bottom line of performers.

"I believe if street performers like myself don't adapt to the cashless society we are edging towards, we're at risk of becoming a dying art," she said.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas discharge from a hospital has been delayed, reports said Sunday.

The announcement came soon after Dr. Yasser Abu Safiyeh initially said Abbas, 83, would be discharged. No explanation was given for the sudden change in plans.

Abbas' medical condition was not immediately clear Sunday.

His hospitalization was prompted by a high fever that followed recent ear surgery, Palestinian officials said. They said Abbas had pneumonia, was on a respirator and received antibiotics intravenously.

Abbas, who is a heavy smoker and overweight, has a long history of health issues, ranging from heart trouble to a bout with prostate cancer a decade ago.

Because the leader has no deputy, his latest health scare revived anxiety over a potentially chaotic or even bloody succession battle.

In 2005, Abbas won a four-year term as president, but has since remained in office without any further elections, Al Arabiya English reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Thunderstorms sweeping across southern Britain Saturday night brought in more than 60,000 lightning strikes within 24 hours that were captured in stunning images and described by people utterly insane and like being under a strobe light.

The thunderstorms came after a pretty hot and humid May night, Sky News reported.

"We had some storms coming in from northern France and some building up in the Channel and they sort of spread out and have been working their way in, the U.K. Met Office told Sky News. "It looks like there just one huge area of thundery showers that worked across London just before midnight."

The lightning strikes illuminated the sky at night and were followed with heavy rain. Videos and photos showed lightning flashing in the sky.

In Warwickshire, located northwest of London, at least five properties were struck by lightning. Firefighters also rushed to a house in Stanway, Essex early Sunday after lightning struck the roof, setting it on fire. The flames were put out and no one was injured in the incident, the BBC reported.

LIGHTNING STRIKE KILLS 16 PEOPLE, INJURES 140 AT CHURCH IN RWANDA

London Stansted Airport, about 40 miles northeast of London, reported delays on Sunday after lightning struck a fueling system.

Oh boy! This [is] utterly insane, BBC weather reporter Tomasz Schafernaker said. "I've never seen a storm with such frequent lightning in my life I don't think. Mostly sheet lightning and not too loud but flashes are spectacular."

Several areas reported flooding. Nearly 1,000 homes also reported no power. The Met Office issued a yellow warning for severe weather affecting parts of Wales, southern and central England through Monday morning.
Two U.S. Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China after Beijing landed a nuclear-capable bomber and deployed missiles there, defense officials told Fox News on Sunday.

The U.S.S Higgins, a guided-missile destroyer, and the U.S.S. Antietam, a missile cruiser, conducted freedom of navigation operations near the Paracel Island chain, including Woody Island, where Beijing has operated an airbase since the 1990s.

U.S. forces operate in the Asia-Pacific region on a daily basis, including in the South China Sea. All operations are conducted in accordance with international law and demonstrate that the United States will fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows," Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Chris Logan said in a statement to Fox News.

China's Defense Ministry said Chinese ships and aircraft were sent to urge the U.S. warships to leave Chinese territorial waters, Reuters reported. It added the warships entered without permission.

The patrol near the contested island came days after the Pentagon disinvited Beijing from participating in a large multinational exercise next month following reports the country was again secretly beefing up its military operation and during an ongoing trade dispute.

China last took part in the bi-annual Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in 2014 and 2016, which dates back to the 1970s.

US DISINVITES CHINA FROM MILITARY EXERCISES AFTER COUNTRY CONTINUES 'MILITARIZATION' OF DISPUTED ISLAND

The move came after Fox News exclusively reported that the Chinese military had deployed another advanced surface-to-air missile system to one of its contested islands in the South China Sea.

Satellite images taken last Sunday by ImageSat International show two new launchers on the northern shore of the Island, next to a radar system, all covered by a camouflage net.

The net is usually used to conceal stealthy activities that might interest other armies or security teams. It also makes it harder to identify what surface-to-air missile system it is. But ISI analysts think its similar to the HQ-9 system that was deployed back in February 2016, and was first reported by Fox News. The HQ-9 air defense system, has a range of 125 miles, which would pose threat to any airplanes, civilians or military, flying close by.

The U.S. vessels' maneuvering operations on Sunday were carried out near the islands of Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody, according to Reuters.

Woody Island and the Paracel Islands are not part of Chinas man-made islands built atop former reefs in the Spratly chain further south.

CHINESE LAND BOMBER IN SOUTH CHINA SEA, POTENTIALLY ESCALATING TENSIONS OVER DISPUTED ZONE

The South China Sea remains a contested area, with surrounding countries  Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam  disputing China's territorial claims.

Earlier this month, China riled Vietnam and the Philippines by landing bombers on a disputed set of islands in the South China Sea.

Pentagon officials told Fox News that U.S. forces operate in the region on a daily basis.

We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future," Logan said.

Fox News' Yonat Friling and Jennifer Griffin contributed to this report.
Australian Minister to visit Vietnam

Australia Foreign Minister Julie Bishop will pay a visit to Vietnam from May 26-28 to open the Cao Lanh Bridge with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and co-chair the inaugural Australia-Vietnam Foreign Ministers Meeting.









Australia Foreign Minister Julie Bishop









The minister said in a media release on May 26 that Australia has co-financed the design and construction of the Cao Lanh Bridge as part of a major new transport project that will help connect 18 million people in the Mekong Delta with regional markets and drive economic growth.

Australias 160 million AUD (over 121 million USD) investment in the project is one of the countrys largest aid activities in Southeast Asia.

The Cao Lanh Bridge is a visible symbol of the depth of the Australia-Vietnam relationship, now formalised as a Strategic Partnership, and demonstrates Australias commitment to build closer linkages across the Indo-Pacific region, to bring people together and encourage greater trade and investment, she noted.

Meanwhile, the inaugural Foreign Ministers Meeting is a direct outcome of the new Strategic Partnership between Australia and Vietnam, signed by Prime Ministers Turnbull and Phuc prior to the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in March.

Australia and Vietnam are celebrating 45 years of diplomatic relations this year, she said, noting that strong community and personal ties are the basis of the relationship, marked by 300,000 members of the Vietnamese community in Australia - one of the largest migrant communities in the country.

Julie Bishop said she looks forward to discussing with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh how Australia and Vietnam can expand their collaboration, particularly on important regional issues relating to stability, security and prosperity.

Cao Lanh bridge in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap, spanning over the Tien River and linking Cao Lanh city and Lap Vo district, is located about 0.8 kilometre from Cao Lanh ferry and about 35 kilometres from My Thuan bridge, which connects Tien Giang and Vinh Long provinces.

The 2,000-metre long bridge is expected to make significant contributions to improving road traffic network, boosting social and economic development and consolidating defence and security in the Mekong Delta region, which is not only a rice granary and the third largest industrial centre in Vietnam but also one of the most productive agricultural and aquaculture areas in the world.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has granted an interview to Vietnam News Agencys correspondents in Sydney on the occasion of her visit to Vietnam from May 26-28. Vietnam and Australia have officially upgraded their relationship to Strategic Partner in March 2018 during the visit of our Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to Australia and this week, Vietnam welcomed the official visit made by His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove and Her Excellency Lady Cosgrove. What do you think about the development of cooperation between two countries? I am delighted to be visiting Vietnam during the 45th anniversary year of diplomatic relations between Australia and Vietnam, for my third visit as Foreign Minister. This busy schedule of high-level bilateral visits reflects the recent elevation of the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership, signed during Prime Minister Phucs guest-of-government visit to Australia in March. This means our two nations have recognised and laid the foundation for an ever-stronger partnership. During this visit I will co-chair the inaugural Foreign Ministers Meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Minh. Over the coming years, this meeting will provide a regular opportunity to discuss a range of strategic issues and new areas of collaboration. Australias deep engagement with Vietnam is also shown by our history of support for Vietnams economic development. During my visit, I will be participating in the opening ceremony of the Cao Lanh Bridge in the Mekong delta, for which Australia provided A$160 million, which is our largest single aid activity in mainland Southeast Asia. The bridge will create new economic opportunities for the five million people living in the surrounding area by reducing travel times and making it easier for people to access markets - travel time between Ho Chi Minh City and Long Xuyen will be deduced from four to two and a half hours. Australia and Vietnams relationship is underpinned by strong people-to-people links, with around 300,000 Australians of Vietnamese descent in Australia, creating personal and business links with Vietnam. I am looking forward to meeting dynamic Australian-Vietnamese business leaders, entrepreneurs and influences to hear how they are building their own bridges between our countries. Australia and Vietnam have established cooperative relations in many areas such as trade, security, national defence, science and technology, education and tourism... what areas of cooperation should be prioritised and what initiatives should be put in place so bilateral cooperation can continue to contribute effectively to the development of each country as well as to peace, security and stability in the region? The Strategic Partnership establishes a new bilateral ministerial-level architecture which reflects the contemporary and dynamic relationship between our two countries. This provides for a Foreign Ministers Meeting, Defence Ministers Meeting, and Economic Partnership Meeting. These ministerial-level meetings will provide direction for increased engagement across the breadth of the relationship, including on defence and security, law enforcement, trade, investment, development cooperation, science and technology, innovation, education, tourism and business links. This cooperation will be the foundation for strong economic growth, peace, security and stability in the region.

What do you think about the cooperation and coordination between Vietnam and Australia in regional and international forums? Australia is a close long-term partner for Vietnam and we have converging regional interests on a range of issues in the Indo-Pacific region. The East Asia Summit and other ASEAN-centred regional organisations like the ASEAN Regional Forum have a critical role to play to ensure the Indo-Pacific remains open, secure, inclusive and prosperous. Australia demonstrated its commitment to a strong and resilient region, and to ASEAN centrality, by holding the first ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney in March this year.







VNA
Galveston, TX (77553)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy this afternoon. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 86F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Some clouds. Low near 80F. Winds SSE at 15 to 25 mph.
In the Southwestern United States, there are legends of a woman called La Llarona, who reportedly drowned her children in a desert wash in order to make her lover happy, as he didn't want children. The woman's spirit is said to ramble around the desert, calling out in anguish for her children. In Native American culture there is a ghostly legend of the water babies.





Some say they were the spirits of babies that were drown by their parents who had no means to feed them and others say they are some sort of spirit that was never part of this realm. They are described often as tricksters and also as angry cannibalistic killers.





The urban legend of this area states that one year a terrible famine overtook the land of the Shoshone Indians. They could not feed themselves, nor could they feed any new mouths. Mothers were forced to drown their newborn babies in the local rivers and lakes.



It is said that the babies changed, they grew tails and fins and gills. They survived the famine by feasting on tadpoles and small fish. Now, these sprites can be seen playing in the canals and rivers around the Shoshone Bannock reservation. Their laughter can be heard as they attempt to lure unsuspecting humans to their death.



They never forgot the sins of their mothers and will claim the life of any foolish enough to approach the water's edge.





Utah has its own version of water babies -





The Ute Indians told stories of a mysterious race of dwarves who lived in the lake. They referred to them as Water Babies because of their clever tactics in luring people to their deaths. They would make sounds very reminiscent of crying babies. Concerned people would take off into the lake in an effort to locate and rescue the endangered babies within, only to be dragged down into the depths by the nefarious Water Babies.



If one managed to escape the clutches of these devilish dwarves, they wouldnt be in the clear. A huge, predatorial, man-hating monster also calls Utah Lake Home. The first sighting by a European occurred just at the tail end of the Civil War, when a resident reported being chased to the shore by a thirty foot reptile, which then turned around, joined another huge beast, and swam off. Shortly after, a different man claimed to see a huge reptile with the head of a dog patrolling the waters of the lake. In 1870, some fishermen found a large, strange skull with tusks protruding from it in the water. Sightings occurred steadily throughout the late 1800s through the 1920s, when they died down.





One researcher I work with has taken pictures in caves and in cave ice and believes upon occasion he has captured what he refers to as "water babies."





This one was peeking out from a rock jut where he had laid his shovel against the wall.




















nametalkam at 27-05-2018 07:08 AM (3 years ago) (m)

President Muhammadu Buhari has released a statement to commemorate this years Childrens Day.

President Muhammadu Buhari has released a statement to commemorate this years Childrens Day.

In the statement, Buhari highlights the home-grown school feeding programme and the Campaign to End Child Marriage which was launched in 2016 as part of the things his administration is doing to better the lives of children.



Read the message below:



In the statement, Buhari highlights the home-grown school feeding programme and the Campaign to End Child Marriage which was launched in 2016 as part of the things his administration is doing to better the lives of children.Read the message below: Quote Today affords me another opportunity to re-affirm our Administrations commitment to the protection of children, a day to reflect on our roles and responsibilities as Parents and Leaders towards our children, and also assessing how far we have fared in this regard. As you may recall, one of the cardinal objectives of this Administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this Administration has recorded measurable success in the home grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand. Our children are our future, and the initiatives that come from them give confidence that our country has a bright future. I am always inspired and encouraged when I remember encounters I had with three of our young ones. When I was on medical vacation in 2017, three year old Maya Jammal recorded a prayer for my recovery, which went viral online.



Also, 10 year old Aisha Aliyu Gebbi wrote a personal letter to me, describing herself as my biggest fan. Nicole Benson, then 12 years old, had contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to my campaign in 2015. The money was all saved up from her lunch and pocket allowance. There are millions of such children nationwide.



I am very impressed by what our children have been able to do, and what the future holds for them. That is one reason why we are committed to the school feeding programme, to prepare a future generation of physically and intellectually robust children. At the last count, over 8.2 million children in 24 states of the Federation are being given free meals daily. This happens in 45,000 schools round the country.



I therefore call on all stakeholders to support this programme to ensure that all the 36 States of the Federation and FCT are covered. This will promote substantially higher enrolment levels in our schools. Since its inception in May, 2015, this Administration has also focused attention on addressing issues of child protection, participation and survival. In 2015, the campaign to end violence against children was launched which was commemorated in 2016. In November 2016, the Campaign to End Child Marriage was also launched to ensure that as many children as possible are able to fully enjoy their childhood and be protected from all the challenges associated with this phenomenon. These campaigns have been reinforced with sensitization campaigns in some States of the Federation. The theme for this years celebration Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility is an opportunity to promote the safety and security of our children. As a responsible Government, we are committed to ensuring that children are protected from violence and exploitation against them, and, that their environments are safe enough for them to pursue their educational attainments, discover their full potentials to grow into responsible citizens. This Administration has made giant strides in the protection of the Rights of the Nigerian Child and as a result of such efforts, Nigeria has been declared a Pathfinding Country on Ending Violence Against Children.



This I believe is a collective achievement and I urge us to continue to build on the present momentum to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In our efforts to protect our children from abuse, exploitation and trafficking as well as provide safe, non-violent inclusive and effective learning environment in our schools, this Administration has directed the management of all Federal Government Colleges and advised all state owned schools across the Country to provide adequate measures of safety and security of their students. I again call on all schools management committees at all levels of public and private institutions to take adequate security measures and put in place mechanisms for safety of children.



May I therefore call on the Families, Security Agencies, Traditional Rulers, Religious Leaders, Civil Society Organizations, Human Rights Activists, and the Society at large to rise up and take urgent and decisive actions to stem the unacceptable rising cases of violence against our children. We must ensure safety of our children in homes, schools, markets, worship centres, on the streets and everywhere at all times. Furthermore let me use this medium to appeal to parents not to relent in their efforts to send their wards to school, especially the girl child as her education reduces infant and maternal mortality and prevents early and child marriages. It also increases literacy and reduces poverty. The saying that to educate a woman is to educate the nation is very apt in this regard.



Finally, while I appreciate the security agencies for their efforts so far, I urge them to redouble their efforts in protecting children from danger and violence in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Child Rights Acts, 2003. Once again, happy Childrens Day.

Post Reply I specialize in investigative reportage across several subject matter and sectors but mainly focus on metro events and investigation. Do leave your thoughts and opinion on my reports to let me know what you think about them. Thank you Posted: at 27-05-2018 07:08 AM (3 years ago) | Hero
The Governors Official Program is comprised of a wide range of constitutional and legal duties and ceremonial and community engagements. Each year, the Governor hosts thousands of visitors to Government House to take part in investiture and award ceremonies, Open Days, receptions and meetings, and travels widely throughout Queensland to support the activities of Patron groups. View a chronological record of the Governors daily program below.

On Friday, in the morning, at Brisbane City Hall, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC attended the 2018 Queensland Volunteering Awards during National Volunteer Week, and addressed the guests.

In the afternoon, at Government House, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey hosted afternoon tea to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Palliative Care Queensland and to mark Palliative Care Week, and the Governor addressed the guests.

In the evening, at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, the Governor and Mrs de Jersey attended the Queensland Ballets opening night performance of Carmen & the Firebird.
Valtteri Bottas' agent has refused to comment on speculation the Finn has now agreed a new contract beyond 2018.

There have been rumours Mercedes might replace him with Daniel Ricciardo or Esteban Ocon, but Finland's Ilta Sanomat believes Bottas will definitely stay in 2019.

Citing a source, the newspaper said it believes the decision was actually made some time ago.

When asked about the report, Bottas' agent Ville Ahtiainen answered: "I cannot comment."

(GMM)
Renault is now pressing hard for Red Bull to make a decision about its engine supplier for 2019.

Although long-term partners, the relationship has been fraught for years and Red Bull is now considering a switch to Honda power.

Renault has been pressing Red Bull to make a decision in May, but Red Bull says it wants to wait until the next grand prix in Canada.

"I believe Red Bull should behave responsibly," team boss Cyril Abiteboul told France's Auto Hebdo.

"They already have all the necessary data -- I do not understand their evasive behaviour. They want to wait until Canada, but on Monday after the race in Montreal there will be no revelations.

"They are pleasing Honda and making Renault wait but we cannot wait indefinitely," the Frenchman added.

In fact, Abiteboul said Renault is heading in its own direction anyway, and looking to promote only the interests of its own team rather than helping a rival to succeed.

"Everything else is an addition to our project," he insisted.

"I would prefer to spend these three years while our team progresses with Red Bull Racing than without them, but one day we will have to break this connection," said Abiteboul.

"It will be this year, next year or later, and while Red Bull can continue to help us, there will come a time when we need to be perceived separately," he added.

"You could not imagine Mercedes or Ferrari supplying engines to Red Bull, so it's necessary to get used to the idea that Renault will not either. We will say goodbye to these times when we are a supplier of engines," Abiteboul added.

(GMM)
Stoffel Vandoorne only needs time to find his feet in formula one.

That is the view of Toto Wolff, responding to those like 1996 world champion Damon Hill who think Belgian Vandoorne has so far failed to "get people to say 'Wow'."

And Vandoorne's Belgian compatriot Thierry Boutson said: "I'm his biggest fan, but his future is at stake now."

"For me it's pretty simple with Stoffel," Wolff told the Belgian broadcaster RTBF when asked about the McLaren driver.

"He is one of the most talented drivers on the grid. He beat everyone in GP2 and when he came to F1 many people said he was a future Senna.

"Expectations and comparisons like that are difficult for any young driver. It takes time," Wolff added.

"You have to give a driver time to get kilometres and to learn. The whole environment is difficult and we had a good example last year with Valtteri Bottas who had a very good start but then it didn't go so well.

"Now he has come back very strong," Wolff said. "I have no doubt that Stoffel has the intelligence and the talent to progress and become a very great driver. I hope he will get that time."

But for now, it seems there will be no vacancies at Mercedes, amid rumours Bottas will be retained and Lewis Hamilton will eventually sign a new deal for 2019.

"I'm very cool about that," Wolff smiled when asked about the delayed Hamilton contract.

"We have good discussions, we are even laughing together about it and it's just talking about little things. It's a very important contract for Lewis, perhaps the penultimate in his career, but I have no doubt that he will sign," Wolff said.

(GMM)
F1 experts say Max Verstappen needs a change of approach if he is to succeed.

The Dutchman missed qualifying at Monaco after a practice crash -- yet another crucial mistake in 2018.

"His talent is envied by every driver," former F1 driver Felipe Massa said in Monaco.

"But he needs to act more calmly. He needs a little more patience and then he will succeed."

Verstappen's Red Bull bosses were furious, but team principal Christian Horner said the person most upset was the 20-year-old.

"He's a very fast driver, we all know that, and this weekend he has a very fast car. What happened is a cruel lesson. It doesn't get much worse than that," he said.

"He needs to learn and stop making mistakes. He knows it better than anyone. I hope this incident will convince him to change his approach. I don't know what else will."

2016 world champion Nico Rosberg said Monaco is a "huge setback" for the young Dutchman.

"He was faster than Daniel Ricciardo and then he crashed at the dumbest moment," he said.

"He had an almost identical crash in 2016. I wonder if Max is too confident -- risking too much. If you're doing that, there is no track that bites you in the ass more than Monaco," the German added.

"He hasn't seemed to learn at all. It's already the fifth time this year but it's his fourth season in formula one. You can't really says it's inexperience.

"It's a very dark moment for Max. At the moment everything is going wrong for him but I don't have much hope for him anymore," Rosberg told RTL.

Even more brutal is the assessment of F1 legend Niki Lauda.

"What is the solution for him? Changing the brain," said the Mercedes team chairman.

Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko was visibly livid on Saturday, telling Movistar: "What I have to say I have already told Max."

When asked what Marko should tell Verstappen, Lauda told Bild: "I would ask him 'How many times do you want to do the same thing?'

"First, Dr Marko has to tell him this (crash) is not possible while at the same time defending him outwardly. It's a difficult balancing act and I know it's not easy."

Verstappen, having earlier skipped a round of interviews, eventually said he feels supported by Red Bull.

"I have a team that is with me in good and bad times," he said.

"A year ago we had many technical problems but we continued to work together. It's the same thing now."

(GMM)
Monaco GP 2018

Sunday Press Conference

Sebastian Vettel, Monaco GP 2018  The Cahier Archive

DRIVERS

1 - Daniel RICCIARDO (Red Bull Racing)

2 - Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

3 - Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes)

TRACK INTERVIEWS

(Conducted by David Coulthard)

Q: Sebastian, as you've got your helmet off first, we'll let Daniel celebrate with your old team Red Bull Racing. You're sixth podium finish here, but not the result you were looking for. You just didn't have the pace today?

Sebastian VETTEL: I think we had the pace but it was a tricky race. I think Daniel had the answers at all times. First stint I could follow him fairly easily and then he started to push just, I think, when Lewis started to pit. Then he was a bit stronger there and I couldn't follow. I was going through the tyres fairly quick. Next stint was a bit the same. I think he had a problem half way through with his MGU-K. I think towards the end I picked again but at the re-start I just didn't have much confidence in the tyres and I lost quite a lot, otherwise it would have been nice to keep the pressure on until the end.

Q: Daniel Ricciardo, you win in Monaco. How do you feel?

Daniel RICCIARDO: Ah... good. I think I can show more emotion today than yesterday. Two years in the making this, so I finally feel like the redemption has arrived. We had problems. I don't know how much the radio broadcast, but we had a lot to deal with during the race. I think it was before half way, I felt a loss of power and I thought the race was done and we got home just using six gears. Thanks to the team we got it back. I'm stoked.

Q: We did have the radio played into our broadcast. We were with you in the cockpit. We knew you were driving wounded. This was reminiscent of Schumacher in Barcelona, stuck in fifth gear. You managed it superbly so that must make it even more sweet?

Ricciardo: There were a few doubts that came in mid-race, but yeah, just... we won Monaco! Feels good, feels good. Thanks everyone for the support. There were a lot of Aussie flags on the in-lap, so thanks everyone. Awesome.

Q: Soak it up. Lewis Hamilton: difficult weekend. You mentioned after qualifying it was about damage limitation. You still gave it you all out there but that was the best you could get today - third place?

Hamilton: Well firstly, a big congratulations to Red Bull and to Daniel, they did a great job this weekend. Ultimately they were the quickest all weekend and we knew that would be the case. Yeah, it would have been nice to be second, but I did everything I could. But it was an interesting race. Well, I believe it was an interesting race.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Frederic Ferret - l'Equipe) Daniel, in the past with Red Bull we have seen victories celebrated by jumping into the pool and jumping in the harbour. What will you do?

Ricciardo: As I said, the pool looked a little bit worse for wear yesterday, so maybe the harbour is cleaner - and it's higher, so maybe more fun.

Hamilton: You've got to do a good jump where you land flat and make that slap.

Ricciardo: A belly flop?

Hamilton: Yeah, a belly flop. Can you do a belly flop? The belly flop challenge. Everyone has done a back flip and a normal jump. You gotta do a belly flop.

Ricciardo: Well, belly flop, maybe I'll try a front flip, which could be a back slap.

Hamilton: Or the pike. Have you heard of the pike? It's when you jump and land on your back.

Ricciardo: No.

Hamilton: Come on!

Ricciardo: Maybe we'll have a pool party. Maybe we can start drinking early.

Q: (Dan Knutson - Auto Action and Speedsport) Daniel, you didn't need anything else to go wrong but when the VSC came out, were you thinking good news or bad news?

Ricciardo: I saw the debris in the chicane I think it was. I didn't really want anything. I was just like "let's get this race finished". It had already felt long enough. I was glad it was a VSC and not a Safety Car, because I thought having less power, with the problems, I would have been vulnerable on a re-start. Again, it's hard to overtake here, so if I got good traction out of the last corner and blocked into Turn 1 I still think I would make it difficult for Seb but I didn't feel like becoming vulnerable in the last few laps. We'd already done 72 or something. I wasn't excited to see it but yeah, in the end it helped me as Seb seemed to lose time behind it, but it just made the last few laps go a bit longer.

Q: (Livio Oricchio - Globo Esporte.com) It's time for celebration for sure, but concerning the next race, Daniel, mainly for you, it's a certain of completely characteristics, do your performances relate to the track or have you really made a step forward on your car?

Ricciardo: For sure the circuit helps us. As I said, I was using six gears pretty much the whole race, didn't touch seventh or eighth. I think all weekend anyway we're not really using eighth, so I think it shows that even with an extreme loss of power our chassis still works really well. Fortunately this isn't a power circuit, so I think the circuit certainly helped us here. It's proven again we have a really good chassis. Montreal, we'll see. I think we're back on the hypersofts. It looked like our degradation was better than the others today. Montreal is more of a power circuit. If our chassis is working well and being kind on tyres we may see ourselves fighting again but as always this circuit leans towards our strengths. As I said in Italian earlier, we've all got two victories between us this year, I wouldn't have thought that coming into February so that's pretty cool and we'll try and keep it going for now.

Q: Sebastian, Montreal?

Vettel: yeah, it's a different track. Tyre choice I guess is the same, so we'll see. Obviously a bit more straightforward in terms of racing and overtaking than here, but yeah, we'll see. Two weeks now to prepare and look into our strengths and our weaknesses. Then we'll see where we are. It's a different track, yeah it's quite smooth on tyres, hence the tyre choice, so I don't know. I think we'll all be there. As you've seen, in the first six races it's been really close, which is good for us, because going into Sunday, you never know and you're in the mix and in the fight, so looking forward.

Q: Lewis, Montreal?

Hamilton: They answered it pretty well, not really much more to say. It's going to be fun. More fun than this race, I think.

Q: (Andrew Benson - BBC Sport) Two questions, one for Daniel and then one for everybody. Daniel, you've got an engine upgrade coming for Canada which is supposed to be pretty good. Can you be a title contender? And then, the wider question. A couple of years ago, or a bit more, you three were all instrumental in getting Pirelli to change the tyres, so they could be raced on and pushed on. Today, we saw you lapping four, five, six seconds off the pace for pretty much the entire race. How do you feel about that?

Ricciardo: I think it's a natural question after a victory. I think I got asked after China if it means we're in the title hunt. We're still... I think Lewis still has a pretty good buffer on me, so we're still on the outside of that. It's not impossible but not really at the forefront of my mind yet. But, even if it was, I'm not going to change obviously the way that I'm driving or trying to attack. So, yeah, Montreal will be interesting. Try to get a few more podiums but yeah, we've got to probably prove on at least one other circuit before the summer break that we can win again. And then maybe we're a nice little outside chance. For tyres, yeah, I think today, because it's a tight circuit, you're able to take the piss a little bit with going slow. I mean, there were times I was really cruising but, y'know, the circuit allows you to do that because it's hard to overtake but I don't think we'll be able to maintain that kind of rhythm on a circuit like Montreal or something. So, I think it's more circuit-dependent - but I'm glad they're bringing the hypersofts again. When we pitted early, I thought it was maybe even looking like even a two-stop race - but obviously we could control the pace. But, as I said, on a different circuit I think today would probably have been a two-stop.

Q: Seb, anything to add on the tyres?

Vettel: No, I don't want to answer. Sorry.

Q: Lewis, anything to add on the tyres?

Hamilton: erm... except for we were probably just cruising around from lap six, maybe. Literally cruising. So it wasn't really racing.

Q: What did you learn from the hypersoft this weekend, going forward to Montreal? Do you think it's a tyre you're going to be able to push hard for a whole stint in Montreal?

Hamilton: I have no idea if it will be more or less in Montreal. I don't know. I guess there's less hard core corners so probably it will go a little bit further. Yeah, Daniel did a great job today so super happy for him but ultimately we were turned down and just cruising around to make sure we got to the end. I don't know if that was exciting for you guys to watch. If it is, no problem.

Q: (Jacquelin Magnay - The Australian) At the end, Christian Horner mentioned Michael Schumacher's race in Barcelona where he finished and won after difficulties. I'm just wondering what that meant to you when he mentioned that, and can you just take us through your roller coaster of emotions during the race?

Ricciardo: I don't really know how to... Obviously it's a compliment towards me and my race. I don't really know... so much went on, I guess, for me in that race, trying to figure out what was going on. It's hard to kind of let it all sink in, once it's done. Even now, I don't know, it feels weird that I did get that win but obviously I will take the compliment.

Q: Obviously it's a long weekend here with the practice on a Thursday, it stretches the weekend an extra day so it's a long week. There's obviously a lot of hype - I mean I love it, it is the most fun weekend of the year but it is pretty draining so even today it was long and the race obviously starts an hour later now - an hour and ten minutes later. Yeah, you're just trying to like control everything until the moment of the race. I kind of wish the race was at ten in the morning so we could just get it done already. Going through all that and then finally starting, getting a good start, that was really the key moment and then obviously, as I mentioned, the problems I had, that obviously threw a lot of doubt in my mind for a few laps. Every lap I got by with no extra problems was a little victory so happy to see the chequered flag.

Q: (Christian Menath) First part of the question is for Daniel: can you explain a bit how you drove around that problem? Was it only deploying the energy or was it also harvesting and did you have any problems with the temperatures in the car because of the rear brakes and so on? And for Sebastian, second part, you probably saw the lights flashing when the K didn't work for Daniel. Did you change anything to put a bit more pressure on him, did you have any strategy for that?

Ricciardo: Yes, obviously I had a lot less power so that was the obvious thing, but then, yeah, the rear brakes got really hot so I went I think six or seven percent forwards with the brake balance. That's a lot. Maybe we go one or two percent change during the race, at least, for us, so we had to go a long way forwards and I have to lift a lot before braking to save the brakes and put less energy through them. The pace was slow, for the power, the pace was slow to manage the tyres and then the pace was slow because I was managing brakes. Hence why it felt like a very long race but obviously we got it home.

Vettel: Yeah, not really. Obviously I saw the issue and I was also told by radio and that's when I started to push, but as soon as I got too close or closer then I struggled to stay there and never got in range, especially at the exit of the tunnel, I was always too far (behind) to try and get close. I had the DRS a couple of times but obviously the track makes it quite difficult which is a bonus if you are ahead but with all the problems he had, he was still quicker than us.

Q: Daniel, is this your most satisfying victory?

Ricciardo: I think it's... give it two days, probably and I look back on the weekend as a whole, I think it was definitely my best weekend and the most satisfying. Right now, there's still a lot to process but as I said, once it all settles I think yeah, I could probably say that. You know the race itself... it's a different race to a China. China obviously got everything going and got the adrenalin going and whatnot but as a whole this is probably the best weekend of my career.

Q: (Scott Mitchell - Autosport) After a weekend like this where you've dominated, winning in difficult circumstances today, would you say that your stock as a driver has never been higher than this?

Ricciardo: I guess. We'll see. We'll see what the others think. I can't pay myself but for sure I feel I've done a really good job the first six races and as I said, we've all got two victories so yeah. Lewis is being nice.

Hamilton: I'll negotiate for him.

Ricciardo: What cut will you take?

Hamilton: We can negotiate.

Ricciardo: If Lewis finishes at the end of the year he can maybe step in as my manager.




Haiti - Politic : Overview of the agenda of President Moise in Taiwan (UPDATE)





President Jovenel Moise, accompanied by his wife Martine and a large delegation left Haiti to Taiwan (Republic of China) for an official visit from May 26 to June 2, 2018.



Upon his arrival, Moses and his 30-member delegation will be welcomed by the President of Taiwan (Republic of China) Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen with a military ceremony in his honor in front of the presidential office.



After the military ceremony, Tsai and Moses will hold talks and sign a joint statement, the Taiwan Foreign Ministry said.



Later in the day, President Tsai will hold a banquet for Moise, his wife and the delegation, which includes Haitian Senate President Joseph Lambert, Speaker of the Lower House Gary Bodeau and Foreign Minister Antonio Rodrigue.



In recognition of Moses' support for Taiwan and his efforts to strengthen bilateral relations, Tsai will award him the Order of Brilliant Jade, the supreme order presented by Taiwan to foreign heads of state



In turn, Moses will decorate Tsai with the Grand Cross of the National Order of Honor and Merit, the supreme award of his country that is given to Haitians and foreigners to recognize the distinction in the fields of diplomacy, political, arts, charitable and other areas of concern for Haiti, according to the Foreign Ministry.



During his stay, Moses will notably visit the Taiwan Power Company, the Wen-shan Commune Power Substation, the Mingtan Hydraulic Power Plant, the Taiwan Rice Castle, the Taichung Science Park, the DuaHo-Rice Farm of Taoyuan, the Child Welfare League Foundation, the Committee of Women's Rights Promotion and the National Cultural & Creative Gift.



In addition to meeting with Taiwanese government officials, the Head of State will hold several high-level working sessions with the Taiwanese business community. In this context, a special evening will be offered in honor of the Haitian delegation on the Promotion of Taiwanese Investments in Haiti.



President Jovenel Moise will return home on Saturday, June 2, 2018.



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Elan Haiti 2018 : Young elanistes propose 4 innovative projects





ELAN Haiti 2018, a Youth Association created in 2010 whose mission is to strengthen the capacity of Haitian youth, has decided to carry out through its Directorate of Youth Operations (DOJ), closed last May 21st the 3rd Edition of the International Youth Symposium (ELAN Haiti 2018), organized every two years by the Echo Haiti Group, which took place around the themes: territorial planning, civics, local governance and health.



Elan Haiti 2018, was an appointment for young people in Haiti and around the world who have a strong and committed vision for the future of Haiti, aims to raise awareness of the problems of Haiti while giving them the opportunity to formulate and carry out joint action projects for the development of the country. Elan Haiti 2018 has allowed 100 new Haitian youth (elanists) https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23154-haiti-notice-call-for-applications-3rd-international-symposium-of-the-youth.html to propose at the end of the Forum 4 innovative projects



Spatial Planning Project "Projeco" :

The youth of the spatial planning theme proposed a project to develop a neighborhood of Port-au-Prince by identifying the streets, collecting waste and creating green spaces by involving residents in voluntary actions.



Civic Project "Siv-Aksyon" :

The young elanistes proposed to solve the problem of incivism among students in the 4th to 6th grade (AF) of 5 schools selected in the West Department, by conducting awareness and training sessions among others on environmental citizenship, on patriotism, mutual respect, social peace.



Local Governance Project "Kominote m" :

Young people plan to create an online platform that will disseminate content aimed at training and informing citizens of local communities about local governance and highlighting the potentialities and initiatives of communes. This platform will also allow citizens to alert authorities to problems in their community.



"Zoom health" project :

The young elanistes of the health theme, proposed a project to design and broadcast short videos of information and testimonials of people who have had a bad experience of self-medication.



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-23154-haiti-notice-call-for-applications-3rd-international-symposium-of-the-youth.html



TB/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping...





The Town Hall of L'Estere ransacked

The town hall of the commune of Estere (Dept. Artibonite) was ransacked by angry people. The mayor of Estere, Estimable Seneca, has been missing since May 23rd. Jude Edouard Pierre the President of the National Federation of Haitian Mayors (FENAMH) expressed concern and calls for calm.



The MHAVE celebrates mothers

On Friday, to celebrate with all the mothers (May 27) of the Ministry of Haitians Living Abroad (MHAVE), a symbolic ceremony was held in their honor with the employees of the MHAVE. Declamation of texts, jokes, poems and songs for mothers were on the agenda for this activity, a special way for the ministry to salute the courage and efforts of all Haitian mothers to take care of their children. Happy birthday to all mothers !



Barbados : Congratulations of President Moise

"I extend my sincere congratulations to Mrs. Mia Amor Mottley who has just taken the reins of Barbados [May 24] as the first woman Prime Minister in the history of this sister State of the Caribbean. I take this opportunity to wish her every success !" President Jovenel Moses. Note that Mia Mottley and the "Barbados Labor Party" elected 30 deputies out of 30 seats, another first in 52 years of independence.



Textile : Inclusion of people with disabilities

On Thursday, the Office of the Secretary of State for the Integration of Persons with Disabilities, together with "BetterWork Haiti", organized a training and awareness session on the theme of disability for actors in the textile sector in Haiti. This activity is the first of a series that will continue in particular in the Northeast department. The aim is to make participants aware of the inclusion of people with disabilities and the legal requirements.



Courtesy visit of Ambassador Sison

On Friday, Michele J. Sison, the US Ambassador to Haiti paid a courtesy visit to Jean Roudy Aly, Minister of Justice and Public Security. The occasion for the American diplomat to express the determination of his country to continue its cooperation with Haiti in the field of justice and the rule of law.



Haiti to the 58th Conference of Ministers of Education

The Minister of National Education, Pierre Junior Agenor Cadet participated in the 58th session of the Conference of Ministers of Education of the State and Government of La Francophonie (CONFEMEN) in Bathurst (New Brunswick in Canada) which ended the May 14th



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead | Corn Exchange, Wallingford | Wednesday, May 23

TOM Stoppards Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead is a masterpiece of intertextuality in the way it lifts two minor characters from Shakespeares Hamlet and deploys them in an exploration of the meaning of life.

Will Lidbetter and Tom Richards as the title characters are, of course, the mainstays of Lucy Pitman-Wallaces production for the Sinodun Players.

They display quiet confidence in their roles, both when philosophising on lifes deep questions and also when clowning as a double act.

On Act Is bare stage, the pair pursue a coin-tossing game to evoke how chance and coincidence feature in our lives.

Their banter provides the launchpad for questions about such fundamental issues as mortality and happiness.

They make comic capital from the language of philosophical debate and Stoppards linguistically rich script is safe in their word-perfect delivery.

Stoppards concept that we humans are all playing a part is carried forward by the band of tragedians, responsible for performing the play within a play in Hamlet.

Admirably led by John Jones as The Player, the troupe brings colour, music, song, comedy and a touch of melodrama to the proceedings.

The central query of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead is whether theatre can be regarded as a metaphor for life.

This is a drama about drama, with space for the audience to think about the difference between acting and action, as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern fumble their way through the bewildering events unfolding around them in Elsinore.

Act II sees the pair heading for England, accompanying the exiled Prince of Denmark. Jean Whites imaginative set effectively evokes the ships deck, with an unexpected attack by pirates.

More unexpected still is the trick Hamlet plays on his former friends, resulting in their execution instead of his own and underlining the essential randomness of both life and death.

The notion of identity is made fun of when other characters confuse Rosencrantz with Guildenstern and vice versa. The question of Who am I? is reinforced by the spies, seen as doubles for Rosencrantz and Guildenstern through clever use of costume by Sue Forward.

The subtle direction of this production allows the cast successfully to bring out the wry comedy of the play.

Members of the audience leave the Corn Exchange with the idea that life is absurd, indeed a gamble at terrible odds  but they also leave with a smile.

Until Saturday (May 26).

Susan Creed
#NO:EL Rapper NO:EL arrested over allegedly assaulting police officer, refusing breathalyzer Rapper NO:EL was arrested Tuesday on charges of driving without a license, refusing to take a breathalyzer test and headbutting a police officer last month. Police took the 21-y...

#swimming Swimmer Hwang Sun-woo breaks nat'l record in individual medley Teen swimming sensation Hwang Sun-woo broke the national record in the men's 200m individual medley (IM) on Tuesday, surpassing South Korea's only Olympic swimming champion Park Ta...
Multi-faceted Bay Area recording artist Jordan Garrett releases the quick strike 3-track EP titled Do Not Disturb. Featuring the crowd favorites "Casper" and "New Phone Who Dis," Garrett also adds the experimental acoustic track "Do Not Disturb" featuring Neel Thomas Foon. With recent live appearances opening for Bay Area legend Andre Nickatina and platinum producer Zaytoven, Jordan Garrett and his collective Forever New Nation have been making a wave in The Bay area this year. Fresh off the release of his IDK music video, Jordan Garrett wastes no time feeding the fans new music for the summer.Social MediaInstagram: @jordangarrettmusicTwitter: @27jordangarrettFacebook.com/jordangarrettmusicwww.jordangarrettmusic.comwww.forevernewnation.com
As an existing print subscriber it is easy to get FREE access to all our online content.

When you click get started below it will walk you through creating an online account to attach your print subscription number to.

After your account is created it will ask you to either add a subscription for online access or click on the print subscriber button. Click the print subscriber button header and it will open a dropdown, now click on get started. The page will reload and you will be prompted to enter an account number and a zip code.

IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO USE THE NUMBER OFF OF THE MOST RECENT ISSUE OR ANYTHING AFTER JANUARY 28, 2019 TO GAIN ACCESS!

OLD ACCOUNT NUMBERS WILL NOT WORK

The account number and zip code are easily available on your most recent issue of the High Plains Journal or Midwest Ag Journal in the address fields as is shown here. Sometimes the account number has extra zero's in front of it, just ignore those.
Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print.

Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition.

If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create.
A number of Italian-Americans asked the School Committee to reconsider.

Pittsfield School Committee to Reconsider Indigenous Peoples Day



Rudy Sacco was one of many who opposed the name change. PITTSFIELD, Mass.  The School Committee will reconsider its decision to rename Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day after the Italian-American community voiced outrage at the decision.

The School Committee in January voted to make the change on the school calendar. But, that brought out the ire of the Italian-American community who showed up in numbers at both this week's City Council meeting and School Committee meeting.

Local Italian groups agree that Columbus was a controversial figure but they also said he was accomplished and made a huge impact on the world. They feel eliminating the holiday is an insult to their Italian heritage.

"Regardless of which textbook you believe, Christopher Columbus deserves to be honored, deserves to be debated," said Marietta Rapetti Cawse.

Cawse suggested that there be a different holiday to honor indigenous peoples as well as keeping Columbus Days.

"Yes, it is important to recognize indigenous natives and their own holiday. But please re-enstate Columbus Day," she said.

Maryann Sherman said Columbus was responsible for bringing European culture to the New World more than any other explorer. She said he brought arts and sciences to the Americas and she denies critics who say Columbus was responsible for committing genocide. The day is to celebrate all of the contributions Italians have brought to America, she said.

School Committee member Cynthia Taylor, who proposed the change, said she did so not thinking it was considered an Italian holiday. She said she never knew Columbus Day as such a holiday but saw it as a day to honor someone who was proclaimed to have discovered America.

"I don't know a single soul who linked Columbus Day to Italians," Taylor said. "My intention was never in any way to take anything away from your proud Italian heritage."

Taylor apologized to the members of the Itam, CHAO, Unico, and the Italian American clubs who felt the change was an insult to their culture. She wanted to change the name of the holiday to "set the record straight" about the discovery of America.

Chairwoman Katherine Yon echoed that sentiment, saying she didn't think the renaming of the holiday would have caused an issue.

"We probably should have had more foresight. We did not," Yon said.

However, some of the committee members are standing by their decision. School Committee member Daniel Elias detailed the iconoclastic moment he had when he asked a Native American friend what they were doing for the holiday. They responded they don't celebrate it. Elias then began taking a deeper look into the history and realized Columbus wasn't somebody he felt should be honored. That was a change for him, who grew up thinking of Columbus as an American hero and remember clearly taking photos of himself with a statue of the explorer.

"To me, when I look back and read numerous accounts even from his own men about horrific behavior toward the Indians. I just think it is well documented," Elias said. "To me, it is hard to celebrate a holiday for something like that."

Resident Drew Herzig also spoke in favor of eliminating Columbus Day. But, it wasn't so much focused on what Columbus did or did not do but rather what Columbus represents to Native Americans. He said the holiday is a constant reminder to Native Americans about the horrors their ancestors went through at the hands of colonists.

"It is not about the individual but about the symbolism. The symbolism of Columbus Day is a daily offense to Native Americans," Herzig said.

Michael Bushey is both Italian and Native American. He said there are always reminders of his Italian heritage but none of his Native American. He said indigenous people need more than just a holiday, but this change to the school calendar is a little motion that goes in that direction.

"Their values and customs have been folded into the fabric of our society. There is no longer a need for a separate day to celebrate Italian-American heritage because it is American heritage. Indigenous people have not been given that opportunity," Bushey said.

School Committee Dennis Powell, a member of the NAACP, understands how difficult the conversation is. He said many of the indigenous people were black and he considers himself more closely related to them than African-Americans. He said that history has been mostly erased as well as all of the accomplishments they made. He added that they lost their land while Italians still have Italy just as the Irish still have Ireland, and the Greeks still have Greece.

"I want all children in our school system to understand the values of all of the cultures for contributions made here in America. In order to do that, history is going to have to take a complete change. We are going to have to take what is actually recorded, the real history, the hard history, and start teaching it to our children if the world is going to be improved," Powell said.

He added, "at some point, we have to take a stand about history."

Mayor Linda Tyer sees both sides of the argument. She said people like Columbus did contribute greatly but at the same time did things that weren't worth celebrating. The argument that the committee was now using 21st-century laws and morals to judge a 15th-century event gave her more to think about.

"It is important to learn from both aspects of those historical figures," she said.

Nonetheless, for now, the school calendar will read "Indigenous Peoples Day" but the School Committee will continue the discussion and could change it back to "Columbus Day."
We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

Go to form
Home Search ICH The Pawns of War By Philip A Farruggio May 25, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - She would always have the brightest smile as she stood at the intersection of Avenue T and Ocean Ave in Brooklyn, N.Y. circa 1968. She was our crossing guard and we all loved Mrs. Lombardo. Each morning and afternoon during school days she would greet each and every kid who passed by her post. On Sundays, before and after each Catholic Mass at St. Edmunds church , she would be there, again with that contagious smile. The young kids loved her as one would love a favorite aunt, and the seniors, who seemed to make up a majority of each Sunday mass, enjoyed the special care Mrs. Lombardo offered them. Then, perhaps sometime in 1968, her son Tommy joined the Marines along with his childhood buddy Pete Haros, of the Haros Coffee shop on Avenue U. A year later Pete returned to the coffee shop from his tour of duty in Vietnam unscathed. Tommy returned in a box! Mrs. Lombardo still took up her post on that corner, but the sparkling smile was replaced by what this writer remembers as a 'Mona Lisa smile' or half frown. As with the lady in the famous portrait, Mrs. Lombardo had too much to say without saying a thing. Memorial Day is around the corner once again, and it seems ' The Dogs of War ' are at it as always. Fifty plus years ago there were 58,220 Tommy Lombardos who would never see the smiles of their Moms ever again. Factor that in with approximately 2 million Vietnamese who lost their lives, and one can deduce what our empire's imperial presence meant. For what? For whom? Yet, each and every year spanning these decades, our empire's handlers and their compliant, embedded media sell us this fake and false bill of goods. They honor those dead as ' fallen heroes ' when they should be apologizing for using them as pawns for the geopolitical game they play. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter Fast forward to 2002 until the present and see how the scam continues. Phony wars following the dictates of what Zbigniew Brzezinski labeled ' The Grand Chessboard ' for the key Eurasian region were in play... then and NOW! What George Bush Sr. made famous as ' The New World Order' has our empire as the only one needed to assure the ' safety of humanity'. And I have this great bridge in Brooklyn for sale. Imagine the gall of the movers and shakers of this Military Industrial Empire to keep playing that fear card on a mostly subservient and apathetic populace. It worked during the ' Red Scare ' 50s and 60s, with a Cold War that was mostly predicated on continuous ' Fake News'. Eisenhower, through his ' handlers' the two Dulles brothers, knew that the Russians were much weaker than us militarily. The Russians knew it as well. Check out the great 1989 Andrew Davis film 'The Package' to see how these scams work. They will lower the flag, the flag that this empire has hijacked from us, on Memorial Day. They will have somber ceremonies to ' honor the dead , fallen heroes'. What they should always have done is honor those dead US servicemen and women by acknowledging the criminal acts of sending them to those hornets nests overseas to kill and be killed... or maimed for life with lost limbs, eyes, and fatal diseases from Agent Orange and Depleted Uranium. After that is done, to give just a ' teaspoon of comfort ' to the dead and their families, the war criminals still breathing among us should be tried and convicted for high treason. Let justice be done though the heavens may fall! Philip A Farruggio is a son and grandson of Brooklyn , NYC longshoremen. He has been a free lance columnist since 2001. His blog can be read in full on World News Trust. Philip has a internet interview show, ' It's the Empire... Stupid' with producer Chuck Gregory, and can be reached at paf1222@bellsouth.net ) The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. ====== "But what do the dead say? Did anybody ever come back from the dead any single one of the millions who got killed did any one of them ever come back and say by god I'm glad I'm dead because death is always better than dishonor? Did they say I'm glad I died to make the world safe for democracy? Did they say I like death better than losing liberty? Did any of them ever say it's good to think I got my guts blown out for the honor of my country? Did any of them ever say look at me I'm dead but I died for decency and that's better than being alive? Did any of them ever say here I am I've been rotting for two years in a foreign grave but it's wonderful to die for your native land? Did any of them say hurray I died for womanhood and I'm happy, see how I sing even though my mouth is choked with worms?" Dalton Trumbo, Johnny Got His Gun Join the Discussion It is not necessary for ICH readers to register before placing a comment. We ask that you treat others with respect. Take a moment to read the following - Comment Policy - What Or Who is Information Clearing House and Purpose and Intent of this website: It is unacceptable to slander, smear or engage in personal attacks on authors of articles posted on ICH. Those engaging in that behavior will be banned from the comment section. Search Information Clearing House === Click Here To Support Information Clearing House Your support has kept ICH free on the Web since 2002. Click for Spanish , German , Dutch , Danish , French , translation- Note- Translation may take a moment to load.
May 25, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - Nero played his fiddle, Obama shot baskets and Trump twittered while their empires burned.

What makes empire decay and what makes empires expand has everything to do with their relations between rulers and the ruled. Several factors are decisive. These include: (1) rent, land and housing, (2) the direction of living standards, (3) the rise or fall of mortality rate, (4) decline or rise of families.

Throughout history rising empires incorporate their population to the task of empire by distributing a portion of their plunder to their masses, by providing them with land, low rents and housing. Large scale landlords facing returning young war veterans reduced excessive land concentration to avoid domestic unrest.

Rising empires raised living standards, as salaried employees, workers and artisans, merchants and scribes found employment as the oligarchies expanding conspicuous consumption and expanded the state bureaucracy running the empire.

A prosperous empire is cause and consequence of increases in families, and the growth of healthy and educated plebeians who serviced and served the rulers.

In contrast, declining empires plunder the domestic economy; concentrated wealth as the expense of the labor force, heedless of the diminution of its health and life expectancy. As a result deteriorating empires experience a declining rate of mortality; homeownership and land is concentrated in an elite of renters living off of unearned wealth via inheritance, speculation, rents which degrades productive work based on skill and knowledge.

Declining empires are cause and consequence of deteriorating families composed of opioid addicted workers suffering from rising inequalities between rulers and ruled.

The US imperial experience over the past century embodies the trajectory of the rise and fall of empires. The past quarter century describes the relations between rulers and ruled at a time of declining empire.

Living standards of Americans have decline precipitously. Employers have ceased paying for pensions; reduced or eliminated health coverage; reduced corporate taxes thus lowering the quality for public education.

Over the past two decades, wages and salaries for the majority of households have stagnated or declined; education and health expenses bankrupting many and reducing university graduates to long-term debt peonage.

Accessibility to home ownership for Americans under 45 years has fallen dramatically from 24% in 2006 to 14% in 2017. At the same time, rents have skyrocketed especially in large cities across the country, in most cases absorbing between a third and half of monthly income.

Business elites and their housing experts divert attention to intergenerational inequalities between pensioners and younger wage and salaried employees instead of recognizing rising inequalities between CEO and both workers and pensioners which have risen from 100 to 400 to one over the past three decades.

Mortality rates between the business elite and workers have widened as the wealthy live longer and healthier lives while workers have experienced declining life expectancy, the first time in American history! As the business elites income from profits, dividends, interest increase they can afford high cost private medical care, prolonging life, while millions of workers are prescribed death inducing opioids, to reduce pain and precipitate premature death.

Births are declining as a result of the high cost of medical care, the absence of day care and paid maternal or paternal leave. The most recent studies revealed that 2017 experienced the fewest babies in 30 years. The so-called economic recovery following the financial collapse of 2008/9 was class based: the real estate and financial elites received over two trillion dollars in bailouts while over 3 million working class households were evicted by financial mortgage holders. The result was a rapid rise in homeless people especially in cities with the highest rate of recovery from the crises.

Homelessness and crowded overpriced rentals and minimum wages are likely causes of declining birthrates and increasing mortality rates.

Imperialism Expands, Living Standards Decline

Unlike the earlier, post WWII decades in which overseas expansion was accompanied by low cost higher education, accessible low cost mortgages and increasing home ownership, and employer paid pensions and health coverage, over the past two decades imperial expansion is based on forced reductions of living standards.

The empire grew and living standards declined because the capitalist class evaded trillions of taxable income via overseas tax havens, transfer pricing and tax exemptions. Moreover, capitalists received massive state subsidies for infrastructure, and cost-free transfers of public funded technological innovations.

Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

Imperial expansion now is based on the relocation of multi-national manufacturing corporations overseas to lower labor costs, increasing the percentage of low wage service workers in the US .

The decline of living standards for the majority is a result of the restructuring of the empire, the advent of the regressive tax system, the redistribution of State welfare transfers from public social spending to private finance and real estate subsidies and bailouts.

Conclusion

In the beginning imperialism involved an explicit social contract with labor: overseas expansion shared profits, taxes and income with labor in exchange for workers political support for imperial overseas economic exploitation, resource plundering as well as serving in the imperial armed forces .

The social contract was conditioned by a relative balance of power: unionized workers represented the majority of manufacturing, public sector and skilled workers. But this balance of power in class relations was based on the capacity of labor to engage in class struggle and influence the state. In other words the entire imperialism and welfare configuration was based on a particular set of conditional relations intrinsic to the social pact.

Over time imperial expansion faced overseas constraints from rising national and socialist opposition which forced or encouraged corporations it to relocate capital abroad. Imperial rivals in Europe and Asia competed for overseas markets forcing the US to increase productivity, lower labor costs, relocate abroad or reduce profits. The US chose to reduce domestic living standards and relocating abroad.

Labor unions divorced from the broader community movements and lacking an independent political movement, corrupted from within and committed to a disappearing social compact, declined in number and capacity to formulate a new combatative post social pact strategy. The capital class gained total control over class relations and, therefore, unilaterally set the terms of taxation, employment, living standards and, most important, state expenditure.

Imperial military and economic expenditures grew in direct proportions to the decline of social welfare payments. Rival power groups fought over the share of capitalist budgets and political-military priorities. Economic imperialists competed with or converged with military imperialists; free market neo-liberals competed for overseas markets with national militarists pursuing territorial occupations, conquests, closed markets and submissive clients. Rival political power configuration competed over imperial priorities  powerful Zionists configurations sought regional wars for Israel while multi-nationals looked to advance their political-economic expansion in Asia  China, India and Southeast Asian markets.

Competing elite factions monopolized budgets, taxes and expenditures driving labor living standards downward. Imperialist classes formed pacts  but only among themselves  but the quality and quantity of workers decreased  through impoverished health care and, educational systems. In contrast Elite offspring attended the best schools and secured the highest posts in government and economy.

Privilege and power did not produce imperial triumphs. China harnessed educational programs and skilled workers to productive work. In contrast privileged US university graduates sought employment in parasitical lucrative financial positions not in science, engineering and social welfare. Military academy graduates joined networks of commanders who condoned sexual abusers, trained and promoted officers who sent missiles which targeted military bases and bombed population centers and trained naval captains specializing in own- ship collisions.

Ivy League graduates secured high government positions leading the US into endless Middle East wars, multiplying adversaries, antagonizing allies and spending trillions on wars for Israel, not social welfare and higher wages for American workers . Oh yes the economy is recovering. only the people are doing worse.

James Petras is a Bartle Professor (Emeritus) of Sociology at Binghamton University, New York.
By Robert J. Burrowes

May 25, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - I would like to tell you something about human depravity and illustrate just how widespread it is among those we often regard as responsible. I am going to use the Democratic Republic of the Congo as my example.

As I illustrate and explain what has happened to the Congo and its people during the past 500 years, I invite you to consider my essential point: Human depravity has no limit unless people like you (hopefully) and me take some responsibility for ending it. Depravity, barbarity and violent exploitation will not end otherwise because major international organizations (such as the UN), national governments and corporations all benefit from it and are almost invariably led by individuals too cowardly to act on the truth.

The Congo

Prior to 1482, the area of central Africa now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo was part of the Kingdom of the Kongo. It was populated by some of the greatest civilizations in human history.

Slavery

However, in that fateful year of 1482, the mouth of the Congo river, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean, became known to Europeans when the Portuguese explorer Diogo Cao claimed he discovered it. By the 1530s, more than five thousand slaves a year (many from inland regions of the Kongo) were being transported to distant lands, mostly in the Americas. Hence, as documented by Adam Hothschild, the Congo was first exploited by Europeans during the Atlantic slave trade. See King Leopolds Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa .

Despite the horrific depredations of the militarized slave trade and all of its ancillary activities, including Christian priests spreading Christianity while raping their captive slave girls, the Kingdoms of the Kongo were able to defend and maintain themselves to a large degree for another 400 years by virtue of their long-standing systems of effective governance. As noted by Chancellor Williams in his epic study The Destruction of Black Civilization: Great Issues of a Race from 4500 B.C. to 2000 A.D. the Kingdoms of the Congo prior to 1885  including Kuba under Shyaam the Great and the Matamba Kingdom under Ngola Kambolo  were a cradle of culture, democracy and exceptional achievement with none more effective than the remarkable Queen (of Ndongo and Matamba), warrior and diplomat Nzinga in the 17th century.

But the ruthless military onslaught of the Europeans never abated. In fact, it continually expanded with ever-greater military firepower applied to the task of conquering Africa. In 1884 European powers met in Germany to finally divide this magnificent African cake, precipitating what is sometimes called the scramble for Africa but is more accurately described as the scramble to finally control and exploit Africa and Africans completely.

Colonization

One outcome of the Berlin Conference was that the great perpetrator of genocide  King Leopold II of Belgium  with the active and critical support of the United States, seized violent control of a vast swathe of central Africa in the Congo Basin and turned it into a Belgian colony. In Leopolds rapacious pursuit of rubber, gold, diamonds, mahogany and ivory, 10 million African men, women and children had been slaughtered and many Africans mutilated (by limb amputation, for example) by the time he died in 1909. His brutality and savagery have been documented by Adam Hochschild in the book King Leopolds Ghost: A Story of Greed, Terror, and Heroism in Colonial Africa which reveals the magnitude of human suffering that this one man, unopposed in any significant way by his fellow Belgians or anyone else, was responsible for inflicting on Africa.

Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

If you want to spend a few moments in touch with the horror of what some human beings do to other human beings, then I invite you to look at the sample photos of what Leopold did in his colony in the Congo. See A Nightmare In Heaven  Why Nobody Is Talking About The Holocaust in Congo .

Now if you were hoping that the situation in the Congo improved with the death of the monster Leopold, your hope is in vain.

The shocking reality is that the unmitigated horror inflicted on the Congolese people has barely improved since Leopolds time. The Congo remained under Belgian control during World War I during which more than 300,000 Congolese were forced to fight against other Africans from the neighboring German colony of Ruanda-Urundi. During World War II when Nazi Germany captured Belgium, the Congo financed the Belgian government in exile.

Throughout these decades, the Belgian government forced millions of Congolese into mines and fields using a system of mandatory cultivation that forced people to grow cash crops for export, even as they starved on their own land.

It was also during the colonial period that the United States acquired a strategic stake in the enormous natural wealth of the Congo without, of course, any benefit to the Congolese people. This included its use of uranium from a Congolese mine (subsequently closed in 1960) to manufacture the first nuclear weapons: those used to destroy Hiroshima and Nagasaki. See Patrice Lumumba: the most important assassination of the 20th century .

Independence then Dictatorship

By 1960, the Congolese people had risen up to overthrow nearly a century of slavery and Belgian rule. Patrice Lumumba became the first Prime Minister of the new nation and he quickly set about breaking the yoke of Belgian influence and allied the Congo with Russia at the height of the Cold War.

But the victory of the Congolese people over their European and US overlords was shortlived: Patrice Lumumba was assassinated in a United States-sponsored coup in 1961 with the US and other western imperial powers (and a compliant United Nations) repeating a long-standing and ongoing historical pattern of preventing an incredibly wealthy country from determining its own future and using its resources for the benefit of its own people. See Patrice Lumumba: the most important assassination of the 20th century .

So, following a well-worn modus operandi, an agent in the form of (Army Chief of Staff, Colonel) Mobutu Sese Seko was used to overthrow Lumumbas government. Lumumba himself was captured and tortured for three weeks before being assassinated by firing squad. The new dictator Mobutu, compliant to western interests, then waged all-out war in the country, publicly executing members of the pro-Lumumba revolution in spectacles witnessed by tens of thousands of people. By 1970, nearly all potential threats to his authority had been smashed. See A Nightmare In Heaven  Why Nobody Is Talking About The Holocaust in Congo .

Mobutu would rape the Congo (renamed Zaire for some time) with the blessing of the west  robbing the nation of around $2billion  from 1965 to 1997. During this period, the Congo got more than $1.5 billion in US economic and military aid in return for which US multinational corporations increased their share of the Congos abundant minerals. Washington justified its hold on the Congo with the pretext of anti-Communism but its real interests were strategic and economic. See Congo: The Western Heart of Darkness .

Invasion

Eventually, however, Mobutus increasingly hostile rhetoric toward his white overlords caused the west to seek another proxy. So, ostensibly in retaliation against Hutu rebels from the Rwandan genocide of 1994  who fled into eastern Congo after Paul Kagames (Tutsi) Rwanda Patriotic Army invaded Rwanda from Uganda to end the genocide  in October 1996 Rwandas now-dictator Kagame, who was trained in intelligence at Fort Leavenworth in the United States, invaded the Congo with the help of the Clinton Administration and Uganda. By May 1997 the invading forces had removed Mobutu and installed the new (more compliant) choice for dictator, Laurent Kabila.

Relations between Kabila and Kagame quickly soured, however, and Kabila expelled the Rwandans and Ugandans from the Congo in July 1998. However, the Rwandans and Ugandans reinvaded in August establishing an occupation force in eastern Congo. Angola, Zimbabwe and Namibia sent their armies to support Kabila and Burundi joined the Rwandans and Ugandans. Thus began Africas First World War involving seven armies and lasting until 2003. It eventually killed six million people  most of them civilians  and further devastated a country crushed by more than a century of Western domination, with Rwanda and Uganda establishing themselves as conduits for illegally taking strategic minerals out of the Congo. See Congo: The Western Heart of Darkness .

During the periods under Mobutu and Kabila, the Congo became the concentration camp capital of the world and the rape capital as well. No woman in the path of the violence was spared. 7 year olds were raped by government troops in public. Pregnant women were disemboweled. Genital mutilation was commonplace, as was forced incest and cannibalism. The crimes were never punished, and never will be.

Laurent Kabila maintained the status quo until he was killed by his bodyguard in 2001. Since then, his son and the current President Joseph Kabila has held power in violation of the Constitution. He has murdered protesters and opposition party members, and has continued to obey the will of the west while his people endure unspeakable hells.

Corporate and State Exploitation

While countries such as Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, South Korea, Switzerland and the UK are heavily involved one way or another (with other countries, such as Australia, somewhat less so), US corporations make a vast range of hitech products including microchips, cell phones and semiconductors using conflict minerals taken from the Congo . This makes companies like Intel, Apple, HP, and IBM culpable for funding the militias that control the mines. See A Nightmare In Heaven  Why Nobody Is Talking About The Holocaust in Congo .

But many companies are benefitting. For example, a 2002 report by the United Nations listed a sample of 34 companies based in Europe and Asia that are importing minerals from the Congo via, in this case, Rwanda. The UN Report commented: Illegal exploitation of the mineral and forest resources of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is taking place at an alarming rate. Two phases can be distinguished: mass-scale looting and the systematic and systemic exploitation of resources. The mass-scale looting occurred during the initial phase of the invasion of the Congo by Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi when stockpiles of minerals, coffee, wood, livestock and money in the conquered territory were either taken to the invading countries or exported to international markets by their military forces or nationals. The subsequent systematic and systemic exploitation required planning and organization involving key military commanders, businessmen and government structures; it was clearly illegal. See Report of the Panel of Experts on the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources and other Forms of Wealth of the Democratic Republic of the Congo .

For some insight into other issues making exploitation of the Congo possible but which are usually paid less attention  such as the roles of mercenaries, weapons dealers, US military training of particular rebel groups and the secret airline flights among key locations in the smuggling operations of conflict minerals  see the research of Keith Harmon Snow and David Barouski: Behind the numbers: Untold Suffering in the Congo and Merchants of Death: Exposing Corporate-Financed Holocaust in Africa; White Collar War Crimes, Black African Fall Guys .

Has there been any official attempt to rein in this corporate exploitation?

A little. For example, the Obama-era US Dodd-Frank Financial Reform Act of 2010 shone a spotlight on supply chains, pressuring companies to determine the origin of minerals used in their products and invest in removing conflict minerals from their supply chain. This resulted in some US corporations, conscious of the public relations implications of being linked to murderous warlords and child labor, complying with the Act. So, a small step in the right direction it seemed. See The Impact of Dodd-Frank and Conflict Minerals Reforms on Eastern Congos Conflict and Congo mines no longer in grip of warlords and militias, says report .

In 2011, given that legally-binding human rights provisions, if applied, should have offered adequate protections already, the United Nations rather powerlessly formulated the non-binding Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights .

And in 2015, the European Union also made a half-hearted attempt when it decided that smelters and refiners based in the 28-nation bloc be asked to certify that their imports were conflict-free on a voluntary basis! See EU lawmakers to limit import of conflict minerals .

However, following the election of Donald Trump as US President, in April 2017 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission suspended key provisions of its conflict minerals rule. Trump is also seeking to undo the Obama-era financial regulations, once again opening the door to the unimpeded trade in blood minerals by US corporations. See A Nightmare In Heaven  Why Nobody Is Talking About The Holocaust in Congo and Trump Moves to Roll Back Obama-Era Financial Regulations .

Today

Despite its corrupt exploitation for more than 500 years, the Congo still has vast natural resources (including rainforests) and mineral wealth. Its untapped deposits of minerals are estimated to be worth in excess of $US24 trillion. Yes, thats right: $US24trillion. With a host of rare strategic minerals  including cobalt, coltan, gold and diamonds  as well as copper, zinc, tin and tungsten critical to the manufacture of hitech electronic products ranging from aircraft and vehicles to computers and mobile phones, violent and morally destitute western governments and corporations are not about to let the Congo decide its own future and devote its resources to the people of this African country. This, of course, despite the international community paying lip service to a plethora of human rights treaties.

Hence, violent conflict, including ongoing war, over the exploitation of these resources, including the smuggling of conflict minerals  such as gold, coltan and cassiterite (the latter two ores of tantalum and tin, respectively), and diamonds  will ensure that the people of the Congo continue to be denied what many of those in western countries take for granted: the right to life benefiting from the exploitation of their natural resources.

In essence then, since 1885 European and US governments, together with their corporations and African collaborators, have inflicted phenomenal ongoing atrocities on the peoples of the Congo as they exploit the vast resources of the country for the benefit of non-Congolese people.

But, you might wonder, European colonizers inflicted phenomenal violence on the indigenous peoples in all of their colonies  whether in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, the Caribbean or Oceania  so is their legacy in the Congo any worse?

Well, according to the The Pan-African Alliance, just since colonization in 1885, at least 25 million Congolese men, women and children have been slaughtered by white slave traders, missionaries, colonists, corporations and governments (both the governments of foreign-installed Congolese dictators and imperial powers). Yet barely a mention is made of the holocaust that rages in the heart of Africa. Why? Because the economy of the entire world rests on the back of the Congo. See A Nightmare In Heaven  Why Nobody Is Talking About The Holocaust in Congo .

So what is happening now?

In a sentence: The latest manifestation of the violence and exploitation that has been happening since 1482 when that Portuguese explorer discovered the mouth of the Congo River. The latest generation of European and American genocidal exploiters, and their latter-day cronies, is busy stealing what they can from the Congo. Of course, as illustrated above, having installed the ruthless dictator of their choosing to ensure that foreign interests are protected, the weapon of choice is the corporation and non-existent legal or other effective controls in the era of free trade.

The provinces of North and South Kivu in the eastern Congo are filled with mines of cassiterite, wolframite, coltan and gold. Much mining is done by locals eking out a living using Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM); that is, mining by hand, sometimes with rudimentary tools. Some of these miners sell their product via local agents to Congolese military commanders who smuggle it out of the country, usually via Rwanda, Uganda or Burundi, and use the proceeds to enrich themselves.

Another report on South Kivu by Global Witness in 2016  see River of Gold and Illegal gold trade in Congo still benefiting armed groups, foreign companies  documented evidence of the corrupt links between government authorities, foreign corporations (in this case, Kun Hou Mining of China) and the military, which results in the gold dredged from the Ulindi River in South Kivu being illegally smuggled out of the country, with much of it ending up with Alfa Gold Corp in Dubai. The unconcealed nature of this corruption and the obvious lack of enforcement of weak Congolese law is a powerful disincentive for corporations to engage in due diligence when conducting their own mining operations in the Congo.

In contrast, in the south of the Congo in the former province of Katanga, Amnesty International and Afrewatch researchers tracked sacks of cobalt ore that had been mined by artisanal miners in Kolwezi to the local market where the mineral ore is sold. From this point, the material was smelted by one of the large companies in Kolwezi, such as Congo Dongfang Mining International SARL (CDM), which is a smelter and fully-owned subsidiary of Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Company Ltd (Huayou Cobalt) in China, one of the worlds largest manufacturers of cobalt products. Once smelted, the material is typically exported from the Congo to China via a port in South Africa. See This is what We Die for: Human Rights Abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Power the Global Trade in Cobalt .

In its 2009 report Faced with a gun, what can you do? War and the Militarisation of Mining in Eastern Congo examining the link between foreign corporate activity in the Congo and the military violence, Global Witness raised questions about the involvement of nearly 240 companies spanning the mineral, metal and technology industries. It specifically identified four main European companies as open buyers in this illegal trade: Thailand Smelting and Refining Corp. (owned by British Amalgamated Metal Corp.), British Afrimex, Belgian Trademet and Traxys. It also questioned the role of other companies further down the manufacturing chain, including prominent electronics companies Hewlett-Packard, Nokia, Dell and Motorola (a list to which Microsoft and Samsung should have been added as well). Even though they may be acting legally, Global Witness criticized their lack of due diligence and transparency standards at every level of their supply chain. See First Blood Diamonds, Now Blood Computers?

Of course, as you no doubt expect, some of the worlds largest corporate miners are in the Congo. These include Glencore (Switzerland) and Freeport-McMoRan (USA). But there are another 20 or more mining corporations in the Congo too, including Mawson West Limited (Australia), Forrest Group International (Belgium), Anvil Mining (Canada), Randgold Resources (UK) and AngloGold Ashanti (South Africa).

Needless to say, despite beautifully worded corporate responsibility statements by whatever name, the record rarely goes even remotely close to resembling the rhetoric. Take Glencores lovely statement on safety in the Congo: Ask Glencore: Democratic Republic of the Congo . Unfortunately, this didnt prevent the 2016 accident at a Congolese mine that one newspaper reported in the following terms: Glencores efforts to reduce fatalities among its staff have suffered a setback with the announcement that the death toll from an accident at a Congolese mine has risen to seven. See Glencore reports seven dead in mining accident .

Or consider the Belgian Forrest Group International s wonderful Community Services program, supposedly developing projects in the areas of education, health, early childhood care, culture, sport, infrastructure and the environment. The FORREST GROUP has been investing on the African continent since 1922. Its longevity is the fruit of a vision of the role a company should have, namely the duty to be a positive player in the society in which it operates. The investments of the Group share a common core of values which include, as a priority, objectives of stability and long-term prospects.

Regrettably, the Forrest Group website and public relations documents make no mention of the companys illegal demolition, without notice, of hundreds of homes of people who lived in the long-standing village of Kawama, inconveniently close to the Forrest Groups Luiswishi Mine, on 24 and 25 November 2009. People were left homeless and many lost their livelihoods as a direct consequence. Of course, the demolitions constitute forced evictions, which are illegal under international human rights law.

Fortunately, given the obvious oversight of the Forrest Group in failing to mention it, the demolitions have been thoroughly documented by Amnesty International in its report Bulldozed  How a Mining Company Buried the Truth about Forced Evictions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the satellite photographs acquired by the American Academy for the Advancement of Science have been published as well. See Satellite imagery assessment of forced relocations near the Luiswishi Mine .

Needless to say, it is difficult for Congolese villagers to feel they have any stability and long-term prospects, as the Forrest Groups Community Services statement puts it, when their homes and livelihoods have been destroyed. Are company chairman George A. Forrest and its CEO Malta David Forrest and their family delusional? Or just so familiar with being violently ruthless in their exploitation of the Congo and its people, that it doesnt even occur to them that there might be less violent ways of resolving any local conflicts?

Tragically, of course, fatal industrial accidents and housing demolition are only two of the many abuses inflicted on mining labourers, including (illegal) child labourers, and families in the Congo where workers are not even provided with the most basic safety equipment  work clothes, helmets, gloves, boots and facemasks  let alone a safe working environment (including guidance on the safe handling of toxic substances) or a fair wage, reasonable working hours, holidays, sick leave or superannuation.

Even where laws exist, such as the Congos Child Protection Code (2009) which provides for free and compulsory primary education for all children, laws are often simply ignored (without legal consequence). Although, it should also be noted, in the Congo there is no such thing as free education despite the law. Consequently, plenty of children do not attend school and work full time, others attend school but work out of school hours. There is no effective system to remove children from child labour (which is well documented). Even for adults, there is no effective labour inspection system. Most artisanal mining takes places in unauthorized mining areas where the government is doing next to nothing to regulate the safety and labour conditions in which the miners work. See This is what We Die for: Human Rights Abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Power the Global Trade in Cobalt .

In addition, as noted above, given its need for minerals to manufacture the hitech products it makes, including those for western corporations, China is deeply engaged in mining strategic minerals in the Congo too. See China plays long game on cobalt and electric batteries .

Based on the Chinese notion of respect  which includes the principle of noninterference in each others internal affairs  the Chinese dictatorship is content to ignore the dictatorship of the Congo and its many corrupt and violent practices, even if its investment often has more beneficial outcomes for ordinary Congolese than does western investment. Moreover, China is not going to disrupt and destabilize the Congo in the way that the United States and European countries have done for so long. See Chinas Congo Plan and China vs. the US: The Struggle for Central Africa and the Congo .

Having noted the above, however, there is plenty of evidence of corrupt Chinese business practice in the extraction and sale of strategic minerals in the Congo, including that documented in the above-mentioned Global Witness report. See River of Gold .

Moreover, Chinese involvement is not limited to its direct engagement in mining such as gold dredging of the Ulindi River. A vital source of the mineral cobalt is that which is mined by artisanal miners. As part of a recent detailed investigation, Amnesty International had researchers follow cobalt mined by artisanal miners from where it was mined to a market at Musompo, where minerals are traded. The report summarised what happens:

Independent traders at Musompo  most of them Chinese  buy the ore, regardless of where it has come from or how it has been mined. In turn, these traders sell the ore on to larger companies in the DRC which process and export it. One of the largest companies at the centre of this trade is Congo Dongfang Mining International (CDM). CDM is a 100% owned subsidiary of China-based Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Company Ltd (Huayou Cobalt), one of the worlds largest manufacturers of cobalt products. Operating in the DRC since 2006, CDM buys cobalt from traders, who buy directly from the miners. CDM then smelts the ore at its plant in the DRC before exporting it to China. There, Huayou Cobalt further smelts and sells the processed cobalt to battery component manufacturers in China and South Korea. In turn, these companies sell to battery manufacturers, which then sell on to well-known consumer brands.

Using public records, including investor documents and statements published on company websites, researchers identified battery component manufacturers who were listed as sourcing processed ore from Huayou Cobalt. They then went on to trace companies who were listed as customers of the battery component manufacturers, in order to establish how the cobalt ends up in consumer products. In seeking to understand how this international supply chain works, as well as to ask questions about each companys due diligence policy, Amnesty International wrote to Huayou Cobalt and 25 other companies in China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, UK, and the USA. These companies include some of the worlds largest and best known consumer electronics companies, including Apple Inc., Dell, HP Inc. (formerly Hewlett-Packard Company), Huawei, Lenovo (Motorola), LG, Microsoft Corporation, Samsung, Sony and Vodafone, as well as vehicle manufacturers like Daimler AG, Volkswagen and Chinese firm BYD. Their replies are detailed in the reports Annex. See This is what We Die for: Human Rights Abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Power the Global Trade in Cobalt .

As backdrop to the problems mentioned above, it is worth pointing out that keeping the country under military siege is useful to many parties, internal and foreign. Over the past 20 years of violent conflict, control of these valuable mineral resources has been a lucrative way for warring parties to finance their violence  that is, buying the products of western weapons corporations  and to promote the chaotic circumstances that make minimal accountability and maximum profit easiest. The Global Witness report Faced with a gun, what can you do? cited above followed the supply chain of these minerals from warring parties to middlemen to international buyers: people happy to profit from the sale of blood minerals to corporations which, in turn, are happy to buy them cheaply to manufacture their highly profitable hi-tech products.

Moreover, according to the Global Witness report, although the Congolese army and rebel groups  such as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a rebel force opposed to the Rwandan government that has taken refuge in the Congo since the 1994 Rwanda genocide  have been warring on opposite sides for years, they are collaborators in the mining effort, at times providing each other with road and airport access and even sharing their spoils. Researchers say they found evidence that the mineral trade is much more extensive and profitable than previously suspected: one Congolese government official reported that at least 90% of all gold exports from the country were undeclared. And the report charges that the failure of foreign governments to crack down on illicit mining and trade has undercut development endeavors supposedly undertaken by the international community in the war-torn region.

Social and Environmental Costs

Of course, against this background of preoccupation with the militarized exploitation of mineral resources for vast profit, ordinary Congolese people suffer extraordinary ongoing violence. Apart from the abuses mentioned above, four women are raped every five minutes in the Congo, according to a study done in May 2011. These nationwide estimates of the incidence of rape are 26 times higher than the 15,000 conflict-related cases confirmed by the United Nations for the DRC in 2010. Despite the country having the highest number of UN peacekeeping forces in the world  where the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) has operated since the turn of the century  the level of sexual violence soldiers have perpetrated against women is staggering. Currently, there is still much violence in the region, as well as an overwhelming amount of highly strategic mass rape. See Conflict Profile: Democratic Republic of Congo .

Unsurprisingly, given the international communitys complete indifference, despite rhetoric to the contrary, to the plight of Congolese people, it is not just Congolese soldiers who are responsible for the rapes. UN peacekeepers are perpetrators too. See Peacekeepers gone wild: How much more abuse will the UN ignore in Congo?

And the Congo is a violently dangerous place for children as well with, for example, Child Soldiers International reporting that with a variety of national and foreign armed groups and forces operating in the country for over 20 years, the majority of fighting forces have recruited and used children, and most still exploit boys and girls today with girls forced to become girl soldiers but to perform a variety of other sexual and domestic roles too. See Child Soldiers International . Of course, child labour is completely out of control with many impoverished families utterly dependent on it for survival.

In addition, many Congolese also end up as refugees in neighbouring countries or as internally displaced people in their own country.

As you would expect, it is not just human beings who suffer. With rebel soldiers (such as the Rwanda-backed M23), miners and poachers endlessly plundering inadequately protected national parks and other wild places for their resources, illegal mining is rampant, over-fishing a chronic problem, illegal logging (and other destruction such as charcoal burning for cooking) of rainforests is completely out of control in some places, poaching of hippopotamuses, elephants, chimpanzees and okapi for ivory and bushmeat is unrelenting (often despite laws against hunting with guns), and wildlife trafficking of iconic species (including the increasingly rare mountain gorilla) simply beyond the concern of most people.

The Congolese natural environment  including the UNESCO World Heritage sites at Virunga National Park and the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, together with their park rangers  and the indigenous peoples such as the Mbuti (pygmies) who live in them, are under siege. In addition to the ongoing mining, smaller corporations that cant compete with the majors, such as Soco, want to explore and drill for oil. For a taste of the reading on all this, see Virunga National Park Ranger Killed in DRC Ambush , The struggle to save the Congolese unicorn , Meet the First Female Rangers to Guard One of Worlds Deadliest Parks and The Battle for Africas Oldest National Park .

If you would like to watch a video about some of what is happening in the Congo, either of these videos will give you an unpleasant taste: Crisis In The Congo: Uncovering The Truth and Conflict Minerals, Rebels and Child Soldiers in Congo .

Resisting the Violence

So what is happening to resist this violence and exploitation? Despite the horror, as always, some incredible people are working to end it.

Some Congolese activists resist the military dictatorship of Joseph Kabila, despite the enormous risks of doing so. See, for example, Release the Congolese activists still in jail for planning peaceful demonstrations .

Some visionary Congolese continue devoting their efforts, in phenomenally difficult circumstances including lack of funding, to building a society where ordinary Congolese people have the chance to create a meaningful life for themselves. Two individuals and organizations who particularly inspire me are based in Goma in eastern Congo where the fighting is worst.

The Association de Jeunes Visionnaires pour le Developpement du Congo , headed by Leon Simweragi, is a youth peace group that works to rehabilitate child soldiers as well as offer meaningful opportunities for the sustainable involvement of young people in matters that affect their lives and those of their community.

And Christophe Nyambatsi Mutaka is the key figure at the Groupe Martin Luther King that promotes active nonviolence, human rights and peace. Christophes group particularly works on reducing sexual and other violence against women.

There are also solidarity groups, based in the West, that work to draw attention to the nightmare happening in the Congo. These include Friends of the Congo that works to inform people and agitate for change and groups like Child Soldiers International mentioned above.

If you would like to better understand the depravity of those individuals in the Congo (starting with the dictator Joseph Kabila but including all those officials, bureaucrats and soldiers) who enable, participate in or ignore the violence and exploitation; the presidents and prime ministers of western governments who ignore exploitation, by their locally-based corporations, of the Congo; the heads of multinational corporations that exploit the Congo  such as Anthony Hayward (Chair of Glencore), Richard Adkerson (CEO of Freeport-McMoRan), George A. Forrest and Malta David Forrest (Chair and CEO respectively of Forrest Group International), Christopher L Coleman (Chair of Randgold Resources) and Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan (CEO of AngloGold Ashanti)  as well as those individuals in international organizations such as the UN (starting with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres) and the EU (headed by Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission), who ignore, provoke, support and/or profit from this violence and exploitation, you will find the document Why Violence? and the website Feelings First instructive.

Whether passively or actively complicit, each of these depraved individuals (along with other individuals within the global elite) does little or nothing to draw attention to, let alone work to profoundly change, the situation in the Congo which denies most Congolese the right to a meaningful life in any enlightened sense of these words.

If you would like to help, you can do so by supporting the efforts of the individual activists and solidarity organizations indicated above or those like them.

You might also like to sign the online pledge of The Peoples Charter to Create a Nonviolent World which references the Congo among many other examples of violence around the world.

And if you would like to support efforts to remove the dictatorship of Joseph Kabila and/or get corrupt foreign governments, corporations and organizations out of the Congo, you can do so by planning and implementing or supporting a nonviolent strategy that is designed to achieve one or more of these objectives. See Nonviolent Defense/Liberation Strategy .

If you are still reading this article and you feel the way I do about this ongoing atrocity, then I invite you to participate, one way or another, in ending it.

For more than 500 years, the Congo has been brutalized by the extraordinary violence inflicted by those who have treated the country as a resource  for slaves, rubber, timber, wildlife and minerals  to be exploited.

This will only end when enough of us commit ourselves to acting on the basis that 500 years is long enough. Liberate the Congo!
Home Search ICH The U.S. and Israel Are Marching towards War with Iran By Dr. Ludwig Watzal May 25, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - On Monday, May 21, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered a rant against Iran before the right-wing Heritage Foundation in Washington. It was a bullying speech to push the Iranian leadership to surrender unconditionally to US demands. If the Iranian people are unable to contrive regime change the US will do it by military means, perhaps together with Israel, which Pompeo didnt say. But everybody knows that Israel is hell-bent to crush Iran. All the other twelve orders he required from Iran to fulfill, are blatant violations of all norms of international law and the UN Charta. Pompeo made a revealing statement, either accidentally or out of lack of knowledge, that, if Iran surrenders to the US demands they can look forward to rejoining the league of nations. The League of Nations was the predecessor organization of the United Nations from 1920 to 1946. The disregard and disrespect for the United Nations and the accords, which the US was party to, such as the Iran deal, convey an impression as if the US is planning to undermine, if not destroy the United Nations. Such an idea comes to mind by the appointment o f John Bolton, the Stalin-like mustache Ziocon extremist, who said about the United Nations after 9/11: The Secretariat building in New York has 38 stories. If it lost ten stories, it wouldnt make a bit of difference. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter The following twelve strings demanded Pompeo from Iran: Declare to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) a full account of the prior military dimensions of its nuclear program and permanently and verifiably abandon such work in perpetuity.

Stop enrichment and never pursue plutonium reprocessing, including closing its heavy water reactor.

Provide the IAEA with unqualified access to all sites throughout the entire country.

End its proliferation of ballistic missiles and halt further launching or development of nuclear-capable missile systems.

Release all US citizens as well as citizens of US partners and allies.

End support to Middle East terrorist groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Respect the sovereignty of the Iraqi government and permit the disarming, demobilization and reintegration of Shia militias.

End its military support for the Houthi rebels and work towards a peaceful, political settlement in Yemen.

Withdraw all forces under Irans command throughout the entirety of Syria.

End support for the Taliban and other terrorists in Afghanistan and the region and cease harboring senior al-Qaeda leaders.

End the Islamic Revolutionary Guard corps-linked Quds Forces support for terrorists and militant partners around the world.

End its threatening behavior against its neighbors, many of whom are US allies, including its threats to destroy Israel and its firing of missiles at Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and threats to international shipping and destructive cyber attacks. Irans president Rouhani rejected off hand these impudent demands, saying Who are you to decide for Iran and the world? In contrast to the US, Iran complied to every jota of the nuclear deal, officially known under its awkward title Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). Not Iran or the other signatories broke their words, but th e US did. Neither cant their word be trusted, nor their signature has any value. Kim Jong-un should be on the qui vive entering an agreement with the Trump administration. The Libyan Model is already hanging over Kim Jong-un like a sword of Damocles. Shouldnt Iran turn the tables and confront the US with the following questions and damask US hypocrisy concerning Israels substantial nuclear arsenal and biochemical arsenal? Give the Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) full access to your military nuclear program.

Stop the enrichment, the reprocessing of plutonium and the processing of radioactive material in conventional ammunition and using it in war zones such as Iraq or Israel is doing in the Gaza Strip.

Allow unrestricted IAEA inspections in your country.

Stop all arms exports, especially to regimes like Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Release all Iranian prisoners and prisoners of Iranian allies and partners.

End the support of terrorist groups around the world (for example, IS, al Qaeda, Taliban, various militias in Syria).

Respect the sovereignty of all countries of the world, and do not interfere in their internal affairs, especially in matters of national security and defense of a country.

Stop all military support for Saudi Arabia and stop the illegal and barbaric war against the innocent Yemeni people.

Withdraw all your occupation troops from Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Germany, South Korea, Japan, etc.

Stop supporting terrorism worldwide and making attacks under the title IS or Al-Qaida.

Stop all foreign intelligence activities of your intelligence services, especially secret killer operations.

Stop playing World Police and threaten other countries. Instead, take care of the problems in your own country. You have more than enough of that. Besides these mirror questions to Pompeos ridiculous demands, Iran has the right to put the Israeli secret and illegal atomic and biochemical weapons programs under the scrutiny of the IAEA. Its known that Israel has a massive stockpile of nuclear weapons and a second strike nuclear capability thanks to the submarines, which were given as a gift by Germany out of guilt. They got two as a bargain price. As long as Israels nuclear arsenal remains unspecified, the US and the international community has no right to bully Iran to strip its country and its non-existent atomic arsenal. The problem that the US has apparently with Iran neglects the central question about the elephant in the room, which is Israel and its obsessive Prime Minister. He has pushed President Trump in this confrontational position. Under Obama, Netanyahu tilted at windmills, but with Trump, he can play a cat-and-mouse game. In his administration ardent Zionists, Israel Firster and political pro-Israel extremists have a say. For rational diplomacy, the prospects are gloomy. Iran better prepares for war. One can only hope Russia will stick to its words and supply Iran not only with his SS-400 anti-missile system and its other sophisticated weapons that Iran can defend itself against an American-Zionist attack. Dr. Ludwig Watzal is a frequent contributor to Global Research. This article was originally published by "Global Research " - The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. ====== Join the Discussion It is not necessary for ICH readers to register before placing a comment. We ask that you treat others with respect. Take a moment to read the following - Comment Policy - What Or Who is Information Clearing House and Purpose and Intent of this website: It is unacceptable to slander, smear or engage in personal attacks on authors of articles posted on ICH. Those engaging in that behavior will be banned from the comment section. Search Information Clearing House === Click Here To Support Information Clearing House Your support has kept ICH free on the Web since 2002. Click for Spanish , German , Dutch , Danish , French , translation- Note- Translation may take a moment to load.
"Syrian Observatory for Human Rights" is Run by MI6?



On Sources And Information - The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights



By Moon Of Alabama May 26, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights (SOHR) claims to be a one person shop in Coventry, Britain. But that is only the front story. It is part of a larger organization and the intelligence infrastructure used to wage war on Syria. A few commentators have recently criticized that I used SOHR as a source in some of my pieces. Here is why. SOHR is not a pure propaganda operation like the White Helmets are. It is relatively truthful in its reporting of events and casualties in Syria. The total casualty count of the war SOHR gives is likely too high due to some estimates it uses in its bottom numbers. But an early check of its detailed accounts showed that its reports from incidents on the ground were mostly correct. SOHR's numbers have been quoted by about every news outlet in the world, usually in pro-rebel propaganda pieces. But it is not the observatory that turns the information it collects into propaganda. The media do that when they quote SOHR without the necessary caveats or when they disregard it where its information contradicts the official story. The examples below show that this is now often the case. One of the first descriptions of the one man who allegedly runs SOHR is in a Reuters portrait from late 2011: With only a few hours sleep, a phone glued to his ear and another two ringing, the fast-talking director of arguably Syrias most high-profile human rights group is a very busy man. Are there clashes? How did he die? Ah, he was shot, said Rami Abdulrahman into a phone, the talk of gunfire and death incongruous with his two bedroom terraced home in Coventry, from where he runs the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. When he isnt fielding calls from international media, Abdulrahman is a few minutes down the road at his clothes shop, which he runs with his wife. The idea that one man alone could keep track of all casualties in Syria, or stay in contact with so many local contacts on the ground, never made sense. It is simply too much work for one man who also runs a shop and cares for a family. It was obvious that there was more behind it. Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter SOHR's main function was to keep a current casualty count of the war in Syria. The Reuters piece noted: According to the observatorys latest figures, 3,441 civilians and 1,280 security forces have been killed. The overall number in the casualty count SOHR gave did make sense. The categorization of the numbers did not. The numbers led casual readers assume that only one side of the war in Syria was armed. The numbers could not explained how the security forces were killed. It took a while before people woke up to that mismatch and asked SOHR. It willingly answered the question. But only few reports, like this one from June 2012, used the answer and explained the mismatch to their readers: Those killed since March last year comprised 9,862 civilians, 3,470 soldiers and 783 army deserters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The Britain-based watchdog counts rebel fighters who are not deserters from the army as civilians. This was a technical correct but crude mislabeling of killed "civilians", most of which were in fact anti-government fighters. But SOHR did not hide its dubious categorization. Anyone who asked was provided with the caveat above. But only few journalist asked despite the obvious mismatch in the casualty numbers and even fewer put the caveat into print. You will hardly find it in any current news piece that uses SOHR numbers. Patrick Lang, a trained military spy and former Middle East chief of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, asserted several times that the "Syrian Observatory for Human Rights" is run by MI6, Britain's foreign intelligence service. Peter Hitchens recently reported that SOHR is at least partially financed by the British Foreign Office: Talking of war, and Syria, many of you may have noticed frequent references in the media to a body called the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, often quoted as if it is an impartial source of information about that complicated conflict, in which the British government clearly takes sides. The Observatory says on its website that it is not associated or linked to any political body. To which I reply: Is Boris Johnsons Foreign Office not a political body? Because the FO just confirmed to me that the UK funded a project worth 194,769.60 to provide the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights with communications equipment and cameras. Thats quite a lot, isnt it? I love the precision of that 60p. Your taxes, impartially, at work. MI6 is subordinated to the British Foreign Office. The paltry sum of 195,000 pounds was surely not the only money Rami Abdulrahman received for more than seven years of daily work. There must be a rather large organization behind the dozens of news items and tweets the observatory puts out each and every day. The SOHR reports often contain valuable information. Over the last year, as the Syrian government side regained more and more ground, a new phenomenon arose. SOHR appeared less in western media reports on Syria. Its version of events was often missing in stories that involved U.S. operations. The reason was simple. SOHR continued to report somewhat truthful versions of events while the propaganda moved further away from reality. Here are several incidents of many more where SOHR contradicted the official western propaganda tale. In reports about these incidents in the New York Times and elsewhere the SOHR's version of the events was simply ignored. On October 13 2017 the U.S. coalition made a deal with the Islamic State to give free passage for ISIS fighters from the besieged Raqqa to south-east Syria. The U.S. military, which leads the coalition, loudly denied that it was involved. SOHR disagreed: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights received information from Knowledgeable and independent sources confirming reaching a deal between the International Coalition and the Syria Democratic Forces in one hand; and the Islamic State organization in the other hand, and the deal stated the exit of the remaining members of the Islamic State organization out of Al-Raqqah city. In January 10 2018 SOHR reported that the U.S. coalition released 400 ISIS fighters from prison and that at least 120 of them joined the Syrian Democratic Forces led by Kurdish fighters and U.S. special forces. It confirmed several U.S. attacks which had killed dozens of civilians in east Syria. The U.S. military denied that it let ISIS fighters go and it denied all civilian casualty claims. On April 8 2018 the White Helmets propaganda organization claimed that a chlorine gas attack in East-Ghouta had killed dozens. SOHR disagreed. It reported of people suffocating after their shelter came down on them. It did not report of any gas incident or casualties: [A]mong the casualties there are 21 civilians including 9 children and 3 women were killed as a result of suffocation caused by the shelling which destroyed basements of houses as a result of the violence bombardment that stopped about an hour ago on Douma area. Witnesses on the ground and especially the doctors in the field hospital in east-Ghouta also spoke of suffocation and breathing problems caused by dust clouds after intense aerial bombing and artillery strikes. On April 16 the U.S. launched a large cruise missile attack against Syria "in retaliation" for the fake gas attack in east-Ghouta. It claimed that all 105 cruise missiles hit the three intended targets. SOHR disagreed: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights managed to monitored interception by the regime forces to tens of missiles which targeted their positions and military bases in the Syrian territory, where several intersected sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory, that the number missiles that were downed, exceeded 65 missiles, of the total number of missiles fired by the Trio Coalition ... SOHR also said that eight targets were attacked but only three received hits. The SOHR report is consistent with witness reports, earlier published U.S. targeting plans and with statements by the Syrian and Russian military. On May 24 2018 Syrian positions in east Syria near the T-2 pumping station were first attacked by ISIS and then by U.S. airplanes. The U.S. denied to have attacked there. SOHR disagreed: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned from several reliable sources that the airstrikes that were carried out on sites of the pro-regime gunmen in Desert Deir Ezzor; have caused human losses, where the Syrian Observatory documented the killing of at least 12 pro-regime gunmen of non-Syrian nationalities, as a result of the airstrikes that were carried out by warplanes believed to belong to the International Coalition, which targeted positions of the above-mentioned forces near the 2nd Station T2, which is more than 65 km away of al-Bokamal city in Deir Ezzor Desert, while others were injured with varying severity, and the death toll is expected to rise because there are some people in critical situation. The Russian, Syrian or Iraqi air force are generally not operating in the east, southwards of the Euphrates. Only U.S. coalition planes are flying there. It is thus very likely that the SOHR report is correct.

Patrick Lang, the former DIA Middle East chief and a trained spy, always urges to distinguish between information and its source. A reputable source can give bad information. A source with a bad repute may nonetheless make correct claims. There are a few simple rules I use to come nearer to the truth: Every source is based.

One has to compare bits of information from different sources.

If a reports cites another source one must go to the original to check if the quote is correct, complete and not out of context.

If it does not sound or feels right the information is probably wrong.

One must apply logic and reasonability checks to further weed the good from the bad.

If an alleged act of a rational entity is against the interest of that entity it probably did not happen.

If a claimed behavior of an entity is inconsistent with earlier observed behavior of that entity, the claims are likely wrong. SOHR, despite being an intelligence outlet of a government hostile to Syria, can be regarded as a relatively reliable source. Some of its reports may well be wrong or slandered. But that should not prevent one from using it. [Moon of Alabama is currently asking for donations. Please support this site.] This article was originally published by " Moon Of Alabama " - The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House. ====== RT Outs Rami Abdulrahmn (SOHR), Source of Lies and Vitriol Against Syria Join the Discussion It is not necessary for ICH readers to register before placing a comment. We ask that you treat others with respect. Take a moment to read the following - Comment Policy - What Or Who is Information Clearing House and Purpose and Intent of this website: It is unacceptable to slander, smear or engage in personal attacks on authors of articles posted on ICH. Those engaging in that behavior will be banned from the comment section.
May 26, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - To date, 62 Palestinians have been shot dead in the Gaza Strip by the Israeli army and over 5,500 wounded by gunfire. Their crime: protesting the loss of their ancestral homes in the West Bank.

Here was an example of Gandhi-style passive resistance that failed. Israeli sniper teams just fired at will at the protesters, some of who were throwing rocks or firing sling shots. High concentration tear gas was dumped by drones on the demonstrators. Israel claimed it was killing terrorists.

The United States, Israels patron and financier, reveled in the move of its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a move seen by Bible Belt religious fundamentalists as a key step to the return of the Christian Messiah and Armageddon. The rest of us, Jews included, are fated to be burned alive. The American Republicans, who have become a far-right theocratic party, cheered this good news. The Trump administration, by now an extension of Israels hard right Likud Party, was cock-a-hoop.

Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

There was no joy in Gaza. This miserable, squalid human garbage dump is a giant open-air prison packed with 2 million Palestinian refugees driven from the newly created state of Israel in 1948. Israel and its close ally Egypt keep Gaza bottled up on its land and sea borders. Palestinians are only allowed to fish along the shore. Coastal gas and oil reserves have been expropriated by Israel and Egypt.

Gazas two million people subsist on the edge of starvation. Israel openly boasts that it allows just enough food into the enclave to prevent outright starvation. Chemicals to treat water are banned. Electricity runs only a few hours daily because the power plant was bombed by Israels US-supplied air force. Hospitals have almost no medicines. In short, wartime conditions in the open-air prison. Even the wretched animals in Gaza zoo are starving.

The intensive punishment of Gaza, a crime under international law, began after its people voted in a free election for the Hamas movement over the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) which is more or less run by Israel and the United States. Israel helped found Hamas in 1987, but then sought, with the US, to destroy the organization, branding it terrorist.

Israel has extensively used US-supplied arms and money to fight Hamas in Gaza, a clear violation of the Arms Export Control Act of 1976 that bars the use of American weapons against civilian populations.

The question remains, where did all the Palestinians come from? Israel long claimed there were no such people, or a made-up nationality. This was a pretty rich claim coming from Israelis, many of whom hailed from Russia, Poland and Eastern Europe and who had assumed biblical identities and asserted a direct link to the Hebrews who had lived two thousand years earlier in the Levant.

When Israel was created by the US and UN (with Soviet support) in 1948, from 750,000 to one million native Palestinians were driven from their ancestral home at gunpoint or panicked to flight by massacres and ethnic cleansing. Their villages were bulldozed.

When Israel conquered and annexed the West Bank and the Old City of Jerusalem in 1967, another 500,000 Palestinians were made refugees. Some 50,000-250,000 Syrians were driven by Israel from the strategic Golan Heights. Bedouins were driven from Israels Negev Desert.

By our era, the number of homeless Palestinians has grown to 5 million refugees helped by the UN and at least another million scattered about the Mideast. The actual number could reach as high as 8-9 million thanks to the Palestinians high birth rate and strong family values.

Half of Jordans people are Palestinian refugees. Kuwait had 400,000 Palestinians until they were expelled in 2002-03 after their leader, Yasser Arafat, foolishly backed claims by Saddam Hussein that he was occupying Kuwait in order to trade it for a Palestinian state. This was the biggest Palestinian expulsion since 1948. Egypts brutal dictator, Gen. al-Sisi, is now the biggest persecutor of Palestinians after Israel, keeping them locked away in the Gaza prison.

The Arab states have done very little for the Palestinians save slogans and hot air. The Saudis are now in cahoots with Israel to repress the Palestinians lest they spread modern secular ideas in the medieval Mideast. Interestingly, some of the most extreme Palestinians, like George Habash, were Arab Christians. Palestinians remain some of the best educated and most commercial of the Mideasts peoples. For a long while they ran most of the Gulf Emirates until replaced by Indians.

Sand in the eye of the Mideast is what I called this oppressed people without a home. Their plight could be greatly eased by the creation of a Palestinian state on the West Bank. But this would interfere with plans for Israels right-wing government for planned expansion. So, the future for Palestinians is bleak.

Eric S. Margolis is an award-winning, internationally syndicated columnist. His articles have appeared in the New York Times, the International Herald Tribune the Los Angeles Times, Times of London, the Gulf Times, the Khaleej Times, Nation  Pakistan, Hurriyet,  Turkey, Sun Times Malaysia and other news sites in Asia. ericmargolis.com

Copyright Eric S. Margolis 2018
Chris Hayes on 'Despicable' New Trump Policy

Must Watch:



The United States government is now systematically taking children as young as 53 weeks old away from their parents at the border, thanks to new directives issued by the Trump administration.

Posted May 26, 2018

If Video does not load, please click here http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/trump-administration-separating-parents-and-children-at-border-1242280003606 Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Information Clearing House.

======

Indigenous Guatemalan woman shot dead by US Border Patrol

El Salvador Responds After Trump Calls Immigrants 'Animals'

Government Has 'Lost' 1,475 Children It Separated from Immigrant Parents : Innocent kids are bearing a terrible cost to "make America great again."

As ICE separates children from parents at the border, public outrage grows

Join the Discussion
May 26, 2018 " Information Clearing House " - The question is: Has the Trump administration already made a decision to go to war with Iran, similar to the determination of the Bush administration to invade Iraq in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks?

Predictions are dicey things, and few human institutions are more uncertain than war. But several developments have come together to suggest that the rationale for using sanctions to force a re-negotiation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is cover for an eventual military assault by the U.S., Israel, and Saudi Arabia aimed at regime change in Tehran.

Sanctions Seem Designed to Fail

As clueless as the Trump administration is on foreign policy, the people around the White House  in particular National Security Advisor John Bolton  know that sanctions rarely produce results, and unilateral ones almost always fail.

Sanctions aimed at Cuba, North Korea, Iraq, and Libya did not dislodge any of those regimes and, in the case of North Korea, spurred Pyongyang into producing nuclear weapons. Iraqs Saddam Hussein and Libyas Muammar Gaddafi were eventually overthrown, but by American firepower, not sanctions (and with disastrous results).

The only case in which sanctions produced some results were those applied to Iran from 2010 to 2015. But that embargo was multi-lateral and included China, India, and one of Irans major customers, the European Union. When the U.S. unilaterally applied sanctions to Cuba, Iran, and Libya in 1996, the move was a conspicuous failure.

Are You Tired Of The Lies And Non-Stop Propaganda? Get Your FREE Daily Newsletter

This time around, the White House has made no effort to involve other countries. The Trump plan is to use the power of the American economy to strong-arm nations into line. Back our sanctions, threatens the administration, or lose access to the U.S. market. And given that the world uses the dollar as its de-facto international currency, financial institutions may find themselves barred from using the Society for Worldwide Interbank Telecommunications (SWIFT), the American-controlled network that allows banks and finance centers to transfer money from country to county.

Those threats have not exactly panicked the rest of the world. China and India, which between them buy more than 1 million of the 2.1 million barrels of oil Iran produces each day, say they will ignore the sanctions. And according to Federica Mogherini, the EUs foreign affairs minister, The European Union is determined to act in accordance with its security interests and protect its economic investments.

Adding up all the countries that will go along with the sanctions  including South Korea and Japan  will cut Tehrans oil exports by 10 to 15 percent. That hurts, but its nothing like the 50 percent plus that Iran lost under the prior sanctions regime.

The War Party

In short, the sanctions wont work, but were they really meant to?

Its possible that the White House somehow thinks they will  delusion is a characteristic of the Oval Office these days  but other developments suggest the administration is already putting in place a plan that will lead from economic sanctions to bombing runs.

For starters, theres the close coordination between the White House and Tel Aviv. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus April 30 speech shortly before Trump withdrew from the Iran agreement was tailored to give Washington a casus belli to dump the agreement. Virtually all of what Netanyahu revealed about the Iranian nuclear program was old news, already known by U.S., Israeli, and European intelligence services.

Four days before Netanyahus speech Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman met with his American counterparts and, according to Al Monitor, got a green light for any military action Tel Aviv might take against Iran.

The same day Lieberman was meeting with the Pentagon, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Saudi Arabia to end its campaign against Qatar because the Americans wanted the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to be united around a campaign against Iran.

Each of these moves seems calculated to set the stage for a direct confrontation with Iran involving some combination of the U.S., Israel, and the two most aggressive members of the GCC, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The latter two are currently waging a brutal war on the Iranian-supported Houthis in Yemen, racking up thousands of civilian casualties.

The Likely Fallout

Its almost impossible to imagine what the consequences of such a war might be.

On paper, it looks like a cakewalk for the anti-Tehran axis. Iran has an antiquated air force, a bunch of fast speedboats, and tanks that date back to the 1960s. The military budgets of the U.S., Israel, and the GCC are more than 58 times those of Iran. But, as the Prussian military theorist Carl von Clausewitz once remarked, the only thing one can determine in war is who fires the first shot.

Military might does not translate into an automatic win. After almost 17 years of war, the U.S. is still bogged down in Afghanistan, and it basically left Iraq with its tail between its legs. Indeed, the last time the American military indisputably won a war was in Grenada.

As for the GCC, in spite of more than two years of relentless warfare in Yemen, the monarchs are no nearer victory than they were when the war started. And in Lebanon, the Iranian-allied Hezbollah fought Israel to a stalemate in 2006.

While Iran doesnt have much in the way of military force, it has 80 million people with a strong streak of nationalism who would certainly unite against any attacker. It would be impossible to win a war against Iran without resorting to a ground invasion.

But none of Irans antagonists have the capacity to carry that out. The Saudis have a dismal military record, and the UAEs troops are stalemated in their campaign to take Yemens capital, Saana, from the rag-tag Houthi militia. The Israelis dont have the troops  and, in any case, would never put them in harms way so far from home  and the Americans are not about to send in the Marines.

Most likely this would be a war of aircraft and missiles to destroy Irans military and civilian infrastructure. Theres little that Tehran could do to stop such an assault. Any planes it put up would be toast, its anti-aircraft weapons are obsolete, and its navy wouldnt last long.

But flattening Tehrans military isnt winning a war, and Iran has other ways to strike back. The Iranians, for instance, have shown considerable skill at asymmetric warfare in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, and Iran does have missiles of its own.

The real damage, however, will be the fallout from the war. The price of oil is already on the rise, and hostilities in the middle of one of the worlds largest petroleum repositories will likely send it through the roof. While that will be good for the GCC, high oil prices will put a dent into the economies of the EU, China, India, and even the United States.

What a war will almost certainly do is re-ignite Irans push to build a nuclear weapon. If that happens, Saudi Arabia will follow, and the world will be faced with several new nuclear powers in one of the most volatile regions of the world.

Halting the Inevitable

Which doesnt mean war is inevitable.

The Trump administration hawks broke the JCPOA because they hoped Iran would then withdraw as well, giving the anti-Iranian axis an excuse to launch a war. Iranians are divided on this issue, with some demanding that Tehran accelerate its uranium enrichment program, while others defend the agreement.

Europe can play a key role here by firmly supporting the JCPOA and resisting the American sanctions, even if it means taking a financial hit. Some European firms, however, have already announced they will withdraw their investments.

The U.S. Congress can also help stop a war, although it will require members  mostly Democrats  to put aside their anti-Iranian bias and make common cause with the stay in the pact Europeans. This is a popular issue. A CNN poll found that 63 percent of Americans opposed withdrawing from the agreement.

It will also mean that the Congress  again, mainly Democrats  will have to challenge the role that Israel is playing. That will not be easy, but maybe not as difficult as it has been in the past. Israels brutality against Palestinians over the past month has won no friends except in the White House and the evangelical circuit, and Netanyahu has made it clear that he prefers Republicans to Democrats.

Lastly, Congress should cut the arms pipeline to the GCC and stop aiding the Saudis in their war on Yemen

If war comes, Americans will find themselves in the middle of an unwinnable conflict that will destabilize the Middle East and the worlds economy, and pour more of this countrys resources into yet another quagmire.
Kemi Olunloyo is still not backing down on the attacks on Billionaire Blogger, Linda Ikeji.

In a new post, Kemi revealed that the celebrity blogger is not self-made as many have been led to believe.

According to her, Linda Ikeji got her wealth as a result of her dealings with politicians and oil tycoons.

She also threatened to name the governors who financed Linda Ikejis media.

This is the latest episode from Kemi Olunloyo who appears to have moved on from fueling controversies about Lindas pregnancy.

Kemi Olunloyo wrote:

@officiallindaikeji Your entire business will COLLAPSE VERY SOON WHEN YOU LANGUISH IN PRISON LIKE ME.

My business collapsed and I lost wages, assignment, ads, revenues and my integrity. MARK MY WORDS! Linda Ikeji media will suffer a catastrophe.

When your baby arrives in 9 months or whenever you choose, I will investigate where you trafficked it from.

Better get your adoption papers together. Languish is a word that you will never ever say again. Omale jatijati. Banana Island mansion bought by a looter.

Both governors who financed LIM will be named soon. You are NOT SELF MADE. YOU LIED TO ALL THOSE YOUNG GIRLS. Oil tycoons and politicians made you. They cannot marry you. They have their wives home

Leave a Comment

comments
In a series of tweets on her twitter time-line, Nicki Minaj has dished out some pieces of advice to her female fans.

In her narration, Nicki Minaj opened up on how she has been abused emotionally, verbally and physically abused but she still maintained a fake smile all the time on social media just to look glam.

See tweets below:

#Queen, know your worth. Ive been proposed to 3 times; asked by 4 boyfriends to have their child. Being emotionally, mentally, or physically abused just to crack a fake smile on the gram & show off a ring is not happiness. Being cheated on, humiliated, belittled for the gram?  Chun-Li (@NICKIMINAJ) May 26, 2018

#Queen, know your worth. You were a Queen before him. Youll be a Queen after him. He cant make or break you. Being equally yoked is what you should strive for. Spirituality is key. Once your spirit can soar on its own, then you are ready to allow him the privilege of ur time.  Chun-Li (@NICKIMINAJ) May 26, 2018

Having men treat you like dog shit because theyre famous or have money is the new era we live in. Word to the gram. Arguing w|other women while defending your abuser is the new era. Word to the gram. #Queen 8|10|18  Chun-Li (@NICKIMINAJ) May 26, 2018

New boy asked if I could have his baby in a year & a half. On God I said: aint pushin out his babies til he buy da rock. Then I busted out laughing. He said: Ill put a ring on it. Ill do anything it takes. Yet all I could think of his how much I love my new found freedom.  Chun-Li (@NICKIMINAJ) May 26, 2018

When I tell you I hate Mack.  I cant even have serious girl talk cuz here he go. I had to school him the other day & defend ALL WOMEN! Chile! NOTTTT on my watch!!!!! Queen SZN is HERE!!!! If you not appreciating the goodT woman you have, EXIT! Cuz she bout to know her worth  https://t.co/0tOdOFsIsV  Chun-Li (@NICKIMINAJ) May 26, 2018

Nicki bout to start a revolution! Breakup season is upon us fellas! Good thing that sh*t dont apply to me but its over for 80% of yall!   Mack Maine (@mackmaine) May 26, 2018

After mounted speculation this week, Nicki Minajs camp shut down Eminem dating rumors.

Minaj set the internet on fire Friday after responding yes to a fan who asked her, You dating Eminem??? on Instagram.

Sources close to Minaj tell TMZ she was only joking  theres nothing romantic between the two.

Minaj is no stranger to dating dudes in the music biz, shes been with Nas, Meek Mill and was with Safaree for years.

She and Eminem both appeared on Nickis Romans Revenge back in 2010. (TMZ)

Leave a Comment

comments
Lauretta Onochie, president Muhammadu Buharis aide on social media has lambasted ex president Goodluck Jonathan for daring to advise the president.

The presidential aide via her Twitter handle, lamented why a man whose name is on the list looters should dare advise Buhari on National TV. According to Onochie, Jonathan lacks the moral standing to speak about issues concerning growth and democracy.

See what she wrote below:

Watching Ex Pres Jonathan, a man whose name is on the lips of looters having authorised the looting of our common wealth. He's shamelessly on National TV and dared to advise Pres Buhari on issues bothering on the growth of democracy.

He lacks the moral standing to speak in public  Lauretta Onochie (@Laurestar) May 25, 2018

See of how some Nigerians reacted

Speak about the money found at Osborne flat, Babachir Lawal contract scam, Maina and NHIS boss before you accuse the past administration of corruption, you are all the same.  Adewale (@shinaray3010) May 25, 2018

Buhari a beneficiary of corruption has no moral right to fight corruption. A man that was unable to buy presidential form has not asked how his campaign was funded. Where is the integrity?  Defender of Truth. (@nwakamso) May 25, 2018

Madam when will u stop taking excess codeine n tramadol?  Tunde Adegoke (@Tony30Adegoke) May 25, 2018

If you are wise you will listen attentively to Ex Pres Jonathan so you (Buharis regime) dont make same mistake.

Ahhh to late, you have made your mistake already! Jonathans looted money Buharis looted lives by condoling the Killing by herdsmen.

Stop the blame game & work!  Crackerjack (@Cracker63301007) May 25, 2018
Another Lady has called out Tonto Dikehs estranged husband, Oladunni Churchill, and its messy.

The Lady claims Churchill kept using and dumping her, even when he was about to get married to his ex, Bimbo..

Read her story below with pictures:

Dear Abiodun Churchill Olakunle Oladunni,

Well done on your so called success . I want to write this to let the world know how in denial you are, How wicked , evil and selfish you are. I met you in 2007 and in 2008 you disappeared, and came back in 2009 back into my life .. in 2012 we where still dating when you met Bimbo Taiye Coker in Ghana and married her 6months later , I even stayed in the same hotel with Bimbo 2 days to your wedding ..

( I had no idea you where getting married) you told me you came to lagos to burry your uncle . Well luckily for you (guess it would have been your funeral ) you even slept in my room that night ( I wonder where Bimbo was) . Fast forward to 2 weeks after your wedding , when someone posted on your facebook page saying congratulations on your wedding to Bimbo , Shock of life.

I called your phone and behold it was Bimbo Coker Oladunni that picked the call. As a Mumu that I have been since 2007 I believed you when you told me she was the same girl you told me Obasanjo wanted you to marry. Not until I met Dee and was checking her iPad and saw your wedding pictures  .

By den your marriage was crumbling and you lied again to me that she used juju I believed oh and still continued with this so called love relationship after your breakup with Bimbo , We stayed together in lagos you lied that Bimbo made you broke , we spent all my money and even stole my sisters money for you  I left work and moved to Ghana , we stayed at your friends house for like 1 month before getting our own apartment, I thought I was going to finally start life with the man I truly loved , forsaking all the things youve done in the past.

I started school in Ghana ( which you paid for only 1 semester that caused the whole fight) and we lived happily till after 4months when your DISAPPEARING MADNESS started again 

Youll leave the house for weeks and not come back till you needed a change of clothes , or when your family member was coming to visit from London or Nigeria. The rent expired and we had to move out , you wanted to get me a one room apartment and I refused because I know you will never stay in that space .. so I decided to stay with some friends.

Waiting for you to get money and a new place . Not knowing you had paid for a house in trasaco estate living with another woman ( Abeg make i no lie love is very blind). You broke up with me on the phone because I found out you where living in trasaco and I needed to pay my fees , because I asked you how you would feel if a man treated you sisters and Mum the way you where treating me  you even told my friends I insulted your Mum. You blocked me everywhere and moved on .

Till 2 months later I started seeing Tonto posting private pictures of you and her ( of crse I knew it was you  your hands , your Churchill crafted ring , your neck, been there and done all). Fast forward to  2017 after your breakup and drama with Tonto . ( trust me I understood Tontos dilemma, Churchill you can frustrate life in a bitter sweet way). You asked my friend for my number..she gave you cos she knows our story from way back and was disappointed in you. Which she told you.

You called me and tried to play your tricks with me again. ( I guess) I played my part and talked to you about all the things you where doing to Tonto and your son. You said you would stop but NO you didnt stop!!! I took time to send you messages about what you did but no you dont see anything wrong. You chose to block me and report me to my friends !!! YOU ARE YOUR BIGGEST ENEMY

Long story short  Kunle you are the devil himselfcloth in human skin . And all your lies and betrayal will still hunt you down , you messed with a genuine heart that loved you unconditionally..you lied that I broke your things and insulted your mum  ..(I still repeat my self cos thats why you blocked me ) what did you get after me  You said Tonto beat your mum and broke all your properties  does that sound like a mistake or just karma for your lies .

You know the remaining story of your lies. So get ready for the Karma cos its gonna f0ck you real hard . Continue calling my friends to report me , calling me your enemy and saying shit you dont know , you cant believe your Mumu darling Zainab can stand up to you . It took me 4 years to fully understand that you are a demon. Go take some time and beg God for forgiveness and clarity cos you clearly dont know who your enemies are  and take care of your Children Abimbola ( who you claimed you named after me ) and king.

Theres a part of me that wants to say more !!! But . just leave me Zainab Abimbola Rufai alone, 4 years gone but your betrayal never forgotten.

Leave a Comment

comments
Spanish side, Real Madrid have now won the Champions League three times in a row and it will take another team as overconfident and arrogant as Zinedine Zidanes own to break that record.

Goals from Karim Benzema (51), Gareth Bale (64, 83) having come on as a substitute for Isco, stopped Liverpools chances of winning the final after showing time and again that they should not be underestimated  especially with Mo Salah in the team.

Dani Carvajal left the field distressed in the 35th minute just as Mo Salah left in the 30th minute; both due to injury.

Madrid seemed steadfast in their determination to stay on the Champions league stage and the result has shown that. Their victory has made them the most successful side in the competitions history other than their own 1955-60 predecessors.

Leave a Comment

comments
Former BBNaija Housemate, Uriel Oputa, has times without numbers been body shamed..

But Uriel has of course, also times without number said shes proud of her oranges the way they are.

She went braless for a photoshoot and shared the photo. She wrote:

Pls pls I would like to beg you let my saggy boobs feel sexy pls .. Its a shoot after I will pack them. Pls just let me have this pict

Leave a Comment

comments
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has again revealed why President Muhammadu Buhari should not be allowed to win in 2019 presidential elections. According to the former president, one reason why Buhari must be stopped in the coming election is because Buhari was double-mouthed especially as regards the issue of the Fulani Herdsmen.

While in a meeting with leaders of the pan-Yoruba organisation, Afenifere, last week in Akure, the Ondo State, Tribune reports that Obasanjo noted that he was not on board with the excuse of the Herdsmen that it is the anti-grazing laws that has caused the problem.




Kenya Moore was recently accused of faking her pregnancy after she shared a photo of her and husband, Marc Daly, the image of which had her stomach covered.star later removed the image and instead replaced it by sharing inspirational quotes about motherhood and spirituality.Now, Moore recently took to Instagram to shut down any speculation about the state of her marriage and her pregnancy.#FAKENEWS @bet @celebrity_insider_org @theinquisitr shame on you for constantly regurgitating the slanderous fake news from #radaronline, Moore fired off on May 24. Fake Husband, Fake Pregnancy, Fake Boyfriends, Fake Storyline, FIred, Fake Divorce. At least be effing original with your hateful lies. Im used to you all making up stories to get clicks off my name but LEAVE MY FAMILY ALONE.She concluded the post with the hashtags, #thatsmrsdaly2you and #blacklove.Kenya announced that she and husband, Marc Daly are expecting their first child together during Part 1 of The Real Housewives of Atlanta Season 10 reunion. She later revealed that she got pregnant via IVF treatment and shared details about her process.I dont have a horror story, Moore told, earlier this month. Its weird because you hear other peoples troubles with the injections and the hormones. And for me, it was a pretty simple process, she explains.Moore opened up to the publication about her entire IVF experience, from self-administering her hormone shots to finding out she was, indeed, pregnant.You take the hormones to stimulate your ovaries, you go in for the procedure  obviously youre being monitored every day to where they need to see how many [ovarian follicles] you have, how big theyre getting, when to extract, she revealed how her IVF process was. And then, obviously, the process when they grow to make sure theyre growing at a certain rate and reach a certain size.After that, theyre ready to be implanted. You dont go under any anesthesia for the process and it doesnt hurt. You have to rest, which is always a great thing. To be quite honest, the thing that hurt the most was them sticking me with the IV when they had to extract the eggs because my veins are so tiny. But thats the only thing that was uncomfortable. The rest of it wasnt painful.Did the hormones affected her IVF process? I dont think so, but I guess you would have to ask people around me. I think I was okay. I think I felt a little emotional but I wasnt going zero to 100 or anything like that. It just wasnt as bad as I heard other people go through. The injections were fine, I got through that by myself, it was fine. I didnt feel crazy, I didnt feel like I was losing control or anything like that.Then, Moore revealed how she handled the injection process. I thought I would be the worst person for the injections. Honestly, the first time I did it, I had to do it by myself. I imagined myself going to the clinic every day, having a nurse do it for me. Or hiring a nurse to come to my home to do it, she toldI tried it the first time, and Im unusually afraid of needles. I cant look when my blood is drawn and I hyperventilate when I see a needle. I hate it. But these needles, theyre very small. And it didnt hurt. And the first time I did it, it was okay. It wasnt any big deal. I just felt blessed because I was stronger than I thought I would be.Photo Credit: Bravo
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.

0108263 License for publishing multimedia online



Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349
This Week in Review

A weekly review of the best and most popular stories published in the Imperial Valley Press. Also, featured upcoming events, new movies at local theaters, the week in photos and much more.
Vying for the number two spot and a place in the runoff behind Dianne Feinstein (left) are, from left to right, Kevin de Leon, Alison Hartson, and Pat Harris.

F

OR more than a quarter of a century, U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein has been a Democratic party standard bearer and a powerful voice on Capitol Hill for women, gun-control and progressive politics unmistakably rooted in the Golden State. A fixture in California politics, she's now the oldest member of the Senate, and will turn 85 in June as she seeks her fifth full six-year term. So why is she now facing her most significant re-election challenge in decades  and being derided by some members of her own party? One answer is in the Oval Office  her critics think she's not loud enough in resisting all things Donald Trump. There's also a tug-of-war within a Democratic party being pushed leftward by its Bernie Sanders wing, and the free-for-all nature of a revamped California primary system that's now more inviting to intra-party challenges. All that has turned what would typically be a shoo-in re-election bid into a battle. But are California's voters really up for a revolt that could possibly unseat Dianne Feinstein?

Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein

Whos running against her?

More people than you think. Feinstein faces 31 challengers to her re-election on the June 5 primary ballot  nine fellow Democrats, 11 Republicans, a Libertarian, a Peace and Freedom candidate and nine others claiming no political party. Most dont stand a chance. But things are different since Feinstein steamrolled a token Republican in November 2012. The top-two primary California adopted that year will send the two candidates with the most votes  regardless of party  to the November election. With no well known or well funded Republican in the race, Democrats, who enjoy a big party registration advantage in California, are challenging an incumbent many feel isnt liberal enough.

Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group Kevin de Leon

Support local journalism Your subscription strengthens journalism in the Bay Area. Subscribe today for more news that matters.

What are the big issues?

Gary Reyes/Bay Area News Group Archives Private insurance rates are soaring along with the costs for medical care like this ovary surgery at El Camino Hospital in Mountain View in 2017. Health Care California Democrats oppose President Trumps call for repealing and replacing Obamacare with a Republican plan, and his move to end federal Obamacare subsidies and cut outreach funding. Feinstein has touted her defense of Obamacare and support for universal health care  coverage for everyone. But she has stopped short of supporting a government single-payer Medicare for All plan, such as proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders. Feinstein's leading Democratic challengers like de Leon and Hartson want a single-payer Medicare for All government plan. Republicans for the most part back the president's policies.

AP PHOTO/ERIC RISBERG The witness gallery inside the lethal injection facility at San Quentin State Prison. Death penalty Feinstein shed her historic support for capital punishment, citing concerns about executing the wrongly convicted. That aligns her with top Democratic rival de Leon who opposes capital punishment. California voters in 2016 approved speeding up executions and rejected a death penalty repeal.

Watchara Phomicinda, The Press-Enterprise At the U.S. border in Tijuana, Mexico, in 2017 near the eight border wall prototypes in San Diego. Immigration California Democrats oppose President Trumps calls for a border wall, deporting illegal immigrants, withholding federal funding from sanctuary cities, restricting travel from mostly Muslim countries wracked by terrorism and ending the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program allowing young Dreamers brought to the country illegally as children. Democratic candidates for Senate agree on the Trump resistance, but not on who would fight Trump hardest. Republicans for the most part support the president's policies.

AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File An offshore oil platform off the coast of Santa Barbara. Environment California Democrats oppose President Trumps withdrawal of the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement and back the states cap-and-trade regulations on the "greenhouse" gases blamed for warming the planet. They also oppose Trumps fights with California over auto fuel economy standards, offshore oil production and desert mining. Democrat candidates agree on the Trump resistance, but not on who would fight Trump hardest. Republicans for the most part support the President's policies.

Photo courtesy of San Jose Police Dept. An AR-15 style semiautomatic rifle seized during an arrest of a criminal suspect in San Jose. Guns Among Feinsteins signature legislative accomplishments was her 1994 federal assault weapons ban. Congress let it sunset a decade later, citing inconclusive evidence it reduced gun violence. Now she and other Democrats want more gun controls than the rapid-fire bump stocks ban approved by the Trump administration, and have called for a new assault weapons ban and broader background checks. Republicans for the most part support the presidents policies.

Whos got the money?

Only two of the 32 Senate candidates have raised more than $1 million toward their U.S. Senate bid. Here are the top half-dozen:

What do the polls say? All of the recent polls give the incumbent a comfortable lead, and most put de Leon as the runner-up who would compete head-to-head with Feinstein in November. Among the more respected is the Public Policy Institute of California, where the most recent survey May 11-20 of 1,702 California adult residents found Feinstein maintains a double-digit lead over de Leon: Another respected survey, the Berkeley IGS poll, in April found:

Among other polls, there have been a few outliers. A Survey USA poll last month had Feinstein leading with 39 percent followed by Patrick Little  yes, the neo-Nazi  with 18 percent and de Leon a withering 8 percent, tied with Rocky De La Fuente, and 17 percent undecided. Another early this month by One America News Network gave Feinstein 32 percent, James Bradley 19 percent, Erin Cruz 13 percent, de Leon 8 percent and Hartson 6 percent with 16 percent undecided. 

Who are the big backers? Both major parties declined to endorse a U.S. Senate candidate for the June primary election. That's not a huge surprise for the GOP, with 11 little-known contenders in a race deemed a lost cause for Republicans. But Democrats snubbed Feinstein with their refusal to endorse. Feinstein did clinch a key endorsement from former President Barack Obama, while presumed runner-up de Leon, far behind her in fundraising, got a big boost with the endorsement of billionaire hedge fund manager Tom Steyer. Feinstein also has the nod from Vice President Joe Biden, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker, Gov. Jerry Brown and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, agricultural and farmworker groups. De Leon is supported by Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Fremont, and many unions including SEIU California, representing government workers, and the California Nurses Association. Tom Palzer is endorsed by the California Republican Assembly and Cruz by the co-founder of Latinos for Trump, Marco Gutierrez. Among major newspapers, the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, San Jose Mercury News and East Bay Times all have endorsed Feinstein.

Should I be wary of any ads?

A television ad for U.S Senate candidate Kevin De Leon.

The Super PAC A Progressive California, with backing from the California Nurses Association and National Nurses United, launched ads for Kevin de Leon last month arguing Dianne Feinstein isn't feisty enough toward Donald Trump. Weve never been fooled into thinking Donald Trump can be a good president, de Leon declares, a reference to remarks Feinstein had made in San Francisco last August. It was similar to an earlier ad by the group that argued de Leon would deliver a more bare-knuckled resistance to Trump. Feinstein later released a statement clarifying that while Im under no illusion that its likely to happen and will continue to oppose his policies, I want President Trump to change for the good of the country.

A television ad for U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein

Feinsteins ads have touted her endorsements and her leadership on gun limits as she pushes for another assault weapon ban like the one she authored in 1994 that Congress allowed to sunset. Her most recent ad also argues she has championed Obamacare and efforts to expand Medicare. Hartson has hammered Feinstein with an ad of her own quoting Feinstein saying she would not support Sen. Bernie Sanders' Medicare for All bill at this time and arguing that after more than a quarter century in office, she never will. The ad argues Feinstein's Medicare for All enthusiasm is cooled by cash from health industry donors. Feinstein has received thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from health industry representatives including lobbying firm Avenue Solutions, whose clients include the American Medical Association, the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, United Health Group and Merck. But the health industry isn't among her biggest contributors, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Whats the one defining moment of this race?

Without a doubt, this would not be much of a race at all if not for the Democratic Partys refusal in February to endorse its stalwart incumbent in her Senate re-election bid. Though Feinstein still enjoys a huge advantage in polling, funding and name recognition, the party's decision to stand back has given her challengers and their backers its blessing to take her on.
.             -   ,    ,          .      .        8.00  12.30 ,    ,          ...
After officers with the College Station Police Department said an increasing number of people are ignoring crossing signals on Northgate, the city has proposed the possibility of closing parts of Boyett during peak bar hours.

The plan is to close the Boyett Street from University Drive to Patricia Street on Thursday, Friday and Saturdays from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. to ensure pedestrian safety.

Business owners on the street like Shawn Ali, who owns Gig' Em Food Mart, aren't too pleased with the possibility of blocking the road.

"Property taxes are already really expensive in this area so I do not agree with it, and I know other businesses nearby would say the same," said Ali.

Although business can be slow at times during the day, Sagir Panthi, who works at the store, said it's a whole different story at night.

"During the day it's just okay, I mean people come and go, night time we are slammed, there are always people in and out of here and a lot of people come park near here so they can get picked up," said Panthi.

The large crowds don't bother Panthi, he thinks the growth in the area is good, but wishes people would be safer when crossing the street.

"This is a place where there are a lot of bars around here so to see drunk people is very normal, so I take it very normally, but it is scary at some nights when people are driving really fast and the kids aren't looking," said Panthi.

According to Ali, blocking the street would prohibit people from getting gas.

"I understand why if you are a business owner you might be upset, he might have to close the whole gas pump, so business wise in the beginning, it's looks very difficult," said Panthi.

If the city goes forth with the temporary closures, they plan to make the changes this August before students return for the fall semester.
GRANTS PASS, ORE.- This morning Knute Buehler walked in today's Boatnik parade meeting voters. In May, Buehler secured the Republican nomination for Governor of Oregon.

Knute Buehler is challenging sitting Governor Kate Brown for the second time in his career.

In 2012, Buehler ran against Brown for the office of Secretary of State and lost. Six years later, Buehler says he can win. Buehler mentions since 2012, he's run two difficult elections in Bend and won a seat on the Oregon State House of Representatives in a Democratic district.

Buehler tells NewsWatch12 his viewpoints on hot topic issues cater to both Democrats and Republicans. As a moderate Republican, he's showing voters he can take office in a historically blue state.

Buehler touts that while serving in the legislature, he has a record of independent leadership and bipartisan results.

For a look at his voting history, click here.

On abortion, Buehler says he's pro-choice, but he's not pro-abortion.

The nominee says abortion should be done as rarely as possible, saying, "I wrote and passed a bill that would make contraception over the counter in Oregon the first state in the nation that allows it, and that is being copied now by a half dozen states across the country and I think thats a goal no matter for pro life or for pro-choice that we can share is to try and make abortion as rare as possible."

On gun control, Buehler says he's pro-second ammendment.

He mentions growing up in rural Oregon with guns. As a gun owner now, Buehler realizes there is an issue that needs to be addressed. Buehler says it will take everyone on both sides of the aisle to fix the issue.

Buehler says, "Its just not about gun control laws, its also about more mental health. Its about more resources in our schools, and more mental health in our schools, more counselors, more school resource officers, and then more resources for law-enforcement."

On Oregon being a sanctuary state, Bueler says he voted against the sanctuary state bill last legislative session.

Buehler says, "I think weve gotten this concept all wrong. One, it was developed in the 1980s and it was to protect victims of crime no matter if you were here legally or illegally. Now we are protecting criminals because of the sanctuary state law and we need to change it we need to protect victims, not criminals."

Buehler adds education tops his list of priorities citing 25,000 students failed to graduate high school under Governor Brown. According to the Oregon Department of Education - Oregon's overall on-time graduation rate made a 2-point jump. The most recent performance report available shows 74.8% of students graduated in the four-year cohort in 2015-16.

Buehler mentions to NewsWatch12, Brown's single biggest failure in her time as Governor is her indifference to fixing public schools.

Governor Kate Brown and the Oregon Department of Education say they have, "explicitly focused on narrowing the opportunity gap to improve graduation rates by working directly with stakeholders and school districts to develop success plans for historically underserved students."

Governor Brown says she is dedicated to ensuring that students, communities and districts have what they need for all students to graduate with a plan for their future.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks during a press conference at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Sunday, May 27, 2018. President Moon said North Korean leader Kim Jong Un remains committed to holding a summit with President Donald Trump and to the "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
A Yemeni man inspects a petrol station after it was hit by Saudi-led airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, Sunday, May 27, 2018. Yemeni security officials say a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in the capital has killed at least four civilians and wounded over 10 others. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)
ROCHESTER, Minn.  Thousand of current and former smokers who should be screened for lung cancer arent getting checked. Thats according to a new study from the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Susan Franken, of Rochester, was among that group, until someone close to her made a life-saving suggestion. The 62-year old has been a smoker for 47 years and never thought to get a lung cancer screening until last fall when she got a phone call from her sister.

I was out having a cigarette when she asked me, says Susan. I remember exactly where I was.

Susans sister encouraged her to get a screening and in February, she went in for a CT scan at Mayo Clinic. The results: stage 1A lung cancer, which luckily is very treatable.

Typically, we can remove it with surgery, explains Shanda H. Blackmon, MD, MPH, Professor of Surgery at Mayo Clinic. Because it was caught so early Dr. Blackmon was able to remove Susans caner. But catching lung cancer at this stage is not easy because many patients, like Susan, dont show any symptoms until its too late.

One of the best things you can do for someone is send them for a lung cancer screening, Dr. Blackmon says. I have a mother that smoked, my grandfather died from lung cancer and I really emphasize how important it is to get screened.

It gives you some perspective on; people do care about you, explains Susan who says she and her sister are closer than ever before. She will forever be grateful for the truly priceless gift she was given: a chance to continue to be a Grandma for a few more years.

Just over a month after her surgery, Susan graduated from Rochester Community & Technical College with a Liberal Arts & Sciences Associates Degree she had been working on getting for a number of years. In the audience to watch her get her diploma: her sister.

So, how do you know if you or someone you know should get annual lung cancer screenings? According to Mayo Clinic, people 55 years and older who smoke(d) heavily for many years should talk with their doctor about their lung cancer risk and if a low-dose CT scan is right for them.

As for Susan, she plans on paying it forward by sharing her story and a future donation to Savedbythescan.org.
STILLWATER, Minn. (AP)  An eastern Minnesota man has set a state catch-and-release record by hooking a more than 6-foot-long sturgeon on the Rainy River.

The state Department of Natural Resources announced this week that Jack Burke's May 4 catch set a new state record, Minnesota Public Radio reported .

Burke had been fishing with his friend Michael Orgas. The duo had caught 20 fish over three days before the record-breaking catch.

"We had been having some great action and knew there were big fish in the Rainy River," Burke said in a statement. "This particular fish took about 45 minutes to reel in. When we got it closer to the boat it blew some bubbles and came to the top; I knew it was a huge fish!"

Burke used a muskie rod and an 80-pound braided line with a circle hook and crawlers to catch the fish. The fish was 30 inches in girth.

The previous record was set in April 2017 by two separate anglers who caught 70-inch sturgeons on the same day.

The state keeps records based on length for the catch and release of muskellunge, northern pike, lake sturgeon or flathead catfish. Records for fish that are caught and kept are based on weight.
TDCI promotes Older Americans Month, provides tips for scam prevention



NASHVILLE  The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurances (TDCI) Division of Consumer Affairs has joined the Administration for Community Living in promoting May as Older Americans Month. The theme of this years campaign is Engage at Every Age, which emphasizes the importance of participating in activities that stimulate physical, mental, and emotional well-being.



Older Americans Month has been observed for 55 years and aims to recognize older Americans for their contributions to their communities. The campaign has never been of more importance as older Americans make up a rapidly growing population. As part of Older Americans Month, TDCIs Division of Consumer Affairs is sharing the following tips to help Tennessee consumers avoid scam and fraud tactics often aimed at seniors:





SUBSCRIPTION SCAMS



Some products are advertised as a free trial offer, but the fine print states that once the trial period is over you must cancel or you will be automatically charged a subscription fee. Often times, consumers dont realize theyve agreed to the subscription until theyve been charged multiple times. To avoid this scam:



 Find and read the terms and conditions for an offer. If you cant find them or cant understand what youre agreeing to, dont sign up.

 Research and check reviews on the company and product being offered before signing up or entering payment.

 Check your bank and credit card statements monthly to identify any fraudulent charges.





TECHNICAL SUPPORT SCAMS



Scammers claim to be computer technicians associated with well-known companies like Microsoft or Apple. They call or send pop-up messages warning of viruses or other computer problems. Consumers are urged to pay for the technician to gain remote access to the device in order to solve this problem.



To avoid this typically unneeded and harmful scam:



 Avoid clicking on any unexpected pop-ups, spam email, or urgent messages about problems with your computer.

 Computer manufacturers will not include a contact number in an error or warning message and will not call you if there is a problem with your computer.

 If a consumer falls victim to a technical support scam, a follow-up scam regarding a tech support refund is likely to occur. They will ask for your bank account or credit card information to issue a refund, but rather than depositing a refund, they take more money or will make fraudulent charges on the account.





NEW MEDICARE CARD SCAMS



The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is required to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019. A new, unique Medicare Number is replacing the SSN-based Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN) on each new Medicare card. Tennesseans are expected to start receiving the new Medicare cards after June 2018. These new cards will be provided automatically and at no cost to consumers. If you receive a phone call or mail asking you to pay a fee or verify personal or financial information in order to receive the new card, it is a scam.



 When you get your new card, be sure to destroy your old card. It likely has your or your spouses SSN on it, so dont toss it in the trashshred it.

 Guard your card. While the new card wont include your social security number, thieves can still use it to get medical services.





FAMILY EMERGENCY SCAMS



In recent years, scammers have become craftier and may pose as relatives or friends in need of help. Theyll urge you to wire money immediately to help with an emergencylike getting out of jail, paying a hospital bill, or needing to leave a foreign country. Their goal is to provide a sense of urgency so that you send money quickly, before realizing its a scam. When faced with this situation:



 Resist the urge to act immediately, no matter how pressing the issue appears to be.

 Verify the persons identity by asking questions that a stranger couldnt possibly know.

 Call the phone number for the family member or friend that you know to be genuine to validate the call.

 Check the story of the caller with someone else in your family or circle of friends, even if youve been told to keep it a secret.

 Dont wire money or send a check or money order by overnight delivery or courier.





IF YOU BECOME A VICTIM



Have you fallen victim to a scam or fraud? If so, follow these four steps:



 Tell your family or caregivers so they can help you and warn your friends.

 Call your bank or credit card company to change any associated account numbers and passwords.

 Document the fraud by recording dates and the names of the people and organization with whom you spoke.

 Report the fraud. You can file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission through their website or by calling 877-382-4357. You can also contact TDCIs Division of Consumer Affairs through its website or by calling 615-741-4737.

Published May 27, 2018














Original constitutions, workshop planned for Statehood celebration



NASHVILLE  The Tennessee State Library and Archives will put all three of the states original constitutions on display to the public in commemoration of Statehood Day. The constitutions are typically protected in a vault, but all three versions will be in the Library and Archives lobby for public viewing June 1 to 2 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CDT.



Seeing these wonderful documents makes Tennessee history come alive, said Secretary of State Tre Hargett. Not many Tennesseans can say theyve seen one of our constitutions up close, much less all three. Hopefully, this exhibition will demonstrate how the Library and Archives works tirelessly to protect and chronicle our great states history.



As part of this celebration, the Library and Archives will also host a free lecture on Tennessees first governor John Sevier and Tennessees road to statehood. Gordon Belt, Library and Archives Public Services director and author of the book John Sevier: Tennessees First Hero, will discuss how Tennessee became a state and the prominent role Sevier played in Tennessee's early history, eventually becoming the states first governor.



The lecture will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. CDT Saturday, June 2, in the Library and Archives auditorium. The Library and Archives is located at 403 Seventh Ave. N., directly west of the Tennessee State Capitol in downtown Nashville. Free parking is available around the Library and Archives building.



Although the lecture is free and open to the public, registration is required due to seating limitations in the auditorium. To reserve seats, please visit sevierstatehood.eventbrite.com.



Viewing the state constitutions is free. No reservation is required.

Published May 27, 2018














UTIA researcher named Fulbright Scholar





Seong-Hoon Cho, a professor and researcher at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, has been chosen as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar and will spend six months in South Korea, developing the framework for the design of payments for forest carbon sequestration that optimizes risk/reward trade-offs and to help determine optimal spatial targeting of incentive payments to encourage forest carbon sequestration. Photo by N. Leverton, courtesy UTIA.



KNOXVILLE  Seong-Hoon Cho, professor and researcher at the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, will spend six months in South Korea, designing the countrys framework for forest carbon sequestration payments that optimizes risk/reward trade-offs.



The project, which is inspired by a new USDA-National Institute of Food and Agriculture project that Cho is leading for the next three years, includes designing an innovative framework that merges economics, finance modeling and ecological modeling to help determine optimal spatial targeting of incentive payments to encourage forest carbon sequestration. Sequestering carbon through the reforestation and/or avoiding deforestation is a cost-effective means of mitigating climate change.



Cho will design incentive payment programs for forest-based ecosystem services using modern portfolio theory. Information generated from his research will help determine optimal spatial distributions of initial forest carbon credits that can be traded in the carbon market program, should the Korean government decide to adopt forest carbon as part of its new cap-and-trade program.



South Korea was strategically selected as a host country to Chos research because it faces serious conservation challenges from damaged ecosystem services that have resulted from rapid land development. More than half of South Koreas population is exposed to dangerous levels of fine dust due to rapid urbanization and dust storms originating in China. His presence in South Korea will also facilitate data collection.



In addition to his research activities, Cho will also teach at Korea University, a leading university in South Korea, and foster academic ties between KU and the University of Tennessee.



I am excited to have this opportunity to bring key innovation to South Korean efforts to recover ecosystem services through market-driven approaches, says Cho. I think the research component will be particularly valued in South Korean academic circles, as the country currently lacks multidisciplinary research activities focusing on modeling human decisions in the context of natural systems.



The teaching component will also train a knowledgeable workforce to develop and administer the innovative framework that has been lacking in the country, says Cho. During the course of mentorship and interaction with students at KU, I will have a chance to recruit quality students who have interest in pursuing degrees and/or participating in programs at the University of Tennessee, adds Cho.



A Fulbright legacy is in the making, as Chos father was also chosen as a recipient of the Korean Fulbright Scholarship for graduate studies in America some 50 years ago but did not accept due to a lack of funds to purchase the airfare. More than a half-century later, his son will have the honor of representing the U.S. as a Fulbright Scholar to Koreawith paid airfare and a generous compensation package.



Cho is a natural resource and environmental economist in UTIAs Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, where he teaches graduate-level advanced natural resource economics and undergraduate/graduate courses in natural resource economics. He is also a faculty fellow in the energy and environmental policy program at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy. Also serving on the faculty board of UTIAs Natural Resource Policy Center, Cho collaborates with engineers, economists, ecologists, foresters and geographers as part of the Centers multidisciplinary, multi-institutional and multifunctional approach to solving natural resource issues in the southeastern United States.



Chos research includes dynamics of natural and human systems such as ecological and economic effectiveness of land conservation, land-use planning on rural-urban interface, valuation of green space for ecofriendly urbanization, management of urban sprawl, and valuation of ecosystem services and their influences on climate change. The majority of his recent research is funded by the National Science Foundation through its Coupled Natural and Human Systems program and by USDA through its Agriculture and Food Research Initiative program. The NSF-funded research focuses on understanding the costs of establishing protected areas, and the USDA-funded project focuses on designing incentives intended to secure ecosystem service benefits from private landowners more effectively. He currently leads a USDA-funded project that deals with the cost-effective design of conservation subsidies in the presence of market and climate uncertainties using the case study of biodiversity conservation in the central and southern Appalachian region.



The Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program offers teaching, research or combination teaching/research awards in more than 160 countries each year. Fulbright alumni include 59 Nobel Laureates, 82 Pulitzer Prize winners, 71 MacArthur Fellows, 16 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients and thousands of leaders across the private, public and nonprofit sectors. Since its inception in 1946, more than 360,000 Fulbrighters have participated in the program.



The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture celebrates 50 years of excellence in providing Real. Life. Solutions. through teaching, discovery and service. ag.tennessee.edu

Published May 27, 2018


















By Park Jae-hyuk







Standard Chartered (SC) Bank Korea's Plus Mile credit card has gained popularity with consumers who are interested in accumulating air miles and using the points, the London-based banking giant's local affiliate said Friday.







The credit card has been known for its various benefits to its users, since its March 29 release.







Its users can accumulate air miles through their purchases at affiliated stores in Korea and abroad.







The card also offers up to 3.5 bonus miles per 1,000 won ($0.90) spending on Asiana Airlines flights and 3 bonus miles per 1,000 won spending on Korean Air flights.







"Those who spend 2 million won each month for a half year can get more than 20,000 miles," an SC Bank Korea official said. "With the regular spending, those who have already accumulated 20,000 miles will be able to have free round-trip tickets to most Southeast Asian countries from Korea."







In addition, users of the credit card can exchange major currencies, such as U.S. dollars, Japanese yen, euros and Chinese yuan, at rates 70 percent more favorable than usual.







They can also use lounges at the Incheon, Gimpo and Gimhae international airports for free three times a year.







The Lounge Key service will be given to customers as well, so they can use lounges at 850 airports worldwide for free three times a year, even if they do not own priority pass cards.







"The credit card will be the must-have item for frequent travelers," the company official said.







By the end of July this year, SC Bank Korea will give a gifticon for a tall-size Starbucks Americano to those who spent more than 30,000 won with the Plus Mile credit card.








Kang Moon-sung, 33, a writer and independent publisher, who published "30-something Jobless Bum's Diary" based on his many years without a job, sells his books at "Publisher's Table," an independent book market held at the Culture Station Seoul, Sunday. He is one of many independent writers who have sprung up in recent years. / Photo by Park Jin-hai
Lao Piak's beef tendon noodles with homemade chili sauce / Korea Times photo by Yun Suh-young



Newly opened Lao Piak is one of only 2 Laotian restaurants in Seoul



By Yun Suh-young



This is the fourth in a series of articles covering restaurants specializing in authentic international cuisine, produced in collaboration with Todd Sample and Sara Park of food consulting brand Eathentic that recommends authentic international cuisine in Korea. Authentic here doesn't mean sticking to the way things should be, it's about representing the "heart and soul" of a culture. This monthly "dine & talk" journey explores food from different regions and the people who are making them.  ED.



Two young women in their early 30s have been close friends since college. Both graduated from high school in Korea and went on to the University of Virginia in the United States, where they first met. When they graduated, they both went into television  one became a TV presenter and the other a producer at major local broadcasters.



They prepared for the TV jobs together and kept in close touch and traveled together when they started working. After five years in their respective positions, they both quit.



Kicking their established jobs to the curb, the two women set out on a completely new, risky adventure to open a Laotian restaurant called "Lao Piak" on a tranquil street in Mangwon-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul. One year into its opening, the restaurant is a success.



It all began when the two went on vacation together two years ago to Laos, a country that had been gaining hype on television.



"We went to Vientiane and Luang Prabang in Laos. It was our first time in the country. We decided on Laos because it was close to Thailand and Vietnam and had similar food. It was also after Flowers Over Youth ended with its episode on Laos. That triggered our interest," said Chung Hyo-yeol, co-owner of Lao Piak and the former TV presenter. Piak refers to noodles in soup in Laotian.



"After traveling to Laos, we were mesmerized by the country and wanted to introduce Laotian cuisine in Seoul. Three months after the trip, we both quit our jobs and went back to Laos to learn Laotian cuisine from locals. On that trip we included Vang Vieng to the two previous locations and stayed for a month."



They ended up spending three months in the country on three return trips to learn local recipes.

"It was difficult to find locals in the city to teach us the recipes. They were wary. But those in the countryside were more open. Our recipes are from them," said Won Sung-hoon, co-owner of Lao Piak and former producer at Olive, a local lifestyle and food cable channel.





Co-owners of Lao Piak Won Sung-hoon, left, and Chung Hyo-yeol / Korea Times photo by Yun Suh-young



The two's radical transformation from producer and presenter to chef-owners brought resistance from their families.



"Mine wouldn't see me until the restaurant opened. Sung-hoon and I are as close as sisters so we decided to live together above the restaurant. It's less tiring for us," said Chung.



"My family is used to my radical transformation due to a past experience _ when I switched from a biology major to becoming a producer. When they heard I was planning to open a restaurant, they were less surprised," said Won.



Laotian food is much influenced by neighbors Thailand and Vietnam and vice versa. It also uses a lot of ingredients from the neighboring countries. Laotian staples are steamed sticky rice and larb which is a spicy marinated meat or fish mixture. The papaya salad dish, better known as som tam in the West, is also a Laotian invention.



"Because of the low quality of beef in Laos due to geographical reasons, they use more pork and chicken. Their noodle soup is popular among Koreans. The noodles are made with glutinous rice, but it's not the same as rice noodles in Korea. There's a dish called khao piak which is popular. Khao means rice, and piak is noodle soup," said Won, who is in charge of the noodle soup, whereas Chung is in charge of anything fried.



"Our noodles are handmade. We each take turns making them. It's on limited availability because we can only make a handful by ourselves."



The two are the only chefs at the restaurant. In the beginning they did everything from cooking to serving. Now they have a few part-time servers to help out.





Lao Piak's beef tendon noodles with homemade chili sauce / Korea Times photo by Yun Suh-young
U.S. President Donald Trump, left, cancelled his planned summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, right, on May 24 over Pyongyang's "tremendous anger and open hostility." Kim remained low key over the decision, leaving the door open for the historic summit in a message entrusted to Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan on May 25. / AFP-Yonhap



By Yi Whan-woo



North Korean leader Kim Jong-un appears to be pursuing balanced diplomacy between the United States and China in a bid to hold the summit with U.S. President Donald Trump while maintaining Pyongyang's decades-old alliance with Beijing.

During his surprise talks with President Moon Jae-in, May 26, Kim said he is committed to meeting with U.S. Preesident Donald Trump.

On May 25, Kim entrusted Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan with a message after Trump abruptly called off the summit scheduled for June 12 in Singapore.

Trump accused North Korea of "tremendous anger and open hostility" despite their agreement to hold the summit. He blamed China for North Korea's more bellicose approach toward the U.S. after Kim met Chinese President Xi Jinping for a second time this year in early May.

And in a statement carried by Pyongyang's state-controlled Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim Kye-gwan said his country "would like to make known to the U.S. side once again that we have the intent to sit with the U.S. side to solve problems regardless of ways at any time."

He said Washington's decision to cancel the talks demonstrated the extent of the animosity between the North and the U.S. and that leaders of the two countries desperately needed to meet to resolve the hostile relations.

He also said Kim Jong-un made all-out efforts to prepare for the summit with the U.S., saying his meeting with Trump would serve as a good start.

"The U.S. side's unilateral announcement of the cancellation of the summit makes us think over if we were truly right to have made efforts for it and to have opted for the new path," he said.

"We remain unchanged in our goal and will to do everything we can for peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and humankind, and we, broad-minded and open all the time, have the willingness to offer the U.S. side time and opportunity."

Pyongyang's reaction was seen as a surprise because it has rarely remained low key toward Washington.

Even during preparations for the summit, North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui lashed U.S. Vice President Mike Pence for suggesting a Libya-style approach for denuclearizing North Korea.

"As for the tremendous anger and open hostility referred to by President Trump, it is just a reaction to the unbridled remarks made by the U.S. side, which has long pressed the DPRK unilaterally to scrap its nuclear program ahead of the DPRK-U.S. summit," Kim Kye-gwan said.

Pyongyang's harsh rhetoric toward Washington came after Kim Jong-un visited Dalian, China from May 7 to 8 and held his second summit with Xi.

The meeting surprised many people because it came only about 40 days after they met in Beijing.

The May summit was seen as Kim's bid to gain diplomatic leverage before his summit with Trump by showing off the Pyongyang-Beijing alliance.

Diplomatic sources speculated that North Korea may push for the removal of some or all of the 28,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea, in line with Xi's demand.

China has been angling to retain its influence over North Korea amid the recent rapprochement between the two Koreas.

Kim did not ask for U.S. military forces to be withdrawn from the South when he met President Moon on April 27.
Kim Jong-un regime suspected of hiding nuclear weapons



By Yi Whan-woo



North Korea has designated its border region Chagang Province as a Special Songun (military-first) Revolutionary Zone, according to sources familiar with Pyongyang.

The region is mountainous, fueling speculation that North Korea, despite its promise to scrap its nuclear program, may seek to hide its atomic weapons there.

"The designation of the zone was discussed during a meeting involving the Ministry of State Security officials in April," a source said last week.

"Covering more than 6,400 square miles on North Korea's border with China, fully 98 percent of Chagang Province is mountainous.

"This means it is relatively sparsely populated and has plenty of opportunities for underground excavations to conceal stockpiles of weapons and facilities to conduct further research."

Another source said Pyongyang authorities were re-examining residents' ideological backgrounds and expelling anyone with a hint of belonging to the "hostile class."

A third source said additional fortifications were being built and new limits were being imposed on the movement of local residents, along with additional checkpoints on key roads.

The revelation coincided with the secretive state's invitation to journalists from South Korea, the U.S., China, Russia and the U.K. last week to witness the "demolition" of its nuclear test site in Punggye-ri.

In 2013, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) warned that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the domestic munitions industry to be moved underground to protect it from observation and attack.

"Most of the facilities are in Chagang Province and other remote inland areas and are partially or wholly underground to minimize damage in war", the NIS said in a report.

"Emergency shelters are being built near factories and plants and mobilization plans for persons and materials have already been completed to assure continued production even through the fires of war," the NIS said.

North Korea is believed to have up to 60 nuclear weapons. The regime touted nuclear bombs as the best guarantee of survival despite decades of negotiations, international sanctions and threats of war.

North Korea withdrew from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and conducted six nuclear tests since 2006.

It does not belong to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) or the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).

The North is also believed to operate a large chemical weapons program, although it has joined the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) and Geneva Protocol, meaning it may maintain an offensive biological weapons program.




By Yi Whan-woo



North Korea's Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation has called for prompt implementation of the declaration jointly announced by President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at their first summit on April 27.

The council made the call last week in its congratulatory message for the 100th anniversary of the birth of Moon Ik-hwan, a South Korean pastor and reunification activist. The anniversary commemoration will take place in Seoul on May 29.

The declaration, announced at the Panmunjeom truce village, aims for denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula.

"Hoisting the Panmunjom Declaration ... as a new platform for the new era of independent unification, we should push to open a new era of peace, prosperity and unification," the council said in the message delivered to its South Korean counterparts preparing for the anniversary of the pastor's birth.












By Yi Whan-woo



Kim Chang-son, de facto chief of staff to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, was seen in Beijing on May 26, fueling speculation that the latter may be discussing another summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping following the ones in March and early May.

Diplomatic sources said Kim Chang-son was seen at Beijing Capital International Airport, where he boarded an Air Koryo flight bound for Pyongyang at 2 p.m.

He was accompanied by Kim Song-nam, deputy chief of the international bureau of the North Korea's ruling Workers' Party.

"There's no concrete evidence at the moment that the person seen is Kim Chang-son," a source said. "But if is found that Kim Chang-son stayed in Beijing, it could be a visit for party-to-party exchanges between North Korea and China."

Another source said the trip to Beijing could mean another China visit by Kim Jong-un.

The third source said Kim Chang-son was in Beijing on May 24 en route to Singapore for the North Korea-U.S. summit preparations, but that he had revised his schedule after U.S. President Donald Trump abruptly cancelled the summit.

"There is a possibility that Kim prepared for a Singapore visit in Beijing but saw a twist in his plan due to Trump's announcement," the source said. "Kim Chang-son serves as a guide to Kim Jong-un's schedule, so there is a possibility."

Meanwhile, Hong Kong media reported that the train service bound for Beijing from China's northeast region would be suspended on May 27 and 28 as well as on June 13 and 14.

The route passes trough Dandong, Dalian, Fushun and Shenyang in Liaoning Province; Changchun in Jilin Province; and Harbin in Heilongjiang Province.

The reports add to speculation that Kim Jong-un may visit China again on his special train.

When Kim visited China in late March, train services were suspended in the northeast region, and Kim's train arrived in Beijing via Dandong.

For decades, North Korean leaders, amid rumors that they feared being assassinated, did not use planes when traveling abroad until Kim flew on his private jet, Chammae-1, to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Dalian from May 7 to 8.




Archbishop Alfred Xuereb speaks to reporters in Seoul, Sunday. / Yonhap



Pope Francis has voiced hopes for continued efforts for inter-Korean reconciliation and peace on the divided Korean Peninsula, the Holy See's top envoy to South Korea said Sunday.



Archbishop Alfred Xuereb, 59, made the remarks upon his arrival in Korea for the Vatican's diplomatic mission here. In February, the pontiff named Xuereb the new apostolic nuncio for both South Korea and Mongolia.



"He told me, 'Please assure the Korean people and also the bishops that he will continue praying that future generations will have a future of stability and prosperity,'" Xuereb said in response to a question from Yonhap News Agency.



"The pope is very much informed about the situation, and he has great hope that the talks, which started on April 27, about the reconciliation would continue and will be successful so that the future generations will live in a peaceful environment, prosperous future," the Maltese prelate added, referring to last month's inter-Korean summit.



Xuereb assumed the post, which has been left vacant since his predecessor, Archbishop Osvaldo Padilla, retired in September.



The apostolic nuncio voiced his enthusiasm to know more about Korea and mingle with its people.



"I told (the pope) that I accepted (his proposal to serve in Korea) very willingly and also with enthusiasm because I feel sort of attraction. I feel that the Lord is calling me to come here and try to be ... to do some good," Xuereb said.



"I am here to serve the church, and I will do my best with the help of my secretary to get to know as much as possible Korea, in order to serve better. The better I know Korea, the better I can serve the Korean church and Korean people," he also said.



Xuereb's mission here came amid a flurry of diplomacy aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions and establishing a lasting peace on the peninsula.



Before coming to Seoul, the archbishop told the Vatican News that the peace process by Seoul and Pyongyang gives "great hope," though it may be a "long one with many obstacles to overcome."



Pope Francis has shown keen attention to the growing mood for inter-Korean reconciliation and peace on the peninsula.

Days before the April 27 cross-border summit, the pontiff was quoted as saying that the meeting would be an "auspicious opportunity that leads to a journey for reconciliation and the restoration of fraternity."



While marking Easter weeks earlier, he said, "We implore fruits of dialogue for the Korean Peninsula that the discussions under way may advance harmony and peace within the region."



The pontiff visited Seoul in August 2014 for a trip during which he attended a gathering of Asian Catholic youths and met with the socially marginalized, the victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery and the bereaved families of those who died in the April 2014 ferry disaster.



Born in Malta in October 1958, Xuereb was ordained a priest in 1984. He later earned a Ph.D. in theology from the Pontifical Theological Faculty Teresianum, an educational institution of the Roman Catholic Church.



In 2007, then-Pope Benedict XVI appointed Xuereb his second private secretary. After Pope Francis was elected in 2013, Xuereb became his first private secretary. From 2014 to his appointment as the apostolic nuncio to Korea and Mongolia, Xuereb served as the first prelate secretary of the Secretariat for the Economy. (Yonhap)


By Lee Suh-yoon



President Moon Jae-in met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for their surprise second summit at Panmunjeom, Saturday, at Kim's request to discuss the upcoming Trump-Kim summit. U.S. President Trump abruptly cancelled the June 12 summit on Thursday but suggested in a tweet two days later that it could still take place as scheduled. All photos are provided by Cheong Wa Dae with watermarked photos taken by North Korea's state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA).





A convoy carrying President Moon Jae-in and his entourage arrives for Moon's second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the northern side of the truce village Panmunjeom, Saturday.





Kim Yo-jong, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's younger sister and close adviser, greets Moon in front of the Tongilgak building on the northern side of Panmunjeom.





Moon enters Tongilgak surrounded by North Korean military honor guards.





Kim Jong-un greets President Moon inside Tongilgak.





The leaders of the two Koreas shake hands during their second meeting, one month after their first meeting at Panmunjeom on April 27.





Moon leaves a message in the Tongilgak visitors' book.









President Moon writes in the visitor book, "(For) peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula, together with DPRK leader Kim Jong-un!"





An official photo-shoot in the Tongilgak lobby.





Kim and Moon sit down to discuss the June 12 North Korea-U.S. summit and implementation of the Panmunjeom Declaration signed at the first inter-Korean summit.





Suh Hoon, South Korea's National Intelligence Service director, and Kim Yong-chol, North Korea's United Front Department chief, sit together with their leaders.





President Moon talks with Kim Jong-un.





The two leaders smile as they leave Tongilgak after the summit.





Kim and Moon share a parting handshake in front of Tongilgak.





The two leaders embrace after the summit.





Kim waves as the car carrying President Moon leaves Tongilgak.




President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un hug each other during their surprise second summit at Tongilgak on the North's side of the border village of Panmunjeom, Saturday. Moon said the meeting, held for two hours, was arranged at Kim's request. / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae





By Kim Rahn







North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's willingness for denuclearization is firm and he hopes his summit with U.S. President Donald Trump will be held as planned and successfully, President Moon Jae-in said Sunday after his surprise second meeting with Kim the previous day.







The leaders of the two Korea agreed that Kim needs to talk directly with Trump to resolve misunderstandings and to successfully make their summit happen, he added.







The two-hour inter-Korean summit on the northern side of Panmunjeom was a surprise as Moon and Kim met secretly and only about a month after the first one, April 27.







Their second meeting came amid a series of rapidly reversing situations where the U.S. decided to cancel the historic Washington-Pyongyang summit slated for June 12 following the North's bellicose rhetoric, and Pyongyang expressed hopes to continue dialogue. Now the U.S. is getting positive about holding the summit again as scheduled.







"Once again Kim clearly showed his commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, showing willingness to cooperate to end the history of war and confrontation and to establish peace and prosperity by successfully holding the Washington-Pyongyang summit," Moon said in a media briefing at Cheong Wa Dae.







"What is unclear to Kim is not his willingness for denuclearization but whether the U.S. can really end the hostile relations and guarantee regime security after the North gives up its nuclear weapons," Moon said.







"In a recent summit with me, Trump said the denuclearization will not only end hostile relations but also bring the North economic prosperity. I'm delivering their determination to each other and urging them to reconfirm their willingness through direct talks."







Regarding the recent standoff between the U.S. and North Korea over whether to hold the summit, leaders of the two Koreas reaffirmed close cooperation to make it happen.







"Because both Kim and Trump want the success of the summit sincerely, I told Kim about the need for the two leaders to directly communicate to resolve misunderstandings and for sufficient working-level talks in advance over the agenda items to be discussed at the summit. And Kim agreed," Moon said.







Asked whether Pyongyang and Washington share the same view on the complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization (CVID), Moon said both are aware of what the other wants.







North Korea walks tightrope between US and China Moon expects US, NK to hold working-level dialogue High-level inter-Korean talks to resume June 1 Moon, Kim vow to 'meet frequently in the future' "But although they have the same goal of denuclearization, they need to agree on a roadmap on how to realize it, and they may have difficulty in the process," Moon said.



He said Washington officials started working-level preparation for the summit because they also confirmed Pyongyang's commitment for denuclearization. "If they have something to confirm more, they will do so during the working-level negotiations."



Moon said Seoul had already told Washington about the second meeting with Kim. But he did not say specifically whether it was before the summit of after it.



Asked about any plans to have trilateral hotline talks with Kim and Trump, Moon said a trilateral summit may have to precede such hotline talks. "I hope, if the Washington-Pyongyang summit succeeds, we can hold a trilateral summit and declare the end to the Korean War."



A senior Cheong Wa Dae official also said the two Koreas are having working-level talks over ways to resolve Pyongyang's concerns over regime security, such as Washington and Pyongyang signing a non-aggression treaty, transforming the armistice into a peace treaty, and Seoul, Pyongyang and Washington declaring an end to the war.



"But no agreement has been made about details such as how and when to hold a trilateral summit," he said.



The surprise meeting took place upon Kim's request. The official said National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon and the Workers' Party of Korea's Central Committee Chairman Kim Yong-chol were talking about follow-up measures to the Panmunjeom Declaration Friday afternoon through their own communication channel.



"During the talk, Kim Yong-chol said Kim Jong-un proposed an informal communication with Moon. So security-related aides here discussed it and told Moon about it, and the President gladly accepted it," the official said.



Moon also said such an abrupt and quick meeting was in line with their earlier promise to meet anytime and anywhere when necessary. "I've stressed regular meetings and direct communication between the leaders of the two Koreas as a means to overcome conflict. In this regard, I'd say this summit, which took place like a daily meeting of two friends, was as important as the historic first summit."



The two Koreas disclosed what the leaders discussed a day after the meeting, as Kim requested so because North Korean media could not report it immediately, Moon said.



Accordingly, the North's Korean Central News Agency reported the second inter-Korean summit Sunday, saying Kim showed his firm determination to hold a summit with Trump. It also said the Washington-Pyongyang summit was due on June 12, the first time for a North Korean media to disclose the date to its public.



The two leaders also agreed to hold a high-level inter-Korean meeting June 1. The meeting, which was initially slated for May 16, was cancelled at the time because the North refused to attend citing South Korea-U.S. joint air force drills.



They also decided to hold military talks and Red Cross talks for a reunion of families separated by the Korean War.



The White House did not immediately release a response to the second Moon-Kim summit. But Trump told reporters and wrote on his Twitter Saturday and Sunday that Washington and Pyongyang were having good talks about the Trump-Kim summit, indicating it could be held in Singapore on June 12 as initially planned. Considering Seoul told Washington about the Moon-Kim meeting Saturday, Trump's comments may be in response to it.




President Moon Jae-in holds a question-and-answer session during a press conference at Cheong Wa Dae, Sunday, about his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, held on the North's side of the border village of Panmunjeom the previous day. / Yonhap



By Yi Whan-woo



The second summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un shows Moon's determination to take the initiative on the path toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, according to officials and analysts, Sunday.



It also shows how serious Moon was in regaining momentum for cross-border dialogue over the U.S. and China factors that recently jeopardized a hard-earned chance for reconciliation and peace.



The second summit, proposed by Kim, Saturday, came after leaders of the two Koreas agreed on complete denuclearization of the peninsula in their previous meeting on April 27.



On Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump abruptly cancelled his planned summit with Kim slated for June 12 in Singapore, accusing Pyongyang of taking a bellicose tone with Washington after remaining at odds over possible denuclearization models.



Trump attributed influence from China in Pyongyang's change in tone, referring to Kim's surprise visit to China in early May and second meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Their meeting took place about 40 days after their previous summit in late March, which is extremely unusual for world leaders.



In a rare, low-key gesture toward the U.S., Friday, North Korea expressed willingness to hold the Kim-Trump summit. Kim then sought help from Moon, the self-proclaimed driver of Korean Peninsula-related affairs, to mediate and resolve animosity between the North and the U.S.





Moon expects US, NK to hold working-level dialogue High-level inter-Korean talks to resume June 1 Moon, Kim vow to 'meet frequently in the future' Also for Moon, the Kim-Trump summit was essential to better implement joint declaration with Kim on April 27 and sign a peace treaty to officially end the 1950-53 Korean War.



On Sunday, Trump said he is still looking at a June 12 summit with Kim.



"Kim was believed to be seeking advice regarding his Singapore meeting with Trump. And he wanted Moon to do give it," said Kim Yong-hyun, a professor of North Korean studies at Seoul's Dongguk University. "It seems he wanted to listen to Trump's view on denuclearization and convey his will for denuclearization to Trump in a more convincing manner."



A Seoul foreign ministry official said Saturday's summit ensured Moon's role as a mediator between North Korea and the U.S.



The official claimed Moon's agreement with Kim to hold cross-border military talks also adds to building on momentum for peace.



Korean conservatives denounced Moon for failing to be in the "driver's seat" when North-U.S. relations took a turn despite Moon's visit to the White House last week.



"With Moon meeting both Trump and Kim last week, he at least helped leaders of the U.S. and North Korea engage in dialogue indirectly," the official said.



Some security experts speculated that North Korea is likely to cooperate with the U.S. on summit preparation faithfully. They pointed out that Pyongyang's state-controlled outlets reported Kim's promise to Moon to improve the Pyongyang-Washington relations, while putting efforts to establish "enduring and solid" system for peace on the peninsula.



Cho Sung-ryul, a senior researcher at Institute for National Security Strategy, said the two Koreas and the U.S. may capitalize on the momentum for dialogue and pursue a three-way summit right after the Trump-Kim meeting.






By Lee Kyung-min



A district court reviewing former President Lee Myung-bak's criminal case is expected to determine whether to allow him to stay away for court hearings unless he was due to testify.



Defense attorney Kang Hoon submitted a request to the Seoul Central District Court, Friday, stating that Lee did not want to appear for the hearings citing "health reasons," but would do so when he was needed to answer questions from the court.



The seemingly "bold" move towards the country's criminal justice system was somewhat expected following similar statements from attorneys at the first hearing last week. "Lee has not slept or eaten well. It is questionable whether he would be able to sit through the long hearings. We, therefore, ask that the prosecution present its case without Lee's court appearance," they said. Lee had up to 15-minute breaks every hour, and the court decided to hold only two hearings a week, instead of up to four, taking into account his age, 77, and deteriorating health.



Kang, however, stressed that Lee was not boycotting the court proceedings, adding "Lee would willingly counter arguments himself with the prosecution if need be, but for the proceedings where it is expected to review written evidence, he does not want to be present."



The request, which aims to seek the court's permission in advance, is considered a move not to repeat the path of former President Park Geun-hye, who boycotted the hearings after the then presiding judge issued a second arrest warrant, extending an earlier detention for another six months. The court continued the hearings without Park present until the verdict and sentencing (24 years in prison and 18 billion won in fines) in April.



Court permission unlikely



It is highly unlikely for the court to grant such a request. Under the law, a court is barred from holding a hearing when a defendant fails to appear. Exceptions are allowed in limited cases where correctional officials are unable to forcibly bring a defendant in custody who refuses to attend a hearing. The exceptions are rare because almost all defendants do not dare defy court orders out of fear such an act could increase the chance of conviction and possible harsher sentences. "Lee stated that he was willing to appear to answer questions, which implies that his health conditions are not as serious as he claimed to be. When a defendant refuses to appear for a due date, the court must delay the hearing," a court official was quoted as saying.



Lee was indicted on a wide range of corruption charges including bribery in the amount of 11 billion won ($10.5 million). Lee faces charges of bribery, abuse of power, embezzlement, breach of trust and tax evasion as well as violations of the election and presidential records laws. Prosecutors suspect Lee is the owner of DAS, an auto parts company owned by his brother on paper, and used it to commit a wide range of corrupt activities, a claim he flatly denies. Prosecutors suspect Lee managed a 33.9 billion won slush fund, which was part of 34.9 billion won embezzled from DAS.






President Moon Jae-in's top national security adviser Chung Eui-yong. / Korea Times



By Oh Young-jin



President Moon Jae-in's top national security aide was nowhere to be seen at Moon's summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at the Panmunjeom, truce village on Saturday.



It is unclear if the absence of Chung Eui-yong, chief of the presidential National Security Office, had anything to do with his 99.9 percent bet on the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim taking place in Singapore on June 12 as scheduled.



Perhaps Chung may be heaving a sigh of relief now that the talks are back on track. Or he may boast in private of his clairvoyance.



Either way, if the career diplomat keeps his job this time, it would be better that he has learned his lesson.



Chung's nearly 100 percent prediction came when Moon was on his way to the meeting with Trump. Chung told reporters aboard Air Force One, "I am 99.9 percent sure that the Trump-Kim summit will be held as scheduled ... We are now preparing for contingencies."



Then Trump cancelled the summit.



Events had already taken a turn for the worse in the lead-up to the planned summit, with Chung's bet looking decidedly shaky.

U.S. national security adviser John Bolton reminded the North of the deposed Libyan leader Gaddafi. And Secretary of State Mike Pompeo unwittingly disparaged the North Korean leadership when he offered to enable people in the North to eat meat if the North denuclearized _ an obvious reference to the Kim regime's failure.



Then the North reacted strongly when Senior Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan threatened to axe the summit and vowed to go to nuclear war with the U.S.



Reports in Washington had it that Trump was beginning to have doubts after Pyongyang stood up a U.S. advance team sent to prepare for the summit.



Trump called Moon before he left for Washington.



Then, shortly after Moon returned home, Trump pulled out of the Singapore summit. Moon was not informed of Trump's decision in advance, which weakened his effort to mediate between the North and the U.S.



Fortunately, the North relented and asked Trump to reconsider.



Considering Trump's super ego, he may not have taken news of Chung's bet kindly, perhaps contributing to trump's decision to cancel the summit.



Domestically, the credibility of Moon's diplomatic effort to seek a broker's role between the U.S. and the North was compromised when the opposition, weakened as it might be, took issue with the 99.9 percent as a sign of amateurism in the foreign policy team.



Chung's levity contrasts with Moon's prudence shown at the Sunday news conference when he said the Singapore summit was a matter between the U.S. and the North and that Seoul was not playing a central role.



Moon apparently knows that it works best when the South uses moderation and modesty _ such as when he heaped praise on Trump for progress in his effort to bring about lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Chung can learn from his boss.


President Moon Jae-in writes in a visitors' book as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un waits during their meeting at Tongilgak, a building on the northern side of the truce village of Panmunjeom, Saturday. / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae



By Lee Min-hyung



The United States and North Korea will hold working-level talks to prepare for a summit between their leaders, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Sunday.



"The potential success of the June 12 summit between Washington and Pyongyang depends on whether the upcoming working-level negotiation goes smoothly," Moon said at a media briefing at Cheong Wa Dae.



A day earlier, the President held an unexpected summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un at Tongilgak, on the northern side of the Panmunjeom truce village.



"I expect the planned summit to be successful as the U.S. and North Korea push ahead with the event at a time when the two countries fully recognize what each side wants," Moon said.



Washington and Pyongyang are expected to narrow their differences on the latter's recent pledge to denuclearize during the working-level talks, for which the dates have not been reveled.



Asked whether the regime's pledge referred to complete, verification and irreversible denuclearization (CVID), President Moon said Washington and Pyongyang would discuss this during the working-level talks.






Singapore's financial skyline is seen lining the edge of the Singapore River in Singapore in this May 10, file photo. / AP-Yonhap



By Park Ji-won



U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are apparently likely to hold their first summit as scheduled on June 12 in Singapore.



South Korean President Moon Jae-in, while holding a media briefing Sunday, on his surprise meeting with the North Korean leader the previous day, said Kim seemed determined to meet Trump as scheduled for a denuclearization deal.



"Our two leaders confirmed that the success of the North Korea-U.S. summit should be achieved and the journey toward the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and the permanent peace regime should be carry on," said President Moon.



"Also, we reaffirmed fast implementation of the April 27 Panmunjeom Declaration. In order to do so, we agreed to hold a high-ranking official meeting on June 1 as well as meetings of military officials and Red Cross officials for the separated Korean families. "



North Korea also expressed its willingness to hold the summit through its media Sunday saying the Singapore summit has been set for June 12, while U.S. President Donald Trump also said that "the schedule hasn't changed."





Seen is the front page of the North Korean newspaper Rodong Shinmun's Sunday edition. / Yonhap



The Rodong Sinmun, the North's Worker's Party newspaper, reported the second Moon-Kim summit saying, "Our Chairman (Kim Jong-un) expressed his fixed will on the historic North-U.S summit as well as gratitude over Moon's efforts, who tried hard for the North-U.S. summit, which is scheduled to be held on June 12."



This was the first time for the North to have revealed the specific date of the summit with Trump through its media.





President Donald J. Trump speaks with Joshua Holt after his return to the to the U.S. at The White House in Washington, Saturday. / UPI-Yonhap
By Lee Min-hyung



The two Koreas agreed Sunday to resume peace talks by holding high-level talks on June 1 and rearranging schedules to realize the inter-Korean Panmunjeom Declaration.



The agreement came a day after South Korean President Moon Jae-in held his second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.



The leaders agreed to resume recently suspended inter-Korean talks, and to continue the momentum for peace on the Korean Peninsula with ongoing talks. These include military talks aimed at easing armed conflicts at some disputed border areas, and Red Cross talks to resume reunions of separated families.



"Both sides agreed to hold the military and Red Cross talks soon after the high-level dialogue on June 1," Moon said in a media briefing on Sunday.






President Donald Trump's decision to cancel his summit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un is, in itself, no cause for regret.



Going ahead with a meeting that had little chance of success would have been a mistake, compounding errors the administration has already made on this issue. The cancellation is an opportunity to rethink, one the president and his advisers need to grasp.



Exactly why Trump won't meet Kim in Singapore on June 12 is unclear. Perhaps he's come to think that the North Koreans were never sincere about discussing a formula to abandon their nuclear weapons program.



In any event, Trump's withdrawal avoids the risk that he might have struck a bad deal in pursuit of a moment's applause  and that's all to the good. The door to future negotiations hasn't closed. North Korea says it wants to keep talking. What matters now is to get this process on to a more productive track.



This will take some doing. Trump's approach up to now has weakened the U.S. position. If the U.S. had shown it was prepared to negotiate in good faith and the North wasn't, it would now be in a stronger position. Instead, South Korea's government may grudgingly agree with the North's charge that the U.S. is not to be trusted. China will be confirmed in that assessment. Both countries may soon be urging a lifting of sanctions.



The administration should assure its allies and China that it's still open to serious talks. U.S. diplomats should stay in contact with North Korean counterparts and do the preparatory work that should already have been done. They'll need to repair the partnership with South Korean officials, reportedly blindsided by Trump's announcement. The U.S., not North Korea, must be seen as the party most committed to a peaceful resolution.



So the administration's nuclear threats aren't helpful  or all that credible, either. Bluster and bullying on trade and other foreign-policy issues are plainly counterproductive. Maintaining sanctions won't be easy, and the U.S. needs friends to help. And when it comes to China, linking sanctions enforcement to trade is unwise. Enforcing sanctions is a U.N. obligation: Don't make that a bargaining chip in a clash over agricultural tariffs.



One thing hasn't changed. A negotiated settlement offers the only real prospect for peace on the Korean Peninsula. Achieving that settlement will probably require the U.S. to accept something less than prompt and complete denuclearization  but something less than that could nonetheless reduce the North Korean threat to a more manageable level. That's well worth pursuing, and if it happens would deserve to be celebrated. But to get there, Trump and his advisers will need to change their approach, do their homework, and start measuring their words.





The above editorial appeared in the Bloomberg News. It was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


KT employees, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries officials and Liberian fisheries agency officials pose after signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU). KT said Sunday it will built a surveillance system for illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in Liberia and Sierra Leone in cooperation with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. / Courtesy of KT
BOK warns chip boom to dissipate



By Baek Byung-yeul



Korea's exports grew 10.1 percent in the first quarter year-on-year buoyed by strong sales of semiconductors.

But, industry watchers say it is the time for Korea to diversify its portfolio because the country is too dependent on semiconductors.



The global semiconductor market grew 22 percent to $412.2 billion last year. The price and sales of memory semiconductors increased 37.3 percent and 64.3 percent from a year ago respectively.



With the increased market size, exports of Korean semiconductors reached a record high last year. Outbound shipments of chips totaled $99.71 billion last year, up 60.2 percent from $62.23 billion of 2016.



Exports of semiconductors totaled $10.8 billion in March, the first time a single item has hit the $10 billion mark. Although this figure fell to $9.8 billion last month, it was still the second-highest ever.



However expert says the boom is likely to end in the second half of next year.



The Bank of Korea released a report last month saying the semiconductor boom would probably continue in the first half of next year.



This is because global IT firms such as Amazon and Google have increased their investments in building data centers, which consequently accelerated demand for DRAM.



However, the report also said the boom would probably end in the second half of next year as facility expansion slowed.



Research agency Gartner also forecast that the semiconductor industry boom would be short-lived, most likely falling away in late 2019.



In the global semiconductor market, the memory and non-memory semiconductor segments account for roughly 30 percent and 70 percent respectively while DRAM represents about 60 percent of the memory semiconductor sector.



Korean semiconductors have dominated memory chips with Samsung Electronics' revenue increasing nearly $20 billion last year to put the company into top spot in the business.



While Chinese companies have focused on non-volatile chips, they are moving toward the memory semiconductor market -- another reason Korea should diversify its portfolios.



China's aggressive investment in resources is extremely threatening. The Chinese government says its long-term goal is to become self-sufficient in integrated circuit devices.



In a plan announced in May, 2015, China aims to raise its self-sufficiency rate for integrated circuit products to 40 percent by 2020 and 70 percent by 2025.



The government has approved about $20 billion in funding support with possibly another $100 billion from local government and investors.


A JTI Korea employee hands out a portable ashtray at Korea University in Seoul, Friday. The tobacco company has been holding a campaign to help smokers equip themselves with proper etiquette, considering non-smokers. / Courtesy of JTI Korea



By Yoon Ja-young



Smokers are being called to exercise proper manners these days, to co-exist peacefully with non-smokers. JTI Korea, the Korean unit of the global cigarette company Japan Tobacco International (JTI), held a campaign Friday to promote proper smoking etiquette.



"The JTI Smoking Manners Campaign" was held at Korea University in Seoul, as the campus was filled with young people participating in the 41st IPSELENTI, one of the largest college festivals in the country.



During the festival, JTI Korea distributed 4,000 portable ashtrays for free, under the slogan "JTI Korea encourages smokers who are considerate of others."



The company has been holding the smoking etiquette campaign since 2001 to set up a culture where smokers have regard for others. It is especially focused on college students who smoke, holding campaigns at a number of college campuses around the country. It distributed 1,000 portable ashtrays at Konkuk University and supported Seoul Women's University students' project to improve the campus environment. It is scheduled to provide around 10,000 ashtrays at 70 college campuses.



The campaign at Korea University this time was especially meaningful since the portable ashtray distributed there was designed by college students who won at the design competition last year.



JTI has been holding a "JTI Smoking Manners Campaign" around the country, to help establish a society where smokers and non-smokers peacefully co-exist through mutual respect. It has distributed over 1 million portable ashtrays in Korea since 2001, cooperating with diverse organizations.



As a global cigarette company, JTI is known for brands such as Mevius, previously known as Mild Seven, Winston, Camel and LD. It also sells the electronic cigarette Logic. It advanced into the heated tobacco market by launching Ploom in 2011. Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, JTI has around 40,000 employees in some 130 countries around the world.



Since its advancement into the Korean market in 1992, JTI Korea has been continuing to grow. It has around 500 employees in 15 operations in the country, including headquarters in Seoul.



The company's social contribution activities have been focused on support for senior citizens and the culture and art scenes.


SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won speaks during the opening ceremony of Shanghai Forum 2018 at Shanghai International Conference Center, China, Saturday. / Courtesy of SK Group



By Nam Hyun-woo



SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won is continuing his pitch for social value in China as part of a group-wide localization strategy, there, where the group affiliates operate massive manufacturing facilities.



According to SK Group, Sunday, Chey underscored social value in corporate management during his speech at the opening ceremony of the Shanghai Forum 2018 held a day earlier at Shanghai International Conference Center.



China is the most important market for the Korean conglomerate, pushing it hard to implement a localization strategy. This strategy is a unique market approach a company takes to address purchasing habits, customer behaviors and overall cultural differences in each country it works in.



SK is one of the largest foreign investors in China with the group investing billions of dollars with tax and administrative benefits from Beijing to operate semiconductor and battery factories both independently and through joint ventures.



Amid growing pressure from China, SK hopes strengthening its China-initiated localization strategy will ensure customers there benefit from the same quality experience they would expect from a business in Korea.



"The world is looking at the widening income gap and more global citizens are suffering from a lack of basic education, health services and even food," Chey said, adding that companies should create greater social value.



"'Company' is derived from the Latin word 'cum,' meaning 'together,' and 'panis,' meaning 'bread.' This means sharing bread together," he said. "As President Xi Jinping stressed at this year's Boao Forum, companies, universities and governments should play a role of sharing wealth, resources and experiences with the society."



According to Chey, SK is pursuing a "Double Bottom Line" management strategy, which is the group's system of measuring the economic and social value of a project at the same time, so SK companies and employees can create greater social value.



Chey also introduced the group's infrastructure-sharing efforts, in which the group shares its tangible and intangible assets with society, and social value incentive projects, in which the group provides financial aid to smaller enterprises which contribute in creating jobs and other social values.



"In a belief that SK's tangible and intangible assets are not SK's alone, we are pursuing multiple infrastructure-sharing projects so those assets can benefit not only our partner companies, but also consumers and the society."



According to the group, SK has opened the vacant space of 3,600 SK gas stations across Korea so small- and medium-sized enterprises and startups can use the space to develop their own business models.



Also in the incentive project, the group awarded more than 100 companies since 2013, helping them to build ecosystems in which they can stand by themselves.



Chey stressed that social value is garnering more attention at this year's Shanghai Forum, saying "companies' talks over social value is becoming one of the most important themes of the forum and those talks are gaining momentum in industries and academic circles."



Chey has been championing the idea of social value leading corporate sustainability and growth in a number of forums in and outside of countries.



Earlier this month, the SK boss highlighted the corporate social value at the Beijing Forum, and made another speech at Boao Forum a month earlier, in which he spoke of the need for companies to create more social value as a core part of their growth strategy in the rapidly changing market environment.



The latest Shanghai Forum met its 13th year and offered various sessions under the theme of "Asia's responsibilities in a world of change." Fudan University Council Chairperson Jiao Yang, Shanghai WTO Affairs Consultation Center President Wang Xinkui, former Finance Minister of Brazil Luiz Carlos Bresser-Pereira, former Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs Director Graham Tillett Allison, Jr. and a slew of other influential figures attended the forum which will close today.




THE REV. DAVE HOGSETT is a retired United Methodist pastor. He can be emailed at davidh15503@embarqmail.com.
You have permission to edit this article.

Edit Close
Rome, May 27 - Premier delegate Giuseppe Conte is meeting President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinal Palace at 19:00 on Sunday. The meeting may lead to the formation of a coalition government backed by the 5-Star Movement and the League and headed by law professor Conte to end the long deadlock that ensued after Italy's March 4 general election. The formation of the new executive has apparently been held up by League leader Matteo Salvini's insistence that economist Paolo Savona, who has expressed Euroskeptic positions in the past, should be the new economy minster. Mattarella is reportedly not happy about this pick. "I want a different Europe, one that is stronger but fairer," Savona said in a statement on Sunday. "Wild controversy has been made out of my ideas. I believe in European political union".
Rome, May 27 - Premier designate Giuseppe Conte has handed back a mandate to form a new government to President Sergio Mattarella, the president office said on Sunday. Law professor Conte's drive to form a government backed by the 5-Star Movement and the League appears to have run aground due to Mattarella's reported 'veto' of the nomination of Paolo Savona as economy minister. The appointment of economist Savona, a former industry minister who has expressed Euroskeptic positions in the past, seems to be a deal breaker for League leader Matteo Salvini. Senior members of the M5S are angry about developments, sources said. The sources said that it is the "biggest fake new in history" that Savona has called for Italy to quit the euro. "I want a different Europe, one that is stronger but fairer," Savona said in a statement on Sunday. "Wild controversy has been made out of my ideas. I believe in European political union".
(see related) Rome, May 27 - 5-Star Movement (M5S) leader Luigi Di Maio said Sunday that President Sergio Mattarella's decision to reject the nomination of Paolo Savona as economy minister was "incomprehensible". "In that case it is no use voting, the same people always decide (on who governs)," Di Maio said on Facebook. "There is a big problem in Italy that is called democracy. "In this country you can be a condemned criminal, a tax-fraud convict, you can be (Foreign Minister Angelino) Alfano, you can have done crimes against the civil service, you can be under investigation for corruption and you can be a minister. "But if you have criticised Europe, you cannot be economy minister in Italy. But it doesn't end here".
The first food poisoning cases came to light in late March  eight patrons of fast-food restaurants in New Jersey suffered bloody diarrhea and cramps that sent them rushing to hospitals.

More than two months later, one person is dead in California, 75 others have been hospitalized, and federal authorities still dont know where a nasty strain of E. coli bacteria latched onto romaine lettuce from Yuma, Ariz.

Their struggle to trace dozens of supply lines across 32 states, on a paper trail that often may actually be on paper, demonstrates the limits of tracing food by methods rooted in another century.

Food safety advocates and industry insiders say it may be time to borrow the encrypted accounting platform that drives cryptocurrency: blockchain.

Advertisement

I often describe that as food traceability at the speed of thought  as quickly as you can think it, we can know it, said Frank Yiannas, vice president of food safety for Walmart, which is scaling up an IBM-driven pilot blockchain that already includes top suppliers such as Unilever, Nestle and Danone.

Walmart, the largest retailer of groceries in the world, is adopting blockchain to help trace food from shelves back to farms. The lightning-fast method may offer a better way to combat food-borne illnesses. (John J. Kim / TNS )

Not long ago, Yiannas, who guards the integrity of food in Walmarts $280-billion grocery empire, would have brushed off the notion of an instantly knowable and verifiable food chain as fantasy. He heard about it two years ago, when Walmart was about to open a food safety institute in China, where 10 years ago a baby formula adulteration scandal sickened 54,000 babies.

Up until that point I only knew that it was the technology behind bitcoin, Yiannas said. I will tell you I was a bit of a skeptic, just like many people are about the technology.

Blockchain, for all its cloak-and-dagger associations, is basically a democratized accounting system made possible by advances in data encryption. Rather than storing proprietary data behind traditional security walls, companies contribute encrypted blocks of data to a distributed ledger that can be monitored and verified by each farmer, packer, shipper, distributor, wholesaler and retailer of produce. No one can make a change without everyone knowing, and agreeing to it.

If I want to change something or fudge something on my version of the ledger, I then have to share it with everybody else and they all have to agree to that, Yiannas said. You cant have two separate sets of books. Its one set of books that everyone sees.

As it stands, no one can see the entire path from farm to fork.

Each time a food-borne illness breaks out  which tends to happen around 900 times a year  investigators have to work their way backward, one link at a time, from victims to fields, tracing multiple paths across separate companies and sometimes across international borders.

Its very linear, but the food system as we know is not very linear, Yiannas said.

That linear approach can cost lives and waste billions of dollars in healthcare costs, lost work hours, and trashed food every year, health officials and analysts say. Food-borne illnesses can cost the economy $152 billion a year, with tainted produce responsible for a quarter of that damage, according to a Pew Charitable Trust study.

Take mangoes. The increasingly popular fruit grows on small farms scattered across Latin America, and can harbor listeria, a bacterium that kills 260 people per year in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Two years ago, Yiannas told his staff to trace a packet of sliced mango from a Walmart aisle the traditional way.

I looked at my clock and wrote down the time and date, and I timed them, he said. It took them six days, 18 hours and 26 minutes.

Under a week is considered fast by the current link-by-link method known as one up, one back tracking, said Yiannas, who previously headed Walt Disney Worlds health and safety program. Walmart has a sophisticated tracking system for its part of the supply line.

Beyond the walls of Walmarts distribution centers, though, record-keeping can get hazy.

Believe it or not, its still largely done on paper, Yiannas said. Its done many different ways by many different actors.

It took a month to build the blockchain network, which depends on cooperative partners agreeing on what information to contribute. By then, Yiannas felt confident enough to pull off the test live, at a stockholder meeting last summer.

It wasnt staged, he said. We had a backup in case the technology failed.

It worked  they mapped the mango supply line in 2.2 seconds.

The next day, Walmart started contacting suppliers. I think were onto something here, Yiannas told them.

Strawberries are among the items Walmart now can track through blockchain, which has enabled the retailer to trace food from shelves back to farms in mere seconds. (Frederic J. Brown / AFP/Getty Images )

Driscolls berries was among the first companies to join Walmarts blockchain pilot, along with Nestle, Danone, Unilever and others.

Based in Watsonville, Calif., Driscolls grows berries in nearly two dozen countries, making it by far the biggest berry supplier worldwide.

Almost immediately, Driscolls saw a lot more than food safety in blockchain. A fully built-out ledger could one day get berries to shelves faster, figure out what varieties last longest, trim waste and even pay suppliers more quickly, the company believes.

We want to drill down and continuously improve and understand: If we fell flat somewhere, why? Or if we did really well somewhere else, why? And then constantly refine our operations to be better, said Tim Jackson, the companys vice president of food safety and compliance.

Driscolls also foresees a day when consumers could tap into some of that information.

In the case of the romaine outbreak, consumers complained that they had no idea how to find out if they were buying lettuce from Yuma (although, if you eat romaine in early spring, theres a 90% chance it came from the desert valleys straddling the lower Colorado River, from Yuma into Californias Imperial Valley).

To say to consumers that you shouldnt be consuming romaine lettuce if it came from the Yuma area and yet that information at the point of consumption or the point of purchase isnt readily available or obvious to the consumer, then thats a problem, said Stephen Ostroff, deputy commissioner for food and veterinary medicine at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Blockchain technology is best known as the driver of cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin, but it is emerging as a platform for tracing supply chains in many industries, including food. (Andrew Burton / Getty Images )

Blockchain, first developed in the 1990s, was considered some dark art in the world of cryptocurrency in 2010, when Congress passed the Food Safety Modernization Act, the first major overhaul of the nations deeply fragmented food safety regulation since the 1930s.

The law required the FDA to identify high-risk foods and require companies to keep better records of them. The agency has yet to write those rules  and they have been further delayed by the Trump administrations wholesale rollback of regulation.

Seven years after the enactment of FSMA, the FDA has yet to carry out Congresss mandate to create a list of high-risk foods and issue a proposed rule for enhanced recordkeeping, a coalition of food safety advocates said in a letter to the agency last week.

The groups noted that leafy greens were responsible for more cases of E. coli illness than any other produce  a general category that accounted for half or more of the outbreaks of listeria, E. coli and salmonella, and a third of the campylobacter outbreaks reported from 2009 to 2013.

Ostroff said implementing the remaining FSMA regulations would help, but it wouldnt necessarily solve the problem presented by such a broad outbreak.

At each point of that supply chain, you potentially are looking at hundreds and hundreds of records, he said. Many of those records are stored and available in different ways, ranging from very sophisticated electronic systems ... to hand-written records. And theyre in different formats.

Meanwhile, the offending lettuce is gone  consumed, or long ago tossed away after its 21-day shelf life expired, the FDA has said. No more lettuce is being grown in Yuma, either, according to the FDA, which cited industry sources.

Even as we were hearing about these cases, the product that they actually consumed either in their home or in a restaurant wasnt available for us to test, Ostroff said.

Yiannas believes blockchain could have led investigators to likely culprits long before the lettuce vanished.

Walmart is not chasing blockchain because its a new fad or its a shiny coin, Yiannas said. The romaine incident is a perfect example of a real-world scenario where if tools were available it might be managed a bit more effectively.

geoffrey.mohan@latimes.com

Follow me: @LATgeoffmohan
Coppelia Long Beach Ballet stages the classic fable about a young man who falls in love with a life-sized dancing doll. Terrace Theater, Long Beach Convention Center, 300 E. Ocean Blvd., Long Beach. Sun., 2 p.m. $38 and up. (562) 426-4622.

Gala Flamenca: Arte de Verano Cristina Hall, Wendy Castellanos, Manuel Gutierrez and Alexandra Rozo are the featured dancers in this Forever Flamenco presentation. The Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Ave., L.A. Sun., 8 p.m. $30-$50. (323) 663-1525.

Heartbeat of Mexico Family-friendly festival includes dance and ballet folklorico performances, live music, arts and crafts and more. Musco Center for the Arts, Aitken Arts Plaza, Chapman University, 415 N. Glassell St., Orange. Sun., 1 to 7:30 p.m. Free. (844) 626-8726.

Spring Showcase Westside Ballet of Santa Monica presents a mixed classical and contemporary program that includes a salute to Memorial Day and a celebration of the movie Grease. The Broad Stage, 1310 11th St., Santa Monica. Sun., 1 and 5 p.m. $35. (800) 595-4849.

Advertisement

BodyTraffic The L.A.-based company celebrates its 10th anniversary with a program that includes the world premiere of Matthew Neenans A Million Voices. Bram Goldsmith Theater, Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. Thu.-Sat., 7:30 p.m. $45-$125. (310) 746-4000.

The Wooden Floor: Unifying Catalysts Contemporary dance pieces created by young dancers from low-income communities working in collaboration with established artists. Irvine Barclay Theatre, 4242 Campus Drive, Irvine. Thu.-Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2:30 and 8 p.m. $10-$50. (949) 854-4646.

Flamenco Sketches Pianist Chano Dominguez, flamenco dancer Daniel Navarro, et al., perform this reimagining of the classic Miles Davis album Kind of Blue. The Ford Theatres, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood. Fri., 8:30 p.m. $40 and up. (323) 461-3673.

Transit Dances II Audience members will ride the Metro to watch Donna Sternberg & Dancers and a diverse group of local companies perform site-specific works near three Expo Line stations in Santa Monica. 26th St./Bergamot Station, 2602 Olympic Blvd., Santa Monica. Sat., noon and 1 p.m. Free. (310) 260-1198.

Benita Bikes DanceArt The company presents an interactive program. Culver City Senior Center, 4095 Overland Ave., Culver City. Next Sun., 1:30 p.m. Free. (818) 353-5734.

Louise Reichlin & Dancers/Los Angeles Choreographers & Dancers The company performs as part of the annual Lummis Day Festival. Sycamore Grove Park, 4702 N. Figueroa St., Highland Park. Next Sun., 4:25. Free. (323) 646-8331.
Walt Whitman heard America singing. Carpenter, boatman, mother, washerwoman. Young fellows Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs.

In Matthew Aucoins troublingly perceptive opera, Crossing, which was given its West Coast premiere this weekend at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, the young fellows are not strong, the melodious voice is melancholic and Whitmans own. The great poet has volunteered to give solace to the wounded and dying in Civil War hospitals.

Taking his inspiration from Whitmans journals, Acouin imagines the poets humanitarian mindfulness as a kind of Dante-esque descent into a hellish morass of suffering where there can only be a pittance of healing. Could the sexual attraction of helpless young men have something to do with his motivation? What happens if Whitman actually falls in love with a young soldier, and what if that young soldier in a Union hospital happens to be a Rebel in disguise, who attempts to employ an unwitting Whitman into helping transmit coded intelligence?

On the surface, Crossing is a sad and powerful almost traditional operatic love story. On a deeper level, and the level in which it functions most effectively, it is a sad and powerful anti-war statement.

Advertisement

This is the opera that made Aucoin an overnight sensation when it had its premiere in Boston three years ago. The composer  also a poet, himself, as well as the operas librettist and conductor  was 25 when he completed the score. An international press took notice.

Everyone, it seemed, was taking notice of Aucoin. He had already been the subject of a major New York Times Sunday magazine profile, Operas Great 25-Year-Old Hope. The Metropolitan Opera, where he was an impossibly young assistant conductor, wanted a new opera from Aucoin. The Brooklyn Academy of Music imported the Crossing production to its 2017 Next Wave Festival. The Los Angeles Philharmonic made Aucoin a Dudamel conducting fellow.

Most important of all, the Los Angeles Opera, which co-produced the Wallis concert performance of Crossing as part of its Off Grand series, made Aucoin its first artist in residence, and it, too, has commissioned an opera from him.

Still it is only now, nearing the end of the second season of Aucoins three-year residency with the company, and only with Crossing, are we finally finding out what all the fuss is about. Aucoins L.A. Phil tenure came and went without public notice. Thus far, Aucoins public face with the company had mainly been as an effortful conductor of Akhnaten last season and a somewhat more nuanced conductor of the companys current production of Rigoletto.

Crossing, which is a young mans work in both its impressive over-insistence and just plain over-insistence -- is the real indication, as librettist and composer, of where Aucoins talents lie. In the way only opera can, he both captures and invents Whitman.

Indeed, what are Whitmans words and Aucoins can be hard to distinguish. Whether fact and fancy, the intersection of Whitmans grandeur, grandiosity and tenderness is similarly believable.

Aucoin created Whitman for Rod Gilfry, a regular with L.A. Opera from its first season in 1986. But despite his 28 roles sung at the Music Center, the baritones important recent work has been elsewhere, such as starring in Messiaens Saint-Francois dAssise in Amsterdam or in Brett Deans Hamlet at Glyndebourne last summer.

Dressed in a suit with pink tie, pocket handkerchief and sporting long hair, Gilfry seemed a kind of oily Elmer Gantry, further oiled by Aucoins busily ingratiating chamber orchestra accompaniment. There is always something, and usually a lot, burbling under the surface in the orchestra, with influences of the clamorous sides of John Adams and Philip Glass. Meanwhile, Whitmans vocal lines can convey an effusive lyricism as well as turn poignantly intimate.

That unsettling tension between orchestra and voice creates an affecting uncertainty, and Gilfry seemed alert to every dramatic Whitmanesque option. He honored Aucoins and Whitmans words, making the projected titles all but unnecessary and giving subtle credence to both the inner resonance of a lyric and its immediacy. Every vivid gesture vocally, facially and theatrical meant something.

As the wounded soldier, John Wormley, with whom Whitman has an affair in the opera (he is mentioned only in passing in Whitmans diaries), tenor Brenton Ryan, who has had a series of small roles with L.A. Opera, offered a grippingly strong characterization of an angry, lost young man. After Wormley allows himself to be seduced by the old poet, repugnance turns to fury and finally, wrenchingly, to love.

There is also a small part for an escaped slave, Freddie Stowers, sung with spellbinding intensity by Davone Tines. The only female voice is that of a messenger who brings the news of peace. Liv Redpath soared above the male principals and a male chamber chorus like an alien creature from planet Puccini.

Perhaps the greatest achievement of Crossing is how Aucoin captures the shell-shocked mood of victory. The soldiers are simply too weak and emotionally devastated to absorb the meaning of this peace. The consequences of war are sorrow and self-searching.

At the end, though, Aucoin succumbs to romanticizing, not quite trusting what he has already created. A duet between the dying Wormley and Whitman leads to an apotheosis. Nothing is final, the men of the chorus pour forth. No men shall see the end, they sing, stamping out each word with utter finality. This leaves Whitman to morosely mourn, I stop somewhere waiting for you.

This is the one moment of empty bathos. The staying power of Crossing is not our hearing Whitman singing  weve heard that before  but hearing Whitman hearing America singing. It is through him that we may learn to listen at a time when listening to America singing is becoming a lost art.

mark.swed@latimes.com
Early on in Burning, the gripping new psychological thriller from South Korean filmmaker Lee Chang-dong, a shy, troubled young man named Jongsu (Yoo Ah-in) returns to a small farmhouse in the town of Paju, where hes lived since childhood. President Trump can be seen and heard blaring from a TV in the background, a throwaway detail that becomes more disquieting when its revealed that Jongsu lives close to the border with North Korea.

Adapted and transplanted from a 1992 short story by Haruki Murakami, Burning, a runaway critical favorite at the recent Cannes Film Festival, is less about any geopolitical turmoil than it is about class privilege, youthful ennui and frustrated longing.

But for Lee, the 63-year-old writer-director of such acclaimed character studies as Secret Sunshine (2007) and Poetry (2010), there is something undeniably resonant about the fact that his first film in eight years has arrived at a tense, potentially historic moment on the Korean peninsula.

This is a film about anger. I think everyone is angry these days. I think it was also some peoples anger that made Trump president, Lee says. What I pay attention to is the anger of young people. Youngsters dont understand why they dont have a future or hope. They dont have a specific target for this anger.

The movie keeps that rage pulsing, steadily but ambiguously, in scene after scene; its the very definition of a slow burn. Lee was a renowned author before he became a filmmaker, and his movies are often praised for their novelistic density  their deliberate pacing, subtle emotional modulation and richly textured sense of place. While these stories come to poignant, sometimes tragic ends, they never feel rigid or deterministic, thanks to Lees ability to capture moments that feel carefully sculpted yet powerfully unresolved.

Burning is no exception. For 2 1/2 hours, this leisurely but ruthlessly unpredictable movie follows Jongsu as he falls hard for an old childhood friend, Haemi (Jeon Jong-seo), only to watch as she begins seeing Ben (The Walking Deads Steven Yeun), a rich, young man from Seoul. Rather than erupting immediately, the tensions remain on a low simmer, gradually propelling this romantic triangle into mystery-thriller territory.

The result is an empathetic but unsparing study in human fragility and torment, much like Lees Peppermint Candy (1999) and Secret Sunshine (2007), which won an acting prize at Cannes for its star, Jeon Do-yeon, and catapulted the director to international prominence. Lee returned to Cannes three years later with the equally admired Poetry (2010), which won a screenplay award. (Yun Jung-hee, the star of Poetry, was later named the years best actress by the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn.)

Yoo Ah-in in a scene from Lee Chang-dong's "Burning." 2018 Pinehousefilm

Burning is Lees third and most unanimously acclaimed feature to screen at Cannes, where it received an unprecedented average score of 3.8 out of 4 stars on the annual Screen International critics grid, beating out even the previous record (3.6) held by 2016s Toni Erdmann. (Full disclosure: I was one of 10 critics who participated in the poll.)

But like Toni Erdmann, Burning didnt succeed in parlaying its critical love into recognition from the official jury. While it was named the best film in the competition by the international critics organization FIPRESCI, it left the festivals awards ceremony empty-handed.

Still, the prospect of awards seems far from Lees mind when we sit down on a pier overlooking the Mediterranean the day after his films premiere. Friendly yet hushed and grave in demeanor as he speaks through an interpreter, he seems to radiate the wisdom of a few past lives, or at least past careers: In addition to working as a high-school teacher and novelist, he served as South Koreas minister of culture and tourism from 2003-04.

His third trip to Cannes has been a bittersweet one. Just a few days before the festival was set to begin, news arrived that Pierre Rissient, a longtime champion and tireless promoter of world cinema, had died at 81 in Paris.

Rissients behind-the-scenes advocacy helped bring famed auteurs like Clint Eastwood, Jane Campion, Mike Leigh and Hou Hsiao-hsien to the attention of international tastemakers. He had played an instrumental role in bringing Lee to the attention of Cannes and the broader film world, and was hard at work on the Burning campaign the week before he died.

The emotions I feel go beyond mere sadness. Im still in shock, Lee says. Until his death, he was so passionately dedicated to promoting this film.

READ MORE: Justin Chang's day-by-day Cannes diary 

Rissient had continually pushed Lee to make a film all through his eight-year dormancy. During that time the director considered several other projects, three of which became finished screenplays before falling apart.

Strangely enough, I couldnt find a definitive reason as to why they had to be made into films, he says. I was searching for something different ... but I wasnt sure what it was exactly. I cannot say that Burning is an entirely new and original kind of film, but its a film that has come closest to the new style of storytelling that Ive been searching for.

Some elements from those aborted projects made their way into Burning, which deviates significantly from Barn Burning, the Murakami short story on which its based. Securing the rights to the material delayed the production by a year, during which time Lee and his co-writer, Oh Jung-mi, elaborated and deepened the script. The movies second half is almost entirely of their own devising.

It was also during this waiting period that Lee, who had been planning to cast a local Korean actor as Ben, decided to look further afield. He ended up choosing the Seoul-born, Michigan-raised Yeun, who remains best known for playing Glenn Rhee, a popular character on The Walking Dead.

Steven Yeun stars in the new movie "Burning." Stephanie Cornfield / For The Times

Burning marks Yeuns second collaboration with a major Korean auteur after Bong Joon-hos Okja (2017), in which he played a bilingual environmental activist. He admits he didnt feel confident initially about working with Lee, whom he reveres.

I dont want to ruin his filmography, he recalls thinking. I dont want to do something I had no business doing.

But Lee persuaded him that he was a good fit for Ben, the enviably privileged and sophisticated man who keeps Jongsu unnervingly close even as he pushes him aside. In the end, Yeun found he couldnt refuse.

The first reason I cast Steven was because he was a successful man, a man with a success ordinary people cannot even dream of, Lee says. He has power and money, and he is someone young Korean people today admire. While being all that, he also has a kind heart, as you can tell from his character on The Walking Dead.  Ben had to keep a delicate balance, to be an uneasy and mysterious character until the end.

That emotional inscrutability is typical of Lees characters, who are in no hurry to reveal every facet of themselves. Although Ben is outwardly generous and hospitable toward both Jongsu and Haemi, his every word, breath and gesture cant help but convey an ingrained sense of superiority.

READ MORE: L.A. Times critics on the highs and lows of Cannes 2018 

For Yeun, Lees instinct for casting, borne out by the quality of the performances he elicits from his actors, stems from an understanding of humans at a level that most people probably dont see.

It would be hard to imagine a more unusual (or more persuasive) choice for the role of a humble country boy like Jongsu than the 31-year-old Yoo Ah-in, a well-known and somewhat controversially outspoken actor, gallerist and fashion icon. By contrast, Burning is the first screen credit for Jeon Jong-seo, 23, who uses her newcomer status to underscore Haemis little-girl-lost quality.

As for Yeun, he prepared for the role of Ben by reading Nietzsche and working hard to nail the nuances of his all-Korean dialogue. But what really makes the performance work is an element of emotional reserve, an outsider quality that Yeun frames in terms of his immigrant background.

I think theres something inherent about being in Korea when you dont feel completely integrated into it, he says. It cultivates its own sense of loneliness.

Lee Chang-dong's "Burning" official trailer.

Loneliness and unbelonging are constants in Murakamis fiction, and they are crucial to the effect of Burning. Foregrounding class tensions far more than he has in his previous films, Lee continually draws visual contrasts between Jongsus rusty old truck and Bens shiny Porsche, between the wide-open prairies of Paju and the modern cafes and apartments of Seoul. The separation of North and South looms large as a metaphor for countless smaller but equally irreconcilable divisions across an entire spectrum of Korean society.

The result is not a movie that Lee expected hed make at the outset of his career, even though it is, to a remarkable degree, a movie that no one else could have made. An optimistic phrase that he continually uses, while describing the shaping of the material through its many setbacks and delays, is the destiny of this film.

Yeun hails the director for allowing his actors to pursue a type of freedom you dont really get in filmmaking.

He would always say that this movie is making itself, Yeun says. We just need to go with it.

FOR THE RECORD (May 30, 2018): This post describes the movie Burnings source material, Barn Burning, as a 1992 short story by Haruki Murakami. The correct year is 1983. 1992 was the year Barn Burning was published in the New Yorker.

justin.chang@latimes.com

ALSO

Cannes delivers a triumph with Lee Chang-dongs slow-Burning masterwork

Spike Lee hopes 'BlacKkKlansman' is a wake-up call for the Trump era

The first Cannes Film Festival after Harvey Weinstein's downfall struggled with its place in the #MeToo era
Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs says that for way too long, his city has been known for headlines about bankruptcy, violent crime and the housing collapse.

In the future, he wants it to be known as a place willing to test bold solutions.

Bold, and a little controversial.

Tubbs, a Stockton native and Stanford graduate who is all of 27 years old, wants to give at least $500 a month to a select group of residents. Theyll be able to spend it as they wish, for 18 months, in a pilot program to test the impact of whats called guaranteed basic income.

Advertisement

If the very sound of that knocked you half off your chair, this next initiative might finish the job.

Stockton is about to award stipends of up to $1,000 a month to residents deemed most likely to shoot somebody. This program is called Advance Peace, and its modeled after a crime reduction program in the Bay Area city of Richmond.

The idea is that a small number of people are responsible for a large percentage of violence, and offering them an alternative path  with counseling and case management over an 18-month period, along with a stipend if they stay the course  can be a good investment all around.

Let me be clear, Advance Peace is not a get out of jail free card, Tubbs wrote in explaining the program on Stocktons public safety website. Participating in this program doesnt erase the past, but it does help these young men learn how to make better choices for their own and our communitys collective future.

Theres a difference between a vision and a hallucination, and time will tell with Tubbs. But I like the young mans mix of rebelliousness, impatience and willingness to take risks.

A home for sale in Stockton, Calif. Workers in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco-Oakland area, driven out of the cuckoo housing markets in those communities, have snapped up cheaper properties in Stockton, accepting the bargain of killer commutes. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times )

We met last year when I wrote about how Stockton had gone from housing collapse to housing boom. Workers in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco-Oakland area, driven out of the cuckoo housing markets in those communities, have snapped up cheaper properties in Stockton, accepting the bargain of killer commutes.

But Stockton still suffers the crushing burdens of poverty, crime and now the rising rents and home prices that come with gentrification. For those who dont have the education or training to work 60 miles away on techs front lines, Stockton still struggles to develop jobs that pay a living wage, and I paid the mayor another visit last week to talk about his plans for residents whose most pressing problems have not lifted.

We get 50 constituents a week, if not more, calling and emailing us to explain why they would benefit from a $500 monthly stipend, Tubbs said. Its heartbreaking that theyre asking, but its also exciting that we can do something for these people.

Exciting is not the way everyone describes the program.

Youve got to be kidding, Sarah Palin, former Alaska governor and vice presidential running mate, tweeted last month.

But Tubbs responded with a Twitter touche.

Actually modeled after the Alaska Permanent Fund, he wrote. Are you familiar with it?

The Alaska fund shares the wealth on state oil revenues, awarding residents roughly $2,000 a year.

The first thing you need to know about Stocktons stipend plans is that taxpayers arent footing the bill. Nor will they pay for Tubbs Stockton Scholars program, which will tap a $20-million grant from the California Community Foundation in an effort to triple the number of Stockton students who go to college.

I firmly believe that talent and intelligence are universal, but resources and opportunities are not. Stockton Scholars is born out of that belief, Tubbs said when he introduced the program this year.

Tubbs said that when he became mayor last year, he had a habit of sending late-night emails to a crack team of volunteer research assistants. One night he asked them to look into novel ways to attack poverty.

They came back with guaranteed income, said Tubbs, and it jogged a memory for him. In college, he read Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.s book Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community, in which King promoted a guaranteed annual income.

So the idea of stipends isnt exactly new  Canada and Finland have tried it; Oakland has a pilot program  nor is it exclusively a liberal pipe dream. In some form, the pitch has supporters and detractors on both the right and the left, although on the right, its often framed as a substitute for existing safety net programs.

Facebooks Mark Zuckerberg and Space Xs Elon Musk have both pitched the idea in terms of inevitability, given the growing income gap and the threat of massive job losses because of automation.

Tubbs attended a San Francisco conference on those very topics last year and met Natalie Foster of the Economic Security Project, whose ambitious goal is to find ways to lift people out of poverty and to rebuild the middle class. Foster co-chairs the project with Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes.

One thing we wanted to do was spur our first mayor-led demonstration project in the U.S., said Foster, who began working on the details with Tubbs and expects Stocktons program to begin early next year.

As small as the program will be, its not going to dramatically affect many Stockton residents, but the goal is to get a sense of whether such an infusion on a broader scale can significantly alter lives and boost the economy. Still to be worked out are details on who will be eligible and how recipients will be selected. Mayor Tubbs said he wants middle-class residents to be eligible, because lots of people making $50,000 to $60,000 a year struggle to get through each month.

To those who say theres dignity in work, and that free money might remove the incentive, Tubbs notes that he grew up poor despite the efforts of an overworked mother. A large percentage of Stocktons poorest people have jobs, he said, but no economic security.

Working 12 to 14 hours a day and not being able to pay the bills creates more stress than dignity, he said.

Tubbs said what hes heard from residents is that if their number comes up, they wont use the extra $500 a month to buy a new car or television. Theyll pay bills. One mother said it would help with inflated food and utility costs when her kids come home from college for the summer.

Or it pays for child care so you can work more, said Tubbs. Or you could work less and spend more time with the kids, or take care of your sick parents, or pay for your rising rent.

Jason Furman, a Harvard professor and former economic advisor to President Obama, is no fan of this idea. He said hed prefer wage supplements or tax credits over the awarding of money with no strings attached.

If the goal is to eventually make guaranteed income a publicly funded program, Furman said, the necessary tax increase would be huge and unlikely to materialize. And if it did, programs that pay for specific needs might get shredded. Furman also believes the better approach would be to develop a new economy of better-paying jobs and find ways to encourage work, rather than surrender to the threat of automation.

Natalie Foster had an answer for that.

You shouldnt live in poverty in the richest country on earth at the richest moment in time, she said. Its not a question of where the money comes from. Its a question of political will, and there are a number of ways to finance it, from fees on the people making millions shuffling paper on Wall Street to a carbon tax.

Well, lets see how it goes in Stockton first. Im not quite ready to pay a tax to fund this kind of a giveaway, but as long as this is a small demonstration project financed by private and nonprofit sources interested in greater distribution of the wealth, why not?

Even under those terms, its easy to find those in Stockton who cant believe what sounds to them like liberal claptrap, and theyve got plenty of reasonable questions.

What if people use the money for drugs? Why wont they be required to work or perform a public service? And dont we already have welfare?

I think its not smart, said insurance agent Evelyn Vega, who wouldnt mind it so much if the free money went to people with legitimate need, rather than being awarded randomly and without requirements. After Bill Clinton passed the welfare-to-work act, my mom had to go back to school and it eventually motivated her.

Obviously, its a dumb idea, said deli operator Robin Luna-Gonzalez, who was referring to the Advance Peace initiative. She said she has an autistic son whose care center is closing in a budgetary crunch.

Why are we paying criminals? she asked.

Her husband, James Gonzalez, said he thinks automation will create some jobs as it eliminates others. He might be open to the concept of supplemental pay if its aimed at education or job training, but not if its do-whatever-you-want cash, green and easy.

We already give away billions of dollars to people who sit at home on welfare and make no effort to work, he said.

Herk Washington, Mayor Tubbs barber, told me he and his wife do well and dont need an extra $500 a month. But he showed me the bus schedule that has his $2 off haircut coupon for transit riders, and told me when he rides the bus, he talks to a lot of people barely getting by. And supplemental income has been a hot topic in his clip shop.

There was a man sitting in that chair right there, a hard-working man, and he said he could use the help, said Washington, who hadnt known about the mans financial struggles until that day.

Washington said hes all for the stipend, and for the Advance Peace program. Itll cost a few dollars, he said, but it might save lives and money.

Nothing is guaranteed, said Washington. But to do nothing is worse than to do something.

Stockton still suffers crushing burdens, and rather than rely entirely on old remedies with mixed records, Mayor Michael Tubbs wants to shake it up. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times )

Get more of Steve Lopezs work and follow him on Twitter @LATstevelopez
Just ahead of the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy in Los Angeles, conspiracy theories still abound.

The latest to add his voice to the chorus of those who believe there was a second gunman is the victims son  Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Sirhan B. Sirhan, a 24-year-old Palestinian immigrant, was arrested and later convicted of the shooting at the Ambassador Hotel shortly after midnight on June 5, 1968. Kennedy, a presidential candidate at the time, was mortally wounded after celebrating his victory in Californias Democratic primary.

Although Sirhan was captured at the scene with a .22-caliber handgun in his hand and later admitted that he shot Kennedy, new evidence has emerged over the years that suggests there may have been as many as 13 shots fired that night. Sirhans gun held only eight bullets. There has also been disagreement among experts over the years about whether some of the recovered bullets were fired from the same gun.

Advertisement

In a recent interview with the Washington Post, Kennedys son said that he has conducted his own detailed research into the assassination and now believes there was a second gunman. He is calling for a new investigation. He also revealed for the first time that he visited Sirhan last December at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility near San Diego.

I got to a place where I had to see Sirhan, Kennedy told the Post. I went there because I was curious and disturbed by what I had seen in the evidence.

Kennedy, who was 14 when his father died, did not disclose what he and Sirhan talked about. But after their three-hour conservation, he concluded that there was a second gunman at the hotel the night of the shooting.

I was disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father, Kennedy told the the paper. My father was the chief law enforcement officer in this country. I think it would have disturbed him if somebody was put in jail for a crime they didnt commit.

After delivering a victory speech at the Ambassador, Kennedy and his entourage were on their way to a news conference elsewhere at the hotel, taking a shortcut via the kitchen pantry when the candidate stopped to shake hands with some of the staff.

Suddenly, gunfire erupted, with bullets hitting Kennedy in the back, through his armpit and another into his brain.

Five other people were injured, including Paul Schrade, a regional director of the United Auto Workers union and a key Kennedy supporter. He survived the shooting and also told the Post that he believed that a second gunman actually killed Kennedy.

An autopsy report found Sirhan had been standing in front of Kennedy when he was shot and so conspiracy theorists have argued over the years that this would have made it impossible for a shot to have hit Kennedy in the back. But others have argued that Kennedy turned around after the first shot to try to protect himself.

Sirhan, now 74, was initially convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for the crime. But his sentence was later commuted to life. His requests for parole have repeatedly been denied.

Schrade, now living in Laurel Canyon, told the Post that he was the one who convinced Robert Kennedy Jr. to re-examine the evidence regarding a second gunman.

Once Schrade showed me the autopsy report, Kennedy told the paper, then I didnt feel like it was something I could just dismiss. Which is what I wanted to do.

Russell Iungerich, an attorney from Rancho Palos Verdes, worked as a deputy attorney general for the state of California when officials reopened the Kennedy case from 1975 to 1976. He said Robert Kennedy Jr.s words did not have any merit.

His comments are just way off base, Iungerich said. When you add up all the evidence produced at the hearings, theres no way you can configure the evidence to say that there was a second gunman. RFK Jr. may believe this because he talked to Sirhan, he added, noting that Sirhan had worked as a groom at Hollywood Park and he was kicked in the head by a horse which created some brain damage and he had some delusional thinking about RFK.

anh.do@latimes.com

UPDATES:

6:05 p.m.: This article was updated with comments from an attorney about the case.

This article was originally published at 11:40 a.m.
On Monday, Angelenos will honor Americas fallen service members with a host of Memorial Day events, including, cemetery ceremonies, parades and flyovers.

The tradition of dedicating a specific day to remember those who died in military service started after the Civil War. During its first observance in 1868, it was known as Decoration Day, because Americans adorned the graves of the dead with flowers.

The tradition evolved to include other types of remembrances and veterans from all wars. In 1967, the federal government established Memorial Day as an official holiday.

Here are a few events scheduled in and around L.A. on Monday:

Advertisement

Westside

At 10 a.m. Monday, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti will join Randy C. Reeves, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs undersecretary for memorial affairs, at a ceremony at the Los Angeles National Cemetery in Westwood.

Hollywood

Retired U.S. Army Capt. Dr. Jon Williams, a Purple Heart recipient who underwent 23 surgeries during his second tour in the Vietnam War, will speak at an event at Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills starting at 10 a.m.

South L.A.

A ceremony at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, originally built in 1923 to honor the 23,000 Angelenos who served in World War I, is scheduled for noon and will include patriotic music, an honor guard presentation and the lighting of the stadium torch.

San Fernando Valley

The annual Canoga Park Memorial Day Parade kicks off an hour after the 10:00 a.m. opening ceremony at Sherman Way and Owensmouth Avenue.

Inglewood

People will gather at 11 a.m. in front of the Memorial Obelisk Monument at Inglewood City Hall for speeches, a colors presentation and a flag ceremony.

South Bay

A ceremony featuring a flyover of 17 military transport aircraft, a skydiving performance, a 21-gun salute, the release of 100 doves and a parade of colors will begin at 10 a.m. at Green Hills Memorial Park in Rancho Palos Verdes. Retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. John Wissler is scheduled to speak.

Pico Rivera

Veterans are asked to bring their military photos to display at a traditional ceremony at 10 a.m. at the citys Veterans Memorial and Eternal Flame.

Long Beach

Starting at 5:45 a.m., people will gather at Rosie the Riveter Park to read the names of the roughly 7,000 members of the armed services who have died since Sept. 11, 2001. The names are inscribed on the parks Honoring Our Fallen Memorial Wall.

San Gabriel Valley

A Vietnam War Navy veteran will speak at a ceremony beginning at 9 a.m. in El Montes Arceo Park. Tributes are also scheduled for prisoners of war and those missing in action.

Joy.Resmovits@LATimes.com

@Joy_Resmovits
The ancient mosaic depicts Hercules and other figures from Roman mythology and is believed to date from the 3rd or 4th century. It is 18 feet wide and 8 feet tall, and weighs one ton.

The Byzantine artwork was seized by FBI agents in 2016 at the Palmdale home of Mohamad Yassin Alcharihi, who is accused in a complaint filed in federal court in Los Angeles this week of smuggling the antiquity into the U.S. and concealing it at his residence.

Authorities say the relic was looted from war-torn Syria.

The mosaic is an authentic mosaic from the Byzantine Period depicting Roman mythology, and was consistent with the iconography of mosaics found in Syria, in particular in and around the city of Idlib, Syria, according to an expert retained by the government to examine the piece.

Advertisement

The city of Idlib in Syria has been the backdrop for fierce fighting between President Bashar al-Assads government forces and opposition fighters and ISIS at times since 2011. The war has left many historic buildings and their valuables in ruins.

As a result, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Treasury Department two years ago announced import restrictions for archeological and ethnological materials removed from Syria on or after March 15, 2011.

The appearance in the United States of stolen or illegally exported artifacts from other countries where there has been pillage has, on occasion, strained our foreign and cultural relations, the government reasoned. It became apparent that it was in the national interest of the United States to join with other countries to suppress illegal trafficking of such objects in international commerce.

Authorities contend Alcharihi was trying to cash in on the spoils of the war in Syria by using a well-known black-market trade route through Turkey. Originally from Syria, Alcharihi is a naturalized citizen who is accused of failing to declare the mosaic among other items he imported from Turkey in 2015 to avoid duty costs and of hiding the artworks origin in his native country.

But Alcharihi maintains that hes no black-market arts dealer. In a 2016 court petition to have the mosaic returned, he described himself as a chemical engineer by education who works as a technical engineer for a printing supply company while restoring cars and reselling them for cash on the side.

This is my first time [with art], and it ended up with a seizure, he said in a brief phone interview with the Los Angeles Times. I put all my money in it.

In January 2016, Alcharihi hired experts who could restore the mosaic for $40,000 so he could resell it.

(TVavere / )

The 1,000-year-old mortar used to originally afix the tiles was mostly gone by the time Alcharihi acquired the mosaic, the restoration workers noted, and it appeared to have been replaced sometime in the 1960s or 70s with a neoprene synthetic rubber glue.

Alcharihis restoration, in turn, used cement-based mortar with steel T-bolts underneath that connected to the mosaics new, fiberglass substrate, documents show. Some tessera were damaged and others were missing when it was rolled up and transported overseas, but those too were restored. The mosaic was cut into five sections and reconnected at the end.

After the restoration, the mosaic could be sold for between $200,000 and $500,000, based on the relative ignorance of the U.S. purchaser whether it be an individual collector, an antiquities museum, a dealer, or an art shop, Alcharihi wrote in his petition. An experienced and sophisticated buyer overseas who understands the meaning of the now freshly restored mosaic and its value has verbally offered me more.

The mosaics potential value is based in part, Alcharihi allegedly told potential buyers, on the significance of the figures it includes.

In one email, Alcharihi claimed the mosaic showed Hercules being freed from imprisonment after fighting his enemies, court documents show. He allegedly wrote that Aphrodite and Zeus were also pictured along with a black bird.

But according to USCs Ann Marie Yasin, an associate professor of art history and classics at USC, the mosaic shows Prometheus, who stole fire from the gods and gave the spoils to mortals, and Hercules, the half-god known for his adventures and feats of strength.

Prometheus, who stole from the gods and gave the spoils to mortals, is shown strapped to a rock so an eagle can tear at his liver for eternity as punishment, Yasin said. Hercules is his rescuer and is pictured preparing to shoot the eagle with a bow and arrow to free Prometheus.

Unfortunately, Yasin said, much of the pieces value is lost without knowing more about its origins and how and where it was displayed.

Thats one of the things that makes objects like this so tragic  once its been taken out of its location, its architectural position or surround, what we can say about it is extremely limited, Yasin said. Without that context, were really handicapped.

joseph.serna@latimes.com

For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna on Twitter.
It was near 5:30 p.m. on a recent Saturday, and Aranyani Phyakul had only a few hours before congregants started arriving for Ramadan prayers and iftar  the meal that breaks the days fast.

Phyakul is in charge of daily operations at Masjid Al-Fatiha, a small Thai mosque in Azusa that was founded 20 years ago.

She scurried into her office and began to delegate tasks.

Make sure you cut the cucumbers in a slant and put a few slices in each plate, Phyakul reminded a worshiper.

Advertisement

As Ramadan enters its second week, and Memorial Day is celebrated across Southern California, Muslims have gathered with family and close friends to observe the holy month meant to encourage self-reflection and piety.

As with many mosques across Southern California, congregants at Masjid Al-Fatiha extended the invitation to people of all faiths to join them one evening for prayer and to break the days fast.

What better way than sharing a meal with people and having them see our community? Phyakul said.

Its a fitting objective for a mosque known within the Muslim community for embracing diversity and uniting Muslims from different ethnic backgrounds.

Phyakuls father, Rahmat, was raised as a Buddhist in Thailand until he met his wife, Sukatee, in the 1960s and converted to Islam.

The establishment of the Thai mosque underscores Southern Californias diverse Muslim population, according to Jihad Turk, president of Bayan Claremont Islamic Graduate School.

Every mosque has its own culture because in Islam there is no hierarchical structure, Turk said. Some mosques tend to focus on the culture of the founders from back home, wherever that may be, or others are adjusted in the American context.

A child plays as men offer their nightly Ramadan prayers this month at Masjid Al-Fatiha. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times )

The Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations estimates there are around 500,000 Muslims in the region. In 2010, there were 59 mosques serving about 69,000 Muslims in Los Angeles County, according to USCs Center for Religion and Civic Culture.

Some of the most established mosques in Southern California still tend to reflect the country of origin of its founders, according to Brie Loskota, executive director of the USC center.

Other people from that country know people at the mosque so they become worshipers there, Loskota said. So that mosque becomes more known to the larger community and develops its own character.

Congregants at the Thai mosque are not only from Southeast Asia, but also first- and second-generation immigrants from Bangladesh, Niger, Pakistan, India and Morocco, as well as white and African American converts.

At first, community members were wary of the Thai mosque when it was built, Phayakul said.

People didnt know what to make of us. They thought it was going to disrupt their life, she said. You dont expect a Muslim to look like me.

The Thai mosque offers a space for worshipers who want to develop their faith but who dont necessarily want to adhere to strict rules imposed at more conservative mosques.

Our parents decided to establish this Masjid for the future of their grandkids, Phyakul said. The way we interact with people is out of love.

The mosques subsequent popularity within the Muslim community suggests it is filling congregants spiritual needs.

For Sahrish Akram, the mosque has given her a second chance at connecting with her faith.

I dont get judged here, Akram said. I always feel included no matter if I wear jeans, or if I dont wear a headscarf.

Jing Wang, left, is greeted by Aranyani Phyakul, executive director of Masjid Al-Fatiha. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times )

On a recent Saturday evening, more than 120 people from different faiths and ethnic backgrounds gathered at the mosques parking lot before sunset.

Not far from sight, dozens of plates filled with dates and pastries lined tables.

The temptation to eat was strong.

Groups huddled near the food, some fixated on the sugary delights. Some hadnt had anything to drink or eat for over 15 hours. But worshipers resisted the urge.

Kaamilah Sha, 17, and her friend Rukan Saif, 16, stood at the entrance of the mosque, greeting worshipers as they arrived and encouraged guests to wear hijabs  a headscarf worn to show modesty.

The Arcadia High School students wrapped their arms around each other and posed for a picture under a sign that read Ramadan Kareem, a common greeting during the holy month.

Rukan invited Kaamilah to the gathering last year, and the girls returned this year.

Kaamilah grew up in a diverse household in the San Gabriel Valley. Her parents are Chinese; her dad is Muslim, her mom Christian. Its that type of inclusion she craves but has a hard time finding at other mosques, she said.

Other mosques can be too conservative, Kaamilah said. This is the most diverse mosque Ive been to.

Abdonrosak Mahachal, 35, leads nightly prayers during the month of Ramadan. Mahachai is a hafiz  a person who has memorized the entire Koran. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times )

Shortly before sunset, the guests filed inside the mosque for prayer.

Its customary in Islamic tradition, as in some other Abrahamic faiths, to separate the sexes during prayer.

Men sat in the front and women huddled in back; but unlike with other mosques, no walls or curtains separated them.

The room was packed as the Koran reciter, Abdonrosak Mahachal, began singing the call to prayer. His voice filled the renovated room with rhythmic passages from the Koran.

Mahachal is a hafiz  a person who has memorized the entire Koran  from the Songkhla province in southern Thailand. The 35-year-old is one of many Koran reciters invited to America during Ramadan.

By the time evening prayers finished, night had fallen.

Muslim congregants eager to break fast rushed toward tables filled with plates of appetizers. They bit into plump dates and washed it down with sweetened tea.

Nearby, Hadiara Diallo and her guest Carr Oduro began serving guests the main course: Thai food.

Diallo, a first-generation immigrant from Niger, moved to America 33 years ago and said the community of worshipers at the mosque make her feel comfortable for how she chooses to practice Islam.

Theres no politics here and no preaching, she said. I can hug people if I want and nobody judges me. After prayer people actually talk.

It was the first time Oduro, a 46-year-old programmer, observed Ramadan.

Oduro, who is Christian, said she wanted to be at the interfaith gathering because as more Muslims and minorities face discrimination in the Trump era, she wants to get to know different communities.

In this climate we have to get together and talk, Oduro said.

melissa.etehad@latimes.com

Follow me on Twitter @melissaetehad
When Vanessa Schwartz learned on Friday that USC President C.L. Max Nikias would be stepping down, she took a long, deep breath. Elation washed over her.

In the days since The Times published an investigation about Dr. George Tyndall, the longtime campus gynecologist who faced repeated complaints of misconduct, Schwartz has been busy demanding action.

Schwartz, a professor of art history and history, is on leave for a fellowship but came back to campus last week to protest the universitys leadership. She signed her name to a letter demanding Nikias resignation. She spoke out at a heated forum on Wednesday.

Sometimes a lifetime can happen in the course of a few days, said Schwartz, who has taught at USC for 18 years.

Advertisement

I am totally optimistic, or I would not have participated in any of this. We participated because we believe in the future of this university. We care deeply about it and our students. This is not about seeking retribution or punishment.

The announcement of Nikias departure capped days of turmoil at USC that, on Saturday, gave way to discussions about how the university will move forward. Its unclear when exactly Nikias will step down as president and how quickly the Board of Trustees plans to name a replacement.

Nikias oversaw dramatic growth at USC but also a series of scandals that eroded confidence in him among some on campus.

USC faculty and students said Saturday that the university needs more transparency, communication and ethical leadership from both the administration and the Board of Trustees if it wants to move forward from a string of damaging scandals. Many hoped Nikias departure would be the start of a new era.

Our community is in pain, and we welcome a transition that can begin the process of healing, professor Paul Rosenbloom, president of the Academic Senate, wrote in a letter to faculty members Friday evening. The Academic Senate last week passed a resignation calling for Nikias resignation.

The Senate recognized that throughout the past year there has been an increasing breakdown of trust between the President and the academic community, Rosenbloom continued. Our conclusion  was that this break in trust was irreparable, and that the only way forward for the university was a change in the presidency.

More than 300 people have come forward to USC, many with allegations of mistreatment and sexual abuse that dates back to the early 1990s.

The Times reported that Tyndall was the subject of repeated complaints from staff and patients about inappropriate comments and touching. The university barred him from treating patients only after a nurse, frustrated that her complaints had been ignored, reported Tyndall to the campus rape crisis center. An internal investigation concluded that Tyndall had sexually harassed students and performed pelvic exams that departed from current medical standards.

Yet administrators and USCs general counsel struck a secret deal with Tyndall, allowing him to resign with a financial payout. USC opted not to report Tyndall to the Medical Board of California when he resigned, nor were patients notified of the allegations against him. The university insisted it was under no legal obligation to report Tyndall to the Medical Board, but later acknowledged that, in hindsight, it should have. Administrators filed a belated complaint in March.

The Los Angeles Police Department is now investigating, and USC already is beginning to face what is expected to be costly litigation by women who say Tyndall, 71, abused them.

The revelations about Tyndall came less than a year after Times disclosures about drug and alcohol abuse by Dr. Carmen A. Puliafito during his tenure as dean of the universitys medical school, a period when he was also partying with young criminals and addicts. Puliafitos replacement as dean, Rohit Varma, resigned as The Times was about to publish a report on allegations he sexually harassed a colleague, whom the university paid $135,000 as a result of her complaint.

Tara McPherson, a professor in the School of Cinematic Arts, said that some of the hundreds of faculty members who signed the letter demanding Nikias resignation have been excitedly emailing each other since the news broke.

People are pretty ecstatic, she said. There were a lot of feelings over the past few years that the university had lost its way.

McPherson said the move allows us to move forward, to address the needs of the women affected and to rebuild trust with the students.

Schwartz, the art history professor who has been teaching at USC for 18 years, said, theres been a failure of moral and ethical leadership, period.

Schwartz said Nikias failed to accept responsibility for the scandals and that she lost it after learning the president attended and spoke at a catered reception in honor of Puliafito after he announced his resignation.

Im sure Max expects a party, too, she said.

Schwartz said she has found Nikias communications with the campus community in the wake of the Tyndall revelations insincere.

Is there a real person there, or is it just one dictated memo by a very bad team of spin doctors and lawyers?

Walking through the USC campus Saturday, Alissa Brasington, a 19-year-old animation student, said she hopes the scandals will make university leaders more willing to act upon reports of misconduct and wrongdoing. She called Nikias departure a big deal.

Change is actually happening, and this is the first time in a while that anyone has taken responsibility for something like this.

Umit Bas, a 30-year-old electrical engineering doctoral candidate, said USC should have been open about Tyndall and that the scandals are hurtful for the universitys reputation.

For some people, USC failed to create a safe environment, Bas said.

Katie Usellis, a 20-year-old student studying global health, said she hopes USC considers student input as it chooses its next president.

Id love to see a female president for the school, Usellis said. Especially since this is kind of like a womens rights issue that took such a long time to actually do something.  I feel like a woman president would not prioritize the [schools reputation] as much but take a stand on a strong moral ground.

She said it doesnt feel like students have any say in what happens on campus and that USC needs to be more transparent about allegations involving staff and faculty.

Its our school, she said. We pay to be here. We trust it to be a safe place. We trust it to be a place that we can learn, but we dont really hear much about whats going on until its already happened.

Several students said they were surprised by Nikias decision to go, thinking he would be able to weather another calamity since so many had happened in quick succession.

I thought he would stick it through, theater student Vicente Saintignon said.

Nikias presided over the development of the $700-million USC Village, and his name is on several buidlings in the red-brick housing and retail complex. As a recent graduate, who gave only his first name, Alex, walked through the courtyard on Saturday, he described Nikias tenure as a double-edged sword because the president was a prolific fundraiser who also boosted the universitys reputation by luring top professors.

He did a lot of good for the school, but he also pushed a lot under the rug, Alex said.

When it comes to Nikias, he said, everyone is going to see the Village, but they are also going to remember the gynecologist.

hailey.branson@latimes.com

Twitter: @haileybranson
Marta Martinez was in her bedroom about a mile from the border in south Texas on Wednesday, preparing to attend her sons end-of-year award ceremony at school, when she heard a gunshot. She told her children to stay inside and rushed out to see a Border Patrol agent with a gun in his hand.

It was not unusual for Martinez, 39, born and raised in the area, to see agents chasing migrants who had crossed the border illegally. But this time, she said, she confronted a gruesome scene: outside her room, the body of a young woman lay bleeding on the ground, shot in the head.

When I started to film and I saw the woman, I got mad, so I started shouting at the man, Martinez said.

The shooting in a residential area about 15 miles southeast of Laredo has stirred controversy from south Texas to Central America at a time when President Trumps administration has vowed to crack down on illegal immigration. U.S. Border Patrol officials initially said the agent fired after migrants attacked him, but backpedaled Friday as the victims relatives in Guatemala, Martinez and other border-area residents called for a deeper investigation into the circumstances of the killing.

Advertisement

The agent, a 15-year veteran, was responding to a report of illegal activity near a culvert when he discovered migrants around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Border Patrol said in its initial statement. The statement said the agent fired after being attacked by migrants armed with blunt objects, which officials described as two-by-four pieces of lumber. The agent then fatally wounded one of the assailants, the statement said.

On Friday, the agency released a second statement saying the migrants rushed the officer after ignoring orders to get on the ground. The second statement did not mention blunt objects and called the gunshot victim a member of the group. The agent, who has not been identified, was placed on administrative leave.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection canceled a news conference about the shooting Friday. An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment due to the ongoing investigation.

Webb County Medical Examiner Corinne Stern and the Guatemalan Ministry of Foreign Affairs identified the shooting victim as Claudia Patricia Gomez Gonzalez, 20, of San Juan Ostuncalco, Guatemala.

Gomez had studied accounting but was unable to find a job and left to work in the U.S. out of necessity, her aunt, Dominga Vicente, told reporters in Guatemala City on Friday.

This is not the first person dying in the United States, Vicente told Guatevision TV. There are many people that have been treated like animals, and that isnt what we should do as people.

Gomezs mother, Lidia Gonzalez Vasquez, said she wanted her daughters body returned.

She left home 15 days ago, saying: Mamita, were going to go on ahead, Ill make money. Theres no work here, Gonzalez said. But shamefully they killed her. The migration killed her.

Carlos Narez, secretary of the National Council for Migrant Assistance in Guatemala, joined Gomezs relatives at the Friday briefing and called for an exhaustive, impartial investigation.

On Saturday, Narez tweeted, The Border Patrol changes its version and sows doubts about the death of an immigrant.

Gomez, whose nickname was Princesita, or Little Princess, was on her way to Virginia to join her boyfriend, Morales Yosimar, who posted photos of her and expressed his grief on Facebook. She was assassinated, he wrote, while trying to make them a couple again.

For those questioning the official account of the shooting, Martinez  the neighbor who saw the aftermath  is a key witness.

Dominga Vicente shows a photo of her niece, 20-year-old Claudia Patricia Gomez Gonzalez. (Moises Castillo / Associated Press )

Martinez said she often sees the Border Patrol chasing migrants near her home not far from the Rio Grande.

The river is just 10 or 15 houses away from here. Immigrants just pass by my house running away, scared, trying to hide, she said Saturday. They have never knocked on my door. They have never tried to hurt me. They just run away trying to hide behind trees and the grass. Immigration agents chase them; they run away scared.

But in her 20 years in the area, there had never been a chase involving shooting, she said.

Before emerging from her house Wednesday, Martinez said, she never heard [the agent] tell her to stop.

Outside, she began recording with her cellphone and broadcasting on Facebook Live. Martinez said she saw the same agent yell at three young male immigrants, See what happens? Do you see what you caused?

I didnt think; I just started filming. I always have my phone at hand; Im always filming everything. My family always says, Be careful, take away her phone because she is going to film us! Martinez said.

But this was her first time filming law enforcement. Several other agents had already arrived.

The officers were telling me that I could not film, she recalled. I told them that I was filming them live, that I was going to expose them on Facebook.

Martinez watched an officer flip Gomezs body over and begin chest compressions in a grassy lot. She said it wasnt clear what the migrants had been doing before the shooting.

I dont know if they attacked or not because I didnt see, she said  but she didnt see the migrants armed nor any two-by-fours in the area.

In the video, a uniformed officer can be seen performing chest compressions. The young womans face was covered with dirt on one side and blood on the other, Martinez said.

Thats when I saw that the young lady was not moving, she said.

Martinez kept filming as the agent captured two men who ran from the scene after the shooting and walked them through a vacant lot. Martinez said she heard the agent say: This is what happens. You see?

She said she also heard the agent tell the men, Be quiet; you have weapons.

Border Patrol said agents arrested three migrants at the scene who had crossed the border illegally.

Martinez can be heard in the video yelling in Spanish as the officer led the men to his vehicle.

Why do you mistreat them? Why did you shoot the girl? You killed her. He killed the girl. Shes there. Shes dead. I saw you with the gun! she yelled.

After the shooting, she noticed Border Patrol agents driving by her familys house in their green-and-white vehicles, stopping just outside. She later spoke with FBI investigators, and said she trusts they will investigate thoroughly.

Martinez has received hundreds of messages, including from Gomezs neighbor and cousin, who described her as humble and studious  a good person.

I hope we get justice. Its something that should not happen, she said, adding that she filmed because it seemed unjust to me, and many times when unjust things happen  people dont realize because its not on video.

Officials from the Texas branch of the American Civil Liberties Union have called for the shooting to be fully investigated and repeated demands that Border Patrol agents wear body cameras.

Astrid Dominguez, director of the groups Border Rights Center, said the contradictory Border Patrol statements about Gomezs shooting highlight their lack of transparency and the need for body cameras so we can actually know what happened.

We are extremely concerned about this twist, Dominguez said Saturday, and worried that the other migrants traveling with Gomez might be deported before they can share what they saw.

They are key to this investigation, she said.

Late Saturday, the migrant advocacy group Laredo Immigrant Alliance held a vigil for Gomez in a downtown park, where residents called for not just a thorough investigation, but greater oversight and accountability for the Border Patrol.

Weve been seeing a lot more Border Patrol because of all this anti-immigrant narrative thats going on, said alliance founder Karina Alvarez, 29, herself a participant in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program who feels threatened by Trumps anti-immigrant rhetoric.

She said his description of migrants as animals and rapists and murderers trickles down to agents on the border.

That is ultimately how they see us, she said. We see that in this, and this is not an isolated case. This has happened before. The exception to this is that it was videotaped.

Special correspondent Veronica G. Cardenas contributed to this report.

molly.hennessy-fiske@latimes.com

@mollyhf
More than 200 people turned out for a community meeting Saturday to protest the death of a young black man who was fatally shot by a Virginia police officer after he ran naked onto an interstate highway.

Speakers at the meeting at Richmonds Second Baptist Church said they were angry that police used deadly force on Marcus-David Peters, 24, who was unarmed and behaving erratically during the May 14 confrontation.

Body-camera video made public by Police Chief Alfred Durham on Friday shows Peters emerge naked from a car and dash onto Interstate 95, then flail erratically before running toward the officer while shouting threats. The officer deploys a stun gun before shooting Peters twice with his service weapon.

Durham on Friday asked the community for patience. Let the investigation take its course, please, he said.

Advertisement

The chief emphasized that he understood the impact the incident has had on Peters family and the community.

I only wish we could have helped Mr. Peters, Durham said. Unfortunately, we could not help him that day. For that, Im truly sorry.

But people who attended the meeting Saturday said they cannot understand why the officer  who referred to Peters as mentally unstable during the encounter  shot him.

Having a mental breakdown in the middle of traffic should not be a death sentence, said Rob Gibson, a friend who went to college with Peters.

Peters sister, Princess Blanding, told the crowd that the family never saw bizarre behavior from her brother. He graduated with honors from Virginia Commonwealth University and was working as a high school science teacher.

Blanding said police need more training on how to de-escalate encounters with people in crisis or suffering from mental illness.

Nationwide, officers need to be equipped with more strategies than just deadly force, she said. A day earlier, she had said, Nothing justifies Marcus not being here.

The confrontation began after an officer saw Peters strike another vehicle with his sedan and flee.

The officer, whom police have identified as Michael Nyantakyi, a 10-year veteran of the force who is also black, is seen in body-camera video with his handgun trained on the vehicle as he first approaches and orders Peters to stay in the car.

Male seems to be mentally unstable as we speak, Nyantakyi says.

Peters exits the vehicle and dashes onto the interstate filled with rush-hour traffic, where a vehicle strikes him, the video shows. Peters then lies in the roadway, rolling back and forth and swinging his limbs.

Peters then approaches the officer, slowly at first, and tells him, Put that Taser down or Ill kill you.

Nyantakyi fires the stun gun as Peters continues to advance. Peters then runs toward the officer. Two gunshots are heard.

Nyantakyi remains on paid administrative leave while the investigation, which will involve an autopsy and toxicology report, continues, Durham said.

When the inquiry is complete, police will forward the findings to the commonwealths attorneys office, which will assess whether the use of force was justified.

Peters family plans to lead a march June 2 from Virginia Commonwealth University to police headquarters.
California voters are often tempted to see their June primaries as little more than spring training  a sort of try-out round for the main event on Nov. 6. Many wait the five months before poring over the candidates and the issues. Thats a shame, because some decisions made now are likely to be final. Candidates for sheriff, superintendent of public instruction and some other offices just might get more than 50% of the primary vote and win outright without a runoff.

For governor, U.S. Senate and other partisan races, there will be no victor; the top two vote-getters (regardless of political party) will proceed to the ballot in November. The outcome of the June 5 vote will dictate whether any Republicans in this deep blue state will be in the final contests for state offices, the Senate and many House seats; meanwhile, in some GOP strongholds, the question is whether the top two candidates will include any Democrats.

In making its recommendations, the Times took on the elections for governor and U.S. Senate, the statewide ballot measure and the nonpartisan state and local races that could conceivably be over in June. Offices and candidate names in this summary link to the The Times full endorsements.

Completed vote-by-mail ballots must be postmarked on or before June 5 and received by June 8. And of course voters can still go old-school, casting their ballots at the polling place on June 5. To find your polling place, go to https://www.lavote.net/locator.

Advertisement

Here are The Times recommendations, with links to our full endorsements:

U.S. Senator: Dianne Feinstein

Governor: Antonio Villaraigosa

Superintendent of Public Instruction: Tony Thurmond

Proposition 68: Yes

Proposition 69: Yes

Proposition 70: No

Proposition 71: Yes

Proposition 72: Yes

Los Angeles County Sheriff: Jim McDonnell

Los Angeles County Assessor: Jeffrey Prang

Los Angeles County Supervisor, District 1: Hilda Solis

Los Angeles County Supervisor, District 3: Sheila Kuehl

Superior Court Judge:

Office No. 4: Alfred A. Coletta

Office No. 16: Sydne Jane Michel

Office No. 20: Wendy Segall

Office No. 60: Holly L. Hancock

Office No. 63: Malcolm H. Mackey

Office No. 67: Maria L. Armendariz

Office No. 71: David A. Berger

Office No. 113: Michael P. Ribons

Office No. 118: David D. Diamond

Office No. 126: Rene Caldwell Gilbertson

Office No. 146: Emily T. Spear

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
Overwhelmed by climate change? Its not your fault.

Actually, you are to blame for climate change. But its the medias fault for making you feel completely hopeless about it.

That includes me. As a correspondent for NPR 10 years ago, I did a story on Newtok, a remote Yupik community in northwest Alaska that was both sinking and eroding because of the effects of global warming. In the decade since the report aired, hundreds of national and international reporters have visited Newtok, and a dozen other Alaskan communities like it, to document the effects of climate change.

The stories all fit the same narrative. With somber music, images of houses and schools tipping precariously off cliffs and phrases like impending doom, the reports paint a picture of tragedy and hopelessness and frame the residents as victims, climate change refugees whose communities are one bad storm away from ceasing to exist.

Advertisement

The repetition of this narrative over the last 10 years has done little to help. There is still no dedicated agency or funding at the federal level to address climate-induced relocation. And while the public is slowly accepting the reality of warming, even those identified as the most alarmed say they dont really know what to do about it.

The threats posed to humans, polar bears and entire ecosystems are recounted on a daily basis, leading to what researchers call a hope gap.

This familiar narrative, about communities facing sea level rise and coastal erosion, fits into a larger pattern of climate change coverage. The threats posed to humans, polar bears and entire ecosystems are recounted on a daily basis, leading to what researchers call a hope gap. With little offered in the way of action or response, people eventually tune out: Were doomed. Whats on Hulu?

As someone who lives in Alaska and has been to the North Pole twice, Ive got a pretty good idea of how bad it is. What Id like to know more about is what people are doing to counter it. I want to know how cities are meeting emissions targets in spite of the Trump administrations environmental rollbacks. I want to know that the fastest-growing job in the country is solar panel installer.

Im not alone, apparently. A surprising number of scholars are studying how the public responds to climate news. Theres even a Media and Climate Change Observatory that keeps daily track of climate-related stories. In 2004, its founder, Max Boykoff, was among the first to identify a trend of false balance in the early reporting. Thats the practice of pairing a contrarian view from an organization skeptical of climate change to balance the view of a reputable climate scientist. Several years later, Boykoff took another look and found that most news organizations had self-corrected. More recently, he called attention to a trend of daily fear, misery and doom that leaves audiences feeling powerless.

This doesnt mean we should stop reporting the terrifying realities. But it does mean we need to start telling stories about effective responses: practical, replicable examples of how individuals, businesses and governments are tackling climate change. It may smack of advocacy, but what self-respecting public health reporter would do a story about an epidemic without including information about an available vaccine or how to avoid infection?

Take Newtok, for example. That community is not waiting and watching helplessly as homes are erased by the sea. Quite the opposite is true: Its a place where indigenous people are adapting in order to stay in a region where theyve managed to weather wrenching environmental and cultural change for thousands of years.

Newtok residents have spent the last decade raising money, navigating a bureaucratic morass and collaborating with everyone from the local Lions Club to the Department of Defense in order to move just nine and a half miles away. Their new community is taking shape on firm volcanic rock. Its called Mertarvik, which means place to get water, because it has a fresh water spring, something the old site lacks. Community members have built seven energy-efficient homes. Theyre building another four this summer, and 13 refurbished military barracks are scheduled to arrive by barge. State agencies will soon be required to fund a new school, an airstrip and public utilities.

The process of relocating a community is painfully incremental, but its one that should be documented for the same reason so many news organizations sent reporters to Newtok in the first place. Although Newtoks plight was broadcast as a harbinger of tragic things to come, its response might serve as a model for the coastal and island communities around the world facing the same threat.

If we journalists were able to self-correct for false balance, surely we can self-correct for an overly narrow narrative that amounts to a steady drip of catastrophic predictions. Newtok, a community doomed by climate change, has figured out how to adapt  one innovative idea, one grant, one barge load at a time. It will not cease to exist. In fact, life might even be a little bit better on higher, more solid ground and with fresh water. Its a story worth telling.

Elizabeth Arnold is a Shorenstein fellow at Harvards Kennedy School and a journalism professor at University of Alaska Anchorage. She was previously a correspondent for National Public Radio.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
The task is the El Capitan of freshman English. Find a poem you like. Study it. Memorize it. Recite it to your classmates. You have two weeks to scale the poems wall.

Ive given this assignment for 20 years. It always elicits the same reaction when the students grasp the weight of whats being asked. The questions begin.

Student: Do I have to do this, Mr. Curnett?

Me: Yes, everyone has to do it.

Advertisement

Student: Is it for a grade?

Me: Yes, a huge grade that will count heavily. (Im kind of lying here, but the students equate grades with importance.)

Student: Can I get my friend to read mine for me, Mr. Curnett?

Me: No.

Student: Can I do it from my desk, or do I have to stand in front?

Me: Stand in front like everyone else. (The student rolls her eyes and looks for salvation outside the window. There is only a bird.)

Student: Can I have notes? (Forty-four eyes stare into my soul.)

Me: No. (A collective gasp. Im fairly certain that one kid mouths an expletive but I cant be sure.)

Student: What happens if I forget my lines?

Me: Ill help you. (Several yeah, right looks. I have clearly forsaken them already.)

Student: Can I choose a poem my friend wrote? Its really good. Its about love.

Me: No. (God, no, I think.)

Student: I cant do this, Mr. Curnett.

Me: Yes, you can do it.

So we begin the search for the right poem. We comb through poetry websites as if we are sweeping metal detectors along a beach, listening for beeps that might reveal treasure. Eventually, each student finds a title. I have no idea how it happens. It just does.

For me, the student and the poet become entwined. Jimmys got Whitman. Alexas is Dickinson. Faisals giving Countee Cullen a whirl. Tamara has inexplicably chosen Allen Ginsbergs A Supermarket in California. Jasmine has found Linda Pastan.

The student who is more intelligent than I will ever be recites Langston Hughes with a clarity and depth that few human beings could muster.

As week one turns into week two, the questions become more contextual, less fatalistic. Im holding conferences, a mafia boss at his restaurant table. The students are so earnest in what they want to know. They think I have all of the answers.

Student: Mr. Curnett, how do you pronounce this word?

Me: In-VICK-tuss. Nice choice. Have you heard of Nelson Mandela before? No? Let me tell you about this poem ....

Student: Mr. Curnett, I dont understand this line. Can you help me?

Me: The speaker means that hes lying on his couch and reflecting on the daffodils hes seen. This is what people did before phones. They often had moods that were vacant and pensive. Can you imagine? Nothing to do but lie there and think of flowers as a way to relax. Have you ever done that? No? Try it. Talk to me about it tomorrow.

Student: Mr. Curnett, that thing you were teaching us  should I do it here?

Me: Yes, thats a good place for emphasizing the lines enjambment. Roll on through it. Use the punctuation to guide your voice.

Student: Mr. Curnett, do you have a favorite poem?

Me: Too many to count. But you cant go wrong with Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio. Ive been reading that poem for 30 years, since I was about your age. Everything in that poem makes me feel something inside. It gets worse as I get older.

Student: Mr. Curnett, my grandmother died yesterday. I dont think I can memorize my poem. Is that OK?

Me: Yes, of course that is OK. I am so sorry to hear about your grandmother. I really am. Maybe you can sit and listen to the students recite their poems, and you can think about her.

Student: Mr. Curnett, can I go to the bathroom but still finish this conference?

Me: Sure. Myra will just have to wait.

Recital day finally arrives. It is one of the reasons I teach  to see this annual migration of ninth-graders across the desert of pop culture to the oasis that is literature.

The student with dyslexia shines with The Tyger, William Blakes rhythm reaching through 225 years to find a fearful symmetry in her voice. Students thrum their hands to the cadence. Theres applause when she finishes.

The student who is more intelligent than I will ever be recites Langston Hughes with a clarity and depth that few human beings could muster. When he finishes, the class bursts into applause again.

The quiet boy who had always seemed so aloof delivers 40 lines of Homer without a hitch. 40 lines! The students look at each other, dumbfounded, then trade expressions of approval. More applause.

On and on it goes, all day long. More than 60 poems, each performance style unique. I am proud of all the students for their efforts and abilities, even the ones who botched it.

Art is greater than we are: Its the realization of this idea that makes the assignment so compelling. Something as weightless as a poem can have the power to make us laugh or weep or guffaw or go silent with feeling  or cause a ninth-grade classroom to erupt with applause on a Tuesday morning in April, as centuries-old words reverberate off the walls.

Joshua Curnett is a high school English teacher, currently in Singapore.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
A senior federal district judge last week ruled that President Trump violates the 1st Amendment when he blocks his critics on Twitter.

But thats just the most obvious aspect of the immensely interesting decision by Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald of the Southern District of New York in the case of Knight Institute, et al., vs. Donald J. Trump, et al.

Buchwald, who was appointed by President Clinton in 1999, is a jurist of the first rank. She is studiously non-ideological. Her ruling Wednesday brought equanimity and authority to the moral chaos that is Twitter. Her rigor is sorely needed, especially as Trumps illogic and hysteria continue to set the tone in social media and geopolitics.

The plaintiffs in the case were the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and seven compelling individuals.

Advertisement

Theres lawyer and journalist Rebecca Pilar Buckwalter-Poza. Holly Figueroa OReilly, co-organizer of the March for Truth and mother of five. Joe Papp, an anti-doping advocate.

Philip N. Cohen, a sociologist. Nick Jack Pappas, a comedian. Brandon Neely, a former guard at Guantanamo.

Finally, theres Eugene Gu, a surgeon known for having performed the first successful human fetal heart and kidney transplants in immuno-compromised rats. For his surgical work, which sets a path for curing kidney and heart disease in babies, Gu has been threatened, doxed and smeared by antiabortion extremists.

A heterogenous clan. Even racist pepperpot Tomi Lahren, the right-wing TV personality, could not twist this group into a monolith of snowflakes.

The defendants need no introduction: Donald J. Trump, former White House communications director Hope Hicks, spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders and social media director Dan Scavino. All the presidents publicists.

Even though he doesnt bother to act like one, Trump is a public servant in an office that belongs to the people.

At one time or another, each of the plaintiffs criticized Trump on Twitter. Criticism of the powerful  punching up  was exactly the kind of speech the 1st Amendment was framed to protect. Trump-style sniping  punching down  is also, of course, protected speech.

But how might Twitter blocking infringe on the inalienable right of Americans to free expression?

In the case of non-state actors blocking one another, it doesnt. Were free as Twitter birds to block the heck out of each other.

But for once the law agrees with Trump: He is  at least while hes president  exceptional. Even though he cant be bothered to act like one, he is a public servant in an office that belongs to the people.

Buchwalds painstaking 75-page judgment says that when @realDonaldTrump blocks someone its a suppression by the executive branch of free speech, in part because the President presents the @realDonaldTrump account as being a presidential account and uses the account to take actions that can be taken only by the President as President.

Indeed, Trumps former spokesperson, Sean Spicer, also called Trumps tweets official statements by the President of the United States.

Next, Buchwald reasons, portions of the @realDonaldTrump account  the interactive space where Twitter users may directly engage with the content of the Presidents tweets  are properly analyzed under the public forum doctrines set forth by the Supreme Court.

A public forum! For those of us who have puzzled for 25 years over the legal status of the internet  is it a place, a machine, intellectual property, a weapon?  this is a breakthrough.

On my Twitter account, and yours, this interactive space  replies and retweets  might be something like a private front yard. We can shoo others off or even wall them out as we please. But in Buchwalds judgment, replies and retweets on Trumps account constitute a government-owned park that  according to the republics very first principles  has to be open to unfettered public expression and assembly.

Blocking renders both blocker and blockee invisible to each other. On being blocked by Trump, as the plaintiff Buckwalter-Poza recalls, I stopped getting alerts for Trumps tweets, and when other people were commenting on them, I would see all these gray boxes in my feed.

Buckwalter-Poza was prevented from reading her presidents official statements, and she had no way to be heard by him or the vast audience that lands on his Twitter account.

And this violates Buckwalter-Pozas 1st Amendment rights  as well as those of the other plaintiffs, and anyone #blockedbyTrump.

Buchwald didnt order the president to unblock the plaintiffs or anyone else. She explained what the law is, and her expectation  or maybe her vain hope  was that the White House would fall in line with the Constitution. Of course, the decision is already being appealed, so we arent likely see Neely or Gu weighing in on the @realDonaldTrump thread about the North Korea summit debacle  yet.

But Buchwalds decision is not incidental. No government official is above the law  and all government officials must follow the law, she bracingly wrote. Sing it. Better yet: She called Trumps vindictive slapdowns of American citizens something more than violations of courtesy and norms. Buchwald discovered in Trumps Twitter practices a legally cognizable injury.

Injury is the right word. Trumps presidency  in lockstep with his Twitter feed  has been profoundly injurious to the nation and its citizens. Its good to see Buchwald call Trumps nastiness on Twitter what it is: an injury thats not just indecent. Its unconstitutional.

Twitter: @page88

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinionand Facebook
To the editor: I appreciate op-ed article writer Meghan Daums ability to psychoanalyze Philip Roths all-encompassing sense of inferiority to women.

I wonder: Is this sense of inferiority common to many great writers, such as Ernest Hemingway, Vladimir Nabokov, Norman Mailer and others? Do all great writers who are labeled as misogynists (which would have to include almost all of the greatest male writers in literature) feel a sense of inferiority to women?

A character in one of Roths books said that in todays world everyone has an opinion, but no criterion. Daum submitted her opinion on Roths hidden demons, but I really dont care. I only care about great literature, and without Roths inner demons we might have been deprived of Roths brilliant writing.

Giuseppe Mirelli, Los Angeles

Advertisement

..

To the editor: While I laud Daum feeling empowered to call out misogyny, I am surprised that she considers it acceptable to suggest that a man sitting opposite should be considered an ape or that women should not take men seriously. It places her on the same level as the men she is criticizing.

I am also disappointed that the Los Angeles Times chose to print an article that denigrates an entire sex. Would it print an article written by a man that suggested women are just bodies; their minds and opinions are irrelevant?

Of course not. Let us remember that equality means exactly that.

Duncan Smith, Thousand Oaks

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
To the editor: The Salton Sea is a natural wonder in deep trouble. And for the past 10-plus years, state officials have known this problem would grow worse if action was not taken by 2018.

So while the Imperial Irrigation District honored its legal commitment to pour water into the shrinking Salton Sea until 2018, the state has backed away from its responsibility for funding for remediation. Now the water has stopped and more and more of the seas toxin-laden shoreline is being exposed.

There are solutions. First and foremost, the state Legislature must commit funding, lest it wants to create another Owens Valley. Next, the Imperial Irrigation District must use competent legal and administrative assistance. No more hiring of a son-in-law or distant cousin to go up against the skilled and crafty water managers at the Metropolitan Water District, in San Diego or at the state.

Finally, all parties must work together to increase water storage, which is the only way to assure a viable Salton Sea as well as a healthy and prosperous California.

Advertisement

Christle Balvin, Pasadena

The writer has served as a consultant for water districts and has worked in the Imperial Valley.

..

To the editor: This article vividly illustrates Californias water problems. Increasing population along with a protracted drought are the main culprits.

At some point, Californians are going to have to reexamine their attitudes and policies on the use of recycled water for direct potable use if we are ever going to be able to adequately address our states water issues.

Mark S. Dymally, Los Angeles

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook
Allies balk at Trump administration bid to block Chinese firm from cutting-edge telecom markets By David S. Cloud Britain and Germany are balking at the Trump administrations call for a ban on equipment from Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, threatening a global U.S. campaign to thwart Chinas involvement in future mobile networks. Both countries are expected to limit Huawei and other Chinese companies from providing core components including routers. But other types of Chinese equipment for next-generation, high-speed communications could still be installed on British and German networks, officials and analysts say. The U.S. push to ban Huawei has provoked a global dispute in recent weeks, with senior U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, publicly urging NATO allies in Europe to exclude the company and warning that the United States might limit its military presence in countries that did not do so. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Confucius Institutes: Do they improve U.S.-China ties or harbor spies? By Don Lee Hanging red lanterns welcome visitors to the University of Marylands Confucius Institute, the oldest of about 100 Chinese language and cultural centers that have popped up over the last 15 years on American campuses, subsidized by millions of dollars from Chinas central government. But last fall, when four U.S. Senate investigators walked into the Confucius offices in Maryland and spent hours questioning staff, they werent looking for an educational exchange. The committee has been seeking detailed information from the university about the program, including contracts, email exchanges and financial arrangements that school administrators have kept under wraps since it started in 2004. American colleges once viewed these jointly funded institutes as an economical way to expand their language offerings  one that could also bring warmer ties with China and, importantly, an influx of Chinese international students paying full tuition. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Watch Live: White House holds surprise news briefing amid government shutdown Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

U.S. policy toward China shifts from engagement to confrontation By David S. Cloud For decades, China had no closer American friend than Dianne Feinstein. As San Francisco mayor in the 1970s, she forged a sister-city relationship with Shanghai, the first between American and Chinese communities. As U.S. senator, she dined with Chinese leaders at Mao Tse-tungs old Beijing residence. And in the 1990s, she championed a trade policy change that opened a floodgate of Western investment into China. Today the Democratic senator sees China as a growing threat, joining a broad array of Trump administration officials, national security strategists and business executives who once favored engagement with Beijing and now advocate a confrontational approach instead. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Mnuchins attempt to calm markets backfires as Trump takes another shot at the Federal Reserve By Jim Puzzanghera An attempt by Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin to calm plunging financial markets backfired Monday, further rattling investors with new fears about whether major U.S. banks have enough cash on top of worries about interest rates, political instability in Washington and a slowing global economy. Adding to the volatile mix was a fresh attack on the Federal Reserve by President Trump, who declared that the central bank was the U.S. economys only problem and that it didnt have a feel for the market. The Fed is like a powerful golfer who cant score because he has no touch -- he cant putt! Trump said on Twitter. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

He speaks to Democratic hearts. But is Beto ORourke a serious White House contender? By Mark Z. Barabak Hes a failed U.S. Senate candidate with an undistinguished congressional record who, for the moment, is a blazing-hot 2020 presidential prospect  despite the fact that he may not run and faces long odds if he does. Beto ORourke suggests the will-he-or-wont-he speculation is something he himself cant quite fathom. I think thats a great question, he responded in a Dallas Morning News interview when asked whether his unsuccessful November Senate bid merited a promotion to the White House. I ask that question myself. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Russian disinformation teams targeted Robert S. Mueller III, says report prepared for Senate By Craig Timberg, Tony Romm, Elizabeth Dwoskin Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. (Associated Press) Months after President Trump took office, Russias disinformation teams trained their sites on a new target: special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. Having worked to help get Trump into the White House, they now worked to neutralize the biggest threat to his staying there. The Russian operatives unloaded on Mueller through fake accounts on Facebook, Twitter and beyond, falsely claiming that the former FBI director was corrupt and that the allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election were crackpot conspiracies. One post on Instagram  which emerged as an especially potent weapon in the Russian social media arsenal  claimed that Mueller had worked in the past with radical Islamic groups. Such tactics exemplified how Russian teams ranged nimbly across social media platforms in a shrewd online influence operation aimed squarely at American voters. The effort started earlier than commonly understood and lasted longer while relying on the strengths of different sites to manipulate distinct slices of the electorate, according to a pair of comprehensive new reports prepared for the Senate Intelligence Committee and released Monday. Read more Timberg, Romm and Dwoskin report for the Washington Post. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

President Trump announces Mick Mulvaney as acting White House chief of staff By Associated Press President Trump says budget director Mick Mulvaney will serve as acting chief of staff, replacing John F. Kelly in the new year. I am pleased to announce that Mick Mulvaney, Director of the Office of Management & Budget, will be named Acting White House Chief of Staff, replacing General John Kelly, who has served our Country with distinction. Mick has done an outstanding job while in the Administration....  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 14, 2018 Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

It aint over when its over: In Michigan, Wisconsin and elsewhere, losers seek to undermine election results By Mark Z. Barabak Democrat Gavin Newsom has yet to become California governor, but already a candidate for state Republican Party chairman is promoting a recall effort. In Michigan and Wisconsin, GOP lawmakers have rushed through legislation to thwart their incoming Democratic governors and hamper others in the opposing party from doing the jobs voters chose them to do. In Congress, GOP leaders have echoed President Trump and sought to undermine the legitimacy of Democrats strong midterm performance, raising unsubstantiated allegations of fraud and political malfeasance. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

New CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger says she wont be a puppet of Mick Mulvaney By Jim Puzzanghera On her first full day leading the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Kathy Kraninger said she wont be a puppet of Mick Mulvaney, the controversial acting director whom she replaced in the powerful regulatory position. To underscore that point, the former White House aide said she would even reconsider a Mulvaney action that critics saw as a gratuitous jab at Democrats who championed the agencys creation: changing its name to the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. Kraningers declaration during a meeting with reporters Tuesday addressed one of the main criticisms of her selection. She is considered a protege of Mulvaney, her boss at the White House Office of Management and Budget who has executed a dramatic, industry-friendly shift at the watchdog agency. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Trumps pick for chief of staff, Nick Ayers, out of running By Associated Press Nick Ayers, right, with Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, at the funeral service for George H.W. Bush on Dec. 3. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Associated Press) President Trumps top pick to replace John F. Kelly as chief of staff, Nick Ayers, is no longer expected to fill that role. Thats according to a White House official who is not authorized to discuss the personnel issue by name and spoke on condition of anonymity. Ayers is Vice President Mike Pences chief of staff. The official says that Trump and Ayers could not agree on Ayers length of service. The father of young children, Ayers had agreed to serve in an interim capacity though the spring, but Trump wanted a two-year commitment. The official says that Ayers will instead assist the president from outside the administration. Trump announced Saturday that Kelly would be departing the White House around the end of the year. Thank you @realDonaldTrump, @VP, and my great colleagues for the honor to serve our Nation at The White House. I will be departing at the end of the year but will work with the #MAGA team to advance the cause.  #Georgia  Nick Ayers (@nick_ayers) December 9, 2018 Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

U.S. hiring slows to 155,000 jobs, unemployment rate holds at 3.7% By Jim Puzzanghera Job growth slowed significantly in November but still was solid, indicating the economy remains in good shape but not expanding so quickly that it will lead to sharply higher interest rates. U.S. employers added 155,000 jobs last month, well below analyst expectations and a steep decline from Octobers strong 237,000 figure, the Labor Department reported Friday. Still, monthly job gains are averaging 206,000 this year, the best since 2015. Even the slower pace of 170,000 over the last three months is close to last years average of 182,000 and well above the amount needed to keep up with population growth. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Trump is expected to pick State Department spokeswoman for U.N. ambassador By Associated Press Heather Nauert at a briefing at the State Department on Aug. 9, 2017. (Alex Brandon / Associated Press) President Trump is expected to nominate State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert to be the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Two administration officials confirmed Trumps plans. A Republican congressional aide said the president was expected to announce his decision by tweet on Friday morning. The officials were not authorized to speak publicly before Trumps announcement. Trump has previously said Nauert was under serious consideration to replace Nikki Haley, who announced in October that she would step down at the end of this year. Trump has been known to change course on staffing decisions in the past. Nauert was a reporter for Fox News Channel before she became State Department spokeswoman under former Secretary Rex Tillerson. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Senate confirms new consumer financial protection chief: Kathy Kraninger, protege of industry-friendly Mick Mulvaney By Jim Puzzanghera The Senate, in a party-line vote Thursday, confirmed White House aide Kathy Kraninger to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and experts predicted a continuation of the industry-friendly shift it has taken since President Trump installed an acting director last year. Kraninger is a protege of acting director and White House budget chief Mick Mulvaney, an outspoken critic of the agency that was created in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis to prevent predatory lending and other abuses that led to it. Democrats and consumer advocates have denounced him for sharply departing from the aggressive watchdog role the bureau had pursued under its first director, Obama-appointee Richard Cordray, including scaling back enforcement and moving to reassess tough new rules on payday loans and narrow the definition of abusive practices by banks and other firms. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Shutdown postponed by two weeks under plan approved by Congress By Erik Wasson Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), shown at the Capitol on Tuesday, says President Trumps border wall is a waste of money. (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) Congress passed a two-week stopgap spending bill that will delay the chance of a partial government shutdown until Dec. 22 as lawmakers and President Donald Trump negotiate over his demands to pay for a wall on the southern border. The House and Senate passed the measure Thursday without dissent, and Trump has indicated hell sign the bill before the current shutdown deadline of midnight Friday. Negotiations were delayed by memorial services this week for former President George H.W. Bush. The temporary measure gives Democrats and Republicans more time to find a resolution to their biggest hurdle: funding a wall on the U.S. Mexico border wall. Trump says he wants $5 billion for parts of a concrete wall on the southern border and is willing to shut down the government if he doesnt get it. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York has said Democrats will provide no more than $1.6 billion for border security, because the wall is a waste of money. The presidents demands for wall funding from Congress come after he said during the campaign that Mexico would pay for it. This week he said on Twitter that a $25 billion border wall would pay for itself in two months, without providing evidence. Most of the U.S. governments $1.2 trillion discretionary budget has been appropriated already by Congress for the fiscal year that began on Oct. 1. Departments at a risk of a partial shutdown late this month include the departments of State, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, Treasury and Homeland Security. Talks to resolve the differences have been on hold since a meeting among Trump, Schumer and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California originally slated for Dec. 4 was postponed due to Bush memorial events. The three are scheduled to meet on Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the matter. Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby of Alabama told reporters the rest of the seven-bill spending package being negotiated is basically done. Shelby in recent weeks had tried to broker a compromise in which Trumps $5 billion request would be split over two years, but Schumer has rejected that. Some Democrats have been willing to trade border wall funding for deportation protections for young undocumented immigrants. Pelosi ruled out such a deal in remarks to reporters Thursday. The stopgap government funding measure also would extend the National Flood Insurance Program, which provides subsidized coverage for homes in flood-prone areas, to Dec. 21. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Bipartisan Senate group wants to formally blame Saudi crown prince for journalists killing By Karoun Demirjian Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires. (Associated Press) A bipartisan group of senators filed a resolution Wednesday condemning Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as responsible for the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, directly challenging President Trump to do the same. This resolution -- without equivocation -- definitively states that the crown prince of Saudi Arabia was complicit in the murder of Mr. [Jamal] Khashoggi and has been a wrecking ball to the region jeopardizing our national security interests on multiple fronts, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in a statement accompanying the release of the resolution. It will be up to Saudi Arabia as to how to deal with this matter. But it is up to the United States to firmly stand for who we are and what we believe. The resolution put forward by Graham and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who are expected to lead the Judiciary Committee together next year, comes just one day after CIA Director Gina Haspel briefed leading senators about the details of the agencys assessment that Mohammed ordered and monitored the killing and dismemberment of Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. Senators emerged from that closed-door briefing furious not only with Saudi Arabia, but Trump as well for dismissing the heft of the CIAs findings. You have to be willfully blind not to come to the conclusion that this was orchestrated and organized by people under the command of MBS and that he was intricately involved in the demise of Mr. Khashoggi, Graham said following the briefing, referring to Mohammed by his initials. He added that Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo and Defense Secretary James N. Mattis, who briefed senators last week, were at best being good soldiers and at worst were in the pocket of Saudi Arabia for presenting the evidence of Mohammeds involvement as inconclusive. The release of the resolution condemning Mohammed also comes as the Senate is preparing to move ahead with debate on a resolution to curtail U.S. support for the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen. Though the Yemen resolution does not directly address Khashoggis murder, its popularity is a sign of how strained the United States patience with Saudi Arabia is on multiple fronts, including its role in worsening the civilian cost of the war in Yemen, cited by the United Nations as the worlds worst humanitarian crisis. Last week, the Senate voted 63 to 37 to advance the Yemen resolution past an opening procedural hurdle. But Graham and Feinsteins resolution on the crown prince has the potential of drawing broader support, especially from Republicans, who are deeply divided about how fiercely to punish Saudi Arabia over Khashoggis killing. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who has been an outspoken advocate for human rights and is seen as one of the more influential foreign policy voices in the GOP, did not vote for the Yemen resolution last week or sign on to a bipartisan measure last month to sanction Saudi officials and cease weapons transfers to the kingdom. But he is an original co-sponsor of the resolution condemning Mohammed over Khashoggis death. So is Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), who represents the other end of the GOP spectrum in terms of recent Saudi-related votes and endorsements. Young was an initial co-sponsor of the bill Graham wrote with Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) to sanction Saudi officials deemed responsible for Khashoggis killing and stop the sale of anything but exclusively defensive weapons to the kingdom until it ceased hostilities in Yemen. Young also voted to advance the Yemen resolution  something Graham did as well, though Graham has signaled he will not be lending any similar support to the measure, fearing it may establish a precedent of invoking the War Powers Act too broadly. Sens. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) are listed as original co-sponsors of the resolution condemning Mohammed, which also urges Saudi Arabia to negotiate with Houthi rebels to end the Yemen war, work out a political solution to its standoff with Qatar and release political prisoners. But how much sway the resolution has probably comes down to how forcefully the administration decides to heed it -- and thus far, Trump has not shown any interest in condemning the crown prince the way the senators hope he will. Demirjian reports for the Washington Post. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Los Angeles County offices and U.S. Postal Service closed Wednesday in honor of George H.W. Bush By Brian Park The Honor Guard carries the casket of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush following his funeral on Dec. 5 in Washington, DC. (Doug Mills - Pool/Getty Images) The U.S. Postal Service will suspend regular mail delivery Wednesday, which President Trump has declared a national day of mourning in honor of former President George H.W. Bush. All retail postal outlets will be closed, and package delivery will be limited. In Los Angeles, all nonessential county departments, offices and libraries will be closed for the day, L.A. County officials said. The Los Angeles County Library said no overdue fines will be assessed for books, and due dates will be moved forward one week. Los Angeles County Department of Public Health offices also are closed Wednesday. The Sheriffs Department, Fire Department, clinics and hospitals will continue to operate, the county said. The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health clinics are being operated with reduced staffing, and the department asked patients to confirm or reschedule any appointments. All county courts and the disaster recovery centers for the Woolsey fire in Malibu and Agoura Hills will remain open. Larger federal government operations will be closed Wednesday. To honor the life and legacy of President Bush, the Postal Service will observe the National Day of Mourning. Learn how Postal operations will be affected. https://t.co/Mffch7bPCh pic.twitter.com/vG46BsIOpm  U.S. Postal Service (@USPS) December 4, 2018 L.A. County offices and libraries will be closed tomorrow (Dec 5) in observance of the #NationalDayOfMourning for President George H. W. Bush.



The Countys Disaster Recovery Centers in Malibu & Agoura Hills will remain open from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. pic.twitter.com/Sv1J7GoJ7T  Los Angeles County (@CountyofLA) December 4, 2018 @LAPublicHealth offices will be closed tomorrow December 5 in observance of the national Day of Mourning for President George H. W. Bush. Essential Services including clinics and other services will remain open: https://t.co/tZGoGGHRlg pic.twitter.com/ypXsV6vlYY  LA Public Health (@lapublichealth) December 4, 2018 Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick to skip 2020 White House race, sources say By Associated Press Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick speaks during an interview in Boston on Dec. 15, 2014. (Elise Amendola / Associated Press) Former Gov. Deval Patrick of Massachusetts will soon announce he wont launch a 2020 presidential campaign, according to three sources familiar with his plans. They did not say why the Democrat decided against a run. A formal announcement was delayed as the country observed a day of mourning for President George H.W. Bush, one source said. News of Patricks plans was first reported by Politico. Patrick, 62, served two terms as governor, from 2007 to 2015, was assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Clinton administration and since leaving the governors office has been a managing director for Bain Capital. Patrick traveled the country in support of Democratic candidates in the recent midterm election. Earlier this year, some of Patricks supporters and close advisors started the Reason to Believe political action committee, a grassroots organization dedicated to advancing a positive, progressive vision for our nation in 2018 and 2020. Reason to Believe PAC had been holding meetups across the country, including in early presidential primary states. While Patrick is opting against a 2020 run, dozens of Democrats are considering jumping in, including nearly a half-dozen members of the Senate, several House members, and other Massachusetts politicians. On Tuesday, Michael Avenatti, the attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels and a vocal critic of President Trump, said in a statement that he would run. Patrick had previously expressed some concerns about breaking through if he sought the nomination, telling David Axelrod, a former advisor to President Obama, that he wasnt sure he could stand out in such a large field. Its hard to see how you even get noticed in such a big, broad field without being shrill, sensational or a celebrity, and Im none of those things and Im never going to be any of those things, Patrick said in a September interview with Axelrod. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Former Trump adviser Roger Stone invokes 5th Amendment right and wont testify before Senate Judiciary Committee By Associated Press Roger Stone in 2017. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images) Roger Stone, an associate of President Trump, says he wont provide testimony or documents to the Senate Judiciary Committee. An attorney for Stone said in a letter to Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the committees top Democrat, that Stone was invoking his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination in refusing to produce documents or appear for an interview. Stone has been entangled in investigations by Congress and special counsel Robert S. Mueller III about whether Trump aides had advance knowledge of Democratic emails published by WikiLeaks during the 2016 election. Stone has not been charged and has said he had no knowledge of the timing or specifics of WikiLeaks plans. In the letter to Feinstein, Stone said the committees requests were far too overbroad, far too overreaching and far too wide-ranging. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Watch live: Vice President Pence and lawmakers honor George H.W. Bush at the U.S. Capitol before he lies in state Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Rebuilding crumbling infrastructure has bipartisan support. But who gets to pay for it? By Jim Puzzanghera The grades for major U.S. infrastructure would give any parent indigestion if they were on a childs report card. Roads: D; bridges: C+; dams: D; ports: C+: railways: B; airports: D; schools: D+; public transit: D-. The nations overall grade: D+, which translates to being in fair to poor condition and mostly below standards with significant deterioration and a strong risk of failure, according to an evaluation last year by the American Society of Civil Engineers. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Trump calls former lawyer Michael Cohen a weak person who is lying By Associated Press President Trump says his former lawyer Michael Cohen is lying to get a reduced sentence. The president is reacting to Cohens guilty plea Thursday to lying to Congress about work he did on a Trump real estate project in Russia. During a surprise court hearing, Cohen admitted to lying in testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee about a plan to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. Cohen in his guilty plea said he made the false statements to be consistent with Trumps political message. Cohens lawyer says he continues to cooperate with special counsel Robert S. Mueller IIIs investigation into Russian election interference and possible coordination with Trump associates. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

As California Republicans confront a congressional wipeout, GOP leader Kevin McCarthy faces a reckoning By Mark Z. Barabak When the House voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Kevin McCarthy trooped with other Republican lawmakers to a splashy Rose Garden celebration, smiling alongside President Trump as they celebrated the moment. As majority leader, McCarthy had helped round up the votes to narrowly pass the hard-fought legislation, convincing 13 other California Republicans to go along, even though several faced tough reelection fights. Fewer than half will be returning in January. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

As California Republicans confront a congressional wipeout, GOP leader Kevin McCarthy faces a reckoning By Sarah D. Wire When the House voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Kevin McCarthy trooped with other Republican lawmakers to a splashy Rose Garden celebration, smiling alongside President Trump as they celebrated the moment. As majority leader, McCarthy had helped round up the votes to narrowly pass the hard-fought legislation, convincing 13 other California Republicans to go along, even though several faced tough reelection fights. Fewer than half will be returning in January. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Michael Cohen, President Trumps ex-lawyer, pleads guilty to lying to Congress about Trump real estate project in Russia By Associated Press Michael Cohen, President Trumps former personal lawyer, pursued a Russian real estate project on candidate Trumps behalf well into the 2016 campaign, he said Thursday while pleading guilty to lying to Congress. Cohen had previously said that the project was abandoned in January 2016, but he now admits he continued to pursue a deal and says he updated Trump and members of his family about the negotiations, according to a new court document. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

James Comey says acting Atty. Gen. Whitaker may not be the sharpest knife in our drawer By John Wagner Acting Atty. Gen. Matthew Whitaker speaks at the Justice Department in Washington on Nov. 14. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press) Former FBI Director James B. Comey apparently isnt too impressed with the mental prowess of President Trumps acting attorney general. Matthew Whitaker may not be the sharpest knife in our drawer, Comey said during a radio interview on Monday night in which he sized up the man Trump installed this month to replace ousted Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions. Comey was asked by WGBH News in Boston if he thinks Whitaker could derail the investigation of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. Whitaker has spoken critically of the probe, and Trump  as recently as Tuesday  continues to call it a witch hunt. I think its a worry, but to my mind not a serious worry, Comey said. The institution is too strong, and [Whitaker], frankly, is not strong enough to have that kind of impact. He may not be the sharpest knife in our drawer, but he can see his future and knows that if he acted in an extralegal way, he would go down in history for the wrong reasons, and Im sure he doesnt want that, added Comey, who was fired by Trump last year and later wrote a book that portrays the president as an ego-driven congenital liar. Whitaker, a former U.S. attorney in Iowa, was Sessions chief of staff before being picked by Trump to lead the Justice Department. Trump has called Whitaker a very smart man. Earlier this year, Trump called Comey an untruthful slime ball. Wagner writes for the Washington Post. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Interior Department watchdog clears Zinke in investigation of Utah national monument By Juliet Eilperin Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, third from the left, and Gov. Jerry Brown tour fire damage in Paradise, Calif., on Nov. 14. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press) The Interior Departments Office of Inspector General has cleared Secretary Ryan Zinke in a probe of whether he redrew boundaries of a national monument in Utah to aid the financial interests of a Republican state lawmaker and stalwart supporter of President Trump. In a Nov. 21 letter to Zinkes deputy, David Bernhardt, Deputy Inspector General Mary Kendall wrote that her office found no evidence that the secretary or his aides changed the boundaries of Utahs Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in an effort to help former Utah state representative Mike Noel, who serves as executive director of the Kane County Water Conservancy District. Last December, Trump shrank the monument, first established by President Clinton in 1996, by 46% based on Zinkes recommendation. Noel owns 40 acres that had been surrounded by the monument, but now lies outside its boundaries. The new boundaries also would make it easier to construct the proposed Lake Powell Pipeline, which would deliver water to sites in Kane County that include Noels property. Earlier this year, the Interior Department had proposed selling off 120 acres of federal land from the former monument that lay adjacent to some of Noels land holdings, but later reversed the plan. We found no evidence that Noel influenced the DOIs proposed revisions to the [monuments] boundaries, that Zinke or other DOI staff involved in the project were aware of Noels financial interest in the revised boundaries, or that they gave Noel any preferential treatment in the resulting proposed boundaries, Kendall wrote. Neither the Interior Department nor the inspector generals office would release the actual investigative report. In the letter, Kendall writes that her office will provide the report to Congress no sooner than 31 days from Nov. 21, when it is provided it to Zinkes office. The Associated Press first reported the inspector generals conclusions Monday night, but did not provide details from the report itself. Noel emailed Zinke about the effort to alter Grand Staircase-Escalante, according to emails released by Interior under the Freedom of Informational Act. But those emails do not make references to Noels land holdings. Noel also pushed to rename a Utah highway in honor of Trump, but abandoned that effort in March after some of his fellow Republicans objected to the idea. Noel did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday. The inspector generals office still has at least two ongoing probes of the secretary, including one focused on his real estate dealings in Whitefish, Mont., and another regarding his decision to deny a permit to two Connecticut tribes who were hoping to jointly run a casino after MGM Resorts International lobbied against it. Interior Department spokeswoman Heather Swift welcomed the watchdogs conclusions. The report shows exactly what the secretarys office has known all along  that the monument boundaries were adjusted in accordance with all rules, regulations and laws, she said in an email. This report is also the latest example of opponents and special interest groups ginning up fake and misleading stories, only to be proven false after expensive and time consuming inquiries by the IGs office. But Kendalls spokeswoman, Nancy DiPaolo, defended the inquiry, even though she said the report has not been publicly released and we will not be speaking specifically about the matter at this time. The OIG opens investigations based on credible allegations and reports our findings objectively and independently, DiPaolo added. Any time or resources spent investigating conduct or activity that may be a violation of law, regulation or policy is a service to the public, Congress and the Department. Rep. Raul Grijalva of Arizona, the top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, said in a statement that he still intended to investigate the way Zinke and his colleague redrew the boundaries for Grand Staircase-Escalante and another Utah national monument, Bears Ears, next year. I have great respect for the inspector general, and I accept these findings, but Secretary Zinke should have known the people he listened to while destroying our national monuments had disqualifying conflicts of interest, he said. Should I chair the Natural Resources Committee in the next Congress, the process he and President Trump used to destroy Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante will be front and center in our oversight and investigations efforts. We need to know why they ignored overwhelming public expressions of support for both Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, why they ignored Native American tribes throughout their decision-making, and why they removed protections on parcels of land with known mineral deposits. Eilperin and Rein report for the Washington Post. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Trump advisor Larry Kudlow says China must do more to end trade war By Jim Puzzanghera Larry Kudlow, President Trumps top economic advisor, said Tuesday that Chinas response to U.S. efforts to rework the two economic superpowers trade relationship has been extremely disappointing but the planned meeting this weekend between the nations leaders is an opportunity for a breakthrough. They have to do more. They must do more, Larry Kudlow, director of the White House National Economic Council, told reporters ahead of a Saturday dinner between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Group of 20 Summit in Argentina. I think the president is exactly right  to show strong backbone when prior administrations did not, to break through these Chinese walls, Kudlow said. Theyre so resistant to change. We have to protect the country. We have to protect our technology, our inventiveness, our innovation. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Watch live: White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders holds a media briefing amid tensions at the border By Los Angeles Times Staff Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Democrat TJ Cox grabs lead over Republican David Valadao in nations last remaining undecided House race By Maya Sweedler Democrat TJ Cox slipped past Republican incumbent David Valadao on Monday to take the lead in the countrys sole remaining undecided congressional race, positioning Democrats to pick up their seventh House seat in California and 40th nationwide. Cox, who trailed by nearly 4,400 votes on election night, has steadily gained as ballot counting continues nearly three weeks after the Nov. 6 election, a pattern consistent with the states recent voting history. On Monday, he pulled ahead by 438 votes after Kern County updated its results. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Former CIA director Michael Hayden hospitalized after suffering a stroke By Deanna Paul Then-CIA Director Michael Hayden testifies before a Senate committee in 2008. (Saul Loeb / Getty Images) Former CIA Director and retired Air Force Gen. Michael Hayden has been hospitalized after suffering a stroke, his family said Friday. He is receiving expert medical care for which the family is grateful, according to a statement issued by his namesake organization. The General and his family greatly appreciate the warm wishes and prayers of his friends, colleagues, and supporters. Hayden, 73, served as director of the CIA and National Security Agency during the George W. Bush and Obama administrations. He retired from the CIA in 2009. Hayden has been a vocal critic of Donald Trumps campaign and presidency. Earlier this year, after Trump decided to revoke the security clearance of former CIA director John Brennan, Hayden was one of several former intelligence leaders who signed a statement in opposition. Criticizing the president for crossing a line, he quickly became one of the individuals whose security clearance Trump threatened to review. Deanna Paul writes for the Washington Post. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Trump tells troops hes thankful for what hes done for the U.S. and rails against courts and migrants By Associated Press President Trump talks with troops via teleconference from his estate in Palm Beach, Fla., on Thanksgiving. (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) President Trump used his Thanksgiving Day call to troops deployed overseas to pat himself on the back and air grievances about the courts, trade and migrants heading to the U.S.-Mexico border. Trumps call, made from his opulent private Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., struck an unusually political tone as he spoke with members of all five branches of the military to wish them happy holidays. Its a disgrace, Trump said of judges who have blocked his attempts to overhaul U.S. immigration law, as he linked his efforts to secure the border with military missions overseas. Trump later threatened to close the U.S. border with Mexico for an undisclosed period of time if his administration determines Mexico has lost control on its side. The call was a uniquely Trump blend of boasting, peppered questions and off-the-cuff observations as his comments veered from venting about slights to praising troops  You really are our heroes, he said  as club waiters worked to set Thanksgiving dinner tables on the outdoor terrace behind him. It was yet another show of how Trump has dramatically transformed the presidency, erasing the traditional divisions between domestic policy and military matters and efforts to keep the troops clear of politics. You probably see over the news whats happening on our southern border, Trump told one Air Force brigadier general stationed at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, adding: I dont have to even ask you. I know what you want to do, you want to make sure that you know who were letting in. Later, Trump asked a U.S. Coast Guard commander about trade, which he noted was a very big subject for him personally. Weve been taken advantage of for many, many years by bad trade deals, Trump told the commander, who sheepishly replied, Mr. President, from our perspective on the water  we dont see any issues in terms of trade right now. And throughout, Trump congratulated himself, telling the officers that the country is doing exceptionally well on his watch. I hope that youll take solace in knowing that all of the American families you hold so close to your heart are all doing well, he said. The nations doing well economically, better than anybody in the world. He later told reporters, Nobodys done more for the military than me. Indeed, asked what he was thankful for this Thanksgiving, Trump cited his great family as well as himself. I made a tremendous difference in this country, he said. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Trump contradicts CIA assessment that Saudi crown prince ordered Jamal Khashoggi killing By Josh Dawsey | Washington Post (Susan Walsh / Associated Press) President Trump on Thursday contradicted the CIAs assessment that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had ordered the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, insisting that the agency had feelings but did not firmly place blame for the death. Trump, in defiant remarks to reporters from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, defended his continued support for Mohammed in the face of a CIA assessment that the crown prince had ordered the killing. He denies it vehemently, Trump said. He said his own conclusion was that maybe he did, maybe he didnt. I hate the crime .... I hate the cover-up. I will tell you this: The crown prince hates it more than I do, Trump said. Asked who should be held accountable for the death of Khashoggi, who was killed at the Saudi Consulate in Turkey, Trump refused to place blame. Maybe the world should be held accountable because the world is a very, very vicious place, the president said. He also seemed to suggest that all U.S. allies were guilty of the same behavior, declaring that if the others were held to the standard that critics have held Saudi Arabia to in recent days, we wouldnt be able to have anyone for an ally. Trumps remarks came after he held a conference call with U.S. military officers overseas, during which he repeatedly praised his administration and sought to draw the officers into discussions of domestic policy. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Former FBI Director James Comey gets subpoena from House Republicans By Bloomberg Former FBI Director James B. Comey said he has received a subpoena from House Republicans, according to a Twitter post on Thursday. Bloomberg News reported last week that Comey would be receiving a subpoena alongside former Atty. Gen. Loretta Lynch as part of continuing probes into their handling of investigations into Hillary Clinton and Russian election meddling, according to a top House Democrat. Happy Thanksgiving. Got a subpoena from House Republicans. Im still happy to sit in the light and answer all questions. But I will resist a closed door thing because Ive seen enough of their selective leaking and distortion. Lets have a hearing and invite everyone to see.  James Comey (@Comey) November 22, 2018 Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Republican David Valadaos lead slips to 447 votes over Democrat TJ Cox in still-undecided Central Valley House race By Mark Z. Barabak Rep. David Valadao (R-Hanford), right, finds himself in an increasingly harrowing cliffhanger against Democrat TJ Cox. (Bill Clark / CQ Roll Call) On election night, it looked like Rep. David Valadao had survived a close shave and was destined to return to Washington for his fourth term. But on Wednesday, when Fresno County announced its latest vote totals, the Hanford Republican found himself in an increasingly harrowing cliffhanger against Democrat TJ Cox, with his lead in the Central Valley district shrunken to 447 votes. Thousands remain to be counted. Valadao, a repeated Democratic target, finished election night with a lead of nearly 4,440 votes. Cox, an engineer and a business owner who unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 2006, has steadily gained ground in the 21st Congressional District ever since. The trend is consistent with historic patterns showing Republicans in California tend to vote early and Democrats later, meaning their mail ballots continue to stream in past election day. Under California law, ballots postmarked up to midnight on Nov. 6 will be counted. Democrats have already picked up six House seats in California. They ousted Reps. Dana Rohrabacher, Mimi Walters, Steve Knight and Jeff Denham and won the seats of retiring Reps. Ed Royce and Darrell Issa. All six represented districts that backed Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump in 2016. Valadao was the seventh California Republican in a district Clinton won, though his previous successes  he last won reelection by a 14-point margin  suggested his ouster was a longer shot for Democrats. If Cox prevails, it would give Democrats a 40-seat gain nationwide, far more than the 23 seats needed to take control when Congress reconvenes in January. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Trump says no new punishments against Saudi Arabia in Jamal Khashoggi murder By Eli Stokols In this Oct. 25 photo, candles are lit in front of a photo of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. (Lefteris Pitarakis) President Trump made it clear on Tuesday that he does not intend to punish Saudi Arabia or Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi, an American resident killed by Saudi officials in Turkey in October. In a remarkable statement replete with exclamation points, Trump cast doubt on the CIAs reported conclusions that it has a high degree of confidence that the crown prince ordered Khashoggis murder and sent his closest allies to Saudi Arabias consulate in Istanbul to carry it out. Read MoreThis article has been updated with staff. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Sixteen House Democrats vow to oppose Nancy Pelosi as next speaker By Mike DeBonis | Washington Post House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press) Sixteen House Democrats said Monday that they will vote to deny Rep. Nancy Pelosi another stint as House speaker, a show of defiance that puts her opponents on the cusp of forcing a seismic leadership shake-up as their party prepares to take the majority. Their pledge to oppose Pelosi (D-San Francisco), both in an internal caucus election and a Jan. 3 floor vote, delivered in a letter sent to Democratic colleagues, comes as Pelosi has marshaled a legion of supporters on and off Capitol Hill to make her case. But her opponents said Monday they are convinced it is time to select a new leader. We are thankful to Leader Pelosi for her years of service to our Country and to our Caucus, they wrote. However, we also recognize that in this recent election, Democrats ran on and won on a message of change. Pelosi has expressed complete confidence that she will retake the speakers gavel in January  eight years after she lost it following massive Republican gains in the 2010 midterms and 16 years after she was first elevated to the top Democratic leadership post in the House. Come on in, the waters fine, she said Friday about a potential leadership challenge. The signers might not be able to force Pelosi out themselves. The size of the Democratic majority remains in flux, but Democrats have already won 232 seats, according to the Associated Press, with five races still undecided. All those races have Republican incumbents, but the Democratic challenger is ahead in only one of them. If the leads hold in the uncalled races, Democrats would have won 233 seats, a 16-seat majority. That means Pelosi could lose as many as 15 Democratic votes when she stands for election as speaker on Jan. 3. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Democratic senators sue over Whitakers appointment as acting attorney general By Associated Press Acting U.S. Atty. Gen. Matthew Whitaker (Nicholas Kamm / AFP/Getty Images) Three Senate Democrats filed a lawsuit Monday arguing that Acting Atty. Gen. Matthew Whitakers appointment is unconstitutional and asking a federal judge to remove him. The suit, filed by Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, argues that Whitakers appointment violates the Constitution because he has not been confirmed by the Senate. Whitaker was chief of staff to Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions and was elevated to the top job after Sessions was ousted by President Trump on Nov. 7. The Constitutions Appointments Clause requires that the Senate confirm all principal officials before they can serve in their office. The Justice Department released a legal opinion last week that said Whitakers appointment would not violate the clause because he is serving in an acting capacity. The opinion concluded that Whitaker, even without Senate confirmation, may serve in an acting capacity because he has been at the department for more than a year at a sufficiently senior pay level. President Trump is denying senators our constitutional obligation and opportunity to do our job: scrutinizing the nomination of our nations top law enforcement official, Blumenthal said in a statement. The reason is simple: Whitaker would never pass the advice and consent test. In selecting a so-called constitutional nobody and thwarting every senators constitutional duty, Trump leaves us no choice but to seek recourse through the courts. The lawsuit comes days after a Washington lawyer challenged Whitakers appointment in a pending Supreme Court case dealing with gun rights. The attorney, Thomas Goldstein, asked the high court to find that Whitakers appointment is unconstitutional and replace him with Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein. Rosenstein, the second-ranking Justice Department official, has been confirmed by the Senate and had been overseeing special counsel Robert Muellers Russia investigation. Whitaker is now overseeing the investigation. The Justice Department issued a statement Monday defending Whitakers appointment as lawful and said it comports with the Appointments Clause, the Federal Vacancies Reform Act and legal precedent. There are over 160 instances in American history in which non-Senate confirmed persons performed, on a temporary basis, the duties of a Senate-confirmed position, Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said. To suggest otherwise is to ignore centuries of practice and precedent. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Gov. Rick Scott says Sen. Bill Nelson concedes Florida Senate race By Associated Press Republican Senate candidate Rick Scott speaks with his wife, Ann, by his side at an election watch party in Naples, Fla., on Nov. 7. (Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press) Floridas Republican Gov. Rick Scott says incumbent Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson called him to concede defeat in their extremely tight race. Scott issued a statement Sunday saying Nelson graciously conceded their Senate race shortly after the states recount ended. The final results show Scott defeated Nelson by just over 10,000 votes out of 8 million cast. Nelson is scheduled to release a videotaped statement later Sunday. The defeat ends Nelsons lengthy political career. The three-term incumbent was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000. Before that he served six terms in the U.S. House and as state treasurer and insurance commissioner for six years. Scott spent more than $60 million of his own money on ads that portrayed Nelson as out-of-touch and ineffective. Nelson responded by questioning Scotts ethics and saying he would be under the sway of President Trump. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Orange County goes blue, as Democrats complete historic sweep of its seven congressional seats By Michael Finnegan Gil Cisneros defeated Republican Young Kim on Saturday in the last of Orange Countys undecided House races, giving Democrats a clean sweep of the states six most fiercely fought congressional contests and marking an epochal shift in a region long synonymous with political conservatism. With Cisneros victory, Democrats will constitute the entirety of Orange Countys seven-member congressional delegation, the first time since the 1930s that the birthplace of Richard Nixon, home of John Wayne and spiritual center of the Republican Party will have no GOP representative in the House. Sitting back in the 1960s, I would never have believed this would happen, said Stuart K. Spencer, a party strategist who spent more than half a century ushering Republicans, including President Reagan, into office. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Going, going ... with midterm wipeout, California Republican Party drifts closer to irrelevance By Michael Finnegan For a party in freefall the last two decades, California Republicans learned that its possible to plunge even further. The GOP not only lost every statewide office in the midterm election  again, in blowout fashion  but Democrats reestablished their supermajority in Sacramento, allowing them to legislate however they see fit After major defeats in Orange County and the Central Valley, two longtime strongholds, Republicans will have a significantly smaller footprint on Capitol Hill. (Democrats hold both Senate seats.) When the vote-counting is finished, the GOP may not even have enough lawmakers in Californias 53-member House delegation to field a nine-person softball team. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Congresswoman-elect Katie Porter says she will support Rep. Nancy Pelosi for speaker By Maya Sweedler Democratic Rep.-elect Katie Porter is congratulated by volunteers at her campaign headquarters in Irvine. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) Congresswoman-elect Katie Porter said she plans to support Rep. Nancy Pelosis bid for speaker of the House and will make campaign finance reform her top priority when she enters the chamber in January. Im going to continue to have conversations, but so far I feel like Leader Pelosi is definitely making the things that were a priority to the families that elected me her priorities, including announcing her support for campaign finance reform and anti-corruption as HR1, Porter said in her first public appearance since being declared the winner in Californias 45th Congressional District on Thursday evening. It means a lot to me that she is a Californian. She understands our state, Porter added. When we talk about environmental protections, this is a person who understands as a Californian how fragile our environment is and whats at risk in things like drilling off our coasts. Porter, a law professor at UC Irvine, defeated two-term Republican Rep. Mimi Walters. The 45th District, covering inland Orange County, has never been represented by a Democrat. Porter became the third Democrat to claim a Republican-held seat in Orange County, following the victories of Harley Rouda in the 48th District and Mike Levin in the 49th. A fourth, Gil Cisneros, is running slightly ahead of his Republican opponent in the race for the open seat in the 39th District, which extends into Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Porter attributed the massive political shift in the county, for decades a conservative stronghold, to increased levels of political engagement. Folks here care about education, they care about the environment, they believe climate change is real, they want healthcare that protects preexisting conditions, they want a tax system that doesnt punish California, they want our schools and places of worship to be safe from gun violence, she said. Those are the issues we campaigned on, and to the extent that Donald Trump and Mimi Walters were on the wrong side of those issues, the voters have made clear what direction they want us to go. Porter was flying back from the East Coast when her race was called, she said. She turned on her phone to find 167 text messages from friends and supporters. Among them was Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who was one of Porters teachers in law school and with whom she has remained close. The pair spoke via FaceTime this morning, she said. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Bitter battle for Senate seat in Florida goes to hand recount By Associated Press Employees look through damaged ballots during a recount Thursday in West Palm Beach, Fla. (Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press) Floridas acrimonious battle for the U.S. Senate headed Thursday to a legally required hand recount after an initial review by ballot-counting machines showed Republican Gov. Rick Scott and Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson separated by less than 13,000 votes. But the highly watched contest for governor between Republican Ron DeSantis and Democrat Andrew Gillum appeared to be over, with a machine recount showing DeSantis with a large enough advantage over Gillum to avoid a hand recount in that race. Gillum, who conceded the contest on election night only to retract his concession later, said in a statement that it is not over until every legally casted vote is counted. The recount so far has been fraught with problems. One large Democratic stronghold in South Florida was unable to finish its machine recount by the Thursday deadline due to machines breaking down. A federal judge rejected a request to extend the recount deadline. We gave a heroic effort, said Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher. If the county had three or four more hours, it would have made the deadline to recount ballots in the Senate race, she said. Meanwhile, election officials in another urban county in the Tampa Bay area decided against turning in the results of their machine recount, which came up with 846 fewer votes than originally counted. Media in South Florida reported that Broward County finished its machine recount but missed the deadline by a few minutes. Counties were ordered last weekend to do a machine recount of three statewide races because the margins were so tight. The next stage is a manual review of ballots that were not counted by machines to see whether there is a way to figure out voter intent. Scott called on Nelson to end the recount battle. Its time for Nelson to respect the will of the voters and graciously bring this process to an end rather than proceed with yet another count of the votes  which will yield the same result and bring more embarrassment to the state that we both love and have served, the governor said in a statement. The recount has triggered multiple lawsuits, many of them filed by Nelson and Democrats. The legal battles drew the ire of U.S. District Judge Mark E. Walker, who slammed the state for repeatedly failing to anticipate election problems. He also said the state law on recounts appears to violate the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that decided the presidency in 2000. We have been the laughingstock of the world, election after election, and we chose not to fix this, Walker said during a morning hearing. Walker vented his anger at state lawmakers and Palm Beach County officials, saying they should have made sure they had enough equipment in place to handle this kind of a recount. But he said he could not extend the recount deadline because he did not know when Palm Beach County would finish its work. This court must be able to craft a remedy with knowledge that it will not prove futile, Walker wrote in his ruling turning down the request from Democrats. It cannot do so on this record. This court does not and will not fashion a remedy in the dark. The overarching problem was created by the Florida Legislature, which Walker said passed a recount law that appears to run afoul of the 2000 Bush vs. Gore decision by locking in procedures that do not allow for potential problems. A total of six election-related lawsuits are pending in federal court in Tallahassee as well at least one lawsuit filed in state court. Walker also ordered that voters be given until 5 p.m. Saturday to show a valid identification and fix their ballots if they have not been counted due to mismatched signatures. Republicans appealed the ruling, but an appeals court turned down the request. State officials testified that nearly 4,000 mailed-in ballots were set aside because local officials decided the signatures on the envelopes did not match the signatures on file. If those voters can prove their identity, their votes will be counted and included in final official returns due from each county by noon Sunday. Walker was asked by Democrats to require local officials to provide a list of people whose ballots were rejected. But the judge appointed by President Obama refused the request, calling it inappropriate. Under state law, a hand review is required with races that have a margin of 0.25 percentage points or less. A state website put the unofficial results showing Scott ahead of Nelson by 0.15 percentage points. The margin between DeSantis and Gillum was at 0.41 points. The margin between Scott and Nelson had not changed much in the last few days, conceded Marc Elias, an attorney working for Nelsons campaign. But he said that he expected the vote tally to shrink due to the hand recount and the ruling on signatures. The developments fueled frustrations among Democrats and Republicans alike. Democrats want state officials to do whatever it takes to make sure every eligible vote is counted. Republicans, including President Trump, have argued without evidence that voter fraud threatens to steal races from the GOP. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Democrat Gil Cisneros pulls ahead of Republican Young Kim as more votes are tallied in Orange and San Bernardino counties By Michael Finnegan Congressional candidate Gil Cisneros (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Democrat Gil Cisneros pulled ahead of Republican Young Kim in one of Californias undecided congressional races Thursday, an ominous sign for a GOP already reeling from its loss of four House seats in the state. In updated vote counts released by the registrars for Orange and San Bernardino counties, Kim fell 941 votes behind Cisneros in the contest to succeed Republican Rep. Ed Royce in Californias 39th Congressional District. The 39th straddles Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Orange counties. In another unresolved House race, Democrat Katie Porter pulled further ahead of Republican incumbent Mimi Walters in the 45th District, which includes Mission Viejo, Tustin, Irvine, Rancho Santa Margarita and Laguna Hills. Porter, a consumer attorney and UC Irvine law professor, is now 6,203 votes ahead. The Nov. 6 midterm election has been devastating to Republicans in California. If Cisneros and Porter win, the party will have lost six of its 14 House seats in the state, essentially a wipeout in every contest that both parties spent heavily to win. The three Republicans already bounced from Congress are Reps. Dana Rohrabacher of Costa Mesa, Steve Knight of Palmdale and Jeff Denham of Turlock in the San Joaquin Valley. Democrat Mike Levin won the seat of retiring GOP Rep. Darrell Issa of Vista in the fourth district flipped so far. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Florida Senate race likely headed to second recount By Associated Press A Palm Beach County Sheriffs deputy walks past boxes of ballots before a recount on Nov. 15 in West Palm Beach, Fla. (Wilfredo Lee) Unofficial Florida election results show that the governors race seems to be settled after a machine recount but the U.S. Senate race is likely headed to a hand recount. Republican Ron DeSantis is virtually assured of winning the nationally watched governors race over Democrat Andrew Gillum. Florida finished a machine recount Thursday that showed Gillum without enough votes to force a manual recount. Unofficial results posted on a state website show the margin between U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and Gov. Rick Scott is still thin enough to trigger a second review. State law requires a hand recount of races with a margin of 0.25 percentage point or less. Counties have until Sunday to inspect the ballots that did not record a vote when put through the machines. Those ballots are re-examined to see whether the voter skipped the race or marked the ballot in a way that the machines cannot read but can be deciphered. The election will be certified Tuesday. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Pelosi says she has the votes to become the next House speaker By John Wagner Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi speaks during a news conference in Washington on Nov. 14. (Susan Walsh) House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi insisted Thursday that she has the votes to become the chambers speaker despite solid opposition from more than a dozen Democrats who want fresh leadership when the party takes control next year. I have overwhelming support in my caucus to be speaker of the House, the San Francisco lawmaker told reporters. I happen to think at this point, Im the best person for that. A vote within the Democratic caucus is scheduled for Nov. 28. The full House votes on Jan. 3 to elect a new speaker. During her remarks, Pelosi touted the size of the Democratic victory in the midterms, which she called almost a tsunami. With a few races still to be decided, Democrats are poised to pick up close to 40 seats in the chamber. Pelosi called that the biggest victory for the Democrats since 1974, when the Watergate babies came in. Pelosis comments come as she faces solid opposition from at least 17 Democrats, setting the stage for a battle over who will ascend to one of the most powerful positions in Washington. After a campaign in which some Democrats prevailed in competitive districts by promising to oppose her, a coalition of incumbents and newly elected members has denied her a smooth path to the speakership. The defections, if they stand, would leave Pelosi, who has led the Democrats for more than 15 years, several votes short of the 218 she would need when the full House votes for speaker Jan. 3. However, no Democrat has stepped forward to run against her for a job she held from 2007 through 2010. Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) told reporters Wednesday that shes being encouraged to stand for speaker if Pelosi doesnt have the votes. In an interview with the Washington Post on Thursday, she said she has been overwhelmed by the support from many of her colleagues for her possible entry into the race for House speaker. Over the last 12 hours, Ive been overwhelmed by the amount of support Ive received, Fudge said, adding that there are probably closer to 30" Democrats who have privately signaled that they are willing to oppose Pelosi. Things could change rapidly, Fudge said. Fudge, 66, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, said she is building a diverse coalition as she mulls a speaker run, talking with allies in the caucus, moderate Democrats and newly elected members. To this point, Pelosi has enjoyed the strong backing of the Congressional Black Caucus. On Thursday, Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.), one of its members, wrote a letter to colleagues praising her insight, fortitude and strategic thinking and urging support for her speakership bid. Former Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr., an African American who is contemplating a 2020 presidential bid, also voiced support for Pelosi, praising her in a tweet as an architect of the recent midterm success. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), a leader of the resistance to Pelosi, said during an interview on CNN on Thursday that Fudge is the kind of new leader that we need in this party. Shes in touch with middle America. She understands what the American people want. Shes a next-generation leader that people will look to and say, Thats the future of our party, thats the future of our country, and thats exactly the kind of leader that I want to see as our next speaker. Wagner reports for the Washington Post. The Posts Robert Costa, Erica Werner, Mike DeBonis, Paul Kane and Elise Viebeck contributed to this report. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

GOP Rep. Jeff Denham concedes to Democrat Josh Harder in Central Valley race By Maya Sweedler Rep. Jeff Denham (Bill Clark / CQ Roll Call) Republican Rep. Jeff Denham has conceded to Democrat Josh Harder in the race to represent Californias 10th Congressional District in the San Joaquin Valley. It has been an absolute honor to serve our community and represent the Central Valley in Congress over the past eight years, the 51-year-old congressman said. The enormity of the responsibility was never lost on me. My wife Sonia and I look forward to starting the next chapter of our lives. Harder said he had spoken with Denham and the two were committed to a productive transition. Denham, an Air Force veteran, previously represented the region in the state Senate for eight years and founded a company specializing in plastic packaging used in agriculture. While a member of Congress, he sat on the Transportation and Infrastructure, Veterans Affairs and Agriculture committees. First-time candidate Harder was born and raised in the district. After graduating from Stanford University, he served as vice president of a Silicon Valley venture capital firm. Since moving back, he has been teaching at Modesto Junior College. Denhams House seat is one of four in California that Republicans lost in the Nov. 6 election, with two contests in Orange County still undecided as of Thursday morning. Jeff Denham called me this morning and we had a very productive conversation. I'm honored that I've been chosen to serve our community in Congress, and we're both looking forward to a productive transition that best serves the people of District 10.  Josh Harder (@JoshHarder) November 14, 2018 Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Democrat Katie Porter now nearly 3,800 votes ahead of GOP Rep. Mimi Walters By Maya Sweedler Rep. Mimi Walters thanks all of her supporters as she watches election results in Irvine on Nov. 7, 2018. (Alex Gallardo / Associated Press) Democrat Katie Porter opened a 3,797-vote lead Wednesday over Republican Rep. Mimi Walters in Orange Countys 45th Congressional District. In the neighboring 39th, Democrat Gil Cisneros has nearly tied the race against Republican Young Kim. Cisneros now trails Kim by a razor-thin margin of 122 votes. The 39th District straddles Los Angeles, Orange and San Bernardino counties; Wednesdays updated ballot counts came from the latter two. There are more than 202,000 ballots left to count in Orange County, which includes parts of seven congressional districts. The 45th is entirely in inland Orange County. In California, the ballots counted first tend to lean Republican and those tallied later skew Democratic. In the Central Valleys 21st Congressional District, Democratic challenger TJ Cox has pulled within 2 percentage points of Rep. David Valadao, who is serving his third term. The Associated Press had projected a win for Valadao on election night, but his 4,839-vote advantage has shrunk to 2,090. Back in CA-21, Valadao (R) wins a batch of ballots from his stronghold in Kings Co., but by a considerably smaller margin (14 points) than his previous ~30-point margin in the county. We're moving to Lean R from Likely R; today a bit scary for Valadao.https://t.co/WqJVUVkqGW  Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) November 15, 2018 A spokesman for Valadao told the Fresno Bee that the changes were expected and that [s]tatistically, David Valadao has won this race. Democrats in California have already flipped four House seats, defeating three Republican incumbents and claiming an open seat previously held by the GOP. Reps. Steve Knight of Palmdale, Dana Rohrabacher of Costa Mesa and Jeff Denham of Turlock have already lost their races, and retiring Rep. Darrell Issas San Diego County seat was claimed by Democrat Mike Levin. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Trump aide departs West Wing after rebuke from Melania Trump By Associated Press First Lady Melania Trump. (Alain Jocard / AFP-Getty Images) Deputy national security advisor Mira Ricardel is leaving the White House, one day after First Lady Melania Trumps office issued an extraordinary statement calling for her dismissal. No replacement was named. Aides said Ricardel clashed with the first ladys staff over her visit to Africa last month. Yet it is highly unusual for a first lady or her office to weigh in on personnel matters, especially the presidents national security staff. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Ricardel would have a new role in the administration. On Tuesday, Stephanie Grisham, the first ladys spokeswoman, released a statement saying, It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House. President Trumps White House has set records for administration turnover. Ricardel was the third person to hold the post under Trump. An ally of national security advisor John Bolton, Ricardel began her service in the Trump administration as associate director in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel, then moved to the Commerce Department last year. Bolton brought her into the West Wing shortly after taking the job in April. He is traveling in Asia this week alongside Vice President Mike Pence. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Race for House Minority Leader is Kevin McCarthys to lose By Associated Press (Bill Clark / CQ Roll Call) House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy is running to take over next years shrunken caucus in closed-door elections that will set the tone for the new Congress. The race for minority leader is McCarthys to lose Wednesday. But the California Republican, who is an ally of President Trump, must fend off a challenge from conservative Jim Jordan of Ohio. Jordan is a leader of the House Freedom Caucus. The two encountered questions and finger-pointing during a private meeting with lawmakers Tuesday night as the GOP sorted through the midterm defeat that put Democrats in the majority next year. Elections Wednesday will also determine party leadership in the Senate. Voting for the biggest race, Nancy Pelosis bid to return as the Democrats nominee for speaker, is later this month. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Melania Trump calls for the firing of deputy national security advisor By Justin Sink First Lady Melania Trump arrives at the Chateau de Versailles outside Paris on Nov. 11. (Alain Jocard / AFP/Getty Images ) First Lady Melania Trumps office said she wants Mira Ricardel, the deputy national security advisor, ousted from the White House. It is the position of the Office of the First Lady that she no longer deserves the honor of serving in this White House, Trumps spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, said in a statement in response to a question about reports the first lady had sought Ricardels removal. Ricardel is the top deputy to national security advisor John Bolton. She drew the first ladys wrath after threatening to withhold National Security Council resources during Melania Trumps trip to Africa last month unless Ricardel was included in her entourage, one person familiar with the matter said. Grishams statement comes as several media outlets have reported that President Trump is considering a broader shakeup of his administration, including ousting Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. Sink and Jacobs report for Bloomberg. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

CNN sues Trump over the suspension of Jim Acostas White House press credentials By Jim Puzzanghera CNN said Tuesday that it is suing President Trump and other administration officials over the decision to suspend the White House press credentials of correspondent Jim Acosta after a conflict at a news conference last week. The suit, to be filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, escalates an ongoing battle between Trump and the cable news outlet that he frequently accuses of disseminating fake news for its aggressive coverage of him and his administration. The wrongful revocation of these credentials violates CNN and Acostas 1st Amendment rights of freedom of the press, and their 5th Amendment rights to due process, CNN said in a written statement. If left unchallenged, the actions of the White House would create a dangerous chilling effect for any journalist who covers our elected officials. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Maxine Waters to take aim at Wells Fargo and Deutsche Bank as new head of House Financial Services Committee By Jim Puzzanghera Rep. Maxine Waters plans to zero in on two big banks  Wells Fargo & Co. and Deutsche Bank  when she becomes head of the powerful House Financial Services Committee. The Los Angeles congresswoman, now the committees top Democrat, is widely expected to gain the gavel after her party won control of the House in last weeks elections. While Waters has outlined a wide-ranging agenda, she said her focus on bank oversight will target two large institutions she has been tangling with for a while  including one, Deutsche Bank, that spills into her bitter feud with President Trump. With Trump in the White House, I know that our fight for Americas consumers and investors will continue to be challenging. But I am more than up to that fight, Waters wrote in a letter last week to her Democratic colleagues on the committee that was obtained by The Times. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Heres how a controversial voting system will decide a congressional race in Maine By Kurtis Lee For the first time in U.S. history, a controversial voting system known as ranked choice is being used to decide a federal election. Its happening in Maine, which adopted the system in 2016. Rather than marking a single candidate, each voter ranks them all, assigning a first-place vote, a second-place vote and so on down the ballot. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

ACLU files suit to stop Trumps new asylum limits By Associated Press A group of Central American migrants march to the office of the U.N.'s humans rights body in Mexico City on Nov. 8. (Rebecca Blackwell / Associated Press) The American Civil Liberties Union has filed a legal challenge to President Trumps order denying asylum to migrants if they cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. The lawsuit was filed Friday in federal court in San Francisco and argues the new rules are against the law. Attorney Lee Gelernt said the regulations will put families in danger. The suit seeks to declare the regulations invalid and wants a judge to stop the rules from going into effect while the litigation is pending. The new rules were spurred in part by caravans of Central American migrants slowly moving north on foot, but officials say they will apply to anyone caught crossing illegally. Officials say about 70,000 people who enter the country illegally claim asylum. The order invoked the same national security powers Trump used to push through his travel ban. Read More Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Trump on new acting AG: I dont know Matt Whitaker By Associated Press President Trump talks with reporters before departing for France on the South Lawn of the White House on Nov. 9. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press) President Trump is moving to distance himself from Matthew Whitaker as he faces criticism over his choice for acting attorney general. Trump told reporters Friday that I dont know Matt Whitaker and said he didnt speak with Whitaker about special counsel Robert Muellers Russia investigation. Whitaker has made public comments critical of Muellers investigation, and critics have called on Whitaker to recuse himself from oversight of the inquiry. Under former Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions, the investigation was overseen by Deputy Atty. Gen. Rod Rosenstein. Of the scrutiny Whitaker is facing, Trump said: Its a shame that no matter who I put in they go after. He also called Whitaker a very highly respected man. Whitaker was Sessions chief of staff before Trump made him Sessions interim replacement. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg out of hospital after fall By Associated Press The Supreme Court says 85-year-old Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is home after being released from the hospital. She had been admitted for treatment and observation after fracturing three ribs in a fall. The court said Ginsburg was released Friday. Supreme Court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg says she is doing well and working from home. The court had previously said the justice fell in her office at the court on Wednesday evening and went to George Washington University Hospital in Washington early Thursday after experiencing discomfort overnight. Ginsburg broke two ribs in a fall in 2012. She had two prior bouts with cancer and had a stent implanted to open a blocked artery in 2014. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Gun-control activist Lucy McBath defeats GOP Rep. Karen Handel in Georgia By Associated Press Lucy McBath speaks during a rally for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams on Nov. 2 at Morehouse College in Atlanta. (Alyssa Pointer / Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP) Democratic gun-control activist Lucy McBath has defeated Republican Rep. Karen Handel of Georgia in a suburban congressional district long considered safe for the GOP. Handel had to seek reelection after winning her seat last year in a close special election race against Democrat Jon Ossoff. McBath became an advocate for stricter gun laws after her son, Jordan Davis, was fatally shot at a Florida gas station in 2012 by a man angry over loud music the teenager and his friends were playing in a car. McBaths margin of victory was narrow enough for Handel to have requested a recount. The Associated Press declared McBath the winner Thursday after Handel conceded. Handel conceded in a statement Thursday morning, stating that after reviewing all of the election data, its clear she came up a bit short in Tuesdays vote. Handel congratulated McBath, offering good thoughts and much prayer for the journey that lies ahead for her. McBath, who is African American, declared victory Wednesday. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg hospitalized after fracturing 3 ribs in fall By Associated Press Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press) The Supreme Court says 85-year-old Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg fractured three ribs in a fall in her office at the court and is in the hospital. The court says the justice went to George Washington University Hospital in Washington early Thursday after experiencing discomfort overnight. The court says the fall occurred Wednesday evening. Ginsburg was admitted to the hospital for treatment and observation after tests showed she fractured three ribs. Ginsburg broke two ribs in a fall in 2012. She has had two prior bouts with cancer and had a stent implanted to open a blocked artery in 2014. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

White House suspends press pass of CNNs Jim Acosta after heated exchange with Trump By Associated Press The White House on Wednesday suspended the press pass of CNN correspondent Jim Acosta after he and President Trump had a heated confrontation during a news conference. They began sparring after Acosta asked Trump about the caravan of migrants heading from Latin America to the southern U.S. border. When Acosta tried to follow up with another question, Trump said, Thats enough! and a female White House aide unsuccessfully tried to grab the microphone from Acosta. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders released a statement accusing Acosta of placing his hands on a young woman just trying to do her job as a White House intern, calling it absolutely unacceptable. The interaction between Acosta and the intern was brief, and Acosta appeared to brush her arm as she reached for the microphone and he tried to hold onto it. Pardon me, maam, he told her. Acosta tweeted that Sanders statement that he put his hands on the aide was a lie. CNN said in a statement that the White House revoked Acostas press pass in retaliation for his challenging questions Wednesday, and the network accused Sanders of lying about Acostas actions. This conduct is absolutely unacceptable. It is also completely disrespectful to the reporters colleagues not to allow them an opportunity to ask a question. President Trump has given the press more access than any President in history.  Stephanie Grisham (@PressSec) November 8, 2018 Contrary to CNNs assertions there is no greater demonstration of the Presidents support for a free press than the event he held today. Only they would attack the President for not supporting a free press in the midst of him taking 68 questions from 35 different reporters...  Stephanie Grisham (@PressSec) November 8, 2018 As a result of todays incident, the White House is suspending the hard pass of the reporter involved until further notice.  Stephanie Grisham (@PressSec) November 8, 2018 Sanders provided fraudulent accusations and cited an incident that never happened. This unprecedented decision is a threat to our democracy and the country deserves better, CNN said. Jim Acosta has our full support. Journalists assigned to cover the White House apply for passes that allow them daily access to press areas in the West Wing. White House staffers decide whether journalists are eligible, though the Secret Service determines whether their applications are approved. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Trump spars with reporters at post-election news briefing, ordering several to sit down By Associated Press  President Trump assails CNNs Jim Acosta at a White House news conference. President Trump sparred with reporters at his post-election news conference, ordering several to sit down and telling another hes a rude, terrible person. He told another reporter hes not a fan of yours, either. The presidents mood turned sour Wednesday after reporters pressed him on why he referred to a migrant caravan making its way to the U.S. on foot through Mexico as an invasion. Trump ramped up his anti-immigrant rhetoric against the caravan in the final days of the midterm elections. Trump was also pressed on why his campaign aired an ad featuring a Mexican immigrant convicted of killing American police officers and linking the mans actions to the caravan. Several television networks pulled the ad after airing it or declined to air it at all. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Im living one hour at a time at this point By Christine Mai-Duc Republican congressional candidate Young Kim and gubernatorial candidate John Cox campaign in Rowland Heights. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times) Republican congressional candidate Young Kim greeted gubernatorial candidate John Coxs giant campaign bus, the words HELP IS ON THE WAY emblazoned across it, as it rolled into the parking lot outside her Rowland Heights field office. Standing beside Cox on Saturday, Kim predicted that a string of GOP victories Tuesday would start with voters repealing the gas tax hike. Can you imagine Gavin Newsom being our governor? Can you imagine Gil Cisneros being your representative? Kim asked the crowd, to loud boos and cries of Nooo! The former state assemblywoman who worked for retiring Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton) is vying for his seat with Democrat Gil Cisneros. She led the crowd in chants of Enough is enough! and, though short-lived, Drain the swamp! Ive served you in Sacramento and Ive seen dysfunction personally, Kim continued. We cannot continue that route. She urged her supporters to stay and help make phone calls or walk neighborhoods. Lets get out there  the 72 hours is really critical. Its all going to come down to a few votes, it could be your vote, she said pointing to her left, then pivoting right, it could be your vote. So dont sit back and do nothing. Every night I go to sleep thinking, OK, how many more votes can I get or how many more people can I call tomorrow? Kim said. It can be physically exhausting but Im mentally, emotionally very energized. She listed off her events so far that day  and the next one she was heading to. Thats just what I can remember, she said. Im living one hour at a time at this point. Kims campaign invited press to two of her events on Saturday. After she was whisked away to her next event  a high tea fundraiser in Walnut, a couple dozen volunteers remained. John Freeman, a statewide field manager for the state Republican Party, tried to pump them up. This is the Super Bowl. Were not in an NFL stadium, were not getting paid millions of dollars, but you know what? Freeman said. Were walking on the field right now. This is that high-stakes-level game. Facebook

Twitter

Show more sharing options Share Close extra sharing options Facebook

Twitter

LinkedIn

Email

Copy Link URL Copied!

Print

Advertisement

Its going to be tough out there Democratic candidate Katie Porter speaks to volunteers in Mission Viejo. Jon Bauman, Bowzer from the band Sha Na Na, is in the background. (Victoria Kim / Los Angeles Times ) Judging from the cheers in the crowd, about half those assembled at Katie Porters campaign headquarters in Mission Viejo Sunday morning were old enough to remember 70s rock n roll star Bowzer from the band Sha Na Na. Jon Bauman, as Bowzer is known off stage, said it was her position on senior issues including retirement and social security that has him out supporting Porter over her opponent, incumbent Rep. Mimi Walters. I want you to make sure every phone is called and every door is knocked, he told the crowd of about 80 volunteers. There has never been a more important election. Both Bauman and his nephew, California Democratic Party Chairman Eric Bauman, were interrupted by yells from Trump supporters coming from an adjoining hillside. We love Trump, the voice cried out. We love him too, he makes great fodder, the younger Bauman retorted, before introducing Porter. Porter, a UC Irvine law professor and first-time candidate, acknowledged the uphill battle some of her canvassers might face in this more conservative end of the long-red Orange County district. I know its going to be tough out there, she said, motioning to the hillside. But she said the attacks meant the other side viewed her campaign as a significant threat. This election is going to be close, she said. If we dont fight all the way to the finish line, until 8 oclock on Tuesday, this could slip away. Bowzer then took to a keyboard piano to lead the crowd in a reworded rendition of the song Good Night Sweetheart: Good night, Mimi Walters, he crooned. A woman in a black tank top, jeans and flip flops holding a cup of coffee later joined the crowd with her two sons, 17 and 14, the younger one wearing a Trump 2016 T-shirt. She declined to give her name, saying she was concerned about being attacked, but said she lived up the hill and said she had been the one yelling. She said she was encouraging her sons to talk to people on both sides and make up their own minds. We need to have a government that runs the way government teachers are telling kids its supposed to be run, said the woman, a retired registered dental assistant who voted early for Mimi Walters. Referring to Democrats, she said: Theyve had control over all these years and Californias gone to crap. Among those canvassing was Stacie Campbell, 37, who was at the launch with her husband Jerome and three children, the youngest of whom was 2 months old. Campbell, a Mission Viejo resident who runs a business, had never canvassed or volunteered for campaigns before, and her husband is a French citizen and unable to vote. She said they had been talking to their children  the older ones are 5 and 2  about the presidency and the government since Trumps election. Together, they worked on homemade Katie Porter lawn signs and put them up around town. This is the first time its felt like a big deal and there isnt a president up for election, she said. Because her city is a mix of conservatives and liberals  her next-door neighbor is an NRA-supporting Republican  she the race felt m
Even as he reached a critical moment in his diplomatic efforts with North Korea and celebrated the release of a prisoner from Venezuela, President Trump spent much of Memorial Day weekend tweeting angrily from the White House about the media and the Russia investigation, continuing his strategy of trying to delegitimize the probe that has consumed him since his election.

Whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt? Trump tweeted Sunday morning.



For the record: An earlier version of this report said Mueller was named FBI director by President George H.W. Bush. President George W. Bush named Mueller FBI director.

It was unclear whom Trump was talking about, given that most of the people directly affected by the investigation have been limited to his inner circle and a handful of former campaign aides.

Trump instead referred to those hurt in romantic, generational terms.

Advertisement

They journeyed down to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes and wanting to help our nation...They went back home in tatters! Trump continued.

Although a number of young aides have left Trumps White House  notably his former communications director Hope Hicks  most have departed as a result of the fierce infighting among administration factions, not because of the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and any possible Trump campaign involvement and whether the president obstructed justice.

Follow the latest news of the Trump administration on Essential Washington 

Trumps focus on the investigation  even on a weekend typically reserved for mourning soldiers who died in combat  underscored the degree to which the issue continues to obsess and frustrate the president, who believes it is an effort to delegitimize his presidency. His chief of staff, John F. Kelly, told National Public Radio this month that Trump is somewhat embarrassed by the string of investigations.

One continuing issue has been whether Trump will sit for questioning by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. The presidents lawyer and close advisor Rudy Giuliani, appearing on CNN Sunday, declined to say directly.

Giuliani said Muellers office, which has been negotiating the parameters of a potential sit-down, would probably limit questions to those involving whether the campaign colluded with Russian agents and whether Trump tried to obstruct the investigation into those efforts.

Trump continued his campaign over the weekend of trying to sow distrust in the probe by calling Muellers team of attorneys 13 Angry Democrats (& those who worked for President O).

In fact, Mueller is a Republican and not all of the political affiliations of his team are known. Mueller was named FBI director by President George W. Bush in 2001 and stayed on during the Obama administration until 2013.

Trump also repeated his allegation that the FBIs use of informants  a common practice in investigations  amounted to spying on his campaign.

With Spies, or Informants as the Democrats like to call them because it sounds less sinister (but its not), all over my campaign, even from a very early date, why didnt the crooked highest levels of the FBI or Justice contact me to tell me of the phony Russia problem? Trump asked in one tweet.

In another tweet, Trump wrote that a U.S. team had arrived in North Korea to arrange a summit between him and leader Kim Jong Un.

noah.bierman@latimes.com

Twitter: @noahbierman
The home stretch of Californias statewide primary election is here, and all the big questions in this political season have one thing in common.

They begin with the disruptive nature of the top-two primary, an electoral juggernaut that the political party leaders hate and the candidates treat, at best, with lukewarm praise.

Voters, though, arent looking back. They seem happy to be rid of the traditional way of running primaries.

Californias free-for-all primary rules could surprise everyone... again 

Advertisement

In a new USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll, just 10% of registered voters gave a thumbs up to what we now call a closed primary  the vintage system where the members of a political party pick their own nominee to appear on the general election ballot. Outsiders, be they voters who belong to another party or unaffiliated independents, arent welcome.

That system was in place for most of Californias modern history, but even at the beginning, its flaws were well known. A reporter covering the California Legislature in 1909, Franklin Hichborn, wrote at the time that the direct primary, as it was known then, made it smooth sailing for the mere partisan and extremely hard for the independent Republican or independent Democrat to secure [the] party nomination.

In 1996, voters replaced it with an open primary system that allowed all voters to pick the nominees of the political parties. Democrats and Republicans challenged it in the U.S. Supreme Court in 2000 and won, saying it was unfair to force them to allow nonmembers to pick their partys anointed choice. The top-two primary, enacted by voters in 2010, got around that problem by stripping the parties of a guaranteed spot on the November ballot altogether.

Californias illegal immigration fight is back, and so are the political pitfalls for Republicans 

Fifty percent of registered voters in the poll said they like the top-two primary. But political parties would regain at least some of their power under a scenario preferred by 40% of voters who were surveyed: A primary where independent voters were the only ones who could play in a partys June election. Its unclear, though, whether such a system would meet the constitutional standard set 18 years ago. A party can have the option of allowing independent voters to participate in the primary, but its less likely they can be forced to do so.

The popularity of the idea in the poll, though, is probably a result of the top-two primarys most unusual provision: The final candidates can be from the same party, the kind of electoral shutout for everyone else that happened in the U.S. Senate race two years ago and now threatens to upend races from governor down to regional contests for the U.S. House.

Those kinds of same-party contests have a lack of heterogeneity, the kind that some believe alienates voters who dont see anyone with their values on the ballot. In the November 2016 Senate race that featured two Democrats, there were 1.9 million fewer ballots cast than in the race for president and fewer than in any of that falls statewide ballot propositions. Clearly, a number of voters skipped the race altogether.

And yet 79% of registered voters in the poll said they would still vote in a race if their preferred party had no candidate on the fall ballot.

Make no mistake about it, on the topic of open versus closed primaries, the political parties would be fighting an uphill battle if they tried to go back to how things used to be.

It would be fixing something people do not think is broken, said Mike Murphy, a GOP strategist and advisor to the poll.

That probably explains why a recently rumored effort to put the issue to voters never got off the ground. For better or worse, the era of the closed primary is likely gone for good.

john.myers@latimes.com

Follow @johnmyers on Twitter, sign up for our daily Essential Politics newsletter and listen to the weekly California Politics Podcast

Jill Darling, survey director of the USC Dornsife Center for Economic and Social Research, contributed to this report.

View the poll methodology here
As he campaigned for governor in Boyle Heights, Antonio Villaraigosa kept meeting people from his past.

The former Los Angeles mayor walked down Cesar Chavez Avenue on Friday morning to listen to small business owners. From parking concerns to fears the economy will hurt business, they told the Democrat what they wanted him to do if he is elected governor.

But first, he must win a spot in Californias top-two primary election on June 5, which is why he spent the day getting out the vote in friendly territory. Villaraigosa grew up in Boyle Heights, and he served as L.A. mayor from 2005 to 2013.

His first stop was King Taco. I came here in May 1983, when the iconic restaurant first opened, he told customers and employees. I used to go to the one in Cypress Park before.

Advertisement

Sergio Mosqueda, who has managed this King Taco for 20 of the 28 years hes worked there, said, It feels good to see someone from the neighborhood rise like he did.

Down the block at Pet Care Inc., co-owners Luz Padua and Jesus Ornelas display a certificate of appreciation for small businesses next to the register. Villaraigosa presented it to them in August 2007.

We supported him back then, because of his support for our communitys youth, as well as their education, said Padua, 47, of Carson.

To see him come back to the community where he was born, to come back to his roots, is significant, Padua said. It means he really is trying to hear everyones voices.

Villaraigosa listened as the couple talked about the pressure that gentrification has put on business owners. Ornelas said they fear the property they rent monthly for their business will be sold out from under them.

Because of gentrification, I might be pushed out, and a lot of us feel like that around here, Ornelas said. They dont care that weve been here for 33 years.

The rising cost of living has made residents put pet food last on their list of priorities, Padua said.

Youre exactly why we need to fix this economy. Its not working for enough people, Villaraigosa told the couple.

Coverage of California politics 

Antonio Villaraigosa talks with Milpa Grille owner Dan Morales on Saturday. (Katie Falkenberg / Los Angeles Times )

Farther down Cesar Chavez Avenue, Milpa Grille co-owner Dan Morales served Villaraigosa a chili bowl and shed light on the struggles of owning a small-business without a parking lot.

We rely heavily on foot traffic  our customers are the community, Morales said of the Mesoamerican restaurant that opened its doors four months ago.

We can all complain about fees and permits, but our biggest challenge is the parking situation, and we knew that going in, Morales said.

Morales and Villaraigosa attended Cathedral High School together. The two reminisced about the student walkouts Villaraigosa led at the private high school in support of the farmworkers boycott.

One of the students demands before resuming classes was to abolish school uniforms. Everybody got to wear jeans except for us, Villaraigosa said. Because of what we did, you guys got to wear jeans later on, Villaraigosa said to Morales. I got thrown out!

Villaraigosa was expelled from Cathedral for fighting, but later graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School.

As mayor, he unsuccessfully tried to take control of the Los Angeles Unified School District, saying that city schools were failing the neediest students and needed to be overhauled. He eventually gained control of more than a dozen struggling schools, including Roosevelt, through a nonprofit he founded.

Villaraigosa said at the restaurant that the graduation rate for Roosevelt rose from 36% to more than 80%.

Morales said he looks at Villaraigosa as a friend and a leader and that he would be a capable governor.

You can say we both come from this neighborhood  different parts but still the same, Morales said.

In the Candelas Guitar Shop, owner Tomas Delgado gave Villaraigosa a tour of the store and strolled down memory lane.

I dont think you remember how you helped me, Delgado said.

Delgados family had rented the building for 70 years, and when he tried to buy it, he sought assistance from Villaraigosa, then an assemblyman, in trying to secure a small business loan.

Delgado got the loan and bought the building, but technical issues persisted. I called your office and your staff said What can we do? he said.

Villaraigosa said he didnt recall the story but praised his former legislative employees.

I had the kind of staff that understood our job was in service to others, and our job is to serve others, and cut through the bureaucracy, Villaraigosa said. I cant tell you I remember all of that, except that we made it clear. We wanted to make a difference.

Sign up for the Essential Politics newsletter 

michael.livingston@latimes.com

@Livingston_LAT
A sweeping crackdown on alleged drug dealers has left at least 91 people dead in less than two weeks in Bangladesh, sparking fears of a Philippines-style drug war marked by extrajudicial killings.

Most of the deaths have occurred in what the Bangladeshi news media have referred to as shootouts or gunfights, although the families of several people killed have said they were arrested by police and died while in custody.

Since the operation began May 15, the death toll has ticked higher every day, the names and whereabouts of those killed filling newspaper columns but with few details of the evidence against them. Odhikar, a human rights advocacy group, said Sunday that it had counted 91 people killed in 13 days.

There seems to be no end in sight, began a front-page story in the Daily Star, a leading English-language paper.

Advertisement

Many of the dead appear from news accounts to be small-time addicts and peddlers killed in cities and far corners of the country, sometimes accused of carrying small stashes of drugs and light weapons.

Bangladeshs Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) soldiers stand guard during a raid on suspected drug dealers at Geneva Camp in Dhaka on May 26, 2018. (Mehedi Hasan / Associated Press )

One was 35-year-old Kamrul Islam, described by his wife as a former drug seller who left the trade 10 years ago and was earning a meager living running a food stall at a bus station in Dhaka.

His wife, Taslima Begum, who lives with her parents while Islam worked in the capital, said in an interview that his phone had been switched off since Wednesday. When relatives went to look for him at the food stall, they were told hed been picked up by plainclothes officers.

On Friday, Begum learned from television news that Islam had been killed in what was described as a shootout with members of the Rapid Action Battalion, or RAB, the elite counterterrorism squad leading the operation.

After we got married, my husband left his previous lifestyle. I know that he is completely innocent now, she said.

The drug war is the latest severe move by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinas increasingly authoritarian government, which has faced criticism for stifling journalists, jailing political opponents and allowing law enforcement agencies to detain, torture and kill suspected Islamist militants.

By denying drug suspects due process, it has drawn comparisons to President Rodrigo Dutertes notorious drug war in the Philippines, a shoot-to-kill campaign that has left more than 12,000 people dead in two years. Bangladeshi authorities have denied carrying out extrajudicial killings.

In launching the crackdown this month, Hasina invoked her anti-terrorism policies  the toughest of which were implemented after a 2016 attack on a Dhaka cafe that killed 23 people  and said that no offender would be spared.

We will rescue the country from the clutches of drugs just as we did in clamping down on militancy, she said.

Although Hasinas government has not echoed some of Dutertes most violent rhetoric  the Philippine leader once said, Shoot [the drug dealer] and Ill give you a medal  some officials have called for a zero-tolerance policy.

One police official wrote on his Facebook page that authorities should take the law into our own hands and suggested punishing drug peddlers by pouring feces on their heads. (He later clarified that he wasnt speaking literally.)

Bangladeshi police estimate that 7 million of the countrys 160 million people are addicted to drugs, most commonly yaba, a pill that contains caffeine and methamphetamine. Although the drug is not produced in Bangladesh, authorities say that more than $40 million worth of yaba pills enters the country every year from neighboring Myanmar.

A Bangladesh border police officer displays bags of the drug yaba recovered from a passenger bus near the Myanmar border in April 2018. (Munir Uz Zaman / AFP/Getty Images )

Bangladesh has adopted a tougher stance against yaba since last summer, when hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees began streaming into the country to escape deadly attacks by Myanmar security forces. Officials have arrested hundreds of refugees, or traffickers posing as refugees, on drug-related offenses.

Domestic and international human rights groups say the government is sweeping up minor offenders while ignoring the leaders of smuggling networks, including government and security officials believed to be involved in the trade.

Instead of taking effective measures to clean up law enforcement and patronage networks and go after the kingpins, they have suddenly started this war against the little ones, said Badiul Alam Majumdar, a human rights activist and co-founder of Shujan, a civil society organization.

Anybody could be picked up tomorrow and branded a drug pusher. No one is safe if there is no rule of law.

Media reports say that thousands have been arrested. On Saturday morning, hundreds of RAB personnel raided the Geneva Camp neighborhood in Dhaka, a cramped warren of concrete tenements and shops, going house-to-house with drug-sniffing dogs.

Bangladeshi authorities arrested more than 100 people from Dhakas Geneva camp neighborhood on May 26, 2018. (A.M. Ahad / Associated Press )

Mohammad Saeed, a 42-year-old cook, was standing outside a public bathroom when he was arrested, he said Sunday. He was released a few hours later without being questioned, but only after he was made to sign two blank sheets of paper.

Who knows if that will be used against me in the future, Saeed said. People are scared.

Mohammad Raju, 25, said his older brother Tajun was arrested in the sweep and within hours sentenced to six months in prison by a mobile court, a fast-track legal process that affords defendants few protections. He said that Tajun, a 30-year-old electrician with a wife and two kids, was not a drug user.

We support getting rid of drugs, Raju said. But the government should be careful that innocent people dont suffer.

Hasinas government came to power in 2009 pledging to end Bangladeshs long history of human rights abuses by law enforcement, but advocacy groups say the violations have increased. From January 2009 through last month, Odhikar recorded 429 cases of enforced disappearances and 1,528 extrajudicial killings.

New York-based Human Rights Watch has described RAB, in particular, as a death squad and called for it to be disbanded.

So terrible is the record of security forces like RAB and others that crossfire has become a widely accepted euphemism for extrajudicial killings, said Meenakshi Ganguly, Human Rights Watchs South Asia director. Bangladesh authorities, regardless of the party in power, have denied such violations and refused to ensure accountability. There should be an impartial investigation into the recent killings, and if there is a violation by a member of the security forces, they should be held to account.

Special correspondent Syed Zainul Abedin contributed to this report.

shashank.bengali@latimes.com

Shashank Bengali is South Asia correspondent for The Times. Follow him on Twitter at @SBengali
President Trump said Sunday a U.S. team was in North Korea to plan a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, raising expectations that the on-off-on meeting would indeed take place.

The State Department said earlier that a team was in Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the demilitarized zone, or DMZ, separating North and South Korea. One can cross the border simply by stepping across a painted line, but moving beyond several footsteps into the North at Panmunjom would be rare for U.S. officials.

Trump withdrew from a planned June 12 Singapore summit with Kim last Thursday but quickly announced that it could get back on track. His tweet Sunday afternoon, which offered praise for the longtime U.S. adversary, was the latest signal that his concerns about the Norths stance toward the summit had been allayed.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, he tweeted. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

Advertisement

South Koreas president, Moon Jae-in, gave details about his surprise meeting Saturday with Kim in the Panmunjom truce village, saying Kim had committed to sitting down with Trump and to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2018

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tapped veteran American diplomat Sung Kim to handle pre-summit negotiations. On a separate but complementary track was the CIA team Pompeo set up last year when he headed the spy agency. And on a third track was a White House logistical group sent to Singapore on Sunday to prepare in case the summit takes place. It was led by Joe Hagin, White House deputy chief of staff for operations.

Kim, the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines, also served as ambassador to South Korea and was part of the U.S. negotiating team that last held substantive denuclearization talks with North Korea during the George W. Bush administration in 2005.

The Korean leaders second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles. But their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appeared to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the worlds most heavily armed border.

The talks, which Moon said Kim Jong Un requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back and forth. They allowed Moon to push for a U.S.-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Kim may see a meeting with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters that Kim again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Moon added that Kim said hes willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful summit with Trump.

Moon said he told Kim that Trump has a firm resolve to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic cooperation if Kim implements complete denuclearization.

What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations [with North Korea] and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearization, Moon said.

During the South Korea-U.S. summit, President Trump said the U.S. is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations [between the U.S. and North Korea] and help [the North] achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearization, he said.

Kim, in a dispatch issued by the Norths state-run news service earlier Sunday, expressed his fixed will on the historic [North Korea]-U.S. summit talks. During Saturdays inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve [North Korea]-U.S. relations and establish [a] mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

They agreed to have their top officials meet again June 1. Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas also will meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Saturdays Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting.

Despite repeated references to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

The North has previously used the term to demand the United States pull out its 28,500 troops in South Korea and withdraw its so-called nuclear umbrella security commitment to South Korea and Japan. The North hasnt openly repeated those same demands after Kims sudden outreach to Seoul and Washington.

Moon has insisted that Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees. Moon said Sunday that the Norths disarmament could still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul dont differ over what complete denuclearization of the peninsula means.

Before he canceled the summit, Trump did not rule out an incremental approach that would provide incentives along the way to the North.

Following an unusually provocative 2017 in which Kims engineers tested a purported thermonuclear warhead and three long-range missiles theoretically capable of striking mainland U.S. cities, the North Korean leader has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity in recent months. He has had summits with Moon and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, as well as two meetings with Pompeo.
The lot was laid out in 1752 when William Parsons gave order to what would be the growing municipality of Easton.

But the building got its bones in the early 1870s when David Pyatt paid $15,000 to Michael Butz for the brick structure that rose in the 1850s.

Pyatt "promptly tore down Butz's building and replaced it with his own," according to a history of 428-430 Northampton St. provided as part of an historic review of the current renovation there.

Thats the building thats reemerging after years worth of work by developer Howard Mimnaugh, architect Bill Gittings and others at a cost of about $1.5 million and counting. The work has required imagination because the pair didnt actually know what the place looked like when it was built.

"We were just following the character of the street and the original window locations," Gittings, 50, said Wednesday from the offices of Gittings Associates in Princeton.

But Pyatt didn't have to guess about his period-proper building.

His crockery business would front the street and he would live there with his wife and their seven children. It would stay in the family until 1925 and then, after the struggles of the Great Depression, would be sold 13 years later for $75.32 at sheriff's sale.

Then everything would change.

In its early years, there was little mystery about the brick building with period details above the windows in the middle of the south side of the block.

But time has a way of hiding history.

Enter Herman and Bertha Sigal and their son Arthur, who, in 1938 were preparing to open a women's clothing store, a business the Sigals had been in since 1902 when they lived in Pittsburgh. Most folks know where the Sigal family finished their retail endeavor in Easton -- in the 300 block of Northampton Street, now home to the Sigal Museum, to which the family generously contributed millions of dollars.

But from the late 1930s to the late 1950s, the Sigals did their business in the 400 block of Northampton Street. The building, which has entrances and addresses on either side of a main retail front, would become what Easton historian Richard Hope wrote was a "white marble-faced building, in the Art Moderne style."

There would be Sigal's signs just above the first floor and perched on the roof.

In a block of diverse architecture, it stood out, not only because of its stark color but its visual focus on the future, not the past, in a design style that was popular for about 20 years.

But it would eventually stand down. The marble would be replaced by corrugated metal and the higher-end shopping eventually would give way to a Salvation Army thrift store.

Early in the 2000s, Michel Hurst and his partner Robert Swope would bring Full House to 428-430 Northampton, hoping to create "So-Ho in Easton," a nod to where the mid- and late-20th century furniture business formerly operated, according to a New York Times report.

They would make some key changes, such as dividing the property into the original two buildings and creating an enclosed green courtyard in between.

"In the '30s it was joined together to become a swanky department store," Hurst told the Times in 2006. "In the '50s it became a discount store and in the '70s, it became the Salvation Army."

In the early 21st century, anyone looking at the front facing Northampton Street still would be confronted by a coverup.

The light blue metal disguising the second and third floors was not a recognition of Easton's once dominant Downtown. The cover was installed at a time when things were done for convenience, not architectural significance.

Mimnaugh bought both buildings in late 2014 for more than $400,000. The rear building, which fronts on Pine Street, was where Hurst lived and was in good shape, Mimnaugh said. The new owner credited the previous owner for good work there. That was Mimnaugh's first project at the location and was wrapped up in 2016, he said.

The one-bedroom apartment on the first floor and the three-bedroom apartment on the second and third floors rented within three days for $1,100 and $2,200, respectively. Both have views of the courtyard, which features grass, a tree and plantings.

The goal for both buildings was "higher end units" that fit the revived rental market in the city, he said.

The young professionals he hopes to draw to the four two-bedroom apartments being created in the front building "like unique spaces," Mimnaugh said. He pointed to the Simon Silk Mill on 13th Street as an example.

"Baby Boomers seem to be interested in this type of living as well," he added. He plans one apartment on the first floor, two on the second and one on the third, with expected rents of $1,600 to $1,700 a month.

After wrapping up the rear building, work remained to be done on the main building. And the property wasn't pretty. But the developer was ready.

"I like what I'm doing," said Mimnaugh, 56, whose "primary career" is as a certified public accountant with the Virtus Group in Princeton. Mimnaugh's primary residence is in a restored 1820s farmhouse in Solebury Township.

"I don't mind the challenges," he said.

He brought in Gittings, who worked on the Bushkill Commons project for Lafayette College. How did the Carnegie Mellon University graduate architect meet the Mckeesport, Pennsylvania, native?

"He's my accountant," Gittings said with a laugh.

Mimnaugh knew he didn't want to create "vanilla boxes" and had the understanding of doing work in an historic district.

What was eventually left was a "very well built" shell and Mimnaugh has a desire to "be proud of my buildings."

They did have a roadmap to what once was, Gittings said. Mimnaugh had the original front facade drawing for the Sigal renovation, which hinted at the past.

But until Thursday, Gittings never had seen a photo of Pyatt's creation.

Mimnaugh and Gittings awhile back went through what the developer called "an exercise" in imaging what once was there.

"How do you retain the esthetic of those conversions while still meeting code?" Mimnaugh asked.

"We had to create something new within old, but maintain the old we had, which creates a very unique character," Gittings added.

Both men know the drill.

"I grew up renovating old buildings," said Gittings, a Moorestown, New Jersey, native who also worked on changes to the State House in Trenton.

So they designed a building that turned out looking remarkably like the original, except in places where decorative metal was used where the 1870s bricks were long gone. The color scheme is historic tones of green and red. The bricks required a paint job after significant preparation, they said.

The revival of the facade for the "primarily residential project" -- which will have 1,000 square feet of commercial space on the first floor -- has been painstaking in detail as weeks turned into months.

But Mimnaugh said he expects to keep the building for as long as he lives, so the investment in the look of the place is worth the time and money.

Once inside, a greater challenge awaited.

The basement and second and third floors were a mess, he said.

It was a gut job.

"Just putting residential into an old building with limited windows and old framing" is a challenge, Gittings said. Since the east side is on the property line, they couldn't add windows there, he added.

While there were remnants of a once grand stairway toward the back, they would need stairs that met code, windows that opened and fire-suppression sprinklers throughout.

Mimnaugh was able to save some support beams and brick, which are being put back to use in the design, Gittings said.

Once the canvas was clean, new framing went up, as well as air conditioning and heating equipment that wouldn't have even been a dream nearly 150 years ago. With everything opened up and "high floor-to-floor heights," adding the modern hardware was far easier, he said.

If there were interior details such as moldings in 1870, they were long lost to 70 years of retail use, Gittings said. The original floors are gone. The apartments themselves, while nodding to history, will be modern open-concept, not the cookie-cutter room-by-room setup that was likely original, Gittings said.

"We didn't really have historic fabric inside the building to work with," he said.

When they get to the finishes prior to an expected autumn opening, there will be stainless steel, granite and higher-end cabinets, Mimnaugh said.

"These are quality units," he added. "I think people will be pleased as they come inside."

The commercial space has drawn "a fair amount of inquiries," but he's not necessarily interested in a restaurant as a tenant, Mimnaugh said. He wants to make sure whomever takes that space that it's "a good mix" for his residential tenants.

The block itself, which has been transitional in recent years between the Downtown revival and the western portions of the city that are still waiting to reap the benefits of such investments, is stabilizing as "people ... support the street retail," Mimnaugh said.

But digging into the middle of a block, especially an energized one, can offer concerns all too basic.

There are always challenges of making everything that must be in a building fit before it can be opened to the public, Gittings said.

But the architect figures the end product will be "modern living with historic character."

Once Mimnaugh is done he'll move 10 blocks west to 1458 Northampton, an old Packard dealer he bought that borders 15th Street. The large, squarish, tan-bricked structure comes from a time when car companies put up apartment buildings with showrooms on the first floor, he said.

"It has great bones," he said of the project he likely will begin in 2019. "It won't take much to make that a great building."

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A teen driver fell asleep behind the wheel Sunday morning, crossed over the center median and caused a wreck along Route 248 in Lower Nazareth Township, Colonial Regional police said.

The accident happened just before 8 a.m. in the vicinity of the Essroc Cement Plant -- between Hollo Road and Jandy Boulevard. Colonial Regional police said the teen male was headed west in a Nissan Maxima, when he fell asleep and struck a Hyundai, driven by an adult male driver.

The collision was not head-on, police said, describing the impact being more at an angle. The driver of the Hyundai was entrapped and had to be extricated from the car, according to police.

"The teen driver woke up just in time to avoid a real serious accident," a Colonial Regional police officer said.

The Hyundai driver suffered minor injuries and was taken to area hospital for a medical evaluation, police said.

Crews shut down a portion of Route 248 around the crash scene for about a half hour to clear debris. Both vehicles were towed from the scene.

Police said both drivers were wearing seat-belts and air bags were deployed. There were no passengers.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
UPDATE: 1 taken into custody after shots fired in Allen Township, report says

Pennsylvania State Police responded Saturday evening to a home in Allen Township for a possible shooting, according to a published report.

The Morning Call newspaper is reporting officers were dispatched to the 100 block of Jeffrey Lane at about 5:45 p.m. WFMZ-69 News reported a "large police presence" in a news broadcast.

Neighbors told the Morning Call they heard six to eight shots fired.

State Police in Bethlehem said no information is available yet on the incident; authorities could be issuing a news release later Sunday afternoon.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
A man was injured in a two-vehicle crash Saturday night in Greenwich Township.

The accident happened at 7:16 p.m. along South Main Street -- about 100 feet south from the intersection with the Route 78 on-ramp. A witness reported the accident involved a Toyota Corolla and a Hyundai Sonata.

It appeared the driver of the Toyota was headed north on South Main Street and the Hyundai was traveling south on South Main Street. Both vehicles ended up on the shoulder of the north side of the road, according to the witness.

A male driver of one of the vehicles was taken to St Luke's Warren Hospital by the Greenwich Township Rescue Squad, the witness said. A New Jersey State Police sergeant in Perryville said Sunday injuries did not appear serious.

The sergeant did not have further details about the crash to provide. The roadway was closed in both directions during the accident.

Responding to the crash was the Greenwich Township Police Department, Stewartsville Fire Co. and the Greenwich Rescue Squad. The accident is being investigated by New Jersey State Police in Perryville.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
The makers of Saamy Square, better known as Saamy 2, have postponed the release of its trailer following the death of the 13 Sterlite protesters in Thoottukudi in Tamil Nadu.

As per the reports, the producer want to show the solidarity with the people, who have been protesting against the expansion of Vedanta's Sterlite Industrial Plant.

'It's not the time for celebration, so with all your permission (#Saamy Lovers and #Chiyaan fans) we are postponing our trailer launch..Will update, let's pray for the ppl who lost their lives, more over pray this kind of situation should not continue Nd never happen..#saamy2., Producer Shibu Thameens announced the news through Twitter.
Moscow: A Russian military missile was responsible for shooting down flight MH17 over the eastern Ukraine in 2014, an international team of investigators said.

The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 was traveling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was shot down over the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine from Russia.

In 2016, the investigators announced they had evidence that the BUK system involved in the incident had crossed the border into the eastern Ukarine from Russia and returned after the plane had been shot down.

However, the Russian officials had denied the involvement in the incident, and on Thursday the defense ministry repeated these denials, claiming that no Russian missile had ever crossed into Ukraine.
Its wedding season in Bollywood. After Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja's big fat Punjabi wedding, it looks like another popular couple is ready to tie the knot soon. Ever since the beginning of 2018 rumours of Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone tying the knot was all over the place.

If a report in SpoteBoyE is to be believed, Ranveer and Deepika have zeroed in on November 19, for the wedding date. Just like Sonam, the wedding will take place in Mumbai.Even though the couple tried to seal the deal in July, their work commitment pushed it back to November.
How Trumps Ditching of Iran Nuclear Deal Affirms American Unipolarity with Obamas help

The Trump White House plans to break the Iran deal by sanctioning companies from Europe and Asia doing business in and with Iran. Ironically, President Obama paved the way to unilateral sanctions.



For three years, the comprehensive nuclear accord (JCPOA) has offered Iran relief from US, UN and multilateral sanctions on energy, financial, shipping, automotive and other sectors. But recently that era came to a halt. The United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, President Trump said on May 8.





Two weeks later, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the ultra-conservative former head of the CIA, said Washington will impose "the strongest sanctions in history [on Iran] once they come into full force."



In contrast, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has reiterated Beijing's support for the deal. "China will continue to work to maintain the deal," Wang said, stressing that the agreement was "hard-earned." By the same token, the other key signatories of the nuclear deal - UK, France, and Germany, and Russia - say the deal will be sustained.

Breaking Iran by sanctioning EU and Asian companies



American internationalism began a century ago, when President Woodrow Wilson purported to make the world safe for democracy. Thats no longer the goal (if it ever was). Rather, the objective is now to ensure US unipolarity in a multipolar era, by any means necessary.



Regionally, Trumps quest for primacy leans on Saudi Arabia for economic and geopolitical support, as evidenced by the $110 billion arms deal with Riyadh a year ago, and reinforced security ties with Israel, as reflected by US recognition of Jerusalem as capital of Israel - another fatal policy mistake that reversed decades of US foreign policy.



Now America also plans to apply unprecedented financial pressure on the Iranian regime, as Pompeo said. The administrations objective is to restore primary sanctions that were lifted after the International Atomic Energy Agencys (IAEA) certification in January 2016 that Iran had complied with the agreement. As secondary sanctions on firms have remained in place, along with sanctions applying to US companies, including banks, the White House will fortify them.



In a typical unipolar move, the Trump administration is extending sanctions over to EU firms that have done business in and with Iran since the 2015 nuclear deal, thus raising risks for their U.S. access. As Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says, EU-Iran business agreements will be voided as the existing licenses will be revoked.



Along with Renault, PSA Peugeot Citroen and Sanofi, French companies have huge stakes in the deal, thanks to the $21 billion Airbus contract and the oil giant Totals $2 billion deal to develop the South Pars oil field. Some 120 German companies, including Volkswagen and Siemens, operate in Iran and another 10,000 do business with Iran. Royal Dutch Shell would be adversely affected.



Economic pressure could harm significantly Irans oil industry which is the fourth largest reserve holder of crude oil in the world and whose largest buyers include China, South Korea, Turkey, Japan, Italy and India.



During the sanctions era, Iran shifted toward Asia and it has a vital role in the China-led One Road One Belt initiative. Indeed, through the worst days of the 2010-16 sanctions, Asian countries remained engaged in Irans economy. In the coming years, these countries hope to support Iran to become a major regional trading hub and to diversify its economy away from oil and gas. But if the White House sanctions EU companies for Iran business, it will sanctions firms from Asia as well.



In the 2003 Iraq War, President Trumps new National Security Advisor John Bolton relied on false data from U.S.-based Iraqi exiles. Since last fall, Bolton has been urging the US to implement a similar regime change with Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK), which was de-listed as a terrorist group by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the early 2010s. MEK is an Iranian opposition group which has lucratively financed and then been lobbied by former heads of the CIA, FBI and the Homeland.



Bolton wants a new regime in Tehran before February 2019 - the 50th anniversary of the revolution.

How Obama paved the way to Trumps withdrawals



With his pledges to withdraw from the climate and nuclear accords and Americas key trade agreements (e.g., North American NAFTA, Asia-Pacific TPP, and US-EU TTIP), Trump has electrified the historical debate on the legality of US withdrawal from treaties and other international agreements.



While the US constitution sets forth a process whereby the executive has the power to make treaties with the advise and consent of the Senate, it does not specify how such treaties can be terminated. The nature of the agreement matters as well. When the president enters into executive agreements, these do not receive the Senates advice and consent. But such political commitments are not seen as binding. As a result, the US will withdraw if the Iran deal is not renegotiated.



Ironically, it was the President Obama who created the opportunity for such strategic maneuvering. When his administration concluded the JCPOA, it considered the plan of action a non-binding political commitment, which allows the Trump administration to argue it has ability to withdraw from the JCPOA. True, on 2015, the Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2231 endorsing the Iran deal. So Trumps critics could argue that the resolution converted at least some provisions in the JCPOA into obligations that are binding under international law which would mean a complex and long debate.



Yet, today such critics seem to be largely absent. When Obama concluded the Iran talks, most Democrats hailed the accord. Yet, most Democrats turned their coats in late 2016, the Senate and the House of Representatives unanimously extended the Iran Sanctions Act for a decade.



As a legal scholar, Obama knew well the loopholes his administration left to its successor. His (few remaining) supporters say he concluded the deal out of political expediency (not enough Republican support in the Congress). Others see it as a Wilsonian failure (adequate authority to sign the deal but not to implement it). But radicals believe that Obama, who was trained in the CIA front Business International Corp. in the 80s, was used to pave the way to withdrawal.



In a recent meeting with President Xi Jinping, German Chancellor Angela Merkel sought a common strategy to ward off a trade war, keep markets open and a unity in the nuclear deal. It is a stance that is aligned with the interests and values in Beijing.



Whatever the legal pretexts for Trumps withdrawals, they herald the end of Wilsonian internationalism in America. In the past, Washington, Brussels and Tokyo shared similar interests and values, it was said. As the White House is substituting unilateral bullying for multilateral diplomacy, those days are busy fading into history.

Dr Steinbock is the founder of the Difference Group and has served as the research director at the India, China, and America Institute (USA) and a visiting fellow at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (China) and the EU Center (Singapore). For more information, see http://www.differencegroup.net/

 2018 Copyright Dan Steinbock - All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

Dan Steinbock Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Ireland moves forward with abortion law reform after historic voteIrelands health minister has said he will push forward with new abortion laws after Saturdays resounding referendum result overturned a 35-year ban on terminations.Simon Harris said he would start the process on Tuesday, when the Irish cabinet will meet to discuss draft legislation to allow terminations within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, and up to 24 weeks in exceptional circumstances.The Irish electorate voted by 1,429,981 votes to 723,632 in favour of abolishing the controversial eighth amendment to the constitution that gave equal legal status to the lives of a foetus and the woman carrying it. The result was a two-thirds majority: 66.4% yes to 33.6% no.Draft legislation was set out before Fridays vote and will now be formalised over the coming weeks, to be tabled in the Dail, Irelands parliament, in the autumn. Speaking on Saturday, the taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said he hoped the law would be changed before the end of the year.The change is not expected to face significant hurdles in parliament, with members who opposed repeal acknowledging the overwhelming nature of the result.On Saturdays announcement of the historic result at Dublin Castle, Harris told supporters of repeal: Under the eighth amendment we used to say to women in crisis: take the boat or take the plane. Today we say, take our hand.Varadkar said Saturday would be remembered as the day Ireland embraced our responsibilities as citizens and as a country  The day Ireland stepped out from under the last of our shadows and into the light. The day we came of age as a country. The day we took our place among the nations of the world.Saturdays triumph for abortion reformers occurred only months before Pope Francis visits the country  the first since John Paul IIs tour of Ireland in 1979.
GEORGETOWN - A body was discovered in a wooded area in Georgetown on Saturday, according to The Boston Globe.

A driver was traveling on Jewett Street in the town around noon when they spotted what they thought was "a person lying up against a tree," a spokesperson for the Essex District Attorney's Office told the paper.

The driver got out of their car and approached the body, and, finding it "unresponsive," called 911, according to the spokesperson.

The identity of the deceased has not been released at this time, nor details on the cause of death.

No further details have been released at this time.
CAMBRIDGE - A Cambridge man was arrested on child porn charges earlier this week, court documents show.

Jairo Flores, 30, was taken into custody Wednesday after an investigation by officials with the Department of Homeland Security.

A search warrant was executed at Flores's residence on Ware Street on March 20. Federal agents seized computers, digital cameras, cell phones, and other devices from the suspect's home, according to a criminal complaint associated with the case.

Investigation of seized materials led to the discovery of videos and images of suspected child porn on an external hard drive that was seized from a closet in Flores's bedroom, documents state.

Around 20 electronic devices were taken to Boston's HSI office for forensic examination, documents state.

Flores was arraigned Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Boston on charges of receipt and possession of child pornography.

Judge Marianne B. Bowler ordered Flores held on the basis of being a flight risk and a danger to minors.

A detention hearing for Flores has been set for June 1.
London pub THE DUKE OF SUSSEX celebrates Royal Wedding in a very UNUSUAL way

By Caitlin DohertyDaily ExpressSat, May 26, 2018The Duke of Sussex in Waterloo, south London, unveiled their new artwork on Friday after it was painted by artist Paul Karslake.Landlords Rupert Cleverly and his wife Joanna say they wanted to have a bit of fun to celebrate the wedding of the sixth in line to the throne.They said: It is a nod at having a bit of fun in support of them and celebrating their relationship and the wedding.We thought it would cause a lot of amusement, and that is what it has done.I think it represents a very inclusive society.The redesign has gone down a storm so far.Mr Cleverly added: It has been taken very positively by all of our customers and friends.For the foreseeable future, that will be the sign.But, if it turns the punters away, he is willing to bring it inside and hang it as a memory of the big day.He said: If people dont like it then I will take it down and hang it in the pub,. Its a bit of fun.Its just something we wanted to do to celebrate their marriage and the wedding - that was our token to it.Rupert and Joanna arent the only landlords who have commemorated Harry and Meghans big day.A pub a stones throw away from Windsor Castle renamed itself The Prince Harry to celebrate the wedding.Previously known as The Three Tuns, the pub also served a special local wedding pale ale to some of the 120,000 well-wishers who lined the Windsor streets last Saturday.Landlady Kelly Carpenter said the change had been planned for a while, but it was a rush to get it ready for May 19.She said: We all love Prince Harry. Hes one of our favourites.
WESTMINSTER - A car struck a boulder and burst into flames, killing the driver early Sunday morning.

The driver, whose name will not be released until family can be notified, was traveling eastbound on Route 2 at about 2:35 a.m. and lost control of the car. The 2007 GMC Yukon veered off the left side and into the rock before catching fire, Massachusetts State Police said.

The driver was alone at the time was declared dead at the scene. When firefighters arrived, the car was completely engulfed in flames, police said.

State Police were assisted at the crash by Westminster Fire and Emergency Medical Service and Massachusetts Department of Transportation.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation by State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, Crime Scene Services Section, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
A wide variety of Memorial Day parades and other remembrances are to be held Monday in communities across Western Massachusetts.

Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, which was a day to remember those killed in war by placing flags and flowers on their grades. In 1971 it became an official federal holiday.

Communities have scheduled a variety of events to remember those killed in war and honor veterans throughout the week but most parades are held on Monday. Here is a list of some of the parades and events.

AGAWAM - The parade will begin at Town Hall at 10 a.m. and travel down Main Street ending at Veteran's Green for a ceremony to remember those who died in war.

CHICOPEE - The Memorial Day parade will start at 10 a.m. at the American Legion Post 452 and march down Exchange Street, Center Street and Front Street to the Chicopee Veterans' Memorial Plaza where speakers will remember veterans.

DEERFIELD: The parade will begin at Frontier High School on 113 North Main St. and march to the S. Deerfield Common where speeches and other events will begin at 8:35 a.m.

EAST LONGMEADOW: The Memorial Day event will begin at 10:50 a.m. with a procession to the high school flag pole area, where a new flag will be raised and a wreath will be placed.

GREAT BARRINGTON: This town in the Berkshire has two parades. The first begins at 9 a.m. at the fire station on State Road and goes to Main Street, Pleasant Street, Oak Street and ends at the cemetery. The second begins at 11 a.m. on Cottage Street, travels down Main Street and ends at the town hall.

HOLYOKE: Memorial Day events will begin at 9 a.m. with a parade from the War Memorial through Appleton, High, Lyman and Maple streets ending in Veterans Park. held on 28 May. The day begins with a Parade at 9am from the War Memorial Building to Veterans Park via Appleton Street, High Street, Lyman Street and Maple Street.

LUDLOW: The Memorial Day Parade will begin at 9 a.m. on Windsor Street and travel through a variety of streets ending at the Veterans Memorial on East Street where remembrance ceremonies will be held.

NORTHAMPTON: The Florence Memorial Day parade will celebrate the 150th anniversary with a longer parade route and nearly 1,500 marchers. It will begin at 1 p.m. from Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School, on Locust Street, and head through the Florence village center past the Sojourner Truth statue to Pine Street before ending at the Elks Lodge, Spring Street.

PALMER: The parade will begin at 10:45 a.m. and will start on Lawrence street, travel south down Thorndike Street, turn on Main Street and then go down Central Street and end on Converse Street at the Converse Middle School where a ceremony to honor the dead will be held.

RUSSELL: The Memorial Day Parade will begin at 2 p.m. and march down Main Street.

SOUTHAMPTON: The town's parade will begin at 9 a.m. at the Norris School, stop at the cemetery on College Highway and continue down College Highway to East Street where a ceremony will happen.

SOUTHBRIDGE: Memorial Day ceremonies will begin at 8:15 a.m. at Town Hall with a 21-gun salute. The parade will then march down Elm, Main, Hamilton, Hook and North Streets ending at the Southbridge Fire Department.

WARE: The parade will begin at 1 p.m. and step off at the American Legion Post on Maple Street. It will end at Veteran's Park on Main Street.

WEST SPRINGFIELD: There will be a Memorial Day ceremony at 10 a.m. on the Town Common.

WESTFIELD: The parade will step off at 10 a.m. from Mestek, Inc, 260 North Elm Street. It will cross the Great River Bridge onto Elm Street head down Broad Street, turning on West Silver Street where ceremonies will be held at Parker Memorial Park. American Legion Post 124 will then reverse the route and hold additional memorial ceremonies at its headquarters on Broad Street.

WORCESTER: The Worcester Veterans' Council and the City of Worcester Veterans' Services Division will host two events. The 130th remembrance ceremony will begin at 9 a.m. at Hope Ceremony. A wreath-laying

ceremony will also be held at 11 a.m. at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Green Hill Park.
MOUNT WASHINGTON - A 13-year-old Connecticut boy who went missing while on a hike in the Berkshire County town of Mount Washington has been found safe, according to Massachusetts State Police.

A state police trooper with the barracks in Lee said that the boy is safe, but could not provide further details on how he was found.

Police were alerted around 8:15 p.m. Friday that the boy had gone missing while hiking with his father and a sibling near the Department of Conservation and Recreation headquarters on East Street, according to Western Mass News.

Police said the boy vanished after going too far ahead and losing contact with the group, the news outlet reported.

A number of law enforcement units assisted with the search, including the State Police Air Wing, the Egremont Fire Department, and others.
A Worcester store clerk shot a suspect who tried to rob him at knifepoint Saturday night, Worcester police said.

Officers were called to 49 Vernon St. around 8:40 p.m. for a report of a man on the sidewalk suffering from gunshot wounds. When they arrived the 26-year-old was already being treated for three wounds by Worcester EMS.

The ambulance crew happened to be driving by and spotted the man on the sidewalk, police said.

"Police were told that the male that was shot had just attempted to rob the No Name store at knifepoint and was shot by the clerk," police said.

Officers went inside the store and spotted a large knife on the counter. Investigators learned the suspect, Juan Ahorrio of Worcester, went into the store with a knife.

Ahorrio allegedly went up behind a female customer and wrapped his arm around her neck.

"Fearing for the customer's safety the clerk produced his personal firearm," police said. "At this time the customer fell to the ground."

The clerk fired three shots at the suspect. Ahorrio dropped the knife and ran outside. The clerk chased the suspect and ordered him to the ground. He then returned inside to check on his customers, police said.

The two female customers and the clerk were not hurt during the attempted robbery and subsequent shooting, police said.

"Detectives confiscated the weapon and the clerk's license to carry while the investigation continues," police said.

Ahorrio, who received non life-threatening injuries, was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, assault with a dangerous weapon and armed assault with intent to rob.
President Donald Trump said Sunday a U.S. team was in North Korea to plan a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, raising expectations that the on-off-on meeting would indeed take place.

The State Department said earlier that a team was in Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the demilitarized zone, or DMZ, separating the North and South Korea. One can cross the border simply by stepping across a painted line, but moving beyond several footsteps into the North at Panmunjom would be rare for U.S. officials.

Trump withdrew from a planned June 12 Singapore summit with Kim last Thursday, but quickly announced that it could get back on track. His tweet Sunday afternoon, which offered praise for the longtime U.S. adversary, was the latest signal that his concerns about the North's stance toward the summit had been allayed.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen! -- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2018

South Korea's president, Moon Jae-in, gave details about his surprise meeting Saturday with Kim in the Panmunjom truce village, saying Kim had committed to sitting down with Trump and to a "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tapped veteran American diplomat Sung Kim to handle pre-summit negotiations. On a separate but complementary track was the CIA team Pompeo set up last year when he headed the spy agency. And on a third track was a White House logistical group sent to Singapore on Sunday to prepare in case the summit takes place. It was led by Joe Hagin, White House deputy chief of staff for operations.

Kim, the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines, also served as ambassador to South Korea and was part of the U.S. negotiating team that last held substantive denuclearization talks with North Korea during the George W. Bush administration in 2005.

The Korean leaders' second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles. But their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appeared to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the world's most heavily armed border.

The talks, which Moon said Kim Jong Un requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back and forth. They allowed Moon to push for a U.S.-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Kim may see a meeting with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters that Kim "again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula." Moon added that Kim said he's willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful summit with Trump.

Moon said he told Kim that Trump has a "firm resolve" to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic cooperation if Kim implements "complete denuclearization."

"What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations (with North Korea) and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearization," Moon said.

"During the South Korea-U.S. summit, President Trump said the U.S. is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations (between the U.S. and North Korea) and help (the North) achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearization," he said.

Kim, in a dispatch issued by the North's state-run news service earlier Sunday, "expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-U.S. summit talks." During Saturday's inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to "positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-U.S. relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent and durable peace."

They agreed to have their top officials meet again June 1. Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Saturday's Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting.

Despite repeated references to "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

The North has previously used the term to demand the United States pull out its 28,500 troops in South Korea and withdraw its so-called nuclear umbrella security commitment to South Korea and Japan. The North hasn't openly repeated those same demands after Kim's sudden outreach to Seoul and Washington.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees. Moon said Sunday that the North's disarmament could still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul don't differ over what "complete denuclearization" of the peninsula means.

Before he canceled the summit, Trump did not rule out an incremental approach that would provide incentives along the way to the North.

Following an unusually provocative 2017 in which Kim's engineers tested a purported thermonuclear warhead and three long-range missiles theoretically capable of striking mainland U.S. cities, the North Korean leader has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity in recent months. He has had the summits with Moon and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, as well as two meetings with Pompeo.

--By Catherine Lucey, Matthew Lee, Hyung-Jin Kim and Foster Klug
At commonFont, we deliver cutting edge technology solutions for the worlds top companies, and we do so from our home base of Bozeman, Montana. Our business model encourages long-term investment in client success, employee growth and development, and community sustainability. Our people approach their work with passion, curiosity, and a drive to innovate and improve. We need your help to build the worlds most outstanding organization!

All Opportunities: https://www.commonfont.com/job-openings/

Wed appreciate it if youd mention that you found these opportunities on MATR.net Thank you
Charter Spectrum https://official.spectrum.com/spectrum60/lfo-7n?ca.mp=Google&ca.cr=241338094062&ca.kw=charter%20spectrum&ca.mt=e&cb.device=c&ca.target=kwd-296348492322&o=sem&lfokp=charter%20spectrum&cmp=pds_lfo&&offer=ws&gclid=CjwKCAjwrqnYBRB-EiwAthnBFhqcLFPQAa3LWhRTn5xtoP7nb1M-UdzoVVJ7OZlaHm5Btb2te7Yo-BoCRRYQAvD_BwE gave employees little-to-no notice when it closed its Cheyenne call center this week, laying off 60 people.

As they filed in to work Tuesday, employees were told to go home with little explanation.

The move is part of the Connecticut-based companys effort to mainstream its call centers, creating larger regional hubs that can handle more significant call volumes.

http://trib.com/news/charter-closes-cheyenne-call-center-lays-off/article_8c06bc86-3bb2-5864-a7e7-5f04349962ae.html
"It would be a magnet like no other around the world," he said. "It would really bring some exciting things to the state overnight."

"Wyoming has to get its mojo goingget its identity (back)," he said. "(We need) a way to leverage what we have, whats really valuable, what we do best."

Temte suggested that the state could enter into a purchase agreement to buy power from a utility then offer the energy free of charge to businesses Wyoming is trying to attract.

Katie Roenigk and Daniel Bendtsen Riverton Ranger Via Wyoming News Exchange

http://trib.com/business/endow-member-suggests-using-free-power-to-draw-business/article_5c1ff30f-b264-59b0-8579-3c0c81a3af0b.html
Montana offers a variety of opportunities to help you make a difference in your community and further your career. We offer competitive benefits, work-life balance, and family friendly policies. As a service-oriented employer, we seek employees with a passion for customer service. Explore the links below to apply for a state job or learn more about our career opportunities and the benefits of working for the state.

https://statecareers.mt.gov/
In March 2018, Billings Clinic has exclusively retained Arrow Solutions Group to recruit for their next Chief Information Officer. Currently, CIO Search http://www.arrowsolutionsgroup.com/bc-cio-search-2018 is in the 3rd round of interviews.

Arrow Solutions will seek a forward thinking, IT strategist who has a love of community and can understand the geographical footprint of Billings Clinic and its patients. This IT Leader will have strong leadership skills and the vision of the future of healthcare technology in Billings Clinic. The ability of this CIO to recognize and implement IT efficiencies within the organization will allow Billings Clinic to grow, ensure better patient care, prepare for the future of healthcare and offer the best experience to all those who touch their organization.

https://www.arrowsolutionsgroup.com/news-and-events/press-release-billings-clinic-partners-with-arrow-solutions-group-to-lead-cio-search

All Career Opportunities available at Arrow: http://www.matr.net/article-83218.html
ANN ARBOR, MI - Energy-saving designs and innovations will be on display Friday, June 8 in downtown Ann Arbor as the Mayor's Green Fair returns for an 18th year.

Ann Arbor is hosting the event from 6-9 p.m. on Main Street, showcasing environmental leadership and innovation, the city announced.

Environmental nonprofit organizations, government agencies and participating businesses that have earned the "Environmental Excellence" or "Community Partners for Clean Streams" designations from Washtenaw County will provide hands-on activities at the fair.

Exhibitors will highlight innovative energy-saving equipment, including alternative fuel vehicles, demonstrations of green building materials, solar energy installations, renewable energy installations and more, according to the mayor's office.

There will be live birds of prey demonstrations and live music performed by Paul's Big Radio.

Green transportation exhibits will highlight the opportunities available for cleaner trips -- ranging from VanRide vanpools for long-distance commuting to cargo bikes for local shopping trips.

Bike parking is available throughout downtown for the event.

Green Fair is a zero-waste event, coordinated by the mayor's office with Washtenaw County Environmental Excellence Partners, getDowntown, Recycle Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan's Sustainability Cases Initiative.

For more information, visit www.a2gov.org/greenfair.
GENESEE COUNTY, MI - The Genesee County Health Department is cautioning residents that may have been exposed to hepatitis A at a local restaurant to receive treatment.

A public health advisory from the county health department notes an employee at Sweetwater Bar and Grill, 3015 E. Grand Blanc Road, has tested positive for the virus.

"Guests who consumed food or drinks from the restaurant between Tuesday, May 15th, and Wednesday, May 23rd, 2018, may have been exposed to hepatitis A," reads the advisory. "The restaurant is fully cooperating with the Health Department in this effort to provide notification to its valued patrons."

Hepatitis A is an infection of the liver caused by a virus. The virus is shed in feces and is most commonly spread from person to person by unclean hands contaminated with feces.

The infection comes with symptoms that may include sudden abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, headache, dark urine, and/or vomiting often followed by yellowing of the skin and eyes.

Symptoms may appear from 14-50 days after exposure, with an average of about one month.

Any residents that believe they may have been exposed to hepatitis A can reduce the risk by performing the following actions:

Getting the vaccine (within 14 days of potential exposure)

Washing their hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds, especially after using the bathroom, changing diapers, and before preparing and eating food.

Cleaning and disinfecting all surfaces areas -- with particular care to areas including toilets, sinks, trash, door knobs, and faucet handles -- especially while someone in the household or workplace has symptoms.

Do not prepare food if you have symptoms, and refrain from food preparation for at least three days after symptoms have ended.

Regular clinic hours for hepatitis A vaccinations at the Genesee County Health Department Burton branch, 3373 S. Saginaw St., are 8 a.m.-11 a.m. and 1 p.m.-4 p.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 1 p.m.-4 p.m. on Tuesdays, and Thursday evenings by appointment.

The Burton branch will be closed on Monday, May 28 in observance of Memorial Day.

For more information about hepatitis A, visit the county health department's website at www.gchd.us or call the hepatitis A telephone hotline at 810-257-3048.
KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI -- Police are searching for a man they say entered a home Sunday afternoon and exposed himself to a mother and her child.

The incident happened around 12:20 p.m. Sunday, May 27, in the 8800 block of West ML Avenue in Oshtemo Township, about 6 miles west of downtown Kalamazoo, according to the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies say the man was naked when he entered the home. He did not harm the mother and child.

The man left the home in a four-door burgundy Honda that was described as a newer model with a noticeable dent on the driver's side rear door, according to the sheriff's office.

He was last seen traveling west from the residence. He is described as white man with a tan complexion who is in his mid-20s and stands around 6 foot tall with a medium build. He has dark, short hair with a beard and a black band tattoo on his upper left arm.

Before leaving the home, he put on black gym shorts and a red shirt.

Police ask anyone with information about the incident to call the Kalamazoo County Sheriff's Office at 269-383-8748 or Silent Observer at 269-343-2100.
LANSING, MI - On Memorial Day, Zaneta Adams and other military veterans will reflect on those who lost gave their lives in combat as members of the United States Armed Forces.

Yet in the fanfare of parades and fireworks displays, Adams, an Army veteran, said she knows the contributions of her fellow female soldiers will likely go unmentioned.

For her, being a woman and a veteran is a lot like being an invisible hero.

"People don't really realize how many of us are serving, or have served," Adams said. "Female veterans often don't self-identify, either, because people think they should be part of the auxiliary in veteran service organizations.

"There's not a lot of representation for women from other women who get it."

That's why Adams, 41, formed WINC: For All Women Veterans in 2014 - to connect women veterans and raise awareness for their most pressing issues.

As an advocacy and support group, WINC has helped thousands of women veterans share their stories, their hardships and hope. The group also works to combat healthcare issues like PTSD and depression.

Another core pillar of WINC's work centers on military sexual harassment or assault.

Now, Adams is waging WINC's most important campaign yet: a statewide push for a Women Veterans Day.

On Tuesday, the Michigan House of Representatives will consider the adoption of a resolution naming June 15 as Women Veterans Day. The day will honor the nearly 44,000 female military veterans living throughout the state, a fraction of the nearly two million female veterans and active service personnel across the nation.

In doing so, Michigan could join the likes of Alaska and Puerto Rico, which have already signed similar resolutions with the past decade. Other states, like California, Georgia, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania have put aside a whole month to honor female veterans, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

An uphill battle

A Women Veterans Day in Michigan, Adams said, could help secure female soldiers' place in military history. It could also cast a significant spotlight on the difficulties women face when the transition from military to civilian life.

"The message is two-fold," Adams said. "The first is to honor and help raise awareness that we are here in huge numbers. What I hear from a lot of women that when you're a wife or a mom, you're expected to be back to business as usual.

"There is no down time. There's no time to reacclimate as a civilian. With men, we say, 'oh take some time to get yourself together.'"

The resolution was introduced by Rep. Terry Sabo, D-Muskegon, and is expected to pass with bi-partisan support, Adams said.

Adams is traveling to Lansing May 29 to address legislators to make another impassioned pitch, one that she's had some time to perfect.

The attorney has been pushing for a Women Veterans Day since WINC's formation. Most recently, Adams and WINC were able to convince the Muskegon City Commission to recognize Women Veterans Day on June 15. The body presented a proclamation saying as much on April 24.

Adams said having that early support has helped paved the way for her journey to Lansing. However, there are some - even within her own ranks - who say a whole day dedicated to the service of female veterans is reaching.

"There are some men and some women veterans who don't think we should have a Women Veterans Day because 'we're all the same,'" Adams said. "That is a great sentiment. I wish we are all viewed as the same. But the reality is that we're not. Women are very different from men."

The overlooked solider

To understand how much women have impacted the success of the U.S. Armed Forces, one can look no further than the pages of history.

Sabo touches on some of that history in his resolution. The highlights include the formation of the first Women's Army Auxiliary Corps in May 1942 to the first female to become a Marine infantry officer.

Adams said that without real change, those hallmarks will continue to be glossed over when the nation looks back on wartime heroism displayed by their male counterparts.

Adams said those feelings of invisibility mirror her experience in the Army.

She joined the Army reserves in 1998. Out of a unit of 250 male soldiers, Adams said she was the only female. As a result, she endured ridicule and sexual harassment, and found few avenues to report the abuse.

"You just suck it up and drive through," she said. "When you talk to your superiors, who are also males, about other males in the unit, they tend to blow it off."

In a lot of ways, Adams considers herself lucky, because the abuse could have been worse, she said.

In 2005, Adams was called up to serve in the Iraq War. She was placed in an infantry unit and began preparing for what would be one of the bloodiest chapters of Middle Eastern war.

Two weeks before she was deployed, Adams was injured after falling from a 10-foot tall truck during a training exercise. After surgery to fix her nerves and a year later, Adams was discharged from service.

The injury - and the fact that she never got to fight - still haunts her to this day. When she attended veterans conferences, Adams said she was the only woman in the room. As other veterans learn that she was hurt before deployment, the conversation turns sour, and dismissive.

Still, Adams considers it a blessing in disguise - several members of her unit were killed in a roadside bombing once they landed in Iraq, an incident that surely could have taken her life had she been there.

The thought gives Adams pause as she reflects on her service, and her work to make things better for women in the military.

"Being one of the states in the union saying 'we're going to honor Women Veterans Day' is huge," Adams said. "One of the comments I've gotten from women all over the country is that they are just honored. It feels like a thank you."
TORONTO, Ontario, May 27, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RTDNA Canada is pleased to recognize journalistic excellence with the winners of the Network RTDNA Awards of Excellence.



RTDNA Canada Awards honour the best journalists, programs, stations and news gathering organizations in radio, television and digital. With a record number of entries this year, the competition was as tough as ever and our valued judges presided over some truly remarkable submissions, said RTDNA Canada President Ian Koenigsfest. The exceptionally high standard of entries from all regions and all market sizes indicates that quality of journalism continues to thrive in Canada. Winning an RTDNA Award of Excellence once again indicates the pinnacle of our craft on all platforms. Congratulations to everyone involved in producing the winning entries, your work is proudly part of Canadas journalistic legacy.

2018 RTDNA Awards - NETWORK Winners:

Digital

Breaking News  Charlie Edwards Award

CBC Montreal, Quebec City Mosque Attack

Continuing Coverage  Ron Laidlaw Award

CBC News, Crossing into Canada

Data Storytelling Award

CBC News, Census 2016

Digital Media Award

UBC School of Journalism International Reporting Program, Surviving the City

Diversity  Adrienne Clarkson Award

CBC News, Dancing Towards the Light

News-Live Special Events  Gord Sinclair Award

CBC News, Visit Vimy with Peter Mansbridge

Opinion and Commentary  Sam Ross Award

Global TV, Cultural Appropriation

Podcast Award

CBC Original Podcasts, Someone Knows Something - Dee & Moore

Social Media Award

CBC News Social Team, From Danger to Despair: Life for Refugees on the Streets of Serbia

Sports  Feature Reporting Award

CBC News, Throwing it All Away

Multiplatform

Indepth or Investigative  Dan McArthur Award

Global TV, Who's Watching? Ontarios Probation System a joke, say Offenders

Innovation Award

CBC News, A City Destroyed: The Halifax Explosion, 100 Years Later

Radio

Breaking News  Charlie Edwards Award

CBC News, World Report, London Tube Attack

Continuing Coverage  Ron Laidlaw Award

CBC News, The World at Six, No Home for Rohingyas

Diversity  Adrienne Clarkson Award

CBC Radio One, The Current, 'I Want to Understand': Ottawa Police Sergeant Openly Apologizes for Racist Comments

Long Feature  Dave Rogers Award

CBC News, The World at Six, Selling Elephants

News-Live Special Events  Gord Sinclair Award

CBC News, CBC Radio News Special: Vimy @ 100

Opinion and Commentary  Sam Ross Award

CBC Radio One, Day 6, Ryan McMahon's 12-Step-Guide to Decolonization

Radio News Information Program  Peter Gzowski Award

CBC Radio, On Drugs, Opioids, Addiction and our Troubled History with Pain

Radio Newscast  Byron MacGregor Award

CBC News, The World at Six, A Deadly Day

Short Feature  Dave Rogers Award

CBC News, The World at Six, Toby's Apology

Sound  Dick Smyth Award

CBC News, The World at Six, Trump Inauguration

Sports  Feature Reporting Award

CBC News, The World This Weekend, Indigenous Sprinter

Television

Breaking News  Charlie Edwards Award

CTV News Channel, Quebec City Mosque Shooting

Continuing Coverage  Ron Laidlaw Award

CBC News, The National, South Sudan Famine

Diversity  Adrienne Clarkson Award

CTV W5, Electric Pow Wow

Long Feature  Dave Rogers Award

CBC News, The National, The Ruins of Raqqa

News-Live Special Events  Gord Sinclair Award

CBC News Special Presentation, Canada Day 2017

Opinion and Commentary  Sam Ross Award

CTV News, Essay: Power of the People

Short Feature  Dave Rogers Award

CTV News, James Sydney Battis at Vimy Ridge

Sports  Feature Reporting Award

TSN, Sound of Thunder

Sports  Live Special Events Awards

TSN, 2017 Grey Cup

TV News Information Program  Trina McQueen Award

CTV W5, Episode 52-02: Jet Lagged | Mesh Misery

TV Newscast  Bert Cannings Award

CBC News, The National, December 7, 2017

Video  Hugh Haugland Award

CBC News, The National, Disappearing Giants

About RTDNA



RTDNA Canada is the voice of electronic and digital journalists and news managers in Canada. The members of RTDNA Canada recognize the responsibility of broadcast and digital journalists to promote and to protect the freedom to report independently about matters of public interest and to present a wide range of expressions, opinions and ideas. The RTDNA Canada Journalistic Code of Ethics, adopted by the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council, is used to measure fairness and accuracy in our profession.

Become a Member: https://rtdna.wildapricot.org/join-us

Contact Information

Ian Koenigsfest

President, RTDNA Canada

president@rtdnacanada.com

Jennifer Nguyen

RTDNA Canada Awards

info@rtdnacanada.com

http://www.rtdnacanada.com
"We're planning on taking a lot more flow from Merck, and Merck has asked us to provide to them a proposal, if you will, for what that means from our side of things," said councilman BJ Breish.
Building Homes for Heroes donates home to war veteran and her children
May 27, 2018

The MoA Week In Review - ISIS and U.S./Saudi Weapons - Open Thread 2018-26

Last week's posts on Moon of Alabama:

May 21 - Trump's New Campaign Against Iran Will Not Achieve Its Aims

U.S. Secretary of State Pomous Maximus laid out 12 demands towards Iran. Ayatollah Khamenei responded with 6 demands to the Europeans.

May 22 - A Dive Into Washington's Swamp

How the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the Zionists bought the White House.

Since the Central Bank intervention on Wednesday the Lira stopped its scary drop. I expect it to resume soon.

With their flurry of action the Korean President Moon and Chairman Kim are running circles around the Trump team. This is not the "maximum pressure" on North Korea U.S. president Trump envisioned.

May 25 - Moon of Alabama Needs Your Help - Please Support Its Poor Poet

Please drop us a dime or two or more.

Here are two more items for you to read:

Looking for Calley - How a young journalist untangled the riddle of My Lai - By Seymour M. Hersh

Hersh describes for Harpers how his classic shoe leather reporting dug up the evidence. A quite amusing read.

WEAPONS OF THE ISLAMIC STATE - By Conflict Armament Research

CAR with detail data on who supplied ISIS with weapons and ammunition. Unsurprising for those who read here it finds:

Unauthorised retransferthe violation of agreements by which a supplier government prohibits the re-export of materiel by a recipient government without its prior consentis a significant source of IS weapons and ammunition. The United States and Saudi Arabia supplied most of this materiel without authorisation, apparently to Syrian opposition forces. This diverted materiel, recovered from IS forces, comprises exclusively Warsaw Pact calibre weapons and ammunition, purchased by the United States and Saudi Arabia from European Union (EU) Member States in Eastern Europe.

...

Supplies of materiel into the Syrian conflict from foreign partiesnotably the United States and Saudi Arabiahave indirectly allowed IS to obtain substantial quantities of anti-armour ammunition. These weapons include ATGWs and several varieties of rocket with tandem warheads, which are designed to defeat modern reactive armour. These systems continue to pose a significant threat to the coalition of troops arrayed against IS forces.

...

The report concludes that international weapon supplies to factions in the Syrian conflict have significantly augmented the quantity and quality of weapons available to IS forcesin numbers far beyond those that would have been available to the group through battlefield capture alone.

Use as open thread ...

Posted by b on May 27, 2018 at 15:54 UTC | Permalink

Comments
A service dog has unexpectedly given birth to eight puppies in the middle of a Florida airport.

Diane Van Atter and her stepmother were on their way to Philadelphia with their two service dogs when the female, Eleanor Rigby, went into labour, NBC news reports.

The pair knew two-year-old Eleanor was pregnant and their other dog, Nugget, was the father, but did not realise she was ready to give birth until the puppies arrived.

Dogs are normally pregnant for around 65 days. Flying with a dog past 45 days is not recommended as it could induce an early labour.


The US and North Korea, Still Miles Apart



By Phillip Orchard







U.S. President Donald Trump canceled next months summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on May 24, citing the tremendous anger and open hostility of recent North Korean rhetoric. (Of course, North Korea says angry and openly hostile things all the time; it would be more suspicious if it suddenly stopped.) Trump later said the summit might still happen with unspecified constructive steps from Kim.





But the U.S. and North Korean positions on the Norths nuclear program are still miles apart, and the U.S. simply wasnt going to get much of what it wanted in the June 12 summit in Singapore. Its not clear if the White House ever truly thought otherwise  or, if so, why it did.





Measures of Good Faith

Its possible that things were communicated behind the scenes all along that led the U.S. to take the Norths willingness to give up its nukes seriously  and that the North has indeed done an about-face. This is the story coming out of the White House. Earlier this week, Trump suggested that relaxed pressure from China on the North had led Pyongyang to harden its position.

But nothing the North has done publicly since Kims New Years speech has suggested an actual willingness to hand over its nukes. More important, the North has long seen nuclear weapons as the ultimate way to keep the U.S. and hostile outside powers at bay for good. Theres little that China or international sanctions pressure or maximalist rhetoric can do to change Pyongyangs thinking on this. Empty U.S. reassurances about regime security arent going to do the trick  even if Trump, rather oddly, hadnt warned Kim this week that failure to give up his nukes would lead him to the same fate as Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, who did surrender his nuclear weapons program.

True, the North has refrained from conducting missile or nuclear tests since November. It released U.S. prisoners. Kim said nice things to South Korean President Moon Jae-in about heading down the long road to reunification and hinted at an interest in economic liberalization . Kim echoed his father and grandfather in reiterating that denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula was the enduring dream of the Kim dynasty. Just two hours before Trumps announcement, the North even blew up its nuclear test site  or at least appeared to do so (Western journalists attended the event, but inspectors havent been allowed in). But these are merely measures of good faith intended to demonstrate a willingness to sit down with its great adversary  as nuclear powers on equal footing. They do not signal a softening of Pyongyangs position on its nuclear program.

Ultimately, when the U.S. and North Korea talk about denuclearization, they are talking about two very different things. In the Trump administrations view, denuclearization needs to be complete, verifiable and irreversible  and, importantly, completed by the end of Trumps first term. According to U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton, every one of the Norths nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, along with its associated equipment, plus its ballistic missiles, must be dismantled and shipped to the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee before North Korea gets anything tangible in exchange. The U.S. even wants North Koreas nuclear scientists to leave the country. To North Korea, denuclearization is more of a long-term goal on par with global disarmament. In the meantime, the most it may be willing to compromise on is the size and shape of its missile and warhead arsenal.

A Position of Strength

North Korea almost certainly believes that it is bargaining from a position of strength. To start, even if its missile arsenal is not yet reliable enough to guarantee an ability to strike a target in the U.S., North Korea is effectively a nuclear power. Despite its freeze on missile and nuclear tests and the apparent destruction of its favored nuclear test site, it already has large stockpiles of nuclear weapons and missiles that, if nothing else, can fly far enough to reach airspace over the United States. And though it has yet to demonstrate mastery over intercontinental ballistic missile re-entry technology  the trickiest part of missile development  the missile program is far enough along to make the U.S. think twice about an attack on the North. In the nuclear game, deterrence doesnt hinge on whats probable, just whats possible. This, along with its entrenched artillery positions along the demilitarized zone that threaten more than half of South Koreas population , may be enough for the North to think it has the U.S. beat on the military question.

In addition, in the Norths view, Trump backed himself into a political corner when he agreed to buck precedent and sit down with Kim face-to-face  long an elusive goal of the North  before it had made any substantive concessions. The North (with ample help from Seoul) dangled an opportunity, even if a wholly insincere one, for Trump to do what none of his predecessors could: bring Pyongyang to heel. Since the North was never going to hand over its nukes willingly, this meant Trump would be faced with the prospect of either coming home empty-handed or claiming victory by agreeing to a weak deal  likely involving a freeze on ICBMs and perhaps a protracted, largely symbolic process toward denuclearization.

In other words, Pyongyang saw a chance to get de facto recognition of its status as a nuclear power, plus concessions on short-range missiles and the U.S. troop presence on the peninsula that would weaken Washingtons alliance with South Korea and Japan (something China wholeheartedly supports). If, as turned out to be the case, the U.S. came to terms with its poor position and backed out of the summit, the North would be no worse off than before.

Its position may even be improved. The North, after all, has lived up to its pledges ahead of the summit, however symbolic they may have been. Its keen to drag out the diplomatic process and demonstrate that it can act as a rational and responsible nuclear power  or at least enough that countries like China and South Korea may want to start normalizing ties with (and easing sanctions on) Pyongyang. Meanwhile, whatever the strategic logic that led the U.S. to abandon the Iran nuclear deal, doing so without even trying to prove that Tehran had violated the deal has only reinforced perceptions of the U.S. as a capricious power. Backing out of the summit on grounds that North Korean rhetoric had become too bellicose wont help in this regard.

The U.S. is leaving the door open for the summit to resume and searching for leverage to improve its negotiating position. But its options havent really changed. It can decide the costs of war are worth bearing and try to deal with the nuclear issue by force. It can conduct a limited strike to demonstrate resolve and call the Norths bluff on a counterattack, whatever the risks of escalation. It can agree to a weak deal that would effectively cement Pyongyangs nuclear status. It can kick the can down the road indefinitely and hope the regime eventually collapses under its own weight. None of these are good options, but thats why the issue hasnt been resolved before now.
This item is available in full to subscribers.

Attention subscribers

We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription.

If you are a digital subscriber with an active subscription, then you already have an account here. Just reset your password if you've not yet logged in to your account on this new site.

If you are a current print subscriber, you can set up a free website account by clicking here.

Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing.
NORTH HAVEN  An East Haven man was found dead Sunday morning in Peters Rock Park.

The man, who was not immediately identified, was younger than 40 years old, according to fire officials. The North Haven Police Departments investigative services unit is investigating the death.

North Haven Fire Department Deputy Chief Scott Martus said crews and officers from the East Haven Police Department were dispatched to the park around 6 p.m. Saturday.

The mans vehicle was found near the parks entrance on Middletown Avenue.

Crews searched until midnight Sunday, with assistance from the Guilford Fire Department and state police.

North Haven fire crews resumed the search at 5 a.m. Sunday with state police search and rescue dogs, which located the body off a trail, about 300 yards from Hermitage Lane.

The body was removed by 10 a.m. and the park has re-opened to the public.

LTakores@record-journal.com

203-317-2212

Twitter: @LCTakores
One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021
Navys parents believe music helps their son build self-confidence and teaches him to work in a team.

Navy Lin (second row, second right) is happy he can perform at renowned venues.

Ada Lau (left) does not let her disabilities stop her from being Hope Through Music Childrens Orchestra concertmaster.

The Hong Kong Hope Through Music Childrens Choir and Childrens Orchestra provide opportunities for underprivileged youngsters to play music.

They say music has the power to heal, and the old adage is proving to be true for a group of talented children from low-income families.

They receive free musical education through the Hong Kong Hope Through Music Children's Choir and Children's Orchestra.

The youngsters perform free community concerts to spread care and love to other people in need.

The orchestra's concertmaster Ada Lau plays the viola and the violin.

Her family cannot afford music lessons as her father is a stroke patient and her mother Chan Kai-wang cannot work as she needs to care for her husband and two daughters, so learning music is a luxury for them. However, she found that music was good for Ada, who is autistic.

"When she was in Primary 1 she could not remember what she learned at school - not a word, even after writing it 100 times. She could not understand why one plus one makes two and she never played with other children."

Music track

Music is the only thing Ada, who also has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, shows interest in. Her mother said she is glad she found the Hope Through Music Children's Charity, which offers free music lessons.

"When I discovered they offered free music lessons I signed Ada up immediately. We are so happy we did."

Music not only made Ada open her heart, but the charity's instructors also discovered her musical potential.

Ms Chan said: "She changed from a timid girl to a confident and happy girl. She loves music and performing onstage."

Ada has performed with the orchestra on multiple occasions and participated in a musical exchange tour in Austria.

Last year, she played at the prestigious National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing.

Ada said: "It was spectacular. I was so proud to perform there. Although I did not give a solo performance, it felt good to play with my friends."

Confidence building

Navy Lin also has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. His parents said performing helps children build self-confidence and teaches them to work as a team.

Navy's father Lin Shao-min said he is happy his son can perform at renowned venues with the Hope Through Music Children's Choir.

"The aim of the organisation is to provide opportunities for underprivileged children to learn music and perform. I really appreciate that. They may not be the best choir, but they still have the chance to perform in places like the Hong Kong Cultural Centre."

Navy's mother Fu Cui-hong said the choir's teachers are patient and caring, and help students build confidence.

"My son is active, even naughty sometimes. I was worried they would not want to teach him. I am thankful they took him on and taught him with love and care. It is too expensive to join other choirs. Navy is happy here and he has also learned to co-operate with others, not just in singing."

Social harmony

The charity was formed in 2014. Funded by the Social Welfare Department's Partnership Fund for the Disadvantaged, it provides opportunities for underprivileged children to play music.

The Vienna Boys Choir Music Academy Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Youth Symphonic Orchestra provide professional tutors to inspire the young musicians and advise the charity's staff.

The charity's Chairman Lam Kai-fai said the choir and the orchestra have bought hope to children, created opportunities for them and boosted their confidence.

"Our students not only perform at renowned venues, but also at hospitals and elderly homes because we want to raise their interest in music and help them establish a good character.

"They also have the opportunity to play or sing with other schools, choirs or orchestras. We want to give these children a level playing field and encourage them to overcome their less fortunate backgrounds.

"When their character and self-esteem improve, they can strive for a better future."
Chris Kleponis/Pool/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- President Donald Trump welcomed American citizen Josh Holt, who was released Saturday morning from prison in Venezuela after two years, to the Oval Office Saturday evening.



"I just want to welcome you to the Oval Office, welcome you to the White House," Trump said. "You've got through a lot -- more than most people could endure."



"They came back from a very tough ordeal in a Venezuelan prison almost two years, Josh -- and, you know, amazing that you were able to take it," Trump said.



Holt, who had changed from his blue jeans into a navy blue suit and tie for the White House visit, looked calm and at ease sitting next to Trump. On one gold couch in the Oval Office sat Holt's family, and on the other couch sat Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah; Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah; Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn.; and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, in a row. State Department officials lined the back wall of the Oval Office.



"I'm overwhelmed with gratitude," Holt said.



"They were a very, very difficult two years," he continued. "Not really the great vacation that I was looking for. But we're still together, starting off a marriage rough, but now we'll be together. I'm just so grateful for what you guys have done and for thinking about me and caring about me, just a normal person. It really touches me, and thank you."



"You've been very brave," Trump replied.



Holt had traveled to Venezuela in June 2016 to marry Thamara Caleno, whom he met on an online Mormon dating site. Holt planned to return to the United States with his new wife and two stepchildren, but they never made it back. Venezuelan police raided their apartment and arrested them on charges of terrorism, espionage and illegal possession of weapons. They never received a trial, and maintained their innocence.



Corker, who led efforts to get Holt and his wife released, traveled to Venezuela to meet with President Nicolas Maduro and said it was "quite an experience."



"We could almost write a book about the past 48 hours," Corker said.



Trump shook hands with Corker's staffer, who played an instrumental role in setting up communications for Holt's release.



Trump touted the number of prisoners his administration has released and went on to say that he's specifically looking at trying to free Pastor Andrew Brunson, currently imprisoned in Turkey.



"Pastor Brunson, I hope you can hear us. We'll be helping you," Trump said.



Trump asked everyone sitting with him in the Oval Office to speak about Holt's release but was surprised -- and amused -- when Lee turned to Holt's daughter to address her in Spanish.



"You understood that beautifully," Trump said to Holt's Venezuelan daughter. "Good job."



At the end of the spray, Trump said he wanted to make comments on North Korea.



Trump revealed that there are currently meetings going on about the summit "as we speak, in a certain location, which I won't name but you'd like the location. It's not so far away from here."



Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
How Much Does This

Guy Love His Wife?

Their House Now Spins
(Newser)  Joshua Holt, who traveled to Venezuela from Utah in 2016 to marry a Spanish-speaking Mormon woman but soon found himself jailed and later branded the CIA's top spy in Latin America, has been set free by the anti-American Maduro government. He says he was "overwhelmed with gratitude," reports the AP. Holt and his wife, Thamara Caleno, arrived Saturday evening at Dulles International Airport for a tearful reunion with his parents, Laurie and Jason Holt. A few hours later President Trump welcomed them to the White House. "Those two years, they were a very, very difficult two years," said an emotional Holt, sitting next to Trump in the Oval Office. "Not really the great vacation that I was looking for ... I'm just so grateful for what you guys have done." To Holt, Trump said: "You've gone through a lot. More than most people could endure."

story continues below

Their release came a day after Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., held a surprise meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the White House says runs a "dictatorship" and just won re-election in a "sham" vote. Trump, in a tweet, described Holt as a "hostage." Months of backchannel talks between a Corker aide and close allies of Maduro preceded their return. Yet Holt's release seemed unlikely even a week ago. Joining Trump in the Oval Office were Corker, Utah Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee, and Utah Rep. Mia Love. Holt and his wife were reunited at the Caracas airport with her daughter, and all three boarded a flight to Washington. "We are on our way home," Corker tweeted. When he departed Caracas, Holt told the AP the ordeal had left him "exhausted." The White House issued a statement Saturday saying the US' Venezuela policy was not changing, while thanking the government for releasing the Holts.

(Read more President Trump stories.)
(Newser)  Nearly a half-century after bullets took the life of Robert F. Kennedy, Sirhan Sirhan, the man convicted of firing those bullets, has an unlikely defender: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The slain presidential candidate's third-eldest child tells the Washington Post that "I got to a place where I had to see Sirhan" because "I was curious and disturbed by what I had seen in the evidence" and "disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father." After a three-hour jailhouse visit with the convicted assassin in Decembera conversation he won't discuss in detailKennedy Jr. says he believes that there was a second shooter at the Ambassador Hotel on June 5, 1968, and that Sirhan did not fire the fatal shots. Kennedy Jr., who was 14 when his father was assassinated, is now calling for a reinvestigation into his death.

story continues below

He joins Paul Schrade, who was also shot that night, but survived. The case isn't without evidence: Sirhan was standing in front of Kennedy, but the autopsy showed that the fatal shots hit Kennedy from behind. Evidence in later years showed that as many as 13 shots were fired, though Sirhan's weapon held only eight bullets. "Yes, he did shoot me. Yes, he shot four other people and aimed at Kennedy," Schrade says. "The important thing is he did not shoot Robert Kennedy." Says Kennedy Jr., "Once Schrade showed me the autopsy report, then I didnt feel like it was something I could just dismiss. Which is what I wanted to do." Sirhan has long held that he has no memory of the assassination, and some witnesses have said there was a second shooter. (Read more Robert F. Kennedy stories.)
(Newser)  "Call the cops, my boyfriend is threatening me. He has a gun. Please don't let him know." So wrote a Florida woman in a note she handed to her dog's veterinarian Saturday in a highly stressful situation, authorities tell ABC News. Seems the boyfriend, convicted felon Jeremy Floyd, was standing beside her with a concealed and loaded weapon. Luckily the vet notified police in Deland, Fla., who showed up and arrested the guy. Authorities say Floyd, 39, had beaten her with his gun in a fight Wednesday, and when they struggled for the weapon two bullets fired harmlessly through a wall, the Orlando Sentinel reports.

story continues below

The woman, who remains unidentified, spent a day in bed due to a head injury. Then she convinced Floyd she had to take her dog to DeLand Animal Hospital, so he reportedly went along and threatened to murder her and her family on the drive over. At the hospital, a cool-headed staffer managed to call law enforcement. "If they had alerted [Floyd] in some way, this might not have been as peaceful, you know, somebody may have gotten hurt," the CEO of a domestic abuse center tells WFTV. (Read more domestic abuse stories.)
(Newser)  Ever recoiled at the corrections scribbled on your high school essay? Now you can imagine how the White House felt earlier this month when its form letter was returned by retired teacher Yvonne Mason, the Greenville News reports. "I have never, ever, received a letter with this many silly mistakes," says Mason, who taught middle and high school in South Carolina for 17 years. "When you get letters from the highest level of government, you expect them to be at least mechanically correct." Mason began the exchange with a letter asking President Trump to meet family members of victims of the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. In response, she received a form letter that discusses school safety. "It didn't address the letter I wrote," she says.

story continues below

But that wasn't all: Grammatical mistakes. Improper capitalizations. Lack of specificity. In her purple ink, Mason marked improper capitalizations of "president," "state," "federal," and "nation." As she explained, "'Federal' is capitalized only when used as part of a proper noun, e.g. the name of an agency." Huffington Post points out two of her more colorful notes: "Have y'all tried grammar and style check?" and "OMG this is WRONG!" Mason says she would have graded the letter a "D" in her high school class. "Part of the idea of clear, precise writing is abiding by grammatical and mechanical standards so everyone can be on the same page," she says. "Otherwise, you're going to be misunderstood." (Some mistakes in Trump's tweets are actually deliberate.)
(Newser)  "Mr. Trump's son should be concerned." That's the word from Spanish investigator Jose Grinda, who says the FBI recently obtained wiretaps involving two Russiansoligarch Alexander Torshin and convicted money launderer Alexander Romanovfrom Spanish police, Yahoo News reports. Seems the wiretaps led to a brief meeting between Torshin and Donald Trump Jr. at an NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky, two years ago. Torshin, a top official at Russia's Central Bank with close ties to the NRA and US lawmakers, was blacklisted by the Treasury Department last month, CNN reported at the time.

story continues below

The FBI is looking into whether Torshin funneled money to the NRA to help it pay for get-out-the-vote efforts and political ads in the 2016 election. Why the FBI wants these wiretaps is unclear: "I don't have to ask them why they want this information," says Grinda, who has led probes into Russian organized crime. But for Robert Mueller to use the wiretaps in court, he would have to issue a formal request to Spain's government. In a wide-ranging case spearheaded by Grinda five years ago, Spanish police nearly arrested Torshin at a birthday party for Romanov on the island of Mallorca, but Torshin never showed up. (Read more about Torshin here.)
(Newser)  Maybe it was the vodkaor the crazy in Ivan the Terrible's eyes. Whatever, a drunk Russian has assaulted one of his of his country's most famous paintings, Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan on November 16, 1581, reports the Guardian. The government released video of the 37-year-old saying he went to the State Tretyakov gallery in central Moscow to see the work, of the 16th-century tsar cradling his son after mortally attacking him. "I wanted to leave, but then dropped into the [gallerys] buffet and drank 100g of vodka," the man says. "I don't drink vodka and became overwhelmed by something." He then grabbed a metal pole used to keep people away from the art and attacked the painting three times.

story continues below

He managed to smash through the protective glass and cause "serious damage" to the painting, piercing it in three places, the gallery says. Luckily the work was undamaged in key areas around the subjects' hands and faces and may be fixable. Some Russian media outlets say the man attacked the painting for being inaccurate, a charge leveled in 2013 by Russian nationalists who wanted the painting taken down, the Telegraph reports. Generally speaking, nationalists including Vladimir Putin consider Ivan a great tsar who's been vilified by the West. Others say the 1885 painting by Ilya Repin so intensely depicts Ivan the Terrible's anguish that the look in his eyes "can drive viewers mad," per the Telegraph. (Read more Russia stories.)
Sorry!

This content is not available in your region
New Delhi:

The BJP and the Congress will be once again back on the battlefield as the stage is set for the bypoll to 14 constituencies in 10 states to elect their new representatives on Monday.

The 10 seats where Assembly bypolls will be held are Noorpur (Uttar Pradesh), Maheshtala (West Bengal), Ampati (Meghalaya), Tharali (Uttarakhand), Chengannur (Kerala), Jokihat (Bihar), Gomia (Jharkhand), Silli (Jharkhand), Shahkot (Punjab) and Palus-Kadegaon (Maharashtra).

The byelection will also take place in Palghar (Maharashtra), Bhandara-Gondiya (Maharashtra), Kairana (Uttar Pradesh), and Nagaland (Nagaland) Lok Sabha seats.

The bypolls were necessitated after the seats were left vacant following the death and retirement of their respective candidates.

One constituency, RR Nagar in Karnataka will also go to polls on Monday as earlier it had been countermanded due to alleged voter ID fraud in the first week of May.

With 14 constituencies going to poll on the same day, one of the largest ever such exercises is going to be held on Monday.

Read | Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll: BJP 'bribing' voters, Shiv Sena writes to Election Commission

All eyes will be on the results of Monday's polling as it is a key player in the run up to 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

It will be also a test for the Bharatiya Janata Party to maintain the majority mark of 271 in Lok Sabha. Recently, the party has dropped two seats after BS Yeddyurappa and B Sriramulu quit following their victory in the Karnataka Assembly Polls.

The Congress, which had forged an alliance with JD-S to form the government in Karnataka, is yet to confirm its coalition for the RR Nagar seat.

The counting of votes will be held by the Election Commission on May 31.

Read | Kairana bypoll is a key player in the run up to 2019 Lok Sabha polls

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

Days after army officer Major Leetul Gogoi's detention from a Srinagar hotel along with a Kashmiri woman, the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) on Sunday asked the police to furnish the status report of the same, according to an article, published by The Indian Express.

Earlier on May 23, the army officer and the local woman were detained by the Srinagar police following their scuffle with one of the hotel staffs in Srinagar. The two were detained under Section 164 of CrPC.

In her statement before the magistrate, the woman has said that she knew Gogoi for quite some time and met him of her "own free will". She also wanted to spend some time with the officer. The Jammu and Kashmir Police has recorded her statement.

"SHO Police Station Khanyar to submit report in light of application by 30-05-2018 through Chief Prosecuting Officer (CPO) Srinagar," CJM Srinagar directed the police after human rights activist Ahsan Untoo filed an application questioning police's role in the case.

In his application, Untoo has also urged the police to furnish the status report of the case before the court.

Read | 'Exemplary punishment' to major Gogoi if found guilty, says Army chief Bipin Rawat

The woman also said that she had met Gogoi several times on outings in the past and is an adult. She produced Aadhaar card before the magistrate as proof of her date of birth.

Being asked how she met Gogoi, the woman said that they first got in touch with each other on Facebook. Gogoi opened a Facebook account under a fake name - Aadil Adnan and later revealed his real identity to her. Post that they became friends.

As per her deposition before the Magistrate, she also knew Sameer Ahmad Malla, the local Armyman, who was detained with them. But she failed to name Sameer's parents when being asked about the magistrate.

On Wednesday, Major Gogoi booked a hotel room for two guests but arrived with the woman at the hotel reception. Post that they were denied the room as the woman is a local and it is room to a local. The altercation led the hotel management to call the police.

Read | Azadi isnt possible, it wont happen: Army Chief to Kashmir youth

On Friday, the Army has ordered a Court of Inquiry against Major Gogoi and Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat had promised of exemplary punishment in case Gogoi is found guilty.

"If anyone in the Indian Army, at any rank, does any wrong and it comes to our notice, then strictest action will be taken. If Major Gogoi has done something wrong then I can say that he will be given due punishment and the punishment will be such that it will set an example," Rawat said.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation through his monthly radio program amann ki baata at 11 am on Sunday. The 44th edition of PMas amann ki baata program will be aired on All India Radio. The monthly radio show will also be broadcast on Doordarshan and live-streamed on Modias YouTube channel.

Immediately after the original Hindi broadcast, the radio program will be aired in regional languages by Akashvani. During the program, the prime minister is expected to give his report card of four years.

The BJP has decided to organise the mass hearing of Modias address that comes amid the completion of four years of BJP-led NDA government in the Centre. Earlier in the 43rd edition of the amann ki baata show, PM Modi had announced Swachh Bharat summer internship' for youth.

LIVE Updates:

#11:30 AM:A During Mann Ki Baat, PM Narendra Modi pays tributes to Pandit Nehru.

#11:25 AM:A The month of May is associated with a historic event in 1857. While many preferred to call it only a Mutiny or a Sepoy Mutiny, it was Veer Savarkar who called it the First War of Independence. I pay my tributes to the great Veer Savarkar: PM

#11:20 AM:A I laud 5 tribal students from Chandrapur, Maharashtra, Ajeet and Deeya Bajaj, Sangeeta Bahl and a BSF contingent for scaling the Mount Everest. The BSF contingent also brought back dirt that had accumulated in the mountains: PM Narendra Modi

#11:15 AM:A India is delighted to host this year's World Environment Day programme. It is our duty to live in harmony with nature.A

India is delighted to host this year's World Environment Day programme. It is our duty to live in harmony with nature. #MannKiBaat pic.twitter.com/LLEQtAuVO3 a PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 27, 2018

# 11:12 AM:A We must not forget our heritage. Through crowdsourcing, let us make archives of our traditional sports. The youngster generation will gain through this.A

Devote this summer to playing traditional games of India. #MannKiBaat pic.twitter.com/Y334e6gcfF a PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 27, 2018

# 11:10 AM:A There is great awareness towards Fitness. Everyone is saying Hum Fit Toh India Fit.

#11:05 AM:A A sense of adventure inspires people to do great things. In the recent weeks, several people scaled Everest and made us proud.A

A sense of adventure inspires people to do great things. In the recent weeks, several people scaled Everest and made us proud. #MannKiBaat https://t.co/mpVak6uxrs pic.twitter.com/CovuN308Cm a PMO India (@PMOIndia) May 27, 2018

#11:00 AM: PM Modi's 'Mann kiA Baat'A has begun. The Prime MinisterA congratulates the team of INSV Tarini.A

#09:00 AM: The 44th edition of PM Modias amann ki baata program will start at 11 am. A Till then watch the highlights of April edition of aMann ki Baata.A

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated India's first smart and green highway - the Eastern Peripheral Expressway in Uttar Pradesh's Bhagpat. During the launch, Modi said that infrastructure does not differentiate on the basis caste and religion.

"Infrastructure does not differentiate on the basis of caste, creed, religion and economic status. We have constructed 28,000 km of highway in the last four years. The BJP is racing towards the development," Modi said while addressing a rally in Bhagpat.

Earlier in the day, Modi launched the first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway and held a roadshow. The roadshow began from Nizamuddin Bridge and the PM travelled in an open jeep on Delhi-Meerut Expressway for six kilometers before flying to Bhagpat.

Highlights

#01:40 PM: Congress cheated people for the last 70 years. They don't believe in democracy. They doubted the credibility of India's Supreme Court and others institutions like Election Commission, says PM.

#01:25 PM: From 12 km highway per day earlier, now almost 27 km highway is built per day. 100 waterways are underway, soon UP will be connected with the sea. Big ships will be able to bring goods directly to UP: PM

#01:15 PM: Have given maximum attention to rail, road and water transport because the infrastructure does not differentiate on the basis caste, creed, religion and economic status: PM

#01:10 PM: Through 'Make in India' campaign manufacturing has received a boost, as a result, now there are 120 mobile phone manufacturing factories in India as compared to only 2, four years back: Prime Minister Narendra Modi

#01:05 PM: BREAKING: Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates the Eastern Peripheral Expressway. He says "Infrastructure does not differentiate on the basis caste, creed, religion and economic status."

#12:45 PM: By next March, Eastern Peripheral Expressway will be completed and you will be able to travel to Delhi from Meerut only in 40 mins: Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister

By next March, #EasternPeripheralExpressway will be completed and you will be able to travel to Delhi from Meerut only in 40 mins: Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister pic.twitter.com/VGaAL3y3fT  ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

#12:39 PM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi to shortly address a public rally in Uttar Pradesh's Bagpat. UP Governor Ram Naik, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, UP CM Yogi Adityanath and Haryana CM ML Khattar also present.

#11:10 AM: Take a look at the Eastern Peripheral Expressway: The 135-km Eastern Peripheral Expressway was built at a cost of whopping Rs 11,000 crore. The highway, which was completed in a record 500 days would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains.......Click Here To Read More

# 10:55 AM: PM Modi, Nitin Gadkari, Mansukh Mandaviya roadshow.

WATCH: PM Narendra Modi holds road show after inauguration of first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway. Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Mansukh Mandaviya also present pic.twitter.com/K1OB5krvua  ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

#10:40 AM: PM Narendra Modi holds roadshow after the inauguration of the first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway

PM Narendra Modi holds road show after inauguration of first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway pic.twitter.com/6C01TU2NBL  ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

#10:35 AM: Delhi: PM Narendra Modi inaugurates first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also present

Delhi: PM Narendra Modi inaugurates first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also present pic.twitter.com/IAIpGGj2xs  ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

#10:30 AM: WATCH: PM Narendra Modi inaugurates first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway

WATCH: PM Narendra Modi inaugurates first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway https://t.co/Ku70NR982b  ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

#10:00 AM: Hello and welcome to the News Nation live updates. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch India's first green, smart highway equipped with world-class safety features. The PM will also hold a roadshow on the 6-km long stretch on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway. Stay with us for all the live updates and information on Modi's program Today.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

The Shiv Sena on Sunday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of trying to bribe voters ahead of the May 28 bypoll for Palghar Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra. The Sena wrote to the Election Commission seeking action against the saffron party for using unfair means to win the election.

Distribution of cash to the voters to bribe them to vote for BJP candidate was going on in Palghar ahead of the bypoll," Sena MLA Amit Ghoda alleged in the letter to the EC.

Ghoda said that Shiv Sena workers caught people distributing the cash and a flying squad of the Election Commission had conducted the spot inspection.

It was gross violation of election code of conduct and therefore the BJP candidate (Rajendra Gavit) should be disqualified, the letter stated.

Both the Shiv Sena and the BJP have run an acrimonious campaign for the by-poll, levelling accusations at each other.

Earlier, Shiv Sena boss Uddhav Thackeray had released a purported audio-clip in which Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was allegedly heard encouraging party workers to use Saam, Daam, Dand and Bhed to win Palghar by-election.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Several Armenian officials and their relatives invest in the Czech Republic for various purposes.

Some are engaged in business and others buy real estate. There are even those that just buy and sell companies, a pursuit that has its own merits.

A list of the latter camp includes Artashes Tumanyan, Armenias Ambassador to Iran, along with his family and that of his son; Tavoush Provincial Governor Hovik Abovyan and his wife; Deputy Minister of Energy Infrastructures and Natural Reserves Karen Ghahramanyan and his wife; and Misak Hovsepyan, son of former Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepyan and currently head of the Investigative Committee.

As we wrote earlier, its a well-known fact that foreigners often register or buy a company in the Czech Republic in order to purchase real estate and facilitate citizenship later. In the past, having a business (being a taxpayer) was a mandatory condition for a foreigner to obtain real estate in the Czech Republic. This is not the case now.

There are also businesses that do not actually operate but are not liquidated, either. The purpose of their creation might be connected with the migration policy of the Czech Republic and Schengen countries, providing mostly short visas to foreigners - a maximum of 90 days in a half-year period, while long-term visas are intended for family reunion, educational, scientific, cultural purposes and business trips.

Applying for a long-term visa when having a fictitious company is a common practice among foreigners visiting the Czech Republic. The Czech Interior Ministry reports that last year more than two-thirds of long-term visa applications for business purposes from legal entity representatives were rejected.

Our Czech counterparts say that journalistic investigations prove that foreigners use such companies to obtain a permanent residence permit in the Czech Republic in less than five years, which is the usual term otherwise.

We do not claim that the below-mentioned Armenian officials and their relatives set up or acquire companies in the Czech Republic for such purposes, but the fact is that they do not have real estate in their names and the companies are not operating.

These officials have not declared their shares in Czech companies, which is a legal requirement.

Ambassador Tumanyan hasnt declared his share

Artashes Tumanyan was appointed Armenias ambassador to Iran in 2015.

Back in 2008, he and his family established Unitezza Group LLC in Prague, with charter capital of 200,000 Czech Koruna (US$9,000). Artashes Tumanyan is the main shareholder (52%), while the remaining shares belong to his wife Anahit Shahverdyan (16%), his daughter Lilit Tumanyan (16%) and son-in-law Karen Grigoryan (16%). Lilit Tumanyan is also the director of the company.

At the beginning, the activities of the company listed trade and service brokerage, wholesale and retail trade, rent of real estate, residential and non-residential premises, while in 2012 they were changed to contain only rent.

From 2008 to 2009, the company was registered at Kosire, Zahradnickova 1220/20a, Prague. At the end of 2009, the address was changed to Liboc, Naardenska 666/7. This second address is directly related to Bagrat Verdiyan, an Armenian citizen, a resident of Prague, who has been authorized by the Tumanyans to register a company and do other legal actions.

According to the Czech Cadaster, none of the above-mentioned persons owns any real estate. But, as we learn from the companys documents, Verdiyan lives at the company's registration address. We took a photo of his name among the residents by visiting the building, as well (photo).

Bagrat Verdiyan lives there with his sister, Zaruhi, and their mother, Ruzanna Baghdasaryan, who are also Armenian citizens. The apartment belongs to Russian citizen Anastasia Moletotova, whose family has a joint company with the Verdiyans.

In the Czech Trade Registry, the documents of Unitezza Group date back to 2008 and 2009. The company doesnt operate now, although it is not liquidated. Nevertheless, Ambassador Tumanyan should have declared his 52% stake in the company (104,000 Czech Koruna), which he didnt do in 2015, when submitting his financial disclosures.

Artashes Tumanyans son Samvel and his daughter-in-law Laura Badalyan own shares (70%-30%) in a twin company, Tumanyan Group, founded days after Unitezza Group, again with the help of Bagrat Verdiyan, having the same charter capital, activity, and address and with documents dating back to 2008-2009. According to the Czech Cadaster, this company and its owners dont own any real estate, either.

Tavoush Provincial Governor Hovik Abovyan- a shareholder and a director

Hovik Abovyan, the provincial governor of Tavoush, was appointed in 2014. He is one of the richest governors of Armenia.

Hovik Abovyan and his wife, Anna Azatyan, became owners of a Czech company in April 2009, acquiring via Exabello LLC, established by Czechs in January of the same year.

Generally, the practice in the Czech Republic is to establish a company to sell it to foreigners in the future. It is beneficial for foreigners to avoid the paperwork of registration process and get a "ready" legal entity.

Thus, on April 8, 2009 Hovik Abovyan (51%) and Anna Azatyan (49%) were registered as shareholders of this company, becoming its directors, and renamed it Zikatar, like the name of a mountain in the Gougarq Mountain Range, in the southern-western part of Tavoush Province.

Hovik Abovyan had no right to become a director back then, since he was a customs officer in 2009, and according to the RA Customs Service law, Customs Officers are prohibited to engage in any entrepreneurial activity (he cannot be a director now, either, since he is a public servant, and the Law on Public Service prohibits business activities). Governor Hovik Abovyan failed to submit a financial disclosure of appointment in 2014, where he should have also presented his 51% stake in the Czech company.

The Czech Register has got documents about this company dating back to 2009. Most probably, the company doesnt operate now, but its not liquidated, either. Thus, the governor and his wife remain shareholders.

Abovyan and his wife moved the companys address from Ostrava to Prague and registered it at Hakob Nikoghosyan's SIS Hotel (Gallery Hotel SIS, Nusle, Rostislavova 253/17). The owner of the hotel is Czech Narek LLC, which until 2015 it belonged to the Nikoghosyans and was then sold to two Ukrainians. Zikatar is not the only Armenian company registered in the former Armenian hotel.

The charter capital of Zikatar is 200,000 Czech Koruna (US$9,000) The activities are rent of real estate, trade and services. Abovyan, his wife and the company do not own any real estate in the Czech Republic.

Deputy Minister Ghahramanyan: registered as director and keeping his share a secret

Karen Ghahramanyan is Armavir Provincial Governor Ashot Ghahramanyans son, and Deputy Minister of the Armenian Ministry of Energy Infrastructure and Natural Resources since February this year.

He served as chief of staff of the same ministry in 2004-2018. He and his wife Edita Shekoyan founded Edikar LLC in Prague on August 9, 2010, owning 50%-50% shares of the company with a charter capital of 200,000 Czech Koruna. Thus, Ghahramanyan, too, has violated the Law on Public Service.

The companys type of activity is lease of real estate. It is registered at Starokosirska 6/11, Prague. There is no Armenian name among the building residents (see photo), but it serves as a registration address for a number of companies with Armenian roots.

Ghahramanyan presented a financial disclosure in September 2017, which failed to mention his stake in the Czech company. Even if the Czech Trade Register only has the companys foundation documents, Ghahramanyan still had to declare his share.

As for 2018, he still hasnt submitted any financial disclosure, although he was appointed back in February.

Aghvan Hovsepyan's sons company

Misak Hovsepyan, one of the sons of the President of the Armenian Investigative Committee Aghvan Hovsepyan, registered Omira LLC in Prague in 2010. Misak owns a number of companies in Armenia, and his name is oftencirculatedregarding hydro-electric plant businesses.

Omiras activities include rent of real estate, trade and services. Misak is the only shareholder of the company and director since 2013. The companys charter capital is 200,000 Czech Koruna.

Initially being registered at V hurkach 2145/1, address was changed to Hakob Nikoghosyan's SIS hotel in 2013.

There is no document about Omira since 2013 in the Czech Registry, but the company hasnt been liquidated, either. Since Misak Hovsepyan and his wife, Nora Barseghyan, reside with Aghvan Hovsepyan, they have to submit financial disclosures, too, but these disclosures never mention any data on Czech companies.

Hetq thanks Pavla Holtsova, who has contributed to the preparation of this article.
New Delhi:

The photographs of NASA's 'melted camera', being set up to capture Tuesday's SpaceX Falcon 9 launch, are currently doing rounds on social networking sites.

While the photographs have already gone viral on social media, inviting assumptions of many kinds, the American space agency on Sunday took to explain the real reason behind the same.

According to NASA, a grass fire, which started by the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 earlier this week, toasted the camera, which belonged to NASA photographer Bill Ingalls.

"Earlier this week, a remote camera set up a quarter of a mile away from the launch pad MELTED YYY following our #GRACEFO launch," NASA tweeted on Saturday.

Interestingly, the damaged camera captured its own demise and the photo spread like fire across the world as the memory card was found to be intact.

What Really Happened to that Melted NASA Camera? https://t.co/kg3wFBCUlm pic.twitter.com/kBdT6OGjjq  NASA HQ PHOTO (@nasahqphoto) May 25, 2018

Also Read | Tough times make human brains grow large, reveal scientists

Though many people assumed that the camera was set up too close to the launch pad, actually it was the one Ingalls set up furthest from the pad. It was a quarter of a mile away from the launch site.

"I had six remotes, two outside the launch pad safety perimeter and four inside," said Ingalls.

"Unfortunately, the launch started a grass fire that toasted one of the cameras outside the perimeter," he added.

However, accepting the camera was destroyed, Ingalls rushed to the site and opened the body to check whether the memory card of the camera could be rescued. He finally salvaged the memory card, this is why people got a chance to see the fire engulfing the camera.

Read | NASA sending coldest place on earth to space to unravel mysteries of the universe

The camera, being dubbed as ''toasty", is expected to be displayed somewhere at NASA headquarters in Washington, DC, according to NASA.

On the professional front, Ingalls is scheduled to travel to Kazakhstan and will photograph the June 3 landing of the International Space Station's Expedition 55 crew.

For all the Latest Science News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
New Delhi:

People of Pakistan will vote on July 25 to elect the new government in the country, a presidential spokesman said on Sunday.

Earlier, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had written to the President and proposed two datesJuly 25 and 27 -- to hold elections for the National Assembly and four provincial Assemblies.

On Saturday, Pakistan President Hussain approved July 25 as the polling date for general and provincial elections, PTI quoted officials in the President Office as saying.

A total of 105.95 million voters will use their right of vote to elect the new government. Among them, 59.2 million are male and 46.7 million are female voters.

The dates of general elections were announced even as the ruling PML-N and the opposition spar over picking up an interim prime minister.

The ruling government in the neighbouring country will complete its tenure on May 31 and a caretaker government will take over from June 1. The caretaker government will remain in the office until a new government is set up through elections.

However, despite half a dozen meetings between Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and opposition leader Khursheed Shah, the name of the caretaker prime minister could not be finalised.

(With inputs from agencies)

For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
The Crown Prince has emphasised the significance of strong relations between the executive and legislature branches for the development of the nation. This came as His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander, and First Deputy Prime Minister, visited the majlises of Al Fadhala family, Al Rumaihi family and Al Kaabi family. The Crown Prince affirmed that the Kingdoms development programme is built on solid foundations, enabling Bahrain to overcome different challenges facing the region. Prince Salman highlighted that collaboration between the Executive and Legislative branches has further advanced the Kingdoms development and promoted the role of the private sector as an engine for growth, noting that within the past three years 134 laws have been introduced to deliver on the objectives of HM King Hamads vision. The Crown Prince affirmed that Bahrains institutions are underpinned by a robust regulatory and strategic framework, which comprises the Kingdoms constitution, the National Action Charter and Bahrains Economic Vision 2030, all of which are designed to enhance development opportunities for citizens. The Crown Prince extended his best wishes on the holy month of Ramadan. The hosts and guests expressed their gratitude for HRH the Crown Princes visit and acknowledged his continuous contribution to the Kingdoms development.
The Bitcoin trade booming on Bahraini websites and social media with no laws regulating the system

The Bitcoin trade booming on Bahraini websites and social media with no laws regulating the system

Managing Director of INFINITIWARE, a Bahraini artificial intelligence company, Ameen Al Tajer, explained to Tribune that Bitcoins are basically a digital currency created by an anonymous person or entity named Satoshi Nakamoto almost a decade ago.

With the beginning of this year, more countries have begun to legally recognise bitcoins, including European Union (EU) states, Canada, the US and several African and Asian countries. Bitcoins trade have been booming on Bahraini websites and social media networks. There are no laws in Bahrain that regulate the Bitcoins system, therefore its not 100 per cent safe.

In the absence of official regulations, Bitcoins trade have been booming on Bahraini websites and social media networks. Additionally, an actual shop is set to open soon in Riffa area, as mentioned by an online ad.
His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa received at Gudaibiya Palace today British Secretary of State for International Trade Dr. Liam Fox. He stressed strong relations between Bahrain and the United Kingdom and both countries keenness on economic, political and commercial development. He also emphasised Bahrains keenness to further boost bilateral strategic cooperation which is based on common interests and mutual respect. We look forward to more stability in the region which suffered a lot from conflicts that affected its security and international trade, HRH the Premier said.



HRH the Prime Minister asserted keenness on bolstering strategic partnership, pointing out deep-rooted historic relations and cooperation between the two friendly countries. He also underlined the need to carry out more joint projects given their positive impact on further consolidating cooperation in various fields. He stressed the favourable climate provided by Bahrain for foreign investments, including the British ones.



The British Secretary of State for International Trade commended Bahrains attractive investment climate, stability and advanced economic programme. He also lauded keenness to further cement ties of friendship and cooperation binding both countries by encouraging joint ventures.
A former President of Nigeria, Dr Goodluck Jonathan has warned President Muhammadu Buhari against deploying Federal might to subvert the...

Jonathan said the will of the people must be allowed to stand at all times, because power belongs to them and we must respect their verdict through the ballots, he advised. Jonathan also told President Buhari to stop labeling Nigerian youth as being lazy, urging him to stop using Nigeria as a bad example of a failed nation at the international scene.The former number one citizen , also praised the people of Ekiti State for their supports tor the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), urging them to support the youthful team put up to succeed Governor Ayodele Fayose in the gubernatorial election.He was referring to the youthful PDP governorship candidate, Prof Kolapo Olusola and his running mate, Mr. Deji Ogunsakin. Speaking while inaugurating the 1.2 kilometres long flyover built by Fayose in Ado Ekiti Friday evening , Jonathan described Fayose as an exemplary leader and loyal party man, who has done the PDP proud in all facets. He said:  I dont believe anybody can defeat the PDP in Ekiti if election is going to be held.I want to advise President Buhari not to deploy power to truncate Ekiti election. Though as a president, you have the power but dont do that becaue of posterity. History will record whatever you do and the power of a leader is determined after leaving office and not when he is in the office.On the statement credited to President Buhari that Nigerian youths are slothful, Jonathan retorted: Nigerians youth are not lazy, I dont believe that, because I have worked with them closely. They are great people with great potentials who should be celebrated by any leader. As leaders, we must make sure we present a country that will make us proud and not to use our country as a negative example in Africa to the outside world. The idea of portraying Nigerians negative manners had occurred on two occasions under this present government.These are mistakes we should not make. I want to thank you for your supports for the PDP since 2015 and we expect you to do more in the coming governorship election Speaking further, Jonathan added: Fayose will never compromise the interest of Ekiti people for anything . He is a leader who speaks truth to power, in fact Fayose is a leader and he has done well for his people. Speaking on education, Jonathan said: Any leader who wants to encourage his people must encourage the education of the youth. If you dont encourage the youths, they will be exploited .As youths, you have to be aware that we are operating a knowledge based economy, so you must be proficient in the use of computer, this you cant compromise if you want to fit into the 21st century economy. At a time, Ekiti was becoming low in ranking in education, we were surprised but through effective leadership of Ayodele Fayose, there was improvement.
Gov. David Umahi of Ebonyi has vowed never to castigate President Muhammadu Buhari to prove that he was still in the Peoples Democratic ...

Gov. David Umahi of Ebonyi has vowed never to castigate President Muhammadu Buhari to prove that he was still in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).Umahi made the declaration on Saturday night in Abakaliki during a media chat and dinner he organised for journalists as part of the 2018 Democracy Day celebrations.The governor noted that his decision was a matter of principles, stressing that Buhari remained his only boss.I have left all those issues to political parties not because the president is doing everything right but because he is not God.He might not be doing everything 100 per cent but it is not my duty to castigate my boss and will only face my duties.It is also not my duty to write petitions about the past administration in the state and I am focused towards my duties as child of God who has a calling and is committed, he said.The governor noted that corruption was not a party affair but an issue that has to do with the individual engaging in it.The Bible says that with the fear of God, men depart from evil and without effective tackling of corruption, Nigeria will never develop.It is not an issue concerned with the PDP and if those who decamped from the party to the countrys ruling party says it is corrupt, then they have infected their new party with corruption, he said.He declared that his constant mention of opposition members in the state during solidarity rallies in his honour does not mean that he was threatened by their activities and antics.No member of the opposition can stand for election with me because they have no base in the state and are only deceiving the people.They are not working for the president as they deceitfully claim but are big minuses for the opposition party because most of them dont own houses in the state.They boast of using the federal might to rig the 2019 elections but the youths have warned anyone planning to execute such act to write two things: the fake results and his will, the governor said.Umahi listed his administrations development strides in education, health, human empowerment, infrastructure and security, among others, noting that Ebonyi would be Nigerias Dubai after his eight years tenure.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that journalists and individuals across the state and beyond asked questions on state and national issues.Top government officials including the Secretary to the State Government, the Chief of Staff, legislators and some cabinet members, among others, were however locked out because of lateness.But they were admitted into the venue after the interactive session.
Seniors at McNair Academic High School in Jersey City celebrated their prom at Highlawn Pavilion in West Orange on Friday night.

With a "starry night" theme, students were dressed to impress and danced the night away. Jersey Journal freelance photographer Aixa Garcia was on hand to capture the night.

Check out photos from the prom in the gallery above and don't miss NJ.com's complete coverage of proms from across the state.

Buy these photos:

Are you one of the people pictured at this prom? Want to buy the photo and keep it forever? Look for the blue link "buy photo" below the photographer's credit to purchase the picture. You'll have the ability to order prints in a variety of sizes, or products like magnets, keychains, coffee mugs and more.
As I ascended the escalator in the AMC Theatre, I noticed six huge billboards of buxom women across the street. After all, this was 42nd Street in Times Square.

But as I entered Theater 13, its huge screen brought me back to the old Stanley in Journal Square. And very soon Pope Francis' face was even bigger than the babes on the block.

It was a special screening of "Pope Francis: A Man of His Word," a feature film now playing in wide release all over. Billed as a documentary, it is nothing like the traditional style. It does not cover his entire life, or virtually anything chronological, but rather intersperses clips from eight hours of one-on-one interviews with Francis at the Vatican with video of him speaking and interacting around the world.

The idea is to show how revolutionary Francis is by redirecting the church's mission outward -- especially among the poor.

Among the many beautiful images is Francis at his first Holy Thursday service kissing the feet of the prisoners he has just washed including a Muslim and women.

The one interpretation director/screenwriter Wim Wenders imposes at the beginning is the conversion of St. Francis of Assisi called to "rebuild my church." You see St. Francis in black-and-white going about his mission in Assisi with some other Franciscans in rough robes, unlike the tailored ones by Franciscans today.

In a 30-minute Q&A after the screening, Wenders admitted that he was enthralled with Pope Francis from the moment he took that saint's name, the first time ever for a pope, and the simple way he greeted the flock in Vatican City after his election.

Wenders was surprised, he said, one year into Francis' papacy when Vatican officials approached him about making a major film on Francis with no Vatican interference or agenda.

"I never thought the pope would be available for making a movie," said Wenders, now 72 and a director of major films like "Wings of Desire" and "Buena Vista Social Club."

His film crew was given four two-hour interview sessions with the pope over a period of time. But instead of the interviewer hogging time, Wenders allows Francis' words to advance the movie and uses subtitles to translate his Spanish or Italian.

One highlight for me is when Francis delivers his 2014 Christmas homily to the assembled cardinals seated on plush chairs arranged in a rectangle in some ornate Vatican room. Dressed in their scarlet attire, Francis begins to tick off 15 "diseases" he sees among them: participating in "gossip" and exhibiting "spiritual Alzheimer's" by creating their own closed worlds were two. The kicker: displaying lugubrious or "funereal faces."

Hearing Francis call them out made the last a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Later, hundreds of people pick for scraps or anything they can sell, use or eat from what must be the largest garbage dump ever. Just to watch these poor people made my stomach turn thinking that we consign millions of people in the world to live this way daily.

A theme emerges in the papal visits to Africa, the Philippines, Brazil and elsewhere -- how he gets close to people and his words afford them the dignity that most political leaders do not. He is also concerned about environmental issues, social justice and calls for peace.

You see his appearance in Philadelphia where he cracked a joke about mothers-in-law and before Congress in D.C. where he insists on an end to the gun trade -- "which we all know is simply for money ... money drenched in blood." The Republicans just sat on their hands.

I suggested that Wenders did a disservice to the pope and viewers by not stressing at all his Jesuit formation, which I believe is the cause of his incredible intellect and fearlessness. He replied that he did not want the film to be biographical but simply highlight his words and actions.

The film does show Francis' Jesuitcal style when on the plane he uttered those now famous words in reply to homosexuals: "Who am I to judge?" And now, he has taken it a step further by telling the Chilean abused by a famous priest and coming out to Francis as gay: "God made you this way."

This film reveals the avuncular quality of Francis who reveals his strength by communicating with his eyes and his smile. And his love.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Rev. Alexander Santora is the pastor of Our Lady of Grace and St. Joseph, 400 Willow Ave., Hoboken, 07030, FAX: 201-659-5833; Email: padrealex@yahoo.com; Twitter: @padrehoboken.

Previous columns:
Two men were killed Saturday night when fire swept through a boarded-up house in New Brunswick where they had been staying for an unknown period of time.

Police said the fire appears to have been an accident, and that the two men who died were squatters who gained access to the condemned structure.

The blaze at 289 Seaman St. was reported at 9:53 p.m., New Brunswick Deputy Fire Chief Kevin McCann said on Sunday afternoon.

When firefighters and others arrived, the house was "fully involved in fire," the New Brunswick Police Department said in a statement.

McCann said doors and windows at the the two-and-a-half story wood-frame structure had been sealed up with plywood, complicating the work of firefighters responding to the blaze.

Both men were unresponsive when found on the second floor, police said. They were later pronounced dead at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital.

It is not known long the men, both believed to have been approximately 35 years old, had been living in the house, McCann said.

McCann said the structure had been a residential home before being boarded up at least a year ago.

Four firefighters were treated at the scene for minor injuries, such as a hand burn, that did not require hospitalization, McCann said.

Both the first and second floors of the house sustained heavy damage, McCann said.

Up to 25 firefighters from North Brunswick, East Franklin, South River East Brunswick and Edison responded to the fire.

Rob Jennings may be reached at rjennings@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @RobJenningsNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
A volunteer firefighter in Red Bank was stabbed to death early Sunday in a violent attack that left another borough resident facing state murder and weapons charges.

In a statement, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office said police found Andrew Hill, 26, in the area of Tilton Avenue and Bank Street after receiving a 911 call around 12:43 a.m. reporting a stabbing.

Hill was pronounced dead at Riverview Medical Center just over a half hour later, investigators said.

Authorities arrested Demar S. Reevy, 23, a short time later and charged him with first-degree murder and third-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

It was not clear Sunday whether he had an attorney who could comment on the charges.

Hill was a volunteer member of both the Westside Hose Company and the Red Bank First Aid & Rescue Squad, according to separate Facebook posts by borough Mayor Pat Menna and the rescue squad, which called Hill a "very caring, sweet, and loving individual":

5/27/18: I am saddened to report that a volunteer member of Westside Hose Company, Andrew Hill, died early this morning... Posted by Mayor Pat Menna on Sunday, May 27, 2018

The squad is heartbroken to report the sudden and tragic passing of one of our members Andrew Hill. Andrew was also a... Posted by Red Bank First Aid and Rescue Squad on Sunday, May 27, 2018

Menna said he was ordering flags at borough facilities be flown at half-staff until Hill's funeral.

Hill's death is still under investigation, according to the prosecutor's office.

Authorities said they are urging anyone with information about the stabbing to contact prosecutor's office Detective Kevin Condon at 800-533-7443 or Red Bank police Detective Paul Perez at 732-530-2700.

Anonymous tips can be made via the county Crime Stoppers at 1-800-671-4400, texting "MONMOUTH" plus the tip to 274637, or through email via the Crime Stoppers website at www.monmouthcountycrimestoppers.com.

Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips
Authorities are investigating whether a body discovered Saturday in the Delaware River near Beverly is that of a boater who went missing earlier in the week.

New Jersey State Police said officials responded to the sighting of a body in the river along the Burlington County shoreline shortly after noon.

Police said the victim appeared to have drowned.

According to authorities, positive identification of the person was pending an autopsy at the Burlington County Medical Examiner's Office.

Police could not say Saturday if the body was that of the man in his 20s who went missing after a boating accident on Monday.

State police, the U.S. Coast Guard and Philadelphia Marine Police had searched the river looking for the man.

Four others -- three men and a woman-- were rescued by the Coast Guard after their boat hit a wake in the Delaware River, tossing them into the water.

The search for the missing man was suspended Tuesday.

Taylor Tiamoyo Harris may be reached at tharris@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ladytiamoyo.

Find NJ.com on Facebook
After a killer career in the private sector, Gov. Phil Murphy is about to get an education in the frustrations of governing.

He's had a good run, so far. In four months, he's checked off several big items from the liberal wish list. Equal pay for women. Automatic voter registration. Funding for Planned Parenthood. A return to sanity on climate change. And a robust fight against President Trump on everything, from sanctuary cities and guns, to taxes and water pollution.

"We will reclaim the progressive soul of this state," Murphy said in March.

I sat with the governor for an hour on Monday and came away with two main thoughts.

One is that he's a likeable guy, sincere and smart -- a bit nerdy, perhaps, but bursting with genuine passion to build a more just economy, one strong enough to bring everyone aboard. I root for him to succeed.

But I'm not betting on it. Which brings us to my second thought: I have a sinking feeling that we've already seen the best of the Murphy Era. This could get ugly fast.

Because all signs say the Legislature is going to murder his budget next month by refusing to raise the sales tax, leaving him a whopping $581 million short. Legislative leaders say that in public, and they emphasize it in private. And Murphy has built no reservoir of good will to fall back on.

They don't like him. They don't fear him. And they are convinced he's mistaken about the state's progressive soul -- at least when it comes to raising taxes.

If Murphy can't fix this in the next five weeks, they're going to give him a timid budget designed to protect their careers in next year's election, not to mention their pensions. Short of revenue, it will inevitably be full of the kind of cheap gimmicks that got us into the fiscal mess in the first place, and stripped of Murphy's signature liberal initiatives, like scholarships for community colleges and expansion of preschool programs.

"I would prefer that we do not (raise the sales tax)," says Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, D-Middlesex. "I recognize that probably in each transaction it's not a lot. But cumulatively, that's a lot, and that affects people at all socioeconomic levels."

Senate President Steve Sweeney, who clenches his jaw when you mention Murphy's name, has been striking the same note. You don't have to be an expert at reading tea leaves to know that Murphy is about to walk into a buzz saw.

And he doesn't seem to realize it. I asked him about the constant complaint from legislative leaders, offered to me and to every journalist in town -- that he fails to consult them, that he's a remote figure who doesn't get the importance of personal relationships in politics.

Not a scrap of truth to it, Murphy says.

"I like people. I think we have an enormous amount of contact, with me personally, we and me. I make it my business to make five or 10 calls or meetings per day."

So why do they complain? "I don't know," he says.

Murphy's problems with the Legislature started before he was elected, when he made the most bone-headed political move I've seen in years. The New Jersey Education Association, the state's largest teachers' union, was trying to take out Sweeney by spending more than $5 million to support a Trump Republican against him.

Most of the union money was spent on sleazy attacks against Sweeney, who begged Murphy to take a public stand against the union's smear campaign. Murphy refused, and Sweeney seethed.

I asked Murphy if he felt, on reflection, that it was a mistake. That wide smile disappeared in a flash.

"We spoke to them (the union) at length privately," Murphy said. "We just agreed to disagree."

Politics is full of pointless spats, but on this one, I get why Sweeney is furious. This wasn't a dispute about a road project. The NJEA took a head shot at Sweeney, and Murphy didn't make a peep. Democratic legislators took note, saying the governor should have been in the fox hole with the party's leader in the Senate.

Now, Murphy needs them, especially Sweeney. Good luck with that.

New Jersey, despite what you may have heard from our previous governor, does not impose the highest taxes in the country. If you combine all state and local taxes, we rank 5th in absolute dollars per capita, and 11th as a share of income. I asked Murphy if he worried about moving higher in the rankings.

"I'm modestly surprised we weren't higher already," he said. "We were a good value-for-money state. You pay a premium in New Jersey, but you get a lot of stuff back for that...This is a state that relies on great public education, great infrastructure, greater higher ed, just to pick those three. It reminds me that's why I came here. I'm still good. That's what I want people to think."

I asked if he could promise he won't raise taxes again, assuming he gets the full $1.7 billion he's seeking. He danced. "It's the last move I'll want to reach for. I view this as a major reset. I want to reset this in one boom!"

His budget boosts school funding by nearly $300 million, the biggest increase aside from pensions. He expects the Legislature to approve that sum, even if the distribution is changed somewhat - which is what legislative leaders expect as well. Score that as a big win, after years of frozen funding under former Gov. Chris Christie.

I asked him about what many see as the most promising place to cut spending, the Byrne-Healey commission's recommendation to scale back health benefits for public workers, saving $1 billion a year by moving them "platinum" plans under Obamacare's scoring to "gold" plans.

That doesn't sound too tough to me, but Murphy said he will sign no such law, and that collective bargaining of health benefits is sacred. He hinted at big savings to come through cooperation. "There are smart moves we can make when everybody wins," he says. "We're going to get to a better place sooner than we all think."

He brushed off critics from his left, who complain about his $46 million cut in spending on affordable housing, and the continued diversion of funds from the Clean Energy Fund and the Exxon settlement. "We inherited a complete mess, worse than we thought," Murphy said. "So, we're doing everything we can."

On legalizing recreational use of marijuana for adults, he said he expects the Legislature to approve it, but he was unsure if it'd be done by June 30, the budget deadline. He's open to expunging criminal records of low-level marijuana offenders and releasing those now imprisoned on such charges. And he wants to pave the way for minority entrepreneurs to get into the business, probably by borrowing from other states that have done so, like Maryland and Massachusetts.

"It's an extraordinarily white industry," he said. "There are exceptions, but not many. So how do you figure a way that gets at that, so we don't have this crazy unacceptable stark contrast."

He defended the giant subsidies for PSEG's nuclear plants and pumping more money into solar subsidies that are among the nation's most inefficient -- two measures that could cost ratepayers an added $600 million a year.

"I'm not suggesting it's a perfect child," he said of the nuke bill. "But when you put the green subsidies beside it, combined with what we're doing on wind, we think we're in a pretty good place."

Electing a governor with no experience serving in a legislature, let alone managing one, is a risk. You could even call it reckless. Who would ask a plumber to fix the roof? Politics is a tough and complex game, more so for someone who is learning on the job.

Let's hope Murphy turns out to be a Michael Bloomberg, not a Jon Corzine. At this stage, who knows? He'll face his first serious test next month, when the budget comes due.

More: Tom Moran columns

Tom Moran may be reached at tmoran@starledger.com or call (973) 836-4909. Follow him on Twitter @tomamoran. Find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook.
A swift-moving blaze early Sunday ripped through a mixed-use building housing second and third-story apartments and a first-floor business in Phillipsburg.

Firefighters were dispatched to 43-45 South Main Street at 1:06 a.m. A witness reported flames being under control by 2:10 a.m. when he arrived at the scene.

Firefighters were seen on the second and third floors walking around through the windows. They pulled a hose from the building around 2:20 a.m., the witness said.

It's unclear how many people evacuated; there were no reported injuries. A voicemail left to the Phillipsburg Fire Co. was not immediately returned Sunday.

Spig USA Inc., a global provider of custom-engineered cooling systems and services, had signage on the building. A phone number listed for the business was disconnected Sunday.

Online property records show the building is owned by Vincent M. Tarsi, LLC of Hopatcong, New Jersey.

Responding to the blaze was the Phillipsburg Police Department, Phillipsburg Fire Department and the Phillipsburg Rescue Squad.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
After bouncing through countless jails and rehab centers and living on the streets in New Orleans and beyond, U.S. Army and Navy veteran Tommy Clark found himself sitting in a jail cell this year in Franklinton, not far from where his life went off the rails some 30 years ago.

His parole officers told him about Camp NORA, a transitional facility for homeless veterans that was soon to open at a former orphanage on a beautiful piece of property in the rural Barker's Corner community, north of Covington.

"I thought they were full of crap," said Clark, 59, who is from the tiny Washington Parish village of Angie. "Nothing like this don't exist."

But it does -- or at least it was trying to get off the ground at the time.

Around May 1, Clark -- still wearing prison-issued sweatpants, T-shirt and slippers -- was taken straight from jail to Camp NORA, a 7,600 square-foot facility situated on 18 acres behind a white picket fence and pond. He became the first veteran to move into the home opened by Air Force veteran Ed Lewis and his non-profit group Ride of the Brotherhood.

In just three weeks, Camp NORA (short for "No one rides alone") has already had a profound effect on him, Clark said.

"When I got here, I was one man, with one rifle and one bullet. Trying to fight a war. What I got . . . here, I got a platoon. With everybody behind me. I got a support system," he said.

He's now attending veterans court, has a checking account, goes to a clinic in Slidell for mental health services, and is seeking to restore his financial credit.

Clark has also rediscovered his dignity and pride in being a military veteran.

"This place saved my life," he said. "Makes me feel whole again. Makes me have self-worth. I am somebody."

Clark recounted a recent visit to the Veterans Festival at Heritage Park in Slidell. "I felt proud again, when they played the National Anthem," he said, choking back tears. "I felt like I belonged, like I was a part again."

Clark hasn't been a part of much of anything for decades because of drug abuse, jail time and mental health problems.

The son of a truck driver and a school teacher, Tommy Kelson Clark graduated from Varnado High School in 1975 and, not knowing where he belonged, joined the Army.

He was stationed at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri's Ozarks and - being from the country - took a liking to the infantry. "I could shoot. I didn't mind bugs and snakes. I fit right in," he said.

Clark excelled during infantry training, and an instructor recommended he consider the Army's airborne units. He eventually became a member of the famed 82nd Airborne, an elite division specializing in parachute assaults into hostile territory.

He participated in various covert operations but declined to go into details, other than to say he killed and saw others killed. He said he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia before leaving the Army in 1979 after four years.

Clark joined the Navy and served as a machinist mate aboard the USS Guadalcanal amphibious landing craft stationed at Norfolk, Va. The Navy took him to the Indian Ocean and such places as Italy, Greece, France and Tunisia.

After two years, he left the Navy with his machinist skills and returned to Louisiana, getting a license to work on oilfield boats from the Louisiana Petroleum Institute in Chauvin. He worked in the Gulf of Mexico for years before taking a job on a 210-foot seagoing tug that guided oil ships in and out of Alaska's Prince William Sound.

Clark tired of the demanding schedule of off-shore work and returned to Louisiana around 1988, where he attended Sullivan Technical College and became a licensed practical nurse. He worked at Charity Hospital in New Orleans and became a traveling nurse, working at hospitals across the U.S.

But none of his various life experiences would prepare him for cocaine.

Some friends introduced to him to the drug at his mobile home in Angie during the Christmas holiday in 1990. Clark was never the same.

"When I first smoked cocaine, I knew I was hooked on it," said Clark, who had up to that point only dabbled with marijuana. "It was the best feeling that I ever had."

St. Tammany top stories in your inbox A weekly guide to the biggest news in St. Tammany. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

He refers to cocaine as "Houdini," because it makes things disappear like magic.

"When I started, my wife went away. My bank account went away. My house went away. My family went away. And I found myself working just to do drugs."

Ultimately, he couldn't even work because of his addiction.

The result was a life in and out of jail and on and off the streets, including a couple of years living under the overpass at Claiborne Avenue and Canal Street in New Orleans. Clark would eat and get cleaned up at the New Orleans Mission and sometimes shower at the bus and train station on Loyola Avenue.

Like him, many other veterans across the country were struggling with addiction and lacking help from the Veterans Administration, which didn't have decent programs for vets back then, Clark said.

"I was invisible. I was an angry man. I felt like the government turned their back on me," he said.

About two years ago, he was at a drug-fueled party at a Bogalusa motel at which a flat-screen TV got tossed out of a window. It landed him in jail yet again.

Clark pleaded guilty to various charges stemming from the incident and was serving time at the parish jail in Franklinton this year when his parole officers, Aaron Moran and Meredith McLendon, suggested that he consider Camp NORA, which was on the verge of opening.

"They knew I didn't have any place to go," Clark said.

He said Washington Parish Sheriff Randy "Country" Seal arranged for him to stay in the jail longer than what was required while waiting on Camp NORA to open its doors this year.

"He actually saved my life. I'd like to thank him for that," Clark said of Seal. Clark has now been sober for about a year.

Camp NORA founder Ed Lewis, himself an Air Force vet, said he could not have asked for a better veteran to be the first at the shelter, which he has worked for three years to open.

"Sometimes I get speechless because it's been a longtime in the making," an emotional Lewis said. "But it's happening."

Last week Lewis was lining up two more veterans to join Clark at the home, which is depending on donors and volunteers to keep it going.

For Clark, his attitude has changed since he arrived and realized those at the shelter are not trying to run his life but give him options and support to get him back on his feet.

"The pride is coming out of him," Lewis said.

Clark praised his parole officers and the 22nd Judicial District Drug Court, overseen by state Judge Raymond Childress in Covington. "They're giving the veterans a second chance," Clark said.

And he could not say enough about Lewis.

"He's a mentor. He's a friend. He's a father. He's a guidance counselor. He is a go-to person. He wears a lot of hats. He lives and breathes veterans," Clark said.

He said his life is moving in a positive direction, and he even has begun to re-open lines of communication with his three grown sons and his wife in Bogalusa. Backsliding, he said, is not an option.

"Everything that I have gained goes out the window. There's no room for me, at my age, to go back," he said. "But I have a support system now."
Opinion by Flozell Daniels Jr.

In 2017, while many of us in New Orleans were preparing to observe the tricentennial, Nicole, a hardworking local mom was pulled over for not wearing her seatbelt. The eventual cost? A month in Orleans Parish jail, the loss of her job, a missed family holiday, several missed parent teacher conferences, and thousands of dollars in taxpayer money. New Orleans leads all U.S. cities in jailing its people, and Nicole is just one of many in jail for being poor. How did we get here?

History teaches us that bail in Louisiana was originally a right to release, granted on a pledge without payment: "the prisoner must be discharged without extracting from him the payment of any fees," wrote Edward Livingston at the time of our first constitution. Yet there was still a price placed on certain people's freedom, with profits made from lodging enslaved people in jail for "safe keeping" and capturing anyone accused of being a "fugitive" -- and these unnecessary costs were passed on to taxpayers. As we extended rights to formerly enslaved peoples, the right to release became available only to those who could pay up front for their liberty -- and our modern money bail system was created.

Let's go back to Nicole. After she received a ticket for the seatbelt violation, she forgot to pay it. Haven't we all forgotten a ticket, especially when juggling family life and working full-time jobs? A year later, Nicole was pulled over in a routine traffic stop and taken to jail for driving on a suspended license, something she didn't realize could happen just from not paying one ticket. Her penalty? Bail, fees and fines that were too high to pay on her $26,500 per-year salary, the median income for black women working full-time in Louisiana. In this system that effectively treats poverty as a crime, neither Nicole nor her family could buy her freedom.

While Nicole and others are in one of the most dangerous jails in America, the vast majority for nonviolent charges, our communities are bleeding millions of dollars that would otherwise support local businesses and families. In fact, the money bail system extracts more than $6 million from New Orleans families each year, with most of it going to commercial bail bond companies. We're spending as much in taxpayer dollars to pursue these payments as we get in return -- instead of investing in community programs that are actually proven to make our city safer. In short, we're investing in what works against our people instead of what works for our people.

As a New Orleanian, I recognize that we're a beautifully diverse city and may never all agree on how we got here, even when exploring our past successes and failures. But regardless of intent, the reality is we have disparate outcomes -- and our future relies on us doing better. We now know who is ensnared in the system, disproportionately; it's women, children, families, people of color, the LGBTQ community, poor communities, and everyone living at these intersections. We also know that attaching a price to freedom affects everyone. And it's simply not fair to treat people differently, at best, because they don't have as much money as the next person.

The good news is there are alternatives. We can partner with the court to eliminate wealth-based pretrial detention and use the savings to fund a more efficient and fair process. We've seen money bail successfully eliminated in other states. More good news is that we're already moving in the right direction. Last year, our City Council passed municipal bail reform, and criminal court is working on ways to reduce its reliance on money bail.

Nicole shouldn't be locked away for being poor. She shouldn't have to lose her job after missing work for a month, and her kids shouldn't have to lose their mom, simply because she forgot to pay a ticket and got caught in an unjust system. As we move beyond the tricentennial and into a new era for our city, we can seize this opportunity to finally eliminate money bail and create a system that's more fair for all of us. Now is the time to invest in ourselves and create a future that breaks clearly with the past.

Join the local effort to end cash bail by visiting www.foundationforlouisiana.org and subscribing to our newsletter for updates.

Flozell Daniels Jr. is CEO and president of Foundation for Louisiana.
The St. Tammany Parish coroner has confirmed that four people were killed in a series of accidents Saturday (May 27) on Interstate 12 near Covington.

Two 18-wheelers and an undetermined number of additional vehicles were involved in the chain-reaction incident on eastbound I-12. It occurred around 4:30 on the Highway 21 overpass. As of 10:40 p.m. Saturday, the interstate remained closed.

Three victims were pronounced dead at the scene, including one who emergency personnel were still trying to remove from a vehicle. Another victim was taken to a hospital, where resuscitation efforts failed, coroner Dr. Charles Preston said in a statement.

Preston said the victims would not be identified until authorities reach their families.

As of late Saturday, there was still no precise count on how many people were injured or the number of vehicles involved in the accident.

Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Capt. Scott Lee with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office said a deputy arrived on the scene of the first accident to "render aid to a victim." His marked GMC Tahoe unit was involved in a subsequent accident. The deputy was brought to the hospital as a precaution, Lee said.

nvestigators have not yet determined the cause of the crash. Louisiana State Trooper Melissa Matey said the investigation is ongoing and complicated by the fact that some vehicles have been burned beyond recognition. The westbound lane of Interstate 12 reopened shortly after the crash was reported, but Matey said the eastbound lane will be closed for "several hours."

One of the 18-wheelers was carrying avocados and the other was carrying lemon juice, Matey said. No further information was immediately available.

Bob Warren, Robert Rhoden, Marie Simoneaux and David Grunfeld contributed to this story.
An apparent chain-reaction accident on Interstate 12 near Covington resulted in "multiple deaths" and injuries Saturday afternoon (May 26), according to Louisiana State Police and the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office. The coroner's office confirmed late Saturday that four people died in the wreck.

The first crash occurred just after 4 p.m. in the eastbound lanes of I-12 on the Highway 21 overpass when two 18-wheelers crashed into each other, according to State Police spokeswoman Melissa Matey. Matey said several other vehicles were involved in the crash, including a St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office unit.

A St. Tammany Parish firefighter described a chaotic scene strewn with crushed and burning vehicles belching thick, black smoke. Jeremy Windom, of St. Tammany Fire District 4 in the Mandeville area, said numerous fire agencies responded to the emergency call.

"It's such a complex scene,'' Windom said from the scene at 6:45 p.m. "There are still some vehicles smoldering.''

Windom said firefighters, Louisiana State Police and St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's deputies and officials with the St. Tammany Coroner's Office likely will be on the scene well into the night.

Capt. Scott Lee with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office said a deputy arrived on the scene of the first accident to "render aid to a victim." His marked GMC Tahoe unit was involved in a subsequent accident. The deputy was brought to the hospital as a precaution, Lee said.

Matey said investigators could not immediately confirm the exact number of victims or vehicles involved. According to Matey, at least one of the victims is listed in critical condition.

Windom declined to confirm any particular number of dead, but said firefighters extricated at least one person from a vehicle. He didn't know whether that person was one of the deceased. Multiple people were transported to area hospitals, and others were treated on the scene for minor injuries, he said.

Top stories in New Orleans in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

"It was very chaotic,'' he said.

The crash was initially reported around 4 p.m. Windom said the first fire units a rrived six minutes later. Firefighters from six different departments responded. The show of force, Windom said, was partly due to the fact that so much water had to be trucked in to put out the fires.

"The scene will be going on for quite some time,'' he said.

Windom said the overpass will likely have to be checked out by state transportation officials to make sure it's structurally sound.

Investigators have not yet determined the cause of the crash. Matey said the investigation is ongoing and complicated by the fact that some vehicles have been burned beyond recognition. The westbound lane of Interstate 12 reopened shortly after the crash was reported, but Matey said the eastbound lane will be closed for "several hours."

One of the 18-wheelers was carrying avocados and the other was carrying lemon juice, Matey said. No further information was immediately available.

Stay with NOLA.com for more on this developing story.

Bob Warren and David Grunfeld contributed to this story.
By GEORGE F. WILL

WASHINGTON -- No elaborate catechism is required to determine if someone is a conservative. A single question, as simple as it is infallible, suffices: For whom would you have voted in the presidential election of 1912?

That year, a former president and a future president ran against the incumbent president, who lost, as did the country, which would have been much better off giving another term to William Howard Taft. Instead it got Woodrow Wilson and the modern imperial presidency that had been prefigured by Taft's predecessor and second major opponent in 1912, Theodore Roosevelt. Taft won fewer electoral votes (eight, from Utah and Vermont) than any other incumbent president; Roosevelt carried six states, Wilson 40.

Taft's presidency was bracketed by Roosevelt's and Wilson's, the progenitors of today's imperial presidency. Jeffrey Rosen, law professor at George Washington University and CEO of the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, began writing his new appreciation of the 27th president ("William Howard Taft," the latest in the series of slender books on "The American Presidents," now edited by Princeton historian Sean Wilentz) in January 2017, when the 45th president began inadvertently doing something useful -- validating nostalgia for Taft, whom Rosen calls "the only president to approach the office in constitutional terms above all."

Wilson was the first president to criticize the American founding, particularly for the separation of powers that crimps presidential supremacy. Roosevelt believed that presidents are free to do whatever the Constitution does not forbid. Taft's constitutional modesty held that presidents should exercise only powers explicitly granted by the document.

Romanticizers of Roosevelt ignore his belief that no moral equivalent of war could be as invigorating as the real thing, and they celebrate him as a trustbuster taming corporate capitalism and a pioneering environmentalist. Rosen notes, however, that Taft "extended federal environmental protection to more land than Roosevelt" -- and he created 10 national parks -- "and brought more antitrust suits in one term than Roosevelt brought in nearly two." One of Roosevelt's excuses for trying to regain the presidency was that Taft, who in 1911 brought an antitrust action against U.S. Steel (world's first billion-dollar corporation, then producing a quarter of the world's steel), was too aggressive in trust-busting. Roosevelt thought that, in industry, big was beautiful (because efficiently Darwinian) if big government supervised it.

Taft signed the first revision of tariffs, which are regressive taxes, since the 1890s, when they were raised by an average of 57 percent. His tariff message to Congress was just 340 words because he thought the Constitution and traditional political practice allowed presidents to recommend, but not lobby for, congressional action. Such was his constitutional reticence, in his inaugural address he referred to tariff reform as "a suggestion only."

Taft unsuccessfully resisted President William McKinley's entreaties that he become governor of the Philippines ("I have never approved of keeping the Philippines"). Others wanted him to be president much more than he did. His aspiration, achieved after the presidency, was to be chief justice of the United States. As a reluctant president, he demonstrated that reluctance, which is vanishingly rare, is a recommendation for the office.

In 1912, Roosevelt's "New Nationalism" promised populism rampant and a plebiscitary presidency untethered from constitutional inhibitions: "I don't think that any harm comes from the concentration of powers in one man's hands." And "I believe in pure democracy," the purity being unmediated, unfiltered public opinion empowered even to overturn state court decisions by referendums. This galvanized Taft's determination to resist Roosevelt ("my closest friend") in the name of judicial independence. Taft had vetoed the legislation admitting New Mexico and Arizona to statehood because the latter's constitution provided for the recall of judicial decisions. Arizona removed this quintessentially populist provision -- then restored it once safely inside the Union.

Taft correctly compared Roosevelt to the first populist president (whose portrait would be hung in the Oval Office in 2017 by a populist president): "There is a decided similarity between Andrew Jackson and Roosevelt. He had the same disrespect for law when he felt the law stood between him and what he thought was right to do."

The 1912 strife between conservative and progressive-populist Republicans simmered until Ronald Reagan's election in 1980 sealed conservatism's ascendancy in the party. This lasted 36 years, until it was supplanted by its antithesis, populism, 104 years after Taft resisted Roosevelt. This, for a while, prevented American from having only a populist Republican Party to oppose a progressive Democratic Party -- an echo, not a choice.

George Will's email address is georgewill@washpost.com.

(c) 2018, Washington Post Writers Group
With the upcoming 70th anniversary, we asked readers to share their memories or family stories of the Vanport Flood. We'll publish them online and in print over the next few weeks. Please email your submissions, including your full name and hometown.

A few treasured remains

My father, Ed Potter, a Portland musician, was driving home after a matinee performance with a fellow musician and an Army buddy. As they neared Vanport, they saw a large power line topple over, the first indication something was wrong.

In their Vanport apartment, my mother Lydia had just placed a roast in the oven. She was listening to Walter Winchell on the radio and heard him announce the Columbia River dike had given way and that Vanport was flooding. She didn't believe that Winchell -- all the way in New York -- knew what he was talking about. So she laid down for a nap until someone frantically pounded on the front door. The apartment manager told her Vanport was flooding and that he could take her out in his car. She started to collect white shirts for Ed since he'd need them for his music job, but the manager told her there was no time. Lydia recalled there were so many people driving toward Vanport to watch, it was difficult for residents to evacuate. She asked the manager to drop her off at a pay phone where she called her in-laws, Frank and Christine Potter, to tell them she was safe and on the way to their home in the Alberta neighborhood.

My parents lost virtually everything in the flood. When allowed back after the waters receded, they found the corner cabinet from their kitchen where, by a fluke, the wedding gift set of silverware had caught on the lip of the shelf. We used the silverware during the holidays and special occasions while I was growing up in the Woodlawn neighborhood. Every time we used it my parents were reminded of the flood and how lucky they were to survive.

-- Mary Potter, Wilsonville

Never forget seeing floating homes

I was 5-1/2 years old and remember three things about the flood. My father drove us out to the Vanport area on Interstate Avenue, which ran along an elevated dike in that area before I-5 was constructed. We saw houses were floating around in the flood waters.

We then went downtown to the area near the Portland Police station and found the area was flooded. Workers were making dikes of sand bags and aid workers - the Red Cross, I think -- was dispensing coffee to the workers. Lastly, we lived next door to Peyton Hawes, one of the founders of what became the PayLess Drug Stores chain in Oregon. He lost one of his stores, which had been located in Vanport. He rented his home from my father. Later Mr. Hawes built a large home near Montgomery Drive.

-- Frank Hilton, Northeast Portland

Water rushing in

I was only 8 years old during the Vanport flood. I was in the movie theater at the time and the lights were turned on and an announcement was made over the PA system telling us all to leave immediately because the dike broke and water was rushing in. I ran a few blocks from my home on Cottonwood Drive and got into the car to escape from the flood. We picked up two more families we knew and headed toward Kenton on Denver Avenue, which was very congested. After a few hours we were to seek help at our church in Northwest Portland. They fed us and gave us some clothing. I shall never forget that Memorial Day.

-- Robert Matsunaga, Southeast Portland

The white rabbit

When I was 4 years old, my family drove from San Francisco to Vanport. It was 1948. My father, Rayond Tanguay had been a jockey and a horse trainer and had some sort of business to conduct at the race track. We stayed in a popular motel, sort of stucco boxes with cement stoops and drive in garages in between.

I don't remember much of the trip but one morning someone was banging on the motel door and yelling that there was a flood. Indeed, the water had risen to the step below the stoop. There was a row boat waiting for us. My mother was helped into the boat and then, as I was picked up, I saw a little white rabbit in the neighboring unit. Just sitting there waiting. I wanted to get the little rabbit and began to cry. Other people were getting help into boats and some of them were crying, too.

I am now 74 and have held the visual image of that rabbit on the stoop all of my life.

-- Mary Tanguay Webb, Astoria
The valuable books that once attracted collectors and sold for thousands of dollars are gone. What remains are assorted hardbacks, now going for $1, and the memories.

When the shelves are empty, Hawthorne Boulevard Books, tucked away at 3129 on the street that bears its name, will close. The books provided the fascination, but the owners of the shop provided the heart.

They came up with the idea for a bookstore on a whim and made it happen with thousands of used books they bought from the Communist Party of Los Angeles.

Roger and Ilse Roberts lived in the house attached to the store. One of them was always sitting at the corner desk in the front of the shop until Roger died two years ago.

Ilse Roberts kept the store going. But she recently decided to sell the remaining stock. She'll live in the home but will rent out the space to another business.

"I'm 85," she said. "It's too much."

The couple opened the store in 1984 after a life that took them from Germany, to New York City, back to Germany, then to Minnesota and California, where they were living when their oldest son was admitted to Reed College. They drove him to the college and stopped for lunch in Ashland.

"We were walking around and found a used bookstore," said Ilse Roberts. "The owner told us he'd once been a grocery clerk and had never been happier than when he owned the store."

Later, the couple talked about the bookstore and decided to do the same thing in Portland because their youngest son also planned to go to Reed and the family could be together.

They had always been willing to embrace the unknown. The two met, at 26, on a boat sailing from Germany to New York City.

On the second day at sea, Roger, who was from Michigan and returning to America after traveling in Germany, proposed to Ilse, who was from Germany. She accepted. After getting married, they lived in New York for two years and then returned to Germany.

Four years later, they moved from Germany to Minnesota to raise cattle on a 60-acre ranch. Then, with their two sons, it was off to rural California in a Volkswagen Beetle to start a building maintenance company and manufacture carpet cleaners.

After getting their first son settled in Reed and returning to California, the couple reached out to Portland real estate agents to look for a building to start a bookstore. In time, an agent found the perfect building: a home attached to a vacant storefront that had once been the site of a dental office. The couple came to check it out.

"Hawthorne was very seedy," Roberts said. "Empty storefronts, bars and an X-rated video store."

But this was the place.

They knew nothing about running a bookstore but needed books. While still in California, they scoured garage sales and flea markets. They hit the big time when they learned the Communist Party in Los Angeles was having a garage sale at a warehouse.

"There were books donated by Hollywood people," Roberts said. "Excellent and many collectibles. We bought everything except the Communist books."

They sold their home and business in California and moved north, shipping 30,000 books. Their sons both eventually earned Ph.D.s in math and moved to the East Coast. When the couple visited their boys, they'd bid at auctions and search the area for books not available on the West Coast.

"This was before Amazon," Roberts said. "We'd ship the books back to Portland. It was a good life."

Once, while Ilse Roberts was babysitting her grandchildren back East, she received a telephone call from her husband who was in Portland running the store. He said he'd just bought a book for $15,000.

"I couldn't speak," Ilse Roberts said.

Her husband explained it was a first edition of the Lewis and Clark diaries.

Ilse Roberts still wasn't sure.

Soon after, though, a collector bought the diaries for $25,000.

Last week, the lone customer in the store was Michael Powell, owner of Powell's Books. He came to see if he could find things to add to the shelves in his store.

This little store, Powell said, had added to the diversity of the city. He carried a stack of books to the front counter to pay for them.

Roberts took his money.

"I'm not sad it's over," she said, as much to Powell as to herself. "All things come to an end."

Just like a good book.

--Tom Hallman Jr.

thallman@oregonian.com; 503 221-8224

@thallmanjr
Dawn Holbrook felt a twinge of familiarity Saturday morning as she read news reports that a man had sent three women to the hospital in an apparent hit-and-run on the Portland State University campus the previous day.

The retired counselor was talking about the story with her neighbor when the two came across the name of the man police arrested in connection with the incident.

"Is that Greg Porter from downstairs?" Holbrook said.

Up until last year, the man accused of intentionally driving on the sidewalk near Southwest Sixth Avenue and Montgomery Street in downtown Portland shared a unit with his wife, Mary Porter, at the King City Apartments.

And they lived right below Holbrook.

The incident shook witnesses at the scene, one of whom had to jump out of the way as the blue SUV barreled toward him after hitting the three women. A PSU student said she was considering taking online classes next year because she was so rattled.

One of the victims remains in critical condition at OHSU Hospital, a spokesperson said Saturday morning. Another is in serious condition. And the third is in fair condition.

The name of the man police arrested in Northeast Portland in connection with the tragedy didn't come as a surprise to Holbrook and another of Greg Porter's former neighbors.

"I was not shocked at all," Holbrook, 69, said.

Greg Porter was prone to confrontation, Holbrook and another neighbor, Ralph Garza, told The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Holbrook's first interaction with Greg Porter was nearly four years ago when she first moved into the unit above his. His home theater system was playing at full blast and the sound was shaking the floor of Holbrook's unit.

She walked downstairs, rapped on the door and asked Porter to turn the volume down.

When he wouldn't relent, Holbrook called the building manager. Porter would ultimately oblige but from then on, "I was the enemy," she said.

In retaliation, Greg Porter took to stomping up and down the stairs outside Holbrook's apartment to agitate her. He would also accuse Holbrook of stealing the password to his laptop and locking him out of it.

It's the same allegation he would lob at Garza, who lives in the unit to the right of Porter's former apartment.

Garza has lived in the King City Apartments since 2011. Greg Porter and his wife would move in four years later.

When Garza introduced himself to Mary Porter, Greg Porter accused him of flirting.

"He somehow got the impression I was trying to make off with his wife," Garza said. "I was just trying to welcome her to the neighborhood."

The two rarely spoke, but Greg Porter would typically approach Garza when he was sorting through personal issues.

Greg Porter would brag about women he was sleeping with. Or complain about financial problems.

In April 2017, Greg Porter told Garza he was afraid of being tossed out of his apartment. According to court records, Greg and Mary Porter were evicted from the King City Apartments one month later.

But Greg Porter had a cordial relationship with at least one of his neighbors. Judith Lynne, who also lived next door, said she was friendly with the Porters.

The couple knew she had Parkinson's disease and would offer to help her with household chores.

"He was a sweet guy," Lynne, 67, said. "If I was having trouble opening a jar or reaching something up high, I would call Mary and ask her if Greg could come over and do 'The Guy Thing.'"

But she noticed a change in Greg Porter in late 2016.

He and Mary Porter would fight in the parking lot in front of their apartment. Once or twice, Mary Porter wound up in Lynne's living room with tears in her eyes. She had been in and out of the hospital for years, Lynne said, and Lynne believed it was taking a toll on Greg Porter.

"My sense is he didn't know how to manage it  seeing Mary like that," Lynne said.

The couple broke up by April 2017. All three neighbors suspect Greg Porter lived out of his car for the next month until Mary Porter was sent to the hospital for the last time. She died in May 2017, neighbors said.

They didn't hear from Greg Porter after that. The residents of the King City Apartments wouldn't know what happened to their former neighbor until Saturday, as his name made the news and reporters began knocking on their doors.

--Eder Campuzano | 503.221.4344

ecampuzano@oregonian.com
Oregon lawmakers called for Amtrak to "promptly investigate" an incident involving Portland State University student Aaron Salazar after he was found injured and unconscious near train tracks in Northern California on May 15.

A letter addressed to Amtrak President and CEO Richard Anderson on Friday, signed by six legislative members, said that Salazar is in a coma "fighting for his life," with serious injuries to his brain stem and a broken pelvis, and suggested that the incident may have been a hate crime.

"Aaron is a person of color who also identifies as gay," the letter said, and cited the timing of the incident, just one year after the MAX stabbing attack where two men were killed. "There are too many stories like these and too many lives lost or injured due to hate crimes in our communities."

Salazar, 22, was on his way back to Portland from Colorado via Amtrak after visiting family, according to the Reno Gazette Journal. His train was only scheduled to stop for a few minutes in Truckee, California.

On May 15, Truckee police responded to a call about someone lying near the railroad tracks at approximately 11:30 a.m., according to a statement posted on their Facebook page. Officers found Salazar "with significant injuries laying only feet from the railroad tracks." He was transported to a hospital in Reno, Nevada, the post said, and the investigation was turned over to Amtrak.

The Reno Gazette Journal reported that Salazar's family hasn't gotten answers, and that Amtrak and its in-house police department cited that "there's nothing to suggest criminal intent" in a statement provided by the company. Amtrak officials declined to comment, the article noted, saying that they can't comment "on ongoing investigations."

In the most recent update posted to a GoFundMe page set up by the family, Salthazar is now able to breathe on his own without a respirator and "the progress he has made has been immense."

-- Corlyn Voorhees
Exactly one year after the MAX stabbing attack, the community gathered to honor the victims and commemorate the outpour of community support that followed the attack.

A few hundred people attended the "Commemoration of Heroism and Community" ceremony at the Hollywood Transit Center on Saturday. The event was hosted by TriMet, the Hollywood Neighborhood Association and the area's business association.

The event comes a year after Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche of Portland and Ricky Best of Happy Valley were killed when Portland resident Jeremy Christian allegedly targeted two teen girls on the MAX with racist and anti-Muslim comments. A third man, Portland resident Micah Fletcher, was wounded but survived.

Christian, 36, faces charges of aggravated murder and attempted murder in the attack. His trial is scheduled to start in June 2019.

The event struck close to home for one attendee, Beaverton resident Seemab Hussaini. As a Muslim, he said, the attack emboldened him to get into activism and civil liberties protections for other Muslims in the community. It was because of the attack that he helped to found the Council on American-Islamic Relations chapter in Oregon.

"I see a lot of hope and a lot of optimism in our future, in Portland and in Oregon," Hussaini said.

Several religious figures spoke at the ceremony honoring the victims, including Rabbi Debra Kolodny and the Rev. Rick Paperini. Both Kolodny and Paperini commended residents for coming together and advocated for acceptance and change.

"It's our obligation to fight like hell for the living," Kolodny declared, eliciting cheers and applause from attendees.

Sarah Farahat, the lead artist in charge of the mural dedicated to the victims, stressed the importance of raising up the perspectives of those who are underrepresented in her speech.

"Much suffering has brought us here and it didn't just start last year," she said.

At 4:30 p.m., the time the attack occurred, family members of the victims rang a bell from the Buddhist Diahonzan Henjyoji Temple in remembrance.

Asha Deliverance led the procession, ringing the bell in honor of her son, Namkai-Meche. Erik Best followed, ringing in honor of his father. Then it was Margie Fletcher for her son. Dyjuana Hudson concluded, ringing once in honor of her daughter Destinee Mangum and Walio Mohamed, the two teen girls targeted.

As the bells tolled, a number of the attendees wept. Others hugged and leaned into each other for support.

When the ceremony concluded, people flooded to the mural to leave flowers, zig zagging up the walkway as flowers filled up available space on ledges and were threaded through railings.

Hudson, who has spoken sparingly to the media, was very happy with the outcome of the event and the number of people who turned up in support.

"I think it was beautiful," Hudson said. "I'm just excited to finally get the girls back to where it happened and get their emotions out."

-- Corlyn Voorhees
EUGENE -- The Crouser family has lots of records, but this one was different.

Olympic champion Ryan Crouser broke his own Hayward Field record Saturday while winning the Prefontaine Classic shot put title by nearly two feet with a throw of 73 feet, 11 inches.

"It's really special for me to get that here in the last Prefontaine that we're going to have at 'historic' Hayward Field," Crouser said.

The meet will continue, Crouser's record will stand, but the 99-year-old stadium is scheduled for demolition later this summer to make way for a newer, more modern replacement expected to open in the spring of 2020.

Crouser's extended family, which includes some of the best throwers in state history, was on hand to see him dominate the competition before an announced crowd of 12,667. Poland's Michal Haratyk was a distant second with a best mark of 72-1.

Among other standout performances Saturday in the men's competition were flashy sprint victories by Ronnie Baker, who won the 100 meters in a wind-aided time of 9.78 seconds, and Noah Lyles, who took the 200 with a wind-legal time of 19.69.

Reigning Olympic gold medalist Omar McLeod successfully defended his Pre Classic 110-hurdles title in a wind-aided 13.01, although he was pushed by Russian Sergey Shubenkov, second in 13.08, and crowd favorite Devon Allen, third in 13.13.

Kenyan Timothy Cheruiyout won the Bowerman Mile, the meet's signature event, with a time of 3:49.87.

But for Crouser, this will be a day to remember. He received a Saturday morning text message from his uncle, Dean Crouser, who has held the University of Oregon records in the shot since 1982 and discus since 1983.

Crouser said his uncle's message wished him luck and included some good memories from competing at Hayward nearly 40 years ago.

Another uncle, Brian, holds the UO record in the old implement javelin. His cousin, Haley, once was the U.S. girls record-holder in the javelin. Another cousin, Sam, is No. 2 on the UO career javelin list.

"It's really like a family tradition," Crouser said. "They were all able to make it down today. To compete in front of friends and family and move that record out there, throw the farthest shot ever at Prefontaine, was pretty special."

He was in control of the competition from the start, taking the lead with his first throw of 72-1 1/2, a mark that would have won had Crouser not bettered it with his fifth attempt. That broke the record of 73-7 1/4 he set last year.

"I warmed up really well," said Crouser, who was sidelined with a finger injury on his throwing hand for about two months at the end of the 2017 outdoor season.

"I'm not traditionally a warm-up guy," he said. "But today I warmed up pretty big. As I get used to throwing hard again and competing again, I'm really excited because there is a lot more potential there to improve."

Lyles' 19.69 in the 200 just missed Justin Gatlin's meet record of 19.68.

Lyles said he looked at the scoreboard after he crossed the finish line.

"I saw a 6, and I knew it was going to be fast," he said.

Baker's time in the 100 would have taken down Steve Mullings' meet record of 9.80 if wind legal. As it was, he beat Christian Coleman, the world indoor record-holder in the 60.

'I expected Coleman to get out on me, because he is a tremendous starter," Baker said. "But at 20 meters we were right next to each other, so I knew I got a good one."

Perhaps the performance will be enough to get him into the conversation about the top U.S. sprinters, which now seems to start and end with Coleman and Gatlin.

Baker did arrive in Eugene as the Pre Classic's defending champion.

"I came in here last year and I had the fastest time in the world and no one talked about me," he said. "I wasn't in any of the headlines, any of the media. Same thing this year."

Kenyan Benjamin Kigen won the men's steeplechase in 8:09.07. But separating Conseslus Kipruto and Bowerman Track Club's Evan Jager for second and third was difficult.

Both were timed officially in 8:11.71. Kipruto got the nod by .002.

Here are the results from the Prefontaine Classic.

-- Ken Goe

kgoe@oregonian.com | @KenGoe
SUNDAY

"Killing Eve": The BBC America series that returns the gifted Sandra Oh ("Grey's Anatomy") to TV in a role worthy of her talents, and features the fascinating relationship between Oh's MI5 agent and Villannelle (Jodie Comer), a psychopathic assassin, concludes its sensational first season. (9 p.m. t few episodes). No wonder BBC America has already renewed "Killing Eve" for a second season. (8 p.m. BBC America)

"National Memorial Day Concert": The annual event features guests including General Colin Powell, Allison Janney, Charles Esten, Megan Hilty and the U.S. Air Force Singing Sergeants. (9 p.m. PBS/10)

"The Fourth Estate": in this four-part series, filmmaker Liz Garbus provides a behind-the-scenes look at how the New York Times has covered news, including Donald Trump and his administration. (8 p.m. Showtime)



"The Break With Michelle Wolf": The comedian who drew attention for her recent monologue at the White House Correspondents' Dinner hosts her own series. (Netflix)

MONDAY

"The Bachelorette": Becca Kufrin is the woman in search of - well, whatever - in the new season. (8 p.m. ABC/2)

"John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls": A documentary about the life and career of Senator John McCain, who agreed to participate shortly after being diagnosed with brain cancer. (8 p.m. HBO)

"Six": The Navy SEAL drama series returns for Season 2 for a Memorial Day premiere, then moves to its regular Wednesday timeslot. (10 p.m. History)

TUESDAY



"Arrested Development": The Bluth family returns for Season 5. (Netflix)

"America's Got Talent": More hopefuls audition as the new season begins. (8 p.m. NBC/8)

WEDNESDAY

"MasterChef": In Season 9, the judges choose their favorite home cooks and mentor them as they compete. (8 p.m. Fox/12)

"The Americans": This wrenching sixth and final season of one of TV's most gripping dramas ends, with the series finale. (10 p.m. FX)

"Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt": The first six episodes of Season 4 are streaming, with the second half coming later in 2018. (Netflix)

THURSDAY

"Flip or Flop": House flippers - and ex-spouses - Christina and Tarek El Moussa are back for a new season. Awkward. (9 p.m. HGTV)

FRIDAY

"C.B. Strike": A new miniseries based on crime novels written by J.K. Rowling, under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. (10 p.m. Cinemax)

SATURDAY



"Marrying Mr. Darcy": TV movie about a schoolteacher engaged to a wealthy beau, and complications that may or may not involve pride and prejudice. (9 p.m. Hallmark Channel)

-- Kristi Turnquist

kturnquist@oregonian.com

503-221-8227

@Kristiturnquist
We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription.
Forever and a day, the public has feared Big Brother spying on them in unimaginable ways. This year, we discovered that Facebook and Cambridge Analytica sold the personal information of their customers en masse without mercy. We learned that they were using facial recognition without customer consent. It's not like Facebook invented this crime of selling personal data but it's the scope of their reach that made this a stunning revelation.

Back in 2014, Vizio made TVs that automatically tracked what consumers were watching and transmitted that data back to its servers. They sold the consumers' viewing histories to advertisers and personal viewing habits to content providers.

There was so much money to be made selling user data that Vizio went one step further and retrofitted older models by installing its tracking software remotely.

While fearing the reach that the Government now has, who would have thought that some of our favorite tech companies were taking on the roll of Big Brother driven by ruthless greed.

Last week the so-called incident involving Amazon's echo speaker was another crazy invasion of privacy story. The chain of events Amazon had claimed to occur didn't pass the laugh test.

Google got caught last October recording user conversations in its new Google Home mini. If it wasn't for a smart reporter catching this feature, who knows how many conversations the devices would have recorded over time with the possibility of hackers gaining access to these private conversations. Was it really a "bug" as Google claims?

Who could save us from this information gathering monster in Silicon Valley? Oddly enough, it could be new legislation from the European Union, via their new internet policy known as "General Data Protection Regulation" (GDPR).

Yesterday, Counterpoint Research published a report titled "GDPR: Restoring Faith in Data Privacy." The report claims that GDPR, which officially kicked-in Friday, "will play a crucial role for both the organization and the consumer by helping restore the faith lost in organizations that use personal data. It means implementing strict rules for organizations and backs this up with potentially serious consequences in cases of noncompliance and violation.

GDPR compliance demands more than basic data-loss prevention or just post-data-loss reporting. It also demands that organizations set pre-defined protocols and precautionary measures to prevent data-loss in the first place. It also advises organizations on using predictive tools to anticipate attacks and take appropriate actions against the exploitation of potential vulnerabilities." You could read more about this here.

Reuters reporting on this same development stated in their report that "People in the [European] bloc have been bombarded with dozens of emails asking for their consent to keep processing their data, and a privacy activist wasted no time in taking action against U.S. tech giants for allegedly acting illegally by forcing users to accept intrusive terms of service or lose access."

"You have to have a 'yes or no' option, Austrian Max Schrems said before filing complaints in European jurisdictions. A lot of these companies now force you to consent to the new privacy policy, which is totally against the law."

"This (forced consent) is an issue that we will be looking at immediately, and work is already underway," said Helen Dixon, head of the Irish Data Protection Commissioner, which will be responsible for policing U.S. giants, Facebook and Google, among others.

Many privacy advocates have hailed the new law as a model for personal data protection in the internet era and called on other countries to follow the European model. You could read more about this in the Reuters report here. The report also touches on data portability for things as music playlists.

The issue of "forcing users to accept intrusive terms of service or lose access" as highlighted above is equally an issue in the U.S. and Canada. This week I went to moderate comments on Patently Apple only to find out that I was locked out of my account. I was "forced" to check off a box agreeing to their new terms or lose access to my account.

That type of tactic is the equivalent of putting a gun to my head with the clear message: "agree or else." It's clear that Disqus collects a lot of information for their advertisers and in order to stay viable, they have to legally take this route.

The vast majority of blogs make their income from advertising. Yet to be fair, an ad is supposedly to sell a product, be it an app, hardware or services. The way it's been done on TV from day one. Yet online advertisers now go far beyond mere commerce and delve into grabbing all personal data available to them. The government hasn't kept up with the times and need to step in and put an end to the added activity that advertisers are now practicing in order to make larger profits.



On another front regarding privacy, Apple quietly updated their privacy policy this week. Apple now states: "Your privacy is important to Apple so we've developed a Privacy Policy that covers how we collect, use, disclose, transfer, and store your personal information."

Technically the update came after the Tim Cook - Mark Zuckerberg clash over privacy policy. Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg claimed that Apple's CEO was trying to cash in on this sensitive issue. While the timing of Apple's Privacy Policy update may be seen as coincidental, it's interesting nonetheless.



About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Those using abusive language or negative behavior will result in being blacklisted on Disqus.
Concluding the second-to-the-last chapter of my book manuscript, at least as it currently stands:

Misunderstanding was also the problem when the American Marines were sent to Lebanon in 1982. The United States thought, as well it might, that it was sending the troops in to prop up the legitimate government of Lebanon and to help it reestablish its control over the entire countryside. What the Americans did not realize was that the government of Lebanon was controlled by the Maronite Christians, largely for their own benefit, and that it really was simply one among the many warring factions of the country, with little more claim to legitimacy than any other of the countrys warlords. In fact, the government of Lebanon called in the Americans to help in its battle against other sectors of the population, most particularly against the Druze with whom the Maronites shared the Shouf Mountains. The American problem was that it was reading the Lebanese situation in the light of its own concepts and experience. It was deceived by the appearance of parliamentary democracy and republican presidency that Lebanon had copied so well from its contacts with the West. The Lebanese, too, would read the Americans in the light of their own experience. To many of them, the American Marines would come to be merely one more of the nations private militias, one that happened to be in the pay and control of the Maronites. Thus, to the Shiites and the Sunnis and the Druze, the Americans became the enemy. The United States had entered a tribal conflict on behalf of one of the tribes and did not even know it. (This case ought, by itself, to illustrate the imperative need for more knowledge of foreign countries and cultures among our policymakers.)[1] That is why the American Marines were blown up. It was an act that seemed full of irrational hatred to most in the West. Within the framework of Lebanese history and society, though, it had a certain logic.

By the mid-1980s, the Shiites had emerged to dominate Beirut. Their fiery religious absolutism, a far cry from the old and rather decadent tolerance of the Levant, had fundamentally changed the atmosphere of the city.

It is into this Near East, surging with passions and boiling with a newly reenergized Islam, that the Church must someday bring the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. The time is clearly not yet. Nevertheless, because of our own deep interest in the region, and because of our mandate to preach the gospel to all mankind, we are in the area now. Indeed, although it is little known among the Saints, we have been in the area for quite some time. The next and final chapter of this book will sketch the history of Latter-day Saint contacts with the Near East and will attempt to outline the direction the future of the gospel will take there.

[1] Certain writers, notable among them Frances Fitzgerald, have made a compelling case that a sometimes spectacular American failure to understand Vietnamese culture played a major role in producing the military disaster that occurred there.

Posted from Paris, France
News and commentary on organized crime, street crime, white collar crime, cyber crime, sex crime, crime fiction, crime prevention, espionage and terrorism.
Iran Security Agents Prevent 50th Anniversary of Writers Association

05/27/18

Source: Radio Farda

Iranian security forces on Friday May 25 prevented the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Writers Association, the oldest and most prestigious trade union for Iranian writers. Upholding human rights, organizing Iranian writers and campaigning against censorship are the focal points of the Iranian Writers Association's activities.



www.facebook.com/kanoon.nevisandegan.iran



Akbar Massoumbeigi, a member of the Writers Association reported on social media that security agents "brutally stormed" the venue of the writers' gathering at a member's house and barricaded the street in which it was located.



The report added that security agents confiscated all the posters and memorabilia that members had prepared for the ceremony during the past year.



"They fear even a simple gathering at a private home," wrote another member, Hassan Mortazavi, on his Facebook.



Last November, security agents had stormed a similar session when a group of writers were commemorating an Iranian novelist who had passed away.



Both of Iran's security establishments, the IRIGC Intelligence Organization and the Rouhani administration's Intelligence Ministry, have been preventing gatherings by various political and cultural groups including the National Front and the Writers Association during recent years.



Meanwhile, The Center for Defending Human Rights in Iran has recently asked President Hassan Rouhani to stop violations of law and human rights by the Intelligence Ministry and other "parallel intelligence organizations."

In a statement issued on the occasion of its 50th anniversary, the Writers Association of Iran emphasised its mission to counter censorship, defend human rights and organize Iranian writers.



The Association was established in 1968 by 49 prominent Iranian writers including Jalal Al-Ahmad, Bahram Bayzai, Darioush Ashouri and Mohammad Ali Sepanlou.



The association organized a major literary event in 1978 shortly before the 1979 revolution which was instrumental in creating an atmosphere of dissent and political excitement.



In the 1990s, two of its activists, poet Mohammad Mokhtari and writer Mohammad Jafar Pouyandeh were murdered by "rouge elements" in the Iranian Intelligence Ministry.



Others, such as author Ali Akbar Saeedi Sijani were murdered in custody only because they wrote letters to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to inform him of violation of human rights in the country.



The murders were part of the state sponsored organized crimes that mainly targeted intellectuals and political activists during that decade. The murders were later disclosed by Iran's reformist President Mohammad Khatami and the outspoken reformist press that was allowed to operate in Iran during his term of office in late 1990s and early 2000s.
The Minister for Education and MP for Manhyia South, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh has underscored Ghanas commitment to promoting the teaching and learning of French as a second official language in the country.



The Minister was speaking at a ceremony in Paris, France, where a linguistic pact was signed between Ghana and the International Organisation of the Francophone for improved technical support and capacity building for the teaching and learning of French in Ghana.



In attendance was Ghanas Ambassador to France, H.E. Anna Bossman, other members of the Diplomatic Corps, and the leadership of the organisation. The Ghanaian delegation also included officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.



The Francophone is a gathering of French-speaking countries around the world, whose objectives are to promote peace and good governance, to support education, training and research, and to promote the French language and cultural diversity.



Dr. Prempeh noted in his remarks that in September 2006 in Bucharest, Romania, Ghana acceded to the Francophone as an associate member to contribute to the attainment of the noble goals the organisation set for itself. Our accession was steered by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, who was then Ghanas Foreign Minister.



Explaining that Ghana was surrounded by French-speaking countries and that most ECOWAS countries had French as their official language, he stressed that strategically, it was in Ghanas interests to pursue the teaching learning of French to enable the country benefit more from the West African sub region.



He outlined some of the governments policies in promoting French, which include introduction of French in a number of professional and technical-oriented universities, provision of resources in public libraries to enable learning of French with a degree of autonomy, celebration by the University of Ghana of Francophone Day with seminars and conferences to create awareness of the language, and initial talks with French TV stations to extend their broadcasting services to Ghana.



Dr. Prempeh further pointed to an insufficient number of French teachers and a limited number of learning and teaching materials as the main challenges facing government in pursuit of its policy on the French language.



Ghana deeply appreciates the sterling work being done by this organisation in its goalsWe share in these aims and values, and look forward to playing an important role in their realisation. It is my conviction that the signing of this pact will pose a significant landmark in our effort to build bridges between the people of Ghana and the people of the larger community of Francophone the minister said





Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/Peacefmonline.com/ Twitter: @Washman5/ Instagram: Ambrose_wash









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
In very strong language laced with banter, Parliament on Thursday minced no words to express disgust, revulsion and angst against attempts by people, backed by some foreign elements to legalise sodomy in Ghana.



Earlier at separate fora, Prof Aaron Michael Oquaye, the Speaker of the House, and Second Deputy Speaker Alban Sumana Bagbin had registered their position, that, under no circumstance would they countenance and endorse any attempts to legalise the practice, which the MPs said was debasing and below the behaviour of animals.



Speaker Oquaye had threatened to resign his position, and Mr Bagbin vowed to kick against any attempts by foreign countries to impose homosexuality on Ghanaians.



If anybody should bring such a thing to parliament and I have to preside over that, I'd rather resign than subscribe to this delusion, Prof Oquaye had said.



The disgust of the entire House stemmed from comments from British Prime Minister Theresa May, at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London last April, urging Commonwealth countries to bring to an end a legacy of anti-homosexual discrimination, blaming Britain's history of colonialism for criminalising same-sex relationships.



The Prime Minister had said that the UK would support member states which sought to reform "outdated" legislation affecting the relationships, or failed to protect women and girls.



Gay and lesbian rights campaigners urged Ms May to intervene over the legislation affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, as same sex relations were still illegal in 36 Commonwealth countries.



The Prime Minister indicated further that the U.K. was ready to help Commonwealth nations to repeal anti-gay laws and embrace homosexuality.



The comment attracted wide condemnation among Ghanaians, among which the Presidency issued a statement to the effect that it will not be under the Presidency of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo that same-sex marriage will be legalised in Ghana.



And on Tuesday, May 22, 2018, the plenary of the House re-visited the issue, with both the Majority and Minority Sides stating in clear terms their avowed disinterest to endorse legislation in favour of the practice of homosexuality and lesbianism.



Three MPs from both Sides of Ghanas Parliament- Dr Bernard Okoe, from the Majority Side of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and MP for Ledzokuku Constituency; Mr Emmanuel Bedzrah, President of the Parliamentary Christian Fellowship and MP for Ho West, and Rev Helen Adzoa Ntoso, MP for Krachi West from the Minority Side of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) made statements on homosexuality and lesbianism, which exposed the negative health consequences of the practice, mental issues and increased suicidal attempts. According to Dr Boye, recent reports by the National AIDS Commission showed a rise of 70.15 per cent in HIV prevalence rate, and attributed the increase a rise in the practice of homosexuality and lesbianism.



Don't treat homosexuality as fashion nor a joke - Oquaye warns Ghanaians



Mr Speaker, the medical narrative given so far shows a strong negative correlation between homosexuality and health outcomes, the MP, a medical doctor, drew the attention of the House that the practice offended the cultural and religious values of the land.



In their joint statement, Mr Bedzrah and Rev Ntoso noted that this is not the first time the issue if LBGT was raised and Presidents both past and present have been called upon to state the position of the State.



But recent trajectories and continuous call on us as a State to indicate our position on the matter, appeared to us as calculated attempt to promote or pressurise the Government to accept what otherwise is alien and unacceptable to us as Ghanaians and a sovereign nation to build a prosperous society.



Mr Speaker, the position of Ghana on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) is a common knowledge and explicitly stated in our statutes. And one wonders why the question keeps popping up. We find such questions as an attempt to undermine our God given ability to decipher what is right or wrong to us as Ghanaians and to a large extent as Africans.



In her contribution to the statements, Ms Laadi Ayii Ayamba, the Ranking Member of the Gender and Children Committee, and MP for Pusiga Constituency in the Upper East Region, informed the House of an approach made to her and some colleague legislators to lobby them to support legislation in favour of homosexuality and lesbianism.



She said at a forum in which she and Ms Sarah Adwoa Safo, Deputy Majority Leader participated, the issue about LGBT was raised and they were asked if they could help fight for the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender.



I, in particular, made them understand that for us we will be discussing and taking it up but they should come and sit in the public gallery and declare that they are the gay people in Ghana and also present the matter to Mr. Speaker and hear what they will say. Believe me or not, it brought the discussion to an end. As for Hon Adwoa she simply said my father will slaughter me.



Ms Ayamba said: It is horrible, not acceptable and I think that we in this House should be the first people to come out to put it right to anybody that is coming out with whatever they want to call it that we will not take it, we represent the people of Ghana, we represent our constituents [and] we would not have been here if men were marrying men or women marrying women. ..Mr Speaker, let us urge our educational institutions to talk against this particular issue, she stressed.



Minority Chief Whip Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka said that MPs would forge a united front and against any bill that would seek to legalise homosexuality in the country.



Alhaji Boniface Abubakar Sadiq, Inner City and Zongo Development Minister and MP for Madina, queried the proponents of sodomy if they had ever seen a cock mounting a cock or a hen mating a hen.



We must be connected by the opposite sex, not same sex, he said, adding, unnatural practices could be practiced elsewhere, but not in Ghana.



Mr Bagbin, who was in the Speakers chair, in a contribution, said the nation would not compromise on its position and would not allow itself to be dictated to by the West.



We are no longer the small boys and girls of any country, Mr Bagbin said.

Source: GNA









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
A group calling itself the Progressive Nationalist Forum (PNF) has sought to expose the lies of IMANI Africa, a policy think tank, over a contract between the Ministry of Communications and telecommunications company, Kelni GVG.



PNF wondering "why any patriotic Ghanaian, or for that matter good cooperate citizen will be against an auditing system that seeks to bring transparency and enable government collect taxes due it".



President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe is on record to have called for the abrogation of the $89.4million contract between the State through the Ministry of Communications and Kelni GVG.



According to him, Subah Info Solution and Afriwave are already performing similar roles for the Ministry and so stated emphatically that the Kelni GVG contract amounts to duplication of functions; hence needless of the Government of Ghana to pursue such contract.



Deputy Communications Minister George Andah reacting to IMANI's concerns on Joy FM's "Newsfile" on Saturday refuted the claims saying "either IMANI is misinformed or they have been motivated to do whatever they are doingI would have expected that if they had any concerns, they should have engaged the ministry. People could be misinformedIMANI is not God. There hasnt been any request to meet with the ministry. They are misinformed; IMANI is misinformed".



Also addressing the claims by IMANI, the Progressive Nationalist Forum describes Franklin Cudjoe's assertions as "pedestrian" and believed the policy think tank is in connivance with the telecom companies to collapse government's efforts to streamline the sector.



In a statement copied to Peacefmonline.com, the PNF explained that the Communications Ministry's action is in compliance with the country's constitution.



The group noted that the Ministry is in accordance with the Communications Service Tax Act 2013 and Act 864 (amendment of section 14 of act 754) which enjoins the Minister of Finance to collaborate with the Communications Minister to "inter alia: Establish a mechanism to verify the actual revenue that accrues to vendors for the purpose of computing taxes due the government under this act; be given physical access to the physical network nodes of the vendors network at an equivalent point in the network where the network providers billing systems are connected" and to ensure a "common platform is used for the purpose of verifying revenues under the act as well as the revenues accruing to levies under the electronic communications act 2009, (act 775). From the above narration, the action of the minister of communications, the finance minister, GRA and NCA are in conformity with the laws of Ghana."



The group further narrated the benefits that could derive from the contract with Kelni GVG saying it will help the government to accumulate accurate revenues from the various telecom operators by ensuring that Kelni GVG monitors and provides "exact amount of revenue generated from mobile and fixed lines network operators as well as broadband wireless access licensees".



"On the issue of mobile money transfers and revenues generated therein by the operators, Kelni GVG will be able to capture the following: Mobile money transaction data to establish as a minimum the total value of authorised e-money in the market and the fees accruing to each operator on a monthly basis. This should enable government know exactly what amount comes to it as tax revenue from the profits made by the operators" and also provide government with comprehensive statistics on transactions, the statement further read.



"It is clear that the NCA as it currently stands does not have both the financial capacity and technical knowhow to implement the system on its own. Currently, NCA personnel are being trained abroad to enable them do proper evaluation and assessment of the data that will be provided. It is the hope of the NCA that at the end of this contract, its staff would have acquired the requisite capacity to continue the CP (Common Platform).



"We are aware that the new company has invested not less than 60million USD so far in in equipment, software, capacity building among other things for the smooth take off of the system. The total pre-financed hardware and software costs excluding operational and maintenance costs is valued at over $62 million with the responsibility to guarantee the upgrading and updating the CP Solution resting with Kelni GVG. It is therefore palpable falsehood being peddled by the assigns of some of the telecoms companies who dont want this implemented, that claim that the current system can be done for a paltry sum of 200,000 USD. We challenge them to strict proof", the PNF asserted.



Touching further on the concerns of Franklin Cudjoe of IMANI Africa, the PNF wondered "why any patriotic Ghanaian, or for that matter good cooperate citizen will be against an auditing system that seeks to bring transparency and enable government collect taxes due it".





Read full statement below:





IMANI GHANA CONIVING WITH TELECOM COMPANIES AGAINST GHANA



The Progressive Nationalist Forum has followed with dismay, the pedestrian issues raised by Imani Africa in general and Mr. Franklin Cudjoe in particular with the help of the CEO OF MTN Ghana against the government policy on the Common Platform for Telecom Revenue Assurance and Regulatory Oversight.



The CP as is commonly known takes its locus from the communications service tax (amendment) Act, 2013, Act 864 (amendment of section 14 of act 754) which enjoins the minister of finance to collaborate with the minister of communications to inter alia:



Establish a mechanism to verify the actual revenue that accrues to vendors for the purpose of computing taxes due the government under this act;



Be given physical access to the physical network nodes of the vendors network at an equivalent point in the network where the network providers billing systems are connected and



Ensure that a common platform is used for the purpose of verifying revenues under the act as well as the revenues accruing to levies under the electronic communications act 2009, (act 775).



From the above narration, the action of the minister of communications, the finance minister, GRA and NCA are in conformity with the laws of Ghana.



We have also seen and evaluated the key performance indicators for Kelni GVG which include but not limited to the following:



Provide on real time basis, accurate measurement of the types of traffic:



Volume of international incoming traffic terminated in Ghana

International outgoing traffic originated from Ghana

Domestic (on-net and off-net ) voice traffic in Ghana

Data traffic in Ghana



Generate daily, monthly, quarterly and annual statistic on international incoming and outgoing traffic volumes, classifying the volumes by operators and carrier links

Generate daily, monthly, quarterly and annual statistics on local on-net and off-net traffic volumes, classifying the volumes by operators.



Enable the comprehensive and accurate billing of the governments share on the international incoming traffic termination (set at USD 0.06).



The above KPIS from our point of view will assist government in collecting the accurate revenues from the various telecom operators in the following ways;

Kelni GVG will be able to monitor and provide the exact amount of revenue generated from mobile and fixed lines network operators as well as broadband wireless access licensees.



Generate daily, monthly, quarterly and annual statistics on revenue generated from telecommunications services based on;



Prepaid services (sms, voice, data)

Post-paid services (sms, voice, data)

Value added services

Wholesale services



Other telecommunications service



On the issue of mobile money transfers and revenues generated therein by the operators, Kelni GVG will be able to capture the following:



Mobile money transaction data to establish as a minimum the total value of authorised e-money in the market and the fees accruing to each operator on a monthly basis. This should enable government know exactly what amount comes to it as tax revenue from the profits made by the operators.



They will be able to provide government with comprehensive statistics on transactions, including but not limited to:



Cash in

Cash out

Fee associated with transactions

Peer-peer transactions

Total volume of transactions by operators

Total value of transactions by operators.



Provide the above on daily, monthly, quarterly and annual basis.



The above is all to be done by KelniGVG on real time basis. Which means that the company will collect the exact information as the operators collect from the same source thereby limiting the ability of the operators to tamper and manipulate data to their advantage before passing it on to tax authorities? This was what was done under Subah and Afriwave, which the new system seeks to change.



On the matter of effectiveness of the common platform to monitor mobile money transactions, we found out that the system is capable of collecting data on all mobile money transactions for regulatory oversight, consumer protection and anti-money laundering purposes. It is very relevant to note that terrorism especially in the sub-Saharan African region has been largely financed through the use of mobile money transfers. Examples abound in Nigeria, Somalia, Niger and Mali just to mention a few.



A responsible government cannot afford to leave this area unchecked and to the whelms and caprices of telecommunications companies whose main motive is profit making. With porous physical borders as we currently have, we as a nation cannot afford to leave the cyber space to terrorist to operate.



Government loses millions of dollars every year to simbox fraud and if the telecommunications companies are not complicit in these activities, we do not understand why they will be against any system that will help arrest the situation and make sure all amounts and taxes due to government are properly collected. To this effect the new system is capable of doing the following;



Able to manage the tracking of international call termination, on sample basis, to detect and report the by-passing of the legally declared routes for international traffic into Ghana and to assist in blocking such numbers. By-pass calls include international PSTN calls terminating on an OTT voice application such as viber.

Able to localize suspicious and/or fraudulent SIM and equipment using available information from operators, including by-pass traffic information and other network elements, to search for and locate illegal SIM-BOX operators.



Provide the above statistic on daily, monthly, quarterly and annual basis.

Apart from the above, individual consumers stand to gain directly from the new CP in the following ways;



By tracking and eliminating fraudulent traffic (simbox) the CP will make networks more secure for everyone.



The elimination of fraudulent traffic will also improve quality of service on international calls, since calls going through illegal routes are of poor quality due to the VOIP compression methods used by the fraudsters.



The CP will enable a more proactive approach of consumer protection, not based only on after the fact complaints management, but on real time data collected and analysed by the NCA.



The CP will yield the same benefits as the above mentioned ones for mobile money subscribers, bringing more security, reliability and transparency in the mobile money industry. This is a clearly significant component of the CP considering the rising trends in financial crimes and terrorism financing. For example, in Tanzania, nearly half of its GDP value is transacted through Mobile money platforms. Monitoring of Mobile activities is only possible through much more visibility than what is currently in place to protect the general public from market failures, which can have serious economic implications for Ghana.



Traditional banks have been closely regulated over the years to protect consumers, but due to informality of the users and intermediaries in the mobile money ecosystem, it is imperative that as the Technical Regulator, NCA puts in place such monitoring to provide useful information to the Government of Ghana to help protect the public.



The PNF has also questioned why the NCA has not taken up this CP system and implement by itself. It is clear that the NCA as it currently stands does not have both the financial capacity and technical knowhow to implement the system on its own. Currently, NCA personnel are being trained abroad to enable them do proper evaluation and assessment of the data that will be provided. It is the hope of the NCA that at the end of this contract, its staff would have acquired the requisite capacity to continue the CP.



We are aware that the new company has invested not less than 60million USD so far in in equipment, software, capacity building among other things for the smooth take off of the system.



The total pre-financed hardware and software costs excluding operational and maintenance costs is valued at over $62 million with the responsibility to guarantee the upgrading and updating the CP Solution resting with Kelni GVG. It is therefore palpable falsehood being peddled by the assigns of some of the telecoms companies who dont want this implemented, that claim that the current system can be done for a paltry sum of 200,000 USD. We challenge them to strict prove.



From the above narration of what the facts are about the new system, PNF wonders why any patriotic Ghanaian, or for that matter good cooperate citizen will be against an auditing system that seeks to bring transparency and enable government collect taxes due it.



We wish to use this opportunity to ask the government through the minister of communications and the NCA to cause a forensic audit into the operations of MTN over the past years to find out what it is they did in the past that they fear the new system will expose.



Finally, we pray the government, through the minister of communications and the NCA to ensure strict compliance to the KPIs and license requirement of the operators to ensure an improved service delivery based upon which their licenses should be renewed or denied in 2019.



Richard Nyamah





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Carlisle High School students entering Kevin Wagner's AP U.S. History class on the first day of school know what's in store for them. They've heard rumblings about this class. Then, he hands each of them a Silent Heroes owner's manual.

It's then they know that it's their turn to make history personal.

The Silent Heroes project pairs each student with a Pennsylvania-born, Normandy veteran. During the class, the student learns the story of their assigned soldier, follows his or her footsteps through WWII and hopefully provides them with a greater appreciation for history.

Each AP student digs through U.S. Army records, government documents and newspaper clippings to get to know the story of these seemingly ordinary people in history. Their efforts culminate in a website for each soldier, honoring their legacy and permanently recording their personal story.

This year, Wagner's class contains 25 students. Some high school students choose to take AP courses, which are of more rigor than lower level classes and conclude with each student taking the AP exam for that subject. Passing this exam gets the student credits that most colleges accept.

Wagner, 45, began the Silent Heroes project in 2011. "When I first roll this out to them, it seems like a lot of work - it's not a happy face," he says. "But by the time they narrow it down to that person and they start digging into them and start finding little bits and pieces, all of a sudden it's not a project any more. It's more of a 'where will this take me next?' It moves to a personal attachment to their soldier."

It's that ability to personally connect with history that got Wagner interested in starting a project like this.

In early 2011, Wagner and his student, Sam Spare, were chosen as one of 15 student-teacher teams from across the nation to travel to France. They left Carlisle High School bound for the the beaches of Normandy as part of a program sponsored by the National History Day organization.

This trip was the brainchild of Albert Small, who holds one of the largest collections of World War II memorabilia. Small recognized that those who lived this history wouldn't always be around to tell it, and he didn't want the stories of these soldiers to be gone once they were.

More than 2,000 soldiers died on D-Day - June 6, 1944 - and all told about 9,400 servicemen and women who died on and around Omaha and Utah beaches are buried in the Normandy American Cemetery.

In preparation for the trip, Spare was told to select a soldier from Pennsylvania who's buried in the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial and learn about his or her life and history, knowing he would eventually create a website for this soldier and deliver a eulogy at this soldier's gravestone in France.

Spare chose William McCabe, a Carlisle High School graduate turned World War II glider pilot at the age of 22.

"I wanted to find someone who went to Carlisle High School, and I remember I found his obituary first, then looked in yearbooks," Spare says.

His research took off from there.

"When we were in Normandy, based on what our soldier did and where they were, we would try to incorporate their story at the different places we visited," Wagner said.

McCabe flew into Normandy in the early morning hours of D-Day and didn't survive. Wagner says this was true of a lot of the glider pilots in World War II.

"It was kind of a one-way trip. Once you glided in, there's no real way to get back out," Wagner says.

Through his research, Spare learned that McCabe probably chose to be a glider pilot because it paid $40 extra every week, which he sent back home to his single mom anxiously awaiting his return in America. Spare's digging also uncovered a niece and nephew of McCabe, who he was able to visit and share with them what he learned about their uncle.

Wagner recalls Spare saying this experience made World War II become something more personal for him because now he was telling it through one individual who lived it.

"I don't think I realized it at the time, but the trip was a lot about creating new knowledge," Spare says.

And he was grateful to be able to create that new knowledge not alone, but together - he and Wagner.

"It wasn't just names, dates and battles," Wagner says. "[Not] just the big guys like Patton and Eisenhower that you were learning about. But you were learning about this little old boy from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, who had never probably been out of the state and now finds himself in Europe, fighting for freedom."

And that, Wagner says, is the driving force that really hit home for him.

"That really made me stop and think, maybe we need to rethink the way we teach and talk about World War II," he says.

Though Wagner has been teaching history for 21 years, this experience was different. He says he vividly remembers standing on those famous shorelines and realizing that talking about history will never compare to actually being there. He calls it the "power of place."

His goal with Silent Heroes is to recreate that feeling in the classroom.

"You know, these guys were no older than the kids who are researching them," Wagner says. "But they rose to the challenge every time."

Wagner says he hopes his students can see historical events through a new light, not just through the big battles and the cornerstone speeches but through the ordinary people who did extraordinary things.

Another student of Wagner, Reghan Ruf, says history was never her favorite subject in high school, but that changed with Silent Heroes.

"Attending [Wagner's] class was honestly like a breath of fresh air for me. He is so incredibly passionate about history that it's difficult to not be inspired just by listening to him speak. The project really focuses on learning the stories of those who may not be famous for their efforts, but still had major impacts on the outcome of the war. This really teaches students perspective," Ruf says.

Following the lives of these soldiers has given Wagner a new appreciation for World War II history, and he sees the same thing happening with each of his students over the course of the project.

"I tell my students, whether you're going to be a businessman, a doctor, a lawyer or a mechanic, the skill sets you're learning in this project are something you are going to use with any dealings you have in the real world," Wagner says.

Wagner's goal is to provide all 1,213 Pennsylvania-born Normandy veterans with their own website. At the end of this school year, he and his students will have completed close to 100.

He has created a curriculum for this project that teachers across the country can use with their own students, for their own veterans.

His unit plan is available on the American Battle Monuments Commission website. It takes teachers through the project step by step, giving them guides, tutorials, videos and "teacher tips" for research using the U.S. Census, newspaper articles, National Archives materials and U.S. Army Service Cards.

Wagner has what he describes as an adamant passion for lifelong learning - one that doesn't stop after graduating high school or college. He says he hopes to model this through his own constant research. He previously chose his own soldier and researched along with students.

Though Spare never actually had Wagner as a teacher, he still calls him, by far, the most impactful person in his high school career. Spare's academics have taken him to Denver, Colorado, but he still manages to see Wagner when he can.

"Anything he does, he always goes above and beyond what's required of any educator, for example, he didn't have to apply with me for this project," Spare says. "And look at the wealth of things he has done for the district since."

Wagner also is hopeful that Silent Heroes will foster a better appreciation among his students for our country's veterans.

"Veterans Day is the perfect time to realize that so many people in the past have given up their lives -- the ultimate sacrifice. [We] need to take the time now to be appreciative of those who are serving and are still with us, and learn what their stories are. Because when they're gone, their stories disappear," he says.

Following their return from their trip across those Normandy beaches, Spare and Wagner traveled across the state sharing their experiences. Something Spare said in one of his speeches has always stuck with Wagner.

"He talked about looking at William McCabe's senior yearbook picture around the same time he was getting ready to pose for his own and wondering, 70 years from now, who will be looking at my high school picture and wondering 'what did you do?'" Wagner says.

As for Wagner, part of his legacy will surely be the stories of these veterans that could have faded away with the passing of time, but thanks to him will now long endure.
A fight between two passengers on an American Airlines flight headed to Miami International Airport from Saint Croix on Wednesday was captured on film by at least one of the passengers.

And it all erupted over a request for beer that was denied by an attendant.

A story posted on miamiherald.com Friday noted that the passenger started to get angry when the attendant told him he couldn't purchase more beer. There is a federal law that prohibits the airline from serving an intoxicated passenger.

"You need to please sit down, I'm not bringing you more beers," the attendant tells the man in a video that another passenger took of the exchange. "We will be there in an hour. Why do you have this attitude? You had a couple beers."

As the disagreement continued and the man began shouting, several other passengers got involved trying to calm the man down. Eventually, he got in a fight with one of them as others tried to break it up.

The fight was first reported by WSVN-Channel 7, in Miami.

Here's a link to the story and a link to the video that aired on ABC News, one of five the passenger shot from seat 17F, according to the story.
Portions of Ellicott City and suburban Baltimore are underwater after flash flooding and thunderstorms hit the area on Sunday afternoon, according to a report from The Baltimore Sun.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has declared a state of emergency.

"This is an extremely dangerous situation similar to the catastrophic Ellicott City flash flood of 7/30/16," according to the National Weather Service.

In case its not clear yet, stay away from Main Street. Please. pic.twitter.com/FO1HFpYqMo  Libby Solomon  (@libsolomon) May 27, 2018

"Some residents said Sunday's barrage seemed worse than the storm in July 2016, which killed two people and destroyed local businesses," according to The Baltimore Sun report.

More than 5 inches of rain fell on the Ellicott City and areas of western Baltimore between 3 and 6 p.m. on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

Numerous water rescues have been reported after heavy rain sent raging brown water surging down Main Street in Ellicott City. Authorities say Ellicott City, on the west bank of Maryland's Patapsco River, is prone to periodic flooding.

Authorities have no immediate report of any injuries or fatalities, though information is still preliminary.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
NORTHUMBERLAND - Allegations of unethical conduct have been raised in the continuing legal battle over the contract to operate five shortline railroads in central Pennsylvania.

The current operator, Susquehanna Union and Carload Co. of Northumberland, makes the accusation in a court filing about Donald Purcell, who since 2014 has been a Northumberland County representative on the SEDA-COG Joint Authority Rail Authority.

The authority, which owns the 200 miles of track on which the shortlines operate, has been embroiled in a legal dispute since it voted 7-3 on July 8, 2015, to award a seven-year, multimillion-dollar contract to Carload Express Inc. based in Oakmont.

A contract was not awarded because the authority contended since it has 16 members, nine votes were needed for a majority. Clinton County Judge Michael F. Salisbury agreed.

But a three-member Commonwealth Court panel, citing the state Municipal Authorities Act, on May 3 overturned Salisbury, ruling the law allows the award of contracts based on the majority of members in attendance.

Six of the authority members abstained in 2015, five of them because their companies were customers of the shortlines.

Susquehanna Union contends they did not need to abstain because the cost of shipping freight is set by major railroads like Norfolk Southern.

READ MORE: Operator of five shortlines not giving up despite Commonwealth Court ruling

The authority has scheduled a special meeting Tuesday in Lewisburg at which it is expected to vote on whether to appeal the Commonwealth Court order.

In the meantime, Susquehanna Union, more commonly known as North Shore Railroad, this week with Salisbury's approval filed an amended counterclaim challenging the legality of the 2015 vote and making allegations about Purcell.

It also asked Commonwealth Court to vacate its May 3 decision, remand the case to Salisbury for further proceedings and issue an order preventing the authority from executing a contract with Carload until the various issues are resolved.

It argues the 2015 vote should be voided because Purcell, in a sworn deposition, stated he meant to give Susquehanna Union a raw score of 60 out of 100 points when ranking the three finalists.

He claimed in his testimony that he did not realize he had submitted an incomplete ranking sheet giving Susquehanna Union zero.

A 60 would have resulted in a tie between Susquehanna Union and Carload. Several authority members voted for Carload based on its top ranking, the counterclaim states.

The ethical issue raised about Purcell is an allegation that he had repeated contact with officials of Reading, Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad, a shortline eliminated early in the ranking process.

The authority's request for proposals for a shortline operator required all contacts to be made with its executive director Jeffrey Stover.

READ MORE: Seven is enough: Authority can't deny railroad contract to winning bidder, Pa. court says

Purcell also is accused of contacting Susquehanna Union employees about the possibility of a new company running the railroads and continuing to do so after advised by a Feb. 11, 2015, letter to stop.

He is identified in court documents as a representative of Penn Valley Railroad that has conducted passenger excursions on authority track.

Susquehanna Union's shortlines that use authority track are:

Juniata Valley in the Lewistown area;

Lycoming Valley between Avis and Muncy through Williamsport;

Nittany & Bald Eagle between Lock Haven and Tyrone with links to Bellefonte and State College;

Shamokin Valley between Sunbury and Shamokin;

North Shore between Northumberland and the Berwick area.

Carload operates Allegheny Valley, Southwest Pennsylvania, Ohio Terminal and Delmarva Central shortlines in western Pennsylvania and in Delaware, Maryland and Ohio.
The weather forecast

as of about 7:30 a.m. Sunday was calling for a strong possibility of heavy rain in the Harrisburg region, followed by a cloudy but probably dryer Memorial Day.

In other words, Memorial Day on Monday probably won't be remembered for great weather.

Sunday's forecast for the Harrisburg region called for the likelihood of rain, possibly heavy, for most of the day, and possibly thunderstorms as well. The high is expected to reach only into the high 70s.

The forecast for Memorial Day called for fog and drizzle in the early morning followed by a partly cloudy day with a 30 percent chance of rain and a high of about 76.

Tuesday, expected to be partly sunny with a high of 86, looks to be the best day of the workweek.

For the remainder of the workweek, the Harrisburg region was expected to receive clouds and periods of rain brought

After Tuesday, it's not expected to be blistering hot, with highs of about 80 expected on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

In the Pittsburgh region, the forecast as of early Sunday called for a mostly cloudy day on Sunday followed by a partly sunny Memorial Day with a high of 88.

The Philadelphia area was under a flash flood watch as of early Sunday, with heavy rain expected throughout the day and overnight. Memorial Day was expected to be partly cloudy with a high of 75.

It wasn't looking much better at shore locations within easy traveling distance of the Harrisburg region.

Cape May, N.J. was expected to see heavy rain on Sunday and Sunday night, followed by a cloudy day and 40 percent chance of rain on Memorial Day. The forecast was similar for Ocean City, Maryland.
In the popular imagination, World War II was a time that brought Americans together. In many ways, that's true.

But not entirely.

Harrisburg newspaper articles at the time show the challenges that people in central Pennsylvania and across the country faced on the home front, even on Memorial Day.

Fallout shelters sparked controversy in central Pennsylvania during Cold War: 5 facts

Here are five facts about Memorial Day in the Harrisburg area in World War II.

1. Nurses risked becoming prisoners of war.

Harrisburg-area families spent Memorial Days in World War II not knowing if their captured loved ones were alive or dead.

And it wasn't just the families of soldiers. Military medical staff members risked capture, too.

One example is Anne E. "Anna" Williams, a nurse who graduated from John Harris High School and the Harrisburg Hospital School of Nursing.

The Army nurse arrived in the Philippines days before the Pearl Harbor attack. News that she was captured in Corregidor was reported a week before Memorial Day 1942. Her parents didn't receive word of her condition until nine months later, when she sent a cable through the Red Cross.

In her nearly three years of captivity, Williams and about 70 other nurses, nicknamed the "Angels of Bataan," lived on 7 ounces of rice or corn a day. Williams continued to care for wounded soldiers and civilians in captivity.

She battled malaria for about a year before Gen. Douglas MacArthur's forces liberated the Santo Tomas prison camp in February 1945.

If there was one good thing about her brutal captivity in a prison camp, it was that Williams met her future husband there. Rush Clark, a naval reservist who was a Pan-American Airways employee, courted Williams "in brief periods in the evenings when they were permitted to listen to the radio together," The (Harrisburg) Evening News reported.

When Clark was transferred to another prison, the two communicated with each other via the "underground." Eventually, Clark proposed with a ring he created from steel wire. The two were married in 1945.

Still, captivity took its toll. The Evening News reported a year and a half after Williams was freed that she was still suffering from three years of malnutrition. She was unable to do housework and reported to the hospital each week for treatments, but doctors were confident that she would regain strength.

Williams, a first lieutenant, received a Bronze Star for bravery under fire, three presidential citations and, 43 years later, the new Prisoner of War Medal.

More from Joe McClure:

St. Patrick's Day in Harrisburg went from un-American to beloved a century ago: 5 facts

The Ku Klux Klan in central Pennsylvania: 5 facts

6 must-read books about central Pennsylvania

5 must-read books about Harrisburg

What messages did the Harrisburg of 1960 send to the future?

2. Rationing affected everyday life on the home front.

As the war effort ramped up, the government imposed gas and rubber restrictions.

In 1942, Memorial Day ads for places of recreation such as Williams Grove Park in Monroe Township and Willow Mill Park and The Rainbow Roller Skating Park in Silver Spring Township emphasized how little gas was required to drive there from Harrisburg.

Also that year, Williams Grove Speedway announced it would stop holding races until after the war.

Restrictions became more drastic in 1943. Days before Memorial Day, Gov. Edward Martin said the "honor system" for saving gasoline had failed with Pennsylvanians driving an increasing number of miles. He warned that the state police were going to help enforce the federal ban on pleasure driving.

Pittsburgh even established a night court for those suspected of violating the pleasure-driving prohibition.

The day before the holiday, the Harrisburg Regional War Transportation Committee urged residents not to use buses and taxis for nonessential purposes such as recreation and social activities. That way, those engaged in essential occupations such as military and industry could travel more easily.

Even driving to the cemetery on Memorial Day came with caveats, The Evening News reported: The grave must be that of a relative, it must be impossible to reach using public transportation and the visit must amount to a religious rite.

3. Memorial Day ceremonies urged unity.

In his speech during Harrisburg's Memorial Day festivities in 1943, Lt. Col. John Smith, head of the legal staff of the Pennsylvania Selective Service, contrasted brave soldiers and veterans with citizens on the home front.

"We note with sorrow in our hearts the headlines of the day," Smith said. "We are somewhat bewildered and confused. We cannot understand why men should strike in wartime. We wonder why some folks will not cooperate with the rationing programs. We are astonished that folks are still making trips for pleasure and social purposes. The draft-dodger is in our midst. The ugly word 'slacker' is becoming more frequently used. Truly the ills of the day are legion."

Although Smith said those not cooperating with the war effort are an "infinitesimal minority," the fact that he mentioned them shows that unity had not been achieved.

Officials' desire for unity was most vividly symbolized on Memorial Day in 1944. The nation's governors, who had gathered for a conference in Hershey, traveled to Gettysburg National Cemetery for what Martin called the most important Memorial Day service at the site since President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address.

The highlight of the ceremony came when Massachusetts Gov. Leverett Saltonstall and North Carolina Gov. J. Melville Broughton shook hands. This symbolic act of unity between North and South at the site of the Civil War's bloodiest battle was intended to show soldiers, "the great-grandsons of the boys in Blue and Gray (who) are fighting side by side in all corners of the world," that Americans on the home front had come together to support them, Saltonstall said.

But full unity was difficult for reasons besides frustration with rationing.

As Broughton and Saltonstall shook hands, participants in the Harrisburg Memorial Day parade marched across the State Street Bridge to Harrisburg Cemetery.

At 13th Street, the African-American Buffalo Post VFW detached from the parade and continued to Lincoln Cemetery near Penbrook for its own memorial service.

A symbolic handshake could not eradicate the legacy of slavery.

4. After the war, peace was viewed as fragile.

Memorial Day 1946 came about nine months after the war ended. Although it was now peacetime, the editorials of the Harrisburg newspapers were shaded with somberness.

"In hospitals throughout our land the grievously wounded, the maimed, the blind, the mentally disturbed, give evidence that we have not yet discovered the means through which we must advance to a better way of life," the Harrisburg Telegraph editorial board wrote.

Returning veterans "are disillusioned already" by unstable leadership and "callous indifference" they face from their fellow Americans, the Telegraph said.

In its Memorial Day editorial, The Evening News wrote that too many veterans are "ill-housed and ill-clothed, jobless or poorly employed." Meanwhile, any unity America displayed during the war is shattered: "We quarrel and bicker and accuse. Group clashes with selfish group in pursuit of selfish goals."

The Telegraph worried about "a bleak future" in which succeeding generations would have to sacrifice their lives because of poor leadership.

In contrast to the newspapers, the keynote speaker at Harrisburg's Memorial Day ceremony urged his listeners to honor those who have died by assuming the responsibilities of a postwar world.

"(A)t home we must help each other to restore the balance, order, prosperity, friendliness, fairness and toleration for which these boys were fighting when they fell," said Gen. Williston B. Palmer, commanding general of the Carlisle Barracks.

And beyond American borders, the United States has raised hopes, "the only hopes remaining for most of the world today," Palmer said.

5. An end note about Memorial Day 1941.

Memorial Day 1941, the last one before America's entry into World War II, served as a kind of bookend to the Civil War, the war that spawned the holiday in the first place. Until that year, Civil War veterans participated in Harrisburg Memorial Day festivities.

By 1941, only two remained in the city. Ephraim Slaughter and John Barton made their final appearances at the parade, with Slaughter as chief marshal and Barton as chief of staff.

Barton served in the U.S. Colored Volunteer Infantry and took part in the capture of Petersburg, Virginia. He died at age 95 in 1942.

Slaughter, who escaped from slavery in North Carolina and joined the Union Army, died in 1943 at age 97. American Legion Post 733 in Harrisburg bears his name.

The last Civil War veteran in Dauphin County was Henry Maurer, a longtime Steelton resident who spent his final years in Wiconisco Township. The former steelworker, who fought at Gettysburg, died at age 100 in 1947.

Joe McClure is an embedded editor for PennLive/The Patriot-News. Email him at jmcclure@advancelocal.com, and follow him on Twitter: @jmcclure59.
By Christine Flowers

In an earlier life, I was a language teacher. Make that, foreign language teacher. I was Mademoiselle Fleurs, Senorita Flores and Signorina Fiori (and here ends my crash course in how to say "teacher is a spinster" in three of the five Romance idioms, which is touchingly ironic, isn't it?)

Christine Flowers (PennLive file)

My love of language runs deep, and it is one of my proudest achievements to say that I am quadrilingual, which has nothing to do with things that Stormy Daniels might do and simply means that I am fluent in three languages not my own.

That doesn't mean I don't like my own tongue. I find English to be one of the most beautiful, colorful, chameleonic and useful languages in the lexicon of human communication, and if I had to choose among the four I do speak (and the thousands I do not,) I would pick my native language.

That said, I hate when people start using words as weapons, and sow division in the most unexpected places. Take a gas station, for example.

Last week, two women in Montana near the Canadian Border started speaking Spanish to each other.

A Border Patrol agent overheard the conversation, and asked one of the women for her identification. Now when a Border Patrol agent asks you for ID, he's not referring to your LA Fitness membership card.

He or she is asking to see what "papers" you have, and those papers better show that you are legally living in the United States or you will soon find yourself riding in the back of a white bus with "Homeland Security" written on the side.

Some people thinks that's perfectly fine, and these are usually the people who speak nostalgically about their great grandparents who arrived at Ellis Island wearing babushkas and carrying wicker baskets, and speaking perfect English. Oh wait, that last part is probably a nostalgic step too far.

Personally, I know that when my relatives came over on the "boat," they were not reading Shakespearean sonnets to one another and debating the merits of Wordsworth vs. Longfellow.

My ancestors spoke Italian, French, Swedish, and yes, English with a decidedly Irish lilt. If they had ended up at a gas station in Montana, I'm fairly certain they would have aroused suspicion as well. Fortunately for great-aunt Concetta and great-grandfather Pierre, we were a bit more forgiving of hopeful immigrants many years ago.

The thing is, this isn't even an immigration story. It's more about our increasingly narrow vision of what it means to be American.

We have always been what Amy Chua describes in her book "Political Tribes" as a "Super Group:"

"[A] super group is a distinctive kind of group: one in which membership is open to individuals from all different backgrounds-ethnic, religious, racial, cultural. Even more fundamentally, a super group does not require its members to shed or suppress their sub group identities.

On the contrary, it allows those subgroup identities to thrive, even as individuals are bound together by a strong, overarching collective identity."

Lately, though, we have decided that being American means adhering to some very specific standards: speaking English, singing the national anthem, flying the flag, shutting down dissent, and making sure that we point the fingers at those who aren't living up to our draconian bottom lines.

Personally, I think having a common national language is helpful to unite everyone, for the same reason that I miss the Latin mass because it was something distinctive that connected the Italian Catholic to the Ukrainian Catholic to the Irish Catholic to the Argentinian Catholic and let us know that wherever we were in the world, we were part of the same beautiful family.

Speaking English is important, and Americans who do not have a good grasp of the Anglo-Saxon lexicon often find themselves at a social and economic disadvantage.

But to question the citizenship, the entitlement to exist and belong of two women speaking Spanish among each other is a truly sinister sign that this country is losing sight of Chua's "super group," and what she notes as "America's distinctive history-its ethnicity-transcending national identity."

We are great because we are not monolithic, homogenous, and people who have perfectly mastered the language one particular colonial power.

As Ronald Reagan eloquently stated many years ago, "You can go to live in France, but you can't become a Frenchman. You can go to live in Germany or Italy, but you can't become a German, and Italian...but anyone from any corner of the world, can come to live in the United States and become an American."

That's important to remember, when overhearing two women speaking Spanish at a gas station in Montana.

An immigration attorney from suburban Philadelphia, Christine Flowers is a PennLive Opinion contributor. Her work appears biweekly.
Manitoba civil servants can have alcohol at some office parties, but marijuana will still be a no-no, even after recreational use of the drug is legalized. According to one human resouces expert, it's an issue that many employers, public and private, will have to grapple with. A cloud of smoke hangs over the crowd as thousands of people smoke marijuana during the 4-20 annual marijuana celebration, in Vancouver on Friday, April 20, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
. Opinion

.





David M. Herszenhorn: EU leaders unite against Trump

Steve Bell



EU leaders' lack of influence over Donald Trump.

SOFIA  EU leaders on Wednesday vowed that they would not be bullied by Donald Trump on the Iran nuclear accord or threatened steel tariffs. Over a nearly five-hour long dinner of meatballs and buffalo steak in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia, the 28 leaders chewed over their tough, new reality of a U.S. president who acts unpredictably and often, it seems, more as a foe than as a historic ally with shared values and political objectives. Officially, the leaders are in Bulgaria, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, to meet with western Balkan nations as a bloc for the first time in 15 years, and rev up partnership initiatives aimed at blunting the influence of Russia and Turkey. But the surprisingly aggressive moves by Trump in recent weeks  first by slapping down tariffs on steel and aluminum and issuing a brief one-month exemption for negotiations with Brussels, and then by withdrawing from the Iran nuclear agreement and unilaterally declaring a reimposition of sanctions on Tehran  prompted EU leaders to adjust their agenda. The dinner, which was supposed to focus on developing new proactive policies on digital innovation, still began with a discussion of technology and there was general consensus that the EU should do more, including by creating a European Innovation Council and promoting pilot projects in areas like artificial intelligence, officials said. "At their dinner, the leaders reaffirmed their common line that the EU will not negotiate with a gun at its head. But the focus quickly moved to the more nettlesome subject of Trump. Council President Donald Tusk had foreshadowed the tone of the discussion at a pre-dinner statement to reporters , where he rather somberly noted, With friends like that, who needs enemies? To drive home the point, Tusk's statement was quickly published on Twitter , Trump's preferred method of communication. The EU's two most influential leaders, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron, had each visited Trump in Washington ahead of his decision on Iran and were able to share their personal observations with colleagues, which officials briefed on the discussion described as extremely realistic and not overly optimistic  a diplomatic attempt at saying they see little hope for improvement in transatlantic relations any time soon. The dispute over steel tariffs has drawn particular outrage in European capitals. At their dinner, the leaders reaffirmed their common line that the EU will not negotiate with a gun at its head. They are demanding that Trump issue a permanent exemption from his punitive tariffs before the current reprieve expires on June 1, and they said that in return that would be willing to initiate talks aimed at addressing shared concerns. Former U.S. Ambassador to the EU Anthony Gardner said Trump is damaging transatlantic relations across the board. Among the items potentially up for discussion: deepening energy cooperation, notably in the field of liquefied natural gas; stepped-up regulatory cooperation; joint work on reforming the World Trade Organization, particularly over ways to unblock appointments to the WTO appellate court ; and reciprocal improvement of market access for industrial products, including cars, an official said. But leaders are insisting on the permanent exemption as a prerequisite to such talks and said any negotiations would be aimed at the objective of avoiding a trade war, the official said. On Iran, the leaders expressed unanimous support for the position of France, Germany and the U.K.  the three EU powers that helped broker the nuclear deal along with the U.S., Russia and China  to preserve the agreement so long as Tehran is meeting its commitments. Officials said there is consensus among leaders to work to shield European companies from any punitive action by Washington and they said they are prepared to take additional steps to address Iran's ballistic missile program and its military adventurism throughout the Middle East. But the leaders were also adamant that they would continue pressing for adherence to a rules-based international system  a reflection of their dismay that Trump pulled out of the deal despite a unanimous U.N. Security Council resolution that had endorsed it. The dinner was held in a high-tech center against a backdrop of pink roses. Bulgarian officials also noted that the leaders dined at a table made of paperboard, on which they could write messages that would later be displayed as part of an exhibit. In Brussels on Wednesday, former U.S. Ambassador to the EU Anthony Gardner said Trump is damaging transatlantic relations across the board. One and a half years into the Trump administration, one can only conclude that U.S.-EU relations will be significantly, but temporarily, damaged in almost every area where we used to collaborate, he told the European Parliament. David M. Herszenhorn is chief Brussels correspondent of POLITICO. Before joining POLITICO, David worked for more than 20 years at The New York Times, as a reporter, Washington correspondent and foreign correspondent based in Moscow. Petroleumworld does not necessarily share these views. Hans von der Burchard contributed reporting from Brussels. Editor's Note: This commentary was originally published by Politico , 05/17/2018. Petroleumworld reprint this article in the interest of our readers and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Petroleumworld and its owners.



Link to original article. All comments posted and published on Petroleumworld, do not reflect either for or against the opinion expressed in the comment as an endorsement of Petroleumworld . Use Notice:This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of issues of environmental and humanitarian significance. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml.



All works published by Petroleumworld are in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.Petroleumworld has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is Petroleumworld endorsed or sponsored by theoriginator.Petroleumworld encourages persons to reproduce, reprint, or broadcast Petroleumworld articles provided that any such reproduction identify the original source, http://www.petroleumworld.com or else and it is done within the fair use as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law.



If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. Internet web links to http://www.petroleumworld.com are appreciated. Copyright 1999-2018 Petroleumworld or respective author or news agency. All rights reserved. Petroleumworld.com



Hit your target - Advertise with us



We welcome the use of Petroleumworld stories by anyone provided it mentions Petroleumworld.com as the source. Other stories you have to get authorization by its authors.Internet web links to http://www.petroleumworld.com are appreciated. Petroleumworld welcomes your feedback and comments, share your thoughts on this article, your feedback is important to us! Petroleumworld News 05/28/18 . We invite all our readers to share with us

their views and comments about this article. Follow us in : twitter / Facebook

Send this story to a friend Write to editor@petroleumworld.com By using this link, you agree to allow PW

to publish your comments on our letters page.



Any question or suggestions,

please write to: editor@petroleumworld.com Best Viewed with IE 5.01+ Windows NT 4.0, '95,

'98,ME,XP, Vista, Windows 7,8 +/ 800x600 pixels






Christ Kraul: Colombia's presidential election could signal

end of peace pact with former FARC rebels, analysts say

Fernando Vergara/Associated Press



Soldiers patrol the outskirts of Bogota, Colombia, as part of pre-election security,

on Saturday. Colombians go to the polls Sunday to elect a new president.



Colombians go to the polls Sunday in a historic presidential election that could decide the fate of the already precarious peace agreement by the country's largest and most violent rebel group and the government of outgoing president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Juan Manuel Santos.

The election is the first in Colombia since the disarmament of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, under terms of the peace deal signed in November 2016 that ended 52 years of civil conflict. Depending on who wins, analysts say, the vote could presage the end of the accord, which is already on shaky ground amid assassinations of former combatants and allegations of noncompliance by both sides.

Surveys indicate that none of the five presidential candidates is strong enough to garner the 50% plus one votes needed to avoid a June runoff. Two diametrically opposed candidates are likely to proceed to the second round: right-wing politician Ivan Duque, who opposes critical elements of the peace deal, and leftist former guerrilla Gustavo Petro, who generally supports the pact.

Also running are former Medellin Mayor Sergio Fajardo; former senator and cabinet minister German Vargas Lleras, and former vice president and peace negotiator Humberto de la Calle. Although 30 million Colombians are eligible to vote, turnout of no more than 15 million is expected.

Duque, a 41-year-old economist, led his opponents in opinion polls prior to balloting with 35% of those questioned saying he would get their vote. He is favored to beat Petro, a former Bogota mayor, or any of the other candidates he would face in a runoff next month.

The front-runner status of Duque, a relatively unknown quantity in Colombian politics, is testimony to the enduring power of his patron, former President and now Sen. Alvaro Uribe. Many Colombians credit Uribe for turning the tide militarily against the FARC with $10 billion in military and anti-terrorism aid from the U.S. under so-called Plan Colombia.

Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering the deal with FARC, but the pact is unpopular among many Colombians. Uribe has been a strident critic of the pact with the rebels, favoring instead a military victory, which he maintained was close at hand when he left office in 2010.

Duque, a former Inter-American Development Bank staffer and holder of a Georgetown University graduate degree, has pledged to amend the justice provisions in the accord so that FARC members convicted of heinous crimes serve prison sentences; rebel leaders have vowed never to submit to such punishment.

All other candidates have publicly pledged to support the peace process if elected.

Arlene Tickner, an international relations professor at Rosario University in Bogota, said the agreement already is in serious jeopardy because of "slow implementation, lack of money and other factors" and that changes proposed by Duque could spell its doom

"There is growing distrust of the process on the part of many demobilized guerrillas," Tickner said. "So depending on who passes to the second round, we will see efforts to stall it even more or reinvigorate it. While I think it's impossible to dismantle the peace deal completely, it could be dismembered to the point it ends up falling apart."

Duque also has said he supports the extradition to the U.S. of Jesus Santrich, a former top FARC commander who was arrested in April on charges of facilitating a drug deal with a Mexican cartel. A federal court in New York has requested Santrich's extradition.

Although the peace pact guarantees ex-rebels lenient detention sentences under special peace tribunals for crimes committed before the accord was signed, it stipulates that ex-fighters are subject to ordinary justice for crimes committed after that point.

As a result, Duque and other hard-liners say Santrich, who is accused of trafficking drugs after the deadline, should be extradited. For its part, the FARC, which has morphed into a political party using the same initials, alleges that Santrich, who was set to take a seat in Congress, was framed and that an extradition would violate the pact. Peace deal advocates argue extradition should be denied to salvage the accord.

In any case, Santrich's arrest has fortified peace deal critics who say the FARC has not lived up to its end of the bargain by failing to provide authorities with more information on drug-trafficking routes and contacts it developed with cartels during the conflict. For that reason, the U.S. State Department still classifies the FARC political party as a terrorist entity.

"Duque is Uribe's hand-picked candidate, a smart guy, technically competent, but with few if any identifiable independent political positions of his own," said Bruce Bagley, a University of Miami professor. "If he is elected, make no mistake, we will have 'Uribe 2.0' back in office."

Duque also has benefited from what Bagley and Tickner described as a campaign to stigmatize Petro as a "Castro-Chavista" populist candidate who would lead Colombia down a path to socialism and economic ruin as happened in neighboring Venezuela under the late President Hugo Chavez. Chavez was a political protege of Cuba's Fidel Castro.

Petro's left-leaning campaign has emphasized the need to address social and economic inequality in Colombia, which, with its 28% poverty rate, is one of Latin America's most economically and socially unequal countries.



Chris Kraul is a special correspondent and covers South America for the Los Angeles Times from his base in Bogota, Colombia. Freelance writer, also covers Latin America for Womens Wear Daily and Platts. Contributes to Barrons and Knowledge@Wharton. Petroleumworld does not necessarily share these views.

Editor's Note: This commentary was originally published by Los Angeles Times on 05/26/2018. Petroleumworld reprint this article in the interest of our readers and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Petroleumworld and its owners.



Link to original article.

Editor's Note: All comments posted and published on Petroleumworld, do not reflect either for or against the opinion expressed in the comment as an endorsement of Petroleumworld and are expressed are private comments and do not necessary reflect the view of this website

All comments are posted and published without liability to Petroleumworld. Use Notice:This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of issues of environmental and humanitarian significance. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107.

For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml.



All works published by Petroleumworld are in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.Petroleumworld has no affiliation whatsoever with the originator of this article nor is Petroleumworld endorsed or sponsored by theoriginator.

Petroleumworld encourages persons to reproduce, reprint, or broadcast Petroleumworld articles provided that any such reproduction identify the original source, http://www.petroleumworld.com or else and it is done within the fair use as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law.



If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. Internet web links to http://www.petroleumworld.com are appreciated.Copyright 1999-2018 Petroleumworld or respective author or news agency. All rights reserved.



We welcome the use of Petroleumworld stories by anyone provided it mentions Petroleumworld.com as the source. Other stories you have to get authorization by its authors.

Internet web links to http://www.petroleumworld.com are appreciated.

Petroleumworld welcomes your feedback and comments, share your thoughts on this article, your feedback is important to us!

Petroleumworld News 05/28/18
Lansdowne stakes its future on attracting artists and is opening a co working space, Utility Works, for them. The old theater on Lansdowne Ave. is shown on May 22, 2018. It also has a vinyl record store, a town theater and farmer's market. Read more

Kyle Robinson lugs three canvases in his arms and eyes some open space on a nearby wall. He hangs up his abstract paintings, giving a futuristic splash to his nearby Kay-Way Juice Bar and Plant-Based Cafe, where he sells homemade juices and smoothies.

Robinson, 33, is one of several artists in the area who's now set up in Lansdowne's new coworking space for artists, called Utility Works.

Owned by the Lansdowne Economic Development Corp. (LEDC), Utility Works is so named because it used to be a base for the Delaware County Electric Co., a PECO precursor. The project shows how LEDC is pushing an unusual growth plan for the 1.2-square-mile borough, imagining Lansdowne as a kind of left bank community for painters, musicians, and art aficionados.

And why not? Lansdowne's downtown has everything an artist could ask for: restaurants with vegan options, outdoor spaces to lounge and listen to local musicians, a folk club, an old-school vinyl record store, a 75+ member symphony orchestra and even an exotic musical instrument shop.

Lansdowne, which has mostly single-family residences that average 80-plus years old, has no wage tax, big industry, or large commercial presence. Its real estate taxes are relatively steep and its schools do not rank high in test scores.

But it does have a prime location. The Delaware County borough, with about 10,600 people, sits about six miles from Media to the west and six miles from Center City Philadelphia to the east. Its SEPTA train station is only four stops  and 12 minutes  from University City on the Media/Elwyn line.

Lansdowne is also LGBTQ-friendly, say several residents. The town established an LGBTQ-friendly anti-discrimination ordinance in 2006 and has the second-highest percentage of LGBTQ couples after New Hope in Pennsylvania, according to 2013 data from UCLA's Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy.

New residents such as Ramsey Beyer, 33, and Michael Cantor, 32, have found affordable real estate in Lansdowne. Beyer and Cantor moved from West Philadelphia and now own a home with a dog and some chickens.

"We wanted to buy a house, and West Philadelphia was getting a little unaffordable," Beyer said.

They agreed that more millennials will likely follow if prices in West Philadelphia continue to rise.

As for Lansdowne, its tax assessments  the assessed value of property  rose this year for the first time since 2007, said Deborah Brodeur, the LEDC's executive director. She credits the 1.5 percent increase in part to a new Walgreen's that opened in a long-abandoned building in the borough's downtown.

But Lansdowne still has cheap property ready for renovation, said Brodeur, who speaks from first-hand experience. She renovated a "fixer-upper" herself and is moving in with her husband.

In the third quarter of 2017, 79 houses sold with a median price of $143,000, compared with 76 houses that sold for a median price of $125,000 during that same period in 2016.

Property values could continue to rise if projects such as Utility Works occupy vacant space downtown, especially when the nearby Lansdowne Theater is finally renovated. Matt Schultz, executive director of the Historic Lansdowne Theater Corp., expects the venue to open in about two years.

"We need at least a year for construction," Schultz said.

The rundown 1920s-era movie house closed in 1987 and was bought by the nonprofit in 2007. The theater plans to present live music and could attract as many as 1,300 people downtown on a good night.

Utility Works opened April 25 and now offers artists hot desks, conference rooms, and private and open studios for a monthly membership fee. It even has a weekly revolving retail space for members to rent and sell their art to passersby.

The town hasn't hit hard with a marketing campaign yet. But in its first month with walk-ins, 12 of the 32 individual studios were rented, along with one of the 15 hot desk memberships.

The base membership for hot desks, which rotate among different users, and other perks is $100 a month, while private 150-square-foot studios go for $275.

"As an artist, it's often an isolated experience," said Maura C. Williams, an occupational therapist and photographer renting an open studio. "I'm looking forward to being around other artists, so that we can talk with one another, problem-solve, inspire each other, and share resources."

Williams has lived in the area for about 30 years and has seen artists blossom lately thanks, in part, to art festivals, music clubs, and supportive local restaurants.

One big draw is the the farmers market, which, beginning Memorial Day weekend, will be open every Saturday through the summer. It attracts more than 500 people each week.

George Blum, 51, discovered the market in 2010 and immediately fell in love with the town. "Just meeting people and talking to them the first day, I saw the sense of community." Now he lives in Lansdowne and helps out weekly at the farmer's market.

Grammy-nominated musicians such as Orlando Haddad and Patricia King of the Philadelphia-based bossa nova jazz band Minas also call Lansdowne home. Haddad and King lived in Brazil before settling in Pennsylvania in 1984 to raise their then newborn daughter. They have performed in Lincoln Center in New York, Kennedy Center in Washington, and the Kimmel and Mann Centers in Philadelphia.

The couple needed to live near a city for work but chose the Philadelphia area for their daughter, because "I didn't want to force her to grow up in New York City," Haddad said.

Jamie's House of Music is one of several venues that Haddad says supports local musicians, and the Lansdowne Theater could be a hot spot when the renovation is complete.

The theater is one of several Lansdowne landmarks that make the town feel special, said Robinson, who grew up in Delaware County and lives in the borough with his wife, Dana.

"What stands out is the uniqueness and the older feel of the town  things like the movie theater with the marquee in the front," he said. "And you have the people that have been here for a while that have equity in the town so there's not a frequent turnover of different people. And it's just a mild-mannered town."

And that sense of community has been welcoming to millennials, Robinson said.

"I have a couple friends that live in Lansdowne and started families  friends that grew up with me and went to school with me that lived in Lansdowne, stayed in Lansdowne, and are growing families in Lansdowne," he said. "The younger crowd is definitely coming to Lansdowne."
The cast of Camelot at Act II Playhouse in Ambler gets the emotional balance right. Read more

For anyone who's ever suffered "desire without hope" or bemoaned the death of idealism, Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's Camelot offers a musical palliative.

President John F. Kennedy was a fan of the 1960 Broadway show, based on the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. After his 1963 assassination, his widow, Jackie Kennedy, helped fashion the myth of the Kennedy administration as a "brief shining moment" in history akin to Camelot.

The musical itself, by the creators of My Fair Lady, is a surprisingly complicated and satisfying work. A skillful mixture of light and dark, it celebrates political idealism while exploring the human passions and vices that undermine it. Its first act, when the characters are youthful and callow, is delightfully comic. Its second act advances a tragic view of human nature, twinning personal maturation with political disillusionment.

Under Matt Pfeiffer's direction, the scaled down but stirring production at Act II Playhouse in Ambler gets the emotional balance right. And the glorious score  including "If Ever I Would Leave You," "I Loved You Once in Silence" and, of course, the frequently reprised title number  shines, thanks to a superb trio of singing actors.

Philadelphia favorite Jeffrey Coon, with his powerful baritone, is a worthy King Arthur, worrying equally about the burdens of kingship and his restless bride, Guenevere (Eileen Cella). Guenevere at first tries to hide her attraction to the French knight Lancelot (Kevin Toniazzo-Naughton) beneath a jaunty antagonism. And Lancelot seems on initial meeting (in the song "C'est Moi") like the shallowest of egomaniacs, exulting in his own physical and spiritual perfection.

But their long-suppressed love pares away their egotism, even as it threatens both Guenevere's marriage to Arthur and Lancelot's vow of fidelity to the king. Cella's soprano evokes Julie Andrews, who originated the role, but with an extra vein of humor. Toniazzo-Naughton evolves convincingly from braggart to tortured lover, and offers a gorgeous rendition of Lancelot's signature number, "If Ever I Would Leave You."

Enumerating "The Seven Deadly Virtues" and leading the knights to declare "Fie on Goodness!," Luke Bradt, as the viperous Mordred, exudes negative charisma. Scott Langdon ably portrays both Merlyn, the magician who tutored young Arthur, and Pellinore, the idiosyncratic king who battles Arthur in chess.

Don't come to Act II expecting spectacle: The playing space is small, and Adam Riggar's scenic design of vertical wooden planks, suggesting a fence, and a circular platform, emblematic of the fabled Round Table, is serviceable rather than stunning. Ditto Janus Stefanowicz's costumes, which juxtapose contemporary outfits with medieval-seeming tunics and breastplates for the men and red velvet for Guenevere. Music director Dan Matarazzo performs the piano accompaniment in lieu of an orchestra, sacrificing some musical richness.

But the theater's intimacy allows for unamplified vocals and raises the emotional stakes of the piece, with its combustive romantic triangle and unstable magical kingdom of unicorns, fairies and jousting knights. Love betrayed, political promise dashed  Camelot's themes have aged well, and Act II's staging does them justice.
As the Philadelphia Orchestra wends its way through Germany in the next few days before heading to Israel on its spring tour, there is one musician watching nearby who harbors an unusually deep affinity for the ensemble but who still feels the orchestra has made "a terrible mistake."

In fact, for Berlin-based viol player and musicologist Laurence Dreyfus, it's personal. His father, George Dreyfus, was a violinist in the Philadelphia Orchestra for nearly a half-century. The younger Dreyfus, founder of the early-music Phantasm ensemble, was one of the signers of the petition that circulated a couple of months ago urging the orchestra to not go to Israel.

>> READ MORE: Philadelphia Orchestra and Yannick Nezet-Seguin resolute about visit to Israel

"While I personally don't support disrupting performances and can imagine how stressful that is for the musicians concerned  I surely wouldn't want a performance of mine own to be disrupted and believe it is counterproductive for the audience present  I think the broader context of constant human rights violations in Israel/Palestine needs addressing urgently."

> READ MORE: Pro-Palestinian activists protest the Philadelphia Orchestra's Israel tour

>> READ MORE: Yannick slams his baton after pro-Palestinian protesters disrupt 'Tosca' performance

George Dreyfus, the son of Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe, joined the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1953. Until his retirement from the orchestra in 2001, he was a visible stalwart of the ensemble, often the first person warming up on stage before a performance began. He died in July at age 97.

The orchestra was a big part of Laurence Dreyfus' childhood. "I more or less grew up backstage in the Green Room, attending weekly concerts for much of my youth and studying with two members of the cello section," he wrote in one of several emails on this topic.

"When I think of the huge prestige the Philadelphians enjoyed on the world stage and the role they played as ambassadors of peace and detente, what springs to mind  also from my own childhood and youth  are the orchestra's thrilling tours to the Soviet Union in 1958 and to China in 1973, both of which contributed to a thawing of international tensions at the time. No sign of that with this misbegotten venture! Just the opposite, in fact."

He asks: "Is the orchestra happy to have taken such a partisan side in this case, despite their disavowals to the contrary? I suspect Matias Tarnopolsky [the orchestra's incoming CEO, who starts in August] will have some damage to undo when he arrives on the Delaware."

Right now, the orchestra's main face of the controversy is music director Yannick Nezet-Seguin, whose first concert of the tour Thursday night in Brussels was interrupted by two protesters chanting pro-Palestinian slogans and unfurling a sign. Nezet-Seguin, the orchestra, and pianist Helene Grimaud came to a halt in the Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1. The concert later resumed and went off without further incident.

>> READ MORE: Pro-Palestinian protesters interrupt Philadelphia Orchestra's performance in Brussels

Afterward, the conductor told the audience that they are musicians, not politicians, and use music rather than words.

The orchestra has maintained that the tour  which continued with a concert Friday night in Luxembourg that was not interrupted and a Saturday night concert in Paris that drew some leafletters outside beforehand  is an act of cultural diplomacy.

"We respect the right of free expression and peaceful protest. We also believe in the vital importance of music as a unifying form of expression, bringing light to our shared human values," the orchestra said in a statement released Saturday. "While in Israel, many of our musicians will participate in residency activities with Israeli citizens of diverse backgrounds and faiths, creating together a message of hope and unity."

Still, Dreyfus said he found Nezet-Seguin to sound "very disingenuous in stating  as he did at the Brussels performance before the encore  that musicians deal in notes, not in words, essentially exculpating musicians from defending moral positions so that we can make music in a better world."

An orchestra spokeswoman Saturday said Nezet-Seguin was unavailable to speak more fully of his thoughts and feelings on the matter.

Performances are scheduled Sunday in Dusseldorf, Monday and Tuesday in Hamburg, Thursday and Friday in Vienna, and June 3-5 in Israel.

And how would his father feel about the question of whether the orchestra he played in for nearly a half-century is about to make a "terrible mistake" by going to Israel?

It's hard to know, says Dreyfus. "He was someone very much of his generation in supporting the idea of an Israeli state generally, though not their right-wing governments."

But the younger Dreyfus, who is also Jewish, feels compelled to act.

"Sometimes gentle methods  even if they rest on an implacable set of principles  have greater rhetorical force than confrontational ones," he says. "I can well imagine, however, that if one were living in Gaza or the West Bank today these ideas might seem a waste of time. But in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere as well I would hope it's possible to turn the tide against positions that perpetuate great injustices.

"Musicians and artists of all stripes  who make it their business to act as persuasive humanists  can play a small but admirable role in this venture."
Seventeen months into the presidency of Donald Trump, television's still trying to find its footing in a story that seems to change hour to hour, tweet to tweet.

Roseanne Conner of ABC's rebooted Roseanne and the woman who plays her both support the president  and the character is addicted to pain pills. Virulently anti-Trump litigator Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski), after moving from CBS's The Good Wife to CBS All Access' streaming series The Good Fight, responded to the ever-changing news from Washington by microdosing psilocybin to the point of hallucinations (though she moved to kick her mushrooms habit in time for Sunday's second-season finale).

Filmmaker Liz Garbus saw in the results of the 2016 election an opportunity to immerse herself in the institution the president likes to call the "failing" New York Times. Her four-episode documentary series, directed with Jenny Carchman, makes its television premiere at 7:30 p.m. Sunday on Showtime with an episode titled "The First 100 Days." The two episodes I've seen  the second's called "The Trump Bump"  show hardworking people trying to adapt to a changing media landscape while staying on top of a White House-driven news cycle that never lets up.

Yet the most meaningful reminder this Memorial Day weekend of how radically the nature of politics has changed in what seems like a short time comes in a documentary from which the current president is noticeably absent.

Premiering on Monday, the day on which we honor those who have died in the service of our country, HBO's John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls, could be seen as a dying man's effort to have a last word, if not the last word, on his own legacy.

(I haven't read the U.S. senator from Arizona and former POW's new book with Mark Salter, The Restless Wave, but he reportedly pulls no punches in taking on Trump there.)

For the Republican McCain, who was diagnosed with brain cancer shortly before agreeing to participate in the film, For Whom the Bell Tolls might also feel a bit like attending his own funeral, as we hear from friends, admirers, and sometime opponents from both parties. (Among the interviewees are former Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, and former Vice President Joe Biden.)

McCain's long history of forming alliances, and friendships, with people  including the late Sen. Ted Kennedy  with whom he disagreed on many things seems remarkable now, but that's the way things used to work in the Senate, and not so long ago.

Produced and directed by Peter Kunhardt (King in the Wilderness) with sons George Kunhardt and Teddy Kunhardt, For Whom the Bell Tolls  named for the Ernest Hemingway novel that's McCain's favorite book  covers the things you'd expect, including his years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam. But it acknowledges his flaws, including a powerful temper. And it doesn't skip past some painful bumps in his biography, including the affair that ended his first marriage and resulted in his second, and his part in the political scandal surrounding the 1989 collapse of Lincoln Savings & Loan (in which McCain was found to have displayed "poor judgment," an experience that motivated his push for campaign-finance reform).

Regrets, McCain has a few, including not resisting his advisers' opposition and naming his good friend Democrat Joe Lieberman to be his running mate in 2008. But it's left to New York Times columnist (and Radnor High School graduate) David Brooks to spell out how the choice of then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin helped lead to a hardening political divide.

"I don't think he could have known this at the time, but in picking Sarah Palin, he basically took a disease that was running through the Republican Party  not Palin herself, she's a normal human being  but a disease I'll call anti-intellectualism, disrespect for facts, and put it right in the center of the party. So she was a chapter in the rise of a cheap kind of populism," Brooks says.

That same presidential campaign, though, yielded the famous clip that can't help but feel like a rebuke to Trump, who for years promoted the theory that McCain's 2008 opponent had not been born in the United States (and who, according to the New York Times, continued to question Obama's citizenship in private long after a public acknowledgment of it in 2016).

In it, McCain politely but firmly corrects a woman who tells him, "I can't trust Obama.  He's an Arab," telling her, "No, ma'am. He's a decent family man, citizen, that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues."

He goes on to tell a crowd that Obama "is a decent person and a person you do not have to be scared [of] as president of the United States."

Trump, who in 2015 had challenged the notion that McCain was a war hero, saying, "I like people who weren't captured," might see acknowledging an opponent's decency as weakness on McCain's part, but that's not what it looked like to me then, and it's not what it looks like now.

It would be a terrible thing, not just for the Republican Party, but for all of us, if the idea that reasonable people can disagree were to die with John McCain.

The Fourth Estate

Times executive editor Dean Baquet, appearing on CBS's The Late Show with Stephen Colbert Monday, was asked why he'd let filmmakers into his newsroom to make the documentary The Fourth Estate.

"I want people to know how hard we try," he told Colbert. "I want people to know, to be blunt, how much integrity I believe we have, and I want people to know our imperfections.  My belief was that if people got a look inside the New York Times, their reaction would be, 'Boy, they're better than I thought they were.' "

And I suppose that might happen, though it would help if the people Baquet hopes to convince don't already think of the Times, along with CNN, NBC News, ABC, and CBS, as the "enemy of the American people" that the president declared it to be in a February 2017 tweet.

As both a Times subscriber and a career journalist, I can't help but watch The Fourth Estate differently. (A mention of the construction that accompanied the consolidation of its Manhattan newsroom to free seven floors for leasing had me nodding, as we're going through a noisy newsroom reconstruction phase ourselves.) And the Times' successful push for digital-first publishing has become a model for my industry, in ways that have been both fascinating and far from easy.

But the thing about newsrooms is that they're full of characters, and always have been, even before Twitter made us count them. The Fourth Estate gets that and shows the people behind the bylines, the podcasts, and the tweets. Whether it's listening in as White House correspondent Maggie Haberman takes a call from Trump or watching the give-and-take between her and another reporter as they collaborate on deadline, you might see, yes, how hard they try, but also why  and even, amid their obvious exhaustion, how much fun they have doing it.

John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls. 8 p.m. Monday, HBO.

The Fourth Estate. 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Showtime.
New Jersey State Police are investigating the circumstances involving an unidentified body pulled from the Delaware River near Beverly Township, Camden County, on Saturday.

A passing boat spotted the floating body and notified police around noon. Divers from the Marine Services Bureau made the recovery.

Police are withholding the name of the victim pending an autopsy but believe the person is linked to a boating accident earlier this month.

A boat overturned May 21 around 5:30 p.m., sending three people into the river in the vicinity of Hawk Island in Delanco Township. Two people were rescued by a nearby vessel, but a third person drowned, according to New Jersey State Trooper Alejandro Goez.

The investigation into that boating accident continues, he said.

Another body was pulled from the Delaware River on Saturday evening near Christopher Columbus Boulevard and Reed Street. The body of an unidentified man, which had no visible signs of trauma, was pronounced dead at 6:58 p.m., according to Philadelphia police.

No further details were available.
Denise Barger was supposed to attend a Father's Day barbecue the night she was beaten to death in her Berwyn home.

But at the last minute, she texted a niece to say she wasn't feeling well.

Her throat had been bothering her for a while, her brother Mike McDonald recalled, and the medicine Barger had been prescribed to treat it "knocked her out."

The next morning, June 17, 2016, McDonald arrived at Barger's colonial home on Heatherstone Drive. Every weekday, he would drop off his Norfolk terrier there. When Barger didn't answer the door, McDonald found his spare key and let himself in. "Denise," he called out, over and over, as he walked through the home.

Perhaps, McDonald recalled thinking, his sister was just in the bathroom, out of earshot. When McDonald went upstairs and entered the master bedroom, he walked into the scene of a murder that nearly two years later remains unsolved.

"I still see what I saw that day," McDonald said, "every time I blink my eyes."

Barger was lifeless on the floor beside her bed. When McDonald called 911 around 8:40 a.m., he told dispatchers his sister was bleeding from the head and cold to the touch.

Barger was pronounced dead in that bloody bedroom, and her picturesque 3,000-square-foot home became a crime scene. Authorities found a rear deck door open on the first floor. McDonald told police his sister usually locked all the doors before going to bed.

Barger died of blunt-force trauma, the medical examiner determined. She suffered a broken nose and seven broken ribs. Her brain was bleeding. Bruises on her arm signaled that she may have been grabbed, according to the autopsy report.

But, who would have wanted to kill the 62-year-old widow?

Barger worked as a patient safety liaison for the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, and previously served as risk management director for the Main Line and Jefferson Health systems. For about a decade, she had lived in Daylesford Estates, which sits between Routes 252 and 202 about five miles from the King of Prussia Mall. She had been preparing to move to a townhouse in the neighboring Daylesford Lake complex. A townhouse would be smaller, more manageable for her, McDonald said. And besides, Barger had a Shore home in Avalon, where she enjoyed spending time with her extended family, he said.

A week before Barger died, McDonald said his sister made a comment that stuck with him. She said her Daylesford Estates home "had been nothing but bad luck."

It was where her husband, Thomas, had died suddenly three months before at the age of 64, McDonald said. The two had always been a perfect match, first as friends at Cardinal Dougherty High School and then as partners, he said. They had been married for more than 35 years.

Now McDonald's sister, too, was gone.

On the day her body was discovered, authorities found a trail of blood from Barger's deck to a backyard fence that separates her yard from that of a neighbor, David Bookstaber, police records show.

That same day, Chester County detectives interviewed Bookstaber, a 42-year-old Yale-educated husband, father, and Air Force veteran. They wanted to know if Bookstaber had seen or heard anything unusual on the day of his neighbor's death, or perhaps unknowingly captured a clue on the surveillance cameras he had all around his house. They also asked about Bookstaber's right hand, which appeared "badly swollen," investigators later said, with an injury consistent with having struck something. Bookstaber told authorities he had poison ivy, which caused his hand to swell, law enforcement officials said.

Hours later, authorities obtained a search warrant and descended on Bookstaber's home. They found blood on a sink and on a light switch in the garage, according to documents law enforcement officials compiled after the search. In the mudroom, they found a pair of Sperry men's boat shoes that appeared to match bloody tread patterns on Barger's bedroom floor, the documents say. And they learned that Bookstaber's home surveillance system  which included several exterior video cameras  had not been working in the days leading up to his neighbor's death, documents show.

The day after Barger's body was discovered, authorities said, a police dog tracked the scent of blood from Barger's bedroom to Bookstaber's garage door.

Through his lawyer, Joseph P. Green Jr., Bookstaber said he had no knowledge of the crime and hopes the person who killed his neighbor will be brought to justice.

"He has no involvement," Green said. "He hasn't committed any crime."

When asked about the findings from the search warrants, Green emphasized that it had been nearly two years since authorities gathered that information. He declined to comment further.

This week, Chester County First Assistant District Attorney Michael Noone said the investigation of Barger's death is "active and ongoing" and urged anyone with information to contact police.

Law enforcement officials have talked with friends, neighbors, and associates of Barger's. They have studied the crime scene, and pored over forensics, the autopsy report, and the results of several searches of Barger's property and her neighbor's.

Noone declined to say whether his office had any suspects or had identified possible motives.

As the two-year anniversary of Barger's death approaches, McDonald is trying to hold himself together so his sister can get justice.

Since he walked into that crime scene, McDonald said, he has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. He thinks of his sister many times a day.

"It's just tough to lose somebody like that," McDonald said. "Really, really tough."
Ely Fernandez is questioned by border patrol agent Robert Rodriguez after being detained for crossing the border illegally with his son 5-year-old Bryan, center, on March 15, 2018 in McAllen, Texas. Read more

This is how America ends as any kind of force for good. With a yellow bracelet.

I've been thinking about a 36-year-old Guatemalan woman named Alma Jacinto and her two boys, ages 8 and 11, as I try to comprehend the rapidly accelerating human-rights outrage taking place along America's southern border. To be clear, the story of how the United States mistreats migrant families, so desperate for a better life, can be a confusing tale  especially as emotions flare on social media. It's a discussion that can get bogged down in the evil banality of bureaucrats and in statistics  especially the 1,475 children that government agents took, and then lost track of  that generate shock yet somehow don't do justice to the everyday inhumanity.

That's why I'm grateful for the on-the-ground journalism of Curt Prendergast and Perla Trevizo of the Arizona Daily Star (local reporting matters, people) that put a human face on a horrible Trump administration "zero tolerance" policy by showing us the terror and the tears of Jacinto as the detained border crosser left the Tucson courtroom where a magistrate couldn't answer her questions about where her two boys were going or when she would see them again.

On Jacinto's wrist was the yellow bracelet that, the newspaper reported, federal authorities have begun using to mark mothers and fathers who've been forcibly separated from their kids under recently amped-up prosecution directives of a 2005 program named Operation Streamline  bland Orwellian doublespeak to mask a human-rights outrage. It was just a decade ago that a yellow bracelet meant support for humanitarian causes like fighting cancer. Now, it's a symbol of a cancer on the American spirit, led by a president and his top aides who dehumanize migrants and now terrorize their families, fueled by cynical demagogic politics and a dollop of old-time prejudice.

The human toll of state-sanctioned hatred hits people like Estaban Pastor, another Guatemalan who came here with his 18-month-old son after he'd mortgaged his family's tiny farm to pay for the child's hospital bill and needed the income to pay back the loan. As recounted by Lomi Kriel of the Houston Chronicle, father and child were arrested in July 2017 trying to cross the border in Texas. U.S. Border Patrol agents deported Pastor last October but wouldn't say where his toddler was other than "somewhere in Texas."

"I cried. I begged," Pastor told the newspaper. "No one could tell me anything." The Chronicle says a judge eventually freed the child after a Kafkaesque three-month crusade by Pastor to find his son, now 2, and secure his release. What's happening in 2018 is that stories like Pastor's are becoming much more common  thanks to the "zero tolerance" announced by Attorney General Jeff Sessions that's causing a dramatic rise in both arrests and family separations.

How did we get to this horrible place?

It's a complicated story, and in some ways it's more of an "America story" than a "Trump story," with tangled roots in the abuses of a so-called "war on terror"  although the arrival of the Trump presidency has managed to make things much worse.

As Trump is so often wont to do.

But Trump wasn't president (nor could such a thing be imagined) in 2003 when a new federal immigration apparatus  including the creation of a new police force, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE  was created under the Department of Homeland Security, which in turn was created to respond to the 2001 terrorist attack on the United States. Few listened to experts who warned that treating the very human problem of migration as a law-enforcement issue closely related to fighting terrorism would have serious unintended consequences.

Under two presidents  a Republican, George W. Bush, and a Democrat, Barack Obama  arrests of immigrants and deportations skyrocketed. Meanwhile, just now are we learning the extent to which ICE, the Border Patrol and other federal agencies were horrible custodians of the people they arrested and detained  particularly children. Just last week, the American Civil Liberties Union issued a major report based on thousands of pages of Border Patrol records it had obtained from 2009-2014  years when Obama was in the White House.

What the ACLU uncovered was "a pattern of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse by Customs and Border Protection officials against child immigrants that existed long before President Trump emboldened the agency by unleashing its officers to enforce his draconian immigration policies." That included horror stories like a 15-year-old teen mother  brought undocumented to the United States from Mexico at a young age  who was nabbed by Border Patrol at a rest stop, roughed up and told that if she didn't sign papers to go back to her native country, thus putting her child into foster care, "Right now, we close the door, we rape you and f you."

Overall, Obama had a mixed record on immigration; unable to work with GOP obstructionists on a reform plan, he spiked deportations in his first term but used his executive order pen to offer humane alternatives like the DACA program protecting young "Dreamers" midway through his time in the White House. But in hindsight, Obama's failure to rein in the out-of-control abuses of this authoritarian police apparatus loom larger every day.

Because things could get a lot worse.

Beginning in 2011, with soaring murder rates and narcotics crime spreading across Central America, there was a surge in unaccompanied minors  mostly teens  trying to cross the border. Many of these children were apprehended by Border Patrol, and the U.S. obviously didn't have a good plan for what to do next. Some of the kids were placed with family members, but others ended in foster care or more ambiguous situations. It was a system with a high risk for abuse  and abuses occurred.

The agency tasked with placing thousands of kids  the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement  clearly wasn't up to the task of vetting potential sponsors. An AP investigation found in 2016 that "more than two dozen unaccompanied children had been sent to homes where they were sexually assaulted, starved or forced to work for little or no pay."

Under pressure, the HHS agency stepped up its efforts to keep track of what is happening to these migrant kids, and so last month top officials in the department made a stunning admission to a federal hearing: When officials tried to follow up from October through December of 2017 on the whereabouts of roughly 7.500 kids the federal government had placed with sponsors, it was unable to find out what happened to 1,475 of them, or roughly one in five.

The report of the 1,475 kids that HHS doesn't know what happened to has stirred up considerable controversy on social media. Critics say it's appalling that  given the potential for trafficking and other abuse  that the government doesn't keep better tabs. Some immigration lawyers say that most of the supposedly lost children are doing fine with family members and that liberals are inadvertently advocating for a Big Brother-type response that would do more harm than good.

Either way, the U.S. government isn't the preferred guardian for migrant kids. In a normal world, the administration of our new-in-2017 President Trump would be dedicated to fixing the problems. To the contrary, Team Trump rolled out new punitive polices at the border that would have the consequence of tossing hundreds and eventually thousands more children into this growing American gulag. The new policy reflects both the way that xenophobia was central to Trump's election in 2016 and also the fact that demeaning migrants and keeping refugees from reaching American soil seems to be the only thing that personally excites and engages the new president.

In March, responding to Trump's growing rage over a jump in border crossing, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the "zero tolerance" policy that would take parents who might have been merely returned across the border under past policies and now detain them and prosecute them, thus requiring the government to put the kids in shelters.

"If you cross this border unlawfully, then we will prosecute you. It's that simple," said Sessions. "If you smuggle illegal aliens across our border, then we will prosecute you. If you are smuggling a child, then we will prosecute you and that child will be separated from you as required by law. If you don't like that, then don't smuggle children over our border."

Parents doing what any native-born American mom or dad would do in a similar situation  trying to get their kids away from places where they might starve or get shot  are branded by the Trump administration as "smugglers." And the attitude of top administration officials on what happens to these children is shockingly callous. Trump's chief of staff John Kelly told NPR the kids "will be put in foster care or whatever."

Whatever. Hover over that word and let it sink in.

But this fish stinks from the head. The growing uproar about how America mistreats these migrant kids comes at the same time that Trump speaks of migrants  possibly members of a gang called MS-13, although the president left it intentionally vague  as "animals." This weekend, we learned that the president of the United States  who has in the past raged privately about arrivals from "shithole countries" in Africa  also brags on how he demonizes Hispanic immigrants for political gain.

"Trump reminded them the crowds loved his rhetoric on immigrants along the campaign trail," reported the Washington Post of a recent Oval Office meeting. "Acting as if he were at a rally, he recited a few made-up Hispanic names and described potential crimes they could have committed, such as rape or murder. Then, he said, the crowds would roar when the criminals were thrown out of the country  as they did when he highlighted crimes by illegal immigrants at his rallies, according to a person present for the exchange and another briefed on it later. [Aides Stephen] Miller and [Jared] Kushner laughed." [Emphasis added.]

This is a dangerous demagogue willfully using hatred and prejudice to consolidate his political power  the scenario we probably should have seen coming, but didn't, in the daze immediately after 9/11 when we created our homeland-security state. It never should have gotten this far. People  myself included  should have paid attention and spoken out as our repressive immigration policies worsened over the last decade, because now there's no easy fix under a racist Trump and his lapdog GOP Congress.

With the new "zero tolerance" policy in place, you're going to be hearing a lot more stories like the nightmares that Alma Jacinto and Estaban Pastor experienced in the weeks ahead. Immigration experts from groups like the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project say they're already seeing a 75 percent spike in family separations this year  throwing hundreds of more kids into this messed-up system where children literally get lost.

The spring of 2018 is a moment when many people are placing all their hopes for change on November's midterm elections  but that may be too late for too many traumatized families. The people who did an amazing job in the winter of 2018 flooding airports and turning the tide against the Muslim travel ban need to throw themselves into this issue with the same fierce urgency of now. On Capitol Hill, I would urge the handful of moderate Republicans fearful of getting swamped in a "wave election," eager to show some humanity on the immigration issue, to speak out and work with Democrats to undo this policy right now, and not in 2021 under a much-anticipated new president.

We all need to do something about this. A yellow bracelet of terror is already cutting into the blood flow of rapidly eroding moral force that was America.
Benjamin Robbs, 83, of Camden, joined the Army as a teenager. He served in the Korean War. Read more

When a Navy recruiter showed up at her house to enlist her only son, Judi Tapper could have stopped him from joining.

But she gave her blessing. So shortly after graduating in 1989 from Edgewood High School in Winslow Township, where he was a standout wrestler, David, the youngest of six, embarked on a journey to pursue his dream of becoming a Navy SEAL. Two years later, he joined the elite unit after completing SEAL training in San Diego.

He felt especially compelled to serve after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. In 2003, David was part of the team that made a daring raid behind enemy lines to rescue POW Jessica Lynch from her Iraqi captors and to help recover the bodies of nine American soldiers buried near where she had been held captive. During his third tour of duty, Tapper was killed in Afghanistan on Aug. 20, 2003, four days after his 32nd birthday.

His story, as told by his Gold Star mother, Judi Tapper, of Atco, has been memorialized in a video recording at the Library of Congress in Washington as part of its Veterans History Project. He is among 25 Camden County veterans whose stories were submitted for the project last week.

"They deserve to have their stories told," said Tapper, 78, the former president of New Jersey Gold Star Mothers. "They volunteered to serve their country."

Congress created the Veterans History Project in 2000 to collect personal stories, photographs, and documents such as diaries, letters, and scrapbooks from veterans with service dating to World War I and preserve their accounts for future generations to better understand the realities of war. Hundreds of thousands of testimonies have been archived.

Initially, the project accepted only firsthand accounts from living veterans, excluding the stories of soldiers such as David Tapper, who died while serving. But his mother and others lobbied to change the law, and a bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Christopher Smith (R., N.J.) was approved unanimously by the House in 2016 to allow immediate family members to share the stories of fallen loved ones.

"It's not just the ones who served, but also the ones who didn't come home," said Judi Tapper, a retired real estate agent. "He really was so special. I think it was the greatest tragedy in life that I will ever have to deal with. It's something I'll never get over."

The Camden County Freeholder Board began its Veterans History Project in 2013 to begin capturing the stories of the more than 26,000 veterans who live in the county. About 150 have been recorded, but many don't meet the guidelines and requirements for submission to the Library of Congress, said Freeholder Bill Moen.

Moen, along with U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross (D., N.J.), delivered the videos to the Library of Congress last week. So far, Camden County and Sanilac County in Sandusky, Mich., are the only two counties in the country to participate in the national Veterans History Project. Oral historians, civic groups, and military buffs have also been collecting stories.

The county plans to review its recordings to identify future submissions, Moen said. The recordings will also be archived locally. The county eventually hopes to set up a place, possibly with kiosks where visitors can listen to narratives from those who served, he said.

The interviews are conducted by the Office of Veterans Affairs and recorded on DVDs, Moen said. Veterans are encouraged to share as much or as little as they feel comfortable disclosing, he said. A priority is given to older veterans to capture the recollections of a dying breed.

"These stories and the impact long term, in my mind, is priceless," Moen said in an interview. "We're losing so many of them. It's dire, now more than ever, to try to preserve the stories that are left and able to be told."

Tapper, the first interviewed, said she takes comfort in knowing that her son, who loved skydiving and the beach, fulfilled his dream to become a SEAL, a member of SEAL Team 6. She recalled that she jokingly told him when he decided to enlist: "You're my only son. I can stop you."

She said he replied, "No, Mom, this is what I want to do."

His commendations included a Purple Heart and the Bronze Star with Combat "V" for valor. The 13-year veteran left behind his wife, Tracy, and four children, Raimen, Vanessa, Talia, and Jarred.

Korean War veteran Benjamin Robbs, 83, of Camden, wanted to share his experience for the history project as an African American who served in a segregated Army unit. Robbs, who grew up in Philadelphia, dropped out of high school when he was 15 to enlist in March 1951.

Robbs was sent to basic training at Fort Campbell in Hokinsville, Ky., where black recruits were barred from the commissary, service clubs, and certain neighborhoods because of their skin color, he said. There were more racial injustices when his segregated unit was shipped to Korea, where he fought for 10 months with ground troops, he said.

"People say so little about the black Army because they were segregated," said Robbs, who achieved the rank of corporal and was awarded two Distinguished Service Cross Medals and a Bronze Star. "We were treated unfairly. They didn't consider us human. It was bad."

After Robbs was wounded by a mortar round, he was sent back to the United States. His injuries left him unable to stand for long periods, so the military sent him to school to study finance and gave him a new assignment indoors. He was discharged in 1954  the same year that the last segregated unit in the armed forces was abolished.

Robbs later joined the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union in Philadelphia as a business agent for 30 years. He also worked for the State of New Jersey in the unemployment office. He was twice married and had two sons, Brian and Adam.

A devout Muslim, Robbs enjoys a leisurely pace these days at the Victor Building in Camden, where he holds court daily in the lobby and everyone knows his name. He has come to terms with his Army experience. His only military memento is his DD 214 form, which lists the dates and locations of his service.

"These are memories I don't want to remember," Robbs said. "Some things you want to forget in life."

Retired Army Command Sgt. Major Gordon Lampitt, 94, of Voorhees, enlisted in 1939 and served for 33 years, seeing duty in three wars: World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. A career officer, he became a civilian employee for 20 years at Fort Dix and retired in 1972, said his son, Charles.

When asked whether he was proud about his service during an interview for the history project, he responded: "Proud? I feel proud of the fact that I served my nation, yes. I served it to the best of my ability and I gave them the best I had."

He is among a dwindling population of the country's remaining World War II veterans, who are now in their 80s and 90s. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, 558,000 of the 16 million Americans who served were alive in 2017.

"We fought with him for years to get his story down before age set in," said Charles, 60. "He is one proud, strong man. I can't say enough about my dad."

Lampitt, formerly of Browns Mills, remained very active for years until his health declined recently, said State Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt (D., Camden), his daughter-in-law. Married for more than 60 years and the father of five, he lives in an assisted-living facility with his wife, Rose, 87.

Recently, the family was able to obtain about 15 medals that Lampitt was due in recognition of his service, Pamela Lampitt said. Several years ago, he proudly donned his uniform and danced with his granddaughter, Ilene, at her wedding.

"He's a remarkable man," his daughter-in-law said.

For more information on the Veterans History Project, call the Camden County Office of Veterans Affairs at 1-800-464-VETS.
Three people are dead and one is in critical condition after a fiery car crash in Philadelphia's Feltonville section early Sunday morning, according to a police report.

A 2009 gray Honda Accord headed south on Whitaker Avenue hit another vehicle and caught fire. After firefighters extinguished the blaze, they found three dead in the Honda: two 22-year-old men and one woman. No other information about them was made available.

The driver of the other vehicle was sent to Temple University Hospital in critical condition.

No arrests were made.
It turns out that I don't have a very good idea how to get elected to Congress. I lost the Democratic primary last week because Madeleine Dean ran a great campaign, and most voters wanted to support women and new blood for the U.S. House. I get it, and will give my full support to Madeleine in the general election.

But I do have a few ideas about what Democrats need to do in order to win the battle for public support against Donald Trump. Anger at Trump is not enough  we have to stand for something, and convince the public that our ideas make sense.

>> READ MORE: Analysis: Pennsylvania primary results reflect both sides of the Trump divide

The president and his conservative allies in Congress want to cut taxes for the wealthy, shrink government, and withdraw to an America First isolationism, while insulting friend and foe alike. This will not benefit working families struggling for a better life, nor will it keep us safe.

The Democratic Party must do three things to win public support.

Our platform must be both socially liberal and fiscally responsible. We must accept the obligations that come with being the only super power that supports freedom and liberty around the world. We must show respect to our political competitors so that government will work again.

The first challenge is to get our fiscal house in order. Bill Clinton showed us the progressive way to balance the federal budget, with modest tax increases on the wealthy and careful reductions in spending that protected low-income and other vulnerable Americans.

We will not be able to pay for any of the programs we advocate as progressives, such as better schools, better health care, more jobs, and a cleaner environment, unless we have sustainable funding and an orderly and rational process to balance revenues and spending. It is no good to balloon the debt our grandchildren must pay.

>> READ MORE: Women win party nods in Pa. primary elections for U.S. House

We should start by rolling back Trump's tax cut for corporations and the wealthy, reclaiming $1.5 trillion for other priorities and deficit reduction. We should re-balance our excessive military spending. We certainly live in a dangerous world, but we currently spend as much on our military as the next eight countries combined. The number two military spender is China, which we outspend 3-1. We outspend Russia 9-1. We need a thoughtful review of our military budget that would save tens of billions of dollars while still keeping us safe.

Second, Democrats must welcome the challenges that come with being the world's primary defender of freedom and liberty. We must robustly support our international alliances, mutual defense pacts, and fair trade agreements. We need the U.N., NATO and other multinational organizations as much as the rest of the world does. Our existing agreements keep us safer. Trump's chaotic behavior on the world stage risks our safety.

Third, we must return respect to our political arena. Our federal government must be able to level the playing field, provide a strong social safety net, and strive for social justice and economic opportunity for all. We will never achieve those goals if the current hyper-partisanship continues in Washington. The president is a huge part of the problem, and so are the leaders of both parties. We must respectfully listen to our opponents with open minds and the desire to find common ground. Political compromise is never easy, but it is absolutely essential if we are going to make Congress work for us again.

Donald Trump offers bombast, chaos and division. Congressional Republicans are enabling him. Democrats will win and govern with success by embracing fiscal responsibility, international leadership, and respectful political debate.

Joseph Hoeffel is a former member of Congress from Montgomery County, and also served as a state representative and county commissioner. He is the author of two books on politics and government.
Members of the Ocean City Noreasters, a United Soccer Leagues developmental team, kick a ball around in Ocean City in 2016. Read more

Memorial Day weekend begins the annual great migration from the Philadelphia region to the beloved Jersey Shore. When visitors arrive in their favorite towns, they may notice, as residents do, that the coast is changing at an accelerated pace. The rising sea is pushing back beaches, forests, and marshes. Flooding is more frequent.

And, the danger posed by a rising sea is made even more extreme by the fact that coastal land is sinking, according to a Rutgers University study.

The state knows the Shore is in trouble. Mother Nature delivered that message loud and clear six years ago with Hurricane Sandy, which killed 117 people and cost $50 billion in damage.

It's foolish that New Jersey's state and local governments didn't use the disaster as an opportunity for sweeping new approaches to coastal protection. They didn't create a special building code for flood-prone communities, build up bulkheads, or upgrade storm sewers to stop higher tides from flooding neighborhoods. Instead, they mostly rebuilt what was already there.

But with former Gov. Chris Christie and his reckless disregard for the environment gone from Trenton, planning for a safer future is getting back on track. This month, the Legislature began moving bills to update the Shore Protection Master Plan for the first time since 1981. The updated plan will be a focused blueprint for protecting coastal communities into the future, taking into account the Shore's new reality.

"It's only getting worse, and it's going to get worse faster," says terrestrial ecologist Emile DeVito, manager of science and stewardship with the New Jersey Conservation Foundation.

He notes that scientists in 1981 thought sea level would rise about a foot a century. Now, they believe sea level will rise from three feet to five feet a century. Forty years ago, the word superstorm wasn't even a term and now superstorms are expected to hit the Shore more frequently and with greater intensity, further weakening natural buffers.

Over time, development and brutal storms wore out natural protections, even in mainland communities where residents thought they were safe from the ravages of the sea. Coastal forests abutting marshes are dying as the marshes recede. Without the marshes, there's not much to stop waves from crashing against mainland communities and taking ground away.

The master plan can capitalize on lessons learned from extreme weather. For example, dunes have done a good job holding back the Atlantic on the ocean side of barrier islands, but the bay sides flood frequently, even in mild rains or moon tides.

The state also should consider letting more properties return to nature. There has to be a point where taxpayers stop rebuilding storm-damaged buildings over and over again.

New Jersey can become resilient as long as it becomes realistic about the effects of climate change.

This renewed interest in updating the Shore Protection Master Plan is a good sign that state government is taking the challenge seriously. Residents and visitors should stay on top of public officials to ensure they protect the Shore.
President Trump give a thumbs up to members of the media as he arrives on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, May 25, 2018. Read more

WASHINGTON  President Trump moved Friday to roll back civil-service protections that federal employees have enjoyed for a generation, making it easier to fire poor performers, curtailing time employees can be paid for union work and directing agencies to negotiate tougher union contracts.

In three executive orders the president signed before the holiday weekend, Trump took his first significant steps toward fulfilling a campaign promise made to overhaul a federal bureaucracy he told voters was awash in "waste, fraud and abuse."

The changes have been championed by Republicans who have sought to rein in the size and reach of the federal bureaucracy of 2 million, which under Trump has been gradually shrinking through hiring freezes and unfilled vacancies.

The trio of executive orders  which can be undone by the next president  could have a much more dramatic impact. Trump's move immediately drew polarized reactions, with public employee unions casting it as an attack on civil servants and conservatives praising the overhaul as a win for accountability.

The orders limit federal employees to spending no more than a quarter of their workday on "official time"  paid time to do union business, a benefit Congress approved for federal unions four decades ago. Administration officials said the change could save $100 million a year.

They require agencies to negotiate union contracts in less than a year. And they direct managers to move more aggressively to fire poor performers or employees involved in misconduct, limiting to one month a last-chance grace period for improvement that now can last up to 120 days. Agencies must also disclose details about an employee's record to other federal offices considering hiring someone who has been fired or disciplined.

In addition, the orders upend a long tradition of basing layoffs on seniority. Agencies can now take performance into consideration, as well.

The orders also require agencies to begin charging unions for space in federal buildings they now use for free.

White House officials said their goal is to make the federal workforce more efficient and responsive to the public and to improve morale for employees who play by the rules.

In a briefing with reporters, Andrew Bremberg, the White House director of the domestic policy council, said surveys of federal employees have repeatedly found that few trust their managers to adequately address poor performers.

"These executive orders make it easier for agencies to remove poor performing employees and ensure that taxpayer dollars are more efficiently used," Bremberg said. The president, he noted, called on Congress during his State of the Union address "to empower every Cabinet secretary with the authority to reward good workers and to remove those that undermine the public trust or fail the American people."

Public employee unions said Trump's orders amounted to an attack on federal workers and said they were contemplating legal action to halt them.

"President Trump is attempting to silence the voice of veterans, law enforcement officers, and other frontline federal workers through a series of executive orders intended to strip federal employees of their decades-old right to representation at the worksite," the American Federation of Government Employees, the largest federal employee union, said in a statement.

For their part, conservatives praised the changes as long overdue  particularly the order that will limit how much federal employees can be paid for doing union work on the job.

"There is nothing more galling to limited government advocates than public employee unions being largely subsidized by taxpayer dollars while using their dues payments to support politicians in favor of expanding government," Rick Manning, who served on Trump's transition team and leads the advocacy group Americans for Limited Government, said in a statement.

Trump has repeatedly referred to federal workers as part of the Washington "swamp" he has promised to drain. But he did not publicly champion the executive orders Friday, signing them quietly behind closed doors. The details were released to reporters late in the afternoon before the holiday weekend.

The new orders expand on a policy Congress enacted last year that made it easier for the Department of Veterans Affairs to fire poor performers or employees involved in misconduct, as well as a tough new union contract imposed by management this year at the Department of Education.

Civil service experts said there is widespread consensus across the political spectrum on the need to overhaul the federal civil service. But they noted that Trump's orders build on an effort conservatives have used in Indiana, Wisconsin and other states to weaken public employee unions.

"It's very clear this is part of a broad strategy to undermine the power and position of federal unions," said Donald Kettl, a public affairs professor at the University of Texas in Austin.

Still, some experts noted that Friday's orders will not immediately ban unions from the federal workplace and could be reversed by the next administration absent congressional action, which is viewed as unlikely.

Some of the changes Trump ordered could be slow to implement. The amount of time federal employees are paid for "official time" must be negotiated through collective bargaining, and that change and others could hinge on agencies reopening existing contracts with rank-and-file employees or renegotiating new ones, experts said.

"There are laws that govern all of these things they are trying to do," said Jeffrey Neal, former personnel chief at the Department of Homeland Security and now a senior vice president at the consulting firm ICF. "There's only so much you can do when Congress hasn't changed the law."

Nevertheless, the public employee unions sounded the alarm.

The National Treasury Employees Union, the second-largest federal labor organization, said the orders amount to an "assault on federal employees, the nation's civil service laws and federal unions."

"This would begin the process of dismantling the merit system that governs our civil service," NTEU said in a statement.

That message was echoed by Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill, who said the order will hurt federal workers and government services.

"The Trump Administration's so-called 'reforms' will harm middle class workers who dedicate their lives to public service, impair our ability to recruit and retain the best and brightest, and degrade the services that our government delivers to the American people every single day," Rep. Elijah Cummings, Md., the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said in a statement.

One of the biggest impacts Trump's move could have is on the ability of agencies to fire employees.

A tiny fraction of federal employees are fired for misconduct or poor performance each year, in part because federal workers have strong appeal rights. Even those who have committed felonies can sometimes stay on the job, administration officials said Friday.

One of Friday's orders directs managers to move faster to discipline workers and to report such information to other agencies, a practice that's now hidden from other prospective federal employers.

However, agencies still have considerable flexibility to decide on penalties for misconduct.

The Washington Post's Joe Davidson contributed to this report.
When Social Security numbers were created in 1936, the numbers were only used by the agency as a means to track earnings and correctly determine benefits. But over time, it became common practice for companies, schools, banks, and the like to employ Social Security numbers as a way to both identify someone and to prove their identity. Read more

WASHINGTON  Did you know that last fall at least 145.5 million Americans' Social Security numbers were stolen in a data breach at Equifax? Worse, this was just one in a series of recent breaches  don't forget Anthem and the Office of Personnel Management, just to name two others.

In this technological age, folks are at greater risk when it comes to having their Social Security number stolen even if they do everything right. That's because keeping your number a secret, leaving your Social Security card in a safe, and shredding all documents containing your number are antiquated efforts for stopping the modern hacker.

To help protect Americans from identity theft, I have for years been dedicated to limiting the use of Social Security numbers. Military IDs no longer use Social Security numbers, and thanks to a bipartisan effort I led, Medicare is sending new cards without the number to seniors across the country. What's more, last year Congress made all federal agencies stop mailing documents that contain a Social Security number unless it is absolutely necessary.

But if we want to keep pace with identity thieves, we need to think beyond just keeping Social Security numbers secret and reacting to data breaches. We need to go on the offense and make these numbers less useful to hackers. We must change how Social Security numbers are used.

When Social Security numbers were created in 1936, the numbers were only used by the agency as a means to track earnings and correctly determine benefits. But over time, it became common practice for companies, schools, banks, and the like to employ Social Security numbers as a way to identify someone and to prove their identity. This just doesn't make sense.

We need to break this link between identification and authentication. We need to limit the unnecessary use of Social Security numbers, but more importantly we need to make these numbers less valuable to thieves.

Experts have proposed a wide variety of solutions to address this problem. For instance, some suggest substituting Social Security numbers with a replaceable identifier and maintain a link between both  similar to a credit card and an account number. Others suggest using key-based encryption. Some experts have gone so far as to propose publishing all Social Security numbers to make it clear these numbers are no longer secret.

While more information is needed regarding these solutions, I appreciate thinking outside the box. Identity theft is a big problem, and traditional safeguards are no longer enough.

Americans are counting on us to find effective solutions. They deserve nothing less, and I look forward to working with my colleagues and hearing from experts as we figure out the best steps forward.

Rep. Sam Johnson (R., Texas) serves as the chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means' subcommittee on Social Security. He's represented Texas' Third Congressional District since 1991. This article was written for CQ/Roll Call.
BUTABIKA: On March 21, 2017, Beatrice Namukobe was admitted to Butabika Hospital for the mentally ill on recommendation by the police after she allegedly killed a five-year-old boy.

She escaped from her asylum and in a repeat of the crime; she allegedly killed another three-year-old girl using a knife. Unfortunately for her this time, a mob waylaid her and lynched her.

When she killed the first child, the police believed she had a mental problem and referred her to Butabika for treatment.

Namukobe represents a growing case of mentally ill persons in Uganda; some so obvious and visible but majority of cases are subtle with patients scattered in workplaces, in families or schools like time bombs waiting to explode.

Like Namukobe, there are many patients with mental problems that are ignored, some are taken to treatment centres like Butabika Hospital, but when they escape, it ends there.

Common problem

Dr Caroline Birungi, a Psychiatrist and lecturer in the department of Psychiatry at Makerere, says mental illness which is the condition that disrupts a persons thinking, feelings, mood, ability to relate to others and daily functioning is becoming a common problem in Uganda.

Dr Birungi says that 35% of Ugandans  about 11.5 million people  suffer from some form of mental illness, with depression being one of the most common.

But barely half of these people seek medical attention from health centers in a country where people only associate mental illness with advanced and manic psychosis, said Dr Birungi.

However, even in the most seemingly obvious cases of the disorder, police and other institutions of health do not seem to have the capacity to detect patients, she adds.

She explained that mental illness in Uganda affects over one-third of the population but that less than half of these individuals seek intervention because of the lack of mental health services, including providers of care, such as nurses; psychotropic medicines; psycho-social interventions; and psychotherapies, misinterpretation of symptoms.

She said the countrys mental health services are still significantly underfunded (with only 1% of the health expenditure going to mental health), and skewed towards urban areas and the total personnel working in mental health facilities are 310 (1.13 per 100,000 population) with only 0.8% of the medical doctors and 4% of the nurses had specialized in psychiatry.

A WHO report March 2017 ranks Uganda among top six countries in Africa with the highest cases of mental disorder and the report adds 1.7 million or (4.6%) Ugandans suffer from depressive disorders and 1.07 0r (2.8%) Ugandans suffer from anxiety disorders.

The report estimates that by 2020, mental disorders will be the second most diagnosed and recognised illness second only to cardiovascular diseases.

In the case of Namukobe, it is said she confessed killing her first victim and told the police she would repeat the act if she is released.

Although she was referred to Butabika for diagnosis and treatment, she later fulfilled her promise before she got killed by a mob, itself a possible case of a collective mental disorder.

Most of the common causes of mental illnesses are genetic passed on from a parent/s to the child. They are also caused by ones personality and people who are at risk of suffering from mental disorders because of their personality are the kind that cannot stand disappointments, are short tempered and are difficult to deal with, Dr Sheila Ndyanabangi, the head of control of substance abuse at the Ministry of Health says.

These illnesses are in form of mood disturbances, brain infections or injuries, epilepsy, schizophrenia and psychotrauma. In our environment, factors like rampant infections in form of malaria, HIV/AIDS are sufficient contributors, Dr Birungi says.

Injury to the brain as a result of accidents can be an offset of mental illnesses. Drug abuse in form of alcohol, marijuana, cocaine among others also leads to these disorders, she added.

Dr Muhammad Mulongo, the DHO Bulambuli says the worst hit areas with mental illnesses in the country are northern Uganda and West Nile because they experienced war for a long time and that in a research conducted in 2004 among people living in camps in the northern Uganda, 30 per cent of IDPs had symptoms of moderate severe depression because of alcohol, drug abuse and stress.

And People with HIV/AIDS are at a higher risk for mental health disorders, they actually have an increased risk for developing mood, anxiety, and cognitive disorders, said Dr Mulongo.

He added that people living with HIV are twice as likely to have depression compared to those who are not infected with HIV and that some forms of stress can contribute to mental health problems for people living with HIV, including: having trouble getting the services you need, experiencing a loss of social support, resulting in isolation, experiencing a loss of employment or worries about whether you will be able to perform your work as you did before, having to tell others you are HIV-positive, managing HIV medicines, going through changes in your physical appearance or abilities due to HIV/AIDS, dealing with loss, including the loss of relationships or even death and facing the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS

Related
Yesterday, President Trump addressed the graduating class at the U.S. Naval Academy. He told the incoming naval officers, you are winners, you are warriors.

Trump praised the resolve of the U.S. armed forces and Americas achievements, stating:

Our ancestors trounced an empire, tamed a continent and triumphed over the worst evils in history. We are not going to apologize for America. We are going to stand up for America.

This is shameless nationalism. Isnt it great?

Show me a nation or a people that has prevailed over determined adversaries without this sort of pride in its ancestors and its history.

After his speech, Trump shook the hand of every graduate, more than 1,000 of them. He gave the last one, Marine 2nd Lt. Logan Zenner, a hug.

Trump was well-received in Annapolis. According to the Washington Post, he drew cheers and applause when he entered Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium and when he took the stage. His speech drew frequent applause.

Jane Kirkham told the Post that its a huge honor to have Trump at the graduation. She praised him for taking the time to shake every hand. Well remember [it] for the rest of our lives.

Kenneth Edmond compared Trumps visit to the CEO of your company coming to give you your diploma. Its exciting he added.

If there were any protests, the Washington Post didnt mention them. This means there were no protests.

There arent many campuses in this country President Trump could visit without protest. Indeed, there arent many colleges that would invite the president to give a commencement address.

Thats because there arent many colleges at which the level of patriotism remotely approaches that of the Naval Academy.
As I have said a time or two before, Samantha Power made a name for herself with a book proclaiming our obligation to stop genocide abroad. Once she took office in the Obama administration, however, she became an apologist for Obamas detachment from the catastrophe in Syria and his deal with the genocidal maniacs in Iran, among other things. Its almost enough to make one question her bona fides, or even to suspect she may be a complete fraud. Dante might even add a circle of hell to his vision of hell to accommodate her.

No one has done justice to the phenomenon of Samantha Power. It might be the task of a lifetime. Seth Mandel nevertheless made a good start of it in the 2017 Commentary essay The cautionary tale of Samantha Power.

Power played an untold role in the unmasking of Trump transition officials caught up in foreign surveillance. She has testified that certain of the unmasking requests were made by others using her name. Perhaps someday well know the truth. She should be in the middle of an old-fashioned scandal. Is anyone on the case?

In March Power took to Twitter to comment on the mad barking former CIA Director John Brennan. Lee Smith, incidentally, has demonstrated that Brennan is himself a protagonist in the underlying scandal. A reasonable reader might infer that Power is aware of the hazard of exclusion from Brennans circle of love, or interpret it an advisory from one who knows.

Not a good idea to piss off John Brennan. https://t.co/VLg94OLL2R  Samantha Power (@SamanthaJPower) March 17, 2018

Lest she be thought to have committed a Kinsley gaffe by accidentally blurting the truth  its not her style  Power tried to clear it all up.

Whoa! Just home & see much misinterp. of earlier tweet. Its testament to polarized times that it cd be misread as referring to something other than Brennans indignation. So will translate: not a good idea to upset @JohnBrennan bc/ he will raise an angry (& eloquent) voice. https://t.co/YgIjeKGAlp  Samantha Power (@SamanthaJPower) March 18, 2018

Along with John Kerry and Ben Rhodes, Power is one of the stars of Greg Barkers HBO documentary The Final Year. In my view, the documentary might have made for slightly more palatable viewing if it had been titled The Final Year, Thank God. Featuring Power, Ben Rhodes, and John Kerry, the movie is suffused with their self-regard, their professed love of humanity beyond the borders of the United States, and their disdain for the rest of us. Borrowing a term from the law of defamation, I find these three to represent a loathsome disease.

Washington Post opinion writer and editor Christian Caryl spoke with Barker, Power, and Rhodes in the 25-minute discussion of the film in the video posted here on YouTube along with many hostile comments. At about 14:30, Caryl gingerly raises the question of Syria. Russia also comes up toward the end. One can view five minutes more with this gruesome threesome flaunting an attitude amped up for AV Club posted here on YouTube. Power virtually defies belief. She must have been concocted somewhere in a laboratory to prove a point.
Islam and Economic Performance: Historical and Contemporary Links Timur Kuran

Abstract. This essay critically evaluates the analytic literature concerned with causal connections between Islam and economic performance. It focuses on works since 1997, when this literature was last surveyed. Among the findings are the following: Ramadan fasting by pregnant women harms prenatal development; Islamic charities mainly benefit the middle class; Islam affects educational outcomes less through Islamic schooling than through structural factors that handicap learning as a whole; Islamic finance hardly affects Muslim financial behavior; and low generalized trust depresses Muslim trade. The last feature reflects the Muslim worlds delay in transitioning from personal to impersonal exchange. The delay resulted from the persistent simplicity of the private enterprises formed under Islamic law. Weak property rights reinforced the private sectors stagnation by driving capital out of commerce and into rigid waqfs. Waqfs limited economic development through their inflexibility and democratization by restraining the development of civil society. Parts of the Muslim world conquered by Arab armies are especially undemocratic, which suggests that early Islamic institutions, including slave-based armies, were particularly critical to the persistence of authoritarian patterns of governance. States have contributed themselves to the persistence of authoritarianism by treating Islam as an instrument of governance. As the world started to industrialize, non-Muslim subjects of Muslim-governed states pulled ahead of their Muslim neighbors by exercising the choice of law they enjoyed under Islamic law in favor of a Western legal system.

Worth reading the whole thing, which is written in plain English. One thing the article does not do is speculate about what the Arabian world would be like if it didnt have the huge oil resources on which to generate huge (state-controlled) wealth, and whether the Arab world might have been better off without their oil riches, as it might have forced them to modernize and diversify. In other words, the paradox of gleaming modern cities in the Middle East amidst dysfunctional culture is a case study of the highly contested resource curse hypothesis.

The amazing thing is that this article got published at all. Ill be interested in tracking the reaction it gets, though I suspect the initial response will be to try to ignore it. Though I suggest Prof. Kuran secure himself a Kevlar vest anyway.
Marek Wawro, co-founder of Azimo (London based Fintech which raised over 46 million USD from investors such as Rakuten, Greycroft or Anthemis Group) and recently CTO of Doctify, joined the Coinfirm team as DevOps Ninja. He will be responsible for supporting Coinfirm's journey of being World-Class Agile, Reliable and Secure organisation.

Marek is experienced technical leader, with strong background in Requirements Engineering, Software Architecture and Software Engineering. He has over 15 years of experience in managing and delivering complex IT projects. He had been developing digital transformation agency Flaber since 2008, he is also a founding CTO of Azimo, which provides technical assistance for quick money transfers. As Google Developer Launchpad Mentor, he is also supporting projects from CEE/Russia region.

Why Coinfirm? The current landscape of companies offering a complex solution in blockchain which had commercial validation is minimal. If you look at existing polish scene, Coinfirm very quickly stand out as a global company from early days. I am thrilled that I can pass my experience in building global companies and offer another place for engineers where they can grow their careers in my mother country, said Marek Wawro.

We are pleased that Marek joined our team, strengthening our competences in DevOps and focus delivery  both as experienced CTO and an entrepreneur who went through several stages of growth. With him on board, Coinfirm is ready to strengthen its position in global tech market and become prepared for even faster growth. Thanks to his skills and expertise, we will be sure that our company is agile enough to meet the needs of our clients and changeable market conditions.  Pawe Kuskowski, CEO and co-founder of Coinfirm.

About Coinfirm

Coinfirm serves as a foundation for the safe adoption and use of blockchain. A recognized leader in their field and among the most influential blockchain and regtech companies, the blockchain agnostic Coinfirm AML/CTF Platform uses proprietary algorithms and big data analysis to provide structured, actionable data that increases efficiency, reduces costs and streamlines compliance to near automation. In addition, Coinfirm develops dedicated blockchain solutions such as their data provenance platform Trudatum, currently being piloted for adoption by multiple financial institutions. Coinfirm has also recently released their AMLT Token to allow for market participants to help rate others and democratize the financial system.

https://www.coinfirm.io/

https://amlt.coinfirm.io/

https://trudatum.com/
We had an excellent response from the community last year and we are very excited to welcome the Oink and Moo BBQ and Lexylicious Food Trucks back to Greene 750...

Greene 750 at Bear Tavern, a new community of luxury apartments in Mercer County, NJ is celebrating this Memorial Day with a special pool opening event, featuring the delicious eats & treats of Oink and Moo BBQ, the #1 ranked Best Food Truck in America 2016 per The Daily Meal, and Lexylicious Food Truck. The event will be held on Sunday May 27, 2018, outside of the Greene 750 clubhouse, located at 23 Wheldon Shivers Drive Ewing, NJ (GPS Address: 750 Bear Tavern Road.) The pool will be open only to current Greene 750 residents, but all are welcome to explore the community, enjoy the Food Trucks, and celebrate the holiday! We had an excellent response from the community last year and we are very excited to welcome the Oink and Moo BBQ and Lexylicious Food Trucks back to Greene 750 for this annual event, said Jamie Justus-Gladysiewicz, Property Manager at Greene 750 at Bear Tavern, We are expecting another successful turn out.

Greene 750 at Bear Tavern offers luxury apartment homes featuring up to 1,458 square feet of living space with one-, two-, and two-bedroom with den layout, with pricing starting from $1,585 per month. Each unit features luxury appointments including 9-foot ceilings and designer interiors with stylish kitchens and modern bathrooms, and private patios or balconies. The community provides a sprawling clubhouse with great room, bar area, fitness center, media room with theater-style seating, onsite dog park, and more! The community also features ChargePoint Electric Vehicle charging stations onsite. Greene 750 is conveniently located near Princeton, Trenton, and Philadelphia, with quick access to major highways.

Those interested or with inquiries may contact the Leasing Office by phone at (609)-403-6033, open daily 10am-5pm.

*About American Properties Realty, Inc.

American Properties Realty, Inc., A Licensed Real Estate Broker, continues its proud 40-year tradition of introducing award winning communities that provide excellent quality, convenient locations and affordable pricing for New Jersey homebuyers. The Principals of American Properties Realty, Inc., have been involved in the creation of residences ranging from luxurious estate homes to master planned communities of apartments, condominiums, townhomes and single-family homes. Our residential communities have an unsurpassed reputation for quality craftsmanship and extraordinary value. We consistently deliver unique design and outstanding customer service. The experienced management team at American Properties at Bear Tavern, LLC. and American Properties Realty, Inc. are committed to earning the trust of each and every family who calls our communities home.
To qualify for a Matching Contribution, the congregations mission project will target one of the 14 causes of death in children under age 5 in one of those 40 countries.

empty tombs Mission Match is soon to relaunch with a new Web site and a targeted focus.

The goal date for launching the revamped Web site is mid-summer.

This time, Mission Match will be offering to match money raised in Christian congregations for projects focused on one of 40 countries. To qualify for a Matching Contribution, the congregations mission project will target one of the 14 causes of death in children under age 5 in one of those 40 countries.

From 2002 to 2016, empty tombs Mission Match provided Matching Contributions for a variety of congregational mission projects.

Over those years, 86 congregations in 23 states received 124 Matching Contributions totaling $222,000. The churches agreed to raise at least an equal amount from people within their congregations for the mission projects named in their applications.

The projects included a variety of activities, such as: refugee resettlement; support of orphanages in Africa and Asia; evangelism trips to South America, Africa, and Asia; home construction, sanitation and water projects; building a school and supporting agriculture in Africa; medical clinic and training trips; and some domestic projects in the U.S. as well.

Some participating congregations reported that the energy from the Mission Match Matching Contribution had a positive effect on the dynamics in the congregation.

One church wrote in a follow-up report, empty tomb Mission Match was such a huge blessing. It afforded life changing work in the hearts and lives of all who participated  As a result of this trip, a total of 17 people have committed to sponsoring 20 children.

In 2005, the sixth and seventh graders at a church wanted to build a water system in another country. One of the adult leaders wrote, This project is significant in that it is a youth initiative which is inspiring interest, enthusiasm and involvement among many of our parishioners. When the adult leaders initially thought the youth were taking on too large a project, the youth replied, Lets think big, thats the way God is. The leader wrote, We see this project as a vehicle for the Holy Spirit to work in our youth, our entire congregation and the communities in which we live, as we join with many of our local brothers and sisters to help some of our distant ones.

Now, the goal of empty tomb Mission Match is to bring the enthusiasm shown in past Mission Match projects to a more targeted goal.

Congregations will be invited to join with empty tomb Mission Match to help, in Jesus name, close what empty tomb terms the Promise Gap.

In 1990 and again in 2000, over 180 world governments promised the children of the world to reduce the global Under-5 Mortality Rate (U5MR), according to UNICEF.

By 2015, according to a UNICEF and WHO report, although progress had been made toward reducing child deaths, the goal had not been reached.

The difference between the goal and actual rate of reduction is labeled the Promise Gap by empty tomb.

In 2015, according to empty tomb estimates, 1.3 million children under the age of five were caught in this Promise Gap, and, as a result, died before their fifth birthdays.

Further, 40 countries are behind the curve in the level of progress needed to meet the next goals set to reduce their U5MRs, according to an empty tomb analysis.

The money raised to be offered as Matching Contributions is donated by individuals. The suggested level is $50 a year. The revamped Mission Match Web site will provide a place for donations toward the pool of Matching Contributions money offered to help, in Jesus name, close the Promise Gap. Even before the revised Mission Match page is launched, the empty tomb Web site donation page currently has a place for people to designate their gift to Mission Match. Any Mission Match donations received now will help expand the initial Matching Contribution pool when the new Mission Match site is launched.

The new Web site will also provide a place for congregations to apply for a Matching Contribution to support their mission project focused on one of the causes of death in children under age five in one of the 40 countries.
Monster Energys Phil Mr. Wonderful Davis Wins Bellator 200 With A Brutal Head Kick KO of Linton Vassell Whoever steps in this cage has to deal with me. If that dont scare you, if that dont give you the heebie-jeebies, if that dont keep you up at night  I dont know what will - Phil Davis

Monster Energy congratulates Phil Davis on his emphatic victory over Linton Vassell on Friday night at Bellator 200 at the SSE Arena, Wembley London, UK. The light heavyweight bout aired on Paramount via tape-delay from The SSE Arena in London.

Davis (19-4 MMA, 6-1 BMMA) is yet another step closer to earning a shot at challenging for his previous Bellator light heavyweight title after defeating Linton Vassell (18-7 MMA, 7-4 BMMA) just 65 seconds into the third round by putting Vassell down with a thunderous head kick KO.

The first round started with Davis controlling the pace of the action, using his range, counter striking, and takedown attempts to slow the forward attack of Vassell, even adding a couple knee strikes late in the round for good measure.

In the second Vassell tried to pick up the pace and become more offensive, leaving himself open for Davis counter shots and the former Penn State wrestlers pedigreed takedowns. A quick reversal gave Vassell a glimmer of hope as he briefly took Davis back, but he failed to hold the position and his momentum as Davis ended the stanza back on his feet and in control of another round.

Davis came out all offense for round three, and was clearly looking to make a statement. After a flurry of sharp and well-placed punches, he ended the night early with a stunning head kick KO, dropping Vassell to the canvas at just 1:05 into the round.

As for Davis future opponents chances as he surges toward a redemption match to battle for the Light Heavyweight title he lost at Bellator 180 last year Davis said, Whoever steps in this cage has to deal with me. If that dont scare you, if that dont give you the heebie-jeebies, if that dont keep you up at night  I dont know what will.

Monster Energys Roy Big Country Nelson was set to serve as the Heavyweight headliner of Bellator 200, but it was announced earlier in the week that his opponent Mirko Cro Cop would be forced to withdraw after Cro Cop injured his knee. Be on the lookout for a Nelson heavyweight fight in the near future.

Download photos for editorial use.

Davis is amongst Monster Energys elite MMA athletes along with Conor The Notorious McGregor, Chris The All American Weidman, Donald Cowboy Cerrone, Paige VanZant, Dominick Dominator Cruz, Tyron The Chosen One Woodley, Daniel Cormier, Jessica-Rose Clark, Quinton Rampage Jackson, Rory MacDonald, Phil Davis, James Gallagher, and Roy Big Country Nelson.

For more on Monster Energys MMA team visit http://www.monsterenergy.com.

###

About Monster Energy

Based in Corona, California, Monster Energy is the leading marketer and distributor of energy drinks and alternative beverages. Refusing to acknowledge the traditional, Monster Energy supports the scene and sport. Whether motocross, off-road, NASCAR, MMA, BMX, surf, snowboard, ski, skateboard, or the rock and roll lifestyle, Monster Energy is a brand that believes in authenticity and the core of what its sports, athletes and musicians represent. More than a drink, its the way of life lived by athletes, sports, bands, believers and fans. See more about Monster Energy including all of its drinks at http://www.monsterenergy.com.
Welcome Guest! You Are Here:
A staff driver at Dangote Cement and six other locals in Adaberga wereda in the Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia, have been arrested in connection with the death of the country manager, Deep Kamara.

In a report by a local website, TheReporter Ethiopia, the suspects were arrested for investigation few weeks after the killings of the country manager of Dangote Cement; Deep Kamara, his secretary; Beakal Alelegn, and driver; Tsegaye Gidey.

This development is coming after a strong delegation from Dangote group visited the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Workneh Gebeyehu (Ph.D.) over the death of three of its staff.

Workneh denounced the killing with a promise to fish out the culprits of the dastard act.

The Ethiopian Foreign Minister further told the Dangote group delegation that the federal and regional governments are working vigorously to apprehend the culprits.

Sources at the Oromia Police, Ethiopia also disclosed that the arrest of the seven suspects does not necessarily mean that the suspects are the ones who committed the crime but can lead the investigation to the perpetrators.

Dangote has invested more than USD 700 million to build the Ethiopian cement plant and created more than 1,500 jobs.

The cement plant situated at the 85km west of the Addis Ababa has an installed production capacity of 2.5 million tons of cement after it commenced production in June 2015.

The cement company, an offshoot of the Dangote group, has also built a cement bag manufacturing plant in front of the cement plant at a cost of USD 25 million.
The Haitain company was awarded the contract to monitor revenue losses and simbox fraud in the telecommunications sector.

But the deal has generated controversy after IMANI boss, Franklin Cudjoe, raised issues about the terms of the agreement.

According to him, the deal is potentially bad and a careless duplication of roles.

He said Subah and Afriwave were awarded similar contracts under the National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration to perform similar jobs, even though both contracts were needless.

Speaking on Joy FMs Newsfile Saturday, the Editor-in-Chief of the New Crusading Guide newspaper, Abdul Malik Kweku Baako, called for an enquiry.

He said: In spite of the fact that in terms of the explanations and clarifications, Im inclined to at this stage to think that the Ministry of Communications has a stronger case.

But Im not going to say it is absolute. So, I call also for an enquiry, continued the veteran journalist, adding: For instance, the audit service is there, they can investigate the processes, value for money, audit and all the rest.
The suspects were arrested following a tip-off that they were transferring fuel from one vessel to another at the fishing harbor in Tema in the Greater Accra Region.

Navy Public Relations Officer, Commander Veronica Arhin told Accra-based Citi FM that a team was deployed to vary the information.

Upon reaching there, she said the team discovered that the suspects were transferring fuel from a canoe to a tanker.

She said: We received information that there was a transfer of fuel from one vessel to the other.

So we became suspicious, and a team was deployed to go and verify.

READ MORE: Government wages war on oil smugglers
He served under ex-president John Mahama as the Chairman of the National Development Commission.

Prof Botchwey also chaired the committee that investigated the factors that led to the NDCs defeat in the 2016 polls.

At the time, there were agitations that he was using his position to market himself, a charge he denied.

Meanwhile Mr Mahama is expected to announce his bid to lead the NDC into the 2020 election at the partys last Unity Walk in the Volta Region.

He has however given a strong hint that he will run for president.

He posed on Facebook last week that he will not disappoint those asking him run for president again.

I want to congratulate the rank & file and executives of our party, the NDC, at all levels for the commitment and work we have put into our reorganization efforts.
The far-right League and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) have yet to set up shop in Rome since scoring the most votes in Italy's inconclusive elections nearly three months ago.

Conte, 53, won Mattarella's approval last week to head what would be Italy's 65th government since 1946.

But the impasse over Savona has seen League chief Matteo Salvini digging in his heels, suggesting that a new election may be on the cards if the standoff continues.

M5S Senate group leader Danilo Toninelli told reporters Sunday that he thought Conte was "very close to finalising (the fresh lineup) this evening".

If it includes Savona, Mattarella is expected to confirm his refusal, which could prompt him to appoint a caretaker government until new elections can be held, probably in the autumn.

According to the Italian press, Mattarella wants to avoid isolating Italy within the European Union.

The 81-year-old Savona's hostility to the euro -- he says it has halved Italians' purchasing power -- has prompted a flurry of warnings from Brussels.

The impasse has rattled financial markets, with the Milan Stock Exchange closing down 1.54 percent on Friday.

The veteran economist issued a statement Sunday advocating a "different Europe, stronger but fairer". At the same time, he reiterated his opposition to the euro, likening its use to being in a "German prison".

Mattarella is also mindful of his role in appointing prime ministers and approving their cabinets, the most crucial functions of Italy's largely ceremonial presidency.

Salvini, 45, who is riding high in opinion surveys, stuck to his guns on Sunday, saying on his Twitter account that he was "in it to the end" and would "not surrender".

On Saturday Salvini pressed for a speedy resolution, saying that failing that he would prefer fresh elections.
There was no immediate official confirmation of the arrest although the Interior Ministry called a news conference for Sunday that was expected to provide details on the development.

Officials cited by Reforma said Gonzalez, who was flown by helicopter to Mexico City after her arrest, managed the cartel's finances.

Sources in the Jalisco state prosecutor's office said security forces, civil defense and emergency medical services were put on alert in case of attacks by the cartel.

Mexican troops were deployed to guard approaches to the city, Mexico's second largest.

On Monday, Guadalajara was shaken by the attempted assassination of Jalisco Labor Secretary Luis Najera, a former state prosecutor who was attacked by armed men in a restaurant in central Guadalajara.

Assailants torched a passenger bus after the attack, killing an eight-month-old baby.

Najera suffered only minor injuries in the attack, but seven other people were more seriously wounded. One of the attackers was killed.

The Mexican government estimates that the Jalisco New Generation cartel has amassed a $50 billion fortune. It has a strong presence in nine Mexican states and connections with criminal organizations in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America.
Varadkar's government has promised to approve the drafting of abortion legislation at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday and is aiming to enact the new law before the end of the year.

More than 66 percent of voters backed repealing the constitutional ban on terminations, triggering scenes of tearful jubilation in Dublin after an emotional campaign.

British lawmakers said Northern Ireland, where abortions are only allowed if the physical or mental health of the mother are at severe risk, should now follow suit.

Women who have unsanctioned abortions in Northern Ireland face life imprisonment under 19th-century legislation still in place.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said Ireland's vote was a "hopeful" day for Northern Ireland.

"That hope must be met," she said.

Newspapers reflected on the historic vote, while the government promised to allow abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and between 12 and 24 weeks in exceptional circumstances.

"The power of women," was the headline on The Sunday Independent, while The Sunday Business Post ran with "Generation Yes" saying Ireland had wrestled with its past and voted to redefine its future.

The Irish Sun on Sunday pictured two women hugging under the headline "No more lonely journeys" in reference to those who had been forced to travel to England to have an abortion.

Seismic change

Writing in The Sunday Times, columnist Una Mullally said: "The fiction of Ireland as a conservative, dogmatically Catholic country has been shattered.

"What happened in the referendum vote was seismic, but more seismic still was the realisation that this vote was reflecting change, not just instigating it."

In the Sunday Independent, Jody Corcoran said the big pro-choice vote "maximises to a visceral, guttural roar what must amount to be a demand to end decades of hypocrisy and shame".

The result is another hammer blow for the Catholic Church's authority in Ireland, coming three years after referendum voters backed legalising same-sex marriage by 62 percent.

The Church's influence has crumbled in recent years due to a series of child sex abuse scandals.

Diarmuid Martin, the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, said the Church could not compromise its position on abortion.

In an address to mass-goers in Maynooth, west of Dublin, Martin said the Church needed to renew its pro-life stance not just in words but in deeds also, Irish media reported.

That would include helping women struggling with difficult decisions over pregnancies. "Pro-life means radically rediscovering in all our lives a special love for the poor," he reportedly said.

Northern Ireland in spotlight

But any hope for quick change in Northern Ireland, the only part of the United Kingdom where terminations are almost always illegal, appears improbable.

May's minority Conservative government relies on support from MPs from Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party for a majority in the British parliament -- and the Protestant DUP strongly opposes abortion law reform.

Sinn Fein and the SDLP, the two major parties representing Northern Ireland's Irish Catholics, and the cross-community Alliance Party, back overturning the ban.

Among the crowds celebrating the referendum outcome at Dublin Castle where the result was announced, were many from Northern Ireland.

"We believe this is going to be a springboard for the movement in Northern Ireland," 27-year-old Claire told AFP, without giving her last name due to the sensitivity of the issue in the British-ruled territory.

"It is a criminal offence in Northern Ireland and we have absolutely had enough of it."

Another demonstrator from Belfast said the Republic of Ireland was "giving a voice to women.

"In Northern Ireland, we don't have a voice," said Sarah, 26, who also did not give her surname.
For the person who runs the Environmental Voter Project, that may sound surprising. To Stinnett, its pretty obvious, even if its difficult.

However, convincing people that environmentalism is important or that climate change is happening isnt the point. The point is getting those who consider themselves environmentalists to vote  nearly 16 million did not in the 2014 midterm elections.

Stinnett, 43, realized if he could get environmentalists to vote, then they would show up in polls of likely voters, and so would their priorities  the environment and climate change. Politicians would have to pay attention to them to get elected, and these issues would come into the national conversation.

So, with a baby on the way, Stinnett made the difficult decision to leave a high-paying job at a Boston law firm and take on the cause.

But how? Most people buy into the idea that voting is good (even if they dont do it) and would be ashamed for their communities to find out they didnt vote.

Stinnett said he and his colleagues used social and peer pressure  much better behavioral nudges than talking about the environment. A sample mailer from the group: Did you know that last time there was a City Council election, 87 percent of your block voted and you didnt?

And its working. Since starting in Massachusetts in 2015, a report by the group shows that it has increased turnout in multiple elections by around 5 percent; in its first attempt in Florida (St. Petersburgs mayoral race), the group added nearly 500 environmentalists to the voter rolls, and it plans to target nearly 1 million Florida voters in the coming midterm elections.

For the midterms this year, with an army of 1,500 volunteers across the country, theyll be targeting 2.4 million environmentalists in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Colorado, Florida and Nevada.

It might seem depressing that so many environmentalists (let alone Americans) dont vote. But Stinnett sees it as an enormous opportunity.

We have a silent green majority, he said. Weve already won the battle for hearts and minds, and we have this army that could change everything by doing one thing: voting.

________

Becoming an Activist for Environmental Justice

Elizabeth Yeampierre

Executive director of Uprose

Elizabeth Yeampierre, a native New Yorker of Puerto Rican heritage, did not plan on being an environmental justice activist.

When she became the leader of Uprose, a Latino community-based organization in Brooklyn, she began by listening to what the community wanted: clean air; more green space; no new power plants in their neighborhood.

In the process of fighting for these things and others, Yeampierre found herself at the helm of what has become one of the countrys most successful community-based climate and environmental justice groups.

From Sunset Park, Brooklyn, she quickly made an impact across the city  advocating for lead paint removal legislation  and the state  helping to pass brownfields legislation  and nationally  speaking at a climate change rally, which coincided with Pope Franciss visit, on the National Mall in Washington.

In the process, Yeampierre, who is descended from African and indigenous people, has helped change what climate activism looks like. She is making a space for young people of color, including at events like the Peoples Climate March.

There are all these stereotypes about minorities not caring about climate change, she said, but we live within our carbon footprint, and we do care.

Cindy Weisner, executive director of the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, met Yeampierre as they were both helping organize the Peoples Climate March, and was immediately impressed by her ability to connect the needs of her community to the wider environmental and climate justice movement.

For her to extend out beyond the needs of her community was a real sign showing me personally: this is what leadership means, Weisner said.

Yeampierre, who is in her 50s, said her success was deeply rooted in protest culture and community organizing, not some radical innovation: she listens, she shares.

And she has perspective: Our ancestors were in shackles, and were a testament to their sacrifice and their vision.

Like them we need to be able to believe we can change things. There has never been a challenge to our survival like climate change, but that doesnt mean we give up, she said.

I cant live thinking that I didnt do everything I could.

____

Boyan Slat

Founder of The Ocean Cleanup

Swirling in the eddies and currents of the Northern Pacific Ocean are trillions of pieces of plastic, stretching across an area about four times the size of California. Its a scourge that scientists lament, and one that captures the public imagination every so often, like when a photo of a sea horse wrapped around a Q-tip goes viral.

The scope of the problem, like so many environmental issues, feels too big to do anything about to most people, including adults.

Enter Boyan Slat. When he was 16, he went scuba diving in Greece, where he said he saw more plastic than fish. The problem of marine plastic pollution became one he wanted to solve.

Within two years  at the same time that he became a legal adult in his native Netherlands  he had started a foundation, The Ocean Cleanup, and began developing a device to get plastic out of the ocean.

Now 23, he is getting ready to deploy his invention to the North Pacific Garbage Patch, where this summer it will begin gathering plastic, which will be taken by barge to land where it will be recycled. The hope is that half the plastic there will be gone within five years.

Despite his efforts to solve a major environmental problem  he plans to collect the plastic in the four other accumulation zones in the South Pacific, North and South Atlantic and Indian Oceans  he considers himself a technologist, not an environmentalist. For Slat, marine plastic pollution was something he thought he could fix, through his passion for invention and technology.

I hope that The Ocean Cleanup can be a blueprint of how you can solve problems, he said. Instead of fighting against the stuff you dont agree with, building the future that you do agree with.

_____

Carbon Dioxide Emissions Become Fuels and Materials

Kendra Kuhl

Co-founder of Opus 12

Imagine a future where car engines run on particles gathered from the fuel theyve already burned and where plastic doesnt sit in landfills forever, but has another life  as plastic.

Thats the future dreamed up by Kendra Kuhl and her co-founders of Opus 12, a clean energy startup that seeks to turn carbon dioxide emissions into new fuels and materials similar to plastic. And they are in the process of creating it.

Through a complicated process that is hard for a journalist with no background in chemical engineering to explain, carbon dioxide emissions from industrial processes are combined with water and a catalyst in a reactor. When (renewably powered) electricity is applied to the reactor, it can produce fuel or plastics.

Kuhl and her colleagues are working on creating a commercial-scale prototype, but they hope someday to be able to recycle tons of carbon dioxide emissions every day, preventing additional planet-warming emissions and finding a beneficial use for the gas we have released in such abundance.

Kuhl, 36, majored in chemistry as an undergraduate at Stanford University and later earned her doctorate in the subject. She was drawn to the field partly because of her talent for it and partly because she wanted to do something about climate change, inspired by her love of the outdoors that came from growing up in Montana.

Ilan Gur, the founding director of Cyclotron Road, a fellowship program that supports scientists trying to build technologies with global impact, selected Kuhl and her co-founder, Etosha Cave, for their first class of fellows because of their unique application of hard science to the worlds biggest challenge.

Im not one to use hyperbole lightly, Gur said, but what shes working on could be part of a solution that potentially saves the planet.

Kuhl is slightly more modest: Naively when I was in high school, I thought, We can make a new technology that can solve this whole problem. The deeper into it Ive gotten the more Ive realized that a new technology can help, but it takes all kinds of things together to make a difference.

_______

A Public Defender of Climate Sciences

Kim Cobb

Professor of atmospheric and climate sciences at Georgia Institute of Technology

When Kim Cobb, looks at a coral reef, she sees something others might miss: thousands of years of climate history.

She has been researching on Christmas Island in the Central Pacific for more than two decades, and has been able to reconstruct how El Nino has behaved for the last 7,000 years.

Because of her work, scientists can say with greater confidence that El Nino has become more intense as a result of human activity.

And she has seen its effects firsthand. When she visited her research site after the 2015-16 El Nino, she saw a skeleton of the reef More than 75 percent was dead.

You cant witness what I did at my research site of 20-plus years, watch it die and in the same year watch an administration get elected that is openly hostile to climate change and climate policy and not be changed by those events, she said.

Since then, Cobb, 43, has become more than an award-winning climate scientist  she has become a public defender of climate scientists, their work and the planet.

On Twitter (@coralsncaves), at the March for Science Atlanta last year, and in all her public appearances, she presses for engagement  demanding that audiences live their values; challenging scientists to focus on solutions, not just on identifying problems; encouraging her students to reduce their carbon footprints.

Being a mother of four has also made her more radical. Climate change is even more urgent because of them, she said, and her experience narrowly escaping the professional damage so many mothers endure made her want to advance the careers of other women in climate science and science more generally. She has the opportunity to do that as an Advance professor of diversity, equity and inclusion at Georgia Tech.

For Cobb, climate change and diversity in science are connected. They both require engagement and solutions, and plenty of voices and ideas.

The medicine of engagement keeps me going personally in what are deep structural long-term challenges that I know I cant fix alone, she said.

______

How We Picked Our Visionaries

People love lists.

We want to check out the best places to travel, catch up with the best inventions of the last 100 years, be in the know about the best-dressed people, the best books, the best schools. And on and on.

Of course, there is a risk to listmaking. Maybe your choices wont hold up over the years. Maybe the best book of decades ago seems not so great today.

With the listmaking fervor and its risks in mind, we searched for people who would fit our criteria for visionaries. They had to be people who are forward-looking, working on exciting projects, helping others or taking a new direction. We wanted diversity in gender, race and ethnic background.

We assigned writers who are knowledgeable about the subjects we deemed most important. And we limited the list to 30.

Narrowing down the numbers was a huge challenge. And thats a good problem to have. It means there are a lot of people out there who are following their visions.

We hope this inspires you to follow yours.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
The island is now left with 18 diplomatic allies  many of them poor nations in Central America and the Pacific, like Belize and Nauru; only one is in Africa, the tiny kingdom of Swaziland.

It was the second ally to break with Taiwan in less than a month, as Chinas economic clout and geopolitical influence have made it difficult for countries to maintain alliances. The Dominican Republic established diplomatic relations with Beijing this month, citing hopes for improved commercial ties.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said a document establishing diplomatic ties was signed Saturday in Beijing between Wang Yi, the state councilor and foreign minister, and Burkina Fasos foreign minister, Alpha Barry.

On Thursday, in a statement about the decision to break with Taiwan, Barry made no direct mention of China, saying only, The evolution of the world and the socio-economic challenges of our country and region push us to reconsider our position.

Beijing claims Taiwan as its own territory under its One China principle, and has long refused to have diplomatic relations with any country that officially recognizes Taiwan. It has been ratcheting up pressure since President Tsai Ing-wen, whose party has traditionally favored independence for Taiwan, took office two years ago.

On Friday, Tsai said on Twitter that Chinas growing pressure will only strengthen other countries support for us. She added, We will never back down.

Taiwans foreign minister, Joseph Wu, said he had offered his resignation to the president, saying that Taiwan cannot compete with Chinas financial resources.

I, along with our countrys people, feel sad, angry and regretful, he said. China grabbing our allies and giving us pressure in the diplomatic space will not shrink the distance across the strait and will not let cross-strait relations walk on a peaceful, friendly path.

It was unclear if Tsai had accepted his resignation.

The Finance Ministry said, however, that it would end its aid programs in Burkina Faso and that Taiwan would close its embassy there.

China is Africas largest trade partner, with huge investments in mining, construction and banking, though it had been less active to date in Burkina Faso. It is set to host a summit meeting of African leaders in September in Beijing, where it will most likely offer new pledges of aid and preferential loans.

Burkina Faso is the fourth country to cut ties with Taiwan since Tsai came to office, following the Dominican Republic, Sao Tome and Principe and Panama. All have established a relationship with China.

The Vatican could be next, analysts say, as the Holy See and China edge closer to an accord on the appointment of bishops there.

Some countries have switched back and forth between Beijing and Taipei several times. This is the second time Burkina Faso has cut ties with Taiwan. It previously did so in 1973, before resuming relations in 1994.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
As summer approaches, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed financial institutions to make foreign exchange available to customers over the counter to allow travellers have easy access to dollars.

The apex bank also mandated all Bureaux de Change (BDCs) to access dollars from the CBN on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays every week.

Isaac Okoroafor, the apex banks Acting Director, Corporate Communications in a statement issued on Saturday, May 26, 2018, stated that in a bid to ensure that eligible travelers are able to access foreign currency and make liquidity available in the market, the CBN had issued the directives.

All-Deposit Money Banks are mandated to buy and sell foreign currency to travelers (both customers and non-customers) upon presentation of relevant valid travel documents such as visa and tickets over the counter.

All travelers shall be attended to immediately at the banks counters."

The CBN further stated that it is compulsory that all BDCs access currency at least three times weekly which is Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

The statement warned that BDCs that failed to access the FX window at least three times weekly would have their licenses reviewed by the CBN  emphasising that compliance with the new directive was compulsory.

On Thursday, May 24, 2018, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) also released $100 million into the Nigerian Forex market to boost liquidity in the market to operate obligations of Nigerians travelling for pilgrimage.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has been making precautionary monetary policy moves by injecting more United States Dollars into the foreign exchange market to checkmate any attempt to trigger artificial scarcity of the greenback.
As Nigeria celebrates Children's Day on Sunday, May 27, 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari has reaffirmed his administrations commitment to the protection of children.

President Muhammadu Buhari said Children's Day is a day to reflect on the roles and responsibilities as parents and leaders towards the children, and also assessing how far his administration has fared in promoting the wellbeing of every Nigeria child.

The president stated this in his Children's day message released by the special adviser on media, Femi Adesina.

One of the cardinal objectives of this administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this administration has recorded measurable success in the home-grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand.

Also READ: 5 child actors only 90s kids will remember

At the last count, over 8.2 million children in 24 states of the Federation are being given free meals daily. This happens in 45,000 schools around the country, the statement reads.

Business Insider Sub Saharan Africa looks at 3 kids that have inspired President Muhammadu Buhari and have been invited to the Villa.

Maya Jammal

At about three-year-old, Maya Jammal became an internet sensation after a recorded video prayer of her praying for the Presidents recovery went viral in 2017.

Maya is the daughter of Mohammed Jammal AKA White Nigerian, a musician and comedian born in Jos, Plateau state.

Aisha Aliyu Gebi

In 2017, 10-year-old Aisha Aliyu Gebi, penned a personal letter to President Muhammadu Buhari describing herself as his biggest fan. She is the daughter of Hon. Aliyu Ibrahim Gebi, member of the Nigerian parliament.

Nicole Benson

In 2015, Nicole Benson, who was then 9 years old, contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to the Buhari/Osinbajo campaign team. The money was all saved up from her lunch and pocket allowance.

There are also millions of such children nationwide but the donation of Nicole caught the attention of the presidential candidate and the media.

While meeting the three young admirers in Aso Rock in 2017, President Buhari attributed his victory at the polls to the contributions of good-hearted Nigerians, like young Nicole, who is from Lagos State, and showed her support by sending her personal savings.

Nicole, I congratulate you, and myself for being here today. Your contribution made a great impact. As you can see, I am here in the Presidential Villa. Thank you, the president had said.

The theme for this years celebration Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility.
The Nigerian Postal Service, is a government-owned and operated corporation, established in 1987 to provide postal services in the country.

Barrister Adebayo Shittu, Nigeria's communications minister disclosed this while speaking at the 4th series of the INDO-AFRICA ICT EXPO 2018 on Digital Transformation in Lagos on Wednesday, May 23, 2018.

The companies, according to the minister are:

These five new companies are platforms within which investors can make enquiries, come in and invest; the opportunities within these five companies will be limitless, Shittu stated.

The Minister called on the private sector, particularly those whose businesses are driven by Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to take full opportunity of the Indo-Africa ICT Expo.

According to him: It is not enough for Nigerian businesses to be mere marketers of ICT products and services.

They must rather collaborate with the right group to establish ICT platforms and factories that will promote skills training and employment opportunities in the country."

Foreign ICT companies that want to do business in Nigeria must be prepared to establish ICT factories in Nigeria.

Why is government splitting NIPOST

The minister noted that the NIPOST banking and insurance services are in line with the CBNs financial inclusion drive assuring that the agency will leverage on its 1,500 locations across the country.
The fifth edition of the All Africa Music Awards which holds annually is now receiving entries for this year's event.

ALSO READ: Ycee wins Best African Hip-hop Artist at music award ceremony

The AU unveiled the calender of events in Accra, Ghana on Friday, May 24, 2018 after a meeting and courtesy visit to the President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

The submission portal opened on May 25, 2018.

While welcoming the delegation led by the Head of Culture, African Union Commission, Mrs. Angela Martins, at the Presidential Office, Jubilee House, Accra, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo applauded the initiative for creating a platform that showcases Africa positively to the rest of the world through the creativity of the music talents as well as distinct African cultural heritage.

He stated, The people of Ghana are proud to host the 2018 AFRIMA World Media Calendar Unveiling event and to receive the delegation of officials of AU and AFRIMA as well the talented artistes and the media. Im excited to hear AFRIMA is engaging the rest of the world on an intellectual platform with conferences and the music awards. We hope you have had a remarkable experience of Ghanaian hospitality. Our hope is that we will host the main awards ceremony.

The 5th AFRIMA Calendar shows the details from the build up to the main event activities which will lead up to the 5th AFRIMA Main Awards ceremony taking place on November 25, 2018.

Celebrities in attendance included, 2Face Idibia, Seyi Shay, Victoria Kimani, to name a few.

The All Africa Music Awards, AFRIMA, is an iconic continental award conceptualized to celebrate the rich musical heritage of the African race.
It was shocking how difficult this task was. I mean, how hard can narrowing down the numerous classics from the 80s and 90s be?

After hours of reminiscing about our favorite years in the Nigerian film history, we finally came down to just two movies that remind each one of us of our childhood.

A handful of films appeared frequently on the list though; and we are excited to share our childhood with you all.

So ladies and gentlemen, buckle up and join us on this blissful journey to the past.

"Ti Oluwa Ni Ile" and "Owo Blow" were mentioned frequently by Pulse Staff who were born between 1981 - 1985.

1. Osagie Alonge

"Ti Oluwa Ni Ile" - "It was the foundation for me to speak Yoruba language."

"Glamour Girls" - "It was so different from the foreign movies I was watching at the time. So real and vivid. "

2. Ayomide Tayo

"Forever 1&2" - "Arguably greatest masterpiece. It told the tale of a dysfunctional family and drug abuse. "

"The movie and its sequel might just be and strongest performance. "

"Oracle" - "At the time this movie was released, Nollywood was obsessed with supernatural horror/thriller flicks. If we are to make a list of the top ten best movies of this sub-genre, Oracle will easily make the list."

"Oh it was scary as hell too."

3. Timilehin Oyedare

"Owo Blow" - "It was the storyline, about a repented thief who left a gang. But, when they were arrested, they tried to rope him in.

I liked it because it was a story everyone enjoyed watching, the role made and Kmore popular. "

"It was a hit back then, a huge one."

"Ti Oluwa Ni Ile" - "The movie is a classic, one made by the famed Mainframe, the movie made the career of

Like I mentioned earlier, they were real stories, they were classic stories of rights and wrongs. I think life was simpler then."

4. Olamide Olarewaju

"Igodo" - "Literally the best epic Nigerian movie ever."

"Ijele" - "For some reason, Sam Dede and Genevieve Nnaji's performance stuck with me."

"Ti Oluwa Ni Ile," "Igodo" and "Living in Bondage" were frequently mentioned by Pulse Staff who were born between 1986 - 1990.

5. Oghelie Duke

"Igodo" - "The storyline was not only epic, it was also deep and emotional. And the characters, they killed it with realness."

"Festival of Fire" - "It was epic, deep, real and emotional."

6. Shakirudeen Taiwo

"Ti Oluwa nile" - "Scenes in the movie were the topic of discussions with my friends during our long walk home from school (primary school). "

"So, it reminds of friends I have lost their contact."

"Owo Blow" - "This was first movie that made me cry."

7. Princess Abumere

"Living In Bondage" -"A true Nollywood classic with an interesting plot."

"Sango" - "This was probably the first Nigerian movie I watched. I love folk stories and mythology. I couldn't sleep for days after watching this though."

8. Ayoola Adetayo

"Labake" - "Reminds me of the first ever house I ever knew as home."

"Issakaba" - "It was epic AF. And, I really did like Sam Dede."

9. Bayo Wahab

"Toluwa Nile" - "It was one of the most popular movies back then and it seemed if you hadn't seen it you had not seen any movie in life.

"As serious as the storyline was, there were some hilarious scenes and comic characters that the kids could easily relate to."

"Blood Money" - "Like Toluwa nile, blood money was a popular movie and when your classmates are narrating it to you in school, you just had to go for it to see it.I can't remember much about it except that it was a very popular movie then."

10. Abe Adiele

"Conspiracy" - "The whole family was into it."

"Chain Reaction" - "Onyeka Onwenu was the prime actress as at that time."

11. Nurudeen Shotayo

"Iru Esin" - "It is a tragic movie which tells the story of two boys who lost their parents and left to rely on their poor grandma to feed."

"Ayo Ni Mofe" - "It's a story of love, betrayal and disappointments in which a young lady lost her sanity when she discovered that the man she calls her fiance is preparing to marry another woman."

12. Atenega Collins

"Igodo" - "Classic. flawlessly delivered by the grandmaster, Pete Edochie."

"State of Emergency" - "RIP J.T West."

13. Steve Dede

"Living in Bondage" - "One of the first movies I saw as a kid. Very memorable."

"Rattle Snake" - "First Nigerian crime flick I saw."

"Saworoide," "Diamond Ring" and "Take me to Mama" were frequently mentioned by Pulse Staff who were born between 1991 - 1996.

14. Folarin Okunola

"Silent Night" - "Segun Arinze was a beast!"

"Ti Oluwa Ni'le" - "It was just different. The acting was superior and the cinematography was on point.

From the props to the locations and the story, Nigerian moviemakers never paid attention to detail like that before."

15. Ayola Salako

"Mama Sunday" - "The movie highlights the struggles of a mother and her son, and the usual happily ever after life that follows."

"Saworoide" - "Culture, Story and a fitting cinematic interpretation by

16. Tolani Odumade

"Take Me to Mama" - "It made me cry and I watched it with so many friends. Don't know where they are now. Kind of reminds me of my mama!"

"Diamond Ring" - "Sorrowful, scary and lit!"

17. Yinka Ogunlami

"The gods are dead" - "My mother must have played this movie a million times because I knew every dialogue, verbatim."

"After School Hours" - "This movie reminds me of how my mother would repeatedly tell us not to collect or share anything with strangers and even friends."

18. Uchenna Obi

"Diamond Ring" - "Everything about this movie was perfect. The plot, production, cast, everything!

I believe media should be used to inform people of the trends while laying emphasis on good morals and living.

"Diamond Ring" expertly tackled issues like robbery, cultism and killings. These are some of the issues faced at that time especially in the school environment.

The movie also made me cautious of bad friends and the need to be of good character."

"Take Me to Mama" - "This is Isn't my second choice, but, I can't remember the movie where a rich guy used a banana seller for rituals only to have her ghost haunt him till he confessed.

The Ghost always appeared saying, "Come and buy banana, my sweet banana".

However, I liked "Take me to Mama" because it had that foreign feel to it in terms of their marketing style.

They also blew up a car. A "Mercedes Benz" for crying out loud! The action sequences were also stellar (for that period) and production was great too. "

19. Amaka Nworji

"Mine Forever" - "The storyline was interesting and educative."

"Nneka The Pretty Serpent" - "The way Nneka acted the mermaid scenes were so real. making it look as if she's mermaid in real life. Secondly, Kudos to the producer of the movie based on 'effects' which made it more relatable."

20. Fu'ad Lawal

"Igodo" -"Because it was brilliant story, well adorned in a stellar cast. Probably the best Nigerian epic movie, ever. This movie made me cry."

"Saworoide" - "Simply because Tunde Kelani only knows how to create magic, and nothing else. Saworoide is so layered.

"Watching it as a child, it was just a really nice movie about military aggression. It was after watching it as a adult I realised how much allegory it carried."

21. Jonathan Ekowho

"Sakobi" - "The snake girl was really hot. "

"Full Moon" - "was so hot."

22. Daniel Okorejior

"Violated" - "Because I was a fan of and

"Chain Reaction" - "It was a relatable story."

23. Segun Akande

"Diamond Ring" - "The older guys in the compound thought it was scary, so scary that when they gathered in a neighbour's room to watch it, they didn't let us in.

So I and all the kids in the compound gathered by the window and watched each part from there. Best movie I had seen until that point."

"Most Wanted"- "My dad was never around then, so I saw it with my mum. One of my favourite memories."

24. Samson Toromade

"Take me to Mama" - "The story is way ahead of its time for a Nollywood movie and the execution is spot on."

"Saworoide" - "Classic traditional movie about corruption and the politics of the Yoruba culture."

25. Chidumga Izuzu

"Abused" -"It was the first Nollywood movie I ever saw."

"Final Whistle" - "Because we loved the movie, we bought several copies of it, and replaced whenever it got bad and started cracking."
According to the reports, Cheston had been at a party with her boyfriend in October 2012 when an armed security guard approached them by some picnic tables.

ALSO READ: Man in court over alleged rape of minor

While speaking with Associated Press on Wednesday, May 23, 2018, Cheston's attorney, said that the guard ordered the victim's boyfriend not to move before proceeding to rape her.

Identified in the lawsuit as Brandon Lamar Zachary, the security guard has now been convicted of statutory rape and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.

AP reports that the suit was filed by the mother of the victim, Renatta Cheston-Thornton, on behalf of her daughter who was a minor at the time.

A Georgia jury passed the verdict on Tuesday, May 22, 2018, against Crime Prevention Agency, the security company that employed Zachary.

The jury argued that Zachary, who was 22 at the time of the rape, was too young to have been hired by the company because he was not licensed to carry a gun.

According to Stewart, the presiding judge already determined that the security company was liable for Zachary's actions so the jury simply determined the damages.

Man, 21, in court for alleged sexual assault of minor

A 21-year-old man, Jeremiah Okpara, who allegedly assaulted his neighbours five-year-old daughter, was on Tuesday charged before an Ikeja High Court, Lagos.

Okpara a resident of Imashai St., Agege, a Lagos suburb, is facing a charge of sexual assault.

The Prosecutor, Mr Adebayo Haroun, told the court that the accused lured his victim into his apartment and used his fingers on her private part.

Okafor sexually assaulted the five-year-old girl by penetrating her private part with his fingers.

He was caught by some neighbours, who arrested and took him to the police station, he said.

Haroun urged the court to fix a date for trial saying he had four witnesses ready to testify during the trial.

The offence contravened Section 259 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2011.

The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
According to the advertorial posted in the newspaper, the Shoremi family disassociated themselves from their daughter identified as Shalom Shoremi.

ALSO READ: Nigerian man, girlfriend caught with drugs in Thailand

The Shoremi family made the move after Shalom reportedly began to seek court approval to consummate her marriage to her lesbian partner.

The advert also revealed that Shoremi was rejected by the marriage registry as her request contravene's the same-sex marriage probation act of 2014.

The act declares same-sex marriage as an illegal act in Nigeria and also states 14 years imprisonment for those accused of being in same-sex relationships.

Despite the law's stand on the issue, Shalom still chose to request a license, prompting her family to publicly disown her.

The advertorial read, The attention of Shoremi Family of Ogun State has been drawn to an application for a special marriage license sought by Shalom T. Shoremi.

She had requested for a special marriage license at the Federal Marriage Registry on 22nd of March, 2018 to allow her to consummate a same-sex marriage, which was rejected as it in variance with the Marriage Act of the Federal Republic Of Nigeria.

The family is disassociating itself from the move and has served ties with her.

We also disown her on the grounds that what she planned to do is against the law in Nigeria.

She will also not be entitled to anything from the family inheritance.

Man publicly disowns errant son

A man has finally given up hope for his son as he posts a public notice in the Newspapers disowning him and cutting off his inheritance.

According to the public notice, the man, Mr Andrew Chukwurah Nwora who hails from Awka, shares his reasons for disowning his son identified as Mr Bethel Nwora.

The notice reveals that the son had threatened to kill him amongst other misconducts, for which reason he has cut off his 39-year-old son.

He adds that upon his death, his son is not to participate in his funeral rites and would not be inheriting any of his properties.

ALSO READ: Nigerian prophet arrested for raping minor in Zambia
As shared on Instagram, the veteran actor says:

I thought I had a pretty good idea of what a woman is. But when it was time for me to find my own woman, it dawned on me that a woman is not a man. In my search, I came across a lady who was edging me on, making me [believe] she loved me.

Well, I decided to propose. She had listened quietly with encouraging countenance on her face. I went on to fantasy on how our coming together would be the best thing that could happen to us. Then [she asked] are you sure you are ready? "YES" I answered.

"Where is your car?"

"I will get one soon."

"If eventually you are able to get a car God knows when, wont you go to work with the car?" I nodded proudly.

"So when I get married to you, I will be jumping on public buses"

I read her lips. She had simply told me that I have to offer Me+ 2 cars at least before she could say "yes."

I needed no Imam to tell me she wasn't my wife. I decided to face my career and leave woman palava until I met this woman who my mind told me had been searching for me.

After "toasting her we became friends. My brotherly friend was the gardner who kept watering the flower of the friendship. One day a voice came: "Hafiz Mumu you no go propose abi na when Jesus come back you go do am?" So I proposed. She was silent for some minutes. I thought I saw her looking me over! Ye! This one too was calculating my worth. My God! What will this one ask?

Then... "YES!" I had thought it was a voice in me that spoke in such audible voice. But the assurance on her gentle beautiful face assured me I had heard her voice and I heard her right. She never asked what I could offer before she could agree to be my wife.

I remembered then I was living in a room and parlour portion in a civilian barrack where we used general toilet and kitchen. This woman stood by me. She has never wavered in helping me achieve my dream, our dream our future! She had taught me what womanhood is. A woman is a divine catalyst for achieving future dreams.This day, May 24th 15 years ago, Olaide said YES and became my darling wife

May ALLAH grant us the grace to witness many years alive in excellent health and HIS divine favour
The Public Relations Officer of the Command, DSP Muhammad Shehu disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Gusau on Sunday.

He said the unidentified bandits on Friday attacked people of Gidan Labbo village at Malikawa Forest while the victims were clearing their farm lands to prepare for this years rainy season.

As soon as we received the report, our men were deployed to the area. They discovered seven bodies.

He said the command and other security agencies have already deployed security personnel to the area to maintain peace and stability.

He urged people of the state to continue to support security agents with information on criminals to enable them take proactive measures.

NAN reports that Governor Abdulaziz Yari yesterday disclosed that the bandits are now sending threat letters to farmers in the state, asking them to keep away from their farms.

Yari made this known while launching the sales and distribution of fertiliser to farmers in the state at Nasarawar-Burkullu town in Bukkuyum local government area of the state.
The presidents congratulatory message is contained in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Sunday.

President Buhari joined the media industry in specially celebrating the renowned author of Jailed for Life and What a Country! for his literary prowess and contributions to topical issues in the country over the years.

The President recalled the many hurdles Ajibade had to overcome, and the sacrifices he made in the pursuit of seeing fairness and justice institutionalized in the country, including going to jail for trumped up reasons.

President Buhari commended Ajibades patriotism, resilience and desire to see Nigeria become a better country.
He said his government has recorded tremendous success in this regard and reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring even more is done to better the lives of the Nigerian child.

Buhari stated this in commemoration of Children's Day. He said parents and leaders should use the opportunity to reflect on their roles and responsibilities towards their children.

Read full text of the President's speech below:

Today affords me another opportunity to re-affirm our Administrations commitment to the protection of children, a day to reflect on our roles and responsibilities as Parents and Leaders towards our children, and also assessing how far we have fared in this regard.

As you may recall, one of the cardinal objectives of this Administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this Administration has recorded measurable success in the home grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand.

Our children are our future, and the initiatives that come from them give confidence that our country has a bright future.

I am always inspired and encouraged when I remember encounters I had with three of our young ones. When I was on medical vacation in 2017, three year old Maya Jammal recorded a prayer for my recovery, which went viral online.

Also, 10 year old Aisha Aliyu Gebbi wrote a personal letter to me, describing herself as my "'biggest fan.

Nicole Benson, then 12 years old, had contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to my campaign in 2015. The money was all saved up from her lunch and pocket allowance. There are millions of such children nationwide.

I am very impressed by what our children have been able to do, and what the future holds for them. That is one reason why we are committed to the school feeding programme, to prepare a future generation of physically and intellectually robust children. At the last count, over 8.2 million children in 24 states of the Federation are being given free meals daily. This happens in 45,000 schools round the country.

I therefore call on all stakeholders to support this programme to ensure that all the 36 States of the Federation and FCT are covered. This will promote substantially higher enrolment levels in our schools.

Since its inception in May, 2015, this Administration has also focused attention on addressing issues of child protection, participation and survival. In 2015, the campaign to end violence against children was launched which was commemorated in 2016. In November 2016, the Campaign to End Child Marriage was also launched to ensure that as many children as possible are able to fully enjoy their childhood and be protected from all the challenges associated with this phenomenon. These campaigns have been reinforced with sensitization campaigns in some States of the Federation.

The theme for this years celebration Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility is an opportunity to promote the safety and security of our children. As a responsible Government, we are committed to ensuring that children are protected from violence and exploitation against them, and, that their environments are safe enough for them to pursue their educational attainments, discover their full potentials to grow into responsible citizens.

This Administration has made giant strides in the protection of the Rights of the Nigerian Child and as a result of such efforts, Nigeria has been declared a Pathfinding Country on Ending Violence Against Children. This I believe is a collective achievement and I urge us to continue to build on the present momentum to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In our efforts to protect our children from abuse, exploitation and trafficking as well as provide safe, non-violent inclusive and effective learning environment in our schools, this Administration has directed the management of all Federal Government Colleges and advised all state owned schools across the Country to provide adequate measures of safety and security of their students. I again call on all schools management committees at all levels of public and private institutions to take adequate security measures and put in place mechanisms for safety of children.

May I therefore call on the Families, Security Agencies, Traditional Rulers, Religious Leaders, Civil Society Organizations, Human Rights Activists, and the Society at large to rise up and take urgent and decisive actions to stem the unacceptable rising cases of violence against our children. We must ensure safety of our children in homes, schools, markets, worship centres, on the streets and everywhere at all times.

ALSO READ: Why FGs school feeding programme has yet to take off in Lagos

Furthermore let me use this medium to appeal to parents not to relent in their efforts to send their wards to school, especially the girl child as her education reduces infant and maternal mortality and prevents early and child marriages. It also increases literacy and reduces poverty. The saying that to educate a woman is to educate the nation is very apt in this regard.

Finally, while I appreciate the security agencies for their efforts so far, I urge them to redouble their efforts in protecting children from danger and violence in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Child Rights Acts, 2003.
Dr Sigma Jagne, Commissioner for ECOWAS Social Affairs and Gender, told newsmen in Abuja that this would tackle gender inequality issues.

She said poor representation and participation of women in politics posed a serious challenge for sustenance of democratic growth in West Africa.

The men have been there for a long time and they have not taken us where we want to go and we think that, as long as women are left out, we will not get where we want to go.

We have to work hand in hand to the place where we all want to be which is where men and women work together and make decisions together.

Senegal made it a law to have 50 per cent women in parliament and 50 per cent men and I think all the other countries can take (a) cue from Senegal.

We urge Nigeria, which has the lowest representation of elected women, to also work on legislation for the 2019 elections.

To ensure that women representation move up, if not 50 per cent but from its 8 per cent to 25 per cent; we (can) take (it) slowly to 50 per cent by another five years after 2019.

She identified the belief that men were designed to lead women as a culture that hinders gender growth.

Jagne urged political parties to create a level-playing-field that would encourage gender equality.
And this is because a 'National Anthem' signifies the nations status on which people pride themselves.

Thus, countries like France that prides itself on freedom glorifies the spirit of rebelliousness in their anthem. While the likes of Germany, who at a time stood supreme, exalts itself above all.

But there are other countries like Ghana who, instead of pride, prays to God for guidance in their anthem...and her sister, Senegal, renders praise to mother Africa.

Be that as it may, our concern here is to explain the meaning of Nigeria's National Anthem; not the first stanza, but the second.

"Oh God of creation, direct our noble cause.

Guide our leaders right, help our youths the truth to know.

In love and honesty to grow and living just and true.

Great lofty heights attain.

To build a nation where peace and justice shall reign.

The first line of the second stanza is a plea to the Father of creation; begging Him to take control of the principles that govern our activities, which include our constitution, value system, and way of life.

And as observed in the second line, the plea continues with specifications: Guide our leaders right; urge them to walk through the pastures of integrity and dignity. May their mind be far from wrongfulness whenever it comes to decision making.

The plea also begs for the bestowal of knowledge and understanding upon our young men and women, as it goes on to say, "help our youths the truth to know the truth."

Because only then can they grow in love and honesty, as well as living a just and truthful life.

However, the fourth line can be argued to be the result of the third line because it is impossible to live a life of love and honesty without attaining a lofty state.

In conclusion, the second stanza of the National Anthem ends with placing responsibility on the youths to build a nation where peace and justice shall reign.

However, it is important to note that this nation of peace and justice can only be built by youths who have succeeded in attaining that lofty height, by living a life of love and honesty.
An AGIP means an unprincipled person ready to serve `Any Government In Power.

Shehu made the clarification in a write-up titled; `The Real Price of Change the Change campaign (2) issued in Abuja on Sunday.

Presidential aide said he was invited to serve the current Buhari administration as one of the two spokespersons of the government, and he subsequently pledged 100 per cent loyalty to the government, adding that this cannot be AGIP by any standards.

The presidential aide, who stated that Omokri lied against him, narrated the circumstances that resulted in his `resignation while serving in the media office of a PDP administration.

For those Reno tried to mislead, yes it is a fact that I worked in the media office of a PDP administration.

Not for five years as the new-day pastor published but only for six months at which point it was announced on NTA news, to my surprise, that my letter of resignation had been accepted when I hadnt written any.

I learned of course that I was fired because the head of the country at that time, who believed that every published criticism was sponsored by an insider, read the weekly magazine, The News, and didnt like what was written about him, he said

He further explained:  Pastor Reno lied by calling me an AGIP  The period he was referring to was one in which my boss ran into bad political weather and some of us around him were scapegoated.

I was locked in DSS detention many times, my houses in Kano and Abuja broken into and valuables, including cash, some of which were never returned, were seized.

I was going to court for two years and for the most part of which I didnt have a passport.

In the course of that trial, the judge presiding called back my lawyers, Niyi Akintola, SAN and Rickey Tarfa, SAN, after an adjournment to say that I didnt mean that he should be kept in DSS detention. I said he should be taken to Kuje Prison,, and thats where I was kept.

Under detention in the DSS I was stripped down to the pants and photographed head to toe. All that didnt make one to capitulate.

When they lost to Muhammadu Buhari in the party primaries, the candidates in that race, Gov. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Waziri Atiku Abubakar, Rochas Okorocha and Sam Nda-Isaiah surrendered their media assets to the winner who had the grace to ask me to lead the media team.

When we won, he (then President-elect Buhari) invited me to serve as one of his two spokespersons and I pledged 100 per cent loyalty to him and thats where I am. This cannot be AGIP by any standards.

Reno should stop lying, if only to help the pastoral calling to retain its good name. Otherwise he should quit the ministry.

He said that he had known and worked with exemplary pastors who were decent and from whom he learned more of the etiquette of truth telling.
The thespian and President of Tonto Dikeh Foundation (TDF) made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.

She noted that since many teenage girls were not well enlightened on how their body works, they remained ignorant and even fallen prey to tendencies that endanger their lives.

The task of guiding the girl child, especially on sensitive things about womanhood belongs to those they look up to either as parents, teachers or role models.

For example, there are a lot of myths which tend to suggest that menstruation is a disease or a curse, and presents a womans body as polluted when she is experiencing periods.

Such beliefs and myths have caused discrimination against women and at times, can lower their self-esteem and opportunities for growth.

Many of such beliefs have been proven wrong by medical science, but they are still believed in most current societies, and therefore the need for enlightenment, she said.

She explained that her foundation would take awareness on reproductive health and hygiene to selected schools in the Federal Capital Territory as part of its support and intervention initiative for young girls.

We are set to visit female schools, and even prisons, in commemoration of the Global Menstrual Hygiene Day to educate them on the importance of hygiene, especially menstrual hygiene.

Menstrual Hygiene Day is an annual awareness day which comes up on May 28 to highlight the importance of good menstrual hygiene management.

Beside the enlightenment campaign, the foundation intends to aid women and girls with free sanitary towels, Dikeh said.
Saraki stated this at a visit to the Abegena Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Benue state on Childrens Day, Sunday, May 27, 2018.

The Senate Pesident who was accompanied on the visit by the Senators Barnabas Gemade, George Akume, Emmanuel Bwacha and Fatimat Raji-Rasaki, was received by the Governor Samuel Ortom who led the delegation to the camp.

Saraki who condemned the killings across the country furthered noted that government is working towards finding a lasting solution to the problem.

While commiserating with the people of Benue over the loss of lives and properties occasioned by incessant attacks by bandits, Saraki reiterated the call of the Senate for increased funding for security agencies to enable them combat violent crimes across the country.

"I decided to mark the 2018 National Childrens Day here in Benue, with those who, due to no fault of theirs, find themselves in an Internally Displaced Camp on a day set aside for the nation to celebrate her greatest assets, the children," Saraki said.

"In previous years, I have spent Childrens Day in the comfort of my office with children visiting the National Assembly, and that was fine enough. This year, however, I decided to come here, not just to celebrate the day but to let the people of Benue know - especially the children who need us now more than ever - that you are not alone in this ordeal.

"This visit is also emblematic of our deep concern and sympathy for children and other IDPs in many other parts of Nigeria  in places such as Borno, Yobe and Adamawa - who have fallen victim to many conflicts that are destroying entire communities.

"We recognise that there are many other children and adults who do not even have the meagre luxury of IDP camps in many places in Kaduna and Zamfara States  fellow citizens who are daily exposed to bandits, robbers, kidnappers and rapists, as well as the elements.

"We chose to visit Abagena IDP Camp, to spend some time with the children and inspect the facilities, in continuation of the Senates search for solutions to multi-faceted crises that are stretching our security and law-and-order assets beyond their limits.

"Just last week, the Senate received detailed briefings from Service Chiefs and other security agencies on the nature of our current security challenges, and the ways in which we can contribute to finding solutions.

"The Senate also received the Report of the Security Summit it organised in February this year, an event that tapped into a very wide spectrum of national assets with knowledge, experience and responsibility in improving citizen, community and national security.

"What is clear is that we must fund our security agencies. We must equip and support them, if we are to bring to the barest minimum those situations that cause people to be internally displaced. The killings going on in many parts of this country must stop. They are anathema to civilised values and cannot be tolerated," he added.

He said the visit was important to tell the people of Benue that they are not alone in their moment of trial.

"Benue State, in particular, has suffered terribly as a result of these senseless and murderous activities," Saraki said. "It was therefore important to come here in solidarity with the people of this state, to say: we stand with you, we are one."

ALSO READ: Buhari just indicted himself in Benue

He said that the Senate has been gravely concerned about the situation for several months now the reason it sent an Ad-hoc Committee on Security to Benue immediately after one of the major atrocities, earlier this year.

"Our interventions culminated in the briefing by Service Chiefs last week; and we remain committed to ensuring security in this state in particular. Our efforts towards supporting effective solutions to the deteriorating security of the nation as a whole, shall be unrelenting," he said.

"The condition of children caught in conflicts, many of whom we see here today, is particularly challenging, but the nation must never resign itself to living with this problem. This cannot become the new normal.

"Beyond millions of children in the North East who have missed out on education and vital social support for many years, there are others being deprived daily of parental care, development and security in many parts of the country. The fate of the Nigerian child today should spur all leaders into action, to bring an end to conflicts that make victims of the most vulnerable among us.

"We need to rediscover the vision that emplace the young as the centre piece of national development and all endeavours. A nation that does not invest in its young by protecting it, investing in its health and education and skills and hope or building economy that should make it productive - is doomed.

"Conflicts that make women and children prime targets, sap the national energy needed to resolve them. Every adult who is confined to IDP camps represents a waste of productive resource, and resources spent on running the camps are regretfully diverted from vital investments in human capital and infrastructure.

"Internally displaced persons are taken out of productive circles and activities, and they risk becoming permanently dependent. Rebuilding lives and communities become more challenging and costly the longer the conflicts last and occupy more space in our lives.

"I appeal to us all to use this National Childrens Day to intensify efforts at finding lasting solutions to conflicts which give rise to camps such as this one. I strongly believe we can find these solutions; and that military and police presence and activities and IDP camps are not the only solutions we need," he said.

On his part, the Governor of Benue State thanked Saraki for the visit and the the National Assembly for approving more funding security agencies.
The former Chairman of the group, Alhaji Kawu Baraje, has listed names of prominent aggrieved members of the APC who attended the recent meeting of the nPDP, where they discussed the outcome of the group's negotiations with the leadership of the APC and their possible next line of actions.

In a statement issued on Saturday, May 26, Baraje listed Senator Bukola Saraki; Speaker, House of Representatives, Mr. Yakubu Dogara; Governor of Sokoto State, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal and Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso as among the politicians who were at the nPDP meeting.

"Nigerians may recall that members of the former New PDP Bloc within the All Progressives Congress addressed a letter dated April 27, 2018 to the Chairman of the APC where we informed the party of our grievances and expectations from both the party and government of President Muhammadu Buhari", Baraje said in the statement.

"Following this development, the party invited us and we honoured its invitation to a meeting. We met with the leadership of the party last week during which we resolved to report the outcome of our meeting to our members and stakeholders before arriving at any decision or proceeding with the next phase of discussions or actions with the APC and government.

"I am glad to inform you, therefore, that we have briefed our members at a meeting convened in Abuja on Wednesday, May 23, 2018, where we reviewed the state of the nation and our party, APC, and constituted committees on various issues, especially on how to rescue Nigeria from economic, social, political and especially security challenges".

According to him, other members of the nPDP that attended the meeting included, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola; Admiral Murtala Nyako (retd.); Sen. Mohammad Aliero, Senator Danjuma Goje, Sen. John Enoh, Senator Andy Uba, Sen. Ibrahim Gobir, Sen. Rufai Ibrahim and Sen. Ibrahim Danbaba.

Others are Sen. Suleman Nazif, Sen. Isa Misau, Sen. Muhammed Shitu, Sen. Shehu Sani, Sen. Dino Melaye, Sen. Suleiman Hunkuyi, Sen. Shaaba Lafiagi, Sen. Bala Ibn NaAllah, Sen. David Umaru, Sen. Barnabas Gemade; Chairman, former nPDP, Alh. Abubakar K. Baraje; Mr. Aminu Shagari, Mr. Kabiru Marafa, Mr. Isa Ashiru, Mr. Muhd Soba, Mr. Mark Gbillah, Mr. Sani Rano, Mr. Garba Durbunde, Mr. Aliyu Madaki, Mr. Zakari Mohammed, Mr. Rufai Chachangi, Mr. Razak Atunwa, Mr. Emmanuel Udende, Mr. Hassan Saleh, Mr. Nasiru Sule, Mr. Orker Jev, Mr. Aliyu Pategi, Mr. Isah Halilu, Mr. Rabiu Kaugama, Mr. Abdussamad Dasuki, Mr. Ismaila Gadaka, Mr. Lado Suleja, Mr. Dickson Tarkighir, Mr. Babatunde Kolawole, Dr. Bode Ayorinde, Mr. Danjuma Shida, Mr. Danburam Nuhu, Mr. Sunday Adepoju, Mr. Sani Zorro, Mr. Ahmed Bichi, Mr. Garba Mohammed and a host of others.

Punch reports that eight serving members of the House of Representatives from Oyo State also joined the group, but their names were not listed by Baraje.

Defection talks

One of the lawmakers from the National Assembly who attended the meeting reportedly disclosed that the group considered three options that they might take soon, with defection as the most preferred option.

"After he briefed us about the discussions he held on our behalf with the leadership of the APC, the floor was thrown open for discussions and suggestions. We all agreed that we were not being fairly treated within the APC", the lawmaker, who did not want to be identified, told Punch.

"Opinions were however divided on how best to proceed. There were those who felt we should pull out and join a party yet to be determined.

"There was the second group which felt it was better to remain within and fight it out through further discussions and negotiations.

"The third group consisted of those who felt we should pull out, adopt a new platform and ensure we have a written agreement so as to avoid a repeat of what we are seeing (experiencing) in the APC.

"At the end, it was agreed that we set up a committee to look at the most viable option. However, the committee has yet to be formed and we are leaving our doors open for further discussions with the APC for now."

The PDP, however, said it is intensifying efforts to woo members of the nPDP bloc in the APC and all genuine democrats in the country with the primary aim of unseating Buhari in 2019.

Speaking in a telephone interview with the newspaper, the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said the party is making progress in the coalition efforts.

ALSO READ: Is the APC falling apart before our eyes?

"We are talking to everybody...we are talking to people in the APC; we are talking to all genuine democrats who have seen through the deceit the ruling party represents", he said.

Ologbondiyan said the situation has gone beyond parties but about Nigeria which he said could be better if its resources are properly managed.
In a letter signed by Atiku and obtained by Daily Nigerian, Daniel will oversee all that pertains to personnel, resourcing and campaign staffing.

A twitter support group for Atiku, 'Youths For Atiku', also confirmed the development in a tweet on Sunday, May 27.

The letter reads in part, "I am pleased to officially notify you of the appointment of His Excellency, Otunba Gbenga Daniel (OGD as he is popularly known), as the Director-General of the Atiku Campaign Organisation.

"OGD is a former two-term governor of Ogun State, and a foremost engineer, businessman and astute politician. He has vast knowledge of the Nigerian political terrain and has a wide network of contacts and friends all over Nigeria, and these are a few of the assets he will be bringing to our campaign organisation.

"I am in no doubt OGD is a very positive and welcome addition to our campaign and I look forward to working with him as he leads over campaign to victory come February 2019.

"Going forward, OGD as the Director General, has overall responsibility for every aspect of the campaign. This includes mobilization and organizing (delegates and supporters), publicity and communication, finance and expenditure. I am in the process of setting up a separate fund raising committee which will work alongside and complement the campaign finance structure.

"The DG will also have overall responsibility for personnel, resourcing and campaign staffing and any other political or campaign related matters, that I give my delegated authority.

"From now on, my role will be limited to continuing my consultations with the relevant stakeholders in the PDP and in the political landscape as a whole. All campaign or other staff will report to the DG with immediate effect, and all campaign or political matters will also be referred to the DG.

"The DG will report to me directly."

If given the PDP presidential ticket, Atiku and incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, both from northern Nigeria, will battle for the Presidency seat.
The security operatives were said to have sealed off the Ikot-Ansa Town Hall, proposed venue of the congress, on Sunday, May 27, saying it was to avert a bloody clash.

According to Punch, the venue was sealed by 9am on the order of the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hafiz Inuwa, who deployed a team of officer to forestall a breakdown of law and order.

The Commissioner reportedly said he got intelligence report that there would be bloodbath if the Congress took place.

He said, "I got intelligence report that there would be bloodbath; so, I had to intervene.

"A faction of the party had initially written that they wanted to hold the congress at that venue, but the chairman of the party wrote to dissociate himself from that congress.

"We acted promptly to avert a breakdown of law and order."

However, a faction to the APC in the state went ahead with the Congress at a different venue, where they elected a new chairman, Dr. Mathew Achigbe and other executive members of the party by voice votes.

The faction was said to have been led by a former governor of the state, Mr. Clement Ebri; and the senator representing the central senatorial district in the National Assembly, John Owan-Enoh.

Achigbe, the new factional chairman thanked all the delegates for electing him n pledged to move the party forward.

"I thank all delegates for finding us worthy to serve the party. It is a great honour and we shall take the party to the next level.

"We want to also thank President Buhari for all he has done for Cross River. We assure him that we would support him and also ensure that the state gives him massive votes in", he said.

Other dignitaries at the alternative venue, which was within the premises of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, were a former commissioner in the Niger Delta Development Commission, Prof. Eyo Nyong, and a former member of House of Representatives, Mr. Paul Adah, among others.

On May 19, 2018, a faction led by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Usani Usani, conducted its congress at the Cultural Centre in Calabar in which Mr. Etim John was elected as chairman.
He said Kwara State, where Saraki hails from, will be liberated once the number three citizen has been taken out of the picture.

Sowore stated this on Friday, May 25, while speaking about godfatherism in Nigerian politics at a town hall meeting in Ilorin, Kwara capital.

He said Saraki has turned himself into a "demigod" in the state, adding that he would rid Kwara and Nigeria as a whole of godfatherism if voted into power in 2019.

Sowore said, "We will ensure that Kwara state is liberated from the hand of political godfather who cant build good roads, schools and infrastructures.

"I remember last year, this was the same political godfather, Bukola Saraki, that seized our money, that was meant for the SaharaReporters Civic Media Lab, and brought it to Kwara state.

"This same Saraki went to the court to stop us and sent thugs to beat us after bragging he has all the Judges in Kwara state in his pocket.

"Let me use this opportunity to tell him that the money he seized from us would be refunded soon and will be paid with interest while he goes to jail."

He reiterated that the Buhari administration has failed Nigeria and its people and "should be kicked out".

"By next year, we are taking back this country from the hands of the old guards and we would ensure we set its feet on the path of progress," the publisher said.

"Then, it will no longer be sai Baba but sai Bobo because the country would not be left again in the hands of untrustworthy elders and leaders who have taken us back.

"We are tired of the old people in all the regions of the country mostly the ones who still think in analogue ways and have nothing to offer us."

ALSO READ: SaharaReporters publisher, minister of communication clash in Ibadan

Sowore is galvanising diverse interest to actualise his presidential ambition.
He said Buhari had at different times given different identities to the people believed to be masquerading as herdsmen and killing Nigerians in Benue and other states.

The ex-president was said to have stated this during his meeting with the leadership of the pan-Yoruba organisation, Afenifere, last week in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

According to Nigerian Tribune, more details of the meeting emerged on Sunday, May 27.

Obasanjo was said to have given a second reason as the gradual loss of public confidence in the capability of security agencies to curtail the herdsmen because of the body language of the president.

He reportedly said Buhari's body language and comments on the activities of the herdsmen are making the job of the security agencies difficult.

The newspaper quoted an 'impeccable source' who in turn quoted Obasanjo as saying; "He (Buhari) often speaks from both sides of the mouth on the issue of armed herdsmen killing of innocent citizens.

"At times, he would say the herdsmen are not Nigerians; that they are from Niger, Mali, Chad and other neighbouring countries.

"In the same breath, the president would say we should learn to live and cope with our neighbours, talking of the Middle Belt groups and that the crisis is an internal matter.

"At another time while in the United States, he said it was the fighters from Libya that were behind the killings. So, if the Nigerian military were to act, it will be against the position of the president. Therefore, the military had to be careful."

Another source was said to have quoted Obasanjo as saying that "Nigerians no longer have any regard for the military because of the activities of the killer herdsmen".

Anti-grazing law

It was gathered that the former president also spoke against the claim by herdsmen and others that the anti-grazing law enacted by Benue State caused the massacre in the middle belt.

Obasanjo reportedly agreed with the position of Afenifere leaders that no matter how crooked any law was, once it was made by the parliament of a state, it was the duty of the security forces to enforce it, while the judiciary would do the interpretation.

Responding to a question of if the Afenifere leaders asked Obasanjo whether he had rallied the support other key individuals and groups in the country, the sources quoted OBJ to have said that his "meeting with the Afenifere was part of his efforts to coordinate national opinion against Buhari."

Obasanjo reportedly added that a number of leaders of the ruling APC, including governors that succeeded in winning the recent congresses of the party, had agreed to be part of the ongoing coalition against the president.

In what seems like Buhari's reaction to Obasanjo's move to stop his re-election bid, the Federal Government had on Tuesday, May 22, queried the former president over the spending of $16 billion on power projects during his administration.

ALSO READ: 5 ways Obasanjo attacked Buhari all over again

The power project was done during the Obasanjo administration (1999-2006). It has been described as a mismanagement of public funds by observers and civic groups.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) operatives are said to have started gathering facts to would help in investigating the power project.
A statement from the armed wing of Islamic Jihad, the Al-Quds Brigades, claimed the two as members.

Islamic Jihad is the second-most powerful armed group in the Gaza Strip, after Hamas, which runs the Palestinian enclave.

Israel's military said in a statement that the tank fire came after soldiers detonated an explosive device that had been placed near the border fence, targeting its troops.

It said the explosive device had been hidden inside a pair of fence cutters.

Separately on Saturday night, Israeli aircraft struck two targets belonging to Hamas, but there were no reports of casualties.

The military said the operation was in response to a brief incursion across the border earlier in the day by Palestinians who immediately fled back into Gaza.

It added that the strike was also in retaliation for repeated Palestinian attempts to damage the border fence and "security infrastructure" during ongoing border protests.

At least 118 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the Gaza Strip since mass protests and clashes broke out on March 30, according to figures from the Gazan health ministry.

No Israelis have been killed during that time.

Low-level demonstrations along the border have continued since protests peaked on May 14, when at least 61 Palestinians died as tens of thousands of Gazans protested the US moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Israel says its actions are necessary to defend the border and stop mass incursions into its territory.
According to Reuters, which cited a defence lawyer, the sentence was handed down on Friday, May 25, 2018.

President Paul Biya's predominantly Francophone government had arrested Mancho Bibixy, a radio presenter in the English-speaking Northwest Region, and several other activists in 2017 as part of a crackdown on a developing Anglophone secessionist movement.

Bibixy's lawyer, Claude Assira, who told Reuters that one activist was acquitted, said the convictions "would only worsen the ... Anglophone crisis".

In 2016, teachers and lawyers had started a peaceful protest movement against the perceived marginalisation of the English-speaking minority but it became a full-blown crisis the following year after the government launched violent crackdowns on the protesters.

The intimidation and suppression fuelled support for radical separatist movements, including armed groups aiming to create an independent state that has killed over 20 soldiers and police officers.
"We believe it is important to patiently continue the search for a solution that would satisfy the interests of Russia and Japan and that would be accepted by the nations of both countries," Putin said at a news conference following the talks.

He added that Russia would "assist" in allowing Japanese citizens to visit the Kuril islands.

"Solving (the dispute) is not easy but we would like to end it within the lifetime of our generation," Abe said.

He added that Tokyo was "thankful" to Moscow for allowing Japanese citizens to visit the graves of relatives on the islands.

Earlier, Abe said he hoped for a "new breakthrough" in settling the territorial dispute over the Kuril Islands and that he was "ready to reinforce cooperation in a calm but energetic manner."

The summit is the latest attempt to draw a line under World War II since Japan and the Soviet Union began discussions in 1956.

Abe's late father Shintaro took the lead in negotiations with Moscow as a foreign minister but died in 1991 after pushing for talks while suffering from cancer.

Japan has been careful to avoid criticising Russia, particularly its role in Syria that has drawn condemnation by Western countries, as it seeks to resolve the territorial dispute.

North Korea

The two leaders also discussed the North Korea crisis.

Putin called on countries participating in regulating the North Korea crisis to show "restraint in order not to allow a new spike in confrontation and to keep the situation in the political and diplomatic field."

"The most important (thing) is for North Korea to carry out full and irreversible denuclearisation," Abe said for his part.

Russia has retained close ties with its Soviet ally North Korea, while Pyongyang has test fired ballistic missiles over Japan.

Japan and Russia were both members of six-party talks on regulating the North Korea crisis, which also involved China, the US and both Koreas.

The talks were designed to offer the North security and economic benefits in exchange for denuclearisation but broke down in 2009 when Pyongyang abandoned them.

Putin and Abe pledged to "reinforce cooperation" at a time of tension with the West.

"I am very pleased to have the opportunity to talk in detail on our bilateral relations and political cooperation," Putin said as he greeted Abe in the Kremlin.
They called you Virginia Ciarunji Njoka. I called you mom. You shaped us. You loved us. You were special to me. Nobody can fill your void. Fare thee well, say hello to papa! Till we meet again, on that bright morning... said Speaker Muturi.

Uhuru

President Uhuru Kenyatta also sent a message of condolence to the Speakers family terming Mama Virginia Ciarunji Njoka as a person of great integrity, who lived a life of single-minded service to her family, the community and the nation.

In the fullness of time, she brought up a distinguished family. Her family members, among them our National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi, emulated her rectitude and have continued to serve this nation with distinction, he said.

It is my prayer that fond memories of her life will fill the void she has left and help you overcome the sadness and pain occasioned by her departure, said President Kenyatta.
The message read in part that Dear Jakom Raila Odinga: Thank you for fighting against dictatorship for the past 30 years.

Miguna who fell out with the opposition after being deported on two separate occasions early this year advised the NASA boss to retreat to his Opoda farm and allow a crop of young leaders to carry on with the fight for justice.

Miguna urged Odinga to let young, vibrant, committed and courageous revolutionaries pursue justice.

The self-styled opposition activist however noted that Odinga should hang his boots as he is now tired after 30 years of service, fighting for good governance and democracy.

Alluding to the unity pact between Raila and President Uhuru Kenyatta, Miguna alleged that the former premier has since crossed over to join the same side that he was initially opposing.

You are now tired and have recently surrendered to tyrants. Retreat to your Opoda Farm, Miguna wrote.

The message which was shared through his Facebook account comes in the wake of multi-billion scandals that have rocked the nation.

Odinga who delved into the rampant corruption in the country disclosed that tackling corruption was part of the March 09 deal with President Kenyatta.
This week, reports indicate that the opposition leader will jet out to South Africa for another high profile engagement and is expected to be given a befitting reception matching his status.

Odinga will meet exiled former South Sudan vice-president Riek Machar who is leading a faction of government soldirs allied to him in a long standing war with the government of Salva Kiir.

The meeting is in an attempt to reconcile Machar with South Sudans President Salva Kiir and bring peace to the country that has never known lasting peace for decades.

Thursday this week, marked his first formal engagement when he held a 7-hour meeting with South Sudans President Salva Kiir.

Odinga was received by Kenyas ambassador to South Sudan Cleland Leshore during his maiden trip as a peace envoy.

The NASA boss was accompanied by his lawyer Paul Mwangi and Suna East MP Junet Mohamed.

Scanty details are available on his future engagements but the opposition chief is expected to spear head efforts to bring peace across the continent with the support of the government and African Union.
QUIZ: Guess the Road Songs

We can't wait to get back on the road again! Play this quiz and see if how many you can get right!
Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale

Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada.

Search Real Estate
Can welfare schemes truly transform from being flagship to flag-bearers for a government that is looking to get a second term in 2019?

Jyoti Mukul takes a look at how some of the signature programmes of Modi Sarkar have performed.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

Catchy acronyms and high-pitched launches have often defined the flagship schemes of the Narendra Modi government.

Peppered with social media campaigns, these outreach plans have been able to go to the remotest corners of the country in messaging.

As this government enters its last year in office, the signature programmes have started performing. Some say many contributed to the BJPs electoral successes.

A series of reports will show how the Modi governments report card looks good, if not excellent yet, when flagship schemes are a benchmark.

From Swachh Bharat to Ujjwala, Jan-Dhan to Bharatmala, numbers tell a story of progress that has clearly taken off.

Underscoring the significance of flagship programmes, M Ramachandran, former secretary, ministry of urban development, says such schemes set targets and then try to achieve them.

The specificity of targets and the willingness to work towards them is very important.

Take, for instance, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, one of the earliest schemes to be rolled out by the NDA alliance.

Launched in October 2014, the mission with urban and rural components aims to ensure an open defecation free country by October 2, 2019.

When the programme started, 38.7 per cent of rural households had toilets.

Now, the government data shows 83.7 per cent have toilets, with 71.96 million built since 2014-15.

Critics warn that a target-oriented approach may lead to a partial repeat of problems like toilets not being used after a while.

Toilets are not the only way the NDA sought to change living habits.

Providing energy access has been an equally powerful message about inclusion, relayed right into households.

Two schemes have been specifically designed to provide energy to households, especially to those living on the margins.

The Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana that gives free cooking gas (LPG) connections to poor households and the Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana that brings electricity to rural households.

While the Ujjwala scheme launched on May 1, 2016, now targets to provide cooking gas connection to 80 million households by 2020, it has already reached the 39-million mark.

In a similar display of achievement, on April 28, Modi announced his government had met the target of 100 per cent rural electrification by covering 18,374 remaining villages 12 days ahead of schedule.

Both these schemes, however, face a hurdle of consumers not buying the services or paying for them -- gas cylinder refills for LPG and taking connections for rural electrification -- if the charges are beyond their means.

For the Bharatmala programme, which is all about road connectivity, formal targets were rolled out only last October after a Cabinet nod.

Although some of the projects under the umbrella plan are being implemented, the first phase is to be completed by 2021-22.

A total of 24,800 km are being considered in Phase I along with 10,000 km of balance road works under National Highways Development Project, taking the total to 34,800 km.

Clearly, the government will try to push for completion of some of these projects before the 2019 general elections.

When it comes to creating virtual connectivity, the government has spelt out targets for e-governance and e-office, among others.

Kirit Parikh, former member, Planning Commission, says there has been a certain level of improvement in e-governance that has helped step up service delivery in the public sector.

However, increasing rural teledensity, which is the most basic of the digital programme, is yet to show substantial results.

The number of telephone connections in rural India is just above the halfway mark at 57 per 100 persons.

Closely linked to the digital connectivity plank is financial inclusion and direct benefit transfer.

Aadhaar or biometrically-linked unique identification number launched by the previous UPA government got an all-out backing of the NDA government.

Though the validity of Aadhaar is pending in the Supreme Court, over 1.2 billion have been enrolled under it.

The unique number is used for disbursement of government benefits under 432 schemes through the direct benefit transfer platform.

Also, under the governments ambitious Jan Dhan Yojana, a parallel initiative to bring unbanked sections of the society into the formal banking network, some 315 million accounts were opened till last week.

Of the total, roughly 59 per cent are in rural and semi-urban areas.

Another much talked about programme is the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana -- Gramin, which aims to build 10.2 million houses by March 2019.

According to data available with the government, the speed of construction of houses has picked up in rural areas from about 1.6 million houses that were constructed in 2014-15 to 1.8 million in 2015-16, 3.2 million in 2016-17 and 3.4 million in 2017-18.

But theres a catch. While the jump in numbers was substantial in 2016-17, the pace appears to have slowed down in 2017-18.

The challenge would be to double the speed of construction to complete the remaining 6.6 million houses before March 2019.

According to Parikh, these flagship plans are primarily welfare schemes.

By setting up ambitious targets, creating awareness and pushing for them, the government has made progress on achieving multi-dimensional idea of human development.

He says its a different issue altogether whether all this will result in higher economic growth and job creation.

Perhaps, that was also not the idea behind these schemes.

Whatever the outcome, these programmes appeal to common people, says Ramachandran, though the jury is out on whether a voter exercises franchise based on their performance.

Even so, feedback and responses will be critical at this stage of implementation for knowing how far these programmes have been successful and whether their reach has been uniform across regions, he points out.

Only then can these schemes truly transform from being flagship to flag bearers for the government that is looking to get a second term in 2019.
One warm sunny day, Abhilasha Ojha stumbles upon the soul of Bahrain.

IMAGE: The Bahrain Fort is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Photograph: Kind courtesy Martin Falbisoner/Wikimedia Commons

It is something of a truism to say that to truly understand a destination, one needs to explore its lanes and bylanes.

The labyrinth of passageways in Dubrovniks old city is rich with tales of a bygone era.

In the lanes of Paris, one can still stumble upon sculptures and artwork that afford a deeper engagement with the storied city.

The alleys of Benaras, echoing with the sounds of temple bells, provide an immersive experience like none other.

IMAGE: The Bin Mattar building. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ministry of Information Affairs/Kingdom of Bahrain

Cliches, after all, are based on truth.

Bahrain is no different.

One warm sunny day, I have a moment where I wonder if I have stumbled upon the soul of this island nation, an archipelago consisting of 33 islands.

I am walking through Muharraq's narrow streets and tiny alleyways, gazing at the area's low-rise, historic houses with traditional architecture.

The capital of Bahrain in the 19th century, Muharraq -- its old Arab-world charm notwithstanding -- reminds me of alleyways in European cities.

Were the cobbled pathways of this major pearling centre inspired from Santorini's white-washed streets? Could these hidden gems bear influence from a similar street in Athens?

IMAGE: A Bab al Bahrain alley. Photograph: Kind courtesy Jan Michael Pfeiffer/Wikimedia Commons

John Yarwood, author of Urban Planning in the Middle East: Case Studies, describes Muharraq as a 'traditional Gulf town which arose in the pre-capitalist era and a civilisation radically different from the western classical tradition'.

Muharraq gained influence after Bahrain's ruling family settled there in the early 1800s but became rundown in the early 1930s when Japanese cultured pearls eventually wiped out the old pearling culture. But, in its heyday, even Cartier found it impossible to ignore the unique pearls of Bahrain.

Once the pearling culture collapsed, many Bahrainis moved to Manama (the current capital).

Yarwood, whose architectural drawings were scrutinised almost a decade ago for the redevelopment of Muharraq, noted that several of the timber, faroush (a stone harvested from the sea) and plaster buildings fell into disrepair.

IMAGE: The Bahrain national museum. Photograph: Kind courtesy Anthony DeCosta/Wikimedia Commons

In the early 2000s, Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al-Khalifa, president of the Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities, inaugurated the old capital's first major restoration.

And when, in 2012, pearling in Bahrain was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List, the restoration received renewed momentum.

The listing drove the restoration of 17 buildings, three offshore oyster beds and the Qalat Bu Mahir fortress.

Many of the restored buildings were once shops, storehouses and residences of wealthy merchants.

IMAGE: The Al Jasra Handicrafts Centre. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ministry of Information Affairs/Kingdom of Bahrain

While walking through these lean lanes and absorbing the architecture is an invitation into the social fabric and culture of Bahrain, it is worth noting that there is a very clear mandate to encourage it as an art destination.

I catch the brightly-coloured, contemporary-styled wall mural by renowned French-Tunisian artist eL Seed, which complements the traditional architecture of Siyadi House, the restored residence of a well-known pearl merchant in the 19th century.

The same evening, on my way to a traditional Arabic dinner, I spot several such murals in Block 338, a pedestrian quarter teeming with international restaurants, art galleries and small boutiques.

IMAGE: The Al Fateh Grand Mosque. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ciacho5/Wikimedia commons

There's a sense of timelessness to be experienced in the quiet lanes of this area and it's in this quietude that Muharraq comes alive -- in my imagination.

I imagine how the traders and merchants might have sat in the courtyards, discussing business over coffee and hookah.

I think of how women must have worked together, laughing, gossiping while doing their painstaking work on garments with kurar -- the typical Bahraini gold and silver embroidery work.

I think of the numerous poets, artists, writers and scholars who would have gathered in majlis to discuss politics or visited the well-stocked library in Muharraq that boasted of newspapers purchased on a daily basis from all over the world.

IMAGE: Bahraini girls dressed in Thoab Al Nashel (traditional dresses with gold embroidery) and Gob Gob gold head covers and necklaces. Photograph: Reuters

With the restoration of several old houses in Muharraq, the makeover of the area is unparalleled -- Bait Abdullah Al Zayed (House of Bahrain Press Heritage), Bait Mohammad Bin Faris (House of Music), House of Kurar (House of Embroidery) and Iqra House are some of the hidden gems that stand proudly in Muharraq, bearing testimony to the archipelagos rich history.

Check out more images below!

Bahrain's Top 10  Qalat al Bahrain site and museum: Bahrain's rich trading history is reflected in numerous archaeological sites, the most fascinating of which is the Bahrain Fort.  Block 338: Located in the heart of Adliya, Block 338 is a charming pedestrian quarter crammed with restaurants, galleries and boutiques.  Bab al Bahrain: Gateway to the Manama Souq, for a traditional shopping experience.  Bahrain National Museum: One of the first museums in the region, it opened in 1988 and features artefacts from 6,000 years of the Bahrain's history.  Aali burial mounds: These ancient burial mounds dominate the landscape north of the island and date to the 3rd century BCE.  Old houses of Muharraq: Traditional Bahraini houses, now beautifully restored.  Jasra House & Al Jasra Handicraft Centre: Live demos and workshops by weavers, potters and carpenters.  Al Fateh Mosque: People from all over the world come to pray.  Bahrain International Circuit: An adventure to be had in a Hummer on the circuits extreme 4x4 course.  Bait al Quran: This distinguished museum showcases a significant collection of Quranic manuscripts and scriptures dating to the 7th century.

IMAGE: Siyadi House, also known as Bayt Siyadi, is part of a historic complex of buildings constructed for pearl merchant Abdullah bin Isa Siyadi. Photograph: Kind courtesy Graeme/Wikimedia Commons

IMAGE: A closer look at Siyadi House. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ministry of Information Affairs/Kingdom of Bahrain

IMAGE: The windtower at the Isa Bin Ali House, home of former ruler of Bahrain, in Muharraq. Photograph: Kind courtesy fuzzytnth3/Wikimedia Commons

IMAGE: A Muharraq dhow. Photograph: Kind courtesy StellarD/Wikimedia Commons

IMAGE: This doorway to a residence showcases traditional Bahraini architecture. Photograph: Kind courtesy fuzzytnth3/Wikimedia Commons

IMAGE: Inside a shop at the Bab-al-Bahrain Souk. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ministry of Information Affairs/Kingdom of Bahrain

IMAGE: A'ali, one of the largest towns in Bahrain is well-known for its ancient burial mounds. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ministry of Information Affairs/Kingdom of Bahrain

IMAGE: Old Muharraq houses. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ministry of Information Affairs/Kingdom of Bahrain

IMAGE: The Bahrain International Circuit. Photograph: Kind courtesy Sjrake/Wikimedia Commons

IMAGE: The Beit Al Quran museum showcases a significant collection of Quranic manuscripts and scriptures dating to the 7th century. Photograph: Kind courtesy Ciacho5/Wikimedia Commons
Reader Amar K J (black t-shirt) and Anish (grey t-shirt) met Bobby Deol in the sugarcane fields of Mauritius when he was shooting for Help.

Thank you Amar, Anish.

If you meet/see film or television personalities and take a photograph or a video of the star(s), please mail us your pictures at moviesdesk@rediff.co.in

Or kindly upload the picture on ZaraBol
'I had the strangest feeling that my childhood home had burnt and disappeared on my parents' funeral pyres,' he said.

Hardly any of his family lived there now. Migration or death had claimed them all. It seemed to be full of strangers.

'Then I realised that from their perspective, perhaps there was only one stranger -- me..." Babu Lal tells Geetanjali Krishna.

Illustration: Dominic Xavier/Rediff.com

The other day, I found Babu Lal, the old dhobi, looking very moody as he went about his work.

It was sweltering and he was in a shack with a plastic roof, ironing clothes with his ancient coal iron, but even so, he looked more despondent than usual.

Was everything well, I asked. At first he said it was. He had just returned from his village in Uttar Pradesh, he said.

Just then his son arrived on his motorcycle, wearing skinny jeans and a snazzy pair of shades. Something seem to snap quite visibly in the old dhobi's head, and he told me what was on his mind.

"Something very disquieting occurred to me on the bus ride back from my village yesterday," he said. "Over the last 30 years that I've lived and worked in Delhi, my ties with the village I was born in have gradually loosened, and now I find that I no longer think of the village as 'home'."

Babu Lal's angst is echoed by many migrants, I mused, as he told me his story.

Babu Lal's family owned a small plot of agricultural land in his village near Lucknow. He dropped out in class eight, and when he found no employment opportunities there, started asking around for leads in Delhi.

An uncle with an ironing business in south Delhi needed a helper, so his father arranged the job for him.

"Initially, when I moved to Delhi, I missed everything about the village -- the open air, the people and the way of life," he said.

"I told everyone that my move to the city was temporary, it was as if I'd left my heart behind."

His young wife, parents and younger brother stayed back to tend the family land.

In the first five years of moving to Delhi, Babu Lal estimates that he went back every two months.

The inevitable happened. His wife became pregnant. The pull of the village became stronger.

But unbeknownst to him, change was in the air.

When his son came of school-going age, he decided it was time to move his family to Delhi. His uncle had died, and the ironing business was doing well.

"Even though I continued to send the bulk of my salary every month to my parents, I began to feel more settled in Delhi now that my nuclear family was with me," said he.

The second child came along, and gradually, trips to the village reduced.

Inevitably, his ties with the village weakened further when his parents died.

"When I went back for my father's funeral, I urged my brother to return to Delhi with me as I needed an assistant," he said.

And so, the village receded even further from his mind. His visits became limited to the occasional wedding or funeral.

"This time, when I went back to attend our old neighbour's granddaughter's wedding, I realised it had been two years since I last visited," said he.

Much had changed.

"I had the strangest feeling that my childhood home had burnt and disappeared on my parents' funeral pyres," he said.

Hardly any of his family lived there now. Migration or death had claimed them all. It seemed to be full of strangers.

"Then I realised that from their perspective, perhaps there was only one stranger -- me..."

Accompanied by his citified son, he experienced the place of his youth through his eyes, and it seemed lifeless, poor and isolated.

So, as soon as the wedding festivities concluded, Babu Lal told his son, 'Let's go home.'

And he has been moody and depressed ever since.
If simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies are held in 2019, the Election Commission will require nearly 24 lakh electronic voting machines, double the number required to hold only the Parliamentary polls.

During their discussion with the Law Commission on May 16 on the issue of holding simultaneous polls, the EC officials had said they would need around Rs 4,500 crore to buy nearly 12 lakh additional electronic voting machines and an equal number voter-verifiable paper audit trail machines.

The estimate was based on the current cost to procure the devices, sources privy to the deliberations said.

In case simultaneous polls are held, two separate sets of EVMs and VVPAT machines will have to be placed in separate compartments for those contesting the Lok Sabha polls and the Assembly elections respectively.

There are nearly 10 lakh polling stations across the country. Since EVMs and paper-trail machines are deployed in every polling station, the requirement is for 10 lakh EVMs and an equal number of paper-trail machines. In addition, 20 per cent of the machines are kept in the reserve. That comes to two lakh. Therefore, to hold the Lok Sabha polls in 2019, the EC needs 12 lakh EVMs and an equal number of VVPAT machines, explained a functionary.

Thus, if simultaneous polls were held in 2019, the EC would require double the number of the EVMs, which was 24 lakh, he added.

The functionary said as of now, five polling personnel are deployed per polling station. For simultaneous polls, the poll panel believes seven personnel will be required per polling station.

Assuming that simultaneous polls were again held in 2024, the EC would need Rs 1,700 crore to replace some of the old EVMs, which would complete their 15-year life span by then, the sources said.

The Electronics Corporation of India Ltd and the Bharat Electronics Ltd, two public sector undertakings, manufacture the EVMs and VVPAT machines. They would have to work on an overdrive to provide the required number of devices in time, if simultaneous polls were held in 2019, they added.

Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat had a word of caution on simultaneous polls when he recently said the legal framework required for holding the elections together would take time to be readied.

We cannot put the cart before the horse. Logistical issues are subservient to the legal framework. Unless the legal framework is in place, we do not have to talk about anything else, because the legal framework will take a lot of time. Making constitutional amendments to (changing) the law -- the process will take time, he had said.

Rawat had said once the legal framework was ready, the EC would be out with its proposals.

The EC is a creation of the Constitution. We have to perform willy-nilly, deliver the election, whatever way prescribed in the law, he had said.
The death toll due to the Nipah rose to 13 in Kerala, with one more person succumbing to the deadly virus in Kozhikode on Sunday.

IMAGE: A child wears a safety mask as a precautionary measure after the Nipah virus outbreak, at Kozhikode Medical College, in Kerala. Photograph: PTI Photo

Twenty six-year-old Abin, hailing from Palazhi in the district, died at a private hospital after battling for life for one week, official sources said.

Kalyani, a septuagenarian woman who was undergoing treatment at the Government Medical College, died on Saturday.

After the outbreak of Nipah at a hamlet in Perambra last week, 16 people have tested positive, of whom 13 have died so far.

Health Minister K K Shylaja told reporters that the authorities had collected details of people who had direct contact with the deceased persons and all of them are now under observation.

However, the authorities are still clueless about the actual source of the spread of the virus.

As samples of insectivores bats tested negative for the virus, the Kerala Animal Husbandry Department and the Pune based National Virology Institute are jointly collecting samples of fruit-eating bats to be sent for expert tests.

The samples would be sent for tests at the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases in Bhopal, official sources said.

Meanwhile, Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said in Thiruvananthapuram that the government and the department would take the initiative to alleviate the concern among tourists and stakeholders following the outbreak of Nipah.

The effective steps taken by the government and the health department had helped contain further spread of the disease and the situation is under control now, he said in a meeting of the state Tourism Advisory Committee.

The outbreak of the Nipah virus infection, a newly emerging zoonosis that causes severe disease in both animals and humans, is suspected to be from an unused well in Perambra which was infested with bats.

The natural host of the virus is believed to be fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family, Pteropus genus.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.
GOTZIS (AUT, May 26): Nafi Thiam and Damian Warner have big overnight leads after impressive displays on the first day at the Hypomeeting Combined Events in Gotzis (IAAF CE Challenge). Boosted by a world lead and world record during a heptathlon of 2.01m in the high jump, Thiam amassed 4112 for a buffer of 112 over second-placed Erica Bougard. Thiam is 58 points up on her day one total from Gotzis last year when she set her Belgian record of 7013. As well as an outdoor PB of 15.29m in the shot, the Belgian Olympic champion had a solid 100m hurdles of 13.45 and 200m of 24.61m. American Bougard was also on form with a 12.80 hurdles PB, big shot best of 13.02m and near-PB 200m of 23.31. Cuba's Yorgelis Rodriguez lies third with 3950. Germany's world silver medallist Carolin Schafer had all fouls in the shot and did not continue. In the decathlon, a 10.31 100m, 7.81m long jump, 14.83m shot, 2.03m high jump and 47.72m put Canadian Warner also on course to defend his title with 4565 points. Germany's world bronze medallist Kai Kazmirek is 218 points adrift as his 47.27 400m was the best of the day. Estonia's Maicel Uibo is third on 4295, thanks in part to a 2.12m high jump.
A six-month pregnant woman was allegedly gang-raped by an autorickshaw driver and his two accomplices in Manesar here, police said on Saturday.

The victim, 23, approached the police four days after she was victimised.



"A case under Section 376D (gang rape) and other sections of the Indian Penal Code was registered at Women Police Station, Manesar, against unknown autorickshaw driver and others," a senior police officer told IANS.



The police said the victim, who hails from Bihar, had been residing in Manesar area with her husband and two-and-half-year-old son.



The victim was employed at a vehicle showroom in Manesar.





On May 21, when the incident took place, the woman had visited the ESI Hospital in Sector 3 of Manesar for a routine checkup of her pregnancy with her husband on his bicycle.



"While returning, she complained to her husband that she was not comfortable on bicycle. Victim's husband asked her to take shared autorickshaw to reach their rented house in the nearby village. But she did not reach home for hours until very late," said the officer.



Later, the victim was found in a semi-conscious condition in Sector 6 of Manesar.



"The victim reached the Women Police Station on Friday evening with her husband after she developed some complications in her pregnancy. A case was registered after her medical examination. Doctors, however, said the foetus is stable," the officer added.



The victim told the police that the accused gave her a glass of water, after drinking which she fell unconscious.



"I can recall that they were three. But I don't know the place they took me to," she said in her complaint.
What we feared would happen one day in this country is unfolding before our very eyes.

With Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaois administration acquiring such political power over the years turning Parliament into a one-party state, they perhaps thought they are so powerful no one would ever dare to question their decision-making, let alone stand up to them.

Well that was until this week when the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa, the biggest denomination in the country, flatly rejected the law requiring Church Ministers to pay taxes on their alofa (offering received by Pastors).

What that has led to is an unprecedented stand off between the State and Government where both parties are eyeballing each other to see who blinks first.

From an outside perspective looking in, this is great fun, especially in a country that recently declared itself an official Christian state. And here we have two of the most powerful institutions on the land taking on each other like weve never seen before. Who is the genius who warned that the state and the church do not mix? Didnt somebody tell them to separate politics and church matters?

Now here is the concern. When two blades of steel clash, sparks fly in all directions. Thats exactly what is happening in this case. We dont need to be reminded about Samoas loyalty to their God and churches. The worry is that this confrontation is growing nasty and as sparks fly in all directions, we hope theres no fuel leakage close by that could lead to an eruption causing irreparable damage.

Since the law to tax the Head of State and Church Ministers became effective in January, the E.F.K.S. had refused to obey. They said they wanted to wait until their Fonotele this year to discuss the matter.

While they were meeting, Prime Minister Tuilaepa issued a clear warning.

You will answer individually to the law, he said. The law does not target the Church, rather it targets the Church Ministers individually. This law is the same as the law governing murder; once you violate that law, you alone will be criminally charged. And if you conspire with someone else to murder another, youll be charged as well.

Thats when he referred to convicted Cabinet Ministers, Toi Aukuso and Leafa Vitale who were jailed for conspiring to murder another H.R.P.P. Cabinet Minister, the late Luagalau Levaula Kamu.

Tuilaepa said everyone who conspires to reject the law would be dealt with.

They conspired (to murder) and then Toi refused to be a part of the plan but Leafa continued with the plan, Tuilaepa said.

That is the defense that Toi exploited to clear his name, but Toi should have reported this matter to the Police but he didnt and that was why he was charged. That is the same principal that is applied in this matter (of the taxes).

The culprit and the conspirator will face the same charges meaning if the Secretary of the Church is the one who is giving the wrong advice to the elders of the Church, it means the Secretarys actions are a factor.

So what is Tuilaepa saying? That all members of the church who discussed and supported the rejection of the tax law should be charged and hauled to jail? Thousands of them too? What a scenario that would be?

In any case, Tuilaepa pointed out that all other churches are supportive of the law unlike the E.F.K.S.

Have you ever heard of other churches elaborating about this issue in their conferences? All the other churches, aside from this denomination (C.C.C.S.), once they were informed, they agreed noting this is a must because even the Bible says to pay taxes.

Well thats not what the E.F.K.S. believes. Which is what the General Secretary, Reverend Vavatau Taufao highlighted when he confirmed the Churchs rejection of the tax law.

There is no teaching by Jesus that points to the taxing of Church Ministers, he said, adding that Jesus teachings is clear, what belongs to God, give it to him.

Asked to elaborate, he said: The common belief among church members of their alofa to the Faifeau, is that they give freely with the notion this is their way expressing of their love for God. That is why they give and more reasons why they do not want the Church Ministers to pay taxes.

Obviously Tuilaepa and Rev. Vavatau are not reading the same Bible.

Still, Rev. Vavatau said it is the right decision.

For me personally, I am very proud of my church, they stand by their faith and I am very proud of that, he said, this time fighting back tears. I am proud of my Church. We cant compromise the Gospel to satisfy human necessities.

How serious was he? Serious enough that hes ready to face the consequences that Tuilaepa had warned about.

For the Church, I hope they are ready, but for me personally, I am ready to face the consequences. I cannot speak for the Church Ministers but considering the response of the Fonotele, they are ready to face the consequences.

Now lets pause here for a minute and picture this. Can you imagine Prime Minister Tuilaepa sending in Police officers to arrest all those disobedient E.F.K.S. Ministers? What will church members do? They are unlikely to be happy to just sit around. And what about Police officers who are also members of the E.F.K.S. church? Will they be daring enough to arrest their own spiritual parents?

This is where this dispute is heading unless a solution is found soon.

The good news is that according to Rev. Vavatau, the Church is seeking an opportunity to meet with Prime Minister Tuilaepa. What happens at that meeting will determine the next development in this mighty mess.

As we head to church on this Sunday, lets pray that both parties come to their senses and end this fracas once and for all.

What we need to keep reminding ourselves is that problems are not solved by confrontation, but through mutual respect, humility and the humbling practice called dialogue. Since we know that confrontation will only aggravate and destroy, its important for us all to learn to forgive, forget and ask what would Jesus Christ do in this situation? Isnt that why we are called Christians?

Have a restful Sunday Samoa, God bless!
Dear Editor,

If there is one good thing about a one party state, it is that it has the political muscle to deal with institutions and individuals who are so used to privilege and special treatment that they think they are above the law.

So I for one fully applaud government taking on the E.F.K.S. church and its, haughty and misguided pastors who think they dont have to pay taxes like everyone else. Samoa may have lost its democratic bearings under 30 years of H.R.P.P. stewardship. But as we say in times like these, e sau pea malama there is light at the end of the tunnel, every cloud has a silver lining

A democratic Samoa may have to wait for the next lot of leaders to emerge and the next lot of voters, better versed hopefully in the values, the benefits and mechanics of democratic government.

But we see hopeful signs today with the proposed changes of electoral boundaries in line with democratic principles of equal representation rather than according to historical and traditional divisions.

One also sees a willingness to tackle some of our sacred cows, mostly aspects of the unholy alliance between church and culture that are the very opposite of the light yoke Jesus promised his followers, and a drag on the nations development and progress.

But back to the E.F.K.S. pastors and not paying taxes. In Fridays Samoa Observer, the Prime Minister criticized the General Secretary of the E.F.K.S. church for not explaining the law to the E.F.K.S. church leaders and pastors. I suspect that as an employee, the General Secretary has little say in the matter.

But a lesson in equity and fairness, the theme of governments current budget would have been a good start. Equity and fairness are values that emanate from God himself, and in the matter of taxes, its about every Samoan irrespective of position or status contributing to the countrys development by way of paying taxes in accordance with their ability to pay.

Government uses the revenue from such taxes to provide services like education for all, and affordable health services for all. Protection under the law for all.

An improved standard of living for all. Samoa has seen major improvements in these services in recent times, but much more needs doing. Many of the services we enjoy today are made possible by the taxes of other people overseas, many of whom if not the majority dont go to church every Sunday or proclaim from the coconut tree tops at every opportunity as we do, that they are Christians.

But one would have thought that when it comes to putting the Godly principles of equity and fairness into practice, the pastors, Gods self-proclaimed Gods representatives on earth would be the first to pay up. But not our increasingly mercenary and privilege loving Samoan church ministers.

Which poses the question; what exactly is the God they claim to represent? The God of money, of privilege and of position, or the God who said it is not those who say Lord, Lord, but those who do the will of my Father that enter the Kingdom of God

The Bible is clear about the duty of all Christians to perform their civic obligations as good citizens, to obey the law of the land, and to be subject to the God ordained institution of government as the apostle Paul wrote (Romans 130 And however it is argued, the E.F.K.S. refusal to pay taxes is contrary to Gods will as given in His Word.

The privileged position the E.F.K.S. church seeks to continue is based on pagan Samoas social elevation of religion and its practitioners (the Taulaitu) before the liberating light of the Gospel arrived. It is an elevation that is based on superstition and fear which has continued, in spite of the skin deep appearance of Christianity today.

Perhaps in time and with Gods grace, the Gospel message will result in true Christian conversion. In the meantime, we have blindly continued this elevation and privilege for the church in Samoa, which now puts the EFKS church on a collision course with Government and with the rule of law.

Jesus himself had to deal with such church leaders and a similar situation in his time. Knowledge of Gods will and character had been grossly perverted by Jewish tradition and culture, taught and perpetrated by church leaders.

And we know from Scripture (Mathew 23) that Jesus did not mince words when it was time to expose the hypocrisy, the greed, the love of praise and position, and the lawless behavior of these self-styled Gods representatives. Sadly, its a situation that has much in common with our very own Samoan form of Christianity today.

Reports that some of the church ministers have come forward themselves and started the process of paying their taxes is joyful reassurance that Jesus is welcomed and accepted in His church, if by a few only.

Perhaps in hind sight, the subject could have been handled more delicately by government knowing the pride and love of position in the church. But that is probably too much to expect given the authoritarian nature of power monopolies.

A monopoly on power is what we wanted and what we allowed to happen to our system of government. And as the saying goes, the people deserve the government they get. But we await with interest whether the rule of law prevails over privilege and self.

Sipili Tesi Lamina Fiafia

A Cheerful Taxpayer
The Governments decision to tax the Head of State and Church Ministers is the beginning of the downfall of Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sa'ilele Malielegaois administration.

The claim was made during the general debate at the Congregational Christian Church of Samoas (C.C.C.S.) General Assembly at Malua when the issue of taxation was raised.

The debate took place before the General Assembly took a vote on the issue, where they decided to reject the law.

The media was not allowed inside the General Assembly. But a recording of the debate obtained by the Sunday Samoan proves the extent of the churchs opposition to the law.

The governments decision to tax the Church Ministers will be the downfall of the current administration, one Senior Church Minister said.

When we stand together this will be their downfall, the taxing of Church Ministers. I speak out of love for the Head of State and I have a suggestion. We should look at the totality of the alofa (offering received by pastors) that is collected annually and from that amount, we should give a percentage to the Government."

If it comes up to half a million, then we pay the Government based on their percentage of the total amount of the alofa.

The Minister said the Church Ministers should never pay taxes.

Instead of Church Ministers paying taxes, we give them this amount, but we will not pay taxes, we will not abide by that law, he said.

The Minister added that he does not want this to be downfall of the Government but if Prime Minister Tuilaepa insists, then so be it.

Another member suggested that there should be a set amount of money the Church can pay to the Government.

We should not just talk about it, but take action and figure out how much we are willing to pay and negotiate with the Government."

This issue is one of the topics that are covered widely by the newspapers, radios and TV's and we should be considering putting this issue to rest, and that calls for negotiations.

He urged the Fonotele to negotiate with the Government on the matter.

But not everyone opposed the tax.

It is better in my view for the Church Ministers to pay their taxes rather than the Church to pay the Government, he said.

For me personally, it is better for the Church Ministers to pay their taxes because if we consider the suggestion, those funds will come from the Churchs money, yet what the Government is after is the Ministers alofa."

There is a big difference in the taulaga and the alofa and how these funds are spent.

One reminded the Fonotele has already made their decision on Monday to reject the taxation of Church Ministers and they should stick to it.

We should not change what we agreed on and the decision was made on Monday and if we change that, it wouldnt look good and also what does that say about the Fonotele not sticking to their decision, cautioned the member.

We have decided on Monday, stick to that decision, he said.

Another member urged the Fonotele to remain humble and be a peacemaker.

Leave it to the Elders Committee who will go and meet the Government to discuss the subject at hand, while we will pray that all will go well and that the final decisions will benefit everyone.
Police have arrested two men in connection with the brutal death of a 53-year-old man from Vailele.

This was confirmed by Police Superintendent and Media Spokesperson, Auapaau Logoitino Filipo.

He said two men have been charged with first degree murder.

According to the statement issued by the Police on the matter, the deceased suffered severe injuries to the head which led to his death.

Police reports say the accused had consumed alcohol during the day and in the evening there was a disagreement which led to his injuries.

Auapaau declined to comment as to what is the personal connection between the deceased and the murder defendants.

However, Police officers who are not allowed to talk to the media stated the accused is the deceaseds step son and brother-in-law.

Furthermore, the Police officers told the Sunday Samoan the deceased had allegedly assaulted his wife.

The step son and his uncle tried to stop the deceased from assaulting his wife, thats when its alleged that he was struck on the head with an object, said the Police.

As first reported earlier this week, the neighbour told the Sunday Samoan that the deceased was consuming alcohol earlier in the day and was found in the evening with severe injuries to his head.

He was making unreasonable noise because he was overly intoxicated and was later found unconscious in the back of his house with severe injuries to his head."

Unfortunately, the man died on his way to the hospital.
A kidney specialist from India has emphasised that more education is needed around encouraging Samoans to be more open towards donating their kidneys.

In the event that your loved one may need a kidney transplant, Dr. D. Vijaya Rajakumari, from the visiting Apollo hospitals group, spoke passionately about looking at solid organ donating as a gift of life.

She explained people will need renal replacement therapy when they reach five stages of kidney failure. You could either use the abdomen as the dialysis area or do chemo dialysis, which is something that we have already achieved in Samoa.

The third option, she explained, is kidney donating which is something she strongly supports that we educate our people about.

The other way, which is something I expect the media to educate the public on is that kidney donating is safe. People who donate can go on to make babies, can go back to work and live a normal life, so that is a message that I want to give to the community that it is OK to donate a kidney and live normal.

She acknowledged that for Pacific peoples, it is very rare to see this practice and it is mainly because of the lack of information.

Every country is different, if you look from a Christian point of view, love your neighbour as you do yourself, she said. Its more than your neighbour, its your whole family and its not easy but it comes as a sacrifice."

If you have one normal functioning kidney that is enough to live life and we only take one kidney if they are fit, we dont want to create two sick people at the end of it. Its a gift of life."

You have to remember, people cant be killed in this. Its a hype thats been created by the media. The heart is one organ where we take from a brain dead donor. There are two kinds of death, one where the heart stops first and one when the brain stops first.

Dr. Rajakumari explained why she supports awareness about solid organ donating saying that if there is a chance to take our people off the machines and enable them to live productive normal lives, then we should seriously consider organ donating.

When I looked around the national kidney foundation, I just realised that there are 109 kidney failure patients who are being taken care of with dialysis of the sector by the Government, she said.

That is a major achievement that the Samoa Government has done so when you have these patients now, do we just leave them on dialysis? Or what is the way forward?

The ages vary from 25 years to 75-80 years old in the system of 109 patients on dialysis. If you look at it, there is a group that is the productive age which is stuck on the machines so we need to take them off the machines so they can go back and work effectively at a quality life without being tied on to the machine."

As we develop the system, everyone has to develop the system as we transfer technology so that is what we are looking at. We need all the help to get people to come forward to donate.

Looking ahead to the future of Samoas healthcare services, the kidney transplant specialist says they are committed to working towards training our local surgeons to be able to do the procedure on island.

Thats what we are looking at. We plan to do access procedures here in training the local surgeons who can do it instead of patients travelling out of the country to the neighbouring countries to get the procedure done. So that is one commitment that we do have.

According to Dr. Rajakumari, Apollo Hospitals Groups has the record for the worlds largest series of kidney transplants. In the last six years, they have also been the biggest solid organ transplant group in terms of kidneys, livers, heart, lungs put together and she mentioned that they have invited the medical faculty here to come to India to spend three-six months fellowship training with their group.

At some stage in the next four-five years, we want to make Samoa the capital of kidney transplant for the Pacific region, she said.

Instead of coming all the way to India, they can come to Samoa and have a transplant.
Samoa Ava standard was launched in a ceremony at the Tanoa Tusitala Hotel on Friday evening.

Members of the diplomatic corps as well as representatives from the World Health Organisation (W.H.O.), Food and Agriculture Organisation(F.A.O.), Pacific Horticultural and Agricultural Market Access Programme Fiji (P.H.A.M.A) and members of the farming business community were present.

Minister of Commerce, Industry and Labour, Lautafi Fio Purcell thanked all those who had contributed their efforts and time during the development process of the Ava documents.

In our Samoan culture, ava plays a significant role in ceremonies and social way of life of faasamoa. Tonight (Friday) we are here to launch our first Samoa Ava Standards having been developed through a consultative process with the Samoa National Codex Committee and stakeholders in both Upolu and Savaii.

Lautafi said the standard was initiated by the Samoa Association of Manufacturers and Exporters (S.A.M.E.).

He added it was coordinated and facilitated by the Samoa National Codex Committee in order to enable Samoas ava producers and suppliers to produce high quality ava for the benefit of customers.

Its main aims were to maintain ava quality by adhering to good hygiene standards, meet safety standards and to be locally and international renowned and recognised as a quality product.

The traditional preparation of the ava involves the extraction of ava roots and/or rhizome with fresh water and consumed fresh, which is facilitated through the standard, said Lautafi.

The standard was developed to align the quality standards and activities to support the implementation and enforcement of those standards among ava growers in the Pacific.

The launch of the ava standards is a significant milestone at the end of the recent events that led to the banning of ava exports from Samoa and the Pacific.

Lautafi urged producers, farmers, and exporters to ensure compliance with the standard to increase exports of ava to overseas markets, which will enhance economic growth, employment creation and revenue generation for Samoa.

The Minister of M.C.I.L. concluded by commending all the stakeholders and particularly the assistance and support of both the Australia and New Zealand funded acific Horticultural and Agricultural Market Access programme (P.H.A.M.A.).

The evening concluded with an ava ceremony.
Fogaa Tavita, 26, of Safaatoa Lefaga has called on the Samoan Government to lower the cost of living.

Speaking to the Village Voice team on his way home after work, Fogaa said the money he makes is never enough because everything is absurdly expensive.

Fogaa works during the week and only visits his family on the weekend.

I am heading home for the weekend and I know for a fact this is the only time they will get to eat good food, is on the weekend, when I get my salary.

Aside from the food and everything else increasing significantly, nowadays, family obligations are another avenue that is milking all the money.

I think for my family during the weekdays they are just having a cup of tea in the evenings maybe with some taros, while the money to goes to everything else.

Then there are church obligations.

Fogaa again reiterated on the cost of living.

The cost of living keeps on getting higher and higher and before we know it, there will be more things that we cannot afford anymore.

There are too many changes and the truth is most of those changes come with a rising cost.

And its a very high cost at that and I just want to ask the government to please help out our people by providing a solution for the expensive cost of living.

According to Fogaa, it appears the Chinese shops are one way the Government has addressed the high cost of living.

But then most of what is sold at these Chinese shops, you really cant read the text, because its in a foreign language, these are some of the issues that we encounter with these Asian shops.

Another thing is, they sell expired canned food and if we are careful, we just consume, said Fogaa.

And you know nowadays money is everything here in Samoa, and thats the truth.

Even though we have three people working, but I tell you that when a family obligation like funeral occus at the same time with the kids school fees deadline, things will not be the same.

Money is needed for so much stuff, paying the bills, family obligations, supporting church as well as village councils items, he said.
Think a minuteImagine this rich, successful young man. Hes well educated and owns a big, beautiful house. He lives and travels first class! Yet even with all his success he still goes to church and is a humble, good person. Of course, hes not perfect.

But hes definitely no murderer. Adultery? Nothing any red-blooded boy wouldnt do once in a while. Stealing? Only a little cheating like everyone else does to survive. Honors his father and mother? Definitely. He sends money home all the time.

Sounds like a good person doesnt he? But do you know what Jesus Christ said to a young man like the one we just talked about? Jesus saw right through this nice, church-going young man. Jesus knew that this man really loved his good life and religious reputation more than he loved Jesus.

Yet this man thought he was a Christian and right with God just because he went to church, and was kind to other people. But Jesus said hes not even close! Harsh words, arent they?

Jesus taught that there is absolutely nothing that any person can do, whether its going to church or giving money to the poor, that is good enough to reach Gods standard of perfect goodness from the heart.

You see, if God can forgive and accept me into heaven just because Im a good person, then Jesus was either a crazy lunatic, or a liar! Because Jesus Himself said that He, God the Son, He had to die and give His own perfect life to pay the penalty for all our wrongs, so He could forgive us and make us His children.

So friend, just going to church cannot save you and me. Giving money to the poor cannot earn us Gods gift of forgiveness and new life. There is nothing or no one in this world who can make us good enough and acceptable to our perfect Creatoronly God the Son Himself.

Jesus alone can forgive and save you and me from judgment and hell forever for living our own way, even if were religious. Thats why Jesus is our only hope! But after weve asked Him to forgive us and take full charge of our life in a daily personal relationship.

Its then because Hes already forgiven and saved us, well only want to spend the rest of our life growing and learning in His family, the church, how to live His right successful way every day. Just Think a Minute
Savaii residents heading to the wharf to board the Lady Samoa were stuck in traffic as the road was blocked between Salelologa and Salelavalu this morning.

According to reports out of Savaii; men between Salelologa blocked the road near Salelavalu.

Rocks were reportedly thrown.

Its been reported that while other vehicles were damaged; others were stopped and searched.

Videos posted online indicate that Church Ministers attempted to calm the situation between the villages.

Police have been called.

Efforts to get official comments as to what action have been taken by the Police have been unsuccessful.
When sewage spills from Tijuana close the South Bay shoreline, Jesse Ramirez cant sell wet suits or rent out surfboards.

As the owner of the Surf Hut in downtown Imperial Beach, Ramirez can only watch as foot traffic and sales decline. But he doesnt stress too much. Ramirez learned early on the importance of budgeting for beach closures.

We have a little sewer day fund, Ramirez said. Over many years, weve learned to put a safety net so when it does happen, were ready.

When the beach is closed, Ramirez said, sales drop by more than 50 percent, a death knell for some businesses. Its already slow in the winter time, he said. Then the spills come in, they close the beach and its even slower. Ive seen a lot of (businesses) pack up and leave.

Advertisement

Sewage spills are as much a part of life in the South Bay as are the surfers who ride the southerly swells. Ramirez has weathered the environmental hardships better than others over the 30 years hes been in business, in large measure because hes built a loyal following and a welcoming atmosphere.

The Surf Hut appeals to tourists and locals. The store on Seacoast Drive carries everything from sun screen and beach toys to skateboard and watches.

Ramirez speaks to customers in an upbeat tone typical of Southern California surfers that makes strangers feel like close friends.

Walking into the store feels like walking into a friends garage. Customers bring their dogs, who say hello to Ramirezs golden retriever who likes to sit behind the checkout desk.

Having been in Imperial Beach three decades, some of Ramirezs first customers now walk into the store with their grandchildren. Last week, a longtime customer stopped by and mentioned he got a new car. Ramirez was so stoked he left the store for a few minutes to check out the new ride.

His dog watched the store from behind the desk.

It was a nice distraction from the decades-long pollution problem that has defied resolution.

Last year, after more than 250 gallons of sewage spilled into the Pacific Ocean from the Tijuana River, water pollution in Imperial Beach became an international news story.

Imperial Beach, Chula Vista and the Port of San Diego filed a joint lawsuit against the federal government claiming the feds failed to control sewage, industrial waste, trash, and pesticides from flowing into the Pacific Ocean.

The legal battle gained more traction last month when Californias Attorney General and the Surfrider Foundations San Diego Chapter filed similar plans to sue the federal government over alleged violations of the Clean Water Act.

Although the spills have come to the forefront in the last few years, water pollution has been part of Imperial Beach life for generations, particularly for the local surf community.

Everybody I know has gotten sick, said Jeff Knox, 68, a local surfer who taught his son to ride a board when he was four. I dont know of anybody who hasnt and these are the guys who are very careful.

Knox, who has lived and surfed in Imperial Beach for decades, has seen ear infections, skin rashes, stomach viruses and even hepatitis. His son, Joe, got hepatitis and strep throat in 2012 from swallowing a little bit of water while surfing the Tijuana Slough  a popular big-wave surf spot south of Imperial Beach near the mouth of the Tijuana River.

Knox surfed alongside his son that warm and sunny day. They didnt realize anything was wrong until after their surf session.

It really feels like youre going to die, said Joe Knox, 36. It hit me about 10 hours later, in the middle of eating; it felt like all of the blood was draining from my head.

Knox was hospitalized, recovered, and still surfs in Imperial Beach. Like most Imperial Beach surfers, Knox takes a few precautions before getting in the water. Hell check the countys water quality and check the Tijuana Rivers flow online.

Hes also learned to read the ocean for signs of pollution such as discoloration along the waters surface, the consistency and color of the seafoam, and strange smells mixed into the ocean breeze.

Aside from health risks, water pollution disrupts daily life in Imperial Beach.

The citys surf community is mainly made up of working-class families who have lived in Imperial Beach for generations. Grandparents surf with grandchildren and construction workers get leads on new projects in-between catching waves.

Beach closures eliminate those interactions.

It sort of eviscerates the fabric of our community and its not just surfing; its friendships and people, says the citys mayor, Serge Dedina, who worked as a lifeguard in Imperial Beach and the Silver Strand to put himself through college. A lot of guys like me, thats our social life. All of a sudden thats gone and then months later you miss everyone.

It will take years and millions of dollars to keep sewage from spilling into the Pacific Ocean near Imperial Beach.

Some dont plan to wait. Several of Ramirezs customers at the Surf Hut have sold their houses and moved north. The ones who have money and can afford a place near the coast will end up moving to coastal communities and keep that beach lifestyle without worrying about the pollution.

But most surfers stay. Partly because its too expensive to move anywhere else along the coast, but mostly because theyre loyal to Imperial Beach, he says.

I think those guys have pretty much built a really good immune system, Ramirez joked. Theyre glowing at night, but they dont get affected by it.

Contact Gustavo Solis via Email or Twitter
A Utah man who was imprisoned in Venezuela amid deteriorating ties between the United States and Venezuela and languished for nearly two years in a Caracas jail was released Saturday.

The family of Joshua Holt, 26, announced his release in a statement, and President Trump later confirmed it on Twitter, though the president referred incorrectly to Holt as a hostage.

Good news about the release of the American hostage from Venezuela, Trump wrote, adding that the man and his family were expected Saturday evening in Washington for a ceremony at the White House.

The great people of Utah will be very happy! Trump added.

Advertisement

Holt appeared with Trump at the White House on Saturday night after he was flown out of Venezuela, accompanied on the flight by Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn). Trump said Holt was one 17 Americans held overseas who have been freed under his administration.

Holt said, Im just overwhelmed with gratitude for everything you guys have done. His mother, Laurie Holt, also at the White House ceremony, added thanks for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for finally releasing her son.

Trump thanked four congress members who joined the group in the Oval Office, who thanked him in turn.

Holts wife, Thamara Candelo, who is Venezuelan, had also been detained with Holt when he traveled to Venezuela for their wedding. The Mormon missionary and his new wife had planned to spend the summer of 2016 in Caracas while awaiting U.S. visas for Candelo and her children. He was arrested on weapons charges but never tried.

Laurie Holt said her son suffered respiratory problems, kidney stones and other ailments while in jail and lost considerable weight. During his White House visit, Holt had changed into a suit and tie and appeared in good health, if tired.

Holts relatives had pressed his case insistently, and although U.S. officials initially kept a low profile, they eventually became more vocal in demanding his release. But talks with the socialist Venezuelan government were complicated by diplomatic tensions and Venezuelas deepening social and economic crisis.

Holt was freed just weeks after he made a chilling, clandestine video begging for help and saying his life was in danger because of deadly riots and fires in several Venezuelan prisons.

Also advocating for Holt was Corker, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, who traveled to Caracas and met with Maduro on Friday.

Just days earlier, Maduro had expelled the top two U.S. diplomats in Venezuela, accusing them of plotting to sabotage last Sundays presidential election. Maduro blames much of the humanitarian disaster gripping his once oil-rich nation on foreign interference.

Maduro won the election handily. The United States and several Latin American countries condemned the election as a sham because most of Maduros key opponents were jailed and his loyalists control most of the press, the courts and all the major government institutions that oversee elections.

One of the diplomats expelled was the charge daffaires, Todd Robinson, who after the prison unrest this month went to the Foreign Ministry to demand officials give him information on Holts condition. They refused to see him, Robinson said at the time.

Washington and Caracas have not exchanged ambassadors since 2010, making Robinson the most senior U.S. official there. The Trump and Obama administrations have imposed numerous economic sanctions on the Maduro government, accusing many senior officials of enriching themselves through drug trafficking and money laundering.

However, there have been intermittent efforts over the last several years to reduce tensions between the two countries and find ways for peaceful political changes in Venezuela. In addition, at least as long ago as March, back-channel talks had opened between U.S. congressional advisors and Venezuelan officials to discuss, among other issues, freeing Holt.

On May 17, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert again demanded Holts release and said the administration held the Maduro government responsible for Holts safety. Francisco Palmieri, acting assistant secretary of State for Western Hemisphere affairs, conveyed a similar message to Venezuelan officials in Washington.

What changed Maduros mind now is unclear. He may be hoping for relief from some of the sanctions, or an easing of diplomatic isolation. Neither is likely to be forthcoming, however.

Laurie Holt and U.S. officials insisted all along that Joshua Holt and his wife were innocent, perhaps victims of the intense suspicion with which many Venezuelan officials regard Americans.

UPDATES:

9:25 p.m.: This article was updated with Joshua Holts visit to the White House.

This article was originally published at 11:20 a.m.
As an artist, Maidy Morhous realized she needed to take a break from using the human form in her sculptures. She needed to do something different, and that difference can be seen in her solo exhibition, Ordinary Stuff, at the Oceanside Museum of Art, opening June 30.

To be an artist is to experiment, she says. Without experimentation, an artist does not grow, they stagnate with a technique that has become comfortable. I believe my break from the human form was a nature break, or protest, from what everyone typically thinks is sculpture. What comes to mind when you think of sculpture? Michelangelo? Rodin? A natural direction to express political and social commentary was to incorporate inanimate objects.

A printmaker and a sculptor, shes studied her craft in France and Italy before returning to the United States where, over the years, her work has been selected for both private and public collections, publications, fairs and exhibitions.

Morhous, 67, lives in Del Mar with her husband and they have two children. She took some time to talk about sculpting exclusively in bronze, the social and political commentary she makes through her work, and her desire to establish herself as an artists artist.

Advertisement

Q: When and how did you know you wanted to pursue art professionally?

A: As a small child, I drew and created clay objects with my mother, who studied painting at the Art Students League in New York. In college, I chose to study the arts with the idea of teaching at the college level, but upon graduating, found few jobs available in California. Thus, I pursued selling and was able to support myself through my artwork.

Q: And why sculpture, as opposed to painting or photography?

A: Actually, I graduated in printmaking and sculpture, two diametrically opposed disciplines as one is two-dimensional and the other three-dimensional. That slowly morphed over the years solely into sculpture. Today, I am pursuing oil painting and love the speed at which a painting is completed, compared to bronze sculpting, which takes between two to three months to mold and cast by the foundry after Ive completed sculpting.

Q: You work exclusively in bronze? Why?

A: My background while studying in Florence, Italy, with the Ferdinando Marinelli Artistic Foundry, and in college, was totally in bronze. The Marinelli foundry is one of the largest and oldest foundries in Italy that practices the lost-wax method of casting. I am fascinated with how bronze, a cold, hard metal, could take on such a soft, sensuous appearance. Ive since worked exclusively with bronze as a form of creative expression.

Q: What are the challenges of working with this metal?

A: Through trial and error, one learns what techniques produce the result one is trying to express, but one of the challenges is creating a strong armature, which is the inner structure that allows the artist to sculpt large pieces. If the armature is weak, the piece can suddenly collapse after maybe a week or a month of sculpting. An armature can be made of metal, wood, or anything that will support the weight of an appendage. Another challenge is the weight  large pieces are very heavy and require my son, friends or equipment to move. Creating a mold and casting the artwork is an art in itself, along with caustic fumes and dangerous, molten bronze. Over the years, this has had an impact on my lungs, so today, I deliver my sculpted pieces to a foundry for the experts to mold and cast.

Q: Youve spent years examining social critique, and political and social issues? Can you tell us about some examples of the ways youve done this through your work?

A: A series I completed five to eight years ago called Mirror Mirror is a social and political critique concerning issues such as mans judgement of others, based entirely upon first impressions. The resistance to the oppression of socially inscribed narratives, and socially dominating practice, is presented sublimely to the viewer and is open to interpretation. The human form is a perfect conduit to express this theme: Zip it is a female bronze torso with a zipper half zipped; or Hanging Out #1, #2, a paper-thin male torso hanging off of a clothes line, as if who we are is as interchangeable as clothes, and as paper thin as our skin.

What I love about Del Mar ...

Living next to the coast is heaven: the cool breezes, sunsets, and the continual change of the ocean are my Zen.

Q: And your latest direction in your work leaves out the human form? How long have you been on this particular path? And what led you here?

A:  My new direction that I have been pursuing for the past three years, devoid of the human form, adds a refreshing twist on commentary. Idiomatic titles like Dont kill the goose! and 3 second rule prompt the viewers to seek metaphorical interpretations to these works. These titles hint at multi-layered meanings. What you see is definitely not what you get, and naming sculptures is quite interesting in that it can guide or mislead the viewer in what the work is relating.

Q: Your exhibit Ordinary Stuff opens at the end of June at the Oceanside Museum of Art. What can you tell us about this exhibition?

A: I am very excited and honored to have been chosen to have a solo exhibition.  Ordinary Stuff is an exhibition of 13 bronze sculptures and examines the reintroduction of identifiable imagery as a critical or ironic comment on traditional fine art values. A celebration of common-day objects, while seeking to elevate popular culture to the level of fine art. The concept that there is no hierarchy of culture and that art may borrow from any source is presented coolly ambivalent. The artwork dates from 2015 to the present and will be grouped by political, social statements or just pieces to make the viewer smile.

Q: Whats been challenging about your work in this business over the years?

A: Establishing ones self as a true artists artist. Im not talking about the ability to sell, but the ability to be recognized by other artists, galleries and museums. When I first graduated in the arts and was working in Intaglio printmaking, I sold everything I created to a gallery in Beverly Hills that sold internationally to designers. This was commercial art and they dictated colors, size and imagery. I sold a lot of artwork, but it was very unrewarding not creating and expressing myself through my art. This is the reason I got back into creating without the concern of what I would sell. My art is not always pretty, but a personal expression of a strong emotion.

Q: What has your work taught you about yourself?

A: That I am a very creative person. Ive studied ballet, I play cello, and have always in some way been involved with the arts. The act of creating is an emotional release; it centers me, giving an inner peace which allows me to reflect not only on who I am, but how I think and feel. I realize now that the pride of being an artist comes not from what one sells, but the inner peace one derives from the act of creating.

Q: What is the best advice youve ever received?

A: To believe in myself and my abilities, and to not give up.

Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?

A: Im a recluse; I love to work all day in my studio alone and I have a real hard time attending art receptions! I also have a funny side and I dont always take myself seriously.

Q: Describe your ideal San Diego weekend.

A: To walk the beach or hike Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, breakfast along the coast, playing cello, and time spent in my studio either painting or sculpting.

Email: lisa.deaderick@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @lisadeaderick
The moment of truth for Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher and Nathan Fletcher is at hand.

The results of the June 5 primary may go a long way in determining whether the assemblywoman and county supervisor candidate have indeed become San Diegos power couple.

If Nathan Fletcher advances to a November runoff, hed be the favorite to win a seat on the board, likely becoming the only Democratic member. She continues on as chairwoman of the influential Assembly Appropriations Committee.

The race has pretty much been his to lose from the start, but the odds have tightened considerably since then.

Advertisement

A Fletcher loss next week would quash that political dynamic duo status, for a good while anyway. Following two mayoral campaign defeats, another loss would raise the broader issue of whether he could ever get elected to anything in San DIego again.

Theyve put their combined efforts into trying to make sure that doesnt happen with all-or-nothing fervor. Their fundraising through his campaign and the Democratic Party, along with independent expenditure committees, would seem outsized were it not for multiple campaigns aimed at denying Fletcher a spot on the November ballot.

She transferred a whopping $355,000 from her campaign to the local Democratic Party, which has spent more than $680,000 to get him elected, according to the Voice of San Diego. Thats rankled some opponents, who probably wouldnt mind that kind of support. In any case, the supervisor race arguably is the biggest local election priority for the party.

Critics say Gonzalez Fletcher has used tough tactics to help pull in support for Fletcher, including endorsments from the Democratic Party and the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council, among others. A more benign view is that shes built up considerable political capital and is expending it.

Gonzalez Fletcher doesnt apologize for any of it.

I believe in him as a person, she said.

But she also said shes doing it in the best interest of the constituents in her South County 80th Assembly District, which she described as working-class with large numbers of immigrants, resettled refugees and homeless.

My district is most affected by what the county does, she said.

One of the best ways to help her district, she said, is to fight for a supervisor who I know is most effective in getting resources for my district.

So shes trying to elect her husband to bring the goods to her district?

Absolutely! she said. If she believes a county candidate can deliver for her constituents, it doesnt matter if its my husband or anyone else for this seat. . .Im all in.

Not that Gonzalez Fletcher needs extra motivation, but its also become personal  about her. She said political groups, particularly those financed by Republicans, not only are trying to defeat Fletcher but thats their only way to get at me.

Gonzalez Fletcher has faced little or no opposition since she first won the Assembly seat in a 2013 special election. Some Republican leaders have considerable emnity toward her but theyre never likely to defeat her in an election.

She is tenacious in pursuing policies to benefit families, union workers, immigrants  including unauthorized immigrants  and the environment.

I think Im a target because people dont like upsetting the apple cart in San Diego, she said. . . .I didnt get into politics to be polite.

Before they were married, she supported Fletcher in his second bid for mayor, after the once-rising Repblican star-turned-independent had become a Democrat. That triggered disputes with labor officials  Gonzalez Fletcher had been a labor leader herself  and other Democrats who questioned whether Fletchers shifting political alliances and positions were based in opportunism.

He has worked successfully in recent years to build support within the Democratic Party and among allied groups, seeking to convince them that his transformation to a progressive is from the heart. He was just endorsed by former Vice President Joe Biden. But Gonzalez Fletchers roots in the party and orgaized labor are deep and were key to helping him win labor and Democratic backing he didnt have before.

At least a few Democrats have said he ultimately won them over because they figured she wouldnt marry someone who didnt share her values. The two exchanged vows on New Years Day 2017 at a quiet ceremony in Balboa Park.

While Fletcher tries to put his Republican days in the rearview mirror, political opponents  including some GOP groups, labor unions and Democrats  are determined not to let him outrun his past.

Countless mailers detail his Republican-leaning votes in the Assembly and 93 percent NRA rating in 2010. Not mentioned are his votes for anti-gun bills and other legislation in later years more reflective of his current stances. Other pieces remind voters of his spotty Assembly attendance record. This is all very familiar to those who followed his mayoral bids in 2012 and the 2013 special election.

Fletcher is trying to run as the Democratic choice. One problem is there are other Democrats in the race  former Assemblywoman Lori Saldana, attorney Omar Passons and retired Deputy Fire Chief Ken Malbrough  along with former District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis, a Republican.

Further, a new labor group is spending big to elect Saldana, as much by attacking Fletcher as promoting her. The Working Families Council was created last year by some unions that broke away from the Labor Council amid an ongoing feud. That dispute has been driving much of the dynamics in the supervisorial campaign.

The labor split and the likelihood of substantial campaign financing for Saldana werent on the radar when this race got started. But Fletcher and Fletcher Gonzalez are no strangers to the rough-and-tumble world of politics, both on the giving and receiving ends.

Still, if they can navigate all that and get through November, they may have earned that power couple status.

Tweet of the Week

Goes to The San Diego Union-Tribune (@sdut), for a post using a storys headline, which should win an award on its own.

Portable toilet executive sent to prison in illegal dumping scheme.
On his way to a doctors appointment, Steve Schneider sits at a bus stop in North Park on Tuesday afternoon surrounded by trendy coffee shops, tattoo parlors and mustachioed hipsters sipping craft beer.

The 68-year-old has lived in the neighborhood for 25 years, but in just the last four, hes seen his rent jumped from $850 to $1,275. As an epileptic on a fixed income, he cannot drive and has recently started to fear he may have to move and lose access to transit.

I get anxious about it, especially last year when my rent went up, and I thought What am I going to do? he said. Thats when I decided to get rid of my cell phone and go on the food stamps.

Schneiders situation could be part of an emerging new trend of bus and rail riders priced out of their communities by the very policies designed to boost transit ridership.

Advertisement

Lawmakers, academics and urban planners from Southern California to Sacramento have long called for building denser housing around transit stops. The idea is to design neighborhoods that encourage people to ditch their car commutes  simultaneously fighting climate change while trying to address the states historic housing crisis.

However, efforts to inspire construction along rail and bus lines, coupled with a severe shortage of housing, have brought opulent apartment buildings and condominiums into economically challenged neighborhoods. As young professionals flock to the new housing, moderate- to low-income tenants in urban areas from San Diego to Sacramento are now facing displacement.

Tenants rights groups, especially in Southern California, say the trend is already playing out in many communities with serious consequences.

The greatest risk is the places that are already showing signs of gentrification. Theres already value in those neighborhoods and the private market has seen. Miriam Zuk, director of the Urban Displacement Project at UC Berkeley

Youre seeing families pushed further from transit, said Laura Raymond, campaign director for Alliance for Community Transit in Los Angeles. Around the urban core, we still have a lot of low-income families living next to transit-rich areas. They dont have cars. When those areas are gentrifying, theyre moving out, and it becomes a lot more difficult to access their jobs.

In the last five years, there were about 400 multifamily buildings completed or under construction within a half mile of a transit stop in the metropolitan areas of San Diego, Los Angeles, Sacramento and the Bay Area, according to data from real estate tracker CoStar.

While the median family income in those neighborhoods was on average less than $64,000 a year, the average cost of a two-bedroom apartment was more than $3,500 a month, according to a San Diego Union-Tribune analysis of Census and CoStar data.

And about one in five of those projects are in areas where the median household income is less than $30,000, where the average rent on a two-bedroom apartment is still more than $3,300.

Concerns have become so pronounced, in fact, that academics have given the phenomenon a name: transit-induced gentrification.

Being within a half mile of a rail station, we did see higher rates of gentrification in those neighborhoods, said Miriam Zuk, director of the Urban Displacement Project at UC Berkeley, who has studied the phenomenon.

The greatest risk is the places that are already showing signs of gentrification, she added. Theres already value in those neighborhoods and the private market has seen that.

Zuk participated in a report prepared last year for the California Air Resources Board by UC Berkeley and UCLA that tracked demographic shifts around rail transportation in Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

The report found that transit proximity has a significant impact on the stability of the surrounding neighborhood, leading to increases in housing costs that change the composition of the area, including the loss of low-income households.

A San Diego Metropolitan Transit System bus travels along Market Street at 13th Street near the 13th and Market apartments in East Village, where rent for a two-bedroom apartment is more than 2,800 a month. (Howard Lipin / San Diego Union-Tribune )

Will building more housing solve the problem?

While the idea that rising housing costs are overhauling the face of many neighborhoods around the state and country, what to do about it, especially in transit-rich areas, has become a hot-button issue in California.

Experts agree that the states skyrocketing rents and home prices are largely the result of a massive housing deficit.

In the last decade, the state has added an average of roughly 80,000 new homes annually, far short of the roughly 180,000 needed every year to keep pace with growth, according to a recent report from the California Department of Housing and Community Development.

However, to actually lower the cost of housing, the state would need to add roughly 2.5 million new units by 2025, or roughly 357,000 a year, according to a recent analysis from the University of Southern California.

Perhaps not surprisingly, nobody seems quicker to point out the need for a massive infusion of new workforce housing than the construction industry.

You can demand transit-oriented development all day long, but its not going to house the people that need housing in those areas, said Borre Winckel, president and CEO of the Building Industry Association of San Diego County. Ive never seen this much demand for the middle market. Theres no parallel in history. This is very scary, uncharted territory, and people are not taking this seriously.

Coalitions of upwardly mobile professionals have formed in just the last year or so to demand lawmakers from city hall to Sacramento embrace policies to inspire new-home construction. These groups have embraced the notion that just dramatically increasing housing supply will bring down the price of homeownership as well as renting across all income levels.

Most notably the newly formed nonprofit California YIMBY  which stands for yes in my backyard, a play on the commonly used acronym NIMBY or not in my backyard  sponsored a bill in the state Legislature this year that would have bulldozed zoning requirements for density and parking up to a half mile from major transit stops all around the state.

Many academics supported the move enthusiastically.

Whats really contributing to gentrification is the lack of new housing being built in general regardless of location, said Ethan Elkind, director of the climate program at UC Berkeley School of Law. If you dont build new homes for these newcomers, theyre going to buy up existing homes and start gentrifying neighborhoods.

However, a recent effort by state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, to loosen zoning regulations and encourage more construction around transit ran into opposition, from homeowners to local elected officials to even tenants rights organizations.

Affluent communities have routinely expressed concerns about new housing bringing increased traffic and undermining local aesthetics. More recently, lower-income renters have started demanding policies to prevent renters from being shunted aside in the rush to build housing for middle-class families.

After garnering national attention, Wiener saw his proposal, SB 827, to preempt local zoning rules around transit abruptly killed in its first committee hearing.

The death blow came, somewhat surprisingly, with opposition from rights groups for low-income tenants, such as Strategic Actions for a Just Economy, known as SAJE.

My group really believe strongly in increased density along transit lines, said Executive Director Cynthia Strathmann. We just want to make sure that a big component of that is affordable.

From San Diego to Sacramento, local officials have paid lip service to the need for designing more walkable neighborhoods around transit to combat both climate change and the states historic housing crisis.

While Wiener and California YIMBY readily included a number of amendments at the behest of the fair-housing groups, it wasnt enough to win their support. Backers of the bill are expected to renew their efforts and attempt to build a broader coalition next year.

Transit riders such Richard Krukowski arent holding their breath. The 51-year-old survives on disability payments and lives in a studio apartment in San Diegos rapidly gentrifying East Village. He said hes looking for a cheaper place to live on the bus line, but hasnt had much luck.

Clearly everybodys concerned, he said of all his friends in the area, but pretty much everyone knows how its going to go. Youre not going to beat the developers and the big bucks.

Can government policies ensure affordable housing for all?

Campaigns to bring down the cost of housing are threatening to pit the middle-class residents against the renters.

Right now, a developer who includes affordable housing in a project can get bonuses through the state and local government. Incentives include everything from faster permitting to being able to construct more units within a single building to relaxed parking requirements.

However, many advocates would like to see lawmakers take a more heavy-handed approach, requiring projects around transit stops to include a designated number of affordable units, using what are known as inclusionary zoning ordinances.

Such policies can be effective but theyre not without their consequences, said Casey Dawkins, a researcher with the National Center for Smart Growth at the University of Maryland.

What tends to happen is you get affordable lower-income housing and you get more expensive unrestricted housing, and its harder to fill the middle and achieve moderate income affordability, he said.

Some neighborhoods would like to see such zoning restrictions aimed at middle-income residents as well.

Under pressure from local residents, the city of San Diego has repeatedly stalled on plans to allow for greater density around planned transit stations that will serve the Mid-Coast Trolley extension, which is under construction from downtown to University City. Such proposals have routinely drawn huge crowds of angry homeowners from Bay Park, Linda Vista and Clairemont.

Recently, however, neighborhood residents have shifted from outright opposition to higher-density development to ensuring that whatever gets built is affordable for working-class people in the immediate area.

What the community wants is workforce housing, and what the proposals are on the table from the land owners are luxury rentals with ocean views, said James LaMattery, spokesperson for a group called Raise the Balloon, formed to oppose a city proposal to raise the building height limit in Bay Ho from 30 feet to 60 feet. The city wants to rezone for more housing but they dont want to guarantee the appropriate housing.

LaMattery and others have suggested that developers who build workforce housing should get a break on inclusionary fees, which subsidized housing for the poor.

Therein lies the rub: In the decade or more it could take to erase Californias housing backlog, government policies aimed at controlling costs may result in winners and losers split along economic lines.

Lets be frank, theres sometimes a blindness from the YIMBY crowd about the interests of the low-income tenant community and communities of color, said Colin Parent, executive director of Circulate San Diego and member of a new local Democratic Party club YIMBY Democrats. It just doesnt occur to them that these displacement issues are big problems.

In the meantime, efforts to enact rent controls are popping up around the state. For example, in National City  where 70 percent of the population are tenants  a signature drive is underway to cap annual rent increases at 5 percent in the city.

Statewide, tenants rights advocates have spearheaded a repeal of a decades-old law known as the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which prohibits cities from imposing rent control on single-family homes, condominiums, as well as any apartment buildings built after 1995.

Supporters are closing in on the 550,000 signatures they need to qualify a measure for the November ballot.

Landlords and developers strongly oppose lifting the restrictions, saying that rent control will only exacerbate the housing crisis. Experts and even progressive economists have agreed.

It will absolutely interfere with new construction, and thats the biggest fear we have, said Debra Carlton, senior vice president of public affairs for the California Apartment Association. If you cant make that thing pencil its not going to happen in cities with strict rent control. Its a great way to slow development.

Carlton added that developers and even large corporate landlords arent making huge profits off the current situation.

Despite what people might think the margins are very slim, because of the cost of land, she said. Even those high-end towers have staff costs, attorney costs, not to mention what it cost to buy and build it.

Will affluent residents ever embrace public transit?

The overwhelming majority of transit riders are people of limited means.

In San Diego, for example, 84 percent of transit riders come from households that make less than $60,000 a year, according to data from the San Diego Association of Governments. And roughly 80 percent of riders are dependent on transit as their primary means of transportation.

A study in January from the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies found that ridership of public transportation in Southern California had dipped as car ownership, especially among lower-income residents, increased.

After working her full-time job at a local coffee house in North Park, Wendy Islas drives with her husband to their home in Mexico, where they moved to save on rent. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / San Diego Union-Tribune )

Wendy Islas, for example, moved with her husband to Rosarito in January to avoid the rising cost of rent in her La Mesa neighborhood. For her it made more sense to trade a bus commute to the North Park job where she works for a more than hour-long drive by car.

Were trying to save money to buy a house, but if we kept living in San Diego it would be impossible, said the 30-year-old San Diego native. Its tough right now because we have to wake up at the crack of dawn.

An improving economy and cheap gas likely fueled the trend in falling transit ridership. But even as prices at the pump rise, some fear displacement of transits core patrons will continue to exacerbate challenges for systems around the state.

Even some of transit-oriented developments biggest supporters have recognized the irony of the situation.

The real story is those people that move into the high-density areas take Uber and Lyft not buses, said architect-developer Jonathan Segal. Thats the irony.

Segal is no stranger to the changing dynamics of urban neighborhoods. He has built several critically lauded projects in North Park and Little Italy focused on invigorating street life.

He said that while newly arrived residents in these area may not be taking transit, hes not giving up on his vision, which he believes still encourages people to drive less.

Because its in a dense corridor, all the amenities come with that, like bars, coffee shops, the drycleaners, Segal said. So you dont have to drive to Fashion Valley to see a movie.

He might be right.

Findings from the Urban Displacement Project at UC Berkeley and UCLA have found no correlation between displacing transit riders and higher rates of overall driving in a region.

According to the report there is little evidence that (vehicle miles traveled) would be affected by displacement unless it is accompanied by a loss of population near transit.

The study found that lower-income residents drive less than more affluent households regardless of how close they are to transit, while higher-income residents tend to use their cars more infrequently the closer they are to a rail station.

Of course, that doesnt mean that those residents are commuting to work using bus or rail systems.

Transit-rich San Francisco is the exception, with slightly more people biking, walking and taking transit to work than driving, according to Census data. But in San Diego County, for example, 85 percent of workers 16 years and older still drive to their job.

Twitter: @jemersmith

Phone: (619) 293-2234

Email: joshua.smith@sduniontribune.com
Assembly District 76 stretches from Encinitas to Camp Pendleton, a sweeping swath of coastal North County that includes Oceanside, Carlsbad and Vista.

This ground has long been solidly Republican, but voter registration data show thats changing. In 2016, Republicans enjoyed a 7,165-registration advantage over Democrats, but today that margin is only 616, according to the San Diego County Registrar of Voters.

Despite this sudden shift in the ballot box power balance, Republican candidates still outnumber Democrats more than two-to-one in the upcoming 76th primary race.

As has been the case in many state-level races this spring, Republicans have sought to harness anger over the Legislatures recent gas tax hike and polarized feelings about the states sanctuary city laws. Democrats seek to draw support from those dissatisfied with a range of issues, such as health care and the environment, that come into play at the state and federal levels with the election of President Donald Trump.

Advertisement

Both sides are talking with potential voters about affordability, especially as it pertains to housing. Here, Democratic candidates generally see a greater role for government action while Republicans are focusing on overregulation and especially what they say is burdensome taxation.

This time around, the fight for the 76th Assembly District has no incumbent.

Three-term Assemblyman Rocky Chavez is campaigning to replace U.S. Rep. Darrell Issa in the 49th Congressional District, and he has endorsed Philip Phil Graham of Encinitas to be his replacement. The stepson of former California governor and U.S. Sen. Pete Wilson, Graham also nabbed the Republican Party of San Diego Countys endorsement and is leading the fundraising race with more than $200,000 in the bank as of April 21. Thats more than twice the amount in any other candidates coffers.

The Encinitas resident, who ran unsuccessfully for his local city council in 2016, said Tuesday that his stepfather instilled in him a desire to participate in the political process. He said his hopes are bigger than filling a single seat.

Im not going to be just a good tax fighter, but somebody whos going to help get Republicans elected, Graham said.

The Coast News published a story Monday, that indicated the San Diego County Sheriffs department is investigating an allegation that Graham forcibly kissed a Carlsbad woman at an Encinitas bar last week. He declined to discuss that story, but said in a short emailed statement: The allegation is completely false. This is dirty politics right before an election. We are fully cooperating and looking forward to putting this to rest.

Thomas Krouse, a Carlsbad financial consultant, is the only candidate in the race this year that has previous experience seeking the seat in November. He ran against Chavez in 2014 and 2016, pulling in more than 65,000 votes, and 40 percent of all ballots cast, in 2016. He said he epects that experience, and support he has already built among thousands of voters, to serve him well in the primary.

With a dozen years on the Encinitas City Council before losing his seat in 2012, Jerome Stocks has the most actual political experience of anyone in the 76th primary. Though hes been out of office for six years now, Stocks said he expects his experience working on regional projects such as the Sprinter light rail line and beach sand replenishment to serve him well among voters.

Having served on Encinitas-area school boards since 2008, Maureen Mo Muir has nearly as much local government experience and has done well in fundraising, with more than $70,000 available to be spent as of AprIL 21, according to campaign finance disclosures.

Tasha Boerner Horvath, an Encinitas City councilwoman and one of two Democrats in the race, had nearly $77,000 by the same date. She has what is surely the most interesting business among candidates, a tactile friendly boutique clothing line for children with sensory process disorders named after her daughter, Maya.

Elizabeth Warren, who started her career as a newspaper reporter in Indiana, has strong connections to national activist networks, becoming active in the national movement to stop the Trans-Pacific Partnership. She often cites the experience of losing the family home during the Great Recession in discussions about current housing policy.

Now on her second term as a Vista city councilmember, Amanda Rigby serves as her citys representative at the League of California Cities, traveling to Sacramento every other month to sit on the organizations Revenue & Taxation Policy Committee. She is, she adds, a big fan of Pete Wilson.

On AprIL 5, KOCT-TV conducted an candidate forum with Assembly District 76 candidates which can be viewed at: bit.ly/KOCTAD76 .

Video of another candidate forum hosted by MiraCosta College on May 2 is available at: bit.ly/MCCAD76.

The following short candidate profiles each include an answer to the following question: What is the most important issue facing District 76 voters over the next two years?

Tasha Boerner Horvath, 45, Encinitas (D)

(Courtesy of Tasha for Assembly )

Occupation: Encinitas City Councilmember/Businesswoman

Endorsements: Planned Parenthood Action Fund, Legislative Womens Caucus, San Diego County Young Democrats

Civic organizations: Leucadia, Encinitas and Cardiff mainstreet associations, Bike-Walk Encinitas

Education: Bachelors degree in political science, UC Berkeley; masters degree in international studies, Claremont Graduate University

Website: www.tasha4assembly.com

Answer: We have to address the urgent need for affordable housing and comprehensively address homelessness, so that our teachers, firefighters, seniors, millennials and hard-working families have a shot at living in the place they call home, as well as housing the talent that will help our local businesses thrive.

Maureen Mo Muir, Encinitas (R)

(Courtesy of Mo Muir for Assembly )

Occupation: Businesswoman/School Boardmember

Civic organizations: Kiwanis volunteer, friends of Encinitas County Library, Northview Homeowners Association

Endorsements: Deputy Sheriffs Association of San Diego, Supervisor Kristin Gaspar, Carlsbad Councilman Michael Schumacher

Education: Bachelors degree in political science, USD; masters degree in governance, CA School Board Assn.

Website: www.momuirforassembly.com

Answer: I believe affordability will be the most important issue. With a rising cost of living, rising taxes, and rising housing costs, its going to only get more expensive to live in California.

Philip Phil Graham, 50, Encinitas (R)

(Courtesy of Graham for Assembly )

Occupation: Educator, business management and marketing, National University

Civic organizations: Vice Commander, Sons of the American Legion Post 416, Founders Board  The Preuss School at UCSD

Endorsements: San Diego County Republican Party, The San Diego County Medical Association, Assemblyman Rocky Chavez

Education: Bachelors degree in business from USC, MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management

Website: www.grahamforassembly.com

Answer: The high taxes, onerous regulations, and wasteful spending on projects like the bullet train are making life almost completely unaffordable for millions of Californians. I will bring some financial common sense to Sacramento, so we get entrepreneurs and businesses to move to California rather than leave.

Thomas Krouse, 49, Carlsbad (R)

(Courtesy of Krouse for Assembly )

Occupation: Executive financial consultant

Civic organizations: Oceanside Charitable Foundation, North San Diego County NAACP, Republican Club of Ocean Hills

Endorsements: San Diego County Libertarian Party, Veterans Party of America, North County Conservatives

Education: BA in economics from Stanford University, MBA from USC

Website: www.KrouseForAssembly.com

Answer: Whether you call it the Swamp, Business-as-usual, Cronyism, or the two-party mafia, defeating the Establishment in Sacramento in order to make State Government accountable to the people is the most important goal before they raise taxes again and nonetheless bankrupt the state, default on pensions, leak nuclear waste on the beach, drive more businesses and jobs out of state, indoctrinate instead of educate the next generation, and further violate our Constitutional and inalienable rights.

Elizabeth Warren, Oceanside (D)

(Courtesy of Warren for Assembly )

Occupation: Journalist, Activist, Community Organizer

Civic organizations: None listed

Endorsements: MLK Democratic Club, Progressive Democrats of San Diego County, Americans for Democratic Action

Education: Bachelors degree in English (journalism concentration) from Indiana University, South Bend

Website: www.LizWarren4CA.com

Answer: Ive drawn a line in the sand on single-payer health care and our need to pass SB 562 -- or a new version of it to remove the profit motive so that every dollar Californians spend on health care actually GOES to health care.

Jerome Stocks, 61, Encinitas (R)

(Courtesy of Stocks for Assembly )

Occupation: Insurance brokerage owner

Civic organizations: American Legion Post 416

Endorsements: Former Congressman Brian Bilbray, Carlsbad Mayor Matt Hall, Escondido City Councilman Ed Gallo

Education: BA, organizational leadership

Website: stocksforassembly.com

Answer: Traffic congestion relief, improved and sustained prosperity and preserving our beaches.

Amanda Rigby, Vista (R)

(Courtesy of Rigby for Assembly )

Occupation: Certified paralegal, Vista city council member

Civic organizations: Boy Scouts, Daughters of the American Revolution

Endorsements: Brig. Gen. John Bullard, USMC (Ret.), Vista Mayor Judy Ritter, State Sen. Joel Anderson

Education: Graduate, USD Paralegal Program

Website: www.amandarigby.com

Answer: For too many of our fellow Californians, their quality of life diminished to the point that they chose to leave the state in what a current legislator called a mass exodus. Excessive taxes, job-killing government regulations, the high cost of housing, the exponential rise in homelessness, especially among veterans, a crumbling infrastructure, and the increased threat to public safety with bills like SB54, AB109, and AB931 all contribute to the heavy heartedness and heavy burden crushing middle class families.

Health Playlist On Now Video: Why aren't Americans getting flu shots? 0:37 On Now Video: Leaders urge public to help extinguish hepatitis outbreak On Now San Diego starts cleansing sidewalks, streets to combat hepatitis A On Now Video: Scripps to shutter its hospice service On Now Video: Scripps La Jolla hospitals nab top local spot in annual hospital rankings On Now Video: Does a parent's Alzheimer's doom their children? On Now Video: Vaccine can prevent human papillomavirus, which can cause cancer 0:31 On Now 23 local doctors have already faced state discipline in 2017 0:48 On Now EpiPen recall expands On Now Kids can add years to your life

paul.sisson@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1850

Twitter: @paulsisson
Accused rapist Harvey Weinsteins proposed casting couch defense seems unlikely to sit well with prospective jurors  especially women  in a post-#MeToo courtroom.

Defense attorneys were dubious about Weinstein lawyer Benjamin Brafmans invocation of the old Hollywood trope of actresses trading sex for stardom after his client was sprung Friday on $1 million bail.

It sounds like a bit of a throwback to the late 50s or the Mad Men era, said veteran lawyer Ron Kuby. Whether its a viable defense in 2018 is really up to the jury.

But it could have been a viable defense  a generation ago.

Advertisement

Weinstein, 66, remained out of the public eye Saturday, one day after he was charged with of two counts of rape and one count of committing a criminal sex act.

The disgraced movie mogul did not show his face on the streets of Tribeca, where he is a longtime resident of Greenwich St.

Weinstein couldnt go far anyhow  he was forced to surrender his passport and ordered to stay in New York state or Connecticut. The two-time Oscar winner was also wearing a monitoring ankle bracelet.

After Weinstein was arrested, handcuffed and arraigned Friday, Brafman declared his client was innocent, and suggested the pervy producers accusers willingly traded sex for career advancement.

Mr. Weinstein did not invent the casting couch, said Brafman. Bad behavior is not on trial here. Its only if you intentionally committed a criminal act, and Mr. Weinstein vigorously denies that.

Defense attorney Edward Hayes said that defense would definitely strike a sour note with potential female jurors.

The casting couch is not consensual  if you wanted a job, you had to have sex, said Hayes. Not consensual. Thats not a defense. Not a defense.

(New York Daily News)

The defense tactics are a high-stakes, high-risk decision, as Weinstein faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted of the most serious count. At his age, thats a potential life sentence.

Hayes suggested prosecutors could try to call previous accusers to testify about similar sexual assaults by Weinstein, as happened in this years successful Pennsylvania prosecution of Bill Cosby.

Their stories would also resonate with female jurors, said Hayes.

Many women have had an incident where a man says he will do something for you, but he wants something sexual, said Hayes. Some of these women (accusing Weinstein) had their careers ruined for saying no.

Oscar winner Mira Sorvino and actress Rosanna Arquette charged that Weinstein torpedoed their promising careers after they rejected his unwanted sexual overtures.

Sending love to all my sisters today who stood up against a monster, Sorvino tweeted after Weinsteins arrest. I am proud and grateful to you all.

Upward of 80 women leveled charges of inappropriate sexual behavior by Weinstein, who continues to insist his contact with the women was consensual.

Former Manhattan prosecutor-turned-defense lawyer Mark Bederow suggested Brafman hoped to use the allegations against Weinstein to bolster his arguments for acquittal.

They are trying to turn Weinsteins sleazy reputation to their advantage, because its critical to his casting couch defense, said Bederow.

They hope to convince a jury that Weinsteins exploitation of his power as a Hollywood mogul supports his claim that the women engaged in consensual sexual activity with him.

Weinstein leaving Manhattan Criminal Court. (Kena Betancur/Afp/Getty Images)

The downside?

Bederow said that defense would likely mean putting Weinstein on the witness stand  a potential disaster. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

This is not about salvaging Harvey Weinsteins reputation or career, both of which have been destroyed beyond repair, said Bederow. This is about trying to keep a 66-year-old man from spending the rest of his life in prison.

The accusations against Weinstein date back as far as 1980, although the New York charges involve two women who allege they were attacked in 2004 and 2013.

One-time actress Lucia Evans charged that Weinstein forced her into performing oral sex on him during a meeting in his Tribeca office in the earlier attack.

The second victim, who was not publicly identified, charged that she was raped by Weinstein in a Midtown hotel room in March 2013.

Kuby, while skeptical of Brafmans approach, said the defense lawyer had to say something to the media horde outside the Manhattan Criminal Court hearing.

When defending a client, no matter how guilty he may appear, one rule is you have to say something, said Kuby. You cant just shrug your shoulders. And here, the argument is consent.

Weinstein, regardless of the outcome of his Manhattan case, still faces criminal investigations in London and Los Angeles.
The Texas mother of three young children killed by her ex-husband earlier this month says he has won.

Amanda Simpson survived what police say was Justin Painters fatal shooting of the kids and her boyfriend at her home in Ponder on May 16. Painter also killed himself.

The 29-year-old Simpson tells HuffPost in an interview published Saturday that Painter intentionally left her alive to make her feel more pain.

My kids were my coping mechanism, and now they are gone, Simpson told HuffPost. He knew when he took them from me, he took everything. Hes won.

Advertisement

On the morning of the 16th, she was asleep with boyfriend Seth Richardson when she heard gunshots. Seth! she screamed, according to HuffPost. Seth!

Painter, who had custody of the children, was in the doorway.

Seths dead. The kids are dead. And youre going to have to live with it, Painter told her, according to HuffPost.

Amanda Simpson with Drake, Odin and Caydence. (Facebook)

He had killed 4-year-old Drake, 8-year-old Odin and 6-year-old Caydence. Their mom was left alive, but she was wounded in the mass shooting.

In a video made from the hospital after the slayings, Simpson said the judge in her divorce suit ignored her warning about her husband. She said she told the judge Painter had attempted suicide.

Because I dont know if anybody knows, but Justin tried to commit suicide a year ago, she said. And I made it very clear to the judge that he was mentally unstable. And they didnt listen, so now I dont have my babies. You guys know they were my everything, my purpose to breathe.

Painter had hoped for reconciliation after their divorce, but I told him I couldnt. He didnt like it. He didnt like it.

She said that every time she closes her eyes, she sees her kids dead.

Your life can always get worse, she told HuffPost. I dont think mine can get any lower. Somehow, Im still f------ standing, and Im going to keep going, and I dont know how, but Im going to keep going.
President Trumps lawyer Rudy Giuliani said Sunday that the investigation into Russian election meddling is rigged and not legitimate.

Were more convinced, as we see it, that this is a rigged investigation, the New York mayor turned personal attorney for Trump said Sunday on CNNs State of the Union.

Giuliani again sought to discredit the probe by special counsel Robert Mueller, which is looking at Russian efforts to sway the 2016 election and any possible involvement by members of Trumps campaign.

He made the claim even as he acknowledged he could not rule out the possibility that low-level campaign associates did collude with the Russians.

Advertisement

This came as a surprise to me, to the President, and to the top four or five people around him, he said. You go out to the outer orbit - how do I know whats going on? But I dont think that would matter. You cant - if theres collusion with a guy 50 rungs down on the campaign, not that Im saying it happened, but if it did, I dont know what that means.

Giuliani said he no longer views the Mueller probe as legitimate.

Not anymore. I dont. I did when I came in, he said.

He insisted the special counsel should never have been appointed. Im not saying Mueller is illegitimate. Im saying the basis on which he was appointed is illegitimate, Giuliani said.

The latest line of attack against the Mueller probe comes from reports that the FBI informant met with Trump campaign advisers to gather information about links to Russia. Intelligence officials have said it was a standard investigatory tactic, but Trump says it amounted to the Department of Justice placing a spy in his campaign.

You have a President peddling these falsehoods and you have essentially people putting out propaganda like Rudy Giuliani to further that fiction, Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said Sunday on ABCs This Week.

There is no evidence to support that spy theory. This is just a piece of propaganda the President wants to put out and repeat.

Former CIA director Michael Hayden said the use of an informant, like other law enforcement tactics Trump has attacked, was stunningly normal.

Hes simply trying to delegitimize the Mueller investigation, the FBI, the Department of Justice and hes willing to throw almost anything against the wall, he told This Week.

Giuliani said that despite his attacks on Mueller, Trump would not fire him because it would make the special counsel look like a victim. He said Trump remains adamant about sitting down for an interview with Mueller.

Mueller may agree to limit questioning to the topics of collusion with the Russians and obstruction of justice, Giuliani said, adding he was not comfortable with Trump answering questions about obstruction because he might wind up being accused of lying.

Then you can say its obstruction, and then you can say its perjury, which is even easier for them, which is where I think, if theyre sneaky, theyre going, he told CNN.

Giuliani also ripped two veteran intelligence officials who have been critical of Trumps attacks on law enforcement, James Clapper and John Brennan, as clowns.

I have no regard at all for Clapper and Brennan, Giuliani said of the former director of national intelligence and former CIA chief. I think they are two clowns.

There are a lot of people with decades of service, some good, some bad, Giuliani said. Some get consumed with power and begin to lie.

Trump again ripped the investigation in a series of tweets on Sunday morning, writing, whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt? They journeyed down to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes and wanting to help our nation ... They went back home in tatters!

The President also again took aim at his opponent in the 2016 election, tweeting, why didnt the 13 Angry Democrats investigate the campaign of Crooked Hillary Clinton, many crimes, much Collusion with Russia? Why didnt the FBI take the Server from the DNC? Rigged Investigation!
John Cox of Rancho Santa Fe, a Republican, has found himself near the top of the heap in deep-blue Californias race for governor.

Two polls this past week placed him just behind Democratic Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom in the June 5 primary election, an outcome which would allow Cox to advance to the general election in November along with Newsom.

Few thought that would be how things would play out in California when the state switched to a top two primary system  in which the top two vote-getters go to a runoff election, regardless of party.

In a state with 45 percent Democratic voters and 25 percent Republican, the assumption was that a runoff in the governors race might allow the dominant partys liberal and moderate wings to duke it out.

Advertisement

Then came Cox, a perennial political candidate in Illinois whose early entry into politics in California involved proposals for profound changes to the government. He proposed a legislature with 12,000 members, to strengthen the voice of the people and lessen the voice of special interests. He has steadily built momentum in the governors race, and was endorsed this month by President Donald Trump.

For Newsom, Cox has become a frenemy going into the primary. Beating a Republican would probably be easier for Newsom in November than taking on a fellow Democrat.

For former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, also a Democrat, Cox is a growing obstacle. Two polls released Thursday place Cox in second place and Villaraigosa in third, leaving Villaraigosa with little option but to make Cox his focus.

Its been absolutely strange, Tim Rosales, Coxs campaign manager, said by phone.

In not-so-subtle ways, the frontrunner appears to be trying to usher Cox along with Newsom into the November campaign.

The idea of choosing your own opponent is old, and Ive got to tell you in a situation where you have an open primary it becomes easier, said John Nienstedt, a pollster with Competitive Edge Research and Communication. The rules have been set up to aid someone like Newsom in this effort.

Newsoms campaign is casting Cox as a solid conservative, while Villaraigosas supporters are attempting to reallocate some of Coxs votes by making him appear as an unreliable Republican.

Newsoms campaign did not return calls for this story. The campaign has produced a series of commercials that, on their surface, criticize Cox for his positions on gun control and perspectives on President Donald Trump.

Why is John Cox attacking Gavin Newsom for supporting common sense gun safety? one of Newsoms commercials begins. John Cox stands with Donald Trump and the NRA. Cox called gun laws a waste of time, opposes background checks and a ban on assault weapons. And Gavin Newsom, Gavin Newsom took on the gun lobby and won.

Another refers to Cox as Trumps protege, while a 63-second cartoon on Newsoms Facebook page uses polarizing issues like LGBT rights, hate crime laws and gun laws to cast Newsom as a defender of liberal values, and Cox as a hardline conservative.

While Newsom is trying to advance his own campaign, he is also trying to signal to conservatives that Cox is a solid Republican, Nienstedt said.

He built Cox up by portraying him as someone who works in concert with Trump and opposes gun control, Nienstedt said. Thats more than a dog whistle, thats a screamer.

And it appears that Newsoms playbook is paying off, Nienstedt said.

Newsoms strategy to bolster Cox is working, and Republicans have coalesced around Cox, the businessman, Nienstedt said.

While Cox (and Newsom) are trying to consolidate conservative support for Cox, Villaraigosas supporters are trying to do the opposite  divide conservatives.

Families and Teachers for Antonio Villaraigosa, a pro-charter school political committee, recently sent 500,000 mailers to conservative households. The campaign literature extols two other candidates, Assemblyman Travis Allen, R-Huntington Beach and Robert Newman, a farmer, with sterling conservative bonafides.

I just got this from Villaragosa Charter School IE... pic.twitter.com/6oh3gz7IVT  Ben Avey (@benavey) May 23, 2018

Cox is tarred in the same mailer as a former Democrat, a Chicago lawyer and a supporter of tax hikes.

A sepearate flyer from the charter-school group says Cox doesnt deserve your vote and is a Chicago liberal, a reference to former President Barack Obamas adopted hometown.

Another mailer tries to rally support for Allen with a picture of the assemblyman and his family posed in front of an antique military aicraft and a caption that says, Our flag and national anthem unite us as Americans. This Californnia family doesnt kneel.

If their strategy is successful, Cox will have fewer supporters and lower the bar needed to finish the primary in second place.

Rosales said he believes that voters have figured out that Newsom is trying to boost Cox and Villaraigosas supporters are trying to tear him down. Some voters, he said, have reached out to the campaign to talk about some of the commercials about Cox theyve seen, and theyve said that they have read the fine print on the ads where the financier is named.

He said that Cox has gained support not because of Newsoms commercials, but because of his policies and because Trump endorsed him on May 18, signaling that Cox is the GOPs standard bearer in California.

I think Republican voters are seeing through these Democrats attacks, and by trying to prop up these candidates who are falling pretty far back in the polls, Rosales said, referring to Allen and Newman.

On Thursday, the Cox Campaign submitted a complaint to the Fair Political Practices Commission, a state watchdog that referees election law and ethics, over the mailer about Allen and the flag and the military airplane. The complaint alleges that the Familes and Teachers political group didnt disclose in the pro-Allen ad that it is actually pro-Villaraigosa group, an omission that hides the political groups plot to spoil the election for Cox.

Coxs team isnt the only one that has found the push-pull unusual. A spokesman for Treasurer John Chiang, a Democrat who is running, said that it detracts from the progressive issues that the party champions and is unfair to voters who are trying to make a decisions about which candidate theyll support.

We dont need another governor who is willing to play games instead of actually leading on issues that Californians care about, said Fabian Levy, a spokesman for Chiang.

He warned that there will be problems for Democrats running for lower offices in the November runoff if conservative voters are drawn to polls to vote for Cox at the top of the ticket and then support other Republican candidates and causes down ballot.

If we have a chance to get two Democrats on the top of the ballot, which we do here in California, that can help the number of Democrats who win in races across the state. Pushing a Republican like Gavin Newsom is doing, only helps Republicans, Levy said.

Rosales said that the last weeks of the primary will likely turn into a preview of the messages that Californians will hear in November.

The general election campaign is starting to shape up a little before the primary is done, Rosales said. Its the same kind of attacks that we expect to see from Gavin Newsom in the fall.

Twitter: @jptstewart

joshua.stewart@sduniontribune.com

(619) 293-1841
A man robbed two women, then took off in their friends car in Mission Valley and officers were still searching for the suspect and the car.

A 22-year-old woman, a 31-year-old woman and a 28-year-old man were talking in the parking lot of a Wendys restaurant on Rio San Diego Drive near Camino Del Este at around 11:30 p.m. Saturday when a man approached the trio with a small black pistol, according to San Diego police Sgt. Michael Tansey.

The suspect took the two womens purses, then got in the male victims car and drove away, Tansey said.

The stolen car was a 2010 Chrysler 300 sedan with a California licenseplate number of 6KVX405.

Advertisement

Police described the suspect as a black man in his early 20s, about 5-feet-9-inches tall with a thin build. He had short dreadlocks and was wearing a light-colored hoodie and blue jeans, Tansey said.

Twitter: @karenkucher

(619) 293-1350

karen.kucher@sduniontribune.com
A man was shot in the ankle Saturday night in Encanto, San Diego police said.

The shooting took place around 8:40 p.m. near the intersection of Stork Street and Akins Avenue.

The victim, a 25-year-old-man, was standing on the street when the suspect walked up and began shooting. The victim turned and ran.

Police said the suspect fired about seven shots.

Advertisement

Police first said they were searching for a white BMW with tinted windows, but another witness told them the shooter was in a black four-door Honda Civic.

The victim was taken to a hospital.

andrew.dyer@sduniontribune.com

@adyer619
An unprecedented amount of money from wealthy donors, unions and corporations is flowing into the California governors race, giving independent groups  unrestricted by contribution limits  a greater say in picking the states chief executive than ever before.

The groups have already spent more than $26 million through Thursday, the most ever spent by noncandidate committees in a gubernatorial primary, according to a Times analysis of campaign finance reports.

California elections have always been expensive, and the future is even more expensive, said Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College and a former state Republican leader. The stakes are very real.

To be sure, California has seen high-spending elections before. GOP nominee Meg Whitman shattered records when she spent $178.5 million on an unsuccessful gubernatorial bid in 2010, including $144 million of her own money. Ballot measures routinely see tens of millions of dollars in spending.

Advertisement

But spending by outside groups  which legally cannot coordinate with a candidate but can accept unlimited donations  has been steadily climbing in recent years.

(Los Angeles Times )

The campaigns, some of which have been operating for years, have spent more than the outside groups  $40.8 million as of Thursday. But in the run-up to primary day, the independent groups are far outspending the campaigns  $20 million to $14 million between May 1 and Thursday, according to financial disclosure documents filed with the state.

A voter-approved 2000 ballot measure limits how much donors can contribute to candidates. For the current election, its $29,200 for gubernatorial candidates in the primary. But donors face no limits in how much they can contribute to outside groups, which are formally called independent expenditure committees.

(Los Angeles Times )

Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has been the biggest beneficiary of outside spending in this race, with charter school backers spending nearly $16 million on efforts to boost his campaign.

The vast majority of that spending has been devoted to airing television ads to promote Villaraigosa. But some of that money has been spent to influence the competition between the two top GOP candidates in the race, an effort to increase Villaraigosas chances of coming in second in the June 5 primary and to advance him to the general election against Democratic front-runner Gavin Newsom.

Many political observers say Villaraigosa, who was stagnating in the polls earlier this year, would not have a chance to finish in the top two without the outside groups largesse.

Hes already in a hole and the best he can hope for is the [independent expenditure] money will enable him to edge into the No. 2 spot, and even that is no sure thing, Pitney said. Without the I.E. money, hed be looking to go back to Herbalife, the multilevel marketing nutrition supplements company Villaraigosa worked for after leaving the mayors office.

Other candidates have also benefited from independent expenditures, notably Newsom. More than $6 million has been spent to support his bid, mostly by unions.

Donations to such groups have steadily increased since the passage of the 2000 ballot measure establishing limits on donations to candidates, according to reports by the Fair Political Practices Commission, the states campaign finance watchdog agency.

Ann Ravel, former chair of the FPPC and the Federal Elections Commission, said the greatest increase occurred after the U.S. Supreme Courts 2010 Citizens United decision. The ruling held that limits on independent political spending by corporations, unions and other entities violated 1st Amendment free speech protections.

Even though such donations were already legal in California, people just became more aware of it because of the notoriety of Citizens United, Ravel said. Independent expenditure committees became a much more convenient way for people to funnel money to races, she said.

Political observers say the uptick in spending by independent expenditure committees increases the influence of the wealthy.

Its not as if the candidates dont know who gives money to their super PACs, said Dan Schnur, a veteran political analyst who teaches at USC. If they return a phone call from a $5,000 donor to their campaign very quickly, theyre going to return a phone call from a $500,000 donor to their super PAC a hundred times faster.

And many of the donors to the outside groups in the governors race are donating in far greater amounts. Villaraigosas charter school backers include Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, who has contributed $7 million; former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and philanthropist Eli Broad, who have contributed $2.5 million each; and major GOP benefactor Bill Oberndorf, who has given $2 million.

Shortly after the charter school proponents backed Villaraigosa, the California Teachers Assn., a powerful force in state politics, steered more than $1 million to Education Organizations for Gavin Newsom for Governor 2018. Other public sector unions, chief among them the Service Employees International Union, gave more than $3 million to Citizens Supporting Gavin Newsom for Governor 2018. That group also received nearly $1 million from health insurance provider Blue Shield of California.

All will have business or interests in front of the next governor.

Ravel said the increase of donations to outside groups has also led to more negative campaigning.

The difference between I.E.s and a candidates own advertising is that the promulgators of I.E. advertising can be a lot more nasty than candidates can  and they tend to be, she said. [Candidates] are often not willing to stoop quite as low as independent expenditure committees that are willing to say things that are patently false or really divisive or really nasty.

Some of the most eyebrow-raising attacks have come from outside groups.

An anti-Newsom digital campaign launched by the Asian American Small Business PAC focused on an inappropriate relationship Newsom had while in office.

Another outside group spent about $2 million to attack state Treasurer John Chiang, the most money devoted to opposing a single candidate by an independent expenditure committee, according to filings with the California secretary of state.

Health Care Providers for Fiscal Accountability Opposed to John Chiang, which received funding from Blue Shield, spent much of its money on mailers that dont mention healthcare, but instead allege Chiang made billion-dollar blunders as treasurer. Those ads drew a rebuke from the state Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, which called the attacks unfounded and unwarranted in a letter to the groups backers.

The pro-Villaraigosa charter school group has sent mailers to GOP voters calling Republican John Cox a Democratic activist and using the logo of Hillary Clintons 2016 presidential campaign as the h in his first name. It also launched a television ad on Fox News aligning Cox with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and promoting his GOP rival Travis Allen as the true conservative in the race.

That group, Families and Teachers for Antonio Villaraigosa for Governor, has also aired ads and sent mailers featuring former President Obama praising Villaraigosa, though Obama has not weighed in on the race.

The Cox and Villaraigosa campaigns have filed complaints with state regulators alleging outside committees are failing to properly disclose their intents. The FPPC is unlikely to rule on these complaints before the primary.

Independent groups have a mixed record of success.

In the 2010 gubernatorial election, unions spent tens of millions of dollars to support then-Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown during the summer, an effort that was viewed as crucial to stalling Whitmans campaign. He ultimately won the race by 13 points.

Its uncertain whether outside groups will have as much of an influence on the 2018 election, though spending by such groups is expected to grow exponentially if Villaraigosa makes the runoff.

If hes No. 2, both sides will be very well funded, a lot of it on the I.E. side, particularly for Villaraigosa, said GOP strategist Rob Stutzman, who is unaligned in the race. I think so much so that he would be the favorite if he makes the runoff, thats the irony of his current position.

Times staff writer Maloy Moore contributed to this report.

Explore the money pouring into the governors race with The Times tracker 

Follow California politics by signing up for our email newsletter 

Coverage of California politics 

seema.mehta@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATSeema

ryan.menezes@latimes.com

Twitter: @ryanvmenezes
San Diego police will conduct pedestrian and bicycle safety operations Sunday, targeting certain trouble spots identified by the department.

Downtown, police will be looking to crack down on drivers, pedestians, bicyclists and scooter riders who violate traffic laws.

Special attention will be directed toward drivers speeding, making illegal turns, failing to stop for signs an signals and failing to yield, the department said in a statement. Pedestrians should cross the street only in marked crosswalks or at intersections.

Elsewhere in the city, police will focus on locations where pedestian and bicycle-involved collisions have occured.

Advertisement

The enforcement action will run from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

andrew.dyer@sduniontribune.com

@adyer619


Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading.
Goodman Property Trust, the NZX-listed commercial and industrial property investor, saw profit fall in 2018 as it focused on pivoting to the Auckland industrial market, due largely to smaller revaluation gains in the latest year.

Net profit was $194 million in the year ended March 31, from $213.8 million a year earlier, due largely to a smaller fair value gain in the property portfolio of $83.8 million, compared to $114.7 million a year earlier. The company's preferred measure of pre-tax operating earnings was $119.1 million, or 9.25 cents per unit, from $121.7 million a year earlier. That means the company exceeded its expectation for annual pre-tax operating earnings of around 9.1 cents per unit, though that's still down from 9.51 cents in 2017.

Goodman's total property portfolio was worth $2.7 billion as of March 31 from $2.46 billion a year earlier, including $238.6 million worth of property contracted for sale and $114.3 million in joint ventures. Post balance date, the trust agreed to sell a further $323.9 million of its assets, via divesting its 51 percent interest in the VXV Portfolio, owned within its Wynyard Precinct joint venture, to US private equity firm Blackstone for $635 million. That deal is still dependent on approval from the Overseas Investment Office and the freehold landowner.

Assuming that sale goes ahead, 99 percent of the trust's assets will be in industrial land and buildings in Auckland, and its portfolio will be worth $2.2 billion. It says it expects industrial property to benefit from e-commerce and immigration trends and its assets are in key locations close to consumers. The company has increased its exposure to logistics firms with a focus on storage and distribution, with its top 10 customers including New Zealand Post, DHL and Fliway Transport.

To get to that point, Goodman has sold almost $1.2 billion in assets over the past five years, with 73 percent of that coming from selling Auckland office space and 19 percent from assets in Christchurch.

"Were divesting our remaining office assets and developing high-quality estates such as Highbrook Business Park in East Tamaki. It is a deliberate strategy that reflects the positive investment characteristics of this type of property and the strong growth profile of the countrys largest city," said chief executive officer John Dakin. "The trusts position as the largest owner and developer of industrial property in New Zealand means it is uniquely placed to benefit from these trends."

The trust announced $165 million of developments in 2018, and another $54 million since balance date. It says it will have strong liquidity after selling its Wynyard Precinct stake, meaning it can further invest in Auckland industrial assets through development pipeline and potential acquisitions.

Goodman has 22 hectares of land left to develop, which would cost about $290 million to develop but have a yield between 8 and 9 percent, and 82 percent of that land is in its Highbrook business park. It noted that new land opportunities are "tightly held and difficult to secure".

The trust had a look-through loan-to-value ratio of 25 percent compared to 30.6 percent in the previous period, but said this gearing would drop to 20 percent once the VXW sale is completed. It issued two $100 million retail bonds during the year, and repaid $45 million of wholesale bonds in September 2017.

The company will distribute 6.65 cents per unit, as forecast, and the board said it expects cash earnings around 7 cents per unit in 2019.

The units last traded at $1.43, and have gained 14 percent in the past 12 months.

(BusinessDesk)

Comments from our readers

No comments yet

Add your comment:

Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process.

Related News:

Southwest Pacific Tropical Cyclone Outlook - NIWA

Turners Automotive Group Limited (NZX: TRA) Q1 Dividend Declared

Air New Zealand Limited (NZX: AIR) Awarded International Cargo Flights to March 2022

ikeGPS Group Limited (NZX: IKE) Wins $1.6m Customer Contract Extension

12th October 2021 Morning Report

Comvita Limited (NZX: CVT) Reports Strong Q1 Earnings Improvement

11th October 2021 Morning Report

Z Energy Limited (NZX: ZEL) Board Unanimously Recommends Scheme of Arrangement

Radius Residential Care Limited (NZX: RAD) Announces the Acquisition of Clare House

8th October 2021 Morning Report


UPDATE: While police are still clearing the vehicles from the scene of the accident, traffic flow has been restored in the area by 4 p.m.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Police are asking motorists to avoid a stretch of Hylan Boulevard in New Dorp where a 41-year-old male was killed Sunday afternoon, according to a police spokesman.

Police from the 122 Precinct in New Dorp are asking that motorists avoid Hylan Boulevard from Bancroft Avenue to New Dorp Lane in both directions until further notice, the spokesman said.

Portions of the roadway are still blocked off to traffic due to the fatal accident that occurred at Otis Avenue and Hylan Boulevard in New Dorp on Sunday afternoon.

Motorists are reporting that all streets that run parallel to Otis Avenue were clogged with snarled traffic as of 3 p.m. Sunday.

According to police radio transmissions, there is a large crowd forming in the area of New Dorp Lane and Hylan Boulevard.

Following the incident, police were rerouting traffic headed toward St. George on Hylan Boulevard into the lanes dedicated for southbound -- toward Tottenville -- traffic.

FATAL ACCIDENT

A 41-year-old male was heading toward Tottenville in a four-door Infinity sedan on Hylan Boulevard when he attempted to turn left onto Otis Avenue on Sunday afternoon, said police.

That's when he collided with a Jeep, driven by a 68-year-old male who was traveling toward St. George on Hylan Boulevard, police said.

The 41-year-old male was pronounced dead shortly after the accident occurred, police said.

The 68-year-old was taken to Staten Island University Hospital, Ocean Breeze, with non-life threatening injuries, police said.

FOLLOW TRACEY PORPORA ON FACEBOOK and TWITTER
By Jason Sherman, For the Staten Island Advance

ABOARD THE USS ARLINGTON -- This mighty amphibious warship, designed to support a Marine assault of enemy shores, led a parade of sail from Virginia, ferrying thousands of sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsman into New York Harbor for one of the most festive events on the Navy's calendar: Fleet Week New York.

The sun prevailed against an overcast morning as the Arlington (LPD-24) sailed under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge -- her deck perimeter replete with sailors in summer white uniforms and Marines in dress blues -- the lead ship of a 14-vessel flotilla that will make land at piers in Staten Island, Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx through Memorial Day.

"We are super excited about the opportunity to come up here," Capt. Todd Marzano, skipper of this $1.7 billion San Antonio-class ship, an amphibious transport dock vessel.

FLEET WEEK

Staten Island is hosting four ships at the Homeport Pier, including one of the newest additions to the Navy's fleet: the Little Rock, a littoral combat ship. A Navy oceanographic survey ship, the Maury, and two Coast Guard vessels, the Bay-class cutter Sturgeon Bay (WTGB 109), from Bayonne, and Reliance-class cutter Diligence (WMEC 616), from Wilmington, N.C., will also be tied up at the pier.

For three decades, the Navy has deployed ships to to New York in late May as part of a campaign to stay connected with parts of the American public that otherwise might not have contact with the service which consists of 283 ships and more than 3,700 aircraft, fueled in part by a $180 billion budget this year.

This year's event will allow more than 2,300 sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen the opportunity to explore the five boroughs.

FUTURE MILITARY

Ron Sezairi, 18, a senior at New Dorp High School -- who enlisted in the Marine Corps in November and will head to boot camp in September after graduating next month -- is part of a small group of fledgling Marines invited to sail as part of Fleet Week.

"I've never [before] been on a ship in my life," Sezairi said.

"This is my first ship. I'm very happy I'm not sea sick. Seeing ocean in every direction is kind of daunting," he said, casting his gaze over the ship deck in the direction of land.

It's possible, he said, that his classmates at New Dorp High School -- which sits within site of the Atlantic Ocean -- might have noticed the Navy ship steaming past this morning.

"I don't know if anyone at New Dorp knows that I'm doing this," said Sezairi who plans to join the FBI after his stint with the Marines. "I didn't really mention it to anyone. I told my teachers so they know I'm not going to be in school."

TRANSPORT SHIP

Sezairi and his cohort of soon-to-be-Marines explored this ship, which is used to transport and move Marines ashore.

A flight deck permits helicopter operations, including use of service's new tilt-rotor MV-22 Osprey.

Inside is a cavernous, multi-story garage that feeds a massive basin that can be partially flooded to allow combat hovercraft loaded with vehicles to fly from the rear of the ship as well as permit amphibious assault vehicles to swim to shore.

The ship has a Navy crew of 400 and can accommodate up to 800 Marines and their combat gear.

HONORS 9/11 VICTIMS

The Arlington is one of three San Antonio-class warships named to remember the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks; the other two are the New York and the Somerset. Near the ship's bridge is a tribute commemorating those killed that day when American Airlines Flight 77 was flown into the Pentagon -- which is in Virginia's Arlington County.

Along with depictions of the attack, aftermath and names of all who died, the room features an encased flag flown by U.S. Special Operations Forces at the Pakistani compound during the May 1, 2011 raid that killed Osma bin Laden, architect of the Sept. 11 attacks.

"I come in here to get away from work and to remind myself of our purpose, our mission for being in the Navy," said Marzao, the Arlington's captain.

"All throughout the ship there are reminders of Arlington County and all the 9/11 attacks."

HISTORICAL LINKS

The New York port visit draws on many connections between the Navy and the region. The Navy and Marine Corps recruit between eight and nine percent of their force from the New York-New Jersey region, according to Rear Adm. John Meier, Carrier Strike Group 10 commander.

"We have a large, large footprint here," Meier said.

There are deep historical links, too.

"New York has been connected to the Navy since the beginning of our shipbuilding," the one-star admiral -- who lead the aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower and supporting ships -- told the Advance.

"If you go back to 1800, the President, which was one of our first six frigates, was built right here in New York City. That ship went on to great fame in the War of 1812, so there is certainly a connection to New York and New York City."

ISLANDER ON BOARD

Corporal Kiera Rodriguez, 20, originally from Westerleigh, is just such a connection.

The Staten-Island native said her cruise on the Arlington marked her first time on a ship since joining the Marines in 2016. While still in waters off the East Coast, she told the Advance she was looking forward to sailing into New York Harbor.

"It's definitely going to be crazy," Rodriguez, who went to Susan Wagner High School before joining the Marines in 2016, said. "I know that being on the Verrazano is not fun sometimes."

Sailing under the bridge, she predicted before they entered New York Harbor, is "definitely an experience a lot of individuals don't get to do, so I'm excited for that."

As the Arlington approached the Verrazano-Narrows, cannons at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn fired in honor of the Navy ship; the sailors and Marines saluted in response.

VISIT THE SHIPS

This Fleet Week marks the first-ever visit of a littoral combat ship, the Little Rock, to New York City. Among the unique aspects of this ship, in Staten Island through Monday, Memorial Day, is the ability -- while on shore -- to swap out "mission modules" to tailor the vessel for one of three missions: to hunt and destroy submarines, to hunt and destroy mines, or fight other surface combatants.

Originally designed to counter small, fast boats in waters near shore in combat situations, Navy leaders are contemplating new missions for LCS ships, including counter-narcotics operations in South America.

The ships continue to be open to visitors on Sunday and Monday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Arlington will be in Manhattan along with a Canadian coast defense ship, the Moncton and a Coast Guard Sentinel-class cutter, the Richard Snyder, from Atlantic Beach, N.C.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, the Mitscher (DDG-57), from Norfolk, Va., is at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal in Red Hook.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A wise man once said that Staten Island has a habit of allowing defeat to be snared from the jaws of victory.

If we are not careful, that's what will happen with an indoor pool promised to Staten Island to replace a victory that vanished when the Salvation Army snatched the Kroc Center from under us.

You'll recall it was to be built on the grounds of Bayley Seton Hospital. The deal collapsed when the city failed to come up with $20 million that would have made the project whole.

Mayor Bill de Blasio, in an effort to mollify Staten Island and its borough president, promised an indoor pool in its place.

It's not a fair trade but it's what we have. The recreation center, as first described, would have met the needs of so many Staten Islanders, from the youngest to the oldest.

But we would be foolish to turn our backs on the offer of an indoor pool.

A stumbling block is its location.

Borough President James Oddo, with the support of most of Staten Island's political leadership, thinks the Petrides Center, off the Staten Island Expressway in Sunnyside, is the ideal location.

Councilwoman Debi Rose, who represents Staten Island's North Shore, insists her district is where the pool should located. She's joined by a groiup called the North Shore Indoor Pool Committee.

The North Shore lacks ample recreational facilities, Ms. Rose maintains -- especially after Cromwell Center was forced to close after it partially collapsed into New York Harbor.

We applaud the councilwoman for fighting for her district. The North Shore is shortchanged, often the site for unwanted city projects.

But on this issue, the borough president is right.

Petrides is a good location.

Unlike the now-defunct Kroc Center, where such recreation facilities are not unique across the borough but largely private, an indoor pool is. Of course, we do have other indoor pools, but on college campuses and in Curtis High School.

An indoor pool for the public should not be a North-South battle. It should be for all Staten Island, and Petrides is hardly South Shore, located just about in the middle of the borough.

Public transportation is said to be an issue. But the borough president has already received assurance from the MTA that additional bus service will be provided.

And lest we forget, hundreds and hundreds of students get to the school every day, seemingly without problem.

The borough president points to the Ocean Breeze indoor track as a model. It has become a revenue generator, not just for the track's operation but for shops and hotels around Staten Island.

So popular has it become that a spacious parking lot had to be built across the street.

Petrides does have parking and could have more if the demand is there.

Let's stop squabbling over location and get behind the plan to make the pool happen. Sooner than later. And while we're at it, let's start talking about a new Cromwell Center.
Hundreds march in Hong Kong to mark Tiananmen crackdown



Hong Kong, May 27 (AFP) May 27, 2018



Hundreds marched through Hong Kong on Sunday ahead of the 29th anniversary of China's crackdown on democracy protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

Semi-autonomous Hong Kong is the only place on Chinese soil where the anniversary is openly marked with a famous vigil in Victoria Park on June 4 each year. The march is an annual precursor to the main event.

Organised by a group of veteran democracy activists, protesters demanded justice for the victims of the crackdown and also urged the Chinese government to release Liu Xia, widow of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo, who continues to be under house arrest since her husband's death in custody last year.

Protesters shouted "Accountability for the massacre! End one-party dictatorship," and held banners reading: "Mourn June 4, Resist Authoritarianism" as they walked from the business district of Wan Chai to Beijing's liaison office in the city.

The disqualification of pro-democracy lawmakers from parliament and the banning of some activists from standing for office has heightened concern that Hong Kong's cherished freedoms are being steadily eroded by Beijing.

Pro-Beijing figures have said recently that calling for an end to one-party dictatorship is "illegal" and that anyone who does so could run the risk of being disqualified from running for election.

"This is our freedom, our right, and also our belief. We do not hesitate to continue saying our slogan. We believe that only by ending the one-party dictatorship can we build democratic China," said Albert Ho, chairman of Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organised the march.

Ho said that around 1,100 people attended the protest.

Residents said they were marching to ensure the bloody crackdown was not forgotten.

"If nobody talks about it, the next generation will never know about this history," said a woman who gave her name as Mrs Ho, and attended the protest with her son.

"China's Communist Party will not listen to citizens and people's voices. Although I was not born at that time, I heard my parents talk about it and I knew Hong Kong people went on the streets... to fight for their democracy and rights," added another protester who gave his name as Kelvin.

However, the turnout figures for the march and vigil have dropped in recent years as many young Hong Kongers are frustrated by the lack of progress on political reform in the city.

They disagree with the vigil's main message of democratisation in China, saying the focus should be on Hong Kong, not the mainland.

Student unions will not attend the longstanding vigil in Victoria Park this year and have boycotted it for the past three years.

Hundreds -- by some estimates more than a thousand -- died after the Communist Party sent tanks to crush demonstrations in the square in the heart of Beijing on June 4 1989, where student-led protesters had staged a peaceful seven-week sit-in to demand democratic reforms.
Cario gets 7 Egyptians out of Syria-controlled shelters



Cairo, May 26 (AFP) May 26, 2018



The Egyptian foreign ministry said on Saturday its embassy in Syria had been able to get seven Egyptians out of shelters in areas now controlled by the Syrian government.

The embassy had cooperated with the Syrian authorities to secure their release from camps where thousands of civilians fleeing the Eastern Ghouta Damascus suburb were now staying.

One citizen was able to leave one of the shelters on Saturday, while another Egyptian, his mother, his sister, and his Syrian wife and children were able to leave another shelter the same day.

The ministry said preparations were underway to fly them home.

The embassy was able to rescue another Egyptian family "from the area of military operations in Ghouta a few weeks ago," the ministry said.

Syria's regime lost swathes of territory to rebels early in the uprising but has since made a comeback and recaptured large parts of the country.

It used military pressure and population transfers to flush fighters and civilians out of territory around Damascus, most notably the Eastern Ghouta suburb.

The assault on Eastern Ghouta has a sparked a mass exodus from the shrinking rebel enclave, with 50,000 people reaching shelters in regime-controlled areas in the past week, according to the United Nations.

The UN humanitarian coordinator in Syria in March condemned the "tragic" living conditions of the displaced massed in the makeshift shelters.

Prior to the assault, Ghouta's 400,000 residents had suffered five years of crippling regime siege that made food and medicine nearly impossible to access or afford.

Syria's conflict broke out in March 2011 with protests against the government but has since evolved into a civil war that has killed more than 350,000 people and triggered a staggering humanitarian crisis.
Korean leaders meet to salvage Trump-Kim summit



Seoul, May 26 (AFP) May 26, 2018



North and South Korea's leaders held surprise talks on Saturday to get a historic summit between Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump back on track after a head-spinning series of twists and turns.

The meeting is the latest remarkable diplomatic chapter in a roller coaster of developments on the Korean peninsula.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his meeting with Kim which had been due to take place in Singapore on June 12, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in met with Kim Saturday for two hours in the truce village of Panmunjom in an effort to ensure the landmark meeting between Trump and the North Korean leader goes ahead.

"They exchanged views and discussed ways to implement the Panmunjom Declaration and to ensure a successful US North Korea summit," Seoul's presidential Blue House said in a statement, referencing a declaration the two leaders signed last month vowing to improve ties following their historic first meeting in the same village.

Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations.

The North's state-run KCNA news agency said the two leaders agreed to "meet frequently in the future to make dialogue brisk and pool wisdom and efforts, expressing their stand to make joint efforts for the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula".

Specifically, Moon and Kim will hold "high-level talks" on Friday, the agency added.

Kim also "expressed his fixed will on the historic DPRK-US summit talks," KCNA added, using the official abbreviation for North Korea.



- Remarkable detente -



Trump's original decision to abandon the historic summit blindsided South Korea which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang.

However, there was a further signal from the US Saturday the June 12 summit may yet go ahead as the White House said it would send a team to Singapore to prepare for the meeting.

"The White House pre-advance team for Singapore will leave as scheduled in order to prepare should the summit take place," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said.

Last year Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear bomb to date and launched test missiles it said were capable of reaching the United States.

Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a sudden detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang.

Moon won election last year partly by vowing to be open to dialogue with Pyongyang and finding a solution to a Cold War-era sore that continues to blight the region.

But the flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks as the summit was thrown into doubt by increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang.

Trump eventually pulled the plug on talks in a personal letter to Kim on Thursday.

But he left the door open to future meetings and Pyongyang responded by saying it was willing to sit down "at any time", prompting Trump to reply that the Singapore summit could still take place.

Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place in a grand building on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a heavily fortified village that lies between the two countries and marks the spot where the armistice ending the Korean War in 1953 was signed.

Only last month the two leaders met in the same village, with Kim famously inviting Moon to step briefly into the North before they both held talks in a building on the South's side.

Koh Yu-hwan, an expert on Korean relations at Dongguk University, said Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim increased the likelihood of the Singapore summit taking place as originally intended.

"Today's summit is aimed at resolving the misunderstanding caused by communication glitches between Washington and Pyongyang and lay the groundwork for the US-North Korea summit," he told AFP.

Adam Mount, a nuclear policy expert at the Federation of American Scientists, said it was a "bold but risky" move by Moon, describing the sudden summit as "a clear demonstration of how dangerous Trump's temper tantrum was".

"Trump says 'everybody plays games'. Moon Jae-in is not playing a game: he must keep his people safe from war," he wrote on Twitter.



- Utmost secrecy -



Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only being told later that the face-to-face had taken place.

Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South, including leading a delegation across the border during February's Winter Olympics.

Saturday's talks were only the fourth time serving leaders of the two Koreas, who remain technically at war, have ever met.
Trump still sees June 12 Singapore summit with Kim



Washington, May 27 (AFP) May 27, 2018



US President Donald Trump said Saturday that things are moving "very nicely" towards a summit on June 12 in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump said at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his June 12 meeting with Kim in the Southeast Asian city-state, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"There are meetings going on as we speak," Trump said. "I think there's a lot of goodwill."

His comments came after North Korea said Kim was "fixed" on holding the summit with Trump, raising hopes the historic meeting might still take place after a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship.

The latest conciliatory declaration from Pyongyang came as the White House confirmed it was sending a team to Singapore to prepare for the talks -- a further signal that both sides were moving to cool tensions following a rollercoaster few days on the Korean Peninsula.
Trump and Kim raise summit hopes after days of brinkmanship



Seoul, May 27 (AFP) May 27, 2018



North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is committed to "complete" denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and to a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump, South Korea's leader said Sunday, as Trump announced that plans for the meeting are moving along "very nicely".

The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship that had sent tensions soaring.

Trump rattled a sabre on Thursday by cancelling the planned June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump told reporters when asked for an update. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed."

Trump's unpredictability sparked a surprise meeting on Saturday between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in -- only the fourth time leaders from the two countries have ever met -- as they scrambled to get the talks back on track.

Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations.

Moon said Kim reached out to him to arrange the hasty meeting "without any formality", a stunning development given that the Koreas only reopened a defunct hotline between the two nations last month.

The North Korean leader described the Singapore summit as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation.

"He... expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters on Sunday.

Moon added that Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete denuclearisation" but was uncertain "whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime" if he gave up those weapons.

Pyongyang's state-run KCNA news agency said Kim "expressed his fixed will" to meet Trump, adding South and North Korea would hold another round of "high-level" talks on June 1.



- Shaky detente -

There was a further signal of progress Saturday as White House press secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed a team of US officials was leaving for Singapore "in order to prepare should the summit take place".

Trump's original decision to abandon the summit initially blindsided South Korea, which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang in a desperate bid to avoid a devastating conflict.

Last year Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to date and missiles which it said were capable of reaching the US mainland.

Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a rapid detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang.

But the flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks with increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang.

There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve.

Washington wants North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible in return for sanctions and economic relief.

Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look like and remains deeply worried that abandoning its deterrent would leave the country vulnerable to regime change.



- 'Back on track' -



Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a village that straddles the border between the two countries, where the 1953 armistice was signed.

The two leaders had met in the same village only last month.

Kim Yong-hyun, professor of North Korea studies at Dongguk University in Seoul, said Moon and Kim moved quickly to defuse the crisis after Trump's shock cancellation.

"Moon essentially helped relay messages from Trump to Kim and vice versa, to further smooth the process and to resume negotiations," he told AFP, saying the Singapore meeting was "clearly back on track".

In Seoul Sunday most people whom AFP spoke to appeared to welcome Moon's move to talk to Kim.

"I think it was a good thing if meeting in person and having a direct conversation about each other's intentions helps us proceed to the next step," said Lee Tae-kyoung.

Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only told later that it had taken place.

Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South.
NATO should adopt hybrid warfare trigger: special rapporteur



Warsaw, May 27 (AFP) May 27, 2018



NATO states should modify the alliance's Article 5 collective defence provision to trigger a response in the event of so-called "hybrid warfare" attacks, a conservative British lawmaker said in a special report Sunday.

NATO allies have accused Russia of using "hybrid warfare" techniques, including subversion, propaganda and cyber warfare, to undermine the West without triggering a full NATO military response.

In his special report on countering Russia's hybrid threats, Britain's Lord Jopling told lawmakers meeting at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Warsaw this weekend that the alliance should consider a new collective defence "Article 5B".

"The article would make clear that hybrid attacks would trigger a collective response from the Alliance," the British lawmaker said in his report.

"The Rapporteur is convinced that the Allied leaders should, possibly at the upcoming summit in July 2018, initiate the drafting of the Alliance's new Strategic Concept to reflect new global security realities, including the rise of hybrid threats," he added.

NATO lawmakers are expected to vote on whether to accept his recommendation at the closing session of the assembly on Monday.

In March, US General Curtis Scaparrotti, the commander of NATO forces in Europe, said that NATO countries were working to determine when a cyber attack would trigger the alliance's Article 5 collective defense provision.

NATO leaders have agreed that a cyber attack against a member state could trigger Article 5, and reaching a specific understanding on the issue would allow "greater agility, greater flexibility in determining how to respond," he told a US Senate committee.

The alliance "recognizes the difficulty in indirect or asymmetric activity that Russia is practising, activities below the level of conflict," Scaparrotti said.

NATO will hold its next summit on July 11 and 12 in Brussels, with the fight against terrorism and the growing threat from Russia in the areas of hybrid and cyber warfare expected to be high on the agenda.
Srinagar, May 27: Complete shutdown was observed in Downtown here on Saturday to protest the use of force on protesters on people by government forces at Jamia Masjid there on Friday.At least 50 people, including women, were injured after police and paramilitary forces fired tear gas and pellets to disperse protests near Jamia Masjid on Friday.

All shops and other business establishments remained closed on Saturday in the area following a shutdown call by the Jamia market traders federation against desecration of the grand masjid.

The anger grew further after the photographs went viral on social networking sites showing an exploded teargas shell on the roof of Jamia Masjid. This shell has potential to burn the entire state?, wrote one of the users on Facebook.

Another photograph, which went viral shows the cops training guns at the main entrance at Jamia Masjid. It reminds of situation at Masjid Aqsa, wrote a facebook user.

Traders of Downtown expressed resentment against the forces action and demanded immediate suspension of cops and troopers who fired pellets and teargas shells inside the Jamia Masjid.

We wont tolerate desecration of the Jamia Masjid. We ask government to initiate inquiry and punish the accused forces said Nazir Ahmad Shah, chairman Shaher-e-Khaas Traders coordination committee.

If government wont take any action, we will be forced to launch state wide agitation, Shah said.

The clashes intensified, resulting in injuries to several among the protesters and shopkeepers, many of them hit by pellets in their faces, chests, and eyes.

Several women were left unconscious after the forces fired PAVA shells inside the mosque, pellets even hit the wooden pillars of the historic Mosque.

As per the traders, scores of the tear-smoke shells and pellets landed inside the mosque and injured the people offering prayers.

The Hurriyat (M) says that the historic Jamia Masjid will be closed for further prayers until the blood spilled on its floors is cleaned.

He said that blood of the injured is spread all over the mosque and needs to be cleaned first, adding that boys were only protesting when police started firing pellets and tear gas canisters at them.

More other agencies:-

Witnesses said the protesters ran towards the mosque as clashes intensified in the area with forces chasing them right into the thousands of worshippers who had come from different parts of the Valley to offer the second Friday prayers of Ramazan at the historic mosque. Several civilians injured after police fire pellets inside Jamia Masjid premises from main gate.

I saw atleast 5 people with pellets in eyes. #Kashmir protests and shelling intensifies. Locked inside Jamia, Mohammad Rafi, a Srinagar-based journalist, who offered prayers at the mosque wrote on Facebook.

Witnesses said the pellet fire resulted in eye injuries to at least ten persons, The floor of the prayer hall was bloodied due to shelling by forces, sources said.
Madrid, May 27, 2018 (SPS)- Spanish parliamentary intergroups Peace and freedom in Western Sahara, met recently in Zaragoza, issued a statement in which they renew their commitments to the cause of Western Sahara and the right of the Sahrawi people to hold a referendum on self-determination.



The members of the 14 intergroups of Spanish regional parliaments reaffirmed in their final document their commitment to the Sahrawi cause which is based on the resolutions of the United Nations, on the strict compliance with the international law and legitimate rights of the Sahrawi people to self-determination through a referendum, as a last stage of the decolonization process that has persisted for decades.



They underlined that the Polisario Front is the legitimate and the only representative of the Sahrawi people, recognized by the United Nations and the international community.



The Spanish parliamentarians pointed out that Western Sahara is a Non-Self-Governing Territory in accordance with the international law and has never belonged to Morocco and therefore, they added, we demand to end the illegal occupation of Western Sahara and the exercise by the Sahrawi people of their right to self-determination.



They also insisted on the immediate release of the Sahrawi political prisoners, calling to stop human rights violations in the Moroccan prisons to ensure the physical and mental integrity of the detainees, while urging the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva to appoint a rapporteur on human rights for Western Sahara.



They also denounced the plundering of the Sahrawi natural resources, exhorting companies and countries to start negotiations with the Sahrawi peoples legitimate representative which the Polisario Front. (SPS)



062/SPS/APS
London, May 27, 2018 (SPS) - Adala UK, an organization based in London which deals with human rights in occupied Western Sahara, said it is extremely concerned about the extent of Moroccan intimidations and arbitrary detentions against Sahrawi journalists.



In its last report published this week, the non-governmental organization underlined that the Moroccan authorities continue attacking journalists to prevent them from reporting human rights violations committed by the Moroccan forces in the occupied territories of Western Sahara.



Adala UK cited as an example the case of Sahrawi journalist Laaroussi Ndor who was arrested on 2 May 2018 and deprived of his right to have a legal representation and his right to contact his family.



Before he was arrested, laaroussi was, in the last few years, harassed and threatened by the Moroccan police and was victim of police violence, notably after he provided media coverage of the unfair trial of Sahrawi political prisoners of Gdeim Izik.



During his detention, the journalist was tortured and forced to sign confessions under torture. On May 21st, he was sentenced to three months in prison.



Sahrawi journalist Salha Boutinguiza was arrested when she was providing the coverage of Laaroussis trial.



Adala UK said that the Moroccan authorities know that the Sahrawi journalists are often the only source of information on the Moroccan human rights violations in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, the international media and observers are frequently prevented from getting to the region. (SPS)



062/SPS/APS
Srinagar: Danish Ayub, 16, raised the hopes of his family in 2016 when he topped in his school in the Class 10 Board exams. Danish, too, felt more confident of pursuing his dream of becoming a doctor. That dream is now on the verge of darkness as he battles severe eye damage sustained in the pellet firing by government troops at Srinagars Jamia Masjid this Friday.

Pellets hit Danish all over the face and pierced his left eye. Doctors at SMHS Hospital, where he is admitted, say he may not recover vision in the eye because the eyeball has been severely damaged.

My eyes are hurting and I am unable to open my eyes and see anything, he spoke in a barely audible voice at Ward 8 of SMHS on Saturday. I am worried about my studies. How will I fulfil my dreams now?

Perforation due to pellet injury in the retina and cornea has damaged his left eye badly, said the doctor treating him. Its difficult to decide on the treatment as his eyes were hit with many pellets, leading to serious injuries. We may need more time to decide on his treatment plan, the doctor said.

According to his family, Danish was inside the Jamia Masjid premises when police fired at him from one of the main gates. There was a peaceful rally outside the grand mosque when police and paramilitary used teargas shells and pellets to disperse the crowd. They closed the gates of the mosque and fired pellets inside, family members said.

Police said they fired because they came under intense stone-pelting during the protest.

Danishs mother, Shahnaza, said the family was shattered after doctors told them that Danish may not regain vision in his left eye.

He was a topper at his school in Class 10 exams with 98 percent marks. He opted for medical and his dream is to become a doctor. That dream has been shattered by the cruel government forces, she said.

She said that Danishs treatment is costly and the family cannot afford it. We are already facing a huge debt following a serious blaze some years ago that damaged our two-storey house completely, she said.

His father is earning a meagre amount from selling fruits. It will not suffice to treat his serious injuries, she said.

The 40-year-old Shahnaza appealed to affluent people and NGOs to come forward to help. We are clueless about how to finance his treatment as we have a huge family to support, she said.

Among the other injured admitted to SMHS is a youth, Basit Ahmad, who was hit by pellets in both his eyes. Another youth, Lateef Ahmad of Khanyar, was admitted in a critical condition following pellet injuries.

On Friday, SMHS Hospital admitted 34 injured persons among whom 12 had been hit by pellets in the eyes, according to the Medical Superintendent Dr Saleem Tak.

Most of them have been discharged but some of them may need hospitalisation for multiple surgeries, Dr Tak said.
1 dead, 9 injured in Okhaldhunga jeep accident

At least one person was killed leaving nine others injured after a jeep fell some 100 metres down the road at Rampur in Molung Rural Municipality-2 on Sunday.
Berry named US envoy for Nepal

US President Donald Trump has proposed Randy W Berry as his countrys new ambassador to Nepal, subject to Senate approval
Bhattarai frontrunner for top position in Labour Ministry

The former Director General (DG) of the Department of Transport Management (DoTM) Rupnarayan Bhattarai, the top official who spearheaded the crackdown against transport cartels in the city, is likely to get a key position in the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security.
In April 2018 two Chinese born men (Shan Shi and Gang Liu) were indicted for conspiring to commit economic espionage in the United States. It was also revealed that the two men (one of them an American citizen and the other a permanent resident) and four others were also indicted in July 2017 for conspiring to steal trade secrets. The theft involved obtaining, from 2014 onward, information necessary to create and mass produce syntactic foam, a substance used to keep objects afloat in deep water. Syntactic foam is used in offshore oil exploration and production as well as for several military systems. The two accused spies were provided with technical and financial support by CBMF, a state-owned Chinese firm that had been established to develop new maritime technologies and put the technology into production. The Chinese spies were provided with several million dollars to establish a CBMF subsidiary in Texas where key technical people were hired away from an unnamed multinational firm that had developed syntactic foam production technology. Using bribes and other financial inducements the Chinese spies provided the necessary information for CBMF to build a factory in 2016 for the production of syntactic foam. The main customer for this syntactic foam was a Chinese shipyard building warships and other naval equipment. CBMF also began offering their syntactic foam to foreign customers.

If convicted Shan Shi (an American citizen) faced 45 years in prison while Gang Liu faces 25 years. Economic espionage like this is a common activity for China and has been used mainly against the United States but other Western nations as well. Even Chinese neighbor and ally Russia has suffered heavy losses due to this Chinese economic espionage. There are going to be a lot more court cases like this because Chinese firms are becoming bolder in how they exploit stolen software, trade secrets and other technology. In the past, the Chinese were careful in the use of stolen tech when exporting their own military equipment copied from Russian designs. The Chinese had started doing this during the Cold War, which sometimes got fairly hot (there were some deadly border skirmishes in the 1970a) because China and Russia developed some territorial and ideological disputes that did not settle down until the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991.

The Russians are still angry about the continued Chinese theft of their tech and growing Russian threats over this caused the Chinese to sign agreements in the last decade that declared Chinese firms would stop stealing and reselling Russian tech. In practice, this only slowed the Chinese down, but it placated the Russians for a while. Currently, the Americans are starting to sound like the Russians in the 1990s, but the Americans have more legal and economic clout to deploy and this situation is liable to get ugly before (if ever) it gets better.

By 2012 most American officials had come to openly admit that a whole lot of American military and commercial technical data has been stolen via Chinese Internet (and more conventional) espionage efforts. Details of exactly all the evidence of this is unclear, but apparently, it was pretty convincing for many American politicians and senior officials who had previously been skeptical. The Chinese efforts have resulted in most major American weapons systems having tech details obtained by the Chinese, in addition to a lot of non-defense or dual-use technology (as in the syntactic foam case above). Its not just the United States that is being hit but most nations with anything worth stealing. Many of these nations are noticing that China is the source of most of this espionage and few are content to remain silent any longer.

Its no secret that Chinese intelligence collecting efforts since the late 1990s have been spectacularly successful. As the rest of the world comes to realize the extent of this success, there is a building desire for retaliation. What form that payback will take remains to be seen. Collecting information, both military and commercial, often means breaking laws and striking (or hacking) back at the suspected attackers will involve even more felonies. China has broken a lot of laws. Technically, China has committed acts of war because of the degree to which it penetrated military networks and carried away copies of highly secret material. The U.S. and many other victims has been warning China there will be consequences. As the extent of Chinese espionage becomes known and understood, the call for consequences becomes louder.

China has tried hard to conceal its espionage efforts. Not just denying anything and everything connected to its hacking and conventional spying but also taking precautions. But as their success continued year after year, some of the Chinese hackers became cocky and sloppy. At the same time, the victims became more adept at detecting Chinese efforts and tracing them back to specific Chinese government organizations or non-government hackers inside China.

Undeterred, China has sought to keep its espionage effort going and has even expanded operations. For example, starting in 2008 China opened National Intelligence Colleges in many major universities. In effect, each of these is an "Espionage Department" where, each year, several hundred carefully selected applicants are accepted in each school, to be trained as spies and intelligence operatives. China has found that espionage is an enormously profitable way to obtain military and commercial secrets and now China trains and rewards those who have a talent for such things and make a career of it. The Internet based operations, however, are only one part of Chinas espionage efforts.

While Chinese Cyber War operations in this area get a lot of publicity, the more conventional spying brings in a lot of stuff that is not reachable on the Internet. One indicator of this effort is the fact that American counter-intelligence efforts are snagging more Chinese spies. This is partly due to increased spying efforts by China (which puts more of their people out there to get caught), as well as more success by the FBI and CIA. All this espionage, in all its forms, has played a large part in turning China into one of the mightiest industrial and military powers on the planet. China is having a hard time hiding the source of the new technologies they are incorporating into their weapons and commercial products. Many of the victims initially had a hard time accepting the fact that the oh-so-eager (to export) Chinese were robbing their best customers of intellectual property on a grand scale. Now Western firms are a lot more wary about dealing with the Chinese.

China has been getting away with something the Soviet Union never accomplished, stealing Western technology and then using it to move ahead of the West. The Soviets lacked the many essential supporting industries found in the West (largely founded and run by entrepreneurs) and was never able to acquire all the many pieces needed to match Western technical accomplishments. Soviet copies of American computers, for example, were crude, less reliable, and less powerful. It was the same situation with their jet fighters, tanks, and warships.

China gets around this by making it seemingly profitable for Western firms to set up factories in China, where Chinese managers and workers can be taught how to make things right. At the same time, China allows thousands of their best students to go to the United States to study. While many of these students will stay in America, where there are better jobs and more opportunities, a growing number are coming back to China and bringing American business and technical skills with them. Finally, China energetically uses the "thousand grains of sand" approach to espionage. This involves China trying to get all Chinese going overseas, and those of Chinese ancestry living outside the motherland, to spy for China, if only a tiny bit.

This approach to espionage is nothing new. Other nations have used similar systems for centuries. What is unusual is the scale of the Chinese effort, and that makes a difference. Supporting it all is a Chinese intelligence bureaucracy back home that is huge, with nearly 100,000 people working just to keep track of the many Chinese overseas and what they could, or should, be trying to grab for the motherland. This is where many of the graduates of the National Intelligence College program will work.

It begins when Chinese intelligence officials examine who is going overseas and for what purpose. Chinese citizens cannot leave the country, legally, without the state security organizations being notified. The intel people are not being asked to give permission. They are being alerted in case they want to have a talk with students, tourists, or business people before leaving the country. Interviews are often held when these people come back as well.

Those who might be coming in contact with useful information are asked to remember what they saw or bring back souvenirs (legal or otherwise). Over 100,000 Chinese students go off to foreign universities each year. Even more go abroad as tourists or on business. Most of these people were not asked to actually act as spies but simply to share, with Chinese government officials (who are not always identified as intelligence personnel), whatever information they obtained. The more ambitious of these people are getting caught and prosecuted. But the majority are quite casual and individually bring back relatively little and are almost impossible to catch, much less prosecute.

Like the Russians, the Chinese are also employing the traditional methods, using people with diplomatic immunity to recruit spies and offering cash, or whatever, to get people to sell them information. This is still effective and when combined with the "thousand grains of sand" methods brings in a lot of secrets. The final ingredient is a shadowy venture capital operation, sometimes called Project 863 that offers money for Chinese entrepreneurs who will turn the stolen technology into something real. No questions asked. If you can get back to China with the secrets, you are home free and potentially very rich. This is the approach Chinese firms like CBMF are set up to do. While CBMF was technically supposed to develop new technologies in China the unofficial mandate was to steal as much as possible from other nations and not get caught.

Not getting caught is becoming more important because that can lead to increasingly dangerous diplomatic and legal problems. When the Chinese steal some technology and produce something that the Western victims can prove was stolen (via patents and prior use of the technology), legal action can make it impossible, or very difficult, to sell anything using the stolen tech outside of China. This is what the recent syntactic foam case is all about. For that reason, the Chinese long preferred stealing military technology and tried to avoid using stolen commercial tech in a way that made it easy to determine the source of stolen data. This meant keeping stolen commercial tech inside China. And in some cases, like manufacturing technology, there's an advantage to not selling it outside of China. Because China is still a communist dictatorship, the courts do as they are told, and they are rarely told to honor foreign patent claims when stolen tech is discovered in China by its foreign owners.

But increasingly, Chinese firms are boldly using their stolen technology, daring foreign firms to try and use Chinese courts to get justice. Instead, the foreign firms are trying to muster support from their governments for lawsuits outside China. Naturally, the Chinese government will howl and insist that its all a plot to oppress China. This has worked for a long time, but many of the victims are now telling China that this conflict is being taken to a new, and more dangerous, level.
Since the 1990s Germany has ignored complaints from its allies that Germany was failing to maintain sufficient defense spending to maintain its military obligations to NATO. In 1990 Germany spent 2.7 percent of GDP on defense. That fell to 1.5 percent in 2000 and despite growing calls to increase spending fell to 1.4 percent in 2010 and 1.3 percent in 2014. Currently, it is 1.2 percent despite promises to achieve two percent by 2024. For a long time, Germany got away with this because it had no real military threats to deal with. But after 2014 Russia became a real threat and since then alarmed German defense officials have leaked increasingly embarrassing data about how ineffective the German armed forces are becoming The latest leak, about the shrinking percentage of military aircraft are capable of carrying out a mission, was particularly alarming. Less than four percent of Germanys Typhoon fighters were capable of combat. Ironically 31 percent of the older (and being retired) Tornado fighters were operational. Newer equipment tended to be worse off. Only 13 percent of the NH90 transport helicopters were ready and only 16 percent of the Tiger helicopter gunships. Even more dismal was the number of these military aircraft Germany has (114 Typhoons, 93 Tornados, 40 NH90s and 43 Tigers). This discouraging data is nothing new. German military aircraft have had the lowest readiness rates in NATO for years. Germany continues, as it has for over twenty years, to promise the situation would be fixed but it never is.

For example earlier in 2018 leaked data showed that a key component of the NATO rapid reaction force, which Germany is to supply in 2019, is nowhere near ready to perform duties German assured everyone it could handle. The German armored brigade that was promised for 2019 is, in short, not ready. Only about 20 percent of the armored vehicles (Leopard 2 tanks and Marder infantry vehicles) are fit for service. Now we know that the brigade is unlikely to get much air support either.

When the Americans press Germany to meet its NATO obligations there are promises but no performance. Meanwhile, the United States spends nearly four percent of GDP on defense, accounts for 70 percent defense spending in NATO and is now telling the Germans that they can no longer automatically expect the Americans to bail them out when Germany comes up short in meeting its NATO obligations. This got some attention in Germany, but not a lot. This is a major shift since Germany was reunited in 1990. Before that, during the Cold War, West Germany (the half that belonged to NATO) maintained its military obligations faithfully, fearful that the dozens of Russian divisions in communist East Germany would quickly extinguish a democratic and prosperous post World War II Germany.

That seemed to work because by 1990 Russia agreed to withdraw from East Germany and allow Germany to be united once more. Since then the united German defense budget and armed forces personnel were cut, what with the primary threat, the dozens of Russian divisions in East Europe gone and all those East European nations embracing democracy and a free (and more productive) economy. But a decade later Russia had second thoughts about giving up its empire. Germany made promises but did little.

In the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks Germany agreed to help out in Afghanistan, as long as its troops were kept away from the hostile areas and allowed to avoid combat as much as possible. The deployment of a few troops to Afghanistan and other peacekeeping missions revealed other problems. While Germany had, on paper, well-armed and equipped troops the government had spent very little on training and logistical support. It required a major effort to keep small numbers of German troops overseas fed and supplied. It was embarrassing and promises were made to set it right. Nothing really got done about that.

The current American government is questioning the usefulness of the United States in NATO when the Americans have always tolerated their assuming a disproportionate burden of NATO responsibilities. In return for that, the U.S. regularly received more criticism than cooperation. A growing number of Americans question why the U.S. should remain so involved in a defensive effort that so many other NATO partners are backing away from. In response to this, the German government is criticizing American commitment to NATO without appreciating the irony of that attitude.

Until now it was generally overlooked, especially by Western Europe, that the U.S. was stubbornly determined to stay out of the two World Wars because the majority of Americans came from Europe to get away from all the wars, broken promises and bad politics in general. Europeans tend to forget that the main reason the Americans eventually entered the two World Wars was Germans misunderstanding what they were up against. In World War I the Germans engaged in all sorts of covert aggression against the neutral United States that eventually came to light and got America into the war during the last year when they were needed most. In World War II it was Germany that declared war on the United States after Japan attacked the Americans. At the time U.S. public opinion was very hostile taking part in another World War.

West Europe is again misjudging the Americans, who are quite capable of leaving NATO and telling Europe to take care of itself. As history demonstrates time and again its the things that you refused to recognize and later say you didnt see coming that cause the most damage. Now a growing number of Germans, especially defense experts and politicians, are recognizing that they have a problem. Yet the attitude in Germany remains hostile to actually spending the money needed to repair the damage over a decade of neglect did to their defense capabilities. German elected officials agree and have promised to come up with more than $12 billion to deal with the worsening readiness problems. The same politicians agree that the annual defense budget should be increased. But when the parliament goes to work on the government budget defense always comes up short. That does not appear to be changing in 2018, despite everyone agreeing this is not a good thing.

This latest crisis is made worse by a 2015 NATO decision to do something to help new NATO members in East Europe fulfill the mutual defense pledge in the face of Russian threats. NATO agreed to speed up efforts to create a rapid reaction force to help with the defense of new NATO members bordering Russia and very much in the way of the growing Russian threat. These new NATO members had suffered decades of Russian occupation after World War II and many of their citizens spoke or understood Russian and felt that the west NATO members underestimated the seriousness of the renewed Russian aggressiveness and misunderstood what the Russians were up to.

It was pretty clear what NATO was up to, at least in theory. The overall rapid reaction operation was called NRF (NATO Response Force) and it was to have NATO members contribute 30,000 troops. A third of NRF would be available within 48 hours for an emergency. This Spearhead Force was officially called the VJTF (Very High Readiness Joint Task Force). Germany is scheduled to assume command of the VJTF in 2019 and that means a German armored brigade will be the core unit of the VJTF. That German brigade is not ready and unless Germany makes some drastic changes wont be ready. Currently, most of the tanks in the entire German army are not functional. Now it is clear that the German air force would be of even less help. The German navy, which is mainly responsible for dealing with Russian aggression in the Baltic Sea, is aging more rapidly than the ground and air forces and efforts to build replacements for Cold War era warships are inadequate and the ships that are built turn out to be less effective (or not even able to go to sea) than expected.

The NRF itself is a division size organization with air, naval and special operations contingents backing three Spearhead Force brigades. Each of these brigades has about 5,000 troops and one (the VJTF) must have units ready to move within 48 hours with the rest of the brigade moving within a week. At that point portions of the other two brigades would be on the move. The major contributors to the NRF, and especially the VJTF will be the United States France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and Britain. Nearly all the ground troops will be from European NATO members while the U.S. provides a lot of specialized electronic and naval forces only they have. Note that all these other NATO members are in better shape to fulfill their NRF obligations. Germany is in a class of its own when it comes to un-readiness.

The VJTF could be used to slow down disrupt Russian aggression with ground and air forces (and naval ones if needed) until more forces can be mobilized. NATO members are reviving Cold War era defense plans because Russia has again become a threat in the east. Its a different threat this time because during the Cold War NATO was looking at an initial Russian invasion force of over 30 divisions followed by two or three times that number once they these reserve units were mobilized and deployed. These days Russia cant even muster that many brigades. In the past, there were few NATO members (like Norway and Turkey) that even bordered the old Soviet Union. Now there are many more, including the major Russian Cold War allies in East Europe (the former Warsaw Pact) who are now members of NATO. The Baltic States are particularly vulnerable and the VJTF was created in large part to reassure these neighbors of Russia that NATO membership can deliver the promised security.

Not only are the East NATO members not reassured by VJTF but they are afraid that history will repeat itself in more ways than one. East NATO members remember that in the 1930s there was a similar situation with Western nations promising assistance if there was aggression from Russia and Nazi Germany. The worst happened in 1939 when World War II officially got started when Germany and Russia both attacked and partitioned Poland as part of a secret agreement. Two years later Germany double crossed its new ally and invaded Russia. That ended disastrously for Russia, Germany and Eastern Europe, especially when the West again abandoned East Europe to Russian domination after the war. That period of Russian domination collapsed in 1991 but now East Europe sees the 1930s pattern of earnest promises that wont be kept and Russia moving in again.
This photo was taken over Ettington by Heather Walker.

AN office building in Henley was damaged after being struck by lightning in the early hours of this morning.

It was among five buildings struck in Warwickshire including two in Leamington, one in Kenilworth, and one in the north of the county in Nuneaton.

The premises in Henley in Arden has been left with smoke damage on the second floor.

Appliances from Leamington Spa, Stratford, Henley in Arden, Kenilworth, Southam and Nuneaton attended these incidents. The 1st calls were received at 2.07am.

Thunderstorms and torrential rain swept across parts of southern and central Britain, with lightning flashing across the sky.

Photo taken in Stratford by Dan Friar.

Around 15,000 lightning strikes were recorded in four hours on Saturday night, BBC Weather said.

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for heavy rain and flooding across Wales and most of England.

Later in the morning, storms brought more than an inch of rain to parts of Wales and the Midlands in just an hour.

Western Power Distribution said nearly 1,000 properties had been left without power across the Midlands, with the majority of outages down to lightning.

A cluster of 17 flood alerts were issued for parts of the Thames Valley, while West Midlands and Bedfordshire fire services warned motorists of the risks of driving on flood-hit roads.

Parts of Wales and central and southern England could see further thunderstorms on bank holiday Monday, with the Met Office warning of the possibility of power cuts and delays to trains and buses.

Many people got out their cameras to photograph and video Saturday night's electrical storm, which was called "utterly insane" and "like being under a strobe light".
John Barton

Vanessa Redgrave, Patrick Stewart, Janet Suzman, Trevor Nunn, Harriet Walter and Jane Lapotaire were among the contributors at an event to celebrate John Barton at the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) this afternoon (Sunday).

Entitled John Barton: A Celebration the ticketed event commemorated the great director who died in January aged 89. John was a founding member of the RSC with Peter Hall in 1960, his directing career spans over 40 years, and he published more than 20 adaptations as well as several works of major importance, including The War of The Roses, The Hollow Crown, The Greeks and Tantalus. Most significantly he changed the way Shakespeare is played and heard through his workshops and his visionary book and television series Playing Shakespeare.

RSC associate artists, Johns friends and colleagues performed notable extracts and shared memories during the afternoon, which was originally billed as an hour-long event, but overran to over 140 minutes.

Many told of they debt they owed John, for launching their careers or for elucidating Shakespeare, and all spoke of his warmth and humanity, and shared humorous stories of his eccentricities  including his clumsiness and sartorial inelegance.

For Herald arts view of this emotional afternoon, see Thursdays Herald.
Class in the past

Venerable Durbar High School is a window into the early days of education in Nepal
Conflict victims demand justice

Conflict victims have pressed the government to deliver them justice, arguing that compensation alone would not heal their wounds.
Inspired by the visual of a docked iPod, the building resembled a flat, titled brick and was known as the iPad tower.

Today, the concept has taken one step closer to reality and, in the process, has taken on the more conventional moniker of The Pad.

As one may expect, its 231 apartments feature an array of smart technology from a virtual reality projection wall that changes locations, to RFID (Radio-frequency Identification) tags instead of keys for apartments.

Furthermore, security and heating can also be managed using your smartphone, while the building also has toilets that can analyse its users health.

The architect behind the concept, James Law, says that he hopes that the technology incorporated into the building can be updated with time, ensuring it remains a sustainable project.

Earlier this month, BMW Designworks, the German carmakers creative consultancy, unveiled a prototype design for the Dubai hyperloop capsule that will be capable of traveling through vacuum-sealed tubes at speeds of 671 mph.
Gongor-Khimti transmission line 80pc completed

Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Company, a subsidiary of Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) and developer of much-talked about Upper Tamakoshi Hydropower Project, has completed construction of over 80 percent of the 220kV Gongor-Khimti Transmission Line Project.
Situated on the beautiful bay of Cala Petra Ruja, the club will only be reachable by the sea, with access to the property through a tender service or by private yacht.

The venue will showcase the signature Nikki Beach look and feel, featuring a design of all white with wood accents. With several seating areas, there will be consist an outdoor restaurant, lounging spots, main bar and secluded beach area.

European expansion has always been a focus for our brand, and weve been looking towards Italy, says Jack Penrod, Chairman and Owner of Nikki Beach Global.

The scenic location, natural beauty and elevated Italian crowd made this coastal property an ideal fit for our brand."

With space for around 300 guests, there will be signature directors chairs, sofas, dining tables, oversized sunbeds and umbrellas.

Meanwhile the Mediterranean-inspired cuisine will highlight local and traditional Italian delicacies, fresh seafood specials and Nikki Beachs signature global dishes.

The extensive beverage menu will highlight a mix of both local and international wine and Champagne, as well as handcrafted cocktails including the famous Nikki Beach Mojito.

This year, Nikki Beach will celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the opening of its first beach club, founded by the entrepreneur Jack Penrod and his wife Lucia, in Miami Beach in 1998.

Today, Nikki Beach Global has grown into an international luxury hospitality company, with 14 beach clubs around the world, including in Versilia, Saint Barth, Saint Tropez, Dubai, Monte Carlo, Marbella and Ibiza, and 4 hotels and resorts.
Colombian flutist Jesus Castro will be in Pulaski Thursday to perform the next concert in the LaVeck Concert series, Northern Oswego County's Classical music series held at the Pulaski Congregational Church, 27 Lake St., Pulaski.

Castro will perform Classical works for flute and piano accompanied by pianist Rob Auler, chair of the music department at SUNY Oswego and artistic director of LaVeck. The concert will be at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.

Auler said Castro is the first flutist to perform at LaVeck, He encouraged local music students to attend the concert for free. "Jesus is an inventive and charismatic player, and his appearance here will be a real treat," Auler said.

Castro and Auler will play three selections for flute and piano: Sergey Prokofiev's Sonata for Flute and Piano in D major, Francis Poulene's Sonata for Flute and Piano, and Franz Schubert's Introduction and Variations for Flute and Piano.

Russian composer Prokofiev is a 20th century master. He is famous for composing the ballet Romeo and Juliet and Peter and the Wolf. His sonata for flute and piano is described as lively, lyrical and thrilling.

French composer and pianist Francis Poulenc's sonata has been described as "fluid, graceful and dreamy." The third piece, by beloved Austrian composer Franz Schubert, is a musical illustration of a folk tale about unrequited love.

Jesus Castro has performed in Peru, Ecuador, and the United States, and has won several flute competitions. He holds an undergraduate degree from the Conservatory of Tolima, Colombia, and went on to earn his Master of Music degree in Flute Performance and his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The University of Southern Mississippi.

Castro is Principal Flutist in Colombia's Bolivar Symphony Orchestra and serves as Professor of Flute at Colombia's Conservatorio Adolfo Mejia in the Institucion Universitaria Bellas Artes y Ciencias de Bolivar.

Auler is an accomplished pianist who founded the LaVeck Concert Series in 2008 to bring world-class Classical music to the North Country. The New York Times commended his playing for its "extraordinary rhythmic clarity and expression." He has won first prize in national and international piano competitions, including the Society of American Musicians and the Stravinsky Awards.

Thursday's concert will be followed by a free Meet the Artists reception. A suggested donation of $10 for adults is requested for the concert, but no admission is required for this opportunity to hear symphony quality Classical music in Pulaski.

IF YOU GO:

What: LaVeck Concerts Presents Flutist Jesus Castro and Pianist Rob Auler

When: Thursday, May 31, 7:30 p.m.

Cost: There is a suggested donation of $10 per person, but no donation is required and students are encouraged to attend for free.

Bonus: A 'Meet the Artists' reception with free refreshments follows the concert.
Govt to unveil budget on Tuesday

The government is all set to unveil the budget for fiscal year 2018/19 in the joint meeting of the Federal Parliaments on May 29.
Candidates named in city and school elections

With the passing of the filing deadline for the upcoming city and school election, several area governing bodies including the City of Tama and ...
Hearing on govt decision to offer amnesty to murder-convict Dhungel on Monday

Hearing on the case filed against the government's decision of granting amnesty to Bal Krishna Dhungel would be held on Monday.
Researchers at NASA's Eagleworks advanced-propulsion lab have been working on a technology that can theoretically bring humans to Mars in just 70 days.

Technology Can Theoretically Make Space Flights Cheaper, More Efficient

The rocket propulsion engine known as EmDrive is supposed to generate thrust by bouncing microwaves inside a cone-shaped chamber without any propellant. It was originally developed by British scientist Roger Shawyer in the early 2000s.

As the engine does not require any fuel, the technology can theoretically make spaceflight cheaper and far more efficient. It can significantly make deep space missions, particularly manned missions, to the Red Planet more doable.

Physics-Defying Rocket Propulsion Engine

Newton's third law of motion says that every action must have an equal and opposite reaction. Conventional propulsion rockets expel superheated gas and other materials through nozzles at high speed. EmDrive, however, does not have an exhaust to expel as the opposing reaction, which defies the laws of physics.

Anomalous Thrust

Last year, NASA reported in a peer-reviewed scientific paper that they tested the EmDrive and were able to measure some thrust. Nonetheless, not everyone is convinced. Some remained skeptical prompting a group of researchers from the Technical University at Dresden in Germany to repeat the experiment. The new experiment was done in a vacuum and everything was automated.

"I consider the EMDrive as an experimental claim - and we are assessing if it works or not," said lead researcher of the study Martin Tajmar, from TU Dresden.

The researchers noticed the same effect was observed in the earlier experiments. They were able to measure thrust, albeit it did not appear to come from the engine itself.

Thrust Possibly From Earth's Magnetic Field

The researchers observed that there was thrust regardless of which direction the engine was pointing. This suggests that it comes from a secondary source, possibly magnetism from Earth. The researchers also noticed that the force produced was more than what is expected and they were not able to get the thruster to work in reverse.

"Special attention is given to the investigation and identification of error sources that cause false thrust signals," Tajmar and colleagues reported. "Our results show that the magnetic interaction from not sufficiently shielded cables or thrusters are a major factor that needs to be taken into account for proper N thrust measurements."

The results of the experiment were presented at the 2018 Space Propulsion conference held in Spain.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The Nebraska State Patrol made a historic drug bust as it seized 118 pounds of the opiate drug fentanyl last month.

Largest Fentanyl Seizure In Nebraska

The bust is the largest fentanyl seizure in the history of Nebraska and among the largest in the United States.

The drugs were seized during a routine traffic stop. Nebraska State Patrol Col. John Bolduc said that the troopers became suspicious of a semi-truck that was driving on the shoulder lane, prompting them to search the vehicle, which eventually led to the discovery of the illicit drugs concealed in a hidden compartment.

The troopers did not immediately test the drugs out of caution given the dangerous nature of the substance. They initially thought that most of the drugs were cocaine, but further testing revealed these were all fentanyl.

"Further testing from the NSP Crime Lab has confirmed that the entire 118 pounds of drugs seized during a traffic stop on April 24 in Buffalo County is fentanyl," the Nebraska State Patrol said in a statement. "Without question that traffic stop saved thousands of lives."

Fentanyl

Fentanyl is a powerful opioid up to 100 times more potent than morphine and up to 50 times more potent than heroin. The drug is dangerous to anyone who comes into contact with it since it can be accidentally inhaled or absorbed through the skin.

There have been incidents of police officers and drug overdose responders falling ill due to accidental exposure to the drug.

Last year, three police officers were taken to a hospital in Everett, Massachusetts, after responding to a car crash that involved three men suspected of drug overdose. The police officers showed symptoms of overdose after exposure to fentanyl found in a cigarette box inside the car.

A fentanyl spill at the Duluth Police Department , which also happened last year, likewise became a hazmat situation. A police officer and a crime scene technician had to be quarantined because they were exposed to the drug.

Seized Amount Of Fentanyl Could Kill More Than 26 Million People

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said that just 2 milligrams of fentanyl can be deadly, which means that the amount of the drug that was taken into custody would be enough to kill 26 million people. The value of the drug is estimated to be at over $20 million.

The truck's driver, 46-year-old Felipe Genao-Minaya, and the passenger, 52-year-old Nelson Nunez, both from New Jersey, were arrested.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Anup Ojha is a reporter for The Kathmandu Post primarily covering social issues and human interest stories. Before moving to the social beat, Ojha covered arts and culture for the Post for four years.
Mailung-Syaphrubesi road section closed for safety reason

The newly-constructed Mailung-Syaphrubesi section of the shortest India-Nepal-China overland route is unlikely to come into operation immediately due to safety reason.
Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily!

Your notification has been saved.

There was a problem saving your notification.

{{description}}

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
The rash of school shootings around the country is creating fallout for law enforcement agencies in Louisiana and elsewhere as they increasingly find themselves called on to investigate threats of violence on school campuses.

The Brusly Police Department arrested a 16-year-old student who last week was overheard threatening to shoot up Brusly High just two days after a student at a high school in Santa Fe, Texas, fatally shot 10 people and injured nearly a dozen more.

Brusly student faces terrorism charge after reportedly threatening to shoot up school BRUSLY  A 16-year-old Brusly High student will be charged with terrorizing after threatening to shoot up the school this week, authorities sa

And in the days and month after the Feb. 14 school shooting in Parkland, Florida, that resulted in 17 deaths and nearly 20 injuries, law enforcement agencies throughout the Baton Rouge Metro area dealt with numerous reports of threats at local schools.

"The Louisiana State Police Fusion Center monitors every school threat made in the state (and) we have seen an increase in the number of school threats over the past couple of years," said Senior Trooper Bryan Lee, a spokesman for the Louisiana State Police. "Our level of involvement investigating those threats depends on the request of the local investigating agency."

Some law enforcement agencies consider each school threat a learning experience and another opportunity for open dialogue about best practices when it comes to responding to them. Others consider them a wake-up call to what it might take to keep schools safe within the world's changing landscape.

"We get calls of threats all the time and take them seriously," said Sgt. L'Jean McKneely, a spokesman with the Baton Rouge Police Department. "Every time there's a school shooting it always brings it to the front of your mind to say, 'It can happen here.'"

According to the Educator's School Safety Network, a national non-profit school safety organization, there were more than 1,061 threats of violence to schools across the nation in the fall of 2017. That was an average of 10.9 per day  a 12.6 percent increase when compared to the same time the previous year.

The number of violent incidents on school campuses went from 64 to 100  a 59 percent increase  between fall 2016 and fall 2017.

Education School Safety Network defines "violent incidents" and "threats of violence" as those with the potential for a loss of life, such as explosive devices, firearms and other deadly weapons like knives. Things like fights and harassment on school campuses were not included.

Louisiana tied for eighth place in the network's ranking for states with the most violent incidents occurring at schools during it's 2016-17 study.

Amy Klinger, a spokeswoman for the group, said data for the current school year is unavailable due to the high volume and frequency of events.

"We've had a lot of high-profile events," she said. "There's just been so many those numbers are constantly changing."

Two days after the Brusly Police Department was able to thwart the threat to one of its local high schools, the Federal Bureau of Investigations announced it was launching a campaign to educate the public on the consequences of posting hoax threats to schools and other public places on social media.

Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

+5 Livingston sheriff says he is not for arming teachers, but wants more officers in schools SATSUMA  The Livingston Parish sheriff said Wednesday that he doesn't favor arming teachers but that he wants to put more law enforcement of

The FBI warns that offenders face possible federal charges that could land them in prison for up to five years. And if federal charges don't apply, state charges might.

"Every threat is real until we learn it's not real," said Iberville Parish Brett Stassi.

Stassi's detectives had to deal with at least two reported threats of violence at schools in Iberville Parish, both of which were declared fake but still caused waves of panic through the community.

"We can't overlook anything," Stassi said. "Parents have a right to know what's going on and we have an obligation to keep them in the loop."

Stassi views every threat his department investigated as a learning tool that helps better prepare them for the next, and further opens a dialogue between school districts and law enforcement on school safety.

Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff Bud Torres says his detectives have recently become more vigilant about keeping an eye on social media for possible threats.

In April, his department had their hands full trying to figure out who doctored a photo threatening a mass shooting at Livonia High School that went viral on social media.

Pointe Coupee sheriff searching for culprit behind doctored photo threatening school shooting The Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff's Office is trying to figure out who posted a doctored photo that went viral on social media Monday night thr

After being made aware of the post, it didn't take Torres' detectives long to recognize the image was doctored, having originally read "CHS" instead of "LHS." The teen in the picture was actually a 17-year-old student who was arrested in New Mexico for threatening to shoot up his high school.

"Mayhem and panic is what they're thriving on," Torres said of what motivates those making such fake threats.

As threats to schools and number of actual shootings on school campuses continues to rise, Torres said it's time districts spend more money to secure their campuses.

Beyond placing more school resources officers on campuses, he said, schools need to implement other safety protocol, such as having checkpoints and metal detectors and limiting points of access.

"The American public has to decide if theyre going to secure their schools or not," he said. "It's going to be painful and it's going to take a lot of money. But until that happens, we're going to have the same chaos we've been going through."
NCP withdraws support to Province 2 govt

Nepal Communist Party has withdrawn its support to the government of Province 2 on Sunday.
Purchases made via links on our site may earn us an affiliate commission
In December, when Wanda Snowdens brother was fatally shot in his Clayton Drive home  becoming one of the final homicides in an already markedly murderous year  she was hopeful Baton Rouge police would find his killer.

Five months later, shes lost much of that hope.

After dozens of unanswered calls to detectives or otherwise fruitless updates when she did connect with an investigator, she said she doesnt believe Thomas Snowden's murder is getting the attention it deserves.

Her brother's case along with 44 other BRPD homicides cases from 2017  when the city and parish broke all-time records for the most murders in one year  remain unsolved. And now, almost halfway into 2018, homicides are already outpacing last year, painting a bleak picture for the next seven months.

Its like, OK, yall done forgot about 2017 murders and started on 2018, Wanda Snowden said. If yall dont have enough detectives, thats not right.

Local authorities concede that the homicide division is not staffed to the level they would like to see as the detectives continue to face ever mounting caseloads. However little has been done to address the situation.

Baton Rouge deserves a fully-manned homicide department, said East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore III. They are good at what they do, but they are strapped for time and resources. Its a well-known deficiency.

When Thomas Snowden was killed at the end of 2017, there were nine Baton Rouge police detectives working the citys most high-profile crimes. BRPD supervisors said they were overworked; Moore then called them woefully short. Yet, despite functioning below optimal staffing levels for months and a change in departmental leadership with Chief Murphy Paul taking over in January, the division has actually shrunk since then.

Currently, eight detectives are working homicides cases, down one from December after an officer went on medical leave, police officials said, although they said they hope to add one new detective to the team soon. In previous years, about 12 detectives consistently worked the city of Baton Rouges homicides.

We had a discussion about it recently, said Deputy Chief Robert McGarner, who has been over criminal investigations since Pauls induction. Were going to add a couple more investigators to the homicide division, its coming soon.

On Monday, Paul officially posted for a new homicide detective, looking to recruit applicants internally, according to the job listing obtained by The Advocate. Interested officers with at least three years experience were asked to submit their applications within three days, the minimum amount of time for a job posting, the listing said.

McGarner said the new administration had been discussing adding to the homicide division, but were unable to find a good spot to pull from as the entire department is struggling with manpower shortages.

Its been on the table, but were in a situation where we have to rob Peter to pay Paul, McGarner said. We need more police officers, period. From uniform patrol to detectives.

McGarner also said they hope to add more detectives once an expected 28 current police academy cadets graduate next month, and then complete their three-month field training.

+7 Baton Rouge Police homicide detectives 'woefully short' working the city's historic number of killings In 2014, Baton Rouge Police Department homicide detectives worked 53 homicide cases. At that time, there were 17 officers in the unit.

Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Theyre just overloaded and they need more help, Moore said. But theyre not alone, its the intelligence department, uniform patrol. But the ones you see most are homicide detectives.

There had had been 31 homicides inside the Baton Rouge city limits so far in 2018, up eight from last year at this time, according to records maintained by The Advocate.

The vast majority of the parishs homicides happen within city limits, meaning the Baton Rouge Police Departments homicide division responds to the incident and works the investigation.

Moore said he is concerned how the shortage of homicide detectives  and therefore the time and energy they can spend solving cases  can affect the publics perception of the effectiveness of law enforcement, especially as the murder rate continues to rise. He noted that detectives are also tasked with responding to other suspicious deaths, including suicides and drug overdoses which continue to increase amid the nations opioid crisis.

The inability to solve cases, particularly murders and rapes, does surely have an impact on the community, Moore said. It also leads to potentially a lack of cooperation, because if they dont believe police can get the job done then someone else gets the job done.

Baton Rouge Police have cleared 45 percent of the citys homicides thus far in 2018, about the same proportion they had cleared at the end of 2017  however still well below the national average, which hovers just below 60 percent. A homicide is considered cleared when an arrest is made or when the alleged perpetrator dies, not after a conviction.

McGarner said he doesnt believe the shortage of detectives has affected the departments clearance rate, which he said is a testament to how hard the current detectives are working.

Studies have shown detectives are more successful when they have more time to work on each case, and they in turn end up with higher clearance rates. The FBI in 2011 recommended that detectives in a department with more than 50 homicides a year should handle an average of five cases annually as the primary investigator. The study also used data to show that when detectives handle more cases than recommended, the overall homicide clearance rate decreased, meaning fewer cases were solved.

Although homicides cases are not distributed exactly even among detectives at BRPD, often being assigned depending who is on call at the time, it will still be almost impossible for Baton Rouge Police detectives to adhere to the recommended caseload unless something drastically changes.

With only eight detectives taking on cases and 31 homicides thus far in 2018, each detective already could have been assigned about four homicides  not even halfway through the year.

McGarner said every case is different, some take longer than others. He recalled working 13 cases in one year when he worked in the homicide division.

One thing that can make a big difference in solving a case, he said, is the communitys assistance, and he hopes that can continue to improve their clearance rate.

The public is starting to buy in, McGarner said. The community has been doing a hell of job helping us.

'Lovable ... church-going': Family grieves for man fatally shot Monday night in apparent robbery Just hours before Thomas Snowden, 46, was fatally shot in his Clayton Drive home late Monday, he and his two siblings had been there planning 

Moore said hes hopeful something can change to stop the violent upward trend of homicides in the city. But with school getting out last week, hes concerned  especially since the months of June, July and August are historically the most deadly.

Its going to be a long summer, Moore said. The way its shaping up, I dont like what I see.
Hamas supporters wave their green flags during a protest against the possible U.S. decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, in Jebaliya Refugee Camp, Gaza Strip, Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2017. President Donald Trump is forging ahead with plans to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital despite intense Arab, Muslim and European opposition to a move that would upend decades of U.S. policy and risk potentially violent protests. (AP Photo/Adel Hana) ORG XMIT: AH102
The fiery crash that killed four people and injured about a dozen more on Interstate 12 in Covington on Saturday afternoon started when an 18-wheeler hauling avocados failed to stop as the driver approached stalled traffic, Louisiana State Police said.

A State Police spokeswoman on Sunday identified three of the dead as Yoland Simmons and Keland Simmons, both of Baton Rouge, and Mandeville resident Rachel Lehmann.

The driver of the 18-wheeler hauling avocados also died in the crash, according to trooper Melissa Matey, but that person's identity hasn't yet been confirmed.

Can't see video below? Click here.

The crash, which involved two 18-wheelers and eight other vehicles, happened about 4 p.m. Saturday on the I-12 overpass over La. 21 and shut down the entire eastbound portion of I-12, leaving just one westbound lane open.

According to Matey, on-scene evidence and investigation by State Police revealed that right before the crash, traffic was stopped or slowing to a stop on I-12 eastbound because of congestion.

The 18-wheeler hauling avocados was traveling in the right lane on I-12 and, for unknown reasons, failed to stop. It started a chain-reaction crash with nine other vehicles, Matey said in a news release.

The 18-wheeler jackknifed during the crash and caught fire, along with three other vehicles, she said.

Can't see video below? Click here.

Video courtesy of Brittany Breaux

During the crash, a 2014 Lexus IS350 was struck by the 18-wheeler. The driver and passenger in that vehicle, the Simmonses, died at the scene.

Lehmann, who was driving a 1997 Toyota 4Runner, was also struck by the 18-wheeler, according to the release. She was taken to a hospital, where she later died.

Several other victims, including a St. Tammany Parish Sheriffs Office deputy, were taken to local hospitals with minor or moderate injuries. Matey said all of them are expected to make a full recovery. The deputy was released from a hospital later Saturday.

+14 Four dead, many injured after crashes involving 18-wheelers, vehicles on I-12 in Covington Four people were reported dead and about a dozen more injured after multiple crashes Saturday afternoon involving two 18-wheelers and several 

Whether driver impairment was involved in the crash has not been determined. Results of toxicology tests are pending, Matey said, adding that the crash investigation remains "very active and ongoing."

After being closed since 4 p.m., the eastbound highway was reopened about 2 a.m. Sunday.

Authorities said first responders from all over western St. Tammany Parish responded to the crash, including Fire Districts No. 2, No. 4, No. 8, No. 12 and No. 13, the Covington Fire Department and the Sheriff's Office.

As the crash scene was active, one of the 18-wheelers was completely engulfed in flames, causing many witnesses to stop and take pictures and video of the accident.

"Crashes like this are horrific, and they don't just affect the first responders on the scene. They also affect all the families involved, the communities they live in. It's a widespread effect, and it's usually because people don't pay attention behind the wheel," Matey said.
The Digital Age, also known as the Third Industrial Revolution, dawned in the early 1950s and came of age in the late 1970s as the use of digital computers proliferated. With it came advances that were the stuff of science fiction prior to the digital revolution.

Today corporations and consumers are increasingly paying a price for their wonder with the onslaught of the bane of modern life in the digital world  hacking.

Cyber Security  a term unheard of prior to the coining of the term Cyberspace in 1982  has evolved from its introduction in 1989 to the number one risk citied by North American business leaders in a 2018 study.

The risk has extended beyond the business world to strike at the very fabric of societies everywhere, affecting governments as well as ordinary citizens. Australians now know our country was not spared the intrusive reach of not only the ubiquitous Russian hackers, but attacks from the Pakistani military as well.

In 2014 the Center for Strategic and International Studies and US-based cybersecurity firm McAfee released a study showing online crime  both corporate and consumer  peeling off 0.08% of global GDP. The now outdated graphic displays the shocking numbers by country.



Tesserent Limited (TNT) listed on the ASX in February 2016, with the share price falling steadily since it came on before experiencing a bit of a bump so far in 2018.



>> BACK TO THE NEWSLETTER: Click here to read other articles from this weeks newsletter
Plan education expos in all states

The resounding success of the Fifth Kantipur-Hissan Education Fair in Kathmandu encouraged a section of academia, students and parents to advise organising such expos all over Nepal for the benefit of citizens in other provinces.
PM to discuss charter revision, says RJP-N

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has assured top leaders of the Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal of a discussion on amending the constitution adopted three years ago.
Billie Eilish on reaching out to Lorde and a potential collab with Niall Horan

She couldn't be more excited about returning to our shores.
Siddhicharans birthday in a Baroque palace

A remarkable power of Siddhicharan Shresthas poetry is the play of time and space
Living the fantasy of Britain's royal wedding, American kids dressed up as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for a photoshoot on a budget and schedule that wedding planners can only dream of.

Tricia Messeroux, a New York photographer, has been capturing children in red carpet looks from the Oscars, Grammy and Golden Globe award ceremonies, and blockbuster movies ever since her idea of dressing up her daughter as a celebrity in 2008 gave birth to Toddlewood Studio in Baldwin, New York.

The biggest wedding of the year inspired her to recreate the cast, including Markle's mother Doria Ragland, Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, bishop Michael Bruce Curry and cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason.

As the bride, Naiyah Otero, 7, wore a version of Markle's boat-necked Givenchy wedding gown as interpreted by Esaie Couture.

Read also: Pacific Ocean features in new royal Markle's Coat of Arms

"I think she's pretty and it's an honor to marry Prince Harry, like, dress up as her," Otero said at the photoshoot on Tuesday.

Andrew Robert Joy, 6, embodied bearded Prince Harry with the help of eyebrow pencil on his smooth jawline that matched his close-cropped red hair.

Messeroux and her team give themselves only 48 hours to mimic the looks and set design for her big annual project.

"We had to spend all night creating this flower wall as best we possibly could," Messeroux said. "And the gown for the priest, I literally glued that myself. Yes, I glued a whole gown together myself, with my friends, overnight last night."

"Hopefully, it's going to look good and hopefully nobody can tell but we'll see," she said.
A portmanteau of Depok and Antasari, Desari describes the route of a newly built highway connecting Depok city with Jakartas Antasari road. The new road that has not yet opened will be the venue of a race titled the Desari 10K, claimed to be the first full toll road running race.

Desari 10K committee head Alfie Dasaad told Antara on Wednesday that the running competition was packaged with a Betawi folk party to be held after the race. The party will take place at a race village that can be attended by citizens from residential areas surrounding the highway.

The Desari 10K folk party aims to entertain, raise social awareness and offer Betawi culinary delights that support a healthy lifestyle, said Alfie.

He went on to say that the event was slated to be held on July 8. Apart from offering Betawi culture as an attraction, the running competition also offers scenic views rolling along the sides of the Depok-Antasari highway.

Runners will be able to see Mount Gede from the start and during the first leg heading south. The view is expected to give runners the feeling of running in the countryside. After finishing the first leg, runners are to turn around and retrace their steps to the finish line, with the contrast of skyscraper views along the sides of the road.

The concession holder of the Desari toll road, which spans 21.6 kilometers through Jakarta, Depok, and Bogor, is PT Cipta Waspphutowa, which also organized the running competition. The company said the event was to celebrate the completion of the construction of section 1A (Antasari  Brigif/Cinere).

Djoko Saputro, president director of PT Cipta Waspphutowa said the highway was expected to support the activities and mobility of residents around the area. And in the end, they hope this infrastructure will also contribute more to the economy.

The running competition will be divided into two categories, namely the 10K and 5K with the start and finish lines near the toll gate in Cilandak, South Jakarta. The competition will start at 5.30 a.m. for the 10K category, with two-and-a-half hours cut off time. Meanwhile, 5K runners are to start at 5.45 a.m. with one-and-a-half hours cut off time.

Water stations will be provided in three spots for 10K runners, and two spots for 5K runners, said Safrita Aryana, the director of the competition.

Read also: Pacemakers: Thai seniors compete in first 'Elderly Games'

The event is expected to draw 3000 individual and community runners from Indonesia and abroad. Registration is already open, and discounts are offered for communities who wish to join the run. There will be 10 percent off the registration fee for a community of five people, and 15 percent off for a group of 10 people. (mut)
Single apolitical union proposed

The government has proposed a single trade union in civil service as it drafts a law to regulate the federal civil service.
Half-man, half-beast, the tall African statues dominate a busy gallery in Paris' Quai Branly museum. But few of the visitors are aware they are looking at what might be considered stolen goods.

The three imposing wooden carvings were plundered by French troops in 1892 from the kingdom of Dahomey -- modern-day Benin.

"I came here to learn about how these objects were intended to be used, more than how they were brought here," said Michael Fanning, a student from New Orleans, peering up at the statues.

"But it does make me think we should give them back to whoever made them."

From London to Berlin, Europe's museums are packed with hundreds of thousands of colonial-era items. Increasingly, they are facing the awkward question of whether they should be there at all.

The "Scramble for Africa", as Europe's 19th-century land grab came to be known, brought with it a clamour for trinkets from conquered territories, so exotic to the eyes of the colonisers.

Bought, bartered and in some cases simply stolen by soldiers, missionaries and anthropologists, they ended up in museums and private collections all over Europe.

The controversy is hardly new, nor does it concern Africa alone.

Star lawyer Amal Clooney, wife of Hollywood actor George, has advised Athens on its bid to reclaim the Parthenon marbles, vast sculptures which have been in Britain since the 1800s.

The massive Koh-i-Noor diamond, part of Britain's crown jewels and claimed by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan, is another spectacular example.

But in Africa, a speech by French President Emmanuel Macron has spurred hope that things may be about to change.

"Africa's heritage cannot just be in European private collections and museums," Macron said in Burkina Faso in November.

He charged two experts with working out how to give African artefacts back within five years, prompting speculation that museums across Europe could be pressured to follow suit.

"Suffice to say that he'll have made European curators quake in their boots," said Pascal Blanchard, a historian of French colonialism.

- Tangle of problems -

French art historian Benedicte Savoy, one of the experts appointed by Macron along with Senegalese writer Felwine Sarr, described her new job as "a hell of a challenge".

Museums have long wrestled with a tangle of legal and ethical problems concerning who really "owns" such objects.

Read also: Mexican-Indonesian batik fusion exhibited in Jakarta's Kota Tua

Even in well-documented cases of pillaging, the law often prevents countries from giving them back.

Last year France flatly refused Benin's bid to reclaim its treasures, saying they were exempt from seizure as state property.

European conservationists have also raised practical concerns, worrying artefacts could be stolen or handled improperly if given to inexperienced museums in politically unstable countries.

Blanchard said countries like Nigeria, with well-established museums, had "all the ingredients for solid restitution claims".

But others as poor as Chad "do not currently have the museums and cultural heritage services capable of restoring and displaying these objects", he said.

- 'These objects belong to us' -

Yet many African officials say these treasures should be at home, attracting tourists and boosting national pride.

Few cases inspire more outrage than the Benin bronzes, hundreds of exquisite metal plaques seized in 1897 by British troops from the Kingdom of Benin, in modern-day Nigeria.

Most are now in the British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

For Crusoe Osagie, spokesman for the governor of Nigeria's Edo State, it is simply wrong that his children must go to Britain or Germany to see their heritage in a glass-fronted cabinet.

"These objects belong to us and were forcefully denied to our possession," he told AFP.

As for suggestions that Africans might not look after such objects, he finds the idea insulting.

"It's like asking me how to look after my child," he said. "We are ready to look after them with great care."

Read also: Parisians embrace Indonesian culture in front of The Louvre

- Echoes of Nazi looting -

Some colonial-era artefacts have been handed back over the years on an ad hoc basis, and UN cultural agency UNESCO has mediated successfully in several disputes since the 1970s.

European and US museums have also been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 seeking a solution for the Benin bronzes, but with few results.

The idea of loaning the bronzes, as well as Ethiopian items displayed in Britain, has been floated, but some African officials are affronted by the suggestion of "borrowing" what they see as their own property.

For want of better solutions, many museums are simply trying to approach the issue more sensitively.

German museums have taken a lead -- mindful of their previous experience with Jewish-owned artworks looted by the Nazis.

At Berlin's new Humboldt Forum, labels are set to include details of how colonial-era items came to be in the collection.

And Hamburg's MKG museum is running an exhibition which focuses not so much on its three Benin bronzes, but the fact that they were looted.

Its curator Silke Reuther said visitors appreciate the museum's honesty.

"We are not afraid to show something which is not a beautiful story," she said.
Researchers in Peru believe they have traced the origins of the Incas -- the largest pre-Hispanic civilization in the Americas -- through the DNA of the modern-day descendants of their emperors.

From their ancient capital Cusco, the Incas controlled a vast empire called Tahuantinsuyo, which extended from the west of present-day Argentina to the south of Colombia.

They ruled for more than two hundred years before being conquered by the invading Spanish in the 16th century.

The empire included the mountain-top citadel of Machu Picchu in modern-day Peru -- now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a major tourist attraction.

After becoming fascinated by the Inca culture, their organizational skills and their mastery of engineering, researchers Ricardo Fujita and Jose Sandoval of Lima's University of San Martin de Porresit became interested in the genetic profile of their descendants.

They said the aim of the study, the first of its kind, was to reveal whether there was a unique Inca patriarch.

"It's like a paternity test, not between father and son but among peoples," Fujita told AFP.

The scientists wanted to verify two common legends about the origin of the Incas.

One attributes them to a couple from around Lake Titicaca, in Peru's Puno region. The other identifies the first Incas as the Ayar brothers from the Pacaritambo mountain in the Cusco region.

DNA samples were taken from inhabitants of both places.

"After three years of tracking the genetic fingerprints of the descendants, we confirm that the two legends explaining the origin of the Inca civilization could be related," said Fujita.

Read also: Overproduction threatens Andes superfood haven

- Genetic similarities -

"They were compared with our genealogical base of more than 3,000 people to reconstruct the genealogical tree of all individuals," said Fujita.

"We finally reduced this base to almost 200 people sharing genetic similarities close to the Inca nobility."

The study released some preliminary results in April, in the review Molecular Genetics and Genomics.

"The conclusion we came to is that the Tahuantinsuyo nobility is descended from two lines, one in the region of Lake Titicaca, the other around the mountain of Pacaritambo in Cusco. That confirms the legends," said Sandoval.

But it also confirms that the two legends were linked.

"Probably the first migration came from the Puno region and was established in Pacaritambo for a few decades before heading to Cusco and founding Tahuantinsuyo," he said.

But the work of the researchers does not stop there. Now they want to go further back in time.

For that, they have to test the DNA of ancient relics, such as mummies, "to form the most complete picture of the origin of the most important pre-Hispanic civilization," said Fujita.

The task looks complicated because the Spanish Conquistadores, who arrived 1532, destroyed Inca mummies that families venerated, as they sought to convert people to Christianity.

The researchers are now looking for where the Incas' most direct descendants are buried in order to trace their history.

The DNA analysis would add to archeological and anthropological research to understand the exact origin of the people.

"In this case, we use ... genetics, the transmission of molecular features across the generations," said Fujita.
Europe's museums are full of items taken from Africa during colonisation, but many other objects on their shelves also carry an uncomfortable history.

Here are five examples of historic artefacts which have caused bitter ownership spats between nations:

- Benin bronzes -

So intricate that some Europeans of the day did not believe they could have been made by supposedly "primitive" Africans, thousands of these plaques were plundered from the Kingdom of Benin by British troops in 1897.

The British ransacked what is now Benin City in Nigeria, torching it and stripping it of its artwork in revenge for a massacre of their troops.

Showing scenes of court life, the "bronzes" date back to the 16th and 17th centuries and are in fact mostly made of brass.

Brisk trade scattered them around Europe, and today the biggest collections are in London's British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

European and US museums have been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 but have thus far struggled to find a solution.

Last year, museums floated the idea of a permanent loan, but "many issues remain, not least whether or not a loan is agreeable to the Nigerian authorities", according to the British Museum.

- Royal treasures of Abomey -

Like the British, French colonial troops also pillaged objects from conquered African lands which were considered the spoils of war.

They returned from the 1892 capture of Abomey, capital of the Dahomey kingdom in modern-day Benin, with a wealth of thrones, royal sceptres and statues.

Benin's government says an estimated 4,500-6,000 royal items remain in France, including in private collections. The finest are in the Quai Branly museum in Paris.

France last year refused to return the artefacts but appears set to re-examine the issue after President Emmanuel Macron said Europe needed to return Africa's heritage.

Read also: Four-month festival aims to strengthen national identity

- Elgin marbles -

This superb collection of ancient marble sculptures once stood at the Parthenon temple overlooking Athens, but have been in Britain since the 1800s -- much to the chagrin of the Greek government.

British officials have argued Lord Elgin removed them with the permission of Greece's then Ottoman rulers, and that the British Museum has protected them from the ravages of time.

The museum refused a UNESCO offer to mediate in the dispute in 2015, saying the sculptures were its inalienable property and on display "for the benefit of the world public".

- Nefertiti bust -

With her high cheek bones and elegant long neck, this bust of the famed ancient Egyptian queen became an icon of feminine beauty.

Sculpted around 1340 BC, it was discovered by German archaeologists in 1912 and is today displayed in Berlin's Neues Museum.

Egyptian authorities have sought it back for decades. German officials have argued that it was obtained legally and is too fragile to be transported.

- Koh-i-Noor diamond -

Thanks to a murky history this giant diamond, on display at the Tower of London along with other British crown jewels, has been claimed over the years by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan.

It changed hands between elites on the sub-continent for more than two centuries before being ceded to Queen Victoria when Britain annexed the Punjab in 1849.

Despite being one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, it initially failed to impress Britons who went to see it on display in London.

Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, ordered it re-polished -- shrinking it by a half, but giving it a brilliant dazzle.

Even critics who argue it was taken by force have struggled to determine which country would hold the best claim to it.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, May 27, 2018 14:27 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e64dc7a 4 National dugong,stranded,West-Sulawesi,Polewali-Mandar,protected-animals Free

A fisherman named Safaruddin was about to go out to sea on Saturday when he reportedly found the body of a dugong on Garassi beach in Nepo village, Wonomulyo district, Polewali Mandar, West Sulawesi.

According to his account, there were wounds all over the protected animals 2.5-meter-long body. He alleged that the dugong was killed by poachers.

It was already dead when I found it. This is the third time we have found a dugong body around here, Safaruddin said as reported by kompas.com on Sunday.

When Polewali Mandar Water Police officers went to the scene to remove the dead creature, some local residents had reportedly stolen it. They had reportedly cut the body into pieces and planned to sell it on Battoa island.

However, the police thwarted their attempt, arrested the culprits and seized the dugong body as evidence.

Dugongs are listed as endangered in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). (vla)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Stefanno Reinard Sulaiman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, May 27, 2018 18:52 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e655455 1 Business EU,Indonesia-EU-CEPA,palm-oil,trade-agreement Free

The European Union is confident that the ongoing debate over palm oil with Indonesia will not hamper negotiations on the Indonesia-EU Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (I-EU CEPA).

The bloc had never considered palm oil a trade issue, as no tariff or import duty was imposed on the commodity so far, said Vincent Guerend, the EUs head of delegation and ambassador to Indonesia and Brunei Darussalam.

We are not specifically talking about palm oil [in I-EU CEPA], because we have 15 chapters to discuss, he told The Jakarta Post on Friday. It may be an aspect in wider issues, but from our point of view, we have no problem at all.

Guerend said the fifth round of negotiations on the Indonesia-EU CEPA was expected to commence in July, following the fourth round held in February in Surakarta, Central Java.

He said the EU also aimed to resolve non-trade issues in the I-EU CEPA negotiation, such as intellectual property rights as well as laws on labor, competition and public procurement.

The European Parliament has announced plans to phase out palm oil by 2021.

Another issue to be discussed in the July negotiation was investment, and Indonesia continued to have obstacles hampering EU investment, he said.

The Indonesia-EU CEPA, if achieved, will be one of the countrys biggest trade agreements among six ongoing negotiations, including the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA) and the Indonesia-European Free Trade Association (EFTA) CEPA.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (Reuters) Moscow, Russia  Sun, May 27, 2018 18:36 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e654605 2 World Russia,Syria,war,death Free

Four Russian military personnel were killed in fighting in eastern Syria's Deir al-Zor province, Interfax news agency reported on Sunday, citing the Russian Defence Ministry.

The fighting erupted after several groups of rebels attacked an artillery battery of the Syrian army, the ministry said.

Two Russian military advisers who directed the fire of the Syrian battery were killed on the spot. Five other personnel were injured and taken to a Russian military hospital. Two of them died from their wounds.

The ministry said that 43 rebels had been killed in the same fighting, Interfax reported.

Metadata :
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, May 27, 2018 01:18 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e658185 4 City crime,thief,burglars,Tanah-Abang Free

A group of criminals has allegedly broken into three pawnshops in three different areas in Depok and Bekasi, West Java by drilling through the walls.

The alleged driller, identified as Iwan, a low-paid porter in Tanah Abang market, Central Jakarta, said the group had rented a house near their targets before breaking into the shops so they could better monitor the situation. They claimed they were fruit sellers.

There are four other suspects, identified only by their initial R, D, AS and H.

They committed their crimes in the morning or at weekends, when there were no security officials on duty.

"My task was to drill the wall, and we barged into the shop to break down safety deposit boxes. We also took some valuable items such as mobile phones, laptops, cameras and money," Iwan said at the Jakarta Police Headquarters on Friday as quoted by tribunnews.com.

To avoid arousing suspicion from the noise of the drill, they played music, Iwan said.

The group also damaged CCTV cameras.

They collected Rp 1.9 billion (US$134,124) in their operation, said Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Argo Yuwono. (fac)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Stefanno Reinard Sulaiman (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Sun, May 27, 2018 19:03 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e655568 1 Business premium,gasoline,Jokowi,pertamina,BPH-Migas Free

President Joko Jokowi Widodo has reportedly given his approval for a revised presidential regulation ensuring the supply of Premium-branded gasoline in Java, Madura and Bali, regions where the fuel was previously phased out.

The revision of Presidential Regulation No. 191/2014 has been labeled as a politically motivated move ahead of the presidential election next year.

Fansurullah Asa, head of the Downstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Agency (BPH Migas), said the president had signed the revision, which was submitted by Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan.

We will wait for the following ministerial regulation, which assigns BPH Migas to distribute Premium in Java, Madura and Bali, he said as quoted by Tempo.co on Friday.

Fansurullah added the fixed volume for distribution had yet to be decided, noting that throughout 2017 the agency recorded a realization of 5.1 million liters of Premium.

Presidential spokesperson Johan Budi could not be reached for confirmation on whether Jokowi had officially signed the revised presidential regulation.

Premium is one of state energy giant Pertaminas products with a research octane number (RON) level of 88, the lowest RON.

Despite being a low octane gasoline, Premium is popular because of its low price, which has been set at Rp 6,550 (47 US cents) per liter for Java, Madura and Bali. Meanwhile, Pertalite, which has an RON of 90, is sold at Rp 7,800 per liter.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Michael Heath (Bloomberg) Sydney, Australia  Sun, May 27, 2018 17:03 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e651119 2 Business Australia,banking-services,disruption,power-outage Free

National Australia Bank said it will ensure no customers suffer financial losses after a nationwide system outage left Internet banking, ATMs and EFTPOS terminals out of service early Saturday.

The event was incredibly rare and no personal data was compromised, Cindy Batchelor, NAB Business executive general manager, told reporters in Melbourne, according to a transcript. She said all customers were invited to speak with the bank about the impact on their business.

Our intention is to work with each and every one of them to make sure they have no financial loss associated with the outage, she said. If there was a loss driven by the outage, yes compensation will be provided to customers.

The outage comes at an awkward time, with Australian banks under pressure from a probe thats exposed a decade of unethical practices by the lenders, including lying to regulators, falsifying documents and taking bribes to extracting fees from dead customers.

NABs outage struck at about 7:50 a.m. on Saturday and by 2 p.m. all systems were back up and running, Batchelor said.

Its an incredibly rare event and it took a number of hours for our technicians to be able to bring the systems back up," she said. It has had an incredible impact on our customers and for that were incredibly sorry.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Jolyn Rosa (Reuters) Honolulu  Sun, May 27, 2018 12:55 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e64c33c 2 World Hawaii,Hawaii-volcano,lava,geothermal-plant,Kilauea,earthquake,volcanic-eruption,US,disaster Free

A broad lava flow crossed onto the property of a Hawaii geothermal power station on Saturday, posing a new hazard as molten rock from the erupting Kilauea volcano bulldozed relentlessly through homes and backyards.

The lava crossed onto the Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV) Saturday evening local time, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, having destroyed dozens of nearby houses in the past few days.

Since Hawaii's Kilauea volcano began a once-in-a-century-scale eruption May 3, authorities have shutdown the plant, removed 60,000 gallons of flammable liquid and deactivated wells that tap into steam and gas deep in the Earth's core.

Magma has drained from Kilauea's summit lava lake and flowed around 25 miles (40 km) east underground, bursting out of about two dozen giant cracks or fissures near the plant.

"The flow from fissures 21 and 7 was widening and advancing," Janet Snyder, a spokeswoman for the County of Hawaii, said in an email on the position of lava heading northeast towards PGV at 12:30 p.m. (6:00 p.m. ET)

Hawaii Governor David Ige has said the wells are stable.

But lava has never engulfed a geothermal plant anywhere in the world and the potential threat is untested, according to the head of the state's emergency management agency. Local residents fear an explosive emission of deadly hydrogen sulfide and other gases should wells be ruptured.

270 earthquakes in one day

Residents have complained of health hazards from emissions from the plant since it went online in 1989 and PGV has been the target of lawsuits challenging its location on the flank of one of the world's most active volcanoes.

The Israeli-owned 38 megawatt plant typically provides around 25 percent of electricity on the Big Island, according to local power utility Hawaii Electric Light.

Operator Ormat Technologies Inc last week said there was no above-ground damage to the plant but it would have to wait until the situation stabilized to assess the impact of earthquakes and subterranean lava flows on the wells.

In just the past 24 hours there were between 250 and 270 earthquakes at Kilauea's summit, with four explosions on Saturday sending ash to altitudes as high as 12,000-15,000 feet, said Stovall and National Weather Service meteorologist John Bravender.

Winds are set to shift on Monday and Tuesday, causing higher concentrations of ash and volcanic smog that will spread west and northwest to affect more populated areas, Bravender said.

U.S. Marine Corp and National Guard helicopters are on standby for an air evacuation in the event fissure activity cuts off Highway 130, the last exit route for up to 1,000 coastal residents. Cracks in the highway have yet to emit hydrogen sulfide gas which would indicate magma was rising towards the surface, Stovall said.
Stop the horror

Almost every industry has experimented on animals, even when it was not necessary
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Mohammed Aly Sergie (Bloomberg) Dubai, United Arab Emirates  Sun, May 27, 2018 16:11 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e6505bf 2 Business Qatar,UAE,Saudi-Arabia,Trade Free

Almost a year after Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut ties with Qatar, the gas-rich country decided to stop consuming goods from its rivals.

Qatars economy ministry ordered shops to strip shelves of products imported from the four countries, according to a circular sent on Saturday. Inspectors will visit stores to insure compliance with the ban.

A spokesman for the economy ministry didnt immediately respond to requests for comment.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt cut economic and diplomatic ties with Qatar on June 5, accusing the country of financing terrorist groups and having close ties with Iran, charges Qatar rejects. The rift forced Qatar to shift import routes to Kuwait and Oman, and buy goods from Iran and Turkey.

Qatar, which has one of the worlds biggest sovereign wealth funds, absorbed the shock of the embargo. The economy expanded faster than most of its neighbors last year and is expected to outperform this year, according to International Monetary Fund data.

After shoring up ties in Western capitals and spending billions on weapons, Qatar plans to retool its economy to attract foreign investment and build a financial hub for companies in Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Pakistan.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Seoul  Sun, May 27, 2018 12:18 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e64b424 2 World drag-queen,South-Korea,human-rights,LGBT,parade,Asia,minority-groups Free

South Korea held its first ever drag parade this weekend, a small but significant step for rights activists in a country that remains deeply conservative when it comes to gender and sexuality.

Dozens of drag queens and kings marched through Itaewon on Saturday, a suburb of Seoul best known for its nightlife and a nascent but vibrant gay scene.

Carrying rainbow flags, they cheered and strutted their best outfits, receiving shouts of support and the odd baffled look from those they passed.

While homosexuality is not illegal in South Korea, same-sex marriage is not recognised and people cannot legally change their birth gender.

The country is home to a large evangelical Christian community and LGBT people feel pervasive pressure to to stay closeted.

"When it comes to South Korea, human rights guarantees for sexual minorities are insufficient," Yang Heezy, a drag queen and the organiser of Seoul Drag Parade, told AFP.

"Today's drag parade and more queer culture festivals should take place to bring attention to sexual minorities and help those who are not from those minorities learn more," he added, sporting a flame red wig and floral dress.

Both South Koreans and foreigners participated in Saturday's parade.

One participant, who gave her drag queen name Lola Bank, said there was a feeling of exhilaration among marchers.

"The fact that we are able to be in public in drag is a huge milestone to queer acceptance in Korea," Lola enthused, dragging on a cigarette.

"Ive always struggled with my masculinity and my femininity. And when I get in drag Im saying kind of like a 'fuck you' to societys expectations of how I should behave as a male."

Gay pride parades have been a fixture in South Korea for years but have often been protested by religious groups, who have held rival anti-homosexuality rallies while trying to physically block marchers.

Even left-leaning South Korean President Moon Jae-in - a former human rights lawyer - said he "opposed homosexuality" during a campaign debate last year.

Gay rights activists claim that some progress has been made in recent years, with surveys showing increasing tolerance -- particularly among young people -- and growing participation at gay pride events.

Saturday's small parade saw no counter-demonstration.

Lee Hyang-soon, an elderly street vendor, smiled and waved to participants as they passed.

"It's really cool. Seeing all the foreigners join in, it feels like Korea is becoming world famous," she said. "I'm happy. It's fabulous."
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Theresia Sufa (The Jakarta Post) Bogor, West Java  Sun, May 27, 2018 15:27 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e64f39f 1 City murder,teens,child-protection,bogor,crime Free

The Bogor Police have found that the alleged killer of 6-year-old Grace Gabriella Bimusu, identified only as R, 15, killed the victim over a grudge held against Graces parents.

Graces body was found at a banana plantation in Bogor Asri Residential Complex, Nanggewer, Cibinong, Bogor, West Java on May 1.

According to the autopsy, Grace Gabriella Bimusu died of asphyxiation, Bogor Police criminal investigation director Adj.Sr.Comr. Bimantoro Kurniawan said on Friday.

He said that R, who had just finished junior high school, told the police he had killed Grace at the victim's house by smothering her. At the time, the suspect was alone, his father was working while his mother was taking his younger sibling to school, Bimantoro added.

He said the suspect put Graces body into a sack and dumped the sack at the banana plantation sometime between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. on April 30. Local residents found Grace's body the next day at around 1:50 a.m.

The suspect and the victim lived in the same neighborhood at Bogor Asri Residential Complex, Block K3, Nanggewer, Cibinong, Bogor.

Bimantoro said R was angry that Grace's mother had cursed at the suspect's parents, so he targeted Grace for revenge.

The police have also detained the suspects parents for questioning, and the suspect's entire family has been taken to the Bogor Police Headquarters as a security measure.

The police have confiscated one plastic sack, a pair of earrings, a sleeveless shirt, an undershirt, a skirt, a piece of cloth, a bag filled with toy money and a pair of sandals.

The suspect has been charged under articles 340 and 338 of the Criminal Code (KUHP) on premeditated murder as well as Article 80 of Law No. 35/2015 on child protection, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. (ami)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Jerome Taylor and Jung Hawon (Agence France-Presse) Seoul  Sun, May 27, 2018 10:20 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e645b3c 2 World Trump-Kim-summit,Donald-Trump,kim-jong-un,North-Korea,US,USA,Nuclear,denuclearization Free

Plans for a landmark summit with North Korea's Kim Jong Un are moving "very nicely", US President Donald Trump said Sunday, as the South's leader said Kim told him the talks would be a historic opportunity to end decades of confrontation.

The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship on the Korean Peninsula that had sent tensions soaring.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling a planned June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump told reporters late Saturday when asked for an update. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed."

Trump's unpredictability sparked a sudden and surprise meeting on Saturday between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in -- only the fourth time leaders from the two countries have ever met -- as they scrambled to get the talks back on track.

Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations.

Moon said Kim described the Singapore summit as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation.

"He... expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters in Seoul on Sunday.

Pyongyang's state-run KCNA news agency said Kim "expressed his fixed will on the historic DPRK-US summit talks", using the official abbreviation for North Korea.

Kim said the two Koreas should "positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve the DPRK-U.S. relations and establish mechanism for permanent and durable peace," KCNA added, saying South and North Korea would hold another round of "high-level" talks on June 1.

Shaky detente

Trump's original decision to abandon the historic summit initially blindsided South Korea, which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang and is desperate to avoid conflict breaking out.

However, there was a further signal of progress Saturday as White House press secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed a team of US officials were leaving for Singapore "in order to prepare should the summit take place".

Last year, Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to date and missiles it said were capable of reaching the US mainland.

Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a rapid detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang.

Moon won the election last year partly by vowing to be open to dialogue with the North and finding a solution to a Cold War-era sore that continues to blight the region.

The flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks as the summit was thrown into doubt by increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang.

There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve.

Washington wants North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible in return for sanctions and economic relief.

Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look like and remains deeply worried that abandoning that deterrent would leave the country vulnerable to regime change.

"Kim stressed again that he had a firm determination towards complete denuclearisation," Moon told reporters Sunday.

"The thing he was uncertain about was not denuclearisation but concerns on whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime when the North denuclearises itself."

'Back on track'

Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a heavily fortified village that lies between the two countries where the 1953 armistice was signed.

Only last month, the two leaders met in the same village, with Kim famously inviting Moon to step briefly into the North before they both held talks in a building on the South's side.

Kim Yong-hyun, professor of North Korea studies at Dongguk University in Seoul, said Moon and Kim moved quickly to defuse the crisis after Trump's shock cancellation.

"Moon essentially helped relay messages from Trump to Kim and vice versa, to further smooth the process and to resume negotiations," he told AFP, saying the Singapore meeting was "clearly back on track".

Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only told later that the face-to-face had taken place.

Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South.
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (Agence France-Presse) Gaza City, Palestinian Territories  Sun, May 27, 2018 15:50 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e64ff7b 2 World Israel,Palestine,Gaza-strip,attack Free

Israeli tank fire at an Islamic Jihad observation post killed two Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday, the enclave's health ministry and sources from the militant movement said.

The ministry identified those killed as Hussein al-Amour, 25, and Abdul Haleem al-Naqa, 28. The incident happened east of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, a ministry spokesman said.

Earlier on Saturday, Israeli aircraft struck two Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip on Saturday night, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, Palestinian security sources in the coastal territory said.

One of the targets, in the southern town of Rafah, was a facility of the Islamist movement's military wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the sources said. The other they described only as a Hamas site in the centre of the strip.

The Israeli military said in a statement that its "fighter jets struck military targets in a compound belonging to the Hamas terror organisation in the southern Gaza Strip".
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin Dian Septiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, May 28 2018

Solidarity: Sri Lankas Muslim community light a lamp to start an ifthar gathering in Jakarta on Saturday. (JP/Dian Septiari)

One of the iftar (breaking-of-the-fast meal) events in Central Jakarta on Saturday was not like the others, where it started with participants, including children, taking turns to light traditional brass oil lamps to start the event.

It is a tradition in Sri Lanka to commence ceremonies and festivals by having all communities light a lamp, Sri Lankan Ambassador to Indonesia Dharshana M Perera said after the event at the embassy.
2018 Maarif Award winner Abdul Rosyid Wahab (second left), a long-time advocate of tolerance and pluralism from Sikka, East Nusa Tenggara, poses with members of the judges panel, Centre for Strategic and International Studies Foundation vice chair Clara Joewono (left), Maarif Institute treasurer Suyoto (second right) and Education Minister Muhadjir Effendy, after receiving the award in Jakarta on Sunday. The Maarif Award acknowledges individuals and organizations that contribute to promoting tolerance, diversity and social justice. (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)(second left), a long-time advocate of tolerance and pluralism from Sikka, East Nusa Tenggara, poses with members of the judges panel, Centre for Strategic and International Studies Foundation vice chair Clara Joewono (left), Maarif Institute treasurer Suyoto (second right) and Education Minister Muhadjir Effendy, after receiving the award in Jakarta on Sunday. The Maarif Award acknowledges individuals and organizations that contribute to promoting tolerance, diversity and social justice. (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
Share this article Whatsapp

Facebook

Twitter

Linkedin (The Straits Times/Asia News Network) Petaling Jaya, Malaysia  Sun, May 27, 2018 11:22 1234 a7124a1e87885b91d244660f9e647ff6 2 SE Asia high-speed-rail,Singapore,Malaysia,Kuala-Lumpur,Transportation,Mahathir-Mohamad Free

The Malaysian government is looking at how it might reduce the compensation it has to pay to Singapore if it decides to drop the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high-speed rail (HSR) project.

With Malaysia looking at ways to cut costs to pare its debt of RM1 trillion (S$337 billion), mega projects such as the 350km HSR deal inked in 2016 under previous prime minister Najib Razak and the RM55 billion East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) have come under fresh scrutiny.

In an interview with The Edge weekly published on Saturday (May 26), Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, whose coalition swept to power on May 9, raised the possibility of both rail projects being dropped.

"The terms and agreement for the HSR are such that if we decide to drop the project, it would cost us a lot of money," he said.

"We have entered into an agreement with Singapore. If we break the agreement, we have to pay a very large sum of money."

The HSR is estimated to cost up to RM50 billion, and will slash the travelling time between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur to 90 minutes when completed in 2026.

Most of the line - 335km of it - will be in Malaysia, with the remaining 15km in Singapore. The HSR will have eight stops - seven in Malaysia and one in Jurong East.

Singapore-Malaysia high-speed train. (The Straits Times/-)

The Land Transport Authority called for tenders for the design and construction of tunnels and associated facilities for Singapore's end of the HSR last month, with construction expected to start next year.

Early this month, Mr Mohd Nur Ismal Mohamed Kamal, chief executive of MyHSR Corporation, the state firm tasked with implementing the HSR on the Malaysian side, estimated that Malaysia could lose RM209 billion in gross national income if the project was scrapped.

Mr Lim Biow Chuan, who sits on the Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, said on Saturday it would be a waste if the project were to fall through.

"With so many people moving back and forth, the HSR will benefit both countries," he told The Sunday Times.

Dr Walter Theseira, senior lecturer at the Singapore University of Social Sciences, said it would be a "great missed opportunity" for both countries if plans for the HSR were to fall through, as the project would have strengthened both Singapore's and Kuala Lumpur's positions as regional business hubs.

In the interview with The Edge, Tun Dr Mahathir also said that the ECRL, which will connect Malaysia's east and west coasts, is expected to cost RM92 billion by the time it is paid off, due to interest.

Work on the project - a major part of Beijing's Belt and Road infrastructure push - started last year.

The project was planned to stretch 688km, connecting the South China Sea at the Thai border in the east with the shipping routes of the Strait of Malacca in the west.

It is being built by China Communications Construction, and is mainly financed by a loan from China Exim Bank.

"We are renegotiating the terms," Dr Mahathir said.

"The terms are very damaging to our economy."

He questioned the need for the project in the first place, saying "it is not going to serve any purpose, it is not going to give us any returns".

Topics :

This article appeared on The Straits Times newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
In the spirit of Idul Fitri, which falls close to Jakartas 491st anniversary, Indonesias 73rd Independence Day and the Asian Games, Ancol Dreamland Park is slated to host Ancol Asian Festival from June to August in several different venues.

Kompas.com reported that there would be three major events at the festival, namely the Nusantara Festival, Kampung Betawi Festival, Asian Lantern Festival and Ancol Triathlon Kemerdekaan Festival.

Ancol Nusantara Festival (Ancol Archipelago Festival)

This is a cultural festival featuring art performances from Aceh to Papua. A number of artists are also set to create ethnic sculptures to be showcased at a few spots on Ancol beach.

Meanwhile, in conjunction with the anniversary of Jakarta, which is celebrated every June, a special parade of ondel-ondel (giant Betawi effigies) will be held. Events will also be held as a tribute to Benyamin Sueb, a multi-talented Betawi artist who was a comedian, actor, director and composer.

The event is set to include an ondel-ondel procession along Ancol Lagoon beach, pencak silat, Lenong Betawi (traditional Betawi theater), and the Palang Pintu ritual (a wedding ritual comprising pantun, a traditional form of repetitive prose, and a symbolic pencak silat duel).

Vacationers will be able to attend this festival from June 13 to July 15 at Ancol Lagoon beach.

Kampung Betawi Festival (Betawi Kampong Festival)

Ancol Art Market, the cultural center of the area, is set to be transformed into a Betawi kampong. Ancol Dreamland Parks management team will set up the venue to accommodate visitors so that they can explore Betawi culture, arts and craft as well as culinary delights.

Special performances of Betawi artists performing lenong and giving traditional music performances such as gambang kromong, keroncong and marawis are scheduled for weekends from June 15 to August 31.

Asian Lantern Festival

Promoting Asian cultures, this festival is set to showcase lanterns in the form of heritage buildings and Asian characters. Boats decorated with ethnic touches will also parade around Festival beach, while vacationers can enjoy tea and coffee with Asian flavors at Ancol monument.

Slated to be centered at Festival beach, the event will be held from July 29 to September 2.

Ancol Triathlon and Kemerdekaan (Independence) Festival

The sporting contest and Independence Day festival are scheduled to end the month-long festivities. Teuku Sahir Syahali, vice president director of PT Pembangunan Jaya Ancol said to Kompas.com on Thursday that the triathlon would be a friendly race with a fun concept for vacationers.

Ancol is also set to hold traditional Independence Day games such as panjat pinang, in which contestants race to climb to the top of trimmed palm tree trunks to reach the prizes at the top. There will be 188 palm trees to climb. (mut)
Spain may be one of the world's top tourist destinations, but many people in its biggest cities have grown exasperated with Airbnb-style rentals.

And now, their city councils are taking action.

Airbnb and other peer-to-peer rental websites have for years been credited with enabling lovers of travel and culture to find new ways to explore foreign lands.

However, complaints have abounded in Spain that greedy landlords are throwing out long-term tenants in order to cash in on the tourist flow, and that the short-term leases are pushing up rent.

By introducing a slew of new rules, Madrid's leftwing city hall plans to make it impossible for short-term rental companies to rent out 95 percent of apartments in the Spanish capital by the end of the year.

To get a holiday rental licence homeowners will have to prove their property has a separate entrance from the rest of the building -- a condition that is in most cases impossible to fulfil.

Homeowners who rent their primary residence for less than three months a year will be exempt.

"We are aware that this is a very restrictive condition, and that is our intention," Madrid's city councillor for sustainable urban development, Jose Manuel Calvo, told AFP.

He said certain Madrid neighbourhoods have reached "the same saturation level" as Barcelona, where a boom in holiday rentals has drained the city's housing supply and pushed up rents, sparking a backlash against tourists that saw protesters take to the streets.

- Locals out? -

There are now around 9,000 flats in Madrid that are rented out to tourists, six to seven times more than in 2013, Calvo said. Of these, about 2,000 operate without a licence.

In some buildings landlords have evicted all local residents in order to rent their flats to tourists for more money, Calvo explained.

"The consequence is that these neighbourhoods end up emptying out gradually, and this must be prevented. There is still time," he said.

Madrid city hall in January stopped issuing new licences for tourist apartments, and only plans to resume licensing once the new system is in place.

Read also: FamilyMart to allow Airbnb users to pick up keys at its stores

- 'Theme parks' -

Other cities in Spain, the world's second most visited country after France according to the UN World Tourism Organization, are also facing a surge in the number of sharing economy short-term rentals, threatening hotel businesses.

In the Mediterranean port city of Valencia the number of peer-to-peer holiday apartments has soared by 30 percent since 2016.

While the situation is not as critical as in Madrid and Barcelona, the city's leftwing mayor wants a raft of new regulations to be approved by July.

"It seems important to have rules in place that, without stopping this model of the sharing economy, are compatible with cities' desire to preserve the spirit of their neighbourhoods, without becoming theme parks," the city's economic development coordinator, Julio Olmos, told AFP.

The plan is to apply the same laws regulating hotels to tourist rentals. In practice under the new rules, only apartments on the ground floor or first floor can be legally rented out to tourists.

In the old town centre the legislation will be even tighter. There, licences will only be awarded to flats in buildings specifically designated for holiday rentals.

- Internet tracking -

To ensure the rules are respected, Madrid and Valencia plan to follow Barcelona's lead.

The Catalan city employs 40 people tasked with poring through holiday rental sites to ensure that properties have the proper licences.

Between mid-2016 and mid-2017 Barcelona city hall, headed by a former housing rights activist, ordered the closure of over 2,300 holiday rental flats.

Fewer than 750 have obeyed the order, with legal proceedings under way against those still resisting.

Airbnb has, however, removed 1,500 ads for unlicensed flats, helping to return the properties to the regular rental market.

Palma de Mallorca, capital of Mediterranean tourist destination the Balearic Islands, is going even further -- it is poised to ban nearly all short-term rentals of private homes like those listed on Airbnb.

The island city saw the number of holiday flats jump 40 percent between 2013 and 2017.

The surge is blamed for a shortage of long-term rental apartments, forcing some locals and seasonal workers to live in vans and campsites in the summer because they can't find affordable housing.

Detached homes will be available to rent for tourists only if they are located near the airport, in industrial areas, or in buildings not designated for residential use.
Three killed after bus rams bike in Tanahun

Three youths have died after a bus rammed a bike in Tanahun on Saturday night.
The Oscars have long been a source of delight, controversy, glamour, and contention amongst the film world. The elitism of the very institution leads many to ignore the awards entirely, while others insist that recognition for diverse works are is the only route to a more inclusive industry.

Whether you like them or not, whether they consider their social responsibility or not, their impact is undeniable. The last ten years have seen a plethora of masterpieces, and masterclass performances - here are my picks of the best of the best for the main categories.

He may have faced multiple snubs and near misses, but Leonardo DiCaprio finally nabbed his own golden statue for his epic performance in The Revenant. DiCaprio plays Hugh Glass, a frontiersman battling against the elements, hostile natives and vicious bears in order to get back home and avenge his family.

Acting alongside the likes of Domhnall Gleeson and Tom Hardy, DiCaprios steals the limelight in his stand out performance. Perhaps its DiCaprios gritty commitment to the role that edges him over the line as best actor, a commitment that saw nestling into animal carcasses, wading through frozen rivers and eating raw bison.

As you root for DiCaprios survival, his tenacious performance will leave you gripping your armrests and tense all over. The dark and gritty performance was worth DiCaprios wait for receiving the prestigious award and this performance is certainly worth the award for best performance by an actor for the past ten years.

(Special shout out to Casey Affleck in Manchester By the Sea. Although I may not like the man in light of recent controversies , this performance was incredible.)

Best Actress  Julianne Moore, Still Alice (2014)

In her haunting performance, Julianne Moore plays Dr Alice Howland, a 50-year-old academic who tragically discovers that she has early-onset Alzheimers. Moores exceptional talent stunned audiences and critics in one of Hollywoods most memorable performances of a lifetime.

Alices infectious personality and undeniably joyous aura slowly fades throughout the duration as well as her control over her own body. As the end draws near, Alices memories fade, and the realisation sets in that she is just a former shell of who she used to be. Moores performance leaves you fearful of the future whilst holding tight onto the years to come.

Moores talent and professionalism delivers a sophisticated performance which was required to successfully execute such a delicate role. Moore is exceptionally physical whilst retaining an incredible intimacy with the audience. Moores performance is one that you simply cannot forget, and nor should you want to, leaving a bitter-sweet reminder of how quickly life can change from beyond recognition.

(Special shout out to Frances McDormand in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Yet another example of a how to give a performance with intimacy and physicality.)

Best Animated Feature  Up (2009)

Dominating the category for years, it's unsurprising to see Pixar emerge victorious in the category of best animated feature. Pixar has opted for depicting scenes of a mature nature in its films for years, arguably originating in Up, and the success of these depictions has rippled through its productions up to the present day in films like Zootopia.

Within its first ten minutes, Pixar produced its most famous sequence for years, introducing seriously mature ideas like death, loss and even miscarriages. Pixar takes an opportunity to provide for a moral to be taken away from their films, allowing for more than just a money grabbing opportunity, but an opportunity to allow for bonds to be built between audiences and characters by producing real character development.

The secret to Pixars success is that their films speak to people, with Up being no exception. With their provision of mature storylines cushioned by light hearted comedic relief in its narratives and characters, children leave with a life lesson whilst still enjoying their last hour and a half.

Three Billboards is incredibly unconventional in its approach, allowing for an emergence of a discourse about typically uncomfortable topics through the blending of comedy and drama. Rockwell epitomises this approach through the exposure of his dark side, yet his comedic persona still shines through.

In this black comedy, Rockwell plays a crooked cop who desperately attempts to put an attempt to Mildreds (Frances McDormand) scheme to reignite the police departments investigation into her daughters death. Rockwell is quickly positioned as the film's main antagonist, whose relationship with the other characters is ever-evolving.

Rockwell often goes toe to toe with McDormand, as they battle to act each other off the screen. McDormand delivers plenty of traumatic moments, which are then interrupted by moments of heightened comedy by Rockwel,l and vice versa. Acting almost as a cinematic ying-and-yang, Rockwells interactions with McDormand give a new meaning to black comedies, forcing laughs from the audience at the most inappropriate of times

Fences fell short of claiming best picture for failing to attract any substantial directors, in which Washington was forced to take on the role himself. Lacking any directorial style, the on-screen adaptation feels more like a play than a cinematic masterpiece.

Based on the famous Pittsburgh plays by August Wilson, Fences follows the life of Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington), a trash collector living in 1950s Pittsburgh, struggling to come to terms with the mundaneness of his life. In her stunning performance, Davis embodies Washingtons onscreen wife, reuniting the cast from the award-winning Broadway adaptation.

Davis delivery of Roses iconic monologue was remarkable with an intense vulnerability in her physicality that proved unbearable to witness. Davis performance took us a journey of inner strength that left audiences unable to resist her potent charm. Viola Davis haunting performance excuses any of the film's technical shortcomings, delivering a performance more than worthy of the best supporting actress in the last ten years.

(A special shout out to Lupita Nyongo in Twelve Years a Slave, a close second for a truly harrowing performance.)

Best director - Alfonso Cuaron, Gravity (2013)



This was the hardest category of winners to judge. There have been so many brilliantly directed films in the last decade, but when I think of the lasting impact Gravity had on me I had to award it the best director.

I accredit my fear of space to this film. I remember leaving the cinema after watching Gravity for the first time and just feeling so stressed and anxious. Even thinking about space now leaves me with a tense uneasy feeling, and this is all thanks to Cuarons direction.

Everything about this film works with such cohesion towards acheiving the overall aim of the film. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) must force her way back to earth after disaster strikes her shuttle. This film may essentially be an out of the frying pan and into the fire type, but thats what makes it great. Every aspect of Gravity, from its cinematography to its use of sound to its eerie music, will grip you from the start through every new obstacle Bullock must overcome

Best Picture  Moonlight (2016)

This film is one of my favourites from the last ten years. The dense character development, elegant use of camerawork, and melancholic soundtrack can only be likened to the richness of silk. This is a film that will be studied for years to come, a film that has truly left a mark on the film industry.

Moonlight, the first thing that comes to mind is the Oscars' When I think of, the first thing that comes to mind is the Oscars' cataclysmic screw up , in which La La Land was incorrectly awarded best picture rather than the true winner, Moonlight. I will always cringe and laugh at the awkward moment when Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty made the colossal mistake, but I also feel a sense of disappointment.

What shouldve been a monumental moment in film history was replaced by white grace . Just a year after the #OscarsSoWhite controversy, a film that finally featured complex black characters in an all-black cast, shouldve been the highlight of the evening. However, that evening will no longer be remembered for this incredible moment in Hollywood history - its moment had been scuppered by an innocent mistake.

Many may view this film as lacking in a thick substantial narrative, but for me, thats where its excellence should be found. Moonlight closely follows the life of young black man growing up in a working-class neighbourhood in which he both struggles with his sexuality and the expectations of the world around him.

In a film full of exceptional performances, its hard to pick a stand out performer yet Mahershala Ali (best supporting actor) delivers an exceptional performance as Chirons only father figure. For me, the true gem in the crown is Naomi Harris whose performance as Chirons drug abusing mother was truly special. Harris is only a cog in the grand acting machine whereby each actor plays an essential part in keeping the machine working.

The beautiful cohesion between actors may be why it earned itself the grand prize in 2016, but it is without a shadow of a doubt the reason I have awarded Moonlight the best picture out of the past ten years' Oscar nominations.
Banksy

From rediscovering the British music scene to trying traditional British food and drinks, there are plenty of options to help you to take part in the national month of walking, minus the muddy boots!Everyone knows the name. But in this guided tour, familiarise yourself with some of the best street art the world has to offer in the heart of Western England. The two-hour tour will leave you feeling like an art connoisseur as you wander the canvassed streets of Bristol. Gaining recognition in recent years for its growth in the edgy underground art scene that has seen an emergence in homegrown DJs and artists, the once quaint city has been totally transformed into a vibrant cultural hub at the forefront of the contemporary art scene.

The Once Upon A Whiskey Tour is the perfect opportunity for you to taste Scottish Whiskey, an experience in the form of liquid gold. In a blend almost as good as the whiskey youll taste, the tour combines Scottish history and indulgences into one of Scotland's most exported products.

With a consistent 5* rating on trip advisor, it is no wonder the walking tour of Glaswegian whiskey bars is nearly always sold out. The Once Upon A Whiskey Tour is the perfect opportunity for experienced whiskey drinkers and newbies alike to taste one of Britains most recognisable flavours.

Cardiff epitomises a city rooted in a strong sense of national pride. When it comes to Welsh nationalism, the pub tour of Cardiff allows visitors or resident alike to engage with Welsh history, try local Welsh beers and being entertained by their thespian tour guides. Get to the very core of it what it means to be Welsh.

If you have a love of beers, Wales and history the Pub Tour emerges as an essential walk that enriches the body, the mind and the stomach!

Covering all aspects of Manchester, this free 3-hour walking tour is certainly the best way to get to grips with a city bustling with culture and history. Exploring the stunning architecture and long-lasting history of this magnificent city, this tour of one of Britain's most iconic cities is simply a must. Youll explore all aspects of Manchester, uncovering fascinating stories of its origins, witness the stunning architecture first hand and walk in the footsteps of some of Manchesters musical icons.

blinders

takes

By order of the peakyyou simply must take this themed tour of the UKs second biggest city. Birmingham is the backdrop to smash hit TV series The Peaky Blinders and the Brum tour takes you on a historically entertaining trip through the citys rich cultural heritage, many of the stories you'll hear are what inspired the creators of the show. Walking in the footsteps of Birminghams real Peaky Blinders, you'll gain a first-hand account of a city that was once at the forefront of mass economic and political upheaval. Whether you've seen the show or not, Brum toursvisitors and residents alike on an unforeseen trip through one of the UKs most underrated cities.

Liverpool is world famous for exporting musical genius and this walking tour utilises the scouse knowledge of music and blends it with the cities vast history. Producing the likes of Cilla Black and The Beetles, Liverpool is one of the UKs best locations for musical history and what better way to learn than through practising with actual instruments on this tour through the iconic streets. The two-hour tour will take you to pubs, music venues and local landmarks whilst mixing in moments of music to allow visitors the best opportunity to witness this creative hub.

Rooted deep in British history is the presence of Vikings on our Isles. Situated at the very heart of the occupation is the quaint city of York. And the best way to learn about the city's rich history? The Original Viking Walk. Covering over 200 years in just 75 minutes, the walk provides you with an in-depth account of the Anglo-Scandinavian city whilst being entertained by your hosts along the way, establishing itself as an essential trail for history buffs.

Photography tours are quickly becoming a popular trend in Britain, with Edinburgh emerging as a clear-cut choice. Its stunning scenery and architecture serve as your model for the day. Blending a beautiful walk through the Scottish capitals gorgeous streets with local stories and photography tips, this trail is as a must for budding photographers. If youre a beginner or a pro, this unique walking tour presents you with the ability to hone in on your skills behind the camera whilst taking in the breath-taking sites of one of Britains most stunning cities.


Yeti Airlines plane makes emergency landing after being hit by bird

A Yeti Airlines aircraft made an emergency landing after being hit by a bird soon after takeoff from Bharatpur Airport on Sunday.
Unfortunately, The Content Is Not Here

You have arrived at this page because the page or post you were looking for no longer exists. Please check our main navigation pages for other content: 

Home Page
Killeen, TX (76540)

Today

Rain showers early with scattered thunderstorms arriving for the afternoon. High 86F. Winds SSE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Tonight

Scattered thunderstorms. Low 73F. Winds SSE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 60%.
1. Yes. The medical data shows it will be beneficial to get one. The sooner the better.

2. Yes. Theres no rush, but I plan to get one sometime in the next few months.

3. No. Im not sold on the need for a booster. Besides, the case numbers are falliing.

4. No. I havent been vaccinated for COVID-19, and I dont plan to get the booster, either.

5. Unsure. It may be smart to wait and see how beneficial the booster shots prove to be.

Vote

View Results


remaining of

Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading.
Are the fire and safety protocols in my childs yeshiva sufficiently rigorous?

Well, thanks to a recent collaboration between FDNY and Agudath Israel of America, those safety protocols in NYC just got a bit more robust.

Background

The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) requires that certain buildings maintain a staff member appropriately trained and certified by FDNY in fire and safety protocols. This individual is charged with overseeing many building fire and safety requirements, including understanding how to quickly react to fire, chemical, human (e.g. active shooter), and other threats; maintaining fire extinguishers and equipment; and training staff and other occupants in best safety practices through drills and instruction.

Recognizing that a school full of children presents a different set of safety challenges than an office building, FDNY developed a different certification course geared specifically to school principals.

The Issue

As Avrohom Weinstock, Esq., Agudath Israel Chief of Staff and Associate Director of Education, explained at the programs opening, for years a void existed. There is a certificate and training program available to public school principals. And there is a certificate and pathway designed for general building safety. But there was no appropriate certificate and course for nonpublic school principals. For nonpublic schools to comply with the requirement of having certified fire and safety personnel, if even aware of this requirement, yeshiva principals or administrators were forced to train and sit for the generalized building certificate. This certificate is cumbersome to obtain and contains either extraneous or insufficient information for the needs of a school. This begged the question  what of our children? Why cant our school principals receive the training and certificate that best suits our schools needs?

A Partnership

This longstanding gap ends today, said Mr. Weinstock to an enthusiastic crowd at Brookdale Senior Citizen Center in Brooklyn, NY of nearly 150 NYC yeshiva principals and administrators.

Agudath Israel was made aware of this inequity and safety gap several months ago. Together with the Archdiocese of NY, it led a coalition of nonpublic school groups in partnering with FDNY. FDNY was receptive, and worked hand in hand with Agudath Israel and other groups to develop a new certificate to specifically address the needs of children in yeshivos and nonpublic schools.

At Agudahs inaugural Yeshiva Expo this past October, FDNY and Agudath Israel made a joint presentation to the yeshiva community to spread awareness of this safety requirement and to make known the groups intention to work together to create a new certificate for nonpublic schools.

That partnership bore fruit this past Wednesday, May 23rd. Following months of discussion and preparation, a study guide, live teaching component, examination, and documentation protocols were created for yeshivos to receive a first-of-its-kind, nonpublic school tailored, safety certificate. The certificate, dubbed the D-20 Fire and Emergency Drill Conductor Certificate, is being administered by Agudath Israel under the aegis of FDNY to eligible nonpublic school principals and supervisors.

While Agudath Israel will be spending the next few weeks processing and submitting the exam results and multiple notarized documents from applicants to FDNY, we are happy to do it, explained Mrs. Deborah Zachai, Director of Education Affairs. Mr. Weinstock, Rabbi Bazov, and I all felt this is something we must undertake; there is nothing more important than the safety of our precious children. concluded Mrs. Zachai.

Those who missed this first administration of the Certificate may partake in a follow up administration Agudath Israel is already planning for this fall. The overflow crowd was a kiddush Hashem that attested to the import yeshivos place on safety and legal compliance. Agudath Israel thanks the Beren Foundation, and its unstinting dedication to fostering enhanced dina dmallchisa dina, for its assistance with this event.

Conclusion

May Hashem see our eagerness to put in place the appropriate safeguards towards venishmartem me-od es nafshoseychem and merit that our schools never require the expertise of fire and safety trained personnel!

(YWN World Headquarters  NYC)
United States casino magnate Sheldon Adelson provided Guatemalas official delegation a Boeing 767 to travel to Israel for the relocation of its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a Guatemalan government official said Friday.

Guatemalan foreign minister Sandra Jovel said Adelson provided the plane last week to carry government officials and guests, including religious leaders.

Jovel made the comments on radio show ConCriterio, ending days of speculation in Guatemala about who paid for the trip.

Manfredo Marroquin, director of civil society organization Citizen Action, said President Jimmy Morales administration violated Guatemalan law, which forbids accepting such gifts.

Guatemalas human rights prosecutor, Jordan Rodas, also said the arrangement with Adelson was concerning.

You dont know if what hes doing is laying the groundwork for personal interests, Rodas said.

Jovel emphasized that Adelson did not have business interests in Guatemala.

Morales decision to move Guatemalas embassy just two days after the U.S. did the same was seen by many as an attempt to curry favor with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Morales has been battling aggressive prosecutors looking to investigate corruption allegations swirling around him. Local prosecutors are supported by a United Nations anti-corruption commission that is funded in part by the U.S.

(AP)
MBABANE  Another day, another child disappears in our community.

This time, residents of Hholoshini, a few kilometres from Mbabane city, are still searching for an eight-year-old Phiwayinkhosi Titi Kunene who disappeared without trace on Wednesday afternoon. According to a relative, the Grade II pupil of Phakamani Primary School had just returned from school, where her elder siblings were called by their father Bongani Kunene whose kombi had broken down. The kombi is a source of transportation for the people of Hholoshini and Mbuluzi. Phiwayinkhosi was left at home while Sibahle, Msimiso and Asakhe rushed to assist their father with his kombi. It is suspected that someone came and snatched the child without anyone noticing. Upon return, both her parents and the other siblings did not find her, and police were informed on the same day, the relative said. Thobile Kunene who is Phiwayinkhosis mother said she had been at Mbuluzi High School market when her children returned from school.

Had premonition

Kunene said she had premonition that something bad was going to befall her, and upon reaching home, she asked the other siblings about Phiwayinkhosis whereabouts. At first, she said everybody thought she was in the neighbourhood.

When her father returned at about 7pm, he also asked the other children where Phiwayinkhosi was and they said she might have gone to her grandparents homestead. I started to get worried and when the other children returned without her, I lost it, she said. She said since Wednesday, the whole community has been searching for the child, but by yesterday, they had not traced her whereabouts. Police sniffer dogs have been used but still she has not been found. As we speak now, everyone is out there in the bushes looking for her, she added. The areas Umgijimi Roland Mbuli said they were still shocked at the incident which he said was the first of its kind in the community. We have been hearing about such incidents in other places. Someone has just told us that another child has disappeared at Mbuluzi. This is frightening indeed, and we hope that the young girl will be found soon, he said. He said they hope that she will re-appear. Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Khulani Mamba confirmed the incident.




MBULUZI  Fear. This might probably be a word that best describes the emotions of some parents whose children school at Mbuluzi High School.

This follows alleged unconventional incidents that happened at the schools hostel in a space of about five months which include a break-in and reports of alleged lesbianism among some pupils. According to sources whose names will not be revealed, a certain popular individual from around Mbuluzi area was suspected to have broken into the senior girls dormitory a few weeks after schools opened. The sources alleged that the male character gained entry into the dormitory through the bathroom window at night while the female pupils were sleeping. He allegedly used a pick (lipiki) to climb up the wall and enter the dormitory through the small bathroom window. The dormitory which is said to have been broken into, is believed to accommodate about 16 pupils.

Sources alleged that once inside the dormitory, bed by bed, the intruder peeped under blankets to see who was sleeping in every particular bed he passed. The sources alleged that he walked slowly between beds presumably to ensure that he did not wake up the pupils. They also purported that his actions were as if he was looking for a specific pupil. Sources deduced that the intruder might have suspected that some of the pupils were awake and decided to make a run for it, exiting the dormitory through the same bathroom window. It was at this time that pupils then allegedly started screaming for help. When asked why the pupils did not scream earlier, a source said they might have been frightened as they had no clue what the mans intentions were. The source suspected that the pupils feared that he might hurt them if they dared to raise an alarm. Police were called and to our knowledge the suspect was told not to ever set foot at the school again, sources said.

The sources further shared what might have made it easier for the intruder to break into the hostel was that lights around the boarding facility were dysfunctional. They said this made it easier for him to get in and out of the hostel without being spotted. The sources went on to share that recently some parents complained to school authorities after there were allegations of the existence of lesbians at the boarding facility. What troubled the parents was that the suspected lesbian pupils fondled younger schoolmates. The suspected lesbian pupils allegedly proposed love to younger pupils, something which resulted in the juniors reporting the matter to their parents. So serious was the matter that some parents said they had to take their children for counselling due to the unusual experience. They also narrated that they expected the school to caution the alleged lesbian pupils to refrain from their behaviour. Pupils from the school who were asked about this confirmed both matters although they were reluctant to elaborate on them.




MBABANE  Eswatini is now the only African country with ties with Taiwan.

This follows Burkina Fasos decision to cut ties with the self-governed Island this week. It effectively means an Africa-Taiwan summit is now difficult for the Taiwanese to host as Eswatini could be the only country in attendance.

Burkina Faso cut ties with Taiwan in favour of mainland China. Burkina Fasos Foreign Minister Alpha Barry announced the move on Thursday to reporters in the capital, Ouagadougou, saying a relationship with China would better serve the West African nations interests. We want to build better partnerships for our peoples social and economic development, said Barry. The president gave instructions to take all the necessary measures for the closure of our embassy in Taipei and Taiwans embassy in our country. Burkina Fasos decision comes less than a month after the Dominican Republic made a similar announcement. There are now 18 nations of the world, including Eswatini, that recognise the government in Taipei, rather than Beijing. Political analysts define this move by Burkina Faso and Dominican Republic as the latest success in Chinas effort to squeeze Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.

President Tsai-ing-wen was in the country last month to attend the countrys double celebration of His Majestys 50th Birthday and Eswatinis 50th Independence Anniversary. The Taiwanese president also recognised her countrys 50th diplomatic ties with the Kingdom of Eswatini. It must be said that mainland China claims sovereignty over the self-ruled democracy and threatens to invade should Taiwan ever move to formalise its independence. According to Bloomberg L.P, Taiwans Foreign Minister Joseph Wu blamed China for Burkina Fasos decision, telling reporters in Taipei that efforts to persuade countries to switch recognition to Beijing would not improve the cross-strait relationship.

The Taiwan News reported that Taiwan has lost a total of 14 diplomatic allies over the last 18 years because of pressure from China in an attempt to diminish its sovereignty, leaving the island with only 18 allies around the globe. However, President Tsai promised to preserve the remaining alliances and not kowtow to China. Since 2001, 14 countries have cut diplomatic ties with the self-ruled island, including Macedonia (2001), Liberia (2003), Dominica (2004), Vanuatu (2004), Grenada (2005), Senegal (2005), Chad (2006), Costa Rica (2007), Malawi (2008), Gambia (2013), Sao Tome and Principe (2016), Panama (2017), Dominican Republic (2018), and Burkina Faso (2018), according to CNA. It was also reported that the reason behind diplomatic breakout was due to Chinas long-term quest to isolate Taiwan on the global stage. Taiwan has accused Beijing of taking advantage of cash rewards to manipulate the diplomatic relations of Taiwan with other nations, CNA reported.




MBABANE  Land is a sensitive and precious resource, which Emaswati can die for when push comes to shove.

In terms of the countrys Constitution, the administration of land was accorded to the Land Management Board (LMB), to ensure it is bought or transferred to institutions, companies and individuals in a transparent, fair and procedural manner. The Times SUNDAY can reveal that the Swaziland National Housing Board (SNHB), a Category A public company, sold a prime land measuring 7.7 hectares to a company owned by the Mansoor family without the consent or knowledge of the LMB. The land is about 300 metres away from The Gables Shopping Complex. Investigations unearthed that the sale of this property was not advertised. Instead, the government company secretly sold the land to YFM Investments (Proprietary) Limited for E8.5 million..

It has been established that SNHB had bought the land in 2009 from its original owner, Buhleni Properties Pty Ltd, for E6.9 million. This means the public entity made a profit of E1.5 million over a period of five years. This is contained in documents seen by the Times SUNDAY, which show that the deed of transfer to the current landowners was done in 2014.

Developing to township



Interestingly, YFM Investments is doing exactly what the SNHB should have done with the property as they are developing it to a township  and that is in line with the public companys mandate. On Thursday, we inspected the property and discovered that eight houses of different sizes have already been built. Further investigations revealed that the houses would be sold to get prospective home owners. The documents reflect that Mduduzi Mona Dlamini, the Managing Director of SNHB, legitimised the sale on the strength of a resolution passed at a meeting of the Board of Directors held in Mbabane on July 31, 2014. The transfer of the land to YFM Investments was done on November 19, 2014. According to the documents at the Registry of Companies, the directors of the company (YFM) are Arshad Mansoor and Nasser Mansoor. Another document shows that Latiff Faizel and Latiff Yasheena were once directors of the company. The Mansoor family are famous for running a chain of supermarkets in the country, including the Buy n Save Spar in Mbabane.

Asked if the sale of the land was appropriately done according to the dictates of the Constitution, Clement Dlamini, LMB Chairman, responded that both the buyers and sellers acted outside the ambit of the supreme law. Dlamini, the former Kukhanyeni MP and Minister of Agriculture said the Board was concerned with the sale of Crown land, government land or public land without its knowledge. He reminded government and parastatals of Section 212 (4) of the Constitution, which provides that the Board is responsible for the overall management of land in the country. Reads the section: The Board is responsible for the overall management and for the regulation of any right or interest in land whether urban or rural or vesting in iNgwenyama in trust for the Swazi nation. He said the LMB should be informed of any land sale transaction, particularly land belonging to government and its companies, because there was a lot of illegal and perceived corrupt administration of property in Eswatini. He said the duty of the LMB was to make sure the sales were done transparently and were above board.
Kansas City area students mourn loss of Santa Fe shooting victims, call for action KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A vigil Friday at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral in downtown Kansas City, Missouri was organized by the Kansas City chapter of the national organization, Students Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. Caroline Bennett, a Sophomore at Park Hill South High School said the vigil had two goals.

The Futility of Trying to Prevent More School Shootings in America As long as there is easy access to guns, there's no way parents, teachers, and other specialists can thwart every violent teenager. The 17-year-old who killed 10 people at Santa Fe High School, in Texas, allegedly used his father's shotgun and .38 revolver.

Aftermath of continued protest and a glimpse at thetaking a decidedlystance as old school voters confront youngsters with growing derision rather than engage in any productive dialogue.Read more about the future of the 2nd Amendment at risk:Further reading:
"Racial tensions remain high in many cities. One third of American children are being raised in homes without their biological fathers. The legal status of more than a million young people who were brought to this country as children remains in limbo. In Massachusetts, Illinois and the District of Columbia, Catholic Charities is no longer able to place children for adoption.





"Our nation continues to give legal protection to doctors and organizations that profit from the killing of more than one million innocent unborn children. There are efforts in the courts and some state legislatures to coerce Catholic hospitals to perform abortions.





"Unfortunately, this is by no means an exhaustive list of the serious threats to the well-being of our nation. However, the most serious crisis for our country is none of the above, but, rather, a God-crisis  a crisis of faith."

As church attendance declines and overall the U.S. moves away from organized religion, this KCK cleric hopes to reignite vigor for his faith community.Checkit:Highlight:You decide . . .
More Deets ad Confirmation Of Downtown Kansas City Club Life Chaos

Man wounded in shooting in downtown area early Saturday Kansas City police are investigating a shooting in the downtown area early Saturday. Police officers were called at 3:01 a.m. to 10th Street and Broadway Boulevard on a report of a large crowd fighting. Authorities said then a shooting was reported. Officers found a man suffering from a gunshot wound.

Youngster Tragedy Today

18-year-old from Independence killed, 4 injured in crash near Sweet Springs One young person from Independence was killed and four were injured in a crash in Saline County, Missouri near Sweet Springs shortly after midnight on Saturday. An 18-year-old was driving a 2001 Kia east on I-70 when a possible vehicle defect caused her to skid and go off the right shoulder of the highway.

On The Run In JoCo

Fugitive not in custody after escaping police in Olathe area The Johnson County, Kansas, Sheriff's Office is cautioning residents about a man who eluded police after a pursuit early Saturday. The Sheriff's Office said Wellsville police were chasing the driver of a stolen vehicle on northbound I-35. Stop sticks were deployed, and the driver stopped near I-35 and Lone Elm Road, jumped out and ran off.

Today's Kansas City Blight Fight

Neighbors frustrated with partially torn down, dilapidated Kansas City home KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- James and Essie Thomas are tired of looking at the partially torn down house they call a big eyesore. The couple said all the old wood, insulation and rusty pipes are causing all kinds of problems for them. "I can't even enjoy sitting out here," James Thomas said.

Newspaper Reports KCMO Ink Party

From taboo to fine art: KC tattoo convention draws hundreds of ink artists and addicts Jazlynn Schwegman has always been proud of her Native American ancestry. On Saturday, the 18-year-old had that pride permanently inked on her body: The tattoo on the back of her shoulder shows a chief with a snarling bear headdress. "The bear symbolizes courage," said Schwegman, one of hundreds who attended the fourth annual Kansas City Tattoo Arts Convention.

Save The KCK Ruins

Lawmakers Seek Landmark Status For Old Quindaro Site In Kansas City, Kansas Years of effort on the part of local activists and historians to designate the Quindaro ruins in Kansas City, Kansas, as a National Historic Landmark may be entering the final stages. U.S. Rep. Kevin Yoder and Sen. Pat Roberts of Kansas, along with Rep.

Kansas City Trippin' Over New Flights

FOX4's Karli Ritter takes KC's first nonstop transatlantic flight to Iceland KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When Kansas City's first nonstop transatlantic flight took off on Saturday, FOX4's Karli Ritter was along for the ride. The new service allows travelers to fly nonstop from KC to Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, and vice versa, courtesy of Icelandair. The airline offers three nonstop flights a week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Another newsworthy glimpse at the NEXTGEN on the national level:Closer to home, here's more news that deserves attention right now . . .And this is thefor right now . . .
Bronze helmet of the 5th century BC found on the Taman Peninsula, Russia. Photo source: Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences

A Corinthian helmet was discovered in a 5th century BC grave in the Taman Peninsula, southwest Russia, according to RIA Novosti news agency.

Made of bronze, Corinthian helmets covered the entire head and neck, with slits for the eyes and mouth, protruding cheek covers (paragnathides in Greek) as well as a curved protrusion in the back to protect the nape of the neck.

The helmet has a padded interior made of fabric or leather to protect the warriors skull. These helmets were indispensable for the Greek hoplites, the famous foot soldiers of the phalanxes, as they were highly protective because they completely covered the head

Often their crest was surmounted by a crest (lophos) with a horsehair plume.

The one found is corroded and highly fragmented, but its discovery is extremely significant for historical purposes. The Corinthian helmet is the only one of its kind discovered north of the Black Sea.

Symbols of ancient Greece

Corinthian helmets appeared in Greece around the 6th century BC and constitute one of the symbols of ancient Greece. Goddess Athena and Pericles, are frequently depicted wearing them.

When a warrior died, his helmet would be buried next to him. According to Roman Mimohod, director of the expedition of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IA RAS), the helmet of the Taman peninsula belongs to the Corinthian Hermione-type and would date back to the first quarter of the fifth century BC, an Archaeology News Network report notes.

For two years now, Russian archaeologists study a necropolis of 600 burial mounds where many Greek warriors of the Bosporus kingdom are buried. Several Greek colonies were established in the region and their settlement extends from the end of the 7th century BC until the second quarter of the 4th century BC.

The Greeks founded large cities on the northern coast of the Black Sea. The major ones were Olbia, at the mouth of the Dnieper; Panticapaion, todays Kerch, in the extreme west of the Crimea, and Chersonese (Sevastopol); on the Russian bank, one found Phanagoria (Taman), also the name given to the peninsula on which the Corinthian helmet was discovered.

General view of the burial of the Greek warrior Photo Source: Institute of archaeology of Russian Academy of Sciences





Close contact with the Scythian inhabitants of the steppe

According to the Archaeology News Network report, the Kingdom of the Bosporus was established in 480 BC around the Kerch Strait and the Taman Peninsula, west of the Bosporus.

These settlements were in very close contact with the Scythian inhabitants of the steppe, points out historian Iraoslav Lebedynsky, specialist of these ancient Eurasian cultures.

From the 6th century BC, the Greeks founded large cities on the northern coast of the Black Sea. The main ones were Olbia, at the mouth of the Dnieper; Panticapaion, todays Kerch, in the extreme west of the Crimea, and Chersonese (Sevastopol); on the Russian bank, one found Phanagoria (Taman), also the name given to the peninsula on which the Corinthian helmet was found.

The kingdom, with Panticapaion as its capital, lasted nearly a millennium, the last written traces going back to the 5th century AD. It was a place where the Greek culture merged with the successive nomadic cultures of the steppe, be it the Scythians or the Sarmatians. Between the 6th and 3rd centuries BC, Greeks and Scythians maintained extremely close cultural as well as commercial ties.

Read more at etavenir.fr

Photo Source: Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Pollution incidents have been extremely rare in Greece, which is famous in the whole world for its unspoiled natural environment, picturesque islands and pristine beaches

There is no problem with the Saronic Gulf, in regards to pollution levels from oil. People can swim where they swam before the tanker "Agia Zoni II" sank, Ioannis Hatzianestis, chief researcher at the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR) told Athens-Macedonian News Agency's radio station Praktoreio 104.9 FM.

"We started tests right after the accident on September 18 and our work was completed at the end of March. We examined the sea water, sediments and the general ecological quality of the Saronic Gulf, along with the marine organisms. In regards to the sea water, which is of interest to most people who want to go swimming, the levels of hydrocarbons were normal as of December."

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: WeatherExtremes License: CC-BY-SA

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
Greek olive oil is expected to enjoy a great year in 2018, after a mediocre crop in the previous year, as this year's crop is projected to be better, George Economou, head of the Association of Olive Oil Industries SEVITEL said on Friday. He said this would raise the bar both for production and exports of Greece's "liquid gold," noting that this should be sold as a "premium" product, ANA reports.

In comments made to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency radio station "Praktoreio 104.9 FM," Economou noted: "We have around 280,000 tons, it is a very good year, I hope we can extend the run of good figures to our exports also, which have been rising steadily in the last few years." Economou noted that olive oil exports have doubled, from around 15,000 tonnes 15 years ago to 30-35,000 tonnes at present. "All the positive messages makes us even more optimistic and we hope we can earn an additional 3-5.0 pct," he said.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Petr Pakandl License: CC-BY-SA
Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (Adib), a leading financial institution, has welcomed its one millionth customer in the UAE, nearly double the number it had five years ago.



A focus on customer service, combined with considerable investment in the banks digital platforms and the development of industry-leading products, has led to Adib attracting new customers from a wide range of different backgrounds. Out of these 1 million customers, 450,000 are using Adib digital channels, representing a growth of nearly25 per cent active users over the last 12 months.



In recent years, Adib has increasingly welcomed expat and non-Muslim customers, who value and appreciate the ethics, and principles of fairness, transparency and simplicity, on which Islamic finance is based.



In the last year, Adib launched its new class of efficient branches Adib Express, which provide high levels of automation with a highly-personalised experience as Adib staff have more time to spend on addressing customers particular issues and giving advice.



Khamis Buharoon, vice chairman and acting CEO of Adib, said: Reaching one million customers is a major achievement and a testament to the banks strategy and the commitment of our employees. While we have been growing rapidly over the last five years, we have always focused on putting customers at the heart of our offerings.



Whether it is our investment in digital banking or our commitment to delivering a leading suite of products and services, the customer experience is always at the forefront of our thinking. There is now a widespread understanding of Islamic banking principles and the strength of our offering, and we continue to attract a diverse mix of customers. We look forward to enhancing our banking experience and welcoming new customers to the bank over coming years.



Increasingly, our customers are choosing to manage their finances with us in the digital space. We are seeing an average of over 2 million transactions monthly through mobile banking, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
The 8th edition of the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) held in Dubai was a huge success with 1,852 business-to-business and 821 government-to-business meetings taking place at the event.



A total of 20,332, including more than 1,000 investment specialists and advisors from 143 countries, took part in the meetings at the AIM, held at the Dubai World Trade Centre from April 9 to 11, 2018, said a statement from the organisers.



The high-profile event also was graced by the attendance of 87 ministers, state ministers, governors, heads of government delegations and senior government officials and private investors  making it the worlds largest gathering of important minds, it said.



HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, attended the inauguration of the three-day investment conference with a keynote address by Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy; Kim Hyun-Chong, Minister of Trade, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, South Korea, Sami Al Qamzi, Director-General of the Department of Economic Development, Dubai Government, and other senior UAE Federal Government and Dubai Government officials.



As many as 459 exhibitors  including country pavilions, international organisations, investment promotion agencies (IPAs), public and private organisations  occupied 8,000-sq-m exhibition space across eight exhibition halls at the Dubai World Trade Centre.



The event attracted more than 100 IPAs and free zones, 43 sponsors and supporting partners, 64 media partners and eight knowledge partners, it added.



India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Indonesia, Nigeria, Algeria, UK, Italy and Ukraine are amongst the top participating countries.



The event saw a number of IPAs winning AIM Investment Awards, while China held the China Global Investment Summit at the AIM.



The conference and exhibitions included country presentations, investment workshops on capacity building, training of investment officials in promoting their respective countries investment environment, investment match-making meetings, investors hub where officials of large corporations met with investors on exploring investment opportunities, in addition to main conference on investment-related issues.



AIM 2018 Investors Hub had participation from 20 local and international organisations. A total of more than 800+ meetings have been held at the Investors Hub. As many as 18 countries/investment destinations took part in the Country Presentation feature of AIM including UAE, China, Georgia, Italy, India, South Korea, Russia, Egypt, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Jordan, Botswana, Cameroon, and Nigeria.



The inaugural session of the meeting also saw the launch of the e-Platform for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), established by the UAE Ministry of Economy, said a statement.



Al Mansoori said: Global economic growth is improving and short-term prospects look positive. The world economy is gathering speed with growth forecast for 2018-2019, according to the IMF, pegged at 3.9 per cent.



The recovery in economy in a number of the key sectors such as investment, manufacturing and trade had a significant impact on strengthening the fundamentals of global economic growth. This recovery was more visible in emerging markets and developing economies, with average growth estimates for these markets at around 4.5 per cent in 2018, he added.



Foreign direct investment (FDI) in to the UAE recorded 7.29 per cent growth to $10.3 billion in 2017, up from $9.6 billion in 2016 and 21.17 per cent up from $8.5 billion FDI flow to UAE recorded in 2015, according to UAE Central Bank and the UAE Federal Competitiveness Council.



However, this is at the backdrop of a 16 per cent decline in global FDI flow of $1.52 trillion in 2016, according to the United Nations Council on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).



The meeting, a large congregation of high-profile officials that include 25 federal ministers, 19 mayors, heads of international organisations, one head of parliament and investors saw the signing of a number of agreements and announcements that will help countries boost the flow of FDI.



Al Mansoori said, the meeting became a regional and international landmark for FDI and exchange of knowledge and best practices between emerging and developed markets, where it gains tremendous and continuous support from the leaders, decision makers and officials worldwide.



He added: We live in an increasingly interdependent world. The pace of technological change is staggering, and Foreign Investment indeed plays a key role in harnessing this interdependence in a way that enhances our access to technology, the ingredients of innovation and to enhance prospects for meeting sustainable development goals (SDGs).



World merchandise exports, valued at $15.46 trillion in 2016, is expected to grow this year as the global economy likely to record 3.9 per cent growth in 2018, Yonov Frederick Agah, deputy director-general of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), said at the opening ceremony.



Agah added: Economic data and forecasts from the IMF, OECD, World Bank and others have been revised steadily upwards over the last year, which would tend to indicate a sustained recovery of trade in 2018 following strong trade growth in 2017.



The IMF's latest projections were issued in the World Economic Outlook Update in January, which had a forecast of 3.9 per cent for world real GDP growth in 2018. This would be the strongest performance since 2011, reflecting increased global growth momentum and the expected impact of US tax policy changes, he added.



The prestigious line-up of ministers participating at the event include Kim Hyun Chong, Minister of Trade, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, South Korea; Dr Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Oman; Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Commerce and Industry, India; Mccullen Ntsikelelo Jack, Provincial Minister (MEC) for Finance  Economic Development and Tourism, Northern Cape Provincial Government, South Africa; Hassan Come, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Central African Republic, were among other chief guests and speakers for the event.



Governors and Mayors from Nigeria, Ukraine, Mayor of the Municipality of Timisoara, Romania, Governor of Kano State, Nigeria, Governor of the Perm region of Russian Federation, Mayor of Ajdovscina, Slovenia, Metropolitan chief executive of Republic of Ghana, Governor of Kilifi County Government, Kenya and many other governors and mayors from Ecuador and other countries attended the event.



Dawood Al Shezawi, CEO of AIM Organising Committee, said: The increase in the number of dignitaries, participants and investor footfall reflects a resounding endorsement of the three-day event and makes it one of the largest such gatherings in the global investment map.



We are grateful to the tremendous support given to us by all the stakeholders, governments and private sector institutions that helped us put such a huge global event together, he said.



However, the biggest success of the event comes from the investment promotions and the 1,852 business-to-business and 821 government-to-business meetings in three days that will have far-reaching impact when follow-up agreements are signed up to accelerate cross-border investment, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
Dubai-based Index Holding has opened its new branch in Singapore, due to its strategic location in the Asia-Pacific region and its strong economic and commercial ties with the UAE.



Index is a market leader in the events industry, healthcare sector and general trading.



Through its new branch, Index Holding intends to replicate its UAE business model in Southeast Asia by taking advantage of Singapore as a vital regional hub for business, investment, innovation, technology, and tourism, it said.



Through its new branch in Singapore, Index Holding will organise a number of regional and international scientific and commercial events, and it will serve as gateway for collaboration between regional and global professional communities creating a number of new business opportunities, it added.



Engineer Anas Al Madani, vice-chairman and Group CEO of Index Holding, said: Our decision to open a new branch in Singapore comes in line with our commitment to providing innovative services to our clients worldwide.



Today, Singapore is considered one of the important business and economic hubs that mirrors the vision of the UAE in entrepreneurship and development, and it goes in line with our ambitions to establish business relations with the worlds leading companies in this region, he said.



Al Madani added: Having established a branch in Seoul, South Korea in 2006, we are able to play a pivotal role in supporting businesses in Southeast Asia. Today, through our branch in Singapore, we will also be supporting the event industry though organising a number of scientific and commercial events in the Asia-Pacific region.



Index Holding contributes significantly to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the UAE by diversifying its economy and creating sustainable business opportunities and job opportunities that contribute to the development of human capital.



Over the past years, Index Conferences & Exhibitions  a member of Index Holding, has contributed 25 per cent of the UAE market share in the events industry, and it has succeeded in attracting more than one million visitors from 133 countries to Dubai to participate and benefit from its events organized throughout the year.



A number of leading subsidiaries fall under Index Holding like Abdul Salam Al Madani Textile and Tailoring; Index Trading & Investment; Index Conferences & Exhibitions; Bigdot; Index Media; Index Healthcare Management; Index Interior Design; Index Medical Center.



Besides, Index has a number of branches in various Arab and international countries such as Japan, Korea, London (UK) and Kuwait, it stated.  TradeArabia News Service
Bahrains value of imports increased by 34 per cent as it reached BD507 million ($1.34 billion) during April 2018, compared to BD377 million ($998.5 million) for the same month of the previous year, said a report.



The top 10 countries account for 67 per cent of the imports value and 33 per cent for other countries, said the foreign trade report by Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA) for the month of April, which encompasses balance of trade, imports, exports (national origin) and re-exports.



According to a report, China ranked top in exports to Bahrain with BD55 million ($145.67 million); UAE came second with BD49 million ($129.78 million); whereas Saudi Arabia ranked third with BD37 million ($98.00 million).



Non-agglomerated iron ores and concentrates emerged as the top product imported to Bahrain with BD35 million ($92.70 million), while the aluminium oxide ranked second with BD24 million ($63.56 million). Four-wheel drive vehicles came in third with BD18 million ($47.67 million).



Additionally, the value of the exported national origin increased by 7 per cent as it reached BD176 million ($466.16 million) during April, compared to BD164 million ($434.37 million) for the same month last year.



The top ten countries account for 85 per cent of the exported national origin value and 15 per cent for other countries.



Saudi Arabia topped the countries importing from Bahrain with BD58 million ($155.62 million), Oman came second with BD30 million ($79.45 million) and UAE placed third with BD21 million ($55.62 million).



As for national export products, agglomerated iron ores and concentrates emerged as the top products exported in April with BD26 million ($68.86 million); aluminium wire were positioned second products exported with a value of BD18 million ($47.67 million); and ferrous products from the direct reduction of iron ore stood third place for exported products with BD15 million ($39.72 million).



In regards to the re-exported field, the value of re-exports decreased by 2 per cent as it reached BD44 million ($116.54 million) during April versus BD45 million ($119.18 million) for the same month of the previous year.



The top ten countries account for 89 per cent of the re-exported value and 11 per cent for other countries.



Saudi Arabia was ranked as the first country to re-export from Bahrain with BD16 million ($42.37 million), UAE ranked second with BD9 million ($23.83 million), and China came third with BD5 million ($13.24 million).



Four-wheel drive vehicles emerged as the top product re-exported from Bahrain with BD6 million ($15.89 million), cigarettes containing tobacco came as second products with BD3 million ($7.94 million), and parts for other gas turbines came as third with BD2 million ($5.29 million).



The trade balance, difference between exports and imports, value of the deficit of the trade balance reached BD286 million ($757.51 million) during April, compared to BD167 million ($442.32 million) for the same month of the previous year with an increase of 71 per cent.  TradeArabia News Service
BMW Group has officially obtained the Shanghai Intelligent Connected Autonomous Driving Test License, becoming the first international automaker to obtain an autonomous driving road test licence in China.



The licence was issued by the Intelligent Connected Vehicle Road Test Promotion Team - consisting of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization, Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau and Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission, said a statement from the company.



The achievement underlines BMW Groups leading role in the development of autonomous driving in the Chinese automotive industry, it said.



BMW Group implements its Strategy Number One > Next worldwide, and continues to carry out the layout in "A.C.E.S.", namely, autonomous driving, connectivity, e-mobility and shared services, to create exciting solutions and innovative mobility experiences for customers - and by doing so - speeding up its transformation into a technology company.



Autonomous driving, an important part of the "A.C.E.S." layout, will change the future of individual mobility in a revolutionary way, significantly improving the safety and convenience of premium individual mobility, it added.



China is promoting autonomous driving as a part of boosting intelligent connected vehicles (ICVs) and its recent smart city, smart China initiative, giving China a vital role in BMW Groups autonomous driving development programme.



BMW anticipated this development - and was first to demonstrate and publish L3 highly autonomous driving on a designated highway under government supervision in Chengdu as early as 2016.



To carry out road tests for the preparation of L4 Autonomous Driving R&D in China, Shanghai is an attractive, innovative city, matching perfectly with the group's vision of future mobility. The group has set up a strong local team in Shanghai, including over 60 experts in autonomous driving.



Using the license, the R&D team will gather several Petabyte of data based on actual traffic, covering its full complexity. This data will be used to train machine learning algorithms performing adequate L4 Autonomous Driving behaviour.



The test sites in Shanghai currently cover a total length of about 5.6 km planned to grow quickly over time. The test fleet is based on the latest BMW 7 Series models, starting with two operating vehicles in May and adding up to seven vehicles by December in China.



Safety first is the primary premise for the development of autonomous driving at BMW Group. Until now, the accumulated mileage reaches nearly 30,000 km of road test in China, and more than 200,000 km of computer simulation.



Martin Sautter, senior vice president, R&D Center - BMW Group, BMW China Services, said: The company has always followed its R&D strategy In China, For China.



We have developed a complete, customer-oriented and prospective R&D system, through the R&D layout in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenyang, he said.



Now, it is a great honour to be the first international vehicle manufacturer to obtain an autonomous road test license in China. With the highest safety standards, we will rigorously promote the local development of autonomous driving and strive to achieve a safer, more efficient and more convenient transportation system, he added.  TradeArabia News Service
Radisson Hospitality is adding a new territory to its expanding portfolio with the signing of Park Inn by Radisson Lusaka Longacres in Zambia.



Radisson Hotel Groups Africa portfolio consists of 83 hotels and more than 17,500 rooms in operation and under development.



Located in the Longacres suburb of Lusaka, the hotel will be situated in a prime location within the citys concentration of embassies, diplomatic missions and United Nations (UN) offices. It will form part of a mixed-use development, including a 9000-sq-m shopping mall, which  along with an increasing number of businesses  will support the hotel in establishing itself as a destination in Lusaka.



Elie Younes, executive vice president and chief development officer, Radisson Hotel Group, said: Were delighted to bring Park Inn by Radisson to Zambia, where tourism is growing. Having successfully operated in Zambia since 2012 with Radisson Blu, we now look forward to introducing Park Inn by Radisson, our upper midscale brand in this emerging market.



The 136-room Park Inn by Radisson Lusaka Longacres will open in 2020 and will offer a mixture of standard rooms and suites, along with an all-day dining restaurant and bar. The Meetings & Events area will include one ballroom, three meeting rooms and a boardroom. The hotel will also house a well-equipped gym.



Public Service Pension Fund (PSPF), owners of Park Inn by Radisson Lusaka Longacres said: We are delighted to partner with the Radisson Hotel Group in introducing the Park Inn by Radisson brand to Lusaka. Together, we believe we will create a must-stay destination hotel in Lusaka, which will provide individuals and families with a simple yet memorable value option for their travels to Zambia. This hotel will be located in one of the prime areas of Lusaka, in close proximity to the UN offices. We look forward to a long-standing and mutually beneficial relationship with the group. - TradeArabia News Service
editorial@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 27

After a heated debate, the Panjab University (PU) Senate approved the extension of one year to Dr Devinder Dhawan with administrative powers of the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) here on Sunday.

University Vice-Chancellor (VC) Prof Arun Kumar Grover pleaded to honour the unanimous view of the Syndicate which had agreed for Dr Dhawans extension.

However, Senator Dr Rabinder Nath Sharma opposed the move. He cited the case of Dr Pragya Kumar when she was given extension only as the Medical Officer and not as the CMO. How could you grant administrative powers to him (Dhawan) when you do not allow them to teachers above 60 years of age, he said.

When Assistant Professor Praveen Goyal started leveling allegations against Dr Pragya Kumar, the VC intervened and stopped him. After which, Dr Sharma said even Dr Dhawan had entered the PU through the back door.

Senator Jarnail Singh said there were senior doctors in the regional centres of the PU who could be given the charge of the CMO. Prof Chaman Lal also objected to the extension. Dr Sharma said the doctor next in line had an experience of 20 years and shouldnt be denied a chance.

Some senators called for giving two-year extension to Dhawan, but finally only one-year extension was approved.

Extension to DSW

Senator Anu Chatrath led the discussion, calling for an extension of one year to Dean Students Welfare (DSW) Prof Emanual Nahar, DSW (Women) Prof Neena Caplash and Associate Dean Ranjan Kumar. Earlier, their tenure was till August 31.

Jagat Bhushan is nominee for dental council

Prof Jagat Bhushan has been chosen as the nominee for the Dental Council of India. In an election between him and Prof Ashish Jain, he won. Out of 71 votes, Bhushan got 37 while Jain received 34. Sources said Congress members sided with Jain, while the BJP and Prof Navdeep Goyal's group supported Bhushan.
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 26

Chandigarhs first flyover project at the Tribune roundabout is going to become a reality as Punjab Governor and UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore has given administrative approval for the project.

Sources said with the approval, the Administration would soon send its recommendation, along with the report of the consultant, to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) under the Ministry of the Transport to take the project to the next stage. The NHAI will provide the funds for the project and the work will also be implemented by it. Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari announced the project during his visit to the city in 2016 after the demand was raised by local Member of Parliament (MP) Kirron Kher. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways gave nod to the Administration to engage the consultant for the preparation of the detailed project report. The Administration has engaged the consultant for Rs 1.85-crore fees after five failed attempts.

The Mumbai-based consultant, Stup Constructions, has made the presentation before the high-level committee of the Administration recently in which various issues related to the project were discussed. After discussion, the Administration gave its nod for the project. As per the initial report of the consultant, the flyover project at Tribune Chowk is likely to cost around Rs 1,600 crore.

Sources said the consultant had prepared the initial report of the project after a three-month survey. The consultant has suggested two levels of the flyover connecting Chandigarh with the Zirakpur flyover. An elevated road has also been proposed from Chandigarh to Zirakpur.

Sources said the issue of the objection of the Department of the Urban Planning had also discussed in the meeting and it was found that the Tribune flyover was coming up on the national highway and it was not going to affect the heritage value of the city.

The Department has raised the objection as overbridge and flyover are not recommended to be constructed in the entire city of Chandigarh due to heritage consideration. Tribune Chowk is an important junction that falls on the national highway and thousands of vehicles are passing through the roundabout every day.
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 26

Finding Dr Devinder Preet Singh guilty of sexual harassing students of Dr HS Judge Institute of Dental Sciences and Hospital, the Panjab University Committee Against Sexual Harassment (PUCASH) has recommended major penalty against him for serious misconduct.

In its report, the 10-member panel, headed by Prof Manvinder Kaur, submitted, The PUCASH found the respondent (Dr Devinder Preet Singh) guilty in multiple counts of sexual harassment. Taken together, these constitute serious misconduct under the Service Rules of Panjab University and warrant a major penalty.

The major penalty included either demotion or dismissal.

The report was submitted to Vice Chancellor Arun Kumar Grover on May 25.

As per the report, accessed by Chandigarh Tribune, Dr Devinder Preet Singh, a senior lecturer at the dental institute, has pleaded guilty before the committee. In response to all complaints and queries forwarded to me by the committee, I want to offer my unconditional apology to my dear students and will take care that I do not repeat it in future, submitted Dr Devinder Preet Singh. He, however, refused to cross-examine any of the students related to any of these complaints.

In its findings, the PUCASH has noted that it is clear that he had physically touched the primary complainant inappropriately on her chest on the pretext of examining her. He did so in full knowledge of his lack of qualification for the same and awareness of the MCI guidelines that a male doctor can examine a female patient only in the presence of her relative or a female staff member, reads the report.

The committee members found that the senior lecturer was aware of the presence of a staff nurse on the same floor as his office and of other faculty members, who have a degree in medicine. He did not call any of them.

The committee stated that the accused had been sending vulgar text messages and making other inappropriate comments and invitations, which clearly fell within the definition of sexual harassment as prescribed by the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. He also admitted to having sent an obscene video to one of the students, which he claimed was sent inadvertently, reads the report.

Examining another complaint from a student, the committee found that Dr Devinder Preet Singh had held the hands of an intern from behind engulfing her. The PUCASH was not satisfied with the respondents explanation about holding a glove and simulating milking of a cow, it has been submitted.

In another complaint, Dr Devinder Preet Singhs explanation regarding touching the stomach of a girl student failed to satisfy the PUCASH. As per the report, Dr Devinder Preet Singh stated that I want to plead guilty but the severity of the guilt is not of the level as has been placed by the complainants before the PUCASH.

The Senate, which is the top governing body of the PU, is the punishing authority in this case.
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Chandigarh, May 26

Chandigarh produced just one topper of the tricity  Kush Bansal who scored 98.8 per cent in humanities  while toppers in all other streams are students of Panchkulas Bhavan Vidyalaya.

In 2017, all toppers were from city, except in the medical stream. Three students from the city had topped not only the tricity last year, but also in the country  Bhoomi Sawant, a science student of DAV Sector 8 had scored 99.4 per cent to emerge as the all-India second topper and Mannat Luthra and Aditya Jain of Bhavan Vidyalaya, Sector 27, jointly bagged the third rank with 99.2 per cent in commerce.

Principal of Bhavan Vidyalaya, Chandigarh, Vaneeta Arora said their schools result in English was not up to the mark. Some of our good students could not score more than 70, she said. Even at St Johns High School, students complained about the English papers marking.  TNS

Chandigarh toppers Humanities

Kush Bansal, 98.8%, St Soldier International School, Sector 28 Commerce

Deepti (GMSSS-16) 97.6%

Shubham Kumar (KV, 3 BRD Chandigarh) 97.6%

Medical

Adhish Beri M (Guru Harkishan Model School, Sector 36) 97.2%

Non-medical
BRP Bhaskar

BRP Bhaskar

Veteran journalist

Any talk of last week's firings in Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu, which left 13 dead and about 100 injured, as another Jallianwala Bagh is hyperbole. But the two events have something in common: both were uncalled for and motivated by considerations other than law and order.

The first firing took place last Tuesday as the long-running local agitation against the copper smelter plant of the Sterlite Industries, a unit of Anil Agarwal's UK-based Vedanta Resources, entered the 100th day. The protests which had been peaceful turned violent on that day and police vans and buses were torched.

It is reasonable to assume that intelligence agencies had alerted the authorities about the possibility of the 100th day observance attracting large crowds and that they had made preparations to meet the situation. Yet the police were outnumbered and preparations, like deploying of water cannons, not taken. Instead, commandos were pressed into service. They acted in the way they are trained to, which is quite different from what is laid down in the standard operating procedures of the regular police force.

The issue in Thoothukudi (also known by the British-era name of Tuticorin) is one which crops up often in areas where industrial units with the potential to create environmental problems are located. Efforts to improve the ease-of-doing-business ranking have aggravated the problem in Thoothukudi, which boasts of the second highest human development index in Tamil Nadu after Chennai. It has a port, which is one of the fastest growing ones in the country, and the Gulf of Mannar where it is located is known for pearl farming. It is also a growing educational centre.

The Sterlite copper plant has an annual production capacity of 4,00,000 tonnes, which it wants to double. It came to Tamil Nadu, after being thrown out of Maharashtra, and started operating from an industrial estate set up by the state government.

Not only people in the vicinity of the plant but also many more, particularly farmers and fishermen, want the factory to be shut down in view of the damage it is causing to the environment and the threat it is posing to people's livelihood.

As the company made plans to expand its capacity by adding another smelter unit, fears of increased pollution levels rose and cries for the plant's closure became shriller.

The company has claimed that the pollutants in its emissions are within permissible limits. However, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board has not accepted the claim.

The NDA government has sought to pin the blame for the pollution problems on the UPA government which, it claims, gave the necessary clearances. There is some truth in it, but it is not the whole truth. The story of the clearances obtained by the company is mired in controversies.

When the Sterlite factory was set up, it did not require separate environmental clearance as it was in an industrial estate which had the requisite clearance. In 2006, the Parliament enacted a new environmental law which provides for a public hearing before grant of clearance. Thus, there was a materially altered situation when the company sought the Centre's approval to expand the smelter capacity. Yet, the UPA government gave clearance without raising any issue.

The clearance the UPA regime granted was valid for five years. Since the expansion was not done within that period, the company approached the Centre for its extension in 2013. By this time, environmental issues had come up in many project sites and the UPA government said the companies go through the process of public consultation.

In December 2014, the new NDA regime did away with the consultation process through a regulation issued under the label of "clarification". This opened the way for a host of companies to go ahead with their projects, ignoring people's concerns.

In March 2015, the ministry extended Sterlite's environmental clearance till December 2018.

The issue came up before the courts at different levels, leading to confusing or even contradictory conclusions.

The National Greens Tribunal ruled in 2016 that the NDA regime's 2014 December clarification which benefited Sterlite was illegal. It rejected the Environment Ministry's plea that rescinding of the government order would adversely affect several projects under way.

When a complaint about harmful sulphur dioxide emissions from the Sterlite factory came up before the Supreme Court, it asked the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute to study the problem. NEERI reported that sulphur and other pollutants were present in the groundwater, but they were within permissible limits.

On another occasion, the apex court found the company guilty of polluting the environment and fined it Rs 100 crore.

On two occasions, the Madras High Court ordered the closure of the plant following complaints of pollution. Both times, it got respite on appeal. In one case, the apex court went beyond the issue of pollution to justify a decision in favour of the compny. The plant, it said, "contributes substantially to the copper production in India and copper is used in defence, electricity, automobile, construction and infrastructure etc."

The first police firing occurred the day before the High Court's Madurai Bench was due to deliver its judgment on a public interest litigation demanding closure of the plant. After the court upheld the plea, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board ordered the closure of the copper smelter plant with immediate effect. Power supply was cut off to ensure that the plant, which was not operating for the last two months, does not resume work.

To contain the people's fury over the firimgs, the Tamil Nadu Government transferred the District Collector and the Superintendent of Police of Tuticorin and announced an inquiry by a retired high court judge. But it still has to answer why it remained a mute spectator until people's discontent erupted into violence.

The Tuticorin developments call for urgent introspection by the Centre and all stakeholders on the developmental dilemma the nation is facing. The NDA government's exertions have dramatically improved India's position in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business index from 140 in 2014 to 100 this year . Last year's 30-point jump was unprecedented. But mustn't ease of doing business go hand in hand with ease of living for the people?
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

New York, May 27

A 32-year-old Sikh truck driver, who was shot at two weeks ago in Ohio, has succumbed to his injuries, with prosecutors saying they will seek a murder charge against the accused in the case.

Jaspreet Singh of Monroe, Ohio died of injuries he sustained when he was shot at by 20-year-old Broderick Malik Jones Roberts on the night of May 12, a report in the Journal News said.

Roberts had been indicted for aggravated robbery, felonious assault and possessing weapons under disability for allegedly firing at Singh.

Singh suffered a gunshot wound to the upper torso on May 12, according to a Hamilton Police report. He died on May 21, said Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser.

According to court documents, Roberts allegedly shot Singh while he sat in his vehicle.

Since Singh died of his injuries, prosecutors said they will now seek a murder indictment against the accused.

The police report added that Roberts attorney David Washington entered a not guilty plea on his clients behalf but acknowledged a murder indictment is expected next week.

A native of India, Singh had been living in the US for about eight years.

Advocacy group The Sikh Coalition said no immediate evidence has been released to suggest that any bias was involved in the tragic accident.

The groups legal team has been in contact with relevant authorities in Cincinnati and continues to monitor the case. Our prayers remain with his family during this very difficult time, it said in a Facebook post.

Judge Jennifer McElfresh has set a bond of USD 1 million, substantially increasing it from the initial amount of USD 1,25,000 in Hamilton Municipal Court. Roberts is scheduled to be back in court on May 31.

Manjinder Singh, a friend of Singh, said the victim was a devoted father and husband, leaving behind four young children.

He was very well known and well liked in the Sikh community, Manjinder said, noting that his friend helped manage area stores but was recently employed as a truck driver.

He was an active at the Guru Nanak Society in the area, he said.

It is just senseless, said Manjinder Singh, adding that there is no way he would have engaged in any type of wrong activity. He would have just walked away.

Roberts has a criminal history and was sent to prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to trespass, unlawful restraint and assault, according to Butler County court records. PTI
editorial@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, May 27

Within three months of granting the special autonomous status to Kurukshetra University (KU), the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has approved a grant of Rs 100 crore for it.

Vice-Chancellor Prof KC Sharma confirmed the grant and said it would help in addressing the long-pending requirement of infrastructure development and strengthening research activities on the campus.

He hoped that the state government would further increase the financial support to the KU that had been facing a financial crunch for the last several years.

Sources said the KU had submitted a proposal of Rs 162 crore to the Central government but the MHRD agreed to allocate Rs 100 crore. The University Grants Commission (UGC) funds would route through the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA), a Centrally-sponsored scheme (CSS).

Being the oldest university of Haryana, the KU has excelled in various fields. We are looking for more liberal financial assistance from the government to make it a centre of excellence, said Sharma.

On March 20, the UGC had accorded full autonomy to 62 higher educational institutions across India, including the KU, in recognition of their high academic standards.

Sharma said the prompt fund allocation has silenced rumours that the Centre may ask autonomous institutions to generate independent financial resources.

Ramps and lifts in various building for the convenience of differently-abled persons will also be constructed, said the Vice-Chancellor.

The state government pays 95 per cent budget of aided colleges whereas it gives the KU only 30 per cent of its annual budget. I have written to the state authorities to enhance the budget allocation for overall development, he said.
editorial@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Hisar, May 27

Congress leader and Kaithal MLA Randeep Singh Surjewala has stated that on coming to power in Haryana, the Congress would waive the farm loans up to Rs 50,000 given to farmers having landholdings of less than two acres, landless agricultural labourers and the poor.

Addressing a Kisan Yuva Adhikar rally at Kheri Chaupta village in Narnaund Assembly segment of the district on Sunday, Surjewala alleged that the present government was not providing due rates for the agricultural produce.

The government has failed to provide even the officially announced Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for various crops. Debt relief is urgently required for providing interim relief to the small farmers, Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes and small shopkeepers. If the Punjab Government could provide a loan relief to 22 lakh farmers despite its financial problems, there is no reason that the BJP government should not give the same relief to state farmers, he maintained.

Questioning the Central and state governments for not waiving agricultural loans, the Congress leader said when loans of a dozen industrialists amounting to Rs 2.41 lakh crore could be waived, then why the loans of Rs 2 lakh crore taken by 62 crore farmers cannot be waived.

He pointed out that the insurance companies had been paid Rs 20,478 crore in kharif-2016 and Rabi 2016-17 as insurance premium amount, but farmers have been paid compensation of Rs 5,650 crore only.

Castigating the BJP government for the skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel, Surjewala said despite the international prices of crude oil being nearly half as compared to the prices during the tenure of the UPA government, the people of the country and the region were being forced to pay much higher prices for petrol and diesel.

During the last four years, the BJP regime has increased the Central excise duty on petrol by 211.7 per cent and on diesel by 443.06 per cent. Similarly, the state BJP government increased the VAT on petrol from 21 per cent to 26.25 per cent and almost doubled the VAT on diesel from 9.24 per cent to 17.22 per cent, he stated.

Surjewala criticised the state government for its auction notices to 5,000 farmers who could not clear their bank dues. He asserted that the Congress stands firmly with the distressed farmers and would not let the state government go ahead with its plan of auctioning farmers land.
editorial@tribune.com

Bijendra Ahlawat

Tribune News Service

Palwal, May 27

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) will acquire 24 acres to connect the Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal (KGP) expressway and the Aligarh-Palwal highway in the district.

The demand for a link to the highway before Kuslipur village, the last point on the KGP expressway located about 15 km from Palwal, had been accepted by Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi last month.

Palwal MLA Karan Singh Dalal said a meeting of farmers in Pelak village, whose land would be acquired for the project, was held on Sunday.

The Congress MLA, who attended the meeting, said all farmers concerned had agreed to the acquisition proposal. He said the farmers were likely to get at least Rs20 lakh per acre as compensation.

Describing the proposed link as the lifeline of Palwal, he said thousands of vehicles would not have to pass through the town to travel from the Aligarh road to the expressway.

Terming the link as the first such point of access, Dalal said it would save both fuel and time of a large number of commuters.

He demanded a provision for payment of royalty to farmers whose land had been acquired for the KGP. He pointed out that this was being paid to farmers whose land had been acquired for the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal expressway.

Kishore Kanyal, NHAI project director, said toll would not be charged till June 15. He said traffic was opened on the KGP expressway on Sunday evening.

Pelak sarpanch Bhagwat raised the issue of lack of passages along the KGP highway. He said farmers would be inconvenienced as underpasses did not have connecting passages.

Around 550 acres had been acquired for the expressway in Palwal and Faridabad districts. The link in Faridabad district was located near Maujpur village, about 15 km from Ballabgarh.
amansharma@tribunemail.com

Sumedha Sharma

Tribune News Service

Gurugram, May 27

A major fire broke out in a Rohingya refugee camp in Nuh's Chandeni area late on Sunday evening.

Though no casualties have been reported so far, residential shacks of more than 50 families were reduced to cinders within an hour.

Sources claim that the fire started by short circuit in one of the huts and despite best efforts of firemen the settlement was destroyed. Officials, however, did not confirm short circuit as the reason.

The locals alleged mischief behind the incident. "We have been facing hatred for quite some time. We are on road with our woman and children and local administration or government has not even cared to arrange for water," said Manzek, a representative of refugees.

More than 150 people living in the settlement have been rendered homeless.

Some social workers who had long been working for refugees' welfare too have pulled themselves back, apparently fearing the wrath of right wing outfits.

"We have been accused of resorting to anti-national activities. This is not the first time that a fire has broken out here. Nearly a year back the settlement was wiped out by a fire and I built a few makeshift homes, but had to face a difficult time for helping the refugees," said a local social worker, Madhi Khaleed, who runs a school for refugee children.

Alleging conspiracy, Ali Zuhar, a local Rohingya leader, claimed that, "Every single person was called to Nuh for fingerprint registration and retina scan. When we came back we found the entire settlement in flames and they told us short circuit was the reason. Our camp was intentionally set on fire."
editorial@tribune.com

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 27

The biggest demand of traders for allowing livestock trade may once again remain unfulfilled during the India-China cross border trade along Shipkila Pass in the absence of a quarantine laboratory.

The trade between the two neighbours is undertaken every year from June 1 to November 30. The Doklam standoff last year had cast its shadow on the India-China trade which witnessed a drastic decline from Rs 8.59 crore in 2016 to a mere Rs 59.21 lakh in 2017.

A total of 33 traders have applied to the Trade Office to issue them passes to go inside the Tibetan region of Chine for the trade done on barter system. Our request for setting up of a quarantine laboratory still remains unfulfilled, which will remain one of the biggest impediment in increase in volume of the trade, said Hishey Negi, president of the Kinnaur Indo-China Trade Association.

The Kinnaur Indo-China Trade Association had requested the Union Commerce Ministry and the Trade Authority to set up a quarantine laboratory at Chupan and Namgiya to pave the way for resumption of livestock trade like chiku goats, horses and mules from this year. There is great demand for livestock on either side of the border even though its trade was banned about five years ago in the absence of a quarantine laboratory.

Though the trade is scheduled to begin from June 1 the trade passes have yet to be issued. The traders association had last year demanded that the process for issuance of trade passes should be started from April 1 so that trade can begin from June 1. Though officially the trade period is from June 1 to November 30 every year due to delay in the issuance of passes the traders are able to go to China only in August.

Negi lamented that despite land being identified for the setting up of a Trade Mart at Chuppan and Rs 2.60 crore budgetary allocation having been made there was no progress. Since the trade is for a limited period, pre-fabricated structures must be put up to facilitate stay of traders, he said.

The traders have also demanded that the Chinese Government be requested to construct a proper mule track from Shipkila to China Trade Centre at Shipki village in Tibet region of China. A trader can undertake a trip into China for 72 hours and can carry goods worth Rs 1 lakh though there is no limit on the number of trips he makes for trade.
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Bhanu P Lohumi

Tribune News Service

Shimla, May 27

Water shortage during peak summer is nothing new for Shimla. But its for the first time in living memory that the Municipal Corporation has failed to supply water for almost a week, bringing the city to a near halt.

Owing to the water crisis, the popular Shimla-Kalka toy train was delayed on Sunday by 45 minutes. There was not enough water for the train engine and the toilets. The train left Shimla at 4 pm only after 500 litres of water was arranged. With the BJP-controlled corporation seemingly helpless and Mayor Kusum Sardet away to China, the residents anger has begun to spill on to the streets. If the government is unable to provide water to the residents, which is a basic need, it must stop promoting Shimla as a tourist destination as the tourist rush only aggravates the problem, observed 76-year-old BD Joshi, a local.

Reports of sewage entering the water pipes have created a scare. Two years ago, the jaundice outbreak because of contaminated water had taken an epidemic form and the Ashwani Khud supply scheme had to be scrapped. Shimla hoteliers claim the authorities had been forewarned by the Tourism Industry and Stakeholders Association about the impending water shortage. We had in April written to the district administration and the MC and suggested that borewells be dug around Shimla and water hydrants be installed at Tattapani to meet the water demand, said association president MK Seth, regretting that nothing had been done.

Former Mayor and senior CPI(M) leader Sanjay Chauhan held the corporation solely responsible for the crisis and sough stringent action against employees responsible for it.
editorial@tribune.com

Amin Masoodi

Tangdhar, (Kupwara) May 27

The Pakistan army backed the infiltrating militants who were killed during an hours-long operation near the Line of Control (LoC) in the Tangdhar sector of north Kashmirs Kupwara district on Saturday, a senior Army officer said on Sunday.

The recovery of war-like stores from the five slain militants was indicative of active aiding and abetting of terrorism by Pakistan as a lot of modern weaponry, including an under-barrel grenade launcher, and food items bore Pakistan markings, the Army officer said.

The slain militants were heavily armed and equipped with modern weaponry. The recovery of weapons and ammunition from them apparently indicate the role of Pakistan in aiding and abetting terrorism in Kashmir, Brigadier PK Mishra, who heads the Armys 104 Brigade in Tangdhar, told reporters on Sunday.

Also, through surveillance devices, the movement of infiltrating militants was detected from a close range to the Pakistani army. In other words, the Pakistani army was seen backing the infiltrating militants to cross through the icy and snowbound heights into the Indian territory on Thursday. Based on this vital observation, we re-deployed some of our interception detachments to trap the militants, he added.

Giving details about the operation, the Army officer said during the intervening night of Friday and Saturday, a group of five militants finally walked into interception deaths and ambushes, which had been placed firmly.

They were challenged but they retaliated with a heavy volume of gunfire and were engaged by the troops. They tried to withdraw and break the contact but the troops and their commanders on the ground kept them engaged in the gunfight. The terrorists split into two groups to prolong the gunfight but they were neutralised after a fierce and an hours-long gun battle, the Army officer said.

The troops and their officers showed a great amount of tactical acumen and succeeded in foiling the infiltration of the heavily armed group of militants equipped with modern weaponry, which is indeed credible, the officer said.

To a question, the Army officer said intelligence agencies did suggest that a lot of militant groups were desperately trying to sneak into the Indian side.

We expect more such bids in future. We are exercising maximum restraint in the wake of Ramzan and ceasefire, which has been promulgated by the government, he said.

While we are respecting the ceasefire, Pakistan obviously does not intend to do so. The troops are vigilant and always ready to negate any such attempt, he added.
editorial@tribune.com

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Bishnah, May 27

Enraged over the casual approach being adopted by the successive state governments to ensure their security, border dwellers on Sunday threatened to encroach on palatial official bungalows of ministers and legislators to make them realise how it feels to be displaced amid scorching heat.

Border inhabitants have also warned mass migration with their cattle and belongings from their respective villages to Jammu to awake the ruling elites from deep slumber.

Our patience is running out. Killing of innocent civilians and extensive damage to property has become a routine affair on the border. Except tall promises, nothing concrete has been done to protect us, rued Raghubir Singh, sarpanch of Changia panchayat that has witnessed unprecedented loss of lives and property in the last four years.

All villages falling under this panchayat are experiencing bloodshed. It has become a custom for politicians to visit our areas after every bloodshed and make tall promises. However, after their return, the assurances remain on paper, he said.

Border inhabitants of Kathua, Samba and Jammu districts have decided to form a coordination committee to intensify their struggle for getting their demands fulfilled. The Border Union of Kathua and the Border Sangharsh Samiti of Jammu have already announced to jointly launch an agitation to expose the inhumane approach of the ruling elites.

It is very difficult for children to be in the relief camps set up by the authorities. We will not hesitate to forcible capture official bungalows of ministers and legislators to protect our kids from scorching heat, Singh said.

During a meeting, the Border Sangharsh Samiti members devised a strategy to start mass migration to Jammu with their cattle and belongings. Palatial bungalows where ministers and legislators live are public properties, so there is nothing wrong in shifting there, said Raghunandan Sharma, a resident of Arnia.

Echoing sentiments, Bharat Bhushan, Babiya sarpanch and vice-president of the Border Union, Kathua, said ministers should voluntarily vacate their palatial bungalows to provide shelter to the shelling-hit families. Being public representatives, ministers and legislators are duty bound to protect people at the time of crises, he said.
editorial@tribune.com

Amir Karim Tantray

Tribune News Service

Jammu, May 27

The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is probing the Nagrota terror attack of November 29, 2016, in its investigation has revealed that the militants, who attacked an Army installation near the 16 Corps headquarters, had infiltrated through the Samba sector on the International Border (IB).

The probe has authenticated The Tribune story published on December 1, 2016, which said the militants had infiltrated through the Samba sector along the International Border. The Tribune was the only newspaper to report about the infiltration route of the militants.

During the encounter, the Army had recovered war-like stores from the militants. On the same day, the BSF had managed to kill three infiltrators in the Samba sector and had made huge recoveries. The recoveries made by the Army and the BSF at the two places were similar in nature and sources had told The Tribune that all militants were part of one group of infiltrators which had split in to two sub-groups.

The Tribune had further reported that the militants were provided support by sleeper cells in Jammu which ferried them from Samba to Jammu and to the encounter site before launching the attack.

On Saturday, the NIA arrested the main accused, Syed Muneer-Ul-Hassan Qadri, a resident of Hurhama, Kupwara, in connection with the case. Qadri has revealed how he helped the militants.

This has also authenticated The Tribune story that the sleeper cells had helped the militants to reach the encounter site safely and launch the attack.

On November 29, 2016, fidayeen militants had attacked an Army camp at Nagrota in which seven Army personnel, including two Majors, were killed and three others were injured. Three Pakistani terrorists were also killed in the operation and a huge quantity of arms, ammunition, explosives and other articles were recovered from the slain terrorists.

After the attack, the investigation was handed over to the NIA by the Union Home Ministry.

Nov 29, 2016, incident

On November 29, 2016, fidayeen militants had attacked an Army camp at Nagrota in which seven Army personnel, including two Majors, were killed and three others were injured. Three Pakistani terrorists were also killed in the operation and a huge quantity of arms, ammunition, explosives and other articles were recovered from the slain terrorists.
editorial@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, May 27

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) had declared the Class XII result on Saturday. Astha Bamba of BCM Arya Model School, Ludhiana, emerged as the all India third topper by securing 99.4per cent in humanities stream. Following are scores of other students who have just passed out from the city-based schools.

Kundan Vidya Mandir School

The school has witnessed 100 per cent result. Tatsum Kharbanda from commerce secured with 98.4 per cent marks. Hitika Goyal from humanities scored 98 per cent marks, Ria Aggarwal, from non-medical stream scored 97.4 per cent marks. Simran Madaan from medical stream scored 97 per cent marks made school proud.

Bhartiya Vidya Mandir, Kitchlu Nagar

Kanishk Kapoor from commerce has topped with 97.6 per cent. Yogesh Kumar Verma topped the non-medical side with 96.4 per cent marks and Charu from medical side has topped with 95.8% marks.

DAV Public School, Sarabha Nagar

Rithik Dhiman bagged the first position with 95.4 per cent marks. Tanya Aggarwal from medical stream topped with the score of 92.4 per cent. Hardik Punj and Vikrant Gupta also stood first with 93.6per cent marks in non-medical stream

Jatindera Greenfield School

The school was able to give 100 per cent result. The highest percentage was obtained by Gurleen Kaur Sidhu of medical stream with 95 per cent. Jasmeen Kaur topped arts group with 94.6 per cent. In non-medical, Nimish Kapoor topped with 94.4 per cent.

Guru Gobind Singh Public School, Daad

Yugam Behl topped in mathematics with 99 per cent marks. Gurasheesh Singh from non-medical stream secured the top position in the school with 93 per cent. The overall result of the school is 100 per cent.

UPSC Jain Public School

Kavya Pandey of non-medical bagged the first position in the school by scoring 94.2 per cent. In commerce stream, Shiwani Wadhwa topped with 90.8 per cent. Simran Rai topped the arts stream with 89.8 per cent.

DAV School, BRS Nagar

The school produced 100 per cent result. Sargunpreet Kholi and Kriti Jethila topped in non-medical stream with 97.6 per cent. Prabhustat Kaur topped in medical wing with 97.2 per cent. Similarly, Wamika Arora has topped the commerce group with 96.8 per cent. Anoushka Garg topped in arts with 95.4 per cent.

Police DAV Public School

Madhuri from commerce section stood first by securing 94.6 per cent. In medical, Gourish Duggal bagged the first position with 94.4 per cent. Karan Sharma of non-medical secured the first position with 93 per cent. Paramjot from humanities stood first by securing 91.4 per cent.

Green Land Public School, Jalandhar bypass

Jatin Singla from commerce stream has stood with 97.8 per cent marks. Manmeet Kaur in non-medical has bagged the first position with 96.6 per cent marks. In medical, Harsha Kashyap secured the first position with 96.6 per cent marks. In arts, Priyanka topped with 96.4 per cent marks.

Guru Nanak International Public School

Manvir Singh of non-medical stood first in school with 97 per cent marks. In medical, Simran Kaur has bagged the first position in school with 92.8 per cent marks. Kamalpreet Kaur of commerce stood first in school with 97 per cent marks.

Sacred Heart School, BRS Nagar

Prachi Newtia has topped the commerce with 97 per cent. Gurpahul Singh topped non-medical stream with 96.8per cent. Japoor Kaur Bakshi stood first with 92.4 per cent marks in medical and Kavya Jain bagged the first position in humanities with 90 per cent marks.

Guru Hargobind Public School, Sidhwan Khurd

In the non-medical group, Amritpal Kaur stood first with 94.8 per cent. Sakshi Arora also topped the medical group with 91.6 per cent. Gurjovan Singh topped in commerce stream with 90.6 per cent. In arts, Ramandeep Kaur bagged the first position by securing 90.4 per cent marks.

DCM Presidency School

Himanshu Soni from medical stream scored 96 per cent marks, Mayank Malhotra of non-medical stream scored 90 per cent and Shallu Chaudhary of commerce stream secured 86.8 per cent marks. In the FMM stream, Palak Jaju scored 95 per cent marks.

Eastwood International School

Easha Kaler topped the science group with 88.8 per cent marks and Jashanpreet Singh Bhathal secured the first position with 80 per cent marks.

Nankana Sahib Public School, Gill Park

In science, Jaskamal Singh topped with 92 per cent marks. In commerce section, Gursimran Gill got the first position in school with 91 per cent. In arts, Muskan Verma bagged the first position in school with 82 per cent marks.

Gujranwala Guru Nanak Public School

Harmeet Kaur bagged the first position with 95.2 per cent in non-medical. Avleen Kaur from medical section secured the first position with 92.4 per cent. In humanities, Yuvrajveer Singh Sandhu has topped with 91.4 per cent. Harshdeep Singh has also topped commerce with 91.4 per cent.

Atam Devki Niketan School, Kidwainagar

Mehak Kaura and Himani Bansal of non-medical scored 93.2 per cent. Pramit Jain from the medical section scored 91.6 per cent. Similarly, Muskan Chugh from commerce has scored 93.4 per cent and Bhavika Gupta from humanities scored 90.2 per cent.

Shamrock Christian Senior Secondary School

Manreet Kaur from non-medical stream scored 93.56 per cent. Aashima Gupta topped medical stream with 93.56 per cent. In humanities stream, Stuti Puri topped with 90 per cent.

Ryan International School

Ishita Kapoor from commerce secured 96 per cent. Sushant Sondhi has topped in non-medical by scoring 97.4 per cent. In medical, Sukhpreet Kaur and Bhupinderpal Singh stood first and scored 94.4 per cent. Ashneet Saluja topped the humanities section by obtaining 93 per cent marks.

Darshan Academy

Sahil Sharma in science stream topped with 94 per cent. From commerce stream, Tript Kaur stood first with 86.8 per cent and Jahnvi in arts with 86 per cent marks bagged the first position in the school.

GMT Public School

Both Ruhani and Mansi of non-medical stood first with 96 per cent marks. Another student, Mansi, in commerce scored 92.8 per cent marks. Sneha Joshi of arts bagged the top position with 90.8 per cent marks.

MGM Public School

In the science stream, Mehar Girdhar topped with 95 per cent marks. Nishank Mittal from commerce bagged the first position with 94.6 per cent. Chanpreet Singh of arts bagged the first position.

Guru Nanak Model Senior Secondary School, Doraha

Ramanjot Kaur stood first in commerce stream by securing 93.2 per cent marks. Aditi Bansal in medical stream stood first by attaining 90.6 per cent marks. Komalpreet Singh in non-medical stream with 89.4 per cent marks.

Green Grove Senior Secondary School, Mohapur

Ishleen Kaur topped the area with 96.6% in commerce stream. Gurjap Kaur and Gurleen Kaur secured 95.6 per cent each in non-medical stream. Jasmeen Kaur of medical stream secured 93.8 per cent and topped the school.

Tagore Public School

Archita topped the school with 96.6per cent in commerce. Kanav Singla also topped with 93 per cent in non-medical. In humanities, Ekampreet Kaur topped with 89.69 per cent.

Drishti Dr RC Jain Innovative Public School

Nimarjot Kaur Grewal topped the school with 98.4 per cent, followed by Harmeet Kaur with 97.2 per cent. Similarly, Nikita scored 95.8 per cent marks and Anureet Kaur scored 95.4per cent.

Spring Dale Public School

Shweta Sharma topped arts with 93.4per cent marks. Manpreet Kaur topped commerce 92 per cent. Agamjot Singh topped non-medical with 91.4 per cent marks and Vivek Mishra topped with 90per cent.
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Shahira Naim

In recent weeks, a 38-year-old first-time Dalit BJP MP from Bahraich, Sadhvi Savitiri Bai Phule, has caused embarrassment to the BJP, criticising her own partys stand on the so-called Dalit agenda. She has called the partys bluff on its Dalit outreach programme. Under the Gram Swaraj Abhiyan, the BJP has asked its MPs and ministers to eat alongside Dalits in their homes.

The 5-star food and services offered to these BJP ministers in the houses of Dalits is an insult to the Dalit community. The food is procured from outside and served by others. Only the venue is a Dalit house. If you really want to honour the Dalits, reach their homes unannounced and share their meals, even if it is roti and salt, the fiery Sadhvi remarked.

She was referring to UP minister Suresh Rana, an accused in the Muzaffarnagar riots, ordering food prepared by cooks at a nearby medical centre during his visit to the house of a Dalit, Rajnish Kumar, in Lohgarh, Aligarh district, on April 30.

If politicians eat at a Dalits house in a bid to annihilate the caste system, it adds to the Dalit self-esteem. But if netas partake of food in Dalits homes only to appear on social media pages, then its an insult to the community, she told the media in Bahraich recently. While there is a contest to share meals with Dalits and hold chaupals in their bastis, no one is ready to speak about their rights which are under attack as never before, she alleged.

The miserable track record of CM Yogi Adityanaths government in this regard is once again under the lens. A year safer the Shabbirpur violence, Bhim army founder Chandrashekhar Azad Ravana, arrested under the NSA for protesting against the caste violence, remains behind bars despite the efforts of activists.

On May 5, 2017, in this nondescript village that falls in the jurisdiction of Badhgaon police station in Saharanpur, 55 Dalit households were ransacked and burnt, Dalit women molested and their cattle attacked. At least a dozen Dalits were seriously injured. The trouble began after Shabbirpur Dalits objected to raucous music being played at a procession organised by the Rajputs in memory of their king Maharana Pratap.

Incidentally, the procession was to culminate at Simlana village where minister Suresh Rana, Deoband MLA Brijesh Singh and Haryana minister Shyam Singh Rana were present.

The status report of the attack on Dalit families by Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative and the National Dalit Movement for Justice (NCDHR) on May 19 exposed the state governments double standards in bringing justice to the aggrieved. The family of Rajput youth Sumit, who reportedly died of suffocation while setting Dalit houses ablaze in Shabbirpur, received a compensation of Rs 20 lakh soon after. But Dalit survivors, who had sought Rs 8.25 lakh as relief, received only Rs 25,000 each. Eleven were paid Rs 50,000 each. Only one survivor received Rs 4.12 lakh.

Post Shabbirpur violence, nine criminal cases were registered and seven Dalits and seven Rajputs arrested  two from each side under the NSA. In all three cases filed by the Rajputs, charge-sheets have been filed. But in the four cases filed by the Dalits, no charge-sheet has been filed till date. Also, 19 criminal cases against 34 Bhim Army members, mostly students, were lodged days after the violence.
editorial@tribune.com

Vijayawada, May 27

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said on Sunday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a campaign PM... who has failed to deliver on promises and the BJP would definitely not remain in power after the 2019 General Election.

Naidu said the Congress, too, wont be able to form the next government on its own and stressed that regional parties have able and capable leaders who will play an important role after the polls.

The remarks came a few days after he shared stage with leaders of several regional parties at the swearing-in of HD Kumaraswamy as Chief Minister of the Congress-JD(S) Karnataka Government after a bitterly-fought election that threw up a hung verdict.

Inaugurating Mahanadu, the TDPs annual conclave in Vijayawada, Naidu said his party had played key role in forming governments in the past and had the power to change the narrative in the country, hinting that it could tie-up with like-minded parties to stop the BJP.

Naidu said the TDP was a key player in the formation of the United Front government in 1996.

The TDP has in the past played a key role in forming governments. It has the power to change the political narrative in the country. We wont step back, Naidu said.

On allegations of EVM manipulation during elections, he said thorough discussions should be held on the use of electronic voting machines to ensure fair elections. Naidu said the TDP withdrew support from the NDA government as the Centre had reneged on its promise to grant special category status to Andhra Pradesh and failed to implement the AP Reorganisation Act.

He alleged that the saffron party was resorting to revenge politics and using institutions such as the CBI and ED to put pressure on those who did not follow its line. He accused the BJP of betraying the people of Andhra and trying to create law and order problems in collusion with Jaganmohan Reddys YSR Congress.

He said the BJP government had promised a special package for backward districts of Andhra on the lines of Bundelkhand region. But, Naidu alleged, the BJP betrayed Andhra people.  PTI
uttara@tribuneindia.com

New Delhi, May 27

The cost of prosecuting Mumbai terror attacks mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) head Hafiz Saeed is too great, says former ISI chief Asad Durrani.

"If you prosecute Saeed, the first reaction will be: it's on India's behalf, you're hounding him, he's innocent, etc. The political cost is big, now," he says.

Durrani, 77, mentions this in a new book in which he features in conversation with former RAW chief A S Dulat and the two discuss topics including everything related to India-Pakistan ties: the surgical strikes, Kulbhushan Jadhav, Nawaz Sharif, Kashmir and Burhan Wani.

When Dulat asks him, what is Saeed's value to Pakistan, Durrani replies, "The cost of prosecuting him is too great".

Saeed, who carries a $10 million American bounty for his role in terror activities, was under house arrest from January to November last year.

The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which is responsible for carrying out the Mumbai attacks in 2008 in which 166 people, including six Americans, were killed.

Saeed was declared a global terrorist by the US and the UN after the Mumbai strikes and was put under house arrest in November 2008 but freed by a court some months later.

"He was taken to the courts though they had nothing (new) against him. It is still possible that he was detained to let the storm blow over. In six months, he could come out," writes Durrani about Saeed's detention.

In the book, published by HarperCollins India, Dulat and Durrani are in conversation with Aditya Sinha.

On asked by Dulat if Saeed's house arrest was choreographed, Durrani says: "What's new, as far as Hafiz Saeed is concerned, is more evidence available? One would expect that there's an arrangement with Hafiz Saeed.

Asked if there were any positive implications for Indo-Pak relations from Saeed's house arrest, he says: "There are very few positives on the India-Pakistan front right now. But this can provide breathing space to a country that is constantly under pressure". Meanwhile, Pakistan's powerful Army has accused Durrani of 'violating' the military code of conduct and has summoned him tomorrow seeking clarification over his book The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace.

Durrani mentions in the book that Mumbai remains the only incident in which he decided that he would be available to any Indian and Pakistani channel to say that whoever has done this, be it state-sponsored, ISI-sponsored, military-sponsored, should be caught hold of and punished.

"It's not only about those 168 people dead, four days of carnage, etc. At the time Pakistan could ill afford its eastern front caught in a war. There were enough problems in the West and within the country. I don't know who did it, but there were questions that David Headley named an ISI major. It created difficulties for us," he says.

On reports that Headley collaborated with Saeed, he says, people can go ahead and investigate as all these stories have floated around.

"For eight years, both of us have advocated joint investigation, joint trial, intelligence sharing, get on with the anti-terrorism mechanism, etc, for the simple reason that we can't do anything until and unless this is resolved. Till then, Hafiz Saeed, ISI, Jaish-e-Mohammed: it's possible they had nothing to do with it, that there's a third or fourth or fifth party involved," he says. PTI
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

New Delhi, May 27

India on Sunday summoned Pakistans Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah and lodged a strong protest over Islamabads latest move relating to administrative authority over the Gilgit-Baltistan region, saying any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under its forcible and illegal occupation has no legal basis.

The Ministry of External Affairs said it conveyed to Shah that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Through its May 21 order on Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region. Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order.

Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation, the MEA said.

According to some media reports in Pakistan, the order provides for devolution of greater financial powers to the areas.  PTI
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

Kairana (UP), May 27

Kairana constituency in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pardesh has virtually assumed the dimension of a strategic player in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Kairana bypoll, slated for tomorrow, will also see a joint Opposition taking on the ruling BJP.

Located around 630 km from capital city of Lucknow, the Lok Sabha constituency has five Assembly segments, namely Shamli, Thana Bhawan and Kairana in Shamli district, and Gangoh and Nakur in Saharanpur district. There are nearly 17 lakh voters in the constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

RLD party worker Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which the ruling party was being challenged by a joint Opposition. This is the beauty of our democracy, he said.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the partys candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dals (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

The Opposition hopes that by consolidating anti-BJP votes, they will repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur byelections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat.

The withdrawal of candidature of Lok Dal candidate Kanwar Hasan from the fray and his joining of the RLD has only added to the Oppositions confidence.

The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the Opposition partiesthat the drubbing in the Gorakhpur and Phulpur byelections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.

The results of the May 28 bypoll may set the tone and tenor for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Rajesh Kumar Saini, manager of a hotel on the busy Shamli-Panipat road, said.

Khan exuded confidence that Kairanas daughter-in-law Tabassum Hasan will defeat Kairanas daughter (Mriganka Singh).

The Yogi Adityanath-led state government has left no stone unturned in campaigning for the bypoll. He along with his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya campaigned in Saharanpur and Shamli.

Apart from them, the BJP has thrown in at least five state ministers into the fight for Kairana. They include Dharam Singh Saini (minister of state for Ayush), Suresh Rana (sugarcane development minister), Anupama Jaiswal (basic education minister) Surya Pratap Shahi (agriculture minister) and Laxmi Narayan (religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, waqf and Haj minister).

Of these, Saini and Rana are MLAs from Nakur and Thana Bhawan Assembly segments, respectively, of the constituency. Jaiswal is the minister in-charge of Shamli district, while Surya Pratap Shahi is the minister in charge of Saharanpur.

Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary has been roped in since he hails from a farming background, a senior UP BJP leader said.

BJP MPs Sanjiv Baliyan, Raghav Lakhan Pal, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and Kanta Kardam have also actively campaigned for Mriganka Singh.

The SP and Congress, however, termed the line-up of UP ministers as a sign of party jitters.

According to the locals, the major issues in this bypoll are law and order and the woes of sugarcane growers.

RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan had accused the BJP-led state government of resorting to divisive politics.

Sugarcane growers in the region are feeling the maximum amount of pain, as no payments have been made to them by the state government, she told PTI, rejecting the official claim that the dues from sugar mills were being cleared.

The issue was also raised during an election meeting of state minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary, who said that the dues accumulated from the time of the past governments had been paid out, and the rest would be settled soon.

In Uttar Pradesh, 10,828.59 lakh quintals of sugarcane were purchased by sugar mills from farmers during the BJP government in 2017-18, as compared to 6443.41 lakh quintals under the Samajawadi Party government in 2015-16. Similarly, Rs 21,186.56 crore payments were made during the BJP government in the state in 2017-18, in comparison to Rs 11,841.34 crore made during the SP government in 2015-16, BJP spokesperson Chandramohan said.

Divergent views also emerged on the reported 2016 exodus of Hindu families from Kairana.

The area is adjacent to Panipat district in Haryana. The labourers (both Hindus and Muslims) from the area go to the neighbouring state to work in the industries there. They go in the morning and return in the evening, Hasan said while rejecting the claims of any such exodus.

The RLD leader said the locked houses, even of Muslims who had gone to Panipat for work, were photographed and used as a propaganda.

In Kairana, both Hindus and Muslims live in peace, she added.

BJP candidate Mriganka Singh, on the other hand, said, The exodus of Hindu families from Kairana has stopped now. But hundreds of Hindu families had fled from Kairana out of fear and harassment before the 2017 UP Assembly elections.

Apart from Kairana, bypoll to Noorpur assembly constituency in the state will also be held tomorrow. PTI
uttara@tribuneindia.com

New Delhi, May 29

Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority of his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 km of highways.

Highways, railways, airways and I-ways have been the focus of the government he said.

Highways construction has reached 27 km a day from mere 12 km a day during Congress regime while last year 10 crore people undertook air journeys, he said.

Modi was addressing a public rally here after dedicating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) to the nation. The 135 km EPE has been built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore in 500 days.

He said that apart from Rs 5 lakh crore provision for Bharatmala for highways, a provision of Rs 14 lakh crore was made in the budget to strengthen agriculture related infrastructure.

The government is sensitive to the plight of sugarcane farmers and adequate steps are taken to provide proper prices for their crop, he said.

While talking about social justice, Modi said his government is committed to Dalit protection and has constituted special courts for fast-track hearing of cases of atrocities.

Lauding Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath, he said criminals in Uttar Pradesh are now surrendering themselves and pledging not to indulge in illegal acts.

About the Ganga cleaning programme, Modi said more than 200 projects worth Rs 21,000 crore for have been taken up.

Taking a jibe at Congress, Modi said it had betrayed people for 70 years and played politics to create a crisis of confidence whether related to EVMs or other critical issues.

He said the Opposition was spreading rumours on farmer issues and asked people not to give credence to lies about farms given on contract farming.

In his about 50 minute-speech, he said all-round development work has been initiated.

Delhi-Meerut Expressway



Modi also inaugurated the first phase of the Delhi-Meerut expressway on Sunday.

After inaugurating the 14-lane expressway spanning Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to UP Gate, Modi rode in an open car, waving at crowds gathered on either sides of the highway.

Road Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari too rode in a separate open car alongside Modi.

The roadshow started from Nizamuddin bridge, the start of the about 9-km first leg of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway. After a 6-km travel on the stretch, he flew to Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh to inaugurate the country's first smart and green highway, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway.

The first phase of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway cost Rs 842 crore, according to an advertisement released by the government on the project.

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway, which will have dedicated bicycle tracks on the nearly 28-km stretch between Delhi and Dasna, will cut travel time between Delhi and Meerut to 45 minutes from two-and-half hour now. The total length of the project is 82 km, of which the first 27.74 km will be 14-laned, while the rest will be 6-lane expressway.

The expressway will do away with 31 traffic signals on the Delhi-Meerut road, the busiest highway in the region, and make it signal free.

Modi had in December 2015 laid the foundation stone of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway to be built at a cost of Rs 7,566 crore.

The project is being built in four segmentsNizamuddin Bridge to UP Border, UP Border to Dasna, Dasna to Hapur and Hapur to Meerut.

Besides, six-laning of 22 km long Dasna-Hapur section of NH 24 will cost Rs 1,122 crore. Agencies


gspannu7@gmail.com

New Delhi, May 27

UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, accompanied by her son and Congress president Rahul Gandhi, will leave for abroad tonight for a medical check-up, party sources said.

According to the sources, Sonia Gandhi will be travelling abroad for her annual medical examination. She had undergone a surgery in the US in 2011.

While Rahul Gandhi will return within a week, Sonia Gandhi will stay abroad for a longer period, the sources told PTI.

They said some key decisions, including the allocation of ministerial portfolios in Karnataka after a Congress-JD(S) government led by HD Kumaraswamy was formed in the southern state last week, have been put on hold.

Some fresh appointments in the Congress are also awaited as part of the partys rejig under Rahul Gandhi.

The Congress chief held deliberations with party leaders since yesterday to decide on the portfolios for the partys legislators in Karnataka, but the discussions remained inconclusive.

Will be out of India for a few days, accompanying Sonia ji to her annual medical check up.



To my friends in the BJP social media troll army: dont get too worked up...I'll be back soon!  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 27, 2018

The sources said Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to address a rally at Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh on June 6 to commemorate the first anniversary of police firing on farmers there.  PTI
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Shiv Kumar

With less than a year to go before the next Lok Sabha elections, the bypoll to a couple of parliamentary seats should not be more than a formality. Usually a handful of party leaders go through the motions of campaigning while their minions ensure that their core supporters turn up to vote on polling day.

Not this time, though. The byelection to the Palghar Lok Sabha seat, on the outskirts of Mumbai, has turned into a prestige fight between the warring allies BJP and the Shiv Sena. The latter fired the first salvo by roping in the family of deceased MP Chintaman Wanga, who was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2014 on a BJP ticket.

The late Wangas son Shrinivas, who is contesting as the Shiv Sena candidate, has party chief Uddhav and his son Aditya Thackeray burning the rubber for him in the sprawling constituency.

After losing its candidate to its frenemy, the BJP wooed Congress leader Rajendra Gavit into its fold and fielded him against the younger Wanga. While Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is doing his bit, the BJP decided that Gavit could do with some additional heft and roped in Yogi Adityanath to do some pitching.

The Palghar poll on Monday continues to be in the news thanks to the high-voltage fireworks from leaders of both outfits.

Meanwhile, reports from the ground indicate that the Congress party and the local Bahujan Vikas Aghadi too are putting up a tough fight.

Panhandling in US

Its no secret that the four-year old NDA government in Maharashtra has run the states economy to the ground. The Rs 30,000-crore farm loan waiver announced by Chief Minister Fadnavis more than a year ago strained the treasury but implementing the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations for government employees in the coming months could prove to be the last straw.

Nips and tucks on the budgetary front are unlikely to yield the requisite cash and after some futile adjustments, Fadnavis has chosen the obvious panhandle. The CM heads for Washington in June to try and obtain World Bank funds.

The proposal under preparation by the state government seeks to obtain World Bank funding under the heads of climate resilient agriculture and programmes to reduce crop loss, apart from harnessing solar energy for farmers.

The proposed projects are expected to cost at least Rs 6,000 crore and the state government plans to pitch for part funding from the international lending body.

Banking on Piyush

Piyush Goyal taking charge of the finance ministry, if only for a short while, in addition to the railways has made a section of Mumbais builders very happy. The buzz in the trade is that nearly 250 acres of land allotted to housing railway employees in Mumbai would be commercially developed. It helps that Goyal is a Gujarati from Mumbai who controls both the finance and railway ministries.
editorial@tribune.com

GS Paul

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, May 27

Located around 10 km from Amritsar, a small settlement of thatheras (traditional copper and brass utensil makers) called Bazaar Thatherian in Jandiala Guru caught the fancy of Local Bodies, Tourism and Culture Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on Sunday.

Their business has seen a sharp fall over the years despite the art form being included in the UNESCO Intangible Culture Heritage List. No efforts have been made by successive governments to uplift the thatheras. Accompanied by Amritsar DC Kamaldeep Singh Sangha, state Tourism Director Shiv Dular Singh and students of New Delhi-based ENACTUS Shri Ram College of Commerce, Sidhu went through the narrow streets of the traditional market where thatheras carve impressive utensils.

Sidhu announced a corpus fund of Rs 10 lakh for the revival and existence of this art while claiming that there would never be a dearth of money for these artists. This is the only Indian art form recognised by UNESCO. These people are our pride. Today, I promise them that our government will never let this art fade away. The government will add money to the corpus fund on an annual basis, he said.

Sidhu offered them free shops to market and sell their products at Gobindgarh Fort and Town Hall and assured their participation in the upcoming Global Festival which is scheduled at Dubai.

The major reasons behind the slowdown in their business are lack of design modifications meeting contemporary market needs, very little exposure to the niche market and cheaper options available in plastic, silver and steel. The art is dying as the next generation is not willing to pursue it. The cost of manufacturing these utensils comes out to be approximately Rs 400 per kg. The few craftsman making deg tamba are being paid a daily wage of anything between Rs 20-40 while the market selling price of the product is somewhere between Rs 500-540.

DC Kamaldeep Singh Sangha said a joint initiative was taken recently by the district administration and the Enactus Shri Ram College of Commerce under the name Project Virasat. Their products have already been showcased at various exhibitions in a much smarter and modified way under a brand named P-Tal. Initially, a few thatheras came on board but soon, the number increased and under the chairmanship of the DC, Punjab Thathera Art Legacy was formed under the Societies Act, 1860.
editorial@tribune.com

Charanjit Singh Teja

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, May 27

Leader of the Opposition Sukhpal Singh Khaira on Sunday accused Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh of shielding former minister Rana Gurjit Singh, who is under fire for allegedly dumping untreated industrial waste into the drains of Buttar Sivian village.

After the report on how the former ministers sugar mill dumped untreated industrial waste into the village drains appeared in these columns, Khaira planned a march to the village. However, he was stopped by the police at Dhardeo village after some people, who claimed to be members of a kisan union, held a counter-protest. Khaira alleged they were Ranas supporters.

Meanwhile, Ranas son Veer Pratap Singh dared Khaira to prove his allegations.

Addressing a public rally at Dhardeo village, Khaira said: I am here to visit the spot to express my concern over the river water pollution. I dont want to have any fracas with Ranas goons, he said.

The AAP leader will be visiting sugar mills and distilleries in several parts of the state over the next few days to assess how they treated their industrial waste.

Khaira accused the Chief Minister of shielding people like Rana, who were polluting the river waters. I will offer Capt and his minister drain water to drink, he added.

Veer Pratap Singh, who is one of the company directors, challenged the AAP leader to prove the charges he had been levelling against them for the past few days.

Veer Partap claimed that the company was being run as per norms laid down by the ministry and the Pollution Control Board and had also obtained all mandatory clearances, which were renewed from time to time after proper scrutiny and examination.

He challenged Khaira that if he proved the existence of a reverse borewell, they would shut down the mill.

Khaira said his battle was to save the waters of Punjab. I will continue the crusade, he added. Rana Sugar Mill has several large bores on the factory premises to dispose of toxic waste into the soil, said Khaira.
editorial@tribune.com

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 27

Villages across Shahkot are prone to a host of diseases, including the dreaded cancer, which they blame on polluted water of the Chitti Bein and the Kala Sanghian drain.

Panch Tarsem Lal says they have seen over 20 deaths in the past few years at Eesewal village. Similarly at Seechewal village, where polluted water is the key issue, at least 12-13 deaths from cancer have taken place in the past few years. While a high-pitched campaign was witnessed in the constituency in the past two days, the villagers say they only hope that the winning candidate keeps the promise to provide clean water to the area residents.

Manjit Kaur of Seechewal, who lost her 16-year-old daughter to cancer, says: After fish deaths, candidates of all parties took the water issue. We wonder once the elections are over, will they bother about it? Similarly views were aired by her neighbour Jaswinder Kaur (70), who lost two family members to cancer. Villages all along the Chitti Bein do not have access to clean drinking water. Environmentalist Balbir Singh Seechewal says: The villages across the Shahkot constituency are digging out tubewells as deep as 400-500 ft since until 200 ft, the water is polluted. We have received assurances from all leaders that they would be working to clean Kala Saghian drain and the Bein. We only hope that they paid heed to this serious issue.Kahan Singh Pannu, Chairman, PPCB, said: We have capped the capacity of the units running at the leather complex at 50 per cent. 
vinaymishra188@gmail.com

Rachna Khaira

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 27

In March 1991, Ranjit Singh left for France in search for better prospects. Twenty-seven years on, he is back in India, having lost subsistence allowance for refusing to forego his identity as a turbaned Sikh.

Singh, who belongs to Ambala, paid the price for refusing to get photographed without the turban  for the ID to renew his status as a refugee. After fighting his battle with the French authorities for nearly two decades, Singh, 82, returned to India on Saturday to stay with his son in Pathankot.

Singh was first issued the ID in 1991 with the turban and it was due for renewal in 2001. For months, the French authorities asked him to get himself photographed, this time without the turban. However, Ranjit Singh refused to comply, and after a couple of years, the French government stopped his social security allowance.

Singh took on the French Government, filing a case in the Administrative Tribunal there. He even took the battle to the European Court of

Human Rights (ECHR), which dismissed his petition. Singh later moved the United Nations against the French law banning the wearing of turban for ID photographs.

In June 12, 2012, the UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) concluded that France had violated the religious freedom of Ranjit Singh, then 76.

Even six years after the verdict, the French Government refused to extend social security allowance, causing him a lot of hardship, he claims. Even though I am over 80, I do not have medical insurance cover and was forced to pay all my bills. Recently, my medical expenses at a private hospital crossed over 2,200 euros. As I was unable to pay back instantly, my family offered to pay in monthly instalments of 80 euros, he says.

Refusing to be a burden on his elder son, who lives in France, Singh decided to move to India to stay with his younger son.

What is the use of luxury once you lose your religious identity? I am a born Sikh and will prefer to die with this identity. This is not a battle of ego but of religious faith, which is above all worldly pleasures, said Singh.

Will he seek social security benefits from the Punjab Government? Yes, I will visit Chandigarh next week to apply for my old-age pension and other allowances, he adds.

NRI Iqbal Singh Bhatti, president of Paris-based human rights body Aurore Dawn, said the Indian Embassy had offered support to Singh in taking up his fight to international organisations. The NGO sent one of its members along on Singhs journey back home.
uttara@tribuneindia.com

Charanjit Singh Teja

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, May 27

Leader of opposition in Punjab Assembly Sukhpal Singh Khaira accused Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh of trying to shield former minister Rana Gurjeet Singh, as the latter's mills came under fire for dumping untreated industrial waste into the drains of Buttar Sivian village.

After Sunday Tribune carried a report about how the minister's sugar mill dumped untreated industrial waters into the village drains, Khaira planned a march to the village, but was stopped by police in the adjoining Dhardeo village after some people who claimed to be members of a Kisan union, but who Khaira said were Rana's supporters, held a counter protest.

Khaira accused police of working for Rana.

Police however claimed they were trying to prevent violence.

(Read: In Deep Trouble)

Addressing a public rally at the village, Khaira said: I am here to visit the spot to show my concern with the waters of Punjab. I dont want to mess with Ranas goons, and said he would sugar mills and distilleries in several parts of the state over the next few days to assess how they treated their industrial waste.

He accused Chief Minister Amarinder Singh of shielding people like Rana, who were polluting the states waters.

I will offer the drain water to Captain Amarinder and his ministers to drink, he added.

The Sunday Tribune quoted villagers as saying Rana Sugar Mills released untreated industrial wastewater into the village drains, polluting water sources in the village.

The mill has denied the allegations.
editorial@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 27

Former judge of Punjab and Haryana High Court Justice JS Narang passed away at a private hospital in Mohali on Sunday afternoon after a brief illness.

He was 73. He is survived by his wife Raminder Narang and sons Amitjit Narang and Ripjit Narang.

Justice Narang headed the Commission of Inquiry, which CM Capt Amarinder Singh had constituted to investigate former minister Rana Gurjits involvement in the sand mining scandal.

The CM condoled the death. He said Justice Narang was an eminent legal luminary, an able administrator, a distinguished jurist and above all, a fine human being.

According to the family, the cremation will take place on Monday at 4:30 pm in the electric crematorium at Sector 25, Chandigarh.
editorial@tribune.com

Sanjeev Singh Bariana

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 27

The Punjab School Education Board results of Class X and Class XII this year reveal that despite surplus teachers posted in Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (Mohali) district, the pass percentage here was only 68.

A large number of teachers had managed to get posted here as their spouses were either posted at the state headquarters or at Mohali. There are similar examples of schools at the district headquarters having poor results compared to those in rural areas because of the same reason.

Meanwhile, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, which had a 37-per cent shortage of teachers, has shown a pass percentage of 65. The Education Department is making a list of schools with sufficient or surplus staff but poor results and is sending them a notice, a senior officer said. Fazilka district also had surplus teachers but the overall pass percentage was still only about 65.

During the evaluation of board results for Amritsar district, it was found that it had a 20-per cent shortage of teachers but the pass percentage was only 52. Gurdaspur with a 14-per cent staff shortage showed an average pass result of 52 per cent, Ferozepur with a shortage of 13 per cent had 55 per cent result and Pathankot with 13-per cent shortage had only 50 as pass percentage.

At Tarn Taran, where there was a staff shortage of more than 40 per cent, the average pass percentage was only 32.

Talking to The Tribune, a senior officer said, These schools will be handled for required changes along with all schools which have shown less than 10-per cent result in the first phase.

All schools with less than 10 pass percentage were called for a meeting with senior officers in Chandigarh on Friday. The interaction concentrated on a detailed follow-up action plan from schools along with a timeline for the expected action.
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

Chandigarh, May 27

Polling to the Shahkot Assembly bypoll, for which the three major political parties  the Congress, Akali Dal and AAP  have went all out, will take place on Monday.

The Shahkot bypoll was necessitated following the demise of Akali MLA Ajit Singh Kohar in February this year.

Ruling party Congress has fielded Hardev Singh Laddi, while Akali Dal has given ticket to Kohars son Naib Singh Kohar.

The Aam Aadmi Party has nominated Rattan Singh Kakkar Kalan for the bypoll.

As many as 1,72,676 voters will decide the fate of 12 candidates who are in the fray.

The Election Commission has deployed a total of 1,022 personnel of security forces, including six companies of the Border Security Force, in Shahkot.

All the necessary arrangements have been made to hold free and fair Shahkot bypoll, an official spokesman of the election office said today.

The voting will start at 7 am and will go on till 6 pm. Holiday has been declared for the electors of Shahkot Assembly constituency on May 28.

The counting of votes will take place on May 31.

There are total 236 polling stations in the constituency, out of which, webcasting will be held at 103 stations. The election office has identified 136 places vulnerable.

Electronic Voting Machines and Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) will be deployed at all the polling stations, while 15 per cent additional EVMs and VVPAT have been kept as reserve if some malfunctioning is developed during polling, official said.

With the ruling party Congress eyeing to maintain winning momentum on the development agenda, opposition party Akali Dal is striving to retain its pocket borough from where Ajit Singh Kohar had remained five-time MLA.

The main opposition party Aam Aadmi Party which faced humiliating defeat during Gurdaspur Lok Sabha bypoll and civic polls is desperately looking for the victory.

Congress candidate Laddi came under severe attack with opposition parties accusing him of being involved in illegal sand mining.

The party had to even face embarrassment when an FIR was lodged by the then Mehatpur SHO against Laddi in illegal mining case, though Congress accused SHO of acting at the behest of the SAD and AAP.

However, the SHO was replaced by the Election Commission over complaints of bias and violation of the code of conduct in filing of an FIR against Hardev Singh Laddi.

With SAD chief Sukhbir Badal taking the charge of the poll campaign for Akali candidate, the Opposition party managed to bring three leaders of AAP and one of Congress into its party fold.

AAP leaders C D Singh Kamboj, H S Walia and Hans Raj Rana shifted to Akali Dal while senior Congress leader and former Home Minister Brij Bhupinder Singh Lalli joined Akali Dal.

During campaigning, Akali kept its attack on the ruling Congress on the issues like illegal sand mining, molasses leakage incident, alleged removal of Sikh history from Class 12 and reneging on polls promises.

The Congress, on the other hand, charged the previous Akali-BJP regime with ruining the state and total lack of development in the Shahkot Assembly constituency which was held by Akali MLA.

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh even lashed out at the Akalis for misleading people on farm debt waiver issue and leaving the state in fiscal crisis. PTI
editorial@tribune.com

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 27

The Congress governments performance in the last 14 months will be put to test as Shahkot goes to the polls on Monday.

The electors will also take a crucial decision as to whether the Congress can complete its two-thirds majority by getting 78th seat in the 117-member Assembly.

While Congress candidate Hardev Singh Laddi Sherowalia is banking on the tendency of the people to go with the government for more development in their area, the Akali Dal is hopeful to retain the seat in its 21-year-old bastion.

The bypoll was necessitated due to the demise of five-time Akali MLA Ajit Singh Kohar in February. His son Naib Singh Kohar is the party candidate this time.

Cong had a bad start

The Congress started its campaign on a bad note following the registration of an FIR against Laddi for illegal mining just a day after the announcement of his candidature. The party had to face a lot of trouble in initial days. Five local leaders from the constituency, who were also ticket seekers, had labelled Laddi as a controversial candidate and constantly demanded his replacement.

Former minister Rana Gurjit Singh stood by his side and turned out to be his poll strategist along with Capt Sandeep Sandhu, CM Capt Amarinder Singhs OSD, who resigned from his post to be here. The election is also the test of abilities of Rana and Laddi, who got 13 ministers, former ministers and most MLAs to campaign door to door. They successfully made many sarpanches switch over to the Congress. The CM was here for two days, first for the nomination and then for a roadshow on Saturday. PPCC chief Sunil Jakhar and Local Bodies Minister Navjot Sidhu also gave a boost to the Congress campaign.

SAD put up a good fight

The Akali Dal does not want its share of seats in the Vidhan Sabha come down from 15 to 14. It thus put up a strong fight. Party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal and former minister Bikram Majithia camped here for eight days. Managing to get prominent Aam Aadmi Party leaders by their side, they made the contest with the ruling party go neck-and-neck. Former minister Daljit Singh Cheema and Sukhbirs media adviser Jangveer Singh handled the campaign by daily issuing statements against Congress ministers, levelling allegations against Laddi and lodging complaints with the Election Commission of India.

AAP lacked zeal

Campaigning by the Aam Aadmi Party, which had secured 41,010 votes in the last years Assembly polls, remained lacklustre. Their NRI candidate Rattan Singh Kakkar Kalan was mostly seen campaigning on his own. The party saw its 2017 candidate switching over to the Akali Dal. Party leaders, including Leader of Opposition Sukhpal Khaira, showed up primarily during nomination and a roadshow. Party incharge Manish Sisodia failed to turn up even once, although MP Bhagwant Mann made an appearance on the last day.

Main issues

Illegal mining remains the main issue followed by water pollution, failed muskmelon crop, no college, bad roads, drug and illicit liquor.

Previous result

Ajit Singh Kohar (SAD): 46,913 votes

Hardev Singh Laddi (Cong): 42,008 votes

Amarijit Singh Thind (AAP): 41,010

Factfile

No. of voters: 1.72 lakh

Male: 88,885

Female: 83,194

Candidates in fray: 12

Polling staff strength: 2,500

Booths: 236

Stations: 189

Vulnerable polling

booths: 96

Polling booths for

webcasting: 103

Booths with

micro-observers: 64

Security staff strength: 2,000

Check posts: 25

Videographers

deployed: 30
By Ritah Kemigisa.

The chairman Uganda Human Rights commission Meddy Kaggwa has rubbished reports that Muslims are being witch hunted in the country.

His remark come at a time Muslims in the country feel they are being witch hunted for the ongoing insecurity ion the country with the latest being the raid on USAFI market in Kisenyi.

According to Kaggwa, the problem is that police is not speeding up the investigations and prosecution of the arrested Muslims for various crimes.

He adds that for those in court, justice has been delayed.

He is now calling upon all Ugandans irrespective of their religions to do things that are proper in the society.
pardeepdhull@gmail.com

San Francisco, May 27

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might be willing to swap a life in politics to lead the worlds largest social-networking company, a media report said.

On being asked by Attorney General Maura Healey, a democrat from Massachusetts, which company she would want to be the CEO of, Clinton didnt pause before quickly answering Facebook, CNET reported on Friday.

Its the biggest news platform in the world. Most people in our country get their newstrue or not from Facebook, Clinton was quoted as saying.

The former US presidential candidate was at Harvard on Friday receiving the Radcliffe Medal, which honours people who have had a transformative impact on society.

Facebook is working to win back its users trust following a series of recent controversies, including the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which data from as many as 87 million Facebook users was improperly shared with the political consultancy.

In a bid to prevent foreign interference into elections, Facebook has also begun labelling all political and issue ads in the USincluding a Paid for by disclosure from the advertiser at the top of the advertisement.

Advertisers wanting to run ads with political content in the US will also need to verify their identity and location.  IANS
shalender@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, May 27

Several weeks have passed since the last Janta Durbar was held at the BJP office here. With ministers showing a lack of interest in listening to the woes of the general public, the public too seem to have realised that it is futile to wait for them at the office. Hence the people too have started keeping off.

While BJP leaders say the ministers are preoccupied with other important activities, the Opposition Congress is raising questions at the commitment of the BJP government.

Janta Durbars were conceputalised by the BJP to ensure that the complaints of the party workers and the general public were heard at the state BJP office but for the last several weeks not even a single Janta Durbar has been held. Even in the Vidhan Sabha the ministers seem to be skipping the meetings.

Chief Minister TS Rawat had directed his Cabinet colleagues to fix days for hearing the complaints of the general public even at the Vidhan Sabha.

Actually, the disinterest started after the suicide attempt by Transporter Prakash Pandey at the BJP office during the Janta Durbar held by Uttarakhand Minister for Agriculture and Horticulture Subodh Uniyal.

On being asked why the ministers were keeping away from the Janta Durbars, Uttarakhand BJP chief Ajay Bhatt said, Most of the ministers are busy with campaigning in Tharali. As soon as we are done with the elections, these would take place as scheduled, said Bhatt.

The opposition Congress had termed the whole exercise as a waste of time and a mere publicity stunt. Now with these not being held altogether the party has sharpened its attack. As the ministers are busy in some other activities they do not have time for attending to the problems of the people, said Indira Hridayesh Leader of the Opposition.
shalender@tribune.com

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, May 27

The Tharali (SC) Assembly constituency in Chamoli district will go to bypoll on Monday when 1,02,569 voters will decide the fate of five candidate. In all five candidates are in the fray with the main contest likely to between the Congress and the BJP.

The BJP has fielded Munni Devi Shah and the Congress has named Dr Jeet Ram as its party candidate. While Kunwar Ram will be fighting the elections on the party ticket of the CPM, Kasbi Lal Shah on the UKD party ticket and Beeri Ram as an independent.

The Tharali Assembly seat fell vacant after the demise of Magan Lal Shah, who won the seat in 2017 on the BJP ticket. The counting of votes will take place on May 30.

The Election Commission has made elaborate arrangements for the bypoll. Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines would be in use for the first time in all the polling booths. So also the Electronic Transmission of Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) that too would be extensively used for the first time in the state for the service voters.

In the Assembly elections of 2017, these ballots were used on experimental basis in Udham Singh Nagar and Haridwar city Assembly constituencies.

The Election commission has sent 3,277 electronically transmissible postal ballot to service voters for Tharali Assembly by-elections, said Soujanya, Chief Electoral Officer.

In all there are 178 polling stations and the Tharali Assembly constituency has been divided into five zones and 39 sectors. A total of 24 polling stations are in remote area of Tharali. According the chief electoral office, Gwaldam has the maximum number of electors at 1,116 and Kera has minimum number of electors at 144. Kanol is situated at an altitude of 8,456 feet. There are a total of 99,292 general voters and 3,277 service voters.

The security has been beefed up in the area ahead of the election.

The candidates in fray

The BJP is banking on the sympathy factor that they feel would benefit Munni Devi, who is the widow of Magan Lak Shah. Chief Minister had held several election meetings and rallies along with his Cabinet colleagues to shore up support for Munni Devi

For the first time all the factions within the Congress came together to canvas support for Dr Jeet Ram

Kunwar Ram will be fighting on the party ticket of the CPM

Kasbi Lal Shah is the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (UKD) candidate

Beeri Ram is fighting as an independent

Kera has least voters
uttara@tribuneindia.com

New Delhi, May 27

India has concluded price negotiations with Russia for a nearly Rs 40,000 crore deal to procure S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems for the Indian Air Force, officials said.

"The negotiations for the missile deal have been concluded. The financial component has been finalised," a top official involved in the negotiations for the deal with Russia told PTI.

The official said both Russia and India are likely to announce the deal before an annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in October.

Two other officials said both sides are now looking at ways to insulate the deal from the sanctions announced by the US against Russia under its Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA)a law that came into effect in January, and seeks to punish countries and entities engaged in transactions with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

The issue is understood to have figured during Modi's informal talks with Putin in Sochi last week.

There has been mounting concerns in India over the US sanctions against Russian defence majors including Rosoboronexport as billions of dollars of military purchases may be impacted because of the punitive measure.

The US had announced sanctions against Russia under the stringent law for its alleged meddling in the American presidential election in 2016.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis last month appealed to the Congress to urgently provide India the national security waiver, saying imposing sanctions under CAATSA for the S-400 air defence missile deal would only hit the US.

India wants to procure the long-range missile systems to tighten its air defence mechanism, particularly along the nearly 4,000-km-long Sino-India border.

In 2016, India and Russia had signed an agreement on the 'Triumf' interceptor-based missile system which can destroy incoming hostile aircraft, missiles and even drones at ranges of up to 400 km. S-400 is known as Russia's most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system.

China was the first foreign buyer to seal a government-to-government deal with Russia in 2014 to procure the lethal missile system and Moscow has already started delivery of unknown number of the S-400 missile systems to Beijing.

The S-400 is an upgraded version of the S-300 systems. The missile system, manufactured by Almaz-Antey, has been in service in Russia since 2007. PTI


vermaajay1968@gmail.com

Seoul, May 27

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said today North Korean leader Kim Jong Un committed in their surprise meeting to sitting down with President Donald Trump and to a complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

The Korean leaders second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles, but their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appears to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the worlds most heavily armed border.

At the White House, Trump said negotiations over a potential June 12 summit with Kim that he had earlier canceled were going along very well. Trump told reporters that they are still considering Singapore as the venue for their talks. He said there is a lot of good will, and that denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula would be a great thing.

The Koreas talks, which Moon said Kim requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back-and-forth. They allowed Moon to push for a US-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year. Kim may see the sit-down with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters on Sunday that Kim again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, and that he told the South Korean leader hes willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work towards peace for the sake of the successful North Korea-US summit.

Kim, in a telling line from a dispatch issued by the Norths state-run news service on Sunday, expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-US summit talks. During Saturdays inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-US relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent peace.

They agreed to have their officials meet again June 1. Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Saturdays Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting. Despite repeated references to denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees.  AP

The whirlwind diplomacy
vermaajay1968@gmail.com

Peshawar, May 27

Several people have been injured in Pakistan in clashes between police and protesters during a demonstration against the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, media reports said today.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the disputed region through the Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018 which was passed on May 21.

The order is seen as Islamabads efforts towards incorporating the disputed region as its fifth province.

Police fired tear gas shells and resorted to aerial firing in Gilgit yesterday to stop protesters approaching towards Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly for a scheduled sit-in against the newly introduced order, The Express Tribune reported.

Politicians, cutting across party lines, held protest rallies across Gilgit-Baltistan demanding constitutional rights for the region. The Gilgit-Baltistan government has promulgated the Gilgit-Baltistan Order-2018, which replaced the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order of 2009.

However, the new order has failed to impress local politicians who announced region-wide protests. We will continue our sit-in outside the assembly till this package is revoked and we are given constitutional rights, said Awami Action Committee Chairman Sultan Raees.

Civil rights groups in Pakistan have also criticised the order. Pakistan has bifurcated occupied Kashmir into two administrative parts - Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Gilgit-Baltistan was treated as a separate geographical entity by Pakistan until now.

Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh are the four provinces of Pakistan. A Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Abbasi on Tuesday, was informed that Gilgit-Baltistan Council will be retained as advisory body towards the functions of the Federal Government.

Chinas controversial $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) passes through the disputed region. It is believed that Chinas concerns about the unsettled status of Gilgit-Baltistan prompted Pakistan to change its status.

Dawn reported that under the new order, all powers exercised by the Gilgit Baltistan council, including passing legislation regarding mineral, hydropower and tourism sectors, have been shifted to the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly.  PTI
The chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has told visiting South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon that the United Nations body will be ready to verify North Korea's denuclearization if relevant countries reach an agreement.

IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano made the remarks Friday during his meeting with Lee, who arrived in Vienna the previous day for a three-day official visit to Austria.

Lee also met with Lassina Zerbo, executive secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO), in the Austrian capital on the same day.

The chiefs of the IAEA and the CTBTO expressed support for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and called for a "political agreement" on the issue.

Amano told Lee that his agency was closely monitoring North Korea's nuclear program situation through satellite photos, while making preparations for verification work in the North.

The IAEA chief ruled out intervening in international politics but vowed not to stand idle as far as the denuclearization of North Korea is concerned.

The agency set up a separate team on North Korea within its secretariat in August last year.

In response, Lee said: "North Korea's leader may also have an understanding of the verification process as the Panmunjom Declaration calls for a complete denuclearization. The question is how quickly and concretely the concerned parties can reach an agreement."

The prime minister said the recent confusion over the planned North Korea-U.S. summit is regrettable, but he is not pessimistic about the long-term outlook.

In a separate meeting with the CTBTO's chief, Lee appreciated the U.N. organization's efforts to monitor nuclear tests worldwide and maintain lasting peace in the world.

Zerbo said he was impressed by the inter-Korean agreement produced from the April 27 summit between leaders of South and North Korea.

Zerbo stressed the importance of a swift political agreement by the concerned nations on the complete denuclearization of North Korea, while Lee replied North Korea may have a full understanding of the issue. (Yonhap)
By David Tizzard





One day, a man fell down in the snow. He lay there cold and afraid. He cried out: "Help me up. Please, someone help me up!" A Buddhist monk passed by, heard the poor man's cries, and lay down in the snow next to him. The injured man got up and walked away.



The most prominent form of Buddhism on the Korean Peninsula is Mahayana (Great Vehicle), though over time, like much else here, it has transformed into its own unique form of Korean Buddhism  K-Buddhism, perhaps, for those involved in internet debates concerning that particular prefix. Defined by its use of bodhisattvas, Sangha and resolution in facing and overcoming obstacles, it has suffused itself onto the Korean character.



It is also found in China, Japan, Tibet and parts of Mongolia. It stands separate from the other main strand of Buddhism, Theravada (Small Vehicle), which sees its path originating in India and then taking it through Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Laos and Cambodia. A simple story illustrates where these two religious paths diverge.



A group of people walk through the desert. After some time, they come across a ladder leaning against a wall. Eventually, the Theravadan decides to ascend the ladder and see what is on the other side. On reaching the top, he sees Nirvana. Paradise. Thinking nothing of the people that he has left behind in the desert, the Teravandan leaps over the wall and into the heavenly land that he has found. Liberation from the shackles of life has been achieved. Theravada is the Small Vehicle of Buddhism because the journey to paradise is taken by one person.



The Mahayanan then climbs the ladder. On reaching the top, he too sees the idyll beyond. However, as he belongs to the Great Vehicle, he descends back down the ladder to tell the people below of what he has discovered. He then encourages them to journey with him and become part of the congregation that he leads. This becomes his duty and the role of the Bodhisattva is elevated.



The Buddhism in Korea is thus more based on the collective  it is not so much about sitting in the hills, smoking a pipe and letting your beard run white as you try to decipher the various k?ans presented to you. Instead, it encourages collective action: Study, singing, eating.



Importantly, it encourages people to show kindness and grace to all. It does not forbid its adherents from attending any other types of religious services nor does it demand that the people in its temples refrain from singing in a church or a mosque. It has no problem with people bowing to their ancestors during traditions such as jesa or charye. There are indeed few things that Buddhists here actually take umbrage with.



National holidays are cherished events here as they allow people some respite from the daily grind, the office and the school desk. It is important, however, that we not forget where they come from. Park Chung-hee ruled South Korea from 1962 to 1979 and during that time he frequently acted in ways that were sympathetic to Buddhism as well as financially supportive.



Shortly after becoming president he enacted the Management of Buddhist Property Law. Thirteen years later, in 1975, he declared Buddha's birthday a national holiday for the people of the nation. All those enjoying themselves in the parks, department stores and coastal resorts on the public holiday last Tuesday would no doubt have thought little of these actions taken by that man 43 years ago.



Choi Kyu-hah's term as Korean president was short-lived as he was quickly ousted in a coup by another military figure, Chun Doo-hwan. Unlike his companion Park, Chun was a devout Christian and thus had a great distrust of Buddhist practices and the various organizations in the country. Support that had been there previously soon began fading and that decline has continued over the decades.



Today, Buddhism is seen by many as the chance to embark on a revitalizing temple stay in the mountains, or perhaps something to spark a conversation about the origins of the swastika, or a trip with a loved one to the Cheonggyecheon to see the lantern and lotus displays.



What should not be forgotten, however, is just how embracing, pragmatic and utilitarian Buddhism is. It can still play a role for this country and its inhabitants. Not through proselytization or late-night television shows, but, instead, by reminding people that it's possible, nay necessary, to learn to get along with each other despite the various differences that may arise. After all, should they be very closely examined, the variances and imbalances will likely soon reveal themselves to be nothing of the sort.



As the political sphere becomes ever more divided by debates on how to respond to North Korea, as social chasms widen between men and women in the light of a whole host of movements, and as the generations of families become more and more alienated from each other thanks to the exponential growth of technology, there needs to be something to provide a little unity.



Let me close with one last example from the Buddhist tradition on how such seemingly impossibilities can be achieved. Two men were observing a flag fluttering in the wind on a faraway tower. The first man declared, "It is the flag that moves." The second man immediately countered him, "No, it is the wind that moves." The two argued back and forth, each championing their own position. A passing monk heard the commotion and when asked for his own opinion, he replied: "It is neither the flag nor the wind. It is the mind that moves."





David Tizzard (datizzard@swu.ac.kr) is an assistant professor at Seoul Women's University and host of TBS eFM's cultural radio show "A Little of a Lot." The show can be heard every Sunday from 4 p.m.-6 p.m. on 101.3 FM or downloaded via online platforms such as iTunes and Podbang.?


The domain turkeytelegraph.com may be for sale. Please click here to inquire
Three Excelsior firefighters suffered heat exhaustion and one was hospitalized while battling a three-alarm house fire on Saturday.

The fire destroyed the home on the 6100 block of Cathcart Drive in Shorewood, about 24 miles southeast of Minneapolis.

Officials said the third alarm was called because of the extreme heat.

The blaze was called in around 1 p.m. According to the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, crews were still on the scene at 4 p.m.

The family and two pets escaped uninjured, according to deputies.

Fire officials believe the blaze started in the garage and spread to the house.
Start your day with Sunrise, a roundup of B.C. news and opinions delivered straight to your inbox

Start your day with Sunrise, delivered straight to your inbox

Sign up now>
How and when to talk to your kids about sex, (Photo: Pexels)

SINGAPORE: I recently became a father. Friends have warned me and my wife of how quickly they grow but the reality only hit us after L nearly doubled her birth weight in just six weeks. She had outgrown her diapers and her newborn clothes, and is now in danger of spilling out of her co-sleeper.

I can't help but think: Soon well be camping out under the stars. Then shell be going to school. She'll have her first crush. And we'll have to have that sex talk dreaded by parents and children alike, which, as I found out at the recent SPARK (Sexual Pleasure And Relationship Konversations) Fest 2018, may actually take place earlier than expected.

SAYING IT AS IT IS

According to Dutch sexologist and youth sex education expert Dr Sanderijn Van Der Doef, positive sexuality education should start when the child is able to respond, or about three years old.

Dr Sanderijn Van Der Doef on the do's and don'ts when talking about sex with your children at the recent SPARK Fest sexual wellness festival. (Photo: SPARK Fest)

Speaking on Having The Talk: Dos And Donts When Talking About Sex With Your Childrenat Asias first sexual wellness festival, Dr Van Der Doef said her own children got the talk when a condom advertisement aired on television, she recounted.

I have twins who were about three at the time and my older boy was five years old. They asked what was a condom and I told them its what adults used to prevent pregnancies. Thats it.

The three-year-olds went back to what they were doing. The five-year-old had follow-up questions such as how do you use it, do you put it on your fingers, and such. So I explained to him it is a bag that catches the seed from daddy and prevents pregnancies. At that age, thats about all they can process. I tell it like it is.

"The next day, his daddy told him how the engine on a car works. It is just information to him.

Dr Van Der Doef also shared that the Netherlands today has the lowest percentage of teenage pregnancies in Europe, according to the Sex Under 25 report by Rutgers, an international agency on sexual and reproductive health and rights and SOA AIDS Nederland, an intervention specialist for STDs. She attributed this feat to an enlightened sexuality education programme, which begins from primary school.

"DIRTY PARTS"

As a child of the 70s in Singapore, my own sex education journey started when we sneaked into drive-in theatre for free movies  and the free shows in the cars.

When I came of age in the 80s, genitals were said to be dirty.

(Photo: Pexels)

Only one teacher in my entire school life said our genitals are only dirty if we don't wash them. But even he stopped short of giving us the talk. I learned about sex through a friend whose open-minded parents told him and somehow didnt scar him for life.

Dr Van Der Doef was quick to make the distinction between sex education and sexuality education, the former being about sexual intercourse and the latter about gender, body consciousness, permissiveness and cultural difference.

She assured me that children will not ask more than what they can understand. Use the right names  its okay to say vagina and penis. Dont use euphemisms, she said, and dont bring the birds and the bees into it.

When they can handle more, tell them sexuality is private and have conversations about their bodies: What feels right and what doesnt.

And dont say sex is dirty, she cautioned.

THE TALK DOESN'T NEED TO BE AWKWARD

Children in early education, between five and 10 years old, should be taught what privacy and nudity means and how to respect others in relationships, advised Dr Van Der Doef, who is a member of the WHO European expert group that developed the Standards for Sexuality Education in Europe.

Be prepared to talk about the changes to their bodies, she said, like the appearance of pubic hair and breasts and menstruation for girls, before it happens.

(Photo: Pixabay)

Tweens up to 18  the most difficult age, I am assuming, for fathers of daughters  should know about safe sex and contraception, she said. Have conversations about positive relationships. Talk about how to start, maintain and end a healthy relationship, including communicating, being assertive, knowing their vulnerability, asking for help and making choices. They should also know the difference between lust and love.

Seeing the colour drain from my face, Dr Van Der Doef quickly assured me: Positive sexuality education is like teaching your child to swim or ride a bike. Youre ecstatic when they get it but you want to equip them with all the right safety gear and tools along the way.

Dont make the talk awkward, advised Dr Van Der Doef.

Definitely dont make a date at a fancy restaurant and sit opposite your child, like my mother did with me," she said. "Do something else: Cook with them, take them to the park, sit next to them, then have the talk."

You should also check what your child already knows. Ask how much he or she knows, then add on to it. Hed be more interested if youre not just repeating something he already knows.

How parents should talk about sex with their children Spark Fest Asia Pixabay (Photo: Pixabay) As fast as L is growing, I know I still have a couple of years before I prep for the talk. But, as long as we start the conversations early, well never be caught off-guard, assured Dr Van Der Doef.

Now that Im prepped for the sex talk, Ill be sure to include my better half in the conversation. L, we promise not to make this an embarrassing period in your life.

Well reserve that for birthdays and school proms.
Alan Bean (R), pictured in November 1969 with his fellow US astronauts of Apollo 12, Charles "Pete" Conrad, Jr (L), commander, and Richard F.Gordon, command module pilot (C), in front of their Saturn V space vehicle. (Photo: AFP)

The moonwalker who went on to become a painter died on Saturday (May 26) in Houston after suddenly falling ill weeks before, the statement said.

He was among the elite group NASA chose for its third group of astronauts in 1963, having served as a test pilot in the US Navy.

He twice ventured into space, originally in 1969 on the Apollo 12 moon landing mission, and later as commander of the second crew to fly to the first US space station Skylab in 1973.

His second foray outside of Earth's atmosphere saw Bean log a record-breaking 59-day, 24.4 million-mile flight (39.3 million kilometres).

He retired from NASA in 1981 to embark on a third career as an artist, creating Apollo-themed paintings textured with lunar boot prints or using acrylics infused with small bits of his mission patches sprinkled with moon dust.

Fellow astronaut Harrison Schmitt called Bean "one of the great renaissance men of his generation - engineer, fighter pilot, astronaut and artist."

Born March 15, 1932 in Wheeler, Texas the future moonwalker earned a degree in aeronautical engineering from the University of Texas in 1955.

He is survived by his wife, sister and two children from a prior marriage.

Walt Cunningham, who flew on Apollo 7 and called Bean his best friend of 55 years, said "we are accustomed to losing friends in our business but this is a tough one."

"Alan and I never missed a month where we did not have a cheeseburger."

In 1994 Bean told The New York Times the otherworldly perspectives he got in space inspired him to devote the latter half of his life to art, to the surprise of many of his colleagues.

"Every artist has the Earth or their imaginations to inspire their paintings," he said.

"I've got the Earth and my imagination, and I'm the first to have the moon, too."
Peruvian genetics specialist Ricardo Fujita works at his lab in the San Martin de Porres University in Lima. (Photo: AFP/Cris Bouroncle)

From their ancient capital Cusco, the Incas controlled a vast empire called Tahuantinsuyo, which extended from the west of present-day Argentina to the south of Colombia.

They ruled for more than two hundred years before being conquered by the invading Spanish in the 16th century.

The empire included the mountain-top citadel of Machu Picchu in modern-day Peru - now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a major tourist attraction.

After becoming fascinated by the Inca culture, their organizational skills and their mastery of engineering, researchers Ricardo Fujita and Jose Sandoval of Lima's University of San Martin de Porresit became interested in the genetic profile of their descendants.

They said the aim of the study, the first of its kind, was to reveal whether there was a unique Inca patriarch.

"It's like a paternity test, not between father and son but among peoples," Fujita told AFP.

The scientists wanted to verify two common legends about the origin of the Incas.

One attributes them to a couple from around Lake Titicaca, in Peru's Puno region. The other identifies the first Incas as the Ayar brothers from the Pacaritambo mountain in the Cusco region.

DNA samples were taken from inhabitants of both places.

"After three years of tracking the genetic fingerprints of the descendants, we confirm that the two legends explaining the origin of the Inca civilization could be related," said Fujita.

GENETIC SIMILARITIES

"They were compared with our genealogical base of more than 3,000 people to reconstruct the genealogical tree of all individuals," said Fujita.

"We finally reduced this base to almost 200 people sharing genetic similarities close to the Inca nobility."

The study released some preliminary results in April, in the review Molecular Genetics and Genomics.

"The conclusion we came to is that the Tahuantinsuyo nobility is descended from two lines, one in the region of Lake Titicaca, the other around the mountain of Pacaritambo in Cusco. That confirms the legends," said Sandoval.

But it also confirms that the two legends were linked.

"Probably the first migration came from the Puno region and was established in Pacaritambo for a few decades before heading to Cusco and founding Tahuantinsuyo," he said.

But the work of the researchers does not stop there. Now they want to go further back in time.

For that, they have to test the DNA of ancient relics, such as mummies, "to form the most complete picture of the origin of the most important pre-Hispanic civilization," said Fujita.

The task looks complicated because the Spanish Conquistadores, who arrived 1532, destroyed Inca mummies that families venerated, as they sought to convert people to Christianity.

The researchers are now looking for where the Incas' most direct descendants are buried in order to trace their history.

The DNA analysis would add to archeological and anthropological research to understand the exact origin of the people.

"In this case, we use ... genetics, the transmission of molecular features across the generations," said Fujita.
Photo: Amazon Prime Video

Picnic at Hanging Rock is the sapphic, David Lynch-influenced mystery-thriller that you didnt know you needed.

Based on Joan Lindsays 1967 novel about a group of students who disappeared 118 years ago during a field trip to Hanging Rock in Victoria, this six-part miniseries is at once earnest and knowing. The filmmaking and performances are just arch enough to be taken as camp, but every role has been written, cast, and performed with such empathy and imagination that whenever a character is humiliated, rebuffed, or traumatized, you may feel slightly ashamed at yourself for having laughed at their absurdities a few scenes earlier. Characters look straight into the camera sometimes, as if to say, I know exactly what I just did, and dont you dare judge me for it. The series control over tone is impressive. One wrong move and it mightve turned into a very bad Ryan Murphy series, something along the lines of Australian Horror Story. Instead it keeps gliding along, delving deeper into menace by the hour.

Natalie Dormer stars as Mrs. Hester Appleyard, headmistress of the self-named Appleyard College for Young Ladies, set, as Lindsays novel tells us, in one of those elaborate houses that sprang up all over Australia like exotic fungi following the finding of gold. Hester buys the place outright. Where does her money come from? Well find out eventually, dear viewer. Which of the girls will disappear? Will it be Miranda (Lily Sullivan), a dark-haired, faintly rebellious girl who has issues with authority and loves to go barefoot? Irma Leopold (Samara Weaving), a crystalline blonde who epitomizes the British Empires ideals of physical perfection and absolutely knows it? Will it be the schools lone student of indigenous blood, Marion Quade (Madeleine Madden); the precocious 14-year old Sara Weybourne (Inez Curro); or Edith Horton (Ruby Rees), who only recently got her period and thought there was something wrong with her?

This is a populous series, thick with incidents, twists, and cliffhangers, but the pace is slower and more meditative than your usual potboiler. The main characters psychologies and motivations are delineated so clearly that whenever they do something that seems out of character, it only takes a moment to realize that it does, in fact, make sense, given what their issues are. Writers Beatrix Christian and Alice Addison have gone out of their way to turn this story, which was so memorably adapted to film by Peter Weir in 1975, into a distinctive work that has its own personality even as it genuflects to its primary inspirations. Besides Lynch, the series owes quite a bit to Jane Campion, who shares Lynchs affinity for ominous forests that can seem either enchanted or cursed, and Sofia Coppola, who counts the original Picnic at Hanging Rock, with its gauzy photography and European art cinema accents, as a major influence.

Its hard to understate the excellence of the Game of Thrones veteran Dormer. Every inch the movie star antihero, she immediately draws the audience into rooting for Hester, and she never quite relinquishes her grip on those sympathies even when the character proves herself to be the exact opposite of what a woke 21st-century viewer would want from a heroine. (The characters behave true to period even when the series highlights just how oppressive this particular time and place was for women; the difference in privilege between the wealthy white girls and the working class men and indigenous Australians is noted as well.) Hester is positioned as an Edwardian-era version of a hard-boiled dame from the very start, and even as we learn more about her  as we realize that shes running away from trauma and carrying a terrible psychic weight  the core of charismatic toughness never goes away.

Its a sensory experience first and foremost, forever trying to depict events in the most clever, sensuous, or surprising way possible, even when a simpler approach wouldve gotten the narrative point across. Synthesizer music shimmers and drones on the soundtrack, complementing the rock-and-roll Alice in Wonderland accents of Edie Kurzers costumes. Directors Amanda Brotchie, Larysa Kondracki, and Michael Rymer (the latter two are veterans of violent, genre-driven TV, including American Horror Story and The Walking Dead) never miss an opportunity to adopt an exaggerated or skewed perspective. As overseen by cinematographer Garry Phillips, the camera tilts to convey disorientation and peers through windows and doors, from the far sides of rooms, and from high overhead. Many of the shots are rigidly symmetrical, arranging the young women in rows so that they look like frilly-costumed figurines in a diorama, and there are wordless slow-motion sequences that draw out moments of wonder, sexual attraction, anxiety, and terror. When two men on horseback pass the girls as they head out for Hanging Rock in a carriage, the moment is depicted extreme slow motion, putting you inside the heads of young women who have little experience navigating a world of adult men but are biologically hardwired to see them as potential threats. (They arent wrong; the horsemen become two of the suspects.) In the very first scene  a long take of several minutes duration that follows Hester around the enormous country house that shes about to buy and turn into a school  the lush landscape behind her is so obviously green-screened that the effect is reminiscent of one of those moments in an old film where characters stand in front of a rear-projection matte painting of a forest, embracing each other and talking about how lovely it is. Its a decadent yet oddly heartfelt feast for the senses, and one of the best surprises of the year.
President Donald Trump welcomed Josh Holt, an American who had been held as a prisoner in Venezuela since the summer of 2016, back to the US on Saturday night.

"You've gone through a lot, more than most people could endure," the President said to Holt as the two were seated side-by-side in the Oval Office.

"I'm just overwhelmed with gratitude for you guys for everything that you've done," Holt said, adding that it had been a "very, very difficult two years."

Holt, a Utah native, arrived at the White House with his wife, Thamy, who had also been imprisoned, shortly after flying back from Venezuela. After the flight landed, Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, who said earlier in the day that his office helped secure Holt's release, posted a video to Twitter showing Holt reuniting with his family.

In his remarks from the White House, Trump thanked Hatch along with Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, Utah Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. Mia Love of Utah. The President also took the opportunity to highlight the release of other Americans held prisoner abroad, including the recent release of three Americans who had been detained by North Korea.

"You were a tough one, I have to tell you, that was a tough situation," the President said to Holt, adding that he is "very proud" of the administration's overall track record.

Trump also said that his administration is "in the midst of some very big negotiations" in an effort to secure the release of other individuals. "In most cases, they're Americans, but we can try and help other countries, too, where there's injustice," the President said.

Holt joked that the time he spent in Venezuela was "not really the great vacation that I was looking for," and said that he was "so grateful," describing himself as "a normal person."

"You've been very brave," Trump said to Holt. "You've been incredibly brave."

Trump ignored a question on if Venezuelan President Nicol-s Maduro had gotten anything in exchange for the release of Josh Holt. Holt's mother told CNN he had not.

Earlier, NSC officials told CNN's Boris Sanchez that the US "offered nothing" to Venezuelan leadership in exchange for the release of Holt.

Getting the Holts back to the US

The President announced on Saturday morning that Holt had been released from prison in Venezuela and was expected to land in D.C. that evening. The U.S. "offered nothing" to Venezuelan leadership in exchange for the release of Holt, two White House National Security Council officials told CNN.

Holt traveled to Venezuela in June 2016 to marry Venezuelan Thamara Cale-o, according to news reports. He was arrested shortly afterward and accused by the Venezuelan government of stockpiling weapons and attempting to destabilize the government, according to The Washington Post. Holt was held for nearly two years without standing trial.

Holt and his wife were freed overnight and released to the US Embassy in Caracas, according to Foro Penal, a human rights organization of lawyers and others who assist political prisoners in Venezuela. The couple was joined by Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee as they flew back to the US on Saturday afternoon.

The U.S. "offered nothing" to Venezuelan leadership in exchange for the release of Holt, two White House National Security Council officials told CNN.

"We're grateful to all who participated in this miracle," Holt's family said in a statement.

"Over the last two years I've worked with two Presidential administrations, countless diplomatic contacts, ambassadors from all over the world, a network of contacts in Venezuela, and President Maduro himself, and I could not be more honored to be able to reunite Josh with his sweet, long-suffering family in Riverton," Hatch said in a statement earlier on Saturday.

"I want to thank (Senate Foreign Relations Committee) Chairman Bob Corker for his pivotal efforts, and that of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for their help in this effort. I want to particularly thank Caleb McCarry, whose expertise and effort in Venezuela on my behalf has been instrumental in bringing Josh home," he said, referring to an aide of Corker's.

"I am pleased to join Senator Hatch and President Trump in announcing the release of Josh and Thamy Holt," Corker said in a statement. "Senator Hatch has worked tirelessly on the Holt family's behalf, and I was honored to play a small role in bringing Josh and his wife home to the United States. I also would like to thank Secretary (of State Mike) Pompeo and his team at the State Department for all that they have done."

Other members of Congress expressed their elation over Holt's release. Love tweeted, "After nearly 2 years, Josh Holt is finally coming home! Thanks to @realdonaldtrump and others who I've had the pleasure to work with to secure Josh's freedom. #justiceforjosh #utpol."

Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, praised Hatch for working "tirelessly to bring this innocent young man & his bride home."

"Josh & Thamy Holt had nothing to do with internal politics in #Venezuela," Rubio tweeted.

Holt's release comes more than a week after he posted videos to Facebook during a prison riot, pleading for help from Americans and the US government. In one video he said, "I've been begging my government for two years. They say they're doing things, but I'm still here."
University of Alabama in Huntsville researchers are looking in to the health effects of medications used to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD.

According to the most recent stats from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Alabama ranks in the top five in the U.S. for the number of ADHD meds doctors prescribe to kids with the disorder.

The research being done on campus is the first time people are gathering data specifically to find out if using ADHD drugs lead to having brittle bones.

Dr. Gordon Macgregor and Dr. Shannon Mathis are Professors at UAH.

They're doing the study there, because of how many kids on campus take ADHD meds.

"We expect a lot of our college aged students, maybe 25%, to be on this drug. That's the numbers that are published," said Dr. Macgregor.

The number of kids taking the drug goes up at certain times of the year.

"Research has been done that during an exam that up to 50% of the college aged students have taken this drug," said Dr. Macgregor.

They're specifically looking at the impact of long term use of amphetamines, like Adderall and Ritalin, that have been used for six months or longer.

"The original observations came from these illegal drug users. The methamphetamine users that they have really bad teeth and their teeth fall out. Teeth is a bone," said Dr. Macgregor.

The researchers are right in the middle of getting 120 UAH students to come get a bone density scan.

Depending on the results, they have a follow up study they want to do too.

"Such as a high intensity training program that would be interesting and exciting and fun for young adults to partake in that might increase bone density and offset the affect of the drug," said Dr. Mathis.

Depending on the results of the study, this could have an impact on how many of these types of medications are prescribed.

"Maybe physicians will really scrutinize whether or not those signs and symptoms of add and adhd are present prior to prescribing these medications," said Dr. Mathis.

The two researchers plan on wrapping up the study in October.

They'll analyze the data and make a conclusion.

If they find ADHD meds do cause brittle bones they'll move on to their next study.
By West Kentucky Star Staff May. 26, 2018 | 08:27 PM | LEXINGTON, KY

Honoring the service of veterans across Kentucky on Memorial Day weekend, Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes on Saturday morning met and welcomed World War II, Vietnam, and Korean veterans departing on a visit to the nation's capital.

"On this Memorial Day weekend, we join you in honoring the memory and sacrifice of those who stood by you in harm's way. We also honor your courageous service," said Grimes. "You carried our flag through the Earth's most dangerous battlefields and advanced the cause of freedom across the globe. Our Commonwealth, our nation is forever indebted to you. Seeing our nation's history commemorated in Washington, DC is truly powerful, and I am grateful that you will see it today."

The approximately 70 veterans Grimes honored Saturday are participants in an Honor Flight Kentucky mission to Washington, D.C., to spend the day and tour veteran monuments and memorials. Honor Flight Kentucky is a nonprofit that organizes charter flights to the Washington. Veterans may participate at no cost.

Grimes is a tireless advocate for veterans. As Secretary of State, she implemented Kentucky's Military Heroes Voting Initiative that makes it easier for military and overseas voters to cast ballots.

In the 2018 legislative session, Grimes successfully sought a new law that will help veteran entrepreneurs start new businesses and grow Kentucky's economy.

"We owe our veterans more than our respect and gratitude. We owe them support and access to every opportunity available to succeed in the country they have risked their lives defending," Grimes said.
Thank you for reading!

Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue.
A radio ad launched for Leah Vukmir by the Wisconsin Republican Party touts that shes a blue star mom because her son is in the military.

But the claim is in direct conflict with the constitution of the Blue Star Mothers of America, Inc., which states that the organization cannot be used for personal or partisan purposes.

Vukmir might be using her association with BSM because her opponent for the GOP Senate nomination is Kevin Nicholson, a decorated Marine. He fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, and hes made his military service a central focus of his candidacy. Nicholson uses the tag line Send in the Marine.

Hate groups

Vukmir could also be at odds with BSMs position on hate groups. The organizations website denounces any involvement or support of Identity Evropa or any similar organizations.

Identity Evropa is a white supremacist hate group.

While theres no evidence that Vukmir has been involved with racist groups, shes tied to the Family Research Council, which has been designated an anti-LGBTQ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The groups mission is to vilify LGBTQ people and to actively undermine their civil rights.

Statements from FRC include:

Family Research Council believes that homosexual conduct is harmful to the persons who engage in it and to society at large, and can never be affirmed. It is by definition unnatural, and as such is associated with negative physical and psychological health effects.

While activists like to claim that pedophilia is a completely distinct orientation from homosexuality, evidence shows a disproportionate overlap between the two.  It is a homosexual problem.

They are aimed at persuading kids that although they'll face struggles and perhaps bullying for 'coming out' as homosexual (or transgendered or some other perversion), life will get better. It's disgusting. And it's part of a concerted effort to persuade kids that homosexuality is okay and actually to recruit them into that lifestyle.

Vukmir has a strong relationship with Wisconsin Family Action, a statewide group whose mission is outlawing abortion as well as LGBTQ civil rights. Emails showed that Vukmir opposed an anti-bullying bullying law after consulting with WFAs anti-gay president Julaine Appling.

Republican support

The Republican establishment has endorsed Vukmir and is trying to help her defeat Nicholson in the Aug. 14 primary. She also has the support of Scott Walker and Koch-brother funded groups.

Vukmir aligns herself politically with Donald Trump and says she wants to help him build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

The Republican Party of Wisconsin paid for the recent radio ad for Vukmir. It cost $29,000 and was the party's first ad in the race.

The winner of that primary will advance to face Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin in November.

The national GOP believes it can unseat Baldwin, and third-party groups have already spent $11.7 million on the effort, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

It is the most expensive Senate race in the country so far.
ROME, NY  An evening of dinner and dancing in Rome Saturday.

And it was all for a good cause.

The 4th annual Rome Policemans Ball was held at the Teugega Country Club.

Proceeds from the event went to the Rome Police Departments Shop With A Cop holiday charity.

Nobody ever calls the police when something good is going on says Rome Police Chief Kevin Beach.

So to see us as a friend, as a mentor, as someone to look up to when theres not that stress or tension. Its a great feeling.

Just before Christmas, Rome officers will take area needy children shopping to buy presents for themselves and their loved ones.
NOBLESVILLE, Ind. (WLFI)  News 18 continues to follow the tragedy at a middle school in Noblesville.

Two were injured, a student and a teacher, after another student opened fire.

The teacher who was shot, 29-year-old Jason Seaman, was able to take down the shooter. He is said to be in good condition.

The other person shot was 13-year-old Ella Whistler. Her family released this statement, Friday:

"Our daughter, Ella Whistler, was involved in a horrific shooting today at her school. We will spend the next days and weeks processing what happened and why. But first, we wanted to say she is doing well at Riley Hospital for Children. Her status is critical, yet we are pleased to report she is stable. We'd like to thank everyone across the country who prayed for our family today. We've felt those prayers and appreciate each of them. We'd also like to thank the first responders, Noblesville police, Indiana State Police and the medical staff and surgeons at Riley. Please do not contact our family for further comment at this time.

We appreciate you respecting our privacy as we support Ella in her recovery."

Noblesville Schools Education Foundation has also set up a way to donate to the families, you can help by following this link.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI)  Bob Feuer spends his days volunteering in Greater Lafayette. It was through that volunteer work Feuer heard about Earhart Elementary School losing funding for its backpack program.

"I see things with the kids and there's such a need there that it has to be done," said Feuer.

The backpack program is donation based and supplies children in need with food on the weekends. Food Finders Food Bank President and CEO Katy Bunder said Earhart's program was once sponsored by a local church. However, she said the church can no longer afford to support it.

"We were really worried that Earhart just wouldn't be able to have a backpack program because we got kind of late notice and then we needed to raise the money quickly," said Bunder. "So we weren't sure we could do this."

Bunder said it's a life-changing program.

"Their children are more eager to go to school," said Bunder. "They do their homework better and they're definitely healthier."

With his dog Teddy by his side, Feuer decided to step up.

"You hear things, you see things," said Feuer. "There was a need, so I stepped up."

Through donations and pledges, he's raised a little more than $5,000 of the $8,000 needed so that Food Finders can supply the backpacks on a weekly basis.

He said Teddy has been able to help too.

"People feel happy to give when he's there," said Feuer. " If I can raise more money, I want to do it.

Bunder said with a growing student population, some children could be falling through the cracks. Her hope is to raise even more in order to make sure everyone in need can take part in the program.

"There are more children that need the backpack than we're currently serving," said Bunder. "So, if we get more money than that, we'll add children to the backpack program."

Feuer said he'll keep raising money until the goal is met.

"To see the kids and how happy they are to take those backpacks home, it's a great feeling to know they're helping out their family."

If you'd like to donate, you can mail a check to Food Finders Food Bank at 1204 Greenbush Street Lafayette, IN 47904. The memo line of each check should indicate the donation is for the "Amelia Earhart Elementary School Backpack Program".




China News on Women





Sorry, the page you requested was not found. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Womenofchina.cn, try visiting the Womenofchina Home page
This website is inclusive of tolerant people of all faiths, without exception. Neither anti-Semitism nor Islamophobia nor homophobia should ever be acceptable to anyone. We must all strive to live in peace and harmony with each other, regardless of religious affiliations, or none. Intolerance is the mother of strife and conflict.   Mark Alexander

We Britons are Europeans!Wir Briten sind Europaer! Nous, les Britanniques, sommes europeens !  Mark AlexanderEmail me at:markalexander.librabunda@gmail.com
(CNN Money) -- Get ready for sticker shock at the gas station if you're one of the estimated 36 million Americans hitting the roads this Memorial Day weekend.

Gone are the days of $2-a-gallon gasoline. A spike in crude oil prices has lifted the national average price of gas by 31% over the past year to an average of $2.97 a gallon, according to AAA.

Prices at the pump haven't been this high heading into the biggest driving holiday of the year since 2014, when crude was sitting in triple-digit territory.

"WIthout a doubt people are noticing and they're feeling the pinch," said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, a platform that helps drivers find real-time prices.

AAA says that fifteen states, including New York, New Jersey and Illinois, are already facing $3 average gas prices or higher. Gas in California and Hawaii, traditionally two of the priciest states, is north of $3.70 a gallon.

Related: India is freaking out about rising oil prices

Here's why gasoline prices are getting uncomfortably high:

People are driving more: The United States is consuming more gasoline, thanks to the strong economy and upbeat consumer confidence.

That trend could continue into this weekend. AAA estimates that 36.6 million Americans will travel by auto this weekend. That's almost 5% more than last year. Overall, AAA estimates that 41.5 million Americans will travel by car, planes, trains, buses and cruise ships over Memorial Day weekend, the highest since 2005.

"Demand is red-hot," said DeHaan.

Crude awakening: But demand isn't strong enough to justify the spike in prices. That's where crude oil comes into play. Brent crude, the global benchmark that tends to influence US gas prices, recently topped $80 a barrel. It's up about 50% over the past year.

The oil rally has been driven by a range of factors, including robust demand around the world amid stronger economic growth.

Thanks OPEC and Russia: The rebound in oil prices from the crash of 2015-2016 was engineered in large part by OPEC. The oil cartel teamed up with Russia to slash production beginning in early 2017 in a bid to fix a supply glut. That strategy eventually worked and global oil stockpiles, especially in the United States, have declined steadily.

In fact, OPEC and Russia's moves have been strong enough to offset soaring production from the shale revolution in the United States.

Trump exits Iran deal: US oil prices topped $70 a barrel earlier this month just as President Trump announced the United States is withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal.

The decision sparked fears that renewed sanctions on Iran, the world's fifth-biggest oil producer, will sideline up to 1 million barrels per day of supply. It remains unclear exactly how much Iranian oil will get knocked offline, but it's safe to say the Iran decision has supported oil and gas prices.

Related: Saudis say OPEC and Russia could pump more oil

How high will prices go? Memorial Day weekend is often the peak for gasoline prices as demand starts to wane through the summer and in the fall.

DeHaan predicted that the national average could top $3 a gallon over the next few days before backing away.

"This could be the high-water mark for the driving season," said DeHaan.

If prices don't calm down, some drivers could decide to stay home rather than pay up at the pump.

"It's starting to cause some sticker shock and maybe some resentment. But I don't think it will hold people back," said DeHaan.

Trump could eventually take action if prices become a problem. Goldman Sachs recently suggested Trump could tap the emergency stockpile of oil stored in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to make up for the loss of Iranian production.

OPEC to the rescue? It's possible that OPEC and Russia, sensing that prices have gotten too hot, step in to calm the market down.

In fact, Saudi Arabia said this week that OPEC and Russia could supply more oil to world markets "in the near future."

That news, from a panel discussion hosted by CNNMoney's John Defterios, helped send US oil prices plunging 4% to $67.88 a barrel. It was oil's steepest decline in nearly a year. OPEC and Russia are due to meet in Vienna on June 22.

However, some analysts are skeptical that OPEC and Russia will do anything to spoil the high prices needed to balance their budgets.

"The Saudis are quite enjoying $80 prices," said Michael Tran, global energy strategist at RBC Capital Markets.

"I'm not sure they're going to rush back in and flood the market with barrels," he said.

Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated how many people are expected to drive this weekend.

The-CNN-Wire

 &  2018 Cable News Network, Inc., a Time Warner Company. All rights reserved.
VINCENNES, Ind. (WTHI)- People from all over the state and the country came to the Vincennes Riverwalk just off Main Street Saturday. Many wanting to take witness to the citys newest statue.

One of those who attended was Larry Whitlock was born and raised in Vincennes. He was one of the contributors to the statue.

"I currently live in Texas where I have lived for 30 years but it was very important for me to come back here today because French heritage is very important to Vincennes," said Whitlock.

The new statue is of Sieur De Vincennes. The city is named after him for being the founder of Indianas oldest city.

It's a project that was put together by the Friends of Vincennes' Heritage. Joy Biggs who is the chairman of the group says this is a project they have been happy to be completed. It's a way to honor this historical figure and his impact on the state.

Theres one little plaque for Sieur De Vincennes and I thought we had these other statues honoring Francis Vigo and Father Shivou and I thought we needed something for Sieur De Vincennes," said Biggs.

Representatives from France and Quebec also attended the unveiling of this historical icon. Local Terre Haute artist Bill Wolfe was behind the project.

Wolfe had been working on this project for over five years. It's a project that proved challenging at times for Wolfe. But one he will never forget.

"Well, it means a lot to me for one thing because I love Indiana history. So if anything that involves Indiana history and my art combination. Then that's perfect," said Wolfe.

To some, they might see a statue, but for those who call Vincennes home, its something that makes them proud of their citys rich history.

"Ive lived around the world but its always Vincennes that brings you home and Vincennes will always be home," said Whitlock.

The statue is now in its permanent place in Vincennes and available for everyone to see. Its located just north of the George Rodgers Clark Memorial on Main Street.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian woman imprisoned in Tehran, will face a trial for new "security-related" charges, Iranian media reports.

The 39-year-old was arrested in 2016 and is already serving a five-year sentence for allegedly spying against the Iranian regime.

Earlier this month Zaghari-Ratcliffe appeared in court to face new charges of "spreading propaganda," her husband said.

"She was told by Judge (Abolghassem) Salavati to expect that she will be convicted," husband Richard Ratcliffe said. Ratcliffe has consistently denied the allegations against his wife.

When asked about the new charges, the UK Foreign Office said, "We will continue to approach each case in a way that we judge is most likely to secure the outcome we all want. Therefore, we will not be providing a running commentary on every twist and turn."

The head of Tehran's Revolution Court, Hojatoleslam Musa Ghazanfarabadi, told Iran's Tasnim news agency that Zaghari-Ratcliffe's next court date has not been set.

"The court will convene after she designates a lawyer," he said.

Ghazanfarabadi said the new charges are "security-related," but did not specify beyond that.

Pleading to see her daughter

Zaghari-Ratcliffe has requested a temporary release to visit her daughter Gabriella, whom she has not seen for two years and who will celebrate her fourth birthday next month.

Richard Ratcliffe said the Iranian Foreign Ministry has suggested to the British Embassy in Tehran that the girl write a letter requesting her mother be released for her birthday.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe was first detained at Tehran's airport in April 2016 while on her way back to the UK from visiting family with Gabriella, who was then 22 months old.

The Iranian government accused her of working for a UK media network involved in activities against Iran. She was sentenced to five years in jail and her child was placed in the care of her parents.

Her employer, the Thomson Reuters Foundation, rejected the allegations.

The Free Nazanin Campaign, headed by her husband, said last week that Zaghari-Ratcliffe was able to call the British ambassador to Iran for the first time in two years.

A diplomatic rift

Zaghari-Ratcliffe's imprisonment has sparked a diplomatic spat between Britain and Iran.

Boris Johnson, the British Foreign Secretary, visited Tehran in December to try to raise Zaghari-Ratcliffe's case with the Iranian government.

The visit came a month after he was forced to apologize for a serious misstep in which he told a parliamentary committee that Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been teaching journalism during her visit to Iran. He later clarified that she had been visiting relatives before she was detained.

The comments apparently led to Zaghari-Ratcliffe being summoned to an unscheduled court hearing, at which Johnson's remarks were cited as proof that she had engaged in "propaganda against the regime."

Johnson later backtracked and apologized for his comments.
MIAMI (AP)  The Latest on Subtropical Storm Alberto (all times local):

6:10 p.m.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has declared a state of emergency for several counties ahead of Subtropical Storm Alberto.

Due to the threat from #Alberto I have issued a State of Emergency for counties that could be affected. Some areas could see flooding, heavy winds and possibly tornadoes. Please stay weather aware through the weekend and into next week. https://t.co/91CBR6zu3R  Governor Kay Ivey (@GovernorKayIvey) May 26, 2018

The order effective at 6 a.m. Sunday covers 40 counties across the southern portion of the state.

The only area county under the order is Pickens.

The National Hurricane Center on Saturday issued a tropical storm warning for Alabama's coast, saying tropical storm conditions are possible there by early Monday. Forecasters say a wide area will get 3 to 6 inches (8 to 18 centimeters) of rain, with 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30 centimeters) closer to the coast.

Ivey's announcement says Alabama residents should be "prepared for the potential of significant flooding."

By declaring an emergency, Ivey is directing the appropriate state agencies to exercise their authority to assist communities and entities affected by Alberto.

___

5:15 p.m.

The National Hurricane Center has issued tropical storm warnings for parts of Florida and Alabama as Subtropical Storm Alberto moves north.

Forecasters at the center in Miami issued the warnings Saturday evening. They cover the northern Gulf Coast of Florida west to the Mississippi-Alabama border and the west coast of Florida from Bonita Beach to the Anclote River.

The Pinar del Rio province of Cuba remains under a tropical storm warning.

Alberto is about 95 miles (155 kilometers) north of the western tip of Cuba and is moving north at 13 mph (20 kph). The storm has top sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and is expected to strengthen as it moves over the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

___

11:35 a.m.

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant has declared a state of emergency as Subtropical Storm Alberto moves toward the state's coast.

In a tweet Saturday, Bryant said he signed a proclamation declaring the emergency and an order making the Mississippi National Guard and other state resources available should they become necessary.

LINK: The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency provides information concerning Alberto

The latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center shifts the storm farther east with a potential landfall near the Alabama-Florida state line.

___

10:40 a.m.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency for all 67 counties ahead of Subtropical Storm Alberto.

Scott made the announcement on Saturday morning.

At a briefing at the state emergency operations center in Tallahassee, authorities urged Floridians to take the storm seriously.

Wes Maul, the state's emergency management director, said timing of the storm is uncertain, but the entire state will feel the effects. Swelling riverbanks, tornadoes and localized flooding are possible.

___

A storm moving slowly through the Caribbean Sea is threatening to bring heavy rainfall, mudslides, and flash floods to parts of Mexico, Cuba, Florida and the U.S. Gulf Coast this weekend.

Subtropical Storm Alberto  the first named storm of the 2018 hurricane season  was continued roiling toward parts of coastal Mexico and Cuba with rip currents and dangerous surf on Saturday. Both countries issued tropical storm watches for portions of their coastlines, with rain totals in some isolated areas of up to 25 inches.

U.S. forecasters followed suit by issuing a tropical storm watch for parts of the Gulf Coast from the Florida Panhandle southwest of Tallahassee to the New Orleans metropolitan area.

At 5 a.m. EDT, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said Alberto was moving north-northeastward toward the Yucatan Channel and was centered about 95 miles (105 kilometers) southeast of Cozumel, Mexico. Its top sustained winds were 40 mph (65 kph). A gradual strengthening was expected through the weekend as it moves north.
TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) -- This weekend's weather brought to us by Subtropical Storm Alberto. Although the center of rotation is still 450 miles south of Apalachicola, the rain extends well to the north and east of it. As we move into the Sunday, and even Monday, Alberto will push closer to the Florida/Alabama border, bringing us quite a bit of rain bands, and gusty winds. Within these rain bands have heavier rain, and stronger storms. There is a chance that some of these storms become severe, and could possibly produce a spin-up, similar to what we've seen in past tropical systems.

Tonight, expect to see a a few rain showers and thunderstorms with mostly cloudy conditions. Winds will be from the east, about 5 to 10 mph. Overnight lows fall to the low 70s.

Sunday, we'll see quite a quite a bit of rain, likely in the form of rain bands. As previously mentioned, some of the rain storms could become stronger at times. Winds are expected to be breezy, from the east at 15 mph with stronger gusts. Highs remain unseasonably cool, only heating to the low 80s. Sunday night also looks to be on the wet side as Subtropical Storm Alberto sits just off the Florida/Alabama coast.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 05:33:32|Editor: yan

Video Player Close

MEXICO CITY, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Mexican police have shot dead six suspected members of a criminal gang in the suburbs of Tepic, capital of the western state of Nayarit, local authorities announced on Saturday.

The shootout happened on Friday, when police located and surrounded a group of armed men along a highway, shortly after the gang had fired at two houses in Tepic and the neighboring town of Xalisco.

The Nayarit secretariat of public security issued a statement explaining that the men got out of two trucks and a car and opened fire on the police with assault rifles.

After shooting the six gunmen on a highway southwest of Tepic, the officers found two kidnapped women and a man inside the vehicles.

The 28-year-old man had been kidnapped a few hours earlier in Tepic, while the two women, aged 19 and 21, had spent four months in captivity.

"They had been held for four months, approximately, by this criminal group, being molested, raped, and forced to accompany them in their illegal acts," stated the police.

Nayarit, a popular state with tourists, has been suffering from an increase in drug-related violence recently.
In this file photo illustration taken on March 23, 2018 shows YouTube logos on a computer screen in Beijing. (AFP photo)

CAIRO, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Egypt's top administrative court ordered on Saturday to block YouTube streaming website for one month over hosting a video that denigrates Prophet Muhammad of Islam, the Egyptian lawyer who filed the lawsuit told Xinhua.

"The ruling is final, unappealable and enforceable," lawyer Mohamed Hamed Salem said.

A lower administrative court has previously ordered the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) to do so, but the latter appealed against the ruling, citing it was hard to implement.

The top administrative court rejected the NTRA appeal on Saturday and upheld the temporary ban as a final, unappealable ruling.

The lawsuit dates back to 2013 when the Egyptian lawyer demanded to ban YouTube in Egypt until the offensive clip on Prophet Muhammad and other anti-Islamic videos are removed.

"The ruling is a punishment for YouTube website that will cost it massive economic losses," Salem told Xinhua.

Privately funded and produced in California, the controversial video first appeared on YouTube in 2012, raising a wave of anti-American outrage in the Muslim world where Prophet Muhammad is highly revered.

The lawyer said that "the offensive video" led some fanatic Islamists to assault the U.S. and British embassies in Cairo at the time.

It is unclear how the temporary ban will be implemented, as YouTube was still working in Egypt until Saturday evening.

"The NTRA is responsible for implementing the ban and there is no technical difficulty to do so," the lawyer told Xinhua, warning "I will file a lawsuit against the NTRA chief if the ban is not implemented."
SAN FRANCISCO, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Governor Bill Walker of the U.S. northwestern state of Alaska has declared June 2 as "Alaska Trails Day" to promote public well-being through outdoor activities, his office said in a statement Saturday.

"Alaska is home to thousands of miles of public trails, offering a variety of recreational opportunities and access to abundant natural resources for Alaskans and visitors," Walker said.

Trail activities provide opportunities for people of all ages and abilities to enjoy the rich beauty of the state of Alaska, said the governor.

"The use of trails benefit Alaskans spiritual, mental and physical well-being, and enhances the quality of life for all...and trails attract visitors to locations all over the state, increasing appreciation for the land and creating significant state-wide benefit to the economy," Walker said.

He calls on Alaskans to go out and "take a hike" and enjoy nearby trails all year round.

Walker said Alaska boasts historic trails, scenic courses, hiking routes, dogsled, snowmachine, and bike paths that could attract visitors to spectacular scenic viewpoints, lakes, streams, rivers, and access to fish, wildlife, and other natural resources.

Each year, the first Saturday in June is National Trails Day, when various events are held throughout the United States to help promote the awareness of the wide variety of benefits that trails provide and encourage people to discover their local trails.
TOKYO, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Japan, along with China and the European Union (EU), has not shied away from voicing its ardent protest to the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to look into hiking the rates of imported vehicle and parts' tariffs, to, in some cases, as much as 25 percent.

The Japanese government stands firmly against Washington's latest move towards unilateral protectionism with Japan's top government spokesperson Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga telling a press briefing on the matter here recently that "any trade measures should be consistent with World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements," adding that he would carefully monitor the situation.

Japanese Trade Minister Hiroshige Seko, for his part, pulled no punches when it came to offering his view on Washington's latest protectionist moves, stating recently that "Such a move would plunge the global market into turmoil. The WTO rules should be adhered to," Seko also remarked, in support of Suga's comments and in line with the government's position.

Seko said he will tell U.S. trade officials that any such measures must be consistent with the WTO's multilateral trade system and that Japan will keep a watchful eye on how the U.S. newly launched investigation shapes up.

As many Japanese senior ministers and the hierarchy of Japan's automakers have consistently pointed out that the United States is the biggest market for Japanese cars, with automakers here increasingly shifting production hubs to the United States, providing jobs for Americans and helping with its economic growth.

As for exports to the U.S. from Japan, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, Japanese carmakers exported around 1.77 million units to the United States in the business year ended March, with exports from here to the United States actually marking a downward trend recently.

If Trump decides to make it financially preclusive for exporters to maintain their level of exports, then more companies may chose to open production hubs in the United States, which while being a boon in some areas, will, ultimately lead to the hollowing out of Japan's domestic industry, analysts here have pointed out.

According to Takeshi Miyao, an analyst at Tokyo-based auto market researcher Carnorama, the new tariffs would "hit Mazda Motor especially, and automakers that do not have manufacturing bases in the U.S."

"Other companies will be forced to adjust the proportions of manufacturing between their home countries and the United States, possibly forcing them to invest in greater capacity in the United States."

"A downward revision in earnings might be required for this term," Miyao also added.

Japan's, as with other countries' firm backlash to the potential hike of auto import tariffs by Washington comes as the U.S. Commerce Department has launched a probe into whether auto imports into the United Sates pose a threat to the U.S. economy and its national security.

Local auto analysts here are struggling to find the logic or plausibility to Trump instructing the U.S. Commerce Department to investigate the impact of vehicle and auto parts imports on national security.

"There is evidence suggesting that, for decades, imports from abroad have eroded our domestic auto industry," U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross was quoted by local media as saying.

"The Department of Commerce will conduct a thorough, fair, and transparent investigation into whether such imports are weakening our internal economy and may impair national security," Ross also said as quoted by the Japanese media.

Hisao Katayama, a senior equity analyst at Nomura Securities Co., told Xinhua that in the end, cool heads would prevail, and losses for exporters may not be as hefty as first thought.

"The new tariff hike could lead to increased employment in the auto sector in the U.S., but looking at the big picture, it would bear an overall negative impact on the U.S. economy," Katayama proffered.

"And no such moves towards protectionism can occur in a vacuum, especially in a new world leaning towards multilateral free trade agreements. Other countries (including Japan) can and will take retaliatory tariffs trade measures against the U.S. on sectors or products that might be economically sensitive and hurt the U.S. economy," said Katayama.

Along with the Japanese government, Japan's biggest automaker has also blasted Washington's latest move to tighten up yet another trade loop in its march towards protectionism.

"We believe free and fair trade is the best way to create sustained growth for the auto industry and provides more choices and greater value for American consumers," Toyota said in a statement here recently, adding that a national security probe leading to higher tariffs is "a determination which seems implausible."

Toyota, for its part, as a heavy-hitter for the U.S. market, highlighted the fact that it has 1,500 dealers and employs 136,000 people in the United States, and the Japanese automaker plans to open its 11th U.S. manufacturing plant there soon.

The Japanese auto giant manufactured nearly 12 million cars in the United States last year, with Toyota stating that, "It has been a significant contributor to both U.S. employment and growth."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 08:49:06|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

by Yang Jingzhong

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea, May 27 (Xinhua) -- "Papua New Guinea (PNG) 's active participation in the construction of China's Belt and Road Initiative will greatly promote the economic and social development of PNG, and bring enormous opportunities for international and regional cooperation, Chinese Ambassador to PNG Xue Bing told Xinhua in an exclusive interview.

With various APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) meetings to be held in PNG this year, the country has attracted unprecedented attention from the international community.

Speaking with Xinhua on the 24th APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting on Friday, Xue said that as the largest and most populous country among South Pacific island countries with abundant natural resources and unlimited development potential, PNG is playing an increasingly important role in international and regional affairs.

The Chinese people had travelled across the oceans to work and live in PNG since 200 years ago, said Xue. In recent years, the two countries have maintained close high-level exchanges and deepened political mutual trust.

"China supports the economic and social development of PNG, while PNG respects China's core interests and adheres to the one-China policy," Xue said.

PNG appreciates China's Belt and Road Initiative and believes that such an international public product will bring a promising prospect for global development, he said.

According to Xue, PNG is carrying out a "Look-North Policy" and its core is looking to China. The South Pacific country hopes to board the Belt and Road "express train" to achieve sustainable development.

In 2014, China and PNG established a strategic partnership featuring mutual respect and common development, which has charted the course of the development of bilateral relations. Two years later, the two countries signed several cooperation documents including a framework agreement on development cooperation on production capacity to bring their cooperation into the Belt and Road "express lane."

And earlier this month, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank approved the application from PNG to join the bank, which has accelerated the pace of PNG to participate in the Belt and Road construction.

"PNG is located in the vast South Pacific region as well as the southern extension strip of China's 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. There is the great potential for the two sides to expand cooperation within the Belt and Road framework," Xue said.

PNG is rich in vast natural resources, including mineral reserves, forests, agricultural and fishery resources, with the fishery sea zone covering an area of 2.4 million square-km.

"All of these are priority areas for the two countries to enhance industry cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative," Xue said.

He said that many Chinese companies have come to PNG for investment and development, and developing agricultural industry parks is one of the most important cooperative projects. Over these years, Chinese experts have been stationed in PNG to guide and assist local people in growing upland rice, which has achieved continuous good harvest.

"I travelled to the Eastern Highlands for a harvesting ceremony this year, seeing people were so jubilant for the harvest and I was deeply moved," Xue said.

Both countries are also working together to build industrial parks. For example, PNG has abundant fishery resources, and Chinese enterprises are helping PNG build ports and fish-processing plants.

Xue said that Chinese enterprises pursue to give full play to their advantages in infrastructure construction and production capacity cooperation in PNG. In addition, there are also broad prospects for bilateral cooperation in the fields of education and culture.

So far, China has provided more than 440 PNG students with scholarships to study in China. They have studied in different universities across China, and many of them have played an important leading role in various fields since their return to PNG. The PNG government strongly hopes for expanding this program.

Besides, the national airline of PNG Air Nuigini is set to open direct flights between Port Moresby and Shanghai this year. It is expected that there will be a huge increase in people-to-people exchanges between the two countries as well as a surge in the demand for cultural exchanges and Chinese-language talents.

Chinese enterprises have employed over 7,000 local employees in PNG so far and the number keeps increasing. Major PNG universities including University of Papua New Guinea and Lae University of Technology, are actively communicating with China partners in a bid to establish Confucius Institutes or open Confucius Classrooms.

"With the further development of China-PNG relations and the increase in people-to-people exchanges, the friendship between our two peoples will definitely be further deepened," Xue added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 08:59:09|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

CHONGQING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The county of Fengdu in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality is overhauling its cattle farms to cut pollution along the Yangtze River.

The county famous for beef has over 1,000 cattle farms, the largest with over 10,000 head. One of the country's largest beef producer Hondo Beef is headquartered in Fengdu. There are more than 210,000 cattle in the county, according to the county animal husbandry bureau.

"About four years ago, pollution from cow dung was alarming, and we had to take action," said He Chuandong, deputy director of the bureau.

"Farmers used to dump the dung near crop fields, and it frequently rains here, so there was heavy runoff," He said.

Rivers were darkened and grass along rivers died. "During winter when the river bed was exposed, cow dung could reach about a man's height," said a resident in Gaojia Township.

One cow produces 25 to 30 kilograms of dung very day. Consider the number of cow farms in Fengdu, the total amount of dung is huge, He said.

In 2014, the county invited Renmin University of China (RUC) to assess the environmental impact of cattle-raising. The county had a development target of 550,000 head, but later it cut the figure by 150,000 at the suggestion of RUC.

All big farms have renovated their sheds and built methane tanks to collect and compost manure. Factories have opened to produce organic fertilizer. Mushroom farms, an earthworm factory and a power plant were established.

Now 95 percent of dung is recycled, according to the bureau.

Farmer Zhang Lincong has 200 cattle. Every day, these animals produce about 5,000 kilograms of dung. "Not a single bit is wasted on my farm," said Zhang.

Zhang earns 20,000 yuan (about 6,340 U.S. dollars) every year from selling composted cow manure to the earthworm factory. He uses processed cow urine to fertilize his own corn fields.

Hondo Beef invested 80 million yuan to upgrade the sewerage system for its farms and butcheries.

"Environmental protection is the biggest priority if the beef industry is to be developed," said Wu Dongping, vice general manager of the company.

"As industry is consolidated, it is getting harder to find cow waste now," said Huang Jin, general manager of Fengzeyuan Fertilizer Co., Ltd.
SEOUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Sunday that both top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump wished the success of their summit "wholeheartedly."

Moon made the comment during his nationally televised speech after holding a surprise summit with Kim Saturday on the DPRK side of the border village of Panmunjom.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 09:19:17|Editor: Yamei

Video Player Close

PYONGYANG, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), has expressed his "fixed will" to hold a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, when he met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in Saturday at the truce village Panmunjom, said Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) Sunday.

Kim also promised to further push forward the peace process on the Korean Peninsula by working for the goal of denuclearization and improving inter-Korean ties.

During the meeting, Kim thanked Moon for the efforts made by him for the DPRK-U.S. summit scheduled for June 12, and expressed his fixed will on the historic DPRK-U.S. summit talk, said KCNA.

"Kim Jong Un told Moon Jae-in to positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve the DPRK-U.S. relations and establish mechanism for permanent and durable peace," said the report.

The surprise inter-Korean summit came soon after Trump said he remained open to a summit with Kim in Singapore on June 12.

Kim and Moon met for the second time within one month on Saturday on the northern side of the demarcation line of Panmunjom.

Related:
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 09:59:30|Editor: Yamei

Video Player Close

South Korean President Moon Jae-in delivers a nationally televised speech at the Blue House in Seoul May 27, 2018. Moon said on Sunday that top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump both wished the success of their summit "wholeheartedly." Moon met with Kim on Saturday at the border village of Panmunjom and with Trump in Washington earlier this week. (Xinhua/Newsis)

SEOUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Sunday that both top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump wished the success of their summit, originally scheduled for June 12 in Singapore, "wholeheartedly."

Moon made the comments in his nationally televised speech after holding a surprise summit with Kim on Saturday at the border village of Panmunjom and a summit with Trump in Washington earlier this week.

The South Korean leader said he met with Kim for the second time in a month following the third-ever inter-Korean summit on the South Korean side of Panmunjom on April 27.

The second meeting between Moon and Kim was held on the DPRK side of Panmunjom at the request of Kim, Moon said.

U.S. President Trump sent a letter to the DPRK leader on Thursday, saying that their planned meeting in Singapore on June 12 would not happen due to "tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed in Pyongyang's recent statements.
Winners receive their awards after the qualifying round of the 17th "Chinese Bridge" held in Hanoi, Vietnam, on May 25, 2018. (Xinhua/Yan Jianhua)

by Tao Jun, Bui Long

HANOI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Studying Chinese has helped him better understand concepts such as "One world, one family" and "within the four seas, all men are brothers," a Vietnamese college student said.

"In an increasingly connected world today, I think that studying Chinese helps bring people together, and with the mindset of 'One world, one family', we will build a better world together," Hanoi University student Le Anh Duc told Xinhua Friday after winning the final round of Northern Vietnam of the 17th "Chinese Bridge," the annual Chinese proficiency competition for foreign college students.

At the competition themed "One World, One Family," held by the Confucius Institute Headquarters and the Chinese Embassy in Vietnam, the third-year student outperformed 11 other finalists from 10 universities in terms of language, presentation, Peking opera and calligraphy skills, and knowledge of Chinese economy, politics, society and culture.

"The competition's theme this year touches an age-old common aspiration. That is all people in the world living in peace, harmony and benevolence. Given that the world is now facing conflicts and terrorism, this theme also has topicality," the 21-year-old student in a black-and-white elegant tunic said, adding that Chinese culture such as music, dance and calligraphy can help narrow gaps and differences to bring people closer to each other.

"I am keen on Peking opera (Jingju) and Chinese martial art (Taijiquan) as mustard, so when partaking in the coming final round of the international 17th 'Chinese Bridge' in China, I will choose to perform either Jingju or Taijiquan," said Duc, whose performance of part of Peking opera "Ba Wang Bie Ji" (Farewell My Concubine) at the competition on Friday brought down the house.

Student Le Anh Duc of the Hanoi University receives the arward after wining the first prize in the qualifying round of the 17th "Chinese Bridge" held in Hanoi, Vietnam, on May 25, 2018. (Xinhua/Yan Jianhua)

Duc said that after the international competition in mid-2018 in China, he would spare no efforts to improve his Chinese and pursue further studies in China. "I like the major of tourism and travel management," he said, adding that traveling not only broadens the mind but also connects hearts for a better world.

Duc's understanding and explanation about the concept "One world, One family" have been echoed by many of his compatriots, including educators, lecturers and students.

They agreed that people of all nations around the globe should value peace, harmony, and mutual understanding and trust in state-to-state relations as well as in people-to-people exchange, promoting win-win cooperation and striving for consensus in achieving common goals.

Many Vietnamese told Xinhua that they are much impressed by Chinese famous saying such as "Do not do unto others what you do not want others to do unto you" by Confucius and "Within the four seas, all men are brothers" by one of his disciples.

In recent years, more and more Chinese educational institutions are offering scholarships and discounted tuition fees to Vietnamese students, while organizing more classes of Chinese language and arts for students, as well as intensive courses for university lecturers, Do Thanh Van, head of the Confucius Institute at Hanoi University, told Xinhua

All the Chinese language, calligraphy, singing and paper-cutting art classes sponsored by the institute are always overloaded with Vietnamese learners, she said, adding that the institute is holding courses on foreign relations and protocol etiquettes for cadres of Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union and student volunteers.

Now, Vietnamese students of Chinese language are actively getting to know global and regional issues. They are interested in international relations, especially the traditional friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and China, Nguyen Thanh Cong, vice dean of Hanoi University's Chinese Department, told Xinhua on Friday.

"This is one of manifestations of realizing the Chinese idea of "Datong Shijie" (the world of great harmony) in the past or 'One world, one family' at present, or put it more simply, globalization or international integration," he added.

One of his students, Mai Trang, who is also member of the Confucius Institute's dancing troupe that performed Chinese dance "Hao ri zi" (beautiful days) at the competition on Friday, told Xinhua that she also loves the idea "One world, One family," saying that family members are closest to each other, so it is perfect for all people in the world to treat each other as brothers and sisters.

"I will register for the 'Chinese Bridge' next year, and I will study tourism management at Peking University in the next few years," the freshwoman student in Chinese traditional red costume said.

Vietnamese students' high demand for studying Chinese in Vietnam and then pursing higher education in China is partly attributed to the expanding and deepening cooperation and exchanges between the two countries, said Nguyen Thi Cuc Phuong, vice rector of the Hanoi University.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 10:49:43|Editor: Yurou

Video Player Close

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 26 (Xinhua) -- The Brazilian government on Saturday denounced a "lockout" as being behind protests by thousands of truckers which have paralyzed Brazilian highways since Monday.

President Michel Temer met with a number of ministers to analyze the situation on Saturday, a day after ordering the army and police to clear the highways.

In a televised address on Friday, Temer said that "I have ordered security forces to unblock the highways and I am asking governors to do the same. We will not let the population go without its primary needs."

Carlos Marun, the secretary of government, told the press on Saturday that "we are convinced there is a lockout. The federal police has opened investigations to verify these suspicions. The suspected executives will be interrogated. The police has already issued arrest warrants and is awaiting judicial approval."

A lockout takes place when business owners use their employees' demands to serve their own commercial interests.

The truckers are staging a massive protest to demand a drop in the price of fuel and their blockades have frozen much of the country. In Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and other major cities, supermarkets reported being without food and pharmacies were running out of medicine.

On Saturday, the police reported that at least 544 blockade points had been broken up while 596 blockades remained, "they are mostly partial and do not stop the freedom of movement."

Marun said the government had already begun to apply fines of 100,000 reais (around 27,300 U.S. dollars) per hour to the owners of transport companies if their trucks do not return to work.

The government vowed to remove one of the taxes on the sale of diesel fuel, while national oil company Petrobras vowed to reduce the price of diesel by 10 percent at refineries within 15 days.

However, the Association of Brazilian Truck Drivers rejected these moves as insufficient.
VIENTIANE, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The Lao government will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with four construction companies from Laos and China to carry out a survey, feasibility study and detailed design of the Vientiane-Pakxe Expressway.

According to Vientiane Times online newspaper on Sunday, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport will sign the MOU on behalf of the Lao government, the coordinator of the expressway project Bounyavath Nilaxay told local media on Friday.

The companies are scheduled to begin work this year and will spend one year on the assignments after signing contracts with the ministry.

The participating companies are Phousy Construction and Development Public Company, Douangchaleun Development Group, China Yunnan Sunny Road and Bridge Company and the China Road and Bridge Cooperation Company.

The 585-km expressway from the Lao capital Vientiane to southern Champassak province will have four lanes, with a total carriageway width of 23 meters.

Bounyavath said the project will be under the Build-Operate-Transfer model.

The road will be built to specifications laid down under Asean Expressway Standard Grade 1 and will be able to carry loads of up to 11 tonnes per axle.

The Lao government believes the expressway will help the nation connect with the region, with the aim of turning the land-locked country into a transport hub.

At present it takes about 10 hours by car to travel from Vientiane to Pakxe. When the expressway is built, travel time could be reduced to less than seven hours.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 11:24:48|Editor: Yamei

Video Player Close

South Korean President Moon Jae-in delivers a nationally televised speech at the Blue House in Seoul May 27, 2018. Moon said on Sunday that top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump both wished the success of their summit "wholeheartedly." Moon met with Kim on Saturday at the border village of Panmunjom and with Trump in Washington earlier this week. (Xinhua/Newsis)

SEOUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Sunday confirmed the willingness of Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), and U.S. President Donald Trump to hold the first-ever historic DPRK-U.S. summit as scheduled.

Moon delivered a nationally televised address at the presidential complex, saying both Kim and Trump wished the success of their summit originally scheduled for June 12 in Singapore "wholeheartedly."

The confirmation came after Moon held a surprise summit Saturday with Kim on the DPRK side of the border village of Panmunjom. Moon met with Trump in Washington on May 22 to discuss the DPRK-U.S. summit.

The South Korean leader said he met with Kim for the second time in a month following the third inter-Korean summit on the South Korean side of Panmunjom on April 27. The second meeting between Moon and Kim was held at the request of the DPRK leader.

At the April 27 summit, Moon and Kim promised to meet at any time, in any place and in no format, if necessary, to discuss significant issues between the two Koreas.

Kim had delivered his intent Friday afternoon to meet with Moon in no format, which the South Korean president willingly accepted.

Moon spoke highly his second meeting with Kim, which the South Korean leader likened to a daily round between old friends. He said the two Koreas should meet as it was.

During the Saturday meeting, Moon explained to Kim about the outcome of his summit with Trump in Washington earlier this week, conveying Trump's firm will to end hostile relations with the DPRK and build economic cooperation if Kim fulfills complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

Moon told Kim that Pyongyang and Washington should dispel possible misunderstandings via direct dialogues and have sufficient working-level talks over agenda that needs to be agreed upon at the Kim-Trump summit as both Kim and Trump wholeheartedly wished the success of the DPRK-U.S. summit.

Kim agreed to the need for what Moon told him, the South Korean president noted.

The DPRK leader made clear his commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula at the Saturday meeting, expressing his willingness to end the history of war and conflicts, and cooperate for peace and prosperity via a successful DPRK-U.S. summit.

Moon and Kim wished the June 12 DPRK-U.S. summit could be held as scheduled and the journey of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula and building permanent peace should never be stopped. The leaders agreed to closely cooperate to achieve it.

To rapidly enforce the Panmunjom Declaration, which Moon and Kim announced after the April 27 summit, the two sides agreed to resume high-level inter-Korean dialogue on June 1, which had been cancelled at the last minute.

It will be followed by inter-Korean military talks to ease military tensions and a Red Cross talks to hold the reunion of separated families across the inter-Korean border since the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, according to the South Korean president who took office in May last year.

Moon and Kim also agreed to meet and communicate, if necessary, at any time and in no format, Moon said.

The inter-Korean talks between high-level officials were originally held last week, but Pyongyang made a pre-dawn cancellation citing the joint annual South Korea-U.S. air combat exercises, codenamed Max Thunder that ended on Friday.

In a publicized letter to the DPRK leader, Trump cancelled the DPRK-U.S. summit on Thursday, citing "tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed in recent DPRK statements.

Following the cancellation, the DPRK said it was ready to sit down with the United States, and then Trump said the U.S.-DPRK summit likely remained as scheduled.

Moon said in the speech that the DPRK showed its determination by dismantling its nuclear test site and stopping nuclear and missile tests, calling it a completely new start toward complete denuclearization and permanent peace on the peninsula.

Pyongyang invited journalists earlier this week to let them cover the dismantlement of the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, where all of its six nuclear tests were conducted.
CANBERRA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Record numbers of Australian parents with outstanding child support debts are being stopped from travelling overseas, with more than one parent a day being prevented from boarding planes or ships until they pay.

Under the Australian law, both parents in a divorce settlement are expected to contribute to the financial support of their children. The child support payment amounts are decided by the courts.

Human Services Minister Michael Keenan, on Sunday highlighted the increasing problem of "deadbeat" parents in Australia, a term given to those parents who deliberately ignored court orders and refused to pay for support of their children who were often living with their former partners.

Keenan said many of those parents stopped at airports and sea ports were able to immediately pay their debts, which he said showed they had the means to support their children but were choosing not to.

After being stopped at an airport last year, one parent paid 266,000 U.S. dollars in a single payment. Another parent paid 42,000 U.S. dollars on the spot, while, in a separate case, a parent who had been residing overseas and returned briefly to Australia paid 21,000 U.S. dollars in a lump-sum.

"If a parent can afford to take an overseas holiday ... they can and should be made to pay what they owe," Keenan said in a statement on Sunday. "The welfare of their children should be their first priority, not getting a tan on a beach in Bali."

In the first 10 months of this financial year, 358 people were stopped at the point of departure and given a choice to pay the outstanding child support or cancel their travel plans, surpassing the previous full-year record.

Those 358 parents repaid 7.9 million U.S. dollars in child maintenance, eclipsing the record of 7.5 million U.S. dollars repaid by 333 people last financial year.

Under a joint operation between Australia's Child Support Agency and Border Force, parents who owe their former partners and children support can be prevented from travelling overseas until they pay up.

Keenan said many of those stopped had repeatedly ignored attempts by the Department of Human Services to help them pay through voluntarily repayment plans.

"This is money first of all that you owe your own children, and we believe that should be your priority, quite frankly, rather than travelling overseas," he told Sky News.

"Now if you have a debt that you owe to your own family and we catch you trying to leave Australia, then we will stop you from leaving until you pay that debt in full, and quite frankly I think that's appropriate, because these debts are incurred by people for the support of their own children, and that is a pretty important responsibility and obligation that you have as a parent."

"It's only one thing that we do, of course, it's only one weapon in our arsenal, but it has proved to be very effective."

"We've actually had somebody pay 350,000 dollars on the spot, which shows you that it's not an issue of capacity to pay, it's just an issue of refusing to fulfil your obligations to your own family."

When a parent is stopped and pays the outstanding child support, the money goes to the department and it is then transferred to the parent who is entitled to receive the funds.

Most of those stopped were trying to leave New South Wales. Figures for the first nine months of the current financial year showed 89 parents were stopped trying to leave that state, compared with 69 in Queensland, 51 in Victoria, 50 in Western Australia and 11 in South Australia.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 11:49:52|Editor: Yamei

Video Player Close

WASHINGTON, May 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is looking at the Singapore summit with Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), on June 12.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed," Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that talks were progressing well.

"We're doing very well in terms of the summit. It's moving along very nicely," he said.

Trump canceled the scheduled meeting on Thursday, saying that it will not happen "based on the tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed in the DPRK's most recent statements.

However, he reversed course just one day after the announcement. Both sides wanted the meeting to happen and it could still go ahead after productive talks, he said.

Just hours earlier, the DPRK's official Korean Central News Agency said Kim expressed his "fixed will" to hold the summit when meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in Saturday at the truce village Panmunjom.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 11:49:53|Editor: Yamei

Video Player Close

MINSK, May 27 (Xinhua) -- In the eastern suburb of Minsk, capital city of Belarus, stands the China-Belarus industrial park, the largest foreign investment project in the country and an important cooperation project between China and Belarus under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Located right at the juncture between the Eurasian Customs Union and the European Union, Belarus -- the China-Belarus industrial park in particular -- is ready to forge a closer link between the two vigorous markets.

As of now, the rapidly developing industrial park, named Great Stone, is home to 34 resident enterprises, of which 18 are from China. Notable Chinese companies include diesel engine manufacturer Weichai Co., Ltd, telecommunications giant Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd, China Merchant Group Ltd (CMG), among others.

The 34 enterprises so far represent eight countries, China, Belarus, Russia, the United States, Germany, Austria, Lithuania and Israel, making the park a multinational business hub.

Buoyed by the support of the governments of China and Belarus, infrastructure facilities covering 3.5 square km of the park's first phase have been completed, and supporting facilities for the whole of the 8.5-square-km first phase are being built.

The largest project inside the park to date, in terms of construction and investment, is the China-Belarus trade and logistics subpark, whose first phase, in which CMG has invested 141 million U.S. dollars, covers a total area of 100,000 square meters.

The subpark has already signed contracts with European supermarkets to provide storage and logistics services for them. While speeding up the establishment of a bonded logistics area within the industrial park, CMG is also planning to cooperate with Germany's Duisburger Hafen AG to construct a railway directly linking the park with the China-Europe rail lines, which are providing freight services to meet the ever increasing demands of both sides.

Transportation of China Railway Express via Belarus has been growing rapidly. In 2017, over 2,700 freight trains traveled from China to Europe via Belarus.

"We plan to increase this number to 5,000 a year by 2020. This will create an opportunity for Belarus to expand (the) export of milk, beef, chicken and other foods to China," Belarusian Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua recently.

According to Hu Zheng, board member of CMG and the group's chief representative in Central Asia and the Baltic region, since becoming a stakeholder of the industrial park's development company, CMG has put forward the vision of a comprehensive logistics system encompassing roads, air routes, railways and sea transportation, with the industrial park being a base.

This comprehensive system, Hu added, is expected to open a grand logistics pathway from the Pacific Ocean to the Baltic Sea, making the China-Belarus industrial park one of the distribution centers for goods in Central Asia and Europe.

"An important content of CMG's involvement in the Belt and Road Initiative is to combine the specific advantages of individual enterprises with the development needs of the countries along the Belt and Road," Hu said.

Weichai began constructing its factory in the park a month ago, with the first batch of diesel engines expected to be built by the end of the year. In addition, other projects by Chinese enterprises involving such sectors as unmanned vehicles, drones and architectural designs are busy preparing for operations as well.

Given the industrial park's adjacency to the Minsk National Airport -- the international aviation hub of Belarus -- high-tech products produced here can be easily delivered to consumers in the Eurasian Customs Union as well as the European Union.

Belarus views the industrial park as a strategic project that gives hope for the country's future economic development, giving it an unprecedented preferential tax policy.

"For us, the park represents the future direction of the development of the Belarusian economy. It will contribute to the economic growth of our country and boost its export potential," Kobyakov said.

The goal of the China-Belarus industrial park is to build an international industrial hub as well as an eco-friendly industrial city, said Hu.

It is foreseeable that such an important project will be a platform for Chinese enterprises to seek overseas cooperation under the framework the Belt and Road Initiative, he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 11:54:54|Editor: Yamei

Video Player Close

HELSINKI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The latest U.S. move to start an investigation into the automobile imports under the Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act was against the spirit of free trade, said an American professor.

In an interview with Xinhua over the weekend, Carl Fey, professor of International Business at Aalto University in Helsinki, Finland and visiting professor at Chinese University of Hong Kong, said "clearly such a move is not in the spirit of free trade."

Fey said many leading U.S. companies were against the tariffs. "Leaders of American companies such as Apple, Best Buy, and General Electric and many others spoke out against the proposed tariffs."

As a large portion of the auto products in the U.S. market comes from Japan and Europe, the planned investigation fueled the international anger, which was caused by earlier decision to increase tax on imports of steel and aluminum products.

Elaborating on the attempt to raise tariffs on steel and aluminum products, Fey said there is a temptation to think it will help U.S. aluminum companies, but this view forgets that someone has to pay for those tariffs and that will among other people be the U.S. consumer.

Aluminum is used in many other products which are made in the United States and thus these products become more expensive and less competitive internationally resulting in the U.S. selling fewer such products.

"Probably most importantly countries will not buy from us as much as they could," he explained.

Historically, the United States has been the leader in pushing for a liberal trade policy globally and has been in favor of multilateral trade agreements. "I hope the Trump administration will return to these important principles moving forward."

If the United States had used the national security as the justification for raising tariffs, other countries would do the same, Fey foresaw. "It would be a slippery slope," he said.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had asked for an investigation into automobile imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act from 1962, which would allow the U.S. administration to impose tariffs on the grounds of national security.

It will look into imports of automobiles, including sport-utility vehicles, vans and light trucks, and automotive parts, said the Commerce Department statement.

European Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen said on Thursday that the action was "difficult to understand."
TRIPOLI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Head of the Libyan Higher Council of State Khaled al-Meshri said on Saturday that General Khalifa Haftar, commander of the eastern-based army, should not be included in a meeting in Paris on Libya as he is "not a party of the political agreement."

Al-Meshri made his remarks during a meeting with Dutch Ambassador to Libya Eric Strating in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

"I received an invitation from the French president to attend a meeting on Libya in Paris," said Al-Meshri.

"I informed the French side of the position on this matter that the elections would be successful in the event of a referendum on the constitution, because elections without a constitution means entering into a fourth transitional phase," he added.

Last week, the French Foreign Ministry extended an initiative to the parties of the UN-sponsored political agreement to hold a meeting in Paris to discuss a French plan to end the Libyan political crisis.

"The meeting of Paris should be between the parties in the Libyan political agreement. Hafter is not a party of the political agreement and does not recognize it," said Al-Meshri.

"The dialogue is supposed to be confined to three parties: the Higher Council of State, the House of Representatives, and the Presidential Council," he added.

General Khalifa Haftar on several occasions rejected the political agreement, stressing the need for the Libyan people to support the army in its fight against terrorism.

Despite signing the political agreement by the Libyan rivals in December 2015 and appointment of the UN-backed unity government, Libya remains politically divided between authorities in the east and the west.

UN Envoy to Libya Ghassan Salame last year proposed an action plan for Libya that includes amendment of the political agreement and holding presidential and parliamentary elections before the end of 2018.

In a recent briefing to the UN Security Council, Salame urged relevant parties to focus on holding the upcoming elections.
19 IS militants killed in eastern Afghan airstrikes: gov't Source: Xinhua 2018-05-27 12:55:03 KABUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least 19 militants, including two commanders, of the Islamic State (IS) militant group were killed in airstrikes targeting their hideouts in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar, the Defense Ministry said Sunday. Editor: Yamei Related News Back to Top
KABUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least 19 militants, including two commanders, of the Islamic State (IS) militant group were killed in airstrikes targeting their hideouts in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar, the Defense Ministry said Sunday.

"The strikes were conducted in Haska Mina district on Saturday, killing 19 Daesh or Islamic State militants," the ministry said in a statement.

Among those killed militants were two IS divisional commanders named Qari Esrar and Mullah Hasghar, the statement said.

However, the statement did not say whether the air raid was launched by the Afghan air force or NATO and U.S.-led coalition forces.

The mountainous province, 120 km east of Kabul, has been the scene of clashes between the Afghan security forces and IS militants.

The clashes have forced thousands of villagers to flee to safer places.

The IS group, which emerged in Nangarhar in early 2015, has yet to make comments on the report.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 13:15:07|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

LANZHOU, May 27 (Xinhua ) -- Heavy ion medical accelerators developed by Chinese researchers entered clinical testing for cancer patients in northwest China's Gansu Province this month, researchers said.

Cancer radiation treatments employing heavy-ion accelerators can bombard a target with high-energy electrons to kill cancer cells.

Xiao Guoqing, head of the Institute of Modern Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said it is widely considered the most effective way of fighting tumors.

Compared to traditional therapy such as radiation, heavy ion treatment is considered to have more balanced properties with less radiation on healthy cells. The treatment period is shorter and the therapy could more effectively control cancer cells.

The institute, based in Lanzhou, capital of northwest China's Gansu Province, developed the accelerators in 2015. It took two years for the accelerators to undergo medical equipment testing. Registration and testing were completed in April this year and clinical tests began.

Currently, the institute has produced two sets of the cancer treatment equipment, one each in Lanzhou and Wuwei City, which has a high rate of stomach cancer.

Patients were selected from Gansu Provincial Cancer Hospital and Wuwei Cancer Hospital. Testing is under way for cancer treatment for the head, neck, chest, abdomen, pelvis and limbs.

In order to ensure the safety of the tests, 36 leading doctors in cancer treatment were assigned to oversee the tests.

Xiao said the domestically developed equipment marks the end of China's dependence on imports. The institute started basic research into the technology in 1993.

Currently very few hospitals in China offer heavy ion cancer treatment in China. Shanghai Proton and Heavy Ion Center uses imported equipment from Germany for cancer treatment. There is a long wait for the treatment at the Shanghai hospital.

A report published by the National Cancer Center in 2017 showed that China has nearly 25 percent of the world's new cancer cases, with 10,000 cancer patients added per day. Every year, there are two million cancer-induced deaths. Lung, breast and stomach cancers are the most common types.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 13:20:08|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Cash dividends paid by Chinese listed firms exceeded one trillion yuan for the first time as regulators continued to urge listed firms to reward investors.

Some 2,754 listed firms on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses proposed cash dividends of 1.07 trillion yuan (about 167.3 billion U.S. dollars) in 2017, up 21.88 percent from that in 2016, according to data from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).

CSRC said there has been improvement in dividend payments by listed firms, with cash dividends paid by non-financial companies surpassing 600 billion yuan, or one-third of their combined net profits.

CSRC has encouraged listed firms to offer more yields to investors in the stock market, where dividend payouts were previously infrequent, and vowed to punish the stingy "iron roosters," a phrase taken from a Chinese term to describe a miserly person.

As of the end of 2017, the country had 3,485 listed firms, with their total market value exceeding 57 trillion yuan.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 13:25:10|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China will soon establish its first industrial base for the development of two-dimensional barcodes, or QR codes, as companies rush to tap opportunities created by the widespread technology.

The China Electronics Chamber of Commerce (CECC) has signed agreements with Lianhuashan eco-tourism resort and the northeastern branch of Beijing E-hualu Information Technology Company to build the project in Changchun, capital city of northeast China's Jilin Province.

With total investment of 3 billion yuan (around 470 million U.S. dollars), the project will contain a blue-ray storage data center, a scientific research area, an experience zone, and an incubator.

From mobile payment to shared bikes and messaging apps, QR codes are widely used in China and have made everyday life more convenient.

The industrial complex will focus on standardization, sales, R&D and QR code services, and it will help promote China's domestic system globally, said Zhang Chao, executive director of the China Registration & Certification Center of Two-dimensional Code, which plans to build similar bases across the country.

The center is a third-party public institution established by the CECC and the China Quality Certification Center.
ABC News(WASHINGTON) -- Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he is convinced that North Korea will not give up its nuclear program and that its release of U.S. prisoners and other gestures are "a show."



Rubio told ABC News Chief Global Affairs Correspondent and This Week Co-Anchor Martha Raddatz on Sunday that the U.S. will have to make a decision about whether it can live with North Korea's having nuclear weapons that could put America at risk.



Rubio said he remains "convinced" that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un "will not denuclearize, but he wants to give off this perception that he's this open leader, that he's peaceful, that he's reasonable."



Its all a show," Rubio said, adding that Kim "released three Americans that were innocently there, blew up a facility that was probably already damaged."



Raddatz asked the Florida senator about a recent tweet about the North Korean leader in which he said the U.S.'s options to deal with him are narrowing.



Rubio responded, If you don't think you're ever going to be able to reach a deal where he gives up his missiles and gives up his nukes, then you're going to have to make a decision, which is where we've been the whole time, and that is, 'Are you prepared to live in a world where someone like him possesses not just nuclear weapons, but the ability to hit the mainland of the United States?' And, if you're not, then you're going to have to do something to go after them at some point."



On President Trumps strategy for summit talks, Rubio gave the president credit for keeping North Korea off-balance.



I give the president credit for that, but ultimately, theres got to be a deal, Rubio said. That is a very difficult thing to accomplish with a country in North Korea that has no history of diplomacy, no history of negotiations, and no one around thats ever done this before.



Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
by Prithvi Shrestha

KATHMANDU, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Nepali industrialists have expected a surge in foreign direct investment (FDI) in Nepal in the coming days as the country is heading toward political stability after recent national elections.

After 16 years, the ruling party has had the absolute majority in the parliament which will contribute to the political stability in Nepal. The country is load-shedding free now after suffering power cuts up to 18 hours a day until a few years ago and industries are running in largely peaceful environment due to improved labor relations.

Nepal has also introduced new Industrial Enterprise Act, the Special Economic Zone Act and the Foreign Investment Policy, seeking to create more friendly investment environment.

Besides, the policies and programs of the Nepali government presented at the parliament by Nepali President Bidya Devi Bhandari on May 21 aims to achieve a double digit growth in the next five years from current 5.9 percent by attracting investment in the areas of agriculture, energy, transport, physical infrastructure, information technology, tourism and civil aviation. which are termed as the key areas driving economic growth in the country.

Nepali industrialists said these factors have made Nepal's business climate favorable for investment although there are issues related to good governance and corruption.

Hari Bhakta Sharma, president of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), a group of large and medium scale industries, told Xinhua on Saturday that Nepal's current investment climate should be considered the best in recent years.

"I think foreign investors will seize this opportunity," he said.

Sharma said that he sees the prospect of increased foreign investment in general and from China in particular.

"China has resources, technology and experiences to develop big infrastructure projects such as railways and hydropower projects," he said.

China has contributed around 58 percent of FDI commitment out of the total 137.30 million U.S. dollar pledged by foreign investors during the first half of current fiscal year that began in mid-July 2017, according to Nepal's Department of Industry.

Kishore Kumar Pradhan, vice president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), the apex private sector body of Nepal, also told Xinhua that the government's policies and programs have offered opportunities for foreign investors in various areas particularly the infrastructure sector.

"We have not seen much foreign investment in the infrastructure sector except in hydropower sector," he said.

With two international airports under construction, the country is expected to witness a surge in tourist arrivals which, in turn, requires more investment on tourism infrastructure.

Former FNCCI President Pashupati Murarka told Xinhua that Nepal is in urgent need for governance reforms after the situation has been improved in the areas of politics, power availability and labor relations.

"The government must be able to ensure that the rule of law prevails so as to attract large-scale foreign investment in the country which is necessary to achieve economic prosperity," he said.

He also stressed on settling the issue of taxation to be imposed by the central, provincial and local governments. "Multiple taxations must be avoided if we have to attract more investment either from within the country or outside," he added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 13:50:15|Editor: Yurou

Video Player Close

TRIPOLI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Violent battles in Libya's eastern city of Darna killed two Libyan army soldiers and four militants on Saturday, as the army progresses towards taking over the city.

"Our forces have made significant progress in Al-Fata'eh heights east of Darna. Our forces are now very close to controlling those heights after violent battles since earlier in the morning until later at night," an officer in the army's Darna operation chamber told Xinhua later on Saturday.

"Two of our soldiers from the Tobruk military zone were killed, and we killed four terrorists," said the officer, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

"From a strategic point of view, controlling those heights means that we will be occupying a large part of Darna. Thus, we would be able to maneuver in the remaining military operations," he said.

Maria Ribeiro, humanitarian coordinator of the UN Support Mission in Libya, on Thursday called on the army to allow humanitarian aid to enter Darna.

The army is launching a military operation to take over Darna from the militants who control the coastal city.

The fighting has so far killed 30 army soldiers and wounded more than 40 others, according to medical and military sources.

Since 2015, Darna has been besieged by the army, which demands the Shura Council of the Mujahideen in Darna, a coalition of Islamist militias, leave the city. The army accuses the armed group of being loyal to al-Qaida.
HOUSTON, May 26 (Xinhua) -- A month-long photography exhibition featuring life moments of the Chinese community in Houston has kicked off.

With the theme of "Let the time stand still, let the stories never end, and let the memories last forever," the exhibition was unveiled at the Talent Academy in Sugar Land on Saturday.

The exhibition showcased 105 photos taken by Jia Zhong, an American-Chinese photographer, to highlight the desire of "building a harmonious Chinese community overseas."

During the past 10 years living in Houston, Jia has paid special attention to the Chinese community and has captured vivid moments of their lives, from cheering on the World Expo in Shanghai and supporting the Winter Olympics in Beijing to various of large-scale art performances and annual community gatherings.

Chinese Consul General in Houston Li Qiangmin attended the opening ceremony. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and U.S. Congressman Al Green sent their congratulations to the event.

Sponsored by several local Chinese groups, the exhibition will be later on display at the Panorama Art Academy and the Huaxia Chinese School.

Jia has been engaged in photography for over 30 years. As a member of several photography associations in both China and the United States, Jia has travelled throughout China and across the world to take photos featuring scenery and folklore.
WASHINGTON, May 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is looking at the Singapore summit with Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), on June 12.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed," Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that talks over the meeting were progressing well.

"We're doing very well in terms of the summit. It's moving along very nicely," he said.

There is "a lot of goodwill," the White House host said.

Trump canceled the scheduled meeting on Thursday, saying that it will not happen "based on the tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed in the DPRK's most recent statements.

However, he reversed course just one day after the announcement. Both sides wanted the meeting to happen and it could still go ahead after productive talks, he said.

A White House spokeswoman said on Saturday that a White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the Trump-Kim talks.

Just hours earlier, the DPRK's official Korean Central News Agency said Kim expressed his "fixed will" to hold the summit when meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in Saturday at the truce village Panmunjom.

During the second meeting within a month on the northern side of the demarcation line of Panmunjom, Kim promised to further push forward the peace process on the Korean Peninsula by working for the goal of denuclearization and improving inter-Korean ties.

Pyongyang suspended the high-level talks with South Korea on May 16 in view of recent provocative acts such as the joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea.
LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least two Afghan army soldiers were killed and four others injured after a suicide car bombing rocked an army camp in the country's southern province of Helmand Sunday, a local official said.

"The incident occurred early morning in Hajji Shirin area of Nad Ali district. The blast also damaged parts of the military camp," the official who declined to be named told Xinhua.

The Afghan security forces have cordoned off the area for precautionary measures.

Further details about the incident are still forthcoming amid the absence of any official statement.

The Taliban militant group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Zabiullah Mujahid, a purported Taliban spokesman, tweeted that a Taliban fighter launched a truck bombing against a joint Afghan security forces' compound in Nad Ali, leaving huge casualties among the Afghan army and police forces.

Helmand, notorious for poppy growing, is also a known Taliban stronghold.

The Afghan security forces have seen rising casualties since the beginning of 2015 when Afghan soldiers and police assumed full responsibilities of security from the U.S. and NATO troops.
HOUSTON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- More than 30 children, some of whom are adopted from China, and their American parents gathered in the residence of Chinese Consul General in Houston Li Qiangmin on Saturday to celebrate the upcoming International Children's Day.

On the eve of International Children's Day, which falls on June 1, Li delivered a speech, extending greetings to all the American families and their children. He praised the American families for giving love to the Chinese children and enabling them to live a happy life.

"Many of you braved difficulties in early childhood and are living a happy life with your American parents," he said.

Enjoying a film about China, performances given by the children of Chinese diplomats and authentic Chinese food, the American families experienced Chinese culture with their beloved ones.

"In a world of globalization, culture is an identity of a nation. With rich cultural heritage, Chinese people carry forward and develop the traditional Chinese virtues. At the same time we are open to new ideas and new things," Li said.

Marjorie Reichard and her husband adopted two Chinese girls, Madeline and Olivia, who are seven and five respectively. Reichard said she planned to take the two girls to China for a heritage trip when they are older.

"We have done a lot of different things to help them understand what their roots are like. If you ask them where are they from, they would say China, they were born in China," she told Xinhua.

According to figures provided by the U.S. Department of State, U.S. families adopted about 80,000 Chinese children from 1999 to 2017.
KATHMANDU, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Over 400 people including locals and foreigners participated in the 30th Annual Rafting Festival 2018 held in Nepal on Saturday.

The annual adventurous water carnival was organized by the Nepal Association of Rafting Agencies (NARA), an umbrella organization of rafting agencies, under the theme "Let's Protect our Rivers for Tourism and Environment."

As part of the event, white water rafting was organized in Benighat-Phisling section of Trishuli River, some 40 km away from the capital city.

"Being enriched with water resources, Nepal has a huge prospect for water adventures. Thus, through this event, we aim to promote water adventure rafting which highly contributes to the country's tourism," Shiva Adhikari, general secretary of NARA, told Xinhua.

The water fiesta also aimed to raise awareness on the need of preserving and protecting the rivers for environmental conservation and tourism development.

Sujata Bhattarai, a health professional who participated in the event, told Xinhua "It was my first time and I enjoyed paddling along with the water waves. It's an amazing experience".

Nepal has some 6,000 big and small rivers of which the government permits rafting in 16 big rivers including Trishuli, Bhotekoshi, Sunkoshi, Karnali and Kali Gandaki, among others.

According to NARA, Nepal can be established as the best destination of adventurous water tourism. Besides rafting, the country also offers water activities like cannoning, kayaking and stand-up paddle, among others.

There are around 65 rafting agencies in Nepal and nearly 1,500 guides are involved in this sector.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 14:57:15|Editor: zh

Video Player Close

A dressed up pet dog is seen on stage during the fashion show of the 2018 Woofstock at Woodbine Park in Toronto, Canada, May 26, 2018. With tens of thousands of dog lovers and visitors, the North America's largest outdoor festival for dogs celebrated its 15th year on Saturday and Sunday. (Xinhua/Zou Zheng)
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 14:55:32|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

ST. PETERSBURG, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan wrapped up a productive trip here on Sunday after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and addressing a plenary session of the 22nd St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).

During his stay in Russia's "northern capital," he reaffirmed China's readiness to strengthen cooperation with Russia, called for a global effort against trade protectionism, and suggested that all countries build mutual trust and join hands for common development.

CHINA-RUSSIA PARTNERSHIP

Wang met with Putin on Thursday shortly after arriving in St. Petersburg in his first overseas trip as vice president. The two sides agreed to further boost bilateral cooperation for the benefit of both countries and the world.

In their meeting, Wang conveyed to Putin Chinese President Xi Jinping's sincere greetings and best wishes, saying that Xi attaches great importance to China-Russia ties and cherishes his friendship with Putin.

The Chinese president, added Wang, looks forward to meeting Putin again to jointly chart the future course of bilateral relations as well as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which is scheduled to hold this year's summit in June in China.

The heads of state of the two countries have made painstaking efforts for and injected robust energy into bilateral cooperation, continuously steering the China-Russia relationship forward, said Wang.

He pointed out that the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination is of great significance not only to the two countries themselves but to the world at large.

The two neighbors, he said, respect each other, trust each other, cooperate on the basis of equality, and enjoy mutual understanding and support on major international affairs.

In so doing, they have set a model of major-country relations in the current world and made great contribution to safeguarding global strategic stability and building a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for mankind, added Wang.

The Chinese vice president stressed that it is a choice both of history and of the people that China and Russia steadfastly pursue development paths that suit their respective national realities.

Now the Chinese people, under Xi's leadership, are vigorously pushing forward the building of a socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era, said Wang, adding that China's development is making rapid and remarkable progress.

Meanwhile, the Chinese side firmly believes that under Putin's leadership, Russia will grow stronger and more prosperous, said the vice president.

China, he added, resolutely supports Russia's development, and stands ready to carry out strategic and long-term cooperation with Russia, lift the level and quality of bilateral practical cooperation more swiftly, and achieve a deeper integration of interests, so as to bring more benefits to the two nations.

Putin, for his part, asked Wang to convey his sincere greetings and best wishes to the Chinese president, saying he is confident that Xi will lead the Chinese people to new achievements in China's development.

The Russian leader added that he is looking forward to visiting China and meeting Xi again.

Russia-China ties continue to develop at a high level, he said, noting that political mutual trust is deepening, bilateral practical cooperation is strengthening, the structure of economic and trade relations is witnessing a sizable improvement, cooperation on large projects is speeding up, and exchanges and cooperation in people-to-people areas and at the local level are gathering steam.

Meanwhile, it serves as an important stabilizer in the world that the two countries maintain close communication and coordination as well as mutual support on major regional and global issues, said Putin.

The Russian side, he added, is willing to work with China to further deepen all-around cooperation, cement mutual understanding and support on international affairs, and keep lifting the two countries' comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination to a higher level.

GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT

Addressing a plenary session of SPIEF 2018 on Friday, Wang urged countries around the world to build trust and boost cooperation in order to tackle international challenges and cement the foundation for sustainable global growth.

Pointing out that no single country can cope with today's challenges alone, Wang said building a trust economy that features equality, mutual trust, mutual benefit, inclusiveness and good faith between enterprises, markets and countries is an effective way to unleash the potential of global growth.

Building trust needs mutual understanding and mutual respect, and it also needs all parties to discover and solve their own problems and consolidate their self-confidence, he said at the event, whose key theme was "Building a Trust Economy."

The Chinese vice president stressed that politicizing economic and trade issues and picking up the stick of economic sanctions at the slightest provocations will gravely impair market certainty.

No country should blame its own problems on others, and all countries should pursue development paths that suit their own realities and strive for common development through opening up and cooperation, Wang said.

He suggested that countries around the world join forces to chart the course forward with structural economic reforms and innovative development.

He also called for global unity in resisting trade protectionism and safeguarding the stable international economic order, particularly the authority of the multilateral trading regime.

Economic and trade disputes should be handled properly through communication and consultation, and different parties need to take care of each others' major concerns, Wang added.

China, he said, is forging ahead under Xi's leadership toward the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation and will steadfastly stick to an opening-up policy that offers mutual benefits.

Other countries, he added, are welcome to take part in China's economic development, share its market opportunities, and participate in the Belt and Road Initiative, which has now become a new platform for international cooperation.

Hailing Russia as a constructive player in global economic governance, Wang said China highly appreciates the socioeconomic achievements Russia has made under Putin's leadership and firmly believes that Russia will realize its development goals over the next six years.

He added that with annual bilateral trade approaching 100 billion U.S. dollars, China stands ready to work with Russia to deepen their all-around cooperation, strengthen their comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination, and make new contribution to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Launched in 1997, SPIEF has become one of the leading platforms for global brainstorming on key economic issues facing Russia and the world as a whole, and is now often referred to as Russia's Davos.

Besides Wang, this year's event was also attended by Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde.

Before leaving for Minsk to continue his two-nation trip, Wang also met with Igor Sechin, CEO of leading Russian oil company Rosneft, and Dmitry Mezentsev, chairman of the Russia-China Friendship Association, among other Russian dignitaries, and inspected the Pearl of the Baltic Sea project, China's largest non-energy investment undertaking in Russia.
MANILA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is planning to run for mayor again when his six-year presidential term ends in 2022.

Duterte, 73, was the mayor of his home city Davao in the southern Philippines for 23 years before he ran for president in 2016.

Two years into office, Duterte is not yet thinking of retirement.

At an inauguration of a bridge in Davao City this week, Duterte wondered aloud about the possibility of serving his home city as mayor.

"If I don't have a job anymore I might run for the mayor here again," he told the audience.

"(I am) very near the end of the road. So, I'like to thank you again for supporting me, for helping me. Most of you are really my supporters," he added.

Duterte is the first president to hail from Mindanao in the southern Philippines.

He became the Davao City mayor in 1988, and was reelected six times after forging a reputation for being tough on crime.

He won the presidency by a landslide in the 2016 presidential election. His daughter, Sara Duterte-Carpio, is currently the mayor of Davao City.

Seeking for another government position is not uncommon in the Philippines.

Former President Gloria Arroyo ran for a seat in the House of Representatives when her presidential term ended in 2010.

Arroyo replaced ousted President Joseph Estrada in 2001. She ran in the 2004 presidential elections and won another six-year term. She is now a member of the House of Representatives.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 15:41:19|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

Junusbekova Meruyert from Kazakhstan sings with her classmates at the China University of Petroleum in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, May 3, 2018. Meruyert, 22, is a native of Almaty, and majors in petroleum engineering at the China University of Petroleum, but she dreams of opening a support center in Kazakhstan to help those who hope to study in China. Meruyert spent a year learning Chinese at Shandong University of Technology in Weifang before moving to Qingdao, but it was still difficult at first for her to understand courses such as physics and chemistry. She worked hard, improved her language skills and passed all her exams. She even took a Chinese name, "Zhenzhu" (Pearl) and has traveled all over China, mostly by high-speed train. Besides traveling, she practices Peking Opera and writes short stories in Russian during her spare time. In about two months, she will leave Qingdao for Kazakhstan when she completes her thesis. "I know the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit is to be held in Qingdao in June and feel closer to realizing my own dream," said Meruyert. (Xinhua/Guo Xulei)
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 15:35:45|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China is willing to cooperate with other countries to reduce health injustice and achieve better health services for everyone, Ma Xiaowei, minister of China's National Health Commission, has told the just-concluded 71st World Health Assembly (WHA).

China has attached great importance to cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) to take an active part in global health governance and contribute Chinese wisdom so that everyone has access to healthcare.

FROM BAREFOOT DOCTORS TO HEALTHY CHINA 2030

In the 1960s, when the general public in China, especially farmers, lacked basic medical insurance, barefoot doctors cured diseases for billions of farmers.

This inspired the WHO conference in Kazakhstan in 1978 to call on local communities to help decide healthcare priorities, call for an emphasis on primary and preventive healthcare, and seek to link medicine with trade, economics and other political and social areas.

Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun, former director-general of the WHO, said China's experience in combating challenges is more useful for middle- and low-income countries than those of high-income nations.

China has made tremendous achievements in the medical and health sector and has improved the health of one-fifth of the world's population since the adoption of its reform and opening-up policy in 1978.

Over 95 percent of the Chinese population now enjoy basic medical insurance. Average life expectancy has grown from 35 years in the 1940s to 76.5 years in 2016, and the infant mortality rate declined to 0.75 percent in 2016.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he is impressed by the large scale, fast speed and high quality of China's medical health system reforms, adding that it serves as a good example for the rest of the world.

Ma said that focusing on relevant sustainable development goals, China has elevated its Healthy China initiative to a national strategy and released the Healthy China 2030 Outline for its national health progress.

Tedros said China has played a leading role in national health coverage, and the Healthy China 2030 Outline has demonstrated the government's determination to safeguard its citizens' health.

FOREIGN HEALTH ASSISTANCE

"We have more than 200 million cases of malaria a year and more than 90 percent of them are in Africa, so the focus on Africa is important," said Tedros, an Ethiopian who had specialized in malaria before taking the helm of the WHO last year.

"Working with research institutes in Africa, China has launched joint projects to adapt for use in Africa its practices in the prevention and control of malaria and schistosomiasis," Ma said, explaining that China is also a pioneer in global emergency response.

The change of the malaria situation in Comoros began in 2007, when a team of Chinese scientists introduced an anti-malaria project to the island of Moheli before extending it to Anjouan in 2012 and Grande Comore in 2013. On the three islands, it led to a 98-percent drop in malaria cases, from over 100,000 to 1,300 a year, said Chinese Ambassador to Comoros He Yanjun.

Over the years, China has continuously engaged in health assistance to other developing countries. Since 1963, China has sent medical teams to 69 developing countries, according to the official.

In 2014, China sent over 1,200 healthcare professionals and public health experts to help African nations in their response to Ebola. Ma said China is prepared to do so for the current Ebola crisis facing the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"China is playing a major leadership role in the global health agenda. It is a strong, economically powerful country with a vision to contributing to the fight against malaria and generally in the improvement of health beyond its own borders," said WHO Global Malaria Program Director Pedro Alonso.

"So we welcome the involvement of China in a leadership position, building out of its own experience, but putting also at the service of mankind, its talent, its capacity, its own products," he added.

FROM PEACE ARK TO HEALTH SILK ROAD

In 2017, the Chinese naval hospital ship Peace Ark sailed about 30,000 sea miles (about 56,000 km) along the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road for 155 days to provide medical services for people along the route.

In 2010-2015, the Peace Ark visited Asia, Africa, the Americas and Oceania. Around 120,000 people from a total of 29 countries and regions received free on-board medical and humanitarian services.

Lezi Kbamba, a 48-year-old musician, will hold another music show at the end of the month. This was something he desired, yet could not do, as he had been troubled by cloudy vision for three months due to a cataract in his right eye.

China's Brightness Action program offered him free surgeries to help him restore his eyesight. The program aims to provide free cataract surgeries to 200 patients in Namibia's capital Windhoek and the rural area of Rundu.

The Chinese government has also donated medical supplies worth 279,000 U.S. dollars to the southern African country to help with eye surgeries.

Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibe said the Belt and Road Initiative is a great initiative which helps to cope with challenges confronting the world.

The WHA, which took place from Monday to Saturday in Geneva, Switzerland, unveiled an ambitious plan on Monday aiming to benefit an overall population of 3 billion globally for the next five years with better health care and well-being.

The plan sets three strategic priorities to ensure healthy lives and promote the well-being for all at all ages -- namely, to help 1 billion more people benefit from universal health coverage, to help 1 billion more people to be better protected in health emergencies, and to help 1 billion more people enjoy better health and well-being.

"To achieve this goal, we must seize the opportunity of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative to guarantee the health of billions of people involved in the initiative," Tedros said.
WASHINGTON, May 26 (Xinhua) -- A pair of 125-year-old jeans has sold for nearly 100,000 U.S. dollars, setting a record for vintage denim, U.S. media said Saturday.

The pants, manufactured by Levi Strauss & Co., were sold by an auction house in Maine on May 15 to a buyer in Southeast Asia. Daniel Soules of the auction house said: "It's somebody who loves old Levis."

At this old age, the jeans come with a fascinating backstory. The fabric was produced by a mill in New Hampshire on the East Coast, but the pants were manufactured in San Francisco on the West Coast. The first owner of the pants was Solomon Warner, a store owner in Arizona who purchased them in 1893.

Warner had barely worn them before his death, so the jeans stayed in good condition as they were passed down in the family throughout the years, helping preserve their value.

Levis had offered to buy back the pants for 50,000 dollars.

Several features of the pants were distinctively different from today's model, such as their single back pocket, and their lack of belt loops due to the popularity of suspenders in the 19th century.

Vintage denim is a sought-after item among many collectors. A pair of 501 jeans manufactured in the 1880s sold for 60,000 dollars to a Japanese collector, Soules said, and another pair, from 1888, sold for six figures.

Analysts said that blue jeans are coveted because they have been deeply ingrained in the U.S. culture after their first appearance during the years of Western expansion.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 16:00:52|Editor: Yurou

Video Player Close

JERUSALEM, May 27 (Xinhua) -- An Israeli tank fired at a military observation post in the Gaza Strip, killing at least two people on Sunday, Israeli and Palestinian sources said.

The Israeli military said in a statement that a tank targeted a military observation post in the southern Gaza Strip. The fire was a response to an explosive device placed on Saturday near the fence separating between the besieged Palestinian enclave and Israel.

The device was detonated, the army said, adding that no injuries to Israeli soldiers were reported.

Israeli media identified the victims as militants with the Islamic Jihad, a Palestinian Islamist group.

Palestinian media reported that the artillery attack killed at least two people and injured another.

On Saturday night, Israeli fighter jets struck a compound belonging to Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs Gaza, saying the attack was a response to an infiltration attempt of four Palestinian earlier on Saturday.

The incidents were part of an escalation in the area and weekly protests against the crippling 12-year blockade, the inauguration of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, and the Israeli occupation.

At least 110 Palestinian have been killed by Israeli fire since the protests started on March 30 and thousands more were injured.
MALE, May 27 (Xinhua) -- More than half a million tourists have arrived in the Maldives in the first quarter of this year, with China being the leading market, local media reported on Sunday.

A total of 539,816 travelers arrived from January to April, which is a 12.7 percent jump from last year's 478,827 tourists who arrived during the same period.

According to statistics, a total of 87,632 Chinese travelers have visited the Maldives from January through April, which is a lead of 16 percent, followed by Italy which saw a 9 percent growth, both Britain and Germany with a 8 percent growth and Russia with a 6 percent growth.

The Maldives government last week said it has planned a number of events to promote the destination globally and increase the number of tourist arrivals in 2018.

The Maldives welcomed a record 1.3 million tourists last year after the government fell short of reaching a target of 1.5 million during the past two years.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 17:01:06|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China's securities regulator has approved new IPO applications from two companies, which will raise about 2.7 billion yuan (429 million U.S. dollars) in the A-share market.

YIJIAHE Technology Co., Ltd. and China Securities Co., Ltd. will be listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said over the weekend.

The firms and their underwriters will confirm IPO dates and publish prospectuses following discussions with the exchanges.

Under the current IPO system, new shares are subject to approval from the CSRC. China is gradually switching from an approval-based IPO system to a more market-oriented one based on registration.
4 Russian servicemen killed in Syrian shelling Source: Xinhua 2018-05-27 17:11:07 MOSCOW, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least four Russian servicemen, including two military advisers, were killed in Syria after they were shelled by militants, RIA Novosti news agency reported Sunday, citing a Russian Defense Ministry statement. Editor: ZX
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 17:26:09|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Buses in Beijing transported nearly 3.2 billion passengers last year, with daily passenger traffic of over 8.7 million, the city's public transport company said Sunday.

According to Beijing Public Transport Corporation, buses in Beijing travelled a combined distance of about 1.3 billion kilometers last year, carrying 3.19 billion passengers.

There are 1,028 regular bus routes with more than 13,000 stops, and a combined operating distance of over 18,000 km in Beijing. Another 363 tailored routes have been set up to meet various demands of commuters and tourists.

More than 16,000 new energy and natural gas buses are now running in the city. Last year, 500 charging poles were added to 80 bus terminals.

Thanks to advancing energy conservation technology and improving infrastructure, buses in Beijing saved an estimated 12 million kwh of electricity and 8.2 million kg of natural gas in 2017.
WELLINGTON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) Review discussion document was released on Sunday by New Zealand Education Minister Chris Hipkins, focusing more on critical thinking, digital literacy, civic participation, and working alongside others.

Among the six big ideas in the document are radically changes to level one and better involving families and students in the design of courses students take.

"The ideas were developed by my Ministerial Advisory Group to challenge thinking and provoke debate on updating our national school-leaving qualification," Hipkins said in a statement. Public consultation begins on Sunday and runs till Sept. 16.

"At stake is the opportunity to change how NCEA is used to prepare our students for life after school in a fast-changing world," Hipkins said.

"Employers are telling us that students coming out of school don't have the right skills, students say more flexibility is needed and teachers say there's too much assessment, getting in the way of learning," the minister said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 18:06:15|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

Relatives of 28-year-old Palestinian Abdul Kareem al-Naqa mourn during his funeral in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, on May 27, 2018. Two Palestinians were killed early on Sunday in an Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip, medical sources said. (Xinhua/Khaled Omar)

GAZA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Two Palestinians have been killed early on Sunday in an Israeli bombardment in the Gaza Strip, medical sources said.

Samir al-Amour 25, and Abdul Kareem al-Naqa 28, were killed by Israeli artillery fire in the Southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, spokesperson for health ministry in Gaza, Ashraf al-Qedra, said in a statement.

Eyewitnesses and local media said that the Israeli bombardment targeted military posts belonging to Islamic Jihad movement.

The Israeli army said in a statement Sunday that a tank targeted a military observation post in Rafah.

The bombing was a response to an explosive device placed on Saturday near the border fence between Gaza and Israel, according to the army.

The Israeli army revealed that the device was detonated.

On Saturday night, Israeli fighter jets struck a compound belonging to Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs Gaza, saying the attack was a response to an infiltration attempt of four Palestinian earlier on Saturday.

The incidents were part of an escalation in the area and weekly protests against the crippling 12-year blockade, the inauguration of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, and the Israeli occupation.

At least 110 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the protests started on March 30 and thousands more were injured.
LONDON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Meghan Markle, the new Duchess of Sussex, will get a "six-month crash course" on how to be a royal from the Queen's special adviser, Samantha Cohen.

Markle, who was married to Prince Harry on May 19, will turn to Cohen to help guide her in her first months as a member of the royal family.

Cohen is one of the Queen's most trusted aides, a feisty Australian nicknamed "Samantha the Panther." She is sent to prepare the former U.S. actress for her new royal life.

Cohen, 49, the Queen's assistant private secretary, has made the move from Buckingham Palace to Kensington Palace, and the Duchess of Sussex is said to be ready for "six months of listening."

Cohen's secondment is part of Meghan's plans to become an effective royal, and she has 17 years of experience as part of the Queen's top team advising her on a daily basis.

The married mother-of-three, who doesn't mince her words, will guide Harry and Meghan through their first year of marriage and has already played a key role at the royal wedding in Windsor.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 18:51:26|Editor: Lu Hui

Video Player Close

PARIS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Chinese technology group BOE, a global leader in semiconductor display industry as well as an IoT technology provider, has unveiled its new strategic plan "VUSION 2022" at Viva Technology, which ran from May 24 to 26 in Paris.

The plan aims to strengthen the leadership of the French company SES-imagotag (hereinafter referred to as SES), of which BOE Technology Group is the main shareholder, on the market of the digitalization of the physical trade with three objectives: a doubling of the customers within the Top 2,000 of the world distribution, a base installed 500 million connected electronic tags and a turnover of 800 million euros in 2022.

In June 2017, BOE acquired 50.01 percent of the share capital of SES, the world leader in electronic labels and IoT solutions for commerce, and since March 16, 2018, the group holds 79.94 percent of the shares.

BOE and SES share the same vision for the central role of smart labels, which, combined with sensors, image recognition and data analysis, is a true "omni-channel store's technology base".

"Our partnership with BOE will generate strong growth in the coming years, strengthening our industrial competitiveness and taking a leadership position in the huge Chinese market at the forefront of 'New Retail'," said Thierry Gadou, CEO of SES.

"BOE focuses on the applications in segmented markets based on its advantages in display, AI, and sensor technologies. loT-based smart retail solutions are intended to address pain points of retailers and consumers by improving operational efficiency an achieving seamless online and offline convergence," said Yao Xiangjun, Co-COO of BOE.
Security personnels patrol on the street in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Jan 29, 2011. (Xinhua/Zhao Yingquan)

ADDIS ABABA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The Federal Attorney General of Ethiopia on Saturday officially dropped corruption charges against 740 convicts, including former high-profile Ethiopian officials and a prominent rebel leader.

According to Berhanu Tsegaye, some 137 of the pardoned individuals were imprisoned on terror charges, while 27 others were charged in connection with corruption.

Among the released terrorism related convicts is the prominent rebel leader, Andargachew Tsige, a British citizen of Ethiopian origin, who has been serving a prison sentence since June 2014, for leading and directing an outlawed rebel group Ginbot 7, based mainly in Ethiopia's neighboring nation Eritrea.

Tsige's release, which the attorney general said was on a "special amnesty rationale," followed the announcement on Friday to release former high-profile Ethiopian government officials.

Among the former Ethiopian government officials whose cases dropped on Friday include Melaku Fanta, the former Director General of the Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority with the rank of a Minister, and his deputy, Gebrewahed Woldegiorgis, who were arrested in 2013 together with other 11 individuals suspected of involving in large scale corruption cases, state television EBC reported.

Alemayehu Gojo, former deputy minister of finance and economic cooperation, who was arrested last year as part of Ethiopia's biggest anti-corruption sweep in years, is also another high-profile defendant included in the attorney general's latest amnesty list.

Gojo, who is a member of Ethiopian Parliament, had his immunity revoked by a vote in the Parliament, a necessary step before he was prosecuted for corruption.

Tsegaye, announcing the pardon on Saturday, also revealed that some 576 individuals serving time on various other criminal charges were also pardoned as part of the large government's amnesty program.

The amnesty program, which the Ethiopian government said is a means towards national reconciliation and unity, has seen the release of thousands of prisoners and others under investigation since the swearing in of Ethiopia's new Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, on April 2.

Just last month, 114 defendants who were detained on terrorism cases were given pardon followed by the closure of a notorious detention and investigation center located in the capital Addis Ababa.

The Ethiopian government has characterized the mass prisoner release programs as part of its efforts to widen political space by creating national consensus and reconciliation.

Regional states have also conducted similar large scale prisoners release recently, including pardoning more than 2,200 prisoners by Ethiopia's northern Tigray regional state.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 19:01:34|Editor: Chengcheng

Video Player Close

Two "raging" customers smash objects with a bat in one of the two specially arranged rooms at the first Rage Room in Athens, Greece, May 25, 2018. An anger room in Athens designed for stressed-out people to relieve their tension by smashing televisions, keyboards, plates and other objects is now open to public. (Xinhua/Chris Kissadjekian)

by Natasha Pavlopoulou

ATHENS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Forget yoga, meditation and spa. Stressed-out people in Athens can now relieve their tension by smashing televisions, keyboards, plates and other objects. In other words they can "make it all limba" as a popular slang phrase indicated in Greece which means spoil, mess up.

Limba is the name of the first anger room in the centre of Athens, where those who carry something emotionally difficult to bear, had a bad day at work or just want to have some fun can go and feel better.

No matter if it's the economic hardship or a love story goes bad, people can laugh and have fun. "No rage needed to try something new", writes a sign that welcomes customers to the first "rage room" of Greece which opened in December 2016 in a soundproof basement in the colorful neighborhood of Psyrri, central Athens.

Helen Driva and Spyros Trikaliotis are a couple of trainers in their late 20s who own the place and day after day clean the mess of the broken objects, with big smiles.

As for how it starts, Spyros, 29, told Xinhua, "We were in Argentina, the last stop of our journey in Latin America and she (Helen) had her birthday. Looking for what Helen's Day will include, we discovered the rage room."

"We returned to Greece... we decided to make reality the strangest idea we met," said Spyros.

"Limba" appeals to people of all ages and cultures. "To those who want to break, to those who are curious to learn the sound of an object when it breaks, to those who are bored to go out for coffee..." he explained.

In any case it is not addressed to those who have no humor.

All this procedure helps to discharge, but because of the laughter and the "air" of the new experience. "It is not related to violence, outbreak or rage. The only thing that has to do with rage is in the name of the place," noted Helen.

"It seems that in our time, the accumulation of personal, and socio-economic pressures force people to seek immediate relief solutions. Rage rooms seem to provide such a way out, a safe decompression space. In order to meet their long-term and substantive needs, people have to make profound changes," said clinical therapist Petros Dimisianos.

Spyros and Helen buy all the objects to be broken from factories and then they recycle them. Customers are provided with protective equipment that includes a helmet, goggles and gloves.

And they can also pick out a music soundtrack -- including classical, heavy metal even traditional Greek music -- as well as an array of objects to smash.

The most economic package does not exceed 10 euros (11.7 U.S. dollars) which includes 10 bottles and a surprise gift. And it can go up to 100 euros (117 U.S. dollars) for 100 bottles, 4 TVs, 12 glasses, 12 plates etc.
LONDON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A butterfly that became extinct in England more than 40 years ago was reintroduced recently as part of an 8-million-pound initiative to save the nation's most endangered species.

The mottled golden wings of the chequered skipper butterflies were once a common sight along the edge of forest tracks until they disappeared in 1976 after decades of habitat loss.

Lepidopterists trapped swarms of adult butterflies in Belgium this week and transported them to England ahead of their release in the Rockingham Forest, Northamptonshire.

Local press report said that 50 of the species were released in a secret location in Rockingham Forest.

A small number of the chequered skippers had survived in Scotland, but scientists said that conditions in Belgium were closer to their intended home. Both sites have an abundance of false brome, a type of grass, which their caterpillars feed on.

Butterfly Conservation, which runs the project, said it was an "important milestone for conservation."

It said that the recent release is the first in a series of planned releases, but the precise locations would remain secret until the population had taken hold.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 19:06:36|Editor: Lu Hui

Video Player Close

By Xinhua writer Zhang Yongxing

SUVA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Twelve pieces of fine collection with typical costume elements of China's Miao ethnic group have stunned audience in this year's Fiji Fashion Week, which just came to its end with the participation of talented designers, beautiful models and avid audience on Saturday night.

"It is amazing and unbelievable," the audience said while giving thundering applause to the models who just finished their wonderful performance by wearing different styles of collection with Miao ethnic costume elements.

"We love these wonderful collection of Miao costume elements, and we love their bright colors, beautiful embroidery and motifs," two middle-aged women told Xinhua while a Fijian girl aged around 15 said that "I like these clothes with Miao style as they are really beautiful and special."

It is not strange for the audience to praise the collection with Miao costume elements as they are really perfect. Even some photographers could not help lauding the collection while being busy taking pictures of the models wearing the uniquely designed clothes.

The two-day Fiji Fashion Week, which has a theme of Resort Cruise 2018, was held at FMF Gymnasium in the capital city Suva. And the specially-decorated performing hall of the facility was crowded with audience, designers and models from Fiji and some other countries like China, India, Vietnam and Australia.

Chen Bin, professor of the fashion institute of the Shanghai-based Donghua University, told Xinhua that the 12 pieces of collection were designed by himself and some of his students. He was not surprised to receive such positive comments from the audience as he believed that the clothes were special with wonderful design of typical elements of Miao costume.

"This is our first successful participation in the Fiji Fashion Week. As you see, this is very interesting for the beautiful foreign models to wear our collection with Miao costume elements. We can say this is a place where fashion meets tradition, and East and West also meet and mingle harmoniously," he said proudly.

In his eyes, the Miao costume, believed to be a history book worn on people, is in fact one of the rare treasures and beautiful flowers in Chinese history and culture.

"It is not only about beautiful clothes, but also about China's long history and culture," he said.

"There are 56 ethnic groups in China, and the costume of the Miao ethnic group in southern China is an important component of China's ethnic costumes. As designers, we should also go out to showcase our fashion design and learn from our foreign colleagues," he said.

For her part, Yang Hui, director of the Confucius Institute at the University of the South Pacific, was also very happy for the successful involvement of Chen Bin's team in this fashion show.

"I am happy for their success and I am happy for our Confucius Institute here as we helped Chen's team take part in the fashion show. We would like to be a bridge of language and culture to help boost the cultural exchange between China and the South Pacific Island states," she said.

This is the 11th year of the Fiji Fashion Week, which is the biggest fashion show in the South Pacific Island states.
MOSCOW, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least four Russian servicemen, including two military advisers, were killed in Syria after they were shelled by militants, the Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday.

Several groups of militants attacked the Syrian army's artillery battery in the province of Deir al-Zour at night, killing two Russian military advisers on the spot and wounding another five soldiers, the ministry said.

The injured were immediately taken to a Russian military hospital, but two of them died there, it said.

The Syrian and Russian troops fought the militants for about one hour and killed 43 militants and destroyed six cross-country vehicles armed with large-caliber weapons, according to the ministry.

Russia has been participating in the fight against the Islamic State and insurgent groups in Syria since September 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Russian servicemen and military facilities in Syria have been attacked by militants several times, causing a number of deaths.
PARIS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- French President Emmanuel Macron invited Libyan rivals to meet in Paris next week to seek a roadmap to end the deadlock in the North African country, his office said on Sunday.

"Libyan officials and the international community will be invited ... to engage in the implementation of an inclusive political roadmap, to get out of the crisis that has affected the country and the region for several years," the statement said.

"The unprecedented conference" scheduled for May 29 will be attended by representatives of the Libyan government and delegations representing Libya's main institutions, with the aim "to open a new period of stability and cooperation, expected by all Libyan people," it added.

Since the 2011 uprising, which ousted the former leader Muammar Gaddafi, Libya has plunged into chaotic violence and political instability which helped the terrorist cell flourish and put the security of the Maghreb region at risk.

So far, the country has been struggling to make a democratic transition. It suffers a political division with two rival parliaments and governments battling to legitimacy.

Starting work in March 2016, Fayez Sarraj, head of Libya's UN-backed government in Tripoli is struggling to impose its authority after military commander Khalifa Haftar, based east of Libya, refuses to recognise it.
KABUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least 19 militants were killed in airstrikes in four Afghan provinces within the past 24 hours as Afghan and coalition forces continued with the mopping-up operations, the command of Afghan special forces said on Sunday.

"The Afghan Special Operations Forces-led airstrikes killed seven militants in Ajristan district of Ghazni province, six in Chaparhar of Nangarhar, two in Sayyed Karam of Paktia and four others in Darzab of Jawzjan province," Operational Coordination Group Afghanistan said in a statement.

The Afghan security forces, alongside U.S. and NATO-led coalition troops, have increased ground and air offensives against militants in the past few months as the militants frequently attacked government interests across the country.

Taliban and the Islamic State (IS) group fighting the government have yet to make comments on the report.
BRUSSELS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China is unique and essential for Europe's AI strategy, and vice versa, said a European business leader.

"It is beneficial for both sides to jointly work on this topic, and this is the right time for Brussels and Beijing to deepen their cooperation," Luigi Gambardella, president of ChinaEU, a business-led international digital association in Brussels, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Why is China so essential? Gambardella said the significance lies in China's competitive advantages with the EU. With a population larger than Europe and the U.S. combined, China has "a natural advantage" with tons of data, which are the key to the machine-learning algorithms behind the AI boom.

He added unlike Europeans, Chinese customers have well adapted to digital life. "For instance, mobile payment is so prevalent in China that a cashless society has become a reality in many cities."

According to the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, China's digital economy totaled 26 trillion yuan (4.07 trillion U.S. dollars) in 2017, accounting for about 32 percent of its GDP.

However, Europe is relatively less digitalized. "So China will be an appealing and promising market for the EU's future AI companies," said the digital association chief.

As for why China should look to Europe when developing its AI strategy. He said Europe has world-class researchers, laboratories and startups in the field of AI, making it home to the world's leading AI research community.

He noted that the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence was founded in 1988, and is one of the world's largest research centers in the field of AI.

Data showed that Europe accounts for largest share of top 100 AI research institutions worldwide and there are 32 European research institutions in the global top 100 for AI-related research paper citations, compared to 30 from the US and 15 from China.

As a result, Europe now is a leading player, producing more than one-fourth of the world's industrial robots and is home to three of the world's largest producers of industrial robots, said Gambardella.

China has set a development plan for new generation AI as its strategy in July last year to compete with the United States, which is the first country to have implemented a comprehensive AI research and development strategic plan in May 2016.

However, Europe has been slow to act. Only last month, the European Commission outlined its European Union-wide strategic plan to boost AI.

"It comes a bitter fact that Europe already lagged behind North America and Asia in private investment in AI," said Gambardella.

Some Chinese major cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Tianjin as the latest one, have announced their own measures to promote the AI industry, joined by China's banking sector, technology giants, and numerous small and medium-sized enterprises.

"If the EU wants to be more productive and effective, it needs to deepen cooperation with its competitors, especially China," he added.
KABUL, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least eight insurgents have been killed and 13 others injured in the southern Zabul province over the past 24 hours, said a statement of 205 Atal Corps stationed in the southern region released on Sunday.

The government forces, according to the statement, launched cleanup operations in Dai Chopan district of Zabul province on Saturday and besides inflicting casualties on the insurgents, also ejected them from several villages.

Taliban militants who have stepped up activities since launching their annual spring offensive in April, have yet to make comments.
YANGON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar has received first 62 returnees through Nga Khu Ya reception camp in Rakhine state, who had fled to Bangladesh due to the Rakhine conflict, according to a statement from the State Counselor's Office Sunday.

The returnees include 58 persons pardoned by the President and four lifted from prosecution.

They had first returned by their own arrangement, ignoring the official procedure, and they had been arrested by the Myanmar authorities earlier.

However, pardoned by the president, they were brought to the reception camp on Saturday.

In accordance with the Myanmar-Bangladesh agreement, those returnees will be transferred to the Hla Pho Khaung transit camp in Maungtaw after proper verification, the statement said.

Myanmar and Bangladesh had reached an agreement on the arrangement concerning the return of displaced people from Rakhine state on Nov. 23 last year.

The Myanmar side has made arrangements to receive returnees by establishing two reception centers -- Nga Khu Ya and Taung Pyo Latwe and one Hla Phoe Khaung transit camp in Maungtaw.

The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army extremist terrorists launched attacks on police outposts in Rakhine on Aug. 25 last year, displacing residents from a number of areas in Maungtaw district.
WARSAW, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Every fifth Polish patient in need of bone marrow is unable to find a donor, non-profit advocacy group DKMS said Sunday in statement, urging more people to register as donors.

DKMS, founded in Germany in 1991, works to raise blood cancer awareness and donor registration for hematopoietic stem transplantation.

On the occasion on the upcoming World Blood Cancer Day, DKMS said that every fifth patient in Poland, who needs a transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells, cannot find a genetic donor.

Therefore, more people should register as bone marrow and stem donors in order to increase the chance of finding a "genetic twin".

According to DKMS data, one person gets leukemia or other type of hematopoietic system every hour in Poland, both children and adults. For some of them, bone marrow transplantation is the only possible way of cure.

Only 25 percent of patients, however, finds a suitable donor in the family. The chance to find a "genetic twin" in an unrelated individual is only one to 20,000, or even one to several million, in case of a rare genotype, according to DKMS.

The DKMS foundation has been operating in Poland since 2008. Since then, it has observed an increase in the base of donors from less than 35,000 people to over 1.3 million. However, the donor database is still too small.

According to Polish National Cancer Registry data, over the last 30 years, the number of new cases of hematopoietic and lymphatic cancers in Poland has more than doubled. Most cases of blood cancer are observed among people aged between 50 and 79.

The World Blood Cancer Day, an international festival, celebrated annually on May 28, was initiated in 2014 by the DKMS foundation.
KUALA LUMPUR, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia's Customs Department on Sunday asked businesses nationwide to follow through on a zero-rated Goods and Services Tax (GST), which will take effect on June 1, and cut prices.

Subromaniam Tholasy, head of the department, said in a statement that all businesses should not wait for the formulation of the sales and services tax (SST), which will replace GST on a later date, and lower prices immediately after June 1.

He said businesses should not exploit the government's desire to lower prices and should pass the tax saving to consumers. Businesses will be further notified about the timetable for a new SST, he said.

The finance ministry announced a zero-rated GST soon after the new government led by Mahathir Mohamad came to power, in a bid to fulfill a campaign promise.

Daim Zainuddin, a member of a high-level advisory council set up by Mahathir, said it would take two to three months for SST, thus creating a short "tax holiday" for consumers, which led many to believe that consumer spending will be pushed up after June 1.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 19:56:54|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

GENEVA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The rapid development of Sino-Swiss bilateral ties in recent years has provided a good framework for promoting economic and trade cooperation in the future, China's ambassador to Switzerland Geng Wenbing has said.

In an interview with local media this week, Geng told the Swiss audience that there is no need to worry about investments from China.

"If Switzerland wants to attract more Chinese investments, it should create a better and favorable public opinion environment," Geng suggested.

According to the Chinese Ambassador, in addition to the rapid growth of direct investment, some well-known Chinese enterprises have set up branches in Switzerland, and more Chinese enterprises are looking forward to having closer ties with their Swiss partners.

He mentioned that in the past several years, a relatively still limited number of Chinese companies has started to enter into Switzerland, a country for a long time being considered as having high quality environment, strong innovation ability, the craftsman spirit and the excellent business service level.

Nevertheless, Geng said, there are only some 80 Chinese enterprises running in Switzerland now, most of them are private enterprises and are limited in investment scales and business sectors.

In contrast, he said, there are currently more than 1,000 Swiss companies doing business in China, and almost all of the famous companies in Switzerland now have branches or R&D centers in China.

As regard to concerns by some local people about investments from Chinese enterprises, Geng said that at the beginning of China's reform and opening up, there were also such concerns in China, but the achievements made in the past 40 years have proved that such concerns were "redundant".

The Chinese diplomat also stressed that China, like Switzerland, is a firm defender of free trade and globalization.

He noted that both sides should work together to fight against rising trade protectionism and contribute to the maintenance of the international trade order.
OSLO, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Despite the fact that 16 percent of them reported sexual harassment in a survey last year, Norwegian female soldiers are more positive to mixed rooms in army than their male fellows, public broadcaster NRK reported Sunday.

The survey of conscripts in 2017 showed that 78 percent of female soldiers were very positive and 14 percent said they were quite positive about having mixed rooms.

On the other hand, 66 percent of men were very positive and 19 percent quite positive about this concept.

While only one percent of male soldiers answered that they had been subjected to sexual harassment, 16 percent of women experienced the same.

This is still a decrease compared to situation in 2012, when 23 percent of women reported that they had been exposed to sexual harassment, the report said.

According to Per-Thomas Boe, captain and spokesperson for the Norwegian Armed Forces, mixed-room solution has become a success story, which many were skeptical of a few years ago.

"If you ask many other countries, they say that we in Norway are quite daring to do this. We see that it has an effect and that the soldiers become more brothers and sisters than potential couples," Boe told NRK.

"They take care of each other and say when something wrong happens. Considering the fact that they live so close and gathered, I think that this helps us to take care of it earlier in the phase and before it gets serious," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 20:11:59|Editor: ZX

Video Player Close

SHENZHEN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- An international forum in the southern metropolis of Shenzhen focusing on the role of young leaders concluded Sunday.

The fourth Africa-China Young Leaders Forum was held in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. More than 70 young political representatives from about 40 African countries participated in the two-day event.

Song Tao, head of the International Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), called on young people in China and Africa to devote themselves to the development of their countries, and to contribute to friendly cooperation between China and Africa.

Participants at the forum gave suggestions in areas such as increasing communication between youth organizations and enhancing China-Africa cooperation.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 20:22:01|Editor: Yurou

Video Player Close

DAMASCUS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army has foiled an attack Wednesday by the Islamic State (IS) group on a Syrian military site in eastern province of Deir al-Zour, killing 43 IS militants, state news agency SANA reported on Sunday.

The IS militants targeted the Syrian military position near the city of al-Mayadeen in the southern countryside of Deir al-Zour, said the report.

According to Russia's Defense Ministry on Sunday, Russian military experts were present in the base at the time of the assault.

Four Russian experts were killed and three others were wounded during the sudden IS attack, which was later completely thwarted, said SANA.

Meanwhile, a source familiar with the situation told Xinhua the attack was pulled off by IS in the Faida area, some 60 km south of the al-Mayadeen city. Totally 13 pro-government fighters were killed as well.

The IS has lost large swathes of areas in Deir al-Zour to the Syrian army and controls only a few pockets in the countryside of that oil-rich province.

The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has recently waged an offensive to defeat IS in areas on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 20:27:02|Editor: Yurou

Video Player Close

JERUSALEM, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel operates against the establishment of Iranian forces in Syria and the transfer of weapons to Lebanon.

His remarks came three days after suspected Israeli airstrikes hit a military base in central Syria, where the Lebanon-based Iran-backed military of Hezbollah were located.

"We are working against the establishment of an Iranian military presence (in Syria) against us," Netanyahu said at the start of Israel's weekly cabinet meeting.

"To this end, we are also operating against the transfer of deadly weapons from Syria to Lebanon or their manufacture in Lebanon," he said.

According to Netanyahu, the weapons are for use against Israel and "it is our right - based on the right of self-defense - to prevent their manufacture or transfer."

The al-Marsad, a Syrian human rights group, said on Friday that Thursday's attack on a military airport in Dabaa in central Homs province was aimed at members of the Hezbollah and other militias supporting the Bashar al-Assad regime.

The Israeli military is accused of carrying out dozens of air attacks in recent years against Hezbollah, Iran and Syrian positions.

Israel and the United States charged Iran's presence in Syria as a threat to Israel and threatened to take actions to prevent it.
LONDON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Britain is set to seal an "open skies" agreement with America this summer that will keep planes flying between both countries after Brexit, a major British newspaper said Sunday.

The Sunday Telegraph newspaper quoted four sources in London and Washington briefed on the talks as saying that a deal is "close" after consensus was reached on the biggest issues up for debate.

"UK and U.S. negotiators have agreed that major transatlantic airlines must be covered despite them being foreign owned -- a break with the normal rules," the major British newspaper said.

"That means flights from Virgin, Norwegian Air and British Airways owner IAG -- all majority-owned outside of the UK and U.S. -- will continue after Brexit," it added.

Britain has also offered in principle to include its overseas territories in the agreement, something not covered by the current EU-U.S. open skies agreement.

The EU-U.S. open skies agreement was brought in 10 years ago to provide uniform rules for airlines and airports, and it has led to an estimated 18 percent increase in transatlantic traffic from 2006 to 2016.

It allows any airline of the European Union and any airline of the United States to fly between any point in the European Union and any point in the United States.

The agreement also effectively allows the free market to set the price and number of flights to and from countries, rather than the governments of these nations.

But the hitch arose when U.S. negotiators offered only a basic bilateral agreement for when Britain quits the EU.

Standard agreements usually require airlines to be majority owned and controlled by firms from their home country.

But both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic don't fall into that category, prompting fears flights could be affected.

Normally landing rights for bilateral deals will only apply to a fixed number of flights per week to a fixed destination.

A fresh round of talks is expected to take place next month with officials and well-placed industry sources increasingly confident an agreement is within reach.

"We could get a deal right now if we wanted," said one UK cabinet source, adding that Britain was mainly holding on for extra concessions.

An agreement, which negotiators believe can be announced before the March 2019 Brexit date even if not implemented, would be major victory for the British government.

Britain will leave the EU-U.S. open skies deal the day after Brexit, meaning flights between America and the UK would be grounded unless an agreement is reached.

Separately, Britain also needs to negotiate an "open skies" deal with the EU, which is critical for U.S. airlines as half of all Americans who fly to the UK travel on to the continent.

Talks with Brussels have yet to progress on such a deal given the impasse on wider Brexit issues such as customs arrangements and what happens on the Irish border.

"Nothing has been finalized," said a U.S. State Department official.
ISLAMABAD, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Police in Pakistan's eastern Punjab province said Sunday that six terrorist suspects have been killed in an encounter.

A spokesman for the counter-terrorism department said that a group of eight terrorist suspects, riding motorcycles, opened fire on a police post after they were asked to stop in Gujrtat district.

The police retaliated and killed six while two escaped, he told the media.

The spokesmen said the suspects belonged to a banned group and were planning a terrorist activity to target sensitive installations.

A wanted terrorist, Suhaib, was among those killed who was included in the red book, a list of most wanted criminals, the spokesman said.

The spokesman said that the killed were involved in a bomb blast in Lahore last year, which killed 26 people including police officers.

They were also behind the killing of a senior army officer in Sargodha, a main city in Punjab, in 2014.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 21:27:15|Editor: Lu Hui

Video Player Close

HAMBURG, Germany, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A three-day world's leading wind energy summit will take place this September, its organizer Hamburg Messe told Xinhua.

Over 1,400 exhibitors from about 40 countries and regions worldwide are expected to show their latest technologies and solutions focusing on the whole value chain of the wind industry from September 25 to 28 in the harbor city.

The Expo this year has three main subjects, which are Dynamic Markets, Cost-Efficiency and Smart Energy.

"Visitors will get answers to how to develop the new market, how to make the products competitive in auctions and how to use wind power for all energy applications and needs of the future," Bernd Aufderheide, president of Hamburg Messe, told Xinhua.

The WindEurope Conference, featuring more than 250 professional speakers and presenters from the industry, will go parallel with the Expo, forming together the Summit.

Giles Dickson, CEO of WindEurope, said the Summit will "give vital input for the continued progress of the wind energy worldwide."

The wind power has taken up 16.3 percent of Germany's generated energy by the end of last year, which is half of the renewable energy produced by the country, latest statistics of Germany's Economics and Energy Ministry showed.

Evolved from Germany's regional Husum Wind Expo, Hamburg Global Wind Summit is held every two years.
ANKARA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- In a crowded cafe of Kizilay, downtown Ankara, young Turkish people were discussing their daily routine as a campaigner distributes leaflets of a political party which will run in the upcoming general elections.

"If they want our votes, they have to treat us seriously and not only claim our attention just before elections," said Emre Fisek to Xinhua while drinking tea with a group of friends from university.

Fisek, a university freshman, insisted that he is "not particularly interested in politics," but would be keen to participate more in political discussions in his community as he will vote for the first time in the upcoming elections.

The eligibility age was lowered from 25 to 18 in Turkey in recent years.

Turkey is heading for snap legislative and presidential elections on June 24 when 1.6 million new young voters will decide the faith of their democracy for the first time.

The big novelty for them is that most of the parties have presented 18-year-old candidates for a seat in parliament, however their chances of being elected is slim as they are at the bottom of the lists.

About 16 percent of Turkey's overall population is young people between the ages of 15 to 24, and the country's political future depends on reality of the young voters' preferences.

According to research by survey company A&G on the previous 2015 general elections, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) took 29.5 percent of the youth's vote, while the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) took 23.8 percent.

Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition, took 23.7 percent, and the nationalist MHP took 18.9 percent of the young people's votes.

"Turkey's most important power is its young and qualified population," said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who is seeking re-election to shift Turkey from a parliamentary system to a presidential one, approved by referendum last year.

AKP, led by its founder Erdogan, supported by millions of voters, lowered the candidate eligible age to 25 in 2007 and then to 18 in 2016.

"More than half of Turkey's population is under 30 years old and more than a third is younger than 20, so the young vote is crucial," said to Xinhua an AKP official.

The AKP and CHP youth organizations are particularly active in cities and are campaigning intensively since last month. Social media is one of their major tools, as rally, meeting and conference information is shared instantly on Twitter or Instagram.

The AKP has presented 57 candidates aged between 18 and 24 and one of them is self-confident Ibrahim Enes Durmaz who has a potential chance of getting elected in one of capital Ankara's constituencies.

"There is lack of confidence from the society towards young people. The future of the country is being determined by older aged parliamentarians, with a high average age like that they cannot grasp our situation," Durmaz said to Xinhua.

"We want to prove them that we are serious," Durmaz said while emphasizing that the youth must be brought to the fore more.

The young candidate who is still at the senior year of high school, explained that he is genuinely interested in politics and that he worked for four years now in the youth organization of AKP, before getting noticed by the top brass of the party.

Politics will not prevent Durmaz from furthering his studies and he intends to go to law school after entering the college admission tests that will take place a week after the election.

If he's elected, he will be the first parliamentarian to enter the test at his tender age. If not, he will encourage other young people to get interested in politics.

The CHP has also attempted to tap into the huge potential of the young people, with 48 candidates below the age of 25.

In total, 113 young candidates from mainstream parties will race in the elections for the 600-seat parliament.

According to studies, lifestyle is the most important factor determining the youngsters' voting behavior.

Having higher levels of education and residing in an urban area increases the possibility of abstaining, even though participation remains very high in Turkey's elections, at around 80 percent.
LONDON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The result of the referendum in Ireland to liberalize the country's strict abortion laws could cause a major headache for British Prime Minister Theresa May, it was reported Sunday.

Around two thirds of voters in the Irish Republic backed the move to leave the strict anti-abortion laws in place in Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom.

Abortion rules on Britain's mainland have been relaxed for many years, but across the Irish Sea it is a devolved decision for Northern Ireland's own lawmakers.

The Sunday Times reported Sunday that May is facing open revolt from senior women in her own Conservative party over abortion after Ireland's historic vote to lift a ban on terminations.

Penny Mordaunt, the women and equalities minister in May's government, and four of her predecessors have urged the prime minister to allow a free vote in the Westminster parliament to reform Northern Ireland's "draconian abortion laws".

Mordaunt said the landslide victory to legalize abortion in the Irish referendum should now bring change north of the border.

The dilemma for May is that her minority government at Westminster is shored by the 10 MPs belonging to Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which opposes relaxing abortion laws.

The Sunday Times says 10 Downing Street fears Mordaunt's call could destabilize the government by antagonizing the socially conservative DUP which May depends on for a majority in the House of Commons.

DUP MP Ian Paisley, meanwhile, said Northern Ireland should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand.

"The settled will of the people has been to afford protections to the unborn life and protect the life of the mother," he said.

Conservative MP Sarah Wollaston, chair of the House of Commons health select committee, said she would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole of Britain.

Wollaston said if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker of the House of Commons there should at very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland on this issue.

Northern Ireland has some of the toughest abortion laws in the western world with even rape, incest and fatal foetal abnormality not considered legal grounds for a termination. Abortions are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.

"Every day three women travel from Northern Ireland to England for abortion care or resort to illegal online medication, risking life imprisonment. The United Nations has said this violates their human rights," the Sunday Times reported.

Media reports say Karen Bradley, the Northern Ireland secretary in May's government, has insisted abortion law is a "devolved matter" and ruled out a free vote among Westminster MPs.

London Labour MP Stella Creasy said more than 140 parliamentarians at Westminster had already signaled support for an effort to change the abortion law in Northern Ireland. Creasy, who led a campaign to allow Northern Irish women to access NHS terminations for free in England, said: "21st century abortion laws should be extended across the British Isles."

A forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill expected to be debated at Westminster could be used as a vehicle for MPs to change the law in Northern Ireland where the devolved government has been suspended for more than a year.

Political commentators say such a move could cause a major headache for May who desperately needs the support of the DUP as she navigates her Brexit bill through parliament.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 21:57:21|Editor: Yurou

Video Player Close

TEHRAN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Iran will maintain its "advisory role in Syria and continue its support for resistance groups," Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said on Sunday.

Iran is present in Syria at the request of the Arab country's legitimate government, Shamkhani was quoted as saying by Press TV.

Besides, "as long as threat of terrorism exists in Syria... we will stay in Syria," Shamkhani said.

Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on the Islamic republic to pull out from Syria, or it will face the "strongest sanctions in history."

Iranian officials rejected the demands, saying that "Iran's presence in Syria is legitimate."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 22:08:10|Editor: ZD

Video Player Close

Children admire puppets at the municipal Puppet Museum during the 4th Puppet Theatre Festival in Larissa, Greece, May 26, 2018. The festival attracted puppet making workshops for all ages, interactive storytellers and puppet theatre troupes from around Greece. (Xinhua/Apostolos Domalis)
BRUSSELS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- "The United Kingdom must look at the reality of the European Union (EU) in the face. He must also face the reality of Brexit," Michel Barnier, EU's chief Brexit negotiator, told the XXVIIIth Congress of the International Federation for European Law Saturday in Lisbon.

Commenting on the General Regulation on Data Protection (GDPR) which came into force Friday, Barnier said Brexit is not and will never be in the interest of EU companies.

"And above all it would be contrary to the interests of our companies to give up our autonomy of decision. This autonomy allows us to set standards for the whole of the EU but also often to see these standards taken over the world," he noted.

"It is the normative power of the Union or what is often called 'the Brussels effect'," said Barnier.

After four years of preparation and debate the GDPR was approved by the EU Parliament on April 14, 2016 and was enforced Friday.

Replacing the Data Protection Directive 95/46/EC, the GDPR was designed to harmonize data privacy laws across Europe, to protect and empower all EU citizens data privacy and to reshape the way organizations across the region approach data privacy.

According to the first position presented and published by Britain this week on data protection, the United Kingdom wants its supervisor to remain on the European Data Protection Council set up by the GDPR, stay in the one-stop system as Britain "believes that all this is in the interest of EU companies."

In response, the EU chief Brexit negotiator said "We can not, we will not be able to share this decisional autonomy with a third country, undoubtedly a former member state but which no longer wants to be in the same legal ecosystem as us."

He further listed three problems posed by Britain's ideas, namely "who would launch an offense against the United Kingdom in case of misapplication of the GDPR?"

"How to ensure that the United Kingdom updates its data legislation every time the EU itself updates the GDPR?"

"How to ensure uniform interpretation of the data protection rules on both sides of the Channel?"

"It must respect the fact that the European Union will continue to operate on the basis of this system, which has enabled us to build a single market, and which will enable us to deepen this unique market in response to new challenges," he said in the speech.

"And, with regard to personal data, he (Britain) must understand that the only possibility for the Union, as indicated in the guidelines of the European Council, will be to ensure their protection through adequacy decisions," said the negotiator.

"It's one thing to be inside the Union, it's another thing to be outside," he said.

Meanwhile, for Britain, the Brexit talk is a two-way thing instead of a one-way business.

"I fear that many see Brexit as a challenge for the Brits to sort out. This has to be two-way conversation. It can't just be about British prosperity, it has to be about our European partners. Candidly, if European leaders don't want it, then it won't happen," British finance minister Philip Hammond said Thursday during the European Business Summit here in Brussels.

The long-awaited Brexit talks was launched on June 19, 2017, nearly one year after Britain voted to leave the bloc by a narrow margin on June 23, 2016.

The British Prime Minister Theresa May sent a notification letter to the EU in late March last year, triggering a two-year countdown to Britain's withdrawal of the bloc after more than 44 years of membership.
Turkish students hold national flags in the ceremony at Anitkabir, Ataturk's mausoleum, in Ankara,Turkey, on May 19, 2018. (Xinhua)

ANKARA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- In a crowded cafe of Kizilay, downtown Ankara, young Turkish people were discussing their daily routine as a campaigner distributes leaflets of a political party which will run in the upcoming general elections.

"If they want our votes, they have to treat us seriously and not only claim our attention just before elections," said Emre Fisek to Xinhua while drinking tea with a group of friends from university.

Fisek, a university freshman, insisted that he is "not particularly interested in politics," but would be keen to participate more in political discussions in his community as he will vote for the first time in the upcoming elections.

The eligibility age was lowered from 25 to 18 in Turkey in recent years.

Turkey is heading for snap legislative and presidential elections on June 24 when 1.6 million new young voters will decide the faith of their democracy for the first time.

The big novelty for them is that most of the parties have presented 18-year-old candidates for a seat in parliament, however their chances of being elected is slim as they are at the bottom of the lists.

About 16 percent of Turkey's overall population is young people between the ages of 15 to 24, and the country's political future depends on reality of the young voters' preferences.

According to research by survey company A&G on the previous 2015 general elections, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) took 29.5 percent of the youth's vote, while the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) took 23.8 percent.

Republican People's Party (CHP), the main opposition, took 23.7 percent, and the nationalist MHP took 18.9 percent of the young people's votes.

"Turkey's most important power is its young and qualified population," said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who is seeking re-election to shift Turkey from a parliamentary system to a presidential one, approved by referendum last year.

AKP, led by its founder Erdogan, supported by millions of voters, lowered the candidate eligible age to 25 in 2007 and then to 18 in 2016.

"More than half of Turkey's population is under 30 years old and more than a third is younger than 20, so the young vote is crucial," said to Xinhua an AKP official.

The AKP and CHP youth organizations are particularly active in cities and are campaigning intensively since last month. Social media is one of their major tools, as rally, meeting and conference information is shared instantly on Twitter or Instagram.

The AKP has presented 57 candidates aged between 18 and 24 and one of them is self-confident Ibrahim Enes Durmaz who has a potential chance of getting elected in one of capital Ankara's constituencies.

"There is lack of confidence from the society towards young people. The future of the country is being determined by older aged parliamentarians, with a high average age like that they cannot grasp our situation," Durmaz said to Xinhua.

"We want to prove them that we are serious," Durmaz said while emphasizing that the youth must be brought to the fore more.

The young candidate who is still at the senior year of high school, explained that he is genuinely interested in politics and that he worked for four years now in the youth organization of AKP, before getting noticed by the top brass of the party.

Politics will not prevent Durmaz from furthering his studies and he intends to go to law school after entering the college admission tests that will take place a week after the election.

If he's elected, he will be the first parliamentarian to enter the test at his tender age. If not, he will encourage other young people to get interested in politics.

The CHP has also attempted to tap into the huge potential of the young people, with 48 candidates below the age of 25.

In total, 113 young candidates from mainstream parties will race in the elections for the 600-seat parliament.

According to studies, lifestyle is the most important factor determining the youngsters' voting behavior.
Syrian and Russian soldiers stand beside a bus transporting rebels and their families on the outskirts of the Beit Sahm, southeast of Damascus, Syria, on May 7, 2018. (Xinhua/Ammar Safarjalani)

MOSCOW, May 27 (Xinhua) -- At least four Russian servicemen, including two military advisers, were killed in Syria after they were shelled by militants, the Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday.

Several groups of militants attacked the Syrian army's artillery battery in the province of Deir al-Zour at night, killing two Russian military advisers on the spot and wounding another five soldiers, the ministry said.

The injured were immediately taken to a Russian military hospital, but two of them died there, it said.

The Syrian and Russian troops fought the militants for about one hour and killed 43 militants and destroyed six cross-country vehicles armed with large-caliber weapons, according to the ministry.

Russia has been participating in the fight against the Islamic State and insurgent groups in Syria since September 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Russian servicemen and military facilities in Syria have been attacked by militants several times, causing a number of deaths.
WASHINGTON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim on Sunday crossed into the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to talk about the preparation for a summit between leaders of the two nations, local report said.

Sung Kim, a former U.S. ambassador to South Korea and ex-nuclear negotiator, was summoned from his present posting as U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines to talk with Choe Son Hui, DPRK's vice foreign minister, the Washington Post said in a report.

The White House has not yet confirmed the report, which cited a source familiar with the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and DPRK leader Kim Jong Un on June 12 in Singapore.

Just a day before, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong Un held a surprise meeting on the northern side of the border village Panmunjom, the second inter-Korean summit in a month.
by Eric J. Lyman

ROME, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Italy's population this year started what is expected to be a long and steady decline, a trend analysts say is likely to have an impact on its tax base, pension costs, and economic innovation.

The United Nations statistics estimate that Italy's population has peaked at 59.3 million, fourth highest in the European Union (behind Germany, the United Kingdom and France). The average net increase of 192 migrant arrivals per day is no longer enough to compensate for the average death rate of 1,721 per day, compared with the average births of 1,325.

That means, on average, the country's total population is diminishing by one person every seven minutes.

Italy's internal census estimates show a similar total population, but indicate the country's population will edge higher for nearly a quarter of a century more, peaking at around 64 million in 2042.

But regardless of the estimates used, analysts agree that the country's low birthrate and rising life expectancy is resulting in an aging population.

The average Italian is now 45.1 years old, the second oldest population in the world, behind only Japan. And this is expected to give rise to a host of demographic problems.

"As a population ages, it creates obvious problems for pensions, health care costs, and labor markets," Maria Silvana Salvini, a demographics expert at the University of Florence, told Xinhua. "But there are also less evident problems such as less innovation, whether in business, technology, or culture."

Alessandro Polli, a professor of economic statistics at Rome's La Sapienza University, noted that many mature, industrialized countries have similar issues. But he said the problem is particularly pronounced in Italy.

"There are cultural factors involved, but there is also the problem of more than 30 years of policies that do nothing to improve the situation," Polli said in an interview.

The problem is not a new one in Italy. From the late 1920s to the early 1940s, Italy had a controversial "Battle for Births" program under Fascist leader Benito Mussolini, with the goal of increasing Italy's population from 40 million in 1927 to 60 million in 1950.

Families were offered low-interest loans that would be partially cancelled each time they had children, and a family with six or more kids paid no income taxes. Woman of child-bearing age were fired from state jobs to make it easier for them to raise children, while unmarried men paid income taxes at a rate that increased over time. State-sponsored advertisements pressured families to have more children.

Few experts would endorse such dramatic policies today. But both Salvini and Polli said the Italian government could take relatively easy steps that could help slow the decrease in population.

"Labor laws create a kind of disincentive for childbirth," Polli said. "Companies are less likely to hire women who have their child-bearing years ahead of them, and there is no real protection for a pregnant woman who is fired from her job just for being pregnant."

Salvini noted that some European countries -- France and the Nordic countries are the best examples -- offer support for working mothers and tax incentives for families that have more kids.

"It's no coincidence that the countries with these policies in place are the ones most immune to declining population," she said. "It would not be difficult for Italy to offer certain benefits to families starting with the third child, or to make it easier for mothers to balance work and family, through changes in health care or by making child care more affordable for working mothers."
MOSCOW, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A Moldovan-Russian economic forum will be held in the Moldovan capital of Chisinau this year, TASS news agency reported Sunday, citing Moldovan President Igor Dodon.

The forum will be held on Sept. 20-22, with the participation of potential Russian investors, said Dodon.

The agreement on holding such an event was signed on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum earlier this week.

The Moldovan leader made his first foreign visit as president to Moscow in mid-January 2017, less than a month after taking office.

He stressed that restoring full-fledged ties with Russia, his "priority goal as head of state," will have a positive impact on the Moldovan economy and benefit a large number of farmers and migrant workers.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 23:22:45|Editor: Liangyu

Video Player Close

Li Xi, secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Guangdong Provincial Committee,addresses a meeting with the theme "Reform and opening-up holds the key to the destiny of contemporary China" held in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, May 27, 2018. China's reform and opening-up has not only yielded top results, but also provided valuable experience to the world, according to attendees of a meeting held in Shenzhen. (Xinhua/Mao Siqian)

SHENZHEN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China's reform and opening-up has not only yielded top results, but also provided valuable experience to the world, according to attendees of a meeting held in Shenzhen.

The meeting, with the theme "Reform and opening-up holds the key to the destiny of contemporary China," was held in the southern Chinese city on Sunday. More than 500 representatives of over 200 political parties from over 100 countries attended.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up. Guangdong Province, where Shenzhen is located, is the birthplace of the policy, and the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone is one of its landmark achievements, said Li Xi, secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Guangdong Provincial Committee.

Mushahid Hussain Syed, Chairman of Pakistan's Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, visited Shenzhen 40 years ago as a journalist.

"Shenzhen was a small fishing village at that time. However, it has become an international metropolis with nearly 1,000 buildings exceeding a height of 100 meters," he said.

Lineth Guzman, vice president of the Senate of Bolivia, said China's reform and opening-up has offered huge opportunities to other countries.

Guzman said she believes the Chinese government will achieve its goal of eliminating rural poverty by 2020, and Bolivia, which shares similar goals in terms of poverty reduction, is willing to adopt China's experience in pulling people out of poverty.

Representatives also expressed their willingness to learn about governance from the CPC.

Gustavo Rene Hein, chairman of the Republican Proposal Party in the Entre Rios Province of Argentina, said he was very impressed by China's development under the leadership of the CPC, including its long-term planning.

According to Hein, China's rapid development has attracted increasing attention from the world. At the same time, China's opening has made its achievements visible to other countries, which can learn from them.

China's achievements in the past 40 years through reform and opening-up is truly remarkable, and they have answered many questions, said Sergey Zheleznyak, deputy secretary of the General Council of the United Russia Party.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 23:22:45|Editor: ZD

Video Player Close

BEILUN, China, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The United States claimed their third win in the first round of the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Nations League by beating hosts China 3-0 (25-20, 26-24, 25-18) here on Sunday.

Taylor Sander lead the USA team with 17 points while spiker Benjamin Patch had 14 points. Wing spiker Torey Defalco scored 13 that included four blocks.

Jiang Chuan again proved his leading attack in the Chinese team by scoring 15 points with middle blocker Rao Shuhan adding seven points.

Cheered by the home fans, China pressured the Americans all through the first set and again in the second. But the world No. 2 showed their muscles in the set point of the first and second set thanks to aces from Sanders. The United States leaned heavily on their superior experience in the third to break free.

Early on Sunday, Nikolay Uchikov had 26 points to help Bulgaria beat Argentina 3-1 (19-25, 25-19, 25-21, 25-22) in another match. The world 14th-ranked Bulgarians now head home to the second round in Sofia with a 2-1 win-loss record here, losing only to the Americans.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 23:37:49|Editor: Mu Xuequan

Video Player Close

TEHRAN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- International consensus to save the Iran nuclear deal from the U.S. damage has further isolated Washington, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said here on Sunday.

International community has voiced its support for Iran's nuclear deal, except for Israel and a few Arab states which backed U.S. withdrawal from the deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Zarif said.

"I believe that there is still an international consensus in support of it (the JCPOA) and (U.S. President) Trump has failed to change the conditions," Zarif was quoted as saying by state TV.

He stressed that "we trust our nation and this confidence gives us power to meet our country's benefits in such difficult negotiations."

Referring to the ongoing negotiations between Iran and five other parties over the nuclear deal, he said that if Iran's interests are met and necessary guarantees are given over Iran's interests and benefits from the JCPOA, the Islamic republic will remain committed to it.

Zarif said that the U.S. new strategies vis-a-vis Iran will lead to greater isolation of Washington among the international community.

On Friday, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi met his counterparts from Europe, Russia and China to discuss the future of the deal.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 23:37:50|Editor: Chengcheng

Video Player Close

GUIYANG, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A China-India IT industry cluster was launched Sunday in southwest China's Guizhou Province, in a bid to step up cooperation between the two countries through integrated development.

Guiyang, capital of Guizhou, has joined hands with NASSCOM, an Indian non-profit IT industry association, and NIIT, an Indian talent development enterprise, to launch a series of cooperation projects.

The NASSOM (Guiyang) IT Industry Cluster District and the NIIT Big Data College were inaugurated on a forum at China International Big Data Industry Expo 2018.

Guiyang, also known as China's "big data valley," saw its big data enterprises gaining 81.7 billion yuan (12.8 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue in 2017, contributing 33 percent to the city's annual GDP, official data showed.

Located in Guiyang's High-tech Zone, the 8,000-square-meter NASSOM (Guiyang) IT Industry Cluster District is to become an important base for Guizhou's software and service outsourcing industry, according to the forum.

In three to five years, the district is to achieve over 275 million yuan in revenue, by hosting more than 25 enterprises as well as more than 500 software engineers.

The NIIT Big Data College will offer various training programs including big data technology, network development and business intelligence analysis.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 23:52:54|Editor: Mu Xuequan

Video Player Close

TEHRAN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Three Palestinian Islamic Jihad militants were killed Sunday by Israeli artillery fire in the Gaza Strip, an attack that came in response to planting an explosive device near the border fence between Gaza and Israel.

The bombardment came hours after Israeli fighter jets struck a compound belonging to Hamas, the Islamist movement that runs Gaza.

Health ministry in Gaza confirmed the death of the Palestinians killed in the Israeli shelling that targeted an Islamic Jihad military post in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.

The three were identified as Marwan al-Amor, 25, Samir al-Amor, 25, and Abdul Karim al-Naqa, 28.

Palestinian security sources said that the Islamic Jihad monitoring post was targeted by two Israeli tank shells.

Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad group, also announced in a statement the death of three of its militants.

Islamic Jihad spokesman, Dawoud Shehab, said in a statement that his movement "knows how to respond to the Israeli escalation against the Palestinian people."

He stressed that the Islamic Jihad has the right to respond to the Israeli "aggression," affirming that his group will never give up this right.

"We know what are supposed to do to remind the Israeli terrorists that the blood of the Palestinian people is not cheap," he said.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army announced that the bombardment was a response to an explosive device placed on Saturday near the border fence between Gaza and Israel.

"The device was placed last night near the border fence in the southern Gaza Strip in attempt to harm forces operating in the area and was neutralized this morning by Israeli troops," said the Israeli army's statement.

Before the Israeli bombardment on the Islamic Jihad post, Israeli war jets launched several missiles Saturday night at a Hamas military training facility in Rafah.

The war jets also targeted another military facility west of the town of Khan Younis in southern Gaza Strip.

The two Israeli airstrikes were carried out in response to an earlier infiltration of four Palestinian youths who cut the fence of the border between eastern Gaza Strip and Israel.

Israeli and Palestinian media reported that the young men entered Israel, burned an Israeli army military post and returned to Gaza.

Israeli air raids on Gaza have been common over the past few weeks. The strikes usually target military facilities belonging to Hamas movement, which has been ruling Gaza since it routed forces loyal to the Palestinian Authority in 2007.

Israel says the attacks come in response to field developments along the borders with Gaza.

Violence erupted on the border between Gaza and Israel since the start of the mass Palestinian rallies on March 30, during which 116 Palestinians were reportedly killed and thousands of others injured.

The rallies demand the return of Palestinians refugees who were forced to leave their cities during the Arab-Israeli war in 1948 as well as lifting the blockade Israel has been imposing on Gaza since 2007.

Commenting on the recent escalation, Gaza-based political observer and writer, Adnan Abu Amer, said the Israeli army continues to impose its field equation in Gaza without hesitation.

"The Israeli army realizes that the Palestinian options are extremely difficult, that is why Israel is exploiting this situation," Abu Amr told Xinhua.

Israel understands that the resistance in Gaza is living in extremely difficult conditions due to the ongoing Israeli blockade on Gaza, Abu Amer said, therefore Israel is imposing "a decisive deterrent equation."
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-27 23:57:56|Editor: Chengcheng

Video Player Close

TEHRAN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will embark on a visit to India on Sunday for talks on bilateral ties, official IRNA news agency reported.

Zarif will head a political and economic delegation seeking to expand comprehensive ties between the two countries, Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi told IRNA.

During the stay in India, the Iranian foreign minister will meet his Indian counterpart and some other senior officials to review the latest regional and global developments.

In February, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani visited New Delhi while nine agreements were signed to expand bilateral economic ties.

The two countries have friendly relations and significant trade ties in many areas, particularly in crude oil imports into India and diesel exports to Iran.

Iran is the second largest supplier of crude oil to India, supplying more than 425,000 barrels of oil per day, and India is one of the foreign investors in Iran's oil and gas industry.
BRATISLAVA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Slovakia registered a record number of 5.4 million tourists, both domestic and foreign, in 2017, up 7 percent year on year, local media reported on Sunday.

Slovak tourists made up 60 percent of all tourists with 3.2 million registered.

Among the foreign tourists, Czech visitors topped the list with more than 645,000, which was followed by Poles, Germans, Hungarians and Austrians.

"Czechs enjoy the advantage of geographical proximity and accessibility, security, the minimum language barrier and the plentiful offer of sights of nature and culture. More than 88 percent of Czechs are happy with their visit of Slovakia and approximately 97 percent would return to Slovakia again," said Slovak Transport and Construction Minister Arpad Ersek.

According to the minister, the number of tourists from China also significantly increased in 2017.

"We are also happy, that the number of tourists from China exceeded 61,000 last year, which is twice as many as in 2016," said Ersek.

The most attractive Slovak towns or places were Bratislava, Kosice, High Tatras and region Liptov in the Northern Slovakia.
ISLAMABAD, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan's National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar arrived in Pakistan on Sunday for talks with senior civil and military leaders on security issues, Pakistani and Afghan officials said.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi invited the Afghan security adviser for further discussions on issues he had talked about with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul last month.

Atmar is scheduled to hold official talks with his Pakistani counterpart Nasir Janjua and will also meet Pakistan's Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

This is the first high level visit by a senior Afghan official after Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed on a comprehensive bilateral mechanism for dialogue on key areas.

Both sides have operationalized five working groups under the Afghanistan Pakistan Action Plan for Solidarity and efforts are underway to implement its seven key principles that also include their commitments to take action against fugitive and irreconcilable elements.
TRIPOLI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Sunday denied reports that its headquarters in the capital Tripoli had been closed by gunmen.

"The reports about the closure of the mission's headquarters by gunmen are totally untrue," the UNSMIL's spokeswoman, Sawsan Ghosha, told Xinhua.

Local media said that armed groups closed the mission's headquarters and prevented the UN staff from entering the offices.

Also, local media published images of a group of armed vehicles deployed near the mission.

The mission's headquarters is located in a luxury resort in Janzour town, some 15 km west of the capital Tripoli.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-28 00:48:07|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China on Sunday voiced strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to two U.S. warships trespassing China's territorial waters off the Xisha Islands.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said in a statement released on Sunday night that the U.S. warships trespassed into China's territorial waters off the Xisha Islands on Sunday without permission of the Chinese government, and the Chinese navy identified the U.S. warships, warned and expelled them.

"The Chinese side strongly urges the U.S. side to immediately stop such kind of provocative operations that violate China's sovereignty and threaten China's security," Lu said. Enditem
By Ren Ke, Zhang Yuan, Xu Yang

BERLIN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- A total of tens of thousands of demonstrators on Sunday joined in Berlin in two separate groups -- one for the populist right-wing party Alternative fuer Deutschland (AfD) and another against it, lashing each other on issues of refugees and racism.

The AfD said between 2,500 and 5,000 party supporters are at the pro-AfD rally, which was outnumbered by the protest against it, as the Deutsche Presse Agentur (DPA) quoted the police as saying that over 25,000 demonstrators gathered against the party.

Security has been beefed up throughout the city to avoid clashes between AfD supporters and their opponents. However, many of the protests against the AfD appeared to have peaceful and even fun themes, including a rally on boats on the River Spree.

In front of the Bundestag anti-AfD protestors rallied on the grassland, with activists calling for boycotting the party and distributing brochures and papers with slogans.

"Stoppt den Hass" (Stop the Hate), an umbrella of anti-AfD protest groups wrote. "Racism is no alternative," many people held papers with this slogan. Germany's major political groups, including the Die Linke, the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens and others also showed their solidarity against the right-wing populism.

On a stage in front of the Bundestag some Muslim women with loudspeakers denounced the AfD, which is against Islam in Germany. Boys and girls joined the rally with their parents and techno on boats were playing music to show their support for diversified culture.

"I want AFD out because it is a rightist party who only wants Germans to live in Berlin. You know Berlin has always been a city with different nations living together. It's simply not right to have only one people living here," Antje Kanitz told Xinhua among the anti-AfD demonstrators.

While on the other side, AfD members and its supporters walked from the landmark Brandenburg Tor to Berlin Central Railway Station, waving mostly German national flags, and anti-Euro flag and anti-Islam banners. Another banner read, "A. Merkel.... She is a rights breaker."

"Too many new people are coming into Germany and you can see that we are like having a civil war due to Merkel. It's a consequence of her policy," said a man to Xinhua in his 50's named Schmidt among the AfD rally, which was heavily guarded by the police.

He referred to Merkel's opening-door policy towards over one million refugees, mostly Muslims from war-torn Middle East who came to Germany since the summer of 2015.

Founded in 2014, the anti-immigration, anti-Euro AfD gained popularity among the refugee crisis and in the federal elections in September 2017, the party crossed the 5-percent threshold, becoming the first right-wing populist party after WWII in Bundestag, the German Parliament.

The rise of the far-right politics coincided with a spike in anti-Semitism and surging attacks targeting refugee accommodations throughout Germany.

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, Secretary-General of the ruling Christian Democratic Union party (CDU), accused the AfD of anti-Semitism. She said in an article of the weekly Bild am Sonntag that the party was a threat against Jewish life in Germany and had brought anti-Semitism into German parliament.

However, AfD co-chairman Joerg Meuthen fought back against Kramp-Karrenbauer's views, saying the CDU instead was a threat to "Jewish life in Germany with its migration policy allowing masses of people from the Islamic world to immigrate without any conditions."

Latest polls showed that the AfD has around 14 percent of supporting rates, just 3 percentage points after the second largest party, the SPD.

But the demonstrations on Sunday displayed that the AfD arose public anger, as their momentum was obviously pressed down by other political groups on the other side of River Spree, or ordinary people who just passed by.

The two groups were separated from each other by the police. Despite exchanging insults at some crossroads distantly, the demonstrations on Sunday were quite peaceful.

The police deployed 2,000 armed-to-the-teeth officers to guard the demonstrations, blocking the most central area of Berlin.
ARUSHA, Tanzania, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The invasion of pests which have destroyed over 17,000 hectares of food and cash crops in Tanzania's eastern district of Kilosa, authorities said on Sunday.

Tatu Kachenje, an agricultural officer in Kilosa District, said in an interview that pests, such as fall armyworms, rats and quelea birds, have mostly attacked maize, rice and cotton farms in the district.

"We are worried that some 27 wards in our district will experience a food shortage in coming months," she said.

According to Kachenje, 16,531 hectares of maize have been destructed by pests in 20 wards and another 625 hectares of paddy in two other wards. Paddy farms were invaded by quelea birds.

A total of 808 hectares of cotton were invaded by Jassid -- a sucking pest. The pest injects toxins into leaves while feeding, resulting in abnormal changes in leaves.

"The early evaluation reports by experts indicate that maize harvests will drop to 100,354 tonnes as a result of the destruction of 16,531 hectares," Kachenje said.

"We'll experience a drop of 33,062 tonnes of maize in this harvest season," she said, adding that pesticides have been distributed to control the insects.

The government, in collaboration with stakeholders, has continued to educate farmers on how to identify and control the pests, Kachenje said.

The fall armyworm devours everything on its path before turning into a moth. It is native to central America, and was first reported in Nigeria in early 2016.

It has since spread to many other African countries, including Tanzania and Kenya.
TRIPOLI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The French Embassy in Libya officially announced on Sunday that France will host the UN-sponsored international conference on Libya in Paris on Tuesday.

"An international conference on Libya will be held under the auspices of the United Nations on Tuesday, May 29, in Paris' Elysee Palace," the embassy said in a statement.

"After seven years of conflict, this unprecedented conference, which is a continuation of the efforts made since 2011 by the international community and the United Nations, aims to start a new period of stability and cooperation, expected by all Libyan people," the statement said.

"Libyan officials and the international community will be invited on that day to engage in the implementation of an inclusive political road map, in order to end the crisis that has affected the country and the region for several years," the statement added.

Two weeks ago, France proposed an initiative to the Libyan political parties to hold a meeting in Paris to discuss a plan to end the political crisis.

Despite a UN-sponsored political agreement signed by the Libyan rivals in December 2015 and appointment of the UN-backed unity government, Libya remains politically divided between authorities in the east and the west.

UN Envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salame, in September 2017 proposed an action plan for Libya that includes amendment of the political agreement and holding presidential and parliamentary elections before the end of 2018.

In a recent briefing to the UN Security Council, Salame urged for focusing on holding the upcoming elections rather than amendment of the agreement.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-28 02:13:19|Editor: Mu Xuequan

Video Player Close

BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China on Sunday voiced strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to two U.S. warships trespassing into China's territorial waters off the Xisha Islands.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said in a statement released on Sunday night that the U.S. warships trespassed into China's territorial waters off the Xisha Islands on Sunday without permission of the Chinese government, and the Chinese navy identified the U.S. warships, warned and expelled them.

The Xisha Islands are China's inherent territory, Lu said, noting that in accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, the Chinese government promulgated the baseline of the territorial sea off the Xisha Islands in 1996.

The relevant Chinese law has explicit provisions on foreign military vessels' entry into the territorial sea of China, Lu said.

The U.S. side once again sent warships to trespass into China's territorial waters off the Xisha Islands, an act which violated the Chinese and relevant international laws, seriously infringed upon China's sovereignty, disrupted peace, security and good order of the relevant waters.

"The Chinese side strongly urges the U.S. side to immediately stop such kind of provocative operations that violate China's sovereignty and threaten China's security," Lu said, noting that the Chinese side will continue to take all necessary measures to defend national sovereignty and security.
CHICAGO, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Building a two-way educational bridge between U.S. and China is what Tom Watkins has dreamed of.

It is "for the betterment of the students and society," Watkins, former Michigan state superintendent of schools, told Xinhua.

Since a primary school teacher sparked his interest in China, Watkins has dedicated his life to building bridges, economically, culturally and educationally, between China and the United States. "One of the best ways to build relationship and forge a shared vision and common agenda is around education," he said.

He worked with the Confucius Institute to bring Chinese teachers to U.S., invited Chinese principals, teachers, university professors and presidents to conferences in the United States.

Meanwhile, he has visited countless Chinese schools and universities. "China has a long and rich history of educating its people... The concept of teamwork, tolerance, co-operation and harmony are strong skills that students gain as part of the greater society and Chinese education," he told Xinhua.

"Chinese students are, overall, much better behaved, calm and compliant in the classroom," he added, which is rarely seen at the same level as Western education.

But given all these, he admits: "neither U.S. nor Chinese system of education has all the answers," the two countries should learn from each other.

Statistics released by U.S. Institute of International Education in November 2017 show that in the 2016-17 academic year, students from the Chinese mainland studying in U.S. reached 350,755, up 6.8 percent year on year and making up 32.5 percent of total international student studying in the United States. China has become the largest source of foreign students for U.S. colleges and universities for eight years running.

This one-way direction prompted Watkins to do something: bringing U.S. education essence to China.

He becomes a partner of the Way American School, an innovative educational company in U.S. that is partnering with China's Bright Scholar Schools to offer the best of Chinese and U.S. education to students living in China.

The partnership has proved to be a supplementary program to standard Chinese curriculum, and equipped Chinese students with the critical academic foundation and skillsets necessary to succeed in their future pursuit of higher education both at home and abroad.

By building educational bridge, Watkins also aims to forge a deeper understanding between Chinese and Americans.

"The relationship between China and U.S. is, and will remain the most important bilateral relationship on the planet," Watkins said. "By creating ways to strengthen our nations' bond through education bodes well for the U.S., China and all of humanity."

Now serving as managing director of China operations at WAY American School, Watkins will move to China full time this summer. "There is nothing more important to the individual, family and society than the education of our youth. This is true regardless if you are Chinese or American."
KAMPALA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Uganda's ministry of health said on Sunday there is no Ebola outbreak in the country.

Sarah Opendi, state minister for health, said in a statement that a 35-year-old man died on May 21 in the southwestern district of Kakumiro from Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), not Ebola.

The man, who was first admitted to Melt Care Clinic before being transferred to Mubende regional referral hospital, presented high fever and vomiting for two days.

"The ministry of health has noted with concern reports of an Ebola outbreak in Mubende district making rounds across the different media platforms," Opendi said in the statement.

"We would like to inform the public that there is no Ebola outbreak in Mubende or any other part of the country," she said. "What was quoted in the media is rather a case of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever."

The denial followed social media reports that claimed an Ebola outbreak in the east African country and that the authorities were trying to suppress the information.

The minister said a rapid response team, with members from the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization, has been dispatched to Mubende to collect more information and help the district contain the spread of CCHF.

"We appeal to the general public to immediately report any cases presenting with high grade fevers and bleeding tendencies to the nearest health facility," Opendi said.

"The government of Uganda is working towards the control of ticks which are the main agents in the transmission of CCHF from animals to humans," she said.

The minister said the authorities continue to screen travelers at Entebbe International Airport, especially those from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is experiencing an Ebola outbreak.

"The screening targets all passengers who have had a history of travel of not less than 21 days to the DRC," Opendi said.

The Ebola virus is highly contagious and causes a range of symptoms including fever, vomiting, diarrhea, generalized pain or malaise and in many cases internal and external bleeding.

Mortality rates of Ebola fever, according to the World Health Organization, are extremely high, with the human case-fatality rate ranging from 50 percent to 89 percent, depending on viral sub-type.
WASHINGTON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim on Sunday crossed into the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to talk about the preparation for a summit between leaders of the two countries, local report said.

Sung Kim, a former U.S. ambassador to South Korea and ex-nuclear negotiator, was summoned from his present posting as U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines to talk with Choe Son Hui, DPRK's vice foreign minister, the Washington Post said in a report.

Sung Kim came to meet with DPRK's Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, together with Allison Hooker, the U.S. National Security Council member, and Randall Schriver, the assistant secretary of defense for East Asia of State Department.

The Washington Post quoted State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert as saying that the meetings are expected to continue Monday and Tuesday in the northern part of the demilitarized zone where DPRK leader Kim Jong Un met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Saturday.

The two delegations will reportedly be focused on the substance of the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Kim -- the DPRK's nuclear weapon program.

The White House has not yet confirmed the report.

Just a day before, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong Un held a surprise meeting on the northern side of the border village Panmunjom, the second inter-Korean summit in a month.

Moon said Sunday that both Kim and Trump wished the success of their summit "wholeheartedly."

Trump also said on Saturday that Washington is "doing very well in terms of the summit with" Kim.

"A lot of people are working on it. It's moving along very nicely," he said. "We're looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed. And it's moving along pretty well."

Trump canceled the scheduled meeting on Thursday, saying that it will not happen "based on the tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed in the DPRK's most recent statements.

However, he reversed course just one day after the announcement. Both sides wanted the meeting to happen and it could still go ahead after productive talks, he said.

A White House spokeswoman said on Saturday that a White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the Trump-Kim talks.
RABAT, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Morocco's largest opposition party Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) elected its new leader on Sunday.

Hakim Benchamach, also the speaker of the House of Advisors, the higher chamber of the Moroccan parliament, was elected as PAM's new secretary general at the end of an extraordinary session held in the northwestern city of Sale near the capital Rabat.

He won 439 votes in the party's national council, against 39 and 35 votes for his competitors Mohamed Soulouh and Hadi El Hiba respectively.

PAM's previous secretary general Ilyas El Omari resigned last year amid troubles since its defeat in the parliamentary election by ruling Islamist Justice and Development Party in October 2016.
By Eric J. Lyman

ROME, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Giuseppe Conte's decision to abandon his bid to become Italy's next prime minister dashed the first chance for two political novices to take the helm of Europe's fourth largest economy and could pave the way for new elections later this year.

Conte, 53, clashed with Italian President Sergio Mattarella over the selection of 82-year-old euro-skeptic economist Paolo Savona.

Mattarella said he feared Savona would "probably or almost certainly bring Italy's exit from the euro currency zone", something most Italians oppose.

Luigi Di Maio, 31, leader of the populist Five-Star Movement, and 45-year-old Matteo Salvini of the nationalist League -- both newcomers to national politics in Italy and leaders of the coalition that nominated Conte -- refused to back down on Savona. That forced Conte, another political neophyte, to resign his mandate.

Financial markets had been nervous about the prospects of Savona as the chief of Italy's economy. Italian stocks so far lost more than 8 percent of its value this month, while yields on Italian bonds, a measure of investor jitters about a country's economic prospects, shot up.

According to ABS Securities analyst Gian Franco Gallo, investor nervousness will probably calm when markets open Monday.

"The big fear was that Italy might leave the euro currency union or otherwise act to weaken the ties between European Union states," Gallo said in an interview.

"That risk is now greatly reduced. I think what happened was Mattarella drawing a red line and saying 'We will not go beyond this and put the euro currency union at risk'."

The Italian media reported that following Conte's departure, Mattarella asked economist Carlo Cottarelli to come to his office Monday morning.

Gallo said that would likely mean Cottarelli, a former director for the International Monetary Fund, will be asked to form a caretaker government that could have the mandate of finalizing the country's 2019 budget and perhaps a political reform before new elections in September or October.

The Five-Star Movement and the League both finished with record high vote totals in the March 4 general election, pollsters said it was unclear whether the 12-week standoff that resulted in an aborted attempt to form a government under Conte might impact the performance of the two parties if new elections are held within a few months.

"Both parties seem to have maintained their support levels for the most part and the absence of a strong opposition will no doubt help," Maria Rossi, co-director of polling firm Opinioni said in an e-mail after the latest moves. "But it is difficult to know how the coming months might play out."

One wildcard factor is Silvio Berlusconi, the controversial billionaire tycoon and former prime minister whose party, Forza Italia, finished fourth in May, behind both the Five-Star Movement and the League with 14 percent of the vote.

But that happened while Berlusconi was banned from holding public office because of legal problems. That ban was lifted since the election, and that could allow Berlusconi to do better in a future vote.

The center-left Democratic Party, meanwhile, a distant second to the Five-Star Movement in the March 4 vote, is having internal problems and might risk splitting into factions before a new vote can be held.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-28 04:43:45|Editor: Chengcheng

Video Player Close

XIAMEN, May 27 (Xinhua) -- China's Xiamen Airlines welcomed the 200th member of its fleet as its first Boeing 737 MAX aircraft started commercial flight on Sunday.

With a white egret logo on its tail fin, the latest model of the Boeing 737 family started its maiden trip for Xiamen Airlines on a direct air route from southeast China's Xiamen to the eastern city of Shanghai.

"Born in 1984 in the Xiamen Special Economic Zone, Xiamen Airlines is the epitome of China's surging civil aviation amid the country's reform and opening," said Che Shanglun, chairman with Xiamen Airlines.

The airline has achieved total profits of 10 billion yuan (about 1.57 billion U.S. dollars). It has also celebrated 31 consecutive years of profitability.

"It's a milestone of Xiamen Airlines to become a big carrier with the 200th aircraft joining the fleet," said Che, adding that the airline doubled its fleet from 100 to 200 in less than four and a half years.

"Boeing has had a very special relationship with Xiamen Airlines in the past three decades. Now it receives its 737 MAX, which will surely make it more profitable," said Kevin McAllister, CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

"With the delivery of this aircraft, we hope it begins the next chapter of our long-term relationship," he said.

As the latest member of the Boeing 737 narrow-body aircraft family, the 737 MAX is the fastest-selling airplane in Boeing's history. Boeing has gotten more than 4,500 orders from nearly 100 customers worldwide.

The 737 MAX boasts advanced technology winglets and LEAP-1B engines, which contribute to its reduced fuel use and carbon dioxide emissions compared to the single-aisle airplanes it replaces.

In 2017, Boeing delivered a record high of 202 new aircraft to China, representing its sixth consecutive year of more than 140 deliveries to the country, according to Boeing China.

Boeing's global deliveries of commercial aircraft reached 763 in 2017, with those to China making up 26 percent.

Now, each one of three Boeing narrow-body 737 family aircraft is made for the Chinese customers.

China's surging aviation industry has been creating great opportunities for global companies, especially U.S. giants and many enterprises on the extensive industrial chain, said insiders in the aviation industry.

As an air carrier of all-Boeing fleet, Xiamen Airlines uses the fleet of 737s, 757s, and 787 Dreamliners to expand its airline network home and abroad, including ten transcontinental air routes.

Che announced that the airline has set a target to expand its Boeing fleet to 560 by 2035, similar to the current fleet size of the country's biggest carrier, China Southern Airlines.
LOS ANGELES, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Lava erupted from Hawaii's Kilauea volcano reached site of the Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV) plant and threatened the nearest well 130 feet (39.6 meters) away, local media reported on Sunday.

The Hawaii News Now website reported the residents living near the 38 MW PGV received alert via text message from Hawaii County Civil Defense Agency about 6:15 am Sunday, saying lava flew into PGV property overnight.

The plant's spokesman Mike Kaleikini was quoted as saying that no release of hydrogen sulfide had been detected on the site so far, which is the biggest concern if lava were to hit the geothermal wells.

Geothermal power, which uses the natural heat of underground rocks to create electricity, is a low-carbon way to generate a relatively constant supply of electricity.

However, Art Technica website warned Sunday noon that since no modern geothermal plant has suffered lava damage, so there's no precedent for this situation and many officials are concerned the damage would result in releases of hydrogen sulfide gas, which is toxic to humans.

Geothermal wells often release small amounts of toxic hydrogen sulfide during normal operations, usually well below emissions limits set by local governments, but lava could destabilize a well and release more, the analysis said.

PGV usually provides about 25 percent of power in the Big Island, where Kilauea volcano started erupting over three weeks ago and has forced thousands people's evacuation, but the plant was taken offline after the first eruption of Kilauea.

Meanwhile, about 60,000 gallons of pentane, a highly-flammable chemical, were moved from the PGV site early this month. Pentane, used as a "working fluid" for geothermal plants, has a lower boiling point than water so it heats up quickly.

PGV officials said the threat of an uncontrolled release of hydrogen sulfide would be mitigated if lava inundates their property and makes contact with their wells.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-28 04:53:48|Editor: Mu Xuequan

Video Player Close

JERUSALEM, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Israeli troops shot and injured a Palestinian woman in East Jerusalem on Sunday night, after the woman did not stop as the forces told her.

A video clip that surfaced on the internet showed the woman walking slowly on a pavement in Pisgat Ze'ev, a Jewish settlement neighborhood in Jerusalem, when the Israeli border police surrounded her before shooting.

No other civilians were seen near the Palestinian woman.

According to a Israeli police statement, the paramilitary border police forces "carried out a procedure for apprehending" the woman after shooting at her legs, as she "approached them and did not obey their calls."

Palestinian reports, however, said the woman has a hearing impairment, which prevented her from hearing the warning.

She was taken to the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem with "moderate shooting injuries," a spokesperson for the hospital said.

The incident came amid a rising tension between Israelis and Palestinians, as at least 110 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since March 30, the first day of the ongoing Palestinian anti-Israel "March of Return" mass rally.
This combination of pictures created on May 24, 2018 shows U.S. President Donald Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, May 17, 2018, and DPRK's leader Kim Jong Un (R) during the inter-Korean summit in the Peace House building on the southern side of the truce village of Panmunjom on April 27, 2018. (AFP Photo and Korea Summit Press Pool)

WASHINGTON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday confirmed that a U.S. official team had arrived in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to talk about the preparation for a summit between him and DPRK's top leader Kim Jong Un.

"Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself," he tweeted.

The Trump-Kim meeting is scheduled to be held in Singapore on June 12.

"I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!" said the White House host.

The Washington Post reported earlier on Sunday that former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim on Sunday crossed into the DPRK to prepare for a summit with Choe Son Hui, DPRK's vice foreign minister.

The Washington Post quoted State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert as saying that the meetings are expected to continue Monday and Tuesday in the northern part of the demilitarized zone where DPRK leader Kim Jong Un met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on Saturday.
ALGIERS, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Algeria on Sunday condemned a car bomb attack targeting a market street in Libya's eastern city of Benghazi late Thursday, which killed at least six and wounded more than 20 others.

"Algeria strongly condemns the terrorist car bomb attack that targeted a populated area in the city of Benghazi during this holy month of Ramadan," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Such criminal and heinous acts are contrary to all values and morals called for by this holy month of mercy and tolerance," it added.

Algeria also expressed its solidarity with Libyans, describing the terrorist act as "a desperate attempt to undermine the determination of the Libyan people for national reconciliation through comprehensive inter-dialogue."
HELSINKI, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Finnish parliament member Anna-Maja Henriksson was re-elected on Sunday as chairperson of the Swedish Party at a party convention in Oulu, northern Finland.

The Swedish party has profiled itself as a national liberal alternative, instead of promoting only the interests of the Swedish speaking minority in Finland.

At the convention, Heriksson emphasized low income taxation. She said Finland should become "the most child friendly country" in the world.

Henriksson said the party backs the idea of offering privately produced medical services in tax funded health care system, but opposes the envisaged reform package. She said the party will vote against the government health and provincial autonomy bills.

Henriksson denied rumors that the party had made a deal with Prime Minister Sipila about the support for the government in return for better services in Swedish speaking areas.

After decades of almost automatic participation in Finnish coalition governments, Finnish Swedish Party ended up in opposition in 2015, when the current coalition under the centrist prime minister Sipila was formed.

Political observers noted that a continued term in opposition would be a horror scenario for the party. It has nine seats in parliament currently.

Henriksson has been in the parliament since 2007. She is a lawyer by profession.
HAVANA, May 27 (Xinhua) -- Cuba's Institute of Forensic Medicine (IFM) has identified the remains of all the victims of the plane crash which took place on May 18 near Havana's Jose Marti International Airport, the daily Juventud Rebelde reported on Sunday.

The Institute informed Saturday night the families of the nine remaining unidentified victims that the bodies had been recognized, concluding the exhaustive identification process of the 110 immediate victims of the tragedy.

Sergio Rabell, director of the IFM, stressed that the "work of the experts has been intense, since the victims had multiple injuries and many of them were burned."

Rabell said that the bodies of the 11 foreigners had DNA tests, for the Cuban victims, DNA tests were carried out only when other markers, such as tattoos or scars, could not be found.

On Friday, May 18, a Boeing 737 flying between Havana and the eastern city of Holguin city crashed minutes after take-off with 113 people on board.

These included 102 Cuban passengers, five foreign passengers and six Mexican crew.

The aircraft belonged to the Mexican company Damojh and had been leased by the island's national airline, Cubana de Aviacion.

Four Cubans survived initially but a male survivor died on the way to the hospital. Two other female survivors died later in intensive care while the final one is in critical condition.

The Cuban government has appointed an official commission to investigate the cause of the crash, led by Jose Armando Daniel Lopez, president of Cuba's Institute of Aeronautics and Civil Aviation.

Lopez said "it could take months to reach credible...conclusions" about the cause.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-05-28 06:34:06|Editor: Mu Xuequan

Video Player Close

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 27 (Xinhua) -- The economic losses caused by truckers's long strike across Brazil since Monday have already exceeded 10.2 billion reais (2.8 billion U.S. dollars), according to initial estimates from various sectors.

Published on Sunday by the daily, Folha de Sao Paulo, the number is more than double the 5 billion reais (1.37 billion) U.S. dollars the government has unblocked to cover the losses.

The president of the Brazilian Chamber of the Construction Industry (CBIC), Jose Carlos Martins, said that 40 percent of the sector's activities had been affected by the strike, jeopardizing 2.4 billion reais (657 million U.S. dollars) of business.

In the poultry and pork sector, losses have been estimated at around 1.8 billion reais (493 million U.S. dollars) in the first five days of the strike.

The Brazilian Association of Animal Protein (ABPA) said this number includes both losses on the internal market and exports. "Each day chickens are dying and eggs are not being born. Over 50 million birds have already died," it said.

In the cattle industry, export losses have been estimated at 620 million reais (170 million U.S. dollars), although this could rise in coming days, as animals begin to run out of food.

Milk producers have announced losses of 1.1 billion reais (300 million U.S. dollars) with 95 million liters of milk being lost every day. The pharmaceutical sector has reported losses of 1 billion reais (275 million U.S. dollars) and the automotive sector has declared 1.3 billion reais (355 million U.S. dollars) of losses due to factories shutting down for a lack of parts.

Electronics, airlines, coffee producers and garment workers have also seen losses in the millions.

The truckers have been protested all week against a rise in fuel prices. On Friday, President Michel Temer called out the army and police to clear the blockades but many remained on Sunday.

Supermarkets have been running out of food, medication is out of stock in pharmacies and service stations are out of fuel, paralyzing Latin America's largest economy.
Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said on Sunday that the regional parties would be king-makers in 2019. "In 2019, regional parties will rule. All regional parties are coming together to defeat BJP. In 2019, BJP will taste defeat. It gave false promise but could not deliver anything. Conspiracies are going on to create tension in the state. But we won`t let them happen," he said.

In 2019, the regional parties will be king-makers. All regional parties are coming together to defeat BJP. In upcoming Lok Sabha elections, BJP will taste defeat: N Chandrababu Naidu, CM of Andhra Pradesh. pic.twitter.com/sCAVflEaAO  ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

Naidu also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he is a campaign PM who has failed to deliver on promises. Inaugurating Mahanadu, the TDP's annual conclave, he said the Telugu Desam Party played a key role in forming governments in the past and had the power to change the political narrative in the country. He added that the TDP was key in forming the United Front government in 1996. "The TDP has in the past played a key role in forming governments. It has the power to change the political narrative in the country. We won't step back," Naidu said.

On withdrawing support from the NDA government, he said that the Centre had reneged on its promise to grant Andhra Pradesh Special Category status and to implement the AP Reorganisation Act. Naidu accused the BJP of betraying the people of AP and trying to create law and order problems in the state in collusion with the YSRCP.

The TDP had in March 2018 withdrawn support from the NDA government over the Centre's refusal to grant special category status to the state.

Naidu's comments come days after a galaxy of opposition leaders and CMs attended HD Kumaraswamy oath-taking ceremony on May 23, 2018, in Karnataka. Congress president Rahul Gandhi, his mother and UPA chairperson Sonia, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Chandrababu Naidu, Arvind Kejriwal and Pinarayi Vijayan, her counterparts in Andhra Pradesh, Delhi and Kerala, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, Tejashwi Yadav, the Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, BSP chief Mayawati, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav and Rashtriya Lok Dal leader Ajit Singh, were among those who attended the coronation of Kumaraswamy, who is heading the JD(S)-Congress coalition in the state, in a development that could plant a seed for a broad-based anti-BJP platform before the Lok Sabha polls in 2019.

(With ANI and PTI inputs)
Username: Password: or Register Thread Rating: 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average

1

2

3

4

5

Page: 1 2 3 4 What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441868

05-27-2018 02:09 AM











Post: #31 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Advertisement LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 01:23 AM) Why did bush and Cheney and the rest refuse to testify under oath and get away with it?

Answer me that LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441769

05-27-2018 02:15 AM











Post: #32 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:09 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 01:23 AM) Why did bush and Cheney and the rest refuse to testify under oath and get away with it?

Answer me that

Testify to what? Their claim that terrorist attacked the US is installed in all government agencies, and with all the elite, as a fact. They sort of did a coup, and made terrorism the new doctrine of the pentagon and defence industry.

Even if Bush confesed, new propaganda will be made to make that inconcequential for any of the current conflicts and the planned conflicts. That terrorism is real is now also a fact since they created it. Testify to what? Their claim that terrorist attacked the US is installed in all government agencies, and with all the elite, as a fact. They sort of did a coup, and made terrorism the new doctrine of the pentagon and defence industry.Even if Bush confesed, new propaganda will be made to make that inconcequential for any of the current conflicts and the planned conflicts. That terrorism is real is now also a fact since they created it. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441868

05-27-2018 02:18 AM











Post: #33 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:15 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:09 AM)

Testify to what? Their claim that terrorist attacked the US is installed in all government agencies, and with all the elite, as a fact. They sort of did a coup, and made terrorism the new doctrine of the pentagon and defence industry.

Even if Bush confesed, new propaganda will be made to make that inconcequential for any of the current conflicts and the planned conflicts. That terrorism is real is now also a fact since they created it.

Testify to What happened on 911

They refused and people let it slide

WHY!? Testify to What happened on 911They refused and people let it slideWHY!? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441769

05-27-2018 02:20 AM











Post: #34 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:18 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:15 AM) Testify to what? Their claim that terrorist attacked the US is installed in all government agencies, and with all the elite, as a fact. They sort of did a coup, and made terrorism the new doctrine of the pentagon and defence industry.

Even if Bush confesed, new propaganda will be made to make that inconcequential for any of the current conflicts and the planned conflicts. That terrorism is real is now also a fact since they created it.

Testify to What happened on 911

They refused and people let it slide

WHY!?

They testified that Osama did it, from the caves of Afghanistan. And Iraq supposedly was invloved in transfering funding and arms to Al Qaida.

That is what they testified. They testified that Osama did it, from the caves of Afghanistan. And Iraq supposedly was invloved in transfering funding and arms to Al Qaida.That is what they testified. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441868

05-27-2018 02:22 AM











Post: #35 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:20 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:18 AM) Testify to What happened on 911

They refused and people let it slide

WHY!?

They testified that Osama did it, from the caves of Afghanistan. And Iraq supposedly was invloved in transfering funding and arms to Al Qaida.

That is what they testified. No they REFUSED to Testify under OATH No they REFUSED to Testify under OATH LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441868

05-27-2018 02:22 AM











Post: #36 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

And people let it slide LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441868

05-27-2018 03:13 AM











Post: #37 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:22 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:20 AM) They testified that Osama did it, from the caves of Afghanistan. And Iraq supposedly was invloved in transfering funding and arms to Al Qaida.

That is what they testified. No they REFUSED to Testify under OATH LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441868

05-27-2018 03:19 AM











Post: #38 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

And you let it slide

Why? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442984

05-27-2018 03:34 AM











Post: #39 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Their official line is that saddam had wmd (he gassed the kurds a few years back)

And at some point the americans and Iraqi govt were working together.? I rememver seeing a pic of rumfeld with saddam LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442994

05-27-2018 04:09 AM











Post: #40 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

they played the role of fall guy base unit

Registered User

User ID: 348689

05-27-2018 04:46 AM



Posts: 1,490









Post: #41 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:24 PM) How does, "Operation Iraqi Freedom" coinside with looking for "Weapons of Mass Destruction"?



It doesn't add up.

Was there dancing Iraqi in New York?

Were the alleged Hijackers from Iraq?

Did Iraq plant the Explosives?



Where does Iraq fit into the 911 equation?

iraq was the country that would get the big pipeline across it taking oil to israel and other US allies in the region.



look it up iraq was the country that would get the big pipeline across it taking oil to israel and other US allies in the region.look it up LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442917

05-30-2018 10:18 PM











Post: #42 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Strategos Wrote: (05-27-2018 01:16 AM) FFS there was no Iraqi involvement in 9/11.



We spent billions on a separate effort after the invasion looking for evidence.



We turned up nothing.

LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 372620

05-30-2018 10:46 PM











Post: #43 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

it was excuse by WASP elite to get oil,

and for Israel and Zionism to gain power. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442203

05-30-2018 10:48 PM











Post: #44 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:22 AM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 02:20 AM) They testified that Osama did it, from the caves of Afghanistan. And Iraq supposedly was invloved in transfering funding and arms to Al Qaida.

That is what they testified. No they REFUSED to Testify under OATH

So? People lie under oath all the time. So? People lie under oath all the time. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 443537

05-30-2018 11:12 PM











Post: #45 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:24 PM) How does, "Operation Iraqi Freedom" coinside with looking for "Weapons of Mass Destruction"?



It doesn't add up.

Was there dancing Iraqi in New York?

Were the alleged Hijackers from Iraq?

Did Iraq plant the Explosives?



Where does Iraq fit into the 911 equation?

to build / complete oil pipeline in northwest Iraq to isreal to build / complete oil pipeline in northwest Iraq to isreal Advertisement


















Mumbai: Actor Harshvardhan Rane, who is gearing up for the release of his upcoming war drama film 'Paltan', says its trailer will release in mid-July.

Harshvardhan interacted with the media at the GQ 100 Best Dressed Awards 2018 here on Saturday.

"We are waiting for the launch of the trailer. The teaser of the film was released two to three weeks ago. The film is scheduled to release on September 7, so if we go little reverse of that then, I think we will be able to release the trailer of our film around mid-July," he said.

'Paltan', which also features Arjun Rampal, Sonu Sood, Gurmeet Choudhary, Siddhanth Kapoor, Monica Gill and Sonal Chauhan, is directed by J.P. Dutta, who is returning to direction after 12 years.

He is known for his war-based films such as 'Border', 'LOC Kargil' and 'Refugee'.
It's a new day, a new beginning. Its all about starting life afresh. So as you begin a new journey, find out what the stars have in store for you today. There are twelve zodiac signs and each has its distinct feature. Be it, Aries, Taurus, Gethe mini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces - each of the signs has something unique to tell.

Geminis will feel lucky today as a lot of your initiatives will get attention.

Check out today's predictions by Sundeep Kochar:

Aries

You use creativity to express your love and your partner will be surprised with your creativity. Your partner will want your commitment and it is appropriate time to take the plunge. One area you will be intrigued is understanding of spiritual self and that is an area you may need to seek guidance and help from your teacher or father.

Taurus

Today you will be feeling good and at the top of the world. You will feel like starting a new initiative or complete an ambitious project that you have undertaken before. Your partner, loved ones and all your family members will be supportive of you. Overall a good day for you.

Gemini

You will feel lucky today as lot of your initiatives will get attention. Some key people will check at your initiatives and will support your ideas. You should use your intellect and demonstrate your passionate energy to make your case strong further.

Cancer

You will feel dull and not motivated. You may feel you are not able to achieve anything but this is just phase. You will be surprised that in dull mood of mind you will find many things that you many things that you have thought are actually happening and happening for your benefits.

Leo

You will feel you are being looked up by everyone. You want to express your ideas and you will be surprised that everyone accepts your ideas. You partner will be supportive of your initiatives. Just dont be obsessed on material gains and they are bigger things than material gains in life.

Virgo

Be careful with your friends and family and try not to be critical of them especially when they are dealing with financial matters. You may want to invest in some investment deal and be careful as you may find it risky. Your partner will need your attention and it is good time to spend some time with your partner.

Libra

Your siblings need your time and you should focus on their well being. You will find yourself taking some risky initiative or project and you will be surprised that you are not afraid of taking risk. Today you may feel like travelling for a short trip and pack you bag and go for a spin. Always great to unwind.

Scorpio

You will feel moody and emotional which is so unlike of you but then these hidden emotions of yours are just surfacing. Try not to be peevish as loved ones and dear ones surrounding you will find tough to keep up with your moods.

Sagittarius

You may try to avoid speculative and risky investments. You want to focus on your loved ones especially for those having children. You should be firm in your commitments to your loved ones as they may feel shaken or losing confidence in themselves and they will feel strong if your with them and give them your time.

Capricon

If you are in a profession dealing with words, ideas, or communication, this is a very productive time for you. Ideas flow and you express your thoughts well. There is much activity; you move rapidly from one thing to another and a hectic, somewhat stressful pace is likely. Many errands, phone calls, letters which require a response, and other "busywork" is on the agenda today.

Aquarius

Today, it is advisable for you to express yourself boldly and confidently. You seem to care less about outside approval and this frees you to act on your own behalf or to do something you have not had the courage to attempt before. Your health and vitality are quite good, and you need physical outlets for your energies now.

Pisces

The atmosphere at the work place of someone special may have to be given a serious hearing. Keep your patience and the more compassionate you are, sweeter will be your love life. Your ego and self-esteem will swell as you see the tension flowing away from your special person's mind.
A quick glance at the top news of the day:

1. India slams Pak over 'Gilgit-Baltistan order', says 'vacate areas under illegal occupation'

India on Sunday told Pakistan that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is its integral part by virtue of its accession in 1947. Read full report

2. Never knew they would oppose India for the sake of opposing Modi: PM on Congress

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lashed out at the Congress and the other opposition parties for joining hands with an aim to take on the Bharatiya Janata Parrty (BJP). Hitting out at the opposition parties, he said: "there is a limit to playing politics." Read full report

3. Regional parties will be king-makers in 2019, BJP coming back to power a dream: Naidu

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said on Sunday that the regional parties would be king-makers in 2019. "In 2019, regional parties will rule. All regional parties are coming together to defeat BJP. In 2019, BJP will taste defeat. Read full report

4. Heat wave will continue in Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi: IMD

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has warned of heat wave conditions in North India, including Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Delhi in the coming days. Read full report

5. Stage set for Palghar, Bhandara-Gondia bypolls, tight security in place

Preparations have geared up ahead of by-elections in two Lok Sabha seats - Palghar and Bhandara-Gondia of Maharashtra which is slated to be held on May 28, Tuesday. The polling will be conducted from 7 am to 6 pm and the counting will be done on May 31. Read full report
AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat Board Class 10th results 2018 will be declared at 8 am on Monday. The results will be made available on the official website of Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) - gseb.org.

Once released, the students who have appeared in the examination will be able to check their scores by visiting the board's portal. Other than GSHSEB's official portal, the results will also be made available on gipl.net, examresults.net and indiaresults.com.

Nearly 10 lakh students appeared in the SSC Class 10 examination 2018 at various centres across the country. The Gujarat board Class 10th examinations were held between March 12 to March 23, 2018.

Here's how to check Gujarat board class 10th result 2018:

Step 1: Go to the official website, gseb.org

Step 2: Click on the result tab

Step 3: Enter your registration number or roll number

Step 4: Submit the details

The marksheets will be handed over to the school authorities on May 31, Thursday and the students can collect their scorecards on the same day.

About Gujarat Board (GSEB)

The GSEB is responsible for the conduct of Class 10 and 12 exams in the state. Every year, 2 (including 4-semester type examinations) main examinations are held - the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exam for standard 10 and the Higher Secondary (School) Certificate (HSC) examination for Standard 11 and 12 students in Gujarat. The board is also responsible for the State entrance examinations GUJCET.
New Delhi: India on Sunday told Pakistan that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is its integral part by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Summoning Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah over Islamabad's so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, the Ministry of External Affairs told him that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country's forcible occupation has no legal basis.

Through its order on Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region. Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order.

"Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under the forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation," the MEA said, according to per PTI.

The ministry said it was also conveyed to the Pakistani deputy envoy that such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of J&K by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan-occupied territories (PoK).

Pakistan to give greater administrative and financial authority to PoK, Gilgit-Baltistan

It was reported on May 20, 2018, that Pakistan's top civil and military leaders had decided to give greater administrative and financial authority to PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan, the region through which the USD 50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) passes.

During a meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) - the top civil and military body - Sartaj Aziz, deputy chairman planning commission and the Ministry of Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan, was said to have briefed the committee on the PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan reform proposals on May 19, 2018, an official statement had said.

The meeting chaired by Abbasi had reviewed these proposals and after detailed deliberations, a consensus was reached on the "devolution of greater administrative authority and financial powers" to the 'PoK government' and the Gilgit-Baltistan government, as per to the statement.

However, there was also consensus over retention of the PoK and Gilgit-Baltistan Councils as advisory bodies and the grant of a five-year tax holiday to Gilgit-Baltistan so as to create adequate incentives for the development of the region and bring it at par with the other areas of Pakistan, PTI has reported.

Gilgit-Baltistan is treated as a separate geographical entity by Pakistan. Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh are four provinces of Pakistan.

The NSC had also endorsed that FATA shall be merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa along with the introduction of the administrative and judicial institutional structures and laws of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The meeting was attended by Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Defence and Foreign Affairs Khurram Dastgir Khan, chairman joint chiefs of staff committee Gen Zubair Mahmood Hayat, Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of Naval and Air forces, ISI chief and other senior civil and military officials.

(With Agency inputs)
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tej Pratap Yadavs wife Aishwarya Rai may contest in 2019 Lok Sabha elections for the party from Chhapra in Bihar. However, a decision in this regard is yet to be taken by the family of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav.

According to RJD leader Rahul Tiwari, people of the state want Aishwarya to contest the elections and a final decision would be taken by the Yadav family. Terming Aishwarya as Chhapras daughter, he said that she would certainly fight the elections and win if RJD supremo wishes so.

Even before any official confirmation about Aishwaryas candidature, the ruling Janata Dal United has taken a dig at the RJD saying workers in the party are there merely to play drums and party tickets for elections would be given only to members of Lalus family.

JDU leader Neeraj Kumar said, RJD workers are there in party merely for playing drums. Only members of Lalus family will get the chance to contest in elections. Lalu family can never rise above dynasty politics and corruption.

Tej Pratap and Aishwarya Rai, granddaughter of former Bihar chief minister Daroga Prasad Rai, got married at a grand ceremony in Patna on May 12.

There was a huge turnout of well wishers at the marriage venue. Amid photographs and videos of celebrations, there were also reports of mismanagement at the wedding because of some unruly section of the crowd.

Taking to Twitter, Tej Prataps brother and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav had thanked people for coming in huge numbers to bless the couple. He had shared photographs showing huge crowd trying to click photographs of the couple. In one of the photographs shared by Tejashwi, an SUV apparently taking the couple from the venue to their residence, can be seen surrounded by huge crowd of people.

Sharing the pictures on the microblogging site, Tejashwi thanked people for showering blessings on the couple, attributing the huge turnout to the presence of Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is currently serving a sentence in connection with fodder scam cases.

Had we expected that lakhs of people would come to shower their blessings on the couple in the presence of Lalu Prasad Yadav, we would have organised the wedding at a bigger venue like Gandhi Maidan. Forgive us for whatever trouble you faced. Thank you again, tweeted Tejashwi.
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lashed out at the Congress and the other opposition parties for joining hands with an aim to take on the Bharatiya Janata Parrty (BJP). Hitting out at the opposition parties, he said: "there is a limit to playing politics."

"Congress makes a joke out of whatever work is done for the poor Dalits and backward classes. They create obstacles in the development work and even treat that with disrespect. They think creating toilets for women is a joke, Swachch Bharat is a joke, providing free LPG connections is a joke, making bank accounts is a joke. The ones who have been in dynasty politics think everything is a joke. Never knew they would oppose India and put the development at stake just for the sake of opposing Modi. For them, their family is the country, for me, my country is my family," he said.

"I am talking out of my experience. Those who have greed, only shed crocodile tears for politics. They do politics of appeasement. But the one who actually thinks about you, works for the development," he said while targetting the Congress.

Talking about the work done by the government for Dalits, he said: "We have made Special courts to tackle cases of atrocities against the Dalits. The Congress is openly lying even about a Supreme Court order just for politics, be it about laws for Dalit atrocities or for reservations. They do not even care how their statements can bring instability in the country," he said.
New Delhi: The cost of prosecuting Mumbai terror attacks mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) head Hafiz Saeed is too great, says former ISI chief Asad Durrani.

"If you prosecute Saeed, the first reaction will be - it's on India's behalf, you're hounding him, he's innocent, etc. The political cost is big, now," he says.

Durrani, 77, mentions this in a new book in which he features in conversation with former RAW chief AS Dulat and the two discuss topics including everything related to India-Pakistan ties: the surgical strikes, Kulbhushan Jadhav, Nawaz Sharif, Kashmir and Burhan Wani.

When Dulat asks him, what is Saeed's value to Pakistan, Durrani replies, "The cost of prosecuting him is too great."

Saeed, who carries a USD 10 million American bounty for his role in terror activities, was under house arrest from January to November 2017.

The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which is responsible for carrying out the Mumbai attacks in 2008 in which 166 people, including six Americans, were killed.

Saeed was declared a global terrorist by the US and the UN after the Mumbai strikes and was put under house arrest in November 2008 but freed by a court some months later.

"He was taken to the courts though they had nothing (new) against him. It is still possible that he was detained to let the storm blow over. In six months, he could come out," writes Durrani about Saeed's detention.

In the book, published by HarperCollins India, Dulat and Durrani are in conversation with Aditya Sinha.

On asked by Dulat if Saeed's house arrest was choreographed, Durrani says, "What's new, as far as Hafiz Saeed is concerned, is more evidence available? One would expect that there's an arrangement with Hafiz Saeed.

Asked if there were any positive implications for Indo-Pak relations from Saeed's house arrest, he says, "There are very few positives on the India-Pakistan front right now. But this can provide breathing space to a country that is constantly under pressure."

Meanwhile, Pakistan's powerful Army has accused Durrani of 'violating' the military code of conduct and has summoned him tomorrow seeking clarification over his book "The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace".

Durrani mentions in the book that Mumbai remains the only incident in which he decided that he would be available to any Indian and Pakistani channel to say that whoever has done this, be it state-sponsored, ISI-sponsored, military-sponsored, should be caught hold of and punished.

"It's not only about those 168 people dead, four days of carnage, etc. At the time Pakistan could ill afford its eastern front caught in a war. There were enough problems in the West and within the country. I don't know who did it, but there were questions that David Headley named an ISI major. It created difficulties for us," he says.

On reports that Headley collaborated with Saeed, he says, people can go ahead and investigate as all these stories have floated around.

"For eight years, both of us have advocated joint investigation, joint trial, intelligence sharing, get on with the anti-terrorism mechanism, etc, for the simple reason that we can't do anything until and unless this is resolved. Till then, Hafiz Saeed, ISI, Jaish-e-Mohammed: it's possible they had nothing to do with it, that there's a third or fourth or fifth party involved," he says.
New Delhi: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Baghpat to take credit for a project envisaged during the erstwhile UPA government, but did not spare any thought for the protesting sugarcane farmers. He said that the PM zoomed past the fields of sugarcane farmers of Uttar Pradesh without sparing any thought for people like Udaiveer Singh.

UP        UPA                           ?                ,      pic.twitter.com/1bmDB0DBIF  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 27, 2018

Singh, a farmer sitting on 'dharna' demanding payment of dues by sugar mills and against the hike in rural power tariffs died in the Baraut town of this district, officials said. He was protesting under the banner - 'Kisan Sangharsh Morcha'. The dharna was being held in the Baraut sub-division of this district since May 21, 2018. Singh, 60, died on Saturday following which the district administration announced a compensation of Rs 12 lakh to his family, PTI was quoted as saying by officials.

Meanwhile, in Baghpat, the PM on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the Congress for spreading "lies and rumours" on issues ranging from dilution of anti-Dalit atrocities law to farmer issues.

Speaking at a public rally after inaugurating the Rs 11,000-crore Eastern Peripheral Expressway, he said the Congress was "openly" spreading lies for its narrow political gains. "People who are used to worshipping one family cannot worship democracy," he said. After losing elections, they are rattled. "I had not thought that in opposing Modi, they would start opposing the country. On that side are the people for whom their family is the country. For me, my country is my family," the PM added.

                     pic.twitter.com/hGC8rvzf5M  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 27, 2018

He further said that he is not bothered by the opposition attacks on him as he knows the people of the country are with him and those who for 70 years deceived poor, middle-class, farmers and youth are now rattled. "Truth is that Congress and its allies either create obstacles or make fun of any work done for the upliftment of poor, Dalits and tribals. To them, the country's development too is a joke. To them, Swachh Bharat, free cooking gas (LPG) connection to poor women, building toilets and opening bank accounts for poor are a joke," PM Modi said.

Without taking the name of Congress or its president Rahul Gandhi, he said, "Those used to seeing power for generations consider any work done for poor as a joke. Those who tear Cabinet notes don't deem it fit to respect law passed by Parliament unanimously."

(With PTI inputs)
NEW DELHI: Congress President Rahul Gandhi will be travelling abroad for a few days starting on Sunday to accompany his mother UPA chief Sonia Gandhi for a medical check up.

Sonia Gandhi will be travelling abroad for her annual medical examination. She had undergone a surgery in the US in 2011.

Taking a dig at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s social media troll army, the Gandhi scion took to Twitter and asked them to not get too worked up as he will be back to India soon.

"Will be out of India for a few days, accompanying Sonia ji to her annual medical check up. To my friends in the BJP social media troll army: don't get too worked up...I'll be back soon!" he said.

Will be out of India for a few days, accompanying Sonia ji to her annual medical check up. To my friends in the BJP social media troll army: dont get too worked up...I'll be back soon!  Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 27, 2018

The Congress president is expected to return to the country in a week while Sonia Gandhi would stay abroad for a longer period.

As per party sources, some key decisions, including the allocation of ministerial portfolios in Karnataka after a Congress-JD(S) government led by HD Kumaraswamy was formed in the southern state last week, have been put on hold.

Some fresh appointments in the Congress are also awaited as part of the party's rejig under Rahul Gandhi.

The Congress chief held deliberations with party leaders since Saturday to decide on the portfolios for the party's legislators in Karnataka, but the discussions remained inconclusive.

Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to address a rally in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh in the first week of June.

(With inputs from agencies)
Username: Password: or Register Thread Rating: 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average

1

2

3

4

5

Page: 1 2 3 4 What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442917

05-26-2018 11:24 PM











Post: #1 What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Advertisement



It doesn't add up.

Was there dancing Iraqi in New York?

Were the alleged Hijackers from Iraq?

Did Iraq plant the Explosives?



Where does Iraq fit into the 911 equation? How does, "Operation Iraqi Freedom" coinside with looking for "Weapons of Mass Destruction"?It doesn't add up.Was there dancing Iraqi in New York?Were the alleged Hijackers from Iraq?Did Iraq plant the Explosives?Where does Iraq fit into the 911 equation? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441752

05-26-2018 11:27 PM











Post: #2 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Squat, it was Israel with the help of certain undercover US elements and Saudi Arabia. Strategos

Against Dystopia

User ID: 441784

05-26-2018 11:30 PM



Posts: 9,540









Post: #3 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Iraq had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. Fact. Pookie

New Jacques City

User ID: 413063

05-26-2018 11:31 PM



Posts: 3,063









Post: #4 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:27 PM) Squat, it was Israel with the help of certain undercover US elements and Saudi Arabia.

dont forget England, Pakistan, Canada.



at least you didn't stop at Israel like those who planted the dancers want! dont forget England, Pakistan, Canada.at least you didn't stop at Israel like those who planted the dancers want! LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442917

05-26-2018 11:38 PM











Post: #5 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:27 PM) Squat, it was Israel with the help of certain undercover US elements and Saudi Arabia.

Bush was very quick to Invade.



Was "Shock and Awe" drawn up prior to the September 11th attack, it appears to look that way.







Bush was very quick to Invade.Was "Shock and Awe" drawn up prior to the September 11th attack, it appears to look that way. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442917

05-26-2018 11:41 PM











Post: #6 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Steven James Dishon Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:31 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:27 PM) Squat, it was Israel with the help of certain undercover US elements and Saudi Arabia.

dont forget England, Pakistan, Canada.



at least you didn't stop at Israel like those who planted the dancers want!

What about Russia having a hand in it too?



Putin never Speaks of it... What about Russia having a hand in it too?Putin never Speaks of it... LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442954

05-26-2018 11:46 PM











Post: #7 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Steven James Dishon Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:31 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:27 PM) Squat, it was Israel with the help of certain undercover US elements and Saudi Arabia.

dont forget England, Pakistan, Canada.



at least you didn't stop at Israel like those who planted the dancers want!

And the US.



The CIA were warned an attack was coming And the US.The CIA were warned an attack was coming LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442917

05-26-2018 11:49 PM











Post: #8 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:46 PM) Steven James Dishon Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:31 PM) dont forget England, Pakistan, Canada.



at least you didn't stop at Israel like those who planted the dancers want!

And the US.



The CIA were warned an attack was coming

Was the CIA given a reason for the coming attack?



It's said the attack was because the United States wouldn't go along with Something. Was the CIA given a reason for the coming attack?It's said the attack was because the United States wouldn't go along with Something. fnord

lop guest

User ID: 337000

05-27-2018 12:12 AM











Post: #9 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:46 PM) Steven James Dishon Wrote: (05-26-2018 11:31 PM) dont forget England, Pakistan, Canada.



at least you didn't stop at Israel like those who planted the dancers want!

And the US.



The CIA were warned an attack was coming

The CIA were warned, but they already knew the attack was coming because they helped to plan it. The CIA were warned, but they already knew the attack was coming because they helped to plan it. piequal3because14

Angel of Love from Heaven

User ID: 441550

05-27-2018 12:32 AM



Posts: 28,020









Post: #10 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

The same thing Poland had to do with Nazi invasion in WW2. Look into my eyes to see a Paradise of Love



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqtHu0XFal0



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo7PY4vbQLE



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTm9ui-26F0 Dirk

lop guest

User ID: 426152

05-27-2018 12:36 AM











Post: #11 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Iraq's WMD were shipped out to Syria and Syria has used them multiple times since then. Iraq and Syria were Baathist allies.



The other link is the lead hijacker Attah , whose doctors said he had anthrax rash, and who had met with Iraqi intelligence in Prague just prior to 911, with Iraq one of three countries with such highly aerosolized anthrax particles. The other two being the US and the USSR. Attach was also seen on a security camera at a 711 buying tons of moisturizers with rashes all over, at the time. Some of the anthrax was postmarked from Iraq, the ones targeting the national enquirer's owner. The other anthrax letters targeted the Senators who had sponsored the bills in Congress authorizing the assassination of Sadaam Heussein.



I would add that Iraq tried to assassinate George Bush I in Kuwait and had explosives planted under the stage where he was going to speak.



Another thing to look into more is the Kurdish area of Iraq there was a Boeing Jet being used for test run attacks prior to 911. Not well publicized except for at the time. Same with the anthrax details.



There are also many links between Terry Nichols, Abu Sayef, and Iraqi Elite Guard, in terms of the Oklahoma City bombing, which you could look into more if you had any intellectual curiosity , and were not already 'programmed'. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441641

05-27-2018 12:42 AM











Post: #12 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Dirk Wrote: (05-27-2018 12:36 AM) Iraq's WMD were shipped out to Syria and Syria has used them multiple times since then. Iraq and Syria were Baathist allies.



The other link is the lead hijacker Attah , whose doctors said he had anthrax rash, and who had met with Iraqi intelligence in Prague just prior to 911, with Iraq one of three countries with such highly aerosolized anthrax particles. The other two being the US and the USSR. Attach was also seen on a security camera at a 711 buying tons of moisturizers with rashes all over, at the time. Some of the anthrax was postmarked from Iraq, the ones targeting the national enquirer's owner. The other anthrax letters targeted the Senators who had sponsored the bills in Congress authorizing the assassination of Sadaam Heussein.



I would add that Iraq tried to assassinate George Bush I in Kuwait and had explosives planted under the stage where he was going to speak.



Another thing to look into more is the Kurdish area of Iraq there was a Boeing Jet being used for test run attacks prior to 911. Not well publicized except for at the time. Same with the anthrax details.



There are also many links between Terry Nichols, Abu Sayef, and Iraqi Elite Guard, in terms of the Oklahoma City bombing, which you could look into more if you had any intellectual curiosity , and were not already 'programmed'.

Saddam had some old surplus US chemical weapons left over from the Iran war, which we knew about, the war was over allegations that WMD production was on going.



Nobody knows who's doing the chemical attacks in Syria, post proof that it was Saddam stockpile.



Other than that, there are a bunch of "links" ginned up by half-way conmen and other dubious sources. Saddam's regime was not friendly to Al-Qaeda types and they had nothing to gain by pulling off 9/11. Saddam had some old surplus US chemical weapons left over from the Iran war, which we knew about, the war was over allegations that WMD production was on going.Nobody knows who's doing the chemical attacks in Syria, post proof that it was Saddam stockpile.Other than that, there are a bunch of "links" ginned up by half-way conmen and other dubious sources. Saddam's regime was not friendly to Al-Qaeda types and they had nothing to gain by pulling off 9/11. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 442203

05-27-2018 12:46 AM











Post: #13 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

Saddam paid for 9/11. Classified info. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441769

05-27-2018 12:51 AM











Post: #14 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

US has only themselves to blame. Not jews, or anyone else.

And all that bitching about liberalism doesn't make anything right.

There are so many things you guys here also believe, that leads to people in power and with a military, to do what they are doing.

The main one being thinking America and you are special compared to all other nations and races. Another is your interest in guns and thinking it is ok to shoot criminals. And another one is your believe that the strongest deserve what the can get, the weak do not deserve special treatment, survival of the fittest and natural law.

And another is believing that inequality is not something you should do something about and allow people to become extremely wealthy and powerful, affecting everything, including war. And another is being so anti government that you are very pro corporate in the sense that they have extreme privacy and liberty, also the companies of war.



So check yourself, before you wreck yourself. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441641

05-27-2018 12:53 AM











Post: #15 RE: What did Iraq have to do with the September Eleventh attack?

LoP Guest Wrote: (05-27-2018 12:51 AM) US has only themselves to blame. Not jews, or anyone else.

And all that bitching about liberalism doesn't make anything right.

There are so many things you guys here also believe, that leads to people in power and with a military, to do what they are doing.

The main one being thinking America and you are special compared to all other nations and races. Another is your interest in guns and thinking it is ok to shoot criminals. And another one is your believe that the strongest deserve what the can get, the weak do not deserve special treatment, survival of the fittest and natural law.

And another is believing that inequality is not something you should do something about and allow people to become extremely wealthy and powerful, affecting everything, including war. And another is being so anti government that you are very pro corporate in the sense that they have extreme privacy and liberty, also the companies of war.



So check yourself, before you wreck yourself.

American culture is trash, but that's really for another thread. Let's continue talking about how the Iraq war went down in history as both a great blunder and a bloody crime. American culture is trash, but that's really for another thread. Let's continue talking about how the Iraq war went down in history as both a great blunder and a bloody crime. Advertisement


















Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav has hit out at Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the latters criticism of demonetisation, which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2016.

The attack by RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadavs son came a day after the Janata Dal United (JDU) leader raised questions on demonetisation on Saturday, years after he had lauded Prime Minister Modi for the move.

Our beloved Nitish Chacha took another sharp U-turn.. He supported demonetisation but now questioning it... He is always years behind in understanding the issues, difficulties & demands of common people. Dont be surprised if he calls demonetisation the biggest scam of India  Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) May 27, 2018

Taking to microblogging site Twitter, the Yadav scion wrote, Our beloved Nitish Chacha took another sharp U-turn..He supported demonetisation but now questioning it...He is always years behind in understanding the issues, difficulties & demands of common people.

Dont be surprised if he calls demonetisation the biggest scam of India, tweeted Tejashwi Yadav.

The Bihar Chief Minister had on Saturday questioned the benefits out of demonetisation. He sought to know if the Centre's sudden decision to ban the old currency notes of high denomination actually benefited the poor and the downtrodden, the marginalised and the weaker sections of the society.

The Bihar politician also slammed the banks for allegedly helping the rich and powerful manage their cash during the notes ban.

"I was initially the supporter of demonetisation...but how many people benefited from it? Some powerful people shifted their cash from one place to another," Nitish Kumar said at a meeting with bank officials.

Nitish Kumar's remarks against the Centre's demonetisation move came on a day when the saffron party was celebrating the completion of four years of Narendra Modi government at the Centre.

Nitish Kumar's party JD(U) is a BJP ally and runs a coalition government in Bihar.

The Bihar Chief Minister made these remarks in front of his deputy and BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi.

Following the announcement of demonetisation by Prime Minister Modi, Nitish Kumar, who was then a part of Mahagathbandhan comprising the RJD and the Congress along with the JDU, had hailed the move.
SRINAGAR: Nineteen personnel of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were injured on Sunday morning after vehicle met with an accident in Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir. The police said that the CRPF vehicle turned turtle after its driver lost control near the Bemina headquarter of the paramilitary force. Twenty one personnel were on board the vehicle which was part of a three-vehicle convoy.

The injured have been taken to JVC Hospital. Later, seven of them were moved to the Army's Base Hospital in Srinagar. One of the CRPF men is said to be in a critical condition after suffering injuries in the spinal cord and is being moved to Delhi for specialised treatment.

Officials said the incident took place around 5 am.

Some reports suggested that the accident took place after the vehicle was attacked by stone pelters. However, the police dismissed them and termed it as an accident. Police reportedly said that they have analysed the CCTV footage which shows that there was no stone pelting in the area and the mishap occurred as the CRPF driver lost control over the vehicle.

A case under relevant sections has been filed.
Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir Police are identifying the 'keypad jehadis' who spew venom on social networking sites to try and create a law and order situation in the state.

The police have registered cases against five Twitter handles and filed complaints with service providers against such misleading posts on Facebook and WhatsApp so that necessary action is taken at the earliest, news agency PTI quoted officials as saying.

The officials added that a communication had been sent to the micro-blogging site for providing details of the Twitter handles so that punitive action could be initiated at the earliest as it would help in reining in what is called 'keypad jehadis'. Police have laid special emphasis on monitoring the social networking websites and also various groups created on messaging services like WhatsApp, Telegram and similar such tools available on the Internet, they added.

The officials further said that post-2016, the misinformation campaign from some groups was at its peak with each party trying to project an incident for their political goals which had a potential of pushing the state to communal clashes. "We have passed on several complaints to the Computer Emergency Response Team-India (CERT-IN) for blocking several pages on Facebook and Twitter," officials said, as per the news agency, adding that many SIM cards which were used to spread canards on messaging services like WhatsApp have been blocked with the help of the service provider.

There have also been instances of circulation of photo-shopped pictures of ordinary civilians as militants whereas the unknown victim would have been attending his daily duties. "We had many such cases including the one in Ganderbal where a picture of a shopkeeper was circulated with an assault rifle as having joined a militant group. On inquiry, we found that he was selling his groceries and one of his business rivals had played the mischief. A case was registered under relevant sections of Information and Technology act and the accused was arrested. It is a virtual battleground where a bloody war is fought, but with words. However, this has an impact on the young minds," a senior police official said

Meanwhile, in order to fight terrorism in the Valley, the security forces are also focusing on finding new recruits and motivate them to return to their families. The strategy of police and security agencies is to cut the "umbilical cord" by smashing the overground worker network, which is instrumental in radicalising youth and pushing them to jihad.

"Our effort is to catch them alive and understand their grievances. After all, a 15 or 16-year-old boy can't be brainwashed to the extent that he would like to be killed in a gunfight. There has to be a counter-narrative," a senior official, engaged in counter-insurgency operations, was quoted as saying by PTI.

"In the last seven months, four new recruits have been arrested while one returned... My director general of police (SP Vaid) has also appealed to misguided youths and so I am asking them to return to their families," Inspector General of Police (Kashmir range) Swayam Prakash Pani had said.

Hardcore terrorists like Saddam Paddar, Esa Fazl and Sameer Tiger have been eliminated in recent times by the security forces. Officials have said that operations based on specific intelligence inputs will continue, but there will be also be increasing emphasis on catching newly-recruited terrorists alive.

(With Agency inputs)
BENGALURU: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has called for a state-wide bandh in Karnataka on Monday. The strike will, however, not be held in the state capital Bengaluru.

On Friday, the saffron party had threatened to hold a state-wide bandh on May 28, if Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy fails to waive off farmers loans by then.

Meanwhile, Kumaraswamy will meet Prime Modi Narendra Modi at 11 am on Monday. The meeting will be held to seek co-operation from the Center in the development of the state.

The state-wide bandh was announced by the BJP leader BS Yeddyurappa, following which the party walked out of the state legislative assembly prior to Kumaraswamy's floor test.

BJP leader R Ashoka had said they will be aggressive on the issue of the farmers' loan waivers and will take action if the state government does not take action soon.

Responding to this, Shivakumar had said they would not act under pressure and wish of the BJP.

The Congress-JDS alliance together with two independent candidates has 117 MLAs, six more than the majority required to form a government in the state. All the 117 MLAs had voted in Kumaraswamy's favour in the floor test on Friday.

The floor test was considered significant for the Congress-JDS alliance after the BJP decided not to go for floor test as it did not have the required number of members to establish its claim to run the government.

Yeddyurappa, who first took oath as chief minister, had opted to resign as the BJP was seven short of the simple majority mark of 111 in the 221-member assembly.

(With inputs from agencies)
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: One more person in Kerala's Calicut died of infection due to the deadly Nipah virus on Sunday taking the death toll to 14. 26-year-old Ebin, a native of Palazhi was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Kozhikodu.

As many as nine others have been admitted to Kozhikodu Medical College with suspected Nipah infection. Kerala Health minister K K Shailaja said that at least 175 people are being monitored by the authorities.



On Saturday, 75-year-old Kalyani, who was undergoing treatment at the Kozhikodu Medical college since May 16, lost her life. Earlier this week, 61-year-old V Moosa while two of his family members who were suffering from the same disease had died earlier. His eldest son had also died, however, his samples were not tested.

Lini Puthussery, a nurse who had initially treated members of Moosa's affected family members at Perambra Taluk hospital in the district, also died after being infected by the virus.

With samples of insectivores bats testing negative for the virus, samples of fruit-eating bats are being collected from nearby Perambra, the epicenter of the Nipah virus, to be sent for tests at the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) in Bhopal.

Experts from NIV and departments of Animal Husbandry and Forest have begun collecting samples which would be sent to NIHSAD, to test for presence of the virus in the fruit-eating bats, Dr N N Sasi, the Director Animal Husbandry, told PTI.

Earlier, samples of three insectivorous bats caught from an unused well of the Moosa family, which lost three members to the virus, were sent to the Bhopal laboratory along with samples of pigs, goats and cattle in the five km radius of the affected area and all of them tested negative, he said.

According to an official, the droppings, urine and secretions of the bats would also be sent for testing.

A Union Health Ministry advisory has said that the virus, which commonly affects animals such as bats, pigs, dogs, and horses, can spread to humans, causing serious illness.

Spread of the virus to humans may occur after close contact with other Nipah infected people, infected bats, or infected pigs.

Meanwhile, the Kerala government has said travellers need to avoid only Kozhikode and Malappuram districts from where the deaths have been reported.

The outbreak of the virus infection, which is a newly emerging zoonosis that causes severe disease in both animals and humans, is suspected to be from an unused well which was infested with bats.

The natural host of the virus is believed to be fruit bats of the Pteropodidae family, Pteropus genus.

(With inputs from agencies)
Mumbai: Shikha Talsania, who will be seen in the upcoming film 'Veere Di Wedding', says there is much more to her than her body type and hopes the industry stops looking at her in a unidimensional manner.

Shikha made her debut with 'Wake Up Sid' (2009), in which she played the role of Laxmi, the accomplished and body-conscious best friend of Ranbir Kapoor's character.

She was also seen in 'Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji', 'My Friend Pinto' and 'Midnight's Children', among others.

The actor says she is aware of her appearance and is open to transformation if a role demands.

"Look at Aamir Khan, the way he transforms for a film. I will put on weight or lose weight, I will do it for a film. I got much fitter for 'Veere Di Wedding'.

"There is much more to me than just what I look like. Everybody should think like that. I just want to act, perform. We are at a wonderful time where more well-etched out parts are being written for women. I am happy being this person, this is me," Shikha told PTI.

Post her debut, the actor says she received similar roles and she rejected some of them as she did not want to be stereotyped.

"I was hungry for work and nobody knew me. I want the entire world to know about me. I was making calls and finding out about the auditions. Auditions are nothing but part of acting. But, a lot of work that came my way was very unidimensional, like the character who is fat or despite being fat she is funny.

"I was not comfortable with that. There has been a lot of work to which I have said no. I hope the struggle ends," she says.

In "Veere...", Shikha will be seen playing the role of Meera, who marries without her parents' consent.

"Rhea Kapoor, who is producing the film, and Karan Johar knew me from before as I had done 'Wake Up Sid' with them. I was called by casting director Mukesh Chabbra, I did a look test and got selected," she said.

The actor says the Shashanka Ghosh-directed film is about female bonding and their struggles in the modern-day world.

"When I was reading the story, I did not see the gender. There are so many films that have male protagonist and I relate to that. The need of the hour is to have women roles with whom you can relate to. Let's hope with 'Veere...' some spark happens," she says.

Shikha, who is the daughter of veteran actor Tiku Talsania, says there is often discussion about acting at home and her father appreciates her work.

The film also features Kareena Kapoor Khan, Sonam K Ahuja and Swara Bhasker.

Produced by Ekta Kapoor, Rhea Kapoor and Nikhil Dwivedi, 'Veere Di Wedding' is set to release on June 1.
New Delhi: Trolling celebrities on social media has become pretty fashionable these days. From hurling abuses to slut-shaming actors, people do all sorts of grievous things to have "fun". Recently, Bigg Boss 11 contestant Vikas Gupta lost his cool at an Instagram user who posted a distasteful comment on his niece's picture.

Taking to Twitter, Vikas Gupta wrote, "Lets give love to this man . Who on my niece story has written chu......, while he has a niece of his own . Frustrated human beings, abusing on childrens pics and videos. I think you are just pathetic ... #Lostsouls and other. He needs attention. Please do give."

Vikas had shared a picture of his baby niece Niyanta Gupta on his Instagram stories but such a derogatory comment on a baby's picture came as a shock.

Vikas Gupta was recently in news for patching up with his friend Parth Samthaan, with whom he had a rather public war of words followed by a legal tussle.

Announcing his reunion with Parth Vikas wrote on Instagram, "Friends, brothers , affair , colleagues...everyone had their own version on this.. well I dont think I wish to explain that anymore .

I am not here to either justify whose fault was it . Why did it become so big ..What is important is that after so much time we have decided to let go of the negativity , pain that both of us and our families went through . Hence we realised it's pointless carrying this baggage of negativity around ..

I am choosing to be free from hatred . I am choosing happiness and positivity . People who love me and care about me will understand and support my decision. Thankyou !!!"

On the work front, Vikas is currently busy with 'Punch Beat', a web-series by Ekta Kapoor's ALTBalaji. It stars Priyank Sharma, Harshita Gaur and Rohit Suchanti in lead roles.
Ireland has voted by a landslide to liberalise its highly restrictive abortion laws in a referendum that its prime minister called the culmination of a "quiet revolution" in what was one of Europe's most socially conservative countries.

Voters in the once deeply Catholic nation backed the change by two-to-one, a far higher margin than any opinion poll in the run up to the vote had predicted, and allows the government to bring in legislation by the end of the year.

"It's incredible. For all the years and years and years we've been trying to look after women and not been able to look after women, this means everything," said Mary Higgins, obstetrician and Together For Yes campaigner.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who campaigned to repeal the laws, had called the vote a once-in-a-generation chance and voters responded by turning out in droves. A turnout of 64 percent was one of the highest for a referendum.

All but one of Ireland's 40 constituencies voted "Yes" and contributed to the 66 percent that carried the proposal, almost an exact reversal of the 1983 referendum result that inserted the ban into the constitution.

"What we see is the culmination of a quiet revolution that has been taking place in Ireland over the last couple of decades," Varadkar, who became Ireland's first openly gay prime minister last year, told journalists in Dublin.

The outcome is the latest milestone on a path of change for a country which only legalised divorce by a razor thin majority in 1995 before becoming the first in the world to adopt gay marriage by popular vote three years ago.

"For him (his son), it's a different Ireland that we're moving onto. It's an Ireland that is more tolerant, more inclusive and where he can be whatever he wants without fear of recrimination," said Colm O'Riain, a 44-year-old teacher with his son Ruarai, who was born 14 weeks premature in November.

ASTONISHING MARGIN

Anti-abortion activists conceded defeat early on Saturday as their opponents expressed astonishment at the scale of their victory. Lawmakers who campaigned for a "No" vote said they would not seek to block the government's legislation.

"What Irish voters did yesterday is a tragedy of historic proportions," the Save The 8th group said. "However, a wrong does not become a right simply because a majority support it."

Voters were asked to scrap the constitutional amendment, which gives an unborn child and its mother equal rights to life. The consequent prohibition on abortion was partly lifted in 2013 for cases where the mother's life was in danger.

The largest newspaper, the Irish Independent described the result as "a massive moment in Ireland's social history".

Campaigners for change, wearing "Repeal" jumpers and "Yes" badges, gathered at count centres, many in tears and hugging each other. Others sang songs in the sunshine outside the main Dublin results centre as they awaited the official result.

The large crowd cheered Varadkar as he took to the stage to thank them for "trusting women and respecting their choices".

"Yes" campaigners had argued that with over 3,000 women travelling to Britain each year for terminations - a right enshrined in a 1992 referendum - and others ordering pills illegally online, abortion was already a reality in Ireland.

Reform in Ireland also raised the prospect that women in Northern Ireland, where abortion is still illegal, may start travelling south of the border.

The leaders of Sinn Fein, the province's largest Irish nationalist party that also has a large presence in the Irish republic, held up a sign on stage saying "The North is next."

MIDDLE GROUND

No social issue has divided Ireland's 4.8 million people as sharply as abortion, which was pushed up the political agenda by the death in 2012 of a 31-year-old Indian immigrant from a septic miscarriage after she was refused a termination.

Campaigners left flowers and candles at a large mural of the woman, Savita Halappanavar, in central Dublin. Her parents in India were quoted by the Irish Times newspaper as thanking their "brothers and sisters" in Ireland and requesting the new law be called "Savita's law".

Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney said he believed a middle ground of around 40 percent of voters had decided en masse to allow women and doctors rather than lawmakers and lawyers to decide whether a termination was justified.

The vote divided political parties, saw the once-mighty Catholic Church take a back seat, with the campaign defined by women on both sides publicly describing their personal experiences of terminations.

Although not on the ballot paper, the "No" camp sought to seize on government plans to allow abortions with no restriction up to 12 weeks into a pregnancy if the referendum is carried, calling it a step too far for most voters.

Save The 8th spokesman McGuirk appealed for tolerance and respect from "those who find themselves in the majority now".

Jim Wells, a member of Northern Ireland's socially conservative Democratic Unionist Party, said that after the vote Northern Ireland and Malta were the only parts of Europe where the unborn child was properly protected.

"It is inevitable that the abortion industry based in Great Britain will set up clinics in border towns," he said. "The outcome of the referendum is an extremely worrying development for the protection of the unborn child in Northern Ireland."
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might be willing to swap a life in politics to lead the world's largest social-networking company, a media report said.

On being asked by Attorney General Maura Healey, a democrat from Massachusetts, which company she would want to be the CEO of, Clinton didn't pause before quickly answering "Facebook", CNET reported on Friday.

"It's the biggest news platform in the world. Most people in our country get their news -- true or not from Facebook," Clinton was quoted as saying.

The former US presidential candidate was at Harvard on Friday receiving the Radcliffe Medal, which honours people who have "had a transformative impact on society".

Facebook is working to win back its users' trust following a series of recent controversies, including the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which data from as many as 87 million Facebook users was improperly shared with the political consultancy.

In a bid to prevent foreign interference into elections, Facebook has also begun labelling all political and issue ads in the US -- including a "Paid for by" disclosure from the advertiser at the top of the advertisement.

Advertisers wanting to run ads with political content in the US will also need to verify their identity and location.
Islamabad: Pakistan's upcoming general elections for parliament and provincial assemblies will be held on July 25, according to a decree signed by President Mamnoon Hussain on Saturday. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in a formal letter last week had proposed the president to grant permission to hold the election between July 25 and 27.

Sources in the President Office said that Hussain approved July 25 and signed the document to be sent to the ECP to grant it permission to go ahead and hold polls. According to the law, ECP proposes dates to the president to organize general elections, who is empowered to fix the final date.

The present government will complete the tenure on May 31 and the caretaker government will take over form June 1 and remain in office until a new government is set up through elections. It is the second consecutive elected government that is poised to complete the five-year tenure. It was elected in 2013.

Earlier, the ECP announced that a total of 105.95 million voters will use their right of vote to elect the new government. Among them are 59.2 million male and 46.7 million female voters, showing A gender gap of over 12.5 million.
Lunaticoutpost.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program , anaffiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.Amazon, the Amazon logo, MYHABIT, and the MYHABIT logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.Don't be a pest to the forum.No profanity in thread-titles or usernamesNo excessive profanity in postsNo Racism, Antisemitism + HateNo calls for violence against anyone..This website exists for fun and discussion only. The reader is responsible for discerning the validity, factuality or implications of information posted here, be it fictional or based on real events. The content of posts on this site, including but not limited to links to other web sites, are the expressed opinion of the original poster and are in no way representative of or endorsed by the owners or administration of this website. The posts on this website are the opinion of the specific author and are not statements of advice, opinion, or factual information on behalf of the owner or administration of LunaticOutPost.Com. The owners or administration of this website can't be hold responsible for content hosted on sites that posters link to in; including, but not limited to, posts, signatures, private messages and such. This site may contain content not suitable for minors and if you feel you might be offended by such content, you should log off immediately.This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Users may make such material available in an effort to advance awareness and understanding of issues relating to civil rights, economics, individual rights, international affairs, liberty, science & technology, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material. The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.In accordance with industry accepted best practices we ask that users limit their copy / paste of copyrighted material to the relevant portions of the article you wish to discuss (no more than 50% of the source material) provide a link back to the original articleIf you are a legal copyright holder or a designated agent for such and you believe a post on this website falls outside the boundaries of "Fair Use" and legitimately infringes on yours or your clients copyright please contact [email protected] This website is owned by :Marco ZwaneveldDrijfriemstraat 522516 XR The HagueNetherlands.I will not rent, sell, share or otherwise disclose your personal information to any third party.We might contact you from time to time regarding your purchases or the services (like forums and announcement lists) you have subscribed to.Some of the 3rd party advertisers on lunaticoutpost.com may use cookiesto track peformance and/or to serve relevant ads.If you wish to read more and/or opt out of such cookies, please visit: http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices/
Washington: US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that things are moving "very nicely" towards a summit on June 12 in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump said at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed. Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his June 12 meeting with Kim in the Southeast Asian city-state, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang. But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"There are meetings going on as we speak," Trump said. "I think there's a lot of goodwill." His comments came after North Korea said Kim was "fixed" on holding the summit with Trump, raising hopes the historic meeting might still take place after a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship.

The latest conciliatory declaration from Pyongyang came as the White House confirmed it was sending a team to Singapore to prepare for the talks -- a further signal that both sides were moving to cool tensions following a rollercoaster few days on the Korean Peninsula.
The militants have violated the ceasefire 28 times

Open source

One Ukrainian soldier died, four were injured in Donbas over the past 24 hours, as it was reported on the Joint Forces Operation HQ Facebook page.

As a result of battle actions one Ukrainian soldier died, four were injured over the past 24 hours, the message says.

It is noted that the militants have violated the ceasefire 28 times. The enemy attacked Ukrainian positions from mortar launchers near Krymske.

Active hostilities were conducted near Luhanske, Pivdenne, Krasnohorivka, Kamianka, Shyrokyne within the day.
The parties have coordinated the positions in terms of conducting Ukraine-EU Summit in Brussel on July 9, 2018

Ukraine and Bulgaria agreed to construct a highway on the transport corridor between Odesa region, Reni and Varna, as the Head of the state said at the joint briefing with Boyko Borissov, Bulgarias PM, broadcasted by 112 Ukraine.

We agreed with Bulgarias PM on the activation of the highway construction on the transport corridor between Odesa region, Reni and Varna through Romania. We will be doing everything possible so that one can easily get from Odesa to Varna, Poroshenko stated.

The Head of the state has also noted that within the discussion of the European integration, the parties have coordinated the positions in terms of conducting Ukraine-EU Summit in Brussel on July 9, 2018.

In particular, our talks were significant concerning current Bulgarias chairmanship in EU Council, the President stressed.

Earlier, Poroshenko informed about 37% increase in trade exchange with Bulgaria.
The information on mining of Kyiv subway emerged, as it was reported on Kyiv subway Twitter page.

We received synonymous calls about the mining of the following subway stations  Dnipro, Hydropark, Livoberezhna , Arsenalna and Heroiv Dnipra. The stations are closed for the passengers, the inspections are being conducted, the message says.

According to Kyiv police, the police officers are evacuating the passengers, subway staff and inspecting the sites properly.

Patrol police crews, district investigative groups, experts of explosive-technical service, handlers and medical workers are working at the mentioned stations.

UEFA Champions League 2018 Final is to be held on May 26 in Kyiv at NSC Olimpiyskiy. 50,000 guests are expected to come to the capital during the final.

Earlier, it was reported that Ukraines Government instructed the law enforcers to increase the level of activities on defining the potential threat of terrorist attacks in Kyiv and Kyiv region on May 18-28.
20 hectares of forest are burning in Kherson region. This was reported by the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.

"On May 27 at 13:25 a fire was reported in the 3rd and 4th quarters of Radensk forest area of Oleshky district. As of 16:30 the fire area in the forest is 20 hectares, of which 1.5 hectares is in crown fire," the message says.

The service added that 11 units of equipment and 50 rescuers of the Emergency Service were involved in the fire-fighting, as well as 14 units of equipment and 35 forest guards.

Earlier it was reported that on May 27-28 an emergency level of fire danger is expected on the territory of Ukraine.

The fire occurred at the armament depot in Balakliya, Kharkiv region on May 3. According to the source, the fire tank ran over some explosive device during the execution of the technical works. The works on the liquidation of fire at the depot's territory take place. No casualties reported.

According to the press service of the General Staff of Ukraine, the dry grass caught fire at 13:55 at the former technical territory of a 65th arsenal in Balakliya. The works on the cleaning and demining of the armaments' debris that did not explode during the previous fire took place and the new fire has begun.
Jacek Czaputowicz believes that Jens Stoltenberg has the tools for this

Open source

Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz believes that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg can intervene in the situation with Hungary's attempt to block Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration. This was reported by olsatnews.

Czaputowicz called the situation between Hungary and Ukraine a "family quarrel."

"I think this is a family quarrel, it is necessary to get acquainted with this issue and propose a solution that will debunk any doubts. Perhaps, the third party would be useful here - for example, NATO Secretary General, I think he has some tools for solving this question ", Czaputowicz noted.

He also said that a few days ago he discussed this problem with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto.

As it was reported earlier, Hungary imposed a veto at the holding of the Ukraine-NATO commission in Brussels at the foreign ministers level that should take place this week.

Budapest blocks the holding of the Ukraine-NATO commission for the third time, expressing the claimants toward the language article of the Ukrainian law on education.

As we reported the session of the Ukraine-NATO commission that should have taken place on February 14-15 was blocked by Hungary. Hungary claimed about its intention to block the meeting in the mid of January when Peter Szijjarto Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary claimed that the blocking will continue until Kyiv fulfills the demands of Hungary toward the education law.
Petro Poroshenko, Ukraines President, and Volodymyr Groysman, the PM of Ukraine, congratulated the Easter Orthodox Christians with Holy Trinity (Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, - ed.).

The Head of the State wished everyone welfare, joy and called for having faith in the victory of good.

Holy Trinity, or according to Ukrainian national traditions, the Green Holidays, is not just a joy of summer coming and suns accession, but also the glory of higher forces which inspire for good deeds. Today, when Ukraine is getting through hardship due to Russias aggression, it is extremely important to stay open to the world and tender to the relatives, to believe in the victory of truth and good. I am convinced that we are unconquerable, that together we will overcome all the burdens and we will build up a free, reach and prosperous state in peace and consent, the Presidents Administration says.

The PM wished welfare and coziness.

Congratulations on Holy Trinity! Let every Ukrainian family live in welfare, coziness and harmony, Groysam wrote on his Facebook page.

It should be noted that today Orthodox Christians are celebrating Saint Trinity Day  one of twelve most important holidays after Easter.
24daily.net

On Saturday, May 26, a soldier of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was found dead near the Yavoriv military training ground in Lviv region. This was reported by UNIAN agency with reference to the head of the Western Regional Media Center of Ukraine's Defense Ministry, Oleksandr Poronyuk.

"In one of the forest plantations near the International Center for Peacemaking and Security (Yavorivsky military polygon) on May 26, a serviceman who was going through military training was found dead," the report said.

It is noted that the circumstances of the death of the serviceman are investigated by the military law enforcement service and military prosecutor's office.

At the same time, there are no other confirmations of soldiers death yet.

As it was reported earlier, a collision between a truck and Mercedes Sprinter micro bus occurred in western Ukraine. The tragedy took place at E40 international roadway near Chuchmany village, Lviv region. The local branch of the National Police reported that six people deceased, while another three sustained injuries of various degrees of severity. One of the wounded was stuck inside the badly damaged bus, so the rescue team had to use special tools to get the individual out.
Borys Lozhkin, Ukrainian businessman and honoured journalist, was elected the president of the Jewish Confederation of Ukraine on May 25, 2018

Borys Lozhkin, Ukrainian businessman and honoured journalist, was elected the president of the Jewish Confederation of Ukraine on May 25, 2018. Here are some facts about his life, business and public activity.

Early years

Borys Lozhkin was born in Kharkiv on October 23, 1971. He started his journalistic career at the age of 14 as a string correspondent in two Ukrainian news agencies. In 1989 he set up his own business creating a newspapers and magazines sales network. After a year, he became the publisher and editor-in-chief of a commercial newspaper ATV.

First steps towards publishing business

In 1994 Lozhkin gathered editorial staff and was preparing to publish Telenedelya newspaper, which later became the first TV-guide in Ukraine. Telenedelya ranks among top-10 major printed news agency on the territory of the former Soviet Union. The newspaper established TV Star  the first and only nationwide public rating of TV products and people, where the winners are elected by the viewers voting.

Ukraines major publishing company

Borys Lozhkin found UMH group in 2000  an international multimedia group, which has control over 50 brands with top positions in Internet, radio and press markets. Today, UMH group is the major publishing company in Ukraine. In 2003 the media holding enter the ed Russian market. In 2008 UMH group became the first Ukrainian media company to make private stocks placement on Frankfurt Stock Exchange gaining $45 million and achieving capitalization of $300 million. When the first radio stations was set, IMH group appeared to be the largest holding in Ukraines radio market with 3 million people the of daily audience.

UMH group President Borys Lozhkin made a deal with Forbes Media which allowed the media holding to develop projects under Forbes trademark in Ukraine. Forbes Ukraine first edition was published in March 2011. Miguel Forbes, American entrepreneur and publisher, claimed Ukrainian Forbes ranks among top-5 license projects.

Lozhkin brought to Ukrainian publishing market such famous brands as Vogue, GQ, CN Traveller.

Lozhkin announced the sale of 98% of the UNH groups share to the VETEK companies group in 2013. Experts evaluated the transaction value at $450-500 million. In 2012, Lozhkin was looking for investments and suggested that UMH group works with private investments. The transaction with VETEK group was completed in 2014.

Lozhkins public activity

Borys Lozhkin became a member of the Council of Entrepreneurs under Ukraines Government. In 2004-2006 he was elected the President of Ukraines Association of Press Publishers.

In 2012, Borys Lozhkin arranged World Newspaper Congress WAN-IFRA in Kyiv.

Lozhkin won Man of the Year award in 2003 as the Entrepreneur of the year.

Petro Poroshenko appointed Borys Lozhkin the Head of Presidential Administration on June 10 in 2014. The Presidential Administration accepted Lozhkins plan to appoint professional foreign technocrat managers to governments positions. The new vision of HR policy presented by Lozhkin was to inflect state authority with people with a new way of thinking.

At the end of 2015, a phrase Reforms special forces became widely spread and used by Ukrainian journalists. The term means a team of foreign reformers in Ukraine who were admitted ti Ukrainain citizenship.

Borys Lozhkin started developing a medium-term plan for reforming Ukraine - The Strategy for Sustainable Development of Ukraine Ukraine-2020. The President signed a relevant decree on January 12, 2015.

On June 3, 2015, Borys Lozhkin was appointed the Deputy Head of the National Reforms Council.

After he left his position of the Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine, he was appointed the Secretary of the National Investment Council. As Lozhkin pointed out, the key priority of the Councils activity will be the "creation of a stable ecosystem, attractive for foreign investors.

Borys Lozhkin is the author of three books, including The Fourth Republic. Why Europe needs Ukraine, and Why Ukraine needs Europe, published in 2016.
Tony Award-winning play about middle-aged American Charlie, who returns home to Dublin to come to terms with his relationship to a thoroughly beguiling, maddening presence in his life.

Tony Award-winning Best Play. Middle-aged American Charlie returns home to Dublin to come to terms with his relationship to this thoroughly beguiling, maddening presence in his life: "Da."

Leading West End Productions second show this year is Philip J. Shortell in the title role of Da, directed by Colleen Neary McClure. Da is a witty, wise and magical experience for the whole family.

Phil is well-known in Albuquerque for playing some of Americas classic characters  including Willy Loman (All My Sons), Hickey (The Iceman Cometh), Mr. Van Daan (The Diary of Anne Frank), Al Lewis (The Sunshine Boys), Joe Kidder (All My Sons). Joining Phil, in the role of Mother, is Jessica Osbourne, well-known for her West End Productions appearances, in the one-woman play Shirley Valentine, as Rita in Educating Rita, (both plays directed by Colleen Neary McClure) and to hilarious effect as the much-put-upon Angela in Abigails Party.

Da is a semi-autobiographical work - the play revolves around the living memories of Charlie, a grown man (played by Adamantios Miranda) who returns home to Ireland after the death of his father Da to find the old mans presence very much alive in the form of a ghost. Hugh Leonard, the prolific Irish playwright, memoirist, travel writer and dyspeptic newspaper columnist won four Tony Awards in 1978, including Best Play.

Performing as the young Charlie is UNM theatre student, James Patten. Other members of the cast are actor/director Frederick Ponzlov, Tim Riley, Ashley Reid and Carolyn Ward.

Da runs at North 4th Art Center, 4904 4th St. NW, from May 18  June 10, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 PM, Sunday matinees at 2 PM. For more information, season and individual tickets, go to www.westendproductions.org or call (505) 410-8524. $25 general at door, advance $22 general, $18 senior/student/military.

Tony Award-winning Best Play 1978 by Hugh Leonard. Middle-aged American Charlie returns home to Dublin to come to terms with his relationship to this thoroughly beguiling, maddening presence in his life: "Da." A witty, wise and magical experience for the whole family.
Celebrate and honor the brave few that have died while serving in the United States Military with Authentic Native American art, food and dance.

This Memorial Day Weekend 2018, marks the 28th year of the Annual Jemez Red Rocks Arts and Crafts Show. This event is a time-honored tradition that brings hundreds of people to the Jemez Pueblo Red Rocks to celebrate and honor the brave few that have died while serving in the United States Military with Authentic Native American Art, Food, and Dance.

Native American artisans, from many different nations, will display their amazing art to the visiting public, which will be available for purchase during this 3-day event. There will also be Authentic Native foods sold at nearby roadside booths. Local dance groups and performers will entertain us while we enjoy the beautiful art, people, and scenery.

The Jemez Arts and Crafts Association aims to help local Jemez artists, as well as artists from other Indigenous communities. We want to provide venues and events like the annual Jemez Red Rocks Arts and Crafts Show to sell their artwork so they can provide for themselves and their families.
Conservative candidate Ivan Duque won the first round of Colombia's presidential election but fell short of the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff next month. The 41-year-old senator will face former guerrilla Gustavo Petro on June 17, the first leftist candidate to contest a runoff in Colombia. Duque won 39.2 percent of the votes, compared to Petro's 25 percent, in the Sunday poll which showed deep divisions over a peace deal with former rebel movement FARC. It was the first presidential election in half a century free of the threat of the FARC, however Duque has campaigned strongly on a pledge to rewrite a peace agreement with the group. Polling was "totally normal," said electoral authority chairman Juan Carlos Galindo. Turnout was a higher-than-usual 53.2 percent in a country traditionally plagued by voter apathy. The peaceful election was an achievement praised by outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos after casting his ballot in Bogota. Ironically, the peace Santos made with the FARC has opened sharp divisions, reflected in the two candidates to succeed him. - Vow to revise accord - Duque has vowed to rewrite an accord he sees as too lenient on a group that waged a decades-long war of terror in Colombia before transforming itself into a political party. Duque's pledges to defend private enterprise and introduce tax cuts also won him support. Duque called for a "Colombia where peace coincides with justice" after the results were announced, reiterating his desire to revise -- without "shredding" -- the pact with FARC. Petro, a former member of the disbanded M-19 rebel group, defied expectations in a country where presidential elections have traditionally been the domain of the right. His total of more than 4.8 million votes is almost double the previous best showing for the left in a presidential election, in 2006. "It's obviously going to be very polarized in the second round," said analyst Andres Macais, with both sides scrambling to form alliances with defeated candidates. Conservatives backing Duque have a majority in the Congress after sweeping legislative elections in March. Leftist candidates Sergio Fajardo, a former Medellin mayor who polled 23.7 percent of the vote, and peace negotiator Humberto De la Calle, have previously refused to ally with Petro. Petro expressed confidence after his second-place finish. "You can be certain that we will win, that the history of Colombia can be changed," he told supporters. The 58-year-old rallied many Colombians with his campaign speeches against inequality and corruption. "I voted for Petro... who has helped the poor people," said domestic worker Gladys Cortes, 60. Analysts said turnout could be a key factor in the second round. "There is an increase in participation, but abstention is still high, we will have to see if it is still possible to move that absentee vote towards Petro. The second round is going to be very close," said analyst Medofilo Medina. - Santos stepping down - Santos -- who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the 2016 deal with the FARC -- steps down in August. Duque, a gray-haired senator and former economist, is backed by the Democratic Center party of former president Alvaro Uribe, which swept legislative elections in March. If successful, he can count on the support of Congress. Uribe fell out with onetime ally Santos over his drive for peace with FARC, setting up his own party in 2013. Many voters see Uribe's guiding hand behind the inexperienced Duque's campaign. Like Santos, the 65-year-old Uribe is constitutionally precluded from seeking a third term. Colombia, ravaged by corruption and glaring inequality, is still struggling to emerge from the longest armed conflict in the Americas. The world's leading producer of cocaine, the country continues to battle armed groups vying for control of lucrative narco-trafficking routes in areas FARC once dominated. - 'No impunity' - The peace deal, in effect for little more than a year, remains fragile. The FARC's political party did not win much support in March's legislative elections, failing to add to the 10 parliamentary seats it was awarded in the peace deal. "What we Colombians want is that those who have committed crimes against humanity be punished by proportional penalties, which is incompatible with political representation, so that there is no impunity," Duque recently told AFP. The senator has pledged to eradicate "the cancer of corruption" and to revive a sluggish economy, while vowing to defend traditional family values. Petro's crowds grew steadily as his campaign went on, in what some analysts see as public support for the peace deal and the rehabilitation of FARC as a political party. "Society has overcome the fear of violence and terror, and what we are seeing today is the political expression of that, filling public places and drawing crowds," Petro told AFP in the final days of his campaign. Conservative Colombian presidential candidate Ivan Duque celebrates after his first-round win Former guerrilla Gustavo Petro will become the first leftist candidate to contest a presidential runoff in Colombia Major cities in Colombia reported a high turnout for the country's presidential election, in which voters cast ballots at this polling station in Cali and elsewhere Profiles of the four leading presidential candidates in Colombia's May 27 election
A fast food customer has revealed his horror after he discovered an unwelcome addition tucked away inside his burger.

Najib Anek was visiting the restaurant chain Culvers in Arizona, US, last week when he bit into his burger to find a fake fingernail lodged inside his meal.

It was crunchy man  I threw up three times  he told ABC 7.

The customer couldnt believe his eyes when he found a fake fingernail inside his burger. Source: ABC 7

Mr Anek immediately complained to the stores manager who apologised for the incident and promised to look further into the incident.

According Mr Anek, CCTV footage from inside the restaurants kitchen shows a female employee preparing his burger without gloves.

Mr Anek says he threw up several times after the incident. Source: ABC 7

After the worker was found with a nail missing, she was placed on leave, the stores manager told ABC15.

Mr Anek says the chain has since tried to resolve the issue with a free meal but the disgruntled customer has escalated the incident with the health department.

It wasnt a good experience for me. And I will never eat here no more, he said.

The stores manager told ABC15 the matter was now in the hands of the stores insurer.
Marooned on a dusty slope in the world's largest refugee camp, Osiur Rahman looked to the hill where a Rohingya girl was buried in a landslide just days earlier and contemplated his chances should the earth give way beneath his feet. "Our families would be killed. There are children everywhere around here. We constantly fear that rain could trigger a landslide," the 53-year-old told AFP on the steep embankment where he lives with nine family members in a bamboo shack. For the 700,000 Rohingya Muslims who have fled to southeast Bangladesh in the past nine months, the approaching monsoon season poses the most serious threat since they were violently expelled from Myanmar. Close to one million of the stateless Muslim minority live in the Cox's Bazar district but the new arrivals, stranded on unstable hills in bamboo and plastic shacks, are especially vulnerable. A massive operation to shore up the camps against disaster is in overdrive, with bulldozers levelling hills and refugees bunkering down however they can. But as the rains approach, the young girl's death this month in a torrent of mud and rock has heightened fears of a much greater tragedy. There is a dearth of safe land to relocate the estimated 200,000 refugees in direct danger of floods and landslides, and just 21,000 have been moved so far. "We could literally have lives lost as people slide down hillsides and valleys are flooded with water," Kevin J. Allen, head of the UNHCR refugee agency's operations in Cox's Bazar, told AFP. "They could face yet again another emergency, this time driven by mother nature." The camps' makeshift homes are predicted to receive more than 2.5 metres (eight feet) of rainfall over three months starting June -- roughly triple what Britain gets in a year. Cox's Bazar has been battered by cyclones for three years running, having already suffered astonishing devastation in the past. Cyclones have killed tens of thousands along the Bangladesh coast in recent decades and countless more have been swept to their deaths in floods and landslides. This time, nature is on a collision course with refugees who have nowhere to run -- no higher ground and no cyclone shelters. - Nowhere to go - The first storms underscored the fragility of the camps: the brief rains turned roads into quagmires, crumbled hillsides and flooded low-lying areas. The huge endeavour to prevent disaster has seen slopes vulnerable to collapse flattened and extensive canal systems carved throughout the camps. Toilets are being fortified with sandbags to prevent a major disease outbreak should floodwater meet overflowing latrines. But there are limits to how much can be done. Bangladesh has restricted the use of sturdier materials for shelters because it may suggest the Rohingya plan to stay, contrary to Dhaka's desire to return them to Myanmar. The roof was blown clean off Noor Mohammad's shack in a recent squall. He had gathered chunks of wood and rocks to weigh it down but was "scared of what could pass" when Bangladesh's wild weather barrels through. The Rohingya are no strangers to the monsoon, he said. But in Myanmar, villages were built to withstand its ferocity and trees provided a bulwark against the elements. "Here, there is nothing to stop the wind," he said, gesturing to the deforested hills stretching for miles. Bangladesh has freed up hundreds of hectares (acres) but most is hilly and was prone to landslides even before the Rohingya uprooted trees for shelters and firewood. - 'We will die' - Mosques and community centres could shelter 150,000 people if needed, said Kazi Abdur Rahman, acting district administrator of Cox's Bazar. "But if there is a big cyclone, and all these people need relocating, there is not a system for that yet. It is not possible to shift one million people," he told AFP. The Rohingya, who have fled persecution time and again, fear being on the run once more. "Everybody is afraid, wondering where we'll go if our houses are destroyed," Rohingya imam Muhammad Yusuf told AFP. Aid groups say a cyclone or devastating storm could cut access to the camps for a week -- restricting food and supplies to a tent city with a population greater than San Francisco. The World Food Programme's emergency coordinator Peter Guest said thousands of porters were being assembled to carry food on foot if access roads were cut. Those left homeless or starving will have nowhere to run anyway: the Rohingya are encircled by military checkpoints and prohibited from leaving. "What else can we do? If Allah does not protect us, we will die," said 60-year-old refugee Dil Mohammad. Jokhir Ahmend, one of the 700,000 Rohingya Muslims who have fled to southeast Bangladesh from Myanmar in the past nine months, says he is concerned about the lack of materials available to help prepare his shelter for the upcoming monsoon season Rohingya refugees carry sandbags in preparation for the upcoming monsoon season in Kutupalong refugee camp Bangladesh has restricted the use of sturdy materials for shelters, fearing it may suggest the Rohingya plan to stay Rohingya refugees make bamboo fences in preparation for the upcoming monsoon season in Kutupalong refugee camp
A woman allegedly held captive at gunpoint by her boyfriend has managed to escape by raising the alarm with a note she slipped to a vet.

Florida authorities say the woman was beaten and held captive for two days at gunpoint by her partner before escaping when she convinced him to bring their dog to an animal hospital on Friday.

While at DeLand Animal Hospital, she is believed to have slipped a note to a staff member asking for help.

Call the cops. My boyfriend is threatening me, the note read.

The woman allegedly slipped this note to a staff member in a bid to escape her boyfriend who she claims held her at gunpoint. Source: Volusia County Sheriffs Office

He has a gun. Please dont let him know.

The member of staff called police with officers arriving to arrest Jeremy Floyd, 39, at the hospital, Volusia County Sheriffs Office said.

Floyd allegedly repeatedly battered his partner on Wednesday night, threatened her at gunpoint and physically prevented her from leaving their home.

During the incident, the two struggled over the handgun and it was discharged inside the house.

Jeremy Floyd, 39, has been arrested and charged over the alleged incident. Source: Volusia County Sheriffs Office

On the drive to the vet, Floyd allegedly pointed the gun at his girlfriend, threatening to kill her and her family.

Officers took the woman to Florida Hospital DeLand where she was treated for injuries  including a head injury, a black eye and bruised arms.

Floyd has been charged a series of offences including domestic violence, aggravated assault with a firearm, false imprisonment and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon

He has not been granted bail and remains in custody at the Volusia County Branch Jail.
A grieving mother has shared harrowing details of her teenage daughters death after she took two pills at a music festival over the weekend.

Georgia Jones, 18, had a 45-minute fit and was rushed to hospital after taking the pills at the Mutiny Festival in Hampshire, UK on Saturday.

Her devastated mum, Janine Milburn, took to Facebook to pay tribute to her little girl and said she hoped her death would stop others from making the same mistake.

I can now say Georgia died yesterday due to complications after taking two pills at Mutiny, Ms Milburn wrote.

Georgia Jones died on Saturday after taking two pills at a UK music festival. Source: Facebook/Georgia Jones

The pills  caused her temperature to rise so high it made her fit for 45 mins (sic).

This then caused her muscle to break down and turn her blood acidic.

Her heart was irregular and stopped numerous times and then her lungs filled with blood and fluid and I made the decision to turn everything off.

If nothing else, I hope what has happened to her will deter you from taking anything ever.

Ms Milburn said Ms Jones was my little girl was full of life.

A 20-year-old man also died at the festival, while a further 13 were taken to Portsmouth Hospital to be treated.

Fifteen people were transported to hospital from the festival on Saturday. Source: Instagram/Luke Jackson

Mutiny Festival organisers warned festivalgoers they were aware of a dangerous high-strength or bad batch substance on site and no drugs should be taken.

Following their deaths, event organisers decided not to reopen the following day.

The safety of our amazing customers has always been paramount to us and so to keep everyone safe and in respect to those who have passed, we have taken the decision not to open today, they said in a statement on Facebook.

As you can imagine, this decision was not taken lightly and was taken with the support of the local statutory authorities who we continue to work with.

Enquiries are being made into the circumstances of what has happened, but we must reiterate our advice to all our customers to responsibly dispose of any substances.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is committed to "complete" denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and to a landmark summit with US President Donald Trump, South Korea's leader said Sunday, as Trump announced that plans for the meeting are moving along "very nicely". The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship that had sent tensions soaring. Trump rattled a sabre on Thursday by cancelling the planned June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang. But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials. "It's moving along very nicely," Trump told reporters when asked for an update. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed." Trump's unpredictability sparked a surprise meeting on Saturday between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in -- only the fourth time leaders from the two countries have ever met -- as they scrambled to get the talks back on track. Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations. Moon said Kim reached out to him to arrange the hasty meeting "without any formality", a stunning development given that the Koreas only reopened a defunct hotline between the two nations last month. The North Korean leader described the Singapore summit as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation. "He... expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters on Sunday. Moon added that Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete denuclearisation" but was uncertain "whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime" if he gave up those weapons. Pyongyang's state-run KCNA news agency said Kim "expressed his fixed will" to meet Trump, adding South and North Korea would hold another round of "high-level" talks on June 1. - Shaky detente - There was a further signal of progress Saturday as White House press secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed a team of US officials was leaving for Singapore "in order to prepare should the summit take place". Trump's original decision to abandon the summit initially blindsided South Korea, which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang in a desperate bid to avoid a devastating conflict. Last year Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to date and missiles which it said were capable of reaching the US mainland. Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a rapid detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang. But the flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks with increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang. There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve. Washington wants North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible in return for sanctions and economic relief. Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look like and remains deeply worried that abandoning its deterrent would leave the country vulnerable to regime change. - 'Back on track' - Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a village that straddles the border between the two countries, where the 1953 armistice was signed. The two leaders had met in the same village only last month. Kim Yong-hyun, professor of North Korea studies at Dongguk University in Seoul, said Moon and Kim moved quickly to defuse the crisis after Trump's shock cancellation. "Moon essentially helped relay messages from Trump to Kim and vice versa, to further smooth the process and to resume negotiations," he told AFP, saying the Singapore meeting was "clearly back on track". In Seoul Sunday most people whom AFP spoke to appeared to welcome Moon's move to talk to Kim. "I think it was a good thing if meeting in person and having a direct conversation about each other's intentions helps us proceed to the next step," said Lee Tae-kyoung. Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only told later that it had taken place. Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South. Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise meeting in a bid to get US-North Korea talks back on track South Korea's Moon said Kim Jong Un described the Singapore summit with Donald Trump as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation US President Donald Trump said plans for a landmark summit with Kim Jong Un are moving 'very nicely' North Korea remains deeply worried that abandoning its nuclear weapons would leave the country vulnerable to regime change
Hundreds of protesters dug in around Nicaragua on Saturday, blocking roads as at least eight more people were killed in a 24-hour period. Unrest has resumed since week-long church-mediated talks between the government and opposition to quell a month of violence broke down late on Wednesday. Hundreds of demonstrators in the north, center and south of the Central American nation were blocking highways on Saturday, demanding Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, stand down. Since protests began on April 18 at least 83 people have been killed and more than 860 wounded, police and rights activists say. Four people were killed on Friday, and another four by mid-day Saturday, police and family members said. Ortega, a former Sandinista guerrilla who first ruled between 1979 and 1990 before returning as president 11 years ago, had kept power by maintaining leftist rhetoric while ensuring an accommodation with powerful private industry and keeping up trade with the United States. But demonstrators have voiced frustration over corruption, the autocratic style of Ortega and Murillo, limited options to change the country's politics in elections, and the president's control over Congress, the courts, the military and the electoral board. The Organization of American States has called for Ortega to call early elections, an issue which became the biggest stumbling block in dialogue. Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said an early ballot would mean "dismantling constitutional order and the democratically elected government." Before protests broke out, an OAS team had been trying to mediate in a process aimed at bringing about new elections, as well as electoral reforms. Ortega and Murillo were elected in November 2016 for a term that ends in January 2022. Nicaraguan demonstrators in Leon set up a barricade while resuming protests after peace talks between the government and opposition collapsed
Another patient has died in India from the Nipah virus, taking the number of fatalities from an outbreak of the rare disease to 13, authorities said Sunday. Officials in the southwestern state of Kerala said that in addition to the latest fatality two patients have tested positive for the virus spread by fruit bats, which induces flu-like symptoms that lead to agonising encephalitis and coma. Emergency measures have been imposed across Kerala to curb the spread of the virus, with dozens of patients quarantined since the outbreak was detected this month. Health experts have been flown to Kerala to help contain the virus, which has a mortality rate of 70 percent and no vaccine. "One man died today from Nipah virus, taking the overall death toll to 13," Sarita R.L., director of Kerala's health services, told AFP. "There are two other confirmed Nipah patients undergoing treatment." Nipah has killed more than 260 people in Malaysia, Bangladesh and India since 1998. The World Health Organization has listed it as one of the eight priority diseases that could cause a global epidemic, alongside Ebola and Zika. Nipah is named after the Malaysian village where it first appeared in 1998. It spread to Singapore and more than 100 people were killed. On that occasion, pigs were the virus hosts but they are believed to have caught it from bats. In India the disease was first reported in 2001 and again six years later, with the two outbreaks claiming 50 lives. Both times the disease was reported in West Bengal state bordering Bangladesh. Bangladesh has borne the brunt of the disease in recent years, with more than 100 people dying of Nipah since a first outbreak was reported there in 2001. Four victims from the latest outbreak in Kerala hailed from one family. Dead bats were found in a well at their home in Kozhikode district, the epicentre of the viral outbreak. A nurse treating one of the victims also succumbed to the disease. Animal Husbandry department and Forest officials inspect a well to catch bats at Kozhikode earlier this month
A curious labrador puppy has been rescued by police after it became trapped between two homes in Sydney.

Baxter the puppy managed to squeeze into a narrow gap between the two Paddington terraces at about 10.30am on Friday before Eastern Suburbs Police Area Command were called to the rescue.

Baxter, a labrador puppy, somehow managed to find himself in a tight spot on Friday morning. Source: NSW Police

Police had no choice but to try and drill their way to the puppy. Source: NSW Police

After assessing the scene, Police Rescue were brought in to help the caught-up canine.

Baxter, the labrador puppy, was trapped in the space for about 30 minutes before officers were able to retrieve the pooch by drilling through a wall in the home.

Adorable photos shared by NSW Police shows the relieved pup embrace one of the officers after pulling him free.

Thankfully Baxter was uninjured from the incident.

After about 30 minutes, officers were able to pull him through a hole in the wall. Source: NSW Police
Russian fighters were among dozens of pro-government forces killed in eastern Syria this week in a deadly wave of attacks by Islamic State group jihadists, Moscow and a monitor said Sunday. After the collapse of its so-called "caliphate" last year, IS now only holds tiny pockets of Syria, mainly in the vast desert stretching to its eastern border. This week, the jihadists ramped up their hit-and-run attacks on regime positions there, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor. The deadliest was on Wednesday, when IS targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor. "There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman. The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP. A steadfast ally of President Bashar al-Assad, Moscow has helped his army recapture swathes of territory since 2015 by providing air strikes and ground troops. There are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground. Moscow's defence ministry said Sunday four of its servicemen were killed in clashes in Deir Ezzor. Two were military advisers supporting Syrian artillery operations and died immediately, and another two died of their wounds in a Russian-operated military hospital in Syria. Three others were wounded. - IS claims attack - Russia did not specify when, where, or whether IS was involved, but it appeared to be the same incident as the IS attack reported near Mayadeen. The jihadist group itself claimed it attacked regime forces in eastern Syria on Wednesday. The assault was the largest in series of IS guerilla raids on regime positions this week. On Tuesday, 26 regime forces were killed in a surprise IS attack in desert areas of the neighbouring province of Homs, according to the Observatory. And a pair of IS assaults between Saturday night and Sunday morning killed at least 11 pro-regime forces in Deir Ezzor. "The latest attack brings to 76 the number of Syrian troops and allied Iranian and Russian forces killed since the escalation," Abdel Rahman said Sunday. He said the uptick came the day after the last IS fighters were bussed out of southern parts of Syria's capital Damascus, including the ravaged Palestinian camp of Yarmuk, in a negotiated withdrawal. Many headed towards the Badiya, the stretch of Syrian desert extending from Homs province through Deir Ezzor to the eastern border with Iraq. The Observatory said the evacuated fighters were actively involved in the recent attacks. "IS is trying to take the initiative and show it can still threaten the regime and its allies despite the losses it suffered in other areas," said Abdel Rahman. Government positions in the Badiya make for an easy target: they are few and far between, so reinforcements take a long time to arrive. - 'Hinder' army - Russian-backed Syrian troops hold the western half of Deir Ezzor province, which is divided diagonally by the Euphrates River. US-backed fighters hold the east bank. The river is meant to serve as a de-confliction line to prevent the two sides from clashing as they pursue separate assaults against IS. A Syrian military source based in the east told AFP that Assad's troops had cleared large parts of territory from IS, which was now lashing out. "Daesh wants to hinder the army's combing operations in the Badiya by waging these intermittent attacks," said the source, using the Arabic acronym for IS. It confirmed Russian military advisers were present during Wednesday's attack and were among those killed. Russia's government officially acknowledges that 92 soldiers have been killed in Syria, although some estimate the number is even higher. The highest casualties were in March, when a transport plane crashed at Hmeimim airbase where Moscow's airforce is based, killing all 39 people on board. On Sunday, a local Russian newspaper in the Siberian city of Chita reported on the funerals of four soldiers it said were killed in Syria on May 23. The international group Conflict Intelligence Team said up to six Russian soldiers could have been killed in the attack, quoting social media reports of a funeral for a Russian soldier that took place in the Western Russian city of Smolensk this week. A file picture shows damaged buildings in the Syrian town of Mayadeen where Russian fighters were among dozens of pro-regime forces killed this week Map of eastern Syria locating an attack on Syrian regime forces and Russian allies Russian-backed Syrian regime forces took control of Deir Ezzor city on November 3, 2017
A popular Californian zoo has come under fire after an offensive mishap during the opening of their Australian exhibit.

San Diego Zoo Safari Park launched its Walkabout Australia experience on Friday morning (local time)  which featured kangaroos, kookaburras and wallabies.

In an attempt to inject some indigenous culture into the exhibit, a group of Maori dancers performed for the audience, leaving many scratching their heads.

A Facebook live stream of the performance, visible all over the world, was inundated with furious comments questioning why the zoo had used a New Zealand dance to open an Australian exhibition.

San Diego Zoo Safari Park came under fire after a Maori dance was performed to open an Australian exhibit. Source: Facebook / San Diego Zoo

The zoo initially doubled down on their mistake, responding to criticism by saying Maori dancers were native to both Australia and New Zealand before later apologising for their mistake.

Our sincere apologies. We were given incorrect information, they wrote on their Facebook page.

Facebook users slammed the event organisers, labelling their lack of research into both cultures as ignorant.

Your attempt at cultural appropriation is wrong, rude, and offensive, one woman wrote.

A public apology to the New Zealand culture is very necessary and not some smeared cover up attempt! Shameful Posted by Sarah Allen on Saturday, May 26, 2018

How ignorant can the people employed at that San Diego zoo be that they open an exhibition clearly showing they dont Posted by Frederique Marie Robert on Saturday, May 26, 2018

Mixing two very different cultures and perpetuating the ignorance the US has about most things beyond its borders, another added.

Did you consult with any actual Aboriginal people before using their cultural word Walkabout? Maybe if you had you would have also learned that Maori arent from Australia, one man said in response to a Zoo Twitter post.

Yahoo7 News has contacted San Diego Zoo for comment.
A Canadian couple have been left dumbfounded after being told their little girls sundress was inappropriate for kindergarten.

Parents Jame and Sadie Stonehouse told CTV News when Lola, 3, came home from The Little Years Nursery School, they were informed Lolas sundress with spaghetti straps was no appropriate to wear.

Mrs Stonehouse said she was told her daughter needed to have two-inch straps on her sundress.

The parents were also told if Lola wore the dress again she would need to wear a t-shirt underneath.

Parents of a three-year-old have been left dumbfounded after they were told her sundress (pictured) was inappropriate to wear at kindergarten. Source: CTV News/ Facebook/ Sadie Stonehouse

The mum said shes struggling to explain to Lola why she cant wear the dress anymore and is concerned the little girl might think she did something wrong.

So now shes going to be questioning her own body, Mrs Stonehouse.

And thats such a young age to even be thinking of something like that.

The parents plan on following through on the schools request, but hope they at least review their policies.

I dont think any girl should have to worry about how much shoulder shes exposing when she dresses to go to school or anywhere else. At any age, Mrs Stonehouse said.

The nursery is located inside a primary school. The schools director would not comment to CTV News and referred the question to the school district.

A spokesperson for the school district said it does not have a dress code and encourages its leaders to use discretion and encourage best practices in a respectful way.

The spokesperson also recommended the parents speak with the pre-school directly.
Perez Williams seemed to be making progress in raising the race's national profile when she received the "Red to Blue" designation. But she downplayed the significance of being named to the program and whether it's relevant in the primary.

"Certainly I like to say that my candidacy brings some national attention, which is what we want," she said. "We want to get this race on the radar. We want people to know that this is one of the few districts that actually leans left and so we can win with the right challenger."

She added, "This wasn't given to me. I have to earn it. I'm putting in the time because I believe in this and I believe we can win."

Perez Williams also views her recent experience in the Syracuse mayoral race as an asset. Last year, she didn't win the Democratic Party's support during the designation process. To secure the nomination, she needed to win a primary.

In a primary, she noted, it comes down to the voters. But she also wants to ensure it's a healthy primary contest that strengthens the party's ability to defeat Katko in November.

"I'm confident that we're going to be a strong voice and that we're going to be competitive," she said. "It's going to be a good race."

Beating Katko
"That is not the caricature definition of the Republican Party, but that's the reality of the Republican Party and people are gonna start realizing it," Wofford said. "And that's going to make us extraordinarily competitive in the fall."

Wofford is expected to face Democratic nominee Tish James in the general election. However, there may be a Democratic primary for attorney general.

For the state comptroller's race, Republicans nominated a former Democratic strategist. Jonathan Trichter won the nomination at the convention Thursday. He beat out Manny Alicandro, who briefly sought the nomination for attorney general, for the designation.

Trichter, like Wofford, hasn't run for political office before. But he isn't new to politics. He worked for Eliot Spitzer's campaign for attorney general in 1998 and advised Republican candidate Harry Wilson's campaign against current state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli in 2010.

To run on the Republican line, Trichter obtained a Wilson-Pakula authorization. The Wilson-Pakula authorizes candidates who aren't members of a certain political party to run on that party's ballot line. Trichter has changed his party affiliation to Republican, but it won't take effect until after the election.
Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base opened in 1979 as the Navy's Atlantic Ocean Trident missile port. It is the largest nuclear submarine base in the world. The "Kings Bay Plowshares" hope to draw attention not only to the threat of nuclear annihilation posed by the weapons aboard the submarines whose home port is Kings Bay, but to emphasize how the weapons kill every day. Clare Grady wrote from Camden County jail, We say, 'the ultimate logic of Trident is homicide,' and yet, the explosive power of this weapon is only part of what we want to make visible. We see that nuclear weapons kill every day by their mere existence. We see the billions of dollars it takes to build and maintain the Trident system as stolen resources, which are desperately needed for human needs. In response to news of the indictment, Mark Colville, of New Haven, Connecticut, wrote from the Camden County Jail, Once again the federal criminal justice system has plainly identified itself as another arm of the Pentagon by turning a blind eye to the criminal and murderous course from which it has repeatedly refused to desist for the past 70 years.
The impact of the new canal on the people of Cayuga County was minimal, if not negative. The new route of the canal, using the Seneca River, shifted the canal business out of the villages, and this had an impact on the economic life of the people who depended on the canal. But truthfully, by 1918, there was little traffic left on the old canal. Perhaps the largest impact was to the Tanner dry dock, whose business was canal boats. But the impact to the natural environment was extensive. The river was canalized by dredging a 12-foot deep channel and straightening some of the bends. At Mosquito Point, a new channel was cut south of the area known as Haiti (so named for its abolitionist roots), thus creating Haiti Island. Campbell's Island, which lied in the river south of Howlands Island, was removed. To regulate the river, a dam was added at the north end of Cayuga Lake at what is now Cayuga Seneca Lock 1. And a second dam was built on the Clyde River at Mays Point. To the east in Onondaga County, the state ditch at Jacks Reef was deepened and enlarged, completing a project that had been ongoing since 1825. All this work served to lower the level of the river and lake by about 4 feet, causing the wetlands to dry up, and as a result, causing the waterfowl to leave. Later, this would be addressed by the creation of the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge.
Take a deep breath. If you're lucky, the air smells clean and the breath is refreshing. But even air that seems OK can have hazardous levels of particulates  the stuff that gives kids asthma  as well as CO2 the stuff that's changing our climate.

Robert Percival's column in the May 18 Public Citizen describes the various actions ordered by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt to weaken the Clean Air Act, which puts controls on emissions of CO2 and particulates. Percival points out that unless we want our air to resemble that of Beijing, we should continue controls on particulates.

He's right, but CO2 emissions are just as worrisome. Evidence of a warming climate is right here: recent years have seen CNY apple crops stunted by early-spring heat waves, and tick-borne diseases are becoming all too common as warming temperatures increase the ticks' range and breeding season.
Now that it is fully apparent, to all who have the ability to pay some modicum of attention, that Imposter President Biden has extreme cognitive issues, in addition to being an inveterate liar: Can OUR Republic continue with this Executive Office that has completely failed, so many times, on far too many issues here at this early date in this abysmal presidency?

No, Joseph R. Biden is completely unqualified, morally and cognitively, to represent real Americans, and lead this Republic of disparate peoples.

Yes, Joseph R. Biden has started whispering again, even softer now than before; so, I know he still cares, plus, OUR media will soon stop reporting on Afghanistan in favor of OUR Socialist ideals.
The world of law school and the legal profession is in turmoil. This is because there are not only many market distortions at play, but because the economy is undergoing transitions.One of these distortions is the overabundance of federal aid, especially loans that allow law schools to maintain high levels of enrollment. Schools are even able to raise tuitions even as the legal profession faces a labor supply glut. Studies have shown that 10 months after graduation, only 73 percent of law school graduates from the class of 2016 had found full-time jobs in the legal field or a position that uses their legal training.As can be expected in such a chaotic environment, innovations are appearing in response to the distortions and market shifts. Whether they are actual solutions to the most important problems remain to be seen; it may be that the legal industry and its academic component need much more dramatic and fundamental changes for solutions to occur.Three innovations have already made some inroads into legal education and accreditation. The first is the acceptance of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) as an admissions test for law school in place of the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). Both the GRE and LSAT test for language skills, interpretation of texts, and logical reasoning, but the GRE also has a quantitative portion that the LSAT lacks.Permitting applicants to submit GRE scores will shift admissions toward those who have majored in science or technical programs. This will help address the growing demand for lawyers who are familiar with technology since it is increasingly important as both an area of litigation in such matters as patent law and as a tool for lawyers to uncover and present evidence.Also, using the GRE gives law schools a wider pool from which to draw applicants. While still able to fill their classes, admissions standards at many schools have dropped.Harvard, Chicago, Stanford, and Wake Forest were among the first schools to adopt this new policy and more than a dozen law schools have chosen to accept the GRE since 2011. Schools that have become known for their strong research and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) programs were among the first to adopt this change.A second innovation taking hold is the adoption of a Universal Bar Exam (UBE). Currently, in order to ensure that new graduates are capable of practicing law, they are required by their respective states to pass state-specific American Bar Association tests.Passing the UBE, however, allows attorneys to gain entrance to any participating State Bar. Since 2006, 29 states and the District of Columbia have agreed to adopt the UBE, which may lower legal fees to clients by allowing for more competition in a very regulated market. Reciprocity between states increases the value of a job-seeker's law degree by removing the bureaucratic hurdle of requiring exams specific to each state. At the same time, it makes legal services more affordable by increasing competition as clients have more law firms from which to choose.Even with a universal bar, attorneys may still have to apply to other participating State Bars if they wish to practice there. Additionally, they may have to pay the expensive membership fees and meet other state requirements, such as annual Continuing Legal Education and hours of pro-bono work.Many are concerned that testing attorneys based on a national standard may be a threat to federalism. Federalism allows government to operate at different levels, essentially allowing states the sovereignty to make their own laws. Testing attorneys from different states and regions using standards applicable to many states may incentivize law schools to train attorneys more broadly and with a more shallow understanding of state laws. After all, questions about each state's laws are less likely to show up on a universal bar exam.A third innovation addresses the high tuition charged by law schools. A handful of states-Virginia, Vermont, Washington, and California-allow aspiring attorneys to forego law school altogether if they complete approved law apprenticeship programs . New York and Maine also allow legal apprenticeships, but apprentices there must take some law courses before beginning the programs.Generally, an apprenticeship program places an aspiring lawyer in the office of an attorney or judge after some foundational legal coursework. Just as each state has different requirements to practice law, each legal apprenticeship program differs greatly based on the ABA requirements in the state, the market in that area, and the needs of their students.Unfortunately, legal apprentice programs have seen very limited success. The overall national bar passage rate for legal readers and legal apprentices is as low as 28 percent, compared to the 78 percent passage rate for traditional law school graduates.The state of Washington's " Law Clerks Program " is an exception. With the support of the state bar association, a volunteer board sets standards and assigns a liaison to a pair of lawyer-apprentices. Participants are also assigned a mentor to track progress as they prepare to take the bar exam. Of the law clerks who took the Washington bar last year, fully 67 percent passed. One factor that limits the number of people who can become lawyers through apprenticeships in Washington is a rule that, upon completion of the program, participants must be employed by the office in which they studied.One program in California was created to increase diversity in the legal profession. In California, fewer than 7 percent of the state's licensed attorneys are black (2.7 percent) or Latino (4.2 percent). The program, Esq. Apprentice , claims to advocate for aIt is a four-year program in which participants work as legal assistants and researchers while studying part-time.Still, the facts suggest that Esq. Apprentice and other legal apprenticeship programs-with the exception of Washington's-over-promise and under-deliver. Given their abysmal failure rates, the concern shifts from the direct costs of attending law school to the opportunity costs of foregone alternatives. Do they help participants financially in the long run? Instead of preparing for careers in which they can be successful, unsuccessful apprentices spend years of their life working for modest salaries and preparing to take a qualifying test they simply cannot pass.Innovations in the legal field are welcome and necessary, but only time will tell whether the three discussed here will prove fruitful.Kathy Manos Penn is a Sandy Springs resident. Find her latest book, "Lord Banjo the Royal Pooch," and her collection of columns, "The Ink Penn: Celebrating the Magic in the Everyday," on Amazon. Contact her at inkpenn119@gmail.com, and follow her on Facebook, www.facebook.com/KathyManosPennAuthor/.
Demonstrators disrupted a theatre performance in Brno. They did not like a scene where Jesus rapes a muslim woman

27. 5. 2018

cas cteni 4 minuty

The theme of this year's Brno theatre festival is Freedom and its Fragility



Z predstaveni pro par desitek lidi celostatni udalost. Hru Nase nasili a vase nasili v divadle Husa na Provazku narusilo asi tricet aktivistu hnuti Slusni lide - jsou to ti v modrych trickach v pozadi. Tvrdi, ze je urazi vyobrazeni Jezise. pic.twitter.com/NM6gD94NEB  CT24 (@CT24zive) May 26, 2018





Thirty members of the "Decent People" organisation disrupted a performance which was going on at the Brno "Theatre on a String" on Saturday within the framework of an international theatre festival. They protested against the play Our Violence and Your Violence, which is directed by the Croatian director Oliver Frljic. Previously, the performance had been condemned by the Catholic church and by some politicians.



The protesters formed a chain on stage intending to push away the actors. However, the audience started clapping and chanting "Decent people, Go Home!" Thirty members of the "Decent People" organisation disrupted a performance which was going on at the Brno "Theatre on a String" on Saturday within the framework of an international theatre festival. They protested against the play, which is directed by the Croatian director Oliver Frljic. Previously, the performance had been condemned by the Catholic church and by some politicians.The protesters formed a chain on stage intending to push away the actors. However, the audience started clapping and chanting "Decent people, Go Home!"





While the demonstrators were blocking the stage, some members of the audience started dancing, others attempted to enter into discussions with the protesters. The actors tried to continue with the performance.



The demonstrators were eventually taken out by the police and they may be charged with an offence.



After a delay of about one hour, the performance continued. However, later on, it was again disrupted by a group of Christian activists. During naked scenes, they started praying aloud and then began whistling and chanting: "Do not insult Christ, Our Lord!"



"We must learn to fight for our faith and for our God because if someone insults him this way and if someone shows that our God rapes someone, that is the worst kind of blasphemy," said one Christian activist.





The protests were provoked by the publication of a photograph of a scene from the play in which the character of Jesus rapes a muslim woman. The play culminates in a scene in which an actor wearing a crown of thorns comes down from a crucifix made of oil barrels and lies down, half naked on a woman who is lying on her stomach:











Martin Glaser, the director of the festival "The Brno World of Theatre", during which this play is being staged, was horrified by the incident.



"I do not understand how come some politicians might be thinking that a play should be banned and when they do not manage to ban it, some people come to the theatre and disrupt it. When I saw what was happening I thought of films about the beginnings of Nazism," said Glaser.



Glaser is also horrified that the police waited for twenty minutes before they acted. Although the incident was reported to them immediately once the stage was occupied by protesters, they said that they would only act after violence has occurred.











0

5973

The playpresents a view of Europe which has been (naively) surprised by the refugee crisis. It presents a Europe which has forgotten its colonial history when it closed its borders to prevent the arrival of those people who were escaping the results of European and American policies. The play argues that it is as though the Europeans did only one thing throughout the 20th century - they fed their own national narcissism which teaches that one kind of people is better than the other and forgets that ignorance is also a form of violence. The 21st century continues to teach the Europeans the same lesson but it now uses a new weapon - fear. And fear is the most familiar emotion of those people who are lost.The playasks several uncomfortable questions: Are we aware that our wealth depends on thousands of dead people in the Middle East? Do we mourn the victims of the Paris and Brussels terrorist attacks just as intensely as we mourn the victims of the terrorist attacks in Baghdad and Kabul? At which particular moment have we managed to convince ourselves that it is we who are right and that our God is more powerful than other gods?Oliver Frljic is one of the most well-known contemporary theatre directors and holder of many prizes. He frequently shocks the public by the plays he has written and produced as well as by his radical reinterpretations of classical works. He has started a debate about theatre censorship in Croatia, opened the painful topic of Slovenian purges, highlighted the participation of the Poles in the holocaust and has drawn our attention to the post-colonial arrogance with which Europe has responded to the Middle Eastern refugee crisis.He currently works in Germany.Source in Czech HERE
Entertainment / Movies

by Staff rpeorter

The premiere of the much-anticipated war biopic Chinhoyi 7 has been scheduled for next Friday amid revelations that the movie debut could have been held back by re-editing of certain scenes that feature former president Robert Mugabe.The "coming soon" tag of the movie, which was financed by the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF), has been lingering on local movie goers during the past three years. The 120-minute-long movie was supposed to have premiered at Ster Kinekor Borrowdale on March 16 this year, but it was moved due to what the producers claimed were "logistical challenges".However, sources told The Standard Style that the postponement was to do with revisiting of certain scenes deemed to be giving Mugabe "mileage"."Production of the movie started way back when Mugabe was still in power and some of the scenes support him. There are scenes where people spoke glowingly about him and there were scenes where slogans were chanted in his name, which is no longer the case in this 'new dispensation'," the source said."There was no way a biopic by the ZDF would have showered Mugabe with all sorts of praises when he was ousted by the military."However, movie director and main actor Moses Matanda (pictured right) refuted the claims, saying there were certain procedures that needed to be followed before the movie could be watched by the public."This is nothing, but just speculation. The movie was postponed because the President [Emmerson Mnangagwa] and the Cabinet wanted to watch it first," Matanda said."They are the custodians of our heritage and Chinhoyi 7 tells a story that is pertinent in the history of our nation. Now that they have watched it and are impressed, the movie hits the cinemas on June 1."Matanda, who is not a member of the ZDF, said all was set for the long-awaited premiere."Everything is under control now and we are ready to share what we have been doing behind the scenes with the rest of the world," he said.The involvement of the ZDF in the movie has raised eyebrows, with some people questioning the role of the military in the project. The ZDF is said to have funded the project to the tune of $100 000.Efforts to contact ZDF spokesperson Overson Mugwisi on the matter were fruitless yesterday as his mobile phone was not reachable. However, Matanda defended the role of the army in the movie."The army played a pivotal role in the production. They funded the production and they are the executive producers of the movie. They also provided the helicopters, guns and ammunition, as well as the soldiers," he said.Meanwhile, Matanda admitted that he was linked to Foreign Affairs and International Trade minister Sibusiso Moyo - a retired army general."I am not a member of the army. I do films, that is my profession and I am also the CEO of Bar Rogue [a franchise of clubs] owned by Minister SB Moyo," Matanda said.Moyo rose to prominence in November last year when he announced the coup that toppled Mugabe.Chinhoyi 7 is based on true events about seven liberation war fighters - David Guzuzu, Arthur Maramba, Christopher Chatambudza, Simon Chingosha Nyandoro, Godfrey Manyerenyere, Godwin Dube and Chubby Savanhu - who were killed by the Ian Smith regime in 1966 in Chinhoyi, a battle that signalled the start of the liberation war.
Entertainment / National

by Staff reporter

When Yvonne Chaka Chaka finally turns in her crown as the Princess of Africa, the woman to succeed her may be none other than Zimbabwe's own Berita Khumalo, the young songbird who has enjoyed serving an extended internship under the wing of one of Africa's most celebrated artistes.Berita and Chaka Chaka have struck up a mother-daughter relationship in the last few years, with the Zimbabwean jazz musician even getting a much sought after collaboration on her last album.That album, titled Berita, was a follow-up to her previous effort Songs of Empowerment, an album that saw her try to bridge the gap between the old and the new when she featured the likes of Oliver Mtukudzi and Hugh Masekela.While Berita is on her ongoing tour of East Africa where she is promoting her brand in that part of the continent, she revealed that she had not stopped seeking guidance from the ageless South African beauty."I have had an exciting music career and I have been very fortunate. For me it has to be working with the late Bra Hugh Masekela and Oliver Mtukudzi. That was a big highlight. It just changed the trajectory of my career because I was this young girl and then all of a sudden it's like, "what's so special about her?"I learnt a lot about how to present myself as an artiste, how to communicate my ideas and Oliver Mtukudzi told me to talk about what's happening in my community. One of the highlights that I keep on enjoying is being mentored by Yvonne Chakachaka. That's something that I truly enjoy and I'm learning a lot," she said when asked to reveal the highlights of her career by Kenya Buzz.Chaka Chaka had in the past said Berita had impressed her with her song making skills on the track, Jewel of Africa. "When Berita came to me with the track, she sang it her way and I liked it. I said this is how I'm going to respond. I wanted us to make it so positive," Chaka Chaka said in an interview.
News / National

by Staff rpeorter

MDC Alliance leader Mr Nelson Chamisa says the Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) is a professional and patriotic national body, which is unlikely to block him from assuming the Presidency in the implausible event that he wins the forthcoming elections.Addressing a rally at Pelandaba Stadium in Gwanda on Friday, Mr Chamisa told supporters he believes that the army prioritises the interests of the people.Mr Chamisa's assertions puts paid to claims by some sections of the opposition party that sought to besmirch the country's defence forces as forerunners of Zanu-PF's elections machinery."Mukupe said if I win, the army won't allow me to rule, he said they will stop me from ruling. This will not happen because soldiers are patriotic and professional. They don't serve an individual, but they follow the will of the people and therefore they will support the will of the people because it's the people who would have elected me," he said.Last week, Government reiterated that the army, which religiously upholds the Constitution, will not be involved in the elections. The assurance came after Finance and Economic Development Deputy Minister Mr Terence Mukupe was quoted as having said the army will not allow Mr Chamisa to rule if he wins the elections.Mr Mukupe has however claimed that he was quoted out of context.At Friday's event, Mr Chamisa also berated the party's interpreter for demeaning President Mnangagwa after he kept on referring to him as "chiMnangagwa".Party members, he said, had an obligation to respect President Mnangagwa despite their political differences."Can you show some respect and address him properly! I respect Mnangagwa although we differ, our difference doesn't mean he is an enemy. We have to cultivate a culture of respect for one another and as a leader, it's my duty to lead by example," he said.Mr Chamisa called on people to register to vote.He also reached out to Dr Thokozani Khupe, who is currently involved in a dogfight with him over the leadership of the party. Mr Chamisa, who was accompanied by another principal in the alliance, Professor Welshman Ncube, said in the event that he wins the forthcoming elections, he will use the US dollar for a short while before introducing a local currency."My Government will address the grievances of the people and represent them. I will address cash challenges. If I come into power in July, by August I would have removed the bond note with the US dollar. Foreign currency will be used for a short while and then I will introduce our own currency," he said.In a separate rally held in Maphisa, Matabeleland South, on Thursday, where a handful of people turned up, Mr Chamisa controversially claimed that he will legislate for a policy where Government-run institutions in respective provinces will be manned by people from the same area.In the 2013 harmonised elections, Zanu-PF swept all the 13 House of Assembly seats in the province."We want to change the organogram of the law system, where we do not want to have judges and other law keepers coming from different regions to work where they were not born. If you look at the bench of the Supreme Court, it is led by people from one area," he said.Civil servants, he claimed, must work from their places of origin."We want the police, teachers, and other civil servants to work from their places of birth."In order to promote cohesion, unity and the efficient allocation of the country's human resource, Government currently does not discriminate in terms of recruitments.
News / National

by Staff rpeorter

FORMER President Mr Robert Mugabe was solely responsible for the post-independence civil disturbances commonly known as Gukurahundi and his properties should be seized and sold to compensate victims of that period, a senior war veteran leader has said.Addressing war veterans, ex-detainees, war collaborators, widowers, widows and children of war veterans at Stanley Square in Makokoba, Bulawayo yesterday, war veterans Secretary-General and Zanu-PF Politburo member Victor Matemadanda said Mr Mugabe made an individual decision during the disturbances as he was the Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces."As the Commander-in-Chief, these issues that are coming up now about (Gukurahundi) are all a political gimmick. These are just political games, the person answerable before death is Robert Mugabe. Even the commanders that were deployed were working under his instruction, as the Commander-in-Chief. Why is the President called the Commander-in-Chief, because he is the one who instigates and authorises any instructions to do with the welfare of the nation," said Matemadanda.Gukurahundi is a term used to refer to disturbances in Matabeleland and Midlands in the 1980s. Matemadanda whose address was both in SiNdebele and ChiShona said Mr Mugabe should compensate the victims of the disturbances using his personal resources.WATCH VIDEO BELOW"We need to engage and finish it off while Mugabe is still alive, Gushungo Holdings ine mombe dzakawanda (has many cattle). Traditionally when compensating in our culture, we use cattle. I want to be in the committee which will make Mugabe pay. His kids dance on top of cars so the former First Family members must pay," he said.He said the nation should not be swayed into believing that there were some people other than Mr Mugabe who had the final say during the disturbances."If anyone wants to deal with the author of Gukurahundi, that person is Robert Mugabe. But I want to make it clear that when Robert Mugabe did it he did not do it on behalf of the Shona people or the Zezurus. Mugabe did it all on his own convictions and beliefs."This was all laid bare when he married his wife (Mrs Grace Mugabe) so that she could later on rule the country. If at all he was doing it for the sake of any ethnic group, for example the Shona people, he would not have fired Emmerson Mnangagwa, but because he was bent on creating a Mugabe dynasty, some of us did not see it coming nor did we know. It is something he had been planning all along," said Matemadanda.He said whenever the issue was raised at any platform, Mr Mugabe would fake an illness in order to avoid being questioned."Mugabe is still talking too much from his home but if ever you ask him about Gukurahundi, he fakes an illness, as if he is on a deathbed."It is now time as Zimbabweans to rise up and say Robert noma kuthiwa izinto ziyafana tell us about the motive behind Gukurahundi. Because if he dies before he answers there would be a problem, this issue should be spoken about and should not raise emotions, even though it is sensitive between the Ndebeles and the Shonas because Mugabe did not consult any ethnic group, he just wanted to massacre the Ndebele people. He did all on his own accord. We should ask him why he did it.He has sympathisers using this issue as a gimmick just to gain political mileage but we will not allow that," said Matemadanda.Mr Mugabe has described the era as a moment of madness. During the meeting, Matemadanda also said Zimbabweans should not take MDC Alliance presidential candidate Mr Nelson Chamisa seriously as he was bent on dividing the nation through tribal based issues.
News / National

by Staff reporter

A Chinhoyi man got the shock of his life when he was told that he died last year after he tried to check if his registration details were captured properly during the biometric voter registration (BVR) exercise that began last year.Emmanuel Chateka was told by Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) officials last week that the elections body received information from the Registrar-General's office that he died soon after registering to vote in the forthcoming elections.Chateka said at first he thought it was just a mistake that could be easily rectified.But he was referred to the RG's office in Chinhoyi to verify why he appeared on the exclusion list."It was devastating to be told that I'm a dead man walking," he said."I was told to go and rectify the mistake with the registrar-general, which is taking most of my time when I should be fending for my family."ZEC's Mashonaland West boss Austin Ndlovu confirmed Chateka's case, but said the RG's office was the only department that was competent enough to deal with the issue."Yes, we received such a case and we have since advised the concerned person to go and rectify the issue at the Registrar-General's office before coming back to register again," he said.Investigations revealed that Chateka's case was not an isolated one.Some registered voters in Mashonaland West have reportedly been told that they were dead when they tried to check their details on the provisional voters' roll prepared by ZEC.They have been told to go to the RG's office to confirm their existence.The issue of dead people appearing on the voters' roll has been a constant cause of friction between the RG's office and opposition parties, which have always accused the ruling party of vote-rigging.During past elections the name of former Rhodesian leader Ian Douglas Smith was on the voters' roll prompting opposition parties and independent electoral bodies to force government to embark on the creation of a new voters' roll.Meanwhile, the inspection of the voters' roll that began last Sunday ends on Tuesday.
News / National

by Staff reporter

A Harare woman is demanding $500 from her neighbour whom she accuses of often calling her a witch.Melody Gwati appeared before civil court magistrate Manase Masiwa claiming Priscilla Choto's behaviour had killed her vending business."I'm a vendor and I'm now losing customers because of her insults," she said."As a widow I single-handedly send my children to school. One of them was accepted into university and I have to raise $700 by July, but I cannot do that since my business is no longer performing."Gwati said she made $40 to $50 a day, but her business had taken a knock because of the fights between her and Choto.However, Choto denied ever insulting Gwati. She said Gwati started insulting her after seeing her chatting with her husband.The magistrate dismissed the claim.
News / National

by Sytaff reporter

A Harare woman was granted a protection order at the civil court after she accused her neighbour of insulting her and knocking too loudly on her gate.Anna Taperewa appeared before magistrate Manase Masiwa accusing Kudzai Mapondera of being a nuisance.Mapondera opposed the application, arguing Taperewa, who she claimed was his aunt, was not telling the truth and was overreacting after a misunderstanding.However, Taperewa said she was not related to Mapondera, but that they only shared a totem.
News / Regional

by Staff Reporter

AT 100 years old, John Makanjera is still full of life. You could say he is young at heart.He is a registered voter, an avid newspaper reader, and does not shy away from expressing his thoughts  like them or not.When The Sunday Mail visited him, Makanjera was at the Zanu-PF Headquarters in Harare, rekindling memories with fellow political restrictees of the liberation struggle.Clad in a neat, grey suit and a fashionable fedora, he shrinks away from any hand-holding as he strutted around and spoke his mind.The sheer number of political parties that have said they want to contest the 2018 harmonised elections incenses him.They were 128 at the last count."Umwe musi ndakaverenga nyaya mubepa rinonzi Herald raitaura kuti ma party ava over 100, ndikati zvinotipei izvozvi? Maparty haafani kuwanda so, zvinokonzera nyonga-nyonga. (I read a story in The Herald which said that registered political parties in the country are now more than 100 and I said to myself, what do we gain from this? We don't need so many political parties, it it lads to instability)," he says.Then quickly accepting that he cannot do anything about it, he adds with a smile: "Iyemi vana vadiki ndimi muri kukonzera kuti maparty awande imi. (Young people are the ones behind the increase in political parties)."The centenarian believes the fewer political parties there are, the more the nation can speak with one voice, which to him is the recipe for development."Honai zvakaitika gore rakapera; Zimbabwe yakashamisa nyika dzese - no noise, no what. (Look at what happened last year; Zimbabwe surprised everyone - no noise, just peace)," in reference to the peaceful marches that followed Operation Restore Legacy and ended with Mr Robert Mugabe resigning and Emmerson Mnangagwa becoming Head of State and Government."Ndizvo zvinofana kuitika  kubatana kwakadaro (This is what we expect - unity)," he says.Makanjera was born in April 1918 in Chiweshe's Makope area. He attended school there, before heading to the then Salisbury to look for a job.While working for what is now Schweppes Zimbabwe in his twenties, Makanjera was driven into political activism."Kamwana kemurungu kadiki kai-daidza murume mukuru mutema kuti boy'. Nyangwe asina chaanoziva aiuya achiita boss wako. (A small white boy would call an adult black man boy'. Even without any work experience, he was automatically appointed your boss)," he recalls.Makanjera was abducted by agents of the colonial government in 1965 for his political activism and was confined to Villa Salazar Camp 3 in Gonarezhou National Park.He was to spend the next three years there.The centenarin remembers how he and fellow restrictees cheated death by a whisker when they went into the dense forest in search of honey.It was not to be a sweet outing, as they soon encountered a herd of elephants that chased them off.After the life-threatening ordeal, the thankful survivors made merry, with Makanjera drumming the tunes. There was no alcohol in the celebration, and not just because they were under restriction.You see, Makanjera believes that the secret to a long life is staying away from booze."Hwahwa hwakashata. Kusvika kwangu pandiri nhasi kuchengetwa naMwari nekusanwa hwahwa. (Alcohol is bad. I have lived so long because God takes care of me and I have shunned alcohol)," he counsels.Not that Makanjera was always teetotaller.He vaguely remembers a day, in his early 20s, when he and his friends drank themselves into a stupor. That he could not properly recall, the following day, what had happened during the binge convinced him to stop hitting the bottle.Makanjera married Enriecha 76 years ago  and they are still together.Six of their 12 children are late, and they have 34 grandchildren and more great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren than Makanjera can count.And he encourages all those of voting age to register to cast their ballots."Ini ndakaregister kudhara kumusha. Bepa rakanditaurira kuti mwedzi uno uyu kuri kuzarirwa vanoda kuregister kuvhota nekutarisa mazita avo kuti akabuda zvakanaka here. Vanhu ngavaende. (I have long registered to vote at my rural home. The newspaper says the provisional voters' roll will be open for registered voters to check if their details were correctly captured. People should go and check)."
Opinion / Columnist

Big mouth war veterans Secretary General, Victor Matamatanda's mediocre suggestion that province names should be changed must not be allowed to last a second in the record book of good opinions.Addressing war veterans in Bulawayo, Victor Matamatanda said the country should do away with tribal provincial names like Matabeleland and Mashonaland as these promote tribalism which hinders national development. And that there is need for victims of Matabeleland genocide to find closure by taking the country's former President Robert Mugabe to task whilst he is still alive.In case this former Zanla war vet has short memories like a squirrel, the people of Matabeleland have not forgotten and will never forget.It is not provincial names that produced the evil Grand Plan in 1979 but shona supremacists assisted and abated by Britain. Like the Hutu 10 Commandments wrote by Hutu supremacists in Rwanda, the Grand plan outlined how Matabeles were going to be wiped out from the face of earth and survivors marginalised in all spheres of life and dominated. Their identity, languages, culture and dignity murdered.It is not the names of provinces that unleashed Zimbabwe National Army 5th Brigade on the people of Matabeleland to dastardly murder more than 40 000 Matabele civilians, rape more than 100 000 Matebele women, burn more than 100 000 homes, displace more than a million Matabeles. But it was the highly tribalistic shona supremacists that created and sent the Zimbabwe National Army 5th Brigade and again, with the assistance of Britain. North Korea was roped in to train the blood socked Zimbabwe National Army 5th Brigade and left afterwards but British army commanders under BMATT ie British Military Training Team remained to direct the gory events. The shona supremacists were cheered by the beneficiaries and supporters of shona supremacy system, Victor Matematanda included.We also remind the loose cannon Matamatanda who seriously suffers from short memories that the Zimbabwe National Army 5th Brigade was composed of shonas only and recruited from Zanla forces which makes him one of the main suspects of Matabeleland genocide perpetrators.It is not provincial names that continues to tribally discriminate Matabeles and deny them, educational opportunities, job opportunities, business opportunities and development. It is the shona supremacist found in Zanupf, MDCT, PDP, and all shona led political parties.It is not provincial names that treat Matabeles as second class citizens and makes them permanent ceremonial second vice presidents both in the ruling and opposition party. But it is the highly tribalistic and hateful shona supremacists and its multitudes of supporters found in Zanupf and all shona led political partiesThis Matamadanda fellow must be told that the pain and anger against the shonas is still within us and shall remain so and visit them upto to their 10th generation from now if they dont apologise and give us US$100billion compensation and deliver our country to regain its full sovereignity and independence. Remember, it would be costly, painful and unsustainable to shonas if they choose to ignore us yet three steps above will end this anger and bittersness against the shonas. We shall for ever remain good neighbours.The shona supremacist government of Zimbabwe must face the consequences of its hateful, divisionist and genocidal programs like men instead of looking for scapegoats.The time for Matabeles to govern themselves has come. We will revive the Jameson Line, which is the border post between Matabeleland and Mashonaland aka Zimbabwe without apologising. Out of all four Matabeleland border posts lawfully signed by King Lobhengula the Jameson Line is the only one that gives us problems. Genocide, hate, tribalism, oppression, immorality, disrespect and disorder of all manners is being exported by shona supremacists into our beautiful and peaceful country through the Jameson line. All patriotic Matabeles are asked to build a wall higher than the Berlin wall to keep ourselves from harmful foreign policies exported by Zimbabwe shona supremacist into our land, Matabeleland.Izenzo Kungemazwi!Israel DubeSecretary for Information and Public Affairs
Many cannabis companies are eagerly awaiting the day when pot is legalized in Canada and are expecting that demand will send their sales skyrocketing soon afterward. The allure of getting into an industry with minimal barriers where just about anyone can start up a company and grow has resulted in many cannabis companies competing for a piece of the pie.

What could go wrong?

The danger in all of this is that there is still a very formidable black market present that wont go away just because pot is legal. After all, many users are very anti-corporation and may not want to contribute tax dollars to a Canadian government that now wants to take advantage of an industry it has demonized for years.

The other problem is that with all the growing competition, there could be too much pot and not enough customers.

The Oregon example

In Oregon, recreational pot has been legal since 2015, and the state has seen lots of activity in the industry since that time. With many people and companies looking to sell pot, that has led to an excess of supply that has sent the price of weed down significantly. In fewer than three years, the price per gram was cut in half, according to the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis.

According the Oregon.gov website, the state has approved nearly 1,900 licences as of May 18. With over 4.1 million people in the state, thats approximately one business licence to sell pot for every 2,180 people that live in Oregon. And we could still see more licences being issued as hype in the industry isnt slowing down anytime soon.

The problem this has caused for cannabis companies in Oregon is that some have just chosen to shut down and wait for pot to be legalized at the federal level, but that too could result in an even bigger influx of producers.

Why should this matter to Canadian investors?

The Oregon example may not be entirely comparable to Canada. After all, in Canada, when pot gets legalized, it will be at the federal level. The suspicion is that Oregons excess pot is being shipped out to other states where it is still illegal to sell marijuana. In that situation, Oregon is a more complex problem, but the key issue is the same: overproduction, and the risk that prices will come down hard.

Story continues

If that happens, we could see financials get even weaker in an industry where profits have already been scarce. While Aurora Cannabis Inc. (TSX:ACB) is excited at all the capacity it will have with the acquisition of MedReleaf Corp. (TSX:LEAF), the problem could be finding customers to sell it to, or selling it at lower-than-expected prices. Even low-cost producer Aphria Inc. (TSX:APH) might need to bring down its cost per gram even more if competition erodes profitability.

Cannabis companies may have to look at strategies outside the country  something weve seen Canopy Growth Corp. (TSX:WEED) and others do with international expansion.

There will be a lot of growth in the industry when marijuana becomes legalized, but investors should be aware of the risks, as the industry is already starting to get crowded.

More reading

Fool contributor David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.
Najib Razak

REUTERS/Lai Seng Sin

Police seized $28.6 million-worth of cash, which included 26 foreign currencies, from properties reportedly linked to former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.

The seizures happened on six properties linked to Najib last week, where 284 designer handbags and 72 bags were found stuffed with cash, jewelry, and watches taken.

Police needed 22 bank staff and 11 counting machines to track and verify all the cash found.

The raids appear to be part of an investigation into suspicious money transfers from the state investment fund which lost billions of dollars.



Police recently seized $28.6 million-worth of cash from a residence reportedly linked to former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Najib lost a national election earlier this month in a dramatic turn of events which led to the first transition of power to the opposition alliance in the country's independent history. Najib's popularity began to plummet in 2015 after billions of dollars went missing from the state fund 1MDB, and hundreds of millions were reportedly found in Najib's personal bank accounts.

After being sworn in as the new prime minister Mahathir Mohamad promised to continue the investigation into 1MDB, saying he expected charges to be laid against Najib. Last week, police conducted raids on six properties linked to Najib and seized 284 luxury handbags and 72 bags of cash, jewelry and watches. At the time.

Amar Singh, head of Malaysia's Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID), said in a press conference on Friday that 35 of 72 bags contained cash totaling about $28.6 million.

"We've counted since 21 to 23 May, and yesterday we sat with the bank to tally the amount in that seizure. I can confirm that the money in those 35 bags is about 114 million ringgit ($28.6 million). It's in 26 currencies, Malaysian ringgit, US currencies and various other denominations," Singh said.

Singh had been unable to provide estimates of the amount of cash seized earlier "because it was a lot," he said. Police used 11 counting machines and 22 bank officers to count and verify the 26 foreign currencies that were seized.

Story continues

The luxury handbags and bags of cash and jewelry was seized from an empty apartment in the Pavilion Residences on May 18. Nothing else was in the apartment except for furniture, Singh said.

Though Singh would not confirm whether the apartment was linked to Najib, the raid occurred at the same time police began searching Najib's home, and the apartment of each his son and daughter in the Pavilion Residences. From Najib's home 500,000 ringgit ($125,000), plus additional foreign currency, was also seized.

Experts will soon start the process of authenticating and appraising the remaining 37 bags of jewelry and watches.

Of the remaining 284 designer handbags found in boxes, most of these were from Hermes which can cost up to $200,000 each.

"We have already discussed with Hermes and we'll take pictures and send it to Paris to certify from the aspect of authenticating it and also the price," Singh said.

Earlier this week, Najib gave a testimony to Malaysia's anti-graft agency over $10.6 million found in his bank account, which allegedly originated from a former 1MDB subsidiary.

Najib set up the 1MDB fund in 2009, but in 2015 nearly $700 million was reportedly found in his personal bank accounts, which a royal Saudi family member said was a personal donation.

A number of countries, including the US and Switzerland, are investigating $4.5 billion that was allegedly siphoned off from 1MDB, some of which was used to fund "The Wolf of Wall Street" movie and diamonds for supermodel Miranda Kerr.

Najib is currently barred from leaving the country.

NOW WATCH: 80% of startup money goes to 3 states  here's what one visionary is doing to help spread the wealth

See Also:

SEE ALSO: In a historic election, Malaysia's allegedly corrupt prime minister lost to his 92-year-old former mentor who ran on behalf of a man he put in jail
BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia will next week formally join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, making it the only Latin American nation in the alliance, President Juan Manuel Santos said late on Friday. Colombia will join as a "global partner", Santos said, which means it will not necessarily have to take part in military action, and will be fully accredited in Brussels. The 29-nation NATO alliance reached a partnership agreement with Colombia back in May 2017, just after peace was signed with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, an agreement that earned Santos a Nobel Peace Prize. "Colombia benefits a lot from being an active part of the international community, many of the problems we face are increasingly global and need the support and collaboration of other countries for their solution," Santos said in a televised address. Other global partners include Afghanistan, Australia, Iraq, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mongolia, New Zealand and Pakistan. The partnership with Colombia will cooperate on global security areas like cyber and maritime security, terrorism and links to organized crime, according to NATO's website. The announcement came just hours after the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) approved Colombia as a new member. "Being part of the OECD and NATO improves the image of Colombia and allows us to have much more play on the international stage," Santos said. (Reporting by Helen Murphy, editing by Louise Heavens)
Hundreds of Canadians sent messages to the office of Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould after the minister posted a comment on Twitter about the second degree murder trial of Saskatchewan farmer Gerald Stanley.

In February, a jury found Stanley not guilty in the death of Colten Boushie, a 22-year-old Cree man. Stanley shot Boushie after he and a group of other young people drove onto his farm near Biggar, Sask.

Soon after the verdict, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his grief and sorrow to Boushie's family on Twitter.

Wilson-Raybould put out a tweet of her own.

"Thank you, Prime Minister @JustinTrudeau, My thoughts are with the family of Colten Boushie tonight. I truly feel your pain and I hear all of your voices.

"As a country we can and must do better  I am committed to working everyday to ensure justice for all Canadians."

That message prompted a flurry of responses from Canadians to Wilson-Raybould's office. CBC News has obtained more than 500 pages of correspondence through the access to information law.

Almost all of those messages are negative in tone and content, with many writers angrily accusing the minister of undermining the judicial system.

"Your tweet 'feeling their pain' and commenting that 'our country can do better' is inappropriate and serves to undermine the difficult decisions that the jurors faced," wrote one person.

"Tweets like yours (as we see from the President of the U.S.) do nothing to advance an agenda or drive peace in our great country."

'How dare you?'

"How dare you interfere with the very justice system for which you are responsible?" wrote another.

"Your personal opinion is irrelevant and inappropriately voiced as the 'Minister of Justice'. Surely you comprehend the meaning of 'political interference'."

"You have truly overstepped with your comments on this case," wrote another person who self-identified as a criminal defence lawyer.

Story continues

"You have put me in the very uncomfortable and unwelcome position of agreeing with the Conservative MPs who have spoken out on this issue."

While criticizing the justice minister and prime minister, many writers expressed sympathy for Gerald Stanley and his family.

"I personally know Gerry Stanley as a law abiding, quiet, even tempered man," wrote one person who said they were from North Battleford, Sask.

"I think he feared for the safety of his family that day. I am sure that he has wished a million times over that he had never taken out his gun that day to scare them off. But I also wonder what would have happened to his family that day if he had not."

"You are blaming the victim for defending himself," another person wrote. "You do not deserve to be Minister of Justice."

The documents released by Justice Canada include some internal departmental communications. Much of it  including an email chain titled "Update:Boushie Correspondence"  is blacked out.

The documents do show the Department of Justice was closely tracking reaction to Trudeau and Wilson-Raybould's Twitter posts. Officials shared media stories and planned answers to reporters' questions. The department also kept a close eye on the House of Commons, where the opposition was grilling the government on its response to the verdict.

Calls for reform

While the letters and emails about the minister's comments on Twitter are overwhelmingly negative, they stand in sharp contrast to other correspondence Wilson-Raybould's office received in the wake of the Stanley verdict. Many of those messages expressed shock over the jury's decision and support for the Boushie family.

CBC News has reported on how the minister received hundreds of messages calling for an appeal and for reform of the jury selection process.

The minister's spokesperson, David Taylor, said Wilson-Raybould's office has received 1,722 letters and emails about the Stanley trial. Of those, 376 were related specifically to the minister's comments.

Taylor said each person who contacted the department will receive a response. In one of the documents released by Justice Canada, one person who wrote is warned that "due to the significant increase in the volume of correspondence, there may be a delay in processing your email."

Taylor provided a written statement to CBC News in which Wilson-Raybould once again defended her Twitter post.

"My remarks were not a comment on a specific verdict, but rather, meant to speak to the need to do better for Indigenous Canadians involved with the criminal justice system, and to take the necessary steps to prevent them from becoming involved in the system in the first place," the message reads.

'Unprecedented ... and dangerous'

The Canadian Council of Criminal Defence Lawyers wrote to Trudeau and Wilson-Raybould soon after they posted their Twitter comments, calling them "unprecedented, inappropriate and quite frankly dangerous." Other criminal lawyers also waded in to warn about the perception of political interference in the judicial system.

Trudeau and Wilson-Raybould were not the only federal politicians who used Twitter to comment on the Stanley verdict.

Indigenous Services Minister Jane Philpott called the jury's decision "devastating news" for Boushie's family.

"My thoughts & prayers are with you in your time of grief & pain. We all have more to do to improve justice & fairness for Indigenous Canadians," Philpott wrote.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh was more direct in his post: "There was no justice for Colten Boushie."

Since the verdict, the federal government has introduced reforms to the criminal justice system  among them an end to peremptory challenges in jury selection, which became a flashpoint in the Stanley trial.
Photo credit: Getty Images

From Harper's BAZAAR

Princess Diana's niece, Lady Kitty Spencer, continues to build her career as a model-this time by booking a coveted role as Bvlgari's latest brand ambassador.

Spencer has been working with Bvlgari for quite some time, but the new partnership gives her an official role with the brand.

As Harper's BAZAAR UK reports, Spencer says of her new appointment:

"It is an immense honor to be working with the most iconic Italian jewellery brand in the world. Bvlgari has always been synonymous with creativity, heritage, beauty and glamour. I am, therefore, very excited to be part of the Bvlgari family, as it means experiencing their passion and magic first-hand."

Photo credit: Bvlgari

Bvlagri notes that Spencer represents the brand's "fearless attitude," making her a perfect fit for the new position.



Spencer has previously helped to raise funds for several charities that work with Bvlagri, including the Elton John Aids Foundation and Save the Children.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Just last weekend, Spencer attended Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's wedding in Windsor. As she's Prince Harry's cousin, it's unsurprising that Spencer was invited to the royal wedding. Princess Diana's niece wore a stunning green floral gown by Dolce & Gabbana to the ceremony, along with bright orange heels, and a green fascinator. She accessorized the look with a simple, sparkly necklace:

Photo credit: Getty Images

Lady Kitty is no stranger to the spotlight, and her Instagram account instantly caught the world's attention, particularly as she regularly showcases her chic outfits, including when she got to walk the runway for Dolce & Gabbana:



You Might Also Like
Fire crews rescued at least four people in Putnam County, West Virginia, after it was hit by flash floods on Saturday, May 26, according to WSAZ News. Motorists were advised to avoid driving on flooded roads, the report said.

This drone footage, filmed by Justin Riddle, captured the extent of flooding around Teays Valley Road in Scott Depot. Credit: Justin Riddle via Storyful
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States warned Syria on Friday it would take "firm and appropriate measures" in response to ceasefire violations, saying it was concerned about reports of an impending military operation in a de-escalation zone in the country's southwest. Washington also cautioned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad against broadening the conflict. "As a guarantor of this de-escalation area with Russia and Jordan, the United States will take firm and appropriate measures in response to Assad regime violations," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement late on Friday. A war monitor, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, reported on Wednesday that Syrian government forces fresh from their victory this week against an Islamic State pocket in south Damascus were moving into the southern province of Deraa. Syrian state-run media have reported that government aircraft have dropped leaflets on rebel-held areas in Deraa urging fighters to disarm. The U.S. warning comes weeks after a similar attack on a de-escalation zone in northeastern Syria held by U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. U.S. ground and air forces repelled the more than four-hour attack, killing perhaps as many as 300 pro-Assad militia members, many of them Russian mercenaries. Backed by Russian warplanes, ground forces from Iran and allied militia, including Lebanon's Hezbollah, have helped Assad drive rebels from Syria's biggest cities, putting him in an unassailable military position. They have recaptured all remaining insurgent areas near Damascus in recent weeks, including the densely populated eastern Ghouta area, as well as big enclaves in central Syria. The government is now in its strongest position since the early months of the war in 2011, although still a long way from achieving Assad's aim of reasserting sway over all of Syria. Anti-Assad rebels still control two large contiguous areas of territory in the northwest and southwest. Kurdish and allied Arab militia backed by the United States hold the quarter of Syria east of the Euphrates. The government's gains have brought it to a point where any new military campaign risks putting it in conflict with foreign powers. (Reporting by Eric Walsh; Editing by Paul Tait)
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (Reuters)

The royal power couple

Lets face it: were swooning over them. Hes the big-hearted Prince with a social conscious, and shes the American actress with an activist soul. In their official engagement interview, Prince Harry revealed that on his first blind date with Meghan the stars were aligned when this beautiful woman tripped and fell into my life. Its the stuff of fairytales. And now the happy couple have been graffitied over walls, printed on Union Jack flags, they smile on the glistening china of cups and saucers, and then theres the life-sized cardboard cut-outs of Harry and Meghan holding hands, ready to take on the world.

I write this article on the eve of the royal wedding between Prince Henry Charles Albert David of Wales (say it slowly and you wont get tongue tied), and Ms Rachel Meghan Markle. I find it fitting that in her high-school yearbook the quote beneath Meghan Markles picture reads:

Women are like teabags; they dont realise how strong they are until theyre in hot water. (Eleanor Roosevelt)

She has traded the vanilla soy lattes of Hollywood for the English Breakfast brews of the United Kingdom. As she rides in a horse-drawn carriage from St Georges Chapel towards Windsor Castle with her new husband, its expected that 3 million kettles across the UK will boil, according to one report. Could it be anymore British to toast the royal newly weds with a cup of tea?

Over 2 billion viewers worldwide will watch this power couple say I do making this the wedding of the century. But why do we care about the romance of princes and princesses, anyway? Does the world stop to take a breath of awe when other celebrities marry? Kim Kardashian and Kanye Wests wedding photo is one of the most popular images on Instagram, with 2.4 million likes. Their wedding may have saturated the tabloid press, but did it draw thousands to the streets waving flags, and send off international waves of joy and hope for the future?

The phenomenon behind royal obsession

The idea of royalty stirs in us something much deeper than a shallow fascination with the rich and famous. In the frenzied lead up to the big day, Huffington Post asked psychologists to explain the phenomenon behind our obsession with royalty. There were some interesting points like:

- Disney fairytales program us from childhood to fantasise about princes and princesses

- Royalty provides us with a way to escape from troubling world news

- The Queen and her family help us connect with the past and through them we can witness history unfold

- The success of the Netflix show The Crown means more people are interested in royalty

Though these are valid statements, I dont think they come close to explaining royal obsession. Why did we run around the playground as kids imagining kingdoms? Why did we get so excited when a plastic tiara was placed on our head, or we wielded a knightly sword? Why does a royal wedding captivate us as adults if not to remind us who we are and what were called to?

We were crowned with honour and glorywe remember, if only faintly, that we were once more than we are now. (John Eldridge, Epic)

Youre invited

As a geeky teenager I poured over family trees, first in old books, and then on the internet, until I could finally prove that my family was descended from William the Conqueror. Bursting with excitement I raced to tell my brother the news. Hes a surfer who likes to watch the footy, skate, hang out with mates, and basically do more interesting things than research kings and queens. He couldnt care less about modern monarchies. Yet when I told him he had a king as an ancestor, he lifted his head a little higher, looked a little stronger, dare I say it a little nobler. My findings tapped into something that was already in his soul, a knowing that he wasnt ordinary. He was set-apart. The bloodline of kings and conquerors dwelt within him.

Ive since learnt that having a violent Norman king as a great-granddaddy is nothing to boast about, most people dont care and if you bring it up at dinner parties your friends will roll their eyes.

Thankfully the true King who summons us by name into His Kingdom is Christ. He is the one whose holy blood flows through your veins. He is the one who has set you apart and called you to greatness, for you are fearfully and wonderfully made in His image. He is the King who conquered sin and death to win your heart. He has invited you to the grandest wedding of them all. Its the event, not of the century, but of all eternity. And in that glorious crowning moment all that you are, and all that youve been created for, will be revealed before heavens host. For the Kings banner over you is Love, and in this divine romance you have the starring role as the one who captured His heart.

The time has come for the wedding feast of the lamb. And the bride has prepared herself. She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wearBlessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the lamb. Revelation chapter 19, verses 7-9.

Though your face might not feature on a souvenir teaspoon, you are inscribed on the heart of a King whose wild for you. We still care about royalty in the 21st century because buried within us in the knowledge that were born to bring delight to the King of kings, even as He delights over us.

He is your happily ever after.

Amy learnt from an early age the value of a good cup of tea. Her British Grandparents and UK-born mother taught her that putting the kettle on was always an appropriate action, because tea brings people together, quenches thirst, solves problems, and is the only way to toast a royal wedding. Her previous articles can be read here: http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/amy-manners.html
Applications to stay the sentence of inmates currently on death row should be allowed, says DAP's Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh.





In a statement issued on Thursday (May 24), the lawyer said the sentences of inmates on death row should be reviewed in light of the possible abolition of the death penalty.





He said he would file an application to the Federal Court on behalf of one of his clients currently on death row for an offence under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.





"It is hoped that the said proposed application will be allowed and applied to all other inmates currently on death row as the death sentence is irreversible," said Ramkarpal.





He also urged that the sole discretion of imposing the death penalty or commuting it to a lighter sentence be given to the courts.





He explained that at present, the court requires a certificate from the public prosecutor, who acts on behalf of the Attorney-General, before it can consider commuting the sentence.





Ramkarpal also lauded the possible abolition of the Sedition Act, saying that it was a "political tool to stifle dissent".





He urged the courts to adjourn cases charged under the Act pending its review in Parliament.





On Wednesday (May 23), Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said it was time to review existing laws that were outdated such as the Printing Presses and Publications Act, Prevention of Crime Act, the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act, and the mandatory death penalty for certain crimes.





"We will study such laws first before deciding whether to repeal or amend them," he said, adding that civil society would be engaged in this process.

Drug mule Maria Exposto sure she'll beat death sentence

The Sydney grandmother sentenced to death in Malaysia for drug smuggling has told her lawyer not to worry as they will win their appeal case because "it's obvious I'm innocent".





An appeal court in Malaysia on Thursday sentenced Maria Elvira Pinto Exposto to death by hanging after overturning her earlier acquittal on drug smuggling charges.





The 3 judges sitting in Kuala Lumpur unanimously found the 54-year-old guilty but said she had a right of further appeal on the methamphetamine charges and wished her luck.





On Friday Exposto's legal team lodged an application to appeal the ruling in the Federal Court.





"I can confirm a notice of appeal has been filed with the court," a lawyer with Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who represents Exposto, told AAP.





Her lawyer told Network Ten on Friday that his client had "told me something very encouraging". "She said, 'Not to worry, we got another appeal, and with your team ...we will win the case ... because I'm innocent. It's obvious I'm innocent'."





In a statement on Thursday Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said "Australia opposes the death penalty in all circumstances for all people" and Exposto would continue to receive full Australian consular assistance.





On December 27 last year Exposto was acquitted of drug trafficking but faced a prosecution appeal against the acquittal on charges of trafficking 1.5kg of methamphetamine into Malaysia.





She had claimed she was the victim of a set-up after she was found with the drugs in her bag after arriving on a flight from China in 2014.





She was acquitted after the judge found she was scammed by her online boyfriend and was unaware she was carrying the drugs stitched into her bag.





The prosecution in the appeal argued Exposto had been wilfully blind, that her defence was made up and she had engaged in a "sly game", News Corp reported.

 | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com



Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE!





"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,

but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde

Source: thestar.com.my, May 24, 2018Australian Associated Press, May 24, 2018
Obesity has become a global scourge. It increases a person's risk of developing heart disease and stroke, diabetes, and certain cancers. (Photo: Pixabay)

Paris: Still looking for the secret to effortless weight loss? It may be as simple as chewing gum while walking, Japanese researchers suggested on Saturday.

In experiments, they said, the heart rate of 46 people, aged 21 to 69, increased when they were given gum to chew while walking at a natural pace.

And while masticating caused a measurable physical difference in participants of both genders and across all age groups, it was most pronounced in men over 40, the team reported at the European Congress on Obesity in Vienna.

"Combining exercise and gum chewing may be an effective way to manage weight," the researchers said -- particularly in countries such as Japan where walking is the "most widely performed movement".

Previous research had found that gum chewing boosts heart rate and energy expenditure in people at rest.

This was the first study dedicated to studying its effects in people while walking, its authors said.

Volunteers completed two walking trials, each 15 minutes long.

In one they chewed two pellets of gum that contained three kilocalories. In the other, for comparison, they walked after ingesting a powder containing the same ingredients as the gum.

The team then measured participants' resting heart rate and walking heart rate in both legs, as well as the distance they covered at a natural pace, walking speed, and the number of steps taken.

In all participants, the mean heart rate was "significantly higher" in the gum trial, said the researchers.

In men over 40, it also boosted the distance walked, number of steps taken, and energy expended.

Though the study was not designed to explain the link, the team speculated it may have something to do with "cardio-locomotor synchronisation", a natural phenomenon whereby the heart beats in rhythm with a repetitive movement.

Obesity has become a global scourge. It increases a person's risk of developing heart disease and stroke, diabetes, and certain cancers.

"Effective preventive methods and treatments for obesity are needed," the researchers said.

The study was published in The Journal of Physical Therapy Science.
Thousands get down to the DJs on Saigon walking street

International DJs had lot of fun with Vietnamese EDM lovers.

Thousands of people rocked on Nguyen Hue Walking Street during the Ravolution Music Festival on Saturday night.

Young Vietnamese fans arrive on Nguyen Hue in downtown Saigon in rave costumes two hours before the event started at 6 p.m.

Morgane Bocquet (R), from France, who is doing an internship in Saigon, takes her visiting friend to the festival. Both said they are excited to check out the event to live up the atmosphere of similar festivals from home.
The earlier delay might have been related to talks between Gazprom and Turkey's Botas about a possible discount for Russian gas.

Russian state gas giant Gazprom said on May 26 it had signed a protocol with the Turkish government on a planned gas pipeline and agreed with Turkish firm Botas to end an arbitration dispute over the terms of gas supplies.

The protocol concerned the land-based part of the transit leg of the TurkStream gas pipeline, which Gazprom said meant that work to implement it could now begin, Hurriyet reports.

Turkey had delayed issuing a permit for the Russian company to start building the land-based parts of the pipeline which, if completed, would allow Moscow to reduce its reliance on Ukraine as a transit route for its gas supplies to Europe.

Read alsoEU's energy chief says 'time has come' for new Russia, Ukraine gas talks  Reuters

A source speaking to the agency said in February the permit problem might be related to talks between Gazprom and Botas about a possible discount for Russian gas.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said earlier in the day Turkey and Russia had reached a retroactive agreement for a 10.25% discount on the natural gas Ankara buys from Moscow.

Gazprom said in the Saturday statement, without elaborating, that the dispute with Botas would be settled out of court.

As UNIAN reported earlier, on April 30, Gazrpom said it had completed construction of an offshore section of the TurkStream's first line that would supply Russian gas to Turkey.
Ukraine's withdrawal from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a step that should have been done at least four years ago, and that is if we focus on the beginning of Russian aggression against the country in 2014. In fact, the move is much more years late because the CIS as a structure was created at a transition stage between the fall of the Soviet Union and the formation of fully independent states. Therefore, the CIS is purely a transitional structure. Although independent states were formed long ago (in 1992-1993), the CIS dragged along in inertia.

In addition, from a tactical point of view, and especially from an economic standpoint, Ukraine's participation yielded neither positive nor negative results, except for the virtual presence of almost all of the former Soviet republics in this transitional structure. After all, all economic agreements were generally concluded either bilaterally or between CIS member-states within the framework of the Customs Union, of which Ukraine is not part.

So, Ukraine's latest step is, rather, political. For our country, the CIS has no economic significance. That's because the Russian Federation has for 15 years been waging the economic war against Ukraine via all types of bans and restrictions on Ukrainian goods in its market, having started in recent years a "hybrid war" involving both economic warfare and direct military action. Russia has already introduced massive unilateral restrictions in its market for Ukrainian goods.

In addition, from a tactical point of view, and especially from an economic standpoint, Ukraine's participation yielded neither positive nor negative results, except for the virtual presence of almost all of the former Soviet republics in this transitional structure

Therefore, the withdrawal from the CIS and termination of treaties has no economic importance for Ukraine - only a light political trail, that's it.

Will Ukraine be punished in any way for breaching agreements within the CIS? Of course, one needs to look closely at the CIS statute, but I don't believe any penalties are laid down for such a move.

In principle, in 2014, Ukraine recalled all its representatives from the CIS structures. Therefore, Ukraine's withdrawal from the CIS bodies today is purely a symbolic gesture  there has long been no Ukrainian representation there anyway... So what Ukraine is doing now is simply a political move, nothing more.

As for the deals concluded precisely within the CIS, it should be understood that there are interstate agreements and there are commercial ones, between business structures. Even if the business structures used to be connected with the CIS through some deals, they would simply re-enter into new bilateral agreements with their partners to keep on cooperating. At the same time, intergovernmental deals are formally severed, as Ukraine has previously terminated a trade agreement with the Russian Federation, which is much more important than agreements within the CIS.

Russia really is anything but happy about Ukraine quitting the CIS, but its attitude is dictated by politics, not the economy. That's because such a decision by Kyiv is another political step by which Ukraine "tears the umbilical cord" with supposedly "elder brother." Of course, the "elder brother" responds very very painfully and will do so in relation to any similar steps Ukraine might take in the future.

Andriy Novak is Candidate of Economic Sciences, Chairman of the Committee of Economists of Ukraine
Since 2011, the U.S. State Departments Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, or INL, has contributed more than $9 million toward the first construction phase of Pakistans Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa security forces Joint Police Training Center. The INL also contributed $1.7 million worth of equipment support.

Since the Joint Police Training Center was launched in June 2014, more than 4,000 Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa police personnel, including better than 100 female police commandos, have trained at the facility.

On May 11th, Director of the U.S. Embassy in Pakistans INL Section Gregory Schiffer, and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Police Additional Inspector General of Police, Dr. Muhammad Naeem Khan, participated in a ground breaking ceremony for the second phase of construction of the Joint Police Training Center. The INL is contributing about $8 million to this phase of the project. Director Shiffer noted that the INL and the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Police have worked in partnership for the past 15 years. He also noted the close cooperation between the INL and its implementing partner on Phase II of this project, the United Nations Development Program.

Director Schiffer noted that the event marks another step in the long partnership between INL and the [Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa] Police. The Joint Police Training Center has established itself as a premier facility providing training for hundreds of [Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa] police officers on modern policing practices, investigations, and command level courses.

The Joint Police Training Center, said Director Schiffer, has helped the KP police develop its own specialized training capacity to respond to emergencies, including terrorism-related cases.

For almost 40 years, the United States and Pakistan have worked to improve citizen security and enhance law enforcement capacity across Pakistan. The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs works in more than 90 countries to help combat crime and corruption; counter the narcotics trade; improve police institutions; and promote court systems that are fair and accountable.

The United States is proud to work with Pakistan to help law enforcement to better protect the peoples of Pakistan, the South Asia region, and the world.
A university professor has been detained in Iran for insulting Sunni Muslims, Iranian media reported.

Zahedans Prosecutor Ali Movahedirad was quoted by domestic media as saying that a professor of Persian Literature at Azad University in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchistan was detained on May 25 over a video clip that he said was against "unity" in the country.

"Since the video clip had created differences among people in Sistan and Baluchistan, this person was arrested last night," Movahedirad told the judiciary affiliated Mizanonline news agency on May 26.

A video posted online where the professor was reportedly insulting Sunnis had led to anger and a protest by a group of students at Zahedan University.

Though the majority of Iranians are Shi'a, Sistan and Baluchistanistan is home to a big population of Iranian Baluchis and Sunni Muslims.

Zahedan city, the provincial capital of Sistan and Baluchistan, has been the scene of occasional clashes between Iranian security forces and Baluch separatists.

With reporting by IRNA, Mizanonline, and AP
The secretary of the Islamic Republics Supreme Security Council has reiterated that Irans military presence in Syria, its regional policies and missile program will continue and are non-negotiable.

On May 17, Russian president Vladimir Putin had said that after the stabilization of the situation in Syria he hopes all foreign troops will be withdrawn from Syria.

Speaking to Al Jezeera TV network, Ali Shamkhani, an Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Rear Admiral, without mentioning the Putin's statement, insisted, The Islamic Republic will never leave Syria because its presence is at the request of the Syrian government.

Meanwhile, responding to Secretary of State Mike Pompeos recent conditions set for Tehran, Shamkhani said, These comments are neither strategic, nor new,: adding, It is wrong to describe Pompeos remarks as new or strategic.

Furthermore, Shamkhani dismissed latest comments of US officials on Iran as boasting and maintained, The Islamic Republic has always proved that it will never surrender.

During his first major policy speech, titled "After the Deal: A New Iran Strategy", Secretary of State Mike Pompeo addressed Heritage Foundation last May 21 and demanded the Islamic Republic to end its uranium enrichment activities, curb its ballistic missile program, stop funding Lebanese Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthi rebels and terminate its destabilizing operations in the region.

What has the Islamic revolution given to the Iranian people? Mr. Pompeo asked at one point, and then offered an answer: The hard grip of repression is all that millions of Iranians have ever known.

In the meantime, Secretary Pompeo cautioned that if Tehran restarts its nuclear program we will respond.

Dismissing Secretary Pompeos remarks, Shamkhani reiterated that the Tehrans missile program is non-negotiable and the Islamic Republic continues to strengthen its defensive capabilities.

Disregarding the new rounds of Tehran-EU talks over the future of Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action or Irans nuclear deal with world powers, Shamkhani underlined that his country would never renegotiate the 2015 nuclear deal, adding that Tehran would revise cooperation with the Europeans if they fail to defend interests of both sides.

Shamkhani also insisted that Iran will continue supporting resistance groups in the region. As a rule, the Islamic Republic official use the term resistance for describing groups such as Palestinian Hamas, Islamic Jihad Movement and Lebanese Hezbollah.

Israel and US, along with several other countries have recently called for ending Tehrans military presence in Syria. Israel has emphasized that it will never tolerate Lebanese Hezbollah forces and Iranian military presence near its common borders with Syria.

UN Secretary General has also bitterly criticized the Lebanese Hezbollahs conduct, calling upon it to put an end to its military operations in or outside Lebanon, including Syria.
Pakistan will hold general elections on July 25, officials said on May 26.

"President Mamnoon Hussain has approved the date for the elections," a spokesman for Election Commission of Pakistan, Altaf Khan told Reuters.

"We haven't yet received the summary signed by the president, but we hope to get it anytime," he said.

The Election Commission had proposed three dates from July 25 to July 27 as dates to hold polls.

Elections for the national parliament and four provincial assemblies will be held on the same day, according to domestic media.

Pakistans government and parliament is due to be dissolved on May 31, when a new interim prime minister and an interim administration is meant to take over.

Based on reporting by AFP, Reuters and Geo TV


WARSAW, May 26 (Reuters)

The EU should pay more heed to U.S. security concerns linked to Washington's withdrawal from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal as the bloc decides how to address American sanctions against the Islamic Republic, Poland's chief diplomat said.

Since President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the accord this month, European states have been scrambling to ensure Iran gets enough economic benefits to persuade it to stay in the deal and keep limits on its nuclear activities.

Tehran is pressuring Europe to come up with a package of economic measures to offset the U.S. pullout by May 31, saying it was "weeks" from deciding whether to quit the pact. Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia remain in it.

Earlier this month, the European Commission, the EU executive, proposed a series of measures which include banning EU-based firms from complying with the revived U.S. sanctions.

Poland's Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said Warsaw -- a staunch ally of Washington -- had not decided yet whether to back the ban, potentially complicating a decision that needs unanimous backing from the EU's 28 members.

"We need to think, there is still time," Czaputowicz told Reuters. "This doesn't mean we don't feel part of the EU community in these discussions ... We will see what other EU members think."

Referring to European companies doing business in Iran since the nuclear deal was put in place, Czaputowicz said Poland felt "economic considerations appeared to take precedence" in EU talks.

"During discussions (within the EU), we will emphasize the need to consider the motives of the United States and a greater empathy towards them."

Warsaw has been at loggerheads with Brussels since the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) came into power in 2015 over issues ranging from the rule of law, energy policy and logging in an ancient forest.

Warsaw is keen for security assurances from the United States as a deterrence policy against Russia.

Czaputowicz said EU member states should weigh broader security issues during discussions about policy on Iran such as Russia's increased assertiveness in eastern Europe.

"It doesn't seem there is a direct link, but ... this is another issue we need to resolve."

He cautioned that Washington could at some point impose economic sanctions against European companies participating in the subsea Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany.

"This would become another issue for the European Union to find a position on."

EU foreign ministers will discuss policy on Iran at a meeting in Brussels on Monday.

Trump has complained that the Iran accord did not address Iran's ballistic missile program, its nuclear activities beyond 2025 or its role in conflicts in Yemen and Syria.

(Reporting by Justyna Pawlak and Pawel Sobczak Editing by Helen Popper)
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 27

Trend:

In 2019, Azerbaijan plans to begin construction of a large complex for the production of pomegranate products, Farhad Garashov, chairman of the Association of Pomegranate Manufacturers and Exporters, told Trend.

"Several members of our association have already prepared a business plan. To compile it, foreign consulting and audit companies were involved. The business plan is submitted to the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan, and we expect a positive response. The project can be financed through the National Entrepreneurship Support Fund, Garashov said.

According to the chairman of the Association, the complex can be built in one of the industrial parks of Azerbaijan.

"It is planned that the complex will consist of 4 enterprises for the production of pomegranate juice, concentrate, processing of pomegranate peels and seeds. The total cost of the complex, according to the business plan is 25 million manat. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2019, completed by 2021, "- said the head of the Association.

In general, according to Garashov, an important task is to increase the types of products obtained from pomegranate.

"This will help increase the export potential in this area. From a pomegranate it is possible to receive juices, alcoholic drinks, narcharab. Pomegranate rind, as well as oil from its seeds are used in cosmetology, pharmaceutical production. That is, it is a non-waste product, "Garashov said.

The Association of Pomegranate Manufacturers and Exporters was established on October 31, 2016.

(Author: Ilkin Shafiev, Editor: Khazar Akhundov)
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 27

Trend:

Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs made a statement on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, the ministry told Trend May 27.

The statement says:

"On May 28, 1918 the first parliamentary democracy in the Muslim world - Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was founded with the adoption of Declaration on Independence. The sovereign territory of the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic was 114,000 square kilometers.

Despite facing grave internal and external challenges arising from the collapse of an empire, Azerbaijan Democratic Republic succeeded in setting effective state institutions, upholding the rights of its citizens and gaining the trust of the international community. Universal suffrage right, as well as the right of voting of women was guaranteed.

Government was formed on the basis of accountability and separation of powers and the Azerbaijani parliament was a democratically-elected, multi-party and truly representative legislative body, the first of its kind in the entire Muslim East. In its two-year tenure, the Republic was governed by five executive cabinets and the Parliament held 155 meetings and discussed more than 240 draft laws. Another vital pillar of the state-building process came with the establishment of the Chamber of Appeals, creating in effect a modern judicial system that would check the powers of Parliament and Cabinet of Ministers.

The newly formed Republic made education a primary concern and on its end the Baku State University was founded. Despite the economic and political difficulties that the Republic was facing, it aspired for long-term human capital investment by providing scholarships for hundreds of young students to study in leading European universities. Azerbaijani was declared the official language, the national tricolor flag and anthem were adopted, a modern theater and opera were established, Azerbaijani postage stamps were printed and a national Azerbaijani currency-Manat, was issued.

As stated in the Declaration of Independence, establishment of friendly relations with all nations, especially neighboring nations and states, was determined as one of the foreign policy priorities of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

The first major breakthrough in diplomatic relations came when the parliamentary delegation of Azerbaijan, headed by Alimardan Topchubashov, went to Paris with the main goal to gain international recognition for Azerbaijan Democratic Republic. Members of the delegation to the Paris Peace Conference impressed foreign dignitaries with respect to their ideas of liberty, rights and justice. Unanimous de-facto recognition of the independence of Azerbaijan was attained and the Azerbaijani mission received an invitation to the Supreme Council of the Paris Peace Conference.

Once recognition had been established, the governments focus shifted towards building a competent diplomatic corps.

In 1919, when Azerbaijani diplomacy took its first steps, diplomatic missions of 16 states functioned in Baku, including the USA, Great Britain, France, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Iran, Poland and Ukraine. Diplomatic missions and General Consulates of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic were established in Turkey, Iran, Georgia, Ukraine, Armenia and other countries.

The Bolsheviks invasion of April 1920 put an end to the independence of ADR. As the successor of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, the Republic of Azerbaijan restored its independence in 1991. The difficulties faced by the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, including Armenias territorial claims and war against Azerbaijan, geopolitical intrigues, the socio-economic problems engulfed the Republic of Azerbaijan as well since regaining its independence in 1991.

The policies pursued later by the national leader Heydar Aliyev developed the sense of national identity by reviving our deep historical and cultural memory, as well as by instilling a firm conviction for preserving and strengthening our independence and statehood. The Azerbaijani people treasuring the statehood policy of the national leader Heydar Aliyev celebrate the centennial anniversary of their independence this year with the heightened sense of pride and particular spirit of festivity.

The proclamation of this year as the year of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic as well as the signing the Decree by President Ilham Aliyev to ensure due commemoration of the centenary of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic is a vivid manifestation of the aforementioned.

Today the Republic of Azerbaijan under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev as the independent, sovereign and democratic country brings into the reality the aspirations and ideals of Azerbaijan Democratic Republic with its good and effective management, socio-economic and human capital development as well as its growing role and prestige in international relations. If the founders of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic were alive, they would have been proud of today's Republic of Azerbaijan.

As it was said by national leader Heydar Aliyev:Azerbaijans independence is eternal and irrevocable.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 27

By Ali Mustafayev - Trend:

French President Emmanuel Macron will pay an official visit to Azerbaijan at the end of this year, said Jean-Yves Le Drian, the Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs of France at a press-conference in Baku May 27.

In July 2018, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is expected to visit France. The French president, in turn, accepted the reciprocal invitation, and plans to visit Azerbaijan in December 2018, he said.

Jean-Yves Le Drian stressed that a series of visits at a high level will serve to further expand bilateral cooperation between Azerbaijan and France.

At present, we closely cooperate with Azerbaijan in a number of key areas for us, including agriculture, energy, transport, high technologies, ecology and education. In the summer of 2018, we plan to step up the work of the Azerbaijani-French intergovernmental economic commission in these areas, the minister said.

He noted that France has always supported Azerbaijan from the first days of its independence, and will continue its policy of cooperation in the future.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 27

Trend:

Military service by the citizens of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is a violation of the norms of international law, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministrys Spokesman Hikmet Hajiyev told Trend May 27, commenting on the information about the military service of Armenian prime ministers son in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

Hajiyev noted that the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry considers the sending of the son of Armenian prime minister, whose euphoric period is already running out, to military service in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan as populism.

Military service of the citizens of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is a gross violation of the norms and principles of international law and even the laws of Armenia. By taking this step, the leadership of Armenia once again confirmed that international legal responsibility for the occupation of Azerbaijani territories lies with Armenia. Thus, Azerbaijani territories continue to remain under the occupation of the Armenian Armed Forces as a result of the military aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan, he said.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson noted that Armenian citizens, especially young people, are forced to spend the most formative period of their life in the trenches in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and serve the occupation mission, instead of engaging in creative activity.

It would be useful for the Armenian leadership to seriously think about the social and economic problems that the country has faced, on the resolution of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, to establish peaceful and friendly relations with the countries of the region, rather than to make such populist steps, Hajiyev said.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.
Tehran, Iran, May 27



By Kamyar Eghbalnejad - Trend:



The Iranian deputy agriculture minister for livestock affairs said the Agriculture Ministry has banned livestock exports in a bid to balance the market.



Morteza Rezaei said the government has placed restrictions on exports of livestock due to a rise in livestock prices in the domestic market, ISNA reported.



"The ban came into effect last week in an attempt to control the red meat market," he said.



Rezaei added that the move could also play a key role in preventing smuggling of livestock.



Iranian officials say the countrys annual agricultural output stands at 120 million tons, worth at $80 million. The figure includes 82 million tons of crops, 20 million tons of horticultural products, 14 million tons of livestock, and over one million tons of fishery products.



Irans exports of livestock over the first 11 months of the last fiscal year (ended March 21) grew by 16.1 percent to hit 606,000 tons.
Tehran, Iran, May 27



By Kamyar Eghbalnejad - Trend:



A member of Turkmenistans Chamber of Commerce and Industry said Ashgabat is willing to use the Iranian southeastern port of Shahid Beheshti in Chabahr as a conduit for shipment of its goods to different parts of the world.



Shahid Beheshti Port has a high potential for investment. Turkmenistan has long had an eye on Chabahar, Karim Akmamedov said on May 27 while touring the international port in the province of Sistan and Baluchestan, according to a report by the Trend news agencys correspondent in Tehran.



We want to use the port a channel to export our goods to the world, he added.



We believe that Chabahar ports infrastructures have created a unique opportunity for Central Asian nations, particularly Turkmenistan, to have business transactions with other countries, Akmamedov said.



In the first step, we are planning to export 120,000 tons of cargo through the Chabahar port, he said.



During the tour, an official with the provinces Ports and Maritime Department said Iran is ready to attract investment from Turkmenistan to finance its projects.



The Chabahar port was established to connect the Commonwealth of Independent States as well as Afghanistan to international waters.



Chabahar is the closest and best access point of Iran to the Indian Ocean and Iran has devised serious plans to turn it into a transit hub for immediate access to markets in the northern part of the Indian Ocean and Central Asia.
Tehran, Iran, May 27



By Kamyar Eghbalnejad - Trend:



NIOC (National Iranian Oil Company) Managing Director Ali Kardor said Iran is exporting nearly 2.5 million barrels of crude oil on a daily basis.



Impending new US sanctions have not thus far undermined the flow of oil supplies to international markets, Kardor said on May 26.



He added that Irans total exports of crude stood at an average of 2.5 million barrels per day (m/bpd), SHANA news agency reported.



The US has failed to make any impact on the countrys oil export process, the Iranian official said, adding that Irans oil exports will remain unchanged if the Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, is salvaged by the EU following the US withdrawal from the multinational accord.



US President Donald Trump recently said he would take the US out of a nuclear agreement that was signed with Iran in 2015. He also signed a presidential memorandum to re-impose what he described as the "highest level of sanctions" against Iran.



The memorandum specifies that many of the sanctions should be re-imposed in 90 days  by August 6, 2018. The most important ones  as reported by media  would be a ban on Iran over buying or acquiring US dollars.



Another set of sanctions will once again be clamped down on Iran within the next 180 days. The most important sanctions would be those concerning Irans oil sales and energy sector investment as well as transactions with the Central Bank of Iran (CBI).
According to Reuters, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, during "in-depth discussions" with his South Korean counterpart Moon Jae-in, agreed to hold top-level talks between the two countries on June 1.

On Saturday, Seoul's presidential office said that earlier in the day Moon and Kim had met for the second time in the village of Panmunjom in the demilitarized zone.

The next meeting will be held on Friday, the Yonhap news agency reported citing North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Moreover, the leaders agreed to meet frequently in the future to make bilateral dialogue "brisk" as well as expressed their commitment to efforts aimed at the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. During the Saturday meeting, Kim also reportedly expressed a "fixed will" to hold a North Korea-US summit on June 12.

Moreover, Kim expressed his will to improve the North Korea-US relations and establish a mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

Meanwhile, South Korea regards as "fortunate" the resumption of talks between the United States and North Korea on their leaders summit in June, a presidential spokesman said Saturday.

"It's a fortunate thing that the possibility of the North Korea-US dialogue is still alive without being terminated," President Moon Jae-in's spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom was quoted as saying by Yonhap.

He added Seoul was carefully watching the progress of negotiations announced earlier by US President Donald Trump, who said on Twitter the summit could be reinstated or postponed beyond June 12.

On Friday, The New York Times newspaper reported that some of Trumps advisers differed sharply on what the president should get from the meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, if it eventually takes place. The newspaper also cited a senior White House official, who said that even if the meeting was reinstated, it would be impossible to hold it on June 12, as it had been scheduled before.

"Unlike what the Failing and Corrupt New York Times would like people to believe, there is ZERO disagreement within the Trump Administration as to how to deal with North Koreaand if there was, it wouldnt matter. The @nytimes has called me wrong right from the beginning!" Trump wrote on Twitter.

The president also denied the existence of a senior White House official, who had been cited by the newspaper.

"The Failing @nytimes quotes a senior White House official, who doesnt exist, as saying even if the meeting were reinstated, holding it on June 12 would be impossible, given the lack of time and the amount of planning needed. WRONG AGAIN! Use real people, not phony sources," he added.

On Thursday, the White House released Trump's letter informing Kim that he was canceling their meeting in Singapore scheduled for June 12. However, the following day, the US president indicated that he might yet meet the North Korean leader as scheduled or postpone the summit.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas release from hospital has been delayed, according to a presidency statement obtained by Al Arabiya.

Abbas was expected to leave hospital on Sunday afternoon after a week of treatment for pneumonia.

His extended hospitalization has led to widespread speculation over his condition, particularly with no successor publicly in line for the Palestinian presidency.

Pictures and video of Abbas walking around the wards and reading a newspaper were published late Monday, in an apparent attempt to calm rumors that his condition was more serious than reported.

Abbas was admitted on May 20 with complications following an ear operation, including a high fever.

Officials have since confirmed he was being treated for pneumonia.

In February, he underwent what were described as routine medical tests in the United States.

Abbas won a four-year term as president in 2005, but he has since remained in office without further elections.
China and several other countries have been claiming ownership over multiple islands and islets in the South China Sea, with Beijing deploying numerous military forces and vehicles to the region in a bid to secure its claims. US naval forces have been working to circumvent its attempts to secure positions in the region by conducting FONOPs, Sputnik reports.

The destroyer USS Higgins and the USS Antietam cruiser came near to the disputed Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, Reuters reported, citing an anonymous US official. According to the outlet, the warships passed by the Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels. Another unnamed US official noted that the move was likely made to exert pressure on Beijing over the North Korean issue.

The US Navy hasn't confirmed the information directly, but noted that it is conducting routine Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs) in the region.

"We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future," a representative of the US Pacific Fleet said.

The Chinese Ministry of Defense has accused the US warships of serious infringement of Chinese sovereignty after American vessels entered Chinese territorial waters without permission. According to Beijing, its ships and aircraft warned the US ships and demanded that they leave the disputed waters.

China is one of the parties that claim ownership over certain islands in the South China Sea. Beijing has been redeploying significant military forces to the region, including bombers, surface-to-air and anti-ship cruise missiles. China claims that all its military forces in the South China Sea are purely defensive.

Washington has slammed Beijing's moves in the region and has recently been conducting FONOPs in the area, although some military experts claim that they have little effect. China has reminded the US that it has a right to self-defense and has urged Washington not to "hype up the so-called 'militarization' of the South China Sea."

US President Trump recently announced that the upcoming summit between the US and North Korea was canceled due to Pyongyang's "aggressive rhetoric." The DPRK slammed the US move, but has continued its renewed contacts with South Korea.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and to a planned meeting with US President Donald Trump, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Sunday, Reuters reported.

In Washington, US President Donald Trump signaled that preparations for a June 12 summit with Kim were going ahead, despite having called off the meeting last week.

Moon and Kim agreed at a surprise meeting on Saturday that the possible North Korea-US summit must be held, Moon told a news conference in Seoul.

Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean peninsulas denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted, Moon said.

The meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the two Korean leaders are trying to keep the on-again off-again meeting on track.

A statement from North Koreas state news agency KCNA said Kim expressed his fixed will on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Moon, who returned to Seoul on Thursday morning after meeting Trump in Washington in a bid to keep the high-stakes US-North Korea summit on track, said he delivered a message of Trumps firm resolve to end the hostile relationship with North Korea and pursue bilateral economic cooperation.

In a letter to Kim on Thursday, Trump had said he was cancelling the planned Singapore summit, citing North Koreas open hostility.

But on Saturday, Trump said he was still looking at a June 12 date for a summit in Singapore, adding that talks were progressing very well.

Were doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea, Trump said at the White House. Its moving along very nicely. So were looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasnt changed. So, well see what happens.

A White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the possible summit, a White House spokeswoman said on Saturday.
Slovakia registered a record number of 5.4 million tourists, both domestic and foreign, in 2017, up 7 percent year on year, local media reported on Sunday, according Xinhua.

Slovak tourists made up 60 percent of all tourists with 3.2 million registered.

Among the foreign tourists, Czech visitors topped the list with more than 645,000, which was followed by Poles, Germans, Hungarians and Austrians.

"Czechs enjoy the advantage of geographical proximity and accessibility, security, the minimum language barrier and the plentiful offer of sights of nature and culture. More than 88 percent of Czechs are happy with their visit of Slovakia and approximately 97 percent would return to Slovakia again," said Slovak Transport and Construction Minister Arpad Ersek.

According to the minister, the number of tourists from China also significantly increased in 2017.

"We are also happy, that the number of tourists from China exceeded 61,000 last year, which is twice as many as in 2016," said Ersek.

The most attractive Slovak towns or places were Bratislava, Kosice, High Tatras and region Liptov in the Northern Slovakia.
Italian Prime Minister-Designate Giuseppe Conte couldn't form a new government, Ugo Zampetti, an official at the president's office, said Sunday, Sputnik reported.

"President [Sergio Mattarella] has received Prof. Giuseppe Conte. who returned the mandate given to him on May 23 to form the government. The president has thanked him for his effort in fulfilling this task," Zampetti said, as aired by Rai broadcaster.

President Sergio Mattarella authorized Zampetti to form the government on Wednesday.

According to media reports, the president rejected the candidature of eurosceptic Paolo Savona for the post of the minister of economy.

Italy's populist Five Star Movement (M5S) and far-right Lega party proposed to Mattarella the candidacy of Conte on Monday.

The Italian parliamentary election was held on March 4 and resulted in the M5S securing more than 32 percent of the vote. The center-right coalition, consisting of the Lega party, the center-right Forza Italia and the Brothers of Italy movement, got 37 percent of the vote. The Democratic Party won about 20 percent of the vote. None of the parties obtained the majority of votes required for the government formation.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 27

Trend:

Turkey can buy Russian Su-57 jets in case if US blocks supplies of F-35 fighters, Yeni Safak newspaper reports May 27.

"Ankara does not intend to give up the right to airplanes, which it should receive in June. The option of buying Russian "Su" is being discussed", the newspaper says.
Baku, Azerbaijan, May 27

The United States continues to focus on holding the first ever US-North Korean summit in Singapore on June 12, preparations for it are conducted in a positive way. This was announced on Saturday by US President Donald Trump after he received the American citizen released from the Venezuelan prison in the White House.

"We are targeting June 12 in Singapore - it has remained unchanged, everything is going very well, so we'll see what happens next," he said.

The meeting between Trump and Kim Jong-un was initially planned for June 12 in Singapore, but on May 24, the US president sent a message to the leader of the DPRK, informing him that the meeting could not take place because of the hostile statements of Pyongyang. Trump did not rule out that the summit could pass later, and on May 25, he admitted that he would still meet with the leader of the DPRK in Singapore on June 12.

On Saturday, the White House informed that the government delegation will go on the previously approved schedule to Singapore to prepare for the summit on June 12 in case it does take place. At this meeting, it is supposed, the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula should be discussed.
American and North Korean officials met at the border between North and South Korea on Sunday in preparation for a possible North Korea-U.S. summit, as North Koreas Kim Jong Un was cited as reaffirming his commitment to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, Reuters reported.

Both Pyongyang and Washington are pressing ahead on plans for a summit after Trump pulled out of the proposed June 12 meeting on Thursday, only to reconsider the decision the next day.

A U.S. delegation is in ongoing talks with North Korean officials at Panmunjom, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said, referring to a village in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that runs along the heavily armed border between North and South Korea.

We continue to prepare for a meeting between the President and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, she said in a statement.

In addition to those talks, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said a pre-advance team left for Singapore - where the summit has been expected to take place - on Sunday morning to work on logistics.

Earlier on Sunday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said he and North Koreas Kim had agreed during a surprise meeting on Saturday that the North Korea-U.S. summit must be held.

The weekend meetings were the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs over the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the leaders of the two Koreas are trying to keep the meeting on track.

North Korea has faced years of economic sanctions over its nuclear and missile programs since it conducted its first nuclear test in 2006. The United States has struggled to slow the isolated countrys weapons programs, which have become a security priority for Washington given Pyongyangs promise to develop a nuclear-tipped missile capable of hitting the U.S. mainland.

A U.S. official told Reuters that Sung Kim, the former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, would lead an American delegation to meet North Korean officials at the border. Pentagon official Randall Schriver was part of the U.S. team, the official said.

The Washington Post first reported that the team, which also included Allison Hooker, the Korea expert on the White House National Security Council, met with Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister.

The Post said the talks at the border would continue Monday and Tuesday at Tongilgak, the Norths building in Panmunjom, where the truce suspending the 1950-53 Korean War was signed.

In their meeting on Saturday, Kim reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to a planned summit with Trump, Moon told reporters in Seoul.

Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean Peninsulas denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted, Moon said.

Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what denuclearization means and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

The United States has demanded the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement of North Koreas nuclear weapons program. Pyongyang has rejected unilateral disarmament and has always couched its language in terms of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

In previous, failed talks, North Korea said it could consider giving up its arsenal if Washington removed its troops from South Korea and withdrew its so-called nuclear umbrella of deterrence from South Korea and Japan.

North Korea has tested dozens of missiles of various types in the past two years, including one launch of its largest-ever intercontinental ballistic missile, which is theoretically capable of hitting anywhere in the United States, on Nov. 29.
KYODO NEWS - May 27, 2018 - 15:38 | World, All

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump separately expressed willingness over the weekend to meet June 12 in Singapore as originally planned, after days of conflicting signals from both sides.

Kim, in a summit Saturday with South Korean President Moon Jae In, voiced his "fixed will" to proceed with the first-ever North Korea-U.S. summit as initially scheduled, North Korea's state media reported Sunday.

Trump, who had canceled the summit on Thursday only to suggest it might still take place, told reporters at the White House on Saturday that arrangements appear to be "going along very well."

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore, That hasn't changed," he said, speaking after it was announced that a team of U.S. officials would soon leave for Singapore to prepare for the possible summit.

The South and North Korean leaders held their surprise meeting -- the second in a month -- at the truce village of Panmunjeom after Trump revived hopes of a historic summit.

They held "in-depth" discussions on issues related to denuclearization and regional peace, while agreeing to hold high-level talks between officials of the two Koreas on June 1, the North's official Korean Central News Agency said.

Moon and Kim also shared the view that both countries should "exert joint efforts" to implement "at an early date" the declaration issued after their first meeting on April 27, KCNA said.

They reached a "satisfactory consensus" in the matters discussed at their talks, it said.

Kim told Moon that the two Koreas should "positively cooperate with each other" to improve Washington-Pyongyang relations, while he thanked him for his efforts to bring to fruition "the summit scheduled for June 12."

Moon told a press conference Sunday he hopes the upcoming preparatory meeting between U.S. and North Korean officials will go smoothly to ensure the summit's success in terms of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

He said he hopes that a trilateral summit between two Koreas and the United States could take place if Trump-Kim talks are successful.

"I am expecting that we can make progress for the declaration" of the end of the 1950-1953 Korean War "through trilateral summit talks," he said.

Moon said his latest meeting with Kim was held at North Korea's request.

At their April 27 summit, the first between the two Koreas in over a decade, Kim and Moon issued the Panmunjeom Declaration calling for "complete" denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula as well as efforts to declare a formal end to the war.

In the Korean War, U.S.-led multilateral forces fought alongside South Korea against the North, which was supported by China and the Soviet Union. Hostilities ceased with an armistice agreement signed on July 27, 1953 by the U.N. Command, North Korea and China.

China, Pyongyang's close ally, has also called on the United States and North Korea to hold their summit to that same end.

Beijing-Pyongyang relations have been drastically improving recently in the wake of Kim's visit to China in March, on his first foreign trip since becoming the supreme leader following the death of his father Kim Jong Il in December 2011.

Kim has tried to bolster ties with Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of envisioned tough negotiations with Trump.

Moon, who has pledged to serve as a broker between Pyongyang and Washington in talks over a potential U.S.-North Korea summit, met with Trump last Tuesday in Washington to discuss issues related to the divided peninsula.

But just two days later, Trump canceled his summit with Kim in a move that left Moon "very perplexed."

North Korea, in a surprisingly conciliatory statement Friday, urged Trump to reconsider his decision, prompting him to reverse course.

That statement from First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan, Pyongyang's long-serving point man on nuclear issues, was in marked contrast with the belligerent rhetoric issue by him and another senior Foreign Ministry official earlier this month

"We would like to make known to the U.S. side once again that we have the intent to sit with the U.S. side to solve problem regardless of ways at any time," he said, according to KCNA.

Kim is believed to be keen to ask the United States to accept the continuation of North Korea's hereditary regime, in return for Pyongyang vowing to denuclearize in a "phased" and "synchronized" manner.

Trump, however, has put pressure on North Korea to abandon all its nuclear weapons as soon as possible if Pyongyang wants to receive returns.
KYODO NEWS - May 26, 2018 - 07:00 | All, World, Japan

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet Saturday in Moscow to talk about bilateral economic cooperation and security issues.

North Korea is also likely to be high on the agenda days after Washington told Pyongyang it will not hold the first-ever U.S.-North Korean summit scheduled for June 12.

Abe and Putin are expected to discuss how to materialize their countries' joint economic activities in five areas, which they agreed on last September, on the disputed islands controlled by Moscow.

The two leaders are likely to agree to launch consultations to develop sightseeing tours involving travel agencies of both countries, culture sea urchins and farm strawberries, Japanese government sources said.

Japan hopes the activities would pave the way to settling the decades-long territorial row over the islands and, ultimately, signing a post-World War II peace treaty, while Russia aims to attract Japanese investments in the underdeveloped Far East region.

Abe expects Putin, who has renewed his grip on power following the presidential election in March, to make a landmark decision over the contested isles off Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido.

But it is still unclear whether the two neighbors will be able to come up with a "special framework" that will not compromise either side's legal position on the islands' sovereignty, a sticking point of the scheme.

(Abe (L) and Putin shake hands before talks in Danang, Vietnam, on Nov. 10, 2017)

The islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, Shikotan and the Habomai islet group, called the Northern Territories in Japan and the Southern Kurils in Russia, were seized by the former Soviet Union at the end of the war.

As part of humanitarian measures, Abe and Putin will also likely agree to allow former Japanese residents of the islands to visit their ancestral graves by aircraft again this year following the first such occasion last year, the sources said.

Apart from the five areas, Abe and Putin will likely confirm how far their eight-point economic cooperation package, which Abe proposed two years ago, has advanced, the sources said.

The Abe-Putin summit will be the first since the latter won a landslide victory in the presidential election in March and the 21st in total.

In the field of security, the two leaders may agree to hold the next round of the so-called two-plus-two talks involving the two countries' foreign and defense ministers in Moscow, following the previous session in March 2017 in Tokyo, the sources said.

On North Korea, Abe seeks Putin's cooperation in resolving the issue of Japanese nationals abducted by the North in the 1970s and 1980s.

Japan has been performing a delicate balancing act amid deteriorating ties between Russia and Western countries, in particular the United States, Japan's major ally, due partly to the Middle East situation.
KYODO NEWS - May 27, 2018 - 12:51 | All, World

U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday signaled willingness to go ahead with a June 12 summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, saying talks between the two countries on the event are going "very well."

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed," Trump said after Kim expressed his "fixed will" to have "historic" summit talks with Trump in Singapore, an event the U.S. leader abruptly cancelled Thursday but said the following day could still take place on the original date.

"I just want to mention we're doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea. Looks like it's going along very well," he told reporters at the White House. "So we'll see what happens."

[Getty/Kyodo]

In preparation for a June 12 summit, a White House advance team is scheduled to depart Sunday for Singapore via Japan for a round of planning meetings with North Korean officials, according to a U.S. media report.

The advance team is set to arrive in Japan on Monday and will leave for Singapore the same day, Politico said, citing the manifest for the trip.

The team, involving about 30 White House and State Department officials, is led by White House deputy chief of staff Joe Hagin and special assistant to the president Patrick Clifton, it said.

Trump spoke after Kim on Saturday had a second meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae In at the truce village of Panmunjeom and expressed his commitment to the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula.

"We can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, that could be a great thing for North Korea, it would be a great thing for South Korea, it would be great for Japan, it would be great for the world, it would be great for the United States, it would be great for China," Trump said.
With this, the number of active COVID cases in the state fell to 96,646. Of the new cases, 7,353 contracted the virus through contact while 35 came from outside the state.
If you're lucky enough to have a 401(k), it really pays to the make the most of that plan. That's because the money you save today could set the stage for a financially stable future. That said, there are certain 401(k) moves that could easily derail your retirement savings efforts and hurt you financially. Here are a few things you should never do with regard to your 401(k).

1. Take an early withdrawal

Maybe you've lost your job and are having a hard time paying the bills. Or maybe you have a near-term financial goal you're looking to meet, and figure you might as well access the money you've saved in your 401(k). After all, that cash is yours, so why shouldn't you spend it?

Coin being inserted into piggy bank next to chalkboard with 401k written in chalk

IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

Well, there's a good reason why you shouldn't tap your 401(k) before reaching age 59 1/2: You'll be hit with a whopping 10% early-withdrawal penalty on whatever amount you remove. This means that if you withdraw $10,000 before age 59 1/2, you'll lose $1,000 right off the bat. On top of that, you'll be taxed on whatever amount you withdraw -- though that would be the case even if you were to wait until 59 1/2.

But penalties aside, the more money you remove from your 401(k) for non-retirement purposes, the less income you'll have access to when you're older. And that's reason enough to leave that money alone.

Furthermore, while you may have heard that it's OK to take an early withdrawal to pay for college or buy a first-time home, those allowances only apply to funds held in an IRA. If you have a 401(k), you won't qualify for the same exceptions to the early-withdrawal penalty.

2. Cash it out when you switch jobs

Job-hopping is fairly common nowadays, so when you stop working for the company that's sponsored your 401(k) to date, you may be inclined to cash out your plan and start a new 401(k) with your next employer. Big mistake. The early-withdrawal penalty we talked about above applies when you cash out a 401(k) upon leaving a job, so don't go that route. Instead, roll that money into an IRA or see about rolling it into your new employer's plan. This way, you'll avoid taxes and penalties on the money you've worked hard to save.

Story continues

3. Borrow money from it

Some companies allow employees to borrow money from their 401(k) plans. If you have that option, you can borrow the lesser of $50,000 or half of your account's vested balance.

While borrowing certainly is preferable to taking an early withdrawal, it's a move that could end up backfiring in several ways. First, if you get laid off from your job, your outstanding 401(k) loan amount will be treated as a distribution -- which means that it automatically gets taxed. And if you're under 59 1/2 at the time, you'll get hit with that nasty 10% early-withdrawal penalty, as well. Furthermore, any time you remove money from your 401(k), you lose out on its associated growth by virtue of not having it invested. And that could end up hurting your savings.

4. Miss out on employer-matching dollars

An estimated 92% of companies that sponsor 401(k) plans also match employee contributions to some degree. But if you don't contribute enough of your own money to snag that match, you'll be losing out on free cash. Incidentally, about 25% of workers don't contribute enough to capitalize on employer matches, and as such, the average employee gives up $1,336 each year.

But as is the case with borrowing from a 401(k), when you fail to take advantage of employer-matching dollars, you don't just miss out on the money itself, but also on its growth potential. Passing up $1,336 a year for 20 years, therefore, doesn't just mean losing out on $26,720 -- it means losing out on $54,770 if your investments could've generated a 7% average annual return during that time (which is more than doable with a stock-focused strategy). And that's a lot of cash to give up.

5. Ignore your investments

Many people set up their 401(k) investments early on and then fail to check up on them regularly. But if you don't review your investments periodically, you'll have no way of knowing how they're performing.

What if you chose a fund initially that averaged an 11% return per year, but in the past two years, it's failed to do better than 4%? Would you really want to keep your money there? Though you don't need to check your investments on a weekly basis, schedule a quarterly or semiannual review. This way, if you see that your funds are underperforming, you'll have an opportunity to act and move your money around.

By saving in a 401(k), you're putting yourself in a great position to retire comfortably. So don't blow that chance. Avoid these mistakes and with any luck, you'll build an impressive nest egg that covers you throughout your golden years.

More From The Motley Fool

The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Astronaut Alan Bean poses for a portrait in front of a mockup of NASAs lunar module in advance of his Apollo 12 moon mission in 1969. (NASA Photo)

Artist-astronaut Alan Bean, the moonwalker who saw himself as different from the rest, died today at the age of 86 at Houston Medical Hospital.

Beans death followed a sudden illness that befell him two weeks earlier during a trip to Fort Wayne, Ind., for a school fundraising event.

He became the fourth human to walk on the moon during the Apollo 12 mission in November 1969, exploring Oceanus Procellarum alongside the late astronaut Pete Conrad. Bean also commanded the second crewed flight to Skylab, Americas first space station, in 1973.

Alan was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew. He was the love of my life, and I miss him dearly, Leslie Bean, his wife of 40 years, said in a statement released by NASA and the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. A native Texan, Alan died peacefully in Houston surrounded by those who loved him.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said the space agency mourned his loss.

Alan Bean once said I have the nicest life in the world,  Bridenstine said in a statement. Its a comforting sentiment to recall as we mourn his passing.

Astronaut-artist Alan Bean speaks at the 2009 opening of an exhibit titled Alan Bean: Painting Apollo, First Artist on Another World at the Smithsonians National Air and Space Museum in Washington. (NASA Photo)

Bean served as a test pilot in the U.S. Navy, and was among 14 trainees who were selected by NASA in 1963 for its third group of astronauts  after the Mercury Seven and the New Nine.

Alan and I have been best friends for 55 years  ever since the day we became astronauts, said Walt Cunningham, who flew on Apollo 7. We are accustomed to losing friends in our business, but this is a tough one.

Apollo 17s Harrison Schmitt, the only professional scientist to walk on the moon, praised the contribution that Bean and Conrad made to lunar geology. He said the 75 pounds of lunar samples they collected were a scientific gift that keeps on giving today and in the future.

Their description of bright green concentrations of olivine (peridot) as ginger ale bottle glass, however, gave geologists in Mission Control all a big laugh, as we knew exactly what they had discovered, Schmitt said in a statement.

Story continues

Bean retired from the Navy in 1975, and from NASA in 1981. He then turned his attention to what Schmitt called a third career as a painter.

Over the course of that third career, Bean created more than 100 paintings that he said marked the beginning of a new category in the progression of art history: art of human experiences off our home planet.

I have the honor and responsibility of being first, he said.

Beans favorite theme was to depict astronauts in flight or on the lunar surface. One of his favorite tricks was to sprinkle a little moondust from his lunar patches onto his canvases as he painted. He also liked to use a moon boot to add texture to the paint.

Long after Im gone, people will have these paintings with dust and footprints in them, he said in a 1997 interview. It will be something really special for people to enjoy and remember.

Alan Beans Reaching for the Stars graces the wall of the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame. The painting bears the imprint of a spacesuit boot. (Alan Bean / Greenwich Workshop)

A decade later, Bean told me that his brain must have been wired differently from the norm for astronauts.

A lot of things I think about come from the right side of my brain, he said in 2007. And for most of the other guys, most of the things they think about come from the left side. And it got me in trouble at NASA at first.

I just say it how I think it, even though other people will say, Thats weird, because its from the other side of the brain, he said.

Beans passing means only four of the 12 Apollo moonwalkers are still alive, with a string of lunar landing anniversaries due to begin next year. The four are Apollo 11s Buzz Aldrin, 88; Apollo 15s Dave Scott, 85; Apollo 16s Charlie Duke, 82; and Apollo 17s Harrison Schmitt, 82.

In addition to his wife, Leslie, Alan Bean is survived by a sister, Paula Stott; and two children from a previous marriage, Amy Sue Bean and Clay Bean.

More from GeekWire:
After famously gutting NASA's budget for earth science and climate change-related missions in 2017, is President Donald Trump having a change of heart on space?

It kind of looks like he is. The president raised his "ask" for NASA's space budget in February, requesting that Congress fund the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to the tune of $19.9 billion in fiscal 2019 -- giving the agency $300 million more than its medium-term forecast had counted on. And the news gets better from there.

Just a couple of miles away from the Oval Office, on Capitol Hill, Congress is working on an appropriations bill that would lift NASA's budget into a higher orbit. On May 8, the House Committee on Appropriations released its Fiscal Year 2019 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Bill. As it regards NASA in particular, this proposed budget contains $21.5 billion in planned funding -- a number Politico says is $810 million more than NASA is receiving currently, and $1.6 billion more than the President requested.

Put down your calculators: That's a cool 8% bump into higher orbit, compared to what NASA thought it might be getting after seeing the president's proposal earlier this year.

Astronauts walking on the moon near moon base.

NASA's new budget includes nearly $1 billion in funding for lunar projects. Image source: Getty Images.

Which companies will win more money?

So who will get the loot? Believe it or not, more than half the House's increase in funding (a $459 million increase compared to fiscal 2018) is going to science programs -- $6.7 billion in total. And while the bill is short of specifics, this is money investors can probably expect will be going to satellite makers such as Boeing (NYSE: BA) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT), Northrop Grumman (NYSE: OA), and Maxar Technologies (NYSE: MAXR), also to satellite launchers such as SpaceX, and Boeing and Lockheed's United Launch Alliance.

In fact, Boeing and Lockheed Martin look to be two-time winners, as the second largest bump in funding is going to help pay for deep space missions, and to NASA's Orion crew vehicle and Space Launch System (SLS), which are designed to carry them. Orbital ATK (soon to be absorbed into Northrop Grumman) and Aerojet Rocketdyne (NYSE: AJRD) are other key players on the SLS project. Congress wants to pour an additional $294 million into this program, funding it with $5.1 billion next year.

Story continues

To the Moon, Alice!

It's harder to predict the winners in a separate category of space spending that may surprise you: Lunar exploration and development.

The House Appropriations budget contains nearly $1 billion in funds for projects tied to the moon:

$504.2 million to build a lunar orbital platform that can serve both as a gateway to lunar landings, and potentially as a hub for missions that will reach past the moon -- perhaps as far as Mars.

$116.5 million for advanced lunar and surface capabilities, which might include anything from housing modules to mining the moon.

$218 million for planetary science, including rovers and science instruments that will be used to explore the lunar surface.

And $150 million for commercial low-earth orbit development -- the much ballyhooed transition of the International Space Station to private ownership, freeing up NASA funding for missions farther away from Earth.

Who will help NASA with all of the above? It's a safe bet that Boeing, Lockheed, and all the other "usual suspects" will bid for moon-related space work. But they'll have to contend with a rising tide of "new space" companies that hope to return us to the moon "smaller, better, faster, and cheaper" (so to speak).

To name just a few of these unlikelier suspects, tiny Moon Express recently won government approval to land robots on the moon to begin (initially small scale) moon-mining missions. Rocket Lab is another U.S. company that hopes to play a role, by providing the rockets that will deliver Moon Express's landers to the moon. And Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin has been particularly vocal about his company's desire to help NASA out with moon missions.

For that matter, even SpaceX's Elon Musk has been making noises about how SpaceX wouldn't be averse to assisting with a moon mission (in addition to his ultimate objective -- a mission to Mars).

The upshot for investors

The bad news of course is that most of these new space companies mulling moon plans -- everyone from small up-and-comers like Moon Express and Rocket Lab to household names like SpaceX -- are currently not available for investment. All of these companies are privately held.

The good news, though, is that now that Congress seems intent on pouring money into space, the chances of these companies living long enough to go public so that we can invest in them just got significantly better.

More From The Motley Fool

John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fools board of directors. Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool recommends Orbital ATK. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
* Malaysians glued to astonishing downfall of former PM Najib

* Police cart handbags, watches, jewels from Najib-linked condo

* Live-streams of dramatic events break viewership records

* Najib lost May 9 election in stunning upset

By Tom Westbrook

KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 (Reuters) - Malaysians have avidly watched the public humiliation of former leader Najib Razak and his wife, as police hunting evidence of graft loaded five trucks with luxury items, including dozens of Birkin handbags, some costing as much as a sportscar.

Tens of thousands of people logged onto Facebook watched as journalists live-streamed the 3 am raid on Friday at an apartment in a fancy condominium, just one of several locations linked to the Najib family that were searched.

Millions more watched, as news channels aired the footage on a loop through the following day.

During his near ten years in power, Najib stamped out political dissent, and stifled criticism in the media.

But since Najib's defeat in the May 9 election to 92-year-old Mahathir Mohamad, his mentor-turned-foe, and jailed opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, media coverage of his downfall has been remorseless.

"All of the secrets are coming out already," said Sara Rashid, serving at Optimist Coffee, a busy downtown cafe in Kuala Lumpur. A blackboard listing specials included "freedom of expression".

"I think now we have got this opportunity to witness everything, we don't want to miss the chance," she said.

The Hermes-branded boxes for the Birkins were plainly seen, loaded in to shopping trolleys as they were carted away, but police said that besides the bags, which can cost as much as three times the prime minister's annual salary of $120,000, they brought out cash, watches and jewels.

"The number of jewellery is rather big," policeman Amar Singh, director of commercial crime investigations, told reporters outside. Uploaded to social media, his comments quickly gathered more than 80,000 views online. The new government has made a priority of finding out how billions of dollars went missing from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a fund set up by Najib. He has consistently denied any wrongdoing at 1MDB, and prior to election the mainstream media had towed the official line.

Story continues

Najib's wife Rosmah Mansor, who has become a focal point for public criticism for flaunting her wealth, took issue with the way in which the cameras filmed the police raid.

In a statement issued through her lawyers on Saturday she said the "media hailstorm" was "a seemingly targeted vilification of our family to provoke public anger," and railed against the publication of details of items taken from her home.

"Enforcement agencies should not be feeding social media trolls," she said.

Wags online had already posted memes comparing policeman Singh to the superhero Iron Man, and captioning his remarks with "CASH IS NO LONGER KING, THE SINGH IS KING NOW." It was mostly one-way traffic on Twitter.

"YA ALLAHHH NAJIB ROSMAH. How do you sleep at nights!! HOW DO YOU EVEN LIVE THIS LIFE!!!!" lawyer Nurainie Haziqah wrote on Twitter.

TEN DAYS THAT SHOOK MALAYSIA

During the ten days since he lost power, Najib and his wife have been barred from leaving the country, his home has been searched by police and anti-corruption investigators have said they will meet him next week.

Najib, whose late father was Malaysia's second prime minister, has also quit as head of the United Malays National Organisation, the party that, until now, had headed every multi-ethnic coalition to rule Malaysia for the past six decades.

Having given little space to the opposition during the election campaign, mainstream media, including state news agency Bernama and the major newspapers New Straits Times and the Star, have reported the drama blow-by-blow.

Malaysiakini, an independent news portal that did publish articles critical of the government, said it has recorded a "major increase in viewership" with more than 222 million likes, shares and comments on its Facebook page.

"Safe to assume it's our best month ever," chief executive Premesh Chandran told Reuters in an email. (Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Ros Russell)
By Vladimir Soldatkin

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A return to the oil production levels that were in place in October 2016, baseline for the current deal to cut output, is one of the options for easing curbs, Russia's energy minister said on Saturday.

Sources said this week that Saudi Arabia and Russia were discussing raising OPEC and non-OPEC oil production to ease 17 months of strict supply curbs amid concerns that a price rally has gone too far.

"When we extended the agreement until the end of 2018, we spoke about such possibilities (of returning to the October 2016 level)," Novak told reporters.

"But a decision will be made in June," he added, referring to meetings of OPEC and non-OPEC countries in Vienna on June 22-23.

The existing deal came into force on January 1, 2017, and envisaged global oil producers reducing their combined output by 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) to cut bloated stockpiles and prop up oil prices.

Russia's oil output reached a 30-year high of 11.247 million bpd in October 2016 and it pledged to cut it by 300,000 bpd to 10.947 mln.

In March and in April this year it failed to fully comply with the deal, pumping at the pace of 10.97 million bpd, a 11-month high.

Oil prices have risen to $80 per barrel, levels unseen since late 2014. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the price of $60 "suits Russia".

Novak was also quoted as saying on Saturday he expected Iran to reduce its output by no more than 10 percent as a result of the move by the United States to withdraw from a nuclear deal and reinstate sanctions against Tehran.

"I think the output reduction will not be as significant as many expect," RIA news agency quoted Novak as saying when asked if he agreed with an estimate that the sanctions could remove as much as 800,000 barrels a day from the market.

"Some 10 percent is probably the maximum level," he said.

Novak also estimated that the "geopolitical risk" premium to the oil price was around $5-$7 per barrel.

(Additional reporting by Oksana Kobzeva; writing by Maria Kiselyova; Editing by Richard Balmforth and Helen Popper)
(Repeats to additional subscribers)

ISTANBUL, May 26 (Reuters) - Turkey and Russia have reached a retroactive agreement for a 10.25 percent discount on the natural gas Ankara buys from Moscow, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

Speaking at an election rally in eastern Turkey's Erzurum, Erdogan said a $1 billion payment will be made to Turkey under the deal, which followed a Turkish request for a discount on gas first made in 2015.

Turkey had gone to arbitration after its request was not met, Erdogan said.

"After long talks, we reached agreement on a 10.25 percent price discount on the natural gas we receive from Russia, covering the years 2015 and 2016," he said.

"With the agreement which we have reached, a payment of $1 billion will be made to our country to cover the discount for the natural gas we received in those two years," he added.

Turkey is the biggest consumer of Russian gas after Germany. Russia's Gazprom, which has a de facto monopoly on Russian gas exports by pipeline, supplies gas to Turkey's Black Sea coast via an underwater pipeline called Blue Stream with a capacity of 16 bcm per year.

Gazprom did not respond to a request for comment. (Reporting by Daren Butler; additional reporting by Maria Kiselyova; Editing by David Dolan and Toby Chopra)
When the asteroid that struck the Earth in Chicxulub, Mexico, slammed into the surface some 66 million years ago it made life incredibly difficult for just about every living creature on the planet. It caused massive swings in temperature, and shrouded the Earth in a cloud of darkness which killed off plant life on a massive scale. Now, a new study into the effect the asteroid impact had on bird life is suggesting that the only birds to survive the ordeal were actually ground-dwelling species, but why was that the case?

According to the study, which was published in Current Biology, the diversity of the bird species that survived the impact and immediate aftermath was quite narrow. By studying bird fossils from the period prior to the impact and contrasting that with post-impact fossils, the researchers determined that ground-dwelling birds were the only ones who managed to tough it out, and they think they know why.

Don't Miss: 3rd-gen Nest Thermostat is only $150 on Amazon, but its almost sold out

Thanks to foliage fossils from the time, scientists know that the asteroid sparked massive fires that wiped out huge sections of forest. The deforestation was so dramatic that it prevented birds from nesting as they normally would. In the centuries following the impact, ferns dominated North America, and tree-dwelling bird species simply couldnt adjust in time. Ground-dwelling, quail-like birds on the other hand were better equipped to deal with this new landscape.

The researchers say that only a handful of modern bird types were actually around prior to the asteroids arrival, including the ancient ancestors of chickens and ducks. Gathering their food from the ground rather than finding it by air, these primitive birds were able to hang on against all odds.

However, as Science magazine points out, some researchers arent so ready to accept these dramatic findings. Some have suggested that the scientists behind the work are trying to draw broad conclusions from a smattering of evidence. Its a debate thats been going on for decades, Joel Cracraft of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City notes. I dont think its going to end any time soon.

Story continues

BGR Top Deals:

Trending Right Now:

See the original version of this article on BGR.com
Zurich, May 24, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In this year's ranking by Reputation Institute of the Swiss Market Index (SMI) companies, Geberit takes first place, just ahead of the Swatch Group. Both companies have a RepTrak Pulse of over 70 points, which is considered "strong". The third position goes to Richemont, with 69.7 points.

In 2018, almost all companies surveyed worldwide (97%) suffered a decline in their reputation. For Switzerland, on the other hand, Reputation Institute has seen an upward trend over the last five years. The respondents seem to continue to give their trust to companies in Switzerland, even in an increasingly difficult-to-predict world.

According to this year's survey, new recipes are needed to build and strengthen reputation. Pure brand awareness is no longer enough, it needs quality and depth in customer relations. Businesses need to engage with their audiences and have a broad understanding of their role in society  and communicate as much as possible through all available channels.

The 2018 Reputation Ranking of the SMI Companies:

1. Geberit (76.2) 11. Swiss Life (63.2) 2. Swatch Group (75.6) 12. Zurich Insurance (60.9) 3. Richemont (69.7) 13. Nestle (60.6) 4. Swiss Re (69.0) 14. Julius Bar (56.1) 5. Swisscom (66.5) 15. Adecco (55.5) 6. Givaudan (65.7) 16. Lonza (55.2) 7. Roche (65.3) 17. Novartis (54.6) 8. ABB (64.5) 18. Credit Suisse (52.2) 9. Sika (64.3) 19. LafargeHolcim (50.2) 10. SGS (64.3) 20. UBS (48.9)



Technology Industry Makes Big Leap Forward

Looking at all sectors, "Technology" is the strongest in 2018, 10.3 points above the Swiss average. This is also the industry's biggest leap forward (2017: 7th place). It seems that the sector is successfully positioning itself as an innovation driver of digitization, and is consolidating its communication activities ever better. The Consumer and Food & Beverage sectors rank second and third.

Striking: There are industries in which the difference between the companies is very large or very small. For example, both industry and retail show a gap of more than 31 points between the highest and the lowest value. This is an indicator of how much potential upside the companies are in the bottom of the league  but also how much the leaders can lose. In the pharmaceuticals and services sectors, on the other hand, companies are closer together  a clear indication that they need to think "out of the box" in order to stand out from the competition.

The Depth and Quality of Relationships Is Crucial

The most relevant difference for communication, however, can be found in the comparison of customers versus non-customers. Existing customers give significantly better ratings than non-customers (75.2 points vs. 61.6 points). This leads to the realization that the depth and quality of the relationship, the so-called familiarity with the company, has the greatest relevance for the reputation. The better the respective stakeholders know a company, the better they will score at the reputational values  up to 19 points better. In terms of content, companies have to communicate more and better around the question "Who am I" than about the product ("What do I sell").

It also shows that there is no correlation between awareness and reputation alone. Admittedly, high awareness leads to a more robust reputation and thus lower reputational risks. However, the central insight is that companies need to work on the familiarity of their target groups and intensify engagement with their stakeholders if they want to gain reputation.

Content Has the Highest Impact of Reputation Drivers

Companies need to make sure that they are delivering the right content to the outside world. According to the Reputation Institute, the strongest content-driven reputation drivers in Switzerland across all sectors and regions are "Products / Services" at 21% (the products meet real customer needs, are of high quality and available at a reasonable price), "Governance" at 17% (the company acts ethically, fairly and transparently) and "Citizenship" with 16.4% (the company has a positive influence on the world). Citizenship has thus surpassed "governance" within the Top 3. Leadership emerges in fourth place of the most influential drivers (12.8%), a trend that can be observed globally: CEO and management have an ever greater impact on reputation as a whole. The number 4 from the previous year, "Workplace" is now in last place with 10.7%.

Depending on the industry in which a company operates, the region and the demographics of the stakeholders, the impact of the different drivers on the reputation varies. In the consumer sector, for example, alongside "Products / Services", "Performance" and "Leadership" are on top, while for the pharmaceuticals industry, "Innovation" is one of the three most important drivers of reputation. A content strategy would be wise to know and meet the relevant stakeholder expectations of a particular industry.

Multi-Channel Strategy Leads to Domino Effect



In addition to the content, the channel strategy and the corresponding budget distribution have a big impact on the reputation. A multi-channel strategy, i.e. the use of all channels  Paid, Earned, Owned and Direct  can make up to 20.8 points in reputation measurement. Companies that reach their stakeholders across all four channels are therefore on average 20.8 points better rated.



In today's multi-channel world, it's also critical to capitalize on the multi-channel, domino effect. The use of the channels must be coordinated and strategically planned. For Switzerland, it has become apparent that owned channels have the greatest impact. The paid channels with the largest reach should therefore be used to steer the stakeholders to their own channels. These in turn should emphasize the most relevant core messages so they can be picked up by the paid channels.



The Methodology



The Switzerland RepTrak is the largest reputation study conducted in Switzerland. In more than 5,500 interviews, the Swiss have been interviewed over the past few months about their approach to selected companies. The overall assessment is based on the "emotional bond" of the general public with the company, which can be expressed in terms of "degree of trust", "admiration", "appreciation" and a "generally good feeling". This global assessment is broken down into the RepTrak Framework along the top seven reputation drivers:



Products/Services

Innovation

Workplace

Governance

Citizenship

Leadership

Performance

An "excellent" reputation corresponds to a RepTrak Pulse of 80 or more. A value of 70-79 is considered "strong", 60-69 is rated "average".



The 2018 reputation ranking comprises the companies managed in the SMI. In order to be able to measure industry trends consistently, Reputation Institute also examined (alphabetically) the following companies: Amag, Baloise, Bell, Coop, Denner, Mobiliar, Die Post, Emmi, Feldschlosschen, Groupe Mutuel, IWC Schaffhausen, Lindt & Sprungli, Logitech , Manor, Migrol, Migros, Omega, PostFinance, Raiffeisen, Rolex, SBB CFF FFS, Schindler, Swiss, Tissot, Triumph, Zurcher Kantonalbank.



Learn More and Get Your Companys Pulse Score:



On an annual basis, Reputation Institute (RI) measures the reputation of thousands of companies using its RepTrak framework. Its Global RepTrak 100 study measures the most highly regarded and familiar multinational companies in 15 countries.

To access the full list of the most reputable companies in Switzerland, please visit:

https://www.reputationinstitute.com/switzerland-reptrak-2018

To hear perspectives from RI experts on key trends, what they mean and how you can leverage RI insights to build and protect reputation capital, view webinars at:



http://www.reputationinstitute.com/events

To get your companys 2018 score and learn how to improve your ranking and grow stakeholder support, just ask us at:



https://www.reputationinstitute.com/about/contact-us

About Reputation Institute

Reputation Institute powers the worlds most reputable companies. By tracking and analyzing stakeholder perceptions, we unleash the power of reputation to enable leaders to build better companies. Our RepTrak model analyzes the reputations of companies and is best known as the Forbes-published Global RepTrak 100. Underlying the model is the RepTrak methodology, the global gold standard for measuring reputation. Learn more at:

http://www.reputationinstitute.com

Further information For additional information, please visit www.reputationinstitute.com or follow us on Twitter: @RI_Switzerland.
TORONTO, May 27, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cardinal Resources Limited (ASX:CDV) (TSX:CDV) (Cardinal or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has received encouraging results from its first pass shallow RC drilling designed to test one of the six coincident gold-in-soil and geophysical targets on the Ndongo License within the Bolgatanga Project, which is located ~15 km north of the Companys Namdini Gold Project with an Indicated Mineral Resource of 6.5 Moz Au (Figure 2).



Highlights

RC drilling has returned several shallow gold intersections from the first of six targets to be drilled including: NDRC130: 24m at 1.2 g/t Au from 2m , and 14m at 1.4 g/t Au from 46m NDRC131: 9m at 11.5 g/t Au from surface (includes 3m at 29.8 g/t Au) NDRC134 : 4m at 1.2 g/t Au from 20m NDRC137: 8m at 1.4 g/t Au from 1m

The results highlight the potential for discovery of gold mineralisation within the Ndongo License, located approximately 15 km north of Cardinals Namdini Gold deposit which currently contains 6.5 Moz Au Indicated and 0.5 Moz Inferred Mineral Resources.

Prospectivity of the area is enhanced due to its proximity to the prolific Nangodi Shear Zone which is known to host major economic gold mineralisation in northeast Ghana and Burkina Faso

Field crews are currently undertaking geological mapping, surface rock sampling, trenching and geophysical surveys to help identify new targets and refine existing targets

Cardinals Chief Executive Officer / Managing Director, Archie Koimtsidis stated:

We are highly encouraged with these early promising results at Target A  Prospect Zupeliga South (Figures 3, 4 and 5) particularly given the strong grades we are seeing near surface. These results strengthen our resolve that the Ndongo License is highly prospective with several untested drill targets which could deliver another significant gold discovery.

We are planning infill and extensional drilling with both RC and DD rigs to target the strike and dip extensions of the mineralisation which remains open.

Gold mineralisation has initially been located within an area of ~200m strike length by ~100m width within the larger Target A area which has a strike length of ~12km and a width of ~1.5km. At this early stage, mineralisation appears to be open along strike and at depth with further drilling planned.

Drill rigs will also be mobilised across the Ndongo License to test other target areas (Figures 3, 4 and 5).

The target area was originally highlighted following a soil sampling programme by AfricWest in 1997 and Etruscan Resources in 2007. A number of shallow high-grade gold intersections were returned from RAB drilling completed by Etruscan Resources in 2008. The results from the historical Etruscan Resources RAB drilling include:

NRB-08-399: 7.5m at 1.8 g/t Au from 33m

from 33m NRB-08-400: 19.5m at 1.2 g/t Au from 6m

from 6m NRB-08-404: 21.0m at 2.3 g/t Au from 6m

from 6m NRB-08-409: 18.0m at 3.4 g/t Au from surface Note: All the historical RAB drill data was collected by

Etruscan Resources Ghana Limited, now part of Endeavour

Mining Corporation (For details, refer to TSX announcement

by ABZU Gold on 23 January, 2013 entitled ABZU Gold

Announces Drilling Mobilisation For 2013, Targets Additional

Satellite Gold Mineralisation at Zupeliga).



Figure 1: Major Gold Discoveries in Burkina Faso, Cote dIvoire (Ivory Coast) and Ghana

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6224a371-f953-46cc-8baa-3feadba1a9ed

Ndongo Prospecting License

The Ndongo Prospecting License covers an area of 295 km2, having been recently expanded by the purchase of two exploration licence areas from Kinross Gold in August 2017 (Figure 2).

The license area is considered highly prospective for the discovery of economic gold mineralisation associated with the prolific Nangodi Shear Zone, a splay fault off the main regional-scale Bole-Bolgatanga Shear. Elsewhere, the Nangodi Shear Zone is spatially related to no fewer than four major gold discoveries, including the Companys Namdini Gold Project with 6.5 Moz Au Indicated and 0.5 Moz Au Inferred Mineral Resources, the Shaanxi Mine, the historic Nangodi Gold Mine and the 2.1 Moz Youga Gold Mine in Burkina Faso, adjacent to the Ghana border (Figures 1, 2 and 3). In addition, there are numerous historic shallow artisanal workings along many parts of this shear zone ~15 km north of the Namdini Gold Project (Figure 3).

Six exploration target areas totalling 70 km in strike length ~15 km north of the Namdini Gold Project have been initially identified for more detailed investigations through assessing geophysical, geochemical and geological data relevant to this Prospecting License (Figures 3 and 4).

Figure 2: Cardinals Three Large Scale Tenements comprising the Bolgatanga Project and the Namdini Project

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/31ff40e4-e772-4919-8e4f-3fb0941ed9bb

Ndongo Prospecting License - Target A  Prospect Zupeliga South

Target A was previously named Ndongo West prior to the acquisition of the surrounding Kinross ground. Numerous gold-in-soil anomalies, RAB drilling, shallow artisanal diggings and several deeper artisanal shafts all indicated the gold-bearing potential of this recently acquired area (Figures 3 and 4).

At Ndongo West, Gradient Array IP (GAIP) and ground magnetic surveys identified a very well-developed contact zone between conductive and resistive units, along which the artisanal shafts are located.

Once the former Kinross ground was added to Ndongo West, this extended the Target A strike length to 12 km and 1.5 km width and is now called Zupeliga South Prospect (Figure 5).

The prospect is underlain by weak to strongly magnetic mafic-ultramafic volcanic units which are intruded locally by granodiorite. The volcanic units are altered containing pyrite, minor pyrrhotite, magnetite, minor arsenopyrite and silica.

The geology of this prospect is more complex as folding has been identified with the fold axis orientated ~020, and the rock units striking ~300 and dipping north at ~60. The structures imply open anticlinal folds although plunges have yet to be determined.

Gold of variable grades is found within highly magnetised mafic volcanic horizons with disseminated sulphides and cross-cutting pyrite and smoky quartz veinlets. Higher gold grades occur within a sheared, less magnetic and siliceous altered inner zone within the magnetic corridor which also has cross-cutting pyrite and quartz veinlets.

Gold mineralisation has initially been located within an area of ~200 m strike length by ~100 m width within the larger Target A area which has a strike length of ~12 km and a width of ~1.5 km. At this early stage, mineralisation appears to be open along strike, especially along the fold axes, and at depth with further drilling planned to evaluate the two limbs of the anticlines.

Figure 3: Ndongo Prospecting License - Target Areas Over Geology

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/9cbcd95b-7f62-42d3-ada6-a149f96f220d

Figure 4: Ndongo Prospecting License - Target Areas Over Magnetics

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/69d9c170-9c83-424a-a6cd-e96b8276f3ed

Figure 5: Ndongo Prospecting License showing local prospects

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/222399d5-6566-4e3f-b5e2-184f75049933

Figure 6: Prospect Zupeliga South - Plan View - Interpretive Geology and Location of Cross Section Lines (Yellow Histograms are Historical values drilled by Etruscan Resources Ghana Ltd)

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6b1552cd-9d9d-4488-b3a8-3de0b31aa704

Figure 7: Prospect Zupeliga South - Cross Section (Section Line A-A)

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b9a8b09d-d220-4e2b-a7b1-b0b6c274625e

Figure 8: Prospect Zupeliga South - Cross Section (Section Line B - B)

http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/46be2b9c-aa0f-4413-94db-15f6b84629a8

ABOUT CARDINAL

Cardinal Resources Limited (ASX:CDV) (TSX:CDV) is a gold-focused exploration and development Company which holds interests in tenements within Ghana, West Africa.

The Companys Namdini Project has an Indicated Mineral Resource of 6.5 Moz of gold contained in 180 Mt at 1.1 g/t Au at a cut-off of 0.5 g/t Au and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 0.5 Moz of gold contained in 13 Mt @ 1.2 g/t Au at a cut-off of 0.5g/t Au.

The Company is focused on the development of the Namdini Project through advancing its PFS studies, supported by additional multi-disciplinary engineering and metallurgical activities.

Exploration programmes are also continuing at the Companys Bolgatanga (Northern Ghana) and Subranum (Southern Ghana) Projects.

For further information contact:

Archie Koimtsidis

CEO / MD

Cardinal Resources Limited

P: +61 8 6558 0573

Bettina Filippone

Renmark Financial Communications Inc

E: bfilippone@renmarkfinancial.com

P: +1 416 644 2020 or +1 514 939 3989

Alec Rowlands

IR / Corp Dev

Cardinal Resources Limited

P: +1 647 256 1922

Competent Persons / Qualified Persons Statement

The information in this press release is based on information prepared by Mr. Paul Abbott, a full-time employee of Cardinal Resources, who is a member of the Geological Society of South Africa. Mr. Abbott has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person, as defined in the 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves.

The information in this press release has been compiled and reviewed by Mr. Richard Bray, a Registered Professional Geologist with the Australian Institute of Geoscientists and Mr. Ekow Taylor, a Chartered Professional Geologist with the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. Mr. Bray and Mr. Taylor have more than five years experience relevant to the styles of mineralisation and type of deposits under consideration and to the activity which is being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person, as defined in the 2012 Edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves and as a Qualified Person as defined by the NI43-101 instrument. Mr. Bray and Mr. Taylor are full-time employees of Cardinal and hold equity securities in the Company. Mr. Bray and Mr. Taylor have consented to the inclusion of the matters in this report based on the information in the form and context in which it appears.

Disclaimer

This ASX / TSX press release has been prepared by Cardinal Resources Limited (ABN: 56 147 325 620) (Cardinal or the Company). Neither the ASX or the TSX, nor their regulation service providers accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.

This press release contains summary information about Cardinal, its subsidiaries and their activities, which is current as at the date of this press release. The information in this press release is of a general nature and does not purport to be complete nor does it contain all the information, which a prospective investor may require in evaluating a possible investment in Cardinal.

By its very nature exploration for minerals is a highrisk business and is not suitable for certain investors. Cardinals securities are speculative. Potential investors should consult their stockbroker or financial advisor. There are a number of risks, both specific to Cardinal and of a general nature which may affect the future operating and financial performance of Cardinal and the value of an investment in Cardinal including but not limited to economic conditions, stock market fluctuations, gold price movements, regional infrastructure constraints, timing of approvals from relevant authorities, regulatory risks, operational risks and reliance on key personnel and foreign currency fluctuations.

Except for statutory liability which cannot be excluded and subject to applicable law, each of Cardinals officers, employees and advisors expressly disclaim any responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of the material contained in this press release and excludes all liability whatsoever (including in negligence) for any loss or damage which may be suffered by any person as a consequence of any information in this Announcement or any error or omission here from. Except as required by applicable law, the Company is under no obligation to update any person regarding any inaccuracy, omission or change in information in this press release or any other information made available to a person nor any obligation to furnish the person with any further information. Recipients of this press release should make their own independent assessment and determination as to the Companys prospects, its business, assets and liabilities as well as the matters covered in this press release.

Forwardlooking statements

Certain statements contained in this press release, including information as to the future financial or operating performance of Cardinal and its projects may also include statements which are forwardlooking statements that may include, amongst other things, statements regarding targets, anticipated timing of the PEA on the Namdini project, estimates and assumptions in respect of mineral resources and anticipated grades and recovery rates, production and prices, recovery costs and results, capital expenditures and are or may be based on assumptions and estimates related to future technical, economic, market, political, social and other conditions. These forward  looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Cardinal, are inherently subject to significant technical, business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results reflected in such forwardlooking statements.

Cardinal disclaims any intent or obligation to update publicly or release any revisions to any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, circumstances or results or otherwise after todays date or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, other than required by the Corporations Act and ASX and TSX Listing Rules. The words believe, expect, anticipate, indicate, contemplate, target, plan, intends, continue, budget, estimate, may, will, schedule and similar expressions identify forwardlooking statements.

All forwardlooking statements made in this press release are qualified by the foregoing cautionary statements. Investors are cautioned that forwardlooking statements are not guarantees of future performance and accordingly investors are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forwardlooking statements due to the inherent uncertainty therein.





SCHEDULE 1

NDONGO LICENSE AREA DRILL RESULTS

Hole ID Depth (m) Dip Azimuth Grid_ID mEast mNorth mRL NDRC129 60 -61.4 201.6 WGS84_30N 746789.8 1195184.3 247.6 NDRC130 120 -59.9 202.0 WGS84_30N 746815.1 1195237.1 247.0 NDRC131 120 -62.6 202.1 WGS84_30N 746886.8 1195153.4 249.4 NDRC132 120 -61.3 202.2 WGS84_30N 746899.2 1195207.1 247.8 NDRC133 186 -60.8 200.5 WGS84_30N 746829.3 1195289.2 246.2 NDRC145 108 -60.4 200.0 WGS84_30N 746930.5 1195133.3 250.6 NDRC146 120 -59.1 196.3 WGS84_30N 746945.5 1195178.7 249.7 NDRC148 180 -61.1 203.2 WGS84_30N 746845.3 1195333.8 245.0 NDRC149 120 -59.9 199.8 WGS84_30N 746960.1 1195225.8 247.3 NDRC151 108 -61.0 203.9 WGS84_30N 746755.9 1195239.9 246.3 NDRC152 132 -59.3 200.8 WGS84_30N 746912.8 1195249.9 247.1 NDRC153 66 -60.0 203.0 WGS84_30N 746805.6 1195210.0 247.3 NDRC154 108 -60.0 205.1 WGS84_30N 746822.7 1195260.0 246.6 NDRC155 78 -59.5 198.8 WGS84_30N 746837.8 1195228.2 247.3 NDRC156 106 -60.9 201.3 WGS84_30N 746788.3 1195248.0 246.3 NDRC159 50 -59.5 200.8 WGS84_30N 746890.8 1195180.2 248.0 NDRC160 210 -60.2 202.2 WGS84_30N 746787.2 1195329.2 244.6 NDRC162 50 -60.5 199.7 WGS84_30N 746904.7 1195153.0 249.7 NDRC163 50 -59.7 199.6 WGS84_30N 746858.7 1195162.7 248.4 NDRC164 174 -59.4 199.6 WGS84_30N 746773.5 1195289.4 245.0

Table 1: Meta-Data Listing of Drill Holes

Hole_ID mFrom mTo mWidth Aug/t NDRC130 23 24 1 0.9 NDRC130 28 33 5 0.6 NDRC130 41 42 1 0.6 NDRC130 46 60 14 1.4 NDRC130 102 105 3 1.7 NDRC131 0 9 9 11.5 NDRC132 43 44 1 0.6 NDRC132 53 54 1 1.1 NDRC133 88 89 1 1.0 NDRC133 93 100 7 0.7 NDRC133 110 111 1 0.7 NDRC146 35 36 1 2.2 NDRC148 152 157 5 0.6 NDRC148 162 168 6 1.1 NDRC149 77 78 1 0.9 NDRC151 24 27 3 0.8 NDRC152 90 92 2 1.3 NDRC153 12 14 2 1.0 NDRC153 23 24 1 1.0 NDRC154 62 66 4 0.5 NDRC154 73 80 7 1.9 NDRC155 25 35 10 0.8 NDRC155 39 60 21 0.8 NDRC156 33 34 1 0.5 NDRC156 51 54 3 1.0 NDRC159 19 24 5 2.3 NDRC162 0 11 11 1.5 NDRC162 0 11 11 1.5 NDRC163 0 2 2 1.2 NDRC163 9 14 5 0.8 NDRC163 33 34 1 5.7 NDRC164 23 24 1 0.6 NDRC164 40 41 1 0.8 NDRC164 84 85 1 0.7

Table 2 Summary of Individual Intercepts



Notes:

Cut-off grade for reporting of each individual intercept is  0.5g/t Au with a maximum of 3m of consecutive internal dilution included within the intercept; only intercepts  1m are reported.

Intervals are RC chips which are sampled every 1m.

Samples are analysed for Au (SGS Lab FAA505 method) which is a 50g fire assay fusion with AAS instrument finish.

Grid coordinates are in WGS84 Zone 30 North.

The intercepts were calculated, using a 0.5g/t cut-off, which approximates the cut-off for Reasonable Prospects of Eventual Economic Extraction (RPEEE) as per the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (JORC Code) 2012 and the Canadian Institute of Mining (CIM) 2010 guidelines and internal dilution of no more than 3m at <0.5g/t Au.

APPENDIX 1

JORC CODE 2012 EDITION

TABLE 1 REPORTING OF EXPLORATION RESULTS

Section 1  Sampling Technique and Data

Criteria JORC Code Explanation Commentary Sampling techniques Nature and quality of sampling (e.g. cut channels, random chips, or specific specialised industry standard measurement tools appropriate to the minerals under investigation, such as down hole gamma sondes, or handheld XRF instruments, etc.). These examples should not be taken as limiting the broad meaning of sampling. Sampling is by reverse circulation (RC) holes.



Nature and quality of sampling is carried out under QAQC procedures as per industry standards.



Drilling samples are collected by a three-tier riffle splitter using downhole sampling hammers with nominal 127 to 140mm diameters. Include reference to measures taken to ensure sample representivity and the appropriate calibration of any measurement tools or systems used. Sampling is guided by Cardinal Resources protocols and Quality Control procedures as per industry standard.



To ensure representative sampling, 1m RC samples are collected from a cyclone, passing them through a three-tier riffle splitter, and taking duplicate samples every 20th sample.



Aspects of the determination of mineralisation that are Material to the Public Report.



In cases where industry standard work has been done this would be relatively simple (e.g. reverse circulation drilling was used to obtain 1 m samples from which 3 kg was pulverised to produce a 30 g charge for fire assay). In other cases, more explanation may be required, such as where there is coarse gold that has inherent sampling problems. Unusual commodities or mineralisation types (e.g. submarine nodules) may warrant disclosure of detailed information. The determination of mineralisation is based on observed alterations and lithological differences.



Drill samples are crushed through a RSD Boyd crusher to -2mm and pulverised via LM2 to a nominal 85% passing -75m.



A 200g sub-sample is taken for analysis. A 50g charge weight is fused with litharge-based flux, cupelled and the prill dissolved in aqua regia and gold tenor is determined by AAS. Drilling techniques Drill type (e.g. core, reverse circulation, openhole hammer, rotary air blast, auger, Bangka, sonic, etc.) and details (e.g. core diameter, triple or standard tube, depth of diamond tails, face-sampling bit or other type, whether core is oriented and if so, by what method, etc.). Reverse circulation drilling uses sampling hammer of nominal 127 to 140mm diameter.



The drill azimuths are orientated at 200, drilling south-southwest at an inclined angle of -60 and the initial drilling has been concentrated around the anticlinal axis.



All drill collars are surveyed using Trimble R8 RTK GPS with downhole surveying every 30m. Drill sample recovery Method of recording and assessing core and chip sample recoveries and results assessed. The method of recording chip sample recoveries was to enter the relevant data on a hand-held Motion F5te Tablet PC using a set of standard templates supplied by Maxwell Geoservices, Perth (Maxwell).



Reverse circulation sampling is good. Chips are logged, weighed and captured to the database. Sample recoveries are assessed by weighing 1m samples from the cyclone on a scale in the field and comparing with the theoretical volume contained in a 1m x 140mm diameter hole to calculate an estimated percentage sample recovery.



Measures taken to maximise sample recovery and ensure representative nature of the samples. At the rig, sampling systems are routinely cleaned to minimise the opportunity for contamination and drilling methods are focused on sample quality. The measures taken to maximize RC sample recovery are through a cyclone and a 3-tier riffle splitter. Each 1m sample is passed twice through the splitter before sampling to ensure maximum homogenisation of each sample and to collect an unbiased representative sample to be assayed.



The rigs have auxiliary compressors and boosters to help maintain dry samples. Where wet samples are encountered, the reverse circulation drilling is discontinued. Whether a relationship exists between sample recovery and grade and whether sample bias may have occurred due to preferential loss/gain of fine/coarse material. No relationship is seen to exist between sample recovery and grade, and no sample bias due to preferential loss/gain of any fine/coarse material due to the acceptable sample recoveries Logging Whether core and chip samples have been geologically and geotechnically logged to a level of detail to support appropriate Mineral Resource estimation, mining studies and metallurgical studies. All drill holes are fully logged. The lithology, alteration and geotechnical characteristics of core are logged directly to a digital format on a Field Toughbook laptop logging system following procedures and using Cardinal geologic codes. Data is imported into Cardinals central database after validation in LogChief. All geological logging is to a level of detail to support Mineral Resource estimation. Whether logging is qualitative or quantitative in nature. Core (or costean, channel, etc.) photography. Logging is both qualitative and quantitative depending on the field being logged. RC chips in trays are photographed both in dry and wet form. The total length and percentage of the relevant intersections logged. All holes are logged in full and to the total length of each drill hole. Sub-sampling techniques and sample preparation If core, whether cut or sawn and whether quarter, half or all core taken. All samples in this announcement are non-core If non-core, whether riffled, tube sampled, rotary split, etc. and whether sampled wet or dry. Samples are split using a three-tier riffle splitter. The majority of samples are dry. On occasions that wet samples are encountered, they are dried prior to splitting with a riffle splitter. For all sample types, the nature, quality and appropriateness of the sample preparation technique. Samples are sorted and dried in an oven for eight hours and weighed. They are then crushed to -2mm using a RSD Boyd crusher and a <1.0kg split is taken. The reject sample is retained in the original bag and stored. The split is pulverised in a LM2 to a nominal 85% passing 75m and a 200g sub-sample is used for analysis.



All preparation equipment is flushed with barren material prior to commencement of the job. Quality control procedures adopted for all sub-sampling stages to maximise representivity of samples. Cardinal Resources has protocols that cover the sample preparation at the laboratories and the collection and assessment of data to ensure that accurate steps are used in producing representative samples for the analytical process. Key performance indices include:

Contamination index of 95% (that is at least 95% of blanks pass); failures can only be attributed to probable minor laboratory contamination.

Crushed Size index of 95% passing 2mm (1:50 sample screened).

Grind Size index of 85% passing 75 microns (minimum 1:50 sample screened).

Check Samples returning at worst 20% precision at 90th percentile and bias of 5% or better. Crusher and pulveriser are flushed with barren material at the start of every batch. Measures taken to ensure that the sampling is representative of the in-situ material collected, including for instance results for field duplicate/secondhalf sampling. Sampling is carried out in accordance with Cardinal protocols as per industry best practice. Quality control procedures adopted for all sub-sampling stages to maximize representativeness of samples is to insert commercial certified reference material (CRM) for standards and blanks every 20 samples.



The Laboratory assays duplicate samples of each sample batch (20%) so that representation of the samples can be checked. Field duplicates have been taken and analysis of results have shown the sampling to be representative Whether sample sizes are appropriate to the grain size of the material being sampled. Measures taken to ensure that the RC sampling is representative of the in-situ material collected are to take field duplicate samples every 20th sample. Approximately 3kg samples from the splitter are retained from each sample and stored at the Companys secured premises for possible reassay.



Results of field duplicates, standards and blanks are all evaluated to ensure that the results of each assay batch are acceptable. Quality of Assay data and laboratory tests The nature, quality and appropriateness of the assaying and laboratory procedures used and whether the technique is considered partial or total. Samples are analysed for gold by lead collection fire assay of a 50g charge with AAS finish; the assay charge is fused with the litharge-based flux, cupelled and prill dissolved in aqua regia and gold tenor determined by flame AAS.



The analytical method is considered appropriate for the mineralisation style and is of industry standards. The quality of the Fire Assaying and laboratory procedures are considered to be entirely appropriate for this deposit type. For geophysical tools, spectrometers, handheld XRF instruments, etc., the parameters used in determining the analysis including instrument make and model, reading times, calibrations factors applied and their derivation, etc. No hand held geophysical tools are used. Nature of quality control procedures adopted (e.g. standards, blanks, duplicates, external laboratory checks) and whether acceptable levels of accuracy (i.e. lack of bias) and precision have been established. Sample preparation checks for pulp fineness are carried out by the laboratory as part of their internal procedures to ensure the grind size of 85% passing 75m is being attained. Laboratories QAQC involves the use of internal lab standards using CRMs and blanks.



Cardinals QAQC protocol is considered industry standard with CRMs submitted on a regular basis with routine samples. The CRMs having a range of values and blanks are inserted in the ratio of 1:20. Duplicates are taken at the riffle splitter every 20th sample.



Pulps are submitted to a secondary laboratory for checks on accuracy and precision of the primary laboratory. Coarse rejects are submitted back to the primary laboratory to assess the adequacy of the sub-sampling process. Verification of sampling and assaying The verification of significant intersections by either independent or alternative company personnel. Significant intersections have been verified by alternative company personnel. The use of twinned holes. None of the drill holes in this report are twinned. Documentation of primary data, data entry procedures, data verification, data storage (physical and electronic) protocols. Primary data are captured on field tough book laptops using LogChief Software. The software has validation routines and data is then imported onto a secure central database. Discuss any adjustment to assay data. The primary data is always kept and is never replaced by adjusted or interpreted data. Location of data points Accuracy and quality of surveys used to locate drill holes (collar and downhole surveys), trenches, mine workings and other locations used in Mineral Resource estimation. Planned drill hole collar coordinates are surveyed using handheld Garmin GPSmap 62s GPS within 3m accuracy.

All drill collars are accurately surveyed using Trimble R8 RTK GPS system within 10mm of accuracy (X, Y, Z).



Coordinates are based on six control stations established at the Ndongo License by Sahara Mining Services.



Downhole survey is completed by using Reflex Ez-Shot survey instrument at regular intervals. Specification of the grid system used. Coordinate and azimuth are reported in UTM WGS84 Zone 30 North. Quality and adequacy of topographic control. Topographic control at Ndongo was supplied by Southern Geoscience Consultants (Perth) using satellite imagery. Data spacing and distribution Data spacing for reporting of Exploration Results. The drilling was carried out on four fence lines that are 50m to 100m apart with hole spacing on line within 50m testing mineralisation up to a vertical depth of approximately 180m and covering a strike length of 200m Whether the data spacing and distribution is sufficient to establish the degree of geological and grade continuity appropriate for the Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimation procedure(s) and classifications applied. Drill data spacing and distribution are insufficient to establish geological and grade continuity that are appropriate for reporting Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves. Orientation of data in relation to geological structure Whether sample compositing has been applied. No sample compositing has been applied. Whether the orientation of sampling achieves unbiased sampling of possible structures and the extent to which this is known, considering the deposit type. The drill holes are orientated to achieve intersection angles as close to perpendicular to the mineralisation as practicable based on ground magnetic modelling data.



If the relationship between the drilling orientation and the orientation of key mineralised structures is considered to have introduced a sampling bias, this should be assessed and reported if material.



No significant orientation-based sampling bias is known at this time. Sample security The measures taken to ensure sample security. An independent Ghanaian security contractor is used to ensure sample security.



The drilling contractor is accountable for drill core and RC chip production at the drill site. Final delivery from the drill site to the laydown area within the core yard is managed by Cardinal. The core yard technicians, field technicians and Geologists ensure the core and chips are logged, prepared and stored under security until collected for delivery to the laboratories.



At the time of sample collection, a sign-off process between Cardinal and the laboratory delivery truck driver ensures that samples and paperwork correspond. The samples are then transported to the laboratory where they are receipted against the dispatch documents. The assay laboratories are responsible for the samples from the time of collection from Cardinal until final results are returned and checked by Cardinal Geologists.



Sample pulps and coarse rejects are retained by the laboratories and are shipped back to Cardinal after final results are returned where they are stored under security. Audits or reviews The results of any audits or reviews of sampling techniques and data. Sampling techniques are of industry standards. Data is audited by Maxwell Geoservices (Perth), who have not made any other recommendations.





Section 2  Reporting of Exploration Results

(Criteria listed in section 1 will also apply to this section where relevant)

Criteria JORC Code Explanation Commentary Mineral Tenement and Land Status Type, name/reference number, location and ownership including agreements or material issues with third parties including joint ventures, partnerships, overriding royalties, native title interests, historical sites, wilderness or national park and environmental settings. The Exploration Permit covering Cardinals Ndongo Prospect is over an area of 295 sq. km located in the North-East region of Ghana. The security of the tenure held at the time of reporting along with any known impediments to obtaining a license to operate in the area. All tenements are current and in good standing. Exploration Done by Other Parties Acknowledgment and appraisal of exploration by other parties. Aside from Cardinal, systematic exploration was previously undertaken on the Ndongo Licence by Etruscan Resources. Geology



Deposit type, geological setting and style of mineralisation The deposit type comprises gold mineralisation within sheared and folded rocks containing sulphides; mainly pyrite with minor arsenopyrite.



The geological setting is a Paleoproterozoic Greenstone Belt comprising Birimian metavolcanics, volcaniclastics and metasediments located along portion of the regional Bole-Bolgatanga Shear Zone and a splay off this Shear Zone (the Nangodi Shear Zone).



The style of mineralisation is yet to be determined Drill hole information A summary of all information material to the understanding of the exploration results including tabulation of the following information for all Material drill holes: Easting and northing of the drill hole collar

Elevation or RL (Reduced Level  elevation above sea level in meters) of the drill hole collar

Dip and azimuth of the hole

Down hole length and interception depth

Hole length A summary of drill hole information is provided in this document. If the exclusion of this information is justified on the basis that the information is not Material and this exclusion does not detract from the understanding of the report, the Competent Person should clearly explain why this is the case. There has been no exclusion of information. Data aggregation methods In reporting Exploration Results, weighting averaging techniques, maximum and/or minimum grade truncations (e.g. cutting of high grades) and cutoff grades are usually Material and should be stated. No weighting averaging techniques nor cutting of high grades have yet been undertaken.



Where aggregated intercepts incorporate short lengths of high grade results and longer lengths of low grade results, the procedure used for such aggregation should be stated and some typical examples of such aggregations should be shown in detail. Aggregated intercepts incorporating short lengths of high grade results within the lithological units are calculated to include no more than intervals of 3m below grades of <0.5 g/t Au when assay results are reported.



The assumptions used for any reporting of metal equivalent values should be clearly stated. No metal equivalents are used in the intersection calculation. Relationship between mineralisation widths and intercept lengths These relationships are particularly important in the reporting of exploration results. The relationship between mineralisation widths and intercept length are not yet known. If the geometry of the mineralisation with respect to the drill hole angle is known, its nature should be reported. The geometry of the mineralisation with respect to the drill hole angle is not yet known.



If it is not known and only the down hole lengths are reported, there should be a clear statement to this effect (e.g. down hole length, true width not known). The geometry of the mineralisation is unknown; only downhole length is reported (no true width of mineralisation is reported). Diagrams Appropriate maps and sections (with scales) and tabulations of intercepts should be included for any significant discovery being reported. These should include, but not be limited to a plane view of drill hole collar locations and appropriate sectional views. Appropriate maps and cross-sections with scale are included within the body of the accompanying document. Balanced Reporting Where comprehensive reporting of all Exploration Results is not practical, representative reporting of both low and high grades and/or widths should be practiced to avoid misleading reporting of Exploration Results. The accompanying document is considered to represent a balanced report. Other substantive exploration data Other exploration data, if meaningful and material, should be reported including (but not limited to): geological observation; geophysical survey results; geochemical survey results; bulk samples  size and method of treatment; metallurgical test results; bulk density, groundwater, geotechnical and rock characteristics; potential deleterious or contaminating substances. Other exploration data collected is not considered material to this document at this stage.



The interpretation of the geological observations shown in the cross and long sections are subject to possible change as new information is gathered.



Further data collection will be reviewed and reported when considered material. Further Work The nature and scale of planned further work (e.g. tests for lateral extensions or depth extensions or large  scale step  out drilling).







Diagrams clearly highlighting the areas of possible extensions, including the main geological interpretations and future drilling areas, provided this information is not commercially sensitive. Further definition drilling and geophysical surveys are planned for the Ndongo Prospect.






GMATNinja wrote:

loserunderachiever wrote:

Rumikido3 wrote: During the early 1890s, while at the same time a student, Willa Cather had written theater and music reviews that were often uncompromising in their criticisms.



A) During the early 1890s, while at the same time a student, Willa Cather had written

B) While a student in the early 1890s, Willa Cather wrote

C) Willa Cather had written, while as a student in the early 1890s,

D) Willa Cather wrote, as she was a student in the early 1890s,

E) While a student in the early 1890s, Willa Cather became known for her





This is also a 800score question.. I will appreciate your analysis.



Well , I'm still not convinced with B as an answer , as all the newbies have posted their analysis , most of them looks like an odd guess.



Any experts on this ? Application of while in option B ? is it making sense ?

Well , I'm still not convinced with B as an answer , as all the newbies have posted their analysis , most of them looks like an odd guess.Any experts on this ? Application of while in option B ? is it making sense ?

The intention of the question-writer is that "while" indicates that two things happen simultaneously ("While eating his weight in burritos, Charlie was happy."). And that's completely fine.However, you'll want to take this one with a huge grain of salt, since it's a non-official question. Some of you are probably tired of hearing me say this, but the GMAT spends between $1500 and $3000 developing each individual GMAT question, and even the best test-prep companies can't compete with that. And this one just doesn't quite feel like a GMAT question to me.The use of "while" (indicating two simultaneous events) is perfectly acceptable in (B), but "while" can also be a synonym for "although" -- so the exact meaning of "while" in (B) is arguably a little bit confusing, and I'm not sure that you'd see an official GMAT question with this issue. So don't worry about this one too much.I hope this helps!
if the working classes controlled the economic system, then

You've been walking the ocean's edge, holding up your robes to keep them dry. You must dive naked under, and deeper under, a thousand times deeper! - Rumi



http://www.manhattangmat.com/blog/index.php/author/cbermanmanhattanprep-com/ - This is worth its weight in gold



Economist GMAT Test - 730, Q50, V41 Aug 9th, 2013

Manhattan GMAT Test - 670, Q45, V36 Aug 11th, 2013

Manhattan GMAT Test - 680, Q47, V36 Aug 17th, 2013

GmatPrep CAT 1 - 770, Q50, V44 Aug 24th, 2013

Manhattan GMAT Test - 690, Q45, V39 Aug 30th, 2013

Manhattan GMAT Test - 710, Q48, V39 Sep 13th, 2013

GmatPrep CAT 2 - 740, Q49, V41 Oct 6th, 2013



GMAT - 770, Q50, V44, Oct 7th, 2013

My Debrief - http://gmatclub.com/forum/from-the-ashes-thou-shall-rise-770-q-50-v-44-awa-5-ir-162299.html#p1284542 Signature Read More

Marxist theorists believe that the interests of the working class ultimately align with those of humanity in general. They claim that those who control the means of production are able to unfairly subject the working class to substandard working conditions and wages, while extorting the maximum possible prices for their products from consumers. Marxists therefore believe that__________.A. The owners of the means of production could not be depended upon to charge as much as necessary for their products to enable the owners to pay a fair working wage to laborers.The owners are the workers and they can be depended on to not overwork the working class and be depended on to charge a fair price. FalseB. Market forces would cause the most successful commercial entities to monopolize the market.IrrelevantC. Consumer goods would be less expensive.This can be inferred from the statement.D. The free market would favor producers who are able to provide the highest quality product at the lowest possible price.Nothing about quality in question stemE. Communist methods of production and distribution would still not replace the capitalist system, despite its costs to the working class.Communist methods would replace the capitalist system. False anyways_________________
Omega Corporation has hired two management consultant firms, ManageFix [ #permalink

1 Kudos
Oxford Said vs. MIT Sloan [May 31 Deadline] [ #permalink

Hi all, I would greatly appreciate your input on this decision. My gut leans one way, but my finances lean another. Since I have incomplete information, I'd love to hear wider thoughts on this matter.



LATE 20s

Work Experience: Consulting + Engineering [several years each]

Post-MBA: Technology-focused Social Entrepreneurship

Citizenship: British, but worked/lived in US last ~10 years (H-1B)

Desired Location: US or UK (preference for US immediately post-MBA)



Oxford Said vs. MIT Sloan



I'm going to assume we're all on the same page re: generally publicly available information on these schools, so I'm going to list the two factors most important to me. If you think I'm omitting some potentially crucial issues, do let me know!



(1) FUNDING : Having been back at school for 2 years (masters), I'm already under water at this point. Both schools have generously offered partial funding, and Sloan is slightly more expensive on paper. However, I have an excellent credit record in the US (and have none in the UK), and I have a US sponsor who is unfortunately unwilling to shoulder forex risk. All things considered, I feel much more comfortable about financing for Sloan. This is especially important since I'm targeting a space that I really love, but does not pay nearly as well/ consistently as bread-and-butter consulting/engineering.



(2) CAREER : I'm also very sure of the space I want to be in (tech-focused social entrepreneurship). My understanding is that visa/ green card issues in this space are problematic even if I graduated with a US degree, so going the UK route is not a severe disadvantage. At the same time, if I were to start my own thing (not unlikely), it is my impression that this is much easier (in terms of garnering support and investors) in the US. I know Said quite well, and there should be a good amount of like-minded people /potential mentorship in the program. Any thoughts on Sloan? I did not have a chance to visit...



DEADLINE: Sloan's deadline is May 31. Said's deadline is a week after. Funding at Said could increase (but odds are very, very slim), and I might find out the first week of June. Assuming I don't get lucky on that front, I have been advised by friends and colleagues to accept Sloan. But this all feels a bit of a gamble to me in terms of the school/program, since I have not visited at all, while I know Said and it does fit me (and vice versa) quite well. Basically, rationale says Sloan, but gut says Said. I would love to hear all of your thoughts, esp. on Sloan, which I don't know well!!



(FWIW, I'm not ruling out waiting a year to get my finances in order before re-applying, possibly to additional schools. I only applied ~R3 to several schools this year, and based on the process/results I believe I have a pretty good shot at a lot of places. But I'd rather not complicate things, and besides, that's a whole different story for another day..)



Thank you so much!!
As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ
Memorial Day in the United States is a time for remembering the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. armed forces.

Families especially want to remember the stories of relatives or ancestors who served.

For one family, the discovery of a warplane that crashed into the Pacific Ocean during World War II brought welcome knowledge about one of their own, Tom Kelly.

Kelly grew up on a farm in Northern California in the 1930s. He dreamed of becoming a cowboy. But World War II changed his plans.

Kelly enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Forces. He became a 2nd lieutenant in the crew of a B-24 bomber.

But on March 11, 1944, Japanese anti-aircraft fire struck his plane, named Heaven Can Wait. It crashed in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Papua New Guinea.

The discovery of the plane wreckage has brought a new understanding of Kelly, especially among his younger relatives.

Relatives recover memory of Kelly

Scott Althaus is one of those relatives.

This discovery of where the wreck is, of seeing pictures and videos of the wreck on the floor of Hansa Bay. My goodness, it brings closure in a way we didnt expect, he said.

On Memorial Day five years ago, Althaus launched a project to learn everything he could about Tom Kelly. Soon the whole family was involved.

The family wanted to know about the young serviceman on the Heaven Can Wait.

Althaus discovered a lot about the young man.

He was a very gregarious man. He kept up correspondence with I think 38 different people stateside while he was overseas. He was just well-liked, said Althaus.

One year ago, the Kelly family turned over what they learned to Project Recover. The group is a team of marine scientists, historians, archeologists, divers and others who are seeking military crash sites. They want to find the final resting place for those listed as Missing in Action.

Project Recover announced the discovery of the Heaven Can Wait wreckage before Memorial Day. It said the familys research greatly assisted the search for the plane. The team used stories from eyewitnesses, military reports, flight documents and personal writings of crew members.

Eric Terrill helped establish Project Recover. He also works at San Diegos Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Terrill said it was the first time that the family of a missing in action (MIA) military member provided his group such support.

The results from our efforts in Hansa Bay have stirred a mix of lasting emotions within our team and drives home the need to recognize the sacrifices that service members and their families make in protecting our freedoms, Terrill said.

The team will give its findings to the Department of Defenses POW/MIA Accounting Agency. That office seeks to recover the remains of those missing in action.

Althaus said, if his cousins body is recovered, the family hopes for a burial in Kellys hometown of Livermore, California.

And, he said, he hopes that, this Memorial Day, other families revisit the stories of their lost relatives who served in the U.S. armed forces.

Im Mario Ritter.

The Associated Press reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

closure n. a feeling that something has been completed or reached a conclusion

gregarious adj. enjoying the company of other people

correspondence n. the activity of writing letters, emails or other written communications to others

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.
A fresh look at old data is giving scientists a new reason to consider Europa, a moon orbiting the planet Jupiter, as a leading candidate in the search for life beyond Earth.

The reason: evidence of water from the moon shooting into space.

NASA, the American space agency, noted an unusual shape -- a bend -- in Europas magnetic field in 1997. That was the year when NASAs Galileo spacecraft passed close to the moon. For a time, it was about 200 kilometers above the surface.

Scientists reported earlier this month on their reexamination of the Galileo data. They now think this bend in the magnetic field could be explained by an active geyser in an underground ocean. The scientists believe the spacecraft traveled through a plume of water.

Elizabeth Turtle is a planetary scientist with the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. She told reporters that Europa does have a lot of the qualities that are necessary for life was we know it.

Theres water. Theres energy. Theres some amount of carbon material. But the habitability of Europa is one of the big questions that we want to understand, said Turtle.

And one of the really exciting things about detection of a plume is that that means there may be ways that the material from the ocean  which is likely the most habitable part of Europa because its warmer and its protected  to come out above the ice shell, she added.

University of Michigan space physicist Xianzhe Jia led the latest study, which was published in the journal Nature Astronomy.

The findings support other evidence of plumes from Europa, whose ocean may contain two times as much water as all of Earths oceans. In 2012, NASAs Hubble Space Telescope collected evidence of ultraviolet radiation which suggests a plume.

NASA will get a close-up look from a new spacecraft as part of the space agencys Europa Clipper mission. That spacecraft could be launched as soon as June 2022. The agency says this could provide a chance to examine plumes for signs of life from Europas ocean, some of which may be microscopic.

Experts consider Europa to be among the top candidates for life in our solar system. But it is not the only one.

For example, NASAs Cassini spacecraft examined plumes from Enceladus, a moon of the planet Saturn. The water from Enceladuss ocean contained hydrogen from hydrothermal vents, an environment that may have given rise to life on Earth.

Europa is a little smaller than Earths moon. Its ocean is buried under about 15 to 25 kilometers of ice. Experts believe the ocean itself to be anywhere from 60 to 150 kilometers deep.

Im Pete Musto.

Will Dunham first reported this story for the Reuters news service. Pete Musto adapted his report for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

What do you think scientists will find in Europas oceans? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

______________________________________________________________

QUIZ

Quiz - Jupiters Moon Europa May Be Top Candidate for Life Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

data  n. facts or information used usually to calculate, analyze, or plan something

geyser  n. a hole in the ground that shoots out hot water and steam

plume  n. something, such as smoke, steam, or water, that rises into the air in a tall, thin shape

habitability  adj. the ability of a place or location to support life

exciting  adj. causing feelings of interest and enthusiasm

detection  n. the act or process of discovering, finding, or noticing something

journal  n. a magazine that reports on things of special interest to a particular group of people

mission  n. a task or job that someone is given to do

solar system  n. our sun and the planets that move around it

hydrothermal vent(s)  n. an opening in a planet's surface from which naturally heated water issues
One of the things the United States is known for is a separation between church and state. But those exact words do not appear in the U.S. Constitution.

Instead, Americans point to a line in the First Amendment that says, Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion. In other words, the U.S. government is not permitted to declare and support a national religion.

In 1971, the Supreme Court sought to clarify this idea in a case called Lemon versus Kurtzman.

Alton Lemon was a teacher in the state of Pennsylvania. David Kurtzman was a top school official there.

Lemon objected to the state giving money to teachers in Catholic schools, even though those people were teaching non-religious subjects, such as math.

Lemon objected because, in this country, taxpayers support only public schools. Parents who want their children to go to religious schools pay for that education themselves.

A majority of Supreme Court justices agreed with Lemon. But their reasoning surprised many people. The aim was not to punish religious schools. Instead, the justices wanted to protect them from government intervention. They worried that state officials could influence the teachers or the classes they taught. The price of state funding, the justices said, was just too high to pay.

Kelly Jean Kelly wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

________________________________________________________________

QUIZ

Quiz - Lemon vs Kurtzman 1971 Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

clarify - v. to make something clear or clearer
The rate of imprisonment in the United States is the highest in the world. Many lawmakers and policy experts have called the situation a prison epidemic.

But, Representative Hakeem Jeffries, a Democratic Party member from New York, told VOA the beginning of the end of the epidemic started on Tuesday.

Jeffries helped introduce the First Step Act.

The bill is a bipartisan prison reform law. It passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a 360-59 vote. Jeffries says it "strikes an opening blow against the overcriminalization of the nation.

U.S. President Donald Trump said the strong bipartisan vote opens the way for action by the Senate. Last week, Trump endorsed the bill at a White House conference on prison reform. He said that the U.S. gains a lot if former prisoners are able to reenter society as productive citizens who obey the law.

If the bill passes the Senate and is signed by the president, it would provide $50 million in financing for five years. The money would pay for job training, education and drug abuse treatment for prisoners. It would also provide a number of measures aimed at reducing high rates of recidivism among former prisoners.



Opposing views

But the issue of criminal justice reform has split Democrats and Republicans within their political parties. And that may hurt the bills chances of passage as it goes to the U.S. Senate.

In a letter last week, five members of Congress said the bill could not be carried out effectively and could possibly lead to the privatization of prisons.

They include Senators Kamala Harris, Dick Durbin and Cory Booker and House Representatives John Lewis and Sheila Jackson Lee. All are Democratic Party members.

Jeffries told VOA many of the arguments against the First Step Act were based on false ideas.

He added that the bills passage "is a first step towards ending the cancer of mass incarceration." Republicans in the House also welcomed the bill.

Bob Goodlatte, a Republican from Virginia, is the House Judiciary Chairman. On the House floor Tuesday, he said, Rather than allowing the cycle of crime to continue, this bill takes a useful and intelligent approach to rehabilitation.

The bill represents the first major criminal justice reform effort since the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010. That measure reduced the difference in mandatory minimum sentences between drug offenders possessing two kinds of cocaine. Before the Act, those possessing crack cocaine faced sentences greater than those possessing powdered cocaine. The bills supporters said this unfairly affected African Americans.

But the First Step Act faces much opposition in the Senate. There, a bipartisan group of senators is pushing for more complete criminal justice reform.

An opposing bill is the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act. It has received strong support by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, a Republican. The bill calls for lower sentences for nonviolent, low-level offenders and gives judges greater choices for sentencing.

More than 20 senators have signed on to the bill, but the Trump administration opposes the measure.

Sentencing laws

Required minimum sentences for drug offenses came into use in the 1970s and 1980s. They are widely blamed for a sharp rise in the number of U.S. prisoners in the last several years.

In recent years, the number of U.S. prisoners has fallen. But, the Bureau of Prisons says nearly half of the 184,000 prisoners currently held in federal prisons are serving time for drug crimes.

Observers say the disagreement in Congress over prison reform is similar to a disagreement among supporters of reforming Americas criminal justice system.

On one side of the debate is a group of more than 100 organizations. It includes the American Civil Liberties Union and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. These groups opposed the bill passed by the House. They said it would not be able to bring about meaningful criminal justice reform.

In a letter last Monday, the group said the House bill fails to deal with racial inequalities, problems with mandatory minimums, overcrowding, lack of rehabilitation and the high cost of imprisonment.

At the other side of the debate is a group of more than 70 organizations that support the legislation. It includes Koch Industries, headed by the conservative billionaire Koch brothers, and Families Against Mandatory Minimums, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit group that opposes such laws.

Kevin Ring, the groups president, said the chances of sentencing reform under the Trump administration are low.

For this reason, he said, Congress is likely to only pass prison reform.

What we dont want to do is make the perfect the enemy of the good: kill a bill that has modest reforms that will help real people just because were waiting for something thats not likely to happen in this administration, Ring said.

Ring said he hopes negotiations in the Senate can lead to a compromise between the First Step Act and the bill supported by Grassley.

Im Phil Dierking. And Im Alice Bryant.

Masood Farivar and Katherine Gypson wrote this story for VOA News. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor. ______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

epidemic n. when a disease spreads quickly to many people

bipartisan adj. related to or involving members of two parties

endorse v. to support

recidivism n. when people continue to commit crimes after they have been caught and punished

cycle n. events that happen again and again

rehabilitation n. to bring someone or something back to normal or back to health after they have been sick or have had problems

mandatory minimum adj. related to a required least amount of something
Bluegreen Vacations Holding Corp. is a holding company, which engages in the real estate, real estate joint ventures, and middle market operating businesses. It operates through the following segments: Bluegreen, BBX Capital Real Estate, Renin, and BBX Sweet Holdings. The Bluegreen segment markets, sells, and manages real estate-based vacation ownership interests in resorts located in popular, high-volume, and drive-to vacation destinations. The BBX Capital Real Estate segment includes acquisition, development, construction, ownership, financing, and management of real estate and investments in real estate joint ventures. The Renin segment involves in the design, manufacture, and distribution of sliding doors, door systems and hardware, and home decor products and operates. The BBX Sweet Holdings segment engages in the ownership and management of operating businesses in the confectionery industry, including IT'SUGAR, Hoffman's Chocolates, and Las Olas Confections and Snacks. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Read More
 American Consumer News, LLC dba MarketBeat 2010-2021. All rights reserved.

326 E 8th St #105, Sioux Falls, SD 57103 | U.S. Based Support Team at [email protected] | (844) 978-6257

MarketBeat does not provide personalized financial advice and does not issue recommendations or offers to buy stock or sell any security.



Our Accessibility Statement | Terms of Service | Do Not Sell My Information



 2021 Market data provided is at least 10-minutes delayed and hosted by Barchart Solutions. Information is provided 'as-is' and solely for informational purposes, not for trading purposes or advice, and is delayed. To see all exchange delays and terms of use please see disclaimer. Fundamental company data provided by Zacks Investment Research.
NGL Energy Partners LP is an energy partnership that transports, treats, recycles, and disposes of produced water generated as part of the energy production process. It also transports, stores, markets, and provides other logistics services for crude oil and liquid hydrocarbons. The firm operates through the following segments: Water Solutions, Crude Oil Logistics, Liquids Logistics, and Corporate & Other. The Water Solutions segment transports, treats, recycles, and disposes of produced and flow back water generated from oil and natural gas production. The Crude Oil Logistics segment purchases crude oil from producers and marketers and transports it to refineries or for resale at pipeline injection stations, storage terminals, barge loading facilities, rail facilities, refineries, and other trade hubs. The Liquids Logistics segment conducts supply operations for natural gas liquids, refined petroleum products and biodiesel to a range of commercial, retail and industrial customers across the United States and Canada. The Corporate & Other segment include corporate expenses that are not allocated to the reportable segments. The company was founded in 1940 and is headquartered in Tul

Read More
American Electric Power Co., Inc. engages in the business of generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. It operates through the following segments: Vertically Integrated Utilities, Transmission & Distribution Utilities, AEP Transmission Holdco and Generation & Marketing. The Vertically Integrated Utilities segment engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers through assets owned and operated by its subsidiaries. The Transmission & Distribution Utilities segment engages in the business of transmission and distribution of electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers through assets owned and operated by its subsidiaries. The AEP Transmission Holdco segment engages in the development, construction and operation of transmission facilities through investments in its wholly-owned transmission subsidiaries and joint ventures. The Generation & Marketing segment engages in non-regulated generation and marketing, risk management and retail activities. The company was founded on December 20, 1906 and is headquartered in Columbus, OH.

Read More
Pakistan has exploded five underground nuclear devices in response to Indias nuclear tests two weeks ago.

The move has provoked worldwide condemnation and fears of a nuclear conflict in one of the worlds most volatile regions.

Pakistani officials said the devices were detonated underground at 1030GMT in the Baluchistan region near the border with Afghanistan.

Shortly afterwards, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif addressed the nation on television and said the five tests by India had made the action inevitable.

Todays day is history in the making, he said. Today God has given us the opportunity to take this step for our countrys defence which is inevitable. We never wanted to participate in this nuclear race. We have proved to the world that we would not accept what was dictated to us.

The prime minister said Pakistans response was fully supported by its people and attacked the international community for a weak response to Indias tests.

But after his national address, he said he was ready for more talks with India on a non-aggression pact.

There was uproar in the Indian parliament when the news was announced. The Indian Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, said Pakistans action vindicated Indias decision to conduct tests of its own.

The western nations were quick to condemn Pakistans action. US President Bill Clinton said Pakistan had missed a truly priceless opportunity by not showing restraint. He said Pakistan would now face sanctions.

Nato said the tests were a dangerous development and also warned of sanctions.

Ever since the partition of the sub-continent in 1947, when Britain dismantled its Indian empire, India and Pakistan have been arch rivals. The animosity has its roots in religion and history, and is epitomised by the long-running conflict over the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

Now they have not only entered a new nuclear arms race but expanded the club of nuclear powers across the globe which includes the US, Russia, China, Britain, France, North Korea and Israel.

Optimists hope India and Pakistans nuclear parity will now lead to serious and constructive peace talks.

Courtesy BBC News

In context

In February 1999 relations between the two Asian rivals eased after they signed the Lahore accord pledging to resolve all issues including that of the disputed regions of Jammu and Kashmir.

But conflict broke out just three months later when India launched air strikes on Pakistani-backed forces that had infiltrated Indian-administered Kashmir. Pakistan insisted those forces were in fact freedom fighters demanding their own state.

The ensuing military build-up in the region led at least 30,000 people to flee their homes.

Under US pressure, Pakistan ordered the infiltrators out of the region.

October 1999 saw a military coup in Pakistan with General Pervez Musharraf taking power.

In 2002 Pakistan and India came close to all-out war but talks between the countries two leaders in January 2004 led to hopes of peace.
The Williams Cos., Inc. operates as an energy infrastructure company, which explores, produces, transports, sells and processes natural gas and petroleum products. It operates through the following segments: Transmission and Gulf of Mexico; Northeast G&P; and West. The Transmission and Gulf of Mexico segment comprises of interstate natural gas pipelines, Transco and Northwest Pipeline, as well as natural gas gathering and processing and crude oil production handling and transportation assets in the Gulf Coast region. The Northeast G&P segment includes midstream gathering, processing, and fractionation businesses in the Marcellus Shale region primarily in Pennsylvania and New York, and the Utica Shale region of eastern Ohio. The West segment consists of gas gathering, processing, and treating operations in the Rocky Mountain region of Colorado and Wyoming, the Barnett Shale region of north-central Texas, the Eagle Ford Shale region of south Texas, the Haynesville Shale region of northwest Louisiana, and the Mid-Continent region which includes the Anadarko, Arkoma, and Permian basins. The company was founded by David Williams and Miller Williams in 1908 and is headquartered in Tulsa,

Read More
Oil States International, Inc. engages in the provision of specialty products and services to drilling, completion, subsea, production, and infrastructure sectors of the oil and gas industry. It operates through the following segments: Well Site Services, Downhole Technologies and Offshore or Manufactured Products. The Well Site Services segment consists of completion and drilling services such equipment and services that are used to drill for, establish, and maintain the flow of oil and natural gas from a well throughout its life cycle focuses on completion-focused equipment and services as well as land drilling services. The Downhole Technologies segment provides oil and gas perforation systems and downhole tools in support of completion, intervention, wireline and abandonment operations. The Offshore or Manufactured Products segment designs, manufactures, and markets capital equipment utilized on floating production systems, subsea pipeline infrastructure, and offshore drilling rigs and vessels, along with short-cycle and other products. The company was founded in July 1995 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.

Read More
A new blockchain startup named TariLabs has been set up in Johannesburg with the aim of building the open source Tari blockchain protocol.

The startup is headed by Monero lead maintainer Riccardo fluffypony Spagni, US-based entrepreneur Naveen Jain, and Ticketfly founder Dan Teree.

The Tari blockchain protocol is being constructed as a platform for the management, trade, and use of digital assets, and will be merge-mined with the Monero blockchain.

TariLabs will contribute heavily to the project, and its team of developers require a specific set of skills and aptitudes.

MyBroadband spoke to Spagni and Jain about what they look for when hiring developers for their blockchain development team.

Studying and experience

Spagni said that from an education perspective, a relevant degree could be advantageous  but it is not necessary.

Im not convinced that university is at all applicable to real life. I think that university teaches you one thing and one thing only  and that is to finish what you start, start Spagni.

A computer sciences degree is not a terrible thing, but it can also be a distraction as you are learning all the principles of computer science, he said.

He said that ultimately, you can acquire the relevant skills from working on different projects and being interested in learning how systems work.

TariLabs does not look for developers with experience in the blockchain industry, but rather those with an aptitude for working under tight constraints.

Spagni warned that blockchain protocols are limited systems which can be very difficult to build properly.

A blockchain protocol is not a pretty system  its lots of APIs, loosely-coupled microservices, and disk I/O issues, he said.

Low-level apps

Jain told MyBroadband that TariLabs is interested in hiring developers with experience building software under heavy constraints.

We think that developers who have experience building lower-level applications are really valuable to blockchain projects, said Jain.

Ultimately, blockchain systems have many constraints, and having that ethos and understanding is really important.

TariLabs has interviewed electrical engineers, developers who have only worked on firmware, and people with experience in similar low-level software environments.

This type of low-level application work is the most similar to the work required to build the Tari blockchain protocol, and developers who can apply this mindset to blockchain-based problems stand out from the crowd.

We are very excited to be building our team here in Johannesburg, we think there are so many untapped resources here, said Jain.

Building our primary dev team in Johannesburg is wonderful for the TariLabs organisation, but we also think it is fantastic for South Africa, because you have a truly cutting-edge blockchain protocol project that is being developed locally, he said.
Traveling outside her community, on a month-long trip to Africa, Pentland was inspired to take her art in a new direction.

In 2015, Pentland lived with 31 cheetahs in Nambia for two weeks at the Cheetah Conservation Fund.

I got to feed them and clean up their pens. I also got to exercise them from a truck. I filmed two cheetahs from the back of a pickup truck as they chased the truck for pieces of liver the volunteers would throw at them, Pentland said, glowing with excitement as she recalled her time with the cheetahs.

The absolute highlight of it all was going into the wilderness with the cheetah handler to track a released cat with cubs, she continued. It was like National Geographic. There had been a fire  not like fire here  it was so low they just let it burn out.

As Pentland and the handler drove through the bush, they passed little fires in their search for the cheetah. When the dogs smelled the cheetah, which was wearing a tracking collar, the handler warned Pentland that the cheetah would be aggressive.

He called to the cheetah, like a lover. Moments later, this wild thing came bounding out of the wilderness, Pentland said. I got my camera ready but was so startled that I got no video.
A decade later, I was in the same situation. I was returning home from my first business trip. This trip to enchanting Davenport, Iowa also marked my first solo trip. Every other time Ive flown by myself, I was meeting up with family or friends. This was my first lone wolf trip, and I knew it wasnt going to go smoothly.

Id warned my boss and my editor about my history with Chicago International and told them I wouldnt be surprised if I ended up getting stuck there.

Typically, I enjoy being right, but not this time.

My puddle jumper flight to Chicago was delayed by a thunderstorm, which also delayed my connecting flight to California, so I wasnt too worried, but in the end, my Sacramento-bound flight left without me. Luckily, or so I thought at the time, I found another flight on a different airline.

By the time I was added to the passenger roster, my new fellow fliers were already grumpy because their flight had been delayed because of the weather. When our plane arrived, staff rushed to deplane the passengers, clean things up and usher us on. However, we didnt leave the gate for 40 minutes because of the incoming and outgoing flight traffic jam resulting from the weather delay. The pilot kept us posted and said even after we left the gate, we still probably wouldnt take off for another hour.
Elvis and I go way back.

I was never a fan. I never bought one of his records. Ive cringed at the debauched character he became in his later years.

Still, Ive always paid attention. Elvis and I are Memphians.

Elvis adopted Memphis as his home after his parents moved there from Tupelo, Mississippi. When he became a star, he bought Graceland, now the most famous private home in America.

Compared to Elvis, Im a poseur Memphian. I only lived there in the early 60s for my last three years of high school.

Memphians at that time lived and breathed Elvis. He was more famous than anything Memphis had ever produced. More famous than any Confederate general. More famous than barbecue.

The local paper, The Commercial Appeal, obsessively followed his comings and goings and charitable good deeds as if he were heartland royalty.

Elvis was gone a lot, making those not-so-great Hollywood movies, but he always came home and hung out with his pack of good ol boys and showed his pride in all things Memphis.

I liked that about Elvis. He was loyal.
Napa Valley Unified School District students from American Canyon High School (ACHS) and American Canyon Middle School (ACMS) recently took home top honors at the RoboPlay Challenge and RoboPlay Video Competition held at UC Davis.

There were 19 American Canyon middle and high school teams at the competition and they earned a combined total of 20 awards out of the 46 distributed. The all-girl ACHS team won the Statewide RoboPlay 2nd Place Award and the all-boy ACHS team took the Statewide RoboPlay 3rd Place Award in their respective divisions. The ACMS team captured the Regional RoboPlay 2nd Place award.

Despite the unprecedented difficulty of the challenges, our students did an amazing job, said Barbara Nemko, Napa County superintendent of schools. What impressed us the most is how hard the students worked and how they didnt give up when things didnt go their way. They all succeeded with their amazing hard work and collaboration.

American Canyon Middle School (ACMS) and American Canyon High School (ACHS) have been attending the the RoboPlay Challenge for six years.

Within the Napa Valley Unified School District, American Canyon pioneered the UC Davis C-STEM curriculum in the 2013-2014 school year, which integrates coding and robotics into its Algebra and Geometry classes.
One man was arrested and police are seeking information about another following a report of an armed robbery on Hagen Road near Silverado Trail during the BottleRock music festival on Saturday, according to Napa Police.

The two suspects had met the victims to make a jewelry purchase, police said. Police said that they don't when the suspects decided to rob the victims.

The suspects fled in a vehicle, but were located by a Napa County Sheriff's deputy in the area of Hagen Road and First Street.

As the deputy pursued the vehicle, it continued to the Napa Valley Expo, where BottleRock's second day of concerts was being held. Once at the festival, police said, the suspects exited the vehicle and continued to flee on foot.

One man, identified as William Frederico Carter, 27, of San Francisco, entered the fairgrounds via a gate on Third Street and was immediately arrested.

Carter was booked at the Napa County jail.

Police were unable to locate the other suspect as of Sunday morning. He was described as being a Hispanic man in his late 20s to early 30s with dark curly hair, wearing a black T-shirt and jeans. He was last seen outside the Expo in the area of Silverado Trail and Third Street.
Please log in to keep reading.

Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever.
The city of St. Helenas sometimes-controversial marketing contract with the St. Helena Chamber of Commerce doesnt seem to be in jeopardy this year.

Councilmembers last week praised the Chamber for moving from south St. Helena to downtown and seemed to support renewing the contract into the 2018-2019 fiscal year at its previous amount of $210,000. That money has already been set aside in next years draft budget.

Councilmembers Paul Dohring and Mary Koberstein were assigned to a subcommittee to work with the Chamber on the specific wording of the contract before the council approves it.

Last years contract, approved by a 3-2 vote, earmarked most of the money for destination marketing but set aside $30,000 for community events like Harvest Festival, Earth Day, Fourth of July fireworks, and summer concerts in Lyman Park.

Councilmembers spoke highly of the Chambers new downtown office, which offers public restrooms and puts the Chamber closer to the downtown businesses it serves. The new office has already drawn a lot more foot traffic than the previous one that was near Vidovich Avenue, said Joaquin Razo, the Chambers vice president and chief strategy officer.
Fanucci, whose husband, Robert, is listed as the winerys proprietor, says the review is violating these policies.

One example, she says, is a review by James K that calls the winery a toilet.

It reads: Oh. This place is a toilet. We met a bombastic selfrighteous person who thinks they are entitled to the world. We went here one day and from the moment we walked in, we wanted to leave. Theres nothing historic here as far as we could see. Just a bunch of former yuppies that use the place as a tax write off.

We keep records of who comes in  hes never been in, Fanucci said.

Although the reviews are being left by different usernames, Fanucci said she thinks it is just one person who is out to get them. She said that she has tried to figure out who the person writing the bad reviews is, but theres no way to do so.

Somebodys trolling us  and Google wont even acknowledge it or do anything about it, Fanucci said Wednesday. The reviews are similar in language, she said.

Its definitely somebody out to get us, she said.
Lo and behold, Trump caved. First he tweeted that he would lift sanctions on Chinese telecom giant ZTE before kind of, sort of, walking it back. And then this week he ran up the white flag altogether, with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin saying that the trade war is "on hold." (Who knew that wars, like phone calls, could be put "on hold"?)

Trump's trade negotiators had been pushing for China to buy $200 billion more from the U.S. annually - a fantastical figure that U.S. factories and farms could not produce even if they wanted to. China refused, and the administration settled for a vague commitment to buy an unspecified amount of U.S. goods. Trump supporters such as Sen. Marco Rubio (R.-Fla.) correctly labeled this a "surrender," because it did nothing to address China's theft of U.S. intellectual property. Trump responded with an incomprehensible tweet: "Our Trade Deal with China is moving along nicely, but in the end we will probably have to use a different structure in that this will be too hard to get done and to verify results after completion."

No one knows what that means, aside from the obvious: Trump doesn't know what he's doing and what he's talking about, and therefore he can't get a "great deal" from China or anyone else.
This year education has become prominent in many state elections, as teacher strikes have highlighted that education funding seems substantially below our recognition of its importance.

While California has not yet had that kind of strike activity, we know that districts are being squeezed by the rising cost of pensions and health care, the need to expand preschool, and the simultaneous increase in students with significant and high-cost special needs.

Choosing a State Superintendent of Public Instruction is on the ballot, and Ive received numerous calls asking me for my recommendation on which of the two candidates to select. I am supporting Tony Thurmond, who currently serves in the State Assembly representing the 15th Assembly District, and has served on the school board for West Contra Costa Unified School District, (formerly Richmond Unified) and the Richmond City Council.

Tony fully understands the life-changing effect that great teachers and schools can have on students, as he was orphaned at age 6 and sent to Philadelphia, where he was adopted and raised by a cousin. He credits his teachers for turning an at-risk youth into a scholar who earned dual masters degrees in law and social policy and social work from Bryn Mawr College.
The Battle of Cantigny took place 100 years ago during World War I, on May 28, 1918. For the first time, the Americans attacked, taking ground from the Germans.

As a timely victory it perhaps saved General John J. Black Jack Pershings military career as the U.S. commander of the American Expeditionary Force on the Western Front. Impatient French and British leaders were going over his head to President Woodrow Wilson in order to request Pershings removal from command, in favor of a more pliant U.S. general.

A German wedge had been driven between the British army in Flanders and the French armies to the south. If not pinched off, it could portend demise for the Allies.

The April 3, 1918 promotion of General Ferdinand Foch to Marshal of France and as overall commander cast a shadow upon Pershing. General Tasker H. Bliss, his representative to the Supreme War Council, was lukewarm in defense of Pershing, who would neither submit to amalgamation of the U.S. troops into French and British ranks nor yet launch an American offensive to prove U.S. forces could advance into enemy territory. (Bliss realized that unless the U.S. soon took the offensive or gave its infantry to the French and British, Allied defeat could come.)

At the furthest tip of General Erich von Ludendorff s spring drive was located the small village of Cantigny, with a population of 125. Located on high ground, it ideally served as a lookout command post for German artillery, which methodically shelled American trenches a quarter-mile west. There was constant drumfire, box barrage fire, and night fire. For, artillery was king of the battlefield. Whizz-bang 77s, 88s, 105s, and 155s so badly devastated the Americans rear communication lines that the depressed and devastated area was called Death Valley by the Doughboys.

Static trench life was one of deadly boredom. Each section of trench had its name, such as Mud Trench and Iron Trench. So methodical was the enemy artillery fire, that when making the inspection tour of the trenches, an officer might abruptly stop. Seconds later an exploding shell would land exactly where he would have been if he had continued walking.

An officers desk in the forward trenches might consist of a flat board and a crate as his chair. While he sat writing, muddy water to his knees would seep inside of his boots. Trench foot was a common infantrymans disease.

Sniping with long-range rifle fire at each others trenches was a macabre sport. In one instance, a rifle grenade launcher was used as more of a challenge to take out an annoying German sniper, for amusement to ease boredom. It was a grim existence.

+2 The Great War: Doughboys meet first test in the trenches "April is the cruelest month," wrote American-born poet Thomas Stearns Eliot in his epic poem "The Waste Land," published in 1922.

Three 10-day rotation shifts were performed every 30 days in order to keep the troops fresh. This triad consisted of one rotation in the forward trenches just across No Mans Land from the enemy, a second rotation in a support trench further back, and a third rotation of billeting in a village up to a few miles behind the front.

Billeting in drafty houses and barns, the Doughboys warmly mingled with French families. (Upon inspecting their unkempt quarters, an abashed spit-and-polish Pershing in silence, would quickly depart.) Talk overheard by the quartered Doughboys from their civilian hosts was mixed, the old men saying, Everything has been taken from us already; the coming of more men [i.e., the Americans] will only increase the agony.

However, the women of the households were positive in their belief that the ebullient young American knights-errant were in time to save France.

Opposite Cantigny was Americas Fighting First Division. Big ChiefPershing had Field Order No. 18 issued for the American capture of Cantigny. Fire from the rear in the form of criticizing Allied heavy artillery (i.e., Ferdinand Foch, Georges Clemenceau, and David Lloyd George) forced Pershing to finally take the offensive.

+2 The Great War: American forces reach the trenches On Nov. 30, 1917, one hundred years ago in World War I, a large U.S. non-combat unit was the first such to engage the enemy.

The harassing ability of the Germans to keep looking down our throats from Cantigny heights had also spurred Pershing. Meticulous rehearsals of the planned attack were conducted prior to J-Day (Jump-off Day), which was to be May 28, 1918. (A small-scale terrain layout, with model soldiers, was used as a three-D reference.)

At Zero Hour, 5:45 a.m., 386 cannons and mortars sounded off. Over the top went a mile-long line of First Division Doughboys of the 28th Infantry Regiment, with rifles and gleaming bayonets at high port. It is America going into battle, one remarked.

Each man, encumbered by two canteens, a gas mask, and two days rations in a tall backpack, had beforehand, nevertheless practiced until each knew just what to do. The 4,000 Doughboys in the first wave displayed no tense excitement. Protected by a screening, artillery, barrage wall in front of them as they strode forward, prevented accurate return fire by the German defenders cowering inside Cantigny.

U.S. General Charles Pelot Summerall, known as Sitting Bull to his men, was a combined arms specialist. Employing the relatively unorthodox use of the combined arms of synchronized artillery and infantry, Cantigny was thus captured in only 34 minutes.

It was, Pershing as a bystander, stolidly observed, quite a simple affair.

From his command bunker, the 28ths Colonel Hanson Ely prosaically relayed to HQ, objective reached.

Stunned by the brief preliminary one-hour artillery shelling of Cantigny, the Germans had been too feeble to repel the advancing Doughboys.

I did not see one German infantryman fire; we captured about all of them, said Private Earl Simons, who was part of the entering first wave of attack.

Enemy-occupied cellars and isolated machine-gun nests still remained to be neutralized. French flamethrower teams and French land-battleships (i.e., tanks) cleaned out these latter impediments. (The iron monsters fazed the Germans.) The enemy ran out of caves and dugouts, very scared, their hands up, shouting kamerad. Seventy were killed and no prisoners were taken at destroyed Cantigny.

Attempting to retake Cantigny, the piqued German 18th Army counter-attacked. From noon onward, thousands of German shells, "including a substantial number of gas shells rained upon American-held Cantigny during the rest of May 28 into the 29th. Repelling German assaults the 28th Infantry held out.

Signal flares at 6 p.m. lit up enemy troop concentrations, targeted by Summeralls artillery. At 7:55 p.m., the 28th messaged Ely, Situation fine-enemy beaten off.

No German set foot in Cantigny except as a prisoner, of which there were five officers and 225 troops.

The artillery and infantry work of your First Division is equal to the best armies of the world, admitted a captured German officer.

The Men of Cantigny and the Black Lions were French sobriquets for the American 28th Infantry Regiment.

Cantigny will write the doom of the Kaiser, said the London Evening News.

Colonel Ely became Ely of Cantigny. The taking and holding of Cantigny corner as an American show was Pershings positive statement of proof to the Allies, which cost 1,603 U.S. casualties, including 199 killed.

The Cantigny operation, said U.S. Secretary of War, Newton Baker, was Well planned, splendidly executed.

Editor's Note: This item has been modified to correct the number of Germans taken prisoner and to reflect the fact that gas shells were in fact used by the Germans during the battle.

Futini is a Napa-based history enthusiast. This is the latest in an occasional series marking the 100th anniversary of the First World War.
Armenia Parliament Speaker sends condolence message to Georgian counterpart

Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II: Armenia will overcome difficult times with Russia's support

Putin to hold online meeting with heads of security agencies of CIS countries

Andrea Wiktorin: EU ready to be mediator between Armenia and Azerbaijan, if they wish

Armenia Parliament Speaker on opening of roads and return of Armenian POWs

Displaced residents of Karabakh hold demonstration in front of Russia Embassy in Armenia

Turkey President's spokesperson: Biden, Erdogan to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh

Taliban says NATO should speak to movement only in language of diplomacy

Armenia Parliament Speaker receives Syria Ambassador

Historical houses of Armenians in Igdir are perishing

Texas governor bans forcing residents of state to vaccinate against COVID-19

Armenia parliamentary opposition boycotts standing committee session

Speaker: Only those vaccinated against coronavirus will have right to enter Armenia legislature building

Armenias Pashinyan in Russia on working visit

Kremlin: Format of Putin-Pashinyan talks implies conversation and working lunch

Armenia delegation head: PACE called on Azerbaijan to return all Armenian POWs immediately

Armenia ex-Deputy PM and now opposition MP's attorney leaves courtroom as protest against judge's actions

Bloomberg says Erdogan will persuade Biden to allow Ankara to buy US military aircraft

Armenia former deputy PM and now MP Gevorgyan: Court is holding me captive

Armenia opposition MP: PM not guaranteeing Kashatagh, Shushi regions villages will not be under Azerbaijan control

Armenia ex-deputy PM, now lawmaker Gevorgyan's lawyer submits 2 motions to court

Armenia ex-president Kocharyan, former deputy PM and now MP Gevorgyan criminal case court hearing resumes

Pashinyan to Spains Sanchez: I appreciate your country's support for expansion of Armenia-EU partnership

Armenia, India FMs to meet Wednesday

903 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Artsakh displaced residents again protesting outside Armenia government building

Armenia President in Vatican, meets with head of Pontifical Council for Culture of Holy See

Russia citizen stabbed to death in Yerevan

Armenia convict, 40, dies in hospital

Russia peacekeepers escort Azerbaijan convoys via Karabakh

Armenian Assembly of America urges US to reject Turkey request to purchase F-16 fighter jets

Armenia, Russia defense ministers discuss Armenian-Azerbaijani border situation

Newspaper: Mandatory coronavirus testing of unvaccinated Armenia employees to become 3 times a month instead of 2?

Newspaper: Arrested Armenia ex-defense minister Tonoyan keeps silent to save PM Pashinyan

Armenia ombudsman: During war Azerbaijanis incurred in border area near Tsav village of Syunik Province

ECtHR denies Azerbaijan appeal on blogger Lapshins case

Armenia Journalists Union issues statement on Constitutional Court declaring law on insult/defamation constitutional

Aravot.am: Gyumri woman who killed her mother with psychotropic drugs, attempted suicide is arrested for 2 months

Spiritual leaders of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan to discuss peacemaking initiative in South Caucasus

Iran test-launches 'Majid' short-range and low-altitude air defense system

Putin, Merkel and Macron discuss Ukraine

Karabakh Prosecutor General's Office on case of murder of citizen by Azerbaijani side

Court renders decision on Armenia Police's unlawful actions against Armenian citizen Argishti Kiviryan

Armenia PM's Chief of Staff attends event dedicated to International Architects' Day

The ARARAT Museum of the Yerevan Brandy Company hosted the Awards Ceremony of the Golden Apricot

Participants of motorcade of six cars in Moscow start firing gunshots, Armenia citizens arrested

Political consultations between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and Denmark

Armenia ruling faction MP: Turkish textiles need to be replaced with Russian ones

Armenian deputy minister: There are companies in Armenia that manufacture items for Russian military planes

Armenia justice minister says government will remove unjust judges from the judiciary

Karabakh President signs law on making amendments to legislation on weapons

Armenia President visits St. Peter's Basilica at Vatican, lays flowers at statue of St. Gregory of Narek

Armenia President meets with Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin

Armenia President meets with Pope Francis

Iran's Prosecutor General to arrive in Armenia at invitation of Armenian counterpart

Armenia high-tech industry minister receives Sweden Ambassador

Armenia Deputy PM Suren Papikyan to leave for Moscow

Digest: Pashinyan and Putin scheduled to meet, more on COVID-19 in Armenia

Armenia State Revenue Committee chief meets with UAE State Audit Institution president

Superior command inspects engineering work at Armenia army positions

Iran MFA spokesman: We have never closed our airspace to Azerbaijan

Artsakh ombudsman: Occupied Hadrut undeniable proof of Azerbaijan hatred, ethnic cleansing policy against Armenians

Azerbaijan, Turkey FMs confer on regional situation

Armenia to host French-Armenian Scientific-Medical Conference to help those affected by the war

Iran FM to visit Azerbaijan, media report

One dollar falls below AMD 479 in Armenia

Union of Banks of Armenia has new board chairman

Russian architect: Old Yerevan is about to perish, while Gyumri is being reborn

3 Azerbaijanis cause mass deaths of residents of Russia's Orenburg

Karabakh Armenian architect: It's impossible to cooperate with Azerbaijan in culture sector

UAE State Audit Institution president arrives in Armenia at invitation of justice minister

Mutalibov: Karabakh Armenians will have right to live there if they adopt Azerbaijan citizenship

Ambassador to finance minister: Sweden ready to continue assisting in Armenia reforms

Russia architect: Many monuments in Karabakh are now under threat of destruction

Turkey court orders interior ministry to pay close to $112k to Hrant Dinks family

Catholicos of All Armenians heading for Moscow, will meet with religious leaders of Russia and Azerbaijan

Armenia prosecutor's office to be consistent in investigating Artsakh residents murder, gross violation of ceasefire

Russian FM meeting with Turkish counterpart in Serbia

Armenia FM, Belarus ambassador discuss regional issues

Bitcoin price rises above $ 57,000

Armenia PM to pay working visit to Russia

Azerbaijan State Border Service calls on Iran officials to avoid to spread false and defamatory information

Gas price in Europe exceeds $ 1,100 per 1,000 cubic meters

Man, 37, found half-naked on Armenia river bank

601 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Legal team: Armenia ex-defense minister does not accept charge against him

Russia peacekeepers ensure pilgrims safe visit to Karabakhs Amaras Monastery

Child, 9, found dead under concrete rubble in Yerevan (PHOTOS)

Artsakh historical, cultural heritage being discussed in Yerevan with participation of international specialists

US embassy in Armenia to be closed Monday

World gold prices drop

Armenia participates in Europes largest trade fair for food within EU4Business Initiative

World oil prices going up

Woman kills mother with psychotropic drugs in Gyumri

Borrell: EU is facing risk of turning from subject into object of world politics

California law requires selling gender-neutral baby products

Saakashvili's condition worsens on tenth day of hunger strike

Armenia lawyer: Most ridiculous thing is that only COVID-19 statistics are stated in rationale for legislative amendment

Russian MOD issues statement on murder of peaceful Armenian civilian by Azerbaijanis in Karabakh

Iran FM: Tehran has no intention to be dependent of Russia
Within this framework, the Head of State requested efforts to be undertaken at all government levels, along with parents.

"We want to tell the whole country, from Huanta in Ayacucho (region), that we are going to combat and win the fight against anemia . Together, we can do it," he expressed.

A sign of that commitment is the participation of the Ministers of Health, Culture, and Development-Social Inclusion, who also arrived in the Andean city to join the President in such effort.

In his speech, the Head of State stressed the government does have a strategy to combat that condition currently affecting 43.6% of Peruvian children, according to official figures.

"We have a whole strategy to fight anemia , and we are convinced we can indeed combat it (...). We want to replicate across the entire country the example set by Ayacucho (region)," he concluded.
An American who was held in a Venezuelan prison for nearly two years on weapons charges made it back to the U.S. Saturday evening where he was greeted by his family and President Trump, USA Today reported.

Josh Holt and his Venezuelan wife, Thamy, landed at Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. There the couple and their daughter, Marian Leal, reunited with his family in a tearful meeting at the airport.

Trump later hosted the family in the Oval Office and told Holt he was "brave" and "went through a lot."

Holt, 26, of Utah thanked the president and all the government officials who worked for his release.

"I'm just overwhelmed with gratitude," he said. "I'm just so grateful for what you guys have done and for thinking about me and caring about me, just a normal person, so it really touches me and thank you."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel will prevent weapons from being manufacted in Lebanon and will bar arms from being transported from Syria to Lebanon, The Times of Israel reported.

Netanyahus stark threat against Lebanon came after Israeli officials have warned repeatedly that Iran may be trying to manufacture advanced missiles in Lebanon to be used against Israel by the Hezbollah terror group.

We are working to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. At the same time we are working against the establishment of an Iranian military presence against us; to this end we are also operating against the transfer of deadly weapons from Syria to Lebanon or their manufacture in Lebanon. All of these weapons are for use against the State of Israel and it is our right  based on the right of self-defense  to prevent their manufacture or transfer.

Netanyahu did not specify what action was being taken against the arms in Lebanon.

Israel has reportedly carried out dozens of airstrikes against targets in Syria, including Iranian military installations, but has mostly refrained from carrying out attacks in Lebanon, where Hezbollah is a major player in the countrys government.
Home | News | General | Shock as gunmen assassinate Benue traditional ruler at home

- The gunmen stormed the victim (Godwin's) residence at the GRA and demanded to see him

- He was shot and killed on the spot immediately he stepped out and identified himself

- The police have confirmed the incident and have launched a preliminary investigation into the matter

A traditional ruler in Benue has been killed by some gunmen at the GRA area of Katsina-Ala town in the middle belt state.

Daily Sun reports that the incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday, May 26 when the assailants shot dead Godwin Tor Geri Gbajur, a market chief in Katsina-Ala local Government area of the state.

The gunmen were said to have stormed the GRA residence of the chief on a motorcycle at about 6:30am and demanded to see him.

READ ALSO: nPDP leader Baraje slams poor governance in APC

The victim was shot point blank by the gunmen immediately he stepped out and introduced himself.

They shot him at close range and as soon as they were convinced that he had died, they jumped on the Bajaj motorcycle they came with and rode off shooting sporadically as they left, a source who spoke on grounds of anonymity told Daily Sun.

The police spokesman in the state ASP Moses Yamu confirmed the assassination, saying the victim died on the spot after being shot at close range.

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android and read best news on Nigerias #1 news app

He said: The Benue State Police Command wish to report that at about 0648hrs of today, one Godwin Gbajur (Katsina-Ala Township Leader aka Tor Gari) was assassinated in his GRA residence at the outskirts of Katsina-Ala LGA by two armed bandits.

Eye witness account reveals that, the assassins rode on two Bajaj motorcycles to the house of the victim and inquired from him if he was Godwin, which he answered in affirmative before he was eventually shot dead. Eight (8) empty shells of AK-47 ammunition were recovered at the scene.

Preliminary investigation reveals that the assassins are gang members of Terwase Akwaza aka Ghana, the notorious wanted criminal in the state.

In a separate but similar vein, NAIJ.com reported recently that the governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike, alleged that there were plans to assassinate him in a crowd and claim accidental discharge.

The governor while speaking at the third year anniversary thanksgiving service of his administration at the Living Faith Church in Port Harcourt on Sunday, May 20, said there are intelligence reports available to support his claims.

Wike said no level of intimidation by the All Progressives Congress or the federal government would deter him for carrying out his responsibility as the governor of Rivers state.

Nigerian Police: The challenges and progress - Benue state Commissioner of Police Fatai Owoseni - on NAIJ.com TV

[embedded content]

Subscribe to watch new videos

Source: Naija.ng

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Osinbajo's office declines comment as Buhari jokes about threat to VP position

- President Buhari had joked that Osinbajo's VP job was under threat after some female parliamentarians paid him a visit

- The parliamentarians had demanded for the VP position and other legislative slots

- Osinbajo's aide Akande refused to comment on the president's statement, wondering why he was being asked to react to the joke

The office of the Vice President of Nigeria has refused to comment on a statement jokingly made by the president Muhammadu Buhari about a threat to his deputy Yemi Osinbajos job.

Tribune reports on Saturday, May 26 that Osinbajos spokesperson Laolu Akande declined comment but instead queried why he should be asked to comment on what the president said.

The president has spoken (so) why are you asking me to comment, Akande said when contacted by phone on Friday afternoon.

READ ALSO: Mama, I finally got my freedom - Leah Sharibu tells mum in dream

NAIJ.com had earlier reported on Friday, May 25 that President Buhari joked that Osinbajos position as vice president was under threat.

The president made this joke at the Presidential Villa in Abuja while hosting a delegation of the Conference of Nigerian Female Parliamentarians, who were calling for a woman vice president among other demands.

He said:"It is a pity the VP is not here, but I believe the Secretary to the Government of the Federation will brief him that his position is threatened. It is only the vice president who is threatened. And if we win the next election, he may lose his election."

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android and read best news on Nigerias #1 news app

President Buhari has expressed interest in running for office in 2019 but has not formally confirmed if he will be returning with Osinbajo.

Buhari to Contest for Presidency in 2019! Naij.com TV - on NAIJ.com TV

[embedded content]

Subscribe to watch new videos

Source: Naija.ng

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Again, nPDP grumbles over poor treatment of its members by leadership of APC

- Group leader Kawu Baraje says his group is disappointed that what they left the PDP over is happening on a higher level in the APC

- Baraje says the group is crying out over the problems in APC because they want what is best for the ruling party

- The group had held a meeting with the leadership of the APC just recently to resolve their differences

A faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) called nPDP has condemned poor governance within the ruling party's structure which is breeding unhappy members.

The leader of the group Kawu Baraje said the poor governance in the APC was worse than what his group complained about in the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party.

Making his case in an interview with Punch on Saturday, May 26, Baraje said the group is witnessing similar issues it complained about years ago but on a high level.

READ ALSO: Osinbajo's office shuns comment as Buhari jokes about threat to VP position

"As far as we are concerned, the defunct nPDP is a group that will continue to live for a long time as long as the political situation in Nigeria continues because it consists of leaders and not only that, these leaders are now bringing up vanguards.

"What does that group stand for? It stands for good governance and delivery of dividends of democracy to the common man. That is what we stand for and today, we have travelled a long way in APC and we discovered that there are some of those things, if not all those things, that led us to complain when we were in PDP, that are even worse now.

"If we are leaders thats worth our salt, we should not be ashamed to cry out that what we cried against is now repeating itself. So, it is like history is repeating itself. And time is so short to call it history; it is just three years ago. Maybe that is how short human memory is."

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android and read best news on Nigerias #1 news app

NAIJ.com had reported on Sunday, May 20 that the members of nPDP were set to withdraw from the ruling party after the expiration of their recent ultimatum to the leadership of the party.

According to the report, should last-minute efforts by the national leaders of the APC and members of the nPDP who met on Monday, May 21, fail, the faction would leave the party.

APC official tells why his party could be voted out in 2019 - on NAIJ.com TV

[embedded content]

Subscribe to watch new videos

Source: Naija.ng

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | 2 kidnapped girls rescued as police vow to arrest fleeing suspect

- The police have rescued two female teenagers in Bayelsa

- The state police public relations officer Asinim Butswat has confirmed the action

- Butswat said efforts have been intensified to arrest the fleeing suspect

The police in Bayelsa said they had rescued two female teenagers, abducted by a gunman in Agbura, near Azikoro village in Yenagoa local government area of the state.

In a statement on Saturday, May 26, in Yenagoa by police public relations officer in the state Asinim Butswat, said the girls were rescued by the police in the area, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

Butswat said that the gunman specialised in stalking his victims to church during night vigil or to their houses with a dummy AK47 Riffle to perpetrate the act.

READ ALSO: Lai Mohammed indicates willingness to visit TB Joshuas church

On 21st May, 2018, based on actionable intelligence, the police and youths of Agbura community raided a bush surrounded by swamp and fishing ponds, where the lone gunman held his victim captive.

On sighting policemen, the gunman fled and abandoned the two females, who were chained to a makeshift tent and the victims were rescued and taken to Police clinic for medical examination.

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app

Efforts have been intensified to arrest the fleeing suspect. Members of the public should assist the police with useful information about suspicious movement of a lanky male adult, dark in complexion within Agbura community, who displays pedophilic behaviour.

Meanwhile, NAIJ.com had reported that six kidnap suspects were arrested by police officers in Abia state, and a 76-year-old victim rescued.

The development was made public by the commander of the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT), Abba Kyari, on Monday, December 18.

Kyari disclosed that IRT operatives had swung into action following a report about the kidnapping of the victim, Benjamin Okoye, in Aba, Abia state, on Friday, December 15, and the subsequent demand of N80 million by his abductors.

NAIJ.com visits the kidnappers den discovered in Lagos - on NAIJ.com TV:

[embedded content]

Subscribe to watch new videos

Source: Naija.ng

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Disabled persons asked to make use of Ambodes N500m budget

By Yinka Ajayi

Speakers at the Community Life Project Initiative have asked physically challenged persons to take advantage of the N500 million Governor Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State budgeted for them.

Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode (middle), signing Seven bills into Law in his Office at the Lagos House, Ikeja.File Photo

Speaking during the Reclaim Naija program in Yaba Local Community Development Area (LCDA), Dr. Ashiru, President of Federation Of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria, FOMWAN, Lagos, State, said :Challenged persons in each local government should identify with the Lagos State Office for Disabilities Affairs (LASODA) at the state secretariat in Alausa, Ikeja in order to access what the state has for them.

This is because the state government, in its commitment to ease the pains of challenged persons, budgeted N500million to cater for them and is exclusive to Lagosians with the LASRA identification card.

Responding, Adebayo Adewunmi, leader of the physically challenged persons in Yaba LCDA commended Ambode for his kind gesture.

Meanwhile, Lanre Onilenla, event coordinator Community Life Project, urged participants to be sure their demands were within government provisions.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Oshiomhole, a proven liar, just lied again  Reno

That Adams Oshiomhole is a confirmed liar has already been proven by no less an institution than the State Department of the United States Government.

It will be recalled that on July 27, 2015, Adams Oshiomhole alleged that the State Department of the United States Government told him while he was on an official visit that just one minister who served under President Jonathan stole $6 billion from the treasury.

At that time Oshiomhole said:

The PDP destroyed the country. I mean from the lips of American officials, senior officials of the State Department said one minister, under PDP, cornered as much as $6 billion. The man said even by Washington standards, that is earth-shattering.

However, the very next day, the State Department of the United States Government denied Oshiomholes assertions and said as follows:

The U.S. should not be drawn into such irresponsible comment as alleged by Mr. Oshiomhole. America has a transparent administration that doesnt hide when people make a statement. If Mr. Oshiomhole claims a U.S. official told him that a Nigerian minister stole $6 billion, he should name the official instead of hiding behind an anonymous source.

The truth is that Adams Oshiomhole is embarrassed by the monumental thievery uncovered under the Buhari Administration and is eager to divert the publics attention from such including:

The $25 billion NNPC Contract Scam

The return, reinstatement and double promotion of Abdulrasheed Maina

The failure to announce who owns the $43 million Ikoyi Apartment loot

The reinstatement of the Executive Secretary of the NHIS despite his indictment for misappropriating 10 billion

The non prosecution of former SGF Babachir Lawal

The recent HSLi Israeli $195 million contract scam

The double payment of the Abacha lawyers scam

The 1.1 billion budgeted to clean the NSAs office, amongst others.

I also call on journalists to go to Abuja and Edo State to appraise the value of Adams Oshiomholes homes which are more expensive and worth more than former President Jonathans homes in Abuja and Bayelsa. Yet former President Jonathan was a deputy Governor, Governor, Vice President and President while Oshiomhole was a labour leader before becoming a Governor. From where did he get the money to build such palatial homes?

Since Adams Oshiomhole is desperate to be Chairman of the sinking All Progressive Congress, let me throw a little teaser to him.

Former President Jonathan initiated, started and completed over 1000 projects in three years including:

12 new universities

120 almajiri schools

Revival of Lagos-Kano rail

Reconstruction of Benin-Ore rd

Reconstruction of Vom-Manchok-rd.

Conversion of Enugu airport to international

Introduction of BVN

The YouWIN initiative

The Graduate Internship Scheme

The rebasing of the Nigerian economy

I now challenge Adams Oshiomhole to take the #BuhariChallenge and do the same.

That is what Nigerians want to know, not desperate lies from a failing regime.

Finally, let me add that no matter how many EFCCs Buhari unleashes on former Peoples Democratic Party Presidents like Dr. Jonathan and President Obasanjo, the moon can never be the sun and they can never achieve what Obasanjo or Jonathan achieved. Who even created EFCC? Is it not the PDP?

No matter how much a stream denies its source, we still know from where the water flows!

Reno Omokri

Bestselling author of Facts Versus Fiction: The True Story of the Jonathan Years: Chibok, 2015 and Other Conspiracies.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | FG has refused to release Govt Support Fund to Rivers State  Wike

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has revealed that the APC Federal Government has denied the Rivers State Government Special Funds under the approved Government Budget Support Fund.

Governor Wike said that official sources noted that the Budget Support Fund for Rivers State was witheld because of the governors critical stance on national issues. He said all other states have received the fund.

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike (m), Former Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori (r) and National Chairman of PDP, Prince Uche Secondus (l) during the commissioning of three roads in Port Harcourt on Saturday by Chief Ibori.

He spoke on Saturday in Port Harcourt Township during the commissioning of Bishop Fubara Street, Captain Amangala Street and Tourist Beach Road by Former Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori.

The governor said the arm-twisting tactics of the APC Federal Government will not stop him from standing for the people of Rivers State and the Niger Delta.

Nothing will stop me from defending Niger Delta and Rivers State. They denied Rivers State Government Support Fund which has been given to all other states.

They denied Rivers State this fund, claiming that I should stop criticising the Federal Government. Stopping our funds will not stop me from defending Niger Delta and Rivers State , he said.

The governor said that the roll out of projects will continue across the state because his administration is committed to sustained development.

On the three roads commissioned by Former Delta State Governor , Governor Wike said that his administration is committed to enhancing the living condition of the people of Port Harcourt Township.

He directed Julius Berger to reconstruct the remaining roads in Port Harcourt Township, adding that all the three roads will be furnished with streetlights.

The residents of this area will agree with me that their roads were not motorable. I resolved that we must reconstruct the roads, he said.

Commissioning the three road projects, Former Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori commended Governor Wike for his developmental projects.

I associate myself with the commitment of the Rivers State Governor to infrastructural development of the state . I am glad that the governor has made further commitment to develop this area, he said.

The commissioning programme was witnessed by the National Chairman of PDP, Prince Uche Secondus.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Champions League final: Real Madrid may sack Zidane  Paul Merson

Arsenal legend, Paul Merson has stated that Real Madrid will sack their manager, Zinedine Zidane if Liverpool beat the LaLiga giants on Saturday night in the Champions League final at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium.

Merson believes failure for Zidane to win the Champions League trophy tonight in Kiev would be the end of the road for the Frenchman at the Santiago Bernabeu, despite guiding the Los Blancos to back-to-back Champions League wins in his first two seasons in charge.

Jurgen Klopp could get Zinedine Zidane the sack tonight because he is the better manager, Merson told the Daily Star.

I know Zidane has won two Champions League titles in a row but he has had world class players to work with.

You should be judged on what you do in your domestic league when youre a manager and Real Madrid are so far behind Barcelona now its ridiculous.

Barcelona are not even that good  but Real have only won the league once since Zidane took over and this season they only finished a very distant third.

Hes been getting out of jail by winning the Champions League. But competitions like that are a bonus. The league is your bread and butter.

You cant judge a manager in a knockout competition because you need a bit of luck and a good draw to win them.

Zidane could win three in a row and that would be an amazing achievement. But if he loses the final I would be shocked if he keeps his job because they are miles behind Barcelona.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Fresh crisis rocks CAN as late Gen Sec Asakes family rejects assistance on burial

By Sam Eyoboka

The family of the late General Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Musa Asake, has rejected CANs offer to assist in the burial of the deceased.

Late Musa Asake

The late General Secretarys son, Aminchi Asake, told the umbrella body for Christians pointedly, in a letter, that the family did not need CANs assistance.

Asaka died on May 11 and, according to burial arrangement by the family, he would be laid to rest on June 8 at Ungar Rimi, Kafanchan, Kaduna State.

The rejection of CAN assistance in the late General Secretarys burial came barely one week after the Nigerian Christian Elders Forum (NCEF) levelled several allegations against CAN leadership, including that it visited the Presidency where it collected N25 million for transportation.

CAN leadership denied all the allegations.

Asakes son, in a letter from his United States (US) base, told CAN that the family had resolved that it will be solely responsible for the burial at the deceased.

The letter, titled, Letter of Information, was in response to a letter by CAN, dated May 22, 2018, to the family in which the body said it had set up a committee, headed by Bishop Stephen Adegbite, to oversee Asakes burial.

The son wrote in the letter: I received your letter dated May 22, 2018. I want to thank the Christian Association of Nigeria for reaching out to my family and wanting to commiserate with us on the passing of my father.

You have been so generous as to offer assistance with the planning of his burial, even planning a service of songs and a commendation service. But at this point, I must ask CAN to stop, we do not need your assistance.

The family has taken an independent decision that we will be solely responsible for the burial of our father, the late Rev. Dr. Musa Asake. We have already set up an independent committee and will proceed accordingly with our plans. Thank you.

The family burial committee is headed by Rev. John Kennedy Opara.

The late Asakes younger brother, Jonathan Asake, echoed the position of the son of the deceased in his letter to CAN when he told Sunday Vanguard that the familys main concern was the interment.

All other functions are politically organised and they dont mean anything to me because the most important thing is for our brother to be laid to rest, and the family has chosen June 8 for that purpose, he stated.

No two committees

The former member of the House of Representatives went on: On that day,the funeral service will take place at the Kafachan Township Stadium. After that, his remains will be taken to the family compound at Ungar Rimi to lay him to rest. So, to me, that is the most important thing. Any other activity by any person or persons, that is not my interest.

Reminded that aside the family burial committee headed by Opara, CAN had set up another committee headed by Bishop Adegbite, he said: There are no two committees. I am not aware that there are two committees but even if there is another committee aside from the one set up by the family, it is for the same purpose and we will definitely come to work as one. The question is: is it CAN that owns the dead body or the family?

So whatever the family is doing is the official thing. We are only giving honour to whom honour is due but if not..when a person dies, you bury him. We dont even keep a corpse beyond one week in my own place.

The Public Relations Officer of the Northern Christian Elders Forum, Elder Sunday Oibe, also told Sunday Vanguard that the Asake family had briefed members about plans for the late General Secretarys funeral.

The family told us about the committee they put in place for the burial and it is the only one they know. That even though one Bishop Adegbite called a member of the family telling them that they (CAN) had drawn up a programme for the burial, the brother told us he was not aware of anything like that,Oibe said.

He affirmed that they were poised to bury their brother their own way and they have set up a committee to that effect. He made it clear that they are not expecting any money from any government.

Nobody can stop us  CAN committee

Meanwhile, the committee set up by CAN has vowed to proceed with its plans to be part of the burial because he died while still in the service of CAN and the association owes him the last respect.

Speaking in a telephone interview, the Chairman of the committee, Bishop Adegbite, who revealed that the body is composed of representatives of the five blocs that make up CAN, said they were going ahead with their plans regardless of the position of the Asake family.

The family has a choice not to be in support but the person we are going to bury died in office as General Secretary of CAN which is bigger than his family. When he took up the appointment, the understanding was that if he died in office there are things that must be done by the association for him.

So nobody can stop that. That is what we going to accord him as the General Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, not as Rev. Dr. Asake. We owe him the duty and it is something that must be done for him. Its like saying the President of Nigeria dies and the family says Nigeria should not participate in his burial. Does that make sense?

Its not for the President but for the man who is occupying the seat. So, that must be done. State burial must be given to any state officer. Asake was a national officer of CAN, so CAN must organize a national burial service for him; and that must be done by the grace of God.

Asked if there was a possibility of mending fences with the family before the burial, he said: We are having a meeting on Monday with the family. When we meet, were going to harmonise our differences. As a matter of fact, I have not been told by the family that we cannot be part of the burial. The last thing I heard was that a meeting has been scheduled for Monday (tomorrow) and we are going to be there to organize a befitting burial for our General Secretary.

Adegbite hinted that an emergency NEC meeting of CAN had been scheduled for June 1 in Abuja and the only agenda of that meeting was to plan the burial of the CAN General Secretary.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Democracy under threat, by Uche Secondus

MY view on the above topic as the leader of the main opposition party in the country is not going to be fundamentally different from that of the rest of Nigerians. As objective as one would want to be even as an opposition person you cannot but score the three years of the administration poor and below average in all ramifications.

The only reason why some generous teachers award certain marks to a badly written work is for the sympathy of the ink and the paper used. Similarly, why anybody outside those driven by selfish interests should take a critical examination of Nigeria in the last 36 months and claims he or she has seen something to eulogize about the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, and President Muhammadu Buhari is because something just needed to be given out.

Uche Secondus

Recall that this government rode to power clutching their magic change propaganda promising to do wonders in so many areas particularly in the area of Economy, Security and Democracy. Since propaganda in its deceitful ingredients can take you into government but cannot help you in governance, here we are three years after.

Economy: I am not going to say much in the area of economy because this is an area this government has shown glaringly that it lacked the wherewithal to make reasonable change in our economy. When we in the opposition were shouting that this government is directionless in the area of economy, we were not taken seriously until bill gate came and told them that their economic blueprint is not good for their people.

They promised to turn the economy around within one year, in three years they have dragged us into recession, devalued our currency from 365 naira to a dollar from about 186 naira to a dollar they met. They claimed that PDP administration was hiding under fuel subsidy to embezzle money that nothing really existed as subsidy.

Google for yourself and see what PDP spent as subsidy in 16 years and what the APC government has spent in three years and judge for yourself. Whatever you see is despite the hiking of petrol product prize from N97 per liter to N145 per liter. Am not going to talk about the state of our industries in the past three years, the cost of poor power performance etc.

Security: This is one area that this administration came brandishing the credentials of the President as a General and a nonsense person who will send Boko Haram packing within 100 days of entering government.

They came using the weapons already purchased by PDP administration to chase way the sect from certain parts of the country and even entered the notorious Sambisa forest. Typical of them they made all the noise and took some civil society groups and the media to the forest where they established the so called ground zero. The media should ask them for an update what they celebrated two years ago as technically defeated.

The media should ask them to furnish the public numbers of Nigerian civilians and soldiers killed since they came into office. While the Chibok girls who they claimed PDP government mismanaged is still not settled we have had the curious case of Dapchi girls with all the suspicion around its handling.

Do I need to belabor the menace of herdsmen that has killed hundreds of Nigerians across the country with government clearly unable to provide solutions? They cannot even look at the terrorists herds group and tag them what they really are terrorists Groups. Instead what you hear from the General is lamentations of the herdsmen coming from Libya and all that. In summary my take in the three years of APC in Nigeria is that the country has never been this insecure and disunited since after the civil war.

Democracy: This is one area where the predictions of all pundits came through. Despite the claims of APC then that their flag bearer was a new creature and a converted democrat and that with him old things of the uniform era has passed away, three years after, the fear for our democracy is as real as sunlight.

Since 1999 this democracy has never been as threatened as it is today. All institutions of democracy are under stress. The legislature is permanently harassed by the agencies of government ditto the Judiciary. Not even in the dark days of General Abacha did security operatives invade homes of Justices and Judges at the dead of the night the way we witnessed under their watch. Just recently in Port Harcourt a serving Minister took operatives armed to the teeth to stop court from delivering ruling they suspect would be against them. What kind of democracy are they offering?

Prince Secondus is the National Chairman of the main Opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | OAU SEX-FOR-MARKS SAGA: No regrets speaking out about randy professor  Monica Osagie

Opens up on severe backlash, abuse on social media

Why sexual harassment thrives in varsities  Sonaike, French lecturer

By Bukola Adebayo & Stephanie Busari

When Monica Osagie got low marks in a course for her masters degree, she says the professor gave her two options: Sleep with him or fail the class.

Monica Osagie

Faced with this stark choice, Osagie says she knew no one would believe her word against the lecturers, so she recorded one of their conversations using a cell phone app.

The audio recording was leaked online and went viral on social media. Osagie says she did not leak it but had submitted it to university authorities before it surfaced online.

The students allegations, coming amid the conversations around the global #Metoo movement, have now sparked a nationwide conversation in Nigeria about predatory sexual behavior on campuses and bolstered the notion that sexual harassment is a problem women the world over face almost every day.

In the recording, a man can be heard saying that if the student agreed to have sex with him five times, he would improve her grades.

Is it not five we agreed? Our agreement is five, the man says on the tape.

Osagie replies, Is it B that you want to give me or A? Why would it be five times you will knack me? Prof, you know what? Let me fail it. I cant do it five times.

Student speaks out

In her only interview since the audio was leaked online, Osagie, 23, told CNN she had developed a mentor-mentee relationship with the professor after she helped him edit his book.

But the relationship soon made her uncomfortable because he started to make sexual advances towards her, she said.

We actually edited the book together Then, the next thing he told me was, Can you date me? I was like, No. He was like, Why? I said, One, I dont date lecturers, and secondly, you are more matured than I am.

CNN hasnt been able to confirm the professors age.

Osagie believes he deliberately gave her low marks so she would agree to sleep with him to raise them, she said.

He kept calling me to ask if I was ready to accept his proposal. So, I decided to record our next conversation, she added.

CNN has listened to the recording but cannot independently verify it. But a spokesman for the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Osun State, south west Nigeria, has confirmed that the voice is that of Richard Akindele, an accounting professor at the university.

The university said in a statement posted on its website: Professor Richard I. Akindele, of the department of management and accounting, is now established to be the lecturer in the controversial marks for sex audio recording. The female voice has also been identified as that of Miss Monica Osetobe Osagie, a postgraduate student on the Master of Business Administration Regular programme.

The OAU authorities say they have launched an investigation into Osagies allegations and Akindele has been suspended pending a final decision by the university.

The university added that it will continue to do everything legally and morally acceptable in pursuance of its avowed commitment to zero tolerance for sexual harassment, intimidation and, or coercion.

Akindele is yet to speak publicly and declined to comment to CNN.

I have nothing to say until the university has concluded their investigation, he said.

Backlash on social media

Osagie says she has faced severe backlash since the university made her identity public when it released a statement.

A guy came up to me at the bank and said, Is this not the girl who harassed a lecturer? and he called me a prostitute. The security guard then had to push me away to go withdraw my money inside the bank, she said.

Osagie has also received abuse on social media and allegations that she tried to seduce the professor, she said.

Despite the criticism, Osagie says she has no regrets speaking about her experience. She hopes her case will give young women facing harassment on campuses the confidence to reject inappropriate advances from their lecturers, she said.

I am actually happy I came out. I am helping many ladies that have gone through the same thing I have gone through, and most of them cant talk about it.

They are scared of coming out in public. But I know it happens everywhere, not just in Nigeria. For me, speaking up will bring more women to speak and eradicate what is happening around young women and older men, Osagie told CNN.

There is no work or  education that is worth your dignity, she added. I will keep saying that.

After the story broke in the media, Osagie faced a university panel investigating the allegations on the tape and is awaiting its findings so she can receive her certificate. There has been no suggestion that the findings will prevent her from receiving her degree.

Her lawyer, Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, told CNN more victims have contacted her with allegations about the same professor since hearing about Osagies case.

We have  a situation whereby people have promised to send to us affidavits  where they can also give evidence against the professor, the lawyer said.

CNN has not been able to reach Akindele for comment about other accusers.

A spokesman for the university also told CNN the institution could not disclose whether other students had brought similar allegations against the professor.

What is being investigated is the allegation leveled by the student against her lecturer. The universitys council will make the final decision on the report the vice chancellor has submitted on the case, said Abiodun Olarewaju, a spokesman for OAU.

This is because of the caliber of the lecturer involved, he added.

OAU hit by allegations of sexual harassment

Sexual exploitation of female students is a common practice in many universities in Nigeria, one lecturer told CNN.

There is no doubt that this is something that happens frequently in our universities, said Remi Sonaiya, a former professor of French and linguistics at the OAU.

Terrible! Unfortunately, many universities dont have strong deterrents or punishment for abusers. Students should be encouraged to speak out when such things happen. There must be at least someone in the institution who can be trusted and confided in. Justice must be done.

The practice thrives because students do not come forward with these allegations and also because they do not trust their institutions to handle such matters with discretion.

I handled a case where the female student reported to another lecturer. She did not come to me at first even though I was the head of the department.

I felt bad she worried about who to tell, but I cant blame her. She didnt know who to trust.

I hope this sends a signal that we can no longer tolerate these forms of assault on young women anymore.

Osagies case is not the first time OAU has been embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal.

A former student in January said in a now-deleted Facebook post that one of her lecturers caused her to drop out of school when he failed her after she refused to sleep with him, according to local media reports.

OAU said the man worked for the university about 15 years ago and also said they had launched an investigation, which is on-going.

Sexual harassment on African campuses

But it is not only happening in Nigerian universities. Makere University, Ugandas oldest university, last month, suspended a male member of staff after a female student accused him of sexual harassment.

Ugandan local media also captured one of the schools male lecturers asking a female student for sex in exchange for marks. The man was later suspended by the university.

CNN has been unable to reach the two accused men for comment. A spokeswoman for Makerere University told CNN the university was investigating both cases.

The university will issue an official notification when the investigations are concluded, Ritah Namisango said.

The vice chancellor set up a committee in March after the allegations against the lecturer came to light to investigate the increasing cases of sexual harassment at the university. The committee will review and improve the institutions sexual harassment policy, she added.

A 2010 survey of college students and lecturers in Ghana and Tanzania universities found sex-for-grades was the most common form of harassment students faced on campuses.

Researchers interviewed 200 academics and policymakers and 200 students in the report, which highlights various forms of sexual harassment in the two countries.

Interview data revealed heterosexual sexual harassment of women by men as a discursive and actual practice in all four case-study institutions, wrote Louise Morley, the lead researcher and professor of education at the University of Sussex, in the UK.

Some male lecturers in universities surveyed consider it their right to demand sex with female students in return for grades, researchers found.

Hashtag campaign reflects outrage

Since Osagies recording went viral, many Nigerians have led calls for universities to do more to protect students from sexual harassment.

Any lecturer caught soliciting bribe for marks in Nigeria should be suspended for a full academic year. Any lecturer caught soliciting sex for marks/good grades should be fired. Retweet if you support this, Dipo Awojide tweeted.

Tweeting with the hashtag #StandingWithMonicaOsagie, many expressed anger at the university, which forced authorities to respond to her allegations.

Commentator Ronke Ogunleye posted: If youre a female in Nigeria and youre not #StandingWithMonicaOsagie, you are doing a disservice to your daughters and granddaughters  present or future!

Fight abuse of power in schools and the workplace! No to sexual harassment!!!

* Source: CNN

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Ex-BBNaija 2017 housemate Uriel shows off saggy chest in new photos

Ex-BBNaija 2017 housemate, Uriel Oputa, seem to have triumphed over people who are out to body shale her at every given opportunity.

It would be recalled that Uriel has been faced with several backlashes after the Big Brother Naija show came to an end in 2017. Many body shamed her for having saggy chest. Well, now, she is proudly accepting them just the way they are.

The beautiful star took to social media to share beautiful photos from a recent photo shoot which she had with a brand where she had to go braless.

READ ALSO: BBNaija 2018: Ifu Ennada and Leo look good in new bridal themed photos

Knowing her fans and followers well enough, she decided to inform them not to insult her as the photos were only for a shoot.

She captioned, "Pls pls I would like to beg you let my saggy b*obs feel s*xy pls .. Its a shoot after I will pack them. Pls just let me have this picture Im shaking as Im typing this. Pls pls"

Get the hottest gist on Naija Uncensored Facebook Group

Recall that Months ago, Uriel took to her Instagram page to write a touching message to her mother, saying even though dementia wants to take her mother away; she will always be by her side.

Dementia is a broad category of brain diseases that cause a long-term and often gradual decrease in the ability to think and remember that is great enough to affect a person's daily functioning. The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer's disease, which makes up 50% to 70% of cases.

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android and read the best news about Nigeria

Ex-BBNaija housemate, Uriel Oputa bares it all on NAIJ.com TV

[embedded content]

Subscribe to watch new videos

Source: Naija.ng

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Children Day: Education best instrument to fight poverty, social ills  Nasarawa Speaker

Alhaji Ibrahim Abdullahi, the Speaker, Nasarawa State House of Assembly, has urged parents and guardians to provide good education and proper upbringing of their children for a better society.

The speaker made the appeal in a statement issued by his Press Secretary, Alhaji Jibrin Gwamna, and made available to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Keffi on Sunday.

Abdullahi described education as the best instrument to fight poverty and other related abuses on children, hence the need for parents to give topmost priority to the education of their wards.

The speaker described children as special gifts from God while urging parents to take adequate care of them for a prosperous society.

He also urged parents to live an exemplary life by inculcating good moral values on their children.

Education is the leeway to success in life and a route to escape from poverty box, and it is the bed rock of any society as knowledge is power.

When one is well informed, he or she can move to places beyond his local environment, the statement said.

Abdullahi condemned violence against children, calling for all hands to be on deck in order to fight violence against violence.

He congratulated the children on their day, describing the day as unique and worth celebrating.

According to him, there will be permanent peace in the society if parents instill moral values on their children and to live a life worth of emulation for the overall development of the country.

Besides, the speaker called for special prayers for the survival, good health and growth of children as leaders of tomorrow.

He underscored the need for all, especially leaders, to brace up and put smiles on the faces of children, especially the less privileged.

Abdullahi restated the commitment of the state legislature to continue to pass resolutions and enact laws that have direct bearing on the lives of the children.

He enjoined the people of the state and Nigerians at large to be law abiding, respect constituted authorities and to live in peace for the overall development of the country.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | $16b power project: Nigerians are waiting for your explanation, Agoro asks Obasanjo

By Ola Ajayi

Ibadan  FOLLOWING accusations and counter accusations among the presidency and former Presidents , Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan over $16billion power project, Dr Olapade Agoro, National Chairman of the National Action Council (NAC) has challenged the three Nigerian leader to stop the blame-game and explain their roles in series of mismanaged funds since 1999. Chief Olusegun Obasanjo

Agoro said this when speaking with newsmen in Ibadan Sunday on the occasion of Nigerias 19th anniversary of Democracy Day.

The NAC chairman said, it was unfortunate that the 19 years of democratic process have brought about poverty, suffering and sorrow to Nigerians as a result of corruption and mismanagement of funds.

The 19 years of democratic experience in the country have been woefully messed up by corrupt politicians. What Nigerians need now is explanation on how some funds were mismanaged or embezzled.

Besides, the cleric insisted that Nigerians also deserved to know more about the $62 billion left behind in the countrys foreign exchange reserve in 2007 when former President Obasanjo was leaving office got depleted to about $360 million within one year, and the missing $20 billion crude oil money alleged by the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN), Sanusi Lamido Sanusi.

The NACs National Chairman, however, revealed that in order to create a platform for Buhari, Obasanjo and Jonathan to be heard, he (Agoro) would on August 16, 2018 organise a forum in Ibadan that would be tagged  Face the Nation, in which the trio and members of their economic teams will be invited to explain their roles in the alleged mismanagement of funds.

His words: The issue of the $16 billion power project is not a blame-game issue. Buhari was partially right, claiming that Obasanjo spent $16 billion on the power project. The truth is that Obasanjo committed $12 billion, while the YarAdua/Jonathans administration committed $8 billion on the project.

This is, therefore, calling on Obasanjo to forget about asking anybody to go and read his book. Nigerians are not interested in that. Nigerians deserve to know what is happening. Nigerians are waiting for explanations on what happened to the money. It is, therefore, not an ordinary political words bring throwing about, Agoro said.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Fresh crisis in Labour Party over alleged plot by NLC to hijack party

By Chris Ochayi

ABUJA  There are indications that fresh a leadership crisis is brewing in the Labour Party, LP, following alleged plot by the leadership of Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, to hijack the party.

Supporters of Labour party celebrating Mimikos Victory at Amusement park, Akure. Photos Lamidi Bamidele



The subterranean moves to takeover the party by the organized union according to Vanguard findings, could not be unconnected with recent skirmishes in the party where a few aggrieved members were said to have allegedly organised a questionable national convention to topple the national chairman.

The attempted plot however failed with INEC rebuttal of any leadership crisis in the party, insisting that it recognised Alhaji Abdulkadir Abdulsalam as the authentic National chairman of the party.

It would be recalled that the President of Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, in his May Day Speech declared that the NLC is the owner of the Party and shall dissolve Wards, Local Government, and State Executive structures of the Party.

The current intrigue in the party according to political pundit might lead to a point where the organised labour will need to reorganise it to such a formidable front that would be used as platform for the nations workforce to have a common voice to either to go it alone or through affiliation with other parties to make a bold statement during the 2019 presidential elections.

This grand plot also coincided with recent alert raised by Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu over alleged clandestine move by civil servants and other public officials not comfortable with the anti-graft posture of President Muhammadu Buhari to remove him from office.

According to the source, We are aware of clandestine moves by the NLC to forcefully, unconstitutionally and illegally take over the leadership of the Party.

We are informed authoritatively that the NLC acting through its President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba have perfected plans to convene meetings of the Organs of the Party and thereafter, mobilise thugs and hoodlums to forcefully take over the National Secretariat.

The source, while pointing accusing fingers at the NLC President, further recalled that Recently the NLC pretended as if they were mediating in the party crisis but employed various tactics including divide and rule system to take over the Party.

The source, who said this is not the first time the NLC will be embarking on such a journey, recalled how during the National Convention of the Party held in Akure in 2014, the NLC set up a Caretaker Committee but failed in an attempt to legitimize it.

Meanwhile, Vanguard learnt that worried by the unfolding development, the leadership of the Labour Party, LP, has petitioned the Chairman of Independent National electoral Commission, INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, urging him to call the NLC president to order.

The petition according to dependable source close to the management of the electoral umpire was received on May 21, 2018.

Yes, we have just received a protest letter from the Labour Party, LP, complaining of plot by certain persons operating under a body to hijack the party.

We are looking into the issues raised in the letter with a view to addressing them accordingly, thanks, said the source.

But another source to the gimmick, who did not want his name in print while accusing the NLC of plotting to hijack the party for ulterior motive said, Section 221 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) prohibits any association from contributing to the funds of any political party.

He said, It is a criminal offence under section 15 of the Trade Union Act to use Trade Unions Funds whether directly or indirectly to fund a political party.

Noting that the NLC has nothing to do with administration of the party, he said, once a Political Party is registered by INEC it becomes a body corporate with a perpetual succession and a common seal.

His words: Section 80 of the Electoral Act (as amended) states that a political party once registered has a life of its own and its only regulated by its constitution.

But efforts to reach out to the National chairman of Labour Party, LP, Alhaji Abdulkadir Abdulsalam to react to the development proved abortive as several calls put across to his phone by our correspondent could not get through even as text messages were not replied.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
Home | News | General | Messi threatens to quit Barcelona after Real Madrid won third straight Champions League

Lionel Messi has reportedly threatened to quit Barcelona this summer if the LaLiga champions dont make big signings.

According to Spanish outlet, Don Balon, Messi has told Barcelonas president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, to bring in top players before next season.

It is believed the Argentina captain is concerned about the clubs future, after watching Real Madrid lift their 13th Champions League/European Cup on Saturday night, their third in a row.

The 30-year-old has now told Bartomeu to abandon plans to sign Santos and Gremio stars Rodrygo and Arthur and go for bigger players.

The report claimed that unless Barca sign big names in the upcoming window, Messi will ask to leave.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM: General
I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OO poor

Reply

Thread

Link

Brooklyn is stupidly overrated, there I said it.

Reply

Thread

Link

lol bye

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

A lot of hip celebs/white rich people left Manhattan and are moving into Brooklyn, thus making Brooklyn very pricey/go up!!



UGH

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

do you like any city that isn't detroit? jesus

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

you are absolutely correct

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Gentrification is legit killing the culture of a lot of cities.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Truth, If we didn't treat housing like a commodity in this country our cities would be better off, all developers wanna build is luxury stuff and nothing else.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

it is

take me back to your time monalisa!! when houses/property were pennines worth!!

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

LOL I was gonna ask if there is any part of Brooklyn that is not totally gentrified and has any of its formal culture.....the pics give me alot of that answer.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

especially new york as whole. the rest of the tri-state is about to get a lot more interesting i guess...

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

IA and it's all because of gentrification. I don't think I've ever walked by so many Trader Joe's before in my life until I went to Brooklyn. Also all the Brooklyn Yelp reviews are all lies.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

Lmfao I always wanted to live there and the guys there must be so hot asf. Gentrification tho..... R I P!!!!

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

Is it like a culture for rich people in America to purchase a house and then sell it and then move to another house? That sounds so exhausting because in my country most rich people especially the old rich have ancestral homes and they barely move.

Reply

Thread

Link

It's for $$$$$. Investment.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

yep,

wait until the market opens up and sell it for more.

come to think about it, this house might be worth doubled in the next 5-10 years.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

there are like dozens of shows about it even, house flipping or whatever

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

The US isn't really old enough to have ancestral homes like in other countries. Sure, there are some families with multi-generaltional properties, like the Kennedys. But in general, this is a thing celebs and rich people do (typically self-made rich people who have no wealthy roots). Sometimes they never even live in the places, which is weird.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

surprised they're worth enough to afford this

Reply

Thread

Link

gasps how dare you :O



But they did buy a house in NY/Brooklyn for a good price (still pretty fucking expensive like 3-9 million dollars) and sold them for a better price. So they pro saved that $$ up.





Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

He getting that Marvel money.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Lol! Marvel money aint nothin excepet if you RDJ.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

p much all i got from this too

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

They must be good with money

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Avengers paid for it

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I thought the same, good for them I guess

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

it's all from labyrinth :)

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

how dare you!



jennifer connelly's been steadily working since she was a pre-teen and paul bettany's been an established actor for a while plus he's gettin' that marvel money now.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

Putting that Marvel money to use

Reply

Thread

Link

And Star Wars too, making that good Disney money.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

every time i see him i think of that one video that called him "british christmas robot" and i laugh for a million years



anyway my brain can't even process that sort of money good christ on a motorcycle

Reply

Thread

Link

they got that much money? i haven't seen either of them in anything unless i missed something.

Reply

Thread

Link

its called being lowkey and flawless (Basically I'm talking Jennifer more lol) and saving that cash to buy it

also she was a very successful teen model and she seems smart with her $$, and Paul get that Marvel cash

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Paul's playing Vision in the Avengers + all of their other work.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I remember he was like before he was Vision, I just come into a sound booth say my lines in 3 hours and leave with a boatload of cash and I was like my dream.



Also, judging by their summer holidays they always go yatching (rich folk with other rich people) and you need $$ to do that every summer. Basically I'm jelly

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

If I had that much money to spend on real estate I'd buy multiple beachfront apartments. I could never be an investor because spending that much money for a home that doesn't have an amazing view just doesn't make sense to me.

Reply

Thread

Link

property in NYC and Brooklyn is so fucking outrageous, I mean a small house for 5 million dollars??



Like, ugh. I wish I brought a house in Brooklyn before it inflated like crazy.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

spending that much money for a home that doesn't have an amazing view just doesn't make sense to me.

This! It's not worth it, if there is no view.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

It's just off the Brooklyn Heights promenade, so it has views of the Manhattan skyline + Statue of Liberty

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

That's a lot of money to spend for the luxury of not being able to find a parking spot. Though I guess that's probably not a problem rich people have.

Reply

Thread

Link

I cant imagine spending that much money to live in Brooklyn and not Manhattan

Reply

Thread

Link

they lived in Tribeca for about a decade, before they were in Brooklyn but I guess they were like most of the kids are grown so why not??



I'll buy a small apartment and a house in LA if I had the $$ lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Also Manhattan is pretty much over. It's just covered in high-rises purchased by rich Europeans that never live in them.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Manhattan is nothing special, it's just becoming a forest of corporate skyscrapers and luxury condos, really ugly honestly.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

can they pay my barely affordable 1-bedroom brooklyn rent while their at it, its like 1/10000 of this

Reply

Thread

Link

how much is your rent for that?

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

granted its in Brooklyn prob like 2000-2500 a month??

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

Hey long time no chat! Hope ur doing well!



And yes its their haunted one, that just sold for like 15 million dollars. It was owned by some Microsoft billionaire omg and he sold it.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

who haunts it and how is this known?



lmao I'd love if the real estate put it as a feature

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

Eww the decor is sf tacky

Like English countryside grandma

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

ugh @ the pot lights in that gorgeous original ceiling.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

hey thats my place of biz

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

That white ceiling is so pretty. I love the detail on the wood but I don't like brown on anything but the floors.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

That's very ugly.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

this is beautiful, that classy bish

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

i think i hate old houses

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I love that white bathroom style that every expensive home seems to have, but as a poor person I immediately think of what a nightmare it must be to keep clean and the visible hairs everywhere.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

that's way too much wood for me





Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

I thought this was going to a divorce announcement post when I saw their names lol

Reply

Thread

Link

I would be shocked tbh, but then again who knows??



Their love story is rather cute, he saw 9/11 happening on TV in London, and immediately called Jennifer who was in NY at the time and told her he loved her. And the rest is history.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

IA It would be shocking because they do seem to be really in love



Benttany seems like a bit of a prick though

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

Obviously they can do with their money what they want but i really don't see the point of buying a huge and expensive house.



Like, hollywood people buying 5+ million dollar mansions doesn't make sense to me lol

Reply

Thread

Link

ok

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

that's a vibe

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

lmfao

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

mood

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

big mood

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link
Kanye and Kim are so full of shit.

Reply

Thread

Link

Gurl yaaas. Kim is SO messy.

For Christ sake, at least do a goddamn spell check. How you gonna try to "check" someone on Twitter with multiple spelling errors and standing up for your trash husband. Lol, gurl bye.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Shead a negative light on Kanye.



You know that how she thinks its supposed to be spellet.

Lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Kim has become insufferable to me since she married him. Showing her ass constantly trying to defend his bullshit.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

I'm so confused. Her issue is that the co-founder had nothing negative to say when Kanye was actually helping out? Well, no shit, LOL.

Reply

Thread

Link

LMAO MTE. She shouldnt have gotten involved because she only made an ass of herself.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I hope an earthquake destroys their house in Calabasas.

Reply

Thread

Link

I cackled so loud at this. <3 lololol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

...a very localized earthquake pls! I live like 10 miles away and would like not to be swallowed up by the earth, ty.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

It'll be like when Ned's house was the only one destroyed by the hurricane on The Simpsons.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

yeah, my mum's house needs to not be destroyed but theirs totally can (not that we coul ever afford to live in calabasas)

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

oop

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

shut up kim

Reply

Thread

Link







People who do community work in Chicago can attest to this. https://t.co/iKBfrLQfac  #Prisonculture (@prisonculture) May 27, 2018





I know some things about how much Che has personally invested in that project/organization but I'm going to let his response speak for itself because it is more than sufficient.  #Prisonculture (@prisonculture) May 27, 2018





But the work of another dope Black woman is potentially erased. Donnie Smith, Executive Director of Donda's House, has worked tirelessly on that organization. Google her!  Charles Preston (@_CharlesPreston) May 27, 2018





Seeing yalll cheer on Kims tweet while community organizers in Chicago with Dondas House are actually on the ground putting forth effort, including Rhymefest is ugly tbh.

Visibility is credibility tho.  DarkSkintDostoyevsky (@daniecal) May 27, 2018



judging by a lot of the ppl from Chicago I follow who do work in the community it seems pretty obvious that Rhymefest is 100% telling the truth. Kim and Kanye are assholes. I really can't @ any of her stans applauding some ~clapback~

Reply

Thread

Link

Hes definitely telling the truth its been obvious for a minute that Rhymefest and his wife!! is the one putting in the work and teaching the classes. I cant even imagine Kanye giving up his time to do that



Edited at 2018-05-27 02:48 am (UTC)

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Right? What is she on? Her kids aren't going to learn anything good from her and Kayne

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

what



i still don't get why drake got dragged into this, at all. this guy just sounds like he's mooching off drake for no random ass reason?

Reply

Thread

Link

No, he shouted out Drake because Drake and Pusha T have been dissing each other back and forth (Pusha T on a Kanye produced and promoted album). It's an extra dig at Kanye. Like - you won't even commit time to your own organization so I'm gonna ask this guy that you're busy dissing. Add on to that the "invoice" Drake posted to his instagram - Rhymefest is saying that they haven't been able to get any money from Kanye for Kanye's own charity so maybe if Kanye pays up to Drake then Drake can kick Rhymefest the cash Kanye owes. He's not being serious, it's all just about calling out Kanye on his bullshit.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Well you cant say Kim isnt loyal to her husband

Reply

Thread

Link

Loyalty in and of itself isn't worthy of respect; plenty of shitty people are loyal to shitty systems, people, beliefs and more and it just makes them even shittier. Kim is a pig.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Oh I think its fucked shes so loyal to Kanye and keeps caping for him in these situations. It wasnt really meant to be a positive comment

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Let her children run it? Well a 5 year old would probably do a better job than Kanye.

Reply

Thread

Link

I feel so bad for these kids, being dragged into this mess already

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I know, right.

Good to know the kids have choices!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I was wondering why she said that. Idk.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Fuck off, Kim

Reply

Thread

Link

wtffff

Reply

Thread

Link

They deserve each other kim.kanye are self involved idiots.

Reply

Thread

Link

Kim wants to seize the foundation so her toddlers can run it?

Reply

Thread

Link

apparently

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

She realized toddlers would probably do a better job than her, bless this self aware queen

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

So it seems lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

lol - mte

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

shut up Kim like your kids are gonna go to college and learn how to run a non-profit get the fuck out of here

Reply

Thread

Link

lol mte

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Lol keepin it real

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Omggg

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

What, like it's hard? You just don't make any money! So if you do accidentally make some money, you go out and buy some new tops until you're out of money again. Easy-peasy.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Honestly, I hope they do so they can be 1000x better than their parents.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

as someone working in a frontline role at a nonprofit... i wiiish our ED had even thought about doing it. Too many nonprofits leaders are wildly underqualified.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

This is sad, but not surprising

Reply

Thread

Link

She shoulda had this same energy for Drake. He went harder at ya mans then he did Push why dont you pop off at them Kimmy? Fake ass bitch has the audacity to say some shit like that last tweet. I hope someone Tomi Lahrens her and her sisters and Kanye falls off the face of the earth.



Nothing I hate more than people popping shit who aint about shit.

Reply

Thread

Link

and snoop lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

for fuckin real!!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link
Y'all are making me want to start watching

Reply

Thread

Link

ONE OF US ONE OF US

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

do it do it do it

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

you need to do it sis

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

DO IT!!!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

i'd recommend just kinda powering through the first episode or two. i've gotten a few people hooked on it because we'll be hanging out and i'll convince them to start it on netflix, and for the first couple of episodes i can tell they're not really into it but by the third they're loling and i get a text two weeks later that they've finished all the episodes on netflix and are trying to pirate the rest

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

seconding this, i would have it on in the background while i cooked, just for some noise, and then partway through season 1 i found myself actively paying attention and loving it.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

do it! it's so good.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link



such great news in lieu of a shit week. yaaas. thank you OP for your beautiful posts <3

Reply

Thread

Link

she is so pretty ilh

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Does Dan Levy still roll his eyes to the back of his head when delivering lines?



Seeing just the whites of his eyes during a huge fraction of his dialogue finally made me drop the show.

Reply

Thread

Link

i think so. he's been really lazy with his acting and relying on the same few mannerisms way too much.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Season 4 is already on Netflix though? Or is that only in the UK?

Reply

Thread

Link

looks like the UK and Australia got something first for once \o/

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

season 3 took until Christmas to go up on netflix in Canada so it seems like it'll be forever

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Yeah but they go up immediately on the CBC website before netflix so you can watch it there.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link







i've said it before, but imma need a whole lot more of Ronnie (and Ray) for Season 5.

Reply

Thread

Link





I've only started watching in the last week, and it's so good. Catherine O'Hara is a gift.

Reply

Thread

Link

So glad this small Canadian show gained so much traction over the years. It's such a deserving and amazing show.

Reply

Thread

Link

It is my favourite tv comedy right now

Reply

Thread

Link





i never would've discovered this show if it wasn't for ontd. now i'm obsessed. just finished season 4 last night!!

Reply

Thread

Link

i love these two and i need Patrick to become a series regular, get married with David and have tons of babies.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Same! I love them together. Ahhhhhhh! I need to watch it again.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link



Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in Hello! Your entry got to top-25 of the most popular entries in LiveJournal!Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ

Reply

Thread

Link

she's totally become my favourite, i've loved her character growth

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

This show has been one of my new favorites. Ty for introducing it to me, ontd 

Reply

Thread

Link

It's time for Roland to have a freak accident.

Reply

Thread

Link

You forgot Patrick.

Reply

Thread

Link

I only started watching this because of the GIF's on ONTD and I ended up binge watching the whole thing. It's so good!

Reply

Thread

Link
grimes sis you know what to do

Reply

Thread

Link

lmfao

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

the lil exclamation point and everything

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

White Men Can't Tweet

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

weren't there stories recently about him being elder abused by his family? i bet its not him tweeting that.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

He actually accidentally signed away his rights to his own image, etc. which technically includes his Twitter account, and that whole thing is in court right now. He says it's him, but it's not clear if he is always the one using his account.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

i cannot express in words how much i HATE how we've been socially conditioned to think that everything rich straight white men say is automatically profound and interesting.

Reply

Thread

Link

absolutely. Success basically absolves you of being a decent human being. The end justifies the means.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

and so many people automatically think successful people 1) deserve their success and 2) actually earned their success. like an old racist republican grandfather screaming into the void: LIFE IS HARD JUST WORK HARDER AND IF YOU DON'T SUCCEED IT'S YOUR FAULT

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

The hero worship of anyone rich, tbh. Goodbye.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Why does Stan Lees tweet look exactly like a Trump one? Misspelled word, random caps. He probably is being held hostage in an old folks home.

Reply

Thread

Link

they're both senile? idk

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I honestly think its just an old man thing. Text from my grandpa look just like that.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Voice-to-text randomly capitalizes words for me so maybe he types that way?

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Time to get back into your mum's basement where the Internet connection sucks, Elon.











Urgh, a cliche nerd is a basement dweller comment, but I'm too lazy to try better.

Reply

Thread

Link

retweeting praise from (allegedly) Stan Lee

Why does it say 'allegedly' here? Is it not really Stan Lee?



I agree that media should be held accountable if they're spreading lies, but Musk's attack on media seems like a really wrong way to go about it.

Reply

Thread

Link

He supposedly took control of his own twitter account two weeks ago; it was being controlled by someone else (rumor says his daughter but I have no idea). So anything tweeted since then is probably (?) really him.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

The sweet tweet abt Tom Holland from a week ago must be from him lol. It was adorable.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Oh wait no this post has informed he is a creep. I take it back

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

because it's very unlikely that stan lee is running any of his social media accounts.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

To add to what shavingkit said, hes also alleging in his lawsuit against POW! for taking advantage of his grief and poor eyesight that they took over his social media and he only recently got it back, so it was mostly in reference to that



Edited at 2018-05-27 02:51 pm (UTC)

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Is he losing it or has he always been like that?



People I know named their kid "Elon" and I was side-eyeing them a little. You really want to associate your kid with a real life Bond villain? Really?!

Reply

Thread

Link

Hes always been an awful crazy person, but his twitter meltdowns seem a recent development.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

He's always been like that

People are just realizing it now

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I think he's losing it. I'm not sure if it's because things aren't going well behind the scenes or because Grimes is mad at him about some of the reports on working conditions Tesla and how being associated with him reflects on her, but I don't think he was doing this before.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Tesla stock has been down, in large part due to negative press coverage (of valid issues!), so he's panicking.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

he has the Trump syndrome, i.e. is a fragile af narcissist. I don't envy the people who have to deal with him.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

ia with brock (lmfao???) i must be in hell rn that's the only way i can make sense of this entire timeline's garbage



Edited at 2018-05-27 02:37 pm (UTC)

Reply

Thread

Link

The idea of holding media accountable is not bad. Allowing the public to rank its truthiness is hysterically stupid.

Reply

Thread

Link

I agree.



Also while he makes a point that many of the large media is owned by rich people with agendas (Rupert Murdoch, Jeff Bezos) He's just proposing a website for judging facts that he would own so that's not really changing anything.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I hope youre not suggesting people are biased? /s

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

his whole argument (and trumps) presumes that the media isn't accountable. it is.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Like, Elon, generally speaking people obv have no critical thinking ability, they were fooled by shitposts on FB.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

i can't believe i'm agreeing with someone named brock

Reply

Thread

Link

Lol

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

i wish he deleted because he recognized what a fucking dumbfuck he was being and started re-examining every choice in his life that led him to this point but it's much more likely that he reluctantly deleted it while grumbling about how unfair it is that you can't freely bask in the praise of an illegal sex cult without being criticized.

Reply

Thread

Link

I'd like him to explain how the public will be able to know if the source is telling the truth or not? This just seems like it'll lead to a bunch of fake news morons down voting everything they don't agree with, how trustworthy and objective.

Reply

Thread

Link

So basically Reddit for News. And there have been rating sites before for news but they never really take off because bias always kills the accountability.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

"Elon Musk" is an anagram for "suk lemon."

Reply

Thread

Link

or lone skum

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I absolutely love how quickly he has fallen from grace. Obviously there are still fanboys but even the hxc places like imgur are lessening the worship and are using critical thinking skills.

Reply

Thread

Link
This is such a beautiful song. Her voice is amazing.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I love this song. Short and sweet

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

ugh, this song is everything <3

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

it's all coming back to me now is her most underrated song bc it's the best song ever written and we could never appreciate it enough in any reality

Reply

Thread

Link

lmao mte

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

exactly

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

My ultimate favorite, but I'm probably biased because I love Jim Steinman's songwriting/composing.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

The video always reminded me of Beauty and the Beast for some reason(even though I know she did a version of BATB)

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

that flawless gloriouly overwrought, overemotional opera is one of my earliest music video memories and is a certified banger to this day. Its on my work playlist rn, I still love it.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link





IF YOU TOUCH ME LIKE THIS

AND IF I KISS YOU LIKE THAT

IT WAS GONE WITH THE WIND

BUT IT'S ALL COMING BACK TO ME

IT'S ALL COMING BACK

IT'S ALL COMING BACK TO ME NOW

My favorites are Because You Loved Me and her version of The Power Of Love but I was having a moment with It's All Coming Back To Me Now this past week.IF YOU TOUCH ME LIKE THISAND IF I KISS YOU LIKE THATIT WAS GONE WITH THE WINDBUT IT'S ALL COMING BACK TO MEIT'S ALL COMING BACKIT'S ALL COMING BACK TO ME NOW

Reply

Thread

Link

Falling into you is her best album in my opinion.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

We need an ontd original of THE BEST reality tv Christmas specials/episodes.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I absolutely murder IACBTMN on the karaoke and I say that proudly.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link



http://myarmsareridiculous.tumblr.com/post/134317796255/myarmsareridiculous-the-first-time-i-ever-heard this song always reminds me of this tumblr post

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

LMAOOO

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link





QUEEN

Reply

Thread

Link

yes! i love this song!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

MY FAVORITE FOREVER

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Yasssss! This song is everything. Its so ethereal and beautiful and the strings and her voice...ugh, goosebumps!

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

This song. One of my very favorites.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I LOOOOVE that song.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

I fucking loathe R.Kelly but I cannot get enough of Im your angel. She should re-record it with Josh Groban.



Edited at 2018-05-27 09:09 pm (UTC)

Reply

Thread

Link

I forgot about that! Much like "Do What You Want" with gaga, those get to stay as a result of a technicality.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

That song still pisses me off cuz he was NOT needed. The solo version makes so much more sense, especially in the context of ARTPOP. Stupid stupid.

Reply

Parent

Thread

Expand

Link

its all coming back to my now.. whew, lets discuss em vocals!!!!

Reply

Thread

Link

I like "A New Day Has Come" and "I'm Alive"



Not a big enough fan to know if those are underrated or not

Reply

Thread

Link

Its All Coming Back To Me Now video had me shook as a 7 year old

Reply

Thread

Link

All her French ones are underrated (to you americans/ anglo-Canadians).



Not only are her French songs songs artistically and lyrically better, her technique in them is superior, as she's not just screaming in them just to show she can (like her english-songs producers encourage her to).



My personal faves:



- Le ballet



- Je lui dirais



- Preiere paienne



- Je t'aime encore



- J'irais ou tu iras



- Vole



Anything she's done with Jean-Jacque Goldman, really



Edited at 2018-05-27 09:14 pm (UTC)

Reply

Thread

Link

!!!!!



Yes at all of this

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Omg, basically her entire album D'eux is gold! Les derniers seront les premiers is soooo good.



I also really like It's all coming back to me now, Immortality, and Think twice, lol.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Regarde-moi is a timeless jam I put on way too many playlists.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

L'amour Existe Encore is my favorite french song by hers. Love it so much.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Agreed! D'eux is her all-time best album. Pour que tu m'aimes encore is my personal favourite, but the whole album is fantastic.

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

Ashamed of it, but I only know 5 celine songs



My Heart will go on

that's the way it is

It's all coming back to me now

Ashes (the new deadpool one)

Beauty and the Beast



and the covers of All by myself and The Power of love

Reply

Thread

Link

hello I love this post



Water From The Moon is sooooo good





Did You Get Enough Love is such a good song, and these looks!! Amazing, we deserve an HQ video rip







My favorite French one always goes back to this



Reply

Thread

Link

Beauty and the Beast

Its All Coming Back to Me Now





Reply

Thread

Link

This!



Wait lemme pull out a more appropriate icon, lol.



Edited at 2018-05-27 10:18 pm (UTC)

Reply

Parent

Thread



Link

To Love You More

The Power of Love

It's All Coming Back To Me Now

All By Myself

I Drove All Night



Edited at 2018-05-27 09:24 pm (UTC)

Reply

Thread

Link
SSS asks Senate to revise charter

posted May 27, 2018 at 06:30 pm by Julito G. Rada May 27, 2018 at 06:30 pm

State-run pension fund Social Security System asked the Senate to amend its 1997 charter, a top executive said over the weekend. SSS president and chief executive Emmanuel Dooc said the proposed bill to amend Republic Act No. 8282 or Social Security Law of 1997 received wide support in the Senate, following Sen. Richard Gordons sponsorship speech on May 22. Dooc said Senate Bill 1753 which aimed to amend the 21-year old SSS law gathered the attention of the senators after the committee of government corporations and public enterprises and the committee on labor, employment and human resources development led by Gordon presented Committee Report No. 300.We are grateful to Sen. Richard Gordon in pushing the amendment of some provisions of the SSS charter. This is a long-term solution to maintain the viability of SSS in order to continuously provide meaningful benefits, Dooc said. Gordon presented the bill citing the need to amend the existing law for the benefit of the pension fund, members, pensioners, and stakeholders. Gordon said the bill if enacted into law, would expand, protect and grow the fund.

COMMENT DISCLAIMER: Reader comments posted on this Web site are not in any way endorsed by Manila Standard. Comments are views by manilastandard.net readers who exercise their right to free expression and they do not necessarily represent or reflect the position or viewpoint of manilastandard.net. While reserving this publications right to delete comments that are deemed offensive, indecent or inconsistent with Manila Standard editorial standards, Manila Standard may not be held liable for any false information posted by readers in this comments section.
Big Chinese group eyes Philippines investments

posted May 27, 2018 at 06:40 pm by Julito G. Rada May 27, 2018 at 06:40 pm

A Chinese delegation representing 44,000 local-level chambers of commerce met with Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III to discuss cooperation and investment opportunities in the Philippines. The Finance Department said over the weekend the Chinese businessmen were looking for possible tie-ups with other business groups within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Gao Yunlong, chairman of the All-China Federation of Commerce and Industry, was accompanied by several Chinese investors engaged in the fields of aerospace and aviation, agriculture, energy, hotels, tourism and other businesses. Gao said Chinese private investments in the country would help fuel the Philippines economic growth and deliver real benefits to Filipinos in the form of more job opportunities and higher income.Gao said he was impressed by the Philippines economic development and social prosperity in his first visit to Manila. I bring a number of Chinese entrepreneurs with me and the mission of our delegation is to seek cooperation and opportunities in the Philippines, including investments and business cooperation, said Gao, who is also vice chairman of the national committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference.

COMMENT DISCLAIMER: Reader comments posted on this Web site are not in any way endorsed by Manila Standard. Comments are views by manilastandard.net readers who exercise their right to free expression and they do not necessarily represent or reflect the position or viewpoint of manilastandard.net. While reserving this publications right to delete comments that are deemed offensive, indecent or inconsistent with Manila Standard editorial standards, Manila Standard may not be held liable for any false information posted by readers in this comments section.
The following companies are subsidiares of Abbott Laboratories: 3A Nutrition (Vietnam) Company Limited, ABON Biopharm (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd., AGA Medical Belgium, AGA Medical Corporation, AGA Medical Holdings Inc., ALR Holdings, AML Medical LLC, APK Advanced Medical Technologies LLC, ATS Bermuda Holdings Limited, ATS Laboratories Inc., Abbott, Abbott (Jiaxing) Nutrition Co. Ltd., Abbott (UK) Finance Limited, Abbott (UK) Holdings Limited, Abbott AG, Abbott Asia Holdings Limited, Abbott Asia Investments Limited, Abbott Australasia Holdings Limited, Abbott Australasia Pty Ltd, Abbott B.V., Abbott Bahamas Overseas Businesses Corporation, Abbott Belgian Investments, Abbott Bermuda Holding Ltd., Abbott Biologicals B.V., Abbott Biologicals LLC, Abbott Bulgaria Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Capital India Limited, Abbott Cardiovascular Inc., Abbott Cardiovascular Systems Inc., Abbott Delaware LLC, Abbott Diabetes Care Inc., Abbott Diabetes Care Limited, Abbott Diabetes Care Sales Corporation, Abbott Diagnostics GmbH, Abbott Diagnostics International Ltd., Abbott Diagnostics Technologies AS, Abbott Doral Investments S.L., Abbott Equity Holdings Unlimited, Abbott Equity Investments LLC, Abbott Established Products Holdings (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Finance Company SA, Abbott Financial Holdings SRL, Abbott France S.A.S., Abbott Fund Tanzania Limited, Abbott Gesellschaft m.b.H., Abbott GmbH & Co. KG, Abbott Health Products LLC, Abbott Healthcare (Puerto Rico) Ltd., Abbott Healthcare B.V., Abbott Healthcare Costa Rica S.A., Abbott Healthcare LLC, Abbott Healthcare Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Healthcare Private Limited, Abbott Healthcare Products B.V., Abbott Healthcare Products Ltd, Abbott Holding (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding GmbH, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited, Abbott Holding Subsidiary (Gibraltar) Limited Luxembourg S.C.S., Abbott Holdings B.V., Abbott Holdings LLC, Abbott Holdings Limited, Abbott Holdings Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Hungary Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Iberian Investments (2) Limited, Abbott Iberian Investments Limited, Abbott India Limited, Abbott Informatics Asia Pacific Limited, Abbott Informatics Canada Inc, Abbott Informatics Corporation, Abbott Informatics Europe Limited, Abbott Informatics France, Abbott Informatics Germany GmbH, Abbott Informatics Netherlands B.V., Abbott Informatics Singapore Pte. Limited, Abbott Informatics Spain S.A., Abbott Informatics Technologies Ltd, Abbott International Corporation, Abbott International Enterprises Ltd., Abbott International Holdings Limited, Abbott International LLC, Abbott International Luxembourg S.ar.l., Abbott Investments Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Ireland, Abbott Ireland Financing Designated Activity Company, Abbott Ireland Limited, Abbott Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Kazakhstan Limited Liability Partnership, Abbott Knoll Investments B.V., Abbott Korea Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Bangladesh) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco (Dos) SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Chile) Holdco SpA, Abbott Laboratories (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Laboratories (Mozambique) Limitada, Abbott Laboratories (Pakistan) Limited, Abbott Laboratories (Philippines), Abbott Laboratories (Puerto Rico) Incorporated, Abbott Laboratories (Singapore) Private Limited, Abbott Laboratories A/S, Abbott Laboratories Argentina Sociedad Anonima, Abbott Laboratories B.V., Abbott Laboratories C.A., Abbott Laboratories Finance B.V., Abbott Laboratories GmbH, Abbott Laboratories Inc., Abbott Laboratories International LLC, Abbott Laboratories Ireland Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited, Abbott Laboratories Limited - Laboratoires Abbott Limitee, Abbott Laboratories NZ Limited, Abbott Laboratories Pacific Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Poland Spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Laboratories Products B.V., Abbott Laboratories Residential Development Fund Inc., Abbott Laboratories S.A., Abbott Laboratories SA, Abbott Laboratories Services Corp., Abbott Laboratories Slovakia s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories South Africa (Pty) Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Laboratories Trustee Company Limited, Abbott Laboratories Uruguay S.A., Abbott Laboratories Vascular Enterprises, Abbott Laboratories d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories de Chile Limitada, Abbott Laboratories de Colombia S.A., Abbott Laboratories de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Abbott Laboratories druzba za farmacijo in diagnostiko d.o.o., Abbott Laboratories s.r.o., Abbott Laboratories(Hellas) Societe Anonyme, Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios S.A., Abbott Laboratorios del Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Abbott Laboratuarlari Ithalat Ihracat ve Ticaret Ltd.Sti, Abbott Laboratorios Lda, Abbott Laboratorios do Brasil Ltda., Abbott Limited Egypt LLC, Abbott Logistics B.V., Abbott Management GmbH, Abbott Management LLC, Abbott Manufacturing Singapore Private Limited, Abbott Mature Products International Unlimited Company, Abbott Mature Products Management Limited, Abbott Medical (Hong Kong) Limited, Abbott Medical (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Abbott Medical (Portugal) Distribuicao de Produtos Medicos Lda, Abbott Medical (Schweiz) AG, Abbott Medical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Abbott Medical (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Australia Pty. Ltd., Abbott Medical Austria Ges.m.b.H., Abbott Medical Balkan d.o.o. Beograd (Novi Beograd), Abbott Medical Belgium, Abbott Medical Canada Inc./ Medicale Abbott Canada Inc., Abbott Medical Danmark A/S, Abbott Medical Devices Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Espana S.A., Abbott Medical Estonia OU, Abbott Medical Finland Oy, Abbott Medical France SAS, Abbott Medical GmbH, Abbott Medical Hellas Limited Liability Trading Company, Abbott Medical Ireland Limited, Abbott Medical Italia S.p.A., Abbott Medical Japan Co. Ltd., Abbott Medical Korea Limited, Abbott Medical Korlatolt Felelossegu Tarsasag, Abbott Medical Laboratories LTD, Abbott Medical Nederland B.V., Abbott Medical New Zealand Limited, Abbott Medical Norway AS, Abbott Medical Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Medical Sweden AB, Abbott Medical Taiwan Co., Abbott Medical U.K. Limited, Abbott Medical spoka z ograniczona odpowiedzialnoscia, Abbott Middle East S.A.R.L., Abbott Molecular Inc., Abbott Morocco SARL, Abbott Nederland C.V., Abbott Nederland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Netherlands Investments B.V., Abbott Norge AS, Abbott Nutrition Limited, Abbott Nutrition Manufacturing Inc., Abbott Operations Singapore Pte. Ltd., Abbott Operations Uruguay S.R.L., Abbott Overseas Cyprus Limited, Abbott Overseas Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Overseas S.A., Abbott Oy, Abbott Point of Care Canada Limited, Abbott Point of Care Inc., Abbott Poland Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Procurement LLC, Abbott Products (Philippines) Inc., Abbott Products (Spain) S.L., Abbott Products Algerie EURL, Abbott Products B.V., Abbott Products Distribution SAS, Abbott Products Egypt LLC, Abbott Products Limited, Abbott Products Limited Liability Company, Abbott Products Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Products Operations AG, Abbott Products Operations LLC, Abbott Products Romania S.R.L., Abbott Products Tunisie S.A.R.L., Abbott Products Unlimited Company, Abbott Resources Inc., Abbott Resources International Inc., Abbott S.r.l., Abbott Saudi Arabia Trading Company, Abbott Scandinavia Aktiebolag, Abbott Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, Abbott South Africa Luxembourg S.a r.l., Abbott Strategic Opportunities Limited, Abbott Trading Company Inc., Abbott Universal LLC, Abbott Vascular Devices (2) Limited, Abbott Vascular Devices Limited, Abbott Vascular Inc., Abbott Vascular Instruments Deutschland GmbH, Abbott Vascular International, Abbott Vascular Japan Co. Ltd, Abbott Vascular Limitada, Abbott Vascular Netherlands B.V., Abbott Vascular Solutions Inc., Abbott Ventures Inc., Abbott West Indies Limited, Abbott drustvo sa ogranicenom odgovornoscu za trgovinu i usluge, Advanced Neuromodulation Systems Inc., Alere, Alere (Shanghai) Diagnostics Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Healthcare Management Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Medical Sales Co. Ltd., Alere (Shanghai) Technology Co. Ltd., Alere A/S, Alere AB, Alere AS, Alere AS Holdings Limited, Alere BBI Holdings Limited, Alere Bangladesh Limited, Alere China Co. Ltd., Alere Colombia S.A., Alere Connect LLC, Alere Connected Health Limited, Alere Connected Health Ltd., Alere Diagnostics GmbH, Alere DoA Holding GmbH, Alere GmbH, Alere GmbH (Austria), Alere GmbH (Germany), Alere HK Holdings Ltd., Alere Health B.V., Alere Health BVBA, Alere Health Corp., Alere Health Sdn Bhd, Alere Health Services B.V., Alere Healthcare (Pty) Limited, Alere Healthcare Connections Limited, Alere Healthcare Inc., Alere Healthcare Nigeria Limited, Alere Healthcare S.L., Alere Holdco Inc., Alere Holding GmbH, Alere Holdings Bermuda Limited, Alere Holdings Pty Limited, Alere Home Monitoring Inc., Alere Inc., Alere Informatics Inc., Alere International Holding Corp., Alere International Limited, Alere Lda, Alere Limited, Alere Limited (New Zealand), Alere Medical BVBA, Alere Medical Co. Ltd., Alere Medical Pakistan (Private) Limited, Alere Medical Private Limited, Alere North America LLC, Alere Oy Ab, Alere Philippines Inc., Alere Phoenix ACQ Inc., Alere Pte Ltd, Alere S.A., Alere S.r.l., Alere S/A, Alere SAS, Alere San Diego Inc., Alere Scarborough Inc., Alere Spain S.L., Alere Switzerland GmbH, Alere Technologies GmbH, Alere Technologies Holdings Limited, Alere Technologies Limited, Alere Toxicology AB, Alere Toxicology Inc., Alere Toxicology S.r.l., Alere Toxicology Services Inc., Alere Toxicology plc, Alere UK Holdings Limited, Alere UK Subco Limited, Alere ULC, Alere US Holdings LLC, Alere s.r.o., Alisoc Investment & Co, Amedica Biotech Inc., Ameditech Inc., American Generics S.A.S., American Medical Supplies Inc., American Pharmacist Inc., Antares S.A., Apica Cardiovascular Limited, Aquagestion Capacitacion S.A., Aquagestion S.A., Arriva Medical LLC, Arriva Medical Philippines Inc., Arvis Investments Limited, Atlas Farmaceutica S.A., Avee Laboratories Inc., Axis-Shield AD III AS, Axis-Shield AD IV AS, Axis-Shield AS, Axis-Shield Diagnostics Limited, Axis-Shield Ltd., BBI Animal Health Limited, BBI Diagnostics Group 2 Public Limited Company, Banco de Vida S.A., Bioabsorbable Vascular Solutions Inc., Bioalgae S.A., Biohealth LLC, Biosite Incorporated, Bosque Bonito S.A., Branan Medical Corporation, Brandex Europe C.V., British Colloids Limited, CFR Chile S.A., CFR Interamericas EL Salvador Sociedad Anonima de Capital Variable, CFR Interamericas Nicaragua Sociedad Anonima, CFR Interamericas Panama S.A., CFR Pharmaceuticals, California Property Holdings III LLC, CardioMEMS LLC, Caripharm Inc., Cephea Valve Technologies, Cephea Valve Technologies Inc., Colibri Medical Aktiebolag, Comercializadora y Distribuidora CFR Interamericas Honduras S.A., Concateno South Limited, Concateno UK Limited, Consorcio Tecnologico en Biomedicina Clinico-Molecular S.A., Continuum Services LLC, Cozart Limited, Dextech S.A., Diagnostik Nord GmbH, Distribuciones Uquifa S.A.S., Domesco Medical Import-Export Joint-Stock Corporation, Duphar International Research B.V., Endocardial Solutions, Epocal (US) Inc, Esprit de Vie S.A., European Chemicals & Co, European Drug Testing Service EDTS AB, European Services S.A., Evalve Inc., Evalve International Inc., FARMINDUSTRIA S.A., Fada Pharma Paraguay Sociedad Anonima, Fadapharma del Ecuador S.A., Farmaceutica Mont Blanc S.L., Farmacologia Em Aquicultura Veterinaria Ltda., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV Ecuador S.A., Farmacologia en Aquacultura Veterinaria FAV S.A., Fernwood Investment S.A., First Check Diagnostics LLC, Focus Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Forensics Limited, Forestcreek Overseas S.A., Fournier Pharma Corp., Fournier Pharma GmbH, Fournier Pharmaceuticals Limited, Framed B.V., Gabmed GmbH, Garden Hills LLC, Global Analytical Development LLC, Globapharm & CO LP, Glomed Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Golnorth Investments S.A., Gynocare Limited, Gynopharm Sociedad Anonima, Gynopharm de Centroamerica S.A., Gynopharm de Venezuela C.A., Hi-Tronics Designs Inc., IDEV Technologies Inc., IG Innovations Limited, IMTC Finance B.V., IMTC Holdings B.V., IMTC Technologies Inc., Ibis Biosciences LLC, Igloo Zone Chile S.A., Igloo Zone S.L., Inmobiliaria Naknek S.A.C., Innovacon Inc., Instant Tech Subsidiary Acquisition Inc., Instant Technologies Inc., Instituto de Criopreservacion de Chile S.A., Integrated Vascular Systems Inc., Inverness Canadian Acquisition Corporation, Inverness Medical (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Australia Pty Ltd., Inverness Medical Innovations Hong Kong Limited, Inverness Medical Innovations SK LLC, Inverness Medical Investments LLC, Inverness Medical LLC, Inverness Medical Shimla Private Limited, Inversiones K2 SpA, Inversiones Komodo S.R.L., Ionian Technologies LLC, Irvine Biomedical Inc., Kalila Medical, Kangshenyunga S.A., Knoll UK Investments Unlimited, LLC VeroInPharm, Laboratoires Fournier S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano Lafrancol S.A.S., Laboratorio Franco Colombiano del Ecuador S.A., Laboratorio Internacional Argentino S.A., Laboratorio Synthesis S.A.S., Laboratorios Lafi Limitada, Laboratorios Naturmedik S.A.S., Laboratorios Pauly Pharmaceutical S.A.S., Laboratorios Recalcine S.A., Laboratorios Transpharm S.A., Laboratory Specialists of America Inc., Lafrancol Dominicana S.A.S., Lafrancol Guatemala S.A. Sociedad Anonima, Lafrancol Internacional S.A.S, Lafrancol Peru S.R.L, Lake Forest Investments LLC, Lightlab Imaging Inc., Limited Liability Company Abbott Laboratories, Limited Liability Company Abbott Ukraine, Limited Liability Company VEROPHARM, Lung Fung Hong (China) Limited, Mansbridge Pharmaceuticals Limited, MediGuide LLC, MediGuide Ltd., Medscreen Holdings Limited, Metropolitana Farmaceutica S.A., Midwest Properties LLC, Murex Argentina S.A., Murex Biotech Limited, Murex Biotech South Africa, Murex Diagnostics Inc., Murex Diagnostics International Inc., Natural Supplement Association LLC, Negocios Denia Sociedad Anonima, Neosalud S.A.C., Nether Pharma N.P. C.V., NeuroTherm LLC, Normann Pharma-Handels GmbH, North Shore Properties Inc., Novamedi S.A., Novasalud.com S.A., Nutravida S.A., OJSC Voronezhkhimpharm, Omnilab Iberia Sociedad Limitada, OptiMedica, Orgenics France SAS, Orgenics International Holdings B.V., Orgenics Ltd., PBM-Selfcare LLC, PDD II LLC, PDD LLC, PT Alere Health, PT. Abbott Indonesia, PT. Abbott Products Indonesia, Pacesetter Inc., Pantech (RF) (PTY) LTD, Pembrooke Occupational Health Inc., Penagos S.A., Pharma International Sociedad Anonima, Pharmaceutical Technologies (Pharmatech) S.A., Pharmatech Boliviana S.A., Polygon Labs S.A., Quality Assured Services Inc., RF Medical Holdings LLC, RTL Holdings Inc., Ramses Business Corp., Recben Xenerics Farmaceutica Limitada, Redwood Toxicology Laboratory Inc., Rich Horizons International Limited, SC VEROPHARM, SJ Medical Mexico S de R.L. de C.V., SJM International Inc., SJM Thunder Holding Company, SPDH Inc., Saboya Enterprises Corporation, Salviac Limited, Scanax AS, Sealing Solutions Inc., Selfcare Technology Inc., Shandong Abbott Dairy Product Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Medical Devices Science and Technology Co. Ltd., Shanghai Abbott Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Shanghai Si Fa Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Sinensix & Co., Spinal Modulation LLC, St. Jude Medical, St. Jude Medical AB, St. Jude Medical ATG Inc., St. Jude Medical Argentina S.A., St. Jude Medical Asia Pacific Holdings GK, St. Jude Medical Atrial Fibrillation Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Brasil Ltda., St. Jude Medical Business Services Inc., St. Jude Medical Cardiology Division Inc., St. Jude Medical Colombia Ltda., St. Jude Medical Coordination Center, St. Jude Medical Costa Rica Limitada, St. Jude Medical Europe Inc., St. Jude Medical Export Ges.m.b.H., St. Jude Medical GVA Sarl, St. Jude Medical Holdings B.V., St. Jude Medical India Private Limited, St. Jude Medical International Holding, St. Jude Medical LLC, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings II, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings NT, St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings SMI S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Luxembourg Holdings TC S.a r.l., St. Jude Medical Mexico Business Services S. de R.L. de C.V., St. Jude Medical Middle East DMCC, St. Jude Medical Operations (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., St. Jude Medical Puerto Rico LLC, St. Jude Medical S.C. Inc., St. Jude Medical Systems AB, St. Jude Medical Turkey Medikal Urunler Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Standard Diagnostics Inc., Standing Stone LLC, Swan-Myers Incorporated, TC1 LLC, Tendyne Holdings Inc., Tendyne Medical Inc., Thoratec Delaware LLC, Thoratec Europe Limited, Thoratec LLC, Thoratec Switzerland GmbH, Tobal Products Incorporated, Topera GmbH in Liquidation, Topera Inc., Tremora S.A., Tuenir S.A., TwistDx, UAB Abbott Laboratories, UAB Abbott Medical Lithuania, Union-Madison Realty Company Inc., Unipath Limited (dba Alere International/aka Cranfield), Unipath Management Limited, Unipath Pension Trustee Limited, Veropharm, Veropharm Limited Liability Partnership, Vida Cell Inversiones S.A., Vida Cell S.A., Vivalsol, W&R Pharma Handels GmbH, Western Pharmaceuticals S.A., X Technologies Inc., Yissum Holding Limited, ZonePerfect Nutrition Company, eScreen Canada ULC, eScreen Inc.,      ( ), and Abbott Laboratories Baltics.
Xcel Energy, Inc. operates as a holding company, which engages in the generation, purchase, transmission, distribution and sale of electricity. It operates through the following three segments: Regulated Electric Utility, Regulated Natural Gas Utility and All Others. The Regulated Electric Utility segment generates, transmits and distributes electricity primarily in portions of generates, transmits and distributes electricity in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico. In addition, this segment includes sales for resale and provides wholesale transmission service to various entities in the United States. It also includes commodity trading operations. The Regulated Natural Gas Utility segment transports, stores, and distributes natural gas primarily in portions of Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Michigan and Colorado. The All Others segment engages in steam, appliance repair services, nonutility real estate activities, processing solid waste into refuse-derived fuel and investments in rental housing projects that qualify for low-income housing tax credits. The company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.

Read More
2 hours ago

Inflation Playbook: 3 Stocks to Consider Buying Now

Inflation and transitory are probably two words that investors are getting tired of hearing, yet its important to understand that this is what is moving markets following the pandemic. Every Consumer

Read Article
James Carucci has a doctorate in anthropology and has worked as an archaeologist for about 40 years. He has served as a Trustee and officer on the Lompoc Museum Board of Trustees for 20 years. He is a California native who resides in Lompoc with his wife, college-aged children, and various cats.
The arrests made between May 5 and 15. Five have returned to Japan, at least three after being deported. Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs: foreigners must comply with the law. Beijing's new crackdown on the religious activities of foreigners in China.

Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Chinese authorities have arrested 21 Japanese citizens for alleged missionary activities. An source informed in relations between the two countries gave the news yesterday. In China, the religious activities of foreigners are regulated by a strict law banning proselytism and unauthorized religious meetings.

The authorities arrested members of the Christian group between May 5 and 15 in five different provinces - Hebei, Henan, Guizhou, Shanxi and Liaoning - as well as in the autonomous region of Ningxia.

The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that five of them have returned to Japan. According to the source, three of them were deported and others are likely to remain in the custody of the Beijing authorities. Their arrest seems not to be the first: another 19 Japanese Christians were held in China last November, and later deported to Japan. Tokyo is following developments closely and asks Beijing authorities to treat their citizens appropriately. For his part, Lu Kang, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said he was not informed of the details, reiterating that "China is a state where the law is enforced" and that for this reason the legal rights of all parties will be protected . "But - he adds - even foreigners must respect Chinese laws and not commit crimes".

Beijing imposes strict regulations on religious activities of foreigners. The regulations in force since 1991 prohibit all missionary activity and any religious gatherings that have not been previously authorized. Moreover, since the beginning of May, the Chinese authorities are revising the relevant regulations, announcing a further crackdown on the religious life of foreigners in China.
Alsons Consolidated Resources Inc. is confident of completing the second unit of the coal-fired power plant of Sarangani Energy Corp. in Maasim, Sarangani province by the first quarter of next year. National Grid Corp. of the Philippines committed to connect the new unit to the transmission network. They committed they will do the last mile... They agreed they will do it, Alsons chairman Tomas Alcantara said over the weekend. The power plant will have the capacity to produce up to 210 MW of electricity for southern and south central Mindanao. The first 105-MW section of the plant began commercial operations in April 2016 while second 105-MW unit is expected to start operation in 2019. Alsons earlier cited the delays in installing the facilities in the NGCP Klinan substation that would connect the second unit to the grid. The second unit is set to be completed in the first quarter next year. Alsons chief financial officer Robert Yenko said the company programmed a capital expenditure budget of P9 billion this year, with the bulk to be spent for the completion of the second unit.Around P9 billion for the group, bulk for power... This year we will be completing bulk of SEC 2. That should be around... P7 billion, Yenko said. Yenko said the capex excluded some projects, including the 105-megawatt coal-fired plant of unit San Ramon Power Inc. and the 15-MW Siguil hydro project in Maasim, Sarangani, which are still due for construction late this year. Yenko said Alsons expects to sign the engineering, procurement and construction contract for the Siguil hydropower plant in the third quarter, while the SRPI power plant is due to start construction in the last quarter. We are looking to start construction (of SRPI) before the end of the year and we are targeting to operate this plant by 2021,Alsons executive vice president and chief operating officer Tirso Santillan Jr. said. SRPIs coal plant in Barangay Talisay, Zamboanga City, is expected to start operations in 2021. Santillan said Alsons was looking at diesel expansion opportunities in Eastern Visayas to serve the regions ancillary or reserve market.
Launched on Monday, Chinas relay satellite has finally reached near the moon and has successfully entered into a series of transitions before it is positioned at the desired orbit. According to the official statement released by the China National Space Administration, Queqiao  Chinas relay satellite, braked near the moon and now, it will follow the command fed by the officials on Earth to enter a specific orbit needed to complete the mission.

Queqiao is a 400-kg communication relay satellite that was launched on Monday, May 21, on a Long March-4C rocket and it successfully transmitted from the Earth towards the moon. Once it is set-up, it will form a link between the mission control and the lander & rover on the far side of the moon. It is the first-ever mission to the far side of the moon where the lander and rover will land at the Von Karman Crater in South Pole-Aitken Basin.

The satellite braked its velocity about 100 km above the surface of the moon in order to enter a specific orbit called second Lagrangian (L2) point of the Earth-Moon system. According to the statement, there was a short window available for braking and the satellite had only a single chance to complete the task which was successfully performed by the instructions and commands feed by the mission control. As of now, the satellite will burn its engine several times in order to adjust its orbit and reach a halo orbit around the second Lagrangian point where the object remains in equilibrium and in stable condition maintaining its relative position with respect to the Earth-Moon system which is around 455,000 km from the Earth.

Queqiao is a state-of-the-art communication relay satellite with a fixed 4.2m radio antenna that will pick up the transmission from the lander and rover positioned in the far side of the moon. Then, it will relay the data to the mission control in S-band radio signals which will help scientists to analyze the hidden secrets of the far side of the moon. Queqiao is the first communication satellite in such an orbit around the moon. It will act as a relay satellite for Change-4 rover and lander that will be launch later this year.
By John Geddie

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia is haggling over the terms of a $14 billion rail deal with its Chinese partners and can reduce its ballooning national debts by $50 billion by doing away with mega projects, its prime minister said in an interview published on Saturday.

Mahathir Mohamad, the 92-year-old who triumphed over scandal-plagued Najib Razak in elections earlier this month, has made it a priority to cut the national debt and pledged to review major projects agreed by the previous government.

Work on the 55 billion ringgit ($13.82 billion) East Coast Rail Link - the largest such project in the country and a major part of Beijing's Belt and Road infrastructure push - started last year.

The project was planned to stretch 688 kilometres (430 miles) connecting the South China Sea at the Thai border in the east with the strategic shipping routes of the Straits of Malacca in the west.

"We are renegotiating the terms," Mahathir told the financial newspaper The Edge. "The terms are very damaging to our economy."

The project is being built by China Communications Construction Co Ltd, and is being mainly financed by a loan from China Exim Bank.

Mahathir also questioned the need for the project in the first place.

"He (Najib) knew very well that the ECRL, for example, is not something we could afford. It is not going to serve any purpose, it is not going to give us any returns," said Mahathir.

Addressing the need to reduce the national debt and liabilities - which the government puts at around one trillion ringgit ($251.32 billion) or 80 percent of its GDP - Mahathir said "at one go we can reduce it by 200 billion ringgit ($50.26 billion) by doing away with all these huge projects".

Mahathir said Malaysia is also going to look into how it can reduce the cost of any potential exit from a deal with Singapore for a high-speed rail (HSR) to link its capital Kuala Lumpur with the city-state, said Mahathir.

Story continues

The project, valued by analysts at about $17 billion, is currently out for tender and is scheduled to be completed by 2026.

"The terms of the agreement (for the HSR) are such that if we decide to drop the project, it will cost us a lot of money," said Mahathir.

"So we are going to find out how we can reduce the amount of money we have to pay for breaking the agreement."

($1 = 3.9790 ringgit)

(Reporting by John Geddie; Editing by Stephen Powell)
Hundreds of protesters dug in around Nicaragua on Saturday, blocking roads as at least eight more people were killed in a 24-hour period. Unrest has resumed since week-long church-mediated talks between the government and opposition to quell a month of violence broke down late on Wednesday. Hundreds of demonstrators in the north, center and south of the Central American nation were blocking highways on Saturday, demanding Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, stand down. Since protests began on April 18 at least 83 people have been killed and more than 860 wounded, police and rights activists say. Four people were killed on Friday, and another four by mid-day Saturday, police and family members said. Ortega, a former Sandinista guerrilla who first ruled between 1979 and 1990 before returning as president 11 years ago, had kept power by maintaining leftist rhetoric while ensuring an accommodation with powerful private industry and keeping up trade with the United States. But demonstrators have voiced frustration over corruption, the autocratic style of Ortega and Murillo, limited options to change the country's politics in elections, and the president's control over Congress, the courts, the military and the electoral board. The Organization of American States has called for Ortega to call early elections, an issue which became the biggest stumbling block in dialogue. Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said an early ballot would mean "dismantling constitutional order and the democratically elected government." Before protests broke out, an OAS team had been trying to mediate in a process aimed at bringing about new elections, as well as electoral reforms. Ortega and Murillo were elected in November 2016 for a term that ends in January 2022.
Italian President Sergio Mattarella will receive prime minister-designate Giuseppe Conte Sunday evening in a meeting that could resolve a days-long standoff over the composition of Italy's next cabinet or lead to the appointment of a caretaker government. Conte was seen heading to the parliament building in Rome where he was hammering out a final lineup to present to the president, who has rejected the populist coalition's proposed finance minister, the eurosceptic Paolo Savona. The far-right League and the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) have yet to set up shop in Rome since scoring the most votes in Italy's inconclusive elections nearly three months ago. Conte, 53, won Mattarella's approval last week to head what would be Italy's 65th government since 1946. But the impasse over Savona has seen League chief Matteo Salvini digging in his heels, suggesting that a new election may be on the cards if the standoff continues. M5S Senate group leader Danilo Toninelli told reporters Sunday that he thought Conte was "very close to finalising (the fresh lineup) this evening". If it includes Savona, Mattarella is expected to confirm his refusal, which could prompt him to appoint a caretaker government until new elections can be held, probably in the autumn. According to the Italian press, Mattarella wants to avoid isolating Italy within the European Union. The 81-year-old Savona's hostility to the euro -- he says it has halved Italians' purchasing power -- has prompted a flurry of warnings from Brussels. The impasse has rattled financial markets, with the Milan Stock Exchange closing down 1.54 percent on Friday. The veteran economist issued a statement Sunday advocating a "different Europe, stronger but fairer". At the same time, he reiterated his opposition to the euro, likening its use to being in a "German prison". Mattarella is also mindful of his role in appointing prime ministers and approving their cabinets, the most crucial functions of Italy's largely ceremonial presidency. Salvini, 45, who is riding high in opinion surveys, stuck to his guns on Sunday, saying on his Twitter account that he was "in it to the end" and would "not surrender". On Saturday Salvini pressed for a speedy resolution, saying that failing that he would prefer fresh elections. M5S leader Luigi Di Maio, 31, for his part said he was prepared to "call it quits" barring a breakthrough in 24 hours. "We've already lost too much time," he said Saturday.
Chef Abie serves pork sisig to ECC judges and guests

Philippine Embassy Chef Abie Sincioco-Mateo (center) won 1st place in Judges Choice and Peoples Choice categories of the 2018 Embassy Chef Challenge. Joining her are renowned Filipino chef and restaurateur Jessie Sincioco (right) and Ivan Gonzales (left), who concocted the black and gold beer cocktail.

Our very own pork sisig bagged the top spot in the Judges Choice and Peoples Choice categories of the 2018 Embassy Chef Challenge held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center on May 17. Philippine embassy chef Abie Sincioco-Mateo proudly served this beloved Filipino dish of grilled or broiled chopped meat, seasoned with calamansi and hot chili, paired with a special beer cocktail of San Miguel Pale Pilsen and Cerveza Negra.Chef Abie described the secret ingredient that made all the difference in her winning dish as full of love. She also highlighted the beautiful presentation and the exceptional taste of the dish that earned it the top awards of the night. Tonights outcome shows that Philippine cuisine is certainly being recognized in the American mainstream, and the ECC provided us a good platform to further showcase our unique cuisine that testifies to our countrys beautiful and diverse cultural heritage. Chef Abies double win is a great way to celebrate National Heritage Month, said Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez.Renowned Filipino restaurateur and chef Jessie Sincioco and the Philippine Embassy team assisted Chef Abie all throughout the competition.The Philippine Embassys participation in this years Embassy Chef Challenge was generously supported by Bistro 1521, Tito Als Choice, US-Philippines Society, and Datu Puti. The Embassy of Ghana won 2nd place in both the Judges and Peoples Choice categories; the Embassy of the Republic of Haiti took home 3rd place in the Judges Choice; and the Embassy of Colombia bagged the 3rd place in the Peoples Choice category. The Best Beverage award went to the Embassy of Barbados and the Best Dressed Embassy was awarded to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco.
Spain's Socialist Party on Saturday pledged to hold new elections within months if its attempt to unseat Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy with a parliamentary no-confidence vote succeeds. The country's biggest opposition party, led by Pedro Sanchez, filed the motion seeking Rajoy's ouster in the 350-seat lower house of parliament on Friday. No date has been set for the vote, but the bid is being taken seriously in Madrid where a legislative election is not due for another two years. The surprise move came a day after Rajoy's Popular Party (PP) was found guilty of benefiting from illegal funds in a massive graft trial. "The PP leadership is concerned and does not totally rule out that the number of votes needed to overturn the government could be found," the La Razon newspaper, considered close to the PP, said on Saturday. The Socialists also clarified their strategy on Saturday. If Sanchez can get the absolute majority required in parliament and replace Rajoy, the party intends "to govern for the amount of time it considers appropriate (and) then call an election" after "some months", said one of his spokespeople, the former culture minister Carmen Calvo. The Socialists can already count on the support of anti-establishment Podemos but would need to convince Catalan separatists and Basque nationalists -- or the liberal Ciudadanos party -- to ensure a majority. Rajoy's allies Ciudadanos, who have overtaken the PP in some recent polls thanks to a hard line on Catalan separatism, immediately said it would oppose the no-confidence motion and instead called for snap polls. Ciudadanos number two Jose Manuel Villegas said Saturday that he was ready to talk to the Socialists about "another way of calling elections immediately". Analysts said Ciudadanos has no reason to support a no-confidence motion that could lead to an alternative leftwing government headed by the Socialists. - 'Judas of Spanish politics' - The Basque Nationalist Party has promised to "study the proposal", its president Andoni Ortuzar said Saturday, questioning if the no-confidence move was "serious and viable" or just electioneering. Rajoy, a devoted Real Madrid fan, cancelled his trip to the Champions League final in Kiev to deal with the crisis and his lieutenants counter-attacked in the media. "Pedro Sanchez will go down in history like the Judas of Spanish politics," said PP's Fernando Martinez-Maillo, accusing the Socialist leader of seeking power on the back of "separatists who want to destroy Spain". Spain's National Court said Thursday it had uncovered a vast system of bribes given to former PP officials in exchange for lucrative public contracts between 1999 and 2005. The court sentenced 29 people to jail for a total of 351 years for corruption, embezzlement and money laundering in the so-called Gurtel trial. The PP itself was not on trial for direct involvement in the scheme but was found to have benefited from funds obtained illegally through "an authentic and efficient system of institutional corruption" including a slush fund. It was ordered to pay back 245,000 euros ($290,000).
By Soyoung Kim and David Brunnstrom

SEOUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Saturday in an effort to ensure that a high-stakes summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump takes place successfully, South Korean officials said.

The meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic flip-flops surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the two Korean leaders are trying to keep the on-again off-again summit on track.

Their two hours of talks at the Panmunjom border village came a month after they held the first inter-Korean summit in more than a decade at the same venue. At that meeting, they declared they would work toward a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

"The two leaders candidly exchanged views about making the North Korea-U.S. summit a successful one and about implementing the Panmunjom Declaration," South Korea's presidential spokesman said in a statement. He did not confirm how the meeting was arranged or which side asked for it.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment. But White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said an advance team of White House and U.S. State Department officials would leave for Singapore on schedule this weekend to prepare for a possible summit there.

Reuters reported earlier this week that a U.S. advance team was scheduled to discuss the agenda and logistics for the summit with North Korean officials.

"There is a very strong possibility a U.S.-North Korea summit could be back on very soon," said Harry Kazianis of the conservative Center for the National Interest think-tank in Washington.

Whether one takes place depends on Kim agreeing to some sort of a realistic and verifiable denuclearization plan, added Kazianis, citing his own Trump administration sources. "If not, no summit. That is what it hinges on," he said.

Story continues

TRUMP HAILS "PRODUCTIVE TALKS"

In a letter to Kim on Thursday, Trump had said he was cancelling the summit planned for June 12 in Singapore, citing North Korea's "open hostility."

But on Friday he indicated the meeting could be salvaged after welcoming a conciliatory statement from Pyongyang.

"We're talking to them now. They very much want to do it. We'd like to do it," Trump told reporters at the White House.

In a tweet later, Trump cited "very productive talks" and said that if the summit were reinstated it would likely remain in Singapore on June 12, and that it could be extended if necessary.

A senior White House official told reporters on Thursday that organizing a summit by June 12 could be a challenge, given the amount of dialogue needed to ensure a clear agenda.

"And June 12 is in ... 10 minutes," the official said.

If the summit is not held, some analysts warn that the prospect of a military confrontation between the two nations would rise, while a successful summit would mark Trump's biggest foreign policy achievement.

The Trump administration is demanding that North Korea completely and irreversibly shutter its nuclear weapons program. Kim and Trump's initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over the program.

Pyongyang has conducted six nuclear tests, and has developed a long-range missile that could theoretically hit anywhere in the United States. Experts, however, are doubtful that North Korea possesses a warhead capable of surviving the stresses of re-entering Earth's atmosphere.

Video and a photo released by South Korea's presidential Blue House on Saturday showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the North's building in the truce village, which lies in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) - the 2.5-mile (4 km) wide buffer that runs along the heavily armed military border.

Video footage also showed Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, greeting Moon as he arrived at Tongilgak and shaking hands, before the South Korean leader entered the building flanked by North Korean military guards.

Moon is the only South Korean leader to have met a North Korean leader twice, both times in the DMZ, which is a symbol of the unending hostilities between the nations after the Korean War ended in 1953 in a truce, not a peace treaty.

GRAPHIC: North Korea's nuclear test site http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/NORTHKOREA-MISSILES-NUCLEARSITE/0100702F05C/PUNGGYE-RI2.jpg

GRAPHIC: Nuclear North Korea http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/NORTHKOREA-MISSILES-NUCLEARSITE/0100702H05E/index.html

(Reporting by Soyoung Kim, Hyunjoo Jin and Joori Roh in SEOUL, and David Brunnstrom, David Morgan, Jonathan Landay, Roberta Rampton and Katanga Johnson in WASHINGTON; Editing by Helen Popper and Rosalba O'Brien)
2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #21

Posted on 27 May 2018 by John Hartz

Story of the Week... Opinion of the Week... Toon of the Week... Quote of the Week... Graphic of the Week... SkS Spotlights... Video of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... Poster of the Week...

Story of the Week...

What Is Kilaueas Impact on the Climate?

Scientists are tearing their hair out over baseless myths about the erupting volcano in Hawaii.

Mario Tama/Getty

Maarten de Moor would like to clear up a few things about the dramatic, weeks-long eruption of Hawaiis Kilauea volcano.

Kilaueas spectacular explosions wont set off earthquakes on Americas West Coast. They wont cause a tsunami, either. They wont trigger a bigger, more catastrophic eruption like the one of Mount Pinatubo, in the Philippines, in 1991. Not gonna happen, de Moor, a volcanologist, said. And even though Kilauea is emitting lots of carbon dioxide, it wont worsen global warming to any meaningful degree. That one, he said, is just not based on any facts at all.

Each of these myths about Kilauea have spread on the internet in one form or another since the volcano began spewing lava on May 3. Theyve been largely debunked thanks to scientists like de Moor, who monitors volcanic emissions for the Deep Carbon Observatory and the Volcanological and Seismological Observatory of Costa Rica. The Associated Press, for example, corrected its May 13 story that wrongly stated that Kilauea was part of the Ring of Fire, a belt of severe seismic activity that surrounds the Pacific Ocean. The popular-science publications Earther and National Geographic have also published extensive articles refuting most of these claims.

But one of these myths has been especially persistent.

What Is Kilaueas Impact on the Climate? by Emily Atkin, The New Republic, May 26, 2018

Editorial of the Week...

Taxpayers shouldn't foot bill for climate change alone

Getty Images

On Thursday, May 24th, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California heard arguments on a motion to dismiss a pioneering lawsuit filed by San Francisco and Oakland against oil and gas producers like ExxonMobil, Shell, and others, seeking to recover the massive costs of adapting to climate change. If the case survives and moves to trial, it would be the first to do so, and would represent a watershed moment for climate liability lawsuits which have been filed by 13 localities across the country.

Not surprisingly, these lawsuits have generated predictable denunciations from fossil fuel allies: First, they argue theres no comparison between big oil and industries like tobacco that were brought to account through the courts. Then they claim were all responsible, so no one, especially not the oil industry in particular, is responsible. And finally, they argue that addressing climate change is a political question that cannot be decided in the courts.

Lets take a look at the claims.

Taxpayers shouldn't foot bill for climate change alone, Opinion by Richard Wiles*, The Hill, May 26, 2017

*Richard Wiles is the executive director of the Center for Climate Integrity, an initiative of the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development.

Toon of the Week...

Quote of the Week...

A landmark climate case in the Netherlands, the first to rule that a government has a constitutional duty to protect its citizens from the impacts of climate change, is heading back to court on Monday for a hearing on the Dutch governments appeal.

The Dutch courts ruling in Urgenda Foundation v. The State of Netherlands in 2015 ordered the government to take more aggressive action to cut carbon emissions. It inspired similar lawsuits around the world from activist groups and citizens trying to compel governments to act more decisively on the climate crisis.

The lawsuit was filed by the Urgenda Foundation and 886 citizens in 2013, seeking to hold the government accountable for its promises to aggressively cut emissions at a time when the country was falling behind in reaching its renewable energy goals.

The case completely changed the political debate on climate policy. Now it is the top topic in Dutch politics, said Dennis van Berkel, legal counsel of Urgenda Foundation in Amsterdam. The case created an enormous amount of hope around the world for people who lost faith in the political process.

Netherlands Works to Overturn Landmark Urgenda Climate Ruling by Ucilia Wang, Climate Liability News, May 24, 2018

Graphic of the Week...

Warming stripes

A new set of climate visualisations, communicating the long term rise in temperatures for particular locations as a changing set of colours from blue to red. Each stripe represents the temperature of a single year, ordered from the earliest available data to now.

Annual global temperatures from 1850-2017

The colour scale represents the change in global temperatures covering 1.35C [data]

Warming stripes by Ed Hawkins, Climate Lab Book, May 22, 2018

SkS Spotlights...

Institute for Government & Sustainable Development (IGSD)

Promoting just & sustainable societies

IGSDs mission is to promote just and sustainable societies and to protect the environment by advancing the understanding, development, and implementation of effective, and accountable systems of governance for sustainable development.

Strengthening environmental law

IGSD brings together professionals from around the world who are committed to strengthening environmental law and institutions to promote sustainable development.

IGSD advances:

Understanding of governance through research and education

Effective implementation of policies through capacity building, advice, and advocacy

Cooperation through networking

Enhanced public awareness through media including film and television

Connecting professionals from around the world

IGSD has a broad range of projects in a variety of regions. Its members include practitioners and scholars from a variety of developed and developing countries  including lawyers, political scientists, economists, scientists and others  representing a diversity of geographic regions, and a wide range of cultural, legal and political traditions.

Working with leading international organizations

IGSD collaborates with leading national and international and academic organizations including:

United Nations Environment (UN E)

Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC)

United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)

The Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD)

Basel Convention on Hazardous Wastes

University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)

Tshingua University, Beijing

Click here to access the IGSD homepage.

Video of the Week...

Meet NASAs New Dynamic Duo: A Pair of Climate Change-Tracking Satellites by Julissa Trevino, Smithsonian, May 22, 2018

Coming Soon on SkS...

Yes, EVs are green and global warming is causing sea level rise (Dana)

(Dana) Climate change is already making droughts worse (Benjamin Cook)

(Benjamin Cook) Global warming, hurricanes, and rain (John Abraham)

(John Abraham) Climate science websites around the world (Baerbel)

(Baerbel) New research this week (Ari)

(Ari) 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #22 (John Hartz)

(John Hartz) 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #22 (John Hartz)

Climate Feedback Reviews...

Business Insider highlights health impacts of climate change, but some aspects are misleading

Climate Feedback asked a team of scientists to review the article, The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere just hit its highest level in 800,000 years and scientists predict deadly consequences by Kevin Loria, Business Insider, May 8, 2018

Six scientists analyzed the article and estimate its overall scientific credibility to be 'neutral'.

A majority of reviewers tagged the article as: Confused.

Review Summary

This article at Business Insider describes the impacts of climate change on human health which covering the fact that the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere recently passed 410 parts per million.

Scientists who reviewed the article found that many of the listed impacts were described accurately and supported with links to relevant published studies. However, cited numbers for current deaths due to common air pollutants and the concentration at which CO2 itself can impact brain function are misleading. In their comments, the scientists provide context for interpreting these numbers. Additionally, the articles language conflates CO2s effect as a climate-changing gas with the direct health effects of other pollutants.

Business Insider highlights health impacts of climate change, but some aspects are misleading, Edited by Scott Johnson, Climate Feedback, May 15, 2018

SkS Week in Review...

Poster of the Week...
Chelsea Clinton didnt hold back on her feelings for the current U.S. president in a wide-ranging interview with the Guardian to promote her new book, She Persisted Around the World. The former first daughter said that our president and many people around him have not only mainstreamed hate, but mainlined it. She cited figures from the Southern Poverty Law Center to discuss how that has caused a rise in bullying in schools. Not just the hundreds but now thousands of instances in schools across America, where children are citing the president as theyre demeaning a little girl, or theyre chanting Build a wall in an attempt to demean and degrade brown children, she said.

Advertisement

When asked what people in Britain should do when Trump visits the country in July, Clinton advised that a good old fashioned protests could be in order. Well, Ive been to multiple protests since the election, she said. If I lived in Britain I would show up to protest, because I dont agree with what hes doing to degrade what it means to be an American.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Beyond the criticism of Trumps ideology and promotion of hate, Clinton also said that many of Trumps appointees were not qualified for their jobs when they were appointed so the White House now has a strange mixture of corruption mixed with incompetence. I do not believe that many of the people that he has hired have been qualified to do the jobs. Not only do I want an administration that isnt venal, corrupt and focused on making life harder for millions of Americans, I also want a competent administration, Clinton said. So for me, the larger question is the collision of cruelty and incompetence and corruption that we see across the administration.

Advertisement

Clinton said that Barbara Bushs death has made her think a lot about the importance of intentions. Although she disagreed with her and her husband, she never doubted that she believed what she and her husband were fighting for was going to be to the benefit of most Americans. There was a time when she thought all that mattered was the bottom line but now she has come to believe that intentions and tone and decency matter.

Clinton smartly dodges questions regarding Stormy Daniels, changing the conversation to special counsel Robert Muellers probe. I havent followed that as closely as I have everything thats emerging around the Russia investigation, she said.

Advertisement

Clintons feelings toward Trump are hardly a surprise considering that shortly after the election she emerged as one of Trumps sharpest critics on Twitter even as her mother and father kept a low profile. In one notable instance, Trump took to Twitter to complain about how media bashed him for having his daughter briefly sit in for him at a meeting in Germany last year.

If Chelsea Clinton were asked to hold the seat for her mother,as her mother gave our country away, Trump wrote, the Fake News would say CHELSEA FOR PRES! Clinton replied: Good morning Mr. President. It would never have occurred to my mother or my father to ask me. Were you giving our country away? Hoping not.

Advertisement

Advertisement

If Chelsea Clinton were asked to hold the seat for her mother,as her mother gave our country away, the Fake News would say CHELSEA FOR PRES!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 10, 2017

Advertisement

Good morning Mr. President. It would never have occurred to my mother or my father to ask me. Were you giving our country away? Hoping not. https://t.co/4ODjWZUp0c  Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) July 10, 2017

Advertisement

Clinton also mocked Trump for saying Sweden was suffering the toll of too many immigrants, helped him out on how he should have responded to a question about rising anti-Semitism, and questioned whether members of foreign intelligence agencies would become members of Mar-a-Lago, just to name a few of the times Clinton took to Twitter to criticize the president.

What happened in Sweden Friday night? Did they catch the Bowling Green Massacre perpetrators?  Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) February 19, 2017

Advertisement

Advertisement

One would think he would have thought of an answer since yesterday. Here's one: There's no place for any bigotry, ever, in America. https://t.co/XBtcgFnRxd  Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) February 16, 2017
The leaders of North and South Korea surprised the world again on Saturday by holding a meeting at the Demilitarized Zone for the second time in a month.

The surprise meeting took place merely two days after President Donald Trump abruptly canceled the long-awaited summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, only to suggest it could be back on soon enough. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders gave further hints that the summit could actually happen, saying Saturday morning that the administration was still sending a pre-advance team to Singapore to get ready. The White House pre-advance team for Singapore will leave as scheduled in order to prepare should the summit take place, Sanders said in a statement Saturday morning.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Sanders statement came shortly after Trump sent out a tweet saying that the United States is having very productive talks with North Korea and that the summit could still take place in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary will be extended beyond that date.

Advertisement

We are having very productive talks with North Korea about reinstating the Summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

South Korean President Moon Jae-in apparently called for the emergency meeting with the North Korean leader after Trump sent the letter canceling the summit. The decision to cancel the summit left Moon feeling perplexed and was very regrettable, he said. Although there wasnt much information released about the two-hour sit-down between the two Korean leaders, a spokesman for South Koreas president said they exchanged views about making the North Korea-U.S. summit a successful one. Experts said the two likely discussed how to bring Pyongyang and Washington closer when it comes to nuclear weapons.

Advertisement

Advertisement

That the surprise meeting took place at all seems to suggest just how much Kim needs to salvage the summit with the United States. The New York Times explains:
There seems to be renewed optimism that the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will go ahead as scheduled. Following the surprise meeting with Kim and South Koreas Moon Jae-in, Trump said the date and location for the June 12 summit in Singapore hasnt changed and that things are moving along very nicely.

Trump said there was a lot of good will between the parties and even made a mysterious mention of talks regarding the summit that were taking place near the White House, although he did not elaborate. As you know, there are meetings going on as we speak in a certain location, which I wont name, he said. But youd like the location, its not so far away from here. Trump spoke optimistically about a summit with Pyongyang mere days after he sent a letter to Kim on Thursday canceling the summit due to North Koreas open hostility.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

President @realDonaldTrump on North Korea summit: "I think there's a lot of good will. I think people want to see if we can get the meeting and get something done." https://t.co/6ygXayOiLi pic.twitter.com/QJCAUOxp2H  Fox News (@FoxNews) May 27, 2018

In what were his first public remarks after the surprise meeting, Moon said Kim again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Moon added that he told Kim that Trump has a firm resolve to improve relations between Washington and Pyongyang, which could include economic cooperation as long as Kim moves forward with complete denuclearization. Still, Moon declined to define what complete denuclearization means, which suggests there are still fundamental gaps on the key issue bedeviling preparations for the on-again-off-again summit between Trump and Kim, notes the Washington Post.

Advertisement

Advertisement

For now Kim is apparently worried about whether the United States will keep its end of the bargain. What is unclear to Chairman Kim Jong-un is not the will for denuclearization, but the concern that if [North Korea] denuclearizes, whether the US can end hostile relations and guarantee the security of the regime, Moon said. Regardless, the two Korean leaders agreed that the summit between Kim and Trump must be held as scheduled. A report on North Koreas official KCNA news agency says Kim expressed his fixed will on the historic  summit talks between the United States and North Korea.

Advertisement

Advertisement

South Korea is so eager for the talks between North Korea and the United States to move forward that it is discussing the possibility of sealing a non-aggression pledge and launch peace talks as a way to address any concerns Pyongyan may have about security, reports Reuters. Although initial reports had said it was Moon who had asked for the meeting after Trump sent the letter canceling the summit, it was actually Kim who asked for the sit-down without any formality, according to the South Korean leader.

The meeting Saturday between the two Koreas was a reminder that if the Kim-Trump summit does end up happening it will be in no small part thanks to the South Korean leader. While Washington and Pyongyang have expressed their hopes for a summit through published statements, Moon has to step up as the mediator because the surest way to set the meeting in stone would be an official confirmation of intent between heads of states, Hong Min, a senior analyst at Seouls Korea Institute for National Unification, tells the Associated Press. Analysts also say Kims desire to move forward with the talks hints at Kims determination to improve North Koreas economic situation. The New York Times explains:

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement
A joint oil and gas exploration by China and the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea will somehow give up the arbitration ruling that said Manila had sovereign rights over the disputed areas in the sea, a maritime expert said Sunday. Jay Batongbacal, a professor of maritime affairs and the Laws of the Sea, said the government had yet to address the legal issues in the areas that would potentially be the subjects of the joint exploration deal between the Philippines and China. Given that we have the arbitration ruling on our side, its really hard to think of a way to proceed with this joint development without somehow giving up the arbitration ruling, Batongbacal said. The Philippines and China in February agreed to set up a special panel to work out how they could jointly explore offshore oil and gas in the waters that both countries claim without needing to address the issue of sovereignty. Its very difficult to resolve. The conditions for engaging in joint development in the areas are not yet being addressed legally by the administrations actions or statements so far, Batongbacal said.He agreed with former Solicitor General Florin Hilbay who said the Philippines must file a diplomatic protest against China for the supposed militarization of the disputed areas in the South China Sea. Batongbacal said the Philippines must be commended for exercising self-restraint over the South China Sea issues even if other claimant countries had already started developing weapons systems in the area. The government has already begun repairing the collapsed runway on Pag-asa Island, the largest of its nine features in the Spratly islands. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said this was consistent with our national sovereignty and jurisdiction.
At least one vandal spray-painted swastikas on more than 200 headstones at a cemetery in Glen Carbon, Illinois. At least nine homes and one vehicle in a nearby neighborhood were also vandalized with Swastikas. We havent seen anything of this magnitude in the 30 years that Ive been here, Mark Johnson, the grounds superintendent of Sunset Hill Cemetery, told local CBS affiliate KMOV. Officials say they are working to try and wash away all the swastikas before Monday, when a Memorial Day event was planned to honor the more than 1,300 veterans who are buried there.

Advertisement

Hundred headstones were painted with swastikas at a Sunset Hill Memorial Estates Cemetery in Glen Carbon https://t.co/h8TCZ3XMoT  Laurie Skrivan (@LaurieSkrivan) May 26, 2018

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

One of the homes that was vandalized captured a possible suspect on surveillance video. Police released the video and later in the day said they had arrested a 34-year-old suspect.

This type of swastika vandalism is more common than many people realize and came mere days after a teenager was sentenced to six months in jail for vandalizing a Jewish cemetery in upstate New York. In another instance of swastika vandalism, four high school students in Maryland were arrested on Thursday and charged with hate crimes after they reportedly spray-painted swastikas and other racist graffiti at Glenelg High School.
President Donald Trump welcomed Josh Holt back to the United States after he was released from prison in Venezuela, where had been held since the summer of 2016. Youve gone through a lot, more than most people could endure, Trump told Holt in the Oval Office shortly after the 26-year-old landed in the United States.

Holt traveled to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a Mormon woman he had met online while looking to improve his Spanish. Mere days after marrying Thamara Caleno Holt ended up jailed without trial for two years as he was branded the top CIA spy in Latin America. The Mormon missionary from Utah became the ultimate example of an American in the wrong place at the wrong time, notes the Washington Post. Holt ended up held in a notorious prison known for holding political prisoners who say they have been tortured.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Only last week, Holt had posted a video on Facebook saying he feared for his life after a riot. Ive been begging my government for two years, he said. They say theyre doing things but Im still here. That led to a doubling down of existing efforts to get Holt released. On Saturday night, Holt became emotional as he thanked those who worked toward his release. Im just overwhelmed with gratitude for you guys for everything youve done, Holt said.

Advertisement

Trump, who had earlier called Holt a hostage, seemingly couldnt help himself and used the opportunity to highlight the other American prisoners held abroad who were released during his administration. You were a tough one, I have to tell you, that was a tough situation, Trump said. But weve had 17 [people jailed] released and were very proud of that record. Very proud. And we have others coming. Were in the midst of some very big negotiations to get others out.

Good news about the release of the American hostage from Venezuela. Should be landing in D.C. this evening and be in the White House, with his family, at about 7:00 P.M. The great people of Utah will be very happy!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

Advertisement

Advertisement

The release of Holt came a day after Sen. Bob Corker held a surprise meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas. Days earlier the Trump administration had refused to recognize Maduros re-election in what it had described as a sham vote. Although Corker may have provided the final push for release, Holt was able to return to the United States thanks to months of negotiations through a secret backchannel that was led by a veteran Republican staffer who is an expert on Latin America. Both Corker and Sen. Orrin Hatch from Utah credited the staffer, Caleb McCarry, with leading the negotiations. Hatch had also spoken with Maduro several times about Holt and his office posted a video on Saturday of the family reuniting in the United States.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Holts release comes at a time when Maduro appears to be launching a charm offensive to try to improve relations with countries that criticized last weeks election. But in a statement later on Saturday, the White House made clear that Holts release does not change United States policy. The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution. The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate.
Ask around, and youll find a surprising number of people have a smart speaker in their homes.

As of January, 1 in 6 Americans own a voice-activated speaker, but Gartner predicts 75 percent of U.S. households will have one by 2020. With a broad gamut of capabilitiesstreaming news and music, answering questions, issuing reminders, and controlling connected home productsthey can offer a good value proposition, particularly when paired with an attractive price point.

But just because our Echos, Google Homes, and HomePods can do all sorts of things doesnt mean were taking advantage of every single one of their features. Many of us are content to rely on our digital assistants for just one, or a handful, of specific tasks. With that in mind, there seem to be several distinct emerging classes of smart speaker users to which people belong.

The Creeped-Out Owner of an Overpriced Paperweight

For some, particularly those gifted a smart speaker, the first phase of ownership is nonownership. It didnt even come out of the box for the first two months, one Texas-based Echo owner shared. Theres a perception that such devices are always listening to everything you say. While smart speakers may be capable of that, companies such as Amazon assert that they dont (the extremely rare occurrence reported Thursday aside). The speakers use on-device keyword spotting to only listen for their wake word, after which theyll listen and record what you say as a command. Still, adding an always-on listening device in your home is an incredibly personal decision, and if you dont want to take yours out of the box  well, when the next smart speaker privacy debacle eventually happens, youll be the one laughing, not your Alexa.

The Early Adopting Die-Hard

And then youve got folks on the opposite end of the spectrum. The people who, on a daily basis, use their voice assistant for everything: for turning on and off the lights, controlling the thermostat, playing music, setting timers, relaying information, shopping, and reading the days news headlines. These people would be lost without an Echo or Google Home in their lives (or at least on their phones a whole lot more). Heaven forbid theres a power outage or their voice-dictated kingdom will crumble.

The Streamer

I really purchased [an Echo] because we needed something much smaller, with great speakers, to play music on, Terri Axell of Salem, Oregon, told Slate. I have to admit thats what I use it for primarily.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Data collected by Voicebot.ai shows that listening to streaming music is the most popular thing we task our smart speakers with, narrowly edging out more mundane functions, like asking it the weather. And according to the report Everybodys TalkinSmart Speakers and Their Impact on Music Consumption, smart speakers may be driving streaming usage. Thirty-four percent of smart speakerowning respondents say they listen to music more than four hours a day, compared with 24 percent of the general populaceand many say they listen to more music than they did before their speaker purchase. Before setting it as the default for music, San Franciscobased CNN Tech reporter Heather Kelly used Alexa to play music on Spotify so often that her preschool-age son began adding on Spotify to the end of every Alexa request.

The Weather Summoner

Yes, despite the myriad things digital assistants can do, the second-most common thing people rely on them for is embarrassingly simple: the weather forecast. Alexa at my house is bored. All I ask her is the outside temperature, one owner recently tweeted. Hes not alone.

Advertisement

I use it for weather. Thats it, Redditor Ricoculus Prime said in a thread.  Alexa Weatherthats all I say to it.

Advertisement

I usually ask Alexa about the weather two or three times a day, certainly more than any other task she does, and Im well-versed in all the things shes capable of. I should be ashamed, but Im not.

The Person Who Really Just Needs a Clock

The kitchen is a popular place for a smart speaker thanks to its counter-friendly size, but regardless of its location, a lot of people use their assistant primarily as a kitchen timer, to set alarms, or simply to get the time without needing to look at a clock or phone screen. Setting a timer or alarm on a smartphone can be a little tedious, and potentially problematic if your hands are covered in flour or chicken grease. If your smart speaker is nothing but a glorified clock, your kitchen (and phone) are likely a more sanitary place.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Most smart speaker owners will fall into only one of those categories of use, but theres also the question of how they talk to their assistant. And for that, there are really only two camps.

The Alexa Denigrator

Anecdotally, a lot of people love to hate on their smart assistant. Ours is pretty much just a verbal punch[ing] bag, one Redditor shared. We ask it a question, it says Im not sure I can help you with that and then we ask it why its so shit. Others get frustrated, yelling at their smart speaker when it misunderstands a query or plays the wrong genre of music, or barking orders at it. On the more innocuous end of this spectrum, some simply enjoy making her play fart sounds.

The Alexa Apologist

And then there are the folks who are completely appalled by the behavior above. While some just treat their A.I. neutrallyit is a computer, after allothers swing to the opposite extreme. They say please, thank you, and issue apologies to their home assistant when others treat it with disrespect. Amazon clearly embraces this camp, at least for families with kids: Amazon recently introduced Kids editions of some Echo products that reward children for speaking to the bot politely.

Ultimately, how you use your assistant is up to you, but that doesnt mean that others wont judge you for your tone or habits. Virtual assistants may not be people, but theyre a household personalityand often a helpful one, regardless of how you use it.
Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musks crusade to discredit the press in the wake of negative reporting hit a snag on Saturday when he recommended an article on The Knife as an excellent analysis of the medias response to his trolling. The Knife, it turns out, is a rebranded version of The Knife of Aristotle, the outlet memorably profiled in Paste last year under the straightforward headline, The Knife of Aristotle Isnt Just a Fake Fake News SiteIts a Cult. The site is affiliated with NXIVM, the suspected sex cult whose leader Keith Raniere was arrested in March and charged with a laundry list of crimes ranging from forcing his followers to have sex with him all the way to literally having them branded. (Smallville actress Allison Mackalso facing criminal charges for her alleged involvement with NXIVMseems to have recruited for them on Twitter.) Musk quickly deleted the tweet, but the internet never forgets:

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Sending someone a link to the Wikipedia article for Critical Thinking always smacks of hubris, but its especially ill-advised when steering your Twitter followers into the arms of a suspected sex cult. The article Musk linked to takes a Gamergate-style approach to media criticism, assigning scientific-sounding objectivity ratings to news reports about Musk based on a numerical analysis in four categories: spin, slant, logic, and data. (The Washington Posts coverage of Musks media criticism, for example, earned a 79% Spin Rating, an 83% Slant Rating, a 22% Faulty Logic Rating, and a 35% Total Integrity score.) Musk liked this approach so much that he defended it even after deleting his original tweet:

Advertisement

Sadly, it had better critical analysis than most non-cult media  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 27, 2018

Advertisement

Arguing that The Knife is affiliated with a suspected sex cult whose leaders are facing criminal charges rather than objectively answering the sites objective analysis on its objective merits is the kind of fallacy that will doubtless earn this article a very high Faulty Logic Rating. But look more closely at the raw numbers: Elon Musks Twitter blunder has a 93% Objective Hilarity rating, while Slate will only incur a 27 Credibility Point penalty for writing about it, assuming we roll a 10 or higher on the wisdom check. This yields a Publication Quotient of 7.32 against a Clickbait Measure of only 2.5000009 and an astonishing People Love It When You Tell Them Something They Already Believe but Dress It Up in Scientific-Sounding Lingo Ratio of 100:1. Objectively speaking, we had no choice but to point and laugh.
Most beautiful Slovak cake from Smizany

A foreign baking website also spotted her work.

Iveta Kosikova from Smizany won the sixth year of the Slovak confectionery exhibition in Trencin, Spis Korzar reported.

Her cake Cimko and Cimka won the category Maj, lasky cas (May, time of love). The inspiration for the winning cake was a Slovak fairy-tale for children Cin-cin by Ludmila Podjavorinska, Spis Korzar wrote.

The story is about a sparrow Cim Cimcara who wants to marry a sparrow Cin-Cin. Her parents, however, do not agree with the marriage because they consider Cim to be lazy. But Cin-Cin loves him and marries him, Spis Korzar reported.

It is traditional rhymed Slovak fairy-tale. What could be nicer than this love confession for May, a time of love? aked Iveta Kosikova, explaining the cake theme, as quoted by Spis Korzar.

There are cherry flowers, a decorated tree, a heart and two lovers on the cake. All the symbols of are of May love, the creator of the winning cake explained. Because folklore, traditions and folk crafts are close to Kosikova, she also featured Slovak traditional crafts, Spis Korzar wrote.

Blueprint, wood, ironwork, these all are our Slovak crafts, she said for Spis Korzar.

She worked several long hours on the cake. She was the only one to have a fairy-tale themed cake. The jury also evaluated technique and the overall look, SPis Korzar reported.

An American website on baking also spotted her work and four of her cakes were ranked as Daily TOP 15 beautiful cakes from the whole world, Spis Korzar wrote.

27. May 2018 at 7:05 | Compiled by Spectator staff
Wall Street analysts have given iShares MSCI Austria ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares MSCI Austria ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

View MarketBeat's top stock picks here.
Paris- Half-man, half-beast, the tall African statues dominate a busy gallery in Paris Quai Branly museum. But few of the visitors are aware they are looking at what might be considered stolen goods. The three imposing wooden carvings were plundered by French troops in 1892 from the kingdom of Dahomeymodern-day Benin. I came here to learn about how these objects were intended to be used, more than how they were brought here, said Michael Fanning, a student from New Orleans, peering up at the statues. But it does make me think we should give them back to whoever made them. From London to Berlin, Europes museums are packed with hundreds of thousands of colonial-era items. Increasingly, they are facing the awkward question of whether they should be there at all. The Scramble for Africa, as Europes 19th-century land grab came to be known, brought with it a clamor for trinkets from conquered territories, so exotic to the eyes of the colonizers. Bought, bartered and in some cases simply stolen by soldiers, missionaries and anthropologists, they ended up in museums and private collections all over Europe. The controversy is hardly new, nor does it concern Africa alone. Star lawyer Amal Clooney, wife of Hollywood actor George, has advised Athens on its bid to reclaim the Parthenon marbles, vast sculptures which have been in Britain since the 1800s. The massive Koh-i-Noor diamond, part of Britains crown jewels and claimed by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan, is another spectacular example. But in Africa, a speech by French President Emmanuel Macron has spurred hope that things may be about to change. Africas heritage cannot just be in European private collections and museums, Macron said in Burkina Faso in November. He charged two experts with working out how to give African artifacts back within five years, prompting speculation that museums across Europe could be pressured to follow suit. Suffice to say that hell have made European curators quake in their boots, said Pascal Blanchard, a historian of French colonialism. French art historian Benedicte Savoy, one of the experts appointed by Macron along with Senegalese writer Felwine Sarr, described her new job as a hell of a challenge. Museums have long wrestled with a tangle of legal and ethical problems concerning who really owns such objects. Even in well-documented cases of pillaging, the law often prevents countries from giving them back. Last year France flatly refused Benins bid to reclaim its treasures, saying they were exempt from seizure as state property. European conservationists have also raised practical concerns, worrying artifacts could be stolen or handled improperly if given to inexperienced museums in politically unstable countries.Blanchard said countries like Nigeria, with well-established museums, had all the ingredients for solid restitution claims. But others as poor as Chad do not currently have the museums and cultural heritage services capable of restoring and displaying these objects, he said. Yet many African officials say these treasures should be at home, attracting tourists and boosting national pride. Few cases inspire more outrage than the Benin bronzes, hundreds of exquisite metal plaques seized in 1897 by British troops from the Kingdom of Benin, in modern-day Nigeria. Most are now in the British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin. For Crusoe Osagie, spokesman for the governor of Nigerias Edo State, it is simply wrong that his children must go to Britain or Germany to see their heritage in a glass-fronted cabinet. These objects belong to us and were forcefully denied to our possession, he told AFP. As for suggestions that Africans might not look after such objects, he finds the idea insulting. Its like asking me how to look after my child, he said. We are ready to look after them with great care. Some colonial-era artifacts have been handed back over the years on an ad hoc basis, and UN cultural agency UNESCO has mediated successfully in several disputes since the 1970s. European and US museums have also been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 seeking a solution for the Benin bronzes, but with few results. The idea of loaning the bronzes, as well as Ethiopian items displayed in Britain, has been floated, but some African officials are affronted by the suggestion of borrowing what they see as their own property. For want of better solutions, many museums are simply trying to approach the issue more sensitively. German museums have taken a lead -- mindful of their previous experience with Jewish-owned artworks looted by the Nazis. At Berlins new Humboldt Forum, labels are set to include details of how colonial-era items came to be in the collection. And Hamburgs MKG museum is running an exhibition which focuses not so much on its three Benin bronzes, but the fact that they were looted. Its curator Silke Reuther said visitors appreciate the museums honesty. We are not afraid to show something which is not a beautiful story, she said.
The earliest days of health foods in a big supermarket consisted of looking for a special sign "natural or health" foods and then walking down one narrow aisle, out of a dozen more, to get low-sugar, low-fat groceries usually free of additives and boasting of natural grains, juices and pesticide-free produce. What if you will be walking into clothing malls of the future and ask the shop manager where to find the "health" racks of clothes made of bamboo, and hemp?

Textile makers are turning a tide and an Australia-based company is a sign that we are moving, in addition to cars, to other daily items in our lives that need sustainable alternatives.

Long story short, Australian company Nanollose is now focused on a plant-free fabric aimed at the sustainable fashion trade. The company made news on Wednesday at Planet Textiles 2018 event in Canada when they launched their microbial cellulose fabrics. The fabrics are derived from natural coconut byproductscoconut waste.

The company is talking up the eco-friendly nature of their material. The apparel industry is the second largest consumer and polluter of natural resources on the planet, with an urgent need for sustainable alternatives.

Their microbial cellulose is grown through natural fermentation. The company said, "Nanollose Technologies, which uses industrial organic and agricultural waste products to produce plant-free cellulose, does not involve the felling of trees or require the use of arable land or its associated use of irrigation, pesticides and other resource intensive inputs making it a sustainable product with potential for industrial scale manufacture."

It can be grown all year round, no waiting for "crop seasons." Also, their numbers show microbial cellulose has a significant yield-to-field advantage.

Their development speaks to those in the industry who are on the trail of finding sustainable alternatives to rayon and cotton.

A publication's title reflects the times. Ecotextile News is an "environmental magazine for the global textile and clothing supply chain."

It reported that the Planet Textiles event marked the first time that its 'Nullabor' branded fabrics have been shown in public. Nanollose chief executive Alfie Germano told over 400 Planet Textiles delegates: "We identified a source of cellulose raw material (coconuts) and made a fibre in a very quick time-frame. But there's nothing like a deadline, and so to be in front of you all today, I'm very happy to say that not only do we now have a fibre, we've used industrial methods to spin this fibre into a yarn and produced the very first batch of fabrics to bring to this event."

Meanwhile, one can note a news story last month which appeared in Manufacturers' Monthly. "The company [Nanollose] today announced signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indonesian food producer, PT Supra Natami Utama, a subsidiary of PT Niramas Utama, to develop a commercial scale factory and supply chain solution for cellulose production."

PT Supra Natami Utama is a producer of coconut food, beverages and cosmetic products. It has facilities across Indonesia with access to quantities of coconut bi-product and waste stream. The report said "Nanollose intends to access these waste streams for use in the production of textile grade microbial cellulose on an industrial scale."

Explore further Making fabric from wood

 2018 Tech Xplore
The enterprising and entrepreneurial spirit has always been high among Filipinos.

Just think about the number of people who have side businesses or other gigs to augment income they get from their day jobs. Turns out, juggling employment with a side hustle is now a norm in the country.

According to the recent Gig Economy Survey conducted by GoDaddy, the worlds largest cloud platform dedicated to small, independent ventures, 77% of Filipinos have or had a side business. The study also revealed the biggest enabler to having gigs on the side: technology.

If the trend of selling products and services online is any indication, more Filipinos are trying their hand at entrepreneurial pursuits because of how easier it is to do now.

In fact, the GoDaddy survey also revealed that 55% of Filipinos with side businesses are highly reliant on technology, with social media, websites, and e-commerce platforms as the top three online tools of choice.

E-commerce is also something a business of any size, looking to sell their products online should consider. According to a study done by Ken Research, the e-commerce market in the Philippines is expected to keep growing this year due to improving internet connection and higher acceptance from the marketopening a huge opportunity for online selling.

Although running a business venture can have its share of challenges, newly available online tools have addressed some common challenges that entrepreneurs have faced in the past. Here GoDaddy shares solutions to three common issues that often prevent people from pursuing their side businesses.

The Issue: Lack of Shopfront Online Tech Solution: E-commerce Tools

In the old days, for people to buy most product and services they had to seek out the source and buy it from a seller or business directly, most often from a shopfront. Today, e-commerce tools have greatly addressed this problem. Now, one can easily see a product and purchase it directly online. In most cases, purchased items are delivered right to a buyers doorstep. This has greatly enabled those with day jobs to have side businesses without having to operate a physical shop front. GoDaddy Online Store offers templates for selling up to 1500 products, with inventory management and options for payment processing and shipping methods.

The Issue: Displaying Product or Service Portfolios Online Tech Solution: Mobile-Friendly Website Builder According to We Are Socials Digital in 2018 report, 61.9 Filipinos access the Internet through their mobile phone. If theyre looking for a product or service, theyll do it through a search engine from their smartphones. Having a mobile-friendly website makes it easier for potential customers to access business information. In addition, a website serves as a repository of information for people to find describing a business products or services. They can also read about it in more depth than they can from social media pages. For example, someone doing photography and graphics, as a side hustle, can have their portfolio displayed on a professional looking website. GoDaddy Website Builder is optimized for mobile device viewing from the start.

The Issue: Targeted Product Marketing Online Tech Solution: Email Marketing Tools and Social Media Integration for Websites

Creating awareness about a business and its latest product offerings is now faster and more effective online. Repeat customers can be engaged through email marketing, which lets them know of any new deals or products they might want. Tools like social media integration on websites also allow people to access company social media pages for real-time business updates. And, today with the modern Filipino customer spending much of their time being online, its the best kind of targeting a venture can do.
The Digital Transformation of Asia Pacifics massive manufacturing sector promises to deliver a $387-billion leap in regional GDP within three years.

This finding, in a

Microsoft commissioned survey

and authored by analysts at IDC, throws a spotlight on the importance of rethinking traditional business models in this technology-driven age.

The survey, of 615 manufacturing firms in 15 economies across

Asia Pacific, identifies managing costs as the biggest business concern among CEOs in the region. And, it is through that lens that they view digitalization largely as a way

reducing expenditures. In its analysis, IDC agreed that while rising costs represent a real worry, it is a backward way of looking at the power of digital transformation. The good news, however, is that the CEOs rightly grasp the imperative of developing new business models to beat the rise of disruptive competitors. It is here that true Digital Transformation holds its greatest potential for success.

 In other words, manufacturers are trying hard to balance priorities. They want to keep traditional revenue streams ticking along while keeping a fixed eye on the fast-approaching future. We believe that change is not coming as quickly as it should. Manufacturing companies have to accelerate on truly transformative measures otherwise they run the risk of being lagged behind, said Victor Lim, Vice President IDC Asia/Pacific.

Balancing the present and the future

Digital Transformation initiatives bring tangible results to manufacturing companies

The survey identifies five top benefits, three of which relate to the present bottomlineimprovement in productivity, profit margin and cost reduction.

And two othersrevenue from new products and services along with improved customer loyalty represent long-term sustainable growth and are truly transformative initiatives. They demonstrated the highest impact of all five last year, from 16% to 17%.

Moreover, revenue from new products and services along with customer loyalty show the most promise for improvements in the lead up to 2020, at 23% and 28% respectively.

Start the journey

Simply put it, Digital Transformation is about reimagining how organizations bring together people, data, and processes to create value for their customers and maintain a competitive advantage.

So how does an organization start? The answer is gathering datalots of data.

 Broadly, an organization should go through a three-step process, Lim said.  Firstly, the data that you collect can help improve decision-making and leads to insights. Secondly, those insights feed the development of better products and services. And thirdly, that will lead to new business models to monetize sets of data directly or develop new commercial digital services.
Tourism and health authorities in Ho Chi Minh City rolled out a guidebook on medical tourism  traveling to a different country for medical treatment  on Wednesday as part of an effort to develop this form of tourism and diversify tourist options in the southern metropolis.

The handbook features information, images, addresses and maps of reputable providers of medical treatment, traditional medicine, dental care and health checks.

It also includes information and answers to questions of medical tourism in the city and introduces famous local places of interest, resorts, shopping centers and restaurants.

About 10,000 copies are scheduled to be distributed to tourism agencies, hotels and hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City.

International visitors have made approximately 80,000 arrivals to Vietnam for medical treatment purposes over the past one year, generating around US$$2 billion worth of revenue, according to Nguyen Thi Anh Hoa, deputy director of the municipal Department of Tourism.

Ho Chi Minh City alone received about $1 billion from 30,000 to 40,000 arrivals of medical tourists during the same period, Hoa said.

A potential portion came from Vietnams neighboring countries of Cambodia and Laos, and from overseas Vietnamese who trusted in the citys medical services, she added.

The guidebooks publication followed the metropolis recent offering of dental tourism, which local administrators said is one of the five key components of its medical tourism and is expected to become its strength on the international travel stage.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Thanks to help from local and foreign volunteers, a Vietnamese woman has been able to spend the last ten years running free English classes at a pagoda in Hanoi for children unable to afford the high tuition at language centers.

The free class is taught by volunteers and foreign teachers every morning at 8:00 am at Phap Van Pagoda in Hoang Mai District.

Tran Thi Huong Duyen first began the Happy Class free English program in July 2007.

Since then, the course has grown to 40 students divided into three classes: 5-7 year olds, 8-12 year olds, and adult students.

So far, the class has attracted around 40 students of varying ages. Photo: Tuoi Tre

I found out about Happy Class by accident when I was hanging out with friends at the pagoda. After that I asked mom to let me attend the class. I think the class is really fun. Ive made a lot of new friends and have become more confident in speaking English. I was also rewarded with some books, said Nguyen Nhat Hung, an 11-year-old who lives near the pagoda and has regularly attended classes for the past three months.

Having taught at English language centers in the city, Duyen understands that many families are unable to afford expensive English courses, some of which can cost as much as VND10 million (US$440) per three-month program.

She decided to organize the free classes so that those who cannot afford expensive courses but are still passionate about English have an alternative.

A students indulges in the book she has just been awarded. Photo: Tuoi Tre

However, Duyen says the charitable endeavor is not without its obstacles.

It challenging enough to manage an English center, and it is even harder to manage a free English center, Duyen said.

During the class, the children sit on the floor of a borrowed room in the pagoda, working around small, low tables to add new vocabulary to their notebooks.

Duyen attending to the students. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Being a free course, the classes often lack resources and instead are forced to take full advantage of what little is available in order to provide lessons for the students.

Some of the responsibility falls on the volunteers, most of whom make a significant effort to provide blank paper and offer extra tutoring to the students.

In order to motivate the students and make the class livelier, the volunteers and teachers of Happy Class often teach through various activities and games.

Considering the dedication from all volunteers, it should not come as a surprise that the class is always filled with laughter, excitement, and happiness.

Victor is a foreign teacher from the UK. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Moreover, those who show outstanding improvements receive rewards from the teachers.

I am always very happy to see parents bringing their children to class and staying to help. Receiving support from many people motivates me to maintain the course, Duyen said.

Over 90 percent of the lessons are provided by foreign teachers and English teachers from language centers who focus on vocabulary, pronunciation, and communication.

The class is always lively and fun so that students have an easier time remembering the lessons. Photo: Tuoi Tre

This summer, the volunteers and teachers will hold other activities for the members of the course which include sightseeing events and extracurricular activities.

Through these activities, the students will not only be able to learn in the classroom, but will also have a chance to visit various places like embassies so that they can interact with foreigners.

Duyen also revealed her plan to open two more classes at the end of the year so that more students who want to learn English will have the opportunity to do so.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Visitors to the Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City were treated on Saturday to soy sauce chicken rice prepared by Chan Hon Meng, the Singaporean hawker chef who received one Michelin star for the dish in 2016.

Two hundred boxes of Michelin-starred soy sauce chicken rice were distributed free-of-charge to guests in the opening of the two-day festival, held by the Singapore Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City.

Themed Super Shiok (Simply Wonderful), the event is part of the activities to celebrate 45 years of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Singapore.

It gathers around 20 booths selling Singapore food and hawker classics such as chicken rice, laksa, char kuay teow, satay, among others.

Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City

In her opening remarks, Singaporean Ambassador to Vietnam Catherine Wong said through the event, Vietnamese friends will get to know Singapore better and have a taste of the countrys multi-ethnic food culture.

"Perhaps "chao ech" (frog porridge) is one of the first dishes that come to the minds of our Vietnamese friends when they think of Singapore food, but Singapore still has many other iconic and well-loved dishes such as chili crab, Hainanese chicken rice and laska waiting for people to explore," she added.

Singaporean Ambassador to Vietnam Catherine Wong (R) and Consul General Leow Siu Lin (R) taste the Michelin-starred soy sauce chicken rice by chef Chan Hon Meng at the Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on May 26, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Besides showcasing the elite of Singaporean cuisine, the event will also have its proceeds go toward the Singapore Business Groups Education Fund (or Edfund), which provides scholarships to needy students in and around Ho Chi Minh City.

According to the ambassador, until the first day, the event had raised US$26,000 for Edfund and would still raise more during the two days of the festival.

Since 2000, Edfund has provided scholarships to more than 3,000 underprivileged students in and around Ho Chi Minh City.

Below are some pictures taken by Tuoi Tre News at the Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on May 26:

Representatives of the festival's organizers and guests are seen making popiah, a Singaporean dish, at the Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on May 26, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Singaporean Ambassador to Vietnam Catherine Wong and guests are seen making popiah, a Singaporean dish, at the Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on May 26, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Visitors are seen waiting for the soy sauce chicken rice by Michelin-starred hawker chef Chan Hon Meng at the Singapore Food Festival in Ho Chi Minh City on May 26, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
How TIMEs Bremmer Got Duterte Wrong

Today, global dominant media is often exploited as a tool of coercive diplomacy. The recent Time commentary on the Philippines president is a case in point. The real story is behind the story.



In early May, Time magazine released the feature story, The Strongmen Era, by Ian Bremmer, the venerable president of Eurasia Group. The cover featured the photos of Russian President Putin, Hungarian Prime Minister Urban, Turkeys President Erdogan, and Philippines President Duterte. It was a promotional piece for Bremmers new book on globalization. As Duterte reject the term strongman, Bremmer penned a new attack.





Bremmers arguments are neither original nor deep. What makes them different is that the Eurasia Group is very close - too close, say critics - to U.S. economic, political and intelligence power, including the famed military-industrial complex, along with his role as Times editor-at-large and global affairs columnist.

Flawed data, compromised sources



In his sequel on Duterte, Bremmer relied largely on just a single report by Human Rights Watch (HRW), which he considers highly credible. Yet, the HRW has lost much of its reputation. Billionaire speculator George Soros has had leverage over HRW since the 80s. In 2010 Soros cemented the ties with a 10-year $100 million HRW donation. Since then, HRWs record has been tarnished by allegations of partisanship and bias, which climaxed in the 2014 open letter by Nobel Peace Laureates criticizing HRW for intimate ties with the US government.



Moreover, the head of HRWs Asia Division Phelim Kine continues to inflate data in reporting on the Philippines anti-drugs campaign; and Bremmer uses this flawed data without slightest source criticism. Relying on HRW, Bremmer blames Duterte for sending anyone to jail for criticizing him, yet the examples he comes up with are Senator Leila de Lima and Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno.



In reality, de Lima is imprisoned for receiving substantial payola money from drug lords, abusing public office and paying off confidants, while serving as Justice Secretary in the former Aquino administration. In turn, Sereno, another Aquino appointee, got her office, thanks to partisan politics, but not to credentials, and she was ousted after grossly abusing her office.



Finally, Bremmer relies on international rights organizations and UN officials that Duterte has tried to harass and intimidate. In reality, the Duterte government invited UN Special Rapporteur Agnes Callamard - who has been supported by Soros in the US and the UN - to a public debate, yet Callamard sneaked into Manila for a lecture at the request of Chico Gascon, a veteran Liberal Party leader, who promotes the misguided views that Bremmer takes for divine truths.

Links with the Philippine failed liberals, and Malloch-Brown (Soros)



The common denominator in all these cases is the ongoing meltdown of the Liberal Party (LP), which Washington has relied on in the Philippines since the late 1980s, despite the partys internal decay. Human rights is the pretext in a geopolitical effort to corner the Duterte government, restore the LP and its special ties with the US.



Bremmers Time debacle is the latest in a long series, which began in May 2016, when he warned in the New York Times that The Philippines Has to Know It Needs the US. The Philippines needs Chinese infrastructure investment, but if you deal with China without us... That will be bad for you and your country.



And yet, as Duterte has recalibrated Philippines ties with the US in security and with China in the infrastructure, the country is positioned to grow at 6-7% annually for years. These realities are fully ignored in Bremmers pieces for Time, along with Dutertes democratic and huge popular support - and by other global media that failed to report on the darker side of the Aquino era, its massive graft, proliferation of drugs, and high-profile corruption debacles.



In contrast to Nobel critics of human rights political exploitation, Bremmers case rests on HRW and Soros, who he deems the advocate of liberal Western democracy. Yet, the two may share more prosaic common interests. In 1998, the Financial Times reported that Soross commentary on the need for Russia to devalue its currency precipitated the countrys massive default on debt, which was created by Prime Minister Sergey Kiryenkos cabinet. Thats also the year when Bremmer founded his consultancy which has advised Kiryenko, according to his own bio.



Moreover, the Eurasia Group is linked with Soros through Lord Malloch-Brown, the controversial chairman behind the election technology Smartmatic - which has caused political debacles around the world, including the Philippines - who has served as vice-chairman of Soros Fund Management and the Open Society Institute. Since 2016, Lord Malloch-Brown - who has been a longstanding advisor of the Aquinos and the Liberal Party - also became Senior Advisor of the Eurasia Group.



None of these associations were disclosed in the Time commentary.

Links with the White House and US intelligence community



Specializing in the former Soviet Union, Bremmer got his PhD in Stanford in 1994. The young policy wizard proved influential in think-tanks that work with, for and by the US government, multinationals and Wall Street. He founded Eurasia Group in the late 90s when the US pioneer of geopolitics Zbigniew Brzezinski used to warn that American hegemony can only survive if the US can dominate Eurasia and deter future rivals - such as Russia and China.



As the National Security Agency (NSA) intensified efforts to shape US foreign policy in the early 2000s, along with the State Department and Pentagon, its leaders listened Bremmer about oil, natural gas, terrorism and Iraqi reconstruction. The Groups CEO is Robert Johnston, an energy specialist, who used to serve in UBS and Enron. Its head of research David Gordon has served in the highest posts of the CIA and the State Department. Evan Medeiros was recruited in fall 2015 to head the Groups Asia branch. As Obamas top advisor on the Asia Pacific, he was responsible for coordinating US policy toward Asia, including modernizing key alliances, such as the US-Philippines 10-year defense agreement.



There is nothing wrong about hiring the best and the brightest. But a revolving door between the government and the private sector comes with huge moral hazards. If the two are not kept in arms length, collusion becomes viable and political risk consultancies operating in the private sector risk morphing into arms of the government. Thats precisely the kind of statism - centralized state control - that Bremmer purports to oppose.

Dr Steinbock is the founder of the Difference Group and has served as the research director at the India, China, and America Institute (USA) and a visiting fellow at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (China) and the EU Center (Singapore). For more information, see http://www.differencegroup.net/

 2018 Copyright Dan Steinbock - All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




Here are todays leading news stories:

Politics

-- Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop is paying a visit to Vietnam from May 26 to 28 to inaugurate the Cao Lanh Bridge in the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, and co-chair the Australia-Vietnam Foreign Ministers Meeting.

Society

-- Two freight trains collided with each other at Nui Thanh Station in the central province of Quang Nam at around 4:30 pm on Saturday, causing many cars to topple, while a lot of goods were thrown off the trains.

-- The chief of the police station in Phong Loc Commune, located in the north-central province of Thanh Hoa, has been temporarily suspended from work after being caught spending time with a married woman at a local motel.

-- Leksii Vackvasaki, a 36-year-old Russian national, was arrested by police in Nha Trang, a resort city in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa, on Saturday for damaging an ATM and attempting to steal information from it.

-- A car was running at high speed along a street in the northern province of Thai Binh when it crashed into a motorcycle on Friday, causing the motorcyclist to be thrown off the roadside, officers confirmed on Saturday. The victim was seriously injured and is being treated at the hospital.

-- Police in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau are hunting for a young man who stabbed a primary school teacher at her house on Saturday afternoon. The victim sustained a severe wound in her neck and is being treated at a hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

Business

-- The construction of two major hospitals, whose investment totals VND9 trillion (US$396 million), in the northern province of Ha Nam has been halted for the past 18 months and is at risk of becoming loss-making projects.

Lifestyle

-- The Ravolution Music Festival by Jetstar (RMFbyJETSTAR) heated up Nguyen Hue Pedestrian Street in downtown Ho Chi Minh City on Saturday night with a series of EDM (electronic dance music) performances from local and foreign DJs.

-- The second night of the biennial Da Nang International Fireworks Festival (DIFF 2018) lit up the central city with performances from France and the United States on Saturday.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
A freight train collided with a locomotive which was in charge of moving cars at a station in the central Vietnamese province of Quang Nam on Saturday, causing many carriages to derail and goods to be thrown off the train.

The accident happened at around 4:20 pm at the train station in Nui Thanh Town, Quang Nam Province, when the freight train ASY2 was approaching the place.

At the same time, locomotive No. 350 was moving the cars of another freight train No. 2469 at the station.

A collision then occurred between the train ASY2 and locomotive No. 350, causing the latter and four cars of the freight train to topple and goods to be thrown onto the ground.

Locomotive No. 350 and a car that it was pulling were also knocked off their tracks.

There were no casualties, but financial damage has yet to be calculated.

Locomotive D20E-011 of freight train ASY2 crashes into locomotive No. 350 at the station. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Competent authorities are investigating the cause of the accident.

Initial information showed that locomotive No. 350 had gone past its safe area, which is designated to prevent collisions with oncoming trains.

The Vietnam Railways has mobilized its relevant units to deal with the incident.

The north-to-south railway operations were still affected by the crash as of Saturday night.

Train passengers were transported in automobiles between Tam Ky Station in Quang Nam Province and Tri Binh Station in neighboring Quang Ngai Province to continue their journey.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
A long-anticipated bridge over a major river in Vietnams Mekong Delta region was inaugurated on Sunday after over three years of construction, amid local eagerness.

The Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province started opening to traffic in the afternoon following a ceremony held by the Ministry of Transport earlier the same day.

The two-kilometer-long bridge spans the Tien (Front) River, one of the two chief branches of the Mekong River in Vietnam.

Nearly 25 meters wide, it features four lanes for motorized vehicles and two for bicycles, with the design speed of 80 kilometers per hour and a navigation clearance of around 38 meters.

The bridge was built at a total cost of US$307 million, of which $160 million came from the Australian governments non-refundable aid.

The Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre

A birds eye view of part of the Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The structure serves to link several highways crossing the province and constitutes a step forward to easing traffic flow from the Mekong Delta to Ho Chi Minh City.

A number of residents congregated in the early morning at the bridge feet impatiently looking forward to the moment they first ran on the construction.

Some said they were willing to stay there for hours before the bridge opened.

Makeshift stalls vending drinks were set up at the locations to quench the thirst of those who were waiting.

The Cao Lanh Bridge connects two sides of the Tien River, which separates my paternal grandparents and my maternal grandparents hometowns. Now its easier to travel between them, said Nguyen Van Cai, a native in Dong Thap.

The bridge is the third over the Tien River, preceded by the Vietnam-made Rach Mieu Bridge, which links Tien Giang and Ben Tre Provinces, and the Australia-built My Thuan Bridge, connecting Tien Giang and Vinh Long.

Officials walk to a ribbon cutting location on the Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

A ribbon cutting ceremony for the Cao Lanh Bridge is seen in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Local people wait at the foot of the Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Residents wait to ride on the Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Riders move their motorbikes away to wait for the Cao Lanh Bridge opens in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Men sit near a makeshift beverage stand to wait for the opening of the Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Children pose for photos before the inauguration of the Cao Lanh Bridge in Dong Thap Province, Vietnam, May 27, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
A Russian man has been taken into police custody for damaging equipment at an automated teller machine (ATM) in Vietnam in an attempt to steal customer data.

Authorities in Nha Trang  the capital city of Khanh Hoa Province  have held Leksii Vackvasaki on criminal charges of deliberate destruction of property and theft, Nguyen Hong Ky, head of the local police department, said on Saturday.

At around 2:30 am on the same day, officers received reports that a foreigner was breaking the shield of an ATM in Nha Trang owned by Vietnam Technological and Commercial Joint Stock Bank (Techcombank).

The man rapidly fled the scene when police arrived.

During a citywide patrol, they found a backpack-carrying foreign suspect at a hotel and brought him to the police station.

He identified himself as Leksii Vackvasaki, a 36-year-old tourist in Vietnam, and admitted he had covered the security camera at the ATM with adhesive tape before using a screwdriver from the backpack to forcibly lever the shield open.

Vackvasaki connected his laptop with the automated teller machine in order to steal the card data of customers who had made transactions here, and other information.

Police officers are clarifying his true motive, but they said the Russian must have intended to sell the information to a foreign organization.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
This week on Julia Zemiros Home Delivery the guest is Louis Theroux, in South London, Westminster and Brixton.

Currently a resident of LA, Louis meets Julia in London  the city of his birth  and takes her

through the sites of his formative years in South London, Westminster and Brixton. They meet

outside his old home in Wandsworth where he is surprised at how much his neighbourhood

has changed since he was a boy.

And its no different inside the house with Louis exclaiming that its unrecognizable in parts.

Hes visibly thrown by the experience, referring to Proustian associations of memories

bubbling up. He tells Julia how it was growing up with his father a famous author, and how he

learnt that boasting about connections to David Bowie didnt necessarily win him friends at

school. Louis also admits to finding intimacy awkward at times, and reveals he has a puckish

spirit that lets him see the funny side in mishaps.

They jump in a London cab and drive to the picturesque Westminster school which Louis

points out has close up views of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament from the main

courtyard. He leads Julia through to the magnificent Up School where assemblies were held,

and tells her how he and his friends got into trouble for singing a hymn in punk style. Louis

laughingly recalls that when he made a documentary in the famous San Quentin prison, he

saw parallels with that environment  the dormitories and courtyards, male energy and the

jails gangs and cliques, and his boarding school.

8pm Wednesday on ABC.
Hola! Get ready for fake tans, plucked eyebrows & beautifully coiffured hair -and thats just the guys.

9GO!s new perve-fest reality series Love Island is unashamedly trash telly that knows its audience. And disclaimer, disclaimer, Im not it.

10 hotted up singles, straight from modelling and acting agencies, were pushed to pairing up by host and former Bachelorette Sophie Monk. Wheres the bar? and Do my tits look good, were amongst early first impressions.

The girls wore skimpy bikinis smaller than the wireless mike packs attached to their hips, but continuously subjected to arse shots as they approached the Love Island villa. Not just cookie-cutter casting, it became a challenge to discern between the three blonde girls.

When the muscled-up boys arrived the show got into its first format storypoint as Monk asked the girls to step forward if they were attracted to the boys. But Aussies are backward in coming forward and the opening segment was failing fast. Whats wrong with you guys? Monk asked them.

It was hashtag #totesawks until the numbers began to diminish and finally girls stepped up to the plate.

After Monks departure it was left to Irish narrator Eoghan I agreed to work for Guinness McDermott to link together the bonding sessions between the five couples. Only one couple Eden & Erin dispensed with inhibitions, acknowledging their physical attraction. But even Erin was focussed on whether Eden was a cheater.

Trust & fidelity, the natural enemies of gorgeous people, became a common theme.

We also learned not-gay Justin was a roo-eating kangatarian, Natasha has never been in a situation where she hasnt been liked, Grant calls girls mate, Eden needs subtitles, phones have not been confiscated, and Charlie & Millie have dating history.

In the glam Spanish villa where every room is a chance to primp and preen, Eden & Erin got to first base under night cam, practically undeterred by their mood-killing roommates.

There were also diary cam style confessions, gym workouts and a text message from Sophie (clearly too busy to front in person) to prepare for an evening party and surprise.

(Another) Blonde bombshell intruder Kim entered the villa ready to find a man, prompting Erin to sharpen her claws. With one female presumably facing elimination, it was a late drama arrival, but given the opening episode is focussed on establishing its cast, more should become regular.

Love Island isnt trying to offer insightful or intellectual TV and so far has not hit the rock bottom of such shows as Geordie Shore. Sure it ticks the eye candy box, but it may prove challenging to gravitate to likeable participants. The format is almost identical to Paradise Hotel which aired in Australia on Nine.

While reality romances have had as hooked in the past, such as Marty & Jess on Big Brother, it was neither enforced nor accelerated. But with TVs increasing short-attention span, Love Island responds to a different TV climate.

Lower your expectations, serve up the mojitos and mai tais, get your best memes and emojis ready. Love Island is here.

Love Island airs 8:30pm Sunday  Thursday on 9GO!
There are media reports today suggesting TEN may switch from its previously-announced Bachelorette Ali Oetjen for Nikki Gogan (pictured above).

It follows a concerning fan reaction to the announcement of Oetjen (pictured below) as its upcoming star and recent reports in which US based Bachelor In Paradise beau Grant Kemp accused her of hooking up with one of his friends. TEN said there were 2 sides to the break-up and branded such reports false and misleading.

NW magazine now claims TEN have been feeling the pressure to reconsider their decision, holding crisis meetings before filming begins.

Theres been a lot of backlash, says the insider. Before Grants story even came out, fans were already outraged, calling her boring. Its a bit of a disaster!

Casting is still underway in Sydney and no men have been selected yet to appear on the show.

Agents are basically casting for two girls right now  just in case Nikki comes through, claims the source.

Nikki Gogan was runner up in The Bachelor season 4, when Richie Strahan chose Alex Nation.

Updated: TEN has denied the report.
Georgias Minister of Economy Meets US Secretary of Commerce

The First Vice Prime Minister of Georgia, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Dimitri Kumsishvili met the United States Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Louis Ross in Washington DC on Tuesday.The meeting of Kumsishvili and Wilbur Louis Ross is the first official meeting held between such high-rank US and Georgian officials of economy sector. Georgian minister is visiting the US within the frames of the official visit of the Georgian Government.The sides positively assessed the bilateral trade and economic relations, which, besides the net economy, also has political loading. At the same time, the special emphasis was placed on the fact that the potential is very high in this direction.Kumsishvili mentioned the development of the transit corridor passing Georgia and the involvement of the US state and private sectors in this process.Special attention was paid to Georgias transit capabilities and the transit corridors (TRACECA, Trans Caucasia International Transport Corridor or so called middle corridor; Lapis Lazuli; Persian Gulf  Black Sea corridor, etc.) passing over the territory of the country and to the efforts of the Georgian Government aiming at development of those transit corridors.The meeting also focused on such significant projects as the Anaklia Deep Sea Port, the East-West Highway, the Railway Modernization Project allowing for tripling the current cargo turnover, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway line and others.Importance of the participation of the US company -the Conti Group and one of the worlds largest operator the SSA Marine in the deep sea port development global project was specially highlighted as well.Development of the transit lines of petrol and gas from Asia to EU via Georgia were also covered during the meeting.Moreover, Georgian minister introduced the results of the study on the impact of the US-Georgia Free Trade Agreement on the bilateral economic relations to the United States Secretary of Commerce.The study was conducted by the international consultancy company PWC following the request of the Georgian Government. The study reported that the Free Trade Agreement would significantly increase the export value of the both parties, promote investments and facilitate creation of new jobs. Georgian party welcomes the increase of the US investment in the country since it also brings new knowledge and technologies.Kumsishvili also offered Wilbur Louis Ross to open the US Regional Office of Commerce in Georgia, which would cover South Caucasus states as well as the countries of the region.Georgian Minister highlighted that the interest of the US companies towards Georgia as well as the Caucasus region in General has significantly increased recently. He added that opening of the Commerce Office in Georgia would further facilitate development of bilateral economic relations between Georgian and the USA business circles.In the end, the sides agreed to hold additional trade missions, as the interest from the US business companies towards Georgia significantly increase every year.
With Prince Harry happily married to his sweetheart Meghan, It's time to ask the question; was the wedding worth the extensive costs and whether the Royal Family are of benefit to the country itself?

The total cost of the wedding was a substantial 31.4 million pounds. 94 percent was spent on security alone. According to the Department of Health, a patient to staying in a hospital for a day, presuming they have an operation and a consultation, will cost on average 2000 per person. Based off that, surely the nation has denied treatment to 15,000 people on an ever-lengthening waiting list for NHS services.

The morality of those planning the wedding must come under scrutiny as there have been reports that Police officers have been removing belongings of the homeless around the streets near Windsor castle, asking them to move with a promise of returning their possessions after the event, according to the BBC. Would a more moral solution not be to feed and house those that have been displaced, as appose to completely ignore the problem itself and just moving it out of sight?

The facts

Consider the power that the Royal Family actually has: The queen is head of state, Supreme Governor of the Church of England and Commander and Chief of the armed forces. The Daily Mail noted that she had a net worth of 300 million in 2015, along with the best private healthcare in the world.

The queen owns two palaces and three castles. Her crown has 3000 diamonds encrusted in it. This is one family in a country of 65.4 million. They live a complete life of luxury paid for by the unquestioning taxpayers - being you and me.

This leads me to question whether we actually live within an uncorrupted democratic system, when there are people within that system that hold so much power and influence within a society, purely down to a birthright?

Their influences will most likely include politics, with the prime minister regularly meeting with the queen, who also gets frequent updates from the Civil Service regarding economic and domestic issues.

There is a divide of support and criticism among the public regarding the royal wedding. One such criticism is shown below (tweeted by Sophie, someone who's clearly not a fan of the wedding), who makes a very good point on the priorities of the powers that be.

Apparently the royal wedding cake cost 50k. 50k. Imagine how many families could be fed for 50k. The injustice sickens me.  Sophie (@Fifijane83) 18 May 2018

A business perspective

For the sake of ambiguity, the Royal Family do attract notable levels of tourism in the form of 500,000 people a year who visit Buckingham Palace. This has a ripple effect on other industries including; hospitality and food. However, when compared to another part of the British tourism industry. According to the Chester Zoo website, they get just under two million visitors a year, four times that of Buckingham Palace.

In France for example, (who notably haven't had a head of state since 1792), there are more tourists that visit the Palace of Versailles than Buckingham Palace and combined.

If we look at this from a business perspective, how can the Royal Family possibly be justified, when we aren't even getting a return on our investment?

It is unclear to me as to how we can keep a Monarchy for the sake of pride and tradition alone when NHS waiting times are at an all-time high. We can no longer afford suitable police numbers. The gap between the rich and the poor is getting wider and homelessness is on the rise. And yet, we as a society, have 300 million pounds a year to spend on one family while millions struggle. They are living proof that we still live in an elitist society and this is what I believe is holding our society back. I believe progress will be impossible without serious changes to the structure and priorities of our society.
An employee works on highly viscous oil production at the Ashalchinskoye oil field owned by Russia's oil producer Tatneft near Almetyevsk, in the republic of Tatarstan, Russia, July 27, 2017. Picture taken July 27, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

By Stephanie Kelly

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices fell more than $2 per barrel on Friday as Saudi Arabia and Russia discussed easing production cuts that have helped push crude prices to their highest since 2014.

Brent crude futures (LCOc1) fell $2.35, or 3 percent, to settle at $76.44 a barrel. The global benchmark lost about 2.7 percent this week, its largest weekly drop since early April. The contract hit its highest since late 2014 at $80.50 last week.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude (CLc1) slumped $2.83, or 4 percent, to finish at $67.88 a barrel. For the week, WTI tumbled about 4.9 percent, its biggest loss since early February, a sharp course reversal after six weeks of gains.

The discount of WTI to Brent (WTCLc1-LCOc1) hit $8.60 per barrel, its widest since May 17, and not far off levels last seen three years ago.

The energy ministers of Russia and Saudi Arabia met in St. Petersburg to review the terms of a global oil supply pact that has been in place for 17 months, ahead of a key OPEC meeting in Vienna next month.

The ministers, along with their counterpart from the United Arab Emirates, discussed an output increase of about 1 million barrels per day (bpd), sources told Reuters. [nL5N1SW62E]

Russia's energy minister said oil ministers from OPEC states and non-OPEC countries participating in a deal to cut output would likely decide to gradually ease curbs at their meeting in Vienna next month.

"After hitting that $80 level, which is a psychological level, we were seeing a little bit of a pull-back yesterday, and then rhetoric out of Saudi and Russia has only exacerbated the sell-off today," said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at ClipperData.

Global crude inventories have fallen over the past year because of the OPEC-led cuts, which were boosted by a dramatic drop in Venezuelan production.

The prospect of renewed sanctions on Iran after Trump pulled out of an international nuclear deal with Tehran has further supported prices in recent weeks.

Story continues

This comes even as U.S. crude production has risen. The United States in February produced 10.3 million bpd, a record.

The U.S. oil rig count, an indicator of future production, rose by 15 to 859 in the week to May 25, the highest level since March 2015, General Electric Co's (GE.N) Baker Hughes energy services firm said. [nL2N1SW1DF]

Hedge funds and other money managers raised their bullish bets on U.S. crude futures and options in the latest week after four consecutive cuts in the net long position, according to data released on Friday.

The increase lifted the wagers from 6-month lows, in the week to May 22, according to data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).

The speculator group raised its combined futures and options position in New York and London by 2,009 contracts to 421,916 during the period.

(Additional reporting by Ron Bousso in London, and Henning Gloystein and Roslan Khasawneh in Singapore; Editing by Marguerita Choy and Chris Reese)
FILE PHOTO: Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attends a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron (not pictured) at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, April 10, 2018. Yoan Valat/Pool via Reuters

FRANKFURT/RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has ordered that no more government contracts be awarded to German companies, in a sign of continued irritation over Berlin's foreign policy in the Middle East, German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Friday.

Citing no sources, it said the move was likely to hit major companies such as Siemens <SIEGn.DE>, Bayer <BAYGn.DE> and Boehringer Ingelheim as well as carmaker Daimler <DAIGn.DE>.

Relations between Germany and Saudi Arabia have been strained, and Saudi Arabia last year summoned its ambassador in Germany home for consultations over comments by then-Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel about the political crisis in Lebanon. [nL8N1NO03U]

Saudi Arabia is a significant trade partner for Germany, generating 2017 exports worth 6.6 billion euros ($7.7 billion), according to Germany's statistics office.

Siemens last year won an order worth around $400 million to deliver five gas turbines for a combined heat and power plant being built in Saudi Arabia. Daimler soon after secured an order for 600 MercedesBenz Citaro buses from Saudi bus operator SAPTCO.

A senior German businessman in Saudi Arabia, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters on Friday that especially the healthcare sector was currently feeling added scrutiny when applying for Saudi tenders.

"They have even been asking: Where are the products coming from? Are they made in Germany? Do you have other manufacturing sites? And as soon as this is made in Germany, they have been rejecting any German applications for tender," the person said.

Bayer, Boehringer and Siemens declined to comment on the report by Spiegel. Daimler said it could not confirm the report and that its business was ongoing.

A Saudi government media office did not immediately reply to request for comment.

Bloomberg News had reported in March that government agencies had been told not to renew some non-essential contracts with German firms.

At the time, it cited sources as saying that Deutsche Bank's <DBKGn.DE> mandates in the kingdom were among those at risk, including a potential role in Saudi Aramco's <IPO-ARMO.SE> initial public offering, which could be the largest share sale ever.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan and Stephen Kalin; Additional reporting by Ludwig Burger and John Revill; Editing by Louise Heavens)
A Kansas woman has been arrested after police found a body under a bridge believed to be that of her 5-year-old stepson, whom she had reported missing in February, multiple outlets report.

On Thursday night, hours after the body was found, police arrested Emily Glass, 27, of Wichita, the stepmother of Lucas Hernandez, and charged her with one count of interfering with a law enforcement officer and obstruction, local station KAKE reports.

Officers who found the body under a bridge in rural Harvey County called it unidentifiable because it was so badly decomposed, the Topeka Capital-Journal reports.

Sedgwick County District Attorney Mark Bennett said that Glass was in the area hours before, the New York Times reports.

Glass led private investigator David Marshburn, who specializes in finding missing persons, to the area, Marshburn told KAKE in an interview.

While Glass has not been charged directly in the boys disappearance, the district attorney has called her a person of interest in the case, the Times reports.

Emily Glass, 27

Authorities have not yet identified the body. But Lucas maternal grandmother, Robin Taylor, told KAKE that the body is that of her grandson.

An autopsy will be conducted Friday to officially identify the body, according to Police Chief Gordon Ramsay, KWCH reports.

Lucas Hernandez, 5

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

After Lucas was reported missing on Feb. 17, relatives and neighbors came forward saying they believed he was abused, according to ABC News.

In February, shortly after Lucas went missing, Glass was arrested on child endangerment charges related to her 1-year-old daughter, ABC News reports. She was acquitted of those charges in May.

Lucas father, Jonathan Hernandez, was arrested May 10 in an unrelated battery case, ABC News reports. That case is still pending.

Story continues

On the day Lucas was reported missing, Glass told police she last saw the boy in his bedroom at about 3 p.m. before she took a shower and fell asleep, police said at the time. She said that when she woke up, he was gone.

After he was declared missing, the FBI and local authorities spent weeks searching for the boy.

At the time, Lucass elementary school teacher wrote an emotional post on her Facebook page, writing, Please pray for the safe return of the 5-year old that went missing.

He is one of my students and a very sweet little boy. Please pray for him and his family. My heart is so heavy right now.
Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan delivers a speech during a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia May 25, 2018. REUTERS/Grigory Dukor

By Denis Pinchuk

ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan said on Friday there would be no winners if there was a trade war between China and the United States, but said Beijing had to be ready for any turn of events.

Speaking at an economic forum in St Petersburg, Wang Qishan said there were frequent consultations between the world's two largest economies aimed at tamping down trade tensions which have flared after talk of potential tariffs.

U.S. President Donald Trump has said he is unhappy about what he regards as the excessive nature of his country's trade deficit with China and has cast uncertainty over progress in trade talks with Beijing.

"We need to be restrained and not limited by emotions," Wang Qishan told the forum, according to an instantaneous translation of his remarks into Russian.

"We must avoid a trade war because there won't be any winners in such a war."

He said a mutually beneficial arrangement needed to be found and spoke out against pursuing what he called a zero sum game.

"We can learn a lot from the United States," he said, citing its super power status. "We need to cooperate."

However, despite the conciliatory tone of his comments on the subject, he said Beijing had to be ready for any turn of events.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde, speaking at the same event, said U.S. complaints about the size of its trade deficit with China were strange.

She also said that U.S. complaints about alleged Chinese intellectual property violations should be discussed at the World Trade Organization.

(Additional reporting by Katya Golubkova and Christian Lowe; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
Floridas ban on smokable medical marijuana is unconstitutional, a judge ruled Friday.

Patients in Florida have the right to use the form of medical marijuana for treatment of their debilitating medical conditions as recommended by their certified physicians, Leon County Circuit Court Judge Karen Gievers wrote in her 22-page ruling, according to The Hill.

GettyImages-592213298

Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Trending: Tropical Storm Alberto Update: Where Is Storm Going And When Will It Hit?

The states Department of Health announced in a statement that it has appealed the ruling, prompting an automatic stay, The Associated Press reported.

A spokesman for the department told the AP that Gievers ruling goes against what the legislature outlined when they wrote and approved the law to implement the constitutional amendment that was approved.

In 2016, voters approved a constitutional amendment that allows the use of medical marijuana. The amendments language noted that the Legislature and local governments could restrict smoking medical marijuana in public locations, according to the AP.

Don't miss: Michelle Wolf Hits Sarah Huckabee Sanders Again, Slamming Her 'Ugly Personality'

The following year, Floridas Legislature passed laws, which were signed by Governor Rick Scott in June, that barred the sale of smoking products due to health risks. The laws allowed patients to use medical cannabis by vaping, foods, oils, sprays and tinctures.

Two weeks after Scott signed the bill, Orlando attorney John Morgan filed a lawsuit to challenge the ban. Morgan was joined by two terminally ill patients who claim to benefit from smokable medical marijuana.

So many people wont smoke due to the stigma and it being against the law. This is legitimate medicine, Cathy Jordan, who has ALS and says smoking has helped prolong her life, told the AP. This ruling is not just for me but for many other people.

Story continues

Most popular: George H.W. Bush Hospitalized for 'Low Blood Pressure' and 'Fatigue,' According to Spokesman

Medical marijuana is legal in 29 states and in Washington, D.C., though there is no uniform approach among those states and the capitol. Despite this, marijuana is still illegal under the federal government.

share-card

Reuters

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban adjusts his tie before addressing parliament in Budapest Hungary, May 18, 2018. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo/File Photo

Thomson Reuters

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary's government will launch measures to stop and then reverse a demographic decline by 2030, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Friday, as he blamed liberal democracy for undermining traditional families.

Orban said the key question was whether the Hungarian nation was preserved "biologically and in numbers" and what the government should do to stop the demographic decline. He said the government would launch a "serious family policy action plan" but did not go into detail.

Liberal democracy had failed to halt immigration, protect Christian culture or strengthen the traditional family of one man and one woman, Orban said.

"There are many kinds of families, many ways of life and it (liberal democracy) says we should not differentiate between these ... it wants to ensure equal treatment in the law ... and this is the reason, this is one of the reasons, why we are experiencing a demographic decline now," Orban told state radio.

Statistical data show that Hungary's population has been declining for decades. Since Orban was elected in 2010, it has declined further, to 9.771 million in January 2018 from 10.014 million in 2010.

He said the period until 2030 in Hungary and Europe should be defined by a modernized concept of Christian democracy instead.

"Christian democracy protects us from migration, defends the borders, supports the traditional family model of one man, one woman, considers the protection of our Christian culture as a natural thing," he said.

Orban, 54, took power in 2010 and has continually increased his control over the media, put allies in charge of once-independent institutions and campaigned on a platform of fierce hostility to immigration.

His policies have put him into conflict with the European Union, but he was re-elected for a third straight term last month.

A vehement opponent of immigration into Europe by Muslim refugees from the Middle East and Africa, Orban's campaign - helped by his party's media dominance - resonated with swathes of the electorate. His Fidesz party now holds 133 of 199 seats in parliament.

Story continues

Orban reiterated his government will submit legislation to parliament next week that would impose criminal penalties on non-governmental groups accused of helping and financing illegal immigration.

"We must sanction those ... who conduct such activities," Orban told state radio.

(Reporting by Krisztina Than, editing by Larry King)

See Also:
Georgian Airways Criticizes TAV Georgia for High Prices

By Vladimer Napetvaridze

Last week, representative of Georgian airline company Georgian Airways, Tamaz Gaiashvili openly criticised Tbilisi Airport Operating Company TAV Georgia, which was established by Turkish company TAV Urban.According to the founder of Georgian Airways, TAV services are expensive and ticket prices are artificially increased. He added the government is powerless as TAV has right to operate Tbilisi Airport until 2027. Gaiashvili says he decided to fight against TAV himself.For more than a year, I've been begging them to discuss these issues, but I couldn't convince TAV Georgia into talking about problems because they don't want to talk and show solidarity to the Georgian population, they are doing everything to have more income. I do not have anything against high income, but high income demands a high level of service, but nothing has been done yet, he said.In response to these accusations "TAV Georgia" also released the statement and called out statements of Gaiashvili to be false: For 13 years, "Georgian Airways" had all the privileges that "TAV Georgia" had been offering to local national companies. Every year, for 5 months "Georgian Airways" has been paying 50% of the cost of the service, and the remaining amount is being covered during the summer period. From the previous year, "Georgian Airways" has a special tariff with 20% "TAV" services. At this stage we have ongoing negotiations with the Georgian Airports Association to elaborate the new concept for supporting local companies. This new concept will provide solid discounts for "Georgian Airways". Representatives of Georgian Airways has been informed about this process and they have not answered yet," reads the statement of "TAV Georgia".In response to TAV statement, "Georgian Airways provided data about their payments for "TAV Georgia" services:For the last five years only for transporting passengers from terminal to plane, we have paid to "TAV" more than 43 million GEL.In 2017 we served 182 506 passengers and paid more than 15 million GEL (15 788 336 GEL) to "TAV Georgia," stated "Georgian Airways ".It is not yet clear which position will the Government and the Ministry of Economy hold. The fact is that the government does not intend to terminate the agreement with TAV Georgia until 2027.Emphasising the fact that the Turkish people are trying to hamper the Georgian companies, clearly, serves to create a negative public opinion against "TAV Georgia" and this is not the first case when George Airways has confronted "TAV Georgia". In 2013, during the negotiations between the Georgian Government and "TAV" about re-signing the contract, representatives of the Georgian company criticized the process and underscored several shortcomings in the document, they protested the specific article of the document, according to which the government of Georgia was not allowed to build an airport in 150 km radius from Tbilisi or Batumi.This detail of the contract may be more, than just a business interest.TAV Airports operates in Turkey, Georgia, Tunisia, Macedonia, Latvia, Saudi Arabia and Croatia. Depending on the geographic location of Georgian airports, it has a great potential to become a transit hub. Although the Istanbul airports are one of the biggest transit hubs in the world, due to strict meteorological conditions in winter, the Istanbul airports are often closed for several days, which leads to the great financial losses. Therefore, Tbilisi and Batumi airports have the opportunity to actually compete with Istanbul airports, but at present, it is impossible because the company that owns Georgian airports, operates in Istanbul airports.
By Jolyn Rosa

HONOLULU (Reuters) - A broad lava flow crossed onto the property of a Hawaii geothermal power station on Saturday, posing a new hazard as molten rock from the erupting Kilauea volcano bulldozed relentlessly through homes and backyards.

The lava crossed onto the Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV) Saturday evening local time, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, having destroyed dozens of nearby houses in the past few days.

Since Hawaii's Kilauea volcano began a once-in-a-century-scale eruption May 3, authorities have shutdown the plant, removed 60,000 gallons of flammable liquid and deactivated wells that tap into steam and gas deep in the Earth's core.

Magma has drained from Kilauea's summit lava lake and flowed around 25 miles (40 km) east underground, bursting out of about two dozen giant cracks or fissures near the plant.

"The flow from fissures 21 and 7 was widening and advancing," Janet Snyder, a spokeswoman for the County of Hawaii, said in an email on the position of lava heading northeast towards PGV at 12:30 p.m. (6:00 p.m. ET)

Hawaii Governor David Ige has said the wells are stable.

But lava has never engulfed a geothermal plant anywhere in the world and the potential threat is untested, according to the head of the state's emergency management agency. Local residents fear an explosive emission of deadly hydrogen sulphide and other gases should wells be ruptured.

270 EARTHQUAKES IN ONE DAY

Residents have complained of health hazards from emissions from the plant since it went online in 1989 and PGV has been the target of lawsuits challenging its location on the flank of one of the world's most active volcanoes.

The Israeli-owned 38 megawatt plant typically provides around 25 percent of electricity on the Big Island, according to local power utility Hawaii Electric Light.

Operator Ormat Technologies Inc last week said there was no above-ground damage to the plant but it would have to wait until the situation stabilized to assess the impact of earthquakes and subterranean lava flows on the wells.

Story continues

In just the past 24 hours there were between 250 and 270 earthquakes at Kilauea's summit, with four explosions on Saturday sending ash to altitudes as high as 12,000-15,000 feet, said Stovall and National Weather Service meteorologist John Bravender.

Winds are set to shift on Monday and Tuesday, causing higher concentrations of ash and volcanic smog that will spread west and northwest to affect more populated areas, Bravender said.

U.S. Marine Corp and National Guard helicopters are on standby for an air evacuation in the event fissure activity cuts off Highway 130, the last exit route for up to 1,000 coastal residents.

Cracks in the highway have yet to emit hydrogen sulphide gas which would indicate magma was rising towards the surface, Stovall said.

(Reporting by Jolyn Rosa in Honolulu; additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Writing by Gina Cherelus in New York; Editing by Andrew Hay, Marguerita Choy and Susan Thomas)
South Korean President Moon Jae-in met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Saturday to discuss Kims possible upcoming summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, the South said.

The surprise meeting was the second inter-Korean summit in as many months.

05_2_Kim_Moon

Korea Summit Press Pool/AFP/Getty Images

Trending: Memorial Day: Hundreds of Graves in an Illinois Cemetery Were Defaced With Swastikas

Moon and Kim met just north of the heavily militarised border in the afternoon to exchange views to pave way for a summit between North Korea and the United States, South Koreas presidential office said.

Moon will announce the outcome of his two-hour meeting with Kim on Sunday morning, officials said.

The talks were held at the northern side of the Panmunjom truce village between 15:00 and 17:00 local time, Moon's office said.

Don't miss: Chelsea Clinton: Donald Trump Degrades What it Means to be an American'

"Both leader exchanged opinions... for the successful holding of the North Korea-US Summit," it added.

On Thursday Trump cancelled a planned summit with Kim, but later signalled that the meeting may still go ahead.

Sadly, based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it would be inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting, Trump wrote in a letter to the North Korean leader.

The planned discussions would focus on the denuclearization of North Korea, and reducing tensions between North Korea and other states in the region.

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
The hysteria about the future of artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere. There seems to be no shortage of sensationalist news about how AI could cure diseases, accelerate human innovation and improve human creativity. Just looking at the media headlines, you might think that we are already living in a future where AI has infiltrated every aspect of society.

While it is undeniable that AI has opened up a wealth of promising opportunities, it has also led to the emergence of a mindset that can be best described as AI solutionism. This is the philosophy that, given enough data, machine learning algorithms can solve all of humanitys problems.

But theres a big problem with this idea. Instead of supporting AI progress, it actually jeopardises the value of machine intelligence by disregarding important AI safety principles and setting unrealistic expectations about what AI can really do for humanity.

AI solutionism

In only a few years, AI solutionism has made its way from the technology evangelists mouths in Silicon Valley to the minds of government officials and policymakers around the world. The pendulum has swung from the dystopian notion that AI will destroy humanity to the utopian belief that our algorithmic saviour is here.

We are now seeing governments pledge support to national AI initiatives and compete in a technological and rhetorical arms race to dominate the burgeoning machine learning sector. For example, the UK government has vowed to invest 300m in AI research to position itself as a leader in the field. Enamoured with the transformative potential of AI, the French president Emmanuel Macron committed to turn France into a global AI hub. Meanwhile, the Chinese government is increasing its AI prowess with a national plan to create a Chinese AI industry worth US$150 billion by 2030. AI solutionism is on the rise and it is here to stay.

Neural networks  easier said than done

While many political manifestos tout the transformative effects of the looming AI revolution, they tend to understate the complexity around deploying advanced machine learning systems in the real world.

Story continues

One of the most promising varieties of AI technologies are neural networks. This form of machine learning is loosely modelled after the neuronal structure of the human brain but on a much smaller scale. Many AI-based products use neural networks to infer patterns and rules from large volumes of data. But what many politicians do not understand is that simply adding a neural network to a problem will not automatically mean that youll find a solution. Similarly, adding a neural network to a democracy does not mean it will be instantaneously more inclusive, fair or personalised.

Challenging the data bureaucracy

AI systems need a lot of data to function, but the public sector typically does not have the appropriate data infrastructure to support advanced machine learning. Most of the data remains stored in offline archives. The few digitised sources of data that exist tend to be buried in bureaucracy. More often than not, data is spread across different government departments that each require special permissions to be accessed. Above all, the public sector typically lacks the human talent with the right technological capabilities to fully reap the benefits of machine intelligence.

For these reasons, the sensationalism over AI has attracted many critics. Stuart Russell, a professor of computer science at Berkeley, has long advocated a more realistic approach that focuses on simple everyday applications of AI instead of the hypothetical takeover by super-intelligent robots. Similarly, MITs professor of robotics, Rodney Brooks, writes that almost all innovations in robotics and AI take far, far, longer to be really widely deployed than people in the field and outside the field imagine.

One of the many difficulties in deploying machine learning systems is that AI is extremely susceptible to adversarial attacks. This means that a malicious AI can target another AI to force it to make wrong predictions or to behave in a certain way. Many researchers have warned against the rolling out of AI without appropriate security standards and defence mechanisms. Still, AI security remains an often overlooked topic.

Machine learning is not magic

If we are to reap the benefits and minimise the potential harms of AI, we must start thinking about how machine learning can be meaningfully applied to specific areas of government, business and society. This means we need to have a discussion about AI ethics and the distrust that many people have towards machine learning.

Most importantly, we need to be aware of the limitations of AI and where humans still need to take the lead. Instead of painting an unrealistic picture of the power of AI, it is important to take a step back and separate the actual technological capabilities of AI from magic.

For a long time, Facebook believed that problems like the spread of misinformation and hate speech could be algorithmically identified and stopped. But under recent pressure from legislators, the company quickly pledged to replace its algorithms with an army of over 10,000 human reviewers.

The medical profession has also recognised that AI cannot be considered a solution for all problems. The IBM Watson for Oncology programme was a piece of AI that was meant to help doctors treat cancer. Even though it was developed to deliver the best recommendations, human experts found it difficult to trust the machine. As a result, the AI programme was abandoned in most hospitals where it was trialled.

Similar problems arose in the legal domain when algorithms were used in courts in the US to sentence criminals. An algorithm calculated risk assessment scores and advised judges on the sentencing. The system was found to amplify structural racial discrimination and was later abandoned.

These examples demonstrate that there is no AI solution for everything. Using AI simply for the sake of AI may not always be productive or useful. Not every problem is best addressed by applying machine intelligence to it. This is the crucial lesson for everyone aiming to boost investments in national AI programmes: all solutions come with a cost and not everything that can be automated should be.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

The Conversation

Vyacheslav Polonski received funding from the University of Oxford and the ESRC.
It will not be unusual for the Duchess of Cambridge to disappear from the public eye until October. That's because it 's a royal tradition that new mothers are entitled to a six-month maternity leave. That means they are excused from carrying out royal duties during that time.

We saw Kate Middleton at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding on Saturday, May 19 just a few weeks after giving birth to Prince Louis. That was a special exception because it was a family outing and not an official engagement.

She and Prince William were absent from Prince Charles' 70th birthday celebration on Monday.

Prince William was speaking at an event for the Manchester Arena bombing victims. Kate appeared at neither one of the events, but she did not break any rules because her maternity leave continues. It seems as though she will take advantage of being on maternity leave and will be selective in the events she will attend.

Option to pick and choose

Royal biographer Duncan Larcombe explained that Kate Middleton has the option to pick and choose which affairs she will attend. She will be permitted to attend or choose not to appear in public until next fall. The Duchess of Cambridge appeared in public until her eighth month of pregnancy.

She went on maternity leave on March 22 to prepare for the delivery of the new arrival.

That means her maternity leave started an entire month before Prince Louis was born on April 23. Therefore, she had five months left after his birth.

Extended maternity leave

It was originally believed that Kate would take the entire six months and not take on any royal engagements until the fall. Now it is believed that she might extend the six months to a longer period of time because new reports indicate that she might have gone back to work too soon after giving birth to Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

Kate Middleton maternity leave: The Duchess of Cambridge is reportedly extending her time off to spend more time with Prince Louis, #print https://t.co/hS3CHuvk3a  bargain wall art (@bargainwallart1) May 18, 2018

If the Duchess of Cambridge does get an extension on her maternity leave, she might not appear for royal duties until close to the end of the year.

No one could blame her if she takes extra time. After all, she and Prince William have three children ranging in ages from one month to four years.

Upcoming family affair

Another family affair is coming up on June 9. The Duchess of Cambridge might attend that event. It is Queen Elizabeth's official birthday celebration called "Trooping of the Colours." You might remember the queen celebrated her actual 92nd birthday on April 21. That birthday celebration was a private affair with family members.

The upcoming birthday celebration is for Queen Elizabeth's reign for 66 years. It is a public and formal event that includes a parade with 1,400 soldiers, 200 horses, and 400 musicians.
Smarties are the English counterpart to the beloved M&Ms in the United States. The candy of that same name is also well known and loved in the US, but the American brand is a tart candy disk, packaged in rolls, and a favorite in Halloween trick-or-treat buckets. The English Smarties are milk chocolate, covered by a hard candy shell, but in different colors than the familiar M&Ms so loved by Americans, and naturally without the stamp of the letter M (for chocolatiers Mars and Murrie) on every tasty morsel.

Alexi Lubomirski has been well known in the fashion photography world for some time, particularly for his work in capturing exotic, beautiful women in their unique essence, and not in the stereotypical conventions of beauty.

Lubomirski is a Polish prince in name only, as he was told at age nine by his mother, and when a good friend of Meghan Markles learned that Lubomirski would be in London around the time of the engagement announcement, she suggested, you should meet Alexi-- he's wonderful. Well, the rest, as they say, is history.

The photographers warm and exquisite engagement portraits of the couple have become cherished worldwide, and the artist calls the photographs some of the easiest of his career because the growing love between Harry and Meghan pulsed through every image. Alexi also forged a natural bond between the betrothed and himself because of growing up in Botswana and having the same love for the African nation.

Being commissioned as the royal wedding photographer heaped quite a lot more history and pressure on Lubomirskis tall shoulders. The engagement session had been conducted before the official news of the nuptials, but this wedding would be part of British and American history for all eternity, and many more people, including the Queen herself, would be the subject of these pictures.

As it turned out, Alexi Lubomirski used his daddy skills in getting just the right moments on camera and discovered that Smarties held magic power.

Weeks come down to minutes

Just like the royal family themselves, Alexi Lubomirski left nothing to chance on the big day. The photographer was also a guest of the couple at the wedding and quickly dashed from St.

George's Chapel to the assigned areas for the shoot, which he and his assistant had meticulously arranged. One of the most endearing captures was the broadly-smiling Prince Harry, with his bride draped beside him on the steps. That image was truly a moment when Lubomirski said, Sit down right here, and the natural glow just happened, including the loose tendrils of Meghans hair adding to the beauty.

When it comes to the royal portraits including Her Majesty, however, every split second matters. Lubomirski had studied the wedding portraits of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip all the way to Prince William and Kate, and he wanted to bring something different but still not too out there for the family treasury.

The idea of family kept running through his head, and he had only 25 minutes for six pictures. He confessed on CBS This Morning, on May 25, that he never even looked at the screen until after the entire session was done, relying on his assistant to signal the precise framing. Lubomirski was absorbed with getting the kids to look. He dubbed the experience of finally seeing the pictures quite emotional.

Donned in green and glowing smiles

I'm not one of those artists who forces my vision on people, relates Lubomirski. I want them to be seen. Now, eyes across the globe have seen the royal wedding portraits, with both mothers of the bride and the groom in resplendent shades of green. The most divine feat is that the Monarch of the British Empire is seated and offering quite a natural smile.

Saying now, ma'am, let's try a grin, would certainly be considered completely insubordinate. Alexi credits that genuine, content expression to the children, and his antics to get the youngest of the wedding party, from age two through 10, to smile. There was no need to call in one of her corgis.

The ever more mindful portrait master overheard giggles over being offered a Smartie, so he ran with that idea, improvising with an instantaneous question, Who likes Smarties? and eliciting the beaming responses of Me! from all ages. Even in a royal pitch, candy can work wonders. Despite the rush, Lubomirski describes that it was like a family room at any special occasion. It was a beautiful sight. Messages are cramming the Inbox and phone of the most sought-after photographer now, hoping he can create similar beautiful sights for blissful couples. Start the candy runs to the store now.
Camille Grammer has been facing rumors of a potential full-time return to "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" for the past several weeks, but is there any truth to the ongoing reports? During a new interview with Us Weekly magazine on May 22, Grammer addressed the rumors, stating that she doesn't yet know what her role will be when the series returns to Bravo TV for season nine.

Although Grammer doesn't know if she will be featured in a full-time or part-time role during season nine, she noted that a full-time position would be a tough commitment for her.

"Ive got a lot going on in my life so I dont know if I can commit to it, she explained. As fans well know, Grammer is a newly engaged mother of two with tons of responsibilities to her children, Mason and Jude, and a lot to consider in regard to her upcoming nuptials with David C. Meyer.

Is Camille Grammer in touch with the 'Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' cast?

Following production on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" season eight, Grammer says she's remained in contact with a number of her co-stars, including her longtime friends Kyle Richards and Lisa Vanderpump. As she explained, she and the other women have been through a lot in the years since they first joined the series' first season.

"Theres a certain connection that keeps us all together," she said.

As for the rest of the cast, Grammer said that she enjoys the company of Lisa Rinna and Teddi Mellencamp but doesn't know Erika Girardi all that well. "Ive liked [Teddi] from day one, Grammer noted. Grammer also said that while she and Dorit Kemsley had their differences during filming on season eight, they are now in a "much better" place and Grammer is actually optimistic about a potential friendship between them in the future.

Where will Camille Grammer marry fiance David C. Meyer?

Speaking of her plans to get married, Grammer said she initially planned to have her ceremony with David C. Meyer in Hawaii but because of the volcano situation in the state, she's unsure of what her exact plans will be. That said, she would love to get married on the Big Island, where she has a home.

I want it very authentic," Camille Grammer continued of her wedding plans, "a Hawaiian theme for the wedding.

Camille Grammer was previously married to "Frasier" star Kelsey Grammer.

"The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" season nine will likely begin filming sometime this summer.
Recently, President Trump signed three executive orders that are designed to create a better, more efficient government to work for. The idea is that contracts will be created, maintained, and negotiated in a shorter time frame as to not cause problems with the daily working schedule. The ability of companies to fire an employee who is not performing up to expectations will allow for a shorter time span for that to happen. But are these recently signed executive orders exactly what this country needed?

No workers contracts could mean government shutdown

Unions are a good way to protect workers rights. You pay monthly or yearly dues to get certain assurances. Assurances such as that you can't be paid below a certain amount of money, you can't get fired without cause, and you are entitled to certain benefits like bereavement, sick leave, personal, and other benefits. All are negotiated by your union representative for your contract. In the event that you are fired or called to answer an issue, you are given legal counsel by your union or your union representative will act on your behalf as to ensure you are protected.

In recent years, some workers, such as teachers, have been working without a contract for two years.

Some, like the railroad, at the ninth hour, came to an agreement. In the government, the same thing happens. But if they don't work, it could possibly lead to a government shutdown of certain office workers that are needed to keep it running. In order for this not to happen, the contracts are negotiated but some even in government have been working without a contract.

Important sections in the three executive orders

This executive order will make sure that the contracts are negotiated quickly and with benefits towards the employers to let go of employees that are not working out and make it easier to do so. Another executive order is that the unions will have to now rent the facilities they use to complete union business.

Formally the union could use the facilities at any time and not be responsible for paying any money towards its upkeep. Now this will change. This could cause a rise in union dues as well. Also note, the time spent to complete union business while working during your work day will be curtailed so that more work may be done for the job the person was hired. Not only that but an actual limit was set.

According to Bloomberg, in the article "Trump Signs Orders Cracking Down on Federal Workers' Unions," it states that the limit is ..."no more than 25 percent." But those who actually work as the union representative or who represent the union in legal or other activities state that a majority of their time at work is spent working on union issues.

To now limit that, means that the unions become inefficient. And when unions become inefficient, the work at the office suffers and you lose employees.

Also, President Trump signed an executive order that updated a regulation. This regulation will lessen the time a person has to improve their work performance upon being informed of the need. This affects the probation period that the employee has. He wants to lessen it to 30 days from its current length of 60 to 120 days. Again, this is a nod to making government more cost-effective and smaller. Although no law has been passed, these executive orders are a first step in giving more power to the executive branch of government to relieve federal employees of their positions.

Trump has also taken a hit on the minimum wage paid toward those who work on federal lands. He wanted those who were seasonal workers to be paid a different rate than the one set by former President Barack Obama. His reasoning is that due to the high turnover rate, different schedules, and the amount of overtime that group of workers might work, to pay them the amount the former president had requested was a burden on the employer. It means he wants to cut their wages.
David Adler in the NYT:

My research suggests that across Europe and North America, centrists are the least supportive of democracy, the least committed to its institutions and the most supportive of authoritarianism.

I examined the data from the most recentWorld Values Survey (2010 to 2014) andEuropean Values Survey (2008), two of the most comprehensive studies of public opinion carried out in over 100 countries. The survey asks respondents to place themselves on a spectrum from far left to center to far right. I then plotted the proportion of each groups support for key democratic institutions. (A copy of my working paper, with a more detailed analysis of the survey data, can be found here.)

Respondents who put themselves at the center of the political spectrum are the least supportive of democracy, according to several survey measures. These include views of democracy as the best political system, and a more general rating of democratic politics. In both, those in the center have the most critical views of democracy.
To pick up on almost any story in the news these dayspolitical, financial, sexual, or environmentalis to be informed in the opening monologue that the rule of law is vanished from the face of the American earth. So sayeth President Donald J. Trump, eight or nine times a day to his 47 million followers on Twitter. So sayeth also the plurality of expert witnesses in the court of principled opinion (media pundit, Never Trumper, think-tank sage, hashtag inspector of souls) testifying to the sad loss of Americas democracy, a once upon a time government of laws and not of men. The funeral orations make a woeful noise unto the Lord, but its not clear the orators know what their words mean or how reliable are their powers of observation. The American earth groans under the weight of legal bureaucracy, the body politic so judiciously enwrapped and embalmed in rules, regulations, requirements, codes, and commandments that it bears comparison to the glorified mummy of a once upon a time great king in Egypt. Senior statesmen and tenured Harvard professors say the rule of law has been missing for three generations, ever since President Richard Nixons bagmen removed it from a safe at the Watergate. If so, who can be expected to know what it looks like if and when it shows up with the ambulance at the scene of a crime? Does it come dressed as a man or a woman? Blue eyes and sweet smile riding a white horse? Black uniform, steel helmet, armed with assault rifle? Or maybe the rule of law isnt lost but misplaced. Left under a chair on Capitol Hill, in a display case at the Smithsonian, scouting locations for Clint Eastwoods next movie.

Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980 to restore America to its rightful place where someone can always get rich, his attitude and agenda not unlike Donald Trumps, and by 1984 everywhere in the society, money was seen to be the hero with a thousand faces, greed the creative frenzy from which all blessings flow. What was billed as the Reagan Revolution and the dawn of a new Morning in America united the many and various parties of the right (conservative, neoconservative, libertarian, reactionary, evangelical, the Ku Klux Klan, and the Koch brothers) under one flag of transcendent and absolute truthmoney ennobles rich people, making them healthy, wealthy, and wise; money corrupts poor people, making them lazy, ignorant, and sick. The doctrine of enlightened selfishness rebranded as neoliberalism has remained in power in Washington for the past thirty years. The separation of values treasured by a capitalist economy from those cherished by a democratic society has resulted in the accumulation of more laws limiting the freedom of persons, fewer laws restraining the license of property, the letting fall into disrepair of nearly all the infrastructure (roads, schools, rivers) that provides the citizenry with the ways and means of its common enterprise.

More here.
Zach Carter in The Huffington Post:

Keltons core idea  that the government cant run out of money or go bankrupt, no matter how much it spends  hasnt really changed since the days when Buiter and Krugman were trashing her thinking. But it seems the world has. Today she is a full-fledged member of the American power elite, juggling television bookings with MSNBCs Chris Hayes and Bloomberg TVs Joe Weisenthal, writing op-eds for The New York Times and being quoted in The Wall Street Journal.

Pod Save America and Financial Times want her on their podcasts. Shes got a book deal with Public Affairs, and Bloomberg View has signed her up as its newest columnist  but she isnt sure that gig is worth the time, given her packed speaking schedule. In May alone, shes being flown to Las Vegas to debate a former International Monetary Fund chief economist before heading to Monaco to moderate a panel on artificial intelligence. After that, the House of Lords in London.

Everybody wants a piece of Kelton these days because a simple, radical idea she has been workshopping her entire career is the next big thing in Democratic Party politics. She calls it the job guarantee  a federal program offering a decent job to every American who wants to work, in every county in the country, at any phase of the business cycle.

Its a practical expression of her monetary thinking.

More here.
Marco Roth in n+1:

LETS GET THE STUPID BIT about the shared last name out of the way. It affected me. When a young wannabe, I couldnt read him, not willingly, not without trepidation, certainly I couldnt read him well. One overwhelming, brilliant father was enough, thank you. Later, a rueful joke: Yes, like the novelist, not related, or dismissive, Roth, like Henry or Joseph. Distance, denial, mistrust, a touch of unearned condescension, the attitude of so many writers my generation and a little older, both toward the man and the writer, whether we were tri-state Jews or golden midwest goys, like David Foster Wallace. The feeling was mutual, judging by the books. Men roughly my age, that is of a generation who would have been Roths children, had he wanted any, began appearing in his novels throughout the late 90s and mid aughts. We were a bunch of whiny upstarts, puritans, biographers, journalists, thoughtless opportunists and entitled schemers (Exit Ghost) or already castrated paragons of mushy devotion to our brilliant, sexy girlfriends and the older men who covet them (he seemed to take pleasure in deferentially calling me Mr. Zuckerman is how one such ephebe is first characterized). Or, like Drenkas son in Sabbaths Theater, a cop, a character who seems to exist only so he can catch the master puppeteer in various delicta flagrantia atop his mothers grave and stop the carnal play in the name of the law. Daughters fare worse: the tragedy inside American Pastoral, a reverse-engineered King Lear, is of a child driven to madness by her inability to acknowledge a fathers loveone of the few times in Roths fiction that he sympathized his way into seeing things from a parents point of view, and he did it by imagining a child turned terrorist.

More here.
Aberdeen couple celebrates 75 years together

Calvin and Oriole Nelson were both born and raised in Aberdeen and married at the old Bethlehem Lutheran church in 1946.
BY KEITH JACKSON



THE BREED OF men known as kiaps  call them what you will, assistant resident magistrates, patrol officers, whatever  made their presence felt on the island of New Guinea from the late 19th century.

But in the most recent era, that since World War II, serving Australia and the people of what is now PNG, there were the kiaps as we recognise and know them today: the men who did more than most to develop a nation from 800 fragmented tribes and to ready it to govern itself.

It was a mission they accomplished with great effectiveness, although many of them continue to deny the achievement to this day. They should not. I saw what they did then. I have had no reason to change my mind since. Without them the nation-state of Papua New Guinea could not possibly have been created.

The luminous photograph above, taken in 1944, is a great and telling picture in its own right and it is also of note because so many of the young men it depicts in the two back rows (some who at the time were still serving as wartime soldiers) went on to become significant figures in the pre-independence story of Papua New Guinea. [Left click on the photo to see it in larger dimension]

As such, their names and their own personal stories are honoured.

And in the front row are their instructors; some great names there too.

Harry West OAM (middle row, fourth from right), one of the great kiaps, wrote in PNG Attitude some years ago:

Then in 1944, Army routine orders sought applicants to attend a School of Civil Affairs for aspirant patrol officers. I was interviewed in Cairns by Colonel Murray, later the first Administrator of Papua New Guinea, Les Haylen, the Secretary of the Department of Territories and a Federal MP, along with numerous others and 40 ended up at Duntroon. After five gruelling months, 18 of the 40 were returned to their units, six were sent to Borneo and the remaining 16, including me, to PNG.

Australia took Papua New Guinea very seriously in those days. And of the 40 men who attended this first kiaps course, only 22 graduated.

The passing of the years dulls the memory, and sometimes the name of a man who was fiercely well known back then has receded to some murky cavern of the mind, proving nigh impossible to retrieve.

But PNG Attitudes correspondents have sought to reconstruct this group of stalwart men  and this is where they have got to so far:

Back Row, left to right: 1 - Michael Conroy; 2, 3,4 -Unknown; 5  Hitchcock; 6,7 - Unknown; 8 - Watson; 9 - Geoff Herkes; 10,11 - Unknown; 12 - Kingsley Jackson (District Commissioner, retired 1973); 13  Unknown;14 - Cassidey Middle Row, left to right: 1 - George Tuckey (kiap, died Kundiawa, c 1946): 2 -McKinnon; 3 - Unkown; 4 - Dudley Young-Whitford (Patrol Officer & Assistant District Officer, died 1958); 5 - Des Clifton-Bassett (District Commissioner, retired 1973); 6 - Breakespear; 7 - Grainger (Blue) Morris (possibly Registrar of Cooperatives); 8 - Unknown; 9 - Doug Parrish (kiap, later Secretary for Labour); 10 - Harry West OAM (District Commissioner, later Secretary, Department of Native Affairs); 12 - Brian Connelley; 13 - Eric Flower (kiap, later Executive Officer Department of Administrator); 14 -Russ Crooks Front Row, left to right: 1 - T E H Strehlow (anthropologist); 2 - Jim McCauley (lecturer in history, ASOPA luminary, great Australian poet); 3 - Unknown; 4 - Dudley Jones (later Solicitor, Rabaul); 5 - John Black (1946-1948 Assistant Director, District Services and Native Affairs); 6 - Colonel J K Murray (PNG Administrator prior to Sir Donald Cleland); 7 - Ralph Piddington (anthropologist); 8 - John Andrews (lecturer ASOPA, later Professor of Geography, University of Melbourne); 9 - John Legge (later Professor of History, University of Melbourne); 10  Lieutenant Peter Ryan MM, kiap, publisher and commentator); 11 - Sgt Major Stead (later at ASOPA)

I thank another great kiap, Bill Brown MBE, a former District Commissioner of Bougainville in truly exacting times, for sharing this historic photograph with us.
Both director and historian, Patrick Nagatani was a sorcerer of stories.

The Albuquerque-based photographer and teacher conjured universes on canvas, collaging photography, masking tape and magazine clippings with a focus on vibrant color and the irony of truth hidden in plain sight.

A pioneer in directed photography, the late photographer is the subject of Invented Realities, a survey exhibition of 38 images at the New Mexico Museum of Art.

Nagatanis images combine his background as a Hollywood set model maker (Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Blade Runner), his ethnic heritage (he was born in Chicago just days after the atomic bomb obliterated Hiroshima), his passion for healing and the environment.

Nagatani created complex tableaus and detailed models for the camera. The results spilled in a cascade of collaged contradictions: Hopi dancers next to missiles, military sites paired with monuments. It was in New Mexico that he produced some of his best-known series, including large-scale Polaroids and Nuclear Enchantment, about the development of atomic weapons and their environmental consequences.

Photography curator Kate Ware has organized the exhibit to emphasize Nagatani as a storyteller through several series. He didnt just take pictures; he constructed them for his viewers to decode.

Nagatanis early Los Angeles collaborations with the painter Andree Tracey involved the creation of elaborate scenes with a 20- by 24-inch Polaroid camera.

Radioactive Reds (1986) reveals his choice of the color as a symbol of nuclear weapons. The artists humor is also intact: a pair of McDonalds arches and a Buddhist temple bookend the frightened faces while the sky rains hamburgers in a confrontation of his bicultural heritage.

Both of Nagtanis parents and his grandfather were imprisoned in Japanese internment camps during World War II. That history produced a rare series of representational photographs. He traveled across the U.S., from California to Wyoming, New Mexico, Colorado and Arkansas documenting the camps or what was left of them. Most of them were unmarked.

Some of them were in the middle of somebodys fields, Ware said. Its almost stranger than reality; it didnt need much help. I think it was a very personal series.

Nagatani came to teach at the University of New Mexico in 1987, where he dove into his Nuclear Enchantment series. In a precursor to Instagram and 21st-century narcissism, Trinity Site, Jornada del Muerto, New Mexico (1989) shows tourists aiming cameras at the marker while a papier-mache plane delivering the bomb hovers overhead.

First, theres nothing there, Ware said. The narratives are really complex. He puts them in front of us for us to think about and contemplate.

Later, Nagatanis Buddhist roots saturated his compositions. He began using masking tape to veil the images. A self-described, self-invented tape-ist, he added layers of opaqueness to Buddhist goddesses.

He talked about how obsessive and calming these taped works were, Ware said.

He left key areas untaped, including the goddess hand.

It calls attention to the hand and the idea of truth and a blessing, Ware said.

Nagatani died after a long battle with colon cancer last November.

His contribution was in being an early adapter of color work in this directorial style, Ware said. And he was very important as a teacher.
Mark Medley is proof of how long a single case of identity theft can continue to mess up a persons life.

Medley founded Los Ranchos-based ID Theft Resolutions after his wallet was stolen at a city Summerfest event. The person who stole his identity was picked up on other, felony charges the next day and identified himself to authorities as Medley.

That was 17 years ago. It was a long and uphill battle for Medley to clear his name and to deal with the financial aftermath, including checks that bounced because the thief had drained his account.

Just last week, Medley learned the latest ramifications of the theft when he went to his local polling place to vote and was told his name had been deleted from the voter rolls.

Why?

Medley suspects the identity thief might be committing new crimes, continuing to use Medleys name. Its a new problem stemming from the old crime; Medley says he has voted in every election since 2001  including the last presidential election  and never had an issue. He says the Secretary of States Office is looking into the issue and assures him the matter will be resolved.

Its a perfect example of how identity theft can haunt you for many, many years, he said.

He plans to go back to his old practice of ordering a background check from the state Public Safety Department at least once a year to make sure no new crimes have been committed by the fake Mark Medley.

About being a victim of ID theft, Medley says, You never know what information is out there (when) your identity has been misused.

  

The New Mexico/Southwest Colorado Better Business Bureau is warning about several phone scams that happened recently.

In one case, a caller with an Indian accent claims to be from the Better Business Bureau and says he needs access to the consumers computer through a service code. He says he is trying to verify a supposed payment made to a fake Microsoft Co. (In other words, the scammer was claiming to be investigating a scam.)

The same consumer got a second call, this time from a supposed Microsoft employee who said he was the only one who could fix the consumers corrupted computer.

The BBB says it would never ask a consumer to verify any sort of information by allowing us access to their computer via a service code. It urges caution when taking calls from unknown or unfamiliar phone numbers. We also urge extreme caution when a caller/salesperson/telemarketer refuses to verify their identity.

  

Starbucks will not give you a $50 coupon for taking an online survey.

Versions of this type of scam have been shared on social media for years, involving not only Starbucks but Dunkin Donuts, Pizza Hut and other chains.

The latest variety claims to be in celebration of Starbucks 50th year in business, even though the company is three years shy of its golden anniversary. Also, the logo on the bogus offer is outdated. It shows a green ring around a black center image of a mermaid with the words STARBUCKS COFFEE and two stars. Starbucks dropped the ring and the color black from the design in 2011.

The company says those who question whether an offer is bogus can check on its app, call its customer care line or speak with an employee at one of its outlets.

  

A warning about a drivers license scam. Victims are targeted through email, with a message that looks to be from the American Automobile Association, according to the Scam Detector website. The scammers ask the recipient to click on a link and respond to questions as part of a so-called annual verification. They say that this year, drivers licenses must be updated because of some unspecified change in legislation.

Clicking on the link will take you to a page that looks like it belongs to a government agency, with a form that asks for personal information.

Dont be fooled.

Ellen Marks is assistant business editor at the Albuquerque Journal. Contact her at emarks@abqjournal.com or 505-823-3842 if you are aware of what sounds like a scam. To report a scam to law enforcement, contact the New Mexico Consumer Protection Division toll-free at 1-844-255-9210.
One minute youre having breakfast with your child before school, and the next youre waving goodbye as they rush out the door to catch the bus.

For millions of parents, its a tough  if fleeting  part of the job. We treasure every moment with our kids, and sometimes its hard seeing them run off to school for the day. Some days, you want to hug them before they leave, but theyre already out the door.

As a parent, you take comfort in knowing that, although you arent with them at school, theyre safe. That theyll return home, and youll get to catch up with them and hear about their day. That youll send them off to bed, and youll have breakfast with them in the morning. Hopefully, youll get that hug in before they rush out the door once again.

However, far too many families in this country have sent their loved ones to school only to learn that they wont be coming home. Weve seen it in Parkland, and weve seen it in Aztec  and we just saw it in Santa Fe, Texas. It never gets any less heartbreaking.

When parents send their children to school, theres an expectation that theyll be safe. School, after all, is a place that should keep our children away from violence and traumatic experiences, not expose them to it. Thats why after the tragic Parkland school shooting last February, when students and young people began to demand action from lawmakers to make our schools safer, I decided to act.

I introduced legislation that created a $40 million fund designated for one purpose: ensuring that our schools are safe. The money is earmarked for training school staff on how to respond to an armed threat or an attack, hiring additional security personnel, and the installation of security hardware like metal detectors and cameras.

Im proud to say that, through hard work and coalition building, my bill was passed and is now law in New Mexico. Now we have to spend that money to make schools safer.

With most public schools starting to break for summer at the end of May, that only leaves June and July to decide how to spend these funds before students return in August.

Thats why I am calling on Gov. Susana Martinez to call for a special session to address school security and make our schools safer. While lawmakers in Washington. D.C., sit on their hands, New Mexico has taken the first step to fund increased school safety.

Now we need to hear from students, parents, teachers, school administrators and school board members on what they need to make schools safer. Most importantly, everything should be on the table; from treating school shootings as a public health issue to expanding background checks on the sale of firearms to funding more training to facilitate coordination between public schools and first responders.

As the father of two sons and the husband of a school principal, nothing is more important than family, and the safety of all our children is my top priority. Parents should send their precious children to school with the full confidence in our ability to keep them safe, and I pledge to fight every day to restore their faith in New Mexicos ability to do just that.
Some columns just write themselves, but this one Ill leave to Yvette Marie Wilson.

For the past few years, she has done a lot of writing, her words like beacons lighting the way for others who follow her on a journey that might otherwise be less joyful if not for the positive narrative Wilson prefers.

Which is not to say that where Wilson, 48, is going is not heartbreaking. Being diagnosed with ALS in 2015 set her on a path into the unknown as the shadows of an incurable disease grow longer, darker, inevitable.

That, though, is not what Wilson chooses to write about or dwell upon.

I make no apologies for my ambitions, for my confident belief in myself or for wanting something more out of life, she wrote last October. I need no excuse for wanting to make the most of my brief time in this life. Having been diagnosed with ALS, I am determined to make every day special and meaningful.

Wilson, a Navy veteran, was an active woman most of her life. Its how she met Greg, her husband of six years.

We were running 5K races and walks, doing Dirty Dashes, she said. We were hiking, roller-skating, bike riding. We were doing it all back then.

Three years ago, though, she noticed a weakness in her legs, like she was walking through mud, like her legs were too heavy to lift. It took months and grueling rounds of testing before she was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS or Lou Gehrigs disease, after the famed New York Yankee who died of it.

You could get 100 people with ALS together and not more than one of us would have been attacked in the same way, she said. There isnt a specific scientific test that says, aha, you have ALS. The diagnosis is by process of elimination.

Its an unforgiving disease, slowly attacking its victims by destroying the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that control voluntary muscle movement until the muscles no longer move or support the body, no longer allow for the eating, the speaking, the breathing. The average life expectancy after ALS appears is two to five years, although there are exceptions.

Perhaps Wilson will be one of those exceptions. But thats something to think about later. Wilson prefers to live in the now.

Today, I dont look too far into the future, she wrote in January. Ive decided to savor today, and the memories that Ive made with family and friends. Tomorrow is another day, full of possibilities and new adventures. Im determined to treasure what I am able to do and accept help from those around me  not the easiest thing to do, but Im learning. I may have to adjust the manner in which I do things, but this makes me a stronger person  because I am still here.

Wilson said she has always liked to write, since a middle school teacher taught her about poetry. She took up writing essays, which can be found on her Facebook page, as a way to help others face ALS. Today, her writings are shared around the globe through ALS groups, clinics, doctors and others with ALS.

I didnt realize my writing was going to take off as fast as it did, Wilson said, her voice raspy and thin, the latest toll the disease has taken. They say it helps to fight back, to not look so much at the end result but what they have to appreciate now.

Appreciating the now is her main message.

Wherever you are, be there. Be there as fully as you can, she wrote in November. Dont live in the past  youve already been there. And dont live in the future, either. Tomorrow will be here soon enough. Live in this moment now. It is sacred and unrepeatable. This moment alone holds valuable gifts that should not be missed.

Besides writing, Wilson speaks out about ALS through her community activities. Since 2016, she has led Team Yvette  also known as the Holy Walkamolies, whose motto is Why run when you can guac?  in the annual ALS Associations Walk to Defeat ALS. With 178 members, her team is among the largest.

In July, she flies to Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, to compete as Miss Wheelchair USA  another platform, she said, to talk about ALS.

There are too many people with ALS who dont have a voice any longer, she said. I hope I can speak for them, even if it is taking an alternative means of expression.

Already, she is preparing for those alternative means. Someday, perhaps soon, she will lose her voice entirely. Then she will rely on her Tobii Dynavox, a remarkable computer that speaks for her, using her own voice and directed by the movement of her eyes  one of the last parts of the body to succumb to ALS.

Her eyes and her computer are also how she writes. She can no longer press a key or raise a spoon to her mouth. She uses a feeding tube now since swallowing has become difficult. Her husband  whom she calls her rock  retired from his job as an airplane mechanic to take care of her full time.

Wilson admits she is not always as hopeful as her writing suggests. Sometimes something simple like the inability to brush her hair or her teeth reminds her of where she is headed on her journey. But she keeps on.

Theres no reason to sit there and cry over something I dont have, she said. Im fortunate for what I have now and what remains of my beautiful life ahead. Nobody knows how long we have. I am no different than that.

Maybe not different, but so happily, joyfully herself.

At the end of my life, what will matter to me? Not that I ever had the ability to foresee my future (I have little interest in that), but that I had a hand in shaping it, she wrote in November. That is the magic inside me. I can largely shape who I will become, and when I do, I am shaping my future.

UpFront is a front-page news and opinion column. Comment directly to Joline at 823-3603, jkrueger@abqjournal.com or follow her on Twitter @jolinegkg.

Words of wisdom

The writings of Yvette Marie Wilson can be found on her Facebook page, The Holy Walkamolies  ALS Team Yvette.
SANTA FE  Michelle Lujan Grisham held a commanding edge over her two Democratic rivals in the primary contest to determine the partys 2018 nominee for New Mexico governor, a new Journal Poll found.

Fifty-seven percent of proven Democratic voters surveyed last week said they would vote  or had already voted  for Lujan Grisham, a former state Cabinet secretary who is giving up her Albuquerque-area congressional seat to run for governor.

Former Albuquerque media executive Jeff Apodaca trailed Lujan Grisham, with the support of 15 percent of voters surveyed, while 9 percent said they would vote for state Sen. Joseph Cervantes of Las Cruces. The remaining 19 percent of voters were undecided or would not say for whom they planned to vote.

I think Michelle Lujan Grisham got a really early start in the gubernatorial campaign, and its paying off, said Brian Sanderoff, president of Research & Polling Inc., which conducted the survey.

She has a lot more name recognition than her two opponents, he added. Theyve really had an uphill battle to try to defeat her.

Lujan Grisham was the first candidate to enter the race, nearly a year-and-a-half ago, and has used her broad range of connections to outraise her Democratic opponents and land the endorsements of labor unions, tribal groups and more than two dozen state lawmakers.

She has touted her state government experience on the campaign trail, saying it would allow her to hit the ground running as governor and make changes to the states public education system and minimum wage law.

However, Cervantes and Apodaca in recent weeks have stepped up their criticisms  in campaign TV ads and debates  of Lujan Grishams job performance during her 16-year tenure as a Cabinet secretary and profits earned from a health care consulting company she co-founded in 2008.

Those attacks have been described as inaccurate and misguided by Lujan Grisham, who has aired TV ads of her own, and do not appear to have affected her credibility in the minds of most Democratic voters, Sanderoff said.

The anti-establishment mood has not been a drawback for her in this race, he said.

The winner of the Democratic primary on June 5 will face Republican Steve Pearce, who is also giving up his congressional seat to run for governor, in the November general election. Two-term GOP Gov. Susana Martinez is barred from seeking a third consecutive term in office and will step down at the end of the year.

Statewide lead

Lujan Grisham outpaced her two opponents in all parts of the state in the Journal Poll, but had especially strong support in the Albuquerque area.

Sixty-five percent of proven Democratic voters surveyed in the Albuquerque area said they would vote for Lujan Grisham, who was also a Bernalillo County commissioner before being elected to Congress, compared with 10 percent for Apodaca and 9 percent for Cervantes.

Not surprisingly, support for Cervantes was strongest in Las Cruces and southwestern New Mexico, where 19 percent of voters surveyed said they would support the veteran lawmaker, who hails from a prominent farming family.

As for Apodaca, whose father, Jerry Apodaca, served as New Mexicos governor in the 1970s, there was a gender gap of sorts among his supporters.

Male voters surveyed were nearly twice as likely to say they would vote for Apodaca than female voters were, as 20 percent of men said they would vote for Apodaca compared with 11 percent of women surveyed.

Apodaca also had more support among Hispanic voters than among Anglo voters, though Lujan Grisham still held a sizable edge among both groups.

Under New Mexicos closed primary system, only voters affiliated with major political parties  Democrats, Republicans and Libertarians in this years election cycle  can vote in the primary election for candidates of their party.

Thats generally led to lower turnout than in general elections, and only about one in five eligible voters  or roughly 202,700 voters  cast ballots in the states 2014 primary election. But voter turnout was higher in 2010, when the state last had an open race for governor.

In state Democratic primary elections, the majority of the voters who cast ballots are over 50 years old and female, Sanderoff said. The Journal Poll sample was stratified to reflect those trends.

Methodology

The Journal Poll is based on a scientific, statewide sample of 444 registered Democratic voters who cast ballots in the 2014 and/or 2016 primary elections and said they were very likely to vote in this years primary election.

The poll was conducted May 20-24. The voter sample has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.6 percentage points. The margin of error grows for subsamples.

All interviews were conducted by live, professional interviewers, with multiple callbacks to households that did not initially answer the phone.

Both cellphone numbers (54 percent) and landlines (46 percent) of proven Democratic primary election voters were used.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

SANTA FE  Political newcomer Garrett VeneKlasen has emerged as the front-runner in a tight three-way race for the Democratic nomination for New Mexico land commissioner, according to a new Journal Poll.

The poll also showed state Sen. Howie Morales of Silver City leading in the race for lieutenant governor, and Albuquerque attorney Brian Colon ahead in the Democratic race for state auditor.

VeneKlasen, executive director of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, led the field for land commission, with support from 25 percent of likely voters in the Democratic primary, according to the scientific survey by Research & Polling Inc.

Two state lawmakers were close behind. Rep. Stephanie Garcia Richard of White Rock had support from 22 percent of likely voters, and Sen. George Munoz of Gallup was at 20 percent.

But more than one-third of those surveyed were undecided or wouldnt say how theyll vote.

Brian Sanderoff, president of Research & Polling, said VeneKlasen entered the race early and is airing television ads with environmental and progressive messages, allowing him to capture a slight lead over two experienced legislators. VeneKlasen is a longtime conservationist but has never held an elected state office.

I view the others as trying to play catch-up to him, Sanderoff said. But the outcome of this race will be determined by how the bulk of the undecideds move.

VeneKlasen, whos from Santa Fe, showed particular strength in the Albuquerque area and among Anglo voters, according to the Journal Poll.

Munoz led among Hispanic voters, and he was strong in the northwestern part of the state.

Incumbent Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn won the office four years ago as a Republican. But he is forgoing a re-election campaign, opting instead to run as a Libertarian for the U.S. Senate.

The winner of the Democratic nomination for land commissioner will face Republican Patrick Lyons, a member of the Public Regulation Commission whose term ends this year and a former land commissioner, and Libertarian Michael Lucero, a rancher, in the general election.

The Democratic race for state auditor is much clearer: Colon grabbed a healthy lead over his rival, state Rep. Bill McCamley, according to the telephone survey, conducted May 20-24.

Colon, a former chairman of the state Democratic Party, received support from 48 percent of those surveyed, far outpacing McCamley at 22 percent, in the auditors race.

Colon was particularly strong among Hispanic voters and has built a very significant lead, even with plenty of voters undecided, Sanderoff said.

Some of Colons strength may come from his 2017 campaign for Albuquerque mayor and 2010 bid for lieutenant governor, Sanderoff said. He lost both races, but his television ads and other campaign activity made him a more familiar face to voters throughout the state. Albuquerques media market touches most of New Mexico, other than Las Cruces and the areas close to El Paso.

McCamley, in turn, is an up-and-coming Democrat who is running strong in Las Cruces, Sanderoff said.

The winner of the Democratic nomination will face Republican Wayne Johnson in the fall.

In the race for lieutenant governor, meanwhile, state Sen. Howie Morales of Silver City had an advantage over his two Democratic rivals for the nomination, though 50 percent of those surveyed said they were undecided or wouldnt say how they would vote.

Morales had support from 25 percent, followed by former state Rep. Rick Miera of Albuquerque, at 17 percent. Trailing the field was Dona Ana County Commissioner Billy Garrett, at 8 percent.

The race for lieutenant governor isnt over, Sanderoff said, given the percentage of undecided voters.

Methodology

The Journal Poll is based on a scientific, statewide sample of 444 registered Democratic voters who cast ballots in the 2014 and/or 2016 primary elections and said they were very likely to vote again in this years primary.

The voter sample has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.6 percentage points.

All interviews were conducted by live, professional interviewers, with multiple callbacks to households that did not initially answer the phone.

Both cellphone numbers (54 percent) and landlines (46 percent) of proven Democratic primary election voters were used.
BELLEAU, France  High-ranking military officials from the United States, France and Germany took part in Memorial Day ceremonies at an American cemetery in France on Sunday to mark the centennial of the battle of Belleau Wood, a turning point in World War I and a key moment in U.S. Marine Corps history.

The ceremony at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in the village of Belleau featured speeches Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller and other military officials, prayers, wreath laying, poem readings, and the national anthems of the three countries.

More than 5,000 people attended the event to commemorate the fierce, monthlong battle, which is considered the first major engagement of U.S. troops in the war. Belleau Wood, where Marines helped Allied Forces secure victory, also helped to establish the prestige and reputation for bravery of the Marine Corps overseas.

Rear Admiral Brent Scott, chaplain of the U.S. Marine Corps, said the battle was a critical turning point for the Corps.

There are many great stories that have come out of this battle, that have inspired Marines for generations, Scott told The Associated Press.

Most of the 2,289 American soldiers, including 474 Marines, buried in the Belleau cemetery died in the French northern Aisne-Marne region in 1918. More than a thousand other servicemen are memorialized and honored by name on Walls of the Missing.

The June 1918 battle in and outside the Belleau Wood and the decisive engagement of the U.S. forces became a defining moment in WWI by containing a break by German troops through the Western Front and foiling their push toward Paris.

After the hostilities of World War I ended with the Armistice on Nov 11, 1918, many American families faced the decision of whether to bring their dead home or to have them buried where they fell.

Despite the distance and the decades that have passed, the service members still are honored each year for Memorial Day. But the task of remembering them has fallen after 100 years to grandchildren or distant relatives who sometimes travel from far away to pay their respects.

Mark Shively and his wife, Linda, from Beaverton Oregon, also had a personal, if less direct, reason to be at the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery this weekend. They crossed the United States and the Atlantic Ocean to spend Memorial Day with the officer who left a lasting impression on Shivelys grandfather.

Weve been talking about it for a couple of years, to come and visit France, to retrace his footsteps, Shively said. We wanted to lay flowers here to remember (my grandfathers) commander. He really loved this man.

Shivelys grandfather, Marine Corps Pvt. Norman Alfred Roberts, fought in the battle of Belleau Wood in June 1918. He was gassed and wounded on June 12, according to a small pocket diary he kept and that his descendants keep as a memento. After recovering and being wounded a second time, Roberts was sent home after the Armistice.

His unit commander, Marine Corps Lt. Carleton Burr, a 1913 Harvard graduate from Milton, Massachusetts, would not be as lucky. While Burr survived the carnage while fighting alongside Roberts at Belleau Wood, he was killed in action in July 1918. At the Aisne-Marne cemetery, Lt. Burr lies in plot A, row 2, grave 76.

My grandfather admired him very much. If it hadnt been for his leadership, my grandfather might not have made it, Shively told The Associated Press.

___

Philippe Sotto reported from Paris. Nadine Achoui-Lesage in Belleau contributed to the report.
President Donald Trump said Sunday a U.S. team was in North Korea to plan a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, raising expectations that the on-off-on meeting would indeed take place.

The State Department said earlier that a team was in Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the demilitarized zone, or DMZ, separating the North and South Korea. One can cross the border simply by stepping across a painted line, but moving beyond several footsteps into the North at Panmunjom would be rare for U.S. officials.

Trump withdrew from a planned June 12 Singapore summit with Kim last Thursday, but quickly announced that it could get back on track. His tweet Sunday afternoon, which offered praise for the longtime U.S. adversary, was the latest signal that his concerns about the Norths stance toward the summit had been allayed.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, he tweeted. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

South Koreas president, Moon Jae-in, gave details about his surprise meeting Saturday with Kim in the Panmunjom truce village, saying Kim had committed to sitting down with Trump and to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tapped veteran American diplomat Sung Kim to handle pre-summit negotiations. On a separate but complementary track was the CIA team Pompeo set up last year when he headed the spy agency. And on a third track was a White House logistical group sent to Singapore on Sunday to prepare in case the summit takes place. It was led by Joe Hagin, White House deputy chief of staff for operations.

Kim, the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines, also served as ambassador to South Korea and was part of the U.S. negotiating team that last held substantive denuclearization talks with North Korea during the George W. Bush administration in 2005.

The Korean leaders second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles. But their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appeared to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the worlds most heavily armed border.

The talks, which Moon said Kim Jong Un requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back and forth. They allowed Moon to push for a U.S.-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Kim may see a meeting with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters that Kim again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Moon added that Kim said hes willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful summit with Trump.

Moon said he told Kim that Trump has a firm resolve to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic cooperation if Kim implements complete denuclearization.

What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations (with North Korea) and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearization, Moon said.

During the South Korea-U.S. summit, President Trump said the U.S. is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations (between the U.S. and North Korea) and help (the North) achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearization, he said.

Kim, in a dispatch issued by the Norths state-run news service earlier Sunday, expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-U.S. summit talks. During Saturdays inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-U.S. relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

They agreed to have their top officials meet again June 1. Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Saturdays Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting.

Despite repeated references to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

The North has previously used the term to demand the United States pull out its 28,500 troops in South Korea and withdraw its so-called nuclear umbrella security commitment to South Korea and Japan. The North hasnt openly repeated those same demands after Kims sudden outreach to Seoul and Washington.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees. Moon said Sunday that the Norths disarmament could still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul dont differ over what complete denuclearization of the peninsula means.

Before he canceled the summit, Trump did not rule out an incremental approach that would provide incentives along the way to the North.

Following an unusually provocative 2017 in which Kims engineers tested a purported thermonuclear warhead and three long-range missiles theoretically capable of striking mainland U.S. cities, the North Korean leader has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity in recent months. He has had the summits with Moon and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, as well as two meetings with Pompeo.

___

Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul contributed to this report.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska  William Roy Dovers memory of the World War II battle is as sharp as it was 75 years ago, even though its been long forgotten by most everyone else.

His first sergeant rousted him from his pup tent around 2 a.m. when word came the Japanese were attacking and had maybe even gotten behind the American front line, on a desolate, unforgiving slab of an occupied island in the North Pacific.

He was shouting, Get up! Get out!' Dover said.

Dover and most of the American soldiers rushed to an embankment on what became known as Engineer Hill, the last gasp of the Japanese during the Battle of Attu , fought 75 years ago this month on Attu Island in Alaskas Aleutian chain.

I had two friends that were too slow to get out, the 95-year-old Alabama farmer recalled. They both got bayonetted in their pup tents.

Joseph Sasser, then a skinny 20-year-old from Cartharge, Mississippi, also found himself perched against the berm on Engineer Hill when a captain with a rifle took up a position about 10 feet (3 meters) away.

I noticed about after 30 minutes or so, he was awfully quiet, Sasser said. We checked to see if he had a pulse and if he was alive, and he was not.

We didnt even know he had been shot, said Sasser, also 95.

American forces reclaimed remote Attu Island on May 30, 1943, after a 19-day campaign that is known as World War IIs forgotten battle. Much of the fighting was hand-to-hand, waged in dense fog and winds of up to 120 mph (193 kph).

The battle for the Aleutian island was one of the deadliest in the Pacific in terms of the percentage of troops killed. Nearly all the Japanese forces, estimated at about 2,500 soldiers, died with only 28 survivors. About 550 or so U.S. soldiers were killed.

American forces, many poorly outfitted for Alaska weather and trained in California for desert combat, recaptured Attu 11 months after the Japanese took it and a nearby island, Kiska. It was the only WWII battle fought on North American soil.

The Japanese staged a last-ditch, desperate offensive May 29 at Engineer Hill.

Japanese soldiers surprise American forces on Attu with a fanatical charge out of the mountains, recounts an Associated Press chronology of WWII events in 1943. Savage fighting rages throughout the day and into the following night.

About 200 Japanese soldiers died in the assault, and the remaining 500 or so held grenades to their bellies and pulled the pins. It was the first official case of gyokusai, a Japanese euphemism for annihilation or mass suicide in the name of Emperor Hirohito, which increasingly occurred in other Japanese battlefields.

Tomimatsu Takahashi told Japanese public television network NHK in 2010 he was being treated for a bullet wound when the order for the final charge came. I was going to die, I thought, he said.

But as he headed out to fight, he collapsed, likely because he hadnt eaten in days. He was captured and sent to several mainland POW camps  including in Seattle, San Francisco and Chicago  before he returned home to Japans Iwate prefecture in 1947.

His family already had a funeral and grave for him.

I felt so relieved to be home, he said. But I never thought I was lucky to be alive. I thought I survived because I was not lucky. I felt I was not supposed to come back, because those who went to war were not supposed to come back, and thats what we were taught.

After the battle, Dover said things went back to normal for the American soldiers  except one thing: Somebody had to bury those Japanese.

During the war, the U.S. Army buried the Japanese soldiers bodies with care, built a memorial, set up a grave post and paid respects to the spirits, said Nobuyuki Yamazaki, whose grandfather died on Attu.

Yamazaki was among a delegation of Japanese soldiers descendants who attended a 75th anniversary celebration this month in Anchorage. The families have formally petitioned the Japanese government to have the remains returned, Anchorage television station KTVA reported.

Japanese people find great comfort when the remains of the Japanese are buried in our homeland, Yamazaki said.

The Aleut people living on Attu Island also suffered losses, becoming the only North American community to be imprisoned in Japan during the war, according to the book Attu: The Forgotten Battle, by John Haile Cloe.

While Kiska was unpopulated, about 45 Aleuts lived on Attu Island. When Japanese forces invaded, the Aleuts were captured and sent to Japans Hokkaido Island, where about half died, most from malnutrition or starvation.

The survivors never returned to Attu. The Army said it would be too expensive to rebuild their village, and they were relocated after the war.

The battle over Attu proved to be unimportant to the rest of the war, possibly why its forgotten today. However, American planes did use the island to bomb the northernmost reaches of Japan. And author and historian Cloe, who died in 2016, told the AP in 1993 that the Army learned much about amphibious landings and Japanese tactics from the battle.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service now owns Attu Island, which is part of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.

Seventy-five years later, 102-year-old Allan Seroll of Massachusetts, who worked in communications including Morse code for the Army Signal Corps, still carries the burden of the Battle of Attu.

I wake up in the middle of the night, and I cant go back to sleep, Seroll told KTVA. Thats what this has done to me. Thats how much it affected me and still does.

___

Yamaguchi reported from Tokyo.
The News in Brief

Traffic to Be Restricted on Freedom Square on May 22-26



The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) made a statement regarding traffic restrictions on Freedom Square in Tbilisi from May 22 to May 26.



The MIA says that traffic movement will be restored on May 26 when the festive events in connection to Georgias Independence Day are over.



"Patrol Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs informs that traffic movement will be restricted on Freedom Square in Tbilisi on May 22, at 12:00 am, in relation to the Independence Day of Georgia. Cars from Kote Abkhazi and Shalva Dadiani streets will move towards Pushkin Street. The movement will be restored on May 26, at the end of the event," the MIA statement reads.



On May 26 special festive events will take place in Georgias capital of Tbilisi.



Museum venues, theatre troupes, universities and other institutions are organizing public talks, various events and performances to mark the 100th anniversary of the First Democratic Republic of Georgia.



In one of the principal events, armed forces recruits from six locations across Georgia will take their oath at the Freedom Square.







Tbilisi Metro Workers to strike on June 3



Head of Tbilisi Metro workers union  Unity 2013, Rati Kapanadze accused Tbilisi City Hall and Court of artificial prolongation of court proceedings.



On May 21, Tbilisi City Court stated that metro workers can go on strike, but only in working hours, which caused the dissatisfaction of the workers and NGOs, working on human rights.



Kapanadze said the union still intended to go ahead with the strike, but said they had not come to an agreement over when it would begin.



We will have to go on a strike and stop Metropolitan on June 3. We will not obey the unlawful decision made by the Court and will use the constitutionally granted right, stated Kapanadze.



After the Georgian court ruled that protesting subway workers can strike only during working hours, activists held a protest rally at metro Rustaveli, saying an unlawful decision sets a dangerous precedent for restricting workers' rights in the country.



Union representatives noted that the decision contravenes the very definition of a strike, which is a refusal to work in order to express protest over their labor conditions.



Part of the Tbilisi Metro Workers directly addressed the Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze to find time without any mediators to personally talk to the workers and listen to the problems they have regarding the salaries and improper work conditions.



Tuesdays demonstration was organized by local rights group the Human Rights Education and Monitoring Centre (EMC), the Solidarity Network  Workers Center, a workers advocacy group, and student movement Auditorium 115. Protesters claim that the court ruling was a restriction of the employees rights.

(By Mariam Chanishvili)




Would you like to receive breaking news notifications from The Post and Courier?

Sign up to receive news and updates from this site directly to your desktop.

Breaking News Columbia Breaking News Greenville Breaking News Myrtle Beach Breaking News Aiken Breaking News N Augusta Breaking News

Click on the bell icon to manage your notifications at any time.

Success! Please click the 'Allow' button in the 'Show Notifcations' alert in your browser if one is available. Thank you for signing up!

Please enable notifications in your browser and reload the page.
BAGHDAD  Shiite coalitions that won the most seats in Iraq's May 12 legislative elections are absorbed in negotiations to form the largest parliamentary bloc, which will have the constitutional right to nominate the next prime minister.

The Sairoon Alliance led by Muqtada al-Sadr won the highest number of seats, but not enough for a parliamentary majority, so pacts must be made.

The main Shiite party, the Islamic Dawa, has led the country since 2005, but its two most powerful figures are bitter rivals. This year, their rift split the party into two coalitions, or lists: the Al-Nasr Alliance led by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and the State of Law Coalition led by party secretary and former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Reuniting the lists has become a challenge. Abadi and Sadr have discussed forming an alliance. If that happens, Abadi would most likely have to distance himself from Dawa. If the two Dawa blocs were to reunite, Abadi  and Dawa  would lose a connection to Sadr, whose alliance was the leading vote-getter. One of Sadrs main conditions is to exclude Maliki from any alliance.

It is still early to determine how the ongoing talks within the party could end. It depends on a number of things, most importantly, the relationship with the other winning lists," Dawa leader Sader al-Labban told Al-Monitor.

The leaderships of winning parties are constantly meeting and are extremely positive about discussing everything together," he said. "Maliki presents the idea of the political majority and seeks to form one large bloc to form the government alone  while Abadi has ideas about the need to involve all large blocs in the next government.

Labban ruled out the possibility that the rivalry between Maliki and Abadi for the office of prime minister is holding up reunification. All signs show that the Dawa blocs will most probably be merged soon and will be in charge of the premiership, no matter whom they nominate.

Maliki claimed in a May 9 statement to Al-Sharqiya that Dawa leaders, himself included, had signed a deal to restore the party's union after the elections and that running under two different lists was part of the partys strategy. Dawa wants Abadi to abide by this agreement, he added.

However, Abadi denied making such an agreement and said in a TV statement that Dawa leadership insisted that he head the party's electoral list, and this is why Maliki asked to run separately. Contrary to the decision the Dawa Party had made  Maliki registered the [whole] party within his bloc. As a result, a rebellion within the party erupted and some considered this to be a stab in the back."

Abadi said, I advised Maliki of the need to reverse his decision, but he didn't listen.

In light of this cloudy situation in which Dawa finds itself, some reports claim Abadi's departure from Dawa is imminent, though others deny this is the case.

A source familiar with Dawa told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, The negotiations are now about the post of prime minister and Abadi does not mind merging the two Dawa blocs if it guarantees his nomination for a second term, while Maliki's bloc insists that this matter will be resolved by virtue of an internal vote within the party.

He added, Abadi, whose seats in the new parliament outnumber Malikis, is in no hurry to make a decision and he wants to discuss the matter with all winning lists to find the best possible partner to achieve his legitimate political ambitions.

The source didn't rule out the possibility that Iran might push party leaders to compromise "by nominating someone other than Maliki and Abadi to head the government, should the Abadi-Sadr alliance fail.

Dawa leader Jassem Mohammed Jaafar told Iraq News on May 17, "It's now very difficult for Abadis Al-Nasr Alliance to join forces with the State of Law Coalition, as Maliki and Abadi can't agree on who should be prime minister.

Today, Dawa is at a crossroads, with two most likely paths: Maliki accepts the nomination of Abadi as the new prime minister and restores the partys unity or Abadi leaves the party indefinitely until one or the other is forced to defect entirely.

It wouldn't be the first time a leader defected from Dawa; many divisions have occurred over the years. Most recently, former party Secretary-General Ibrahim al-Jaafari left Dawa to create a reformist party after he was dismissed as prime minister in 2006.

Now Shiite parties need to form alliances and register the largest bloc with the Independent High Electoral Commission before the first session of the new parliament is held. As many parties are seeking to take the post of prime minister away from Dawa, the latter finds itself unable to stand idly by.

It may try to put its internal differences aside until one of its leaders becomes prime minister, after which it could discuss the future of the party or possibly resolve the conflict internally until the next elections are held in 2022.
Hamas leader Salah al-Bardawils comments May 16 on Baladna TV sparked much controversy within the Gaza Strip. Bardawil said, In the last round [of the Great Return marches], 62 people were martyred, 50 of them belonged to Hamas.

Many believe that such statements give Israel justification for its use of violence against demonstrators along the Gaza fence. The marches broke out March 30, culminating on the 70th anniversary of the Palestinian Nakba, on May 14, during which over 110 Palestinians were killed and thousands wounded as a result of shooting and using live ammunition and gas bombs.

Political analyst Saleh al-Naami, who is close to Hamas, wrote on his Facebook page May 16 that Israel has rejoiced over Bardawils remarks, adding, Bardawil meant that the [victims] are civilians belonging to Hamas-affiliated families.

Hamas behavior, which is presenting itself as the spiritual father of the return marches, has sparked discontent among many Gazans after Bardawils remarks went viral in international media. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video May 17, Bardawils remarks prove that Israel is targeting terrorists.

Bardawil was also quoted by Aviva Raz Shechter, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, during the United Nations Human Rights Council extraordinary session May 18 in Geneva to discuss the use of violence against demonstrators in Gaza.

Arij Husni, a human rights activist who is based in Italy, told Al-Monitor, When I heard of the UN session [on Gaza], I felt joy as [people] are showing solidarity with [Palestinians] and condemning the terror of the occupying state. But I was soon shocked when I heard Israels representative quoting Bardawil that 50 of the victims who were killed in the marches were affiliated with Hamas.

Husni, who left Gaza a few years ago, said, Bardawils statements are exploitation of the martyrs death for partisan interests, calling for awareness of the importance of peaceful struggle.

Videos that were leaked online, showing Israeli snipers firing at unarmed protesters during the marches are more reflective of what is happening on the ground than Bardawils remarks that clearly reflect Hamas overestimation of its influence and popularity.

Ahmad Abu Ratima, a writer and one of the organizers of the return marches, told Al-Monitor that Bardawils statements can be explained within the Palestinian domestic context as Hamas boasting to other factions about the number of Hamas martyrs killed in the protests. The figures Bardawil mentioned are not accurate anyway, Abu Ratima said.

He explained that the expression belonging to Hamas has cultural connotation within Gaza, which is different from what might be understood in the international media. Belonging to Hamas does not necessarily mean that this person is an armed element in the movement, as they could be part of its popular base or working in the movements relief field, or having families that support Hamas, he noted.

The marches were not only organized for historical reasons to commemorate the Nakba, but also in protest to the transfer of the US Embassy to Jerusalem on the same day as the anniversary of the Nakba, and to protest the tragic situation in the Gaza Strip after 12 years of blockade.

Samir Zaqout, the assistant director of Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, told Al-Monitor that Hamas has been trying to present itself as leading the Gaza protests and that the armed resistance has been protecting the peaceful demonstrators, as stated by Hamas leader Mahmoud al-Zahar. Zaqout believes that this proves that Hamas does not truly endorse nonviolent activism, thus it was not the party orchestrating the protests that have proved to be peaceful throughout the eight weeks since their eruption.

Zahar stated May 12, The protests are peaceful but are protected by our weapons and guns. Otherwise they would have been wiped out. The Zionist occupation soldiers are well-aware that behind the demonstrators stand our men with their guns and rockets. That is why they did not cross the border.

Zaqout added, Israels quoting of Bardawil shows that it clearly contradicts itself. Israel has previously declared that Gaza residents are against Hamas only to state now that the majority of the martyrs belong to Hamas.

On May 14, spokesman for the Israeli military Avichay Adraee tweeted that most people in Gaza fear Hamas terrorism.

Zaqout noted that the centers documentation of the numbers of killed and wounded shows that the protesters come from all walks of life. Some of them are from poor families, others are rich, and while some of them belong to organizations, others are independent. The protesters are of all ages. He said, It is impossible to state that all protesters are of the same creed as some claim.

Let us assume that all protesters are affiliated with Hamas. How come the protests are still peaceful with no casualties among Israeli soldiers? Zaqout added.

Israel has been lambasted internationally for using violence against the protesters, and therefore it was grateful for Bardawils remarks. However, this does not acquit Israel of killing peaceful Palestinians.

Omar Shakir, the director of Human Rights Watch for Israel and Palestine, said in an article May 15, Israeli forces can use non-lethal means [to] prevent unauthorized crossings of borders, but international law prohibits the deliberate use of lethal force in policing situations except when necessary to stave off an immediate threat to life.

He added, Bloodshed on this scale results directly from these open-fire orders that green-light the firing on demonstrators irrespective of the threat they pose."

There is clear contradiction between the behavior and Hamas statements. While it makes public statements boasting about its strength, on the ground it is keen on keeping the demonstrations nonviolent.

Islam Atallah, who participated in the demonstrations in the east of Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza, told Al-Monitor, I did not see any kind of weapons among protesters. Families gathered with their children to eat and drink as if they were on a picnic.

In the first few weeks, I noticed that Hamas elements did not interfere for security reasons or to impose order. People were gathering peacefully. In the following weeks, the Interior Ministry security men were deployed to ensure that demonstrators did not engage in acts provoking the Israeli soldiers, he added.

Every Friday, security men and police are deployed to support demonstrators, facilitate their movement, secure their tents and properties in the eastern areas of Gaza, Iyad al-Bazm, a spokesman for the Hamas-affiliated Interior Ministry in Gaza, wrote on his Facebook page April 28.

Bardawils remarks sparked controversy not only internationally but also within Hamas itself, which is facing criticism by some of the movements young rank and file that are beginning to endorse nonviolent resistance, which might be difficult for its veteran supporters to accept.
There is much despair and suffering in the Gaza Strip. UN envoy for the Middle East Nickolay Mladenov warned May 23 that Gaza is on the verge of collapse. Gazas almost hermetic closure by Israel, the rift between Hamas and Fatah, and the continuous investment by Hamas in arms and tunnels instead of investing in the economy have led to a catastrophic humanitarian disaster. Hamas cannot resolve it on its own, even now that Egypt has agreed to open the Rafah crossing during the month of Ramadan. Within the Hamas political and terrorist leadership in Gaza are different opinions as to how to deal with the crisis, ranging from a political solution to another war with Israel.

A senior PLO official with close ties to the Hamas leadership in the Gaza Strip told Al-Monitor that Ramallah is satisfied over Hamas failure to ignite violence against Israel from the West Bank. In fact, while President Mahmoud Abbas condemns the Israeli killing of Gazans and has called for three days of official mourning, he believes that Hamas has failed in its latest effort to ignite violence for political and public relations purposes. And so, despite Arab, Muslim and international outpouring of sympathy with the victims of the confrontation, Hamas itself is as isolated as before in handling the Gazan humanitarian crisis.

In his view, there is currently an opportunity for Israel to negotiate, via Cairo and Ramallah, a deal with Hamas that would stabilize the situation. More so, such an initiative had already been discussed by Ramallah leadership and Egypt, as well as the European Union.

According to the PLO senior official, an essential condition for such a deal would be the implementation of the reconciliation deal between Fatah and Hamas in a way that would allow the Palestinian Authority (PA) to take civilian and some security control of Gaza, especially on the crossing points. Also, Hamas would demilitarize most of the Gaza Strip, except for a force overseeing public order, with a civilian security contingency similar to that of Fatah in the West Bank. Israel would then be required to lift the sea closure of the Gaza Strip, keeping its navy 6 miles away from Gaza, allowing for the establishment of a Gaza harbor.

For Israel to agree to such a deal, other elements would be included in it, such as Israeli control over the passage of goods imported from Israel and control of the aid from donor countries transferred through the ports of Haifa and Ashdod, and through the various crossing points.

The PLO official added that the EU would expedite economic and security experts to Gaza to monitor that aid funds are indeed channeled to economic projects and humanitarian relief. This would be carried out in coordination with the US administration. Egypt would open the Rafah crossing for the passage of goods and people, provided Hamas stops the use of violence and allows greater PA control of the Gaza Strip.

According to the PLO official, the more pragmatic elements in the Hamas leadership agree now in principle to explore such a deal. He estimated that such negotiations could bear fruits only if championed by the Egyptian intelligence and would obviously require Israeli consent.

A senior Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs official with access to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Al-Monitor that Israel would be open to a deal, provided that it would entail the full demilitarization of the Gaza Strip by Hamas. In this case, and according to security conditions, Israel would agree to a partial lifting of the closure. It would also agree to exploring the possibility of a Gaza port with international security inspection monitored by Israel.

In his view, Hamas would reject such a comprehensive deal, as it has already done in the past. He also believes that Israel would agree to greater humanitarian assistance to Gaza by the international community through Israeli and Egyptian crossing points.

The Israeli official might be right about Hamas. Yet exploring, together with the United States, a comprehensive Gaza agreement has become urgent. In view of the escalating violence and increasing humanitarian crisis, all sides now need a deal: Hamas demilitarization in exchange for lifting the closure, with an enhanced role for the PA in the Gaza Strip as a necessary building bloc toward a two-state solution process.
"It's the Old City of Mosul, with its beauty, that taught me to draw and paint," Khleif Mahmood, a painter and professor in the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Mosul, told Al-Monitor, as he showed his paintings of the Old City.

The city that has inspired him is now 70% destroyed by the international coalitions airstrikes and street battles to fight the Islamic State (IS).

I used to sit next to the Tigris River to paint some parts of the medina [Old City]. But if I go there today, I will not even recognize where I used to sit or where the buildings were. Its all rubble, all destroyed, he said, with pain in his voice.

Mahmood has spent years in displacement, living in Dahuk, part of the Kurdistan Regional Government in northern Iraq, Turkey, Germany and Baghdad. At the end of 2016, he returned to Dahuk, an hour north of Mosul. Finally, in November 2017, he resettled in his beloved city and returned to his work.

During the transitory period of February-July 2017, when only the eastern part of the city was freed, a few university classes were held in Dahuk and Bartella, a small town a few kilometers from Mosul, in very precarious conditions. Following the liberation of the whole city, the Faculty of Fine Arts at Mosul University reopened its doors in September 2017, readmitting a large part of its students.

I am actually very busy with our students exams, and so I spend every day at the Faculty of Fine Arts, Mahmood explained as he led Al-Monitor inside the faculty building, which opened in 1994. The small entrance of the Faculty of Fine Arts visually represents signs of IS intolerance  the faces of sculptures are ruined. Most of the classrooms and the furniture on the five floors were burned, but students and professors together tried to clean and rehabilitate at least the first floor so that they could hold classes there.

Since I was a child, my dream was to become a painter and an artist, Raghad al-Meleh, a 27-year-old student, told Al-Monitor. When I first wanted to start my studies, it was already a challenging time. In 2008 some unknown criminals tried to kidnap my sister. They attacked her from a car, holding her by her feet in the street and then stealing her bag and running away. My documents to apply to the university were in her bag.

Once Meleh entered the faculty, tough times were ahead. I was in my senior year when IS fighters came, she said. They arrived on June 10, 2014, and we tried to escape on June 12. We spent a day in nearby al-Hamdania, but our home was in Mosul. We didnt know where to go, so we came back. We lived the longest nightmare of our lives. Three years under IS was like 10 years for me. Meleh is now back at the school and about to get her diploma.

All the rooms are filled with students, sitting at tables, holding a brush or taking exams. We want to tell the world that we are back to life, said Maysoon, a first-year student who did not want to give her last name. My decision to study art after three years of occupation and war was my personal reaction to violence and to the fact that I spent all my time at home.

Mahmood still suffers the consequences of the annihilation of the Old City to the point that he doesnt want to go there and see it. He feels it is still dangerous and far too painful. Most of my work has been destroyed by IS, both at home and at the Faculty of Fine Arts where I have taught for 20 years, he said.

His decision to leave his beloved city after IS took control in June 2014 was out of necessity. I found my name on their websites blacklist three months after they occupied Mosul, and so I migrated with part of my family. IS wanted to arrest and likely execute him simply for being a painter and a professor of fine arts. Mahmood is also the president of the Association of Fine Arts in Ninevah province. During the three years he was in exile, his house was occupied by a Russian family and later became a sort of hostel and meeting place for IS fighters. By the time Mahmood returned, the paintings had been destroyed and the building was severely damaged by airstrikes.

During those years away from Mosul, he never stopped painting, and he is now eager to recover the years away from the city, his home and inspiration.

Together with his colleagues and students, he opened an exhibition May 7 titled Displaced Inside the Homeland at the Qantara Cultural Cafe in east Mosul, a newly opened venue that is part of a major effort to revitalize the cultural life of the city.

Mahmood's colleagues from the same faculty are also showing their work. Mahmoods paintings are bright and colorful, although the stories behind them are full of fear and uncertainty.

Our memories of the recent past still affect us and somehow make our artistic projects even stronger than before, said Meleh, as she prepared her paintings for the final exam. Despite all of the destruction in Mosul, the love for our city is still the biggest source of inspiration for students of the Faculty of Fine Arts.
Lucy Berry Debuty for AL.com

Yellowhammer Brewing is more than just a brewery  it's also one of the Huntsville/Madison County Chamber's Best Places to Work for 2018.

General manager and co-owner Ethan Couch said the award is a credit to everyone who has helped Yellowhammer become the fast-growing business it is today.

"This award means a lot to Yellowhammer because it says we are doing something right for the people behind our products," he said. "I think that's something the community can get behind as well. It will help us grow and recruit new people as needed."

Six months after completing a $1.2 million expansion at Campus No. 805, Yellowhammer won the gold-level Best Places to Work award for small businesses with 25-50 local employees. Troy 7 and Hill Technical Solutions took home the category's silver- and bronze-level awards, respectively.

Winners were determined by employee surveys and calculated by Quantum Workplace, an all-in-one employee engagement software company. Pammie Jimmar, vice president of small business and events for the Chamber, said the main reason companies win has a lot to do with the culture they provide for employees.

The Yellowhammer Brewing executive team accept the chamber's 2018 Best Places to Work award.

"Employees like working in a positive, supportive environment," she said. "It's not the CEO determining or giving scores  it's the team members. This is strictly an employee engagement survey."

Jimmar said servant leadership is also important among companies who win Best Places to Work awards. Employees like to give back to their communities and the companies who give them time to do so usually score higher each year.

Companies in the Huntsville region also score well above the national average for employee engagement and satisfaction overall, Jimmar said.

"This includes companies who don't win, or who are named as contenders," she said. "They still do quite well in scoring, and that's a very good thing."

Alabama focus

Couch doesn't know who nominated Yellowhammer Brewing for the Best Places to Work award, but the honor "should be shared with everyone."

Since launching the craft brewery in west Huntsville in 2010, Yellowhammer has grown to employ 40 people and is closing in on its goal of hiring 50 workers by the end of 2018. Couch said further growth this year will depend on how sales go this summer.

"Our focus is on Alabama this year," he said. "We meet people in Huntsville and throughout the state every day that have never tried our beers, or maybe even craft beer in general. I think there is a sea of change in Alabama with people getting behind local beer and local industry."

As a community, Huntsville needs steady employment for residents to thrive. As long as Yellowhammer continues developing creative, fresh-tasting beer, Couch said "people will get behind a good, local company."

Expanding at its current facility on Clinton Avenue has been a huge success for Yellowhammer, which has utilized every inch of space available. The brewery shares the facility with Earth & Stone Wood Fired Pizza, another popular and fast-growing local restaurant owned and operated by Stan Stinson and Tina Thompson Ford.

"I wish we had more (space)," Couch said. "It's like buying a 1950s rancher. Why are the closets so small in this place?"

Looking forward

Despite its close quarters, Yellowhammer continues to unveil new concepts for customers. Couch said the brewery recently began selling house-made vodka in the taproom and plans to reveal several more spirits later this year.

Customers are especially excited about Yellowhammer's barrel-aged whiskeys coming out in November.

"We have lots of live music and fun events happening in our new Lost Highway Bierhall," Couch said. "It's a multipurpose venue where we host a mix of public and private events. That's where we'll be doing all of our special releases this year."

Because craft beer is a crowded market, not all breweries will survive the ebbs and flows of the industry. Yellowhammer hopes to change that trajectory by establishing itself as a long-term player in the Huntsville community.

Couch said Yellowhammer would also like to have a presence in key markets across the Southeast over the next 5-10 years.

"We want our community to be as proud of us as we are of our beer and spirits," he said. "It's all about quality for us. Our brewery and our products should be something you want to show off to people when they come."

Overcoming challenges

Yellowhammer's biggest challenge since opening nearly a decade ago has been anticipating a changing market. When your market is a constant moving target, it can be difficult to stay on track, Couch said.

As he grows the business, Couch has learned to listen to younger generations because they represent the biggest shift in market trends.

"If I could have this team 10 years from now, I'd be extremely happy," he said. "Everyone here cares about each other and they care about our mission. It goes a long way to success."

Yellowhammer's charitable work with HEALS, the North Alabama Food Bank, Huntsville Hospital Foundation, and the U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Fund has had a major impact on the business. Last year, Couch said the brewery raised $10,000 to fund Space Camp scholarships.

For aspiring entrepreneurs seeking to open their own business, Couch said "there is always opportunity."

"If you see a need in the community, you can fill that gap, but you need to have a plan and a good team to execute it," he said. "There is little substitute for hard work and a good attitude, but learning how to work with a team is key to your success."
U.S. Sen. Doug Jones speaks at the Hoover Crescent Islamic Center on May 26, 2018, as Khaula Hadeed, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Alabama, looks on. (Photo/Greg Garrison)

U.S. Sen. Doug Jones visited the Hoover Crescent Islamic Center on Saturday night, giving a speech to about 200 Muslims before they broke their daytime fasting with an evening meal after sunset in observance of their holy month of Ramadan.

"The people of this state have so much more in common than what divides us," Jones said.

A coalition of 21 Alabama Muslim organizations sent a letter of congratulations after his election, inviting Jones to visit a mosque to meet with members of the Muslim community and better understand that part of his constituency.

Jones responded to the invitation that was sent after his election from Alabama Muslims who said they supported him statewide over the Republican nominee for senate, former Chief Justice Roy Moore. Moore had made several derogatory comments about Muslims during the campaign.

More than 20,000 Muslim voters - about the margin of victory for Jones - turned out and voted in December almost without exception for Jones, said Khaula Hadeed, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Alabama.

Hadeed said Moore had called Islam a "false religion" and made other disparaging remarks about Muslims and their faith. Muslims invited Moore to visit a mosque last year but did not receive a response, she said.

"The fact that Alabama rejected Roy Moore was a really big deal around the country," Jones said. "It sends an incredible message of dignity and inclusion."

Jones, a longtime member of Canterbury United Methodist Church in Mountain Brook, said it was the first time he has been inside a mosque. Officials with CAIR of Alabama said they were not aware of any Alabama senator having previously ever visited a mosque in the state.

"I'm going to be there by you to make sure that this community gets the dignity and respect you deserve, that anytime something happens in this world where they attach the word terrorism, that it is not an indictment of an entire people," Jones said.

Jones said President Donald Trump's repeated verbal attacks on immigrants are harmful.

"It really is troubling," Jones said. "Words have consequences."
Forty Alabama counties will be under a State of Emergency starting at 6 a.m. Sunday as Subtropical Storm Alberto heads toward the Gulf of Mexico, according to the governor's office.

The action from Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey joins similar orders issued Saturday in Florida and Mississippi.

"All Alabamians should take time to be prepared for the potential of significant flooding," Ivey said in a news release. "As with any tropical weather event, being prepared is of the utmost importance. Everyone should take the necessary precautions now and stay informed of the latest weather conditions for their area."

Ivey said that her order ensures "that all available state resources are ready when they are needed."

The counties included are, in alphabetical order: Autauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bibb, Bullock, Butler, Chambers, Chilton, Choctaw, Clarke, Coffee, Conecuh, Coosa, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Dallas, Elmore, Escambia, Geneva, Greene, Hale, Henry, Houston, Lee, Lowndes, Macon, Marengo, Mobile, Monroe, Montgomery, Perry, Pickens, Pike, Russell, Sumter, Tallapoosa, Tuscaloosa, Washington and Wilcox.

Ivey activated the State Emergency Operations Center in Clanton on Friday in preparation for Alberto. The Alabama National Guard has activated its High Water Evacuation Team to support its divisions in the coastal and southeastern portions of the state.

"There is still uncertainty of where landfall will occur, which will likely be late Monday or early Tuesday morning," said Brian Hastings, the director of the Alabama Emergency Management Agency. "Regardless of the final track and intensity of Alberto, we know it will produce heavy rainfall and flash flooding in several counties, and the time to prepare is now."

According to the National Weather Service, Alberto will soon become a Tropical Storm, and the track has shifted a bit further east. Significant impacts are expected in Alabama beginning Saturday evening near the coast and lasting into the middle of next week.

Flooding is expected to be a widespread concern. Three to 7 inches of rain will occur with 6-12 inches closer to the coast. Some locations could get 10-15 inches.

There is also a prolonged tornado threat for much of the state beginning near the coast on Sunday and lasting into at least Tuesday night in North Alabama.
A "Pork & Politics" gathering of Republican hopefuls for state office was supposed to be highlighted with another governor's candidates' forum on Saturday. Instead, it was the Attorney General's candidates who stole the show.

With Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle absent from the Baldwin County GOP event, the program's format changed. Other candidates for statewide offices got to speak, and it was three of the four Republicans vying for Alabama Attorney General who captured the political intrigue by taking turns jabbing at one another.

The forum, held at the Baldwin County Coliseum in Robertsdale, occurred slightly more than a week out from the June 5 primary.

Criticism abounds



The three GOP candidates -- Chess Bedsole, Steve Marshall and Alice Martin -- each toss political haymakers at their opponents.

Chess Bedsole, Republican candidate for Alabama Attorney General, speaks during a "Pork and Politics" gathering of Republicans on Saturday, May 26, 2018, at the Baldwin County Coliseum in Robertsdale, Ala. (John Sharp/jsharp@al.com).

"I am the only person who said 'No' to the interview with (former) Gov. Robert Bentley," said Bedsole, a former judge who served as President Donald Trump's Alabama campaign chairman during the 2016 presidential race.

Bedsole referred to interviews that Bentley had in early 2017, after he appointed former Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange to replace Jeff Sessions in the U.S. Senate after Sessions was tabbed by Trump to become U.S. Attorney General.

The move raised some eyebrows since it allowed Bentley to appoint a new state attorney general as he faced an ethics investigation in the fallout of an alleged affair with a staffer.

"I don't do business with crooks," said Bedsole. "I think that is important for the Attorney General."

Martin, a former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, blasted Marshall's support from heavyweight political donors, such as the Business Council of Alabama. She also referenced Marshall's decision, about five years, to switch parties from Democrat to Republican.

In addition, Martin also took a swipe at Bedsole's campaign that has repeatedly tied itself to Trump.

"I'm the only person running for this job who has worked for a President of the United States," said Martin, who was nominated as a federal prosecutor by President George W. Bush in 2001. She served in that role until 2009.

Alice Martin, Republican candidate for Alabama Attorney General, speaks during a "Pork & Politics" gathering of the GOP on Saturday, May 26, 2018, at the Baldwin County Coliseum in Robertsdale, Ala. (John Sharp/jsharp@al.com).

Bedsole and Martin were joined by Marshall at the event. Absent was former Alabama Attorney General Troy King, who headed up the office from 2004-2011.

Marshall, the current attorney general, said that while Bedsole, Martin and himself have been at candidates' forums, King has not. Marshall said that has allowed King "not to be questioned."

Marshall then championed the work his office has done in the past week that included joining with U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks, R-Huntsville, to sue the federal government for the U.S. Census Bureau's inclusion of undocumented immigrants in its decennial count.

Said Marshall: "I will tell you this, if we count those who are in (the United States) illegally, we'll lose a member of Congress. We'll lose the ability of Alabama to influence what is going on in Washington."

'Disappointment'

For the two governor's candidates in attendance - state Rep. Bill Hightower of Mobile and Birmingham evangelist Scott Dawson - the canceled forum allowed them each to speak uninterrupted for 10 minutes before prospective voters.

But they were both disappointed that the scheduled forum was canceled. A final GOP governor's forum is scheduled at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Tuesday.

"It's a tragedy," said Dawson. "I am running for Alabama and if people are running for the highest office, you are public servant and it starts with campaigning to serve the people of Alabama."

Dawson, Hightower and Battle have all been critical of Ivey, who has missed most of the candidates' forums and debates since they began last month.

"I'm very disappointed in our interim governor who hasn't shown up to any of these," said Hightower. "I wonder where is she?"

Hightower then returned to previous campaign comments he's made about health. He was the first of the candidates to release his personal medical records last month, triggering reactions by the other candidates to do the same.

Questions have swirled about Ivey's health since media reports claimed that Ivey, while serving as lieutenant governor, suffered stroke-like symptoms or a mini-stroke while in Colorado in 2015.

Ivey has since said she is in good health and, earlier this month, her campaign released a letter from her Montgomery-based physician Dr. Brian Elrod, who said that he has not seen medical issues that would prevent the governor from fulfilling her job.

Said Hightower: "All of us want to make sure whoever is the Republican nominee is strong enough to run against (Democratic governor hopeful) Walt Maddox. We don't need a weak person to do that. They need to be strong mentally and physically."

Battle was a last-minute scratch from the forum. His campaign did not respond to an immediate email request for comment.

"This is not his home territory," said Hightower. "I have focused on my area here in Mobile and Baldwin counties and served it for the past five years."

Said Dawson: "He's been to 17 of the 18 forums. If you're running and doing the best you can, things do come up."
A 31-year-old Birmingham man drowned Friday in rough Gulf waters in Panama City Beach, Florida.

According to police, the man joined about 8 to 10 of his friends for a swim in the Gulf around 7:40 p.m. in the 17000 block of Front Beach Road near the Tropic Winds condominiums. The man was later seen by his friends floating face down in the water, a Panama City Police Beach sergeant told AL.com.

Attempts to administer CPR were ineffective and the man was pronounced dead a a beachside emergency room.

Authorities are not releasing the man's name, but WMBB-TV in Panama City identified him as Darrius Stone Jr. of Birmingham.

Red flag warnings were present along beaches throughout the Gulf on Friday, warning swimmers to stay out of the water because of dangerous conditions.
When Scott Shepherd opened his eyes shortly after birth, the first person the newborn saw was Rebecca Scott Hawkins, the woman he was named after, the woman raising his two older siblings.

At least that's how she tells it. Still.

She's 103 years old and still lives on the black side of the tracks in Indianola, Miss., in the heart of the Mississippi Delta.

Shepherd's family lived on the white side of the tracks. He would be one of five children raised in a turbulent, traumatic household headed by Ben, a riverboat engineer and Paula, a school teacher.

Ben was an alcoholic, as Shephard tells it. An abusive drunk, to be frank.

Before he was old enough for kindergarten, Scott saw his father, in a drunken rage, throw six kittens as hard as he could against a wall across the room. They had been in a box next to Scott as he stood in front of a space heater to keep him--and the kittens--warm.

Shephard is 58 years old now. He still remembers the "squishy" sound the kittens made as they hit the wall.

"I think I'll always have that thought," he says. "It messes you up. It definitely messes you up."

Shephard makes no excuses for the choices he later made, choices that may or may not have been influenced by the abuse he witnessed as a child.

His siblings saw the same things. They saw their father turn over furniture, slash mattresses with a butcher knife and even chase local cops around the house with a shotgun--something that would all but certainly get him killed today.

But none of them joined the Ku Klux Klan, as Scott did when he was 16 years old.

None of them embraced white supremacy, recruited for the Klan and rose to become a Grand Dragon, overseeing its hatred and vileness in the state of Tennessee.

None of them considered Byron De La Beckwith, the man ultimately convicted of the murder of civil rights icon Medgar Evers, like a grandfather.

None of them looked up to Sam Bowers, the Mississippi Ku Klux Klan imperial wizard who was convicted of the 1998 firebombing of a shopkeeper in that terrorized state.

None of them became friends with Robert Shelton, imperial wizard of the United Klan of America, based in Tuscaloosa.

None of them served, albeit for just three months, as imperial wizard of Omerta Knights of the KKK, an uber-militant group in Alabama that harbored a code of silence about its violent, criminal events and steadfastly refused to cooperate with law enforcement.

None of them associated with Tom Posey, leader of the Civilian Military Assistance of Decatur (a/k/a/ Civilian Materiel Assistance), which was known to be friendly with the KKK and Central Intelligence Agency.

None of them were recruited by the Phineas Priesthood, home-grown terrorists who believe they're sanctified by God to be racist, even to murder.

None of them hated like Scott Shepherd.

"I had low self-esteem," he says of that 16-year-old who found solace with the Klan. "I didn't like anyone. I didn't like myself. One time, I reached out to the Italian mafia and the Irish Republican Army. That's how messed up of a person I was at the time."

Shepherd rose through the KKK's ranks. He became a visible leader, regularly spewing racial hatred on televisions throughout the Southeast. It poisoned his relationships with family members, including his parents.

With Rebecca Scott Hawkins, too, with whom Shepherd became estranged during the more than three decades he was a member of the Klan.

"My momma didn't teach me any kind of racism," Shepherd says now. "Daddy didn't either. Grandparents, either.

"There was always a little bitty voice inside asking me, 'Do you really believe the things you're doing?' But I was so wrapped up in self-anger I ignored it."

In 1990, Shepherd made headlines when he was questioned by the FBI about the 1989 murders of 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Robert Vance in a bombing at his Mountain Brook home that also severely injured his wife, Helen, and Savannah, Georgia civil rights attorney Robert E. Robinson.

Last month, 83-year-old Walter Lee Moody, then the oldest inmate on Alabama's death row, was executed for those murders.

Afterward, Shephard reached out via email to AL.com's Kent Faulk, who reported on the execution. He wrote:

This man was sick, I am a reformed racist and

KKK leader, now working to fight racism.

In 1989 these bombings were being committed in Alabama and Georgia. I was questioned and investigated for a short time, then they found the man Walter Leroy Moody of Rex, Georgia. Why was I? Because he tried to make it look like the Ku Klux Klan was behind the bombs!

I was questioned and investigated for this because of this sick man!

"I didn't know Walter Leroy Moody at all," he told me not long after sending the email. "He made it look like a white supremacy bomb. That's where the connection to me was made. I didn't know if it was his plan to make it look like a Ku Klux Klan attack on government, which is something the Klan talked about all the time."

You may have heard of Scott Shepherd. Maybe while he was one of the Klan's most visible leaders in the Southeast.

Or maybe because since 2012, he has indeed been a "reformed racist," publicly disavowing his hateful past and becoming an active, visible, outspoken opponent of racism.

He has spoken to numerous groups--from children to members of the Black Lives Matter movement--and appeared in numerous documentaries, including "Accidental Courtesy," an award-winning film by African-American musician, actor and film-maker Daryl Davis who befriends Klan members and even persuades some to change their racist thinking. Davis and Shepherd are now close friends.

He also publicly apologized to Rev. Bernice King, daughter of the famed civil rights leader, during the first of his two appearances on forums at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center in Atlanta.

"I've spoken at schools, churches, anyplace that'll allow me to speak," he told me. "I'm trying to make amends. If I can help just one person, the whole entire thing has been worth it."

His transformation didn't happen quickly. Or without cost.

It began in 1990 when he checked himself into the Cumberland Heights drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in Nashville as part of a plea deal after being charged with DUI and found to be in possession of marijuana.

The public defender who represented him was African American. When Shepherd first met him, he thought being a visible racist would affect his defense: "Well, I'm not going to get out of this," he thought.

Instead, the attorney, Handle Durham, surprised him. "He stood up for me," Shepherd says. And, yes, he says today he and Durham are friends.

In rehab, Shepherd found himself surrounded by the very people he railed hatred against, and it began to change him.

"Strangely," he says. "I went in one person, came out another. I was forced to sit with people of all races, religions and sexual preferences. I got to know people. I was forced to take a hard look at myself. I learned the problem wasn't blacks or any other people; the problem was Scott."

Afterward, Shepherd went into seclusion for several years, slowly extricating himself from Klan associations but not yet speaking out against them.

At one juncture, he was called to Baton Rouge, Louisiana where his sister was dying of cancer.

"I was sitting in the hospital room with her when she asked me, 'Do you regret what you've done in the past?'" he recalls. "She said, 'Take what you've done and turn it into a positive and help other people.' I never forgot what she said; she died two days later."

Even racists must earn a living. Shepherd is a funeral director (semi-retired, he says) and embalmer. In 2005, he lent his skills to recovery efforts in the wake of the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina. Once again, he was side-by-side with people he once reviled.

"People from all over the country, working in a very emotional situation," he says. "I got close to them. I got to thinking again about what happened with my sister and at the treatment center."

He volunteered in New Orleans for a year before returning to Nashville, where, in 2010, he experienced the episode that finally persuaded him to reveal his transformation: he almost died from complications brought on by three surgeries in which three-fourths of his stomach was removed due to ulcers.

"I had no doubt it was caused by the secrets I was keeping and the anger I had for myself," he says.

He recuperated for nearly two months in a hospital in Jackson, Mississippi. "I had a lot of time to think," he says. "I decided I didn't want to die with people thinking I'm the same person I used to be. That's when I made the decision to open up and talk."

Shepherd unveiled his conversion in a blog called Racist No More.

"I know I said a lot of crazy things over those hateful years [in the Klan], and there is not any way I can take [them] back," he wrote in that extensive initial post. "My life today is totally different...I no longer live the negative, racist life I once did. I am happy with who I am."

Shepherd says he was "scared to death" when he initially published the blog. By then, he had already been all-but-abandoned by former Klan associates.

"I didn't have any friends at all," he says. "Friends had distanced themselves from me."

Predictably, the blog only further flamed their ire. "People in the movement didn't like it," he says. "They considered me a traitor to the white race, the Klan and the white supremacy movement."

But Shepherd knew he had "done the right thing" when the response elsewhere was "overwhelmingly positive."

It allowed him to begin rebuilding his relationships with his remaining siblings. His mother is deceased and as for his father, who is in his late 70s, Shepherd says their relationship is "still rocky."

Last August, Shepherd was as horrified as most Americans as he watched what unfolded in Charlottesville, Va, where white supremacists descended upon the city for a rally in which three people were killed and dozens injured when 20-year-old white supremacist James Alex Fields drove into a crowd of counter-protesters.

He was "blown away" by the number of white supremacists who marched carrying tiki lights the night before the rally because his role with the Klan decades before had been to help the organization re-brand itself.

"They were looking for a way to look more legitimate and attractive to the general public," he says. "I had been to college and wore a suit and tie every day. They exploited that; it was part of the image change.

"In Charlottesville, they weren't dressed in white hoods. They wore khaki pants and polos and no longer covered their faces. They'd been working on that since the early 80s but I didn't realize it had really taken place, how far they'd progressed towards that goal.

"It made me realize we've got a lot more work to do."

He believes that work begins as it did with him--with interactions where boundaries still abound.

"Anywhere you go into a cafeteria, you see blacks sitting with blacks and whites with whites," he says. "There's nothing wrong with that. But someone needs to get up and walk across that room and talk. They'll find out they've got a lot in common. Then we can build from there."

Perhaps most significantly, Rebecca Scott Hawkins lived long enough to see the conversion of the child she once raised. In 2012, Shepherd visited her in Indianola, the first time in decades he had seen her.

"She not only opened the door but also her arms," Shepherd recalls. "She hugged me, held me and said, 'I knew someday you'd come back home.'"
Alabama State Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham

In 2004, Illinois lawmakers adopted legislation requiring police to keep race statistics of drivers they pulled over. Future President Barack Obama was the bill's main sponsor and it was considered one of his significant accomplishments as a state senator.

That same year in Alabama, state Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, offered up a similar bill to collect data to combat racial profiling. His proposal surfaced after news accounts showed only 18 percent of Alabama law enforcement agencies complied with a 1999 amendment to the state's seatbelt law which required the reporting of a driver's ethnicity.

Fourteen years later, Smitherman was back at it again with a similar racial profiling bill. And much like it was back in 2004, his proposal encountered a similar fate.

"It's the same concerns in 2004 that it was last session," said Smitherman. "There are differences. Generally, I try to pick it up where we've negotiated to try to move the bill forward."

The latest iteration of Smitherman's racial profiling legislation, SB84, stalled during the final hours of the Alabama legislative session in March. Though the legislation sailed through the Alabama Senate, it couldn't muster enough votes to make it onto the House floor for a full debate.

"We'll continue to work on it until we get it rectified," said Smitherman, who plans to bring the legislation back up - yet again - when Alabama lawmakers return to Montgomery in early 2019.

Crumbling legislation

Smitherman's proposal sparked intense reaction from Alabama's Black Caucus in the waning days of the legislative session. They warned of filibusters and promised to slow the legislative progress of other bills.

Under SB84, law enforcement agencies would have been required to report to the Alabama Attorney General's Office statistics about traffic stops, including the race, age and gender of the driver and the officer and the nature of the alleged violation that prompted the stop.

The bill outlawed racial profiling by police as a sole factor for stopping a vehicle and required police agencies to adopt written policies to define racial profiling and to prohibit it. The proposal, however, did not include punishments for police officers who were found to engage in racial profiling.

"I don't think that bill does a heck of a whole lot," said state Sen. Cam Ward, R-Alabaster, who is chairman of the Alabama Senate Judiciary Committee, which endorsed the measure. "I know that law enforcement was worried about it. But it just didn't do a lot."

Indeed, law enforcement opposed the measure. The powerful associations representing Alabama police and sheriffs' departments this year stopped other reforms, including lessening penalties for marijuana possession and restricting the use of civil asset forfeiture.

"We see this as a larger systematic attack by law enforcement to keep Alabamians in the dark about what they are doing whether it's civil asset forfeiture or the sheriff's responses on the jail food issues," said Frank Knaack, executive director with the Montgomery-based Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice.

Unanswered concerns

Mobile County Sheriff Sam Cochran said there are already restrictions in place to combat racial profiling, saying federal civil rights violations can be at play. He also said there is existing data from traffic reports which should include a range of identifying information about police stops.

Cochran was a critic of SB84, and how it was handled in the Alabama Legislature. He said the bill was approved by the Alabama State Senate "with no advance warning" to the state's sheriffs, who then mobilized ahead of the vote in the House.

"It was wrought with all kinds of problems," said Cochran.

To Cochran, the bill carries a bunch of unanswered questions and scenarios that could prevent law enforcement officers from doing their jobs.

"It would have required the police to document every time they encounter a citizen," Cochran said. "It could have possibly overwhelmed law enforcement to the point where law enforcement pulls back even more than they do now. I think the Ferguson effect has taken place in many of our cities. If (the racial profiling bill passed) it would lead to worse conditions to the communities that need that police protection the most."

But Smitherman said it's the post-Ferguson and Baltimore era of policing that prompted him to continue pursuing the legislation. In 2014, an unarmed 18-year-old black man named Michael Brown was shot and killed by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, sparking nationwide protests over police and community relations. In 2015, a 25-year-old black man named Freddie Gray died while in police custody during an arrest in Baltimore, which furthered the debate.

"We have to deal with what is happening so we can provide a framework so this state doesn't have the same situations as you had in Baltimore or Missouri where the reaction was explosive because of someone being profiled," said Smitherman.

Missouri, however, has had a law in place since 2000 that tracks the driver's race for every vehicle stop. A Republican Missouri lawmaker is currently pushing a proposal that would require police to collect even more data ranging from the reason for the stop to whether a search was conducted and if a warning or citation was issued, according to media accounts.

Charles Epp, a professor at the School of Public Affairs and Administration in the Department of African and African-American Studies at the University of Kansas, said that Missouri is one of a few states that requires police departments to report data on the race of a driver during stops.

AG candidates react

For Missouri and North Carolina, the law requires reporting the data directly to the Attorney General's Office.

That same reporting requirement was contained in Smitherman's bill, but was a sticking point in the bill's negotiations toward the end of the legislative session.

"In both cases, these requirements have been implemented for many years without significant concerns over cost or administrative effort," said Epp, referring to Missouri and North Carolina. "In fact, developing systems for implementing these requirements is really rather easy and not terribly expensive."

The issue has sparked some reaction among Alabama Attorney General candidates running for office this year. Four Republicans and two Democrats are all looking to survive the June 5 primaries ahead of the November general elections.

Steve Marshall, who was appointed Attorney General in early 2017 and is seeking a four-year term to the office, said his office worked with the bill's sponsors on a "friendly House amendment" that he said addressed the fact that his office "does not have jurisdiction over local law enforcement or its funding sources."

He said the Attorney General's Office would not have been able to impose monetary punishments under the legislation.

"Should policymakers choose to enact a racial profiling statute, the Attorney General would also caution against using raw data as evidence of racial profiling in a particular district," said Marshall.

Marshall, instead, suggested that lawmakers work with the Alabama Criminal Justice Information Center, which is a division of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, to analyze the potential of racial profiling trends based on already submitted data.

Other Republican Attorney General hopefuls, in emails to AL.com, are weighing in.

Chess Bedsole, a former criminal court judge in North Alabama, was the only other Republican candidate to speak specifically about SB84.

"I think everyone agrees that police can't use the race of a driver as the sole reason to stop a vehicle," Bedsole said. "However, the race of the driver, alone neither proves nor disproves whether racial profiling occurred. For this reason, I agree with legislative leaders that SB84 did not offer a real solution."

Troy King, who held onto the job from 2004-2001, said while racial profiling is inappropriate and should never be condoned, it can be confused with "good police work."

"We must be careful about enacting any policy that makes legitimate law enforcement functions more difficult to perform," King said. "I do not believe the Attorney General's Office should make determinations about withholding funds from law enforcement agencies."

Alice Martin, a former U.S. District Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, said: "As Attorney General, I would support any effective bill to curb the practice of pretextual traffic stops and racial profiling."

The two Democratic Attorney General hopefuls - Joseph Siegelman and Chris Christie - both support the passage of SB84.

"It's a shame that it didn't pass," Siegelman said. "As Attorney General, I will work to see this legislation succeed in the next session."

Siegelman, a Birmingham attorney and son of ex-Gov. Don Siegeleman, said the legislation would help restore what he says police are telling him regarding a "crisis of trust" between law enforcement and communities.

"Needless stops are expensive and they increase danger for everyone especially when they're based on an improper motive, which unfortunately, does happen," Siegelman said. "But we can't fix what we can't see and there's nothing about collecting this information that's going to hurt anybody."

He added, "Part of the problem is we're evaluating our officers on how many people they stop and arrest. That's not helping, either, and it shouldn't be the measure of successful policing."

Christie, a Birmingham attorney, said that Smitherman's bill needed passage, and that Marshall's office should've encouraged it.

"The Attorney General should've encouraged and worked with the Legislature to pass the racial profiling bill," he said. "With that data, you will be able to tell whether or not there is a problem. The behavior will change in some places because you are gathering the information. The information they are requesting in the bill is not burdensome and should be information (police agencies) are keeping up with already."

Implicit bias

In states where data has been collected, statistics alone aren't producing much change.

In Illinois, lawmakers are debating whether to allow Obama's bill - the one passed in 2004 - to expire in 2019. Law enforcement organizations argue that since data was first collected, very little has changed - no legislation has emerged in Illinois to criminalize racial profiling.

But in Illinois, as in other states that have compiled data, disparities exist among those who are pulled over. A 2016 report in Illinois showed minorities statewide were 38 percent more likely to be stopped than whites, up from 25 percent in 2015.

North Carolina has dived deeper into the data thanks to the work of Frank Baumgartner, professor of political sciences at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, and a co-author of book that will be released this summer that analyzes over 20 million records representing every traffic stop in the state from 2002 through 2016.

His analysis shows that blacks are 63 percent more likely than whites to be stopped. But Baumgartner argues that the disparities are even higher - at 95 percent more likely to be stopped than whites - when considering driving habits that show black citizens driving 16 percent less than whites.

In addition, the data shows that people who are black are 115 percent more likely to be searched during a traffic stop than whites.

Baumgartner said that after his team issued its first report, legislation was introduced to stop collecting the data. The original data collecting law, passed in 1999, was occurred when Democrats were the majority in the North Carolina state legislature.

"We've looked at 1,800 police jurisdictions around the country and found that no more than 10 where the likelihood existed that black and Hispanic drivers weren't being searched more," said Baumgartner. "The numbers are shocking."

Theresa Davidson, associate professor of sociology at Samford University in Birmingham, said the studies in North Carolina and other states will likely reveal similar results in Alabama.

"It is likely that racial bias in law enforcement in Alabama would be found," she said. "What is helpful to understand is that most law enforcement officers aren't being intentionally racist, it's that they've internalized the cultural stereotypes in our society about men or color, particularly black men, as being inherently dangerous and criminal."

And that culture stigma is something that Epp, at the University of Kansas, underscores the opposition to data collection among police agencies.

"Officers are worried that they will be found to be stopping black drivers at higher rates than whites," he said. "Police chiefs are worried that their departments will be embarrassed by the statistics. So they drag their feet."

Davidson said data collecting could root out "some bad apples," but it is more likely to simply reveal a pattern of racial bias in stops. Social psychologists, she added, refer to this as "implicit bias," to highlight the negative stereotypes about racial and ethnic minorities.

"Whether we realize it or not, this impacts the way we interact with each other," Davidson said. "Police officers are certainly not exempt from this bias."

Another try

Davidson encourages lawmakers and law enforcement agencies not to be "anxious or hesitant" in gathering the data. She said it could help build trust in some communities.

"I think this evidence, and general willingness to critically examine policy and procedures, can be an important step toward building trust and confidence in law enforcement," she said.

It appears that Democrats want to give it another shot, and that a bill will be re-introduced in January 2019.

State Rep. Anthony Daniels, the Democratic Minority Leader of the Alabama House, said that politics essentially thwarted the bill's progress this year. All state offices are up for election this year, and most controversial pieces of legislation were pushed aside during the recently-completed session.

"Hopefully after the November elections, we'll have a more serious dialogue not only on that piece of legislation but others," said Daniels.

Smitherman said he's ready to give it another shot, more than a decade since first taking a crack at an issue Obama addressed years before winning the presidency.

"I'm going to pick this back up where we left it off in the House," he said. "This state doesn't have a law directly dealing with profiling itself. Whatever those concerns were, I want to eliminate them."
Multiple law enforcement agencies are asking residents to be aware of an "armed and dangerous" man who played a role in a deadly shooting in Jackson, Alabama and a crime spree in Mississippi.

Jackson police said Devarian Edwards, 21, Kyle Webb, 19, Zavier Williams, 19, and Sceilar Dupree McKenzie, 19, arrived in a vacant lot on Miller Street on Friday morning. All of them were occupying a white 2018 Nissan Rouge. As the males were getting out of the vehicle, Edwards and Webb began shooting at McKenzie and Williams. McKenzie was shot multiple times. Williams was able to flee without being injured. Edwards and Webb then reentered the Rouge and fled the location, police said.

Police officers and EMS units arrived on the scene after receiving a shots fired call at 6:47 a.m. Authorities found McKenzie, who was later pronounced dead at the scene. McKenzie was from Gautier, Mississippi. Jackson police investigators, the Clarke County District Attorney's Office, and the Clarke County Coroner came to the scene to start an investigation.

Shortly after, deputies with the Washington County Sheriff's Department spotted the Nissan Rouge heading south on U.S. 43 in Washington County. Edwards, who was driving the vehicle, refused to stop. The vehicle was pursued south into Mobile County where Edwards slowed down after leaving the road and striking a road sign near the intersection of Wide Road and Highway 43 in Mt. Vernon. Webb jumped out of the vehicle from the passenger side and fled into a wooded area. Authorities made a perimeter around the area and started searching for Webb.

Edwards then continued south on Highway 43. The vehicle was spotted again a short time later heading south on Interstate 65 by Saraland police. Edwards refused to stop. Saraland police officers pursued the vehicle until they reached I-65 and Springhill Avenue, where the pursuit was terminated.

Jackson police officers were dispatched to Wide Road to search for Webb. The Mobile County Sheriff's Office, Saraland police, U.S. Marshal's Service, K-9 units from the state Department of Corrections and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency assisted in the search. Webb was later located and apprehended.

After Webb was found, Pascagoula police officers in Mississippi found the Rouge abandoned in their city. When Jackson police investigators went to Pascagoula to photograph and examine the Rouge, they learned it was stolen during an early-morning carjacking that occurred before the shooting on Friday. It was also learned that all four men were suspects in a series of crimes that happened Thursday night in Pascagoula, Moss Point and Jackson County, Mississippi. The crimes include car-jacking, robbery, kidnapping, burglary and theft. Law enforcement agencies in Mississippi will charge Edwards, Webb and Williams for the crimes.

Webb, who is from the Pascagoula/ Moss Point area, was charged with murder, attempted murder and discharging a firearm into an unoccupied vehicle by Jackson police. Williams, who is from Jackson, Alabama, was charged with fourth-degree receiving stolen property.

Edwards, who is also from the Moss Point area, has not been apprehended and is considered armed and dangerous. He is wanted by Jackson police for murder, attempted murder, and discharging a firearm into an unoccupied vehicle. Jackson police is asking anyone with any information regarding Edwards' whereabouts to notify police at 251-246-4484. It is believed Edwards is still in the southeast Mississippi area.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will play an "important" role in determining whether a boat launch project can move forward along the Intracoastal Waterway in Orange Beach, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said.

The $10 million project, which would substantially boost the number of boat launches in coastal Alabama, triggered a round of political mudslinging last week between Baldwin County Commissioners and the city of Orange Beach.

"That's an important process that includes a lot of public meetings and public comments and that due diligence has to be completed before state funds can be used," Ivey said during a visit to Gulf State Park on Thursday.

Baldwin County Commissioner Chris Elliott said there is already an existing Corps permit for the original planned development of the property.

He said commissioners have the option to either amend the permit or apply for a new one.

Said Elliott: "We have requested a pre-application meeting with the Corps to determine the best path forward to obtain the necessary permit to bring this project to fruition as soon as possible."

Ivey, as governor, has the authority on how to disburse the federal allocations to Alabama from revenues generated by offshore oil and gas revenues through the Gulf of Mexico Security Act (GOMESA).

Baldwin County officials are eyeing that money to build the boat launch project.

U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne, R-Fairhope, said he believes the GOMESA money can be used to build it. He had previously encouraged the state to consider utilizing the money to assist in the construction of the Interstate 10 Bridge and Bayway widening project, but state officials are now pursuing to toll the new bridge as part of an agreement with a private development team.

"The bridge, and any other road project in Mobile and Baldwin counties, would fly under this provision for using this money for a hurricane evacuation route," said Byrne.

Indeed, the money can go toward a host of uses that include coastal protection and conservation projects, hurricane protection, and for infrastructure directly affected by coastal wetland losses.

Elliott, a candidate for Alabama state Senate, has expressed concerns about having the money diverted out of the coastal area. He compares the possibility of that to what happened in 2016 when Alabama lawmakers decided to funnel federal court settlements from the 2010 BP oil spill into the state's General Fund.

But Byrne said he believes it will be difficult for lawmakers in other areas of Alabama to use the GOMESA money for projects outside the coastal region.

"All of it is subject to permitted uses under the (federal) statute," he said. "They are carefully drawn to be used for coastal areas. For Alabama, it would be hard to use this money for anywhere other than Mobile and Baldwin counties."

The U.S. Department of the Interior announced last month that $188 million would be going this year to four Gulf states - Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

Of that, $21 million will go to Alabama with an additional $2.47 million going to Baldwin County and $2.88 million going to Mobile County, according to information provided by U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne's office.

The amount represents the first year of GOMESA money in 2017, which was the first year of Phase 2 of the program that started in 2009. The first phase, which ended last year, generated about $37 million, which was divided among the four Gulf states.

The second phase is scheduled to run through 2055, and Alabama officials are anticipating higher amounts each year.

Said Byrne: "We've been getting GOMESA funding for awhile but no where near this level."

If the GOMESA money is authorized for the boat launch, it is still unclear whether the project will happen.

Orange Beach officials, last week, blasted Baldwin County Commissioners for voting on a letter of intent to move the project forward. They said that commissioners never informed them about the project, and that a lot of uncertainty surrounds the development such as security, road maintenance and fees.

Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon has called the project a "fake" and doubts it can happen. He said the announcement was designed to score quick publicity during the election season. Commissioners have denied that is the case.

All four county commission seats, held by Republicans, are up for election during the June 5 primary. In one of those races, Orange Beach City Councilman Jerry Johnson is competing against incumbent Baldwin County Commissioner Charles "Skip" Gruber.

Elliott is also running for State Senate seat against three other GOP contenders including Orange Beach City Councilman Jeff Boyd. Both Boyd and Johnson have labeled the commissioners actions as political.

The project calls for the development of 44.5 acres along the Intracoastal Waterway - a location that away from the congested beachfront - into a sprawling marine-access venue offering 12 public boat ramps and 450 parking spaces.

It would be a substantial increase in the number of public boat launches that currently exist in coastal Alabama, where boating is a popular summertime activity.

Two existing public boat launches in Orange Beach are owned by the state, and combined, they offer just four launches, which can pose problems and long waits during peak warm weather months.
The evening Alabama's four Democratic gubernatorial candidates took the stage in Birmingham, hecklers were waiting in the audience to make it a bad night for Sue Bell Cobb.

"Don't pick the Cobb!" one shouted.

"Quitter!" another yelled, echoing Walt Maddox, who has criticized Cobb for leaving office early as Alabama Chief Justice in 2011.

I should mention here that Reckon by AL.com hosted that debate and security escorted two of the hecklers from the theater. But for Cobb, much of the damage was done. The jabs unsettled her and sapped much of her momentum.

I, and others there, suspected the hecklers were plants and I said so on Twitter. Maddox's campaign spokesman vehemently denied there was any connection.

"We had absolutely nothing to do with the hecklers last night," Maddox's communications director Chip Hill said in an email to me the next day. "Nothing."

I wish I could prove him wrong. Heck, I wish I could prove him right.

But there's a problem. A loophole in Alabama's Fair Campaign Practices Act, makes it difficult to prove anything at all.

It works like this

In theory, here's how campaign disclosures are supposed to work.

Under Alabama law, candidates are supposed to itemize all expenditures greater than $100.

If you're a candidate and you spend money at Home Depot buying stakes for yard signs, you put that expense on your form.

If you hire someone to put those signs out for you, you report who you paid what you paid them.

Then, when nosy journalists or anybody else, including you, gets curious, they can go to the Alabama Secretary of State's website and look those expenses up.

Transparency!

However, if you look at those disclosures, you'll see it's not that simple. Let's take Maddox's form just because I'm in a mood to pick on him.

Maddox's campaign manager is Madolyn Kirby. If she draws any compensation from the campaign, it doesn't show up in Maddox's disclosures. When I asked Hill, he said Kirby actually works for Matrix LLC, a third-party firm, which pays her for her campaign work from its contract with the Maddox campaign.

Disclosures show that the campaign has paid $145,092.80 to Matrix, LLC, for advertising, consultants and polling.

I also asked where all that money was going.

"As you know, under current law, consultants and advertising firms are not required to detail expenditures," Hill said when I asked what Matrix spends that money on. "Matrix has assured us that should the law change, they will be more than happy to comply."

And therein lies the loophole.

There's no way for someone looking at campaign finance disclosures to tell where that money's going.

But everybody's doing it

The way the law works now, if a candidate wanted to hide a campaign expenditure, they could get one of their campaign contractors to make that expenditure for them, and it wouldn't show up on their campaign report.

And according to Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill, there's nothing illegal about that, even if it runs counter to the spirit of the law.

"I don't see anything legally out of line with any of this, as long as [the people being paid] have a relationship with that entity," Merrill said.

And Merrill was upfront enough to admit that he's paid contractors, too, to handle advertising buys.

Before Maddox's campaign gets upset for me picking on them, no, he's not alone. Not by a long shot.

Kay Ivey has paid about $1.8 million to Target Enterprises LLC to handle advertising, and Tommy Battle more than $1 million to Scott Howell & Company, for media production. Steve Marshall has paid a smidge less than $1 million to Strategic Media Services, and Bill Hightower have given $620,000 to BrabenderCox LLC.

And except for a note saying "advertising," "consulting" or "polling," there's nothing more to show what those expenditures actually paid for.

And again, there's nothing here to suggest that any of these candidates were doing anything illegal or even wrong, but neither was there four years ago when Gov. Robert Bentley gave more than $500,000 to Rebekah Caldwell Mason's company, RCM Communications.

A Montgomery grand jury recently found those two weren't breaking the law, either.

But legal or not, it sure wasn't right.

Kyle Whitmire is the state political columnist for the Alabama Media Group.

Want access to the best analysis and in-depth reporting about Alabama each week? Sign up for the weekly Reckon Report newsletter and follow Reckon on Facebook and Twitter.
By Brit Blalock, who is running for the State Democratic Executive Committee in House District 54. She is also the campaign manager for Heather Milam for Secretary of State. Blalock lives and works in Birmingham.

Two years ago, I moved back to my home state of Alabama with one goal in mind: to find a way to make it better for my neighbors and for myself. I returned at a time when all three branches of government were embroiled in scandal and dysfunction. I was embarrassed and had to fight hard to push down the thought that nothing could be done.

I'm writing to tell you that something CAN be done.

A few weeks ago, I graduated with the inaugural class of Emerge Alabama--a grassroots organization that trains women to run for office. I struggle to find adequate words to describe the experience, but the one thing I can easily express is how extraordinary the women in my class are. They are mothers, professionals, community organizers, patriotic, hardworking, and a thousand more complimentary descriptors. I have been made better simply by knowing them.

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, I've heard some rumblings that there's a sense of "man hating" sweeping through the nation. I don't think that could be farther from reality. To me, female empowerment and enfranchisement can only help the men in our country. By standing up to speak their truth or by being vulnerable enough to run for office, women are building a path to a stronger society--one that expects every individual to treat others with respect and dignity.

This year women are running for office in record numbers in Alabama, and it's no surprise why. We make up nearly 52% of the population but only hold about 15% of offices in the state legislature. That statistic isn't doing us any favors.

Let's be clear that I'm not telling you to vote for women on election day just because they're women. As we approach the June 5th primary, I'm asking you to take an extra close look at their platforms, their qualifications, and their visions for the potential in Alabama.

I'm also asking you to think about the people in your own community who you know are working to improve it. Think of the people steering your local PTA. Think of the volunteers driving meals to the elderly. Think of the teachers guiding your kids' futures. A whole lot of them are women, aren't they?

It's time to give those people a real shot at leading this state. It's time to try something new.
The collective story of being a female Palestinian refugee in Lebanon as seen through the lives of a family of women.

Beirut, Lebanon  On a June morning in 1982, Leila Balqees joined her amputee father to watch the news on TV, as he did every day.

For Leila, who was 17 and engaged at the time, that day had started out just like any other in Burj Barajneh, a cramped Palestinian refugee camp on the southern edge of Lebanons capital, Beirut.

It soon turned into a nightmare.

The strikes started coming, left right and centre on the entire camp, recalls Leila, now 56.

On that day, Israel launched a fierce aerial and ground assault, claiming it was to push Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) fighters away from its northern borders.

The three-month offensive, which came at a time when Lebanon was already embroiled in a civil war that would eventually last 15 years, killed thousands of Palestinian refugees and severely damaged the poorly constructed houses in Beiruts camps  including Leilas family home.

I saw the walls fly off from down the road, she says earlier this month, sitting in the same living room that was torn apart in one of the first days of the Israeli operation.

Like many Burj Barajneh residents, Leila, her mother and three sisters sought shelter in a nearby area. But her father refused to leave their home for the first month of the bombardment.

A photo of Leilas late father hangs in the living room [Al Jazeera]

He used to say, if I cant die in Palestine, Ill just die here, Leila says.

Eventually, their neighbours, fearing for his safety, physically moved him to join his family.

After the assault ended, they returned to half a home  the living room, one bedroom and part of the kitchen were destroyed. It took them years to rebuild.

Standing to this day, the two-bedroom flat in one of Burj Barajnehs unregulated, high brick structures is the same building that Leila was born in back in 1962  and the only home she has ever known in Lebanon.

One of millions of Palestinians forced to live away from her ancestral home, Leila has been a refugee her whole life.

Her story is not unique, but her strength and resilience paint a striking picture of the collective story of Palestinian women in Lebanon  as evidenced by the hurdles she overcame, from surviving an Israeli offensive to defying hardship to raise four daughters as a single mother.

Burj Barajneh is home to more than 50,000 people [File: Reuters]

We have nothing else

Described as a city within a city, Burj Barajneh sprawls along the side of a busy highway linking southern Beirut to the capitals city centre.

Set up in 1948 to host Palestinians fleeing their villages and towns after being attacked by Zionist militias, the camp is today home to about 50,000 people. It is one of the 12 camps  run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA)  housing most of the nearly half a million Palestinians in Lebanon.

At Burj Barajnehs main entrance, tattered Palestinian flags hang alongside faded emblems of Palestinian political parties.

Once inside, a narrow pathway leads into the camp, lined with stalls of vendors selling coffee and freshly squeezed juice while men of all ages, some puffing away at shishas, sit idly on plastic chairs.

A few metres further in, the alley widens  and the markers of a factionalised community become clearer.

Armed men acting as the camps security apparatus stand at their designated wooden booths. Some are dressed in casual clothing; others in green army jumpsuits  but they all answer to the major parties in control of the camp, including Fatah, Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

Winding deeper into the maze of narrow lanes, rows of bullet-ridden, graffiti-covered buildings appear. The worn-out buildings are packed so tightly together that its hard to tell at any given time what time of the day it is.

As the paths get tighter and narrower, a thick canopy of electricity wires intertwined with water pipes hangs low over the alleyways. There are flags everywhere, interspersed with posters of camp residents who lost their lives either during the Israeli assault or due to the camps haphazard conditions.

Woefully lacking infrastructure, including sanitation, the camp poses severe health risks to its inhabitants, especially in times of heavy rains when muddy tides drown its passageways.

According to UNRWA, Lebanon is home to the highest percentage of Palestinian refugees living in abject poverty, often lacking the most basic human needs such as food, safe drinking water and sanitation.

Its conditions like these that Leila has spent nearly all her life in.

I was born and raised here, and I went to school here, Leila says, referring to the UNRWA school system provided for registered refugee children.

My whole life has been here, she adds.

I know Palestine through my parents; I love my country  but I raised my daughters to know that this camp is their home because we have nothing else.

Zahiya Dgheim was forced to leave her village at 20 [Al Jazeera]

Most beautiful place on Earth

More than 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly driven away from their lands by Zionist militias in a campaign that led to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. Referred to by the Palestinians as the Nakba, or Catastrophe, the violent expulsion marked the beginning of a painful chapter of mass displacement and military occupation.

Between 1947 and 1949, the militias seized more than 78 percent of historical Palestine, ethnically cleansed and destroyed about 530 villages and cities and killed about 15,000 Palestinians. More than 100,000 Palestinians sought refuge in neighbouring Lebanon  some arriving on foot, others crammed into vehicles.

The refugees were initially welcomed in Lebanon amid a widespread belief they would soon return home. But as the months turned to years and the years to decades, things changed. Seen as a burden, the refugees were largely left helpless, with UNRWA the only entity supporting them.

To this day, their presence is seen as a threat to Lebanons fragile sectarian system. Denied fundamental rights, Palestinians in Lebanon are effectively banned from working in 72 occupations; they cannot own land, do not have access to free education, and have to issue a hard-to-obtain permit to bring construction materials into the camps to renovate their homes.

Hailing from the village of al-Kabri in the Galilee, Leilas parents also fled to Lebanon with the belief that they would only stay for a few days.

After seven decades in Burj Barajneh, Leilas mother  90-year-old Zahiya Dgheim  still reminisces about the home of her youth: a three-story brick house overlooking a spring in her now-destroyed village.

Al-Kabri is the most beautiful place on Earth, she says slowly, casting a frail figure as she lays under thick blankets on her large bed in the family home at Burj Barajneh.

Zahiya, who suffers from a chronic lung infection, had been married for four years when the state of Israel was created in 1948.

My wedding day was the most beautiful day, she says, bringing to mind the years before becoming a refugee. They [covered] me in gold jewellery that layered over my embroidered gown and paraded us in the wedding ceremony, she says of her and her now-late husband.

They put me on a white horse, she adds. Around me were my friends carrying candles; everyone was dancing in our honour.

The hazardous power cables have claimed the lives of at least 55 people since 2015 [File: Reuters]

Single motherhood

But for Leila, such memorable anecdotes feel a world apart. For her, the only reality is that of being a Palestinian refugee in Lebanon  and particularly a woman raising her family on her own.

After getting married, Leila left with her Palestinian husband who had a job in Libya, only to return as a mother of four daughters less than 10 years later, following the couples separation.

I came back, and everything was changed; I didnt recognise the camps streets, Leila says.

With her youngest child just three months old, Leila realised she urgently needed to find a way to support herself and her young daughters as she moved back into her parents house.

As a Palestinian woman, chances of finding work outside the camp were almost non-existent, so Leilas mother helped her set up a kiosk selling grocery items.

I used to carry goods back and forth on a big wooden cart  I would be pushing it all alone, she says, with tears running down her face.

I would walk from Dahiyeh [a nearby area] with bags of bread on my head, no matter the weather.

Three years later, Leila closed the kiosk to run a cashier stand at the local vegetable market  a job she held for 21 years  becoming a familiar face for many of the camps residents.

The girls grew up, and I made sure they went to school  I thank God that I never had to ask anyone for anything.

The third generation

Leilas four daughters, who have also spent their life in Burj Barajneh, grew up as part of the third generation of people calling the camp home.

Over the past years, Syrian and Palestinian refugees fleeing the war in Syria have also come to Burj Barajneh, making conditions even harder for the camps residents, who share a space of less than 1sq km.

We really suffer from power cuts, says Leila. At times, we only get power for about an hour a day.

The camps hazardous power cables have claimed the lives of at least 55 people in the past three years, Mohammed Khaled, UNRWAs chief area officer, told Al Jazeera.





While Leila struggled to provide the best for her four daughters as a single mother, she was aware that they would be denied many rights, just as she had been.

Yet, she was determined to instil a sense of pride in them, seeing it as her duty to empower them but also manage their expectations. She reluctantly refers to Lebanon as her second home, but wonders if she would be feeling differently if her daughters  three of whom are married with children  were granted fundamental rights.

Leila says she never thought of remarrying, even for the sake of her children.

I was abandoned but raised my girls and worked to get through the years, she says. When I needed someone in the darkest times I had no one, so why would I need anyone from now on?

Listening nearby is Ramz, Leilas youngest daughter. The petite 28-year-old suffers from a developmental disability, as well as a partial physical disability.

Growing up as her ailing grandmothers helping hand, Ramz says she would love to be able to join an educational facility and work with children.

I wish I could join an educational institute, to learn how to work with children, Ramz says.

But this is not a feasible career option, Leila says, explaining that camps like Burj Barajneh do not have access to public centres that help refugees who share Ramzs disabilities develop. Palestinians with disabilities in Lebanon are excluded from governmental services and therefore rely on assistance from specialised NGOs.

I fear for her safety, Leila says, explaining how people, unfamiliar with Ramzs condition, tend to lack the skills needed to communicate with her effectively.

We want to die on our land

A family of women, Leila and her daughters have created their own traditions, including a weekly gathering in the family home to spend the night together.

Occasionally, her curious grandchildren would gather around their great-grandmother Zahiya, eager to hear more about the Palestine she endlessly speaks of.

I tell my grandchildren, one day, I hope you go back and see our home, says Zahiya.

Every time I talk about my home, I see myself in it.

Palestinians in the camp still held on to the lingering legacy of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who had become an icon of the Palestinian diasporas struggle for the right to return.

But for Leila, the right of return has been slipping away year after year.

We were closer to the right of return decades ago than we are now, she says.

But eventually, we want to die on our land with our dignity, knowing our enemy, adds Leila.

Not here, not like dogs, not like this.
Children fathered by refugees on Manus Island could be marginalised by patrilineal clan structures, says Father Taulam.

Manus Island, Papua New Guinea  For people in Papua New Guinea (PNG), land is life. It carries great spiritual and cultural significance and is a vital resource for food and shelter. Arguably, it is the most valuable asset for local communities.

More than 97 percent of land in PNG is owned by families or clans, and it cannot be sold or purchased. Instead, it is inherited through patrilineal lines  meaning its passed down through the males in a family. While matrilineal communities do exist in PNG, women are generally adopted into their husbands clan after marriage.

But what happens to children whose father has no access to ancestral land or property rights?

On PNGs small, remote Manus Island, at least 36 children have been born to Manusian women, but were fathered by refugees, according to Lorengau hospital records.

{articleGUID}

About 600 male refugees and asylum seekers remain in legal limbo on Manus after an Australian-run immigration detention centre was deemed illegal by PNGs Supreme Court. It was subsequently shut down in 2017.

Under a strict policy designed to deter unauthorised boat arrivals, the Australian government has refused to take any of the men to Australia.

More than 80 men have been resettled in the United States. The others have no choice but to wait until they are accepted by a third country  a process that has been painstakingly slow.

Father Clement Taulam is the parish priest of the Papitalai Catholic Church on Los Negros Island and has worked across the region for the past 37 years.

He spoke to Al Jazeera about the impact the refugees had on the local community and the small islands long history of accepting outsiders.

Al Jazeera: Do you remember when the refugees came to Manus Island?

Father Clement Taulam: I have been here on Manus since the refugees came. There have been two big rounds of outsiders coming to Manus Island. The first group were people from West Papua  thats on the other side of the border of Papua New Guinea  during the 1970s.

The second group are these men. Lots from Iran, Pakistan, from Sri Lanka, Sudan, Bengali, Somali. Theyre all here. If you walk around town, you will notice them right away because there are so many of them.

{articleGUID}

Al Jazeera: Are they accepted in the community?

Father Taulam: Yes. Manus people know the situation of refugees because they themselves have been refugees. First, during World War II, they were displaced off their land. The second time has been due to the high-rising sea levels.

So you will find many people with a receiving mentality because they were displaced and they received a lot of things. So the memory stays with them.

Al Jazeera: The Australian-run detention camp was closed last year. Where are the refugees now?

Father Taulam: In Lorengau town. The town is quite small. In the province itself, we have maybe about 60,000 inhabitants.

{articleGUID}

There are three camps. One is for those who have been processed and are known as refugees. Out of those, only about 96 have been processed and gone to the United States.

Most of the refugees  about 600 of them  are still here in Papua New Guinea.

About 140 of them are in Port Moresby for medical reasons, mainly mental health. About 150 have still not been processed. So a lot of refugees are frustrated because the process is taking a very long time.

Al Jazeera: Do you see them in the community?

Father Taulam: Often they do come out to visit us  especially the church groups.

We take them and we try to help them in their situation. But basically they are kept together in the camps, and they are waiting for any country to accept them.

Al Jazeera: What do you think will happen?

Father Taulam:The way I look at it, PNG is being a scapegoat for this thing.

Australia seems to be saying, PNG, this is your responsibility. And PNG is saying to Australia, Do your work, clean up your mess. And while this is going on, these people are suffering.

Weve had incidents of refugees being diffused into communities before  especially through marriage  and this might end up the same if PNG does not find a country for them.

We are not helped especially by the Australians. They are the ones who have put the refugees here to keep them offshore.

Father Clement Taulam says the local community on Manus tries to help refugees and asylum seekers stuck on the island [ASRC/MartinWurt]

Al Jazeera: Were Manusians involved in the decision to bring asylum seekers to PNG?

Father Taulam: In the beginning, it was only discussed with the leaders of this country and Australia. And we accepted it. Our government accepted it.

In the 1990s, the refugees had come here before, and they eventually went to Australia and to other countries. And Australia processed them.

But this time, Australia doesnt want them, so they are left here with us in PNG.

We dont understand why. We only know Australia wants to keep them out. For us in Manus, we want them to be settled well.

Al Jazeera: What is the impact on the community?

I think we are feeling their presence in the province. They are putting a strain on the local economy. But  at the same time  they are coming into town and helping by buying things from the market with their allowance.

However, there is something else. We have data from the local hospital saying that 36 babies have been born to our women here on Manus over the past five years. They are already like refugees on Manus because they will not have anywhere to settle.

Al Jazeera: Why cant they just settle with their clan?

Father Taulam: Our land system is not like other countries where land is owned by the government and people can settle anywhere.

For people in Papua New Guinea, land is life. Here on Manus, land is handed down through the fathers or the men. In other communities in PNG, its handed down through the women.

So if one of these refugees gets married to a woman from a matrilineal clan, then they could be settled. But in most parts of PNG, land is patrilineal. So its going to be difficult for them.

Their father is not from here, they dont have any land, so the only way for them is if their father stays in town and does a bit of trading.

The children might be able to settle with the mothers clan line. But usually this is very difficult. When people are married, it is a common practice that the woman has to follow the husband.

So when the husband is from another country, it becomes difficult. The children will have difficulties in the future when it comes to settling down.

So these 36 babies are already starting a new wave of refugees on Manus.

Al Jazeera: Whats the biggest misconception about Manus?

Father Taulam: Manusian people are very good people and are quite welcoming to the refugees. They greet them on the street, talk with them. They try to help them, especially with language problems. So the attitude is quite friendly. Drunk stuff happens sometimes  and a story will blow up.

Sometimes the world paints a bad picture of Manus people. They say the island is like hell for these people  but when you come to it, not really. We feel for them and want the best for them.

But I think its now a waiting game.
A recent measure proposed by US Senator Bernie Sanders to end the war in Yemen masks US raids in the country.

Donald Trump launched his presidency with the killing of nine children. Only a week after taking office, the reality star turned commander-in-chief ordered a made-for-TV raid in the dead of night that saw Navy SEALs storming a rural village in Yemen. A leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was said to be hiding out there.

A fierce gunfight turned into an intense aerial bombardment, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism reported. By dawn, 14 militants had been killed  along with 25 civilians, among them the 8-year-old daughter of extremist preacher Anwar al-Awlaqi. Awlaqi and his 16-year-old son had already been killed in separate US drone strikes in 2011.

The raid, during which a US soldier also died, was a brazen and characteristically botched statement of intent from the new president: This would be an administration that puts America First, even  or perhaps especially  when standing on shaky legal ground. According to news reports, Trump approved what would end up being a massacre while having dinner with his son-in-law and a man he now calls Sloppy Steve.

Im really worried about US engagement in Yemen under this administration, Will Picard, executive director of the Yemen Peace Project, told me at the time. I dont think they care who they kill.

In his first hundred days, Trump ordered as many US air strikes in Yemen as his predecessor did in the previous two years combined. Even the most targeted of air raids inevitably kill innocents, and this president has not expressed any desire for greater precision, but the opposite: He campaigned on purposely killing the families of terrorists, too.

Amid this carnage, US Senator Bernie Sanders has called for the war in Yemen to end. A democratic socialist who almost won the Democratic nomination for president, Sanders has introduced a measure that would restrict direct US support for the disastrous war that Saudi Arabia has led against the Houthi rebels in Yemen.

But the resolution specifically exempts direct US involvement in Yemen itself, so long as the Trump administration continues carrying out raids for the same reason it already claims: because terrorists live there.

US bombs in Yemen

The resolution was first put forward to vote in the Senate in March, but was defeated. Nevertheless, Sanders intends to bring back the measure for another vote, according to his spokesperson Josh Miller-Lewis .

The resolution is concerned specifically with the lack of authorisation for US military support for the Saudi-led war against the Houthis, he told me in an email exchange.

Ending the Saudi-led war should be a priority for anyone who values human life. Since 2014, weddings, funerals and street markets have all been bombed by the Saudi coalition. Yemenis are besieged and mortared by Houthi militants, too, but they are killed, overwhelmingly, by the other side, which drops bombs that the US and Europe provide.

By the end of 2017, according to the United Nations, more than 5,200 civilians had been killed as a result of a war with no clear point or end in sight; tens of thousands more face death from starvation or cholera.

The issue is the normalisation, without debate, of a 'war on terror' that has produced a body count higher than that of the evil it is supposed to counter.

Washington provides the intelligence used on the bombing raids; provides fuel for the bomber jets themselves; and gives both Saudi and UAE pilots the cluster munitions that they drop near civilian areas, ensuring appendages and lives will be lost to this war years after its over.

But while Sanders resolution would curtail the more direct forms of support for these hostilities, it would allow the other US war in Yemen to continue. In fact, it makes sure that the proposal is not construed as limiting it, providing an exemption for United States armed forces engaged in operations directed at al-Qaeda or associated forces.

{articleGUID}

If Sanders resolution had been passed on January 20, 2016, that language would mean that every raid and drone attack in Yemen that Trump has authorised since would have happened anyway. US cluster bombs will continue to fall on Yemen, so long as it is part of a war on terror.

Amnesty International says one such US cluster bomb attack, in 2009, killed 41 Yemeni civilians, including 21 children. US drone strikes have alone killed another 1,000 people in Yemen, most of the dead alleged to be militants  but at least four dozen of them were children.

Sanders has previously voted to repeal the 2001 authorisation passed after the 9/11 attacks that is used to justify ongoing US foreign military operations from Djibouti to the Philippines. A majority of his colleagues have not.

His resolution, and the focus on Yemen, is billed as a more focused response to an impasse. To actually get anywhere in the Senate, cosponsor Mike Lee, a Republican from Utah, has argued, We have to deal with these conflict by conflict.

Sanders office did not answer when asked why language exempting the war on terror was included in the resolution on the Yemen conflict. One could speculate that its a legislative strategy: Dont let ending all wars be the enemy of ending the war you can. But Sanders isnt selling it that way. His argument against the Saudi-led war in Yemen centres on its humanitarian toll, but also notes it has undermined US efforts to stop terrorism.

This effort, in Sanders view, requires authorisation of the use of special forces and drones wherever the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), which split from al-Qaeda, shows up.

Blood on our hands

Under the Obama administration, Sanders was pointedly ambivalent when asked about the extrajudicial killing of the elder Awlaqi, an al-Qaeda propagandist in Yemen. He also has not addressed the killing of Awlaqis innocent children, who, like their father, were US citizens.

The issue is not Sanders own personal anti-imperialist credentials, nor is critiquing a worthy effort to end a war a holistic condemnation. The issue is the normalisation, without debate, of a war on terror that has produced a body count higher than that of the evil it is supposed to counter. Sanders resolution, excluding this US war from debate on a US-backed war in the same theatre, reflects this.

There is no need to vouch for the character of al-Awlaqi or any other extremist to believe it at least worth asking the question: Is doing this  periodically picking off militants and bystanders in perpetuity  doing any more lasting good than not doing that?

In Iraq and Syria, the US and its European allies have complemented the wars on terror waged by friends and nominal enemies with targeted air strikes that have led to a civilian kill rate, not seen since Korea or Vietnam, according to the monitoring group Airwars.

In Yemen, in 2018, the war on terror is a complementary evil, but its also the root of all the others. The need to wage it, for over a decade, led Washington to support a dictator  and, when that dictator fell, to support the installation of his vice president, despite the Arab Springs cries for change.

This US war in Yemen cannot be divorced from the other conflicts raging there, particularly when Donald Trump is helping escalate them all. Children are being killed in the dark, their blood is on the presidents hands. Its arguably too late, but also worth asking: Do we want it on ours?

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
Iraqi Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr and his Sairoon coalition have now been confirmed as the winner of Iraqs parliamentary elections with 54 seats. The closest runner-up is Hadi al-Amiris Fatah list which has obtained 47 seats.

These results have already imposed a new dynamic, which will have an impact on the countrys domestic and foreign policy. The full extent of any reforms will depend on a number of factors, some of which will play out in the coming months.

Political fragmentation

While al-Sadrs 54 seats translate into only 16.4 percent of the seats in the new parliament, Iraqi politics are now so fragmented that the importance of his share is significantly amplified. In previous years, formation of governments of national unity which brought together almost all of the parties that had representation in parliament was customary in Iraq, yet this will no longer be possible today for a variety of reasons.





Despite an electoral law that was designed to benefit larger coalitions, the next parliament will accommodate 28 parties that have 5 seats or less. Together these parties will occupy a total of 58 seats (or around 18 percent of the next parliament).

Iraqs Sunni community is also impossibly splintered. Ten different Sunni parties will be represented in the next parliament and will occupy a total of 39 seats. It will be close to impossible to incorporate most if not all of these MPs in the next government, given that their respective political weight may not be worth the cost that would be incurred by including them.

The parliaments remaining seats are also not equally distributed. Only three electoral alliances returned between 40 and 60 seats. An additional three alliances have between 20 and 40 seats. In that context, it is almost inevitable that the next government will include all three of the main alliances including al-Sadrs Sairoon alliance.

In addition, despite the relatively minor difference between them (in 2014, there was a 58 seat difference between the winner and the closest runner-up), not all of the three major political alliances are created equal. Al-Sadr is one of the only political figures who enjoy consistent and ever growing support among a specific constituency. In 2016, his supporters even stormed the Green Zone and ransacked the parliament building.

As a result, his alliance is far less susceptible to splintering and to floor-crossing. Al-Sadrs closest competitors are temporary alliances of convenience that are likely to be reduced in the coming months and years.

Irans interests at stake

All of the countrys main political forces appear to understand the new political and numerical realities that the elections have imposed and are now gravitating towards al-Sadrs pole. A number of bilateral meetings have already taken place since the preliminary results were announced, many of which have involved senior leaders paying a visit to al-Sadr on his terms. Al-Sadr is now in prime position to extract concessions and to impose part of his agenda. Given how aggressive he has been in the past, that is unlikely to please many actors.

Unsurprisingly, many Iranian officials are said to be displeased with the electoral results. Irans interests and influence were an important issue during the electoral campaign and will continue to be during the government formation process. Iranian influence is, in fact, one of the only substantive points of divergence between Iraqs main parties.

Al-Sadr insists far more than many of his rivals on an 'Iraq first' approach, which some interpret as a call to exclude Iranian interests from policy considerations.

Iran has significant influence in Iraq but it is far from the all-controlling behemoth that some analysts claim it is. More than a decade ago, Iran encouraged all of the countrys main Shia parties to close ranks in a single electoral alliance and also encouraged the formation of a mechanism to allow the parties to work out their differences behind closed doors.

These parties did not follow the script. They failed to improve security, participated in deepening corruption while simultaneously competing with each other for leadership, causing the alliance to fall apart in 2009.

Iran responded by modifying its principle objectives, which today appear to be to ensure the formation of a government that maintains friendly political, security and economic relations with Tehran. In 2014, it calculated that then Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was best placed for that purpose, but was unable to keep him in government. It opposed Haider al-Abadis appointment as prime minister.

Perhaps most importantly, Iran is very aware that many Iraqis are suspicious of foreign interests in their country. For that reason, Iran seeks to maintain influence through accommodation and deliberately avoids confrontation for fear of a backlash.

In practical terms, what that means today is that Iran will likely seek to establish some or all of its main allies (mainly the Fatah and State of Law coalitions, who together have 72 seats) as a strong united voice in the next government.

Al-Sadrs agenda

Al-Sadrs policy agenda is hard to distinguish from that of his main rivals. Almost all of the elections candidates focused their campaigns on the need for reform, improved standards of living, anti-corruption measures, etc. Al-Sadr insists far more than many of his rivals on an Iraq first approach, which some interpret as a call to exclude Iranian interests from policy considerations. That and the fact that many of his supporters are fond of chanting anti-Iranian slogans at demonstrations has raised concerns in Tehran.

But just as the Iranians cannot control who will occupy the prime ministers position, they are also fully aware that al-Sadrs options are equally limited. He may be in pole position, but he cannot fully exclude both Fatah and the State of Law coalitions from the next government. That would be interpreted as a deliberate and explicit snub against Irans interests, which would invite an equally strong response. And al-Sadr would rather avoid direct confrontation with Iran.

{articleGUID}

Both of these dynamics will play themselves out in the government formation process. As always, most of the focus will be on the sovereign ministries (defence, interior, foreign affairs, finance, etc), and Irans allies are likely to demand control over at least one of the security portfolios.

The next parliament will be the first in which none of the main candidates for the prime ministers position is backed up by a dominant electoral alliance. The premiership will continue to be an important position; through it and with the support of the cabinets key staff, individual politicians will be able to exercise significant control over state policy.

Sairoon does not have many frontrunners for the prime ministers position, which has led to speculation that al-Sadr will allow for incumbent Haider al-Abadi to stay on. Regardless of whether that happens, al-Sadr will likely turn his attention to how the office of the prime minister functions. That will likely include gutting the prime ministers office of its staff, which has been dominated by former prime minister Nouri al-Malikis Islamic Dawa party since 2005. New officials are likely to be recruited, who will seek to impose a new agenda for both the prime minister and the cabinet of ministers.

If al-Sadr is genuine in wanting to curb foreign influence, and if he plays his cards right during the government formation process, then he may find that he will have sufficient leverage to do so; but this is far from a given. The coming period of negotiations will reveal what his true goals are and how adept he is at achieving them.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
An estimated 20,000 counter-protesters took to the streets of Berlin on Sunday to demonstrate against an AfD rally.

Thousands of people have gathered in Germanys capital to protest against a far-right rally called for by the Alternative for Germany (AfD), the countrys main opposition party.

An estimated 20,000 counter-demonstrators, including anti-fascists, pro-refugee organisations and LGBTQI groups, took to the streets of Berlin, shouting slogans against the AfD rally, which saw party leaders addressing a crowd of about 5,000.

Many times during the speeches by AfD leaders you couldnt hear what they were saying because they [counter-demonstrators] were playing loud band music and chanting Nazis out, said Al Jazeeras David Chater, reporting from Berlin.

He added that about 2,000 police officers had been deployed to make sure there was no trouble.

In the end, it was a vocal confrontation rather than a violent one, Chater said.

All about the base. Hundreds of counter-demonstrators already gathering in Berlin near to the capitals Victory Column. Dozens of clubs, theatres and rights groups from across Berlin will later march against far-right AfD. Say they want to bass away the AfD#AfDwegbassen pic.twitter.com/ufo0EHfl4b  Kate Brady (@kbrady90) May 27, 2018

Founded in 2013, the AfD became the first far-right party to enter Germanys Bundestag in decades after securing more than 12 percent in last Septembers elections on the back of a largely anti-refugee and anti-Islam agenda.

The AfD called the rally in response to German Chancellor Angela Merkels migration policy and other grievances.

Parallel (to parliament), we take to the streets and give our members and supporters the chance to actively participate, AfD organiser Guido Reil said at a press conference ahead of Sundays event, as reported by Deutsche Welle.

Thats very important, he added. Because were alternative. Its a new concept.

Stop the hate

Before the rally, Stoppt den Hass (Stop the Hate), an umbrella of anti-AfD protest groups, had said in a statement that it intended to block the far-right march from reaching its final destination.

The AfD blames Muslims and displaced people for all evils, from poverty to sexual violence, Stoppt den Hass said on its website.

Opponents of the anti-immigration party Alternative for Germany (AfD) hold a counterprotest in Berlin [Hannibal Hanschke/Reuters]

The rise of Germanys far right has coincided with a spike in anti-Semitism and attacks targeting refugee accommodations throughout the country.

In early May, a senior government official, Felix Klein, accused the AfD of creating a political environment in which anti-Semitism is tolerated.

I dont want to say the AfD is anti-Semitic, per se, but it tolerates representatives who are demanding a new policy of remembrance, Klein told news website watson.de at the time.

They initiated this discussion about drawing a line (under the Holocaust), and that is very dangerous because it helps make anti-Semitism presentable again.

German authorities documented more than 3,500 attacks on refugees and their accommodations in 2016, and another 2,219 were recorded in 2017.

Although the AfD was initially founded as a Eurosceptic party, it was only able to break the five-percent threshold to enter the Bundestag after shifting its focus to migration and Islam.

Al Jazeeras Chater said the party had caused a real impact in German politics, particularly in the Bundestag, where the party holds 92 seats.

It is the first time since World War II that we are beginning to hear racist, antiSemitic, xenophobic and anti-Islamic comments, not only in the parliament but of course during these rallies on the streets of Berlin, and that is what has incensed these counter-protesters, Chater said.

The whole political complexion of Germany has changed since this party [the AfD] became the main opposition party.
Chinas defence ministry says US warships sailing near Paracel Islands seriously infringe Chinese sovereignty.

Chinas defence ministry has protested against what it called provocation after US warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by Beijing.

US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Reuters news agency that two military vessels came within 12 nautical miles (around 22km) of the disputed Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbours.

The Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, carried out manoeuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.

In a statement later on Sunday, Chinas defence ministry said the move contravened Chinese and relevant international law, seriously infringed upon Chinese sovereignty (and) harmed strategic mutual trust between the two militaries.

It also said it had deployed ships and aircraft to warn the US warships to leave, saying they had entered the countrys territorial waters without permission.

In a separate statement, Chinas foreign ministry urged Washington to stop such actions.

China will continue to take all necessary measures to defend the countrys sovereignty and security, it added, without elaborating.

The US military did not immediately comment on the operation, but said US forces operate in the region on a daily basis, Reuters said.

South China Sea standoff

China is pitted against smaller neighbours in multiple disputes in the South China Sea over islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters crucial for global trade and rich in fish and potential oil and gas reserves.

It has begun building military structures on disputed islands  much to the dismay of other Southeast Asian nations including the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The incident on Sunday came on the heels of a string of events that highlight tension between the worlds two biggest economies over the South China Seas disputed waters.

On Wednesday, the Pentagon withdrew an invitation to China to participate in the worlds largest multinational maritime exercise in a move the Chinese defence ministry called not constructive.

The Pentagon said its decision was an initial response to Chinas continued militarisation of the South China Sea.

Earlier this month, Chinas air force landed long-range military aircraft on Woody Island, marking the first time a strategic bomber landed on an island in the South China Sea.
Voters head to the polls amid concerns about corruption, peace and the Venezuela crisis.

Colombians are voting in the countrys first presidential election since a controversial peace deal between the government and FARC rebels in 2016.

Polls opened at 13:00 GMT in a campaign that has been dominated by a battle between two candidates: Ivan Duque of the right-wing Democratic Centre party and Gustavo Petro, a leftist candidate who is a one-time rebel and former mayor of Bogota.

Polls are set to close at 21:00 GMT. Results are expected around 01:00 GMT.

The vote is expected to reflect the social polarisation that the landmark agreement created.

Despite the challenges of peace and managing the fallout from the Venezuelan crisis, voters are more concerned about corruption, healthcare and unemployment, according to Invamer polls.

Colombias election comes as several Latin American countries choose new leaders over the next few months, including such regional power players as Brazil and Mexico.

With six more presidential elections following in 2019, Colombias neighbours will be awaiting Sundays results with interest.

How will the vote work?

To win the presidency, a candidate must secure a majority of votes. Failing that, a second round will be held on June 17. The winner will begin a four-year term in August.

The vote follows congressional elections on March 11, which are often seen as bellwethers for the presidential elections. The candidate whose party wins most seats in the congressional elections often goes on to become president.

Right-wing and left-wing coalitions also held primaries on March 11, in which Ivan Duque and Gustavo Petro emerged as the candidates for each group respectively.

Around 36 million Colombians are eligible to vote, according to a March 2018 electoral census. Voter turnout has traditionally been low, with 48 percent voting in the second round of the last presidential election in 2014.

The May 27 vote will be the first presidential election since the peace deal with the FARC, although the party is not fielding a candidate [Ivan Valencia/AP]

What are the key issues?

Corruption: Colombia has been rocked by major corruption scandals in recent years, pushing the issue to the top of the political agenda.

Politicians from both sides have been tainted by alleged associations with Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction company that paid bribes to officials across Latin America.

Allegations of vote-buying have cast a shadow over previous elections, including in March where several polling stations ran out of ballots before polls closed during a congressional election.

Employment: According to Invamer polls, voters think unemployment is the most important issue Colombias next president should address.

Unemployment rose sharply to 11.8 percent in January 2018. The unemployment rate in cities is rising as workers move from rural areas seeking opportunities.

Candidates from both the right and left-wing coalitions have promised job creation and pension reform.

Healthcare: Colombias complex and overpopulated healthcare sector is a main concern for voters, according to Invamer opinion polls.

The country has a mixed-market system, with one public health insurance provider and various private options. Successive governments have attempted to simplify the existing system and expand free healthcare.

Who are the main candidates?

Incumbent President Juan Manuel Santos is ineligible to run for re-election, having served the maximum two terms.

Duques, left, close relationship with Uribe, right, has boosted support for his candidacy [Nacho Doce/ Reuters]

Ivan Duque: Currently the man to beat, the right-wing Centro Democratico (Democratic Centre) politician has been leading opinion polls since January.

A lawyer and senator, Duque is the protege of former President Alvaro Uribe, who led the country from 2002 to 2010. Uribe remains a highly influential figure in Colombian politics, with as many as one in five Colombians telling pollsters they would vote for the candidate backed by Uribe.

Duque has vowed to close the poverty gap, simplify the countrys tax code and pursue the complete eradication of coca in line with his tough stance on drugs.

If elected, he wants to pass constitutional reforms to undo key aspects of the peace deal, including those that allow the FARC to participate in politics.

Critics say Duque lacks experience, having only entered politics in 2014, and fear he is too closely tied to both Uribe and big business.

Petro has promised to tackle corruption by fully separating Colombias political and judicial systems [Christian Escobar Mora/Reuters]

Gustavo Petro: The lefts candidate is a former mayor of Colombias capital, Bogota, and a one-time member of the M-19 armed group.

Petro has promised to fully separate the countrys political and judicial systems, in a bid to strengthen democracy and tackle corruption.

Inequality is high on Petros agenda: he wants to improve working conditions, nationalise healthcare and introduce land reforms to benefit the countrys rural poor.

He supports peace with the FARC, but has criticised the deal, saying it ended the war without resolving its effects on society.

Petros critics say his plans to shift Colombias economy from oil to agriculture are unrealistic, but his supporters see him as the most credible challenger of the traditional power bases.

Other candidates include a former mayor of Medellin, Sergio Fajardo; former vice president under Santos, German Vargas Lleras; and Humberto de la Calle, an elder statesman of Colombian politics, as well as a number of lesser-known figures.

What role will the peace deal play?

Santos, left, and FARC leader Rodrigo Londono, right, signed the peace deal in Havana, Cuba, after four years of negotiations [Ramon Espinosa/AP]

In a referendum on October 2, 2016, Colombians narrowly rejected a deal to end the armed conflict between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). A revised deal was signed the following month without a public vote.

Santos was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in bringing the decades-long conflict  which had killed 220,000 people and displaced nearly seven million  to an end.

Many Colombians, however, felt the agreement was too lenient on FARC by allowing its members to enter politics and avoid imprisonment for crimes committed during the conflict.

The agreement permitted FARC to rebrand itself as a political party  the Common Alternative Revolutionary Force  and guaranteed it five seats in each of the countrys two chambers of parliament, regardless of vote share. {articleGUID}

This condition angered Colombias other political parties, none of which have guaranteed representation.

FARC will not field a candidate in Sundays elections after their presidential hopeful, Rodrigo Londono  better known by his nom de guerre Timoleon Jimenez or nickname Timochenko  pulled out of the race due to health problems.

The idea of the former rebels as politicians is still divisive among voters. In Marchs congressional elections, FARC secured just 0.5 percent of the vote and at some campaign events, candidates were pelted by stones and tomatoes.

The result of Sundays vote will throw the future of the deal into uncertainty, with both leading candidates openly critical of aspects of the agreement.

How will the Venezuela crisis affect the election?

Almost one million Venezuelans have crossed the porous border with Colombia [Jaime Saldarriaga/Reuters]
Right-winger Ivan Duque and leftist Gustavo Petro to contest second round of voting on June 17.

Colombias historic presidential election is heading into a runoff vote, with right-wing candidate Ivan Duque leading the race but failing to secure the majority needed to win outright.

With nearly all of the votes counted, Duque  who led opinion polls ahead of Sundays election  was first with 39.1 percent.

He will now face leftist candidate Gustavo Petro, who finished second with 25.1 percent, in the second round of voting on June 17.

Former Medellin Mayor Sergio Fajardo, a centre-left candidate, came third with 23.8 percent.

Al Jazeeras Lucia Newman, reporting from the capital, Bogota, said the prospect of Duque finishing first in an election headed to a runoff vote was widely anticipated.

She added, however, that the centre and centre-left had done far better than opinion polls had suggested, pointing to Fajardos better-than-expected showing in the election.

The winner of the second round will begin a four-year term in office from August onwards.

Around 36 million Colombians were eligible to vote. The final outcome of the elections is expected to shape the future of a controversial 2016 peace deal between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels.

Extraordinary feat

Incumbent President Juan Manuel Santos, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for ending a decades-long conflict with FARC, was ineligible to run for re-election having served the maximum two terms permitted by Colombias constitution.

He described the vote as the calmest and most secure in the countrys recent history.

So far not a single voting station has had to be moved for security reasons  Its been many decades since that has happened, he said in a televised address after casting his ballot in Bogota.

As long lines of voters amassed in polling stations across Bogota on a cloudy day, Al Jazeeras Newman said the elections peaceful conditions marked an extraordinary feat and something that Colombians have never seen in recent times.

Casting his ballot in Bogota, Duque called Sunday a very special day for our nation.

I want a country of legality, a full-on fight against corruption, a country where peace can breathe throughout the land, he said.

Ivan Duque called Sundays vote marked a very special day for Colombia [Nacho Doce/Reuters]

Irregularity accusations

In the run-up to the vote, Petro had accused officials of failing to address a voting software glitch that he said could lead to fraud.

{articleGUID}

He reiterated those concerns on Sunday after casting his vote, urging citizens to document any irregularities with their phones.

His campaign also issued a statement alleging voting irregularities, including votes pre-marked in favour of Duque.

Petro is claiming there is an effort under way to deprive him of victory by an adjustment of the electoral software, said Al Jazeeras Newman.

The outcome [of the vote] could be questioned, especially if it is very close.

Former FARC rebels have come to admire the strongly leftist leanings of Gustavo Petro [Reuters]

Colombians want peace

The deal with FARC, pushed through by Santos in November 2016 after it was rejected in a referendum vote weeks earlier, brought to an end to the conflict which killed 220,000 people and displaced nearly seven million.

The deal allowed FARC to rebrand as a political party  the Common Alternative Revolutionary Force  and guaranteed it five seats in each of the countrys two chambers of parliament, regardless of vote share.

Many Colombians, however, felt the agreement was too lenient on FARC by allowing its members to enter politics and avoid imprisonment and face reduced sentences for crimes committed during the conflict.

Both Duque and Petro have criticised the peace deal, with the former pledging to pass reforms undoing key aspects of the agreement and the latter alleging it has done little to achieve lasting social reform.

Former FARC rebel leader Rodrigo Londono voted for the first time [Carlos Julio Martinez/Reuters]

FARC did not field a candidate in the presidential election after leader Rodrigo Londono  commonly known as Timochenko  pulled out of the ballot due to health problems.

After voting in elections for the first time, Londono told reporters in Bogota that the majority of Colombians want peace.

The invitation is for everyone to exercise this right and to make today a day of reconciliation, the leader of FARC also wrote on Facebook.
Several Supreme Court justices focused on Shaima al-Omaris case as part of their review of Trumps travel ban.

A disabled Yemeni girl who had been denied entry into the US as a result of US President Donald Trumps travel ban arrived in New York for resettlement after a reversal by the government.

Shaima al-Omari, 11, whose case was questioned by Supreme Court justices reviewing the Trump administrations travel ban, arrived with her family in the US on Saturday, her father Najeeb al-Omari told Al Jazeera.

After denying her application in January, the US embassy in Djibouti changed course and issued visas on Wednesday allowing al-Omari  a US citizen who has been trying to get visas for his wife and three girls for years  and his family to migrate to the United States.

Shaima, who was born with cerebral palsy, suffers severe mental and physical disabilities, according to her family, who say the war in Yemen compounded her suffering as medicine and healthcare services became increasingly scarce in the city of Ibb, where the family resided.

Im glad the US embassy eventually reconsidered our case and granted us our rights, al-Omari said by telephone before boarding his flight from Djibouti to New York.

Al-Omaris family was among thousands of Yemeni Americans who have been stranded in Djibouti for months, or forced back into war-torn Yemen, after being denied visas to travel to the US because of the controversial travel restrictions  often referred to as the Muslim ban  implemented by Trump.

I'm glad the US embassy eventually reconsidered our case and granted us our rights. Nageeb al-Omari, father and US Yemeni citizen

Unveiled in September, the third version of the ban was allowed to come into full force on December 8, even though it was challenged in the courts. It restricts travel for nationals of five Muslim-majority countries  Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen, as well as individuals from Venezuela and North Korea.

The Trump administration has said the restrictions target countries that inadequately vet prospective migrants to the US and, therefore, represent a threat to US security.

Human rights groups and others argue, however, the ban disproportionately targets Muslims.

Years-long wait

Al-Omari, 39, divided his time between California, where he worked at a petrol station, and Ibb, where his wife and three daughters had lived since 2010, when he was granted US citizenship, 13 years after moving to the US.

But after a Saudi-led coalition of Arab states launched a military campaign in 2015 to defeat the Houthi rebels who had taken over the capital Sanaa in 2014, al-Omari decided it was time to bring his family to the US.

Providing Shaima with the healthcare she needed was becoming increasingly difficult. So many doctors had left Yemen and the medication she depended on was no longer readily available, he told Al Jazeera in April.

Al-Omari described a long struggle with the immigration bureaucracy to relocate his family from Ibb to the US, where prospects for Shaimas healthcare were far better.

It was a feeling of sheer happiness. After all this hardship, waiting, and losing all hope, things had finally worked out. Nageeb al-Omari, father and US Yemeni citizen

After filing their paperwork, the al-Omaris were given a visa interview with US consular officers for January 2018. But while they waited, Trump was elected and eventually enacted the ban.

The Department of Justice had noted exceptions for individuals with compelling reasons to enter the US. Among them were cases where denial would cause undue hardship and an infant, a young child or adoptee [or] an individual needing urgent medical care.

Mosheer Fittahey, a translator and immigration consultant in New York, who had been advising al-Omari, said he was certain Shaimas waiver would be granted because of her condition.

{articleGUID}

But following the January interview, a consular officer denied the application.

Taking into account the provisions of the Proclamation, a waiver will not be granted in your case, said the rejection document seen by Al Jazeera.

Todays decision cannot be appealed.

Between December 2017 and January 2018, only about 100 waivers were granted, according to Department of State data.

Ongoing challenges to the ban, led by the state of Hawaii, argue it is based on religious prejudice. Lower courts largely agreed it lacks adequate justification and violates immigration laws prohibiting discrimination based on nationality in issuing visas.

In oral arguments before the Supreme Court on April 25, several justices focused on Shaimas case, which had been highlighted in a brief filed in March.

Change of course

To the al-Omaris surprise, a day before the Supreme Court arguments, an American vice consul in Djibouti sent an email to al-Omari saying their case was being reviewed.

I determined the very same day that your familys case clearly met the standard of hardship and necessity specified  and I therefore recommended your family for a waiver, the email said.

{articleGUID}

However, I could not inform you of this at the time of the interview because under department rules, the waiver still required review from my supervisor. The waiver was approved, it said, adding the visas would come after further processing.

According to al-Omari, his family received a call from the US embassy in Djibouti on May 17 telling them to come to the East African country as soon as possible in anticipation of being granted the waiver and receiving their visas.

We couldnt believe what we had heard when we received the call, said al-Omari.

As soon as we arrived in Djibouti, we received another call from the embassy and we were asked to come in the same day. We were handed our passports and visas on Wednesday and arrangements for our flight to New York were soon under way.

It was a feeling of sheer happiness. After all this hardship, waiting and losing all hope, things had finally worked out, al-Omari said.

Najeeb al-Omari with his daughters Shaima, Salma, 8, and Lamia, 6, in front of their home in Ibb [Courtesy: Najeeb al-Omari]

Wave of change?

According to Fittahey, who set up a Facebook page to advise Yemeni migrants on how to proceed, the number of Yemeni applicants whose waivers were approved appears to have increased following the Supreme Courts arguments.

Fittahey said, like al-Omari, many of those applicants previously had been denied without explanation or opportunity to appeal.

They [the consular office] are sending applicants emails saying that the waiver is being reconsidered and that they should check the status of their applications online, he told Al Jazeera.

I dont know what prompted this change, but maybe the consular office was given a revised idea about how to process the waiver requirements.

The Supreme Courts ruling on Trumps travel ban is expected sometime in June.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un believes a face-to-face meeting with US President Donald Trump in Singapore next month could put an end to the history of war between the two nations, South Koreas president said.

Moon Jae-in also said on Sunday that Kim reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula in talks they had at a surprise meeting a day earlier at the demilitarised zone.

Chairman Kim and I have agreed  our quest for the Korean Peninsulas denuclearisation and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted, Moon told reporters.

He also expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity.

Saturdays meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet the two Korean leaders are trying to keep the on-again-off-again meeting on track.

Moving along very nicely

A statement from North Koreas state news agency KCNA on Sunday also said Kim expressed his fixed will on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Trump, meanwhile, signalled preparations for the June 12 summit with Kim were going ahead, despite having called off the meeting last week.

Were doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea, Trump said at the White House. Its moving along very nicely. So were looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasnt changed. So, well see what happens.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore citing open hostility from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.





Complete denuclearisation

While maintaining that Kim is committed to denuclearisation, Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what that means, and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

Even though they share the same resolve, there need to be discussions regarding the roadmap for how to make it happen, and that process could be tough, he said, declining to define complete denuclearisation.

The Trump administration has demanded North Korea completely and irreversibly shutter its nuclear weapons programme. Kim and Trumps initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over Pyongyangs nuclear arsenal.

American officials are sceptical that Kim will ever fully abandon his nuclear weapons, and Moon said North Korea is not yet convinced it can trust security guarantees from the United States.

A senior South Korean official later said the two Koreas are discussing a possible non-aggression pledge and the start of peace treaty talks as a way of addressing Pyongyangs security concerns ahead of US-North Korean negotiations.

Wars end?

The Moon-Kim talks at the Panmunjom border village, which South Korean officials said lasted two hours, came after their April 27 meeting, the first inter-Korean summit in more than a decade that was also held at the same venue. At that meeting, they declared they would work towards a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

{articleGUID}

Video and a photo released by South Koreas presidential Blue House on Saturday showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the Norths building in the truce village, which lies in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)  the 4km wide buffer that runs along the heavily armed military border.

Andrei Lankov, from Kookmin University in Seoul, said North Koreas fear of what might happen next likely pushed Pyongyang back on track for the summit.

Donald Trump is seen as a person who can start a war. And over the last say 48 hours  maybe more  they fear that Donald Trumps administration is going to cancel the summit and that this will lead to a new escalation of tensions and probably war. This fear has been decisive, said Lankov.

Stephen Nagy from the International Christian University said Pyongyang is seeking to benefit after achieving nuclear power status.

I think its the North Koreans who have driven this engagement. Theyve consolidated their strategic nuclear deterrent, theyve decided that they can push through with negotiations  not only with the United States but also with South Korea and re-engage China. They have a clear pathway forward, he said.
The arrest of Hazim Abdelazim is the latest in Egypts ongoing crackdown on dissenting voices.

Egyptian police have arrested a one-time campaigner turned critic for President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, a police official said on Sunday.

The police official did not give a reason for the overnight arrest of Hazim Abdelazim, but a source told Reuters news agency that he was arrested on suspicion of publishing false news and inciting against the state.

Once a deputy telecoms minister under ousted Hosni Mubarak, Abdelazim later headed the youth committee in Sisis 2014 presidential election campaign.

Hes especially active on Twitter, where he has 752,000 followers and regularly criticises Sisi and his policies.

I have been right and I have made mistakes, and my biggest mistake was accepting to join Sisis campaign, Abdelazims Twitter profile reads.

Abdelazims arrest is the latest development in what rights groups say is a campaign to silence government critics.

The interior ministry could not immediately be reached for comment.

Arrests and disappearances

Egyptian authorities arrested numerous bloggers this month, including award-winning blogger and journalist Wael Abbas at his home on Wednesday, accusing him of involvement with an illegal organisation and publishing false news.

The path the Sisi government took has been linear  eliminating the public sphere, or the political space has always run alongside arrests of dissidents, activists and human rights advocates, said Fadi al-Qadi, a commentator on human rights in the Middle East and North Africa.

The truth is, no one is immune under Sisi  these two incidents of arrests are probably meant to dismiss any thought that Sisi may tolerate certain types of dissent in Egypt  on the contrary, he does not, al-Qadi told Al Jazeera.

Bloggers Sherif Gaber and Shady Abuzaid, known for his YouTube and Facebook videos were also arrested this month.

Earlier last week, an Egyptian military court sentenced journalist and researcher Ismail Alexandrani to 10 years in prison.

Alexandrani, an expert on insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula, was arrested in November 2015 and accused of belonging to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.

This week many have also been spreading the word on Twitter about the disappearance of Walid Salem, PhD candidate at the University of Washington.

Terrible news  Walid Salem, Ph.D. candidate at University of Washington, disappeared in Egypt after conducting an interview with legal scholar Nour Farahat. Follows sentencing of Sinai expert Ismail Alexandrani earlier this week. https://t.co/ooToMnxVaf  Sharan Grewal (@sh_grewal) May 25, 2018

Worst human rights crisis

Human Rights Watch has issued numerous reports over the years condemning Egypts crackdown on dissenting voices.

President Abd al-Fattah al-Sisis government continues to preside over the worst human rights crisis in the country in decades, Human Rights Watch wrote.

Police systematically used torture, arbitrary arrests, and enforced disappearances to silence political dissent. Thousands of civilians were tried by military courts.

By introducing new restrictive NGO legislation, detaining journalists, and prosecuting human rights defenders and subjecting them to travel bans, the government is working to eradicate independent civil society in the country.

Since 2013, international human rights groups have criticised Sisis government for cracking down on secular and left-wing activists, as well as those who share the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood.

However, his supporters say his tough security policy is needed to ensure stability as Egypt recovers from years of political chaos and tackles economic challenges.

Sisi was elected president a year after heading the 2013 military ouster of democratically-elected President Mohamed Morsi, amid mass protests against him.

He won a second term in office last March after securing more than 97 percent of the vote.

The presidential elections featured only one other candidate  himself an ardent Sisi supporter  after all serious opposition contenders halted their campaigns citing intimidation and several arrests.
A far-right attack on anti-fascists in Perama comes on the heels of a surge in violence targeting migrants and others.

Athens, Greece  A spate of far-right attacks targeting refugees, migrants, anti-fascists and others has aroused concern in Greece.

On Saturday, the anti-fascist group ORMA said that affiliates of the neo-fascist Golden Dawn party attacked them in Perama, an impoverished suburb of Piraeus.

The attack comes amid surging violence, including a brutal attack against the mayor of Greeces second largest city, Thessaloniki.

We were attacked by Golden Dawn members with crowbars outside of the offices of Saint Nicholas Union, ORMA wrote on Facebook, referring to a ship worker union linked to the far-right party.

The post added that the anti-fascists pushed back the attackers. When they went to a police station to file a complaint, ORMA members were arrested, the group said.

In response to the incident, Syriza, the ruling left-wing party, said in a statement that the poisons of fascism and racism have no place in Perama or anywhere else.

On its website, Golden Dawn, which currently has 16 seats in the Greek parliament, dismissed the allegations as ridiculous.

A Greek police spokesperson was unavailable for comment.

Saturdays attack follows an assault on two Pakistani migrant labourers in an outdoor market in Agioi Anargyroi four days earlier.

Javed Aslam, president of the Union of Immigrant Workers, explained that two men attacked the workers in front of dozens of Greeks and others.

{articleGUID}

They were just working, and some people came and [attacked] them, Aslam told Al Jazeera by telephone.

Five people beat them  this is happening during Ramadan, he said, referring to the Muslim holy month.

Stop the fascist threat

In a statement responding to the attacks, Keerfa, an Athens-based anti-fascist group, has called for a demonstration on Wednesday to stop the fascist threat, which constitutes an attack on all of our freedoms.

On May 19, a group of ultra-nationalist demonstrators pounced on Yiannis Boutaris, the 75-year-old mayor of Thessaloniki, during a flag-lowering ceremony commemorating the killing of Pontic Greeks during World War I.

The assailants kicked Boutaris and hurled bottles at him until he was able to make it to his vehicle and escape from the scene.

Police have arrested at least 12 suspects in relation to that attack, according to the Greek daily Ekathimerini.

In early May, some headstones were smashed in a Jewish cemetery in Athens. Although no one took credit for the vandalism, neo-Nazi groups have claimed credit for similar incidents in the past.

The uptick in far-right violence comes on the heels of a massive increase in hate crimes in 2017, when the number of incidents targeting victims based on their nationality, ethnicity or skin colour nearly tripled, according to police statistics provided to Al Jazeera earlier this year.

Yonous Muhammadi, an Afghan refugee and head of the Athens-based Greek Forum of Refugees, was attacked by Golden Dawn in the past.

Again, I see that [far-right violence] is getting worse, he told Al Jazeera.

Next year we have elections, and [it seems] the far right is taking advantage of this situation.

{articleGUID}

In September 2013, police arrested Golden Dawns leading cadre after a party member stabbed to death Pavlos Fyssas, an anti-fascist rapper, in the Keratsini area of Piraeus.

Following that attack, 69 Golden Dawn members were put on trial for allegedly operating a criminal organisation.

That trial is slated to end later this year, but has moved slowly.
Israeli military and Palestinian sources say Israeli soldiers targeted an observation post.

Israeli tank shelling in the Gaza Strip has killed at least three people, according to Israeli and Palestinian sources.

The attack on Sunday targeted an observation post manned by Islamic Jihad fighters after an explosive device was left near the Israel-Gaza fence, Israeli military officials said.

Two of the killed were identified as 25-year-old Hussein al-Amour, 28-year-old Abdul Haleem al-Naqa, according to the Palestinian health ministry. A third person, 25-year-old Naseem Marwan al-Amour, succumbed later to his wounds.

A day earlier, Israeli aircraft struck two targets belonging to the Hamas movement, although no casualties were reported.

More than 118 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since mass protests demanding the right of return began in late March.

Israel has been widely condemned for its killing of unarmed protesters.
Giuseppe Conte abandons his mandate to form a new government after meeting with President Sergio Mattarella.

Giuseppe Conte, Italys prime minister-designate, has abandoned his mandate to form a new government, the presidential palace has said.

The announcement on Sunday came after a meeting between Conte and Italian President Sergio Mattarella to discuss a proposed list of cabinet members, in what would have been Italys first populist government.

Contes attempt at forming a government broke down after Mattarella refused to endorse Paolo Savona, a vocal critic of the European Union, for the post of minister of economy.

Conte told reporters he gave the maximum effort, attention, to carry out his task with the full collaboration of Five Star Movement and League political parties.

The move could open the way for renewed elections.

Later on Sunday, the Italian presidents office announced Mattarella had summoned Carlo Cottarelli for talks on Monday, signalling the former senior director at the International Monetary Fund might be asked to head a technocrat government.

Inconclusive elections

Conte, a 53-year-old law professor, was given his mandate by Mattarella on Wednesday, 80 days after Italy held inconclusive elections.

He had been put forward by Luigi di Maio and Matteo Salvini, the leaders of would-be coalition partners Five Star Movement and League, who after months of political deadlock agreed on a government programme earlier this month.





The populist Five Star Movement came out as the single largest party in Italys March elections, capturing nearly a third of the vote. The far-right League was the biggest party in a right-wing coalition which as a bloc captured about 37 percent of seats in Italys two houses of parliament.

Mattarella, who constitutionally must approve of cabinet picks, blocked Savona as incoming economy minister, citing concerns that Savona might have pushed Italy out of the eurozone and his appointment would have alarmed markets.

I have agreed and accepted all the nominations, except that of the minister of economy, Mattarella said in a televised speech on Sunday.

I asked for that ministry an authoritative political figure from the coalition parties who was not seen as the supporter of a line that could provoke Italys exit from the euro, he added.

On Friday, ratings agency Moodys had threatened to downgrade Italys debt rating, citing a risk that the new government might fail to reduce its public debt.

Shortly before Contes bid broke down, Leagues Salvini said the would-be coalition partners should be able to name the ministers they wanted.

In a democracy, if we are still in a democracy, theres only one thing to do: let the Italians have their say, he said.

Di Maio, the Five Star Movement leader, called Mattarellas rejection of Savona unacceptable.

Whats the point of going to vote if its the ratings agencies that decide? he said.

I have been informed that the parties now want an immediate election. It is a decision I will make after we discuss it in parliament.

Political limbo

In his televised speech, Mattarella said he knew his stance would not be popular.





Commenting on the latest developments, Al Jazeeras Nadim Baba said the breakdown leaves Italy in political limbo.

Wen the results came out from the general election, a lot of people were saying this was a call by the electorate for a fresh wave of politicians, he said.

This was seen as the chance for a break by somebody  that has failed.

Baba added that Italy might be primed for a long period of a caretaker government before fresh elections, as well as more disillusionment by the Italian electorate and of course economic uncertainty.
Clashes between police and separatists escalated in Kashmir Valley after Friday prayers.

More video clips from the story
Hundreds gather in Njoro to mark ruling that recognised the Ogiek peoples rights to land, religion and culture.

Nessuit, Kenya  Kenyas Ogiek people dressed in traditional regalia have gathered in the western town of Njoro in the Rift Valley to celebrate the anniversary of an historic land rights ruling.

Men and women on Saturday performed traditional songs and dances at the Nessuit Primary School in a celebration organised by the human rights group, Ogiek Peoples Development Program (OPDP).

The Ogiek have designated May 26 as Ogiek Celebration Day.

It marks the first anniversary of a ruling by the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights (ACHPR), which found that the Kenyan government had violated the Ogiek peoples right to land, religion, culture, development and non-discrimination by evicting thousands of families from the Mau Forest.

The landmark verdict also recognised the Ogieks indigenous status and their right to reparations from the Kenyan government.





Our fight for land ownership is a battle of the weak against the mighty, said 48-year-old Sarah Osasi, who now lives in a rental house after being evicted from her home in Ngongongeri.

We want to remind the government through the celebration that we are still existing and we have nowhere else to go except running to it to safeguard our rights, she said.

Ogiek, a community of about 45,000 people, are among the few indigenous groups in Kenya.

Human rights activists from across Africa, lawyers and hundreds of people from other ethnic communities joined in the celebrations.

Justice for Ogiek

Daniel Kobei, executive director of OPDP, urged the Kenyan government to implement the landmark ruling.

We want the government to hear the voices of the people that Ogiek want their land, he said.

Justice for Ogiek now is our message today.

OPDP is among the three groups that brought the case against the Kenyan government at the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights in 2009. The commission then referred the case to the ACHPR in 2012.

After delivering its ruling last year, the court ordered the Ogiek people to submit requests for reparations within three months and the Kenyan government to report on its progress on addressing violations against the Ogiek people within six months.

Kobei said members of the Ogiek community have already submitted requests for the reparations and are now waiting for the courts decision.

Daniel Kobei urged the Kenyan government to implement land rights ruling [Moraa Obiria/ Al Jazeera]

Lucy Claridge, the lawyer who represented the Ogiek in the land rights case, said the celebration is a call to the government to respect the rights of Ogiek and take serious and meaningful steps to return their land.

Kagwiria Mbogori, chairperson of Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, a government watchdog, was emphatic that the ruling was a clear message to the government that they respect the rights of the indigenous peoples.

{articleGUID}

The ruling was a major success for the community and this is a good time to appreciate the journey, said Mbogori, who officiated the occasion.

Landmark judgment

The Ogiek community, however, is worried that the implementation process might be derailed by the politicisation of the issue as well as the potential influence of powerful figures who own land they are claiming.

Nevertheless, they remain hopeful that the government will fully honour the continental courts decision.

In November 2017, the Ministry of Environment formed a 17-member taskforce to establish both registration and status of the claimed land and recommend measures to provide redress to the Ogieks claim.

Zachayo Lesingo, a 47-year old Ogiek, said the formation of the body gives them hope that the government is responding to the ruling and will finally become landowners in Mau.

At least the government is making progress despite our land claim being politicised, said Lesingo, at his home in Inginge village in Nakuru county.

The Ministry of Environment said the taskforce has reviewed the judgement and related policies and legislations and has appreciated the gravity of the matter.

The body is preparing to hold meetings with leaders and affected community for dialogue, the ministry said, adding that it was also consulting with a separate taskforce on forest resources moratorium since it was also looking at forest resources management vis a vis communities living near the forest.

The ministry was referring to the taskforce it appointed in February following the imposition of a 90-day ban on logging activities in Kenyan forests by Deputy President William Ruto.

Ogiek women performed traditional dances to celebrate Ogiek Day [Moraa Obiria/ Al Jazeera]

A place to call home

Korir Singoei, a member of the Ogiek taskforce, said the government is committed towards effective implementation of the ruling.

I have come here today to pledge my support  I have come here today to pledge to continue working with your community to make sure the government implements the decision(of the African Court), he said on Saturday.

The experts say the government is duty bound to protect rights of indigenous peoples and marginalised communities in Kenya as well as respect regional instruments it has ratified such as the African Charter.

Implementing the decision will send a positive signal of governments commitment to upholding indigenous peoples land rights as it has already shown its commitment towards land reforms in Kenya, said Shadrack Omondi, an analyst at the Resource Conflict Institute, a regional environmental and natural resources policy advocacy NGO.

For Mary Chepkemei, 63, her eyes are on the executive. Speaking at the celebration, she called on the president and deputy president to respond to their sufferings and give them land.

We want a place to call a home. We want a home where our ancestors lived. We have suffered for too long, she said.
At least eight killed over last 24 hours, as death toll since protests began last month climbs to 83, activists say.

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Nicaragua over the weekend, blocking roads as at least eight more people were killed in a 24-hour period.

Protests resumed after week-long church-mediated talks between the government and opposition to quell a month of violence broke down late on Wednesday.

Demonstrators across the Central American nation blocked highways on Saturday, demanding Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, stand down.

Since protests began on April 18, at least 83 people have been killed and more than 860 wounded, according to police and rights activists.

Four people were killed on Friday, and another four by midday Saturday, police and family members said, according to AFP news agency.

Ortega, a former Sandinista rebel who first ruled between 1979 and 1990 before returning as president 11 years ago, had kept power by maintaining leftist rhetoric while ensuring an accommodation with powerful private industry and keeping up trade with the United States.

Anti-government demonstrators hold a protest demanding Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and his wife resign [Inti Ocon/AFP]

{articleGUID}

But demonstrators have voiced frustration over corruption, the autocratic style of Ortega and Murillo, limited options to change the countrys politics in elections, and the presidents control over Congress, the courts, the military and the electoral board.

The protests began after the government approved cuts to pensions and social security. The plan has since been scrapped, but protests continued.

The Organization of American States (OAS) has called for Ortega to call early elections, an issue which became the biggest stumbling block in dialogue.

Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said an early ballot would mean dismantling constitutional order and the democratically elected government.

Before protests broke out, an OAS team had been trying to mediate in a process aimed at bringing about new elections, as well as electoral reforms.

Ortega and Murillo were elected in November 2016 for a term that ends in January 2022.
Expectations of Kim-Trump face-to-face meeting grow as US officials are at the demilitarised zone for discussions.

An American delegation was engaged in talks on Monday with North Korean officials at the demilitarised zone, raising hopes that a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un could be back on.

Both the State Department and South Koreas foreign ministry said officials were in discussions at the Korean village of Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the DMZ.

Trump withdrew from a proposed June 12 summit in Singapore with Kim last Thursday, but announced the next day it could get back on track.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the summit between Kim Jong-un and myself, Trump tweeted on Sunday. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong-un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

A statement from North Koreas state news agency KCNA on Sunday also said Kim expressed his fixed will on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore citing open hostility from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.





Complete denuclearisation

While maintaining that Kim is committed to denuclearisation, South Korean President Moon Jae-in acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what that means, and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

Even though they share the same resolve, there need to be discussions regarding the roadmap for how to make it happen, and that process could be tough, he said, declining to define complete denuclearisation.

The Trump administration has demanded North Korea completely and irreversibly shutter its nuclear weapons programme. Kim and Trumps initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over Pyongyangs nuclear arsenal.

American officials are sceptical that Kim will ever fully abandon his nuclear weapons, and Moon said North Korea is not yet convinced it can trust security guarantees from the US.

A senior South Korean official later said the two Koreas are discussing a possible non-aggression pledge and the start of peace treaty talks as a way of addressing Pyongyangs security concerns ahead of US-North Korean negotiations.

Wars end?

Surprise Moon-Kim talks at the Panmunjom border village on Saturday, which South Korean officials said lasted two hours, came after their April 27 meeting, the first inter-Korean summit in more than a decade that was also held at the same venue. At that meeting, they declared they would work towards a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula and a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

{articleGUID}

Video and a photo released by South Koreas presidential Blue House on Saturday showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the Norths building in the truce village, which lies in the DMZ  the 4km wide buffer that runs along the heavily armed military border.

Andrei Lankov, from Kookmin University in Seoul, said North Koreas fear of what might happen next likely pushed Pyongyang back on track for the summit.

Donald Trump is seen as a person who can start a war. And over the last say 48 hours  maybe more  they fear that Donald Trumps administration is going to cancel the summit and that this will lead to a new escalation of tensions and probably war. This fear has been decisive, said Lankov.

Stephen Nagy from the International Christian University said Pyongyang is seeking to benefit after achieving nuclear power status.

I think its the North Koreans who have driven this engagement. Theyve consolidated their strategic nuclear deterrent, theyve decided that they can push through with negotiations  not only with the United States but also with South Korea and re-engage China. They have a clear pathway forward, he said.
White House thanks President Maduros regime for releasing Joshua Holt but says policy on Venezuela will not change.

A United States citizen who was held in a Venezuelan prison for two years has met US President Donald Trump shortly after his release.

Joshua Holt was accused of being the CIAs top spy in Latin America by senior Venezuelan officials but US officials, including Trump, say he was held hostage.

The 26-year-old travelled to the country to marry a Venezuelan woman he met online and to secure US visas for her and her two daughters.





At the meeting in the White House on Saturday, Trump called Holt incredibly brave.

We saw what was happening inside of that prison. So you really have been very, very brave, Trump said.

Holt said he was overwhelmed with gratitude for the support he received from the US government while behind bars.

They were a very, very, very difficult two years, he said. Im just so grateful for what you guys have done and for thinking about me, and caring about me, just a normal person.

Holts arrest and imprisonment came amid deteriorating relations between the socialist government of President Nicolas Maduro and the US.

Maduro has blamed an economic war by the US for his countrys deteriorating finances and consequent social instability.

The US also refuses to recognise Maduros re-election as president in a vote last week that was largely boycotted by the opposition.

A White House spokesperson thanked the Maduro regime for releasing the unjustly detained Holt from detention, but said US foreign policy towards the country would not change.

The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution, a statement issued by the White House said.

The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate  The United States will continue to use all available tools and options to pressure the Maduro regime to abide by democratic norms.
At least 92 Russian soldiers have been killed in Syria since September 2015, Russias defence ministry says.

Four Russian military personnel and dozens of rebel fighters have been killed during a battle in eastern Syrias Deir Az Zor province, according to Russian officials.

Fighting erupted after several armed groups attacked an artillery battery belonging to Syrian government forces, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing a defence ministry statement.

Two Russian military advisers who directed fire from the Syrian battery were killed on the spot. Five other personnel were wounded and taken to a Russian-run military hospital, where two later died from their wounds.

According to the defence ministry statement, cited by AFP news agency, 92 Russian soldiers have been killed in Syria since Russia entered the countrys ongoing war in September 2015.

Forty-three rebels were also killed during the battle, the ministry said, adding that several mobile terrorist groups attacked Syrian government artillery at night. The statement did not make clear when the fighting, which lasted for about one hour, took place.

Moscow helps turn tide in Assads favour

Russia is the main military backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his countrys seven-year civil war that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and displaced millions.

Moscows intervention in 2015 tilted the conflict in favour of Assads forces, who have in recent months made territorial gains against armed groups, including the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS).

Since then, Russia mainly conducted air raids against groups opposed to the government, including the Syrian National Coalition, ISIL, al-Nusra Front, and others.

In December, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a significant part of Moscows military presence in Syria to begin withdrawing from the country, saying their objective had been achieved.

Russias armed forces and the Syrian army have defeated the most battle-hardened group of international terrorists, Putin said.

The conditions for a political solution under the auspices of the United Nations have been created.

Putins comments came a month after Assad thanked Putin for saving his country and for Russias support in Syria.
South Africa: A look back at Ramaphosas first 100 days in office

While Cyril Ramaphosa has moved quickly to overhaul state enterprises since becoming president in February, on other economic fronts the so-called Ramaphoria effect has had little impact.
At least 6,872 people have been rescued while trying to enter Spain by sea so far this year, according to the IOM.

Spanish authorities have rescued more than 500 people attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea in a bid to reach Europe.

Spains maritime rescue service said it pulled 243 people from eight small boats on Sunday, a day after picking 293 others from nine vessels.

Three of the boats located on Sunday were in poor condition and sank shortly after those on board were removed from them.

The operations included plane and helicopter searches, while those rescued were from various countries in north and sub-Saharan Africa.

Arrivals to Spain by sea soar

At least 6,872 people have been rescued while trying to enter Spain by sea so far this year, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), while 218 others have died attempting to make the crossing from North Africa, known as the Western Mediterranean route.

While the number of refugees and migrants arriving in southern Europe by sea has dropped substantially since the height of the European Unions (EU) refugee crisis in 2016, the number of such arrivals in Spain has jumped during the same period, according to the IOM.

At least 21,468 arrived in Spain by sea between January 1 and December 20 last year, IOM figures show, more than triple the number for the same period in 2016.

Spain is the third busiest point of arrival for all refugees and migrants entering Europe by sea, behind Italy and Greece, accounting for 23 percent of all such arrivals to the EU.

Increasingly, it is seen as an alternative arrival destination for those seeking to avoid travelling through Libya, where widespread abuse and slavery has been documented, and onwards across the Mediterranean to southern Italy.

EU border agency

In separate comments on Sunday, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz called for EU border agency Frontex to be given a new mandate allowing it to act in third countries with the agreement of local government.

Kurz told Germanys Welt am Sonntag newspaper that more must be done to end smugglers dirty business model and prevent smugglers boats setting off on the dangerous route across the Mediterranean.

Austria is set to take over the presidency of the EU, which rotates among member states every six months, in July.

Kurz is known for his anti-immigration stance and has previously called for stricter border controls in Europe to discourage refugees from fleeing to Europe
Trump blames his own policy of separating children at the US-Mexico border on Democrats.

Anger is mounting in the United States at the governments policy of separating children from migrant and refugee parents who are caught crossing the US-Mexico border.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has taken a tough stance on what it deems to be unlawful crossings of the US-Mexico border and has vowed to prosecute the refugees and migrants who do so.

If you cross the border unlawfully .. then we will prosecute you, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said earlier this month. If youre smuggling a child, then were going to prosecute you, and that child will be separated from you, probably, as required by law, he added. If you dont want your child separated, then dont bring them across the border illegally. Its not our fault that somebody does that.





This zero-tolerance policy is a departure from the previous precedent that placed those detained in immigration proceedings while their asylum claims were examined or deportation proceedings finalised. Families were often kept together in shelters, or released to await their hearings.

As a result of the recent arrests, thousands of children have been separated from parents who have been detained and placed in the care of sponsors, but officials say some 1,500 are unaccounted for, according to figures first reported by The New York Times and Associated Press last month.

The scale of that number has sparked outrage on social media, especially amid reports that some of the children had fallen into the hands of human traffickers.

This [policy] is without a doubt one of the cruellest, most inhumane decisions President Trump has proposed so far, said Democrat legislator Joe Crowley, earlier in May, adding: Shame on him and shame on any Republican who doesnt immediately speak out against it.

Weeks later, there has been no let-up in anger towards the Trump administration, and many are demanding to know the whereabouts of the unaccounted children.

Crime against humanity

The Twitter hashtag #WhereAreTheChildren trended in the US overnight on Saturday and drew thousands of tweets.

{articleGUID}

Ripping young children away from their mothers is already beyond horrifying. But having some of the children sold into human trafficking is the greatest injustice this administration has ever done. It is a crime against humanity, wrote Dr Eugene Gu, a frequent Trump critic.

Ripping young children away from their mothers is already beyond horrifying. But having some of the children sold into human trafficking is the greatest injustice this administration has ever done. It is a crime against humanity. #WhereAreTheChildren  Eugene Gu, MD (@eugenegu) May 26, 2018

Author Maggie Smith said: My kids are asleep upstairs in their beds. It makes me physically ill to imagine having them pulled from me, going months without seeing them, not knowing if they are safe or even alive. This is, simply, evil.

My kids are asleep upstairs in their beds. It makes me physically ill to imagine having them pulled from me, going months without seeing them, not knowing if they are safe or even alive. This is, simply, evil. #WhereAreTheChildren  Maggie Smith (@maggiesmithpoet) May 27, 2018

Trump has responded by blaming his Democrat rivals for the law that he and his officials have themselves introduced and enforced.

Put pressure on the Democrats to end the horrible law that separates children from there parents once they cross the Border into the U.S. Catch and Release, Lottery and Chain must also go with it and we MUST continue building the WALL! DEMOCRATS ARE PROTECTING MS-13 THUGS, the US leader wrote, referring to the predominantly Hispanic street gang.

Put pressure on the Democrats to end the horrible law that separates children from there parents once they cross the Border into the U.S. Catch and Release, Lottery and Chain must also go with it and we MUST continue building the WALL! DEMOCRATS ARE PROTECTING MS-13 THUGS.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

There is no evidence to suggest undocumented migrants are more likely to be involved in criminal activity. To the contrary, studies show that they are less likely to the break the law.

Trump has a long track record of fiery rhetoric against immigrants, and his election campaign included a pledge to build a wall across the US-Mexico border and to ban Muslims from entering the US.

He is still looking at ways to finance the former, and a modified version of the latter is being debated at the Supreme Court.
Even if he doesnt become Colombias first-ever leftist president, Gustavo Petro has already made history by managing to arrive alive at Sundays vote.

If there has been one certainty throughout Colombias violent political past, it is that being on the left of the political spectrum and being successful, as well, meant you would not reach power or that your life would be cut short if you happened to get that far.

Just to name a few: Luis Carlos Galan was riddled with bullets at a campaign stop just days before the elections in 1989; Carlos Pizarro, a former rebel commander of the M-19 movement, was assassinated the following year; and most famously firebrand reformist candidate Jorge Eliecer Gaitan was shot dead in 1948, a killing that is seen as the beginning of the violent civil confrontations that Colombia has been unable to completely resolve to this day.

At 58, Gustavo Petro promises to defy that history on Sunday, presenting himself as the heir to those terminated leaders. He survived an attempt on his life a couple of months ago when a bullet drilled through his armoured van.

Ours is a country where change has been massacred for two centuries, he said. But now we can change that. I will be the one to change that.

Bespectacled, brainy and aloof, Petro was seen as a very long-shot candidate.

Through the force of his rhetoric, he is running a close second to right-wing candidate Ivan Duque, a pupil of controversial former President Alvaro Uribe. And polls show he is closing in.





He has been consistently attracting huge crowds at his campaign events, rattling the countrys traditional conservative elite that has always kept a tight grip on power and voters apathy.

I dont believe things are OK as they are in Colombia, Petro said. There is an immense social inequality; we are the third most unequal society in the world. We have one of the most corrupt states. And we are dealing with the legacy of a political class that has not even been capable of giving education to our society.

His followers are mostly lower- and middle-class Colombians, fascinated by his prose of social justice and reforms, as well as his radical attacks against corruption and inequality.

He aroused a fervour among the people that has been unheard for many generations. I think that since Gaitan no Colombian politicians has managed to so thoroughly describe our problems and how to solve them, Silvio Jimenez, a car service driver in Bogota, told Al Jazeera.

Socialist fear

Petros candidacy, however, has sparked as much hope and enthusiasm as it has stoked fears among the countrys elite.

They fear he could turn Colombia into another Venezuela, which is going through its worst social and economic crisis after almost two decades of Chavista rule.

Petro proposes to transform the countrys economic model, moving Colombia away from its reliance on oil and coal in favour of clean energy.

He also wants to increase taxes on unproductive landowners and redistribute land.

{articleGUID}

Petro insists these are just common-sense reforms.

What Im proposing is a middle-class society to which we should all belong. Not one with just powerful, rich people on one side and poor dying of hunger on the other. We can find in that middle class the creative private initiative, the instruments to bring about change.

But many in the business community are fearful of that kind of change.

Hes dangerous for Colombia, a director of an investment company, who wished not to be named, told Al Jazeera. He wants to start a class war, the director added. His win would be bad for business and for workers. Foreign investments in the country have already come to a halt as investors wait to find out if he will be president.

From rebel to politician

Petro says the desperate condition of Colombias poor and the 1973 coup against Chilean socialist President Salvador Allende sparked his political awakening.

At 17, he joined the urban rebel group M-19. While he says he never participated in armed action, Petro rose quickly to the political leadership of the group. In the mid-1980s, he was arrested by the army  for possession of weapons  and tortured.

Following a peace deal between the M-19 and the government in the 1990s, Petro ran for office, becoming a respected, firebrand senator.

{articleGUID}

From Congress, he denounced collusion between establishment politicians and paramilitary leaders, implicating President Alvaro Uribe himself.

He failed in his first run as president in 2010, but succeeded in his bid to become mayor of the capital, Bogota  the second most powerful political position in the country  the following year.

His term as mayor was marked by controversy. Critics say he showed his autocratic side as he tried to take on the political and economic powers that ran the city.

Political allies and collaborators accused him of not listening to others and being unable to negotiate. At least 12 close allies resigned their posts. Antonio Navarro, a respected leftist politician who was his chief of staff said Petro was a Lone Ranger.

Those controversies only increased the fear, political analyst Jorge Restrepo told Al Jazeera. The radicalism of his proposals for the presidency are the same, Restrepo said.

He wants to greatly increase spending even if its unclear how he will pay for it. And he has this anti-business streak and lack of compromise that remain worrisome.

The benefits of peace

Jose Antequera, the son of a leftist political activist assassinated in 1989, said the attacks are fear mongering from the countrys elite who want to avoid change.

Theres a habit in Colombia, which tries to disqualify ones adversary in order to avoid having to challenge his ideas, Antequera told Al Jazeera.

Until recently internal conflict was the main pretext to avoid change, claiming that the left could not govern as it was complicit with armed rebels, he said.

Now that no longer being the case, people are beginning to focus on their problems for the first time, such as lack of quality public education, a responsive health system. They can no longer be hidden.

Many agree that the 2016 landmark peace agreement with FARC rebels has done much to open the door to a viable candidate from the left, lifting a decades-old taboo.

Petro is convinced about that, saying: We can leave behind the political machinery, the corruption, the hatred, the revenge, the violence and finally build a great nation of peace and democracy. Social justice is the contrary of inequality.

If polls are to be believed, Petro has a chance to win the runoff in June should he come in second on Sunday.

But its clear that the simple fact that hes gotten this far means the country and its democracy might finally become available to all Colombians.
Albania opposition stages rally with thousands accusing the government of having links to organised crime.

Thousands of Albanian opposition supporters called for the resignation of Prime Minister Edi Rama and Interior Minister Fatmir Xhafaj during a protest in the capital Tirana, accusing them of links to organised crime and drug smuggling.

Participants marched along Tiranas Martyrs of the Nation boulevard on Saturday chanting Rama go. They held Albanian and European Union flags, and some threw stones and other objects at Ramas office building and the interior ministry.

National police chief Ardi Veliu said 11 officers were injured while trying to keep protesters away from government buildings.

Democratic Party leader Lulzim Basha addressed the rally, telling demonstrators the time had come for Rama to step down.

They promised the people jobs, but the only jobs that this government has created are in sectors where they deal with drugs, Basha told supporters.

They promised rule of law but this government has only defended criminals and government officials who are connected to criminals.

Smuggling and corruption

The opposition fears the governments alleged involvement in organised crime would disrupt the countrys path towards EU membership.

Albania, a NATO member since 2009, is expecting to launch negotiations to join the EU next month.

Basha estimated hundreds of thousands of people attended the event. Police gave no figures. The rally ended after about two hours.





Some protesters pulled down a fence at the interior ministry and tried to break through a police cordon. The conservative opposition Democrats showed a picture of their newspapers editor-in-chief allegedly injured in skirmishes with police.

The protests were sparked after journalist Jetmir Olldashi released a recording of a phone conversation, which the opposition believes was between Xhafajs brother and a drug dealer.

They talked over the phone and thats the audio clip that was released. They talked about smuggling cannabis to Italy, Olldashi told Al Jazeera.

Ridiculous and unbelievable

Democrats accuse Xhafaj of supporting his brothers alleged drug-related activities. Earlier this month, the brother turned himself into Italian authorities to serve a 2002 sentence for drug trafficking.

Xhafaj denies the allegations, saying he would resign the moment the claims were proven.

Al Jazeeras Avni Ahmetaj, reporting from Tirana, said tensions have risen following a court decision two weeks ago to place under house arrest former interior minister Saimir Tahiri and a long time, close associate of Rama, who it alleged were involved in drug smuggling and corruption.

The accused officials rejected all allegations against them.

Rama took to Facebook on Saturday to thank Democrats who refused to take part in the rally.

Thank you to all the Democrats who do not support the government but still refused to take part in the protest, which sounds ridiculous and unbelievable for every Albanian who does not accept hurting his country because of hidden interests, Rama wrote.

The Democrats suffered a landslide loss in last years parliamentary election securing only 43 of the 140 seats.
About the show

A weekly programme that examines and dissects the worlds media, how they operate and the stories they cover. Watch The Listening Post every Saturday at 0830GMT
This summer, the National Park Service, the Forest Service, and the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife plan to capture many mountain goats from the Olympic National Park, and relocate them to the North Cascades. Ravaging the ranks of the only species of its kind in the world would be appalling even if it was based upon circumspective stewardship, but it's not! Rather, it's based on disputed science and peculiar notions of environmental aesthetics.

Reflecting on our environmental stewardship, author Bill Bryson once wrote, "It's an unnerving thought that we may be the living universe's supreme achievement and its worst nightmare simultaneously." What these agencies are conjuring up for the mountain goats in the Olympic National Park represents a nightmare.

We're worthy stewards of the land when we prudently intervene in nature to judiciously manage our natural resources, but the plan concocted to relocate mountain goats is more atrocious than judicious. That's because relocation is only the first part  according to Olympic National Park wildlife branch manager Patti Happe, they'll be able to capture only about half of the goats. The others will be shot.

Louise Johnson, the park's chief of resources management, also estimates that about half will be killed because capture crews can't access their rugged terrain. That's about 300 mountain goats to be exterminated for offending the sensibilities of supercilious bureaucrats with a vendetta against non-native species.

There are three main justifications for this absurd interference with the prerogatives of nature: the mountain goats are not native to the Olympics, they're harming the local vegetation, and they're dangerous to hikers.

Not native: A National Geographic report in 1896 mentions mountain goats on the Olympic Peninsula, indicating they could be native. Even if that is wrong, what's not disputed is that mountain goats were introduced to the Olympics way back in 1920. For almost 100 years, then, the only species of its type in the whole world has been thriving in Olympic National Park. Heaven forbid that this is outside their "known" historical range.

Life for mountain goats can be challenging; kid and yearling survival may be less than 50 percent. Despite this, they are flourishing in the park; indeed, their population is growing about 8% per year. This overwhelmingly contradicts Happe, who insists, "[T]hey're not part of our ecosystem." But mountain goats are native to the mountains of northwestern North America, which includes Washington State, and they're fond of territory in the 44 to 63 degrees north latitude region  which encompasses the Olympic National Park. They are part of our ecosystem and have been relishing it long before Happe was a twinkle in her father's eye.

Whether native or introduced by humans 100 years ago, the mountain goats are clearly at home in their Olympic habitat. Nevertheless, the park bureaucrats seem to have mountain goat derangement syndrome. The aforementioned Louise Johnson echoes Happe, insinuating that the Olympics aren't their natural habitat. Revealing her bias, Johnson states that the goats' introduction to the park in the 1920s was "the wrong thing to do, the animals are an exotic species in an area that hadn't evolved to tolerate them." Actually, it is downright hospitable, given their population growth.

Harming native vegetation: A second major justification for tormenting the mountain goats is based on an environmental review that is prejudiced against supposed interlopers. One wonders: instead of mid-level managers succumbing to Parkinson's Law, can't they do something useful and go tidy up the trails?

One specious argument in the review is that mountain goats are damaging the native vegetation. Not so fast...the Department of the Interior appointed a conservation biologist named Reed Noss to investigate. He concluded that harm to the native vegetation was more likely caused by rain, snow, and ice. Should potentially hundreds of mountain goats be slaughtered if the science behind the park's environmental review is sloppy and disputed by an eminent biologist? Besides, who is ultimately qualified to question why nature made the vegetation so tasty in the first place? And so much fun for itchy mammals to roll in, too.

There's irony that a state that promotes open borders for needy and ill behaved illegal aliens (this brutal gang member even goes by the moniker "Animal") imposes rigid borders upon an animal that likes to chow down on Piper's Bellflower.

Safety risk: The third major justification for the diabolical plan is that mountain goats pose a safety risk. One hiker gored back in 2010 was a personal tragedy, but fatal goat attacks are so rare that it was the first such incident in Washington State. Even Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Rich Harris, who favors transplanting mountain goats to the Cascades, admits, "The fears of killer goats are overblown." By far the biggest cause of deaths in Olympic National Park are falls, some of which may have occurred when encroaching upon the mountain goats. Indeed, many hikers seem to appreciate their goat encounters so much that the WDFW's own website warns people to be wary about conditioning goats to habituate with humans.

Officials also went after the goats back in 1980s and 1990s. Decades later, an animal whose life can be tough is nevertheless thriving is in a suitable environment at its preferred latitude and longitude coordinates. They could always use a bit more salt, but otherwise, it's a salubrious environment they have roamed for about 100 years (or longer).

If the length of a generation is measured as the time between the birth of a parent to the birth of offspring, then mountain goats have been in the Olympic National Park more goat generations than there have been human generations since the founding of our country. The singular fatal attack on a human in the Olympics, now eight years ago, is an excuse bureaucrats often cite to justify their vindictiveness toward the hardy beasts. It seems that anti-mountain goat sentiment has long pervaded their culture.

Nature's prerogative: Intervention in nature is tolerable if it remedies the dire consequences of certain human activities  for example, deterring sea lions from ravaging delicious salmon that are unnaturally vulnerable due to dams or other human development. But it's intolerable to contradict nature's dictates by choosing winners and losers among fauna on behalf of flora whose demise may be more due to harsh mountain elements. The hubris of government zealots who infringe upon nature's prerogative of "survival of the fittest" is disturbing. Maybe they are burrowed civil servants from the last administration who don't appreciate winning or celebrating success.

Humans represent only 0.01% of known life but still managed to destroy about 83% of wild mammals. Let's not add to that list based upon ill founded arrogance that Oreamnos americanus doesn't belong in our ecosystem.
Secretary Mike Pompeo has made it abundantly clear that he will not cater to the left's soft bigotry of low expectations with respect to Iran. For some reason, those who claim to hold a monopoly on moral authority are all too often the same individuals who hold Islamic radicals to a lower standard of behavior than other menaces. One can only assume that this is based on their politically correct worldview, which blinds them from objective truth.

In a recent press briefing, Secretary Pompeo brilliantly articulated the stunning hypocrisy of those who do not believe that it is reasonable to hold Iran to the same accountability as others on the world stage.

"We wouldn't tolerate Iceland doing what the Iranians are doing. We wouldn't tolerate Chad doing what the Iranians  I could just pick a number. I'm sort of tripping through the alphabet," he stated.

Why would we tolerate it those driven by an apocalyptic ideology? Iran's supreme leaders are all true believers in hastening "the promised one," or the 12th Imam, who they believe will bring about the end of the world and kill all nonbelievers. It's time we take the blinders off and recognize what will happen if a country that endorses ideology as menacing as that is acquires a nuclear weapon.

This is why political correctness isn't just illogical; it's dangerous. When a multicultural worldview becomes so ingrained that it clouds proper judgment about the threats we face, it must be discarded. It's about time we had a secretary of state who understood that truth.

Former secretary of state John Kerry vowed to put a stop to Iran's nuclear weapon ambitions. It did not happen. The Trump administration has clearly determined that you cannot fight strength with weakness. Secretary Pompeo is tasked with having to take on this threat of Iran, since it clearly was not handled properly by former administrations.

First, the so-called "Iran deal" wasn't a deal; it was acquiescence. Iran was given more than a billion in cash in unmarked bills in exchange for just about nothing.

One of the staples of the Iran deal stipulated that the Iranians would need to remove approximately 75% of their nuclear centrifuges. Iran was allowed to keep 25% of those for so-called "research purposes," as long as it was willing to limit the amount of enriched uranium. How could the free world be assured that Iran was complying with these terms? Inspectors would be allowed to visit the facilities.

However, if one of the inspectors had suspicions that Iran was hiding a centrifuge or not complying with any other aspects of the agreement, Iran would be allowed 24 days before a full inspection could be completed at the facility in question.

Why would they be allowed any time to stall inspections, let alone 24 days, especially if they have nothing to hide? Throwing that dangerously useless deal in the trash was perhaps the greatest accomplishment of President Trump so far.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently pointed out that the deal itself was built upon the lie that Iran was never pursuing nuclear weapons in the first place.

What if the media held Hassan Rouhani to the same standard as they hold Netanyahu? What if they exercised the same scrutiny of an Islamic terrorist nation as they do the only Jewish and democratic state in the Middle East?

If Israel defends itself against an army of Hamas terrorists hurling Molotov cocktails and explosives across their border (as they recently did during the embassy opening), they are immediately portrayed as the aggressors and are the subject of condemnation.

The real aggressors in the Middle East are dictators like Rouhani.

A nation that regularly preaches "Death to America" and the total extermination of our Jewish allies should not be granted leniency in terms of complying with basic humanitarian demands.

What will it take for the U.S. media to start recognizing the threat Iran poses to civilization as we know it? Maybe the Trump administration could start a rumor that Rouhani recently converted to Christianity and has become a white supremacist.

Secretary Pompeo recently outlined the approach the U.S. will now take to protect our national security.

"It's not a fantasy to imagine the Iranians making a decision not to fire missiles into another nation and threatening American lives that travel through that airport. It's not a fantasy to ask them to cease engaging in terror," he said.

That's the type of leadership the United States and the rest of the world has been starving for. Finally, some unwavering commitment to holding malicious nations accountable for their actions. Finally, no more tolerance for terror. Finally, no more excuses.

If Iran wants a seat at the table with the rest of the civilized world, it's going to have to start acting like it. Those who advocate for anything less do not believe in true equality, morality, or human rights, no matter how desperately they posture themselves as such.

Brigitte Gabriel is chairman of ACT For America, the largest national security grassroots organization in the U.S. She is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America and They Must be Stopped: Why we must defeat radical Islam and how we can do it.
Memorial Day had its origin as Decoration Day following the Civil War, but it became an official federal holiday to honor those who lost their lives while serving in the armed forces of the United States only in 1971.

Memorial Day is also an occasion to associate those who died with the just causes for which the United States was willing to go to war. World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam were conflicts where freedom was clearly at stake. The post-9-11 engagements in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria remain a bit more complicated, being associated with responses to horrific abuse of power and to transnational radical Islamist terrorism.

October 2018 will mark the commemoration of 25 years since U.S. forces suffered defeat in Somalia. But we still commemorate the courageous Army Rangers and Delta Force members who fought and died in the chaotic streets of Mogadishu so their fellow soldiers could survive and be rescued against overwhelming odds, depicted in the popular film Blackhawk Down.

Some U.S. military engagements were ill advised, and history shows that the instances of injustice were probably greater from actions taken by Washington politicians and bureaucrats than by the military in the field. For instance, the government's willingness to authorize and deploy military force without clear objectives and a strategy for victory  which put American lives in harm's way and cost 58,220 lives  was the great injustice of the Vietnam War. In other cases, such as in Iraq, President Obama's political decision to withdraw U.S. military forces by the end of 2011 directly led to the injustice of reversal of hard fought gains made by the military in the prior eight years, which resulted in a power vacuum that was filled by the rise of ISIS and growing Iranian influence.

Over a million Americans have given their lives in defending U.S. interests in conflicts large and small. And while remembering those people is a central purpose of this holiday, Memorial Day takes on its deepest meaning when we connect it with our roots. Americans were unique in sacrificing their treasure and giving their lives to found the first country in history establishing that all people have natural rights that come from God rather than from rulers or government. The Declaration of Independence affirmed the equality of all people and that they are endowed with unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Thus, when Americans sacrificed their lives in military service, it was not just to defend the United States, but it was also to uphold the natural rights and spiritual values associated with the nation's founding that provide inspiration for others worldwide.

There were times and places in human history when there were nation-states of cultural achievement, virtue, and efflorescence, such as in Periclean Athens, in the Florence of the Medicis, and in England of Elizabeth and Shakespeare. But none was founded the way America was  that is, by a collection of human genius who prayerfully approached drafting a constitution that would mitigate corruption and abuse of power while also protecting the citizens' unalienable God-given rights and enabling them to rise to levels closer to the divine image in which all were created than they would have under any government previously conceived.

Yet another significant part of celebrating Memorial Day is associated with the example set by Americans in how they treated their vanquished foes.

The respect that General MacArthur and the occupying American forces displayed after Japan's surrender surprised and won over many of the people, who assumed that the victorious Americans would execute their beloved emperor and plunder them and treat them in ways similar to what Japanese soldiers did to those they had conquered in East and Southeast Asia. The courtesy and respect shown by the Americans helped mollify resistance to the occupation's policies that forced fundamental change on the country  rewriting the constitution and laws; land reform; and the reorganization of business ownership to provide more competition, fairness, and opportunity.

In Europe after armistice, the war-indebted United States launched the Marshall Plan that gave some $125 billion in current dollar value in economic support to help reconstruct war-devastated regions in Western Europe. Major initiatives included rebuilding industry  even giving the Europeans a leg up on the U.S. with the building of state-of-the-art factories and facilities that were in many cases more efficient than what then existed in the U.S.

In sum, Memorial Day means more than remembering those who died in military service to the country. It means connecting with a heritage that began with a courageous and faithful group of founders, who risked their lives for the birth of freedom and the establishment of America as a "shining city on a hill." It also means remembering all who subsequently died for their nation, and especially "the greatest generation," who  after forfeiting so many lives to assure victory for the Allied nations in World War II  then sacrificed more to rebuild and preserve the independence of its former enemies.

Scott Powell is senior fellow at the Discovery Institute in Seattle. His father enlisted in the Army after Pearl Harbor and recently celebrated his 95th birthday. Powell can be reached at scottp@discovery.org.
I am a fairly avid consumer of political news, and I watched the live coverage of President Trumps address to the Naval Academy graduates at their commencement ceremony. (If you happened to miss the inspiring speech, Rick Morans coverage of it was excellent. But Rick and I, and probably you, did not hear about the fact that the President of the United States, a 71 year old man, stood in the Maryland sun and heat, wearing a suit jacket, and took the time to shake the hand and thank every single one of the 1,191 graduates. I learned of this via Glenn Reynolds and The Newly Press.

It was not exactly a secret, yet got little play in the media. You can see the entire process, speedy up, in this tweet:

Awesome video of Pres. Trump shaking hands of Naval Academy graduates for 90 minutes. Heres every single one in under a minute. pic.twitter.com/HGkrH7f3bV  Josh Caplan (@joshdcaplan) May 25, 2018

71 year old, stood straight backed in the sun on concrete and shook hands for 90 minutes. What an incredible tribute. Thank you President Trump. Meaningful. #MAGA  dagny (@dukeblu85) May 25, 2018

These new Naval Officers and Marines will remember the gesture for the rest of their lives. I dont recall President Obama doing anything similar, and as Twitter commenters pointed out:
Migrants cross borders for many reasons. They may be subject to political persecution. They may be hounded by criminal gangs. They may be beaten by evil husbands. They may have an aversion to spicy foods, or giant tsetse flies, or repetitive salsa dancing.

That's why our border should always be open and inviting and never, ever be secured.

But what I'm talking about applies to only one border crossing: the one on Roxham Road between New York State and Canada.

That's because a flood of illegal aliens has been using this road to flee America and go to Canada.

Ever since President Trump has been less welcoming to illegal aliens, some of them have been leaving American and going to Canada. Because Canada is a progressive country that welcomes migrants with special needs, it feels no need to secure its border with the U.S.

One particular crossing seems to be heavily used is on Roxham Road in the northern edge of New York State. At the end of the road, one can simply walk around a small fence to enter Canada without any difficulty:

The foreground is Canada. See all those wonderful people (perhaps they are migrants!) in the background? They are in America. All they have to do is walk around a small fence to get into Canada.

The Canadian government loves getting our illegal aliens. The Canadian citizenry, not as much.

It may seem paradoxical. Last year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to issue an open invitation to refugees with a tweet declaring, "to those fleeing persecution, terror & war ... #WelcomeToCanada." This year, his government is working hard to deter thousands of people who are walking over the U.S. border to seek asylum in Canada.

Does liberalism seem paradoxical?

Since President Donald Trump was elected, over 27,000 people have crossed into Canada overland. (By comparison, only 2,000 people did this in 2016.) ... "There's a perception that Canada is being invaded," said Wendy Ayotte, a member of Bridges Not Borders, a Quebec-based volunteer group that formed last summer to support the asylum seekers. "The perception is that these people are illegal and that they're violating Canada's borders and that they're just queue jumpers trying to get freebies on welfare."

But others love the illegals!

Moira Kilmainham, a member of Solidarity Across Borders, a volunteer group working with asylum seekers in Montreal[, says,] "Trying to depict these people as welfare bums and security threats and criminals is a racist attitude. Canadians hate when you say that we're racist, but we are."

I wish all Canadians could be as open and welcome to illegals leaving the U.S. as Moira. They are all virtuous, dreaming people who will bring added diversity to Canada's communities, if not to Canada's welfare rolls.

So when it comes to Roxham Road, I say, "Open borders for all!"

Ed Straker is the senior writer at Newsmachete.com.
Tomorrow, the US officially recognizes Memorial Day. But the origin of a day to remember our fallen heroes was originally set aside as May 30, and the story of the man largely believed responsible for starting the tradition is a remarkable testament to the healing power of remembrance.

Nine years ago, I penned a tribute to former Union General John Logan, a pro-war Democrat, whose leadership of the veterans group Grand Army of the Republic set the stage for his passionate advocay of formally remembering the fallen during the Civil War.

Popular with the men under his command, Logan was a rarity - a commander the men could trust. They sensed his concern for their welfare as Logan made it a habit of visiting the company mess to taste the food himself. If he found it inadequate, hed dress down the company commander and order him to fix the situation. Usually it was something simple like changing cooks or cleaning the cooking pots once and a while. In addition, Logan made sure the men under his command were properly supplied with shoes, blankets, and other necessities that kept the men comfortable during winter months. Logans concern for his men was evident after the war as well. Elected to Congress again in 1866, Logan took part in the first memorial day observance in Illinois. Its thought that Logan became especially interested in the issue of a decoration day for the nation following a gesture by the women of Columbia, Mississippi who, during a remembrance for the dead, placed flowers on the graves of both Union and Southern soldiers. Logan had fought with Grant at the battle of Columbia and remembered well the hatred of civilians toward the Union Army. Horace Greeley wrote a famous editorial about the Columbian women and Francis Miles Finch wrote a beautiful poem for the Atlantic Monthly entitled The Blue and the Grey. Logans popularity with the men paid off when he was named Commander in Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). In 1868 he issued his famous general order that designated May 30th as Decoration Day for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land.

The gesture of placing flowers on the graves of the dead from both sides occurred in several places in the south immediately after the war. But the Columbia, MS women caught the attention of hard war man Horace Greely who immediately grasped the significance. Perhaps remembering the dead from both the North and South could reunite the country.

Logan went on to become a senator and was nominated as a Democrat for vice president in 1884. He also wrote a loving tribute to Civil War volunteers, in contrast to General Grant's autobiography that trashed the citizen soldiers. But his promotion for a "Decoration Day" on May 30, using the very politically powerful veterans group, the GAR, guaranteed that date would serve as a day of remembrance.
In the year of their so-called blue wave, California's Democrats, ensconced in the bluest state in the union, are in the midst of what the New York Times leads with "mushrooming political chaos across Southern California."

Couldn't happen to a nicer group of leftwing powermongers.

Apparently, so many leftists have gotten word of a great blue wave for Democrats this year that there are too many of them running. With Democrats creating a top-two system for a runoff in November, that means they are cannibalizing each other. Funnier still, nationally, they need to flip California's seven retiring Republican seats in Southern California blue or no takeover of the House for them. Their whole strategy is built on that, and that is where they are thrashing around.

Now they've got chaos for themselves, and might just see Republicans win as a result.

Here is what the New York Times is reporting:

With so many Democrats running, the partys fear is that the vote will be splintered, allowing Republicans  who have fewer candidates  to dominate some primaries. The party and allied groups are spending more than $4 million on just three campaigns, intervening in one contest to prop up a favored candidate; attacking a Republican from the right in another; and even reminding people not to waste their votes on ghost candidates who have dropped out yet remain on the ballot. As any progressive activist will explain through gnashed teeth, the head-snapping scramble is because of the states top two open primary system, which allows the two leading vote-getters  regardless of political parties  to advance to the general election.

It's nice to read this stuff because all the Dems are doing is flooding us with TV and radio ads here in Southern California, throwing forward one callow 29-year-old after another with leftwing ideas and zero willingness to admit the gamy details about what they want to do to us. If it's not that, it's someone claiming to be an ex-Marine who made his fortune as a land developer, a very unpopular profession in SoCal given how such fast-buck jerks pay off pols to get what they want and then dump congestion and horrible planning on top of us, ruining our quality of life, as they make out. Loathesome people in themselves, doubled by the fact that they are leftwing.

As a result of this chaos, which they have yet to resolve (it exists on the Republican side, too, but the GOP shows signs of coming together on John Cox for governor), we have the amazingly icky specter of Gavin Newsom, former mayor of San Francisco, doing crazy stuff to win the top spot in the gubernatorial runoff - by boosting GOP candidate John Cox.

The ads are amazing, get ready to clutch your pearls:

Cox is endorsed by Donald Trump!

Oooh! Terror!

Cox favors, are you ready, tax cuts!

Cox supports the NRA!

As if those things won't get more people onto the Cox bandwagon to vote for him.

Those are actually what we see on television in the Newsom ads.

The Los Angeles Times explains it out as Newsom's strategy to get Cox on the second slot of the ballot for November, cynically convinced that there is no way in heck Cox can win the race against pretty boy him.

Ugh.

The Times says even if all Republicans vote for Cox and half the independents do, there is still no way Cox can win.

All I can think is: Don't push your luck, pals. California has elected Republicans in the past 20 years and might just do it again, given the horrors of one-party state and all the corruption around the issue of succoring illegal immigrants.

Nothing would be nicer than to see Newsom's masterplan to knock out his fellow Democrat challengers and face Cox backfire on him badly.

If the Republicans play their cards right, and one has to hope they are on it and not sleeping as they usually are, it could be the Mother of all Surprises in this overhyped blue wave that is supposedly poised to counter the great Trump phenomenon. Thrash on, blue bozos.

Image credit: Sander van Dijk, via Flickr // Creative Commons SA 2.0
Donald Trump welcomed an American couple, Josh and Thamy Holt, to the White House last night after securing their release from a Venezuelan prison on Friday.

Their freedom was negotiated by the Trump administration and the office of Senator Orrin Hatch. The senator posted a video of the reunion:

CNN:

Holt and his wife were freed overnight and released to the US Embassy in Caracas, according to Foro Penal, a human rights organization of lawyers and others who assist political prisoners in Venezuela. The couple was joined by Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee as they flew back to the US on Saturday afternoon. The U.S. "offered nothing" to Venezuelan leadership in exchange for the release of Holt, two White House National Security Council officials told CNN. "We're grateful to all who participated in this miracle," Holt's family said in a statement. "Over the last two years I've worked with two Presidential administrations, countless diplomatic contacts, ambassadors from all over the world, a network of contacts in Venezuela, and President Maduro himself, and I could not be more honored to be able to reunite Josh with his sweet, long-suffering family in Riverton," Hatch said in a statement earlier on Saturday. "I want to thank (Senate Foreign Relations Committee) Chairman Bob Corker for his pivotal efforts, and that of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for their help in this effort. I want to particularly thank Caleb McCarry, whose expertise and effort in Venezuela on my behalf has been instrumental in bringing Josh home," he said, referring to an aide of Corker's. "I am pleased to join Senator Hatch and President Trump in announcing the release of Josh and Thamy Holt," Corker said in a statement. "Senator Hatch has worked tirelessly on the Holt family's behalf, and I was honored to play a small role in bringing Josh and his wife home to the United States. I also would like to thank Secretary (of State Mike) Pompeo and his team at the State Department for all that they have done."

Probably not coincidentally, Senator Corker met with President Maduro on Friday.

The Holt odyssey began in June of 2016 when Josh travelled to Venezyuela to marry Thamy, who he met online. A few days after the ceremony police burst into his hotel room and accused him of being in possession of automatic weapons - a ludicrous charge denied by Holt and the US government. He has been in prison since July, 2016.

The effort to free him gained some impetus last week:

Holt's release comes more than a week after he posted videos to Facebook during a prison riot, pleading for help from Americans and the US government. In one video he said, "I've been begging my government for two years. They say they're doing things, but I'm still here."

The Holts were political prisoners, held unjustly in horrible conditions. And while the White House says they gave Venezuela nothing in return, there are two Maduro relatives who are serving long prison sentences for drugs. It may not have been a straight up exchange, but the two convicts bear watching over the coming weeks to see if they are granted release.

Trump's efforts to release Americans held captive in North Korea and Venezuela stand in stark contrast to President Obama's efforts while he was in office. Why Trump has had success while Obama didn't will come out someday, but it seems in both cases, Kim and Maduro desperately want better relations with the US.
President Trump has been handed an ideal example to reinforce his drive to reform civil service laws. Using executive orders (his pen and his phone, as his predecessor put it), he has just implemented three reforms, but those can be reversed by the next Democrat in the Oval Office. It is time for him to place bureaucratic abuses on the national agenda.

The Transportation Security Agency is working hard to deserve its reputation as a useless, ineffective agency that consistently fails tests of its ability to spot guns and bombs, but which harasses (and feels up) grandmothers, while delaying airline passengers from getting to their gates on time. As one of the least popular federal bureaucracies, its misbehavior can be used to justify reform. And it has just been found culpable in a doozy of an abuse of bureaucratic power.

It is one thing to be ineffective, but much worse to resist and punish when employees attempt to identify and fix problems. Yet, that is what the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was caught doing, and penalized a million dollars for. Local media in Hawaii, but so far as a cursory Google search can reveal, no general interest national outlets have picked up the story. KHNL TV-Hawaii News Now reports:

Three Transportation Security Administration employees in Hawaii who were abruptly reassigned to mainland positions have been awarded a total of $1 million dollars by a federal investigative agency. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel said the TSA retaliated against the three over concerns regarding security and management problems at Hawaii airports. Heather Callaghan Chuck was deputy director in charge of operations in Honolulu, while lifelong Kauai resident Sharlene Mata was in charge of neighbor island airports. The two found 15 types of security vulnerabilities and management deficiencies at Hawaii airports when they took over in early 2014. "They weren't un-fixable, they were fixable. And quite frankly, readily fixable," said Callaghan Chuck. "And when we started reporting those, then all of a sudden we started getting negative repercussions from management instead of support. A third TSA employee, Frank Abreu, also ran afoul of management. "He stood up when the manager said he wanted Frank to make a complaint that the two women had been disrespectful to the senior manager, and he said he wouldn't because it wasn't true," said Elbridge Smith, attorney for Callaghan Chuck and Mata. The TSA then abruptly reassigned all three on one business day's notice.

This is brutal retaliation. All three individuals  deeply rooted in Hawaii were given one day to move to the mainland. There is no question that the message was, Shut up! The shocking unwillingness to hear about readily fixable problems suggests a total indifference to the actual mission of the agency, and a primary concern with protecting senior officials who might be embarrassed, or simply have to work a bit harder on their jobs.

I am glad that the harassed employees are being compensated, but that penalty is paid by you and me, that is to say, US taxpayers. Who are the officials that determined to harass the employees, rather than act on their suggestions to help accomplish the mission? What penalties  if any -- have they incurred? If they are still on the job, why?

The only changes mentioned are:

The TSA has agreed to pay a total of $1 million to the three, along with their moving and other expenses. Abreu and Mata will also be returned to comparable positions in Hawaii. The TSA also has discontinued its discretionary practice of involuntary geographic reassignments, and has created an internal training program on whistleblower retaliation.

I hope that President Trump will demand an explanation of who suggested and who approved the retaliation. And if firing is not an option, then I hope that he will address the American public on the sort of civil service reforms necessary to root out such behavior and scare other bureaucrats into focusing on their mission, not on protecting their rear ends. Perhaps inviting the three vicitms of retaliatoin for their efforts to fix problems to come tot he White House is the way to illustrate how badly the bureaucracy needs fixing.

Hat tip: Peter von Buol
HMD Global teased the launch of a battery-focused Nokia smartphone set to take place on Tuesday, May 29. The Finnish company took to Twitter earlier this week to state its time to get #ChargedUp, with the implication being that the upcoming Android handset will either tout fast charging support as one of its main selling points or otherwise be focused on its battery cell. The existence of the event itself has already been confirmed last week when HMD revealed the happening will be taking place in Moscow, Russia.

The phone maker recently implied its Nokia X6 mid-ranger is meant to be released outside of China in the near future and while that particular product comes with Qualcomms Quick Charge 3.0 support, so does the vast majority of other devices the company debuted in recent times. The bezel-less design and value-oriented nature of the Nokia X6 have also been presented as much larger highlights of the handset in China, making the possibility of HMD teasing its international variant with a #ChargedUp hashtag unlikely. Just over two weeks ago, three Nokia devices identified as the TA-1075, TA-1105, and the TA-1116 were certified by Russias telecom authority, with one or more of them possibly being among the products the firm is planning to introduce on a global stage next week.

HMD started the revival of the Nokia smartphone brand early last year, having done so through a family of aggressively priced handsets that punch well above their weight. Whereas its 2017 products shipped with a slightly modified version of Android, all of its 2018 offerings released outside of China so far have been introduced as part of Googles Android One program, featuring a stock variant of the worlds most popular operating system. Nokia is selling its new smartphones along with a promise of timely software updates, both security patches and major OS upgrades.

Advertisement

Whats next in the #Nokiamobile story? Find out on Tuesday 29th May. Its time to get #ChargedUp. pic.twitter.com/UUwVeBM3Pj  Nokia Mobile (@Nokiamobile) May 25, 2018
Tencent Holdings Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Pony Ma sees ZTEs recent episode in the United States as a wake-up call for China chip industry which remains highly reliant on American imports, local media reports. While speaking at a Shenzhen conference on Saturday, Mr. Ma said that while ZTEs stateside troubles have now seemingly been resolved, the Far Eastern country should pay more attention to fundamental scientific research and must not lose vigilance. A similar sentiment has been expressed by various China actors over the course of the last month, with a number of reports indicating local investors will commit more resources to domestic chipmaking efforts going forward, both in terms of research and development.

After the Commerce Department hit ZTE with a seven-year denial order preventing it from purchasing and licensing any kind of American technologies, the company shut down its main operations, having found its smartphone business crippled due to the inability to obtain Qualcomms Snapdragon chips and an up-to-date build of Googles Android operating system, among other things. The ban was a response to ZTEs failure to fulfill the terms of a 2017 settlement over its admitted conspiracy to violate stateside trade sanctions placed on North Korea and Iran, with the Commerce Department also accusing the company of lying to its investigators.

ZTE repeatedly argued the sanction is unfair because its a response to an issue that wasnt an intentional act of defiance against Washington and was self-reported after being discovered. Following a degree of mediation from President Trump, ZTE replaced the denial order with a $1.3 billion fine and a broad range of concessions. The move to ease ZTEs sanctions is presently facing significant bipartisan opposition from Congress and has yet to be confirmed by the Shenzhen-based company itself, indicating the episode may still not be over. President Trump argued that providing ZTE with a lifeline after requiring massive concessions from the company and crippling its operations is more than what the Obama administration ever did to regulate the firm which has repeatedly been accused of spying on behalf of China, its majority owner. Critics remain adamant the ZTE deal offers little benefit to the U.S. and runs in contradiction with the Presidents America first political platform.
COP26 may be a cop-out in the making COP26 is just about a month away. Delayed for a year by the Covid-19 pandemic, the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference has built up even more expectations and momentum during the intervening months
CVT

This all-new car is based on the TNGA platform, shared with the Prius and C-HR. Compared to the older model, it's 0.6 inches longer, 0.6 inches wider and rides on a 1.5in-stretched wheelbase.It's also powered by a new engine, a 2-liter with direct injection, 168 horsepower and 151 lb-ft of torque. Despite the higher displacement and output compared to the old 1.8-liter, Toyota says this unit is more compact, lighter and has reduced noise vibration harshness.The 6-speed manual gearbox it's hooked up to has a rev-matching system, while theautomatic option features paddle shifters and all that good jazz.Speaking of which, the CVT option for the base SE model will set you back $21,090. Everybody has fallen in love with the bright blue paint and sporty body kit of the Corolla you see in the pictures, and we're glad to tell you that it's not so expensive. The XSE top-spec model costs $22,990 for the manual and $24,090 with the CVT. That's not counting the $920 for the destination.However, there will be a small price to pay at the pumps. The standard versions of the Corolla achieve a respectable 32 mpg around town and 42 mpg on the highway with the CVT or 31/40 with the manual. However, the XSE slides down to 30/38 mpg. But if Toyota told me the blue color makes the hatch slower, I'd still buy it.The standard equipment for this model includes an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system and several driver-assist systems including adaptive cruise control and automatic emergency braking. For $1,400 more, you can have blind spot monitoring, the Entune 3.0 infotainment system, and Toyota's connected-car services.There's also the XSE Preferred Package, which matches the Entune 3.0 Premium Audio with an 800W JBL 8-speaker system, Toyota Connected Services, navigation, and Qi charging for $1,600.
Since the beginning of the year, PSA announced a series of measures meant to open new perspectives on the future automotive market. Hell-bent on reinventing the wheel, the company said last week it would be producing its own electric motors.In charge of the creation of this technology would be a new joint venture set up together with Nidec, a Japanese manufacturer of electric motors. The new entity will be called Nidec-PSA emotors and would be headquartered in Carrieres sous Poissy, near Paris. Both companies would invest in the project 220 million euros ($258 million).By the end of this summer, around 70 engineers are expected to work for the company, designing new traction electric motors that would be manufactured at the Tremery plant and used in mild-hybrids, electric vehicles, and plug-in electric vehicles.By 2025, the year when, if we are to judge by the promises made by automakers the world would be turned upside down and green, PSA plans to have an electrified version for all of its cars. That is for all the three brands it owns, Peugeot Citroen , and Opel . In all, there will be 40 different electrified cars.To support the push in this direction, PSA announced in April the creation of the Low Emission Vehicles Business Unit. The first task of the new division would be to define the electric strategy of the group. Only then will they begin rolling out the related products and services. PSA will include in the new division the Free2move car sharing solutions provider as well.The rollout will be supported by the return of the PSA brand to one of the worlds largest auto markets, the United States.
This should clear all charges for ever, he said.

But Dr Schram said he will still go through the costly process of getting his original doctorate legalised and send it through diplomatic channels to the committal court in Waigani.

In this world, you are completely alone because there is no point in trying to have a reasonable conversation with anyone. A truly terrifying world, but the truth will set us free.

[We entered] a parallel world where lies are truth and all people are blind, deaf and mute, he wrote in Facebook of the charge of 'false pretence' he is facing.

Dr Schram said he has been the subject of a political prosecution and will forego bail rather than return to an uncertain legal future in PNG.

NOOSA  In a shock development in the Schram case, the former vice-chancellor of the PNG University of Technology has said he will not return to Papua New Guinea until major changes occur in the country.

Dr Schram & associate were delighted to see his Netherlands passport returned last week - now he has said he will not come back to PNG to face trial

Last Tuesday, against the wishes of police prosecutor Kila Tali, national court judge Panuel Mogish had varied Dr Schrams bail conditions and ordered his passport be returned to enable him to travel to Italy to obtain the credentials which would have been prime evidence in a court hearing on a charge that Dr Schram engaged in false pretence.

Dr Schram and his wife Paulina left PNG yesterday ostensibly to retrieve the doctoral qualifications from the European University Institute in Florence.

We got out, Dr Schram emailed me from Singapore late this afternoon, probably not able to come back until major changes occur in the country."

In his judgement on 22 May on the bail conditions, the judge in the national court was deliberately explicit on the substantive case," Dr Schram has written on his Facebook page.

"There is not a shred of primary evidence suggesting I have falsified anything, while there is overwhelming evidence that in fact my doctorate is genuine, he said.

Finally an independent judge has said what anyone with common sense could have concluded since the complaints were made in 2012.

Dr Schram quoted Justice Mogish as writing in his judgement:

"In spite of this overwhelming evidence (presented by Dr Schram) Mr [Ralph] Saulep continues to dispute the authenticity of the applicant's doctorate degree. I find this ridiculous and difficult to fathom especially when neither he or the police are in receipt of evidence from the European University Institute in Florence Italy, confirming their allegations and suspicions".

The judge continued:

"The current charge, with respect, lacks the primary evidence to prove the elements of falsity. Whether they will have such evidence by the 12 June 2018 (the next hearing) is anyone's guess. The reality is that they have failed to do so when the allegations were raised in 2012.

It stands to reason the case will be thrown out at some point in time and my innocence will be established, Dr Schram said.

All this is of course is damaging for police and the complainant - former pro chancellor Ralph Saulep.. Since the conditions for the settlement with the [current Unitech] Council, which included no criminal prosecution, have now been violated, I do not consider myself bound to this agreement.

"In any case, for justice to prevail and the people of PNG to be liberated from police abuse, I must describe the facts."

Dr Schram said he and his wife Paulina did not come to [PNG] to get rich but neither did we expect the financial ruin we are facing now.

"The legal fight with the [Unitech] Council for wrongful dismissal first and now the fight for my malicious prosecution by the police has drained all of our resources.

He said he missed two job interviews because of his arrest and, when the charges are cleared, he will claim damages for all the financial losses, opportunity costs and defamation of character I suffered.

Dr Schram also said a parliamentary inquiry is warranted into police abuse in his case.

He concluded:

Like for all of us academics, journalists and other knowledge workers who cannot return to the country, it makes us sad that until amends are made and the police have been restructured and [brought] under control, we will not be able to see our friends and our new and beloved family in PNG.

When varying the bail conditions last week, Justice Mogish said it would be academic and career suicide for Dr Schram to abscond from bail and not return to PNG.

I do not think any reasonable man would just walk away leaving a trail of serious allegations unanswered, he said.

His standing in the academic world would be seriously affected.

Whether or not the judges words will be borne out, time will tell.

But it does seem that, given these dramatic circumstances, Dr Schrams hopes for official vindication are unlikely to be realised.

Then again, Albert and Paulina Schram may feel this is a small price to pay.

They had found themselves in a totally powerless position on what appeared to be a trumped up charge in a country where they doubted the politics surrounding their predicament would allow justice to prevail no matter what the court decided.

This has emerged as something of a cautionary tale for outsiders who sail too close to Papua New Guinea's political winds.
One of the most unusual and intriguing aircraft to fly for the Air Force might make an appearance at AirVenture 2018. Aircraft restorer Tom Reilly says hes close to flying his XP-82, the so-called Twin Mustang that was built as a long-range bomber escort at the end of the war. It didnt see any action in that war but was used as a night fighter in Korea. More than 300 were built and all but five were scrapped in the early 1950s. Reilly, who is based in Douglas, Georgia, found a complete airframe at an Ohio farm and has spent the last 10 years scouring the world for the parts necessary to restore it to flying condition.

The interest and enthusiasm for this restoration has been wonderful and gratifying, Reilly told EAA. There is no better place than Oshkosh to make the first public flights of this aircraft, which is why it is our intent to complete the restoration and testing so we can be a part of AirVenture 2018. The aircraft used two P-51 fuselages on a common wing and two specially designed Packard-built Merlin engines to create a long-range and high-speed fighter. It has been decades since people have seen this aircraft type fly anywhere, said Rick Larsen, EAAs vice president of communities and member programs, who coordinates AirVenture features and attractions. The return of this historic aircraft to the sky is a tribute to the vision and perseverance of the restoration team, and its fitting that the group has AirVenture as a goal to fly this beauty before a huge, appreciative audience.
Joshua Holt, the U.S. citizen detained in Venezuela by the Maduro regime since the summer of 2016 has returned home following Trump's Saturday morning announcement.

What they're saying: President Trump congratulated Holt on his return saying "you were a tough one, I have to tell you, that was a tough situation," adding "you've gone through a lot, more than most people could endure." Holt, following Trump's remarks in the Oval Office, expressed his saying, "I'm just overwhelmed with gratitude for you guys for everything that you've done," explaining his time detained in the crime-stricken country had "been a very, very difficult two years." [Go deeper: Why it matters: The release of U.S. citizen Joshua Holt from Venezuela]
By Kamila Aliyeva

Today, May 28, marks 100 years anniversary since the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR), the first parliamentary republic in the Turkic-Muslim world and the entire East.

Millions of Azerbaijanis celebrate this holiday inside the country and across the world.

On May 18, 1918, a temporary National Council of plenipotentiary representatives of the Azerbaijani people - the true elite of the nation - was formed in Tiflis. The council, headed by Mammad Amin Rasulzade, proclaimed the independence of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

On the same day, the Declaration of Independence was signed in the hall of the palace of the former governor of the Russian emperor in the Caucasus in Tiflis.

The document signed on that day stated: Since this day, Azerbaijan, covering the South-East Transcaucasia is fully independent state. The people of the independent Azerbaijan are the source of government.

The ADR was a pioneer that combined both European democratic values and the abundant cultural heritage of the East in one entity.

Its role in formation of statehood and socio-political thought of people cannot be overestimated, since all the measures undertaken by the state in this period have left a significant footprint in the national history.

During its existence, the ADR achieved great progress. All citizens of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, regardless of their ethnic and religious affiliation, were granted a right to vote. Thus, women gained suffrage for the first time in the Islamic world.

The ceremony of the opening of Azerbaijani Parliament was held in the building of the maiden seminary (currently, the Fizuli Institute of Manuscripts) at 13:00 on December 7, 1918. That was the first parliament in the entire east, formed on the basis of the most democratic principles of that time. Rasulzade, the chair of the National Council of Azerbaijan delivered a wide congratulation speech at the opening ceremony of the Parliament.

The Parliament of Azerbaijan, which existed only 17 months, was conducting its activities in a very tense socio-political situation. The Parliament conducted only 145 sessions within this period, during which it worked on the establishment of the most up-to-date legal and democratic state that would ensure human rights and liberties and protect the country's independence and territorial integrity.

Moreover, to prevent the approaching danger of foreign intervention, the government and the parliament of the ADR did a great job in order to achieve international recognition of the young republic by other states, including the great world powers. In this regard, the Parliament decided to send a special delegation headed by the Chairman of the Parliament Alimardan bey Topchubashev, to the Paris Peace Conference in 1919.

A delegation of the best representatives of intelligentsia of the time included Mammad Amin Rasulzade, Alimardan bey Topchubashev, Fatali Khan Khoyski, Samad bey Mehmandarov and others. They devoted their lives to establish and immortalize the first independent republic.

The ADR leaders played very important role in the foundation of the ADR and in the countrys history. Some of them were killed, forced to emigrate and punished in many different ways for dedicating their lives to the idea of free, secular, democratic and independent Azerbaijani state.

For the first time, the anniversary of the proclamation of Azerbaijan's independence was celebrated on May 28, 1919. The young state of Azerbaijan was established in complicated internal and external conditions. Therefore, the ADR could survive only 23 months.

On April 28, 1920, the 11th Red Army of the Bolsheviks occupied Baku, and the republic fell. After the collapse of the USSR, Azerbaijan regained its independence in 1991, declaring itself an heir to the ADR and restoring the attributes of Democratic Azerbaijan - flag, emblem and anthem.

Nevertheless, the establishment of the ADR was noted as great and historic event in the chronicles of the Azerbaijani nation, and marked a glorious page in the country's history. In its short period of existence, the ADR managed to return national consciousness to the Azerbaijani people.

The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, having declared the independence, demonstrated the peoples desires for independence, freedom and national self-determination.

---

Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
By Trend

A commencement ceremony has today been held at ADA University.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and family members attended the event.

President Ilham Aliyev addressed the commencement ceremony.

A video highlighting ADA graduates was screened at the event.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
By Trend

Azerbaijani Prosecutor Generals Office and the countrys Interior Ministry have exposed a $412,000 financial fraud in the Azerbaijani Popular Front Party, the Prosecutor Generals Office said in a statement May 26.

As a result of the measures of detection, it was revealed that Saleh Huseynov, residing in the Russian Federation, in order to conceal the source of receiving "dirty" money, violated the requirements of the law "On Entrepreneurship", the Tax Code and other normative legal acts.

Moreover, with the purpose of carrying out an actual banking operation, he carried out propaganda in the territory of Russia in order to finance the activities of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan, said the message.

Saleh Rustamov ensured the transfer of $30,000 through Jeyhun Huseynov, Rauf Isgandarov, Heydar Ahmadov and Tural Mehdikhanov, who were engaged in the illegal transfer of money to Baku for Vidadi Rustamli.

Rustamli received these funds and transferred them to Agil Maharramov, Ruslan Nasirov and Babak Hasanov. Thus, serious suspicions were found regarding financing of the activities of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan in the amount of $412,000, as well as regarding activities to legalize a large amount of money received illegally.

As a result of the investigation the interrogated Babak Hasanov, Ruslan Nasirov, Agil Maharramov confessed to illegal actions and said that the money sent by Saleh Rustamov from Moscow was received from Vidadi Rustamli and was transferred to Ali Karimli and other persons with the purpose of financing the activities of the organization they represent.

At present, the relevant departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Prosecutor General's Office are conducting an objective investigation into this criminal case to determine the number of the perpetrators and bring them to criminal liability.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
By Trend

Military service by the citizens of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is a violation of the norms of international law, Azerbaijani Foreign Ministrys Spokesman Hikmet Hajiyev told Trend May 27, commenting on the information about the military service of Armenian prime ministers son in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.

Hajiyev noted that the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry considers the sending of the son of Armenian prime minister, whose euphoric period is already running out, to military service in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan as populism.

Military service of the citizens of Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan is a gross violation of the norms and principles of international law and even the laws of Armenia. By taking this step, the leadership of Armenia once again confirmed that international legal responsibility for the occupation of Azerbaijani territories lies with Armenia. Thus, Azerbaijani territories continue to remain under the occupation of the Armenian Armed Forces as a result of the military aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan, he said.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson noted that Armenian citizens, especially young people, are forced to spend the most formative period of their life in the trenches in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and serve the occupation mission, instead of engaging in creative activity.

It would be useful for the Armenian leadership to seriously think about the social and economic problems that the country has faced, on the resolution of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, to establish peaceful and friendly relations with the countries of the region, rather than to make such populist steps, Hajiyev said.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
By Trend

Volvo submitted the details of a type of 200-million-euro cooperation model to Iran whereby the Swedish construction equipment company will supply heavy machinery and equipment to the Islamic Republic.



Representatives from VOLVO Construction Equipment Company held a meeting with Iranian Deputy Minister of Industry, Mining and Trade Mehdi Karbasian in Tehran on May 23 and submitted the cooperation model to him, IRNA news agency reported.



Karbasian, who is also the Director of the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), welcomed the model, saying that this could help rejuvenate the countrys dilapidated fleet of mining machinery.



An official with Volvo, for his part, said the company approves IMIDRO as the guarantor of the entire project.



He, however, added that Irans Central Bank and Economy Ministry can also give this guarantee and help the plan go ahead.



As the first phase of the cooperation framework, 200 million euros will be allocated by Volvo and this can be doubled with the help of IMIDRO, the report added.



US President Donald Trump announced on May 8 that Washington was walking away from the nuclear agreement, which was reached between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - the US, Britain, France, Russia and China - plus Germany.



Trump also said he would reinstate US nuclear sanctions on Iran and impose "the highest level" of economic bans on the Islamic Republic.



Before Trumps announcement, Irans mining sector had more than $10 billion of investment pledges by the Europeans and Chinese under its belt, but they are backtracking on their promises one by one over the new US sanctions.

---
By Trend

An Iranian trade delegation comprised of representatives from the countrys private sector will travel to South Africa in mid-June to explore business opportunities there.

Head of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Mines Gholam Hossein Shafei will lead the trade delegation to South Africa, according to the Trend news agencys correspondent in Tehran.
By Trend

The Iranian deputy agriculture minister for livestock affairs said the Agriculture Ministry has banned livestock exports in a bid to balance the market.



Morteza Rezaei said the government has placed restrictions on exports of livestock due to a rise in livestock prices in the domestic market, ISNA reported.



"The ban came into effect last week in an attempt to control the red meat market," he said.



Rezaei added that the move could also play a key role in preventing smuggling of livestock.



Iranian officials say the countrys annual agricultural output stands at 120 million tons, worth at $80 million. The figure includes 82 million tons of crops, 20 million tons of horticultural products, 14 million tons of livestock, and over one million tons of fishery products.



Irans exports of livestock over the first 11 months of the last fiscal year (ended March 21) grew by 16.1 percent to hit 606,000 tons.

---

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
A Fred man was shot and killed by a Silsbee Police Officer and Hardin County Sheriff's Deputy after allegedly threatening them with a handgun early Saturday morning, HCSO and SPD said.

The Texas Rangers are investigating, DPS said in a statement.

Homer Woodroe Tyler, 51, was "reported to be armed with a firearm and driving a pickup en route to a family member's home in Hardin County," the Sheriff's Office and Silsbee Police said in a joint statement. HCSO was told at 2:17 a.m. that he "had made threats to harm his family and law enforcement."

He was stopped by officers from Silsbee Police and the Sheriff's Office around 3 a.m. Saturday morning on FM 92 in Silsbee.

"The suspect exited his vehicle and immediately threatened officers with a handgun," the statement said. "One Silsbee Police Officer and one Sheriff's Deputy discharged their service weapons in response to the threat. The suspect was struck at least once by gunfire and died at the scene."

Officials have not released the names of the officers involved.

Texas Rangers are investigating, DPS Sgt. Stephanie Davis said. "This is an active investigation and additional details cannot be released at this time."
According to reports, the world's highest mountain biking race, the EPIC 17000 Mountain Biking Race is to be hosted in Sikkim from June 26. Reportedly, in collaboration with Mountain Goats Adventure Company and Hub Outdoors, the race will be organised by Sikkim North District Administration.

The EPIC 17k race will reportedly be the world's highest race. While last year, the race only had domestic riders, this year, riders from all over the world, including Nepal and Bhutan will be participating.

The race will cover a distance of 300 km and will take place for four days. Medical and logistical support will be provided by the Army and the rescue team will be led by mountaineer Kazi Sherpa.
One of the cars which was damaged in the incident / Credit: Paul McCusker

A gang of around 100 youths have smashed up cars and forced a woman into emergency accommodation after going on a rampage in north Belfast.

On Saturday night police responded to reports of separate incidents between Brookvalue Avenue and Oldpark Avenue.

At around 9.20pm officers attended a home in the Brookvale Avenue area, where the householder - a woman in her 50s - said a group of youths had damaged her front and inner door.

It is understood the resident came to Northern Ireland as a refugee from Sudan, and the incident is not being treated as a hate crime.

Social Services was required to provide the woman with alternative accommodation arrangements on Saturday night.

SDLP councillor Paul McCusker arrived at the property while the gang of young people, aged between 13 and 19, were still outside.

Mr McCusker said he estimated there were around 80 young people at the scene, with around half of them standing in the street and half inside the fence of the Waterworks park.

"Residents are at the end of their tether with this on-going behaviour dominating the area at weekends," he said.

"It is despicable that a refugee, who left her war torn country for a better life, has been removed from her home by the PSNI for her own safety after thugs attempted to gain access to the property during the disorder.

"All residents, no matter class or creed, have the right to live in peace, free from intimidation and fear. I would urge the teenagers and young adults partaking in this disruption to stop and think of the consequences."

Earlier in the evening, at around 7.45pm, police responded to a report from the nearby Oldpark Avenue area of around 100 youths banging on doors, drinking, running up and down the street, and jumping on and damaging cars.

Police did not confirm if the incidents were linked, although SDLP councillor McCusker said he believed it was the same group of young people.

Inspector James Murphy said: We are continually issuing appeals, asking parents and guardians to ensure they know where their children are, what they are doing and who they are with. Yet, we are still regularly called upon to attend incidents of anti-social behaviour to deal with young people who are at times gathering up in large numbers.

The majority of young people out enjoying themselves, meeting up with friends over the weekends are well behaved, but unfortunately the behaviour of some is having a huge impact on the community."

He added that "what might seem like fooling about can often result in a criminal record" and said police would continue to work with local politicians and representatives.

Mr McCusker added the incidents were part of a wider problem with anti-social behaviour in the area, with young people travelling in from other parts of the city to the Waterworks, Marrowbone Park, and Alexandra Park.

Anyone with any information about anti-social behaviour is asked to contact police on 101.
There were emotional scenes in court on Saturday as a Co Down man was remanded into custody accused of murder. (stock photo)

There were emotional scenes in court on Saturday as a Co Down man was remanded into custody accused of murder.

Friends and family of 20-year-old Jason Carr filled two rows of seats in the public gallery at Newtownards Magistrates Court, many of them crying as he was led to the cells, waving at them as he went.

Carr, from Castle Heights in Ardglass, spoke only to confirm that he understood the two charges against him.

Carr is accused of attempted aggravated burglary at a property on Crew Hill Court in the fishing village with intent to inflict grievous bodily harm on Stefan Zait and with Mr Zaits murder on May 22 this year.

Mr Zait, a 45-year-old Romanian national who has been living and working on fishing vessels in Ardglass for six years, suffered serious head injuries in an assault on Tuesday morning before dying on Thursday.

He was attacked between 10.30am and 11.00am near the Downpatrick Road and Strangford Road in the village.

In court on Saturday, Detective Sergeant Lewis testified that she believed she could connect Carr to each of the offences.

Defence barrister Sean Doherty told the court that while Carr denies both offences, he was not applying for bail "out of respect for the family of the deceased".

Having heard it was the defence and prosecution application for a three-week adjournment, District Judge Prytherch remanded Carr into custody to appear at Downpatrick Magistrates Court via videolink on June 14.
The head of the Catholic Church in Ireland has said he will pray for the courageous no campaigners in the abortion referendum.

Archbishop of Armagh and primate of all-Ireland Eamon Martin declared that every human life was precious and the lives of the unborn also needed protection.

The archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has said the church, which campaigned for a No vote, was seen by many as weak in compassion.

Archbishop Eamon Martin said: This weekend at Mass I will give thanks in prayer for the many courageous missionaries for life who made such a huge effort to remind us that in pregnancy we are dealing with two lives  both in need of love, respect and protection.

He added: Every human life remains beautiful, every human life remains precious. Every human life remains sacred.

This weekend at Mass I will give thanks in prayer for the many courageous missionaries for life who made such a huge effort to remind us that in pregnancy we are dealing with two lives - both in need of love, respect and protection. pic.twitter.com/gcWw6KIN7G  Eamon Martin (@ArchbishopEamon) May 26, 2018

Irelands traditionally conservative and Catholic-dominated society has been transformed in recent decades, with referenda since 1980 voting to accept divorce, same sex marriage and now abortion.

Contraception has also been legalised.

The church has been rocked by a series of clerical sex scandals and the endemic abuse of young people in religious-run institutions over many decades.

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin said: The challenge of witnessing to Jesus Christ in todays world is not an easy one.

Many will see the results of Fridays referendum as an indication that the Catholic Church in Ireland is regarded today by many with indifference and as having a marginal role in the formation of Irish culture.

The Church that is called to make present the Jesus who is full of mercy and compassion is seen by many as somehow weak in compassion.

The bishops played a low-key role during the referendum campaign, but made clear they believed the practice was immoral.

Proponents of reform, including Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, characterised it as the compassionate choice for thousands of women who travelled to the UK for terminations or took illegal pills obtained without Irish medical advice.

The archbishop of Dublin said: The Irish Church after the referendum must renew its commitment to support life.

He said it must be pro-life in deed, bestowing loving care for human life at any stage.

That loving care includes support to help those women who face enormous challenges and who grapple with very difficult decisions to choose life.

He said pro-life meant helping those whose lives are threatened by violence, who cannot live full lives because of economic deprivation, homelessness and marginalisation.

Pro-life means radically rediscovering in all our lives a special love for the poor that is the mark of the followers of Jesus.

Reshaping the Church of tomorrow must be marked by a radical rediscovery of its roots.

The Church of Irelands Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Michael Jackson, envisaged an outworking of democracy which can initiate a real and lasting acknowledgement of the unborn in Irish society, an acknowledgement that needs to extend over many decades when stigmatisation has too often been the default setting of response.
The father of the first British woman to die fighting with Kurdish forces in Syria has accused the Government of back-pedalling amid his calls to bring her body home.

Dirk Campbell said it now seemed even more likely his daughter Annas body would be left to rot on the battlefield in Afrin after claiming a meeting with Alistair Burt, minister of state for the Middle East, gave him little confidence of progress.

Ms Campbell died in March after apparently being hit during Turkish air strikes while fighting with the Kurdish Womens Protection Units (YPJ).

In an open letter to the Government last week, Mr Campbell claimed Turkish authorities had flouted international humanitarian law by not doing their duty in searching for the dead and preventing their bodies being bespoiled.

He said charities were prevented from getting to the site to assist, and as a result, his daughters body has still not been brought back to the UK.

The 67-year-old has since met officials after calling on the Government to do more to address the atrocities in Syria and to help him be reunited with his daughter.

The 26-year-old is the eighth Briton to have died in the country so far.

She flew to Syria via Lebanon about a year ago where she joined the YPJ, an all-female brigade of the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG), which has about 50,000 Kurdish men and women fighting against Isis in the north of the country.

Speaking to the Press Association, Mr Campbell, of Lewes, East Sussex, said: It is a scandalous state of affairs.

I had hoped for a less equivocal response from the Foreign Office. It is just completely back-pedalling. They are not supporting the Kurds.

Expand Close Anna Campbell death PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Anna Campbell death

One of Ms Campbells sisters, Hester, said the family had a desolate feeling of futility, adding: We dont want Anna to have died for nothing.

Ruth Cadbury, Labour MP for Brentford and Isleworth where another of Ms Campbells sisters lives, said in a statement released by the family that she was disappointed Mr Burt was not prepared to commit the Government to challenging Turkeys actions.

Mr Campbells MP, Conservative Maria Caulfield, said she was trying to arrange a meeting for him with Prime Minister Theresa May.

In a YPJ video filmed before she left for Afrin, a smiling Ms Campbell told the camera how she was known by her nom de guerre of Helin Qerecox.

She said she was happy and proud to join her friends and defend against fascism.

Conflict between Turkey and Kurdish groups has been inflamed since January.

In the week of Ms Campbells death, Turkeys president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the countrys military had captured the town centre of Afrin, which was previously controlled by the YPG.

Expand Close Anna Campbell death Press Association Images / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Anna Campbell death

A Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokeswoman said: We have been in contact with Annas family following her sad death in Syria.

As the UK government has no consular presence in Syria, our ability to help is extremely limited.

The UK has repeatedly raised its concerns with Turkey following its intervention into Northern Syria.

While we recognise Turkeys legitimate right to defend its borders, it is essential that the rights of innocent civilians are protected.

Turkey has assured us of its commitment to respect international law in its operations.

Where there is credible evidence that human rights have been violated, then those responsible should be held to account.

Anybody who travels to Syria against our advice is putting themselves at considerable risk.
A missing schoolgirl who left the UK on the EuroTunnel train is believed to have gone to Poland, where her mother lives.

Serena Alexander-Benson was last seen by her father leaving their home in Wimbledon, south-west London, at around 7.50am on Friday.

A public appeal was shared widely on social media after the 13-year-old did not arrive at school that morning.

Police officers said the teenager left the country from Folkestone, in Kent, on Friday.

She is believed to have travelled in a car to Poland with a female friend of her mothers, the Metropolitan Police said.

A spokesman said: Detectives are not releasing further details at this stage of the route Serena and the woman have taken, nor of how it has been established that they are in Poland, where Serenas mother lives.

At this stage, the priority of officers is to confirm Serenas exact whereabouts and confirm that she is safe.

Any potential offences will be considered in due course.
Theresa May must take a tougher line with Brussels after making errors in her Brexit negotiation strategy, Jacob Rees-Mogg has urged.

The chairman of the influential European Research Group, tipped as a potential future Tory leader, insisted there was no menace in me at all over his actions.

But he claimed the Government had proposed over-complicated solutions to the customs problem and must be prepared to tell Brussels it will walk away without paying the almost 40 billion Brexit divorce bill  potentially leaving the bloc in the red.

On BBC1s Andrew Marr Show Mr Rees-Mogg said Mrs May had made a mistake over her approach to the Irish border issue, one of the most contentious aspects of the negotiations, by ruling out the prospect of unilaterally keeping an open frontier after Brexit.

The customs union on its own, says @Jacob_Rees_Mogg does not solve the seamless border issue. pic.twitter.com/Q3ojjNVqff  The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) May 27, 2018

Mr Rees-Mogg said: The Prime Minister said in her Mansion House speech that she wasnt going to do this, I think that is a mistake.

I think it is the obvious negotiating position to have. Bear in mind the Irish economy is heavily dependent on its trade with the United Kingdom, it is overwhelmingly in the interests of the Republic of Ireland to maintain an open border with the United Kingdom.

I think, if you are going into a negotiation, you should use your strongest cards and just to tear one of them up and set hares running on other issues is, I think, an error.

He said the Governments plans for a backstop which would see the whole UK potentially tied to European Union rules in order to avoid a hard border  if no other way of solving the issue is possible  was a real problem and could leave the UK a vassal state for an indeterminate period.

Mr Rees-Mogg added: Basically, the deal is very simple  we are paying a very large amount of money, 40 billion, and in return we want a trade deal.

Everything else is essentially incidental to that.

The UK should make clear to the EU that if we dont get the trade deal we want, you dont get the money.

Without the UKs money the EU faces a real crisis next March  when the political situation in Italy meant it was already facing other problems.

"The Prime Minister is the most impressive and dutiful leader that this country has had," says @Jacob_Rees_Mogg pic.twitter.com/dtmp6AbbjK  The Andrew Marr Show (@MarrShow) May 27, 2018

Playing down his own ambitions, Mr Rees-Mogg insisted he believed Mrs May  the most impressive and dutiful leader this country has had  was crucial to the Brexit project.

Of course I wouldnt challenge Theresa May, thats a ridiculous idea, he said.

Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith told Skys Ridge on Sunday that anyone plotting to overthrow Mrs May should shut up and get on with delivering Brexit.

Deputy Labour leader Tom Watson said no decision had yet been made on whether Labour MPs would be whipped to oppose membership of the single market when the Commons votes on the issue in June.

We havent decided our whipping arrangements yet, he said on ITVs Peston on Sunday, adding: We havent made a decision yet, but weve been pretty clear that there are deficiencies in the Norway model that might not work for a bespoke UK deal.
DUP leader Arlene Foster speaking in central London at the Policy Exchange conference titled The Union and Unionism  Past, Present and Future

On Monday morning, Arlene Foster spoke in London at a conference on the Union. It was organised by Policy Exchange, one of the main British think-tanks, and she was speaking alongside pro-Union politicians from across the United Kingdom, as well as historians and commentators.

As the leader of the largest unionist party in the province, it was important that she was there to provide a Northern Ireland unionist perspective. Her speech was important and it was also impressive, because it carried a strong positive message with a broad vision for Ulster and the Union.

She spoke very personally about her own experience of growing up in Co Fermanagh under the threat of terrorism and of how her father, a member of the RUC, had been shot by the Provisional IRA.

Some of her speech was directed towards the other parts of the United Kingdom and the need to cherish and nourish the relationships within the Union.

She spoke of the things that we all share in common in terms of history and values and also of the benefits of the United Kingdom, the fifth-largest economy in the world.

Unionism must be an advocate for the Union, winning as many hearts and minds as possible, especially among those who may be ambivalent. We strengthen the Union when we sell the benefits of the Union and convince the waverers and the unconvinced.

Other parts of her speech had particular relevance for the people of Northern Ireland and to her vision of a shared and better future for all our people.

It was a confident speech and it was right that she referred to our cultural wealth, with mention of CS Lewis and Seamus Heaney, as well as that great Ulster-born scientist Lord Kelvin. Culture matters and we all know that cultural differences are at the heart of the present political impasse.

Alongside cultural wealth, she spoke about cultural pluralism, or cultural diversity, and this is a theme that she has spoken about previously.

Our various cultural traditions, including Irish Gaelic, Ulster-Scots and Orange, are all part of our cultural wealth and no single tradition should be given preferential treatment over the others, in the way that Sinn Fein demand.

Alongside cultural diversity, she spoke about unionism reclaiming the rights agenda, saying that citizenship and rights are essentially unionist areas.

Each July, many of us celebrate the Battle of Boyne and it is worth remembering that the Glorious Revolution produced the 1689 Bill of Rights.

Unfortunately, a variety of radical causes have hijacked the concept of human rights as a way of advancing their own narrow political agendas and, for Sinn Fein, human rights have become war by another means.

Unfortunately, the response to her speech from Sinn Fein was typically churlish, arrogant and disingenuous.

Indeed, it showed that Sinn Fein is put on the back foot when unionism presents that positive and coherent vision for the future. Arlene Fosters London speech was moving on to ground where Sinn Fein is clearly uncomfortable.

There was no rational response from Sinn Fein, merely attack and personal abuse, and the intention was to divert the media away from exploring the main ideas in what she had said.

This is what Sinn Fein have done before and it is what they did again. That discomfort must have been increased by the most recent opinion poll, which shows that, in a border poll, only 21% of the population of Northern Ireland would vote to leave the United Kingdom.

That was encouraging for unionists and discouraging for republicans  especially Sinn Fein, who have been demanding a border poll.

It also undermines the credibility of some of the more extreme prophets of doom. However, we must not allow it make us complacent.

Now is the time for unionism to map out a way forward, to set out a vision for building a shared and better future for Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom.

Now is the time to advocate for the Union and the DUP, as the largest unionist party, has a particular responsibility to lead the way for unionism.
A fire has been tackled overnight on the northside of Dublin.

The blaze broke out on the roof of a derelict building in Drumcondra.

Four units of Dublin Fire Brigade attended the scene and a turntable ladder was also used.

Firefighters from the North Strand and Phibsborough fought the blaze.

Over night North Strand & Phibsborough firefighters attended a fire in a derelict building in Drumcondra. The fire was well developed in the roof, 4  & a turntable ladder on scene #Dublin #fire pic.twitter.com/SUb5kLCvbt  Dublin Fire Brigade (@DubFireBrigade) May 27, 2018

- Digital Desk
Students could face an additional challenge looking for accommodation in Dublin in the autumn, the national student representative group has warned.

The Union of Students in Ireland believe the Pope's visit in August could play havoc with those searching for a place to live.
Casino giant Crowns commitment to building the countrys tallest skyscraper is in doubt ahead of a fast-closing deadline, with the company yet to begin seeking any of the required planning approvals.

More than 15 months after the Victorian government gave conditional planning approval for the colossal One Queensbridge Tower project, in Melbournes Southbank precinct, Fairfax Media has confirmed that James Packers Crown Resorts and its joint-venture partner, Schiavello Group, are yet to submit key planning documents or initiate the process of negotiating preliminary approvals with council.

An artist's impression of the proposed One Queensbridge Tower development. Credit:FloodSlicer

Neither Melbourne City Council nor Victorian Planning Minister Richard Wynnes department has received mandatory updated plans, requested in early 2017, to get the vast project under way before the deadline that requires work to start by February.

The revelations cast uncertainty over if and when the joint venture will press ahead with its plans to build the glittering, multi-storey skyscraper, which would include a six-star, 388-room hotel and 708 residential apartments on Queensbridge Street, opposite the casino.
Three Australian tech start-ups have locked horns as the battle to make it easier to book beauty and wellness appointments without picking up the phone hots up.

Bookwell, Honee and Pretty Pronto all enable consumers to find a beauty or wellness appointment via an app and make an appointment. Bookwell charges a 20 per cent booking fee to businesses that land a booking through the app, while Honee and Pretty Pronto are currently free.

Nathan Airey and Matt Dyer, founders of Bookwell.

Time will tell whether user experience, fees, the best marketing or the ability to grow users quickly will see one ultimately triumph as they jockey to be market leader.

Bookwell
Adele Bishop, from Brisbane Acupuncture clinic AcuBalance, lost money over the NAB banking outage.

National Australia Bank has committed to repaying small businesses lost profits after hours spent on Saturday without banking services, but it does not intend to contact affected merchant customers directly.

During a several-hour long nationwide outage of EFTPOS terminals, internet banking and ATMs, millions of consumers and small businesses, like bakeries, butchers, service stations, grocery stores and cafes were left unable to make or accept payments. Saturday is the busiest trading day of the week for many retailers and small businesses.

A particular problem for health care providers was an outage on NABs HICAPS machines, used to manage payments and claims for health services through Medicare and health funds. Some medical providers, such as chiropractors, took to social media to ask customers to bring cash to their appointments.

Adele Bishop, from Brisbane Acupuncture clinic AcuBalance, had customers walk out without being able to pay after their sessions and describes the day as "frustrating".
The former operator of a hotel has been fined $211,104 for allegedly underpaying two Malaysian employees who shared his Chinese descent after telling them they were like family.

In the Fair Work Ombudsman's first racial discrimination case, the Federal Circuit Court found the hotel boss exploited the employees who shared the same cultural values of helping and working hard for family.

The Federal Circuit Court has fined Chang Yen Chang of NSW, who until 2014 owned and operated the Scamander Beach Resort Hotel on the east coast of Tasmania, $35,099. He was the director and company secretary of Yenida Pty Ltd, which was fined a further $176,005.
People who rely on legal aid will find it even harder to access help because lawyers who work for the service have not had a pay rise in more than 10 years, the profession has warned.

NSW Law Society president Doug Humphreys said if private practitioners are not adequately paid "more will walk away from legal aid work".

The law society is calling for an increase in the hourly rate which has been frozen at $150 since 2007.

"Without a substantial increase in funding for legal aid, including for private practitioners doing legal aid work, we risk access to justice becoming a privilege rather than an entitlement," Mr Humphreys said.
It might be the end of the road for Family Feud but it has earned Grant Denyer a Gold Logie nomination.

Ten may have pulled the pin on their game show Family Feud, but Grant Denyer can take some solace from the knowledge the show has earned him a nomination for Australian TV's most coveted award.

Denyer, who hosted the reboot of the show, has been nominated for a Gold Logie and will now face off against Love Child and The Wrong Girl star Jessica Marais, The Living Room's Amanda Keller, Doctor Doctor's Rodger Corser, Love It Or List It and Selling Houses Australia's Andrew Winter along with A Current Affair's Tracy Grimshaw to take home the little golden man.

The awards, which will be held on the Gold Coast for the first time this year, take place on July 1 when a who's who of television will converge on Queensland's glitter strip to find out who is the most popular and who is the most outstanding in the industry.
MOVIE

To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

9Gem, 4.20pm

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird is a delicately written novel about justice in the 1930s American South. The citizens of Maycomb, Alabama, want to punish an Afro-American for a rape that possibly never occurred. Lawyer Atticus Finch believes in doing the right thing, with little interest in being well-liked, but his decision to defend the accused sees him ostracised and his children subjected to racist attacks. The remarkable film adaptation from scriptwriter Horton Foote and director Robert Mulligan shows many of the dramatic events through the eyes of Finch's daughter, Scout (Mary Badham), and her friend, Dill (John Megna). This makes excellent cinematic sense as Lee was the daughter of a Southern attorney and Dill her long-time friend, Truman Capote. This unflinching examination of bigotry in America in both novel and film were defining blows in the defeat of segregation. Shot in radiant black and white, the movie is close to perfect. Scott Murray

Ambulance airs on Saturdays on Channel Ten. Credit:TEN

MOVIE

Adventures in Babysitting (2016)

7flix, 4.30pm

In 1987, there was a fabulous comedy called Adventures in Babysitting about what can go wrong when a teenager is babysitting an infant in Oak Park, Illinois. It was the first film as director by Chris Columbus (who had just written Reckless and would soon become famous for Home Alone and, later, even more famous with the first two Harry Potter movies). You have probably seen Adventures, but you might not realise it, given in Australia the title was changed to A Night on the Town. Today, 7flix is not showing Colombus' original, but a tele-movie remake. It has the honour of being the 100th Disney Channel Original Movie, even though, of course, it's not original. It has a young and largely unknown cast, who go about their tasks with manicured smiles, even when the children they should be protecting nearly lose life and limb. SM
House Rules

Seven, 7pm

This is a competitive renovation reality series in which fully-grown adults cry about things like laundry tiles. Louise Schwartzkoff

Johanna Griggs hosts House Rules on Channel Seven. Credit:SEVEN

David Attenborough's Tasmania

ABC, 7.40pm

The image that encapsulates this David Attenborough-narrated documentary is a shot of a wallaby nosing through the snow for a snack. The central idea is that while Australian wildlife is a little bit different from that found in the rest of the world, in Tasmania things are wackier still. Sure, aside from the Tassie devil, most of the featured critters can be found elsewhere in Australia. But Tasmania's climate and isolation mean that its wallabies, wombats, platypuses and echidna don't behave like their cousins on the mainland. Tasmanian platypuses, for example, are bigger and apparently bolder than those that live elsewhere. One of the documentary's most remarkable moments is a section of footage that shows a plump platypus waddling across a grassy stretch of ground in broad daylight. You're more likely catch a platypus out of water in Tasmania, says Attenborough, because of the lack of predators. On Bruny Island, there is a thriving population of white wallabies. Anywhere else, these rare creatures would die young and disappear from the gene pool, but without predators, the white wallabies of Bruny Island live to reach breeding age, allowing their number to grow. Different rules apply for Tasmania's flora, too. Native mountain ash can be found on the mainland, but only in Tasmania do they grow big enough to make them the tallest flowering trees in the world. The damper climate and lower fire risk means they can grow close to 100 metres tall. David Attenborough's Tasmania is a lower-key affair than his recent globe-hopping series, Planet Earth II. It's interesting and well shot, but without the jaw-dropping moments of high drama that made Planet Earth II appointment viewing. Still, it's always a pleasure to listen to He of the Conspiratorial Whisper as he describes the private lives of creatures great and small. LS
It's an annual event that quite literally lights up the city of Sydney each and every year. But I can say one thing for sure; 10 bullocks would have a hard time dragging me to Vivid ever again.

In 2013, just 800,000 people attended. But by 2017, the event attracted 2.33 million visitors. This weekend, that number was about the same, despite the complaints that the festival of lights, now in its 10th year, is poorly organised, with many visitors giving up before deciding to return home.

The 10th anniversary of Vivid on May 25. Credit:Brook Mitchell

I can't say I blame them. According to reddit user Hantook, Vivid is "a victim of its popularity", with other commenters saying the crowds are poorly managed and scary.

Why does one entire city need to be regaled with light displays each and every year? Can't the love be shared a little by Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide and Melbourne, and regional cities too?
Like any high school there are certain areas at my public school, Rose Bay Secondary College, where year groups sit at recess and lunch. You can find Year 11 and 12 outside the canteen, Year 8 near the lockers, Year 9 in the plaza and Year 10 on the oval. Finding the little Year 7 students isnt too hard either; they are anywhere and everywhere, the hallways, stairwells and standing in little clusters.

Elsie Gillezeau left Randwick Girls High because she wanted a co-ed education but the downside is that her new school is overcrowded.

As a Year 10 student at Rose Bay my friends and I used to find it amusing that the new Year 7s had nowhere to sit at break times because our school was so packed, however, now we are in Term 2, the joke has passed and students and teachers are becoming increasingly frustrated with how overcrowded our school is.

You can trace the cause of student overpopulation in Sydney's east back to 1990 when Maroubra Bay High School was closed. The land was sold and redeveloped for town houses. Later Dover Heights and Vaucluse highs were amalgamated and the Vaucluse site sold. It is now a retirement village.

Since then population and birth rates in the eastern suburbs have grown rapidly. School enrolments in Waverley surged 22.5 per cent between 2012 and 2016.
The state government has announced funding for a new $150 million theatre will be part of next month's budget and improve the Queensland Performing Arts Centre's chances of attracting world premieres to the sunshine state.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the new theatre would give Queensland Ballet a new home and ease the pressure on QPAC's existing facilities, which had exceeded 90 per cent capacity.

The Queensland Performing Arts Centre is 'bursting at the seams' according to the Premier. Credit:Fairfax Media - Glenn Hunt

Labor has allocated $125 million in the Queensland budget and QPAC will contribute the remaining $25 million for the 1500-1700-seat theatre. It will be built on the Playhouse Green site.

An international competition will be set up to find the best design for the new theatre, which has been scheduled for completion by 2022.
Parents in Brisbane's North Lakes area have been warned about threatening internet posts that named schools in the area.

Education Queensland has written to parents saying police are investigating the posts, which used threatening language and referenced schools in the area but did not name any.

Police were patrolling North Lakes State School on Monday after non-specific threats were made to schools in the area. Credit:Nine News Queensland/Sam Cucchiara

Fairfax Media has seen the threatening posts but has chosen not to report on the specifics, to avoid giving the posters the notoriety they were seeking.

Police said the investigation was ongoing, but the department has advised all schools would be open on Monday.
The LNP has called for a parliamentary inquiry into the state's toll road operators, saying Queensland drivers are submitting more complaints to the Tolling Customer Ombudsman than the rest of the country combined.

Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington said drivers are "being taken for a ride" and the toll roads are being underused, which is contributing to the south-east's congestion problems.

The Clem 7 tunnel entrance. Credit:Glenn Hunt

Our toll roads are underused and our toll company tops the table for consumer complaints, Ms Frecklington said.

We should be busting congestion by making the best use of all our roads, tunnels and bridges.
Police have charged a Werribee man with the stabbing murder of his 69-year-old mother.

Jamie Willis, 38, was remanded in custody on Sunday afternoon after being charged with murdering Caroline Anne Willis in her home.

Police search the Wyndham Vale reserve creek area for the weapon allegedly used in the murder of Werribee woman Caroline Anne Willis. Credit:Channel Nine News

A crime scene was established at the house and surrounds on Taworri Crescent after emergency services were called to the newly-built Harpley Estate in Werribees south-west about 7.30am on Friday.

Homicide detectives and forensic police were called to the scene that morning and searched the house.
Former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce has blasted his own's government's "bullshit" commitment to moving public servants from Canberra to regional Australia, a contentious policy he championed before his demise as Nationals leader.

In his latest public critique of the Coalition since being forced to the backbench over an affair with a staffer, Mr Joyce has questioned the Nationals' apparent retreat from the decentralisation policy, with the May budget pushing fewer than 100 positions, across just six agencies, out of Canberra and other metropolitan centres.

Barnaby Joyce has criticised the "very modest" commitment to the decentralisation policy he championed as Nationals leader. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Mr Joyce, who with his new partner Vikki Campion has signed a $150,000 deal with Seven's Sunday Night program to tell the story of their relationship and the birth of their son Sebastian, has not gone to the backbench quietly.

In an interview with Fairfax Media he suggested only three of the six relocations qualify as decentralisation because the others were placing government workers in Perth, Adelaide and western Sydney, amounting to a "silly game" where the policy was technically, but not legitimately, being pursued.
Forest covering an area more than 50 times the size of the combined central business districts of Sydney and Melbourne is set to be bulldozed near the Great Barrier Reef, official data shows, triggering claims the Turnbull government is thwarting its $500 million reef survival package.

Figures provided to Fairfax Media by Queenslands Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy show that 36,600 hectares of land in Great Barrier Reef water catchments has been approved for tree clearing and is awaiting destruction.

The approvals were granted by the Queensland government over the past five years. About 9000 hectares under those approvals has already been cleared.

Despite the dire consequences of land clearing for the Great Barrier Reef  and billions of dollars of public money spent over the years to tackle the problem  neither Labor nor the government would commit to intervening to stop the mass deforestation.
The charity that has pledged to use a $444 million federal grant to attract private donations and help the Great Barrier Reef previously failed to raise money for a Cape York replanting project, casting doubt on the extent to which it can leverage the massive investment.

The revelations undermine the Turnbull government's justification for entering the controversial partnership with the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, in a process that shut out expert bodies including its own agencies.

Doubts have been raised over the Great Barrier Reef Foundation's ability to raise money to improve the health of the natural wonder. Credit:Jason South

The business-focused foundation has been under intense scrutiny since the government last month announced it would hand over the unsolicited funds without a tender process, and without having fully assessed the organisations ability to manage the windfall.

Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg defended the decision, saying the foundation would leverage the funds to attract additional money from the corporate and philanthropic sectors.
An extended nine-week campaign for five byelections on July 28 has dented the Turnbull government's chances of securing a company tax cut breakthrough in the Senate, while strengthening calls to split the legislation to exclude the biggest companies, including the banks.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann confirmed the government had not modelled any other methods of carving out the politically toxic big banks from the proposed cut in company tax from 30 per cent to 25 per cent without excluding other big employers with turnover of more than $500 million.

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says the government has not modelled any other methods for excluding big banks from the proposed company tax cut. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Key Senate crossbench parties, One Nation and the Centre Alliance have candidates running in the byelections and are preparing to campaign strongly against the company tax cuts for bigger firms, aware they are unpopular with voters.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has indicated the government will run on its economic record and advocate its policies for both personal and business tax cuts, despite Labor's claims that the latter constitutes an "$80 billion giveaway" to the big end of town.
The Turnbull government will be urged to fix a chronic problem in the superannuation industry by setting up a new body to allocate some of the $474 billion in retirement savings for workers who never nominate their preferred fund.

The government's peak economic adviser has prepared a damning report on the industry woes and recommends sweeping new measures to help choose the best funds for millions of workers to boost their retirement nest eggs.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Minister for Revenue and Financial Services, Kelly O'Dwyer. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The report, to be released on Tuesday, will dash the hopes of the major banks in their quest to break open the existing system where unions and employers choose the default funds for workers.

The Productivity Commission will outline a new way to select the default funds, but its stops far short of the open competition sought by the banks and allies such as AMP in the retail fund sector.
Though Sirhan admitted at his trial in 1969 that he shot Kennedy, he claimed from the start that he had no memory of doing so. And midway through Sirhan's trial, prosecutors provided his lawyers with an autopsy report that launched five decades of controversy: Kennedy was shot four times at point-blank range from behind, including the fatal shot behind his ear. But Sirhan, a 24-year-old Palestinian immigrant, was standing in front of him. New evidence has emerged over the years that Sirhan Sirhan, in white shirt, may not have been the only shooter. Credit:Universal Pictorial Press Was there a second gunman? The debate rages to this day. But the legal system has not entertained doubts. A jury convicted Sirhan of first-degree murder and sentenced him to death in 1969, which was commuted to a life term in 1972. Sirhan's appeals have been rejected at every level, as recently as 2016, even with the courts considering new evidence that has emerged over the years that as many as 13 shots were fired - Sirhan's gun held only eight bullets - and that Sirhan may have been subjected to coercive hypnosis, a real life "Manchurian candidate." His case is closed. His lawyers are now launching a longshot bid to have the Inter-American Court of Human Rights hold an evidentiary hearing, while Schrade is hoping for a group such as the Innocence Project to take on the case. A spokesman for the Innocence Project said they do not discuss cases at the consideration stage.

In the final court rejection of Sirhan's appeals, US Magistrate Judge Andrew Wistrich ruled, "Even if the second shooter's bullet was the one that killed Senator Kennedy, [Sirhan] would be liable [for murder] as an aider and abettor." And if Sirhan was unaware of the second shooter, Wistrich wrote that the scenario of a second gunman who shot Kennedy "at close range with the same type of gun and ammunition as [Sirhan] was using, but managed to escape the crowded room without notice of almost any of the roomful of witnesses, lacks any evidentiary support." 'Is everybody OK?' On June 5, 1968, Kennedy had just won the California Democratic presidential primary and delivered a victory speech to a delirious crowd. At 12.15 am, the 42-year-old candidate and Schrade left the celebration, walking through the hotel pantry en route to a news conference. Schrade was a regional director of the United Auto Workers who had helped Kennedy round up labor support, and Kennedy had singled him out for thanks in his victory speech moments earlier. Schrade, now 93, still recalls the scene in the pantry vividly.

"He immediately started shaking hands" with kitchen workers, Schrade said of Kennedy. "The TV lights went on. I got hit. I didn't know I was hit. I was shaking violently, and I fell. Then Bob fell. I saw flashes and heard crackling. The crackling actually was all the other bullets being fired." Witnesses reported that Kennedy said, "Is everybody OK? Is Paul all right?" Kennedy was still conscious as his wife, Ethel, pregnant with their 11th child, rushed to his side. He lived for another day and died at 1.44 am June 6, 1968. Schrade was shot above the forehead but the bullet bounced off his skull. Four other people, including ABC news producer William Weisel, were also wounded. All survived. Sirhan was captured immediately; he had a .22-caliber revolver in his hand. Karl Uecker, an Ambassador Hotel maitre d' who was escorting Kennedy through the pantry, testified that he grabbed Sirhan's wrist and pinned it down after two shots and that Sirhan continued to fire wildly while being held down, never getting close to Kennedy. An Ambassador waiter and a Kennedy aide also said they tackled Sirhan after two or three shots.

Several other witnesses also said he was not close enough to place the gun against Kennedy's back, where famed Los Angeles coroner Thomas Noguchi found powder burns on the senator's jacket and on his hair, indicating shots fired at close contact. These witnesses provided more proof for those who insist a second gunman was involved. Both the Los Angeles District Attorney's office and the Los Angeles Police Department declined interviews on what they consider a closed case. Paul Schrade speaks on Sirhan's behalf at his 2016 parole hearing. Credit:AP Schrade believes Sirhan shot him and the others who were wounded but that he did not kill Kennedy. Since 1974, Schrade has led the crusade to try to persuade authorities - the police, prosecutors, the feds, anyone - to reinvestigate the case and identify the second gunman. "Yes, he did shoot me. Yes, he shot four other people and aimed at Kennedy," Schrade, said in an interview at his Laurel Canyon home. "The important thing is he did not shoot Robert Kennedy. Why didn't they go after the second gunman? They knew about him right away. They didn't want to know who it was. They wanted a quickie."

- - - At trial, defence lawyer Grant Cooper made the decision not to contest the charge that Sirhan fired the fatal shot and instead tried to persuade the jury not to impose the death penalty by arguing Sirhan had "diminished capacity" and didn't know what he was doing. It is a standard tactic by attorneys in death penalty cases, but Cooper, who died in 1990, was widely criticised for not investigating the case before conceding guilt. Sirhan is now 74 and approaching 50 years behind bars. After California's courts abolished the death penalty in 1972, he was first made eligible for parole in 1986 but has been rejected repeatedly. In 2016, Schrade spoke on Sirhan's behalf at his parole hearing and apologised for not coming forward sooner to advocate for Sirhan's release and exoneration. There's plenty of damning evidence against Sirhan. He confessed to the killing at trial, though he claims this was done on his attorney's instruction. He took hours of target practice with his pistol earlier in the day, and he took the gun into the Ambassador that night. He had been seen at a Kennedy speech at the Ambassador two days earlier. He had a newspaper clipping critical of Kennedy in his pocket and had written "RFK must die" in notebooks at home, though he said he didn't remember doing that. And he waited in the pantry for about 30 minutes, according to witnesses who said he asked if Kennedy would be coming through there.

But questions about the case arose almost immediately in Los Angeles, resulting in hearings and reinvestigations as early as 1971 by the district attorney, the police chief, the county board of supervisors and the county superior court. Many of them focused on the ballistics of the case, starting with Noguchi's finding that Kennedy had been shot from behind, which Sirhan's lawyer didn't raise in his defence. In addition, lead crime scene investigator DeWayne Wolfer testified at trial that a bullet taken from Kennedy's body and bullets from two of the wounded victims all matched Sirhan's gun. But other experts who examined the three bullets said they had markings from different guns and different bullet manufacturers. An internal police document concluded that "Kennedy and Weisel bullets not fired from same gun," (Weisel was the wounded ABC news producer) and "Kennedy bullet not fired from Sirhan's revolver." This prompted a Los Angeles judge in 1975 to convene a panel of seven forensic experts, who examined the three bullets and refired Sirhan's gun. The panel said no match could be made between the three bullets, which appeared to be fired from the same gun, and Sirhan's revolver. They found Wolfer had done a sloppy job with the ballistics evidence and urged further investigation. In addition, witnesses said bullet holes were found in the door frames of the Ambassador pantry, and photos showed investigators examining the holes in the hours after the shooting. Between the three bullets that hit Kennedy and the bullets that hit the five wounded victims, Wolfer had accounted for all eight of Sirhan's shots. Bullets in the doors would indicate a second gun. Wolfer later said the holes and the metal inside were not bullets, and the door frames were destroyed after trial.

Though Los Angeles authorities had promised transparency in the case, the police and prosecutors refused to release their files until 1988, producing a flood of new evidence for researchers. Among the material was an audiotape, first unearthed by CNN journalist Brad Johnson, which had been inadvertently made by Polish journalist Stanislaw Pruszynski in the Ambassador ballroom, and turned over to police in 1969. 'Too many bullets' Pruszynski's microphone had been on the podium where Kennedy spoke, and TV footage shows him detaching it and moving toward the pantry as the shooting happens. In 2005, audio engineer Philip Van Praag said the tape revealed that about 13 shots had been fired. He said he used technology similar to the ShotSpotter technology used by police to alert them to gunshots, and which differentiates gunshots from firecrackers or other loud bangs.

Van Praag said recently that different guns create different resonances and that he was able to establish that two guns were fired, that they fired in different directions, and that some of the shot "impulses" were so close together they couldn't have been fired by the same gun. He said he could not say "precisely" 13 shots but certainly more than the eight contained by Sirhan's gun. "There were too many bullets," Robert Kennedy jnr said. "You can't fire 13 shots out of an eight-shot gun." But moreover, "The people that were closest to [Sirhan], the people that disarmed him all said he never got near my father." "I'm interested in finding out how the prosecutor convicted Sirhan with no evidence, knowing there was a second gunman," Schrade said. It was Schrade who persuaded Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to examine the evidence. "Once Schrade showed me the autopsy report," Kennedy said, "then I didn't feel like it was something I could just dismiss. Which is what I wanted to do."
Vous etes confrontes a une infestation par la puce, la punaise de lit ? Voici plusieurs actions qui sont a mettre en uvre pour faire []
Latest News 86 400 CEO steps down Bank CEO announces on social media that he has quit, merger partner to fill in

ANZ makes major change to broker leadership team Head of retail broker promoted to corporate role, aggregator chief to take over on interim basis

Nominations are open for the 2018 Australian Mortgage Awards, inviting entries in 31 categories.

The awards recognise a broad range of practices in the industry, celebrating brokerages, individual brokers, BDMs, aggregators and industry campaigns.

Last year saw the introduction of the lenders categories. The winners of the newly introduced categories were Westpac for Major Bank of the Year, ING for Non-Major Bank of the Year and Pepper Money for Non-Bank of the Year.

The award for Most Effective Online Presence was also expanded to recognise the best websites from brokers, aggregators and lenders, with the trophies won by Empower Wealth Mortgage Advisory, Connective and Pepper Money respectively.

Who will be the winners of 2018?

Readers are urged so submit their nomination in one or more of the award categories and start preparing their nominations.

To nominate, just click here. Entries close Friday 29 June.

Winners in all categories will be announced at an awards ceremony at The Star Sydney on Friday 19 October.

Related stories:

Australias broker of the year revealed at AMAs

Productive focus helps brokerage write $160m
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated country's first smart and green highway - the Eastern Peripheral Expressway or EPE- built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore. The Prime Minister had laid the foundation stone for the project on November 5, 2015. The 135-km long EPE runs from Kondli - Ghaziabad- Palwal.



The Expressway, which has been completed in a record time of about 500 days, has several unique features and is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting on every 500 metres on both sides and would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains.



According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, this is the first national highway in the country with 14 lanes, and has several features that would help reduce pollution. The EPE aims to provide faster and safer connectivity between Delhi and Meerut and beyond this, with Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.



The Expressway will reduce the time to travel from Delhi to Meerut to 45 minutes from the present about 4-5 hours.

The project is being built in four segments -- Nizamuddin Bridge to UP Border, UP Border to Dasna, Dasna to Hapur and Hapur to Meerut.



KEY POINTS TO KNOW ABOUT DELHI-MEERUT EXPRESSWAY



The Expressway has a closed tolling system in which toll will be collected only for the distance travelled and not for the entire length. Toll plazas will be equipped with Electronic Toll Collection system for faster toll collection and uninterrupted travel experience.



Weigh-in-Motion equipment have been installed at all 30 entry points of the Expressway to stop entry of over-loaded vehicles.

EPE has toll plaza 170 feet high, with 154 feet wing on either side. Under the toll plaza there is a digital art gallery with holographic models of major structures and making of the EPE.

The Expressway is equipped with smart and intelligent highway traffic management system and video incident detection system.

The project has consumed 11 lakh tonnes of cement, 1 lakh tonnes of steel, 3.6 crore cum earthwork and 1.2 crore cum fly-ash. It generated employment opportunities of about 50 lakh man-days and 9,375 manpower was deployed here.

The six-lane expressway provides entry and exit designated interchanges only and has 406 structures of which 4 are major bridges, 46 minor bridges, 3 flyovers, 7 inter-changes, 221 underpasses and 8 road over bridges.

The amenities include retail fuel outlets, rest rooms, motels, restaurants, shops etc. Some of the monuments replicas pertain to Ashoka Lion, Ashoka Chakra, Konark Temple, Jalianwala Bagh, Gateway of India, Qutab Minar, Char Minar, Lal Quila, Kirti Stambh, India Gate, Hawa Mahal and Gujarat Carving.

Delhi-Meerut Expressway is the first highway to use solar power on the entire length of 135 km. There are eight solar power plants on this Expressway, with a capacity of 4000 KW (4 megawatt) for lighting of the underpasses and running solar pumps for watering plants.

The expressway will do away with 31 traffic signals on the Delhi-Meerut road, the busiest highway in the region, and make it signal free.

(With inputs from PTI)


The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is set to move a special court in Mumbai to seek permission for "immediate confiscation" of about Rs 7,000 crore assets of designer diamond jeweller Nirav Modi under the recently promulgated Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance.

The agency, empowered by the Union government to enact the new power in the country, will seek an official declaration to categorise Nirav Modi as a "fugitive" based on its prosecution complaint (charge sheet) filed before a special court in Mumbai last week under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

On May 24, the ED had filed its first charge sheet in the over USD 2 billion PNB fraud case involving diamantaire Nirav Modi and his associates stating that over Rs 6,400 crore of bank funds were allegedly laundered abroad to dummy companies by him and others.

A total of 24 accused have been listed in the charge sheet, filed under section 45 of the PMLA, including Nirav Modi, his father, brother Neeshal Modi, sister Purvi Modi, brother-in-law Mayank Mehta and the designer jewellers' firms--Ms Solar Exports, Stellar Diamonds and Diamonds R Us.

The court is expected to take cognisance of the 12,000 page charge sheet tomorrow and the counsel for the agency will subsequently seek its permission to invoke the provisions of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance against Modi and immediately begin the procedure to confiscate all the assets "of and linked to" Modi in India and abroad, a senior official told PTI.

A court-issued non-bailable warrant is already pending against Modi and the ED has also moved the Interpol to get a global arrest warrant issued against him, sometime back.

The agency will initiate the same action against absconding liquor baron Vijay Mallya, against whom the Enforcement Directorate and the CBI had filed their respective charge sheets last year.

It is expected, the official said, that assets worth Rs 7,000 crore can be confiscated in the money laundering and the Punjab National Bank fraud corruption case against Nirav Modi, under the stringent fugitive offenders ordinance.

The central probe agency had recently begun the work to bring together the existing cases of high-value fugitives and bank loan defaulters for getting them notified under the new legislation.

As per the existing process of law under the PMLA, the ED could only confiscate the assets once the trial in a case finishes which usually takes a long time of many years.

The ordinance is aimed at deterring economic offenders from evading the process of law by remaining outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts.

The Modi government brought the ordinance last month as "there have been instances of economic offenders fleeing the jurisdiction of Indian courts, anticipating the commencement, or during the pendency, of criminal proceedings," the government said.

The rationale behind the law, the government had said, was the absence of such offenders from Indian courts which hampers investigation and wastes court time and undermines the rule of law.

"The existing civil and criminal provisions in law are not entirely adequate to deal with the severity of the problem," it had said.

The Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill, 2018 was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 12 but couldnt be taken up due to logjam in Parliament over different issues.

With Parliament being adjourned sine die, an ordinance was proposed.

The Union Cabinet on April 21 approved the ordinance and the President gave his assent to promulgation of the same a day later.

The ordinance makes provisions for special courts under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 to declare a person as a fugitive economic offender.

"A Fugitive Economic Offender is a person against whom an arrest warrant has been issued in respect of a scheduled offence and who has left India so as to avoid criminal prosecution, or being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution," the government statement said.

However, only cases of frauds, cheque dishonour or loan default of over Rs 200 crore would come under this ordinance.

The ordinance provides for necessary constitutional safeguards in terms of providing hearing to the person through counsel, allowing him time to file a reply, serving notice of summons to him, whether in India or abroad and appeal before the high court.

The government had said the new law would help banks and other financial institutions to achieve higher recovery from financial defaults committed by fugitive economic offenders, improving the financial health of such institutions.

The ED would take the same action of notification under the fugitive offenders ordinance after filing a second charge sheet against Modi's uncle and jeweller Mehul Choksi and his businesses, who are also accused in this case.

Nirav Modi, who is absconding and has not joined the ED probe in the case till now, and others are being probed under various criminal laws after the fraud came to light this year following a complaint by the Punjab National Bank that they allegedly cheated the nationalised bank to the tune of over Rs 13,000 crore, with the purported involvement of a few employees of the bank.

Both Nirav Modi and Choksi are said to have left the country before criminal cases were lodged against them.
news, latest-news

Canberra pet owners are concerned the veterinary complaints system is broken, and believe the proposed new scheme should be more transparent. Alexis Kilby-Luhrs dog died while having surgical swabs removed from its abdomen from a failed previous surgery. She took her complaint to the ACT Veterinary Surgeons Board and said their response was manifestly inadequate. We never even had a meeting with the person investigating the complaint, Ms Kilby-Luhrs said. The process was traumatic, frustrating and unfair. However the ACT government has defended the vet board, saying it was working well and the new legislation would improve it's efforts to stamp out malpractise in the sector. Ms Kilby-Luhrs' dog Elle, a mastiff cross rescue dog, died in January 2016 from mistakes made during a routine desexing surgery two years prior. A complaint report produced by the vet board, provided to the Sunday Canberra Times by Ms Kilby-Luhrs, states: "[Redacted] is likely [redacted] left an indeterminate number of surgical swabs in Elle's abdominal cavity while spaying her. It appears that this incident was an isolated lapse of judgement by an otherwise experienced, competent veterinary surgeon." In response to the complaint, the vet's employer updated surgery kit protocols to include a defined number of swabs and reviewed clinical record procedures and anaesthetic protocols. The dog, Elle, was six months old when she had the desexing operation in 2014. After she became unwell, a subsequent surgery revealed a mass of surgical swabs that had, over two years, embedded into the tissue causing necrosis and obstructing digestion. Ms Kilby-Luhrs complained to the vet board soon after the dogs death. It took the board a year to finalise the complaint, and she is deeply unhappy with the result. She received a letter saying the complaint had been finalised without any information as to what had been put in place to ensure what happened to her dog wouldnt happen to someone elses. Ms Kilby-Luhrs wants the process to be more open and transparent. At the moment, the board only discloses information publicly if disciplinary action has been taken - but not if recommendations are made. Ms Kilby-Luhrs fosters rescue dogs until they find their forever homes, and said she is experienced with post-surgical care. She felt the vet board dismissed her complaint because she hadnt taken Elle back for a postoperative check-up. But, Ms Kilby-Luhrs said she was never informed of complications that occurred during the surgery and the dog had no clinical signs of being unwell. The death of Elle devastated Ms Kilby-Luhrs. Adding insult to injury, she said the board was condescending, the whole episode dragged on for way too long, and she felt the problem was not dealt with appropriately. The vet just got a slap on the wrist, Ms Kilby-Luhrs said. "I still have no answers. I want to know it wont happen again, Ms Kilby-Luhrs said. Lance Nashs dealings with the vet board have been similarly difficult. While he's been told his complaint has been finalised, Mr Nash is fighting to find answers as to what's been put in place to protect other animals. He said the lack of action is appalling. I think its a matter of an industry policing itself," Mr Nash said. Mr Nash's dog Apache, a kelpie cross, was found to have cancer on his bottom. He was 14 years old. Surgery to remove a lump was undertaken in 2016 but the vet didnt tie off the suture, which resulted in infection. The dog collapsed soon after the surgery and Mr Nash said he received a phone call asking if he wanted to euthanise the dog. Mr Nash was astonished, and asked what other options were available. He said only then did the vet offer to clean the surgery site, which would require another surgery. The vet clinic then tried to charge Mr Nash for the subsequent surgery. While the vet board doesn't deal with complaints about the cost of veterinary care, Mr Nash felt that the vet discharged Apache too early with an open wound after he complained about the fees. "They wanted me to pay for their negligence," Mr Nash said. Apache died in September 2017. Mr Nash said before the surgery, the dog was a fairly healthy older dog with arthritis as his only health issue. When I brought him home, he was not the same dog. He never fully recovered from the second surgery. The minister for Transport Canberra and City Services presented the new veterinary legislation in early May. It will be debated by the Legislative Assembly in the coming weeks. Minister Meegan Fitzharris said the changes enhance regulatory powers of the vet board, but also increase public reporting measures and accountability provisions. "These provisions will enable scrutiny of the board's work and provide the community and the profession with greater assurance that the board is working in line with its legislative duties and performing efficiently," Ms Fitzharris said. A government spokeswoman said the board investigates complaints in an evidence-focused manner. "The boards focus in resolving complaints is always on ensuring the protection of the public and the welfare of animals." The spokeswoman said the board members consult with the ACT Human Rights Commission about what actions are appropriate in response to a complaint. She said the new legislation, set to be debated in the Legislative Assembly in the coming weeks, would "significantly improve the efficiency and responsiveness of the complaints process".

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/ef45b853-387b-416a-94ad-960eb485af07/r0_223_4256_2628_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
In the late 1980s, I worked at Gogodala in the Western Province employing mostly local staff. One of my female workers decided to get married to a recently qualified wantok policeman stationed in Moresby. So she sailed away to live with him in the big city.

Thus, when the Malaysian loggers come along accompanied by an educated wantok spiv, the opportunity of getting a 20 kina note or more is hard to resist. After all, they only have to say yes and sign an official form in English legal jargon.

They are expected to repatriate some of their salaries to help mum and dad pay for sibling to get educated, with a little money left over for a bag of rice and some sugar.

So they migrate, often forever, to the urban areas of PNG where they live in sub-standard homes in settlements or on the fringes of town.

CARDIFF - My wifes extended family in rural Papua New Guinea are subsistence folk. Any of their children able to reach higher education rarely find paid employment back home where they can use their learning.

Arthur Williams & photo album at home in Wales - 'too many of my PNG friends got an education but not a career'

I didnt see her again until some years later when I was working in Moresby and she came looking for a job in a new tiny retail unit I had built at the side of my companys head office. I remembered her well and had always thought highly of her work so gave her a job.

One day I drove her home so I could meet her husband. I was amazed that they lived underneath a wantoks small fibro-walled home near Badili. Their one room was on the sloping rocky land of the hillside on which the original house had been built.

I cant forget them. Two young married people both fully employed and yet with no real home in which to bring up their first child. The three of them were still there when I returned to New Ireland a couple of years later.

They had some relatives who I also met. Mr X (not his real name, as I think youve guessed) was from the Gogo area too and worked as bookkeeper for our company.

I asked him if he was hoping to go home for Christmas and was amazed when he replied, I hope I never have to live with those primitives again! His exact words. And he was a young educated Christian man. I still wonder if he was really as bad as he seemed.

On the Aramia River in the Western Province I was piloting my flat bottomed river truck when its outboard engine gave out. We had about mile or so of our up-river journey to go and daylight was dwindling.

We had three paddles for the three of us. My Highlander Huli colleague grabbed one; I took another and we both looked at our passenger, John, who just sat there.

He was a local Gogodala man who worked in our Moresby office and home for the weekend to attend a customary feast.

Whats a matter John? I asked.

I dont know how to paddle Arthur.

But youre from here!

But I havent lived here since I was two. Ive lived in Moresby all my life.

So a Welshman and a Huli highlander managed very, very slowly to paddle safely home.
news, latest-news

Canberra's peak provider for people with autism has been left in the dark about proposed dramatic changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. One Canberra father said the flagged changes would be devastating. Marymead chief executive Camila Rowland said she was "deeply concerned" about potential changes to the NDIS revealed last week. The changes were previously flagged by the Productivity Commission and would limit the availability of services for people with less than severe autism. Ms Rowland was only made aware of the possible overhaul after being contacted by the Sunday Canberra Times, despite reports the National Disability Insurance Agency had contacted key stakeholders nationally. "We 're the main autism centre for the region," Ms Rowland said. "We have 2000 people in our [autism centre's] client database." Canberra father John Donovan, who himself has autism, cares for his two sons, Cameron, 16 and Nicholas, 20, who also have autism. People with autism wouldn't be barred from care under the changes but may not be automatically eligible for support. The levels range from one to three - mild to severe - under the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V with the NDIA flagging removing level two people from List A which grants them automatic eligibility. Mr Donovan's sons have been diagnosed as severe and moderate respectively under the previous DSM-IV scheme but he estimated Cameron was at level three, potentially level two, while he estimated Nick was at level two. "Fighting to get the services for my children is very taxing and I have to put my own needs on the backburner," Mr Donovan said. The changes wouldn't bar people with level two autism receiving List A support but would move them to List B which required independent assessment by the NDIA. Marymead's Ms Rowland said the severity of a persons autism isn't always clear from a young age and they needed strong support and early intervention. "Given that there have been widespread reports of inconsistencies in NDIA assessments, reviews and determinations, it is of concern that an independent professional diagnosis using the DSM-5 tool would be overlooked by the NDIA in preference for their own in house alternative," Ms Rowland said. "As NDIS operates on an insurance model, it would be expected that comprehensive early intervention funding packages would enable reduced cost to the NDIA over time." "Any type of reduction in NDIS funding for these people, these individuals and families would be of a major concern to us." Mr Donovan said the public servants at the NDIA were "out of touch". "The public service is not a medical community. They need to take into account medical professions reports, not just a government cap," Mr Donovan said. "What [Cameron] needs and what the NDIS is prepared to fund are two different kettles of fish."

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/78fd0f94-50f1-4234-8b14-5e84c98e19ce/r0_224_3784_2362_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, latest-news

Executive staff at Calvary Hospital raised issues about being ordered to "manipulate" some elective surgery waiting lists by ACT Health in 2013, with some calling the practice unethical, according to confidential emails. Documents leaked to The Sunday Canberra Times reveal high-level staff expressed concern about a directive issued by ACT Health that Calvary staff said forced them to manipulate elective surgery wait lists by operating on patients newer to the list, rather than those who had waited the longest, in order to meet national benchmarks. The emails were leaked following revelations of a systemic culture of bullying of staff at the hospital. ACT Health previously denied any manipulation took place, stating in November 2013 that the system wasn't altered to improve performance standards. The directive from ACT Health, seen by the Sunday Canberra Times, came despite both staff and executives at Calvary saying patients would be put at risk by the changes to the waiting list procedure. "The directive is potentially placing patients on the elective surgery waiting list at risk, as a cohort will be required to be treated out of turn," then-nursing director Andrew Mead and perioperative services director Stephen Brazenor said in a joint email. "The directive is unlikely to stand up to independent audit or Auditor General scrutiny against the surgical access policy or other jurisdictional benchmarks." The orders came from a letter from ACT Health dated July 30, 2013 to former Calvary chief executive Ray Dennis. The letter stated Calvary was ordered to change its policies to the surgical waiting list for category two patients - where surgery is desirable within 90 days - to bring it into line to what was seen at Canberra Hospital. Patients new to the waiting list would be treated first, rather than those on the list the longest, in order to meet the national benchmark of 66 per cent of all surgeries being on time. Calvary insiders have confirmed with The Sunday Canberra Times that the practice took place. "I therefore now direct you to make urgent and radical changes to the current approach undertaken by Calvary in the management of category two patients accessing surgery, to reflect the model implemented at Canberra Hospital," the ACT Health letter said. An ACT Health spokeswoman said the approach to elective surgery waiting lists has changed since 2013. "Different approaches are taken depending on the needs of the population at any given time, and as technology and best practice models evolve both nationally and internationally, we update our practices," she said. "We are also now focused on a territory-wide approach to health services. The Territory Wide Surgical Management Committee monitors wait list performance and ensures key bodies of work are allocated to providers." In late 2013, ACT Visting Medical Officers Association president Peter Hughes told The Canberra Times the waiting lists for category two patients were being manipulated. At the time, ACT Health rejected the claims as "nonsense". Staff at the hospital said in emails they would be forced to "cherry pick" patients in order to meet the targets. "I believe that the course being plotted exposes not just Calvary Health Care Bruce but also the Little Company of Mary, the ACT Health Directorate and the minister to justifiable criticism and public outrage," Stephen Brazenor said at the time. Data from the year to June 2013 showed only 49 per cent of category two patients were operated on time at Calvary Hospital. Perioperative administration manager Karen Burgan expressed concerns over the ACT Health proposal, with a large deal of patients on the waiting list being elderly. "As most of our long wait overdue category two patients are orthopaedic, they are generally elderly and requiring orthopaedic surgery, often in a lot of pain and on medications," she wrote on August 9. "It is extremely unethical for Calvary Health Care to even consider this directive from ACT Health." "I feel that this directive is unfair to patients particularly those that have been waiting a long time. It is very sad that a lot of these patients will fly under the radar," surgical bookings clerk Lee-Ann Turk said. A Calvary insider said shortly after the directive was issued, a staff member was appointed by Calvary to ensure the changes to the wait lists were implemented. The ACT Health spokeswoman said wait lists for elective surgeries are determined by a range of factors, including patient complexities, availability as well as resources. "At the time of this five-year-old correspondence between ACT Health and Calvary Public Hospital, Calvary Public Hospital was seeking further information about an approach ACT Health were taking at that time, to reduce elective surgery wait lists," the spokeswoman said. "This model had seen Canberra Hospital reduce the number of category two patients who were waiting longer than 90 days for elective surgery, by including a mix of long wait and within target patients on surgical lists." A Calvary Hospital spokesman said the hospital participates in territory government programs to maintain the effective flow of patients. "Different jurisdictions have introduced revised processes to improve patient access to elective surgery over the years," the spokesman said. "In respect of the ACT's elective surgery management in 2013, Calvary complied with and provided feedback on the territory-wide elective surgery policies as we had done previously and will continue to do." Do you know more? Email: andrewbrown@fairfaxmedia.com.au

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/27f0125e-f7d4-4cac-8a05-31a86037ada8/r0_229_4500_2771_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, latest-news

The consultancy firm that ironed out sexual harassment policy for the Australian Navy will run the ruler over residential colleges at the Australian National University. Nous Group, based in Canberra, won the tender to conduct the review for the university, in response to recommendations from a 2017 Australian Human Rights Commission report which named the ANU as among the worst universities in the nation for sexual violence. College traditions including hazing, would be closely examined for their role in sexual assault and harassment, Pro Vice-Chancellor of university experience Professor Richard Baker said, as would a "worrying" culture of binge drinking. While an earlier audit of the university's policies on sexual harassment and assault was criticised for not consulting with survivors, Professor Baker said this time around the ANU would be listening closely to students. Training of residency staff and student leaders, along with levels of supervision and support in a 24 hour residential setting, would also be considered during the six-month-long review. ANU Vice-Chancellor Professor Brian Schmidt put colleges "on notice" after the release of the 2017 survey, warning they could have their affiliation with the university revoked if they opted out of the review. The sector-wide report found residencies were spaces of particular danger and detailed hazing rituals at some Australian university colleges including a "run the gauntlet" challenge, in which female students made their way down a corridor drinking from cask wine kept in the trousers of male residents. Professor Schmidt said the review would be guided by advice from an expert panel, including the ACT's chief police officer Justine Saunders, and retired Vice Admiral Russell Crane who has a long history working on sexual misconduct in institutional settings. [It] will explore the culture within individual residences  both ANU owned and managed and affiliated residences- and...how [they] respond to reports of sexual assault and sexual harassment," Professor Schmidt said. Details of how the review will work are still being ironed out, but are expected to include both focus groups and student surveys. Input would also be sought from students who had graduated up to five years ago. More than twenty per cent of ANU students lived on campus last year, one of the highest rates in the country. "That's why this review is so important," Professor Baker said. "We want to change the culture." An audit of counselling services available at the university, including wait times, is also underway. While the review was another recommendation of the commission's report, it had fallen almost six months behind schedule due to changes in health management policy within the university, Professor Baker said. The ANU has updated its discipline rule to include definitions of sexual assault and harassment, meaning the university can now treat such allegations as misconduct. But clauses remain barring the ANU from acting upon complaints if a criminal investigation is under way, despite an independent review recommending in September this rule be reconsidered as "a matter of urgency". Professor Baker said the university had received legal advice that it could not pursue any action once an incident became a police matter. The ANU has introduced new training for staff and students responding to sexual assault and harassment, and beefed up its counselling services, with a Canberra Rape Crisis Centre staff member now available on campus five days a week. If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault or family violence, call the Canberra Rape Crisis Centre on 02 6247 2525. Nationally, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732. In an emergency contact 000.

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/8de7a099-bb1e-425f-a10e-9eadebaa8467/r0_80_2000_1210_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, latest-news

The public bust-up between Qantas and Canberra Airport has taken another unexpected twist, with a senior Kenyan diplomat now entering the fray. Last week the former chair of Australias competition watchdog, Graeme Samuel, likened the aggressive behaviour of Canberra Airport to something out of Somalia or Kenya. In response, Kenyas high commissioner to Australia, Isaiya Kabira, has rebuked the comparison in an open letter sent to Fairfax Media. While it is in your full right to express your outrage, we find it extremely unfortunate that you draw parallels of inefficiency and imagery of piracy to a respected and much-admired airport of Nairobi, Mr Kabira wrote. We also bring to your attention that thousands of young Kenyan soldiers have put their lives on the line to pacify and bring peace in Somalia, a corner of the world, long forgotten by many nations, as part of a peace keeping force of the African Union, he added. The letter attributed the comments to Qantas boss Alan Joyce, although the quote referenced in the letter was made by Mr Samuel, who chairs industry body Airlines for Australia and New Zealand. A spokeswoman for the industry body said they would apologise to the Kenyan embassy. The comments were made on the spur of the moment and were a poor choice of wording, the spokeswoman said. There was never any intention to cause offence to Kenya. The intention was to demonstrate our ongoing frustration with the anti-competitive behaviour of Canberra Airport. We will issue an apology to the Kenyan Embassy accordingly. Mr Samuel made the comparison at an airline industry event at Parliament House on Thursday last week. I cant contemplate any place in the world, except perhaps Somalia or perhaps Nairobi, where an aircraft would, having had to make an unscheduled landing because of weather, had a car parked in front of the aircraft, saying you cannot move until the airline provides a Visa card to extract a charge of $18,000, he said. Thats not Australia. Thats a third world country. Im assured by Qantas it doesnt even happen in third world countries they are involved in. In contrast, Mr Kabira said Nairobi Airport was a bustling freight and transport hub of which Kenyans were proud. The Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi is the centrepiece of this hub, serving millions of passengers every year, he said. We are indeed proud that later in the year our national airline, Kenya Airways, will begin direct flights from Nairobi to New York. At the same event Mr Joyce had likened Canberra Airport to a band of Somali pirates. Maybe the airport should be called The Canberra Pirates because you wouldnt have this in Somalia, Mr Joyce said. You wouldnt have this in other parts of the world. It is unbelievably appalling behaviour. Mr Joyces comments referred to a stoush in March last year, in which the airport had asked Qantas to pay an $18,000 diversion fee following an unexpected landing due to bad weather. A Canberra Airport spokeswoman said Qantas was bullying them after a flare-up over flight cancellations. Qantas doesn't like Canberra Airport calling them out on the cancellations, the spokeswoman said. Canberra Airport said the plane was only delayed for eight minutes while they negotiated a diversion agreement to prevent unexpected and unsafe landings in the future. But Mr Joyce said he had encountered nothing like the incident in almost 30 years working in aviation. A Canberra Airport spokeswoman said last week the airport had a positive meeting with Qantas, and was focused on repairing its relationship with the nations biggest airline. If Graeme Samuel or Alan Joyce wants to continue this bullying behaviour, so be it, the spokeswoman said. Unfortunately, this new attack comes after a positive meeting with Qantas yesterday and puts the progress we made on behalf of our customers in question. Canberra Airport has been publicly at loggerheads with Qantas for months, repeatedly speaking out against cancellation rates plaguing flights between Sydney and Canberra. The airport has gone as far as seeking federal government intervention and recently met Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack to discuss the issue.

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/d68ddd32-9674-4751-97ed-0c66d8133410/r0_112_2000_1242_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, act-politics

More than $2 million will be spent in next week's ACT budget on upgrading and protecting the Mulligans Flat wildlife sanctuary. ACT Environment Minister Mick Gentleman announced $1.6 million for the construction of an ecotourism learning centre at Mulligans Flat, while almost $600,000 will be spent on the eradication of rabbits and hares from the area. The visitors centre was previously outlined as part of a 2016 election commitment by Labor. It's hoped the centre will bring in more tourists to the area and act as a gateway to the wildlife sanctuary. The centre is expected to be open to the public during the 2021-22 financial year. Woodlands and Wetlands Trust chief executive Jason Cummings welcomed the funding. "It's long been an aspiration of our organisation and members to develop a world-class facility that brings together community, conservationists and researchers, where they will be able to work together," he said. "It would absolutely boost numbers and would be a great asset and hopefully attract more visitors." The $1.6 million announcement matches funding already raised by conservation organisation Odonata. Mulligans Flat is the only woodland area in Australia that is predator free and protects endangered species such as the eastern bettong. Mr Cummings said the three-year funding to rid the sanctury of rabbits and hares was step in the right direction. He said while there isn't a large rabbit population in Mulligans Flat, it has the potential to become a larger problem in years to come. "If rabbit numbers are unchecked, it would impact significantly on native flora and can do untold damage to the vegetation," he said. While rabbits were eradicated from the sanctuary in 2017, the new program will help remove the species from the new area in Mulligans Flat, which extends to the Throsby offset area and the Goorooyarroo Nature Reserve. The program will involve monitoring rabbit activity, establishing a network of rabbit fences as well as baiting and fumigation.

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/50dd1485-f908-4359-9b4a-e7b5004ad1e7/r0_78_1280_801_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, latest-news

The ACT government is proposing to alter the Territory Plan to prevent unrestricted, multi-unit redevelopments in Canberra's older suburbs, after the plan's current wording created "unintended consequences". Draft Variation 350 proposes to change the definition and naming of "single-dwelling block" to "standard block". The "single-dwelling block" definition, introduced into the plan in 2013, specifically applies to blocks that were originally leased or used for a single dwelling. This meant it did not apply to a number of residential blocks developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when dual occupancies with a house and a small flat could be built on a single block provided only the house could be seen from the street. According to the draft variation, residential leases for these blocks do not specify or limit the number of dwellings permitted. "This has led to multi-unit redevelopment proposals being lodged with the planning and land authority that are contrary to the existing streetscape density and character," the draft variation says. Minister for Planning and Land Management Mick Gentleman said the draft variation addressed the "unintended consequences" thrown up by the current wording, by adjusting the definition of these blocks so they included land originally leased or used for one or two dwellings. This adjustment to the Territory Plan will give the community and industry greater clarity and provide them with certainty when considering redevelopment of these particular blocks, Mr Gentleman said. As Canberra progresses, so too does the need to constantly review and adjust the Territory Plan zoning to meet current planning and community expectations. The draft variation has already taken interim effect, and applies to development applications lodged on or after May 25. It is being proposed as an interim solution until the Housing Choices Project, a broader policy review of the ACT's future housing options, has been completed next year. Public submissions on the draft variation are open until July 13.

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/8e867b72-ffc1-4317-8b75-90a77e1d8bd7/r0_116_2000_1246_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, latest-news

It's just after lunch and a group of Canberra high school students are wrapping up their teleconference with NASA. A jet-propulsion engineer has been taking questions on how he helped build the Mars rovers. All tips are welcome, says teacher and scientist Paula Taylor, who runs the newly opened Centre for Innovation and Learning in Tuggeranong. Soon students will be working with Formula One (and 3D printers) to build model cars that will cut across the facility in less than a second. While propulsion might be covered in the Australian curriculum, the experiences on hand at the $5.7 million centre don't run by the book. When the facility opened its doors this year at Caroline Chisholm School, a robot designed by a student cut the ribbon. It's one of two specialty STEM centres which will eventually be available to all ACT public schools as part of the 'Future Skills Academy' program, based on consultation with industry leaders at the CSIRO, the Australian National University and the University of Canberra. Education Minister Yvette Berry revealed $5.8 million in next month's budget will go towards funding a second centre in the north, in a reconfigured space at the University of Canberra Lake Ginninderra school. Already, 11 schools are flocking to the Tuggeranong centre to work on projects, hear from industry experts and invent, while 35 teacher have access to professional development around the clock. Amongst it all, Ms Taylor is impossible to miss in her bright pink lab coat. Today she is helping a year 2 class from Fadden Primary design animal habitats. For the diarama, there's the usual spread of icecream sticks and plasticine but there's also 3D apps and virtual reality headsets to step into each animal's home. This particular class became so excited by their first visit to the centre they even set their own homework. "It's all hands-on, self-directed learning," explains Ms Taylor. "When they come here young, they build those skills, then all we can do is advance them." While similiar Tech School programs are being rolled out in Victoria for secondary schools, Australia's Chief Scientist Alan Finkel agreed it was important to ignite the "spark" for STEM early on. Dr Finkel has thrown his support behind the Canberra centres, after releasing a report earlier this month calling for more industry engagement to turn around Australia's deteriorating school STEM results. "What we found is that industry wants to work with schools. They're not trying to take over, but they want to be part of it," he said. The report also emphasised the importance of focussing on real world problems rather than careers and ATAR scores. "Kids care about the problems theyre going to solve," Dr Finkel said. In a shed beside the centre are stacks of inventions, solutions to questions students set out to answer this semester. "Sometimes they really surprise me," Ms Taylor says. Once both centres were complete, Ms Berry says they would be open for every student, regardless of their socio-economic background. "This is about showing kids, showing girls in particular, that STEM is something they can enjoy...It's actually a bit emotional...to see it all happening," she says. "One student in Year 10, she said she had never connected with STEM before and she came to a robotics [class] here...She's now coming back [in her own time] to work on her robot." For Dr Finkel himself, it was the US space program and an exploding glass flask that first made him fall in love with STEM in school. The unfortunate glass was a casualty of a classroom chemistry experiment gone wrong, but it was all "terrifically exciting", he recalls. The ACT's STEM centres are particularly well timed, he says, as Australia's new space agency lands in the capital this July. "The [US space program] was very exciting...when I was growing up. "We lost that for a while but now there's a lot of excitement across Australia and developed countries...in the potential of conquering space again."

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/6bce761e-4d72-487f-88bd-017552e11f46/r0_214_4200_2587_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
news, latest-news

Canberrans snapped up a chance to get a first hand experience with Indigenous culture on Saturday, making bush soap, boomerangs and learning about plant life. The event at the Jerrabomberra wetlands was being held to allow younger generations to learn more about Aboriginal culture and work towards closing the gap, Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation cultural director Richie Allan said. "It's important to highlight Ngunnawal culture around here and show it to the Canberra community," Mr Allan said. Mr Allan said Canberra's first Reconciliation Day on Monday was a sign the country was moving forward. "Not a great deal, but we are moving forward," Mr Allan said. Penelope Andrew said her son, Spencer Cole, was most interested in the boomerangs. "I like hearing about Indigenous cultures, but I really want my children to learn about it as well," Ms Andrew said. "I want them to grow up knowing the stories. I think there's a lot of Aboriginal culture that we don't know about." The group was served a spread, including crocodile and kangaroo, which Mr Allan said wasn't traditionally Ngunnawal. Ms Andrew also said the group learned about native plants which acted as a soap but also a sedative, which Indigenous people would put into waterholes. "If kangaroos or snakes came and drank from the waterhole it made them easier to hunt," Ms Andrew said. Christine Sarafian, a Canadian, also attended the event in the wetlands with her son Mikael. The experience made her want to learn more about native Canadians when she returned home. "I really enjoyed learning about the different medicinal or edible properties of the plants; the flora and fauna is very different from Canada," Ms Sarafian said. Young Mikael was amazed at making soap from native plants and loved throwing boomerangs. "We all really enjoyed it," Ms Sarafian said. Mr Allan said he hoped for more funding so he could continue to provide the tours to more Canberrans. "If you want to learn more, please, I urge people to contact us," he said. "It's our history." A series of events is being held in Canberra for Reconciliation Day and Week. See reconcilation.org.au for details.

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/3e06aebe-d305-4c7d-9877-326c8e07416c/r0_185_3529_2179_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
Northern Power Distribution Company of Telangana Ltd (TSNPDCL) has released an employment notification calling out for aspirants to apply for the post of Sub-Engineer. Those interested can check out the eligibility, salary scale, how to apply and the complete details of the government job here. Selected candidates can earn up to INR 41155. The last date to apply for the government job is June 18, 2018.

Konkan Railway Recruitment 2018 For 100 Vacancies!

TSNPDCL Recruitment 2018 Vacancy Details

CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Post Sub-Engineer Organisation Northern Power Distribution Company of Telangana Ltd (TSNPDCL) Educational Qualification Diploma in electrical engineering Age Limit 18 to 44 years Skills Required Engineering skills Salary Scale INR 20535 to INR 41155 Job Location Telangana Industry Electrical Experience Not required Application Start Date June 5, 2018 Application End Date June 18, 2018

Also Read: NTPC Recruitment 2018 For Executives

How To Apply For TSNPDCL Recruitment 2018

In order to apply for TSNPDCL Recruitment 2018, follow these steps:

Step 1: Log on to the TSNPDCL official website.

Step 2: Click on the Careers tab.

Step 3: The list of notifications will be displayed on the screen.

Step 4: Click on the link for Sub-Engineer post.

Step 5: The detailed notification will be displayed on the screen. Read the details carefully.

Step 6: Click on the link mentioned in the advertisement in order to apply. (The application will be open only from June 5, 2018).

Step 7: Follow the subsequent pages to complete the registration process.

Click here to read the detailed official notification.
Photo: Contributed

A life-and-death battle against drug dealers is being waged on the sprawling Blood reserve in southwestern Alberta, as officials struggle to keep deadly opioids away from its most vulnerable residents.

Canada's largest reserve has been on the front lines of a fentanyl epidemic that has plagued many parts of the country over the last four years.

Fentanyl, an opioid up to 100 times more powerful than heroin, is used as a painkiller for terminal cancer patients. But on the streets, the drug  also known as "beans"  emerged as an OxyContin replacement after that drug's formula was changed.

Sixteen overdose deaths in the first three months of 2015 prompted the Blood band, which has about 10,000 members, to declare a state of emergency.

A second state of emergency was called after a rash of overdoses at the end of February when a batch of carfentil, described as 100 times more toxic than fentanyl, hit the community.

"We were ill-prepared for it. EMS and the police had horrendous calls," said Dr. Esther Tailfeathers, who was born and raised on the reserve.

"They'd come to a house and there would be five people who had overdosed and they were unresponsive and not breathing. In that weekend, we had 14 overdoses and luckily no one died."

There were another 50 overdoses in Lethbridge that weekend.

"We haven't seen another night like that," Tailfeathers said. "But I'm sure it's not the last night we're going to see something like that."

Tailfeathers said progress has been made with the introduction of naloxone and Suboxone, a non-addictive medication used to treat opioid addiction.

But drugs are still making their way onto the reserve and, she said, dealers seem to know exactly when to strike.

"There are certain days when we're going to see more overdoses, more violence related to drug dealing and more suicide attempts," she said.

"Those are always related to a payment in the community  a day after welfare comes out or a day after child tax benefits, even (Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped) and Canada Pension."

Blood Tribe Police Chief Kyle Melting Tallow said several dealers have been banished only to set up shop in communities on the edge of the reserve. He said they find drug mules, usually addicted band members, to carry fentanyl onto the First Nation and sell it when cash is available.

"They know when the money is in the community, so that's when we see the trafficking go up in frequency."

Addictions have been a problem for the Blood Tribe for generations.

"We do have a lot of addicted people. We do have a lot of people who are in vulnerable situations and some of them don't know how to deal with certain things," said Melting Tallow.

"We have dealers who come in from outside the community and take advantage of that."

The CEO of the Blood Tribe Department of Health said additional community health staff, a harm reduction nurse and a crisis prevention team have been added.

But despite increased awareness, some people are still getting "tricked" by whatever they're buying, said Kevin Cowan.

"If it's not fentanyl, it's going to be something else. The drug addiction, the alcoholism, it all continues to happen," said Cowan.

"We're just saving lives now because of naloxone. Whereas two or three years ago, it wouldn't have been 50 plus overdoses. It would have been 50 plus deaths."

Rick Tailfeathers, a spokesman for the Blood Tribe, said the band is looking at mixing up the timing of payments to members so they don't all happen on the same day.

"We've lost a lot of people through overdose fatalities. It was OK after 2015  things improved and the overdoses were way down. But they're back."

He said the current addictions are more deadly than those in the past.

"There was alcoholism that was rampant in the '60s. But today you hear almost daily about overdoses and it's fatal. That didn't happen until just recently  I would say in the last four years," Tailfeathers said.

"I don't see any end in sight as long the addiction is there. Fentanyl is highly addictive and most drug users are going to try and find it. It's the big guys, the dealers, that need to be caught."
Michelle Obama was the first lady of the United States for two terms, which some people were grateful for. But others, not so much. Fox News was no exception to those who were displeased with seemingly everything Obama got involved in  and the network has continued hating on her since her time in the White House ended.

From body shaming (page 5) to calling her a racist (page 6), this is every time Fox News attacked the former FLOTUS.

1. For rapping about going to college

In 2015, Obama tried to encourage young adults to go to college by making a rap video with Saturday Night Live alum Jay Pharoah. She was attempting to connect with and inspire the youth, but Fox News host Sean Hannity saw it as a waste of time.

He criticized, The Western world is under constant threat from Islamic jihadists, but your first lady, Michelle Obama, is busy making a rap music video about going to college.

Next: He thought she had an ulterior motive.

2. For wearing designer clothes

Obama was one seriously stylish FLOTUS, but Hannity had a problem with her wearing designer clothes. He claimed her only motive was to make the media report on it and call [her], you know, Jackie Kennedy.

Next: We arent surprised she faced backlash for this.

3. For saying female Trump voters went against their own voice

Obama unapologetically called out women who voted for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election. While at a Boston conference in September 2017, she criticized female Trump voters for going against their own voice. She also noted that they chose to support what they were told to like.

Unsurprisingly, Obama faced the backlash from Fox News. Conservative host Kathy Barnette criticized, The left still does not get it. This election has never been about ovaries  As women, we can speak beyond our uteruses.

Next: He spouted off lies about her powerful speech.

4. For her speech on slavery

At the Democratic National Convention in 2016, Obama delivered a moving speech that touched on how far weve come since the days of slavery. I wake up every morning in a house that was built by slaves, Obama pointed out. And I watch my daughters, two beautiful, intelligent, black young women playing with their dogs on the White House lawn.

Bill OReilly, a former Fox News host who was fired due to sexual harassment allegations, had a concerning response to Obamas speech. While he noted, Michelle Obama is essentially correct in citing slaves as builders of the White House, he added, There were others working as well.

OReilly claimed, Slaves that worked there were well-fed and had decent lodgings provided by the government, which stopped hiring slave labor in 1802. Twitter users were quick to call out the hosts attempt to downplay the reality of slavery.

TV executive Shonda Rhimes tweeted, The idiocy never ceases to amaze me. Try slavery, Bill. Let us know how good the food is while you wear chains.

Next: This doctor body-shamed the FLOTUS.

5. For her advocacy around eliminating childhood obesity

Obama poured her heart into initiatives she cared deeply about, making her one of the most beloved first ladies of all time. One of the causes she advocated for was the fight against childhood obesity. However, the hosts of Fox News Outnumbered werent impressed.

They called her efforts annoying, claiming she was acting like a duchess. Dr. Keith Ablow, one of Fox News members of their Medical A-Team, chimed in to explain why he doesnt think Obama is qualified to deliver such advice.

He insensitively criticized her, saying that Obama needs to lose a few pounds. According to Politicus USA, [Ablow] later claimed that she is obviously eating french fries and that she didnt get her figure by eating kale and carrots.

Next: They actually called her racist.

6. For making divisive and racist comments

While speaking at the Pennsylvania Conference for Women in October 2017, Obama pointed out a problem she noticed at the State of the Union address. The Republican side of the room completely lacked diversity, comprised of literally gray and white.

However, she noted, On the other side of the room, there are yellows and blues and whites and greens. Physically, theres a difference in color, in the tone. Because one side: all men, all white. On the other side: some women, some people of color.

Stuart Varney of Fox Business spoke with Katrina Pierson, a member of the Trump for President Advisory Board, who both agreed that Obamas comments were divisive. Pierson harped on Obamas divisive language and racism in her tone, claiming, This is one of the reasons why people in this country stay so divided.

Next: This analogy is apparently a sign of liberal elitism.

7. For her liberal elitism

Pierson wasnt done with blasting Obama for her comments. In April 2018, Obama used an analogy to describe the difference between her husbands leadership and that of President Trump  and its safe to say Pierson didnt agree.

The former FLOTUS referred to President Obama as the good parent. She explained, For the eight years Barack was president, it was like having the good parent at home. The responsible parent, the one who told you to eat your carrots and go to bed on time.

And now we have the other parent, she continued, referring to Trump. We thought itd feel fun, maybe it feels fun for now because we can eat candy all day and stay up late, and not follow the rules.

Pierson called Obamas remarks liberal elitism on full display. She also claimed that Obama continues to insult and demean the American people.

Check out The Cheat Sheet on Facebook!
Colorado's love for SUVs is stronger than ever, even as climate warms
Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

I'm in the historic English city of Lincoln ahead of the 400th anniversary of the Pilgrims leaving these shores on the Mayflower.

The anniversary is an opportunity for both Americans and Britons to learn about the history of the Pilgrims, not least the history beyond the Mayflower folklore at the heart of the annual Thanksgiving holiday.

After first visiting Harwich, home of Mayflower Captain Christopher Jones and likely where the ship was built, I drove to Lincoln where I learned about its extensive connections to the Pilgrims and those who followed them. Along the way, I stopped in Boston, the namesake of Boston, Massachusetts.

In the original Boston, I discovered the finely preserved circa 14th century Guildhall, including the cells where William Bradford, arguably the most famous of Mayflower passengers, and other Pilgrim leaders were jailed after attempting to leave for the Netherlands in 1607. I also explored St. Botolph's Church, which rivals some cathedrals in size, and saw the pulpit used by John Cotton, a firebrand Puritan clergyman.

Four hundred years ago, Lincolnshire and neighboring Nottinghamshire were on the frontlines of religious dissent with the two main factions being Puritans, who wanted to reform the Church of England from within, and Separatists, who, as their name implies, wanted to separate from the established church.

Some of the divide was over doctrine and practices (aka churchmanship). However, much of the division centered on church polity, as in the structure or government of the church.

The Church of England, established by Parliament, headed by the monarch since Henry VIII, run by bishops from thrones in their cathedrals and operated on a day-to-day basis by priests, was rejected by the radical reformers as too hierarchical and too Roman Catholic. This was the basis for several of today's Protestant denominations, including the Baptists and Congregationalists.

History tells us the Pilgrims fled to America for religious freedom. And while it is certainly true that they looked to the New World and saw an opportunity to freely practice their kind of Protestant Christianity, the Pilgrims, as well as the early waves of emigrants from England that followed them, only cared about religious freedom for themselves. They had little toleration for dissenting voices with the best example of their hypocrisy being the founding of Rhode Island by Roger Williams as a "liberty of conscience."

To better understand the people, places and history, I went on a Mayflower 400 day tour with Adrian Gray of Pilgrims & Prophets, which specializes in Christian heritage tours. For Christians, this part of England is also interesting because the religious history goes back to the earliest days of Christendom in the British Isles and continues beyond the Pilgrims to the formation of other dissenter denominations, including the Methodists.

I'm generally not a fan of guided tours or group excursions, as I don't like being on someone else's schedule. However, Gray's expert knowledge and connections to local historic sights were invaluable, as it would have impossible to access some of the places tied to the Mayflower on my own. This was especially true with the churches once attended by the Pilgrims. (The guestbook of one church, which according to the signboard in the churchyard is almost never open, listed only a dozen or so visitors since last summer.)

I stopped at the parish churches in the villages of Babworth, Scrooby and Austerfield, where Bradford and William Brewster would have worshipped and the Rev. Richard Clyfton, a Church of England priest-turned-Separatist, preached. In Austerfield, the churchwarden showed me around the Norman-era church, which was within walking distance from the old manor house Bradford called home.

I also visited Gainsborough Old Hall, where it is believed Separatists once worshipped in secret, and Sturton-le-Steeple, which John Carver, the first governor of Plymouth Colony, and John Robinson, who left the Church of England priesthood, called home. As if that wasn't enough history, this tiny village, known in the 1600s as Styrton, or Sturton is modern spelling, can also claim John Smyth, the first Baptist and a contemporary of the Pilgrims.

These are all places the Pilgrims knew, though admittedly the landscapes and cityscapes have changed greatly since the early 17th century.

What struck me most  besides seeing where so many Pilgrims came from  was the high concentration of religious dissenters in such a small area.

Take Sturton-le-Steeple as an example. This Nottinghamshire village could be claimed as the home of both Baptists and Congregationalists. That's pretty remarkable when you consider its population of fewer than 500 inhabitants

If you go

I stayed at the White Hart Hotel, which is near Lincoln's medieval cathedral. It was the perfect base for exploring both Lincoln and the surrounding area. I recommend booking a room on the upper floors, as they come with million-dollar views of the cathedral and the quaint old town. Room rates, which start at about 81 (approximately $108), include breakfast.

For dinner, I recommend either Browns Pie Shop (note the lack of an apostrophe), which is a great little restaurant, or the Wig & Mitre, a traditional English pub with so-called gastropub fayre. Both have an extensive drinks menu, including wine.

Spires and Crosses, a travel column exclusive to The Christian Post, is published every week. Follow @dennislennox on Twitter.
Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment

There is a critical shortage of foster parents in America today. As one example, the city of Philadelphia has issued an "urgent" plea for more foster homes.

At the same time, the city has halted referrals to Catholic Social Services (CSS), an agency that has worked in the city for decades and oversees about one hundred foster homes. The Wall Street Journal explains the reason: the agency holds Catholic beliefs about same-sex marriage.

"Who is really intolerant here?"

CSS works with children regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or race. On religious grounds, however, they will not certify same-sex or unmarried couples as foster parents, referring them to another state-approved agency. More than two dozen such agencies exist.

CSS says no gay couples have ever sought their help for certification. Nor has anyone filed a complaint after being turned away.

Nonetheless, Philadelphia has denounced CSS as discriminatory and launched an investigation into their practices. Unless the group agrees to provide written certifications for same-sex foster parents, the city will terminate CSS's contract in June.

One foster parent affected by the city's decision has opened her home to more than 130 children over the last forty-six years. Philadelphia honored her as one of its foster parents of the year in 2015. But because she is certified through CSS, her home has been vacant since April.

The city claims that foster parents could simply work through another agency. However, switching agencies can be a bureaucratic challenge. In addition, CSS provides its foster families with holistic support, making social workers available for calls at any hour.

As the Journal notes, "Philadelphia is penalizing Catholic Social Services because its beliefs about marriage don't mesh with progressive cultural values. To protect the city's conscience, Philadelphia demands that Catholics violate their own. Who is really intolerant here?"

"No longer welcome in American culture"

These are troubling times for those of us who affirm biblical morality.

We've grown accustomed to being ridiculed in popular culture (a character on The Simpsons calling Christianity a "dopey religion" is just a recent example). We recognize that our affirmation of biblical marriage will continue to anger those who brand us "intolerant" and "homophobic."

A perceptive Time article headlined, "Regular Christians Are No Longer Welcome in American Culture." In his keynote address at the recent First Amendment Lunch in Washington, DC, Albert Mohler described the times in which we live:

"Religious freedom, freedom of speech, and the freedom of the press, along with the other rights recognized and respected within the Bill of Rights, are all threatened even as other rights are marginalized. Even more distressingly, a new regime of invented rights threatens to replace the rights that are clearly enumerated within the text of the Constitution."

When the growing bias against biblical morality affects innocent children, the "culture wars" have moved to an especially troubling place.

Use our influence to advance biblical morality

How should we respond?

Engage in the political process. I've often stated my belief that God is calling more Christians into public service than are answering his call.

Pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Ask God to guide them and to bring them to repentance where necessary. Encourage believers who are running for office and serving in political leadership, asking God to use their witness for his glory and our good.

Defend believers whose rights are under attack. For example, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty brought a lawsuit on behalf of Catholic Social Services against the city of Philadelphia, claiming that the city has breached its contract with CSS and is violating the group's right to religious liberty. Organizations such as Kelly Shackelford's First Liberty are doing outstanding work in defending Christians whose faith is under legal assault.

"You can turn the world around"

If you're wondering whether your faith and faithfulness can make a real difference in our culture, remember how God works. He uses a shepherd's sling to slay a giant; he turns a boy's lunch into a feast for thousands; he transforms Galilean fishermen into world-changing apostles.

His kingdom is like a mustard seed that becomes a tree so large "the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches" (Matthew 13:31-32).

Why does he do this?

Paul explained: "God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God" (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).

Read again the last phrase: "so that no human being might boast in the presence of God." The King of the universe most uses those who most glorify him. Self-dependence is spiritual suicide. Christ-dependence is spiritual victory.

Edmund Burke warned: "Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little." By contrast, Thoreau asserted: "Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around."

Will you "live your beliefs" today?

Originally posted at Denison Forum.
Today is Monday, May 28, the 148th day of 2018. There are 217 days left in the year. This is the Memorial Day observance.

Todays highlight in history:

On May 28, 1918, American troops fought their first major battle during World War I as they launched an offensive against the German-held French village of Cantigny; the Americans succeeded in capturing the village.

On this date:

1533: The Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, declared the marriage of Englands King Henry VIII to Anne Boleyn valid.

1892: The Sierra Club was organized in San Francisco.

1912: The Senate Commerce Committee issued its report on the Titanic disaster that cited a state of absolute unpreparedness, improperly tested safety equipment and an indifference to danger as some of the causes of an unnecessary tragedy.

1929: The first all-color talking picture, On with the Show! produced by Warner Bros., opened in New York.

1934: The Dionne quintuplets  Annette, Cecile, Emilie, Marie and Yvonne  were born to Oliva and Elzire Dionne at the family farm in Ontario, Canada.

1937: President Franklin D. Roosevelt pushed a button in Washington signaling that vehicular traffic could begin crossing the just-opened Golden Gate Bridge in California. Neville Chamberlain became prime minister of Britain. In Nazi Germany, Volkswagen was founded by the German Labour Front.

1940: During World War II, the Belgian army surrendered to invading German forces.

1957: National League owners gave permission for the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants to move to Los Angeles and San Francisco.

1968: Creedence Clearwater Revival, the bands debut album, was released by Fantasy Records.

1977: A fire raced through the Beverly Hills Supper Club in Southgate, Ky., killing 165 people.

1987: To the embarrassment of Soviet officials, Mathias Rust, a young West German pilot, landed a private plane in Moscows Red Square without authorization. (Rust was freed by the Soviets the following year.)

1998: Comic actor Phil Hartman, 49, of Saturday Night Live and NewsRadio fame was shot to death at his home in Encino, Calif., by his wife, Brynn, who then killed herself.

2008: The White House reacted angrily to a highly critical memoir by President George W. Bushs former press secretary, Scott McClellan, who wrote that Bush had relied on an aggressive political propaganda campaign instead of the truth to sell the Iraq war. Nepals lawmakers abolished the monarchy and declared the country a republic, ending 239 years of royal rule.

2013: Calling it perhaps the biggest money-laundering scheme in U.S. history, federal prosecutors charged seven people with running what amounted to an online, underworld bank, saying that Liberty Reserve handled $6 billion for drug dealers, child pornographers, identity thieves and other criminals around the globe.

2017: A series of shootings in rural Mississippi claimed the lives of eight people at three separate homes; a suspect faces one count of capital murder in the death of Lincoln County Sheriffs Deputy William Durr and seven counts of first-degree murder. The Cannes Film Festival awarded its coveted Palme dOr award to Ruben Ostlunds Swedish comedy The Square. Takuma Sato won the Indianapolis 500 to give owner Michael Andretti a second consecutive victory. Angelique Kerber became the first womens No. 1 seed to be defeated in the French Opens first round in the Open era, losing 6-2, 6-2 to 40th-ranked Ekaterina Makarova of Russia.
Saudi Arabia will partner with Houston-based Halliburton as it hopes to unlock a natural gas revolution similar to the shale boom that began in the U.S. more than a decade ago.

State oil company Saudi Aramco signed a three-year contract Sunday with the North American fracking leader to handle the hydraulic fracturing and completions of its unconventional gas wells. Saudi Arabia hopes to rely much more on its domestic gas to power the Kingdom's electric grid.

HIGH-PROFILE VISITOR: Saudi crown prince wraps up U.S. tour in Houston

Whiles Saudi Arabia is known as the world's largest oil exporter, it has vast supplies of gas as well, but much of it is difficult to recover from shale rock and tight sand. The goal is to use the unconventional drilling and fracking technologies developed in the U.S., especially in Texas, to tap into those gas resources.

The effort also is part of Saudi Arabia's "Vision 2030" modernization plans to open Saudi's energy sector to foreign investors, including taking Aramco public eventually, while diversifying globally, especially along the Texas Gulf Coast. Saudi Arabia is increasingly investing in Texas petrochemical plants and refineries from Corpus Christi to Port Arthur.

The deal comes just a month after Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the heir to the Saudi throne, capped a three-week U.S. tour in Houston, where he underscored the Kingdom's long-standing energy ties to the region.

Now, Halliburton is a bigger part of those overall plans.

"We believe Halliburton will work best with Saudi Aramco to help in our pursuit of unconventional gas to serve domestic needs, offset local crude burning, provide feedstock for chemical industry development, and spur regional economic development in line with Vision 2030, the Kingdom's national transformation program," said Mohammed Qahtani, Saudi Aramco's senior vice president of upstream.

The contract includes a guaranteed two years with the option for a one-year extension. The companies declined to dollar figures or additional details about the deal for now.

"We are excited to apply our broad knowledge, efficiency and experience in unconventionals from Halliburton's leadership position in North America to Saudi Arabia," said Halliburton Chief Executive Jeff Miller, who traveled to Saudi Arabia for a signing ceremony. "This is a great opportunity to provide a tailored application of Halliburton technology, logistics management and operational excellence to maximize Saudi Aramco's asset value and deliver optimal recovery."
Astronaut Alan Bean, the fourth person to set foot on the moon who retired from NASA to blaze new trails as an accomplished artist of lunar landscapes sprinkled with moon dust, died Saturday at Houston Methodist Hospital. He was 86.

Family members said Bean, the last living member of the Apollo 12 crew, suffered from a brief illness after traveling in Indiana two weeks ago. Friends recalled him among the greats of a generation, and also as a genuinely good guy.

"Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met," astronaut Mike Massimino said in a statement. "He was a one-of-a-kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter."

Bean was born in Wheeler in the Texas Panhandle, and grew up in Fort Worth. He dreamed of becoming a naval aviator and began his flight training at 17. He graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in aeronautical engineering.

ean trained as a Navy test pilot under fellow Apollo astronaut Charles "Pete" Conrad, who later played a key role in helping him make the cut as one of 14 trainees in NASA's third class of astronauts in October 1963.

"You had to be superhuman," said Keith Cowing, editor of the American space program blog NASA Watch. "You had to be a fighter pilot and pass all kinds of physicals. You had to be capable of sitting in a spacecraft that would blow up and not let that bother you."

Cowing said the early astronauts had to show they could work with people, follow directions and make decisions with a level head under extreme physical stress.

Bean's remarkable 18-year career at NASA included 69 days in space and 31 hours on the moon's surface.

His first journey to the moon took place in November 1969, just four months after the historic Apollo 11 landing with astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Bean's quick thinking helped keep the mission on track when lightning struck the rocket during the launch of Apollo 12, said Herb Baker, a former manager of the operation support office at Johnson Space Center.

Lightning struck the command module Yankee Clipper shortly after liftoff during a thunderstorm at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With the capsule hurtling about 5,000 mph spaceward, all of the warning lights on the instrument panel lit up. The Yankee Clipper's main power was gone. Mission Control sent a somewhat cryptic message to flip the "SCE to AUX" or backup mode. There were more than 100 switches on the control panel. Neither of his co-pilots knew where to look, but Bean knew where the switch was and brought the power back. If the crew had not found the switch, they would have had to abort the mission.

Instead, on Nov. 19, 1969, Bean and Apollo 12 commander Conrad landed on the Ocean of Storms and he became the fourth human to set foot on the moon. During two moonwalks, Bean helped deploy several surface experiments and installed the first nuclear-powered generator station.

Joking rapport

Back on Earth, Bean maintained a joking rapport with his crewmates, including Richard F. Gordon Jr., who didn't get a chance to step onto the moon, as his role was to remain on board the craft.

The crew all drove matching gold Corvettes. When Conrad and Bean returned to the capsule after their moon walk, they were so coated in moon dust that Gordon  like the proud owner of a freshly waxed vintage car  exclaimed to them, "Holy smoke. You're not getting in here and dirtying up my nice clean command module."

"I made them strip, take every bit of clothes off they had," he said in a NASA oral history. "So they passed the rocks over, they took off their suits, passed those over, took off their underwear, and I said, 'OK, you can come in now.'"

Bean was commander on the second Skylab mission where he spent 60 days living in space, from July 29 to Sept. 25, 1973. While there, he tested a prototype of a Manned Manuevering Unit and took one spacewalk outside the Skylab.

He retired from NASA in 1981 and went on to make art, even though he hadn't picked up a paintbrush until age 30, having enrolled in a night school art class as a Navy test pilot in Maryland, according to Chronicle archives.

More than 40 of his works were displayed at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in 2009 in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 and 12 moon landings.

Strongest, kindest man

Before his venture into space, Bean had been a skilled, if amateur, painter. After he returned, his colleagues urged him to take up the brush to share his impressions of a sight few Earthlings would see.

"You can create the very first paintings in all of history of a place other than our own planet," they said, according to www.alanbean.com the website where Bean promoted his works. "Your paintings will forever be the first paintings of the many other worlds humans will visit as the centuries unfold."

"Because of this unprecedented opportunity and challenge, I resigned from NASA in 1981 to devote all of my time and energy to painting, celebrating the great exploration that was Apollo," the website says. He described his works as a mixture of painting and sculpture, textured with lunar tools, sprinkled with small bits of Apollo 12 spacecraft and moon dust from the Ocean of Storms."

Bean began painting full time in his home studio. His Apollo-themed paintings garnered hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Michael Coats, former director of the Johnson Space Center, said he first met Bean when he acted as a sort of "den mother" for Coats and his colleagues in the 1978 class of astronauts, which was the first group to include women and people of color.

Coats said everyone was surprised when Bean took up painting, but they enjoyed the result.

"I wish I could afford one of his paintings," he said.

Bean's wife of 40 years, Leslie, said in a statement that he was "the strongest and kindest man I ever knew."

"He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly," she said.

In addition to his wife, Bean is survived by two children from a previous marriage.
SANTA FE - A week after Jared Black's family and friends anticipated celebrating his birthday, they instead went to Aldersgate United Methodist Church to bury the teenage boy.

Black, 17, was killed when a classmate walked into his art class at Santa Fe High School and began gunned down eight students and two teachers. Thirteen others were injured, including a school officer who attempted to stop the gunman.

As cars filled the parking lot at Aldersgate United Methodist Church for the private ceremony, a line of 10 white wooden crosses memorialized the dead outside the high school.

A red heart was fastened at the center of each cross, and mourners piled green and yellow necklaces and flowers on each one. Workers from the Red Cross passed out water and chaplains prayed with mourners, who walked the line of crosses and talked amongst themselves.

After the shooting, Black's friends and family remembered him as an optimistic teen who loved making art, playing video games like Minecraft or Pokemon Go and playing Legos with his nephew.

He often sent photos of his artwork to his 21-year-old half-brother, Anthony McLeod, who said Black's family had moved to Santa Fe from Eugene, Ore., when he was 4.

After the shooting, McLeod told the Chronicle that Black was always eager to help and support his friends during difficult times.

McLeod said when he hit a rough patch as a teenager, Black always was by his side.

"He always asked me how I was doing to make sure everything was OK," McLeod said. "He didn't understand what I was going through, but he was always there if I needed him."

McLeod, now an oilfield worker in Odessa, said Black took an interest in his 5-year-old son, and the two became nearly inseparable after they met.

Black showed McLeod's son his favorite Lego sets. They'd play outside in the dirt, using their imaginations to conquer unseen foes. The 5-year-old would stick to Black's back when the two went swimming.

Black's stepfather, Travis Stanich, described the 17-year-old on Friday as a quiet, kind teen who loved anime, science fiction, wrestling and wolves.

"He's a great kid," Stanich said. "He loves people. He's very creative."

According to an obituary posted by Black's family, Black is survived by his mother Pamela Stanich and step-father Travis Stanich; father Robert Black; his brothers Jeremy Black and wife Desi, Anthony McLeod and wife Cara, Houston Conard and Nicholas Black; his sister Emily Black; grandmother Diane Conard; grandfather Lou Black; great-grandmother Ruby Stone; and five nephews, five uncles, and three aunts and other relatives and friends.

Shelby Webb and David Hunn contributed to this story.

St. John Barned-Smith covers public safety and major breaking news for the Houston Chronicle. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Send tips to st.john.smith@chron.com.
Just as the Millennium Falcon took Luke Skywalker away from his desert home of Tatooine, it also provided Deric Peveto passage out of his career as a trauma nurse. Admittedly Pevetos escape didnt involve blasting his way out of Mos Eisley, but the Falcon still changed his life dramatically when he envisioned the Corellian freighter as a chip-and-dip bowl hand carved out of a mix of domestic and exotic wood.

Hurricane Rita turned Peveto into a woodworker when it cleaved his Beaumont home in half. "There were a lot of repairs and no one to do them," he said. "So I learned to do the repairs myself."

Now a Nacogdoches resident, Peveto's hobby grew into his Wood By Hand company, which was selling Falcon chip/dip vessels and other carved pieces at Comicpalooza this weekend.

The Falcon really started it all, he said. Somebody took a picture of it, and I didnt think anything of it. Then a friend told me it was on the front page of Reddit. I asked, Is that a bad thing?

Orders for the bowls began to pour in. Pevetos Comicpalooza booth has some Falcons, and other pieces like a triangular wooden door stop for Game of Thrones fans that reads Hodor.

Pevetos story isnt terribly uncommon at events like Comicpalooza. While mass-produced shirts and toys are readily available, there remains demand for creative, hand-made items by people whose hobbies sometimes reveal a second act in ones professional life.

I never envisioned myself being in this pop-culture world, Peveto says. But I really love being part of it.

Comicpalooza kicked off quietly Friday, as it often does with fans old and young at work or in school. Saturday brings the true wave of costume-clad fans.

Once on site at the George R. Brown Convention Center, theyre faced with all manner of stimuli: artists and vendors selling wares; actors and writers discussing their work; and beloved stars from all corners of the fantasy, superhero, science-fiction, speculative fiction worlds doing photo-ops and signing autographs.

The very tall Peter Mayhew  Chewbacca from Star Wars  pulled a consistently robust crowd, as always. And Orlando Jones from American Gods looked genuinely thrilled to meet and greet fans at his booth, offering laughs and high gives to early arrivals.

Young talent from the Marvel world pulled particularly well. The line for a Q&A with "Jessica Jones" star Krysten Ritter filled a large conference room. Once it cleared, it filled again instantly with teenagers lined up for "Spider-Man" star Tom Holland  three hours before his own Q&A.

A popular draw among the artists was Joel Adams, whose booth bore the title The Sexy, the Cute and the Ugly Art of Joel Adams. Adams is a second- generation artist, whose father Neal is beloved in the comic book veteran whose 1970s Batman work was influential. The younger Adams has a strong following in Texas thanks to his character development for TVs King of the Hill.

"Texas really treats me well," Adams said. "In five years of doing these shows this was my best Friday."

The convention center space was alive with art and new permutations on old ideas. Nate Jones prints were particularly eye-catching. Like Peveto, Jones prototype was an accidental success. He created a tribute to his father, a representation of his dad that focused on his prominent mustache other with facial features eliminated in favor of a prominent quote.

I tried to turn it into a commission-based business, but it really didnt go anywhere, he said. Then I did one after David Bowie died . . .

Suddenly Jones had a thing.

Other things evolve over time. The McDougal Sewing Center has operated in the region since 1940, these days based in JOANN Fabric and Craft Store. They have a cosplay session scheduled in August.

Cheryl Sleboda of McDougal had various costume materials available. We do costume triage for people in need, she said.

Thats one of my favorite things about this convention. Anybody can go out and buy a costume, but you dont see many of those. This place is just full of creative people who have created their own costumes.

Which makes some of the events nerdier undertakings the most enjoyable. Like "The Empire Striketh Back," during which six actors from the Classical Theatre Company read a Shakespeare-inflected reinterpretation of "Star Wars: Episode V," the series' most Shakespearean entry.

With lines like "I trust not Lando" and "Chewie, fear thou not," along with narration and sound effects, it was a charming exercise in fan culture.
A grand jury will review the case of a man who died while fighting with several men in Chinatown late Friday after he allegedly attempted to rob them, Houston police said.

Investigators said it appears the man was trying to rob an apartment near the intersection of Ranchester and Clarewood just before midnight Friday.
A Houston man was arrested early Sunday after he allegedly punched a deputy constable in the face during a bar brawl in near Northside.

Antonio Ordaz, a 28-year-old with a number of prior arrests in Harris County, was jailed and charged with assault on a police officer.

A fight broke out just after 2 a.m. between two bar patrons at Rick's Den in the 4800 block of Cochran, according to Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman.

A Precinct 4 deputy constable working as extra security stepped in to break up the skirmish, but the crowd pushed in around him.

At one point, Herman said, somebody tried to grab the deputy's gun from his holster - though it's not clear whether it was Ordaz or another suspect.

Eventually, Ordaz ended up punching the deputy constable, who was briefly treated for bruises and cuts on his face, Herman said.

Ordaz has a handful of prior assault arrests in Harris County, including a pair of assault charges from 2013, when he was accused of pushing a woman and hitting her toddler. He received deferred adjudication and successfully completed probation, according to online court records.

Then in 2016, he was arrested after a woman he was dating said he hit her. He was charged with assault on a family member and given deferred adjudication.

He was still on probation at the time of his latest arrest, court records show.
Astronaut Alan Bean, the fourth person to set foot on the moon who retired from NASA to blaze new trails as an accomplished artist of lunar landscapes sprinkled with moon dust, died Saturday at Houston Methodist Hospital. He was 86.

Family members said Bean, the last living member of the Apollo 12 crew, suffered from a brief illness after traveling in Indiana two weeks ago. Friends recalled him among the greats of a generation, and also as a genuinely good guy.

Alan Bean was the most extraordinary person I ever met, astronaut Mike Massimino said in a statement. He was a one-of-a-kind combination of technical achievement as an astronaut and artistic achievement as a painter.

Bean was born in Wheeler in the Texas Panhandle, and grew up in Fort Worth. He dreamed of becoming a naval aviator and began his flight training at 17. He graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in aeronautical engineering.

Bean trained as a Navy test pilot under fellow Apollo astronaut Charles Pete Conrad, who later played a key role in helping him make the cut as one of 14 trainees in NASAs third class of astronauts in October 1963.

You had to be superhuman, said Keith Cowing, editor of the American space program blog NASA Watch. You had to be a fighter pilot and pass all kinds of physicals. You had to be capable of sitting in a spacecraft that would blow up and not let that bother you.

Cowing said the early astronauts had to show they could work with people, follow directions and make decisions with a level head under extreme physical stress.

Beans remarkable 18-year career at NASA included 69 days in space and 31 hours on the moons surface.

His first journey to the moon took place in November 1969, just four months after the historic Apollo 11 landing with astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Beans quick thinking helped keep the mission on track when lightning struck the rocket during the launch of Apollo 12, said Herb Baker, a former manager of the operation support office at Johnson Space Center.

Lightning struck the command module Yankee Clipper shortly after liftoff during a thunderstorm at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. With the capsule hurtling about 5,000 mph spaceward, all of the warning lights on the instrument panel lit up. The Yankee Clippers main power was gone. Mission Control sent a somewhat cryptic message to flip the SCE to AUX or backup mode. There were more than 100 switches on the control panel. Neither of his co-pilots knew where to look, but Bean knew where the switch was and brought the power back. If the crew had not found the switch, they would have had to abort the mission.

Instead, on Nov. 19, 1969, Bean and Apollo 12 commander Conrad landed on the Ocean of Storms and he became the fourth human to set foot on the moon. During two moonwalks, Bean helped deploy several surface experiments and installed the first nuclear-powered generator station.

Joking rapport

Back on Earth, Bean maintained a joking rapport with his crewmates, including Richard F. Gordon Jr., who didnt get a chance to step onto the moon, as his role was to remain on board the craft.

The crew all drove matching gold Corvettes. When Conrad and Bean returned to the capsule after their moon walk, they were so coated in moon dust that Gordon  like the proud owner of a freshly waxed vintage car  exclaimed to them, Holy smoke. Youre not getting in here and dirtying up my nice clean command module.

I made them strip, take every bit of clothes off they had, he said in a NASA oral history. So they passed the rocks over, they took off their suits, passed those over, took off their underwear, and I said, OK, you can come in now.

Bean was commander on the second Skylab mission where he spent 60 days living in space, from July 29 to Sept. 25, 1973. While there, he tested a prototype of a Manned Manuevering Unit and took one spacewalk outside the Skylab.

He retired from NASA in 1981 and went on to make art, even though he hadnt picked up a paintbrush until age 30, having enrolled in a night school art class as a Navy test pilot in Maryland, according to Chronicle archives.

More than 40 of his works were displayed at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in 2009 in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 and 12 moon landings.

Strongest, kindest man

Before his venture into space, Bean had been a skilled, if amateur, painter. After he returned, his colleagues urged him to take up the brush to share his impressions of a sight few Earthlings would see.

You can create the very first paintings in all of history of a place other than our own planet, they said, according to www.alanbean.com the website where Bean promoted his works. Your paintings will forever be the first paintings of the many other worlds humans will visit as the centuries unfold.

Because of this unprecedented opportunity and challenge, I resigned from NASA in 1981 to devote all of my time and energy to painting, celebrating the great exploration that was Apollo, the website says. He described his works as a mixture of painting and sculpture, textured with lunar tools, sprinkled with small bits of Apollo 12 spacecraft and moon dust from the Ocean of Storms.

Bean began painting full time in his home studio. His Apollo-themed paintings garnered hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Michael Coats, former director of the Johnson Space Center, said he first met Bean when he acted as a sort of den mother for Coats and his colleagues in the 1978 class of astronauts, which was the first group to include women and people of color.

Coats said everyone was surprised when Bean took up painting, but they enjoyed the result.

I wish I could afford one of his paintings, he said.

Beans wife of 40 years, Leslie, said in a statement that he was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew.

He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly, she said.

In addition to his wife, Bean is survived by two children from a previous marriage.

gabrielle.banks@chron.com

twitter.com/gabmobanks
President Donald Trump will be in Houston Thursday for a previously scheduled fundraiser, but his Texas trip is not expected to include a stop in Santa Fe.

Trump will headline a $5,000 per person luncheon to benefit the National Republican Senatorial Committee. He is also is scheduled to appear at a fundraising dinner in Dallas on the same day.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - School's out at the Cleveland Institute of Art, but the lessons continue, and they're not just for art students.

The institute's Reinberger Gallery is exhibiting "Portals_Thresholds," an excellent small survey show on how emerging artists in Baltimore and New York are using digital media to create artworks that do far more with technology than exploit its gee-whiz aspects.

Organized by Gallery Director Nikki Woods and Samantha Konet, the gallery's project and visiting artist coordinator, the show adroitly combines painting, sculpture, video and a virtual reality installation to provide a sense of the wide possibilities of high-tech art.

Woods said she and Konet organized the show to appeal to students at the institute who are exploring non-traditional media.

Beyond that, the show suggests how the glassy surfaces cellphones and computer screens have produced a new, popular aesthetic. Our screens can bloom with colors of infinite variety and subtlety, or use software to produce imagery ranging from total abstraction to the hyperreal.

It's natural for artists to want to capitalize on widely accessible media and the virtual worlds our devices can conjure.

If one artist in the show whose work embodies most of those possibilities, it's Rachel Rossin, a native of West Palm Beach who now lives in New York.

She's represented by paintings in traditional oil on canvas, paintings printed in hand-molded clear acrylic panels, and a virtual reality extravaganza that takes a viewer zooming through 3-D scenes that resemble fragments of melted apartment buildings and landscapes.

Rossin's work is unified by an eagerness to use various media to evoke a kind of endless space that surrounds the viewer, extending in all directions, as if one were weightlessly afloat in the infinite.

Her virtual reality piece, "I Came And Went As a Ghost Hand (still), 2015, requires viewers to don a headset that blocks out the outside world and wraps the user in an imaginary visual field. The gallery advises viewers to rest their hands on a conveniently placed table and stand still, so as not to become disoriented.

Once accoutered with the headset, viewers can peer in all directions as the viewpoint in Rossin's software zooms through exploded floors, walls and staircases, or soars over green hills, while catching occasional glimpses of a disembodied hand that finger-walks through the air.

As important as the elusive imagery in Rossin's piece is the infinite whiteness in which her shattered architectural fragments float and spin.

Her work takes the idea of negative space - the traditional background in artworks - and extends it in all directions, suggesting that virtual reality is in infinite universe in which any illusion can appear real. The notion is exhilarating and scary.

And, after a few minutes, some viewers may feel a touch of motion sickness from all the flying around. The cure: Just remove the headset.

Rossin's paintings explore space in novel ways in a two-dimensional format. Amid blue seascapes that have no real up or down, she levitates abstracted shapes and forms that appear to have been torn apart like scraps of paper tossed in the wind.

The paintings project energy from the wall with their emphatically frontality, but also appear to recede with infinite depth, suggesting the same kind of vastness at play in the virtual reality video.

Rossin's paintings on acrylic, which depict exploded floral bouquets, engage the space of the gallery itself through reflections and transparency that make the surrounding environment part of the artworks themselves.

The art collaborative Wickerham & Lomax, based in Baltimore, is represented by two large multimedia works on canvas and an especially engaging video, "Whales SPF 50," 2017, that explores black identity in relation to swimming and marine imagery.

A male voice intones an incantatory poem that explores how African-Americans may be averse to swimming as a legacy of racism expressed through segregated swimming pools.

These words provide a soundtrack to rippling, watery, collage-style images of black men swimming, interposed with whales, jellyfish and other sea life.

The video begins and ends with a solitary black man seated on a rock in a mountain stream, contemplating an Edenic American landscape of the kind depicted in the 19th-century by painters of the Hudson River School.

The work suggests an eagerness by the protagonist to claim landscapes and activities historically declared off limits by a segregated society.

New Yorker Sara Ludy is represented by inkjet prints and video projections depicting architectural interiors that possess a dry, icy majesty.

With soaring rooms, multiple staircases and centrally placed medallions that suggestion clocks or glaring eyes, Ludy's imaginary environments show how architecture can evoke comfort or fear by molding space and light around the human body.

Lastly, Dutch-Brazilian artist Rafael Rozendaal created a series of hypnotic animated graphic images projected on the Cleveland Institute of Art's digital media mesh, visible from Euclid Avenue at East 115th Street.

Rozendaal's artworks are being presented throughout the run of the show, with new works shown each week from 5 to 9 p.m. nightly.

"Falling," scheduled for June 1-7, consists of brightly colored rectangles that crumple inward from their upper corners, creating an endless sequence of what appears to be collapsing sheets of paper falling away from the viewer.

The imagery is made captivating by the transition the contrasting colors of one bright, highly saturated rectangle falling one after another, and by the visual conundrum of entirely flat fields of color that nevertheless suggest three-dimensional forms falling away from the viewer.

Rozendaal's work feels as elemental as a child's game, but also functions as a sophisticated commentary on the history of modernist abstraction, viewed through digital technology.

It's especially appropriate that the Cleveland Institute of Art is beaming Rozendaal's playfully subversive work to the world on its digital billboard.

It's a way of communicating the appeal of an exhibition that richly deserves an audience beyond the Cleveland Institute of Art.

Review

What's up:

"Portals_Thresholds," new digitally-inspired art by four contemporary artsts

Venue:

Cleveland Institute of Art

Where:

11610 East Blvd., Cleveland

When:

Through Friday, June 15

Admission: Free. Call 216-421-7407
CLEVELAND,Ohio -- According to a Washington Post fact check tally, President Trump has made over 3,000 misleading or false claims since being sworn in. 'Spygate' is just the lastest Trump lie, following doozies like 'Wiretapgate,' 'Memogate' and the biggest inauguration crowd ever. 'Spygate' is only topped 'Birtherism.'

Trump has claimed Obama had an FBI spy embedded in his 2016 presidential campaign. The Department of Justice was forced last week to provide two separate classified briefings on its use of an FBI informant in the department's investigation into Russian interference with the 2016 election.

The first briefing session was attended by Reps Devin Nunes and Trey Gowdy. The second session was attended by both Republican and Democrat Congressional leaders in the so-called Gang of Eight.

Chief of Staff John Kelly and Trump's lawyer, Emmett Flood also made an appearance at the classified sessions, which is unprecedented and highly inappropriate.

After the second briefing, Rep Adam Schiff addressed reporters on behalf of all Democrat leaders in the meeting, which included Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Mark Warner, ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

"Nothing we heard today has changed our view that there is no evidence to support any allegation that the FBI or any intelligence agency placed a spy in the Trump campaign or otherwise failed to follow appropriate procedures and protocols," said Schiff.

Schiff has appropriately dubbed Trump's 'Spygate' claim 'Liegate."

FBI Informant is a Republican who worked for President Reagan.

The FBI appropriately used an informant as part of a legitimate counterintelligence investigation into Russian interference into the Trump campaign and the election.

Instead of being a political attack on the Trump campaign, the FBI was seeking to find out if the campaign was being targeted by the Russians.

After being tipped off by Australian intelligence that the Russians may be trying to infiltrate the Trump campaign and interfere with the elections, the FBI had a longtime informant working in the U.K. reach out to Carter Page and George Papadopoulos to see if there was enough substance to the Australian intel claims to pursue an expanded investigation into Russian interference. The DOJ, FBI and its informant were doing the job taxpayers pay and expect them to do -- protect the U.S. and sanctity of its elections.

Papadopoulos later would plead guilty in the Russian investigation. He is one of several people who have already been indicted in the ongoing Mueller probe.

Instead of being an Obama plant in the Trump campaign. The longtime FBI informant is a Republican who once worked for Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Reagan, who now works as a professor in the U.K. with a focus on espionage.

The only spies in the "Spygate" briefing were the discredited Devin Nunes, John Kelly and Trump lawyer Emmett Flood, seeking to get classified information on Mueller's investigation, of which Trump and several of his staffers are a subject of.

Rudy Giuliani has said he hopes participants in the briefings leak classified investigation information to The White House.

Trump's and Nunes' demand for the classified briefing are the latest example of Trump blatantly attempting to obstruct the Russian investigation.

Flood and Kelly attending the classified briefings is a highly inappropriate infringement on what is supposed to be the strict independence of the Department of Justice to conduct an investigation involving members of the executive branch.

It should be remembered that on the week before the nation remembers the men and women in the armed forces who gave their lives to defend American democracy, the Commander-in-Chief, with five deferments, launched his latest authoritarian attack on America's democratic institutions and principals to save himself.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A man was found shot to death Sunday morning inside a car on Cleveland's East Side, according to police.

The victim has not been identified.

Police officers found the man about 7:45 a.m. with a gunshot wound to his head, Cleveland police spokesman Det. Reginald Lanton said.

He was slumped over in the driver's seat of a Pontiac Grand Am on East 141st Street just south of the intersection of St. Clair Avenue and Coit Road in the South Collinwood neighborhood, Cleveland police spokeswoman Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said.

Homicide detectives are investigating.

Police have not arrested anyone or provided a possible motive.

Anyone with information should call investigators at 216-623-5464.

To comment on this story, please visit cleveland.com's crime and courts comments section.
Heroism, valor and a war's carnage prompted the establishment of Memorial Day after the Civil War. Per-capita, Ohio's rate of enlistment during that war was the greatest of any state.

Between 319,000 and 330,000 Ohioans served in the Union Army. Little wonder that monuments to Ohio's Union soldiers dot Ohio's town squares and village greens. Among the warriors commemorated are the Ohioans who, from 1861 to 1865, helped lead the Union army to victory: Ulysses S. Grant, Philip Sheridan, William Tecumseh Sherman.

Of Ohioans who answered President Abraham Lincoln's call to arms, 35,475 of them died during the Civil War - 11,588 in combat. A look at other wars suggests how brutal the Civil War was. During World War II, 9,866 Ohioans were killed in action; in Vietnam, 3,092; in Korea, 1,777.

On Monday, continuing a custom formalized just after the Civil War, many Ohioans will visit and decorate the graves of veterans who were kinsmen or neighbors. Some of those buried Ohioans returned from combat. Some fell in combat. All were our defenders and protectors. As Joyce Kilmer wrote, "They kept the faith and fought the fight. Through flying lead and crimson steel."

As Ohioans honor those who served America in uniform, people observing Memorial Day should also see to it that their elected officials, state and federal, assure that today's veterans get the services and support they need.

Nearly 850,000 Ohioans are veterans. The federal Department of Veterans Affairs spent almost $7.7 billion in Ohio in fiscal 2015. And nationally, roughly 9 million men and women are enrolled in the VA's health care system. But the department has been plagued with turnover at the top.

In many minds, Memorial Day is summer's symbolic first day. Still, Monday's real purpose is to honor the men and women who have stood guard for the rest of us. That, front and center, is the holiday's aim: to honor those who died to uphold the values of our state and country - and, more than ever, to make sure the survivors among those men and women get the respect, and care, that they deserve.

About our editorials: Editorials express the view of the editorial board of cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer -- the senior leadership and editorial-writing staff. As is traditional, editorials are unsigned and intended to be seen as the voice of the news organization.

Have something to say about this topic?

* Use the comments to share your thoughts. Then, stay informed when readers reply to your comments by using the "Follow" option at the top of the comments, and look for updates via the small blue bell in the lower right as you look at more stories on cleveland.com.

* Send a letter to the editor, which will be considered for print publication.

* Email general questions about our editorial board or comments on this editorial to Elizabeth Sullivan, director of opinion, at esullivan@cleveland.com.
Union members representing Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd's (CP) conductors and locomotive engineers have served a notice to go on strike as early as May 29, according to a union statement released on Saturday.

The strike notice comes a day after the union rejected the company's latest contract offer.

"After workers at CP voted to reject the last contract offers, the company is still refusing to negotiate seriously," the statement said. CP is the country's second-largest railroad.

Some 3000 conductors and locomotive engineers voted 98.1 percent to reject CP's final offer on Friday, while about 360 signals and communications employees voted 97.2 percent to authorize strike action, the statement said. Commuter train services would not be affected in the event of a strike by Teamster members.

CP will continue to meet with union members in the hopes of reaching agreements, the company said in a statement, adding it has started its contingency plan to ensure a smooth and safe wind down of operations.

The labor strife comes at a time of tighter rail capacity in Canada, with CP and rival Canadian National Railway facing strong demand for shipments of grain, potash and other commodities.

The union members are committed to working with federal mediators to reach negotiated settlement and are willing to remain at the bargaining table until the May 29 strike deadline and beyond, the statement added.

The workers, whose collective agreement expired late last year, are asking for more predictable schedules to combat crew fatigue, among other demands.
sources@

* Qualcomm to meet regulators before Wilbur Ross arrives -sources

* Qualcomm had productive talks with SAMR on Friday -sources

* Qualcomm is now preparing a new submission to SAMR -sources (Adds to say Qualcomm, NXP could not be reached for comment in 9th paragraph)

BEIJING, May 27 (Reuters) - Qualcomm Inc is expecting to meet this week in Beijing with China's antitrust regulators in a final push to secure clearance for its proposed $44 billion acquisition of NXP Semiconductors NV, three sources told Reuters.

The acquisition has been caught in the crosshairs of rising U.S.-China trade tensions, with sources saying an approval would depend on the progress of broader bilateral talks. The deal has got a nod from eight of the nine required global regulators, with Chinese clearance the only one pending.

Qualcomm is likely to meet Chinese regulators before U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross arrives in China on Saturday, the sources briefed on Qualcomm's discussions said.

A Qualcomm team and officials from the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) met in Beijing on Friday and had "productive" talks, the sources said.

The San Diego-based firm is now "cautiously optimistic" the deal will go forward, one of the sources said, amid recent indications of a thaw in U.S.-China trade tensions that has seen both sides propose tens of billions of dollars in tariffs.

On Friday, the Trump administration said it had reached a deal that would put ZTE Corp back in business after the Chinese telecommunications company pays a $1.3 billion fine and makes management changes.

Resolving the ZTE sales ban has been of chief importance to China's leadership. The firm was banned in April from buying U.S. technology components for seven years after breaking an agreement it reached for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran and North Korea.

"It feels as though it's getting close to the end," said the source quoted above.

Qualcomm did not immediately reply to an email from Reuters seeking comment on Sunday, while calls to NXP went unanswered outside regular business hours.

NEW SUBMISSION

Qualcomm is now preparing a new submission to SAMR aimed at providing final guarantees and assurances, the sources said.

China's market regulator did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment outside of business hours.

While there are no explicit ties between ZTE's problems, Sino-U.S. trade tensions and Qualcomm-NXP merger clearance, there are "perceived linkages" and the timing of current discussions is "not coincidental," two of the sources said.

"The degree to which the two sides are moving to resolve trade tensions clearly has an impact," one source said.

Qualcomm in recent weeks has moved to restart discussions that have stalled since the end of last year.

The company in April was forced to refile its China anti-trust application to clear the NXP deal, after talks reached a dead end.

Cristiano Amon, Qualcomm's president, was in China last week, attending a big data industry expo in the southwest province of Guizhou.

Earlier this month, China's anti-trust regulator approved Qualcomm's investment with a unit of state-owned Datang Telecom Technology Co. to design, package and test smartphone chipsets, one year after the joint venture was announced. (Reporting By Matthew Miller; Additional reporting by Michael Martina and Elias Glenn; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
* President rejects eurosceptic Savona for economy minister

* Says Italy's euro zone membership is fundamental

* Early elections look likely

* 5-Star demands impeachment for president (Adds reaction)

ROME, May 27 (Reuters) - Efforts to form a coalition government collapsed on Sunday after the Italian president rejected a eurosceptic pick for the key economy ministry, triggering a possible constitutional crisis and opening the prospect of fresh elections.

The leaders of the two parties trying to field a government, the far-right League and anti-establishment 5-Star Movement, accused President Sergio Mattarella of abusing his authority and working under the orders of European powers.

5-Star leader Luigi Di Maio, whose party won the most seats at an inconclusive March 4 vote, demanded that parliament impeach Mattarella, raising the spectre of political turmoil in the euro zone's third biggest economy.

Financial markets tumbled last week on fears the mooted coalition would unleash a spending splurge and increase Italy's already huge debt mountain, which is equivalent to more than 1.3 times the nation's domestic output.

Looking to allay investor concerns, Mattarella vetoed on Sunday the choice of 81-year-old economist Paolo Savona, a vocal critic of the single currency, to the pivotal economy post.

Prime Minister-designate Giuseppe Conte promptly abandoned his efforts to form a government.

In a sombre, televised speech, Mattarella said he had accepted all the suggested ministers bar Savona.

"I asked for that ministry an authoritative political figure from the coalition parties who was not seen as the supporter of a line that could provoke Italy's exit from the euro," he said.

Shortly afterwards, he summoned former International Monetary Fund (IMF) senior official Carlo Cottarelli for a Monday morning meeting -- an indication he may be considering asking him to head a government of unelected technocrats.

VOTER ANGER

Cottarelli would be a calming choice for the financial markets, but any technocrat administration would likely only be a short-term solution because the majority of parliamentarians have said they would not support such a government.

If he failed to win parliamentary backing, Cottarelli would stay in office in a caretaker capacity ahead of elections that would most likely be held in September or October.

Polls have suggested that the League, which won 17 percent of the vote in March, would see its support surge in any early ballot, while support for 5-Star remained strong. Mainstream centre-left and centre-right parties were seen losing further ground in the face of voter anger over the sluggish economy.

League leader Matteo Salvini responded furiously to Mattarella's refusal to rubberstamp Savona.

"If there's not the OK of Berlin, Paris or Brussels, in Italy a government cannot be formed. It's a folly, and I ask the Italian people to stay close to us because I want to bring democracy back to this country," Salvini told reporters.

News of Mattarella's veto sent a shockwave through Italy.

The leader of the nationalist Brothers of Italy party, which had an electoral pact with the League, said the head of state should be impeached, accusing him of abusing his position.

"We will ask parliament to charge Mattarella with high-treason because he has acted under foreign pressure," Brothers of Italy chief Giorgia Meloni said on La7 television channel.

The 5-Star's Di Maio also demanded impeachment under article 90 of the constitution. Under that clause, parliament can demand a president leave office if a simple majority of lawmakers votes in favour. The constitutional court would then be called to decide whether to impeach or not.

"After tonight, it's truly difficult to believe in the institutions and the laws of the state," Di Maio said.

EXPERIENCE

On Friday, the closely watched gap between the Italian and German 10-year bond yields, seen as a measure of political risk in the euro zone, was at its widest in four years at 215 basis points.

After markets had closed on Friday, Moody's said it may downgrade the country's sovereign debt rating because of the risk that the would-be government would weaken public finances and roll back a 2011 pension reform.

Facing Mattarella's veto, Savona tried on Sunday to allay concerns about his views in his first public statement on the matter.

"I want a different Europe, stronger, but more equal," Savona said in a statement.

He also said his position on debt was the same as that forged by the potential coalition allies in their programme - which says it will be reduced not through austerity or tax cuts, but through targeted investments and policies that boost economic growth.

Savona has had high-level experience at the Bank of Italy, in government as industry minister in 1993-94, and with employers' lobby Confindustria. But his critical stance on the euro has been the focus of concern.

In Sunday's statement Savona did not mention his opinions on the euro, but more than 70 slides outlining a "plan B" for Italy's exit from the euro, co-authored by Savona in 2015 with a dozen others, circulated on social media. (Additional reporting by Giuseppe Fonte, Massimiliano di Giorgio, Giselda Vagnoni, Stefano Bernabei, Stephen Jewkes and Valentina Za ; Editing by Susan Fenton and Richard Balmforth)
Speaking to the network on Sunday, Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani said that the two camps "more or less agree on" restricting the questions to two subjects. "If everything can be worked out, then [the special counsel's office] will probably limit it to collusion and obstruction," said Giuliani, a former federal prosecutor and New York City mayor.

Mueller and Trump's legal representatives have been discussing the terms under which the president would be questioned about what he knew about Russia's interference in the 2016 election, and when he knew it.

President Donald Trump's legal team and the office of Special counsel Robert Mueller are negotiating the outlines of an agreement that could sharply limit the scope of questions the president is asked about the ongoing Russia probe, his personal lawyer told CNN.

Trump and his advocates have vigorously denied collaborating with Russia's efforts to influence the election. However, Giuliani confessed that accusations of obstructing justice  which largely focus on the circumstances under which Trump's fired former FBI Director James Comey  made him less confident.

"The obstruction part, I'm not as comfortable with  the president's fine with it, he's innocent," Giuliani told the network.

"I'm not as comfortable because it's a matter of interpretation, not a hard and fast 'true or not true. If you interpret his comment about firing Comey  as obstruction rather than removing a guy who was doing a bad job on the recommendation in part of [Deputy Attorney General Rod] Rosenstein, then you see it as obstructing the investigation.

He added: "And then you can say it's perjury, which is even easier for them which is where I think they're going."

Trump has blasted the entire probe as a partisan "witch hunt," an accusation that Giuliani raised again on Sunday. He blasted Mueller's legal team as a collection of Democrats loyal to former President Barack Obama, and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
American and North Korean officials met at the border between North and South Korea on Sunday in preparation for a possible North Korea-U.S. summit, as North Korea's Kim Jong Un was cited as reaffirming his commitment to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Both Pyongyang and Washington are pressing ahead on plans for a summit after Trump pulled out of the proposed June 12 meeting on Thursday, only to reconsider the decision the next day.

Trump tweet

"A U.S. delegation is in ongoing talks with North Korean officials at Panmunjom," spokeswoman Heather Nauert said, referring to a village in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that runs along the heavily armed border between North and South Korea.

"We continue to prepare for a meeting between the President and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un," she said in a statement.

In addition to the border talks, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said a "pre-advance team" left for Singapore on Sunday morning to work on logistics for a possible summit.

Earlier on Sunday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said he and North Korea's Kim had agreed during a surprise meeting on Saturday that the North Korea-U.S. summit must be held.

The weekend meetings were the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs over the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the leaders of the two Koreas are trying to keep the meeting on track.
Rupert Matthews: We dont just need a good Brexit deal for Britain. We need one for the Falkland Islands too.

Rupert Matthews is an MEP for the East Midlands.

Along with my Dutch colleague in the European Parliament, Peter van Dalen, I recently hosted a conference in the European Parliament, to looking at the future of the fishing industry in the seas of northern Europe, post-Brexit. I was intrigued when one of the first questions from the floor came from a representative of the Falkland Islands Fishing Companies Association.

Like many others, I remember watching on TV as our fleet set sail to go to fight the Falklands War. Because of that, the Falkland Islands hold a special place in the hearts of many British people. But, to be honest, I have always been a little vague about those beautiful, wild islands in the South Atlantic. Certainly, when somebody mentions the Falklands, fishing is not be the first thing to spring to my mind. Still, it turns out that fishing really is something of a Falkland Islands success story.

The introduction of a fisheries conservation zone and fisheries management regime in 1986 transformed the economy of the islands, securing its self-sufficiency in all areas except defence and external affairs. Whilst the Falklands fishery may not be large in global terms, it accounts for some 40 per cent of the Falklands GDP: despite its population of just over 3,000, total catches are about a third of those taken in the UK.

As an Overseas Territory of the UK, the Falkland Islands currently benefits from both tariff and quota-free access for fishery products exported to the EU. In 2017, the EU was the destination for 94 per cent of the Islands exports of fishery products  by weight, the majority being squid. If you eat calamari in southern Europe, there is about a 50 per cent chance it is a Falklands squid!

Whilst the economic impact of the fishery has been transformational, the Falkland Islands are careful stewards of their reserves, and aim to ensure the long-term sustainability of fishery resources, to benefit both future generations of islanders, and the rich marine biodiversity of the South Atlantic.

The status of the Falkland Islands as an Overseas Territory of the UK is, of course, disputed. Argentina still claims the islands, and it is supported by a number of countries. The attitude of the European Union is ambivalent. The EU recognises British rule as being in existence but, crucially, does not recognise British sovereignty.

It is takes no great stretch of the imagination to see the hand of Spain as being influential in the EUs attitude. What complicates this is that many of the calamari are caught by large, ocean-going Spanish fishing ships. Their owners pay fees to the Falklands Islands government for permission to fish in Falklands waters. Quite what the EUs attitude will be after Brexit is unclear. British diplomats must remain firm in standing up for self-determination, which is a fundamental right under the Charter of the United Nations. It is important  for very obvious reasons  that the EU continues to respect the wishes of all Falkland Islanders to remain a self-governing Overseas Territory of the UK. This desire was clearly rearticulated following a sovereignty referendum in 2013, where, on a turnout of 92 per cent, 99.8 per cent voted in favour of remaining a self-governing Overseas Territory of the UK.

As such, the Falklands would be covered by whatever trade deal the UK strikes with the EU. It is clearly important to the Falklands economy that the current tariff and quota-free access to the EU market should continue. This is also important to the UK fishing industry, since a surprisingly large share of the shellfish and fish caught in UK waters is exported to the EU.

Along with my colleagues in Brussels, I support the Prime Minister in her objective of securing a good deal with the EU. These are challenging and exciting times for us all. As the Government negotiates a new relationship with the EU, I hope they will remember that, along with my own constituents in the East Midlands, there are around 3,000 people 8,000 miles away in the Falkland Islands, also watching and waiting.

A good deal for the UK also needs to be a good deal for our Overseas Territories. And no deal remains better than a bad deal.
Theresa May knows that David Cameron will be remembered as the Prime Minister who lost Britains EU membership. And that he came closer to seeing Scotland break away from the UK than was comfortable. Accounts of her clash with Jacob Rees-Mogg over a referendum on Irish unity suggest that she is fearful of losing Northern Ireland: she does not, repeat not, want her legacy to be the break-up of the United Kingdom.

Her anxiety is shared by other senior Ministers  exacerbated, it seems, by the Belfast Agreements stipulation about the circumstances under which such a poll must be called. It says that this must happen if at any time it appears likely to [the Northern Ireland Secretary] that a majority of those voting would express a wish that Northern Ireland should cease to be part of the United Kingdom and form part of a united Ireland. Since there will be different views in the province about that likelihood, Karen Bradley, and her successors, must potentially make a perilous judgement call. This does nothing to ease nerves.

But it is hard to avoid the conclusion that May and her Ministers are being spooked. As Henry Hill confirmed recently on this site, there is simply no credible polling evidence to suggest that the people of Northern Ireland want to leave the UK. Indeed, the most recent poll on the matter found that support for Irish unity stands at just one in five voters, with half the Catholics polled supporting the status quo. Those Ministers concede that no survey gives reason for alarm. In Scotland, of course, Brexit has actually helped the Unionist cause to date  the greatest single benefit of the referendum decision to date, and one that receives far less recognition than it should.

Meanwhile, Irelands emphatic rejection of its previous abortion ban (in nearly all cases) will reheat claims that Irish unity is on its way  as Northern Irelands people, who live under much the same bar, look south, yearning to live under a more liberal settlement. The claim is worth thinking through.

It is almost certain that there is a majority in the province for scrapping the ban: polls have repeatedly found one. But it is worth noting that last weeks Irish referendum found smaller majorities for ending it in some border areas than in most of the rest of Ireland. The country voted to drop the ban by 66 per cent to 34 per cent. But in Cavan-Monaghan, the result was 56 per cent to 46 per cent. Donegal actually voted No, by 52 per cent to 48 per cent.

The rough shape of those results would probably be replicated in rural areas on the other side of border. Are you looking for religion to unite those who live in the province, rather than divide them? If so, look no further than the abortion issue. The unborn child is the big loser, Ian Paisley protested on Twitter yesterday  a reminder that the most staunch ally of the Catholic bishops in Northern Ireland isthe DUP. Sinn Fein is pro-choice. The SDLP is in turmoil. Arlene Fosters party can be relied upon to strike down any liberalising proposal in the Assembly by means of the petition of consent mechanism.

Then there is the question of whether the people of Northern Ireland feel so strongly about abortion  or same-sex marriage, which is also barred  as to put the issue near the top of their political wish-list, particularly given the narrower majority, in all likelihood, for change. This is unknown.

But if they do, it stands to reason that there is a less complicated means of forcing change than joining the Irish Republic  namely, living under the same legal framework as the rest of the United Kingdom. There are two potential ways of this coming about.

If the provinces political institutions are in abeyance, as at present, Parliament can simply impose change. This seems to be what at least one Cabinet Minister wants, according to the Sunday Times reading of a tweet from Penny Mordaunt yesterday.

At present, however, this idea is a non-starter. May is reliant on the DUP in the Commons. She is not going to antagonise it by forcing Great Britains laws on Northern Ireland. Nor should she in any event. The imposition of direct rule on the province would be debatable enough. Change to its abortion laws would be, in effect, a highly controversial form of that rule. Dramatic interventions by UK politicians in the province risk the law of unexpected consequences.

The other route is via the Assembly, if and when the institutions get going again. But as we have seen, that ways is blocked too. The DUP simply wont have it.

So it is that all roads lead back to the DUP. As we say, there is no good reason why the abortion issue should put wind in the sails of a united Ireland. But, regardless of ones take on abortion, Fosters party should be careful. There might come a point where support for change becomes so overwhelming that politicians can no longer resist it. It could also be that Irelands more restrictive proposal  for abortion after 12 weeks rather than 24  comes to look more attractive to a relatively conservative population (if implemented) than Great Britains. Further to that thought, it would be interesting to find out how much support there is for a 12 week settlement in England, Scotland and Wales.

Perhaps the people of Northern Ireland might, over the course of time, settle the issue for themselves in a referendum? We appreciate that these have been unacceptable recently, in the wake of the EU vote, among our own countrys ruling political class  or, at least, the class that held away over us until the people voted for Brexit. How lucky we all are that Irelands vote last week has made referendums respectable once again.
We are analyzing the site. Please wait a few seconds..
100%

Website cdlib.org uses latest and advanced technologies like: JQuery. It is very popular on the web, it's within the 1 million most visited websites of the world at position 52551 by Alexa. It supports HTTPS and GZIP compression. The main html page has a size of 70726 bytes (69.07 kb uncompressed) and 12190 bytes (11.90 kb compressed).

This CoolSocial report was updated on 2021-07-17, you can refresh this analysis whenever you want.
CORNWALL, Ontario  This weekend, close to a hundred people gathered for the Walk to End Cystic Fibrosis at Lamoureux Park in Cornwall along with 60 other communities across Canada, including Ottawa, Kingston, and Brockville.

Kim Baird organized the event with the help of the Kinettes and the Kinsmen club.

I originally joined Kinettes 32 years ago, and our national project was Cystic Fibrosis, so I reached out to the local chapter then and I met many of the families over the 30 years, explained Kim.

The annual walk has been operating for almost 30 years with the goal of making Cystic Fibrosis history.

It is estimated that 1 in every 3600 children born have CF, which means more than 4000 children and adults in Canada have the fatal disease.

The Walk expects to raise around 7 to 8 thousand that will go to research and treatment of Cystic Fibrosis.
Whoever becomes the next governor will not only be expected to fix the states fiscal mess but also weigh in on the next president of its flagship university.

While some might say solving the economy is tougher, others maintain the tasks are nearly equal  and intertwined.

Hiring a flagship university president is a big deal, said Terry Hartle, a vice president at the American Council on Education. The stakes are high.

Hartle, as well as a number of the states gubernatorial candidates, say the University of Connecticut can and should play a role in the states economic recovery.

Although it will be up to the UConn board of trustees to make the final call, the board is expected to consult with the outgoing and incoming governor, as the ex-officio head of the board of trustees, in keeping with past practice.

Those eager to be governor relish the thought of chiming in.

The person we hire (as UConn president) has to recognize the state of Connecticut is not an unlimited spigot of cash, said Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, the Republican-endorsed candidate for governor.

UConn is important., said Ned Lamont, the Democratic-endorsed candidate. I know how important the right university president can be toward economic development and job creation. ... I think we could be doing better.

Tenure

Susan Herbst, UConns 15th president and the first woman to hold the job, announced she will leave in July 2019 after serving eight years.

Stepping down was not an easy decision for me by any means, Herbst said. But a university is forever, and each of us knows that we are only its temporary caretakers and champions. None of us are indispensable and the right time for a change always arrives eventually.

She will not leave the university, but rather shift roles, becoming a professor of political science at UConn Stamford once she steps down as president.

Her tenure coincides with that of departing Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who in 2010 tasked her with building UConns academic strength, fueling economic growth and elevating its place in American higher education.

Despite diminished state financial support, Herbst said she accomplished the task.

Programs in bio-science, business and engineering have expanded and attracted business partnerships, incubation startups and investments.

UConn enrollment, the number of tenured faculty and the endowment have grown. Research dollars remain strong and the universitys national prominence has risen.

In 2010, the year before Herbst arrived, UConn was ranked 26th among public research universities, according to U.S. News & World Report. It is now 18th best out of 132 institutions nationwide.

More Information UConn then and now How the University of Connecticut compares before Susan Herbst arrived and now: 2010 2017 Total fall enrollment 30,034 32,182 Average SAT scores of entering freshmen at Storrs 1221 1294 Degrees awarded 7,046 8,622 Retention rate 93 % 94% 4-year graduation rate 67% 73% In-state undergraduate tuition fees, room and board $20,968 $27,394 Total budget $1.8 billion $2.3 billion Private giving $45.5 million $71.8 million Gifts, grants and contracts $173.7 million $205.7 million Full-time faculty 1,795 2,083 All staff 9,604 9.916 Total research grants from external sources $233.2 million $184.5 million Endowment $272 million $420 million Source: University of Connecticut See More Collapse

Susan Herbst has been a tremendously effective leader for this university, UConn Board Chairman Thomas Kruger said.

Lawrence D. McHugh, who served as board chairman from 2009 through 2017, called Herbst a tough act to follow.

Depends on who you ask

Tim Herbst, a former Trumbull first selectman and Republican candidate for governor, has been highly critical of the UConn president, calling her tenure one marked by budget mismanagement and tinged by politics.

I do feel her commitment to expanding UConns vision beyond countries borders was noble. I do believe she cares about students, Tim Herbst said. But I am bothered by the politics that injected itself into her tenure on more than one occasion.

Herbst was upset when President Susan Herbst  the two are not related  stood with Malloy on the Avery Point campus to attack a Republican senator over (potential) budget cuts in 2017. He said he was irked that UConn declared itself a sanctuary campus for undocumented students and when the university cut ties with a radio station that had conservative broadcasts.

If elected governor, Tim Herbst said he would not only want to weigh in on the selection of the next UConn president but replace the UConn board with members who understand that taxpayers wallets are not bottomless pits.

He said he has candidates for president in mind, but wont say who they are.

Guy Smith, a Greenwich executive who plans to primary as a Democrat, said he wouldnt mind if the next UConn president came from within the state.

We need an educator and a researcher, someone who can raise money and work with the Legislature and governor, Smith said.

The right candidate, Smith said, might harness the universitys intellectual capital to help solve the states fiscal issues.

Steve Obsitnik, a Republican gubernatorial candidate for governor from Westport, said he wants a leader who is focused on growing the states workforce.

UConn needs a strong leader with not only excellent academic credentials, but who will collaborate with the public and private sector to help keep its many talented graduates in Connecticut, Obsitnik said.

Lamont, meanwhile, sees UConn as key to the states economic recovery and development.

He likes the job President Susan Herbst has done but expects her successor to reach out even further to business leaders in the state, expand apprenticeship programs and more deliberately line up academic offerings with available jobs.

Like most gubernatorial candidates, Lamont says UConn costs too much.

He wants the state to do more to nurture student loan forgiveness programs for graduates who go into teaching or other high demand jobs in the state.

Boughton and Tim Herbst suggest UConn should lower its expenses by cutting high administrative costs, starting with the presidents compensation package.

Boughton said he doesnt understand how someone whose compensation tops $800,000 can have two residences, a car and a driver.

Stephanie Reitz, a university spokeswoman, said by contract the president must live in the presidential residence in Storrs. The UConn Foundation owns a house in Hartford that Susan Herbst is expected to use for fundraising events and alumni engagements.

Her contract offers a state vehicle and driver or a $15,000 vehicle allowance funded by the UConn Foundation. She took the allowance and has her own car, Reitz said.

Hartle, of ACE, called Herbsts compensation package comparable to presidents at other public universities.

What a prospective university president will want

Hartle said the job will attract a strong pool of candidates despite the states continued fiscal woes.

States are cutting support everywhere, Hartle said. UConn is a first-rate research university with a very good story to tell.

As much as gubernatorial hopefuls will be eyeing prospective UConn presidents, any serious candidate for the university president will be watching the governors race, Hartle said.

Its a two-way street, he said. Any serious candidate for a public university presidency will ask carefully about the political context of the state government where the university is located. If not, dont hire them.
SHELTON-Residents voiced a resounding No to the first attempt by a developer to implement the citys new design residential development zone on nearly 23 acres of former farmland adjacent to the Far Mill reservoir.

Huntington does not need cluster housing, Tom Emanuel told the Planning and Zoning commission during a May 23 public hearing that stretched to just before 11 p.m.

He said a Trumbull developers plan to cluster 17 houses on half-acre lots is not something he or any of his neighbors want in the Booth Hill and Waverly Road areas.

Brian Bucholtz, who lives in an 18th century built home on Booth Hill Road, took it a step further.

I was born in New Jersey, said Bucholtz. I know what bad planning looks like. They got it all here.

More than 100 residents attended the hearing to demand the current one home per acre zoning be retained.

The hearing will resume June 12 at 7 p.m.

We handed out a lot of flyers informing people of the hearing, said Greg Tetro, a leader in Save Our Shelton which has grown from a neighborhood group into a political force. Were very, very happy with the turnout. We encourage everyone to attend the May 30 informational session the Planning and Zoning Commission is conducting on Huntington center.

That session, which will include a survey, will begin at 6 p.m. in a Shelton Community Center meeting room, 41 Church Street.

The Booth Hill Estates proposal put forward by John Paul, of Trumbull is the first attempted use of the new Designed Residential District.

A DRD, which became effective last fall,allows housing clustered on smaller lots of large parcels if 30 percent of the land is designated for open space.

In this case, Paul proposes building six houses on six one-acre plots and another 17 on half-acre plots along a private road with a retention pond maintained by a homeowners association.

Under a conventional subdivision he could build 18 homes.

Paul aid the four bedroom Colonial-style homes he plans to build will be  high-quality, high-end selling for up to $600,000.

Residents claim the property rests atop a high water table, empties traffic onto pot-holed, congested roads and risks polluting the reservoir.

If you dig down five feet youre not going to have a cellar. Youre going to have a gusher, claimed Gary Thompson, who lives on Waverly Road.

Paul said his proposal leaves 6.13 acres of open space.

Adrienne Couture of Great Oak Road and Tom Harbinson, Conservation Commission chairman, warned homeowners tend to encroach on open space by extending their yards, outside buildings and pools.

Couture provided the commission with photographic evidence of such encroachments throughout the city. Harbinson suggested building a stone wall around the open space boundaries.

But Harbinson raised serious concerns about building septic systems so close to the reservoir. As a result, he suggested the city purchase the entire property for open space.

Then theres the Homeowners Association which Doreen Laucella, herself a builder, and Tetro warned often dont work out.

Its fine and good on paper, Laucella said. Its not as rosy as it seems.

Tetro said without legal power such associations fall apart during disputes over money, contractors and tasks.

Laucella told the commission not to be surprised if the area around the retention pond is never mowed...never taken care and over run with growth making it an eyesore.

Others like John Oberson warned of the traffic problems it would cause to already congested roads in need of repair.

I hope you are hearing this, Virginia Harger, the commission chairman told James Capra, one of the areas alderman who opposed the new zone use.

Finally Tracy Noga of Waverly Road wrote the commission : I have been searching for any benefits to the community this proposed development would provide. the only one I can determine is to the pocket of the developer.
In Montana, it's legal to shoot wolves that get perilously close to people or livestock, and that's exactly what a rancher in Denton thought he did, putting a bullet into something with four legs and canine teeth that came within stalking distance of his herd.

But when he summoned wildlife officials to investigate, something was off.

The dead animal's canine teeth were too short, the front paws were tiny for a wolf, and the claws on those paws were too long. The ears were too big as well, experts told The Washington Post, and the coat was wrong. This was no wolf.

It was a young, non-lactating female and a canid, or member of the dog family, Montana wildlife officials concluded, but that's about as far as animal experts got.

"We have no idea what this is," Bruce Auchly, information manager for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. "And we won't know until we get the DNA tests back."

But from that vacuum of information has sprung not-quite-educated guesses from armchair taxonomists and conspiracy theorists - people who have spent entirely too much time staring at a picture of a carcass of a wolfish creature on the tailgate of a pickup truck.

Their leading theories about the mystery creature:

- It's Bigfoot: Because it's large and hairy and unexplained.

- It's a dogman: Think bigfoot with a snout. Or, as a website dedicated to dogman encounters defines them: "cryptozoological beings that are large and sometimes described as looking like upright canids."

"They're spotted each day and the government quells any and all reports," one person on social media said, according to the Great Falls Tribune. "Several people report being strong armed into keeping quiet about their reports by men wearing black suits. These are just facts."

Some dogmen look like a stretched out dog that walks on two feet. Others look like a Sasquatch with a Doberman's face.

There has been only one reported dogman sighting in Montana, according to the dogman encounters website, which includes a handy map.

"I sat up in my bed, frightened, but I didn't feel the need to yell for my parents or anything," the anonymous Montana poster said. "It just kind of stared at me. While looking at it, I saw that it had pointed ears, with tufts of fur, like lynx have, and a muzzle like a German Shepard."

After the dogman stepped over the poster's fence, "I heard it yip and bark while on the other side, which was prairie, with a butte and then forest. It was almost like it was calling to others."

- It's a dire wolf: The creature got too close to livestock, not Prince Joffrey of the "Game of Thrones" fame, and although Winterfell is actually a real place you can visit, it's nowhere near Denton, Montana.

Dire wolves were native to the Americas and larger than their cousins, the gray wolf. But they went extinct more than 10,000 years ago, The Washington Post's Karin Brulliard reported.

Thousands of dire wolf skeletons have been found in the La Brea Tar Pits, according to the BBC.

Auchly, with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, doesn't put much stock in that theory.

"First off, 'Dire Wolf' was a wonderful song by The Grateful Dead in about 1971. I know I listened to it a lot," he said. "In reality a dire wolf is a prehistoric mammal from the age of mammoths and saber tooth tigers."

But it could be a dire wolf 2.0. A breeder in southern Oregon has spent the last three decades trying to create a new sort of dog called the American Alsatian that would look very much like the extinct species and the animals given to the children of House Stark.

- It's a wolf-dog hybrid: Wolves and dogs are interfertile, according to the International Wolf Center, meaning they can interbreed and produce offspring that can then produce more offspring.

"We've had a few instances of wolf/dog hybrids out there," Ty Smucker, wolf management specialist for Montana FWP, told the Tribune. "One was out somewhere in eastern central Montana killing sheep like crazy. Finally, we caught it and it turned out to be a hybrid."

Hybrids can be unpredictable.

When wolves reach sexual maturity, hormonal changes can trigger behavior changes, making animals more stubborn or aggressive, the Wolf Center says. They're more likely to challenge the human "leader" of the pack, even if that leader is a person who picked up a wolf-looking puppy because it looked cool.

Abandonments are commonplace once people discover their animals may be difficult to control.

Wildlife officials, for some reason, are not relying on the armchair theories about the wolflike creature.

They sent the carcass to the department's lab in Bozeman.

Researchers there will take tissue samples and ship them to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Laboratory in Oregon.

There, scientists will extra DNA from cells looking for specific DNA markers, which will be compared to known species.

"Social media was quick to pronounce the animal as everything from a wolf to a wolf hybrid to something mythical," the wildlife agency's news release said. " . . . It may be awhile before the anyone really knows what the animal near Denton really was."
Forget the Memorial Day cookouts and the red, white and blue bunting. This holiday weekend I want us to remember the fallen ... politicians. Lets haul down that Dont tread on me flag and hoist the Jolly Roger!

How about saying a few kind words over the moldering bones of Peter Lumaj, the Fairfield immigration lawyer whose starboard-centric campaign for the Republican gubernatorial nomination dried up like spring dew, or a spilled gin-and-tonic, at the partys convention?

With the demise of the ambassador to Albania, as Tim Herbst chided Lumaj during a heated exchange at a candidate forum in New Britain, half of my dream November matchup fell by the wayside.

Connecticut would have been primed and ready for the Fabulist versus the Felon cage match between Lumaj and Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim on Nov. 6, for the pawn-shop soul of Connecticut.

Lumaj, who claimed to have been born in slavery in his native Albania, made a tactical error when earlier in the year he told the West Hartford GOP Town Committee that in the first flush of the 2016 Trump victory, he was offered the ambassador post to the folks back home.

Lumajs problem wasnt so much what he said, but that three pesky reporters were there who followed him out into the hall, asking for proof of the proffered diplomatic dispensation.

That preceded the investigation by my colleague, Kaitlyn Krasselt, who found that Lumaj isnt really a lawyer, and that his law firm on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx is little more than a drab office that seems to serve as a low-rent postal drop in what is otherwise Lumajs real estate business. Meanwhile, the White House never responded to inquiries about Lumajs employment option. He suffered from swamp-like traction at the party convention, and next proved the Earth is flat by falling off of it.

Until at least June 19, Ganim, searching to expand his redemption tour but falling several percentage points short of the threshold needed to qualify for the Democratic primary, will try to gather the 20,000 or so  many will get tossed out as ineligible  Democratic signatures needed to challenge nominee Ned Lamont.

June 19 is the day that Secretary of the State Denise Merrill will have to decide whether there are the necessary 15,500 valid signatures, due June 12, to put Ganim and others on the primary ballots. Guy Smith, a Greenwich liquor executive who is yet another first-time pol with a lot to offer Connecticut, is also seeking Democratic signatures.

Ganim, however, is being trailed by his federal felony record, which makes him ineligible for up to $8.5 million in public funding. Ganims been bragging that his campaign is raising $100,000 a month. Assuming he now has $600,000, hell have enough money to actually compete in ... 79 months.

At least campaigning for governor gives the mayor of the states largest city, with its high taxes, sad schools and aging, ever-ambitious Democratic Town Committee chairman Mario Testa, something to do.

Lamont, who will bring some self-funding multi-millionaire cred to the party that professes to represent the hard-hit middle class, may have a wealth of riches as a running mate, since his former adversary, Susan Bysiewicz of Middletown dropped her bid for governor to team up as his lieutenant governor.

Unfortunately for the Democratic script writers, a young union activist, Eva Bermudez Zimmerman of Newtown, got some resounding support from the convention floor, amid complaints about the need for a more diverse ticket.

If Bermudez Zimmerman knocks off Bysiewicz in the primary, itll put Lamont, who recently won a union straw poll, into a bit of an organized-labor box at a time when many residents erroneously think state unions  and not the lack of nerve over decades among state lawmakers who under-funded their pensions  are the cause of Connecticuts problems. At that point, Lamont would likely regret that Sen. Gary Winfield of New Haven, one of the few Democrats in the state who can call themselves a progressive, declined to seek the lieutenant governor nomination.

Coincidentally, Memorial Day Sunday is the scheduled release of John G. Rowland from his latest federal-prison stint. Rowland, you probably wont recall, gave state unions their great 20-year deal back in 1997, as if the piper would never have to be paid.

Ken Dixon, political editor and columnist, can be reached at 860-549-4670 or at kdixon@ctpost.com. Visit him at twitter.com/KenDixonCT and on Facebook at kendixonct.hearst.
Contributed photo

BRIDGEPORT  A New Hampshire woman was killed and others were injured after a Bridgeport mans car flew in the air and crashed into another vehicle on Route 15 in Meriden.

State police said David Perez, 21, of Bridgeport, was driving south on Route 15 when his car hit the curb and launched over the guard rail, crashing head-on into a car heading northbound.
For Subscribers All about York County's infamous Hex Hollow witchcraft murder

The Hex Hollow murder left York County shocked in 1928 when a farmer was murdered by three men who believed he cursed them with powwow magic.
With talks on Teesta water sharing between India and Bangladesh failing to make any headway, Baluchari silk, Sandesh, crates of the finest mangoes and dokra artefacts are all that Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has had to be content with.

The close to one-hour long meeting between Hasina and Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee at a city hotel was "warm, friendly and cordial" in strictly official terms but will be anything but sweet to the ears of the people of the neighbouring country.

Apart from the goodies, Hasina has had to return home with a DLitt from a Bengal university named after one of the greatest poets of her country, Kazi Nazrul Islam. But she hasn't received any assurance on water sharing in the lean seasons. Banerjee has once again managed to skirt a discussion on the issue, but with Hasina having thrown the ball in the former's court pressure on the chief minister is building.

With the Bangladesh election scheduled this year-end, the Opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) had already made non-availability of water from Teesta a major poll issue to embarrass the Hasina government, which is often criticised for its pro-India stance.

The fundamentalists-backed BNP has raised the campaign against Hasina for being friendly with India at the cost of ordinary Bangladeshis.

Hasina had repeatedly stressed in her previous bilateral meetings with Indian prime ministers the need to have water from Teesta as large areas of Bangladesh are being affected. The agreement was almost about to be signed in 2011 when West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee backed out at the last moment citing paucity of water. Banerjee's decision to pull out was attributed to her political compulsions. Teesta flows through large parts of North Bengal, an area which back then was still out of the ruling Trinamool Congress' reach.

Since then Banerjee had been kept the Teesta agreement on hold. With general election barely a year away, Banerjee is reluctant to sign the treaty, as it might impact the political future of her party.

In 2017, Hasina had stressed on the need to sign the treaty given that it has been among the major demands of the Bangladeshis, which assumes greater importance in the face of the upcoming elections.

However, Banerjee has shied away from entering any pact on the issue despite the Centre's prodding.

Banerjee, meanwhile has raised the issue of some other trans-border rivers, which criss-cross Bangladesh and Bengal and face scarcity of water.

Against this background, Saturday's meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Hasina was held at the insistence of the ministry of external affairs.

Modi and Hasina's meeting at Bangladesh Bhavan also indicated that Mamata has to be on board on this issue.

During her visit to India, Hasina has repeatedly acknowledged India's, especially Indira Gandhi's contribution to the Bangladesh Liberation War and how Indian people shared their ration and space with one crore refugees from her country. Hasina was clearly hinting at the fact that it was once again time for India to show a magnanimous gesture by sharing Teesta water.

What transpired at the meeting between Hasina and Mamata is a matter of conjecture but the Bengal chief minister came out of the meeting saying that she shared a very good relationship with Hasina and her family.

"Our relation dates back even to the time when she was not a PM. We have good relations and are in touch whenever we are in need," Banerjee said.

Elaborating on the relationship between the two neighbours, she said that she didn't believe there was any boundary - political or otherwise between them.

Asked whether she was invited to Bangladesh, Mamata said the doors were always open: "We want them to come here frequently and we will also go there as and when we feel like it."

Sounds friendly but it is now Banerjee's turn to give turn the right-sounding notes into action.

Also read: IPL Final: Why it's beyond Rashid Khan vs CSK
The 1MDB Is Only A Symptom Of A Much Bigger Mess

M. Bakri Musa









Only a few weeks ago that the CEO of 1MDB was telling everyone that the companys assets far exceeded its liabilities and that it could service its humongous debts.





dedak. Arul is but an inept executive and a bumbling campaigner. What can you say of a CEO who does not even know that his company is insolvent, and has been for months, or a campaigner who could not draw a crowd? As for the title Chief Executive, he is 1MDBs only employee! Today Arul Kandasamy is exposed for what he is, Najibs campaign errand boy tagged with an impressive title and powered by a massive dose of. Arul is but an inept executive and a bumbling campaigner. What can you say of a CEO who does not even know that his company is insolvent, and has been for months, or a campaigner who could not draw a crowd? As for the title Chief Executive, he is 1MDBs only employee!





I could not care less about Arul or his erstwhile boss Najib Razak. Malaysians however are rightfully concerned with 1MDB as they would end up with the liabilities, now fast ballooning to be multi-billions. What a sorry and very expensive end to what started out as the first state-level, government-sponsored development agency, Trengganu Investment Authority (TIA), to manage the states oil revenue. It was a combined Alberta Heritage Fund and Norwegian Sovereign Fund wannabe.





Najib morphed TIA into 1MDB and borrowed heavily. It is now near bankcruptcy, needing frequent bailouts. Instead of the promised bounty, 1MDB burdens the rakyat and their descendants for generations to come.





Despite that, many still do not or refuse to see the connection between those boxes of cash hauled from Najibs residence and 1MDBs insolvency. That scene was more like a raid on a drug kingpins house.





This 1MDB scandal is a symptom of a much deeper problem. Time to rethink the whole GLC concept. GLCs and their antecedents, the crown corporations, have a long history. They are not unique to Malaysia. Both capitalistic America and Communist China have GLCs, serving very different needs and objectives.





Tun Razak gave Malaysian GLCs steroids to leverage and spearhead Malay participation in the corporate sector. His son, Najib, degenerated them into a not-so-sophisticated system for crooked politicians like himself to plunder the state. At least when the Sultan of Brunei wants some cash, all he has to do is raid the public treasury. As there is no differentiation between his and the states assets, raid is not quite the right term for that action.





In Malaysia however, Najib needed elaborate shell companies and trusts in such places as Panama and the Cayman Islands, as well as willing intermediaries like his stepson, that chubby moronic-looking fellow, and an Arab potentate among others for Najib to siphon off the states assets through a GLC. 1MDB is Exhibit A.





The frequent exercise of one GLC selling assets to another, each with an ever-escalating price, is reminiscent of the tricks used by Icelandic rogue bankers that led to that countrys economic meltdown in 2008. All those associated paper-shuffling maneuvers with their expensive commissions and professional fees are just schemes to plunder the assets of those GLCs.





Malaysian GLCs also have a negative influence on talented young Bumiputras, their idealism and brilliance squandered by the corrupt ways of these GLCs. Without those GLCs they could have started their own enterprises and be a local Bill Gates or Jeff Bezos, or shine at the local branch of IBM and Morgan Stanley.





Yet another corrosive effect of GLCs is that they are but a not-so-subtle but very effective scheme to corrupt top civil servants. Be too critical of your political superior and you jeopardize your chance of a lucrative post-retirement job as Chairman of Petronas. Note that of the four Tan Sris connected to the earlier investigation of 1MDB who retired, only former IGP Khalid, the snitch, was given the chairmanship of a GLC. That is not lost on those bureaucrats.





titah(command) what a wonderful prime minister Najib was. The sultans too. A few millions thrown their way and they would(command) what a wonderful prime minister Najib was.





ad nauseamhadith on the importance of obedience to leaders. As for the academics, a few thousand dollars for being on the National Professors Council would do it. Likewise the ulamas; throw some crumbs and they would quotehadith on the importance of obedience to leaders.





My solution to the Malaysian GLC mess is as simple as it is inexpensive while being infinitely more productive and effective. It would also prevent future debacles like 1MDB or the many preceding ones like London Tin and Bank Bumiputra.





Sell them all! Put the proceeds into a Trust Fund to benefit Bumiputras. Be a combination of the Norwegian and the Alberta variety. Like the Norwegian, be only a passive investor as an individual would with a mutual fund. Half of the income would be reinvested in the fund and the other half be spent as with the Alberta Heritage Fund to improve the quality of Bumiputras human capital. This would include supplementing the education of Bumiputras in STEM studies, acting as a source of venture capital for budding Bumiputra entrepreneurs, and providing business infrastructures as with building marketplaces and manufacturing food trucks, as well as modernizing the rural sector through mechanizing farms and rural areas.





Liberating The Malay Mind. I have earlier expanded on these ideas in my book





Malaysia should not be satisfied with the current exercise of only punishing those corrupt and incompetent individuals in 1MDB and other GLCs. They should demand more. Get rid of the sources of the problem. Get rid of all GLCs. Sell them!




Versum Materials, Inc. develops, manufactures, transports, and handles specialty materials for the semiconductor and display industries in the United States, Taiwan, South Korea, China, Europe, and rest of Asia. The company operates through two segments, Materials, and Delivery Systems and Services (DS&S). The Materials segment provides specialty chemicals and materials used in semiconductors, as well as specialty gases used in the semiconductor manufacturing process, including high purity process materials for deposition, metallization, chamber cleaning, and etching; chemicals mechanical planarization slurries; organosilanes; organometallics and liquid dopants for thin film deposition; and formulated chemical products for post-etch cleaning primarily for the manufacture of silicon and compound semiconductors, and thin film transistor liquid crystal displays. The DS&S segment develops, designs, manufactures, and sells bulk gas, specialty gas, and specialty chemical cabinets and systems, which are used to manage the delivery of key materials into the semiconductor manufacturing process; and flow and temperature control systems and analytical systems to capture data. It is also involved in the project management for installation and startup of the gas and chemical delivery systems, and inventory management; and provision of spare parts, equipment upgrades, equipment maintenance, and training services. In addition, this segment offers on-site services to assist customers in managing the inventory of gases and chemicals comprising ordering, product changes and monitoring, quality assurance, operation of delivery systems, and managing the bulk gas and specialty gas operations. Versum Materials, Inc. was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Read More
AXA SA operates as a holding company, which engages in the provision of insurance and asset management services. It operates through the following segments: France, Europe, Asia, AXA XL, the United States, International and Transversal & Central Holdings. The France segment consists of Life & Savings and Property & Casualty activities, AXA Banque France and France holdings. The Europe segment consists of Life & Savings and Property & Casualty activities in Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, United Kingdom & Ireland, Spain and Italy. The Asian segment consists of Life & Savings activities in Japan, Hong Kong and Asia High Potentials as well as Property & Casualty activities in Hong Kong and Asia High Potentials. The AXA XL segment consists of Property & Casualty activities at XL Group, as well as AXA Corporate Solutions Assurance and AXA Art. The United States segment includes Life & Savings activities in United States, as well as Asset Management services offered by AB. The International segment consists of Life & Savings and Property & Casualty activities in 14 countries within Europe, Middle East, and Africa & Latin America as well as in Singapore, in Malaysia and in India. The Trans

Read More
Churchill China plc manufactures and sells ceramic and related products in the United Kingdom, rest of Europe, the United States, and internationally. It provides plates, bowls, trays and boards, crates and carriers, stands and risers, cookware, counter serving ware, cups, mugs, saucers, beverage pots, jugs, chip mugs, dip pots and sauce dishes, lids, glassware, cutlery, utensils, and accessories, as well as raw materials for the ceramics industry. The company offers its products to pubs, restaurant and hotel chains, sports and conference venues, health and education establishments, and contract caterers, as well as for consumer use. Churchill China plc was founded in 1795 and is headquartered in Stoke-on-Trent, the United Kingdom.

Read More
Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses. This segment offers financial products and services through branches, automated teller machines, and mobile sales network. Its Wealth Management segment provides a suite of advice-based solutions and strategies to high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals, and institutional clients. The company's Insurance segment offers life, health, home, auto, travel, wealth, annuities, and reinsurance advice and solutions; and creditor and business insurance services to individual, business, and group clients through its field sales force, advice centers, and online, as well as through independent insurance advisors and affinity relationships. Its Investor & Treasury Services segment provides asset, cash management, transaction banking, and treasury services to institutional clients; correspondent banking and trade finance services for financial institutions; and short-term funding and liquidity management services. The company's Capital Markets segment offers corporate and investment banking, as well as equity and debt origination, distribution, sale, and trading services for corporations, institutional investors, asset managers, governments, and central banks. Royal Bank of Canada has a strategic partnership with Royal College Of Physicians & Surgeons Of Canada to support the needs of Canada's medical specialists. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Read More
The following companies are subsidiares of Sealed Air: AFP (Shanghai) Limited, AFP Inc. (Branch), AFPTOH LTD, Aconcagua Distribuciones SRL, Air Ride Pallets Hong Kong Limited, Austin Foam Plastics Inc., Auto-C LLC, Automated Packaging Systems, B+ Equipment, B+ Equipment SAS, Beacon Holdings LLC, Biosphere Industries, BluPack (New Zealand), Blue Dot Packaging Pty Ltd., CPI Packaging Inc., CPI Packaging Systems Inc., Cactus (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Cactus Shanghai Trading Co. Ltd., Ciras C.V., Ciras C.V. - Luxembourg Branch, Ciras C.V.  Luxembourg Branch, Cleanwise Inc., Cryovac (Malaysia) SDN. BHD, Cryovac (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Cryovac Brasil Ltda., Cryovac Chile Holdings LLC, Cryovac Holdings II LLC, Cryovac Inc., Cryovac International Holdings Inc., Cryovac LLC, Cryovac Leasing Corporation, Cryovac Londrina Ltda., Cryovac Packaging Portugal - Embalagens Ltda., Cryovac Packaging Portugal Embalagens Ltda, Cryovac Sweden AB, Cryovac-Sealed Air de Costa Rica S.R.L., DELTAPLAM Embalagens Industria e Comercio, Deltaplam Embalagens Industria e Comercio Ltda, Diversey, Diversey Australia Pty. Ltd., Diversey Austria Trading GmbH, Diversey B.V., Diversey Belgium BVBA, Diversey Brasil Industria Quimica Ltda., Diversey Canada Inc., Diversey Centroamerica S.A., Diversey Danmark ApS, Diversey Hungary Acting Off-shore Capital Management Limited Liability Company, Diversey J Trustee Limited, Diversey Trustee Limited, Diversey Ceska republika s.r.o. clen koncernu Diversey, Entapack Pty. Ltd., Fagerdala (Chengdu) Packaging Co. Ltd., Fagerdala (Chengdu) Packing Co. Ltd. (Chongqing Branch), Fagerdala (Chongqing) Packaging Co. Ltd. (Branch), Fagerdala (Huiyang) Packaging Co. Ltd, Fagerdala (Huiyang) Packaging Co. Ltd. (Branch), Fagerdala (Shanghai) Foams Co. Ltd., Fagerdala (Shanghai) Polymer Co. Ltd., Fagerdala (Shenzhen) Packaging Co. Ltd., Fagerdala (Suzhou) Packaging Co. Ltd., Fagerdala (Suzhou) Packing Co. Ltd. (Hefei Branch), Fagerdala (Thailand) Limited, Fagerdala (Xiamen) Packaging Co. Ltd., Fagerdala Leamchabung Limited, Fagerdala Leamchabung Ltd., Fagerdala Malaysia Sdn Bhd., Fagerdala Mexico S.A. de C.V., Fagerdala Mexico S.A. de C.V. (Chihuahua Branch), Fagerdala Mexico Supply Chain S.A. de C.V., Fagerdala Packaging Inc. (Indiana), Fagerdala Shanghai Foams Co. Ltd., Fagerdala Singapore Pte Ltd, Fagerdala Singapore Pte Ltd (Branch), Fagerdala Singapore Pte. Limited, Fagerdala Singapore Pte. Limited (Taiwan Branch), Fagerdala Singapore Pte. Ltd., Fagerdala Suzhou Packaging Co. Ltd., Fagerdala Suzhou Packaging Co. Ltd. (Hefei Branch), Fagerdala Thailand Ltd., GEIE VES, Getpacking.com GmbH, Indonesian Rep Office of Sealed Air Hong Kong Limited, Invertol S. de R.L. de C.V., JCS Sealed Air Kaustik, JSC Sealed Air Kaustik, Kevothermal LLC, Kevothermal LLC, Kevothermal Limited, Nelipak Holdings, Pack-Tiger GmbH, Packaging C.V., ProAseptic Technologies S.L., Producembal - Producao de Embalagens Ltda., Proxy Biomedical Ltd., Reflectix Inc., SLD Air Packaging Paketleme Malzemeleri Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Saddle Brook Insurance Company, Sealed Air (Asia) Holdings B.V., Sealed Air (Barbados) S.R.L., Sealed Air (Canada) Co./CIE, Sealed Air (Canada) Holdings B.V., Sealed Air (China) Co. Ltd., Sealed Air (China) Co. Ltd., Sealed Air (China) Limited, Sealed Air (China) Ltd., Sealed Air (India) Limited, Sealed Air (Israel) Ltd., Sealed Air (Korea) Limited, Sealed Air (Latin America) Holdings II LLC, Sealed Air (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Sealed Air (New Zealand), Sealed Air (Philippines) Inc., Sealed Air (Singapore) Pte. Limited, Sealed Air (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Sealed Air (Thailand) Limited, Sealed Air (Ukraine) Limited, Sealed Air Africa (Proprietary) Limited, Sealed Air Africa (Pty.) Limited, Sealed Air Americas Manufacturing S. de R. L. de C. V., Sealed Air Argentina S.A., Sealed Air Australia (Holdings) Pty. Limited, Sealed Air Australia Pty Ltd., Sealed Air Australia Pty. Limited, Sealed Air B.V., Sealed Air Belgium N.V., Sealed Air Central America S.A., Sealed Air Chile S.P.A., Sealed Air Colombia Ltda., Sealed Air Corporation (US), Sealed Air Denmark A/S, Sealed Air Embalagens Ltda., Sealed Air Europe Holdings C.V., Sealed Air Europe Holdings LP, Sealed Air Finance B.V., Sealed Air Finance II LLC, Sealed Air Finance II LLC (Sucursal Mexico), Sealed Air Finance Ireland Unlimited Company, Sealed Air Finance Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Sealed Air Finance Luxembourg S.a.r.l. Luxembourg (L) Root Finance Branch, Sealed Air Finance Luxembourg S.a.r.l. US Finance Branch, Sealed Air Funding Corporation, Sealed Air Funding LLC, Sealed Air General Trading LLC, Sealed Air Global Holdings C.V., Sealed Air Global Holdings I C.V., Sealed Air Global Holdings I LLC, Sealed Air GmbH, Sealed Air Hellas S.A., Sealed Air Holding France S.A.S., Sealed Air Holding France SAS, Sealed Air HoldingS I LLC, Sealed Air Holdings (New Zealand) Pty. Ltd., Sealed Air Holdings I C.V., Sealed Air Holdings LLC, Sealed Air Holdings South Africa Proprietary Limited, Sealed Air Hong Kong (Jakarta Indonesia Branch), Sealed Air Hong Kong Limited, Sealed Air Hungary Ltd., Sealed Air International Holdings LLC, Sealed Air International Holdings LLC , Sealed Air Investment and Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Sealed Air Investment and Management Co. Ltd., Sealed Air Japan G.K., Sealed Air Korea Limited, Sealed Air LLC, Sealed Air Limited, Sealed Air Luxembourg (I) S.a.r.l., Sealed Air Luxembourg (II) S.a.r.l., Sealed Air Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Sealed Air Management Holding Verwaltungs GmbH, Sealed Air Multiflex GmbH, Sealed Air Netherlands (Holdings) I B.V., Sealed Air Netherlands (Holdings) II B.V., Sealed Air Netherlands (Holdings) II B.V. - Deutsche Zweigniederlassung, Sealed Air Netherlands (Holdings) II B.V. - Deutsche Zweigniederlassung, Sealed Air Netherlands (Holdings) III B.V., Sealed Air Netherlands (Holdings) III B.V., Sealed Air Netherlands Holdings V B.V., Sealed Air Nevada Holdings Limited, Sealed Air Norge AS, Sealed Air OY, Sealed Air Packaging (India) Private Limited, Sealed Air Packaging (Shanghai) Co. Limited, Sealed Air Packaging (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Sealed Air Packaging LLC, Sealed Air Packaging Materials (India) LLP, Sealed Air Packaging Materials (India) LLP, Sealed Air Packaging S.L.U., Sealed Air Paketleme Malzemeleri Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Sealed Air Peru S.A.C., Sealed Air Polska Sp. Zoo, Sealed Air Pty Limited, Sealed Air S.A S., Sealed Air S.A.S., Sealed Air S.r.l., Sealed Air South Africa (Pty.) Ltd., Sealed Air Svenska AB, Sealed Air Taiwan Limited, Sealed Air US Holdings (Thailand) LLC, Sealed Air Uruguay S.A., Sealed Air Venezuela Corporation, Sealed Air Verpackungen GmbH, Sealed Air de Mexico Operations S. de R.L. de C.V., Sealed Air de Venezuela S.A., Sealed Air s.r.o., Shanklin Corp, Shanklin Corporation, Soinpar Industrial Ltda., TART s.r.o., TART s.r.o. Joint Venture, TTS-Ciptec, TXAFP Asia Pacific Ltd., TXAFP GP LLC, TempTrip LLC, Trigon Industries, and Vietnamese Rep Office of Sealed Air Hong Kong Limited.
10:47

A recording of late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's voice, telling a doctor that her blood pressure of 140/80 was normal for her, has been made available to the media by the commission probing her death.

When a duty doctor tells Jayalalithaa her blood pressure was "high, it reads 140 (systolic)," she asks "by", meaning what was the diastolic value.

To this, the doctor replies "140/80," and she replies "its okay for me... normal."

At the beginning of the 1.07 minute audio, which has beep sounds of the monitors, she coughs and says she can hear a sound, (to denote her breathing difficulty) and it was similar to whistles made by fans in cinema houses.

She also tells a man, identified as Dr K S Sivakumar, her physician, that if it was not possible (to download a mobile application to record her wheezing) "leave it."

In another 33-second audio, which is connected to the other recording, Dr Sivakumar tells Jayalalithaa, who is breathing heavily, that he is recording the wheezing and it was not "very intense now."

Coughing, she tells him "when it (wheezing) was there, I told you, you said it (application) could not be taken (downloaded)."

The doctor says in between that he has downloaded the application (app/to record her wheezing).

Her last voice recordings were made available by the Justice A Arumughaswamy Commission of Inquiry today, probing the circumstances leading to the hospitalisation and the subsequent death of the late leader in 2016.

Giving a background to the recordings, counsel for Jayalalithaa's aide V K Sasikala, N Raja Senthoor Pandian,said that on January 8 2018,Dr Sivakumar had told the Commission in his deposition that he had recorded Jayalalithaa's voice on the night of September 27 2016 at Apollo Hospital.

The voice recording was done by Sivakumar, when the late leader had "wheezing (breathing difficulty) problem."

This was done, according to Sivakumar's deposition, to send the late chief minister's voice to a specialist docto for further evaluation.

"Today, when Dr Sivakumar (questioned by the panel as its witness) appeared before the Commission for deposition, he submitted madam's voice recording during cross examination by me and it was marked as an exhibit," Pandian told PTI.

After her admission to Apollo Hospital on September 22 2016, she had a wheezing problem on September 27, he said, quoting Sivakumar's deposition.

According to Sivakumar's deposition today, after a tracheostomy procedure in October 2016, Jayalalithaa also identified pictures of some deities and spoke a few words with difficulty.

Sivakumar also submitted a to-do list dated August 2, 2016 that covers diet-cum-health monitoring tasks like measuring fasting blood sugar (marked as FBS in the note) and tablets for diabetes, including 'Januvia-50 mg.'

Handwritten by Jayalalithaa in green ink,the chart showed she was conscious of her health and food, according to the deposition. -- PTI
Gildan Activewear Inc. manufactures and sells various apparel products in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It provides various activewear products, including T-shirts, fleece tops and bottoms, and sport shirts under the Gildan, Gildan Performance, Gildan Hammer, Comfort Colors, American Apparel, Anvil by Gildan, Alstyle, Prim + Preux, and GoldToe brands. The company also offers hosiery products comprising athletic; dress; and casual, liner, therapeutic, and workwear socks, as well as sheer panty hoses, tights, and leggings under the brands of Gildan, Under Armour, GoldToe, PowerSox, GT a GoldToe Brand, Silver Toe, Signature Gold by Goldtoe, Peds, MediPeds, Kushyfoot, Therapy Plus, All Pro, Secret, Silks, Secret Silky, and American Apparel. In addition, it provides men's and boys' underwear products, and ladies panties under the Gildan and Gildan Platinum brand names; and ladies' shapewear, intimates, and accessories under the Secret and Secret Silky brands. The company sells its products to wholesale distributors, screen printers, or embellishers, as well as to retailers and consumer brand companies. The company was formerly known as Textiles Gildan Inc. and changed its name to Gildan Activewear Inc. in March 1995. Gildan Activewear Inc. was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.

Read More
The following companies are subsidiares of BlackRock: Acero Cooperatief U.A., Acero Holdings I B.V., Amethyst Merger Sub LLC, AnalytX Hosting LLC, AnalytX LLC, AnalytX Software LLC, Aperio, Aperio, Aquila Heywood, Asia-Pacific Private Credit Opportunities Fund I (GenPar) Ltd., BAA Holdings LLC, BFM Holdco LLC, BLK (Gallatin) Holdings LLC, BLK SMI LLC, BR Acquisition Mexico S.A. de C.V., BR Jersey International Holdings L.P., Beijing eFront Software Company Limited, BlackRock (Barbados) Finco 1 SRL, BlackRock (Channel Islands) Limited, BlackRock (Luxembourg) S.A., BlackRock (Netherlands) B.V., BlackRock (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock (Singapore) Holdco II Pte. Ltd., BlackRock (Singapore) Holdco Pte. Limited, BlackRock (Singapore) Limited, BlackRock AP Investment Holdco LLC, BlackRock Advisors (UK) Limited, BlackRock Advisors LLC, BlackRock Advisors Singapore Pte. Limited, BlackRock Alternative Advisors GP Holdings LLC, BlackRock Alternatives Management LLC, BlackRock Argentina Asesorias Ltda., BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited, BlackRock Asset Management Deutschland AG, BlackRock Asset Management International Inc., BlackRock Asset Management Investor Services Limited, BlackRock Asset Management Ireland Limited, BlackRock Asset Management North Asia Limited, BlackRock Asset Management Schweiz AG, BlackRock Asset Management UK Limited, BlackRock Australia Holdco Pty. Ltd., BlackRock Brasil Gestora de Investimentos Ltda., BlackRock Cal 1 Investor LLC, BlackRock Canada Holdings LP, BlackRock Canada Holdings ULC, BlackRock Capital Holdings Inc., BlackRock Capital Investment Advisors LLC, BlackRock Capital Management Inc., BlackRock Cayco Limited, BlackRock Cayman 1 LP, BlackRock Cayman Capital Holdings Limited, BlackRock Cayman Finco 2 Limited, BlackRock Cayman Finco 3 Limited, BlackRock Cayman Finco Limited, BlackRock Cayman West Bay Finco Limited, BlackRock Cayman West Bay IV Limited, BlackRock Cayman Z Limited, BlackRock Channel Islands Holdco Limited, BlackRock Chile Asesorias Limitada, BlackRock Colombia Holdco LLC, BlackRock Colombia Infraestructura S.A.S., BlackRock Colombia SAS, BlackRock Company Secretarial Services (UK) Limited, BlackRock Corporation US Inc., BlackRock Delaware Holdings Inc., BlackRock Enterprise Management Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock Europe Development Management Limited, BlackRock Execution Services, BlackRock Finance Europe Limited, BlackRock Financial Management Inc., BlackRock Finco LLC, BlackRock Finco UK Ltd., BlackRock First Partner Limited, BlackRock France SAS, BlackRock Fund Advisors, BlackRock Fund Management Company S.A., BlackRock Fund Managers Limited, BlackRock Funding International Ltd., BlackRock Funds Services Group LLC, BlackRock Germany GmBH, BlackRock Group Limited, BlackRock HK Holdco Limited, BlackRock Holdco 2 Inc., BlackRock Holdco 3 LLC, BlackRock Holdco 4 LLC, BlackRock Holdco 5 LLC, BlackRock Holdco 6 LLC, BlackRock Hungary Kft, BlackRock Index Services LLC, BlackRock Infrastructure Management I LLC, BlackRock Institutional Services Inc., BlackRock Institutional Trust Company National Association, BlackRock International Holdings Inc., BlackRock International Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Australia) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Dublin) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Korea) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock Investment Management (Taiwan) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited, BlackRock Investment Management Ireland Holdings Limited, BlackRock Investment Management LLC, BlackRock Investments LLC, BlackRock Japan Co. Ltd., BlackRock Japan Holdings GK, BlackRock Jersey Finco 2 Limited, BlackRock Latin America Holdco LLC, BlackRock Latin American Holdings B.V., BlackRock Life Limited, BlackRock Lux Finco S.a r.l., BlackRock Luxembourg Holdco S.a r.l., BlackRock Mexican Holdco B.V., BlackRock Mexico Infraestructura I S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Infraestructura II S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Infraestructura III S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Manager II S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Manager III S. de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Manager S de R.L. de C.V., BlackRock Mexico Operadora S.A. de C.V. Sociedad Operadora de Fondos de Inversion, BlackRock Mortgage Ventures LLC, BlackRock Niagara LLC, BlackRock Operations (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., BlackRock Overseas Investment Fund Management (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., BlackRock PC Holdings LLC, BlackRock Pensions Limited, BlackRock Peru Asesorias S.A., BlackRock Property Consulting (Beijing) Co. Ltd., BlackRock Property France S.a.r.l., BlackRock Property Lux S.a.r.l., BlackRock Property Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., BlackRock Realty Advisors Inc., BlackRock Saudi Arabia, BlackRock Scale Holdings LLC, BlackRock Services India Private Limited, BlackRock Singapore III Pte. Ltd., BlackRock Slovakia s.r.o., BlackRock Strategic Investors GP LLC, BlackRock Strategic Investors LP, BlackRock Trident Holding Company Limited, BlackRock UK (Alpha) Limited, BlackRock UK (Beta) Limited, BlackRock UK (Delta) LP, BlackRock UK (Gamma) Limited, BlackRock UK (Sigma) Limited, BlackRock UK 2 LLP, BlackRock UK 3 LLP, BlackRock UK 4 LLP, BlackRock UK A LLP, BlackRock UK Holdco 2 Limited, BlackRock UK Holdco Limited, Blackhawk Investment Holding LLC, CIE Automotive, Cachematrix Holdings, Cachematrix Holdings LLC, Cachematrix Integrations Private Limited, Cachematrix Software Solutions LLC, Cachematrix UK Limited, FutureAdvisor Inc., Glass Mountain Pipeline, Global Energy & Power Infrastructure Advisors LLC, Global Energy & Power Infrastructure II Advisors LLC, Grosvenor Alternate Partner Limited, Grosvenor Ventures Limited, HLX Financial Holdings LLC, MGPA (Bermuda) Limited, MGPA (Exec) Limited, MGPA Limited, Mercury Carry Company Ltd., Mercury Private Equity MUST 3 (Jersey) Limited, Object Capital Technology Inc., Phoenix Acquisition B.V., Phoenix Acquisitions Holdings LLC, Portfolio Administration & Management Ltd., Prestadora de Servicios Integrales BlackRock Mexico S.A. de C.V., SVOF/MM LLC, St. Albans House Nominees (Jersey) Ltd., State Street Research & Management, Tennenbaum Capital Partners LLC, Tennenbaum Capital Partners LLC, Tlali Acero S.A. de C.V. SOFOM ENR, Trident Merger LLC, eFront, eFront, eFront (Jersey) Limited, eFront DMLT Holdings LLC, eFront DMLT Holdings S.R.L, eFront DR S.R.L, eFront Do Brasil Solucoes Informaticas Para Sistemas Financeiros Ltda., eFront FZ-LLC, eFront Financial Solutions Inc., eFront GmbH, eFront Holding II SAS, eFront Holdings SAS, eFront Hong Kong Limited, eFront II SAS, eFront Kabushiki Kaisha, eFront Ltd, eFront SAS, eFront Singapore Pte. Ltd, eFront Software Luxembourg S.a r.l., eFront Solutions Financeieres Inc., eFront d.o.o. Beograd, iShares (DE) I Investmentaktiengesellschaft mit Teilgesellschaftsvermogen, and iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC.
CAE Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and supplies simulation equipment and training solutions to defense and security markets, commercial airlines, business aircraft operators, helicopter operators, aircraft manufacturers, and healthcare education and service providers worldwide. The company's Civil Aviation Training Solutions segment provides training solutions for flight, cabin, maintenance, and ground personnel in commercial, business, and helicopter aviation; flight simulation training devices; and ab initio pilot training and crew sourcing services, as well as end to end digitally-enabled crew management, training operations solutions, and optimization software. Its Defence and Security segment offers training and mission support solutions for defense forces across multi-domain operations, and for government organizations responsible for public safety. The company's Healthcare segment provides integrated education and training solutions, including surgical and imaging simulations, curriculum, audiovisual and centre management platforms, and patient simulators to healthcare students and clinical professionals. The company was formerly known as CAE Industries Ltd. and changed its name to CAE Inc. in June 1993. CAE Inc. was founded in 1947 and is headquartered in Saint-Laurent, Canada.

Read More
Wall Street analysts have given iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares Russell 2000 Value ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

View MarketBeat's top stock picks here.
The following companies are subsidiares of Colgate-Palmolive: 887357 Ontario Inc., COLGALIVE S.A., CP GABA GmbH, CP International Holding C.V., CP West East Investment Limited, Cleaning Dimensions Inc., Colgate (BVI) Limited, Colgate (Guangzhou) Company Limited, Colgate (U.K.) Limited, Colgate Business Services of the Americas S.C., Colgate Flavors and Fragrances Inc., Colgate Global Business Services Private Limited, Colgate Holdings, Colgate Inc., Colgate Oral Pharmaceuticals Inc., Colgate Palmolive Ghana Limited, Colgate Palmolive Holding S.Com.P.A., Colgate Palmolive Nouvelle Caledonie Sarl, Colgate Palmolive Tanzania Limited, Colgate Sanxiao Company Limited, Colgate Venture Company Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (America) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Asia) Pte Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive (Blantyre) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Brunei) Sdn Bhn, Colgate-Palmolive (Central America) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Central America) Inc. y Compania Limitada, Colgate-Palmolive (Centro America) S.A., Colgate-Palmolive (China) Co. Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive (Costa Rica) S.A., Colgate-Palmolive (Dominica) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Dominican Republic) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (East Africa) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Eastern) Pte. Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Egypt) S.A.E., Colgate-Palmolive (Far East) Sdn Bhd, Colgate-Palmolive (Fiji) Pte Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Gabon) S.A., Colgate-Palmolive (Guyana) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (H.K.) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Hellas) S.A. I.C., Colgate-Palmolive (Hong Kong) Holding Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Kazakhstan) L.L.P., Colgate-Palmolive (Latvia) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Colgate-Palmolive (Middle East Exports) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Myanmar) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (New York) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Poland) Sp. z o.o., Colgate-Palmolive (Proprietary) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Research & Development) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Romania) SRL, Colgate-Palmolive (Thailand) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (UK) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Uganda) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive (Vietnam) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive (Zambia) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive (Zimbabwe) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive A.B., Colgate-Palmolive A/S, Colgate-Palmolive Adria Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Argentina S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Asia Pacific Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Asia Pacific Treasury Services Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Belgium S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Bolivia Ltda., Colgate-Palmolive Canada Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Caricom Service Co. Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Central European Management Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Chile S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Cia., Colgate-Palmolive Comercial Ltda., Colgate-Palmolive Commercial (Hellas) SP LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Commerciale S.A.S., Colgate-Palmolive Commericale S.r.l., Colgate-Palmolive Compania Anonima, Colgate-Palmolive Company Distr. LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Company GmbH, Colgate-Palmolive Cote dIvoire S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Cyprus Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Development Corp., Colgate-Palmolive East West Africa Region (Pty) Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive Enterprises Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Espana S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Europe (Holdings) Sarl, Colgate-Palmolive Europe Sarl, Colgate-Palmolive Finance (UK) plc, Colgate-Palmolive Global Trading Company, Colgate-Palmolive Holding Argentina S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Holding Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Hungary Kft Limited Liability Company, Colgate-Palmolive IHQ Services (Thailand) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Inc. S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Industrial Ltda., Colgate-Palmolive Industriel S.A.S., Colgate-Palmolive International Holding LLC, Colgate-Palmolive International LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Investment Co. Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Investments (BVI) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Investments (PNG) Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Investments (UK) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Investments Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Israel Ltd., Colgate-Palmolive Italia S.r.l., Colgate-Palmolive JSC, Colgate-Palmolive Lanka (Private) Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Latin America Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Limited, Colgate-Palmolive Manufacturing (Poland) Sp. z o.o., Colgate-Palmolive Marketing Sdn Bhd, Colgate-Palmolive Maroc S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Mocambique Limitada, Colgate-Palmolive NJ Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Nederland B.V., Colgate-Palmolive Norge A/S, Colgate-Palmolive Participacoes e Investimentos Imobiliarios Lda., Colgate-Palmolive Peru S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Philippines Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Pty Ltd, Colgate-Palmolive Retirement Trustee Limited, Colgate-Palmolive S.A. de C.V., Colgate-Palmolive S.p.A., Colgate-Palmolive Senegal S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Services (Hellas) LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Services (Poland) Sp. z o.o., Colgate-Palmolive Services CEW GmbH, Colgate-Palmolive Services S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Slovensko s.r.o., Colgate-Palmolive Support Services, Colgate-Palmolive Temizlik Urunleri Sanayi ve Ticart S.A., Colgate-Palmolive Transnational Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Ukraine LLC, Colgate-Palmolive Unipessoal Lda, Colgate-Palmolive de Paraguay Sociedad Anonima, Colgate-Palmolive de Puerto Rico Inc., Colgate-Palmolive del Ecuador S.A.I.C., Colgate-Palmolive del Peru (Delaware) Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Eeska republika spol. s r.o., Colpal CBS S de R. L. de C. V., Consumer Viewpoint Center Inc., Cotelle S.A., Dimac Development Corp., Dominica Coconut Products Limited, EKIB Inc., ELM Company Limited, Elta MD Holdings Inc., Elta MD Inc., EltaMD, Filorga Americas Inc., Filorga Asia Limited, Filorga Benelux SA, Filorga Cosmetiques Polska, Filorga Middle East DMCC, Filorga Portugal Unipessoal Lda., Filorga RU Limited Liability Company, GABA Europe Holding GmbH, GABA International, GABA International Holding LLC, GABA Schweiz AG, GABA Therwil GmbH, Gamma Development Co. Ltd., Global Trading and Supply LLC, Hamol Ltd., Hello Products, Hello Products LLC, Hills Funding Company, Hills Pet Nutrition (NZ) Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Hills Pet Nutrition Asia Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition B.V., Hills Pet Nutrition Canada Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition Denmark ApS, Hills Pet Nutrition Espana S.L., Hills Pet Nutrition GmbH, Hills Pet Nutrition Holding B.V., Hills Pet Nutrition Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition Indiana Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition Italia S.r.l., Hills Pet Nutrition Korea Ltd., Hills Pet Nutrition Ltd., Hills Pet Nutrition Manufacturing B.V., Hills Pet Nutrition Manufacturing s.r.o, Hills Pet Nutrition Norway AS, Hills Pet Nutrition OOO, Hills Pet Nutrition Pty. Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition S.p.A., Hills Pet Nutrition SNC, Hills Pet Nutrition Sales Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition South Africa Proprietary Limited, Hills Pet Nutrition Sweden AB, Hills Pet Nutrition Switzerland GmbH, Hills Pet Nutrition Taiwan Ltd, Hills Pet Nutrition Trading (GZ) Co. Ltd, Hills Pet Nutrition de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Hills Pet Nutrition de Puerto Rico Inc., Hills Pet Nutrition s.r.o., Hills Pet Products (Benelux) S.A., Hills Pet Products Inc., Hills Veterinary Companies of America Inc., Hills-Colgate (Japan) Ltd., Hopro Liquidating Corp., Hygiene Systemes et Services SA, IES Enterprises Inc., Inmobiliaria Colpal S. de R.L. de C.V., Inmobiliaria Hills S.A. de C.V., Innovacion Creativa S.A. de C.V., Kolynos Corporation, Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques Espana S.L.U., Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques Italia S.R.L., Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques S.A., Laser Brand Toothpaste, Lournay Sales Inc., Mennen Company, Mennen Interamerica Ltd., Mennen Limited, Mennen South Africa Ltd., Mennen de Chile Ltd., Mennen de Nicargua S.A., Mission Hills Property Corporation, Mission Hills S.A. de C.V., Norwood International Incorporated, Olive Music Publishing Corporation, PCA SKIN, Paramount Research Inc., Penny LLC, Pet Chemicals Inc., Physicians Care Alliance LLC, Productos Halogenados Copalven C.A., Purity Holding Company, Purity Music Publishing Corporation, Refresh Company Limited, Samuel Taylor Holdings B.V., Sanex, Sanxiao Company Limited, Services Development Co. Ltd., Societe Generale de Negoce et de Services (GENESE) S.A., The GDN - The Global Distributive Network SAS, The Lournay Company Inc., The MPDP - The Medical and Pharmaceutic Distributive Platform SAS, The Murphy-Phoenix Company, Tom's of Maine, Toms of Maine Holdings Inc., Toms of Maine Inc., Veterinary Companies of America Inc., Vipont Pharmaceutical Inc., and XEB Inc..
The following companies are subsidiares of Cummins: Anvl, Apollo FC Holdings Ltd., Atlantis Acquisitionco Canada Corporation, Atlantis Holdco UK Limited, Brammo, CIFC Worldwide Partner C.V., CMI Africa Holdings BV, CMI CGT Holdings LLC, CMI Canada Financing Ltd., CMI Canada LP, CMI Foreign Holdings B.V., CMI Global Equity Holdings B.V., CMI Global Equity Holdings C.V., CMI Global Holdings B.V., CMI Global Partner 2 C.V., CMI Global Partners B.V., CMI Group Holdings B.V., CMI Group Holdings Cooperatief U.A., CMI International Finance Partner 1 LLC, CMI International Finance Partner 2 LLC, CMI International Finance Partner 3 LLC, CMI International Finance Partner 4 LLC, CMI International Finance Partner 5 LLC, CMI Mexico LLC, CMI Netherlands Holdings B.V., CMI PGI Holdings LLC, CMI PGI International Holdings LLC, CMI Turkish Holdings B.V., CMI UK Finance LP, CMI UK Financing LP, Cherry Island Renewable Energy LLC, Consolidated Diesel Company, Consolidated Diesel Inc., Consolidated Diesel of North Carolina Inc., Cummins (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Cummins (Xiangyang) Machining Co. Ltd., Cummins Africa Middle East (Pty) Ltd., Cummins Afrique de l'Ouest, Cummins Americas Inc., Cummins Angola Lda., Cummins Argentina-Servicios Mineros S.A., Cummins Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Cummins Aust Technologies Pty. Ltd., Cummins BLR LLC, Cummins Battery Systems North America LLC, Cummins Belgium N.V., Cummins Botswana (Pty.) Ltd., Cummins Brasil Ltda., Cummins Burkina Faso SARL, Cummins CDC Holding Inc., Cummins CV Member LLC, Cummins Canada ULC, Cummins Caribbean LLC, Cummins Center of Excellence Singapore Pte. Ltd., Cummins Centroamerica Holding S.de R.L., Cummins Child Development Center Inc., Cummins Colombia S.A.S., Cummins Comercializadora S. de R.L. de C.V., Cummins Corporation, Cummins Cote d'Ivoire SARL, Cummins Czech Republic s.r.o., Cummins Deutschland GmbH, Cummins Diesel International Ltd., Cummins Distribution Holdco Inc., Cummins EMEA Holdings Limited, Cummins East Asia Research & Development Co. Ltd., Cummins Eastern Marine Inc., Cummins Electrified Power Europe Ltd., Cummins Electrified Power NA Inc., Cummins Emission Solutions (China) Co. Ltd., Cummins Emission Solutions Inc., Cummins Empresas Filantropicas, Cummins Energetica Ltda., Cummins Engine (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Cummins Engine (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Cummins Engine (Shanghai) Trading & Services Co. Ltd., Cummins Engine Holding Company Inc., Cummins Engine IP Inc., Cummins Engine Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Cummins Engine Venture Corporation, Cummins Enterprise LLC, Cummins Filtration (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Cummins Filtration GmbH, Cummins Filtration IP Inc., Cummins Filtration Inc., Cummins Filtration International Corp., Cummins Filtration Ltd., Cummins Filtration SARL, Cummins Filtration Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Cummins Filtros Ltda., Cummins Franchise Holdco LLC, Cummins Fuel Systems (Wuhan) Co. Ltd., Cummins Generator Technologies (China) Co. Ltd., Cummins Generator Technologies Americas Inc., Cummins Generator Technologies Germany GmbH, Cummins Generator Technologies India Private Ltd., Cummins Generator Technologies Italy SRL, Cummins Generator Technologies Limited, Cummins Generator Technologies Romania S.A., Cummins Generator Technologies Singapore Pte Ltd., Cummins Ghana Limited, Cummins Ghana Mining Limited, Cummins Global Financing LP, Cummins Global Technologies LLP, Cummins Grupo Comercial Y. de Servicios S. de R.L. de C.V., Cummins Grupo Industrial S. de R.L. de C.V., Cummins Holland B.V., Cummins Hong Kong Ltd., Cummins India Ltd., Cummins Intellectual Property Inc., Cummins International Finance LLC, Cummins International Holdings Cooperatief U.A., Cummins International Holdings LLC, Cummins Italia S.P.A., Cummins Japan Ltd., Cummins Korea Co. Ltd., Cummins LLC Member Inc., Cummins Ltd., Cummins Maroc SARL, Cummins Middle East FZE, Cummins Mining Services S. de R.L. de C.V., Cummins Mobility Services Inc., Cummins Mongolia Investment LLC, Cummins Mozambique Ltda., Cummins NV, Cummins Namibia Engine Sales and Service PTY LTD, Cummins Natural Gas Engines Inc., Cummins New Zealand Limited, Cummins Nigeria Ltd., Cummins Norte de Colombia S.A.S., Cummins North Africa Regional Office SARL, Cummins Norway AS, Cummins PGI Holdings Ltd., Cummins Power Generation (China) Co. Ltd., Cummins Power Generation (S) Pte. Ltd., Cummins Power Generation (U.K.) Limited, Cummins Power Generation Deutschland GmbH, Cummins Power Generation Inc., Cummins Power Generation Limited, Cummins PowerGen IP Inc., Cummins Research and Technology India Private Ltd., Cummins Romania Srl, Cummins S. de R.L. de C.V., Cummins Sales and Service Korea Co. Ltd., Cummins Sales and Service Philippines Inc., Cummins Sales and Service Private Limited, Cummins Sales and Service Sdn. Bhd., Cummins Sales and Service Singapore Pte. Ltd., Cummins Sinai ve Otomotiv Urunleri Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Cummins South Africa (Pty.) Ltd., Cummins South Pacific Pty. Limited, Cummins Southern Plains LLC, Cummins Spain S.L., Cummins Sweden AB, Cummins Technologies India, Cummins Trade Receivables LLC, Cummins Turbo Technologies Limited, Cummins Turkey Motor Guc Sistemleri Sats Servis Limited Sirketi, Cummins U.K. Holdings Ltd., Cummins U.K. Pension Plan Trustee Ltd., Cummins UK Global Holdings Ltd., Cummins UK Holdings LLC, Cummins Vendas e Servicos de Motores e Geradores Ltda., Cummins Venture Corporation, Cummins West Africa Limited, Cummins West Balkans d.o.o. Nova Pasova, Cummins XBorder Operations (Pty) Ltd, Cummins Zambia Ltd., Cummins Zimbabwe Pvt. Ltd., Distribuidora Cummins Centroamerica Costa Rica S.de R.L., Distribuidora Cummins Centroamerica El Salvador S.de R.L., Distribuidora Cummins Centroamerica Guatemala Ltda., Distribuidora Cummins Centroamerica Honduras S.de R.L., Distribuidora Cummins S.A., Distribuidora Cummins Sucursal Paraguay SRL, Distribuidora Cummins de Panama S. de R.L., Dynamo Insurance Company Inc., Efficient Drivetrains, Efficient Drivetrains (Beijing) New Power Technology Co. Ltd., Efficient Drivetrains (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Hilite International, Hydrogenics, Hydrogenics Corporation, Hydrogenics Europe N.V., Hydrogenics GmbH, Hydrogenics Holding GmbH, Hydrogenics USA Inc., Markon Engineering Company Ltd., Nelson Burgess Ltd., Nelson Industries, Newage Engineers GmbH, Newage Ltd. (U.K.), Newage Machine Tools Ltd., OOO Cummins, Petbow Limited, Power Group International (Overseas Holdings) B.V., Power Group International (Overseas Holdings) Ltd., Power Group International Ltd., Quickstart Energy Projects SpA, Shanghai Cummins Trade Co. Ltd., TOO Cummins, Taiwan Cummins Sales & Services Co. Ltd., Worldwide Partner CV Member LLC, Wuxi Cummins Turbo Technologies Co. Ltd., Wuxi New Energy Automotive Technologies Co. Ltd., and ZED Connect Inc..
The following companies are subsidiares of Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft: 87 Leonard Development LLC, ABFS I Incorporated, ABS MB Ltd., Acacia (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Accounting Solutions Holding Company Inc, Alex. Brown Financial Services Incorporated, Alex. Brown Investments Incorporated, Alfred Herrhausen Gesellschaft mbH, Amber Investments S.a r.l., Ambidexter GmbH, Ambidexter GmbH i.L., Argent Incorporated, BHW - Gesellschaft fur Wohnungswirtschaft mbH, BHW Bausparkasse Aktiengesellschaft, BHW Holding GmbH, BHW Kreditservice GmbH, BNA Nominees Pty Limited, BT Globenet Nominees Limited, BTAS Cayman GP, BTD Nominees Pty Limited, Baincor Nominees Pty Limited, Bainpro Nominees Pty Ltd, Baldur Mortgages Limited, Bankers Trust Investments Limited, Barkly Investments Ltd., Bayan Delinquent Loan Recovery 1 (SPV-AMC) Inc, Bayan Delinquent Loan Recovery 1 (SPV-AMC) Inc., Berkshire Mortgage Finance, Betriebs-Center fur Banken AG, Biomass Holdings S.a r.l., Birch (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Blue Cork Inc, Blue Cork Inc., Borfield Sociedad Anonima, Breaking Wave DB Limited, Cape Acquisition Corp., CapeSuccess Inc., CapeSuccess LLC, Cardales UK Limited, Cardea Real Estate S.r.l., Career Blazers LLC, Career Blazers Management Company Inc, Career Blazers Management Company Inc., Career Blazers Personnel Services Inc, Career Blazers Personnel Services Inc., Career Blazers Personnel Services of Washington D.C. Inc. Washington D.C., Caribbean Resort Holdings Inc, Caribbean Resort Holdings Inc., Carpathian Investments Designated Activity Company, Cathay Advisory (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Cathay Advisory (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Cathay Asset Management Company Limited, Cathay Capital Company (No 2) Limited, Cedar (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Centennial River 2 Inc., Centennial River Corporation, Chapel Funding, Charlton (Delaware) Inc, China Recovery Fund LLC, China Recovery Fund LLC, Cinda - DB NPL Securitization Trust 2003-1, City Leasing (Thameside) Limited, City Leasing Limited, Consumo S.p.A., Consumo Srl in Liquidazione, Cyrus J. Lawrence Capital Holdings Inc., Cyrus J. Lawrence Capital Holdings Inc., D B Investments (GB) Limited, D&M Turnaround Partners Godo Kaisha, D.B. International Delaware Inc., D.B. International Delaware Inc., DAHOC (UK) Limited (in members' voluntary liquidation), DAHOC Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, DB (Barbados) SRL, DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Asing) Sdn. Bhd., DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Tempatan) Sendirian Berhad, DB (Pacific) Limited, DB (Pacific) Limited New York, DB (Pacific) Limited New York, DB Abalone LLC, DB Alex. Brown Holdings Incorporated, DB Alps Corporation, DB Aotearoa Investments Limited, DB Asia Pacific Holdings Limited (in voluntary liquidation), DB Asset Finance I S.a r.l., DB Asset Finance II S.a r.l., DB Aster II LLC, DB Aster III LLC, DB Aster Inc., DB Aster LLC, DB Beteiligungs-Holding GmbH, DB Boracay LLC, DB Capital Investments Sarl, DB Capital Markets (Deutschland) GmbH, DB Capital Partners Inc., DB Capital Partners Inc., DB Cartera de Inmuebles 1 S.A.U., DB Cartera de Inmuebles 1 S.A.U., DB Chestnut Holdings Limited, DB Commodity Services LLC, DB Consorzio S. Cons. a r. l., DB Corporate Advisory (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., DB Covered Bond S.r.l., DB Credit Investments S.a r.l., DB Delaware Holdings (Europe) Limited, DB Direkt GmbH, DB Elara LLC, DB Energy Commodities Limited (in members' voluntary liquidation), DB Energy Trading LLC, DB Enfield Infrastructure Holdings Limited, DB Equipment Leasing Inc., DB Equipment Leasing Inc., DB Equity Limited, DB Finance (Delaware) LLC, DB Finance (Delaware) LLC, DB Finance International GmbH, DB Ganymede 2006 L.P., DB Global Markets Multi-Strategy Fund I Ltd., DB Global Technology Inc., DB Global Technology Inc., DB Global Technology SRL, DB Group Services (UK) Limited, DB HR Solutions GmbH, DB Holding Fundo de Investimento Multimercado Investimento no Exterior Credito Privado, DB Holdings (New York) Inc., DB Holdings (New York) Inc., DB Holdings (South America) Limited, DB IROC Leasing Corp., DB Immobilienfonds 1 Wieland KG, DB Immobilienfonds 2 KG i.L., DB Immobilienfonds 4 KG i.L., DB Immobilienfonds 5 Wieland KG, DB Impact Investment (GP) Limited, DB Impact Investment Fund I L.P., DB Impact Investment Fund I L.P., DB Industrial Holdings Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG, DB Industrial Holdings GmbH, DB Intermezzo LLC, DB International (Asia) Limited, DB International Investments Limited, DB International Trust (Singapore) Limited, DB Investment Managers Inc., DB Investment Managers Inc., DB Investment Partners Inc., DB Investment Partners Inc., DB Investment Resources (US) Corporation, DB Investment Resources Holdings Corp., DB Investment Services GmbH, DB Io LP, DB Litigation Fee LLC, DB London (Investor Services) Nominees Limited, DB Management Support GmbH, DB Managers LLC, DB Municipal Holdings LLC, DB Nexus American Investments (UK) Limited (in members'voluntary liquidation), DB Nexus Investments (UK) Limited (in members' voluntary liquidation), DB Nominees (Hong Kong) Limited, DB Nominees (Singapore) Pte Ltd, DB Omega BTV S.C.S., DB Omega Holdings LLC, DB Omega Ltd., DB Omega S.C.S., DB Operaciones y Servicios Interactivos Agrupacion de Interes Economico, DB Overseas Finance Delaware Inc., DB Overseas Finance Delaware Inc., DB Overseas Holdings Limited, DB PWM, DB Portfolio Southwest Inc., DB Print GmbH, DB Privat- und Firmenkundenbank AG, DB Private Clients Corp., DB Private Wealth Mortgage Ltd., DB RC Holdings LLC, DB Re S.A., DB Service Centre Limited, DB Service Uruguay S.A., DB Services Americas Inc., DB Services Americas Inc., DB Servizi Amministrativi S.r.l., DB Strategic Advisors Inc., DB Strategic Advisors Inc., DB Structured Derivative Products LLC, DB Structured Derivative Products LLC, DB Structured Finance 1 Designated Activity Company, DB Structured Finance 2 Designated Activity Company, DB Structured Holdings Luxembourg S.a r.l., DB Structured Products Inc., DB Structured Products Inc., DB Trustee Services Limited, DB Trustees (Hong Kong) Limited, DB U.S. Financial Markets Holding Corporation, DB UK Bank Limited, DB UK Holdings Limited, DB UK PCAM Holdings Limited, DB USA Core Corporation, DB USA Corporation, DB Valoren S.a r.l., DB Value S.a r.l., DB VersicherungsManager GmbH, DB Vita S.A., DBAB Wall Street LLC, DBAH Capital LLC, DBAH Capital LLC, DBCIBZ1, DBCIBZ2, DBFIC Inc., DBFIC Inc., DBNZ Overseas Investments (No.1) Limited, DBOI Global Services (UK) Limited, DBOI Global Services Private Limited, DBR Investments Co. Limited, DBRE Global Real Estate Management IA Ltd., DBRE Global Real Estate Management IB Ltd., DBRE Global Real Estate Management IB Ltd., DBRE Global Real Estate Management US IB L.L.C., DBRMS4, DBRMSGP1, DBUK PCAM Limited, DBUKH No. 2 Limited, DBUSBZ1 LLC, DBUSBZ1 LLC, DBUSBZ2 S.a r.l., DBUSBZ2 S.a r.l., DBX Advisors LLC, DBX ETF Trust, DBX Strategic Advisors LLC, DBO Vermogensverwertung GmbH, DEBEKO Immobilien GmbH & Co Grundbesitz OHG, DEE Deutsche Erneuerbare Energien GmbH, DEUFRAN Beteiligungs GmbH, DEUKONA Versicherungs-Vermittlungs-GmbH, DEUTSCHE BANK A.S., DG China Clean Tech Partners, DI Deutsche Immobilien Treuhandgesellschaft mbH, DIB-Consult Deutsche Immobilien- und BeteiligungsBeratungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., DISCA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, DNU Nominees Pty Limited, DSL Portfolio GmbH & Co. KG, DSL Portfolio Verwaltungs GmbH, DTS Nominees Pty Limited, DWS Alternatives France, DWS Alternatives Global Limited, DWS Alternatives GmbH, DWS Asset Management (Korea) Company Limited, DWS Beteiligungs GmbH, DWS CH AG, DWS Distributors Inc., DWS Distributors Inc., DWS Far Eastern Investments Limited, DWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA, DWS Group Services UK Limited, DWS Grundbesitz GmbH, DWS International GmbH, DWS Investment GmbH, DWS Investment Management Americas Inc., DWS Investment Management Americas Inc., DWS Investment S.A., DWS Investments Australia Limited, DWS Investments Hong Kong Limited, DWS Investments Japan Limited, DWS Investments Shanghai Limited, DWS Investments Singapore Limited, DWS Investments UK Limited, DWS Management GmbH, DWS Real Estate GmbH, DWS Service Company, DWS Trust Company, DWS USA Corporation, De Heng Asset Management Company Limited, De Meng Innovative (Beijing) Consulting Company Limited, DeAM Infrastructure Limited, Deloraine Spain S.L., Delowrezham de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Deposit Solutions, Deutsche (Aotearoa) Capital Holdings New Zealand, Deutsche (Aotearoa) Foreign Investments New Zealand, Deutsche (Mauritius) Limited Port, Deutsche (New Munster) Holdings New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Access Investments Limited, Deutsche Aeolia Power Production Societe Anonyme, Deutsche Alt-A Securities Inc., Deutsche Alt-A Securities Inc., Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (France) SAS, Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (UK) Limited, Deutsche Asia Pacific Holdings Pte Ltd, Deutsche Asset Management (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Asset Management (Japan) Limited, Deutsche Asset Management (Korea) Company Limited, Deutsche Asset Management S.A., Deutsche Asset Management S.G.I.I.C. S.A., Deutsche Australia Limited, Deutsche Bank (Cayman) Limited, Deutsche Bank (Chile), Deutsche Bank (China) Co. Ltd., Deutsche Bank (China) Co. Ltd., Deutsche Bank (Malaysia) Berhad, Deutsche Bank (Suisse) SA, Deutsche Bank (Uruguay) Sociedad Anonima Institucion Financiera Externa, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft, Deutsche Bank Americas Holding Corp., Deutsche Bank Bauspar-Aktiengesellschaft, Deutsche Bank Capital Finance LLC I, Deutsche Bank Capital Finance Trust I, Deutsche Bank Europe GmbH, Deutsche Bank Financial Company, Deutsche Bank Holdings Inc., Deutsche Bank Holdings Inc., Deutsche Bank Insurance Agency Incorporated, Deutsche Bank Insurance Agency of Delaware, Deutsche Bank International Limited, Deutsche Bank Investments (Guernsey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A., Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A. - Fiduciary Deposits, Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A. - Fiduciary Note Programme, Deutsche Bank Mutui S.p.A., Deutsche Bank Mexico S.A. Institucion de Banca Multiple, Deutsche Bank Mexico S.A. Institucion de Banca Multiple, Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, Deutsche Bank National Trust Company Los, Deutsche Bank Nominees (Guernsey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Nominees (Jersey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Polska Spolka Akcyjna, Deutsche Bank Representative Office Nigeria Limited, Deutsche Bank S.A. - Banco Alemao, Deutsche Bank S.A. - Banco Alemao Sao, Deutsche Bank SPEARs/LIFERs Series DBE-8011 Trust, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Deutsche Bank Securities Limited, Deutsche Bank Services (Jersey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Sociedad Anonima Espanola, Deutsche Bank Sociedad Anonima Espanola, Deutsche Bank Societa per Azioni, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Delaware, Deutsche Bank Trust Company National Association, Deutsche Bank Trust Company National Association, Deutsche Bank Trust Corporation, Deutsche CIB Centre Private Limited, Deutsche Capital Finance (2000) Limited, Deutsche Capital Hong Kong Limited, Deutsche Capital Management Limited, Deutsche Capital Markets Australia Limited, Deutsche Capital Partners China Limited, Deutsche Cayman Ltd., Deutsche Colombia S.A.S., Deutsche Custody N.V., Deutsche Domus New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Equities India Private Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 1 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 2 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 3 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 4 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance No. 2 Limited, Deutsche Foras New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Immobilien-Leasing mit beschrankter Haftung, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Immobilien-Leasing mit beschrankterHaftung, Deutsche Global Markets Limited, Deutsche Group Holdings (SA) Proprietary Limited, Deutsche Group Services Pty Limited, Deutsche Grundbesitz Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Deutsche Grundbesitz Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., Deutsche Grundbesitz-Anlagegesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Deutsche Holdings (BTI) Limited, Deutsche Holdings (Grand Duchy), Deutsche Holdings (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Deutsche Holdings (Malta) Ltd., Deutsche Holdings Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 2 Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 3 Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 4 Limited, Deutsche Immobilien Leasing GmbH, Deutsche India Holdings Private Limited, Deutsche International Corporate Services (Ireland) Limited, Deutsche International Corporate Services Limited, Deutsche International Custodial Services Limited, Deutsche Inversiones Dos S.A., Deutsche Inversiones Limitada, Deutsche Investments (Netherlands) N.V., Deutsche Investments India Private Limited, Deutsche Investor Services Private Limited, Deutsche Knowledge Services Pte. Ltd., Deutsche Leasing New York Corp., Deutsche Mandatos S.A., Deutsche Master Funding Corporation, Deutsche Mexico Holdings S.a r.l., Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group Limited, Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group Public Limited Company, Deutsche Mortgage & Asset Receiving Corporation, Deutsche Mortgage Securities Inc., Deutsche Mortgage Securities Inc., Deutsche Nederland N.V., Deutsche New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Nominees Limited, Deutsche Oppenheim Family Office AG, Deutsche Overseas Issuance New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Postbank, Deutsche Postbank Finance Center Objekt GmbH, Deutsche Postbank Funding LLC I, Deutsche Postbank Funding LLC II, Deutsche Postbank Funding LLC III, Deutsche Private Asset Management Limited, Deutsche Securities (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Securities (Proprietary) Limited, Deutsche Securities (SA) (Proprietary) Limited, Deutsche Securities Asia Limited, Deutsche Securities Australia Limited, Deutsche Securities Inc., Deutsche Securities Israel Ltd., Deutsche Securities Korea Co., Deutsche Securities Mauritius Limited, Deutsche Securities Menkul Degerler A.S., Deutsche Securities S.A., Deutsche Securities S.A. de C.V. Casa de Bolsa, Deutsche Securities S.A. de C.V. Casa de Bolsa, Deutsche Securities Saudi Arabia, Deutsche Securities SpA, Deutsche Securities Venezuela S.A., Deutsche Securitisation Australia Pty Limited, Deutsche Services Polska Sp. z o.o., Deutsche StiftungsTrust GmbH, Deutsche Strategic Investment Holdings Yugen Kaisha, Deutsche Trust Company Limited Japan, Deutsche Trustee Company Limited, Deutsche Trustee Services (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Trustees Malaysia Berhad, Deutsche Wealth Management S.G.I.I.C. S.A., Deutsches Institut fur Altersvorsorge GmbH, Durian (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., EC EUROPA IMMOBILIEN FONDS NR. 3 GmbH & CO. KG i.I., Elba Finance GmbH, Elizabethan Holdings Limited, Elizabethan Management Limited, Emerald Asset Repackaging Designated Activity Company, Erste Frankfurter Hoist GmbH, European Value Added I (Alternate G.P.) LLP, Exinor SA, FARAMIR Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungs GmbH, FRANKFURT CONSULT GmbH, Fiduciaria Sant' Andrea S.r.L., Finanzberatungsgesellschaft mbH der Deutschen Bank, Franz Urbig- und Oscar Schlitter-Stiftung Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-037, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-039, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-040, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-041, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-043, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-044, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-047, Funfte SAB Treuhand und Verwaltung GmbH & Co. Suhl "Rimbachzentrum" KG, G Finance Holding Corp., G.O. IB-US Management L.L.C., G918 Corp., GAC-HEL Inc., GWC-GAC Corp., Galene S.a r.l., Gemini Technology Services Inc., German American Capital, German American Capital Corporation, Gladyr Spain S.L., Global Markets Fundo de Investimento Multimercado, Global Markets III Fundo de Investimento Multimercado - Credito, Greenwood Properties Corp., Grundstucksgesellschaft Frankfurt Bockenheimer Landstrae GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Kerpen-Sindorf Vogelrutherfeld GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Leipzig Petersstrae GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Wiesbaden Luisenstrae/Kirchgasse GbR, HTB Spezial GmbH & Co. KG, Hollandsche Bank-Unie, IOS Finance EFC S.A., ISTRON Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungs-GmbH, IVAF I Manager S.a r.l., IVAF I Manager S.a r.l., Immobilienfonds Buro-Center Erfurt am Flughafen Bindersleben I GbR, Immobilienfonds Buro-Center Erfurt am Flughafen Bindersleben II GbR, Immobilienfonds Mietwohnhauser Quadrath-Ichendorf GbR, Immobilienfonds Wohn- und Geschaftshaus Koln-Blumenberg V GbR, J R Nominees (Pty) Ltd, Joint Stock Company Deutsche Bank DBU, Jyogashima Godo Kaisha, KEBA Gesellschaft fur interne Services mbH, Kidson Pte Ltd, Konsul Inkasso GmbH, Kradavimd UK Lease Holdings Limited, LA Water Holdings Limited, LAWL Pte. Ltd., Latitude Australia Secured Personal Loans Trust, Leasing Verwaltungsgesellschaft Waltersdorf mbH, Leonardo III Initial GP Limited, Lindsell Finance Limited, London Industrial Leasing Limited, MEF I Manager S. a r.l., MEF I Manager S. a r.l., MHL Reinsurance Ltd., MIT Holdings Inc., MIT Holdings Inc., MPP Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Maher Terminals Holdings (Toronto) Limited, Morgan Grenfell & Company, MortgageIT, MortgageIT Inc., MortgageIT Inc., MortgageIT Securities Corp., Motion Picture Productions One GmbH & Co. KG, NCW Holding Inc., Navegator - SGFTC S.A., Navegator - SGFTC S.A., New 87 Leonard LLC, Nordwestdeutscher Wohnungsbautrager Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, OOO "Deutsche Bank TechCentre", OOO "Deutsche Bank", OPB Verwaltungs- und Beteiligungs-GmbH, OPB Verwaltungs- und Treuhand GmbH, OPB-Holding GmbH, OPB-Nona GmbH, OPB-Oktava GmbH, OPB-Quarta GmbH, OPB-Quinta GmbH, OPB-Septima GmbH, OPPENHEIM Capital Advisory GmbH, OPPENHEIM Flottenfonds V GmbH & Co. KG, OPPENHEIM PRIVATE EQUITY Manager GmbH, OPPENHEIM PRIVATE EQUITY Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, OPS Nominees Pty Limited, OVT Trust 1 GmbH, OVV Beteiligungs GmbH, Opal Funds (Ireland) Public Limited Company, PADUS Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, PARTS Funding LLC., PB Factoring GmbH, PB Firmenkunden AG, PB International S.A., PB Spezial-Investmentaktiengesellschaft mit Teilgesellschaftsvermogen, PBC Banking Services GmbH, PCC Services GmbH der Deutschen Bank, PT Deutsche Sekuritas Indonesia, PT. Deutsche Verdhana Sekuritas Indonesia, Pan Australian Nominees Pty Ltd, Peruda Leasing Limited, Plantation Bay Inc., Plantation Bay Inc., Postbank Akademie und Service GmbH, Postbank Beteiligungen GmbH, Postbank Direkt GmbH, Postbank Filialvertrieb AG, Postbank Finanzberatung AG, Postbank Immobilien GmbH, Postbank Immobilien und Baumanagement GmbH, Postbank Immobilien und Baumanagement GmbH & Co. Objekt Leipzig KG, Postbank Leasing GmbH, Postbank Service GmbH, Postbank Systems AG, QR Tower 2 LLC, Quantiguous, R.B.M. Nominees Pty Ltd, REO Properties Corporation, RREEF, RREEF America L.L.C., RREEF China REIT Management Limited, RREEF European Value Added I (G.P.) Limited, RREEF Fund Holding Co., RREEF India Advisors Private Limited, RREEF Management L.L.C., RTS Nominees Pty Limited, Reference Capital Investments Limited, RoPro U.S. Holding Inc., RoPro U.S. Holding Inc., Route 28 Receivables LLC, Route 28 Receivables LLC, SAB Real Estate Verwaltungs GmbH, SAGITA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SAPIO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SCUDO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., SEDO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., SENA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Objekt Kamenz KG, SIFA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SOLIDO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SP Mortgage Trust, SPINO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., SPV I Sociedad Anonima Cerrada, SPV II Sociedad Anonima Cerrada, STATOR Heizkraftwerk Frankfurt (Oder) Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Sal. Oppenheim, Sal. Oppenheim Alternative Investments GmbH, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. AG & Co. Kommanditgesellschaft auf Aktien, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. Beteiligungs GmbH, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. Komplementar AG, Sechste Salomon Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Sechste Salomon Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., Service Company Four Limited, Sharps SP I LLC, Singer Island Tower Suite LLC, Somkid Immobiliare S.r.l., Stelvio Immobiliare S.r.l., Structured Finance Americas LLC, Structured Finance Americas LLC, Swabia 1. Vermogensbesitz-GmbH, Suddeutsche Vermogensverwaltung Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, TAKIR Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, TELO Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, TEMATIS Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., TERRUS Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., TESATUR Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Objekt Halle I KG i.L., TESATUR Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Objekt Nordhausen I KG i.L., TOSSA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, TRIPLA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, TRS Aria LLC, TRS Leda LLC, TRS Maple II LTD, TRS Oak II LTD, TRS SVCO LLC, TRS Scorpio LLC, TRS Tupelo II LTD, TRS Venor LLC, TRS Walnut II LTD, Tagus - Sociedade de Titularizacao de Creditos S.A., Tasfiye Halinde Deutsche Securities Menkul Degerler A.S., Tempurrite Leasing Limited, Thai Asset Enforcement and Recovery Asset Management Company Limited, Tianjin Deutsche AM Fund Management Co. Ltd., Treuinvest Service GmbH, Triplereason Limited, UKE Beteiligungs-GmbH, UKE Grundstucksgesellschaft mbH, UKE s.r.o., Ullmann - Esch Grundstucksgesellschaft Kirchnerstrae GbR, Ullmann - Esch Grundstucksverwaltungsgesellschaft Disternich GbR, Ullmann Ullmann Krockow Krockow Esch GbR, VCJ Lease S.a r.l., Vesta Real Estate S.r.l., VOB-ZVD Processing GmbH, WEPLA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, WEPLABeteiligungsgesellschaftmbH, Wealthspur Investment Ltd., Whale Holdings S.a r.l., World Trading (Delaware) Inc., World Trading(Delaware)Inc., Zumirez Drive LLC, db PBC, and norisbank GmbH.
The following companies are subsidiares of Eastman Chemical: BP - Aviation Turbine Oil Business, CP Films Vertriebs GmbH, Commonwealth Laminating & Coating (Hong Kong) Limited, Commonwealth Laminating & Coating Inc, Crown Operations International LLC, Dynaloy, Eastman Administracion S.A. de C.V., Eastman Chemical (Barbados) SRL, Eastman Chemical (China) Co. Ltd., Eastman Chemical (China) Co. Ltd. - Guangzhou Branch, Eastman Chemical (China) Co. Ltd. - JingAn Branch, Eastman Chemical (Gibraltar) Limited, Eastman Chemical (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Eastman Chemical (PPU) Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical AMI GmbH, Eastman Chemical AMI LLC, Eastman Chemical AP Holdings B.V., Eastman Chemical Adhesives (Hong Kong) Limited, Eastman Chemical Advanced Materials B.V., Eastman Chemical Argentina S.R.L., Eastman Chemical Asia Pacific Pte Ltd-Indonesia Rep Office, Eastman Chemical Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd. - Vietnam Representative Office, Eastman Chemical Australia Pty LTD - New Zealand Branch, Eastman Chemical Australia Pty. Ltd., Eastman Chemical B.V., Eastman Chemical B.V. - Czech Republic Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Denmark Branch, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Filiale Italiana, Eastman Chemical B.V. - France Branch, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Hungarian Commercial Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. - Poland Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. - South Africa Representative Office, Eastman Chemical B.V. Taiwan Branch, Eastman Chemical B.V. The Hague Zug Branch, Eastman Chemical Canada Inc., Eastman Chemical Company Investments Inc., Eastman Chemical EMEA B.V., Eastman Chemical Europe Middle East and Africa LLC, Eastman Chemical Europe S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Fibers IP GmbH, Eastman Chemical Fibers IP LLC, Eastman Chemical Finance B.V., Eastman Chemical Finance CN S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance EUR S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance GBP S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance SGD S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Finance USD S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Financial Corporation, Eastman Chemical GDL S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Germany Holdings GmbH & Co. KG, Eastman Chemical Germany Management GmbH & Co. KG, Eastman Chemical Germany Verwaltungs-GmbH, Eastman Chemical Global Holdings LLC, Eastman Chemical Global Holdings S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical GmbH, Eastman Chemical HK Limited, Eastman Chemical Holdings do Brasil Ltda., Eastman Chemical Hong Kong B.V., Eastman Chemical Iberica S.L., Eastman Chemical India Private Limited, Eastman Chemical Intermediates (Hong Kong) Limited, Eastman Chemical International GmbH, Eastman Chemical International Holdings B.V., Eastman Chemical International LP LLC, Eastman Chemical Japan Ltd., Eastman Chemical Korea B.V., Eastman Chemical Korea Ltd., Eastman Chemical Latin America Inc., Eastman Chemical Ltd., Eastman Chemical Ltd. - Australia Branch, Eastman Chemical Ltd. - Singapore Branch, Eastman Chemical Ltd. - Taiwan Branch, Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Finance S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings 1 LLC, Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings 1 S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings 2 S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings LLC, Eastman Chemical Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l., Eastman Chemical Malaysia B.V., Eastman Chemical Middelburg B.V., Eastman Chemical Netherlands Limited, Eastman Chemical Products Singapore Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical Regional UK, Eastman Chemical Resins Inc., Eastman Chemical S.C.S., Eastman Chemical Singapore Pte. Ltd., Eastman Chemical Switzerland GmbH, Eastman Chemical Technology BVBA, Eastman Chemical Texas City Inc., Eastman Chemical US Finance LLC, Eastman Chemical Uruapan S.A. de C.V., Eastman Chemical Workington Limited, Eastman Chemical do Brasil Ltda., Eastman Cogen Management L.L.C., Eastman Cogeneration L.P., Eastman Company UK Limited, Eastman Fibers Korea Limited, Eastman Fibers Singapore Pte. Ltd., Eastman Foundation, Eastman Global Holdings Inc., Eastman International Holdings LLC, Eastman International Management Company, Eastman Italia S.r.l., Eastman Kimya Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Eastman LAR Distribucion S. de R.L. de C.V., Eastman Mazzucchelli Hong Kong Limited, Eastman Mazzucchelli Plastics (Shenzhen) Company Limited, Eastman Servicios Corporativos S.A. de C.V., Eastman Spain L.L.C., Eastman Specialties Corporation, Eastman Specialties Holdings Corporation, Eastman Specialties OU, Eastman Specialties S.a.r.l., Eastman Specialties Wuhan Youji Chemical Co. Ltd, Eastman de Argentina SRL, Ecuataminco S.A., Flexsys America L.P., Flexsys America LLC, Flexsys Chemicals (M) Sdn Bhd, Flexsys K.K., Flexsys Rubber Chemicals Limited, Flexsys Verkauf GmbH, Flexsys Verkauf GmbH - France Branch, Flexsys Verwaltungs- und Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Genovique Specialties Corporation, HDK Industries Inc., Holston Defense Corporation, Huper Optik (GP) L.L.C., Huper Optik International Pte. Ltd., Huper Optik U.S.A. L.P., Industriepark Nienburg GmbH, Kingsport Hotel L.L.C., Knowlton Technologies LLC, Monchem International LLC, Mustang Pipeline Company, Nanjing Yangzi Eastman Chemical Ltd, Novomatrix Inc., Novomatrix International Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Qilu Eastman Specialty Chemicals Ltd, S E Investment LLC, Sakra Hyco Pte. Ltd., Sakra Island Carbon Dioxide Pte Ltd, Scandiflex do Brasil Ltda., Solchem LLC, Solchem Netherlands C.V., Solutia (Thailand) Ltd., Solutia Brasil Ltda., Solutia Canada Inc., Solutia Chemicals France S.a.r.l., Solutia Chemicals India Private Limited, Solutia Chemicals India Private Limited - Branch, Solutia Deutschland GmbH, Solutia Europe BVBA - Portugal Representative Office, Solutia Europe BVBA - Russia Representative Office, Solutia Europe SPRL/BVBA, Solutia Greater China LLC, Solutia Hong Kong Limited, Solutia Inc., Solutia International Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Solutia Italia S.r.l., Solutia Japan Limited, Solutia Performance Products (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Solutia Performance Products Solutions Ltd., Solutia Singapore Pte. Ltd., Solutia Solar GmbH, Solutia Therminol Co. Ltd. Suzhou, Solutia Tlaxcala S.A. de C.V., Solutia UK Holdings Limited, Solutia UK Investments Limited, Solutia UK Limited, Solutia Venezuela S.R.L., Southwall Europe GmbH, Southwall Insulating Glass LLC, Southwall Technologies Inc., St. Gabriel CC Company LLC, Sterling Chemicals Inc, SunTek Australia Pty. Ltd., SunTek Films Canada Inc., SunTek UK Limited, TX Energy LLC, Taminco Argentina S.A., Taminco BVBA, Taminco BVBA - France Rep Office, Taminco BVBA - Hungarian Commercial Representative Office, Taminco BVBA - Oficina de Representacion en Espana, Taminco BVBA - The Philippines, Taminco Chile S.p.A, Taminco Choline Chloride (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Taminco Corporation, Taminco Finland Oy, Taminco Germany GmbH, Taminco Global Chemical LLC, Taminco Group BVBA, Taminco Group Holdings S.a.r.l., Taminco Holding Netherlands B.V., Taminco Intermediate LLC, Taminco Italia S.r.l., Taminco Limitada, Taminco Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Taminco US LLC, Taminco Uruguay S.A., Taminco de Guatemala S.A., Taminco de Honduras S.A. de C.V., Taminco do Brasil Comercio e Industria de Aminas Ltda., Taminco do Brasil Produtos Quimicos Ltda., Te An Ling Tian (Nanjing) Fine Chemical Co. Ltd., TetraVitae Bioscience, V-Kool International Pte. Ltd., and Yixing Taminco Feed Additives Co. Ltd..
Wall Street analysts have given Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

View MarketBeat's top stock picks here.
KB Financial Group, Inc. engages in providing financial services through its subsidiaries. It operates through the following segments: Corporate Banking, Retail Banking, Other Banking Services, Credit Card, Life Insurance, Investment and Securities business. The Corporate Banking business segment provides services such as loans, overdrafts, deposits, credit facilities and other foreign currency activities. The Retail Banking business segment offers services such as private customer current accounts, savings, deposits, consumer loans and mortgage loans. The Other Banking business segment provides services relating to banking business besides corporate banking and retail banking services. The Credit Card business segment offers services such as domestic as well as overseas credit and debit card operations. The Investment and Securities business segment provides services such as investment banking and brokerage. The Life Insurance business segment provides products such as life insurance and wealth management. The company was founded on September 29, 2008 and is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.

Read More
The following companies are subsidiares of UnitedHealth Group: 1031387 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, 1070715 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, 1st Avenue Pharmacy Inc., 310 Canyon Medical, 310 Canyon Medical LLC, 4C MSO LLC, 4C Medical Group PLC, 5995 Minnetonka LLC, ABCO International Holdings LLC, ACN Group IPA of New York, ACN Group IPA of New York Inc., ACN Group of California, ACN Group of California Inc., AHJV, AHJV MSO, AHN Accontable Care Organization LLC, AHN Central Services LLC, AHN Target Holdings LLC, AMIL International, AMIL International S.a.r.l., APS  Assistencia Personalizada a Saude Ltda., ARC Infusion, ASC Holdings of New Jersey LLC, ASC Network LLC, ASI Global, ASI Global LLC, Access Administrators Inc., Access HealthSource Administrators Inc., Access HealthSource Inc., Access I.V., Administradora Clinica La Colina S.A.S., Administradora Country S.A., Administradora Medica Centromed S.A., Advanced Care, Advanced Care Pharmacy, Advanced Pharma Inc., Advanced Surgery Center of Clifton LLC, Advanced Surgical Hospital LLC, Advantage Care Network Inc., Advocate Condell Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Advocate Sherman Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Advocate Southwest Ambulatory Surgery Center LLC, Advocate-SCA Partners LLC, Alere Health, Alere Health Improvement Company, Alere Healthcare of Illinois, Alere Wellbeing, Alere Wellology, Alere of New York, Aliansalud Entidad Promotora de Salud S.A., All Savers Insurance Company, All Savers Life Insurance Company of California, Alliance Surgical Center LLC, Aloha Surgical Center LLC, Ambient Healthcare, Ambient Healthcare Inc., Ambient Healthcare of Central Florida, Ambient Healthcare of Georgia, Ambient Healthcare of Northeast Florida, Ambient Healthcare of S. Florida, Ambient Healthcare of West Florida, Ambient Holdings, Ambient Holdings Inc., Ambient Nursing Services, AmeriChoice, AmeriChoice Corporation, AmeriChoice Health Services, AmeriChoice of Connecticut, AmeriChoice of New Jersey, AmeriChoice of New Jersey Inc., American Health Network of Indiana Care Organization LLC, American Health Network of Indiana II LLC, American Health Network of Indiana LLC, American Health Network of Ohio Care Organization LLC, American Health Network of Ohio II LLC, American Health Network of Ohio LLC, Amico Saude Ltda., Amil, Amil Assistencia Medica Internacional S.A., Amil Lifesciences Participacoes Ltda., Antelope Valley Surgery Center L.P., Analisis Clinicos ML S.A.C., Apothecary Holdings Inc., Apothecary Shop of Phoenix Inc., AppleCare Medical Management, AppleCare Medical Management LLC, Aquitania Chilean Holding SpA, Arise Physician Group, Arizona Physicians IPA, Arizona Physicians IPA Inc., AssuranceRx, AssuranceRx LLC, Athens ASC Holdings LLC, Audax Health Solutions, Audax Health Solutions LLC, Austin Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., Avella Patient Access Program Inc., Avella Specialty Pharmacy, Avella of Austin Inc., Avella of Columbus Inc., Avella of Deer Valley Inc., Avella of Denver Inc., Avella of Gilbert Inc., Avella of Las Vegas II Inc., Avella of Orlando Inc., Avella of Phoenix III Inc., Avella of Sacramento Inc., Avella of Scottsdale Inc., Avella of St. Louis Inc., Avella of Tampa LLC, Avella of Tucson II Inc., Avella of Tucson Inc., Aveta Arizona, Aveta Health Solutions Inc., Aveta Inc., Aveta Kansas City, Aveta Tennessee, AxelaCare Health Solutions, AxelaCare Intermediate Holdings, AxelaCare Intermediate Holdings LLC, AxelaCare LLC, B.R.A.S.S. Partnership in Commendam, Banmedica Colombia SpA, Banmedica Internacional SpA, Banmedica S.A., Beach Surgical Holdings III LLC, Behavioral Healthcare Options, Behavioral Healthcare Options Inc., Belleville Surgical Center Ltd. an Illinois Limited Partnership, Benefit Administration for the Self Employed L.L.C., Benefitter Insurance Solutions Inc., Birmingham Outpatient Surgical Center LLC, Blackstone Valley Surgicare GP LLC, Blue Ridge GP LLC, Bordeaux (Barbados) Holdings I SRL, Bordeaux (Barbados) Holdings II SRL, Bordeaux (Barbados) Holdings III SRL, Bordeaux Holding SpA, Bordeaux International Holdings Inc., Bordeaux UK Holdings I Limited, Bordeaux UK Holdings II Limited, Bordeaux UK Holdings III Limited, Bosque Medical Center Ltda., Brandon Ambulatory Surgery Center LC, BriovaRx, BriovaRx, BriovaRx Infusion Services, BriovaRx Infusion Services 102 LLC, BriovaRx Infusion Services 200 Inc., BriovaRx Infusion Services 204 Inc., BriovaRx Infusion Services 209 Inc., BriovaRx Infusion Services 305 LLC, BriovaRx Infusion Services 402 LLC, BriovaRx Infusion Services Inc., BriovaRx Specialty LLC, BriovaRx of California, BriovaRx of California Inc., BriovaRx of Florida, BriovaRx of Florida Inc., BriovaRx of Georgia, BriovaRx of Georgia LLC, BriovaRx of Hawaii, BriovaRx of Indiana, BriovaRx of Louisiana, BriovaRx of Louisiana L.L.C., BriovaRx of Maine, BriovaRx of Maine Inc., BriovaRx of Massachusetts, BriovaRx of Massachusetts LLC, BriovaRx of Nevada, BriovaRx of New York, BriovaRx of New York Inc., BriovaRx of Texas, BriovaRx of Texas Inc., CDC Holdings Colombia S.A.S., CLISA  Clinica de Santo Antonio S.A., CMO  Centro Medico de Oftalmologia S/S Ltda., CMS  Central de Manipulacao e Servicos Farmaceuticos S.A., CNIC Health Solutions Inc., COI Participacoes S.A., COI  Clinicas Oncologicas Integradas S.A., Cabin Enterprises LLC, Cabin Holdings LLC, California MedTrans Network IPA LLC, California MedTrans Network MSO LLC, California Medical Group Insurance Company Risk Retention Group, Camp Hill-SCA Centers LLC, Capital City Medical Group L.L.C., Cardio Management, Cardio Management Inc., Care Improvement Plus Group Management, Care Improvement Plus Group Management LLC, Care Improvement Plus South Central Insurance Company, Care Improvement Plus Wisconsin Insurance Company, Care Improvement Plus of Texas Insurance Company, Casa de Saude Santa Therezinha Ltda., Casa de Saude Santa Therezinha S.A., Castle Rock SurgiCenter LLC, Catalyst360, Catalyst360 LLC, Catamaran Finance (Ireland) Unlimited Company, Catamaran Health Solutions, Catamaran Holdings I, Catamaran IPA III, Catamaran Mail, Catamaran PBM of Illinois II, Catamaran PBM of Puerto Rico, Catamaran PD of Pennsylvania, Catamaran PD of Puerto Rico, Catamaran Rebate Management, Catamaran S.a.r.l., Catamaran Senior Services, Catamaran of Pennsylvania, Cedar Park Surgery Center LLC, Cemed Care - Empressa de Atendimento Clinico Geral Ltda., Cemed Care  Empresa de Atendimento Clinico Geral Ltda., Central Indiana Care Organization LLC, Central Ohio Care Organization LLC, Central de Compras SpA, CentriHealth Corporation, CentriHealth UK Limited, CentrifyHealth LLC, Centro Medico Hospitalar Pitangueiras Ltda., Centro Medico Odontologico Americano S.A.C., Centro Medico PJ Ltda., Centro de Entrenamiento en Reanimacion y Prevencion Limitada (CERP), Centro de Servicios Compartidos Banmedica S.A., Centromed Quilpue S.A., Centros Medicos y Dentales Multimed Ltda., Centurion Casualty Company, Channel Islands Surgicenter L.P., Channel Islands Surgicenter Properties LLC, Charleston Surgery Properties LLC, Charlotte-SC LLC, Childrens Surgery Center LLC, ChinaGate (Hong Kong) Limited, ChinaGate Company Limited, Citrus Regional Surgery Center L.P., Clinica Oftalmologica Danilo de Castro Sociedade Simples, Clinical Partners of Colorado Springs LLC, Clinica Alameda S.A., Clinica Bio Bio S.A., Clinica Ciudad del Mar S.A., Clinica Davila y Servicios Medicos S.A., Clinica Medico Cirurgica de Santa Tecla S.A., Clinica San Borja (La Esperanza del Peru S.A.), Clinica San Felipe S.A., Clinica Santa Maria S.A., Clinica Sanchez Ferrer S.A., Clinica Vespucio S.A., Clinica del Country S.A., Coachella Valley Physicians of PrimeCare, Coachella Valley Physicians of PrimeCare Inc., Coalition For Advanced Pharmacy Services, Coalition for Advanced Pharmacy Services Inc., Coastal Physicians Management Inc., Collaborative Care Holdings, Collaborative Care Holdings LLC, Collaborative Care Services, Collaborative Care Services Inc., Collaborative Care Solutions, Collaborative Realty, Collaborative Realty LLC, Colmedica Medicina Prepagada, Colonial Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Colorado Innovative Physician Solutions Inc., Colorado Springs Surgery Center Ltd., Comfort Care Transportation, Comfort Care Transportation LLC, Commonwealth Administrators, Connecticut Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Connecticut Surgery Properties LLC, Connecticut Surgical Center LLC, Connextions, Connextions HCI, Constructora e Inmobiliaria Magapoq S.A., Consumer Wellness Solutions Inc., Country Scan Ltda., Crescent Drug Corp., Cypress Care, Cypress Care Inc., DBP Services of New York IPA, DBP Services of New York IPA Inc., DTC Surgery Center LLC, DWIC of Tampa Bay, DWIC of Tampa Bay Inc., DaVita Magan Management Inc., Danbury Surgical Center L.P., Day-Op Surgery Consulting Company, Day-Op Surgery Consulting Company LLC, Definity Health, Dental Benefit Providers, Dental Benefit Providers Inc., Dental Benefit Providers of California, Dental Benefit Providers of California Inc., Dental Benefit Providers of Illinois, Dental Benefit Providers of Illinois Inc., Derry Surgical Center LLC, Diagnostico Ecotomografico Centromed Ltda., Diasnostico por Imagenes Centromed Ltda., Dilab Medicina Nuclear Ltda., Diplomat Pharmacy, Distance Learning Network, Distance Learning Network Inc., Doctor + S.A.C., Dry Creek Surgery Center LLC, Dublin Surgery Center LLC, Duncan Printing Services, Duncan Printing Services LLC, E Street Endoscopy LLC, ELG FZE, EP Campus I, EP Campus I LLC, East Brunswick Surgery Center LLC, Electronic Network Systems, Electronic Network Systems Inc., Elual Participacoes S.A., Empire Physician Management Company, Empire Physician Management Company LLC, Employers Health Choice PPO Inc., Empremedica S. A., Endoscopy Center Affiliates Inc., Enterprise Life Insurance Company, Equian, Equian LLC, Equian Parent Corp., Esho  Empresa de Servicos Hospitalares S.A., Etho  Empresa de Tecnologia Hospitalar Ltda., Evercare Collaborative Solutions, Evercare Collaborative Solutions Inc., Everett MSO Inc., Excellion Servicos Biomedicos Ltda., Excellion Servicos Biomedicos S.A., Excelsior Insurance Brokerage Inc., Executive Health Resources, Executive Health Resources Inc., Executive Surgery Center LLC, Eye Clinic Oftalmologia Clinico Cirurgica e Diagnostico Ltda., FMG Holdings, FMG Holdings LLC, FOR HEALTH OF ARIZONA, Family Health Care Services, Family Home Hospice, Family Home Hospice Inc., First Rx Specialty & Mail Services, Florida MedTrans Network LLC, Florida MedTrans Network MSO LLC, For Health, For Health Inc., For Health of Arizona Inc., Fortified Provider Network Inc., Fortify Technologies Asia LLC, Fortify Technologies LLC, Foundation Financial Services Inc., Franklin Surgical Center LLC, Freedom Life Insurance Company of America, Freeway Surgicenter of Houston LLC, Frontier MEDEX Limited, Frontier Medex Tanzania Limited, FrontierMEDEX, FrontierMEDEX (RMS), FrontierMEDEX (RMS) Inc., FrontierMEDEX Government Services, FrontierMEDEX Government Services LLC, FrontierMEDEX Inc., FrontierMEDEX Kenya Limited, FrontierMEDEX US, FrontierMEDEX US Inc., Fundacion Banmedica, GRANTS PASS SURGERY CENTER LLC, Gadsden Surgery Center LLC, Gadsden Surgery Center Ltd., Gainesville Surgery Center L.P., Gainesville Surgery Properties LLC, Genoa, Genoa Healthcare Inc., Genoa Healthcare LLC, Genoa QoL Wholesale LLC, Genoa Technology (Canada) Inc., Genoa Technology Inc., Genoa Telepsychiatry Inc., Genoa of Arkansas LLC, Glenwood Surgical Center L.P., Glenwood-SC Inc., Golden Outlook, Golden Outlook Inc., Golden Rule Financial Corporation, Golden Rule Insurance Company, Golden Triangle Surgicenter L.P., Grapevine Finance LLC, Greater Hartford ASC LLC, Grove Place Surgery Center L.L.C., Guardian Health Systems Limited Partnership, H&W Indemnity (SPC), H&W Indemnity (SPC) Ltd., H.I. Investments Holding Company LLC, HCP ACO California LLC, HCP ACO Nevada LLC, HCentive Technology India Private Limited, HMI NewCo LLC, Harken Health Insurance Company, Hayes-Strub LLC, Health Business Systems, Health Care-ONE Insurance Agency Inc., Health Inventures Employment Solutions LLC, Health Inventures LLC, Health Net Insurance of New York, Health Net Services (Bermuda) Ltd., Health Plan of Nevada, Health Plan of Nevada Inc., Health Technology Analysts Pty Limited, HealthAllies, HealthAllies Inc., HealthCare Partners ASC-LB LLC, HealthCare Partners Management Services California LLC, HealthCare Partners RE LLC, HealthFirst IPA Inc., HealthMarkets Group Inc., HealthMarkets Inc., HealthMarkets Insurance Agency Inc., HealthMarkets LLC, HealthMarkets NewCo Inc., HealthMarkets Services Inc., HealthSCOPE Holdings Inc., HealthScope Benefits Inc., Healthcare Partners Plan of Nevada Inc., Healthcare Solutions Inc., Heartland Heart and Vascular LLC, Help S.A., Help Service S.A., Highlands Ranch Healthcare, Highlands Ranch Healthcare LLC, Home Care I.V. of Bend, Home Infusion With Heart, Home Medical S.A., Hospice Inspiris Holdings, Hospice Inspiris Holdings Inc., Hospitais Associados de Pernambuco Ltda., Hospital Alvorada de Taguatinga Ltda., Hospital Ana Costa S.A., Hospital Maternidade Promater Ltda., Hospital Samaritano de Sao Paulo Ltda., Hospital Santa Helena S.A., Hospital de Clinicas de Jacarepagua Ltda., Humedica, Humedica Inc., Hygeia Corporation, Hygeia Corporation (Canada), Hygeia Corporation (DE), Hygeia Corporation (Ontario), INOV8 Surgical at Memorial City LLC, INSPIRIS of New York IPA, INSPIRIS of New York Management, INSPIRIS of New York Management Inc., INSPIRIS of Texas Physician Group, IRX Financing I LLC, Illinois Independent Care Network, Imed Star  Servicos de Desempenho Organizacional Ltda., Impel Consulting Experts, Impel Consulting Experts L.L.C., Impel Management Services L.L.C., Indian River Surgery Center Ltd., Indian River Surgery Properties LLC, Indiana Care Organization LLC, Infusource, Ingram & Associates, Ingram & Associates LLC, Inmobiliaria Apoquindo 3001 S.A., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo 3600 Ltda., Inmobiliaria Apoquindo S.A., Inmobiliaria Clinica Santa Maria S.A., Inmobiliaria Vinamed Ltda., Inmobiliaria e Inversiones Alameda S.A., Inspiris, Inspiris Inc., Inspiris Services Company, Inspiris of Tennessee, Instituto do Radium de Cammpinas Ltda, International Psychological Services Pty Limited, Inversiones Clinicas Santa Maria S.A., Isapre Banmedica S.A., Isapre Vida Tres S.A., Johnston Surgicare L.P., Joliet Surgery Center Limited Partnership, LHI, Laboratorio ROE S.A., Laboratorios Medicos Amed Quilpue S.A., LifePrint Health, LifePrint Health Inc., LifeStyles Marketing Group Inc., LifeWell Ltd. Co., Lifeprint Accountable Care Organization, Lifeprint Accountable Care Organization LLC, Lifeprint East, Lifeprint East Inc., Logistics Health Inc., Lotten-Eyes Oftalmologia Clinica e Cirurgica Ltda., Louisville S.C. Ltd., Louisville-SC Properties Inc., Loyola Ambulatory Surgery Center at Oakbrook Inc., Lusiadas - Parcerias Cascais S.A., Lusiadas A.C.E., Lusiadas S.A., Lusiadas SGPS S.A., MAMSI Insurance Resources, MAMSI Life and Health Insurance Company, MD Ops, MD Ops Inc., MD-Individual Practice Association, MD-Individual Practice Association Inc., ME AHS UC LLC, MEDEX Insurance Services, MEDEX Insurance Services Inc., MGH/SCA LLC, MHC Real Estate Holdings, MHC Real Estate Holdings LLC, MIAMI SURGERY CENTER LLC, MSLA Management LLC, MXMD Centros De Cancer, Mamoeco  Mamografia e Ecografia Centro de Diagnostico, Managed Physical Network, Managed Physical Network Inc., March Holdings, March Holdings Inc., March Vision Care, March Vision Care Inc., Marin Surgery Holdings Inc., Maryland Ambulatory Centers, Maryland-SCA Centers LLC, Massachusetts Assurance Company Ltd. PIC, Massachusetts Avenue Surgery Center LLC, Mat-Rx Development, Mat-Rx Fort Worth GP, MedExpress Development, MedExpress Development LLC, MedExpress Urgent Care Alabama LLC, MedExpress Urgent Care Inc. - Ohio, MedExpress Urgent Care Maine Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care New Hampshire Inc., MedExpress Urgent Care of Boynton Beach, MedExpress Urgent Care of Boynton Beach LLC, MedSynergies, MedSynergies LLC, MedSynergies North Texas, Medalliance Net Ltda, Medalliance Net Ltda., Medica Health Plans of Florida, Medica Health Plans of Florida Inc., Medica HealthCare Plans, Medica HealthCare Plans Inc., Medical Clinic of North Texas PLLC, Medical Hilfe S.A., Medical Preparatory School of Allied Health, Medical Support Los Angeles Inc., Medical Surgical Centers of America Inc., Medical Transportation Services, Medical Transportation Services LLC, Medication Management Systems Inc., Melbourne Surgery Center LLC, Memorial City Holdings LLC, Memorial City Partners LLC, Memphis-SC LLC, Memphis-SP LLC, Mesquite Liberty LLC, Metro I Stone Management, Metropolitan Medical Partners LLC, Metropolitan Medical Transportation IPA LLC, Mid Atlantic Medical Services, Mid-West National Life Insurance Company of Tennessee, Midwest Center for Day Surgery LLC, Mile High SurgiCenter LLC, Mississippi Surgery Holdings LLC, Mississippi Surgical Center Limited Partnership, Mobile Medical Professionals, Modern Medical Inc., Monarch Management Services, Monarch Management Services Inc., Montgomery Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Mountain View Medical Group LLC, Mt. Pleasant Surgery Center L.P., Multiangio Ltda., Muskogee Surgical Investors LLC, Mustang Razorback Holdings, Mustang Razorback Holdings Inc., My Wellness Solutions LLC, NAMM Holdings, NAMM Holdings Inc., NSC Fayetteville LLC, NSC Greensboro LLC, NSC Lancaster LLC, NSC Seattle Inc., NSC Upland LLC, Nashville-SCA Surgery Centers Inc., National Foundation Life Insurance Company, National MedTrans LLC, National Pacific Dental, National Pacific Dental Inc., National Surgery Centers LLC, Neighborhood Health Partnership, Neighborhood Health Partnership Inc., Netwerkes, Netwerkes LLC, Nevada Medical Services LLC, Nevada Pacific Dental, New Orleans Regional Physician Hospital Organization L.L.C., New West Physicians Inc., Newton Holdings LLC, North American Medical Management - Illinois, North American Medical Management California, North American Medical Management California Inc., North Puget Sound Center for Sleep Disorders LLC, North Puget Sound Oncology Equipment Leasing Company LLC, Northern Nevada Health Network, Northern Nevada Health Network Inc., Northern Rockies Surgicenter Inc., Northwest Surgicare LLC, Northwest Surgicare Ltd., Nutritional/Parenteral Home Care, Nutritional/Parenteral Home Care of Huntsville, OC Cardiology Practice Partners LLC, OSB  Tecnologia e Servicos de Suporte Ltda., Omesa S.A., OmniClaim LLC, Oncocare S.A.C., OneNet PPO, OneNet PPO LLC, Optimum Choice, Optimum Choice Inc., Optum, Optum Bank, Optum Bank Inc., Optum Biometrics, Optum Biometrics Inc., Optum Care Inc., Optum Care Services Company, Optum Clinical Services, Optum Clinics Holdings, Optum Clinics Holdings Inc., Optum Clinics Intermediate Holdings, Optum Clinics Intermediate Holdings Inc., Optum Digital Health Holdings LLC, Optum Finance (Ireland) Unlimited Company, Optum Global Finance (Ireland) Unlimited Company, Optum Global Solutions (India) Private Limited, Optum Global Solutions (Philippines), Optum Global Solutions (Philippines) Inc., Optum Global Solutions International B.V., Optum Government Solutions, Optum Government Solutions Inc., Optum Growth Partners LLC, Optum Health & Technology (Australia) Pty Ltd, Optum Health & Technology (Hong Kong) Limited, Optum Health & Technology (India) Private Limited, Optum Health & Technology (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Optum Health & Technology (UK) Limited, Optum Health & Technology (US), Optum Health & Technology (US) LLC, Optum Health & Technology FZ-LLC, Optum Health & Technology Holdings (US), Optum Health & Technology Holdings (US) Inc., Optum Health & Technology Servicos do Brasil Ltda., Optum Health Services (Canada) Ltd., Optum Health Solutions (Australia) Pty Ltd, Optum Health Solutions (UK) Limited, Optum Health and Technology FZ-LLC, Optum Healthcare of Illinois, Optum Healthcare of Illinois Inc., Optum Hospice Pharmacy Services, Optum Hospice Pharmacy Services LLC, Optum Inc., Optum Infusion Services 100 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 101 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 103 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 201 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 202 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 203 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 205 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 206 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 207 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 208 Inc., Optum Infusion Services 301 LP, Optum Infusion Services 302 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 308 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 401 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 403 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 404 LLC, Optum Infusion Services 501 Inc., Optum Insurance of Ohio, Optum Insurance of Ohio Inc., Optum Labs, Optum Labs Dimensions, Optum Labs Dimensions Inc., Optum Labs Inc., Optum Labs International (UK) Ltd., Optum Life Sciences (Canada) Inc., Optum Management Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Optum Management Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Optum Networks of New Jersey Inc., Optum Nevada Accountable Care Organization LLC, Optum Operations (Ireland) Unlimited Company, Optum Palliative and Hospice Care, Optum Palliative and Hospice Care Inc., Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Pennsylvania, Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Pennsylvania Inc., Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Texas, Optum Palliative and Hospice Care of Texas Inc., Optum Perks LLC, Optum Pharmacy 701 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 702 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 703 LLC, Optum Pharmacy 705 LLC, Optum Public Sector Solutions, Optum Public Sector Solutions Inc., Optum Rocket, Optum Rocket Inc., Optum Senior Services LLC, Optum Services, Optum Services (Ireland) Limited, Optum Services (Puerto Rico) LLC, Optum Services Inc., Optum Solutions UK Holdings Limited, Optum Solutions do Brasil  Tecnologia e Servicos de Suporte Ltda., Optum Technology, Optum Technology LLC, Optum UK Solutions Group Limited, Optum Women's and Children's Health, Optum Women's and Children's Health LLC, Optum of New York Inc., Optum360, Optum360 LLC, Optum360 Services, Optum360 Services Inc., Optum360 Solutions LLC, OptumCare ACO Florida LLC, OptumCare ACO Holdings LLC, OptumCare ACO New Mexico LLC, OptumCare Clinical Trials LLC, OptumCare Colorado ASC LLC, OptumCare Colorado LLC, OptumCare Colorado Springs LLC, OptumCare Endoscopy Center New Mexico LLC, OptumCare Florida CI LLC, OptumCare Florida LLC, OptumCare Health Plan of California Inc., OptumCare Holdings Colorado LLC, OptumCare Holdings LLC, OptumCare Holdings New Mexico LLC, OptumCare Management LLC, OptumCare New Mexico LLC, OptumCare New York IPA Inc., OptumCare South Florida LLC, OptumHealth Care Solutions, OptumHealth Care Solutions LLC, OptumHealth Financial Services, OptumHealth Financial Services Inc., OptumHealth Holdings, OptumHealth Holdings LLC, OptumHealth International B.V., OptumInsight, OptumInsight Holdings, OptumInsight Holdings LLC, OptumInsight Inc., OptumInsight India Private Limited, OptumInsight Life Sciences, OptumInsight Life Sciences Inc., OptumRx, OptumRx Administrative Services, OptumRx Administrative Services LLC, OptumRx Discount Card Services, OptumRx Discount Card Services LLC, OptumRx Group Holdings, OptumRx Group Holdings Inc., OptumRx Health Solutions LLC, OptumRx Holdings, OptumRx Holdings I LLC, OptumRx Holdings LLC, OptumRx Home Delivery of Illinois, OptumRx Home Delivery of Ohio, OptumRx Home Delivery of Ohio LLC, OptumRx IPA III Inc., OptumRx Inc., OptumRx NY IPA, OptumRx NY IPA Inc., OptumRx PBM of Illinois, OptumRx PBM of Illinois Inc., OptumRx PBM of Maryland, OptumRx PBM of Maryland LLC, OptumRx PBM of Pennsylvania, OptumRx PBM of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumRx PBM of Puerto Rico LLC, OptumRx PBM of Wisconsin, OptumRx PBM of Wisconsin LLC, OptumRx PD of Maryland, OptumRx PD of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumRx Pharmacy, OptumRx Pharmacy Inc., OptumRx Pharmacy of Nevada, OptumRx Pharmacy of Nevada Inc., OptumRx of Pennsylvania LLC, OptumServe Technology Services Inc., Orlando Center for Outpatient Surgery L.P., OrthoNet Holdings, OrthoNet Holdings Inc., OrthoNet LLC, OrthoNet New York IPA, OrthoNet New York IPA Inc., OrthoNet Services, OrthoNet Services Inc., OrthoNet West, OrthoNet West Inc., OrthoNet of the Mid-Atlantic, OrthoNet of the South, OrthoNet of the South Inc., Ovations, Ovations Inc., Oxford Benefit Management, Oxford Benefit Management Inc., Oxford Health Insurance, Oxford Health Insurance Inc., Oxford Health Plans (CT), Oxford Health Plans (CT) Inc., Oxford Health Plans (NJ), Oxford Health Plans (NJ) Inc., Oxford Health Plans (NY), Oxford Health Plans (NY) Inc., Oxford Health Plans LLC, P2 Lower Acquisition, P2P Link LLC, PCCCV, PCCCV Inc., PCN DE Corp., PHC Subsidiary Holdings, PHC Subsidiary Holdings LLC, PHYS Holding Corp., PHYSICIANS DAY SURGERY CENTER LLC, PMI Acquisition, PMI Acquisition LLC, PMSI, PMSI Holdco II, PMSI Holdings, PMSI Holdings LLC, PMSI LLC, PMSI Settlement Solutions, PMSI Settlement Solutions LLC, POMCO Inc., POMCO Network Inc., PPH Holdings LLC, PacifiCare Health Systems, PacifiCare Life Assurance Company, PacifiCare Life and Health Insurance Company, PacifiCare of Arizona, PacifiCare of Arizona Inc., PacifiCare of Colorado, PacifiCare of Colorado Inc., PacifiCare of Nevada, PacifiCare of Nevada Inc., Pacific Casualty Company Inc., Pacifico S.A. Entidad Prestadora de Salud, Paoli Ambulatory Surgery Center, Paoli Surgery Center L.P., Parkway Surgery Center LLC, Pasteur Plaza Surgery Center GP Inc., PatientsLikeMe, PatientsLikeMe LLC, Patrimonio Autonomo Nueva Clinica - PANC., Payment Resolution Services, Payment Resolution Services LLC, Peoples Health, Peoples Health Inc., Pharmaceutical Care Network, Pharmacy Review Services, Pharmacy Software Holdco Inc., PhyServe Holdings, Physician Alliance of the Rockies LLC, Physician Care Partners, Physicians Health Choice of Texas, Physicians Health Choice of Texas LLC, Physicians Health Plan of Maryland, Physicians Health Plan of Maryland Inc., Physicians Plaza Holdings LLC, Plano de Saude Ana Costa Ltda., Plus One Health Management Puerto Rico, Plus One Health Management Puerto Rico Inc., Plus One Holdings, Plus One Holdings Inc., Polar II Fundo de Investimento em Participacoes, Polar II Fundo de Investimento em Participacoes Multiestrategia, Polo Holdco, Polo Holdco LLC, Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center Inc., Pomerado Outpatient Surgical Center L.P., Precision Dialing Services Inc., Preferred Care Partners, Preferred Care Partners Holding, Preferred Care Partners Holding Corp., Preferred Care Partners Inc., Preferred Care Partners Medical Group, Preferred Care Partners Medical Group Inc., Premier Choice ACO, Premier Choice ACO Inc., Premier Surgery Center of Louisville L.P., Prime Health, Prime Health Inc., PrimeCare Medical Network, PrimeCare Medical Network Inc., PrimeCare of Citrus Valley, PrimeCare of Citrus Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Corona, PrimeCare of Corona Inc., PrimeCare of Hemet Valley, PrimeCare of Hemet Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Inland Valley, PrimeCare of Inland Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Moreno Valley, PrimeCare of Moreno Valley Inc., PrimeCare of Redlands, PrimeCare of Redlands Inc., PrimeCare of Riverside, PrimeCare of Riverside Inc., PrimeCare of San Bernardino, PrimeCare of San Bernardino Inc., PrimeCare of Sun City, PrimeCare of Sun City Inc., PrimeCare of Temecula, PrimeCare of Temecula Inc., ProHEALTH Fitness of Lake Success, ProHEALTH Fitness of Lake Success LLC, ProHEALTH Medical Management LLC, ProHealth Medical Management, ProHealth Physicians, ProHealth Physicians ACO, ProHealth Physicians ACO LLC, ProHealth Physicians Inc., ProHealth Proton Center Management, ProHealth Proton Center Management LLC, Procura Management, Procura Management Inc., Progressive Enterprises Holdings, Progressive Enterprises Holdings Inc., Progressive Medical, Progressive Medical LLC, Progressive Solutions, Promotora Country S.A., Pronetics Health Care Group, Pronounced Health Solutions Inc., Prosemedic S.A.C., Prospero Management Services LLC, Pueblo-SCA Surgery Center LLC, Pulse Platform LLC, QoL Acquisition Holdings Corp., Quality Software Services, QuarterMaster Newco LLC, R&H Family Fitness Unlimited LLC, Rally Health, Rally Health Inc., Real Appeal Inc., Recaudacion y Cobranzas Honodav Ltda., Redlands Ambulatory Surgery Center, Redlands-SCA Surgery Centers Inc., Reliant MSO LLC, Research Surgical Center LLC, River Valley ASC LLC, Riverside Electronic Healthcare Resources Inc., Riverside Medical Management, Riverside Medical Management LLC, Riverside Surgical Center of Meadowlands LLC, Riverside Surgical Center of Newark LLC, Rocky Mountain Health Maintenance Organization Incorporated, Rocky Mountain HealthCare Options Inc., SC Affiliates LLC, SCA Alaska Surgery Center inc., SCA Athens LLC, SCA Austin Holdings LLC, SCA BOSC Holdings LLC, SCA California Surgical Holdings LLC, SCA Capital LLC, SCA Cedar Park Holdings LLC, SCA Clifton LLC, SCA Danbury Surgical Center LLC, SCA Development LLC, SCA EHSC Holdings LLC, SCA EWASC Holdings LLC, SCA Hays Holdings LLC, SCA Heartland Holdings LLC, SCA HoldCo Inc., SCA Holding Company Inc., SCA Holdings Inc., SCA IEC Holdings LLC, SCA Indiana Holdings LLC, SCA Nashville ASC LLC, SCA Pacific Holdings Inc., SCA Pennsylvania Holdings LLC, SCA Premier Surgery Center of Louisville LLC, SCA ROCS Holdings LLC, SCA Rockledge JV LLC, SCA SSC Holdings LLC, SCA SSSC Holdings LLC, SCA Sage Medical LLC, SCA Sage Medical MSO LLC, SCA Southwestern PA LLC, SCA Specialists of Florida LLC, SCA Stonegate Holdings LLC, SCA Surgery Center of Cullman LLC, SCA Surgery Holdings LLC, SCA Surgery Partners LLC, SCA Surgicare of Laguna Hills LLC, SCA Teammate Support Network, SCA eCode Solutions Private Limited, SCA of Clarksville Inc., SCA-Albuquerque Surgery Properties Inc., SCA-Alliance LLC, SCA-Anne Arundel LLC, SCA-Applecare Partners LLC, SCA-Bethesda LLC, SCA-Blue Ridge LLC, SCA-Bonita Springs LLC, SCA-Brandon LLC, SCA-Castle Rock LLC, SCA-Central Florida LLC, SCA-Charleston LLC, SCA-Chatham LLC, SCA-Chevy Chase LLC, SCA-Citrus Inc., SCA-Colorado Springs LLC, SCA-Connecticut Partners LLC, SCA-DRY CREEK LLC, SCA-Davenport LLC, SCA-Denver LLC, SCA-Denver Physicians Holdings LLC, SCA-Derry LLC, SCA-Doral LLC, SCA-Downey LLC, SCA-Dublin LLC, SCA-Encinitas Inc., SCA-Eugene Inc., SCA-First Coast LLC, SCA-Florence LLC, SCA-Fort Collins Inc., SCA-Fort Walton Inc., SCA-Franklin LLC, SCA-Frederick LLC, SCA-Freeway Holdings LLC, SCA-Ft. Myers LLC, SCA-GRANTS PASS LLC, SCA-Gainesville LLC, SCA-Gladiolus LLC, SCA-Grove Place LLC, SCA-Hagerstown LLC, SCA-Hamden LLC, SCA-Hilton Head LLC, SCA-Honolulu LLC, SCA-Houston Executive LLC, SCA-IT Holdings LLC, SCA-Illinois LLC, SCA-JPM Holdings LLC, SCA-Kissing Camels Holdings LLC, SCA-MC VBP Inc., SCA-Main Street LLC, SCA-Marina del Rey LLC, SCA-Mecklenburg Development Corp., SCA-Memorial City LLC, SCA-Merritt LLC, SCA-Midlands LLC, SCA-Midway Management LLC, SCA-Mobile LLC, SCA-Mokena LLC, SCA-Mokena Properties LLC, SCA-Morris County LLC, SCA-Mt. Pleasant LLC, SCA-ND VBP Inc., SCA-Naperville LLC, SCA-Naples LLC, SCA-New Jersey LLC, SCA-Newport Beach LLC, SCA-Northeast Georgia Health LLC, SCA-PORTLAND LLC, SCA-Palm Beach LLC, SCA-Palm Beach MSO Holdings LLC, SCA-Paoli LLC, SCA-Phoenix LLC, SCA-Pocono LLC, SCA-Practice Partners Holdings LLC, SCA-River Valley LLC, SCA-Riverside LLC, SCA-Riverside Partners LLC, SCA-Rockville LLC, SCA-Sacred Heart Holdings LLC, SCA-San Diego Inc., SCA-San Luis Obispo LLC, SCA-Sand Lake LLC, SCA-Santa Rosa Inc., SCA-Shelby Development Corp., SCA-Somerset LLC, SCA-South Jersey LLC, SCA-Sparta LLC, SCA-Spartanburg Holdings LLC, SCA-St. Louis LLC, SCA-St. Lucie LLC, SCA-SurgiCare LLC, SCA-Swiftpath LLC, SCA-VERTA LLC, SCA-Wake Forest LLC, SCA-Western Connecticut LLC, SCA-Westover Hills LLC, SCA-Wilmington LLC, SCA-Wilson LLC, SCA-Winchester LLC, SCA-Winter Park Inc., SCA-Woodlands Holdings LLC, SCAI Holdings LLC, SCP Specialty Infusion, SCP Specialty Infusion LLC, SHC Atlanta LLC, SHC Austin Inc., SHC Hawthorn Inc., SHC Melbourne Inc., SPINETRACK 20/20 Inc., SRPS LLC, SXC Comet, Sacred Heart ASC LLC, Saden S.A., Salem Surgery Center LLC, Salveo Specialty Pharmacy, Salveo Specialty Pharmacy Inc., Sand Lake SurgiCenter LLC, Santa Cruz Endoscopy Center LLC, Santa Helena Assistencia Medica S.A., Santos Administracao e Participacoes S.A., Savvysherpa Administrative Services LLC, Savvysherpa Asia Inc., Savvysherpa LLC, Scanner Centromed S.A., ScripNet, ScriptSwitch Limited, Seisa Servicos Integrados de Saude Ltda., Senate Street Surgery Center LLC, Senior Benefits L.L.C., Senior Care Partners, Serquinox Holdings LLC, Serquinox LLC, Servicios Integrados de Salud Ltda., Servicios Medicos Amed Quilpue S.A., Servicios Medicos Bio Bio Limitada, Servicios Medicos Ciudad del Mar Ltda., Servicios Medicos Santa Maria Limitada, Servicios Medicos Vespucio Ltda., Servicios de Entrenamiento en Competencias Clinicas Ltda., SharedClarity LLC, Shelby Surgery Properties Inc., Sierra Health Services, Sierra Health Services Inc, Sierra Health Services Inc., Sierra Health and Life Insurance Company, Sierra Health and Life Insurance Company Inc., Sierra Health-Care Options, Sierra Health-Care Options Inc., Sierra Home Medical Products, Sierra Home Medical Products Inc., Sierra Nevada Administrators, Sierra Nevada Administrators Inc., Sirona Infusion, Sistema de Administracion Hospitalaria S.A.C., Small Business Insurance Advisors Inc., Sobam  Centro Medico Hospitalar S.A., Sociedad Editorial para la Ciencia Limitada., Sociedad de Inversiones Santa Maria S.A., Somerset Outpatient Surgery L.L.C., Southwest Medical Associates, Southwest Medical Associates Inc., Southwest Michigan Health Network Inc., Southwest Surgery Center LLC, Southwest Surgical Center of Bakersfield L.P., Space Coast Surgical Center Ltd., Specialists in Urology Surgery Center LLC, Specialized Pharmaceuticals Inc., Specialty Benefits, Specialty Benefits LLC, Spectera, Spectera Inc., Spectera of New York IPA, Spectera of New York IPA Inc., Spotlite, Spotlite Inc., St. Cloud Surgical Center LLC, StoneRiver P2P Link, StoneRiver Pharmacy Solutions, Stonegate Surgery Center L.P., Streamlines Health LLC, Summit Home Infusion, SunSurgery LLC, Surgery Center Holding LLC, Surgery Center at Cherry Creek LLC, Surgery Center at Kissing Camels LLC, Surgery Center of Boca Raton Inc., Surgery Center of Clarksville L.P., Surgery Center of Colorado Springs LLC, Surgery Center of Des Moines LLC, Surgery Center of Easton LLC, Surgery Center of Ellicott City Inc., Surgery Center of Louisville LLC, Surgery Center of Maui LLC, Surgery Center of Muskogee LLC, Surgery Center of Rockville L.L.C., Surgery Center of Southern Pines LLC, Surgery Center of Spokane LLC, Surgery Center of Summerlin LLC, Surgery Center of The Woodlands LLC, Surgery Center of Vero Beach Inc., Surgery Center of Wilmington LLC, Surgery Center of Wilmington Properties LLC, Surgery Centers of Des Moines Ltd. an Iowa Limited Partnership, Surgery Centers-West Holdings LLC, Surgical Care Affiliates, Surgical Care Affiliates LLC, Surgical Care Affiliates Political Action Committee, Surgical Care Partners of Melbourne LLC, Surgical Center of South Jersey Limited Partnership, Surgical Center of Tuscaloosa Holdings LLC, Surgical Health LLC, Surgical Health of Orlando LLC, Surgical Hospital Holdings of Oklahoma LLC, Surgicare LLC, Surgicare of Belleville LLC, Surgicare of Jackson LLC, Surgicare of Joliet Inc., Surgicare of La Veta Inc., Surgicare of Minneapolis LLC, Surgicare of Mobile LLC, Surgicare of Oceanside Inc., Surgicare of Owensboro LLC, Surgicare of Salem LLC, Surgicenters of Southern California Inc., Symphonix Health Holdings, Symphonix Health Holdings LLC, Symphonix Health Insurance, Symphonix Health Insurance Inc., THE SURGICAL CENTER OF THE TREASURE COAST L.L.C., TeamMD Holdings Inc., TeamMD Iowa Inc., TeamMD Physicians of Texas Inc., TeamUP Insurance Services Inc., Tecnologias de Informacion en Salud S.A., The Advisory Board (Chile) SpA, The Chesapeake Life Insurance Company, The Lewin Group, The Lewin Group Inc., The Magan Medical Group, The Outpatient Surgery Center of Hilton Head LLC, The Polyclinic MSO LLC, Thomas Johnson Surgery Center LLC, Thousand Oaks Endoscopy Center LLC, Three Rivers Holdings, Three Rivers Holdings Inc., Three Rivers Surgical Care L.P., Tmesys, Tmesys LLC, Topimagem Diagnostico por Imagem Ltda., Touchpoint Health Plan, Trails Edge Surgery Center LLC, Travel Express Incorporated, TriMed LLC, Trinity Infusion, Trio Motion LLC, Tucson Arizona Surgical Center LLC, U.S. Behavioral Health Plan, U.S. Behavioral Health Plan California, UHC Finance (Ireland) Unlimited Company, UHC Global Health Services BC Ltd., UHC International Services, UHC International Services Inc., UHC of California, UHCG Holdings (Ireland) Limited, UHCG Services (Ireland) Limited, UHCG  FZE, UHG Brasil Participacoes S.A., UHIC Holdings, UHIC Holdings Inc., UICI Funding Corp. 2, UMR, UMR Inc., USHEALTH Academy Inc., USHEALTH Administrators LLC, USHEALTH Advisors L.L.C., USHEALTH Career Agency Inc., USHEALTH Funding Inc., USHEALTH Group Inc., USMD Administrative Services, USMD Administrative Services L.L.C., USMD Affiliated Services, USMD CT (Mo), USMD Cancer Treatment Centers, USMD Cancer Treatment Centers GP, USMD Diagnostic Services, USMD Holdings, USMD Holdings Inc., USMD Inc., USMD PPM, USMD PPM LLC, USMD of Arlington GP, Ultima Rx, Unidad Medica Diagnostico S.A., Unimerica Insurance Company, Unimerica Life Insurance Company of New York, Unison Administrative Services, Unison Health Plan of Delaware, Unison Health Plan of Delaware Inc., United Behavioral Health, United Behavioral Health of New York I.P.A., United Behavioral Health of New York I.P.A. Inc., United Group Reinsurance Inc., United Health Foundation, United HealthCare, United HealthCare Services Inc., United Management Services Inc., United Resource Networks IPA of New York, United Resource Networks IPA of New York Inc., UnitedHealth Advisors, UnitedHealth Advisors LLC, UnitedHealth Group Finance Inc., UnitedHealth Group Global Healthcare Services Limited, UnitedHealth Group Global Services, UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, UnitedHealth Group Information Services Private Limited, UnitedHealth Group International Finance (Ireland) Unlimited Company, UnitedHealth Group International GP, UnitedHealth Group International L.P., UnitedHealth International, UnitedHealth International Inc., UnitedHealth Military & Veterans Services, UnitedHealth Military & Veterans Services LLC, UnitedHealth UK Limited, UnitedHealthcare, UnitedHealthcare Benefits Plan of California, UnitedHealthcare Benefits of Texas, UnitedHealthcare Benefits of Texas Inc., UnitedHealthcare Children's Foundation Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of California, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of California Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Georgia, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Georgia Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Ohio, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Ohio Inc., UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas L.L.C., UnitedHealthcare Consulting & Assistance Service (Beijing) Co., UnitedHealthcare Consulting & Assistance Service (Beijing) Co. Ltd., UnitedHealthcare Europe S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare Europe S.a.r.l., UnitedHealthcare Global Canada Limited, UnitedHealthcare Global Medical (UK) Limited, UnitedHealthcare Inc., UnitedHealthcare India Private Limited, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of Illinois, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of New York, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company of the River Valley, UnitedHealthcare Insurance Designated Activity Company, UnitedHealthcare Integrated Services, UnitedHealthcare Integrated Services Inc., UnitedHealthcare International Asia, UnitedHealthcare International Asia LLC, UnitedHealthcare International I B.V., UnitedHealthcare International I S.a.r.l., UnitedHealthcare International II B.V., UnitedHealthcare International II S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International II S.a.r.l., UnitedHealthcare International III B.V., UnitedHealthcare International III S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International III S.a.r.l., UnitedHealthcare International IV S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International IV S.a.r.l., UnitedHealthcare International V S.a.r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VI S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VII S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International VIII S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare International X S.a r.l., UnitedHealthcare Life Insurance Company, UnitedHealthcare Plan of the River Valley, UnitedHealthcare Plan of the River Valley Inc., UnitedHealthcare Service LLC, UnitedHealthcare Services Company of the River Valley, UnitedHealthcare Specialty Benefits, UnitedHealthcare Specialty Benefits LLC, UnitedHealthcare of Alabama, UnitedHealthcare of Alabama Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Arizona, UnitedHealthcare of Arizona Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Arkansas, UnitedHealthcare of Arkansas Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Colorado, UnitedHealthcare of Colorado Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Florida, UnitedHealthcare of Florida Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Georgia, UnitedHealthcare of Georgia Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Illinois, UnitedHealthcare of Illinois Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Kentucky, UnitedHealthcare of Kentucky Ltd., UnitedHealthcare of Louisiana, UnitedHealthcare of Louisiana Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Mississippi, UnitedHealthcare of Mississippi Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New England, UnitedHealthcare of New England Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New Mexico, UnitedHealthcare of New Mexico Inc., UnitedHealthcare of New York, UnitedHealthcare of New York Inc., UnitedHealthcare of North Carolina, UnitedHealthcare of North Carolina Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Ohio, UnitedHealthcare of Ohio Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Oklahoma, UnitedHealthcare of Oklahoma Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Oregon, UnitedHealthcare of Oregon Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Pennsylvania, UnitedHealthcare of Pennsylvania Inc., UnitedHealthcare of South Carolina Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Texas, UnitedHealthcare of Texas Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Utah, UnitedHealthcare of Utah Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Washington, UnitedHealthcare of Washington Inc., UnitedHealthcare of Wisconsin, UnitedHealthcare of Wisconsin Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic, UnitedHealthcare of the Mid-Atlantic Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Midlands, UnitedHealthcare of the Midlands Inc., UnitedHealthcare of the Midwest, UnitedHealthcare of the Midwest Inc., UpFront Insurance Agency LLC, Upland Holdings LLC, Upland Outpatient Surgical Center L.P., Urgent Care Holdings, Urgent Care Holdings Inc., Urgent Care MSO, Urgent Care MSO LLC, Urology Associates of North Texas, Urology Associates of North Texas P.L.L.C., VERTA MANAGEMENT SERVICES LLC, Valley Hospital L.L.C., Valley Physicians Network, Valley Physicians Network Inc., Vida Tres Internacional S.A., Vidaintegra S.A., Vivify Health Canada Inc., Vivify Health Inc., WESTMED Practice Partners LLC, Wauwatosa Outpatient Surgery Center LLC, Wauwatosa Surgery Center Limited Partnership, Wayland Square Surgicare Acquisition L.P., Wayland Square Surgicare GP Inc., WebInsure Benefits LLC, WellMed Medical Management, WellMed Medical Management Inc., WellMed Medical Management of Florida, WellMed Medical Management of Florida Inc., WellMed Networks  DFW, West Coast Endoscopy Holdings LLC, Western Connecticut Orthopedic Surgical Center LLC, WillowB Labs LLC, Wilmington ASC LLC, Winchester Endoscopy LLC, Winter Park LLC, XLHealth Corporation, XLHealth Corporation India Private Limited, Your Health Options Insurance Services, Your Health Options Insurance Services Inc., Your Partner in Health Services, divvyDOSE, eCode Solutions LLC, gethealthinsurance.com Agency Inc., hCentive Inc., inPharmative, inPharmative Inc., and ppoONE.
Petronet LNG Ltd is keen to partner with ONGC Videsh Ltd to buy a stake in Qatar Petroleum's upcoming gas exploration and liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects, its MD and CEO Prabhat Singh said.

New Delhi: Petronet LNG Ltd is keen to partner with ONGC Videsh Ltd to buy a stake in Qatar Petroleum's upcoming gas exploration and liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects, its MD and CEO Prabhat Singh said.

Qatar Petroleum plans to expand LNG production capacity from 77 million tonnes per year to 100 million tonnes in next few years. Petronet is keen to take 5 per cent stake in the expansion project along with associated upstream gas development, he said.

State-owned Qatar Petroleum, which consolidated its two LNG producing companies - Qatargas and RasGas, into itself earlier this year, is looking to form a joint venture with international partners to deliver the North Field expansion.

"We had meetings with them and they have asked us to give a business proposal," Singh said, adding the joint team of Petronet and OVL is keen to visit data room to firm their views. Petronet currently buys 7.5 million tonnes of LNG per annum from RasGas of Qatar under a 25-year contract.

RasGas had in the contract promised to give 5 per cent stake to Petronet or its nominee in the liquefication plant in the Gulf nation. But Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), which was assigned to pick up the equity, hesitated in making the USD 135 million payment. The stake is now worth USD 2 billion.

Singh said Qatar has announced plans to produce 100 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) annually - equivalent to a third of current global supplies - in the next five to seven years, up from current 77 million tonnes.

Petronet is keen to get ownership of gas molecule at the well-head and so wants a stake in both the upstream development and LNG production facility, he said.

The stake would help Petronet, which is India's biggest LNG importer, better understand the business of converting natural gas extracted from under-sea fields are converted into a liquid at sub-zero temperature, shipped and marketed world over.

This will be its first investment in an LNG production plant. Petronet operates a 15 million tonnes per annum terminal at Dahej in Gujarat for import of LNG and converting the liquid fuel back to its gaseous state before piping it to customers. Singh said Petronet wants to acquire a stake that will guarantee it a board position.

The offer made to Petronet in lieu of LNG purchases was the same that RasGas had promised Korea's KoGas in an LNG supply deal. Article 30.7 of the agreement with Petronet promised the stake at "no premium" but RasGas reneged on its commitment and demanded a premium from ONGC, which was nominated to take the stake. The talks broke down on the premium asked, sources said.
The launch of Wi-Fi hotspots under the rural broadband project 'BharatNet' has seen 190 per cent jump in data usage to 95 terabyte in six months of the service, as per an official report.

New Delhi: The launch of Wi-Fi hotspots under the rural broadband project 'BharatNet' has seen 190 per cent jump in data usage to 95 terabyte in six months of the service, as per an official report.

A DoT report said that as on April 30 this year, "190 per cent increase in data consumption has been recorded during the last six months in rural areas where broadband internet is provided through Wi-Fi hotspots running on BharatNet Infrastructure".

The government has completed the roll out of the BharatNet project in over 1 lakh gram panchayats and aims to cover the rest of 1.5 lakh GPs by the end of this year, it said.

"While the first half of last twelve months saw a data consumption of around 33 TB, the second half witnessed a consumption of around 95 TB," the report said.

The government is providing Wi-Fi hotspots service, known as (Wifi Choupal) in 7,183 gram panchayats (GPs) under the BharatNet project in 12 states and Union Territories -- Bihar, Chandigarh, Chattisgarh, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Puducherry, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The Wi-Fi choupals have been launched by DoT in partnership with CSC-SPV, which runs common service centres in rural areas.

"High speed data at cheap price is the main reason for increase in consumption, and it has been also reported that people are leaving their 3G and 4G data services for Wi-Fi Choupal service. This shows there is huge demand for data in rural area, and opportunity needs to be provided," said an official.

Under BharatNet, Wi-Fi service users are getting 12 GB of data for Rs 100 with 28 days validity. Small packs of 500 MB, 2GB and 4.5 GB for Rs 10, Rs 25 and Rs 50 respectively, with validity of 10-28 days, are also available. While mobile operators are providing low cost data these days but validity of those small data plans is too low.

"The benefit of Wi-Fi choupals is that if a person has registered in to one of the hotspots, say Bihar, then he can use the service or the plan across any of the Wi-Fi choupals in the country. DoT is working with telecom operators for similar utilisation models in GPs," the official said.

Karnataka at present has largest number of GPs where BharatNet infrastructure is used for Wi-Fi choupal project at 12,978 locations, followed by UP with 10,866 Wi-Fi choupals and MP - 7,896 choupals.
The fourth meeting of the Niti Aayog's Governing Council will be held on June 16 and deliberate on the development agenda for 'New India 2022', vice chairman of the think tank Rajiv Kumar said on Sunday.

New Delhi: The fourth meeting of the Niti Aayog's Governing Council will be held on June 16 and deliberate on the development agenda for 'New India 2022', vice chairman of the think tank Rajiv Kumar said on Sunday.

The Council, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, may also discuss plans for celebrations to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The apex body of Niti Aayog, the Council includes all chief ministers as also the members of the government think tank.

"Topmost on the agenda will be our strategy for 'New India at 75', which NITI Aayog has prepared. The draft will be presented to chief ministers for their approval. Then there will be also discussion on aspirational districts," Kumar told PTI.

"We may also include something on celebration of Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary. It must be done cooperatively and every body must be on board and that will be vision of India," he said.

Niti Aayog has been working on the strategy document or development agenda for 'New India 2022' for a while. Earlier, it had planned to come out with three documents  a three-year action agenda, seven-year medium term strategy paper and a 15-year vision document.

The Aayog, in a presentation last year, had said the foundation for freedom from six problems  poverty, dirt, corruption, terrorism, casteism and communalism  will be laid by 2022 when India celebrates 75 years of independence.
The government will not allow "fly-by-night" data mining firms to improperly harvest social media data of Indian citizens, Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said.

New Delhi: The government will not allow "fly-by-night" data mining firms to improperly harvest social media data of Indian citizens, Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said.

In an interview to PTI, he said that while the government is supportive of the social media, it will not allow abuse of the platform nor "irresponsible traffic in data commerce". The government has already slapped notices to the controversial, UK-based data mining firm Cambridge Analytica for improperly obtaining information from tens of millions of Facebook users globally, including in India and is awaiting its response. ...no fly-by-night operator will now be able to play with data. I am all for campaigning on social media and these platforms but you cannot play with the (user) consent," Prasad said.

The comments assume significance in the run up to general elections slated next year. Cambridge Analytica, a data-mining firm embroiled in a scandal purportedly over its work for US President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, is alleged to have improperly obtained information from tens of millions of Facebook users to develop political ads.

India, in March, slapped a notice on Cambridge Analytica to explain if it was engaged in improperly harvesting Facebook data of Indian citizens. The second notice was sent last month.

The company has since begun insolvency proceedings in the UK and also filed for bankruptcy in the US after losing "virtually all" customers and suppliers.

"India has sent out a very clear and firm message to these data companies that you cannot take the country lightly... I am very firm, we hold our democratic credentials very strongly," said Prasad.

The IT ministry will wait for Cambridge Analytica to respond to the second notice, Prasad said, adding that a final view in the matter will be taken once the reply comes in.

Earlier this month, Facebook responded to government's latest notice over alleged data breach, outlining in detail the "changes made" to protect users information.

But Cambridge Analytica announced its closure in a statement on its website and claimed it had been "vilified" for activities that are legal and considered a standard component of online advertising.

Indian officials familiar with the line of questioning and notices sent in the data leak matter have said that Cambridge Analytica had recently indicated to the IT ministry that it intends to send response to the government latest notice.

Government officials had also maintained that the shutting down of Cambridge will not impact its ongoing probe as the liability of the company existed prior to the closure announcement.

Stating that he wants India to become a hub of data analysis, Prasad said that such aspirations will have to be strictly balanced with adequate safeguards for data protection and respect for user consent.

"I want India to become a centre of data analysis but we are very clear that the element of consent has to be given due regard...to have a robust balance between a need for data analysis and the need to protect the right of individual data owners," he added.

India is already penning stronger data protection laws and a 10-member committee formed last year under the chairmanship of Justice B N Srikrishna (former Supreme Court judge) to give shape to the new data protection framework, is widely expected to finalize it views by next month.
From Hera Pheri to Khatta Meetha, actor Akshay Kumar and director Priyadarshan have given audience some of the best films to remember. However, for the last five years the director has been trying his best to rope in Akshay for another project, but to no avail.

Priyadarshans desperate attempts to sign Akshay for a project began with a film on AIDS, that he insisted could only be made with Akshay in the lead. This film never took off and Priyadarshan kept going to the khiladi with sundry offers only to return empty handed.

Now, the prolific director has announced his ambitious film, Makkar: The Lion of the Arabian Sea, based on the exploits of the 16th Century naval explorer Kunjali Marakkar IV. While the title role in this Hindi-Malayalam-Telugu-Tamil film has gone to his old friend and collaborator Mohanlal, the director offered Akshay a role, which he once again declined.

A close friend of Akshay observes, If you notice he likes to work with new directors these days. He gave up doing a bunch of films with the same director long ago. Whether its Priyadarshan or Suneel Darshan, Akshay is done with the comfort of the familiar.
William H. Macy wants his daughters to live their most fulfilled lives.

Speaking recently to USWeekly.com, the father of Sophia (17) and Georgia (16) said he would embrace the young men his children bring home.

You know, I started doing all the cliches, Im going to threaten the guys, Im going to dig a moat around our house. And then I thought, OK, what do you really want for your daughters? And I realised I want them to be happy and lusty, but safe, the Shameless star shared, Theyre different than when I was a kid. Georgia and Sofia have all their pals over.
Washington: Google search data shows that weight loss searches have increased over time while those on obesity have decreased.

The research, conducted by European Association for the Study of Obesity, suggests a normalisation of obesity in society.

Dr Aditya S. Pawar and colleagues studied data of awareness about obesity over the last twelve years worldwide. They used Google Trends which is based on the number of times worldwide the terms 'Obesity', 'Weight loss 'and 'Obese' were searched for using Google between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2017.

The program assigns a reference value of 100 for the point of maximum popularity among the search terms, and provides relative monthly scores for all terms, which were termed relative interest scores (RIS).

The results found that the for the search term 'obesity', the mean RIS consistently decreased with each quartile. While the search term 'weight loss' RIS consistently increased with time.

The term 'weight loss' appeared to be especially popular during the month of January and its median RIS for January (n=12months) as compared to other months (n=122 months) was higher during the entire study period (88 vs 72), a result which was statistically significant. The RIS for term 'obese' did not change significantly over the study period.

Dr Pawar concluded, "Despite an increase in the prevalence of obesity, its popularity on the internet continues to decrease with time as reflected by the RIS score, which may suggest 'normalisation' of obesity in our society. Reassuringly however, the frequency of the search term 'weight loss' has increased significantly overtime, with significant interest in January every year."

The study was presented at European Congress on Obesity in Vienna, Austria.
The past few days have been scary for people who have been listening to the news and rumours surrounding the outbreak of a deadly infection which has claimed 11 lives in Kerala. Named Nipah virus (NiV) infection, the newly emerging zoonosis that affects both animals and humans, are known to be spread by fruit bats.

First reported in Kampung Sungai Nipah, Malaysia, in 1998, the disease, back then was found to be transmitted by pigs which contracted the virus from fruit bats. In 2004, an NiV outbreak was reported in Bangladesh when humans were infected after consuming date palm syrup contaminated by insect fruit bats. Once contracted, human-to-human transmission of the disease happen, triggering panic.

The latest test results of blood and serum samples of 21 bats found on the premises of the first Keralite victims house have ruled out those insectivore bats as the carriers of the virus. Amidst rumours, panic and scare,Dr B. Padmakumar, Professor and Head of the Department of Medicine, Govt Medical College, Kollam, Kerala, explains about the disease, its symptoms and the precautions to be taken.

What is NiV infection?

Its a relatively new epidemic caused by Nipah virus commonly hosted by fruit-eating bats. Relatively new, because it has been just 20 years since the first instance has been reported. The virus, believed to be transmitted from bats to livestock, and then to humans, spread among humans through body fluids. The virus, with its mutation ability developed for survival, has an incubation period that ranges from three to 21 days.

What are the early symptoms of NiV infection?

The early symptom begins as a fever during the NiVs incubation period, but since that is a common symptom for Japanese encephalitis or Dengue, it cant be confirmed as NiV for two-three days. Along with fever, there might be mild respiratory infection symptoms too. Severe infection starts with symptoms like severe headache, disorientation, encephalitis and results in unconsciousness, coma and death.

How dangerous is the Nipah outbreak?

Though the infection rate is slower compared to common cold and influenza, the mortality rate stands at 40 per cent to 70 per cent, which is very high. The current outbreak is believed to be limited to the area of the victims alone; so theres no need to panic about the situation. However, any case of fever is being referred to as suspected NiV and only after obtaining the test results is the disease ruled out.

What is the treatment procedure?

If a person shows symptoms of encephalitis along with fever, three body fluids  blood, urine and cerebral spinal fluid  and throat swabs are collected and sent for lab tests. Meanwhile, the patient is quarantined and Ribavirin antibody is being administered. If the results that come in three to seven days confirm the presence of the virus in the body, the patient is administered the human monoclonal antibody which neutralises the virus. Intensive supportive care is all that can be done to treat the infected.

What are the precautions that have to be taken to avoid

General health maintenance is the most important factor. Avoid consuming decayed fruits or the ones bitten by bats or birds. Usually, people cut out the decayed or bitten portion and consume the fruits. If a carrier fruit-eating bat has bitten it, eating such fruits could be fatal. Likewise, change your clothes and take a bath after being in a crowd, even if it is a bus or a hospital. Avoid animal contact and if your pets fall sick, take them to a vet immediately. If possible, avoid travelling to the places where the outbreak has been reported, at least for two to three weeks.

Tips to fight NiV

1 Visit your family physician instead of rushing to a crowded specialist hospital.

2 Wash your hands using soap, especially if you are taking care of a patient.

3 Avoid public places and international journeys.

4 Never go for self-medication. Be it is a cold or fever, make sure that visit your family doctor and do not treat yourself.

5 Most importantly, do not believe unscientific news, social media messages or rumours.
The incident occurred on May 21 when the victim, who is six month's pregnant, was going for a routine check-up at a hospital in Manesar with her husband on a bicycle. (Representational Image)

Gurgaon: A 23-year-old pregnant woman was allegedly raped by an auto driver and his two accomplices in Manesar, police said on Saturday.

The incident occurred on May 21 when the victim, who is six month's pregnant, was going for a routine check-up at a hospital in Manesar with her husband on a bicycle, they said.

While the couple was returning home, the woman complained that she was uncomfortable on the bicycle, a senior police officer.

"The woman's husband told her to take a shared auto to reach home in the nearby village. But she did not return until very late," he said.

The victim and her husband filed a complaint on Friday at the Woman Police Station, four days after the incident, police said.

The woman, in her police complaint, alleged that she boarded an auto and was offered some water by the auto driver, following which she got unconscious and was later raped by three persons, the officer added.

The victim hails from Bihar and stays in Manesar with her husband and her minor son.

"A case of gang rape was registered at the Women Police Station, Manesar, against unknown persons. Doctors, however, said the foetus is stable," the officer added.
New Delhi: A woman was allegedly molested by an Army official in a moving train on her way to Delhi from Rajasthan on Saturday, police said.

The woman, who was travelling alone from Kota to Delhi's Hazrat Nizamuddin station in Duronto Express, alleged that the Army subedar tried to inappropriately touch her, they said.

She alleged that the accused was consuming liquor with his friends and to save herself, she locked herself inside a toilet, the police said.

After the train reached Delhi Saturday morning, she lodged a complaint and on the basis of which a zero FIR was registered, they said.

The 48-year-old official was then arrested, the police said.

The Delhi Police has informed their counterparts in Kota about the matter.
The condition of one of the injured was stated to be critical while Chandraiah died in hospital. (Representational Image)

Hyderabad: Rumours of gangs kidnapping children claimed yet another life in the city late on Saturday night when a transgender named Chandraiah and three others were attacked by an angry mob.

The condition of one of the injured was stated to be critical while Chandraiah died in hospital.

The attack took place on the Hafeezbabanagar road where some persons noticed the group moving about asking for alms from hotels and shops.

Preliminary enquiries revealed that the group approached hoteliers asking for money. This resulted in an argument between the locals and them. Soon a mob gathered, chased them, thrashed them, and later attacked them with stones. Some persons threw big granite stones on them, said DCP (south) V. Satyanarayana.

The police said that the group comes to the city regularly.
Make your birthday special - by brewing a beer originally made on that date.

For a mere 25 euros, I'll create a bespoke recipe for any day of the year you like. As well as the recipe, there's a few hundred words of text describing the beer and its historical context and an image of the original brewing record.

Just click on the button below.
The official said both Russia and India are likely to announce the deal before an annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in October. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: India has concluded price negotiations with Russia for a nearly Rs 40,000 crore deal to procure S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems for the Indian Air Force, officials said.

They said the two countries are now trying to find a way out to evade the provisions of a US law that seeks to punish countries and entities engaged in transactions with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

"The negotiations for the missile deal have been concluded. The financial component has been finalised," a top official involved in the negotiations for the deal with Russia told PTI.

The official said both Russia and India are likely to announce the deal before an annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in October.

Two other officials said both sides are now looking at ways to insulate the deal from the sanctions announced by the US against Russia under its Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

The issue is understood to have figured during PM Modi's informal talks with Vladimir Putin in Sochi last week.

There has been mounting concerns in India over the US sanctions against Russian defence majors including Rosoboron export as billions of dollars of military purchases may be impacted because of the punitive measure.

The US had announced sanctions against Russia under the stringent law for its alleged meddling in the American presidential election in 2016.

CAATSA, which came into effect in January, mandates the Donald Trump administration to punish entities engaging in significant transaction with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis last month appealed to the Congress to urgently provide India the national security waiver, saying imposing sanctions under CAATSA for the S-400 air defence missile deal would only hit the US.

India wants to procure the long-range missile systems to tighten its air defence mechanism, particularly along the nearly 4,000-km-long India-China border.

In 2016, India and Russia had signed an agreement on the 'Triumf' interceptor-based missile system which can destroy incoming hostile aircraft, missiles and even drones at ranges of up to 400 km. S-400 is known as Russia's most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system.

China was the first foreign buyer to seal a government-to-government deal with Russia in 2014 to procure the lethal missile system and Moscow has already started delivery of unknown number of the S-400 missile systems to Beijing.

The S-400 is an upgraded version of the S-300 systems. The missile system, manufactured by Almaz-Antey, has been in service in Russia since 2007.
Nitish Kumar, the JD(U) national president, had come out in support of the demonetisation measure, when he was in the Grand Alliance comprising the RJD and the Congress. (Photo: PTI)

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar alleged on Saturday that banks did not implement demonetisation in a proper manner, and said people could not receive benefits to the desired extent owing to it.

Addressing a quarterly review meeting of state-level bankers committee in Patna, Kumar also made an indirect reference to the PNB fraud, stating that big defaulters were able to obtain huge loans and escape from the country, while the poor had to face stringent recovery steps.

Banks are so strict in recovering amounts lent to small-scale borrowers. Why the same strictness is not shown in the case of big defaulters? he wondered.

Kumar, the JD(U) national president, had come out in support of the demonetisation measure, when he was in the Grand Alliance comprising the RJD and the Congress.

I had supported note ban. But because of the role played by banks, people could not be benefited to the extent they should have. People deposited huge amounts in scrapped currency and the money was laundered, he said.

Kumar expressed resentment over the lack of cooperation from banks despite the Bihar governments offer of a guarantee of Rs 160 for every Rs 100 borrowed for the state students credit card scheme.

You (bankers) should understand that banks have the responsibility of helping governments to ensure that pro-poor measures bring desired benefits to the people. Your role does not get over with borrowing, lending and recovering, the CM said.

You must also pay some attention to the abysmally low, 50 per cent, credit deposit ratio in Bihar, he said.

Speaking to reporters later, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi dismissed suggestions that Kumars comments was tantamount to saying that demonetisation had failed in achieving its objective.

That is a completely wrong interpretation. The chief minister did not say that demonetisation has failed. Rather he said that the role of some of the bankers was not right during its implementation phase... there had been reports of irregular deposits of demonetised currency in banks, Sushil Modi said.

The deputy CM, however, lauded banks for achieving 91 per cent of the target of Annual Credit Plan (ACP) of Rs 1.10 lakh crore in 2017-18.

Of the total Annual Credit Plan of Rs 1.10 lakh crore in 2017-18, banks distributed loans of Rs 99,934 crore which is 90.85 per cent of its target. It was 87.9 per cent in the fiscal 2016-17, he said.

Sushil Modi, who also holds finance and commercial taxes departments, said that banks have been given the target of disbursing loans to the tune of Rs 1.30 lakh crore in the current fiscal.

Banks have been asked to review those districts which have achieved less than 80 per cent of their ACP target, he said.

A total of 3.04 crore bank accounts have been opened in the state so far, including 63.26 lakh in 2017-18 under the Prime Minister Jan Dhan Yojana, Sushil Modi said, adding, Rs 10,559 crore has been deposited in these accounts.

Talking about the MUDRA scheme, the deputy CM said that Rs 9,598 crore has been distributed among 11 lakh beneficiaries in the state, which is almost double the target of Rs 5,375 crore.

Referring to people facing difficulties in depositing coins at banks, Sushil Modi said that RBI Regional Director, Patna, N P Topno has clarified that there is no limit or restrictions in depositing coins.
With the campaign for Chengannur bypoll ending on Saturday, the constituency witnessed high-voltage campaign by the three fronts. (Photo: Arrangement)

ALAPPUZHA: The two-month-long spirited campaign in Chengannur ended on Saturday with a communal tone. Instead of giving the electorate a chance to vote on the government's performance, the campaign stooped to a new low. The leaders across the political spectrum were seen rushing to religious and caste leaders seeking their blessing. Congress leader A.K. Antony triggered panic among rivals seeking BJP votes. They rushed to the local offices of communal outfits to seek support rather publically, which is unheard of in history of Kerala.

The CPM state chief Kodiyeri Balakrishnan even painted UDF candidate D. Vijayakumar as communal as he's the vice-president of Ayyappa Seva Sangham, a voluntary group serving Sabarimala pilgrims. He said the black 'bindi' on his forehead had several meanings. "Black mark in his bindi has a message to give out," he said. "People who know it will grab the message." Strangely, he also alleged a 'Co-Lee-Bee' (Congress-League-BJP) alliance in Chengannur as well. The party mouthpiece Deshabhimani published a picture of chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan meeting church leaders on its front page.

The only work his predecessor, Oommen Chandy, had to do on Saturday was calling on leaders of local NSS and SNDP units. "Not only Mr Chandy, but all party leaders come to our office these days. They all want our support," P.N. Sukumara Panicker, president, NSS Taluk Union, Chengannur said. "We offered support to all of them. Our community members work for different parties. They will vote for a right candidate." BJP's Rajya Sabha MP V. Muraleedharan visited SNDP Yogam office seeking 'help'.

"I was surprised why political leaders flock to our offices seeking help which I can't do," Anil P. Srirangam, chairman, SNDP Union, Chengannur, said. "Our general secretary has already declared our stance. Each member of 13,827 registered families under the Union is politically conscious." "BJP would have a lot of works cut out for retaining their 2016 vote share," he added.
The ministry said it was also conveyed to the Pakistani deputy envoy that such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations. (Photo: PTI/Representational)

New Delhi: India on Sunday summoned Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah over Islamabad's so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, and told him that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country's forcible occupation has no legal basis.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said it conveyed to Shah that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Through its order on Gilgit-Baltistan on May 21, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region.

Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order. "Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation," the MEA said.

The ministry said it was also conveyed to the Pakistani deputy envoy that such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan-occupied territories.
There are 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilo watt. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel in an open jeep on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway on Sunday and also inaugurate India's first smart and green highway, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE), built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has said.

The Prime Minister's road show will commence from the Nizamuddin Bridge, the start of the about 9 kilometres first leg of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, and after a 6-kilometres travel on the stretch, he is scheduled to fly to Baghpat for dedicating the EPE to the nation.

"The Prime Minister will travel in an open jeep on Delhi Meerut Expressway for 6 km, where he will be greeted by a huge number of people. The Prime Minister would inaugurate the exhibition and 3D model there and would fly to Baghpat to dedicate to the nation the EPE," Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Gadkari said in New Delhi.

The 135-km EPE, built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore, has several unique features and is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting on every 500 metres on both sides and would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains, the minister said, adding it has been completed in a record 500 days.

There are 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilo watt (4 MW).

The state-of-the-art road will have auto challans for over-speeding, as cameras will capture speed of vehicles, besides it will have provisions of tolling only for the distance travelled, the minister said adding, the expressway has an iconic toll plaza at the entry point on Kundli side besides digital art gallery.

The minister said it is equipped with smart and intelligent highway traffic management system (HTMS) and video incident detection system (VIDS) and will set a benchmark in highway construction by being environment-friendly with world-class safety features and smart/interactive infrastructure.

The foundation stone of the greenfield project was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 5, 2015.

Gadkari said 2.5 lakh trees have been planted here including transplant of 8-10 year old trees and drip irrigation provision has been done. It has consumed 11 lakh tonnes of cement, 1 lakh tonnes of steel, 3.6 crore cum earthwork and 1.2 cr cum fly-ash, the minister said adding the project has generated employment opportunities of about 50 lakh man-days and 9,375 manpower was deployed in New Delhi.

A lot of traffic, outbound or non-destined for Delhi will be diverted, he said adding at least 50,000 vehicles going to Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan will be diverted, bringing down vehicular pollution.

The alignment of EPE starts near Kundli and passes through six parliamentary constituencies, viz Sonepat, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Palwal.

The fully access controlled six-lane expressway provides entry and exit designated interchanges only and has 406 structures of which 4 are major bridges, 46 minor bridges, 3 flyovers, 7 inter-changes, 221 underpasses and 8 road over bridges (ROBs). The amenities include retail fuel outlets, rest rooms, motels, restaurants, shops etc.

Some of the monuments' replicas pertain to Ashoka Lion, Ashoka Chakra, Konark Temple, Jalianwala Bagh, Gateway of India, Qutab Minar, Char Minar, Lal Quila, Kirti Stambh, India Gate, Hawa Mahal and Gujarat Carving.
Pune: This doctor in Maharashtra's Pune is often regarded as the messiah by the homeless and beggars as they do not have to worry about medical care. Dr Abhijeet Sonawane provides weekly check ups and free medicine to the sick and homeless on the streets of Pune.

Dr Sonawane starts his day by visiting shrines and religious places and treating the elderly and physically challenged homeless people, who beg to survive.

Moreover, he not only looks after the needy but also admits those in critical conditions to government hospitals and takes care of all of their expenses.

Speaking to ANI, Sonawane said, "These elderly people are generally the ones who have been abandoned by their families and have no option but to beg. I not only do their check up but also give them free medicines which I carry with me. I do this from 10 am to 3 pm from Monday to Saturday."

For these needy people, Sonawane is now like a family member, who has been helping them for almost two years now. He also has a trust named 'Soham Trust' which helps in executing this initiative.

"This is my way of giving back to the society. While treating these people I build a rapport with them and then try to convince them to quit begging and do some other work. I also assure them of my support in all forms," said Sonawane.

Calling himself the 'Doctor for beggars', Sonawane has set an example for others to emulate.
KOCHI: The solar energy project of the Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) is likely to receive the official recognition of the United Nations. The proposal for giving official recognition of the project is under the consideration of UN, Erik Solheim, head of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters after visiting solar plant of CIAL he the UN will be glad to recognize the Kochi airport as the first fully solar-powered airport in the world. "The model of CIAL can be followed by not only other airports but even countries", he added. He also pointed out that agreement signed by between Beijing Airport in China, one of the largest in the world and UNEP for sustainable development. The two are cooperating in areas such as waste disposal and energy generation. "The UNEP is thinking of Beijing model cooperation with CIAL", he added.

The UNEP chief has also mentioned the uniqueness of the CIAL practice of growing organic vegetables in the spaces between the solar panels. This is a novel idea, he pointed out. The UNEP will think of spreading this across the world, he added. The UNEP chief expressed concern over the accumulation of plastic wastes across the world including the ocean beds. We can see plastic even in the depth of Pacific Ocean.

Even the animals are in danger because of plastic usage", he said and mentioned about the death of wild elephants in Kerala due to plastic. Sea turtles and sea birds are also facing the threat from plastic, he added. Expressing grief over the police firing at Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu he said he said such incidents should not happen anywhere. "This should not repeat and there should not be any violence. Police should not use gun against the public," he added.
The following elected representatives are accused in criminal cases in Telangana state

Hyderabad: Politicians in the two Telugu states who are accused in criminal cases will be tried in special courts, one each in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana state, following directions of the top court of the country.

The Supreme Court has given the green signal for the Centres scheme to set up 12 fast track courts to exclusively prosecute and dispose of criminal cases pending against Members of Parliament and State Legislative Assemblies within a year.

The Centre has estimated that about 1,000 courts would have to be set up to deal with pending cases against politicians across the country.

The Centre has informed the Supreme Court that as per the declarations by the political leaders before the Election Commission in the 2014 general election, there were 1,581 criminal cases pending against lawmakers.

The Supreme Court also referred to a report which was submitted to it by the Association of Democratic Rights, an NGO associated with electoral reforms, which disclosed names of 1,581 MPs/MLAs facing 13,500 criminal cases in Parliament and State Assemblies.

The Hyderabad High Court has commenced the process to segregate the cases pending against politicians which will be referred to the special court.

Of Telangana states 119 MLAs, 64 face criminal cases. Forty of them belong to the Telangana Rashtra Samiti, nine to the Telugu Desam, six to the Congress, three to the MIM, two to the BJP and three to other parties.

In Andhra Pradesh, of the 175 elected MLAs, 82 are facing criminal cases. While the TD tops the list with 52 MLAs, the YSR Congress is second with 29.

As far as the elected MPs are concerned, in Telangana state, eight out of 17 elected MPs are facing criminal cases and in AP 11 out of 25 MPs.

The Supreme Court wanted the special courts to function from March 1, 2018, but it will be delayed by a couple of months, sources in the law department revealed.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Navin Sinha while permitting the Centre to set up the special courts said the cases of several politicians can be clubbed together and one court can hear them. The bench expected a special court to finish at least 100 cases a year.
Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat may witness a violent confrontation between the state administration and villagers over the issue of lignite mining by the Gujarat Power Corporation Limited at Bhavnagar, warn farmer leaders. Protests are on in the area since April 1 when the GPCL claimed possession of around 1,414 hectares of land in 12 villages of Ghogha and Bhavnagar talukas.

New Delhi: After Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat may witness a violent confrontation between the state administration and villagers over the issue of lignite mining by the Gujarat Power Corporation Limited at Bhavnagar, warn farmer leaders. Protests are on in the area since April 1 when the GPCL claimed possession of around 1,414 hectares of land in 12 villages of Ghogha and Bhavnagar talukas.

Gujarat is sitting on a volcano. Not only the farmers but the entire rural Gujarat is crying. The Kheru samaj of farmers, which is strong, is spearheading the movement in Bhavnagar, All India Kisan Sabha leader Atul Anjan said.
New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Sunday summoned Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner to register a strong protest against the Pakistani government for issuing a so-called Gilgit Baltistan Order 2018. Pakistan was told the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir which also includes the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan areas is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947 and that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Pakistan was also asked to immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation.

According to news agency reports, through its order on Gilgit-Baltistan on May 21, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region. Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order. Pakistani media reports said protests are taking place in the region.

Observers feel New Delhi is paying back Islamabad in its own coin, with Pakistan leaving no stone unturned in recent times to issue provocative statements on developments in Jammu and Kashmir.
BENGALURU: On the request of residents of Kaggadasapura, Mayor Sampath Raj on Sunday visited the Kaggadasapura Lake that has been frothing for the last one year. The mayor told the residents that action will be taken and funds will be released for the lake's rejuvenation. The residents alleged that despite their repeated requests, neither MLA S. Raghu nor the corporator has made any effort to rejuvenate the lake.

"I will ask BBMP officials to take necessary action and if lack of funds is the issue, I will release them. We will build a wall to block entrances to reduce illegal garbage dumping," Mr Raj said.

He asked the residents to send him vehicle numbers of BBMP vehicles dumping garbage illegally so that criminal cases could be filed against them. The residents, who have come together and formed a group to protect the lake, have challenged the BBMP too on several occasions. The citizens complained that the BBMP has not used the funds allocated for protection and development of the lake. When asked, officials tell the residents that they don't have adequate funds, they complained.

The mayor asked the residents to form a team of ten people and said he will hold a meeting with the officials in their presence. "Submit two letters with issues and solutions. Immediate action will be taken," the mayor said. The residents said that they are satisfied with the mayor's response and hoped that he would take action to save the lake.
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Oommen Chandy has replaced former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijaya Singh as the AICC general secretary in charge of Andhra Pradesh. Party president Rahul Gandhi appointed the 73-year-old two-time Kerala chief minister to revive the partys fortunes in its former stronghold with immediate effect. Mr Chandy told reporters in Kottayam that he was accepting the challenging job with all his heart.

Though it came as a surprise to many in the party, sources close to him said when he was summoned to New Delhi early in May, Mr Gandhi had sought his views on taking up a national role. Mr Gandhi had also given the same option to Ramesh Chennithala, but he chose to remain in Kerala. Mr Gandhi wanted him to take up the responsibility of either Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu. Since he had twice worked in Andhra, the choice was easy, he told this newspaper. Mr Chandy said he would continue his work in Kerala as well, though he doesnt hold any responsible post here. It doesnt mean that Im moving away completely from Kerala, he said.

I am thankful to Rahul Gandhi for entrusting me with such a huge responsibility. I would fulfil my duty and do justice to it. Mr Chandy said there was no need to misinterpret his appointment and it has got no connection with the Chengannur by-poll. Replying to a question on Mr Gandhis decision to infuse young blood in the party, he said the youth always adds more energy. But at the same time, expertise and skills of senior leaders are also required. Everyone is equal in an organisation like the Congress, he quipped with a smile, stating that the reporter did not get a satisfying reply.
Hyderabad: Following a social media campaign by wives of Army personnel, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman indicated on Sunday that the government was ready to review its decision to allow civilian access to all roads in military cantonments across the country.

Welcome to meet me. Shall hear them with an open mind, Ms Sitharaman said on her Twitter handle, referring to the campaign by wives of Army officers.

Army officials and their families have expressed strong reservations against the decision to reopen all roads in cantonments to civilians, citing security concerns.

A country-wide signature campaign against the decision has been launched by wives of Army officers. They say they would meet the defence minister and urge her to reverse the decision.

The decision will weaken security of the cantonments. The government must review it, said a family member of an Army official here on condition of anonymity. Ms Sitharamans statement on the issue comes on the back of this.

Ms Sitharaman also engaged in the conversation taking place on Twitter.

When user Alok tweeted: Nirmala maam there is a very thin line between genuinely helping people and appeasement! People accept it that you crossed that line this time, acknowledge ur mistake,amend n move on with dignity. No compromise with @adgpi ARMY land n cantonments. Period. @mediarocks (sic), the defence minister replied saying, Thanks for your firm words and for drawing that very thin line for me.
Rumours that a gang of child kidnappers was in the Chandrayangutta police station got another group of people attempting to gatecrash the premises.

Hyderabad: Rumours of gangs kidnapping children claimed yet another life in the city late on Saturday night when a transgender named Chandraiah and three others were attacked by an angry mob.

As it is Ramzan, and establishments are open round the clock, the group came in the night. They boarded a train from Umdanagar railway station and got down at Falaknuma railway station and went around seeking alms, said a police officer.

Around 11.30 pm they were attacked by a mob comprising about 100 persons. Inspector N. Shanker of the Kanchanbagh police and his team were also pushed and heckled by the mob that damaged two police vehicles. The police managed to get the injured to Osmania General Hospital where Chandraiah died while undergoing treatment at about 3 am. The condition of Swami is critical. Two others were treated as outpatients.

Rumours that a gang of child kidnappers was in the Chandrayangutta police station got another group of people attempting to gatecrash the premises. The police stopped them from entering the station building, but they pelted stones at two shops and injured two policemen.

A similar scenario was witnessed in the communally sensitive area of Madannapet around 1.30 am, when locals chased and caught four persons suspecting them to be child lifters. The police rescued them and shifted them to the police station.

A 1,000 strong mob assembled at the place and tried to barge in, forcing the police to use mild force to disperse them. Senior police officials rushed to the spot and monitored the situation. At Omer Hotel in Hafeezbabanagar, another group of persons assaulted two beggars who were moving on the main road. As the crowd was reluctant to disperse, the police resorted to a lathi charge.

As the situation seemed to be spilling out of control, DCP (south) V. Satyanarayana called in additional forces and deployed them in sensitive areas. We are analysing videos recorded using mobile phones and CCTVs, the DCP said.

The police registered cases under Section 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 147 (rioting) of IPC.
New Delhi: In a politically significant message, former vice-president Hamid Ansari has said on Sunday that some inventors were trying to rewrite history, but they are not going to succeed as history cannot be changed. Dr Ansari was speaking at the launch of a book on Indias first PM Jawaharlal Nehru here.

History is history. It has to be read. You can draw lessons from it, you can draw encouragement from it or you can just read it as a college student preparing for term examinations. History cannot be changed. His comments assume significance as the NDA-led central government is often accused of rewriting history by the opposition parties.

Speaking at the same event, former President Pranab Mukherjee said comments and observations on Nehru could never come to an end. The history of modern India is closely associated and rather integrated with a few personalities. Jawaharlal Nehru is one of them. It is not because he was the first Prime Minister or because, till today, he is the longest-serving Prime Minister of 17 years, from August 15, 1947 to May 27, 1964, Mr Mukherjee said.

The book, edited by senior Congress leader A. Gopanna, was launched by Mr Mukherjee and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Fifty-four years ago on this day, we lost him. It is because he is truly the architect of the modern, democratic setup in India, Mr Mukherjee said.

Paying tribute to Pandit Nehru on his 54th death anniversary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his monthly Mann ki Baat radio address: Today is May 27, the death anniversary of the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehruji. I render my pranam to Panditji. Memories of this month are also linked with Veer Savarkar.
There are nearly 17 lakh voters in Kairana constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters. (Photo: PTI)

Kairana (Uttar Pradesh): Kairana constituency in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh has virtually assumed the dimension of a strategic player in the run up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Kairana bypoll, slated for Monday, will also see a joint opposition taking on the ruling BJP.

Located around 630 kilometres from capital city of Lucknow, the Lok Sabha constituency has five assembly segments namely Shamli, Thana Bhawan and Kairana in Shamli district, and Gangoh and Nakur in Saharanpur district.

There are nearly 17 lakh voters in the constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

RLD party worker Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which the ruling party was being challenged by a joint opposition. "This is the beauty of our democracy," he said.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the party's candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dal's (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

The opposition hopes that by consolidating anti-BJP votes, they will repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat. The withdrawal of candidature of Lok Dal candidate Kanwar Hasan from the fray and his joining of the RLD has only added to the opposition's confidence.

The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the opposition parties -- that the drubbing in the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.

"The results of the May 28 bypolls may set the tone and tenor for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," Rajesh Kumar Saini, manager of a hotel on the busy Shamli-Panipat road, said.

Khan exuded confidence that "Kairana's daughter-in-law Tabassum Hasan will defeat Kairana's daughter (Mriganka Singh)."

The Yogi Adityanath-led state government has left no stone unturned in campaigning for the bypoll. He along with his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya campaigned in Saharanpur and Shamli.

Apart from them, the BJP has thrown in at least five state ministers into the 'fight for Kairana'. They include Dharam Singh Saini (minister of state for Ayush), Suresh Rana (sugarcane development minister), Anupama Jaiswal (basic education minister) Surya Pratap Shahi (agriculture minister) and Laxmi Narayan (religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, waqf and Haj minister).

Of these, Saini and Rana are MLAs from Nakur and Thana Bhawan assembly segments, respectively of the constituency. Jaiswal is the minister in charge of Shamli district, while Surya Pratap Shahi is the minister in charge of Saharanpur.

"Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary has been roped in since he hails from a farming background," a senior UP BJP leader said.

BJP MPs Sanjiv Baliyan, Raghav Lakhan Pal, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and Kanta Kardam have also actively campaigned for Mriganka Singh.

The SP and Congress, however, termed the line-up of UP ministers as a sign of "party jitters".

According to the locals, the major issues in this bypoll are law and order and the woes of sugarcane growers.

RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan had accused the BJP-led state government of resorting to divisive politics.

"Sugarcane growers in the region are feeling the maximum amount of pain, as no payments have been made to them by the state government," she told news agency PTI, rejecting the official claim that the dues from sugar mills were being cleared.

The issue was also raised during an election meeting of state minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary, who said that the dues accumulated from the time of the past governments had been paid out, and the rest would be settled soon.

"In Uttar Pradesh, 10,828.59 lakh quintals of sugarcane were purchased by sugar mills from farmers during the BJP government in 2017-18, as compared to 6443.41 lakh quintals under the SP government in 2015-16. Similarly, Rs 21,186.56 crore payments were made during the BJP government in the state in 2017-18, in comparison to Rs 11,841.34 crore made during the SP government in 2015-16," BJP spokesperson Chandramohan said.

Divergent views also emerged on the reported 2016 exodus of Hindu families from Kairana.

"The area is adjacent to Panipat district in Haryana. The labourers (both Hindus and Muslims) from the area go to the neighbouring state to work in the industries there. They go in the morning and return in the evening," Hasan said while rejecting the claims of any such exodus.

The RLD leader said the locked houses, even of Muslims who had gone to Panipat for work, were photographed and used as a "propaganda".

"In Kairana, both Hindus and Muslims live in peace," she added.

BJP candidate Mriganka Singh, on the other hand, said, "The exodus of Hindu families from Kairana has stopped now. But hundreds of Hindu families had fled from Kairana out of fear and harassment before the 2017 UP Assembly elections".

Apart from Kairana, bypoll to Noorpur assembly constituency in the state will also be held on Monday.
Those distributing the cash were caught by Shiv Sena workers, and a flying squad of the Election Commission had conducted a spot inspection. (Representational Image/PTI)

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Saturday wrote to the Election Commission (EC) accusing the BJP of trying to "bribe" voters ahead of the May 28 by-election for Palghar Lok Sabha constituency.

In the letter to the EC, Shiv Sena MLA Amit Ghoda alleged that "distribution of cash to the voters to bribe them to vote for BJP candidate" was going on.

Those distributing the cash were caught by Shiv Sena workers, and a flying squad of the EC had conducted a panch-nama (spot inspection), he said.

It was "gross violation of election code of conduct" and therefore the BJP candidate (Rajendra Gavit) should be disqualified, the letter said.

The BJP spokesperson was not immediately available for comments.

Both parties have run an acrimonious campaign for the by-poll, levelling accusations at each other.
New Delhi: Heading into the election year, the BJP is supremely confident of victory in 2019, and sees its tally going up in many states like Telangana, AP, West Bengal and even Kerala. The party plans no pre-poll alliances in the Telugu states.

The BJP feels the coming together of Opposition parties will be of little consequence as it is mostly a grouping of regional parties that do not have any influence outside their states.

Against this mood, the BJP made light of a recent survey by Lokniti-CSDS which said it was losing ground and popularity.

At an off-the-record interaction with non-Delhi based newspapers at one of the gatherings to celebrate four years in power, a top leader in the BJP shrugged off the survey and said that it was impossible to predict the mood of the nation one year in advance of the elections. He said the BJP had set its mind on doing a lot more before the polls came around.

When it was pointed out that the three states going to polls later this year  Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh  did not really have a year, he said he was confident that the BJP would retain the states.

He agreed that the party faced the anti-incumbency factor in MP. But it was predicted in the last elections as well that Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan would lose but he returned victorious, he said. On the unity of the NDA, after the exit of the Telugu Desam, the BJP believes there is nothing to worry.
New Delhi: Heading into the election year, the BJP is supremely confident of victory in 2019, and sees its tally going up in many states like Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and even Kerala.

The BJP and the Shiv Sena are pitted against each other in the upcoming Palghar Lok Sabha by-election which is crucial to the BJP given that it is two seats short of majority in the Lok Sabha. Even in 2014 we only had a post-poll alliance, he said.

The Opposition bandying together at the swearing-in of JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy certainly did not seem to have fazed the BJP. Few of those parties have been part of the NDA except for the TD.

How does it help to have Mamata or Mayawati campaign in Karnataka? What gains can be made if Kumaraswamy campaigns for Mamata, is the argument to drive home the point that the regional leaders are overreaching themselves and have no constituency outside their respective states.

As an aside, the BJP was not comfortable that Karnataka BJP leader B.S. Yeddyurappa had said he was not against the Congress but against the Gowda father-and-son pair.

The leader laughed and responded, Yes without the father and son duo the Congress would not be in power!

With Karnataka out of its hands for now, the BJP will be focusing on Andhra Pradesh and Telangana state. The BJP is clear that there will be no pre-poll alliance in the two states.

BJP president Amit Shah is headed to the Telugu states and is confident of improving the BJP tally vastly in the Lok Sabha elections.

The party is dismissive of the charges laid against it by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. The BJP does not believe that denying Andhra Pradesh Special Category Status will diminish its popularity. The party is clear that AP could get funds from the Centre only against spending. When drafts for Amaravati are still being drawn in Singapore and there is not a brick laid, the Centre could not release funds. The government will release the funds as and when work begins, he said.

Mr Naidus charge that Rs 44,000 crore was going towards making Dholera in Gujarat a Smart City against Rs 2,500 crore for Amaravati was dismissed outright. The government is not building any new city nor releasing funds for it in Gujarat, he said.

On the concerns of the southern states that the 15th Finance Commission was being unfair by alloting them lesser funds than the BIMARU states though their contribution in terms of taxes was higher, it was indicated that these would likely be addressed as the issues were before the Finance Commission.

The BJP seemed confident about the strides it was making in Kerala and West Bengal. The party is clear that it would win 22 seats in West Bengal and would spring a huge surprise in Kerala.

The troubling part is that the BJP does not believe that the campaign of threats and rapes against its critics is dangerous. It is dismissed lightly as something people in villages face routinely. In other words it will have no negative impact on the elections.
Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday rushed to Delhi by a special flight to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi soon after the state Cabinet meeting held in Pragathi Bhavan.

The Cabinet meet chaired by Mr Rao unanimously approved the new zonal system in the state to ensure government jobs for locals.

The Cabinet also approved creation of seven zones and two multi-zones. Mr Rao will meet Mr Modi to seek the Centres approval for this new zonal system and the amendment to the Presidential Order of 1973 which it will require.

Mr Rao will brief the PM about the need to create new zones because the districts in Telangana state were increased from 10 to 31 in October 2016.

TRS MP B. Vinod Kumar said, The CM will meet Union home minister Rajnath Singh on Monday and submit proposals on new zones and seek approval.
The vote in Ireland repealing the abortion ban is a landmark measure ending centuries of oppression by the Catholic Church. In a nation where a gay person was elected Prime Minister, in PIO Leo Varadkar, and same-sex marriage legalised, the medieval ban on abortions under any circumstances was an affront to modernity and an individuals freedom of choice. Its tragic that the death of young Indian dentist Savita Halappanavar from sepsis after being denied abortion during a miscarriage was the trigger for outrage against a Church-ordained law that seemed totally out of touch with reality. The law said an abortion couldnt be done on a woman until the foetus heart stops. Young Irish women needing an abortion had to travel overseas, mostly to neighbouring UK, or buy pills illegally online to enjoy their freedom of choice.

The new law may be in force only by the yearend, but theres already a movement in Ireland seeking quicker implementation of the referendum verdict. This is the strongest possible rebuke to years of conservative patriarchy in a Catholic nation. The larger question is whether in todays world the right of a woman to keep her child or end her pregnancy can be restricted by religious dogma. It was sporting of Savitas father in Karnataka to hail the referendum verdict as justice for his daughter in faraway Ireland, who he lost due to a ban on abortions even in cases of extreme medical emergency where the mothers life was in grave danger. Irelands PM acknowledged that his people trust and respect women to make their own decisions and choices.
If the political events subsequent to the recent Karnataka elections made it clear that preparations for the next Lok Sabha polls was on in right earnest, Prime Minister Narendra Modis Cuttack speech on Saturday makes it pretty clear that Mr Modi intends to break the Oppositions unity efforts by sending the state apparatus after them. The Lok Sabha polls are due in around 12 months, but could be held later this year. That would shrink the time window for the Opposition to devise a strategy to beat back the governments tactics. From the Oppositions perspective, the task would be to coordinate with one another, overcoming normal political rivalries to present a common face to the BJP. From the governments side, of course, the PM has now given enough hints that the effort would be to open more cases against leading Opposition figures on grounds of criminality and corruption. At Cuttack, Mr Modi declared the Opposition parties had come together because various agencies of his government had launched thousands of raids and sent former CMs to jail, suggesting that a corrupt mafia are now standing in solidarity with one another to challenge him. The message is that the raids raj will continue.

While announcing demonetisation, the PM had said he would clean the system by getting the black money out and soaking the rich so that the poor might be helped. The poor meekly absorbed this explanation and backed his party massively in Uttar Pradesh. The picture looks very different now. Mr Modi has now modified his narrative and claims its the Opposition leaders who are responsible for corruption and black money. The subliminal message is that his own government and party are clean and are being obstructed by the unity of some corrupt parties. It remains to be seen to what extent this is accepted by the electorate. But it is amusing that a government should accuse the Opposition of corruption in loud decibels in a bid to escape scrutiny of its own term in office, when examples of doubtful conduct are scattered all around. The most recent is the effort to bribe non-BJP MLAs in Karnataka to change sides. The PMs implied threat of more raids on Opposition leaders and parties as the year progresses is worrying for its implications for democracy. People need to be even more vigilant.
Gadgets these days come loaded with microphones and cameras. They are all vulnerable to hacking or programming errors, and there's nothing consumers can do to eliminate the risks short of unplugging entirely. (Representational image/ Photo: AP)

Revelations that an Amazon Echo smart speaker inadvertently sent a family's private conversation to an acquaintance highlights some unexpected risks of new voice-enabled technologies.

According to Amazon, the Echo's Alexa voice assistant misheard a word as "Alexa" - a trigger to activate the device - and interpreted subsequent conversation as a "send a message" request. That conversation in a home in Portland, Oregon, was then recorded and sent to an acquaintance in Seattle on the family's contact list.

Amazon blamed the situation on an "unlikely" string of events, and the company already has many privacy safeguards built into the device. Yet the incident shows that even with the best intentions, the risk is never zero. Gadgets these days come loaded with microphones and cameras. They are all vulnerable to hacking or programming errors, and there's nothing consumers can do to eliminate the risks short of unplugging entirely.

But there are ways to minimize the odds that gadgets will serve up unpleasant privacy surprises:

KILL THE MIC

Most smart speakers have a physical button to disable the microphone, so a private conversation can't be recorded, to begin with. You can hit that when you're having sensitive conversations. The button on the Echo will turn red; other devices have similar cues. It doesn't make sense to keep the mic disabled throughout the day, though. If the Echo can't hear you, it won't be able to order you more toilet paper or play smooth jazz.

LIMIT THE MIC

Disabling the microphone isn't practical on a smartphone, but you can limit what apps have access to it. Go to the settings and turn off mic access to all but essential apps such as voice recorders or video conferencing. Netflix doesn't really need voice access; you can simply type the name of the show you're searching for.

ABOUT THAT CAMERA

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg famously puts a piece of tape over his laptop's camera to prevent spying if anyone were to hack his device. Buy yourself a roll. Or use bandages. If you have a home-security camera that's connected to the internet, turn the camera to the wall when you're home. Just remember to turn it back before you leave, or you defeat the point of having a security camera.

BLOCK THE SIGNALS

For smartphones and other gadgets you carry with you, a "Faraday bag" that blocks electromagnetic waves can help prevent unwanted spying. The good ones will block cellular and other signals, meaning privacy-compromising information such as your location won't leak out either. Just remember, your phone won't get any calls while it's in the bag - that's the whole point.

BE INFORMED

Apple, Samsung and other tech companies have worked over the years to ensure that their products work "out of the box," without users having to pore through lengthy manuals and operating instructions. The downside is that users are often unaware of all the things their gadgets can do, good or bad. Checking reputable online reviews, how-to guides and even instructional videos will help you get the most out of new technologies. They'll also tell you about any known glitches and risks.

Of course, the safest approach is not to buy a new gadget in the first place. That might not be practical for smartphones these days, but do you really need a smart speaker or a television set that's connected to the internet? (As it turns out, it's actually difficult to buy a TV without "smart" capabilities these days, but nothing says you have to connect it at home.)

From toothbrushes to slow cookers to toys, if companies can dream it up, it's out there. Companies often release smart gadgets without thinking through the risks and ensuring their security. This makes them easy targets for malicious hackers. This is especially true with manufacturers that aren't well known or that specialise in toys and other non-tech businesses.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Manjinder Singh, a friend of Jaspreet Singh (centre), said he was a devoted husband and father of four. (Photo: @unitedsikhs | Twitter)

New York: A 32-year-old Sikh truck driver, who was shot at two weeks ago in Ohio, has succumbed to his injuries, with prosecutors saying they will seek a murder charge against the accused in the case.

Jaspreet Singh of Monroe, Ohio died of injuries he sustained when he was shot at by 20-year-old Broderick Malik Jones Roberts on the night of May 12, a report in the Journal News said.

Roberts had been indicted for aggravated robbery, felonious assault and possessing weapons under disability for allegedly firing at Singh.

Singh suffered a gunshot wound to the upper torso on May 12, according to a Hamilton Police report. He died on May 21, said Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser.

According to court documents, Roberts allegedly shot Singh "while he sat in his vehicle".

Since Singh died of his injuries, prosecutors said they will now seek a murder indictment against the accused.

The police report added that Roberts' attorney David Washington entered a not guilty plea on his client's behalf but acknowledged a murder indictment is expected next week.

Singh had been living in the US since eight years.

Advocacy group The Sikh Coalition said no immediate evidence has been released to suggest that any bias was involved in the tragic accident.

The group's legal team has been in contact with relevant authorities in Cincinnati and continues to monitor the case. "Our prayers remain with his family during this very difficult time," it said in a Facebook post.

Judge Jennifer McElfresh has set a bond of $1 million, substantially increasing it from the initial amount of $1,25,000 in Hamilton Municipal Court. Roberts is scheduled to be back in court on May 31.

Manjinder Singh, a friend of Jaspreet Singh, said he was a devoted husband and father of four.

"He was very well known and well liked within the community," Manjinder Singh said, noting that his friend helped manage area stores but was recently employed as a truck driver.

He was active at the Guru Nanak Society in the area, he said.

It is just senseless," said Manjinder Singh, adding that "there is no way he would have engaged in any wrong activity. He would have just walked away".

Roberts has a criminal history and was sent to prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to trespass, unlawful restraint and assault, according to Butler County court records.
The notification said General Elections, 2018 in national and provincial Assembly seats will be held simultaneously.

Islamabad: Pakistan will hold general elections on July 25, a notification issued by President Mamnoon Hussain said. The notification said General Elections, 2018 in national and provincial Assembly seats will be held simultaneously. This would be only the second-ever democratic transfer of power in the country.

President Mamnoon signed a summary forwarded by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on holding of elections on July 25. The President has approved July 25 as the date for holding elections, a spokesman from Mamnoon Hussains office said.

The date was also confirmed by the government of Pakistans Twit-ter account and was reported by state media outlets. The announcement comes as the current government enters its final week in office. It is expected to hand over power to a caretaker administration in the coming days.

The Election Commis-sion of Pakistan may announce the poll schedule within a few days. Earlier this week, the ECP had sent a summary to President Hussain proposing holding of the 2018 general elections on any date between July 25 and 27.
With too many leaders aspiring for ministerial berths, the Congress high command is likely to lay out guidelines, based on which ministers will be selected, keeping in mind caste and regional equations.

A delegation comprising state party president and Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, former chief minister Siddaramaiah, former minister D K Shivakumar and others flew to Delhi on Saturday to hold discussions with the high command.

The high command will spell out parameters to filter out aspirants, something the state unit has struggled with.

Party president Rahul Gandhi is slated to leave for the US in afternoon.

The Congress state unit is not entirely satisfied with the candidates shortlisted and leaders want to ensure that caste and regional representation are considered.

Selection of ministers is crucial for the Congress to ensure that the Congress-JD(S) coalition government runs smoothly ahead of the 2019 elections.

Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy is arriving in New Delhi on Sunday for talks with Congress leaders. The JD(S) will draw up a list of who from their party should become ministers, Parameshwara said. Earlier in the day, Kumaraswamy said there were some issues surrounding the allocation of portfolios. But its not something thatll bring the government down. He said the Cabinet expansion will take place once the Congress leaders get their list approved from their high command.

The JD(S) is ready with its list of ministerial aspirants and Vokkaliga MLAs have got a lions share.

It is unclear on whether or not the JD(S) will accommodate N Mahesh (Kollegal) of the BSP, with whom the party had a pre-poll alliance.

According to sources, the JD(S) has asked for five key portfolios  finance, revenue, water resources, PWD and energy  leaving the Congress with home, rural development, transport and Bengaluru development.

Many senior Congress leaders who were ministers in the previous government are seeking berths, whereas the party is also under pressure to accommodate fresh faces, including four women legislators.

Party MLAs such as Abbayya Prasad, Amaregouda Bayyapur, Pratapgouda Patil and P T Parameshwar Naik queued up outside Parameshwaras residence on Saturday to lobby for ministerial berths. Parameshwara said he had not sought any portfolio in particular. Its a media creation that I have asked for the Home department. I will accept whatever portfolio the party decides, he said.

The party is also under pressure to create another deputy chief ministers post. Veteran leader Shamanur Shivashankarappa, backed by the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, former urban development minister R Roshan Baig and former small-scale industries minister Satish Jarkiholi has demanded the post.

The high command will also decide who should replace Parameshwara as the KPCC president and names of candidates who should contest the upcoming Legislative Council polls. Of the 11 seats for which elections will be held on June 11, the Congress can elect four, the BJP five and JD(S) two.
A court here today convicted gangster Abu Salem for demanding Rs five crore as protection money from a Delhi-based businessman in 2002.

Additional Sessions Judge Tarun Sehrawat held Salem guilty of extortion and criminal intimidation and posted the matter to July 30 for hearing arguments on the quantum of sentence.

The court, however, acquitted the other accused -- Chanchal Mehta, Majid Khan, Pawan Kumar Mittal and Mohammad Ashraf -- citing lack of evidence against them.

One of the accused, Sajjan Kumar Soni, had died during the trial.

In the extortion case lodged in Delhi, it was alleged that Salem had demanded Rs five crore as protection money from businessman Ashok Gupta, a resident of Greater Kailash in south Delhi, in 2002.

Salem was convicted under sections 387 (putting person in fear of death or of grievous hurt, in order to commit extortion), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 507 (criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication) of the Indian Penal Code.

He faces a maximum punishment of seven years in jail.

Advocate M S Khan, appearing for Salem, had denied the allegations levelled against his client and contended that the trial in the case violated the order by which the gangster was extradited from Portugal to India.

Salem, who was extradited from Portugal in November 2005, is facing various other cases, including those related to the 1993 Mumbai blasts. He is currently in judicial custody.
India is likely to ink a new defence agreement with Indonesia during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's five-day visit to Jakarta beginning from Tuesday.

Modi's meeting with Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, will focus on stepping up India-Indonesia bilateral cooperation in areas of defence, space, pharmaceutical and infrastructure.

Preeti Saran, Secretary (East) at the Ministry of External Affairs, said both the countries were discussing some agreements for cooperation in the areas of defence, space and science and technology which might be inked during prime minister's visit which begins on May 29. Prime minister Modi will leave for Singapore from there on May 31 for a three-day visit.

One of the pacts, India and Indonesia are likely to ink on May 30 is a new Comprehensive Defence Cooperation Agreement, upgrading the existing Agreement on Cooperative Activities in the Fields of Defence. New Delhi and Jakarta are also discussing the possibility of increasing the frequency of defence exchanges, training and joint exercises among the special forces of the armed forces of the two nations.

Modi and Widodo will also explore collaboration between defence industries for joint production of equipment with technology transfer, technical assistance, and capacity building cooperation, sources said in New Delhi.

The two leaders are also likely to discuss the issue of global terrorism and other transnational crimes to significantly enhance bilateral cooperation in combating terrorism, terrorist financing, money laundering, arms smuggling, human trafficking and cyber crime.
The result of the Kairana Lok Sabha constituency will not only be an indicator of the possible outcome of the 2019 General elections in Uttar Pradesh but it will also be a test of the Oppositions unity and its efforts to form a mahagathbandhan (grand alliance) to counter the BJP.

Interestingly, Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav has not campaigned in Kairana despite the fact that the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) contestant Tabassum Hasan is an SP leader and is being supported by the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Congress.

In the recent Lok Sabha bypolls at Gorakhpur and Phulpur, Akhilesh had addressed election rallies to garner support for his party nominees.

BSP supremo Mayawati has also not made any public appeal to her supporters to vote for the Opposition nominee as she had done at Gorakhpur and Phulpur as a result of which the local BSP leaders did not actively participate in the campaigning.

SP and BSP leaders, however, rubbished the charge that they had left the RLD to fend for itself. The workers of the Congress, SP and BSP have been actively involved in campaigning, says Mohammed Ahmed, a local Congress leader in Shamli, an Assembly segment of Kairana LS constituency.

Local scribe Sachin Tyagi says that a success for the RLD in Kairana will certainly expedite the grand alliance in UP. An opposition victory will reflect coming together of the Dalits and Muslims, who are deciding factors in many constituencies in the western UP, Sachin told DH.

A reversal, however, could derail the efforts to bring all the opposition parties on one platform, he added. Shifting of votes will be a big problem for the Opposition, Sachin said.

The victory in the Monday bypoll is crucial for the RLD, which had drawn a blank in the 2014 LS polls and even its president Ajit Singh had lost in its stronghold of Jat-dominated Baghpat.

Both Singh and his son Jayant Chaudhary have been toiling hard to woo the members of Jat community and the farmers.

Non-payment of sugarcane arrears has also been made a big issue in the poll here by the Opposition though Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath tried to blunt the same by recommending a CBI probe into the reported irregularities in the sale of state-owned sugar mills by the then Mayawati regime.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday said she would meet the wives of Army officers who protest against the governments recent decision of throwing the cantonment roads open to the civilian traffic.

The decision received flak from retired officers and military families, who claimed the move would compromise the safety and security of the families of the soldiers who are on duty in Jammu and Kashmir or in the North East.

On May 20, the ministry ordered that opening up all closed roads in 62 cantonments with some exceptions. The ministry also stated that the issue of closure of individual roads was to be reviewed fresh in conformity with the provisions as laid down, and any closure of roads to be undertaken will be done only after following the due procedure.

Within days, Army headquarters issued an official letter to all its establishments informing them to remove all barriers and check posts within the cantonments to allow unfettered civilian traffic.

The only exceptions are Badami Bag cantonment in Srinagar, Delhi and Cannanore cantonments and Satwari Road in Jammu.

The defence ministry's decision came in the wake of a meeting earlier this month that Sitharaman held with several Parliament members including Murli Manohar Joshi, Farooq Abdullah and Santosh Gangwar and vice presidents of the cantonment boards.

In March, the defence ministry informed the Parliament that it received many complaints about road blockage in the cantonment areas.

The MoD decision now not only upset the men in uniform but also prompted a signature campaign by the wives of the Army officers. On Sunday, Sitharaman tweeted a response, Welcome to meet me. Shall hear them with an open mind.

Before the May 20 decision, 52 roads in 22 cantonments were fully closed and 47 roads in 15 cantonments were partially closed by the Army. While all of these are now open to the civilian traffic, angry social media postings are being been seen from within the military community.

One of the upset groups is those who occupy separated family households in the cantonments. These are the families whose men are on duty at the order or in the counter-insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir and the North East.

A simplified detailed SOP would shortly be issued to jointly address the needs of the local public and the military establishment, said a defence ministry statement.

After meeting the lawmakers, the Defence Minister had another detailed review of the road closure issued with Defence Secretary San jay Mitra and Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat before it was decided to open up the cantonment roads.
Allocation of portfolios in newly sworn-in JD(S)-Congress government in Karnataka is likely to be delayed further as UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi is travelling abroad with her son and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, sources said.

According to the sources, the meeting to decide on the portfolio allocation has been postponed for a week as Sonia Gandhi is travelling abroad with her son tonight for health check-up.

"The meeting is most likely to be held on June 4-5," one the sources said.

The Congress and the JD(S) are at loggerheads over the allocation of key portfolios such as Finance, Home, Public Works Department (PWD) and Power, Irrigation and Urban Development.

The Congress is waiting for the JD(S) to come out with its list of portfolios.

Yesterday, JD(S) leader and Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy admitted that there were some "issues" over the allocation of portfolios with the coalition partner.

On May 23, Kumaraswamy and G Parameshwara of the Congress took oath and chief minister and deputy chief minister respectively.

In addition, tt has already been decided that Congress would have 21 ministers and JD(S) 11 in the new council of ministers.

The sources said that the Congress demanded finance as in the previous coalition government in the state in 2004-06 (JDS-Congress) as well as in 2006-08 (JDS-BJP), the portfolio had gone to those who held the deputy chief minister's post.

There is also discussion and demand that the party should induct new faces in the cabinet.

Former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah who was in the national capital held talks with ministerial aspirants here.

Kumaraswamy is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi tomorrow.

Yesterday, the Congress president held the first round of discussion on portfolio allocation with senior party leaders of the state, but the meeting remained inconclusive.

Siddaramaiah, Parameshwar, senior leaders Mallikarjuna Kharge and D K Shivakumar and state party in-charge K C Venugopal were present in the meeting.

Responding to questions on "cracks" in the Congress-JD(S) coalition, AICC spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil said that when there is internal democracy, partners have a right to raise issues and these cannot be termed as "cracks".
Mathe Mahadevi, head of the Basava Dharma Peetha, Koodalasangama, said that she was willing to approach the Supreme Court if a separate religion status was not accorded to Lingayat-Veershaiva (Basava Tatva); by the Centre.

Addressing a media meet on Sunday, she said that the struggle for a separate religion tag, was still on, and she would meet the Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue and present a memorandum. "Then we will hold a massive march in Delhi," she added.

It may be recalled that the movement for a separate religion tag for Lingayats is several months old. Former chief minister Siddaramaiah had written to the Centre recommending that a separate religion status be accorded to Lingayat-Veerashaiva (Basava Tatva) followers.

Mathe Mahadevi also demanded that a Lingayat be made deputy chief minister, especially M B Patil. "He has the capability to be deputy CM," she opined.
1945  3 stars  Peter Rudolf, Bence Tasnadi, Tamas Szabo Kimmel, Dora Sztarenki, Eszter Nagy-Kalozy; not rated; Broadway

Ferenc Toroks 1945 is about the fragility of a happiness built on deceit.

Set in the immediate aftermath of World War II, the story follows the events in a small Hungarian village on a single day in August 1945. On paper, the day should be happy. The town clerk, Istvan (Peter Rudolf), is preparing to marry his shopkeeper son Arpad (Bence Tasnadi) to a local girl named Kisrozsi (Dora Sztarenki), and on the radio, voices proclaim the end to years of destruction and violence. Yet the whole village seems to be beset with a gloomy bleakness, and over its 90-minute running time, 1945 explains why.

The plot starts in motion when two somber Jews arrive at the local train station with what they describe as precious cargo. As soon as they get off the train, whispers make their way to the village and person after person betrays a deep and agitated prejudice. As a couple of hired hands load two large boxes onto a wagon, the men begin a long walk into the heart of the village.

In the meantime, Istvan is scrambling to make sure everything is set for the wedding. His wife Anna (Eszter Nagy-Kalozy) seems less than excited for the big day  likely because the wedding is arranged  and her fears are confirmed when we discover that Kisrozsi is still sleeping with her ex-fiance Jancsi (Tamas Szabo Kimmel).

Jancsi speaks Russian, which allows him to communicate with the occupying Soviet soldiers who have been adding additional tension throughout the village. 1945 offers a compelling glimpse of a community at the tail end of a war and just at the dawn of its time behind the Iron Curtain.

But soldiers aside, the real tension is centered on the two men in black and their mysterious cargo. As we witness different conversations and watch Istvan interact with people around town, such as the local priest (Bela Gados), we start to piece together the terrible source of their stress.

Apparently the village used to be home to a prominent Jewish family named Pollock, which was forced to sign over their possessions to the locals once the Germans came to remove them to the concentration camps. Now, the villagers fear, the Pollocks have returned to reclaim what was theirs.

Of course, it all goes deeper than that and as the events of the day unfold, 1945 explores a particular angle of the Holocaust's aftermath that is very moving. The story is all the more effective thanks to its sparse and deliberate pacing, punctuated by a minimal soundtrack and black-and-white visuals.

1945s story is exclusively told from the Hungarian villagers point of view, which keeps the Jewish visitors purpose and intent mysterious and all the more moving when it is finally revealed.

1945 is not rated, but would likely land in PG-13 territory for some sexual content and language (including two subtitled instances of R-rated profanity). It is presented in Hungarian and Russian with English subtitles.

1945 is not rated; running time: 91 minutes.
Forces loyal to the renegade General Khalifa Haftar have tightened the noose around the eastern city of Derna, at a time the UN warns of a devastating impact on civilians.

Haftars forces have encircled the city to oust a coalition of local fighters and Islamists known as the Derna Mujahideen Shura Council (DMSC).

The humanitarian coordinator at the UN mission UNSMIL, Maria Ribeiro, said in a statement that the humanitarian community in Libya is perturbed by the continued lack of humanitarian access and subsequent assistance into Derna despite repeated requests.

She deplored that humanitarian assistance was blocked from being delivered to civilians in Derna. Shortages in medicine and medical supplies are reaching critical levels and the first food shortages are being reported, she added.

Seven years after the fall of the Gaddafi regime, Libya remains in turmoil, battered by infighting between heavily armed militias and a political crisis that has divided the country.

A 2015 UN-backed deal to set up the unity government in Tripoli was meant to end the turmoil but the gap between Libyas east and west is yet to be bridged.

Libya has remained riven by divisions between the Government of National Accord (GNA) and a rival administration backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar in the east.

The internationally recognized GNA, led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj, has failed to assert its authority across the oil-rich country, which is also grappling with deadly attacks, and a migration crisis.

Despite the ongoing political crisis, the OPEC member has registered a much-needed increase in crude sales, which analysts see as key to kick-starting Libyas moribund economy and returning security to the country.

Libyas oil revenues more than tripled in 2017 despite the violence and political instability  though they are still a fraction of crude sales under Gaddafi.
In Utah, the GOP charge to the right is led by a group previously identified in the Deseret News as "A small group of far-right Republicans (that) staged a coup of sorts over the weekend, changing Utah GOP bylaws in a way that could jeopardize the party's ability to place candidates on the election ballot" (Surprise GOP bylaw change targets candidates who gather signatures, Feb. 26).

During the Utah GOP Convention, this militant group spearheaded the Keep My Voice movement that sabotaged all party business except nominating candidates, which weary delegates finally, after four hours of bitter wrangling, overwhelmingly demanded.

One state delegate I know came home and immediately changed his registration to independent  he was so disgusted with the passive-aggressive, disruptive behavior of the far-right militants.

In the literature that this group passed out under cover of Keep My Voice, they bragged about denying Utah Sen. Bob Bennett the opportunity of running for re-election in favor of archconservative Mike Lee.

Other delegates attending the state convention said that experienced Keep My Voice operatives had been at their local caucuses and strong-armed their own agenda. And those same operatives were identified at the state convention advising delegates at the microphone what to say.

Thus a militant minority group has hijacked the venerable Utah GOP grass-roots caucus and convention system. And it is currently fighting the right won under Count My Vote for candidates to earn a place on the Republican primary ballot by getting voter signatures.

This well-organized and well-financed Keep My Voice group brazenly claims to champion the caucus and convention system which they, themselves, have corrupted. After all their efforts to seize control of the official route to nomination, the far right is incensed that moderate Republicans in Utah can still get on the ballot by appealing directly to voters for signatures.

Lloyd Abbott

Paso Robles, California
The Colorado River may not be the largest river in the U.S., but it is a crucial resource supplying water to approximately 40 million people and irrigating close to 4 million acres of farm and ranch land each year.

Because of its importance, in 1922, seven states within the Colorado River Basin and the federal government reached an agreement to govern the allocation of the water rights among the states connected to the Colorado River. Dubbed the Colorado River Compact, the agreement divides the river basin into two areas, the Upper Basin (Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming) where the water originates and the Lower Basin (Arizona, California and Nevada) where water demands were developing at the time. That year is significant as water rights adjudicated after 1922 have a lower priority under the compact.

Under the compact, the Upper Basin states are obligated to deliver 7.5 million acre feet of water downstream to the thirsty Lower Basin states. Unfortunately, this requirement was derived from faulty baseline data as the rainfall patterns that occurred in the years prior were abnormally high, and the flows were vastly overestimated. Now the legal right to use every drop is owned or claimed by someone and vastly exceeds its actual flow, making it dangerously over-appropriated and the most heavily litigated river in the country.

These devastating impacts are evident in the water storage levels within the rivers two largest reservoirs, Lake Powell and Lake Mead, which are measured in order to determine if the compact obligations are being met. Recently, the reservoir levels have dropped to their lowest levels since 1937. Until now, the system has worked, but if the Upper Basin states fail to deliver the mandatory volume of water to the reservoirs, then the Lower Basin states could make a compact call, forcing the Upper Basin to curtail use of post-1922 water rights from the Colorado. That means Utahs booming population, amid a warming and drier climate, will be forced to use less water so Lower Basin states can receive their legally obligated share.

To address these diminishing flows, in 2014, the Upper Colorado River Commission, the Bureau of Reclamation and four water providers piloted a program in the Upper Basin to test water conservation strategies that could be part of a drought contingency plan. The goal of the Colorado River System Conservation Pilot Program was to demonstrate the viability of proactive, cooperative and voluntary compensated means to reduce the risk of reaching critical reservoir levels needed to protect the compact entitlements. The program allows farmers and ranchers to voluntarily and temporarily let water run down the river and forego the use of their water to irrigate fields in exchange for compensation.

A shining example is the 9,177-acre Porcupine Ridge Ranch in nearby Routt County, Colorado, and the latest to take advantage of the commission's program by voluntarily reducing consumptive use of its water rights and fallowing 1,941 acres of its irrigated hay fields, or nearly 20 percent of the ranch. In exchange, the ranch will receive up to $421,650. This is one of the largest awards given to a single property and outlines a model of whats to come if ranchers and farmers take advantage of the opportunity while they can.

As the compact nears its 100th birthday, policymakers and landowners alike need to take an honest and accurate view at rainfall rates amid a warming and migrating population to rebalance water needs and decide who gets what (and why). The pilot program is a start in the right direction as it addresses water supply shortages and provides a possible hedge against potential future compact calls. It also benefits agricultural producers by creating a potential income source by funding voluntary conservation measures while also avoiding buy and dry measures that separate their water from the land.
SALT LAKE CITY  Utah lawmakers expressed concern this week about the possibility that voters could expand Medicaid after years of debate at the Legislature.

The initiative poised to make the November ballot would eventually cost the state about $47 million more than a smaller expansion passed by lawmakers that still needs federal approval, according to a legislative analysis.

The ballot-initiative plan would also bring back $535 million more in federal subsidies than the bill approved by lawmakers, the analysis found.

Still, the larger cost to the state was concerning for several lawmakers who met Thursday to discuss the issue the week before it's expected to be certified to get on the ballot.

"I'm concerned about it because I don't know how sustainable it is," said Republican Rep. Ed Redd of Logan. "What happens during an economic downturn?"

While he worries about what could happen if revenues are down and demand is up, supporters say their plan's funding mechanism is solid. Voters would be asked to approve a sales tax increase amounting to about 15 cents on every $100.

"This is about real Utahns, it's your friends, your family, your neighbors," said organizer RyLee Curtis, adding that their plan for a bigger expansion generally gets a favorable reception with voters.

Advocates decided to go to the voters after years of trying unsuccessfully to get the Republican-dominated state Legislature to approve a Medicaid expansion under former President Barack Obama's health care law. Similar efforts are underway in a handful of other states, including Idaho and Nebraska.

The Utah push was already underway when lawmakers passed a limited Medicaid expansion earlier this year. It would cover about 70,000 more low-income people, about half of what advocates wanted.

It would also have a work requirement and cap the state's spending.

By the year 2121, it would cost Utah about $30 million a year, compared to about $77 million for the ballot initiative proposal, the analysis found.

But the lawmakers' plan must still be approved by the federal government. President Donald Trump's administration has been warmer to the idea of work requirements, but lawmakers' unusual plan to cover fewer people could get a cooler reception.

Medicaid is a federal-state collaboration originally meant for poor families and severely disabled people. Over the years, it's grown to become the largest government health insurance program, now covering 1 in 5 people. Under Obama's health law, states got the option of expanding Medicaid to cover more low-income adults. Thirty-two states and Washington, D.C., expanded.

But 18 mostly conservative states held out. In Utah, lawmakers have also been concerned about whether the U.S. government can afford its share.
SALT LAKE CITY  Utah State University did not notify other universities about sexual harassment allegations against two former USU employees, despite President Noelle Cocketts saying that the Logan school had done so.

An investigation into sexual harassment, discrimination and abuse within USUs music department, which involved interviews with 60 witnesses and the evaluation of hundreds of pages of documents, resulted in an 18-page report that stated two current and two former USU music faculty members had been accused of sexual harassment.

Investigators recommended disciplinary action for the two current employees listed in the report. Cockett announced at an April 6 press conference that Gary Amano, former head of the piano program had retired, and that Dennis Hirst would no longer serve as interim piano program coordinator, although he would remain at the school. Cockett also announced sweeping changes to improve the handling of sexual misconduct at Utah State.

Asked about the two former USU employees mentioned but not identified in the report along with Hirst and Amano, Cockett said, "We have notified, where noted, the faculty where they're currently employed to alert them of this report."

Several weeks after the press conference, when asked to clarify Cocketts statement, USU spokesman Tim Vitale said, It was a mistake for Noelle to have said that.

It wasnt in her prepared remarks, said Vitale. It wasnt accurate.

But USU is not violating any rules or procedures by not notifying other schools, according to human resources experts. A university does not have an obligation to share allegations of misconduct concerning former faculty members with other employers, said Tim Trujillo, an independent human resources consultant, who has more than 45 years of experience in the field. Doing so could lead to a lawsuit against the school, he added.

Utah State in this case does not have the responsibility to worry about the rest of the world, Trujillo said.

The sexual misconduct cases at USU raise the question of when, if ever, is it appropriate for a university to share sexual harassment or abuse findings involving faculty? And is there any moral obligation for a school to do so to prevent potential future victims?

One of the schools that USU did not contact was the University of Oklahoma, where former USU piano instructor Luke Hancock is currently pursuing a doctorate degree. Vitale confirmed to the Deseret News that Hancock is one of the two former faculty members accused of "sexual harassment" in the report.

There is an active police investigation involving Hancock, according to Kirsti Kjome, records specialist at the Logan Police Department, who would not say what the investigation entails. Vitale said the university notified police about a Facebook post from a former student about an alleged nonconsensual sexual encounter with Hancock.

Multiple attempts by the Deseret News to reach Hancock for comment have been unsuccessful.

Oklahomas Title IX office, which is tasked with investigating discrimination, sexual assault and sexual harassment allegations at the school, is also following up accordingly, after an anonymous source alerted the school of the USU report, said Rowdy Gilbert, a spokesperson for the University of Oklahoma. The school did not respond to a follow-up questions to confirm if Hancock is still enrolled there.

Prior to this year's independent investigation into Utah States music department, the Department of Justice was looking into how the university responds to reports of sexual misconduct after three students, not associated with the music department, were charged or convicted of sexual assaults, alleged to have occurred between 2013 and 2015.

In addition to the inquiry at Utah State, federal officials are conducting investigations into the handling of sexual misconduct allegations at 337 colleges across the country, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. The University of Utah, Brigham Young University, and Utah Valley University are among those currently under investigation, according to the U.S. Department of Education.

As hundreds of universities attempt to navigate the legal complexity of sexual harassment and assault claims, they balance their moral and legal obligations to those involved. Not only are universities pressured to take decisive action to keep students safe, but they must also protect the privacy of those accused, said experts interviewed for this story.

Legal obligations

The Deseret News spoke with human resources professionals, Title IX lawyers and academics about the legal risks that prevent Utah State University, and other universities in similar positions, from contacting other schools when they have information about alleged harassers.

Christina Mancini, associate professor of criminal justice policy at the Wilder School at Virginia Commonwealth, said there is no law that requires employers, including universities, to pass along information about suspected sexual misconduct committed by employees.

And what the university can do based on its own findings is limited, according to Alan Sash, a lawyer with McLaughlin and Stern who specializes in cases that involve Title IX, the federal law that seeks to protect students from sex-based discrimination.

What they are disclosing is just based on their own investigation; theres been no adjudication in a court, no administrative agency finding that these people committed wrong, said Sash.

Trujillo said a case like Utah States is especially concerning because the faculty in question are working with young and potentially vulnerable college students. But from an employers standpoint, it doesnt matter how abhorrent the allegation is, or even if the allegation is true or not, he said.

It doesn't matter if you're 100 percent right, if a lawsuit arises out of that, which in this case it could, you are looking at a huge expense, Trujillo said.

Experts agreed that the legal obligation lies not with Utah State University to reach out to other institutions, but with universities who are hiring new faculty to do thorough background checks.

But unless an allegation of misconduct led to an actual criminal charge, or an incident received enough publicity to be reported in the news, a prospective employer may not find much, Sash said.

According to Jennifer Floyd, president of HR Experts on Demand, when a prospective employer contacts a past employer for a reference, the past employer will typically give a neutral response that simply includes that persons job responsibilities, how long they worked there and perhaps their salary. Employers who reveal more, including the reason a person was fired, could be sued, she said.

Prospective employers should ask applicants to self-report the reasons why they left previous jobs and any disciplinary issues, making it clear that lying is grounds for termination, Floyd added.

Moral obligations

Despite the clear legal risks associated with communicating harassment and assault allegations, some experts acknowledged those should be weighed against a moral obligation to protect other individuals.

Felice Duffy, an attorney with Duffy Law who specializes in Title IX cases, said she thinks there should be a law that allows universities to share information about known harassers who could pose a danger to students.

If it's sexual misconduct or sexual violence, there's a safety consideration, said Duffy. If that person would be a danger to the school, or if it would interfere with their ability to educate students or fulfill their responsibilities, there should be a law to have that information shared.

Whether or not a school should share information about a former employee is complicated and depends on the circumstance, she said.

I think this will continue to evolve, especially in the context of the #MeToo movement happening. People will start asking those questions, said Duffy.

Nancy Chi Cantalupo, assistant professor of law at Barry University, said the difficulty of communicating harassment findings between universities contributes to a phenomenon she studies called pass the harasser. This occurs when instead of disciplining and firing a faculty member, a school agrees to quietly part ways with an accused harasser.

Institutions are going to experience at least bad publicity if they are found to have passed the harasser and not done anything to really stop  not just at their own institution  the continued conduct of someone who they had good evidence was a harasser, or even an assailant, said Cantalupo.

According to Sash, the legal doctrine of qualified privilege may be a defense for universities looking to share information. Qualified privilege in some states, including Utah, protects two institutions that have a common legal, social or moral interest in sharing specific information, even if that information is potentially defamatory.

Overall, Sash says the moral obligation to share information that will protect potential victims must be balanced with the legal obligation to avoid wrongfully accusing someone who has not been proven guilty in a court of law.

Any law is going to apply to everybody, the guilty and the innocent, and if you cast too wide a net you get the innocent caught up in this, said Sash. On the other hand, if your net is too short youll have a lot of people working in higher education that shouldnt be. So where do you draw the line?

A case study

Utah State became aware of sexual misconduct allegations against Hancock as early as 2009, according to a Title IX document dated Nov. 3, 2009, which details former student Whitney McPhie Griffith's account of a nonconsensual sexual encounter with Hancock.

According to his Facebook page, Hancock continued to work at USU until 2016, when he left to pursue a doctorate degree at the University of Oklahoma.

In a February Facebook post, Griffith recounted what she said she had reported to USU's Title IX office and claimed that the school had not taken her seriously.

Griffiths post was followed by posts from more than a dozen other women who alleged they were mistreated or sexually harassed by USU piano department faculty members, prompting the school to launch its independent investigation.

Vitale said that, following a report to the Title IX office, the university took action in early August 2017 to ensure Hancock would never work at USU in any capacity again. We also immediately shared with police the public Facebook post about him that alleged crimes had been committed, he said.

But USU did not notify the University of Oklahoma, according to representatives of both schools.

Rowdy Gilbert, a spokesperson for the University of Oklahoma said the university was made aware of allegations by an anonymous source.

The universitys Title IX office is following up accordingly on the anonymous report received, Gilbert added.

The University of Oklahoma also reached out to USU for more information.

Vitale said, Oklahoma reached out to us with a voice message asking to talk about Luke Hancock, and our Title IX office staff left a number of voice messages in return. Were still trying to connect, and we most certainly will.

Vitale did not specify exactly what information university officials plan to share with the University of Oklahoma. We plan to have an open and candid conversation with Oklahoma and share with them the information they request from us after that discussion.

Trujillo said that in Utah States case, if another employer finds out about the report independently and contacts the university, like the University of Oklahoma did, then USU should answer truthfully and honestly communicate relevant findings.

Although it wont stop them from being sued  the best defense against defamation is the truth, he said.

Vitale said that if an employee was terminated, USU would share that fact and the reason for termination with a future employer. He added, If there were a finding that showed the potential for a continuing community safety issue for another institution, we would share that information.

In addition the University of Oklahoma, the Deseret News followed up with another university that employs a former USU music department faculty member who allegedly groped a male student on an overnight trip in 2006. That former student told his story to the Deseret News and also said he spoke to investigators who wrote the USU report. USU would not confirm whether that former faculty member is in the investigation report.

A spokesperson from the other university said, Human Resources has not received any recent communication or contact from Utah State to discuss sexual harassment allegations.

Correction: A previous version incorrectly listed Westminster College and Dixie State University among schools currently under federal investigation into the handling of sexual misconduct. The investigations into Westminster and Dixie State have both been resolved. It also incorrectly stated Utah State University took action against former faculty member Luke Hancock following a February Facebook post by an alleged victim of sexual misconduct. USU took action in early August 2017 following a report to the school's Title IX office.
NEW YORK CITY  The Pierre Hotel is a stately, ornate edifice overlooking Central Park from its Fifth Avenue address. Important occasions and formal gatherings are the norm here and last week it played host to a group of people adorned not just in tuxedos, but formal robes and vestments of every stripe, turbans and even feathers.

"We represent The Little Sisters of the Poor. We fought for a Sikh who sought to wear his turban while serving in the U.S. armed forces; we fight for the religious liberty of Mormons and Jews and Muslims and all people of faith in America," said Rabbi Dr. Meir Soloveichik, director of Yeshiva Universitys Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought and a recipient on this night of the prestigious Canterbury Medal to honor one who has fought courageously for religious liberty for all people.

Religious liberty is a term that has become politicized. And readers of this column may turn the page after encountering it, believing that it is a tired phrase utilized in a two-sided argument pitting believers and nonbelievers one against the other. Or in an argument pitting those who promote civil rights versus those who support religious rights, as if there is a difference. But what the hundreds gathered at the Canterbury Medal Gala hosted by Becket last week understand is that preserving religious liberty is about preserving liberty itself  in all its forms, for all people.

As Rabbi Soloveichik put it, the gathering puts away the lie that we are all divided.

The Jewish rabbi peppered his remarks with the word "we" as he looked out on an audience of men and women that included His Eminence Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan of the Catholic Church, Elder D. Todd Christofferson and his wife Kathy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Elder Lance P. Wickman and his wife Pat, also of the LDS Church and a member of the Becket board of directors; Robert P. George, a legal scholar who serves as the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University and also a board member, and many, many others concerned with maintaining liberty for all.

Three weeks earlier in an address to the All Party Parliamentary Group for International Freedom of Religion or Belief in London, Elder Christofferson noted that religious liberty is a value that is foundational to all other civil rights. And eroding one right erodes the others and weakens efforts to help those most in need.

"Today a substantial amount of the social welfare delivered to vulnerable communities comes from the freewill offerings of religious entities and religious people. They give food to the hungry, shelter to the homeless and jobs to the unemployed," he said in his speech.

It is not about believer vs. nonbeliever.

"Our basic freedoms tend to rise and fall together," Elder Christofferson said. "If the state can be convinced (or compelled) to leave space for religious dissent, it will almost surely leave space for other forms of dissent."

That brings us back to last Thursday's Canterbury honor, so named for the cathedral in Canterbury where Thomas Becket was martyred by King Henry II for defending religious freedom. On this night last week, a member of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas, wearing the traditional dress of his tribe, danced for the first time with eagle feathers that had been previously confiscated by federal agents who raided a powwow and taken the sacred eagle feathers.

It was much more than a dance. It was a reflection of members of different faiths from all walks of life coming together to work  and in some instances fight  in support of one's right to act and worship freely.

Becket, self-described as a "nonprofit, public interest law firm that protects the free expression of all religious traditions," worked for years to win the return of the feathers to the tribe so it could perform its rites and protect its rituals.

Rabbi Soloveichik, who in 2013 began leading Shearith Israel in New York, the oldest Jewish congregation in the U.S., looked to history as he evidenced the American spirit of not just tolerance for one another, but of embracing one another and all that the religious and nonreligious bring into the public square.

He quoted two letters, written to separate Jewish congregations by George Washington after the congregations had sent its own letters congratulating Washington on becoming the first president of the United States.

As recounted by Rabbi Soloveichik in his remarks:

"To the Jews of Newport he expressed the essence of the Constitution: 'It is now no more that toleration is spoken of, as if it was by the indulgence of one class of people, that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights.'

"And to the Jews of Savannah he concluded his letter by speaking not only of civics, but also of religion: 'May the same wonder-working Deity, who long since delivering the Hebrews from their Egyptian Oppressors planted them in the promised land whose providential agency has lately been conspicuous in establishing these United States as an independent nation  still continue to water them with the dews of Heaven and to make the inhabitants of every denomination participate in the temporal and spiritual blessings of that people whose God is (the God of the Bible).'"

Noteworthy was that the rabbi did not use the name of the deity quoted by Washington, availing himself of the right to honor and worship as is his custom. In this case, that which was not said says it all.
Joshua Holt, who traveled to Venezuela from Utah in 2016 to marry a woman but soon found himself jailed, was set free by the Maduro government on Saturday. Here's a timeline of the events since his jailing:

June 11, 2016: Twenty-four-year-old Josh Holt travels to Venezuela and marries his fiancee Thamy Caleno. The couple plan to wait for Caleno's visa before returning to the U.S.  a plan that made the Holt family very nervous.

June 30, 2016: Holt is followed by Venezuelan police to his home, where the police allegedly discovered assault rifles and other military items. Holt is arrested, under suspicion of conspiring against the Venezuelan government. His wife is jailed as an accomplice.

July 3, 2016: The Holt family launches a GoFundMe account under #JusticeforJosh to raise funds for legal fees.

July 6, 2016: The Holt family announces it had not heard from their son since the week prior. They had received a Facebook message from Holts wifes mother that stated Holt and Caleno were in prison.

July 12, 2016: Representatives of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas meet with Josh in prison. Details of the meeting are not made available. At the time, Venezuela was currently holding 11 other American citizens.

July 20, 2016: Venezuelan Interior Minister Gustavo Gonzalez describes Holt as a "trained gunman" with a pilot's license. He questions the legality of the couples marriage and suggests Holts case was linked to other attempts by the U.S. to undermine President Nicolas Maduro's rule.

July 30, 2016: The Holt family holds a rally for Josh Holt at the Utah state Capitol, calling for his release.

Aug. 31, 2016: Rep. Mia Love and Sen. Orrin Hatch, both R-Utah, come out in support of Holts release, saying they are doing everything they could to bring him home.

Sept. 7, 2016: The Holt family reports Holts health is failing, saying he had suffered from internal bleeding, scabies, kidney stones and a several bouts of either pneumonia or bronchitis.

Sept. 26, 2016: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to discuss Josh Holts case. Kerry called on Venezuela to respect due process and human rights, but details of the conversation were not released.

Oct. 11, 2016: Josh Holts lawyer reports he was being tortured by Venezuelan prison guards, forcing him to strip naked in a hallway and perform exercises in violation of international agreements on the treatment of prisoners.

Nov. 8, 2016: Holt attends court in Caracas, Venezuela, but his hearing is pushed back yet again, after being delayed multiple times, his attorney said.

Jan. 23, 2017: Holts mother, Laurie Holt, publishes a YouTube video criticizing the efforts of former President Barack Obama's Cabinet to get her son out of Venezuela. She calls on President Donald Trump to work more diligently to secure Josh Holts release.

April 29, 2017: Laurie Holt announces she is feeling more hopeful her son would be released after she met with some of Utah's congressional delegation and White House staff that week.

June 28, 2017: Sen. Orrin Hatch publishes a YouTube video in anticipation of the one-year anniversary of Josh Holts arrest. Hatch reminded Holt and his family that we are still anxiously engaged in the fight for his freedom.

Aug. 25, 2017: The Trump administration again calls for the release of Josh Holt when announcing a new round of financial sanctions on the South American country.

"The United States is very concerned about the situation of Joshua Holt .... We once again call for his immediate release on humanitarian grounds," according to an executive order President Donald Trump signed.

November 2017: Reports surface that Wilmer Ruperti, a wealthy shipping magnate closely linked to Venezuela's socialist government, is funding the defense of Josh Holt.

Dec. 12, 2017: A judge in Venezuela orders Josh Holt to stand trial on weapons charges, a move that "devastated" his mother and dashed hopes that he would be released and home for Christmas.

Feb. 1, 2018: The Trump administration's top diplomat in Venezuela, Todd Robinson, says Josh Holt's incarceration is the main obstacle to improving strained relations between the two countries.

April 4, 2018: Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, travels to Venezuela as American politicians continue to pressure President Nicolas Maduro to release Josh Holt.

May 16, 2018: As violence erupts around him in the prison where he is held, Josh Holt posts a message saying in part that "I am not a political pawn I am a human being a child of God and I just want to live happy with my wife and children. I have NEVER done anything wrong in my life. Please help me!!"

May 25, 2018: Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn., meets with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, where he pushes for Josh Holt's release

May 26, 2018: Josh Holt and his wife, Thamy, are released from prison and flown to Washington, D.C.
BOUNTIFUL  A federal grant is fueling a unique, localized air toxin study in Davis County, where three real-time chemical sensors are being installed in the Bountiful area to provide data on formaldehyde levels.

This two-year effort comes after a study released in 2016 by the Utah Department of Environmental Quality revealed sporadic and seasonal spikes of formaldehyde  a toxic carcinogen  at a Bountiful monitoring site.

While measured at levels that were the highest in the country, state environment and health department officials stressed the measurements were far below the acute exposure limit and not a lasting threat to public health.

State officials, however, still want to get to the bottom of the source of formaldehyde, which is associated with certain types of manufacturing but also occurs naturally in the atmosphere.

The Utah Department of Environmental Quality applied to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for funding and received $330,765 for this next phase of monitoring.

Private company Vaporsens specializes is nanofiber chemical sensors, which offer real-time, continuous measurements of air toxins at three Bountiful locations.

Angela Mitcham, the company's director of partnerships, said the sensors will provide regulators with an instant view of what is happening in a given area.

"Vaporsens' innovations in real-time detection technology allow communities and citizens to live healthier, safer lives," she said.

Current air monitoring requires samples to be collected and sent to a lab for analysis, which can result in delays of alerting the public.

Steve Packham, a toxicologist with the department's Division of Air Quality, said the nanomaterial sensors have the potential to replace current 24-hour average snapshot pictures of pollution. Instead, the division could someday use a video cam live streaming the pollution picture from the sensor.

"Our ability to protect human health and the environment depends on having a clear picture of how much pollution is in the air and where it comes from," he said

The object of the grant is to evaluate emerging technology for improved air quality monitoring.

Correction: An earlier version misspelled the company Vaporsens as Vasporsens.
Xiaomi has so far been expected to launch a new flagship smartphone alongside a bunch of other devices at its event in Shenzhen, China on May 31. Now, latest reports suggest that the Mi Note 5 - a premium smartphone in the company's lineup, may also be a part of the devices unveiled at the event. The rumoured Mi Note 5 will be the successor to the Mi Note 3, and skip the 'Note 4' title in favour of being called 'Mi Note 5'.

The news comes courtesy of leaked promotional material that has been linked to the device, spotted by GizmoChina. Reported specifications of the device include a 5.99-inch display with Full Screen 2.0 design (with 18:9 aspect ratio), the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 SoC, options for 4GB and 6GB of memory, 64GB native storage, four-axis optical image stabilisation for its primary camera module and 43 LTE band support. This hints at possible thin bezels around the display panel, and suggests that the phone will be a global model. However, there is no inclusion of details pertaining to its camera module, and the leaked material does not specify if the smartphone will come with a single-sensor primary camera module, or a dual-camera setup.

The leaked material also suggests that the Xiaomi Mi Note 5 will be launched at CNY 2,299, or approximate Rs. 24,400, for the 4GB RAM variant. While there are no explicit mentions of the 6GB RAM variant, the pricing is likely to be around Rs. 26,500. Xiaomi seems to be following a similar pattern as OnePlus by skipping the '4' nomenclature with this premium smartphone, similar to how OnePlus skipped the OnePlus 4 in favour of the OnePlus 5. Xiaomi has also confirmed its decision to skip a specific nomenclature in favour of the succeeding order, having confirmed the presence of the Mi 8 as the successor to its previous generation flagship device, the Mi 6.

Xiaomi is set to host a major event in Shenzhen, China on May 31, where it is expected to launch multiple devices. Alongside the Mi Note 5 reported here, the company is also expected to launch its new generation flagship smartphone, the Mi 8, along with MiUI 10, the Mi Band 3 fitness tracker, the Surge S2 proprietary SoC and even a wireless charging pad for its new devices. This also raises a possibility that the likes of Mi 8 and Mi Note 5 smartphones may actually feature wireless charging as a key feature.

Note: Image of Xiaomi Mi 3 above is for representational purposes only.
Google's upcoming version of its mobile operating system, Android P, is just around the corner. The developer preview programme is bringing new features to the unstable builds, and one of the multiple new factors about Android in its new avatar is the horizontal app switcher window. It is somewhat similar to how you get the app switcher in iOS, sans the overlap of app windows within the switcher. Now, the latest build shows an animation change within the Google Chrome browser on Android, which appears to include a similar tab switcher animation.

Typically, the tab switcher option within Google Chrome opened all open tabs vertically, with pages overlapping one another. With the new layout, all open tabs open horizontally, and swiping up or down closes each tab. Additionally, you can now actually see the open webpage on each tab in full, which may help usage. Incognito mode is also streamlined here - a button to the top hosts the 'incognito mode', and tapping on it will take you straight to all tabs that were already open when you last accessed it. Tapping on the same button again will bring you back to the normal screen. The update has been included in Chrome Canary, an unstable build of Chrome browser's Android app with a bunch of features that Google is testing for Android P release at the moment.
Apparently, they have displayed a mangled up Toyota Camry alongside all the other new Toyota models. It is not because they couldn't find space elsewhere to put it, but to showcase the safety of Toyota engineering.

The 2018 Toyota Camry you see here met with an accident en route to Pearl Sky Harbor Airport in Arizona. The car was driven by an employee of the same dealership.

The Camry was rear-ended by a semi-truck and pushed onto another truck. The car was sandwiched between the two but left the driver, unscathed. The driver, Ramon Suarez claims that the car was hit with significant force and it was the build quality of the Toyota Camry that saved him from injuries.

From the images, it is evident that the car's passenger cabin is intact even after the heavy blow at the front and rear. In fact, the rear of the car is deformed to an extent that it no longer seems to be a sedan.

The mangled car was retrieved from a tow yard in a nearby locality. The car is surely catching all the attention it needs and is leaving visitors astonished. While this Toyota Camry might cost nothing, it will surely aid in selling a lot other Camrys.

In India, we get the Toyota Camry in a hybrid format. It is powered by a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that makes 159bhp and 213Nm of torque. An electric motor bumps this output to 142bhp and 270Nm of torque. The engine is mated to an e-CVT automatic gearbox.

Thoughts On The Crashed Toyota Camry In The Arizona Dealership

Automotive brands go to several levels for promoting and commercialising their products. You might have seen many advertisements involving celebrities and fancy footages. These take a lot of time, effort and money to produce.

However, this Toyota Arizona dealership has thought differently. Their record of sales figures will surely see a bump in the coming months.
Moroccos police department, DGSN, firmly denied exhibiting Israeli weapons during festivities marking its 62nd anniversary.

Media reports have claimed that Israeli assault riffles, IWI Tavor X95, were carried by Moroccan police during the event.

DGSN categorically denies such newsand affirms that the weapons in question were bought from European suppliers in accordance with national laws.

The Moroccan police celebrated its 62nd anniversary on May 16. Several festivities and parades were held to commemorate the anniversary.
A heroin addict who snatched a womans handbag in a local shopping centre car park to feed her drug habit, has been jailed for 18 months at Dundalk Circuit Court for robbery.

Judge Michael OShea was told that Grace Flanagan (30) with an address at the time at Clontygora Court, Dundalk had denied taking the bag when the woman approached her and asked her to give it back.

The victim had just finished putting shopping into the boot of her car at the Long Walk Shopping Centre and was putting on her seat belt, when a back door opened and the accused asked her for a Euro.

The woman said nothing and when Grace Flanagan snatched her handbag, which was between the two front seats, she grabbed the strap and held on.

The victim was caught up in her seat belt initially but the defendant pulled her into the back seat, as she maintained her grip on the strap of the bag.

When she climbed out, she saw the accused ducking down behind a vehicle two cars away and Grace Flanagan replied:

It wasnt me  it was her when the woman asked for her bag back although it was hidden up her jumper.

The defendant eventually dropped it and left through the main exit of the car park when a man also told her to give the bag back.

Nothing was missing and the victim  who was shaken in the immediate aftermath, suffered bruising to her arms and elbows.

Grace Flanagan has 51 previous convictions and while she made no comment, or made occasional denies during her Garda interview, she was easily identifiable on CCTV footage.

The Defence barrister described it as a theft that escalated to a robbery and said his client is now on a methadone treatment programme and has engaged with psychiatric services in terms of mental health issues.

Judge Michael OShea imposed a two and a half year sentence with the last 12 months suspended on her entering a bond to be of good behaviour for a year after her release.

The sentence was backdated to August 31st last, when the accused went into custody.
Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content.

Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist.

If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider subscribing to our ePaper and/or free daily Newsletter .

Support our mission and join our community now.
The Garda Press Office have issued a statement this evening on the Cameron Reilly murder investigation in Dunleer, Co. Louth. It is as follows:

Gardai in Drogheda investigating the murder of Cameron (Joseph) Reilly, 18 years, of Dunleer, Co. Louth are appealing to the public for information.

Cameron was last seen in the vicinity of Ardee Road, Dunleer at approximately 12.30am on Saturday morning 26 May 2018 before his body was discovered at approximately 8 am at Rivervale, Dunleer.

Investigating Gardai are appealing to anyone who was in his company or with information about his movements on Friday 25 May 2018 evening and Saturday morning 26 May 2018 to make contact with them.

They are also appealing to taxi drivers, bus drivers or anyone with dashcam footage recorded in the Dunleer area to make it available to them.

Speaking at Drogheda Garda Station Inspector John OFlaherty said:

"We are particularly appealing for assistance from the public to locate Camerons phone, an Apple iPhone 8X (64GB) with a green hard back cover, space grey in colour.

"We would ask home & business owners in Dunleer to check their property including wheelie bins and waste skips. We would also ask anyone offered a phone for sale as described to contact us."

Anyone with information is asked to contact Drogheda Garda Station on 041-9874200, the Garda Confidential Line at 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.

The investigation is ongoing and further updates will follow.
By Ronnie Cummins

Consumers know if the tomatoes they buy in the supermarket were imported from Mexico. They know if the sweater they purchased was made in Vietnam.

They also know if the chicken they toss in their grocery cart was imported from another country. Under Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) laws, these products are required to carry labels that tell you if the product was imported from another country.

But beef and pork? Those products are exempt from COOL laws. That means consumers have no idea where their steak and bacon came from, unless the producer chooses to label it.

U.S. cattle ranchers say the failure to require COOL labels on beef is hurting their industry. That's especially true for ranchers serving the fast-growing grassfed segment of the beef industry said Will Harris, president of the board of directors of the American Grassfed Association (AGA) and a fourth-generation cattleman.

The grassfed industry suffers the most because, as Harris told us:

"The U.S. leads the world in the production of grain-fed beef. This production advantage primarily exists because grains and soy are so heavily subsidized under the USDA federal farm program. Grassfed beef producers in America are unsubsidized.

"The subsidies on grain permits our domestic grain-fed beef products to be marketed below the pricing thresholds that would allow stiff competition from imported product. The big winners in the repeal of COOL are the multinational meat companies. This has allowed them to shop for meat in the cheapest markets in the world, and bring it into the best market in the world, and sell it to consumers as 'Product of the USA,' even though the animal had never drawn a single breath of air in the United States."

Harris, who estimates at least 75 percent of the grassfed beef consumed in America comes from Australia, New Zealand or Uruguay, said American consumers are being intentionally misled. Millions of pounds of beef, imported from other countries, are being wrongly labeled as "Product of the USA," Harris said.

Mike Callicrate of Ranch Foods Direct agreed. He told us that:

"U.S. grassfed producers can't come close to competing with cost of production of South American, Australian and New Zealand imports, especially considering producers in the exporting countries are similarly being exploited, forced to produce below cost, by the same multinational packers.

"The loss of COOL was a huge hit on the cattle price, especially grassfed prices due to extremely low cost of supposedly 'grassfed' imports, which allow importers and retailers to make ridiculous margins.

"I just returned from a ranch tour in Argentina. They think it's funny that most South American beef is considered 'grassfed.' They said that may have been true 20 years ago, but not today. Their highest-quality cattle prices were 30 percent below the U.S. at the time of my visit. South American beef has also been falsely considered organic by default."

Ranchers and other advocates of COOL are hoping a revamped North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will help them restore COOL labels on beefbut time may be running out.

Why Are Beef and Pork Exempt From COOL Labeling Laws?

COOL was first established under the Tariff Act of 1930 which required that, "unless excepted, every article of foreign origin (or its container) imported into the U.S. shall be marked with its country of origin."

Over the years, COOL, as applied to meat, has evolved with a convoluted history.

Under COOL, imported beef and pork were required "to bear a label denoting the foreign country-of-origin of the beef all the way to the consumer, unless the beef undergoes a substantial transformation in the United States."

That sounds clear enough, but the "undergoes substantial transformation" in the U.S., along with exemptions under the law for some agricultural commodities, led to a series of changes in the law. According to the National Agricultural Law Center:

The requirements for listing the country of origin for beef and pork specifically were outlined in the COOL law, but were altered through the evolution of the proposed regulations and litigation with the World Trade Organization. In the original regulations, if the product had not undergone a substantial transformation in the United States, its country of origin was the one that was declared to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 7 C.F.R.  60.200(f). However, if the product underwent a substantial transformation in the United States, the product must have been labeled as "product from [the country it was imported from], and processed in the U.S." 7 C.F.R.  60.200(g)(2). If commodities were sold together, with only a part of it undergoing a substantial transformation in the United States, all the countries of origin must have been disclosed. 7 C.F.R.  60.200(h). Similarly, commodities that had different countries of origin and/or methods of production could still be sold together, as long as all the countries and methods were listed, pursuant to 7 C.F.R.  60.300(d).

That's more or less how the law worked, with some tweaks here and there, until December 2008. That's when Canada and Mexico sued to overturn COOL requirements for beef and pork, arguing that the law violated international trade law because it discriminated against Canadian and Mexican livestock.

After much back and forth with rulings and appeals, in May 2015, the World Trade Organization (WTO) determined that the U.S. COOL requirements did in fact violate international trade law. The WTO also said the countries could impose $1.01 billion in retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods.

Soon after the WTO's ruling, in December 2015, Congress repealed COOL and Agricultural Sec. Tom Vilsack announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) would no longer enforce the labeling law on beef and pork products. The repeal was a part of the $1.4-trillion omnibus spending bill, which was signed by President Barack Obama.

The USDA justified its decision by arguing that imported beef is a product of the U.S. even if it comes from a different country, as long as the country of origin has food safety standards similar to that in America.

U.S. ranchers rise up in defense of COOL

Ever since COOL was repealed in 2015, U.S. cattle ranchers, including those in the grassfed beef industry, have been vocal on the need to reestablish the labeling law.

According to a lawsuit filed in June 2017, by American ranchers and cattle producers against the USDA and Sec. of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, millions of pounds of beef are now being imported from various countries and labeled as "Product of the U.S.A," despite only undergoing repackaging in the U.S. The lawsuit alleges that this practice violates the Tariff Act of 1930.

While the lawsuit makes its way through the courts, Kenny Graner, president of the U.S. Cattlemen's Association, is looking for an opening in the recent NAFTA negotiations to strike a deal with Canada and Mexico that restore the labels on beef. (The WTO governs global trade, while NAFTA resolves trade disputes that erupt between only Canada, Mexico and the U.S.)

In a written statement, Graner said:

As talks continue on a modernized NAFTA, U.S. cattle producers remain disappointed in the lack of discussion on a WTO-compliant country-of-origin labeling (COOL) program. Country-of-origin labeling remains an important issue for cattle producers across the U.S. and consensus must be reached on how to best respond to consumer demand for accurate information. USCA continues to work toward truth in labeling on all fronts, and we hope the administration will do the same.

Graner cited industry figures showing that in 1994, the year NAFTA was implemented, the U.S. ran a surplus of $226.7 million in beef and a deficit of $978.8 million with Canada and Mexico combined. By 2016, the surplus in beef had become a deficit of $710.4 million, and the combined deficit in cattle had grown to $1.55 billion.

Political commentator Tomi Lahren expressed similar concerns in a Fox News Insider report, saying that U.S. ranchers and cattle producers have been "squeezed, poked and prodded by the meat packing industry." She went on to say:

They [the foreign beef producers and the big meat packers lobbyists] control the market. They control the price. They buy this cheap foreign beef, and your American ranchers are going underand not because they can't compete in quality, but because that can't compete with mystery meat brought in from who knows where.

If the repeal of COOL is hurting the beef industry, it's even worse for grassfed producers, Harris told us. In an email he wrote:

"I was among the earliest of the American cattle producers who embraced the grassfed protocol. I have seen steady increases for demand of this product for the last 25 years. In the last few months, I have seen most of the necessary-for-production margin premiums eroded by imported grassfed beef."

U.S. cattle producers continue to lobby to get COOL reinstated, as they believe it will help create competition in the beef market, put a stop to consumer deception, reduce market manipulation, enable price discovery and support America's rural economy.

As Carrie Balkcom, executive director of American Grassfed Association, said:

"Consumers want to know when they go to the market that the grassfed meats they are buying are from these farms and farmers. Farmers that are restoring and regenerating their farms. Farmers and farms that are preserving and restoring their rural economies. Farmers and farms that are saving a way of life by allowing these farms to survive so the next generation can be supported.

"Feeding Americans with American products without the worry of whether or not other countries will or will not provide us with food. COOL provides these consumers with the knowledge that they are helping with these efforts. We cannot allow marketing and food conglomerates to decide what goes on a label."

If you want to support American-grown grassfed meat and dairy, buy directly from a trusted farmer near you or look for products that bear the American Grassfed Association logo to ensure that your food is truly a "Product of the U.S.A."
To build the largest and most complete Amateur Radio community site on the Internet - a "portal" that hams think of as the first place to go for information, to exchange ideas, and be part of whats happening with ham radio on the Internet. eHam.net provides recognition and enjoyment to the people who use, contribute, and build the site. This project involves a management team of volunteers who each take a topic of interest and manage it with passion. The site will stand above all other ham radio sites by employing the latest technology and professional design/programming standards, developed by a team of community programmers who contribute their skills to the effort. The site will be something of which everyone involved can be proud to say they were a part. We welcome your comments. The eHam.net Team, Revision 07/2020.
Diamonds is the strongest naturally occurring material on Earth. It is also renowned for its incomparable properties, such as high stiffness, exceptional thermal conductivity, high chemical resistance, and high optical transparency. Although these remarkable properties of diamond make it highly desirable for many scientific and technological applications, progress has been slow due to its brittleness.

A recent study, affiliated with UNIST has unveiled that brittle diamonds can be bent and stretched elastically when made into ultrafine needles.

This breakthrough has been jointly conducted by Distinguished Professor Feng Ding's team from the Center for Multidimensional Carbon Materials (CMCM), within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) at UNIST, in collaboration with an international team of researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), City University of Hong Kong, and Nanyang Technological University. The results of the study has been reported this week in the prestigious jornal Science.

The team demonstrated that their nanoscale diamond needles could flex and stretch by as much as nine percent without breaking, then return to their original shape. Their discovery completely overturns previous theories that diamonds are brittle. Their results, the research team say, could open up unprecedented possibilities for tuning its optical, optomechanical, magnetic, phononic, and catalytic properties through elastic strain engineering.

"Ultrahigh elasticity of diamond is due to the paucity of internal defects."

Ordinary diamond in bulk form has a limit of well below one percent stretch, according to the researchers. In the study, Professor Ming's group handled the chemical calculation and the analysis of the crystal structure of diamond and ascribed that the ultrahigh elasticity of the diamond nanoneedles is due to the paucity of internal defects and the relatively smooth surface.

"Diamonds, either natural or artificial, have internal defects in their crystal structure," says Professor Ding. "When outside force is applied to these defects, they can crack and eventually break."

In the study, via detailed simulations, Professor Ding determined precisely how much stress and strain the diamond needles could accommodate without breaking. He determined the corresponding maximum local stress was close to the known theoretical limit achievable with a perfect, defect-free diamond. He noted that defect-free diamonds can stretch by as much as 12% without breaking.

"Diamond needles stretched and flexed as much as 9% without any breakage."

The research team from the City University of Hong Kong succeeded in fabricating nanoscale diamond needles by plasma-induced etching of diamond thin films deposited on Si substrates through bias-assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD). As a result, the team was able to demonstrate ultralarge, fully reversible elastic deformation of nanoscale (~300 nanometers) single-crystalline and polycrystalline diamond needles.

The team measured the bending of the diamond needles, which were grown through a chemical vapor deposition process and then etched to their final shape, by observing them in a scanning electron microscope while pressing down on the needles with a standard nanoindenter diamond tip. They demonstrated experimentally that single-crystalline needles are simultaneously ultrastrong and susceptible to large elastic deformation, with fully reversible mechanical deformability of up to a maximum of 9% of elastic tensile strain.

The research team expects that their findings could lead to performance enhancement in applications, involving bioimaging and biosensing, strain-mediated nanomechanical resonators, drug delivery, data storage, and optomechanical devices, as well as ultrastrength nanostructures. Besides, Professor Ding noted that large elastic deformation in nanoscale diamond needles will be suitable for use in next-generation flexible and foldable displays.

###

Meanwhile, Professor Feng Ding joined the School of Materials Science and Engineering at UNIST in January 2017. Professor Ding currently serves as one of the group leader at IBS Research Center for Multidimensional Carbon Materials (CMCM). His current research interests include carbon materials research, such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, and diamond.

This study has been funded by the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Singapore-MIT Alliance for Rresearch and Technology (SMART), Nanyang Technological University Singapore, and the National Natural Science Foundation of China.

Story Source: Materials provided by MIT News

Journal Reference: Amit Banerjee, et al., "Ultralarge elastic deformation of nanoscale diamond," Science, (2018).
Switzerlands seven-person Federal Council was braver when it wasnt dominated by men, according to Doris Leuthard, the environment, transport, energy and communications minister.

With a female majority in the cabinet we reached more courageous decisions than previously  and since, she said in an interview with the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper.

Leuthard said that having more women in the cabinet than men was a crucial factor in the decision to phase out nuclear power in 2011.

I got the general impression that women in executive positions feelless bound by party politics than men, she said.

Between September 2010 and January 2012, four women  Simonetta Sommaruga, Micheline Calmy-Rey, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf and Leuthard  sat in the Swiss cabinet for the first and only time.

Thiswas hailed as a symbolic moment for womens rights in a country that only gave women the vote at a federal level in 1971 (Appenzell Inner Rhodes held out until 1991 at a cantonal level) and saw its first cabinet minister, Elisabeth Kopp, in 1984.

At present, the Federal Council comprises only two women, Leuthard and Sommaruga.

No to quotas

Leuthard, who is not standing for re-election next year, called for the proportion of women in parliament to increase at the 2019 elections  something that didnt happen in 2015. Currently 32% of the House of Representatives and 15% of the Senate are women.

However, Leuthard said she was against quotas. It was more important, she believed, for female politicians to be supported by their parties and to take positions in important committees. Women must also be supported in businesses and management, she said.

Support and promotion are necessary as long as women are underrepresented and they dont have the same opportunities as men, she said. With equal qualifications, care must be paid to recruit more women. Mixed teams would work better.

The promotion of women is up to bosses, she said, adding that she had discussed corresponding proposals with her heads of departments.
More than three times as many pubs and restaurants disappeared in Switzerland last year as the year before. The catering industry points the finger at the strong franc, responsible for more bankruptcies (+4.4%) and fewer new openings (-25%).

Some 2,220 places to eat were removed from the trade registry and 684 went bust in 2017, according to a report in the SonntagsZeitung based on data from the industry umbrella organisation GastroSuisse and Creditreform. With 2,048 restaurants opening, the net loss was 856.

GastroSuisse president Casimir Platzer blamed the strong franc and deferred investments for the record number of closures. These were particularly high in cantons Ticino, Bern, Geneva, Lucerne and Zurich.

The strong franc is really squeezing businesses in the mountains, in the countryside and in border regions, he said, explaining that there werent enough guests, and therefore turnover, in an industry with already small margins.

Platzer said that in tough times it gets harder to find someone to take over the business. He added that fewer children were prepared to work the long hours necessary, often for lower salaries.

The SonntagsZeitung said additional factors were changing eating habits and less time for lunch.













swissinfo.ch/ts






Privacy Settings

This site uses functional cookies and external scripts to improve your experience. Which cookies and scripts are used and how they impact your visit is specified on the left. You may change your settings at any time. Your choices will not impact your visit.

NOTE: These settings will only apply to the browser and device you are currently using.
Pope Francis is said to be planning an official visit to Morocco, a destination for intercultural and inter-religious dialogue, Italian media said.

Turiweb.it was first to relay the news quoting Vincenzo Abbinante, Moroccos honorary council in Bari.

The visit will take place in a few months, he said adding that preparations are ongoing.

Neither the Vatican nor the Royal Office announced the visit yet.

The Paper recalled that King Mohammed VI invited the Pope to visit the country five years ago.

According to other press reports, Pope Francis will visit Morocco to take part in the intergovernmental conference on international migration to be hosted by the North African Kingdom December 10-11. The conference is expected to work out, under the auspices of the United Nations, a global compact for safe, orderly and regular migration.

Since the UN General Assembly voted in September 2016 to draw up the compact, Pope Francis showed support to the project, meant to take decisive actions to save migrants lives and protect their rights. He repeatedly called on world governments to include in the compact proposals that would ensure the welcome, protection, promotion and integration of migrants and refugees.

If confirmed, the visit will be the second to Morocco for Head of the Roman Catholic Church, after Jean Paul II trip to the Kingdom during the reign of King Hassan II 30 years ago.

During that visit, Pope Jean Paul II gave a speech in front of thousands of people at the Mohammed V stadium in Casablanca.
Four Russian soldiers have been killed by militants in Syria's eastern Deir Ezzor province, the defence ministry said on Sunday.

Four Russian servicemen were killed by militant fire in the Syrian Arab Republic, a ministry statement said, indicating that another three soldiers were wounded in the incident which took place when several mobile terrorist groups attacked Syrian government artillery at night.

Two of them, who were serving as military advisors to the Syrian army, were killed on the spot, while two more died shortly afterwards while being treated at a Russian military hospital, the statement said.

Some 43 militants were killed in the resulting clashes, which lasted for around an hour, the ministry said, without saying where the incident took place.

The statement did not say exactly when or where the fighting occurred, although several other reports suggested it may have taken place on May 23, with a monitor saying the Russian toll was believed to be twice as high.

Figures released on Sunday by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said nine Russian soldiers had been killed on Wednesday alongside at least 26 Syrian regime forces an attack in Deir Ezzor by Islamic State jihadists.

Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP several groups of militants had attacked pro-government forces near Mayadeen town and that some Russian nationals were with them at the time.

A local Russian newspaper in the Siberian city of Chita also reported on the funerals of four soldiers it said were killed in Syria on May 23.

The Russian statement raised the official count of soldiers killed in Syria to 92.

The biggest number of casualties was in March when a transport plane crashed at Hmeimim airbase, killing all 39 people on board.

Russia entered the Syria conflict in September 2015, offering support to Damascus which changed the course of the war, allowing government troops to retake more than half the country from rebels and IS militants.

More than 350,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since the civil war began in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
Russian fighters were among dozens of pro-government forces killed in eastern Syria this week in a deadly wave of attacks by Islamic State group jihadists, Moscow and a monitor said Sunday.

After the collapse of its so-called caliphate last year, IS now only holds tiny pockets of Syria, mainly in the vast desert stretching to its eastern border.

This week, the jihadists ramped up their hit-and-run attacks on regime positions there, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.

The deadliest was on Wednesday, when IS targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor.

There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them, said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

A steadfast ally of President Bashar al-Assad, Moscow has helped his army recapture swathes of territory since 2015 by providing air strikes and ground troops.

There are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground.

Moscows defence ministry said Sunday four of its servicemen were killed in clashes in Deir Ezzor.

Two were military advisers supporting Syrian artillery operations and died immediately, and another two died of their wounds in a Russian-operated military hospital in Syria.

Three others were wounded.

 IS claims attack 

Russia did not specify when, where, or whether IS was involved, but it appeared to be the same incident as the IS attack reported near Mayadeen.

The jihadist group itself claimed it attacked regime forces in eastern Syria on Wednesday.

The assault was the largest in series of IS guerilla raids on regime positions this week.

On Tuesday, 26 regime forces were killed in a surprise IS attack in desert areas of the neighbouring province of Homs, according to the Observatory.

And a pair of IS assaults between Saturday night and Sunday morning killed at least 11 pro-regime forces in Deir Ezzor.

The latest attack brings to 76 the number of Syrian troops and allied Iranian and Russian forces killed since the escalation, Abdel Rahman said Sunday.

He said the uptick came the day after the last IS fighters were bussed out of southern parts of Syrias capital Damascus, including the ravaged Palestinian camp of Yarmuk, in a negotiated withdrawal.

Many headed towards the Badiya, the stretch of Syrian desert extending from Homs province through Deir Ezzor to the eastern border with Iraq.

The Observatory said the evacuated fighters were actively involved in the recent attacks.

IS is trying to take the initiative and show it can still threaten the regime and its allies despite the losses it suffered in other areas, said Abdel Rahman.

Government positions in the Badiya make for an easy target: they are few and far between, so reinforcements take a long time to arrive.

 Hinder army 

Russian-backed Syrian troops hold the western half of Deir Ezzor province, which is divided diagonally by the Euphrates River. US-backed fighters hold the east bank.

The river is meant to serve as a de-confliction line to prevent the two sides from clashing as they pursue separate assaults against IS.

A Syrian military source based in the east told AFP that Assads troops had cleared large parts of territory from IS, which was now lashing out.

Daesh wants to hinder the armys combing operations in the Badiya by waging these intermittent attacks, said the source, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

It confirmed Russian military advisers were present during Wednesdays attack and were among those killed.

Russias government officially acknowledges that 92 soldiers have been killed in Syria, although some estimate the number is even higher.

The highest casualties were in March, when a transport plane crashed at Hmeimim airbase where Moscows airforce is based, killing all 39 people on board.

On Sunday, a local Russian newspaper in the Siberian city of Chita reported on the funerals of four soldiers it said were killed in Syria on May 23.

The international group Conflict Intelligence Team said up to six Russian soldiers could have been killed in the attack, quoting social media reports of a funeral for a Russian soldier that took place in the Western Russian city of Smolensk this week.
Saturday, May 26, 2018

Listen To Show Here

www.DrNildaPerez.com/AlexandraWhittington

Show Transcript

Hello and welcome to the Dr. Nilda Business Foresight Strategies show. Today we have with us a very awesome guest. Her name is Alexandra Whittington.

Hi Dr. Nilda, Thank you!

I also have with me my co-host Rachel say Hello.

Hello.

Alexandra is a futurist and educator, a writer and a researcher. She has been recognized for one of the worlds top, female futurist. She is a foresight director at Fast Future. She is also co-authored two books, several book chapters and articles and publications such as Financial Times and Lawyer Magazine. Alex also is also a published academic. Shes also published academically, and she is also an adjunct Lecturer at the University of Houston since 2009. She is a Future board at the Lifeboat Foundation and she occasionally is a contributor of the Lifeboat blog. Alex has a BA in Anthropology and she has her BS in Future study.

Welcome. How are you Alex?

Thank you so much.

So, I want you to begin to tell me your trajectory, like how do you begin on this journey with futures because your background is Anthropology and I know Anthropology is looking into the past. So, explain to me how you went from that past to the future?

Yeah, thats true. I do have a great interest in the past and I actually came to Future studies as it was called when I studied it through my Anthropology studies. Im kind of unusual, I think in the sense that I came to future studies through a very academic route. A lot of people find out about future studies once theyve already entered the profession. I actually found it through a college course called Study the Future, a class that I later ended up teaching myself once I had already gotten the masters degree and been practicing futurists for a while.

You go from studying your interest in the past to the future. Tell me a little bit about that middle. What does that look like?

Its all about, as an anthropologist, Im very interested in the human experience as well, just another species trying to survive on this planet essentially. So I guess I look at the future as the conditions to which we will have to adapt as a species. And so thats my interest in my perspective as a futurist is how are our technologies, our social systems, our various forms of economic and political systems, helping us adapt or not to the future and continue to populate the planet.

Youre also the inspiration thinking behind this newest book, Fast Future Beyond Genuine Stupidity Ensuring AI serve Humanity and the Future Reinvented. We need you to explain that.

Those are actually two books. Fast Future Beyond Genuine Stupidity and the Future Reinvented the first one, like the play on words we have, theyre under title obviously relates to Artificial Intelligence, AI being Artificial Intelligence. We basically put together a collection of chapters that talks about how Artificial Intelligence is changing education, families, retirement, work, life, pretty much, you name it. We, looked at different futures for different parts of life and how that could evolve based on the growth and development of Artificial Intelligence. So, that is a great sort of lay person exposure to the idea of Artificial Intelligence and how it might progress into the future. We arent computer scientists were futurist, all of us, the authors of that book. So we take this big picture view of how technology is changing things and where we might be in 10 or 15 years.

So, how might Artificial Intelligence, impact women in their future?

Thats one of the areas Ive been looking at. Im glad you asked me about that. In one of our upcoming books, Ive written a couple of chapters specifically related to AI and women. So Fast Future has very generously let me explore my different ideas and theories about where we might be going in the future. One of them, Rachel, is about AI as a sort of technological revolution. And so with my Anthropology framework and thinking style, I started wondering where we might be going in terms of the direction of the future of families in the future of women. Looking back at history, I observe, well the agricultural revolution introduced these very large families, right? Women had lots of children because they had to have, you know, the resources, the family size, so in the past, the land, someone to help them work the land, right. So, that then changed as we moved into the industrial revolution, which is when the nuclear family started taking shape. People were living in cities, you saw the women having fewer children, people working outside the home and increasingly the woman working outside the home. So my question here is now that were, face to face with this new technology revolution, Artificial Intelligence, how might that change the family structure and the role of men and women in society? And I dont know, but thats just the thinking pattern futurists take when were trying to extrapolate different futures.

AI is a very male dominated field. So how is that for women, even though women have been working for quite some time, the Artificial Intelligence technology, actually the biggest draw right now is to try to get young girls interested in STEM. There arent a lot of women in engineering, math, and in science. So, what is being done from a futurist perspective towards that end?

Well, I think that by exposing regular people to futurist thinking more can be done about it. Im not really sure whats being done other than encouraging women to pay attention to these technologies, educate themselves on it, get their daughters up to speed on it, bring their organizations up to speed and recognize the benefits as well as possible pitfalls of these powerful technologies.

So, you realize that this is my mission, to get the average person, and I use that word very carefully because nobodys really average, but to get people who are business owners and people who are doing very notable things in life, trying to get them to understand. One of my mottoes is if I could just open their minds, the jar just a little bit so that they could it just to peak their interest. If they look a little further, they will be more interested. With that said, these are the women that also, leaders of their homes, their mothers they have children and as theyre learning a lot of this stuff, theyre also depositing a lot of this information to their children. So, I think this is great. So, its really about educating the general public about futures and what direction thats going. Is that correct?

I agree with that and also educating about technology and how its not just this benign naturally occurring thing. Its actually designed with human intention. So when we, for example, choose that to give an AI gender and say this is a female AI personal assistant that speaks to you with a womans voice, for example, a named Alexa or Siri or whatever the feminized name might be. Theres a new robotic device theyre using in Walmart. Its a floor cleaner, floor cleaning robot, but they gave it a name Emma. Its a womans name. I mean, its not to say that Walmart is sexist or the AI designers are purposely trying to design machines that carry womens names and therefore personas there it is a fact that these things are going on and theyre not really being questioned and explored as much as I think we could if we wanted to make sure the technology retains the values that we want to retain in our society.

So, what is actually being done to be able to train women or be able to take this mission out in the world. From your perspective as a futurist, what are you guys doing on your end or what are you doing to be able to preach this gospel of futures?

Well I will definitely reiterate that we do that at Fast Futures through our publishing, you know, of course through my teaching Im always working with students and exposing new people to future studies and futurism. But I think that theres a lot of value in the content that we put out on the, in our book and even in our newsletters on our website, which help people envision different futures about what it looks like when you work side by side with a robot for example, and how do gender or other personal issues come into play. And those stories can really help people relate to the trajectories in a more personal way and maybe come up with some of their own ideas.

Tell me a little bit about Fast Futures publishing. What exactly is it? What do you publish? Is it just books? Is it articles? Is it, is all of the above? Tell me a little bit about that.

Basically, all of the above. We publish books authored by our own staff and also authored by some of the worlds best futurist. One of our earlier books The Future of Business has something like 62 contributors. So were not just trying to push the content, were also always looking for great contributors and people who want to write and think about the future with us to contribute a chapter or short story. Im working on several collaborative books where people have submitted short stories about the future, and their different areas. You can probably relate to this. You never got people from different industries coming in to talk to us about what they think the future might be. And so putting those ideas together is really our purpose. Bringing people together to think right, talk about the future. Of course we do the presentations in the workshops and all of that consulting as well. But right now were really all about the writing.

When these publications go out, how will they be promoted? This would be Rachels field because shes the marketer. Are they being promoted it or theyd be marketed to the general public or are they being marketed to future other futurists?

We definitely write to the general audience. We dont expect our readers to know anything about scenarios or what major trends are. We spell all of that out because we are researchers at heart, right? Were all researchers, you know, as a futurist the main part of your job is just keeping up and knowing whats going on and understanding these big complex topics and problems and stuff. So yeah, we were researchers and so were constantly just getting that information out there through our stories who are articles and yeah, we spread the word through social media. Im sure Rachel can relate, you know, just all the same kind of avenues.

Its funny because I think back to when I started college here in the eighties and I remember at that time you have to actually go to a library and you sit in the library, if you wanted to check out a book and somebody else, how do you have to wait till they were done with it and hope that you will the next person. Sometimes it was up a line of people for that specific book because they would have maybe like three of the books and so where were you in that line and they think of how far weve come with AI and all the progress that weve made. Sometimes Ill have an idea at eleven at night or two in the morning and Im like, let me get a line and see. I cant even imagine how futures it would even operate the way that we used to do before because we would all be fighting for the same books we have to write our own. I think right now when I think back at how far that has come and how much better were doing today as a result of that, the feasibility of having Artificial Intelligence.

And even, you know, just since you asked you what were doing about it, well, what is those various ways technology is helping us. And I see this with my students a lot, It seems like social media has really empowered people to share new stories, breakthroughs and whatnot. I think that the advent of social media has helped us have futures in our dialogue on a day to day basis more often because we do tend to go on Facebook or LinkedIn or whatever. And youll see even if youre not a futurist, you might see something cool that changing technologies or something that you might like or share. So its kind of elevated it into the day to day conversation.

I think personally social media has been able to, assist all of us in sharing that, because you could reach a larger audience that way. The beauty of social media is that this is kind of like how the millennials and the younger generation speak. They understand this language they have it on their phones, so its accessible to them. Its available to them at their fingertips. So, placing it all these platforms is a beautiful thing. So, Alexandria, so what are your upcoming books for Fast Futures?

The next book that I think is coming out, Ill give you a preview of some coming a little further down the line because, those are the women in AI, chapters. The name of the book is called Unleashing Human Potential, The future of AI in business. Since were speaking about that, this is totally focused on AI and this is another one of the books that we really enjoy doing because we have so many guest contributors. Its actually, were not the key off of where the editors of this book and weve got a ton of people from the futures industry and outside the industry who have written about their experience and then their speculations about what were going with AI. My chapters in that book touch on various things like Im a womans life. We were talking about How AI Can Affect Women, me and some co-authors, who are also women in Fast Future are an all-female research team. We wrote a chapter about what a womans life could be like from childhood to the elder years, assisted by AI in different ways, different things from being a little girl that gets assistance from an AI, from maybe a self-driving car taken from after school to a teenager and a college student using an AI tutor. A woman whos working in her profession adopting a co-bot to sit with her and help her as her assistant. And then that co-bot would actually follow you home into your retirement years and then take care of you as an agent in your home.

Do you have an AI in the works that is going to talk about how to, you know, remove the stress level of a womans life? Actually, do the work for you. Totally like a clone,

To go back to my historical analogies, you know, think back and womens history and the history of womens liberation. We know for a fact that in the fifties and sixties, the invention of household appliances did a lot to liberate women, right? We were freed up for out from hours and hours of work from the washing machine, dishwasher, microwave, all those things. So maybe theres some domestic applications and I see them happening. That robotic vacuums, you got the robotic caring robot that can be in your home, the little robot dog. Maybe these in home robots will do another wave of, you know, independence for women in the home, away from the work of the home that we know were still stuck doing. Despite all these years of equality, women still do more work at home, more work raising kids in addition to their jobs these days. So thats another way of looking at it. Maybe these machines are going to bring another wave.

I think a portion of that though is us not being able to cut some of that cord as women, we have to have hands on when it comes to our children and doing things at home. Some of it is just control. I think well probably incorporate some Artificial Intelligence, but I dont know if well let it go completely no, not a woman. A man could just totally disconnect with no problem. Ive seen it, you know, and theyre okay with it. They, what they called the nothing box, but women just constantly have to have their hands and their ideas, their thoughts in everything. Which is a, its human nature, but lets see what the future holds.

Well, if it becomes a tool for that to make that control less stressful, more viable, and at the same time advance gender equality, I think thats a really good thing.

One last question, how do people get a hold of these articles and how do they get hold of this latest information because this information is hot off the press. How do people not just futurists but the lay people, how do they get ahold of this information?

Well, to find our books, of course thats FuturePublishing.com. We also have a blog and a newsletter and then if youre interested in finding the information and that stuff that were writing, but were, were reading and getting these kinds of signals about the future. I mean we look across all of the future social media as well as all these futures website. We do research everything from blogs to YouTube to use science journal and were always looking for new signals of change and thats part of our job is to monitor that.

Right. And so, with that said, you also have articles that you publish from that information that you need, sir.

Exactly, yes, we publish the books which are available and Fast Future.com. We also sell on Amazon. If you, if you look across, our social media is probably the best way to see the different publications right now. Fast Future is a UK based company, so theyre mostly in a British publication, but the ones that you mentioned at the top of your show, we were in the Financial Times. We tend to appear in the end it pro portal. Theres such a range of publications that we get asked to contribute to. Its nice they really seem to enjoy our futures angle on work issues, life issues and whatnot.

I want people to be able to read things about their industry, the direction that its going. AI is going to be very much a part of our everyday life. Were probably going to be using Artificial Intelligence, augmented realities in everything. Eventually, I dont even think were going to have a flat screen tv, were going to have 3D TVs. I just have this vision of. The research is there, the information, the technology is there to give us all of this. So, our realities and I dont think very far away between the next five to fifteen years our reality is going to be very different and very tech savvy. So, people that are in business really need to understand this. People that are looking into their, careers or even a career change really have to look into this because its really important. So, I look forward for them to be able to read a lot of this information and to be able to update themselves, educate themselves on whats available and where do they, where do they go from here. Make sense?

I think educating yourself on it, its one of the greatest ways to feel more control and influence over it because I have had several people from students to, journalists asked me is it scary, is it, isnt this frightening AI? I think we need to maintain our sense of control over the technologies that we create and because we do control them.

Even if thats an idea and how do they bring that idea to like a Hack-A-Thon or a Think Tank that they could actually. I mean, were using it, so we might as well contribute to it and getting more women, more women in the STEM, more women in futuring, because you know, those numbers are growing, theyre all going to be more women, so we may as well get into these fields and being able to be contributors maybe not dominate, but at least be very strong contributors of this change. Right. That was good. Rachel, do you have any last questions?

No, this was very informative, and I want to thank you for all that information. Im, Im just, Im still like stuck on how AI is going to replace some of our duties as women.

Absolutely I welcome that I have quite a few on the list for the thing you can create. Thats good. Anything thats going to take my stress away. I just purchased my first Alexa. Very exciting. Yes. Thats purchased that. So, lets see where it goes from here, right? What used to be at one time the worlds fair that would come every ten years were actually living that today. Its constantly hot off the presses, researchers like us who are looking at things or looking at trends and looking at scenarios and looking at ways to change and I just want to get the information and everybodys here as much as possible.

Wonderful. I think its a great mission. Thank you for doing it. Thank you for having me.

Thank you so much for coming. Okay guys. Thank you. This is the segment of foresight strategies show and I look forward to seeing you guys next week where I will be bringing another really fabulous futurist. I have to tell you; all of these futurists are absolutely amazing, and the idea is that you will be able to connect to any of these industries. Your able to connect to it because its a female or because its the industry, whatever the reason is, I want you to really pay close attention to what this means for you. Okay. All right guys. Ill see you next week. Bye.

Our Guest

Alexandra Whittington Director at Fast Future. She is a futurist, foresight educator, writer, and researcher who has been recognized as one of the worlds top female futurists.

She has coauthored two books, several book chapters and dozens of articles for publications such as the Financial Times and Lawyer Magazine. Alex has also published academically. She is an adjunct lecturer at the University of Houston since 2009.

She is on the Futurist Board at the Lifeboat Foundation and an occasional contributor to the Lifeboat blog. Alex has a BA in Anthropology and an MS in Studies of the Future.

Guest Link

fastfuture.com

Interview With Alexandra Whittington-Women Embracing Futurism."

#DrNildaShow #BusinessForesightShow #DrNildaBusinessForesightShow #AlexandraWhittington

#Women Embracing Futurism


Saturday, May 26, 2018

All it takes is one car to change the history of the automotive industry. Consider the 1932 Ford V8. Its launch created the American hot rod subculture.

Sometimes called a street rod, a hot rod is a classic American car with an oversized engine customized for speed. The term rod." refers to the connecting rods in the high-performance, or hot,." engine. Thus, the name hot rod.."

In the 1930s and 1940s, custom, souped-up cars were visible on most streets in the US. Hot rodding became an American pastime that celebrated self-expression, breaking the rules, and good, clean fun.

The original Deuce, often called Deuce Coupe." in slang terms, made it possible for any hot rod enthusiast to create a custom car with power and performance superior to models purchased new from a dealership lot. Ford produced about 275,000 vehicles in 1932 that introduced a stylish new V-8 engine to the market. With a manufacturers list price of $490, the 32 Coupe entered the used car market as the de facto standard for hot rod modification.

In 1963, the cover of the Beach Boys album, Little Deuce Coupe, featured a custom three-window 1932 Ford Coupe. On September 28, 1963, the albums title song (Little Deuce Coupe) peaked at number fifteen on the top 100 hits chart. The lyrics speak to the hot rod craze: Shes my little deuce coupe, you dont know what I got.."

Fantastic Engine Forgotten for Years

In 1979, Brian Burnett purchased the 1969 Ferrari 365 GT V-12 engine Bill Harrah had installed in the original Jerrari. Custom cars seemed to be in both mens DNA. And, its unlikely anyone other than one of these men would have dreamed theyd install the same Ferrari engine in two different cars almost ten years apart.

Brian continually looked for ways to build unique cars. With the 320-horsepower 268 cubic inch engine in hand, he commissioned Dick Magoo Megugorac to install it into a 1932 Deuce Roadster. Known merely as Magoo, Dick could build cars with the right look. They all seemed to have the subtle just-so stance, the simple-yet-elegant detail work, and, perhaps, most important, bombproof reliability. His cars drove well and could reliably take long rides anywhere, anytime.

Magoos cars were also innovative and spectacular. He and his crew became legendary after they took up the herculean task of stuffing a V-12 engine from a Ferrari 365 GT 2+2 between the rails of a 1932 Ford Deuce Roadster.

Jonnie King is one of radio broadcastings longest running professionals. For over 50 years hes entertained audiences worldwide. His website, www.legends.thewwbc.net, is dedicated to All-American Hot Rods & Custom Cars. Click on the picture below and listen to Jonnie interview Dick Magoo." Megugorac about the Deucari.

[embedded content]

Unlike the Jerrari, the Deucari stuck with a Ferrari theme throughout the project. Magoo outfitted the car with Borrani wire wheels, a Connolly leather interior, and Ferrari red paint. To maintain a sleek flow from front to rear, He added a DuVall windshield and a lift-off aluminum top with a 1937 Cord rear window. The finished car won the Americas Most Beautiful Roadster." award at the 1979 Grand National Roadster Show in Oakland, California.

Beautiful Hot Rod More Than Just Good Looks

The Deucari." proved to be more than just a show queen. Brian drove the car to the 1980 Street Rod Nationals in Memphis, Tennessee, and took it for a few passes down the drag strip, turning in a best elapsed time of 13.01 seconds at 105 miles per hour. It also spent some time on the Fremont drag strip in Northern California.

Have you ever built a hot rod, or know of someone that did? Please share the story here, or leave a comment below.

In the next post, discover another Magoo built 1932 Ford with a Ferrari engine.
Esteban Pastor hoped U.S. Border Patrol agents would free him and his 18-month-old son after they were arrested for crossing the southern border illegally last summer.

He had mortgaged his land in Guatemala to fund his sick toddlers hospital stay, and needed to work in the United States to pay off the loan.

Instead agents imprisoned the 28-year-old in July for coming back into the country after having been deported, a felony. They placed the toddler in a federal shelter, though where, Pastor didnt know. Three months later, in October, the father was deported  alone. His child, he said agents told him, was somewhere in Texas.

I cried. I begged, he said. No one could tell me anything.

Submitted

As President Donald Trumps administration ramps up the prosecutions of parents crossing the border illegally and separates their children, Pastors case offers a glimpse into how challenging it is to reunite them. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen has defended the practice, saying children are taken from any criminals imprisoned for breaking the law.

But once immigrant families, many asylum seekers from Central America, are separated at the border, they struggle to find each other among the three behemoth federal agencies in charge of their care. Advocates say few procedures are in place to ensure they reunify.

In many cases they may never, said Michelle Brane, executive director of the migrant rights program at the Womens Refugee Commission, a national advocacy group. We have seen children as young as 18 months deported without their parents and more commonly, parents deported without their children. Parents arrive in Central America with no idea of how to get their children back.

Previously most parents with children werent prosecuted for crossing the border illegally, a misdemeanor for first offenders, but deported or freed together to pursue their civil immigration cases under a practice called catch and release. The crime of illegal entry swamps federal dockets at the border and prosecutors typically prioritized serious offenders.

Read more: Trump pressing for mass criminalization of illegal border crossers

Trump and his supporters say a federal settlement prevents the prolonged detention of children and that families often dont show up for hearings if they are freed. They point to rising arrivals at the border, saying families take advantage of loopholes protecting children to stay here. Prosecuting parents sends a powerful message of deterrence, U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican, told a Homeland Security committee this week.

Advocates say no systematic policies exist to ensure families dont lose each other after the separation. U.S. Rep. Filemon Vela, a Texas Democrat, echoed those concerns at the congressional hearing.

I worry that there are no reliable mechanisms in place, he said.

After they are removed from their parents, children are deemed "unaccompanied" and placed in the custody of Health and Human Services, which houses minors in federal shelters until it can release them to relatives or provide long-term foster care.

Patrick Fisher, a spokesman for that agencys Office of Refugee Resettlement in charge of migrant children, said in a statement that the agency works with Homeland Security and other authorities to find parents. He said it has done so in about 700 cases between October and April where parents were in DHS custody. The agency couldnt say how many were reunified, saying that data is not in a reportable format. It didnt track separations before that period.

Fisher said the agency is not routinely informed about how or when the (unaccompanied child) became separated from their parent(s) or the whereabouts of the parents.

In some cases, he said, children report that information. In others, parents, attorneys and relatives contact the agency.

Read more: Trump moves to end 'catch and release', prosecuting parents and removing children who cross border

Sometimes, advocates say, families fall through the cracks.

*

Pastor first entered the U.S. illegally in 2009 to work at a Mexican restaurant in Tennessee and save money for a house back home.

His village, Lancetillo la Parroquia, is in a remote mountainous areas of Guatemala, where 80 percent of the mostly indigenous Mayan residents are poor, according to the World Bank. Theres no electricity or paved roads, and residents make $3 a day farming the spice cardamom.

In 2014, police stopped Pastor as he left work, and asked for his license. He didnt have one, so officers booked him into jail and deported him.

In Guatemala, he married and bought a 100-square-foot slip of land, growing corn. He and his wife had a baby, Edwards Yunior.

But he said the child began suffering excruciating bouts of fever and stomach pain. Blood came out of his nose and buttocks. He had seizures. They made the 12-hour journey to the capital, Guatemala City, where the baby was hospitalized.

Pastor, whose native language is Quiche, said he doesnt understand what ailed his baby, who later recovered. But to pay for the treatment, Pastor signed over his land to a neighbor. The practice is common among indigenous communities where few qualify for formal loans.

Such money-lenders charge exceptional interest and Pastor worried he would lose his home. He couldnt find enough work to make bigger payments. He knew it would be difficult to return to the United States, but heard that if he brought along his child he might be released.

Pastor thought he would stay only a few months to repay his debt. He had another baby on the way.

*

Marie D. De Jesus/Houston Chronicle

Last July, Border Patrol agents found the father holding his baby in the New Mexican desert north of El Paso, and discovered his old deportation. He had no other criminal history beyond two tickets for driving without a license, according to their records.

Your kid is going to go to a shelter, Pastor said the agents told him. Youre going to jail.

Let me go back to Guatemala, he begged. Dont separate us.

By the time Meghan McLoughlin, a New Mexico federal public defender, met with Pastor to represent him on the re-entry charge, he was frantic. Listening to his account, she became concerned.

Who is caring for this baby? How will he get back to his father? she worried. It just seemed so crazy logistically. The kid cant even talk.

Border Patrol agents said in their report that they removed the toddler because Pastor couldnt prove he was the father. The agency has said such separations are often necessary to determine adults are not trafficking the children and lying about their relationship.

Pastor insists he gave them a birth certificate. McLoughlin said she called the Guatemalan consulate and obtained verification of Pastors paternity, providing it to immigration officials herself.

No one could tell her what had happened to the toddler.

In August, Pastor pleaded guilty to re-entering the country illegally and a federal judge sentenced him to time-served for the 22 days he had spent in prison. He was transferred to a civil immigrant detention facility in El Paso, where McLoughlin, as his criminal attorney, lost oversight.

But she worried how such a young child could ever find his father. Knowing federal prisoners have their phones confiscated and dont always have them returned before deportation, she scribbled down a number for Pastors wife in Guatemala before he was transferred. She shared it with the consulate.

Across the country federal defenders say they are increasingly on the front lines of helping parents find their children. Often they are the only counsel migrants ever see as they move rapidly from Justice Department to Homeland Security detention and then speedily deported.

These cases move so quickly, McLoughlin said. There isnt one person with the client through all of this.

Miguel "Andy" Nogueras, a federal public defender in McAllen, said he recently represented a woman who was prosecuted for illegal entry last fall and had her child removed. She was coming back to find her this month when she was imprisoned for returning.

Read more: Her husband murdered, her son taken away, a mother seeking asylum tells a judge, 'I have lost everything'

Detained in El Paso, Pastor said he tried to obtain information about his sons whereabouts, but was unable.

Leticia Zamarripa, a spokeswoman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said in a statement that Pastor told officials about his son on Sept. 1, days after transferring from prison. She said officials arranged for him to receive an update on his sons case and make telephonic contact.

Pastor said that never happened. He said the facility was overwhelmed with the transfer of immigrants from detention centers impacted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma and the official said she was too busy. He later again told immigration agents and consular staff that he wanted to return to Guatemala with his toddler.

Please, he begged. I want to go back to my country with my son.

In October, federal agents piled him into a van crammed with other migrants and drove them to the airstrip to board the government plane.

Where is my son? Pastor asked.

The agents shrugged. One made a call.

Your sons not going back today, he announced.

No one could tell him more.

Zamarripa, the spokeswoman, said Pastors son was in federal foster care at the time and represented by a pro bono attorney.

*

According to ICE policy, officials should to the extent practicable allow detained parents to make arrangements for their children before they are deported, including guardianship in the U.S. or travel documents to go home together.

But advocates say that once minors are deemed unaccompanied, they require certain legal and privacy protections and have their own potential asylum cases. They land in federal shelters across the country often with little information on their parents. By the time advocates find parents, who are not told where their children are until their relationship is established, they have already sometimes been deported.

The steps to coordinating anything like this is mind-boggling, even if they have a system, said Brane with the refugee commission. But they dont.

Read more: ACLU challenges Trump administration practice of separating migrants and their children

Trump administration looking to military bases in Texas to house immigrant children

JERRY LARA / San Antonio Express-News

Even supporters of the hard-line policy say parents and children should be kept geographically close after they have been separated and allowed contact, said Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, a think tank supporting reduced immigration. The government must ensure they are deported together if the parent wants that.

Its just unconscionable not to reunite the families when the parent is removed, Vaughan said. They need to develop a system that allows them to keep track of these individuals so they can be reunited efficiently and promptly.

Once Pastor landed in Guatemala, he begged the consulate for help. He made dozens of calls to the U.S. Two months after returning home and four months after the last time he saw his toddler, a social worker reached him at the end of November.

A Harlingen immigration judge ordered the child returned to Guatemala on or before Jan. 2, the day before his second birthday. The father was elated to pick him up at the airport.

I didnt know if I would see him again, Pastor said.

lomi.kriel@chron.com

twitter.com/lomikriel


Ellen Ochoa walked purposely across Johnson Space Centers campus, the unusually sunny day as bright and cheerful as her coral blazer.

After 30 years at NASA, the veteran astronaut could make the walk to mission control with her eyes closed. But that day, the walk was momentous and somewhat final.

She was about to watch her last space launch as a battle-tested member of NASA; two U.S. astronauts were rocketed from Khazakstan to the International Space Station. In January, she had quietly announced to colleagues her plan to retire May 25 as leader of Johnson, the agencys human space flight hub that employs 10,000 civil servant and contract employees.

The day, understandably, was bittersweet.

Its hard to leave the mission and its hard to leave the people, she said. Its hard, absolutely.

Ochoa, now 60, has spent the last five years leading the Houston center  only the second woman and first Hispanic to do so. Friday marked the last day of her trail-blazing career with the space agency.

The California native joined NASA in the late 1980s at the dawn of the Space Shuttle program, a time when space flight opened up to people of different backgrounds, ethnicities and gender. By 1993, she was the first Latina to go to space. She flew four times in her astronaut career, logging almost 1,000 hours in space.

Ochoa is in the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame, has six schools named after her  in California, Oklahoma, Washington and Texas  and has become an outspoken advocate for girls entering science, engineering, technology and math (STEM) fields. Shes also a classical flautist.

Those who worked alongside her describe her as a good role model for women, someone who is smart, driven and compassionate yet who was focused on the NASA team and its goal of human exploration.

She focuses on the people and cares about the team, said Melanie Saunders, the centers acting deputy director who has worked with Ochoa for more than a decade. Shes spent a lot of time in her tenure focusing on inclusion and innovation and how we can use employee engagement to drive the advancement of human exploration in space.

But after three decades, Ochoa is ready to take a breather. She and her husband, Coe Miles, are moving to Boise, Idaho  a place theyve visited often and fallen in love with.

She has been replaced by Mark Geyer, an Indiana native with NASA for about 28 years. He spent several years at Johnson, including two as Ochoas deputy director.

Though Ochoa is ready for a change, she admits its a tough time in history to leave, just as the Trump administration has renewed the nations push for human exploration to the moon and beyond.

Its hard to leave the people and the mission and I think that always makes it difficult to determine when is the right time, Ochoa said. Obviously were in the middle of some important developments  but for me this is just a logical sort of transition year  Its a good time to try new things.

A viable goal

Ochoa first considered astronaut a seemingly viable career path on April 12, 1981, the day the first space shuttle launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla.

The start of the shuttle program was a big event for the 22-year-old budding scientist who was pursuing a graduate degree in electrical engineering at Stanford University. For the first time since President John F. Kennedys famous moonshot speech in 1962, women and minorities had a chance to join the exclusive astronaut corps.

NASA was trying to get a broader mix of people across all fields because of everything they were doing, Ochoa said. The design and mission of shuttle pushed NASA to be more inclusive.

Seven years later in 1988, the Shuttle program was going strong when Ochoa walked into NASAs California-based Ames Research Center as a research engineer. Through the program, NASA had sent the first American woman, Sally Ride, into space in 1983, followed by the first African-American, Guion Bluford, later that year. Astronauts aboard had deployed and rescued numerous satellites and conducted countless scientific studies on orbit.

The space agency had also recovered from heartbreak. In 1986, all seven crew members on the Space Shuttle Challenger were killed 73 seconds after lift off. It was the first major astronaut accident since 1967, when all three Apollo 1 astronauts were killed on the launchpad after fire erupted inside the cabin.

Ask why she dreamed of being an astronaut, and she looks incredulous. Who wouldnt want to?

Ochoa tried to join NASA as an astronaut three years before Ames hired her on as a research engineer in 1988. She first applied in 1985 but didnt make the cut. She tried again in 1987 and made it to the interview round, one of just 120 people nationwide to do so. She didnt make the cut that year, either.

Michael Coats, who would later tap Ochoa as his deputy after he became the Johnson Space Center director in 2005, remembers her interview vividly.

She impressed all of us with her obvious smarts, Coats said. She was quick on the draw but she also impressed us with her poise under pressure.

Iconic photo

Standing in socked feet on the aft flight deck of the Space Shuttle Discovery, Ochoa holds a flute to her lips and begins to play.

Zero gravity causes her brown hair to float wildly around her young face. Manuals and other odds and ends hang suspended in the air around her. She tucks her feet into straps on the floor to keep herself upright. The 1993 photo is from Ochoas first trip to space, freezing in time the moment when her two worlds collided.

Ochoa, a classical flautist, once dreamed of pursuing music in college. Back then, she never would have dreamed of playing her beloved flute thousands of miles above Earth.

Yet there she was, flute in hand, as she became the first Latina in space.

During that nine-day mission, she and her crewmates conducted studies to better understand the effect of solar activity on the Earths climate and environment. She also operated a robotic arm that captured and deployed a satellite studying the outermost part of the Suns atmosphere.

Over the next decade, Ochoa flew on shuttle missions three more times. By the end of her last flight in 2002, she had logged almost 1,000 hours in orbit.

I loved the opportunity to be in space but to me it wasnt just about being in space, she said. It was about being part of a team. It was about we have a goal to accomplish, about scientific discovery, about learning what humans can do in space, about bringing value to country.

Ochoa quit flying but transitioned into several different roles on the ground. She worked in the astronaut office where staff oversee everything related to astronaut training and operations. She also worked on the mission control room floor and was director of Flight Crew Operations.

Saunders first started working with the veteran astronaut when she was director of flight crew operations, a position that made her responsible not only for all the astronauts but also flight operations out of Ellington Field. Ellington is the heart of Johnsons flying operations where astronauts are trained for spaceflight.

Ochoa is smart, always well prepared, calm and has a knack for getting right to the heart of the issue, Saunders said. She can see solutions other people eventually get to but dont see as quickly and she can identify the core problem and begin to find approaches to resolve it.

Coats, who retired as center director in 2012, lists the same attributes when describing why he chose Ochoa to serve as his deputy director in 2007.

I was very, very impressed again by not only her technical skills, which are outstanding, but her management skills as well, Coats said. I think shes done a terrific job over the last five years. I hate to see her leave. Im proud of her.

The last mission

The viewing room above mission control was standing-room-only in March when Ochoa walked in, various televisions playing live feeds of the imminent launch to the International Space Station.

As she reached the front of the room, the missions pin displayed prominently on her lapel, the crowd of family and friends of the two U.S. astronauts immediately quieted. This was the woman responsible for keeping their boys safe.

Ochoa told them of the importance of what their loved ones were doing  how their work on the space station would help future astronauts get to Mars and how hard Johnson personnel have worked to make sure both the astronauts and the space station were safe.

Were watching over the station systems and crew day-in and day-out, Ochoa told the group.

Its that constant compassion and attention to detail that made Ochoa one of the best center directors that Herb Baker, who retired last year from NASA, worked with in his 42 years with the agency.

Shes very accessible and shes very smart  no surprises there, he said, and she cared deeply about the people who worked out there.

What the future holds

Ochoa took over as center director at Johnson during a time of uncertainty for the space agency. Three years prior in 2010, President Barack Obama ended NASAs Constellation Program, a brainchild of the George W. Bush administration to send astronauts back to the moon as a stepping stone for Mars. Saying the program was too costly and inefficient, the Obama administration instead aimed to get astronauts to an asteroid by 2025 and then near Mars by the 2030s.

Still, Ochoa made sure flights to the space station went smoothly and that astronauts were prepared for space. She oversaw all the research and development at Johnson, including work on the Orion spacecraft built to eventually take humans to Mars.

Since President Donald Trump took office, theres been a shift back toward Bushs initial vision of going back to the moon, then Mars. Trumps $19.9 billion proposed budget for the next fiscal year tasks NASA with launching an Orion flight with no crew by 2021, followed by a launch of Americans around the moon in 2023.

It also calls for NASA to build a $2.7 billion Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway, which would act as a mini-space station orbiting the moon, by 2023. Once built, crews could live and work there for 30 to 60 days at a time and it also serve as a stop-over for astronauts traveling deeper into space.

To me, Im really excited, Ochoa said of the future of NASA. Theres more of a focus on working to get to the moon than there was in the previous administration.

So, its not an ideal time to leave NASA  but there never will be, Ochoa said.

Ochoa and her husband already have purchased a home in the heart of Boise, an idyllic town surrounded by foothills. Shes keeping her options open for the future.

For now, shell continue serving on several boards, including the National Science Board, and shell continue speaking out about women and minorities in STEM and leadership. But she plans to keep tabs on NASA.

I already told them, she said, to make sure they invite me back for all the launches.

alex.stuckey@chron.com
Holt and Trump Saturday night. Photo: Pool/Getty Images

Joshua Holt, an American who had been held in a Venezuelan prison for more than two years, was released to the United States on Saturday, and soon after met with President Trump in the Oval Office.

As the two posed for photos, surrounded by Holts family and several other lawmakers, Trump told Holt, Youve gone through a lot. More than most people could endure.

He also hinted that more hostages held in other countries would be released soon, saying we have some others coming.

Holt, a 26-year-old Utahn, had traveled to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a woman he had met online. In June of that year, he was arrested by the government, which accused him  with the help of planted evidence, observers say  of stockpiling weapons as part of an American effort to topple the government of President Nicolas Maduro. Holt was held in a notorious Caracas prison, and was expected to go on trial in the coming months. He recently appeared in a secretly shot video in which he begged for help from the U.S. government, and claimed his life was being threatened.

Holts imprisonment had drawn the attention of multiple U.S. senators. Utah Senator Orrin Hatch had been working to secure his release since 2016, in negotiations that involved President Obama and Maduros administration.

BREAKING: Senator Hatch has secured the release of Utahn Josh Holt from Venezuela. #utpol pic.twitter.com/q9bPIVHgmk  Senator Hatch Office (@senorrinhatch) May 26, 2018

The diplomatic coup de grace came when Tennessee Senator Bob Corker made a surprise trip to Venezuela this week, where he shook hands with Maduro and apparently secured Holts release.

Last week, Maduro won a second term as president, despite the economic catastrophe he has presided over, in a vote that was labeled rigged by independent observers. The U.S. promptly slapped new sanctions on the country, and Maduro expelled the top two American diplomats in Venezuela as payback. President Trump has previously dangled the threat of military force against Venezuela.

Saturdays release may signal a softer approach, at least temporarily. In the Holt transaction, both sides appear to have gotten what they want: the release of the prisoner for the U.S., and the appearance of legitimacy for Maduro.

In a statement, the Holt family said, We thank you for your collaboration during this time of anguish. We ask that you allow us to meet with our son and his wife before giving any interviews and statements. We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle.
by Blaine Blontz | Rangers Correspondent | Sun, May 27th 6:27am EDT

Jordan Lyles allowed five runs on seven hits and four walks in 4 2/3 innings on Saturday. He struck out four in the no-decision.

Fantasy Impact:

After turning in a pair of solid outings, Lyles has allowed nine runs over his last 10 1/3 innings. He only walked two batters in his last two starts, but that number has gone up to six over his last two appearances. He has some intrigue, but he's nothing more than a streaming option at this point.
Farmers in Northern Ireland have highlighted the importance of animal transport and reiterated that there must be no ban on live exports from the UK.

The Ulster Farmers Union (UFU) has outlined the importance of animal transport to the Northern Ireland livestock industry in recent months.

The live export of cattle and sheep forms an integral part of the Northern Ireland livestock sector, injecting in excess of 70 million into local farm businesses per year.

Over 50,000 cattle and 500,000 sheep are exported live annually for further production or slaughter in other regions of the United Kingdom and to EU Member States such as the Republic of Ireland and Spain.

The UFU has highlighted that welfare during transport is already taken very seriously, both for the reputation and the quality of diverse products in Northern Ireland.

In Northern Ireland the Welfare of Animals (Transport) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006, implemented the Council Regulation (EB) No1/2005 and the regulations are already operative.

UFU deputy president, David Brown said these regulations already provide stringent and accountable regulation for the welfare of animals during transport.

We do not believe there are any issues or deficiencies in the current regulations. It is important that animal welfare regulation is supported by sound science and not perception or assumption.

The existing welfare regulations for the transport of animals are supported by science and at this stage we do not believe there is evidence to merit improving the existing regulations, Mr Brown added.

'Decline considerably'

The comments by the farming union follow Defras call for evidence on controlling live exports for slaughter and improving animal welfare during transport after the UK leaves the EU.

The main species for farmed animals which are exported live from the UK are cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry.

The UFU deputy president continued: If there was no competition for these animals from exports, the value of these animals would decline considerably and this would adversely impact farm income.

Mr Brown said the price disparities continue to be clearly evident between Northern Ireland and higher value markets in Great Britain where a better price is paid for livestock.

The deputy president added: It is essential that farmers have access to these markets to avail of better prices. Furthermore, Northern Ireland has an excellent reputation for breeding high quality breeding livestock and these animals have been exported to a wide range of countries across the European Union.

The fact that the vast majority of this trade is with the Republic of Ireland and Spain demonstrates how essential it will be post-Brexit to maintain competitive, un-interrupted free trade with the EU.
How could Michael Cohen have known what would befall him? Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

We thought that President Trump had exhausted every angle to attack Robert Muellers investigation into Russias 2016 election meddling. He has accepted Vladimir Putins innocent plea; pretended that the probe is staffed only by Democrats in an effort to prove its partisan bias; accused Hillary Clinton of being the real colluder; and, most recently, tried to make Spygate happen.

But one tactic he hadnt attempted until Sunday: painting the many people in his administration who have cultivated shady ties with Russia as a bunch of guileless greenhorns whose dreams of making America great again were stomped out by a ruthless special counsel:

Whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt? They journeyed down to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes and wanting to help our nation...They went back home in tatters!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2018

At first blush, this line of thinking seems farcical. But maybe Trump has a point here. Because when you actually take a look  a long, hard look  at some of the men caught up in the Russia probe, their good-heartedness really comes through and you begin to understand the real damage Mueller has wrought on a group of innocent dreamers. Their only crime, other than actual crimes, was to believe they could make a difference:

Paul Manafort was a loyal American friend to leaders around the world before Mueller had to start snooping. If he laundered money, it was only because he wanted those dollars to be clean. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Sure, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy against the United States, but at heart Rick Gates is an idealist. Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Mike Flynn is a true American patriot who wanted to kidnap a Turkish cleric for the love of his country. Photo: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images

The only dirty trick Roger Stone ever pulled was being too virtuous. Photo: CARL JUSTE/TNS via Getty Images

Jared Kushner just wants peace in the Middle East, nothing more. Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post/Getty Images

All Michael Cohen wanted to fix was Americas heart-wrenching antitrust anxieties and lack of investment opportunities for foreigners. Who will continue his mission to end poverty for U.S. porn stars? Photo: Yana Paskova/Getty Images
New rural crime survey seeks to gain insight from farmers

It asks what farmers think of policing in their area
Priyanka Chopra was recently in the news for attending her good friend and now Her Highness Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markles wedding with His Highness Duke of Sussex, Prince Harry. The actress then went on to visit Bangladesh and meet displaced Rohingyas as part of being the goodwill ambassador of UNICEF. Priyanka is no longer just associated with Bollywood. She has now become a global icon. However, her beginning will always be associated with Bollywood. So while talking about her initial days in the industry, Priyanka told a leading daily, When I entered Bollywood, everyone was somebodys uncle or somebodys daughter. Its very difficult to get inside a production office if you are an actor from no film background.The self-made woman further added, When I joined films, I was already a winner of a beauty pageant and still had it a little easy. I got my first few films but I know that I was thrown out of the films because somebody else was recommended, who was somebodys daughter. I didnt know people, ki main dinners pe jaa rahi hoon and networking kar rahi hoon. I know that opportunities came to me because of merit. I know that opportunities were also taken from me because of these reasons.It has been a long journey for Priyanka from the time she entered Bollywood till today where scripts are written especially keeping her in mind. Kudos to you girl!
Kapil Had Promised That He Will Be Back With A Bang!

Because of the controversies and Kapil's ill-health, his new show, Family Time With Kapil Sharma on Sony TV went off air. The actor-comedian had also promised that he will return with a bang after a break!

Bharti Singh Hopes For Kapils Return

Many actors had supported Kapil at his difficult time and are waiting (along with his fans) for his return. Kapil's ex-colleague, Bharti Singh, is also amongst them, who is hoping for Kapil's return.

Kapil Is Like A Lion Who Will Roar Back Again

Bharti was quoted by TOI as saying, "Kapil is like a lion who will roar back again. I am eagerly waiting for his comeback. He is like a teacher to me. I always pray for him and will be very happy to see him making a comeback."

Kapil Is The Only Comedy King!

The comedienne further added, "I want to tell Kapil bhai please return soon and show the world that there is only one Comedy King and that is you."

Bharti Wants To Work With Kapil & Krushna

When asked as to with which comedian she will love to share a stage with for the upcoming projects, she told the leading daily, "I would love to work again with Kapil Sharma and Krushna Abhishek both."

No Trust Lost Between Sony TV & Kapil!

It has to be recalled that recently, even Sony TV had lent its support to Kapil. The channel's EVP and Business Head, Danish Khan revealed that no trust is lost between Sony TV and Kapil Sharma.

Sony Will Be More Than Happy To Associate With Kapil

Danish was quoted by IE as saying, "Kapil will always remain a premium talent for Sony and we completely believe in Kapil and his competence. The day he is physically and mentally fit and ready to drive a show, Sony will be more than happy to associate with him."
Pooja Makes Shocking Revelations

Pooja told BT, "Sharad started acting weird around six months ago, when he suddenly became inattentive and disinterested. However, I assumed that it was because of stress at work; I couldn't fathom that he was planning to end the relationship."

Was Sharad Malhotra Cheating On Pooja Bisht?

"Around two months ago, I got to know that he was meeting a girl on the pretext of professional collaboration. He told me that his manager had fixed a meeting with her, but they had actually connected on Instagram."

Pooja Reveals

She further added, "Even then, I didn't suspect anything amiss. I have never interfered in his work and so, there wasn't any reason for him to lie to me."

Sharad Wanted To End Their Relationship At The Behest Of His Mother & Astrologer

"On the day of break-up, he told me that he didn't feel any connection with me. He also told me that two months ago, his astrologer had advised him against being with me, saying that it is detrimental for him. He wanted to end our relationship at the behest of his mother and the astrologer. I was aghast that he kept me in the dark for two months."

Kasam Actor Wanted To Marry Pooja!

Pooja also reveals that Sharad had spoken about marriage a month ago, "Despite being warned against it, he told me that he still wanted to marry me. Looking back, I realise that his stance on marriage would change every six months."

Sharad Had Even Talked About Their Marriage To Poojas Mother

"During the initial phase of our relationship, he had told my mother that he wanted to marry me, but after that, he never called her up. We have had our share of fights, but he would always come back promising to make things work."

Sharad Denies Cheating On Pooja

Sharad on the other hand, accepts that he had personal issues from his end and astrology was a reason. He also accepts that he is marriage phobic and that's the reason he stepped back! But denied third party was involvement (cheating) in their break-up.

The Actor Is Marriage-phobic!

He was quoted by BT as saying, "I told Pooja's mother that I would love to settle down in the future. But being marriage-phobic, I stepped back. That was wrong on my part, I accept it. Things don't always turn out the way you want; it's not always possible to judge situations. I didn't want to hurt anyone, but unfortunately, the matter went out of my hands."

My Mom Told Me That The Marriage Could Be Bad For Both Of Us

Regarding astrology, the actor says, "My mother consulted the astrologer again 10 days ago, and that's when we realised that there is no solution to the issues in our charts. My mom told me that the marriage could be bad for both of us. Yes, it was a mistake that I didn't tell her for two-and-a-half months, but I wanted to be sure before I broke the news to her."

The Actor Denies Dating Other Girl

Sharad denied that a third party was involved (dating other girl) in their break-up, "That is not the reason at all. Irrespective of whoever I meet, there is no third party involved."

Pooja Deletes Hers & Sharad's Pictures; Sharad On A Family Vacation

Apparently, Pooja has deleted all pictures of hers and Sharad on her social media account. Also, according to Bollywoodlife report, Sharad has left for London along with his family for a vacation.

The source reveals to the website, "The trip was planned since a long time and it is the ideal getaway for him. He loves London and this trip will be a blessing for him after his split."

Sharad & Divyanka

Well, this is not the first time Sharad had been accused of cheating. It has to be recalled that the actor was in relationship with Divyanka Tripathi. There were rumours that Divyanka reportedly came to know of Sharad's fling with his Maharana Pratap co-star, Rachna Parulkar, which led to their break-up!
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / May 27, 2018 / In the year 2016, the California Legislature came up with a bill allowing homeowners to build accessory dwelling units. Else, referred to as the granny flats. Three-quarter of the state's voters are homeowners. Homeowners do not want to see more housing as compared to the renters. Approximately 50 percent of homeowners supported the construction of the new accommodations in the community as compared to the 70 percent of renters in the Public Policy Institute of California Survey. On a more precise question in support of the changing environmental regulation and local permitting process to make housing more affordable, half the number of the homeowners were in favor while more than 70 percent of the renters did support the bill. Therefore, to manage to add more housing in expensive cities is through policies that favor the interest of the homeowners.

In the year 2016, California Legislature bought a law requiring the homeowners to build ADUs or granny flats, garage apartments, and guest houses in their residential areas. The structures should meet some particular requirements like height limits. The arrangements can be advantageous in such manner by providing space for caregivers or relatives, rental income, or a place the aging homeowners can live while renting the bigger house. The constructions can increase the value of your home, or it can provide a livelihood after retirement. A research conducted on the ADUs settlement shows that most rentals rented below the market-price are because some relatives rented or the tenants were friends to the homeowners, explains Neil Shekhter, Chief Executive Officer of NMS Properties.

The market for the structures shoots above average for the last short period with the building permits for ADUs in California going up to more than 4,352 according to the Irvine-based real estate data company. Therefore, many homeowners are seeing the necessity to build ADUs as a way to attract some more rental income by giving out their primary dwelling. The demand for the constructions goes even higher by time in the small and large cities with Los Angeles recording more than 1,684 in 2017; two times more than the last two years combined. San Francisco pioneered in issuing of the ADUs permits throughout the city in the year 2016. However, the cities cannot control on how homeowners should make use of the extensions. The whole idea for the ADUs is to increase the flexibility as life evolves.

Apart from restricting how the ADUs get constructed, the cities should also find a way to limit the use of the structures. Homeowners respect the ability to use the constructions flexibly. For instance, an ADU can get rented to a stranger today, houses an aging person tomorrow, and it houses a visitor out of town for a night the next day. Allowing homeowners convert a garage into apartments helps to increase the housing supply in a city that requires more housing units. If every homeowner would have an ADU, it increases the number of housing facilities twice. Although the ADUs are still facing other restrictions, letting millions of homeowners to build the constructions make them potential developers creating a region of the new housing, according to Neil Shekhter.

Find out what you may have missed - and what you should expect - with the roundup of real estate marketing news below.

The Los Angeles Condo Market Continues to Heat Up LA' Office Market Slowed Down at The End of Last Year with Increased Vacancy Neil Shekhter - Will Co-Living Take Off in Los Angeles? The Los Angeles Condo Market Continues to Heat Up Neil- Shekhter -How Reviews Can Improve Operations and Marketing Is it better to buy or rent in Los Angeles? A Growing Number Of Americans Are Embracing Life With Roommates - Neil Shekhter Neil Shekhter on Emerging Trends in the NYC Real Estate Market

NMS has offered quality rentals in the Los Angeles area for nearly three decades. Since 1988, NMS has developed and managed a large portfolio of premier apartment buildings and commercial properties in Santa Monica, West Los Angeles, Brentwood and the San Fernando Valley

https://www.crunchbase.com/person/neil-shekhter

https://www.levo.com/neil-shekhter

https://twitter.com/neilshekhter1

https://angel.co/neil-shekhter-1

https://www.nmsapartments.com/neil-shekhter





SOURCE: NMS Properties, Inc.
Hyderabad's Income Tax Officer (Hq-Tech) and the Central PIO, K. Srinivas Rao has replied that the PR-CCIT (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Hyderabad) had piled up consolidated arrears of Rs 1644.78 crore as of 2017-2018, which it had 'completely written off'.

Mumbai: Apparently failing to recover massive tax dues from various corporate tax-payers in the country, the Income Tax Department (ITD) has now started "writing off" thousands of crores of tax arrears by such defaulters, according to RTI replies.

This, despite the fact that the ITD is sitting on a pile of Rs 50,000 crore of tax arrears all over India, according to available figures, with the highest  Rs 33,157.97 crore  due in Pune, Maharashtra, alone.

The revelation has come from several replies given by I-T offices under various principal chief commissionerates of Income Tax (PR-CCIT) to RTI activist Chandra Shekhar Gaur, based in Neemuch, Madhya Pradesh.

When contacted, a top official of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), New Delhi, admitted that there were certain provisions by which tax dues may be written off in certain cases.

"However, the tax-payers' liability does not get extinguished even if it is written off for the time being. When we learn that the party's financial situation has changed, we immediately initiate recovery proceedings as per law," the CBDT official, who requested anonymity, told IANS.

The official said the procedure (to write-off) was very long-winded, time-consuming and goes through various levels, depending on the amount and required clearances from different authorities.

At least two PR-CCITs  Hyderabad and Pune  having huge tax arrears, have admitted to 'write-offs' of unpaid taxes, Gaur told IANS.

Pune's Deputy Commissioner of I-T (Hq-Admin) and the Central PIO, Harshit Bari said that the PR-CCIT here had notched up Rs 33,157.97 crores as arrears pertaining to Direct Taxes.

Against this, it had also written off a wee amount of Rs Rs 12.57 Lakhs, but the period for the waiver or the names of the beneficiaries are not specified.

Hyderabad's Income Tax Officer (Hq-Tech) and the Central PIO, K. Srinivas Rao has replied that the PR-CCIT (Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Hyderabad) had piled up consolidated arrears of Rs 1644.78 crore as of 2017-2018, which it had "completely written off".

Additionally, it had written off an amount of Rs 1,357.42 crore for the previous fiscal 2016-2017 - thus, totaling to Rs 3,002.20 crore for only two years.

Experts say that PR-CCIT Hyderabad replies indicate it is barely making efforts to recover its massive dues/arrears and has apparently written off the entire amount to be recovered from the tax-payers in the past two years alone.

In Chandigarh, the Jt. CIT (OSD) has admitted arrears of Rs 70.93 crore and Ward 4(2) has shows recoverables of Rs 10.31 crores. But a single Ward No. 3(4) of ITO, Amritsar has notched up Rs 2,369.81 crores as arrears.

The DCIT Circle-7, Ludhiana has unrecovered arrears of Rs 69.57 crore while ITO Ward 2(1) shows dues of Rs 5.60 crore. DCIT Circle (2) Bathinda has dues of Rs 58.34 crore.

The PR-CCIT Rajasthan has piled up Rs 6,419.57 crores. Additionally, it said it had to recover penalties of Rs 1,202 crore and Interest of Rs 1,618 crore.

The PR-CCIT, Tamil Nadu & Puducherry, has arrears of Rs 3,553.09 crores due from defaulters. It has also gone a step further to provide a published list of 24 top defaulters from that region.

In Chhattisgarh, the DCIT (Central-1) has arrears of Rs.133.81 crore while the ACIT (Central-2) has an unrecovered pile of Rs 3,298 crore.

Gujarat's Gandhidham ITO Ward-1 has dues of Rs 261.23 crore and ITO Ward 1(3)(2) has Rs 17.19 crore dues. ACIT has Rs 217.90 crore due from defaulters.

In Surat, Addl.CIT Range 2(1) has dues of Rs 140.56 crore and Valsad Ward 3 has Rs 7.13 crore as recoverables.

Mumbai's ITO 20(3)(2) at Parel has revealed a small figure of Rs 1.01 crore and ITO 20(3)(5) Rs 1.03 crore as recoverable. DCIT Central Circle 2(2) has admitted to Rs 716.62 crore arrears while ITO Ward 11(3)(3) has Rs 12.40 crore dues.

In Madhya Pradesh's Bhopal ITO 5(2) has arrears of Rs 20.50 crore and the Jabalpur IT0 Ward 2(3) has dues of Rs 14.62 crore.

"These figures are a matter of concern. The IT department has notched up over Rs 50,000 crore as arrears but failed to recover most of it. Pune and Hyderabad I-T have even gone ahead to 'write off' an amount of Rs 3012.13 crore between them," the expert pointed out.

He said like the current trend among banks, even the ITD seems to be in a "forgiving mood" for defaulters who don't cough out taxes, while the honest small tax-payers and the service classes with tax deduction at source (TDS) continue to pay up without fail, or face the music.

Mumbai's tax-consultant and Chartered Accountant Poneet Gupta said that arrears may be written off when the assessee is untraceable or bankrupt, but there is no procedure under the IT Act to "write off" arrears.

"Under the General Financial Rules, 1963, powers to sanction write-off of the revenue have been delegated by the centre to the I-T authorities based on the amount (of write-off) and seniority of the officer," Gupta told IANS.

Meanwhile, an email with specific queries on the issue and reminders to CBDT on May 16 by IANS remains unanswered.

Experts describe direct taxes as the veritable "bread-butter of the economy". Last year (2017-2018), the total collection stood at around Rs 10 Lakh crore.
The results of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class 12th, which were declared on Saturday, will likely lead to a rise in competition for admission to Delhi University.

With an increase in the number of students scoring above 90 percent as well as 95 percent marks in the recently declared Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Class 12th results, the competition for admission into Delhi's top colleges as well in other top-ranking colleges across India is likely to increase, thus pushing up the cut-off marks.

According to the board officials, a total of 12,737 candidates scored 95 percent or above in the exams, whereas 72,599 candidates scored 90 percent and above. The CBSE results are taken into consideration while setting the cut-off marks for Delhi University colleges. In 2017, 10,091 students from across the country scored 95 percent or more and 63,247 got over 90 percent.

"The Delhi University cutoffs are decided by colleges based on the number of applications received and also on the scores of these applicants. If the number of students with 95 percent and above has increased then colleges will keep a higher cutoff," a Delhi University official was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

Hansraj College principal Rama Sharma also said that they are expecting a spike in the first-cut off, but added that they can only say for sure after analysing the data, according to The Indian Express.

The report further said that the competition is likely to be even tougher in the humanities stream because the two toppers of Class 12th are from this stream. Meghna Srivastava, a student of Step By Step School in Noida, topped the exam getting 99.8 percent.

The second position was bagged by another girl, Anoushka Chandra, also a humanities stream student from a school in Ghaziabad. She got 498 marks out of 500.

A Delhi University official said that cutoffs are kept high to avoid over admission. He told Hindustan Times, "We send colleges the number of applicants at every 0.25 percentage points difference so that they have a rough idea of how many students can turn up for admission. The cutoffs are kept at the higher end so that there is no over admission," the official said.

The university has already begun the online registration for admission to undergraduate courses. The first cut-off for merit-based courses is expected to be out by 19 June, 2018. The university may make changes to the schedule later.

That a large number of students scored high marks in 2018 CBSE results as compared to 2017, besides, DU, admission to graduate programmes in several other top universities such as University of Mumbai, Banaras Hindu University, University of Calcutta, Jamia Millia Islamia, Ambedkar University, Panjab University as well as other top colleges like St Xavier's College (Autonomous) in Mumbai, which usually see a very high cut-off marks, could also get tougher.

With inputs from PTI
The Congress's Jammu and Kashmir unit on Sunday asked the Central government to explain why it has offered talks with separatists now, while rejecting a dialogue for three years when all mainstream political parties demanded it.

Jammu: The Congress's Jammu and Kashmir unit on Sunday asked the Central government to explain why it has offered talks with separatists now, while rejecting a dialogue for three years when all mainstream political parties demanded it.

"When all mainstream parties in the state sought a dialogue with all stakeholders including the separatists three years ago, the Central government had rejected the proposal asserting that terror and talks cannot go on side by side," state Congress president GA Mir told journalists in Jammu.

"After rejecting the proposal when all of us sought a dialogue three years ago, the Central government must explain the reason that has caused its change of heart now," he said, adding that had the Central government taken this step three years ago, things would have been different in Kashmir today.

Mir also said it needs to be watched as to how much support the offer made by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

He also demanded the government spell out whether the preconditions set for such a dialogue by the Central government in the past stand today as well or does the offer include unconditional talks between the two sides.
19 CRPF personnel were injured early this morning when their vehicle met with an accident, police said.

Srinagar: 19 CRPF personnel were injured early this morning when their vehicle met with an accident, police said.

A CRPF vehicle turned turtle after its driver lost control near the Bemina headquarter of the paramilitary force, a police official said.

He said 21 personnel were on board the vehicle which was part of a three-vehicle convoy.

19 CRPF personnel have received injuries. The injured were taken to JVC Hospital nearby where from seven of them were shifted to the Army's Base Hospital. One of the CRPF personnel is critical as he has received injury in the spinal cord and is being shifted to New Delhi for specialised treatment, the official said.

He said the incident took place around 5 am.

Further details are awaited, the official said.
Kumaraswamy, who will fly to Delhi on Monday morning, will visit Raj Ghat in the afternoon to pay tributes to Mahatma Gandhi.

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Monday evening, an official said on Sunday.

"Kumaraswamy will meet Modi in the Prime Minister's Office. It's a courtesy call," an official told IANS in Bengaluru.

This will be Kumaraswamy's first meeting with Modi after becoming chief minister of the Janata Dal (Secular) (JDS)-Congress coalition government on 23 May.

"It is customary for the new Chief Minister of any state to call on the Prime Minister, soon after assuming office, in our federal set up," the Chief Minister told reporters at an event in Bengaluru.

Kumaraswamy, who will fly to Delhi on Monday morning, will visit Raj Ghat in the afternoon to pay tributes to Mahatma Gandhi.

After meeting Modi, he will call on Union Coal Minister Piyush Goyal to seek adequate coal supplies for the thermal stations in the southern state for power generation.

Asked if he would meet Congress' central leaders to discuss ministry expansion, Kumaraswamy said it was unlikely as he has to return to Bengaluru by Monday night.

"Talks on Cabinet expansion will resume here with state Congress leaders on their return from Delhi, with the names of their legislators to be inducted in the ministry," said Kumaraswamy after paying homage to Jawaharlal Nehru on his 54th death anniversary.

As per the agreement between the alliance partners, the Congress will have 22 Cabinet posts, including Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, as it has 78 legislators while the JD(S) will keep 12, including the Chief Minister, as it has 36 lawmakers in the 222-member Assembly.

The JD(S) will finalise its list of members for the Cabinet posts in consultation with its supremo HD Deve Gowda.
National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) has extended an Olive branch by offering a six-month amnesty for its disconnected customers to get reconnected.

Through a campaign dubbed Come We Talk or Tangu Twogere, the water utility expects more than 30,000 customers to get back on the NWSC supply through this drive. It targets clients disconnected due to non-payment or illegal use of water for more than three months.

The campaign benefits include waiving reconnection fees, free meters and flexible arrears payment options as deemed by the customers.

Speaking at the launch of the campaign, NWSC managing director Dr Silver Mugisha said they want to use this campaign to increase access to safe water.

Currently, NWSC provides services to 235 towns, with an estimated 10 million customers on its network.

According to its five-year strategic plan, NWSC wants to achieve 100 percent coverage by 2021. In the last five years, the water utility has set off major infrastructure development and network expansion projects, with more than 1,000 kilometres of pipes laid per annum.

In a bid to match the growing demand for Kampala Water area, NWSC has done major refurbishments on the Ggaba water treatment plant to boost both its supply capacity from 120million to 240million litres per day.

Kampala Water covers parts of Mukono, Wakiso, Entebbe and Kampala metropolitan areas.

mugalu@observer.ug
The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) result for the Maharashtra Board HSC Class 12th was released on 30 May at 1 pm.

The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) result for the Maharashtra Board HSC Class 12th was released on 30 May at 1 pm.

The MSBSHSE put up the Maharashtra HSC Class 12th result on its official website mahresult.nic.in

The result is also available on result.mkcl.org, examresults.net, and results.gov.in

The examination was conducted between 21 February and 20 March through nine divisional boards, that are primarily located at Mumbai, Pune, Nasik, Aurangabad, Kolhapur, Latur, Nagpur, Amravati and Ratnagiri.

Around 14,85,132 students registered to appear for the exams conducted in 9,486 junior colleges and 2,822 centres across the state of Maharashtra, The Times of India reported.

Of the total students registered, 5,80,820 students were for Science, 4,79,863 students for Arts, 3,66,756 students for Commerce, and the 57,693 students for the vocational stream, according to The Free Press Journal.

In 2017 also, the Maharashtra Board had declared the result for Class 12th exam on 30 May.

Steps to check HSC 2018 exam results:

- Visit the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE)'s official website mahresult.nic.in

- Click on the link which says Maharashtra Board Class 12th Results OR Maharashtra HSC Result 2018

- Enter your roll number and other required details

- Download the MSBSHSE Maharashtra HSC Class 12th Results 2018 and take a print out for future reference

- Students can also request their Maharashtra Board Result 2018, Maharashtra HSC Result 2018 through SMS. To receive results via SMS, type MHHSC<space>SEAT NO and send it to 57766.

As has been observed over the course of the past few weeks, the dates and times of result announcements have been frequently changed around. The information above has not been independently verified. However, this article will continue to be updated to reflect official updates as and when they come in.
The construction of over 6,000 'farm pools' by cultivators to meet the irrigation demand in Maharashtra's drought-prone Yavatmal has set an example for other districts.

Mumbai: The construction of over 6,000 'farm pools' by cultivators to meet the irrigation demand in Maharashtra's drought-prone Yavatmal has set an example for other districts.

With the digging of these pools, around 6,000 hectares of land will get "protected irrigation", raising hopes of a better rabi crop, an official said.

A farm pool or pond is dug out to harvest rainwater and store it for future use.

Since the inception of the state government's ambitious 'farm pool on demand' scheme two years back, the farmers in this district, located in the Vidarbha region, have constructed 6,200 farm pools, the official said.

Agriculture is the principal occupation in Yavatmal, which had earlier been in news over a spate of farmer suicides.

The district is spread over an area of 13,51,966 hectares, of which 9,60,500 hectares is under crop production.

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said the rainfall in the state has decreased in the past few years, thus adversely affecting the crop production in dryland areas.

When the state government started the 'farm pool on demand' scheme in February 2016, a target of 4,500 farm pools was given to Yavatmal, he told PTI.

"The area under Rabi and summer crops shrunk sharply due to mere 66 percent of the average rainfall during the kharif season in 2017," he said.

The absorption of more rainwater under the ground was needed to help farmers in increasing the agricultural production. Thus, a proper co-ordination was maintained between revenue and agriculture departments for creating the farm pools, he said.

Meetings were organised at the tehsil level and officials explained the scheme's significance to farmers, Fadnavis said.

Since the subsidy amount under the scheme was to be credited to farmers' bank accounts, contractors were unwilling to work, district guardian minister Madan Yerawar said.

The Yavatmal administration then stepped in and brought about a coordination between farmers and machine-holders (to dig the pools), he said.

"We guaranteed that farmers will pay the bills to machine-holders after the money gets credited to their accounts. Hence, contractors also agreed to get involved in the work," said Yerawar, who is the Minister of State for Tourism.

However, executing the farm pool work in a scattered manner increased the expenditure due to unnecessary movement of machinery from one place to another.

"To overcome this difficulty, farmers were encouraged to create farm pools in a cluster manner," he said.

Yavatmal Collector Rajesh Deshmukh said 10,518 farmers in the district applied online for the scheme, and 8,355 applications were found to be technically eligible.

"Out of these, the construction of around 6,200 farm pools has been completed in about six months," he said.

"Due to the completion of these farm pools, 6,000 hectares of land will be covered under protected irrigation which will result in better rabi crop," the collector said.

The farmers who dig farm pools will be preferred for silk farming, he said, adding that they will also be extended benefits of the diesel engine and electric pumps.

The administration has been instructed to provide protected drip irrigation sets to farmers under the 'Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojna' (the Prime Minister's Agricultural Irrigation Scheme), Deshmukh added.
Major Leetul Gogoi is in fresh trouble as the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Srinagar on Saturday directed the police to submit a report.

Major Leetul Gogoi is in fresh trouble as the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) in Srinagar on Saturday directed the police to submit a report with respect to him being caught in a Srinagar hotel with a Kashmiri girl. An application was filed before the court alleging that he had the intention to 'carry out an immoral act' with her.

The CJM has directed that a status report should be filed by the police by 30 May in the case. The Station House Officer (SHO) of Khanyar police station has been directed to submit the report through the Chief Prosecution Officer (CPO).

Gogoi was caught with the girl and another army man, Sameer Ahmad Mala, from a Srinagar hotel. This was after the staff informed the police about an altercation which took place as they did not allow the girl to check into the hotel. The trio were detained for a while and later set free. Senior police officers have taken over the investigation of the case. Police officials said that Sameer was also posted in the armys Beerwah camp and lives in Khag. The girls family members said that both Sameer and Gogoi visited them before she was caught in a Srinagar hotel.

The order by the CJM came even as the army has ordered a Court of Inquiry (CoI) against Major Gogoi with respect to the misconduct which he resorted to while discharging the duties in Kashmir. The CoI will be carried out by a Colonel rank officer. A senior army official said that Major Gogoi is guilty of not keeping his seniors informed while moving from his operational jurisdiction in Beerwah in Budgam to Srinagar.

The CJM's directions were in response to an application moved by human rights activist and chairperson of International Forum for Justice and Human Rights (IFJHR), Mohammad Ahsan Untoo. The application has alleged that even as the police claims to have ordered a probe in the matter, it has tried to hush up the case.

The application has questioned why the police let off Major Gogoi and Sameer without following "due procedure of law."

On Friday, army chief Bipin Rawat promised exemplary punishment if Major Gogoi is found guilty of misconduct. A senior official said that army officers need to maintain a standard operating procedure (SOP) while carrying out duties in militancy affected areas. It was not admissible for the Major to meet the girl in the hotel, said a senior officer.

The CoI will look into the violation of Section 63 of the Army Act 1950, which states that a person who is guilty of any act or omission which is prejudicial to good order and military discipline shall, on conviction by court- martial, be liable to suffer imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years. The Act also specifies that an officer who behaves in a manner unbecoming his position and the character expected of him shall, on conviction by court martial, if he is an officer, be liable to be cashiered or to suffer such less punishment as is in this Act mentioned; and, if he is a junior commissioned officer or a warrant officer, be liable to be dismissed or to suffer such less punishment as is in this Act mentioned.

Advocate Tasveer Shujat, who represented Untoo, said that the application was moved under Section 156 (3) of Criminal Procedure Code (RPC). She said the application contends that the police should have taken the army officer into custody and a proper investigation should have been initiated, which was not done.

The police should have detained the army officer. Further, they should have registered an FIR in the case, she added.
On the occasion of his government's fourth anniversary, Modi had on Saturday launched a survey on his app, asking people to rate the performance of the BJP-led Centre

New Delhi: With the NDA dispensation completing four years in office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with beneficiaries of central schemes while BJP chief Amit Shah will lead a mass outreach programme on the government's achievements, the party said on Sunday.

Modi will interact with the beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjawala Yojna and the Mudra Yojna through video conference on Monday and Tuesday, a statement, issued by the BJP's media head Anil Baluni, said.

As part of the 'Sampark for Samarthan' (contact for support) drive, right from Shah downwards, every member of the BJP will contact at least 10 people, it said.

Shah would contact at least 50 people, the statement said.

On the occasion of his government's fourth anniversary, the prime minister had on Saturday launched a survey on his app, asking people to rate the performance of the BJP-led dispensation at the Centre and MPs and MLAs in their constituencies.

"It is your voice that counts! Tell me what you feel about the working of the central government, its initiatives and the development work in your constituency. Take part in this survey on the NaMo app," Modi had tweeted.

This was being done to gauge the people's views about the government, respective states and constituencies, according to official sources.

The survey assumes significance as the BJP prepares for the Lok Sabha polls, which are due in less than a year.

The Narendra Modi App has been a connectivity platform of choice for the prime minister who has often interacted with the people as well as his party's functionaries through it, the sources said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 kilometres of highways.

Baghpat: Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority for his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 kilometres of highways. Highways, railways, airways and I-ways have been the focus of the government, he said.

Highways construction has reached 27 kilometres a day from mere 12 kilometres a day during the Congress regime, while last year 10 crore people undertook air journeys, he said.

Modi was addressing a public rally after dedicating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) to the nation. The 135 km EPE has been built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore in 500 days.

He said that apart from Rs 5 lakh crore provision for Bharatmala for highways, a provision of Rs 14 lakh crore was made in the budget to strengthen agriculture related infrastructure.

He further said that during the Congress regime, optical fibre network was laid in only 59 gram panchayats, whereas the NDA within 4 years has laid the network in one lakh gram panchayats.

Modi said the government is sensitive to the plight of sugarcane farmers and adequate steps are being taken to provide proper prices for their crop.

While talking about social justice, Modi said his government is committed to the protection of Dalits and has constituted special courts for fast-track hearing of cases of atrocities.

He said that under the Yogi government, criminals in Uttar Pradesh are now surrendering themselves and pledging not to indulge in illegal acts. In the field of women empowerment, he said that toilets built under Swachh Bharat Mission, and LPG connections under Ujjwala Yojana are making the lives of women easier. He said that out of 13 crore loans given under Mudra Yojana, more than 75 percent have been given to women entrepreneurs.

About the Ganga cleaning programme, Modi said more than 200 projects worth Rs 21,000 crore for have been taken up.

Taking a jibe at Congress, Modi said it had betrayed people and played politics to create a crisis of confidence, whether related to EVMs or other critical issues.

In his about 50 minute-speech, the prime minister also mentioned the steps taken for Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Castes.

Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari said that the expressway will reduce 27 percent pollution and ease 41 percent traffic jams.

Gadkari said the Delhi-Meerut expressway will be completed by next March and reduce the travel time between the two cities to 40 minutes. A lot of traffic, outbound or non-destined for Delhi will be diverted, he has said, adding that at least 50,000 vehicles will be diverted.

The alignment of EPE starts near Kundli and passes through six parliamentary constituencies  Sonepat, Bagpat, Gaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Palwal.

Gadkari also announced that Delhi-Saharanpur Highway will be built on EPE pattern and foundation stone of the Rs 7,000 crore Dwarka Expressway will be launched soon by the prime minister.

Besides, he announced the Rs 45,000 crore Delhi-Mumbai project on a new alignment, which will save Rs 16,000 crore on land acquisition.

EPE is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting every 500 metre on both sides. It also showcases 36 national monuments and 40 fountains.

There are 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilo watt (4 MW).

The state-of-the-art road has auto challan system for over-speeding, as cameras will capture speed of vehicles besides having provisions of tolling only for the distance travelled. The expressway has an iconic toll plaza at the entry point on Kundli side besides digital art gallery.

It is also equipped with smart and intelligent highway traffic management system (HTMS) and video incident detection system (VIDS) and is environment-friendly with world-class safety features and smart/ interactive infrastructure.

The foundation stone of the greenfield project was laid by Modi on 5 November, 2015.

About 2.5 lakh trees have been planted alongside the expressways including transplant of 8-10 year old trees with drip irrigation system for plantation.

The fully access controlled six-lane expressway provides entry and exit designated interchanges only. It has 406 structures of which 4 are major bridges, 46 minor bridges, 3 flyovers, 7 inter-changes and 221 underpasses.

The Supreme Court on 10 May had directed the NHAI to throw open the Eastern Peripheral Expressway for the public by 31 May, asking why were they "waiting" for its inauguration by the prime minister.

The apex court had said if the 135-km expressway is not inaugurated on or before 31 May, it should be thrown open for the public to ease congestion.

The Eastern and the Western Peripheral Expressways were planned in 2006 following the apex court's order to build a ring road outside the national capital.

Before inaugurating EPE, the PM launched the 14 lane, access controlled, Phase-I of the Rs 5,000 crore Delhi-Meerut Expressway, stretching from Nizamuddin Bridge to Delhi-UP Border.

The 14 lane expressway stretches 8.716 km and has been completed in a record 18 months as against scheduled 30 months.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 27 May launched a scathing attack on Opposition Congress for spreading 'lies and rumours' on issues ranging from dilution of anti-Dalit atrocities law to farmer issues, saying people who are used to worshipping a family have started opposing the country in their zeal to oppose Modi.

Baghpat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 27 May launched a scathing attack on Opposition Congress for spreading "lies and rumours" on issues ranging from dilution of anti-Dalit atrocities law to farmer issues, saying people who are used to worshipping a family have started opposing the country in their zeal to oppose Modi.

Speaking at a public rally after inaugurating the Rs 11,000-crore Eastern Peripheral Expressway, he said the Congress was "openly" spreading lies for its narrow political gains.

"People used to worshipping one family cannot worship democracy," he said.

After losing elections, they are rattled. Modi ke virodh mein desh ka virodh karne lage hai (in opposing Modi, they have started opposing the country)," he said.

At the rally, which came a day before by-elections in neighbouring Kairana Lok Sabha constituency, he asked citizens to see who are the people on either side.

"On that side are the people for whom their family is the country. For me, my country is my family," he said.

He attacked the Congress for creating a crisis of confidence by pointing fingers at the Supreme Court, raising doubts on Election Commission and EVMs, eyeing with suspicion the Reserve Bank and its policies and questioning every agency that investigates their acts of omissions and commissions.

"Now they are also seeing the media as biased," he said.

The Opposition, he said, negates the valour of the army that conducted surgical strikes across the border and questions foreign dignitaries who praise India.

"People have seen how they are spreading lies over an order of the Supreme Court for their narrow political gains," Modi said, referring to an order of the apex court on the verdict on SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The verdict has been seen, by many, as a dilution of the Act and the government made special efforts to counter such a narrative, he said.

"They don't realise that their lies can create instability in the country," he said. "Be it the law for the prevention of atrocities against Dalits or the reservations for them, they have lied and spread rumours to mislead people."

Modi said a new lie that is being spread is about contract farming attracting 18 per cent Goods and Service Tax (GST). "I want to ask my farmer brothers not to pay any heed to such rumours."

He listed the steps taken by his government for Dalits welfare. "We have made the law on atrocities on Dalits more stringent," he said. "Special courts have been constituted for fast-track hearing of cases of Dalit atrocities."

"The government has constituted a commission for sub-categorisation of OBCs and promised to give reservation to most backward classes in educational institutions and government jobs in a time-bound manner", he said.

"The truth is that Congress and its allies either create obstacles or make fun of any work done for betterment of poor and Dalits," he said. "For them, development of the country is also a joke."

They think it is a joke when the government gives free cooking gas (LPG) connections to poor women or open bank accounts for poor.

"People who are used to worshipping a family for ages see work done for poor as a joke," he said.
Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority of his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 kilometre of highways.

Baghpat: Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority of his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 kilometre of highways.

Highways, railways, airways and I-ways have been the focus of the government he said. Highways construction has reached 27 kilometre a day from mere 12 kilometre a day during the Congress regime, while in 2017, 10 crore people undertook air journeys, he said.

Modi was addressing a public rally in Baghpat after dedicating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) to the nation. The 135 kilometre EPE has been built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore in 500 days.

He said that apart from Rs 5 lakh crore provision for Bharatmala for highways, a provision of Rs 14 lakh crore was made in the budget to strengthen agriculture related infrastructure.

The government is sensitive to the plight of sugarcane farmers and adequate steps are taken to provide proper prices for their crop, he said.

While talking about social justice, Modi said his government is committed to the protection of Dalits and has constituted special courts for fast-track hearing of cases of atrocities.

Lauding Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, he said criminals in Uttar Pradesh are now surrendering themselves and pledging not to indulge in illegal acts.

About the Ganga cleaning programme, Modi said more than 200 projects worth Rs 21,000 crore for have been taken up.

Taking a jibe at Congress, Modi said it had betrayed people for 70 years and played politics to create a crisis of confidence whether related to EVMs or other critical issues.

He said the Opposition was spreading rumours on farmer issues and asked people not to give credence to lies about farms being given on contract farming.

In his about 50-minute speech, he said all-round development work has been initiated.

Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said, the expressway will reduce 27 percent pollution and ease 41 percent traffic jam.

He said the highway was built in a record 500 days against 910 days time.

Gadkari said that the Delhi-Meerut Expressway will be completed by March 2019 and reduce the travel time between the two cities to 40 minutes from two-and-half hours at present.

A lot of traffic, outbound or non-destined for Delhi will be diverted, he has said, adding that at least 50,000 vehicles going to Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Uttrakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan will be diverted bringing down vehicular pollution.

The alignment of EPE starts near Kundli and passes through six parliamentary constituencies  Sonepat, Bagpat, Gaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Palwal.

Gadkari also announced that Delhi-Saharanpur Highway will be built on EPE pattern and foundation stone of the Rs 7,000 crore Dwarka Expressway will be laid soon by the prime minister.

Besides, he announced the Rs 45,000 crore Delhi-Mumbai project via Jaipur and Vadodara on a new alignment, which will save Rs 16,000 crore on land acquisition.

EPE is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting every 500 metre on both sides. It also showcases 36 national monuments and 40 fountains.

There are 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilo watt (4 MW).

The state-of-the-art road has auto challan system for over-speeding, as cameras will capture speed of vehicles besides having provisions of tolling only for the distance travelled. The expressway has an iconic toll plaza at the entry point on Kundli side besides digital art gallery.

It is also equipped with smart and intelligent highway traffic management system (HTMS) and video incident detection system (VIDS) and is environment-friendly with world-class safety features and smart/ interactive infrastructure.

The foundation stone of the greenfield project was laid by Modi on 5 November, 2015.

About 2.5 lakh trees have been planted alongside the expressways including transplant of 8-10 year old trees with drip irrigation system for plantation.

It has consumed 11 lakh tonne of cement, 1 lakh tonne of steel, 3.6 crore cum earthwork and 1.2 crore cum fly-ash. Gadkari has said earlier that the project has generated employment opportunities of about 50 lakh man-days and 9,375 manpower was deployed.

The fully access controlled six-lane expressway provides entry and exit designated interchanges only. It has 406 structures of which 4 are major bridges, 46 minor bridges, 3 flyovers, 7 inter-changes, 221 underpasses and 8 ROBs.

The project had earlier faced resistance from farmers over land and other issues which have since been solved by giving higher compensation.

The Supreme Court on 10 May had directed the NHAI to throw open the Eastern Peripheral Expressway for the public by 31 May, asking why were they "waiting" for its inauguration by the prime minister.

The apex court had said if the 135-kilometre expressway is not inaugurated on or before May 31, it should be thrown open for public who were facing traffic congestion in Delhi.

The Eastern and the Western Peripheral Expressways were planned in 2006 following the apex court's order to build a ring road outside the national capital for channelling the traffic not bound for Delhi.
Narendra Modi addresses 44th Mann Ki Baat, inaugurates New Delhi Expressway. Click here for live updates

Auto refresh feeds

Narendra Modi's roadshow has caused massive traffic jam at NH 24 between Nizamuddin and Ghazipur. The prime minister's roadshow commenced from the Nizamuddin bridge, the start of the about 9 kilometre first leg of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway. He is scheduled to fly to Baghpat for dedicating the EPE to the nation and after a 6-kilometre travel on the stretch.

He also commended the BSF team for not only scaling Mount Everest recently, but removing loads of trash littered there and bringing it down as part of the Clean Ganga-Clean Himalaya Campaign.

While addressing the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded the people who scaled Mount Everent in the recent weeks. "Who does not know what sense of adventure is? If we see the development journey of mankind, progress has arisen from the womb of some adventure. Development is born in the lap of adventure," he said.

"Dust storms are unseasonal. In the last few weeks we saw what happens due to unusual weather patterns. India will do everything possible for a cleaner and greener tomorrow," Narendra Modi said during his Mann Ki Baat address.

Narendra Modi spoke on the significance and importance of yoga. "The world celebrates 26 June as International Yoga Day. The world has seen the manner in which Yoga unites. We believe in yoga for unity and yoga for a harmonious society," he said.

Narendra Modi remembered Veer Savarkar's contributions during Mann Ki Baat. "The month of May is associated with a historic event in 1857. While many preferred to call it only a Mutiny or a Sepoy Mutiny, it was Veer Savarkar who called it the First War of Independence. I pay my tributes to the great Veer Savarkar," he said.

During his Mann Ki Baat programme, Narendra Modi  congratulated D Prakash Rao, a small tea vendor from Cuttack who runs Asha Ashwaasan school and spends half his income on children living in slums and hut settlements. "Rao, from Odisha's Cuttack has been selling tea for the past 50 years. He spends 50 percent of his income on the education of more than 70 poor children. His life is an inspiration to all," Modi said.

Despite the hot weather condition, BJP supporters have reached the Baghpat venue in large numbers. Narendra Modi has reached the place to address the rally. The energetic supporters at the venue are sure that the new expressway will lead to the development of the region.

Among those present at the Baghpat venue are Uttar Pradesh governor Ram Naik, Union minister Nitin Gadkari, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar. Narendra Modi is expected to speak shortly.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari assured that Eastern Peripheral Expressway will be completed by March 2019. "The Supreme Court was monitoring the project. We paid Rs 6,000 crore for land acquisition to farmers. We are installing world's most advanced features in the EPE project," he said.

Since the Muzzafarnagar riots, this area has been viewed as sensitive. Despite the tension between the sects, the locals here believe that the crowd cannot be polarised so easily here.

'Development' is at the centre of discussion on the stage in Baghpat. The Eastern Peripheral Expressway is being called as the " symbol of development". The crowd is chanting "Jai Shri Ram".

The 135-kilometre EPE, built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore, has several unique features and is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting on every 500 metres on both sides and would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains. - PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 135 kilometre-long Eastern Peripheral Expressway on Sunday in Baghpat. It is said to be the India's first smart and green highway.

"Taking problem of pollution seriously, our government has taken up the task to build a ring road of sorts around Delhi. The EPE will help reduce traffic congestion in Delhi. 50,000 vehicles will not have enter Delhi at all. EPE is also India's first green expressway," said Narendra Modi in Baghpat.

"With less pollution, less fuel-use, EPE will also help transport fruits and vegetables into NCR easily. Developing infrastructure is the way to 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas'. For this our government has emphasised on electricity, roadways, highways, motorways." the prime minister said in Baghpat.

"BJP has worked for Dalits and OBCs and I promise we will keep doing the good work. Congress never cared about the welfare of people. The truth is, Congress and its allies always mock anything and everything that is being done for all the backward classes, tribals. They always act as obstacles in development," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Baghpat rally.

"For Congress, their family is their country. For me, my country is my family. The people of this country are the members of my family. To earn, it is only your blessings I seek. The Opposition is misleading people with their lives. People of India have lost faith in the Congress," said Modi in a stinging attack on the Congress.

Through 'Make in India' campaign manufacturing has received a boost, as a result, now there are 120 mobile phone manufacturing factories in India as compared to only 2, four years back:Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of #EasternPeripheralExpressway in UP's Bagpat pic.twitter.com/iUNxS9gGxs

"Through 'Make in India' campaign, manufacturing has received a boost. As a result, now there are 120 mobile phone manufacturing factories in India as compared to only two, four years ago," said Modi.

"In the past four years, more than three lakh crores have been spent on new highways over 28 thousand kilometres. Till four years ago, where only 12 kilometres a day were formed, today about 27 kilometres of highways are being constructed," said Modi.

Spent more than 3 lakh crore on new highways in last four years: Modi

They are spreading rumours among farmers that 18 percent GST will be levied if they lease their land. A party, which has repeatedly lost elections, has the audacity to spread such rumours. Register complaint against them, and the law will take action against them," the prime minister said.

"For Congress, the country's development is a joke. If the government gives free gas connections for women, they make fun of it. The Opposition is shedding crocodile tears. All the work done for the poor, its all a joke to them, and they make fun of it. Today the people of India is watching how for political gain, the Congress tells lies to the Supreme Court. Be it about the SC/ST law or reservation, they try to manipulate people by spreading rumours.

We have made Special courts to tackle cases of atrocities against the Dalits: PM Narendra Modi at the inauguration of #EasternPeripheralExpressway . pic.twitter.com/CFlChH59MP

"BJP has worked for Dalits and OBCs and I promise we will keep doing the good work. Congress never cared about the welfare of people. The truth is, Congress and its allies always mock anything and everything that is being done for all the backward classes, tribals. They always act as obstacles in development," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Baghpat rally.

"Under the Namami Gange program, the government is focused on ensuring that waste generated within cities does not end up in the river. The villages on the banks of the river are also being made open-defecation free," said the prime minister.

"I want to assure all the sugarcane farmers here that the government is sensitive towards their issues and is working to resolve all the problems," said Modi.

"For Congress, their family is their country. For me, my country is my family. The people of this country are the members of my family. To earn, it is only your blessings I seek. The Opposition is misleading people with their lives. People of India have lost faith in the Congress," said Modi in a stinging attack on the Congress.

"People of Baghpat, Meerut, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor know how much amount is still due to farmers for sugarcane. Doing a road show won't make farmers get their outstanding amount. The Eastern Peripheral Expressway was also inaugurated only after the Supreme Court order," said Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav.

Narendra Modi inaugurates expressway LIVE updates: Launching a scathing attack on the Congress, Narendra Modi said that anything to do with development, is a joke for the Rahul Gandhi-led party. "Congress never cared about the welfare of people. The truth is, Congress and its allies always mock anything and everything that is being done for all the backward classes, tribals," he said,

Speaking at the rally, Narendra Modi said the Eastern Peripheral Expressway will help save fuel and reduce pollution in NCR. "With less pollution, less fuel-use, EPE will also help transport fruits and vegetables into NCR easily," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Eastern Peripheral Expressway on Sunday in Baghpat. The 135-kilometre EPE, built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore, has several unique features and is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting on every 500 metres on both sides and would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 3D model exhibition on making of Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) in Haryana's Kundli. He is scheduled to visit Baghpet to dedicate the EPE to the nation.

The prime minister addressed the nation as part of the pre-recorded monthly radio programme, Mann Ki Baat on Sunday. The prime minister talked about women empowerment, the response to the Fit India campaign and Virat Kohli' challenge in the 44th edition of the radio programme.

Earlier today, Modi, inaugurated the newly built Delhi-Meerut Expressway and embarked on a roadshow in an open SUV on the Delhi-Meerut Expressway.

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway has been built at a cost of Rs 841 crore has vertical gardens with solar power on the Yamuna Bridge on this expressway.

Modi's roadshow commenced from the Nizamuddin Bridge, the start of the about 9-kilometre-long first leg of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway, and after a 6-kilometre roadshow on the expressway, the prime minister will fly to Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh to dedicate another infrastructure project, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE), to the nation.

"The prime minister would inaugurate the exhibition and 3D model there and would fly to Baghpat to dedicate to the nation the EPE," Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said on Friday.

The 135-kilometre EPE, built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore, has several unique features and is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rainwater harvesting on every 500 metres on both sides and would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains. It has been completed in record time of 500 days.
IANS

As photographs of NASA's "melted camera" spread like wildfire on the Internet, triggering assumptions of many kinds, the space agency has explained that a grass fire started by the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket this week toasted the camera.

SpaceX launched two new Earth-observing satellites for NASA and five commercial communications satellites for Iridium on a used Falcon 9 rocket in a ride-share mission from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on 22 May.

The launch went off without a glitch, but a fire sparked by the launch destroyed a camera which belonged to NASA photographer Bill Ingalls.

The camera captured its own demise and people got a chance to view the images captured by it as the memory card was found to be intact.

Many people assumed that the camera was too close to the launchpad and got burned by the power of the Falcon 9 rocket, CNET reported on 25 May.

NASA said that only part of the camera's story has been exposed so far, stressing that Ingalls, who has been shooting for the agency for 30 years, knows where to set up his cameras.

"I had six remotes, two outside the launch pad safety perimeter and four inside," said Ingalls.

"Unfortunately, the launch started a grass fire that toasted one of the cameras outside the perimeter," Ingalls added.

Ironically, the four cameras set up inside the perimeter were undamaged, as was the other remote, NASA said.

The damaged camera was one of the furthest from the pad, a quarter of a mile away.

Once the fire reached the camera, it was quickly engulfed. The body started to melt. When Ingalls returned to the site, firefighters were waiting to greet him.

Recognising the camera was destroyed, Ingalls forced open the body to see if its memory card could be salvaged.

It could, which is why people could see the fire approaching the camera.

The "toasty" camera, as Ingalls calls it, is likely headed for display somewhere at NASA headquarters in Washington, DC, NASA said.

Meanwhile, Ingalls himself will soon travel to Kazakhstan to photograph the 3 June landing of the International Space Station's Expedition 55 crew.

He expects that will be a completely normal assignment.
NDTV's Ravish Kumar has alleged that the frequency of death threats that he has been receiving since 2015 have increased manifold in the last month, according to reports.

Journalists in India are often a victim of death threats or hate campaign over their reporting. Recently, UN human rights experts called on the relevant authorities in India to act urgently to protect journalist Rana Ayyub, who received death threats following an online hate campaign.

Now it's NDTV's Ravish Kumar who is facing threat to life. The senior journalist has alleged that the frequency of death threats that he has been receiving since 2015 has increased in the last month, according to reports.

He told NDTV that it happened between 25-26 April when he had not been going to the office. "Suddenly, I started getting thousands of calls on my phone. When I used to block one number, I got calls from another and the kind of language used by all of them was derogatory."

The latest in the series is from an ex-CISF jawan who has sent him a video message threatening to shoot him in his office, according to a report in The Hindu.

Another person who claims to be from the Bajrang Dal in Uttar Pradesh has been sending him details of his residence address, the route he takes from home to office. The culprit also threatened to kill Kumar and rape the women in his family, the report added.

"It is all well-organised and has a political sanction," Kumar told The Hindu. His complaints to the police in Ghaziabad and in Greater Kailash have reportedly led to no action.

Another journalist Ayyub has also reportedly received a barrage of hate-filled messages. UN human rights experts, in a release issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), had asked the Indian government to urgently take steps to protect Ayyub. "We are highly concerned that the life of Rana Ayyub is at serious risk following these graphic and disturbing threats," said the UN experts.

Last year, journalist Gauri Lankesh was shot dead outside her home in Bengaluru. Within two months after the incident, a young reporter, Shantanu Bhowmick, covering a clash between two tribal rights groups in Tripura, was kidnapped and beaten to death by some protesters.

According to Committee to Protect Journalists, between 1992 and 2018, around 47 journalists have lost their lives in India. That murder was the motive has been confirmed in all these cases. Of them, four journalists were killed in 2017 while two were killed earlier this year.
Thank you for reading!

Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading.
Complaints of privacy violation have been filed against tech giants Google and Facebook within hours of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) taking effect on Friday. Google and Facebook, along with the social media giant's subsidiaries WhatsApp and Instagram, could be fined $9.3 billion in total over privacy complaints of breaking European Union's new privacy law.

Austria-based privacy-advocacy group Noyb.eu said that the four companies are forcing users to adopt a "take it or leave it" approach regarding privacy, demanding that they give in to intrusive terms of service, a CNET report said. The group is run by data privacy activist Max Schrems.

"Tons of 'consent boxes' popped up online or in applications, often combined with a threat, that the service cannot longer be used if user[s] do not consent," a statement issued by the group read.

Noyb is asking regulators in France, Belgium, Hamburg and Austria to fine Google, Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp up to 4 per cent of their annual revenue as mandated by the GDPR rules, the CNET report said. This could mean fines to the tune of $4.88 billion for Google's parent company Alphabet Inc and $1.63 billion each for Facebook and its WhatsApp and Instagram services.

The tech giants will have to pay this penalty if the regulators agree with Nyob and decide to fine the companies for the full amount, the report added.

Meanwhile, Google assured that it is working in earnest to ensure compliance with the GDPR guidelines. The leading search engine listed the key steps it has taken to comply with the new privacy law. "We build privacy and security into our products from the very earliest stages and are committed to complying with the EU General Data Protection Regulation," a Google spokesperson said.

Facebook also declared its commitment to comply with GDPR rules. "Over the last 18 months, we have taken steps to update our products, policies and processes to provide users with meaningful data transparency and control across all the services that we provide in the EU," Erin Egan, Facebook's chief privacy officer, said in an emailed statement.

GDPR, which came into effect from May 25, provides European Union citizens greater control over their personal information is collected, processed and used online. Contravention of GDPR laws could lead to penalties amounting to either 20 million euros or four percent of their annual turnover.

Europeans were blocked from several US news outlets as a result of this regulation with the rollout of GDPR norms, media reports said. News websites under the Tronc and Lee Enterprises media publishing houses were affected, including New York Daily News, Chicago Tribune, LA Times, Orlando Sentinel and Baltimore Sun, a BBC report said. CNN and New York Times were not affected.
More attention needs to be given to the question as to how the Nipah virus outbreak happened in Kerala. This is an issue which baffles health experts.

It has now been close to a week since the dreaded Nipah virus outbreak hit Kozhikode in north Kerala. The state government would like the rest of the world to believe that its efforts to contain the virus to as small an area as possible have been successful.

To a large extent, that claim does have merit. Even though one more person died on Saturday afternoon, the death was reported from Kozhikode itself.

But more attention needs to be given to the question as to how the virus outbreak happened in this part of the world. This is an issue which baffles health experts.

It is unclear how the virus landed up in Kozhikode, which is close to three thousand kilometers away from Siliguri in West Bengal, where the last such outbreak was reported way back in 2001. Bangladesh, which saw several Nipah cases till 2017, is also a huge distance away from Kozhikode.

Health officials have been burning the midnight oil to ensure that the outbreak is contained. In a matter of further worry for them, test results from the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NISHAD), Bhopal came in.

These results were from samples of the bats found in the well of a house in Perambra which is believed to be the epicentre of the outbreak. The Nipah virus was not found in these samples.

However, the bats whose samples were collected were insectivorous bats and not fruit bats, which are the only reported host carriers of Nipah till date.

While another round of efforts is on to catch hold of fruit bats in the area to send their blood and salivary samples for testing, at present, confusion prevails on the cause of the disease.

No such previous cases have ever been reported from anywhere in south India. So, this is perhaps for the first time that experts are faced with such an unprecedented situation.

Doctor K Abdul Gafoor is an infectious disease specialist at the Apollo Specialty Hospital in Chennai and had been camping in Kozhikode for the past week trying to ascertain how the virus came here.

Of course, we have no idea at the moment. We need a detailed epidemiological study to get anywhere close to a conclusion. But one positive aspect is that all this seems to be linked to one place which we believe is the source. There has been no second source so far, which in itself is a huge relief. Had there been a second source, things would have been different," Dr Ghafoor told Firstpost.

Dr Gafoor also added that the strength of the outbreak has decreased considerably and that the initial panic which the health officials faced has now given way to a new confidence that this is a disease which may not have a vaccine or a complete cure, but can be contained from spreading further.

The primary source that the doctor had referred to was the house at Chengaroth village in Perambra panchayat, where three people from a family  two brothers and their aunt  had died. While the absence of a secondary source brings relief, many doctors have a word of caution.

This is why it is so important to find the source of this outbreak. Only if we answer the question of how the virus came to this part of the world can we put in place scientific measures to ensure that such an outbreak does not happen anywhere close by again. Otherwise, we cannot be sure of how and in which way this virus would spread in the future, warns Dr Shimna Azeez, a medical officer at Malappuram, from where two confirmed cases of Nipah were reported apart from the ones at Kozhikode.

Following is an overview of the possible ways in which the virus could have travelled to northern Kerala.

From Bangladesh to Kerala?

Even though it is well known that fruit bats are the host carriers of the virus, no evidence could be gathered from Kozhikode to prove that the same species of bats have played a role in this outbreak too.

The assumption that fruit bats are the villains is based on the previous outbreaks that took place in Siliguri, Bangladesh, and Malaysia. But health officials say that as long as no conflicting evidence is received, it has to be believed that fruit bats are indeed the cause in Kozhikode too.

But even that also does not answer the crucial question  how did the virus reach Kerala?

Although some species of bats have been found to be migratory, scientists are not ready to believe that they would have flown thousands of miles to northern Kerala without showing such viral activity at any place on their way.

There are a few who propose another theory. According to them, other large carnivorous migratory birds like eagles may have preyed upon an infected fruit bat and brought the virus with them in their bodies to Kerala. They may have then attacked a fruit bat in the state.

Although this is theoretically possible, wildlife experts say it is improbable. There has been no evidence so far to prove that such large migratory birds are capable of carrying the virus, simply because their body constitution does not support Nipah. This virus thrives in solutions which are high in sugar content, like the saliva of a fruit bat. That is why we say it cannot be even in insectivorous bats. We cannot at this moment think of any other bird as a host, well known ornithologist Dr R Sugathan told Firstpost.

Food source?

But Sugathan has another interesting take. He says that it is possible that Nipah could have traveled in fruits like figs and dates from places like Bangladesh to Kerala. But here too, the role of the bats is the key.

There are lots of dates that come from outside. We all know that dates are very high in sugar content. There is a possibility that some infected fruit bat could have come in contact with dates while being packed. Since this virus has the capacity to survive for a number of days in a sugary medium, we cannot rule out this possibility, added Sugathan.

Sugathans theory also makes sense because it is the month of Ramzan, and in Kozhikode, dates arrive in huge quantities from a number of countries outside India.

No outside source?

While scientists are battling hard to find an external source of the virus, some believe that Nipah could have co-existed with the bats in Kozhikode for a long time only to be pushed out of the mammal in adverse circumstances.

Dr Nameer PO is the head of the department at College of Forestry in Kerala Agricultural University, and is an expert on bats. He says that such viruses and flying foxes have always been co-existing entities, and it was only a matter of time that they showed up to the rest of the world.

Viruses like Nipah have always been in the system of fruit bats. They have co-evolved for years. Such a disease becomes virulent when there is a stress on the animal. Such stress could be because of a loss of habitat, or not getting sufficient food for survival. So, when the animal is faced with such stress, it tends to expel these viruses. In other words, the virus tends to move out of animal. This could be what happened in Kozhikode. But unless we get conclusive evidence that such bats are the reason, we cannot be sure, Nameer told Firstpost.

Nameer also cites the example of the co-existence of migratory birds and the avian bird flu virus. According to him, since these birds are migratory in nature, they take it from one location to another.

Scientists are also raising the question of mutation. In other words, they say that depending on changes in many external factors like temperature and water, some of the viruses may break up or even mutate into different forms and get transformed into a new and highly virulent one such as Nipah and lead to an outbreak.

There is a serious possibility that mutation could have been the reason for an outbreak in Kozhikode. But that can only be ascertained with an in-depth study, which will take a number of days, added a senior doctor in the team of experts camping at Kozhikode.

Some doctors say that while dealing with a disease which has recently become known like Nipah, confusion is an expected thing. The medical fraternity is yet to understand Nipah in its entirety.

It was first detected in 1998, which in the medical world means it is a new disease, about which there could be more things we dont know than things we know. Remember, smallpox came to the world three thousand years ago, but we discovered a vaccine for it just 200 years ago. Nipah is a disease that was discovered just 20 years ago. The medical fraternity has recently started its research on it. But Kerala has done a commendable job in diagnosing it quickly, said Dr PS Jinesh from Info Clinic.

Travel records of the first victim, Muhammed Salih, were also checked on Saturday to ascertain whether he had visited any of the areas reported to have had Nipah outbreaks in the recent past. Apart from visiting Dubai a few months ago, it seems that the young man had not travelled anywhere out of Kozhikode.

Meanwhile, the state has put in stringent control measures at the Kozhikode Government Medical College Hospital, where most of the Nipah cases have been reported. Only patients requiring emergency treatment are admitted at the hospital. Others are treated at the emergency section and discharged at the earliest to ensure that more patients do not come in contact with the virus.

Perhaps the only way to get to the bottom of this is to check as many samples of fruit bats as possible, a much-needed but painfully slow process that will start on Monday. Till then, the question of Nipahs origin in Kerala will remain a matter of speculation.
In the wake of the several deaths reported in Kerala due to Nipah virus, the Rajasthan government on Saturday issued an advisory, asking people not to travel to affected parts of Kerala and for officials to maintain caution.

Jaipur: In the wake of the several deaths reported in Kerala due to Nipah virus, the Rajasthan government on Saturday issued an advisory, asking people not to travel to affected parts of Kerala and for officials to maintain caution.

Presiding over a meeting, chief secretary DB Gupta said that Nipah virus has marked its impact in the northern districts of Kerala including Mallapuram and Kozhikode and hence people should avoid travelling in these places.

It was decided all medical officials in the state will be kept updated on the information regarding the Nipah virus via video conferencing.

Although there has been not a single case of Nipah virus registered in the state till date, but health department needs to remain extra cautious on the issue, Gupta said.

He also asked officials to provide right information to people and to ensure they remain extra alert.

Additional chief secretary, Medical and Health, Veenu Gupta said that all joint directors and chief medical officers have been directed to take special measures in this regard including setting up rapid response teams in the districts, but requested people not to panic.

If there are people who have returned from the places where infection was reported and they are suffering from fever or headache, they should contact nearby hospitals, she said.

Public health director VK Mathur said that Nipah virus spreads to humans after direct contact with infected bats or pigs or even humans. Its symptoms are headaches, fever, body-ache, cough, problems in breathing, vomiting, diarrhoea, laziness and others.
Pakistan on Sunday claimed it was forced to test nuclear weapons two decades ago due to hostile posturing by India.

Islamabad: Pakistan on Sunday claimed it was forced to test nuclear weapons two decades ago due to hostile posturing by India. Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal issued a statement on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the 28 May, 1998 nuclear tests, while insisting that the testing of atomic bombs by India eliminated chances of a nuclear weapons-free South Asia.

Pakistan was forced to take that decision as a response, in self-defence, to the nuclear tests and accompanying hostile posturing by its neighbour. These developments, unfortunately, put an end to the prospect for keeping South Asia free of nuclear weapons, an objective which Pakistan had actively pursued, he said, hinting at India. India conducted a series of five nuclear bomb test explosions at the Pokhran in May 1998, which was soon followed by Pakistan's tests.

The spokesman said that despite the nuclear testing, Pakistan remained steadfast in its commitment to non-proliferation and global peace and strategic stability and demonstrated utmost restraint and responsibility in the stewardship of its nuclear capability since 1998. It is committed to the principle of credible minimum deterrence and has persistently sought deterrence stability in the region, he said.

Faisal also said that this objective has driven Pakistan to offer and conclude several confidence-building measures (CBMs) in the nuclear and conventional domains, including the 2004 Pakistan-India Joint Statement which recognised the respective nuclear capabilities of the two countries as a factor for stability.

He said that as one of the most affected countries due to the impact of climate change, Pakistan plans to increase its nuclear power generation capacity to 40,000 MW by 2050, as a clean and cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel. Pakistan has consistently signaled its willingness to consider further measures for risk reduction and avoidance of arms race in the region, according to the spokesman.

He also said that Pakistan was confident of its ability to deny space for any misadventure against the backdrop of rapidly expanding nuclear and conventional forces in its neighbourhood and pursuit of aggressive security doctrines and developing force postures.

The nuclearisation of the Indian Ocean and canesterisation of ballistic missiles in our neighbourhood should be a matter of concern for the international community as well since these developments have extra-regional ramifications, he said. He said Pakistan while recognising its responsibilities, had developed over the years a robust command and control system led by the National Command Authority, and effective nuclear safety and security regimes and export controls.

He said Pakistan looked forward to expanding the scope of its international collaboration in nuclear power generation for meeting the legitimate socio-economic development needs of its people.

As a country with advanced nuclear technology, Pakistan seeks to play its role as a mainstream partner in the global non-proliferation regime, he said. He said Pakistan had expressed desire to join the multilateral export control regimes and already applied for participation in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) based on non-discriminatory criteria applicable in a fair manner to all non-NPT states.
According to the police, both of them had raped the minor girl, who was residing in their village along with her family, during the intervening night of 14-15 April last year and then killed her.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has stayed the execution of a death row convict who was awarded capital punishment for raping and murdering an 11-year-old girl in Madhya Pradesh last year.

A bench comprising justices AM Khanwilkar and Indu Malhotra also issued notice to the Madhya Pradesh Police seeking its reply on the appeal filed by convict Bhagwani who has challenged the state high court's 9 May verdict upholding the death penalty awarded to him by the trial court.

"There shall be a stay of execution of the death sentence of the petitioner (Bhagwani). Let the original records be called from the high court," the bench said.

Besides Bhagwani, the high court had also upheld the death penalty awarded by the trial court to another convict Satish in the case.

According to the police, both of them had raped the minor girl, who was residing in their village along with her family, during the intervening night of 14-15 April last year and then killed her.

The girl had gone to attend a ceremony in the village along with her parents on 14 April last year and went missing from there, the police had said, adding that her body was recovered the next morning.

The police had said that during the probe, it was found that the duo, who were initially absconding from the village, had a verbal altercation with the victim's father a day prior to the incident.

Both of them were later arrested and the trial court awarded death sentence to them. They had denied the charges against them.

The capital punishment was confirmed by the high court which had taken note of the "alarming increase" in the incidents of child rape and rising anger in the society over such offences across the country.
The Pradhan Mantri Ujjawala Yojana has not just emancipated Lakshmi from the suffocating smoke coming out of her clay stove, but also helped her have her own bank account

Editor's note: Over two years have passed since the inauguration of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana in the district of Ballia in Uttar Pradesh. The scheme, which aims to provide LPG connections to economically weaker sections, has often been cited by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to showcase the Centre's work towards poverty alleviation. In this series of reports, Firstpost seeks to assess the impact of the scheme on the ground in western Uttar Pradesh.

Lakshmi never imagined shed have a bank account. At 36, an account has finally been opened in her name. As she glanced at her name written on the passbook, she couldn't contain a smile. Though there isn't much in her bank account, owing to her household expenses, whatever sum she owns guarantees her a greater degree of economic security that those rolled notes around the corners of her house offered.

Lakshmi is planning to put her savings in her new account opened under the Jan Dhan Yojana. She is yet to deposit the saved money in her account. But, nowadays, whenever she buys an LPG cylinder, the subsidy amount is deposited directly into her bank account.

The Pradhan Mantri Ujjawala Yojana has not just emancipated Lakshmi from the suffocating smoke coming out of her clay stove, but also helped her have her own bank account. Also, thanks to the scheme, some money is regularly deposited in Lakshmi's account.

To get an LPG gas connection under Ujjwala scheme, it is compulsory to have a bank account in the name of a female member of a family. Many Jan Dhan accounts were opened for women. Government statistics from January 2018 show that of 30.97 crore accounts opened under Jan Dhan scheme, 16.37 crore (roughly 50 percent) were opened in the name of women. The governments initiative towards female empowerment seems to have had an impact at the ground level.

The Khatauli assembly area of Muzaffarnagar district in Western Uttar Pradesh, has many such stories. To get a better picture of how such schemes are working on ground, how these schemes have benefitted and impacted the lives of women, Firstpost visited a tiny hamlet of Khatauli. The village's school bears the name of the hamletIslamabadwhich immediately grabs the attention. Vishnu Dutt, a senior citizen and resident of Islamabad, explained that their forebears chose the name well before the Partition. Dutt, who hails from the Brahmin community, said it never bothered people like him but it arouses the intrigue of outsiders.

He also revealed that there was a village named Aurangzeb Nagar not too far from Islamabad. The villagers renamed it Radhna sometime ago. There are also villages such as Akbargarh and Mujahidpur. Dutt explained that these villages date back to the Mughal era, hence the names. Here, villagers might have availed the benefits of the Ujjwala and Jan Dhan schemes but Dutt feels one should wait before measuring the success of any scheme. He added that LPG connections arent available to every poor family.

Udit Kumar is doing a survey on LPG gas connection being distributed under Ujjwala scheme. A local LPG distributer hired Kumar, who runs camps across villages to educate people and tells villagers about the documents required. The biggest issue here is that of documentation. Several women don't have an Aadhaar card. If they have Aadhaar then there is no bank account. Some of them don't have ration cards. All these three documents are a prerequisite to getting the benefit of this scheme, Kumar explained.

The official website of Ujjwala scheme says that BPL ration card, Aadhaar card or Voter I card are the required documents to enlist under this scheme. According to the website, if one doesn't have Aadhaar, people can alternatively use Voter I card to get the benefits. But on the ground, it is almost impossible to get an LPG connection through Ujjwala without Aadhaar card.

Some people already have gas connection. Now, they want benefits under this scheme as well. That's why the Aadhaar has been made mandatory for enrollment under the Ujjwala scheme. The Aadhaar is also necessary to get LPG subsidy. So, BPL ration card and bank account are must along with Aadhaar card, he said.

It is evident that Ujjwala scheme is reaching ground level. People are buying LPG stoves. To put the impact of this scheme in perspective, one must recall the 90s: A time when gas stoves and LPG connections were making inroads in the medium-level cites and small towns. People didn't start using LPG stoves at once. Use of clay stoves with wood and coal as fuel continued.

Then, clay stoves made way for LPG stoves. In most households, women used clay stoves to cook food, while LPG stoves were used to make breakfast and snacks. This was done to maximise the longevity of the LPG cylinder. Aside from dreading added expenditure, people were also wary of standing in long queues to get cylinders refilled. It wasn't easy to get an LPG connection and cylinder refills.

Later, the process eased. Cylinder refills were also made easy to come by and oil marketing companies started doorstep delivery. This easing of the process led to expansion of LPG gas connection base. Gradually, the use of clay stoves and kerosene stoves also became extinct in small towns and cities.

People still think that they should use the LPG stove minimally if they want to prolong their usage. That's why women are still cooking on wooden stoves. As a result, sometimes a single LPG cylinder lasts up to a year. In rural patches of Western Uttar Pradesh, poor families are still to get used to cooking on LPG stoves, said Udit Kumar.

But this saving leads to another problem. If they don't get their cylinders refilled every three months, the distributors put such connections in the inactive list of customers who then face difficulties in getting their connection reactivated. It takes a lot of documents and a visit to the distributors' office to get such connections activated. Rural customers are often are unable to get their LPG connections reactivated after they are put in inactive list by LPG distributors. Many connections are rendered inactive due to this.

A lot of rural customers have LPG connections to their name which are inactive. Which means they took the connection, but didn't use LPG regularly. There were 3.55 crore such inactive LPG connections across country. The number of inactive LPG connections touched 3.82 crore in January 2018. The total number of gas connections distributed under Ujjwala scheme is almost at par with these inactive LPG connections.

Today, 15 percent of LPG connections are inactive. A large number of inactive LPG connections are disappointing and doesn't bode well for success of any of the government's flagship scheme. Though there hasn't been any paucity in distributing LPG connections to poor families. According to data, 3.7 crore poor women have been given LPG connections under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojna.

Several schemes have been launched to improve the LPG sector. The government started transferring gas subsidy directly to peoples' accounts through 'Pahal' scheme. The Modi government also launched, 'Give it up' campaign to nudge well to do families to give up gas subsidy. These programmes have led to plugging the leaks in LPG delivery system. Also, falling international crude prices in past couple of years helped government to deliver LPG connections to more and more families.

After the launch of the Ujjwala scheme, India surpassed Japan when it comes to LPG imports. Now, only China is ahead of India in terms of LPG imports. India imported 2.4 million tonnes of gas in December 2017, while China imported 2.3 million tonnes of LPG during same period. The average consumption of LPG in China is around 2.7 million tonnes per month, while Indians guzzle around 1.7 million tonnes of LPG per month. This data amply shows that people are more and more using LPG as fuel.

The Ujjwala scheme aims to provide a better life to major portion of country's populace. Still, to see a major positive shift at ground level due to this scheme, one will have to wait for some more time.

Read Part 1: Two years of Ujjwala Yojana: Dalits in western UP laud benefits despite resentment against Centre on other issues

Read Part 2: Lack of awareness regarding benefits of LPG hinders scheme's objective at rural level
At a time when the India-Pakistan border is crackling with persistent gunfire with mounting casualties on both sides, former Indian intelligence chief AS Dulat has floated a disruptive proposal

New Delhi: At a time when the India-Pakistan border is crackling with persistent gunfire with mounting casualties on both sides, former Indian intelligence chief AS Dulat has floated a disruptive proposal  invite Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa for a dialogue to reduce tension and talk peace.

Dulat said General Bajwa was making all the "right noises", referring to his April remarks that disputes, including Kashmir, between India and Pakistan can be solved only through peace talks.

"We should invite General Bajwa, the army chief. He has been talking peace and also a lot of our frustration in our dialogue with Pakistan is because we feel frustrated by the armed forces or what we call the 'deep state'  the ISI or the army. Therefore, why not talk to the army chief directly? He is talking reasonably now. Why not invite the army chief, just an idea," Dulat told IANS in an interview at his south Delhi residence.

India has maintained that it will talk only to the elected civilian leadership in Pakistan and has shunned talking to the Pakistani military, which however controls key decision-making on foreign policy  particularly with respect to India  and security in the Pakistani establishment.

Dulat served as chief of India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the country's external intelligence agency, from 1999 to 2000 and was a close aide of then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Kashmir affairs from 2001 to 2004.

He has participated in a somewhat unique book of dialogues, The Spy Chronicles - RAW ISI And The Illusion Of Peace with his once rival, former Pakistani spy chief Lt. Gen. Asad Durrani (retd).

The book throws light on Kashmir, and a missed opportunity for peace; Hafiz Saeed and 26/11; Kulbhushan Jadhav; surgical strikes; the deal for Osama bin Laden; how the US and Russia feature in the India-Pakistan relationship; and how terror undermines the two countries' attempts at talks.

Dulat, who has previously authored Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years, said "not talking to Pakistan is a sort of a handicap" more so at a time when geo-political landscape was witnessing a new churn.

"There is a lot happening in the world around us and they are all taking interest in this particular region. The Americans have a big interest in Pakistan and in Afghanistan.

"Likewise now, the Chinese, the Russians and the Iranians have all developed interest and we need to take note of that and in that, I think, not talking to Pakistan will not help," he said.

But is it wise to extend an invitation to the Pakistani army chief, particularly at this juncture when ceasefire violations across the frontier have killed scores of civilians and over 40,000 residents were forced to flee their homes from the border areas in Jammu?

"Isn't it more reason that we should talk," Dulat asked, adding: "You are presuming that all these cease-fire violations happen only from the Pakistani side and only our people are suffering.

"There is a their side of the story also, it can't be one-sided. If there is firing from one side, the Army or the BSF is bound to respond."

Dulat, who served in Kashmir as the Joint Director of the Intelligence Bureau from 1988 to 1990, maintained that "there is no military solution" to the seven-decade old conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and triggered two wars (1948 and 1965) and a prolonged military skirmish (1999) between the two nuclear-armed powers.

"There is only so much that the army can do; after that it is time for the politicians to play their part," he said.

The former spymaster also noted that there was no space for big-brotherly attitude in bilateral relations, suggesting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should revisit his hardline stance against Pakistan.

"The trouble with Modi is, because India is a big country (there is no doubt about it), we want things on our terms but bilateral relationships do not work in this way. We should not ask 'isme mere liye kya hai' (What does it hold for us?)

"Once you start talking to Kashmiris, there is a lot for you. You should try this and see what all is in store for you."

He said most things in the Modi government were related to elections but still expressed a "feeling" of a breakthrough on Kashmir before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections that are due in May.

"Somewhere I have a feeling that something will happen. It's just a feeling. I am not in government. But I have a feeling."
The AAP on Sunday said it had extended support to the protests proposed by two farmer unions in June in Rajasthan to demand loan waiver and cost plus 50 percent profit

New Delhi: The AAP on Sunday said it had extended support to the protests proposed by two farmer unions in June in Rajasthan to demand loan waiver and cost plus 50 percent profit based on the Swaminathan Committee recommendations.

"The 'Kisan Mahapanchayat', backed by 69 farmer organisations, and the 'Aam Kisan Union', supported by 103 organisations, will hold protests from June 1 to 10, during which farmers in Rajasthan will not participate in agriculture-related work but sell their produce from their homes instead of markets," said AAP leader Ashish Khetan.

"The farmer organisations had sought Aam Aadmi Party support. So, all our party workers will participate in the proposed protests," he said.

"The farmers are demanding that people living in urban area should come to their villages to buy farm products," the AAP leader added.

Om Jangu, a farmer leader from Rajasthan, said: "Water from Indira Canal, which is distributed in nine districts of the state, is used for drinking also but is contaminated. Wastewater from factories is discharged into the canal.

"The Prime Minister is talking about celebrating the World Environment Day on 5 June, but he can't see what water we are being supplied for drinking."

Jangu also said that the country is importing sugar and pulses but doesn't have money to pay its own farmers.
The BJP has alleged the Shiv Sena roped in some criminals to distribute money to voters ahead of the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll scheduled for Monday, and said it would complain about it to the Election Commission.

Mumbai: The BJP has alleged the Shiv Sena roped in some criminals to distribute money to voters ahead of the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll scheduled for Monday, and said it would complain about it to the Election Commission.

"The BJP is going to lodge a complaint with the Election Commission that the Sena has brought 1,000 people from (neighbouring) Thane, Mumbai and Kalyan who are staying illegally in Palghar even after the campaigning is over, and they are distributing money (to voters)," BJP leader Ravindra Chavan told PTI.

"These people, who are distributing money, also include criminals," Chavan, who is the Minister of State for Medical Education, alleged.

Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut hit back saying the BJP was levelling such charges as it was scared of the Uddhav Thackeray-led party.

"Talking about the Sena distributing money does not befit the BJP. The Shiv Sena is a party of the common man and our workers are our strength. It is the people who give our leaders food to eat and water to drink when we go for campaigning," Raut said.

He alleged that the BJP was rather "teaching" corrupt practices to its young party workers by making them indulge in distributing money and alcohol.

"They are free to approach the EC as and when they wish to. However, the truth is that they are scared of us and hence, using these tactics," Raut said.

The BJP and the Shiv Sena, the allies at the Centre and in Maharashtra, had a bitter face-off during the campaigning for the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll with both the parties trading charges against each other.

The Shiv Sena has fielded late BJP MP Chintaman Wanaga's son Shriniwas Wanaga while the saffron party has put up Congress deserter Rajendra Gavit for the seat.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday mounted a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he survives only on publicity.

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday mounted a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he survives only on publicity.

A day after the Modi government completed four years in office, NDA's former ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief described it as a "government of more talk, less action".

Addressing the 34th 'Mahanadu' or annual conclave of his party, which began in Vijayawada, he also predicted that regional parties will come to power after the next general elections and that his party will play a crucial role in national politics.

This was the first TDP conclave after the party pulled out of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government in March over the Centre's refusal to accord special category status to the state.

The TDP leader slammed the Modi government, saying none of its populist slogans like 'Make in India', 'Startup India' and 'Standup India' yielded the desired results.

"Has anybody benefited from Modi's schemes?" asked the TDP leader in his inaugural address at the three-day meet.

He said demonetisation destroyed the Indian banking system and people had to run around the banks to get their own hard-earned money. He alleged that the Goods and Services Tax imposed a burden on the common people.

Naidu said people lost confidence in the banking system due to scams. "According to a survey there is 61 percent corruption in the central government. What is your answer?" he asked his audience.

He reminded the BJP of its poll promise to implement the Swaminathan Commission report to bail out the agricultural sector.

Naidu remarked that the BJP's claim of being a party with a difference is ridiculous as its leaders were caught red-handed while trying to buy MLAs in Karnataka.

The Andhra Pradesh chief minister said that Modi faced a public protest in Tamil Nadu for interfering in the state's politics by using the Cauvery water dispute as an excuse.

The chief minister also alleged that the central government is taking revenge on Andhra Pradesh for demanding fulfilment of the commitments made by the then government when Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated to carve out Telangana state.

Naidu also claimed that the Modi government tried to take over Tirupati temple under this conspiracy. He warned that anybody resorting to such a move will have to pay a heavy price.

Declaring that a special category status is the right of Andhra Pradesh, Naidu said he would not to rest till this was achieved.

Naidu predicted that regional parties would form the government at the Centre after the 2019 general elections. Amid loud cheers from his party cadres, he said the BJP's dream of retaining power will remain unfulfilled.

The TDP chief told the delegates that their party will retain power in the state and play a key role in national politics also.

Stating that the TDP has 70 lakh workers, he said only it could build a new Andhra Pradesh and bring a change in national politics.

Party delegates from both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are attending the conclave, which will pass 34 resolutions on various issues. The key political resolution will be adopted on the last day.
Asserting that stalling the BJP's bid for power in Karnataka has galvanised the Opposition, senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot has said his party will have to be the 'pivot' of any rainbow coalition formed to take on the BJP in 2019 polls.

New Delhi: Asserting that stalling the BJP's bid for power in Karnataka has galvanised the Opposition, senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot has said his party will have to be the "pivot" of any rainbow coalition formed to take on the BJP in 2019 polls. As the political battleground shifts to the Hindi heartland after an intense power struggle in Karnataka that ended with the Congress-JD(S) government being formed, the former Union minister exuded confidence that the Congress would win the Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh Assembly polls slated for later this year.

In an interview to PTI, Pilot said the anti-BJP forces were now aligning themselves to make sure that the BJP does not come to power in 2019 and the Congress would have a pivotal role to play in that. "I think it is very clear that at a pan-India level, it is only the Congress party that has the capacity to defeat the BJP. Of course, there are regional parties and alliances that might be forged. But the pivot of any rainbow coalition will have to be the Congress," the 40-year-old leader said.

With arms aloft on a dais at the swearing-in ceremony of HD Kumaraswamy as chief minister in Bengaluru, a host of opposition leaders had last week sent out a signal that a front to take on the BJP could take shape, setting aside political differences. Kumaraswamy had taken oath at a grand ceremony where a galaxy of top Opposition leaders of national and regional parties, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo Mayawati and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, were in attendance.

Asked if Karnataka's political events leading up to the formation of the Congress-JD(S) government had galvanised the opposition, Pilot answered in the affirmative. However, he asserted that only the Congress has the capacity and the bandwidth to take on the BJP at a pan-India level. There will have to be some sort of understanding in different states, but it is too early to pinpoint what will it be, he said.

Asked if plans to project Rahul Gandhi as the leader of a rainbow coalition had taken a hit with the Congress coming second best in Karnataka, Pilot said, "I don't think anyone wants to project anything. "Right now, we want to work for the people of India who have been let down by the BJP and the only person in the opposition who I believe is taking on Mr (Narendra) Modi and Mr Amit Shah head on and making them accountable by asking very pertinent questions is Rahul Gandhi."

"He (Rahul Gandhi) is leading from the front...the Congress party has never projected anything or anyone, but yes he is our party president and if you ask me who should lead, it has to be Mr Gandhi because at an all India level, it is only the Congress party that can actually surmount a formidable challenge to the BJP," Pilot said. He asserted that like-minded Opposition parties were already working together and would get more galvanised as the polls near.

"It is too early to say what shape it (the coalition) will or will not take. But yes the intent and the presence of all the leaders in Bangalore was an indication of that formation. It is already work in progress. Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi called a meeting which 17 parties had attended in New Delhi," he said. Pilot, who is also the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee chief and is largely seen as the Congress's chief ministerial face in the state, said he was confident that his party would score a "historic" victory to unseat the Vasundhara Raje government.

Talking about the upcoming Assembly polls in the Hindi heartland later this year, he said the Congress would score victories in the three states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as there was "huge anti-incumbency" against the incumbent BJP governments there. Asked if a win in the three states would change the dynamics for 2019, Pilot said, "Of course, these three states will be an example of how Congress will win and can win."

The BJP is on its way out and its decline will be "steep and sharp", the senior Congress leader said. Pilot also dismissed suggestions that a campaign blitz by Prime Minister Modi, like the one in Karnataka, could impact the voters in Rajasthan. "There is a limit to what a so-called blitz can do. Here (in Karnataka) we had a Congress government and all Mr Modi did was come and criticise. In Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, how will he justify the killing of farmers by the government, how will he justify more than 100 farmer suicides," he said. Pilot said it was one thing to campaign against an incumbent government, but defending a government with "absolute zero performance" might be a different ball game.
About Me Scott Because prophetic scriptures are found throughout the bible, it is obvious that a comprehensive, systematic approach would be useful, if not necessary, for the understanding of prophecy. Past prophecies have been fulfilled in a literal manner, as confirmed by the dating of these writings and historical records of confirmation. These past prophecies also serve as a model of how to interpret future prophecies. A literal view of prophecy clearly indicates a certain sequence of events will occur within a single generation, concluding with the Tribulation and Second Advent and these events will be obvious. The prophetic signs appear to be present in this generation and we believe these signs are revealed in the news from around the world. View my complete profile
If simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies are held in 2019, the Election Commission (EC) will require nearly 24 lakh EVMs, double the number required to hold only the Parliamentary polls.

New Delhi: If simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies are held in 2019, the Election Commission (EC) will require nearly 24 lakh EVMs, double the number required to hold only the Parliamentary polls. During their discussion with the Law Commission on 16 May on the issue of holding simultaneous polls, the EC officials had said they would need around Rs 4,500 crore to buy nearly 12 lakh additional electronic voting machines (EVMs) and an equal number voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) machines.

The estimate was based on the current cost to procure the devices, sources privy to the deliberations told PTI. In case simultaneous polls are held, two separate sets of EVMs and VVPAT machines will have to be placed in separate compartments for those contesting the Lok Sabha polls and the Assembly elections respectively.

"There are nearly 10 lakh polling stations across the country. Since EVMs and paper-trail machines are deployed in every polling station, the requirement is for 10 lakh EVMs and an equal number of paper-trail machines. In addition, 20 percent of the machines are kept in the reserve. That comes to two lakh. Therefore, to hold the Lok Sabha polls in 2019, the EC needs 12 lakh EVMs and an equal number of VVPAT machines," explained a functionary.

Thus, if simultaneous polls were held in 2019, the Election Commission would require double the number of the EVMs, which was 24 lakh, he added. The functionary said as of now, five polling personnel are deployed per polling station. For simultaneous polls, the poll panel believes seven personnel will be required per polling station.

Assuming that simultaneous polls were "again" held in 2024, the Election Commission would need Rs 1,700 crore to replace some of the old EVMs, which would complete their 15-year life span by then, the sources said. The Electronics Corporation of India Ltd and the Bharat Electronics Ltd, two public sector undertakings (PSUs), manufacture the EVMs and VVPAT machines. They would have to work on an overdrive to provide the required number of devices in time, if simultaneous polls were held in 2019, they added.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Om Prakash Rawat had a word of caution on simultaneous polls when he recently said the legal framework required for holding the elections together would take time to be readied. "We cannot put the cart before the horse. Logistical issues are subservient to the legal framework. Unless the legal framework is in place, we do not have to talk about anything else, because the legal framework will take a lot of time. Making constitutional amendments to (changing) the law, the process will take time," he had said.

Rawat had said once the legal framework was ready, the Election Commission would be out with its proposals. "The Election Commission is a creation of the Constitution. We have to perform willy-nilly, deliver the election, whatever way prescribed in the law," he had said.
Seeking to revive the agitation for OBC quota, Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) convener Hardik Patel appealed the Patidar community to support him to continue the fight.

Ahmedabad: Seeking to revive the agitation for OBC quota, Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) convener Hardik Patel appealed the Patidar community to support him to continue the fight.

Speaking at 'Patidar Nyay Mahapanchayat' at Moti Malvan in Surendranagar district of Gujarat, Patel attacked the ruling BJP for "attempting to break the agitation".

The gathering or the Mahapanchayat was meant to improve unity and cohesion within the community, he said.

Under criticism for not pressing the demand of reservations in jobs and education for the Patidar community aggressively after the last year's Assembly polls, Patel said the agitation was not limited to elections.

It will continue for years, if required, until the demands are met, he said.

Over twelve MLAs of Opposition Congress attended the event, dubbed by the PAAS as "part III" of the quota agitation launched in 2015.

"They (BJP) are trying to see how the agitation breaks up. Those (from the community) who oppose our demand have taken money from the BJP. So it is our duty to keep the community together. The agitation is not Hardik's alone but of the Patidar community," he said.

"If you give me support, I am ready to fight our oppressors and even go to jail," he said.

He recalled the "martyrdom" of 14 persons who were killed during the 2015 agitation.

Though the organisers had invited Patidar MLAs from both the BJP and Congress, no MLA from the ruling party turned up.

Patel said that MLAs from "Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's Congress party" came, but those from "Amit Shah's BJP" didn't.

"In any case, we would not have let BJP MLAs join us. They were smart not to come," he said.

"We are fighting those who gained power by killing thousands of people. We are not against the government," Patel said.

He warned Congress MLAs that they will have to support the community's demands in the Assembly.

"Where are other MLAs of Congress? (Leader of Opposition) Paresh Dhanani should have come. We have sent MLAs to the Assembly because we have hopes from you. Today you (Patidar MLAs of Congress) are 16, tomorrow you will be 32.

But if you do not speak about us, you will lose," he said.

Representatives from 4,000-odd Patidar-majority villages and PAAS conveners from the tehsil level were invited to the gathering, which saw around 10,000 people in attendance.

Congress MLAs Virji Thummar and Lalit Kagathra also spoke at the mahapanchayat.
Two days ago, Amit Shah said that the alliance between Samjawadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) will be a challenge for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh.

Two days ago, BJP national president Amit Shah said that the alliance between Samjawadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) will be a challenge for the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) in 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

If we consider the figures from the 2014 Lok Sabha results, this alliance certainly appears to be a roadblock for the BJP at the macro level. The SP-BSP combine represents 41.8 percent of the total votes polled, which is certainly a formidable vote share. However, in the same elections the BJP clocked a vote share of 42.30 percent, which was still higher than the SP-BSP combine. But add Congress's vote share  7.5 precent  also to the grand alliance and the arithmetic of such an alliance suddenly looks much stronger, and much more than what the BJP could achieve in 2014 at the peak of the Modi wave.

However, before arriving at a direct conclusion in a state like Uttar Pradesh, it is also important to consider the election dynamics of the state. A Member of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh on an average represents more number of people in the Lok Sabha than any other state. Thus, the politics involved in winning such an election is obviously more nuanced and complicated. The first such complication arises in the allocation of tickets. In any party, there will be at least half a dozen capable candidates to vying to contest each Lok Sabha seat.

This complication is further aggravated when SP, BSP, and Congress decide to contest elections together in 2019 as is being claimed right now. To analyse this situation further, election results of 2009 Lok Sabha are enlightening. In the two decades preceding 2014, BJP wasn't a key player in the elections in Uttar Pradesh and BSP, SP and Congress fought each other for electoral dominance in the state.

Out of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in 2009 elections, 11 constituencies were newly created. In the remaining 69 seats, 42 were wrested by BSP, SP, and Congress from each other. This means that at least for these 42 seats, there are at least two winnable candidates with the different constituents of the touted Mahagathbandhan.

This analysis does not take into account the performance of Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) because it has now joined forces against the BJP but in 2009 it was fighting the elections in alliance with the BJP. However, RLD had bagged five Lok Sabha seats in 2009 elections; including these will take the tally of such swing seats to 36. This problem is further aggravated when there are multiple strong candidates in each party individually.

Looking at this, we can be sure that there will be severe infighting among the constituents of Mahagathbandhan in the division of tickets, because over 50 percent seats are winnable by more than one parties. Naturally, they will be reluctant to give away the seat to another party.

This is visible if we look at the recent remarks of BSP supremo Mayawati. She has voiced her suspicions about getting a fair share of seats and has asked her party to be ready to go solo in the upcoming elections.

Moreover, the nature of the 'grand alliance' in Uttar Pradesh is very different from Bihar, where the traditional voters of both RJD and JD(U)  Yadavs, Muslims and Kurmis  were more or less socially coherent. The mutual animosity between them, if any, was surpassable. However, in Uttar Pradesh there is sufficient hostility between Muslims and Yadavs on one hand and the Dalits on the other. This means the transfer of vote share of one party to another is not so easy.

The bypoll results of Phulpur and Gorapkhpur have given an impetus to the proponents of the theory that Mahagathbandhan can trump BJP. However, when we individually analyse the elections in both the constituencies, it is clear that there was no rivalry between the SP and BSP on the issue of ticket distribution.

In Phuplur, the BSP has almost been a non-entity for its entire existence  except in 2009 when it had won the seat but its MP from that election, Kapil Muni Karwariya, is currently serving a sentence and is debarred from contesting elections. Also, the dynamics of the constituency changed in 2008 when large parts of Allahabad Lok Sabha constituency were included in Phuplur, where SP has been a dominant force. Therefore, it was easy for the BSP to give way to SP in Phuplur.

In Gorakhpur too, the BJP had held the seat since 1991. Therefore, there was virtually no presence of any other political party, ruling out much discontent amid cadres of either parties. The ticket was ultimately given to Praveen Kumar Nishad, who is effectively not even a part of SP. He contested the elections on SP's election symbol when his father, the founder of Nishad party, joined forces with the Akhilesh Yadav-led party.

Therefore, it is highly unlikely that a coalition of SP and BSP can even come into existence for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Even if it does, it will come at the cost of upsetting party workers, who will feel disgruntled over ticket distribution and seat sharing.

Such disgruntlement amid the ranks and file of Mahagathbandhan constituents will serve as a fertile ground for the BJP to expand their footprint. Hence, in the long run, a grand alliance would benefit the BJP more than the harm it could cause to the party.

It is therefore in the interest of the BJP that it allows the Opposition in Uttar Pradesh to form a coalition. It should in the meantime, sit back and enjoy the show.
What does the gathering of opposition leaders in Bengaluru to celebrate the alliance of the Janata Dal (S) with the Congress signify, and can it last for another 12 months? Here's an analysis of the anti-BJP stand ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls

What does the gathering of opposition leaders in Bengaluru to celebrate the alliance of the Janata Dal (S) with the Congress signify? What is driving them to this unity and will this last for another 12 months when India goes to elections?

Lets examine this, but first, let us look at the leaders who decided not to come to Bengaluru. Naveen Patnaik has his own faction of the Janata Dal in Odisha. In the 2014 Assembly elections, his party won 43 percent of the vote. The BJP won 18 percent and the Congress won 25 percent.

This explains why Naveen was not present. For him, Congress is a bigger threat, or at least, it is an equal threat as the BJP. The future may well change this equation and it is easy to see why, by next year, it will be the BJP that will be at Patnaiks heels. But there is no need for him to close his options at the moment and hes doing the smart thing by waiting.

He has allied with the BJP before. It makes no sense for him to link up with Rahul Gandhi now before the issue of 2019 polls is decided.

In Telangana also the leader of the opposition is a Congressman. It is likely that this will continue into the general election. Besides, the BJP is not as big a force in Telangana as the Congress. Chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao did come to Bengaluru to meet the Gowdas but he did not join the unity rally for this reason.

Now, take a look at those people who did come. The electorate of Bihar is quite fragmented. In their defeat of the BJP in 2015, the former Mahagathbandhan of Lalu Prasad Yadav, Nitish Kumar, and Congress secured over 40 percent of the votes. The two Janata Dals, the main components of the alliance, got about the same share of the vote. Nitishs Janata Dal (U) later went with the BJP while Lalus Rashtriya Janata Dal stayed with the Congress.

No party can dominate Bihar on its own, and so it makes sense for the two Janata Dals to stay inside alliances. The Nitish-BJP alliance is stronger on paper and there is no option for the Lalu family but to look for help elsewhere. This explains their enthusiasm for a nationwide unity against the BJP.

In the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections in 2017, the votes were split in the following way: BJP received 41 percent, Samajwadi Party got 28 percent, and Bahujan Samaj Party received 22 percent. Mulayam Singhs Samajwadi Party had won the majority in 2012 with 29 percent votes, so it held on to its vote share. Its just that after Narendra Modi moving to the Centre, the BJP has become much bigger in the state.

Mayawati and the Yadavs compete mainly for power in the state. In that sense, it is fortunate for them that in 2019 there is no Assembly election. That will make it easier for them to attempt unity against the BJP. This unity will likely collapse when it comes to sharing power in the state. For now their OBC + Muslim + Dalit alliance looks powerful.

Vote transfers, of course, do not work in such simple fashion. The psephologist Dorab Sopariwala has long said that coalitions in India work because coalitions are also coalitions of caste. But many of these parties have become desperate and do not want to spend decades in the opposition.

In West Bengal, which has 42 Lok Sabha seats, the Left has collapsed and the Congress has been made irrelevant. The BJP has become the opposition and Mamata Banerjee has no problem joining an alliance that opposes Modi.

In Maharashtra, like in West Bengal, the Congress split, but Sharad Pawar was not able to dominate the party entirely as Mamata was. The coming together of the NCP and the Congress could be problematic for the BJP. The BJP vote bank is not as solid in Maharashtra as it is in northern India. The party got only 27 percent of the total votes in the last Assembly elections (it did not contest all seats) but came close to a majority. The other three parties, including the Shiv Sena, all got about 18 percent each.

After two decades of uneasy partnerships, produced mainly because ideologically they are almost identical, the NCP and Congress are likely to fight the 2019 polls together without a problem. In Andhra Pradesh, the principal opposition is YS Jaganmohan Reddy. Like in West Bengal, the Congress has been taken over by a charismatic local leader and its infrastructure and leadership has been captured. For Chandrababu Naidu, it makes sense to keep his options open because his local threat is not only from the BJP.

The BJP strategy will be to make sure it does not antagonise the parties that are not a part of this alliance, like the Tamil parties especially, who will be open to a post-poll alliance.

For the Congress, it has become necessary to make alliances but this is not easy to deliver at the local level. A recent poll showed that the Congress was ahead of BJP in Rajasthan and, more surprisingly, Madhya Pradesh, a state the BJP has governed for 15 straight years. In Madhya Pradesh, the BSP won only four seats in 2013 (down by 3 seats) but it held on to over 6 percent of the votes.

An alliance with that party will not be easy to drive for the Congress central leadership because the party's state leaders will be reluctant to concede too much at a time when they sense victory. But an alliance with the BSP in Madhya Pradesh could stop the BJPs unbeaten run before it touches two full decades. It will take great maturity from the Gandhis to be able to pull off such alliances.

But if they do it, 2019 will be a very interesting election for all of us to observe, no matter which party we support.
For the RLD, it is a battle for survival. The need to regain their support among Jat voters who deserted them en masse in 2014.

Shamli: On this blistering hot Saturday afternoon, temperatures hover between 46 and 47 degrees centigrade. The people of Shamli have moved indoors. Its streets wear a deserted look. A sulking, grey-haired Anil Kumar, who owns a grocery shop declared, "The government at the Centre did nothing to protect our pitaji who has been thrown in jail. Why will I vote for the ruling dispensation? In 2015, I voted for Narendra Modi ji but this time I will vote for Chaudhary Sahebs party."

The pitaji he is referring to is Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh. The town of Shamli borders Haryana and has a large number of his followers. They are in no mood to forgive or forget and the around one lakh followers scattered across five segments of the Kairana Lok Sabha and Noorpur Assembly seats of Uttar Pradesh have vowed to teach the BJP a "quiet" lesson.

Shamli is one of the Assembly segments where a crucial battle is being fought between BJPs Mriganka Singh, daughter of Hukam Singh whose death resulted in the bypoll, and the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) candidate Begum Tabassum Hasan, who is being backed by the main Opposition parties including the Congress, the Samajwadi Party and the Bahajan Samaj Party.

For the RLD, it is a battle for survival. The need to regain their support among Jat voters who deserted them en masse in 2014. Leading the charge is RLD leader Ajit Singhs son Jayant Chaudhary, who despite soaring temperatures, has made it a point to personally cover twelve to fifteen villages every day for the past four weeks. Jayant has been going door-to-door in these five Assembly segments and pleading with farmers to help him open his partys account.

"Khate kholne mein toh is bar madat karni padegi" (this time, we need your help to open our account), is the message given to every home Jayant and his team visit. Jayant, pleading with his Jat elders, states, "Dada-dadi ko apne ghar mein dubara rakh lo." The legacy message carries a strong emotional pitch because it was former prime minister Charan Singh who helped bring Muslims and the Jats on the same political platform. The elder Jats in this area have come out openly in support of Jayant. The younger generation remains divided with many insisting that while they endorse Jayant, they believe the BJP will do more for the farmers in western Uttar Pradesh.

The RLD is confident that Kairanas Muslims will come out strongly in support of the RLD. The reason is not difficult to deduce. Tabassum Hasan inherited the political legacy of her husband Munawwar Hasan, who died in a road accident some years ago. Hasan was a member of the Samajwadi Party and represented it in both the Lok Sabha and the Vidhan Sabha. Hasan was facing opposition from her brother-in-law Kanwar (Lok Dal) but some deft handling by Jayant saw Kanwar withdraw his candidacy and announce his support for Tabassum. The RLD has calculated that if they manage to wrest Kairana from the BJP, it will speak volumes about the revival of their vote bank among the Jats and help them emerge, once again, as a political force in western Uttar Pradesh.

Local RLD leader Yogendra Singh pointed out, "Kanwar would have divided the Muslim vote and this would have gone in favour of the BJP candidate Mriganka Singh. So, even as the BJP is raising the farmers' issues, we too are highlighting how the Yogi Adityanath government has not kept its promises towards the farmers." But not everyone is convinced. Till one month ago, the RLD candidate Tabassum was a member of the Samajwadi Party. Most of her hard core workers remain members of the Samajwadi Party. Although the Mahagatbandhan is talking about making a united pitch against the BJP, there are farmers who are asking why Akhilesh Yadav has not come to campaign in favour of Tabassum.

Samajwadi Party leader Rajendra Chaudhary admitted that Akhilesh not coming was a deliberate move. He chose to stay away so that the BJP could not once again focus on the Muzaffarnagar riots to gain votes, Rajendra explained. This is why also, despite the large Muslim vote bank, Azam Khan has not been sent to campaign either. Similar questions are being asked about the absence of the first rung of Congress leaders. Even UPCC president Raj Babbar has not shown up and the battle cry has been led entirely by Ajit Singh and Chaudhary.

Rakesh Tikait, a Bharitya Kisan and Jat leader believes this confused message will be reflected in the way people cast their vote on Monday. "I suspect most Hindu families are going to vote on both sides. Some members will vote for the BJP while will cast it for the RLD. BJP has a 20 percent hard core vote bank and it is the same with the Lok Dal. But in the case of 80 percent of Hindu families, I believe there will be voting on both sides," Tikait asserted. Tikait also expressed his apprehension that the state administration may create some impediment for Muslims casting their votes tomorrow. "They will insist Muslim women show their faces before casting their vote and show their Aadhaar cards just to slow them down. They obviously would not want all the Muslims to cast their votes," Tikait added.

But the BJP are not taking any chances either. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has held several rallies and Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, along with several senior leaders, including a half dozen ministers have been camping here for the past fortnight. Local farmer Suresh Rana is upset with the state government for not paying the farmers their dues. "Over Rs 1,200 crore is owned to farmers. Despite the state government promising that our dues would reach us within 15 days of the mill buying our sugar cane, little has been done to mitigate our problems," said Rana.

What impact the death of sugar cane farmer Udayveer Singh in the Baraut tehsil of Baghpat will have on the voting tomorrow is still to be seen. Singh, who died on Saturday, was sitting on dharna, along with 50 other farmers, protesting non-payment of their dues by sugar mills and hiking of power tariff to Rs 800 per month. While some farmers attribute his death to prevailing heat wave, others believe it was due to cardiac arrest. Rana added, "Look at the irony. We are not being paid and then on top of it, power tariffs have been hiked twice in the last five months."

There is no doubt that Modis Sunday rally in Baghpat, where he will be arriving to inaugurate the first phase of the Delhi-Meerut highway, will have an impact on undecided voters. While Modis roadshow will be restricted to seven kilometres around the Nizamuddin Bridge in New Delhi, he will then fly down to Baghpat to inaugurate an exhibition of the project. The RLD had urged the Election Commission to restrain the prime minister from holding this function but the poll body refused to intervene.

While Modi is known to help ensure voter swing in favour of the BJP at the last minute, Tabassum has put up the flags of the Congress, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samajwadi Party in her Shamli office even as her workers on Saturday were in the dark about the schedules for the RLD leader. They insisted their information was limited to Begum Sahibas schedule. Whether this marriage between different parties will remain together will be seen in the months ahead.
IANS

Alan Bean, a NASA astronaut who journeyed into space two times and, as part of the Apollo 12 mission in 1969, became the fourth man to walk on the moon, died at the age of 86 at a hospital in Houston, the US space agency announced.

NASA announced his death on 26 May night noting that he had fallen ill during two weeks of travel, reports The Washington Post.

Bean was born on 15 March, 1932, in Wheeler, Tex., and completed high school in Fort Worth.

He was a Navy test pilot first and later joined NASA's astronaut corps in 1963.

He made his first voyage into space on 14 November, 1969, four months after the historic first landing on the moon of Apollo 11, commanded by Neil Armstrong.

The three astronauts aboard Apollo 12 were Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr., the mission commander, Richard F. Gordon Jr., the command module pilot, and Bean, whose duty was as lunar module pilot.

After more than four days of flying through space, Conrad and Bean settled onto the lunar surface on 19 November, landing in a broad plain called the Ocean of Storms.

Four years later, Bean returned to space as commander of the second mission to the Skylab orbiting space station. He and two astronauts, Jack Lousma and Owen Garriott, stayed aloft for 59 days, conducting a variety of biological experiments to test the body's ability to endure the physical and psychological demands of prolonged space flight.

In the late 1970s, Bean became chief of the astronaut training programme, preparing for the first shuttle mission, which was launched in 1981, The Washington Post reported.

He soon retired from NASA and devoted himself to painting, a longtime hobby that had become an overriding passion.

His paintings have been exhibited at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington and have sold to collectors for well in excess of $100,000.
Abhilash Pavuluri

I figured this would be a nice addition to last weeks article, about learning resources. After all, a lot of us want to become photographers only after we admire photos taken elsewhere by other people. Ive said this before and Ill say it again: The beginnings of the industry were very humble. Photography was like magic to most people back then, and there were certainly people who could be considered magicians with the kind of photos they took. In this article well talk about 5 such people.

1. Ansel Adams:

One of the greatest and most popular of them all, Ansel Adams photos are a treat in themselves. He was a pioneer mainly for his work in landscape photography. Born in California, Ansel was a shy kid at school (and was later diagnosed with hyperactivity) and he used to look to nature for solace. It was in his later life that he really fell in love with the outdoors. Mainly the Yosemite and Sierra Nevada, whose photos are some of his best work ever.

Adams, along with fellow photographer Fred Archer, is also credited to have developed a new technique for developing photography film called the Zone System. He used mainly large format film cameras which meant he could get a ton of detail in all his photos. He was also an avid environmentalist.

Notable photographs include Monolith or The Face Of Half Dome.

2. James Nachtwey:

James Nachtwey is another name that cannot be missed. A photojournalist (mainly in warzones and conflict areas), James work is absolutely stunning. James recently did a segment for Time about Americas opioid crisis, which I personally think is one of the best works of photojournalism to date.

James was born during the Vietnam War and the eventual Civil Rights movements in the States, which he says are the reasons he wanted to take up photography. Having studied in Art History and Political Sciences, it shows in his photos.

James was also a wartime photographer for quite a while, even getting injured one instance from a grenade while in Iraq on assignment. Despite his setback, he still raged on, and continues to be a photographer today.

3. Stanley Kubrick:

This has to be a joke, right? Writing about a director in a photography column?

Nope. Kubrick was one of cinemas greatest influences but he was also an extremely talented photographer. At the age of just 17, Kubrick joined the staff of Look magazine after a photo he took in New York made it to their office.

Kubrick went on to work with Look for 5 years, leaving in 1950. But his work is also something I feel every aspiring photographer needs to have a look at. Kubrick is all about the story. Even mundane subjects (such as a lady putting on makeup) turn into a fascinating story through Kubricks photos, and thats what went into his directorial work as well.

However, this wasnt a very well known fact about Kubrick: It came to light recently when a publishing company took over some photos from the Museum of The City Of New York And Art to publish as a collection.

4. Bruce Barnbaum

This article would be incomplete without a mention of Bruce Barnbaum, another photographer who has been a personal influence to me. Bruce had a different upbringing from the folks mentioned before: He was a computer programmer for around 4 years before he quit to take up photography full time, in 1970.

Since then, and we quote After 40 years, it is still his hobby; it has also been his lifes work

Bruce is also well known for his books. My personal favourite is the essential Art Of Photography: A Personal Approach To Artistic Expression. A book that has some of the best insights on composition that Ive seen.
At least 26 Syrian regime forces and nine Russian fighters were killed in an Islamic State group attack earlier this week in Syria's eastern desert, a monitor said.

Beirut: At least 26 Syrian regime forces and nine Russian fighters were killed in an Islamic State group attack earlier this week in Syria's eastern desert, a monitor said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the jihadists had targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in Deir Ezzor province on Wednesday.

"There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman. The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

The Russian military is backing Syria's army with air strikes and troops, but there are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground.

The defence ministry in Moscow said Sunday four Russian servicemen had been killed in clashes with militants in Deir Ezzor. It did not give a date or precise location, but the Observatory said it was the same incident as the Islamic State attack near Mayadeen.

Two of the servicemen were "military advisors commanding the Syrian artillery" and were killed on the spot, the defence ministry said.

It said two more Russian soldiers died later in a Russian military hospital following the fighting. Three other troops were wounded. The ministry said the fighting lasted around an hour and left 43 militants dead.
The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship on the Korean Peninsula that had sent tensions soaring.

Seoul: Plans for a landmark summit with North Korea's Kim Jong-un are moving "very nicely", US president Donald Trump said on Sunday, as the South's leader said Kim told him the talks would be a historic opportunity to end decades of confrontation.

The latest conciliatory declarations capped a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship on the Korean Peninsula that had sent tensions soaring.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling a planned 12 June meeting with Kim in Singapore, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump told reporters late Saturday when asked for an update. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed."

Trump's unpredictability sparked a sudden and surprise meeting on Saturday between Kim and South Korean president Moon Jae-in  only the fourth time leaders from the two countries have ever met  as they scrambled to get the talks back on track.

Pictures showed them shaking hands and embracing on the North Korean side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two nations.

Moon said Kim described the Singapore summit as a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation.

"He... expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters in Seoul on Sunday.

Pyongyang's state-run KCNA news agency said Kim "expressed his fixed will on the historic DPRK-US summit talks", using the official abbreviation for North Korea.

Kim said the two Koreas should "positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve the DPRK-US relations and establish mechanism for permanent and durable peace," KCNA added, saying South and North Korea would hold another round of "high-level" talks on 1 June.

Shaky detente

Trump's original decision to abandon the historic summit initially blindsided South Korea, which had been brokering a remarkable detente between Washington and Pyongyang and is desperate to avoid conflict breaking out.

However, there was a further signal of progress Saturday as White House press secretary Sarah Sanders confirmed a team of US officials were leaving for Singapore "in order to prepare should the summit take place".

Last year, Trump and Kim were trading war threats and insults after Pyongyang tested its most powerful nuclear weapon to date and missiles it said were capable of reaching the US mainland.

Tensions were calmed after Kim extended an olive branch by offering to send a delegation to the Winter Olympics in South Korea, sparking a rapid detente that led to Trump agreeing to hold direct talks with Pyongyang.

Moon won the election last year partly by vowing to be open to dialogue with the North and finding a solution to a Cold War-era sore that continues to blight the region.

The flurry of diplomatic backslapping and bonhomie disappeared in recent weeks as the summit was thrown into doubt by increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both top US administration officials and Pyongyang.

There are still stark differences between what the two sides hope to achieve.

Washington wants North Korea to give up all its nukes in a verifiable way as quickly as possible in return for sanctions and economic relief.

Pyongyang has a different view of what denuclearisation might look like and remains deeply worried that abandoning that deterrent would leave the country vulnerable to regime change.

"Kim stressed again that he had a firm determination towards complete denuclearisation," Moon told reporters on Sunday.

"The thing he was uncertain about was not denuclearisation but concerns on whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime when the North denuclearises itself."

'Back on track'

Saturday's meeting between Moon and Kim took place on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a heavily fortified village that lies between the two countries where the 1953 armistice was signed.

Only last month, the two leaders met in the same village, with Kim famously inviting Moon to step briefly into the North before they both held talks in a building on the South's side.

Kim Yong-hyun, professor of North Korea studies at Dongguk University in Seoul, said Moon and Kim moved quickly to defuse the crisis after Trump's shock cancellation.

"Moon essentially helped relay messages from Trump to Kim and vice versa, to further smooth the process and to resume negotiations," he told AFP, saying the Singapore meeting was "clearly back on track".

Unlike last month's summit, which was held in front of live TV cameras, Saturday's meeting took place in utmost secrecy, with reporters only told later that the face-to-face had taken place.

Footage released by the Blue House on Twitter, accompanied by a dramatic orchestral score, showed Moon arriving in a convoy of cars and first shaking hands with Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, who has played a major public role in recent talks with the South.
PARIS (Reuters) - France's main far left party, the hardline CGT trade union and some 80 other organisations on Saturday led several thousand people in street protests across the country against President Emmanuel Macron's reforms of the public sector. Organisers hoped that the protests would grow further into a groundswell of opposition to Macron's reform of France's public service and some state enterprises such as the heavily indebted national railway company SNCF. Union officials and the police gave widely different figures for the turnout.

PARIS (Reuters) - France's main far left party, the hardline CGT trade union and some 80 other organisations on Saturday led several thousand people in street protests across the country against President Emmanuel Macron's reforms of the public sector.

Organisers hoped that the protests would grow further into a groundswell of opposition to Macron's reform of France's public service and some state enterprises such as the heavily indebted national railway company SNCF.

Union officials and the police gave widely different figures for the turnout. CGT said 80,000 people participated in the protest in Paris, and 250,000 came out nationwide. The police, however, said the protest drew 21,000 in Paris.

The turnout was lower than the 320,000 during a previous nationwide protest in March.

"We are going to carry a message (and) this message must be heard by the strong-headed Emmanuel Macron," Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the far left France Unbowed party, told a cheering crowd in the southern port city of Marseille.

Melenchon listed a number of grievances including staff shortages at hospitals, limited admissions at universities, and lack of police in tough neighbourhoods, because the government says it does not have the means to fund them.

"We do not believe you because you are lying," Melenchon said, adding that Macron's government had given a 4.5 billion euros ($5.25 billion) tax break to the rich which could have been invested in hospitals.

"The country is rich. The country must share," Melenchon said.

Protesters are expected to hold rallies in at least 160 places across France, CGT Secretary General Philippe Martinez said, adding that Macron should listen to the growing anger.

French Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said that police intervened in Paris after a group of hooded protesters tried to destroy a bank.

Seven police officials were injured during the intervention, Collomb told France BFM TV. The police said 35 demonstrators were detained for various offences.

Unions have staged several nationwide strikes since the start of the year, while SNCF rail workers have been carrying out rolling strikes on two of every five days of the week since April over plans to reform the company and open it to competition.

Macron, 40, who came to power a year-ago promising to push through tough reforms, has shown no sign of surrender so far.

$1 = 0.8584 euros)

GRAPHIC: http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/FRANCE-REFORM-SNCF/010062DJ40H/index.html

(Reporting by Bate Felix, Caroline Pailliez and Emmanuel Jarry; Editing by Stephen Powell)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez was declared on Sunday the winner of a heavily disputed presidential election held three weeks ago, despite mounting protests and opposition claims of fraud.

Tegucigalpa: Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernandez was declared on Sunday the winner of a heavily disputed presidential election held three weeks ago, despite mounting protests and opposition claims of fraud.

Electoral authorities made the announcement the day that Hernandez's leftist opponent, Salvador Nasralla, left for the United States to highlight what he said was ballot tampering in the 26 November poll.

The declaration could deepen a spiral of violence that has occurred since the election, as anti-Hernandez protesters and police have squared off repeatedly.

Police have counted three deaths in the unrest. But the opposition says 20 people have died, and Amnesty International has registered 14 deaths.

The election was deeply contentious.

Hernandez, 49, stood for re-election against Nasralla, a 64-year-old former TV presenter, despite a constitutional ban on presidents having more than one term.

His conservative National Party said that rule was scrapped by a 2015 Supreme Court ruling.

But the opposition insists ballots were tampered with after the election, and says unusual breaks in the count that dragged out the tally over more than a week was suspicious.

International observers also said they noted "irregularities."

Call for new vote

The Supreme Electoral Tribunal had previously declined to name a victor, despite saying that its count of the ballots showed a slight margin in favor of Hernandez: 43 percent to 41 percent for Nasralla.

But it had to do so by a 26 December deadline, or risk the entire election being invalidated.

Nasralla, the candidate of the leftist Opposition Alliance Against the Dictatorship, is standing firm on his claim that he won the election, and that only fraud made it look like Hernandez had the edge.

He is insisting the entire vote be held again, with greater international scrutiny.

On Sunday, Nasralla left for the United States to call attention to the fraud he said was perpetrated.

He was to meet the head of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, officials from the US State Department and human rights groups.

The US visit "may be decisive in finding a solution to the crisis brought about by fraud and to restore calm to the nation," he told journalists in Tegucigalpa before leaving.

Going into the election, the United States gave implicit support to Hernandez, who has presided over a crackdown on vicious gangs that are rampant in Honduras, which is beset by violence, poverty and corruption and provides many of the undocumented migrants headed to the US.

Hernandez himself was in mourning over the death of his 51-year-old sister in an air force helicopter crash on Saturday that also killed five others.

Hilda Hernandez had served as the president's communications minister.
Kim Jong-un believes a summit with US president Donald Trump will be a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation, South Korea's president Moon Jae-in said on Sunday

Seoul: Kim Jong-un believes a summit with US president Donald Trump will be a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation, South Korea's president Moon Jae-in said on Sunday following his surprise meeting with the North Korean leader.

"He (Kim) also expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters, adding both he and Kim agreed to meet or talk in person "if necessary".

Moon and Kim held a surprise summit in the Demilitarised Zone separating their two nations on Saturday in a scramble to save a slated 12 June summit between North Korea and the United States in the city-state of Singapore.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his meeting with Kim, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

During his two hour meeting with Kim, Moon said he urged both Washington and Pyongyang "to remove misunderstandings through direct communication and to have sufficient dialogue in advance through working-level negotiations on the agendas to be agreed upon at the summit".

"Chairman Kim agreed on that," he added.

Moon said the Pyongyang regime reaffirmed its commitment to give up its nuclear weapons but had its own security concerns if it took that step.

"Kim stressed again that he had a firm determination towards complete denuclearisation," the South Korean president added.

"The thing he was uncertain about was not denuclearisation but concerns on whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime when the North denuclearises itself."
Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said he will contest for a National Assembly seat from his native town Nawabshah in the upcoming general elections.

Karachi: Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said he will contest for a National Assembly seat from his native town Nawabshah in the upcoming general elections, making his return to the electoral and parliamentary politics after a gap of 24 years.

The 62-year-old leader made the announcement during an Iftar party hosted by Sindh chief minister Syed Murad Ali Shah at the chief minister's house last evening.

He has been elected as Member of National Assembly from Karachi's area of Lyari in 1990, and from Nawabshah in 1993.

Zardari said he could have chosen Lyari as his electoral constituency but later decided in favour of the constituency from his native town.

He also predicted that no party will hold the majority in the next Assembly.

Zardari served as the 11th President of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013.

He rose to prominence after his marriage to Benazir Bhutto in 1987.

After Bhutto's assassination in December 2007, Zardari led PPP to victory in the 2008 general elections.
By Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan will hold general election on July 25, electoral officials said Saturday, as the government enters its final week in office. 'President Mamnoon Hussain has approved the date for the elections,' a spokesman for Election Commission of Pakistan, Altaf Khan told Reuters

By Asif Shahzad

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan will hold general election on July 25, electoral officials said Saturday, as the government enters its final week in office.

"President Mamnoon Hussain has approved the date for the elections," a spokesman for Election Commission of Pakistan, Altaf Khan told Reuters. "We haven't yet received the summary signed by the president, but we hope to get it anytime," he said. "We had suggested the president to pick any day from July 25 to July 27."

A top official at the presidency said the president has signed the summary that approved the date.

Pakistans government and parliament is due to be dissolved on May 31, when a new interim prime minister and an interim administration is meant to take over.

However, political wrangling between the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) party and the opposition in parliament had delayed the announcement of the new interim premier.

(Writing by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Toby Chopra)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The cost of prosecuting Mumbai terror attacks mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) head Hafiz Saeed is too great, says former ISI chief Asad Durrani.

New Delhi: The cost of prosecuting Mumbai terror attacks mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) head Hafiz Saeed is too great, says former ISI chief Asad Durrani. "If you prosecute Saeed, the first reaction will be: it's on India's behalf, you're hounding him, he's innocent, etc. The political cost is big, now," he says. Durrani, 77, mentions this in a new book in which he features in conversation with former RAW chief A S Dulat and the two discuss topics including everything related to India-Pakistan ties: the surgical strikes, Kulbhushan Jadhav, Nawaz Sharif, Kashmir and Burhan Wani.

When Dulat asks him, what is Saeed's value to Pakistan, Durrani replies, "The cost of prosecuting him is too great."

Saeed, who carries a $10 million American bounty for his role in terror activities, was under house arrest from January to November last year. The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which is responsible for carrying out the Mumbai attacks in 2008 in which 166 people, including six Americans, were killed.

Saeed was declared a global terrorist by the US and the UN after the Mumbai strikes and was put under house arrest in November 2008 but freed by a court some months later. "He was taken to the courts though they had nothing (new) against him. It is still possible that he was detained to let the storm blow over. In six months, he could come out," writes Durrani about Saeed's detention.

In the book, published by Harper Collins India, Dulat and Durrani are in conversation with Aditya Sinha. On asked by Dulat if Saeed's house arrest was choreographed, Durrani says, "What's new, as far as Hafiz Saeed is concerned, is more evidence available? One would expect that there's an arrangement with Hafiz Saeed.

Asked if there were any positive implications for India-Pakistan relations from Saeed's house arrest, he says, "There are very few positives on the India-Pakistan front right now. But this can provide breathing space to a country that is constantly under pressure." Meanwhile, Pakistan's powerful army has accused Durrani of 'violating' the military code of conduct and has summoned him on Monday seeking clarification over his book "The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace".

Durrani mentions in the book that Mumbai remains the only incident in which he decided that he would be available to any Indian and Pakistani channel to say that whoever has done this, be it state-sponsored, ISI-sponsored, military-sponsored, should be caught hold of and punished.

"It's not only about those 168 people dead, four days of carnage, etc. At the time Pakistan could ill afford its eastern front caught in a war. There were enough problems in the West and within the country. I don't know who did it, but there were questions that David Headley named an ISI major. It created difficulties for us," he says. On reports that Headley collaborated with Saeed, he says, people can go ahead and investigate as all these stories have floated around.

"For eight years, both of us have advocated joint investigation, joint trial, intelligence sharing, get on with the anti-terrorism mechanism, etc, for the simple reason that we can't do anything until and unless this is resolved. Till then, Hafiz Saeed, ISI, Jaish-e-Mohammed: it's possible they had nothing to do with it, that there's a third or fourth or fifth party involved," he says.
Savita's death was a catalyst for the movement to repeal the eighth amendment, paving the way for new legislation to allow for the termination of pregnancies in the predominantly Catholic country.

London: The still-grieving father of Savita Halappanavar, the 31-year-old Indian dentist who died of sepsis in 2012 after being denied an abortion during a miscarriage, has welcomed the result of Ireland's landmark referendum to overturn the abortion ban, saying "we have got justice for Savita".

Savita's death was a catalyst for the movement to repeal the eighth amendment, paving the way for new legislation to allow for the termination of pregnancies in the predominantly Catholic country.

The Eighth Amendment grants an equal right to life to the mother and unborn, is now set to be replaced. In the referendum held on Friday and results announced last night, people in Ireland voted overwhelmingly to overturn the abortion ban by 66.4 per cent to 33.6 per cent. Hundreds of People chanted Savita's name soon after the outcome of the referendum was announced.

Ireland's Indian-origin Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who campaigned in favour of liberalisation, said it was "a historic day for Ireland," and that a "quiet revolution" had taken place.

Varadkar told people at Dublin Castle that the result showed the Irish public "trust and respect women to make their own decision and choices."

Reacting to the outcome of the referendum, Andanappa Yalagi, Savita's father said he was "very happy".

Yalagi said: "We've got justice for Savita, and what happened to her will not happen to any other family now. "I have no words to express my gratitude to the people of Ireland at this historic moment," he said.

He said Savita's death had devastated the family. "It's still very emotional after five years. I think about her every day," he said.

An independent inquiry into Savita's treatment found there had been an "over-emphasis on the need not to intervene until the foetal heart had stopped", as well as poor patient monitoring and risk assessment. It strongly recommended that the Irish parliament consider changing the law, and "any necessary constitutional change".

Savita's husband, Praveen Halappanavar had said that he and his wife had repeatedly asked for the pregnancy to be terminated after her admission to hospital, but they had been told: This is a Catholic country".

Meanwhile, the Irish Times reported that the Irish Cabinet will on Tuesday consider a request from the Minister for Health to draft the Heads of a Bill to implement the decision of the people.

Health Minister Simon Harris said he expected it be published by the summer recess and passed by the end of the year. There is a strong mandate to implement the decision of the people as soon as possible, the minister added.
Several people have been injured in Pakistan in clashes between police and protesters during a demonstration against the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, media reports said.

Peshawar: Several people have been injured in Pakistan in clashes between police and protesters during a demonstration against the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, media reports said. Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the disputed region through the Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018 which was passed on 21 May.

The order is seen as Islamabad's efforts towards incorporating the disputed region as its fifth province. Police fired tear gas shells and resorted to aerial firing in Gilgit on Saturday to stop protesters approaching towards Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly for a scheduled sit-in against the newly introduced order, The Express Tribune reported. Politicians, cutting across party lines, held protest rallies across Gilgit-Baltistan demanding constitutional rights for the region.

The Gilgit-Baltistan government has promulgated the Gilgit-Baltistan Order-2018, which replaced the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order of 2009. However, the new order has failed to impress local politicians who announced region-wide protests.

We will continue our sit-in outside the assembly till this package is revoked and we are given constitutional rights, said Awami Action Committee (AAC) Chairman Sultan Raees. Civil rights groups in Pakistan have also criticised the order.

In New Delhi, Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah was summoned over Islamabad's so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order. He was told by India that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country's forcible occupation has no legal basis. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said it conveyed to Shah that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Pakistan has bifurcated occupied Kashmir into two administrative parts - Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). Gilgit-Baltistan was treated as a separate geographical entity by Pakistan untill now. Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh are the four provinces of Pakistan.

A Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Abbasi on Tuesday, was informed that Gilgit-Baltistan Council will be retained as advisory body towards the functions of the Federal Government.

China's controversial $50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) passes through the disputed region. It is believed that China's concerns about the unsettled status of Gilgit-Baltistan prompted Pakistan to change its status.

Dawn reported that under the new order, all powers exercised by the Gilgit Baltistan council, including passing legislation regarding mineral, hydropower and tourism sectors, have been shifted to the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly.
Around 195 files, including documents relating to relations between India and Sri Lanka at the peak of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) led civil war, have been destroyed by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).

London: Around 195 files, including documents relating to relations between India and Sri Lanka at the peak of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) led civil war, have been destroyed by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), sparking concern among archivists and researchers.

While the FCO said that any destruction decision would have been taken based on the country's records policy, experts believe the loss of the files means there is no record of an important period of history.

Britain's MI5 and the Secret Air Service (SAS) had reportedly advised Sri Lanka's security forces during the LTTE crisis between 1978 and 1980.

"Two of the documents they destroyed were called 'Sri Lanka/India relations' from 1979 and 1980," said journalist and researcher Phil Miller, who discovered the files were missing as part of a freedom of information request.

The documents are expected to have had references to India's relations with the island nation, including the work of the Indian Peace-keeping Force (IPKF) during the period.

"Removing or destroying historical records from public custody at the National Archives hurts all of us and is an illegal act," said Vairamuttu Varadakumar, founder of the Tamil Information Centre, registered as an independent community-based non-profit organisation in 1981 with a mission to empower Tamil-speaking people to improve their quality of life through access to knowledge and other projects.

"It appears that the Foreign Office's action is designed to cover up the involvement of the SAS and MI5 in the training of Sri Lankan security forces that might be potentially embarrassing to Her Majesty's government," he said.

"We found recently that there has been an increasing interest in the history, politics and human rights of the Tamil speaking people of Sri Lanka among researchers, particularly among the younger generation. National archives, libraries and documentation centres are places of memories," he added.

Varadakumar also claims that Indian authorities had seized documents that belonged to the Tamil Information Centre back in 1987.

"The Tamil Information Centre had two branches, one in Madras and one in Madurai from 1984 until 1987. The Indian authorities asked us to close them down saying that a peace accord has been signed between the government of Sri Lanka and India and they would help us transport the materials to Trincomalee and set up an archive there, which did not happen," claimed Varadakumar, a Tamil from northern Sri Lanka based in London.

The centre fears that the destruction of FCO files adds to the loss of information, which dates back to the burning of the Jaffna Library by the Sri Lankan Army in 1981, which housed palm-leaf manuscripts and ancient documents, and the destruction of the Jaffna Museum in 1989.

The FCO kept a list of file titles, showing that the destroyed papers would have covered a range of important subjects, from security cooperation and arms sales, to foreign aid and requests for political asylum in the UK.

An FCO spokesperson said: "The FCO, as with all government departments, reviews all its files in line with the requirements of the Public Records Act before making a decision on permanent preservation.

"The FCO's recommendations for the preservation or destruction of records take place under the guidance and supervision of the National Archives. FCO decisions are informed by the National Archive's records collection policy and existing FCO policy."
Two navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two US officials told Reuters, in a move likely to anger Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.

Washington: Two navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two US officials told Reuters, in a move likely to anger Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea. The operation was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijings efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.

While this operation had been planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a particularly sensitive time and just days after the Pentagon uninvited China from a major US-hosted naval drill. The US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

The US military vessels carried out maneuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said. Trumps cancellation of a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has put further strain on US-China ties amid a trade dispute between the worlds two largest economies. Critics of the operations, known as a freedom of navigation, have said that they have little impact on Chinese behavior and are largely symbolic.

The US military has a long-standing position that its operations are carried out throughout the world, including in areas claimed by allies, and that they are separate from political considerations. Satellite photographs taken on 12 May showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.

Earlier this month, Chinas air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs in the South China Sea as part of a training exercise in the region, triggering concern from Vietnam and the Philippines. The US military did not directly comment on Sundays operation, but said US forces operate in the region on a daily basis. We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future, US Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

Neither Chinas foreign nor defence ministries immediately responded to a request for comment.

Contested sea

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region. In March, a US Navy destroyer carried out a freedom of navigation operation close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands. Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, Cold War terms.

Chinas claims in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. The United States has said it would like to see more international participation in freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea.
It's a great time to be in the business of war, as defense contractor order books have swelled. This has occurred due to the need for replacement armaments after years of dropping bombs in support of operations to fight global terrorism and a defense buildup to counter threats from North Korea and elsewhere.

Alas, that soaring demand has placed stress on the supply chain and has the Department of Defense worried about the industry's ability to meet future production targets. Among the chief concerns outlined in the Pentagon's annual Industrial Capabilities Report are potential issues sourcing components to replenish bomb stocks, a reliance on China for critical materials, and an aging workforce.

"Factors such as obsolescence, foreign dependency, fluctuating demand, industry consolidations, and loss of design teams, and manufacturing skills for critical defense products continue to threaten the health of the industrial base, limit innovation, and reduce U.S. competitiveness in the global markets," the Pentagon wrote in the report, which was issued in mid-May.

Here's a breakdown of some of the chief Pentagon concerns, and what they might mean for defense investors.

An uneven supply chain

The Pentagon placed a heavy focus on replenishing munitions in its current and fiscal 2019 budgets, committing more than $20 billion to buy bombs and missiles, but it's worried the industry isn't ready to deal with the increased demand. Part of the problem is of the government's own doing: The Pentagon admits its uneven year-to-year history of buying munitions has led some key domestic suppliers to discontinue -- or at least de-emphasize -- the business.

What remains of the supply chain is, at times, foreign owned or reliant on countries like China for key subcomponents or materials. The report says that about 60 elemental components go into microelectronics today, up from about 12 minerals in the 1980s, and frets that the United States currently imports more than half of its consumption of non-fuel minerals.

The Pentagon also has cut corners by relying on updates to, at times, multi-decade-old munitions, including the mainstay Tomahawk missile, instead of funding development of new programs. "As a result, the design skills for critical components within the missile sector industrial base are at risk," the report concluded, warning the loss of design and production skills could lead to delays, unexpected issues, and a lack of readiness.

Two contractors, Raytheon (NYSE:RTN) and Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT), are involved in roughly 97% of the Pentagon's munition and missile procurement funding. The report could present both a risk to those companies should the government seek to diversify or a boon if future appropriations prioritize funding for new-program development.

The Pentagon also is worried about component suppliers. The report says there are currently only two makers of solid rocket motors, a military-only technology, and only one manufacturer of thermal batteries. Fuzes are another area of concern but for the opposite reason: The report says that there's so much international supply, manufacturers aren't investing in technological improvements.

Greener pastures elsewhere

So much for the military-industrial complex. Dwight Eisenhower might not have believed it possible back when he popularized the phrase in the early 1960s, but in an era of iPhones, DVRs, and server farms running online commerce, the Pentagon is worried it's not big enough to adequately influence the electronics sector.

Global military production represents just 6% of the $1.5 trillion worldwide electronics industry, according to the report, giving the Department of Defense "limited leverage" over production trends. Off-shoring is another worry, with Chinese companies, for example, owning about 50% of the $60 billion printed circuit-board market compared to a 5% share from U.S. companies. Given the increasing importance of electronics, including sensors and radar systems, to modern warfare, as well as some of the unique requirements for military electronics, the Pentagon needs to make sure it has a steady supply of electronics from trusted sources.

This fear should create opportunities for defense electronics specialists, including Raytheon, Lockheed, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics, with the government conceding that it could be prudent to subsidize certain electronics projects to make sure prime contractors are willing to take them on. There are also increased opportunities for the Pentagon and the primes to capitalize on non-military technological advances. For example, Lockheed is developing an autonomous truck that would reduce the personnel needed to convoy supplies through dangerous war zones.

An aging workforce

Demographics also are working against the industry. Only 39% of aerospace and defense (A&D) employees are younger than 45, according to the report, and the industry is having trouble filling the estimated 27,000 open positions within A&D companies. The Pentagon said that while younger workers are interested in the industry, the engineering, science, and math backgrounds that are most in need also are in demand elsewhere.

"Although recent efforts focused on advanced manufacturing have helped to level off the decline in manufacturing jobs during the past few years, manufacturing's share of employment and gross domestic product (GDP) remain at historic lows," the report said. "This has led to a growing shortage of well-trained and capable manufacturing workers."

The government in 2017 held a series of meetings with the Aerospace Industries Association, a trade group, about workforce challenges. The industry and individual companies are encouraging fellowships and sponsoring scholarships to try to drum up interest, but investors should be warned that the problem is unlikely to be solved without higher wages and increased training expenditures. The government might shoulder some of that burden, but it figures to impact corporate profits, as well.

What this means for defense stocks

None of these issues are directly the fault of any one defense prime, but all of the companies figure to be impacted. When your entire business is focused on one customer, you tend to take that customer's concerns seriously.

There's a lot of potential profitability risk contained within the report, as rebuilding the domestic supply chain, attracting and training new workers, and sourcing materials from only select regions will bring up costs. There also could be opportunities, especially for large second-tier suppliers like L-3 Communications, to fill the domestic void in areas including electronics where the Pentagon is looking to invest.

But the most important takeaway from the report is the Pentagon's willingness to help solve the problems it has identified. Just as the defense industry needs to cater to their most important customer, the Defense Department is eager to sustain a healthy supplier base and is unlikely to force new requirements on companies without helping to pick up the bill.

The nation's biggest defense contractors have challenges on the horizon, but those challenges will create opportunities. This continues to be an industry worth holding for the long haul.
What is a 401(k) and How Do They Work?

A 401(k) is a retirement savings plan sponsored by employers. You fund the account with money from your paycheck, you can invest that money in the stock market, and you earn some tax perks for participating. That's the basic (and slightly boring) definition of a 401(k). The more interesting angle is what a 401(k) can do for you. The 401(k) is a powerful resource for achieving financial independence, especially when you start using it early in your career. Said another way, if you like money and wish to have more of it in the future, you can use a 401(k) to make that happen. Read on for a closer look at how the 401(k) works, when you can withdraw funds from a 401(k), and what happens to your 401(k) if you change jobs.

In this article: How a 401(k) works

Contribution limits for 401(k)s

Withdrawing from your 401(k)

What a 401(k) rollover is

How does a 401(k) work? Eligibility to participate in your company 401(k) usually involves a minimum employment period. Many employers allow you to participate in the 401(k) within a month or two of your hire date. The amount you deposit into your 401(k) with each paycheck is calculated from your contribution rate. Your contribution rate is the percentage of your salary you will contribute. Say you make $45,000 annually, or $3,750 gross monthly. A 10% contribution rate would mean you contribute $375 from your monthly paycheck towards this retirement plan. Don't panic if that seems like too much money to carve out of your income. Thanks to the 401(k)'s tax advantages, a $375 paycheck deferral will cost you something less than $375. The contributions from your paycheck are tax-deductible. Known as paycheck deferrals, these amounts are taken from your pay before income taxes are applied. That lowers your taxable income, which, in turn, reduces your income taxes. Some 401(k) plans offer matching contributions, also known as an employer match. These are deposits to your 401(k) account that are funded by your employer -- basically free money. Matching contributions follow a formula that your employer defines. A common structure is for the employer to deposit $0.50 for every $1 you contribute, up to 6% of your salary. Those are just a couple perks of the 401(k). You also get tax-deferred investment earnings. Normally, you'd owe taxes annually on interest, dividends, and profits earned on investments you've sold. You don't have to worry about any of that in a 401(k). You can make as much as you want on your 401(k) investments and you won't pay taxes until you withdraw funds from the account.

401(k) contribution limits Even if you wanted to, you probably cant put all of your paycheck into your 401(k). This is because the IRS sets limits on 401(k) contributions. There are caps on how much you can contribute from your paycheck and on how much you and your employer can contribute in total. The numbers can change from year to year, but the limits for 2021 are below. You can normally contribute up to $19,500 from your salary to your 401(k). Exceptions apply to highly compensated employees, or HCEs.



If you are 50 or older, you are allowed additional paycheck deferrals of $6,500 per year. These are called catch-up contributions.



Total contributions cannot exceed your pay, or $58,000, whichever is less. Total contributions include your paycheck deferrals, matching contributions, and any other employer-funded contributions. The Roth option Some 401(k)s allow you to make Roth contributions. A Roth 401(k) contribution has a different tax structure than your standard 401(k) deposit. While the traditional 401(k) contribution is tax-deductible up front and taxable when you withdraw funds, the Roth contribution is the opposite. You get no tax deduction for a Roth contribution, but your withdrawals in retirement are tax-free.

Withdrawing from your 401(k) The 401(k) is intended to be a retirement plan, so withdrawals are restricted in your younger years. There are a few exceptions, but most withdrawals before age 59 1/2 come with a 10% penalty. Retirement withdrawals: You can start taking retirement withdrawals once you've reached age 59 1/2. You may be able to begin withdrawals at age 55 without penalty if you no longer work for the company. These withdrawals are taxed as ordinary income. Required minimum distributions: If you don't need the money, you can leave it in the account until you are 72. In the first quarter of the year after you turn 72, the IRS requires you to take taxable withdrawals annually. These are known as required minimum distributions, or RMDs. The amount of your 401(k) RMD for each year is based on your age and your year-end account balance. 401(k) loan: Your plan may allow you to borrow against your 401(k) balance, which would not incur a penalty. You do pay interest on the loan; however, youre paying interest to yourself. And, if you change jobs, you normally must repay the loan by the time your next tax return is due. 401(k) rollovers Your job may not be a keeper, but your 401(k) balance is. If you change jobs, you can take your retirement money with you. Depending on your account balance, your former employer may even require you to take your funds out of the plan. Either way, you'll want to do what's called a 401(k) rollover so you can avoid any taxes or penalties. There are two main types of rollovers: Direct rollover: You ask your plan administrator to send your funds directly to a different retirement account -- either an individual retirement account (IRA) or a 401(k) plan with your new employer. No taxes are withheld from your funds. 60-day rollover: If your old employer sends your 401(k) funds to you directly, you have 60 days to deposit those funds in an IRA or a different 401(k). This gets tricky because your plan will withhold 20% in taxes from the direct payment. But the amount you must deposit in a new account is the full account balance, including the withheld taxes. If you deposit a lesser amount, you will report the difference as taxable income on your next tax return. Here's an example to clarify the 60-day rollover. Say your 401(k) balance is $5,000 when you leave your job. Your employer sends you a check for $4,000, with $1,000 withheld for taxes. You have 60 days to deposit the full $5,000 into another retirement account. If you deposit only the $4,000 you received, you will report $1,000 as taxable income. Youd also owe a 10% penalty if its an early withdrawal.

401(k) for financial independence in retirement The 401(k) makes it easy to build wealth for retirement. Once you set your preferences, the work of saving and investing happens behind the scenes. Plus, you have tax savings and, possibly, matching contributions that expedite your savings momentum. Here's what it comes down to: The earlier you start contributing to a 401(k), the more you'll get from its perks and the richer you can be when you retire.

Retirement Plans Check out other retirement plans that may be right for you Retirement Strategies There's more than one way to get to your retirement goal IRAs Learn the basics of individual retirement accounts. Self-Employed Retirement Plans Planning for retirement when you're your own boss.

FAQs
We hear a lot about how Americans on the whole aren't saving adequately for retirement, but clearly, there are plenty of outliers. In fact, the number of workers with $1 million or more in their 401(k) plans jumped to 157,000 at the end of this year's first quarter, according to Fidelity. That's a 45% increase from one year prior.

Of course, there are certain factors that fueled this accumulation of wealth. For one thing, the stock market had a killer 2017, which no doubt boosted balances hovering near the $1 million mark. Furthermore, Fidelity reports that many of the aforementioned 401(k) millionaires have been saving for a solid 30 years.

Still, it just goes to show that with a nice amount of effort, it's possible to amass $1 million and retire comfortably as a result. If that's the sort of goal you have in mind, here's how to get there.

1. Start saving early in your career

Many younger workers think of retirement as a far-off milestone that doesn't demand their immediate attention. But the fact of the matter is that the longer you give yourself to save for the future, the greater your chances of accumulating $1 million -- or whatever personal goal you have in mind.

Currently, you're allowed to contribute up to $18,500 a year to your 401(k) if you're under 50, or $24,500 if you're 50 or older. Most people, however, can't afford to part with anywhere close to that amount of money each year. But if you start saving early enough in your career, you can get away with setting aside much less month after month. Check out the following table, which shows what a modest $300 monthly contribution might grow into depending on the length of your savings window:

If You Start Saving $300 a Month at Age: Here's What You'll Have by Age 70 (Assumes an 8% Average Annual Return): 25 $1.39 million 30 $932,000 35 $620,000 40 $408,000 45 $263,000 50 $165,000 55 $98,000

As you can see, if you commit to saving for the bulk of your career, you can turn a series of $300 monthly contributions into well over $1 million. Even if you miss the boat early on and don't start saving for almost a decade, you can still get pretty close. But the longer you wait, the more money you'll need to part with each month to have a shot at that $1 million -- and the more you risk coming up short when retirement rolls around.

2. Take full advantage of your employer match

If you're lucky enough to have a 401(k), you probably have a chance to get your hands on some free money for it. That's because an estimated 92% of companies that sponsor 401(k)s are willing to match employee contributions to some degree.

The problem? Roughly 25% of workers don't contribute enough to snag that match, thereby leaving a cumulative $24 billion on the table in unclaimed 401(k) dollars. On an individual level, that translates into $1,336 of lost money each year.

If you're serious about reaching millionaire status in your 401(k), you must make a point of putting in enough money each year to claim your employer matching dollars in full. Remember, too, that when you pass up any amount of free money each year, it's not just that principal you're giving up; you're also denying yourself its associated growth.

Imagine you forgo $1,336 a year over a 10-year period because you don't contribute enough to get your match, and then retire 20 years after that point. All told, you'll have missed out on over $90,000 when we factor in potential earnings on that lost money (assuming an 8% average yearly return on your investments).

3. Invest your savings wisely

You may have noticed by now that we've applied an 8% average return on investment to our different calculations so far. The reason for that 8% is that it's just a bit below the stock market's average, which means it's a pretty fair benchmark for projecting returns. But what happens when you shy away from stocks and invest more conservatively instead? It's simple: You lower your chances of retiring a millionaire.

Imagine you're able to sock away $300 a month over a 45-year period, only you play it safe and snag an average annual 4% return instead of 8%. In that case, you'd be looking at an ending balance of $436,000, which is a lot less than $1.39 million. Though stock investments do carry some risk, if you have a 10-year window or longer before retirement, you'd be wise to put your money there. Not only will you have a decent amount of time to ride out the market's ups and downs, but you'll also most likely score higher returns that do the trick of growing your wealth.

Retiring with $1 million or more often boils down to saving consistently and making smart investment decisions. Cover yourself in both regards, and if all goes well, you'll be on your way to joining the ranks of the proud 401(k) millionaires who get to look forward to retirement.
Four laps before [the incident], I felt like the brake pedal was getting very, very long, said Leclerc, whod been racing on home soil for the first time.

As carbon fibre littered the circuit, the stewards announced they would investigate what had happened, but after reviewing video evidence and hearing from all interested parties they quickly dismissed any notion of driver error, with a front-left brake disc failure on Leclerc's Sauber identified as the cause.

Hartley and Leclerc had been running nose-to-tail in 11th and 12th when, coming out of the tunnel at full speed, the latter was unable to slow his car under braking for the chicane and ploughed into his rival.

It was the most dramatic moment of the Monaco Grand Prix  Charles Leclerc barrelling into the rear of Brendon Hartleys Toro Rosso approaching the chicane on lap 70. But as the Sauber driver later explained to the stewards, there was little he could have done to prevent the spectacular clash from happening

It was very inconsistent, even putting the same amount of [pressure] on the pedal, it was not decelerating and then decelerating, not decelerating and then decelerating. It was very difficult to manage and then at one point, they [the brakes] just gave up.

The huge crash, which eliminated both drivers from the running, was not the first time Leclerc and Hartley had tangled during the race, with the Toro Rosso driver losing part of his front wing in an early exchange.

Retirement capped a disappointing weekend for Hartley, who showed impressive speed in practice but was unable to capitalise when it really mattered.

It was an uphill battle [after the early contact]," said the New Zealander. "The tyres quickly faded with lack of front downforce, but we held on and made a big effort to make the ultrasofts last until the end. We pitted really early to make an undercut which was a good strategy, and towards the end of the race I was catching Carlos for P10, but then I got hit from behind.

Charles and I spoke afterwards and he said he lost the brakes. Its pretty frustrating, but thats Monaco. We were strong all weekend apart from Q1, where we didnt get it all together. I was happy with how I was driving today but ultimately it wasnt meant to be.

Despite recording the first DNF of his F1 career, Leclerc said he would take positives from his home race.

Its a shame, but again our race pace was really good," he reasoned. "Our quali pace also was better than expected, with a third Q2 in a row, so its looking positive for the future.
DRIVERS: 1  Daniel RICCIARDO (Red Bull) 2  Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari) 3  Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes) TRACK INTERVIEWS (Conducted by David Coulthard) Q: Sebastian, as youve got your helmet off first, well let Daniel celebrate with your old team Red Bull Racing. Youre sixth podium finish here, but not the result you were looking for. You just didnt have the pace today? Sebastian Vettel: I think we had the pace but it was a tricky race. I think Daniel had the answers at all times. First stint I could follow him fairly easily and then he started to push just, I think, when Lewis started to pit. Then he was a bit stronger there and I couldnt follow. I was going through the tyres fairly quick. Next stint was a bit the same. I think he had a problem half way through with his MGU-K. I think towards the end I picked again but at the re-start I just didnt have much confidence in the tyres and I lost quite a lot, otherwise it would have been nice to keep the pressure on until the end. Q: Daniel Ricciardo, you win in Monaco. How do you feel? Daniel Ricciardo: Ah good. I think I can show more emotion today than yesterday. Two years in the making this, so I finally feel like the redemption has arrived. We had problems. I dont know how much the radio broadcast, but we had a lot to deal with during the race. I think it was before half way, I felt a loss of power and I thought the race was done and we got home just using six gears. Thanks to the team we got it back. Im stoked. Q: We did have the radio played into our broadcast. We were with you in the cockpit. We knew you were driving wounded. This was reminiscent of Schumacher in Barcelona, stuck in fifth gear. You managed it superbly so that must make it even more sweet? DR: There were a few doubts that came in mid-race, but yeah, just we won Monaco! Feels good, feels good. Thanks everyone for the support. There were a lot of Aussie flags on the in-lap, so thanks everyone. Awesome. Q: Soak it up. Lewis Hamilton: difficult weekend. You mentioned after qualifying it was about damage limitation. You still gave it you all out there but that was the best you could get today  third place? LH: Well firstly, a big congratulations to Red Bull and to Daniel, they did a great job this weekend. Ultimately they were the quickest all weekend and we knew that would be the case. Yeah, it would have been nice to be second, but I did everything I could. But it was an interesting race. Well, I believe it was an interesting race. QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR Q: (Frederic Ferret  lEquipe) Daniel, in the past with Red Bull we have seen victories celebrated by jumping into the pool and jumping in the harbour. What will you do? DR: As I said, the pool looked a little bit worse for wear yesterday, so maybe the harbour is cleaner  and its higher, so maybe more fun.

Next Previous Enlarge 1 / 6 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Ferrari and Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Red Bull Racing in the Press Conference at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Sebastian Vettel (GER) Ferrari and Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Red Bull Racing in the Press Conference at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Red Bull Racing and Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes-AMG F1 in the Press Conference at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Race winner Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Red Bull Racing in the Press Conference at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Sebastian Vettel (GER) Ferrari in the Press Conference at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes-AMG F1 in the Press Conference at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Info Close

LH: Youve got to do a good jump where you land flat and make that slap. DR: A belly flop? LH: Yeah, a belly flop. Can you do a belly flop? The belly flop challenge. Everyone has done a back flip and a normal jump. You gotta do a belly flop. DR: Well, belly flop, maybe Ill try a front flip, which could be a back slap. LH: Or the pike. Have you heard of the pike? Its when you jump and land on your back. DR: No. LH: Come on! DR: Maybe well have a pool party. Maybe we can start drinking early. Q: (Dan Knutson  Auto Action and Speedsport) Daniel, you didnt need anything else to go wrong but when the VSC came out, were you thinking good news or bad news? DR: I saw the debris in the chicane I think it was. I didnt really want anything. I was just like lets get this race finished. It had already felt long enough. I was glad it was a VSC and not a Safety Car, because I thought having less power, with the problems, I would have been vulnerable on a re-start. Again, its hard to overtake here, so if I got good traction out of the last corner and blocked into Turn 1 I still think I would make it difficult for Seb but I didnt feel like becoming vulnerable in the last few laps. We'd already done 72 or something. I wasnt excited to see it but yeah, in the end it helped me as Seb seemed to lose time behind it, but it just made the last few laps go a bit longer. Q: (Livio Oricchio  Globo Esporte.com) Its time for celebration for sure, but concerning the next race, Daniel, mainly for you, its a certain of completely characteristics, do your performances relate to the track or have you really made a step forward on your car? DR: For sure the circuit helps us. As I said, I was using six gears pretty much the whole race, didnt touch seventh or eighth. I think all weekend anyway were not really using eighth, so I think it shows that even with an extreme loss of power our chassis still works really well. Fortunately this isnt a power circuit, so I think the circuit certainly helped us here. Its proven again we have a really good chassis. Montreal, well see. I think were back on the hypersofts. It looked like our degradation was better than the others today. Montreal is more of a power circuit. If our chassis is working well and being kind on tyres we may see ourselves fighting again but as always this circuit leans towards our strengths. As I said in Italian earlier, weve all got two victories between us this year, I wouldnt have thought that coming into February so thats pretty cool and well try and keep it going for now. Q: Sebastian, Montreal? SV: yeah, its a different track. Tyre choice I guess is the same, so well see. Obviously a bit more straightforward in terms of racing and overtaking than here, but yeah, well see. Two weeks now to prepare and look into our strengths and our weaknesses. Then well see where we are. Its a different track, yeah its quite smooth on tyres, hence the tyre choice, so I dont know. I think well all be there. As youve seen, in the first six races its been really close, which is good for us, because going into Sunday, you never know and youre in the mix and in the fight, so looking forward. Q: Lewis, Montreal? LH: They answered it pretty well, not really much more to say. Its going to be fun. More fun than this race, I think. Q: (Andrew Benson  BBC Sport) Two questions, one for Daniel and then one for everybody. Daniel, youve got an engine upgrade coming for Canada which is supposed to be pretty good. Can you be a title contender? And then, the wider question. A couple of years ago, or a bit more, you three were all instrumental in getting Pirelli to change the tyres, so they could be raced on and pushed on. Today, we saw you lapping four, five, six seconds off the pace for pretty much the entire race. How do you feel about that? DR: I think its a natural question after a victory. I think I got asked after China if it means were in the title hunt. Were still I think Lewis still has a pretty good buffer on me, so were still on the outside of that. Its not impossible but not really at the forefront of my mind yet. But, even if it was, Im not going to change obviously the way that Im driving or trying to attack. So, yeah, Montreal will be interesting. Try to get a few more podiums but yeah, weve got to probably prove on at least one other circuit before the summer break that we can win again. And then maybe were a nice little outside chance. For tyres, yeah, I think today, because its a tight circuit, youre able to take the piss a little bit with going slow. I mean, there were times I was really cruising but, yknow, the circuit allows you to do that because its hard to overtake but I dont think well be able to maintain that kind of rhythm on a circuit like Montreal or something. So, I think its more circuit-dependent  but Im glad theyre bringing the hypersofts again. When we pitted early, I thought it was maybe even looking like even a two-stop race  but obviously we could control the pace. But, as I said, on a different circuit I think today would probably have been a two-stop.

Next Previous Enlarge 1 / 3 Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Red Bull Racing RB14 celebrates in parc ferme alongside Sebastian Vettel (GER) Ferrari SF-71H and Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes-AMG F1 W09 EQ Power+ at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monac Sebastian Vettel (GER) Ferrari celebrates on the podium with the trophy at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Manuel Goria/Sutton Images Race winner Daniel Ricciardo (AUS) Red Bull Racing celebrates on the podium with the trophy at Formula One World Championship, Rd6, Monaco Grand Prix, Race, Monte-Carlo, Monaco, Sunday 27 May 2018.  Jerry Andre/Sutton Images Info Close
The danger to Italys financial stability is real, but hardly new

The outcome of Italys latest national elections made it very difficult to form a government. Finally, an ostensibly shocking breakthrough occurred: Lega (formerly the Northern League), which is labeled as a right-wing movement, and the Five Star Movement (M5S), labeled as populists, agreed to form a coalition and picked Giuseppe Conte, a law professor, as prime minister.



Both parties are euroskeptic, with one of them being more on the socialist side. Their program calls for tax cuts, which would make sense as the Italian economy is hindered by an excessive tax burden. Tax reductions, of course, would cause a short-term decline in government revenue, but in the long haul they increase revenues by triggering economic growth.

The coalition, however, also plans to spend heavily on a guaranteed minimum income scheme. This contravenes the growth-inducing plan. Such chronic excessive spending is the cause of the precarious financial condition of many European governments, especially in the highly indebted countries like Italy.

The danger to Italys financial stability is real. It exists because a long succession of Italian governments, including that of Matteo Renzi (until recently the head of the mainstream Democratic Party), did not make meaningful efforts to reduce public spending. In this context, there has been no real change. The only difference is that the new coalitions leaders, Luigi Di Maio of M5S and Legas Matteo Salvini, are more open about their intentions.

Let us look realistically at the situation, in a businesslike manner: Italy will never be able to repay this debt

A concern exists in European capitals that the new government may now ask the European Central Bank (ECB) to cancel big parts of Italys debt in its books, of some 340 billion euros. This possibility is seen as a threat to the stability of the common currency. But let us look realistically at the situation, in a businesslike manner. Italy will never be able to repay this debt. Sound accounting would, in any case, require the ECB to create a provision for this receivable on its books. If even the hypothetical possibility of such a request is seen as a threat to the euro, then the threat had existed already and Italys new political situation cannot be blamed for it.

It is rather amusing that Mr. Conti, the prime-minister-designate, is being criticized as having no political experience. Experienced politicians put Italy into these dire straits. It is hard to imagine that a newcomer could make matters any worse.

In an amusing last-minute twist, Italys President Sergio Mattarella refused to accept a nominee for the finance portfolio and Mr. Conte initially gave up his bid to form a government. The prospect of a new election appalled the public, but it was soon comforted when the president accepted a Conte cabinet with a different finance minister.



Regardless of how much sense or nonsense can be found in the new governments program, Italy needed to shake up its usual political process to start changing the status quo. It may prove painful or even dangerous, but a disruption is its only chance for eventual improvement. The coalition may provide just this.
Latest Headlines

Advisers 'should be next for regulator check'

First it was banks, then it was insurance advisers  now there are calls for adviser groups to come under the microscope as part of New Zealand regulators response to the Australian Royal Commission of Inquiry into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry.

Monday, May 28th 2018, 6:00AM

by Susan Edmunds

The Financial Markets Authority and Reserve Bank have asked bank bosses for details of what they are doing in response to the misconduct brought to light by the Australian inquiry. They this week asked life insurance companies for the same information, including steps being taken to tackle the potential for misconduct. They have until June 22 to provide the details.

Adviser Sonnie Bailey, who worked as a financial services lawyer reviewing adviser files in Australia, said he hoped to see attention turn to adviser groups next.

I also hope the FMA contacts industry associations and asks whether they pay anything more than lip service to enforcing their codes of conduct.

It's probably beside the point given that it's winding down, but the IFA's Code of Ethics required members to act in the clients best interests, above consideration of personal gain. And the first principle of Financial Advice NZ's Code of Ethics is to place the client's interests first.

I haven't given much thought as to whether the FMA has much jurisdiction over Financial Advice NZ etc but to my mind, there shouldn't be anything stopping an effective regulator from engaging with stakeholders in this way.

He said he would like to see senior people in the industry admitting the Australian experience had led to genuine soul-searching.

Instead of knee-jerk reactions that everything's fine and there's nothing to see here, actually using this as a prompt to pause and reflect, and see whether there's anything that might need to be changed.

I don't mean soul-searching as an admission of guilt - just individuals and organisations actually being healthy and well-adjusted in light of new information coming to light. As fiduciaries taking the longer view and thinking this might actually be best for shareholder value, not to mention Kiwi consumers.

The Financial Markets Authority is not completely ruling it out.

Were comfortable that it is appropriate to prioritise our work on banks and life insurers, and at this point we havent made any decision as to whether that needs to be expanded in the future, a spokesman said.

Gavin Austin, of ABC Compliance, and formerly with the FMA, said he was not sure New Zealand adviser groups were big enough to warrant the action. Its unlikely but who knows? I dont know if the FMA has the resources.

Special Offers

Comments from our readers

Sign In to add your comment
Now that we've had our first hands-on with Google's Android P beta let's take a look back at how Google's Android has evolved over the years. You may not believe it, looking at the size of your scroll indicator, but we did our best to make this brief!

Introduction to Android

Android is based on a modified Linux kernel which was initially developed by Android Inc., a company co-founded by Andy Rubin in October 2003, and purchased by Google in 2005 for circa $50 million.

Google released its Beta mobile phone operating system, Android, on the 5 November 2007, the same year Apple launched the iPhone, with Google releasing its first SDK one week later, on 12 November 2007.

Did you know? When Google launched Android, Eric Schmidt (Google's then CEO) was a member of Apple's Board of Directors, a position he had held since August 2006. At the time of its launch, the iPhone utilized Google's backend services built into some of Apple's core iPhone apps, such as Maps and YouTube.

It wasn't until August 3, 2009, that he resigned from Apple's Board of Directors due to the obvious potential conflicts of interest. Before his resignation, his effectiveness as an Apple Board member was significantly diminished, often having to recuse himself from Board meetings when the subject matter turned to iPhone or its fledgling operation system - iOS.

During the early stages of its accelerated development, Android had a very aggressive release schedule. We often saw multiple releases per year, and at its peak in 2009 Android received no-less than four significant updates. More recently, Google has settled into yearly major updates.

In 2011, Android became the world's most popular mobile Operating System - a mantle that it has not relinquished since - and is unlikely to do so as developing a modern OS for any platform is a major undertaking. As of April 2018, Android had a market share of 75.66%, with iOS holding 19.23%. The 5.11% for 'other' combines the likes of Windows, Series 40, Samsung, and Blackberry. Taking tablets into account, iOS only closes the divide by 2-3%.

Licensing and Google Mobile Services

Not all devices running Android are equal though. Once Google launches an Android release, it makes the source code available via an open source license allowing for distribution and modification. However, to use the Android trademark, device manufacturers have to license this separately from Google.

Additionally, the Android OS doesn't include that many core apps. Those apps that we take for granted such as the Play Store, Chrome, Gmail, Maps and the API's that access Google's services are part of Google's Mobile Services, which has to be licensed separately from Google. Google will only grant licenses to manufactures that meet its strict compatibility requirements along with other criteria.

This explains why Amazon's Fire tablets, which run a 'forked' version of Android, don't make any reference to Android - instead choosing to call its operating System Fire OS. Similarly, Amazon doesn't license Google Mobile Services and provides its own browser called 'silk,' Amazon app store and other supporting apps that access Amazon's eco-system.

As stated previously, the open source license allows modification, enabling device manufacturers to provide a point of differentiation in the sea of Android devices both through 'skinning' the stock Android experience and/or enhancing other Android features. Samsung with its Samsung Experience, Huawei and its EMUI are two examples of manufacturers who take this approach. Others, such as Motorola and Nokia prefer a 'lighter' touch providing a near stock Android. This can be a contentious subject which warranted our own Sunday debate earlier in the year which you can read here. Of interest, 65% of voters preferred stock android.

Version history

Jump to

Android 1.0 (no codename)

Android 1.1 (Petit Four)

Android 1.5 (Cupcake)

Android 1.6 (Donut)

Android 2.0 (Eclair)

Android 2.2 (Froyo)

Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)

Android 3.0 (Honeycomb)

Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)

Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)

Android 4.4 (KitKat)

Android 5.0 (Lollipop)

Android 6.0 (Marshmallow)

Android 7.0 (Nougat)

Android 8.0 (Oreo)

Android 9.0 (Android P name TBC)



Android 1.0 - no codename

Release date: September 23, 2008

Android 1.0 was the first commercially available release of the OS. It was available on the pioneering device - the T-Mobile G1 (released October 2008 in the US and the UK) along with the Android source code.

Inbuilt apps included:

Android Market  Web Browser  Pictures  Camera

Gmail  Google Contacts  Google Calendar  Over the air syncing via Google Sync

Email app supporting POP3, IMAP & SMTP  Calculator  YouTube  Settings

Alarm clock  Dialer  Google Maps

During our review of the T-Mobile G1 we did a deep dive into this first iteration of Android which you can read here. We've drawn out the salient points for you:

Multiple home screens

Background wallpapers

Task switcher

Home screen folders

Pattern unlock

Access to recent notifications

Home screen short cuts, including contacts

No pre-installed video player

Limited camera settings

Web browser based on WebKit but lacked multi-touch support for zooming

No video recording capabilities

Launched with Android Market



T-Mobile G1  The Android homescreen  Search  context menu  Android Market

In our initial Android review we concluded

It may be a long journey but the first step is daring enough. Instead of trying to expand on an already existing platform Google decided to build a new one from scratch and the effort is well worth it.

For even more nostalgia, here's the video that Google made available at the time providing a look at Android.

Android 1.1 - Google internal codename was Petit Four

Release date: February 9, 2009

Google had yet to expose the public to its dessert inspired release names for Android but it was known internally as 'Petit Four'.

Android version 1.1 was a relatively small update that was released coinciding with the launch of the HTC Dream, an internationally available version of the T-Mobile G1.

Notable Android Petit Four features included:

Details and reviews available when searching businesses on Maps

Longer in-call screen timeout when using the speakerphone, ability to show/hide the dialpad

Attachments in messages

Support added for marquee in system layouts

Android 1.5 - Cupcake

Release date: April 27, 2009

Cupcake was the first Android release to have a sweet public-facing name, a tradition Google has adhered to since, with every subsequent Android release being named after a dessert - whose name started with the next letter of the alphabet.

Cupcake introduced many UI enhancements including a new auto-rotate option, a new boot animation and animated screen transitions.

On-screen keyboards with text prediction and a custom dictionary were added to Android for the first time supporting such phones as the HTC Magic - freeing them from the bulk of a physical QWERTY keyboard. Still a significant differentiator against Apple, Google introduced their AppWidget framework enabling homescreen widgets. While cameras were allowed to stretch their legs even further by being able to record video in both MPEG-4 and 3GP video formats. Users could also copy and paste within the web browser.



HTC Dream  Android 1.5 widget

Other notable Android Cupcake features included:

Auto-pairing and stereo support for Bluetooth (A2DP and AVRCP profiles)

User pictures shown for Favorites in Contacts

Call log events now date/time stamped

One-touch access to a contact card from call log events

Ability to upload videos and photos to YouTube and Picasa respectivly

Android 1.6 - Donut

Release date: September 15, 2009

Donut introduced support for WVGA screen resolutions allowing Android to run on a variety of devices with different displays with varying aspect ratios - a marked improvement from the fixed 320x480 supported up until now.

The voice and text entry Quick Search Box was enhanced to consolidate results. Now including results from the web and developer apps in addition to the users local content. Improvements to the Android Market brought searching, app screenshots and the top free/paid apps categories.

The Gallery, camera, and camcorder became better integrated in addition to faster camera access.

Other notable Android Donut features included:

Multi-lingual speech synthesis engine to allow any Android application to "speak" a string of text

Batch photo deletion

Updated technology support for CDMA/EVDO, 802.1x, VPNs, and a text-to-speech engine

Speed improvements in searching and camera applications

Expanded Gesture framework and new GestureBuilder development tool

Android 2.0 - Eclair

Release date: October 26, 2009

Eclair further optimized performance, came with a revamped UI and supported more screen sizes and resolutions, while also bringing live wallpapers. Google Maps Navigation became a viable replacement for in-car navigation units with its turn by turn directions, 3D view, voice guidance and traffic information.

Smartphones started to close the gap on consumer digital cameras by supporting new camera features, including flash, digital zoom, scene mode, white balance, color effect and macro focus.

Android 2.1 was a subsequent release, which was dubbed Eclair, too, as it wasn't a major update in terms of functionality only introducing minor API changes and bug fixes.

Along with Android 2.1 Eclair, Google introduced its first Nexus devices as well. Manufactured by HTC, but sold directly by Google, the Google Nexus One was released in January 2010, and in May 2010 it also became the first phone to be updated to Android 2.2 Froyo.

Other notable Android Eclair features included:

Multiple Account sync for email and contacts

Microsoft Exchange email support, critical for corporate adoption

Bluetooth 2.1

Quick Contact feature, showing a pop-up for call, SMS and email, as soon as you tap on a contact's avatar

Ability to search all saved SMS and MMS messages

Improved typing speed on virtual keyboard, with smarter dictionary that learns your word usage and includes contact names as suggestions

Refreshed browser UI with bookmark thumbnails, double-tap zoom and support for HTML5

Calendar agenda view enhanced, showing attending status for each invitee, and ability to invite new guests to events

MotionEvent class enhanced to track multi-touch events

Android 2.2 - Froyo

Release date: May 20, 2010

Speed, memory, and performance optimizations were the prominent headline features for Froyo, delivered by the introduction of the Dalvik JIT compiler, delivering up to 5X performance improvements in CPU bound code. A 2-3X improvement in Javascript was achieved by the adoption of the V8 Javascript engine within the browser, in addition to Flash support being added.

Voice Actions enabled even more control of your phone with your voice, including search, getting directions and adding notes. Push notifications made their appearance for the first time. A big change in rendering quality came with the support for high-PPI displays (up to 320 ppi), such as four-inch 720p screens

Other notable Android Froyo featuresincluded;

Improved Microsoft Exchange support

USB tethering and Wi-Fi hotspot functionality

Updated Market application with batch and automatic update features

Quick switching between multiple keyboard languages/dictionaries

Support for Bluetooth car and desk docks

Support for numeric and alphanumeric passwords

Animated GIF support

Application installation on expandable memory

Gallery allows users to view picture stacks using a zoom gesture

Android 2.3 - Gingerbread

Release date: December 6, 2010

Further stretching its legs, Gingerbread delivered a better user experience by simplifying the UI and improving performance even further in addition to paving the way for even more form factors with support for extra-large screens sizes and resolutions. A standout feature was longer battery life, achieved by better management of those apps that were keeping devices awake for too long.

Additional Gaming APIs brought about a richer gaming experience to Android by providing developers with lower level access to audio, graphics, device controls, and storage capabilities.

Additional hardware capabilities were unlocked through Near Field Communication (NFC) support, multiple cameras now allowing native support for front-facing cameras, and more sensors (such as gyroscopes and barometers).

Fun Fact - Since Gingerbread, every version of Android has contained Easter eggs - take a look at the brief overview of those here.

Other notable Android Gingerbread features included:

Native support for SIP VoIP internet telephony

Faster, more intuitive text input in virtual keyboard, with improved accuracy, better suggested text and voice input mode

Enhanced copy/paste functionality, allowing you to select a word by press-hold, copy, and paste

New audio effects such as reverb, equalization, headphone virtualization, and bass boost

New Download Manager, giving easy access to any file downloaded from the browser, email, or another application

Support for WebM/VP8 video playback, and AAC audio encoding

Support for voice or video chat using Google Talk

Switched the default encryption for SSL from AES256-SHA to RC4-MD5

Improved Gmail application

Camera software enhancements

Improved battery efficiency

Android 3.0 - Honeycomb

Release date: February 22, 2011

OK, time to take on Apple's iPad. Honeycomb was an Android release optimized and intended for tablets only. With Google choosing the Motorola Xoom as its supermodel to best showcase its features.

Honeycomb provided an optimized UI for tablets with their larger screen real-estate. Reducing the requirement for physical navigation buttons Honeycomb's System Bar featured quick access to notifications, status, and soft navigation buttons, available at the bottom of the screen.

The new Action Bar gave access to contextual options, navigation, widgets and other types of content at the top of the screen. Quick Settings was introduced, bringing together date, time, battery and connection status. All topped off by a simplified multitasking experience.

Honeycomb also brought hardware acceleration and support for multi-core processors to the tablet party.

Subsequent Honeycomb releases, again tablet only, would bring support for external USB devices including keyboards and pointing devices, resizable Home Screen widgets, support for an enhanced range of tablet hardware and a compatibility display mode for those applications not yet optimized for tablet screen resolutions.

Other notable Android Honeycomb features included;

Redesigned keyboard

Simplified copy/paste interface

Multiple browser tabs, auto form auto-fill and new incognito mode

Quick access to camera exposure, focus, flash, zoom, front-facing camera, time-lapse, and other camera features

New two pane UI for Contacts and Email

Ability to encrypt all user data

Support for joysticks and gamepads

Support for FLAC audio playback

Android 4.0 - Ice Cream Sandwich

Release date: October 18, 2011

Ice Cream Sandwich consolidated both Android 2.3 and Android 3.0 into a single unified release with a hardware accelerated user interface that would support both smartphones and tablets.

That made on-screen navigation buttons available on smartphones for the first time. Alongside the new Roboto font, widgets were moved to a tab of their own in the app drawer, while folder creation was enhanced with a more natural drag-and-drop approach.

Data Usage control within settings allowed you to set warnings when you approached a certain usage limit, and disable data use when the threshold is exceeded. Android Beam leveraged the supported NFC chips allowing the exchange of web bookmarks, contact info, directions, YouTube videos and other data between NFC equipped devices.

Smartphone camera functionality evolved again with the introduction of an improved camera application offering zero shutter lag, time lapse and panorama modes, and the ability to zoom while recording 1080p video recording for stock Android devices. A built-in photo editor allowed you to tweak your captured images.

Of particular note, Ice Cream Sandwich introduced Face Unlock, a feature that allowed you to unlock your phone using facial recognition software. Apple's Face ID would gain prominence six years later utilizing both software and hardware components.

Other notable Android Ice Cream Sandwich features included:

Improved visual voicemail

Pinch-to-zoom functionality in the calendar

Integrated screenshot capture

Application access directly from lock screen

Automatic syncing of browser with users' Chrome bookmarks

New gallery layout

Refreshed People application with social network integration, status updates and hi-res images

Wi-Fi Direct

Android VPN Framework (AVF), and TUN (but not TAP) kernel module.

Android 4.1 - Jelly Bean

Release date: July 9, 2012

Jelly Bean introduced Project Butter with its sole purpose to provide buttery smooth performance and functionality for the user interface. It achieved this through touch anticipation, a fixed frame rate of 60 fps, Triple buffering in the graphics pipeline, CPU input boost (don't ask) and synchronizing touch to vsync timing.

Google Now poked its head above the wall for the first time, with its mobile assistant providing at a glance information based on your location, date and time, schedule and liked subjects.

Jelly Bean introduced Actionable Notifications, with notifications expanding and allowing action to be taken from within them. You could also turn off notifications on an application-specific basis.

Other notable Android Jelly Bean features included:

Enhanced accessibility

Shortcuts and widgets can automatically be re-arranged or re-sized to allow new items to fit on home screens

Bluetooth support for Android Beam, complimention NFC

Improved camera application, followed later by a reworked camera UI, previously introduced on Google Play edition phones

Tablets with smaller screens gained an expanded version of the interface layout and home screen used by phones

Multiple user accounts (tablets only)

New clock application with built-in world clock, stop watch and timer

Group Messaging

4K resolution support

Android 4.4 - KitKat (endorsed by Nestle)

Release date: October 31, 2013

The air was filled with peeps speaking or shouting "OK Google" to perform searches, send texts, get directions or play music.

Android's user interface was enhanced to support an immersive design approach. A users content was put front and center as applications could either hide or make translucent the navigation and status bars.

Improved caller ID was also a part of that release. Receiving a call from a phone number not in your contacts, showed matches from businesses with a local listing on Google Maps.

Under the hood, Android Runtime (ART) was introduced as a new experimental application runtime environment(not enabled by default), as a replacement for the Dalvik virtual machine.

Later in KitKat's lifecycle, a version of KitKat for Android Wear devices was launched, enabled by the addition of wearable extensions.

Other notable Android KitKat features included:

Optimizations for performance on devices with lower specifications

Wireless printing capability

Sensor batching, step detector and counter APIs

Android 5.0 - Lollipop

Release date: November 12, 2014

As opposed to previous incremental design updates, Lollipop introduced a system-wide new look call Material Design, adding shadows and motion while improving navigation. Notifications moved to the lock screen.

Songs, photos, apps, and recent searches from one Android device could be immediately picked up across all of your Android devices seamlessly.

Under the hood, Android Runtime (ART) with ahead-of-time (AOT) compilation, replaced Dalvik. With Lollipop, Android became available on TVs and in our cars for the first time.

Other notable Android Lollipop features included:

Support for 64-bit CPUs

Recent activities screen with tasks instead of applications

Print previews

Refreshed lock screen, no longer supporting widgets

Refreshed notification tray and quick settings pull-down

Project Volta, for battery life improvements

Search within the system settings

Guest logins and multiple user accounts are available on more devices, such as phones

Tap and Go allows users to quickly migrate to a new Android device, using NFC and Bluetooth

A flashlight-style application is included, working on supported devices with a camera flash

Smart lock feature

Updated emoji

Official support for multiple SIM cards

High-definition voice calls, available between compatible 4G LTE devices running Android 5.1

Native WiFi calling support

Android 6.0 - Marshmallow

Release date: October 5, 2015

Now On Tap, activated by pressing and holding the home button brought the ability to access Google Now's cards. Granular permissions allowing you to define what you want to share and when with the ability to turn permissions off at any time, too.

Doze mode, which reduces CPU speed when the screen is off, combined with App Standby were introduced to stretch out battery life even further. While security was enhanced with the introduction of native fingerprint support.

Other notable Android Marshmallow features included:

Contextual search from keywords within apps

Alphabetically accessible vertical application drawer

Application search bar and favorites

Renamed Priority mode to Do Not Disturb mode

Larger Application folders with multiple pages

USB-C support

4K display mode for apps

Experimental multi-window feature

Descriptions for USB connection options

Double-tap power button to open camera

Android 7.0 - Nougat

Release date: August 22, 2016

What time is it? Emoji time! Nougat put emoji's front and center. A trend, whether we like it or not continues, with 1500 emojis including 72 new ones while adding different skin and haircut to existing ones.

Click on the image below to read our Android Nougat Review.

Continued user interface enhancements allow the switching between apps with a double tap, and the ability to run two apps side by side. While the new Vulkan API provides optimized 3D graphics for games and other applications, such as Daydream virtual reality platform (VR interface) introduced with Nougat.

Other notable Android Nougat features included:

Ability to screen zoom

Added Emergency information part

Improvements to file browser

More Quick Settings options

Picture-in-picture support for Android TV

Battery usage alerts

Android 8.0 - Oreo

Release date: August 21, 2017

Oreo introduced further polish to the user interface by offering, Picture-in-picture support, Notification Dots that can be pressed quickly see what's new, and easily clear them by swiping away. Android Instant Apps allows access to new apps right from the browser, no installation needed.

While Toast messages are now white with the same existing transparency (We didn't know this but Toast messages are the small pop-ups you see throughout Android, for example, clicking Send on an email triggers a "Sending message..." toast).

Click on the image below to read our Android Oreo Review:

Support for Unicode 10.0 emoji (5.0) and replacement of all blob-shaped emojis by round ones with gradient and outline was added. Further highlighting the fixation with emojis, Oreo amended the Hamburger emoji to move the position of the cheese slice!

Under the hood, Oreo enables Project Treble, the biggest change to the foundations of Android to date: a modular architecture that makes it easier and faster for hardware makers to deliver Android updates. While boot times were improved 2x.

Other notable Android Oreo features included;



Redesigned Quick Settings and Settings, with restructured Settings

Multi-display support

System-wide Autofill framework

Google Play Protect

Downloadable fonts

Wi-Fi Assistant

Bluetooth battery level for connected devices

Android Oreo Go Edition, an optional lightweight version of Android for devices with less than 1 GB of RAM

Navigation buttons dim when not in use

Visual changes to 'Power Off' and 'Restart' including a new screen and floating toolbar

Automatic light and dark themes

Android 9.0 - Android P name TBC, Parfait anyone?

Release date: Beta 1 released May 8, 2018

Phew - well done on making it this far. Android P is the current Android public beta release and with it comes native support for the current trends display cut-outs and of course gestures.

Kick back and watch our hands-on review below:

Other notable Android P features include;
Week 21 is at its end and as we look back at it and it was another one filled with smartphone announcements - 13 new phones debuted in the past seven days.

Most of these phones were rumor mill lurkers but some of them, like the Meizu M8c and vivo Z1 almost came out of nowhere. The Samsung Galaxy Wide 3 was also an unexpected announcement but that is mainly down to its limited market availability - currently a Korean exclusive.

The key announcement was the HTC U12+ - the Taiwanese company's latest flagship.

Huawei made the Y5 Prime (2018) official with middle of the road specs, the Oppo F7 Youth was finally launched, a week after its doppelganger Realme1 launched in India, and Micromax launched the Bharat Go.

LG unwrapped a trio of Q7's which share a frame of specs and features and differ mostly in RAM and camera configurations.

But it was Samsung that was the most prolific maker in terms of releases with 4 new phones - the Galaxy J8, Galaxy J6, Galaxy J4 and Galaxy S Light Luxury.
This week we focused a lot on the upcoming Xiaomi Mi 8 and its fast approaching May 31 unveiling. The phone was handled in the wild, we saw its translucent back and found out most of its specs. Alongside the Mi 8, Xiaomi will announce MIUI 10 at its event.

HTC announced its U12+ flagship and it was also tested by DxO, which praised its camera prowess.

Samsung announced the Galaxy S Light Luxury. The phone, previously recognized as the Galaxy S8 lite has a 5.8-inch Infinity Display, a single 16MP camera and a Snapdragon 660 chip. The Galaxy J8 also became official.

LG unveiled a trio of Q7 smartphones with metal bodies, IP68 rating, 5.5-inch 18:9 screens and 5MP super wide angle selfie cameras.

The rest of the week saw a few notable stories about why the OnePlus 6 lacks wireless charging, the Nokia X6's impressive initial sales and the upcoming Lenovo Z5's potent battery.

See you around next week!



Xiaomi Mi 8 to cost around 400, leak reveals The 6/64 GB variant will be CNY2,799, while a more powerful 8/128 GB version is set at CNY3,199.





MIUI 10 is also officially arriving on May 31 The announcement will take place during the Xiaomi Mi 8 unveiling in Shenzhen.





Xiaomi Mi 8 handled on video - and it has a translucent back A smoky glass reveals the electronic brain of the Mi 8 - a Snapdragon 845 chipset, complete with the Qualcomm logo.





Nokia 8 Sirocco in for review Nokia's top-end Sirocco 8 is in our hands - full review soon to follow.





Xiaomi confirms Mi 8 name and May 31 launch date The flagship will be announced in Shenzhen at the annual Xiaomi flagship event.





Samsung Galaxy Note9 benchmarked with Exynos 9810 The handset in question had 6GB of RAM and ran Android 8.1.0.





Nokia X6 flash sale ends in seconds, again Nokia X6 second flash sale ended as quickly as the first one.





Xiaomi Redmi 6 pops up on TENAA The phone with model number M1804C3DE will have 5.45 screen with 18:9 ratio and a 3,000 mAh battery.





HTC U12+ brings a dual camera, HDR10 display and Snapdragon 845 The model builds on the foundations of the U11+ and keeps all the best parts: IP68, stereo speakers, noise-canceling headphones.





10nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 focuses on AR and AI The new mobile chipset is available to phone makers now with phones coming in Q2 this year.





Samsung Galaxy Wide 3 announced at SK Telecom in South Korea Samsung Galaxy Wide 3 gets its official unveiling but it will likely remain a South Korea exclusive device.





Teaser for Nokia's May 29 event says 'it's time get ChargedUp' HMD CPO Juho Sarvikas also jumped on the tease bandwagon saying they have "some new stuff to share."





Brace yourselves: EU's GDPR is coming The EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into effect tomorrow, May 25.





vivo Apex goes from concept to mass-produced smartphone on June 12 The Chinese company has tweaked the formula and is almost ready to launch the nearly bezel-less device.


Published on 2018/05/27 | Source

Fewer than 90,000 children were born in Korea in the first three months of this year, a fresh record low, but deaths exceeded the 80,000 mark for the first time.

Advertisement

The birthrate has been dwindling despite government spending worth more than W200 trillion to tackle the issue over the past decade (US$1=W1,083).

According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, 89,600 babies were born in the first quarter, down 9,100 on-year. The biggest on-year decline was in March, when 30,000 babies were born, 3,200 fewer than the same month last year.

January and March are normally the two months with the highest numbers of births. "This is not a good sign", a Statistics Korea spokesman said.

A major reason is the dwindling number of women of peak childbearing age between 30 and 34, coupled with declining marriages.

The number of women aged 30-34 dwindled 5.6 percent in March and a whopping 11.6 percent for 33-year-old women.

Only 66,200 couples got married in the first quarter, down 2,400 from a year earlier. The total fertility rate -- the average number of children born to a woman aged between 15 and 49 over her lifetime -- fell to 1.07.

But 81,800 people died in the first quarter, up 8,800 on-year and an all-time high. The sharp rise was due to many elderly people succumbing to the biting cold in January and February.

The country's population increased by a mere 7,800 in the quarter, only one-third of the 25,600 in the same period last year.

Lee Ji-yeon of Statistics Korea said, "If the birthrate remains this low, the moment when the population actually starts declining will come eight years earlier than expected in 2023".

Since the mid-2000s, the government has spent astronomical sums trying to solve the problems of the low birthrate and ageing population.



This year, it is spending a combined W30 trillion trying to boost the birthrate, which breaks down to nearly W100 million per newborn.

Experts warn that the government is on the wrong track. "Marriage is prerequisite to childbirth, but the government has so far spent more than 80 percent of the relevant budget on child-rearing", said Lee Sam-sik at Hanyang University. "We need high-powered short-term incentives, including subsidies for childbirth".

The working-age population has already been decreasing since 2016, and the economic impact has started to show up in some indices.

The slowdown in job growth, which has dropped below 200,000, is attributed partly to a recent decline of some 65,000 in the working-age population, said Ban Jang-sik, the senior presidential secretary for job affairs.
Having lost everything, Jon and Janae Moss now give back abundantly

The world is filled with everyday heroes, those quiet souls who go about doing good deeds and changing lives without aspirations of notoriety or fanfare. Jon and Janae Moss are two such heroes. The couple has learned through tough experiences that giving back to their community is important, and they do it vigorously. During this Septembers Day of Caring, Jon Moss and his crew from RBM Building Services took a quarter-acre of land at the Aspire Home that had been overgrown with weeds and cleared them out, put in grow boxes and designed a place of serenity for clients. We put in ...
Where to go to see this fall's foliage show in the Tri-State area
The terrors of World War II impacted most of the worlds women, both on the home and battlefronts. A new exhibition opening Friday at the International Museum of World War II in Natick, Massachusetts, highlights just that  the important and sometimes unconventional roles women took on during the war.

Its about the human story, founder Kenneth Rendell explains. Were thrilled to have the opportunity to showcase and honour womens service to the war effort.

Women in WWII: On the Home Fronts and the Battlefronts is composed of more than 100 artifacts from the U.S., Soviet Union, Germany, Japan, France and Great Britain. For many women, wartime was about more than rationing food for their families.

In the Soviet Union, 400,000 women drafted as Red Army girls filled roles as doctors and even snipers. One photograph shows paranurses jumping out of a plane into a war zone, strapped with medical supplies to save wounded soldiers.

Sue Wilkins, director of education at The International Museum of World War II, in Natick, Mass., stands near a 1933 propaganda poster, right, that praised the Nazi organization German Labor Front, which was created after the Nazis eliminated trade unions. A mannequin, center, displays a uniform of the Nazi Lebensborn program, designed to be worn by women bearing children considered by the state as racially valuable. (AP)

Kathryn Bernheim became one of 27 American women chosen by the Army Air Force in 1942 to ferry planes in the Womens Auxiliary Ferrying Service program. As a civilian with more than 1,000 hours of flight experience, Bernheim flew aircraft like the P-47 Thunderbolt, relieving men for combat flying until politics ended the program in 1944. The exhibit showcases her flight jacket, dress uniform and a photo of a smiling Bernheim looking at a map.

Not all women had such dramatic roles, but millions across the U.S. served as postal workers, trash collectors and manufacturers, roles previously held by men.

A 1945 photograph shows 24-year-old Fern Corbett pinch-hitting as a window washer 10 floors above a Minneapolis street  a far cry from her original job as the companys stenographer.

Sue Wilkins holds a 1945 newspaper photograph that shows Fern Corbett, 24, working as a window washer 10 floors above a Minneapolis street during World War II. Corbett worked as her company's stenographer before filling in as a window washer due to the absence of male workers during the war. (AP)

Some women could not risk being as visible in their daring new roles. Female members of the French resistance would load forbidden radios and weapons into the secret compartment of a baby carriage, like one showcased in the collection, risking their lives walking past Nazi occupiers.

Also included in the exhibit is a light green uniform labelled Lebensborn. The frock was worn by women associated with the Nazi group tasked with raising the birth rate of Aryan children. The women worked at centers that provided free health care to unmarried mothers often impregnated by SS officers. Many children were adopted by other SS members and their families.

The philosophy of women dedicating their bodies and minds to the Third Reich is even more apparent in three swastika-emblazoned crosses. Women who bore four to five children received a bronze cross; six to seven a silver. Those who birthed eight or more children received a golden cross from Adolf Hitler.

The Nazis wanted women to be wives and mothers. You see photos of women doing outdoor tasks in great physical shape  this was not so they could fight, but so they could bear children, says Sue Wilkins, the museums education director.

Across the English Channel, more than 640,000 British women served in auxiliary services, performing non combat work such as handling massive searchlights to spot enemy aircraft intent on bombing British cities. Photos of everyday women working in the Royal Naval Service are starkly contrasted with a photo of then-Princess Elizabeth wearing the uniform of the Auxiliary Territorial Service and working under the hood of a car. The exhibition is on display through Oct. 7.

Follow @htlifeandstyle for more
Senior BJP leader and Lok Sabha member from Sagar Laxminaryan Yadav has advocated a separate fund for development of villages adopted by MPs.

Responding to media persons questions the MP said in Sagar on Saturday he had adopted Baroda village as per wishes of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and he had ensured several works for development of the village.

The MP was talking to media persons to share with them achievements of Narendra Modi government on its completion of four years.

I spent money on development of the village from MP Local Area Development fund but I feel there should be separate allocation of funds for development of such villages. I raised this demand on the party forum too. When we spend a major amount of MPLAD fund just for a village other villages object to it.

The MP said he faced administrative red-tapism in sanctioning of development work.

The MP said he didnt see generation of significant job avenues after setting up of big industries. For instance, he said, the refinery at Bina in Sagar was set up with investment of about Rs 20000 crore. About 3000-4000 acre of agriculture land was acquired for the same but it could provide jobs to only 1400-1500 people.
As many as 16 persons were injured when they were attacked by a leopard while a tribal was killed by a tiger in two separate incidents in Panna district, more than 410 kilometers north east of Bhopal, said forest department officials.

In the first incident that took place in the morning hours in at least half a dozen villages under Raipura forest range. A leopard from Mohadra-Sharan jungle attacked villagers in Surra, Murta, Kaluakheda, Pala, Sinhai and Jhaladumri villages one after another while they were sleeping outside their houses.

According to divisional forest officer (DFO), Panna South Meena Kumri Mishra the injured include Badi Bahu, 70, Phool Bai 40, Hemvati 25, Sundar Singh 55, Hote Singh 40, Rena Bai 10, Kalla 12, Virender Singh 70, Kishore 50, Ramsevak 65, Angori Bai 22, Pannalal 20, Ashok Rani 40, Ramesh 48, Rajju 50 and Jaggu 14.

Four of the injured including 70-year-old woman Badi Bahu who received multiple injuries in her face were referred to neighbouring Katni district hospital while 12 were admitted to the community health center, Raipura.

The DFO said a forest team was keeping a close watch on the movement of the leopard.

In the second incident a tribal who was returning home after collecting tendu patta from the nearby jungle was attacked and killed by a tiger.

According to DFO, Panna North NS Yadav, the deceased Betulal, 45, residing at a forest village under Manki forest beat was returning with two other villagers- Gopal and Chhotelal in the evening when the tiger attacked Betulal. On way back Betulal was suddenly attacked by the tiger from behind. The companions shouted for help on which tiger left the spot and disappeared in the jungle. Betulal died on the spot.

The DFO said body of the deceased was handed over to his family after autopsy. A compensation of Rs 4 lakh would be given to the family as per norms. A team would monitor the movement of the tiger.

The DFO said, To the best of my knowledge its first such attack by a tiger in the buffer area of Panna National Park.
Madhya Pradesh police have decided to make 7,000 farmers, who had participated in the last years protest in Mandsaur that ended with the death of six of them in police firing, to sign an undertaking that they would not take part in the protest marking its first anniversary on June 1, HT has learnt.

If the farmers participated in the protest, they would have to pay Rs 25,000 and the bail granted to them would stand cancelled.

Several messages on local WhatsApp groups and social media across the state have criticised the stance taken by the police. Some of these messages alleged that the police was working to suppress the farmers and their voice.

An order issued by the police headquarters on Wednesday also cancelled leaves for the personnel for 10 days beginning June 1, citing the farmers agitation and the month of Ramzan.

We are getting the bonds (readied) to make sure there is a peaceful environment, said Harinarayanchari Mishra, deputy inspector general of police, Indore. The bond is just for the protesters who had participated in the protest last year, and who were booked by the police.

Besides the undertaking from the farmers, the police said it would provide security to those going to the mandis (marketplace) to sell their produce.

Farmers alleged that the BJP government was trying to divide them with the help of police.

By issuing such statements, the government is dividing us. We will stop the farmers in a peaceful manner from going to the city but if police interfere, farmers will agitate against this too, said Bhartiya Kisan Union leader Anil Yadav said.
Actor Priyanka Chopra, who has recently wrapped up shoot for two Hollywood films, spent some quality time with her niece Krishna in a swimming pool. Priyanka is extremely fond of her niece and often shares cute pictures of the baby.

In the new picture, Priyanka is seen in a yellow swimsuit while Krishna dons a blue baby swimsuit. Sharing the picture from California, Priyanka wrote on Instagram, Meanwhile...masi and baby...@sky.krishna best hugs ever @divya_jyoti

Even as she shuttles between shoots across the globe - travelling from Mumbai to the US, Priyanka ensures she takes some time out for family and her loved ones. Check out some more pics of Priyanka and her niece:

On the work front, Priyanka has recently completed shooting for A Kid Like Jake and Isnt It Romantic? She will soon begin working on Salman Khan-starrer Bharat.

Follow @htshowbiz for more
Suhana Khan eventually wants to be an actor but internet has given her star status already. We guess with Shah Rukh Khan as her dad that was to be expected. The 18-year-old was recently seen at a wedding and her photo is going viral. Mother Gauri Khan had also posted a photo with her friends from a wedding in Kolkata and the mother-daughter duo appears to have attended it together.

Suhana is the middle child of the family. She is two years younger than Aryan and 15 years older than AbRam, who is celebrating his birthday today. She is currently studying in England.

According to Shah Rukh, Suhana has made her intentions of pursuing acting clear. We have a simple rule in the family. Each one of us has to have an undergraduate degree at least. Suhana still has 4-5 years to go before she can start acting. She has to be an undergraduate first, he had said earlier.

The actor is also really possessive about her and had issued a warning for any boy who wants to date her. Get a job; understand I dont like you; Im everywhere; get a lawyer; shes my princess; I dont mind going to jail; what you do to her Ill do to you, he had said.
Coupling his experience of dealing with crime stories and his love for the written word, actor Sushant Singh is all set to don the authors hat. His debut book on real-life crime stories will be co-authored by Delhi-based fiction writer Kulpreet Yadav.

Ive never tried my hand at writing, except jotting down a couplet every now and then (smiles). Thats something different then writing prose. That is why I felt the need to co-author with a professional writer. I hope I pass with not flying colours, but walking colours, laughs Sushant.

Talking about the books subject, the actor who has for long been anchoring Savdhaan India, a crime-based show on television, says, Ive already gone through a lot of stories and the way crime affects society. Crime is not just a crime in isolation. There are victims, and law and order involved. Every crime or a major crime has a big impact on society. For example, the Kathua case or December 16 gangrape case. These are recent examples that saw the government [and authorities proposing or] making changes in the law. In that perspective, we want to explore criminals and their impact.

Sushant, who has acted in films such as Jungle (2000), The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002), Lakshya (2004), Baby (2015), and Lipstick Under My Burkha(2017), also shares that his inclination towards poetry and literature came during his time at Kirori Mal College (KMC), Delhi University. Thats why I ended up doing English Honours. And the faculty of KMC was one of the best faculties in the university at that time. That, of course, helped, he says.

The process for fruition of his debut novel has begun, and in full swing. Kulpreet and I got along and the [books] idea was floated by our agent. Everything is going to start now. It will be curated and co-written by me, [incorporating] stories which appeal to me and Kulpreet, notorious criminals who changed the course of law, or [cases that] made big changes in the social perception of the criminal system, says the actor.

The story will take shape with research, which Sushant says will involve going through police records, and meeting police officials and investigating officers, [apart from ] victims, NGOs... wherever the research leads them. Well be asking police officials about the stories that affected them, and criminals they consider [to be] a turning point [in their lives] in some way.

The actor hopes that writing the book  and an attempt at scriptwriting in general  will instil discipline in him. There are ideas bubbling in my mind. I have been struggling to write a script for a long time now. I have so many ideas, but, never had the discipline to write my own script for a film or web series, he signs off.

Interact with the author at Twitter/@NainaArora8
One often wants to do the impossible like returning to childhood, innocence, the high school classroom, the first crush, the city left behind and so on. Call it nostalgia or the urge to go back to more joyous days of the past when life had just begun.

But this rarely happens. However, I did it all in just three days with over 50 batch mates of three prominent schools of a charming hill town. Many of the people I met had travelled from different places not just in the country but from abroad too.

The brave boys and girls of the 1971 batch, some young at 63 and others still going on 63, managed to assemble for the reunion. Some came alone, others with spouses and children with a spring in their steps and a song in their hearts. We had couples from Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Alabama too!

My schooling had virtually been a roller coaster ride as in those eleven years I changed 12 different schools: Just to name a few, Senior Model and Carmel Convent in home town Chandigarh, Mater Dei in Delhi, Notre Dame in Patna, St Marys in Mhow and so on. But it was at age 14 in Loreto Convent, Shillong, that everything changed for the better: even my grades.

Those were exciting teens in the city of dreams, with its fetes and school socials and Sister Christopher instructing us to ensure there was space left for a sheet of paper to pass through when we danced to slow numbers with the boys. She was definitely joking then, or so we believed.

So we gathered this time for the first gala evening at the Tripura Palace Heritage Club on the third Saturday of May, the boys and girls of St Edmunds College, Loreto Convent and Pinemount School, shaking a leg to the hit numbers of the seventies: Country Roads, Those Were The Days, Let It Be and Yesterday Once More. We were back in cosmopolitan Shillong represented by people of different faiths, ethnicity and cultures together in celebration of life. This when each one had gone through the vagaries of time.

However, where one found yesterday once more translated best was in the school visits. As we Loreto Convent girls went back to school after decades, very dignified, the years faded away and soon we were back to being young, rowdy kids the moment Sister Mercie showed us in and left us to wander about.

The first thing we did was run up the staircase once forbidden to us as it was then meant only for the faculty. One of us found the school bell and rang it loudly. Finally, when we were inside the room at had been our Class 11, we were raising our hands and answering questions asked by an imaginary teacher.

What a ruckus there was.

After playing school-school, it was time to leave. This was the hardest of all. But suddenly we were all composed and managed to hold back the tears that we had copiously shed 47 years ago when it was time to move from its safe environs to the unknown adult life that beckoned us.

But we had come here again to mumble a thanksgiving in our own spontaneous manner.
A year after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won the Uttarakhand polls with a thumping majority, the Trivendra Singh Rawat government is all set to face its first litmus test in the Tharali assembly by-election to be held on Monday.

The BJP and the Congress are locked in a direct contest on the seat reserved for scheduled castes, though five candidates are in the fray, including two from the left parties and one independent.

The outcome of the bypoll, necessitated after the death of BJP legislator Magan Lal Shah, will indicate whether the ruling party, which won 57 of the 70 assembly seats last year, is still a popular choice in the state.

The BJP has fielded Magan Lals wife Munni Devi against former legislator Jeet Ram of the Congress. Though Jeet Ram, a professor in the Kumaon University, enjoys a substantial support in constituency, the BJP candidate banks on a strong sympathy after the death of her husband.

BJP state president Ajay Bhatt said his partys connect with the voters, hard work of cadres, and the chief ministers clean image would help them post an easy win.

Although the result of the by-poll will not be a referendum on the work of our government, I am sure we will sail through easily, said Bhatt who led the partys campaign in the constituency. He claimed that the Congresss negative image among voters would work against it.

The opposition Congress, which has put up a united face in the constituency, said price rise would prove too hot for the BJP. Mark my word BJP will be nowhere after the results. Voters are facing price rise; they are not fools to believe BJP every now and then, state Congress president Pritam Singh said.

Both the parties put up a show of strength during campaigning. Former chief minister Harish Rawat, party president Singh, former president Kishore Upadhyay and legislators attending roadshows and rallies to send a message that the Congress was fighting unitedly.

The BJP didnt leave any stone unturned. CM Rawat, party president Bhatt, state in-charge Shyam Jaju, ministers camped in the constituency seeking votes.

Meanwhile, the Congress approached election authorities on Sunday, complaining that BJP MLAs were seeking votes in the constituency after the campaign time was over.

Election commission guidelines suggest that outsiders are to leave the constituency 48 before the polls, said Pritam Singh said.

Campaigning for the bypoll came to a close on Saturday. CM Rawat held two public meetings at Deval Bazar, Chamoli and Bhagoti in Narayanbagad to drum up support for the BJP candidate on the last day of campaigning.

Harish Rawat also addressed poll meetings besides attending roadshows and rallies to mobilise support for the Congress nominee.
The Uttarakhand government is set to apply state-of-the-art technologies to propagate high milk-yielding varieties of elite cattle in the resource-crunched mountain state.

The move is aimed at checking forced migration from the hills of Uttarakhand by enhancing farmers income.

The techniques we are employing to propagate the high milk yielding varieties of indigenous and cross-bred varieties of cattle -- cows and buffaloes -- are not new. We are, however, the first state government in the country to utilise those techniques, animal husbandry, dairy development and cooperatives secretary R Minakshi Sundaram said.

Such elite indigenous and crossbred varieties of cattle will help increase the farmers income helping us to address the issue of forced migration from the hills, he said in an interview to HT.

According to Sundaram, the scientific methods to be used to enhance the productivity of dairy cattle will be different from the artificial insemination (AI) technique although it will also be used as part of the new techniques.

It (AI) does help enhance the productivity of the milk producing cattle but this increase isnt sufficient because it helps improve only 50% of the (male) genetic makeup while its female side is left unaddressed, he said.

The increase in productivity is doubly quick when you have high milk yielding varieties of dairy cattle that are produced by quality female animals after they are crossbred with elite males.

Sundaram said the emphasis of the new schemes was on producing as many as elite cows or buffaloes as required using super ovulation and embryo transfer technology, which leads to rapid genetic improvement.

Unfortunately, in our country, such advanced technologies may not be propagated at the field level as we dont have too many large scale dairy farms, he said.

So, we will use this advanced technology in the state -run animal breeding farm to produce multiple embryos through which female calves will be developed and reared and will later be sold to farmers, said the official.

Farmers will have such elite cows and buffaloes crossed with the semen of elite bulls through artificial insemination, which will result in birth of elite female calves with a potential to provide high milk yield.

This mechanism will help fill a critical gap in the dairy sector, which pertains to the non-availability of breedable female animals with a genuine milk production record, Sundaram said.

In other words, we are planning to come out with a set of elite animals available for sale to the farmers, so that the female side of the genetic makeup is also addressed.

The official attributed the low milk yield in the state to the practice of artificial insemination of the nondescript or low milk yielding animals with the elite animals.

As a result, progenies that are born have 50% elite genes and 50% non-elite genes Their milk yield will naturally be not that high, he said.

Under the twin schemes both crossbred and indigenous varieties of high milk yielding cattle will be propagated.

To be implemented by the Uttarakhand Livestock Development Board (ULDB), one of these projects, under which the indigenous varieties of high milk producing dairy cattle will be propagated, is being taken up by the Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM).

The other project that aims to double the farmers income through sale of high yielding crossbred heifers and cows will be implemented under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (IRDF).

All experiments pertaining to the implementation of the twin projects are being carried out at the state run animal farm, he said referring to the Animal Breeding Farm at Kalsi near Dehradun.

Sundaram said in recognition of its work in improving the breeds of dairy cattle, Uttarakhand has been selected as the best performing state by the Central government.

I have been invited to receive the award from the Union agriculture minister at a function to be held in the national capital on June 1, he added.
The Railway Protection Force on Saturday arrested an army personnel from Nizamuddin railway station for allegedly molesting a woman on board Pune-Delhi Duronto Express. The RPF arrested the man after the victim reported the matter to the train ticket examiner (TTE) who informed the police in Delhi.

Shashi Kumar, senior divisional security commissioner, railway protection force said that on Saturday, a woman who was travelling by Duronto Express from Pune to Delhi accused the army man of harassing and trying to sexually assault her.

The complainant said one army person, a subedar, posted in Pune allegedly molested her when their train was near Kota, Rajasthan. The woman then raised the matter with the TTE who was on duty. The TTE in turn informed the police in Delhi and the army personnel was nabbed and handed over to the RPF as soon as the train arrived at Nizamuddin railway station. He was later handed over to the government railway police (GRP), Kumar said.

The train was not being escorted by RPF or GRP men at the time of incident, Kumar added.

A senior police officer from the GRP said that a case had been registered under sections of molestation and the man was arrested.
The Class 12 economics paper, which was conducted again after a question paper leak, recorded a pass percentage of 83.40%, a jump of over 3 percentage points from last year, CBSE officials said on Saturday.

Officials said that between 5-6 lakh students appeared for the Class 12 economics re-test. The pass percentage for class 12 economics paper for this year is 83.4% as against last years 80.24%. Students have done better in the paper even though they had to attempt the paper again, a CBSE official said.

The official said that the number of students scoring 100 marks in economics paper this year is 1,659.

The board exams were marred by controversy this year with question paper leaks being reported from Delhi-NCR, Haryana and Jharkhand of Class 10 mathematics and Class 12 economics.

The board decided to not conduct the Class 10 mathematics paper again, but the Class 12 economics paper was re-conducted on April 25 for all students, except for students in schools outside India.

I have scored 96 in Economics, which is how much I was expecting. Both, the first paper and the re-test paper were easy, so there wasnt much difference, said Soumya, a class 12 student.

The board said the decision was taken as Class 12 exams is a gateway to higher education and professional exams which have limited seats. therefore, giving undue advantage of to a handful of beneficiaries of the alleged leak of the economics paper would not be in larger interest of the students.

CBSE officials said the pass percentage for economics saw a dip in 2017 compared to 2016. In 2017 the pass percentage for the subject was 80.24, which was a drop from previous years 81.54%. But this year the increase in pass percentage for Economics is by 3.16 percentage points, the official said.

In 2015, the pass percentage for the subject was 79.35%, officials said.

Meanwhile, CBSE officials said they will announce the dates for re-checking, which is re-evaluation of marks, by Monday. There is, however, no clarity on re-evaluation, which the board has discontinued last year. The matter went to court but there was no direction given to us. But if students demand for re-evaluation, which is to check answers again, we will take it up on individual basis, an official said.
Two girls of Noida are proof that academic excellence is a result of sheer hard work and determination. When the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) class 12 results came on Saturday, Nidhi Upadhyay and Srishti Singh, both government school students, scored over 96% to do their alma maters proud.

Upadhyay, a humanities student of Mahamaya Balika Inter College in Noida Sector 44, scored 96.2 %. Her father Ram Prakash drives an autorickshaw in Noida and the family stays in Vaishali, Ghaziabad.

For the past two years, I have been staying in my college hostel and my teachers have been extremely supportive. My parents asked me to focus on my studies and not to think about any financial adversity. I wish to become an IAS officer and make my family proud, she said.

Ram Prakash said he has been driving his autorickshaw day and night in order to make ends meet and ensure that his daughter gets the best resources available.

I have been staying in Vaishali for the past 15 years and I have always managed to ensure that my daughter gets the best resources available to help her in her studies. She is a talented child and I am sure that one day, she will achieve her dream of becoming an IAS officer, the proud father said.

Seventeen-year-old Srishti Singh, another student of the same inter college, has a similar story to tell. She scored 96.8% in the science stream (biology).

Her father Sunil Singh runs a small garments shop in Atta Market, Noida, and her mother Sudha Singh is a homemaker. They reside in Sector 19.

Mahamaya Balika Inter College principal Pratibha Singh said Srishtis family was financially distressed and they were unable to pay her fee in class 12. Overcoming all these odds, Srishti scripted her success through determination and hard work.

My family has been facing financial difficulties for the past one year due to a few hiccups in my fathers business. Also, my parents had to meet medical expenses after I fell ill for a few months.But, my teachers were extremely supportive of me and they held evening classes for us at the hostel. My only advice to my juniors is this: Completely trust your teachers, Singh said.

She wishes to become an army doctor and, next year, she will appear for the entrance examination. I wish to pursue a medical degree and become an army doctor, she said.
For the first time in at least 20 years, over 90% of government school students who appeared in the Central Board of Secondary Educations (CBSE) Class 12 examinations passed the exam, marking the highest pass percentage for Delhis government schools in two decades. They also outperformed private schools for the second year in a row, giving the Delhi government added reason to rejoice.

Delhi education minister Manish Sisodia congratulated students on Twitter. Congratulations to all students, teachers and parents for making us pride [sic] in CBSE Class XII results. Delhi government schools result is 90.64% [sic] which is 2.37% (points) higher than last years 88.27%, he tweeted.

According to data shared by CBSE, 90.68% of government school students passed the exams this year, while only 88.35% of the students from independent institutions cleared the exam in Delhi. A CBSE official clarified that independent institutions refer to private schools.

This is the second year in a row that Delhis government schools have performed better than private schools. As per the Directorate of Education (DoE) and CBSE data, this year the government schools achieved their highest pass percentage in the last 20 years. In 1998, only 63.45% of students from government schools passed the exams, according to the DoE data, and this has steadily climbed over the years. It crossed 70 for the first time in 2000, when the pass percentage was 72.54%, and crossed 80 for the first time in 2007 when 82.73% of the government school kids who had appeared for the exam passed.

We have worked hard. We have provided extra classes, and extra pre-board preparations. We also need to realise that these are children who have been in the system for the last three years. So they have been receiving better education since Class 9, said a close aide of the education minister.

However, the number of students who have scored over 95% has also dropped by 89.

At the Sonia Vihar Government Girls Senior Secondary School, the head of the school Rajeshwari Kapri said their result had improved by 14.5 percentage points from the previous year.

We have a pass percentage of 91.5%. There definitely was pressure from the government and authorities to give a better performance, but it also came down to the teachers hard work. They spend the whole year prepping, and paid close attention... We were able to achieve this despite having a lack of teachers, said Kapri.

Prince Kumar, the overall government school topper with 485 marks out of 500, said he is still reeling from the shock of the results. I am the son of a DTC bus driver. I never expected this... Now I have media people calling me, he said, choking on tears.

Prince said the government schools had changed for the better in recent years, and it helped his score. The kids at these schools may come from a particular socio-economic background. But our teachers and facilities are almost as good as private schools. All teachers are well qualified, and they help us out, said the student of the Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya in Dwarkas Sector 10. He now hopes to pursue an electronics and communications engineering degree, and has cleared his JEE (Mains).

While some private school principals questioned the validity of the data, others blamed smaller budget private schools for bringing down the overall pass percentage.

Smaller budget schools may not have enough infrastructure or teachers, so they may not perform as well. But I think government schools have also focused on their work this time, which is why their performance has improved, said a principal of a private school.

However, to others, one must look beyond such binaries.

Across the board schools have done well. This private school versus government school debate has to come to an end, said Ameeta Wattal, the principal of Springdales School, Pusa Road.

Delhi has around 1,100 government schools and at least 1,700 private schools.
There is no secret to success, an elated Meghna Srivastava, the India topper of CBSE Class 12 exam, said after the results were declared on Saturday. The Noida student attributed her nearly perfect score (100 on 100 in all subjects except 99 in English) to sheer hard work.

Another such remarkable feat of overcoming odds was achieved by Prince Kumar, the son of a DTC bus driver, who topped the science stream in Delhi government schools with an impressive 97%.

Very proud moment, just congratulated Prince Kumar,topper of Delhi Govt school, Science stream in Class 12,



Son of a DTC bus driver has got 97% with 100/100 in Maths, 99/100 Eco, 98/100 in Chemistry #DelhiEducationRevolution pic.twitter.com/IeaxhNpX9m  Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) May 26, 2018

Kumar scored 100/100 in maths, 99/100 eco, and 98/100 in chemistry. Delhis deputy chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, congratulated him and said it was a very proud moment for him.

Prince Kumar, the overall government school topper with 485 marks out of 500, said he is still reeling from the shock of the results. I am the son of a DTC bus driver. I never expected this... Now I have media people calling me, he said, choking on tears.

Prince said the government schools had changed for the better in recent years, and it helped his score. The kids at these schools may come from a particular socio-economic background. But our teachers and facilities are almost as good as private schools. All teachers are well qualified, and they help us out, said the student of the Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya in Dwarkas Sector 10. He now hopes to pursue an electronics and communications engineering degree, and has cleared his JEE (Mains).

Chitra Kaushik, with 95.6%, was the topper in the humanities stream. Prachi Prakash, with 96.2%, was the topper in the commerce stream.

It was also touching moment to speak to Prachi Prakash and her family, topper of Delhi Govt school, Commerce stream in Class 12



Daughter of a small private company executive, Prachi got 96.2% with 100/100 in Eco, 99/100 in Math, #DelhiEducationRevolution pic.twitter.com/lQ4eqCXAi8  Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) May 26, 2018

Sisodia, who also holds the education portfolio in the AAP government, said in another tweet. It was also touching moment to speak to Prachi Prakash and her family, topper of Delhi Govt school, Commerce stream in Class 12. Daughter of a small private company executive, Prachi got 96.2% with 100/100 in Eco, 99/100 in Math.

He also interacted with Chitra Kaushik, a Delhi Police assistant sub-inspectors daughter, who topped the arts stream in Delhi government schools.

Sisodia highlighted the performance of Delhi students in Class 12 results and pointed that 168 government schools achieved 100% results, against 112 of last year. The CBSE Class 12 results were announced on Saturday. The overall pass percentage was 83.01% as against last years 82.02%.

Was wonderful to talk to a very excited Chitra Kaushik, topper of Delhi Govt school, Arts stream in Class 12



Daughter of an ASI in Delhi Police, she got 95.6% with 100/100 in History, 97/100 in Pol. Science#DelhiEducationRevolution pic.twitter.com/1xr4qZkXOV  Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) May 26, 2018

(With inputs from PTI)
Despite a nation-wide controversy caused by leaked question papers that led to the CBSE conducting a retest of the economics paper, the board managed to declare the results on time. CBSE officials said the board also took a number of steps to strengthen the evaluation and result system without any delay in announcing results.

Officials said this time each answer sheet was evaluated by two evaluators. This was done to provide objectivity in evaluation and also to minimise mistakes.

A senior computer teacher was provided at each evaluation hall to upload candidate-wise marks to prevent errors while adding the marks, said a senior CBSE official.

For the first time, officials said the marks were uploaded question-wise rather than just by the total marks of the candidate.

A daily monitoring of each evaluation centre in each of the region for each subject was done in real-time through a new portal. We have an outlier system for detecting inconsistency in a candidates result. This system was applied for the first time on 100% results and wherever inconsistencies were found, 100% rechecking was done, added the official.

The board also rechecked all cases where marks posted were zero. On the examination day itself, we had a system of obtaining online feedback about the difficulty level of each subject through a portal which helped in the evaluation, a senior official added.

According to a CBSE official, in January, all centres sending candidates to Class 10 and Class 12 were directed to relieve requisite number of evaluators subject-wise. The board had imposed an on-the-spot penalty for schools not sending evaluators.

The board declared the Class 12 result on Saturday, with the overall pass percentage increasing by 1 per cent to 83.01. Of the 11,06,772 students who had appeared for the Class 12 exam, 9,18,763 students passed the examination, a statement said. The exam was held between March 5 and April 27.
While many smokers try to quit after realising the side effects of smoking, several smokers make a shift to nicotine patches, chewing gums or e-cigarettes. But these cessation aids also have their own side effects.

A research paper published in the Indian Journal of Medical Paediatric Oncology by oncologists from the Tata Memorial Hospital says that nicotine, in any form, be it as a gum or a patch, can pose several health hazards of varying severity. It directly decreases the immune response and negatively impacts reproductive health, states the paper. And as for e-cigarettes, research has shown that e-cigarettes are loaded with toxic metals, can cause cancer and harm your liver.

Now, a new study done by researchers from the University of Pennsylvania in the US shows cash incentives are three times more effective to help smokers kick the butt than smoking cessation aids. A 2017 report in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Internal Medicine had also suggested that cash incentives could help smokers to give up cigarettes.

Some studies have linked e-cigarettes to cancer and liver damage. (Shutterstock)

What the study shows

The research highlights how merely offering such aids for free does not help employees quit, whereas supplementing them with financial incentives is three times more effective.

The study has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and provides the first large-scale evidence that offering e-cigarettes to known smokers is not effective at helping smokers stay smoke-free. The new study drives forward previous research by showing that even among smokers who are not cherry-picked on the basis of their motivation to quit, financial incentives still triple quit rates, whereas offering free conventional cessation aids or free e-cigarettes accomplishes nothing at all, said Scott D Halpern, an associate professor at University of Pennsylvania in the US.

The study found that overall, only 1.3% of participants remained smoke-free for at least six months. However, the quit rates for redeemable deposits were significantly higher than with free cessation aids or with free e-cigarettes, and the quit rate for the rewards group was also higher than for cessation aids. By contrast, no differences were found in the quit rates among participants assigned to free e-cigarettes, free cessation aids, or usual care.The result is concerning because it suggests that e-cigarettes may do more harm than good, Halpern said.

Exercise can reduce withdrawal symptoms. (Shutterstock)

Here are some of the other ways to quit smoking:

* Turn to Facebook for help

A clinical trial done by the University of California-San Francisco (UCSF) shows that smokers were 2.5 times more likely to quit post an intervention delivered entirely on social networking giant Facebook than by other online quit-smoking programmes.

* Lower levels of nicotine

A study, which examined the effects of nicotine reduction among more vulnerable smokers, recommends lowering nicotine to non-addictive levels. The research team, led by Stephen Higgins, Ph.D., professor of psychiatry, suggested that there was evidence that reducing the nicotine content of cigarettes reduces their addictiveness.

* Go running

A study by the St Georges University of London found that exercise during nicotine exposure reduces the severity of nicotine withdrawal symptoms.

(With inputs from PTI)

Follow @htlifeandstyle for more
A Rohingya refugee camp in Nuh district of Haryana was gutted after a massive fire broke out on Sunday. Although no casualties have been reported so far, houses of at least 55 families were razed to the ground in the fire that started at around 3 pm.

Rohingya refugees have been living on a plot of land near Chandeni area of Ferozepur Namak village in the district since 2012. Residents say that the damage was already done by the time fire tenders reached the site.

Coming more than a month after a Rohingya refugee camp was destroyed in Delhis Kalindi Kunj area, the incident, once again, raises questions on the lack of safety measures in these camps. The houses of as many as 250 Rohingya refugees were destroyed in the Kalindi Kunj camp.

The incident took place around 3pm in the afternoon. Prima facie, it appears to be a case of short-circuit. Ten fire tenders were pressed into service, SHO Nuh, inspector Sanjay Kumar said.

Residents of the camp in Nuh say that the effect of the fire was exacerbated by the heat and wind.

Our houses have been burnt down to ashes. Nothing is left now. Everything is lost, said Jafarullah , a resident of the camp.

Ali Johar, a Rohingya youth leader and a resident of the Kalindi Kunj camp that had earlier caught fire, said such incidents were bound to happen with the poor living conditions.

Unless basic necessities are provided, we will continue to witness such incidents. Time and again, we have apprised the UNHCR of the poor living conditions in the camp and how the camp is susceptible to fires. So far, no concrete steps have been taken to improve the situation, said Johar.

Expressing concern over the accident, MLA Nuh, Zakir Hussain said that immediate relief should be provided to those affected.

The government should compensate for the loss and temporary shelter should be provided to the refugees. They should be rehabilitated as soon as it is possible since it is the month of Ramzan and they would need a space for fasting and praying. Basic food and shelter facilities should be extended to them, said Hussain.

The Rohingya are a Muslim minority community from Myanmar. According to the UNHCR, Rohingya refugees are spread across six locations in India  Jammu, in Haryanas Nuh district, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur and Chennai.
This year has been about two Marvel successes  Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War  that fans could not get enough of. If January belonged to the muscular intensity of Black Panther, the superhero extravaganza that was Avengers: Infinity War is still being dissected.

However, if you have watched Infinity War (and if you have not, treat this as spoiler warning and stop reading now), you cannot help but feel cheated as TChalla (Chadwick Boseman) turned into dust with the snap of Thanos fingers. Why would Marvel kill a superhero they have just established in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

As Huff Post informs us, Nate Moore, a development and production executive at Marvel Studios and a producer on Black Panther, had the same question and tried to hold off the Wakandan kings murder in the film. The report says Nate learnt a while ago that Infinity War directors Anthony and Joe Russo planned to kill off TChalla and spoke to them. This was way back in 2015.

Will Shuri take on the mantle of Black Panther?

I knew pretty well what they were talking about and personally urged them to reconsider. But the storytelling made sense, so I love that we got to see a little bit more of Wakanda in that film, and I hope to see how theyre going to resolve that, he is quoted as saying.

He added that it was difficult to question the directors reasoning, You talk about the pros and cons of each, and they had some really compelling arguments as to why what happened, happened. Again, personally painful, but I understand the reasoning.

The hope that the dead superheroes may return eventually with the help of Time Stone was also debunked by the directors last month. We have a really strong commitment to very real stakes.  Without stakes, it takes away your level of emotional investment and engagement. We love these characters as much as anybody, but all things have to come to an end. Theres a cycle to everything and these movies represent the end of the first cycle of Marvel Studios, they had said.

Meanwhile, Laetitia Wright who plays TChallas sister Shuri was asked in a media interaction if she would want to play Black panthers role in the coming films. If the opportunity came about, then why not? It would be comic book accurate. Yeah, that would be amazing. It means more training, more learning and it would really be an amazing adventure. Shuri becomes a savage in the comic books. From going to comedic and fun and like a kid  to then just pulling out some claws. Im excited, she told The Toronto Sun.
19 CRPF personnel were injured early on Sunday morning when their vehicle met with an accident in Srinagar, police said.

A CRPF vehicle turned turtle after its driver lost control near the Bemina headquarter of the paramilitary force, a police official said.

He said 21 personnel were on board the vehicle which was part of a three-vehicle convoy.

19 CRPF personnel have received injuries. The injured were taken to JVC Hospital nearby where from seven of them were shifted to the Armys Base Hospital here. One of the CRPF personnel is critical as he has received injury in the spinal cord and is being shifted to New Delhi for specialised treatment, the official said.

He said the incident took place around 5 am.

Further details are awaited, the official said.
Having supported demonetisation while in Opposition in 2016, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Saturday blamed banks for failing to check the flow of banned high denomination notes back into the system.

Speaking at the 64th state-level bankers committee (SLBC) meeting, Kumar said the biggest responsibility for the success of the demonetisation (DeMo) drive rested with the bankers, but everyone knows how the rich and powerful managed to plough back a major portion of their unaccounted cash and get it accommodated through the banking system.

The question raised by the Bihar chief minister  on a day when the NDA government was celebrating their fourth year in power  came as a surprise for many after Kumar had hailed the November 2016 move as bold.

If coupled with an attack on benami property, the move will succeed in tackling the problem of black money, he had said then.

Kumar said the role of banks in implementing the programme, both for social reforms and development, was increasing with every passing day.

This highlights the need for redefining the role of banks and initiation of steps for strengthening the banking system to punish wrongdoers, who, unlike their counterparts in government, often escape immediate action, Kumar said, apparently raising a finger at the outcome of DeMo move.

How else can one explain the procedural delays and difficulty of small borrowers in getting small loans, while big people have easy access to big ticket loans? They not only default in paying back and then manage to go scot free to foreign destinations, leaving behind what we hear as banking scams, he asked.

Senior BJP leader and deputy chief minister in Nitish cabinet Sushil Kumar Modi, who was also present during the meeting, tried to downplay the issue later during his interaction with media persons, saying, the chief minister has raised a question on the working of banks and their role in accepting banned notes.

Nitish Kumar has been a supporter of demonetisation and he was trying to point out the loopholes and lack of transparency and absence of micro level monitoring system in the banking sector that allows irregularity to take place at the ground level without the top management having a whiff of it, he said.
Polling is underway for four Lok Sabha and ten assembly by-elections across the country on Monday, the results of which could control the tone and tenor for the 2019 general elections for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition.

All eyes are on Kairana Lok Sabha constituency in Uttar Pradesh, where a joint opposition is taking on the BJP. The opposition hopes to repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections in March in which the ruling BJP suffered unexpected defeats.

Kairana, around 630km from Lucknow, has five assembly segments and an electorate of nearly 1.7 million with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP parliamentarian Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is the partys candidate for the bypoll. She is up against the Rashtriya Lok Dals (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

RLD supporter Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which a combined opposition has challenged the ruling party. This is the beauty of our democracy, he said.

The BJP is trying to retain the seat and send a message to voters, party cadre as well as the opposition parties that the drubbing in Gorakhpur and Phulpur was an aberration. Kairana has been in the news over the reported 2016 exodus of Hindu families from the area. RLD candidate Hasan said both Hindus and Muslims live in peace in Kairana.

BJPs Mriganka Singh said: The exodus of Hindu families from Kairana has stopped now. But hundreds of Hindu families had fled Kairana out of fear and harassment before the 2017 UP Assembly elections.

Apart from Kairana, bypoll to Noorpur assembly constituency in the state will be held on Monday. The votes will be counted on May 31.

The focus of political parties and pundits will also be on the by-elections to Palghar and Bhandara-Gondia Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra.

The Shiv Sena has fielded late BJP MP Chintaman Wanagas son Shriniwas Wanaga in Palghar, much to the dislike of the BJP which has nominated Congress deserter Rajendra Gavit.

In a veiled attack on the BJP, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray called upon opposition parties to unite. I want to tell the Congress, the NCP, even communists, dont go separate ways ... lets come together to fight the calamity which has befallen the country, he said at a campaign rally. Congress spokesman Ratnakar Mahajan said the results will be a fresh mandate on the performance of the Narendra Modi government. The outcome of the bypolls will lead to new political alignments. There will be a new vigour in the anti-BJP camp if the ruling party loses both seats, he said.

The BJP is confident of retaining the two seats. Union minister Smriti Irani and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath campaigned there.

BJP spokesman Madhav Bhandari said: Since the BJP will retain both seats, the possibility of alignment of political forces does not arise.

The fourth Lok Sabha bypoll will be held in Nagaland.

The by-election was necessitated after the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) leader Neiphiu Rio, now chief minister of Nagaland, resigned as a Lok Sabha member in February.

It will be a test of strength between the candidate of the Naga Peoples Front (NPF) supported by Congress and the nominee of the ruling Peoples Democratic Alliance (PDA). The PDA, which has the NDPP and the BJP as it major constituents, has fielded former minister Tokheho Yepthomi in the seat.

This apart, there will bypolls to five assembly seats in as many states in the eastern region. The five seats are Maheshtala in West Bengal, Gomia and Silli in Jharkhand, Jokihat in Bihar and Ampati in Meghalaya.

The bypoll to Mahestala assembly seat in West Bengal will mainly witness a three-cornered contest with the ruling Trinamool Congress, the BJP and the Left Front in the fray.

In Meghalayas Ampati seat, the fight is mainly between the Congress and the BJP-backed National Peoples Party.

The Congress won 21 seats in the February assembly polls, but the count came down to 20 with Sangma vacating the seat.

Winning the Ampati seat could bring about changes in the political scenario in the state as the Congress will become the single largest party, party leader John Kharshiing said. The NPP with 19 MLAs is leading a coalition government.

Bypolls will be held in Punjabs Shahkot, Uttarakhands Tharali and Keralas Chengannur assembly constituencies.
Caught between apprehension by some Opposition parties and public protests in parts of Assam, the proposed amendments to the Citizenship Act may hit a roadblock unless the government is willing to remove refugees from Bangladesh as beneficiaries, according to people familiar with the developments.

The Congress and the Left are not in support of the bill in its current form and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has made it clear that it wants Bangladesh to be excluded from the purview of the bill, the people in the know said.

The joint House panel headed by the Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) Rajendra Agarwal cancelled its latest meeting on May 25, which according to a panel member who asked not to be named, was an indication that the panel wants to tread cautiously and not prepare the report in haste.

The amendments aim to relax the deadline for minorities  Hindus, Sikhs and Christians from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who have taken shelter in this country  to become Indian citizens. According to the original law, only those minorities who came to India from these countries before 1958 are eligible. During the Assam Accord, the deadline for Bangladeshis was extended to March 25, 1971. The new law allows citizenship for immigrants till December 31, 2014, explained a senior member of the panel.

The bill was introduced in July 2016. It is pending with a joint panel.

Under the Act, one of the requirements for citizenship by naturalisation is that the applicant must have resided in India during the last 12 months, and for 11 of the previous 14 years. The Bill relaxes this 11-year requirement to six years for persons belonging to the same six religions and three countries, said a PRS legislative research analysis.

Members of the panel went to Assam, Rajasthan and Gujarat last month to talk to the stakeholders about the bill. In meetings held in Jodhpur, Ahmedabad and Surat, people welcomed the bill. In Guwahati, people waited till 12.30am to meet us to oppose the bill, said a second panel member on condition of anonymity.

In Assam, people in the Brahmaputra valley have opposed to the bill on the grounds that citizenship to Bangaldeshi Hindus might take a toll on the social fabric of a state that is battling the large-scale influx of people from across the border. But the Barak valley, or the lower part of the state which also shares its border with Bangladesh, wants the citizenship law.

There is a vertical divide in Assam and its a sensitive issue, said Bhartruhari Mahtab, the BJDs Lok Sabha leader. Another leader added that the Opposition parties had indicated that the bill could be passed if the Bangladesh issue was kept aside for the time being.

Currently, the government has a scheme to grant long-term visas for such refugees to live in India. There has been a long-standing demand to grant them citizenship.

In a reply to Rajya Sabha question in the last session, minister of state for home affairs Kiren Rijijju had said, Though India is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereon, its track record in dealing with or providing protection to refugees has been internationally acclaimed. There is a provision for grant of Long Term Visa (LTV) under various instructions issued by the Government from time to time. As per the available information, 486 Myanmar nationals (Rohingyas) and 2,154 Afghanistan nationals are staying in India on LTV as in 2016.

The Rajya Sabha was also informed that more than 11,000 Pakistani nationals have been granted Long Term Visas by the government during the last four years.

A government official refused to comment as the bill is pending before Parliament.
A jawan and a civilian were killed on Sunday night when militants attacked an Army camp in Pulwama district of South Kashmir, police said.

This is the first terror strike by militants after the Centre announced cessation of operations during the holy month of Ramzan.

Police said the militants attacked the camp of 50 Rashtriya Rifles at Kakapora in Pulwama district and a soldier was seriously injured.

A civilian identified as Bilal Ahmed was also injured in the crossfire.

Both were rushed to a hospital where the duo succumbed to their injuries.

Authorities have clamped prohibitory orders in parts of Pulwama district.

They said the fire was retaliated by the Army personnel.
Two policemen and some locals were injured when members of two communities clashed in Gujarats Porbandar district following an alleged incident of eve-teasing, police said on Sunday.

The clash took place in the Kirti Mandir area late on Saturday night, some 400 km from Ahmedabad, after which police lobbed teargas shells to control the mob, Porbandar Superintendent of Police (SP) Shobha Bhutada said.

The clash was triggered after some members of a community accused a man from another community of harassing a woman passing by, Bhutada said, adding that police were yet to verify the claim.

A large mob, comprising members of both communities, gathered and started hurling stones at each other, in which two policemen sustained injuries and were taken to hospital. Some members of the public also sustained minor injuries, the SP said.

The minor altercation soon took serious turns and police vehicles were also damaged, she added.

Heavy security was deployed in the area and police had to lob 21 teargas shells to bring the situation under control, the SP said.

We have rounded up some persons and a probe is on, she said, adding that the situation was now under control.

An FIR was lodged under relevant sections of IPC, including 143 (unlawful assembly), 146 (rioting), 308 (attempt to commit culpable homicide) and 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), and under the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, the SP said.
The Delhi high court is staring at an unprecedented crisis  an acute shortage of judges who number just a little above half its sanctioned strength. The high court, which has a sanctioned strength of 60 judges, is making do with just 36. And by August-end, with three more judges set to retire, the number will drop to 33.

A stalemate between the government and the judiciary over the memorandum of procedure -- a set of guidelines for appointments to the higher judiciary -- is at least partly responsible for the situation.

As of May 26, there were 71,704 cases pending in the court.

Justice Indermeet Kaur retired on March 21, the first Delhi high court judge to do so his year. She was followed by justice Deepa Sharma, who retired on May 25. The next in the queue of retiring judges is justice SP Garg, who will be retiring in the coming week.

Gargs retirement will be followed by that of justice Pratibha Rani and justice P S Teji who, according to the website of the department of justice, will be retiring on August 24 and August 13 respectively.

The Delhi HC has been functioning with an acting chief justice for over a year now. Justice Gita Mittal, who was recently awarded the Nari Shakti Puraskar, a national honour conferred on women, has been the acting chief justice since April 12, 2017, when justice G Rohini retired.

It has been over four months since the Supreme Court collegium, a panel of the five top judges in the top court, recommended the name of Calcutta high court judge, Justice Aniruddh Bose, to the central government for appointment as chief justice of the Delhi HC.

Office of the chief justice of the Delhi high court has been lying vacant since long. Therefore, appointment to that office is required to be made. Justice Aniruddha Bose, Judge of Calcutta High Court is suitable in all respects for being appointed as Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, the collegium said in its recommendation to the government dated January 10.

The appointment hasnt come through nor has the government returned the file of justice Bose to the collegium.

Senior advocate Sanjay Hegde said other high courts too were confronting a similar situation, citing the Calcutta and Bangalore HCs where too retired judges havent been replaced.

The logjam between the collegiums and the government has continued to persist and now even the Delhi HC seems to be falling prey, he said.

Administration of justice is suffering due to this logjam. Existing judges are overburdened. Matters are often reduced to grant only interim orders and final hearing of the matters often does not take place, Hegde said.

Lack of agreement between the Centre and top judges has delayed the memorandum of procedure, proposed more than two years ago.

Senior advocate Kirti Uppal, who is also president of the Delhi High Court Bar Association, said, On one hand, the government blames the judiciary for the large pendency of cases and on the other hand, the names are stuck at their own whims and fancies. The ultimate loss is of the nation and the litigants.

The last appointments to the Delhi HC -- of justice Rekha Palli, justice C Hari Shankar, justice Navin Chawla and justice Pratibha M Singh -- were made in May last yer. This year, justice Rajiv Shakdher has been brought back from Madras High Court to the parent HC.

Rahul Mehra, senior standing counsel for the Delhi government in the HC, said the Centre should clear the names as soon as possible so that litigants do not suffer.

I think that the Central government must take a call immediately and finalise the names of the judges. It is the capital city and the Delhi high court is the flagship for all the high courts in the country. So the efficiency must continue. I think that the government must finalise the names that they want to elevate as judges because, according to my knowledge, the process is at a standstill, Mehra said.
The Cabinet is likely to approve a plan to set a minimum price at which millers can sell sugar, among a series of steps, to help improve domestic prices that have fallen below the cost of production amid a glut in production of the sweetener.

Millers have been suffering losses because of surplus output, leading to sugarcane arrears, or the money mills owe to farmers, piling up. Currently, these arrears have increased to 20,000 crore. India is the worlds largest producer as well as consumer of the sweetener. Annual output will likely be 30.3 million tonnes in the 2017-18 sugar season that comes to a close on September 30. Production in the previous year was 20.3 million tonnes.

Consultations have begun among food ministry, petroleum ministry and finance ministry to overhaul the sugar sector, an official in the food ministry said, requesting anonymity.

Last month, former agriculture minister and Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling for measures to support the sugar industry and cane farmers. Pawar said India could face a sugar glut in the coming year, too, urging steps to overhaul regulations.

To improve profitability, the food ministry has moved a series of proposals for the interministerial consultations. The minimum selling price being considered is an ex-mill price, meaning all sugar sold by mills to traders will have to be bought at a pre-determined price, which will factor in the cost of production. It is in the range of 30-32 a kg, the official cited above said.

The proposals moved for Cabinet approval also include a so-called controlled release mechanism, the official said. This refers to stock-holding limits for mills based on production capacity, meaning mills will have to adhere to pre-fixed limits on how much sugar they can stockpile. Another key proposal includes creating a buffer stock of 3 million tonnes at the governments expense.

A second official in the food ministry said the proposals also include policy support to promote exports to four countries: China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Indonesia. These countries depend on imports to meet domestic demand for sugar. The demand in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Indonesia together is about 2.5 million tonnes, the second official said, also on condition of anonymity.

Sugar is treated as essential commodity under the law ; the government controls the sugar trade and heavily regulates the sector. To improve the margins for mills so that they get a better price and pay off the farmers, the government abolished a 20% duty on sugar exports in March. In April, the government ordered mills to export 2 million tonnes.

There is also a proposal to impose a cess on sugar sales being decided by GST panel, said Rohit Aggarwal, director, Comtrade, a commodities trading firm.
The government will not allow fly-by-night data mining firms to improperly harvest social media data of Indian citizens, law and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said.

In an interview to PTI, Prasad said that while the government is supportive of social media, it will not allow abuse of the platform nor irresponsible traffic in data commerce.

The government has already slapped notices on the controversial UK-based data mining firm Cambridge Analytica for improperly obtaining information from millions of Facebook users globally, including in India and is awaiting its response.

...no fly-by-night operator will now be able to play with data. I am all for campaigning on social media and these platforms but you cannot play with (user) consent, Prasad said.

The comments assume significance in the run-up to general elections slated next year.

Cambridge Analytica, a data-mining firm embroiled in a scandal purportedly over its work for US President Donald Trumps 2016 campaign, is alleged to have improperly obtained information from millions of Facebook users to develop political ads.

India, in March, slapped a notice on Cambridge Analytica to explain if it was engaged in improperly harvesting Facebook data of Indian citizens. The second notice was sent last month.

The company has since begun insolvency proceedings in the UK and also filed for bankruptcy in the US after losing virtually all customers and suppliers.

India has sent out a very clear and firm message to these data companies that you cannot take the country lightly... I am very firm, we hold our democratic credentials very strongly, said Prasad.

The IT ministry will wait for Cambridge Analytica to respond to the second notice, Prasad said, adding that a final view in the matter will be taken once the reply comes in.

Earlier this month, Facebook responded to governments latest notice over alleged data breach, outlining in detail the changes made to protect users information.

But Cambridge Analytica announced its closure in a statement on its website and claimed it had been vilified for activities that are legal and considered a standard component of online advertising.

Indian officials familiar with the line of questioning and notices sent in the data leak matter have said that Cambridge Analytica had recently indicated to the IT ministry that it intends to send response to the government latest notice.

Government officials had also maintained that the shutting down of Cambridge will not impact its ongoing probe as the liability of the company existed prior to the closure announcement.

Stating that he wants India to become a hub of data analysis, Prasad said that such aspirations will have to be strictly balanced with adequate safeguards for data protection and respect for user consent.

I want India to become a centre of data analysis but we are very clear that the element of consent has to be given due regard...to have a robust balance between a need for data analysis and the need to protect the right of individual data owners, he added.

India is already penning stronger data protection laws and a 10-member committee formed last year under the chairmanship of Justice BN Srikrishna (former Supreme Court judge) to give shape to the new data protection framework, is widely expected to finalise it views by next month.
On Monday, Kairana votes. The by-election in this western Uttar Pradesh constituency was triggered by the death of Hukum Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP. Kairana is a significant election, because if on the one hand, Singhs daughter is contesting on the BJP ticket, on the other, the entire opposition has come together to support the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) candidate.

Here is the twist. RLD is a Jat-dominated party. The candidate is a Muslim. The election is happening in the same region which witnessed deep Jat-Muslim violence and tensions.

HT reconstructs what happened back in 2013 and since.

Context

Uttar Pradesh had been fragile in terms of inter-community relations since the Samajwadi Party came to power in 2012. Localised Hindu-Muslim tensions had erupted in several places.

The SP alleged this was a result of the belligerence of Sangh-affiliated Hindutva groups and the BJP; the BJP alleged this was a result of the SP government giving a free run to members of the Muslim community. Western UP was particularly sensitive because of its demographics.

It has a substantial Muslim population, which coexists with the dominant Jat community in the region.

Chaudhary Charan Singh was a pioneer in cementing the unity between Jats and Muslims on the basis of class and a common peasant background. But this unity had got increasingly fragile with inter-community tensions. This blew up in 2013.

What happened

In August-September 2013, Hindu-Muslim tensions built up in the western UP district of Muzaffarnagar.

There remain competing versions of the trigger.

Hindutva groups had been alleging that the region was witness to increasing love jihad  a phrase coined to describe instances of Muslim men ostensibly luring Hindu women in order to convert and marry them.

They, and the Jat residents, claimed that a Muslim man had harassed a Hindu girl in a Muzaffarnagar village; two Hindu men had retaliated and killed the man; in turn, a Muslim mob had killed the Hindu men; and because of its policy of appeasement, the SP government, and particularly its minister Azam Khan, ordered that the accused be treated leniently.

This generated anger and a backlash among the Jat community in particular who organised Mahapanchayats and violence broke out.

This version is severely contested by all the non-BJP parties, civil society groups, and Muslim residents.

They claimed that there had been a minor altercation between the young men which led to violence; that with lies, fabricated videos (BJP MP Sangeet Som was later accused of spreading false videos), and propaganda, Hindutva groups converted this into a Hindu-Muslim issue; that the violence was substantially directed against Muslims as shown by both killings and large scale displacement of the community running into thousands; that this was done with the purely political motive of polarising communities in the run up to elections.

Significance

Muzaffarnagar in 2013 changed the political landscape of west Uttar Pradesh.

For one, it had a direct electoral implication. Hindus across castes, including Jats, consolidated in favour of the BJP in the 2014 polls.

BJPs campaign plank openly proclaimed the need to extract revenge and seek honour. The party swept the region, and eventually the state. The divide continued to play a part even in the 2017 polls. Even though reports indicated that Jats were now disenchanted with the BJP, they stuck to the party.

There was also a direct impact on inter-community ties. West UP became the site of constant communal tension on a range of issues triggering communal tension.

It is in this backdrop of deep communal divide that the Kairana election is being fought on Monday.

Will the Hindu-Muslim, in particular the Jat-Muslim, divide persist?

Or will a consolidated opposition be able to change the terms of the political discourse in the region?
Allocation of portfolios in newly sworn-in JD(S)-Congress government in Karnataka is likely to be delayed further as UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi is travelling abroad with her son and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, sources said.

According to the sources, the meeting to decide on the portfolio allocation has been postponed for a week as Sonia Gandhi is travelling abroad with her son tonight for health check-up.

The meeting is most likely to be held on June 4-5, one the sources said.

The Congress and the JD(S) are at loggerheads over the allocation of key portfolios such as Finance, Home, Public Works Department (PWD) and Power, Irrigation and Urban Development.

The Congress is waiting for the JD(S) to come out with its list of portfolios.

On Saturday, JD(S) leader and Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy admitted that there were some issues over the allocation of portfolios with the coalition partner.

On May 23, Kumaraswamy and G Parameshwara of the Congress took oath and chief minister and deputy chief minister respectively.

In addition, it has already been decided that Congress would have 21 ministers and JD(S) 11 in the new council of ministers.

The sources said that the Congress demanded finance as in the previous coalition government in the state in 2004-06 (JDS-Congress) as well as in 2006-08 (JDS-BJP), the portfolio had gone to those who held the deputy chief ministers post.

There is also discussion and demand that the party should induct new faces in the cabinet.

Former Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah who was in the national capital held talks with ministerial aspirants here.

Kumaraswamy is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.

On Saturday, the Congress president held the first round of discussion on portfolio allocation with senior party leaders of the state, but the meeting remained inconclusive.

Siddaramaiah, Parameshwar, senior leaders Mallikarjuna Kharge and D K Shivakumar and state party in-charge K C Venugopal were present in the meeting.

Responding to questions on cracks in the Congress-JD(S) coalition, AICC spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohail said that when there is internal democracy, partners has a right to raise issues and these cannot be termed as cracks.
Karnataka chief minister HD Kumaraswamy will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Monday evening, an official said on Sunday.

Kumaraswamy will meet Modi in the Prime Ministers Office. Its a courtesy call, an official told IANS in Bengaluru.

This will be Kumaraswamys first meeting with Modi after becoming chief minister of the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)-Congress coalition government on May 23.

It is customary for the new chief minister of any state to call on the Prime Minister, soon after assuming office, in our federal set up, Kumaraswamy told reporters at an event in Bengaluru.

Kumaraswamy, who will fly to Delhi on Monday morning, will visit Raj Ghat in the afternoon to pay tributes to Mahatma Gandhi.

After meeting Modi, he will call on Union coal minister Piyush Goyal to seek adequate coal supplies for the thermal stations in the southern state for power generation.

Asked if he would meet Congress central leaders to discuss ministry expansion, Kumaraswamy said it was unlikely as he has to return to Bengaluru by Monday night.

Talks on cabinet expansion will resume in Bengaluru with state Congress leaders on their return from Delhi, with the names of their legislators to be inducted in the ministry, said Kumaraswamy after paying homage to Jawaharlal Nehru on his 54th death anniversary.

As per the agreement between the alliance partners, the Congress will have 22 cabinet posts, including deputy CM G Parameshwara, as it has 78 legislators, while the JD-S will keep 12, including the chief minister, as it has 36 lawmakers in the 222-member Assembly.

The JD-S will finalise its list of members for the Cabinet posts in consultation with its supremo HD Deve Gowda.
Mayawatis political fortunes, which nosedived after a string of defeats between 2012 and 2017, look to be on the upswing now. For one, her support paved the way for the Samajwadi Partys unexpected victory in the UP by-polls. Then, came the Karnataka feat, in which she was a small player.

And now Mayawati is in demand for the assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh by the year-end as she has the skills to translate her support into votes even she is choosy about her poll partners.

Although a hard negotiator, she may not follow a uniform pattern while sealing alliances. Her first choice will be a regional force and then the Congress. She allied with JD (S) in Karnataka, but hugged Sonia Gandhi at the oath-taking ceremony. And there was a reason.

Three of the four states going to the polls in the year-end are bipolar with no third force to reckon with.

Mayawati may ally with the Congress to defeat the BJP as she has bigger plans for 2019. Her party has already raised the demand to make her PM to give India its first Dalit Prime Minister.

However, in a strategic move, Mayawati on Saturday declared that her party was open to alliance if it was given respectable seats in the pre-election pact. otherwise, the BSP will contest the election on its own strength.

Satish Kumar, an activist from Rajasthan, is hopeful of an alliance between the two parties in the desert state where their votes dont have a premium value in the absence of Dalit leadership.

The Dalit movement remained in a limbo in the desert state as BR Ambedkar did not go beyond Agra, often called the Bhim Nagari, close to Rajasthan. He never visited our state. The BSP picked up eight seats in 2008 polls. They all defected to Congress to make Ashok Gehlots government, which had a wafer thin majority, comfortable in the assembly.Similarly, Mayawati, can help the Congress turn the tables on the BJP in Madhya Pradesh, where the BSP has an influence on 55 seats.

In all the three states, the Congress faces a tough challenge from the BJP.

What will be her gain? She will claim to be the kingmaker in two more states. A former senior leader of her party quips, She will be the kingmaker before batting for the queens position at the Centre after the 2019 polls.

And, for this, she needs friends across the country, which explains Mayawati turning over a new leaf, from being a recluse to becoming amiable.

The BSP has already decided to go with Om Prakash Chautalas Lok Dal in Haryana, while it may ally only with the SP in UP as the Congress continues to be in a moribund state in the most crucial state.

Why? A founding leader of the party, who was later shown the door by BSPs firebrand leader, explains, Why would she revive the Congress in states like UP, where she can prop up a regional force? After all, there is no love lost between the BSP and the Congress?

Political expert Dr Badri Narayan says, The BSP took away Dalit support of the Congress. Its revival would mean their return to their first love.

Seat sharing will prove to be a herculean task among four parties  the SP, the BSP, the Congress and the RLD. Our prime concern is checkmating BJP, rather than sacrificing seats. As of now, the Congress doesnt appear to be gaining ground while RLDs fate will be known after the Kairana polls, said a senior SP leader. Thus Mayawati is on the move, picking up poll partners in states heading for elections and she will have different strategies for different states.
With unemployment now a major election issue the Madhya Pradesh government plans to organise a Mahapanchayat in each of the 51 districts to provide jobs to at least one lakh youth in a day after it could create only 17,600 jobs annually on an average in the last 14 years.

The opposition Congress has described as a political stunt.

To achieve that ambitious target, the governments Skill Development and Employment Generation Board signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Pune-based company earlier this month to revive employment exchanges recently through public-private partnership (PPP) on the back of which the Mahapanchayat will be organised, officials said.

The board has also invited more than 1000 private companies including MNCs to participate in the Mahapanchayat scheduled to be held in July. The date is yet to be decided.

The collectors of all the districts have also been asked to actively participate in it.

After they are provided with job letters, these youth will be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi through a video conference.

The exercise is seen as a last-ditch effort by the BJP-led state government as according to MP Economic Survey-2018, there were 11.24 lakhs registered educated unemployed people in MP by the end of 2016 while the government created only 17,600 jobs per year on an average in the past 14 years.

The Congress and other regional political parties are raising unemployment as a major election issue.

Criticising the move Berozgar Sena, a social organisation formed to raise the issue of unemployment and the Congress have termed the state governments decision to hold the Mahapanchayat a political stunt and last minute preparations to woo young educated voters only. They are also questioning why the BJP government didnt do anything on unemployment in the past 14.5 years of its rule.

Berozgar Sena member Akshay Hunka called announcement a jumla of BJP government ahead of the assembly election later this year.

In the past 10 years the number of suicide due to unemployment has increased by 2000%, according to NCRB. This one-day Mahapanchayat is nothing but a process of fooling the youth, Hunka said.

MP Youth Congress president Kunal Chaudhary said, The BJP-led state government didnt show any concern about youngsters in the past 14 years but now all of a sudden, they became so active that they will provide jobs to 1 lakh youth in a day. This is a political stunt and another way to cheat youngsters.

However, Madhya Pradesh State Skill Development and Employment Generation Board chairman Hemant Vijayrao Deshmukh insists it is not a publicity stunt.

We put in a lot of efforts in generating employment in the past two years but we dont believe in publicity, he said.

It is a genuine effort to help the unemployed youths. We are also trying to coordinate with all the engineering colleges for campus selection, the Nagpu-based RSS leader Deshmukh said.

During Mahapanchayat, the candidates will be given a letter of intent and if they show their interest, they would be provided offer letters. All the data will be uploaded on the website and our monitoring committee will keep an eye on the process, he said.

Deshmukh also said other than this process of providing 1 lakh jobs in a day, one lakh more jobs will be provided to youth by the companies which recently signed a MoU with the government.

The company will not only revive 15 employment exchange offices but also provide them job by enhancing their skills in the next one year, he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hailed prominent Hindutva proponent Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and said he was the first one to call the 1857 sepoy mutiny as the first war of Independence.

Modis comments came on the death anniversary of Indias first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

Veer Savarkar boldly expostulated that whatever happened in 1857 was not a revolt but was indeed the first war of independence, Modi said in his monthly radio programme, Mann ki Baat, on Sunday.

Savarkar was credited for coining the term Hindutva a word that has assumed a new relevance in the current ideological tussle between the BJP and the opposition parties.

It is also an amazing coincidence that the month, which witnessed the first struggle for Independence, was the one in which Veer Savarkar ji was born, said Modi. While Modi rendered his respect to Nehru, he chose to speak at length on Savarkar.

Savarkar jis personality was full of special qualities  he was a worshipper of both weapons or shastra and knowledge or shaastras, Modi added.

Ever since the BJP came to power in 2014, it has locked horns with the Congress over allegations that it is trying to undermine the legacy of stalwarts, especially from the Nehru-Gandhi family, in nation-building.

Modi also urged people to stop using low-grade plastic and polythene, and pointed out it is polluting the environment, wildlife and the health of the people.

Protecting the environment and being sensitive towards nature should come naturally. The recent dust storms accompanied by rains were unseasonal. The climate pattern led to the loss of life and property. It is a result of change in weather pattern, he said.

Whenever we face a torrid summer, or floods, incessant rains or unbearable cold, everybody becomes an expert, analysing global warming and climate change... Being sensitive towards nature, protecting nature, should come naturally to us; these virtues should be embedded in our sanskar (culture), he said.

(With agency inputs)
A Pakistani national was detained today by the Border Security Force (BSF) when he tried to enter the country through the international border in Gujarats Kutch district, an official said.

Three SIM cards and two mobile phones were recovered from his possession, the BSF official said.

The man, in his early thirties, identified himself as Raju, he said.

He tried to enter Kutch district from neighbouring Sindh province in Pakistan early this morning when a BSF patrol team caught him, the official said, adding that he tried to cross over through a patch in an unfenced area between border pillars 1085 and 1090.

The man was being questioned. The BSF would later hand him over to the local Khavda police for further action, he added.
The 135km long Eastern Peripheral Expressway to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday will reduce the movement of commercial traffic by 35 per cent in Delhi as an estimated 52,000 vehicles will be able to bypass Delhi everyday. The Prime Minister will also dedicate the first phase of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway that will allow commuters to travel from the national capital to Meerut in 45 minutes.

The Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) will connect Sonipat to Palwal through Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Gautam Budh Nagar and Faridabad while serving as a bypass for vehicles entering Delhi.

According to NHAI, the expressway will be 100 per cent access controlled with multiple entry and exit points besides 430 bridges, underpasses and rail over bridges for smooth commuting.

It has been constructed in a record time of 500 days with seven interchanges and allowing commuting on six lanes, three lanes each side.

Artwork along the Delhi-Meerut Expressway in New Delhi on April 25. (Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

Union minister Nitin Gadkari said in a tweet that the EPE will be one of the first access controlled greenfield expressway which will reduce Delhis pollution by 27 per cent and will reduce Delhis traffic by half. The expressway is 100 per cent solar powered with 2.5 lakh avenue plantations.

The EPE will have 24.5km stretch in Ghaziabad which will have two major interchanges at Duhai and Dasna. The Gautam Budh Nagar district has 49km stretch with an interchange at Bil Akbarpur. The other interchanges are provided at Kundli, Mavi Kalan, Sirsa, Maujpur and Palwal. The work for the two major stretches in Ghaziabad and Gautam Budh Nagar is almost complete, said a NHAI official.

While the first stretch of Delhi-Meerut Expressway (DME) will be inaugurated on Sunday, the second stretch is under construction from UP Gate to Dasna in Ghaziabad. Both the expressways have been provided with 35 fountains and 32 artefacts.

An aerial view of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway in New Delhi. (Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

However, farmers from Loni and those affected by the EPE have threatened to hold protest and have said they will try to meet the PM to press for their demands.

Farmers from Tronica City in Loni are pressing for hiked compensation while the farmers affected by the EPE are demanding service roads. The NHAI officials have already said that the service road will be prepared within three months after the EPE gets inaugurated.

We are holding regular talks with the farmers to abstain from any protests. A number of meetings have already been held with them in the past. The farmers from EPE have been assured of service roads and these have already been approved. For their demand, we are already in talks with the NHAI, said Ritu Maheshwari, district magistrate, Ghaziabad.
Former president Pranab Mukherjee will address members of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) at its headquarters in Nagpur on June 7, according to a senior functionary of the organisation and an official from Mukherjees office.

An invitation was extended to Mukherjee address the RSSs third-year camp for members studying to qualify as pracharaks, which he has accepted, the RSS functionary cited above said on Sunday. He will go to Nagpur to attend the event. He will spend two days in Nagpur and return on June 8, an official from Mukherjees office confirmed.

The former president was associated with the Congress throughout his political career and held several key ministerial berths, including finance and defence under multiple Congress regimes. But officials close to Mukherjee said that he has had a good rapport with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat for several years despite the RSSs links with the Bharataiya Janata Party (BJP).

After Mukherjee became the president, Bhagwat was invited two or three times to Rashtrapati Bhavan and the two talked about India, its culture, and philosophical issues, said a second official from Mukherjees office.

The RSS organises training camps across the country during the summer months. The final-year camp, also known as the Truteeya Varsh Sangh Shiksha Varg is held annually in Nagpur, the headquarters of the Sangh. Only volunteers who attend the first- and second-year training camps are eligible for the final-year camp and can assume the role of full-time pracharaks (those who carry out the role of propagating the RSSs ideology).

The RSS functionary, who asked not to be named, said: We always invite prominent people to address the cadre. This year, we extended the invitation to the former president, which he has accepted. He had shown interest in knowing more about the Sangh, during his meetings with the Sarsangachalak Mohan Bhagwat and we followed it up with inviting him to Nagpur.

Bhagwat had called on Mukherjee in December 2015, a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance lost the assembly elections in Bihar, setting off speculation in the political corridors about the purpose of the meeting. RSS functionaries had, however, asserted that Bhagwat had gone to greet the president after Diwali and had presented him books about the Sangh.

Another meeting between the two took place in June 2017, shortly before Mukherjee demitted office. These meetings were courtesy calls and an invitation for lunch that was extended to the Sarsanghchalak; there was no (political) agenda, a second RSS functionary said.
Sangeeta Bahl, a 53-year-old former model and entrepreneur from Jammu and Kashmir, has become the oldest Indian woman to conquer Mount Everest.

Bahl, who currently resides in Gurugram, was felicitated on Sunday at the Indian embassy in Kathmandu. She scaled the peak on May 19 with the help of two Sherpas. Her husband Ankur Bahl, who climbed Mt Everest in 2016, was also welcomed at the Indian embassy in Kathmandu.

Sangeeta Bahl has already conquered six out of the seven highest peaks of the world. She broke the record of Premlata Agarwal, 48, who scaled Everest on May 20, 2011. The couple had pledged to scale seven summits in seven continents, which they clinched, some of them together.

I just returned to Kathmandu after my epic climb to Mount Everest, she wrote on Facebook. Wish to thank each one of you who have supported me through your prayers, wishes and constant goodwill.

Bahls mission also had a message: she carried a banner to the peak advocating early detection of breast cancer in women, and funding for the same.

This was her second attempt to scale the mountain. She abandoned the first expedition after suffering from high-altitude sickness.

Her husband scaled Mt Everest two years ago to the date, on May 19, 2016.

According to officials, six dozen Indian nationals have scaled Mt Everest this year, becoming the second nation of mountaineers to do so after climbers from the US.

Shivangi Pathak, 16, from Haryana became Indias youngest woman to climb the Everest from Nepali side.
Mohammad Javad Zarif, Irans foreign minister, will hold discussions with his Indian counterpart Sushma Swaraj on Monday as the two countries look at the fallout of the United States pulling out of a nuclear deal with Tehran and a fresh round of sanctions against the country, officials said.

US president Donald Trump pulled out of an international deal with Iran to stop the latters nuclear programme and announced sanctions against the country, and also those countries trading with it.

Though Zarifs meeting with Swaraj is slated for 6:30pm, he is likely to meet other Indian officials as well.

Bahram Ghasemi, a spokesperson of the Iran foreign ministry, said Zarif will discuss the latest developments in bilateral relations and pave the way for expanding and deepening them.

Ghasemi said the minister and the delegation will also discuss the latest regional and international developments with Indian officials.

Iran is the third largest source of Indian oil export and India is making huge strategic investment in the Chabahar port that connects Afghanistan to Central Asia bypassing Pakistan.

During Iranian President Hassan Rouhanis visit to India in February, the two countries signed many pacts to deepen their bilateral cooperation.

Zarif had earlier this month visited Russia, China and the European Union headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
Past attacks on toll plazas in state

May 6, 2018: A truck driver trying to get away without toll tax on Murthal toll plaza on national highway 1 (Delhi-Chandigarh) mowed down a toll plaza worker who tried to stop him.

April 8, 2018: An employee of Karnals Bastara toll plaza was injured after he was stabbed by four persons.

January 5, 2017: A youth allegedly crashed his SUV car into Bastara toll plaza near Karnal and also attacked the plaza supervisor, who asked him to show the tag and change the lane. He left the spot but returned after 10 minutes with about 15 people and attacked the plaza supervisor with sticks injuring him badly.

February 2o16: Makrauli toll plaza and Dighal toll plaza in Rohtak vandalised and set on fire during Jat stir
The University Grants Commission (UGC) is considering the issue of establishing a National Level Council of National Security Research & Studies.

A committee has been formed to consider whether the proposed council should be within the UGC or outside it and other such modalities. The committee will have representation from the ministries of human resource development (HRD) and defence.

A senior UGC official, who did not wish to be named, said that the issue was considered in a meeting held in February and the commission noted that there is a genuine and urgent need to take up the issue of Establishment of National Level Council of National Security Research & Studies in national interest.

To consider the various issues like whether the proposed council be within the set-up of UGC or outside it, etc., it was resolved that a committee consisting of following should consider the various aspects involved and suggest the way forward, read the minutes of the meeting.

Officials further said four central universities, including Allahabad University and Gujarat University, had approached the commission requesting it to upgrade their existing departments on defence studies or national security studies into a department of national security studies.

The commission examined the proposal and has approved it. It is now the HRD ministry that has to finally give their approval, said a senior UGC official.

Once the ministry gives a nod to the upgradation, they will be able to get financial support allowing them to carry out research and studies at post-graduate and doctoral levels in the field of safety and security.

The departments will be allowed to carry out researches on a range of issues related to national security and will be provided funds for it too, said another official.
The desert state of Rajasthan has just gained a huge tract of land  one lakh hectares to be precise. For a state that is known for its arid topography, it is heartening news. An assessment has revealed that Rajasthan is the only state among nine falling within the major arid regions of the country where the degraded land area has registered a decrease over the years.

The assessment is based on maps created using satellite imagery for two different periods, 2011-13 and 2003-05.

The other eight states  Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab and Tamil Nadu  together recorded an increase of 18.72 lakh hectare degraded area in the same period.

The assessment, led by the Central Arid Zone Research Institute (CAZRI), has found that extent of sand dune area is now limited to 48 % in western Rajasthan. Earlier, sand dune area extended to 60% of western Rajasthan.

The maps created under the nationwide mapping project funded by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for assessment period 2011-13 found about 29.32% of countrys total Geographical Area (TGA) degraded due to various process of desertification. In 2003-05 this was 28.76%. Thus there has been an overall increase of 1,872,523 hectare degraded compared to 2003-05 when it was 9,45,25,643 hectare.

Desertification is land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors including climatic variations and human activities, which was adopted in United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED-1992). Dr OP Yadav, director, CAZRI said.

There are several reasons behind Rajasthan registering a decrease in the degraded area. Wind erosion affected area has also reduced by 1.34 lakh hectare. Land use wise, 1.23 lakh hectare under croplands (irrigated and rainfed) is now free of wind erosion hazards compared to 2003-05 assessment, Yadav said.

In Rajasthan, only degradation due to mining, water erosion and vegetation has increased, Dr PC Moharana, principal scientist, said, adding that much of the improvement in desertification scenario of the region has been achieved due to combined efforts. Controlling wind erosion and sand spread was a priority activity as it was the single largest environment problem of this region.

CAZRI at Jodhpur is engaged in assessment and mapping of desertification status of arid areas in India since the preparation for the first United Nations Conference on Desertification (UNCOD) at Kenya in 1977. Studies have been carried out by CAZRI to understand the problem, its severity and its spatial distribution. The first database on desertification was prepared by CAZRI in 1990 for western Rajasthan which showed that wind erosion of moderate to severe intensity affected 50 % area, water erosion affected 9% area, and waterlogging and salinity affected 2% area. Around 62 % area of western Rajasthan was assessed as being moderate to severely degraded, 31 % as slightly affected by various processes and rest 7 % area was free from degradation.
The Bharatpur police on Sunday arrested five cattle smugglers who were transporting the animals to Haryana for slaughter and rescued six cows from their possession.

Following a tip-off, police teams led by station house officer of Sikri police station Naresh Poshwal, raided and arrested five cattle smugglers transporting the cows to Haryana. The rescued cows have been shifted to a cow shelter in Sewal, police said.

The arrested cow smugglers were identified as Sharif Khan, Akhtar Khan, Sobedin Khan, Hasam Mev from Nagal village and Shahrukh Khan from Gulapada village, police said.

The group was arrested under the Rajasthan Bovine Animal (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 1995, Poshwal said, adding that the gang collected stray cattle from rural areas and transported the animals to Haryana for slaughter after crossing the inter-state border.

Police are interrogating them about smuggling of cattle and to find out the identity of other gang members who supply cows for slaughter in Haryana, police said.

On May 18, police rescued 42 stray cows and detained a minor near Mungaska village when a gang of cow smugglers were trying to transport the animals to Haryana.

Police data show that 65 police cases have been registered in 2015, 65 cases in 2016, and 27 cases have been registered until May 2017 under Rajasthan Bovine Animal (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation Temporary Migration or Export) Act, in different police station in the district.

Data also show that police have registered FIRs against cow smugglers in 65 cases in 2015, 71 cases in 2016 and 51 cases were registered until October 2017.

Police have issued challans against 41 cow smugglers who were arrested in the last one year, data has revealed.

Data also show that 1,121 cows were rescued in 2015, 403 in 2016, 210 until May 2017 from the possession of cow smugglers while they were transporting the animals in vehicles from the Mewat region of the district.

Police have seized 38 vehicles in 2015, 30 in 2016, 12 vehicles in 2017 that were in to illegally transporting cattle for slaughtering in the neighbouring state.
Gastronomes never shy away from experimenting with their food palate and thus its imperative that you step out and try authentic Colombian food, prepared by Colombian chefs and dont miss the corn envuelto, a much loved snack back in Colombia.

Help yourself to some lamb carimanola, river sole fish grilled in banana leaves with avocado salad and more at the The Colombian Food Festival, a week-long affair with Colombian delicacies at The Taj Mahal Hotels Machan till June 2.

Here at a tasting session, Master Chef Alejandro Gutierrez and Juan Manuel Ortiz, who had just flown in straight from Colombia, served a few dishes that they believe are among the best, being served at the food fest.

Served as a snack or a starter, lamb carimanola -- lamb croquettes, with suero costeno (cream cheese ) and panela chili -- was a pleasant surprise. Some Bengalis would even associate it a little with the good old Mangsher chop, which contains finely minced mutton.

The carimanola tasted best with the panela chili, which is a bit tangy, to break away from the slight fried taste of the dish. The corn envuelto was loved by all, as it was a paste of corn kernels, served on a corn leaf with paipa cheese crumble and pickled cubios.

However, if you do not like corn, its best to stay away from it as the overwhelming taste of corn which leaves a sweet note on your tongue may not be of your liking. If you want to take the risk, end the dish with the pickled cubios, which works like a palate cleanser.

What won my heart was the river sole fish grilled in a banana leaf with avocado salad, farina and rice encocado on the side. Perfectly cooked, very filling and the slight taste of the grilled spices tasted even better when had with the rice mixed with spices and coconut milk.

Th food fest by the hotel is in association with the Embassy of Colombia. Colombia is yet to be discovered in India. This gastronomy aspect is one of the ways to discover it; an element and a component of a very diverse and rich culture like Indian culture itself is, Colombian Ambassador Clemencia Forero Ucros told IANS.

The team of the Colombian chefs, Gutierrez and Ortiz, will be creating the magic with the hotels team of culinary experts led by Executive Chef Arun Sundararaj. Some of the other scrumptious delicacies that will be there in the buffet lunch include patacones with hogao and chorizo, prawn ceviche, cuajada fresh cheese and some indulgent desserts such as mango, cafe and chocolate (spiced mango sorbet served with syrup, coffee and chocolate shavings).

This is a must try as it consists of pure Colombian coffee with a hint of peanuts, perfectly balanced with crumbs of chocolate.The festival will end on June 2.

Details:

* Where: Machan, The Taj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi, Number One, Mansingh Road

* Timings: 12.30 p.m. to 3.30 p.m. (lunch), 7.30 p.m. to 11 p.m. (dinner)

* Price: Monday to Friday Rs 2,100 plus taxes; Saturday and Sunday Rs 2,600 plus taxes;

Chefs special dinner menu: Rs 2,400 plus taxes
Three persons died and nine others were injured in a fire at the Technic Plus building in Goregaon (West), on Sunday afternoon.

The three deceased were found unconscious by the fire brigade on the seventh floor and in a lift stuck between the fourth and fifth floors of the structure. They were declared dead after being rushed to a nearby hospital.

The fire was declared under control after seven hours of fire-fighting and the rescue operation.

At the time of going to press, the cooling operations were underway, according to PS Rahangdale, chief fire officer.

Eight of the nine injured in the fire were fire brigade personnel.

A 30-year-old man named Wasim, who was stuck at the seventh floor, was sent to Siddharth hospital after he sustained cuts to his right hand. The injured fire brigade officials were also taken to the same hospital for treatment of injuries and excessive smoke inhalation.

Five persons were also rescued from the site and did not suffer any injuries.

While the fire-fighting and rescue operation was underway, locals informed that three people were still missing.

The fire reportedly broke out on the seventh floor of the glass facade building at 4:26pm.

The fire is confined to the electric wiring and around the duct. The smoke and heat travelled to all the floors, a fire official said, on condition of anonymity.

Five hours after the fire was reported, three small water lines were in operation at the site while ventilation to

remove smoke was underway.

The building is located on SV Road and houses several important offices including that of RBL Bank.
The Aarey police said they are awaiting the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) reports of the eight youngsters who were present at the party in an Aarey bungalow, in connection with the Atharva Shinde death case. The youngsters will be booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, if they test positive for drugs.

On Saturday, HT had reported that all of them had been tested positive for cannabis, which is banned under the NDPS Act.

The FSL report was dispatched on Friday. We are likely to receive the FSL report by Monday. If the results comeback positive, we will arrest the youngsters for consumption of drugs. Meanwhile, we are trying to identify the drug peddler, said a police official. The case is being investigated by the crime branch unit 11.

Atharva Shinde, 20, son of a serving police inspector in Mumbai Police, had been found dead on the morning of May 9, after attending a party at a bungalow in Aarey, Goregaon (East). The party had been organised by the daughter of a Marathi film producer. Others in attendance included five minor boys and Shindes girlfriend.

According to the post-mortem report, Shinde suffered injuries on his chest, head, and eyes. A murder case was registered against an unidentified person, and nine days later, the case was transferred to the crime branch. However, the five hours of CCTV footage that eventually came to light led the police to suspect that the death may have been caused by some other reason.
The Congress, Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Sunday registered a complaint with Palghar collector Dr Prashant Narnaware demanding a probe by the Election Commission of India (ECI) into an audio clip in which chief minister Devendra Fadnavis is heard asking BJP workers to use all means to win the Palghar bypoll.

Dr Narnaware is also the returning officer in Palghar for the bypoll being held there today.

Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant, along with NCP and BVA leaders registered the complaint and demanded an inquiry into the entire audio clip by the ECI. Speaking to the media, Sawant said, The CM has violated the election code of conduct on innumerable occasions, hence we had complained to the returning officer. We have also attached a pen drive containing the controversial audio clip. The language used by the CM is shocking, anti-democratic and autocratic in nature. The BJP have also put up hordes of illegal hoardings all along the Mumbai-Ahmedabad National Highway and at other places without seeking the permission of the authorities and the EC must also probe into this,said Sawant.

Meanwhile, 12 persons were detained by the Dahanu police for allegedly distributing money to voters. Police recovered total cash worth Rs1,48,500 in envelopes from the arrested accused.
Stolen vehicles from Mumbai are in great demand in states such as Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, according to the Mumbai police.

A police officer, who worked with the anti-motor vehicle theft unit (MVTU) before it was shut, said, People who buy scrap or vehicles damaged in an accident from insurance companies run this racket in connivance with garage owners and mechanics. The modus operandi was unearthed last year, after a gang was busted. They used to buy scrapped vehicles from insurance companies. They would then get in touch with thieves in the city, demanding vehicles of the same make, model and colour. The stolen cars were then sent to a garage where their number plates, engine number and chassis numbers were swapped with the damaged car. These vehicles would then be sold to new customers, said the officer.

Dheeraj Koli, police inspector, property cell, said, Earlier, the stolen cars were sold mainly in western parts of India, but the trend has changed. At times, we find the stolen vehicles even in the North-East.

According to the police, at least three to four groups are involved in stealing a vehicle. Thieves dont steal random cars, but they look for the specifications mentioned by those running the racket. The accused identify the vehicle and keep a close watch on the owners routine. After crossing the check-naka in Mumbai and Thane, they hand it over to another group, said the officer.

Most of the thefts happen at night, so that the vehicle is out of the city before the owner approaches the police, he said.
The city recorded 1,154 vehicle thefts from January 1 to May 25, higher than 1,093 recorded during the corresponding period last year, according to the Mumbai police data.

A senior IPS officer said the western suburbs are the worst hit. Vehicle thefts are on the rise in the western suburbs, with at least three vehicles being stolen daily, he said.

Officers attribute it to a lot of reasons. With no parking space, residents are forced to park cars on roads, making them easy targets, said a crime detection officer with a suburban police station. Also, it is easier to flee with the stolen vehicle after crossing the Dahisar check naka, as it gives the thieves direct access to National Highway No. 8.

Police records show Maruti Swift Dzire, Mahindra Scorpio, Chevrolet Tavera and Toyota Innova top the list of stolen cars. White and silver are the preferred colours, said an officer, who maintains the statistics.

The increase in vehicle thefts was among the issues discussed at a recently held conference, chaired by Mumbai police commissioner DD Padsalgikar.

A car thief just needs a screwdriver and a small socket to start the ignition. They can unlock the system in three minutes, said a police officer, who worked with the anti-motor vehicle theft unit of the Mumbai crime branch that was disbanded in January.

The disbanding of the anti-motor vehicle theft unit, which used to focus on gangs stealing motor vehicles, has compounded the problem. Sanjay Saxena, joint commissioner of police (crime branch), denied that the unit was disbanded. It has not been disbanded. We have merged the unit with the property cell, said Saxena.

Sachin Patil, deputy commissioner of police and a Mumbai police spokesman, said, The zonal deputy commissioner of police and senior police inspectors of each police station are organising nakabandis and conducting surprise checks to find these vehicles. Efforts are being made to solve cases at the earliest. Prevention of such incidents is our priority.
College students across Mumbai have signed up for Swachh Bharat Summer Internship 2018, an initiative of the Central government, which requires youngsters to devote 100 hours working for sanitation-related work in villages.

From constructing and repairing toilets to installing sewage management system, students are spending their summer vacation promoting safer sanitation methods in remote parts of Maharashtra. While learning about hurdles in implementing Prime Minister Narendra Modis pet project in rural areas firsthand, they also hope to earn several incentives, including two extra credit points to their academic scores.

Students applying for the internship will have to devote at least 100 hours  anytime from May 1 to July 31. According to Babasaheb Bidve, National Service Scheme (NSS) coordinator for University of Mumbai (MU), several colleges in the city have registered for the initiative and more are expected to join once new academic year starts in June.

As part of the initiative, students from KC College, Churchgate, have started working on a waste management plant in their adopted village of Karwale in Palghar district. They have built a vermicompost chamber in the village that will treat sewage and other wastes in a natural and generate compost. It is now being filled with layers of mud, dung and leaves, and will be covered before the monsoon.

They will also survey the toilets they have constructed over the years. We have been working in this village for the past 14 years and have constructed several toilets  including 112 built that were built in the past two years. We want to find out if they need repairs, if people are using them and not, said Satish Kolte, NSS coordinator of the college.

RD National College, Bandra, has decided to carry out similar activities in its adopted village of Indapur in Raigad district. As part of the first phase of the internship, the college had joined hands with Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and conducted a weeklong orientation programme for the 30 students who registered for the internship.

Earlier this month, the students visited a waste-to-energy plant constructed by Pali Hill Residents Association with the help of BMC. They learnt how the project powers streetlights with electricity generated from household waste. BMC officials also taught them how to communicate effectively and patiently with residents, while creating awareness on waste segregation.

Students from MD College, Parel, also plan to spend five days in their adopted villages of Damanwadi and Tadwadi, near Badlapur and create awareness on various issues related to cleanliness including the use of dustbin and waste management. The students will lead by example and clean the streets.

According to the teachers, the initiative is not limited to NSS members and more students are expected to enrol. The students will learn to be more responsible through this initiative. They will also earn two additional credit points for their efforts, said BT Nikam, NSS coordinator, MD College.

However, they also expect students to face hurdles in their cleanliness movement. Many times, villagers dont use public toilets unless its near their home. Some people also encroach on these facilities, said Vijendra Shekhawat, NSS coordinator, RD National College. He added they will interact with village leaders to understand their issues and devote 20 out of 100 hours to address the problems they would highlight.
National security and foreign policy do not fetch votes, and rarely act as an effective polariser of vote banks, as seen in elections after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. Their main dividend is peace and certainty, on the foundation of which sound economic growth is built.

The Narendra Modi government, in its first four years, has done well on these two parameters, barring terror attacks from Pakistan-based groups in Jammu and Kashmir and bordering Gurdaspur in Punjab, and the rise of radicalisation in South Kashmir. The governments resolve in tackling Maoists, who once ruled the mineral-rich belts of eastern India, and the capacity to prevent any major terror attack in the hinterland goes to the credit of home minister Rajnath Singh and security agencies.

The courage and resoluteness of the Indian Army, under the guidance of Prime Minister Modi and his National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval, in conducting surgical strikes in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) in 2016 and standing up against a belligerent Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) in the Doklam plateau last year in defence of Bhutan is now part of the military legacy.

However, the Modi governments main success lies in its diplomatic and security engagement of West Asia and the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) and that too at a time when the dark shadow of the so-called Islamic State had loomed large since 2014. Before the advent of Modi, governments used to look towards Sunni West Asia through the prism of Pakistan and hence were reticent in making overtures towards countries in the region.

Today, Prime Minister Modi and his key advisors are on an SMS basis with key west Asian powers including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Oman and ASEAN countries like Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. The result is quite evident in a single mention of Jammu and Kashmir in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperations Dhaka declaration this year; Bangladesh was at the forefront of support for Indias claim to observer status in the OIC. With Prime Minister Modis personal diplomacy working on global leaders, including the rulers of Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the days of Indian fugitives and terrorists taking refuge in these two kingdoms or for that matter anywhere sin West Asia are practically over.

While the US, Japan and France are Indias core partners, Prime Minister Modi has managed to forge a personal bond with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping through candid conversations. The depth of the India-US relationship is evident from the bipartisan consensus in Washington on building closer ties with India; this is also reflected in the people-to-people relationship.

Pakistan and its terror shadow on Kashmir remain a matter of concern for the Modi government, as they have been to previous regimes in New Delhi since Independence. With a politically fluid situation in Pakistan and Rawalpindi General Headquarters continuing to push extremists across the Line of Control (LoC) into Kashmir, the Modi government is left with no option but to cut its losses and just manage the relationship.

The rise of radicalisation in South Kashmir is a matter of serious concern to the Centre, particularly when state government representatives are doing little to reach out to their own electorate. The sub-nationalism of the two regional parties in the V alley have confused the population between self-rule, autonomy and Indian nationalism. The answer to this only lies in Pakistan reining in extremist groups and disassociating itself from a self-made Kashmir cause.

Apart from Pakistan, the Modi government has expanded cooperation with nations in its immediate and extended neighbourhood. Close relations have been established with Myanmar, Bangladesh and Afghanistan; ties with Sri Lanka and Nepal have been brought back on track and are on the mend with China and the Maldives.

The PMs moves are helped by the fact that he heads a single-party majority government, leaving him without pulls and pressures from allies that are guided by their own domestic constituencies. A strong electoral mandate is directly and not inversely proportional to effective national deterrence and foreign policy.
In a meeting chaired on Saturday, Panjab University syndicate approved 5% fee hike for foreign nationals, persons of Indian origin (PIO) and non-resident Indian (NRI), for both the present as well as the new academic session. The matter will now go to the senate for final nod.

In a meeting on April 9, the committee constituted by PU vice-chancellor Arun K Grover to finalise the fee structure, decided to go for a 5% fee hike for both the new and existing students, keeping in view the hike in the Indian currency. Presently, around 500 international students are pursuing various courses in PU.

The existing tuition fee for foreign nationals/PIO/NRI for bachelor of engineering (BE) course in University Institute of Engineering and Technology (UIET) is $6125 (4,14,860), which after 5% hike will be $6430 (4,35,514).

MPhil courses (arts and science), the existing tuition fee is $1200 which will be $1280 after 5% hike. For BA LLB, the existing tuition fee is $2455 (1,66,281) which will be $2575 (1,74,409) after the increase.

Professor JK Goswamy, UIET, who was part of the committee, said that admission of foreign nationals/PIO/NRI to UIET, UIET Hoshiarpur and Dr SS Bhatnagar University Institute of Chemical Engineering & Technology (SSB UICET) will be done through direct admissions students abroad (DASA) through ministry of human resource development for 2018-19.

PU committee to look into DA of college staffers

In the same meeting, PU syndicate also formed a committee to look into the complaint about salaries of the staff working in various PU affiliated colleges. Senators Inderpal Singh Sidhu, Prabhjit Singh, RK Mahajan and Harpreet Singh Dua are the members of the aforementioned committee.

As per the 6th pay commission, the rate of dearness allowance in Punjab is 136% from the past few months but it was alleged that the colleges, particularly in Ludhiana city, are paying 100-110% DA.

Members demand cancellation of former senators membership

The syndicate also referred to the issue of taking an action against the former senator Munish Verma to withhold his membership in future. Verma is accused of wrongfully hiring three persons as centre and assistant superintendents in the 2014 annual examinations. A special five-member committee constituted by vice-chancellor Arun K Grover had found Verma guilty of cheating the university in 2015. PU has moved a complaint seeking the registration of a first information report (FIR) against Verma.
Megastar Chiranjeevis Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy, a film which will retell the epic story of Kurnool-based freedom fighter Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy, went on the floors towards the end of last year and the team shot a major action sequence in the supervision of international stunt choreographer Lee Whittaker. With nearly 25 percent of the project wrapped up, the team has completed its first schedule last week and now will commence its second schedule next month.

Since the film features many stars, the team is finding it difficult to have all of them together as each one is busy with their respective commitments. Hence, the project is taking longer than expected to be shot. Having already spent over 6 months on shooting, the team has only managed to shoot 25 percent because of the unavailability of all the actors when needed, a source told Hindustan Times.

Being directed by Surender Reddy, the film features ensemble cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Kannada superstar Kichcha Sudeep and Jagapathi Babu among others. Actor Tamannaah Bhatia was recently signed to play a crucial role too. Last seen in SS Rajamoulis Baahubali 2, this is Tamannaahs next big Telugu outing. Even though she has Kalyan Rams Naa Nuvve in her kitty, this film is huge by many standards. Contrary to some reports, shes not playing a cameo. Her character requires a lot of research and shes taking the required help from experts to understand it better.

Actor Nayanthara, who was not part of the films first schedule, recently commenced shooting for the film. Apparently, she had set aside dates for Ajiths Viswasam and since the films shoot was stalled due to the recent strike between TFPC and Digital Service Providers, she used those dates for Chiranjeevi starrer. The film is being produced by Ram Charan on a lavish budget of Rs 150 crore. A.R Rahman was originally signed to compose music, but he opted out of the project earlier this year due to his other commitments. The makers are yet to find a replacement.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop
Actor Rana Daggubati will next be seen in upcoming trilingual Haathi Mere Saathi, in which he plays a mahout. The film, to be directed by Prabhu Solomon, is said to be about conservation of wildlife, and also a tribute to Rajesh Khanns yesteryear classic. Reportedly, Rana lost about 15 kg to play his role in the film. The latest update is that actor Vishnu Vishal has joined the project and he will be seen alongside Rana in the Tamil and Telugu versions of the film. Sharing the news on his Twitter page on Saturday evening, Vishal wrote that hes thrilled to be part of the project.

Happy to b joinin hands with Dir Prabhu Solomon sir for the trilingual 'Haathi Mere Saathi' where i wil b doin d tamil n telugu version alongside @RanaDaggubati ..my direct telugu debut..wrapped up 26 day schedule today in munnar..its not kumki 2 n also not a remake..title soon:) pic.twitter.com/tTp2pSfdUj  VISHNU VISHAL - VV (@iamvishnuvishal) May 26, 2018

Happy to be joining hands with dir Prabhu Solomon sir for the trilingual Haathi Mere Saathi where I will be doing the Tamil and Telugu versions alongside @RanaDaggubati. My direct Telugu debut. Wrapped up 26 day schedule today in Munnar (sic). Vishnu also clarified that the film is not a sequel to Solomons highly successful Kumki.

The film, contrary to rumours, wont be a remake of the classic. The only similarity between the two films will be the bond between elephants and human beings. After shooting extensively in Thailand and Kerala, the team will next head to Delhi. The rest of the cast and crew are still kept under the wraps. The makers are hoping to bring the film out for Diwali 2018. Before joining the sets of the film, Rana spent around two weeks with elephants in Thailand just to get used to being around them.

Follow @htshowbiz for more

ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop
At least 26 Syrian regime forces and nine Russian fighters were killed in an Islamic State group attack earlier this week in Syrias eastern desert, a monitor said today.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the jihadists had targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in Deir Ezzor province on Wednesday.

There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them, said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

The Russian military is backing Syrias army with air strikes and troops, but there are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground. The defence ministry in Moscow said Sunday four Russian servicemen had been killed in clashes with militants in Deir Ezzor. It did not give a date or precise location, but the Observatory said it was the same incident as the IS attack near Mayadeen.

Two of the servicemen were military advisors commanding the Syrian artillery and were killed on the spot, the defence ministry said.

It said two more Russian soldiers died later in a Russian military hospital following the fighting. Three other troops were wounded.

The ministry said the fighting lasted around an hour and left 43 militants dead.
American astronaut Alan Bean, who walked on the moon in 1969 during the Apollo 12 mission and commanded a crew on the Skylab space station in 1973 before giving up his career to become a full-time painter, died in Houston on Saturday, officials said.

Bean, 86, a former US Navy test pilot who became one of only 12 people ever to set foot on the moon, died at Houston Methodist Hospital, his family said in a statement released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). He had fallen ill two weeks ago while travelling in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Alan was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew. He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly, said Leslie Bean, Beans wife of 40 years, in a statement. A native Texan, Alan died peacefully in Houston surrounded by those who loved him.

Leaving his footprints on a region called the Ocean of Storms, Bean in November 1969 became the fourth man to walk on the moon as one of the astronauts on the second of NASAs lunar landing missions, Apollo 12.

For the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11s moon landing, Bean exhibited his paintings of lunar scenes at the Smithsonian Institutions National Air and Space Museum in Washington.

Beans lunar quest came just four months after American Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the moon in NASAs historic Apollo 11 mission in July 1969.

Bean served as lunar module pilot on Apollo 12. He and crew mate Pete Conrad explored the moons surface and conducted experiments while Richard Gordon orbited overhead in the command module, scouting landing sites for future moon missions.

I remember once looking back at Earth and starting to think, Gee, thats beautiful. Then I said to myself, Quit screwing off and go collect rocks. We figured reflection wasnt productive, Bean told People magazine in 1981.

The mission was a success, even though it started with a jolt. Shortly after liftoff, the rocket was struck by lightning but the crew was able to continue the three-day flight to the moon. Bean and Conrad spent more than 31 hours on the lunar surface, including more than seven hours working outside of the module.

In 1973, Bean commanded the second mission to Skylab, the first US space station. Along with crew mates Owen Garriott and Jack Lousma, he spent 59 days in low-Earth orbit.

Bean later played a key role in preparing future astronauts, serving in that role until the first flight of the space shuttle in 1981. He even worked with Star Trek actress Nichelle Nichols on outreach efforts to prospective astronauts.

Live your dream

His decision in 1981 to give up his NASA career to become a full-time artist surprised some of his colleagues.

You have to live your dream even if other people think its screwed up, Bean told a 2010 NASA oral history interview. About half the astronauts thought it was a midlife crisis or something. The other half, the ones that were more right-brain, thought it was a pretty good idea.

In this October 1, 2008 file photo, Alan Bean, the fourth man to walk on the moon, is shown during a preview of his work at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum in Austin, Texas. (AP)

Bean remembered telling a senior NASA official named George Abbey the reason he was leaving the space agency.

I said, Im going to be an artist, Bean recalled. If he hadnt had the window behind him, he would have gone over backwards. ... His first comment: Can you earn a living at that? ... I said, I dont know, but if I cant Im going to go to work at Jack in the Box (the fast-food hamburger chain).

Working at his home in Houston, Bean created paintings that focused on the Apollo missions, with images of himself and other astronauts on the moon rendered with the authenticity in lighting and color that only an eyewitness could provide. His paintings sold for tens of thousands of dollars apiece.

His former colleagues became admirers. Armstrong once said, Alan Bean and his astroartistry recreate the drama and excitement of mans exploration of the moon as only could be chronicled by one who has been there.

I think I would like to be remembered in the end as an astronaut and an artist, Bean told People. I think everyone can do more than one thing with his life.

Bean was born on March 15, 1932, in Wheeler, Texas, and grew up in Fort Worth. He aspired to become a pilot and started flight training at age 17. He earned a degree in aeronautical engineering at the University of Texas, then was commissioned as an officer in the Navy.

He trained as a Navy test pilot under Conrad, who years later during their astronaut days played a key role in getting Bean designated for the Apollo 11 mission.

The retired Navy captain lived with his wife, Leslie, in Houston. He had two children by a previous marriage.
When Donald Trump abruptly scrapped their planned summit, Kim Jong Un sought out someone he knew would come over for a chat: South Korean leader Moon Jae-in.

Moons surprise meeting with Kim on Saturday shows hes willing to do what it takes to keep diplomacy on track and avoid a return to threats of war over North Koreas nuclear program. Moon called the gathering a meaningful attempt to clear up some difficulties in communication as the two leaders shared warm words on the northern side of their border.

More significantly, Moon secured the restart of minister-level inter-Korean talks on June 1, followed by a dialogue between military leaders and a Red Cross meeting to reunite families separated by the war. North Korea, which cancelled the talks earlier this month in a sign of re-emerging tensions, said the two leaders agreed to meet frequently in the future. Moon pledged to visit Pyongyang later this year.

For the moment, Moon has maintained an appearance as a neutral middleman who can bridge the gap between Trump and Kim, two reactive leaders who create a high risk of miscalculation. Yet over the longer term, Moons desire to cut a peace deal with North Korea during his single five-year term means Trump could find it harder to enforce his maximum pressure campaign if talks break down again.

Kim has now separately met Moon and Chinese President Xi Jinping twice in the past three months, and both leaders have pledged to strengthen ties with his regime. South Korea and China account for almost all of North Koreas land borders, so their support is essential for enforcing sanctions ramped up last year after Kim declared the ability to strike the US with a nuclear weapon.

With South Korea and China already talking to the North, its hard for Trump to reignite his campaign at this point or after the summit fails, said Namkoong Young, who has advised South Koreas Unification Ministry and the Foreign Ministry on policy for almost 10 years.

In Trumps thinking, his maximum pressure wouldve resulted in Kim kneeling and returning to dialogue in surrender anyway if it reached the boiling point, he said. But Moon interrupted this by reinstating inter-Korean exchanges.

Trumps team believes the maximum pressure campaign to strangle North Koreas economy is working, and Kims regime will have to come to the table eventually, according to a person familiar with the administrations thinking. North Koreas push to get the summit back on track shows that its probably looking for sanctions relief, even as Kim retains concerns about his own security.

Differing Approaches

Even so, Trump has clashed with both China and South Korea over the best approach to dealing with Kim, as well as on issues like trade.

Before cancelling the summit last week, Trump said that China had eased up enforcement of sanctions on its border. Bloomberg News reported Friday that China is still severely restricting cross-border trade, although optimism is growing that commerce will once again increase.

North Koreas Gateway to China Is Optimistic Regardless of Trump

Moon, meanwhile, didnt get an advance warning from Trump that he was cancelling the summit even though the leaders had met only 48 hours earlier. He expressed frustration immediately afterward, calling the move very regrettable. South Korean officials have since attributed the communications gap to time differences.

China, South Korea and the US all back denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, but differ on how to make that happen. The Trump-Kim summit hit a snag after North Korea lambasted Vice President Mike Pence and National Security Adviser John Bolton for suggesting it give up its nuclear weapons before receiving anything in return -- the so-called Libya model.

Trust Issue

Libyan dictator Moammar Qaddafi agreed in 2003 to give up his weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear arms, in return for sanctions relief. He ended up getting killed at the hands of US-backed rebels less than a decade later.

Chairman Kim clearly appealed once again that his intent to completely denuclearise the Korean Peninsula is firm, Moon said. Whats unclear for Chairman Kim, in my opinion, is not his willingness for denuclearisation, but whether he can certainly trust the US saying that itll end hostile relations and guarantee the security of his regime after his denuclearisation.

In a conciliatory statement Friday aimed at getting the summit back on track, North Korea said it favoured a Trump formula to resolve tensions and praised the president for agreeing to meet Kim. His regime has couched denuclearisation in global terms and called for a step-by-step process, saying it would have no need for nuclear weapons once its leadership felt secure.

The Man Who Brought Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un to the Table

South Korea is reviewing ways to address North Koreas security concerns, including turning the current armistice into a peace agreement, a senior Moon administration official said on Sunday. Moon said he would seek a trilateral summit with Trump and Kim to officially end the war if their meeting is successful.

Still, theres no sense of a consensus yet on denuclearisation. Moon sidestepped a question Sunday on whether Kim clearly mentioned if he would agree to the US demand for complete, verifiable, irreversible denuclearisation, saying that the two sides would need to discuss it at working-level talks.

The US-South Korea alliance could take a hit if Moon intentionally exaggerated Kims commitment to denuclearisation, according to Namkoong, who also teaches inter-Korean politics at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies.

The stakes of this summit are big, he said. If the Trump-Kim summit succeeds, Moon will win big. If it doesnt, he will lose a lot.

(With assistance from Tony Jordan)
Pakistans Sindh province has passed a bill which grants Hindu women the right to remarry six months after separating from her spouse or his demise.

The Sindh Hindu Marriage Amendment Bill, 2018, which was passed on Friday, allows women in strained marriages to file for separation. The bill also states that, in case of separation, the man will have to provide for the children.

Prior to the passage of the bill, divorced or widowed Hindu women in Sindh were not legally allowed to marry a second time.

The amended bill has also prohibited bigamy, stating that a person cannot get married the second time while their first spouse still lives with them. Clause 18 of the bill says: Any marriage solemnised after the commencement of this act is void if at the date of such marriage either party had a spouse living.

Anyone marrying without informing their partner or by lying to them will be sentenced to either six months in jail or a fine of Rs 5,000, or both.

Speaking in the House as he presented the amendment bill on Thursday, Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) parliamentary leader Nand Kumar Goklani said: The Hindu community, especially their widows, suffer a lot because of outdated customs and traditions that dont allow them to remarry in our society.

We want to get rid of old and outdated customs, which is why we are going to amend the law and give rights to widows to remarry after six months of iddah (prescribed Islamic waiting period).

Two years ago, the province passed the Sindh Hindu Marriage Act, 2016, granting the regions three million strong Hindu community a legal framework to register their unions. Pakistans other main religious minority, Christians, have a law recognising their marriages since colonial times.

The bill, by setting 18 as the minimum age for marriage, also makes an attempt to tackle the pertinent issue of child marriage faced by minorities in Pakistan. A number of marriage-related issues were reported from the Hindu community, mainly from Sindh. Since there was no law in place to deal with them, jirgas and panchayats announced arbitrary decisions without considering the rights of women and children or the question of their livelihood.

Before the law was proposed, Hindu couples faced many problems in basic ventures such as opening bank accounts, applying for visas, getting national identity cards, and getting shares of property because they lacked proof of marriage.
Britain needs to focus on the Indo-Pacific region to avoid being caught between two worlds not quite a European power nor a global power  post Brexit, a leading think-tank has said .

To do this, Britain will need to go to Asia by sea, even if it may remind many of its erstwhile empire built mostly through its naval power, a study titled Global Britain in the Indo-Pacific by the influential Henry Jackson Society says.

The analysis by John Hemmings has been released in the context of the recent visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi when, for the first time, the phrase Indo-Pacific was mentioned in an India-UK defence statement on future plans of the Royal Navy and Indian Navy.

The report says: Despite the threats and challenges on the UKs periphery like Russia and the Middle East, the fact is the future of global trade, global geopolitics, and global power are trending toward Asia and the UK must go there or risk being left behind.

There are also trends in maritime trade and maritime security that mean that if Global Britain is going to go to Asia, it must go by sea. While such maritime arguments sound like a Britain harking back to a glorious past, in fact a Global Britain that renews its naval and maritime commercial capabilities will one that is preparing for a prosperous and engaged future.

Mentioning the so-called quad countries of India, Australia, Japan and the United States, the report sees much potential for Britain to engage closely with the group in the context of Chinas growing presence and plans in the area, including the Belt and Road Initiative.

Hemmings writes: Britain and India are developing robust security ties across a broad range of ties; I suggest that the Indian Navy and the Royal Navy  who are brothers with a common history and common traditions  could do so much more together, both bilaterally, or in conjunction with Indias other partners: France, Japan, the US, and Australia.

Besides the existing strengths in India-UK ties, the report says that Britain could work with Japan to financially support Indias desire to match Chinas infrastructure projects. It also sees the potential to develop a UK-India-France trilateral maritime cooperation.

The report specifically recommends that Britain offer diplomatic support when key states  such as India, Singapore, or Japan  come under pressure within the region. It also calls for the utilisation, along with India, of the Commonwealth to bolster democracy with other states in the Indo-Pacific such as the Maldives, Fiji, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.

It also calls for the UK investing in Asian language programmes at British universities, particularly focussing on Hindi, Japanese and Chinese.
An imprisoned minority leader in Pakistan, who is facing trial in the murder case of a Sikh lawmaker, was today administered oath as a member of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assembly, a day before dissolution of the provincial legislature.

Baldev Kumar of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) was administered the oath on the orders of the Peshawar High Court.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly will be dissolved on May 28 after completion of its mandated period.

Speaker Asaq Qaisar administered the oath to Kumar who is presently in jail facing murder charges of Sardar Soran Singh.

Singh, a Sikh lawmaker from PTI and the special assistant to the chief minister, was shot dead in April 2016 in Buner district. He was elected to the provincial assembly on a minority seat.

After Singhs murder, Kumar was declared MPA-elect by the Election Commission of Pakistan. However, he has been in jail since 2016 with the seat lying vacant.

After taking the oath, Kumar signed the register of the assembly members and became a member of the house for a day.

The assembly session was called for a day for the passage of resolution seeking merger of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa under the 31st amendment passed by Parliament.
Pakistan and India were on the path of peace and reconciliation under his regime, former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf has said while claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not an advocate of peace talks.

The former president and chief of All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) in an interview with Voice of America claimed that when he was in power, India and Pakistan were on the path of reconciliation, but that is not the case anymore, the Express Tribune reported.

At the time, I spoke to both the prime ministers, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh, they were both from different political parties but we wanted to move forward from the disputes, he said.

The 74-year-old retired general, who is facing high treason charges, has been living in Dubai since last year when he was allowed to leave Pakistan for medical treatment.

Musharraf claimed that a four-point initiation of peace was strategised by the former president and was put in implementation by the leadership of both countries.

The four points of contention included Siachen and Kashmir as well, he said.

We were working on my strategy because both sides wanted to have peace. This is not the case anymore. They want to undo us, he claimed.

Incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to enforce supremacy in India and isnt an advocate of peace talks, he alleged.

He alleged that there exists an inherent bias towards Indias treatment as both possess nuclear arms, but no questions are raised on India.

Nobody asks India to control their assets. Pakistan became a nuclear state because India posed an undeniable existential threat, he said. The US should have stopped them, we have been loyal to them throughout, he said.

He said Pak-US relations have suffered quite a blow and are currently at the lowest ebb.

Answering a question as to why there are strenuous relations between the two countries, Musharraf said, US has supported India very openly from the Cold War era. And now again, the US is aligning itself with India against Pakistan, this affects us directly. We would like the UN to examine Indias role in Afghanistan. A one-sided approach to the problem is negative.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and to a planned meeting with US President Donald Trump, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Sunday.

In Washington, Trump signalled that preparations for the summit with Kim were going ahead.

Moon and Kim agreed at a surprise meeting on Saturday that a possible North Korea-US summit must be held successfully, Moon told a news conference in Seoul.

Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean peninsulas denuclearisation and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted, Moon said.

The meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the two Korean leaders are trying to keep the on-again off-again meeting on track.

A statement from North Koreas state news agency KCNA said Kim expressed his fixed will on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Moon, who returned to Seoul on Thursday morning after meeting Trump in Washington in a bid to keep the high-stakes US-North Korea summit on track, said he delivered a message of Trumps firm will to end the hostile relationship with North Korea and pursue bilateral economic cooperation.

While maintaining that Kim is commited to denuclearisation, Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what that means, and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

In a letter to Kim on Thursday, Trump had said he was cancelling the planned Singapore summit, citing North Koreas open hostility.

But on Saturday, Trump said he was still looking at a June 12 date for a summit in Singapore, adding that talks were progressing very well.

We are doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea, Trump said at the White House. Its moving along very nicely. So we are looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasnt changed. So, we will see what happens.

A White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the possible summit, a White House spokeswoman said on Saturday.

The Trump administration is demanding that North Korea completely and irreversibly shutter its nuclear weapons program. Kim and Trumps initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over the program.

Better than a phone call

Moon said he held Saturdays impromptu meeting, the second summit between the two sides in a month, at Kims request.

Chairman Kim requested a meeting without any formality two days ago and I gladly accepted it, Moon said, noting that the summit was in line with previous agreements for the two leaders to meet more often.

A meeting was held because officials of both countries thought that meeting face-to-face would be better than a phone call, Moon said.

Their talks at the Panmunjom border village, which South Korean officials said lasted two hours, came after their April 27 meeting, the first inter-Korean summit in more than a decade that was also held at the same venue. At that meeting, they declared they would work toward a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

The KCNA statement said Kim and Moon agreed to hold high-level talks between their two nations on June 1, and to take steps to quickly implement their efforts to denuclearize the peninsula. KCNA said the leaders also agreed to meet frequently.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during their summit at the truce village of Panmunjom, North Korea. (REUTERS)

The agency said the two leaders had reached a satisfactory consensus and expressed their stand to make joint efforts for the decentralization of the Korean peninsula.

Moon said while Kim is committed to denuclearisation, North Korea is not convinced it can trust security guarantees from the United States.

However, during the US-South Korea summit, President Trump clearly emphasised that we may see not only the end of hostile relations but also economic cooperation if North Korea denuclearises, Moon said. I urge North Korea and the US to confirm each others will by sharing their problems with each other and communicating directly.

A senior South Korean official later said that the two Koreas are discussing a possible non-aggression pledge and the start of peace treaty talks as a way of addressing Pyongyangs security concerns ahead of US-North Korean negotiations.

Video and a photo released by South Koreas presidential Blue House on Saturday showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the Norths building in the truce village, which lies in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) - the 2.5-mile (4 km) wide buffer that runs along the heavily armed military border.

Moon is the only South Korean leader to have met a North Korean leader twice, both times in the DMZ, which is a symbol of the unending hostilities between the nations after the Korean War ended in 1953 in a truce, not a peace treaty.
Pakistan on Sunday claimed it was forced to test nuclear weapons two decades ago due to hostile posturing by India.

Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal issued a statement on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the May 28, 1998 nuclear tests, while insisting that the testing of atomic bombs by India eliminated chances of a nuclear weapons-free South Asia.

Pakistan was forced to take that decision as a response, in self-defence, to the nuclear tests and accompanying hostile posturing by its neighbour. These developments unfortunately put an end to the prospect for keeping South Asia free of nuclear weapons - an objective which Pakistan had actively pursued, he said, hinting at India.

India conducted a series of five nuclear bomb test explosions at the Pokhran in May, 1998, which was soon followed by Pakistans tests.

The spokesman said that despite the nuclear testing, Pakistan remained steadfast in its commitment to non-proliferation and global peace and strategic stability and demonstrated utmost restraint and responsibility in the stewardship of its nuclear capability since 1998.

It is committed to the principle of credible minimum deterrence and has persistently sought deterrence stability in the region, he said.

READ | Pokhran tests: 20 years on, heres how India became a legitimate nuclear power

Faisal also said that this objective has driven Pakistan to offer and conclude several confidence building measures (CBMs) in the nuclear and conventional domains, including the 2004 Pakistan-India Joint Statement which recognised the respective nuclear capabilities of the two countries as a factor for stability.

He said that as one of the most affected countries due to the impact of climate change, Pakistan plans to increase its nuclear power generation capacity to 40,000 MW by 2050, as a clean and cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel.

Pakistan has consistently signalled its willingness to consider further measures for risk reduction and avoidance of arms race in the region, according to the spokesman.

He also said that Pakistan was confident of its ability to deny space for any misadventure against the backdrop of rapidly expanding nuclear and conventional forces in its neighbourhood and pursuit of aggressive security doctrines and developing force postures.

The nuclearisation of the Indian Ocean and canesterisation of ballistic missiles in our neighbourhood should be a matter of concern for the international community as well, since these developments have extra-regional ramifications, he said.

He said Pakistan while recognising its responsibilities, had developed over the years a robust command and control system led by the National Command Authority, and effective nuclear safety and security regimes and export controls.

He said Pakistan looked forward to expanding the scope of its international collaboration in nuclear power generation for meeting the legitimate socio-economic development needs of its people.

READ | Pokhran nuclear tests laid groundwork for robust strategic plan

As a country with advanced nuclear technology, Pakistan seeks to play its role as a mainstream partner in the global non-proliferation regime, he said.

He said Pakistan had expressed desire to join the multilateral export control regimes and already applied for participation in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) based on non-discriminatory criteria applicable in a fair manner to all non-NPT states.

(The story has not been modified from its original version and is published from a wire feed)
Two US Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two US officials told Reuters, in a move likely to anger Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.

The operation was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijings efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.

While this operation had been planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a particularly sensitive time and just days after the Pentagon uninvited China from a major US-hosted naval drill.

The US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbours.

The US military vessels carried out manoeuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.

Trumps cancellation of a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has put further strain on US-China ties amid a trade dispute between the worlds two largest economies.

Critics of the operations, known as a freedom of navigation, have said that they have little impact on Chinese behaviour and are largely symbolic.

The US military has a long-standing position that its operations are carried out throughout the world, including in areas claimed by allies, and that they are separate from political considerations.

Satellite photographs taken on May 12 showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.

Earlier this month, Chinas air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs in the South China Sea as part of a training exercise in the region, triggering concern from Vietnam and the Philippines.

The US military did not directly comment on Sundays operation, but said US forces operate in the region on a daily basis.

We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future, US Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

Neither Chinas foreign nor defence ministries immediately responded to a request for comment.

Contested sea

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region.

In March, a US Navy destroyer carried out a freedom of navigation operation close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands.

Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, Cold War terms.

Chinas claims in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The United States has said it would like to see more international participation in freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea.
This past week, CNN published a story where eight women accused Morgan Freeman of sexual misconduct. The accusations varied from inappropriate comments in the workplace, to flirting and touching. Freeman has since come out to apologize, stating, "Anyone who knows me or has worked with me knows I am not someone who would intentionally offend or knowingly make anyone feel uneasy. I apologize to anyone who felt uncomfortable or disrespected  that was never my intent." He maintains that he never purposefully meant to cause any discontent, and that any claims of him being sexually abusive are false.

In a second apology, Freeman wrote. "I am devastated that 80 years of my life is at risk of being undermined, in the blink of an eye, by Thursdays media reports. All victims of assault and harassment deserve to be heard. And we need to listen to them. But it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments or humor." While the legendary actor is battling the allegations, his legacy is already being taken apart.

Freeman signed on to do the voice announcements for Vancouver's public transportation, but that plan has now been axed. According to Vulture, Metro Vancouvers transit authority has canceled the promotional event because of the sexual misconduct allegations.
In what is believed to be the largest jury verdict ever handed down in an American assault case, a Georgia rape survivor was awarded a $1 billion payout, according to reports.

As reported by the New York Post, Hope Cheston, the victim of the assault, was 14 years old in October 2012 when she was attacked and raped by Brandon Lamar Zachary, an apartment security guard in an Atlanta suburb. Zachary had a history of disgusting behavior. The jury ruled that the company that employed him, Crime Prevention Agency, did nothing to properly monitor their employee, despite knowing about his history.

For their mistake, they're going to have to pay big.

"Its one of the biggest victories for women in the United States," said Chris Stewart, one of Cheston's lawyers in the case. "They said a little black girl in Clayton County who was raped is worth $1 billion. That was a big win for us."

The company knew that Zachary had acted out against guests in the past, but "ignored the circumstances that any reasonable person would interpret as leading to the injury," according to the lawsuit. The apartment manager also failed to maintain a safe environment for visitors.

"For the longest, I just thought it was swept under the rug and that it no longer mattered and that it just is what it is," said Cheston. "But come to find out that 12 strangers feel like what I went through and my story and how I feel  after six years  is worth a billion dollars  that is life-changing, history-making. Just beautiful news to know."

While she is unlikely to receive the entire billion dollar settlement, the decision sets a stark precedent on the physical and emotional damage a crime like rape can inflict on the victim.
Donald Trump is not very popular in Hollywood. The wealthy silver screen community has been labeled as "Liberal," and many of Trump's supporters feel as if celebrities have no say when it comes to politics. While the idea that any American should be denied an opinion about the political landscape in their own country is laughable, the idea that a person should be banned from an establishment based on their political views is equally ridiculous.

Robert De Niro is a legendary actor, but he's also co-owner of the world renown Nobu restaurant chain. In an interview with Daily Mail, De Niro stated that he would not let Trump into any of the Nobu's worldwide. Trump famously visited a Nobu in Moscow during the same trip where he allegedly paid prostitutes to perform golden showers. Speaking with Page Six, De Niros publicist Stan Rosenfield stated, Nobody is banned from Nobu, regardless of what you read.

Its a restaurant. Its not a political forum, a source from Nobu stated. They also claim that the only way to get banned is by acting drunk and disorderly, or by misbehaving and harassing the staff or other customers. No matter how many times you choose to rephrase the question, the answer remains, no one is banned from coming to dinner at Nobu, Rosenfield concluded.
Robert Hilburn doesnt approach his biographies lightly. For his acclaimed 2013 book on Johnny Cash and now the new Paul Simon: The Life, he says he sought the same tone and depth of A-list historians such as David McCulloch and Doris Kearns Goodwin.

I dont want this to sound pretentious, though I know it probably does sometimes, but I just havent been a fan of most pop biographies, he admits by phone from Southern California. I think theyre too limited in scope.

Not these books, though. Hilburn says he wanted to treat Cash and Simon almost like statesmen, which placed him in the upper altitude of familiar territory. As the L.A. Timess principal pop-music writer for more than 30 years, Hilburn interviewed scores of musicians, more than a few of them at the pinnacle of their craft. But convincing the famously private Simon to open up was not in the same ballpark  or even the same sport  as bar-hopping with Bono in Dublin, for example.

For Paul, it was really business, Hilburn says of his many interviews with Simon for the Times, which began with the latters 1973 album There Goes Rhymin Simon. He wanted to promote his album, and hed talk to you for that, but he wasnt going to step outside of that writer-artist relationship.

More Information 'Paul Simon: The Life' By Robert Hilburn Simon & Schuster 448 pp., $25 See More Collapse

But even knowing what he knew, Hilburn says the idea of doing a book on Simon appealed to him. In conversation, hed always found the Queens, N.Y., native, whose Homeward Bound farewell tour rolls through Houstons Toyota Center on Saturday, maybe one of the two most thoughtful and articulate people Id ever interviewed in rock.

Thats one of the reasons I was so eager to do the book, Hilburn says. If he can be that articulate about all his music and songs and his life, that would be fabulous.

The idea, Hilburn says, was to use Simons life story as a case study of how artistry comes about. Thats exactly how it reads, but it didnt come easily. Nor did it happen right away.

Simon signed off on the project about two months after Hilburn first floated the idea to the musicians manager, the author recalls, during which time Simon read Hilburns Johnny Cash book.

For the biographer to intrude as little as possible  and because (Simon) wants to spend his time making records, Hilburn notes  they agreed to meet one day a month for five hours at a time.

That figure eventually grew to 100 hours over more than two years, Hilburn estimates. Their early meetings took on a familiar tone, with Simon reluctant to talk about anything outside his music.

He would give four- or five-word answers to things, and this went on for the first two or three times we met, Hilburn recalls. We were meeting in his studio in Connecticut, and every time we would start talking, (it would be) in this very stop-and-start, stop-and-start manner. After a couple of hours, he would stop and say, Come on, lets go listen to the new music.

This pattern repeated until Hilburn decided to start interviewing all the other people I could in Simons orbit. When he returned, Simon had finished his project, and the final 20 or so hours of conversation were much more fruitful.

I dont know if he trusted me at some point, Hilburn says. I dont know if he realized he wanted the book to be a good book so therefore he had to tell me more about himself, but there was a transformation that was just fantastic.

The informal style of Hilburns prose in The Life masks the authors exacting eye for detail. He covers Simons loving family and happy childhood, where he grew up loving the New York Yankees, girls and early rock n roll about the same. His musician father, Lou, could be critical of Pauls early songwriting efforts but also gave his son advice Simon has followed throughout his life, wisdom such as, Dont show off  when you get onstage, just play the music.

The book continues on to Simons teenage hit single Hey Schoolgirl and his many futile attempts to replicate its success; the pivotal months he spent on the UK folk-club circuit, where he forged lifelong friendships and gained valuable performing experience; and his lucrative but fraught relationship with old friend and singing partner Art Garfunkel, an uneasy (and, many argued, lopsided) partnership almost from the beginning.

Hilburn even tracks down the English teacher at Queens College who was a key influence on The Sound of Silence. Shes never been mentioned in the Simon story before, but she was the one who enabled him to write (the song), he says. That was a great breakthrough.

Although he cautions never say never, Hilburn thinks the odds of an eleventh-hour Simon and Garfunkel reconciliation are almost non-existent. Not long after starting the book, he asked Garfunkel to participate; Garfunkel replied, You know, I would talk to you if you were doing a Simon and Garfunkel book, but I dont think Im going to talk to you if youre doing a Paul Simon book.

My impression (was) that he didnt want to do anything to help Paul because they were so far apart by now, Hilburn says.

Except for the duos periodic reunion tours and one-offs  their last, and presumably final, show was at New Orleans Jazz Fest in 2010  Simon and Garfunkel are effectively kaput halfway through The Life. As Simons musical ambitions and successes in the 70s grew thanks to Grammy-winning albums including Rhymin Simon and Still Crazy After All These Years, his anxieties grew right along with them. Frustrated, sometimes he would strum his guitar for hours while looking out over the Manhattan skyline.

Its one of the most powerful images in the book, and one of the moments when the book unlocks Simons songwriting process. Hilburn says Simon reminds him of the great Italian director Federico Fellini.

Fellini said he never wanted to make a movie from a book because if you do that, it limits your imagination, he says. What Paul is saying (is) if you begin your theme before you write the song, that limits your imagination, too. Just start making the music and go line by line, and find the theme of the song.

One of the best examples comes when Simon explains Graceland, a song that appeared at a low point in his life, to Hilburn. Of course the album of the same name went on to become a worldwide blockbuster that not only revived his career but  at least temporarily  defied American pop audiences resistance to sounds from foreign lands. Calling it Simons masterpiece, Hilburn thinks the 32-year-old Graceland is still well ahead of its time.

But it didnt start out that way.

Simons 1983 album Hearts and Bones had stiffed; his second marriage, to Star Wars princess Carrie Fisher, was on the rocks. He even had to read a radio programmer swear were not going to play Paul Simon songs anymore in an issue of Billboard magazine.

Simon also began listening, almost nonstop, to some tapes of South African folk music friends had given him. A visit to Johannesburg helped get his juices flowing again, too.

Because he had never been, one day he decided to visit his hero Elvis Presleys sanctuary mansion in Memphis, Tenn. He rented a car and drove from south Louisiana, where he had been recording with some local zydeco musicians, up through the Mississippi delta. The lyrics began pouring out of him.

Eventually I understood that the song is about why we are traveling to Graceland  to find out how to get healed  and thats why I named the album Graceland, Simon tells Hilburn. It seemed to be about finding something you could call a state of grace  the healing of a deep wound. And thats what was going on in South Africa. There was a deep wound, and then an attempt at a healing process.

Simon, says Hilburn, hates songs that say,  and my point is. So hes always trying to write about the human condition. Theres a lot of empathy, and that was what kind of surprised me.

I think thats one of the rich things about the book, him actually talking about the lyrics. You understand how he writes the song and how its all discovery. He never starts off with a theme, but he learns the theme as he goes along. I think thats whats unique about him and makes the music so great in many ways.

Though not quite as commercially successful  never his primary motivation anyway  Simons work since Graceland has been in many ways equally or even more artistically fulfilling. His refusal to disavow duds such as Hearts and Bones or his ill-fated 1998 Broadway musical The Capeman has often led to their eventual reappraisal in a more positive light. One of Simons post-tour projects, Hilburn notes, is re-recording an album of his lesser-known songs to give em a second chance to capture the publics imagination.

Hes become more involved in humanitarian and environmental causes. His long marriage to native Texan Edie Brickell, whom he met at an SNL taping in 1990, has brought him full circle to the happy family life of his boyhood in Queens. And, Hilburn argues, Simons latter-day songs such as Questions for the Angels, from 2011s So Beautiful or So What, continue to rank among his best material.

Hilburn says he intentionally avoided ranking Simon among his peers in the rock-era songwriter firmament of Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney and Randy Newman and the like, so reviewers who disagreed with him would give the book a fair shake. Still, by the end of The Life, its pretty clear the high esteem he holds for his subjects work.

I think in the epilogue I got closest to that, where I was saying if you look at just the songs hed written in the 60s, hed be one of the great American songwriters, or just the 70s songs, he says. But between Simons Graceland and So Beautiful eras, adds Hilburn, hes done that four times in his life.

Chris Gray is a writer in Houston.
For the past year, 19-year-old Yessenia Lunas plate has been as full as a queens. Shes designed clothes for a fashion show at Cypress Ranch High School, from which shes about to graduate. Shes volunteered and ridden with SIRE, a therapeutic horseback-riding group. Then she was named homecoming queen, which she calls a surprise.

That was the first time a tiara was placed on her shiny black curls. This spring, with a nudge from teachers and friends, Luna entered the Ms. Wheelchair Gulf Coast USA pageant and won another crown. In July, she will travel to Ohio, where 12 contestants will vie for the Ms. Wheelchair USA title.

For someone who was born dead, she sure has a full life.

Lunas will to succeed began with a will to survive. On April 2, 1999, Rosalba Luna was in labor in Chicago with the youngest of her four children with husband Luis. The baby wasnt breathing at delivery; doctors resuscitated little Yessenia, but the damage was done. She had cerebral palsy.

Obviously, nobody knows, Luis recalls, but one doctor bluntly said, You do know shell never be able to walk, sit on her own or talk, dont you? Her mom was crying.

More Information Want to help? To contribute to Yessenia Luna's Ms. Wheelchair USA pageant expenses, donate at gofundme.com/pz6khx-ms-wheelchair-usa. See More Collapse

The family rallied, and Luna got her first power chair at age 3. The snowy, icy winters made the Windy City hard for her to navigate, so the Lunas relocated to greater Houston.

Luna has faced grim predictions with determination and an ever-present bright smile. Her speech is severely affected; for anything requiring more than a few words, she uses a Tobii Dynavox. She moves her eyes over the devices computer-screen keyboard with predictive text to create words about life and a passion for fashion.

Wearing black with crisp white piping, she says it was a little bit hard growing up. When she was younger, shed be ignored when fellow students passed her in the halls at school. But she wouldnt change anything: I have a lot of faith in God.

Luna will enroll this fall at the Art Institute of Houston to pursue a bachelor of fine arts in fashion design. She rattles off her favorite fashion houses: Dolce & Gabbana, Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta top the list for their colors and fabrics. Her favorite color is purple.

How long has she wanted to be a fashion designer? Always.

To get there, Luna has to exercise to improve her muscle movement, posture and balance. Enter the animals.

Several years ago, at a therapists suggestion, Lunas parents got her a miniature poodle. Petting Precious, who wears a studded pink collar, helped Luna relax her perpetually clenched hands. Soon after, the 6-year-old climbed on a horse at SIRE.

It has helped me gain more balance, she says of the therapy in which the horses gait engages core muscles, mimicking the motor input of walking. And it has given me the opportunity to get to know horses.

Riding instructor Paige McDonough has taught Luna for nearly a year. She notes Lunas improved control of her horse, mastery of steering through an obstacle course, and halting and backing up on command, as well as better posture, riding with correct shoulder-hip-heel alignment.

P.J. Murray, manager of SIREs Hockley site, says Luna has impressed the group since she was little.

I have yet to meet anyone with such an indomitable spirit, Murray says. She strives to excel in all areas of her life, whether it be educational, volunteerism or extracurricular activities. She is a caring, fun-loving individual who will, no doubt, make a name for herself.

At 16, Luna began volunteering with the nonprofit.

She helps us by cleaning saddles, bridles, helmets and  going through the first aid kit and making sure everything is in place, says Michelle Skawronski, who coordinates 100 active volunteers in performing 3,000 hours a semester. She is very dependable and will do anything you ask of her.

Her courage, confidence and determination are evident in all aspects of her life, McDonough says. SIRE is another outlet for Yessenia to demonstrate those characteristics.  She doesnt need SIRE to be great because she already is. SIRE is just the cherry on top! And we are lucky to know Yessenia.

Much as she loves SIRE, fashion is her true calling. Last year Luna designed and modeled a satiny purple gown with a detachable longer skirt, along with dressy outfits for girlfriends she recruited for the school fashion show.

Her mother, who helps translate Lunas ideas onto fabric, chuckles at her daughters sneakiness.

She told me, I want to do boys pants. I said, No, those are very hard, Rosalba recalls. Then later she tells me she needs fabric for a pillow. So we go get it, and then she says, I need a zipper. Im thinking, A footlong zipper, for the pillow? No, short. Hmm  .

And thats how a male friend came to model Lunas design for silky white pants in the show. Her classwork and social recruitment efforts were successful. She got an A.

That charm and resourcefulness put her in the running to be crowned Ms. Wheelchair USA on July 21 in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. The program promotes glamour, self-confidence and community service in celebrating the achievements of women with disabilities.

After interviews, judges consider school, work and/or church involvement; recommendation letters; and a contestants motivation for wanting to become Ms. Wheelchair USA, among other factors, according to CEO and founder Lowery D. Lockard. Though scores among applicants at the regional level remain confidential, Lockard calls Luna an amazing young woman.

Lunas GoFundMe campaign to cover the entry fee, travel and wardrobe expenses reflects her platform: a desire to show that anyone, regardless of physical ability, can positively impact society.

With the title of Ms. Wheelchair USA, I will help people who have special needs and have low income to give them the special equipment that will assist them in their daily lives.

In her usual sunny manner, she sees her communication device as an asset for the competition: Not every contestant has a computer to speak.  There are no limitations for us. People with disabilities can do just about anything.

Somebody get that woman a bolt of fabric and a zipper.

A Special World relates programs and experiences by and for the disabled community in Greater Houston.

suzanne.garofalo@chron.com
Eduardo Zelaya made a colorful contribution to his neighborhood this week, just months after Hurricane Harvey wrecked havoc on his home and school. The aspiring 10-year-old artist helped create a hope-themed mural, covering layers of graffiti from rival gangs, the Southwest Cholos and MS-13.

It makes sure people wont give up, he said, looking at his drawing that is part of a bonsai tree.

Zelaya was among dozens gathered Saturday a block from his Gulfton home at the Salvation Army to celebrate a new mural on the side of the thrift shop depicting children planting and watering seeds. It also features astronaut Mae Jemison, a Houston icon, whom Chicago muralist Rahmaan Statik said grew up with his mother.

Mayor Sylvester Turner, who was joined by civic leaders, the three muralists and neighbors, said he has dedicated his time in office to making sure Houston recognizes and uplifts underserved communities. He recognized Gulfton as being the most diverse sector of the city and said it was a perfect candidate for a cultural enrichment project of this type.

Three murals and a colorful sidewalk are being added to this area as part of Turners program, Complete Communities.

Every community should be a community of opportunity, Turner told the crowd. You deserve the best this city has to offer.

This 90-foot mural highlights three neighborhood icons: retired Houston Police officer Randy Bond; veteran Gulfton activist Tammy Rodriguez, who championed living conditions for the working-class area southwest of downtown; and Pastor Alejandro Montes, a volunteer police chaplain from San Mateo Episcopal Church.

The two-year effort by the UP Art Studio, the Mayors Office and Gulfton Super Neighborhood #27 incorporates work by students from nearby Braeburn Elementary School, created with help from art teacher Rosio Padilla.

Braeburn students had to relocate after the aging school sustained damage during Hurricane Harvey. The campus will be rebuilt, said principal Santos Reyes.

Statik, 37, created the street-side piece, and two murals on the other side of the thrift shop were created by Houston artist Gelson Danilo Lemus aka w3r3on3 and Daniel Joseph Bombardier, aka Denial, from Ontario, Canada.

The project was funded by grants from KaBOOM!, Target, the City of Houston and the Houston Arts Alliance.
The grieving Santa Fe community gathered once again Saturday for another day of funerals to lay to rest three of their friends and family killed in a school shooting that has ripped through the heart of this small southeast Texas town.

Eight days after the massacre at Santa Fe High School, residents gathered at the Abundant Life Christian Center in La Marque to grieve for 16-year-old Shana Fisher, at Dayspring Church in Santa Fe to bury 15-year-old Angelique Ramirez, and at Aldersgate United Methodist Church to bury 17-year-old Jared Black.

They remembered their friends warmth and enthusiasm for life, their love of family and the unfettered joy of youth.

The community has gathered for five times before Saturday to honor those lost, and will do so twice more this week to honor the 10 slain and 13 wounded on May 18, when a gunman walked into the school and began firing at students and teachers. A 17-year-old junior at the school is charged with capital murder.

Angelique Nicole Ramirez

The night before they buried her, Angelique Nicole Ramirezs friends focused on the light she brought to their life.

Ramirez and her family moved to Santa Fe in 2008 from Blackwell, Oklahoma. The 15-year-old was one of the youngest of the 10 people killed in the May 18 massacre.

She lived for art and music, anime and animals, friends said. And rainbows. She loved rainbows.

The evening before her funeral, which was closed to the media, friends sought solace in the bright, dramatic sunset, and two rainbows that appeared in the waning sky.

Ramirez would have loved it, said Lesley Tribble, a close family friend.

It has us all in awe, she said.

The next day, Tribble and hundreds of others gathered at in a private service at Dayspring Church, where they celebrated Ramirezs bright spirit.

Some wore red and black while others decorated their clothes with rainbows. She always said rainbow was her favorite color, her friends said.

She was known as Sister Love, for her kind heart, nurturing spirit, and devotion to her family.

Our sweet Angel Messenger was incredibly gentle, kind, free-spirited, thoughtful, caring and empathetic, according to her obituary. She wore her heart on her sleeve and stood for what she believed in. She was an amazing sister who sheltered, protected, and loved her brother with everything she had.

Others remembered her smile and her infectious enthusiasm.

In her short time with us, Angelique proved to be a kind, compassionate and caring individual, family friend Rebecca Ruiz wrote, after her death. She brought smiles to those who knew her; specifically, her mother (Robin) and younger brother (Amadeus). Angeliques smile was contagious and brightened up any room she walked into.

Tribble, meanwhile, could only think of that light.

She was so full of life, she said. Bursting at the seams with rays of pure light.

Jared Alan Lee Conard Black

Hours later, hundreds congregated in the hot and humid afternoon at Aldersgate United Methodist Church to mourn for Black, a 17-year-old science fiction buff who liked video games, anime, wrestling and swimming with his young nephew.

Blacks funeral, like Ramirezs, was closed to the media.

The day after the shooting, Travis Stanich, Blacks stepfather, remembered the 17-year-old as a kind, quiet teen.

He loves people, Stanich said. Hes very creative.

Blacks family had moved to Santa Fe from Eugene, Oregon, when he was four years old, said Anthony McLeod, his 21-year-old half-brother.

Black liked to draw  frequently sending family members photos of his work  and play video games such as Minecraft or Pokemon Go.

McLeod, of Odessa, said Black took a special interest in his 5-year-old son, and the two became nearly inseparable.

Black showed McLeods son his favorite Lego sets. Theyd play outside in the dirt, using their imaginations to conquer unseen foes. The 5-year-old would stick to Blacks back whenever the two went swimming.

McLeod said Black had always been eager to help and support his friends when they went through difficult times. When McLeod hit a rough patch as a teenager, Black was always by his side.

He always asked me how I was doing to make sure everything was OK, McLeod said. He didnt understand what I was going through, but he was always there if I needed him.

Elsewhere Saturday, a steady flow of mourners walked the line of 10 white wooden crosses memorializing the dead outside Santa Fe High School. Flowers were piled high at each one, including the cross that bears Jared Blacks name.

You didnt deserve this, sweet boy, someone had written. I love you.

st.john.smith@chron.com
Following an interrogation, police found that Bhat, a customer service officer, had been called up on his performance and given a verbal notice to improve or lose his job in three months. Bhat reportedly made the call after being warned, in a moment of frustration.

Police managed to identify the number Bhat made the call from, which was confirmed once police seized the phone.

The accused, Kartik Madhav Bhat (23), who was a 'customer service officer' with IndiGo airlines, was caught after investigators traced the call he had made to Pune. He was arrested from his residence," added Sanjay Bhatia, DCP, Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport.

Employers can help their stressed-out workers deal with workplace anxieties before a tricky situation arises. A report from Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) found that one third of organizations have formal wellbeing programs in place, yet under half said wellbeing was on their senior leaders agendas.

HR leaders could consider mindfulness training and one-on-one staff engagement initiatives to ensure their workers are being cared for as they should be.
Rugged and windswept, the Outer Hebrides off the west coast of Scotland are among the most isolated and mysterious places in the U.K., where storms have impacted with such ferocity that even the hardiest folk have chosen to leave some areas after thousands of years of habitation. Today, that wild element has transformed the Western Isles into a destination for tourists exploring a simpler, and in many ways tougher way of life. This article investigates a variety of destinations that speak to its rich heritage from Neolithic times to the present.

Advertisement

The Abandoned Village, St. Kilda:

Few places in Britain are too wild for permanent human habitation, but this remote cluster of islands and sea stacks is one of the exceptions. Forty miles west of North Uist, this rugged archipelago boasts the highest sea cliffs in Britain and was occupied for more than 4,000 years. But by 1930 the remaining St. Kildans had had enough and petitioned the government to evacuate them to the mainland. They left behind their largest settlement, known as The Village, nestled amid the relative shelter of Village Bay on St. Kilda's largest island, Hirta. Located near a small military facility that is now one of the few permanently manned places on the island, the 1830s layout of the ruined village, alongside many older cleits, remains reasonably intact. Steeped in folklore, much of which is unique to this corner of Britain, St. Kilda is now a UNESCO World heritage Site.

The Callanish Stones, Isle of Lewis

Advertisement

The enigmatic Callanish Stones (or Calanais in Gaelic) are thought to be around 5,000 years old, and the fact that their background is shrouded in mystery has given rise to all manner of theory and folklore. An avenue of stones approaches the 13 primary monoliths from the north, forming a shape that resembles the Celtic cross. Rows of shorter stones complete the circle, while the larger ones, some as tall as five metres, were found to mark the entrance to a burial cairn. Theories of Callanish's original purpose range from rational, though disputed, claims that it may have been a lunar observatory, to folk tales of giants who were turned to stone due to their refusal to be converted to Christianity.

Kisimul Castle, Barra:

Advertisement

Dominating a small islet in waters off the village of Castlebay is Kisimul Castle, a fortified tower house that was home to the clan chief of the MacNeils of Barra from the 15th century. Taking its name from the Gaelic "Caisteal Chiosmuil," meaning "castle of the rock of the small bay," Kisimul is surrounded by a mighty outer wall enclosing a courtyard of smaller buildings that included a chapel, great hall and watch house. But after its abandonment in 1838, the castle fell into disrepair, some of its stones even reportedly finding their way into the streets of Glasgow.

Thankfully, the property was purchased by Robert Lister MacNeil in 1937, who set about restoring his ancestors' island stronghold to its former glory. By 2001, Kisimul had passed into the care of Historic Scotland, which leased the castle for 999 years for the princely sum of 1 and a bottle of Talisker whisky annually. Last November it was reported that Kisimul Castle was set to undergo conservation and archaeological work in a bid to shed more light on its rather colourful history.

Gearrannan Blackhouse Village, Isle of Lewis:

While many remaining blackhouses in the Outer Hebrides lie in ruin, those at Gearrannan are an exciting example of living history. The buildings were occupied by generations of crofting families over the years. But by 1974, the last elderly residents had moved into more modern accommodation, and conservationists seized the opportunity to preserve an important example of vernacular architecture that was increasingly disappearing throughout the 20th century. The low buildings with their double dry stone walls and thatched roofs provide effective shelter from the often ferocious Hebridean weather, and are now available as unique holiday accommodation for hardy tourists seeking an authentic Western Isles experience.

Barpa Langass, North Uist:

It may look like a large pile of rocks with a carefully crafted entrance portal, but the chambered cairn known as Barpa Langass has been a feature of the North Uist landscape since Neolithic times. Located about five miles from Lochmaddy, its dimensions of more than 70 feet in diameter, and almost 20 feet high reflect the ancient burial chamber's historical significance. An entrance is positioned to the east, sheltering its internal chambers from the ferocity of approaching winter storms. Nevertheless, the elements have taken their toll, leading to the structure's partial collapse and leaving access hazardous. One chamber remains intact and antiquarians speculate that there may be more hidden within. Excavations over the years have uncovered pottery, burnt bones and flint arrowheads, attesting to the rich history of North Uist and its Neolithic residents.

Barra International Airport, Outer Hebrides:
Imperial Valley News Center

Deputy Secretary John J. Sullivan and Administrator Mark Green's Meeting With International Non-Governmental Organizations and United Nations Agencies

Washington, DC - Friday, Deputy Secretary Sullivan and USAID Administrator Green met with representatives of international and non-governmental organizations on the conflict in Yemen.

The organizations described obstacles to crucial humanitarian and commercial shipments to Yemen, and identified urgent needs of civilians, including those internally displaced by the conflict. They observed that levels of food and fuel imports remained insufficient, as did incomes needed to support the purchase of food where available. They also expressed concern about escalating military activity that could derail the peace initiatives of UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths.

The Deputy Secretary and the Administrator underscored the Administrations deep concern about the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. They also highlighted the Administrations commitment to pushing all parties to facilitate access by humanitarians and engage actively with UN Special Envoy Griffiths on a renewed political process.

The Deputy Secretary expressed strong U.S. support for the efforts of Special Envoy Griffiths to reach a political resolution to this conflict, which is the only sustainable path toward ending the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Yemen. No party should obstruct the delivery of food, fuel and assistance to any part of Yemen, stressed Deputy Sullivan.

The United States continues to assert that a political solution is the only way to advance long-term stability in Yemen.
Imperial Valley News Center

Moon Colony Will Be a Reality Sooner Than You Think

Washington, DC - The first man on the moon held an American flag. In the not-too-distant future, astronauts on the moon may be holding fuel pumps.

The future for American commercial space activity is bright. Space entrepreneurs are already planning travel to Mars, and they are looking to the moon as the perfect location for a way station to refuel and restock Mars-bound rockets. As much as this sounds like the plot of 2001: A Space Odyssey, it is coming closer to reality sooner than you may have ever thought possible.

A privately funded American space industry is the reason. This industry is making progress in leaps and bounds. The global space economy is approaching $350 billion and is expected to become a multitrillion-dollar industry. There are more than 800 operational American satellites in orbit, and by 2024 that number could exceed 15,000. Thanks to public-private partnerships, for the first time in seven years American rockets will soon carry NASA astronauts into space. Long dormant, Cape Canaveral is now bustling with activity. America is leading in space once again.

Space tourism may only be a year away. Tickets for human flights into lower earth orbit have already sold for $250,000 each. Earth-based mining companies may soon face stiff competition from the mining of gold, silver, platinum and rare earths on asteroids and even other planets. A race is already developing to create the technology that will bring those crucial resources back to earth.

Competition is already fierce, with Russia and China challenging the United States for leadership, and about 70 other countries working their way into space. But todays space race is different. It is driven by innovative companies that are finding new solutions to get to space faster, cheaper and more effectively.

As these companies advance new ideas for space commerce and nontraditional approaches to space travel, they seek the legitimacy and stability that comes with government support and approval. They yearn for a government that acts as a facilitator, not just a regulator. Government must create frameworks that enable, rather than stifle, industry.

Unfortunately, our system for regulating private space exploration and commerce has not kept up with this rapidly changing industry. For example, when it comes to licensing cameras in space, we review small, high school science-project satellites the same as billion-dollar national defense assets, leaving too little time and too few resources for crucial national security needs.

On Thursday, President Trump signed Space Policy Directive 2, which will make important strides toward modernizing our outdated space policies. These changes include creating a new office, the Space Policy Advancing Commercial Enterprise Administration, within my office to oversee coordination of the departments commercial space activities, establishing a one-stop shop to work on behalf of the budding private space sector.

This will be a major change. At my department alone, there are six bureaus involved in the space industry. A unified departmental office for business needs will enable better coordination of space-related activities. To this end, I have directed all Commerce Department bureaus with space responsibilities to assign a liaison to the new Space Administration team, including the International Trade Administration, Bureau of Industry and Security, National Telecommunications and Information Administration and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

When companies seek guidance on launching satellites, the Space Administration will be able to address an array of space activities, including remote sensing, economic development, data-purchase policies, GPS, spectrum policy, trade promotion, standards and technology and space-traffic management. The new office will also enable the department to manage its growing responsibilities in space.

The department will take on a greater role when it comes to regulation and promotion of space activity. But as the agency charged with promoting job creation and economic growth, we will not engage only in oversight, but will support American companies so they can compete and lead on a level playing field.

Collectively, these efforts will unshackle American industry and ensure American leadership in space. This is essential to technological innovation, economic growth, jobs and national security. But, perhaps more important, it is rejuvenating the American passion for space exploration.

I can still remember when President John F. Kennedy declared that America would put a man on the moon and when Neil Armstrong took that first step on the lunar landscape. Glued to televisions, Americans were filled with excitement and national pride during the Apollo missions.

Last month I felt that same passion as I visited the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs with Vice President Mike Pence. As we push human exploration deeper into space, we will unleash the boundless potential of Americas pioneering commercial space companies, the vice president told the crowd.

This is a very special time in space history  there is a convergence of technology, capital, and political will. The United States must seize this moment.

Wilbur Ross is the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. This op-ed originally appeared in The New York Times.
Imperial Valley News Center

What International Travelers Should Know Before You Go this Summer

Washington, DC - As the busiest three months of international travel approach, U.S. Customs and Border Protection encourages travelers to Know Before You Go when traveling to the United States or returning home this summer. CBP officers at international airports, cruise terminals and land border ports of entry around the country and at Preclearance facilities around the world are prepared for the additional traffic expected this summer. Last summer, CBP processed more than 121 million international travelers at U.S. ports of entry.

CBP invites visitors to see all that the United States has to offer this summer from the Grand Canyon to Times Square and everything in between, said Commissioner Kevin McAleenan. As international travel to the United States continues to grow, weve made it our goal to transform the entry processadding innovative programs and technologyso travelers are waiting less, handling less paper, and getting to where they are going faster, all while maintaining our dual mission of border security and travel facilitation.

CBP encourages travelers to plan ahead to ensure a smooth and efficient processing experience. Use these tips to help you prepare.

Travel Documents: Travelers should have appropriate passports and any other associated travel documents ready when approaching a CBP officer for processing or visiting a foreign country. Find out more information about approved travel documents for entry into the U.S. as well as country specific information at getyouhome.gov and travel.state.gov. Remember to carry these documents with you, do not pack them.

Familiarize yourself with Automated Passport Control (APC) and Mobile Passport Control: These two programs are making the entry process more efficient, intuitive and paperless for travelers. Learn which option works best for you and speed up your entry into the United States. APC expedites the entry process for most international travelers by allowing them to submit their biographic information and answers to inspection-related questions electronically at self-service kiosks located at 56 airports worldwide. At 25 U.S. airports, U.S. citizens and Canadian visitors can submit their passport information and answers to inspection-related questions to CBP via a smartphone or tablet app prior to arrival. Android and iPhone users can download the Mobile Passport app for free from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

Declare goods: Truthfully declare everything you are bringing from abroad including duty-free items. If duty is applicable, credit cards or cash payment in U.S. currency is acceptable.

Declare food: Many agriculture products can bring damaging pests and diseases into the country. If you have questions about what food is allowed or not allowed in to the U.S. visit https://help.cbp.gov/ and remember don't pack a pest!

Apply and pay for an I-94 online: Speed up your entry into the U.S. by providing your biographic and travel information and paying the $6 fee for the I-94 application online at https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/ up to seven days prior to entry.

Monitor border wait times: Download the Border Wait Time app or use the border crossings wait times website to plan your trip across the border. Know which ports of entry have heavier traffic and possibly use an alternate route. Information is updated hourly and is useful in planning trips and identifying periods of light use/short waits. The official Border Wait Time app can be downloaded from the Apple App Store and Google Play.

Obtain a radio frequency identification (RFID)-enabled travel document to use a Ready Lane at some land ports of entry: At some ports of entry, processing in Ready Lanes is 20 percent faster than normal lanes and provide a time savings of up to 20 seconds per vehicle. To use Ready Lanes, adult travelers (over 16 years of age) are required to have high-tech RFID enabled cards. These include RFID-enabled U.S. Passport cards, Legal Permanent Resident cards, B1/B2 border crossing cards, Trusted Traveler Cards (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, and FAST) and Enhanced Drivers Licenses.

Declare gifts: Gift you bring back for your personal use must be declared, but you may include them in your personal exemption. This includes gifts people gave you while you were out of the country and gifts you have brought back for others.

Prohibited vs. Restricted: Know the difference between prohibited merchandise (which is forbidden by law to enter the United States) and restricted merchandise (items needing special permit to be allowed into the United States). For more information, visit the Restricted/Prohibited section of the CBP website.

Traveling with medication: Travelers must declare all medicine and similar products when entering the United States. Prescription medications should be in their original containers with the doctor's prescription printed on the container. It is advised that you travel with no more than personal use quantities, a rule of thumb is no more than a 90 day supply. If your medications or devices are not in their original containers, you must have a copy of your prescription with you or a letter from your doctor. A valid prescription or doctors note is required on all medication entering the U.S.

Traveling with pets: Cats and dogs must be free of disease and illness when entering the United States. In addition, dog owners must be able to show proof of rabies vaccination. If crossing with a puppy, certain paperwork will need to be completed at the border for the new addition to the family. All pets are subject to health, quarantine, agriculture, or wildlife requirements and prohibitions. The regulations about bringing a pet into the United States are the same whether you drive over the U.S. border with your pet in your car, fly, or travel by other means. Pets taken out of the United States and returned are subject to the same requirements as those entering for the first time. For more information about traveling with your pet to a foreign country or bringing your pet into the U.S., visit APHISs pet travel website.

Report Traveling with $10,000 or more: There is no limit to how much currency you may take in or out of the United States; however, U.S. federal law requires you to report your total currency of $10,000 or more. Currency includes all forms of monetary instruments. Travelers who fail to truthfully report all of their currency risk their currency being seized, and may face criminal charges.

For citizens of Visa Waiver Program countries, an approved Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is required before boarding an aircraft. For those traveling by air or sea on a visa, CBP has automated the Form I-94 removing the need for travelers to fill out a paper copy. Travelers will still be able to obtain their I-94 number and/or a copy of their I-94 online.

For your next trip, consider joining the ranks of a Trusted Traveler. Trusted Traveler members enrolled in Global Entry, NEXUS or SENTRI continue to enjoy the most expedited CBP processing experience. Trusted Traveler members retain their membership for five years.

CBPs mission is to facilitate travel while maintaining the highest standards of security for those who live here and for those who come to visit. On a typical day last year, CBP officers processed more than 1 million travelers arriving airports, seaports or border crossings. During the summer months, travelers should expect heavy traffic. Planning ahead and adopting these travel tips can save time and lead to a less stressful trip.
Former Santa Rosa Rancheria Director of Education Charged with Theft of Education Funds

Fresno, California - A federal grand jury returned an eight-count indictment against Aurora Cuara, 38, of Lemoore, last Thursday, charging her with theft from an Indian tribal organization, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.

According to court documents, Cuara was the director of the Santa Rosa Rancheria Department of Education in Lemoore, which belongs to the Tachi Yokut tribe. The Rancheria operated a higher education program through its Department of Education that allowed Tachi Yokut tribal members to apply to have their higher education tuition and other costs of school attendance, such as child care and books, paid by Santa Rosa Rancheria.

According to the indictment, while overseeing the reimbursement program, Cuara submitted false documentation in order to receive reimbursement for tuition, childcare, mileage and other costs of attending college between 2012 and 2016, even though she was not a student. To support her reimbursement requests, Cuara submitted falsified documents, including fabricated schedules, grade reports, and receipts.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan Richards is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, Cuara faces a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Federal Racketeering Indictment Targets Mexican Mafia Control of Inmates and Drug Trafficking Inside Los Angeles County Jail System

Los Angeles, California - More than 500 law enforcement personnel executed a major operation this morning, taking into custody 32 defendants who are charged in two federal racketeering indictments, one of which outlines how members of the Mexican Mafia were able to control drug smuggling, narcotics sales and the extortion of prisoners inside the Los Angeles County jail system (LACJ).

The defendants arrested this morning are among 83 defendants who were charged by a federal grand jury in the two indictments unsealed today. A total of 35 defendants are already in custody in state prison or county jail facilities and are expected to be brought to federal court in the near future. Authorities continue to search for 16 fugitive who are expected to be arrested in the near future.

The indictments  which allege a host of criminal violations, including conspiracies to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO)  detail the power structure of the Mexican Mafia and its violent exercise of authority over Latino street gangs in Southern California and inside the sprawling LACJ.

According to the indictment that focuses on the LACJ, a criminal enterprise led by members of the Mexican Mafia allegedly engaged in five broad areas of criminal activities that collectively served to enrich members of the enterprise and to maintain control and authority over LACJ, which includes the Mens Central Jail and the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown Los Angeles. The criminal offenses carried out by this enterprise fall generally into five categories:

the Mexican Mafia-sanctioned smuggling of drugs into LACJ, narcotics that were sold to inmates to generate profits for the enterprise;

the taxing of other drugs smuggled into LACJ in what the indictment labels widespread extortion;

another LACJ extortion scheme in which all Latino inmates were required to contribute a percentage of their commissary spending on food and hygiene items into a kitty that generated additional income for the Mexican Mafia member when the kitty was sold to an inmate;

the disciplining and extortion  through assaults and fines  of Mexican Mafia associates who ran afoul of the rules imposed by the organization; and

money laundering of the criminal proceeds from these activities.

These cases have delivered a major blow to the Mexican Mafia and leaders of many of the street gangs under the control of the organization, said United States Attorney Nick Hanna. By taking out the gang members who control the jails, and by disrupting their communications network, we undermined the Mexican Mafias ability to coordinate street gang activity.

Todays takedown is the result of an investigation done under the auspices of the FBIs San Gabriel Valley Safe Streets Task Force, which is made up of agents and officers with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department, the Pomona Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).

Gang violence in the jails also spills over to the streets and adversely affects our communities, said Paul Delacourt, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBIs Los Angeles Field Office. This three-year investigation focused on players at all levels for their role in the conspiracy  from the shot-caller, to the secretary, to the dealer, to the smuggler. Todays successful operation is a direct result of law enforcement partners working cooperatively at all levels of government.

The jails indictment focuses on a period when Mexican Mafia member Jose Landa-Rodriguez and two now-deceased members of the prison gang allegedly controlled the criminal enterprise in LACJ. The indictment explains how Landa-Rodriguez, who was incarcerated in LACJ at the time, and other leaders of the enterprise exercised power with the help of trusted shot-callers, facilitators and associates. These Mexican Mafia members and associates, working together to control criminal activity within LACJ, have become their own entity or enterprise and effectively function as an illegal government within LACJ custody facilities, the indictment states.

Landa-Rodriquez, 55, orchestrated a host of criminal activities, according to the indictment, which alleges that he sanctioned murders, a series of assaults, and the kidnapping and planned murder of the relative of a gang member who had defied him.

A second Mexican Mafia member, Luis Vega, 33, is named as the number 2 defendant in the LACJ indictment. Vega allegedly ordered a murder and directed assaults against those who showed disrespect or failed to follow Mexican Mafia rules.

Operation Dirty Thirds lifts the veil on only one aspect of the complicated factors behind inmate-on-inmate assaults and the dangers to our custody staff, said Sheriff Jim McDonnell. Many assaults have been directed, and carried out, by the Mexican Mafia and are documented in this investigation that took more than four years.

One of the key facilitators for Landa-Rodriguez allegedly was attorney Gabriel Zendejas-Chavez, who was arrested this morning. The indictment, which notes that attorneys are particularly valued members of the operation because attorney-client privilege can serve as a shield to conceal criminal activity from law enforcement, accuses Zendejas-Chavez of conveying messages and orders related to the criminal enterprise. According to the indictment, Zendejas-Chavez travelled to state and federal prisons to convey messages to Mexican Mafia members, including those incarcerated at ADX Florence; conveyed information, including the names of people potentially cooperating with law enforcement, to members of the LACJ racketeering enterprise; and facilitated a plot to extort $100,000 from the Mongols outlaw motorcycle gang.

Inside the jails, drug trafficking generated revenues for leaders of the criminal enterprise in two ways, according to the indictment. Once narcotics were smuggled into jail facilities at the direction of the Mexican Mafia members and their shot-callers, the narcotics were sold to inmates  and those who possessed other narcotics were not allowed to sell their drugs until the Mexican Mafia members drugs were sold. Second, the Mexican Mafia collected a thirds tax on all other drugs smuggled into LACJ. This meant that one-third of all narcotics smuggled into LACJ had to be broken-off and given to the Mexican Mafia member or his shot-caller in control of the facility. If the Mexican Mafia member decided to sell the thirds-tax portion of the drugs, others in the facility were prohibited from selling drugs until the Mexican Mafia member had sold his thirds. This rule led to the name of the investigation: Operation Dirty Thirds.

The Mexican Mafia prison gang is a key component of the illicit drug supply chain, largely controlling narcotics distribution perpetrated by violent street gangs, said DEA Special Agent in Charge David J. Downing. Extinguishing La eMes ability to facilitate organized rackets, drug crimes, and associated violence is a top priority for DEA, and were embedded with countless law enforcement partners in this ongoing effort.

CDCR and the Office of Correctional Safety would like to thank our partners in the San Gabriel Valley Safe Streets Gang Task Force, said John Prelip, CDCR Special Service Unit Special Agent-In-Charge. We know the Mexican Mafia operates within state prisons to conduct criminal activities on the outside through very sophisticated networks. Our hope is that investigations such as these send a message to these gangs that law enforcement  both inside and outside prisons or jails  will continue to work together to dismantle their operations, and protect the community.

The second RICO indictment unsealed today focuses on a second criminal enterprise that allegedly was run by another incarcerated member of the Mexican Mafia, Michael Lerma, 61, also known as Pomona Mike. Lerma exercised control over, and extorted drug proceeds from, Latino street gangs in and around Pomona, as well as from incarcerated Latinos in Calipatria State Prison in Imperial County. Members of Lermas criminal enterprise also allegedly engaged in robberies, identity theft and fraud, drug trafficking, kidnapping, and other acts of violence. Lerma profited from these criminal activities when top-level female associates known as senoras deposited proceeds into his prison account, according to the indictment.

In one incident alleged in the indictment, members of Lernas criminal enterprise attempted to steal a Mercedes-Benz automobile that was owned by a LACJ inmate. When the caretaker of the car refused to turn over the vehicle, one of the defendants named in the indictment shot him. In another incident allegedly involving members of Lermas organization, a woman was kidnapped, held for several days while being extorted for money, and was going to be murdered before the plot was disrupted by law enforcement.

The Pomona community certainly suffered from the criminal acts of those indicted, said Pomona Police Chief Michael Olivieri. I am very pleased with the success of this long-term investigation, and I am looking forward to more collaboration with our law enforcement partners in future investigations.

The two indictments unsealed today charge a host of criminal offenses, including conspiracy to engage in racketeering activity; violent crimes in aid of racketeering activity; carjacking; conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and marijuana; distribution of and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances; money laundering; possession of at least 15 access devices (credit card numbers); aggravated identity theft; and use, possession or discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime. If convicted, most of the defendants could be sentenced to decades in federal prison, and some could face life without parole.

An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.

Most of the defendants arrested this morning are expected to be arraigned on the indictments this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

Operation Dirty Thirds was conducted by the FBIs San Gabriel Valley Safe Streets Task Force. The Pomona Police Department is the sponsoring agency of the Task Force and has been the headquarters for the task force since its inception in 2008.

A number of law enforcement agencies provided substantial assistance during this mornings takedown, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements Homeland Security Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Ontario Police Department; IRS Criminal Investigation and other agencies.

The RICO cases are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Max B. Shiner and Shawn J. Nelson.
NIH-funded researchers identify target for chikungunya treatment

Washington, DC - Scientists have identified a molecule found on human cells and some animal cells that could be a useful target for drugs against chikungunya virus infection and related diseases, according to new research published in the journal Nature. A team led by scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis conducted the research, which was funded in part by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Chikungunya, an alphavirus, is transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected mosquito. Currently no specific treatment is available for chikungunya virus infection, which can cause fever and debilitating joint pain and arthritis. Small, sporadic outbreaks of chikungunya occurred in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Indian and Pacific Oceans after the virus was identified in the 1950s. In 2013, the virus spread to the Americas and has since caused a widespread and ongoing epidemic.

In this study, scientists aimed to better understand which traits make humans susceptible to chikungunya virus infection. Using the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9, they performed a genome-wide screen that identified the molecule Mxra8 as a key to the entry of chikungunya virus and related viruses into host cells. In the laboratory, scientists were able to reduce the ability of chikungunya virus to infect cells by editing the human and mouse genes that encode Mxra8. The researchers also administered anti-Mxra8 antibodies to mice and infected the mice with chikungunya virus or Onyong-nyong virus, another alphavirus. The antibody-treated mice had significantly lower levels of virus infection and related foot swelling as compared with a control group.

These findings, along with future studies to better understand how chikungunya virus interacts with Mxra8, could help inform development of drugs to treat diseases caused by alphaviruses, according to the authors.
El Centro Sector Border Patrol Arrest Its 20th Sex Offender

Calexico, California - Calexico Border Patrol agents arrested a man, a previously deported sex offender, after making an illegal entry into the United States on May 16, 2018.

Eliseo Orozco-Mansilla, a 38-year-old Mexican National, was arrested and convicted for Child Molestation out of Grant County, Washington. Orozco was previously removed from the United States on March 2002.

Orozco is being held in federal custody pending prosecution for Re-entry After Removal.

Twenty sex offenders in just over six months, shows the impact that our agents make in our communities. That is 20 individuals that residents of California do not have to worry about because U.S. Border Patrol continues to keep our nation safe, said El Centro Sector Assistant Chief Patrol Agent David S. Kim.

In fiscal year 2018, El Centro Sector has arrested 20 sex offenders.
General Elections in Barbados

Washington, DC - We congratulate Mia Mottley on her election as the next prime minister of Barbados in the May 24 general election vote. Ms. Mottley makes history as Barbados first female prime minister. We congratulate the Barbadian people on participating in another free and fair election and for their commitment to democratic values.

The United States and Barbados enjoy a strong partnership based on our shared democratic values and commitment to peace and security. We applaud Ms. Mottleys stated intent to address fiscal transparency, and we look forward to collaborating with Barbados to enhance economic partnerships and private sector investment.

We value the productive relationship we built during Prime Minister Stuarts administration and look forward to working with Prime Minister-elect Mottley when the new government takes office.
President Trump in Meeting with U.S. Citizen Freed From Venezuela

Washington, DC - Remarks by President Trump in Meeting with U.S. Citizen Freed From Venezuela:

THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much, everybody. This is a great honor tonight. It is very special. We have, as you know, Josh Holt and his wife Thamy. And they came back from a very tough ordeal in a Venezuelan prison. Almost two years, Josh. And, you know, amazing that you were able to take it.

Your daughter Marian is here, and your parents, Jason and Laurie. And you went through a lot. And you were in there fighting all the way.

And I want to thank Bob Corker. Great job you did over there. Great job. And I want to thank Mike Lee. And, Mia, youve been  every time Id see Mia, shed talk about you, Josh. (Laughter.) Shed say, What about Josh? I said, What about something else? Can we talk about something else? (Laughter.) She was always doing it. And Orrin Hatch is a legend, as you know. Hes a legend in the Senate and in this country. And, Orrin, you were great.

So, Bob, Mike, Mia, Orrin  I want to thank you very much.

So weve had 17 prisoners released during the Trump administration. Most people dont know that. You remember Aya. We called the President of Egypt, and he released her. She was there for a long time  three years. And the previous administration was unable to get her out. A fantastic young woman. And she was released.

As you know, in North Korea, we just had a very great success. We have three wonderful people  Americans  that were released just recently. And theyre now home, safe with their families.

And you were a tough one, I have to tell you. That was a tough situation. But weve had 17 released, and were very proud of that record. Very proud. And we have others coming. Were in the midst of some very big negotiations to get others out. In most cases, theyre Americans, but we can try and help other countries too, where theres injustice. So weve been working very hard on it.

But I just want to welcome you to the Oval Office, welcome you to the White House. Its, really, very special to have you both. Youve gone through a lot. Youve gone through a lot  more than most people could endure.

I want to thank your parents for being such loving parents. You were really very, very special. You were fighting all the way. There was not a day that  there wasnt an hour or a minute that you werent thinking about this man and calling everybody, and letting us know. And we are all, as a group, very happy.

The State Department has been fantastic. Where are my guys from the State Department? Where are they?

SENATOR CORKER: John Sullivan 

THE PRESIDENT: We have John  John Sullivan. You guys were really fantastic. Look at all those people that work at the State Department. Youre probably surprised to see that.

But maybe Id like to ask the parents, your great parents, if you have something to say before  Id like to get to the senators, and Id like to get to you, Mia, and ask you also. But could I start with the parents?

MRS. LAURIE HOLT: I just want to say thank-you to you, personally, for everything that youve done, as well as the State Department. But all of you, I just cant even tell you. Ive grown to love Senator Hatch and Mia so much. Not everybody gets to talk to Senator Hatch and Mia Love. And when everything happened last week, Mia was the one that answered her phone and was the one that got things rolling with Senator Hatch to save Josh. And it was 

THE PRESIDENT: Ive never seen Mia cry before.

MRS. LAURIE HOLT: It was a horrifying, horrifying week. And she got me through it, with Senator Hatch. I just  Senator Hatchs office, I cannot tell you how much I love all of your staff. So thank you, thank you.

And I also want to say thank-you to President Maduro for releasing Josh and letting him come home.

THE PRESIDENT: Thats very nice. Pop, do you want to say something?

JASON HOLT: She pretty much said everything. Thats why I let the pretty face take care of this kind of stuff. (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: Thats good. Thats very smart. Youre smart.

Josh, would you like to say something?

JOSHUA HOLT: Im just overwhelmed with gratitude for you guys, for everything that youve done; for the support of my wife through those two years. They were a very, very, very difficult two years. Not really the great vacation that I was looking for. But were still together. Starting off a marriage rough, but now were going to be together.

And Im just so grateful for what you guys have done and for thinking about me, and caring about me, just a normal person. So it really touches me. And thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: Youve been very brave, actually. Youve been incredibly brave. We saw what was happening inside of that prison. So you really have been very, very brave.

Bob Corker, would you like to say something? Great job.

SENATOR CORKER: Well, thank you. Were just glad to have you home. A lot of people have worked for a long time to make this happen. And I want to thank everyone at the State Department. In particular, I want to thank Caleb McCarry, who knows this area more than probably anybody in the United States. Hes here with me today.

THE PRESIDENT: Wheres Caleb? Caleb, are you back there?

MCCARRY: Im back here, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: Come on over here, Caleb. (Applause.) Fantastic. Fantastic job. That is really great.

SENATOR CORKER: It was quite an experience, that we could almost write a book about just the last 48 hours. But were glad  we were actually, Mr. President, taking off on the runway  nothing in Venezuela happens quite in the same way that it happens here. And we were going down the runway, and they turned the engines off. And we turned around. So we still werent sure we were leaving until 

THE PRESIDENT: What happened? Why did they do that?

SENATOR CORKER: There was an instrument issue that occurred, but we finally  we got out of there. And obviously, Josh had a huge smile on his face, and when he landed he did.

THE PRESIDENT: Probably the only time that anybody was ever happy that there was a bad instrument on an airplane. (Laughter.) That was a better alternative than going back.

SENATOR CORKER: I do want to say there were people that we worked with down there that I do hope at the right time you will have the chance to thank. There are people who really want to try to affect the relationship in a good way. And it was  they were very helpful to us in getting him out of there. I know you talked to one of them last night on the phone when I was having dinner with him, and I appreciate you doing so.

THE PRESIDENT: Thats great. Thats really great. And, you know, we have Pastor Brunson, a wonderful Christian pastor, and hes right now in Turkey. Hes been there a long time. And they say hes a spy, but hes not a spy. And were going to all work, and weve been working for his release. Hes having a hard time. Theres a trial going on, but the trial is not so much of a trial. And were talking to the folks in Turkey about doing something about it.

But, Pastor Brunson  I hope you can hear us  well be helping you at some point. Weve been working on it for a while. Hes been there a long time, and hes a totally innocent man.

Mike Lee, would you like to say something?

SENATOR LEE: Sure. I just want to thank all those who have been involved in this  to Senator Corker, Senator Hatch, Representative Love, to Caleb, to the State Department, everyone whos been involved. Josh, I want to wish you a warm welcome home. Weve missed you and weve prayed for you.

And, Marian and Thamy, welcome to our country, which is now your country.

Quisiera extender una bienvenida a ustedes, a nuestro pais que ahora es su pais  nuestro pais.

MARIAN CALENO: Gracias.

(Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: Very good. Oh, you understood that beautifully. Thats very good. Good job. Good job.

Orrin Hatch, Senator, spectacular man  please.

SENATOR HATCH: Mr. President, I cant tell you how much I appreciate you. As you know, I was the one guy who really supported you 100 percent.

THE PRESIDENT: Very early.

SENATOR HATCH: And I do now. I think youre doing a terrific job, and this shows why we support you. You actually  this was  and I have to say, these folks did a great job. I was really thrilled with the way Bob handled himself. Caleb and others did such a great job. We have good people working with us. And the folks in this delegation all very sincerely wanted to get Josh out of there. And the parents are just as good of people as Ive ever met in my life. And you better really live a good life. (Laughter.) Thats all I can say.

But this wouldnt have happened without you. We just want you to know that  and when you look back over your tenure in the presidency, this is just one of the many great things youre doing. But its really a great thing. And to know that we can rely on you and count on you, and talk to you, and meet with you  these are all very important things. We love you, boy, and we just want to support you every way we can.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Thats very nice. I appreciate it. And youve all been very supportive, but I really appreciate that. Thats very nice. I thank you very much.

SENATOR HATCH: And I thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Mia?

REPRESENTATIVE LOVE: Ive been thinking about what I was going to say today. And its been an emotional day. But so many Utah families send their families out, send their sons and daughters out for maybe a year and a half to two years, and they want to know that theyve got  if something happens to their children, that theyve got someone, or the United States will have their back.

And I dont think that there is a person in the United States right now that doesnt realize that you have their back. And I so wanted to personally thank you for keeping a promise that you made to me. Every time I would go and see you, I would bring up Joshuas name, and you would say, Im going to do everything I can. And obviously, I believe it.

I also wanted to say to Josh that your mom never let us forget about you. That is one of  she is one of the strongest women I know. And we have started a friendship that has been  that started through maybe some heartache and some pain, but we are going to be friends forever because of the bond that we have had.

And so I just wanted to say, sincerely, that we are with you. Utah has been praying for you and so happy that youre coming home. And Utah wants to thank you, Mr. President, for making this happen. We wouldnt have been able to do this 

THE PRESIDENT: Thats very nice.

REPRESENTATIVE LOVE:  without you. Everybody here  Senator Hatch, Mike Lee, Bob Corker  I mean, the State Department  we all worked together to make this happen. And, you know, you dont know us, but we know you very well, Joshua, and we welcome you home.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Mia. It is true, though. Every time Id see Mia, Id say, Look, dont mention the name Joshua Holt. Were working. Were doing it. But she didnt forget. She was out there pitching, as was Bob, as was Mike, as was Orrin. I mean, we really had a great team. Thats a strong nucleus right there, but we had a great team. Great job.

I just want to mention, were doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea. It looks like its going along very well. As you know, there are meetings going on as we speak, in a certain location, which I wont name. But youd like the location; its not so far away from here.

And I think theres a lot of goodwill. I think people want to see if we can get the meeting and get something done. If we got that done, and if we can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, it would be a great thing for North Korea, it would be a great thing for South Korea. It would be great for Japan and great for the world; great for the United States, great for China. A lot of people are working on it. Its moving along very nicely.

So were looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasnt changed. And its moving along pretty well. So well see what happens.

Thank you all very much. We appreciate it. Congratulations.

Q Have you heard from Kim?

Q Was anything exchanged? Sanctions relief? Any promises?

Q Have you heard about the talks between Moon and Kim?

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Those talks have gone very well.

Q Talks have gone well?

THE PRESIDENT: Theyve gone very well. Were fully abreast.

Q Have you spoken with Kim?

THE PRESIDENT: The talks have gone very, very well.

Q Have you communicated directly with him?

THE PRESIDENT: Id rather not say. But the talks have gone very well.

Thank you very much, everybody.

END
Georgia National Day

Washington, DC - Secretary of State Mike Pompeo: "On behalf of the Government of the United States, I would like to wish the Government of Georgia and the Georgian people a joyous Independence Day.

"This year marks the centennial anniversary of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, the first independent Georgian state in modern history. Since regaining its independence in 1991, Georgia has been a close friend and valued partner of the United States.

"Over the past 27 years, Georgia has made impressive progress in building its economy and its democracy. Georgians also make valuable contributions to regional peace and security, including through their service in Afghanistan, where they serve side by side with American servicemen and women. These achievements would not be possible without the dedication and numerous sacrifices of the Georgian people.

"The United States is proud to continue to support Georgias democratic and economic development, its NATO membership, and its sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders. We look forward to many more years of friendship and cooperation between our two countries."
Colombian Accession to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

Washington, DC - The United States congratulates Colombia on its accession and completion of the process to become a member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The United States commends Colombias significant efforts over the past five years to meet the OECDs technical standards.

Membership will bring benefits to the economy and people of Colombia, along with important responsibilities to level the playing field on trade and to enhance protections for investors. The United States looks forward to working with Colombia through the OECD to promote the economic and social well-being of people around the world.
Houthi Missile Strike on a Turkish Wheat Ship

Washington, DC - The United States is alarmed by the Houthi missile strike against a Turkish cargo ship 70 miles off the coast of Yemen that was attempting to deliver 50,000 metric tons of wheat to Yemens Saleef port near Hudaydah. This proves yet again that missile proliferation in Yemen is a real threat to all countries and underscores the need to fully enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 2216. Additionally, reporting indicates that the Houthis have attempted another attack against an oil tanker in the Red Sea.

By risking the spill of millions of barrels of oil, which could further disrupt commerce and destroy fisheries upon which many Yemenis depend for their food and livelihoods, this action further reflects the Houthis disregard for the Yemeni people. We deplore the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps diversion of the Iranian peoples wealth to exacerbate conflicts in other countries and threaten international commerce. Areas under the Houthi control are suffering. The Houthis should engage meaningfully with the United Nations Special Envoy in order to provide a better future for all Yemenis.
This column is about a passenger's lawsuit against JetBlue. It's such a strange case that I'm just going to step out of the way and let you see what it claims.

It all started with a JetBlue flight, #1324 from Mexico City to Orlando. Among the passengers: Moshe Berlin, an American-Israeli dual citizen who lives in Brooklyn, whose first language was Yiddish, and who speaks English with an accent.

Twenty minutes after takeoff, he says he started to feel dehydrated and sick, so he asked a flight attendant for "ICES," as he puts it in the complaint, and was given a cup of ice.

Still feeling ill, he "proceeded out of his seat ... and made a second request for 'ICES,'" according to the complaint.

Maybe you can see where this is going. With Berlin's thick accent, a male flight attendant (named in the complaint) "alerted other[s]" on the plane that the Berlin was yelling "ISIS," as in, the terrorist group--not "ice" or "ices."

The flight attendant then led a group of crew and passengers who allegedly "attacked" Berlin, punching him and "breaking [his] teeth," and tying him up for the remainder of the flight.

On the ground in Orlando, Berlin was charged with interfering with a flight crew. He spent 11 months in pretrial detention before a judge dismissed the case. Now he's suing JetBlue in the federal court in Brooklyn.

"This Jewish man with a yarmulke"

Ices vs. ISIS: It just sounded so crazy to me when I first heard about this case--and yet, maybe it's one of those "so crazy it actually could have happened" situations.

I asked JetBlue for comment, but a spokesperson, Morgan Johnston, told me "we do not comment on pending litigation."

So, I talked with Berlin's attorney, and with a couple of experts on aviation law and even Yiddish. And I pulled the records from Berlin's criminal case.

Sure enough, Berlin spent almost a year in federal prisons and other institutions before the case was resolved--with a judge finding him not guilty, but by reason of insanity. (Berlin's civil complaint acknowledges that he has "bipolar disease.")

But his attorney, Chauncey Henry, told me that even if Berlin had acting oddly or erratically, he believes the real issue in the case is more about whether JetBlue had reasonable policies in place for dealing with a disturbed or threatening passenger.

"Even assuming this Jewish man who had a yarmulke on at the time was ... screaming, 'ISIS'" Henry said, "what's the level of threat would have justified six of his teeth getting kicked in, and his head bashed against steel? ... Bang! Pow! The flight attendant and other passengers attacked him."

ICES or ISIS?

The ramifications for Berlin were big: Besides simply missing his freedom for 11 months while the case was resolved, he said in the complaint that he missed his daughter's wedding as a result, and that his marriage fell apart.

Again, I'm hung up on what happened on board. This all took place on March 22, 2016--so obviously people had cell phones, cameras, and social media, but so far I can't find anything like that online.

Is it even possible that Berlin could have said "ices" in a way that sounded like "ISIS?"

I asked some academics who study Yiddish. Gina Glasman, a lecturer in Judiac studies at SUNY Binghamton, speculated that he could have been speaking a "pidgin form of Yiddish" that combines it with English, and said she can imagine it sounding similar.

"Instead of saying, 'Is there ice?' he asks, 'Ice is?'" she said in an email. "Said quickly ... it can very much sound like the name of a rather extremist group that we all know too much about."

A big check?

Of course, news of this case comes about as we're going through a national debate on how public accommodations--including airlines--should respond to customer disruptions.

It goes back at least as far as the United Airlines incident where a passenger was bloodied and beaten as he was pulled off an airplane, and has stops at places like Starbucks, Waffle House, and Burger King (I wrote about that case yesterday).

This alleged incident on an airplane has another wrinkle, too, as aviation lawyer Christopher B. Kende of the New York firm Cozen O'Connor told me. Because it was an international flight, international law limits might well limit the potential damages JetBlue might have to pay if Berlin won.

But while acknowledging that, Berlin's attorney, Henry, said he's confident his client will prevail with a large payout.

"We're gonna go all the way with this, take it to trial and not stop unless they cut a [settlement] check that looks like a phone number," meaning a really big check, Henry said, adding that it doesn't even make sense that a terrorist would yell "ISIS"--because the acronym is for an English language characterization of the group's name.
If superhero movie fatigue has set in, with films like the Avengers: Infinity War, Deadpool 2 and Black Panther dominating the box office, these new protagonists may rescue you this summer.

Memorial Day weekend typically kicks off the summer movie season, and this year, there are films featuring some different voices. While most of these movies don't deal specifically with entrepreneurship, each highlights an important leadership lesson or theme.

1. Eighth Grade

Whether the memories of eighth grade make you shudder with humiliation or make you nostalgic for your adolescence, the last year of middle school is full of important life lessons. Director Bo Burnham captures some of these emotions in his new movie. Elsie Fisher plays Kayla, a 13-year-old who offers insight on building self-confidence to her meager social-media followers while struggling to take her own advice. The important takeaway from this film is that we are too hard on ourselves, no matter our age.

2. The Hustle

Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson star in the female-centered remake of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988), that focuses on two con artists engaging in a "loser leaves town" contest. Few details about the film have been announced, but it's bound to be full of "creative" ways for dealing with competition in the workplace (Inc. does not recommend swindling schemes or illegal activity).

3. The Gospel According to Andre

Director Kate Novack gives viewers an intimate portrayal of Andre Leon Talley, a fashion icon, in this upcoming documentary. Novack tracks Talley's life, starting as a child in Jim Crow-era North Carolina and following him to New York City, where he worked the reception desk of Andy Warhol's Factory before becoming the mentee of Vogue editor Diana Vreeland. Talley details the racism and homophobia he's faced in his life and how he overcame those challenges to became a fixture in the fashion world.

4. Ocean's 8

What do you need to achieve your goals? A strong team that's willing to support you. That's the legal takeaway from the latest film in the Ocean's franchise--which otherwise treats crime as some sort of career goal. Debbie Ocean, played by Sandra Bullock, is granted parole for her previous misbehavior and quickly assembles a squad to pull off the biggest heist of her life: robbing an actress at the Met Gala.

5. Won't You Be My Neighbor
Asterix the Gaul is a much-loved comic character, the plucky, moustachioed warrior who leads a ragtag village in resistance against the occupying Roman forces, aided and abetted by a druidic potion that confers super-strength.

As a Frenchman born in 1926, writer Rene Goscinnys inspirations for the beleaguered Gauls are perhaps easy to see. He left France while very young with his parents to live in Argentina, but grew up watching his homeland invaded and occupied from half a world away.

But theres another dimension to Goscinny that is not as widely known; although born in Paris (and, indeed, something of a national hero to the French), his parents were Jewish immigrants from Poland and the Ukraine, and thats why Londons Jewish Museum is staging the widest-ranging exhibition of Goscinnys life and work ever to be hosted in the UK.

Among the 100 items gathered together at the museum are the typewriter on which Goscinny, who died in 1977, wrote his first Asterix stories, early examples of his own artwork, and  which any creative will recognise  a slew of rejection letters for his work.

Jo Rosenthal, head of exhibitions at the Jewish Museum in Camden Town, says that while a lot of the exhibition is naturally focused on Goscinnys most famous creation, theres so much more about him to discover.

Everyone loves Asterix, says Rosenthal. The stories have been translated into 150 languages, hes a widely recognised character. But a lot of people perhaps dont know that the creator was Jewish. The reason why this exhibition is at our museum is because were tracing how his Jewishness impacted on Goscinnys creativity.

Rene Goscinny (right) with Asterix illustrator Albert Uderzo in 1976 (Alamy)

From an early age, living in Argentina, Goscinny had ambitions to be a cartoonist. His childhood sketch books are in the exhibition and they are a sometimes sobering mix of cartoonish creations and the influence of world incidents on the young creative.

His books from when he was 15 or 16 feature drawings of Hitler and Stalin, says Rosenthal.

Goscinny observed the Second World War from a distance; his family had returned to France a lot before the war and had friends and quite a lot of family both there and in Eastern Europe, where his parents originally came from. Family members were interned, and some killed, in concentration camps.

After the war, Goscinny moved to New York to try his luck in the cartooning world. Rosenthal says, He had dreams of becoming the next Walt Disney, and in the exhibition we have some of his letters and CVs presenting his credentials to various magazines and organisations.

Goscinny trained with renowned comics artists Harvey Kurtzman and Will Elder, and continued to try to get work in New York.

Among the exhibits are rejection letters from The New Yorker magazine, and after amassing a pile of these Goscinny had a revelation that was to change his career: he realised that, while a fairly competent cartoonist, his strength lay more in the script-writing side of comics than the actual art.

It was then he began his collaborative relationship with the artist Albert Uderzo, who gave Asterix and co their distinctive look.

But Goscinny wasnt content to simply try to sell the Asterix strips to existing publishers; he decided to set up his own magazine called Pilote, which was published in France in 1959, and the museum has managed to secure the very first typewritten pages of his scripts from which Uderzo worked for the inaugural Asterix stories that appeared in the magazine.

Much of the material in the exhibition has come from the Rene Goscinny Institute which was set up by Goscinnys daughter Anne in Paris in 2016, but the Jewish Museum has also assembled a number of exhibits itself, including items from the collection of a British enthusiast, who wishes to remain anonymous.

Asterix albums displayed at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France in Paris (Getty) (Getty Images)

Although Goscinnys name is synonymous with Asterix, there was another comic series, featuring the cowboy Lucky Luke, for which he was equally famous in his native France. Goscinny didnt create Lucky Luke; that was the Belgian cartoonist Maurice de Bevere, aka Morris, in 1946.

But Morris brought in other creators, including Goscinny, who wrote the adventures from the mid-1950s until his death in 1977.

Among his other work were strips for the Tintin magazine, including another collaboration with Uderzo about Oumpah-pah, a Native American. A lot of his work, says Rosenthal, reflected both his roots and the things he saw happening to his home country in the war.

When you realise that both Goscinny and Uderzo were the children of immigrants, it does add a different dimension to their work, she says. Asterix perhaps has obvious parallels to what was happening in Europe in the 1930s and 1940s. Oumpah-pah is similar, with Native Americans facing off against white settlers.

Goscinny was something of a joker, there was a lightness to him. Im not aware of him talking in detail about the dark days of the war, but there is no way that would not have affected him, and we can definitely read Asterix as being a reaction to that.

Goscinny had returned to Europe in 1951, taking a job at the World Press offices in Belgium, where he first met Uderzo. He was summarily fired from his job for trying to start an artists union.

More than 100 movie adaptations of the Asterix story have been made, and many will remember the animated versions from their youth and the series of live action movies that began in 1999 with Gerard Depardieu as Asterixs absolute unit of a best friend, Obelix.

Asterix and Obelix in The Twelve Tasks of Asterix (1976) (Alamy)

Rosenthal herself didnt grow up on Asterix comics, but has come to the character, and Goscinnys work, through working with the museum exhibition. However, now shes a firm fan, and expects anyone who walks through the doors between now and the shows end in September to be the same.

He seems to have been a funny, sweet, kind of guy, she says of Goscinny. Hes an absolutely fascinating character and has led such an interesting life. Thats one of the joys of curating such an exhibition; you immerse yourself in the subject through all these amazing exhibits and items.

Anyone visiting the exhibition will come away with a strong sense of Goscinnys life story as we take them on a journey from his birth to the legacy he left with us in the present day.

Goscinny died after suffering a heart attack while undergoing a routine stress test at his doctors, in 1977, but by that time he was already a giant of French popular culture, and his daughter Anne, an author in her own right, helped maintain that legacy with the setting up of the institute in Paris.

Rosenthals sentiments are echoed by Abigail Morris, director of the Jewish Museum, who says: We have gathered materials of an unprecedented scale and richness for this exhibition, which highlights the brilliance and creativity of a remarkable writer, the child of Eastern European Jewish immigrants, who made a huge contribution to European culture.

Uderzo and Goscinny with TV presenter Jacqueline Huet at the premiere of Asterix The Gaul at the Balzac cinema, Paris, in 1967 (Getty)

Characters like Asterix humorously yet shrewdly tell the story of a marginalised people under threat and how a small village use their wits to resist an occupying force. Its a story which appeals not only to all ages but resonates with readers all over the world.

Visitors will learn not only about the outputs of Goscinnys prolific career but also about the cultural heritage that lay behind his genius.

Goscinnys works have sold more than 500 million copies worldwide, and since 1996 the Rene Goscinny Award has been given annually to young comic writers at the prestigious Angouleme International Comics Festival.

He is buried in the Jewish Cemetery in Nice, and while his contribution to the world of comics has never been in doubt, now fresh light is being thrown on the influences, inspirations and motivations of his work thanks to his Jewish heritage.

Asterix In Britain runs at Londons Jewish Museum until 30 September
Newly released letters from Alan Rickmans personal collection have revealed the actors frustrations playing the character Severus Snape in the Harry Potter movies.

One letter, written by producer David Heyman, thanks Rickman  who died in 2016  for working on the second Harry Potter movie, The Chamber of Secrets.

Thank you for making HP2 a success. the letter reads. I know, at times, you are frustrated but please know that you are an integral part of the films. And you are brilliant.

Rickman later penned a note while working on the 2009 movie The Half-Blood Prince. Titled Inside Snapes Head, the actor writes of frustration over the way director David Yates approached the characters storyline.

Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Show all 30 1 /30 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman at the UK premiere of 'A Little Chaos' at ODEON Kensington in London, 2015 Getty Images Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman poses with actress Kate Winslet and actress Helen McCrory as they attend the UK premiere of 'A Little Chaos' at ODEON Kensington in London, 2015 Getty Image Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman signs autographs for fans before the opening ceremony during the Febiofest Prague International Film Festival in Prague, Czech Republic, 2015 Getty Images Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman poses with 'Elle & The Pocket Belles' as he attends on day two of the Qatar Goodwood Festival at Goodwood Racecourse in Chichester, 2015 Getty Images Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman shakes hands with the Queen Elizabeth II during the Dramatic Arts reception at Buckingham Palace, 2014 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman arrives at the Giffoni Film Festival meeting with the jurors in Giffoni Valle Piana, Italy, 2014 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures 'A Promise' film photocall, 70th Venice International Film Festival, Italy, 2013 Rex Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman walks on the red carpet as he arrives to attend the World Premier for the film 'Gambit' in Leicester Square, in London, 2012 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures (L-R) Alan Rickman, Tom Felton, Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Matthew Lewis attend the New York premiere of 'Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2' at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center in New York, 2011 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman attends the 'John Gabriel Borkman' after party at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City, 2011 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman at the Broadway opening night of 'Seminar' at The Golden Theatre in New York, 2011 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Actors Sir Christopher Lee (L) and Alan Rickman attend the Royal World Premiere of 'Alice In Wonderland' at Odeon Leicester Square in London, 2010 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman poses at the Gibson Guitar celebrity hospitality lounge held at the Miners Club during the 2008 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman and Sigourney Weaver attend the photocall for 'Snow Cake' as part of the 56th Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale) in Berlin, 2006 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman shares a laugh with Mos Def at the premiere of HBO's 'Something The Lord Made' in New York, 2004 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman attends the UK Premiere of 'Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban' at the Odeon Leicester Square in London, 2004 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Actor Alan Rickman and Lyndsey Duncan attend the '2002 Tony Award' nominees brunch in New York, 2002 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman and Julia Roberts at 'Hollywood Salutes Bruce Willis: An American Cinematheque Tribute' at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, Beverly Hills, 2000 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Sigourney Weaver (L), Tim Allen (C) and Alan Rickman (R), pose for the premiere of the science fiction, action comedy film 'Galaxy Quest' outside Mann's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles, 1999 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman at the Golden Globe Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles, 1997 Rex Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman with Laim Neeson, Natasha Richardson in 1997 Rex Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Actresses Cybill Shepherd (L) and Christine Baranski (C) present an Emmy to Alan Rickman (R) for outstanding lead actor in a mini-series or special for his lead role in the HBO production of 'Rasputin' during the 48th Annual Emmy Awards in Pasadena, California, 1996 Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson and Phyllida Law at the Premiere of "Winter Guest" in Glasgow, Scotland, 1993 Rex Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman, Juliette Stevenson and Michael Maloney in 1990 Rex Alan Rickman: Life in pictures Alan Rickman in 1984

Its as if David Yates has decided that this is not important in the scheme of things i.e. teen audience appeal, he noted.

Rickmans letters  which also include one from Harry Potter author JK Rowling who thanks the actor for doing justice to my most complex character  are going up for auction at the ABA Rare Book Fair in London and have been valued at 950,000.

Other items in the collection include letters from the Prince Charles, Bill Clinton and Tony Blair, along with Rickmans copy of the Die Hard script, the 1988 blockbuster movie in which he played the villain Hans Gruber.

Actor and bookseller Neil Pearson, who brought together the works, told The Mirror: Its a fabulous collection. There are 35 boxes of it  there is the Truly Madly Deeply script in there and Robin Hood Prince Of Thieves is in there.

Every single script of a play or film, all of his diaries and a massive amount of correspondence from pretty much everyone youve ever heard of.
Less than a day after releasing the surprise Pusha T and Kanye West diss track, Drake has released another new song.

Titled Im Upset, the single is expected to feature on the Canadians upcoming album Scorpion, Drake writing on Instagram: Anyways back to this album new single out now!

The single artwork consists of a scorpion sitting upon a skeleton hand. Listen below via Spotify.

Loading....

Drake was recently the intended target of a track featured on Pusha Ts new album, Daytona, which was produced by West.

The two rappers have had a fraught relationship, often taking verbal shots at each other. Pusha T this time mocked Drake over the use of the songwriter Quentin Miller, to which Drake responded by releasing Duppy Freestyle.

Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City Show all 6 1 /6 Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City Roy Woods performs at Madison Square Garden on August 6, 2016. Justin Carissimo Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City Roy Woods performs at Madison Square Garden on August 6, 2016. Justin Carissimo Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City dvsn performs at Madison Square Garden on August 6, 2016. Justin Carissimo Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City dvsn performs at Madison Square Garden on August 6, 2016. Justin Carissimo Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City Drake performs at Madison Square Garden on August 6, 2016. Justin Carissimo Drake and Future's Summer Sixteen Tour in New York City Drake performs at Madison Square Garden on August 6, 2016. Justin Carissimo

Drake announced the album earlier this year, saying the record would likely be released this coming June. The artist recently released the songs Nice For What and Gods Plan, both of which topped the American single charts. Whether they will appear on Scorpion remains unclear
On a recent spring evening, two young women, Amore Pistorius, 27, and Garima Deopura, 28, took the elevator to the 26th floor of Beekman Tower, in New York, an Art Deco landmark building from 1928 a few blocks north of the United Nations. They were headed to Ophelia, a recently revived rooftop bar.

When the doors opened, the women, both accountants at a private equity firm around the corner, were greeted by three double-height windows with delicate ironwork, a 24-foot pewter-cast bar with a glass inset holding curiosities from another era, and a mounted albino pheasant with its wings spread over a curated collection of spirits.

They were led to the terrace, with its 360-degree views of Manhattan, and took a seat on a red velvet-covered bench. Both ordered the Bullet Proof, a photogenic play on a whiskey sour featuring rye, St Germain, turmeric, lemon, chili and bitters with a foamy egg white that Pistorius had seen on Instagram. The two chatted about their families, dating, work gossip and what its like to live in New York  Pistorius is from South Africa, and Deopura moved to Manhattan in 2016 from California.

Whether they knew or it not, these women were continuing a legacy from 1928, when the Beekman Tower, then called the Panhellenic Tower, opened as a womens clubhouse, dormitory and social hub for sorority sisters who had recently graduated and were moving to New York in record numbers to join the workforce.

In the years leading up to the Depression, it was increasingly common for women to have a gap between college and marriage, with many of them moving to the city for work, said Joanna Scutts, the author of The Extra Woman: How Marjorie Hillis led a Generation of Women to Live Alone and Like It.

The rooftop bar was originally a solarium, which provided a common space for the buildings female residents to relax  and to receive gentlemen callers, according to a brochure of the time.

The Panhellenic Tower was the only hotel in New York at the time to be owned and managed by women (Getty)

The ability to bask under glass year round was advertised as part of the buildings commitment to its residents health, Scutts said. The rooms wouldve been tiny, very simple dorm rooms, but you would come up here and you could read and hang out with your friends in this beautiful space.

The Great Depression changed everything. The Panhellenic was forced to accept non-sorority women in 1931 and then men as well in 1934, when it was rebranded as Beekman Tower. In 1940, the solarium was converted into a bar called Top of the Tower, which over the years would become a favourite haunt of employees of the UN and celebrities such as Frank Sinatra and Pearl Bailey.

In 1964, the Panhellenic House Association sold the building and the new owners converted the dorm rooms into apartments for a residential hotel. Top of the Tower remained open to the public  it was best known among locals in the know as a once-grand, now-dusty and dated spot with so-so drinks and gorgeous views  until it closed in 2013.

Five years later, Merchants Hospitality Inc, which now owns the rooftop bar, has updated the space by simultaneously getting rid of a certain 1980s pallor that had settled in and choosing to highlight its former Art Deco and early feminist glory with plush fabrics and vintage memorabilia.

The Panhellenic Tower was the idea of Emily Eaton Hepburn. Hepburn, a member of the sorority Kappa Kappa Gamma who graduated from St Lawrence College and Barnard College, devoted herself to civic and social causes, most notably womens suffrage. After her husband died in 1922, she became president of the Panhellenic House Association in 1925. After women won the vote in 1920, Hepburn saw the sororities as continuations of the spirit of that campaign, Scutts said.

Hepburn, who also helped open the Theodore Roosevelt house-museum in 1923, was drawn to the Panhellenic Tower project to prove that women could do big business, according to her biography. In 1926, she purchased the site at 49th Street and First Avenue, hiring the architect John Mead Howells to build the skyscraper. Construction began in 1927, and by the following year, residents had started to move in.

Hepburn not only developed the building herself  adding details like a scattering of Greek letters on the buildings base, and hiring the renowned sculptor Rene Paul Chambellan to add ornamental Art Deco-style carvings  but also ensured that upon its completion, the trustees who ran it would all be women. By 1928, Hepburn had turned the building over to the Panhellenic House Association. It was the only hotel in New York at the time to be owned and managed by women, according to a 1929 sorority publication.

Until 1934, only women could live in the Panhellenic, now known as Beekman Tower (Wikicommons/Jim.henderson)

The building was celebrated for its dramatic design and ingenious solution to a housing crisis. While the 380 rooms were decorated simply, the solarium was highlighted by Robert Stern in his book New York 1930 for its dark tones and sinuous patterns on the wall and waving fronds of metallic foliage applied around the central elevator door, tall lancet windows, and French-influenced furniture.

But as the decades wore on, these design elements went out of fashion. A 1970 review of the Top of the Towers $3.25 lunch buffet by Craig Claiborne of The New York Times said: There is nothing wrong with the tawdry interior of the Top of the Tower that an accomplished designer couldnt improve.

That happened in 2017, when Merchants Hospitality acquired the rooftop lounge. Soon, a female design team, Public Agenda, had been hired to update the rooftop. Laura Mueller-Soppart and Eliza Liepina, the founders of Public Agenda, met through a more modern communal housing version of the Panhellenic Tower: Airbnb. In 2015, Liepina was visiting New York and stayed in Mueller-Sopparts apartment.

The two discovered they had a lot in common, both working in real estate development  Mueller-Soppart for Two Trees and Liepina for WeWork, as its development manager in Germany. They started Public Agenda in 2016 and had recently partnered with Merchants to design a speakeasy-style bar also in Midtown, Sugar East.

Mueller-Soppart and Liepina were immediately taken with Beekman Tower. We were inspired by the history and strong female narrative surrounding the lounge and needed to pay respect to it, Mueller-Soppart said.

You have a responsibility to the history of the space and the community of the building, Liepina said, as well as a responsibility to create a space that actually works for the people that will use it in the future.

Public Agenda then hired other women who they felt would respect the buildings history to customise furniture and consult on finishes and design the graphics and website. Early on, the designers came up with the idea of a cabinet of curiosities.

For this, an antiques specialist was hired to source items from the first half of the 20th century. The most exciting finds were items with direct provenance to the building, like postcards with images of Beekman Tower and a matchbox from Top of the Tower, which are displayed on shelves on either side of the bar  or in the bar itself, inside its glass inset.

Eleanor Roosevelt greeting women in the Panhellenic Building (Alamy)

There are also various sorority ephemera, about 100 mounted butterflies, a silver etched vanity set from 1930s New York and a Kewpie doll, which Scutts noted has ties to the womans suffrage movement. But some people find themselves missing the old bar. Ann Seligman, 67, has lived in the neighbourhood for 25 years. She first remembers going to the Top of the Tower around 2001, and it soon became her favourite place to bring out-of-towners.

The last time I went, there was a big comet in New York, I think that was in 2012, and I went with a friend because we thought that would be the place we could get a good view of the comet.

After recently going to Ophelia, Seligman found herself missing the old incarnation. The design is lovely and theres not any particular thing I can point to, but in an overall way I feel like the previous decor was more genuinely Art Deco than this is, she said.

I hate to say it, but I probably prefer the old.

Luckily for Seligman and other nostalgic New Yorkers, the views remain no less dazzling.

 New York Times
On the morning of 29 April, staff at the Soulex spa in Washington DC discovered the lifeless body of one of its clients lying face down in a sensory deprivation tank. The body was that of 28-year-old Aaron Traywick, who less than three months earlier had injected himself live on stage at an event in Austin, Texas, with an untested gene therapy that he claimed could cure herpes.

Stories soon spread about the discovery of Traywicks body, with some inferring a potential link between the DIY herpes treatment and his untimely death. But those who knew the young entrepreneur and were familiar with the work he did suspected something much more sinister.

Traywick was part of a fringe but steadily growing community known as body hackers  or biohackers  whose modest goal is to cure disease, end ageing and ultimately stop death. Why this test is so important, he said on stage in Austin, just before injecting himself in the leg with the therapy, is because if we succeed with herpes in even the most minor of ways, then we can move forward immediately with cancer.

Aaron Traywick founded Ascendance Biomedical, a biohacking company that encourages people to conduct medical research outside the pharmaceutical industry (Snapshot)

To get around costly and slow drug approval processes with authorities such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), biohackers like Mr Traywick are willing to test experimental therapies on themselves. But in their bid to accelerate humanitys transition to a future outside of natural evolution, some within the community fear powerful entities may be out to get them.

I immediately thought of an FDA conspiracy theory when I heard Aaron was found dead, Zoltan Istvan, a noted futurist who is currently the Libertarian candidate for governor of California, tells The Independent. Our medical system is not one to find cures, but to keep people alive as long as possible while sick to make money off them.

Both Istvan and Traywick worked together in 2015 and 2016 for the Transhumanist Party, a political organisation in the US whose policies aim to improve humanity through radical science and technology. This can often involve circumventing established authorities and major pharmaceutical corporations through processes such as biohacking.

Aaron was a transhumanist star and his escapades had pushed him into the public eye, Istvan says. Can you imagine what would happen to big pharma if transhumanists like Aaron are in charge? We might arrive at a day when there is no disease and no death, and that makes someone like him very dangerous.

Another associate of Traywicks, Tristan Roberts, was also initially sceptical. As a fellow biohacker, Roberts knows the risks involved with untested gene therapies into his body, having made headlines in November 2017 after injecting himself with a purported treatment for HIV live on Facebook. Sat next to him as he placed the syringe into a roll of fat above his belly button that day, was Traywick. Neither of them have a background in biology or medicine.

Aarons death seemed suspicious, Roberts, who has since returned to conventional medicine to treat his HIV, says. I have always felt that the threat from humans profiting off of the status quo was greater than the experimental therapies themselves.

Traywick (left) and Tristan Roberts appeared on a live Facebook broadcast in November last year, during which Roberts injected himself with an untested gene therapy for HIV

The FDA refused to comment on the conspiracy claims, but a spokesperson shared a link to a web page published by the federal agency shortly after Roberts public self-experimentation.

[The] FDA is aware that gene therapy products intended for self-administration and do it yourself kits to produce gene therapies for self-administration are being made available to the public, the web page states. The sale of these products is against the law. [The] FDA is concerned about the safety risks involved.

The Washington spa where Traywick died, which describes itself on its website as a relaxing space for rejuvenation and transcendence, also declined to comment on the circumstances of his death, but the Metropolitan Police Department of Columbia said in a statement that there was no evidence to suggest foul play. A cousin of Traywick told The New York TImes that police found the drug ketamine in his pockets.

But an FDA or big pharma hit job isnt the only conspiracy theory being floated by biohackers since his death. Traywick was a controversial and divisive figure within the biohacking community and through his antics had amassed both avid followers and acrimonious disputes. As the CEO of Ascendance Biomedical, the startup behind the experimental therapies used on himself and Roberts, Traywick had upset fellow biohackers with an approach that was unorthodox, even by their standards.

He used the C-word a lot  cure  which means any treatments that are being developed immediately become subject to FDA oversight, says Rich Lee, a former friend and business partner Traywick who has been involved with biohacking since 2008.

The pair had first come in contact with a device being developed by Lee called the Lovetron 9000  a vibrating implant for men designed to enhance the shared experience of lovemaking. Traywick initially offered investment but the business relationship eventually broke down and the two men parted ways. According to Lee, the entrepreneur had ripped off partners, ripped off researchers and ripped off the public. He also allegedly owed money to fellow biohackers.

Big pharma and government conspiracy theories started springing up after his death but my first instinct was that hed faked his own death and fled the country, Lee says. Given the controversy surrounding him, some people suspected it could have been a hit, that another biohacker could have done it. And it does look pretty suspicious. From the outside, youd point to a feud between biohackers.

Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty

Traywick often compared himself publicly to pioneers of modern medicine such as Jonas Salk and Louis Pasteur, and even despite his controversial character, many within the biohacking community still see him as a force for good in this nascent field.

For a while, I saw some biohackers attacking Aaron with success over his publicity pushes, Istvan says. He was a provocateur. However, that is a great trait of a transhumanist and CEO, so I always welcomed it.

Sure, Aaron wasnt perfect and he was young, and maybe naive about the science he claimed to be working with, but transhumanists are adventurers  in the field of biohacking especially.

Whatever mystery remains of his death will be settled once an autopsy of his body is completed in the coming weeks. It is not clear whether or not his body will go to medical research, but his mother Rita Traywick says he was an organ donor. At the time we were informed of his death, I did not think of this, she says.

Even if his companys HIV or herpes treatment did not prove successful, his death served to draw attention to gene therapies and biohacking  a feat he spent the latter part of his life trying to achieve.

Aaron helped to elevate the idea of accessible gene therapy; an idea which will surely percolate through the human subconscious before erupting, Roberts says.

In many ways, though, Aarons life is an example of how not to organise biomedicine. Good intentions can only get one so far.
Obese staff should be allowed to start work later to avoid anxiety during rush hour, a government adviser has recommended.

Britains obesity problem is the worst in Western Europe with the number of people in England, Wales and Scotland diagnosed expected to double by 2035.

In accordance with this rise, an employment expert has suggested that overweight employees should be offered flexible starts and should have the right to sue employers if they are not offered jobs or promotions because of their weight.

Recommended Morbid obesity in Britain due to double by 2035 as inequality grows

Speaking at the European Congress on Obesity in Vienna, Professor Stephan Bevan, of the Institute for Employment Studies, said letting obese staff who feel anxious about travelling on public transport arrive an hour later, or work from home, would help their mental health.

It can be working time, it can be having a bit of understanding that someone might need to turn up at 10 oclock because they have trouble with transport or anxiety about transport, he said.

I dont think enough [employers] regard being overweight and obese as part of the family of conditions or impairments that they need to do something about.

Professor Bevan also recommended that obesity be treated like other health conditions to stop workplace discrimination, the Daily Mail reports.

Five photos that reveal what it's like to be overweight Show all 4 1 /4 Five photos that reveal what it's like to be overweight Five photos that reveal what it's like to be overweight A girl looks over at the artist, seeming to size her up Haley Morris-Cafiero Five photos that reveal what it's like to be overweight The performer has taken thousands of photos over six years Haley Morris-Cafiero Five photos that reveal what it's like to be overweight Morris-Cafieros photos have provoked mixed reactions Haley Morris-Cafiero Five photos that reveal what it's like to be overweight Women crossing a street cast their gazes in Morris-Cafieros direction Haley Morris-Cafiero

Some people say that obesity is the last characteristic that its still socially acceptable to make fun of. There is a widespread belief among doctors, employers and society that obesity is self-inflicted and is a lifestyle choice, he explained.

They dont believe making adjustments for people with obesity is as important or deserved as someone with what they regard as a proper disability.

Despite the experts claims, others have been quick to criticise the recommendations out of concern they could promote obesity.

This is a ludicrous idea that will only create resentment against obese people if it were implemented, Christopher Snowdon, head of lifestyle economics at the Institute for Economic Affairs, said.

Being fat is not a disability and the majority of people get to work by car so it is difficult to see why obese people should be given an extra hour to arrive.

If obese people are to be given special privileges, should we not also give special privileges to smokers, alcoholics and compulsive gamblers? Where does it end?
Sick with a democratic deficit is how Nicole Fontaine, former president of the European parliament, who has died aged 76, described her beloved European Union in the aftermath of Brexit.

Fontaine, the second woman to occupy that role, was born in Grainville-Ymauville in Normandy. Her early ambition was to become an artist. However, she was convinced instead to study law by her father, a doctor. She graduated from the Paris Institute of Political Studies and gained her doctorate with a thesis on the application of the 1959 Debre law, which established the relationship between the state and private schools in France.

Fontaine would go on to wear three hats in her professional life. She was a keen advocate for Catholic schooling. She was a dedicated French politician, serving as Frances industrial minister between 2002 and 2004 in Jacques Chiracs government. But it is for her devotion to Europe that she will be best remembered. Paying tribute to her, President Macron said: For 35 years of her life, she fought for the European project.

Fontaine became member of the European parliament representing Ile-de-France in 1984. She was a member of the Union for a Popular Movement, part of the centre-right European Peoples Party.

Fontaine oversaw the adoption of the euro during her tenure (Getty)

Fontaine led the EU assembly from 1999 to 2002. A profile by the Economist from that time described her as a consensus-seeker, coalition-builder, conciliator ... nowhere more at home than in the Byzantine corridors of Europe, canvassing cross-party support, flashing her smile, teasing out compromise.

In her inaugural speech in Tampere, Finland, Fontaine showed her understanding of the way the bloc was seen by the average EU citizen, when she addressed the issue of taking into account peoples day-to-day feelings of insecurity.

She told said: What affects them most strongly is the insecurity or injustice they experience in their daily lives: the fact that they cannot walk down a street without the fear of having a bag stolen, blackmail in schools, aggressive behaviour on buses and trains, violence against children.

Fontaine added that, in the face of a rising tide of xenophobic extremism and under the gaze of the whole world, which is watching us with envy the parliament would ensure that, despite its duty to guarantee the security of its citizens, Europe remains what it has always been  a land of welcome, integration and asylum for those suffering oppression in other parts of the globe.

Fontaine with Palestinian legislature speaker Abu Ala and Knesset speaker Avraham Burg in Strasbourg in 2000 (Getty) (AFP/Getty)

Finally, she reminded the EU Council members: Our institution invites you to take a further bold step towards ensuring that the Union operates in a genuinely democratic manner.

It was she who persuaded Tony Blair to sign Britain to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in 2000.

Fontaine understood that the EUs failure to be seen as democratic contributed in no small part to the shock of Brexit.

Towards the end of her life, Fontaine was still working, advising students about the challenges and opportunities that Brexit would bring. Shortly before Britains referendum in 2016, she co-authored a book with Francois Poulet-Mathis: Brexit, Une Chance?

Britain, she concluded, had chosen a precipitous path. Fontaine was also helping to prepare for the bicentenary of ESCP Europe, the worlds oldest business school, where she was associate professor.

Professor Frank Bournois, dean of ESCP Europe, wrote of his colleague: Throughout her life, she was driven by how to rebuild and re-enchant the European dream, in order to build a Europe of citizens. This conviction led her to constantly endeavour to defend youth, associative life, mutual recognition of diplomas, and freedom of establishment throughout the European Union.

Fontaine took part in committees for womens rights, specifically in the context of Afghanistan, and for relations with numerous countries including Israel.

In 2000 she addressed the Knesset as the EU sought to revive stalled peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. In September that year she scored a coup by getting an Israeli and Palestinian representative to shake hands in Strasbourg.

The following year she invited Ahmad Shah Massoud, the renowned Mujahideen commander of Afghanistans Northern Alliance, to address the parliament  an occasion he used to warn the US of the terror threat posed by Osama bin Laden. (Massoud was assassinated two days before 9/11.)

Speaking at Fontaines funeral on Thursday, Antonio Tajani, the current president of the European parliament, recalled his predecessors local touch as history was made and the euro was adopted.

In my minds eye I see her on 31 December 1999, said Mr Tajani, in Nice, going to a cash machine to take out the first euros that she would spend in a local shop.

Nicole Fontaine, French politician, born 16 January 1942, died 17 May 2018
Some of the UKs poorest people are being barred from attending the funerals of loved ones as part of council cost-cutting, it has been claimed.

Families who must reportedly rely on publicly-funded funerals are told they cannot be at the service.

An official at Bracknell Forest Council, in Berkshire, was recorded telling undercover reporters that relatives would not even be told when the burial or cremation was taking place, according to The Sunday Times

Theres no attendees, no keeping of the ashes, the official is reported to have said. Nobodys invited, you dont have any say at all.

The average funeral costs 4,078, pricing out increasing numbers of families.

Councils offer a public health funeral  the modern equivalent of a Victorian paupers funeral  for those who cannot afford. About 4,000 people are buried or cremated this way every year, costing local authorities an estimated 4 million.

The refusal to allow people to attend seems to be a way of keeping costs down and discouraging families from using the option except where financially unavoidable.

The new claims follow similar revelations in March when the same newspaper found children had been placed in mass graves.

Frank Fields, MP, chairman of the commons work and pensions select committee described the findings as sickening.

He told the newspaper: Even Dickenss Mr Gradgrind would have been hard pressed to justify such treatment. This would make red-faced even the worst of the Poor Law commissioners of the 19th century.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA UK news in pictures 21 August 2021 People take part in a demonstration in solidarity with people of Afghanistan, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 20 August 2021 People zip wire across the sea from Bournemouth pier towards the beach. PA UK news in pictures 19 August 2021 Supporters of Geronimo the alpaca gather outside Shepherds Close Farm in Wooton Under Edge, Gloucestershire PA UK news in pictures 18 August 2021 Former Afghan interpreters and veterans hold a demonstration outside Downing Street, calling for support and protection for Afghan interpreters and their families PA UK news in pictures 17 August 2021 Military personnel board the RAF Airbus A400M at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where evacuation flights from Afghanistan have been landing Reuters UK news in pictures 16 August 2021 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer takes part in a minute's silence at Wolverhampton police station for the victims of the Plymouth mass shooting last week PA UK news in pictures 15 August 2021 2Storm, a ten-metre tall puppet of a mythical goddess of the sea created by Edinburgh-based visual theatre company Vision Mechanics, makes its way alongside the seafront at North Berwick, East Lothian, during a performance at the Fringe By The Sea festival PA UK news in pictures 14 August 2021 A woman and two young girls look at floral tributes in Plymouth where six people, including the offender, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident PA UK news in pictures 13 August 2021 Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth where six people, including the shooter, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident on Thursday evening PA UK news in pictures 12 August 2021 Children ride horses in the River Eden in Appleby, Cumbria, during the annual gathering of travellers for the Appleby Horse Fair PA UK news in pictures 11 August 2021 Stella Moris (left) reacts after talking to the media outside the High Court in London, following the first hearing in the Julian Assange extradition appeal, n London, following the first hearing in the Julian Assange extradition appeal. The US government has won the latest round in its High Court bid to appeal against the decision not to extradite Julian Assange on espionage charges PA UK news in pictures 10 August 2021 Students react after they receive their A-Level results at the Ark Academy, in London Reuters

Bracknell Forest is the first case of a council being exposed as barring relatives, although there is some suggestion the practice may be more widespread.

The official quoted is said to have advised the undercover reporter she should negotiate with the funeral director or apply for government aid  although the latter is only available after the service takes place.

Steve Loudoun, environment and public protection officer, said the council had a "fair and appropriate policy regarding Public Heath funerals."

He said: "We have provided for the needs of the bereaved for many years and are very sensitive to the issues that arise at such times. If there is evidence to suggest otherwise, we will investigate as a matter of urgency.

"If our policy needs to be corrected to make it clearer or to address any valid shortcoming we will do so.

"We have no desire to deny anyone, with a reasonable right, the opportunity to say farewell to a loved one... however Bracknell Forest Council does not fund a formal funeral service as standard."
A pregnant woman and her two young children have gone missing from their home in north London.

Police say they are increasingly concerned for the safety of Krystal Gibbs, 25, her three-year-old daughter Sienna and four-year-old son Jayden.

The family are believed to be with Ms Gibbss boyfriend Martin Kelly.

They were last seen at their home in Northumberland Park, Tottenham, on 20 May.

Concerns were raised after Ms Gibbs did not turn up for a maternity appointment and Jayden failed to attend school.

Many of the childrens clothes and belongings were still at the address when police visited.

Martin Kelly, the boyfriend of missing Krystal Gibbs (Metropolitan Police)

Ms Gibbs, who is six-months pregnant, is described as white female with dark hair.

Sienna is described as mixed race with brown eyes and dark brown hair. Jayden is described as mixed race with brown eyes and short brown hair.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 10 October 2021 A young girl is helped by a Border Force officer as a group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, following a small boat incident in the Channel. PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2021 People walk past a life-size sculpture of British singer John Lennon entitled "Imagine", by sculptor Lawrence Holofcener, displayed to mark what would have been the 81st birthday for the former member of the Beatles in Carnaby Street Reuters UK news in pictures 8 October 2021 WW II veteran, 96-year-old Lorna Cockayne, who served in the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS), popularly and officially known as the Wrens, as a Bletchley Park codebreaker, poses for a photograph with the Legion d'honneur after receiving it during a ceremony at the Pear at Parley in Ferndown, Bournemouth PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2021 British comedian Jo Brand poses with cut-out silhouettes representing women outside the Metropolitan Police headquarters New Scotland Yard, to highlight violence against women by male police officers or former police officers AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 6 October 2021 A protester, wearing a mask of Johnson, holds a sign reading Question it all on the final day of the Tory conference Getty UK news in pictures 5 October 2021 Members of Insulate Britain outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, before a hearing over the injunction banning the environmental activists from blocking the M25 PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2021 A delegate passes a street cleaner on the second day of the annual Conservative Party Conference being held at the Manchester Central convention centre AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2021 Margaret Thatcher-themed mugs for sale at the annual Conservative Party conference in Manchester EPA UK news in pictures 2 October 2021 A couple make their way through a flooded underpass in Bristol as a yellow weather warning for rain and wind is issued for parts of the UK Tom Wren/SWNS UK news in pictures 1 October 2021 A driver talks to members of the media after passing his HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) driving test at National Driving Centre in Croydon, south London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 30 September 2021 The centrepiece One Thousand Springs by Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota is seen ahead of the beginning of the Japan Festival, a celebration of the countrys plants, art and culture running from 2-31 October, at Kew Gardens in London PA UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 The family of Betty Campbell unveil the bronze sculpture of her during the unveiling of the statue in Central Square, Cardiff, of Betty Campbell, Wales' first black headteacher PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA

They are believed to be travelling in Ms Gibbss silver Nissan Micra , registration KB53 DZF, which was last traced in Hampshire.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: Officers are increasingly concerned for their wellbeing and would urge anyone with information on their whereabouts or sightings of their car to call police.

Press Association
A man has been filmed climbing a Paris building to save a four-year-old dangling from a balcony.

Video shows the man's heroic actions as he scaled four floors in the space of just a few seconds at around 8pm on Saturday.

The man, whose identity is not known, clambered up the front of a building on rue Marx Dormoy in the 18th arrondissement of the French capital to help a child suspended in mid-air, according to Le Parisien.

Footage posted on social media shows a transfixed crowd gathered beneath the scene cheering and whooping as the man riskd his life to rescue the child.

Video of the episode has been viewed more than two million times on social media.

Firefighters were called to the incident and attended to both the child and rescuer, who were both suffering from shock.

The young man is said to have suffered scratches from scaling the building.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

According to Le Parisien, first testimonies indicate the child was unattended and had ventured onto the balcony before getting stuck on the rail.
The justice secretary has told middle class drug users they should feel guilt and responsibility for fuelling the surge of fatal stabbings in the UK.

David Gauke argued individuals who consume cocaine at dinner parties are to blame for street violence in cities across the UK.

People who do that have to recognise they are fuelling the industry thats resulting in the knife crimes, resulting in the difficulties were having in prisons, the Conservative MP for South West Hertfordshire told Sky News Sophie Ridge on Sunday.

Theres a responsibility for middle class people that take cocaine at a dinner party that when they see a story of a 15-year-old boy stabbed in Hackney [east London] they should feel a degree of guilt and responsibility.

The UK is witnessing a surge in knife crimes  last year the incidence was up 22 per cent.

Last week Police Federation deputy treasurer Simon Kempton heaped blame on affluent people for generating demand for the class A drug.

Mr Kempton, the operational policing lead for the Police Federation, said given the choice between wealthy recreational users and addicts living on estates he would stop the middle classes buying drugs.

If you look at why there is a market for cocaine from South America it is because people who can afford it are buying it and fuelling the problem, he said.

Street-level users are a problem because they steal to fund their habit but on their own they will not support an organised-crime group.

The big market is people with money to spend and they are often oblivious to the misery they cause because it is not on their doorstep.

Middle-class drug users do not come across the radar of police because they are consuming it behind closed doors. Theres a lack of personal responsibility.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 The family of Betty Campbell unveil the bronze sculpture of her during the unveiling of the statue in Central Square, Cardiff, of Betty Campbell, Wales' first black headteacher PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA UK news in pictures 21 August 2021 People take part in a demonstration in solidarity with people of Afghanistan, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 20 August 2021 People zip wire across the sea from Bournemouth pier towards the beach. PA UK news in pictures 19 August 2021 Supporters of Geronimo the alpaca gather outside Shepherds Close Farm in Wooton Under Edge, Gloucestershire PA UK news in pictures 18 August 2021 Former Afghan interpreters and veterans hold a demonstration outside Downing Street, calling for support and protection for Afghan interpreters and their families PA UK news in pictures 17 August 2021 Military personnel board the RAF Airbus A400M at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where evacuation flights from Afghanistan have been landing Reuters UK news in pictures 16 August 2021 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer takes part in a minute's silence at Wolverhampton police station for the victims of the Plymouth mass shooting last week PA UK news in pictures 15 August 2021 2Storm, a ten-metre tall puppet of a mythical goddess of the sea created by Edinburgh-based visual theatre company Vision Mechanics, makes its way alongside the seafront at North Berwick, East Lothian, during a performance at the Fringe By The Sea festival PA UK news in pictures 14 August 2021 A woman and two young girls look at floral tributes in Plymouth where six people, including the offender, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident PA UK news in pictures 13 August 2021 Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth where six people, including the shooter, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident on Thursday evening PA UK news in pictures 12 August 2021 Children ride horses in the River Eden in Appleby, Cumbria, during the annual gathering of travellers for the Appleby Horse Fair PA UK news in pictures 11 August 2021 Stella Moris (left) reacts after talking to the media outside the High Court in London, following the first hearing in the Julian Assange extradition appeal, n London, following the first hearing in the Julian Assange extradition appeal. The US government has won the latest round in its High Court bid to appeal against the decision not to extradite Julian Assange on espionage charges PA

The government named the drug market as one of the key drivers of attacks and murders, in its first Serious Violence Strategy.

Security minister Ben Wallace has warned the UK is fast becoming the biggest consumer of cocaine in Europe.

Earlier in the week, he said the high-margin, high-supply drug was fuelling an increase in violence on the streets.

He told MPs technology had enabled young dealers to dodge detection and order drugs direct from serious gangs.
Two revellers who died at a music festival on Saturday were among 15 attendees rushed to hospital, organisers have revealed.

One person remained in critical condition as bosses of Mutiny Festival in Portsmouth continued to warn that a high strength or bad batch of drugs may have been circulated.

It came as one of the dead was named as 18-year-old Georgia Jones. Writing on Facebook, her mother Janine Milburn revealed the youngster had suffered a 45-minute seizure. My little girl was 18 and full of life, she wrote.

Georgia Jones (Facebook / Janine Milburn) (Facebook/Janine Milburn)

A 20-year-old man who died separately has not yet been named.

The second day of the event  which was to be headlined by Craig David and Sean Paul  has now been cancelled as a safety precaution.

A spokeswoman for the nearby Queen Alexandra Hospital said some of the people admitted were treated for drug-related symptoms but did not confirm how many of the 15 were affected in this way.

Recommended Portsmouth music festival cancelled after two young people die

Mutiny organisers warned at about 9.30pm on Saturday that they was aware of a dangerous high-strength or bad-batch substance on site, and that no drugs should be taken.

A subsequent statement said they was devastated to hear of the tragic loss of life from its festival family. They later added: Following the terrible news from earlier today, the team behind Mutiny Festival are incredibly sad to announce that the Sunday has been cancelled as a safety precaution.

The organisers of the event, which was taking place at the citys King George V Playing Fields, also urged customers to responsibly dispose of any substances.

The two deaths are being treated as separate incidents and non-suspicious but Hampshire Constabulary said it was investigating.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA UK news in pictures 21 August 2021 People take part in a demonstration in solidarity with people of Afghanistan, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 20 August 2021 People zip wire across the sea from Bournemouth pier towards the beach. PA UK news in pictures 19 August 2021 Supporters of Geronimo the alpaca gather outside Shepherds Close Farm in Wooton Under Edge, Gloucestershire PA UK news in pictures 18 August 2021 Former Afghan interpreters and veterans hold a demonstration outside Downing Street, calling for support and protection for Afghan interpreters and their families PA UK news in pictures 17 August 2021 Military personnel board the RAF Airbus A400M at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where evacuation flights from Afghanistan have been landing Reuters UK news in pictures 16 August 2021 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer takes part in a minute's silence at Wolverhampton police station for the victims of the Plymouth mass shooting last week PA UK news in pictures 15 August 2021 2Storm, a ten-metre tall puppet of a mythical goddess of the sea created by Edinburgh-based visual theatre company Vision Mechanics, makes its way alongside the seafront at North Berwick, East Lothian, during a performance at the Fringe By The Sea festival PA UK news in pictures 14 August 2021 A woman and two young girls look at floral tributes in Plymouth where six people, including the offender, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident PA UK news in pictures 13 August 2021 Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth where six people, including the shooter, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident on Thursday evening PA UK news in pictures 12 August 2021 Children ride horses in the River Eden in Appleby, Cumbria, during the annual gathering of travellers for the Appleby Horse Fair PA UK news in pictures 11 August 2021 Stella Moris (left) reacts after talking to the media outside the High Court in London, following the first hearing in the Julian Assange extradition appeal, n London, following the first hearing in the Julian Assange extradition appeal. The US government has won the latest round in its High Court bid to appeal against the decision not to extradite Julian Assange on espionage charges PA UK news in pictures 10 August 2021 Students react after they receive their A-Level results at the Ark Academy, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 9 August 2021 The final athletes from Great Britain arrive home including Jason Kenny, Laura Kenny and Katie Archibald (front left-right) at Heathrow Airport, London following the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games PA UK news in pictures 8 August 2021 Great Britain's Laura Kenny during the closing ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at the Olympic stadium in Japan PA

Officers said Ms Jones was taken ill at 7.10pm before the man was found collapsed 20 minutes later.

A force spokesman said: The deaths are being treated as separate incidents at this stage. They are not being treated as suspicious but enquiries are being made to determine the circumstances of what happened in each case.

He added families of the people who died had been informed and were being supported by specialist officers.
A series of new national parks could be created to safeguard the English landscape for future generations under new plans announced by Michael Gove.

The environment secretary is launching a review to consider expanding the network of protected areas to meet our needs in the 21st century.

It will also explore whether visitor access to the parks can be improved while boosting wildlife and supporting the recovery of natural habitats.

There are currently 10 national parks and 34 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in England, ranging from the Lake District to the South Downs.

The first was established in the Peak District in 1951, following the passing of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act two years earlier.

Officials insisted that existing protections would not be weakened, and indicated the review would consider whether there was potential for the current network to be expanded.

The creation of national parks almost 70 years ago changed the way we view our precious landscapes, helping us all access and enjoy our natural world, Mr Gove said in a statement released by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Amid a growing population, changes in technology, and a decline in certain habitats, the time is right for us to look afresh at these landscapes. We want to make sure they are not only conserved, but enhanced for the next generation.

The review is to be led by Julian Glover, the former Guardian journalist and chief speechwriter to the previous prime minister David Cameron.

Our protected landscapes are Englands finest gems and we owe a huge debt to past generations who had the wisdom to preserve them, said Mr Glover.

The system they created has been a strength, but it faces challenges too. It is an honour to be asked to find ways to secure them for the future. I cant wait to get started and learn from everyone who shares an interest in making Englands landscapes beautiful, diverse and successful.

Defra said the review will not consider weakening or undermining the current scope of the National Parks or their existing protections.

Undertaking a review is one of the key commitments of the governments 25 Year Environment Plan, which outlines our vision for improving the environment over a generation by connecting people with nature and helping wildlife to thrive, it said.

The review was welcomed by both National Parks England and the National Association of AONBs.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 1 October 2021 A driver talks to members of the media after passing his HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) driving test at National Driving Centre in Croydon, south London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 30 September 2021 The centrepiece One Thousand Springs by Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota is seen ahead of the beginning of the Japan Festival, a celebration of the countrys plants, art and culture running from 2-31 October, at Kew Gardens in London PA UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 The family of Betty Campbell unveil the bronze sculpture of her during the unveiling of the statue in Central Square, Cardiff, of Betty Campbell, Wales' first black headteacher PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA UK news in pictures 21 August 2021 People take part in a demonstration in solidarity with people of Afghanistan, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 20 August 2021 People zip wire across the sea from Bournemouth pier towards the beach. PA UK news in pictures 19 August 2021 Supporters of Geronimo the alpaca gather outside Shepherds Close Farm in Wooton Under Edge, Gloucestershire PA UK news in pictures 18 August 2021 Former Afghan interpreters and veterans hold a demonstration outside Downing Street, calling for support and protection for Afghan interpreters and their families PA UK news in pictures 17 August 2021 Military personnel board the RAF Airbus A400M at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where evacuation flights from Afghanistan have been landing Reuters UK news in pictures 16 August 2021 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer takes part in a minute's silence at Wolverhampton police station for the victims of the Plymouth mass shooting last week PA UK news in pictures 15 August 2021 2Storm, a ten-metre tall puppet of a mythical goddess of the sea created by Edinburgh-based visual theatre company Vision Mechanics, makes its way alongside the seafront at North Berwick, East Lothian, during a performance at the Fringe By The Sea festival PA UK news in pictures 14 August 2021 A woman and two young girls look at floral tributes in Plymouth where six people, including the offender, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident PA UK news in pictures 13 August 2021 Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth where six people, including the shooter, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident on Thursday evening PA

Chair of National Parks England, Margaret Paren, said: National Parks are iconic and inspirational cultural landscapes. The Governments 25 Year Environment Plan refers to their establishment as among the outstanding environmental achievements of the past 100 years.

Our National Parks offer so much to the country. And as we approach the 70th anniversary of the founding legislation we look forward to a future where their beauty is enhanced; they are loved and accessible for everyone; and they continue to support thriving communities in these working landscapes.

Chair of the National Association of AONBs, Philip Hygate, said: The world has changed significantly since the designation of Gower, the first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, but our fundamental requirement for beautiful, inspiring places in which to live, work, and relax is probably greater now than ever before.

The act which established the National Parks system was described at the time as a recreational gift to Britains returning Second World War service men and women.

Today the protected areas, which cover a quarter of England, attract more than 260 million visitors a year from across the world.

They are also home to over 2.3 million people, generate over 20bn for the rural economy, and support 75,000 jobs.
New technical T-level qualifications will help the UK compete globally, Theresa May has claimed, as the first colleges and providers teaching the courses were announced.

The vocational qualifications, which are intended as to have an equal status to A-levels, are a vital part of our industrial strategy, the prime minister said.

The first courses will be taught from September 2020, and education secretary Damian Hinds said they would equip children with the skills needed for the jobs of tomorrow.

The announcement that 52 colleges and post-16 providers in England will teach the new courses comes after the senior official at the Department for Education raised concerns about the timetable for the project.

Courses in construction, digital and education and childcare will be taught from September 2020.

A further 22 courses will be rolled out in stages from 2021.

Ms May said: Everyone should be able to have access to an education that suits them, but we know that for those that dont choose to go to university, the routes into further technical and vocational training can be hard to navigate.

Thats why were making the most significant reform to advanced technical education in 70 years to ensure young people have gold standard qualifications open to them whichever route they choose.

T-levels provide a high-quality, technical alternative to A-levels ensuring thousands of people across the country have the skills we need to compete globally  a vital part of our modern industrial strategy.

Mr Hinds said: T-levels represent a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reform technical education in this country so we can rival the worlds best performing systems.

He added: Technology and the world economy are fast-changing, and we need to make sure our young people have the skills they need to get the jobs of tomorrow.

Earlier this month, Jonathan Slater, the senior mandarin at the Department for Education, formally registered concerns about the programme, saying it would be challenging to ensure that the first three T-levels are ready to be taught from 2020 to a consistently high standard.

In a letter to Mr Hinds he said he had a duty to consider the regularity, propriety, value for money and feasibility of public spending and if these were the only considerations, you are aware that I would advise deferring the start date to 2021.

But he acknowledged it was perfectly legitimate for Mr Hinds to consider the high priority that the Government attaches to improving technical skills and stick to the 2020 target.

Jane Gratton, head of skills policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: Business communities across the country tell us that improved technical education and stronger workplace experience are needed to help them fill the skills gaps they face.

T-levels will be an important part of the solution, giving young people a high quality route to gaining the employability and technical skills they will need to succeed in their chosen career.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 1 October 2021 A driver talks to members of the media after passing his HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) driving test at National Driving Centre in Croydon, south London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 30 September 2021 The centrepiece One Thousand Springs by Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota is seen ahead of the beginning of the Japan Festival, a celebration of the countrys plants, art and culture running from 2-31 October, at Kew Gardens in London PA UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 The family of Betty Campbell unveil the bronze sculpture of her during the unveiling of the statue in Central Square, Cardiff, of Betty Campbell, Wales' first black headteacher PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA UK news in pictures 21 August 2021 People take part in a demonstration in solidarity with people of Afghanistan, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 20 August 2021 People zip wire across the sea from Bournemouth pier towards the beach. PA UK news in pictures 19 August 2021 Supporters of Geronimo the alpaca gather outside Shepherds Close Farm in Wooton Under Edge, Gloucestershire PA UK news in pictures 18 August 2021 Former Afghan interpreters and veterans hold a demonstration outside Downing Street, calling for support and protection for Afghan interpreters and their families PA UK news in pictures 17 August 2021 Military personnel board the RAF Airbus A400M at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where evacuation flights from Afghanistan have been landing Reuters UK news in pictures 16 August 2021 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer takes part in a minute's silence at Wolverhampton police station for the victims of the Plymouth mass shooting last week PA UK news in pictures 15 August 2021 2Storm, a ten-metre tall puppet of a mythical goddess of the sea created by Edinburgh-based visual theatre company Vision Mechanics, makes its way alongside the seafront at North Berwick, East Lothian, during a performance at the Fringe By The Sea festival PA UK news in pictures 14 August 2021 A woman and two young girls look at floral tributes in Plymouth where six people, including the offender, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident PA UK news in pictures 13 August 2021 Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth where six people, including the shooter, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident on Thursday evening PA

Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner dismissed the announcement as little more than meaningless spin and said the impact of years of cuts to the sector could not be ignored.

She said: The Department for Educations permanent secretary has already said that T-Levels cannot feasibly be implemented on time without a serious risk to taxpayers money.

The decision to push ahead against the advice of officials is a desperate attempt to mask the governments failure to properly prepare for T-levels.

Press Association
Jacob Rees-Mogg has criticised Theresa May over her handling of Brexit negotiations, calling the prime ministers stance on the Irish border an error and a mistake.

The arch Brexiteer said Ms May was wrong to refuse to play hardball with Brussels by daring it to set up a hard border in Northern Ireland if there is no Brexit withdrawal agreement.

He also criticised the cabinets decision to approve a backstop option that would see Northern Ireland fall under the same regulations as the rest of Europe for a time-limited period if no other deal is reached, describing it as a real problem.

Mr Rees-Mogg has previously urged Ms May to call their bluff during negotiations and argue there will only be a hard border after Brexit if the EU creates one, thereby giving Brussels sole responsibility for finding a solution to the problem.

He said: Ireland has said it doesnt want a hard border, the UK has said it doesnt want a hard border and the EU itself has said it doesnt want a hard border  so frankly its up to Brussels if it wants to start putting up border posts. We should call their bluff.

He was reportedly rebuked by Ms May for the suggestion.

The North East Somerset MP told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show the prime ministers refusal to adopt his proposed approach was an error.

He said: The prime minister said in her Mansion House speech that she wasnt going to do this. I think that is a mistake. I think it is the obvious negotiating position for us to have.

Bearing in mind the Irish economy is heavily dependent on its trade with the United Kingdom, it is overwhelmingly in the interests of the Republic of Ireland to maintain an open border with the United Kingdom.

I think if youre going into a negotiation you should use your strongest cards, and just to tear one of them up and set hares running on other issues is, I think, an error.

The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Show all 8 1 /8 The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Post-Brexit immigration workers sorting radishes on a production line at a farm in Norfolk. One possible post-Brexit immigration scheme could struggle to channel workers towards less attractive roles - while another may heighten the risk of labour exploitation, a new report warns. PA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Customs union A key point in the negotiations remains Britain's access to, or withdrawal from, the EU customs union. Since the referendum there has been hot debate over the meaning of Brexit: would it entail a full withdrawal from the existing agreement, known as hard Brexit, or the soft version in which we would remain part of a common customs area for most goods, as Turkey does? No 10 has so far insisted that Brexit means Brexit and that Britain will be leaving the customs union, but may be inclined to change its position once the potential risks to the UKs economic outlook become clearer. Alamy The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Northern Ireland-Irish border Though progress was made last year, there has still been no solid agreement on whether there should be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. To ensure borderless travel on the island, the countries must be in regulatory alignment and therefore adhere to the same rules as the customs union. In December, the Conservative Partys coalition partners, the DUP, refused a draft agreement that would place the UK/EU border in the Irish Sea due to its potential to undermine the union. May has promised that would not be the case and has suggested that a specific solution would need to be found. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Transition period Despite protests from a small number of Conservative MPs, the Government and the EU are largely in agreement that a transitional period is needed after Brexit. The talks, however, have reached an impasse. Though May has agreed that the UK will continue to contribute to the EU budget until 2021, the PM wants to be able to select which laws made during this time the UK will have to adhere to. Chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said the UK must adopt all of the laws passed during the transition, without any input from British ministers or MEPs. EPA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Rights of EU citizens living the UK The Prime Minister has promised EU citizens already living in the UK the right to live and work here after Brexit, but the rights of those who arrive after Brexit day remains unclear. May insists that those who arrive during the transition period should not be allowed to stay, whereas the EU believe the cut-off point should be later. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Future trade agreement (with the EU) Despite this being a key issue in negotiations, the Government has yet to lay out exactly what it wants from a trade deal with the EU. Infighting within the Cabinet has prevented a solid position from being reached, with some MPs content that "no deal is better than a bad deal" while others rally behind single market access. The EU has already confirmed that access to the single market would be impossible without the UK remaining in the customs union. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Future trade agreements (internationally) The Government has already begun trying to woo foreign leaders into prospective trade agreements, with various high profile state visits to China, India and Canada for May, and the now infamous invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit London. However the UK cannot make trade agreements with another country while it is still a member of the EU, and the potential loss of trade with the world's major powers is a source of anxiety for the PM. The EU has said the UK cannot secure trade deals during the transition period. EPA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Financial services Banks in the UK will be hit hard regardless of the Brexit outcome. The EU has refused to give British banks passporting rights to trade within the EU, dashing hopes of a special City deal. However according to new reports Germany has suggested allowing trade on the condition that the UK continues paying into the EU budget even after the transition period. Getty

Mr Rees-Mogg also criticised the cabinets decision to agree a backstop option that would see Northern Ireland maintain the same regulatory system as the rest of the EU customs union for a time-limited period if no deal is reached to avoid a hard border.

He said: Thats a real problem because the customs union on its own does not solve the seamless border issues ... you require regulatory alignment as well, and that means the single market.

If we were to stay as a rule-taker, as a vassal state, for an indeterminate period, I dont think that would be delivering on Brexit. And if you offer a backstop that is more attractive than anything youre likely to negotiate, from the other sides point of view, the backstop ends up becoming a frontstop.

He added: There are concerns, inevitably, at the way negotiations are proceeding.

 Irish Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney says a hard border with Northern Ireland won't work

However, the MP, who chairs the European Research Group of anti-EU Tory MPs, dismissed suggestions he could launch a leadership challenge against Ms May if she fails to deliver the hard Brexit that Eurosceptics are demanding.

He said: I think the prime minister is the most impressive and dutiful leader that this country has had.

Her expression of duty is something that Conservatives should admire and applaud.

He added: Of course I wouldnt challenge Theresa May  thats a ridiculous idea. The prime minister has my full support to remain as leader of the party, as Ive said many times.

I dont wish to be prime minister. Im very happy to be a backbench member of parliament.

And in a sign of Brexiteers concern that a new Conservative leader could be less favourable to their vision of Brexit, he added: I think Mrs May is crucial to the Brexit project.

Mr Rees-Mogg also revealed he had been told the EU Withdrawal Bill would return to the House of Commons in mid-June. Ministers have refused to confirm when the flagship bill will next be voted on by MPs, with the delay widely seen as a result of attempts to ensure the government has the numbers to overturn the 15 amendments made by the House of Lords.

It comes amid reports Mr Rees-Mogg has purchased a new 5m house just yards from Parliament, fuelling speculation about his leadership ambitions. The property, on Cowley Street in Westminster, was previously the headquarters of former Tory chairman Lord Ashcroft.

The MP is also facing questions over revelations that his investment company, Somerset Capital Management, has a number of investments in Russia, including in two companies that have been blacklisted by the US. Mr Rees-Mogg insisted the fund has a duty to make the best decisions on behalf of investors, and said he did not directly profit from the Russian interests.
Former cabinet minister Priti Patel has urged the Electoral Commission to investigate the Remain campaign's spending on a Keira Knightley video ahead of the EU referendum.

The Conservative MP, who was a leading figure in the Vote Leave campaign, has written to the watchdog about her "deep concerns" over possible breaches by the Britain Stronger in Europe group.

Ms Patel also questioned the impartiality of the Electoral Commission and suggested that it was holding the Remain campaign to a lower standard than the Leave campaign.

The "Don't F*** My Future" video featuring Pirates of the Caribbean star Keira Knightley urging people to vote was published on the Britain Stronger in Europe website and Facebook page in the final days before the vote in 2016.

It was produced by an advertising agency - along with a series also featuring designer Dame Vivienne Westwood and model Lily Cole - at a total cost of more than 76,000.

Ms Patel, who famously resigned as the international development secretary over undisclosed meetings with Israeli officials, said she had "deep concerns" about collusion between Remain-supporting organisations which may have allowed the official Britain Stronger in Europe campaign to breach the strict 7m spending limit.

In a letter to the Electoral Commission, Ms Patel said: "I am sure you share my deep concerns that Britain Stronger in Europe seems to have been provided with services by other Remain campaigns without declaring the expenditure in the appropriate way.

"There is evidence that many campaigns appear to have acted as a mere continuity of the official Remain campaign as it approached its spending limit, the most egregious example of this being the regrettably named 'Don't F*** My Future' campaign, which many different Remain organisations appear to have involved themselves in."

A previous call for an investigation by Ms Patel was rejected by the Electoral Commission, but she said a report in the Sunday Telegraph "suggests that the commission has decided to hold Leave campaigns to one standard, and Remain campaigners to another, much lower standard".

In her letter to the watchdog's head of regulation Louise Edwards, Ms Patel added: "I believe that the Electoral Commission has an important role to play in our democracy, but that role comes with an important responsibility - to be politically neutral at all times.

"If you want to restore confidence in the commission, you should either start a formal investigation into Britain Stronger in Europe, or show equity and end the investigation in Vote Leave."

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 10 October 2021 A young girl is helped by a Border Force officer as a group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent, following a small boat incident in the Channel. PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2021 People walk past a life-size sculpture of British singer John Lennon entitled "Imagine", by sculptor Lawrence Holofcener, displayed to mark what would have been the 81st birthday for the former member of the Beatles in Carnaby Street Reuters UK news in pictures 8 October 2021 WW II veteran, 96-year-old Lorna Cockayne, who served in the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS), popularly and officially known as the Wrens, as a Bletchley Park codebreaker, poses for a photograph with the Legion d'honneur after receiving it during a ceremony at the Pear at Parley in Ferndown, Bournemouth PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2021 British comedian Jo Brand poses with cut-out silhouettes representing women outside the Metropolitan Police headquarters New Scotland Yard, to highlight violence against women by male police officers or former police officers AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 6 October 2021 A protester, wearing a mask of Johnson, holds a sign reading Question it all on the final day of the Tory conference Getty UK news in pictures 5 October 2021 Members of Insulate Britain outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, before a hearing over the injunction banning the environmental activists from blocking the M25 PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2021 A delegate passes a street cleaner on the second day of the annual Conservative Party Conference being held at the Manchester Central convention centre AFP via Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2021 Margaret Thatcher-themed mugs for sale at the annual Conservative Party conference in Manchester EPA UK news in pictures 2 October 2021 A couple make their way through a flooded underpass in Bristol as a yellow weather warning for rain and wind is issued for parts of the UK Tom Wren/SWNS UK news in pictures 1 October 2021 A driver talks to members of the media after passing his HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) driving test at National Driving Centre in Croydon, south London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 30 September 2021 The centrepiece One Thousand Springs by Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota is seen ahead of the beginning of the Japan Festival, a celebration of the countrys plants, art and culture running from 2-31 October, at Kew Gardens in London PA UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 The family of Betty Campbell unveil the bronze sculpture of her during the unveiling of the statue in Central Square, Cardiff, of Betty Campbell, Wales' first black headteacher PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA

A spokesman for Britain Stronger in Europe said: "Following hot on the heels of the dismissal of her previous complaint in December 2017, this demonstrates Priti Patel's complete lack of understanding of electoral law. It is common practice for campaigns to post third party content on social media."

The campaign said it was confident the complaint "would be dismissed as quickly and comprehensively as her other politically motivated and unsubstantiated claims have been".

"Britain Stronger in Europe always took our legal responsibilities seriously and have always followed the rules around working together, which has been backed up by the Electoral Commission," the spokesman said.

An Electoral Commission spokeswoman said: "We have not received the allegation formally yet but when we do we will consider it in line with our enforcement policy."

Press Association
Calls for the Home Office to renew Britains pledge to help Syrian refugees have resurfaced following Amber Rudds departure and Sajid Javids appointment as foreign secretary.

Hasan Ismaik, chairman of Marya Group and one of the Middle Easts most successful and prominent businessmen, has pushed for Mr Javid to recommit to his departments pledge to house 20,000 of the most vulnerable victims of the Syrian refugee crisis by 2020 and beyond.

As the Home Office signals a move away from the hostile environment policy in the wake of the Windrush scandal, Mr Ismaik said the protection of the most vulnerable victims of the Syrian civil war was of utmost importance, citing David Camerons pledge to rehouse vulnerable refugees as part of the vulnerable persons resettlement scheme (VPRS).

Recommended Sajid Javid calls for spit hoods to be rolled out across UK police

The scheme initially won praise from Unicef, UNHCR and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), but only half of the most vulnerable refugees have been granted safety and security in the UK so far.

Mr Ismaik said: The VPRS scheme should be a source of pride for British people, a reminder that the UK is a welcoming sanctuary to those with nowhere else to go, offering a safe and legal home to the most vulnerable refugees of the Syrian crisis while preventing countless needless deaths from illegal migrant crossings.

The scheme is part of the UKs legacy of aid towards the Syrian refugee crisis.

Having already committed 2.46bn to projects since 2012, the UK is one of the largest global donors.

Speaking in Qab Elias, an informal tented settlement on the Syrian-Lebanese border, Ms Rudd had affirmed her commitment that, by 2020, 20,000 of the most vulnerable victims of the Syrian refugee crisis would be granted UK asylum.

She met with dozens of refugee families in the settlement, including one family preparing to be rehoused in the UK, a reminder of the tangible human impact of the UKs resettlement scheme.

Rohingya refugees  in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya refugees  in pictures A young girl and a baby wade through mud after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh from Burma on 10 September Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya refugees walk through a camp in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh after arriving from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures A young Rohingya refugee gathers firewood after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya refugees wait for sacks of rice to be distributed in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees arrive on a boat in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh after crossing from Burma on 8 September Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees react after being re-united with each other after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh on a boat from Burma Getty Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees walk along the remains of a road after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh on a boat from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees wade through water after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh by boat from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees wade through water after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh by boat from Myanmar Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Rohingya Muslim refugees stand in the rain after arriving in Whaikhyang, Bangladesh by boat from Burma Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Rohingya refugees  in pictures Indian children hold placards and shout slogans during a protest against the alleged persecution of the Rohingya Muslims in Burma EPA/Raminder Pal Singh Rohingya refugees  in pictures Supporters of the Difa-e-Pakistan Council (DPC), an Islamic organisation, listen to their leaders' speeches against Burma's persecution of Rohingya Muslims, during a demonstration in Karachi Reuters/Akhtar Soomro Rohingya refugees  in pictures Hundreds of Iranians take part in a protest against violence in Myanmar after weekly Friday prayers, in Tehran EPA/Abedin Taherkenareh Rohingya refugees  in pictures Indonesian Muslim activists hold placards and shout slogans during a protest against the alleged persecution of the Rohingya minority in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia EPA/Ali Lutfi Rohingya refugees  in pictures Members of an Islamic organisation shout slogans against the Burma government during a protest in Dhaka, Bangladesh EPA

But as 2020 approaches, the VPRS presently has no plan about what happens next, and the process of resettlement in the UK is often haphazard and arbitrary.

Mr Ismaik continued: The Home Office has not always had a clean conscience in its treatment of migrants and vulnerable people. The Windrush scandal has uncovered the tragic treatment of some foreign migrants.

Evidence of steps to delegitimise UK citizens are a stark reminder that Home Office policy has not always been fair and kind to those in need.

Working with the UNHCR, UNICEF and IOM, the UK could shelter thousands more Syrian refugees, further offering sanctuary to survivors of violence and torture, those who require urgent medical attention, as well as women and children at risk.

The Home Offices hostile environment policy looks to isolate, marginalise and criminalise illegal migrants. However, critics argue it has had a devastating effect on legal migrants too, tearing families apart and wrongly detaining innocent migrants.

Mr Ismaik said it was time for policies such as these to end.

Sajid Javids disownment of the hostile environment policy is to be welcomed, but the new home secretary must now embrace concrete policies of openness and tolerance towards vulnerable refugees, he said.

The VPRS is the best existing example of a compassionate and meaningful Home Office policy.

Under the new stewardship of Sajid Javid, I hope the Home Office will continue its support and I hope that the home secretary will publicly re-commit to its the goal to reaffirm its position as a world leader in humanitarian aid and support.

SWNS
Theresa May has been accused of ignoring the plight of up to 120,000 young migrants who must pay 10,000 to avoid her hostile environment, after denying the problem existed.

Campaigners have expressed anger after the prime minister told MPs the young people were not required to take any action  despite the risk they will be viewed as illegal if they cannot secure their status.

She also denied a bill of 10,000, although that is the cost for the requirement to make repeated applications for leave to remain, plus pay an NHS surcharge  a process that also takes a full 10 years.

The controversy was raised in the House of Commons, where Ms May rejected warnings of a repeat of the Windrush scandal facing a group who grew up in the UK but simply cannot afford the paperwork.

The young people enjoyed full rights and benefits that put them on an equal footing to their British citizen peers, the prime minister insisted.

In fact, anyone unable to secure permanent leave to remain must pay higher university fees, is ineligible for student loans and is threatened by the hostile environment policy laid bare by the Windrush debacle, critics say.

The prime minister is ducking the issue and ignoring the plight of these young people, said Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Just for Kids Law campaign.

By the age of 18 they have to regularise their status or their world falls apart. They are British apart from not having a piece of paper and they want to become mathematicians, or doctors, or civil servants  to contribute to this country.

Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Show all 15 1 /15 Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK The ex-troopship 'Empire Windrush' arriving at Tilbury Docks from Jamaica, with 482 Jamaicans on board, emigrating to Britain. Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Jamaican immigrants being welcomed by RAF officials from the Colonial Office after the ex-troopship 'Empire Windrush' landed them at Tilbury. PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Alford Gardner who arrived in Britain in 1948 on the first Windrush ship to dock in Tilbury, Essex, speaking at his home in Leeds PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Alford Gardner in Leeds shortly after he arrived in Britain in 1948 on the first Windrush ship to dock in Tilbury, Essex PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Gardner was 22 years old when he boarded the ship in Kingston, Jamaica, with his brother Gladstone before they and hundreds of Caribbean migrants called on to rebuild post-war Britain disembarked the ship in Tilbury Docks PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Alford Gardner (right), during his RAF service in 1947 PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK The son of Ruth Williams, a Windrush-generation immigrant, wants to the leave the country after threats of deportation. According to his mother, Mr Haynes applied for British citizenship in 2016 but was rejected, despite Ms Williams having lived in the UK almost permanently since arriving from St Vincent and the Grenadines in 1959. Ruth Williams, 75, said she felt "betrayed" by Britain after the Home Office twice turned down applications for her 35-year-old son, Mozi Haynes, to remain in the country. Ms Williams is understood to have cancer and said she relies heavily on her son for support. PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK The British liner 'Empire Windrush' at port in 1954. Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Ruth Williams, 75, with her British passport. "I feel betrayed and a second class citizen in my own country," she said. "This makes me so sad and the Home Office must show some compassion. "I am unwell and almost 75, I live on my own and I need my son to stay here. I need my family around me and I cant face being alone. He has applied to the Home Office and been refused twice." PA Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK From the top, hopeful Jamaican boxers Charles Smith, Ten Ansel, Essi Reid, John Hazel, Boy Solas and manager Mortimer Martin arrive at Tilbury on the Empire Windrush in the hope of finding work in Britain. Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Jamaicans reading a newspaper whilst on board the ex-troopship 'Empire Windrush' bound for Tilbury docks in Essex. Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK After half a century in Britain, Anthony Bryan decided it was time to go abroad. But the decision set off a nightmare that saw him lose his job, detained twice and almost deported to Jamaica. AFP/Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Jamaica-born Anthony Bryan poses outside his home in Edmonton, north London. Now 60 and a grandfather, Bryan thought the issue could be resolved swiftly, as he legally moved to Britain with his family as part of the Windrush generation of Caribbean migrants after World War II. In 1948, the ship Windrush brought the first group of migrants from the West Indies to help rebuild post-war Britain, and many others followed from around the Commonwealth. A 1971 law gave them indefinite leave to remain, but many never formalised their status, often because they were children who came over on their parents' passports and then never applied for their own. AFP/Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Three Jamaican immigrants (left to right) John Hazel, a 21-year-old boxer, Harold Wilmot, 32, and John Richards, a 22-year-old carpenter, arriving at Tilbury on board the ex-troopship 'Empire Windrush', smartly dressed in zoot suits and trilby hats. Getty Windrush generation: threat of deportation from UK Newly arrived Jamaican immigrants on board the 'Empire Windrush' at Tilbury in 1948. Getty

Instead, they find they are treated as international students and have to pay international fees and they cannot get a student loan.

Ian Blackford, the Scottish National Partys Westminster leader, who has demanded a meeting with the prime minister after clashing with her over the issue, echoed the criticism.

This government is guilty of creating a generation of undocumented citizens, without the rights that many of us take for granted  yet the prime minister failed to grasp the issue, he said.

We are talking about young people who live here, who have to wait 10 years and pay up to 10,000 to achieve permanent right to remain.

The prime minister must change her policies which target innocent young people, and I seek to meet with her to resolve this injustice.

Ms May was put on the spot because of growing anger over the hoops to be jumped through to gain limited leave to remain (LLR)  a stepping stone to indefinite leave to remain.

Young people must apply for LLR no fewer than four times, paying 2,033 every 30 months to fill in a 60-page form. That fee has soared by 148 per cent since 2014.

It is only after four successful LLR applications that a young person is entitled to apply for indefinite leave to remain (2,389), taking the total cost above 10,000. A year later, they can apply for full citizenship (1,330).

Mr Solomon added: We come across situations where one sibling has to go undocumented because their parents, who have paid their taxes, cant muster the cash for two young people.

Someone who is classed as undocumented as an adult is also not allowed to work and can be denied non-emergency health treatment  in an echo of the Windrush affair.

However, during prime ministers questions, Ms May rejected the figure of 10,000 as one I certainly do not recognise.

Instead, she argued that young people with indefinite leave to remain had access to benefits and entitlements which put them on an equal footing to their British citizen peers.

So, a grant of British citizenship is not therefore required, MPs were told.

Of course, specific exemptions from application fees are provided to several groups with limited means, such as stateless people, victims of modern slavery or domestic abuse, asylum applicants and children who are looked after by a local authority.

As recently as 2014, before the introduction of the NHS surcharge, meant to ensure migrants meet their health costs, an LLR application cost 601.

The Home Office has been open about charging fees far in excess of the costs of immigration, insisting it is fair that they help fund the wider immigration system.
Theresa May is facing the prospect of a major rift at the heart of her government as pressure mounts to reform the ban on abortion in Northern Ireland.

A number of senior Conservatives called for a free vote on the issue following the Republic of Irelands abortion referendum, and members of the cabinet are believed to be ready to push ahead with demands for change.

The row creates a fresh headache for the prime minister because the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), whose votes she relies on in parliament, are firmly anti-abortion and certain to resist calls for a vote on reforming the law. The cabinet is also likely to be divided on the issue.

Downing Street sources suggested Ms May would try to resist calls for a change in the law, insisting the matter should be decided by Northern Irish leaders.

Recommended May refuses to push Northern Ireland abortion reform amid DUP pressure

But as pressure grew, one MP claimed more than 130 of her colleagues were already committed to voting for reform.

It comes as the Republic of Irelands comprehensive vote in favour of overturning its ban on abortion led to fresh calls for a similar move in the north of the island  the only part of the UK where the practice is still illegal.

Reports suggest Penny Mordaunt, the international development secretary, who also holds the women and equalities brief, will lead cabinet calls for reform.

Ms Mordaunt hailed the Irish vote, calling it a historic and great day for Ireland.

She also hinted at change within the UK, saying the result was a hopeful one for Northern Ireland and adding: That hope must be met.

The referendum in the Republic of Ireland on Friday saw 66.4 per cent of voters back repeal of the countrys abortion ban.

With Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar promising legal changes by the end of the year, it means Northern Ireland will be the only part of the UK or the island of Ireland where abortion remains illegal. The region allows a pregnancy to be terminated only if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.

Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Show all 20 1 /20 Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Women in Dublin celebrate the result of yesterday's referendum on abortion law Reuters Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum A woman in Dublin celebrates the result of yesterday's referendum Reuters Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Activists react at the count centre as votes are tallied folowing yesterday's referendum Reuters Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Co-Director of Together For Yes Ailbhe Smyth speaking to the media at the count in Dublin PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Yes voters react, as the results of the votes begin to come in PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Long time campaigner Annette Forde, from Drumcondra, at the count centre in Dublin's RDS as votes are counted PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Minister for Health Simon Harris (centre) with Fine Gael's Kate O'Connell and Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy (left) speaks to the media on arrival at the count centre PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Yes voters celebrate at the count centre in Dublin as official results for constituencies are announced PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Yes campaigners celebrate at the count in Dublin PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum A woman writes a message on a mural to Savita Halappanava, a woman who died of pregnancy complications AFP/Getty Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Activists react at the count centre as votes are tallied folowing yesterday's referendum Reuters Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald reacts with a member of the Yes campaign PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Yes campaigners celebrate at the count in Dublin PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Yes campaigners react, as the results of the votes begin to come in Reuters Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Senator David Norris at the count centre in Dublin as votes are counted PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum A woman sits in front of the Dublin mural of Savita Halappanavar, a woman who died of pregnancy complications PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Repeal supporters at Dublin's RDS await the start of the count last night PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Minister for Health Simon Harris is greeted by retired Supreme Court judge Catherine McGuinness at the count in Dublin PA Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum Yes campaigners react, as the results of the votes begin to come in AP Ireland celebrates historic Yes vote on abortion referendum A Yes voter poses with a badge as votes are counted AFP/Getty

On Sunday, Anne Milton, the education minister, called for a free vote in parliament on lifting the ban.

She told ITVs Peston on Sunday: It does feel anomalous ... we are offering abortions to women from Northern Ireland [in other parts of the UK]. That doesnt feel quite right.

Traditionally votes on abortion have always been a matter of a free vote. I feel quite strongly about that. I do think it should be a free vote.

She said she would vote in favour of lifting the ban, adding: I believe in a womans right to choose.

Other senior Conservatives also backed a change in the law.

Sarah Wollaston, who chairs the Commons Health Committee, said: I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK.

As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland on this issue.

And former education secretary Justine Greening said: Its clear its now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for Northern Irish women that we have as women across the rest of the UK.

However, in a sign of Tory divisions on the issue, justice minister Rory Stewart warned against a vote being held in Westminster.

He told Sky News: It would be very, very dangerous for British politicians to be seen to be telling people in Northern Ireland how to vote.

One of the reasons why we have a more peaceful situation in Northern Ireland is because we have delegated.

 Irish abortion referendum: The moment it was announced Ireland voted 66% in favour of repealing the eighth amendment

He added: There isnt a parliament in Stormont at the moment, so that puts a huge degree of trust and response on the Westminster government to have an interim government, but that mustnt be used to make fundamental constitutional ethical changes on behalf of the people of Northern Ireland.

It should be seen as a caretaker situation. Those kinds of decisions need to be made by the Stormont parliament when that is up and running again.

The cabinet is also likely to be split on the issue, with a number of senior ministers, including Jeremy Hunt, Liam Fox and Chris Grayling, having previously voted in favour of lowering the time limit within which a woman can legally have an abortion.

A Downing Street source played down the prospects of the government intervening on the issue.

The source said: The government thinks this is a matter for Northern Irish people and Northern Irish politicians, just as the Irish referendum was a matter for Irish voters and Irish politicians.

We think its absolutely essential that power-sharing is restored at Stormont, and thats where our focus is.

The hope is that big issues like this will bring the two parties together and create an impetus and for power-sharing.

The source also cast doubts over whether parliament currently has the power to take such a decision on behalf of Northern Ireland.

The source said: Were not in the arena of direct rule yet, so there are still a few stages before the UK parliament can start legislating on behalf of Northern Ireland.

There are a lot of hurdles it would have to clear, at this stage. The speakers office would have to consider it quite carefully because there are a lot of constitutional questions around it.

Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Show all 15 1 /15 Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Members of the public hold yes placards on Fairview road Getty Images Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Taoiseach Leo Varadkar casts his vote at Scoil Thomas, Castlenock Dublin PA Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Members of the public hold no placards on Fairview road Getty Images Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures A woman wears a campaign T-shirt and badges REUTERS Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures REUTERS Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Lorraine Curtin with her son Cillian Curtin, age 5 months, and Petrina Conmee arrive at Dublin airport from Portugal, having traveled especially to vote in Ireland's referendum REUTERS Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Members of the public hold yes placards on Fairview road Getty Images Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures A nun casts her ballot REUTERS Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures PA Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Ireland's Prime Minister Leo Varadakar leaves a polling station after casting his vote AFP/Getty Images Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Tom Harrington arrives to cast his ballot at Knock national school AP Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures PA Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures Leo Varadkar casts his vote PA Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures A woman carries her baby as she arrives to vote Reuters Ireland votes in historic abortion referendum: in pictures REUTERS

MPs are thought to be considering tabling an amendment to the Domestic Abuse Bill to repeal the ban in Northern Ireland.

Labour MP Stella Creasy said more than 130 parliamentarians have already expressed support for such a move.

But in a clear warning to Ms May, Arlene Foster, the DUP leader, said the issue of abortion was a devolved mater ... for the Northern Ireland assembly to debate and decide.

She said: Fridays referendum has no impact upon the law in Northern Ireland, but we obviously take note of issues impacting upon our nearest neighbour.

A referendum was held in the Republic of Ireland because of the constitutional prohibition on abortion that existed there. No such constitutional bar exists in Northern Ireland.

The legislation governing abortion is a devolved matter, and it is for the Northern Ireland assembly to debate and decide such issues.

She added: Some of those who wish to circumvent the assemblys role may be doing so simply to avoid its decision.

The DUP is a pro-life party and we will continue to articulate our position. It is an extremely sensitive issue and not one that should have people taking to the streets in celebration.

Ms May is yet to offer a concrete view on the result of the Irish referendum. In a cautiously worded tweet, she said: The Irish referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result.

I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of Together4Yes on their successful campaign.

Both Labour and the Liberal Democrats called on the prime minister to reform Northern Irelands abortion law.

With no imminent prospect of the Stormont government being restored, the UK government would in theory have the power to reform Northern Irelands abortion laws unilaterally. Senior Whitehall officials have been taking major decisions on behalf of the region since power-sharing collapsed in January 2017.

Dawn Butler, Labours shadow minister for women and equalities, said: Fifty years ago, abortion was decriminalised under a Labour government, but women in Northern Ireland are still denied this fundamental right, having to travel to mainland UK or faced with potential prosecution and imprisonment at home.

This is an injustice. No woman in the UK should be denied access to a safe, legal abortion.

She added: Labours manifesto commits to working with the Northern Ireland assembly to bring about these changes and we want to see the assembly reconvened to make such important decisions, but, nearly 18 months on, women in Northern Ireland should not have to suffer in its absence.

We call on the government to support legislation to extend abortion rights to Northern Ireland. Labour is looking at legislative options for achieving this and urge the Conservatives to work with us to make it law.

Sir Vince Cable, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said: I believe in the principle of the right to choose. However, in Northern Ireland women have suffered from antiquated, inhumane criminalisation for far too long.

The position in Northern Ireland is now highly anomalous and action will now have to be taken. Theresa May cannot remain silent on this issue.

Since there is, effectively, direct rule from Westminster, the UK government has the responsibility. It can and should take the opportunity to deal with this issue properly.
American missionary Joshua Holt, a Utah man who travelled to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a woman he met online but soon found himself jailed and later branded the CIA's top spy in Latin America, has been welcomed home by his family and President Donald Trump.

Mr Holt, 26, and his wife, Thamara Caleno, arrived Saturday evening at Washington Dulles International Airport for a tearful reunion with his parents, Laurie and Jason Holt. A few hours later, Mr Trump welcomed them to the White House.

Those two years, they were a very, very, very difficult two years, said an emotional Joshua Holt, sitting next to Mr Trump in the Oval Office. Not really the great vacation that I was looking for. ... I'm just so grateful for what you guys have done.

Mr Trump said: It's amazing that you were able to take it ... that was a tough situation.

Their release came one day after Senator Bob Corker, a Republican from Tennessee, held a surprise meeting in Caracas with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the Trump administration says runs a dictatorship and just won re-election in a sham vote.

Laurie Holt thanked Mr Trump and the legislators responsible for her son's safe return, adding: I also want to say thank you to President Maduro for releasing Josh and letting him come home.

Mr Trump, in a tweet, described Holt as a hostage. The US contended Joshua Holt was held on trumped-up charges.

Months of secret, backchannel talks between an aide to Mr Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and close allies of Mr Maduro preceded their return. Yet Mr Holt's release had seemed unlikely even a week ago.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Joining Trump in the Oval Office were Mr Corker, Utah Senators Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee, and Utah Representative Mia Love, all Republicans.

The White House learned from Mr Corker on Friday of Mr Holt's impending release, according to a US official who has closely followed Holt's plight and spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the private talks.

Mr Holt and his wife were reunited at the Caracas airport with her daughter from a previous relationship, and all three boarded a chartered flight to Washington. We are on our way home, Mr Corker tweeted.

When he departed the Caracas airport earlier, Mr Holt told The Associated Press that the ordeal had left him exhausted.

 Venezuela prison riot: Utah Mormon missionary says he has spent two years behind bars and appeals for help

Venezuela's communications minister, Jorge Rodriguez, said their release was a goodwill gesture that followed months of dialogue between the Maduro government and US legislators.

We're praying that this type of gesture ... will allow us to strengthen what we've always sought: dialogue, harmony, respect for our independence and respect for our sovereignty, he said.

Mr Holt set out for the South American country in June 2016 to marry a woman he met online while looking for Spanish-speaking Mormons who could help him improve his Spanish. He had planned to spend several months in Caracas that summer with his new wife and her two daughters, to secure their visas so they could move with him to the US

Instead, the couple was arrested that June 30 at her family's apartment in a government housing complex on the outskirts of Caracas. Authorities accused him of stockpiling an assault rifle and grenades and suggested that his case was linked to other unspecified US attempts to undermine Mr Maduro's rule amid deep economic and political turbulence.

They were held in a notorious Caracas prison, run by the secret police, that also is home to dozens of top Maduro opponents jailed during the past few years of political unrest in the country. Their trial was set to begin this month after repeated delays that led the Trump administration to question the motives for his detention.

Until Mr Trump's tweet on Saturday, the US had stopped short of publicly calling Holt a hostage.

Mr Holt's release looked unlikely a week ago, when he appeared in a clandestinely shot video railing against the Maduro government and saying his life was threatened in a prison riot. In retaliation, socialist party boss Diosdado Cabello, a powerful Maduro ally, said on state television that Holt was the CIA's top spy in Latin America.

The White House Press Secretary, Sarah Sanders said in a statement on Saturday night that US policy towards Venezuela was not changing even while thanking the government for releasing the Holts. The statement also called the recent elections illegitimate and urged the release of all political prisoners.

The Trump administration has threatened crippling oil sanctions on Venezuela in the wake of Mr Maduro's decision to go forward with the presidential election last week.

Mr Corker was seen live on state TV on Friday shaking hands with Mr Maduro and being greeted by first lady Cilia Flores as he entered the presidential palace. Mr Corker left an hour later; neither the senator nor the president made any statements.

In a statement, the Holt family said, We thank you for your collaboration during this time of anguish. We ask that you allow us to meet with our son and his wife before giving any interviews and statements. We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle.

Associated Press
A retired secondary school English teacher has corrected a letter she received from US president Donald Trump and sent it back to the White House.

Yvonne Mason, who lives in Atlanta and was a teacher for 17 years, said the letter would have barely passed and corrected its numerous grammatical errors.

This included 11 examples of incorrect capitalisation of words such as president and state.

If it had been written in middle school, Id give it a C or C-plus. If it had been written in high school, Id give it a D, Ms Mason told South Carolinas Greenville News.

She chose not to attach a grade to the corrected letter, which included Mr Trumps signature, and posted back to the White House.

Ms Mason argued the note  which was a reply to a note she had written about the Valentines Day school shooting in Florida which left 17 dead  was stylistically appalling.

She acknowledged the letter was likely to have been penned by a staff member rather than the president himself.

When you get letters from the highest level of government, you expect them to be at least mechanically correct, she said.

The teacher, who taught English at Hughes Middle School and Mauldin High School in Greenville for almost two decades before retiring last year, compared the billionaire property developers letter to those sent by the states Republican Senator Lindsey Graham.

She said: Lindsey Graham, or his people, writes exquisite letters. I give him credit for that. They are far more on-topic. I understand the nature of form letters, but Grahams are written as if theyre addressing your particular concern.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Ms Mason said the White House response did not address her request specifically.

In her original letter, she urged Mr Trump to individually meet with the families who lost loved ones at the Stoneman Douglas High School massacre. The world leader previously held a listening session with student survivors of mass shootings, their parents and teachers in the State Dining Room at the White House.

The Trump administration has been frequently mocked for its grammatical mistakes. The president has become famed for firing off rambling, inflammatory tweets  which include misspellings, typos and other linguistic errors  to his 52 million followers in the early hours.

Typos penned by Mr Trump on Twitter include the famous covfefe, misspelling President Obamas name as Barrack, rediculous and politicons.

The White House has also issued error-prone news releases despite Mr Trump bragging during his campaign for president that he has the best words.
Donald Trump has said he "truly believes North Korea has brilliant potential" as diplomats from US met Pyongyang officials to prepare for his upcoming meeting with leader Kim Jong-un.

The North "will be a great economic and financial Nation one day", the US president tweeted on Sunday night, adding: " Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!"

The border visit by diplomats comes despite Mr Trump having cancelled the historic summit just days ago. The lead US negotiator, former US ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim, arrived in the border village of Panmunjom alongside Allison Hooker, the White House National Security Councils Korea expert. The pair met with Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister.

South Korean president Moon Jae-in said he and Mr Kim had agreed that the 12 June summit should be held successfully, while the State Department said it continue[d] to prepare for the encounter.

Mr Moon noted the North Korean leader had again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

For its part, North Korean state-run media said Mr Kim had expressed a fixed will to meet Mr Trump.

Mr Moon also acknowledged during a news conference in Seoul that Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what denuclearisation means and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

 Explosive demolition at North Korea nuclear test site

The tensions of the past weeks, spurred by joint US-South Korea military exercises taking place in the region, appear to have eased somewhat. Mr Trump said earlier in the weekend that things were moving along nicely ahead of the summit he had just cancelled in a letter citing North Koreas open hostility in recent statements.

He noted in the letter that the withdrawal from the Singapore meeting was for the good of both parties, but to the detriment of the world.

The state-run Korean Central News Agency said afterwards that Pyongyangt would not beg for the summit to happen and would not unilaterally denuclearise.

US vice president Mike Pence had warned the stand-off may end like Libya if Mr Kim did not make a deal  echoing comments by national security adviser John Bolton regarding the Libyan model, which had angered the North Koreans.

The example of Libya has long been cited by North Korea as one of the reasons for it to hold onto its nuclear bombs, with leader Muammar Gaddafi having been ousted and killed after he renounced the atomic weapons. Pyongyang called Mr Pences remarks ignorant and stupid.

 Mike Pompeo meets Kim Jong-un in North Korea

And it called the ongoing military drills, which included F-16 fighter jets, a rehearsal for [an] invasion of the North and a provocation amid warming inter-Korean ties and cancelled scheduled peace talks with its peninsular neighbour.

Ri Son Gwon, chairman of North Koreas Committee for the Peaceful Reunification, also called the South Korean government ignorant and incompetent.

That was just weeks after Mr Kim and Mr Moon participated in a historic and opulent ceremony during which they signed the Panmunjom Declaration.

The signing took place in the neutral Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) between the two Koreas and committed both leaders to moving towards an official peace declaration  a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

Pyongyang has also expressed its displeasure with Mr Bolton. He clashed with North Korean authorities when he worked in the administration of former President George W Bush and it seems they have not forgotten it.

Mr Kim said the country has repugnance towards Mr Bolton, particularly after the advisor suggested the president approach the upcoming summit as the US did with Libya in 2004.

North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Show all 21 1 /21 North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Pukguksong-2 missile - 2 May 2017 A solid-fuel "Pukguksong-2" missile lifts off during its launch test in North Korea on May 22, 2017. They said that it was examining operational plans for attacking Guam, an angry reaction to UN punishment for previous North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile tests and a US suggestion about preparations for possible preventive attacks to stop the North's nuclear weapons program. Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Hwasong-12 -16 September 2017 North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un inspecting a launching drill of the medium-and-long range strategic ballistic rocket Hwasong-12 at an undisclosed location. Kim vowed to complete North Korea's nuclear force despite sanctions, saying the final goal of his country's weapons development is "equilibrium of real force" with the United States, state media reported on September 16, 2017. AFP/Getty Images North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Donald Trump address South Korean assembly - 7 November 2017 President Donald Trump talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-In during their joint press conference at the presidential Blue House on November 7, 2017 in Seoul.Trump was the first US President to address the South Korean National Assembly since President Clinton in 1993. He addressed Kim Jong Un warning him to not underestimate the US and that for talks to materialize then Pyongyang would need to take steps into denuclearization. Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Demilitarized Zone Haean-Myeon, is a small military town near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and border between North and South Korea, in Gangwon province. The zone is a strip of land running across the Korean Peninsula and was created after the 'Korean Armistice Agreement'. Any negotiations between the two countries tend to take place in this zone. AFP/Getty Images North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Declared state sponsor of terrorism by Trump - 20 November 2017 President Donald Trump speaks to the media during a cabinet meeting at the White House on November 20, 2017, where he officially designated North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. North Korea had previously been on the list, however was removed in 2008. Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile - 29 November 2017 The North Korean government launches it's Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile at an undisclosed location in North Korea on November 29, 2017. It is supposedly capable of reaching all parts of the US. Korean Central News Agency via AP North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile - 29 November 2017 North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un celebrating the launch of the Hwasong-15 missile on November 29, 2017. AFP/Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Kim Jong-Un New Year's speech - 1 January 2018 North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un delivering his New Year's speech. He vowed North Korea would mass-produce nuclear warheads and missiles in a defiant New Year message on January 1 suggesting he would continue to accelerate a rogue weapons programme that has stoked international tensions. Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Intercontinental ballistic missile ice sculpture - 1 January 2018 Fireworks are seen above the Taedong River during New Year celebrations as visitors pose for a photo in front of an ice sculpture of an intercontinental ballistic missile at the Pyongyang Ice Sculpture Festival in Kim Il Sung Square in North Korea on 1 January, 2018. REUTERS North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures US-South Korean military drills postponed - 4 January 2018 South Korean President Moon Jae-in talks with US President Donald Trump on January 4, 2018 in Seoul. South Korea and US agreed to delay the annual "Foal Eagle" military drills until after the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games in an effort to "de-conflict" the Games and "focus on ensuring the security" of the event. South Korean Presidential Blue House via Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures North and South Korea have first official talks in over two years - 9 January 2018 Vehicles transporting the South Korean delegation, led by South Korean Unification Ministrer Cho Myoung-Gyon, drive past a checkpoint on the road connecting South and North Korea at the Unification Bridge, near the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating them both on January 9, 2018 in Paju. They began their first official face-to-face talks in two years. Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures North and South Korea have first official talks in over two years - 9 January 2018 Members of the South Korea delegation (R) shake hands with members of the North Korean delegation (L) during their meeting at the border truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) dividing the two Koreas on January 9, 2018. They focused on the forthcoming Winter Olympics after months of tensions over Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme. AFP/Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Foreign Ministers Meeting on Security and Stability on the Korean Peninsula - 16 January 2018 Foreign Ministers from twenty countries from North and South America, Asia, and Europe pose for a photo at the Vancouver Foreign Ministers Meeting on Security and Stability on the Korean Peninsula, in Vancouver on January 16, 2018. The US urged an escalation in pressure on North Korea over its nuclear missile program, despite a more cautious tone from key US ally South Korea. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, co-hosted the event with Canada's foreign minister Chrystia Freeland, and called for North Korean ships to be intercepted and for new punitive measures to be implemented every time Pyongyang tests new weapons. AFP/Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures North Korea and South Korea to march together at Winter Olympics - 20 January 2018 PyeongChang 2018 Olympics President Lee Hee-beom, North Korea's Sports Minister and Olympic Committee president Kim Il Guk, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach, South Korean Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Do Jong-hwan and South Korea's National Olympic Committee President Lee Kee-heung join their hands as they pose during a signing ceremony at the Olympic Museum on January 20, 2018 in Lausanne. North Korea will send 22 athletes to the Winter Games in the South. The two nations will also march together at the opening ceremony. AFP/Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Anti-North Korea activists protest delegation arrival - 22 January 2018 Anti-North Korea activists burn a portrait of leader Kim Jong-Un during a rally Seoul Station as a North Korean delegation arrived to check out performance venues for the Winter Olympics on January 22, 2018. Protesters led by the Korean Patriots Party gathered and complained that the talks to encourage North Korea's participation is stealing the spotlight from their country to the benefit of the regime. Donga Daily via Getty North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Panmunjom - 7 February 2018 South Korean soldiers stand guard at the border village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between South and North Korea on February 7, 2018. In a sign of thawing bilateral ties, North Korea today announced that Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, will attend the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games. Getty Images North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures North Korean ferry arrives in South Korea - 6 February 2018 North Korean ferry Mangyongbong-92 carrying a 140-strong orchestra approaches a port in Donghae, South Korea, February 6, 2018. REUTERS North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Anti-North Korea protest - 6 February 2018 A member of a conservative civic group tears a portrait of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during an anti-North Korea protest as the North Korean ferry Mangyongbong-92 carrying a 140-strong orchestra approached. REUTERS North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures North Korea at the athletes village - 8 February 2018 A North Korean flag is seen hanging on a building at the Winter Olympics athletes village in Gangneung, South Korea. REUTERS North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Olympic Welcome ceremony - 8 February 2018 Democratic People's Republic of Korea Vice Sports Minister Won Gil-woo receives a gift from mayor of the Olympic Village Kim Ki-hoon during the welcome ceremony ahead of the PyeongChang 2018 Games at the Olympic Village on 8 February, 2018 in South Korea. Getty Images North Korea  South Korea relations: in pictures Mike Pence meets Moon Jae-in - 8 February 2018 US Vice President Mike Pence shakes hands with South Korean President Moon Jae-in before their meeting at the presidential office in Seoul, South Korea on 8 February, 2018. REUTERS

The back-and-forth between Mr Trump and Mr Kim holding the meeting is another sign of a relationship characterised by diplomatic drama.

The pair routinely traded barbs in 2017  Mr Trump referring to Mr Kim as rocket man and the North Korean leader calling the president a dotard  as the US president repeatedly hinted that military action would be the only way to stop North Koreas nuclear ambitions.

Pyongyang threatened the Pacific Ocean US territory of Guam, Alaska, Hawaii, and even the west coast of the continental US with its intercontinental ballistic missile tests and development.

Last autumn, Mr Trump said he would unleash fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which this world has never seen before and totally destroy North Korea.

The United Nations then passed strict sanctions on North Korea including oil and gas, textiles, seafood, and financial transactions. Unlike a number of previous efforts at sanctions one of Mr Kims few allies, China, said it would implement them.

But, by the time the February 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea came around, the two leaders reached a detente of sorts. The thaw continued to the point where Mr Trump felt able to accept an invitation to meet Mr Kim on the spur of the moment, during a visit to Washington by South Korean diplomats.

The decision, made in March, took even his own administration by surprise.
Austrias chancellor has said EU border guards should be allowed to patrol parts of North Africa to stop refugees and migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.

Austria will take over the European Councils rotating presidency in July for six months, meaning it will be able to set the agenda of EU summits, push forward EU legislation and chair and organise meetings.

Sebastian Kurz told German weekly Welt am Sonntag that the EUs border protection agency, Frontex, should should have a mandate to act in third countries, with the permission of their governments, to end smugglers dirty business model and prevent smugglers boats setting off on the dangerous route across the Mediterranean.

Recommended EU to step up fight against migrants when Austria takes charge

EU border agents should stop illegal migrants on the external borders, tend to them, and then ideally send them immediately back to their home country or transit country, he said.

Frontex, which is headquartered in Warsaw, Poland, is currently restricted to patrolling the border of the Schengen area.

The European Commission, currently chaired by Bulgaria, announced in May that it planned to employ an additional 10,000 Frontex border guards by 2027. Mr Kurz told the German newspaper he supported the policy, but said the recruitment drive needed to happen much faster.

The chancellor has previously vowed to step up EU efforts against migrants when his coalition administration assumes control of the council and has scheduled an EU summit in September focused on the fight against illegal migration.

Mr Kurz become chancellor after elections in October 2017 in which his OVP party won 31 per cent of the vote. He was joined in government by the FPO, a far-right party which won 26 per cent. Both parties took a hardline approach to immigration on the campaign trail.

The coalition unveiled plans last year to introduce sanctions for immigrants who keep their own culture and refuse to integrate into Austrian culture. It has also pledged to speed up deportations and halve undocumented migration.

In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea Show all 7 1 /7 In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea A baby being taken on to MSF's Bourbon Argos ship from a boat carrying 130 migrants and refugees Lizzie Dearden In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea A refugee boat carrying 101 people being rescued by MSF's Bourbon Argos Lizzie Dearden In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea A refugee boat carrying 101 people being rescued by MSF's Bourbon Argos all images by Lizzie Dearden In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea A baby among refugees on a boat carrying 185 people off the coast of Libya Lizzie Dearden In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea Migrants and refugees sleeping after being rescued by MSF's Bourbon Argos ship Lizzie Dearden In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea A crew from MSF's Bourbon Argos ship rescuing a boat carrying 130 migrants and refugees off the coast of Libya, at sunrise Lizzie Dearden In pictures: A day of refugee rescues in the Mediterranean Sea A woman in a stretcher being lifted onto MSF's Bourbon Argos ship from a boat carrying 130 migrants and refugees off the coast of Libya Lizzie Dearden

Tens of thousands of migrants and refugees attempt to reach southern European countries each year by crossing the Mediterranean in smugglers boats. Most of the boats are unfit for open water and thousands drown.

Spains maritime rescue service said on Sunday afternoon it has rescued 366 migrants attempting the dangerous crossing of the Mediterranean Sea this weekend.

The UN says 636 migrants have died crossing the Mediterranean so far this year. A total of 22,439 migrants reached European shores, with 4,409 arriving in Spain, through the first four months of 2018.

Additional reporting by the Associated Press
A large fire at one of Europes most popular amusement parks forced the evacuation of up to 25,000 visitors.

Seven firefighters were injured tackling the blaze at Europa-Park in the town of Rust in southwest Germany on Saturday night.

The fire started in a storage building before spreading through parts of the Dutch and Scandinavian-themed areas.

Video footage captured by witnesses showed a huge cloud of black smoke billowing from the park as the flames destroyed the Pirates of Batavia boat ride.

Other photographs showed the burning wreckage of buildings in the Scandinavian section.

Despite the damage, most of the park reopened at 9am on Sunday morning and police confirmed no members of the public or employees were injured in the blaze.

The cause of the fire is still unclear and the investigation is ongoing, said the Offenburg Police in a statement.

Through the smooth cooperation of the various rescue workers and the park staff, as well as the impeccable behaviour of the park visitors, managed a quick clearance of the park and up to 25,000 visitors.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

The rescue operation involved around 500 members of the emergency services including 250 firefighters.

All seven of those who were injured in the blaze have been discharged from hospital after medical treatment for smoke inhalation.

Michael Mack, chief executive of Europa-Park, said on Twitter that it had been a sad day and thanked the emergency services and staff.

The park said on its website that several attractions remained closed, including the Panorama Railway, the monorail, fjord rafting and the jungle raft trip.

Europa-Park attracted around 5.7 million visitors last year, making it Europes second-most popular amusement park after Disneyland Paris.
Two-thirds of voters in Ireland have backed a historic change in the countrys abortion laws, deciding overwhelmingly to repeal the eighth amendment to its constitution 35 years after it was brought into force.

Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar said the referendum result marked the day Ireland stepped out from under the last of our shadows and into the light, and he hailed the vote as a quiet revolution.

His government is expected to introduce legislation allowing terminations in some circumstances by the end of the year, now that the amendment giving unborn children an equal right to life with women has been quashed.

We are not a divided country, the result is resounding and it gives us as a government the mandate that we need now to bring forward the legislation as soon as possible and to secure its passage, Mr Varadkar said.

Yes campaigners in Dublin chanted we made history as the result was announced  66.4 per cent of voters having backed repeal. The crowd at Dublin Castle also chanted the name of Savita Hallappanavar, who died in 2012 after doctors refused a termination.

Recommended Yes officially triumphs in Ireland abortion repeal referendum

Among those celebrating were cousins Fiona McEvoy, Rachel Jones and Aidan Brophy. Like many Yes voters, who were quietly confident, they said they had believed in the electorate all along.

Theres a huge sense of relief and a sense of pride that our small country has proved itself to be as compassionate as we knew it was, Ms McEvoy said. So much has changed around Irelands attitudes to sex and morality and religion, and people dont adhere to that anymore.

We made our own decisions now, Ms Jones added. We dont listen to the church. Most Irish people trust women now more than they trust archaic laws.

The pro-life cause was defeated in all Irelands constituencies bar Donegal, where No came out ahead with 51.87 per cent of ballots. The final tally across Ireland was 1,429,981 Yes votes to 723,632 No votes, returning officer Barry Ryan announced shortly after 6pm on Saturday.

Ministers now plan to allow terminations up to the 12th week of pregnancy without restriction, and in cases where there is a risk of life to the mother or a fatal foetal abnormality.

Health minister Simon Harris, who oversaw the new proposals, has fought to defend them in the face of No campaigners who felt it was too extreme, and soft voters who appeared at times uncertain about the 12-week limit.

I think today was a very important day for women, he told The Independent, but I also think it was a very important day for our country. I think its a resounding endorsement that Irish people want to be able to care for their own women in a compassionate way. I think weve found that a lot of people in their hearts and their minds knew what they believed, but hadnt had a chance to air it.

The silent people, the people who kept their views to themselves, clearly in their heart of hearts knew that this was the right thing to do.

The two-to-one margin mirrored the result by which the eighth amendment was passed more than three decades ago.

Sixty-seven per cent of Irish voters backed the restriction in 1983, meaning that for more than three decades women requiring a termination have been forced to travel abroad, or to carry their pregnancies to term, including in cases where it was believed their foetuses would not survive after birth.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

The landmark repeal follows the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Ireland in 2015, when 62 per cent of people supported allowing the unions, and marks another step in the countrys social liberalisation  and the waning influence of the Catholic Church.

Such a wide margin of victory for the Yes campaign  though slightly less huge than predicted by exit polls on Friday  came as a surprise following a sometimes volatile six-week campaign that led many observers to expect a close result.

Calling the referendum paid off for Mr Varadkar, who strongly backed repeal, and his his Fine Gael party. But in opposition, Fianna Fail are in disarray.

Their voters appear to have been split almost down the middle on this issue, and leader Michael Martin came under fire for dithering on his position.

Sinn Fein, whose new leader Mary Lou McDonald decided immediately upon taking charge that her party would back a Yes vote, also appeared to have gained from its position.

When Ms McDonald arrived to hear the result on Saturday she was greeted with applause. Women gathered to hug her, shake her hand and thank her.

I dont share the view of some of the others that because this was a matter of conscience that you dont as a party take a considered, collective position. This is about womens health, she told The Independent.

Yet a full third of the country voted No. While campaigners for the anti-abortion cause were visible on the streets on Friday, once it became apparent that Yes had won, a celebratory atmosphere set in, and No voters were a rare find.

Leaving a hotel on the outskirts of the city, one woman told The Independent the powerful story behind her No vote. I think the legislation goes too far  its a blank canvas, she said, shaking her head.

I first gave birth at 35. I was in an abusive relationship, but I still cherished that child. I have a sister who had a baby as a result of rape, and shes in her 30s now, and we love her. She has children of her own now. Im scared that children like these wont be born in the future. Im scared about how far its going to go.

That future was on the minds of many who voted, but its direction has been determined by those who voted Yes.

Sitting in the forecourt of Dublin Castle with her three-year-old daughter Esme, Jessica Hutchins said: I felt it was important for me to bring my daughter. Its a moment Ill tell her about when she grows up. I brought her to vote with me yesterday too, part of why I voted was for her.

I was 19 when I found myself facing a crisis pregnancy and I was misinformed about the Eighth, the 29-year-old said. I didnt know it could stop me getting adequate healthcare if I was in trouble.

In the end, I had a miscarriage, but I went on to have my daughter and looking forward, I want more children. And when my daughter grows up, if she faces a crisis pregnancy, I sure as hell wont let anything stand in the way of her getting the help she needs.

Attention has now turned to Northern Ireland, where abortion is still tightly restricted. Hundreds of women cross the Irish Sea to England every year to access the procedure.

Ms McDonald held up a banner with the words The North is next during celebrations on Saturday, while international development secretary Penny Mordaunt tweeted following the release of Fridays exit polls: A historic & great day for Ireland, & a hopeful one for Northern Ireland. That hope must be met. #HomeToVote stories are a powerful and moving testimony as to why this had to happen and that understanding & empathy exists between generations. #trustwomen.
Italys political future has grown more uncertain as the president refused to approve a cabinet minister and the countrys prime minister-in-waiting failed to form the continents first populist government.

After emerging from the Quirinal presidential palace, prime minister-designate Giuseppe Conte did not say why he could not form what would have been Western Europes first populist coalition.

But Italian President Sergio Mattarella told the nation minutes later he had refused to accept the nominee the eurosceptic League and 5-Star Movement parties had put forward for the key economic ministry.

Recommended Five things to look out for that could further impact the eurozone

Financial markets tumbled last week on fears the mooted coalition would unleash a spending splurge and increase Italys already huge debt mountain, which is equivalent to more than 1.3 times the nations domestic output. Looking to allay investor concerns, Mr Mattarella vetoed on Sunday the parties choice of 81-year-old economist Paolo Savona as economic chief because he has been a vocal critic of Italy remaining in the euro.

League party leader Matteo Salvini in recent days had virtually given an ultimatum over the economy minister pick to Mr Mattarella, whose duties as head of state include sanctioning a new cabinet. Mr Salvini told right-wing supporters he had refused to submit to a presidential veto of Mr Savona.

Five-Star Movement leader Luigi Di Maio, whose party won the most seats at an inconclusive 4 March vote, demanded that parliament impeach Mr Mattarella and raised the spectre of political turmoil in the euro zones third biggest economy as a result.

 Barriers installed in Venice, Italy ahead of day of segregation of tourists and residents

The 4 March election had failed to produce a party with enough support to govern single-handedly. Mr Salvini and fellow eurosceptic Mr Di Maio agreed this month to join their rival forces in a coalition to break the political impasse.

With neither of them willing to back the other as prime minister, however, they ended up tapping political novice Mr Conte. The law professor at the University of Florence is a 5-Star Movement supporter.

A presidential palace official, Ugo Zampetti, told reporters on Sunday night that Mr Conte has given back the mandate Mr Mattarella had given him four days earlier to try to form a government.

The economy ministry always constitutes an immediate message of trust or alarm for financial markets, Mr Mattarella said, adding that he had asked for someone who was not supporting a position expressed more than once that could probably, or in fact inevitably, provoke Italys exit from the euro.

Mr Mattarella said he was considering political party leaders requests for another election and would announce his next move in the [coming] hours.

World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty

Anticipating Mr Mattarellas decision, Mr Salvini said: Were not a free country. Weve got limited sovereignty. Mr Di Maio also scathingly criticised Mr Mattarellas veto of Mr Savona as incomprehensible. This is not a free democracy, Mr Di Maio said.

The 5-Star Movement is the largest party in the new parliament but remains far short of having an absolute majority. Italys outgoing economy minister Pier Carlo Padoan said in a TV interview on Sunday that the real problem is not Mr Savona, whom he described as having a good background for the post.

Mr Padoan said the real problem was having a populist government. He said it is a clearly unsustainable platform that doesnt rule out a Plan B: that is, in the face of European pressures, one must leave Europe.

Mr Mattarella had also summoned Carlo Cottarelli, a former senior director at the International Monetary Fund (IMF), for talks on Monday. Mr Cottarelli would be a calming choice for the financial markets, but any technocrat administration would likely only be a short-term solution because the majority of parliamentarians have said they would not support such a government.

If he failed to win parliamentary backing, Mr Cotarelli would stay in office in a caretaker capacity ahead of elections that would most likely be held in September or October.
Israels parliament is to consider a law banning the photographing or filming of soldiers, in what critics claim is a dangerous attempt to undermine scrutiny of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).

Under the proposed legislation, entitled the Prohibition against photographing and documenting IDF Soldiers, those found photographing troops with the intention of undermining the spirit of the army can be punished by up to 10 years in prison.

Anyone who filmed, photographed, and/or recorded soldiers in the course of their duties, with the intention of undermining the spirit of IDF soldiers and residents of Israel, shall be liable to five years imprisonment, says the bill, proposed by Robert Ilatov, a member of the Knesset and the chairman of the right-wing nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party.

Anyone intending to harm state security will be sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.

The proposal is being discussed in the wake of the deadliest day in the Gaza Strip since the 2014 war. Medical officials said least 60 Palestinians were killed and thousands wounded on 14 May when Israeli troops fired at demonstrators protesting Israeli occupation.

Explanatory notes accompanying Mr Ilatovs bill, which is reportedly supported by Defence Minister Avigdor Liberman, say: For many years now, the state of Israel has witnessed a worrying phenomenon of documentation of IDF soldiers.

Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Show all 37 1 /37 Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinian mourners carry the dead body of Mukhtar Ebu Hamas, 25, killed by Israeli forces in Gaza on 14 May Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian woman flashes a victory sign during a protest near the border fence AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Israeli soldiers guard on top of a watch tower along the Israel-Gaza border AP Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinian demonstrators react to fired tear gas Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinian demonstrators run for cover Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures US President's daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Senior White House Advisor Jared Kushner arrive for the controversial inauguration of the US embassy in Jerusalem. The United States moved its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem after months of global outcry, Palestinian anger and exuberant praise from Israelis over President Donald Trump's decision tossing aside decades of precedent. AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinians carry a demonstrator injured during clashes AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman speaks during the dedication ceremony of the new US embassy in Jerusalem Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian man walks in the smoke billowing from burning tyres AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu waves as he arrives ahead of the dedication ceremony of the new US embassy in Jerusalem. Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinian protesters lying on the floor during clashes Rex Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinian protesters burn tires AP Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his wife Sara, Senior White House Advisor Jared Kushner, US President's daughter Ivanka Trump, US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and US ambassador to Israel David Friedman attend the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem. AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian man assists a wounded protestor AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian man holding his national flag walks in the smoke billowing from burning tyres AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Ivanka Trump unveil an inauguration plaque during the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinians carry a protester injured AFP/Getty Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Ivanka Trump and US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin stand next to the dedication plaque at the US embassy in Jerusalem Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian demonstrator uses a sling to hurl stones at Israeli troops during a protest against U.S. embassy Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A female Palestinian demonstrator stands amidst smoke Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Ivanka Trump attends the opening ceremony of the new US embassy in Jerusalem AP Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinian medics and protesters evacuate a wounded protester AP Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures An Israeli soldier aims his weapon at Palestinian demonstrators Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Gazans carry an injured protestor Rex Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Protestors gather to demonstrate Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures An Israeli soldier fires tear gas at demonstrators Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian demonstrator poses with a slingshot Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Protestors carry tires Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A demonstrator kicks a burning tire Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Palestinians congregate prior to their demonstration against the US moving their embassy to Jerusalem Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Female Palestinian demonstrators react to tear gas fired by Israeli troops Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian demonstrator reacts Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian man throws leaflets dropped by the Israeli military during a protest against the US embassy move to Jerusalem and ahead of the 70th anniversary of Nakba, at the Israel-Gaza border, east of Gaza City Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A boy holds a Palestinian flag as he stands amidst smoke Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian demonstrator tries to put out a fire caused by objects dropped from Israeli drones during a protest against the US embassy move to Jerusalem and ahead of the 70th anniversary of Nakba, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip Reuters Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures A Palestinian demonstrator with a slingshot REUTERS Gazans protest as US embassy moves to Jerusalem  in pictures Protesters look up at falling tear gas cannisters dropped by an Israeli drone AFP/Getty

This is done through video and stills and audio recordings by anti-Israel and pro-Palestinian organisations such as BTselem, MachsomWatch women [who monitor soldiers behaviour at checkpoints], Breaking the Silence and various BDS organisations. In many cases, the organisations spend whole days near the IDF soldiers waiting impatiently for activities that can be biased and tendentious  and through them they can be disgraced.

The notes continue: Documentation is usually done while interfering with IDF soldiers ongoing operational activities, sometimes even shouting accusations and insults against them. Most of these organisations are supported by associations and governments with a clear anti-Israeli agenda, which use these tendencies to harm the State of Israel and its security.

Its time to put an end to this absurdity, and its inconceivable that every leftist operative or organisation supported by foreign entities will have free access to document IDF soldiers unhindered while carrying out their duties.

We have a responsibility to provide IDF soldiers with optimal conditions for carrying out their duties, without having to worry about a leftist or organisation who might publish their picture to shame and disgrace them.

Recommended Israeli soldier who was filmed killing wounded Palestinian is freed

An editorial in Israeli newspaper Haaretz on Sunday condemned the bill, calling it dangerous and saying its aim was to to silence criticism of the army, and in particular to prevent human rights organisations from documenting the Israeli armys actions in the territories.

The proposed legislation not only attempted to block reporting that undermined the spirit of the army and Israeli residents, the editorial said, but would impose a blanket ban on recording the actions of soldiers.

The immediate result of such a prohibition is serious harm to the possibility of protecting human rights and overseeing the armys activity.

The bill does serious harm to freedom of the press and the publics right to know. The public has a right to know what the reality is and especially what the peoples army; is doing in its name and on its behalf.

 Palestinian man shot by Israeli soldier as he lies on the ground

The violence in Gaza has tapered off since 14 May but there are still sporadic flare-ups. At least 113 Palestinians have been killed since border protests began on 30 March, which demand the right of return for Palestinian refugees and their descendants to land and homes lost to Israel during its founding in a 1948 war.

Gaza has been controlled since 2007 by the Islamist group Hamas. Israel has blamed the group for provoking the violence.

Video footage and photographs showing the actions of Israeli soldiers have often become the source of high-profile investigations into their conduct.

In perhaps the most prominent among these in recent years, Elor Azaria was sentenced to a year and a half in prison for fatally shooting a Palestinian assailant in the head as he lay immobilised on the ground in 2016, only for the sentence to be cut by a third in March. He was freed earlier this month.
After a day of delays, diversions and cancellations at Stansted airport, thousands of travellers will wake up on Monday morning far from where they were hoping to be.

Thunderstorms and lightning strikes in the early hours of Sunday damaged equipment essential for pumping fuel to the aircraft stands.

The problem meant that the aircraft lined up for the first wave of flights, which normally starts just before 6am, were unable to refuel.

On one of the busiest days in the year, inbound aircraft were ordered to divert to Luton, Southend and East Midlands because there was no room on stands at Stansted.

The majority of problems were on Ryanair, which has its main base at the Essex airport and is by far the biggest operator there.

By 9am Ryanair had started cancelling flights  initially the return legs of aircraft that had been diverted.

The first cancellation was a departure to Barcelona at 8.15am. But the inbound aircraft diverted to Luton and returned empty to Spain.

About 180 passengers were told to collect their baggage and re-book their trips. Many of them joined a queue which extended all the way back to International Arrivals, including Joanne Hickey from Ruislip, northwest London. She had arrived at Stansted with her family at 6am for the flight.

Its half-term  we need to get out today, she said. Not very happy.

Tens of thousands of passengers have been left stranded at Stansted airport (Simon Calder/Independent.co.uk)

A spokesperson for Ryanair said: A number of flights have regrettably been cancelled at Stansted airport this morning due to an earlier airport fuelling system failure, caused by a lightning strike.

All affected customers are being contacted and advised of their options of a full refund, a free transfer on to the next available flight or a free transfer on to an alternative routing.

We apologise to all customers affected by these disruptions, which are entirely beyond our control.

As delays built, cancellations increased. By Sunday evening, around 100 departures and arrivals had been grounded, affecting more than 15,000 passengers. Finding alternative flights is likely to prove difficult on many routes, with very few spare seats available.

Many more flights were severely delayed, with a Jet2 flight to Tenerife operating nearly 10 hours late. The inbound passengers were expected to arrive in the early hours of Monday morning, rather than on Sunday afternoon.

Jet2 also cancelled a round trip to the Greek island of Rhodes and another to Nice; easyJets afternoon round trip to Amsterdam was grounded.

One outbound British Airways flight departed for Ibiza but flew only 30 miles to Southend to obtain enough fuel for the trip to the Mediterranean. However, it still arrived over three hours late on the Spanish island.

Stansted airport told travellers: Due to an earlier lightning strike, the aircraft fuelling system was unavailable for a period this morning.

Engineers have been on site and have now restored the system, however flights may still be subject to diversion, delay or cancellation.

We apologise for the inconvenience and advise all passengers to check with their airlines for their latest flight updates.

UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 1 October 2021 A driver talks to members of the media after passing his HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) driving test at National Driving Centre in Croydon, south London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 30 September 2021 The centrepiece One Thousand Springs by Japanese artist Chiharu Shiota is seen ahead of the beginning of the Japan Festival, a celebration of the countrys plants, art and culture running from 2-31 October, at Kew Gardens in London PA UK news in pictures 29 September 2021 The family of Betty Campbell unveil the bronze sculpture of her during the unveiling of the statue in Central Square, Cardiff, of Betty Campbell, Wales' first black headteacher PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2021 A sign referring to the lack of fuel is placed at the entrance to a petrol station in London AP UK news in pictures 27 September 2021 Police officers detain a protester from Insulate Britain occupying a roundabout leading from the M25 motorway to Heathrow Airport in London PA UK news in pictures 26 September 2021 Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer watches the Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur match at The Font pub in Brighton PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2021 Scottish pro-independence supporters hold a march and rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK news in pictures 24 September 2021 Police officers remove two protesters from the top of a tanker, as Insulate Britain block the A20 in Kent, which provides access to the Port of Dover in Kent. The environmental activists have moved location after been banned from campaigning on the M25 motorway in London PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2021 Gabriella, the seven year old daughter of imprisoned British-Iranian Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, joins in a game on a giant snakes and ladders board in Parliament Square, to show the ups and downs of her mothers case to mark the 2,000 days she has been detained in Iran AP UK news in pictures 22 September 2021 A new sign hangs on the Millicent Fawcett statue after it was altered by CrackTheCrises coalition activists to highlight the climate crisis as a feminist struggle in Parliament Square in London EPA UK news in pictures 21 September 2021 Gabriella Diment prepares a monumental bronze patinated fibreglass wall sculpture depicting household cavalry soldiers on horseback which is expected to be sold for 12,000-18,000 when it goes up for auction at Summers Place Auctions in Billinghurst, Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2021 Florist Judith Blacklock puts the finishing touches to a floral carousel installation in Halkin Arcade, which she has designed with Neill Strain for the Belgravia in Bloom festival, running from September 20-26, in London PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2021 Bubbles surround Manchester Uniteds Cristiano Ronaldo before the match against West Ham at London Stadium Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 18 September 2021 Children take part in the Settrington Cup Pedal Car Race as motoring enthusiasts attend the Goodwood Revival, a three-day historic car racing festival in Goodwood, Chichester, Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2021 Hugo, 7, from London rides past a 4x7 metre rainbow arch, made entirely of recycled aluminium cans, which has been installed by recycling initiative 'Every Can Counts', in partnership with The City of London Corporation in front of St Paul's Cathedral in London, to encourage members of the public to recycle their drinks cans ahead of recycling week, which starts on 20 September PA UK news in pictures 16 September 2021 Sheikeh MOhammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, leader of Abu Dhabi, leaves Downing Street after meeting with Boris Johnson PA UK news in pictures 15 September 2021 Children pose by ice sculptures depicting people collecting water by charity Water Aid to show the fragility of water and the threat posed by climate change in London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 14 September 2021 Heavy rain covers the A149 near Kings Lynn in Norfolk PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2021 Luke Jerram's 'Museum of the Moon' at Durham Cathedral PA UK news in pictures 12 September 2021 Inspirational young fundraiser Tobias Weller crosses the finish line, near his home in Sheffield, as he completes his latest epic feat where he swam and triked his way to the end of his awesome year-long Ironman Challenge. This is the third challenge Tobias, who has cerebral palsy and autism, has completed, raising more than 150,000 for his school and Sheffield Children Hospitals charity PA UK news in pictures 11 September 2021 British player Emma Raducanu, holds up the US Open championship trophy winning the women's singles final of the US Open in New York AP UK news in pictures 10 September 2021 People paddle board during a misty morning in Ullswater, the second largest lake in the Lake District, Cumbria PA UK news in pictures 9 September 2021 Troops from Wiltshire based 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during final inspection at Wellington Barracks in London, ahead of providing troops for the Queens Guard PA UK news in pictures 8 September 2021 Workers cross London Bridge during the morning rush hour in London Reuters UK news in pictures Mixing it up: Painting it up press view in London A gallery employee poses for photographers next to a painting entitled Prairie by British artist, Louise Giovanelli during the exhibition 'Mixing it up: Painting it up' at the Hayward Gallery in London EPA UK news in pictures 6 September 2021 Traders in the Ring at the London Metal Exchange, in the City of London, after open-outcry trading returned for the first time since March 2020, when the Ring was temporarily closed due to the pandemic PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2021 People enjoy the warm weather on Sandbanks beach, Poole PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2021 Demonstrators from Animal Rebellion and Nature Rebellion protest in Trafalgar Square in London. PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2021 South Africa's Ntando Mahlangu (centre) wins the Men's 200 metres T61 Final ahead of second placed Great Britain's Richard Whitehead at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2021 A young common seal on the beach at Horsey Gap in Norfolk, as hundreds of pregnant grey seals come ashore ready for the start of the pupping season. PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2021 Goldfinches fighting over food in a garden in Strensham, Worcestershire PA UK news in pictures 31 August 2021 Gold Medallist Sarah Storey of Britain celebrates on the podium Reuters UK news in pictures 30 August 2021 Extinction Rebellion protesters hold a a tea party on Tower Bridge in London EPA UK news in pictures 29 August 2021 A police office tussles with a demonstrator on Cromwell Road outside the Natural History Museum during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion in London PA UK news in pictures 28 August 2021 Members of the British armed forces 16 Air Assault Brigade walk to the air terminal after disembarking a Royal Airforce Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire POOL/AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 27 August 2021 Fabio Quartararo crashes during a MotoGP practice session at the British Grand Prix, Silverstone Circuit Action Images via Reuters UK news in pictures 26 August 2021 An Extinction Rebellion activist holds a placard in a fountain surrounded by police officers, during a protest next to Buckingham Palace in London Reuters UK news in pictures 25 August 2021 Gold Medallist Great Britains cyclist, Sarah Storey, celebrates after winning the Womens C5 3000m Individual Pursuit Final at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. It was her 15th Paralympic gold Reuters UK news in pictures 24 August 2021 A demonstrator dressed as bee during a protest by members of Extinction Rebellion on Whitehall, in central London PA UK news in pictures 23 August 2021 Former interpreters for the British forces in Afghanistan demonstrate outside the Home Office in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 22 August 2021 Police officers form a line in front of the entrance to the Guildhall, London, where protesters have climbed onto a ledge above the entrance during an Extinction Rebellion stage a protest PA UK news in pictures 21 August 2021 People take part in a demonstration in solidarity with people of Afghanistan, in London Reuters UK news in pictures 20 August 2021 People zip wire across the sea from Bournemouth pier towards the beach. PA UK news in pictures 19 August 2021 Supporters of Geronimo the alpaca gather outside Shepherds Close Farm in Wooton Under Edge, Gloucestershire PA UK news in pictures 18 August 2021 Former Afghan interpreters and veterans hold a demonstration outside Downing Street, calling for support and protection for Afghan interpreters and their families PA UK news in pictures 17 August 2021 Military personnel board the RAF Airbus A400M at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where evacuation flights from Afghanistan have been landing Reuters UK news in pictures 16 August 2021 Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer takes part in a minute's silence at Wolverhampton police station for the victims of the Plymouth mass shooting last week PA UK news in pictures 15 August 2021 2Storm, a ten-metre tall puppet of a mythical goddess of the sea created by Edinburgh-based visual theatre company Vision Mechanics, makes its way alongside the seafront at North Berwick, East Lothian, during a performance at the Fringe By The Sea festival PA UK news in pictures 14 August 2021 A woman and two young girls look at floral tributes in Plymouth where six people, including the offender, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident PA UK news in pictures 13 August 2021 Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth where six people, including the shooter, died of gunshot wounds in a firearms incident on Thursday evening PA

Passengers whose flights are cancelled, diverted or severely delayed are entitled to meals and, if necessary, accommodation at the airlines expense until they can reach their destination.

If Ryanair cannot arrange an alternative flight on the day of cancellation or the following day, it will pay for tickets on other airlines.

Over the Easter bank holiday two months ago, 20,000 passengers were stranded when a car park shuttle bus caught fire outside the terminal in Stansted. After the resulting evacuation, dozens of flights were cancelled.

Sundays chaos at Stansted took place a year to the day after the failure of British Airways IT system, causing hundreds of cancellations at Heathrow and Gatwick over the bank holiday weekend.
My earliest memory involves two things: the colour blue and a very specific type of pain. I learnt early and against my will to associate masculinity and all things boy with pain, humiliation and confusion.

There were few positive male role models in my life and most of the men I knew were dangerous. If it wasnt the family members and babysitter who sexually assaulted me, it was the distant family members, who I knew were also rapists. Very few teenagers had to worry about the potential of their grandfather kidnapping them at gunpoint.

Needless to say, by the time I was nearing 18, I was terrified of men.

Im non-binary or agender, which means I dont identify with any gender. When it came time for me to pick a university I didnt really understand my identity, and I chose an all-womens university, in all honesty, because of that fear.

Date rape statistics floated over my head like a cloud. I wasnt concerned with a feminist education  in fact, I believed I might be outcast in my feminist school for having bare legs and armpits because my hormone disorder causes me to have little body hair. I assumed that I would be mocked for wanting to have children  but that was better to me than potentially being raped.

I understand why so many women and non-binary people are scared of men. But, what bothers me about this discussion between trans communities and those who campaign against trans rights is that, no matter who wins, its patriarchy that benefits in the end.

 Author Juno Roche debunks common misconception about transgender people

If trans people are not safe in public spaces, patriarchy wins. Violence against trans people can be difficult to monitor and track due to reporting or misgendering, but Stonewalls LGBT in Britain report on hate crime confirms that 41 per cent of trans people versus 16 per cent of LGB people have experienced hate crime. In gender segregated spaces where individuals have to pass, this can be even riskier.

If feminists who say women have a genuine fear of men in public spaces are discounted and ignored, patriarchy also wins. According to the Ministry of Justice report in 2013, approximately 85,000 women are raped and 400,000 women are sexually assaulted in England and Wales every year and, according to the Map of Gaps report in 2007, most women in the UK do not have access to a rape crisis centre.

Patriarchy wins because the burden is placed on women to protect themselves and no one is asking the real question: why do women have so many good reasons to be afraid of men?

In the Channel 4 documentary, What Makes a Woman?, I was struck by the conversations presenter Munroe Bergdorf had with those who called themselves feminists. There was fear expressed that men might take advantage of the changes to the Gender Recognition Act to sneak into places like bathrooms and changing rooms to assault people or make them feel uncomfortable.

Understandably, many people have responded by claiming this scenario very unlikely  and for the most part I agree. After all, if men want to sneak into womens bathrooms, they already can  providing trans people with a less inaccessible way to have their identity recognised doesnt change this.

Recommended Republican candidate films herself lashing out at transgender woman

A simple Google search of sexual assault bathroom reveals a multitude of cases of men entering female toilets without a need for disguise.

One jogger in Seattle fought back against a man who followed her into a toilet and later dismissed people trying to use her story to argue for laws discriminating against trans people. Its very clear that gender segregation doesnt stop or prevent assault.

If going to a womens university taught me anything its that there is a difference between what I call a female space and a womens space.

A female space is a space in society that is segregated by gender which has nothing to do with empowerment and, if anything, is about keeping women in their place.

Much of public life prior to the Victorian era was male-only. When women were allowed to venture outside of the home, the concept of separate spheres which dominated the Victorian era was erected and everything from salons to libraries to even lines at the bank were segregated by gender.

This died out but, in a paper on sex segregation, Terry Kogan clarifies that there was a last ditch effort in the 19th century to legislate requirements for segregated bathrooms in workplaces for women, not as an attempt to protect women from rape, but to force women back into the home away from the dangerous public realm.

Segregating bathrooms was never about the threat men represented to women, and more about maintaining the purity and virtue of true womanhood.

After graduating from my all-womens university, I went into a workplace in the US South where I only worked around women and yet, with the Jesus statue in the lobby, it felt nothing like my all-womens university. A female space is not a womens space.

A womens space is a space devoted to empowering women. My university wasnt perfect, but without it, I think it would have taken me much longer to understand myself as an agender person.

Recommended The Genderquake debate did more harm than good for transgender people

I went to an all-womens university because I was scared of rape, but while I was there I gained an insight that was inherently more valuable. Our campus still had men on it  professors and visitors. It made me realise very quickly that my idea of segregating myself in society wasnt going to prevent me from rape and that, ultimately, avoiding rape should not be mine nor anyone elses responsibility. The only person responsible for changing their actions is the would-be rapist.

Having a feminist education made me understand that not only was I wrong to assume Id be instantly derided for having bare armpits, but that there was no one universal concept of womanhood that applied to everyone. Thats why I believe in the importance of womens spaces  and that trans women should be a part of them. Thats why I also believe that all spaces should promote empowerment for women.

The feminism I had been first exposed to emphasised the physicality of womanhood  and my not producing oestrogen (or testosterone) meant that my journey was very different. I assumed I didnt feel any connection to the identity of woman because I wasnt a real one. I needed hormone therapy to start my puberty and breast growth. I had no first time period story. My disability already made me feel inhuman and these feminist theories made me feel inadequate.

Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Show all 10 1 /10 Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Brazilian women march in Sao Paulo during a protest following the gang rape of a 16-year-old girl Rex Features Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl There have been calls for protests to end to what campaigners call Brazil's 'culture of rape' after the attack Rex Features Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl An online campaign has been set up in response to the crime, using the hashtag #EstuproNuncaMais, meaning 'rape never again' Rex Features Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl The 16-year-old victim was attacked in a poor neighbourhood in the west of the city on 21 May 2016 Rex Features Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Two of the attackers posted pictures and video on Twitter of the assault, which has shocked the country Rex Features Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Brazilian women protest in front of the Candelaria Church in Rio de Janeiro AFP/Getty Images Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Seven men have been charged in connection with the attack AFP/Getty Images Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Women's underwear and photos from Brazilian photographer Marcio Freitas displayed on Copacabana beach during a protest by non-governmental organization Rio de Paz (Rio of Peace) against rape and violence against women REUTERS Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Women's underwear smeared with paint is seen during a protest against rape and violence against women in Brasilia, Brazil REUTERS Feminist protests demand end to violence against women in Brazil after gang rape of teenage girl Demonstrators attend a protest against rape and violence against women in Brasilia, Brazil REUTERS

My all-womens university helped me come to an understanding that, if everyone assigned as female at birth lived the same womanhood, there would not be women who were anti-feminist. Without that, I would have never dug deeper and found an identity that actually fit me.

Women have a legitimate reason to be afraid of men  and transgender women know and understand this too.

But just because a society separates bathrooms doesnt mean it cares about protecting women. If this society wanted to protect women, it would actually convict rapists and figures released in 2015 showed the UK has the lowest conviction rate for rapes in Europe.

Although segregated bathrooms were never designed to protect anything other than a traditional, sexist view of womanhood, they can offer what looks like a small respite.

If everything came to pass as some of the people in Bergdorfs documentary would like it and no man could enter a womens toilet (legally anyway), all they would have to do is just wait outside. As much as their fear is legitimate, if the burden is constantly placed on womens shoulders to protect themselves from rape using segregation, it is nothing more than victim blaming disguised as progress.

If we lived in a society where sexual assault was taken seriously, if we lived in a society where domestic violence was taken seriously, if we lived in a society where femmephobic violence was taken seriously and if we lived in a society where misogyny was not rampant, then no one would have to hide in a bathroom.

No one should settle for historically sexist practices that only provide the illusion of safety. Trans people and their rights to self-identification should not be held hostage by people who commit sexual assault  those people should actually be held accountable for what they have done.

If you have been affected by sexual violence, the NHS Rape Crisis offers specialist support for women and girls; and the The Survivors Trust supports people of any gender. If you have been affected by the issues discussed in this article, you can contact the following organisations for support:

mind.org.uk

beateatingdisorders.org.uk

nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth

mentalhealth.org.uk

samaritans.org
Are journalists innumerate? Elon Musk and Steven Pinker think so. A range of news outlets reported earlier this month that one of Musks Tesla cars, in autopilot mode, had crashed into the back of a fire engine in Utah at 60mph.

The vehicles technology apparently failed to prevent the collision, as it ought to have. Thankfully, no one was seriously hurt, although the driver broke her ankle.

Musk took to Twitter to vent his frustration at the fact that what he regarded as a minor traffic accident had been considered news.

Its super messed up that a Tesla crash resulting in a broken ankle is front page news and the 40,000 people who died in US auto accidents alone in past year get almost no coverage, he grumbled.

The popular Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker has endorsed this, tweeting: Elon Musk is absolutely right about this. Journalistic innumeracy is damaging in many ways, and editors should put an end to it.

In some ways Musk is talking nonsense, and self-serving nonsense at that. Driverless vehicle technology is consistently presented as one of the revolutionary innovations that will transform our lives in the coming decades, not least by Elon Musk.

But will it be a beneficial revolution? Putting ones life in the hands of a fast-moving machine feels risky and people naturally want to know if it is actually safe or not. That will be determined by the reliability of the kind of sensors used in Teslas autopilot technology. The idea that the media were excited by the Utah crash because of a broken ankle rather than the apparent failure of the technology is obtuseness squared from Musk.

And then theres the self-serving element. Tesla, and Musks other projects, as my colleague Jim Moore has pointed out, have benefited hugely from obsessive media coverage and a lot of hype. To lap up all that free publicity when its commercially useful but then to complain about the massive media interest when its more problematic is hypocrisy squared.

As for news values, as the old saying goes dog bites man is not a news story, whereas man bites dog is. Those multiple daily car crashes are not news precisely because, as Musk notes, they are so common. Crashes by driverless (or autopilot) cars are news because they are so rare.

Recommended Elon Musk attacks press for negative coverage after a run of stories

All that said, the thrust of the Musk/Pinker critique has some validity. The medias obsession with man bites dog stories can distort the publics sense of risk. As the behavioural economist and psychologist Daniel Kahneman has documented, we are all prone to recall what comes easily to mind (the availability heuristic) when making judgements about danger.

Because plane crashes get far more coverage in the media than car crashes, many people wrongly assume air travel is far more hazardous than driving. In fact, the fatal accident rate for large commercial airlines is one for every 16 million flights. Last year was the safest for aviation on record.

The automobile, on the other hand, as John Thornhill of the Financial Times has pointed out, has a claim to be the most deadly human invention ever, with around 1.25 million road traffic deaths a year globally. Musk is right to suggest that this is the correct statistical context in which to view the development  and indeed the risks  of driverless technology.

The media has a proven ability to create availability cascades, creating panics and scares based on not very much. Think of the News of the Worlds notorious name and shame paedophile campaign in 2003, which gave the impression that there was a child molester on every street and prompted mobs to attack innocent people.

Consider Donald Trumps recent claim that London is like a war zone. Does media coverage of the recent spike in youth violence in the capital  in particular, the failure to put the deaths in the appropriate statistical context  help to stoke that kind of malevolent hysteria? Think of the recent ubiquitous claim that London has a higher murder rate than New York.

Loading....

Theres also reason to believe skewed media coverage tears at the social fabric. Surveys suggest British people think a fifth of the UK populations are Muslims, when the true figure is 5 per cent. We think a quarter of the population are immigrants, when the actual figure is around 14 per cent. Those grossly distorted perceptions are due to distorted media coverage  and not just from the shameless right-wing propaganda corp.

Pinker claims in his recent book, Enlightenment Now, that too little attention is given by the media to the major global health advances of recent decades, such as falls in childhood mortality and rising longevity, and that this omission contributes to an unwarranted sense of demoralisation. His overall case is overstated and flawed in some respects, but hes right to claim that a sense of balance is often lost.

Should Teslas Utah crash be considered news? Yes. Should journalists think more carefully about statistics and consider whether their news values in general are sound and genuinely serve the public interest? Also, yes.

Journalists on autopilot have done far more damage than Teslas.
Of all the realistic potential options, not only would a general election contest between Jeremy Corbyn and Jacob Rees-Mogg be the most engaging and entertaining, it is the contest this country needs.

For too long, legitimate political views have gone unrepresented. When Tony Blair brought his third-way politics to the Labour Party and, with them, occupied the middle ground of politics, those with a more socialist worldview found they had little voice.

Electoral pragmatism meant such views were suppressed wherever possible. The left of the party was no-platformed, overlooked, sometimes even mocked.

It went further. The Labour Party then did things few British socialists would countenance. Where they wanted no overseas military intervention, Blair went to war. Where they wanted equal economic opportunity, Gordon Brown presided over rampant corporate expansion, student debt and a boom in house prices that created a generation of people who now cant afford a home.

 Jacob Rees-Mogg: The 'reddest of red carpets' should be laid out for Trump's UK visit

The Labour Party was born in socialism. There are many people in this country who hold those socialist values dear. They must have a political voice. But they were, effectively, disenfranchised. This has led to anger and, in some cases, extremism.

Seeing the success of Tony Blair, and the unpopularity of Thatcherite politics in the 90s and early 00s, the Tories went on their own mission to occupy the middle. They needed to do this, they concluded, if they were to win an election and so we ended up with David Cameron and George Osborne.

Just like the socialists on the left of the Labour Party, those on the right of the Conservative Party were ignored, dismissed or smeared. Traditionalists who questioned gay marriage were backward. Activists were swivel-eyed loons. Eurosceptics were xenophobes and racists.

Like Brown before him, Osborne pursued economic policies which betrayed the traditional values of the Conservative Party. Professing austerity, he added over half a trillion pounds to the national debt (according to some measures he doubled it). The tax code doubled under his tenure (he set up the Office of Tax Simplification with opposite goal in mind).

Framed in equalitys name, his raised stamp duties brought the upper end of the housing market to a standstill, while help-to-buy propped up house prices at the lower end and became subsidy for building companies.

Recommended Jeremy Corbyn commits to abolishing House of Lords

No matter what your opinion of these measures, they are not in the low tax, small state, minimum economic intervention traditions of the Conservative Party. Osborne was more social democrat than Tory.

Unrepresented and ignored, on both sides, anger and frustration has grown to cacaphonic levels.

But in Jeremy Corbyn the left finally has its voice, and in Jacob Rees Mogg, so does the right. That is why both are so popular among their supporters. Whether you agree with them or not, these are politicians with conviction. Two leaders with clear and distinct political philosophies. Its time the voices they represent were heard.

Many of the issues that are dividing the country can be frankly discussed and debated  with such opposing views, how engaging these would be. Then the public can vote and democracy can decide. Im convinced that, with so much political anger in the UK at present, a proper debate followed by a democratic decision could resolve a great deal.

Where is Theresa Mays philosophy? What does she stand for? I struggle to understand because she seems incapable of offering any opinion on anything. That is not leadership. That is expediency. She has her soundbites, but they are as meaningless as the tropes of a motivational speaker.

Brexit, whatever you may think of it, saw the largest voter turn-out in British history with, in terms of numbers, the greatest majority. A leader standing for Brexit should have walked the last general election, but May blew it. That election, if nothing else, was a resounding rejection of centrist vapidity.

The country has had enough of insipid politicians who are more intent on power than anything else, who will base their policies on the findings of focus groups, whose words are determined by political expediency rather than principle. It wants  and badly needs  a leader who actually stands for something. The time has come for a proper election between left and right.

An election fought with genuinely different political ideologies at stake will engage the public in a way that no election fought over who best occupies the middle can. There wont be the usual voter apathy.

Whether left or right, statist or libertarian, voter or bystander, surely we can agree on this: in the next general election lets have the honourable member of the 19th century vs the honourable member of the 1970s. Thats what this country wants and needs.

Dominic Frisby is a financial writer. He is author of the books Bitcoin: the Future of Money? and Life After The State. Dominic also co-wrote the documentary Four Horsemen. He will be taking his Financial Gameshow to the Edinburgh Festival this August
In a bid to cement his already formidable man-of-the-people image, Jacob Rees-Mogg has shared his reasons for moving house.

The prominent backbencher, who reassuringly remains the favourite for next PM, has bought a residence within a four-minute stroll of Downing Street.

The Mail on Sunday sees this as a statement of intent, this precise bit of London SW1 being to Tory leadership plotting what Billingsgate is to fish.

But Rees-Mogg is not having a bit of it. Even before denying to Andew Marr that he wants to succeed Theresa May, whom he convincingly praised as the most impressive PM EVER, Moggy explained the purchase to the Mail on Sunday.

I bought it because I have six children, he told the paper of the 5m, five-storey property. My Mayfair house has three bedrooms for nine people [as if you could forget nanny], so reception rooms now have children in them.

The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Show all 8 1 /8 The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Post-Brexit immigration workers sorting radishes on a production line at a farm in Norfolk. One possible post-Brexit immigration scheme could struggle to channel workers towards less attractive roles - while another may heighten the risk of labour exploitation, a new report warns. PA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Customs union A key point in the negotiations remains Britain's access to, or withdrawal from, the EU customs union. Since the referendum there has been hot debate over the meaning of Brexit: would it entail a full withdrawal from the existing agreement, known as hard Brexit, or the soft version in which we would remain part of a common customs area for most goods, as Turkey does? No 10 has so far insisted that Brexit means Brexit and that Britain will be leaving the customs union, but may be inclined to change its position once the potential risks to the UKs economic outlook become clearer. Alamy The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Northern Ireland-Irish border Though progress was made last year, there has still been no solid agreement on whether there should be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. To ensure borderless travel on the island, the countries must be in regulatory alignment and therefore adhere to the same rules as the customs union. In December, the Conservative Partys coalition partners, the DUP, refused a draft agreement that would place the UK/EU border in the Irish Sea due to its potential to undermine the union. May has promised that would not be the case and has suggested that a specific solution would need to be found. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Transition period Despite protests from a small number of Conservative MPs, the Government and the EU are largely in agreement that a transitional period is needed after Brexit. The talks, however, have reached an impasse. Though May has agreed that the UK will continue to contribute to the EU budget until 2021, the PM wants to be able to select which laws made during this time the UK will have to adhere to. Chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said the UK must adopt all of the laws passed during the transition, without any input from British ministers or MEPs. EPA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Rights of EU citizens living the UK The Prime Minister has promised EU citizens already living in the UK the right to live and work here after Brexit, but the rights of those who arrive after Brexit day remains unclear. May insists that those who arrive during the transition period should not be allowed to stay, whereas the EU believe the cut-off point should be later. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Future trade agreement (with the EU) Despite this being a key issue in negotiations, the Government has yet to lay out exactly what it wants from a trade deal with the EU. Infighting within the Cabinet has prevented a solid position from being reached, with some MPs content that "no deal is better than a bad deal" while others rally behind single market access. The EU has already confirmed that access to the single market would be impossible without the UK remaining in the customs union. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Future trade agreements (internationally) The Government has already begun trying to woo foreign leaders into prospective trade agreements, with various high profile state visits to China, India and Canada for May, and the now infamous invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit London. However the UK cannot make trade agreements with another country while it is still a member of the EU, and the potential loss of trade with the world's major powers is a source of anxiety for the PM. The EU has said the UK cannot secure trade deals during the transition period. EPA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Financial services Banks in the UK will be hit hard regardless of the Brexit outcome. The EU has refused to give British banks passporting rights to trade within the EU, dashing hopes of a special City deal. However according to new reports Germany has suggested allowing trade on the condition that the UK continues paying into the EU budget even after the transition period. Getty

Isnt this typically the way with large broods? You cant move 10 yards through South Shields without overhearing someone in a Poundland say, Well miss the place, of course, but we had no choice. We thought wed muddle through, like, until we had the twins. Once we had to put bairns in reception rooms, well, there was nothing for it but to buy a 5m, five-storey townhouse in Westminster. I mean, you cant be entertaining in the upstairs drawing room with toys all over the floor, pet, now, can you?

It isnt known whether the Moggies had to sell the Mayfair place or mortgage the Somerset stately to fund the acquisition, though on balance probably not. The couples joint wealth is estimated at 100m, with Jacobs portion coming primarily from his 20 per cent stake in Somerset Capital Management, the investment fund he started which now handles about 7.5bn.

The fact that almost none of this money is invested in Britain might be a source of embarrassment to someone who expects the UK economy to flourish after Brexit. The fact that 217m is invested in Russian companies  two blacklisted by the US government; others in the hands of Putin cronies  might be another.

Yet as Moggy reminded Marr, the SCM fund is legally obliged to invest only in emerging markets, so it would be a breach of fiduciary duty to invest here.

Moggy isnt always as zealous about honouring financial duties. The boss man of the ultra-Brexiteer European Research Group believes the PM should renege on that agreed 40bn divorce payment to the EU. But thats an incredibly different type of financial obligation, so well pass hurriedly on.

Whatever SMG gets up to has nothing to do with Moggy, who told Marr he hasnt run it for years, hinting that he doesnt profit from it. You assume I make money from these investments. The clients make money.

How exceedingly true that is. Its also true that he recently declared a payment of 173,000 from SMC, and that last year he was paid some 20,000 a month for 30-35 hours of work.

But even if his aggregated yearly income came to about 400,000, that doesnt mean he was dishonest to suggest he doesnt make money  real money  from these investments. When the stamp duty on your new gaff runs to 700,000, it barely qualifies as piggy bank money.

Anyway, even if Moggy makes peanuts from questionable Russian firms, so what? Its at least nine weeks since he called on May to retaliate for the Salisbury poisonings by hitting Russia financially  and specifically, Russians with links to the Kremlin. So it would be absurdly pedantic to focus on ancient remarks made in a wholly different context.

It would also be a shame were his reputation, like his idols in the White House, besmirched by Russian-related fake news.

According to the Bank of England, Brexit has already cost every British family 900. Now more than ever, these families need a champion  and who feels their pain like Moggy, to whom 900 represents two post-tax hours working for the fund from which he made not a bean last year beyond that 400k and his share of any growth in its capital value?

Loading....

For those who revere his addiction to the simple truth, it was a brutal blow to hear him categorically deny to Marr that he wants to lead party and country. Not since Michael Gove offered to sign a similar declaration in his own blood has such a denial sounded so sincere.

If the bookies refusal to lengthen his odds suggests theyre less convinced, that is their business. Moggys business is championing the interests of struggling families, by setting an example that reception rooms must be freed from infants to fulfil their designated function.

Yet again, his authenticity shines through the murky political vista like sunlight penetrating dirt-grey sky. God willing he can be persuaded to overcome that crippling lack of ambition and set his sights on yet another new Westminster home.

It isnt just that Moggy sails serenely through the classic modern political test (who would you want to have a bottle of 2010 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild with down the pub?). Its the gleaming lack of hypocrisy.

If you cant trust a guy whose notion of punishing Russia financially is accepting pocket money emanating from investments in Russia  whose idea of honouring fiduciary duty is refusing to pay an agreed debt to Brussels  who the hell can you trust?
The Government's vacant-site levy is set to face legal challenges from disgruntled housebuilders after Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy appeared to accede in part to farmers' demands to remove them from the controversial measure.

The apparent climbdown sparked a call from the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) for equal treatment for builders unable to get bank financing to build houses but who are still liable to a levy set at 3pc - and 7pc next year - of the value of vacant land.

Industry sources predicted successful legal challenges would "totally undermine" the levy - a key government measure to tackle the housing crisis. Both farmers' and builders' representatives mounted lobbying campaigns ahead of this Friday's deadline for local authorities to inform landowners that land is on the vacant site register.

Murphy appeared to bow to farming lobby demands to stop at least 15 local authorities including farmland on their vacant site registers. "It is up to each local authority to decide which lands go on to its register. If farmland is in productive use, it should not be included," Murphy stated in the Dail.

CIF director general Tom Parlon told the Sunday Independent: "We anticipate that there will be challenges to the levy if it is applied as a blunt instrument. The CIF will continue to defend housebuilders that are affected, particularly smaller housebuilders who are disproportionately affected by this approach."

Parlon said that, while his organisation supported the concept, it was never the intention that it be applied where land was not financially viable to develop.

The housebuilding industry had noted the minister's comments, he said: "The CIF seek a similar assurance, that any lands that are in any form of productive use, should not be included in the Vacant Site Register by local authorities.

"Where viability of residential development is clearly an issue these lands should not be included."

Asked would Murphy remove land from the register if builders cannot get finance to develop the site, a Housing Department spokesman said: "The levy provisions are intended to be applied equally on owners of vacant underutilised sites irrespective of ability to generate bank finance with a view to incentivising the bringing of vacant sites into productive use at the earliest opportunity."

However, the spokesman added the levy "should not be immediately applied" where "there is insufficient local demand for the immediate provision of housing or where the site is not serviced by the necessary supporting infrastructure".
The United States has called at a meeting in Geneva for a reset of agricultural trade negotiations, rejecting calls from other states to push on with long-drawn-out talks on reform, a trade official said.

Traditional subsidisers such as the United States, Japan and the European Union have long resisted pressure to wean their farmers off handouts, while the United States has accused both China and India of paying far greater subsidies than allowed.

Farm talks reached a dead end last December when World Trade Organization (WTO) ministers met for their two-yearly conference in Buenos Aires but failed to achieve anything.

Five months on, negotiators met again at the WTOs agriculture committee this week but there were still wide divisions, according to a trade official who attended.

Agricultural exporters such as Australia and Brazil called for a restart of negotiations, with a plan to agree a concrete step forward at the next ministerial meeting in 2019 and comprehensive action at the 2021 gathering.

They warned in a statement last week that by 2030, nine big WTO members would be entitled to a combined $1 trillion in trade-distorting farm subsidies, creating risks for trade and food security.

Many WTO members called for a resumption of negotiations. Several, including China and India, said there was an existing mandate from previous ministerial meetings to discuss specific issues, giving a basis for continued talks.

But Japan said the failure of old proposals at last years ministerial meeting suggested that new proposals were needed.

The U.S. representative at the meeting rejected the idea of jumping into negotiations too soon, the trade official said.

The United States was looking at a reset of farm talks and played down the urgency of negotiations, and disagreed that it was necessary to set a clear timeline. The U.S. representative said more time was needed for reflection, according to the trade official.

The European Union called for stronger political will in the negotiations, but agreed with the U.S. point that there should not be any artificial deadlines for the talks.

Agriculture has been a quagmire for WTO negotiators ever since the global trading club was set up in 1995, proving a major obstacle for a comprehensive trade reform deal.
New online gift platform Clevergift is to announce major partnerships with a number of well-known global retailers ahead of its launch later this summer, it is understood.

The company, based in Dublin's Sandyford, has raised 10m in funding in recent times. It has developed a highly innovative way to allow online retailers to more successfully tap into the trillion dollar per annum global market for gifts.

Kealan Lennon, chief executive of Cleverbug, which has developed the platform after a four-year research and development programme, told the Sunday Independent that the company is aiming to surpass the 1bn mark in terms of revenue over the next five years.

Cleverbug already runs the successful online personalised greeting cards store Clevercards, from which the Clevergift platform has been developed.

The new platform, he said, was inspired by the potential he sees for it to capture a portion of the global gifting market.

The Clevergift platform allows retailers to add a new one-click button to their own online shops to enable shoppers to directly buy gifts for friends or family by simply entering the gift recipient's email address or mobile number.

Shoppers are directed into Clevergift's own platform. Once shoppers choose and pay for a gift the recipient receives an online "gift box" which displays the gift but also allows them to choose their own size, colour and style of clothing or other product. The recipient can then enter their own preferred delivery address and the gift is shipped by the retailer.

Clevergift also gives recipients the option to swap the gift for a voucher for the retailer if they prefer.

According to Lennon, this brings huge advantages to retailers because it can greatly reduce the amount of returned gifts they have to deal with.

The fact that the gift link is delivered immediately via email or text also greatly extends the deadline for online gift buying ahead of key dates such as Christmas and St Valentine's Day, allowing retailers to compete directly with Amazon's fast Prime service, he said.

"This solves some major problems for retailers who are currently having to deal with a very changed environment," said Lennon. "For gift-givers it also allows them to purchase gifts online right up to the day itself.

"At its heart, Clevergift is part of the fintech revolution. Call it a cryptocurrency if you will, but effectively what we do is embed a code in each product that allows us to transfer value anywhere in the world, which is very powerful."

In recent weeks the company has raised a further 1.5m tranche of cash ahead of its first major partnership announcement.

That brings the total amount raised to 10m, with the main backers including global investment firm Delta Partners and a number of high net worth individuals with backgrounds in the technology and retail sectors.
Representatives for hotel and pub owners have pushed the Government not to increase the minimum wage and to allow them to hire chefs from countries outside the EU.

The Irish Hotels Federation has met tourism minister Shane Ross on a number of occasions this year to ensure that he does not introduce measures improving workers' terms and conditions that will add to costs in the hospitality sector.

IHF chief executive Tim Fenn met Ross to tell him that the organisation believed that the Government should increase its focus on "social policy measures and interventions", as opposed to increasing the level of the national minimum wage to deal with standards of living that have been impacted by market failure, according to a record of the meeting.

Fenn told Ross that public policy in this area should consciously reflect the current and possible future negative direct and indirect economic impact of Brexit and that it should seek to support competitiveness whenever possible, rather than worsening it with wage increases.

On another occasion, Fenn met Ross in a bid to have a controversial labour agreement - a so-called joint labour committee - abolished and for no new employment regulation orders for hotels to be implemented.

The organisation has long argued that the JLC threatens jobs and growth in the sector because it drives up costs. Trade unions have countered that argument by pointing to the reduced Vat rate the sector enjoys even as prices in many establishments have tended to rise.

In a third meeting, Fenn asked Ross to remove a range of categories of chef from the Ineligible Categories of Employment List - which restricts the granting of work visas - in order to facilitate recruitment in an industry that has seen a huge boom in employment as the tourism sector has grown strongly on the back of the promotion of the Wild Atlantic Way and other initiatives.
Maximum Media, the media company behind Joe.ie and Her.ie, has embarked on a significant fundraising drive, the Sunday Independent understands.

The company is looking to raise funds to drive expansion in the UK, via the sale of a minority stake in the business.

A number of Irish and UK private-equity firms have expressed an interest and have been invited to make offers.

The company was founded by entrepreneur Niall McGarry. It has also been backed by former Munster and Ireland rugby star Jerry Flannery.

Maximum's audience has grown in recent years and has invested to grow its content offering in areas like podcasting and live streaming.

Its advertising model places an emphasis on working with companies and brands to create so-called "native advertising", whereby advertisers pay to tell their story via content rather than a traditional display ad.

In a 2015 interview with the Sunday Independent, McGarry claimed the firm had been "hounded" by private-equity firms looking to take a stake.

He also said that a buyout approach for the company had been rejected.

"We got offers last year of about 10m which I thought was a bit short," he said.
Triona Lillis of the Tweed Project at the WearingIrish showcase in New York. Photo: Katie Levine.

The inaugural WearingIrish showcase, a new platform for promoting Irish fashion created by Offaly woman Margaret Molloy, has brought ten Irish designers hoping to break into the US market to New York.

The three-day event, built around nine salons and panel discussions, resulted in intense networking, sales, client commissions and invitations to pursue retail conversations.

Valuable exposure came in Women's Wear Daily (WWD), the industry trade journal regarded as the 'bible of fashion', which reported on the ten designers: Aine, Alison Conneely, Blaithin Ennis, De Bruir, Inner Island, Jennifer Rothwell, Natalie B Coleman, Sands and Hall, The Tweed Project and Triona Design.

WWD chose to spotlight two designers for contemporary women's wear: Alison Conneely from Clifden, who uses Donegal tweed and Connemara lace in her designs, and Monaghan native Natalie B Coleman whose styles have strong silhouettes.

Dublin designer Jennifer Rothwell made a big impression on the visiting business women and diplomats, including Irish Ambassador to the United Nations Geraldine Byrne Nason at the mini trade show located at the midtown offices of the Bank of Ireland, one of the sponsors of the event.

Margaret Molloy is global chief marketing officer at Siegel+Gale and introduced the designers to retail experts, Harvard Business School alumni and the Top 50 Power Women in Irish American business circles.

"Promoting Ireland's fashion designers is a tangible and highly accessible way to demonstrate Ireland's creativity. My hope is that the WearingIrish platform will ignite a strategic conversation about Ireland's fashion design sector and mobilise meaningful actions to nurture it," said Molloy.

Frank Doroff, vice chairman of Bloomingdale's, said the store was "manic" about how many new things they can get into the store because people's tastes are changing and they want 'newness'.

Garvan de Bruir from Kildare went home delighted at the prospect of one of his leather handbags featuring in an upcoming edition of 'Oprah' magazine.
'He said that Emirates had a very good relationship with the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA), but that it needed new infrastructure.'

Enda Corneille, head of Emirates airlines in Ireland, has said that plans to increase the number of flights from two a day to three are on hold due to issues with Dublin Airport.

He said that Emirates had a very good relationship with the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA), but that it needed new infrastructure.

"There are a number of pain points already in T2," he said. "One of which is around the US customs. We believe that can be sorted through more intensive security technology to smooth people through.

"The other pain point, which also doesn't affect Emirates, is that 6am to 7.30 window in the morning where the short-haul carriers need to get the first wave out on time."

He expressed surprise that the chief executive of the DAA, Dalton Philips, feels that Dublin can accommodate almost double the number of passengers it currently carries.

Circle Oil founder eyes opportunities with Tunisia venture

John McKeon, co-founder of bust Circle Oil, has bought Circles Tunisian business via a new vehicle called Dunraven Resources.

McKeon, who is also looking to strike it rich in the Irish offshore with a company called Ardilaun Energy, is described as Dunravens founder on its website. Its CEO is Alex MacDonald, former boss of AIM-listed Anglo-African Oil & Gas.

In a recent presentation to investors the

company said it is intended that rapid progress be made towards production and income growth.

Tunisia is seen as an oil and gas growth opportunity. Despite its significant existing oil and gas infrastructure and variety of hydrocarbon habitats, the country is a net importer of hydrocarbons.

Growth will be achieved through a combination of organic development and strategic acquisitions, the presentation says.

McKeon was among the founders of Circle Oil, which was put into administration in the UK at the beginning of last year. He left an executive role at the company in 2008.
The world's largest oil exporter has made quite a policy swerve. Within six weeks, Saudi Arabia has gone from advocating higher prices to trying to stop the rally at $80 a barrel.

The U-turn scrambled the outlook for oil markets, hit the share prices of oil majors and shale producers and set up a diplomatic wrangle with other members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

What changed? The supply threats posed by the reimposition of US sanctions on Iran oil exports earlier this month and the quickening collapse of Venezuela's energy industry are both part of the answer, but they're secondary to Donald Trump, pictured. On April 20, the president took to Twitter to lambast the cartel's push for higher prices. "Looks like Opec is at it again," he tweeted. "Oil prices are artificially Very High!" Trump's intervention gave typically strident voice to a concern held more widely in the US and other consuming countries: oil's rally from less than $30 in early 2016 to more than $80 this month risked becoming a threat to global economic growth.

On Friday, Saudi Oil Minister Khalid Al-Falih responded, saying his country shared the "anxiety" of his customers. He then announced a shift in policy that all but gave a green light for a market sell-off, saying Opec and its allies were "likely" to boost output in the second half of the year.

"The tweet moved the Saudis," said Bob McNally, founder of consultant Rapidan Energy Group LLC in Washington and a former White House oil official. "The message was delivered loud and clear to Saudi Arabia."

After Al-Falih's comments, made following a meeting with his Russian counterpart in St Petersburg, Brent crude promptly dropped below $77 a barrel. The bullish tone of recent market chatter, increasingly punctuated with talk about oil prices climbing past $100, $150 and even $300, suddenly looks overdone.

It wasn't just the US. Other major buyers of Saudi crude also put pressure on Riyadh to change course, albeit a little more diplomatically than Trump. Dharmendra Pradhan, the Indian petroleum minister, said he rang Al-Falih and "expressed my concern about rising prices of crude oil".

Opec officials were at Jeddah's opulent Ritz-Carlton hotel on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast when Trump tweeted his views and they immediately saw it as a significant intervention. "We were in the meeting in Jeddah, when we read the tweet," Opec Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said on Friday. "I think I was prodded by his excellency Khalid Al-Falih that probably there was a need for us to respond," he said. "We in Opec always pride ourselves as friends of the United States."

Diplomats and oil officials in Opec countries were also worried about the potential revival in Washington of the so-called "No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels Act," which proposes making Opec subject to the Sherman anti-trust law, used more than a century ago to break up the oil empire of John Rockefeller.

The bill first gained prominence in 2007 when George W Bush was president and oil prices were flirting with $100 a barrel and made a comeback several years later under Barack Obama. While it was opposed by those presidents, the risk for Opec was that Trump "could break with his predecessors and support its passage," said McNally.

In a sign that oil prices were climbing, Washington's agenda as gasoline prices approached the $3 a gallon mark, last week a sub-committee in the US House of Representatives held a rare hearing on the Nopec act. Opec and its allies will gather in Vienna for a policy meeting on June 22 to hammer out a deal. While Al-Falih and Russia's Novak have indicated that output will most likely increase, the details - how many barrels from which countries - are still a question mark.

"In an environment of low inventories and rising geopolitical outages, raising some supply is prudent," said Amrita Sen, oil analyst at Energy Aspects Ltd. Oil producers are debating an increase ranging from 300,000 barrels a day at the low end, backed by Gulf producers including Saudi Arabia, and a larger increase of about 800,000 barrels a day favoured by Russia, a person familiar with matter said. "It's too early now to talk about some specific figure, we need to calculate it thoroughly," Novak said.

Even though Al-Falih's comments brought about an immediate price reaction - towards the end of Friday's session, Brent crude prices were down 3.3pc to $76.202 per barrel after a Reuters report said Saudi Arabia and Russia were in talks about raising oil production by one million barrels a day - there are still reasons for people to be bullish as traders await the impact of US sanctions against Iran and wider political tensions in the Middle East.

And with global oil demand growing strongly, hedge funds will shift their focus on diminishing global spare capacity as Opec returns barrels to the market. The US government estimates the cushion at just 1.34 million barrels a day next year, below the 1.4 million reached in 2008 when oil prices surged to nearly $150 a barrel.

In a letter to investors earlier this month, Pierre Andurand, the bullish oil hedge fund manager, warned that if Saudi Arabia needs to "offset production declines from Iran and Venezuela" global spare capacity would decline to perilous levels.

"Oil prices could potentially surge to record high levels to force demand destruction very quickly," he wrote.

Bloomberg
Regardless of your situation, we all have one thing in common. Each one of us is getting older. That ageing is usually accompanied by a change in our thinking, behaviours, interests, shape, dress, hair, health and most certainly our skin. I've worked with many beauty brands over the years and I have beauty therapists in my family. I regularly hear about the powerful impact that our skin has on how we look and feel about ourselves.

Our skin naturally rejuvenates when we sleep but work-load and stress negatively affects our sleep patterns. So if you've just studied yourself in the mirror, I have some good news for you!

Bellazza Clinic

For years, skincare was aimed principally at women. But men are now much more conscious of how they look. Consequently there is significant growth in skincare treatments for them. But it's not just about lotions and potions. More men now visit salons for a scrub-up.

Catering for women and men, Bellazza Clinic is based in Ranelagh in Dublin. Owned and managed by Sue Machesney, the business started out as a regular beauty salon. Over the years, Sue's knowledge and passion for skincare grew.

The clinic then developed a strong expertise and reputation specialising in reinvigorating the face and body with non-invasive anti-ageing treatments. "Ageing is not nice and I believe we all deserve to look the best we can for our age.

"When we do, we feel better. And the instant gratification that we get from a skin treatment is great for our state of mind too," says Sue.

A regular guest on TV, she has been a driving force in the industry, innovating and keeping up with the newest technologies. Bellazza was one of the first clinics in Ireland to introduce laser skin treatment and semi-permanent make-up.

Recent Challenges

For over 20 years, the business has been tremendously successful and continues to grow from strength to strength. But Sue herself has gone through quite a lot of change in her personal life.

Her family expanded with two children in recent years and that brings all the challenges of balancing work and home life.

Not only that, she lost both her parents in the last two years. Her mother in particular played a big part in her life, both at home and in the business.

Those life-changing events were also coupled with the passing of a birthday milestone that included the numbers four and zero.

Just like her clients, Sue has great empathy for all that goes with getting older. She knows what it takes to stay on top of that.

While the past few years have been personally tough for Sue, she continued to work through it all. She has now given herself a shake and is ready to reinvent herself and the business with a new focus for the future.

Change tips

There is a perpetual struggle in getting the balance right between family and business. Real life brings rollercoasters to all of us, professionally known as the 'sigmoid curve'. (Picture the letter 'S' on its side).

If we don't manage it effectively, the impact can show in the business with our colleagues and suppliers. Our customers too will notice it.

The trick is to anticipate and avoid the dip and to do whatever you can to get onto an upward swing. We can't always see that for ourselves and that's why it's important to listen to those around us that have our best interests at heart. Here is what Sue did.

1 Reconnect with wider market in an objective way

Sue listened to herself and close friends and family. She then took time away from the business for a few days just to think. She considered the changing lifestyle trends and the newest non-invasive technologies in the skincare market. That enabled her to identify real opportunities for the next few years. She also considered the threats in terms of new competition and other negative trends.

2 Identify your own strengths and weaknesses.

Against the backdrop of the opportunities and threats you have identified, consider what your strengths are. A good checklist to use is people, product/services, route to market, marketing, internal controls (such as costs, IT, systems etc.). Follow that with identifying your weaknesses, using the same checklist. Be honest and objective here. Challenge yourself.

3 Do a gap analysis and consider your options.

When you have prioritised your list of options, do a cost-benefit analysis on the ideas you favour most to help you to narrow the funnel.

4 Draw up an action plan.

Make a list of what needs to be done, by whom and by when.

Summary

When life presents challenges to us at home and in our business, it is easy and quite understandable to fall into a rut of complacency, procrastination and maybe even some self-doubt.

We see younger people flying around the place with 'digital this' and 'apps for that' and we wonder if we can ever catch up. That is totally within our control.

Arnold Schwarzenegger has successfully reinvented himself a number of times. Starting out in life as a body-builder, he went on to become an A-list actor in Hollywood. He reinvented himself again as the republican governor of California. More recently he has returned to acting again. Now we don't have to be so drastic or adventurous in how we re-invent ourselves or our business. But fast change is a reality of our new world, regardless of whether you are an employee or self-employed. From now on, reinvention every few years will be the new norm.

Alan O'Neill, The Change Agent. alanoneill.biz. Contact Alan if you'd like support with your business. Business advice questions for Alan can be sent to sundaybusiness@independent.ie

In association with RGON, specialists in Employee Engagement Surveys www.rgon.ie
For a man who's facing even stiffer competition in the coming fortnight, Enda Corneille is looking remarkably relaxed.

The head of Emirates in Ireland will be pitted against Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific going east, while across town, just hours after his Emirates briefing with this column, Hainan was trumpeting its new service from Dublin to Beijing. Throw in embedded local rivals Etihad, Qatar and then add Turkish, Air France KLM and the Nordic carriers and that's a lot of seats to be filled from Ireland to Asia-Pacific.

It's a boon for the business traveller, with a slew of conferences held in Dublin recently for companies eager to break through the bamboo curtain.

"If you asked anyone six years ago how many flights there could possibly be east from Ireland every day you wouldn't have said eight. You mightn't have even said one," Corneille told the Sunday Independent.

But he believes his carrier has advantages for the business traveller. One is a free limousine service in a 50km radius for business class and 70km for first. The other is connectivity. "Don't forget that the range of destinations is wide," he said. "Emirates would cover everything but if you look at Cathay and Hainan they're overflying India and not participating in the India market. They're barely participating in the Thai market. The battle will be Australia, there's no doubt. That's a market we know well - we have a lot of A380s on Australia and that's a real selling point for the customer."

He said that globally, Emirates recorded "good results for the year", with "stellar results from Ireland in a very competitive market". Load factors [passenger numbers] are at 80pc, and he added: "If I look out to the future over the next five or six months our advance bookings are eight to 10 points ahead of last year."

Expand Close Emirates boss Enda Corneille. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Emirates boss Enda Corneille.

But plans to increase frequency from double daily to three a day have been put on hold for now. Corneille explains that while the airline has a "terrific relationship" with Dublin Airport, the gateway is a victim of its own success. "There are a number of pain points already in T2. One of which is around the US customs. We believe that can be sorted through more intensive security technology to smooth people through. The other pain point, which also doesn't affect Emirates, is that 6-7.30 window in the morning where the short-haul carriers need to get the first wave out on time."

He expressed surprise that the chief executive of the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA), Dalton Philips, feels that Dublin can accommodate almost double its present number of passenger - rising to 55 million a year - on just two terminals, especially with a new runway planned.

"You only have to go to Dublin Airport on a Saturday in July or wait for your bag on December 23 to see what's going on. I've heard the 55 million figure and it's great, it's a testament to the economy and the country - but it won't be a pleasant experience unless the facilities and infrastructure are put in place."

He believes that a third terminal - or even a bolt-on extension to T1 or T2 - should be run by the DAA, and added: "We've always believed that a third terminal is a natural consequence of the second runway. The challenge for Emirates is that we're operating in Terminal 2 - we like it, believe it's utterly conducive to our product, our customers like it, but it's a busy place and the third flight we were looking to bring in would have probably run up against the busiest time, being early morning."

And he said airlines are always impatient for progress and any talk of bringing the super-jumbo A380 into Dublin isn't a runner for now: "We don't tend to stand still - if something is profitable we want to pile capacity in, so the oft-asked question about the 380, that's an infrastructure issue into Dublin... we need a double air bridge to be able to handle it. That would remove four current air bridges for six months - if your airport is already at peak you can see the issue.

"You don't see it in Dubai where we have 65 gates for 380s. Some of those were built before the aircraft arrived, so when the aircraft was delivered we were ready. In European airports - you see it at Heathrow as well - you see that lag between the infrastructure keeping up pace with the airlines' wish to grow."

But he says with infrastructure you have to take the long view: "I stood beside Michael O'Leary at the opening of Terminal 2 in 2010 and he was dressed in black in an undertaker's outfit and he had a cardboard coffin. And emblazoned on the outside of the coffin was 'Terminal 2 - the death of Irish tourism'. Now how funny is that now?"

For now, Irish business passengers just have the double-daily service, with Corneille insisting: "Aviation is not about vanity, it's not about how many planes we can operate a day. How many examples are there of airlines launching a route in a fanfare and closing it with a whimper? When we tend to open a route, the work that goes into it is intense and we don't tend to cancel routes."
For a guy who insists he has no political ambitions, Mark Zuckerberg has been spending a lot of time hanging out with politicians recently. Earlier this year it was the US Senate. This week it was European legislators. And it seems like the Facebook's CEO has well and truly mastered the dark art of avoiding answering difficult questions.

The MEPs threw a slew of humdingers at him. Belgium's Philippe Lamberts asked would Facebook allow all users to completely opt out of targeted advertising. There was no answer. Germany's Gabrielle Zimmer asked whether Facebook had moved on from being a 'hot or not' website and whether the culture of discrimination against women and sexism had changed. There was no answer.

Another German MEP, Jan Philipp Albrecht, wanted assurances that the data of European users will not be used or exchanged between the WhatsApp and Facebook. There were none.

Britain's Syed Kamall asked whether the company tracked data from non-Facebook users. The subject was abruptly changed.

Mind you, the format of the meeting session didn't help. Rather than a proper Q&A session, MEPs asked all of their questions for an hour, before Zuckerberg replied with 30 minutes of platitudes and generalities.

He did promise to follow up with written answers to the questions he didn't get to. But the difficult questions were ducked.

Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt - whose own questions also went unanswered - wasn't happy. "Today's pre-cooked format was inappropriate & ensured Zuckerberg could avoid our questions," he tweeted.

So what did Zuckerberg actually say?

Well, he reiterated Facebook's commitment to fighting fake news and hate speech. He also reminded everyone that artificial intelligence will be at the frontline of this battle. He said that the company had suspended more than 200 apps following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, but said that he expected to find others that had misused customer data.

He rejected the suggestion that his company was a monopoly, saying the average users rely on eight tools and apps for online communication. Similarly, he rejected that Facebook had a commercial monopoly, as it only accounts for 6pc of all global ad spend.

Convinced? Don't be. This may be a small percentage - but in absolute terms it's an eye-watering number. Facebook's ad revenue for the first quarter of 2018 was $11.97bn.

Zuckerberg also took the opportunity to remind the European politicians that Facebook supported plenty of jobs and businesses in Europe. Eighteen million European small businesses use Facebook's tools to reach customers. And Facebook offers them the ability to reach consumers with sophisticated marketing and advertising tools.

Almost half of these businesses have told Facebook that they are hiring more people as a result. Plus, it has 10,000 employees in Europe. And let's not forget the data centres it has in Sweden and Ireland, with another on the way in Denmark.

Bar the reminders of Facebook's contribution to European economies, it was all familiar turf. Anyone who tuned into the Senate commerce and judiciary committees in April would have felt a twinge of deja vu. So if he has nothing to say, why is Zuckerberg doing the political rounds?

Firstly, he seems to genuinely believe he's doing the right thing. "I believe deeply in what we're doing," he told the MEPs.

"And when we address these challenges, I know we'll look back and view helping people connect and giving more people a voice as a positive force here in Europe and around the world."

And thanks to that belief, Zuckerberg is taking a leaf out of Andy Warhol's book. He's turning up. You can criticise his appearances for being robotic, naive, evasive, or disingenuous, but he's showing some leadership by showing his face.

This is more than can be said for many other tech titans who should face similar questions from legislators.

But the politicians aren't the audience that really matters. Facebook's genius has always been in knowing that if you have the users you have everything. And while there have been some recent speed bumps, users still love Facebook. The company purged 583 million fake accounts recently; there was no impact on audience reach. The #deleteFacebook backlash never really grew legs. Time spent on Facebook has also gone up. Best of all, Facebook's share price is back up to pre-Cambridge Analytica levels. Maybe Zuckerberg is a businessman and not a politician after all.
Saoirse Ronan is going on holidays. "I'm off to Greece," she tells me, "and I'm really looking forward to it. It'll be nice to slow down."

She is, in fairness, due a break. Over the last 18 months or so she's made three major films back to back - Lady Bird, which you may have heard of, On Chesil Beach, which is out this week, and Mary Queen of Scots, a historical drama co-starring Margot Robbie which will be released in December.

She was still working on that film when Greta Gerwig called Saoirse to let her know that Lady Bird had gone down a bomb at the American festivals, and that her services would be required in an awards campaign. It became one of the most talked about movies of the year, winning wide acclaim and earning Saoirse an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe. And in the midst of the awards season madness she also hosted America's most iconic TV comedy show Saturday Night Live alongside U2.

In her new film, On Chesil Beach, you'll not be surprised to hear that she's excellent. It's based on a novel by Ian McEwan which the writer himself adapted, and he and Ronan go back a ways. She first met him on the set of Atonement, Joe Wright's 2007 film in which the actress shot to fame and earned her first Oscar nomination at the tender age of 12. McEwan described her performance in Atonement as "remarkable - she gives us thought processes right on screen, even before she speaks, and conveys so much with her eyes". Was the writer always keen on Saoirse starring in On Chesil Beach?

Expand Close Saoirse Ronan at the Oscars earlier this year, where she was nominated for Best Actress / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Saoirse Ronan at the Oscars earlier this year, where she was nominated for Best Actress

"He says he was!" she says with a laugh. "No, I think he was: I was too young when they first thought about doing it, and you know what films are like, they can take two years or they can take 10 to pull together, so I was about 16 when they first wanted to do it, and by the time it happened I was the right age. I said to Ian I was just sabotaging the film for all those years until I could do it!"

On Chesil Beach is set in the early 1960s, and Saoirse plays Florence Ponting, an Oxford graduate and talented classical musician who's just married an amiable but intense young man called Edward Mayhew (Billy Howle).

It's their wedding night, and the couple have gone to a fusty hotel on the Dorset coast. They're virgins, and after enduring the purgatory of a 'silver service' meal dolled out to them in their room by two supercilious waiters, Florence and Edward repair to the bed for what ought to be a magical moment. Instead, it's a nightmare: Florence seems terrified by the prospect of sexual intimacy, and flees the room in horror when poor Edward prematurely ejaculates. The film then wanders back and forth in time to explore their backgrounds, courtship, and what happened next.

The film's most compelling scenes are those excruciating moments in the bedroom, when the young couple flounder mortifyingly as they clumsily attempt to copulate. Was it hard to get inside the mind of a character from that prudish place and time?

"In a way, yes, because it's something that not as many people have an aversion to now, but I do think there's still the issue of a young person walking into that situation and not having a clue what they're doing. Maybe not a wedding night, but it was still her first time you know, and I don't think the fear around that has entirely gone away.

"With Billy's character, Edward, you can see that he feels emasculated, and full of shame. He's embarrassed, and Ian told us that Edward goes into that wedding night expecting it to be this like big, explosive, earth-shattering night of love-making, and it's just not that, and it probably isn't for most people first time. There was this massive amount of pressure being put on them to deliver, and I don't think that's changed all that much, you know."

Expand Close Starring role: Saoirse Ronan in 'Lady Bird' / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Starring role: Saoirse Ronan in 'Lady Bird'

Video of the Day

We love to give out about how bad foreigners are at Irish accents, but Irish actors haven't exactly covered themselves in glory any time they've attempted an English one. In On Chesil Beach, Saoirse's is extraordinarily good, and Florence's stifled, careful upper class accent seems to complement her sensual recessiveness perfectly.

"It's the first thing I think about always, how a person is going to sound, because it says so much about you: how you interact with people, how forward you are, how reserved. In this film, at that time, her accent was really telling, and it gave me something to hang on to at the start."

Saoirse went straight into Chesil Beach after Lady Bird, which must have been exhausting. "They actually overlapped," she says. "I had finished most of Lady Bird on a Saturday, then flew to London, went straight into rehearsals on Monday morning, rehearsed from Monday to Thursday, then Thursday night I flew back to New York, finished Lady Bird at like 5am on Friday morning, then I got back on a plane and I started On Chesil Beach on Monday. So it was a killer like for those first couple of weeks, it was brutal."

Did the success of Lady Bird take her by surprise?

"Oh yeah, we didn't expect it at all, not because we didn't think the film was good enough, but I think it was just partly that you don't ever expect that from a film that you're in - a tiny little film that you made for, like, no money.

"I was doing Mary Queen of Scots at the time, and they were taking Lady Bird to the Telluride Festival, and I couldn't go. And they just came back and said we're going to do an awards campaign because everyone really loves it, and I was kind of shocked. So then I ended up going straight into press for it, and did that for six months."

Expand Close Star power: Saoirse Ronan in On Chesil Beach / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Star power: Saoirse Ronan in On Chesil Beach

She first met Lady Bird's writer and director, Greta Gerwig, at the Toronto Film Festival a few years back, and Gerwig asked Saoirse to read through the script with her in her hotel room. "I'm such a big fan of hers, I love her so much, so I was really excited meeting her, but I was quite nervous too. I also didn't know if it was an audition, I was like, 'Do I have the part or do you want me to prove to you?' We read through the whole thing and she was like, 'I'll do everyone else's parts', and I read Lady Bird. And as I was reading it I was thinking, 'Is this what she wants me to do?' Because it is a comedy, and that's my favourite genre, so I didn't want to mess it up. She said later that she realised I was right for it there and then."

Gerwig's tale of a rebellious teenage girl and her temperamental mother is based in part on her own early life in Sacramento, and Lady Bird was mainly shot in California's capital. "Her best friend's grandmother had a role in the film, and everyone seemed to know Greta. We'd be shooting in the street and people would stop their cars and say, 'Hey Greta, my dad says hi'. It was such a tight community, and I think she was delighted to be shooting there."

The finished film went down a bomb at the Golden Globes in January, winning Best Picture Musical or Comedy, and Best Actress for Saoirse. "It was a shock!" she tells me. "I'm used to just being nominated and not winning - my loser face is finely honed! So when I won I was like, 'Oh no, I actually have to talk now, I have to speak'. Then, when you go up on stage, they have this huge widescreen TV directly opposite you, and it's flashing these big red numbers at you, like '45 seconds, 44 seconds!' And you're like, 'Oh God' and you forget everything."

She says that "everybody knew" Frances McDormand was going to win this year's Best Actress Oscar, which nicely took the pressure off. In her acceptance speech, McDormand asked all the female nominees to stand up before memorably championing women in the film industry, and asking why they had to fight so much harder to get things done.

"We got a hint the day before that she was going to do something special. My publicist had said to me, 'I just want to let you know that if Fran tells you to stand up at some stage tomorrow night, stand up', and it completely went out of my head. And then when she won she was like, 'Ok, I'm going to ask everyone to do something', and when she got everyone to share that with her, I just thought what a cool move."

Although she's been acting professionally since she was nine, Saoirse's never ventured onto the stage, until late 2016 that is, when she starred in an acclaimed production of Arthur Miller's The Crucible on Broadway. What was that like?

"Terrifying. I mean it was such a privilege to do that play, and it's so good and everything, but the next time I do a play I'd like to do something in a smaller theatre. The voice was the thing I worried about most, would it be big enough and so on, and that was the only thing I'd recommend people go and train for if they hadn't done theatre before, because it's different, it's a proper instrument."

The whole business of stage acting was different. "The lens is going to pick up everything that you think, you know - if you're feeling something sincerely then it will find it. Whereas the great thing about doing theatre, and it definitely helped me going into Lady Bird and Mary Queen of Scots the following year, is that you really do have to be in touch with your body. Physicality is so important when you're on a stage and you need to know how to tell a story with movement, not in an artsy-fartsy interpretative dance kind of way, but just it's important to know how to be in your body.

"I had a fear with the voice and I also had a fear of having to act big, because I really didn't want to do that, that kind of scared me. But I think the thing that can help combat that is using your body a bit more, and then you don't have to go all big." She got rave reviews, though. "Yeah," she says quietly. "That's good."

Less glowing, around these parts, were reactions to her appearance on Saturday Night Live, when her participation in sketch about a pair of bumbling Aer Lingus hostesses got up certain patriotic noses.

"I was surprised by that. One of the brilliant things about the Irish is that we can take the piss out of ourselves. And I love Aer Lingus, I've flown with them since I was a child, and one of the most emotional moments for me about going home is when I get on an Aer Lingus flight and I hear the Irish accent and I'm surrounded by people from home. So it was never done in bad taste or anything like that, and you also have to remember, it's a comedy show, and they poke fun at everyone, and they poke fun at themselves, and we had sketches about Brooklyn as well and I wasn't offended. It was all a bit of craic, like."

Doing Saturday Night Live was "daunting, but an amazing experience. You've got these great comic actors, like Kate McKinnon, but also all these writers, about 30 of them, who are working 'til like 5am finishing sketches. Everyone who's done it had just said to me, you have no control over what's going to happen, and you kind of just have to go with it, which was kind of a difficult thing for me because I was like, 'But we need to have a plan!'. But once you do that you're fine, and so I went in on the Monday, met everyone, Tuesday they had sketches, Wednesday we did the read-through, and it's moving so quickly that you don't have time to get that nervous. The song was the only thing I was nervous about because it's so difficult, but once I got through that I was fine. And it also helped having the band there, U2, that made me feel much more relaxed."

I've interviewed Saoirse before, and am always struck by her calmness, her unfussy self-possession, and her quiet determination never to allow herself to be sidetracked by the nonsense of celebrity. When I spoke to her in 2013, she told me she didn't think of herself as famous, and could walk about unrecognised in New York. Is that getting harder now?

"I am getting recognised much more over there now," she says, "because of Lady Bird, I think. But I still have that thing in my head though where I think, you know, Justin Bieber is famous, and that's a level of fame that I don't feel a part of at all. So because I don't read any articles about myself - sorry Paul - and I don't look at any photos of myself or interviews, I'm kind of able to detach from it almost completely. The only thing that I have noticed now is that I do get recognised more. I've always been recognised at home, but it's happening an awful lot more when I'm away."

Things don't always go swimmingly for child stars in adult life, but for Saoirse, starting young seems to have helped her stay level-headed about the job she does and the distractions it can bring.

"I think the fact that I started when I was so young has helped me in a way, but I'm also very, very lucky that I have parents who weren't fazed by it, in particular my mam, who had spent years supporting my dad, because he's an actor too. He started out in the theatre in New York and had ups and downs and had times where he wasn't working and where he was working a lot, she saw the pitfalls and the highs and lows of that.

"Also, from the very beginning, it's only been about work, that's always been the only focus for me. That's what I do this for, that's what I care about, and when you know why you do what you do, it's makes everything much clearer. So if you do start to get recognised or whatever, it feels like it's almost not a part of what you do."

She has, she says, always been encouraged to have cautious expectations about her career. "Even now, I'm of the mindset that everything's really good at the moment, so I'm going to appreciate it now, because there will be times when maybe it isn't. I hope to be working in film always, but you never know."

'On Chesil Beach' is in cinemas now
Sixty years ago this summer, British filmmakers Peter Rogers and Gerald Thomas released a comedy called Carry On Sergeant. Directed by Thomas, it had been pulled together in a matter of weeks on a shoestring. Its story of a group of incompetents enduring their national service was tailor-made to appeal to a mass audience, but there were no thoughts of Carry on Sergeant being anything other than a one-off.

Instead, it was the beginning of a film series that would run for decades and become a beloved institution. The Carry On films touched a deep chord in their nation's consciousness, and appealed to the mild and harmless anti-authoritarianism of the British working class. They also tapped into an ancient strain of English humour that mixed low slapstick with sexually themed double entendres that were emphasised with much mugging.

They were silly, strangely innocent films that reflected the gender biases and mores of their era. For many years they were hoary staples on British television, but of late they've fallen completely out of fashion, and when an ill-fated revival was recently mooted, critics and commentators responded with fury and scorn.

Carry Ons were always going to be a bad fit in this age of high-minded correctness, but the hatred with which some writers described them took me by surprise. Peter Bradshaw of the Guardian demanded that people abandon their "dishonest nostalgia" for these "ghastly second-rate films". They were "parables about failure", argued Tanya Gold of the same newspaper, populated by actors whose "misery melted out of the screen". The Carry Ons clung to the "body of British culture like a rotting thong", and worst of all, were "not funny".

The films were certainly hugely variable in terms of quality, and became pretty much unwatchable towards the end. Their attitudes to women were not edifying: the females portrayed were either beautiful idiots (Barbara Windsor, Liz Fraser), or bitter harpies (Hattie Jacques, Joan Sims) determined to control and subdue unruly men. But it's sometimes forgotten that the males on display in the Carry Ons were hardly paragons either: they were usually downtrodden losers who muttered on the sidelines, trying and failing to achieve significance. Rutting ladykillers played by Sidney James were made to look ridiculous, and the repressed homosexuality of Kenneth Williams and Charles Hawtrey was plain for all to see.

The Carry On films were not made in an age when people pretended to be free of all prejudice, and their comedy was based on the kind of engrained and often reprehensible social attitudes that would be recognised and cheered by working audiences of the time. But however inconvenient a truth it might be to modern commentators, they were sometimes very funny indeed.

That was more often down to the talents of a brilliant ensemble of comic actors than it was to the sledgehammer innuendoes of the Carry On scripts, but there was a certain salty charm to the films, which in theme and tone evoked not just the lewd seaside postcards of Donald McGill, but also the bawdy excesses of the rapidly vanishing British music halls. And that is why they're still important.

Though the cast inevitably changed through a run of over 30 films, a small group of actors became indelibly linked with the Carry On films. Kenneth Williams, Sid James, Charles Hawtrey, Hattie Jacques, Joan Sims, Barbara Windsor, Bernard Bresslaw, Kenneth Connor: their very names evoke an absurd parallel Britain populated by gurning, cartoonish eccentrics who meant a great deal to a whole generation of moviegoers. But sadly, most of them didn't do all that well out of the franchise, and Kenneth Williams would comment bitterly on what he saw as the endless ordeal of doing them in his posthumously published diaries.

Even he, though, would have admitted that the early ones were pretty good. Carry on Sergeant was followed within in a year by Carry on Nurse, a bawdy take on the working-class experience of Britain's brave new National Health Service. Kenneth Connor, Charles Hawtrey, Leslie Phillips and Wilfred Hyde-White played moany patients whose minor ailments were unlikely to be cured by the histrionic hospital staff: Kenneth Williams was a supercilious consultant, Hattie Jacques the terrifying matron.

The familiar template was being set: lustful, unattractive middle-aged men would hanker pointlessly after beautiful young women while their frumpy wives did their best to foil them. Sex, though ever present, was only referred to through pun and innuendo: authority figures were absurdly pompous, and Britishness, though also lampooned, would always triumph over Johnny Foreigner. These films might have been silly, but they struck a chord with the public: Carry on Nurse was the biggest British film of 1959, and the sequels that followed would make producer Peter Rogers a fortune.

Video of the Day

The franchise really hit its stride in the 1960s, when Sid James and Barbara Windsor joined the ensemble, and writer Talbot Rothwell was brought in to brighten up the scripts. Carry on Spying, Carry on Cleo, Carry on Screaming and Carry on Up the Khyber were hilarious in patches, and showcased the sublime comic timing of Williams, Hawtrey, James, Sims and company.

Then there were the outrageous puns, which made you groan as well as laugh. In Carry on Matron (1972), Hattie Jacques is handing out post on the ward and says to Kenneth Williams' doctor, "By the way, your mail." He bristles, and replies, "Yes I am, and I can prove it!" And in Carry on Cleo there's my favourite moment of all, when Williams' Caesar is about to be assassinated and runs towards the camera shouting "Infamy! Infamy! They've all got it in for me!"

Peter Rogers seemed to have it in for his cast. He fired Charles Hawtrey for two films after he asked for top billing. Hawtrey was paid 5,000 for Carry on Sergeant, and that pay scale (roughly the same for all the cast) never really rose.

Sid James, a South African adventurer and womaniser, didn't much care what he was being paid: he was an inveterate gambler, and had told his agent to keep salary details from him so he didn't flutter it all away. He spent most of his time on the Carry On sets pursuing his young co-star, Barbara Windsor, with whom he had a torrid 10-year affair.

Williams, perhaps the most talented of them all, sighed quietly as the films' quality began to dip. He had made his name alongside James on the radio show Hancock's Half Hour. He was also a fine writer, though this would only be discovered after his death when a pristine set of diaries were found.

"It is appalling," he complained to himself about one script, "it is a Carry On".

As the film series staggered on into the late 1970s, the titles themselves told a story: Carry on Dick and Carry on Behind did not promise subtlety and nuance, nor did they deliver it. With the Sex Pistols blaring from the radio and race riots on the London streets, the Carry Ons suddenly seemed absurdly irrelevant, though some would argue that they always had been.

The last of the original series, Carry on Emmannuelle, sank like a stone when released in 1978, and was deemed "morally and aesthetically offensive" by Observer film critic Philip French. An ill-advised attempt to refloat the franchise in the 1992 film Carry on Columbus fared no better.

Was the butt of the Carry On joke the British people themselves, with their bad food, class obsessions and repressed sensuality? Possibly, and however distasteful modern commentators may find the films, they did capture the atmosphere of post-war, post-colonial Britain as it faced into an era of slow decline and huge social change.

Things, sadly, did not end well for most of the actors. Hattie Jacques died of a heart attack at the age of 58, and Sid James was performing on stage when he collapsed and died at 62. Both Joan Sims and Charles Hawtrey ended their lives as lonely alcoholics: Hawtrey's last act was to throw a hospital vase at a nurse who'd asked for his autograph.

As his diaries would posthumously reveal, Williams battled depression for years and struggled to come to terms with his homosexuality. He took an overdose of barbiturates in 1988.

I saw him once, walking in Regent's Park. A small, slight, neatly dressed man, he nodded and smiled when he saw that I had recognised him, and strode briskly on. He died a short time after.
The church's influence in Ireland is under threat after a landslide victory for the 'Yes' campaign in the abortion referendum, according to the Archbishop of Dublin.

Dr Diarmuid Martin told mass-goers this morning that many will see yesterday's vote to repeal the Eighth Amendment as an indication that the Church is now widely regarded with indifference and as having a marginal role in the formation of culture in Ireland.

He also said he Church may be seen as "lacking in compassion".

Dr Martin said the Church must now renew its commitment to support life and not just in statements, but in deeds to reflect Jesus' compassion and care, RTE reports.

He said this includes helping women in difficult situations to "choose life".

"Pro-life means radically rediscovering in all our lives a special love for the poor that is the mark of the followers of Jesus," Dr Martin said at the mass where he ordained four deacons at the national seminary in Maynooth.

Meanwhile, the leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Archbishop Eamon Martin tweeted yesterday saying he will give thanks to those who "made such a huge effort to remind us that in pregnancy we are dealing with two lives - both in need of love, respect and protection."

He added; " Every human life remains beautiful, every human life remains precious. Every human life remains sacred. #ChooseLife."

Speaking on RTE Radio One this afternoon, the archbishop said the referendum's results confirm that Ireland is "now conforming to a western liberal democracy".

"We do appear to have obliterated the rights of all unborn children's right to life.

"Our country now appears to be on the brink of legislating a liberal abortion regime.

"It is a new time and a change of culture, but it is not something that is out of the blue.

"Over many years, we have seen a drift away from practices of our faith in our congregations and parishes and a lower degree of involvement from people.

"This abortion referendum now confirms we are in a new space.

"This didn't come out of the blue and it is not something new for us," he added.

Responding to the church's level of involvement in the abortion referendum campaign, the archbishop said they were "very actively involved" by explaining to their congregations the church's teachings on the right to life.

"In January, we called on Catholics to be missionaries for life in their own communities," he said.

"We were overwhelmed by people who made a huge effort to remind people that in pregnancy we are dealing with two lives.

"We were humbled by the lay women and laymen, many parents themselves, who became the voice for the voiceless children.

"I think their profile is more important than ever in Ireland."

The results from the exit polls "didn't surprise" the archbishop, who said he is aware there are now three distinct groups in Ireland's society.

"We are well aware week to week by looking at our congregation [what is happening in Ireland].

"There are three groups; the committed minority, the remnants of people who are deeply committed to the teachings; a large group of people we see from the Census who are nominally and culturally Catholic and self identify as Catholic and retain an affiliation with the Church is some ways but have drifted away from regularly practicing their faith.

"And then we have a third group who have quite consciously rejected the church and are hostile to the teachings of the church.

"The church is now a new space and we've been there for some time," he continued.

"Pope Francis said way back in 1979 that Ireland is at a crossroads. I think what this referendum affirms is that Ireland is now conforming to a western liberal democracy, especially on issues like abortion, same sex, civil partnership, marriage and divorce.

"People are self-identifying as Catholic. And I hear people saying they're Catholic but they don't accept the church's teachings. The reality is people are taking an a la carte approach."

The archbishop said he doesn't think the referendum results will be new to the Pope, and said he is still certain people of all faiths will be interested to see what he has to say in August.

"I would hope that our congregations will remain a creative minority and not an irrelevant minority," he added.
British journalist Rachel Johnson has come under fire on Twitter after making baffling remarks about the media coverage of the abortion referendum.

Also known for being British politician Boris Johnson's younger sister, Ms. Johnson took to Twitter to thank Sky News for their coverage on the Eighth Amendment in Ireland yesterday.

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Demonstrators let off flares during a march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators wear repeal clothing at The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators at The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Demonstrators wear repeal masks at The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Jamilah Curran from Athboy Co Meath at The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Ray Lawless from Co Meath on The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Demonstrators at The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Demonstrators at The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire Taryn Devere from Donegal on The March for Choice in Dublin, a demonstration demanding change to Ireland's strict abortion laws. Photo: Tom Honan/PA Wire A demonstrator with a painted face poses for a photograph during a march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne Demonstrators hold signs outside Ireland's embassy as they support the demand for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in London, Britain September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Mary Turner? Demonstrators hold a sign outside Ireland's embassy as they support the demand for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in London, Britain September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Mary Turner? Demonstrators stand outside Ireland's embassy as they support the demand for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in London, Britain September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Mary Turner? The London-Irish Abortion Rights campaigners outside the embassy of Ireland on Chapel Street, Belgravia, London, as they host the 'London March of Choice'. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Demonstrators outside the embassy of Ireland on Chapel Street, Belgravia, London, as they take part in the 'London March of Choice. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Demonstrators let off flares during a march for more liberal Irish abortion laws, in Dublin, Ireland September 30, 2017. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne

However, her gratitude for the coverage "in mainland UK" with coverage in "clear English not Gaelic" has angered many Irish Twitter users.

"Huge praise to Beth Rigby and Kay Burley of Sky News who produced world class award winning reporting every step of the way of this powerful and moving and divisive story..."

"...and also helped comprehension (in mainland UK) by speaking in clear English not Gaelic throughout."

People were quick to clarify that Ireland is not part of the UK and questioned where the Irish-spoken coverage could be found.

Irish journalist Naomi O'Leary said: "Assuming you mean Irish or Gaeilge, which Irish journalists did you observe speaking Irish on British TV? When?

"If you just mean journalists speaking English with an Irish accent, that is insulting on several levels. Our language is not called Gaelic."

Another Twitter user said: "Ireland is not a part of the U.K. at all so the "mainland U.K." comment is very misinformed and a political faux-pas in the extreme. Just a heads up. Also we don't speak Gaelic, it's Gaeilge, and all reporting would be in English regardless."

More than 350 journalists from across the globe were accredited to attend the official count in Dublin Castle yesterday.

Alongside Sky News, reporters from CNN, The New York Times and Al Jazeera were also among the media present.
Presiding Officer Carmel McBride and Garda Alan Gallagher carry the polling box for the referendum on the 8th Amendment of the Irish Constitution onto the Donegal coastal island of Inishbofin, Ireland. Photo: PA

Donegal has emerged as the only constituency to return a No vote in the referendum to repeal the Eighth Amendment.

Voters were almost evenly split, with just 2,532 votes separating the two sides in the end.

The final result, announced at 6.20 last night, revealed that 52pc of the electorate had voted No and 48pc voted Yes to the repeal

Turnout at 57pc was lower than the national average of 64.51pc.

Yes and No votes in urban areas such as Letterkenny and Donegal were close, but the margin widened in more rural parts of the county with several rural polling stations in the Fanad and Inishowen peninsulas returning a decisive 70pc No vote.

Speaking at the Letterkenny count centre, a sombre Minister of State and Government Chief Whip Joe McHugh said the referendum had given people an opportunity to vote on a matter of conscience.

"When this legislation comes before the Dail, I certainly will be reflecting a very strong point of view even from those who were marginally on the Yes side that they don't want a liberal regime in this country, and I certainly will be reflecting that," he said.

Independent TD Thomas Pringle, who campaigned for a Yes vote, said that the county's other political representatives would have to reflect on how they contributed to the final result.

How Did Your Constituency Vote? Final Results Ireland

Dublin Map Key Yes 55% 50% 55% No

"I think TDs have played politics with this. Politicians should be looking to reflect and represent the people rather than be looking to look after themselves."

He added that while he was disappointed with the outcome, he recognised that there has been a significant Yes vote in Donegal - an area which had voted so overwhelmingly in favour of introducing the Eighth Amendment, 35 years ago.

"Donegal is gradually becoming more progressive.

"Obviously I'm disappointed it wasn't an overall Yes - but I will take a 49pc Yes, given where Donegal is coming from."

Welcoming the No vote, Tim Jackson, the anti-abortion activist who heckled Health Minister Simon Harris at a Yes event last week, was forthright.

"I am glad that the people of Donegal have seen sense today and voted against killing their own children - but for the rest of the country to vote en masse for killing human beings for generations to come, makes this, to my mind the darkest day in Irish history."
l-r; Ailbhe Smyth, Grainne Griffiin and Orla O'Connor at Together for Yes press conference. Davenport Hotel, Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

l-r; Ailbhe Smyth, Grainne Griffin and Orla O'Connor at Together for Yes press conference. Davenport Hotel, Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

PRO-CHOICE campaigners have backed calls for Ireland's new abortion laws to be named after Savita Halappanavar, the expectant mother who died after being refused a termination.

The Together for Yes coalition said the gesture would recognise the "great debt" the Irish people owed to Savita, the 31-year-old Indian dentist who died in a Galway hospital after doctors refused to perform an abortion as she miscarried.

They supported a call from Mrs Halappanvar's father Andanappa Yalagi for the abortion reforms to be named Savita's Law as they urged the Government to expedite legislation in the wake of the landslide referendum vote to end the state's near blanket ban.

Together for Yes said the Government should reconsider its proposed end of year schedule for passing the legislation and called for a special summer sitting of the Dail and Seanad to ensure new laws were brought in as soon as possible.

Mrs Halappanvar's death in 2012 has become emblematic for advocates of abortion reform.

Expand Close 26/5/18 People come to pay tribute at the mural of Savita Halappanavar on Richmond street south in Dublin. Picture:Arthur Carron / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp 26/5/18 People come to pay tribute at the mural of Savita Halappanavar on Richmond street south in Dublin. Picture:Arthur Carron

As people continued to lay flowers and messages at an impromptu shrine to her in south Dublin on Sunday, Together for Yes co-director Grainne Griffin said the coalition would support new legislation being called Savita's Law.

"In terms of Savita and her family I think our country owes them a great debt and we were so honoured and so touched by the support that they lent to the campaign over the course of it," she said.

"I was really glad to see her father say that yesterday they felt they had justice for their daughter."

Those campaigning for liberalisation secured a stunning victory on Saturday, after it was confirmed that 66.4pc of voters in Friday's referendum backed repeal of the controversial Eighth Amendment of the constitution, which bans abortion in all but exceptional circumstances.

Health minister Simon Harris will seek cabinet backing on Tuesday to draft legislation that would allow abortions within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, subject to medical advice and a cooling-off period, and up to 24 weeks in exceptional circumstances.

He has indicated the new legal framework will be drafted over the summer and is set to be tabled in the Dublin parliament in the autumn, with aim for the legislation to be passed by the end of the year.

Together for Yes co-director Orla O'Connor urged a more ambitious timescale.

Opposition parties Sinn Fein and Labour have called on the Government to aim to pass the law before the Dail's summer recess.

"I certainly think that all of our TDs and senators should really consider a special sitting so that it can be progressed through the summer," said Ms O'Connor.

She added: "After this phenomenal vote to remove the Eighth Amendment we now need to move very quickly to introducing and progressing the legislation.

"We are calling on the Government to now start the process next week. The people have spoken, they have spoken very loudly and we now need to see this legislation happen quickly because as we know today, as we are here, there are women who are planning their journeys and who are having to travel to access abortion outside of Ireland."

The referendum vote did not set new laws in itself - rather, it gave politicians the freedom to do so unhindered by a constitutional prohibition.

The Government made clear ahead of the referendum campaign the type of abortion regime it would seek to introduce if the Eighth Amendment was consigned to the history books.

Changed the world

Together for Yes co-director of Grainne Griffin described the results as "a big movement of change".

"I think yesterday and throughout the campaign we were very aware that this wasn't just about Ireland, and that the world was watching," Ms. Griffin said.

Expand Close l-r; Ailbhe Smyth, Grainne Griffin and Orla O'Connor at Together for Yes press conference. Davenport Hotel, Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp l-r; Ailbhe Smyth, Grainne Griffin and Orla O'Connor at Together for Yes press conference. Davenport Hotel, Dublin. Picture: Caroline Quinn

"It changed Ireland to the world, and more than that I think we lit a beacon of hope for countries all over the world where people are working towards similar change."

Alongside fellow co-directors Ailbhe Smyth and Orla O'Connor, the campaign leaders said they hoped the landslide vote would encourage other countries in similar situations to Ireland to seek change, including Brazil and the Philippines.

"Across the world, this is such a big movement of change. To the people across the world, particularly the global south, Argentina will vote next week on an incredibly important vote for women to get access to abortion care up to 14 weeks. We stand with those women.

"In El Salvador, in Brazil, to countries who may be thinking that sometimes, with a background quite similar to ours, this kind of change is not possible- I think yesterday we showed that this change is possible. I hope that those women will look to us as a sign of what they will achieve in their own future.

"To the Philippines, and to Chile, who have their own version of the Eighth in their constitutions, I hope that they will also see change."

Labour Party Leader Brendan Howlin agreed with the calls made by Together for Yes today, calling on Fianna Fail and Fine Gael to ensure debate begins in the Oireachtas before the summer.

"The Cabinet will approve the process of drafting legislation on Tuesday, but I echo the calls of Together for Yes today that this should be progressed as quickly as possible this summer. The Dail will sit until mid-July providing significant time between now and then to progress this.

"I would hope that the two months of the referendum campaign will have facilitated work on a draft bill and that the Minister for Health can move speedily from Tuesday to produce a published bill for the Houses to debate before the summer recess.

He added; "Now we need to get on with it. The people of Ireland have resoundingly spoken."

The campaigners also thanked the women of Northern Ireland for their support and also sent their gratitude to those in Donegal that voted 'Yes' on May 25.

"I know our minds and our eyes turn to the North, where there is a need for clear, comprehensive abortion legislation to be introduced. To give the women in Northern Ireland access to the care that they need.

"We have received huge support and solidarity from the women of Northern Ireland, and I know that everybody in Together for Yes will say that we stand with you now. And we look to you, to work with you and to help you, in receiving the same change in Northern Ireland as we saw here yesterday."

Results

Speaking yesterday after the result, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar called the result a quiet revolution.

Expand Close An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (left), Minister for Health Simon Harris and Senator Catherine Noone wave to the crowd at Dublin Castle. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (left), Minister for Health Simon Harris and Senator Catherine Noone wave to the crowd at Dublin Castle. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

He said: "We have voted to look reality in the eye and we did not blink."

For those who voted No, he said: "I would like to reassure you that Ireland is still be the same country today as it was before, just a little more tolerant, open and respectful."

Mr Varadkar said for 35 years we had "hidden our conscience behind the Constitution" but voters had said "no more".

"No more doctors telling their patients there is nothing that can be done for them in their own country.

"No more lonely journeys across the Irish Sea. No more stigma. The veil of secrecy is lifted.

"No more isolation. The burden of shame is gone.

Mr Varadkar said the results represented "the culmination of a quiet revolution", one that had been taking place in Ireland for the past 10 to 20 years.

"We are a country that is not divided, a country that says that we respect women, that we trust women and we support them."

He said the result was a mandate to bring forward legislation enabling the procedure and the Government is expected to pass laws by the end of the year.

"The people have said that we want a modern constitution for a modern country, that we trust women and we respect them to make the right decision and the right choices about their healthcare."

A vocal anti-repeal movement conceded defeat, calling the the result "a tragedy of historic proportions."

Anti-repeal activist Cora Sherlock said that what we voted on today is the ending of human life.

Ms Sherlock said she is personally very, very upset at the exit polls but that the pro-life movement will continue in its pursuit to keep Ireland abortion-free.

"I will accept the will of the Irish people, at the same time I will make it very clear what I feel of the campaign that has taken place. We will now regroup and find out what our next move is," says Ms Sherlock.

Head of Save the 8th John McGuirk said that "the constitution has changed but the facts have not".

"The 8th Amendment did not create a right to life for the unborn child- it merely acknowledged that such a right exists, has always existed, and will always exist," Mr McGuirk said.

"What Irish voters did yesterday is a tragedy of historic proportions. However, a wrong does not become right simply because a majority support it."
BRITISH Prime Minister Theresa May congratulated the Irish people on their decision in the abortion referendum amid pressure to liberalise the strict laws in Northern Ireland.

Ministers - including within her own Cabinet - have indicated their support for liberalisation of laws to resolve an "anomaly" within the United Kingdom.

Scores of MPs across the Commons have indicated they are prepared to act to rewrite the current legislation given the absence of a devolved administration in Stormont.

But the Prime Minister faces a political headache over calls to act because her fragile administration depends on the support of the 10 Democratic Unionist Party MPs - who strongly oppose any reform to Northern Ireland's strict laws.

And Westminster intervening in a devolved issue could also lead to wider concerns about the political situation in Northern Ireland.

In a post on Twitter, Mrs May said: "The Irish Referendum yesterday was an impressive show of democracy which delivered a clear and unambiguous result.

"I congratulate the Irish people on their decision and all of #Together4Yes on their successful campaign."

It's understood that Mrs May was among a number of world leaders who contacted Taoiseach Leo Varadkar after the result.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also phoned the Taoiseach to congratulate him on the referendum result.

Mr Trudeau urged Mr Varadkar to liberalise Irelands abortion laws when he visited Dublin last year, saying choice was a fundamental human right.

A Government spokesperson told Independent.ie that the Taoiseach received a phonecall from Canada last night.

And Mr Trudeau tweeted: What a moment for democracy and womens rights. Tonight, I spoke with Taoiseach @campaignforLeo and his team and congratulated them on the Yes sides referendum victory legalising abortion in Ireland.

Mr Varadkar also received messages from Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel and Estonian premier Juri Rattas.

Meanwhile, Downing Street is understood to believe that any reform in Northern Ireland "is an issue for Northern Ireland".

"It shows one of the important reasons we need a functioning executive back up and running," a source said.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said: "The legislation governing abortion is a devolved matter and it is for the Northern Ireland Assembly to debate and decide such issues.

"Some of those who wish to circumvent the assembly's role may be doing so simply to avoid its decision.

"The DUP is a pro-life party and we will continue to articulate our position. It is an extremely sensitive issue and not one that should have people taking to the streets in celebration."

But in a sign of the pressure from within Mrs May's own party, Education Minister Anne Milton suggesting she would back liberalisation if there was a free vote.

The current situation "does feel anomalous", she told ITV's Peston on Sunday.

Cabinet minister Penny Mordaunt - who is responsible for the women and equalities brief in Government - said the referendum signalled a "historic and great day for Ireland" and a "hopeful one for Northern Ireland".

"That hope must be met," she added.

Former women and equalities minister Justine Greening said: "It's clear it's now time for debate and action to achieve the rights for NI women that we have as women across the rest of the UK."

Sarah Wollaston, the Tory chairwoman of the Commons Health Select Committee, said: "I would vote to support an extension of abortion rights to all women across the whole UK.

"As this is a devolved issue, if an amendment is not accepted by the Speaker, then there should at very least be a referendum in Northern Ireland on this issue."

But Justice Minister Rory Stewart warned against the Commons intervening on the issue.

He told BBC's Sunday Politics the UK Government was acting as a "caretaker" administration in the absence of Stormont, and "that must not be used to make fundamental constitutional, ethical changes on behalf of the people in Northern Ireland".

DUP MP Ian Paisley said Northern Ireland "should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand".

"The settled will of the people has been to afford protections to the unborn life and protect the life of the mother," he said.

Labour MP Stella Creasy claimed more than 140 parliamentarians had already signalled support for an effort to change the law in Northern Ireland.

In a message to the DUP, she said the people of Northern Ireland "consistently support change" in the abortion law and it was "time to put them, not power in Westminster, first".

The forthcoming Domestic Abuse Bill promised by ministers could be used as a vehicle for MPs hoping to change the law in Northern Ireland.

Abortions are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.

Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said he would back reform of Northern Ireland's strict abortion laws in a free vote, but did not promise Labour would bring a bill before the Commons if the party was in charge.

Women should have the same rights as those elsewhere in the UK, he told Sky's Ridge on Sunday, but stressed Labour must "tread sensitively and be aware of the realities of devolution".
The 13-year-old boy charged with the murder of schoolgirl Ana Kriegel is expected to remain in custody at Oberstown Detention Centre until his next court appearance this Friday.

He was sent to the detention centre in County Dublin last Friday evening after he appeared before Dublin's Children's Court on a charge of murdering the 14-year-old schoolgirl on May 14 at Glenwood House, Clonee Road, Lucan, Dublin.

The boy could not be remanded in custody for longer than a week because it was his first court appearance.

Ana's funeral is expected to take place in the next few days but no details of the arrangements had been published by yesterday.

Ana lived with her family at Newtown Park in Leixlip, County Kildare.

A close friend of the Kriegel family, Catherine Murphy TD, said: "Ana's family are very appreciative of the solidarity that has been expressed by people.

"They have continued to ask for privacy but they are very aware of the high level of support they have been getting. It really matters to them.

"The feeling of sadness which has covered the whole area has not lifted," Ms Murphy said.

Books of condolence will remain open at Leixlip library and Lucan library until tomorrow evening, she said.

A book of condolence was also opened at the Council Building in Tallaght.

The 13-year-old boy charged with Ana's murder, who cannot be named because of his age, was accompanied to the special sitting of the Children's Court by his parents and his grandfather.

It is alleged that he murdered Ana on the day she was reported missing by her parents. Three days later, after an intensive search, her body was discovered at the derelict property where she was allegedly murdered.

The door and windows of the abandoned house have since been sealed with cement blocks.

The boy spoke briefly during the private hearing that lasted less than 10 minutes.

When asked by Judge John O'Connor if this was his first time in court, the accused nodded and replied: "Yeah."

Detective Inspector Mark O'Neill of Lucan garda station told Judge O'Connor the details of the boy's arrest, charge and caution.

He said he arrested the boy at 4.01pm on Friday at Clondalkin garda station and was present when he was charged by Sergeant Maeve Ward.

"His father was present when he was charged," he said.

The boy, wearing a black jumper, blue jeans and black running shoes, made no reply when the charge of murder was put to him.

Judge O'Connor said he did not have jurisdiction to grant bail due to the nature of the charge.

He remanded the boy in custody to appear again this Friday.

The judge stressed that reporting restrictions were essential for a fair trial.

He warned that he wanted to make it clear that if the boy's name, school or address was published, or a picture of him was reproduced it would result in a prosecution.

The judge cited reporting restrictions in juvenile cases, saying: "No report shall be published or included in a broadcast which reveals the name, address or school of any child concerned in the proceedings or includes any particulars likely to lead to the identification of any child concerned in the proceedings, and no picture shall be published or included in a broadcast as being or including a picture of any child concerned in the proceedings or which is likely to lead to his or her identification."

Three reporters were present in the tiny courtroom for the hearing while other journalists had to wait outside.

The judge said he was aware the journalists present understood this and added: "I am doing this from the point of view of general social media."

Legal aid was granted after the judge noted from defence counsel Donagh Molloy that the boy was "a schoolchild, 13 years of age".

A second juvenile who was arrested last Thursday morning in relation to the investigation, was released without charge last Friday. A file will be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.

A GoFundMe page has been opened on social media for Ana's family.
Last Journey: More than 100 people attended the funeral of murderer Mark Hennessy in Dublin yesterday. Picture: Fergal Phillips

THE family of murdered student Jastine Valdez has met with the family of her killer Mark Hennessy, it has emerged.

Hennessy murdered Ms Valdez (24) after kidnapping her from near her home in Enniskerry in Wicklow on the evening of Saturday, 19 May.

He was located by gardai at 8pm on the following day in the Cherrywood Business Park and he was shot dead. The young student's body was found last Monday.

Now, the families have released a joint statement confirming that they have met.

Expand Close Mark Hennessy / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Mark Hennessy

"In the midst of our grief both the Valdez and Hennessy families met on Friday morning where we exchanged sympathies with each other on the tragic circumstances that resulted in the loss of our respective loved ones," it read.

"Both families request privacy at this very difficult time

News of the meeting comes after it emerged over the weekend that the Hennessy family had held a private funeral for their son.

The father of Mark Hennessy has described his family as "broken".

The Hennessy family held a private funeral for their son, who was killed by Gardai during the search for Ms Valdez, at Mount Jerome Chapel in Dublin's Harold's Cross.

"For the past week, I have been waking every morning to see my darling sweetheart wife broken, broken," he told mourners.

Expand Close Jastine Valdez / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Jastine Valdez

"I look at my sons and my daughters and they're broken. I look at Mark's uncles and auntie, cousins, nephews, nieces and his beautiful, beautiful daughters and they're broken and I can't fix them," he told the congregation at the funeral service on Saturday.

"To all the people who have come here today and to all of the people who have come through home, offering the shake of a hand, a cuddle, a peck on the cheek, words of encouragement...Thank you for coming into this nightmare to help us, because you have helped us so much more.

"To every single person on this planet who has had a kind thought for us, thank you - thank you."

More than 100 relatives and friends of the Hennessy family attended the funeral, after which Mr Hennessy was cremated.

There was a low-key presence of plainclothes detectives at Mount Jerome crematorium where immediate family arrived in two limousines.

A single wreath was placed on the coffin which had been brought directly from a funeral home in Bray.

While Hennessy's heartbroken family is said to be struggling to come to terms with his shocking actions, a massive garda investigation continues.

The Garda Siochana Ombudsman (GSOC) released details about the fatal shooting of Hennessy by a south Dublin-based detective last Sunday night.

It said Hennessy was shot dead in his car and had wounds consistent with self-harming.

The incident was caught on camera footage from a garda traffic car at the scene.

"A garda service weapon was recovered from the scene. The remaining ammunition and one spent cartridge was located in the firearm," a GSOC spokesperson said.

"A Stanley knife was subsequently recovered from the vehicle, the Nissan Qashqai, which had been the subject of a garda alert."

The spokesperson confirmed that a post-mortem examination showed Hennessy was shot in the shoulder.
Health Minister Simon Harris speaking to the media at a Together for Yes billboard launch in Dublin, ahead of the referendum. Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire

Simon Harris was never supposed to be health minister - twice. Ironically he got the job first time around because of a secret showdown between the current and the former Taoiseach.

The ministry was Leo Varadkar's but when he laid down terms and conditions for continuing in the role after the 2016 election, Enda Kenny never even rang him back.

Instead he shipped Varadkar off to the Department of Social Protection where Harris was originally due to learn the Cabinet trade.

At 29 years old, the Wicklow TD was handed an office in Hawkins House that can make or break political careers. Fast-forward to June last year when Harris emerged as the only senior minister to back Simon Coveney in the Fine Gael leadership contest.

It was a serious miscalculation, as the vast bulk of his colleagues lined up behind Varadkar.

After the Taoiseach's victory the Harris camp were not just seriously dejected, they really believed their rising star was about to fall to earth.

Rumours flew around Leinster House that a vengeful Varadkar would cast him aside in order to facilitate one of his own. Ultimately Coveney convinced his opponent it was better to keep his enemies close.

Expand Close An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (left), Minister for Health Simon Harris and Senator Catherine Noone wave to the crowd at Dublin Castle. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar (left), Minister for Health Simon Harris and Senator Catherine Noone wave to the crowd at Dublin Castle. Photo: Brian Lawless/PA Wire

How Did Your Constituency Vote? Final Results Ireland

Dublin Map Key Yes 55% 50% 55% No

One source recalled: "As Varadkar proved the previous year, the only thing worse than a demotion is being left in the Department of Health".

And so for a second time Harris was appointed Health Minister by default.

In his first speech as Taoiseach, Varadkar signalled he would be giving responsibility for dealing with the Eighth Amendment to Harris. This was interpreted as an extra drop of poison being added to the chalice.

However, in an interview with this reporter days later, Harris made it clear he was taking up the challenge.

"I want to be the minister who brings forward the legislation to enable this important referendum in 2018," he said.

"This is an issue that, as a nation, we now need to deal with definitively."

His determination to resolve an age-old question was in stark contrast to the commitment he gave a few days before the 2011 general election. Back then, as a first-time candidate, he told the Pro-Life Campaign he was 'proud' to share their views.

"Please be assured of my support. I need number-one votes on Friday so I can be in a position to support these positions in Dail Eireann," he said in an email.

Harris's tenure in Health has followed the familiar pattern of his predecessors: Trolley crises, HSE incompetence, budgetary problems and tragedies. Watching him being mobbed by young women as he arrived at Dublin Castle yesterday, it's hard to imagine that it was just over a month ago when the CervicalCheck scandal broke.

For the guts of a month he was fire-fighting on several levels. He was seen as decisive for quickly declaring no confidence in the board of CervicalCheck but then struggled as he defended the position of HSE Director General Tony O'Brien. There were sleepless nights as feared what information might appear in the media the next morning.

In the background he was constantly tick-tacking with Vicky Phelan, whose legal case unleashed the public backlash against the health services and indeed the Government.

Ms Phelan has always spoken positively of Harris in a way she hasn't about other politicians, including the Taoiseach. As the controversy refused to go away, Harris secretly pulled out of a series of Together for Yes events in the early part of the repeal campaign.

It was the worst possible start for the Government side who felt paralysed by the knowledge that their plan to make the referendum about women's healthcare could spectacularly backfire. But Ms Phelan came out in favour of repeal and gradually Harris felt able to speak about topics other than CervicalCheck.

Sources say he made a conscious decision to become the male face of the campaign, turning up at press conferences day after day even when he wasn't scheduled to.

Last Monday, a media opportunity with the masters of the two main maternity hospitals, Fergal Malone and Rhona Mahony, was almost an hour late starting because the minister decided he wanted to take part.

The delay was not well received by the journalists present but when he eventually arrived Harris delivered a series of quotable attacks, including a spirited one on the Catholic Church. His qualification is actually in journalism, so he knows how to provide good copy.

Then came the RTE Prime Time debate which descended into farce as Cora Sherlock - who had for weeks been dragging a 'Simon Harris podium' around Dublin and challenging him to a debate - failed to show. His colleagues know he's a good man to send out in a crisis but this was different. It was his moment in high-definition. Even Sinn Fein's Mary Lou McDonald agreed he won "hands down".

What followed is something as unpredictable as the referendum result. Twitter lit up with women talking about how they fancied Harris.

"Ireland's version of America's Trump election surprise and the UK's Brexit vote is that we all fancy Simon Harris," tweeted one.

And when he arrived at Dublin Castle yesterday, Harris was confirmed a feminist hero by women, young and old. Some were shrieking, some were crying. All were seeking selfies.

Expand Close SELFIE: Minister Simon Harris with Seana Glennon and Beatrice White at the count centre in the RDS. Photo: Gerry Mooney / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp SELFIE: Minister Simon Harris with Seana Glennon and Beatrice White at the count centre in the RDS. Photo: Gerry Mooney

Two women looking on from the fringes of huddle, one woman sympathetically remarked to her friend: "He looks tired. I wonder has he slept at all lately."

The minister told the global media it was " an emotional day in more ways than I could have imagined".

On Tuesday he will bring a memo to Cabinet seeking permission to draw up legislation for abortion in Ireland. And by Wednesday we can expect normal service will have resumed in the department famously described by Brian Cowen as Angola.

But for today, Harris must be wondering about the fickleness of politics. In the space of a month, he went from fighting for the Government's survival to potentially the most popular politician in the country.

At age 31, he now has a tagline which will follow him until the end of his political career in the same way Noel Browne is linked to the Mother and Child Scheme or Micheal Martin to the smoking ban.

And he has moved from Varadkar's enemy to a very valuable asset ahead of an inevitable general election.
Sinn Fein has called for a referendum on a united Ireland following the abortion poll.

Vice president Michelle O'Neill said constitutional issues had gained renewed prominence following Friday's Yes vote on changing the Irish constitution.

She told ITV's Peston On Sunday: "I think in terms of the conversation at home now it's very much about a union referendum, it's very much about the constitutional future.

"The big decision yesterday in Dublin was a constitutional issue, that is now to the fore.

"People who, particularly people from a unionist background who traditionally in the past wouldn't have had this conversation about where they see themselves in the future are now having that conversation and it's a very healthy and live debate."

As part of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, the British Government accepted the principle of consent, meaning the people of Northern Ireland could decide their own future on the issue.

It recognised the legitimacy of the aspiration for a united Ireland as well as the wish of a majority to remain part of the UK.

The Government has said the time is not right to call a poll on uniting Ireland.

Nationalists have claimed the Brexit result, with its threat of a hard Irish border - which Northern Ireland voted against, had reinvigorated the debate.

Mrs O'Neill said the test had been met for a unity poll.

"I think the fact that if you look at a number of things, the northern state was built on a unionist majority, that unionist majority is now gone."

She said that represented change and the criteria had been met for a unity referendum.
Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Both dresses were designed by Givenchy.

Lady Miranda Guinness at her marriage to Lord Benjamin Iveagh in March 1963

Meghan Markle's Givenchy-designed wedding dress was stunning in its simplicity. Designer Clare Waight Keller, artistic director of the French fashion house, created a pure white boatneck gown that was starkly minimalist.

But it framed the bride's shoulders most beautifully and emphasised Ms Markle's enviable waist.

The haute couture dress of double-bonded silk cady was cushioned by an underskirt in triple silk organza.

But in the days since the wedding, the dress has become a hot topic, with British-based New Zealand-born designer Emilia Wickstead claiming Meghan Markle's dress is "identical" to one of her own.

"Apparently a lot of commentators were saying, 'It's an Emilia Wickstead dress,'" she claimed.

The design Ms Wickstead is referring to is the eponymous brand's "Helene wedding dress" which also features a boatneck collar and long sleeves.

But Ms Wickstead was not the first designer to seek inspiration from such simple lines.

Lady Miranda Guinness - for whom the vessel The Miranda Guinness which once transported stout from St James's Gate to Britain was named - wore a remarkably similar dress on her wedding day back in 1963.

Both Meghan's and Lady Miranda's dresses were designed by Givenchy.

Miranda married Lord Benjamin Iveagh on March 12 of that year.

The couple were given Farmleigh as their wedding present by his grandparents, Rupert and Gwendolen Iveagh.

Lord Iveagh was the heir to the Guinness fortune and he served as chairman of the drinks company from 1965 to 1995.

His wife Lady Miranda, with whom he had four children, was chosen as one of the world's best-dressed women in 1979. As well as being a great beauty, she also had an innate sense of style that she indulged. She favoured Sonia Rykiel, Jean Muir, Georgio Armani, Valentino, Michelina Stacpoole, Yves St Laurent, Bruce Oldfield, Bellville Sassoon, Anouska Hempel and Thierry Mugler.

And Miranda loved the red de Lorean gull-wing coupe that she used to ferry her children around Dublin.

Sunday Independent columnist Lucinda O'Sullivan was an admirer of her sense of style.

"Her taste was unfaltering and exquisite," she recalled.

Sadly, the marriage was not to last and Lady Miranda and Lord Benjamin divorced in 1984.

When she celebrated her 70th birthday in 2010, there was a large party at The Guinness Storehouse at St James's Gate.

The old family home wasn't available. Iveagh House on St Stephen's Green is now the headquarters of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Miranda Guinness died later that year, just after Christmas, at her Wiltshire home surrounded by children, Edward, Rory, Emma and Louisa, and close friends.

The service in St George's Church in London, for which she had laid down some instructions in her final months, was conducted by the Venerable David Pierpoint, Archdeacon of Dublin.

"She was determined to see Christmas through with her family, even though she knew she was dying," the archdeacon told the congregation at the service.
An activists shows off her campaign badges and T-shirt at the count centre as votes are tallied following Friday's referendum on liberalising abortion law, in Dublin, Ireland, May 26, 2018. REUTERS/Max Rossi

Ireland is still some distance from the point where abortion up to 12 weeks into a pregnancy is actually legal. Even though President Michael D Higgins will be able to sign the relevant order to repeal the Eighth Amendment in the coming days, the Dail has still to pass the much-talked about abortion legislation.

Health Minister Simon Harris has already produced the General Scheme of the Bill - but yesterday morning No campaigners indicated that they intend to carefully scrutinise every word of the legislation.

The Government plans to introduce the legislation before July and have a target of getting it passed by the end of the year. However, some opposing politicians have already indicated they will attempt to delay its progress through the Dail and Seanad.

Until then, the existing Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act will continue to be the law of the land.

So have we voted for abortion on demand?

The Health Minister argued during the campaign that the legislation will allow safe, regulated and medically supervised termination of pregnancy.

 Termination will be available where a GP has certified that the pregnancy has not exceeded 12 weeks; that is 10 weeks after conception. A woman will not have to give a reason for why she wants an abortion at this stage.

 A period of 72 hours will have to elapse between the certification and the termination being carried out. This is to allow for a woman to make a considered decision after discussing all the options with her doctor. It would also allow a doctor to refer the woman for a scan if it is clinically determined to be necessary.

How Did Your Constituency Vote? Final Results Ireland

Dublin Map Key Yes 55% 50% 55% No

 It is envisaged that the medical practitioner would provide any follow-up care that is required.

What happens after 12 weeks?

 The Government's proposed legislation will permit termination of pregnancy in cases where there is a risk to the life, or of serious harm to the health, of the pregnant woman, without a distinction between risk from physical or mental health. Such 'serious harm' must go well beyond the expected and common complications of pregnancy, and other common chronic conditions that may be exacerbated by pregnancy.

 Two medical practitioners will have to certify that in their reasonable opinion: a) there is a risk to the life or of serious harm to the health of the pregnant woman; b) the foetus has not reached viability; and c) the termination of pregnancy is appropriate to avert the risk. One of the medical practitioners would have to be an obstetrician and the other a medical practitioner appropriate to the clinical circumstances of the case. The procedure would have to be carried out by an obstetrician.

 Once foetus reaches viability there will be an onus on doctors to deliver the baby. The definition of viability proposed is the point in a pregnancy at which, in the reasonable opinion of a medical practitioner, the foetus is capable of sustained survival outside the uterus.

 Mr Harris has said the requirement to certify that the foetus has not reached viability is an effective ban on later-term abortions. If viability is established and the pregnancy is ended on health grounds then it will be done through early delivery, with a full medical team on hand.

What about emergencies?

 The Government's proposed legislation also makes provision for access to termination of pregnancy on an emergency basis, in line with the process in the existing Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill. That will cover situations in which the risk to the life or of serious harm to the health of the pregnant woman is immediate.

What about fatal foetal abnormalities?

 The legislation proposes to permit termination of pregnancy on the grounds of a condition which is likely to lead to the death of the foetus before or shortly after birth. In these cases, two appropriate medical practitioners will be involved in the assessment.

Will abortion be free?

It is envisaged abortion will be made available in the public health service. This will mean that women will still have to pay in order to visit a doctor, or a clinic, outside the public hospital setting, unless they have a medical card. They will also have to pay for medical abortion pills unless they have a medical card.

Women getting later abortions, due to health problems or because they are carrying babies with fatal foetal abnormalities, will already be in receipt of care from our public maternity services and so will be able to access public hospitals.
Four beautiful daughters, a perfect home and endless trips abroad have earned Clemmie Hooper almost 500,000 followers on social media and a reputation as one of the most influential Insta-mums.

But despite the glamorous lifestyle that being an influencer has afforded the midwife and blogger, her account has now disappeared from Instagram amid rows over using her children in advertising.

Mrs Hooper, 33, one of the most followed mothers on the social networking site, has been accused of taking part in ethically dubious postings under her instagram persona mother of daughters.

She has defended herself on a Mumsnet discussion, telling users: I dont feel I sell my children to make money, I actually hardly ever feature the older girls and have changed my approach when working with brands eg I wont feature a picture of my children alone for an AD and I always ask do they need to be in the post at all?

Using the name anyalovesrose she added: I said I hardly ever feature them. They also see and give consent to any post where there are in the picture.

But users replied saying that it was morally wrong and as children they were not able to give consent or understand what it meant.

User MarshaBradyo added: Selling children doesnt just mean using them in an ad. Its also using them as content to the extent that it brings in .

On Monday, a week after engaging in the discussion, Mrs Hooper deactivated her social media site.

Nearly 470,000 people followed her Instagram page, which was full of stories of family life and the pitfalls of parenting her daughters Anya, Marnie, Ottilie and Delilah, aged between two and 10.

Her husband Simon, who posts under the name Father of Daughters and has almost 850,0000 followers on Instagram, also regularly posts images of the family including advertising.

The couple, who run a limited company together, have repeatedly claimed that talking openly about their failings is important as it helps the enormous number of fellow parents who follow them.

But, as they declare on their posts, they are actually partnered with a number of brands including Pampers and Dorset Cereals and their Instagram show that it also allows them to live a glamorous lifestyle.

Photographs of a family holiday in Florida are labelled as a partnership with Visit Florida, which Mrs Hooper described as a work trip in an interview, whilst the couple spent time in Madagascar in October.

Their social media profiles have also acted as a springboard for the couple to write three books between them about pregnancy and parenting.

Mr Hooper, a 35-year-old management consultant, is taking part in a social experiment whereby Renault have placed a camera in his car for a year.

Mr Hooper then posts videos of family trips - tagged as being a paid partnership with Renault UK  including one in which he says that it is really the only place he can have one on one time with his daughters.

Recent Mumsnet posts from Mrs Hooper reveal that it is not just on blogs where the ethics of posting images of their children are discussed as a photographs of one of her daughters on a potty was one I wasnt happy with him posting I felt it crossed the line, she revealed.

When asked why she did not demand he remove it she replied: The reason I felt it wasnt wise to have it taken down was I felt it would only anger people and fuel more threads so I remained silent and never mentioned it until now.

Those close to the midwife, who works on a ward one day a week, say that the de-activation of her Instagram account is likely to only be temporary as she takes a few days breather from online rows.

The midwife had also become embroiled in accusations of bullying on her page after her followers repeatedly criticised someone who accused her of hypocrisy.

Despite posts suggesting that she had been reported for breaches of the Nursing and Midwifery Councils social media rules, her employer Kings College Hospital said that it had received no such complaint.

Mrs Hooper refused to comment on why she had suspended her account.

She has faced criticism for featuring her children in her posts for a number of years and has repeatedly defended her decision.

Her followers have commented on Mr Hoopers account asking her to ignore the bullying and come back, with one commenting: People still cant handle someone being a mother and a professional, and a person in their own right.

Justine Roberts, CEO and founder of Mumsnet, said: Many Instagram stars are in our own Influencers Network, we consider them to be Mumsnetters and value them highly.

We know that some have taken the feedback on board; the criticism of a lack of clarity when it comes to labelling sponsored posts seems to have led to some Instamums being more transparent about sponsorship and advertising, which is great and much appreciated by mums.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
TRUST: Campbell Spray would be happy to see his grandchildren in the Peugeot 5008

Recently I was over near Manchester visiting my daughter Laura, her husband Sam and my three grandchildren. Life is going good for them and Sam was on the cusp of taking a new job which, like his present one, has a good car attached.

He was keen on something more powerful than his present BMW estate, while Laura, as ever, was entirely practical and wanted a car with three individual seats in the back.

After a relaxing pint, Sam softened and said he would consider anything as long as it wasn't French.

I have come across this prejudice before and at times have shared it with a belief that for all their chicness, French cars are put together by Le Mechanic with a Gauloise in one hand and bottle of Ricard in the other.

While things have got a lot better, I am still not totally convinced by Renault - and wouldn't yet buy one - nor unfortunately by Citroen, which for all their style are still let down by a quirkiness which is more sloppy than endearing. A subject which I will return to next week.

But that isn't the case with Peugeot which is rapidly gaining distinction as offering the best built range of family cars, while at the same time being highly innovative.

In fact its compact SUV, the 2008, had an astounding success in the latest Auto Express Driver Power survey, with not a single 2008 owner reporting a fault with their car, the only model in the entire survey with this outstanding record.

A former Irish Compact SUV of the Year winner, the Peugeot 2008 scored a total of 91.04pc across nine categories, to take its deserved place in the Auto Express Top New Cars to own list, while the Peugeot 3008 SUV scooped gold in both the Car of the Year and Mid-Size SUV categories, topping the poles as the "Best Car to Own".

A bit like Hyundai, Peugeot is aiming to be almost touching the premium sector and sees most of its owners going for higher- spec models.

By a strange touch of fate, the day after returning from the UK I went to test a Peugeot which would be ideal for Laura and her family if they can forget its Frenchness.

The 5008 is a big SUV/MPV vehicle which takes up the baton from its smaller siblings to offer seven seats with three of them as separate entities across the middle. Obviously it is a car too big for my everyday needs, but I was really impressed by the quality and finish of the 5008 and its driving abilities. It is surprisingly nimble for a seven-seater and with all seats folded is a massive load carrier, too.

I was driving the 5008 Allure 1.2 PureTech petrol (International Engine of the Year 2015, 2016 and 2017 category winner) 130bhp 6-speed S&S with a price of 33,205 plus delivery. The road tax band is 200. It was massively equipped with a spec list as long as my ape-like arm.

Recently I received a letter from a reader who couldn't believe the range of extras he got as standard on his Peugeot compared to the ridiculous price it cost for them on a number of premium models.

While the 1.2 engine was willing enough with only two of us and a small Jack Russell on board, fully loaded I would expect it to struggle and the consumption to soar. But really how often are cars at total capacity? Around 35-36mpg is the real-life figure testers have been getting.

Two downsides of the 5008 is that rear view is compromised and the panoramic roof option will do no favours for tall passengers. But, on the whole, the car is at the top of its game and is a worthy rival for the Skoda Kodiaq, that is more expensive but with 4WD options. The 5008 is better specced for the money with lots of safety equipment, and has the bonus of a five-year warranty. Both of which should be game-changers.

I would trust my grandchildren to one.
Xenophobic tone: A protest march organised by For Freedom (For Frihed) against Muslim immigration winds its way through Copenhagen. Photo: Ole Jensen/Corbis via Getty images

Despite the afternoon rain pelting the windows, Cafe Mandela is packed. The eatery lies opposite a police station in a detached brick building in Copenhagen's Vesterbro neighbourhood, where, thanks to gentrification, student cafes and upscale wine bars, pedestrians can get tattooed and then shop for home accessories.

The patrons of Cafe Mandela reflect this mix - a group of 20-somethings laugh at the bar, while an older man nurses a coffee while making faces at a baby in a pram. Each table is accented with a lit candle. And at a seat by the window, Syrian emigrant Yousef Jaeljawal Daas observes the scene.

"It's not easy to have Danish friends," said Daas, his blue eyes scanning the neighbouring tables. "They are closed off." Daas did not intend to end up in Denmark. For many, this country of renowned design and happy people is a destination, but Daas didn't factor quality-of-life indexes, or the ratio of hand-knit woollen socks to people in his travel plans as he fled Palmyra. And now here, these factors mean little.

For some in this tiny Nordic nation, happiness is hindered by the very quality foreigners find so inviting. As tourists, politicians, and social scientists embrace Denmark's hygge factor and seek to emulate it, migrants flocking to Denmark struggle to reconcile this piece of Danish identity and make it their own, within a society where cosiness can also mean exclusivity.

Expand Close Inger Stojberg / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Inger Stojberg

Daas, now 28, arrived here in March 2015. Palmyra was no longer safe as the Assad army and Syrian opposition fighters battled for territory. After he was conscripted in the autumn 2014, he knew he must leave. He took a taxi across the border into Lebanon, and flew to Turkey. From the coastal city of Izmir, he and 42 other illegal migrants, mostly Syrians, took a jetboat to Mytilene - the capital of Lesbos - and then a ferry to Athens. Daas secured an Italian passport and planned to fly to Norway, an ideal destination because he is a petroleum engineer. To fly from his base in Italy to Norway, however, a stop in Denmark was necessary, and that was where his plans changed. He decided to apply for refugee status, rather than continuing on to Norway. It is a decision he now regrets.

Nativist backlash

"It's not a secret they don't want foreigners or refugees in Denmark," said immigration lawyer Asrin Mesbah, referring to the current government. "They are afraid the Danish system and the welfare system will change."

The smallest of the Nordic countries has become synonymous with nativist backlash in the wake of the refugee influx. Mesbah's assertion reflects her work with asylum seekers since 2015, when she founded the legal aid organisation JuraRadgivningen. Denmark is far from the Mediterranean frontlines of the migrant crisis, but it has been nevertheless shaken by the swell.

Located between the two most popular asylum destinations - Germany and Sweden - Denmark has set itself apart from its neighbours.

In summer 2015, the Danish government cancelled unemployment benefits for asylum seekers, replacing them with a new integration benefit that effectively reduced state support by 45pc. The government then publicised the changes in both English and Arabic in four Lebanese newspapers. The trend of increased arrivals reversed the following year. In 2017, there were only 3,458 applicants, down from 21,316 in 2015. This past December, the government announced it would not accept its quota of resettlement refugees from the UNHCR, opting out of the quota programme entirely.

Muhamad Hamed (31) came just ahead of the wave of 2015. A Palestinian born in Syria, he arrived a double migrant, and stateless. He tried 14 times to cross from Turkey to Greece before arriving successfully, and then travelled up through Europe with a forged Saudi passport.

"It's a good place for the Danish people," said Hamed. "And it's a good place for refugees - there's no war, but you have other wars." He smiles ruefully. He has a residence permit, but life is difficult. In Syria he was a physics teacher but here his qualifications aren't recognised, so he drives an Uber. Hamed feels set apart from the Danes around him, and as for hygge, he has not adopted it - like so many evasive cultural elements here - "it's not something you can learn," he said.

While the quality of hygge has been globally embraced as an antidote to dark winter months and as a means to better appreciate the day to day, it has also been used to foster a sense of nationalism that borders on insular nativism.

Along with its copious amounts of calming teas and warm lighting, hygge also prescribes keeping conversations away from divisive topics that might stir up conflict. And for many within the Danish social and political right, discord is synonymous with immigrants or cultural outsiders.

Hamed brought his wife and daughter to Copenhagen. But other refugees are not as lucky; the current centre-right government of Lars Lokke Rasmussen, elected in 2015, has made substantial changes to the country's immigration policy. Depending on your status, family reunification now often does not occur until after three years of living in Denmark.

"The current government has made it harder to get family reunification," said immigration lawyer Bjorn Dilou Jacobsen, "and they have made it harder to get permanent residence permits."

The government face of much of these new reforms is Danish integration minister Inger Stojberg, who infamously celebrated the 50th anti-immigrant measure passed last year with a cake.

The general protection status now given to most Syrian migrants is meant to be temporary, the idea being that when conditions improve in Syria, people will return. "The thought politically," said Jacobsen, "is why get your family here if you are going back soon? The human rights argument is that it's going to take a very long time before you can send anyone back to Syria, or at least send them back in a way that meets the criteria of the Geneva Convention."

The coalition government, however, is not the most conservative voice on immigration. In the 2015 election, the anti-immigrant Danish People's Party (DPP) gained seats and became the second largest party in parliament, while a new party, Nye Borgerlige (The New Right), was founded in that same year. With an even stricter stance on immigration, it has now qualified to run for parliament in the upcoming 2019 election.

The Danish right often uses hygge to further set a xenophobic tone. Hygge is tinged with nostalgia and thus perfect fodder for conservatives. The aesthetic features regularly in political party advertising, with one notable example being the 2016 campaign by the DPP depicting a cosy white family, complete with dog, under the tagline "Our Denmark".

Messages like that don't surprise Bwalya Sorensen anymore. Sorensen, who is originally from Zambia, came to Denmark as a pregnant 18-year-old, though her Danish partner was no longer a part of her life. She sought humanitarian asylum and spent the first two years in an asylum camp with her daughter. That was 32 years ago, and the immigration system, as well as Danish society as a whole, has changed, yet some biases persist.

"Every once in a while you can just feel the hate," said Sorensen. The country is still very much a landscape of familiarity - as of 2017, 86.7pc of the nation's population is ethnically Danish. Racism is a difficult subject in Denmark, and even raising the topic can be harrowing, according to Sorensen.

In September of 2016, she founded Black Lives Matter Denmark, but she has been an activist for migrant issues since her arrival. "I don't have a fear of difference," said Sorensen with a warm smile, "there is a Danish culture of hygge - and I enjoy that. It's not exclusive to whiteness." Sorensen practices hygge, identifies as Afro-Dane, has a Danish passport and four Danish children, yet she feels divided from many who share her citizenship; "there are the original Danes," she said, "and then there is us."

Asrin Mesbah is very aware of this social gulf. "If you aren't born here, even if you have Danish citizenship, you are not allowed to call yourself Danish," said Mesbah. "So I'm not Danish even though I have been here for 35 years." Mesbah was five when her family fled Iran. She is critical of the government, Minister Inger Stojberg, and the DPP, the political right, whom she says do not want Muslims in Denmark.

Mesbah concedes that she is excellent at hygge, and that nothing will change for her because a minister says 'you're not Danish'.

"Danish people like to say that hygge is very Danish," she said, "but of course it's not. If you go to Madrid they are very good at hygge."

Proposed ban on burqas and niqabs

Sorensen remembers the first time she truly felt Danish. Three years after getting citizenship, she took a trip, and, when she returned she felt that she was home. But she acknowledges that this feeling recedes with the constant repetition of the message that 'you are not Danish'.

"We need to do a reclaim," she said. "It's not up to right-wing politicians to tell you, you are not a Dane."

Yet the question of how to treat refugees continues to reverberate within the country. This January, the immigration ministry announced a temporary halt to the forced expulsions of rejected asylum seekers who are ill following a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, a move the opposition criticised as inadequate and far too slow, with several ill migrants already deported. As Denmark continues on its conservative bent - this February the government proposed a ban on burqas and niqabs - the climate for immigrants remains turbulent.

Hamed would like to get Danish citizenship, if only to have a proper passport- as a Palestinian he only has a travel document. But he also wants to return to Syria. His parents and siblings are there, and if the situation improved he would go.

Daas, meanwhile, is completing his master's of engineering at the Technical University of Denmark. Both his brothers are in Germany, but his parents and two sisters remain in Syria.

He is firmly committed to staying in his new home of Europe, but maybe not Denmark. Sweden is a 30-minute drive away and considerably more hospitable to immigrants. "We lost our friends, our family, everything," Daas said, shaking his head.

"We are just trying to be human beings - just to feel like we are citizens somewhere."

He notices the candle on the table and laughs: "Hygge."

Denmark and refugees: the rules

There are three different ways that asylum-seekers can qualify for refugee status in Denmark. Under Article 7 of the Danish Aliens Act, individuals can obtain convention status, individual protection status or general protection status.

The 1951 multilateral United Nations treaty - the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees - lays out the qualification for refugee status.

If individuals applying in Denmark meet the UN requirements for persecution based on political, religious or social status then they qualify for refugee status as well as residency and family reunification.

If you are individually persecuted in your home country for reasons other than those outlined in the Refugee Convention - for example your life is at risk because you are fleeing a forced and violent marriage in your home country - then you still qualify for asylum under Danish case law through individual protection status. Once your case is processed, you are then entitled to family reunification.

Most of the post-2015 migrants arriving in Denmark, however, are not seeking asylum based on individual persecution.

Since the current government was elected in 2015, there have been numerous changes made to Danish immigration policy. Currently, if you are from a country where the situation is such that you require protection just by virtue of being from that country - due to its inherent volatility - your case does not fall under the UN requirement. Instead, you qualify for refugee status domestically in Denmark. But under this general protected status, your case will be assessed again after a period of time to see if you still warrant protection. With this status, individuals do not have the right to apply for family reunification for three years.

Wait for family

In November 2017, the Danish Supreme Court upheld a decision by a lower court that there had been no violation of Article 8 of the European Convention of Human Rights in the case of a Syrian man with temporary general protection status who had to wait three years for family reunification with his spouse. The ruling also found that there had been no infringement of the prohibition against discrimination under Article 14.

Acquiring permanent residence status in Denmark is complex. In certain circumstances it can be achieved after four years, but in reality it normally takes closer to eight years.

The work requirement for the post-four year application ensures that it is very unlikely a refugee would qualify, stipulating as it does that applicants must have been either self-employed or a full-time employee for a minimum of four years within the last four years and six months. This would mean the newcomer had been working legally almost since arrival.

The usual requirement for permanent residence status, which is somewhat more realistic for refugees, is that a person must be legally living in Denmark for at least eight years before they apply to be a permanent resident.

Under the post-eight year application, individuals must have held full-time employment for at least three years and six months within the last four years.




Guwahati : An hardcore militant belonging to NSCN-IM was killed during a fierce gun fight with the troops of Assam Rifles in Arunachal Pradesh on Friday evening, officials said on Saturday.





According to the reports, based on intelligence input about presence of militants at Nignu village in Longding district, the troops of Assam Rifles had launched an operation at the remote area on Friday evening.





Kohima based Defence PRO Colonel Chiranjeet Konwer said that, when the troops reached at the area, the militants had fired and heavy rounds of bullets exchanged.





"The columns while approaching the suspected hut where the cadres were staying were fired upon by a militant who was standing outside the hut, he also started shouting to warn the other militants and tried to flee. Second militant came out from the hut and started firing on the Security Forces column. The column retaliated with fire on the militant and eliminated one of the fleeing cadres. The other militants however exploiting the jungle and dense foliage managed to escape," Colonel Konwer said.





A hardcore NSCN-IM militant was killed in the gun battle and another militants had managed to escape from the area with the help of darkness.





The slain militant was identified as Self Styled Sergeant Pangang Gangsa.





The Defence PRO said that, the militant was previously part of banned outfit NSCN-K and he was also involved in ambush against security forces on December 3, 2016 in Nignu where two security personnel were martyred.





Security personnel had recovered one pistol, ammunition, grenades and other incriminating evidence in possession from the slain militant.





Security personnel had launched operation to nab the fled militants.




Are these old wives' tales, or is there science behind them? Stock photo

Wisdom has always passed down through generations. Before the invention of the printing press, stories would be relayed orally - a process that left the original nugget of truth vulnerable to distortion, like a very long-winded game of Chinese whispers.

This is most likely how old wives' tales came about. Older women - wives is thought to come from the Old English word for woman, wif, rather than wife - would offer snippets of domestic advice to their children. Unfortunately, most would have little scientific backing, which is why the term now connotes a traditional belief that is ultimately incorrect.

In the health sphere, these sayings are numerous. Most of our body heat is not lost through the head, for example, and cracking knuckles doesn't cause arthritis - but there's a fair chance you were told otherwise as a child.

Recently, reports suggested a more modern health myth has been busted. Cranberry juice has long been thought to help prevent urinary tract infections (UTIs). The idea behind this was that cranberries make our urine more acidic, creating an environment in which bacteria struggles to live. A study in 2010 did find people who used cranberry products 38pc less likely to develop UTIs, but now the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), says the evidence isn't strong enough to support the claim.

Current guidelines on how to steer away from UTIs include drinking lots of water, taking painkillers and seeking advice from a GP, where antibiotics may be prescribed. Though cranberry juice won't do any harm, it's also unlikely to remove the infection.

Below we look into some other sayings and ask: Is it an old wives' tale, or is there science behind the statement?

1 The cold gives you a cold

It's a common one, this. Your parents most likely told you that going out in cold weather in insufficient clothing would give you a cold - but were they right?

Not according to the experts. Those living in the Arctic are no more likely to catch a chill than folks in a hot country. In fact, cold weather may stimulate the immune system, according to a study by the Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine. The saying most likely stems from a time when we couldn't treat fevers, so myths were established to explain the causes of a cold.

There are, however, correlations between cold weather and colds. You can develop hypothermia if your body's core temperature gets too low, which will lower your immunity and leads to colds. So the cold can indirectly lead to a cold, but doesn't cause it.

Verdict: Old wives' tale

2 Most of your body heat is lost through your head

In the old days, before central heating, people would wear hats to sleep, as their heads were the only body part not under the covers.

But in 2008 the theory that most of our body heat is lost through the head was debunked. What is true is that the face, head and chest feels temperature changes more acutely than elsewhere in the body; if we cover them up, we don't feel so cold. In truth, heat loss from the head is now thought to be fairly proportional to the rest of the body.

Verdict: Old wives' tale

3 Sitting too close to the TV is bad for your eyes

In 1967, General Electric warned customers that some of their TVs were emitting harmful X-rays and told children to keep a safe distance, resulting in the common belief that sitting close to the box would ruin your eyes.

However, subsequent TVs were built with few rays, and today, LCD and plasma screens contain no x-rays. You can still strain your eyes if staring at a screen for too long - although the same could be said of anything that requires focusing on something up close, such as reading a book.

Verdict: Old wives' tale

4 Carrots are good for your eyes

The claim is said to have its origins in WWII, when a propaganda campaign popularised the myth. There may be some truth to this one. Carrots are a rich source of beta carotene, which is converted by the body in retinal, a type of Vitamin A that helps maintain good vision.

Before you reach for the carrots, however, it's worth noting that unless you are Vitamin A deficient, eating beta carotene won't actually help you see better. This is because when your body has enough beta carotene, it will stop converting it into Vitamin A.

Verdict: We're on the fence

5 It takes seven years to digest a piece of gum

One we've all heard from a parents, but is it true? Most of the ingredients in chewing gum is easily digestible - sugar, flavourings, mint oils, etc. The gum base, however, is fairly resistant to stomach acid and digestive enzymes.

But that doesn't mean it sticks in your stomach for seven years. It will generally make its way down the digestive tract, unless you've swallowed a massive amount - in which case, see a doctor.

Verdict: Old wives' tale

6 Knuckle cracking causes arthritis

It's a myth probably created to prevent a thoroughly annoying habit, but there's no evidence that cracking your knuckles causes arthritis. Cracking occurs when gas bubbles form in the fluids between your joints, and a sudden movement can release it.

It's not thought to be harmful and doesn't mean you have bad knuckles - or any other joint.

Verdict: Old wives' tale

7 Chicken soup can cure a cold

It's a wives' tale as old as time. Chicken soup, otherwise known as Jewish penicillin, is often consumed by cold or flu suffers. For centuries, Jewish scholars have praised its health-restoring ability.

And there may be some truth to this one. Chicken soup contains a broth made of several vegetables and chicken bones cooked for hours, releasing zinc, calcium and magnesium into the liquid. Theories as to why it helps relieve cold symptoms include hot soup clearing blocked noses; zinc helping shorten a cold; the hot water keeping you hydrated; and that there are several anti-inflammatory substances to alleviate colds.

Verdict: Cure is a strong word, but this one can definitely help
Ciaran O Gorman and Abby Belton pictured on Garryvoe Beach looking forward to the Easter Bunny Breakout at the Garryvoe Hotel this Easter Weekend. Pic: Daragh Mc Sweeney/Provision

Halloween celebrations at Irelands only drive-in cinema, Movie Junction, Carrigtwohil. The celebrations encouraged movie-lovers to treat their pets and kids to the cinema in a bid to raise money and awareness for two of Cork's busiest animal rescue centres.

One of the animal attractions at Leahy's Farm on the Ring of Cork

A chandelier made from whiskey bottles at the Jameson Experience in Midleton, Co. Cork.

The Ring of Cork. See ringofcork.ie for more.

Ring of Cork: Colm's Island, with Ballycotton Lighthouse. Tours of the area are available from ballycottonlighthousetours.com.

From cliff walks to certificates of foxiness, there's no end of things to do in this off-radar corner of the Rebel County.

So what is the Ring of Cork?

The answer is a little bit of everything.

The Ring of Cork works both as a route and a destination, looping around Cork City to take in a spectacular and surprising array of coast, towns and countryside along the way.

Here are our 10 great reasons to visit. Got any to add?

1. Its paradise...



Video: YouTube/Ballycotton Island Lighthouse Tours

Literally.

Take a stroll along the Ballycotton cliff walk, and youll come to a teetering series of steps leading to a beautiful (if bracing) bathing spot that locals call Paradise. Even if you dont partake of a dip, the sea air, views of the nearby Ballycotton Lighthouse (pictured above) and sight of fulmars riding the air currents is divine.

Towards the far end of the trail, a crease in the hills leads to a tiny cove at Ballytrasna, another secretive swimming spot. East Cork has several fine beaches (Myrtleville, Redbarn and Garryvoe among them) but this wee stretch of rocky coastline is something to covet.

Ballycotton Island Lighthouse Tours run 90-minute boat tours (20/15) of the area. Check weather conditions ahead by calling 021 464-6875.

Details: ringofcork.ie; ballycottonislandlighthousetours.ie.

2. The fish is THIS fresh

Expand Close Ballymaloe head chef Gillian Hegarty getting fresh fish from the pier at Ballycotton. Photo: Joleen Cronin / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Ballymaloe head chef Gillian Hegarty getting fresh fish from the pier at Ballycotton. Photo: Joleen Cronin



You wont go hungry on the Ring of Cork.

From Midletons farmers market (Saturdays) to its idiosyncratic Farmgate Cafe, from Frank Hedermans smokehouse to Cronins pub in Crosshaven (try the Mad Fish Soup, laced with brandy, cream and lots of fresh fish), you could do the Ring on a bike and still arrive home 10lbs heavier.

Recommendations? I nabbed some marvellous monkfish fritters with home-cut fries at Sage in Midleton recently, Ahernes of Youghal is one of Corks best seafood restaurants (with a Blue Book townhouse on the side), and for dessert, Fantastic Flavours Ice Cream in Cobh and Youghal offer 42 flavours of handmade, artisan ice cream using local dairy. Its Irelands highest rated ice cream parlour by TripAdvisor, apparently.

Details: sagerestaurant.ie; ahernes.net, fantasticflavours.ie

3. The Irish Redhead Convention

Expand Close The Irish Redhead Convention was a whacky idea dreamt up by siblings and proud redheads Joleen and Denis Cronin way back in 2010. (www.redheadconvention.ie). Photo: Darragh Kane / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp The Irish Redhead Convention was a whacky idea dreamt up by siblings and proud redheads Joleen and Denis Cronin way back in 2010. (www.redheadconvention.ie). Photo: Darragh Kane



Red-gister here...

Yes, it's a thing!

Every summer, hundreds of redheads gather for a weekend of ginger-loving madness in the coastal village of Crosshaven. Think carrot tossing, speed dating, a parade of natural redheads, certificates of genuine foxiness and the crowning of the Redhead King and Queen... it's a fiery mix of freckled and flame-haired fun for all the family. This years Irish Redhead Convention runs from August 21-23.

Details: redheadconvention.ie

4. The original country house hotel

Expand Close Ballymaloe House, Co. Cork / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Ballymaloe House, Co. Cork



Ballymaloe House

All roads in Irish hospitality lead to (or from) Ballymaloe.

I remember the first cars coming up the driveway, Myrtle Allen told me on my last visit, sitting in the leafy conservatory behind her old home. She opened over 50 years ago, and though the original country house seems unchanged, the brand continues to vigorously evolve.

Take the Kerrygold Ballymaloe Litfest, scheduled for May 15-17 (last year, it pulled off an all-time Irish food festival coups in booking Nomas Rene Redzepi). Take the Grainstore, a converted 17th century warehouse hosting plays, screenings, concerts and festivals as well as regular drop-in classes such as Yoga and Bridge.

And thats not even starting on the bread-making classes.

Sure, its expensive. You may even find things a little too prim (check out the black-and-white maids uniforms). But the Allen familys great trick has been to keep moving, whilst allowing guests to feel like time is standing still.

Details: ballymaloe.ie; ballymaloegrainstore.ie; litfest.ie

5. This guy

Expand Close Clifford Winser, Youghal's Town Crier. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Clifford Winser, Youghal's Town Crier.



Meet Clifford Winser, Youghals Town Crier.

But Clifford is much more than that. He not only rings his bell, dresses in full livery and offers hearty welcomes (and heartier photo opps) to visitors - he acts as a tour guide too. Best of all, he was a category winner at The World Town Crier Tournament in Chester in 2014 something to shout about indeed!

Youghal is one of several historical stops on the Ring of Cork (the full route was created by the people of Glanmire, Carrigtwohill, Cobh, Midleton, Carrigaline, Crosshaven and Ballincollig).

Its towering Clock Gate, Myrtle Grove (once home to Sir Walter Raleigh) and 13th century St Marys Collegiate Church are highlights... We wonder if Clifford has ever done a spot of town crying in St Marys, where round earthenware jars placed high in the chancel are said to yield spectacular natural acoustics?

Hear ye!

Details: YoughalChamber.ie

6. Animal attractions

Expand Close One of the animal attractions at Leahy's Farm on the Ring of Cork / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp One of the animal attractions at Leahy's Farm on the Ring of Cork



Close encounters at Leahy's Farm

Fota Wildlife Park just keeps getting better. 2014 was the busiest year in its history, and its following that with an expansion of its Asian Sanctuary to include Indian rhino in July, with Asian lions following in 2016. Its an expensive visit at 15/9.50 or 45.50 for a family (2+2), but a great day out nevertheless (oh, and don't miss the cheetahs).

You wont find rhinos or cheetahs at Leahys Open Farm, meanwhile, but you will find a good dose of year-round family fun. Just a couple of miles from the village of Dungourney, visitors can feed the lambs and hold the snake, among other activities  and there are go-karts, boat rides and playgrounds too.

Details: www.fotawildlife.ie; leahysopenfarm.ie

7. It was Titanics last stop

Expand Close RMS Titanic. Cobh was the liner's last port of call. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp RMS Titanic. Cobh was the liner's last port of call.



RMS Titanic: Seven passengers disembarked at Cobh

Cork Harbour has a heck of a maritime history, but the ship that came calling on April 11th, 1912 arguably defines it above all others.

The pride of the White Star line dropped anchor for the last time off Roche's Point. After picking up 123 passengers (and disembarking seven more, including Fr. Browne, who shot many iconic photos of the ship), RMS Titanic sailed off to meet its fate in the icy waters of the North Atlantic.

The Queenstown Story at Cobh Heritage Centre (9.50/5) gives an insight into this amazing chapter in Irish maritime history, with other heritage gems in the town including its cathedral, Titanic Experience (in the former White Star Line offices) and Spike Island, which has hosted a monastery, fortress and prison on its 104 acres.

Details: cobhheritage.com; titanicexperiencecobh.ie

8. The world's fastest growing whiskey

Expand Close A chandelier made from whiskey bottles at the Jameson Experience in Midleton, Co. Cork. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp A chandelier made from whiskey bottles at the Jameson Experience in Midleton, Co. Cork.



100 green bottles...

The Jameson Experience is much more than a polished spiel about three basic ingredients  barley, malt and water  and the distilling process that transforms them into the various blends vying for your credit card in the gift shop (tours cost 13/7.70).

Did you know Midleton boasts the biggest pot still in the world, for example, capable of holding 143,872 litres? Or that product lost to evaporation is known as the angels share?

The old distillery itself is full of lovely old stone warehouses, wooden casks and a great, lumbering mill wheel. And of course, the tour ends with a tasting session comparing smooth Irish whiskey with its paint-stripping American and Scotch counterparts. Jameson is owned by Pernod Ricard these days, and said to be the world's fastest-growing whiskey brand, but I like the sense of a distillery that remains at the heart of the local community.

Every last drop of Jameson is a Cork drop, as my guide says.

For something a little different, Neptune Kayak has a tour of the distillery following a guided kayak tour of Cork Harbour, capping things off with a parting glass at Poc ar Buile in Ballinrostig - a traditional pub where you'll be invited to pull a pint and relax in front of the roaring fire.

The tour costs 70pp (minimum group size of four). Slainte!

Details: jamesonwhiskey.com; neptunekayak.co

9. Corks only drive-in cinema

Expand Close Halloween celebrations at Irelands only drive-in cinema, Movie Junction, Carrigtwohil. The celebrations encouraged movie-lovers to treat their pets and kids to the cinema in a bid to raise money and awareness for two of Cork's busiest animal rescue centres. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Halloween celebrations at Irelands only drive-in cinema, Movie Junction, Carrigtwohil. The celebrations encouraged movie-lovers to treat their pets and kids to the cinema in a bid to raise money and awareness for two of Cork's busiest animal rescue centres.



Halloween at Movie Junction

Ok, you're unlikely to tour the Ring of Cork in a 1950s convertible.

But Movie Junction  the county's only drive-in cinema  caters for all kinds of motors. The experience is available seven nights a week, there are rain canopies (to stop the elements mucking up your view of the screen), and you can tune your car radio into the cinemas FM frequency to catch the full sound.

A double feature deal sees 25 buy two movies any night of the week.

Other big, set-piece experiences on the Ring of Cork include Trabolgan Holiday Village, Darina Allens Ballymaloe Cookery School, and one you may not have heard of  the regional park at Ballincollig. This is a former military town, and a 19th century gunpowder works is just one of the heritage gems youll find cropping up along its stretch of the River Lee.

Details: moviejunction.ie; trabolgan.com; cookingisfun.ie

10. The AA's Hotel of the Year

Expand Close The Maryborough Hotel & Spa, Cork. / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp The Maryborough Hotel & Spa, Cork.



Cork's Maryborough Hotel

"The AA only accredits hotels that we inspect personally for unannounced overnight visits including a meal," says its spokesperson, Conor Faughnan. "Hence when we say they are excellent, we can stand over it."

The 2014/15 Hotel of the Year is Maryborough Hotel & Spa, where AA Secret Hotel Inspectors cited excellent service, continuous improvements, a proactive culture and innovations like its outdoor wedding dome, petting farm and forthcoming orangery in awarding the top gong.

Of course, there are dozens of alternatives  ranging from five-star stays like Fota Island Resort and Castlemartyr to Cork classics like the Garryvoe Hotel, Trabolgan Holiday Village and the Bayview in Ballycotton.

Details: maryborough.com; fotaisland.ie; castlemartyrresort.ie; garryvoehotel.com; trabolgan.com, thebayviewhotel.com. For more accommodation options, see ringofcork.ie.

Read more:
Premium

Colm McCarthy Opinion UK is not alone in its Covid failures

New cases, hospitalisations and deaths from the virus have all risen somewhat in the UK over the last week. Given the rapid roll-out of vaccination, the best in Europe, this should not have been happening. The reason seems to be the so-called Indian variant, more infectious and more widespread in Britain, and some experts are worried the government may be forced to pause, or even reverse, the lifting of restrictions.
Premium

Dan O'Brien Opinion While we catastrophise about Covid, we ignore risk of running out of cash

We Irish view the world in an increasingly strange and unhealthy way. We catastrophise about Covid in a way other European countries do not. We focus on how bad the effects of the virus could get, on how many more restrictions might be imposed by Government and how helpless we are in the face of the virus.
Premium

Eoghan Harris Opinion Misery media fails to give due credit to the Taoiseach

Taoiseach Micheal Martin must drive his advisers mad. Unlike Leo Varadkar or Donald Trump, he never bigs up success stories such as the effect of Level 3 Plus on Covid or his visionary Shared Island project. Last Friday, Tony Holohan and RTE cheerleaders seemed to imply Level 5 was responsible for the improved Covid situation. Not so.
Premium

Gene Kerrigan Opinion Taking the credit like only Fine Gael can

There was a time when Fine Gael wasnt arrogant and aggressive. Hard to believe, after listening to Regina Doherty blowing the partys trumpet last week. God be with the days when you could have a bit of crack with a Fine Gaeler. Some of them were snobbish, some were reactionaries, and there was the odd conniving gobdaw  but there were plenty of them who lived in an Ireland familiar to the rest of us.
You know a story has gone global when Kay Burley sweeps into town to cover it. Sky's doyenne of live news has come to Ireland to ascertain the mood in the hours before the referendum vote and, as she travels from Co Clare to Dublin, sees "a divide between the city and country" and reckons the vote is "going to be incredibly tight" - predictions loudly contradicted by the exit polls a few hours later.

But being right is much less important than being entertaining and Burley's brilliant bluntness and plain-spoken questions make our own national broadcaster's referendum coverage seem almost stuffily British by comparison.

More than any other news anchor, she has the ability to make rolling live news interesting; in talking up the divide she is also drum-rolling the story.

She has happy memories of Ireland. It was here, a quarter of a century ago, that her former husband proposed to her.

"He did it in Stephen's Green and we went to Grafton Street afterward and bought the ring," she tells me.

"He was an A&E guy in the music business and there was lots of work here for him. I came along with him and wasn't expecting it, it was a lovely surprise. I fell pregnant quite soon after and had a boy, Alexander, who is 25 now."

Expand Close Sky News anchor Kay Burley at Dublin Castle on Saturday. Picture: Mark Condren / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Sky News anchor Kay Burley at Dublin Castle on Saturday. Picture: Mark Condren

Burley has long been one of the more controversial news journalists in British broadcasting, earning a reputation as a fearsome interrogator and what The Spectator called "the living embodiment of Sky, a cheeky, eye-rolling icon of populist telly".

Those eye-rolling moments have come thick and fast over the years. She once asked the girlfriend of serial killer Steve Wright if he would have committed the crimes had they had a better sex life.

She deliciously needled newly elected Labour leader Ed Miliband about his ousting of his brother David for the leadership of the party ("your poor mother!"). And her flaying of CEO Nick Varney in the aftermath of an accident on one of the Alton Towers theme park rides was riveting and cringeworthy in equal measure.

Does she ever come off air and think she went too hard?

Video of the Day

"I'm sure I must have some regrets, we all have regrets all the time, but generally when I go to do a tough interview I'm very aware beforehand what I want to ask," she says.

"Take, for example, the Alton Towers interview - the chief executive there did a very good job, he managed to tiptoe through the raindrops. Those children went to a theme park to relax after having done their exams and left there in an ambulance, with some missing some limbs.

"If I'd been the mother of those children I would have wanted someone to have been tough on him. The company subsequently lost a court case for 5m so I think I did quite a good job there."

She says people still bring up her interview with Peter Andre "all the time". "We were both very surprised when he cried [about Katie Price's new husband potentially adopting Andre's children]," she says.

"He was on to promote his book. I rarely go through my questions with anyone beforehand, but he knew what was coming and I was surprised he was so overwhelmed, and I'm sorry about that."

Since we are speaking in the days after Harvey Weinstein has turned himself in, I wonder if Kay herself as ever had to deal with sexual harassment or her own MeToo moments.

"I've worked in newsrooms for 40 years and the atmosphere has changed significantly in that time. Over that time, men have changed all through society, not just in media.

"One time I was at a party and there was a man who ran his finger up and down my spine and I turned around to him and said, 'If you do that again I'm going to punch your f***ing lights out'.

"Not all women feel that they can approach the situation in that way but I'm a tough Wigan streetfighter and I'm never going to be bowed."

So is it British classism - a distaste with a working-class girl rising above her station - that has made her such a lightning rod for controversy?

"I'm not sure it's class so much as I think there is a different view of women asking tough questions in our society," she says. "But hopefully I've gone some way toward breaking that prejudice since I've done more live telly than anyone else in the world, and I'm flying the flag for older women."

Part of that has been putting her best face forward. She's been open about the cosmetic surgery she's had done - she has admitted treating herself to a 10,000 facelift for her 50th birthday and now she has topped it up with Botox.

She explains: "I did my research, as I do with everything in my career, and saw a number of different people before I decided on the person who would do it [the facelift], who is the best person in the world at it, and I actually counsel a lot of the women whom he looks after."

If her taste in surgeons is impeccable, she has an unerring instinct for a good line. Burley recently won Broadcaster of the Year in London, beating off stiff competition from the likes of Laura Kuenssberg, and quips: "I've never actually won anything except for being second in a colouring competition in school. That was for keeping between the lines," - she pauses for a beat - "which I have never really done as a journalist."
'I was 13 when Savita died; I didn't know much about Irish law or abortion, but I was shocked," said Cara Daniel from Dublin.

"It was a wake-up call that I didn't want to live in a country which allowed this," she told the Irish Independent.

"Along with that and the stories of church control; and how women clearly didn't have the same rights, then I wanted to do something.

"I joined ROSA - the Socialist Feminist Movement which supports reproductive rights for women, and I'll stay in politics with groups like the AAA - Austerity Alliance," she said.

Ms Daniel's motivation resonates with almost every young person in the country. Although they were spared the horrors and torture of Magdalene Laundries and industrial schools, it was within their lifetime that the truths of this era has emerged.

Almost 88pc of young Irish people voted in favour of the Government's proposals to allow women to access termination up to 12 weeks gestation, and where a woman's health is at serious risk.

More than 200,000 young people have joined the voting register in the past three years.

The generation of young Irish people today are the most academically more educated; and the most travelled.

How Did Your Constituency Vote? Final Results Ireland

Dublin Map Key Yes 55% 50% 55% No

When Ireland joined the EU in 1973, it was illegal to talk about abortion in the press; there was huge censure, says political analyst Odhran Flynn.

"Young people never got access to information about anything; and that was at the behest of the Church."

Women whose role was traditionally confined to being at home, have become equal, if not more educated than their male counterparts.

As a result you have women demanding to "control their own lives; women won't be dictated by elderly men in garments or suits telling them how their bodies should be treated", said Mr Flynn.

"It's as simple as recognising a woman's humanity and her choice over her own body," said Jimmy Billings (24) from Waterford.

"Ireland has for too long used women's bodies as a mould of control over society.

"It's a really momentous time in getting rid of the Catholic influence in the country," he told the Irish Independent watching on from Dublin Castle.

He said while "women led the movement men were getting involved; they supported from the side-lines" at least.

"Older generations have lived through the trauma; they saw how that regime of fear was so frightening. We wanted to make sure that would never happen again," he said.

In an ironic twist, this weekend's vote is almost the same result as the referendum in 1983, only reverse: 66pc of men voted Yes; that was heavily skewed towards younger people, said Mr Flynn.

"Other than England, Irish people never rebelled against anything," he said.

That's why this has taken so long, but when young people were exposed to new ideas, "they said we want some of this".

Younger people said NO, we're not going down this road any more

In two transformative referendums in three years, young people can see the value of the political system, and the movement towards a more progressive liberal Ireland won't stop now, he said.

"There's no doubt some will get involved in elections; they've been shown that activism works."

They see a gay Taoiseach and a Minister for Health Simon Harris who was born three years after the Eighth Amendment was introduced.

"There's a good chance it will bring more women into politics and I'm certain this will be key for finally more women going in to politics in Ireland," said Flynn.

"We have a lot of young men who come to work with me in the Women's Council," said Laura Harmon.

"Young men who are identifying as feminist; they felt voting to support women was right."

"I shouldn't have the right over someone else's body; at the foundation of any democratic state lies the value of sovereignty and how do you enshrine sovereignty if you don't give women control over their own bodies", said Indian student Vedanth Govi (24).

"So many Irish women who had to bear the trauma of so many years; their daughters and granddaughters won't have to do it, you can see their relief today."

The stories of what went on in Ireland have been passed to young people, said Sinn Fein MEP Lynn Boylan who added she was "shocked" from the stories she'd heard from older people on the doors.

"The older generation at the doors; so many older men and women passed down horrendous stories of how Irish women were banished to the UK, or sent to Magdalene Laundries," she said.

Many of the parents, grand-parents or uncles or aunts would say to me "why is this country so cruel to women? It was an issue that had to be righted and it was down to the younger generation", she said.

Ireland was an outlier; and young people weren't going to accept it.

"Young people have been showered with stories of the women who went to the UK had to scrape the money together, but the other ones ended up in Magdalene Laundries," said Mr Flynn.

Backstreet abortion clinics were "horrendous; they used knitting needles and they were hellholes in working class huts".

Abortion pills are "their equivalent where they're taking a risk with their lives", when in other countries it was seen as healthcare.
Daniel Kearns attends the HOUSE 99 by David Beckham Global Launch Party at Electrowerkz on February 28, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Darren Gerrish/WireImage for HOUSE 99 by David Beckham)

Kent & Curwen Creative Director Daniel Kearns (L) and David Beckham attend the launch of the Kent & Curwen collection during London Fashion Week Men's January 2017 collections at Oxo Tower Wharf on January 8, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Darren Gerrish/Darren Gerrish/WireImage)

Daniel Kearns' CV would make even those whose dismiss fashion as frivolity green with envy.

At 43, he has achieved more in his 20-year career than most could hope for during their lifetime, including stints at Roberto Cavalli, Ungaro, Alexander McQueen and where he got his start - Dolce & Gabbana.

Before he became one of the premier names in menswear, he was a secondary school student at Gonzaga College in Dublin's Ranelagh, when his art teacher noticed how adept he was at the subject.

"The art teacher I had in school stopped me after class and asked did I want to go to art college. Gonzaga was a very academic school, but I wasn't the best student and I'd found something I was quite good at. So, they sent me projects to do every week, like drawing inanimate objects with different materials for portfolio and by the time I was doing my Leaving Cert, I had a place in the National College of Art & Design (NCAD)," Daniel tells Independent.ie Style.

"My first step was to get into art college and from there, it was during my core foundation year when you're trying out different things that I realised fashion was the thing for me. It was at this time that mt mother would tell stories of me raiding my dad's wardrobe as a child, cutting the crocodiles off his Lacoste shirts and putting them down the legs of trousers. From an early age, I was inspired by music and I went through every phase possible under the sun much to my parents dismay."

His journey from angsty teenager to world renowned creative director was a natural one and he says that he was "always fascinated by subcultures and what clothes meant to people" and during his studies at NCAD, he veered towards menswear largely because there was nobody else doing it.

Expand Close Daniel Kearns attends the HOUSE 99 by David Beckham Global Launch Party at Electrowerkz on February 28, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Darren Gerrish/WireImage for HOUSE 99 by David Beckham) / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Daniel Kearns attends the HOUSE 99 by David Beckham Global Launch Party at Electrowerkz on February 28, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Darren Gerrish/WireImage for HOUSE 99 by David Beckham)

And fashion runs in the family - his late grandfather owned a mill in Midleton, Co Cork, which supplied woollen fabrics for military uniforms, where his uncle was designing materials. and his mother was an accomplished sketcher. His father Nicholas had chosen law as his profession and was president of the High Court.

"They were delighted to support me in that, they were super happy that I found something I wanted to do and I was pretty okay at doing," he said of the encouragement of his parents.

After NCAD, he moved onto London's prestigious Royal College of Art (RCA), where he earned and MPhil and toyed with the idea of pursuing a PhD, but was instead lured into the professional design world in Milan, where he landed a coveted four month internship at Dolce & Gabbana.

"At the time, Prada and D&G were the big brands in Milan so it was a very exciting time. I've been massively lucky and fortunate to have some of the chances I've had. Id encourage anyone to just take them and immerse yourself in everything.

Video of the Day

By the year 2000, he graduated and was working with Giambattista Valli, who scouted him after his graduate fashion show to work at Ungaro. After that, it was a time at John Galliano, working side by the side with the videsigner, who, before his fall from grace, was one of the most influential people in the industry.

"I worked there for three and a half years; I did 10 shows with him and did his personal dressing for personal exits and Dior," Daniel says.

"It was a very exciting time for fashion in general in Paris then. After that, I moved back to London in 2005 to work as design director for Alexander McQueen, who was an incredible visionary - one of the biggest inspirations I've ever had working with Lee."

After McQueen's death in 2010, the father-of-two moved to Louis Vuitton and then to Zegna, before making to the jump to Kent & Curwan, the menswear brand where David Beckham is a brand parnter.

"After meeting him and seeing his vision for the brand, I knew it was the right thing to do. He has a very clear idea of what he wants to achieve. That's been an incredible experience. From our first conversation on day one, I could see were on the same page. he's incredibly down to earth and it's so easy to work with him," Daniel says.

"He knows what he likes. He's been involved with me, doing the research and going to vintage stores - when we were doing labels and swing tags and discussing the store concept, he was part of it. He knows what he likes and is certain about that - and usually, he's right."

"His personal style speaks for itself. Its effortless and that is such an inspiration. He always looks impeccable and thats really what were trying to achieve. Most men see him as an icon, both as an international sporting icon but with fashion too."
Kathmandu, Nepal: With the formation of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), internal differences have marred the party, thanks to the failure to give appropriate positions to the senior leaders of the erstwhile CPN UML and the CPN Maoist Center.





Some leaders including partys senior leader Jhala Nath Khanal, who was the former General Secretary and prime Minister of erstwhile UML and now is a member of the NCP secretariat, has taken serious exception to his demotion in the party hierarchy.





As current ranking of the NCP has put Khanal behind Madhav Kumar Nepal, he has demanded to reinstate him into his former position citing the reason that ninth General Convention of the UML had accorded him as the second-most senior leader putting ahead of Nepal in the ranking.





Khanal has a claim that he was kept in dark not only about his position but also about the date that the UML and Maoist Center had merged. It is said that Khanal was in China for treatment on the day the two parties were merged.





Not only Khanal but also Ishwor Pokharel and Bhim Rawal, who were General Secretary and vice president respectively of the erstwhile UML, have also expressed their serious displeasure claiming that their seniority was not respected while merging the two parties.





As Rawal is not appointed even a member in the NCP Secretariat, he had met party co-chair KP Oli to express his dissatisfaction. Though Pokharel has not spoken publicly against of the decision, he is not satisfied for not being offered the post of General Secretary. Bishnu Paudel, who is considered as the close confident of Oli, was appointed as the General Secretary of the NCP.





Not only are the leaders of the erstwhile UML but also the Maoist Center are also not satisfied with the ranking in the CPN. It is said that Narayan Kaji Shrestha and Ram Bahadur Thapa are dissatisfied with their ranks in the CPN. Though Shrestha wanted to be a General Secretary of the NCP, he has been named as spokesperson while Thapa wants to be above of Ishwor Pokharel in rank.




THE welcome sunshine of recent days will become more intermittent in the coming week but the high temperatures and heavy showers will continue, according to Met Eireann.

Forecaster Deirdre Lowe said following this mornings thundery downpours, tonight will bring further heavy down pours locally, but many places will be dry and misty with some fog patches.

And it's set to become very warm.

Monday will be another warm and humid day with a mix of cloud and spells of hazy sunshine, said the Met Eireann forecaster.

Further scattered heavy showers will break out also with localised thundery down pours and highest temperatures 18 to 24 degrees.

While Monday night is predicted to be dry and mild, scattered showers will begin again on Tuesday, with the occasional sunny spell mixed in. Top temperatures will be in the high teens to low twenties, and showers could turn heavy or thundery in the afternoon.

As for the rest of the week, the warm humid weather looks likely to continue.

The days will be bringing a mix of cloud and hazy sunny spells with occasional heavy showers or thunderstorms, according to Met Eireann.

Temperatures throughout the week are expected to remain above normal with daytime values in the high teens during overcast, but rise to the low twenties in sunshine. Night temperatures will be mild, but will remain in double figures.

Next week's hot and heavy forecast follows a spectacular lightning storm over Ireland's south coast over the weekend - with one family with two young children having a lucky escape when their house caught fire after a lighting strike.

The Cork family were awoken by the sound of a loud 'bang' shortly after 1am Sunday.

The father immediately realised the roof of their two storey home at Ballymacoda had just been struck by lightning.

He rushed his wife and two children, a toddler and a four year old, to the safety of a neighbour's house and rang Cork Fire Brigade.

Four units from Youghal and Midleton raced to the scene and fought the blaze at the property just outside Ballymacoda and a short distance from the popular seaside town of Youghal.

Locals paid tribute to the fire brigade officials who fought the blaze at the height of the storm with lightning and torrential thunder showers throughout the area along the Cork-Waterford border.

"Great credit to them - they fought that blaze despite the storm," one local man said.

"From what I heard this morning in the village, the lightning strike was like an explosion on the roof."

"It caused a lot of damage to the roof and that's where they believe the fire started and then spread to the upper part of the house."

A water tanker unit was later dispatched from Cork city to support the four local brigades as they battled the blaze.

The fire was brought under control around 3am but was not finally extinguished until around 7am.

However, substantial damage was caused both to the roof and upper storey of the property involved.

No one was injured in the fire thanks to the quick-thinking of the young father in rushing his family to safety.

Locals said the young family were very shocked by their ordeal.

Engineers will assess the damage to the property which is understood to have only recently been refurbished.

The electrical storm was one of the biggest witnessed over Cork, Kerry and Waterford in recent years.

Lightning strikes also caused problems with the electrical network across the south west.

The ESB confirmed it was attending to a number of line faults linked to lightning strikes, particularly in the Killeagh, Castlemartyr and

Youghal areas where the concentration of lightning strikes was greatest.

The electrical storm was sufficiently violent to wake hundreds of people across the south east and south west.

It was accompanied by torrential thunder showers which resulted in localised funding in some areas.

Lighting strikes at Stansted Airport in the UK also caused problems for Irish travellers with delays to numerous flights caused by damage

to a refuelling system at the airport during the storm.
Britain needs to "face the reality" of Brexit, the EU's chief negotiator has said, as he warned Theresa May a withdrawal deal will not be possible unless she backs down over the future jurisdiction of European courts.

Michel Barnier said Britain should not play a "blame game" and try to claim Brussels is responsible for the "negative consequences" of leaving the EU. He urged government ministers to come forward with "more realistic proposals", warning: "A negotiation cannot be a game of hide and seek."

Mr Barnier said there would be no withdrawal agreement or transition period unless the UK agrees to a continued role for the European Court of Justice in determining disputes involving the UK after Brexit - something Mrs May has repeatedly ruled out.

The barbed comments follow a row over the future of British involvement in the EU's Galileo satellite project. Brussels's decision to kick the UK out of the scheme was angrily denounced by ministers, with Philip Hammond, the chancellor, vowing to launch a separate satellite initiative if the EU refuses to back down. Tensions were already running high following days of strained negotiations in Brussels, during which one senior EU source described the UK's demands as "fantasy". Mr Hammond dismissed that remark as "not helpful".

Speaking at a legal conference in Lisbon, Mr Barnier noted the importance of agreeing how the relationship between the UK and the EU will be governed once Britain leaves the bloc. He said: "We have probably made a lot of progress on the substance of the withdrawal agreement, but without effective governance, these gains will be of limited value. Because without agreement on governance, and without an agreement on Ireland and Northern Ireland, there will be no withdrawal agreement, and therefore no transition period. The United Kingdom is well aware that our citizens and businesses, on both sides of the Channel, need legal certainty."

Hinting at continued frustration in Brussels over a perceived lack of detail in the UK's negotiating demands, Mr Barnier urged ministers to be more "realistic" and warned them against playing a 'blame game" with the EU. He said: "We also want an ambitious partnership with the United Kingdom in the long term. But to achieve this, we need realistic proposals from the UK - proposals that respect the institutional architecture and the integrity of the European Union. I can see the temptation of the blame game to bring the negative consequences of Brexit on the European Union. But we will not be impressed. I will not be impressed."

He added: "For the economy, for foreign policy, the best way to influence the decisions of the European Union is to be in the European Union. The UK wants to leave. It's its decision. Not ours. And that has consequences. The UK must look at the reality of the EU in the face. It must also face the reality of Brexit."

The EU and the UK are at loggerheads over how disputes will be settled after Brexit. Britain wants to establish a joint committee, with members appointed by political leaders, to resolve any issues that arise, but European leaders have insisted the ECJ must be given the final say. Ms May has previously insisted: "The jurisdiction of the ECJ in the UK must end."

In a sign of the continued distance between the two negotiating teams, Mr Barnier said: "We cannot accept that a jurisdiction other that the Court of Justice of the European Union determines the law and imposes its interpretation on the institutions of the Union."

The former French minister said the EU was open to the UK changing its stance, but that time was running out. He said: "If the United Kingdom would like to change its own red lines, it must tell us. The sooner the better. We are asking for clarity. A negotiation cannot be a game of hide and seek."

 Independent
A 13-year-old girl who went missing on her way to school has since left the country probably in the company of an older person, police have said.

Serena Alexander-Benson is known to have boarded a Eurotunnel train at Folkestone on Friday morning.

Officers say they are concerned for her welfare and have widened their search.

The youngster was last seen by her father leaving home in Wimbledon, south-west London, at around 7.50am the same day. He reported her missing after she never arrived at school.

Police say she was wearing a green blazer and uniform with her dark brown hair tied up. They appealed for anyone with information or who may have seen her travelling through Folkestone to contact them. She is understood to have gone through passport control there.

She has not been reported missing before, and, while she lives with her father, her mother is based in Poland.

A statement released by the Met Police on Saturday said: Police are concerned for the welfare of Serena Alexander-Benson, a 13-year-girl who is missing from home in Wimbledon.

CID officers based at Wandsworth are investigating. Serena has not been missing before.

It added: Police enquiries have established that Serena left the UK at Folkestone on the morning of 25 May on a Eurotunnel train. Active lines of inquiry are being pursued to locate her.

Anyone who may know Serena's whereabouts or who may have seen her as she travelled through Folkestone - probably in the company of an older person - should call officers at Wandsworth CID.
Italys premier-designate has told the president he has been unable to form what would have been western Europes first populist government.

A presidential palace official said that Giuseppe Conte has given back the mandate to try to form a government that President Sergio Mattarella gave him four days earlier.

Expand Close Italy Politics / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Italy Politics

Mr Conte said he tried his hardest to form the countrys next government and had full cooperation from would-be coalition partners, the populist 5-Star Movement and League parties.

The University of Florence law professor said he gave the maximum effort, attention, to carry out this task with the full collaboration of the 5-Star Movement and League.

Mr Conte, who has no political experience, received the mandate last week from the pro-European Mr Mattarella.

Assembling a Cabinet acceptable to both Mr Mattarella and the populist partners foundered on League leader Matteo Salvinis insistence on a Eurosceptic economy minister.

League leader Matteo Salvini tweeted on Sunday that he would keep fighting to the end for the anti-euro candidate he wants to be the minister.

Paolo Savona has likened Italy to being in a cage of austerity restrictions favoured by fellow eurozone member Germany.

Mr Salvini and 5-Star Movement leader Luigi Di Maio, a fellow Eurosceptic, joined forces in the hope of giving Italy its first populist government.

After inconclusive March 4 elections, they proposed Mr Conte as their choice to lead the next government.
ON/OFF: South Korean President Moon Jae-in (left) talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (right) before their meeting yesterday in the Korean DMZ. Photo: AFP/Getty

President Donald Trump says "everybody plays games" as he's suggesting the summit with North Korea that he suddenly called off might get back on track, rekindling hopes of progress toward halting the North's nuclear weapons development

Trump has welcomed the North's conciliatory response to his letter last Thursday withdrawing from the June 12 meeting in Singapore with Kim Jong-un. Trump said last Friday it was even possible the meeting could take place on the originally planned date.

"They very much want to do it; we'd like to do it," he said.

Trump later tweeted that the two countries were "having very productive talks". He wrote that the summit, "if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date".

In the meantime, Kim and South Korea's president, Moon Jae-in, met yesterday at a border truce village. They discussed carrying out the peace commitments they reached in their first summit, as well as Kim's potential meeting with Trump, Moon's office said. Moon was expected today to reveal the outcome of his surprise meeting with Kim.

It was the clearest sign yet that the on-again off-again summit between Trump and Kim is likely to be held as initially agreed, in Singapore on June 12.

The unannounced meeting at the Panmunjom border village between Moon and Kim came a month after they held the first inter-Korean summit in more than a decade at the same venue and declared they would move toward a nuclear-free Korean peninsula.

"The two leaders candidly exchanged views about making the North Korea-US summit a successful one and about implementing the Panmunjom Declaration," South Korea's presidential spokesman said in a statement.

Moon, who returned to Seoul last week after a meeting with Trump, will announce details of the meeting with Kim later this morning.

Trump had scrapped the plan to meet in a letter to Kim last Thursday after repeated threats by North Korea to pull out over what it saw as confrontational remarks by US officials demanding unilateral disarmament.

Trump cited North Korean hostility in cancelling the summit.

In Pyongyang, North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye-gwan said North Korea's criticisms had been a reaction to American rhetoric and that current antagonism showed "the urgent necessity" for the summit.

He said North Korea regretted Trump's decision to cancel and remained open to resolving issues "regardless of ways, at any time".

Kim Kye-gwan said North Korea had appreciated Trump having made the bold decision to work toward a summit.

"We even inwardly hoped that what is called 'Trump formula' would help clear both sides of their worries and comply with the requirements of our side and would be a wise way of substantial effect for settling the issue," he said.

North Korea also went ahead with a plan to destroy its only known nuclear site last Thursday, the most concrete action yet since pledging to cease all nuclear and long-range missile tests last month. Dozens of international journalists left North Korea yesterday after observing the demolition of the underground tunnels in Punggye-ri, where all of the North's six nuclear tests were conducted including its latest and largest in September.

White House officials noted that Trump had left the door open with a letter to Kim that blamed "tremendous anger and open hostility" by Pyongyang but also urged Kim to call him.

By last Friday, North Korea issued a statement saying it was still "willing to give the US time and opportunities" to reconsider talks "at any time, at any format".

Trump rapidly tweeted that the statement was "very good news" and told reporters that "we're talking to them now".

Trump views the meeting as a legacy-defining opportunity and has relished the press attention and the speculation about a possible Nobel Peace Prize. He made a quick decision to accept the meeting in March, over the concerns of many top aides, and has remained committed, even amid rising concerns about the challenges he faces in scoring a positive agreement.

Asked last Friday if the North Koreans were playing games with their communications, Trump responded: "Everybody plays games. You know that better than anybody."

He did not detail the nature of the new US communication with the North.

At the Pentagon, Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said "diplomats are still at work on the summit, possibility of a summit, so that is very good news". He characterised the recent back-and-forth as the "usual give and take".

A previously planned trip by White House aides to Singapore this weekend to work on logistics for the trip remained on schedule, said two White House officials, who were not authorised to speak publicly and discuss the matter on condition of anonymity.

The US and North Korea do not have formal diplomatic relations, complicating the task of communicating between the two governments. Under the Trump administration, the CIA, where now-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo served as director, has taken an unusually prominent role in back-channel negotiations.

Pompeo last year assembled a working group at the CIA called the Korea Mission Centre, which gradually assumed the lead role in talks with the North Koreans, and the group's director, a retired senior CIA official with deep experience in the region, became the main US interlocutor with Pyongyang.

The group did not supplant the State Department's traditional mode of communication with the North, which is known as the "New York Channel" and involves US diplomats and their North Korean counterparts posted to the United Nations. But it did play the major role in organising Pompeo's two trips to Pyongyang, one as CIA director and one as secretary of state.

Trump, in his letter to Kim, objected specifically to a statement from a leading North Korean Foreign Ministry official.

That statement referred to Vice President Mike Pence as a "political dummy" for his comments on the North and said it was up to the Americans whether they would "meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown".

Trump then said from the White House that a "maximum pressure campaign" of economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation would continue against North Korea - with which the US is technically still at war - though he added that it was possible the summit could still take place at some point.

US defence and intelligence officials have repeatedly assessed the North to be on the threshold of having the capability to strike anywhere in the continental US with a nuclear-tipped missile - a capacity that Trump and other US officials have said they would not tolerate.

Trump, speaking last Friday to graduates at the US Naval Academy, did not mention North Korea directly, but he stressed the military might of the United States.

He said: "The best way to prevent war is to be fully prepared for war."

Associated Press
Ocado is set to be catapulted into the FTSE 100 for the first time after a string of high-profile international deals led to its shares soaring.

The online grocer secured a deal with US giant Kroger earlier this month, which resulted in its share price rising by more than 40%, embarrassing short-sellers in the process.

Now, Ocado looks set to be promoted to the FTSE 100 when a reshuffle of the blue-chip index takes place on Wednesday.

Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: Ocado looks likely to enter the FTSE 100 for the first time after a sensational year which has seen the share price treble.

The company has managed to sign deals in France, Sweden, Canada and the US to license out its market-leading online delivery technology.

Ocado has for some time been a popular stock for hedge funds to bet against, but now just 5% of the companys shares are in the hands of the short sellers compared to 13.5% in January.

Shares in the group have rocketed from around 314p to 880p in the space of 12 months.

Expand Close Christmas in Ocado fulfilment centre / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp Christmas in Ocado fulfilment centre

Ocado has signed a string of similar agreements in Europe and beyond, and is developing customer fulfilment centres with retailers in France, Canada and Sweden. In the UK, Ocado works with Morrisons.

Ocado continued to prove its selling power by signing Canadas Sobeys in January, and Swedens ICA Group in May.

But these deals were only for one customer fulfilment centre.

Kroger has signed for up to 20 units, and Ocado may well extend the agreement in future.

The others have been quite tentative, but Kroger has been quite courageous, said Anne Marie Neatham, chief operating officer of Ocado Technology.

Ms Neatham joined Ocado 16 years ago, and has seen the companys technology arm grow from a workforce for 350 to over 1,200.

She said the international deals work well for Ocado because the company does not need to understand foreign markets intimately to be able to do business there.

The retailers partnering with Ocado know their home markets inside-out, and Ocado provides the technology to allow them to take their services online, she said.

The technology, known as the Ocado Smart Platform, is an automated system for packing orders in warehouses.

It is operated by robots, which whizz around a grid to pick up products and deliver them to employees, who pack items into the bag for the customer.

Ocados technology is unique because it is the only system that can provide such an automated service for food packing.

Many retailers still use a store pick model for delivering online groceries, which involves sending workers round supermarkets to physically pick products from shelves.

However, depending on the order size, this method can take up to two hours.

A robot can do the same job in under 10 minutes.

For the business, and the customer, this means the costs of doing online delivery are significantly reduced.

Ocados exclusivity agreement with Kroger means it cannot sign with another retailer in the US, but in international markets, the company has not ruled anything out in terms of where it will do business, or who with.

Ms Neatham said Ocado could also use its current system in other areas of the retail sector.

We might find other uses for (for the technology), we are always looking at the next big thing, she said.

We are thinking very far outside the box.
A US delegation has met North Korean officials in the Demilitarized Zone as planning moved ahead for a possible summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

South Koreas president Moon Jae-in gave details about his surprise meeting on Saturday with Mr Kim in the Panmunjom truce village, saying Mr Kim had committed to sitting down with Mr Trump and to a complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has asked veteran American diplomat Sung Kim to handle pre-summit negotiations.

A White House logistical group was also sent to Singapore on Sunday to prepare in case the summit takes place. It was led by Joe Hagin, White House deputy chief of staff for operations.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, Mr Trump tweeted. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

Sung Kim, the US ambassador to the Philippines, also served as ambassador to South Korea and was part of the US negotiating team that last held substantive denuclearisation talks with North Korea during the George W Bush administration in 2005.

The developments, after last weeks whirlwind of uncertainty, appeared to flesh out Mr Trumps assertion that the June 12 summit in Singapore that he cancelled on Thursday could take place as first scheduled.

Mr Trump told reporters on Saturday that there was a lot of goodwill, that the original plan was still being considered and that that hasnt changed.

We continue to prepare for a meeting, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in Washington as she confirmed that an American delegation was in ongoing talks with North Korean officials in Panmunjom in the DMZ, which separates the two Koreas.

The Korean leaders second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles, but their quickly arranged meeting appears to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the worlds most heavily armed border.

The Koreas talks, which Mr Moon said Mr Kim requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back-and-forth.

Expand Close North Korea Koreas Tensions / Facebook

Twitter

Email

Whatsapp North Korea Koreas Tensions

It allowed Mr Moon to push for a US-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Mr Kim may see the sit-down with Mr Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Mr Moon told reporters on Sunday that Mr Kim again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula, and told the South Korean leader that he is willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful North Korea-US summit.

Mr Moon said he told Mr Kim that Mr Trump has a firm resolve to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic cooperation if Kim implements complete denuclearisation.

What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations (with North Korea) and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearisation, Mr Moon said.

During the South Korea-US summit, President Trump said the US is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations (between the US and North Korea) and help (the North) achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearisation.

Mr Moon said North Korea and the United States will soon start working-level talks to prepare for the Kim-Trump summit. He said he expects the talks to go smoothly because Pyongyang and Washington both know what they want from each other.

Mr Kim, in a telling line from a dispatch issued by the Norths state-run news service earlier on Sunday, expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-US summit talks.

During Saturdays inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-US relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

They agreed to have their top officials meet again on June 1.

Mr Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.
The US warned it would take "firm and appropriate measures" to protect a ceasefire in southern Syria if government forces move against rebels there.

The area in south-western Syria, between the border city of Daraa and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, has emerged as a flashpoint in a wider stand-off between regional arch-rivals Israel and Iran.

The US, Russia, and Jordan agreed last year to include Daraa in a "de-escalation zone" to freeze the lines of conflict. But Syrian government forces recently dropped leaflets on rebel-held areas, warning of an imminent offensive and urging fighters to lay down their arms.

The US State Department said it was concerned by reports that Assad's forces were preparing for an operation in south-western Syria. It warned against "any actions that risk broadening the conflict".

Assad has relied on forces from Russia, Iran and Hezbollah to battle an uprising against his family's decades-long rule and roll back an Isil insurgency that grew out of the country's seven-year civil war.

The US and Israel view Iran's military presence in Syria as a threat to Israel and have threatened action. The Israeli military is behind dozens of air-strikes in recent years against Hezbollah, Iran and Syrian positions.

I never assaulted women - Freeman

Morgan Freeman has said that he "did not assault women" as he issued a second statement in response to allegations of sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour. says he likes to compliment people to make them feel at ease around him but that he has never sexually assaulted women.

The Academy Award-winning actor is fighting back against charges of bad behaviour made by multiple women in a CNN report last week. He said in a statement last Friday that the report has devastated him and that "it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments or humour".

Following the report, Visa announced it was suspending all of its marketing that features the actor's voice.

Killer cyclone slams into Gulf

A cyclone more powerful than any previously recorded in Oman slammed into the Gulf country and neighbouring Yemen yesterday, with nearly three years' worth of rainfall in single day.

The storm killed at least five people while more than 30 remain missing, officials said.

Thousands march against Macron

Far-Left parties and trade unions led tens of thousands of protesters who marched against Emmanuel Macron's leadership in cities across France yesterday, a day after the president suggested he could be close to victory in a public battle over his reform agenda.

Rail and hospital workers, civil servants, students, community groups protesting against police violence and pro-Palestinian activists took part in the 'Human Tide against Macron'. However, with the turnouts of the marches lower than expected, comments by Mr Macron about the long-running strikes over his liberalisation programme on Friday appeared to have been justified.

In a TV interview, Mr Macron said neither demonstrations nor strikes that have disrupted France for the past seven weeks would deter him from pushing through his overhaul of state railways, which he said was nearing completion.

Fourth man on the moon dies

Astronaut Alan Bean, who was the fourth person to walk on the moon, has died. Bean flew twice into space, first as the lunar module pilot on Apollo 12, the second moon landing mission, in November 1969.

And in July 1973 he was commander of the second crewed flight to Skylab - NASA's first space station - when he orbited the Earth for 59 days.

Bean spent a total of 69 days in space, including 31 hours on the moon.

He retired from the Navy in 1975 and NASA in 1981 before devoting his time to making Apollo-themed artworks using small pieces of his moon dust-stained mission patches.

'Golden' Booker Prize shortlist

The English Patient and Wolf Hall are among the five books shortlisted for the 'Golden' Booker Prize, the special one-off award that will see a novel crowned the best work of fiction released over the last 50 years. In a Free State, Moon Tiger, and last year's Man Booker Prize for Fiction winner Lincoln in the Bardo complete the shortlist, which was announced at Hay Festival.

All 51 of the former Booker winners were considered by a panel of five judges, each tasked with reading the winning novels from one decade of the award's history. The 'golden five' will now be put to a public vote to decide the winner, which will then be announced on July 8.

Ugandan bus crash claims 22 lives

At least 22 people are dead after a speeding passenger bus struck a tractor and then a beer truck on its way to the Ugandan capital Kampala.

Police spokesman Emilian Kayima said 14 others were injured in the crash on Friday evening near the town of Kiryandongo. Police dispute a Uganda Red Cross statement that the crash killed more than 40.

Motor accidents frequently occur in the east African nation where roads are often narrow and pot-holed.

Authorities blame many accidents on speeding or drunk drivers.
Srinagar, May 27 (IBNS): At least 19 Indian Para military troopers were injured after the driver of the vehicle lost control in Bemina area of Srinagar city.

Some of the troopers suffered critical injuries and have been shifted to hospital for treatment.

Ironically, minutes after the accident IG CRPF claimed that the accident occurred due to stone pelting.

He said youth pelted stones on the vehicle after which driver lost control over it, a claim refuted by Jammu Kashmir Police which made the CCTV footage of the area public.

SSP Srinagar Imtiaz Ismail Paarray said that based on CCTV camera footage it is clear that there was no stone pelting in the area and the mishap occurred as the CRPF driver lost control over the vehicle.

"The CCTV footage was procured and it is clearly seen that the driver lost control which resulted in the mishap," SSP said, adding the 19 personnel were injured in the incident.

He said that a case under relevant sections of law has been registered.



(Reporting by Saleem Iqbal Qadri)
Guwahati, May 27 (IBNS): A team of Narcotics Affairs and Borders (NAB) officials have arrested four persons, including an IRB Rifleman and a Burmese national, on the grounds of drugs trafficking.

Around 1 kilogram of heroine was recovered from the nabbed persons.

The incident took place in Manipurs Tengnoupal district.

According to the reports, based on intelligence input, the NAB team had launched the operation with the help of Manipur police at Nungourok village near Pallel in Tengnoupal district and intercepted an Alto car.

The NAB personnel had recovered 1 kg heroine from the vehicle and arrested four persons who were carrying the drugs from the neighbouring Myanmar.

The Burmese national has been identified as 50-year-old Aung Pyi.

The NAB team also arrested an IRB Rifleman, who has been identified as Mopung Khulpuwa.

The others have been identified as Theophilus Kabai (40 yrs) and Hirom Inao Meitei (48 yrs), Lab Assistant Horticulture and Soil Conservation Department, Government of Manipur.

The team has seized the vehicle, four mobile phones and one Kenbo bike.



(Reporting by Hemanta Kumar Nath)



Image: Google Maps
Kathmandu, Nepal: US Ambassador to Nepal Alaina B. Teplitz is going to return back after successfully completing her tenure as ambassador in Nepal.





It is said that Ambassador Teplitz has been nominated as the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives.





According a source at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Ambassador Teplitz is being replaced by Randy W. Berry, senior Foreign Service career member at the US Department of State.





He currently serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor at the US State Department.




Ever heard that joke where everyone harps about not joking with a kleptomaniac? Well, it's because they take things seriously. If you found this joke a little corny, I am sorry, I will keep my silly humour to myself.

Anyway, what I am trying to say is that many thieves across the world have dusted the boredom off the business. They've even indicates that behind this ugly habit of taking someone else's stuff, they too are normal, sometimes weird humans just like us.

Recently, police in Kerala was shocked to discover a man from Tamil Nadu who became a 'naked thief'. The thief who is being identified as Edwin Jose, a 28-year-old law student has become infamous for stripping down and slathering himself in black paint before breaking into any house. He'd even wear his underwear over his head as a way to keep his identity hidden - while everything else is left open to view.





After stealing gold, a thief got really tired and drained and so he thought that he would take a nap. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a huge mistake since the police nabbed him while he was asleep. The policemen arrested him after a brief chase and discovered a gold ring and a pair of ear studs in his trousers, an officer said.

Darecek pod stromecek#skoda#octavia#rs#rs230#vrs#tsi#dsg#octaviars#skodaauto#skodacr#skodaoctavia#skodafan#skodagram#skodaworld#czech#cars#iphone#photo#pirelli#gyeon#mojeskoda#summer# A post shared by David Czech Republic (@davyclp) on May 23, 2018 at 10:27am PDT





A police constable, who was sacked from service with the Indian Reserve Battalion in Manipur came to Delhi and turned to crime. He formed a gang and began stealing expensive cars from the south and west Delhi.

His gang and stolen over 50 cars such as BMW, Chevrolet Cruze, Skoda etc before they were finally caught.





No one wants to get caught during the act, and so it is safe to say that everyone has tried their own own tricks while they on the job. So this thief, who was busy stealing and stupid wrapped a transparent polythene bag around his face to keep from being caught.

Well, needless to say, everyone could see him, properly.





But the plastic bag isn't the only thing that can be wrapped around one's face in order to make an escape? Amid all sorts of things, there is toilet paper, which this thief used so to save himself from. In China, a thief wrapped toilet paper around his face and entered an empty hospital in Huaibei City to rob it.

Often times, we use some mind diverting tricks to turn people's attention and that's exactly what this thief did. So when Rajesh stole a mobile phone from a house in Gejha village and was fleeing, he dialled '100' and said that his wife was being gang-raped by PCR van policemen.

Not only did he give false information to the police, it also got him arrested





Police caught a serial chain snatcher in Jhansi; turns out, the guy is a better dancer than the entire force combined. Swindling pedestrians is not his only job, as the 28-year-old Rinku grooves to the tunes of pop legend Michael Jackson.

Rinku is the leader of the gang and has snatched more than 10 chains so far. The other two who have been accused in this case are Vishal Khare and Gudda Soni.

The 30-year-old Jenni Morton-Humphreys lost her bicycle on the street, but unlike most of us, she didn't lose hope. Annie's cycle was stolen and later advertised by the thief on Facebook. Jenni posted a picture of her cycle on Facebook, asking friends and family to help her find it. Minutes after that, a fellow cyclist spotted the same cycle while surfing on Facebook.

They then duped the duper and caught him red-handed.

Recently, a Mumbai resident, who used to fly from city to city to loot high-profile guests staying in star hotels, was arrested. When the police interrogated him, and got to know about his stealing ways, they were shocked.

The guy also owned business operations like car accessory sales and textile businesses as a cover up for his crimes.

Who in their right mind would expect a thief to leave an apology note after making the steal? Well, no one. So when this thief robbed Rs 75,000 from a government office in Kolhapur, the employees were shocked.

They received a message that read 'Sorry'. Anyway, he also promised that he will return the amount exactly after 5 years.

Mondays silver lining. A post shared by Victoria's Secret (@victoriassecret) on Apr 23, 2018 at 5:27am PDT





People have different fetishes, don't they? Meet the thief who used to steal women's lingerie. After the police recognised the man using CCTV footage, they revealed that it was a 57-year-old self-styled godman in the locality lifting lingerie from clotheslines.
This summer is murderously hot in Delhi, and perhaps everywhere else too. Its so hot that your air conditioner just cannot be turned off. Wondering how to beat this summer heat? Maliaka Arora Khan has some tips.

The diva shared some of her underwater pictures from a throwback vacation to Maldives showing us how to beat the summer heat  head to the beaches! Time to plan a vacation? Or perhaps, just take a dive into the pool. Well, Malaika Arora is missing her vacation too.

And on the other hand, some people got offended by her pictures here. Why, you ask? Because she is flaunting her bikini body. Trolls attacked her with some very harsh comments.

Middle of nowhere... A post shared by Malaika Arora Khan (@malaikaarorakhanofficial) on Jan 26, 2017 at 7:57pm PST

Trolls, get a life, will you?
Many of the 39 Indians killed in Iraq by Islamic State terrorists are believed to have been shot in the head.

TOI managed to see the death certificates of at least seven of the 27 slain men whose bodies were brought back to Amritsar on Monday. In all seven certificates, "bullet injury in head" was listed as the cause of death.

Also Read: 39 Indians Killed In Iraq: Lone Survivor Claims He Informed About It Years Ago, Govt Ignored

The certificates also say that they were killed at Wadi Agab, an industrial area of Nineveh township, about 110 kilometers from Mosul in Iraq bringing in a little more clarity to the family members on how and where the men died.

ap

The family members of the victims had been seeking these details ever since conflicting reports on whether the men were dead or alive had started appearing.

The certificates, issued by the Indian embassy at Baghdad on March 28, were signed by Umesh Yadav, assistant consular officer of the embassy.

Also Read: Bodies of 39 Indians Killed By ISIS In Iraq Will Be Brought Home In A Week, Sushma Swaraj Assures Families

The documents, however, do not say when the men were killed. According to the relatives of the slain Indians, most of them had last called up home on June 15, 2014 and it is believed that they were killed soon far. The likely date for the killing is believed to be between June 15 and June 20.

ap

Harjit Masih, a resident of a village in Gurdaspur, who claimed to have been with the 39 Indians and escaped, had given similar dates. However, neither Sushma Swaraj nor her deputy V K Singh are ready to believe his account.

After flying the bodies back home, Singh had told reporters at Amritsar airport that Masih was not even part of the group of 39.
There has been a sudden spurt in marijuana consumption in the capital. Police statistics show just how worrying it isthere has been a 502% jump in the number of seizures this year as compared to last year.

Till April 30, 1,345 kilos of marijuana was seized. In the corresponding period last year, the seized quantity was 223kg.

zeit.de/Representational Image

Last year, the demand for cannabis had been just 2,417 kilos in the entire year. This year, the figure is suspected to cross the 5,000kg mark.

Arrested peddlers have confessed to the police that the peddling of the drug near universities and colleges has risen. Places like Majnu Ka Tila near north campus and some areas in south Delhi are particularly popular delivery hubs. Police said that a lot of autorickshaw drivers also peddle in these areas. A crackdown is in the making.

Many users are of the view that smoking pot is harmless and should be legalised. Some users, mostly college students that TOI spoke to, said they smoked pot as it was better than smoking cigarettes and quoted online research to claim it is harmless.

We all know that cigarettes are far more dangerous, However, marijuana is a herb.., said a 2nd year student of a south campus college. Another student had quit smoking pot after his parents got to know and had taken to smoking cigarettes for a while. However, he said he had gone back to smoking joints as they felt better.

Youths said they preferred the Idduki Gold (Kerala) and Andhra strain weed as they give a better high.

naturalfamilyhealth/Representational Image

However, doctors have a different opinion, saying that marijuana has harmful effects on the mind and body. From short term memory issues, disorientation, lowered reaction time to problems like feeling nervous and anxious are found in cannabis users. The users are also at the risk of heart attack and stroke, research has indicated.

However, cannabis cartels across the country are now pushing the drug in the capital as it grows in popularity. In Delhi, weed is being pushed in from Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, DCP (crime) Bhisham Singh said.

Hilly terrains, suitable climate, inaccessible areas and support of the locals made the district a safe haven for cultivators, an official said. Detecting cannabis cultivation is also difficult when grown alongside other similar looking plants.

Representational Image

A major chunk of the supply of cannabis is from Naxal affected areas. DCP (special cell) Pramod Kushwaha recalls that his team had seized 540 kg of the narcotic, cleverly hidden in specially designed cavities of a truck in Mathura road. The marijuana was sourced from areas under Naxal control in Jharkhand and Odisha. Maoists take advantage of the geographical situation and inaccessibility in dense forests. The drug mafia hires tribals for farming and transporting the drug, an investigator explained.

The cultivation of Marijuana is on the rise in Bihar as well in the wake of the liquor ban there.

Cooch Behar and neighbouring areas in West Bengal and Tripura are other places from where the drug is shipped to Delhi.

In Andhra Pradesh, most of the hot beds are located in Visakhapatnam and East Godavari districts, cops say while Bastar and Dantewada have large cultivation in Chhattisgarh.
Despite massive protest, violence and deaths in the protest against Sterlite copper in Tuticorin, the parent company Vedanta is firm to go ahead with an expansion to double the production in the plant. The violence till now has killed 13 protesters.

pti

Were not in that stage to look at setting up a plant elsewhere, P. Ramnath, chief executive of Vedantas India copper business, said in an interview.

Were confident that we will be able to overcome these issues. It will certainly require a huge effort but I am sure we can hope to restart as quickly as possible.

The plant located in Thoothukudi has been closed since late March for maintenance and pending a renewal of its license, even as locals continue to protest demanding a permanent shutdown

pti

On Tuesday 10 people had died on violence when police fired at protesters.

Ramnath said the smelter suffered from a perception that it was the most polluting industry in Thoothukudi because of its size, and that support of the local community would be important to restart the plant and double its capacity, as suggested by Vedantas billionaire chairman Anil Agarwal.

P Ramnath, the Chief Executive of Vedanta's India copper business has said the company needs the support of the local people to restart the production and increase the trust of people in the plant that it doesnt pollute the environment.

Our chairman has said that we need the licence to operate, but also we need to build bridges with the local community so that we get their licence to operate as well, he said.

But at this point in time the atmosphere is very tense, temperatures are high. Meanwhile the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board has cut the power supply to the plant saying that last week it found the company preparing to resume production without permission.

pti

The company, however, denied that it tried to start production without permission. There was no reason for making preparations to restart the plant when we are still under maintenance that happens once in four years, he said.

The company is considering the legal option to get the power back to the smelter which produces 400,000 tonnes of copper a year.
Manipur has become the first state in the northeast and the third Indian state to have solar toilets. The solar panel, connected to the toilets, absorb the heat to generate power and are also efficient to transform waste material as claimed by the founder.

The toilets were inaugurated at Ibudhou Marjing hill Heingang by Tourism Director, Waikhom Ibohal last week.

"I met an entrepreneur while attending a global summit in Guwahati recently where I was introduced to the technology of solar toilets. I immediately thought of using such toilets in Manipur," said Ibohal.

Representational Image

He mentioned that if the initial projects are successful then he might install such solar toilets in almost all tourist spots across the State. The founder, Ravi Senji, along with a dealer in Manipur came together and worked on setting up these solar toilets on a trial basis in the State.

Ravi Senji, based in Chennai, had informed that the solar toilet is the third project that has been installed in Manipur. Earlier the installation had taken place in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

Senji now plans to install 100 units in Manipur before October 2.
China's ruling Communist Party has ordered the provincial governments to regulate the construction of large outdoor religious statues in a bid to prevent "commercialisation" of Buddhist and Taoist religions, official media reported on Saturday.

Both Buddhism and Taoism have been officially recognised in Communist China with thousands of temples, even though they were subjected to heavy crackdown during the Cultural Revolution (1966-76) headed by Communist Party of China (CPC) founder Mao Zedong to cleanse China of its spiritual past.

AFP/Representational Image

Local governments have been asked to ramp up efforts to regulate the construction of new large outdoor religious statues, the United Front Work Department (UFWD) of the CPC directed yesterday.

Chinese society has reached common ground on regulating the commercialisation of Buddhist and Taoist activities and the practice of building large outdoor religious statues has made some progress, but more challenges still lie ahead, according to a meeting held by the UFWD in Beijing on Wednesday, Global Times reported.

While Buddhism which emanated from India remained the oldest religion in China, Taoism, also known as Daoism, is an indigenous religious or philosophical tradition of Chinese origin.

Buddhist statues are dotted all over China as Buddhism remained a dominant religion in the country.

Reuters/Representational Image

An official white paper on religions in China released last month said China has 200 million believers.

The major religions practised in China, which are Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism and Protestantism, have more than 3.80 lakh clerical personnel, it said.

There are about 5,500 religious groups in China, including seven national organisations, and about 144,000 places of worship registered for religious activities, including 33,500 Buddhist temples of different schools, 9,000 Taoist temples.

Since President Xi Jinping took over power, heading the CPC, the Presidency and the military, and becoming the most powerful leader of China in recent years, he has been emphasising on the CPC strengthening the credentials of its core Marxist ideology wedded to the atheistic values.

The UFWD has asked the local governments to create specific plans and timetables for regulating the construction of any new large outdoor religious statues and preventing the further commercialisation of religions must be their "top priority".

AP/Representational Image

"The regulation on religious statues doesn't mean the country is against religion, it aims to stop religions from profit-making activities," Xiong Kunxin, a professor with Beijing's Minzu University of China, told the Times.

Over-commercialisation will contaminate the sanctity of religion and threaten social stability, Xiong said.

Zhu Weiqun, former chairman of the ethnic and religious committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said that "the crackdown must be resolute. We cannot give up halfway. The phenomenon still largely exists across China".
Its really frustrating when youre away from home and your phone battery starts dying. Now, youre travelling with no way to get in touch with people, browse Instagram, play a game, or even browse the net to pass the time. So, to make sure that never happens to you again, maybe check out some of these power banks to keep close at hand.

MI Power Bank (10,400 mAh) - Rs 500

This particular power bank is one of the cheaper ones on the market, and yet it's a good choice. This is perfect if youre usually careful enough to stay juiced up that you dont often need a power bank. But in an emergency, its handy, and not to mention much smaller than a lot of others.

Ambrane P-1000 Star (10,400 mAh) - Rs 800

Ambrane is another smart choice, with enough capacity for two to three full charge cycles on average. Aside from two out points, an additional plus is that it also supports fast charging, so youre not going to have to stay connected for long.

Honor Power Bank (13,000 mAh) Rs 1,399

Honor has always made its devices battery life the focus, but it helps to have some additional juice. This power banks metal shell is splash-proof and corrosion resistant and has ports to let you connect two devices at the same time.

MI Power Bank (16,000 mAh) - Rs 1,399

Xiaomi was one of the first smartphone manufacturers to begin selling a cheap line of branded power banks in India. Its held true to that tradition, offering decent capacity devices at very affordable rates. This one, in particular, offers 16,000mAh in a very sleek body, capable of recharging the average phone about five times.

Corseca DMB2056 (20,000 mAh) - Rs 3,300

You may not have heard of this brand, but its certainly one of the better performers out there as far as power banks go. With a massive 20,000mAh capacity, you should be good for at least a few recharge cycles, maybe even enough to share with your friend. Its still about the size of an average hard disk, with a durable metal shell. Best of all, it comes with an LED display so you can check how much power it has left. Unfortunately, its not particularly light either.
Courtesy: twitter.com

Kathmandu, Nepal: The prospect of joining of the Madhes based parties in the incumbent government seems to have averted, thanks to the souring relations between the ruling head Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) and the two major Madhes based parties- Rastriya Janta Party Nepal (RJPN) and the Federal Socialist Forum Nepal (FSFN).





The CPN has withdrawn its support from Rastriya Janta Party Nepal and Federal Socialist Forum Nepal alliance government of Province-2, after sever differences between the RJPN-FSFN coalition government and the CPN over ranges of issues.





However, the CPN has officially stated that the reason for withdrawing the support was government's delay in the development activities.





However, source close to the CPN has sates that controversial remarks delivered by the Chief Minister Lal Babu Pandit while welcoming the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the major reason behind the CPNs decision to withdraw the support.




People

As group CEO of DUAL, Richard Clapham has overseen significant growth at the MGA  including a recent acquisition that will significantly expand its presence in the US
What Is Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR)?

Enhanced oil recovery (EOR), also known as tertiary recovery, is a process for extracting oil that has not already been retrieved through the primary or secondary oil recovery techniques.

Although the primary and secondary recovery techniques rely on the pressure differential between the surface and the underground well, enhanced oil recovery functions by altering the chemical composition of the oil itself in order to make it easier to extract.

Key Takeaways Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is the practice of extracting oil from a well that has already gone through the primary and secondary stages of oil recovery.

Depending on the price of oil, EOR techniques may not be economically viable.

EOR techniques can affect the environment negatively, though new innovations in the sector may help reduce this impact in the future.

How Enhanced Oil Recovery Works

Enhanced oil recovery techniques are complex and expensive and therefore are employed only when the primary and secondary recovery techniques have exhausted their usefulness. Indeed, depending on factors such as the cost of oil, it may not be economical to employ EOR at all. In those cases, oil and gas might be left in the reservoir because it is simply not profitable to extract the remaining amounts.

Image by Sabrina Jiang  Investopedia 2020

Three Main Types of EOR Techniques

In the first type of technique, gases are forcefully injected into the well in a way that both forces the oil to the surface and reduces its viscosity. The less viscous the oil, the easier it flows and the more cheaply it can be extracted. Although various gases can be used in this process, carbon dioxide (CO2) is used most often.

This specific use of carbon dioxide likely could continue or even increase in the future, as recent advances make it possible to transport CO2 in the form of foams and gels. To some, this could be a significant improvement as it would allow CO2 injections to be utilized in areas far removed from naturally occurring carbon dioxide reservoirs.

On the other hand, there are grave concerns about the continued use of carbon dioxide because of its harmful effects on the environment. Currently, most countries are seeking alternative modes of energy that are more sustainable than CO2.

Other common EOR techniques include pumping steam into the well in order to heat the oil and make it less viscous. Similar outcomes can be achieved through so-called fire flooding, which involves lighting a fire around the periphery of the oil reservoir in order to drive the remaining oil close to the well.

Finally, various polymers and other chemical structures can be injected into the reservoir to reduce viscosity and increase pressure, although these techniques are often prohibitively expensive.

Using Enhanced Oil Recovery Methods

Petroleum companies and scientists look to EOR for its potential to prolong the life of wells in proven or probable oil fields. Proven reserves are those with a greater than 90% chance that oil will be recovered, and probable reserves have a more than 50% chance of recovering petroleum.

Unfortunately, EOR techniques can produce negative environmental side effects, such as causing harmful chemicals to leak into the groundwater. One recent technique that might help reduce these environmental risks is called plasma pulsing. Developed in Russia, plasma pulse technology involves radiating oil fields with low-energy emissions, thereby lowering their viscosity much like conventional EOR techniques.

Because plasma pulsing does not require injecting gases, chemicals, or heat into the ground, it may prove to be less environmentally harmful than the other current methods of oil recovery.
By Daniel McConnell, Political Editor

The Minister for Health Simon Harris is extremely eager to enact legislation, he has told the Irish Examiner.

He will today meet with senior officials to discuss the next steps and to prepare a memorandum for government tomorrow.

He will also brief the opposition and members of the all party Oireachtas Committee who worked on this issue on the next steps.

However, a number of other items need to be advanced including the development of clinical guidance by medical colleges and institutes and the regulation of certain medication for termination.

The Minister hopes with the support of the Oireachtas to be able to pass legislation in the Autumn, a spokeswoman for Mr Harris said.

Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said the legislation should be introduced into the Dail before the summer recess with the second stage debate before the break.

We have an obligation to honour the will of the people, he said.

The debate was about the legislation, so the whole thing has been quite transparent.

Mr Martin said TDs in his party who opposed the referendum are highly unlikely to seek to filibuster the bill or obstruct it.

I don't get any sense of that and some have said they will support the bill given the will of the people, notwithstanding their own views, he added.

Co-Directors of Together For Yes (left to right) Ailbhe Smyth, Grainne Griffin and Orla O'Connor hold a final press conference in Dublin today. Photo: Niall Carson/PA Wire.

The Together4Yes campaign group urged TDs and senators to hold special sittings over the summer break to ensure the passage of the legislation.

Group co-ordinator Orla O Connor said: "I certainly think that all of our TDs and senators should really consider a special sitting so that it could be progressed through the summer."

Childrens Minister Katherine Zappone said she would wish to seek to have the legislation passed as quickly as possible but challenges exist.

We have to wait and see how long that will take. All of us would love to see Second Stage before we rise for the summer. I have spoken to the Attorney General who said it would be quite challenging to complete that bill, she said.

It is really important that we have a deep sense of urgency as public representatives to ensure we move as quickly as possible to implement the will of the people, she said.

Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty described the calls for special sittings as not a bad idea.

The clear mandate we got from the people is to do this and do it quickly and the sooner we do it, the better, she said.

.@marianRTE Priority now is to enact the legislation and introduce a safe, regulated, doctor-led system for termination of pregnancy.  Regina Doherty (@ReginaDo) May 27, 2018

Responding to the calls for extra sittings, Fianna Fail's Timmy Dooley said: I've certainly no issue with that , if the Government are prepared to arrange time I certainly think it would be the right thing to do to get it done.

Mr Dooley, speaking to RTE radio, said many of his party colleagues who opposed the referendum proposal will not block the legislation, saying they will respect the will of the people.

They will have their own discussions, but I think quite a few will vote in favour of the legislation, I certainly think there will be a majority in the Dail and the Seanad to get this legislation through. I think some will vote for it and some will abstain, he added.

Both Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald and Labour leader Brendan Howlin called on the government to bring forward, without delay, the necessary legislation.
Walls of text just aren't cutting it for today's millennials, whose super stimulated visual cortexes seem to work much, much better when photos and videos tell the bigger story.

If a photo is worth a thousand words, and if we extrapolate that to a video being worth a thousand pictures, it doesn't necessary follow that you need a thousand millennials to be as productive as someone born before the year 2000.

No, that's just my little joke to break the ice with you, dear reader, although one wonders whether visual communications are the only way today's delicate millennial snowflakes can get anything done, or whether they're a glass of ice water for all of us stuck in the unproductive hell of modern-day office work.

Again, that's just me being funny, but hey, in one sense, we've all known for a very long time that photos, music and videos alongside text is usually a great thing  take a look at any modern webpage, and go back to those multimedia CDs from the mid 1990s when Windows 95 came on the scene to see just how pre-millennial today's millennial tastes truly were.

Fast forward to 2018, and we now have a generation of millennials for whom growing up with multimedia was so normal and so natural, that an Internet outage that blocks them from Netflix, or Facebook, or anything else online is even worse than a power outage or broken water main down the street.

So, with millennials the focus, and millennials the new blood in businesses, it turns out that many Australian businesses are failing with their communications to the largest generation in the workforce  millennials  and its affecting "morale and productivity".

The research was conducted by visual content creation company TechSmith, which has been developing software solutions that help companies and individuals create and communicate with visuals for more than a quarter century, so the company is practically a millennial entity all its own.

And in this report, we discover:

Millennials are twice as likely to want to use more visual communications methods at work compared to baby boomers;

Businesses are falling short, with 44% of millennials believing their company's communications are outdated;

New scientific research reveals poor visual communications threaten productivity and engagement levels  not just with millennials, but with workers of all ages; and

One in two Australians say they would understand information more efficiently at work if their company increased visual communications.

So, just how thorough was this research, especially given the wafer thin attention span millennials seem to have for anything not flashing across their smart devices?

(Ok that's me with another joke again, but am I truly joking, or...? :-)

Well, we're told that the research, which surveyed 4500 office workers across six countries, including 500 Australian office workers, "reveals that younger workers prefer communications with more visual content  such as screenshots, screencasts, images, gifs, and short videos  when compared to other generations in the workforce."

On top of that, "millennials are twice as likely as Baby Boomers to use images and video to communicate in their own time outside of work (58% vs. 28%). And they are twice as likely to want more visual communications at work (43% compared to 19%)".

So, how advanced are Australian employers in this regard?

It turns out that "Australian employees were one of the most progressive workforces surveyed, with video communication and collaboration in the workplace being most called for by Australians compared with other countries that participated in the study".

"The study also found the Australian workforce placed a strong focus on work-based social networks, with 26% of Aussie companies investing in these channels over the last few years, compared with only 16% in the United States."

TechSmith chief executive Wendy Hamilton commented: Social platforms like Facebook and Instagram, which rely heavily on visual content for engagement, are the go-to way of connecting outside of work because this is how people prefer to communicate.

"Not only that, using images, screencasts and videos in workplace communications makes it easier to get a message across clearly and concisely.

With millennials making up the largest generation in the workforce and Generation Z now moving through organisations too, its time leaders sat up and adapted to their new, image-hungry audiences.

Despite these findings, the research also shows that "most employees believe their workplaces focus heavily on text-only email for internal communications".

"In fact, 47% of millennials say their company relies on plain-text email to communicate, with 44% saying their company's communications are outdated."

Other key findings confirm the demand for more visual content:

Sixty-seven percent of millennials want to use more image-based tools at work;

Sixty percent want to adopt video tools;

Fifty percent are keen to watch more short videos; and

Forty-nine percent want to see more animated gifs used in the workplace

We're then told that "only 30% of Australian employees believe they have access to the tools to communicate effectively in their role, showing a real opportunity for businesses to boost productivity by communicating better and faster with their employees".

"The research shows outdated communication has real-world consequences, sometimes leading to poor motivation and morale. Despite spending fewer years in the workforce, millennials are more likely than other generations to have been demotivated by poor company communications (43% compared to 35% of Gen X and 27% of baby boomers).

"Adding visual content to company communications can sound daunting, especially for those who are new to creating images and video, there are a number of simple ways to get started."

Hamilton added: If youre new to creating visual content, the key is to start small. Dont overwhelm yourself or your employees by requiring all messages to include visuals.

"You could start by taking screenshots and marking them up to show changes youd like to see on the company website, or make a short screencast video of how to access your new online HR system, etc.

"As you learn how simple it can be, I think youll find an organic and natural path to discovering how visuals can help your business better communicate.

So, where's the science-y bit? Millennials (and their employers) want to know  and they probably want to Facebook, Instagram and WeChat it simultaneously.

Well, here we discover that "businesses which fail to unlock the value of visual communications seriously risk holding back productivity and engagement levels".

"New scientific research reveals that communications that include visual content such as screenshots, screencasts, or videos are better, faster and more engaging than plain text for nearly all employees  not just millennials":

Two-thirds (67%) of employees are better at completing tasks when information includes text with images or video than by communications featuring text alone.

Whats more, employees absorb information 7% more quickly when they are communicated using text with static images than when provided only with text.

Overall, companies would see an 8% improvement in accuracy by using text coupled with visuals  and a 6% improvement by using video.

Hamilton concluded: When compounded per employee over every hour of every work day, the time and productivity that can be saved by communicating visually truly begins to add up.

Dr. Alastair Goode, who led the scientific research, put the finishing touches to this visual masterpiece by stating: More than half the human brain is involved in visual processing so visuals play a huge role in our ability to communicate. This research shows that, in a business scenario, visual communication prompts a deeper level of understanding and a more engaging experience for audiences.

With our propensity for visualisation, it is no surprise that infographics, screenshots, screencasts, gifs, and short videos have become so popular  and also means people are becoming more accustomed to absorbing information visually than ever before.

The complete research findings can be found here.
If you're in business and want to deliver personalised yet automated customer service through Facebook Messenger and Web applications, then shipping, mailing, data and commerce experts Pitney Bowes want to send you a message.

Global ecommerce, shipping, mailing, and data solutions experts, Pitney Bowes, have announced the global release of its first "fast and adaptable chatbot platform, EngageOne Converse".

Whether you've ever wanted to be chatted up by a computer aside, this new chatbot is part of the the company's "EngageOne suite of customer engagement solutions" and is appropriately dubbed "Converse".

Billed as "intelligent self-service technology, designed to integrate data and location information into leading messaging software to help support the 55% of consumers who currently welcome customer support through chatbots", Converse isn't a shoe brand in this case, but a tool that clearly aims to be more than just all talk.

After all, in todays digital climate, it's no surprise to discover that "businesses struggle to keep up with consumer demand for instant and accurate support, any time".

Indeed, with consumers, and especially those hard to please, edgy millennials who demand messaging options, the stark reality is that you need to provide them, but unfortunately, less than half of businesses are using messaging platforms to communicate with their customers.

To the rescue comes the EngageOne Converse service which is billed as "simplifying real-time communications for businesses to address this challenge".

What it does is use popular messaging platforms like Facebook Messenger, Web applications, or interactive PDFs for transactional documents, thereby allowing businesses to now automate conversations with customers to help them self-serve.

So, how does it all work?

Well, we're told that the EngageOne Converse service "integrates with the wider portfolio of Pitney Bowes software and data, bringing additional functionality and possibilities to enhance the customer experience".

"A text-based conversation with the chatbot can be upgraded with Interactive Personalised Video from EngageOne Video. Similarly, conversational experiences can be enhanced by location data, demographic data, and other Pitney Bowes data products.

"Take for example the telecommunications industry. Each day, providers are bombarded with hundreds, even thousands, of customer service inquiries. As a result, customers often wait on hold for long periods of time, and are commonly rerouted to multiple departments before their question is resolved.

"With EngageOne Converse, a customer can instead type their question through their preferred messaging application, anytime they want  not just during business hours. The chatbot can provide the answer directly through the conversation, direct the customer to the exact support page online to answer their question, or direct them to other support options for a resolution. Theres never a wait time, and customers are routed to the right place the first time, quickly and efficiently.

"In a billing use case, the chatbot may leverage EngageOne Video to provide the customer with an interactive, personalised video to explain a complex billing transaction. In a customer inquiry about new service or phone repairs, the chatbot may leverage Pitney Bowes location APIs to detect the customers location and provide a map of nearby retail outlets with driving directions. Similarly, online transactional documents, such as interactive PDFs, can be upgraded with contextualised chatbots to answer customer questions in real time, obviating the need to phone the call centre."

How are businesses engaging with EngageOne Converse?

Well, Opus Trust Marketings acting chief executive Rob Alonso said: Were using EngageOne Converse in two ways: firstly, for our own clients, so we can respond to them more effectively and dynamically. We can create engaging conversational experiences hosted on our website that direct our customers to the information they need, in real-time, answering queries on topics like epayslips, for example.

"Secondly, were extending our physical and digital product portfolio so our clients can offer EngageOne Converse to their own customers, helping them meet customer demand in an innovative and relevant way. Initial feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and we love that Marketing and Customer Experience staff can make ongoing changes to the conversation in a few minutes, not days or weeks, without relying on an IT team or a third-party vendor.

Then there's Andy Moy, managing principal, at Buzzy Buzz, who said: "Virtual Assistants all too often are deployed as standalone engagement channels. This is just repeating the problem of the past where new channels are added in isolation.

"They know nothing about the context of prior communications and interactions and they certainly cant gracefully hand over from one channel to another. EngageOne Converse puts Customer Experience to the forefront of virtual assistance

Now, it should come as no surprise to hear Pitney Bowes state that "EngageOne Converse has been built with user focus, so that any business professional can make changes to the chatbot at any time. Authorised personnel can go into Converse and update the solution, again ensuring customer needs are met in real time".

Indeed, Bob Guidotti, executive vice-president and president for Software Solutions at Pitney Bowes, said: Six of the 10 most used applications today are messaging applications. Consumers have spoken, and they have a preferred communication channel.

Todays empowered consumer expects businesses to meet them where they are. Businesses must recognise this and integrate technology capabilities that allow them to have immediate, data-driven conversations with their customers. EngageOne Converse is making this possible.

With EngageOne Converse a part of the Knowledge Fabric of Pitney Bowes, which "helps clients surface relevant business insights by understanding the relationships between people, places, and things", you'll undoubtedly be interesting in knowing that "Converse is a proof point of how software and data can be brought together to enhance business outcomes, namely improving decision-making, increasing customer engagement and reducing risk".

So, if you want to get chatty and learn more about EngageOne Converse, along with a live chatbot screen demo you can interact with, you can do so right here.
Canon Australia has released its latest Business Readiness Index, showing Australian businesses just aren't doing enough to bring new thinking to the table, so smash your barriers and think different!

With internal barriers dampening business passion for innovation, you're going to have to raise your shields to inertia and set your business engines to Warp Factor 10, so you're not left behind.

This is my paraphrasing of Canon's advice, which follows the success of its inaugural Business Readiness Index on Information Security.

Now comes Canon's "second module focused on Innovation", conducted by GfK Australia on behalf of Canon.

We're told the report is "based on surveys with more than 530 local business leaders, with a focus on attitudes and actions aimed at staying ahead of the curve".

The comprehensive study also reveals that "while they recognise the importance of innovation, only 38% consider their business to be innovative".

Sadly, it turns out that "most arent doing enough to drive innovation with, 40% implementing just one innovation initiative".

And, while "challenges vary by business size and across industries, a lack of budget is perceived as the biggest inhibitor and resistance to change also features prominently".

Thankfully, there is a flipside, whereby "highly innovative companies are distinguished by their strong culture of innovation that permeates business units and empowers individuals to drive new ideas and ways of working".

'Money isnt everything'

With Treasurer Scott Morrison wielding both the carrot and stick in the 2018 Federal Budget, Canon states "the decision to cut tax concessions for research and development was out of step with the governments commitment to boosting innovation".

Yet, for many businesses, we're told "there are problems closer to home".

Canon's study "found a range of emotional barriers that hold organisations back from implementing measures to drive innovation. For medium to large businesses, conflicting agendas and a breakdown in communication are cited as the biggest struggle for 63% (medium) and 70% (large) respectively.

"Self-doubt is a knife in the side for half (49%) of small businesses, where leaders lose faith in the value of original ideas over time."

Gavin Gomes, director of Canon Business Services, said: "Bigger budgets are viewed as a magic wand but businesses are made up of real people with real emotions.

Its telling that internal barriers play a critical role in holding businesses back from an innovative future. Self-doubt, conflict, denial, pride and diminishing excitement are all real hurdles to overcome. These feelings often increase with business size.

To overcome these barriers, businesses need to focus on the opposite emotion  belief. Belief is undermined when people see the wider industry innovating faster than their business. Leaders are responsible for delivering tangible changes that show progress is possible. Throwing money at a problem doesnt always set your business up for success.

Good news: Size matters less than intention

"Its encouraging that 78% believe being innovative is important to being successful in the modern economy. Despite this, businesses have implemented an average of just three initiatives.

"Even the most popular initiatives  like having a process for gathering and acting on employee ideas, or nurturing an innovative company culture  have only been implemented by a quarter of businesses. Agile working, training investment and collaborating with other businesses were even less common.

"Larger organisations feel more internal pressures, which could be due to increasing bureaucracy and conflict. More than half (54%) of employees in these larger businesses feel unmotivated when it comes to innovation, while a whopping 42% dismiss it as a buzzword.

"On the other hand, for smaller businesses staff and budget limitations are holding them back from bringing their vision to life. They also feel less supported by government when it comes to funding, policy and access to talent."

Here, Gomes added: Its a myth that smaller businesses can be more innovative because theyre more nimble, just as its a fallacy to assume that larger businesses can be more innovative due to their greater resources.

It comes down to how the organisation is set up and how new processes are introduced so they dont cannibalise other parts of the puzzle.

Hiring the right people is a great place to start, and it is important to build a diverse workforce in the process. Innovative companies prize people who show initiative and have good communication skills  across myriad backgrounds, experiences, skills and, importantly, age. They will drive meaningful change no matter how large or small an organisation is.

Fostering a culture of innovation

Canon states: "The divide between highly innovative companies, and those that rated themselves lower on the scale, is a culture that encourages new ways of thinking and working. 74% of highly innovative businesses believe it comes down to fostering an innovative culture, with 69% actively building this from the inside out.

"The role of the individual in driving innovation is also given more significance, with more than 1 in 2 innovative organisations (57%) seeing non-management employees as the catalysts of change."

Dr Jeroen Vendrig, research manager at Canon Information Systems Research Australia, said: Not only do innovative businesses place a stronger recognition on skills such as digital literacy and data science, they also value curiosity, independent thinking, and a sense of initiative more than their counterparts.

To facilitate a dynamic environment where employees can learn and grow, and where ideas can thrive, reward attempts even if they fail  like a badge of honour. Its not really failure if you learnt something along the way."

As a result, while "less innovative companies appear to struggle with 1 in 4 believing employees are indifferent to innovation efforts, innovative companies demonstrate a much higher level of motivation, excitement, and passion in comparison".

"They also appear to demonstrate visible progress of innovation efforts, and are more likely to have a clear measurement of how their business has evolved."

More information and results of the Canon Business Readiness Index on Innovation are available here, where you can freely download Canon's 21 page PDF report.
Microsoft staff based overseas will have access to servers in Australia where top-secret government data is stored on the company's Azure cloud service.

But they will not have direct access to the data. Additionally, different classes of government data will be stored on the same server, separated only by software controls.

This much has emerged from a Senate Estimates hearing last week, during which Greens digital affairs spokesman Senator Jordon Steele-John grilled National Cyber Security Adviser, Alastair MacGibbon, at length, about aspects of security surrounding the Microsoft Azure cloud service.

Last month, Microsoft was announced as having gained Protected cloud status for its Azure and Office 365 services. Questions were raised about the certification after the Australian Signals Directorate issued a consumer guide containing a number of fiats about the services. Both Labor and the Greens, when approached, said they would seek further information about the certification.

Senator Steele-John's questions were asked in this context, but MacGibbon did not answer any of his rather pointed queries directly.

In response to a query as to whether top-secret government data would be able to be accessed by Microsoft staff overseas, MacGibbon went round in circles, before finally indirectly answering the question.

"Not necessarily", was his take when Senator Steele-John pressed him on whether all Microsoft staff accessing these systems would have to be physically located in Australia. And he added, "It depends on the architecture and it depends on the mitigations in place in an architecture, and the policies and procedures."

MacGibbon, who has staunchly defended Microsoft's being awarded Protected status from the time it was announced, drew a distinction between having access to physical systems and the data they stored.

After another exchange, MacGibbon said all Microsoft staff who had access to top-secret Australian Government data would need to be cleared by the Security Vetting Agency.

At one stage, Senator Steele-John asked: "Have all standards been removed and replaced by what you personally consider to be satisfactory, Mr MacGibbon?" to which MacGibbon responded: "Not at all."

Senator Steele-John pointed to the case of the other four cloud providers - Dimension Data, Sliced Tech, Vault Systems and Macquarie Government - and said any staff of these companies that had access to systems that stored this class of data would need to be physically present in Australia.

He asked whether, if he was contacted by a company that was seeking to gain Protected cloud status, he should tell the entity: "...that the goal is to meet the standard or to satisfy yourself (MacGibbon)?"

MacGibbon said the way that risks were mitigated by the different companies that had gained Protected status differed, depending on the technology they used, on the architecture and on the mitigations in place in an architecture, and policies and procedures.

Later, MacGibbon was marginally clearer with his response, when Senator Steele-John asked again whether Microsoft staff who had access to top-secret government data would need security clearance from the Australian Government Security Vetting Agency.

To this, MacGibbon replied: "Yes, but can I say that the 'yes' is a simple answer to what is a more complex question. The line of questioning you were pursuing related to access to data. And there is a difference between access to data and access to systems. You might do something to a system but not gain access to data.

"I'm satisfied that people who will have access to data in Australia, and the Microsoft staff  again, without going into the way Microsoft has architected its infrastructure, because each of the ways in which these now five companies and 11 companies in the unclassified space have certified is a matter between the cyber security centre and those companies, and I don't want to breach that confidentiality but I'm satisfied that the staff who will have access to data are cleared by AGSVA, yes."

Later Senator Steele-John asked about the physical separation of unclassified and classified data. "...The practice inside the government has been for protected classified data to be kept on completely physically separate systems and infrastructure. So I'd like to ask you if it is true that Microsoft cloud will have protected and less-sensitive data on the same physical infrastructure separated only by software controls?"

MacGibbon responded: "This the first time that we are moving from what's known as a community cloud, where it's a government community and only government data, held on what you would loosely call bits of tin, and a true hyperscale public cloud in the case of Microsoft, yes."

This had to be clarified again, with Senator Steele-John asking, " Right. So the answer to that question is yes?" and MacGibbon responding "Yes."

When Senator Steele-John then ventured to ask about processor vulnerabilities which made it possible for data to be exfiltrated across software boundaries, MacGibbon said this would pertain to his other role, as head of the Australian Cyber Security Centre, and that the ongoing hearing was not the right place to raise this issue.
sacw.net - 27 May 2018

[Statement endorsed by 41 Bangladeshis concerned about the request from the Pre Trial Chamber 1 of the International Criminal Court requesting observations from the Government of the Peoples Republic of Bangladesh. (Government Bangladesh has been invited by ICCs Pre-Trial Chamber to submit is response, by 11 June 2018, its observations on the question the Prosecutoras request whether the ICC has jurisdiction to investigate the deportation of Rohingya people from Myanmar from 25 August 2017 onward.) This statement was submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs [Bangladesh] on 27 May 2018]

As Bangladeshi individuals and organisations engaged in seeking justice for those subjected to violations of rights, we welcome the request of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor for a ruling by ICC judges on whether the ICC has jurisdiction to investigate the deportation of Rohingya people from Myanmar from 25 August 2017 onwards. We call on the Government to respond to the invitation from ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I to Bangladesh authorities to submit, by 11 June 2018, observations on the question and to support the Prosecutoras request.

The ICC Pre-Trial Chamberas decision of 7 May has been made in response to the 9 April Request by the ICC Prosecutor, seeking a ruling on whether the Court has jurisdiction over the deportations of Rohingya people from Myanmar as a crime against humanity.

In her request, the Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda submitted that the ICC has territorial jurisdiction under Article 12(2)(a) of the Rome Statute, based on the deportation of persons from the territory of a State which is not a party to the Statute (Myanmar) directly into the territory of a State Party (Bangladesh). She further submitted that the Court may exercise jurisdiction because an essential legal element of the crime of deportation, namely acrossing an international bordera, occurred on the territory of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh has yet to respond to the Pre-Trial Chamberas decision inviting observations of the Government.

It is our considered view that Bangladesh as a state party to the Rome Statute and a country which has its own history of having suffered war crimes and bringing those responsible to justice, must respond to this request. We believe the Government of Bangladesh should provide the Court with all information in its possession about the circumstances surrounding the presence of the Rohingya on its territory, as invited by the Pre-Trial Chamber. It needs to do so as a matter of principle, because as a State Party to the ICC, Bangladesh has committed itself to promoting accountability for mass atrocities. As disclosed by the Bangladesh Department of Immigration and Passport (DIP), over 700,000 of the 1 million Rohingyas who have been registered entered Bangladesh to escape persecution in Myanmar since 25 August 2017 (see reports of 19th meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Home Affairs in January 2018). Bangladesh has been compelled to address the humanitarian consequences of the deportation, and as such has an interest in providing information to ICC.

We urge the Government of Bangladesh to respond to the ICC Pre-Trial Chamberas request for observations and to support the view of the Prosecutor that the Court may assert jurisdiction against Myanmar. This will be an important first step in ensuring justice for the victims of the crimes against humanity that have occurred in Myanmar and a significant action for us to take as a people and a nation that has suffered horrific war crimes during our liberation war of 1971, which went unaddressed for too long.

Background

Bangladesh ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in 2010. Bangladesh has repeatedly drawn the attention of the international community to the crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya people in Myanmar since August 2017.

Due to the limited scope for international action, this crisis is yet to be addressed. Myanmar is not a State Party to the Rome Statute and the UN Security Council has not as yet referred the situation in Myanmar to the ICC. No significant action has been taken within Myanmar to address the alleged crimes. Against this background, the ICC Prosecutor submitted a Request to the ICC under Articles 19(3) and 42 of the Rome Statute seeking a rule of the Court on its jurisdiction over the deportation of Rohingya from Myanmar to Bangladesh, which could be a milestone in addressing this crisis. The current request, even if results in a ruling that the Court has jurisdiction, would not relate to the alleged crimes of murder, rape, arson committed in their entirety in Myanmar territory as these cannot be brought as individual charges.
Mainstream, VOL LV No 23 New Delhi May 27, 2017

I. The aNehru Modelsa : The Historical Nehru Model and the Posthumous Nehru Model

In most circles where opinion-making on behalf of minorities takes place, one of the reasons for appreciation of Jawaharlal Nehruas approach towards the minorities generally is his statement that majority communalism, that is, sectarianism, is more dangerous than minority communalism. He said that athe communalism of a majority community must of necessity bear a closer resemblance to nationalism than the communalism of a minority groupa . (The Tribune, November 30, 1933) This statement must, however, be understood along with his insight expressed on the same occasion that majority and minority communalisms feed off each other. (Idem) His approach is not therefore a blank cheque to minority communities to nurture and nurse their own respective communalisms as some of his majoritarian detractors allege.

One consequence of the focus on this aspect of Nehruas approach has been that other features of the Nehruvian secular state have not received as much analysis as these deserved. It was hardly ever noticed therefore that there are in fact at least two models that contend for recognition as the Nehru model.

The notion of the secular state that was implemented after independence emerged from the Congress-led freedom struggle. Nehru invariably emphasised the connection between the establishment of a secular state and the awhole growth of our national movementa . (The Statesman, Delhi, July 8, 1951) It is intrinsic to the Gandhi-Nehru framework. It is a model of equality and equal citizenship.

A secular state was thus established and it went beyond the usual European notion of a denominational state whose secularism consisted merely in the separation from the very church to which that state was simultaneously committed. We understood, and rightly understood, a secular state to be a non-denominational state and a state, that was religiously neutral as specified in the Karachi Resolution of 1931. Gandhi, in speaking of a secular state, had also defined it in clear terms in what would now be depicted as a Nehruvian manner, that is, in terms of separation of the state from denominational religion (May 6, 1933; January 27, 1935; January 20, 1942; September 1946; August 16, 1947; August 17, 1947; August 22, 1947; November 15, 1947; November 28, 1947; all cited in my article Gandhi on Secular law and State in The Hindu, October 22, 2003)1

Similarly, when it came to society, as distinct from the state, both Gandhi and Nehru emphasised the concept of equal respect and protection of all religions, thus reconciling the concept of a religiously neutral state with a concept of equal respect for the humanist values that may be located in each religion. For Nehru, aA secular state means a state in which the State protects all religions, but does not favour one at the expense of others and does not itself adopt any religion as State religion.a (The Statesman, July 7, 1951)

And then there is a constructed Nehru model or a quasi-Nehruvian model which is actually a posthumous Nehru model constructed largely after the split in the Congress in 1969. This model resembled but was somewhat different from the actual Nehruvian model. It could not last for more than six or seven years and ended dramatically with the firing at Turkman Gate, Delhi during the tenure of the Emergency regime in 1976.

Let me begin to speak about the first Nehru model.

II. Has the Nehru Model failed?

It would be fallacious to say so.

It will be my contention that the actual Nehru model in fact succeeded. It contained and managed a very serious situation that had developed after the partition of India. It built a state based on equal rights for the citizen and a consensus behind such a state. It provided for regional expressions of linguistic aspirations as well.

The problem was essentially not here but with what emerged as a posthumous Nehru model.There was, I would say, a cut-off point in 1969. After 1969 what might be called a gloss on secularism came to be projected upon the New Congress. The post-1969 Left-of-Centre circle around the then Prime Minister was well-intentioned in wishing to initiate a break from the old guard in the Indian National Congress which, it believed, was holding up further economic reform. In the process the 1969 split in the Congress which this group helped bring about also, however, cut the Congress off from its roots.2

In fact, the quasi-Nehru model became more contentious in public discourse when it began to be presented as cut-off from the countryas struggle for freedom and as a sort of immaculate conception. More than the model itself, it is this projection that not only became problematic but actually helped the forces of majority communalism in particular to present the Nehruvian vision as an artificial imposition upon Indian society rather than as a natural culmination from its social character and political struggle.

As I have said, the quasi-Nehruvian, or posthumous Nehruvian, model was different essentially in the historical provenance that it sought to project. It sought to delink Nehru from the mainstream national struggle, pluck him out of the Gandhi-Nehru framework and to establish an isolated posthumous quasi-Nehru model whose definition could be subsumed under what currently passed for academically acceptable progressive ideas. This happened in the context of the Indira GandhiaCPI alliance post-1969. The alliance itself was unexceptionable; the problem arose in the unhistorical attempt to extrapolate it backwards and seek to diminish or exclude the Congressa own struggles, as it were, from its own history.3

Perhaps because the post-1969 model did not have a strong foundation in historical fact and was an unhistorical attempt to extrapolate backward the post-1969 alliance between Indira Gandhias Congress and the CPI, it was easily toppled first by a callow youth and his organised hoodlums, and then after 1980 by a succession of Non-Resident Indian lobbies.

The posthumous Nehruvian model could hegemonise the state but could not take the society with it. This quasi-Nehruvian model lacked Nehruas democratic temper.

It disregarded society though claiming to speak in the name of the people

In the end in the 1990s, remnants of this model, far from defending themselves against the onslaught from Hindutva, could not defend even the gains from the Gandhi-Nehru frame-work.

III. Why did this projection become problematic?

The answer to this is a complex one.

To some extent an essential and necessary accompaniment had been absent even in the years of the actual Nehru model but this feature came more prominently to the fore after the 1969 events.

K.R. Narayanan (1920-2005), who would serve as the President of India between 1997 and 2002, saw the point perspicaciously as early as in 1970. In a paper, presented at a seminar on Nehru and Nation-building (December 21-23, 1970) at the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur, K.R. Narayanan observed: aIn his passion for legislative revolution Nehru and the Indian National Congress did not, after independence, place sufficient emphasis on the aspect of a social reform movement in the country.a (K.R. Narayanan, Nehru and His Vision, DC Books, Kottayam, 1999, p. 34)

This defect or shortcoming came to the fore especially after 1969 because the split in the Congress and the lines on which it occurred had the effect of cutting the Congress off from the constructive work movements, that is, the very civil society organisations which were its roots and which had provided it sustenance.

It is necessary to dwell on this point a little further. In the 1930s the Frontier Gandhi, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, made a tour of Bengal. On coming back he spoke at the Bombay session of the AICC in 1934. And the point that he made was to underline the link between the constructive work programmes of the Congress and its political programmes. He said he noticed in the course of his tour that people were willing to come forward and listen to the Congress wherever the constructive work programme had reached. For example, he noticed, that where the khadi (handspun and handwoven cloth) programme had reached and had been able to help generate some income, people would flock to the Congress meetings to hear their message.

The vital link that the Frontier Gandhi observed in 1934 was over time lost sight of in independent India and especially in the post-1969 phase of the Congress and Indian politics. The flaw which K.R. Narayanan noticed in 1970 was over-reliance, or rather near-exclusive reliance, on state action, legislation and state policies. The prevailing logic appeared to be : Now that we are in power we do not need to build up civil society institutions for social reform and action because we have the state to do this for us.

The wages of this neglect were not immediately obvious because, for one thing, the Congress was historically associated with a network of ground level constructive work institutions on whose support it could implicitly rely in the first 22 years after independence. The 1969 split in the Congress gave a rude shock to this arrangement. The implications were not immediately obvious in the short term. This was for other reasons, primarily the short term electoral victories that the posthumous Nehru model secured in the General Elections of 1971 and the nationwide elections to the state assemblies which followed in 1972. In the General Elections of 1971 it was the freshness of Indira Gandhias faction, which had emerged from the Congress split of 1969, that swayed the electorate. In the State Assembly elections in the following year there was the added factor of victory in the Bangladesh War.

Yet the overall impact of the 1969 split in the Congress did not take long to make itself felt and it was soon obvious that the Congress, or what remained of it, was on a declining curve.

Meanwhile, the Hindutva organisations, on the other hand, had been working ceaselessly in society and the rise of these organisations was, in this scenario, like a time-bomb waiting to explode.

A more recent recognition, especially in the wake of the findings of the Sachar Committee, has been that neither the Nehru model nor the posthumous Nehru model, nor indeed the models of development in force in other Opposition-ruled States in their action on the ground placed adequate special emphasis on policies to ensure the welfare and human development of the minority communities. [This was although Nehru himself recognised as early as in 1951 that such special emphasis would be required especially in the case of Muslims, Sikhs, Christians and others. (See The Statesman, Delhi, July 8, 1951)] And that more specific steps are required for their education and development.4

IV. What Now?

The shortcoming or defect, to which K.R. Narayanan drew attention in 1970, remains. Until this is remedied, the outlook would remain grim. Even if the present ruling dispensation returns to power and confines its focus to re-adjustment of state policies, it is unlikely to remedy the flaw that K.R. Narayanan under-lined. Similarly, whatever combination of political parties comes to power in the near future, it is unlikely to be able to provide the durable alternative that is required if it merely follows a statist approach. A long-term alter-native can come about only with the emergence of a secular party which has the backing of grassroots civil society organisations with roots in the community life of the Indian people.

Merely taking control of the state will not suffice.

[Lecture delivered at the Dr K.R. Narayanan Centre for Dalit and Minorities Studies and Centre for Zakir Husain Studies, Jamia Millia Islamia on March 3, 2009. The endnotes are subsequent additions.]

Endnotes

1. https://www.academia.edu/19387056/Gandhi_on_Secular_law_and_State

2. For a development of this point see my article a1969 in Retrospecta , The Hindu, March 17, 2000.

3. That is, for example, the extensive pre-freedom struggles conducted by the Congress and such peasant organisations as were non-antagonistically associated with it, the various Congress-associated institutionsa constructive work programmes, and their strivings for the social rights of the underprivileged and for a linguistically accommodative and non-sectarian understanding of nationalism inclusive of the minorities.

4. Whether this should be achieved through programmes directed at minorities specifically or through programmes aimed at the underprivileged irrespective of religion, caste and creed is a matter for consideration. In my opinion, a mix of the two approaches would be more likely to succeed than the one or the other.

The author is a writer and lawyer in the Supreme Court. For some time he was a Senior Fellow at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi.
A blog dedicated to the discussion of topics relating to the history of Sandusky and Erie County, Ohio, the Lake Erie Islands, and nearby communities; inspired by the collections of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center and Follett House Museum. A service of the Sandusky Library.
Reddit Email 115 Shares

London (al-Bab.com )  News from Saudi Arabia about the arrests of ten or more rights activists has been viewed with a mixture of shock and surprise in western media. Just a few years ago, though, no one would have been surprised: it was simply the way the Saudi regime behaved.

But that was before Mohammed bin Salman became crown prince and de facto ruler. It looks surprising now because the prince has been glowingly portrayed as a reformer who makes bold decisions like allowing cinemas to open for the first time in decades, allowing women to drive and  er  bombing Yemen to smithereens.

Women drivers will officially take to the roads a month from now, so at first sight it does seem a bit odd that the people arrested include several women who have been prominent in the campaign to let to let them drive.

Alongside that, theres another puzzle. For the last month or so, Bin Salman himself has been keeping an unusually low profile and rumours have been circulating (with encouragement from Iranian sources) that he was killed or wounded in an attempted coup.

On April 21 several volleys of gunfire were heard in Riyadh, in a district where royal palaces are located. The official explanation was that security forces had shot down a drone  said to be a toy or recreational drone  flying near the palaces.

This led to speculation about a coup attempt. There have been repeated claims that Bin Salman has not been seen in public since then  though they appear to be untrue. A week after the Riyadh shooting official photographs showed Bin Salman attending the launch of the Qiddiya project, seemingly in good health.



Launch of the Qiddiya project, with Bin Salman on the far right

Last week Badr al-Asaker, head of the princes private office, posted a photo on Twitter, said to have been taken a few days ago which showed Bin Salman with brother Arab leaders, apparently standing at the edge of a swimming pool. One noticeable feature of the photo, though not necessarily a significant one, is that most of the background had been blacked out (see below).

Aside from Asakers tweet, however, the Saudis have not made much effort to quash speculation but its possible they are content to let the rumours circulate for a while. Its worth recalling the recent case of Khalifa Haftar, the Libyan strongman who was wrongly reported to be dead or incapacitated. Haftars supporters allowed the story to run because it gave them an opportunity to see who was celebrating.

Assuming Bin Salman is alive and well, his uncharacteristic quietness over the last few weeks coupled with the crackdown on activists does raise a question about whether the arrests were his personal decision.

Since his father came to the throne, Bin Salman seems to have been given more or less a free hand but the arrests might conceivably be a sign that someone is now trying to rein him in, or that he has come under pressure to make a placatory gesture towards the religious reactionaries. If so, though, there would probably be more signs of the same thing happening in other areas.

But perhaps a more likely explanation is that the arrest of activists is entirely consistent with Bin Salmans policies, and that any surprise about that is misplaced. Its important to remember that political reform is not part of the princes vision for Saudi Arabia and reforms, when they happen, must be seen to come from the top. When women drivers finally take to the roads Bin Salman will claim the credit and the Saudis who campaigned for it over many years will be silent behind bars.

Via al-Bab.com

Creative Commons License
Reddit 21 Email 159 Shares

The US is warning Syria against attempting to recover lands lost to rebels south of Damascus.

Some of those rebels are ISIL or affiliated in some way to al-Qaeda. That is, the US is now doing the opposite of what it said it was going in to Syria to do.

It is often alleged that US military presence in Syria is illegal in international law, and that it is not even constitutional.

The Obama administration sent special operations forces into northeast Syria to help leftist Kurds take on ISIL. ISIL has largely been defeated, but the troops (some 2,000 plus a rumored further few thousand mercenaries) are still there.

Obamas lawyers maintained that the US has a right to go into Syria in self-defense, to defeat ISIL, which was plotting attacks in the United States.

The standing congressional Authorization for Use of Military Force is looking pretty long in the tooth. That authorization spoke of hunting down the people responsible for the September 11, 2001 attacks. ISIL was formed in 2012 and it is a little unlikely that virtually any of its members were involved in 9/11.

So the US has now helped create a very large eastern and northeastern Kurdish enclave in Syria (Kurds are about 10 percent of the national population).

Apparently, the US special forces and the US Air Force are committed to now protecting the territory taken by the Kurds (much of it inhabited by Sunni Arabs). To that end, they have fought Syrian government troops, and even a small Russian mercenary battalion.

But how is fighting Syrian government troops part of the US mission in Syria? Only by virtue of mission creep. You had to stand up the Kurdish force to fight ISIL, now you feel the need to defend newly Kurdish-dominated territory.

The Pentagon is saying that since the US was part of the negotiations leading to the deconfliction zone south of the capital, it has the right to intervene there to maintain the cease-fire.

Some observers suspect that the US is simply running interference for the Israelis, who have occupied part of the Golan Heights and the permanent annexation of which the US is preparing to recognize. The Israeli government does not want Syria going south because they dont trust Damascus to keep the Lebanese Shiite militia, Hizbullah, away from the Israeli border. The de facto Syrian side of the Golan is largely held by the a group (formerly known as Nusra Front) with ties to al-Qaeda.

That doesnt sound like self-defense.

So de facto, the US and Israel are protecting some al-Qaeda fighters (among a large number of non-extremists).

Mission creep can go very wrong very quickly, as the US discovered in Vietnam.



Bonus video:

Wochit News: U.S. Warns Syria That Ceasefire Violations Will Be Met With Firm Measures

U.S. Warns Syria That Ceasefire Violations Will Be Met With Firm Measures
Reddit Email 145 Shares

Cleveland, Oh. (The Conversation)  The results of May 2018 the Iraqi parliament election shocked many. The surprising results could mean a different phase in Iraqs political trajectory has begun.

Most observers were expecting an easy win for Prime Minister Haider al-Abadis slate of candidates from all 19 of the countrys provinces. As an analyst of Iraqi politics and security, thats what I thought would happen. My colleague Munqith Dagher, who is the most prolific pollster in Iraq and who helped research and write this piece, came to the same conclusion based on our extensive analysis of the run-up to the elections.

But the Saeroun (Forward) Alliance  supported by the anti-American, anti-Iranian cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, won the most votes  54 of the parliaments total 329. The pro-Iranian Fatah (Victory) Alliance came in second, and the Prime Ministers slate  called Nasr (Conquest)  came in third.

The country has had five elections since the U.S. invasion and the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003, but this could be the most significant since it changed a number of the important pillars of the political process.

Here are some lessons from this election.

1. Turnout is declining

This was the first election after the Iraqi government declared victory over the Islamic State group in all Iraqi territories and the second election after the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq in 2011.

Yet despite the most peaceful conditions in 15 years, this election witnessed the lowest turnout rate of all post-2003 elections.

2. A desire for independence

The victorious Saeroun Alliance is a unique coalition between the Sadr religious party and communists in Iraq. It shows that a marriage between secularity and religiosity is possible and wanted by the people.

This could be a good example for other Muslim countries if the unusual political alliance survives the expected political maneuvers.

Thats not yet clear since Iraqi electoral law and the fractious nature of Iraqi politics make it nearly impossible to have single-party majority governments. As in many parliamentary systems, forming governing coalitions is a necessary yet difficult process after national elections.

Its not certain that the Saeroun Alliance will be part of the new government currently being formed, despite winning the most votes. One reason is because Iran is working hard to keep the relatively anti-Iranian Saeroun Alliance out of the Iraqi government. Iran is trying to create a governing coalition among other Shia-dominated political parties, and has dispatched General Qassem Soleimani, Irans top regional security official, to Baghdad to try to cobble together a pro-Iran governing coalition. This is a matter of the highest national security importance to Iran.

Regardless of how the final government looks, this victory of the Sadrists sends a strong message to all foreign influences in Iraq. This message is especially clear for Iran and the U.S., as al-Sadr opposes both countries influences and asked for independent Iraqi policies.

Interestingly, al-Sadr might consider not nominating any of his candidates to be the next prime minister of Iraq as he knows that it is nearly impossible to ignore the Iranian-American power struggle in Iraq. Indeed, al-Sadr has previously said the current Prime Minster al-Abadi could serve for a second term as long as he responds positively to Sadrs governmental reform wishes, which are not far from al-Abadis own plans.

3. Clergy still powerful

Although the highest Shia clergy in Najaf avoided backing any candidates in this election, they proved that they are still important players that cannot be ignored. We believe that the clergys indifferent position toward voting, or, for that matter, boycotting the election, had a big impact on the low turnout. In previous elections, the Najaf clergy had encouraged people to participate.

On the other hand, the clergy offered guiding instructions to their followers who did want to vote. The slogan of Not voting for those who were already tried before seems to have hurt many top Shia political leaders, such as Nouri al-Maliki and others. It is also likely that this slogan negatively affected the chances of the current prime ministers slate of candidates.

4. Growing less sectarian

Generally speaking the election results indicate that Iraqi voters have started to vote independently of their religious and sectarian identities. Al-Abadi, who is one of the top leaders of the Dawa Shia sectarian party, received almost 30 percent of his votes from Sunnis  especially in areas freed from IS occupation recently, such as Mosul. Sunnis who have been freed from IS occupation are thankful for al-Abadis efforts to defeat IS.

A number of Shia parties, which had militias that fought against IS, also received some votes from Sunnis in these areas as well. These votes are also an appreciation of the militias helping to drive IS out of their areas.

It is still early to say there is a significant, permanent shift away from sectarian voting, yet this new behavior will encourage top Shia leaders who dominated the Iraqi political arena for the last 15 years to consider Sunnis hopes and needs in their future political decisions. This could be important and effective in fighting Sunni extremist terrorism in Iraq.

Despite their involvement behind the scenes, it also looks like Iran will be less adamant that the government be led by an explicitly pro-Iranian politician. At any rate, the main Shia power blocs in Iraq are fragmented and it will be difficult for Iran to bring  and keep  them back under one umbrella. Iran may have to be satisfied by a prime minister who is not opposed to Iranian influence in the country.

And finally, none of this can be seen independently of the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. That withdrawal strengthened the Shia extremists in Iraq and helped them to get more votes. Now Iran needs a moderate Iraqi leader who could play the role of mediator with the U.S. administration to avoid more sanctions or even armed actions.

Munqith Dagher of the Independent Institute for Administration and Civil Society Studies in Baghdad contributed to the research and writing of this piece.

Karl Kaltenthaler, Adjunct Professor, Case Western Reserve University

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Featured Photo: AFP / AHMAD AL-RUBAYE. Iraqi election registrars help a woman to place her ballot through an electronic counting machine at a a polling station in the Wadi Hajar district of Mosul on May 12, 2018.
Colombians voted Sunday to choose a new president in a divisive election that is likely to weigh heavily on the future of the governments fragile peace deal with the former rebel movement FARC.

Polling closed on schedule at 4:00 pm (2100 GMT) after eight hours of totally normal voting, said electoral authority chairman Juan Carlos Galindo. Bogota and other major cities reported a high turnout in a country where voter abstention is traditionally around 50 percent.

It was the first presidential poll in half a century free of the threat of the FARC, an achievement celebrated by outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos after casting his ballot in Bogota.

So far not a single voting station has had to be moved for security reasons, he said in a televised speech. Its been many decades since that has happened. In other words, these elections are going to be the most secure, the calmest.

Ironically, the peace Santos made with the FARC, which is now a political party, has opened sharp divisions, reflected in the leading candidates to succeed him.

Conservative front-runner Ivan Duque has vowed to rewrite an accord he sees as too lenient on a group that waged a decades-long war of terror in Colombia before transforming itself into a political party.

Polling a week before the election showed Duque with a 12-point lead over his main challenger Gustavo Petro, a leftist former Bogota mayor who backs the peace deal.

I want a country of legality, a full-on fight against corruption, a country where peace can breathe throughout the land, said Duque after casting his ballot in Bogota.

Outside one Bogota polling station, Paula Rubio, 38, said she voted for Duque to maintain order in the country.

Petro, a former member of the disbanded M-19 rebel group, has defied expectations in a country where presidential elections have traditionally been the domain of the right.

Petro said he wanted a Colombia present and future without hatred or vengeance and to leave behind the machinery of corruption.

The 58-year-old rallied many Colombians with his campaign speeches against inequality and corruption, making him the countrys first leftist candidate with a chance of going to the second round of a presidential poll.

I voted for Petro who has helped the poor people, said domestic worker Gladys Cortes, 60.

Neither candidate is expected to win outright in Sundays first round, making a runoff likely on June 17.

 Santos stepping down 

Santos  who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for the 2016 deal with the FARC  steps down in August.

Duque, a gray-haired senator and former economist, is backed by the Democratic Center party of former president Alvaro Uribe, which swept legislative elections in March. If successful, he can count on the support of Congress.

Uribe fell out with onetime ally Santos over his drive for peace with FARC, setting up his own party in 2013.

Many voters see Uribes guiding hand behind the inexperienced Duques campaign. Like Santos, the 65-year-old Uribe is constitutionally precluded from seeking a third term.

Colombia, ravaged by corruption and glaring inequality, is still struggling to emerge from the longest armed conflict in the Americas.

The worlds leading producer of cocaine, the country continues to battle armed groups vying for control of lucrative narco-trafficking routes in areas FARC once dominated.

 No impunity 

The peace deal, in effect for little more than a year, remains fragile.

The FARC, now in the form of a political party, did not win much support in March legislative elections, failing to add to the 10 parliamentary seats it was awarded in the peace deal.

What we Colombians want is that those who have committed crimes against humanity be punished by proportional penalties, which is incompatible with political representation, so that there is no impunity, Duque recently told AFP.

The senator has pledged to eradicate the cancer of corruption and to revive a sluggish economy, while vowing to defend traditional family values.

Petros crowds grew steadily as his campaign went on, in what some analysts see as public support for the peace deal and the rehabilitation of FARC as a political party.

Society has overcome the fear of violence and terror, and what we are seeing today is the political expression of that, filling public places and drawing crowds, Petro told AFP in the final days of his campaign.

Analysts say the men are at opposite ends of the political spectrum and are likely to prevail over the four other candidates, who include former vice president German Vargas Lleras.

The countrys last active rebel group, the National Liberation Army (ELN), has announced a ceasefire for the polls. Nevertheless, security has been tightened, with 150,000 troops deployed.
173 Shares Share

When I was in fourth grade, I won our schools spelling bee. This meant that I went on to the next tier of the local spelling world  the sort of prestigious competition that takes place in a gymnasium somewhere with a makeshift stage and a bunch of flags.

I was the first kid disqualified. I misspelled veterinarian veterenarian and battlement battlemint. I remember feeling, in the moment the announcer said, We are sorry , that it was incumbent upon me to exit stage-left with equanimity. But when the spelling bee was over, I wept like only an ashamed child can weep. As we walked back to our car through white-washed cinder-block hallways, I remember my parents saying they were proud (which was confusing) and strangers expressing pity (which was demoralizing). Such is fourth grade.

Someone told me that in life, big fish in a little pond become big fish in a bigger ocean. But in the ocean, big fish are more likely to get eaten or starve. The food chain has more predators and the resources are subject to more competition.

In my fourth year of college, I won our schools highest undergraduate honor and was accepted to all three of our states medical schools, so I felt like a big fish moving on to the next tier. But when I entered medical school, everyone was a big fish. They had all won their schools fourth-grade spelling bee and their colleges top honor, and the competition and pressure and workload were so intense, I constantly felt as if I was swimming in an environment in which even oxygen was in short supply. It got so bad I even took a year off to get a masters degree and explore my choice of medicine altogether.

But I came back re-enchanted, inspired, and focused. I entered The Match with gusto and hope. And in my last year of medical school  this year  on March 12, 2018, I opened an email at 11:01 in the morning that started with, We are sorry, you did not match to any position.

For the uninitiated, the National Residency Matching Programs Match is how all fourth-year medical students discover where they will spend the next several years of their training (and life) after medical school. Its arguably both the greatest hope and the greatest fear of the medical student, for it can mean vocational fulfillment, discontentment, or going unemployed while carrying immense debt.

Throughout fourth year, medical students apply to residency programs, seek counsel from mentors, interview, sweat, schmooze, and eventually, submit a rank list that orders the programs they interviewed with in order of where they would most like to match. Residencies submit their own, similar ranked lists of applicants. Then, both lists are matched using an algorithm that determines the best fit for each applicant and program. While it might sound like something from The Hunger Games, for the vast majority of students and programs, the Match really does work, and it is a good thing.

So let me be clear, I know that my failure to match wasnt because the system is broken. I didnt match because I had poor board scores and a low-class percentile and Im going for OB/GYN, which is an increasingly popular and competitive specialty. In some ways, Im receiving the consequences of my choices during the early years of medical school, and there is a terrible justice to it.

Match results are announced in the Spring, on the same day, at the same hour, for all medical students. During Match Week (this year, March 1216), students discover on Monday whether they matched and on Friday where they matched. The time in between is for those students who did not match (less than 5% of the applicant pool). They enter the SOAP (Supplemental Offer and Acceptance Program), which allows students to enter three additional rounds of applying, re-applying, and responding to offers in residency programs with unmatched (or unfilled) positions. So the time between Monday and Match Day on Friday is for waiting and hoping. The time after is for either celebration or something like mourning  the time Im in now. Exiting stage-left, again.

When it finally sunk in that I hadnt matched in either the main match or the three supplemental SOAP rounds, I thought of hope and hell and Dante  Abandon all hope, ye who enter soap  because SOAP was entering a hell of sorts. The five or so of us unmatched medical students at my school didnt acknowledge each other, preferring to escape into our computer screens to learn about unfilled programs and tweak (or better, contort) our personal statements. Fifteen or so administrators, clerkship directors, family, and support members looked on with faces of pity. A few people cried. Some had their jaws clenched. Most avoided eye contact altogether while a few overcorrected, staring awkwardly at whoever would look their way. Shame was in the air like second-hand smoke.

Elaine Scarry writes that beauty radically de-centers us by lifting us off the ground only to drop us somewhere after the world has rotated beneath our feet. We find were no longer at the center of our world because we truly never were at the center of our world.

The type of identity crisis a medical student experiences by not matching does the same thing  its the sort of event that rips you from your little earth only to drop you in a new landscape with new paths that make not matching look like the sort of melodramatic problem only a privileged child of postmodernity could complain about. There really is something inconclusive about it, even as there is something unresolved about the worst of disappointments. As one of my friends recently put it, its either the worst thing ever or its something strangely exciting and even freeing  an opportunity. Yes. Both. It feels like the worst sort of obstacle, but also a brutally solid adventure  a battlement that is both a closed wall and an open portal  a window into a new, real, and wild work.

John Brewer Eberly, Jr. is a physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
The Herald reports:

Transport Minister Phil Twyford has received official advice to do more work on using buses instead of modern trams from downtown Auckland to the airport  a move that could save taxpayers as much as $2.5 billion.

But the minister, who says trams to the airport has a preliminary estimate of $3.7b, has rejected the idea of running buses on a dedicated corridor. Officials have put a cost of $1.2b to use advanced buses to the airport.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Twyford made an election promise last August to build modern trams, or light rail, from the CBD to the airport and from the CBD to West Auckland. The latest cost estimate for the project is $6b.

Papers obtained by the Herald under the Official Information Act show Twyford was advised by the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) shortly after coming to office in November to look further at advanced buses to the airport before finalising the preferred mode.

Officials said new transport technology was evolving quickly and narrowing the difference between the levels of service and capacity between advanced buses and modern trams, citing an example being tested in China.

These technologies (of the buses) have the potential to deliver light rail performance at lower cost due to less track and fewer overhead infrastructure requirements.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte / Reuters



Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will visit South Korea next month to promote bilateral ties and cooperation, Seoul officials said Friday.

He will make an official visit from June 3-5 and hold a summit with President Moon Jae-in on June 4 focusing on trade, infrastructure and the defense industry, according to the presidential office.

Duterte will be the first head of state from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to visit South Korea since Moon took office in May last year.

The two leaders last met in the Philippines in November on the sidelines of the ASEAN+3 Summit and East Asian Summit (EAS).

Seoul hopes his visit will boost momentum for Moon's New South Policy aimed at strengthening ties with fast-growing Southeast Asian countries.

"The government is seeking to expand cooperation with ASEAN," presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said. "The New South Policy is expected to gain traction on the back of Duterte's trip to Seoul and President Moon's March visit to Vietnam," he added. (Yonhap)
By John J. Metzler





UNITED NATIONS  Amid continuing destruction of villages, attacks on children and a widening displacement of refugees, members of the U.N. Security Council visited Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, and neighboring Bangladesh to assess the widening humanitarian carnage.



The officially dubbed Mission to Myanmar offered diplomats a "vivid and stark revelation" of an unfolding tragedy both in the Southeast Asian country and in Bangladesh, where more than a million people have been forced from their homes.



Myanmar's victims are the Rohingya, a Muslim minority in an overwhelmingly Buddhist state.



Living in the Rakhine state, the downtrodden people flee into bordering Bangladesh, itself a poor country, which now hosts the world's largest refugee camp. According to UNICEF at least 60 Rohingya babies are born in Bangladesh refugee camps every day.



It didn't have to be this way. After a grim half century of military rule, Myanmar slowly nudged towards a more open society in 2011 when the ruling junta allowed "controlled openness." Longtime opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was freed in 2010 after 15 years of house arrest.



During a political victory lap tour in 2012, Suu Kyi, a Nobel laureate, visited the U.N. and the U.S. and was feted as the Angel of Democracy, savior to her once ostracized nation of 53 million people.



Sadly Suu Kyi's name was soon sullied when in August 2017, the Myanmar military commenced security operations against the Rohingya minority. Given the political outcry and her own embarrassment, she skipped a planned address to the U.N. General Assembly last year.



State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, whose power rests on a delicate balance between her party's genuine political popularity and the military's nervous openness, is not directing the carnage by Myanmar's military; yet she has politically and politely chosen to look the other way.



So what did the U.N.'s mission uncover? The town of Cox's Bazaar hosts 670,000 Rohingya who joined 300,000 already in Bangladesh. Over a million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh have placed a massive strain on resources.



France's representative Anne Gueguen put the matter into perspective, "The Rohingya are victims of ethnic cleansing, there is no other way to describe it." She added that the Myanmar government must "tackle the root causes of the crisis," namely granting citizenship to the Rohingya.



Though Myanmar's government recognizes over 100 ethnic groups inside its vast territory such as the Shan and Karen peoples, the Rohingya are denied citizenship and are thus stateless people.



According to Human Rights Watch, Myanmar's 1982 Constitution "effectively deny to the Rohingya the possibility of acquiring a nationality." Moreover Myanmar law does not recognize this ethnic minority as one of the so-called eight "national indigenous races."



The Muslim minority has suffered systematic discrimination for decades but by August 2017, the military campaign began. The French humanitarian agency Doctors Without Borders (MSF) stated that within the first month of attacks at least 6,700 Rohingya men, women and children were killed. There was widespread burning of villages by the Myanmar military.



Though U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres has spoken out forcefully about the atrocities from their start, there has been no formal action by the 15-member Security Council to stem the crisis. One reason rests with China's close political support for the Myanmar regime. Beijing would likely block a formal resolution.



Why is Myanmar so important? The resource-rich former British colony stands astride China's southern doorstep in Yunnan Province, has access to the Bay of Bengal, and holds vast mineral and energy resources. It's clearly part of Beijing's sphere of influence.



American U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley stressed, "The active involvement of the Security Council is essential to bring an end to the Rohingya crisis." She added, "That, too, will be a challenge, as some members of the council have kept us from taking action for cynical and self-interested reasons."



While the U.S. envoy stated that the ultimate solution was for the refugees to return to their own homes on their own land, this seems easier said than done. Surprisingly the Myanmar regime has invited refugees back, but to a very murky future.



Bangladesh delegate Masud Bin Momen warned, "The Rohingya community needed answers to pressing questions of citizenship, freedom of movement, and human rights. The vista of more than 400 burned villages hardly evoked confidence about the prospect of return to Rakhine."



Ambassador Haley stated poignantly, "We have all heard horrifying accounts of what the Rohingya people have suffered, what 'ethnic cleansing' means  that leaves us with no choice but to act now."



John J. Metzler (jjmcolumn@earthlink.net) is a United Nations correspondent covering diplomatic and defense issues. He is the author of "Divided Dynamism: the Diplomacy of Separated Nations: Germany, Korea, China."


Doha, May 27 (AFP) Qatar has ordered shops to remove goods originating from a group of Saudi Arabian-led countries which a year ago imposed a wide-ranging boycott on the emirate, Doha officials said today.

A directive from the economy ministry ordered shops to immediately strip shelves of products from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt.

Inspectors will visit stores to ensure they comply with the order, the ministry said.

The government will also try and stop products such as Saudi dairy goods from entering Qatar via a third country.

Qatar's Government Communications Office (GCO) said it was trying to "protect the safety of consumers".

"Products originating from blockading states, which as a result of the blockade cannot pass the GCC customs territory, has to undergo proper import inspections and customs procedures," the GCO said in a statement.

"Qatar conducts its trade policy in accordance with all of its multilateral and bilateral agreements." The order comes just days before the anniversary of a bitter Gulf crisis.

Since June 5 last year, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt have cut all relations with Qatar, accusing it of financing terrorist groups and having close ties with Iran.

The countries subsequently imposed a trade and diplomatic boycott on Qatar, which rejects the charges and says the countries are seeking regime change in Doha.

The row has forced isolated Qatar, which previously relied on its Gulf neighbours, to look elsewhere for food imports, including Turkey, Morocco and Iran.

Many such imports enter the country via ports such as Kuwait and Oman. It is through these ports, and also via individuals, that goods from the boycotting countries manage to get in to Qatar, said a source with knowledge of the situation.

"Businessmen from the blockading countries are trying to go around the blockade... by using third parties," said the source. (AFP) AQS

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Kit Harrington and Rose Leslie romanced each other on Game Of Thrones. In fact, towards the end of one of the episodes, fans found out that Jon Snow knows some important things after all. *wink wink* But these onscreen couple started dating in real life and made fans fall in love with them. The two got engaged in September last year and have now announced that they will be tying the knot on 23rd June 2018. The date has been posted in the Huntly registration office in Aberdeenshire. Leslie's father owns a castle in Aberdeenshire (Wow!). The two will be getting married in Iceland since they shot for a couple of sequences over there and have the best memories with each other over there.

According to a report in BBC, Kit opened up about why he wants to get married in Iceland and said, "Because the country is beautiful, because the Northern Lights are magical, and because it was there that I fell in love." He also added, "If you're already attracted to someone, and then they play your love interest in the show, it becomes very easy to fall in love." Kit and Rose have given fans major relationship goals.

We are looking forward to this beautiful wedding. We wonder if it will have a GOT theme, too. Okay that's not a great idea because so far, all weddings on GOT have been way too violent. Rose is going to make such a beautiful bride and women are going to cry looking at Kit on his wedding day. Their appearances together have already left the internet falling in love with them. What are your thoughts on this? Tell us in the comments below and stay tuned with us for more.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 27, 2018 11:38 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Shamli (Uttar Pradesh, May 27: Ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha by-poll in Uttar Pradesh's Kairana, BJP candidate Mriganka Singh along with other party leaders has slammed the Deobandi Ulema for 'misleading voters', especially Muslims, in the respective constituency.

Earlier, Deobandi Ulema from Saharanpur took a jibe at BJP, accusing the latter of flaring up communal disharmony and appealing to the voters to elect Rashtriya Lok Dal's Tabassum Hassan.

"People of Kairana are very much aware of all this. They will vote for development and good governance. They are not going to come under anybody's influence. They are misleading voters," Mriganka told ANI.

Deobandi Ulema accused the BJP of creating communal disharmony. He said that the BJP has not been able to benefit the voters of the country and has only created an atmosphere of communal disharmony.

BJP leader Ashok Pradhan also hit out at Deobandi Ulema while alleging that the opposition doesn't want peace in the area. "All this will become the reason behind their loss. They don't want peace in the area. They can't see people living without any fear. They want protests to take place so that people will leave the place. However, now the people are in a mood to see BJP win the elections," Pradhan told ANI.

The Kairana by-election was necessitated following the death of BJP Leader Hukum Singh. His daughter Mriganka Singh became the choice for BJP to battle it out in the Kairana.

The Kairana Lok Sabha seat has around 17 lakh voters, including three lakh Muslims, four lakh backward castes (Jat, Gujjar, Saini, Kashyap, Prajapati, and others) and about 1.5 lakh Dalits. Voting for the Kairana by-polls will be held on May 28 and the results will be declared on May 31.
Earlier in the day, the PM inaugurated the phase-I of Delhi-Meerut Expressway, which connects the Nizamuddin Bridge to the UP Border | (Photo Credits: ANI)

Baghpat, May 27: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE), also referred to Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal Highway. The Rs 11,000-crore project marks the first green highway of the nation, being lit completely using the solar power.

Covering a distance of 135-km, the expressway will allow commuters to avoid entering Delhi-NCR region while travelling from as far as Himachal Pradesh to Rajasthan and vice versa. The project is also termed as 'eco-friendly' as 50,000 trees have been planted on either side of the highway throughout the route.

"The Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) is India's first green expressway. This will decongest Delhi-NCR, apart from drastically reducing the time taken for connecting different cities of this region," PM Modi said.

In his public address after inaugurating the project, the Prime Minister roasted the Opposition, accusing it of "ridiculing" all development projects in the nation.

"If your (Opposition's) enemy is Modi, I can understand. But if your enemy is development, then the people of India will not forgive you. I want to ask the Congress why they want to create obstacles while we want to provide top-level infrastructure to the common people," Modi said.

"Congress should understand the dynasty days are over. Gone are the days when one family and their associates reaped all the benefits. For Modi, the entire nation is his family," the Prime Minister added.

Modi also heaped praises on the government of Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh, crediting it for the "reduction of crimes" in the state. "Criminals are in a state of fear. They are surrendering themselves," Modi claimed.

Earlier in the day, the PM inaugurated the phase-I of Delhi-Meerut Expressway, which connects the Nizamuddin Bridge to the UP Border. The 9-km stretch is expected to decongest the national capital of the traffic from Ghaziabad and Noida.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 27, 2018 02:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
A book on the Balkan War will be launched in the Riverbank Arts Centre in Newbridge on Friday, June 8

The launch will be preceded by a talk by Col. Desmond Travers (Retd).

Witness to War Crimes, the Memoirs of an Irish Peacekeeper in Bosnia has been written by Col Colm Doyle, who had a ringside seat to many of the kep moments in that conflict.

The early 1990s saw Europes first conflict for almost 40 years when bitter fighting broke out in the former Yugoslav republic.

Colonel Doyle, who spent much of his military career in the Curragh, found himself in the midst of the appalling civil war when, in October 1991, he became first a European Community Monitor, and almost immediately head of the Monitor Mission in besieged Sarajevo.

After six months he was appointed Personal Representative to Lord Carrington, Chairman of the Peace Conference on Yugoslavia.

In this memoir, he describes his role mediating, negotiating and persuading political and military leaders of all sides to halt the seemingly inexorable path to all-out civil war.

He arranged cease-fires, visited prisoner-of-war camps, extricated election monitors and organised hostage releases.

His experiences made him a key witness at the International Criminal Tribunal in The Hague at the trials of Milosevic, Mladic and Karadzic.

SEE ALSO: Newbridge transplant couple celebrate wedding anniversary at Irish Kidney Association fun run

With his unprecedented access, Doyles personal account can claim to be one of the most significant insights to the brutal Bosnian War.

During Colonel Colm Doyles career with the Irish Defence Forces, he served with the United Nations in Cyprus, Lebanon and Syria. He was Chief-of-Staff of the Military Division at the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations in New York; Director of Public Relations for the Defence Forces and Commandant of both the UN Training School, Ireland and the Military College.

His experiences with the EU in Bosnia are the subject of this book.

He holds a Masters Degree in International Studies from the University of Limerick. He is married with four adult children.
A JUDGE has been urged to take a chance on a young Limerick man who admitted storing a stash of drugs in a 14-year-old car.

Eoin McDonnell, aged 22, of no fixed abode has pleaded guilty to charges relating to the seizure of a significant amount of cannabis two years ago.

Garda Alan Considine said a house at Bruach Na Coille, Old Cratloe Road was placed under surveillance on March 16, 2016 as part of an intelligence led operation.

He said gardai observed a man  Mr X  emerge from the house on four separate occasions to meet with other unknown males who had called to the front gate. On each occasion, a brief transaction was carried out.

The defendant, who was driving a 06-registered VW Passat arrived at around 8.30pm.

McDonnell remained outside the main entrance to the housing estate where he was observed speaking with the driver of another car for a short time.

The defendant, he said, then parked his Passat before entering the house which was under surveillance.

McDonnell quickly re-emerged from the house and went back to the person he had met a short time earlier. They interacted for a matter of seconds, said Garda Considine.

Judge Tom ODonnell was told the defendant was later observed walking to a 02-registered Opel Corsa and removing something from under the passenger seat. The item was placed in small nappy bag before McDonnell returned to the house.

During a search of the premises a small quantity of cannabis was located in the nappy bag which had been thrown into an open fire. A further quantity of cannabis was recovered from the Opel Corsa.

The total value of the drugs seized was 9,742 while more than 3,000 in cash was also seized.

Texts found on a mobile phone were consistent with drug dealing and following his arrest, McDonnell made admissions and took responsibility for the cannabis and cash.

Garda Considine said gardai were sceptical of his claim that he was the owner of the drugs but accepted he had cooperated.

Brian McInerney BL said his client has poor cognitive skills and is engaging with a number of agencies.

Referring to several reports before the court, he suggested it might be case worth taking a chance on.

Adjourning the matter to October, Judge ODonnell said he is leaving all his options open.
A SMALL West Limerick school is celebrating its biggest ever First Communion class in memory  and its only nine children.

Ballysteen NS usually sends three or four children to the church in May, but this year they have prepared nearly 10 second class pupils for the sacrament.

The school population has doubled in size over the last 20 years, and trebled since its lowest point over 15 years ago, when numbers threatened to dip below 12.

Now, there are a comfortable 36 pupils on the roll books.

Its the biggest class weve had in over 30 years, said principal Mary Flannery.

The Communion classes are made up of, on average, around three children each year. Sometimes there would be four or five, and weve often had two, said Mrs Flannery.

One year in the last decade, Ballysteen made an exception and allowed one child in first class to make her communion with the second class, because she was in a class on her own.

We never hold our Communions on a separate day on its own, it is always held at Sunday Mass in Ballysteen at 9.30am. Because of that, there is huge community engagement and you would have lots of people there who may not come to the separate Communion.

The Parents Association always hold a celebration and refreshments in the school after Mass, and it is a great social occasion for the whole area, because there is no pub or shop in Ballysteen. Everyone comes to the school, whether or not they have a child in Communion class, and they stay for a chat and see their neighbours. Theres a great community spirit, said the principal.

The growth of several small schools around County Limerick seems to point to a growing trend. Ballyseten, a two-room school, recently celebrated 50 years, and boasts an SNA in each classroom, as well as an on-site special education teacher.

Ballysteen is a close-knit community with a very active Parents Association. We normally see three or four pupils coming in every year. A lot of them come from outside and may not live in Ballysteen, but we find that most of them have some link to Ballysteen, a lot of their parents may have come to school here and they live in neighbouring villages and want to send their kids to their old school.
METROPOLITAN councillors have this week approved plans for a joint submission against Irish Cements Mungret plans to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Irish Cement, which is planning to switch away from fossil fuels in favour of used tyres at its plant in Mungret, has cleared all but the final hurdle to bring the 10m plans in.

But the blueprint has proven to be controversial, with residents and councillors alike keen that the environmental regulator does not allow the firm a licence to operate.

To this end, they are hoping to unite with Clare County Council to provide a super-objection to the proposals, which have already prompted over 2,000 people to write to the EPA over environmental concerns.

Sinn Fein councillor Malachy McCreesh said: The community has been ignored by our own planning authority and ignored by An Bord Pleanala. If we do not stand behind them, they will be ignored by the Environmental Protection Agency too.

Cllr James Collins, Fianna Fail, added: We are concerned that industrial incineration is proposed just three miles from the city centre, and less than a mile from Limerick city and countys newest high-amenity area, new primary and secondary schools, the new Mungret public park and a large area zoned for residential development.

He suggested Irish Cement wants to turn its factories into lucrative industrial incinerators.

There were three similar motions on the agenda calling for a complaint to the EPA. Fine Gael councillor Daniel Butler, who authored one of them, said: It would send a very strong message, a joint submission coming from two local authorities.

In a statement, Irish Cement said: The fossil fuel replacement programme in the Mungret cement factory, approved by An Bord Pleanala will reduce Irish Cements dependence on imported fossil fuels, will reduce CO2 emissions by up to 40,000 tonnes a year and will help recover valuable resources.
TWO young men who caused thousands of euro worth of damage during a rampage at an underground car park in Limerick have each received lengthy prison sentences.

Trevor Ambrose, aged 22, of Byrne Avenue, Prospect, Limerick and Dylan Corbett, aged 19, of Crecora Avenue, Ballinacurra Weston, Limerick pleaded guilty to multiple charges including burglary, criminal damage and theft.

During a sentencing hearing, Detective Garda John Keane said the offences occurred at Larchfield, Allendale, Limerick on consecutive nights in November 2016.

Two apartments were broken into on November 20, 2016 and a Renault car taken from outside. The vehicle was later found burned out.

Detective Garda Keane said several other vehicles were damaged and various property stolen by the culprits.

The defendants returned to the car park the following night and stole a second car  an Audi A3  which was later found in a crashed state.

Judge Tom ODonnell was told a total of 29 vehicles were either damaged or broken into during the rampage at the car park.

Summarising the evidence, the judge noted that any item that could be taken was.

The stolen property included laptops, phones, cash and sunglasses and various other valuables.

CCTV proved instrumental in identifying the culprits and DNA found in the Renault was connected to Mr Corbett who admitted he was a passenger in the car after it was stolen.

Both men received sentences totalling three years imprisonment in relation to the offences.

Ambrose, received a consecutive 18 month prison sentence for his role in a separate crime spree which took place on dates in August 2016.

In relation to that case, Judge ODonnell was told the defendant was one of a number of young men who broke into a house in Dooradoyle and stole a high-powered car.

Ambrose and another young man, who was a juvenile at the time, admitted travelling to Pallaskenry where they tried to break into a number of other vehicles.

However, they were apprehended by locals and detained pending the arrival of gardai.

A number of other young men previously pleaded guilty to their role in that incident.

Sentencing Trevor Ambrose, Judge ODonnell noted he has a number of previous convictions and was on bail at the time.

He noted he has suffered from behavioural challenges since he was young and that has had problems with substance abuse.

He said his co-accused, who is now aged 20, had mixed with the wrong crowd when younger and had slipped into substance abuse.

The judge said the offences had caused disruption, upset and inconvenience for each of the property owners and he commented that the level of wanton disruption was a significant concern for the court.

While noting that Ambroses co-accused was the youngest of the culprits, he said a custodial sentence was warranted.

He sentenced the now 20-year-old to three years imprisonment suspending the final two years.

There were angry scenes in the public gallery of the court as relatives and friends of the defendant reacted to the imposition of the prison sentence.
A CROOM-based food supplement brand has donated thousands of euro worth of multivitamins to the Peter McVerry Trust, to help with nutrition among the homeless of Limerick.

Ambermed Ltd donated around 13,000 worth of Oxylent Multivitamins to highlight that more than just housing is often needed for people living in hostels and on the streets, such as mental health services and proper nutrition for families who may not have access to healthy meal options.

The local business is now encouraging other companies to donate whatever they can to the Trust or similar charities.

Ambermed, which is owned by Jon and Miriam Hayes, is the sole distributor in Ireland and the UK for Nordic Naturals Omega fish oil supplements, as well as the multivitamins donated.

The homeless crisis isnt just a problem in Dublin, but one that is on our doorsteps across the country. Organisations such as Peter McVerry Trust are working very hard, often with little resources, to alleviate the problem, said Jon.

Its clear that homelessness is a problem that is touching all strata of society.

Limerick has a great tradition of everyone getting stuck in to help out the wider community in times of need, and there are people in need in hostels and on the streets across the city and county, said Jon.

The company hopes to raise awareness for the health implications that can be caused by homelessness. The supplements they donated contain vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids and electrolytes, to help meet the nutritional requirements of those in need.

Jon Hayes pointed out that businesses can donate more than just money, and they should look at their products and services to see what they can do to help.

Charities can be supported in a number of ways, as we are seeing with the Simon Open Door initiative where architects donate their time for a donation to the Simon Community.

Ambermed is encouraging other companies to look at what they can bring to the table or to get in touch directly with their local charity to see what their current needs are and how they might help, he said.
SOCIETY has been very much divided by the referendum on whether to repeal or retain the eighth amendment, the Bishop of Limerick believes.

Limerick City and County voted by a significant majority to repeal the eighth amendment in Fridays referendum.

In a message read out at Masses across the Limerick diocese this Sunday, Bishop Brendan Leahy described the result of the referendum as deeply regrettable and chilling for those who voted no.

In his message, the Bishop also acknowledged that each persons political position on the matter was ultimately borne out of care.

Those who voted no did so with compassion particularly for the unborn child, Bishop Leahy said.

Those who voted yes did so with an eye particularly on the mother carrying that child.

We have unquestionably been divided in many respects as a society over recent years by pivotal political decisions but we must begin to heal and to remember that we are one, not two societies, Bishop Leahy said.

The stories of many women who terminated their pregnancies were heard during the debate, he added.

They were women in crisis pregnancies or women in dreadful circumstances; victims of sexual violence or those who have been given dreadful news regarding the viability of the baby in the womb, a baby they dearly want, or women whose lives are put at risk by an imminent childbirth.

While the Churchs position is that life, in or out, of the womb is to be protected, it is only right that we have heard these stories and got a sense of womens immense pain and distress.

So often, women were left on their own at that time, perhaps with the support only of a friend, perhaps immediate family but not much else.

A message we can take, therefore, from the stories weve heard is that we have ultimately failed them as a society if we allow them to be isolated.

We need to engender more coherently a society of care, a society of support so that the default for women in these circumstances is to turn to that society and know that it wraps them in a blanket of love and support.

The Church treasures life above all else and that extends to life in the womb, Bishop Leahy added.

Even before the Referendum, it was a core value and it will remain so.

The result, in that context, is deeply regrettable and chilling for those of us who voted no.

The final result of the Referendum is the will of the majority of the people, though not all the people.

The vote does not change the Churchs position on that matter, he added.

Our message is one of love; love for all, love for life, for those with us today, for those in the womb and Gods love is there also for those on both sides of the Referendum campaign.
For lots of animals  humans included  lazing about in the sunshine is one of life's greatest pleasures. But unfortunately, this pastime comes with a cost: the skin-sizzling ordeal known as sunburn. And, while its most likely victims are the fairer-skinned among us, animals are at risk of sunburn, too.

But if this can happen to animals too, why, then, don't we ever see sunburned fish, or scarlet elephants?

"If you think of it, the sun has been here forever in terms of our planet, and all individuals have been exposed to it," said Karina Acevedo-Whitehouse, a molecular epidemiologist from the Autonomous University of Queretaro, in Mexico. "So, it's a pretty strong selective pressure that the sun has imposed on animals and that has led to many mechanisms of counteracting it." [Why Does Being in the Heat Make Us Feel Tired?]

Some of these mechanisms are obvious: Hair, fur, wool, feathers and scales on many creatures create a barrier between sunshine and skin. These adaptations are so effective that the only time they really fail is when humans intervene. For instance, domesticated pigs  bred to have less hair  are more sensitive to sun damage than their wild cousins.

Animals with naturally hairless, unscaled skin must resort to other methods of self-protection. Elephants and rhinos not only have thicker hides; they also regularly coat themselves in dust or mud to create a rudimentary sunscreen. When conditions are extreme, most animals retreat to the shade or take refuge in burrows. "All of that is helping animals to cope, so we don't see a lot of sunburn [in these species]," Acevedo-Whitehouse told Live Science.

Some species up the ante by producing a unique brand of sunscreen from their own cells. Taifo Mahmud, a molecular biologist at Oregon State University, has discovered genetic traits in fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians that enable them to produce a compound called gadusol, which creates protection against ultraviolet (UV) rays in the sun. "Most vertebrates, except mammals, have the genes responsible for producing gadusol," Mahmud told Live Science. So far, they've proved that only zebrafish actually use this compound as a protectant against UV rays. But now scientists are looking into how humans might exploit this trait for our skin.

Why don't we  and other mammals  produce gadusol? "It has been proposed that early mammals were nocturnal. Was that because they lost the genes that produce gadusol? We don't know," Mahmud said. "I think it would be interesting to figure out if fur and thicker skin were developed later in their evolution."

Not to be outdone, gadusol-deprived mammals have developed their own sophisticated mechanisms of protection. Hippos are known to secrete a scarlet liquidfrom their pores that looks just like blood  and it wasn't until 2004 that a group of Japanese scientists discovered that the orangey-red compounds in this skin-coating fluid protected hippos from UV rays, according to a report in the journal Nature. Other animals focus their sun protection in the most vulnerable parts of their bodies.Giraffes, for example, produce more protective melanin in their tongues giving them a darker hue  because they spend most of their lives with their tongues exposed to the sun as they pry tender leaves off trees.

So, do animals ever get sunburned? Yes. "Marine mammals, and specifically cetaceans [whales, dolphins and porpoises], are an exception because they don't have fur; they don't have scales," said Acevedo-Whitehouse, who has been studying sunburn in whales for over five years.

In skin samples taken from the backs of blue, sperm and fin whales on their cross-ocean migrations, Acevedo-Whitehouse and her colleagues discovered signs of sunburnfrom the whales' hours spent breathing and socializing at the surface, according to a 2013 study published in the journal Scientific Reports. But crucially, they also discovered that whales have specialized mechanisms that help them counteract this burn. "The common adaptation of cetaceans is that they appear to be very effective at repairing damage," she said.

Some whales generate pigments that darken and protect their skin; others have genes that trigger a protective stress response in the skin. There are even whales that have developed a hard, keratinized layer that protects the delicate skin below. "We were excited to see there isn't really evidence of skin cancer in whales," Acevedo-Whitehouse said. Now, they're trying to understand precisely how those healing mechanisms work.

From protective coats, to self-made sunscreen, to rapid healing, these sun-smart animals may one day give us the clues we need to save our own skin.

Original article on Live Science.
Stay sharp! You may be needed to help decode a message from intelligent aliens someday.

The work of professional linguists, mathematicians and scientists "is probably not going to be enough" to unravel a cosmic mystery missive, said Sheri Wells-Jensen, a linguist at Bowling Green University in Ohio who also serves on the board of METI (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence), a San Francisco-based nonprofit.

"We have to have all hands on deck," Wells-Jensen told Space.com. "We're going to need everybody, and we're going to need to generate multiple sets of meanings for a message that we get." [13 Ways to Hunt Intelligent Aliens]

An experiment performed recently by Wells-Jensen shows why we may need the power of the human hive-mind. She presented college students with several puzzles that had been coded in the manner of Lincos, a constructed language designed to be understood by intelligent extraterrestrials. The students figured out the simple stuff, such as basic mathematical functions, quite well  but things got dicey when the concepts got more complicated.

For example, Wells-Jensen gave the students the equation for the circumference of a circle, as well as a lightly coded representation of "pi" (the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter).

"And I said, 'OK, what is this real word?' And they came up with all kinds of crazy things," she said. "Some made poetic jumps and said, 'world'; some of them made an opposite poetic jump and said, 'infinity.' Some of them thought that I meant that the diameter of the circle ended at a wall, and said 'prison.'"

And that's for a message drawn up by a fellow human. It will doubtless be much tougher to decode something devised by creatures from a distant solar system who share no cultural or evolutionary history with us, who may rely upon different senses to perceive their environment and to communicate, and who are probably far more advanced technologically than we are.

So, we'll likely need to marshal the collective wisdom of the world, in a massive citizen-science project, to identify (and agree upon) the "right" answer, Wells-Jensen said. And our chances of success in this endeavor would be greatly increased if we all hit the books a little, to increase our critical-thinking skills and our understanding of nature and how it works, she added.

"One of the goals of METI  and I really think it should be a goal of all of us  is to work on this science-literacy problem," Wells-Jensen said.

The linguist was originally scheduled to present her results on Saturday (May 26), during a workshop at the International Space Development Conference (ISDC) 2018 in Los Angeles. But she nixed that after running out of time. Wells-Jensen has been pretty busy; she chaired the workshop, which is called "Language in the Cosmos," and she co-authored another workshop study.

The daylong workshop, which was organized by METI, explored the possibility that language  or at least certain essential elements of language  might be universal throughout the cosmos.

Famed linguist Noam "Chomsky has often said that if a Martian visited Earth, it would think we all speak dialects of the same language, because all terrestrial languages share a common underlying structure," METI President Doug Vakoch, who also presented a paper at the workshop, said in a statement. "But if aliens have language, would it be similar to ours? That's the big question."

Two workshop papers, including one co-authored by Chomsky, expressed optimism about this. Wells-Jensen said she's more skeptical, citing our lack of knowledge about the origins of human language and the difficulty of extrapolating from a sample size of one. (However, whale languages might be complex enough to boost our planet's sample to two, she added.)

"I don't think we know, but this is a nice hypothesis to play with," she said of the language-universality idea.

Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com.
On a day the As honored their great teams of the 1970s, complete with a mule on the field pregame in memory of Charlie-O, the current version of the team had its own mustachioed man on the mound.

Daniel Mengden, whose handlebar mustache earns him frequent comparisons to Hall of Fame closer Rollie Fingers, was magnificent Saturday, pitching his second career shutout in the As 3-0 victory over Arizona.

As sharp as he was, Mengden almost didnt get a chance to pitch the ninth; manager Bob Melvin was going to use closer Blake Treinen until Chad Pinders solo homer in the eighth provided a little more cushion.

I was really excited, Mengden said. I was all about it. First pitch, Chad hit the home run, and I was like, Perfect.

Mengden  who placed a James Harden Rockets jersey prominently on the chair at his locker before starting his postgame interview session  then got to celebrate his fine day by going to watch his hometown team play Game 6 of the Western Conference finals next door at Oracle Arena.

Born and raised in Houston, die-hard Rockets fan my whole life, he said, adding that any grief he gets about his allegiance, Ill take it.

Mengden (5-4) didnt allow more than two runs in any of his five starts in May, and did that just once. Hes riding a 17-inning scoreless streak. On Saturday, he limited Arizona to two hits. He struck out five and he did not walk a batter. He said he and catcher Bruce Maxwell had a plan to attack early with the fastball and then pitch backward later.

Everything was working really well. I was able to get ahead with the heater, changeups to a lot of lefties, Mengden said. Just got a lot of weak contact.

Against me, he didnt really make any mistakes, said Arizona infielder Daniel Descalso, who is from San Carlos. I feel like he made all his pitches down in the zone. He didnt leave anything up for me to drive. He was working ahead. It seemed like he was a strike thrower. He doesnt walk a lot of guys and he was getting early outs. ... He really wasnt missing much, in my opinion.

Mengden has allowed no more than one walk in any of his 11 starts this season, and just six total. Hes looked great, As first baseman Matt Olson said. Hes had outings like this consistently.

The only difficulty he had Saturday came in the third inning, when Nick Ahmed reached on an error, went to second on a sacrifice bunt and to third on a groundout. Mengden went 0-2 on Paul Goldschmidt, called Maxwell out to make sure they were on the same page, then threw a high fastball that Goldschmidt swung at and missed to end the inning.

Oaklands runs came via solo homers, a drive by Matt Joyce on the first pitch thrown by Arizona starter Clay Buchholz, Olsons one-out shot off Jorge De La Rosa in the seventh, and Pinders off Fernando Salas. Olson, who has 13 hits in his past 43 at-bats, homered off a lefty for the first time this season and said he feels as if he is starting to turn a corner.

Ive just been battling this entire year and just starting to come around and feel like myself, he said.

Pregame, a large group of former As players, world champions all, noisily milled around in the dugout and on the field, swapping stories and needling each other. Everyone looks pretty good, outfielder Billy North said of the group, most of whom are in their 70s. But theyre all still ugly.

Every time I come back here, its even better, pitcher Ken Holtzman said. Lifelong friends.

Melvin, who grew up in Menlo Park, caught the first pitch from his boyhood favorite, Sal Bando, who later, as general manager of the Brewers, was instrumental in Melvins career.

I get nervous around these guys, Melvin said. These guys were a big part of my youth, watching those World Series games, coming here 11, 12 years old. What these guys accomplished for this organization resonates deeply with me.

The 1970s teams were famous for brawling in the clubhouse, but all that tension brought them closer.

We were like a big bunch of brothers who used to fight all the time amongst ourselves, Holtzman said, but once the game started, between the lines, it was one of the most fundamentally sound teams of the last 75 years. Thats probably why we won.  They were very special years.

The proudest and happiest I ever was was when they made the third out in the last game of the 1972 playoffs  it was everyones dream to get into the World Series  and as soon as we get in the clubhouse, two of our stars, Blue Moon Odom and Vida Blue, get in a fight. Only our team could get in a fight on the happiest day of your life.

Susan Slusser is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sslusser@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @susanslusser
Even Trevor D. Traina, who was raised amid all the pomp and circumstance that San Francisco society can muster, had to have been impressed by the level of decorum at his coronation Thursday morning as U.S. ambassador to Austria.

Arriving by motorcade to the 13th century Hofburg imperial palace in Vienna, the ambassador-designate presented his credentials in the form of a sealed letter from the White House to Alexander Van der Bellen, federal president of the Republic of Austria. Van der Bellen accepted them during a half-hour ceremony marked by an honor guard and anthems.

That marked the start of foreign service for the San Francisco tech entrepreneur, but also the ending for a secretive and grueling yearlong process.

Traina has been vetted and grilled for top-level security clearance, had friends and business colleagues questioned by the FBI, and had 10 years of taxes and financial records inspected for conflicts of interest. Many were found, and he had 90 days to divest of major stock holdings.

Sure, these are a rich persons problems, but Traina did not need the job, or the paycheck. An ambassador is paid from $124,000 to $187,000 a year. While unaware of what his pay would be, Traina described it in general as a government salary. Not market rate, during a recent interview at his Jackson Square office.

In late March, Traina was sworn in at a small ceremony at his home in Pacific Heights. But until Thursdays transfer ceremony in Vienna, he had not been officially accepted by the Austrian government. In between, he was willing to discuss what he went through over the course of a year to pass muster with both the State Department and the U.S. Senate.

He also answered the question every San Franciscan wants to ask. I did not give money to the Trump campaign, he said, but I have given money to a lot of Republican causes over the years.

Traina, who turned 50 on May 16, is a registered Republican. Records kept by the website OpenSecrets.org show he donated $33,900 each, the maximum allowed, to two Republican political action committees in 2017, before his nomination. An additional $31,000 in Republican PAC donations was made in 2017 by Trainas mother, Dede Wilsey, the longtime board president of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

These donations are nothing compared to the deepest-pocketed, but it shows that he is a player, almost overnight, said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan research organization in Washington, D.C.

If patronage was involved in his selection, Traina said he knew nothing about it. Its one of those mysterious processes where it is unclear who gets picked or how, he said.

 Carina Karlovits / HBF

But it did not come as a bolt out of the blue. His maternal grandfather, Wiley T. Buchanan Jr., had been ambassador to Austria in the 1970s under President Gerald Ford. Traina was just 7 or 8 years old and a student at Cathedral School for Boys on Nob Hill when he was taken abroad by his mother for the first time to stay with his grandparents at the same home that he now occupies.

My whole life I have wanted to be an ambassador, because it was what my grandfather did, Traina said. When I was a boy, one of my most formative memories was learning what all the people who work in an embassy actually do. It instilled in me a hunger to be in that process.

From that point on, he went about building his resume for the job. He studied political science at Princeton and international relations at Oxford before coming back to earn a masters from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley.

The ambassador, who is also called chief of mission, is the highest-ranking American in that country and serves as the personal representative of the U.S. president. The job requires managing a diplomatic staff of more than 200, while implementing and promoting the presidents foreign policy in Europe.

The fiction is that all you do is throw a lot of cocktail parties and it is about entertaining, Traina said. The fact is that you are really in charge of a very complicated mission with a dozen or two dozen agencies all reporting to you.

Traina is not the first person to figure out that the job of ambassador is more than clinking Champagne glasses. Another San Franciscan, Eleni Kounalakis, wrote a book on the topic, titled Madam Ambassador, and published it in 2015 when she returned from her tour in Budapest as ambassador to Hungary.

Trevor has probably been at the FBI, at the CIA, at the Department of Homeland Security and at the Treasury. That is how it is for everyone I know who has been through the process, said Kounalakis, now a Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor of California. You have to get a top-secret SCI (sensitive compartmented information) clearance. Thats the one Jared Kushner couldnt get until recently.

When Traina was first contacted by the White House last summer, he was advised not to tell anyone and to expect a lot of paperwork.

Then more paperwork than even I expected arrived, he said. All kinds of long forms to fill out. One was more than 100 pages long.

He had to hire a lawyer and an accountant to sort it all out, and among the details to be disclosed was every foreign trip he had taken for the past 15 years, with whom he had met and for what purpose. Then the FBI checked it all out independently.

I think 30 people were interviewed, he said. Neighbors from everywhere I have ever lived. I went to school in England. They went there and interviewed people.

This went on for six months before Traina got the call, in December, that he had cleared the FBI background check. In January, he traveled east for five weeks of intense study at the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center in Arlington, Va.

Trevor was one of my star students, said Robert Mandell, former ambassador to Luxembourg, who runs the training program. It takes from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily to teach his students that you are not a CEO. You cannot fire people easily, Mandell said. You have to learn how to be the leader of a team.

Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle

Last fall, Austria elected a 31-year-old chancellor, Sebastian Kurz, who formed a coalition government with the far-right Freedom Party. But one of Mandells lessons is to avoid partisan politics, either in Austria or America.

Politics is hard to avoid, particularly in the appointment process. Some nominees get hung up for months over political grievances in the Senate. But Traina sailed through in record time. He cleared the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by unanimous voice vote on March 20 and was unanimously confirmed by the full Senate one week later.

Then came the pain of divestiture. Elected officials can put assets into a blind trust. Ambassadors dont have that option. Trainas middle initial, D, stands for Dow. He is a descendant of Herbert Henry Dow, founder of Dow Chemical. He was born with stock holdings and added to them early.

I started trading stocks when I was in fifth grade, he said.

He sold his first company, the online shopping service CompareNet, to Microsoft in 1999 and was deep into Amazon.

Almost any prominent American company whose stock I own I have to sell, he said. This was painful for me.

The pain has been eased by shipping over fine-art photography from his vast collection, along with wine made with grapes from vineyards owned by Traina and his wife, Alexis Swanson Traina. She will bring the kids to Vienna once school is out, along with the family Jack Russell terrier and dachshund to run on the lawns Traina can still remember from his childhood visit.

The residence, on the outskirts of town, was built in 1931 in the Bauhaus Modernist style, and it is where President John F. Kennedy first met Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev on June, 3, 1961. A guest wing was added in the 1970s, and Traina can expect a revolving door, said Kathryn Hall, a Berkeley-born lawyer who was ambassador to Austria in the 1990s.

Dignitaries will stay at the residence because it is a secure environment, Hall said. You might have somebody from the NSA (National Security Agency) or Congress.

Hall said there is a household and groundskeeping staff of 15, including a chauffeur to drive Traina in a black Cadillac sedan to the embassy 45 minutes away. He can expect to be there at his desk at least eight hours a day, and then dancing the Viennese Waltz with Austrian society. The formal ball season in Vienna lasts three months, night after night.

Its funny, because I have never been involved in politics or diplomacy, Traina said. But I do want to serve my country.

Sam Whiting is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: swhiting@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SamWhitingSF Instagram: @sfchronicle_art

Online video

Ambassador Trevor Traina packs up his photography collection for Austria: http://bit.ly/trevortraina
An armed robbery suspect was arrested Saturday inside the BottleRock Napa Valley music festival, prompting a brief lockdown of the festival as police searched for the person, authorities said.

William Carter, 27, of San Francisco was booked at the Napa County Jail on felony charges for burglary, evading arrest and possession of a loaded firearm. He is being held without bail, according to jail records.

Dispatchers received a 911 call about 4 p.m. that an armed robbery occurred on Hagen Road near the Silverado Trail, according to the Napa Police Department.

The robbery happened during a private sale of jewelry, the victims told police, and two men fled in a Hyundai. The victims, who were not identified, were not injured.

Officers spotted the Hyundai near Hagen Road and First Avenue and began pursuing the two men. The suspects refused to pull over and continued driving toward the Napa Valley Expo, 575 Third St., where the festival was being held, police said.

The two then left their vehicle and began running toward the festival.

Carter entered the fairgrounds at the Third Street entrance and was immediately arrested, police said.

The other suspect was not found, but was last seen just outside the festival, police said. The second suspect was not identified.

The entrance gates of the festival were temporarily closed as a precaution, police said.

Festival security closed in-and-out privileges for VIP guests during the brief lockdown.

Many other festivalgoers waiting in line were glued to their phones and checking social media for information.

Natalie Griffin, 30, said she was waiting to enter the festival to see Billy Idol perform when she spotted police sport utility vehicles racing over to the entrance.

While we were waiting, we saw the Yountville arm of Napa County CHP pull up with huge-ass guns, Griffin said. They were running toward the entrance. It was terrifying. We were scared, obviously.

After about 20 minutes, Griffin, her boyfriend and 15 friends were allowed inside the festival.

Catherine Clark, 49, was seated near the handicapped area for the Idol performance when she saw officers run in front of her.

Four big burly cops and a German shepherd run up the stairs, Clark said. One officer has an assault rifle out.

Despite the commotion, no performances were disrupted, and no injuries were reported.

The BottleRock staff declined to comment on the incident.

Chronicle Arts Content Editor Mariecar Mendoza contributed to this report.

Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani
VIRGINIA  Ground was officially broken Thursday for a new affordable housing project on the southwest edge of Virginia.

Construction has begun on 20 two- and three-bedroom, single-family houses on seven acres next to Jenny Marr Dunaway Memorial Park. The houses are scheduled to be completed in spring 2019.

This will be an amazing opportunity for families in Virginia, Illinois Housing Development Authority Executive Director Audra Hamernik said in a news release. These are critically needed homes that will go a long way to address the pent-up demand for family housing in the community.

Developed by the Cass County Housing Authority and Windsor Development Group, the project is financed largely by federal tax credits awarded by IHDA, which will generate over $5.4 million in private capital to offset the cost of building the new houses. The development will bring rental options to an area that has seen little multifamily development over the last decade and where more than 40 percent of all rental housing was built before 1960.

There are an unbelievable amount of pieces that have to come together to get to ground breaking, said Mike Niehaus of Springfield, formerly of Jacksonville, president of Windsor Development Group. I would like to thank the people of Cass County who elected solid representatives to help move this forward.

When complete, each house will have a front porch and rear patio, an attached garage and a full range of amenities, including refrigerators, electric ovens, dishwashers and washers and dryers.

Sixteen of the houses will be reserved for households earning less than $34,560 for a family of three in Cass County, with the remaining four houses set aside for households earning less than $17,280 for a family of three. Six houses will be subsidized by rental assistance from Cass County, ensuring residents pay no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent.

This project is a great opportunity for 20 families and a great day for the city of Virginia, said Laymon Carter, chairman of the Cass County Housing Authority.

Im happy to see the project under way, Virginia Mayor Reg Brunk said. I hope all things go as planned.

In 2007, the housing authority board created a not-for-profit organization known as the Cass Affordable Housing Initiative.

We developed that to put us in a position to partner with and take advantage of IRS tax credit monies to build real homes that would provide affordable rent savings for families, Carter said. As a not-for-profit, our housing authority executive director, Steve Horton, has years of tax credit experience that has prompted other communities to use the Cass County Housing Authoritys not-for-profit to manage potential projects like this in their communities.

Horton emphasized the benefits of the housing development.

Nationwide, some working families spend up to 70 percent of their income on rent, Horton said. Cass County is no different. This development will allow 20 families to have a new home in the wonderful community of Virginia. These new homes are not only a win for the future tenants but also for local businesses, schools and all of Cass County.

Carter said the Cass County Housing Authority board plans future housing developments throughout the county.

Of 58 community applicants from across the state, Virginia was one of 13 that received funding for a housing development, Carter said.

This project is already benefiting the community of Virginia by paying $24,000 in building permits to build the 20 new homes, Carter said. A lot of people and businesses are benefiting from this project, and this subdivision is not costing the city of Virginia anything.

Carter said the housing developments location is ideal for people with children.

We are going to construct two large sidewalks connecting the subdivision to the parks walkway in order for people to access the swimming pool, park and the schools, Carter said. We are doing this for public safety and convenience.

The construction of the houses is being funded by Internal Revenue Service tax credits on investors income tax.

Tax credits are purchased by investors for 10 years, after which time the tax credits go away and the housing initiative will assume ownership after 15 years, Carter said. What we want to do is be able to sell these homes after 15 years and help people move forward in life.

Greg Olson can be reached at 217-245-6121, ext. 1224, or on Twitter @JCNews_Greg.
BOGOTA, Colombia - A right-wing lawyer and a leftist ex-mayor claimed first and second places in Colombia's first-round presidential elections Sunday.

A June 17 runoff will determine the next president to guide Latin America's third-most-populous nation through a troubled moment marked by soaring cocaine production, a shaky peace accord with a Marxist rebel group and the influx of Venezuelan migrants flooding over the border to escape an economic crisis next door.

With 98 percent of the votes counted, conservative 41-year-old Ivan Duque nailed down 39 percent of the vote, according to Colombia's national electoral agency. He was followed by the progressive 58-year-old economist and ex-mayor of Bogota, Gustavo Petro, with 25 percent.

A mathematician who was the centrist mayor of Medellin, Sergio Fajardo, received 24 percent of the vote. Outgoing president Juan Manuel Santos' former vice president, German Vargas Lleras, garnered 7 percent, and Santos' peace negotiator, Humberto de la Calle, finished with 2 percent.

The runoff will be historic. Colombians haven't forgotten that an assassin shot the populist leftist presidential candidate Jorge Eliecer Gaitan in 1948. Since then, outwardly left-wing candidates have been scarce in a country that gained a reputation throughout the 20th century for leaning further right than its neighbors. The outcome Sunday gives Colombians a clear choice in ideology, one they haven't had for decades.

Colombia is polarized. A 2016 peace accord led to the demobilization of thousands of fighters from the FARC rebel group last year, but while some Colombians want to forgive and move on, others are frustrated, insisting on harsher punishment for FARC leaders than is pending.

And a wave of poor Venezuelan migrants crossing illegally into Colombia is challenging an underemployed workforce.

In the post-conflict era, the longtime American ally's security issues are changing. Colombia's next president will have to deal with a major increase in the amount of land under coca cultivation. After two decades and a U.S. package of more than $10 billion in aid to fight against drug-trafficking groups, a few violent, criminal organizations have arisen with the end of the fighting. Peace talks with the ELN, a smaller rebel group, appear fragile.

"If Petro were to win, it could create big problems for Colombia's relations with the United States, least because I would think [President Donald] Trump's immediate reaction to Petro would be very negative," said Philip Paterson, a Latin American analyst at Oxford Analytica. "We might see a lot more frustration between Washington and Bogota in terms of Washington pushing for coca crop eradication programs - which I think Petro would be far less likely to follow through on, where Duque would do it enthusiastically."

The issues on voters' minds reflect a Colombia that more and more resembles its South American neighbors, where ire toward corruption, frustration over access to effective health care, and attention to environmental issues are competing with Colombia's age-old political debates of how to tackle drug trafficking and stop armed conflict.

For voters, Duque represents a nostalgic return to the hard-line security stance of former president Alvaro Uribe. Duque has called for harsher punishments for FARC leaders, who face restricted liberties if jurors find they tell the truth in a special tribunal.

He was elected in 2014 as a senator in Uribe's Centro Democratico party. Before that, he worked at the Inter-American Development Bank in Washington.

Duque says Colombia's economy is hamstrung by regulations and taxes on private enterprise. He is calling for tax cuts and reductions in public spending.

Alexandra de Brigard, a 47-year-old architect, said she supports Duque with the hope that he will restore Colombia to what it was before outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos took office in 2010.

"I'm from the generation that lived a really horrible and violent chapter of Colombia's history. Uribe saved us when it seemed like we had no hope," she said.

"Santos did the exact opposite of what he promised, the exact opposite of Uribe," she added, reflecting many pro-Duque voters' regret and frustration that the second-term Santos broke the continuity of Uribe's hard-line security policy with FARC.

Victor Manuel Sierra, also 47, says he is voting for Duque because his 25-employee cable wire business is suffocating under the weight of high taxes.

Detractors say behind Duque's moderate rhetoric are staunch, ultraconservative sectors backed by regional business elites.

"Duque represents a defense of the status quo," said Alvaro Villarraga of the Democratic Culture Foundation.

Petro is a former member of a left-wing armed movement known as M-19. He worked for its political wing until it disarmed in 1991 as part of a peace process.

Elected to the Senate, Petro gained a reputation for exposing corruption. In 2011, he was elected mayor of Bogota.

Petro wants to dismantle Colombia's mining and oil sector and replace it with renewables, as well as strengthen the agricultural sector - where many of the rural poor are employed.

Petro has said he would buy land if landowners won't pay his proposed higher taxes on underused property. His opponents cry expropriation and equate him with Hugo Chavez of Venezuela.

"He's talked about wanting to wind down coal and oil in three years, which I think is extremely ambitious and unlikely to happen in reality," Paterson says. "I certainly don't think he would be hostile to business. He'd still be trying to encourage international private investment into Colombia."

"This idea that he's the 'New Chavez' is way off the mark."

His supporters see the upside to a leader with leftist sympathies who presents himself as an outsider. "I like Petro for his ideas: his defense of the environment, and offering free higher education," says 34-year-old political scientist Andres Ignacio Sanchez, who is unemployed.

"Forever now he's gone against institutions and the way they currently work."
Former president George H.W. Bush has been hospitalized because of low blood pressure and fatigue, his spokesman said Sunday.

Jim McGrath announced on Twitter that Bush was taken Sunday to Southern Maine Health Care in Biddeford, Maine, and will likely remain there for a few days for observation.

"The former president is awake and alert, and not in any discomfort," McGrath said.

Bush, who turns 94 on June 12 and is America's longest-living president, has been hospitalized several times in recent years because of failing health. He is suffering from vascular parkinsonism, which mimics many of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease. He and his late wife also were diagnosed with Graves' disease, a thyroid ailment.

The former president arrived last week in Kennebunkport, Maine, where the Bush family has a summer home, according to the Associated Press. Bush attended a monthly pancake breakfast Saturday and met with veterans at the American Legion Post 159.

Bush was most recently hospitalized in Houston in April, just a day after former first lady Barbara Bush was buried. The former president had contracted an infection that spread to his blood and remained in the hospital for about two weeks. He was hospitalized twice in 2017 for pneumonia and bronchitis, and a few times between 2012 and 2015 - once after falling in his Kennebunkport home and breaking a bone in his neck.

Barbara Bush died April 17 at age 92 shortly after her family said she had "decided not to seek additional medical treatment" following recent hospitalizations. At the funeral, her husband sat in his wheelchair in front of her casket and greeted mourners for 20 minutes.

The former first couple was married for 73 years.

George H.W. Bush, the father of another former president, George W. Bush, served two terms as vice president under Ronald Reagan and one term as president.

---

The Washington Post's Marwa Eltagouri contributed to this post
SEOUL - A team of U.S. officials crossed into North Korea on Sunday for talks to prepare for a summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, as both sides press ahead with arrangements despite the question marks hanging over the meeting.

Sung Kim, a former U.S. ambassador to South Korea and former nuclear negotiator with the North, has been called in from his post as envoy to the Philippines to lead the preparations, according to a person familiar with the arrangements.

The talks are focused on what would be the substance of a potential summit between Trump and Kim - the issue of North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

After Saturday's surprise inter-Korean talks, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Kim was still committed to the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula. But Moon declined to define "complete denuclearization," suggesting that there are still fundamental gaps on the key issue bedeviling preparations.

Crossing the line that separates the two Koreas, Sung Kim met with Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister, who said last week that Pyongyang was "reconsidering" the talks. The two officials know each other well - both were part of their respective delegations that negotiated the 2005 denuclearization agreement through the six-party framework.

The meetings were trumpeted by Trump later Sunday afternoon, when he tweeted, "Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!"

The talks are expected to continue Monday and Tuesday at Tongilgak, or "Unification House," the building in the northern part of the demilitarized zone where Kim Jong Un met Moon on Saturday. That impromptu session was aimed at salvaging the summit that Trump had said he was scuppering just two days earlier.

The South Korean president, who is playing something of a mediator role in the talks, was optimistic afterward. "We two leaders agreed the June 12 North Korea-U.S. summit must be successfully held," he said.

In Washington, lawmakers and former U.S. intelligence officials expressed general support Sunday for proceeding with the summit, but many reacted skeptically to North Korea's suggestion that it is open to discussing denuclearization.

"They're playing a game," Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on CBS' "Face the Nation." "Kim Jong Un - these nuclear weapons are something he's psychologically attached to. They are what give him his prestige and importance. . . . I'd love to see them denuclearize. I just, I'm not very optimistic about that."

James Clapper, the former director of national intelligence and a onetime senior intelligence officer for U.S. forces in South Korea, said he worried that North Korea's idea of "denuclearization" entails scaling back or eliminating U.S. strategic forces in the Pacific.

"When we say 'denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,' this could be a two-way street," Clapper said, also on "Face the Nation."

Clapper suggested that a worthy goal for the summit might be to establish a "regular conduit for communication" between the two countries, perhaps including the opening of diplomatic interest sections in both capitals.

"This is not a reward for bad behavior at all," Clapper said. "It's mutually reciprocal and would give us that presence there, more insight and more understanding." From North Korea's point of view, he said, a U.S. presence in the country might give Pyongyang a "sense of security" against a possible U.S. attack.

But Michael Hayden, the CIA director during the George W. Bush administration, said he worried that Trump might be at a disadvantage in a face-to-face negotiation with Kim Jong Un.

"I don't know the president has done the kind of homework that would allow him to do this," Hayden said on "Fox News Sunday." Hayden said the "real danger" is not the rhetoric and theatrics surrounding the meeting, but rather, the substance: "What will happen at this meeting?"

"These folks are not going to get rid of all their nuclear weapons," Hayden said. "And if President Trump's brand - and that's the right word here, going into this meeting - demands something like that, this is going to end up in a very bad place."

Given all the ups and downs with the summit, many analysts were relieved to hear that the administration had enlisted Sung Kim to help, especially given the retirement of fellow seasoned diplomat Joseph Yun earlier this year.

"This is a great step," said Vipin Narang, a nuclear nonproliferation expert at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, noting that the summit preparation was best handled by experts behind the scenes rather than in public forums such as Twitter.

"This is how progress is made, and the best chance to have a summit, and one that yields meaningful outcomes," Narang said.

Sung Kim was joined by Allison Hooker, the Korea specialist on the National Security Council, and an official from the Defense Department. Randall Schriver, the assistant secretary of defense for East Asia and one of the officials who accompanied Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Pyongyang earlier this month, also is in Seoul. However, it could not be immediately confirmed whether he was the Pentagon official involved in Sunday's talks.

Sung Kim, who was born in South Korea and was a key diplomat in the 2005 six-party talks, served as ambassador to South Korea from 2011 to 2014, then became special representative for North Korea policy, a position that Yun later took over and that is now vacant.

His North Korean counterpart, Choe, also has years of experience working on these issues and is well connected within the North Korean hierarchy.

She has also served as a nuclear negotiator and led the division for U.S. affairs in the North Korean Foreign Ministry until being promoted to vice foreign minister this year. The daughter of a former premier, she is also thought to have direct access to Kim.

Most analysts say it is extremely unlikely that North Korea will surrender its nuclear weapons. The United States has been pushing for "complete, verifiable and irreversible dismantlement" - a high bar that would require North Korea to relinquish its entire nuclear program and allow verification by international inspectors.

North Korea, which refers to its nuclear weapons program as its "treasured sword" keeping the country safe, has repeatedly said it is not interested in unilateral disarmament.

Still, it might be able to narrow the gap. "This is an opportunity to find out what, in fact, they might be willing to do and vice versa - and that is the most important step right now," Narang said.

The April 27 inter-Korean summit, which produced a vague declaration to work toward denuclearization and a peace treaty for the Korean Peninsula, was meant to serve as a springboard for talks between U.S. and North Korean leaders.

Trump surprised the South Koreans in March by hastily agreeing to meet Kim in a summit, which would be the first such meeting between a sitting American president and a North Korean leader.

But the preparations have become increasingly tumultuous as the summit date draws nearer.

After North Korean officials, including Choe, lashed out at Vice President Mike Pence and national security adviser John Bolton, Trump abruptly announced that he was canceling the talks, citing North Korea's "tremendous anger."

But after a magnanimous statement from North Korea that said Kim still hoped to meet Trump "at any time," the summit appears on again.

"We are having very productive talks with North Korea about reinstating the Summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date," Trump tweeted Friday night.

The White House has said that preparations will continue while the final decision on whether to proceed with the summit is made.

Trump confirmed Saturday that working-level meetings were continuing. "As you know, there are meetings going on as we speak in a certain location, which I won't name, but you'd like the location," he told reporters in Washington.

A separate U.S. team led by Joe Hagin, deputy chief of staff in the White House, is organizing logistics with Kim Chang Son, who is effectively the North Korean leader's chief of staff.

Kim Chang Son was in Beijing from Thursday to Saturday, according to Japanese and South Korean media reports, although it was not clear whether his trip was related to the summit preparations.

---

Warrick reported from Washington, D.C.
PORT ARANSAS  Duane Bailey of San Antonio just had to show his pride for both Memorial Day weekend and for one of the many Texas coastal towns still contending with the impact of Hurricane Harvey.

So what better way to do it than with an American flag billowing amidst the many colorful pop-up canopies and tents along a lively stretch of Port Aransas beach by Horace Caldwell Pier?

Im a Marine Corps vet, Im out here flying the flag, having a good time, said Bailey, whose quiet Gordon Setter Annie tugged at her dog leash tied to the staked flag, while Baileys girlfriend, Susan Heckaman from Austin, soaked in the Saturday morning sun and some 80s music.

RELATED: Spring break in South Texas, back in the '80s and '90s

Texas is bouncing back as far as significance after Harvey, Bailey said. You see the people here. I think theyre a testament to the fact that, hey, were going to bounce back.

Bailey and Heckaman were just two of many Texans in Port Aransas for the Memorial Day holiday, doing their duty for fun in the sun and for one of the states more popular hot spots that kicks off summer vacation season for fishing lovers, condominium dwellers and just good ol beachcombers from the Alamo City, Austin, Houston and many other Lone Star locales.

Bailey, a site logistics manager for a commercial construction company in San Antonio, stressed that Gulf Coast sites such as Port Aransas and Rockport still need a financial shot in the arm from tourists as well as from state and federal funding, even nine months after Harvey.

And while a stroll down the Port A beach showed plenty of families frolicking in the water and in the sands, two friends from Austin found the Saturday showing significantly smaller than previous Memorial Day weekends.

Tina Reeves sat in a chair under a canopy with her friend Jenny Jones on the Port A beach, a Memorial Day weekend tradition theyve shared for more than five years. Reeves said previous years would see canopies and tents two to three rows deep, instead of this years bigger gaps in between.

PHOTOS: Popular Port Aransas restaurant reopens after Hurricane Harvey rebuild

Its quieter out here. Not so many people, Reeves said.

Reeves attributed the smaller crowds not to lack of interest but to lack of accommodations. She said she was surprised at how many big hotels were still closed, a statement made in the very shadow of the nearby towering Dunes condominiums building that was boarded up and fenced off.

Not that the shuttered Dunes represented a common sight. A drive down Alister Street, the main retail artery of Port Aransas, and around other nearby blocks showed just a smattering of closed storefronts and construction, while the many pastel-colored homes nearby looked equally intact.

Things are actually going very well, said Port Aransas Mayor Charles R. Bujan in a phone call Friday. Were expecting a big weekend.

Even if that means making the most out of one-day visits rather than condo rentals and overnight stays. Bujan said accommodations in Port Aransas are still at only about 50 percent, though he noted practically all restaurants are open for business and all beaches are in tourist-perfect condition.

Quite the gaggle of day-trippers and campers drove in for just that kind of pristine beach experience.

In addition to Bailey and Heckaman camping at the Port A beach, Iganico Cerbantez and his friend Raul Hernandez brought their respective families to Port A from San Antonio for a Friday night campout and Saturday morning grill on the beach.

And Cruz Hernandez and Sonya Martinez left San Antonio at 5 a.m. Saturday for a day trip to Port A to kick back with seven of their nine children, plus seven grandkids.

I thought it was going to be crowded, Cruz Hernandez said. But its pretty nice.

RELATED: 22 things to do in Corpus Christi that aren't at the beach

Retailers offered a similar experience. For instance, outside the jaws of the semitruck-sized shark at Destination Beach & Surf, Houston couple Alan and Rhonda Bryant, joined by Sugar Land couple Sandra and Jeff Parker, found their first-ever visit to Port Aransas laid-back and enjoyable.

It has everything Im looking for, Rhonda Bryant said. A low-key weekend.

Low-key may mean more elbow room at the beach for visitors, but its not exactly a cozy feeling for local businesses.

I think its still definitely difficult, said Destination shop clerk Valerie Hinojosa. Especially because a lot of the people dont have the customers, with places not being open for them to stay.

But Bailey has just the remedy: Have fun in Port Aransas to help Port Aransas.

I would say go buy a tent, hang out on the beach, come early when the winds not bad and come spend your money out here, Bailey said.

Rene A. Guzman is a San Antonio Express-News staff writer. Read more of his stories here. | rguzman@express-news.net | @reneguz
Advertisement

IBD refers to a group of intractable diseases which lead to repeated inflammation in the mucus of the large or small intestines, resulting from an unidentifiable cause. According to a survey by the Japan Intractable Diseases Information Center in 2013, IBD had the greatest incidence among young people (in their 20's and 30's), and among IBD, it is reported that the number of patients with UC (ulcerative colitis) and CD (Crohn's disease) was 166,060 and 39,799, respectively, which means IBD is the intractable disease with the greatest number of patients. Currently, in addition to observing infiltration of various leukocytes into the inflamed sites of IBD, ITGA4 is strongly expressed, and therefore treatment consists of leukocyte apheresis therapy or monoclonal antibody treatment targeting ITGA4. However, with the number of IBD patients increasing year after year, development of a small molecule treatment that makes it easy to comply with treatment and has superior efficacy is highly anticipated.The joint research group utilized a biomarker technology developed by University of Tsukuba which visualizes protein-protein interaction in an attempt to reveal the mechanism expressing anti-inflammatory effects. CRT, a molecular chaperone, binds to integrin subunits and promotes cell adhesion. Using a biomarker to investigate CRT and ITGA4 interaction in the colonic structure of UC patients, the joint research group found that interaction at inflamed sites significantly increases compared to healthy areas. Given that dissociation of CRT and ITGA4 interaction could suppress activation of leukocytes, high-thoughput screening assay was conducted on Eisai's compound library. Consequently, ER-464195-01 was identified as a small molecule that suppresses leukocyte adhesion by binding to CRT and inhibiting CRT-ITGA4 interaction.When mice were orally administered ER-464195-01 as a prophylactic treatment, in addition to exhibiting remarkable anti-inflammatory effects in dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis, from a comprehensive analysis of gene expression using RNA sequencing found that inflammatory cytokines and expression of inflammatory response signaling factors were significantly suppressed. Furthermore, when ER-464195-01 was therapeutically administered to mice with DSS-induced colitis, it was interesting that mucosal barrier injury as well as infiltration of inflamed cells was remarkably improved. This novel mechanism of action revealed through this joint research is expected to lead to the provision of a new IBD treatment option.ER-464195-01, which possesses this mechanism of action revealed through this joint research, is an analogue of E6007, and it is believed that E6007 also has the same novel mechanism of action. Therefore, our finding is expected to lead to value enhancement and acceleration of the development of E6007 which aims to provide a new treatment method for IBD patients.Source: Eurekalert
With time, Bollywood and its actors are changing and molding themselves according to the trends. Earlier, the web wasn't exactly the place B-town wanted to be associated with. But things have changed and Web Series in India has actually become a thing.

2017 introduced us to some exceptional web shows that we totally loved and binge-watched.

The popularity of Indian series has grown significantly and it's amazing to see how Bollywood entering and cashing in on the digital space. Biggies like Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Saif Ali Khan are trying their hand as well at the Web Series genre and are wading through unexplored territory.

Here's the list of the Bollywood stars, who are all set to rule the digital space and entertain the viewers in 2018:

Kalki Koechlin & Jim Sarbh:

 Twitter

Kalki and Jim are one of those few actors that can pull off any role with ease. Just recently, Kalki completed shooting for Zoya Akhtar's 'Gully Boy', starring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt in lead roles.

Jim was last seen in 'Padmaavat', leaving us in awe with his screen presence. Now, the two stars will be seen in the 12-episode web-series 'Smoke' starring Neil Bhoopalam, Mandira Bedi, and Jim Sarbh. Based on the Goan mafia and politics, Kalki will be debuting as a Portuguese-Goan DJ and nothing much has been revealed about Jim's character yet.

Saif Ali Khan:

 Twitter

For a while, fans have been missing Saif Ali Khan. His never-seen-before avatar in 'Kaalakaandi' came as a relief and it was applauded because of its unconventional feel. Now, Saif is all set to embrace the digital world by playing the lead for the Netflix Original, 'Sacred Games'. Based on the thriller novel by Vikram Chandra, the show is directed by Vikramaditya Motwane. This is one of the most awaited series this year and we can't wait to see Saif ruling the digital space with his amazing acting skills.

Vir Das:

 Twitter

The supremely talented Vir Das has signed up for two shows with Netflix and ABC. After travelling across 6 continents and more than 26 countries and cracking people up with his humour, he has gained a huge fan following. And now, Vir will be seen in a Warner Brothers' dramedy series weekly, 'Whiskey Cavalier'. The show will be both action-packed and a comedy at the same time, tracing the life of the tough-but-tender FBI super agent, Will Chase aka Whiskey Cavalier.

Vir will be seen playing one of the main leads named Jai Datta in the series. He is also working with Nikkhil Advani's upcoming 10-part Netflix series titled 'Hasmukh'.

Radhika Apte:

 Twitter

Radhika Apte, who was loved by people in Akshay Kumar's 'Padman' will soon be seen gracing the digital space with Netflix's first Indian original web series 'Sacred Games'. She will be seen sharing screen space with Saif Ali Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Radhika is a magnificent actor and we can't wait to see her entertaining us with her new project once again.

Pankaj Tripathi:

 Twitter

National Award Winner Pankaj Tripathi is one of the most underrated actors. His sheer talent to entertain people makes him an outstanding actor. Recently, he was busy shooting for three films across different languages. He was last seen with Ammy Virk in 'Harjeeta', Sanjay Mishra in 'Angrezi Mein Kehte Hain' and will also be seen with South Indian Superstar, Rajinikanth in 'Kaala'. Currently, the 'Newton' actor is busy shooting for the BBC international remake of 'Criminal Justice'. The web series stars Jackie Shroff and Vikrant Massey in a vital role. Pankaj Tripathi will also be seen in another web series 'Mirzapur'.

Arunoday Singh

 Instagram

Applauded for his character opposite Irrfan Khan in 'Blackmail', Arunoday Singh will soon be seen in Alt Balaji series, 'Apharan'. We will see him donning the role of a cop-turned-criminal in the series and a lot of the scenes have been shot in the lanes of Rishikesh. Directed by Siddhartha Sengupta, the series stars web superstar, Nidhi Singh.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Kotzias will be in Brussels on Monday, 28 May, to participate in a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council (FAC).



Discussion will focus on the latest developments with regard to Iran, the new framework for the EUs partnership agreement with the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries following 2020, and the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. There will also be a discussion of the latest developments in Venezuela, and the developments in the Gaza Strip will be discussed during the working luncheon.



Finally, on the margins of the FAC, the EU Ministers of Foreign Affairs will have a working breakfast with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Nikola Dimitrov.


Returning from the U.S., where he had a series of important meetings with top Administration officials and with the UN Secretary-General, Minister of Foreign Affairs, N. Kotzias, will attend a meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council on Monday, 28 May, in Brussels.



Mr. Kotzias will then travel to Berlin, where, on the evening of Monday, 28 May, he will be received by the President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier.



On Tuesday, 29 May, Mr. Kotzias will meet with his German counterpart, H. Maas. The talks will focus on bilateral cooperation, with emphasis on the implementation of the Greek-German Bilateral Action Plan that was signed in 2016, and on European and regional issues, with emphasis on developments in the Western Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean.



Within June, the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs will visit Moscow at the invitation of his Russian counterpart S. Lavrov, and a few days later he will receive the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, J.-Y. Le Drian, in Athens.



This round of the Minister of Foreign Affairs high-level meetings will be completed during the summer with an official bilateral visit to the Peoples Republic of China, on a date to be finalized in the coming days.
Muhajer says one of the battles he saw was the 2011 shootdown of Extortion 17, the deadliest single moment of the 20-year war...
Key

Select Mineral List Type Standard Detailed Gallery Strunz Dana Chemical Elements

Detailed Mineral List:  Anglesite Formula: PbSO 4 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Baryte Formula: BaSO 4 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Calcite Formula: CaCO 3 Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370; Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.  Cerussite Formula: PbCO 3 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Cinnabar Formula: HgS Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Descloizite Formula: PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Dolomite Formula: CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Fluorite Formula: CaF 2 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Galena Formula: PbS Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370; Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.  Goethite Formula: -Fe3+O(OH) Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Greenockite Formula: CdS Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Hematite Formula: Fe 2 O 3 Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Hemimorphite Formula: Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2  H 2 O Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Marcasite Formula: FeS 2 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Mimetite Formula: Pb 5 (AsO 4 ) 3 Cl Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Minium Formula: Pb 3 O 4 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Opal Formula: SiO 2  nH 2 O Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  'Petroleum var. Bitumen' Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370; Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.  Plumbojarosite Formula: Pb 0.5 Fe3+ 3 (SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Pyrite Formula: FeS 2 Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370; Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.  Quartz Formula: SiO 2 Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Smithsonite Formula: ZnCO 3 Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370  Sphalerite Formula: ZnS Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370; Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.  Willemite Formula: Zn 2 SiO 4 Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Wulfenite Formula: Pb(MoO 4 ) Reference: Mineralium Deposita, 44 (2009) 363-370  Wurtzite Formula: (Zn,Fe)S Reference: Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370; Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.

Gallery:

List of minerals arranged by Dana 8th Edition classification Group 2 - SULFIDES A m X p , with m:p = 1:1  Cinnabar 2.8.14.1 HgS  Galena 2.8.1.1 PbS  Greenockite 2.8.7.2 CdS  Sphalerite 2.8.2.1 ZnS  Wurtzite 2.8.7.1 (Zn,Fe)S A m B n X p , with (m+n):p = 1:2  Marcasite 2.12.2.1 FeS 2  Pyrite 2.12.1.1 FeS 2 Group 4 - SIMPLE OXIDES A 2 X 3  Hematite 4.3.1.2 Fe 2 O 3 Group 6 - HYDROXIDES AND OXIDES CONTAINING HYDROXYL XO(OH)  Goethite 6.1.1.2 -Fe3+O(OH) Group 7 - MULTIPLE OXIDES AB 2 X 4  Minium 7.2.8.1 Pb 3 O 4 Group 9 - NORMAL HALIDES AX 2  Fluorite 9.2.1.1 CaF 2 Group 14 - ANHYDROUS NORMAL CARBONATES A(XO 3 )  Calcite 14.1.1.1 CaCO 3  Cerussite 14.1.3.4 PbCO 3  Smithsonite 14.1.1.6 ZnCO 3 AB(XO 3 ) 2  Dolomite 14.2.1.1 CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 Group 28 - ANHYDROUS ACID AND NORMAL SULFATES AXO 4  Anglesite 28.3.1.3 PbSO 4  Baryte 28.3.1.1 BaSO 4 Group 30 - ANHYDROUS SULFATES CONTAINING HYDROXYL OR HALOGEN (AB) 2 (XO 4 )Z q  Plumbojarosite 30.2.5.6 Pb 0.5 Fe3+ 3 (SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 Group 41 - ANHYDROUS PHOSPHATES, ETC.CONTAINING HYDROXYL OR HALOGEN (AB) 2 (XO 4 )Z q  Descloizite 41.5.2.1 PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) A 5 (XO 4 ) 3 Z q  Mimetite 41.8.4.2 Pb 5 (AsO 4 ) 3 Cl Group 48 - ANHYDROUS MOLYBDATES AND TUNGSTATES AXO 4  Wulfenite 48.1.3.1 Pb(MoO 4 ) Group 51 - NESOSILICATES Insular SiO 4 Groups Only Insular SiO 4 Groups Only with cations in [4] coordination  Willemite 51.1.1.2 Zn 2 SiO 4 Group 56 - SOROSILICATES Si 2 O 7 Groups, With Additional O, OH, F and H 2 O Si 2 O 7 Groups and O, OH, F, and H 2 O with cations in [4] coordination  Hemimorphite 56.1.2.1 Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2  H 2 O Group 75 - TECTOSILICATES Si Tetrahedral Frameworks Si Tetrahedral Frameworks - SiO 2 with [4] coordinated Si  Quartz 75.1.3.1 SiO 2 Si Tetrahedral Frameworks - SiO 2 with H 2 O and organics  Opal 75.2.1.1 SiO 2  nH 2 O Unclassified Minerals, Mixtures, etc.  'Petroleum

var. Bitumen' -

List of minerals for each chemical element H Hydrogen H  Goethite -Fe3+O(OH) H  Hemimorphite Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2  H 2 O H  Opal SiO 2  nH 2 O H  Descloizite PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) H  Plumbojarosite Pb 0.5 Fe 3 3+(SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 C Carbon C  Calcite CaCO 3 C  Cerussite PbCO 3 C  Dolomite CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 C  Smithsonite ZnCO 3 O Oxygen O  Willemite Zn 2 SiO 4 O  Calcite CaCO 3 O  Goethite -Fe3+O(OH) O  Hematite Fe 2 O 3 O  Hemimorphite Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2  H 2 O O  Opal SiO 2  nH 2 O O  Quartz SiO 2 O  Wulfenite Pb(MoO 4 ) O  Descloizite PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) O  Anglesite PbSO 4 O  Cerussite PbCO 3 O  Plumbojarosite Pb 0.5 Fe 3 3+(SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 O  Dolomite CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 O  Baryte BaSO 4 O  Smithsonite ZnCO 3 O  Mimetite Pb 5 (AsO 4 ) 3 Cl O  Minium Pb 3 O 4 F Fluorine F  Fluorite CaF 2 Mg Magnesium Mg  Dolomite CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 Si Silicon Si  Willemite Zn 2 SiO 4 Si  Hemimorphite Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2  H 2 O Si  Opal SiO 2  nH 2 O Si  Quartz SiO 2 S Sulfur S  Sphalerite ZnS S  Galena PbS S  Pyrite FeS 2 S  Greenockite CdS S  Cinnabar HgS S  Anglesite PbSO 4 S  Plumbojarosite Pb 0.5 Fe 3 3+(SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 S  Wurtzite (Zn,Fe)S S  Baryte BaSO 4 S  Marcasite FeS 2 Cl Chlorine Cl  Mimetite Pb 5 (AsO 4 ) 3 Cl Ca Calcium Ca  Calcite CaCO 3 Ca  Dolomite CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 Ca  Fluorite CaF 2 V Vanadium V  Descloizite PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) Fe Iron Fe  Pyrite FeS 2 Fe  Goethite -Fe3+O(OH) Fe  Hematite Fe 2 O 3 Fe  Plumbojarosite Pb 0.5 Fe 3 3+(SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 Fe  Marcasite FeS 2 Zn Zinc Zn  Sphalerite ZnS Zn  Willemite Zn 2 SiO 4 Zn  Hemimorphite Zn 4 Si 2 O 7 (OH) 2  H 2 O Zn  Descloizite PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) Zn  Wurtzite (Zn,Fe)S Zn  Smithsonite ZnCO 3 As Arsenic As  Mimetite Pb 5 (AsO 4 ) 3 Cl Mo Molybdenum Mo  Wulfenite Pb(MoO 4 ) Cd Cadmium Cd  Greenockite CdS Ba Barium Ba  Baryte BaSO 4 Hg Mercury Hg  Cinnabar HgS Pb Lead Pb  Galena PbS Pb  Wulfenite Pb(MoO 4 ) Pb  Descloizite PbZn(VO 4 )(OH) Pb  Anglesite PbSO 4 Pb  Cerussite PbCO 3 Pb  Plumbojarosite Pb 0.5 Fe 3 3+(SO 4 ) 2 (OH) 6 Pb  Mimetite Pb 5 (AsO 4 ) 3 Cl Pb  Minium Pb 3 O 4

References

Sort by Year (asc) Year (desc) Author (A-Z) Author (Z-A)

Saini-Eidukat, B., Melcher, F., & Lodziak, J. (2009). Zincgermanium ores of the Tres Marias Mine, Chihuahua, Mexico. Mineralium Deposita, 44(3), 363-370. Saini-Eidukat, B., Frank Melcher, F., Gottlicher, J., Steininger, R. (2016): Chemical Environment of Unusually Ge- and Pb-Rich Willemite, Tres Marias Mine, Mexico. Minerals: 6(1): 20; http://forum.amiminerals.it/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12763 (2016) Ostendorf, J., Henjes-Kunst, F., Schneider, J., Melcher, F., & Gutzmer, J. (2017). Genesis of the carbonate-hosted Tres Marias Zn-Pb-(Ge) deposit, Mexico: constraints from Rb-Sr sphalerite geochronology and Pb isotopes. Economic Geology, 112(5), 1075-1087.

External Links

Other Regions, Features and Areas containing this locality

North America Plate Tectonic Plate

This page contains all mineral locality references listed on mindat.org. This does not claim to be a complete list. If you know of more minerals from this site, please register so you can add to our database. This locality information is for reference purposes only. You should never attempt to visit any sites listed in mindat.org without first ensuring that you have the permission of the land and/or mineral rights holders for access and that you are aware of all safety precautions necessary.

Carbonate-hosted ZnGe deposit, characterised by extremely Ge-rich sphalerite and Ge-rich hemimorphite and willemite. Willemite has up to 2 wt.% Pb and 4000 ppm Ge. The metals content, mineralogy and style of mineralization indicate a Mississippi Valley Type brine-origin. The presence of cinnabar suggests a genetic link to (or overprinting by) mercury mineralization related to the Terlingua District across the river.For completely unknown reasons at various times this small mine has been known as either Tres Marias or Dos Marias. It lies just south of the Rio Grande, just west of Big Bend National Park in the mountains above Nuevo Lajitas, Chihuahua; essentially just across the border from the Terlingua-Lajitas, Texas stretch of the Rio Grande. There is some recent ore deposits literature under the name Tres Marias stemming from recent interest in the high Germanium content of the ores (cf Saini-Eidukat et al., 2009, Mineralium Deposita v. 44, p. 363-370) Unfortunately not enough has been found to justify production and no additional orebodies have been found.The mine was operated intermittently between the late 40s and 1992 for zinc oxide mineralization with a high Germanium content. Eagle Picher was the principal purchaser of the ores, which they blended with moderate Ge lead-zinc ores from San Pedro Corralitos. Perhaps 125,000 tonnes were mined. A number of exploration companies have evaluated the property since the 1990s with extensive work and limited success.The orebody is an inverted carrot-shaped breccia chimney in lower Cretaceous Santa Elena (Georgetown) Limestone, probably a result of hydrothermal karsting by acidic ore fluids ascending along intersecting structures. Mineralization preferentially occurred around the margins of the breccia pipe as both open-space fillings and partial replacement of limestone fragments. Oxide ores were the principal mining interest, with zinc grades to 40%. Primary mineralization is galena and sphalerite, with lesser marcasite, pyrite, wurtzite, and cinnabar. The sphalerite is low-iron, honey colored and commonly occurs as stalactitic masses coated with a thick crust of pyrobitumen (called gilsonite by some workers). Silver grades are very low, but Germanium ranges from 300-960 ppm. Secondary minerals include cerussite, anglesite, wulfenite, mimetite, descloizite, plumbojarosite, minium (?), greenockite, hemimorphite, smithsonite and willemite in a matrix of mixed iron-manganese oxides. Calcite, fluorite, dolomite, fine-grained quartz and barite are the principal gangue species.
Orioles shortstop Manny Machado seems like a good bet to end up on the move this year, though its not anywhere close to happening, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. The Orioles arent actively shopping Machado right now, and theyre content to keep the soon-to-be free agent until closer to the July 31 non-waiver deadline, Kubatko writes. Kubatko goes on to list some potential Machado suitors, including the Phillies, who left open the possibility of engaging in talks with the Orioles when they were in Baltimore a couple weeks ago. Meanwhile, according to Kubatko, the Cubs reached out to Orioles general manager Dan Duquette to express interest in Machado, but Chicago  like Baltimore  isnt prepared to make a major deal yet. Of course, Cubs president Theo Epstein addressed the Machado-Chicago speculation earlier this week, saying its in fantasy land at this point.

Here are more trade-related items:
8 | Infosys | Market Cap for the week ended October 30: Rs 4,51,753.23 crore crore | Loss during the week: 26,152.79 crore.

Infosys Ltd on Saturday said it has not received the whistleblower complaint that was sent to the Indian and US regulators last week.

The Bombay Stock Exchange had asked Infosys to clarify on news reports that a whistleblower had raised concerns about the handling of an internal investigation into wrongdoings by the previous Board of the company.

Moneycontrol has seen a copy of the letter.

The whistleblower questioned corporate governance at IT services firm Infosys and accused co-founder Nandan Nilekani of 'conniving with the current board to quietly bury all the wrongdoings of the earlier board'.

The Company has not received the alleged complaint as referenced in the said news item above through its whistleblower mechanism. All complaints received through the whistleblower mechanism of the Company are dealt with in accordance with the Company's Whistleblower Policy, Infosys said in its reply to the exchange.

It further said it would make disclosures as mandated from time to time, as per our obligations under the SEBI Listing Regulations and the company's disclosure policy.
live bse live

nse live Volume Todays L/H More 

With May F&O expiry coming this week coupled with a mixed set of global and domestic cues, we can expect a volatile trade in the coming week, Dinesh Rohira, Founder & CEO, 5nance.com, said in an exclusive interview with Moneycontrols Kshitij Anand.

Q) The Nifty50 rose marginally for the week ended May 25, 2018. It managed to close above 10,600. Do you increase volatility amid F&O expiry in the coming week?

A) Despite a strong breakdown below the crucial level of 10,500 on Wednesday, Nifty managed to recoup its early losses in the two consecutive sessions.

The index took a strong support from its 200-days EMA level. On Friday, Nifty made an intraday high-low of 10,628 and 10,524 indicating divided sentiment in the market.

Thus, with May F&O expiry coming this week coupled with a mixed set of global and domestic cues, we can expect a volatile trade in the coming week.

Further, as index managed to bounce back in the two session from a weeks low level, the index is likely to witness a profit booking regime due to lack of any positive trigger so far.

It will be advisable to continue with the specific stock selection with a positive momentum for a fresh long position and a strict trailing stop-loss.

Q) Modi govt will complete its 4 years on 26th. How do you see the journey of the last 4 years and how does the next one year of the govt likely to pan out for markets?

A) Since taking over the office on May 2014, Modi government has remained as a pro-reformist institution across the period to attract global investors in India.

The relaxation or alterations of various FDI policy and upgrade in World Banks ease of doing business are the accolades achieved in the last four years.

Further, landmark tax reforms with the rollout of Goods & Service Tax, and demonetization exercise on November 2016 in its effort to curb unaccounted money was a genuine step taken by Modi government to create better India.

However, given a recent upsurge in crude oil price coupled with the weakening of the Rupee, the market is likely to monitor the financial health of the nation.

With adverse effect on current account deficit and also on fiscal slippage, it is likely to put pressure on Modi government ahead of general election 2019 and thus keeping the market on the kneejerk action.

Q) Plenty of stocks hit fresh 52-week lows this week instead of 52-week high. Do you think these are stocks which are carrying the momentum and investors should ideally book profits or stay away from them?

A) The earnings growth for Q4FY18 has been lower than what was expected with the majority of companies reporting below estimated earnings. Banking segment alone reported a loss worth of about Rs 35,000 crore in Q4 on new provisioning.

Further, a valuation concern in mid and small cap companies have dented the growth trajectory in companies as it continues to report subdue earnings.

Therefore, it will be advisable to follow with fundamentally driven companies begged by earnings visibility and use the short-term dip as a buying opportunity.

However, stocks with no buying story or lacks a rationality of future growth, it will be prudent to stay away and focus on select-stocks.

Q) What is your call on smallcap and midcap stocks? Should investors stay away or just book profits on rallies?

A) The valuation concerns continue to exist in this space after a staggering upsurge witnessed in the last year which was ahead of its fundamental in most cases.

Further, a dented growth in current period along with repositioning in the portfolio is going to put pressure on small & midcap stock in coming period.

Now, with the major election nearing its deadline, this space is largely expected to witness volatile momentum. Therefore, an investor hunting to capitalise on a short-term basis should re-approach there strategy, and ideally, they should stay away.

However, a long-term investor can continue to hold quality stock from this space in a portfolio with lower allocation and use any downward swing as value buying.

Q) Top 3-5 positional call which could give handsome returns to investors in next 1 month?

ITC: Sell | Target: Rs 250 | Stop loss: Rs 285 | Return: 8%

Just Dial: Buy | Target: Rs 575 | Stop loss: Rs 480 | Return: 13%

Jain Irrigation System: Buy | Target: Rs 123 | Stop loss: Rs 94 | Return: 18%

The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Image: PTI)

Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority of his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 km of highways.

Highways, railways and airways have been the focus of the government he said.

Highways construction has reached 27 km a day from mere 12 km a day during Congress regime while last year 10 crore people undertook air journeys, he said.

Modi was addressing a public rally here after dedicating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) to the nation. The 135 km EPE has been built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore in 500 days.

He said that apart from Rs 5 lakh crore provision for Bharatmala for highways, a provision of Rs 14 lakh crore was made in the budget to strengthen agriculture related infrastructure.

The government is sensitive to the plight of sugarcane farmers and adequate steps are taken to provide proper prices for their crop, he said.

While talking about social justice, Modi said his government is committed to dalit protection and has constituted special courts for fast-track hearing of cases of atrocities.

Lauding Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, he said criminals in UP are now surrendering themselves and pledging not to indulge in illegal acts.

About the Ganga cleaning programme, Modi said more than 200 projects worth Rs 21,000 crore for have been taken up.

Taking a jibe at Congress, Modi said it had betrayed people for 70 years and played politics to create a crisis of confidence whether related to EVMs or other critical issues.

He said the Opposition was spreading rumours on farmer issues and asked people not to give credence to lies about farms given on contract farming.

In his about 50 minute-speech, he said all-round development work has been initiated.
The Congress in Madhya Pradesh has started collecting feedback from all "stakeholders" before drawing up its "vision document" or the election manifesto for the coming Assembly elections.

The party may promise something on the lines of a statutory income commission for farmers, which it had promised in Karnataka elections, sources said.

Assembly elections in the BJP-ruled state, where the Congress is out of power for 15 years, are due by year-end.

Speaking to PTI, State Congress Manifesto Committee chief Rajendra Singh said, "We have started the process of taking feedback from various stakeholders, including women, farmers, labourers, youth and people from different walks of society like doctors, lawyers and others, to prepare the vision document (the manifesto)."

When asked if there would be separate manifestos for youth, farmers, women and others, Singh said, "There would be different sections for these stakeholders in the same document. We will talk to them before presenting a vision for their overall development in the next five years."

The manifesto would be different from election documents in the past, as people's problems and aspirations have changed, he said.

Asked if there would be a promise of freebies -- in Karnataka the party had promised smartphones to college students -- Singh said, "It is too early to say about the content. We will talk to senior leaders including state Congress chief Kamal Nath before finalising it. "Earlier manifestos were released just few days before the polls. This time the party is planning to release the manifesto well in advance," he said.

While Singh didn't reveal specific proposals that the manifesto is likely to contain, sources in the party said the focus will be on farmers, youth and women.

Karnataka Congress's manifesto had proposed a statutory income commission to ensure basic livelihood for farmers and farm labourers. Something on these lines could be expected in the manifesto, sources added.

When asked what the youth of the state are expecting from the opposition party's poll document, Akshay Hunka, convener of Berojgar Sena, an organisation of unemployed youths, said they expect a law to guarantee employment.

"Every party declares the number of jobs its government would create. But such promises are empty. We want the party to promise a law guaranteeing jobs like the MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act). We also want constitution of a youth commission," Hunka said.

The vast constituency of youth can make a difference to the election's outcome, he said.

As per a state election commission official, there are an estimated two crore voters in the 18-35 age group in Madhya Pradesh.

Over two crore voters in the state are from farming families, Kedar Sirohi, a prominent farmer leader, noted.

"We want an income guarantee law for farmers, besides a loan waiver. The number of agricultural markets (mandis) should be increased. The area under irrigation should also go up," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today launched a scathing attack on Opposition Congress for spreading "lies and rumours" on issues ranging from dilution of anti-Dalit atrocities law to farmer issues, saying people who are used to worshipping a family have started opposing the country in their zeal to oppose Modi.

Speaking at a public rally after inaugurating the Rs 11,000-crore Eastern Peripheral Expressway, he said the Congress was "openly" spreading lies for its narrow political gains.

"People who are used to worshipping one family cannot worship democracy," he said.

After losing elections, they are rattled. "Modi ke virodh mein desh ka virodh karne lagenge, aisa mujhe nahi laga tha (I had not thought that in opposing Modi, they would start opposing the country)," he said.

At the rally, which came a day before by-elections in neighbouring Kairana Lok Sabha constituency, he asked citizens to see who are the people on either side.

"On that side are the people for whom their family is the country. For me, my country is my family," he said.

Alleging that the Congress never had faith in democracy or any institutions, he said the opposition party created a crisis of confidence when it pointed fingers at the Supreme Court, raised doubts on Election Commission and EVMs, eyed with suspicion the Reserve Bank and its policies and questioned international agencies praising India.

Modi further said the Congress even doubted credibility of institutions giving economic indicators, tried to put in docks agencies that are probing their misdeeds, negated the valour of the Army that conducted surgical strikes across the border and criticised foreign dignitaries praising the government.

"Now they are also seeing the media as biased," he said.

The prime minister said he is not bothered by the Opposition attacks on him as he knows the people of the country are with him and those who for 70 years deceived poor, middle-class, farmers and youth are now rattled.

"Truth is that Congress and its allies either create obstacles or make fun of any work done for upliftment of poor, Dalits and tribals. To them, the country's development too is a joke. To them, Swachh Bharat, free cooking gas (LPG) connection to poor women, building toilets and opening bank accounts for poor are a joke," he said.

Without taking the name of Congress or its president Rahul Gandhi, he said, "Those used to seeing power for generations consider any work done for poor as a joke. Those who tear Cabinet notes don't deem it fit to respect law passed by Parliament unanimously."

Speaking in a region dominated by sugarcane farmers and Dalits, Modi said those with selfish motives are shedding crocodile tears over Dalit issues.

"For their own narrow political gains, they are openly lying on Supreme Court ruling," he said referring to an order of the apex court on the verdict on SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The verdict has been seen, by many, as a dilution of the Act and the government made special efforts to counter such a narrative.

"They don't realise that their lies can create instability in the country," he said. "Be it the law for the prevention of atrocities against Dalits or the reservations for them, they have lied and spread rumours to mislead people."

While accusing the Opposition of doing populist politics, he said his party does politics for masses by thinking about Dalits and those exploited and deprived for long.

Stating that his government has not just taken measures to create opportunities for Dalits, it has also provided security and justice to them in last four years.

Listing of initiatives, he said the prevention of Dalit atrocities law has been made more stringent and the list of acts of atrocities against Dalits has been widened to 47 from previous 22. Also, specials courts are being constituted to fast-track hearing of cases of atrocities against Dalits.

The government, he said, has decided to constitute a commission for sub-categorisation of backward class so as to give the benefit of reservation in education and government jobs to the most backward classes within the OBC list.

Modi said the government wanted to give Constitutional Status to the Other Backward Class (OBC) Commission but a legislation was blocked by the Congress and its allies in Parliament.

"But I want to assure OBC that the step taken will be fulfilled," he said.

Modi said a new lie that is being spread is about contract farming attracting 18 percent Goods and Service Tax (GST). "I want to ask my farmer brothers not to pay any heed to such rumours and instead should report about those spreading such rumours and I promise law will do its job (against them)."

To cane farmers of the area, he said the government has raised minimum support price (MSP) for sugarcane by about 11 percent, increased blending of sugarcane extracted ethanol in petrol to 10 percent and decided to provide Rs 5.50 per quintal to farmers directly to clear a part of their dues stuck with sugar mills.

Listing pro-rural and agriculture initiatives, he said the Union Budget in February this year provided Rs 14 lakh crore for creation of rural infrastructure, fertilizer is being coated with neem to avoid diversion, the scope of irrigation and crop insurance schemes has been widened and investment provisioned for cold-chain infrastructure.

"This government believes in doing work, rather than talking. Every penny spent is for the benefit on people," he added.
Congress

Asserting that stalling the BJP's bid for power in Karnataka has galvanised the opposition, senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot has said his party will have to be the "pivot" of any rainbow coalition formed to take on the BJP in 2019 polls.

As the political battleground shifts to the Hindi heartland after an intense power struggle in Karnataka that ended with the Congress-JD(S) government being formed, the former Union minister exuded confidence that the Congress would win the Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh Assembly polls slated for later this year.

In an interview to PTI, Pilot said the anti-BJP forces were now aligning themselves to make sure that the BJP does not come to power in 2019 and the Congress would have a pivotal role to play in that.

"I think it is very clear that at a pan-India level, it is only the Congress party that has the capacity to defeat the BJP. Of course, there are regional parties and alliances that might be forged. But the pivot of any rainbow coalition will have to be the Congress," the 40-year-old leader said.

With arms aloft on a dias at the swearing-in ceremony of H D Kumaraswamy as chief minister in Bengaluru, a host of opposition leaders had last week sent out a signal that a front to take on the BJP could take shape, setting aside political differences.

Kumaraswamy had taken oath at a grand ceremony where a galaxy of top opposition leaders of national and regional parties, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, BSP supremo Mayawati and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, were in attendance.

Asked if Karnataka's political events leading up to the formation of the Congress-JD(S) government had galvanised the opposition, Pilot answered in the affirmative.

However, he asserted that only the Congress has the capacity and the bandwidth to take on the BJP at a pan-India level.

There will have to be some sort of understanding in different states, but it is too early to pinpoint what will it be, he said.

Asked if plans to project Rahul Gandhi as the leader of a rainbow coalition had taken a hit with the Congress coming second best in Karnataka, Pilot said, "I don't think anyone wants to project anything.

"Right now, we want to work for the people of India who have been let down by the BJP and the only person in the opposition who I believe is taking on Mr (Narendra) Modi and Mr Amit Shah head on and making them accountable by asking very pertinent questions is Rahul Gandhi."

"He (Rahul Gandhi) is leading from the front...the Congress party has never projected anything or anyone, but yes he is our party president and if you ask me who should lead, it has to be Mr. Gandhi because at an all India level, it is only the Congress party that can actually surmount a formidable challenge to the BJP," Pilot said.

He asserted that like-minded opposition parties were already working together and would get more galvanised as the polls near.

"It is too early to say what shape it (the coalition) will or will not take. But yes the intent and the presence of all the leaders in Bangalore was an indication of that formation. It is already work in progress. Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi called a meeting which 17 parties had attended in New Delhi," he said.

Pilot, who is also the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee chief and is largely seen as the Congress's chief ministerial face in the state, said he was confident that his party would score a "historic" victory to unseat the Vasundhara Raje government.

Talking about the upcoming Assembly polls in the Hindi heartland later this year, he said the Congress would score victories in the three states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh as there was "huge anti-incumbency" against the incumbent BJP governments there.

Asked if a win in the three states would change the dynamics for 2019, Pilot said, "Of course, these three states will be an example of how Congress will win and can win."

The BJP is on its way out and its decline will be "steep and sharp", the senior Congress leader said.

Pilot also dismissed suggestions that a campaign blitz by Prime Minister Modi, like the one in Karnataka, could impact the voters in Rajasthan.

"There is a limit to what a so-called blitz can do. Here (in Karnataka) we had a Congress government and all Mr Modi did was come and criticise. In Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, how will he justify the killing of farmers by the government, how will he justify more than 100 farmer suicides," he said.

Pilot said it was one thing to campaign against an incumbent government, but defending a government with "absolute zero performance" might be a different ball game.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will hold extensive talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tomorrow during which he is expected to seek India's support for Iran's nuclear deal with six world powers in the wake of Washington's withdrawal from it. Zarif's day-long visit here is part of Tehran's efforts to reach out to major world powers after the US pulled out from the landmark nuclear deal of 2015 under which Tehran had agreed to stop its sensitive nuclear activities in return for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.

The issue is expected to be discussed extensively in the talks between Swaraj and Zarif, officials said.

The Chabahar port project is also likely to figure in the meeting.

Iran is India's third largest oil supplier and there were apprehensions about possible impact of the US decision on India's oil import. However, the officials said the US decision to reinstate financial sanctions on Iran would not impact India's oil imports as long as European countries did not follow suit.

The Iranian Foreign Minister visited China, Russia and some European countries in the last three weeks after President Donald Trump announced Washington's withdrawal from the deal which was signed by the Obama administration.

The issue is understood to have figured during an "informal summit" between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Russian city of Sochi last week.

China, Russia and several European nations have been trying to salvage the deal.

Iran had struck the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) with the US, the UK, Russia, China, France and Germany after years of negotiations.

In its reaction to Trump's decision, India had said all the parties concerned should engage constructively to resolve the issue peacefully and that Iran's right to peaceful use of nuclear energy must be ensured.

The US President's decision to abandon the agreement has shocked the world, with America's closest allies such as France, Germany and the UK expressing concern over it.

Zarif is scheduled to return tomorrow night.

Indo-Iran ties have been on a upswing in the last three years. Prime Minister Modi visited Tehran in May 2016 with an aim to craft a strategic relationship with Iran and expand India's ties with West Asia.

During the visit, India and Iran signed nearly a dozen pacts, centrepiece of which was an agreement on development of Chabahar port.

Later, India, Iran and Afghanistan signed a trilateral pact providing for transport of goods among the three countries through the port.

In February, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani visited India during which both sides agreed to further expand their cooperation in a number of key sectors

During Rouhani's visit, both sides signed nine agreements including one on handing over Chabahar port's operation to India for 18 months.

India and Iran have robust economic and commercial ties covering many sectors though it has traditionally been dominated by the import of Iranian crude oil by India.

According to the External Affairs Ministry, India-Iran bilateral trade during the 2016-17 fiscal was USD 12.89 billion. India imported USD 10.5 billion worth of goods, mainly crude oil, and exported commodities worth USD 2.4 billion.
Most of this world is patriarchal. Men own more and run more. In some cultures, mens dominance is so marked that women have very few rights and in many cases depend for their very lives on men.

In a few spots around the globe, matriarchal feminism is so strong that women lead the way. Here are some areas that, by example, hint at a way forward for female empowerment and gender equality. These are examples of how women take the hard work on themselves and how expertly they do it. I havent travelled to them all yet  and, unfortunately, one of these cultures is a Nation that lies in the past. But this is my short list of places where women rule.

KOREA

The Last Generation of Women Deep Sea Divers

Credit: Karendotcom127

Our quest for matriarchal feminism takes off from Jeju in South Korea. A historically conservative society, South Korea has embraced a free market economy. There can be no free market without freedom. Given that women hold half the sky in South Koreas economy and society, it makes sense to explore the freedom and respect that women command in Jeju. A volcanic island, the lifeline of the local economy of Jeju lies is tourism. Women in the Jeju Island have been making a living out of deep sea diving for a hundred years and are known as the Haenyeo in the lingua franca, meaning real-life mermaids. Known for their fearlessness and intense work ethics, the women plunge into the seas regularly for fishing activities, while the men stay back at home to take care of the youngsters, perform daily household chores and shop for amenities.

Lesson: High-profile women, whose story is told as part of the cultures larger story, can inspire the next generation of women and girls. The Jeju Haenyeo stand tall as epitomes of enterprise, fearlessness and courage in a world dominated by men. Even as South Korea embraces change in all spheres of life, the Jeju Haenyeo exemplify the fine balancing act of reconciling womens empowerment with tradition on one hand and modern values on the other.

ICELAND

The Most Feminist Country in the World

From the Korean peninsula, we head to the Nordic country of Iceland, where feminism is an ongoing social movement. The country has a tiny population of 320,000, ranks fourth on the International Gender Gap Index and is in the process of pushing through gender diversity reforms for paternity-leave development, giving mothers the chance to succeed at work while their husbands keep an eye on kid raising, and the right to reject dress codes at work place that the women think of affecting their dignity. Iceland has been dubbed the most feminist country in the world.

Lesson: With a woman prime minister and a majority of women in the parliament, Iceland exemplifies womens leadership in apex level policy-making, and the hand-picking of social tenets that augment womens empowerment.

INDONESIA

Worlds Largest Matriarchal Societies

Credit: Chezumar

We now set foot on one of the most progressive societies in South East Asia. Meet The Minangkabau tribes that inhabit the Western Sumatra province in Indonesia. Women in the Minangkabau tribe enjoy not just property rights, but also inheritance rights to the legacy. This means that the prevailing law mandates the transfer of property from mother to daughter. Minangkabau women also have the freedom to choose their sleeping timings. While the husband spends time with his wife, he must leave before sunrise to have breakfast at his mothers home. The Minangkabau trust that the mother is the most critical person in society. Women also have the power to select chiefs and expel them from office, if theyre found to be flinching from their duties.

Lesson: Theres a deeply entrenched but highly misconstrued perspective of women in Islamic nations being sequestered and closed to cultural and social exchanges. However, the Minangkabau women show it is possible to amalgamate deep-seated religious beliefs with a progressive woman-led society. And who better than mothers to be the power guardians of society?

NORTHERN INDIA

Women of the Khasi Tribe Rule the Roost

Credit: Bogman

Get ready to have the rug beneath your feet pulled away. Yes, men can be packed off to their mother in-laws place after marriage, then be ordered to do the household chores, take care of the old parents and unmarried siblings of their wives, and finally rest with only drink and fags for company. These facts will give a little shake to your world. The men from the Khasi tribe in the northeastern state of Meghalaya in India have their fates sealed in the strong hands of their mothers inlaw. Men are considered the weaker sex among the Khasis and are now fighting for gender equality. However, not all hope is lost for men. Women need to seek the consent of their maternal uncle for decision making. Khasis are a matrilineal society where children take on the names of their mothers.

Lesson: In a world where women are expected to leave home and hearth to stay with their in-laws after marriage, the plight of the Khasi men serves as a reminder of what the vast majority of women go through. While the winds of modernism threaten to blow away age-old Khasi traditions, Khasi women are examples of privilege by birth in an otherwise chauvinist world.

North America

Iroquois Nation

Seneca Woman, 1908

There was no such thing as New York three hundred years ago. The indigenous people of the Iroquois Nation that once inhabited the area between the Adirondack Mountains and Niagara Falls consisted of five tribes: Oneida, Cayuga, Mohawk, Seneca, and Onandaga. The Tuscarora tribe was added later on.

Men in the Iroquois revered their women. While there was a delineation of economic endeavours and domestic affairs, social distribution of power between men and women brought a balance. Women held the influence, power, and riches in all family matters and domestic chores, which were passed down through the mothers side. Men were required to move into their wives place and live with their spouses distant kith and kin. In fact, women had the right to discard their husbands and could ask the latter to leave the family if they did not live up to expectations, without any questions asked.

Lesson: The Iroquois nation was governed by chiefs who could be supplanted at any time by a chamber of women elders, if the latter felt the need to do so. The nature of work done by women varied according to their environment. In Iroquois culture, a womans work was recognised as having equal value to that of a man and the values of enterprise, dignity of labour and mutual respect were cherished.

TUAREG TRIBE OF SAHARA

Where Muslim Women Have Sexual Freedom and Right of Power

Credit: aLaIN eLoRZa

No worldwide quest can ever be over without making Africa a key destination. The nomadic Berbers have lived a pastoral lifestyle for centuries in the Sahara Desert. A tribe with a population of 2 million, the Tuareg has maintained its way of life for centuries, crossing from one side of the worlds largest desert to the other. In Sahrawi culture  and especially the Tuareg Tribe  the woman holds sway in marriage. If her husband displeases her, she can separate and continue to live as a respected individual in society. Separated women are highly respected and much sought-after in society by male suitors, and often more so than unmarried women.

Lesson: The Tuareg people are exemplary in the way woman are treated in their culture. Women are free to have sex before marriage and enjoy multiple sexual partners, as long as they abide by the strict privacy rules governing their tribal society. This implies that young children grow up with the same freedom regardless of gender.

From tribes to cities, women are capable of caring for the good of all, while looking at the bigger picture. Studies show women may respond to caring and compassion in different ways (although all genders naturally have the potential to feel and display compassion). The cultures above demonstrate that men are not the end-all and be-all of governance, law-making and societal norms. Ancient traditions have been kept alive today because they have proved to be effective for a functioning society. It is high time that more societies across the world adopt new approaches to empower women  because it can be done and it works.
Oil and gas companies are praising a reduced regulatory burden under the Trump Administration.

But as speakers noted at Midland Colleges Petroleum Professional Development Centers annual Environmental Regulatory Seminar, challenges remain.

Samantha McDonald, director of government relations for the Independent Petroleum Association of America, told the approximately 125 at the conference the IPAA is monitoring several issues, from methane emissions regulations to the Bureau of Land Managements venting and flaring rules to Waters Of The U.S. to the North American Free Trade Agreement to possible steel tariffs.

But McDonald focused on the Endangered Species Act, which she explained is her area of expertise.

The act was signed into law in 1973 and McDonald said attempts at comprehensive reform have not succeeded. Reform legislation passed the House of Representatives in 2005 but was not considered by the Senate. Likewise, in 2014 legislation to curtail ESA-related litigation and promote transparency passed the House but was not considered by the Senate.

There are several challenges to reforming the act, she said, including a lack of political appointees, the lack of 60 votes in the Senate and a mobilized environmental community.

The IPAA has launched an effort to reform the Endangered Species Act, beginning with forming a task force driven by its member companies. The association has launched the web site esawatch.org with a toolkit for educational efforts and up-to-date information about the ESA.

The IPAA also expects to propose changes to the ESA, starting with removal of Blanket Section 4(d) Rule, which requires the Fish and Wildlife Service to issue regulations necessary for the conservation of the threatened species. The proposed change calls for allowing protective regulations only if theyre species-specific. Revisions to Critical Habitat rules havent been leaked yet but would likely roll back Obama-era regulations. Other proposed changes would address interagency cooperation.

Endangered species is a fun set of issues because its fluid, she said. But they can have a tremendous impact on the oil and gas industry, she said. A prime example is the dune sagebrush lizard, which was the subject of a listing petition filed by the Centers for Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife. The lizards prime habitat also happens to be the prime source of frac sand being mined by sand mining operations opening in the Permian Basin.

The oil and gas industry is just getting up to speed on conservation, said McDonald, cautioning that environmental groups use the ESA to target the industry.

(The public) doesnt know how significantly the industrys footprint has shrunk, through directional drilling and pad drilling, she said.
Seguin, TX (78155)

Today

Showers early, then partly cloudy for the afternoon. High near 90F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy with scattered showers and thunderstorms overnight. Low 74F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
ALTON  Two Madison County housing development projects were among 26 statewide awarded federal tax credits by the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA).

The Community of Sunnybrook, a new development in Alton located east of downtown Alton; and Edison Avenue Lofts, a rehabilitation of the former YWCA in downtown Granite City into mixed-income, mixed use apartments, were among those approved, according to a press release from the IHDA.

The IHDA recently awarded $26.4 million in federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits to help fund 26 developments in 15 counties throughout Illinois.

The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit is instrumental in helping IHDA achieve our mission of financing safe, quality and affordable housing in Illinois, IHDA Executive Director Audra Hamernik said. This program is a proven public-private partnership that allows us to leverage the resources and expertise of the private sector to create jobs, generate tax revenue, and most importantly, ensure working families, seniors, and people with special needs have a place to call home.

Once sold to investors, the tax credits will generate an estimated $241.4 million in private capital to finance the creation or preservation of 1,327 affordable apartments for low- to moderate-income families, seniors, veterans, and persons with special needs. The construction is expected to support 2,379 full-time construction jobs and 524 permanent jobs after completion.

The Community of Sunnybrook is a project by EEJJ LLC, with Ed Hightower listed as the company contact. The project is expected to include 38 affordable apartments and two market-rate units for non-elderly families just east of downtown Alton. The property is now a vacant field, but a total of 20 buildings containing a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment units are planned.

After 15 years the units will be available for sale rather than rental.

Hightower could not be reached for comment.

The Edison Avenue Lofts project, by St. Louis-based Rise Community Development, a nonprofit which builds market rate and affordable housing, plans 37 non-elderly mixed-income, mixed use apartments in the historic building.

The building is owned by Granite City. Mayor Ed Hagnauer said they had limited options and it would have taken approximately $500,000 to demolish the structure.

He said Rise came to them some time ago, but were unable to get enough points to qualify last year. Hagnauer said the plan is to put artists lofts into the building, which would be given to Rise.

The city has a long-standing plan to redevelop its downtown by encouraging artists to move there and open studios. He also said the increased foot traffic in the area will also help spur additional development.

Other Metro East projects include:

 Lofts on the Square (Belleville): Renovation of the historic Hotel Belleville/Meredith Home into 47 affordable senior apartments and retail space on the Public Square in downtown Belleville. The Southwestern Illinois Development Authority will oversee the adaptive reuse of the building, which will convert the second through sixth floors into apartments for residents over 55 who earn less than 60 percent of the area median income.

 Flax Meadow Townhomes (Highland): A new construction development of eight one- and two-story townhomes. When complete, Flax Meadow will offer 32 affordable units of family housing with on-site management offices, as well as a playground and open green space.

 Highland Villas (Highland): The Southwestern Illinois Development Authority will build 48 affordable villa-style units for income eligible seniors. Each unit will be designed to incorporate the highest level of accessibility and a variety of in-unit amenities. The development will also include the construction of a community building.

 Gillespie Senior Residences (Gillespie): New construction of 20 single-family rental homes for seniors in Macoupin County. Every unit will receive rental assistance from the Macoupin County Housing Authority, who will manage the development.

The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program allows the allocation of a certain number of tax credits annually to each state based on population. IHDA awards the credits in a competitive application process, and once developers receive the credits, they sell them to investors and use the equity generated to reduce construction and operating costs. The savings in underwriting are passed on to the renter in the form of below-market rents, which must remain affordable for a minimum of 30 years. IHDA has administered the LIHTC program in Illinois since it began in 1986. Since its inception, the program has financed more than 90,975 units of affordable housing in the state, generating $4.9 billion in private capital for affordable housing.

Reach reporter Scott Cousins at 618-208-6447.
'Akufo-Addo is not in support of ...
 Examining thoughtfully modern trend to prosecute overdose deaths as homicides | Main | An (encouraging?) update on the state of federal criminal justice reform in US Senate 

This past week I came across this terrific lengthy local article looking in-depth at clemency realities in one state. The piece's headlined reveals its essential finding: "Analysis: Pardons have plummeted in New Mexico under Gov. Martinez." Here are excerpts:

SFR and New Mexico In Depth have assembled what is perhaps the most complete picture ever of how recent New Mexico governors have used their constitutional power of executive clemency. That includes pardons, for people who have served their time, and commutations, in which sentences are reduced for those still incarcerated.

A court victory in a public records lawsuit filed by SFR enabled this close examination, which found, among other things, that Ellis resides in an overwhelming majority: She has asked Martinez for a pardonand didnt receive one.

An analysis of hundreds of pages of documents and multiple spreadsheets by the news organizations shows that Martinez has granted just three pardons  an act that clears what are, in most cases, decades-old crimes from peoples criminal records  since taking office. More significantly, the analysis reveals a drastic drop in the number of people even requesting clemency under Martinez, compared to the previous two administrations.

Former two-term governors Gary Johnson and Bill Richardson fielded more than 1,000 clemency applications each; Martinez has received roughly 250 applications for mercy in her seven and half years as governor, according to records turned over by the state. Johnson, then a Republican and now a Libertarian, granted nearly 9 percent of pardon applications between 1995 and 2003, the analysis found. Richardson, a Democrat who served from 2003 through 2010, had a 7 percent pardon grant rate.

Martinez: 1 percent.

Johnson commuted two womens sentences, and Richardson gave one woman a commutation. Martinez has not granted any commutation requests, the records show.

The meager grant rate for Martinez, a former district attorney in Las Cruces who is approaching the end of her second and final term, fits with her govern-as-prosecutor style on criminal justice issues  including her ongoing push to reinstate the death penalty, calls for increased sentences for a host of crimes and even coming around to support Trumps border wall idea.

The precipitous decline in applications surprised a pair of longtime New Mexico criminal defense lawyers who have decades of experience in post-conviction work. Both concede, however, that theyve told prospective clients not to bother with clemency applications until theres a new governor, given Martinez rhetoric since she took office in 2011. One of the lawyers, Mark Donatelli of Santa Fe, calls Martinez clemency record an abuse of power in the sense of not using the powers that are granted to her by the Legislature and our constitution.

Mark Osler, a professor at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota whose scholarship, writing and teaching have focused on clemency nationwide, says hes not aware of any other states that have seen applications fall off the cliff as they have here. He called Martinez stinginess with clemency a dereliction of duty.

Pardons, which effectively are a restoration of rights, are meant to be part of the system; theyre included in state constitutions, and we dont throw constitutions together casually, Osler says. Theres something deeply troubling about kicking part of the system out from under people.

Donatelli and Margaret Strickland, president of the New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, say pardons are especially important in New Mexico, which does not allow expungement  the wiping clean of some criminal records after a certain period of time  even for misdemeanors. In the internet age, when arrest records are a mouse-click away, a pardon could go miles toward landing someone a job.

Martinez, however, has granted pardons to three people who are at or near retirement age. Their crimes: welfare fraud; breaking and entering; and larceny. The governor has denied at least 65 applications for clemency outright; she deemed at least another 71 ineligible for various reasons and, in 32 cases, her office did not provide a disposition or an explanation for where the applications stand.

Some of the pardon files Martinez office provided are incomplete, leaving a question mark hovering over the disposition of some 85 cases, some of which the governor appears not to have acted on. The data leaves other questions, too. It appears the state does not track the race, ethnicity, age or even gender of those who have applied for pardons. Nor is there an indication of how many applicants had the assistance of a lawyer.

What is clear, however, is that people have sought clemency for crimes ranging from first-degree murder  automatically ineligible for pardons here, by law  to rape, armed robbery, writing worthless checks and drug possession charges that are no longer felonies in New Mexico. And although Martinez has turned away a higher percentage of applicants than her predecessors, the vast majority of those who have filled out a pardon application during the past 24 years have come away empty-handed.

Martinez has steadfastly refused to discuss her pardon record, going so far as to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of state money on a private lawyer to keep secret the records that underpin this story. She remained silent through multiple requests for comment on the findings by SFR and NMID....

During her first four-year term, Martinez put more requirements in place for applying for pardons, a process that already forced applicants to have a high school diploma and to wait various lengths of time after their convictions before applying. She has barred pardons for a host of crimes, including misdemeanors, multiple DWIs and sexual offenses.

New Mexico is one of 29 states where the power of executive clemency is vested in the governor alone, according to a scholarly paper published by the American Bar Association in 2009. New Mexico state law allows for its Parole Board to advise the states chief executive on pardons. And the governor does frequently seek Parole Board input; the SFR and NMID analysis shows the Parole Board weighed in on 134 requests under Johnson, 259 requests under Richardson and at least 68 requests under Martinez.

In 13 cases, Martinez went against the Parole Boards recommendation. Such was the case with Bruce Gillis, who in 1974 was convicted of a fourth-degree felony for distributing marijuana. Gillis told Martinez in a letter that he was 20 years old, immature and irresponsible, and pleaded guilty to the charge at the advice of a lawyer, but later turned his life around. The Parole Board recommended a pardon. Martinez denied it.

Generally, in states where pardon power isnt invested in a single person, rates of successful pardon applications are higher, says Osler, the Minnesota law professor. For example, Georgia and South Carolina, where parole boards have ultimate authority over pardons, issue pardons at higher rates than Vermont, Minnesota and New Mexico, three states where the governor has complete control. You tend to see fewer granted when the executive has absolute power, because it becomes a political concern, he says.
The terrible news traveled 10,000 miles to reach to Steven Garcia.

The 24-year-old U.S. Army sergeant was on overseas deployment in Seoul, a patrol supervisor with the 142nd Military Police Company. As the days crept on in January, another role was coming in fast: that of a dad. Garcia waited for his wife Marina to deliver to their child back in Arizona. But when the report came from home, it was bad. Garcia's sister called to say the baby, a girl, had died in childbirth.

"When my sister called me about that, it was pretty emotional," Garcia recently told Tuscon's News 4." We cried quite a bit together over the phone. It was devastating."

The shock and grief were quickly sidelined by more complex feelings the next month, when the soldier learned the truth. Not only was the baby alive - and a boy - but the focal point of a bizarre criminal investigation. The child also was not his.

"I was under the assumption the entire time that she was pregnant that I was the father," he told the station. "When I found out I wasn't, I was pretty upset, I was kind of in denial. I couldn't believe what was going on."

According to authorities, Marina Garcia lied about the baby's death to her husband's family to cover up infidelity. To hide the evidence, she allegedly concocted a plan to hand the newborn over to a couple in Texas, allegedly forging the necessary paperwork to keep the adoption below the legal radar.

"The only thing on her mind was getting rid of this child. This 'problem' in her life," Cochise County Attorney Brian McIntyre said recently.

The deception began unraveling on Feb. 5 on Interstate 10 in Arizona, the Arizona Range News reported. At around 10:15 a.m., an Arizona Department of Public Safety officer clocked a tan sport utility vehicle shooting eastbound 90 miles per hour. After pulling the car over, the officer found three people inside - Alex Hernandez, 33, his wife Leslie, 41, and a newborn baby boy.

According to the Herald/Review, the officer became suspicious. Upon questioning, the couple admitted the 3-day-old baby was not their biological child. The Hernandez couple told police they had been given the baby by Marina Garcia, and that they had "conspired with the birth mother (Garcia) to forge the signature as the father to take possession of the infant child," according to court documents quoted by the Range News.

When investigators searched through the couple's cellphones, they saw Leslie Hernandez had set up the handoff with Garcia through texts and Facebook messenger.

The same day, police traveled to Sierra Vista, Arizona, to interview Marina. Living with a boyfriend, an Army specialist, she admitted to conspiring with the Texas couple. According to Stars and Stripes, Marina told investigators she planned to travel to Texas to sign away her parental rights once she had recovered from the birth. She also said he had given birth to the child at 37 weeks, but actually didn't know who the father was. It wasn't, she contended, her husband.

Back in South Korea, Garcia was contacted by investigators, who told him his child was actually still alive, and a boy. The sergeant took an emergency leave to visit the child, who was taken into state custody. The baby - named Leo, according to the Stars and Stripes - is now with foster parents. Paternity tests determined Garcia was not the father. He has since filed for divorce from his wife.

Although money does not seem to have been exchanged for the child, Marina and the Hernandez's all faced criminal charges for their role in the scheme.

"What scares me is that if it hadn't been the Hernandez', if the couple hadn't been willing to step forward, then what person off the Internet might have been next?" Cochise County Attorney McIntyre told News 4.

In April Alex Hernandez pleaded guilty to committing forgery, and his wife Leslie pleaded to conspiracy to commit forgery, the Herald/Review reported. Each was given four years of supervised probation for the charges.

Marina Garcia pleaded guilty to a felony charge of attempted scheme to defraud, according to News 4. She refused to comment on the details of the case when a News 4 reporter knocked on her door recently. When asked about the baby's paternity, Marina would only say, "It's unknown." Her sentencing is scheduled for next month.

But that is not stopping Garcia from trying to stay in the child's life. He's already visited Leo eight times and plans to petition for custody. Garcia told News 4 his own experience as an adopted child directed his moral compass.

"My adopted father completely changed my life," Garcia said. "Without him I would not be where I am today. And for the opportunity to do that for someone else, I believe it's important. It could change the child's life and give him a better future and I believe that's the right thing to do."
Federal authorities on Friday walked back a claim that a U.S. Border Patrol agent who fatally shot a 19-year-old immigrant woman earlier this week opened fire because a group of immigrants had started to hit him with blunt objects.

Friday, a news release issued by Border Patrol dropped the reference to an attack with blunt objects in the deadly encounter that occurred Wednesday afternoon in Rio Bravo, a small town just south of Laredo.

According to the agent, the group ignored his verbal commands and instead rushed him, states the news release.

When asked about the difference in reporting what happened, a Border Patrol spokesman declined to comment, citing the open investigation.

A witness had already disputed the original report that the immigrants had attacked, saying Thursday that the group was hiding when the Border Patrol agent found them and that no one in the group had a weapon.

The attorney for the agent, a 15-year Border Patrol veteran whose name has not been released, said his client had not committed any wrongdoing.

This matter is being investigated, and rightfully so, by every three-letter acronym under the sun, including the Texas Rangers, said attorney George Altgelt. We welcome their investigation and are confident that the evidence will prove my client's innocence.

It is common knowledge and common sense that being a Border Patrol agent is a dangerous job. Every day the men and women in green put their lives on the line so that we can sleep and live safely here in Laredo.

The case unfolded at about 12:20 p.m. Wednesday, when the agent responded to a report of illegal activity near a culvert in Rio Bravo. He discovered a group of immigrants who had entered the country illegally, the federal agency said. He fired one round from his service-issued weapon, fatally striking the woman.

Federal authorities havent released the womans name, but the Guatemala Foreign Ministry has confirmed the victim was Claudia Patricia Gomez Gonzalez of Guatemala and condemned the death.

Dominga Vicente, the victims aunt, said Gomez had graduated as a forensic accountant but was unable to find a job, so she left Guatemala.

The Laredo Immigrant Alliance, whose leaders said they were outraged by Gomezs death, planned to hold a vigil Saturday night at Tres Laredos Park in Laredo to honor Gomez and others who have lost their lives on the border.

The American Civil Liberties Unions Border Rights Center also was concerned about the details surrounding Gomezs death and cited a recent analysis conducted by The Guardian showing that Border Patrol agents have been involved in nearly 100 fatal encounters since 2003 and have paid out roughly $60 million in wrongful death settlements.

ACLU officials have called for Border Patrol to expand its use of body cameras to every agent in the field; the federal agency is testing the use of body cameras in nine areas but Laredo is not one of them.

Staff Writer Jerilynn Thorpe and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Director of the Military Hospital 175 Major General Nguyen Hong Son thanked Australias support for Vietnam in preparing and training staffs for the level-2 field hospital to take part in United Nations peacekeeping activities. For instance, Australia has provided English training for the staff of the field hospital as well as supported equipment.



Moreover, Australia will help transport the field hospital for peacekeeping mission in South Sudan.



Along with support for the level-2 No.1, Australia also provided refresh course and trained 30 medical workers. Lately, in the framework of Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phucs visit to Australia, managers of the military hospital 175 signed an agreement with Australia based ICON group on training medical workers for the hospitals tumor center.



Speaking at the visit, Governor-General Cosgrove highly lauded Vietnams efforts in preparing personnel for UNs peacekeeping mission manifesting its international responsibility and contribution toward world community. He affirmed that Australia will be always good companion of Vietnam in implementing peacekeeping mission in the next time.



By THANH AN  Translated by UYEN PHUONG
A fire that broke out at a homeless encampment early Sunday temporarily closed some on- and off-ramps on Interstate 280 in San Francisco, authorities said.

No one was injured in the blaze, which was reported just after 6 a.m. and contained by firefighters an hour later. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
WEST SACRAMENTO  He struck out the side in his first inning in more than two months. He struck out opposing pitcher Antonio Senzatela with a 61-mph eephus pitch. On the first pitch he saw as a hitter since spring training, he singled.

Madison Bumgarners minor-league rehab stint is not going to be long, if it continues at all.

The Giants need the big fella, and he provided a heaping helping of hope Saturday night in his return from a broken left hand.

Facing Colorados Triple-A Albuquerque squad, Bumgarner struck out eight of his 12 hitters, did not allow a hit and walked one. He threw 47 pitches in 32/3 innings, just more than the scheduled 45. Based on how good his hand and command felt, he said he was ready to pitch in the majors if the Giants asked.

I obviously didnt know before today, but I think so, Bumgarner said. I wouldnt say Id be back at midseason form, but I definitely feel I could get some outs.

Bumgarner is supposed to make another rehab start for Class A San Jose on Thursday. Nobody should be surprised if he faces the Phillies at AT&T Park on Friday night instead after the way he dominated in front of an overflow crowd at Raley Field, even if he cant provide more than 70 pitches in his next outing.

Bumgarner threw all of his pitches for strikes Saturday, got swings and misses on his fastball, which hit 92 mph, and had a good cutter, slider and curveball, including the rainbow at 61 mph he threw for strike three to Senzatela in the third inning. Bumgarner was seeking weak contact on a bunt to get an out at second base.

Bumgarner then added insult to injury by hitting a first-pitch single off Senzatela through a hole in the right side in the bottom of the inning.

I felt pretty good about how everything was working, he said. Obviously, Ill see how I feel tomorrow and bounce back. Were not rushing it  but were not taking it slow, either.

Bumgarner took the mound two months and three days after he stuck his left hand in front of his chest to protect himself from a liner by the Royals Whit Merrifield. The ball broke his left pinkie. He knew it instantly.

The injury occurred on the final day of spring training in Arizona. Bumgarner had looked as good as ever in his six starts, striking out 30 in 21 innings.

On Saturday, after the River Cats made Bumgarner feel at home by playing Fire on the Mountain as he warmed up, he struck out Garrett Hampson and Raimel Tapia looking before getting Josh Fuentes to swing through a fastball on the 17th and final pitch of the first inning.

After five more strikeouts, Bumgarner said he felt good, with everything headed in the right direction.

Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: hschulman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hankschulman
It was a monstrous task to create the African-inspired futuristic costumes in "Black Panther," the highest-grossing superhero movie in U.S. history.

Costume designer Ruth Carter led the noble charge like one of the movie's bald, female warriors.

The costumes had to be spellbinding but functional, so the characters could pounce, kick, jab or simply glide across the room with ease. She and her team created hundreds of striking designs and incorporated clothing items and adornments from their travels to bring the fictional world of Wakanda to life.

The film's release earlier this year has sparked the emergence of Wakanda-themed parties, galas and special events where guests show off their best African style. In March, Tina Knowles (Beyonce's mother) hosted the second annual Wearable Arts Gala in Los Angeles to benefit the WACO (Where Art Can Occur) Theatre, owned by Knowles with husband Richard Lawson. The dress code for the evening was "From WACO to Wakanda."

Just this month, the Houston Museum of African American Culture held a Wakanda-themed gala at the Ensemble Theatre, complete with African-print table settings.

"I didn't realize we would be filling such a great void," Carter, 58, said. "Not only were the cosplayers rejoiceful because they had a black superhero, but communities around the world were celebrating the culture. It's something they can dress up without wearing masks and feel and look beautiful. It's like you sit down and say, 'Hey, I wanna have a party. What do we theme it? Then all of a sudden 'Black Panther' happens, and it was just, wow, 'That's it.'"

Carter will participate in an onstage Q&A at Comicapalooza 1:30 p.m. Sunday at George R. Brown Convention Center. Tickets are $46 and available at comicpalooza.com.

For more than 30 years, Carter has been creating looks for the big screen. Her costume-design credits include movies such as "Selma," "Do the Right Thing," "Marshall" and "The Butler." She became the first African American recognized for costume design with her Oscar nominations for her work on "Malcolm X." She was also nominated for "Amistad."

"Black Panther" was a different animal, in part, because nothing like it existed before. It was also Carter's first big, fantasy film.

"I had to take what was and make what is," she said. "I fused modern technology with ancient African design. It was really about the beauty of adornment. I looked at all the bits from the different tribes  the beadwork, the metalwork and the way they use leather. I examined it, and I modernized it so that it worked for Wakanda."

Part of the challenge was to make sure the costumes were void of colonial influences, with a few exceptions, such as actor Michael B. Jordan's urban look as "Killmonger." Some of the creations were taken straight from the Maasai people with neck beadwork, rich red tones and ornate sleeveless tunics. In an opening scene, Black Panther (aka "T'Challa," played by Chadwick Boseman) greets his mother, Queen Ramonda (played by Angela Bassett), who appears wearing an off-white cylindrical hat like those worn by married Zulu women. T'Challa can be seen in a cutaway coat with embroidery in a Nigerian tradition.

Carter even called on fashion designer Ozwald Boateng, who is of Ghanaian descent, to create the green suit worn by a Wakanda elder statesman. And for the bald female military, she adorned them with neck rings, armbands, tunic layers and jewelry draping down the front.

The movie's 32-year-old director, Ryan Coogler, who directed "Creed" and "Fruitvale Station," gave Carter ultimate freedom to create the costumes.

"When you hear someone like him say, 'I want them to be real soldiers. I want them bald. I want them to have X,Y and Z. I want their armor to feel like jewelry.' ... I was jumping up and down saying, 'I, too, have been paralyzed by what Hollywood has served me over all these years,' and this guy just unlocked me. He unleashed me," Carter said.

Nicolas Champroux, who teaches theatrical costumes in the fashion-design program at Houston Community College, said the mission of costume design is to capture the project's spirit.

"The costumes in Black Panther felt lived in and loved in," he said. "I was particularly impressed by how people were grouped by color schemes. They were never repetitive but always cohesive. It was a beautiful way of tapping into this heritage and turning it into something fantastical."

As for the movie's bald female military, Champroux gushed over their multilayered looks and the details.

"The women looked strong and empowered because of their costumes," he said. "They were not there to stand pretty in the corner. They were there to play an active role, and they were vivacious and vibrant, soldiers who didn't have time fussing over hair. That was so powerful."

The film's hundreds of costumes are currently being stored in a warehouse in Los Angeles when they aren't on display across the country, Carter said.

A graduate of Hampton University in Virginia with a degree in theater arts, Carter began her career working in theater and later moved to Los Angeles, where she met director Spike Lee. He hired her first for "School Daze," then for his other films, such as "Do the Right Thing," "Mo Better Blues," "Jungle Fever" and "Malcolm X."

"I wish I could say I was the girl who sat down and made all her clothes, or I had a grandma who taught me how to sew, but I had a brother who taught me how to paint," she said. "So I look at costumes as wearable art, and that's how I approach it."

That Carter is a costume designer in Hollywood, which continues to have issues regarding its lack of ethnic and racial diversity, is significant. Things are changing, she said.

"I do think the movie industry is making gains," she said. "We're doing so much more to get people of color from all over the world  Mexico, Asia  into costume designing. We are making strides, and I'm proud to say that I'm a part of it."

joy.sewing@chron.com
The following Greenwich residents received bachelor of arts degrees from Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., on May 20, at the commencement ceremony concluding the colleges 206th year.

Daniel A. Berrick graduated magna cum laude with departmental honors in world politics.

Gerard F. Pozzi graduated with departmental honors in environmental studies.

William T. Rosencrans graduated with a major in mathematics.

Ford Foundation President Darren Walker delivered the commencement address.



Destiny Sammut of Greenwich was inducted into Phi Alpha, the national social work honor society, at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic. Sammut, a member of the Class of 2018, was inducted with other social work majors. The society provides a closer bond among students of social work and promotes humanitarian goals and ideals. Phi Alpha fosters high standards of education for social workers and invites into membership those who have attained excellence in scholarship and achievement.



Three local students have been named to the dean's list at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, for the winter semester ending in April 2018. The students are: Griff Golden, a 2015 graduate of Greenwich High School; Charlotte Jeffrey, a 2014 graduate of Convent of the Sacred Heart High School; and Emily Bass, a 2017 graduate of Greenwich High School.



Three Greenwich students achieved the Dean's List at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, for the Spring 2018 semester. Eligibility is based on a minimum course load of 12 hours and a quality grade point average of 3.5 with no grade below a C. The students are Zoe Clark, Zoe Morris and Melanie Peterson.



Three local students were among the 608 students who graduated from Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, Pa., on May 20. The graduates are: Christian Deschapelles of Riverside, Jordan Marks of Greenwich and Patrick Santini of Cos Cob.



Edward Fraser of Riverside received a bachelor of arts degree from Curry College on May 20 at commencement exercises in Milton, Mass. Social entrepreneur Dr. Navyn Salem was commencement speaker. Salem founded Edesia, a nonprofit organization that helps get high-quality "miracle" food into the hands of the world's most malnourished children.



Scott Sutton of Riverside was among more than 1,000 students from Miami University who received degrees during fall commencement exercises on Dec. 15, 2017, in Millett Hall on the campus in Oxford, Ohio. Sutton graduated with a bachelor of arts degree with a major in journalism.



John Kerbs of Old Greenwich received a bachelor of arts degree in political science from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., the weekend of May 18.
MIDDLETOWN  Its not exactly known how long the city has been marking Memorial Day with a grand, patriotic and flag-waving procession down Main Street.

But, according to Deborah D. Shapiro, executive director of the Middlesex County Historical Society, who researched indexes for the Middletown Press and Penny Press from 1884 to 1939, the earliest reference to a parade was 1890.

That doesnt mean that is the first parade, but it does mean that it goes back at least that far.

She also found mention of another in 1911.

There were consistent listings for Memorial Day observances, so there may have been parades mentioned in the articles, just not in the headlines, she said, adding Memorial Day wasnt a common name for the national observance until after World War II.

The holiday definitely started after the Civil War, Shapiro said.

Mondays parade, organized by the Middletown Council of Veterans, begins at 10:30 a.m. at the corner of Rome Avenue and Stack Street. Line-up begins at 9 a.m. and the parade steps off at 10:30 a.m. The route is south on Main Street from St. Johns Church to Union Park at the South Green, where there will be a ceremony following the parade.

We march to honor the soldiers who didnt get to come home. They made the ultimate sacrifice, said Ken McClellan, who has organized the event for the past decade. Hes adjutant for the Middletown Council of Veterans, as well as a member of American Legion Post 75, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1840 and Disabled American Veterans Chapter 7.

Its a celebration of the fact we do have a strong military and we are willing to defend our country and our freedoms, said McLellan, who retired from the U.S. Army Reserve as lieutenant colonel when he returned from Iraq in 2005.

Members of the 2nd Company Governors Foot Guard of Connecticut will be part of the procession.

For the first time, the Laotian Special Guerrilla Unit will attend  men and women who served in the Laotian Army as part of a group that helped to recover American pilots shot down over Laos in Cambodia, McClellan said.

Helicopter pilots and ground troops who would be working on the border region  both sides of the border  picking up pilots, getting them out of the country back to American bases.

As for the fighter jets flyover, which havent been a part of the festivities for a couple of years, they wont return this year due to state budget cuts and the cost of fuel, McClellan added.

This years theme is the 100th anniversary of the end of the Great War.

At the time, everyone felt that was the most horrific, widespread war that was ever fought, and everyone really hoped there would never be another one, McClellan said. Unfortunately, 20 years later, we were back in the same situation.

Phil Cacciola, a U.S. Army veteran and member of nine local veterans groups, retired at the age of 30 as a U.S. Army Reserve Colonel. Hes been involved for so long he cant remember when he started.

We get a bunch of vets  those who can march, those who cant dont  and unfortunately, the group is getting older, so youre probably going to see more cars this year than there have been in the past.

The council has a mission to get as many vets as possible involved in the annual event.

Many are riding instead of walking. Cacciola said. The younger vets  Gulf War, Afghanistan and Iraq  its a different time.

With older vets dying off, and a generation gap in service, its difficult to get younger vets to engage in local organizations and the parade.

Men  and women now, too  theyre dealing with multiple tours. Coming back, theyve got to be concerned about family No. 1, because thats got to be stressful, children if they have children, and, of course, you have the jobs issue. One tour and youre out. You try to go back for a second tour, its not going to happen, said Cacciola said about companies that cant afford to keep a position open for so long.

PTSD also plays a big factor.

It affects a lot of people. War is hell. Thats it in a nutshell, he said.

A runner-up in the longevity category is the Westfield Fire District parade, a smaller and more intimate gathering that will celebrate 123 years Sunday at 2 p.m.

The cohort forms at the Westfield Firehouse on East Street, stops at Old East Street Cemetery, the firehouse and World War II War Monument. From there, it wends its way to Miner Cemetery for a service.

A special invocation is part of the event, during which the names of all veterans interred at the Miner Street Cemetery will be read off. Afterward, its back to the firehouse for hot dogs and ice cream.

Its supposed to be for the marchers, but now its evolved into anyone that wants to have one can have one, said Deputy Chief Darrell Ponzio, who has taken part for the past five years. A good number of Westfield residents watch the proceedings, and all the districts mutual-aid partners  such as the Cromwell, Middlefield, Durham fire companies and South Fire District  show up.

The Governors Footguard will also be gracing this years parade. I can certainly see them engaging with Middletown, but for us to be able secure them for a small, intimate parade, is remarkable, he said.

The atmosphere of Miner Street, because its much narrower than downtown, prompts many families that live along that route to hold picnics or parties, which allow guests to view the procession.

It feels like a small Main Street kind of thing  like Chester, Ponzio said.

Before the Main Street Parade Monday, there will be a service on the Washington Green at Vine and Washington streets at 9 a.m. Afterward, at 2 p.m., there will be a memorial event at the State Veterans Cemetery on Bow Lane.

Were all Vietnam-era veterans for the most part. We know what things were like back then, and our mission is to ensure the kids that are coming back now are getting the benefits theyre entitled to, the respect theyre entitled to, and being treated like they should be treated for defending our country.

Managing Editor Cassandra Day can be reached at cassandra.day@hearst

mediact.com or Twitter @cassandrasdis.
Sentences may vary based on previous offenses committed by the defendant. Some sentences include other fees imposed by the state. Compiled by reporter Kelly Dame.

The following people were sentenced recently in Midland Countys 42nd Circuit Court by Judge Michael J. Beale or Judge Stephen P. Carras:

 Anderson Phelps Arbury, 60, Aspin Creek Drive, was sentenced for third-offense drunken driving. The offense occurred on Sept. 26 in Midland. Beale sentenced Arbury to $3,000 fines and costs, three years probation, to attend Network Therapy, and to be monitored by an alcohol tether for one year. Restitution was left open. Arbury previously was convicted of second-offense drunken driving on May 8, 1995, in the Midland County District Court, and of third-offense drunken driving on April 6, 1999, in the Midland County Circuit Court.

 Jeffery Allen Brown, 51, North McCann Drive, was sentenced for being a felon in possession of firearms. The offense occurred on Nov. 18 in Edenville Township. Beale sentenced Brown to 90 days in jail with credit for three days, $750 costs, a $500 fine suspended until the end of one year probation, and to forfeit the weapon.

 Cayleb James Creasman, 22, Artcrest Drive, was sentenced for third-degree criminal sexual conduct. The offense occurred on Oct. 6 in Midland. Carras sentenced Creasman to between three and 15 years in prison with credit for 168 days. Creasman also is to register as a sex offender.

 Arthur Harold Dorie, 46, Gladwin, was sentenced for assault with the intent to commit great bodily harm less than murder. The offense occurred on July 1 in Geneva Township. Beale sentenced Dorie to between 18 months and 20 years in prison with credit for 312 days, and $194 restitution.

 Justen Alan Evans, 19, West Isabella Road, was sentenced for felonious assault and third-offense domestic violence. The offenses occurred on Sept. 24 in Lee Township. Carras sentenced Evans to between two and eight years in prison for the first offense, and to between two and 10 years in prison for the second offense with credit for 235 days.

 Clarence Randall Flowers, 59, Bridgeport, was sentenced for first-degree retail fraud. The offense occurred on Aug. 26 in Midland. Carras sentenced Flowers to 14 days in jail with credit for time served, and $3,323 restitution.

 Danny Lavon Nixon Jr., 32, East Pine Street, was sentenced for aggravated assault, and assault and battery. The offenses occurred on June 25 in Midland. Beale sentenced Nixon to nine months in jail for each offense with credit for three days, $1,250 fines and costs, $2,420.64 restitution and two years probation.

 Thomas Francis Smith Jr., 52, Dearborn, was sentenced for possession of burglars tools, and breaking and entering with the intent to steal. The offenses occurred on Nov. 18 in Warren Township. Beale sentenced Smith to between 19 months and 20 years in prison for the first offense, and to between 19 months and 10 years for the second offense, and to pay $1,349.78 restitution.
Democrats vying for the nomination to run against Rep. Barbara Comstock got a chance to sound off on the Trump administration and defend their liberal values during a Saturday event sponsored by the Fairfax NAACP.

With the primary just over two weeks away, candidates focused on racial equality, decriminalization of marijuana, and protections for the elderly and low-income residents of Virginia's 10th District.

All six Democrats were there: State Sen. Jennifer Wexton, D-Loudoun, Army veteran Dan Helmer, strategist Lindsey Davis Stover, anti-human-trafficking activist Alison Friedman, former federal prosecutor Paul Pelletier and scientist Julia Biggins.

Republicans were represented by Shak Hill, a former fighter pilot and self-described motivational speaker, who is challenging Comstock, R-Va., from the right and provided a conservative counterpoint to the group.

Comstock was invited but attended other events in the district instead, her spokesman said.

Both national parties are closely watching the Democratic primary in the district - one of 23 seats held by Republicans that Democrats must win to take control of the House.

The district includes vote-rich Washington suburbs in Loudoun County and parts of Fairfax and Prince William counties, as well as a rural swath bordering West Virginia.

Democrats hope to re-create Gov. Ralph Northam's decisive win in the district last year, but will face in Comstock a seasoned political operative who has won previous campaigns, partly based on her knowledge of local problems, from traffic to the MS-13 gang.

Neither issue came up Saturday in a brightly lit room at Chantilly Baptist Church.

Asked about criminal justice reform, all candidates called for the decriminalization of marijuana, except Helmer, who would outright legalize it, as long as it's regulated and kept away from children.

Wexton, the most well-known candidate in the field, touted her support in the legislature for expanded access to medicinal oils derived from marijuana.

Pelletier noted the discrepancy between prosecuting white-collar criminals, as he did for decades, and street crimes, and denounced the death of Eric Garner, who died after a New York City Police Department officer put him in a headlock while arresting him in Staten Island.

"They're arresting people that don't need to be arrested," he said.

Stover said the Trump administration should declare opioid addiction a national crisis.

Hill said each state should decide whether to decriminalize marijuana within their borders.

When it came to overall crime, he said it would decrease if the government could help keep families intact and "incentivize the dad to live with the mom."

Friedman offered a rebuttal to Hill. "I have to say, as a single mom," she said, "I think there are more important things we can do related to criminal justice reform."

She also called for implicit bias training for law enforcement and community policing, and echoed other candidates' calls for bail and sentencing overhauls.

Turning to immigration, Democrats all denounced President Donald Trump's plan for a border wall and said they would work to reverse his decision to end protections for "dreamers," children brought to the United States illegally as children.

"The wall's just plain stupid, stupid," Stover said. "We have no room in this country for symbols of hate."

On health care, Wexton wants to modernize Medicaid and Medicare systems so people can grow old in their homes instead of having to move into institutional care, and said she would support programs like Meals on Wheels.

Friedman said Congress can make decisions that are kind and "smarter fiscally," such as reworking Social Security disability insurance.

"If you look at the tax structure," she said, "we reward asset creation at the upper end of the spectrum, miss the middle entirely and penalize the poor."

Helmer, Pelletier and Stover said the government should be able to negotiate drug prices, while Biggins is the only Democrat calling for a single-payer health-care system like what Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., has proposed.

Democrats denounced Trump's Friday evening executive order that would roll back civil-service protections, making it easier to fire poor performers, curtailing time employees can be paid for union work and directing agencies to negotiate tougher union contracts. Many residents of the 10th District depend on the federal government for their livelihoods.

Candidates were asked if they would support a bill that former congressman John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., repeatedly introduced to study slavery reparations and former congressman Tom Perriello's call for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission on race.

"If we're going to move forward as a country, we can't necessarily hold on to the evils of the past," Hill said.

Wexton spoke next. "While I agree we shouldn't hold on to the wrongs of the past, we need to at least acknowledge them, and that has not been happening," she said.

She pointed to a bill she carried in the General Assembly that would have allowed localities to move or alter historic monuments. It failed and "was viciously attacked," she said. The government has for years funded the upkeep of Confederate graves, and just last year did the state begin doing it for historic African-American gravesites, she said.

"We need to have this discussion," she said.

Friedman added that Congress must address the modern ramifications of institutional discrimination that plays out in disproportionate school suspension rates and access to honors classes.

Hill had some supporters in the room, a dynamic that led to a sharp exchange at the start of the forum.

"It's really impossible to ignore the fact that the White House is really eroding a lot of the things that we worked really hard over the years to accomplish in a very short time," said Kofi Annan, president of the Fairfax County NAACP.

From the back of the audience, a man yelled: "You're supposed to be nonpartisan but you're being partisan. It's hypocritical."

The forum began and the man left after a few minutes.
ASBURY PARK, N.J. - The Trump administration's bid to expand offshore drilling sounds like a sweet deal when the oil and gas industry sells it: more jobs, increased local revenue and possibly an energy surplus that could lower home heating costs.

But Mayor John Moor's opinion of the proposal to drill off the Atlantic Coast for the first time in decades is set:"I don't think the risk is worth all the money in the world," he said at City Hall,a few blocks from the popular beach boardwalk that is fueling his city's economic turnaround.

"You could stack billions atop of billions atop of billions and it's just not worth the risk."

Moor's unwavering view stretches the length of the 142-mile Jersey Shore, from northern municipalities such as Asbury Park to Cape May in the south. As Memorial Day and beach season approached, several mayors whose economies rely heavily on tourism said they are united in opposition to President Donald Trump's plan.

New Jersey beaches were an embarrassment 30 years ago, but state officials have poured millions of dollars into efforts to recover from a pollution catastrophe. The shore is revitalized, a state treasure that residents, conservationists and politicians fiercely protect.

Across the Atlantic Coast strip, mayors in nearly every city teamed with council members, conservationists, business leaders and residents to craft resolutions that denounced the proposal to widen federal offshore leasing to 90 percent of the outer continental shelf, an effort that beganjust days after Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke announced the plan in January.

They helped put New Jersey at the forefront of resistance to Trump's "energy dominance" agenda, crafting obstacles to the five-year lease proposal that at least one other state copied and another is considering.

Last month, New Jersey became the first Atlantic state to adopt a legal barrier to offshore drilling. Lawmakers passed a bill, signed by Gov. Phil Murphy, D, that prohibits oil exploration in state waters, which extend three miles from shore.

An amendment to the law went further, barring the construction of infrastructure such as a pipeline to deliver oil and natural gas from drilling platforms in federal waters that start where state waters end, a move that would head off the industry's favored method of bringing energy resources to shore.

New York quickly passed a similar law. And a Republican state senator in Delaware submitted a bill in mid-May that mirrors those of the state's northern neighbors.

Some chamber of commerce estimates put the economic impact of coastal Atlantic beach tourism at $95 billion per year.

The administration's proposal has stood on shaky ground from the beginning. Within days of the announcement, Zinke flew to Florida to assure a political ally, Gov. Rick Scott, R, that his state would be exempt.

After a barrage of bipartisan criticism and requests for the same treatment from other coastal states, Zinke has backpedaled.

At congressional hearings in March, Zinke assured Pacific coast officials that a paucity of easily extractableoil there makes it unlikely that drilling will happen. Later he said something similar about Maine.

A pair of Republican representatives from New Jersey, Leonard Lance and Frank LoBiondo, said the secretary indicated to themthat the state would also be left off the plan.

Regardless, they pushed for the state ban as "a backdoor way of blocking the offshore drilling," according to its co-sponsor, state Sen. Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May.

But banning gas pipelines in state waters isn't "necessarily . . . a showstopper," said Nicolette Nye, a spokeswoman for the National Ocean Industries Association, which represents oil and gas interests. Pipelines are the cheapest way to transport oil and natural gas to a processing plant, she said, but an expensive plant could be built in federal waters or shipped in an offshore vessel.

"While the stated goal is to reduce dependence on oil, the fact remains that a major shift from oil as a fuel is still many years away," Nye said. "Thus such a pipeline ban will likely actually increase importation of oil from foreign countries."

But Jersey Shore drilling opponents are deeply influenced bythe shore's dark history, when federal officials allowed state and local governments to dump millions of tons of sewage into the ocean.

The result was an environmental disaster that led to a tourism exodus from New Jersey beaches, billions of dollars in losses and a generation of conservationists and politicians who said "never again."

In the late 1980s, the Jersey Shore's reputation was garbage.

It was a victim of a lawful practice that polluted the coast. Six New Jersey cities and three in New York routinely sent barges piled with 8 million wet tons of sewage to a dumping area 100 miles off Cape May.

Floating trash washed up on beaches from Long Island to Cape May. "Everything from A to Z," said Moor, the mayor of Asbury Park.

"We used to call it the tampon index because if you had a certain number of tampon applicators you'd know how much raw sewage washed up on the beach and whether you could swim," said Cindy Zipf, the executive director of Clean Ocean Action, who sat next to Moor at City Hall.

Near Cape May, Martin Pagliughi, mayor of Avalon, remembered. "We spent every morning, 5:30 in the morning, scouring the beaches with shovels and buckets and scoops to kind of get all those," he said.

Congress passed the federal anti-dumping act of 1988 that ended sewage dumping in 1991 as New York City continued to assert that its ocean garbage runs had nothing to do with the pollution. Meanwhile, syringes and other medical waste continued to wash up on beaches.

By that time, oceanfront rentals and hotels had emptied, few customers were in stores and the shore was the butt of jokes.

New Jersey lost between $900 million and $4 billion, and New York lost between $950 million and $2 billion, according to an estimate by the State University of New York Waste Management Institute.

As the larger dumping debacle played out, Asbury Park was rocked by its own sewage problem starting in 1987. The city botched the maintenance of its sewer lines for two years, then mishandled a cleanup effort by flushing grease into a treatment plant that couldn't handle it. Blobs of fat mixed with fecal matter drifted into the ocean, broke apart and contaminated the beaches of eight cities at the height of the summer season.

"These beaches were empty," said John Weber, the Mid-Atlantic regional manager for the Surfrider Foundation, a conservation group. "And I knew because, if you wanted to surf by yourself, if there were good waves, you could come to Asbury Park to not bother with the crowds. That was like their little secret spot, Asbury Park."

"The beaches were terrible because of the sewage," Moor said. The tourism loss led to "the economic decline of the city itself and also with the boardwalk, which was in terrible disrepair."

Asbury Park was fined nearly $1 million, the stiffest fine ever levied by the state's environmental agency against a city.

"This city was down and out," Moor said.

Now, after nearly three decades, Asbury Park is resurging. The sewage plant was upgraded and is winning awards. The beach is restored.

Revenue from the tags people must purchase to access the beach is marching upward, from $85,400 in 2003 to nearly $2.2 million last year, money that must be spent to maintain and improve the waterfront. Parking revenue rose to the $1 million mark in 2011, and last year topped $5 million.

New retail stores and restaurants on a three-block stretch of Cookman Avenue leading to the boardwalk have drawn international praise. New condominiums sprang up years ago, and another gigantic mixed-use development is being built.

"Every weekend there's something going on" in Asbury Park, Moor said. So when news broke of Trump's drilling proposal, he felt threatened.

"How do we stop this," Moor recalled wondering, "because it's totally insane."

Like other mayors, Moor turned to activists.

Out of the muck of the late 1980s, determined environmental conservation efforts sprang up. "That was when a lot of us got together and formed the Jersey Shore Partnership and created a beach lobbying type of environment," said Pagliughi, the mayor of Avalon.

Zipf became their guide.

Working with Vicki Clark of the Cape May County Chamber of Commerce, she pulled together a network of people who raised public and political awareness.

Zipf also helped craft the amendment that forbids oil pipelines in New Jersey waters, which is modeled on a California law.

David Holt, president of the Consumer Energy Alliance, said outlawing that infrastructure could lead to the type of catastrophe states are trying to avoid.

"They're basically saying 'no' to the most environmentally sensitive way to handle this," Holt said. "It is a concern for groups like ours."

For others on the Jersey Shore, resistance means there is a better chance that ocean views and waters will remain pristine, beckoning to tourists and their wallets.

"We're pretty passionate about protecting our tourism economy," Clark said. She recalled lobbying mayors and council members to pass resolutions when she bumped into them on the streets.

Pagliughi, who called the opposition a no-brainer, was a quick sell. Cape May Mayor Clarence Lear, who doesn't want to see a single oil platform on his horizon, asked what he could do.

Clark summed up her lobbying to fight Trump's proposal: "It was easy," she said.
Dublin

In the end, it wasn't even close.

Irish voters  young and old, male and female, farm and city-bred folk  endorsed expunging an abortion ban from the largely Catholic country's constitution by a two-to-one margin, referendum results showed on Saturday.

The decisive outcome of the landmark referendum held Friday exceeded expectations and was cast as a historic victory for women's rights. Polls had given the pro-repeal "yes" side a small lead, suggesting a close contest.

Since 1983, the now-repealed Eighth Amendment had forced women seeking to terminate pregnancies to go abroad for abortions, bear children conceived through rape or incest or take illegal measures at home.

As the final tally was announced showing over 66 percent of voters supported lifting the ban, crowds in the ancient courtyard of Dublin Castle began chanting "Savita! Savita!" in honor of Savita Halappanavar, a 31-year-old dentist who died of sepsis during a protracted miscarriage after being denied an abortion at a Galway hospital in 2012.

With exit polls showing a win for abortion rights campaigners, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar called the apparent victory the "culmination of a quiet revolution." He hailed the momentous outcome as a victory for Ireland's future.

"I said in recent days that this was a once in a generation vote. Today I believe we have voted for the next generation," said Varadkar, Ireland's first openly gay leader and first prime minister from an ethnic minority.

The next battleground is likely to be Ireland's parliament, where the government led by Varadkar hopes to capitalize on the fresh momentum and enact legislation spelling out the conditions under which abortions will be legal for the first time by the end of this year.

The plan is to allow abortions during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and in special cases after the first trimester, likely ending the trail of Irish women who go elsewhere mostly to neighboring Britain  by the thousands each year for abortions they can't get at home.

"Under the Eighth Amendment, the only thing we could say to women in this country was 'Take a flight or take a boat,'" Health Minister Simon Harris told Irish broadcaster RTE. "And now the country is saying, 'No, take our hands, we want to support you.'"

Some called for the new abortion legislation to be named, "Savita's law." Her father, Andanappa Yalagi, expressed his gratitude for Ireland's "yes" vote.

"We've got justice for Savita," he told Hindustan Times. "What happened to her will not happen to any other family."

Opponents of the repeal movement conceded defeat Saturday morning after exit polls from the night before suggested they had no hope of victory.

John McGuirk, spokesman for the Save the 8th group, told RTE that many Irish citizens would not recognize the country in which they were waking up. The group said on its website that the referendum was a "tragedy of historic proportions," but McGuirk said the vote must still be respected.

"You can still passionately believe the decision of the people is wrong, as I happen to do, and accept it," he said.

The final tally showed that just over 66 percent of voters who cast valid ballots wanted the Eighth Amendment abolished. Exit polls indicated that both men and women strongly opposed the abortion ban, and that opposition to it was strong in rural areas, not just cosmopolitan Dublin.

The Eighth Amendment banned nearly all abortions and turned women seeking them into pariahs. (Northern Ireland allows abortions only when a mother's life is at risk.) Lifting the ban highlights the diminishing influence of the Catholic Church. Same-sex marriage was approved here in 2015.

"This is a monumental day for women in Ireland," said Orla O'Connor, co-director of the Together for Yes group. "This is about women taking their rightful place in Irish society, finally," adding that the vote is a "rejection of an Ireland that treated women as second-class citizens."

At Dublin's Intercontinental Hotel, a jubilant crowd watched TV for hours as 39 out of 40 districts voted for repeal. Cheers erupted. Women hugged. The final count announced at Dublin Castle was met by 1,000 people outside singing, chanting and toasting each other with champagne despite light rain.

There were roars of approval Saturday when two female Sinn Fein party leaders raised a sign that read, "The North is next".
WASHINGTON - In a direct challenge to President Donald Trump, Sen. Marco Rubio suggested Sunday that Congress would take steps to prevent the Chinese tech firm ZTE from being able to operate in the United States.

Trump had announced last week that he would allow the telecom giant to stay open, in a sharp reversal after the United States had imposed crippling penalties on the company for sanctions violations.

In an appearance on CBS News' "Face the Nation," Rubio, R-Fla., said there is "a growing commitment in Congress to do something about what China is trying to do to the United States" and that "one of the things that Congress will do is ... not even allow Chinese telecom companies to operate in the United States."

"None of these companies should be operating in this country," he said, also naming the Chinese telecom firm Huawei. "None of them."

Rubio has been a leader of the congressional charge against Trump's plans to ease the restrictions on ZTE that were imposed after it broke U.S. sanctions by selling products to Iran and North Korea. As part of a deal reached last week with ZTE, the firm would be required to buy American-made parts and pay a $1.3 billion fine.

But lawmakers like Rubio remain unconvinced that the terms will do anything to keep China from using companies like ZTE to target U.S. national and corporate security.

"They are used for espionage ... whether it's routers or anything else, they embed stuff in there that could be used to spy against us, not just for national security," Rubio said. "That's how they steal corporate secrets. That's how they transfer technology. If they can't force you to do it through a business deal, they steal it from you."

The senator did not go into specifics about what kind of legislative measure Congress might pursue to block the president. The annual defense authorization bills being considered in Congress already contain a prohibition on the federal government using Huawei and ZTE products. Rubio has also proposed legislation that would do the same, as well as ban sales of intellectual property and "national security sensitive technology" to China.

But on Sunday, the senator seemed to suggest that Congress should go even further. He guessed that there would be ample support among lawmakers to overcome any potential veto from the president.

"I believe it'll have a supermajority," Rubio said. "I think most members of Congress have come to understand the threat China poses."
Picture The Alamo 183 years ago: Lt. Col. William B. Travis scribbling the enemy in large force is in sight as he wrote to Gonzales for backup, while Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna and his army prepared to overtake the garrison.

Feb. 23, marks the 183th anniversary of the first day of the 13-day siege, better known as the 13 days of glory that ultimately ended in the Alamo company's defeat.
EDITORS NOTE  OWI means operating while intoxicated. DWLS means driving while license suspended. (MC) is for Judge Michael D. Carpenter. (L) is for Magistrate Gerald Ladwig. (B) is for Circuit Judge Michael J. Beale. (SC) is for Circuit Judge Stephen P. Carras. Sentences may vary based on previous offenses committed by the defendant. Some sentencings include other fees imposed by the state. Compiled by reporter Kelly Dame.

Coleman

Carrie Sue Rice, 33, drove while unlicensed or license not valid on May 2, $200 fines and costs (L).

Grace Anna Thrush, 77, second-offense OWI on Oct. 30, one year in jail suspended, $800 fines and costs, one year probation, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Freeland

Jesus Charles Gomez, 21, allowing DWLS and false identification on Dec. 12, $600 fines and costs (MC).

Midland

Alexis Rachelle Alward, 19, Quincy Drive, marijuana possession on Feb. 23, four days in jail with credit for one day, $300 fines and costs, driver license suspended for six months (MC).

Marissa Gwen Dickey, 31, North Rustic Drive, OWI on Feb. 24, one day in jail with credit for time served, $800 fines and costs, attend counseling as directed (MC).

John Joseph Farrell, 53, Osborne Drive, unlawful use of license plate on April 25, $200 fines and costs (L).

Kurt Elias Freidinger, 59, Buchanan Drive, two counts aggravated domestic violence on Feb. 9, one year in jail for each count suspended with credit for 101 days, $700 fines and costs, two years probation, not to be involved in any assaultive, threatening, intimidating, violent, aggressive, disorderly or abusive behavior toward any person, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Elizabeth Marie Gasser, 45, South Sasse Road, OWI on March 2, 93 days in jail suspended with credit for one day, $600 fines and costs, four months probation, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Kaylyn Ann Gutzmer, 27, South Saginaw Road, impaired driving on March 2, 93 days in jail suspended with credit for two days, $775 fines and costs, six months probation, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Isaac Oliver Hughes, 39, South Orus Road, unlawful use of license plate on April 29, $200 fines and costs (L).

Rebecca Jean Humpert, 40, Dublin Avenue, impaired driving on Feb. 10, eight days in jail with credit for two days, $350 fines and costs (MC).

Andrew John Najor, 26, Helen Street, marijuana use on March 3, $200 fines and costs, driver license sanctions ordered (MC).

Kelly Renee Passalacqua, 45, Lund Drive, OWI on Dec. 8, 93 days in jail suspended with credit for one day, $975 fines and costs, six months probation, vehicle immobilized, to be monitored by an alcohol tether for six months, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed, to be monitored by an alcohol tether for six months (MC).

Dustin Allen-Leonard Perysian, 27, Isabella Street, unlawful use of license plate on April 30, $200 fines and costs (L).

Heather Marie Rosenbrock, 45, North Monarch Circle, OWI and fail to provide information or render aid after accident on March 6, 93 days in jail for the first count and 90 days in jail for the second count with each term suspended with credit for two days, $1,025 fines and costs, $1,110.67 restitution, nine months probation, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Angela Rose Wallace, 41, Carolina Street, attempted third-degree retail fraud on Oct. 11, 46 days in jail suspended with credit for one day, $500 fines and costs, six months probation, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Elizabeth Marie Yaworski, 25, North Saginaw Road, no proof of insurance on April 29, $210 fine (L).

Saginaw

Bryan Edward Jackson, 35, second-offense domestic violence on Jan. 5 and second-offense domestic violence, assault and battery, and interfering with electronic communication on Feb. 4, one year in jail for each of the first two offenses and 93 days in jail for each of the remaining offenses with each term suspended with credit for 30 days, $1,600 fines and costs, two years probation, to be monitored by a tether for 180 days, no contact with victim, abide by CPS rules, obtain employment, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Justin Allen Webb, 23, driving without insurance on April 12, $300 fines and costs (MC).

Sanford

Brook William Altman II, 48, allowing DWLS on March 24, $400 fines and costs (MC).

Maurice Babe Bovear, 36, assault and battery on Aug. 27, 2016, 93 days in jail suspended with credit for four days, $500 fines and costs, one year probation, write apology letter to victim, not to be involved in any assaultive, threatening, intimidating, violent, aggressive, disorderly or abusive behavior toward any person, may not use or possess drugs or alcohol, subject to random drug and alcohol screening, may not enter bars, attend counseling as directed (MC).

Virgil Elroy Lavier III, 32, domestic violence on Sept. 11, 11 days in jail with credit for time served, $400 fines and costs (MC).

Brian Larry Leath II, 26, DWLS on Feb. 11, 93 days in jail suspended, $200 fines and costs, six months probation (MC).

James Robert Pate, 42, DWLS on March 7, $200 fines and costs, $411.26 restitution (MC).

Shepherd

Todd Allen Jerome, 33, marijuana possession on Feb. 21, seven days in jail with credit for two days, $250 fines and costs, six months probation (MC).

St. Louis

Joshua Allen Husted, 30, OWI on March 14, 30 days in jail with credit for one day, $650 fines and costs (MC).

Elsewhere

Jennifer Lynn Salter, 34, Brant, fourth-degree child abuse, and assault and battery on Dec. 29, 93 days in jail for each count with credit for three days, $175 fines and costs (MC).
What are you planning to do this Memorial Day? What is the day for? Why was it created?

Despite a long tradition of public promises that those who give their lives fighting for their families, cities and countries will live on in communal memory, human hearts and minds can stand only so much. Memories fade. When our society does not bear the burdens of war collectively, we suffer collective amnesia.

As a result, in most American communities during the Memorial Day weekend, people tend to do things like those listed on austin360.com: attending a crawfish festival, eating burgers for brunch, drinking popsicle cocktails, zinging along ziplines, singing karaoke with a live band, and checking out vintage cars and hot rods. But what does any of this have to do with a national day of reverent commemoration?

In Austin, a movie is featured each day at a grand old theater  Titanic, Pirates of the Caribbean, Bonnie and Clyde and Werner Herzogs Fitzcarraldo. None of these films makes any connection with what those who have served in our armed forces have gone through for our sake.

This Memorial Day marks 150 years since what was originally called Decoration Day was first observed, and it sadly confirms the premonition of the Civil War veteran who proposed it.

The impetus in 1868 did not come from the grieving families of the 620,000 soldiers who died in our Civil War. Nor did it come from the public. They were busy getting back to their peace-time lives. And it did not come from elected political leaders, although the deaths and suffering of soldiers preserved the very government in which they held offices.

The impetus came from members of the fraternal organization of veterans of the Union Army, Union Navy and Marines known as the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR).

Gen. John A. Logan of Illinois, the first GAR commander in chief, issued a general order on May 5, 1868, designating May 30, 1868, for the purpose of strewing flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country. His choice of the word comrades makes clear that his focus was on veterans themselves honoring the fallen.

Logan was a successful politician. The GAR was a large and formidable lobbying group. But he was also realistic. He knew veterans had to look out for their own: If other eyes grow dull and other hands slack, and other hearts cold in the solemn trust, ours shall keep it well as long as the light and warmth of life remains in us. He envisioned veterans cherishing tenderly the memory of our heroic dead and guarding their graves with sacred vigilance.

In early May, my wife and I visited the veterans section of Calvary Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio, where my fathers kid brother Joey, a corporal in the United States Marine Corps in the Pacific Theater during World War II, lies buried. I removed the encroaching soil and grass from his and neighboring headstones. We contemplated his fighting in hellish battles like Iwo Jima when he was 20 years old. He died at 24, tubercular and debilitated by war.

Close to Joseph Palaima lies the body of Medal of Honor winner Pvt. Frank Joseph Petrarca. Petrarca rescued four wounded soldiers under fierce enemy fire on July 27 and July 29, 1943. Trying to rescue yet another wounded buddy, he was killed two days later, on his 25th birthday.

Also close by lie the remains of veteran Joseph Dehouske (1914-1948). Elsie, his wife, widow and mother of their children, was laid to rest beside him 45 years later in 1993. She long remembered those who died fighting for us.

We should remember them too, and her, and everyone affected by war. Make your Memorial Day memorable. Visit a local cemetery or war memorial. After a century and a half, lets prove Gen. Logan wrong. Keep in your heart what veterans have done for us all.

Tom Palaima is a MacArthur fellow and a professor of classics at the University of Texas at Austin.
Re: Still on Triple Crown track; Justify edges Good Magic in foggy thriller, Sports, May 20:

Well, we are on the threshold of another possible Triple Crown. And the best part of all is that Justify did not run as a 2-year-old and has shown that isnt necessary for success. This would be a great trend to catch on.

As horse owners and lovers, my husband and I watch everything equestrian that is available. We have always lamented that race horses are started way too young and that 3-year-olds are just babies, with immature minds and bodies. Other equestrian disciplines, such as cross country eventing (very difficult), start their mounts much more slowly.

As a result, horses are competitive well into their late teens. You certainly dont see that in racing. But you could. And now people can see that stressing 2-year-olds isnt absolutely necessary. Its a start. As an audience, we should encourage this.

Sue Snyder

Check that

The only way to stop a bad person with a gun is a good person ... I mean ... The only way to stop a bad person with a gun is to limit the number of guns available to get!

Irwin Rubin

Feeble responses

Edmund Burke, a father of modern conservatism, believed that bad men needed nothing more than good men doing nothing. For decades, Americans have argued and argued about what to do about mass killings by troubled teenagers and other males in their twenties.

Public policy action has become frozen, fixated on gun control and the sacred 2nd Amendment, blocking out reasonable action, while hundreds have died.

It is what it is. Teachers need to be armed. We offer our thoughts and prayers. These are just a few of the excuses to do nada.

American public-school funding to bolster ultra-lax security systems and build infrastructure has waned in most states, as well as funding for public schools in general. This trend has, ironically, been endorsed by conservative Republicans, who once favored investment in our youth to maintain the status quo.

Our cracked infrastructure on so many levels is quite visible; and yet, we do nada.

J. L. Howell

Justice served

Re: Sense of entitlement, Your Turn, May 21:

The letter writer summed up my views very eloquently regarding the entitled attitude of Catherine Amato when being arrested for breaking the law and (allegedly) driving while in intoxicated. And she did it without the use of expletives. While reading the column she is referring to (Businesswomans dismissed DWI seen speeding through the system, Brian Chasnoff, May 12), there were many expletives that came to mind to describe what Ms. Amato said to our very fine SAPD!!

I can only hope than Ms. Amato receives the justice she is due instead of some plea bargain.

Randy G. Whitworth

Climate impact

Re: Five years ago, city was awash in flooding; And now, work continues to alleviate problems in the future, front page, Sunday:

This article details the lengths to which the city will address the personal and monetary expense associated with heavy rainfall events and subsequent flooding. Addressing flooding is critical but ignores the root cause  climate change.

As noted in the article  three of the wettest days in San Antonio history, based on weather records kept over the past 133 years, occurred in the past 20 years, suggesting a trend of more frequent extreme flooding.

This observation reflects climate models that predict more frequent and intense precipitation.

One approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions  a root cause of climate change  is the carbon fee and dividend (CFD) policy proposed by the Citizens Climate Lobby. CFD does not require a regulatory approach, and is revenue neutral and market driven.

Addressing the negative result of climate change while ignoring the cause is like spending all your money on skin cream to reduce the pain of sunburn while still lying out in the sun all day every day.

Stuart Birnbaum, San Antonio CCL

Adjust the pay scale

Re: U.S. public schools do not constitute a public good, Corey DeAngelis, Other Views, Sunday:

Mr. DeAngelis fails to consider families that do not have enough money to fund an Education Savings Account, a typical oversight from those among the haves, not the have nots. I do agree that we have too much state government involvement in our schools, and that we spend too much money for the result that we get.

My solution would be that the further you get from the classroom (superintendents, principles, counselors, etc.), the less money you make. That would put the best people possible in the classroom, with, hopefully, better results.

Robert Cockrell

Liberal a misnomer

Re: Look it up, Your Turn, May 5; and The liberal media, Your Turn, May 22:

Recently, several letter writers have tried to apply the dictionary definition of liberal and conservative to the political versions of liberal and conservative. That doesnt work mainly because the left in this country wont call themselves what they really are, that being socialists. Being called a socialist in this country has a bad connotation as it relates to Marxism and communism, so theyve chosen to call themselves liberals instead, which is a misnomer.

Liam Harvie
- George Emenalo has dared to secure victory against the Imo state governor, Rochas Okorocha, and his son-in-law

- Emenalo said he would become the next governor of Imo state

- According to him, the situation in Imo has made it compulsory for honest men with the fear of God to rise up and pick up the mantle of leadership

A governorship aspirant in Imo, George Emenalo, popularly called Boy George (BG), on Sunday, May 27, expressed optimism to become the next executive governor of the state.

Emenalo, who has just joined the gubernatorial race in Imo, expressed the optimism while addressing newsmen in Lagos.

He said that his confidence was from God, whose mandate was for him to liberate the people of the state from their sufferings.

The situation in Imo has made it compulsory for honest men with the fear of God to rise up and pick up the mantle of leadership.

It is Gods time in Imo; I do not have the financial muscle like some of the other aspirants but with God and the people, the impunity in the state will come to an end in 2019 he said.

READ ALSO: Buhari receives wives of 36 state governors at the Presidential Villa (photos)

He said that his decision to join the race was influenced by agitations from the people for God fearing men with good reputation to take over the leadership of the state.

The issues emanating from governance in the state; sufferings by all and sundry, non payment of staff salaries, neglect of the rural dwellers are some of the reasons why there must be a shift in leadership.

According to him, if the people of Imo do not get it right in 2019, they may remain in abject poverty and sufferings for a long time to come.

If elected, I will ensure that past leaders, who have used the states resources for personal use are brought to book.

The fight against corruption must be extended to states and their leadership, including past governors, commissioners and council chairmen among others.

On the platform he intended to use for the election, Emenalo said that he would announce it later.

READ ALSO: Saraki, Tambuwal, other nPDP leaders meet, divided on defection, new party

I am currently talking with some political parties and as soon as we reach a decision, I will make the outcome known, he said.

Emenalo is a 51- year- old businessman and a Mass Communication graduate of the University of Nigeria Nsukka.

PAY ATTENTION: Get the Latest Nigerian News Anywhere 24/7. Spend less on the Internet!

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Egbu, Imo state, Reverend Geoffrey Okorafor, the move by the Imo state governor to install his son-in-law as governor is an ill-motivated project.

Okorafor said the governor has not only failed God, but has also disappointed the people of Imo state.

He also described the plan by Okorocha to install his son-in-law as a charade and an insult to the integrity and dignity of Owerri, Okigwe and Orlu people.

Source: NAN

What is cooking in Imo state? - On Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Despite the blockade of the venue of the congress of the APC in Cross River by police in the state, the party has elected new executives

- The proposed venue of the congress, Ikot-Ansa Town Hall, was sealed off by no fewer than 100 policemen

- At the venue that was sealed off, a faction of the party led by a former governor of the state, Clement Ebri, elected Mathew Achigbe as its new chairman

No fewer than 100 policemen on Sunday, May 27 sealed off Ikot-Ansa Town Hall, the proposed venue of the congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Calabar, the Cross River state capital.

According to the police, the intervention was meant to avert what was referred to as bloodbath.

In spite of this, a faction of the party led by Clement Ebri, a former governor of the state; and John Owan-Enoh, the senator representing the central senatorial district in the National Assembly, elected a new chairman in the person of Mathew Achigbe and other executive members of the party by votes at the venue, Punch reports.

Legit.ng notes that the commissioner of police in the state, Hafiz Inuwa, had issued a directive that the venue be sealed off, and the directive was effected as early as 9:00am.

READ ALSO: Federal government reiterates support for IDPs, promises to keep fighting drug abuse

Inuwa said: I got intelligence report that there would be bloodbath; so, I had to intervene. A faction of the party had initially written that they wanted to hold the congress at that venue, but the chairman of the party wrote to dissociate himself from that congress. We acted promptly to avert a breakdown of law and order."

John Ochala, however, emerged vice chairman of the party, while Bishop Victor Ebong was voted as secretary at the election conducted at the new venue, premises of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital

Shortly after his emergence as the new factional chairman, Dr Mathew Achigbe said: I thank all delegates for finding us worthy to serve the party. It is a great honour and we shall take the party to the next level.

We want to also thank President Buhari for all he has done for Cross River. We assure him that we would support him and also ensure that the state gives him massive votes in 2019.

PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the crisis rocking the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River state on Friday, February 9, assumed a new twist as a new factional acting chairman, Etim John, took possession of the party secretariat located along Barracks road in Calabar.

It was reported that on January 27, the party executive led by its acting chairman, John Ochala, alongside the vice-chairman of APC (south-south), Chief Hilliard Eta, suspended the minister of Niger Delta affairs, Uguru Usani, over alleged acts of insubordination.

APC is the worst party in Nigeria, I regret being a member - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Newspaper
I thought I bought a micro pig  I was wrong NY Post

The owner of a SLO County fish market bought a 70-pound octopus  but not to sell it The Tribune

The Silence of the Bugs NYT (J-LS). A study published last fall documented a 76 percent decline in the total seasonal biomass of flying insects netted at 63 locations in Germany over the last three decades. Losses in midsummer, when these insects are most numerous, exceeded 80 percent. Anecdotes from the NC readership support this: I have not seen a bug splat on a windshield for ages. More from the article: This alarming discovery, made by mostly amateur naturalists who make up the volunteer-run Entomological Society Krefeld Wave that in front of anybody whinging that all the jobs in a Jobs Guarantee have to be make-work. There are enormous opportunities in citizen science.

Its Time for the Climate Movement to Embrace a Federal Jobs Guarantee In These Times

Oaktree founder warns private equity standards slipping FT. Just in time for CalPERS to buy in!

Is This the Next Big Retailer to Melt Down? Its Bonds Crashed Wolf Street. Private equity strikes again!

S&P 500 companies have returned $1 trillion to shareholders in tax-cut surge Business Insider. Yves: Returned. Help me. Sure to be mainly buybacks.

Google, Facebook and Snap challenge governance standards FT. Because theyre crooks. And wheres that Oxford comma?

FIFA Is About to Destroy World Soccer Bloomberg

Syraqistan

Only 4.75 Million Join Indias Workforce Annually, Not 12 Million As Claimed India Spend

North Korea

Nuclear Diplomacy Between Brazil and Argentina: An Imperfect But Important History Lesson War on the Rocks

Brexit

Ireland votes to remove constitutional ban on abortion by resounding two-thirds majority Irish Times

Heres a t-shirt you could wear everywhere in East Asia without upsetting anyone Quartz. Handy map of claimed territories in the South China Sea. No issues here!

New Cold War

Brazil truckers strike enters sixth day Agence France Presse

Trump Transition

Stormy Daniels in Vice Industry Crypto Effort Investopedia (E. Mayer). E. Mayer commments: Ms. Daniels has her liaison and legal battle with Trump to thank for rescuing her from Stormy who? PR-oblivion and thus enabling her to cash in big-time. Aint capitalism grand? We even have another set of everyone will make money! promises, so clearly in a few years we can expect to see a batch of newly-minted PornCoin billionaires, not just on the coin-issuer side, but also among the more heroically avid content consumers.' I dunno. On the one hand, Im very happy to file Bitcoin and its ilk under The Bezzle. On the other, the demand for porn drove the expansion of the Internet, home video, and the printed word. So

Realignment and Legitimacy

The Real Constitutional Crisis Kimberley A. Strassel, WSJ. Mr. Trump has an even quicker way to bring the hostility to an end. He canand shoulddeclassify everything possible, letting Congress and the public see the truth. That would put an end to the daily spin and conspiracy theories. Good point, unless of course all parties to the dispute view daily spin and conspiracy theories not as a bug, but a feature. The Failed State of Franklin ThoughtCo (CL). Forgotten history.

RFK Jr. doesnt believe the official story that Sirhan Sirhan shot his father alone  and wants a new investigation Raw Story

The Long Journey to Remember One of Historys Worst Lynching Massacres Vice. Note the essential role of debt.

Big Brother Is Watching You Watch

Democrats in Disarray

Class Warfare

Cultural hitchhiking and competition between patrilineal kin groups explain the post-Neolithic Y-chromosome bottleneck Nature. This suggests that around 50007000 BP [Before Present, so 2000-5000 BC], coinciding with the post-Neolithic period in each region of the Old World for which the bottleneck was found, there were minor changes in the number of reproducing females and a more stable female population, whereas dramatic reduction in the number of reproducing males occurred. So, virilicide?

Antidote du jour (via):

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
By Lambert Strether of Corrente.

Before they sink beneath the waves of the latest moral panic or election horse-race hot take, I want to draw your attention to two stories that are presented as separate but are in fact intertwined. Both concern the Veterans Administration (VA), one of Americas several eligibility-determined single payer systems. (Like Britains NHS, but unlike Canadian or American Medicare, the VA owns its facilities and employs its own medical personnel. That makes it a target-rich environment for neoliberals.)

1) A newly-signed contract with Cerner Corporation for a new VA Electronic Health Record (EHR), the same as the Defense Departments

2) The VA Mission Act, now on President Trumps desk

The stories intertwine because they look like theyre part of the neoliberal privatization playbook, here described in a post about Americas universities:

Its almost like theres a neo-liberal playbook, isnt there? No underpants gnomes, they! [1] Defund [or sabotage], [2] claim crisis, [3] call for privatization [4] Profit! [ka-ching]. Congress underfunds the VA, then overloads it with Section 8 patients, a crisis occurs, and Obamas first response is send patients to the private system. Congress imposes huge unheard-of, pension requirements on the Post Office, such that it operates at a loss, and its gradually cannibalized by private entities, whether for services or property. And charters are justified by a similar process.

(Ive helpfully numbered the steps, and added sabotage alongside defunding, although defunding is neoliberalisms main play, based on the ideology of austerity.) We can see this process play out not only in public universities, public schools, the Post Office, and the TSA, but in Britains NHS, a national treasure that the Tories are systematically and brutally dismantling.)

Ill begin by looking at the VAs EHR project, and then move on to the VA Mission Act.

A New EHR for the Veterans Administration

After a year or so of deliberation, the VA finally signed off with Cerner on an EHR modernization project in mid-May:

According to the announcement  and a budget forecast  the Cerner EHR at the VA will be identical to the one currently in the pilot phase at the Department of Defense. Currently, officials at both agencies are working together to impart lessons learned into the VA project. We expect this program to be a positive catalyst for interoperability across the public and private healthcare sectors, said Cerner President Zane Burke in a statement. We look forward to moving quickly with organizations across the industry to deliver on the promise of this Mission.

(positive catalyst. Hoo boy). It does seem reasonable that DoD and the VA should both use the same EHR, but theres a snag: The DoD EHR project (MHS Genesis) is a debacle. HealthCare IT News, also mid-May:

The Department of Defense, along with EHR vendor Cerner and contractor Leidos, held a call with reporters late Friday in response to a report finding that MHS Genesis implementation is not effective and slamming the massive modernization works survivability as well as recommending DoD delay the project. MHS Genesis  is not operationally suitable because of poor system usability, insufficient training and help desk support , according to the Initial Operational Test and Evaluation. Behler pointed to a lack of workplace functionality needed to document and manage patient care as examples, and noted that clinicians using MHS Genesis only completed 56 percent of the 197 tasks used to measure performance . Poorly designed user roles and workflows resulted in an increase in the time required for healthcare providers to complete daily tasks, according to the report. In some instances, EHR issues caused providers to work overtime or see fewer patients . In other cases, users actually questioned that accuracy of the data exchanged between external systems and MHS Genesis  which could have put patient lives at risk. Users generated 22 high severity incident reports that the testers attributed to inoperability, including interoperability of medical and peripheral devices, according to the report. Users ranked usability at 37 out of 100 on the system usability scale.

More from Politico:

The first stage of the Pentagons $4.3 billion MHS Genesis project has been plagued with severe usability and interoperability problems, according to an April 30 report obtained by POLITICO. Pentagon inspectors who visited three of the four Pacific Northwest treatment centers in the rollout found 156 critical or severe incident reports  i.e. flaws typically serious enough to result in patient deaths. They canceled the fourth visit until problems could be resolved at the first three centers.The report concluded that MHS Genesis, is neither operationally effective, nor operationally suitable  and recommended freezing the rollout indefinitely . That, in effect, is what the MHS Genesis project management office has done, though leader Stacy Cummings says its still on track to finish on time in 2022.

The report confirms and deepens findings from our March investigation, in which doctors and IT specialists expressed alarm about the software system, describing how clinicians at one of four pilot centers, Naval Station Bremerton, quit because they were terrified they might hurt or even kill patients

Of the 7,000 trouble tickets submitted, 1000 have been resolved. Here is the DODs response. Federal Times:

As for negative reports, were disappointed stakeholder feedback continues to be taken out of context to present an incomplete, inaccurate and misleading narrative about the successful completion of the MHS GENESIS initial operating capability phase, the spokesman continued. MHS GENESIS is already achieving meaningful improvements related to quality, efficiency and safety in the initial deployment sites. We are confident MHS GENESIS remains on track for full deployment.

Which totally explains why clinicians decided to enter todays labor market because they were terrified they might hurt or even kill patients. You have to wonder why MHS Genesis project was initiated at all. NextGov:

DoD responds to report calling Cerner EHR not operationally suitable The VAs electronic health system was rated the best for overall user satisfaction in a survey of more than 15,000 physicians, while the Pentagons current platformthe Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Applicationscored dead last.

So, call me crazy, but why not give consideration to making the VA system the standard for the DoD?

Its no surprise that a program as big as MHS Genesisis going to have problems like thisaccording to all the metrics, most large federal IT programs arent successful, said [former VA chief information officer Roger Baker], who held the departments top tech job from 2009 to 2013. [VA] need[s] to remember that the probability theyre flushing that $16 billion down the toilet is actually greater than 50 percent.For one, most VA doctors dont mind the current platform.

So, replacing a system that works with a new system is a $4 billion coin-flip. Perhaps Roger Baker asks a question that answers itself:

Whats it going to look like when VA is trying to replace the most liked [platform] out there? Baker said, especially when the military is having trouble convincing doctors to quit one of the least liked.

To a cynic, it might look like Step One of the neoliberal privatization playbook: Sabotage. Especially because the first time the VA and the DoD tried this, it failed.

The VA Mission Act

And now for the VA Mission Act, passed in a thoroughly bipartisan fashion MR SUBLIMINAL Count the spoons when they leave the house! with support from the Koch Brothers (fascists, we are told, but apparently fascists with friends).

This Act may be cited as the John S. McCain III, Daniel K. Akaka, and Samuel R. Johnson VA M aintaining I nternal S ystems and S trengthening I ntegrated O utside N etworks Act of 2018 or the VA MISSION Act of 2018.

(That acronym is almost as clever as USA PATRIOT Act.) If youve been looking for an honor roll of Democrat Senators who will defend a single payer system that actually exists, here it is:

The Senate easily cleared legislation on Wednesday overhauling medical care options for veterans, sending the bill to President Trumps desk. Senators voted 92-5 on the proposal, called the VA Mission Act, with only a simple majority needed to pass the bill. Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) voted against the legislation.

Here is a refreshingly open headline from the Washington Post:

Congress sends massive veterans bill to Trump, opening door to more private health care

Here is a one-liner from the Metal Trades Union, in a failed attempt to halt the bill:

Congress should be investing more in the VA, not privatizing and downsizing it.

In other words, another version of Step One from the neoliberal playbook: Not sabotage, but defunding.

Here is Sanders reaction, in Common Dreams:

I am concerned, however, that despite some very good provisions in this bill, it continues a trend toward the slow, steady privatization of the VA . No one disagrees that veterans should be able to seek private care in cases where the VA cannot provide the specialized care they require, or when wait times for appointments are too long or when veterans might have to travel long distances for that care. The way to reduce wait times is to make sure that the VA is able to fill the more than 30,000 vacancies it currently has . This bill provides $5 billion for the Choice program. It provides nothing to fill the vacancies at the VA. That is wrong. My fear is that this bill will open the door to the draining, year after year, of much needed resources from the VA.

Step One, defunding, again. And surprisngly good coverage, well worth a read, from Mother Jones:

Congress Is Poised to Push Veterans Health Care Closer to Privatization The first strike in this war over privatization occurred in 2014, when Republicans blocked a bill introduced by Bernie Sanders that would have provided the VA with much-needed funds and expanded services to veterans. A compromise measure, the 2014 VA Choice Act, gave the VA a fraction of the funds it needed while allocating $10 billion for care in the private sector. (More than one-third of all VA-funded medical appointments last year took place in the private sector.) The Choice Act, cast initially as a temporary measure, has been extended repeatedly. The Mission Act will make permanent its privatizing principles by allowing and even encouraging more veterans to seek care outside the VA. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the act would result in 640,000 additional veterans seeking private care in the first few years after its passage, and that the agencys current annual allocation of $9 billion for private care would increase substantially. The bill is essentially a Trojan Horse, and the provisions tucked inside it will further usher in privatization without meaningfully addressing core agency challenges.

Sanders was too nice when he said very good provisions. He should have said Trojan horse. This sets up Step Two, crisis, and provides the solution: Step Three: Privatization.

According to a detailed analysis by the Veterans Healthcare Action Campaign, a veterans advocacy group that opposes the law, the bill imposes stringent new quality metrics that are untested and fail to consider key health outcomes such as symptom reduction. Moreover, if a VA hospital is found to be underperforming in a certain area, a huge swath of patients can be pushed into the private sector. The act loosens other restrictions that determine a veterans eligibility to seek care from a private doctor or hospital. Without providing the funding to hire extra staff, the law also imposes new time-consuming bureaucratic challenges on the VA (or, potentially, a contractor), including setting up appointments with private providers, coordinating care, processing payments to private providers and making sure they provide documentation of the care delivered.

Sabotage, crisis.

The law would also require VA employees to develop and deliver training materials for the private sector.

The old get them to train their replacements and fire them ploy! It never gets old!

Finally, the bill would establish a nine-person commission, beginning in 2021, to assess the VAs future infrastructure needs. The commission will make recommendations of facility closures based on utilization. The upshot is that if the push to shift veterans into private-sector care continues, the corresponding decline in utilization of VA facilities could be used to justify closing those facilities permanentlyregardless of whos providing the highest-quality care.

Step Four, profit. Let the looting begin!

Conclusion

Its clear the VA is an institution to watch. Note that Im by no means an expert on the VA  its seemed to work pretty well, so far, so theres been little reason to pay attention to it, with so much else going on  and so Id welcome reader comments from those who have availed themselves of its services, or work there.

APPENDIX I: Software

Remember when we could write software that worked? Good times:

This is Margaret Hamilton, NASA lead software engineer, and this is the Apollo guidance program she wrote. pic.twitter.com/veweKVHE2n  JD (@nevesytrof) December 10, 2014

APPENDIX II: Privatization

Heres a nauseating n instructive opinion piece from Anthony Tersigni, CEO of Ascension, the worlds largest Catholic health system and the largest non-profit (so-called) health system. You can read it if you dont already have a sense of privatizers choice of tropes, but this caught my eye:

Ascensions mission calls us to care for all, especially the poor and vulnerable. Its for this reason that the VA Mission Act truly resonates with us, and we are humbled to serve this deserving population.

Well, fine, but Mattew 7:16: Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Some coverage on Ascension, from the St Louis Post-Dispatch, in 2014:

But under Tersignis leadership, Ascension has emerged in the past decade as the nations third-largest health care system  acquiring dozens of nonprofit hospitals and immersing itself in numerous for-profit ventures. That dramatic growth culminates Tuesday with the grand opening in the Cayman Islands of the first phase of a $2 billion health city complex  a project that seems far removed from the nonprofit health systems humble origins and its Catholic mission to serve the poor and vulnerable. Ascension executives say they hope through this joint venture with a for-profit, India hospital chain to learn ways to reduce medical costs. But the Caribbean investment also illustrates how dramatically U.S. health care is changing. In its rapid-fire evolution, Ascension has become a leading example of a nonprofit health system that often acts like a for-profit, blurring the line between businesses and charities . Its health ministry [!!] has drawn criticism for risk-taking and its ties to Wall Street. And some critics have raised questions about its tax-exempt status.

By 2017, Ascension had backed out of this sketchy venture into greenfields medical tourism (and it certainly is odd, isnt it, that the United States doesnt have a thriving medical tourism system, and that in fact those who can flee from the United States for health care, do?) Apparently, the approach of Narayana Healths Dr. Devi Shetty, Ascensions partner in this venture, was to standardize medical procedures to bring costs down. One might wonder whether there was a reason Ascension did their experimentation offshore, and whether they plan to apply their lessons learned to veterans. Interestingly, Ascensions Caymans project (Health City) is the subject of a Harvard Business School case study.
(Natural News) You might have heard a lot of acupuncture success stories, but if youve ever seriously considered this treatment for yourself, you were likely greeted with a lot of skepticism. Heres a look at some of the common arguments people make against acupuncture and why theyre way off base.

The first and possibly most common way detractors will shoot down your acupuncture aspirations is by saying that it isnt effective. Their reasoning is usually that it must not work because doctors dont recommend it. You dont have to be a brain surgeon to see the huge flaw in this argument: Doctors will by and large recommend the treatments that make them money, and acupuncture isnt one of them.

In fact, this argument is even more baseless when you realize that the solutions they do recommend  namely opiates  arent nearly as effective as they claim, and they bring with them a slew of very serious side effects like stroke, liver failure, and gastrointestinal bleeding, not to mention risk of addiction.

In a study carried out by Minneapolis VA researchers that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, opioids were shown to work no better than non-opioids and over-the-counter drugs at addressing pain. The researchers in that study said that the best options for chronic pain are actually exercise and physical therapy. Its not a study about acupuncture, but it does show just how little the experts think of drugs when it comes to dealing with pain.

Research is often misrepresented

Then theres the problem of research being misrepresented. The biggest example of this is those who claim that studies have shown it to be no more effective than a placebo. The 2005 study people usually cite when making this argument doesnt quite say that. In fact, it says that acupuncture is indeed more effective at relieving pain than no treatment or a sham treatment, and it adds that when its used alongside conventional therapies, it can relive pain and improve peoples function better than those conventional therapies on their own. However, acupuncture detractors fixate on the part of the study that says it cant draw firm conclusions about acupunctures effectiveness for acute low-back pain.

While picking and choosing the parts of studies that arent overwhelmingly supportive of acupunctures efficacy, they conveniently fail to mention the countless studies that have indeed shown what a big difference it can make.

For example, one meta analysis found it to be a superior choice for chronic back pain, even among those who have not responded to conventional therapy. Meanwhile, a review by Canadian researchers found it to be a safe means of relieving mechanical neck pain, outperforming placebos, delayed treatment and sham treatment.

Theres also a recent review of 15 controlled acupuncture studies that found it to be effective for people with carpal tunnel syndrome, diabetic neuropathy, HIV-related neuropathy, and Bells palsy. It handily outperformed the standard pinacerium bromide treatment for irritable bowel syndrome at 86.7 percent to 64.3 percent, and other studies have shown that it can help to relieve labor pain. A study published in the Chinese Medical Journal showed that women who were given acupuncture or electroacupuncture had significantly less pain than those given a placebo in the hours following their C-sections, requesting morphine later on average and using one third less of it during the first 24 hours post-surgery.

By putting flawed arguments aside and considering the vested interest some people have in the alternatives, many individuals are discovering for themselves just how effective acupuncture can be.

Sources for this article include:

GreenMedInfo.com

Minneapolis.VA.gov

NaturalNews.com
(Natural News) Without a doubt, more than a few customers who were eating at Louies Bar & Grill in Oklahoma City Thursday evening are grateful to be alive after a gunman walked in and started shooting.

And no doubt more than a few of them are relieved that a good guy with a gun managed to kill the potential murderer before he was able to turn his gun on them.

As reported by local media, OKC police were also relieved that the Good Samaritan manage to put an end to what could have been just the latest mass shooting in the U.S.

Its a blessing this was stopped [when it was], said Capt. Bo Matthews, according to The Daily Wire. Who knew when this guy was going to stop shooting people.

ALERT: The only confirmed fatality is the suspect. He was apparently shot-to-death by an armed citizen. Three citizens were injured, two of whom were shot. A large number of witnesses are detained. There is no indication of terrorism at this point, the OKC PD said in a tweet to citizens.

 ALERT: The only confirmed fatality is the suspect. He was apparently shot-to-death by an armed citizen. Three citizens were injured, two of whom were shot. A large number of witnesses are detained. There is no indication of terrorismat this point.  Oklahoma City Police (@OKCPD) May 25, 2018

Not all patrons were unscathed. A woman and her daughter were hit by gunfire and were hospitalized, according to The Daily Caller. Thats unfortunate, of course, but the point is this incident could have been much worse.

And many others have been  and nearly all of them have occurred in so-called gun-free zones that were implemented by Left-wing politicians who are guarded by men and women with guns but for some reason dont believe others should have the ability to defend themselves as otherwise permitted by the Second Amendment.

Despite little to no coverage by the media, shootings are frequently stopped by other people with guns

There have been other recent events where good people with guns stop bad people with guns:

 A man holding his baby managed to shoot one of four other men who were attempting to rob him outside of a McDonalds restaurant in Memphis earlier this month, Fox News reported, citing local news agencies. A witness to the event, David Chase, said the father fought back when the others began robbing him.

They jumped out of the car and they started fighting him and trying to take his wallet and stuff, Chase told a local news team. He was fighting them. He dropped his baby and started fighting them and the child was just sitting on the concrete.

Chase said he heard three to four gunshots; police said they believe at least one of the suspects was hit.

He was doing what any father should have did: protect his child. And I also told the police whether he had a gun license or not, it was a righteous shot, Chase said. He did what any man would do for his kids.

 In April, police responded to shots fired in North Hollywood. When they arrived, they found a man suffering from a pair of gunshot wounds; police think he was shot during a robbery attempt.

 In January a man with a concealed carry permit shot another man who was pointing a sawed-off shotgun at him around 2 a.m. outside a local business in Houston. Police said the man was walking towards his vehicle when he saw the other man pointing the shotgun; they added that the owner of the vehicle pulled out a handgun he was carrying and opened fire. Robbery was the likely motive, according to cops.

 In April 2017 a man in Cleveland shot a robber who broke into his home. Eddie Henderson III, 26, shot the suspect after he heard him opening drawers inside his house. Police said the robber was shot but managed to escape nonetheless. The robber barricaded himself inside Hendersons bathroom; Henderson then fired several shots through the door as the robber yelled at him to stop firing. Henderson has a concealed carry permit because he used to work at a barber shop where the owner required his barbers to carry concealed for their own protection.

Read more about the right to keep and bear arms for self-defense at SecondAmendment.news.

J.D. Heyes is also editor-in-chief of The National Sentinel.

Sources include:

DailyWire.com

DailyCaller.com

SecondAmendment.news
(Natural News) White people arent the only victims of systemic racism on American college campuses, according to the findings of a new study published by the Center for Equal Opportunity (CEO).

At Harvard University, anyway, students of Asian descent are vastly underrepresented, CEO claims  and its all because of Harvards discriminatory race-based admissions policies.

Compared to the California Institute of Technology, where a whopping 43 percent of the student body is Asian, Harvard claims only 17 percent Asian students. According to CEO, this percentage should be much higher.

Too many Asian Americans applying to elite schools are discriminated against on account of their race, wrote CEO chairman and founder Linda Chavez in a recent press release.

That is the message of our new study, and it is past time that schools quit the morally dubious means of using race or ethnicity as a factor in selecting their student bodies.

CEO says that prospective Asian students are being passed over at Harvard in favor of blacks, Hispanics, and even whites who arent as academically qualified. And its all due to discriminatory affirmative action policies, the group claims.

Similarly discriminatory admissions policies are also in place at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), CEO claims, which is why that schools percentage of Asian students is also less than half.

At both MIT and Harvard there seems to be a limit or ceiling on how many Asian American applicants are to be admitted, reads a list of some of the studys key points published on the CEO website.

If there were no such ceiling, both MIT and Harvard would probably enroll a significantly larger number of Asian American applicants. As it is, some of those applicants may conclude they were rejected on account of their race.

Trump administrations DoJ to investigate, sue schools for discriminating against white students

The irony here is that this discrimination is only problematic at this particular juncture in time now that a non-white group of people  in this case Asians  is feeling some of the pain. If it were only white people being denied admission in favor of lesser-qualified minorities, CEO wouldnt be making a peep about any of this.

In fact, the group is claiming that Asians are being unfairly denied admissions at MIT and Harvard in favor of whites  a claim that, for all intents and purposes, has absolutely no basis in reality.

Discrimination against white people in higher education has gotten so bad that the Department of Justice (DoJ) is currently in the process of suing a whole slew of American colleges and universities for affirmative action admissions policies that violate federal law.

An internal announcement by the DoJs civil rights division to employees explains that the federal agency is actively seeking out lawyers who might be interested in working on investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions.

These investigations will presumably address the concerns of groups like CEO, except that they wont be selectively limited to just Asians.

Roger Clegg, a former top official in the civil rights division during the Reagan administration and early Bush years, told the media that this is a welcome and long overdue development in addressing prolifically unfair policies that discriminate against whites and other non-protected racial groups.

The civil rights laws were deliberately written to protect everyone from discrimination, and it is frequently the case that not only are whites discriminated against now, but frequently Asian-Americans are as well, Clegg told The New York Times (NYT).

More news about the lefts corrosive race-baiting throughout American society is available at RaceWar.news.

Sources for this article include:

DailyCaller.com

CEOUSA.org

NaturalNews.com

NYTimes.com
(Natural News) Streets of the future could be made out of tire waste and organic wax, according to a study published in the journal Materiales de Construccion. The study revealed that tire waste and organic wax could be used to make sustainable asphalt.

A team of researchers at the Technical University of Madrid in Spain developed a more ecological type of asphalt, which includes the use of rubber powder from old tires and organic waxes. The use of tire waste could reduce environmental problems. Tires may be recyclable but they have become an environmental problem because tire production goes over 300,000 tons each year. In addition, it would save bitumen, a natural resource from crude oil, and the energy of its production.

Moreover, when organic waxes reach their melting point, the binder viscosity of the mixture is reduced. In turn, this reduces the manufacturing temperature in the asphalt plant.

Heating additives and bitumen at a certain temperature is needed when making an asphalt mixture so that the mixture is moldable for its later placing. In the study, they reduced the manufacturing temperature and the placing of asphalt mixtures up to 30 degrees, retaining a good mechanical behavior.

When reducing the production temperature we also reduce the energy consumption, fuel, and the greenhouse emissions, said Ana Maria Rodriguez Alloza, one of the researchers of the study. This type of mixture with organic waxes would be especially suitable for warm weather countries such as Spain.

Combining the use of a recyclable material and the reduction of manufacture temperature of the mixtures result in a suitable material that is beneficial environmentally, socially, and economically. The findings of the study indicated that the use of these materials can reduce manufacture temperature without compromising the characteristics and compactability of the asphalt.

Building stronger roads with recycled plastic

More and more people are trying to look for alternative materials in making asphalt mixtures that are beneficial to the environment. An engineer in the U.K. came up with an innovative idea to use plastics in producing enhanced asphalt mixture. Toby McCartney replaced much of the crude oil-based asphalt in the pavement with recyclable plastic bottles cut into tiny pellets. He got the idea for using plastic in roads when he remembered how people in India fill the potholes in the roads with plastic trash and melt it into place. Instead of melting plastic, as it is harmful to the environment, he combined it into road building material as a binder additive. The resulting road was said to be 60 percent stronger compared to traditional roads, 10 times more durable, and a lot more eco-friendly.

Typically, roads are made out of approximately 90 percent rock and sand and 10 percent bitumen. With McCartneys idea, in which he was able to establish a startup company called MacRebur, the asphalt mixture is bulked up with bitumen and recycled waste plastic. As a result, the roads are stronger and less crude oil is needed to bind the rocks together. Cumbria, an English county, already adopted his product for new public roadways.

On the other hand, the Japanese government is doing otherwise. Japanese government officials plan to make use of the radioactive Fukushima by using dirt from the site to construct new roads. This scheme of the government alarms the residents as it is known that almost everything in and around the Fukushima disaster site could pose a threat to their health. In fact, reports from 2017 revealed that radiation levels at the site could be up to 530 sieverts per hour. At five sieverts per hour, a person may only survive for a few months, while at 10 sieverts, survival is only within a few weeks. One can only imagine the effects of over 500 sieverts.

Read more news stories and studies on protecting the environment by going to GreenLivingNews.com.

Sources include:

AlphaGalileo.com

Curbed.com
(Natural News) Should teachers play a role in political activism and ideological indoctrination? According to one teacher in the state of Arizona, the answer is yes.

Late last year, Arizona K-8 schoolteacher Noah Karvelis took to social media to urge his colleagues to bring politics into the classroom, and to specifically address the issues of gun control, white supremacy and anti-capitalism.

Teaching is political and silence is complicity, Karvelis wrote on his Twitter page back in December of 2017. Things more educators should discuss especially if they work with young (white) men in the classroom in 2018: gender, feminism, and #MeToo, race, gun violence. What makes this even more disturbing is that these werent kids in high school or even middle school that he was talking about; these were young children in elementary school, most of whom have impressionable minds and arent capable of questioning things that their teachers tell them in the classroom.

Furthermore, a group called AZ Liberal Watch noted that Karvelis has questionable teaching qualifications at best, tweeting in part: Hes barely been certified to teach and he has deficiencies in Arizona & U.S. Constitution certificates. Do you really want someone like this teaching your children? (Related: This U.S. university is now offering anti-Trump resistance training to students.)

The answer, of course, should be no. Truthfully, Americas education system is currently at a crossroads  we can either go down the path whereby education is centered on traditional subjects and accurate accounts of American history, or we can go down a path whereby education is politicized, and students are turned into young activists rather than independent thinkers. Obviously, the former will lead to a much more intelligent and productive society, but its still shocking that there are elementary school teachers like Noah Karvelis now openly supporting the idea of turning our schools into political indoctrination camps. (Related: Many of Americas universities are turning into social justice indoctrination centers that put academics last.)

Its not just random teacher activists

Its not just teachers that are trying to turn students into liberal activists, though. In April, Fox News reported on a new Advanced Placement honors American history textbook that is set to be released next year called By the People: A History of the United States. The book implies, falsely, that President Trump was able to defeat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election largely because his supporters were racist.

Most thought that Trump was too extreme a candidate to win the nomination, but his extremism, his anti-establishment rhetoric, and, some said, his not-very-hidden racism connected with a significant number of primary voters, wrote the books author, New York University professor James Fraser. The textbook also alleges, without any real evidence whatsoever, that the results of the election were ultimately brought about by voters that were afraid of a rapidly developing ethnic diversity of the country, as well as individuals that wanted to see the United States return to an earlier time in the nations history.

Just based on these short excerpts alone, it becomes obvious that the book By the People was never designed to give students an accurate account of the 2016 presidential election, nor does it even make an attempt to remain unbiased. Rather, this textbook, just like hundreds of other school books and teachers across the country, exists for the sole purpose of indoctrinating young people with left wing, anti-conservative propaganda. Our children will be the ones paying the price for this sort of classroom bias, not only because they will inevitably turn into liberal advocates and activists as they move into adulthood, but because they will grow up not knowing how to think independently.

Read more at LeftCult.com.

Sources include:

LifeZette.com

FoxNews.com
(Natural News) After more than two years of painstaking work, a joint aviation investigation team from The Netherlands and Malaysia has announced they have definitive proof that an air defense unit from the Russian military shot down a Malaysia Airlines commercial flight over Ukraine nearly four years ago.

As reported by the South China Morning Post, investigators say they have tracked the missile, which was fired from a Russian-made BUK anti-aircraft system belonging to a Russian anti-aircraft unit which they tracked from the units home base inside Russia.

The Joint Investigation Team has come to the conclusion that the BUK-TELAR that shot down MH17 came from the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade based in Kursk in Russia, said the top Dutch investigator, Wilbert Paulissen.

At a press conference in the Netherlands, Paulissen added, The 53rd Brigade forms part of the Russian armed forces.

The plane was shot down over a conflict-heavy region of Ukraine on July 17, 2014, as it was enroute from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.

As Natural News reported at the time:

 The aircraft was cruising at an altitude of 33,000 feet, which was well within the range of the BUK system (which, in some configurations, can reach aircraft flying as high as 88,000 feet);

 Russian and Ukrainian forces immediately blamed one another after the shoot-down;

 About the time of the MH-17 downing, pro-Russian forces claimed they had shot down what they said was a Ukrainian transport plane;

 Pro-Russian forces, the previous month, had downed an IL-76 transport plane carrying 49 soldiers.

All 298 passengers and crew aboard the Boeing 777 were killed. Most of the passengers were Dutch, but there were passengers from 17 different countries aboard including the U.S., Australia, Great Britain and, of course, Malaysia.

During his press conference, Paulissen said the joint investigative team had ascertained that the BUK-TELAR has a number of unique characteristics. These characteristics as such served as a type of fingerprint for the missile.

We are convinced that our findings justify the conclusions that the BUK-TELAR which was used came from the 53rd Brigade which is part of the military of the Russian Federation, he added. (Related: Who really shot down Malaysia Airlines MH17? Readers weigh in on Russians, conspiracy theories and more.)

Russia has repeatedly denied its forces were responsible and the Putin administration did so again on Thursday after Paulissen revealed the joint teams findings. As reported by Tass, the Russian Defense Ministry said none of the countrys air defense units ever crossed into Ukraine.

Within the framework of interaction with the Dutch law-enforcement bodies, the Russian side presented overwhelming evidence confirmed by full-scale tests and clearly pointing to the complicity of precisely Ukrainian crews of Buk missile systems in destroying the Boeing airliner from the Netherlands over Ukraine, the defense ministry said in a statement.

Not true, according to the joint investigative team.

As reported by the South China Morning Post:

The probe being led by the Netherlands is focusing on some 100 people suspected of having played an active role in the incident, but investigators have not yet publicly named any suspects.

They have identified two people, who go by the aliases Orion and Delfin, as top suspects after obtaining their wire-tapped conversations before and after the plane was shot out of the sky.

Whats more, the joint investigative team said it tracked the air defense brigades convoy leaving from Kursk towards the border and into Ukraine using videos and photos that likely include satellite images.

Dutch officials have stopped short of naming any actual suspects. Also, investigators had long known that a missile from a BUK system is what brought the plane down and that it was fired from inside Ukraine on territory held by Russian-backed rebels.

Its not clear what happens at this point, but if the Dutch view this as an act of war, things will get interesting quickly, considering the Netherlands is a member of NATO.

Read more content about defense and national security at NationalSecurity.news and Cyberwar.news.

J.D. Heyes is a senior writer for NaturalNews.com and NewsTarget.com, as well as editor of The National Sentinel.

Sources include:

Tass.com

SCMP.com

NaturalNews.com
The coyote that had plastic tubing stuck around her neck in Rancho Bernardo was caught Tuesday and taken into the Funds for Animals Wildlife Center (FFAWC) for recovery.

A snare cable and tubing were removed from her neck, according to Dr. Matthew Anderson, Director of the FFAWC.

The center believed the coyote was hunting near a construction site and got stuck in the tube while chasing prey.

The coyote was first spotted in April during breeding season, so the FFAWC cautioned recovery efforts as to not separate any potential pups from their mother.

Nearby residents set up cameras to monitor the coyote.

From the footage, the center said the tubing wasnt adversely affecting her, so they delayed plans to capture until her pups were weaned off her.

It wasnt until the California Department of Fish and Wildlife reached out to the FFAWC with images of the coyote bleeding the week of May 14 that the center immediately revisited plans to capture.

Weve got a huge support system and people are donating for her medical care, Katie Ryan, a resident of the area, told NBC 7.

Deep cuts and swelling were a result of the tubing, so she was given pain medication and antibiotics, according to the center.

This patient is remarkable but she is also still in shock and remains asleep most of the day. Her eating and drinking, her urinating and eye blinking are all great signs that give us tremendous hope, Dr. Anderson said.

Dr. Jane Meier performed the coyotes examination Thursday, according to the wildlife center.

This coyote will make a full recovery, Dr. Meier said, However, given her current condition and the amount of stress associated with her injury, the rehabilitation period will be extensive.

At this time, it is unknown when the coyote will be released back into her native habitat.

The 13-acre FFAWC specializes in animals like coyotes and has helped more than 7,000 animals since 2005, according to Dr. Anderson.
At least seven people are dead, and 27 others have been wounded in shootings across Chicago over the long Memorial Day weekend.

The city's most recent fatal shooting took place Monday night in the 800 block of South Albany, according to police. A 30-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to the head, and was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to witnesses, gunshots rang out just after 9 p.m., and they saw five juveniles running from the area. None of those witnesses actually saw the shooting, but police said they are continuing their work to try to piece together what happened.

Another fatal shooting happened early Monday morning when a 31-year-old man was shot multiple times during an argument in the 5100 block of West Flournoy.

Police said the man was inside a vehicle with another man when both got out of the car and began arguing. The victim was shot twice in the chest and once in the head, according to police. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The suspect in the shooting was last seen driving a green Kia Soul, according to police, who continue to investigate.

On Sunday morning, another man was killed in the 5000 block of South Drexel, according to police. Officers arriving on the scene around 8 a.m. found a man inside a vehicle with a gunshot wound to the chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

Another fatal shooting occurred just after 9 p.m. Saturday night inside a residence in the 800 block of East 49th Street, according to police.

Witnesses told police that an 18-year-old woman and an "adult male acquaintance" were playing with a handgun when the weapon fell on the floor and fired, striking the woman in the chest.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, and the man, who fled the scene, is not in custody. Police are still investigating the shooting.

Earlier Saturday night, at around 8:39 p.m. in the 800 block of West 76th Street, authorities say a man approached a 20-year-old woman from behind while she was walking down the street and opened fire, striking her twice in the back of the head.

She was taken to University of Chicago, where she was pronounced dead.

The city's first fatal shooting of the weekend took place Friday night when a 36-year-old man was shot and killed in the 9100 block of South Aberdeen, according to police.

The man was standing on a corner talking to another man at around 11:37 p.m. when they got into a verbal altercation with two other men. One of the men pulled out a gun, shooting the victim in the chest. He was taken to Little Company of Mary hospital where he was pronounced dead.

A 46-year-old man was also shot in the leg, and was listed in good condition at Christ Hospital, according to police.

Less than two hours later at around 1:26 a.m., police were called to the 2300 block of West 70th Street, where they found a man lying face down on the street with a gunshot wound to his head. The man, who was not immediately identified, was pronounced dead on the scene.

The rest of the weekend's shootings occurred as follows, according to police:

Friday:

A 38-year-old man was shot in the back and was taken to University of Chicago in stable condition, police said. The man was on his porch in the 7800 block of South Evans just before 3 p.m. when he heard gunshots and felt pain.

In the 200 block of East 119th Street at 5 p.m., a 31-year-old man suffered a graze wound to his arm while walking down the street. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in good condition.

A 20-year-old man was shot in the arm and taken to Stroger Hospital in good condition just before 6 p.m., police said. The man was walking in the 1100 block of North Milwaukee when he heard shots and felt pain, police said.

Saturday:

A 42-year-old man is in critical condition at Lutheran General after he was shot multiple times in the abdomen and chest, police said. The incident occurred in the 6100 block of West Grace at approximately 5:21 a.m. when a person in a vehicle fired shots at the man as he was walking.

In the 5900 block of South Calumet, a 38-year-old man was shot in the foot when a person in a vehicle pulled up and opened fire at around 6:56 a.m., according to police. He was taken to University of Chicago in good condition.

A 30-year-old man was shot in the leg during an attempted robbery in the 11400 block of South Normal at approximately 1:30 p.m., police said. The man was taken to Roseland Hospital in good condition.

A 23-year-old man was shot in the leg and is in stable condition at Christ Hospital, according to police. The incident occurred in the 300 block of West 113th Street at approximately 6 p.m., police said. The man was standing in the street when he heard shots and felt pain, officials said.





At approximately 8:30 p.m. Saturday night, three people were shot while inside a retail establishment in the 200 block of East 58th Street, police said. A man walked in and opened fire, stiking an 18-year-old woman twice in the leg, an 18-year-old man in the ankle, and a 19-year-old man in the upper leg. All three victims were in stable condition at the University of Chicago, and the gunman remained at large, police said.





In the 0-100 block of South Clinton Street at approximately 9:35 p.m., a 27-year-old man was shot in both arms and in the buttocks, according to police. Police were called to a disturbance at a party, and while on scene they heard gunshots. Officers discovered property damage, shell casings and the victim's blood on the scene. The victim fled to another location, officials said, where first responders picked him up and took him to Stroger Hospital in stable condition.

Sunday:

A 19-year-old man was walking in the 5200 block of South Loomis at around 12:20 a.m. when he was approached by an unknown man. The man fired shots at him, and struck the victim in the foot. He was taken to Holy Cross Hospital, where he is listed in good condition.

A 29-year-old man was shot four times in the abdomen while sitting inside a vehicle in the 800 block of West Garfield at around 1:15 a.m., police said. The man was unable to give details due to his condition, according to police. He was taken to the University of Chicago Hospital in serious condition.

In the 3500 block of West Wilson just after 2 a.m., a 21-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to the back of his head when a person in an unidentified vehicle opened fire, police said. The man is in stable condition at Illinois Masonic, according to police.

At approximately 2:40 a.m. in the 7100 block of South Martin Luther King Drive, a 29-year-old man was walking when he heard gunshots and felt pain in his leg. He was taken to University of Chicago Hospital in stable condition, according to police.

A 29-year-old man was sitting in front of a residence in the 4800 block of West Washington at around 3:30 a.m. when a two people exited a newer model gray minivan and opened fire before returning to the vehicle and fleeing the scene. The victim was shot in both legs and taken to Stroger Hospital in stable condition.

A 29-year-old woman is in stable condition after she suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound at approximately 5:40 p.m. Sunday in the 5000 block of South Drexel. The woman sat on a weapon and it discharged, striking her, police said.

A 15-year-old boy was shot in the arm while walking in the 1300 block of North Hudson at around 7:40 p.m., according to police. The boy was taken to Lurie Children's Hospital in good condition.

According to multiple reports, a man was shot while riding in the passenger seat of a vehicle on the northbound Dan Ryan on Sunday night. The man was being treated for non life threatening injuries, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Just after 11 p.m., a 15-year-old boy was shot multiple times while walking towards a car in the 1800 block of West Cullerton, police said. The teen was shot in the lower back, both hips and the upper body after someone in a dark minivan pulled up, shouted a gang-related slogan and opened fire, according to authorities. The teen was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.

Monday:

A 20-year-old woman was shot at about midnight Monday while on a sidewalk in the 6400 block of South Eberhart, police said. The woman was talking to someone when a black Pontiac Grand Prix drove by and someone inside fired a single shot, striking the woman in the neck, according to authorities. The women ran to a nearby home where she collapsed, police said. She was taken to University of Chicago Hospital in critical condition.

A 17-year-old boy suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his right thigh, according to police. The shooting took place in the 1700 block of North Mason and the boy was taken to Stroger Hospital in good condition, officials said.

In the 400 block of East 71st Street at approximately 5:22 p.m., an 18-year-old man was walking when he was shot in the lower left leg, according to police. He was taken to University of Chicago Hospital, where he was listed in good condition.

Two men were shot in the 7100 block of South State at approximately 8:09 p.m., police said. The men were standing in the street when a dark sedan pulled up and a passenger opened fire. A 22-year-old man is in good condition after being shot in the hand, and a 62-year-old man refused treatment after suffering a graze wound to his head.

In the 1700 block of West Garfield at approximately 8:33 p.m., a 21-year-old man was shot in the abdomen and was taken to Stroger Hospital in serious condition, police said. According to authorities, the man was standing in front of a building when a group of three men drove by in a black SUV shouting gang slogans. Those men then opened fire before fleeing the scene.

A 43-year-old man sustained an accidental graze wound to the leg when he was moving items around inside of a home in the 9900 block of South Peoria at around 11:39 p.m., according to police. A valid FOID card holder, he initially refused treatment at the scene before taking himself to Christ Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.

No one is in custody in connection with any of the weekend's shootings unless otherwise noted, as authorities continue to investigate.

This year's holiday weekend shootings were fewer, but deadlier than in 2017, when six people were killed and 44 wounded over Memorial Day weekend.
UPDATE : At least 6 people are dead and nearly two dozen others wounded as the long weekend continues. Click here to read the latest report.

At least five people are dead, and 19 more have been wounded in shootings across the city of Chicago this Memorial Day weekend.

The city's most recent fatal shooting occurred in the 5000 block of South Drexel just after 8 a.m. Sunday morning, according to police. Officers arriving on the scene found a man inside a vehicle with a gunshot wound to the chest, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

The circumstances surrounding the shooting are unknown, and police are continuing to investigate the case.

Another fatal shooting occurred just after 9 p.m. Saturday night in the 800 block of East 49th Street, according to police.

According to witnesses, an 18-year-old woman and a man were playing with a handgun when the weapon fell on the floor and fired, striking the woman in the chest.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene, and the man, who fled the scene, is not in custody. Police are still investigating the shooting.

Earlier Saturday night in the 800 block of West 76th Street, authorities say that a man walked up behind a 20-year-old woman while she was walking down the street and fired a shot, striking her in the back of the head.

She was taken to University of Chicago, where she was pronounced dead.

At approximately 6 p.m. Saturday night, three people were shot in the 200 block of East 58th Street, police said. The three were sitting in a restaurant when an unknown man walked in and opened fire.

An 18-year-old woman was shot twice in the leg, an 18-year-old man was shot in the ankle, and a 19-year-old man was shot in the upper leg. All three victims are in stable condition at the University of Chicago, and the gunman is at large, police said.

The city's first fatal shooting of the weekend took place Friday night when a 36-year-old man was shot in the 9100 block of South Aberdeen, according to police.

The man was standing on a corner talking to another man when he got into a verbal altercation with two other men. One of the men pulled out a gun, shooting the 36-year-old in the chest and killing him.

A 46-year-old man was also shot in the leg, and was listed in good condition at Christ Hospital.

Less than two hours later, police were called to the 2300 block of West 70th Street, where they found a man lying face-down on the street with a gunshot wound to his head. The man, as of yet unidentified, was pronounced dead on the scene.

Here are the rest of the shootings that have taken place in the city this weekend:

Friday:

A 38-year-old man was shot in the back and was taken to University of Chicago in stable condition, police said. The man was on his porch in the 7800 block of South Evans just before 3 p.m. when he heard gunshots.

In the 200 block of East 119th Street at 5 p.m., a 31-year-old man suffered a graze wound to his arm while walking down the street. He was taken to a local hospital in good condition.

A 20-year-old man was shot in the arm and was taken to Stroger Hospital in good condition just before 6 p.m., police said. The man was walking when he heard shots.

Saturday:

A 42-year-old man is in critical condition at Lutheran General after he was shot multiple times in the abdomen and chest, police said. The incident occurred in the 6100 block of West Grace at approximately 5:21 a.m. when a person in a vehicle fired shots at the man as he was walking.

In the 5900 block of South Calumet, a 38-year-old man was shot in the foot when a person in a vehicle pulled up and opened fire. He was taken to University of Chicago in good condition.

A 30-year-old man was shot in the leg during an attempted robbery in the 11400 block of South Normal at approximately 1:30 p.m., police said. The man was taken to Roseland Hospital in good condition.

A 23-year-old man was shot in the leg and is in stable condition at Christ Hospital, according to police. The incident occurred in the 300 block of West 113th Street at approximately 6 p.m., police said. The man was standing in the street when he heard shots.

In the 0-100 block of South Clinton at approximately 9:35 p.m., a 27-year-old man was shot in both arms and in the buttocks, according to police. Police were called to a disturbance at a party, and while on scene they heard gunshots. The victim was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.

Sunday:

A 19-year-old man was walking in the 5200 block of South Loomis when he was approached by an unknown man. The man fired shots at him, and struck the victim in the foot. He was taken to Holy Cross Hospital, where he is listed in good condition.

A 29-year-old man is in serious condition after he was shot four times in the abdomen, police said. The man was unable to give details due to his condition, according to police. The incident occurred in the 800 block of West Garfield.

In the 3500 block of West Wilson just after 2 a.m., a 21-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to the back of his head when a person in an unidentified vehicle opened fire, police said. The man is in stable condition at Illinois Masonic, according to police.

At approximately 2:40 a.m. in the 7100 block of South Martin Luther King Drive, a 29-year-old man was walking when he heard gunshots and felt pain in his leg. He was taken to Unviersity of Chicago Hospital in stable condition, according to police.

A 29-year-old man was sitting in front of a residence when a person inside a newer model grey minivan opened fire, striking him in both legs. The victim was taken to Stroger Hospital in stable condition after the shooting in the 4800 block of West Washington.

A 29-year-old woman is in stable condition after she suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound at approximately 5:40 p.m. Sunday. The woman sat on a weapon and it discharged, striking her, police said.

A 15-year-old boy was shot in the arm in the 1300 block of North Hudson, according to police. The boy was taken to Lurie Children's Hospital in good condition.

*No one is in custody in any of these shootings unless otherwise noted.
The Chicago Cubs have placed pitcher Yu Darvish on the 10-day disabled list with right triceps tendonitis.

Darvish, who has a 4.95 ERA and a 1-3 record in eight starts for the Cubs this season, is beginning his second stint on the DL after being put out of action by the flu earlier this season.

The roster move is retroactive to May 23.

Darvish will be replaced on the mound Sunday by Tyler Chatwood, who will have his start moved up a day to fill in on regular rest.

Pitcher Randy Rosario, who has made one appearance for the Cubs so far this season, was called up to replace Darvish on the active roster. Rosario has made 12 relief appearances for the Iowa Cubs this season, posting a 0.47 ERA and allowing just six walks in 19.1 innings of work.
A missing man from East Haven has been found dead in North Haven on Sunday morning.

Police from East Haven, North Haven, and Connecticut State Police say they began searching for a missing 30-year-old man on Saturday. Around 6:00 p.m., officers located the missing man's vehicle in the parking lot of Peter's Rock Park on Middletown Avenue.

First responders began searching the large wooded area using police K9s and a drone.

Early Sunday morning, the search area was expanded and a Connecticut State Police K9 team found the missing man's body in a dense area of wooded property far from the trails.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is expected to determine the cause and manner of death.

Officials have not released the man's identity.
The National Rifle Associations new president Oliver North made a visit to North Texas on Sunday.

The retired Marine lieutenant colonel made an appearance at Fellowship Church in Grapevine for a Memorial Day service.

Who better to help us understand the sacrifice that these men and women had made than somebody who had been there, said Derric Bonnot, creative director at the church.

North spoke about the relationships in his life: with Jesus, his family, and those whove served in the military.

After the service, church goers got to meet North and get a signed copy of his book Under Fire: An American Story.
Trial has been set later this summer for a Texas man shot by western Iowa officer after allegedly leading police on a chase and ramming police vehicles.

The Daily Nonpareil reports that a preliminary hearing was held Friday for 28-year-old Clifton Wade, of Zavalla, Texas. Wade is charged with two counts of attempted murder of a peace officer, assault on an officer and other counts for the May 1 incident.

Wade's arraignment has been set for June 25, and his trial is set for July 31.

Council Bluffs police say Wade sped off when officers tried to stop his pickup at a closed construction site and later intentionally rammed two police cruisers. One officer then shot him.

Wade was taken to a hospital in Omaha, Nebraska, for treatment and later released and booked into the Pottawattamie County Jail, where he remains on $500,000 bond.
A San Diego flight bound for Tulsa was diverted to Phoenix due to what was described by passengers as an odor that came through the plane and was then gone, Phoenix Fire said.

Frontier Flight 1764 left San Diego at 6:50 a.m. Sunday and landed in Phoenix around 11:25 a.m. local time.

The plane landed safely, and the passengers were able to deplane in Phoenix. Seventeen passengers requested to be evaluated by Phoenix Fire, and a 62-year-old man was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

The cause of the odor will be investigated by Frontier, Phoenix Fire said.

Frontier told NBC 7 in a statement:

Frontier Airlines flight [1764] from San Diego to Tulsa landed in Phoenix this morning after an odor was detected by a member of our crew. Safety is the priority at Frontier and the decision to land in Phoenix was made out of an abundance of caution. As is standard procedure, anyone requesting a medical evaluation receives one. Arrangements are being made to allow passengers to continue to their destinations.



This is the second time in a week a Frontier flight on the San Diego-Tulsa route has been diverted because of an in-cabin odor.

On May 20, Flight 1839 from Tulsa to San Diego had to be diverted to Albuquerque because of a chemical smell.
An Uber driver crashed into parked cars on the Lower East Side on Sunday, flipping the car on its side and injuring the driver, police said.

The driver had to be extricated from the vehicle, the NYPD said. The person was injured and taken to a hospital.

It wasn't clear whether the driver had a passenger in the car. No one was believed to be in the other cars.

The Uber car hit three other cars at Avenue D between Fifth and Sixth streets.

Two of them were parked and pushed up on the sidewalk. The third was spun out into the road.

Witnesses told NBC 4 New York that the Uber driver was speeding.
What to Know Joshua Holt, who traveled to Venezuela in 2016 and was later jailed, was released Saturday by the anti-American Maduro government

Months of secret talks between Sen. Bob Corker's aide and Maduro allies led up to Holt's release, which seemed unlikely even a week ago

President Donald Trump said 17 prisoners have been freed from overseas captivity since he's been president and that others would be coming

Joshua Holt, a Utah man who traveled to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a woman he met online but soon found himself jailed and later branded the CIA's top spy in Latin America, has been set free by the anti-American Maduro government.

He says he was "overwhelmed with gratitude."

Holt and his wife, Thamara Caleno, arrived Saturday evening at Washington Dulles International Airport for a tearful reunion with his parents, Laurie and Jason Holt. A few hours later, President Donald Trump welcomed them to the White House.

"Those two years, they were a very, very, very difficult two years," said an emotional Joshua Holt, sitting next to Trump in the Oval Office. "Not really the great vacation that I was looking for. ... I'm just so grateful for what you guys have done."

To Holt, Trump said: "You've gone through a lot. More than most people could endure."

The Utah man's mother, Laurie Holt, thanked Trump and the lawmakers for her son's safe return, adding: "I also want to say thank you to President Maduro for releasing Josh and letting him come home."

Their release came one day after Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., held a surprise meeting in Caracas with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the Trump administration says runs a "dictatorship" and just won re-election in a "sham" vote.

Trump, in a tweet, described Holt as a "hostage." The U.S. contended Holt was held on trumped-up charges.

Months of secret, backchannel talks between an aide to Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and close allies of Maduro preceded their return. Yet Holt's release had seemed unlikely even a week ago.

Joining Trump in the Oval Office were Corker, Utah Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee, and Utah Rep. Mia Love, all Republicans. The lawmakers thanked Trump for his support.

The White House learned from Corker on Friday of Holt's impending release, according to a U.S. official who has closely followed Holt's plight and spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the private talks.

Holt and his wife were reunited at the Caracas airport with her daughter from a previous relationship, and all three boarded a chartered flight to Washington. "We are on our way home," Corker tweeted.

When he departed the Caracas airport earlier, Holt told The Associated Press that the ordeal had left him "exhausted."

Venezuela's communications minister, Jorge Rodriguez, said their release was a goodwill gesture that followed months of dialogue between the Maduro government and U.S. lawmakers.

"We're praying that this type of gesture ... will allow us to strengthen what we've always sought: dialogue, harmony, respect for our independence and respect for our sovereignty," he said.

Holt, now 26, set out for the South American country in June 2016 to marry a woman he met online while looking for Spanish-speaking Mormons who could help him improve his Spanish. He had planned to spend several months in Caracas that summer with his new wife and her two daughters, to secure their visas so they could move with him to the U.S.

Instead, the couple was arrested that June 30 at her family's apartment in a government housing complex on the outskirts of Caracas. Authorities accused him of stockpiling an assault rifle and grenades and suggested that his case was linked to other unspecified U.S. attempts to undermine Maduro's rule amid deep economic and political turbulence.

They were held in a notorious Caracas prison, run by the secret police, that also is home to dozens of top Maduro opponents jailed during the past few years of political unrest in the country. Their trial was set to begin this month after repeated delays that led the Trump administration to question the motives for his detention.

Until Trump's tweet on Saturday, the U.S. had stopped short of publicly calling Holt a "hostage."

Holt's release looked unlikely a week ago, when he appeared in a clandestinely shot video railing against the Maduro government and saying his life was threatened in a prison riot. In retaliation, socialist party boss Diosdado Cabello, a powerful Maduro ally, said on state television that Holt was the CIA's top spy in Latin America.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., spoke to Trump at length Friday night and later said the couple's release "will in no way change U.S. policy toward the dictatorship in Venezuela."

The White House press secretary issued a statement to that point Saturday night, saying policy was not changing even while thanking the government for releasing the Holts. The statement also called the recent elections "illegitimate" and urged the release of all political prisoners.

The Trump administration has threatened crippling oil sanctions on Venezuela for Maduro's decision to go forward with the presidential election last week.

The U.S. government at first avoided ratcheting up public pressure on Venezuela in light of their already strained relations, but eventually raised Holt's case with the highest levels of the Venezuelan government and decried his treatment in prison.

Corker was seen live on state TV on Friday shaking hands with Maduro and being greeted by first lady Cilia Flores as he entered the presidential palace. Corker left an hour later; neither the senator nor the president made any statements.

Laurie Holt worked feverishly to bring attention to her son's incarceration, hosting rallies and fundraisers and doing media interviews. She said her son has suffered numerous health problems in jail, including kidney stones and respiratory problems. He was depressed and lost so much weight that he dropped several pant sizes, she said.

In their statement, the Holt family said, "We thank you for your collaboration during this time of anguish. We ask that you allow us to meet with our son and his wife before giving any interviews and statements. We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle."

___

Goodman reported from Bogota, Colombia. Associated Press writers Scott Smith in Caracas, Venezuela, and Brady McCombs in Salt Lake City contributed to this report.
Police identified a man accused of stealing a running car with two young children inside, leading to a wild chase in Northeast Philadelphia.

Lakim McDonald, 23, is charged with theft by unlawful taking, kidnapping, endangering the welfare of a child, recklessly endangering another person and other offenses.

The ordeal began Wednesday around 10 p.m. when a 28-year-old woman stopped by her friend's house on the 1000 block of Van Kirk Street to drop something off. The woman parked her white 2010 Toyota Camry in front of the home with the engine running and her two sons, ages 6 and 1, in the backseat.

As the woman ran to the front door, McDonald allegedly went into her car and drove off with her children inside.

"It appears the male took this car as a crime of opportunity because the car was sitting there with the engine running," Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said. "Probably very surprised that there were two children in the backseat because the vehicle has heavy tint. But, that's still an abduction."

The woman flagged down a passing police car and reported the theft. Officers spotted the Camry on the 1500 block of Sellers Street, about a mile away from where it was stolen. A police aviation unit began to follow it as it sped off.

"We made sure ground units didn't chase it because we didn't want the vehicle to get involved in an auto accident running from police," Small said.

The aviation unit pursued the vehicle for about 2 miles. The chase finally ended when the stolen car struck a curb at the intersection of Castor and Wyoming avenues. Officers on the ground were notified and they captured the suspect, identified by police as McDonald.

Police say McDonald appeared to be impaired at the time of the arrest.



As police placed McDonald in custody, they realized the children were not inside the car. McDonald told police he dropped the children off along the 4700 block of Darrah Street, according to Small.

Around the same time the suspect was captured, police received another report of two children who were found along the 4700 block of Darrah Street. The two children were found safe and reunited with their mother.

The family was thankful the boys weren't hurt.

The only thing we want to say is thanks to the police for their work and to the two women who found my nephews," the boys' aunt told NBC10.

The mother and children were taken to the Special Victims Unit.

"A happy ending," Small said. "Great job done by Philadelphia Police."
Police are investigating a viral video of an officer punching a woman while arresting her at the beach in Wildwood, New Jersey.

Emily Weinman, 20, of Philadelphia, was arrested Saturday and charged with aggravated assault on a police officer, aggravated assault by spitting bodily fluids at/on a police officer, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, obstruction and minor in possession of alcohol.

Video of the arrest shows three officers holding Weinman down on the sand. One officer punches her on the back of the head as they restrain her. A woman in the background repeatedly yells stop resisting.

Wildwood Commissioner of Public Safety Tony Leonetti told NBC10 Weinman assaulted one of the officers first by kicking him in the groin and then running away, which the video does not show. Wildwood Police also say at one point Weinman spat at one of the officers.

In a Facebook post, which by Monday morning was apparently taken down, Weinman stated she and her friend were first confronted by two officers. While she admitted to being in possession of alcohol while underage, Weinman claims she wasnt drinking at the time and that the alcohol was closed. She also said she took a breathalyzer test which came back negative. After the test, Weinman says the officers still stayed with her and one officer followed her as she walked away to make a phone call.

Therefore I asked them dont they have something better to do as cops than to stop people for underage drinking on the beach, saying to that theres so much more serious stuff going on, Weinman wrote. The cop said, I was gonna let you go but now Ill write you up and he asked my name.

Weinman said she didnt give the officer her name because she didnt do anything wrong. Weinman claims the officer then announced he was going to arrest her and walked toward her to place her in handcuffs.



I tripped and fell and the cop tackled me to the ground and smashed my head into the sand, Weinman wrote. At that point I blacked out and fought any way possible trying to get up and push him off me.

Weinman wrote that she was "partly wrong in a way" for not giving the officer her name but that she didnt want to do it because she was scared.

Like I said I didnt do anything wrong and anything couldve been written on that paper, the whole situation was iffy and I didnt trust it, she wrote. Especially being aware of the fact of how grimy law enforcement can be now a days.

Weinman has faced charges prior to Saturday's incident, including simple assault and criminal mischief, according to court records.



Since being posted on social media, the video has sparked debate, with some supporting the officers actions, others insisting that people wait for the entire story to emerge before passing judgment and others condemning what they believe to be excessive force from the officers.

Wildwood Police say an internal affairs investigation was immediately initiated on the incident and the officers involved were reassigned to administrative duty pending the outcome.

Chief Regalbuto stated that while he finds this video to be alarming, he does not want to rush to any judgment until having the final results of the investigation, a Wildwood Police spokesman wrote.

Leonetti also told NBC10 theyre waiting to see the body camera footage of the officer involved. The Cape May County Prosecutor's Office would not comment on the incident outside of saying it's under review and that the body camera footage will only be released once Wildwood police complete an internal affairs investigation.

Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano, Jr. told NBC10 the incident was not a reflection of the Jersey Shore town.

"It's really a shame that one minuscule incident happened that ruined it for the whole entire weekend which has been a great weekend," he said.

Police are asking anyone who witnessed the incident and has more video to contact Detective Lieutenant Kenneth Gallagher at 609-522-0222.
After inflating a bubble of expectation for a historic summit with North Korea, President Donald Trump popped it.

His withdrawal from a hastily arranged summit with Kim Jong Un drew strong criticism and some praise in Washington.

Trump opponents said he botched a delicate, diplomatic dance with North Korea, at the risk of fueling tensions, cold-shouldering allies like South Korea and making China less willing to put economic pressure on Pyongyang.

But some North Korea watchers said it was the right thing to do. Trump wasn't convinced that Pyongyang was serious about giving up its nuclear weapons capabilities, they said, so the president was right to scrap the summit for now and keep testing Kim's interest in substantive negotiations.

"I don't think that this closes the door," said Olli Heinonen, a former deputy director-general at the U.N. nuclear agency. "He is testing how willing Kim is. We have to remember why Kim comes to the meeting. The sanctions are biting. They have economic trouble there. I don't think this is the end of the road."

The big question now is how Kim reacts.

He was spurned on the very day North Korea demolished its nuclear test site in front of international journalists granted unprecedented access to the remote site, a concrete if not irreversible gesture toward denuclearization.

"They will feel betrayed," said Mark Fitzpatrick at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a British think tank. "There is a good chance North Korea will resume the missile testing that they have paused for six months," starting with short-range systems.

But the North's initial reaction was mild.

Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan said North Korea was still willing to sit down for talks with the U.S. "at any time, at any format." In a statement carried by state media, he said Trump's decision was "very regrettable" and showed how deep-rooted the hostility is between the U.S. and North Korea, and showed "how urgently a summit should be realized to improve ties."

Trump's letter to Kim, almost plaintive in tone, kept the door open to dialogue, but it also carried a threat evocative of last year when North Korea was honing its ability to target the continental U.S. with a nuclear-tipped missile. During those tense months, the president, annoyed by bellicose language from Pyongyang, was goading Kim about the size of his nuclear button.

On this occasion Trump wrote that he was praying to God the U.S. won't need to use its "massive and powerful" nukes.

"I think, by and large, the president's message was polite, although his reference to the U.S. nuclear arsenal looked a little threatening to me," said Christopher Hill, the lead U.S. negotiator with North Korea under the George W. Bush administration.

A flurry of characteristically combative statements from North Korea - branding Vice President Mike Pence as a "political dummy" and threatening nuclear confrontation with the U.S. - made plain that the North was not willing to relinquish its nukes in short order as key Trump advisers like national security adviser John Bolton were demanding.

Hill said Trump probably needed to nix the summit because "it suddenly dawned on him that North Korea was not ready to give up its nuclear weapons for nothing."

That's not really a surprise. Back in March, Trump shocked the world by suddenly agreeing to an unprecedented meeting with the North Korean leader, which was due to be held in Singapore on June 12. Although the chances of success were uncertain, the White House had even unveiled a commemorative coin with the profiles of Trump and Kim to herald the "peace talks."

The president clearly relished the prospect of exercising his purported prowess as a negotiator to bring home the daddy of all deals that would alleviate the North Korea nuclear threat and formally end the 1950-53 Korean War.

That was always going to be a long shot.

He can point to some progress made, including the release this month of three American detainees by North Korea as a goodwill gesture. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has had rare and direct contact with Kim, opening the door to top-level engagement.

But Trump is now open to criticism his administration had failed to lay the groundwork for such a high-stakes meeting with a bitter American adversary.

"In hastily agreeing to a summit and then being the one to walk away, President Trump must understand he has now weakened and further isolated the United States," said Sen. Robert Menendez, top-ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

James Acton, co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said Trump is now left with a difficult diplomatic path forward in sustaining the U.S.-led "maximum pressure" campaign to get North Korea to give up its nukes.

China, North Korea's main trading partner, is going to laud the nuclear test site demolition and could be inclined to ease enforcement of economic sanctions, Acton said, noting reports that North Korean trade with China had restarted already.

"North Korea has done enough for now to placate China and China is going to throw it an economic lifeline," he said.

It could also hurt U.S. relations with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who was in the Oval Office just this week. Moon has invested a lot of political capital in improving relations with North Korea, although Pyongyang just broke off a high-level meeting with Seoul over U.S.-South Korean military drills.

Moon was instrumental in the genesis of the U.S.-North Korea summit, yet his government appeared to be caught unawares by Trump's sudden decision to cancel - a worrying sign of diplomatic disconnect between close allies.

"We are trying to figure out what President Trump's intention is," presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said, according to Yonhap news agency.
A Gardiner man was killed when he lost control of his vehicle on Interstate 295, Maine State Police said Saturday.

Raymond Bisson, 50, died at the scene in Freeport. Troopers said Bisson first collided with a driver in the southbound lane, who was not injured. He then crossed the median and was struck by another vehicle, which contained a family of three. They were taken to Maine Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

The crash closed the northbound lane for 3.5 hours. Authorities say speed is a likely factor in the crash and that Bisson was unfortunately not wearing his seat belt.
An Auburn, New Hampshire man was killed Saturday afternoon in a car accident in Manchester, police reported.

Matthew McGrath, 76, crashed into driver Arthur Skiathits, 52, and then into the Page Street Market after apparently running a red light at the intersection of Hanover and Page Streets, according to police.

McGrath was taken to a local hospital and later pronounced dead. Skiathits was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. A third driver, Robert Ames, was also hit during the incident, but was not injured.

The crash remains under investigation by the Manchester police department. Anyone with information about the accident is asked to contact the police at (603) 668-8711.
Members of the Gang Prevention Unit in Manchester, New Hampshire arrested a man Saturday for possessing a stolen car and stolen pistol -- a discovery they made after they began investigating him for selling drugs.

Manchester police said in a statement they had a warrant for Rafferty Libby, 19, for sale of an unnamed drug, and arrested him Saturday as he got out of a taxi near where they had been surveilling him.

During the arrest, police determined he had also been driving a car that was reported as stolen by Enterprise Rental Car, and was found in possession of a Ruger 9 mm pistol, which had also been reported as stolen earlier in Manchester.

Libby was charged with the original warrant and with two counts of receiving stolen property, a felony. Its unclear if he has an attorney.
A Massachusetts clerk shot and wounded a suspect who was threatening a customer at knife point, according to investigators.

Worcester police said officers responded to the No Name Grocery store at 49 Vernon St. Saturday night for a report of an individual who had been shot, and found paramedics at the scene treating a 26-year-old man who had been shot three times.

Officers then learned that the man who had been injured, identified as Juan Ahorrio of Worcester, had entered the store with a knife. He allegedly moved behind one of two female customers, grabbed her and then held the knife to her throat.

The clerk, whose name has not been released, feared for the customer's safety and grabbed his personal firearm, which resulted in the customer being threatened at knife point to fall to the ground, and the clerk fired three rounds at the suspect, according to investigators.

The suspect dropped the knife after being hit, and then ran out of the store, with the clerk ultimately catching up to him and ordering him to the ground.

Paramedics arrived and then began to treat Ahorrio as officers arrived at the scene.

One man told NBC10 Boston he waved down paramedics as they arrived in an ambulance.

"Just so happened that an ambulance was coming down, so I waved him down, and I'm like, 'Listen, this kid just got shot four times and he's on the sidewalk now,'" Armando Gonzalez said.

Neighbor Maria Hernandez witnessed the shooting's aftermath.

"I heard people yelling outside, then I heard someone whining in pain," she said. "Then I saw someone lying on the floor and the ambulance just pulled out of nowhere down the street."

Ahorrio was booked at a local hospital, and will be arraigned on multiple charges, including assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and armed assault with the intent to rob, when he's released. It's unclear what his current condition is or if he has an attorney.

The investigation is ongoing.
'Appalling' record lands 30-year-old in prison

A NEWBURY shoplifter has been jailed because of his appalling record of previous convictions.

Dale Philip Hayward was already subject to a community order for his previous bout of offending when he was convicted of his latest string of thefts involving hundreds of pounds worth of goods.

However, the towns shopkeepers got a break when the 30-year-old, who lives at the Two Saints hostel in Newtown Road, appeared at Reading Magistrates Court on Wednesday, April 25.

There, he admitted stealing alcohol worth 106 from Sainsburys; meat worth 400, meat worth 186 and meat worth 46, plus Champagne worth 120, all from Marks and Spencer; stealing fragrance worth 44 from Boots and breaching a court-imposed community order.

All those offences were committed in Newbury between January 13 and April 24.

Mr Hayward was ordered to pay compensation for those goods, which were not recovered.

In addition, he was sent to prison for 22 weeks.

Magistrates said the sentence was justified because his record of previous convictions is appalling.
Steep Rock Association and Washington Park & Recreation will offer a hike through Macricostas Preserve in New Preston under a full moon May 29.

The hike will run from 8 to 9:30 p.m. at the preserve, meeting in the parking lots at 124 Christian St., before proceeding over the boardwalk, around hayfield, and into forest with the lookout as a destination.
Lucknow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday sought to allay tensions in Uttar Pradeshs Baghpat, a day after a sugarcane farmer died while protesting the non-payment of dues.

Addressing supporters after inaugurating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway, Modi said his government was looking into the problems of sugarcane farmers. I want to assure all sugarcane farmers here that the government is sensitive towards their issues and is working to resolve all the problems, the PM said.

Hours after his statement, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav slammed PM Modi, saying that the sugarcane farmers will not get their dues by holding roadshows.

People of Baghpat, Binor, Meerut, Shamli and Muzaffarnagar know how much payment of farmers is still due with the government. Road show wont give farmers their due payment. Also, the inauguration which BJP is boasting was done only after Supreme Court's directives and that too, only nine kilometeres of the entire expressway is being inaugurated, he said, adding that besides the farmers, the BJP government had also forgotten their promise made to the students of the state.

Merely 30km away from the venue of the expressway launch, Baraut town has been witnessing farmers protests for six days. On Saturday morning, 58-year-old Udayveer Singh died while sitting on a dharna with 50 other farmers. Within hours, the protesting farmers gathered in huge numbers at the tehsil office.

The protesters alleged that the BJP government had promised clearance of their dues within 14 days of coming to power in the state, but nothing was done even after a year. Instead, the power tariff was hiked twice, they said.

The district administration claimed that the farmer could have died due to cardiac arrest. However, Udayveer Singh's family lodged an FIR on Saturday evening, stating that he suffered an unnatural death.

The deceased farmer owns eight bighas of land in the Jeewana village. Family of the deceased farmer spoke to media and said, Farmers are facing a crisis like situation, dues are not being cleared. On the contrary, power tariff is hiked every two months. There are farms where the sugarcane has not even been harvested.

Speaking on the issue, the National Vice President of RLD, Jayant Chaudhary said, The government hiked power tariff twice in the last five months. Sugar mills have closed. They are importing sugar from abroad. It is a grave issue. (Singh) sacrificed his life fighting for the interest of others, he is a martyr.

Interestingly, in the neighbouring Kairana, which is due for bypoll on Monday, the sugarcane dues have emerged as the biggest issue.

Baghpat ADM Lokpal Singh initially announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the kin of the deceased farmer, however, the amount was later increased to Rs 12 lakh after pressure from the protesting farmers.
The CBSE Class 12 Result 2018 was declared on May 26 at 12:30 pm. The Central Board of Secondary Education CBSE will declare the Central Board of Secondary Education CBSE Class 12 Board Results 2018. The CBSE Central Board of Secondary Education will declare the CBSE Class 12th Result, CBSE Class 12 Result 2018 on its official website cbse.nic.in.

Millions of students are awaiting their admission to colleges and universities across the country  with most institutions judging them solely on the basis of their Class 12 marks.

The moderation policy has in the past, however, made for some interesting number crunch, including the curious case of 'Magic Mark 95'. Here's a look:

CBSEs MAGIC FIGURE - 95

Notice the extremely large spike at 95? This shows that the total number of students scoring exactly 95 is more than the total number of students scoring any other particular mark between 0 and 100.

And here are the graphs for the Maths, Physics, Economics and Accountancy papers among others 

Notice the similarity? In almost all of them, the 95 is a skyscraper, towering above all the marks next to it.

Dheeraj Sanghi, professor at IIT-Kanpur, explains why its odd that 95 is the number awarded to the highest number of people in almost every CBSE exam, year after year.

"This bunching up or moderation is done in a way that a lot of people have been given 95 marks. Now these people in reality must have got 94, 93, 92, 91, something like that and all of them have been bunched with 95. This is really unfair because different people have been given different increases."

This unusually high 95-spike has been observed across 10 of the 12 most-studied subjects of the CBSE every year since 2008. Thats almost every exam, every year, for the last nine years.

In the day and age of cut-throat competition for college admissions, a difference of 2 to 3 per cent in your marks often determines whether you make the list or miss out.

If person A scores 92 and his marks are increased to 95, whereas person B scores a 95 and his marks stay as they are, that takes away the advantage of the person who actually scored higher.

Mukta Nain, Principal of the CBSE-affiliated Birla High School for Boys in Kolkata is not impressed. "It's a little unfair. In this stiff competition where even half a mark is important, I feel this affects the admission of some good students to various courses they want to take up.

A former exam controller for the CBSE, Pavnesh Kumar, had this to say. "The 95-spike is because the highest number for moderated scores is 95. It is unfair to say that people who are scoring 95 without moderation are being disadvantaged because their scores are not being reduced. It's only that the marks of those below 95 are being increased."

Former Chairperson of the CBSE, Ashok Ganguly, agreed with CNN-News18's data analysis and said that the CBSE should try and avoid bumping up marks in the 90s.

"How is it that students attempting only 90 marks in an exam end up scoring 94? We need to differentiate between grace marks and standardisation. The processes of standardisation employed need to be revisited. Lack of transparency is a major concern."

But the CBSE isnt the only board exam with a seemingly flawed marking process. Lets now look at the other big national board  the ISC.

ISCs MISSING NUMBERS

In the ISC examinations of 2016, no student in any paper scored an 81 or an 82 or an 84 or an 85. Nor would you find a single person with an 87, an 89, a 91 or a 93.

These eight numbers feature in a list of 24 numbers between 40 and 100 not to have been scored by any student not just this year, but for all the years for which we have data (that is, from 2012 to 2016).

The CISCE, which administers the ISC examinations, chose not to respond.
Bhopal: Even as Madhya Pradesh government is patting its back over providing maximum benefits to farmers, a 67-year-old farmers' union leader claimed that the incentives introduced by the government are an "eyewash", and they are committed to dislodge Shivraj Singh Chouhan from power. The disgruntled farmers have planned a protest on Friday, a year after the violent MP stir.

Alleging that measures like farm loans on 0% interest have not benefited farmers, Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh national president Shivkumar Sharma Kakkaji said, I dare anyone from RSS or Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to tell us a single pro-farmer measure implemented in the 15-year rule of the saffron party.

Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Mahasangh is an umbrella organization representing over 100 farmers unions of the country.

Speaking to News18 ahead of the farmers stir on June 1, Sharma, who had organised last year's MP farmer protests, claimed that farmers are undergoing the worst phase and the 43% surge in suicides describe their state of affairs in the country.

The leader also dismissed the National Crime Record Bureau data, which states that 36,000 farmers committed suicide in Madhya Pradesh in 14 years. If investigated in detail, it could actually be around 60,000 as we all are well aware about the botched-up police probe in the cases, he said.

Sharma claimed that when he spoke to a group of 700 farmers in Dhar village, none of them said that they backed CM Chouhan for another term.

Even when I asked that does he (CM Shivraj) deserve another chance being a farmers son, not a single farmer responded affirmatively, he said.

The leader claims that farmers in Madhya Pradesh are extremely tormented and dont want CM Shivraj back in power.

Interestingly, Sharma had a fall out with the Chief Minister in 2012 when Chouhan removed him as the Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) state head.

When the leader was asked on his tiff with the CM, he said, During a protest in Bareilly, the state government conspired to eliminate me, jailed me and slapped me with 12 cases including nine under section 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC. I was put behind bars 55 times. It was then that I vowed to uproot the government.

Despite BKS being an-RSS backed organisation, Sharma is extremely vocal about his views against the state government back in 2012.

The 67-year-old crusader, who identifies himself as a socialist fighter waging a war against establishment for the last 50 years, had risen to prominence last year during farmers unrest in Madhya Pradesh and was seen as the chief architect of the agitation.

Accusing RSS-affiliate Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS)-MP government for the violence witnessed during the last years agitation, the veteran leader claimed this time they have changed the format of the stir. Its a gaon bandh this time where farmers would stop coming to towns and cities for selling their products for ten days so there is no question of law and order trouble.

They claim of not having any plans to cause inconvenience to the public so the farmers would keep their shops on the boundaries of urban areas and anyone who wishes to buy anything could come and shop.

There is no one to lead this agitation and its a public agitation, he said. To oppose the unholy pact inked by BKS last year, the protesters would observe Vishwasghat Diwas on June 5, would pay condolences to the farmers killed in Mandsaur on June 6 and hold Dhikkar Diwas on June 8 against brutal bashing of two farmers on this day last year.

The former BKS president, however, blamed his former organization  BKS- for the Mandsaur firing last year.

Till June 3, BKS did not support us and flinging a surprise announced support on June 4, he said adding the organization backed by RSS on June 5 inked a pact with CM Shivraj in Ujjain on June 5 unilaterally forcing us issue disclaimers. This was the reason Mandsaur farmers called and told me that they would take out a peace march on June 6 to convey a message that the agitation was still on.

Policemen asked three-four farmers to come over for a dialogue and opened fire in planned manner, said Kakkaji claiming the mob turned violent only after five of their colleagues were shot down in Mandsaur.

Blaming BJP-RSS for triggering violence last year, the farmer union leader claimed he has 47 years of experience in protests and on the basis of he could say that the rulers tend to cut short any agitation and for doing so they incite violence from protesters side.

Asked what immediate measures are needed to relieve distressed farmers, Kakkaji claimed that earlier they used to raise 40-50 demands which were never met but after the formation of Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangh which had 50 farmers bodies from across the country during the inaugural meeting in Bhopal, they decided to focus on basic issues including offering farmers 1.5 times return on input, a one-time loan waiver to peasants and inclusion of milk, vegetables and fruits producers into Minimum Support Price.

We are now co-ordinating with legal experts to make sure that how the manifestoes of political parties are brought into legal domain and breach of these announcements post electoral win bring de-recognition to the parties.

The elderly leader brushed aside speculations of his agreement with Congress. I havent met Congress MP president Kama Nath and Patidar leader Hardik Patel in my life.

All through my life, I have fought the establishment and when the BJP is in power, I am branded as a Congress-man and I am called an RSS-affiliate when I fight the Congress in power, he claimed.

The farmers leader who has been touring the state in connection with the agitation however urged leaders including from BJP-RSS to cut across political lines to extend support to farmers cause if they are serious about the demands of the farmers.
New Delhi: The cost of prosecuting Mumbai terror attacks mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) head Hafiz Saeed is too great, former ISI chief Asad Durrani has said in a book co-authored with ex-RAW chief As Dulat.

"If you prosecute Saeed, the first reaction will be: it's on India's behalf, you're hounding him, he's innocent, etc. The political cost is big, now," he said.

The book titled Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace features moderated conversations between Durrani and Dulat, wherein the two discuss topics, including surgical strikes, Kulbhushan Jadhav, Nawaz Sharif, Kashmir and Burhan Wani.

When Dulat asks Durrani about Saeed's value to Pakistan, Durrani replies, "The cost of prosecuting him is too great."

Saeed, who carries a $10 million American bounty for his role in terror activities, was under house arrest from January to November last year.

The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) which is responsible for carrying out the Mumbai attacks in 2008 in which 166 people were killed.

Saeed was declared a global terrorist by the US and the UN after the Mumbai strikes and was put under house arrest in November 2008 but freed by a court some months later.

"He was taken to the courts though they had nothing (new) against him. It is still possible that he was detained to let the storm blow over. In six months, he could come out," writes Durrani about Saeed's detention.

In the book, published by HarperCollins India, Dulat and Durrani are in conversation with journalist Aditya Sinha.

Asked by Dulat if Saeed's house arrest was choreographed, Durrani says, "What's new, as far as Hafiz Saeed is concerned, is more evidence available? One would expect that there's an arrangement with Hafiz Saeed.

Asked if there were any positive implications for Indo-Pak relations from Saeed's house arrest, he says, "There are very few positives on the India-Pakistan front right now. But this can provide breathing space to a country that is constantly under pressure."

In an interview with News18 three days ago, the retired ISI chief had also hinted that Pakistan is actively involved in the current unrest in Kashmir. Some in Pakistan may have reasons to watch India lose its grip over the Kashmiris with expectancy. One indeed could not be playing fiddle while Kashmir burns and bleeds, he said.

Pakistan's powerful military has accused Durrani of 'violating' the military code of conduct and has summoned him on Monday seeking clarification over the book.

Durrani tweeted on Sunday that he was saddened by the allegations against him.

I am saddened by the allegations made on me by my own people. I have served Pakistan all along putting my life at risk. People who live life for others selflessly never get respect they deserve & instead those who do all wrongs for their own benefits are treated like King. Gen Asad Durrani (@GenDurrani) May 27, 2018

Durrani said in another tweet that the proceeds from the book would be used for charity.

For the people who are accusing me of making money through my new book - the profit earned is not for my luxury but will be used for the poor people who are victim of terrorism through various NGOs with whom I have association since many years. Gen Asad Durrani (@GenDurrani) May 27, 2018

(With PTI inputs)
The GSEB Result 2018, Gujarat SSC Result 2018, GSEB SSC Result 2018 declared by the Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board on 28th May (today) at 8:00 AM. The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board hosted the GSEB 10th Result 2018, Gujarat 10th Result 2018, Gujarat SSC Result 2018 on its official website gseb.org. The pass percentage for GSEB SSC Result 2018 is 67.50%. Savani Hil Ishwarbhai Tops with 99%

The GSEB officially conducts the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) Class 10 exams during the month of March. This year, the Gujarat Class 10 final exams commenced from March 12 - March 23. Students can check their GSEB Result 2018, Gujarat Result 2018, Gujarat 10th Result 2018 or GSEB SSC Result 2018 on these websites as well examresults.net/gujarat/gseb-ssc-10th-result, gujarat.indiaresults.com

How to check Gujarat 10th Result 2018, GSEB SSC Result 2018, Gujarat SSC Result 2018:

Step 1: Click on the official website www.gseb.org

Step 2: Look for - Gujarat 10th Result 2018, GSEB SSC Result 2018 tab

Step 3: Click on the tab which says GSEB Result 2018, Gujarat SSC Result 2018, GSEB 10th Result 2018

Step 4: Enter your Roll Number

Step 5: Download the Gujarat Result 2018 and save for future reference

Last year, around 7 lakh students sat for the GSEB SSC exam. The state recorded a passing percentage of 68.24 %, with girls outperforming the boys yet again. A total of 11,03,674 students appeared for the exams this year.
New Delhi: India has concluded price negotiations with Russia for a nearly Rs 40,000 crore deal to procure S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems for the Indian Air Force, officials said.

They said the two countries are now trying to find a way out to evade the provisions of a US law that seeks to punish countries and entities engaged in transactions with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

"The negotiations for the missile deal have been concluded. The financial component has been finalised," a top official involved in the negotiations for the deal with Russia told PTI.

The official said both Russia and India are likely to announce the deal before an annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in October.

Two other officials said both sides are now looking at ways to insulate the deal from the sanctions announced by the US against Russia under its Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

The issue is understood to have figured during Modi's informal talks with Putin in Sochi last week.

There has been mounting concerns in India over the US sanctions against Russian defence majors including Rosoboronexport as billions of dollars of military purchases may be impacted because of the punitive measure.

The US had announced sanctions against Russia under the stringent law for its alleged meddling in the American presidential election in 2016.

CAATSA, which came into effect in January, mandates the Donald Trump administration to punish entities engaging in significant transaction with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis last month appealed to the Congress to urgently provide India the national security waiver, saying imposing sanctions under CAATSA for the S-400 air defence missile deal would only hit the US.

India wants to procure the long-range missile systems to tighten its air defence mechanism, particularly along the nearly 4,000-km-long Sino-India border.

In 2016, India and Russia had signed an agreement on the 'Triumf' interceptor-based missile system which can destroy incoming hostile aircraft, missiles and even drones at ranges of up to 400 km. S-400 is known as Russia's most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system.

China was the first foreign buyer to seal a government-to-government deal with Russia in 2014 to procure the lethal missile system and Moscow has already started delivery of unknown number of the S-400 missile systems to Beijing.

The S-400 is an upgraded version of the S-300 systems. The missile system, manufactured by Almaz-Antey, has been in service in Russia since 2007.
New Delhi: India on Sunday summoned the deputy high commissioner of Pakistan to protest against the Islamic Republics Gilgit-Baltistan Order to get hold of power in these areas.

The Gilgit-Baltistan Order, 2018, which essentially seizes the powers of the Gilgit Baltistan Council and entrusts the Prime Minister of Pakistan with indisputable authorities vis-a-vis Gilgit-Baltistan, was officially promulgated on May 21.

The unilateral decision has drawn the disappointment and ire of civilians and political leaders in India across party lines.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said that India had clearly conveyed to Pakistan that Jammu and Kashmir, including Gilgit-Baltistan areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation, the statement said.

The ministry further said the action could not hide the illegal occupation of the part of Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan occupied territories for the past seven decades.

According to some Pakistani media reports, the 'Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018' provides for devolution of greater financial powers to the areas.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday congratulated five tribal students for scaling Mount Everest and also praised the all-women crew of INSV Tarini for circumventing the globe.

The tribal students  Maneesha Dhurve, Pramesh Ale, Umakant Madhavi, Kavidas Katmode and Vikas Soyam  from an Ashram School in Maharashtra's Chandrapur, scaled the world's highest peak on May 16.

Modi, in the 44th edition of his monthly radio address "Mann Ki Baat", said: "These Ashram School students began training in August 2017, covering Wardha, Hyderabad, Darjeeling and Leh-Ladakh. These young boys and girls had been selected under 'Mission Shaurya'. True to its name, they brought glory to the country with their brave deed of conquering the Everest."

He also praised several others, including 16-year-old Shivangi Pathak, for scaling the Everest.

Pathak became the youngest Indian woman to scale Everest from the Nepal side.

"For centuries, Everest has been throwing the gauntlet at humankind. And for long, brave hearts have been responding to the challenge," he said.

He spoke about Ajit Bajaj and his daughter  the first ever father-daughter duo to ascend Everest.

Speaking about a Border Security Force (BSF) group who scaled the Everest and while returning, they brought loads of trash littered there, he said: "This deed is commendable indeed; it also displays their commitment towards cleanliness and the environment."

Modi congratulated the all-women crew of INSV Tarini for circumventing the globe.

The team, led by Lt. Commander Vartika Joshi and comprising Lt. Commanders Pratibha Jamwal and P. Swathi and Lieutenants S. Vijaya Devi, B. Aishwarya and Payal Gupta, had sailed out from Goa in September 2017.

"These six illustrious daughters of India circumnavigated the globe for over more than 250 days on board the INSV Tarini, returning home on May 21," he said.

Travelling across different oceans and seas, they covered almost twenty thousand nautical miles, "this was a first of a kind incident in the world", the Prime Minister said.

"I congratulate these daredevils, especially the daughters from the core of my heart," he added.
Jaipur: Manju Devi stands tall in her fraternity, being the first woman porter of the North-West Railways, in a profession that is considered a male bastion. She has been the sole breadwinner for her three teenage children. She lost her husband 10 years ago.

After overcoming family disputes and psychological hurdles and encouraged by her mother Mohini, Devi acquired her deceased husband Mahadev's porter license no. 15 and took to the demanding task of hauling luggage of passengers at the Jaipur Railway Station.

Authorities initially told her there were no women porters and hence it would be difficult for her. But she persisted and eventually given the badge number, she had said.

Porter Manju Devi hauls luggage of a passenger inside a train compartment in Jaipur. (Photo: Arun Sharma/PTI)

It took her a while to get a grasp of the realities of her job and the challenge included designing her own uniform. Now, clad in a red kurta and white salwar, she sets out every day to work in multiple shifts, to make ends meet for her family.

Manju was among 112 women who were felicitated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, besides former beauty queens -- Aishwarya Rai and Nicole Faria -- mountaineer Bachendri Pal, Anshu Jamsenpa, missile woman Tessy Thomas and private detective Rajani Pandit.

"I weighed 30 kgs and the passengers' luggage was also 30 kgs but it was nowhere to the burden of feeding three children," Devi narrates in jest.
Islamabad: Pakistan on Sunday claimed it was forced to test nuclear weapons two decades ago due to hostile posturing by India.

Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal issued a statement on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the May 28, 1998 nuclear tests, while insisting that the testing of atomic bombs by India eliminated chances of a nuclear weapons-free South Asia.

Pakistan was forced to take that decision as a response, in self-defence, to the nuclear tests and accompanying hostile posturing by its neighbour. These developments unfortunately put an end to the prospect for keeping South Asia free of nuclear weapons - an objective which Pakistan had actively pursued, he said, hinting at India.

India conducted a series of five nuclear bomb test explosions at the Pokhran in May, 1998, which was soon followed by Pakistan's tests.

The spokesman said that despite the nuclear testing, Pakistan remained steadfast in its commitment to non-proliferation and global peace and strategic stability and demonstrated utmost restraint and responsibility in the stewardship of its nuclear capability since 1998.

It is committed to the principle of credible minimum deterrence and has persistently sought deterrence stability in the region, he said.

Faisal also said that this objective has driven Pakistan to offer and conclude several confidence building measures (CBMs) in the nuclear and conventional domains, including the 2004 Pakistan-India Joint Statement which recognised the respective nuclear capabilities of the two countries as a factor for stability.

He said that as one of the most affected countries due to the impact of climate change, Pakistan plans to increase its nuclear power generation capacity to 40,000 MW by 2050, as a clean and cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel.

Pakistan has consistently signaled its willingness to consider further measures for risk reduction and avoidance of arms race in the region, according to the spokesman.

He also said that Pakistan was confident of its ability to deny space for any misadventure against the backdrop of rapidly expanding nuclear and conventional forces in its neighbourhood and pursuit of aggressive security doctrines and developing force postures.

The nuclearisation of the Indian Ocean and canesterisation of ballistic missiles in our neighbourhood should be a matter of concern for the international community as well, since these developments have extra-regional ramifications, he said.

He said Pakistan while recognising its responsibilities, had developed over the years a robust command and control system led by the National Command Authority, and effective nuclear safety and security regimes and export controls.

He said Pakistan looked forward to expanding the scope of its international collaboration in nuclear power generation for meeting the legitimate socio-economic development needs of its people.

As a country with advanced nuclear technology, Pakistan seeks to play its role as a mainstream partner in the global non-proliferation regime, he said.

He said Pakistan had expressed desire to join the multilateral export control regimes and already applied for participation in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) based on non-discriminatory criteria applicable in a fair manner to all non-NPT states.
New York: A Sikh truck driver, who was shot at two weeks ago in Ohio, has succumbed to his injuries, with prosecutors saying they will seek a murder charge against the 20-year-old accused in the case.

Jaspreet Singh (32) of Monroe, Ohio died of injuries he sustained when he was shot at by Broderick Malik Jones Roberts on the night of May 12, a report in the Journal News said.

Following the incident, Roberts had been indicted for aggravated robbery, felonious assault and possessing weapons under disability for allegedly firing at Singh.

Since Singh died of his injuries, prosecutors said they will now seek a murder indictment against the accused.

According to a Hamilton Police report, the victim suffered a gunshot wound to the upper torso. Singh died on May 21, said Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser.

As per court documents, Roberts allegedly shot Singh "while he sat in his vehicle".

The police report added that Roberts' attorney David Washington entered a not guilty plea on his client's behalf but acknowledged a murder indictment is expected next week.

A native of India, Singh had been living in the US for about eight years.

Advocacy group The Sikh Coalition said no immediate evidence has been released to suggest that any bias was involved in the tragic accident.

The group's legal team has been in contact with relevant authorities in Cincinnati and continues to monitor the case. "Our prayers remain with his family during this very difficult time," it said in a Facebook post.

Judge Jennifer McElfresh has set a bond of $1 million, substantially increasing it from the initial amount of $1,25,000 in Hamilton Municipal Court. Roberts is scheduled to be back in court on May 31.

Manjinder Singh, a friend of Singh, said the victim was a devoted father and husband, leaving behind four young children.

"He was very well known and well liked in the Sikh community," Manjinder said, noting that his friend helped manage area stores but was recently employed as a truck driver.

He was an active at the Guru Nanak Society in the area, he said.

"It is just senseless," said Manjinder Singh, adding that "there is no way he would have engaged in any type of wrong activity. He would have just walked away".

Roberts has a criminal history and was sent to prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to trespass, unlawful restraint and assault, according to Butler County court records.
Hyderabad: A transgender was beaten to death and three others severely injured when a mob attacked them with stones in the old city area of Hyderabad late on Saturday night over suspicions of them being child lifters.

Police has taken 25 people into custody after inspecting CCTV footage from the area.

Hyderabad Police has also arrested two students on charges of forwarding a video with fake information regarding kidnapping gangs operating in the city causing fear among locals.

According to police, several transgenders had come to the city from Mahbubnagar district for the ongoing Ramzan month and were seen begging in the area.

The locals got suspicious about their movement at night. After they failed to give any convincing answers, the mob started thrashing them and the tension quickly escalated.

The angry mob even pelted stones and attacked the police when they tried to rescue the victims. Special forces had to be deployed in the area to bring the situation under control.

Both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh has witnessed a string of similar attacks where strangers have been indiscriminately attacked by locals suspecting them of being part of child kidnapping gangs.

A message has gone viral on social media claiming members of Pardhi gang who are kidnapping children have entered the two states. The message also says the gang is killing children to harvest their organs.

In the last few days, at least five people have been lynched and several have been beaten up in different in the two Telugu states.

Both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana police have clarified that there is no such movement of any inter-state gang and there has been no cases of kidnapping reported here.

The police are also conducting awareness campaigns across villages and appealing to people to not believe in these false rumours.

The police has appealed people not to take law in their lands and warned them of strict action. The police has also warned of strict action against people who are spreading these messages and videos on social media.

The Hyderabad Police has said that they have identified more people who are sharing these fake messages on social media and action will be taken against them.
New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry on Sunday claimed there has been "visible improvement" in the security scenario in the country since the Narendra Modi government assumed office four years ago.

This was made possible due to sustained action against terrorists and negotiations with extremists groups which abide by the Constitution, it said.

In a booklet, Country First, released a day after the completion of four years of the Modi government, the ministry said special initiatives have been taken to accelerate development in Left-Wing Extremism-hit areas, the northeastern region, Jammu and Kashmir, along the international borders and the coastal areas.

There has been visible improvement in the security scenario due to adoption of a multi-pronged strategy in the last 48 months that include sustained action against terrorists, extremists and insurgents, the booklet claimed. "The government is negotiating with those extremist groups which abide by the Constitution," it said.

The ministry said there has been a 63 percent decline in insurgency incidents in the northeast, 83 percent reduction in civilian deaths and 40 percent decrease in security forces casualty in the region.

The geographical spread of the LWE-hit areas has been reduced from 76 districts in 2013 to 58 in 2018 while there has been 36.6 per cent reduction in incidents of violence in these areas and 55.5 per cent reduction in deaths, it said. The booklet said 619 terrorists were neutralised in Jammu and Kashmir between 2014-17 in comparison to 471 killed between 2010-13.

However, there was no mention in the booklet about the incidents of violence and casualties of civilians and security personnel in the last four years in Jammu and Kashmir.

According to the data given by Union Minister of State for Home Hansraj Gangaram Ahir in the Lok Sabha on February 6 this year, 201 security personnel and 72 civilians were killed in terrorist violence in J&K between 2015-17.

Ahir had said there were 342 incidents of violence in J&K in 2017 alone in which 80 security personnel were killed.

The minister had also said 572 civilians lost their lives and 199 security forces personnel were killed in violence perpetrated by Naxals between 2015-17.

The booklet said 113sympathisers of the dreaded terror groupISIS were arrested by the central and state agencies by working in tandem in last four years.

The ISIS and Ansar-ul-Ummah (AUU) were declared terrorist organisations and Mumbai-based NGO Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) was declared an unlawful association for its alleged links with terror activities, it said.

The ministry claimed the backbone of the Indian Mujahideen has been broken with courts awarding capital punishment to five operatives of the outfit who were convicted for carrying out blasts in Dilsukhnagar, Hyderabad in 2013.

Several top leaders of the United National Liberation Front of Manipur has been awarded rigorous imprisonment of up to 7-10 years for criminal conspiracy to wage war while 12 people were charge-sheeted by the NIA in connection with terror-funding cases in J&K, it said.

Eighteen activists of the banned terrorist organisation SIMI, including its top leadership, were sentenced to seven years rigorous imprisonment by courts for giving terror training in Kerala, the booklet said.

The security forces also curbed flow of funds to Naxalites, insurgents, separatists and terror groups through effective measures and a web-enabled software operationalised for online maintenance of records of seizures and recoveries of fake Indian currency notes, it said.
London: The still-grieving father of Savita Halappanavar, the 31-year-old Indian dentist who died of sepsis in 2012 after being denied an abortion during a miscarriage, has welcomed the result of Ireland's landmark referendum to overturn the abortion ban, saying "we have got justice for Savita".

Savita's death was a catalyst for the movement to repeal the eighth amendment, paving the way for new legislation to allow for the termination of pregnancies in the predominantly Catholic country.

The Eighth Amendment grants an equal right to life to the mother and unborn, is now set to be replaced. In the referendum held on Friday and results announced on Saturday night, people in Ireland voted overwhelmingly to overturn the abortion ban by 66.4 per cent to 33.6 per cent. Hundreds of People chanted Savita's name soon after the outcome of the referendum was announced.

Ireland's Indian-origin Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who campaigned in favour of liberalisation, said it was "a historic day for Ireland," and that a "quiet revolution" had taken place.

Varadkar told people at Dublin Castle that the result showed the Irish public "trust and respect women to make their own decision and choices."

Reacting to the outcome of the referendum, Andanappa Yalagi, Savita's father said he was "very happy".

Yalagi said: "We've got justice for Savita, and what happened to her will not happen to any other family now.

"I have no words to express my gratitude to the people of Ireland at this historic moment," he said. He said Savita's death had devastated the family.

"It's still very emotional after five years. I think about her every day," he said.

An independent inquiry into Savita's treatment found there had been an "over-emphasis on the need not to intervene until the foetal heart had stopped", as well as poor patient monitoring and risk assessment. It strongly recommended that the Irish parliament consider changing the law, and "any necessary constitutional change".

Savita's husband, Praveen Halappanavar had said that he and his wife had repeatedly asked for the pregnancy to be terminated after her admission to hospital, but they had been told: This is a Catholic country".

Meanwhile, the Irish Times reported that the Irish Cabinet will on Tuesday consider a request from the Minister for Health to draft the Heads of a Bill to implement the decision of the people.

Health Minister Simon Harris said he expected it be published by the summer recess and passed by the end of the year. There is a strong mandate to implement the decision of the people as soon as possible, the minister added.
The West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education announced the West Bengal HS Result 2018, West Bengal Board Result 2018 for Class 12, WB 12th Result 2018 on June 08 (today) at 10 am. The West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education released, WBCHSE Result 2018, WB HS Result 2018, on its official website wbbse.org, wbresults.nic.in. The West Bengal HS Result 2018, WB HS Result 2018 can be checked online at 10:30 am.

The West Bengal Board conducted Higher Secondary examination from 27th March -11th April. Students appeared for the examination can check their WBCHSE Result 2018, West Bengal HS Result 2018, WB HS Result 2018 on these websites as well examresults.net/wb,west-bengal.indiaresults.com, results.nic.in

How to West Bengal HS Result 2018:

Step 1: Click on the official website link wbbse.org, wbresults.nic.in

Step 2: Look for a tab - West Bengal Board Result 2018, WB 12th Result 2018, West Bengal HS Result 2018

Step 3: Click on the link which says WB Result 2018, West Bengal 12th Result 2018, West Bengal Higher Secondary Result 2018

Ste 4: Enter Roll Number

Step 5: Download the West Bengal Board Result 2018 and keep a printout for future reference

Students who are waiting with much anticipation can also check their West Bengal Higher Secondary 12 Result 2018, West Bengal Board Class 12 Result 2018 via SMS as well

Get Your WBCHSE Higher Secondary Result 2018, West Bengal Higher Secondary Result 2018 ON SMS
Director: Deb Medhekar

Cast: Danny Denzongpa, Adil Hussain and Geetanjali Thapa.

In a rising atmosphere of cultural intolerance, hate and violence, director Deb Medhekars Bioscopewala promises hope and manages to convey the more heart-warming emotion of humankind. The film, starring Danny Denzongpa as Rehmat Khan aka Bioscopewala, Geetanjali Thapa as Minnie and Adil Hussain as Robi Basu, is an ultra-modern update of Rabindranath Tagores 1892 classic story Kabuliwala, in which an Afghan merchant comes to Calcutta from Kabul to sell dry fruits and shawls and, during his stay in India, forms a beautiful bond with a 5-year-old young girl Minnie because she reminds him of his daughter.

Bioscopewala is fragmented and shot in a stream of flashbacks as Minnie, in her late 20s, tries to recall her childhood. She has been estranged from her father Robi Basu (Hussain) for many years due to their troubled relationship and now lives in France. But fate brings her back to Kolkata as she gets to know about her fathers tragic demise in a plane crash. Upon her arrival, she finds out that her father was travelling to Afghanistan. Later, Minnies caretaker Bhola Kaka (Brijendra Kala) informs her that Basu has obtained custody of an elderly Alzheimers patient, Rehmat Khan (Danny). Her life takes an unexpected turn when she realises that she has a long lost connection with the old man.

Each door that Minnie opens on her present-day journey takes us to her past when she was 5 and thats how the film unfolds.

However, five minutes in and we clearly get an idea that the film has gotten many layers added to it. In Medhekars newer version of Kabuliwala, Khan has an unconditional passion for cinema and story-telling so much so that he rebels against the Taliban, who are constantly trying to destroy the rich cultural history of his homeland.

The film, on the contrary, shows how a man with no education, has the potential progressively to change peoples views. Its beautifully shot, too, but the power comes totally out of the actors, who are in effect playing their parts, especially Danny who does an incredible job in capturing what the world is like through the eyes of a person who finds joy in others happiness. It feels like he really enjoyed playing this unusual yet admirable character since he is so believable as the Bioscopewala. Wish I could see more of him in the movie.

Thapa plays her part with subtle precision, too, and displays no unnecessary melodrama. Hussains Basu brings a refreshing take on the usual role as upper middle class Bengali, by essaying it with utter sensitivity.

The most startling moment of the movie occurs when Danny puts his hand inside his big loose collarless shirt, and brings out a dirty piece of cloth that bears hand impression of Minnie and his own daughter. The particular sequence is done with so much conviction that it reminds me of Balraj Sahanis Rehmat Khan.

The audience is also given dramatic and heart-wrenching sights of Afghanistan destroyed houses, schools and shops, as we go through various streets of Kabul.

Truth to be told, after watching Bioscopewala, I was still in tears for several minutes, standing helpless and asking myself What have we become?

Bioscopewala may not be a film for everyone, but it's definitely a film everyone should be encouraged to watch.

Rating: 4/5
13 Reasons Why actor Katherine Langford who portrays Hannah Baker in Netflix's controversial series has no plans to come back for a third season. Langford took to Instagram to share a long, emotional post bidding goodbye to her character and thank the team for making her do something that resonated with a large group of the society.

She wrote, "Hannah...I love you...and I let you go" Those are the words I was able to say six months ago, and now can finally share with you..."

She continued, "As most of you know 13 Reasons Why was my first ever job and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to tell Hannahs story so fully in season 1, and to be asked back for a season 2. Thank you to Netflix, the incredible producers, creatives, cast and crew for making these last 2 years so special. And to all of you here  Thank you for filling my life with love and light."

She added that she will strive to do meaningful work ahead, regardless of the fact if her character comes back for the third season.

The second season was a closure for the show's character and fans on Hannah Baker's story. While season one was all about Hannah's story and her tapes explaining why she committed suicide, the recently released season was all about the trial and punishing those responsible. The second season ended in a cliffhanger, but it is unlikely that the new storyline will have anything to do with Langford's track.

The Australian actress is currently shooting the film Spontaneous, in which she plays Mara Carlyle, whose life is forever changed when students in her senior class suddenly start exploding around her.
After traveling across festivals including the Nashville Film Festival and the largest LGBTQ film festivals, Outshine in Miami, Saregamas Yoodlee Films next, Noblemen, is now set for its India premiere at the ongoing Kashish Film Festival, India's biggest LGBT film festival. Just ahead of the premiere, the teaser of Kunal Kapoors starrer is out and it tackles the extremely pertinent and important issue of bullying in high schools. The film is directed by Vandana Kataria, and has an ensemble of fresh faces, along with Kunal.

The film is narrated through the story of the main protagonist, a young 15-year-old boy, Shay, who struggles to come to terms with his adolescent years, and is terrorised by a gang of bullies. The film is set in an all boys boarding school, where Shays interest in dramatics is encouraged by Murali, (Kunal Kapoor). However what starts off as his desire to be a part in the enactment of the Shakespearean play, The Merchant of Venice, turns into a battle of student hierarchy and egos, unleashing a chain of events that lead to loss of life and innocence.

This will be the third film by Saregamas film production arm, Yoodlee films. Yoodlee Films has previously released the critically applauded Ajji, directed by Devashish Makhija, and the sensitive and mature romantic drama Kuchh Bheege Alfaaz, directed by Onir, earlier this year.
The case of Vedanta-Sterlite Copper smelter in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu has once again brought to light the nexus between companies and government that disregards well-being of people and environment.

The NDA government gave concession to the company by getting around the mandatory environmental safety regulations and even the National Green Tribunals order on frivolous grounds.

The plant has been accused of dumping copper slag in a river, causing air pollution, contaminating groundwater and a risk to fisheries. The health study conducted in 2008, when the smelter was running at a much lower capacity, found increased prevalence rate of asthma and respiratory infections caused due to the air pollution in the area.

The residents have been protesting for over 100 days demanding closure of the smelter and this week 13 people were killed in police firing. The contentious expansion of the smelter was stayed by the Madras High Court on May 23. The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board also sprang into action and ordered the closure of the plant, leading to disconnection of power supply.

Sterlite Copper of the London-listed Vedanta group has been a habitual offender. It remained closed for weeks in 2013 after the case came up at the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and the Supreme Court found that it polluted the environment through harmful emissions and slapped a fine of Rs 100 crore.

The reports revealed that successive governments have been in cahoots with the company to provide exception from public consultation for the plants expansion, which now has been made mandatory by the High Court.

Flouting environmental norms, in the name of development and economic growth, has turned India into the capital of world pollution deaths in 2015.

According to a report released last October by The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health, out of nine million deaths worldwide, 2.5 million die prematurely in India. Another report on global climate change and its impact on health showed that India has had over 5 lakh premature deaths, second highest in the world, attributable to air pollution and Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5 concentration in the air.

As if that were not enough, India ranked among five worst nations in curbing environmental pollution as per a new green index released during the annual World Economic Forum meet in Davos this January.

Despite growing concerns world over, the countrys obsession for economic growth coupled with corruption, continues to undermine environmental protection and human rights.

When governments do not pay heed, people and activists resort to courts and tribunals, which is often a lengthy process and many a times rendered ineffective due to mighty executive arm of the government.

In such situation of despondency, shareholders must assume high moral responsibility towards people and environment by holding the company to account.

Learning from the Climate movement

Back in 2010, after learning about the damaging consequences of coal mining on nature and peoples health, a group of students from Swarthmore College near Philadelphia successfully convinced their Board of Managers to publicly sell their fossil fuel shares. This boosted the image of the college while painted fossil fuel industry in a bad light, highlighting ill-effects such as pollution and diseases.

With the slogan Divest from destruction, reinvest in justice, the divestment campaign against fossil fuels  the primary cause of climate change  reached 50 colleges by 2012.

In the US, Europe and other parts of the developed world, it is common for universities, religious organisations, pension funds, local authorities and even charitable foundations to invest in the form of stocks, bonds or funds to generate income.

Something that started as a student campaign is now a global divestment movement that led more than 500 institutions, including The Church of England and World Council of Churches, to make their portfolios fossil free with the invested assets totalling $3.4 trillion.

Last December, the World Bank at the One Planet Summit in Paris announced that it will end its financial support for oil and gas extraction by 2019 to halt climate change.

The movement recently saw more commitments, with New York City council pledging to divest its pension funds of $5 billion in fossil fuel investments, and Sussex University announcing plans to divest, joining 60 UK universities that have at least partially divested from oil, gas and coal.

The divestment movement stressed on moral and financial reasons to influence investors to move their money out of the unsustainable fossil fuel industry and invest in clean energy. The Paris Agreement on Climate Change in 2015 gave a clear signal that the days of the polluting industry are numbered.

We must take a leaf out of this success story, having a common objective of protecting nature and peoples health, to educate, sensitise and even challenge investors to be responsible. We need a similar movement in India against companies which fearlessly pollute not only environment but also cause serious human rights violations.

Financial and reputational risks force companies to be accountable to their shareholders to remain relevant. Vedantas stock plunged over 7 per cent after people lost lives in protests, but it was unarguably due to investors financial self-interest.

The principles for responsible investment, supported by the UN, advocate for incorporating environmental, social and governance factors into investment decisions, to better manage risk and generate sustainable, long-term returns.

It is high time investors  individual or institutional  go beyond their immediate financial interests and embrace environmental protection not only as a legal requirement but a core value while making investment decisions.

(The author is a climate change expert based in New Delhi. He tweets under @harjeet11. Views are personal.)
Patna: The upcoming by-poll in Jokihat constituency of Bihar, which is scheduled for Monday, is being touted as a battle between Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav.

The Muslim-dominated constituency in Araria district had voted JD(U) to power in the past four elections, which led Nitish to come down to Jokihat along with half of his cabinet colleagues to campaign for JD(U) candidate - Murshid Alam.

BJP's Shahnawaz Hussain has also been camping in the constituency.

The high-pitched Jokihat by-polls is turning out to be a litmus test for Nitish Kumar whose popularity and prospect in Bihar will be put to test on Monday.

Tejaswi Yadav has time and again claimed in the past that the people of Bihar, especially the Muslims, have lost faith in Nitish Kumar after he split with the 'Mahagatbandhan'.

The by-election was necessitated after sitting JD(U) lawmaker Sarfaraz Alam quit his party after JD(U) joined BJP and he shifted to RJD. He recently contested from the Araria Lok Sabha seat in March and also won the by-poll.

RJD has now fielded Shahnawaz Alam, Sarfaraz Alam's younger brother for the Jokihat by-polls.

The JD(U) has pitted Murshid Alam, a former panchayat 'Mukhiya', who had joined the party a couple of years ago and pitted himself against Shahnawaz. Murshid has several criminal cases in his name, including charges of attempt to rape and murder.

Earlier, while addressing a public meet, Nitish Kumar had taken a swipe at Sarafarz, saying, "While I thank the people of Jokihat for having blessed us with victory in two consecutive assembly polls, I am sad that Sarfaraz deserted us and defected to RJD.

Tejaswi Yadav, on the other hand, has accused the JD(U) chief of fielding "a tainted candidate, named in cases relating to heinous offences like murder, rape and loot". Yadav said the JD(U) candidate has also publicly shamed the CM on several occasions for being just the face of a government that is run by Narendra Modi and RSS.

Nitish Kumar held his last public meeting here on May 24 and a day later, rival Tejaswi also campaigned on the same ground with a larger audience.
Kairana: Kairana constituency in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh has virtually assumed the dimension of a strategic player in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Kairana bypoll, slated for Monday, will also see a joint opposition taking on the ruling BJP.

Located around 630 km from capital city of Lucknow, the Lok Sabha constituency has five assembly segments namely Shamli, Thana Bhawan and Kairana in Shamli district, and Gangoh and Nakur in Saharanpur district. There are nearly 17 lakh voters in the constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

RLD party worker Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which the ruling party was being challenged by a joint opposition.

"This is the beauty of our democracy," he said.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the party's candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dal's (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

The opposition hopes that by consolidating anti-BJP votes, they will repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat.

The withdrawal of candidature of Lok Dal candidate Kanwar Hasan from the fray and his joining of the RLD has only added to the opposition's confidence.

The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the opposition parties  that the drubbing in the

Gorakhpur and Phulpur bye-elections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.

"The results of the May 28 bypolls may set the tone and tenor for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," Rajesh Kumar Saini, manager of a hotel on the busy Shamli-Panipat road, said.

Khan exuded confidence that "Kairana's daughter-in-law Tabassum Hasan will defeat Kairana's daughter (Mriganka Singh)."

The Yogi Adityanath-led state government has left no stone unturned in campaigning for the bypoll. He along with his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya campaigned in Saharanpur and Shamli.

Apart from them, the BJP has thrown in at least five state ministers into the 'fight for Kairana'. They include Dharam Singh Saini (minister of state for Ayush), Suresh Rana (sugarcane development minister), Anupama Jaiswal (basic education minister) Surya Pratap Shahi (agriculture minister) and Laxmi Narayan (religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, waqf and Haj minister).

Of these, Saini and Rana are MLAs from Nakur and Thana Bhawan assembly segments, respectively of the constituency. Jaiswal is the minister in charge of Shamli district, while Surya Pratap Shahi is the minister in charge of Saharanpur.

"Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary has been roped in since he hails from a farming background," a senior UP BJP leader said.

BJP MPs Sanjiv Baliyan, Raghav Lakhan Pal, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and Kanta Kardam have also actively campaigned for Mriganka Singh.

The SP and Congress, however, termed the line-up of UP ministers as a sign of "party jitters".

According to the locals, the major issues in this bypoll are law and order and the woes of sugarcane growers.

RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan had accused the BJP-led state government of resorting to divisive politics.

"Sugarcane growers in the region are feeling the maximum amount of pain, as no payments have been made to them by the state government," she told PTI, rejecting the official claim that the dues from sugar mills were being cleared.

The issue was also raised during an election meeting of state minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary, who said that the dues accumulated from the time of the past governments had been paid out, and the rest would be settled soon.

"In Uttar Pradesh, 10,828.59 lakh quintals of sugarcane were purchased by sugar mills from farmers during the BJP government in 2017-18, as compared to 6443.41 lakh quintals under the Samajwadi Party government in 2015-16. Similarly, Rs 21,186.56 crore payments were made during the BJP government in the state in 2017-18, in comparison to Rs 11,841.34 crore made during the SP government in 2015-16," BJP spokesperson Chandramohan said.

Divergent views also emerged on the reported 2016 exodus of Hindu families from Kairana.

"The area is adjacent to Panipat district in Haryana. The labourers (both Hindus and Muslims) from the area go to the neighbouring state to work in the industries there. They go in the morning and return in the evening," Hasan said while rejecting the claims of any such exodus.

The RLD leader said the locked houses, even of Muslims who had gone to Panipat for work, were photographed and used as a "propaganda".

"In Kairana, both Hindus and Muslims live in peace," she added.

BJP candidate Mriganka Singh, on the other hand, said, "The exodus of Hindu families from Kairana has stopped now. But hundreds of Hindu families had fled from Kairana out of fear and harassment before the 2017 UP Assembly elections".

Apart from Kairana, bypoll to Noorpur assembly constituency in the state will also be held tomorrow.
New Delhi: Tension over portfolio allocation in Karnataka government refuses to die down as now Congress President Rahul Gandhi is headed abroad along with mother Sonia Gandhi and has put the entire process on hold for the time being. CM Kumaraswamy, on the other hand, shot back saying he is at the mercy of Congress because the people of Karnataka failed to give him the mandate he had sought.

Meanwhile, former CM Siddaramaiah clarified that the matter will be finalised within three to four days. The meeting to decide on the portfolio allocation has been postponed for a week as the Gandhis will be away for Sonias health check-up.

Rahul wrote on Twitter on Sunday night, Will be out of India for a few days, accompanying Sonia ji to her annual medical check up. To my friends in the BJP social media troll army: dont get too worked up...I'll be back soon!

Ahead of his Delhi visit to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other union ministers, Kumaraswamy said that farm loan waiver was his priority as he had promised and he would resign if he failed to fulfill it.

However, he reminded people that JD(S) did not get an absolute majority, which meant he and his party were rejected by the electorate.

"The people of the state rejected me and our party. I had sought an absolute majority. I have heard the statements of farm leaders too and how much they supported me," he said.

"Mine is not an independent government. I had requested the people to give me a mandate that prevents me from succumbing to any pressure other than you. But today I am at the mercy of the Congress. I am not under the pressure of the 6.5 crore people of the state," Kumaraswamy said.

Ever since BS Yeddyurappa resigned as the chief minister and JD(S)-Congress staked claim to form the government in Karnataka, the two new allies have been at loggerheads over the allocation of key portfolios such as Finance, Home, Public Works Department (PWD) and Power, Irrigation and Urban Development.

While the Congress is waiting for the JD(S) to come out with its list of portfolios, CM Kumaraswamy on Saturday admitted that there were some issues regarding berth allocation. Rahul Gandhi, too, met the Karnataka leaders on Saturday but the meeting remained inconclusive.

Siddaramaiah, Parameshwar, senior leaders Mallikarjuna Kharge and D K Shivakumar and state party in-charge K C Venugopal were present in the meeting.

"We could not discuss the matter of allocation of portfolios with Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Once he returns, we will discuss with him again. It will not take a week... Maybe three-four days will be required," Siddaramaiah told reporters in Delhi.

On May 23, Kumaraswamy and G Parameshwara of the Congress took oath and chief minister and deputy chief minister, respectively.

Will be out of India for a few days, accompanying Sonia ji to her annual medical check up. To my friends in the BJP social media troll army: dont get too worked up...I'll be back soon! Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 27, 2018

In addition, it has already been decided that Congress would have 21 ministers and JD(S) 11 in the new council of ministers.

According to PTI, the Congress has demanded finance as in the previous coalition government in the state in 2004-06 (JDS-Congress) as well as in 2006-08 (JDS-BJP), the portfolio had gone to those who held the deputy chief minister's post.

Meanwhile, many MLAs aspiring for a cabinet berth are camping in New Delhi with their supporters. Hirekerur MLA B C Patil, one such berth aspirant, told reporters there it was in the interest of the party and the administration to make him a minister.

Patil is in Delhi along with former speaker K B Koliwad, former ministers Shivanna, Rudrappa, Manohar Tahsildar, former MLA Khadri and Srinivas Mane.

He said he had met Congress general secretary and Karnataka in-charge K C Venugopal.

"We requested them and they (Congress high command) have assured us they will consider it. We will be meeting Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara and former chief minister Siddaramaiah," Patil added.
Patna: Two years after terming Modi government's demonetisation move as a "courageous step", Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has made a U-turn. The Chief Minister questioned benefits of the step and slammed banks for allegedly trying to help rich and powerful manage their cash during notebandi.

"I was supporter of demonetisation...but how many people benefited from it? Some powerful people shifted their cash from one place to another," Kumar said at a meeting with bank officials here on Saturday.

You(banks) are very particular in recovering debts from small people but what about those powerful people who take loans & disappear?Its surprising that even the highest officers are unaware.Banking system needs reform, I am not criticizing,I am concerned:Nitish Kumar (26.5.18) pic.twitter.com/tnXyZZeLUG ANI (@ANI) May 27, 2018

It is first time that Kumar, who is also president of the Janata Dal-United (JD-U), a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally, has questioned the demonetisation move of the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

Incidentally, Kumar's remark against the December 2016 demonetisation move came on a day when the party was celebrating completion of four years of Modi government at the Centre.

After the Chief Minister expressed his reservations about the benefits of demonetisation to the man on street, senior BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who was also present, downplayed his statement, saying, "Nitish Kumar has been a supporter of demonetisation."

In 2016, Kumar, then part of a Grand Alliance of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Congress, had supported demonetisation, while RJD chief Lalu Prasad had opposed the move. Kumar had described the Centre's demonetisation decision as "sahsik" (courageous), which, he said, would help in the fight against black money.

However, the attack on black money would yield better results only when scrapping of notes is coupled with attack on benami properties and prohibition, the chief minister said.

"While supporting demonetisation in principle, I, with equal strength, criticise the poor arrangements for its implementation due to which common man is facing hardship," Kumar, who is also the JD(U) National President, said.

"I am seeing a minus with plus whereas many others are seeing only minuses," he had said.
Mumbai: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said he had submitted the original audio clip, in which he is heard exhorting the BJP workers to win the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll using "saam, daam, dand, bhed (negotiation, money, punishment and division)", to the Election Commission (EC).

The audio clip is at the centre of a row between the BJP and parties like the Shiv Sena, Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which have condemned the language and the aggressive tone of Fadnavis in it.

Voting for the bypoll will be held on Monday.

Speaking to reporters at the BJP's Dadar office, Fadnavis said he had submitted the original audio clip to the EC and demanded action against those who had allegedly edited it for political gains. "I have sent the original clip to the EC and requested them to verify it with the clip they have received from other political parties. The EC can take action against me, but I would request it to take action against those who, on purpose, edited the clip for political gains.

"It is a 14-minute clip and if you go through it, the truth will come out," he said.

Earlier in the day, state Congress general secretary and spokesperson Sachin Sawant lodged a complaint over the audio clip with the returning officer for the bypoll.

Hitting out at Fadnavis, Sawant said, "EC officials should probe the words of Fadnavis as he is claiming to use the law enforcement agencies, money, divisive tactics and muscle power in the Palghar bypoll. The EC should probe what exactly did Fadnavis mean when he talked about the use of muscle and money power."

The Congress leader told reporters that he had submitted the audio clip in a pen drive to the EC officials.

Accusing the chief minister of resorting to "dadagiri", he alleged that BJP workers were guilty of poll code violations as they had put up illegal hoardings and distributed money in the run-up to the bypoll.

Sawant alleged that Fadnavis had broken the Model Code of Conduct for elections on earlier occasions as well, but there was no "satisfactory" action against him.

"People are wondering whether the EC is working under pressure from the BJP government," he said.

Leaders of the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi, a contender in the Palghar bypoll, also accompanied Sawant when he met the EC officials to lodge the complaint against the chief minister.
Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Saturday wrote to the Election Commission accusing the BJP of trying to "bribe" voters ahead of the May 28 by-election for Palghar Lok Sabha constituency.

In the letter to the EC, Sena MLA Amit Ghoda alleged that "distribution of cash to the voters to bribe them to vote for BJP candidate" was going on.

Those distributing the cash were caught by Sena workers, and a flying squad of the Election Commission had conducted a panch-nama (spot inspection), he said.

It was "gross violation of election code of conduct" and therefore the BJP candidate (Rajendra Gavit) should be disqualified, the letter said.

BJP spokesperson was not immediately available for comments. Both parties have run an acrimonious campaign for the by-poll, levelling accusations at each other.

On Saturday, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray released an audio clip purportedly of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, days before the Palghar bypoll, accusing the CM of asking BJP workers to use all possible means to win the by-election. Fadnavis soon hit back with another audio clip claiming it to be the "full version" of the "twisted clip" released by Sena.
San Francisco: Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might be willing to swap a life in politics to lead the world's largest social-networking company, a media report said.

On being asked by Attorney General Maura Healey, a democrat from Massachusetts, which company she would want to be the CEO of, Clinton didn't pause before quickly answering "Facebook", CNET reported on Friday.

"It's the biggest news platform in the world. Most people in our country get their news  true or not from Facebook," Clinton was quoted as saying.

The former US presidential candidate was at Harvard on Friday receiving the Radcliffe Medal, which honours people who have "had a transformative impact on society".

Clintons choice is surprising as Mark Zuckerberg-led Facebook is working to win back its users' trust following a series of recent controversies, including the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which data from as many as 87 million Facebook users was improperly shared with the political consultancy.

In a bid to prevent foreign interference into elections, Facebook has also begun labelling all political and issue ads in the US  including a "Paid for by" disclosure from the advertiser at the top of the advertisement.

Advertisers wanting to run ads with political content in the US will also need to verify their identity and location.

(With IANS inputs)
Karachi: Former president and Pakistan Peoples Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said he will contest for a National Assembly seat from his native town Nawabshah in the upcoming general elections, making his return to the electoral and parliamentary politics after a gap of 24 years.

The 62-year-old leader made the announcement during an Iftar party hosted by Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah at the Chief Minister's House on Saturday evening.

He has been elected as Member of National Assembly from Karachi's area of Lyari in 1990, and from Nawabshah in 1993.

Zardari, the widower of former PM Benazir Bhutto, said he could have chosen Lyari as his electoral constituency but later decided in favour of the constituency from his native town. He also predicted that no party will hold the majority in the next assembly.

Zardari served as the 11th President of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013.

Pakistan will hold general elections on July 25, offering the prospect of what would be only the second ever democratic transfer of power in the nuclear-armed country.

Turmoil continues to rock the country after former prime minister Nawaz Sharif was ousted by the Supreme Court last July on corruption charges and later barred from politics for life.

Sharif was the 15th prime minister in Pakistan's seven-decade history  roughly half of it under military rule  to be removed before completing a full term.

After Sharif was ousted from power, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party (PML-N) took over the premiership.

(With PTI inputs)
New York: Can you teach employees not to be racist? Coffee giant Starbucks will shut stores around the United States on Tuesday to conduct an unprecedented training exercise at its more than 8,000 American outlets.

The initiative, which is expected to last four hours and reach 175,000 employees, was announced by Starbucks management on April 17, as it sought to contain outrage over the arrest of two young black men at one of its cafes in Philadelphia.

The incident five days earlier sparked outrage, protests and anguished soul-searching about America's lingering problems of discrimination and racial tensions that have deteriorated under the presidency of Donald Trump.

After the two black men arrived at the Starbucks one of them asked to use the bathroom but was told it was for paying customers only. The pair then sat down to wait for a third person before ordering drinks.

The manager called police.

A video that went viral showed uniformed officers questioning then handcuffing the two men, who put up no resistance, while a white client repeatedly asks an officer, "What'd they do? What'd they do?"

"Whether in stores, on trains, implicit or explicit bias, you see it all the time," says James Bell, 47, a counsellor in a mostly black school in Brooklyn and a Starbucks customer.

"As a black male, you have workers in the stores excessively asking, 'Do you need anything, may I help you?'" he tells AFP. "You see a young black man and you immediately think crime."

Bell points to other recent examples of discrimination broadcast on social networks, such a student calling the police in May when a black graduate student at Yale University fell asleep in a common room.

'HISTORIC'

Then there are instances of police brutality toward, and killings of, black male suspects, also often captured by witnesses armed with smartphones, that in recent years have spawned protests.

Given the context, Bell isn't convinced that the Starbucks initiative will change much, but says it's "good they are trying." "At least they make the effort," he said.

Like him, there has been a cautious welcome from black officials and activists, who are nonetheless waiting to see what happens and whether anything actually changes as a result.

"I do think this is historic," Sherrilyn Ifill, president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, America's first civil and human rights law firm, has said.

"I don't know of another company as ubiquitous as Starbucks... that has stated their willingness to directly confront racism and bias within their own company."

In taking responsibility, she said, Starbucks has "created an important window for retail corporations in America to begin to honestly and forthrightly tackle racial inequality."

Ifill is one of those from whom Starbucks sought advice in drawing up the curriculum. As with the others, it was conditional assistance.

"We've made it clear that we wont be a rubber stamp to validate their programming if we don't believe it's not effectively delivering," said Heather McGhee, president of Demos, a public policy organization that works to reduce political and economic inequality.

"We are going to be issuing a report later on at the beginning part of this summer about a more comprehensive set of items that we think they need to address to really lead on this issue," she said.

Starbucks seems to have heeded concerns.

'FIRST STEP'

"May 29 isn't a solution, it's a first step," says the company on its website.

"This first training will focus on understanding racial bias and the history of public accommodations in the United States, with future trainings addressing all aspects of bias and experiences," it added.

So what will employees actually be taught on Tuesday? Starbucks has refused to grant media access to the training sessions, but has released a short video ahead of time.

They are due to watch a film from documentary maker Stanley Nelson on the history of African Americans, and discuss in small groups their experience of racial discrimination.

There will also be taped addresses from Howard Schultz and Kevin Johnson, the chairman and CEO of Starbucks respectively.

Sharon Rush, a law professor and expert in race relations at the University of Florida, is another of those who is uncertain -- even if she applauds Starbuck's initiative.

She hopes that the coffee behemoth will set an example and encourage other companies to step up training on racial discrimination, as is currently the case on sexual harassment.

"If other companies say 'I should be doing this,' that would be a real positive outcome," she says.
WASHINGTON: Two U.S. Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two U.S. officials told Reuters, in a move likely to anger Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.

The operation was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijing's efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.

While this operation had been planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a particularly sensitive time and just days after the Pentagon uninvited China from a major U.S.-hosted naval drill.

The U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

The U.S. military vessels carried out maneuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.

Trump's cancellation of a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has put further strain on U.S.-China ties amid a trade dispute between the world's two largest economies.

Critics of the operations, known as a "freedom of navigation," have said that they have little impact on Chinese behavior and are largely symbolic.

The U.S. military has a long-standing position that its operations are carried out throughout the world, including in areas claimed by allies, and that they are separate from political considerations.

Satellite photographs taken on May 12 showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.

Earlier this month, China's air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs in the South China Sea as part of a training exercise in the region, triggering concern from Vietnam and the Philippines.

The U.S. military did not directly comment on Sunday's operation, but said U.S. forces operate in the region on a daily basis.

"We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future," U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

Neither China's foreign nor defence ministries immediately responded to a request for comment.

CONTESTED SEA

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region.

In March, a U.S. Navy destroyer carried out a "freedom of navigation" operation close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands.

Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, "Cold War" terms.

China's claims in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The United States has said it would like to see more international participation in freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea.
Washington: US President Donald Trump's decision to cancel his historic meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong Un left South Korea's President "perplexed" and sparked angry protests in Seoul. One sign read: "We condemn Trump."

Welcome to life these days as a close US ally.

Under the 45th President, long-standing US friends and partners have come in for surprises, some of them bruising. Trump has questioned enduring alliances, insulted neighbors, threatened tariffs against some of America's oldest friends and made clear he'll sanction their businesses if they don't toe his line.

Trump's allies say this is the President's "peace through strength" doctrine at work, where America flexes its military and economic muscles to shape the world it wants. It's a theme Trump warmed to Friday in Annapolis, telling US Naval Academy graduates that the world is "respecting us again," a theme he stressed in his first State of the Union address, declaring that "weakness is the surest path to conflict, and unmatched power is the surest means of our defense."

But there are other forces at work that are shifting the ground on US relationships around the world, including the President's personality, his campaign promises and the overwhelming weight he places on domestic politics.

'We're dragging you along'

"Trump's relationships with allies are preternaturally different than any other administration we've had," said Aaron David Miller, a senior vice president at the Wilson Center.

The threats to sanction allies aren't so much a case of "if you're not with us, you're against us," said Suzanne Maloney, deputy director of the foreign policy program at the Brookings Institution. "This is the administration saying, 'You're with us, even if you don't want to be with us. We're dragging you along.' "

Critics have said Trump's mercurial decision-making on international issues and his treatment of allies are undermining US interests and trust in Washington.

Rep. Eliot Engel of New York, the ranking Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, pointed to Trump's decision Thursday to pull out of the North Korea summit and said the President has "alienated our friends, doubted the value of our alliances and undermined American credibility around the world."

He and others point to a January Gallup poll that found the image of US leadership is weaker and global approval of the US has sunk to a record low of 30%.

That is 18 percentage points lower than the last year of President Barack Obama's tenure and 4 points beneath the previous record low, during President George W. Bush's administration.

The Gallup pollsters said that "based on the trajectory of what the world thinks of the US, many of the US alliances and partnerships that the Trump administration considers a 'great strength' are potentially at risk."

Some missteps are hard to understand.

South Korean President Moon Jae-In was blindsided by Trump, learning about his summit decision only after the news broke. The White House hadn't given Seoul or Tokyo any warning and Moon had to gather his national security team at midnight to determine a response. His office released a statement chastising the US for its failure to communicate.

"When you have the South Korean President say he was embarrassed and perplexed by the announcement, and they had an emergency meeting to respond, it's not a good thing," said Bruce Klingner, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation.

But Miller points to other, more deliberate reasons why US alliances may be on shakier ground, one being the President's campaign promise of "America First," a move to pull back from global engagement and concentrate on US development.

Under that agenda, a more transactional approach becomes the norm and "allies become much less important unless they fundamentally address a goal that's important to Donald Trump," Miller said.

That means Trump can flatter Chinese President Xi Jinping because he needs his support on North Korea, and chastise Mexico for illegal immigration, but he doesn't have to cultivate the Europeans because the issues he would need them on, including the Iran nuclear deal and climate change, "he doesn't care about," Miller said.

Indeed, the US-Europe relationship is as strained as it's been in a long time, with the possibility of a trade war on the horizon. In the wake of Trump's decision to leave the Iran deal, the White House has made clear it will sanction European companies that continue to do business with Iran. By June 1, the administration will also decide whether to slap the European Union with aluminum and steel tariffs.

Tariff threats

On Wednesday, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross announced that the US will look into tariffs on auto imports that could hit Germany hard, along with traditionally close allies Canada, Mexico and Japan.

Trump signaled early that he didn't see the alliances in quite the same light as previous presidents. He questioned the importance of the military structure with South Korea and Japan, suggesting they may need to defend themselves.

He repeatedly criticized and mischaracterized the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's defense funding, blasting European allies who he says don't spend enough, an early harbinger of the tensions that have developed with Europe.

Since those early days, Trump's decision to leave the Paris climate accord and then the Iran nuclear deal -- despite personal lobbying by the leaders of France, Britain and Germany -- has left Europeans bristling.

"It's hard to overstate how angry and resentful the Europeans are," Robert Einhorn, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, said during a discussion about the Iran deal.

Some European officials are making it clear enough. Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, tweeted in the wake of Trump's decision to abandon the Iran deal that "looking at latest decisions of @realDonaldTrump someone could even think: with friends like that who needs enemies."

Domestic politics are another driving factor changing the dynamic between the US and its allies, Miller said. "This administration has allowed domestic politics to so unbelievably set the tone for the foreign policy agenda," he said.

Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel broke with international consensus, drew rebukes from allies, and sparked bloody protests and criticism that the US had abandoned its role as a neutral arbiter in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

But it pleased groups that backed Trump, including evangelicals. The President isn't so concerned with calculating the impact of decisions on allies, Miller said. "The thinking is, 'These people don't vote and my base, my constituency, doesn't like them either, so there you have it.' "

A third and crucial factor, Miller said, is that the President likes to be liked. It's "one of the basic guidelines that drives Trump in relationships with allies," Miller said, pointing to the difference between the President's approach to Europe and the Middle East.

Trump's decision to make his first overseas trip to Saudi Arabia and Israel was not, Miller said, because they're "the two most important countries on the planet. He knew he'd be feted and flattered."
North Korea confirms second Kim-Moon summit

Pyongyang : North Korea on Sunday confirmed that its top leader Kim Jong Un met with President of South Korea Moon Jae-in on Saturday.

The meeting was held at the northern side of the demarcation line between the two sides, Xinhua reported.

"Panmunjom, the historical land which had once come under global spotlights as a symbol of peace for making a new start of the north-south relations and opening up a new era of reconciliation and unity, witnessed the significant meeting between the top leaders of the north and the south once again after 29 days," media reports said.

Honor guards of the Korean People's Army lined up at the Thongil House to receive Moon while Kim warmly greeted and exchanged greetings with him.

The two top leaders were so pleased to have a historic meeting once again at the historic place after the lapse of one month, and warmly shook their hands with each other.

Moon wrote on the visitors' book of the Thongil House in memory of his visit to the north side area: "Peace and Prosperity of the Korean Peninsula, together with Chairman Kim Jong Un of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea."

The two leaders made "in-depth exchanges of opinions to tackle the matters which should be resolved to quickly carry out the Panmunjom Declaration" signed on April 27 by them to realize denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and achieve regional peace, stability and prosperity.

They also talked about "the matters the north and the south are now faced with, and the one of successfully holding the North Korea-US summit.
Former President George H.W. Bush was hospitalized Sunday in Maine with low blood pressure and symptoms of fatigue, just weeks after fighting off a blood infection during a Houston hospital stay.

The 93-year-old is awake and only expected to stay a few days for treatment, according to family spokesman Jim McGrath.

"President @GeorgeHWBush was taken to Southern Maine Health Care today after experiencing low blood pressure and fatigue," McGrath tweeted. "He will likely remain there for a few days for observation. The former president is awake and alert, and not in any discomfort."

Mayor Sylvester Turner voiced his best wishes from Houston, Tweeting: "On behalf of the city, I am sending prayers and positive vibes for a swift recovery. @GeorgeHWBush we know you love summers in Maine, but Houston will always be your home. Get well soon and hurry back."

The Bush patriarch, who has Parkinson's disease and uses a wheelchair, flew to Maine on May 20 as part of a long-time family tradition. Except for his years in the military, he's spent every summer since childhood at the family compound.

Last month, just a day after his wife was buried, Bush spent a little under two weeks in the hospital in Houston as he battled a blood infection.

"The 41st president wants to go to Maine," McGrath said at the time. "He's the most goal-oriented person on the planet and I would not bet against him."

He responded well to treatment and was released a few days later, despite his history of pneumonia and repeated hospitalizations in recent years.

In January 2017, one of his bouts with pneumonia forced him to miss out on President Donald Trump's inauguration.

"My doctor says if I sit outside in January, it likely will put me six feet under," he wrote in a note to Trump at the time.

Though he was out of the hospital in time to oversee the coin toss at the Super Bowl in NRG Stadium, he landed back in Houston Methodist for a couple weeks that April.

READ MORE: President George H.W. Bush gets special performance from the cast of 'Hamilton'

Yet, Bush has a long history of defying the odds, dating to when he survived his torpedo bomber being shot down over the Pacific Ocean by the Japanese during World War II.

As McGrath said last year, "There's no one more resilient."

After getting cleared to leave Methodist after his most recent stay, Bush got a visit in Houston from the cast of hit Broadway show "Hamilton."

"A complete joy to welcome the 'HamFam'  the cast and crew of @HamiltonMusical  to our Houston office for a special performance I will never forget," Bush tweeted on May 15, along with photos. "History never sounded so powerful."

Alyson Ward contributed to this report.
NEW HAVEN >> When Superstorm Sandy swept through New Haven in 2012, the more than 140-year-old mansion atop the hill on East Grand Avenue took a beating.

The unique manual elevator inside is still operational, provided there are only two people inside it that are strong enough to operate it, but the exterior of the Gothic Victorian mansion suffered major wind damage, according to the current and fifth owners of the house, Ian and Carolyn Christmann.

But, thanks to funding from the federal government that was slated to help coastal communities survey and restore historic properties damaged by the hurricane, the house fondly known as Chetstone has a new slate roof and wooden Yankee gutters.

The hurricane was a bad thing, but it turned into a blessing, Carolyn Christmann said.

Doug Royalty, the State Historic Preservation Office Hurricane Sandy Disaster Relief Grant coordinator, said the house qualified for relief funding because of its history  the original owner of the house was Dr. Mary Blair Moody, believed to be the first female practicing physician in New Haven.

After the storm, the U.S. Department of Interior granted $52 million to 12 coastline states to assist in recovery of historical sites and allow preservation offices to have funding they needed to survey damage and prepare for future weather events. Of the $52 million available, Connecticut received $8 million, Royalty said.

A piece of that $8 million was used to help repair the roof on the Victorian Gothic Home in New Haven, Royalty said.

Royalty said the Fair Haven house has been approved to be on the state historical registry and the national registry approval is pending. He added that the architecture of the home and the fact that it was associated with Moody and other early female physicians in the city are what makes the site significant and worthy of the funding.

The Christmanns said $150,000 was used to fix the roof and the gutters after the storm.

The 4,355-square-foot, four-story mansion still has functional gas lamps and the original kitchen cabinets, and the Christmanns believe the elevator was used by Dr. Moody when patients came to the house. When Dr. Moody and her six children no longer lived there, the second owner of the house, Albert Haasis, a chemist and executive of the Dixon Pencil Co., named the house Chetstone. He was also known to have kept peacocks on the property, Carolyn Christmann said.

Aside from the federal grant money, the couple has invested a lot of their own time, energy and funds into the home that looked like it might have belonged to the Addams Family when they first bought it in 2004, Ian Christmann said.

We are preservationists at heart, he said.

Christmann said their original vision for the house was for it to be the center of an artists community in New Haven. Christmann works as a photographer and his wife is a writer, and the couple owns their own business, Ian Christmann Photography, providing marketing services for nonprofits in the area. After 10 years of trying to make that artist community center a reality, the couple started leasing out the home to tenants.

Having ensured that the house has been given historical protections, the couple plans to sell the house in the spring, they said.

We really wanted to see this house protected in the long haul, Carolyn Christmann said. We feel weve done what we could.
Many in Connecticut can hardly wait to burst outside in late May and June and enjoy long daylight and warm breezes. An annual example of that zeal is the Connecticut Trails Day celebration, the largest of its kind in the nation, says organizer Connecticut Forest & Park Association.

Chuck Toal, CT Trails Day coordinator, said nonprofit Ct. Forest & Park maintains 800 miles of blue-blazed trails in the state and also owns properties and land. And Trails Day (its actually two days, Saturday and Sunday, June 2-3) is all about that public access to the outdoors.

I have the best job in the world, Toal said in a phone chat recently. One of the things that I see, with 253 events that happen over two days, is the variety of activities, the creativity that volunteer leaders bring to the public to enjoy. There are biking events, paddling events, theres events that take a ferry ... a trolley ride. Equine events. Theres trail maintenance and cleanup.

And every year, I guess Im impressed by some that are extraordinary; theres one this year for ... the physically challenged, the handicapped. This event in Pomfret says If you have a physical challenge, well get you out on the trail. That moves me; that means a lot.

Some events are urban, some are on rivers and they occur in town and state parks and other property.

Asked about his favorite outdoor spot in Connecticut, Toal pointed to the Peoples State Forest in Barkhamsted on the Farmington River with its trails and big, beautiful cathedral pines and campground. And Im a fly fisherman. ... So if I need to get a way for a couple of days, thats where youll find me.

CFPA works with state agencies, land trusts and other groups. Toal lauds the individual volunteers in each community, who have thought up the idea, organized the hike, figured out the trail, completed the form and application with CFPA for the booklet. And thought back in January or February what they were going to do with the June event. These leaders inspire me.

Here are a few choices from the complete list at ctwoodlands.org (and be aware that the recent severe storms have canceled certain events, such as the one at closed Sleeping Giant State Park in Hamden):

In Litchfield, you can meet up with geologist Tom Alena to talk about rocks in White Memorials (Five Ponds) rich geological area from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

In Danbury, there will be trail maintenance at Tarrywile Park Trail System (in Tarrywile Park) from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Theres also trail work slated from 8:45 a.m. to noon at Mianus River Park in Stamford.

In Bridgeport, there will be a water taxi ride and nature walk at Pleasure Beach from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday. Pre-registration required. Not far from there, theres a nature walk at the Connecticut Audubon Society Center in Fairfield from 1-2 p.m. (Pre-register.)

New Havens Giant Steps Trail up East Rock will be the focus of a hike from 10 a.m. to noon.

More Information Connecticut Forest & Park Association, 10 Meriden Road, Rockfall (Middlefield), Ct. 06481. Free. Protection urged to counter ticks, other bugs, sun and dehydration. Ctwoodlands.org See More Collapse

In East Haddam, I-Park artists-in-residence program will open its 30-acre campus to lovers of nature, art and music in observance of Connecticut Trails Day, from 2 to 6 p.m.

In Killingworth, you can hike 3.5 miles at Chatfield Hollow State Park from 9 a.m. to noon.

Jamarante@nhregister.com; @Joeammo on Twitter
Timothy Egans recent book, The Immortal Irishman: The Irish Revolutionary Who Became an American Hero, serves as stirring fuel for reflection on his own Irish heritage and, in a topical vein, his March column in the The New York Times, headlined How the Irish Could Still Save Civilization.

The book lays out the amazing life of Irish nationalist Thomas Francis Meagher, who led the Young Irelanders in the Rebellion of 1848 during the Irish famine under British rule. He was spared hanging and quartering for sedition but banished to a Tasmanian prison colony (off Australia), and yet he escaped all the way to New York City during the Civil War and rose to the rank of brigadier general in the Union Army, leading the Irish Brigade. Afterward, he became acting governor of the Montana territory.

Egans recent column noted the March visit of Prime Minister Leo Varadkar of Ireland to the White House, saying, The White House opened its doors to the leader of the original shole country this week. The irony was that a president who wants only the smartest and best-looking immigrants was embracing a nation once known for sending famine-stricken, disease-laden, crime-breeding foreigners to our shores.

He goes on to skewer Steve Bannon, President Trump and Mike Pence, saying Its one thing to forget where you came from. Its another to betray that history with backwards public policy.

Egan will present a lecture on The Immortal Irishman, on May 31 at 6 p.m. at Quinnipiac University at the North Haven campus at 370 Bassett Road. Sponsored by Irelands Great Hunger Museum at Quinnipiac in Hamden, the talk is free and open to the public, but registration is required at ighm.org.

In a phone chat the other day from Egans home in Seattle, where he has written a lot about the American West, he said he noticed the giant statue of Meagher in front of the Montana capitol in Helena seven or eight years ago, and the governor at the time said, You call yourself an Irish American and you dont know who Thomas Francis Meagher is?

It took a while but Egan eventually looked into the life of Meagher (pronounced Mar or Ma-er) and thought, Oh my God! This guy lived 12 lives in one; he changed peoples lives for the better on three continents. He was an Irish rebel whose words ultimately led to the founding of the Irish republic. Hed been forced to spend the rest of his life in Tasmania, where he escaped. But his words there ... helped to liberate Tasmania. And then he (joined) the Union Army against the slave-holders, and his actions ... helped to win the war.

Its an American story that resonates today.

There seem to be so many parallels in how the Know Nothing movement treated the Irish immigrants, Egan said. You know, they (the Irish) were dirt, they were scum. They didnt belong here; they were Catholic, they were

Celtic, they spoke a foreign language ... a rural people. They were clanish, they were criminals.

Egan said the Know Nothing movement was very active in Massachusetts, now a blue state with many Irish Catholics.

The Irish, he said, were the first wave of such immigrants; others (Italians, European Jews, Puerto Ricans) would endure a similarly icy welcome.

Today, the Irish have thrived, and 35 million Americans list at least a partial Irish heritage. But like todays refugees, yesterdays Irish immigrants were fleeing something pretty awful.

A million people die in like a few years time, said Egan of the famine, which is like one in eight people die of what we now know was a crime, because Great Britain was exporting food from Ireland while people were starving. They wash up on our shores. ... We never really had an immigrant wave before and there was a huge backlash. And people said they never really could become Americans.

More Information QUINNIPIAC TALK Lecture by Timothy Egan on his book, "The Immortal Irishman," at 6 p.m. Thursday in the auditorium in the Center for Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Quinnipiac University at the North Haven campus at 370 Bassett Road See More Collapse

Helping counter that notion was their service and sacrifice for the country in the Civil War, Egan said, which was Meaghers argument to Irish immigrants despite their own concerns about freed slaves taking their low-level jobs.

The Irish Brigade suffered huge losses in the war; Meagher was shot off his horse twice, Egan said.

So what Im hoping to do at Quinnipiac is to bring some of this history to life today. Its not just dead past; its something that were living with today.

Meaghers epic story fits well with the current exhibition of Irelands Great Hunger in Hamden, Making America: The Irish in the Civil War Era.

The museum, on Whitney Avenue in Hamden, is open Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. Museum admission is free.
3 1 of 3 Mike Smith / Jonathan Ferrara Gallery Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Neil Alexander / Arthur Roger Gallery, New Orleans Show More Show Less 3 of 3





FAIRFIELD  Most students wont be on campus for much of this art exhibits duration, but it focuses on an issue that concerns many of them in a profound way.

#UNLOAD: Guns in the Hands of Artists opens June 1 and runs through Oct. 13 at the Fairfield University Art Museum. Its part of a nationwide initiative to generate conversation about guns and gun violence.
For the first time since humans have been monitoring, atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have exceeded 410 parts per million averaged across an entire month, a threshold that pushes the planet ever closer to warming beyond levels that scientists and the international community have deemed "safe."

The reading from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii finds that concentrations of the climate-warming gas averaged above 410 parts per million throughout April. The first time readings crossed 410 at all occurred on April 18, 2017, or just about a year ago.

Carbon dioxide concentrations - whose "greenhouse gas effect" traps heat and drives climate change - were around 280 parts per million circa 1880, at the dawn of the industrial revolution. They're now 46 percent higher.

Concentrations have ticked upward in an unbroken progression for many decades. But they also go up and down on an annual cycle that's controlled by the patterns and seasonality of plant growth around the planet.

The rate of growth is about 2.5 parts per million per year, said Ralph Keeling, who directs the CO2 program at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, which monitors the readings. The rate has been increasing, with the decade of the 2010s rising faster than the 2000s.

"It's another milestone in the upward increase in CO2 over time," Keeling said of the newest measurements. "It puts us closer to some targets we don't really want to get to, like getting over 450 or 500 ppm. That's pretty much dangerous territory."

In a statement on the milestone, Katharine Hayhoe, a climate scientist at Texas Tech University, said "As a scientist, what concerns me the most is not that we have passed yet another round-number threshold but what this continued rise actually means: that we are continuing full speed ahead with an unprecedented experiment with our planet, the only home we have."

Planetary carbon dioxide levels have been this high or even higher in the planet's history - but it has been a long time. And scientists are concerned that the rate of change now is far faster than what Earth has previously been used to.

In the mid-Pliocene warm period more than 3 million years ago, they were also around 400 parts per million - but Earth's sea level is known to have been 66 feet or more higher, and the planet was still warmer than now.

As a recent federal climate science report (co-authored by Hayhoe) noted, the 400 parts per million carbon dioxide level in the Pliocene "was sustained over long periods of time, whereas today the global CO2 concentration is increasing rapidly." In other words, Earth's movement toward Pliocene-like conditions may play out in the decades and centuries ahead of us.

Even farther back, in the Miocene era between 14 million and 23 million years ago, carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere are believed to have reached 500 parts per million. Antarctica lost tens of meters of ice then, probably corresponding to a sea level rise once again on the scale of that seen in the Pliocene.

Farther back still, at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary around 34 million years ago, Antarctica is believed to have had no ice at all, with atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations of 750 parts per million.

These data points help show why it is that scientists believe that planetary temperatures, sea levels and carbon dioxide levels all tend to rise and fall together - and thus, why Earth is now headed back toward a period like the mid-Pliocene or even, perhaps, the Miocene, if current trends continue.

Keeling said that the planet, currently at 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) above preindustrial levels, is probably not yet committed to a warming of 1.5 or 2 degrees Celsius, but it's getting closer all the time - particularly for 1.5 C. "We don't have a lot of headroom," he said.

"It's not going to be a sudden breakthrough, either," Keeling continued. "We're just moving further and further into dangerous territory."
Mary E. O'Leary/Hearst Connecticut Media

NORTH HAVEN  The body of an East Haven man, 30, who was reported missing, has been found in North Haven, according to a press release.

North Haven police said in the release that officers assisted the East Haven Police Department in searching for the man. At 6 p.m. Saturday, North Haven officers found the mans car in the Middletown Avenue parking lot for Peters Rock Park. Police and fire personnel searched a wooded area using several police dogs and a drone, the release said.
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
SUNDAY PUZZLE  Id call Andrew Chaikin a constructors constructor; the last time a puzzle of his ran in The Times, also on a Sunday, it used only one vowel. That was a while ago but hes back with a grid that features another concept thats clean and simple, but complicated to pull off as a builder.

Todays doubly symmetrical puzzle is like a solar observatory that functions as a giant sundial, or a set of pyramids that lines up perfectly with a constellation. On the face, it looks pretty awesome, what with six maximally long entries. But there are elements of a minitheme, self-referential cleverness and a numerical record (see Mr. Chaikins notes). It takes a lot of precision to make, and its intricacies can be a bit subtle, if youre a numerically illiterate philistine like myself, but its a shrine to puzzlecraft and an enjoyable solve.

Tricky Clues

I was mainly stymied by names and places today, like TRISTAN, STIERS and TERNI; I also had Ossie for BETTE for some reason.

There were a few good puns and misdirections, like ATF; I thought the clue for SPELL was great, and liked the pair of clues for APPLY and OPT.
One of the countrys professional museum organizations announced on Friday that its board of trustees had voted to impose sanctions on the Berkshire Museum, which recently sold artworks to support an expansion initiative.

Selling art to support any need other than to build a museums collection fundamentally undermines the critically important relationships between museums, donors and the public, the organization, the Association of Art Museum Directors, wrote in a statement. When museums violate the trust of their donors and the public, they diminish the opportunity and responsibility to make great works of art available to the public.

The A.A.M.D. said that the sanctions would be effective immediately, and they would include a request that each of the associations 243 members refrain from lending works to the Berkshire Museum or collaborating with it on exhibitions.

A spokeswoman for the Berkshire Museum, Carol Bosco Baumann, called the sanctions regrettable.

The possibility of sanctions was carefully considered by the board when deciding whether to deaccession any works to secure and sustain the museums future, she said in an email. We determined then and strongly believe now that to protect our most important asset  the museums open doors  it was necessary.
ATLAS OF A LOST WORLD

Travels in Ice Age America

By Craig Childs

269 pp. Pantheon. $28.95.

Traveling in ice age America, now almost a vanished landscape, strikes me as a strange topic. After all, the first Americans of 15,000 years ago belong in the realm of archaeology, not travel. Undeterred, the adventure travel writer Craig Childs journeys to experience ice age America, beginning his exploration on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Strait, the highest point of what was once the Bering Land Bridge between Siberia and Alaska. He sees wolves and gazes out over the water, imagining a plain teeming with big game. Next we join him on a canoe trip down the Yukon River, a formidable journey, and venture to the Harding Icefield to experience what it would have been like to trek over the great North American ice sheets during the late ice age  if anyone ever did. Childs does indeed get ice and snow blowing in his face, but theres little about first settlement in these passages, except for a brief discussion of the Bluefish Caves in the Yukon, where some humans camped briefly some 23,000 years ago. Almost certainly they were summer visitors, perhaps from the warmer refuge area of the Land Bridge.

Fresh from his glacier experiences, Childs turns to the once-exposed plains of the Pacific coastal route. He and his family kayak at first, then take a coastal ferry south, hardly an effective way of puzzling out a series of ancient population movements. He talks of computer models that estimate it took 2,267 years to paddle from Seattle to Monte Verde in Chile, the earliest known archaeological site in the far south. The prose here oozes drama. Childs writes of people who couldnt stop paddling, of small numbers of adventurers who ended up at Monte Verde because it was like their homeland.

Image

Inevitably, the journey moves on to large ice age beasts, starting with the highly controversial 130,000-year-old Cerutti mastodon site near San Diego. Clearly Childs favors first human settlement tens of thousands of years earlier than the conventional estimate of around 15,000 years ago, sweeping aside scientific concerns over Cerutti as seemingly irrelevant. He prefers a march of bone smashers from the north, who arrived in a predator-rich land teeming with saber-toothed tigers and other creatures. This is, to put it mildly, an imaginative scenario. He visits Paisley Cave in Oregon, with its fossilized human feces from 14,000 years ago. Next we jump to a Dangerous Eden, in Florida, with its sink holes and swamps, occupied at least 14,500 years ago. We learn that an ice age hunt would have involved musky gore, with projectiles sailing.
1. Will they or wont they?

President Trump canceled a highly anticipated meeting with the leader of North Korea amid increasingly bellicose rhetoric from that country. But a day later, he said talks might be on after all. They could even take place on the original date: June 12.

Moon Jae-in, the president of South Korea, who has brokered the detente between the North and the U.S., met with Kim Jong-un on Saturday, above, to discuss salvaging the talks.

Our correspondent in Seoul writes that Mr. Kim, the 34-year-old leader who took power seven years ago, has promised his country a future free from deprivation. But to complete that promise, he may need a deal.
MARKETS

Chinese companies to gain wider access to investors.

Chinese companies will get a bit more access to global investors beginning on Friday. Thats the day MSCI, the keeper of some widely tracked stock-market indexes, will add shares of companies that trade in mainland China to its China, regional and emerging markets indexes. Investors are widely expected to adjust their portfolios accordingly. The inclusion is widely seen as a reward to China for steps it has taken to open its financial markets, which have largely been closed to foreign investors for years. Still, mainland Chinese shares will represent only a small portion of the indexes initially, reflecting the significant barriers that Beijing still retains between its markets and the rest of the world.

 Carlos Tejada

MANUFACTURING

Auto sales expected to rise in May.

On Friday, automakers are expected to report an increase in sales in May, helped by an extra day of selling and Memorial Day promotions. But sales for the year are on track to decline more than 1 percent for the year, according to analysts. Rising gas prices could continue to hurt demand for new cars, although a recent decline in oil prices may provide some relief for drivers.

 William P. Davis

TRADE

Wilbur Ross heading to China for new trade talks.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is due in Beijing at the end of the week for further trade talks with Chinese officials. Chinas official Xinhua news agency said on Friday that he would be in Beijing from June 2 to 4, while the Commerce Department has confirmed only that he will be in Beijing at the start of June. Many issues remained unresolved after the last round of negotiations, when the Chinese vice premier, Liu He, visited Washington from May 15 to 19 to speak with President Trump and his senior aides. The administration is divided on how far to push Beijing in seeking reductions in the bilateral trade imbalance and curbs on Chinas subsidies to develop advanced manufacturing industries like robotics and semiconductors. Mr. Ross is most likely to focus on developing further the roughly $250 billion in deals that were announced during President Trumps trip to Beijing in November  many of the deals were in very preliminary stages then, like plans for a natural gas pipeline in Alaska.

 Keith Bradsher
Dr. Elizabeth Anne Clark and Dr. Nathan Woo Furukawa were married May 26 at the Pacific Tower, a caterer and events space in Seattle. Dr. Elizabeth B. Loft, a Universal Life minister and a friend of the couple, officiated.

The bride and groom met at the University of Washington, from which each received both a medical degree and a masters degree in public health.

Dr. Clark, 34, is a fourth-year resident in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. In July, she is to be begin a fellowship in reproductive health and will be an associate in gynecology and obstetrics at Emory Universitys School of Medicine in Atlanta. She graduated from Rice University, and from 2006 to 2008, was a Peace Corps volunteer in Potrerillo, Peru, working on sanitation projects.

She is the daughter of the Rev. Martha C. Brimm and Dr. Richard V. Clark of Durham, N.C. The brides father, an endocrinologist, retired as a clinical trials research scientist in Durham for GlaxoSmithKline, the British pharmaceutical company. Her mother, an Episcopal priest, retired as a chaplain at the Franklin Correctional Center in Bunn, N.C.
Martha Suzanne Dobbs and Dolan James Bloom are to be married May 27 at the Gem Theater in Detroit. Chris French, a friend of the couple who became a Universal Life minister for the event, is to officiate.

The bride, 30, is a Pilates instructor and a founder of Spark Dance Forum, a performance and networking forum for dancers and choreographers in New York. She graduated from Wayne State University and received a masters degree in performing arts administration from N.Y.U.

She is a daughter of Kathleen J. Dobbs of Farmington, Mich., and the late Herbert H. Dobbs Jr. The brides mother retired as a physician assistant in Detroit, and was previously the president of the Michigan Academy of Physicians Assistants. The brides father was an engineer for the Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command in Warren, Mich.

The groom, 29, is an actor, director and producer of theater and internet content in New York. He created and produced the 2016 web series Sublets, in which he also performed. In July, he will release Nannies, a web series that he produced and directed. He graduated from Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio.
Martha Alice Helen Rose and Alexander LaRue Lovell are to be married May 27 on the top deck of the William D. Evans Sternwheeler, a paddle-wheel boat at a marina connected to the Bahia Resort Hotel in San Diego. Matthew Kelly, a friend of the groom who was appointed a deputy marriage commissioner for a day by San Diego County, is to officiate.

The bride, 33, is the director of legal in Menlo Park, Calif., for the Sequoia Heritage Fund, a private investment partnership. She graduated cum laude from Colgate and received a law degree from Columbia.

She is the daughter of Anne H. Gregor and Frederick B. Rose of Menlo Park. The brides father retired as a senior special writer in Los Angeles for The Wall Street Journal. Her mother, who was based in Palo Alto, Calif., retired as a freelance writer there.

The groom, 30, is a director of product in the search group in the San Francisco office of Salesforce, a cloud computing company based there. He graduated summa cum laude from University of California, Los Angeles.
Times Insider delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how news, features and opinion come together at The New York Times.

My article this week on Brooklyn Housing Court stands as the final story I wrote as a staff reporter for The Times. Its been 40 years since the first one. The decades zoomed by, a blink in time.

Working for The Times gets you places. I once spent nearly a month at a toxic Superfund site in Seymour, Ind. It was suggested I go to Columbus, Ohio, for a week to eat an outlandish amount of fast food, some of which was O.K. I filled agreeable days in Omaha scribbling down insights from telephone repairmen .

Best of all, though, were trips drifting through Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island. While The Times has bureaus sprinkled around the globe, I spent 40 years in the New York office. Openings sprouted elsewhere. Did I want to go? No, but thanks. Mostly, I was assigned to the Metro staff, and I wouldnt have had it any other way. The Times explains the world, but I always felt that Metro qualified as its pulse. Covering the billowing activity across the miscellaneity of the five boroughs was never tiresome, never trite. Some reporters relish traveling to Novosibirsk or Malacca. I liked Canarsie. I liked Bayside. They were local. I liked being local.
I had the tickets, Ms. Coin said by phone from Rome. I should have been in New York on the fourth of May. I am the godmother of the exhibition at the Frick. But she said that orthopedic problems and a possible knee replacement stopped her.

Mr. Salomon called her a force of nature. Not only is she the president of the Canova museum in tiny Possagno, 350 miles from Rome, she is the president of Friends of Venice Italy, a New York-based group that raises money to support the Venice International Foundation. She is the president of that group, too. Under the Venice International Foundations umbrella is the Civic Museums Foundation of Venice, which runs the museums there.

She and her husband, Piergiorgio Coin  who has produced wine and olive oil since selling his familys department stores  live in a famous Palladian villa on the Grand Canal, Palazzo Barbaro. Henry James stayed there from time to time, and it inspired the setting for his novel The Wings of the Dove. (The character Mrs. Gareth was a reworking of the Boston art collector and museum donor Isabella Stewart Gardner.) James was not the only well-known visitor. Others included the poet Robert Browning, the painters Claude Monet and William Merritt Chase and the novelist Edith Wharton.

Ms. Coins New York, when she makes the trip, seems to center on the Upper East Side, not far from the Frick. The choreographer Susan Stroman, a friend from the Friends of Venice board, said one compass point is Sant Ambroeus, a restaurant just up Madison Avenue from the Carlyle Hotel, where Ms. Coin usually stays. I take her to the theater and the ballet, but before we do anything, we have to have that espresso at Saint Ambroeus, Ms. Stroman said. We cant do anything until we have that espresso.

She has unbelievable energy, Ms. Stroman said. Maybe its the espresso.

Another Friends of Venice board member, Jonathan Marder, said that Ms. Coin always talks about smoking.
On a corner of 86th Street and East End Avenue in Manhattan on Sunday, three posters for a missing man were still hanging on a lamp post about a block from the East River.

That was where the police found the mans parked taxicab, the biggest investment of his life. The man, Yu Mein Chow, had taken out a loan seven years ago to buy a $700,000 medallion that gave him the right to operate a cab.

Mr. Chow, 56, who lived in Queens and went by the nickname Kenny, disappeared on May 11. His body was found floating in the East River about nine miles south, near the Brooklyn Bridge, on Wednesday. Friends and family members believe Mr. Chow jumped to his death, adding to a string of apparent suicides of traditional taxi and livery drivers in the city. It marked the fifth suicide in just over five months. The medical examiner has not yet determined a cause of death.

Image Rest in Peace. Beloved father, husband, brother, friend, NYC taxi driver. Credit... Andres Kudacki for The New York Times

New York Citys cab industry, dependent on the market value of the once-coveted taxi medallion, has been upended by the proliferation of Uber and other ride-sharing services. Drivers have been demanding changes at City Hall to protect their livelihood, but at least five cabbies have buckled under the strain of debt since December as others describe working 12- and 14-hour shifts to make up for the lost income. One driver shot himself in February outside City Hall after leaving a message on Facebook blaming the industrys demise on politicians.
At first, she brought a lot of joy into my life, Ms. Haskell said.

But she also took. The women had visited Ms. Haskells HSBC Bank branch on Ralph several times, and Ms. Legall had access to Ms. Haskells account information. At some point several years ago, she told Ms. Haskell that she had taken money that had been in a savings account that had belonged to Mr. Haskell. She needed it to pay a debt, she said.

It sounded like maybe shed give it back to me, Ms. Haskell said. I was so naive.

The incident had no impact on their bond. Im still Mommy, Ms. Haskell said. I saw her a lot. The two visited nearby restaurants and took selfies that Ms. Legall posted online.

In 2013, Ms. Haskells last surviving sister, Marcy, died in Florida. Ms. Legall traveled with her for the funeral. She helped me on the airplane, Ms. Haskell recalled. It was like a little vacation for her.

Four more years passed this way. Then Ms. Haskells son, Lloyd, a physician, received a certified letter that stunned him. A bank was going to foreclose on his mothers home because she was not paying fees related to a reverse mortgage for $424,000.

Reverse mortgage? His mother lived comfortably within her means. She didnt travel or buy expensive clothes. A splurge for her was adding to her extensive collection of dolls. What did she need $400,000 for?

He asked her. She said she had taken out the money for Ms. Legall, who needed it to pay another debt. Mr. Haskell, mad at himself for believing Ms. Legall was looking after his mother, went to the police and was referred to financial-crimes detectives. They opened a case and discovered the scope of the fraud and loss.
Sexual assault cases are notoriously challenging to prove in court; indeed, Mr. Vance dropped both earlier cases because of questions about whether witnesses would be believed. There is no doubt that the ground has shifted since complaints about Mr. Weinstein touched off the global #MeToo movement, but Mr. Vances office will face a long legal battle against a wealthy defendant and one of the citys best defense lawyers, who will spare no effort to portray Mr. Weinstein as someone who behaved badly but did not break the law by having consensual sex with women seeking to further their careers.

Mr. Vances assistants must first present the case to a grand jury and obtain an indictment. The prosecution will have to prove Mr. Weinstein used physical force or threats of harm to get what he wanted, a high bar in cases with little or no physical evidence. The woman in the rape case has not been publicly identified, but prosecutors have said the attack occurred in Manhattan more than five years ago  a gap in time that creates an additional hurdle for prosecutors. Mr. Vance himself was careful not to crow on Friday, saying, We are at the beginning, not the end.

A year ago, Mr. Vance could make a case that he was a champion for victims of sexual violence, domestic abuse and sex trafficking. He had spent more than $38 million in forfeited funds to clear a backlog of rape-evidence kits across the country and had successfully convicted many people charged with the trafficking of underage prostitutes. His sex crimes unit had won convictions in difficult rape cases and had successfully pioneered strategies for pursuing cold cases with DNA evidence. Since 2010, when Mr. Vance took office, through 2017, his sex crime prosecutors have won 83 percent of their felony trials.

Mr. Vance also established the citys first Family Justice Center in his office, improving how victims of domestic abuse and their cases were handled. His prosecutors had convicted men who assaulted their domestic partners even when the victims were not willing to cooperate. His long list of supporters included feminists like Gloria Steinem.

Still, there was grumbling among advocates for rape victims about his offices grueling questioning of women raped by acquaintances before an arrest was made. Several critics, speaking on the condition of anonymity to avoid antagonizing prosecutors, said the questioning of rape victims in Manhattan was unnecessarily harsh.
To the Editor:

Re Is That E.R. Trip Necessary? An Insurer May Not Think So (front page, May 20):

Penalizing patients for using hospital emergency services is another insult to health care consumers. Its time to take a bold step and keep insurance companies out of the emergency room, and empower Medicare to negotiate contracts with hospitals to cover all Americans.

Why does this plan make sense? According to federal law, hospitals are required to provide emergency care and to stabilize all patients regardless of a patients ability to pay. A result is that hospitals provide billions of dollars in uncompensated care to uninsured patients every year.

But when patients dont pay for their hospital care, those costs are shifted to government and private health insurers, who are charged higher rates by hospitals to make up for the losses they incur from nonpaying patients. In essence, this dysfunctional system is a camouflaged tax.

A far better approach would be to eliminate the costly bureaucracy and replace it with a single-payer, Hospital for All plan.
The new European data privacy legislation is so stringent that it could kill off data-driven online services and chill innovations like driverless cars, tech industry groups warn.

The American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union called the legislation overly strict. The Developers Alliance, a trade group representing Facebook, Google, Intel and dozens of app makers, said it could cost businesses in Europe more than 550 billion euros, or about $640 billion, in annual lost revenue. And DigitalEurope, another tech trade group, said the legislations prohibitive approach seriously undermines the development of Europes digital economy.

These industry alarms are not over the General Data Protection Regulation, or G.D.P.R., a tough privacy law that went into effect in the European Union on Friday. Instead, the cause is an even stricter privacy law thats pending  the tech industrys next regulatory battleground in Europe.

It is called the ePrivacy Regulation, and it specifically protects the confidentiality of electronic communications. The law was approved by the European Parliament last fall and is under review by the Council of the European Union, a group of government officials representing the 28 member countries. Bloc officials had originally intended for the law to go into effect this month, but Council negotiations have been slowed by internal disagreements.
FORT BRAGG, N.C.  If President Trump really wanted to do a proper military parade showcasing the might, speed and derring-do of Americas finest, the Sicily Drop Zone on this sprawling Army base would have been a good place to begin.

For a handful of spine-tingling minutes on Thursday, 770 paratroopers of the 82nd Airborne Division hurled themselves out of five C-17 cargo planes at 1,000 feet, like a swarm of birds, toward a cheering crowd of 10,000 people. Just when it looked like the planes could surely not disgorge any more paratroopers, more peeled out.

They hovered in the air, attached to their individual chutes, one seemingly atop another. It was a stunning culmination of the Army divisions annual All American Week, an in-your-face performance that was topped by two Chinook helicopters that roared through the sky and dropped, with pinpoint precision, two M-119 howitzer artillery pieces onto the field  demonstrating that when American paratroopers advance from the sky, they can bring their own heavy equipment with them.

Luis J. Gutierrez, a former Green Beret who came to see the show, watched, grinning, from the stands. This is where President Trump should come, if he wants a real parade, he said.
The notes were sprawled across a letter bearing President Trumps signature.

In the top left corner: Have yall tried grammar & style check?

At the top right: Federal is capitalized only when used as part of a proper noun.

And toward the bottom: OMG this is WRONG!

The letter, dated May 3 and printed on White House stationery, was addressed to Yvonne Mason, 61, a former high school English teacher who retired last year but hadnt quite left grading-paper mode, she said on Sunday.

So when she received the letter in the mail, she pulled out her go-to purple pen and started making corrections. Then she snapped a picture, posted the letter on Facebook and mailed it back to the White House.
KABUL, Afghanistan  Afghanistan, already torn by decades of intensifying violence, is grappling with a drought in two-thirds of the country that could lead to severe food shortages for up to two million more people, the United Nations has warned.

The United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Afghanistan said in a report released last week that a precipitation deficit of 70 percent in most parts of the country had affected winter harvests, and resulted in grim prospects for the spring and summer.

Many farmers have seen their seeds dry out or have delayed planting crops, and there is little or no feed for livestock on pasturelands.

The drought has led to the displacement of thousands of people this spring, adding to the nearly two million who have been forced from their homes in recent years, largely because of violence.
BEIJING  Chinas military announced on Sunday that it had dispatched warships to challenge two United States Navy vessels that sailed through waters in the South China Sea that China claims as its own.

The Chinese confronted the American ships and warned them to leave, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement posted on its website, but other details of the encounter were not immediately clear.

The American vessels  the Higgins, a destroyer, and the Antietam, a cruiser  passed within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, an archipelago in the northern part of the disputed waters of the South China Sea off the coast of Vietnam.

The chief spokesman for Chinas Ministry of National Defense, Senior Col. Wu Qian, said that the United States gravely violated Chinese sovereignty.
MOSCOW  One of Russias most famous paintings, which depicts the czar Ivan the Terrible cradling his dying son, has been badly damaged in a Moscow gallery after a man drank vodka and attacked it with a metal pole, the police said.

The 1885 canvas, Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan on November 16, 1581, by the Russian realist Ilya Repin, portrays a grief-stricken Ivan holding his son after dealing him a mortal blow, an event whose veracity some Russian nationalists dispute.

The Tretyakov Gallery in central Moscow said a man had attacked the canvas just before closing time on Friday. He managed to get past a group of gallery employees, the gallery said, picked up one of the metal security poles used to keep the public back from the painting, and struck its protective glass covering several times.

The thick glass was smashed, the gallery said in a statement. Serious damage was done to the painting. The canvas was pierced in three places.
VATICAN CITY  When nearly one-third of Irelands Catholic population came to see Pope John Paul II celebrate a papal Mass in Dublin in 1979, divorce, homosexual acts and abortion were all illegal in the country. Ireland, like much of Europe, toed the line on Roman Catholic Church teaching.

In August, Pope Francis will return to Ireland for a World Meeting of Families event attended by the churchs most committed anti-abortion activists. But they will find themselves, after Saturdays historic repeal of an abortion ban in a landslide vote, in a country that is clearly part of Europes secular sprint out of the Roman Catholic fold.

Across Western Europe, the churchs once mighty footprint has faded, in no small measure because of self-inflicted clerical sex abuse scandals and an inability to keep up with and reach contemporary Catholics. Church attendance has plummeted, parishes are merging, and new priests and nuns are in short supply. Gay marriage is on the rise, and abortion is widely legal.

And yet, Francis is not sounding the alarm or calling the faithful to the ramparts. He seems resigned to accept that a devout and Catholic Europe has largely slipped into the churchs past.
For others already active in the abortion rights campaign, Dr. Halappanavars death marked a visible turning point. Thousands rallied outside the Irish Parliament in 2012 after news of her death, and marches and vigils followed. As the years went on, her name became a rallying cry.

Mark OHalloran, an actor and a screenwriter, was at those initial protests in 2012.

The call for change was already there, but I dont think there was much momentum, I dont think there was much political will, Mr. OHalloran said. The people of Ireland were shocked by it, and it changed a lot of peoples minds.

There had been other prominent cases after the Eighth Amendment was introduced, but never one that galvanized so many people across so many demographics, he said. In 1992, a 14-year-old rape victim was prevented from traveling to Britain for an abortion, in an episode that came to be known as the X case. Her name was never released to protect her identity.

Dr. Halappanavars husband and friends gave accounts of her life and of her final days in a hospital. The public also saw videos of her full off life. Mr. OHalloran said he believed that a deeply ingrained sense of responsibility that Irish people feel for visitors and newcomers weighed heavily on the conscience of the nation.

The fact that all of those old, ideological hangups contributed to her death, and the fact that she and her husband were told, This is a Catholic country, we cant help you  that really brought terrible shame on us, Mr. OHalloran said.

Dr. Halappanavars parents gave permission for her image to be used by the campaign to repeal the amendment.

I hope that the people in Ireland will remember the fate of our daughter Savita on the day of the referendum and vote yes so that what happened to us wont happen to other families, her father, Andanappa Yalagi, said in a video clip posted by the Together for Yes campaign ahead of the vote.
MOSCOW  A firefight pitting Syrian government troops and their Russian military advisers against Islamic State militants has left at least four Russians dead and several wounded, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said on Sunday.

The firefight occurred in the Deir al-Zour governorate, an oil-rich area of eastern Syria, after several mobile units of the Islamic State attacked a Syrian Army artillery battery, the Russian news agency Interfax quoted the ministry as saying in a statement.

The fighting lasted about an hour, resulting in the deaths of 43 Islamic State fighters and in the destruction of six all-terrain vehicles, the report said. Two Russians who had been helping to direct Syrian artillery fire were killed during the fighting, the report added, and two others died later as a result of wounds sustained during the battle.

A statement circulated on the Telegram messaging app by accounts affiliated with the Islamic State said that the attack occurred overnight Wednesday near the town of Mayadeen, and that it had killed 15 men fighting on behalf of the Syrian government, including an unspecified number of Russians.
The Expedition 55 crew members had a full complement of work today as they conducted microgravity research, trained to capture a resupply ship and prepared for a June spacewalk.

Astronaut Norishige Kanai explored how living and working in space affects everything from fluid physics to the human body today. He first set up hardware to visualize how water atomizes in microgravity possibly improving the production of spray combustion engines. Next, he researched how spaceflight is impacting his brain structure and function, motor control, and multi-tasking abilities.

Later he joined fellow Flight Engineers Scott Tingle and Ricky Arnold to practice the robotics techniques necessary to capture the Orbital ATK Cygnus resupply ship. The trio trained on a computer to simulate the operation of the Canadarm2 when it reaches out and grapples Cygnus on Thursday.

The commercial space freighter is due to deliver over 7,400 pounds of crew supplies, station hardware and science experiments when it arrives Thursday at 5:20 a.m. EDT. NASA TV will broadcast live the approach, rendezvous and capture of Cygnus beginning at 3:45 a.m.

NASA Flight Engineer Drew Feustel worked on U.S. spacesuits today ahead of the next spacewalk planned for June 14. He scrubbed the spacesuit cooling loops, collected water samples and organized tools in the Quest airlock.

The veteran spacewalker has a total of eight spacewalks having worked in the vacuum of space for nearly 55 hours. He will partner with Arnold, who has four spacewalks for over 25 hours, June 14 to install high definition cameras on the Harmony module.

Captain's Log - Week 12 on Station

The Captain's log are published as they become available.

Crew: Captain Scott "Maker" Tingle, USN

ISS Location: Low Earth Orbit

Earth Date: 4 March 2018

Earth Time (GMT): 13:30

Wow, time has gone by extremely fast. The mid-deployment phase will be short-lived for me this time, as the new crew (Drew Feustel, Ricky Arnold, and Oleg Artemyev) will arrive on March 23rd, and then we have at least one spacewalk on the 29th, followed by a planned SpaceX Dragon cargo craft arrival on the 4th of April. It's a little strange being up here with only two other crewmates. We are still very busy, but the overall work effort is half of what it was just a week ago. My crewmate, Nemo (Norishige Kanai), and I are trying to use the time to prepare for the upcoming very busy schedule, and we have been having some great success getting a ton of details taken care of.

Yesterday I had a funny event, though. I was controlling a robot named "Justin" who was located in Munich. The research and demonstration events were so interesting and fun that I offered them my lunch hour to do an additional protocol and have a longer debrief session. The ground team responded happily and accepted the offer - any extra time with crew onboard the International Space Station (ISS) is valuable to our programs. Halfway through the event, the team needed a few minutes to shut down and restart the robot, and I surmised that since I was skipping my break, this would be a good time to use the toilet. And I did, use the toilet. And literally 3 minutes later I returned, waited another 2 minutes for the robot systems to connect, and we began another great session controlling Justin from ISS with no loss to science. Later that same day, I was approached by the ground team in Houston (not the test team I was working with in Munich) and queried if something was wrong, and why did I have to take a toilet break while we were executing valuable science? They were concerned that I might have a medical issue, as taking a break in the middle of some very valuable science is not normal for us to do while on ISS. It's nice to know that we have literally hundreds of highly-trained professionals looking out for us.

Unpacking, floating, and adjusting to #LifeInSpace. I loved my new work office, and this spectacular view of our home made it even better! Read my 3rd journal entry about my very first week on @Space_Station! https://t.co/D9SYdmmkRY pic.twitter.com/07rBLlyDRf  Scott D. Tingle (@Astro_Maker) May 21, 2018

Captain's Log - Unusual Attitude Recovery

Crew: Captain Scott "Maker" Tingle, USN

ISS Location: Low Earth Orbit

Earth Date: 25 February 2018

Earth Time (GMT): 21:00

While flying fast-moving jets, we practice the art of recovering from unusual attitudes. We close our eyes, and let the instructor put the jet in an unexpected attitude. Sometimes straight up, sometimes straight down, sometimes upside down, and sometimes anything in-between. The goal is to open our eyes, analyze the situation and make rapid and smooth corrections to power and attitude to effect a speedy recovery to straight and level flight without departing controlled flight, or having to endure high G's, or experiencing big losses of altitude. Sometimes, when I crawl into my crew quarters on the space station, it is very dark - just like closing our eyes in the jet. And then, as I sleep, my body floats around and changes position. When I awake in total darkness, I have to figure out what attitude I am in relative to my crew quarters and then right myself. "Unusual Attitude Recovery" can be pretty funny. And sometimes, my heart can get pumping as I awake and realize I don't know what my attitude is. I execute my procedures to figure out what my attitude is, and then correct it. At first, it used to take me a while to realize. But now, it is second nature - and it always brings a smile to my face.



On-Orbit Status Report

Advanced Combustion via Microgravity Experiments (ACME): The crew replaced the Combustion Integrated Rack (CIR) manifold bottles this morning. To prepare for the second part of the CLD Flames investigation the crew configured the ACME Chamber Insert, replaced the igniter tip, and replaced two ACME controllers. The ACME experiment series being performed in the CIR includes five independent studies of gaseous flames. The primary goals of ACME are to improve fuel efficiency and reduce pollutant production in routine fuel combustion activities on Earth. Its secondary goal is to improve spacecraft fire prevention through innovative research focused on materials flammability.

Kubik 6: The commissioning for ESA's Kubik 6 facility continued today. The crew set up the Kubik 6 in the Columbus module, adjusted the sensor signal and calibrated the temperature sensors. They then installed the Foam Carriers in Kubik 6. Kubik is a small controlled-temperature incubator or cooler used to study biological samples in a microgravity environment. It is equipped with removable inserts designed for self-contained, automatic experiments using seeds, cells, and small animals.

Atomization: Today the crew set up and activated Atomization hardware in the Multi-purpose Small Payload Rack (MSPR). The Atomization experiment investigates the disintegration processes of a low-speed water jet for various jet issue conditions in the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) to validate the new atomization concept by observing the process using a high speed camera. The knowledge gained can be applied to improve various engines utilizing spray combustion.

Human Research Program (Biochemical Profile, Marrow, Vascular Echo, and Repository): 53S crewmembers collected urine samples for their Return minus 14-day session of the Biochem Profile, Marrow, Vascular Echo and Repository investigations. Collecting of blood samples has been delayed because of an issue with activating the Refrigerated Centrifuge (RC). The alternate centrifuge will be used. Troubleshooting plans are in work by the team. A 54S crewmember collected urine samples for his Flight Day 60 session of the Biochem Profile and Repository investigations.

The Biochemical Profile investigation tests blood and urine samples obtained from astronauts before, during, and after spaceflight. Specific proteins and chemicals in the samples are used as biomarkers, or indicators of health. Post-flight analysis yields a database of samples and test results; which scientists can use to study the effects of spaceflight on the body.

Marrow looks at the effect of microgravity on bone marrow. It is believed that microgravity, like long-duration bed rest on Earth, has a negative effect on the bone marrow and the blood cells that are produced in the bone marrow.

Vascular Echo examines changes in blood vessels and the heart while the crew members are in space, and then follow their recovery on return to Earth. The results could provide insight into potential countermeasures to help maintain crew member health, and quality of life for everyone.

Repository is a storage bank used to maintain biological specimens over extended periods of time and under well-controlled conditions. The repository supports scientific discovery that contributes to our fundamental knowledge in the area of human physiological changes and adaptation to a microgravity environment and provides unique opportunities to study longitudinal changes in human physiology spanning many missions.

NeuroMapping: A 53S crewmember set up the Neuromapping hardware today and performed his Flight Day 150 tests in "strapped in" and "free floating" body configurations. The NeuroMapping investigation studies whether long-duration spaceflight causes changes to brain structure and function, motor control, and multi-tasking abilities. It also measures how long it takes for the brain and body to recover from possible changes. Previous research and anecdotal evidence from astronauts suggests movement control and cognition can be affected in microgravity. The NeuroMapping investigation includes use of structural and functional magnetic resonance brain imaging (MRI and fMRI) to assess any changes that occur after spending months on the ISS.

OA-9 Robotics Onboard Training: Today the crew scheduled to capture OA-9 performed a second Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) session a reviewed their Cygnus Attached Phase procedures. ROBoT is an on-orbit version of the ground-based Dynamics Skills Trainer (DST) that simulates robotics operations with graphical feedback.

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: Today the crew conducted Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) maintenance and EVA tool configurations in preparation for the upcoming US EVA #51 Node 2 EWC. Following the EMU Cooling Loop Scrubs, the crew took water samples from the cooling loops, performed and iodination of EMU Ion Filters, and tested the water samples for conductivity. The Node 2 EWC EVA is currently planned for June 14th.

Public Affairs (PAO) Live Event: Today Arnold and Tingle participated in a live PAO event with the Vaughn Next Century Learning Center in San Fernando, California. The audience for this event consisted of student representatives from all grade levels and ages across Vaughn's TK-12 span and Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs.

Today's Planned Activities

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

Marrow Breath And Ambient Air Sample Collection

HRF Generic Frozen Blood Collection Double Spin Collection and Configuration 1 [Aborted]

HRF Generic Urine Collection

HRF Generic Refrigerated Centrifuge Double Spin Configuration 2 [Aborted]

Installation of the Columbus Payload LAN Switch in Columbus

MORZE. Log Entry of Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake

HRF Generic Refrigerated Centrifuge Spin Conclude [Aborted]

Water Transfer from Progress 438 Rodnik H2O Tank 2 and Compression

XF305 Camcorder Setup

Multi-purpose Small Payload Rack (MSPR) Component Deactivation for Atomization

Combustion Integrated Rack Hardware Gather

Activation of the Columbus Payload LAN Switch

Verification of -1 Flow Sensor Position

Atomization set up 2

ISS HAM Video Power Down

COSMOCARD. Closeout Ops

ISS HAM Service Module Pass

PILOT-T. Preparation for the experiment.

Combustion Integrated Rack Rack Doors Open

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Maintenance Scrub Initiation

PILOT-T. Experiment Ops and Data Downlink

Combustion Integrated Rack Front End Cap Open

ACME Chamber Insert Configuration

Multi-purpose Small Payload Rack (MSPR) Component Activation for Atomization

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Loop Scrub Check

Crew departure return to earth prep

NeuroMapping Experiment Neurocognitive Test Subject

PILOT-T. Experiment Ops.

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Post Scrub Cooling Loop Water (H2O) Sample

HRF Generic Frozen Blood Collection Conclude And Stow [Aborted]

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Maintenance Iodination

LBNP Training (PRELIMINARY)

BIOS Setup of the European IP Communication Laptop

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Conductivity Test

Combustion Integrated Rack Front End Cap Close

Combustion Integrated Rack Rack Doors Close

Combustion Integrated Rack Hardware Return

RSK2 Laptop SW Version 5.0 Hard Drive Swap.

MORZE. Log Entry of Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake

Hardware prepack for return and disposal on Soyuz 737

EVA Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Cooling Loop Scrub Deconfiguration

iPad 1020 Troubleshooting

Mouse Stress Defense Item Consolidation

PAO Preparation

Columbus Video Camera Assembly 1 Adjustment

Public Affairs Office (PAO) High Definition (HD) Config LAB Setup

Deck 1 cleanup for KUBIK activty

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) - Lab

Collecting condensate water samples from -2 before Gas-Liquid Mixture Filter () into Russian Samplers, initiate

KUBIK 6 Setup

CONTENT. Experiment Ops

Adjustment of KUBIK sensor signal to e-box

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tool Configuring

On-board Training (OBT) Cygnus Attached Phase Operations review.

KUBIK Temperature Measurement

On-board Training (OBT) Cygnus Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) Self study Session

Stow Syringes used in H2O Conductivity Test

HRF Generic Frozen Blood Collection Setup

On-board Training (OBT) Cygnus Attached Phase Operations review.

MORZE. Experiment setup

Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) Recycle Tank Drain

MORZE. Log Entry of Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake

Reminder 1 Vascular Echo 24 Hour Blood Pressure

Completed Task List Activities

None

Ground Activities

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

EMU Loop Scrub

A/L IATCS LTL Flow Term

STP-H5 File Transfers

Three-Day Look Ahead:

Wednesday, 05/23: HRF Collect, MPCC, Cygnus OBT, SSK/MAS, EVA Tool cnfg, Mouse Closeout, Glovebox Closeout, CBEF, Vascular Echo

Thursday, 05/24: Cygnus Rndz/Berth, Cygnus Hatch Open, CIR Bottle, Dosimeter deploy, JEM MLT2, Vascular Echo

Friday, 05/25: Cygnus Cargo Ops, MSG VUE R&R, TangoLab card R&R, JEMAL Slide Table Reconfig, MVP module insertion, SOKOL leak check

QUICK ISS Status - Environmental Control Group:

Component - Status

Elektron - Off

Vozdukh - Manual

[] 1 - SM Air Conditioner System ("SKV1") - Off

[] 2 - SM Air Conditioner System ("SKV2") - On

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab - Operate

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 - Standby

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab - Operate

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 - Idle

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) - Process

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) - Standby

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab - Full Up

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 - Off

Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.
4 years of Modi government: Efforts on economic front will pay-off in the long run

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas Sv

The opinion on the way Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government handled the economy in the last four years is divided. While the opposition leaders would vehemently criticise every move of the BJP government, the allies would praise it, barring, of course, the Shiv Sena. Even the experts on economic matters will not give a straight forward answer about the way the economy was handled by the Modi regime since assuming office.

Whether the demonetisation, the GST or the 'high' excise duty on fuel, the effects have been felt by all. Several of the current government's decisions on the economic front have had a direct impact on the lives of the common man. Questions are also being asked if the government has tried to tinker around with too many things in a short span of four years. Some may even say that things were done in a hapazard manner without much planning and forethought.

It was also said that demonetisation and GST pushed the Indian economy backwards by many years. But, growth is now showing signs of revival, shrugging off the impact of demonetisation and GST. Under the Modi government, businesses have generally stayed optimistic about future prospects.

It would be totally wrong to say that the Modi government is going about handling the economy in an unplanned manner and that there is no long-term goal in its actions, as the opposition tries to portray it.

Widening the tax net:

Whether the GST or the demonetisation, the aim was to include more and more people in the tax bracket. The government has set for itself a Fiscal Deficit target, and that can be met only if the revenue from the taxes go up. Most transactions in India are cash-based, which makes it difficult for the government to track the money flow. Even now it is the handful of salaried people who bear the burden of paying taxes. Those who do business only by cash evade the tax authorities and the government just cannot track them.

The emphasis on digital transactions, which the government is promoting with great enthusiasm, will allow the government to monitor money flow and nab those evading the taxes. The logic is simple, more the number of people in tax bracket, more money the government will have to spend on welfare schemes.

Demonetisation: A bold move

Demonetisation was a move that could potentially have ended a Prime Minister's or party's chances of ever being voted to power again. But, barely two months after that, the BJP registered a thumping win in the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state in the country. Considering the backwardness of the state, people of UP would have experienced massive inconvenience due to demonetisation, but they voted for Modi just like they did in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The opposition parties made note ban a focus of their poll campaigns and tried to capitalise on people's annoyance due to demonetisation, but they failed and the Modi wave triumphed.

Politicians are known to try and woo the voters with their glib talk and appeasement. Seldom do they try to bite the bullet and take a decision that can cause widespread inconvenience, fearing that they may not lose their votes? Modi's note ban decision, despite knowing that it can go horribly wrong, needs to be acknowledged for sheer fearlessness with which it was taken. It may or may not have yielded desired results, but at least an attempt was made to rid the nation of long pending problems.

GDP growth is 'ok' considering the global scenario:

Four years into the government's regime, the economy, in terms of the GDP figures, is not exactly rocking. GDP has clocked in at an average of 7.3% annually between FY15 and FY18, below the 7.5% notched up in the five years prior to that. But we must consider that global economic scenario has not been great either. There has been a slowdown in global economic activity, and the current government has been able to keep Indian economy insulated from it.

The indicator for this is the stock markets. Indian stock markets have fared considerably well as compared to regional Asian peers and Wall Street - the world's largest equity markets by turnover. The benchmark equity index BSE Sensex has added about 10,000 points in the last four years breaching the key levels of 30,000 for the first time under Narendra Modi-led NDA government. The S&P BSE Sensex has gained as much as 9,970 points to 34,663 from a level of 24,693 as on 23 May 2014, before swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi as PM.

So, all in all, it would be wrong to say that economy has hit a rock bottom under Modi regime. It has been handled well and the focus on revenue generation for the government spending is something that would pay-off in the long run. Fuel prices are high because of the high excise duty, and that is something the government ought to look into. The government has been reluctant to reduce excise duty on petrol/diesel because it would impact the target it has set for fiscal deficit. Jaitley should now consider looking for other avenues for income than the excise duty from fuel, so that people get much-needed relief from high petrol/diesel prices.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 6:00 [IST]
The innocent minorities in Kashmir are bearing the brunt of Pakistans frustration

J&K: Terrorists on killing spree, want people to lose faith in Indian system

Following the killing of civilians scores of Islamic terror sympathisers detained

Amidst ceasefire in Kashmir, terrorists decamp with 2 rifles of PSOs

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

In Kashmir where the Indian Government has called for a unilateral ceasefire in the backdrop of Ramzan, terrorists decamped with two rifles of the personal security officers of a protected person in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said.

Two weapons - an AK-47 rifle and an INSAS rifle - have been taken away by the militants from the personal security officers (PSOs) from the residence of a protected person in Darban Anantnag in south Kashmir, a police official said.

The PSOs of the protected person - Sayed Gowhar - were from security wing and Kulgam police respectively, he said.

The official said the protected person was apparently not present at his house. Police has registered a case and investigation underway in the matter, the official said.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 8:06 [IST]
Anti Sterlite protests: Internet service in Thoothukudi resumes

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

The internet services, which were suspended in violence-hit Thoothukudi on Wednesday (May 23), would resume on Sunday night, said reports. Over a dozen people were killed in Thoothukudi (Tuticorin) in the last week over protests against the Sterlite copper plant.

Earlier today (May 27), the Thoothukudi district administration lifted Section 144 which was imposed in the city after the Sterlite Protest.

"Internet facility will be restored from tonight. People can avail services without any problem. We are also withdrawing some officers from some areas, but we are keeping adequate forces on the ground. I request the people to co-operate," news agency ANI quoted TK Rajendran, DGP Tamil Nadu, as saying.

Section 144 was imposed on Wednesday after 13 people were killed and over 60 injured in a violent protest against Sterlite Industries in Tamil Nadu's Thoothukudi. After the incident, security was strengthened and police personnel were directed to keep a tight vigil in several parts of the city.

The protests have been going on for the last three months but it took a violent turn on May 22 (Tuesday) when agitators allegedly hurled stones at police forces, prompting the cops to open fire.

The locals allege that the Sterlite copper plant is responsible for pollution and they have been demanding its closure.

On Thursday, the Madras High court in its interim order had stayed the expansion plans of the plant. It also asked the state government to preserve the bodies of those killed on May 22 protests. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was also filed in the Supreme court seeking a court-monitored CBI probe into the deaths of the protestors. The apex court is scheduled to hear the matter on May 28.
US scribe working on Sterlite issue goes back home, to be blacklisted

Anti-Sterlite protests: Section 144 lifted in Thoothukudi

India

oi-Madhuri

The Thoothukudi district administration on Sunday lifted Section 144 (prohibits assembly of more than 4 people in an area) which had been imposed in the city after the Sterlite Protest.

Section 144 was imposed on Wednesday after 13 people were killed and over 60 injured in a violent protest against Sterlite Industries in Tamil Nadu's Thoothukudi. After the incident, security was strengthened and police personnel were directed to keep a tight vigil in several parts of the city.

The protests were going on since last three months but violence took place on May 22 (Tuesday) when agitators allegedly hurled stones at police forces, prompting it to open fire.

The locals have alleged that the Sterlite copper plant is responsible for pollution and they have been demanding its closure.

On Thursday, the Madras High court in its interim order had stayed the expansion plans of the plant. It also asked the state government to preserve the bodies of those killed on May 22 protests. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was also filed in the Supreme court seeking a court-monitored CBI probe into the deaths of the protestors. The apex court is scheduled to hear the matter on May 28.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 8:36 [IST]
CBSE Class 10th Results 2021: Board likely to declare results soon; here's how to check your roll number

Delhi: DTC driver's son Prince Kumar tops CBSE Class 12 exam in science stream

India

oi-Madhuri

The CBSE 12th Result 2018 declared on Saturday, was a moment of pride for the family of Prince Kumar, the son of a DTC bus driver, as he topped the science stream in Delhi government schools with an impressive 97%.

Kumar scored 100/100 in maths, 99/100 eco, and 98/100 in chemistry.

Delhi's deputy chief Minister, Manish Sisodia, congratulated him and said it was a "very proud moment" for him. Taking to Twitter, Sisodia, he spoke how government schools had given better results this time.

Prince Kumar, the overall government school topper with 485 marks out of 500, said he is still reeling from the shock of the results.

Sisodia also congratulated Prachi Prakash, another Class 12 student who topped the commerce stream by scoring 96.2 per cent. Prachi who too is a student of a government school in Delhi comes from a humble background just like Prince Kumar.

He also congratulated Chitra Kaushik, Delhi Police assistant sub-inspector's daughter and a student of another government school in Delhi who topped in the arts stream with 95.6 per cent.

Sisodia highlighted the performance of Delhi students in Class 12 results and pointed that 168 government schools achieved 100% results, against 112 of last year.

The CBSE 12th Result 2018 was declared by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) yesterday and saw students scoring well.
Delhi man arrested for raping niece

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

A 43-year-old man was arrested for allegedly raping his niece in north Delhi's Kotwali, police said.

The incident first took place first on March 26, when the girl was alone at home as her aunt had gone to Bhagalpur in Bihar, they said.

The 14-year-old victim informed her friend, who works with an NGO. The girl said that her uncle was raping her for the last two months, police said.

The accused had adopted the girl after her parents died when she was two-years-old. She was enrolled in a school later, they said.

The accused came home in an inebriated condition and allegedly raped her, police said. The girl alleged that she was raped several times since then. After she informed her friend, they approached the police on Thursday, following which a case was registered and the accused was arrested, they added.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 7:59 [IST]
Gilgit-Baltistan order: India summons Pakistan's Deputy envoy, registers strong protest

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Taking a strong exception to Pakistan government's recent order to change the status of Gilgit-Baltistan, India on Sunday summoned Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah and told him that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country's forcible occupation has no legal basis. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also asserted that entire Jammu and Kashmir, including Gilgit-Baltistan areas, was an integral part of India.

The Gilgit-Baltistan Order, 2018, which essentially seizes the powers of the Gilgit Baltistan Council and entrusts the Prime Minister of Pakistan with indisputable authorities vis-a-vis Gilgit-Baltistan, was officially promulgated on May 21.

"Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under the forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation," the MEA statement said.

The MEA statement said the Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan to India was summoned and a strong protest was made against Pakistan's so-called "Gilgit Baltistan Order 2018". Through its order on Gilgit-Baltistan on May 21, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region. Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order.

"Government of India's consistent position in the matter is reflected in the resolution passed by the Parliament in 1994 by consensus," the statement said.

Pakistan had been planning to integrate this area to make it easier for China's CPECcorridor to pass through it. India remains opposed to China's corridor because of the sovereignty aspect. India maintains that any possible attempt by Pakistan to declare the Gilgit-Baltistan region, bordering the disputed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, as the fifth province is "entirely unacceptable", reported TOI.

The Ministry said it was also conveyed to the Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner that such actions can neither hide the "illegal occupation" of part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir nor the "grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom" to the people residing in Pakistan-occupied territories for the past seven decades.

OneIndia News with PTI inputs

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 21:40 [IST]
How Modi changed the UPAs paralysis policy: Amit Shah explains

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

The UPA policy paralysis has been replaced with a policy driven government by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the BJP's national president Amit Shah said.

Asserting that BJP's return to power in 2019 is "not a challenge but a certainty", Shah projected the next Lok Sabha polls as a contest between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's efforts to "remove corruption and poverty" and the Opposition's single-point agenda of 'Modi Hatao'.

On the Modi government's fourth anniversary, Shah listed details of its "successes" and heaped scorn on the likely challenge from Rahul Gandhi-led Congress, saying he may have declared himself a prime ministerial candidate but his bid has not got support from even his party colleagues, let alone other opposition leaders.

Projecting Modi as the "most popular and most hardworking prime minister with unending energy", Shah said he replaced the UPA's policy paralysis with a policy-driven government working for the poor and improved economy while also raising the country's esteem in the world.

Asked about the 'achche din' (good days) promised by the BJP-led ruling alliance when it came to power, Shah said the government has "done a lot to fulfil its promises in four years and one year is still left.

The BJP president came down heavily on the Opposition saying a shocking change has happened in the country's politics with those against the prime minister resorting to lies and speaking it loudly all the time.

"This is something new I am seeing and the Opposition seems to have decided to continue with this tactic till the 2019 polls... Its one-point agenda is 'Modi hatao' (replace Modi) while the BJP and Modi want to remove disorder, corruption and poverty to usher in stability and development," Shah said at a press conference.

Playing down the challenge from a united opposition, he said people are standing by Modi like a rock and the prime minister's politics of performance will prevail over those promoting politics of dynasty, casteism and appeasement.

Taking on the Congress, which has accused the government of peddling lies and Modi of harming the dignity of his chair, Shah said the BJP is ready for a debate over facts and figures about the Centre's achievements.

Countering the charges, the BJP president said the honour of the prime minister's chair had hit rock bottom under the Congress-led UPA, as he took a dig at former prime minister Manmohan Singh, remarking that Modi does not need to seek anybody's permission before taking a decision.

Singh was often accused by critics of being guided by the then Congress president Sonia Gandhi in his decisions.

"The Congress will not decide about the dignity of the prime minister's chair. People have done it. They have replaced its 14 state governments (with BJP)," he said.

Asked if he saw a challenge from a united opposition or Rahul Gandhi in 2019, Shah said there is no challenge and its return to power is a certainty.

Referring to Gandhi's comments during the Karnataka assembly polls that he may be prime minister if his party gets the required numbers, Shah said no Congress leader came out in support of his statement, nor did opposition leaders like Sharad Pawar, Mamata Banerjee or Akhilesh Yadav.

Asked if the government has delivered on its promises, he said it has made successful efforts to change the lives of 22 crore families, referring to welfare schemes like providing LPG cylinder, houses, electricity and toilets among others to the poor, as also efforts to improve the country's economy and security of its borders.

Whatever be the opposition's lies, those who have befitted from the government schemes will remember it, he said, underlining his party's welfare plank.

To a question about the Telugu Desam Party leaving the NDA and the saffron party's turbulent relations with another key ally Shiv Sena, Shah said he wants its alliance with Sena to continue and added that 11 new parties, including Nitish Kumar-led JD(U), have joined the ruling bloc.

He also discounted the likely challenge from SP-BSP alliance in UP, saying the media had declared the grouping of "two boys", a reference to SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and Gandhi, a winner in the state assembly poll before the results came, but it was the BJP that swept the election.

Shah also said that the BJP's win in 104 seats in Karnataka is a good sign of its expansion in south India.

Asked about Pakistan's continued support to terrorism in Kashmir despite Indian Army's operations, including surgical strike, and if war was an option, he said, "War is the last resort. It is not an option. Maximum number of terrorists have been killed in the last four years."

Shah also said the government is also working on long-term policy to deal with soaring petroleum prices. He claimed that in three years of the UPA rule, petrol and diesel prices were as high as they are now.

He also maintained the BJP's position on the Ram temple issue, saying it wants the issue to be resolved either through courts or dialogue.

Stating that no village is without power now, Shah said the government recently covered 16800 villages, which had over 50 per cent Dalit population, with its seven welfare schemes, Jan Dhan bank account, toilets and LPG cylinder for all homes, and will cover 65000 villages by August 15.

The Modi government ended an era of instability and has delivered on its two key promises, that it will work for the poor, Dalits, tribals, backwards, farmers and village, and that it will raise India's esteem in the world. It has fulfilled both, he said.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 7:52 [IST]
The Cygnus space freighter from Orbital ATK is closing in on the International Space Station ready to deliver 7,400 pounds of cargo Thursday morning.

The Expedition 55 crew members are getting ready for Cygnus' arrival while also helping researchers understand what living in space does to the human body.

NASA TV is set to begin its live coverage of Cygnus' arrival at the orbital lab Thursday at 3:45 a.m. EDT. Flight Engineer Scott Tingle will be inside the Cupola and command the Canadarm2 robotic arm to reach out and capture Cygnus at 5:20 a.m. Robotics engineers at Mission Control will then take over and remotely install Cygnus to the Earth-facing port of the Unity module later Thursday morning.

The crew started its day collecting blood and urine samples for a pair of experiments, Biochemical Profile and Repository, looking at the physiological changes taking place in astronauts. Those samples are stowed in science freezers for return to Earth so scientists can later analyze the proteins and chemicals for indicators of crew health.

Another pair of experiments taking place today is looking at bone marrow, blood cells and the cardiovascular system. The Marrow study, which looks at white and red blood cells in bone marrow, may benefit astronaut health as well as people on Earth with reduced mobility or aging conditions. The Vascular Echo experiment is observing stiffening arteries in astronauts that resembles accelerated aging.

On-Orbit Status Report

Human Research Program (Biochemical Profile, Marrow, Vascular Echo, and Repository): 53S crewmembers collected blood and urine samples for their Return minus 14-day session of the Biochem Profile, Marrow and Repository investigations. One of the 53S crewmembers also started a 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring session. Blood samples are being processed in the alternate non-refrigerated centrifuge due to the issues experienced yesterday with the refrigerated centrifuge. A 54S crewmember also collected urine samples for his Flight Day 60 session of the Biochem Profile and Repository investigations.

The Biochemical Profile investigation tests blood and urine samples obtained from astronauts before, during, and after spaceflight. Specific proteins and chemicals in the samples are used as biomarkers, or indicators of health. Post-flight analysis yields a database of samples and test results; which scientists can use to study the effects of spaceflight on the body.

Marrow looks at the effect of microgravity on bone marrow. It is believed that microgravity, like long-duration bed rest on Earth, has a negative effect on the bone marrow and the blood cells that are produced in the bone marrow.

Vascular Echo examines changes in blood vessels and the heart while the crew members are in space, and then follow their recovery on return to Earth. The results could provide insight into potential countermeasures to help maintain crew member health, and quality of life for everyone.

Repository is a storage bank used to maintain biological specimens over extended periods of time and under well-controlled conditions. The repository supports scientific discovery that contributes to our fundamental knowledge in the area of human physiological changes and adaptation to a microgravity environment and provides unique opportunities to study longitudinal changes in human physiology spanning many missions.

Food Acceptability: A crewmember completed a Food Acceptability questionnaire today. The Food Acceptability investigation seeks to determine the impact of repetitive consumption of food currently available from the spaceflight food system. Results will be used in developing strategies to improve food system composition to support crew health and performance on long duration missions.

OA-9 Robotics Onboard Training: This afternoon, the crew scheduled to capture OA-9 performed an additional Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) session and continued their review of Cygnus Attached Phase procedures prior to tomorrow's OA-9 capture and berthing. ROBoT is an on-orbit version of the ground-based Dynamics Skills Trainer (DST) that simulates robotics operations with graphical feedback.

Orbital-ATK 9 (OA-9): This evening ground teams will prepare and inspect the Node 1 Nadir Active Common Berthing Mechanism (ACBM) in preparation for OA-9 capture and berthing planned for tomorrow, May 24th, 4:20 am CT.

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Preparations: Today the crew continued configuring EVA tools and equipment needed during the upcoming US EVA #51 Node 2 EWC planned for June 14th. Additionally, the crew swapped Extravehicular Mobility Units (EMUs) on the EMU Don/Doff Assembly (EDDAs) for upcoming EVA prep activities.

Today's Planned Activities

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

HRF Generic Urine Collection

HRF Generic Sample MELFI Insertion Operations

HRF Generic Centrifuge Frozen Blood Collection

MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: Tsentrovka, SENSOR Tests

Vascular Echo 24-Hour Ambulatory BP Monitoring Initialization - Subject

MORZE. Log Entry of Liquid and Food (Medicine) Intake

Wastewater Storage Tank Assembly (WSTA) Fill

HRF Generic Centrifuge Frozen Blood Collection Spin Conclude

HRF Generic Sample Photo

 Reconfiguration in MRM1

XF305 Camcorder Setup

SEPARATION. -- Flush.

Mouse Stress Defense Closeout

Acoustic Monitor Setup for Crew Worn Measurements

HRF Generic Centrifuge Frozen Blood Collection Conclude And Stow

Brine/urine transfer from  to Progress 438 Rodnik H2O tank 2

Glove Box Closeout

Conference of Search and Rescue () specialists with returning crew (S-band)

MELFI Icebrick Cleanup

PCS Laptop Relocate

Crew Departure Preparations for Return to Earth

Installation of the MPCC Demo Payload Laptop (T61p) in Columbus

Cygnus Capture Review

Mouse Habitat Unit Interface Unit Removal

ISS HAM Service Module Pass

SEPARATION. -- Flush.

Activation and BIOS Setup of the MPCC Demo Payload Laptop

Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF) Wipe Post Mouse Stress Defense

Regenerative Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) Recycle Tank Fill Part 3

Comm reconfig for nominal ops

On-board Training (OBT) Cygnus Attached Phase Operations review.

Audio Conference with the Participants of the Youth Educational Forum "Ladoga"

Multi Omics Question

Food Acceptability Questionnaire Subject

Spaceflight Cognitive Assessment Tool for Windows (WinSCAT) Test

Public Affairs Office (PAO) High Definition (HD) Config LAB Setup [Aborted]

Max Cycle Ergometer w/ Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Partial Set Up

URAGAN. Completion of Icarus PL Cable Installation.

Formaldehyde Monitoring Kit (FMK) Deployment Operations

Public Affairs Office (PAO) Event in High Definition (HD) - Lab [Aborted]

KUBIK Temperature Adjustment to 20C

Cygnus Capture Review

Surface Sampler Kit (SSK) and Microbial Air Sampler (MAS) Analysis T + 5

Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Power Up

On-board Training (OBT) Cygnus Robotics Onboard Trainer (ROBoT) Session 2

Vascular Echo 24-Hour Ambulatory BP Monitoring Crew Time Payback

URISYS Hardware Setup

Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS

MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: Cattell's Test

Sampling condensate water [] upstream of -2 Gas-liquid mixture filter () to drink bags, end

MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: Strelau Test

Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU) Swap

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) Tool Configuring

MORZE. Psycho-physiological Evaluation: SUPOS Test

Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Partial Stow

MORZE. Closeout Ops

MORZE. Experiment setup

Acoustic Monitor Battery Swap

Ghost camera setup in Cupola

Max Cycle Ergometer w/Vibration Isolation & Stabilization (CEVIS) Portable PFS Conclude

Completed Task List Activities

None

Ground Activities

All activities are complete unless otherwise noted.

JEM RMS SFA Installation

Node 1 CBM Inspection

Three-Day Look Ahead:

Thursday, 05/24: 53S Return Stowage and departure preps, Cygnus Rndz/Berth, Cygnus Hatch Open, JEM LAN extender activation, CMO OBT, CIR Bottle Relocate, JEM MLT2, Vascular Echo

Friday, 05/25: 53S Rtn Prepack and DM Photo Survey, Cygnus Cargo Ops, MERLIN Sample Xfer, MSG VUE HD Setup, TangoLab card R&R, JEMAL Slide Table Reconfig

Saturday, 05/26: Weekly Housekeeping, Crew Off-Duty

QUICK ISS Status - Environmental Control Group:

Component - Status

Elektron - Off

Vozdukh - Manual

[] 1 - SM Air Conditioner System ("SKV1") - Off

[] 2 - SM Air Conditioner System ("SKV2") - On

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Lab - Operate

Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) Node 3 - Standby

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Lab - Operate

Major Constituent Analyzer (MCA) Node 3 - Idle

Oxygen Generation Assembly (OGA) - Process

Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) - Normal

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Lab - Full Up

Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS) Node 3 - Off

Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.
J&K: Jawan killed, civilian injured after terrorists fire at Army camp in Pulwama

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

One Army jawan was killed and a civilian critically injured in exchange of fire between the terrorists and the Army in jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama region on Sunday night. The gunbattle ensued after the terrorists opened fire at the army camp in Kakpora.

As per reports, the jawan was initially injured, but succumbed to his injuries later.

On Saturday evening, the terrorists fired at the camp of army's Rashtriya Rifles unit in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam area.

On Friday (May 25), terrorists hurled grenade at a camp of 34 Rashtriya Rifles in Kulgam's Nihama.

On May 7, one CRPF personnel was injured after terrorists hurled a grenade at Tahab Chowk in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district. The grenade was lobbed at police and CRPF personnel who were deployed at Tahab Chowk to maintain law and order.

On May 4, terrorists hurled a grenade at a police station in Pulwama. The grenade exploded outside the police station and no one was injured in the incident.

On April 12, terrorists had lobbed a grenade at a police station in Pulwama in which two policemen were left injured. Following the incident, the security forces cordoned off the area and launched a hunt to nab the attackers.

Jammu and Kashmir witnessed 166 per cent more civilian fatalities due to militancy while there was a 42 per cent rise in the number of terrorists neutralised in 2017 compared to the previous year, the Home Ministry said in April. The annual report of the Ministry of Home Affairs for 2017-18, released in April, said that since the advent of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir in 1990, a total of 13,976 civilians and 5,123 security personnel have lost their lives till December 31, 2017. In 2017, there were 342 violent incidents in Jammu and Kashmir in which 80 security personnel, 40 civilians and 213 terrorists were killed.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Monday, May 28, 2018, 0:33 [IST]
Karnataka bandh today, state likely to be hit

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

There would be a Karnataka bandh tomorrow, May 28. The BJP has said that the bandh call was given as Chief Minister Kumaraswamy had failed to waive of the farmer loans within 24 hours of him coming to power.

The bandh would be a state wide one. It would commence at 8 am tomorrow and would go on till evening. All establishments have been asked to down shutters tomorrow in wake of the bandh call given by the BJP.

While the entire state would witness a bandh, the capital city of Bengaluru would be exempted from it. Leader of the opposition, B S Yeddyurappa said that the state wide bandh on May 28 is not sponsored by the BJP, but is supported by it against Kumaraswamy.

He said that the Karnataka bandh was being called as Kumaraswamy had failed to announce the farm loan waiver within 24 hours of coming to power. He said that the CM during his election campaign had promised to waive off farm loans.

Several farmer organisations had taken exception to the delay in announcing the loan waiver. They have come forward voluntarily to observe the Karnataka bandh tomorrow, Yeddyurappa also said. He said that the BJP is extending its support to the agitation.

Yeddyurappa appealed to all merchants and businessmen to down shutters and extend their support to the Bandh as the farmers were suffering. He clarified that Bengaluru was exempted from the bandh and added that in the rest of the state, the bandh would be observed between 8 am and 6 pm.
Navratri 2021: BMC caps height of Durga idols, says no garba events in Mumbai

Mumbai drugs case: Anti-drugs officer alleges he is being spied on

Mumbai: 3 dead, 9 injured in a major fire at Technic Plus One building in Goregaon

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Three people were killed and nine were injured in a major fire that broke out at Techniplus one building in Mumbai's Goregaon locality on Sunday evening. Out of the nine injured, eight are firemen of Mumbai Fire department.

The incident is said to have taken place in the building on SV road.

As per reports, the fire broke out on the seventh floor of the building. The bodies of two persons, out of the three killed, were recovered from the lift, which was stuck between the fourth and fifth floor.

The three dead have been identified as - Naimuddin Shah, Ram Avatar and Ram Tirathpal, reported Indian Express.

The fire department team managed to rescue nine people from the building. Naimuddin Shah was rescued by the firemen, but was declared brought dead by the hospital later.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Monday, May 28, 2018, 1:09 [IST]
Not Sanskrit alone, Tamil is also language of Gods: Madras HC

You cannot drive at 120 kmph on highways says Madras HC

Madras HC to hear actor Vijay's civil lawsuit against his parents, nine others

No blanket order on FIR under IPC sections 172-188 says Madras HC

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

The Madras High Court has refused to pass a blanket order, directing the Tamil Nadu government and the police not to register a First Information Report (FIR) or a chargesheet for offences such as obstructing public servants from discharging their duties.

The first bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose recently disposed of a PIL filed by a lawyer called Balaji, seeking a direction to the police not to register an FIR or a chargesheet under Indian penal code (IPC) sections 172 to 188.

In its order, the Bench said it was of the view that such blanket orders could not be issued and "certainly not in a public interest litigation".

Any individual, however, had the alternative of filing a criminal revision application for quashing the proceedings on the ground of breach of the mandatory provisions of law, it added.

IPC sections 172 to 188 deal with offences such as obstructing a public servant in discharging his public functions and disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant, among others.

The petitioner had also sought a direction to the police not to register an FIR on the contention that the offences under the sections were non-cognizable.

Referring to section 195(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), the petitioner had contended that it restrained the court from taking cognizance of an offence punishable under sections 172 to 188 of the IPC, unless a complaint in writing was made to it by the public servant concerned.

In other words, the police could not lodge an FIR for such offences, the petitioner had contended.

The police could neither register a case against an offender for an offence punishable under sections 172 to 188 of the IPC nor submit a report under section 173, CrPC, he had added.

Alluding to various cases registered by the Tamil Nadu police under the aforesaid sections, the petitioner had said, "I recently learnt and understood that in Tamil Nadu, police register the FIR and file the final report/chargesheet for an offence under section 172 to 188, IPC.

"More particularly, section 188, IPC, when the law does not permit them."

Stating that it led to loss of money, manpower and precious time of governments and trial courts, the petitioner had contended that the time had come to put an end to the unlawful proceedings and save public money and the courts' time.

The Bench observed that an appropriate training programme was to be initiated by the Tamil Nadu State Judicial Academy for magistrates in relation to the offences under sections 172 to 188, IPC.

"As far as the police are concerned, they are not even under the general superintendence of the high court. Their actions may be subjected to judicial scrutiny by the court in exercise of its power of judicial review," it said. Orders, as prayed for by the petitioner, therefore, could not be granted, the court said.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 9:22 [IST]
Not averse to farm loan waiver says H D Kumaraswamy

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

In the backdrop of the BJP calling for a Karnataka bandh, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy has said that there was no question on going back on farm loan waiver. He said that he had already spoken with the Congress on this issue and he would understand the financial situation before taking such a call.

Kumaraswamy hit out at state BJP leader B S Yeddyurappa for his call to support the party's state-wide bandh call on Monday for the alleged failure of the government in announcing farm loan waiver as promised by him earlier.

"I'm with you (people). I don't have any personal wish. I have become the chief minister not with a selfish motive...," he said, noting that there was "no question" of going back on his announcement earlier on farm loan waiver.

He said he had already spoken to Congress leaders on the issue of farm loan waiver as he had to take them into confidence.

"I should also understand the financial situation before taking the decision. I cannot do it alone," he added.

On the portfolio allocation, he said there are some "issues" on portfolio allocation with his party's coalition partner Congress but it is not something that will pull down the government.

He also said the expansion of his Cabinet would take place once state Congress leaders get an approval from their high command.

"..Portfolios have not been allocated. There are some issues regarding portfolios, but it is not an issue that will pull down the government...," Kumaraswamy told reporters here.

Responding to questions on portfolio allocation and demand for a farm loan waiver, he said, "I will try not to take up an issue as a prestige issue and try to solve a problem.. Otherwise I will see. I will not stick to this post, leaving my self-esteem."

Parleys began between the Congress and the JD(S) on the issue of Cabinet expansion soon after Kumaraswamy proved his three-day-old government's majority on the floor of the Assembly yesterday.

Karnataka Congress leaders today left for New Delhi by a chartered plane to discuss with the high command the issues relating to Cabinet expansion and portfolio allocation.

According to sources, Kumaraswamy had met former chief minister and Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister Parameshwara and Congress general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K C Venugopal before they left for Delhi.

The chief minister also clarified that he would not be going to Delhi to meet Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi.

"State Congress leaders have to get approval from their central leadership, that's the reason they are going to Delhi today. Once they come back cabinet expansion will happen smoothly," he said.

It has already been decided that Congress would have 22 ministers and JDS 12 in the new cabinet.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 7:35 [IST]
'Rahul Gandhi as PM face not acceptable to TDP'

India

pti-PTI

Vijayawada, May 27: Andhra Pradesh minister Kalava Srinivasulu said on Sunday that the TDP would not accept Congress chief Rahul Gandhi as the prime ministerial candidate of a "united front" in case it comes into being before the 2019 polls.

Srinivasulu said the TDP never had any equation with the Congress and the two parties would never join hands.

"We are 100 percent clear that the prime minister will not be from the BJP or the Congress. Rahul Gandhi will not be the prime ministerial face of a united front in case such an alternative comes into being with the support of the Congress," he said.

The remarks came days after TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu shared stage with leaders of several regional parties at the swearing-in of H D Kumaraswamy as the CM of the Congress-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka.

"After the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, regional parties will play a major role at the Centre. The TDP will decide who will be the next prime minister," he said in response to a question from reporters on the sidelines of Mahanadu, a three-day annual conclave of the Telugu Desam Party.

The Congress "indiscriminately" divided the Telugu state, the minister for information and public relations minister said. "It did injustice to Andhra Pradesh. The same thing is happening under the BJP government," he added.

Andhra Pradesh has been seeking special category status from the Centra on the grounds that it is at a disadvantage, especially after the loss of capital Hyderabad to Telangana.

In March, the TDP withdrew from the NDA government over the Centre's refusal to grant special status to the state. Asked why the TDP did not pull out of the NDA government for four years, he said: "We did not withdraw the support earlier because we were dependent on the Centre. The state would have suffered a lot had we done that. We waited for fours years for the central government to make good on its promises to Andhra Pradesh."

Asked if Naidu could be projected as the prime ministerial candidate of the "third front", which a few regional parties have been mooting for some time as an alternative to the Congress and the BJP, the minister said: "Chandrababu Naidu has ruled himself out of the prime ministerial race, but the TDP will play the kingmaker."

PTI
Rahul Gandhi criticises PM Modi for not visiting Lakhimpur Kheri despite attending events in Uttar Pradesh

UP government changes its earlier stand, allows Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi to visit Lakhimpur Kheri

Sonia ji unwell, Rahul Gandhi should take over as Congress chief: Siddaramaiah as party preps up for CWC meet

BJP attacks Rahul, Priyanka for turning blind eye to atrocities on Dalits in Cong-ruled states

Rahul to travel abroad with Sonia, tells BJP "I'll be back soon"

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday evening took to Twitter to say that he would be leaving the country along with his mother Sonia Gandhi for the latter's "annual medical check-up".

"Will be out of India for a few days, accompanying Sonia ji to her annual medical check up. To my friends in the BJP social media troll army: don't get too worked up...I'll be back soon," Rahul tweeted.

While Rahul Gandhi will return within a week, Sonia Gandhi will stay abroad for a longer period, reported PTI.

Whenever Rahul travels abroad, BJP leaders mock him and pass remarks deriding him. That is the reason Rahul mentioned BJP in the tweet and said "I'll be back soon".

In March, Rahul Gandhi had gone to Italy to visit his maternal grandmother.

PTI reported that some key decisions, including the allocation of ministerial portfolios in Karnataka after a Congress-JD(S) government led by HD Kumaraswamy was formed in the southern state last week, have been put on hold.

OneIndia News with PTI inputs

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 22:55 [IST]
No major terror attack in India since PM Modi became PM, says Rajnath; calls it major achievement

Nobody on Earth can dare to doubt Muslim's patriotism in Lakshadweep: Rajnath Singh

Our prosperity largely linked to our seas since we are an arriving maritime power: Defence Minister

Ready for talks with Hurriyat if they come forward: Rajnath Singh

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

Home Minister Rajnath Singh reiterated that the government was ready to hold dialogue with the Hurriyat Conference leadership if the separatists come forward for talks.

Singh, however, made it clear that so far there has been no indication from the Hurriyat that it was ready for peace talks with the government.

"I have already said that we are ready for dialogue with all stakeholders in Kashmir. If Hurriyat comes forward for talks, we don't mind talking to them. Whoever wants to talk with us, we are ready for talks," he told a TV channel here.

On whether there was any indication from the separatists leadership for peace dialogue with the government, Singh said, "There has been no indication so far."

The government's special representative Dineshwar Sharma is holding talks with a cross section of people in Jammu and Kashmir, the Home Minister said.

Singh's comments came days after the government had announced suspension of operations against the militants in Jammu and Kashmir during the holy month of Ramzan that began on May 17.

Past attempts to initiate dialogue with the Hurriyat had failed after the separatists amalgam demanded declaration of Kashmir as "disputed" and involvement of Pakistan in the dialogue.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 8:15 [IST]
What are the farmers protesting about? We have stayed the farm laws says SC

Lakhimpur Kheri violence: SC says it is unsatisfied with action taken by UP govt

SC sets aside order denying relief to IFS officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

The Supreme Court has set aside a high court order that had declined to interfere with a plea made by Indian Forest Service officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi seeking a stay on a criminal defamation complaint filed against him by Himachal Pradesh Chief Secretary Vineet Chawdhary.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra found that the Himachal Pradesh High Court order had not adverted to any aspect nor addressed the submissions of the petitioner and sent the matter back to it for passing a rea soned order.

"On a perusal of the order passed by the high court, we find that the learned judge, except stating that he is not inclined to interfere in the petition seeking quashing of the complaint, has not adverted to any aspect. Be it noted though the submissions has been referred to in the impugned order, the same have not at all been addressed," the court said.

In view of the aforesaid, it is appropriate to set aside the impugned order and remand the matter to the high court for fresh consideration and pass a reasoned order in accordance with law, it said.

Vineet Chawdhary, a 1982-batch IAS officer of Himachal Pradesh cadre and former deputy director of All India Institute of Medical Sciences-Delhi, had filed a complaint against Chaturvedi in April 2016, alleging defamation for making public his vigilance profile.

He had also alleged that Chaturvedi made public a confidential letter written by the latter on August 16, 2014 in his capacity as the chief vigilance officer of AIIMS to the then chief secretary, Himachal Pradesh, giving information about pending corruption/departmental inquiries/proceedings against Chawdhary.

Chawdhary had alleged that this letter was circulated to 'defame' him and 'malign his reputation'.

On Chawdhary's complaint, a court in Shimla had issued summons to Chaturvedi on November 24, 2016.

Chaturvedi approached the Himachal Pradesh High Court seeking quashing of this order and also the complaint filed against him, and submitting that he has been summoned to face trial without there being any mandatory sanction of prosecution from government nor there being any evidence of his involvement in leaking the confidential letter.

On April 6, the high court refused to interfere with the local court order saying that it was open for the petitioner to approach the court concerned; enter appearance and take all such pleas at an appropriate stage.

"It is not that petitioner is remediless and as such must first take recourse to the remedies in accordance with law," the order passed by the Himachal Pradesh High Court Acting Chief Justice Sanjay Karol read.

It was against this order that Chaturvedi had moved the Supreme Court.

In his petition before the Supreme Court, Chaturvedi stated that being the chief vigilance officer of AIIMS, he had investigated instances of corruption allegedly involving Chawdhary, who was then the deputy director at the premier medical institution, and that being a public servant, no criminal proceedings can be initiated against him without prosecution sanction of the government.

In April this year, the Delhi High Court had issued notices to the central government on a petition filed by an NGO alleging illegal closure of cases involving Chawdhary and some other senior officials of AIIMS.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 9:13 [IST]
Shiv Sena's dog' remark: We never give importance to Sanjay Raut', says Fadnavis

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday came down heavily on Shiv Sena over the remark likening the Maharashtra Chief Minister to a 'dog' and said the BJP does not give importance to Sanjay Raut.

Raut, who is Shiv Sena's Rajya Sabha MP, had yesterday said that Fadnavis was "full of arrogance", adding, "Even a dog starts considering himself a tiger after coming to power."

"We never give importance to a person like Sanjay Raut. The media gives him importance. The whole country knows who has an ego," Fadnavis said on Sunday when asked about Raut's remark.

The war of words between the two allies started after Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray released an audio clip, purportedly of Fadnavis, in which the Maharashtra CM can be heard asking BJP workers to use all possible means to win Palghar Lok Sabha seat by-election on May 28.

Thackeray released the audio clip while addressing a rally on May 25 in Palghar. The BJP alleged that the Sena had tampered with the audio clip and that it would release its complete version soon. The party said it would also complain to the EC about the "misuse of technology.

Fadnavis was purportedly heard saying in the clip, "If somebody is challenging our existence in Palghar and has betrayed our trust, back-stabbed us while calling itself our ally, then they should be taught a lesson. We should not be sitting quietly now. We should launch a big attack and show them what the BJP is."

"If we want to win this election, then an answer has to be given in the same measure...Give an answer by using 'saam, daam, dand, bhed' (negotiation, money, punishment and division). Do not tolerate anybody's bullying. On the contrary, bully them...I will stand behind you," he purportedly said.

After releasing the audio, Thackeray demanded action against Fadnavis by the Election Commission (EC). Opposition Congress and NCP also demanded an EC probe into the clip.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 18:04 [IST]
Dutchman 5,1:57.3 ($132,858), the California two, three and four-year-old divisional stakes trotting champion, was euthanized this past Friday (May 25) after a long bout with ringbone.

Out of the multiple stakes-producing mare One To Top and by J W Dutch Treat, Dutchman snatched 10 of 13 stakes races while banking $132,858. When a foot injury ended his racing career, Dutchman was then given to a family in Oregon as a pleasure horse.

Last year Vickie and Steve Desomer, the breeders and previous owners, were contacted by people working with the Standardbred Retirement Foundation and told that Dutchman had ended up in a low-end auction and was the target of kill buyers as he seemed very lame. The Desomers stepped up and purchased Dutchman and secured shipping back to their farm in Wilton, Calif.

After consultation by their vet, it was determined that Dutchman was suffering from a deteriorating case of ringbone, but that he could rest comfortably as a pasture pet. Recently though, the ringbone had gotten worse, which at this time it was determined that Dutchmans quality of life had come to an end.

Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the connections of Dutchman

(California Harness Horsemen's Association)
Digvijaya Singh dares PM Modi to file case against him over 'Pulwama accident' remark

UP voters will deliver 'final strike' in BJP's favour in LS polls: Deputy CM

Voting in favour of 'lotus' will mean dropping of nuclear bomb on Pak, says UP Dy CM Maurya

On Meerut cops Go to Pakistan comment, UP Dy CM defends him; Naqvi demands action

We have named her 'Priyanka Twitter Vadra': UP Deputy CM's jibe at Congress leader

UP Dy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya in AIIMS, likely to undergo surgery

India

pti-PTI

New Delhi, May 27: Deputy Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Keshav Prasad Maurya, has been admitted to the AIIMS, after he suffered a seizure.

The 49-year-old minister, who was admitted on Friday, is likely to undergo a surgery for the removal of a lesion in the brain, said a source at AIIMS.

He is currently in the private ward of the Cardio Neuro Centre. "He is stable and conscious,"the source said. A team of doctors are monitoring his condition.

PTI
We are promise bound to improve living of people on border says Jitendra Singh

India

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

Union Minister Jitendra Singh visited a camp housing people affected by cross-border shelling here and assured them of early construction of underground bunkers for their safety.

Singh, the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, interacted with the people living in the shelter at Chann Khatrian in Hiranagar sector, after days of intense firing and shelling by Pakistani troops across the International Border (IB) and the Line of Control (LoC), which left 12 people dead and thousands displaced.

Accompanied by several BJP leaders including Hiranagar MLA Kuldeep Raj, the minister heard their grievances.

However, a group of the displaced people protested after the minister left the camp, claiming that he did not listen to them.

He was in a hurry and left soon after the people started reminding him about the promises made to the border residents by the BJP. We want concrete steps, not hallow promises, one of the protesters said.

Earlier, responding to the demand for underground bunkers, Singh said the Centre had sanctioned the plan but the construction work could not take place due to some unavoidable reasons.

"We are promise bound to improve the living condition of the people of the border residents. The construction work on underground bunkers will start soon, Singh said.

In December last year, the Centre announced the construction of 14,460 individual and community bunkers at a cost of Rs 415.73 crore for the people living along the LoC and the IB in Jammu region as a step to ensure their safety in the wake of frequent cross-border shelling.

Twelve people including two BSF personnel have been killed and scores of others injured during nine days of heavy Pakistani shelling along the IB and the LoC since May 15.

The border residents also raised the demand for a piece of land for each family at safer zones as promised by the BJP. The minister said the issue was shelved for the time being after the security agencies raised concern over the proposal.

Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a spurt in Pakistani shelling and firing this year. Over 800 such incidents have been reported this year, which have left over 44 people, including 18 security personnel, dead and scores injured.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 9:06 [IST]
Collapse of Kabul will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history: Donald Trump

Thousands of terrorists might have been airlifted out of Kabul: Trump slams Biden

Never in history has withdrawal from war been handled so badly: Trump

Blocking Twitter critics: Trump finds a friend in Chinese media

International

oi-Shubham

By Shubham

A day after a federal judge in the US ruled that US President cannot block users on his Twitter feed, China's Global Times said in an op-ed that the laws of the United States proved to be backward about regulating online speech.

The judge, Naomi Reice Buchwald, said in her ruling that Trump violated the American Constitution by barring certain Americans from viewing his tweets posted under the handle @realDonaldTrump. She did not buy the Justice Department's argument that Trump had the right to block Twitter followers because of his "associational freedoms", CNBC reported.

The ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed in July 2017 by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and some other complainants who Trump blocked on Twitter.

The Global Times piece said online freedom has caused much controversy in the US. It cited the example of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg who recently faced the UC Congress over the data theft scandal where he was accused of not protecting the privacy of his platform's users.

"Despite Zuckerberg's efforts to develop Facebook into a neutral platform for all voices, the magnate has repeatedly run into legal troubles for lax regulation of racist speech, online bullying and promotion of counterfeit goods," the op-ed said.

It said America's legal system focuses more on real problems like anybody shouting racist remarks of making malicious personal abuse at President Trump would be stopped by the police but when it comes to the virtual world, "people seem to savour the "paradise of freedom", making any remarks they wish," it said taking an indirect dig at the world's oldest democracy.

It also backed Trump saying even if he did something illegal by blocking the Twitter users, the ruling did not look convincing and felt Trump had a strong chance of winning the appeal against the ruling.

"Freedom of speech has its boundaries. Hate speech and other inflammatory comments with an intention to split society and create unrest must be put under effective control. How to regulate online speech is a challenge for many countries. Although social media platforms have unveiled policies to address the threat of violence with some starting to bar controversial voices, the current regulations and laws have failed to strike a balance between freedom of speech and the need to prevent online remarks from exerting negative effects on society," the Global Times piece said.

China is known to be one of the least tolerant countries for online freedom.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 13:44 [IST]
Collapse of Kabul will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history: Donald Trump

Thousands of terrorists might have been airlifted out of Kabul: Trump slams Biden

Never in history has withdrawal from war been handled so badly: Trump

Donald Trump says talks with North Korea on June 12 Singapore summit going 'very well'

International

pti-PTI

Washington, May 27: US President Donald Trump said today that things are moving "very nicely" towards a summit on June 12 in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump said at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela. "We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his June 12 meeting with Kim in the Southeast Asian city-state, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang. But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

"There are meetings going on as we speak," Trump said. "I think there's a lot of goodwill." His comments came after North Korea said Kim was "fixed" on holding the summit with Trump, raising hopes the historic meeting might still take place after a turbulent few days of diplomatic brinkmanship.

The latest conciliatory declaration from Pyongyang came as the White House confirmed it was sending a team to Singapore to prepare for the talks -- a further signal that both sides were moving to cool tensions following a rollercoaster few days on the Korean Peninsula.

PTI
Ireland man injects himself with own semen to get rid of back pain; hospitalised

How the tragic death of a Karnataka dentist led to Ireland repealing abortion ban

International

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

Irelands Indian-origin Prime Minister Leo Varadkar declared victory in the countrys historic referendum to overturn a ban on abortions as the first official results showed over 66 per cent backing for repealing the amendment against terminations.

"The people have spoken. They have said we need a modern Constitution for a modern country," he said.

The Irish Taoiseach, as the prime minister is known, added that Irish voters "trust and respect women to make the right choices and decisions about their own healthcare".

"What we've seen is the culmination of a quiet revolution that's been taking place in Ireland over the past 20 years," he said.

A vote in favour of repealing the Eighth Amendment, which took place on yesterday, paves the way for the Dail, or Irish Parliament, to legislate for change which would see the introduction of a much more liberal regime.

Results from the first four of 40 constituencies to declare showed 66.36 per cent voted "Yes" and 33.64 per cent voted "No", on a 62 per cent turnout, the central count centre in Dublin announced.

Support for "Yes" was at 77 per cent in Dublin Central, 69 per cent in Cork South-Central, 64 per cent in Cork North-Central and 60 per cent in Galway East.

Varadkar had earlier declared the country was set to make history as exit polls indicated an landslide victory for the yes vote to repeal the countrys stringent abortion laws in the landmark referendum.

According to an exit poll published by The Irish Times, 68 per cent voted in favour of abolishing the Eighth Amendment to the Irish Constitution that gives an unborn child and its mother equal rights to life. More than 4,500 voters were interviewed by Ipsos/MRBI as they left polling stations with the highest Yes vote expected in Dublin at 77 per cent.

The complete results of the referendum will be confirmed later today after the count is completed. "It's looking like we will make history," said Varadkar, as the exit poll results poured in.

While the two main parties of Ireland, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, did not take official positions on the referendum, politicians were permitted to campaign on a personal basis and Varadkar had been campaigning strongly in favour of a Yes vote.

"It has been an honour to be on this journey with you and to work #togetherforyes Thank you to everyone who voted today. Democracy in action, he said in an online message.

The 'Savethe8th' movement, which led the No campaign, had effectively conceded defeat.

What Irish voters did yesterday (Friday) is a tragedy of historic proportions. However, a wrong does not become right simply because a majority support it, it said in a statement.

Thousands of Irish people living abroad flew home to cast their vote in the historic referendum. The #hometovote push online grew steadily for several days leading up to the vote. The hashtag filled up social media as Irish citizens boarded planes in Buenos Aires, Bangkok, Tokyo, Sydney, Los Angeles, New York and from all across Europe and the UK.

Turnout in the referendum was on course to be one of the highest for a referendum in Ireland, topping the 61 per cent who voted in the plebiscite that backed same-sex marriage in the country 2015.

Penny Mordaunt, the UKs minister for women and equalities, welcomed the forecasted result. She tweeted: Based on the exit poll, a historic & great day for Ireland, & a hopeful one for Northern Ireland. That hope must be met.

Acknowledging an equal right to life for both the unborn child and the mother, the Eighth Amendment effectively prohibited termination in almost all cases, including rape, incest or fatal foetal abnormality.

One of the key cases influencing the debate on abortion in Ireland was that of Indian dentist Savita Halappanavar, who died of sepsis in a hospital in Galway after being denied an abortion during a protracted miscarriage in 2012.

Her husband Praveen had told her inquest she requested a termination but was refused because the babys heart was still beating. A midwife manager at Galway University Hospital confirmed that she told Halappanavar that a termination could not be carried out because Ireland was a Catholic country. The inquest into her death returned a verdict of medical misadventure.

I hope the people of Ireland remember my daughter Savita on the day of the referendum, and that what happened to her wont happen to any other family, her father Andanappa Yalagi said from his home in Karnataka.

Her death had triggered a massive debate in the country over the issue of life-saving abortions and resulted in a new law that allows abortions under extreme circumstances. The Irish Parliament voted to legalise abortion in cases of medical emergencies as well as the risk of suicide in July, 2013.

The referendum this week will take that further, and with a win for the Yes vote, the existing article of the Constitution which was inserted in 1983 and the 1992 additions will be replaced with this text: Provision may be made by law for the regulation of termination of pregnancy.

The Catholic church had strongly opposed repealing the amendment and Irish bishops warned in a joint statement, We believe that the deletion or amendment of this article can have no other effect than to expose unborn children to greater risk and that it would not bring about any benefit for the life or health of women in Ireland."

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 8:52 [IST]
Modi not an advocate of peace with Pakistan says Musharraf

International

oi-Oneindia Staff

By Oneindia Staff

Pakistan and India were on the path of peace and reconciliation under his regime, former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf has said while claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not an "advocate of peace talks".

The former president and chief of All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) in an interview with Voice of America claimed that when he was in power, India and Pakistan were on the "path of reconciliation", but that is not the case anymore, the Express Tribune reported.

"At the time, I spoke to both the prime ministers, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh, they were both from different political parties but we wanted to move forward from the disputes, he said.

The 74-year-old retired general, who is facing high treason charges, has been living in Dubai since last year when he was allowed to leave Pakistan for medical treatment.

Musharraf claimed that a four-point initiation of peace was strategised by the former president and was put in implementation by the leadership of both countries.

The four points of contention included Siachen and Kashmir as well, he said.

"We were working on my strategy because both sides wanted to have peace. This is not the case anymore. They want to undo us," he claimed.

"Incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to enforce supremacy in India and isn't an advocate of peace talks," he alleged.

He alleged that there exists an "inherent bias" towards India's treatment as both possess nuclear arms, but no questions are raised on India.

"Nobody asks India to control their assets. Pakistan became a nuclear state because India posed an undeniable existential threat, he said.

"The US should have stopped them, we have been loyal to them throughout, he said.

He said that Pak-US relations have suffered quite a blow and are currently at "the lowest ebb".

Answering a question as to why there are strenuous relations between the two countries, Musharraf said, "US has supported India very openly from the Cold War era. And now again, the US is aligning itself with India against Pakistan, this affects us directly. We would like the UN to examine India's role in Afghanistan. A one-sided approach to the problem is negative.
N Korea: World needs time to catch up with Trumps flip flops, says Chinese media

International

oi-Shubham

By Shubham

Was US President Donald Trump's scrapping the summit with North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un on Thursday, May 24, a risky act before the summit?

The question was raised by China's Global Times news agency.

In an op-ed titled 'US-North Korea summit: Good things take time' carried by Global Times run by People's Daily on Saturday, May 26, it was said that the world needed a little more time to digest everything that has happened in the past 48 hours and to catch up with Trump's "rapid and unpredictable decision-making".

The piece came out in the wake of Trump's flip-flop over the June 12 summit with Kim scheduled in Singapore.

A day after Trump personally wrote to Kim scrapping the summit on grounds of Pyongyang's "tremendous anger and open hostility", he said the scheduled summit could still happen and that Washington and Pyongyang were holding talks.

Trump said in a tweet: "We are having very productive talks with North Korea about reinstating the Summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date."

Meanwhile, on Saturday, Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held yet another meeting - a month after their historic summit at the border truce village of Punmunjeom to revive the prospects of the June 12 talks.

Trump's earlier decision to call off the talks came as a shocker for all all parties, including South Korea whose president said he was "perplexed". It also came hours after North Korea demolished its only nuclear site at Punggye-ri in the presence of foreign journalists. Pyongyang said the decision was regrettable and that it was open for talk anywhere and in any form. According to observers, North Korea could have retaliated against the cancellation with fury but it chose to remain calm.

It said what Trump called "tremendous anger and open hostility" was just a reaction to the provocative remarks that were being made from the American side. Suggestions flying out from the US ranks that North Korea be dealt with like Libya and the continuation of US-led air combat drills with South Korea in the Korean Peninsula left the North Koreans angry and they resorted to an angry reaction.

North Korea's persistence with the peace talks perhaps made Trump to soften his stand too. On Friday, Trump also said on Twitter: "Very good news to receive the warm and productive statement from North Korea."

"It could even be the 12th, they (North Korea) very much want to do it, we would like to do it, we will see what happens," the president told reporters, hinting that the June 12 summit could still happen.

"It is difficult to predict what will happen between the US and North Korea going forward. The Peninsula situation has somehow managed to get back on track, even after the North Korean official denounced the US, and Trump announced the cancellation of the US-North Korean summit. The tenacity of the Korean Peninsula situation is unexpected, as many said that the situation is "doomed." However, different sides have worked hard to stop the situation from being derailed. Such tenacity might be one of the most valuable features and deserves to be promoted and carried forward," the Global Times report added.

"Both sides now have growing resolution to solve the Korean conflict through peaceful dialogue. Such resolution is likely to have restrained themselves from going to the extreme in the latest exchange."

"Despite explaining the US firm stance in Thursday's letter, Trump used polite language and left an open-ended conclusion. North Korea's response protected its self-esteem while expressing its willingness for continued dialogues."

The op-ed said the differences between the US and North Korea cannot be abruptly diminished in a day's time. It said there are still challenges on the way of achieving a completely denuclearised Korean Peninsula but if the two sides can pursue the talks with a positive energy, that could still make a real difference as far as peace in the Korean Peninsula is concerned.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 13:11 [IST]
A change of guard in the ISI and what it would mean

Pak Army summons ex-ISI chief over co-authoring book with ex-RAW chief

International

oi-Shubham

By Shubham

The army in Pakistan, one of the most powerful institutions in that country, on Saturday, May 26, summoned former ISI (Inter-Services Intelligence) chief lieutenant general (retired) Asad Durrani on Monday, May 28, to explain his co-authoring a controversial book with former RAW (Research and Analysis Wing) chief Amarjit Singh Dulat and journalist Aditya Sinha titled 'The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace'. The book was released on Wednesday, May 23.

"He will be asked to explain his position on views attributed to him in the book 'Spy Chronicles' Attribution (is being) taken as (a) violation of Military Code of Conduct applicable on all serving and retired military personnel," The Express Tribune cited an announcement made by DG ISPR Major General Asif Ghafoor on Twitter.

Durrani made observations like former Pakistani prime minister Yousaf Raza Gillani had complete knowledge about the US Navy Seals operation against al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad where he was gunned down in May 2011 and that a special deal was made between the US and Pakistani governments on this, IANS reported.

Durrani also said that Pakistan mishandled the case of Kulbhushan Jadhav and claimed he would eventually be handed over to the Indian authorities, the report added.

The Pakistani Army was seriously disappointed with some of the contents in the book, calling them baseless. "Attribution taken as violation of Military Code of Conduct applicable on all serving and retired military personnel," according to the statement issued last night," PTI cited an army statement as saying.

On Friday, May 25, former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif sought an urgent meeting of the National Security Committee to discuss the content of Durrani's book while former chairman of Pakistan's Senate Raza Rabbani slammed the book authored by rival spy agency chiefs, PTI reported.

Although the co-authoring of a book by former ISI and RAW chiefs is, according to the Pakistani establishment, a move that compromises national security, there has been instance in the past where a joint effort over a book by an Indian and Pakistan led to huge uproar.

In October 2015, former aide to BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani Sudheendra Kulkarni had his face smeared with black ink allegedly by Shiv Sena supporters in Mumbai when he was on his way to an event for the release of a book 'Neither a Hawk Nor a Dove: An Insider's Account of Pakistan's Foreign Relations' authored by former Pakistan foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri. The attackers allegedly warned him against going to the event and targeted him when he refused to oblige.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 10:18 [IST]
A change of guard in the ISI and what it would mean

Pakistan directs Lashkar to revive modules focus on pan India attacks

International

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

The Lashkar-e-Tayiba has decided to expand its operations and has instructed its cadres to strike at different parts of the country. The outfit had restricted itself to Jammu and Kashmir since the past few years and has now decided that it would expand its network.

The Lashkar-e-Tayiba already has dedicated cells and modules in different parts of the country. It has also asked its module in Bangladesh to activate itself and infiltrate operatives through that side of the Indian border.

In its chargesheet, the National Investigation Agency has said that two operatives of the Lashkar-e-Tayiba Sheikh Abdul and Naeem were tasked with reviving the outfit in other parts of the country. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) named 10 persons -- five of whom have been arrested, while the rest are absconding -- in its charge sheet filed before District Judge Poonam A Bamba.

The charge sheet, which also names two persons, who have turned approvers, will be taken up for consideration on July 4, the next date of hearing.

Besides Naeem, the final report has named Bedar Bakht, Towseef Ahmad Malik, Dinesh Garg and Adish Kumar Jain as accused, who were arrested from different parts of the country, and are currently in judicial custody.

The charge sheet named Habib-ur-Rahman, Gul Nawaz, Javed and Mohd Imran as absconders, besides one Amzad, a Pakistan resident.

The report also listed the role of Mahfooz Alam and Abdul Samad, who were granted conditional pardon by the court earlier this month after both turned approvers.

The case was registered on November 27, 2017, against Sheikh Abdul Naeem, Amzad and others on allegations that Naeem was involved in receiving funds from Pakistan and UAE based LeT operatives for terrorist activities in India, and using it to establish hideouts, recruit people for the outfit and to do reconnaissance of targets in India.

Naeem, in pursuance of the larger criminal conspiracy to carry out the subversive activities in India, infiltrated into the country from the Bangladesh side along with three of his associates -- Muzaffar Ahmed Rather, a Jammu and Kashmir resident, and two Pakistan-based terrorists, Md Abdulla and Md Yunus -- in 2007, and while infiltrating into the Indian territory, he got arrested, the charge sheet said.

It added that while Rather, Abdulla and Yunus were awarded death sentence by a West Bengal court in January last year, the trial against Naeem is still pending since he had escaped from custody in August 2014, while being taken from Kolkata to Maharashtra for a court attendance.

"After his escape, Naeem continued his activities as an active member of the LeT and remained in telephonic (voice and VOIP calls) and internet (Nimbuz) contact with his handlers of LeT, including, but not limited to Abdullah Rashid of Faisalabad, Pakistan," the final report said. An Interpol Red Notice was issued against Rashid in 2009.

"On the instructors of his LeT handlers, Naeem carried out reconnaissance of hotels, restaurants and other places frequented by Jews, Israeli tourists, at and around Tosh, and Kasol at Kullu in Himachal Pradesh for carrying out jihadi activities.

"He recorded the videos of these places on his mobile and typed coded messages on his mobile to be sent to his handlers in Pakistan," it said.

It claimed that with the investigation in the case, a large network of the LeT, operating in the country and posing a serious security threat to the country, has been neutralised.

"The role of Abdul Samad, a hawala operator, based in Muzaffarnagar, was established, who in connivance with Saudi Arabia-based Gul Nawaz and Muzafarnagar, UP-based jewellers Dinesh Garg and Adish Kumar Jain received funds from Saudi Arabia and delivered them to Naeem and others," it said.

The accused were charged under various sanctions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Indian Penal Code, Passport Act, Aadhaar Act and Arms Act.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 7:33 [IST]
Qatar hits back; bans goods from its 4 tormentor countries

International

oi-Shubham

By Shubham

It's payback time for Qatar. Almost after a year since Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt cut ties with the gas-rich country in West Asia, Doha has decided to stop consuming goods from its rivals, said a Bloomberg report.

According to a circular sent on Saturday, May 26, Qatar's economy ministry has ordered its shops to stop accepting products imported from those four countries, the report added, saying inspectors were set to visit the stores to ensure that the ban was complied with.

On June 5, 2017, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and Egypt snapped ties with Qatar on charges of backing terrorist groups and having close ties with Iran, perceived as a common enemy. Qatar had to import its goods via Kuwait and Oman and buy goods from Iran and Turkey.

The embargo did not hit it much as Qatar's economy grew faster than most of its neighbours in 2017 and is also expected to outperform them this year, the International Monetary Fund said, the Bloomberg report added.

Qatar, which has evolved as an important economic and strategic power in West Asia, is planning to attract more foreign investments and build a financial hub for firms based in Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Pakistan, the Bloomberg report added.
Collapse of Kabul will go down as one of the greatest defeats in American history: Donald Trump

Thousands of terrorists might have been airlifted out of Kabul: Trump slams Biden

Never in history has withdrawal from war been handled so badly: Trump

Russia probe: WH wants briefing on classified info, says Trump attorney Giuliani

International

oi-Shubham

By Shubham

Amid the growing pressure over the allegations that the Donald Trump campaign had collusion with Russian sources during the 2016 presidential election, President Trump's legal team sought a briefing on the classified information shared with the lawmakers about the origins of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's (FBI) probe into Russia's alleged meddling in the election, Associated Press reported.

It may even take the matter to the Justice Department in a bid to stop the special counsel probe which completed a year this month.

On Friday, Rudy Giuliani, one of the members of Trump's legal team, told AP that the White House hoped to get the information next week, "particularly about the use of a longtime government informant who approached members of Trump's campaign in a possible bid to glean intelligence on Russian efforts to sway the election."

President Trump has called the probe a "witch hunt" time and again and also raised counter allegations that former president Barack Obama and the FBI spied on his presidential campaign.

Giuliani said if the spying was inappropriate, then there was an "entirely illegitimate investigation" in place.

He said the Trump team would approach the Justice Department to re-evaluate and acknowledge that there was a mistake and a whopping $20 million of taxpayers' money was wasted in the entire exercise, the AP report added.

Giuliani also invoked the material compiled by James Comey, the former FBI director, before he was fired by Trump in May 2017, the AP report added.
Why Pervez Musharrafs views on India and Narendra Modi are wrong

International

oi-Shubham

By Shubham

When elections are around the corner in Pakistan, how can its former military dictator Pervez Musharraf be not visible? The 74-year-old former president of Pakistan, whose era got over a decade ago, recently said in an interview with Voice of America that the US treated Pakistan when it suited the former and ditched it when it did not.

Saying the relation between the US and Pakistan has touched "the lowest ebb", Musharraf added that it was very important for Pakistan to sit with the US and resolve the differences. He said the tiff that the two countries are facing also includes Afghanistan, Pakistan's western neighbour with which it doesn't share a great relation.

Explaining why relations between the US and Pakistan were strained, the former Pakistani president said Washington supported India "very openly" from the Cold War era and aligned itself with India against Pakistan again the current times, affecting Pakistan directly. He said Pakistan would like to see the UN examining India's role in Afghanistan, adding that a one-sided approach to the problem would be negative.

Musharraf said despite both India and Pakistan possessing nuclear arms, it is the former who is treated with more favour

"Nobody asks India to control their assets. Pakistan became a nuclear state because India posed an undeniable existential threat," he said in the interview, adding that the US should have stopped India and rued that it did not do so despite Pakistan remaining loyal to the Americans throughout.

He also said it was during his tenure that India and Pakistan were on way towards reconciliation but it is not the same anymore.

Musharraf praised former Indian prime ministers Atal Behari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh saying they wanted to move forward from the disputes even if they came from two different parties. He said both the countries were working as per his four-point strategy for peace but alleged that India now wanted to "undo" Pakistan and opined that current Indian PM Narendra Modi aimed to enforce supremacy in India and isn't one who advocates peace talks.

Each of Musharraf's viewpoints is wrong

The problem with Musharraf is that he remembers history selectively. No other Indian PM other than Modi did the commendable job of inviting the heads of government of the neighbouring states, including arch-rivals Pakistan, to his or her oath-taking ceremony to promote a pro-peace image.

Modi met former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif at his oath-taking ceremony exactly four years ago on May 26. He also made a surprise visit to Lahore to meet Sharif in December 2015.

But things turned for the worse after the terror attack at the Pathankot air base in early 2016 and then the horrific attack on Indian soldiers in Uri in September the same year. Sharif's position in Pakistan politics only deteriorated till he was ousted in July 2017 and it left for very little chance for India to take forward the peace process as the power vacuum persisted.

Musharraf was the man who had spoilt Vajpayee's peace initiative with Pakistan in early 1999 by masterminding the Kargil conflict the same year. Neither he could see the much-hyped Agra summit with Vajpayee in 2001 achieve success while his four-point Kashmir solution was trashed by his own country where he now stands a forgotten figure.

Also, Musharraf's thinking that India is favoured while Pakistan is not is wrong for a country's worth is determined by the international community by its economic merit and not nuclear weapons. Pakistan today stands no chance as an economic entity vis-a-vis India.

It is not bias but a logical conclusion that India enjoys a better image worldwide than Pakistan which is mostly perceived as a failed state.

Musharraf's opinion that the US always used Pakistan for its own convenience also offers little substance because Islamabad always enjoyed the Americans' grant until things got serious after the 9/11 attacks.

However, Musharraf's viewpoints are more about making himself relevant in Pakistan's politics ahead of a national election than making an assessment of the reality.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Sunday, May 27, 2018, 10:23 [IST]




There was something spiritually poetic about this mornings prayer time before Church in Fitzroy. It was not lost on me.

We were sitting in the Onialeku Room, in Fitzroy, our Church in South Belfast. We were gathered to pray for a trip to Onialeku, a Primary School in Arua town in West Nile, right up on the north west corner of Uganda, less than 10 miles from Congo and just around 40 south of South Sudan.

In a room here praying for a school, with the same name, there. The connection was tangible.

The back story is that a wonderful leader in that impoverished community by the name of Bishop Isaac had a dream for the children running around his Church. He longed that they might have an education and started a makeshift school.

A little after he got a school started, thousands of miles away, we in Fitzroy were extending our Church halls. Though the changes in our halls were very much overdue, and desperately needed, we did not want to be self-indulgent and came up with an idea to tithe our fund raising and do something for education in a Lesser Economically Developed Country.

Investigation and prayer led us to Fields Of Life who linked us with Bishop Isaacs dream. In 2015 we took our first team to Onialeku to be part of the school building opening.

In a few weeks we will take our fourth trip. There are 24 in the 2018 team, a wonderful mix of youth and experience. We will be doing Bible Clubs, Christianity Explored, Sexual and Health education, craft classes, guitar lessons, and some sport.

The most wonderful thing is that though only 24 are actually travelling to West Nile, the entire Church are weighing in behind the project. Almost 60 children are sponsored by Fitzroy and money as well as resources are pouring in for this trip.

All of this ends up in relationship, in partnership and in mutual learning. I will blog more about the impact of the partnership on Fitzroy this week. In Onialeku we are keen to see a school with quality education, preparing Ugandan children to take their place in the development of their nation.

We have questions to ask though. It seems vital that we make the school sustainable without us. There are many gifted people working hard on that, on the ground in Onialeku. Bishop Isaac sadly passed away a year after we opened the school. He was a gifted and visionary leader, however, and has left leaders to take up the role. We are very keen that this would be a partnership.

So, this morning, in the Onialeku Room, the miles between us disappeared as I could see in the school playground, under the mango tree, the pastors and teachers and children. We prayed for them as we prayed for ourselves and looked forward excitedly together again in just a few weeks time.
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

From Reader Supported News

The House of Representatives this week passed a bipartisan criminal justice reform measure called the First Step Act by an overwhelming majority of 360-59. The bill was sponsored by Reps. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Doug Collins (R-Ga.) It has the support of the left-leaning Brennan Center for Justice, the activist group Families Against Mandatory Minimums, and even presidential son-in-law Jared Kushner and Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), however, has already said that the bill is "dead on arrival" in the Senate.

What we need right now is real sentencing reform. We don't need half measures. We need reforms that will bring us in line with other "progressive" democracies. I'm a realist. I know that's not going to happen. There will never be a consensus in Congress over true reform. Maybe if we're really lucky -- someday -- we'll be able to do away with the draconian sentences that we have for nonviolent drug crimes. That'll be a start. But we're not there yet.

The First Step Act is not sentencing reform. It is, however, a giant leap in the right direction. It earmarks $250 million to be spent over five years on education and vocational training and on mental health care in federal prisons, in an effort to reduce recidivism. It expands the number of days that a prisoner would be eligible to spend in a halfway house or home confinement near the end of his prison sentence. It would ban the shackling of female prisoners during childbirth. And it would require that the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) place prisoners in facilities within 500 miles of their families. These aren't radical perks. These at least ought to be basic human rights. But they're not. And the bill would be in stark contrast to the realities of federal prison today.

First, there is simply no educational or vocational training in federal prisons. Once upon a time, a prisoner might be trained to do electrical work, plumbing, small engine repair, or even factory work, but today there is literally no money in the federal budget for such a program, despite the fact that the BOP accounts for fully one-quarter of the Justice Department's budget.

Second, although federal law calls for prisoners to earn 15 percent of the length of their sentence off for good behavior, the BOP has always calculated "good behavior time" differently. In the end, prisoners actually get 13.5 percent good behavior time. Furthermore, prisoners are technically eligible for up to 12 months of halfway house time and either 10 percent of the length of their sentence or 90 days, whichever is shorter, for home confinement or house arrest. In reality, though, you could count on one hand the number of federal prisoners who are given more than six months of halfway house time.

That's a shame. There's an institutional desire for punishment at the Justice Department and in Congress. There is little stomach or tolerance for "rehabilitation" or anything else that meets the Republican definition of being "soft on crime." What halfway house time is supposed to do is to give a prisoner nearing the end of his sentence the opportunity to find a job, transition back into society, and become a contributing member of that society. The prisoner pays 25 percent of his gross pay as "rent" for his halfway house bed, and he is then (theoretically) able to put food on the table and care financially for his family.

But it doesn't work that way. Halfway house time is somehow seen in Washington as a "reward." And why should criminals get a reward? It's not a reward, though. It is what an enlightened government ought to do to help put a citizen on his feet and to help ensure that he doesn't return to a life of crime. There's no downside.

The House's work on the First Step Act is done. President Trump has said that he would sign the bill into law. Mitch McConnell, though, doesn't have control of his own caucus. Senate Democrats are united in their support for the bill. The Republican caucus is split. In raw numbers, there are more than enough votes to pass the bill into law. But Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), one of the most extreme right-wing members of that body, is having none of it. Because of Cotton's opposition, and the opposition of several other southern conservatives, McConnell can't call the bill to a vote. Cotton won't even allow a vote in the Judiciary Committee. And because of that, the bill is dead. It's the third time in the past six years that a popular bipartisan prison reform bill will die in the Senate.

There's no good news here. Because our elected officials can't get their collective act together, no incarcerated Americans will catch a break. More importantly, recidivism will remain at one of the highest rates in the industrialized world. If a person goes to prison, does his entire stretch with little chance of meaningful time off for good behavior, has no education or job skills, and no hope for a job when he's released, what does he do? He goes right back into a life of crime.

Congressional inaction makes the country less safe. And that's on Tom Cotton.

Reader Supported News is the Publication of Origin for this work. Permission to republish is freely granted with credit and a link back to Reader Supported News.
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

See original Here

In short, accountability will not come from the top

By Robert Crawford



It is appalling that the Senate would approve for CIA Director someone who was directly involved in carrying out torture. Haspel should have been disqualified from the beginning, no matter what she told the Senators during and after her confirmation hearing. Despite crucial information held back by the CIA, Senators had sufficient knowledge for an informed decision. The majority, which included six Democrats, chose to ignore what they knew.

Torture is a war crime. The Senate is now on record for approving a war criminal to run an agency with a long record of engaging in unlawful acts.

The dangers of this confirmation are multiple -- and because our moral and political work is for the long term, these need to be named:

First, there is a long-standing struggle within the national security state over the use of violence. On one side are those who promote violence as the most effective means for extending or defending U.S. global dominance. On the other side are those who, while regarding the use of force as a legitimate way to project power, would impose legal and democratic limits on its use. Haspel's confirmation, along with John Bolton's appointment as national security adviser and Mike Pompeo's ascendency to Secretary of State, is a clear victory for those promoting unrestrained violence. Trump has now assembled a war cabinet that is for the most part unopposed.

Second, the political struggle over state violence has always been partisan and we can expect nothing from Republicans on this score. Though the Democrats also have much to account for, Republicans have a long record of playing on the fears of Americans. Even on the clarion moral issue of torture, only three Republican Senators opposed Haspel, one more instance of the Party's decision to abdicate political responsibility to the nation by failing to oppose a dangerous authoritarian president. As also demonstrated by their unanimous vote in support of Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State, Republicans have chosen to throw their weight behind a bellicose and militaristic commander-in-chief who is setting the United States on a course to war.

Third, the six Democratic votes for Haspel suggest one of three things: the bankruptcy of an electoral logic that endorses do-anything-to-win strategies, principles be damned; they are part of the camp that has no problem with a torturer running the CIA or no problem with the CIA shielding its "shadow warriors" from accountability; or they simply do not understand what is at stake in confirming Haspel.

Lastly, for many Americans, being "tough on terrorists" is justification enough for torture. Whether for retribution (as Trump recognized during the campaign when he pronounced "even if it doesn't work, they deserve it anyway") or a product of misinformed understandings of what is likely to keep us safe, millions of people embrace torture and "whatever it takes" violence to secure a "strong America." During the Trump era, the war culture now takes on a populist, anti-Muslim dimension and torture becomes another instance of a politically exploited disposition toward violence against designated enemies. For Trump, Haspel is qualified to lead the CIA not irrespective of her involvement in torture but because of it.

Where are the openings going forward?

Forty-five senators voted against Haspel. These votes were won in part by persistent lobbying by national and local organizations. Senators needed to hear from us and they did. Yes, it would have been more effective if senators who opposed Haspel would have come out earlier with public statements of their opposition in clear moral terms. Clearly, senators voted against Haspel for a variety of reasons -- on moral grounds, for her key role in destroying the video tapes, for violations of international law, for the damage to American legitimacy and security, and not least a deep suspicion of Trump's motives. Remember that most Democratic senators also voted against Mike Pompeo. These votes suggest that we can find Democratic allies on selective national security issues in the future.

It is also important to note that many of the nation's most important media institutions editorialized strongly against Haspel or published opinion editorials critical of her nomination. Yet, even among critical media commentators, many continued to avoid the "torture" word or did not refer to the CIA's "torture program;" and fewer still mentioned the entire CIA program: rendition, detention, and interrogation -- or as I think many readers might call it: kidnapping, clandestinely and brutally transporting prisoners, arbitrary, secret and unlawful detention, and torture. Few journalists took the opportunity to review and educate the public about the program's criminality or how the law was manipulated to provide cover. Nonetheless, the Haspel case demonstrates a willingness within the media for engaging moral questions related national security policies.

Whether the Haspel controversy will encourage more Americans to dwell on the morality of state violence or the unlawful and anti-democratic activities of the CIA is to be seen. It is possible that Trump over-reached and that many more Americans will be appalled that the CIA is now being run by a woman who participated in torture and the destruction of evidence of it. Trump's violent rhetoric and his threats to bring back torture will hopefully alert people to the present danger.

Next Page 1 | 2

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

See original here

By Tom Hall



Dangerous Donald Trump

(Image by maxpixel.net) Details DMCA



Are you feeling schizophrenic yet? Are you distraught that for decades, U.S. presidents, both liberal and corporate, have used what Teddy Roosevelt called "The Bully Pulpit" to bully the rest of the world? And do you now hate the Donald even though in less than 18 months he has reduced the United States from international bully to ridiculous laughing stock and supplicant to two-bit dictator Kim Jong Un?

The Donald started Thursday, May 24, 2018 by announcing that he is scared of the mean things North Korea's "Little Rocket Man" will say about him, and so he must back out of the planned June 12 "summit meeting." The Donald didn't identify anything specific that Kim had said -- just that he says bad things in advance of the summit, and those things convinced the Donald to be scared.

Let us be clear. What drove the Donald from the diplomatic battlefield was fear. The eviscerated State Department, still trying to do its job, was intent on briefing the Donald and making him aware of history and international issues and diplomatic protocols, and of cultural differences and nuances and competing interpretations and misinterpretations.

The Donald saw the size of the briefing papers, and the lack of pictures in them. He heard men talking about the need to spend hours studying and being corrected. Bad men. Evil men -- every bit as terrible as those evil professors at the Wharton School who wanted him to study. And now with no daddy to wave a checkbook to make the bad men leave him alone.

The bad men telling him that the whole world is watching; Telling him that our ally/client South Korea is feeling independent enough, under his administration, to negotiate on its own -- something that happened under no previous administration, even under the hated/feared Obama. They tell him that his breaking the Paris Climate Accord, and the International Nuclear Deal with Iran, and his bragging that he wants to treat Kim the way we treated Gaddafi, are not steps logically calculated to encourage Kim to trust the U.S.

There are good men, though -- men who stand by the Donald and tell him that he is not making mistakes. John Bolton and Mike Pompeo remind him that if the North Korea talks break down, or don't happen, we retain the right to go to war with North Korea. They tell him that war can be vastly profitable for those "in-the-loop" from the beginning. More profitable even than the $500 MILLION China paid to have him allow ZTE to keep doing business with Iran, despite U.S. sanctions.

Some may wonder if the whole withdrawal maneuver is simply part of a Bolton/Pompeo war drive. In the days preceding the Donald's withdrawal, Pompeo announced that new U.S. foreign policy expressly demanded regime change in both Iran and North Korea. And both Bolton and Pompeo said that their goal for the Kim-Donald summit was for Kim to agree to accept the Gaddafi treatment.

Convincing the Donald to quit the summit before it began is a logical step, IF war is the real goal. Bolton was there, helping Dick Cheney convince another anti-briefing president that there was no point in allowing international inspectors to look for WMDs. Now he's convincing the Donald to ignore the advice and wishes of South Korea. Pompeo has always derided diplomacy, in favor of a "good fight," although he always wants other people's children to fight those fights.

But times do change. The Donald claims, and may even believe, that the world united against the "communist, Korean menace" once before and will do so again; that the world united against the Iranian nuclear threat once before and will do so again. The Donald may be righter than he knows.

The world may unite against these threats. The world may stay united against the Iranian nuclear threat by refusing to abandon the international agreement that allows Iran to develop a viable economy in exchange for deferring nuclear military development. The world may stay united against the menace of an impoverished North Korea provoking external fires to avoid internal troubles, by cooperating with the two Koreans to normalize relations and lead the North to economic stability.

The Bolton-Pompeo-Donald model of war-diplomacy holds that for the U.S. to "win," both North Korea and Iran must "lose." This is similar to the argument that for the U.S. to "win" material comfort, everyone else must "lose" by resource looting, climate change, rising sea levels, and worse weather events. But there is nothing inherent or logical in this model.

The world could decide that a prosperous Iran and North Korea provide a prospect of "win-win" solutions, rather than the U.S. imposed "win-lose" terms.

There is no certainty in such an idea. The religious dictators of Iran share fundamental convictions with U.S. Southern Baptists. They believe that women are both inferior and inherently evil, and thus require strict controls. As a religious belief, this is not likely to change just because the rest of the world threatens them less. Certainly U.S. Southern Baptists don't exist under any threat. But they remain committed to the goal of depriving others of religious freedom, and of imposing their misogynist bigotry on everyone they can.

Promoting strife with minor, weak regimes doesn't hurt them, and doesn't help us. The trend in the world, despite regular backsliding, is toward greater rights for people, for all genders, and all races. North Korea has made small steps toward engagement with the rest of the world. For all their religious dogma, Iranian leaders deal with the modern world.

Next Page 1 | 2

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

From National Memo

The year's first primaries and special elections for Congress and state legislature have shown 2018 is shaping up as a historic blue voter turnout, a cycle where a wave of new Democratic women could be elected, and a year where progressives will move from the sidelines into state and federal office.

But beyond these top-line trends, there appear to be deeper common threads among Democrats who are winning primaries and special elections. On top of communication skills, endorsements, funding, and other essential campaign ingredients, many share track records and careers helping others -- especially on personal health and household issues. Their campaign platforms typically begin there, starting with personal struggles and unfolding in concentric circles centered on people, while emphasizing the need for improved healthcare, educational opportunity, jobs, and economic stability.

It's incomplete to say the winners so far are pragmatic centrists or passionate progressives. There appears to be a big slice of first-person centered priorities in their biographies and current campaign agendas. Call it an empathy factor, which contrasts to loftier or more ideological rhetoric emanating from their local opponents, state capitals, and Washington. Although admittedly impressionistic, this observation is based on the statements of candidates running in 2018's primaries and special elections, both winners and losers.

A good example can be seen in last January's upset by Democrat Patty Schachtner in Wisconsin's 10th state senate district. The district is in the westernmost part of the state, closer to Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, than to Wisconsin's major cities. Schachtner, the St. Croix County medical examiner, ran for a seat held for the past 17 years by a Republican. In her party's primary, she faced the statewide director of a non-profit group seeking to end the corrupting influence of money in politics, and a farmer/small businessman dismayed by cuts to education and environmental protection. Schachtner emphasized her work with law enforcement and community leaders on mental health and addiction, countering rising health costs, and the need for local job training options.

Her Republican opponents, in their primary, were an attorney/businessman and the owner of a large manufacturing plant. The attorney, who won the primary, emphasized that state government was never the answer and wastes money; he sought tax cuts, stronger gun and property rights. His opponent, the manufacturer, wanted to eliminate the state income tax, help retirees keep more money, and pledged to combat the ravages of opioid addiction.

Schachtner won the special election 55-to-44 percent, compared to her Republican predecessor's 63-to-37 percent victory in 2016, the same year that President Trump beat Hillary Clinton in the district 55-to-38 percent. That turnaround is typical of the blue wave many forecasters are predicting for 2018. However, this race's deeper contours can be seen in other contests around the U.S. with similar dynamics, positioning and outcomes.
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

From Gush Shalom

WE ALL know the picture from the books and the movies: a gambler sits at the roulette table in a casino. He has luck. A lot of luck.

In front of the gambler the pile of chips is growing. Higher and higher. Every spin of the roulette wheel adds to the heap.

When the heap reaches the level of his eyes, he could just get up, exchange the chips for money and go home. He winnings are enough to keep him in luxury for the rest of his life.

But the man cannot get up. Just cannot. He is glued to his place at the roulette table. And then his luck abandons him. The heap of chips starts to shrink.

He could still get up and save a part of his winnings. But he cannot. He is glued to his seat. Until he loses the last chip.

In the movies, the man gets up and puts a pistol to his head.

BINYAMIN NETANYAHU resembles this man. He has luck. A lot of luck. It is uncanny.

The whole country sees the luck. His popularity rises to the heavens.

The economy is flourishing. There is practically no unemployment. More and more Israeli start-up companies are being bought abroad for astronomical sums.

In the international sphere, Israel marches from victory to victory. The president of the world's most important country behaves as if he were Bibi's abject slave. The US has recognized undivided Jerusalem as the capital of Greater Israel. The transfer of the American embassy there turned into a national festival, on the same day as another festival took place in Tel Aviv, an outburst of popular joy over Israel's triumph at the Eurovision song contest. The masses are overcome, as if it was a victory in war.

The world press mentions Trump, Putin and Netanyahu in the same breath. Three giants.

INSIDE ISRAEL, Netanyahu has unlimited power. Emperor Bibi and his wife look like a royal pair.

He has no competitors. Every possible competitor was purged from the ruling party long ago. The remaining Likud functionaries look like dwarfs compared to Giant Bibi. The coalition partners are a miserable lot of small factions, whose leaders know that they have no chance against Bibi. The "opposition" is pitiful, at best.

Next Page 1 | 2 | 3

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

From Sputnik

Seriously, would you buy a second-hand car from the American president? Anybody in their right mind would scoff at the unnerving risk of being sold something liable to splutter into a heap or be repossessed.

Not only that, but dodgy-dealer Trump has surrounded himself with henchmen who have a knack for threatening prospective customers with grievous bodily harm if they don't cough up.

Farcically, the casino-merchant-turned-president is trying to entice North Korea into betting on giving up its nuclear weapons, with only the vaguest of American guarantees, and lots of sinister riders. These only weeks after Trump unilaterally tore up the American side of the bargain in the Iran nuclear accord.

You do have to wonder about the sanity in Washington. Can people be so unaware of their own incompetence and ineptitude?

Earlier this week, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivered a snarling speech aimed at Iran, which can only be described as an ultimatum for surrender. Pompeo -- supposedly America's top diplomat -- warned of the "toughest sanctions ever" that would make Iran struggle for economic survival.

Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Quicklink Not Found

Sometimes, authors delete their quicklinks after publishing them.



To see if the quicklink was renamed or re-published, please click here.
Would you like to know how many people have read this article? Or how reputable the author is? Simply sign up for a Advocate premium membership and you'll automatically see this data on every article. Plus a lot more, too.

From The National

Fathi Harb should have had something to live for, not least the imminent arrival of a new baby. But last week the 21-year-old extinguished his life in an inferno of flames in central Gaza.

It is believed to be the first example of a public act of self-immolation in the enclave. Harb doused himself in petrol and set himself alight on a street in Gaza City shortly before dawn prayers during the holy month.

In part, Harb was driven to this terrible act of self-destruction out of despair.

After a savage, decade-long Israeli blockade by land, sea and air, Gaza is like a car running on fumes. The United Nations has repeatedly warned that the enclave will be uninhabitable within a few years.

Over that same decade, Israel has intermittently pounded Gaza into ruins, in line with the Israeli army's Dahiya doctrine.

The goal is to decimate the targeted area, turning life back to the Stone Age so that the population is too preoccupied with making ends meet to care about the struggle for freedom.

Both of these kinds of assault have had a devastating impact on inhabitants' psychological health.

Harb would have barely remembered a time before Gaza was an open-air prison and one where a 1,000kg Israeli bomb might land near his home.

In an enclave where two-thirds of young men are unemployed, he had no hope of finding work. He could not afford a home for his young family and he was about to have another mouth to feed.

Doubtless, all of this contributed to his decision to burn himself to death.

But self-immolation is more than suicide. That can be done quietly, out of sight, less gruesomely.

In fact, figures suggest that suicide rates in Gaza have rocketed in recent years.

But public self-immolation is associated with protest.

A Buddhist monk famously turned himself into a human fireball in Vietnam in 1963 in protest at the persecution of his co-religionists.

Next Page 1 | 2 | 3

(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Throat Lozenges Market to Register Steady Growth By 2021

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/5726

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/5726

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Throat lozenges, commonly known as cough sweet, cough drop, cachou or troche, are small sized medicated tablets. Lozenge word is used for diamonds that are rhombus in size. Throat lozenges are diamond shaped and these tablets get easily dissolved in the mouth and help relieve temporarily from coughs and other throat problems. It helps soothe and lubricate tissues of throat that are affected from influenza or common cold. Throat lozenges are utilized since ages (1000 BC) for treating throat infection. The first throat lozenges were made in Egypt with the utilization of various ingredients such as honey, herbs, citrus and spices. These tablets were further modified by Smith Brothers in 1852 as cough drops and in 1879 by Luden. The modification included the addition of heroin and morphine in small quantity to enhance the efficiency of the actions of throat lozenge.Request Report for Table of Contents @In current scenario of the market throat lozenges are composed of an anesthetic, benzocaine and eucalyptus oil. Pectin or zinc gluconate glycine is utilized while manufacturing non-menthol throat lozenges. Most of the throat lozenges also contain dextromethorphan. Various brands are available in the market for throat lozenges that include CApacol, Butter-Menthol, Chloraseptic, Gorpils, Fishermans Friend, Halls, Lockets, Lakerol, Pastilles Juanola, Ludens, Ricola, Robitussin, Strepsils and Smith Brothers. Some other brands are Tunes, Vigroids, Vicks, Victory V, Sucrets and CVS Throat Drops.Throat lozenges are advised to patients suffering from pharyngitis (sour throat). Pharyngitis may be caused due to either virus or bacterial infection (streptococcus infection). It is opined by the medical professionals that approximately 50% of sore throat is caused by viral infections and 15% to 20% occurs due to bacterial infections. Mycoplasma pneumoniae, Streptococcus, Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia pneumonia are some of the bacteria that cause sore throat. Symptoms that occur in a patient suffering from sore throat include redness of throat, swollen throat and difficulty in swallowing.The growth of the market for throat lozenges will be driven by aging population since elderly people often suffer from throat infection that increase the uptake of throat lozenges. It has been projected by the World Health Organization (WHO) that by 2050 nearly 2 billion populations will belong to geriatric population and it also estimated that global elderly population was 524 million in 2010. Similarly, increasing number of HIV patients across the globe also propels the growth of throat lozenges market since HIV patients usually suffer with throat infection. Similarly, rising incidences cold and coughs will also augment the growth of throat lozenges market. In addition, changing lifestyle will further support the growth of throat lozenges market since new lifestyle is responsible for reducing immunity of the body.North America in 2012, accounted for the largest share of global throat lozenges market due to presence of large number of throat lozenges manufacturers. Also, due to cold temperature in the nations such as U.S. and Canada, accentuate the incidences of cold and cough in population and in turn boost the growth of throat lozenges market in the region. Europe accounted for the second largest share of the global throat lozenges market owing to the presence of large geriatric population. Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World accounted for the smallest share of global throat lozenges market.Request to View Sample of Research Report @The major players operating in the throat lozenges market include GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Limited, SSL International, Thornton & Ross, Pfizer, Inc. and Procter & Gamble (P&G) amongst other significant players worldwide.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,Telephone - +1-646-568-7751USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Traumatic Brain Injury Therapeutics Market to Register Steady Growth by 2021

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/5744

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/5744

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Traumatic Brain Injury or TBI is sustained from severe or mild damage to the brain tissue from accidents or assaults. In North America, over 1.7 million people suffer annually from TBI and the consequent medical care costs exceed USD 70 billion. According to WHO, the global incidence for TBI is close to 10 million people annually. Brain tissue has one of the least self-repair capabilities making it highly vulnerable to injuries and often leading to permanent loss or disability of motor functions which dramatically reduces the quality of life for any individual. Most neuronal damage occurs sometime after the injury takes place giving a chance for a therapeutic intervention. The previous intervention with Glucocorticoids is not considered due to their harmful effects.Request for Table of Contents @A major challenge in developing therapeutics for TBI lie in overcoming the blood-brain barrier while delivering drugs. In May 2013, DARPA awarded USD 6 million to develop nanotech therapy for combating TBI to a team from University of California San Diego. Nanotechnology offers chances to overcome this physiological challenge of blood-brain barrier to deliver therapeutics. These porous silicon nanoparticles can carry a significant drug load through the blood brain barrier to treat TBI in patients. Other potential treatments include stem cell therapy for CNS trauma and use of apoE-mimetic compounds. Cognosci, a privately held start-up from North Carolina, U.S. has novel therapeutic compounds in pipeline for the treatment of TBI which the company expects to launch in coming years with a strategic partnership alliance.Currently there are two notable clinical trials for gauging the capability of progesterone for traumatic brain injury. The ProTECT III (progesterone for traumatic brain injury) is currently conducted by the Emory University and is sponsored by the NIH. The study has recruited patients from 31 TBI clinical centers across the United States. SyNAPSe, initiated by BHR, a branch of Besins Pharma, in collaboration with the American Brain Injury Consortium (ABIC) and the European Brain Injury Consortium (EBIC), is another Phase III study investigating the efficacy and safety of progesterone in patients with severe traumatic brain injuries.Request to View Sample of Research Report @Since there are currently no approved therapeutic products, the sector is teeming with opportunities for new entrants as well as stalwarts of the pharmaceutical industry. Some of the notable companies developing therapeutics for TBI are Cognosci, Medicortex, Amarantus BioScience Holdings, Aldagen, NeuroScience Pharmaceuticals and Targacept. Increasing incidences of TBI due to rising assaults, accidents and military combats over the world are expected to drive the growth of the market.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,Telephone - +1-646-568-7751USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Brachytherapy Devices Market to Register Steady Growth by 2021

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/6167

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/6167

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

The global radiation therapy equipment market is classified into external radiation therapy equipment market and internal radiation therapy equipment market. Brachytherapy devices market is a sub segment under the internal radiation therapy equipment market. Brachytherapy is referred to as sealed source radiation therapy because the radiation source is sealed and placed inside or near the body part requiring radiation therapy. Besides the treatment of most body part tumors, brachytherapy is commonly used to treat the cancers of the cervix, breast, skin, and prostate. The radiation source is enclosed in a protective wire or a protective capsule and ionizing radiations escape to treat the surrounding cancerous tissues only while avoiding its effects on body fluids.Request for Table of Contents @The advantage of brachytherapy devices over other forms of radiation therapy equipment is that it involves high precision in radiation source placement in the anatomy. One of the key features of brachytherapy devices is that they limit the radiation effects only to the local, diseased (tumors or cancers) parts of the anatomy. Hence, the healthy tissues are protected against radiation. Brachytherapy devices pave the way for a safe radiation therapy treatment in the presence of high, localized doses of radiation. The nature of brachytherapy devices makes it a durable form of treatment delivery as the re-occurrence of cancer in the patient treated with brachytherapy is rare. Brachytherapy is often used in combination with chemotherapy, surgery or external radiation therapy. Based on the location of the tumor being treated, brachytherapy devices market is restrained by a range of side-effects such as localized bleeding within implant region, urinary incontinence, desquamation, etc. The global brachytherapy devices market is expected to witness significant competition from the external radiation therapy equipment market that can hamper the growth of global brachytherapy devices market.Brachytherapy Devices market is classified on the basis of the type of Product Types, dose rate, application, duration of treatment and geography.Based on type of products, the global Brachytherapy Devices market is segmented into the following:Brachytherapy AfterloaderBrachytherapy ApplicatorsIntracavitary ApplicatorsIntraluminal ApplicatorsInterstitial ApplicatorsIntraoperative and Surface ApplicatorsBrachytherapy SoftwareBased on the technique, the global Brachytherapy Devices market is segmented into the following:High Dose Rate (HDR) BrachytherapyLow Dose Rate (LDR) BrachytherapyPulse Dose Rate (PDR) BrachytherapyImage Guided Brachytherapy (IGBT).Based on application, the global Brachytherapy Devices market is segmented into the following:Cervical CancerProstate CancerBreast CancerSkin CancerOther body organ Cancers (Lung, Head, Neck).The global brachytherapy devices market is anticipated to witness significant growth in the forecast years. The high-dose rate and low-dose rate of radiation in brachytherapy devices market together hold more than half the global brachytherapy devices market share. The global brachytherapy devices market is projected to grow at more than around 5% annually. The electronic brachytherapy device is a novel technology that is expected to add remarkable value to the global brachytherapy devices market and open a wide range of opportunities. The global brachytherapy devices market is largely dependent on the radiation sources used in brachytherapy such as cesium-137, cobalt-60, iridium-192, iodine-125, palladium-103, ruthenium-106 and radium-226.Depending on geographic regions, global Brachytherapy Devices market is segmented into seven key regions: North America, South America, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Asia-Pacific, Japan, and the Middle East & Africa. North America is the largest market for radiation therapy equipment followed by Europe due to the high incidence of cancer among the population in these regions. Asia Pacific is expected to be the most promising market for radiation therapy equipment owing to the improving healthcare infrastructure and affordable radiation therapy treatment. As of the regional outlook for brachytherapy devices market, the brachytherapy devices market is set to follow the trend of radiation therapy equipment market.Get Sample Copy of this Report @Some of the key market players identified in global Brachytherapy Devices market are Elekta AB, Varian Medical Systems Inc. Eckert and Ziegler BEBIG S.A, and C.R. Bard.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,Telephone - +1-646-568-7751USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Flavoured Veterinary Medications Market to Incur Rapid Extension by 2021

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/7208

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/7208

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Flavored Veterinary Medications are the medicines available in different flavors for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of diseases in animals or birds. Veterinarians give the right advice to pet owners to take proper care of their pets and the right medication too. Sometimes a problem arises that pets are do not intake proper medication because of the taste. For example cats dont like pills but like tuna, dogs dont like any concentrated solution into their mouth directly but they would take it gladly when its flavored with meat or some flavor in a biscuit, birds unable to take large volume of medication solution but wouldnt mind taking tasty, fruit-flavored concentrated solution Flavored veterinary medications helps in these cases and also prevents the transmission of animal diseases to people.Request for Table of Contents @Recently, Elanco Animal Health announced that the Interceptor Flavor Tablets (milbemycin oxime) would be back in the veterinary market. Interceptor Flavor Tablets protects against whipworms, roundworms and hookworms in dogs. They also prevent heartworms diseases in cats and kittens. Merck Animal Health announced the approval of BRAVECTO (four-lane) chewable tablets for dogs (112.5 mg, 250 mg, 500 mg, 1000 mg, 1400 mg). It quickly and effectively kills fleas and multiple tick species for 12 weeks in a single dose. Virbac Corporation announced an agreement with Eli Lilly and Company to acquire major U.S. veterinary products currently marketed by Novartis Animal Health.Technological advancement, innovation, increasing demand of flavored medications by pet owners, increasing pet health awareness, less expensive as compared to surgery or radiotherapy, increasing healthcare expenditure, are the most important driving factors in flavored veterinary medications market. Since flavored veterinary medications are very helpful during the critical condition of animals, the demand for flavored veterinary medications market has increased.With so many advantages and splendid features of flavored veterinary medications, it has few disadvantages too. Allergic reactions, loss of appetite, vomiting are acting as a barrier for flavored veterinary medications.The flavored veterinary medications market has grown substantially at a healthy CAGR due to increasing veterinary diseases and growing demand of flavored medications by pet owners. With rapid technological advancement and innovation, flavored veterinary medications market is expected to grow globally. North America and Europe would be the fastest growing market in the forecast period.The flavored veterinary medications market is expected to register a double-digit CAGR for the forecast period. Depending on geographic regions, flavored veterinary medications market is segmented into seven key regions: North America, South America, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Asia-Pacific, Japan, and the Middle East & Africa. North America is the largest market for flavored veterinary medications and is contributing the most as compared to other regions. Europe and Asia Pacific is the growing region in the forecast period.Request a Sample Brochure of the Report @Some of the key market players in flavored veterinary medications market are Pet Flavors Inc., Zoetis Inc., Elanco Inc., Novartis, Merck Animal Health, Merial, Virbac, Ceva, Vetoquinol, Wedgewood Pharmacy, Lee Silsby Compounding Pharmacy.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,Telephone - +1-646-568-7751USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Topical Antibiotic Pharmaceuticals Market to Incur Rapid Extension During 2016 - 2022

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/toc/9947

https://www.persistencemarketresearch.com/samples/9947

http://www.persistencemarketresearch.com

Topical antibiotics pharmaceuticals are used to treat infections of the skin and are commonly applied as creams and ointments. Antibiotics are agents that destroy or inhibit the growth of microorganisms, which are sensitive to them. Few topical antibiotics are sold without prescription from physicians and are available in several forms such as ointments, creams, sprays and powders. Topical antibiotics prevents infection caused by bacteria which get into minor scrapes, burns, and cuts. Treating minor injuries with antibiotics allows faster healing.If the injuries are left untreated, the bacteria will multiply and create redness, itching, swelling, oozing, and causing pain. Untreated infections can ultimately spread and become more serious. Soft tissue and dermal bacterial infections are one of the most commonly occurring conditions amongst people accounting for over 25 million visits to physicians every year. Most of these infections are minor and chronic in nature causing irritation and can be treated as outpatient procedures. Topical antibiotics are a large generic group of pharmaceutical products catering to the treatment of these commonly occurring conditions. A large variety of bacteria such as Staph aureus, Streptococcus viridians, Enterococcus faecalis and Staph pyogenes are responsible for these infections.Request for Table of Contents @Patients with poor hygiene, weak immune system and compromised epidermis and close contact with people having epidermal diseases are prone to get affected. Developments in technology are believed to play a critical role in the growth topical antibiotics pharmaceuticals market during the forecast period. Topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals are some of the most commonly used products by the general public. Topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals used for a range of conditions from prevention of infection in cuts and grazes to the management of mild to moderate cases of acne. The market for topical antibiotics has been considerably due to increasing awareness of these OTC products among the lesser literate. Rising resistance of bacteria against drugs has led to development of several new antibiotics that are analogous to existing drugs such as nadifloxacin and triclosan in the past decade. Topical antibiotics comprise of approximately 40% of the global antibiotics market the remainder being accounted to oral antibiotics. Although they have an important role to play in skin infections, only restraint for topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals is their use generally is limited to short-term use and for the mild to moderate forms of infections.Topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals market is classified on the basis of product type, distribution channel er and geography.Based on the product type, the global topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals market is segmented into the following:OintmentCreamSuspensionPowderBased on the type end user, the global topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals market is segmented into the following:Hospitals ClinicsPrivate ClinicsRetail Pharmacies and Drug Storese-commerceThe global market for topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals market is highly fragmented in terms of market players due to high amount of active pharmaceutical generic ingredients used in the preparations. This generic nature has led to the creation of several global players in the market. The Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has particularly significant market opportunity in developing countries where hospital acquired MRSA infections occur commonly. Recent FDA regulations direct anti-septic soap and hand wash manufacturers to provide suitable clinical data for efficacy of their products against normal wash before promotion.On the basis of geography, global topical antibiotic pharmaceuticals market is segmented into five key regions: North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Middle East & Africa. North America and Europe maintains its highest contribution primarily due to a significantly high usage of pharmaceutical preparations as compared to Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World which is still deeply rooted in using unani therapies for topical disease conditions.Get Sample Copy of this Report @Some notable companies manufacturing topical antibiotic pharmaceutical products include Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Perrigo Company plc, Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., Pfizer Inc., Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc., GlaxoSmithKline plc. Fera and Watson pharmaceuticals.About UsPersistence Market Research (PMR) is a third-platform research firm. Our research model is a unique collaboration of data analytics and market research methodology to help businesses achieve optimal performance.To support companies in overcoming complex business challenges, we follow a multi-disciplinary approach. At PMR, we unite various data streams from multi-dimensional sources. By deploying real-time data collection, big data, and customer experience analytics, we deliver business intelligence for organizations of all sizes.Contact UsPersistence Market Research305 Broadway7th Floor, New York City,NY 10007, United States,Telephone - +1-646-568-7751USA  Canada Toll Free: 800-961-0353Email: sales@persistencemarketresearch.comWeb:
Alan Bean, US astronaut and moonwalker, dies at 86

Reuters, New York :

American astronaut Alan Bean, the fourth person to walk on the moon in 1969 during the Apollo 12 mission and commanded a crew on the Skylab space station in 1973, died in Houston on Saturday, federal officials said.

He was 86 years old.

"Alan Bean once said 'I have the nicest life in the world,'" National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a statement. "It's a comforting sentiment to recall as we mourn his passing."

(Reuters) - American astronaut Alan Bean, who walked on the moon in 1969 during the Apollo 12 mission and commanded a crew on the Skylab space station in 1973 before giving up his career to become a full-time painter, died in Houston on Saturday, officials said.

Bean, 86, a former U.S. Navy test pilot who became one of only 12 people ever to set foot on the moon, died at Houston Methodist Hospital, his family said in a statement released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). He had fallen ill two weeks ago while traveling in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Worldwide Coil Coatings Market Poised to Grow at CAGR of 4.6% from 2017 to 2027

https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-2578

https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/askus/rep-gb-2578

www.futuremarketinsights.com

Key excerpts from Future Market Insights new study on the global coil coatings market reveals that by the end of 2027, around 1,368.0 KT of coil coatings will be sold globally. Between 2017 and 2027, the global coil coatings market is expected to register a CAGR of 4.6%, reaching a valuation of US$ 6,312.1 Mn. Rising expenditure in the construction industry, especially for non-residential construction is expected to drive the sales of coil coatings over the next couple of years.The recent boom in the construction sector has been fueling the demand for coated steel and aluminium coils of late. In addition, continuous demand for domestic appliances and construction materials across the globe are also supporting the market growth.Development of eco-friendly coating products to check emission levels and commencement of grid power projects are some of the key trends governing the global coil coatings market. Amongst the key regions, sales of coil coatings in Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) will remain robust throughout the forecast period on account of the increasing infrastructure investments in the region, favouring the growth of the market. APEJs coil coatings market, which is currently valued at over US$ 1,472 Mn is expected to surpass US$ 2,525 Mn over 2027. During the same period, the Middle East and Africa (MEA) will also become a highly attractive market and is expected to witness a relatively higher CAGR as compared to other regions. Meanwhile, North America and Western Europe are currently identified as the second and third largest market for coil coatings respectively.Make an Enquiry @Throughout the assessment period, sales of topcoats are anticipated to remain relatively higher as compared to all the other major coil coating product types. In 2016, around 369.5 KT of topcoats were sold worldwide, which is expected to increase to 588.6 KT by 2027-end, expanding at 4.3% CAGR. By material type, demand for polyester coil coating will continue to gain traction owing to the materials excellent physical and chemical properties, such as good chemical resistance and high durability for interiors & exteriors of buildings and good formability.Coil coatings find widespread application in various steel coating requirements. Moreover, rising preference for pre-coated or pre-painted steel sheets is also fuelling the demand for various coating products including coil coatings from the steel manufacturing industry. On the basis of end-use, the construction industry is projected to account for the largest value share of the global coil coating market over the forecast period.Request For Report Table of Content (TOC):FMI in its report, titled Coil Coatings Market Global Industry Analysis 2012  2016 and Opportunity Assessment 2017  2027 has also profiled some of the leading companies operating in the global coil coatings market, which include Akzo Nobel N.V., The Chemours Company, Axalta Coating Systems, PPG Industries, Becker Group, The Valspar Corporation, Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, Kansai Paint CO. Ltd., Nipsea Group (Nippon Paint), Noroo Coil Coatings. In order to develop interregional solutions and simultaneously increase customer base as well as market share, players are going into strategic partnerships and mergers across the value chain.Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Fire Trucks Market to Reflect a Holistic Expansion During 2017-2027

http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-2732

https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/askus/rep-gb-2732

www.futuremarketinsights.com

Fire Truck or Fire Engine is a vehicle primarily designed for firefighting operations. Many fire and safety companies employ these vehicles for various other applications such as rescue purposes and emergency medical purposes. Fire Engines transport firefighters to the sites, providing water and other necessary equipment to fight the fire. Generally, a fire truck carry equipment such as hydraulic rescue tools, ladders, ventilating equipment, a self-contained breathing apparatus and first aid kits. Growing demand for multi-tasking trucks is a new trend in the global fire trucks market.Global fire trucks market is expanding widely owing to the modern day fire and safety issues arising from new design infrastructures, rapid development of huge and complex buildings, and larger residencies in lesser spaces especially in developing countries. Global fire trucks market finds opportunity for fire trucks with advanced digital technology tools for supporting performance-based design, and field surveys are improvingIn the global fire trucks market, new and advanced technology acceptance is the key driver for the market growth. Use of modern electronics and advanced digital tools will enhance the quality, efficiency and capability of the fire truck. Development in the fire and safety departments and municipal budgets of governments are also projected to fuel the global fire trucks market growth. Moreover, economic growth in developing countries is estimated to create new opportunities for global fire trucks market. In the global fire trucks market, low rate of replacements is a factor hampering the market growth. Though the fleets are ageing, the fire trucks are not being replaced easily. This may hinder the growth of fire trucks market.Request For Report Sample:Global Fire Trucks Market Segmentation The global fire trucks market is segmented on the basis of types as follows: Rescue, Mini Tanker and all other Pumpers (mini pumpers, multi-tasking trucks). On the basis of application, fire trucks are segmented as follows: Conventional, rescue, wild land, airport application and others Over the past few years, the developing countries such as China, India and South Korea have witnessed a stable growth in the infrastructure coupled with rising awareness about safety. This is expected to boost the demand for fire trucks over the forecast period.Fire Trucks are a necessity in airports and other enterprises to ensure public safety. The strengthening of governmental regulations regarding the matter is also a positive factor for the growth of global fire trucks market. The high production capacity in China coupled with lower labour charge contribute to the expansion of fire trucks market in the country. Moreover, the technological advancements and growing application in the manufacturing sector fuel the fire trucks market growth. In North America, stringent regulations and large number of fire stations are the key growth factors driving the market.Request For Report Table of Content (TOC):The Middle East and Africa fire trucks market is expected to witness a significant growth over the forecast period owing to the product innovation coupled with technological advancements in the region.Global Fire Trucks Market Participants: W.S. Darley & Co., Oshkosh Corporation, Ziegler Firefighting, Magirus GmbH (CNH Industrial Group), Rosenbauer International AG, Gimaex GmbH, Morita Holdings Corporation, E-one, HME Incorporated, Smeal Fire ApparatusFuture Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
3D Printing Metal Market Global Trends, Analysis and Forecast 2017-2027

http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-2858

https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/askus/rep-gb-2858

www.futuremarketinsights.com

3D printing metal is also referred to as metal additive manufacturing. This is a manufacturing technology used for the production of complex structures and smaller designs. The introduction of 3D printing metal has helped manufacturers to design and develop complex structures with ease which would have not been possible without the use of conventional manufacturing techniques. 3D printing metal is a manufacturing technology in which manufacturing is done layer by layer and hence, the accuracy of the production is also increased to a higher level.This technique, most commonly, requires only metal powder which can be used to manufacture various parts and components as per the requirement of the producers. There are special machines which are capable of manufacturing such complex structures. However, they must be operated under human supervision. The use of powder metals for the manufacturing of products has enabled manufacturers to use several types of metals and their alloys. Thus, the permutation and combination of several metals has enabled industries to produce products which are more durable, economical and suitable to be used for various industrial and commercial applications.This additive manufacturing process collects the powder in the reservoir and then, according to the need, it deposits the metal powder on the manufacturing bed to form layers of the product. These layers usually have a thickness ranging from 20 m to 100 m. Once the layers are properly placed and distributed, they are either bound together (known as 3D printing) or melted using a high energy beam. In the second case, the bean source is ideally one high energy laser, but many systems use two or more lasers with varying power standards under the inert gas environment. The most commonly used processes are Laser Cusing, Selective Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS) and Laser Melting (SLM). The lone exemption to this process is the Electron Beam melting (EBM) process which operates in full vacuum condition with the electron beam. The melting process is repeated layer by layer, slice by slice, until the last layer is melted and the full products are complete. Then it is removed from the powder bed and post processing is done according to the product requirements.Request For Report Sample:When combined with powerful and modern tools that optimize analysis and simulation process to generate an optimal design solution, such technologized tools are able to design tools which produce perfect, lightweight designs that are functionally accurate and optimized for production via. 3D printing or additive manufacturing. The resulting parts do not only take a reduced amount of time to design, but are also lighter and significantly stronger than part designs that are manufactured using conventional manufacturing methods.Owing to these enhanced properties, 3D printing metal has abundant applications in the automotive, aerospace, construction, defense and medical industries. 3D Printing Metal market is anticipated to grow in all the industrial and manufacturing sectors owing to its growing applications in lightweight engineering products. The 3D Printing Metal market is estimated to grow since the regulatory authorities are pressing the manufacturers to use products which are more ecofriendly and use minimum amount of natural resources during the production process.3D Printing Metal Market has a lot of scope in research and development division since the researchers and scientists are coming up with new metal and softwares which are more efficient and economical. Space constraint is becoming an important factor for the manufacturers now, they are opting for more light and spacious products, which in turn, is expected to fuel the growth of the 3D Printing Metals market in the consumer goods sector. The market for the 3D Printing Metal is anticipated to grow at a healthy CAGR in the coming future. Furthermore, the growing applications of the products manufactured by 3D printing in commercial and industrial sectors is expected to propel the growth of the overall 3D Printing Metal market in the near future.3D Printing Metal Market segmentation By Raw Material: Powder, Filament; On the basis of Manufacturing Process: Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS), Laser Melting (SLM), Others; On the basis of End Use: Aerospace & Defense, Defense, Engineering and industrial, Power, Medical & Dental, Others3D Printing Metal can be divided into seven different geographical regions/divisions  North America, Latin America, Western and Eastern Europe, Asia-Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ), Japan, Middle East and Africa. The North America and European countries have presence of all industrial and commercial sectors alongside the existence of globally prominent players, which is a boon for the 3D Printing Metal market in these regions. The rapid industrialization in the Asia pacific region, especially in China and India, is estimated to fuel the growth of the 3D Printing Metal market.Industries and manufacturers are striving to reduce scrap rates in their operating plants and with the use of 3D printing metal technology, they are also efficiently doing it. Thus, the market is anticipated to grow in the near future. The use of 3D printing metal products in the consumer goods is becoming easier and economical owing to the new inventions and advances being made in this technology. Therefore, it is expected that the 3D Printing Metal market will see rapid growth in all the developed and developing countries in future.Request For Report Table of Content (TOC):3D Printing Metal Market Participants 3D Systems Corporation, Arcam AB, EOS GmbH Electro Optical Systems, Optomec Inc., Voxeljet AG, GKN Plc, Sandvik AB, Renishaw Plc, Carpenter Technology Corporation, Renishaw Plc, LPW TechnologyFuture Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
Electrically Conductive Adhesives Market to Penetrate Untapped Regions During 2017-2027

http://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-2876

https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/askus/rep-gb-2876

www.futuremarketinsights.com

Electrically conductive adhesives are adhesives used in joining electrical or electronic components in order to complete a circuit and to maintain conductivity within the circuit. In short, adhesives which can conduct electricity and complete a circuit when applied over an electrical component. There are various types of electrically conductive adhesivesavailable in the global market such as epoxy based adhesives and silicon based adhesives, among others. Generally, these adhesives contain filler material that enhances the characteristic properties of adhesives such as resistance to moisture, low shrinkage properties and strong bonds, among others. Electronically conductive adhesives need to be excellent adhesives in order to increase electromagnetic interference shielding.Request For Report Sample:They are used for providing thermal stability, connecting electrical junctions and adding stability to the electrical component. Electrically conductive adhesives have manifested as a viable alternative for the soldering process in manufacturing of electrical components, along with multiple other processes and applications. Historically, these adhesives were not capable of providing strength when applied to certain metals or electrical components. In order to overcome this disadvantage,various companies modified their manufacturing process and changed the composition of adhesives so as to produce electrically conductive adhesives which were useful in advanced electronics equipment. Electrically conductive adhesives have distinct characteristic properties which allow for their application in an array of uses, such as in PV solar panels, LED/OLEDs, Touch Panel Screens and electronic devices, among others. Another application for these adhesives is in advanced electronics systems such as in the space operations.Demand for electrically conductive adhesives is increasing due to rising demand from the electronics industry. Technological advancements in electronics products has resulted in an increase in the demand for advanced adhesive materials that offer strength, conductivity and compatibility with electronic circuits. Electrically conductive adhesives are a fairly suitable option to meet this niche demand that drives the market.Besides this, disposal of electronic and electrical wastage creates environmental issues and pollution hazards. There are various regulations laid down by governments in developed countries in order to minimize pollution. Owing to this, use of electrically conductive adhesives is regulated closely; which adversely affects the market and restricts demand. This is a major constraint in the global electrically conductive adhesives market.Global Electrically Conductive Adhesives Market Segmentation: On the basis of type: Epoxy based adhesive, Polyurethane based adhesive, Silicon based adhesives, Acrylate based adhesives, other; On the basis of filler: silver, copper, graphite, nickel, other; On the basis of End use: Electrical, Electronics, Automotive, OthersElectrically conductive adhesives market is mainly dominated by the Asia Pacific region owing to the presence of major electronics companies in the region. Also, growth of the electronics industry in Taiwan, China, Korea and Japan, among other countries is prompt. On account of this, the demand for electrically conductive adhesives is expected to increase and is expected to register healthy growth over the forecast period. Being major consumers and producers, China, followed by Taiwan and Korea are expected to dominate the electrically conductive adhesives market over the forecast period. Western Europe is expected to register stagnant growth over this time frame due to the economic slowdown in Europe. Demand for the electrically conductive adhesive market in North America is expected to increase owing to growth in the solar industry where these adhesives are most commonly used. Latin America and Middle East & Africa region are expected to register slow growth over the forecast period.Request For Report Table of Content (TOC):Examples of some market participants in the global electrically conductive adhesives market, as identified across the value chain, include Panacol-Elosol GmbH, Msaterbond, The 3M Company , H.B. Fuller, Aremco Products, Inc., DOW Corning, Coatex Industries, Bacon Adhesives, Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, Permatex and Kemtron Ltd., among others.Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting firm. We deliver syndicated research reports, custom research reports and consulting services, which are personalized in nature. FMI delivers a complete packaged solution, which combines current market intelligence, statistical anecdotes, technology inputs, valuable growth insights, an aerial view of the competitive framework, and future market trends.Future Market Insights616 Corporate Way, Suite 2-9018,Valley Cottage, NY 10989,United StatesT: +1-347-918-3531F: +1-845-579-5705Email: sales@futuremarketinsights.comWebsite:
mHealth (Mobile Healthcare) Ecosystem: 2018-2030 | ResearchByMarkets

mHealth (Mobile Healthcare) Ecosystem: 2018 - 2030 - Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts

https://www.researchbymarkets.com/report/the-mhealth-mobile-healthcare-ecosystem-2018-2030-opportunities-challenges-strategies-forecasts-16599.html

https://www.researchbymarkets.com/sample-request/16599

https://www.researchbymarkets.com/inquiry/16599

https://www.researchbymarkets.com/aboutus

A key enabler in the digital transformation of the healthcare industry, mobile healthcare  or mHealth  refers to the use of mobile connectivity and associated technologies across the healthcare continuum. Healthcare providers and payers are increasingly embracing mHealth as a means to enhance care coordination, maximize outreach, boost patient engagement and improve outcomes, while minimizing costs.Browse Detailed TOC, 123 Tables & Figures and 416 Companies Mentioned in this report:Keen to monetize their vast wireless network assets, mobile operators view mHealth as a substantial revenue opportunity  and many are extending beyond providing pure connectivity services, towards end-to-end mHealth offerings such as remote patient monitoring.mHealth also offers a wealth of opportunities to the pharmaceutical industry, ranging from accelerated clinical trial innovation and medication adherence monitoring to securing the supply chain and combating counterfeit drugs. In addition, with the increasing prevalence of mobile apps that provide therapeutic impact, the digital therapeutics space is beginning to emerge, which may one day rival mainstream pharmaceuticals in areas such as chronic disease care.Request for Sample Pages for this report:Other stakeholders that are set to benefit from mHealth include but are not limited to connected medical and wearable device OEMs, app developers, Big Data and analytics specialists, cloud computing giants, and even ride-hailing providers such as Uber and Lyft  whose platforms are increasingly being integrated with healthcare IT systems, letting healthcare providers improve their level of care by booking rides for their patients.Driven by the thriving ecosystem, this research estimates that the mHealth market will account for more than $28 Billion in 2018 alone. Despite barriers relating to regulation, patient acceptance and privacy concerns, SNS Telecom & IT estimates further growth at a CAGR of approximately 30% over the next three years.The "mHealth (Mobile Healthcare) Ecosystem: 2018  2030  Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies & Forecasts" report presents an in-depth assessment of the mHealth ecosystem including market drivers, challenges, enabling technologies, applications, key trends, standardization, regulatory landscape, case studies, opportunities, future roadmap, value chain, ecosystem player profiles and strategies. The report also presents forecasts for mHealth investments from 2018 till 2030. The forecasts are segmented for 5 submarkets, 29 use case categories, 5 ecosystem player categories, 6 geographical regions and 34 countries.The report comes with an associated Excel datasheet suite covering quantitative data from all numeric forecasts presented in the report.Topics CoveredThe report covers the following topics:- The scope and implementation of mHealth across the globe- mHealth technology- Market drivers and key benefits of mHealth- Challenges and inhibitors to the mHealth ecosystem- mHealth standardization and regulatory initiatives- mHealth opportunities, use cases and applications- mHealth deployment case studies- Value chain analysis of the mHealth ecosystem and the recognition of key players in each segment of the value chain- mHealth future roadmap: 2018  2030- Key trends in the mHealth ecosystem: cloud-based mHealth services, digital medicine, connected drug delivery, population health management, regulatory developments, and the impact of LTE/5G networks.- The role of IoT and wearable technology in the mHealth ecosystem- Profiles and strategies of over 310 leading and emerging mHealth ecosystem players- Strategic recommendations for mobile operators, enabling technology providers, mHealth device OEMs, application developers, healthcare service providers and pharmaceutical companies- In-depth analysis for 5 individual submarkets and their associated mHealth application use cases: Pharmaceutical Applications Medical Information & Healthcare Management Healthcare & Fitness Remote Consultation/Diagnostic Services IoT, Wearable Technology, Sensor & Monitoring Applications- Market analysis and forecasts from 2018 till 2030Forecast SegmentationMarket forecasts are provided for each of the following 5 submarkets and their 23 use case categories:Pharmaceutical Applications- Safety Data Collection- Consumer Education- Medical Education- PostMarket Monitoring- Drug Authentication- Social Media- Patient Compliance & Retention: Clinical TrialsInformation & Healthcare Management- Electronic Health/Medical Records & Tracking Tools- Diagnostic Tools & Medical Reference- Continuing Medical Education- Awareness Through Alerts- Logistical & Payment SupportHealthcare & Fitness- Medical Compliance- Fitness & Nutrition Apps- Clinical Decision Support Systems- Prescribable Mobile AppsRemote Consultation/Diagnostic Services- Mobile Video Consultations, Collaboration & Surgery- Non-Video Consultations & Collaboration- Remote Collaboration in Emergency SituationsIoT, Wearable Technology, Sensor & Monitoring Applications- Health and Wellness Monitoring- Disease Surveillance/Remote Monitoring- Diagnostic Tools- Technical LogisticsRevenue is also split by ecosystem player:Ecosystem Player Segmentation- Mobile Operators & Connectivity Providers- Mobile & mHealth Device OEMs- Content & Application Providers- Healthcare Service Providers- Pharmaceutical Industry- The following regional and country markets are also covered:Regional Markets- Asia Pacific- Eastern Europe- Latin & Central America- Middle East & Africa- North America- Western EuropeCountry Markets- Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, UAE, UK, USAAdditional forecasts are provided for the following:- IoT connections for mHealth applications- Health and fitness-centric wearable device shipments- Mobile video calling users- Annual throughput of mobile network data traffic- Smartphone, feature phone, tablet, desktop PC and notebook shipments- Mobile network subscriptions by region- Cost saving potential of mHealth by region- Big Data & analytics technology investments in the healthcare sectorKey Questions AnsweredThe report provides answers to the following key questions:- How big is the mHealth opportunity?- What trends, challenges and barriers are influencing its growth?- How is the ecosystem evolving by segment and region?- What will the market size be in 2021 and at what rate will it grow?- Which regions and countries will see the highest percentage of growth?- How is the mHealth value chain structured and how will it evolve overtime?- What level of cost savings can mHealth facilitate for healthcare service providers in each region?- What will be the installed base of IoT connections for mHealth applications in 2021?- How many mHealth-centric wearable devices will be shipped in 2021?- Are digital therapeutics a threat to the pharmaceutical industry?- What are the key applications of LTE and 5G networks in the mHealth arena?- What considerations should be taken into account to devise a successful mHealth strategy for hospitals and other healthcare delivery environments?- Who are the key ecosystem players and what are their strategies?- What strategies should mobile operators, enabling technology providers, mHealth device OEMs, healthcare service providers, pharmaceutical companies and application developers adopt to capitalize on the mHealth opportunity?Key FindingsThe report has the following key findings:- Driven by the thriving ecosystem, this research estimates that the mHealth market will account for more than $28 Billion in 2018 alone. Despite barriers relating to regulation, patient acceptance and privacy concerns, SNS Telecom & IT estimates further growth at a CAGR of approximately 30% over the next three years.- With ongoing advances in key enabling technologies such as the miniaturization of sensors and the development of 5G NR (New Radio) platforms, a spate of new applications are beginning to emerge  ranging from connected drug delivery platforms to UHD (Ultra High Definition) video streaming for remote medical examinations.- SNS Telecom & IT estimates that annual unit shipments of health and fitness-centric wearable devices will surpass 105 Million by the end of 2018. In order to gain valuable insights from the data generated by these devices, healthcare providers and other stakeholders are increasingly investing in Big Data and analytics technology.- As key stakeholders realize the revenue potential of mHealth, a spate of prominent strategic partnerships are beginning to emerge. For example, pharmaceutical giant Novartis has recently partnered with digital therapeutics specialist Pear Therapeutics to co-develop prescription mobile apps aimed at treating patients with multiple sclerosis, schizophrenia and substance use disorder.Inquire more about this report:Contact:ResearchByMarketsMs. Lia Seth | Client Relations Managerenquiry@researchbymarkets.comAbout Us:Research By Markets is an online Market Research Report Repository.Our repository contains reports segmented by Geography and Industry. We cover all major Industry Verticals - Information Technology, Semiconductor, Electronics, Manufacturing, Food & Beverages, Telecommunications, Healthcare, Pharmaceutical, Automotive, BioTechnology, Energy & Power, Banking and many more.Research By MarketsE-3, Ganga Homes,Behind Bank Of India,Viman Nagar,Pune 411 014.Maharashtra, India
Benjamin Brink/Special to The Oregonian/2017

By EDER CAMPUZANO

The Oregonian/OregonLive

The holiday will be observed Monday, May 28. Here's what you need to know about closures and observances in the Portland area.

Federal offices and courts: Closed

Oregon and Washington State offices and courts: Closed

Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, Clark county offices: Closed.

City of Portland and Vancouver offices, Metro regional center: Closed.

Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington county libraries and Fort Vancouver Regional Library District branches: Closed.

Banks: Closed, some in-store branches may be open.

Don't Edit

Benjamin Brink/Special to The Oregonian/2017

Portland parking meters: Free, but meters enforced in Washington Park, the Oregon Zoo and Willamette Park in Southwest Portland.

TriMet: Customer service and ticket office at Pioneer Courthouse Square are closed. Buses and MAX trains will run on the Sunday schedule; the streetcar will run on the Saturday schedule.

Oregon Zoo: Open.

The zoo will offer free admission for military veterans and active military personnel and family members with military ID. Families of deployed military personnel also get free admission with an active-duty ID.

Oregon Museum of Science and Industry: Open.

Don't Edit

Benjamin Brink/Special to The Oregonian/2017

Portland-area commemorations

Several events throughout the metro area will honor the memory of those who died in the line of duty on Monday. (See a full list of events across Oregon at

)

PORTLAND

The Memorial Day program at

Willamette National Cemetery

begins at 10 a.m. and includes a joint color guard, a rifle salute by the Oregon Army National Guard and a flyover by the Oregon Air National Guard. The cemetery is expecting more than 2,500 attendees and more than 650 flags will fly along the Avenue of Flags. Note that the event has moved to a different location this year because of construction. Enter through Gate 1 off Mount Scott Boulevard.

.

At Lone Fir Cemetery, tours of the grounds will begin at 11 a.m. and happen hourly until 3 p.m. Guided historical tours, which take about two hours, begin at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Guided veterans tours, which visit the graves of fallen soldiers, begin at noon and 2 p.m.

At the Oregon Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington Park, the Vietnam Veterans Oregon Memorial Fund will host reading of names, a guest speaker and the laying of a wreath at 10 a.m.

Don't Edit

Beth Nakamura/Staff/2016

BEAVERTON

American Legion Post 124 has organized flyovers, speakers, band performance and more. 11 a.m., Beaverton Veterans Memorial Park, Southwest Seventh Street and Watson Avenue.

GRESHAM

VFW Post 180 has organized a graveside memorial at 9 a.m. at Gresham Forest Lawn, 400 S.W. Walters Drive. The post will also host an appreciation event at 11 a.m. at Heroes Memorial, West Powell Boulevard and Roberts Avenue.

HILLSBORO

Washington County Disability, Aging and Veteran Services has organized a ceremony that will feature patriotic performances by the HIllsboro High School Jazz Ensemble and the MissBehavins. Veterans organizations will be on hand to provide information. 11 a.m., Veterans Memorial Gateway, corner of Northeast 34th Avenue and Veterans Drive.

LAKE OSWEGO

Lake Oswego Veterans Memorial has organized an event that features retired four-star general and former Chief of Staff of the Air Force,

. There will also be a military drone exhibit, PT boat rides and more. 10:30 a.m. at Foothills Park, 199 Foothills Road.

Don't Edit

Benjamin Brink/Special to The Oregonian/2017

MOLALLA

Molalla Post 3973 Veterans of Foreign Wars has organized a 10 a.m. ceremony at Adams Cemetery.

SALEM

The Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs Statewide Memorial Day Celebration will feature veteran speakers, color guard and more at 3:30 p.m. at the Afghan/Iraqi Freedom Memorial, 700 Summer St. N.E.

TIGARD

Tigard American Legion will honor veterans during a ceremony at 11 a.m. in Crescent Grove Cemetery on Greenberg Road in Tigard. Potluck follows at 12:30 p.m. Tigard American Legion, 8635 S.W. Scoffins St.

TUALATIN

Tualatin VFW Auxiliary has organized a 10:45 a.m. ceremony at Tualatin Winona Cemetery, 9900 S.W. Tualatin Road.

WILSONVILLE

Korean War Veterans Association will lead an observance at 11 a.m. at Town Center Park, 29600 S.W. Park Place.

Don't Edit
An 83-year-old Grout Township man is set for arraignment in Gladwin Countys 55th Circuit Court next month after allegedly sucker punching the townships supervisor during a public meeting.

Gerald George is charged with one felony and two misdemeanors in connection with the April 10 incident. He remains free on a $3,000 10 percent bond and is set for an arraignment at 1:20 p.m. June 11 before Gladwin County Circuit Court Judge Tom Evans. George is charged with felony assaulting or obstructing a public officer and two misdemeanor counts: assault or assault and battery and disturbing the peace.
Hi, Pastes unofficial-official Doomsday Correspondent here with your update on wars, riots, climate change, drug cartels, genocidal despots, police crackdowns, true crime, fake crime and a panoply of really satisfactory answers to the question, So, why did the Maya abandon their cities and vanish?

Maybe they saw what I keep seeing? That we are caught in a time-loop worthy of Benedict Cumberbatch in a levitating cloak? That we keep thinking this has never happened before, even though the evidence is right in front of us that the same things happen again and again and we do not learn from them? Bobby Kennedy seemed to get that. Of course, he was assassinated in 1968. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. seemed to get that. But he was assassinated in 1968, too.

Arguably, CNNs new docuseries, executive produced by Tom Hanks, Gary Goetzman and Mark Herzog, should be called 1968: The Year That Didnt Change America Nearly Enough. But its a very engaging and panoramic (and frequently very, very sad) look at what happened that year. A lot happened. A lot.

Winter tracks the escalating protests against the Vietnam War in the wake of the Tet Offensive. The sanitation workers strike in Memphis. The frustrations of Lyndon B. Johnson and the rising voice of Robert Kennedy. Student strikes. Johnsons announcement that he would not seek another term. Spring tracks the last days of the life of MLK before his murder in Memphis, and Bobby Kennedys remarkable speech that night; the burning of draft cards (marchers in the streets carrying banners saying Resist; the race for the Democratic nomination; Bobby Kennedys propulsion into the farm workers rights movement in California and his fatal exit through the Ambassador Hotel kitchen on the night he wins. Summer shows the fall of Eugene McCarthy (probably from survivors guilt) and the embarrassing debacle of the Democratic Convention in Chicago and the rise of Richard Nixon. It also weaves in the womens movement and the eerie presence of a drama-queen ragemonster named George Wallace who uses four-letter words to incite even greater chaos among the left and attempts to get Colonel Sanders (yes, that Colonel Sanders) as a running mate. Fall touches on the Apollo moon landing, the Mexico City Olympics and the protest thereof by Black athletes, and the ongoing quest to take control of the tailspin of the war in Vietnam. Annnnnd the play by Nixon to decide the election for the Democrats by announcing a ceasefire in Vietnam, and Nixons sending an agitator into the peace talks to dissuade the ambassador and waiting for the better deal hed get if Nixon won. It ends with the Apollo 8 crew reading the Book of Genesis while orbiting the moon on Christmas Eve, and a sudden swell of hope.

The production style is, appropriately, quick-paced, montage-heavy, and layered with noise (sound-editing it must have been a kick to the headso many amazing and instantly recognizable voices, a mosaic of speeches and songs and reportage). Art Garfunkel and Diana Ross, John Lennon and Sly Stone, James Brown. King and Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon, Walter Cronkite and Gregory Peck. The range of historians (and, as Neil Patrick Harris once sang, Just for the heck of it, Tom Hanks!) and public figures who survived the late 1960s and are still with us to talk about it, is broad and clear-eyed. They dont take a lot of positions on who was good or bad or right or wrong among the many competing movements, allowing the footage to make its own statement. Though generally linear, that footage is layered and collage-like, as is the present-day retrospective commentary. Its well-constructed. And its hard to watch. Because the year that changed America looks a hell of a lot like this year and last year. I suppose it changed America in terms of the extent to which presidential campaigns were conducted on TV; the Nixon-Humphrey Show does seem to have redefined the model, and not necessarily in a good way.

Lets see: a dirty, dragging, horrifying war. Corruption in politics. Class and race violence. Angry student protests. Distrust. Disaffection. Finger-pointing. Demagoguery. The shouting down of unpopular opinions and personalities. Police brutality. Athletes using their platform to protest institutional bigotry and being banned from their sport. Rallies, marches, strikes. Questioning the Electoral College. The disquieting gulf between who weve been told we are, as a nation, as a people, and the reality in the headlines, on the streets, in the air. And then a tipping point toward something transcendent.

What has changed? Not hypothetical: What has changed? Im sure to people who lived it, 1968 must have felt like a crucible. But really? It must have felt as though everything was happening for the first time in history. But it wasnt. It had just put on different clothes. The cruel cutting down of people who managed to be both visionary change agents and successful politicians? Not new. Racist and classist boil-over? Not new. Riots? Instability? Big dreams dashed by violence or ennui or both? Humans in general and Americans in specific have been acting out this script for ages. Only the costumes change. There is the appearance of progress. Then the appearance of regression. The appearance of peace and the appearance of violence. The breaking points that steer a culture toward and away from and back toward hope for something better.

Ive been screening documentaries on every facet of American history for the last year and a half and the glaring through line is that history is not linear (Winter nods to this with the reboot of unplugged Elvis). It is circular. And we never stop failing to learn from it. If and when we ever start learning from our own history, that will, indeed, be a year that changed America.

Tune in for a sobering wake-up call.

1968: The Year That Changed America premieres tonight at 9 p.m. on CNN.



Amy Glynn is a poet, essayist and fiction writer who really likes that you can multi-task by reviewing television and glasses of Cabernet simultaneously. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.
In Mosul, young volunteers help bring city back to life

Raghad Hammoudi, who is a member of a group of students campaigning to help rebuild the Central Library of Mosul University, speaks with Reuters, in Mosul.

Reuters, Mosul :

A group of Iraqi university students have found a cause in the ruins of Mosul.

They are salvaging what is left of its rich heritage, clearing rubble and distributing aid in a city crying out for help after the war against Islamic State.

The project began when Raghad Hammadi and a group of students decided to launch a campaign to help rebuild the Central Library of Mosul University, burnt and bombed in the war. Its vast contents had been all but lost.

But they found buried under layers of ash some 30,000 books almost intact. Over 40 hot days, with the war still raging on the other side, the students moved the books one by one using holes made by rockets to carry them to safety. "An entire city with a glorious past and ancient history lost its heritage and culture: the tomb of the Prophet Jonah, the minaret of Al-Hadba which is older than Iraq itself. It is great that we were able to save a part of this heritage," said Hammadi, 25, a nursing student.

Both the leaning minaret of Al-Hadba , part of the 12th century Grand al-Nuri Mosque, where in 2014 Islamic State's Abu Bakr al Baghdadi declared a caliphate, and the ancient tomb of what is believed to be the Prophet Jonah were destroyed in the military campaign to retake the city.Hammadi says among the books salvaged were some handwritten by Mosul scholars. They included editions written in Moslawi, the distinct dialect of the region once known as a center for scholarly Islam and the pride of many for its ancient mosques, churches and Old City architecture.

Elsewhere, volunteers cleared rubble and garbage, opened roads, drilled water wells and distributed aid.

"The situation in Mosul is so much better now and this is because of the revolution that happened within Mosul, within its young people," she said. After living under Islamic State's strict rule and then the war to retake the city, young women feel as though they have been liberated.

The team that set out to rescue the books was mixed, a rarity in Mosul's society, where mingling between sexes outside the family or university was limited even before Islamic State.

"An unbelievable barrier has been broken, it might be a trivial thing for the rest of the world but for Mosul it is huge," she said.

Months after Iraq announced full control of the city, life is back in many parts. But much of the Old City, where the last and the bloodiest battles were waged, is still in complete ruin.
St. Mary football gets back on track with win over Cedarville
Get the SC business stories that matter.

Our newsletter catches you up with all the business stories that are shaping Charleston and South Carolina every Monday and Thursday at noon. Get ahead with us - it's free.
Democrats Marguerite Willis, Phil Noble and James Smith participate in a debate for the governor's race at Clemson University in Clemson S.C. Thursday, May 24, 2018. Grace Beahm Alford/The Post and Courier
You are the owner of this article.
Mary Katherine, who also goes by MK, covers health care for The Post and Courier. She is also pursuing a master's degree in data science. She grew up in upstate New York and enjoys playing cards, kayaking and the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Access to quality health care

Dr. Samir Kumar Saha :

(From previous issue)

The gap between what the government has assessed (sanctioned) as requirement for providing healthcare services and the positions vacant clearly shows that Bangladesh has to make much greater efforts in ensuring accessibility to essential health care services. Moreover, the human health resources are heavily concentrated in urban centers, depriving rural areas of much needed human resources for health.

According to Bangladesh Health Watch report (BNHA 2011), 62% of medical doctors in Bangladesh are working in the private sector.

Communicable diseases are a major cause of death and disability in Bangladesh. While the prevalence of tuberculosis (TB) has declined substantially, Bangladesh still ranks among the top ten countries in the world with the highest TB burden. The disease is found primarily among the poor and least educated populations. Pneumonia and water-borne diseases also are widely prevalent. Pneumonia and other infections are major causes of death among young children.

The toll of non-communicable diseases - chronic diseases, cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and chronic respiratory diseases - is increasing in Bangladesh as the population becomes more urbanized. Cancer is the sixth leading cause of death in Bangladesh, accounting for more than 150,000 deaths annually.

Good governance is important in ensuring effective health care delivery, and that returns to investments in health are low, where governance issues are not addressed. Strengthening the health system through better management and organization and effective use of resources can improve health conditions and enhance the quality of health care delivery in Bangladesh. Furthermore, more research is needed on health system reforms.

Necessary steps should be taken to ensure the UHC by overcoming the challenges in the country's health sector.

To overcome the challenges in the health sector, a multi-sectoral holistic approach can be one of the important strategies. We have to take steps for utilizing traditional medicines such as Ayurveda and Unani for ensuring the UHC. Because, traditional medicines are cost-effective and easily available in our country.

Even western scientists are giving increasing attention to the traditional medicines. The ancient system has gained new dimension with standardized forms of formulations and adoption of modern manufacturing methods.

As we have scarcity of manpower in the sector, we can use personnel from the traditional sector. It is time to recognize the natural system of medicine and utilize its workforce.

If necessary steps are taken for recognition and improvement of the traditional system of medicine, there would be development in our health sector. Sri Lanka, India and Child derived benefits by utilizing this system.

The WHD is a moment to think about the country's health issue. It is hoped that the day's spirit would motivate us to take necessary steps for ensuring the UHC by giving focus on the traditional system.



(The author is Executive Director of Public Health Foundation of Bangladesh)
Robert Behre works as an editorial writer with a focus on local government, transportation and the built environment.
Angie Jackson covers crime and breaking news for The Post and Courier. She previously covered the same beat for the Grand Rapids Press and MLive.com in Michigan. When shes not reporting, Angie enjoys teaching yoga and exploring the outdoors.
Michael Majchrowicz is a reporter covering crime and public safety. He previously wrote about courts for the Daily Hampshire Gazette in Northampton, Massachusetts. A Hoosier native, he graduated from Indiana University with a degree in journalism.
Hannah Alani is a reporter at The Post and Courier covering race, immigration and rural life across the Palmetto State. Before graduating from Indiana University and moving to Charleston in 2017, her byline appeared in The New York Times.
Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations.
Editorials represent the institutional view of the newspaper. They are written and edited by the editorial staff, which operates separately from the news department. Editorial writers are not involved in newsroom operations.
Francis Adedayo Faduyile is the new president of the Nigerian Medical Association. He was elected in the recently concluded 58th Annual Delegates Meeting of the association to serve for two years. He is a consultant pathologist and an associate professor.

In this interview with PREMIUM TIMES Ebuka Onyeji, Mr Faduyile speaks on why Nigerian doctors are leaving the country in droves and how they can be made to stay and work at home. He also addressed the issue of incessant strike in the health sector, why doctors are opposed to demands of other health workers and how the dispute between both parties can be resolved.

Excerpts

PT: Why are Nigerian doctors leaving the country to other climes, what are the factor responsible for this?

Faduyile: The major factors here are poor remuneration, poor facilities and working condition, and job satisfaction. Many of our health professionals are over worked. A doctor is supposed to see a maximum of 20 patients a day but they are seeing about 150 in a day. Certainly by the time he gets to 50 he is already exhausted. Even a nurse that is supposed to see about four patients has to take care of 50 patients in a ward, certainly he/she will get tired. The truth is that in Nigeria the working environment for many doctors is very hostile. Many doctors see patients that they can treat or intervene on their issues die in front of them because the hospitals they are working in does not have the necessary equipment to take care of them. Many patients in dire need for help dont have enough money for the kind of services they need at that particular time. I can tell you many doctors are spending fortunes on patients that they are not related to because its painful to see patients die.

So, if we have our NHIS fully functional and we can always treat any patient, I can tell you many doctors will have job satisfaction because at the end of the day you have saved so many number of lives. But by the time you dont have that, you will be dissatisfied. The remuneration of doctors is very poor, if you go to other climes, what we are paid here is just 10 per cent of what they collect and they respect doctors, they put you in that right position where you feel very important. We dont have good funding maintenance for hospitals in the country. The few doctors that we have are over worked and are not appreciated, these are some of the reasons why so many of them are leaving unfortunately.

PT: How then can we keep our doctors from leaving?

Faduyile: First is when you appreciate your doctors, it will make them to stay. Government needs to bring more equipment. We need to have more fund for health. The NHIS is one way to resolve this issue. If we have more enrolee and funds to it then there will be enough money to maintain the hospitals and to bring in equipment, to buy drugs and for doctors to be retained.

PT: There are issues of internal migration inside the country. Doctors seem to avoid the Primary Health centres in the villages (PHC) and opt for the tertiary institutions in the urban areas due to the terrible state of facilities and standard of living in the grassroots. An investigation by PREMIUM TIMES revealed how many PHCs in the country operate with no doctors. How can this issue also be addressed?

Faduyile: The major reason is that the government does not give additional compensation to doctors working in the rural areas. What is in the national health act is that doctors working in the PHCs should be compensated more. However, most PHCs are ran by the states and even the normal payment for doctors, many states are not even paying. Many states are owing doctors and other health workers an upward of nine months. Many are being paid half salary for an upward of 18 months. So every human being naturally will look at those places where they will be much more appreciated. Until the state government key into payment structure of the health system and bring a pay that will make doctors and other health workers comfortable wherever they are, that is only how this issue can be addressed. This is why NMA is asking for universal applicability of CONMESS to all states and everywhere. If that is done enough pay will come for even the workers in the PHC which is initially structured to take care of 70 percent of Nigerians. 70 percent of our ailments but unfortunately, that area (PHC) is almost dead and we dont have any other option than to revive it if we want to achieve Universal Health Coverage. This one percent consolidated allocation on basic health fund will go into the NPHCDA and we believe that with that it will strengthen our primary health care.

Primary Healthcare Centre [Photo credit: LinkedIn]

PT: Why Has NMA repeatedly and vehemently opposed to the demand of salary adjustments by other health workers?

Faduyile: There are so many demands they put forth, but the one on the front line is about their salaries and its unfortunate that we are leaving the main reason why we are on the health sector to talk about mundane things. There is a special salary scale for medical doctors as well as other health workers and in that doctors earn a particular leverage over and above other health workers. And we must understand that in this JOHESU we have the cleaners, the drivers, the typists, we have the administrative staffs, we have the hospital engineer, we have all other type of people who are supportive staff.

What JOHESU is asking is not just increment in their salary, they are asking for parity with doctors. We have been disadvantaged for more than 12 years in the health sector until 2014 when the government realised this and readjusted our salary scale which is CONMESS. We had an agreement with government through collective bargaining and they begged us to reduce the relativity and we have reduced it from 3.3 to 1 ratio to 1.5 to 1 ratio. This means over 50 per cent reduction and in our lower level we have appropriated relativity. In 3 steps out of the 7 steps that doctors are paid in the service, there is parity of 1 is to 1. So what we are saying is that it is getting out of hand. Before like I said, the salary ratio of doctors and other health workers used to be 3.3 to 1.0 but today we have cut it down to 1.5 is to 1.0 so that peace will reign; but they just want it to be at par. But we are saying we have given so much to that level of 1.5 and we cant go beyond that.

PT: But if government finally adjusts the salary of other health workers, will it affect the salary of doctors?

Faduyile: No, it will not affect our salary but it will be a bad morale to us. I am working as a doctor and Im collecting N5; another person in service who did not go through the kind of training I went through and is not working as much as I do will still be collecting the same salary. Why am I going through all these stress then? In America even among doctors, there is relativity. An anaesthetic doctor can collect up to five times the salary of a pathologist.

When CONMESS was implemented, JOHESU went and made up their own salary scheme which is CONHESS. They transferred all the figures and salary steps in CONMESS into CONHESS and that means parity. Doctors have to go back to government and tell them we have been short-changed. And in 2014 when the government realised their mistake they readjusted our own salary and it is that same readjustment that the JOHESU is asking from the government.

A doctor attending to a patient at the emergency ward in Abuja National hospital.

If that is done, then it means we have gone back to that position where we were disadvantaged. They are asking that everything in CONMESS point for point, level for level must be the same thing with CONHESS. Nobody is against them from having increment in salary. What we are saying is that it will not be at the same level with doctors. Government should follow its own agreement. In every institution in the whole world and in all international best practises, relativity begins with salary of doctors and other health care professionals.

(Editors Note: CONMESS is the salary structure for medical and dental officers in the federal public service while Consolidated Health Salary Structure, CONHESS, is the salary structure for pharmacists, medical laboratory, nurses and other health workers in the health sector of the federal public service.}

PT: JOHESU have always argued that they are not asking for same pay with doctors and that relativity suffices at point of entry into service since doctors enter service at grade level 12 while others enter at 8 or 9. What can you say about this?

Faduyile: That they enter service at grade level 9 and we enter at 12 is not relativity, it does not appear here. Can a degree holder that enters service at grade level 8 and a PHD holder that enters at level 10 earn the same salary? No. A PHD holder should get more gratification and enter service at higher grade than his degree counterpart. The relativity we are talking about here is not on the point of entry, point of entry is just about the degrees and level of education. We are talking about the ratio in the salary scale.

PT: How much does a doctor earn at entry level?

Faduyile: Doctors collect about N150,000. I am a consultant, Ive been a consultant for more than 10 years and my salary is just a little above N500,000. With all the taxes, the money is even lesser while my counterpart in other African countries collect well above that and even a higher salary than Supreme Court judges. The judges collect nothing less than N2 million and for your information a neuro-surgeon in America collects more money than their president and we are working here, a typist is saying I must collect same salary with doctors.

PT: What do you make of this other demand by JOHESU for a chance to vie for the position of Chief Medical Director (CMD) in health institutions in the country?

Faduyile: In NNPC for example, can a doctor working there say he wants to be the group managing director of NNPC? There are clinics in the ministry of justice which doctors and nurses run but can they say they want to be the attorney general because they and the lawyers work in the same ministry? So what question are we asking? The representatives of the cleaners and the administrators now want to be CMD that will not go well for the health industry.

NMA: What are your objectives and target over the next two years?

Faduyile: My first target is to see how we can resolve all these issues of strike and disharmony in the health sector. It is a lot of distractions creating unnecessary deaths all over the country. We want to see that we direct our efforts to how patients are well taken care of in Nigeria. We want to strengthen our hospitals working method because a lot of hospitals are not working appropriately. We want to make government responsible to the health of the populace. The national health act is the law that has certified what government should do for the citizenry in terms of health care provision. Thank God that the Senate for the first time in history included in the 2018 budget the one per cent of the consolidated revenue fund in the allocation to the health sector. That one per cent will go into revamping the Primary Health Care system and the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS. It will stop out of pocket spending for health delivery. It is one of the greatest things that can happen. We want to plead with the president to quickly give assent to this budget and ensure it is well spent.

PT: How Do you intend to use your office to curb incessant strike in the health sector and by extent settle this perceived disaffection between doctors and other health workers?

Faduyile: My predecessors already started that, he had series of meeting with other professionals in the health sector. And when this current dust settles, I will call them so we can work out a plan that will benefit us all. And once we can work in harmony, there will be unity and improvement of health delivery. On the part of NMA, we are being proactive to avoid issues that can cause or degenerate to industrial action. We are trying to nip issues at the bod and that is why you see NMA is coming in on this JOHESU issue to let the government know that there is an agreement.

PT: There has been lots of cases of medical negligence and bad attitude of health workers towards patients. How is NMA working towards curtailing this trend?

Faduyile: You also have to understand and consider the plight of health workers on this. Some of them can be over worked like I said earlier and some of these attitude can stem from exhaustion. But regardless, we need to up our game in terms of professionalism. We have all sort of people coming into the system today with lots of behaviour that are unbecoming. On our own we are going to educate our members more, we will continue to pressurise the government to always put in the appropriate number of personnel needed; both doctors and other health workers. I think when we have that, all these harassment will reduce.

PT: How do you plan to check quackery in the health sector?

Faduyile: The first thing to do is to educate the public. You must be able to make the public to understand that your health is the most important thing you can lose. A lot of people will go and meet quacks who they know are quacks but they do so because they will tell you they dont have money to go to hospitals. But if they are wrongly treated and they lose their life, what is now more expensive than that? We need to do a lot of education in this. We need to put pressure on our government to see that the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) is set up.

The MDCN has not been up for more than three years now; it means that medical profession is likely unregulated in Nigeria. Once the council is in place, then we can enact laws to strengthen our security operatives in beating these quacks. On our own, we are going to raise the awareness and work with security agents to be able to pick those quacks and ensure that they are taken to court for impersonation. A quack anywhere is a threat to everybody. I dont know where my sister or brother is now, they may be somewhere and it is a quack that is treating them. He can kill them or cause a lot of damage them.

PT: What is your take on Public Private Partnership (PPP)? Dont you think it will further impoverish Nigerians by increasing out-of-pocket spending?

Faduyile: If you go outside Nigeria, most hospitals are private and that is why they are having good services. For you to enforce professionalism and discipline, it will be difficult within the public. If you go to India, most hospitals are privately owned. Government only supports because government cannot enforce professionalism and a whole lot of things because it is public. PPP is good and NMA supports it. On whether it will impoverish Nigerians, that is if we are still talking of out-of-pocket spending, we are now working towards changing the spending system through the NHIS where people can spend less.
The ongoing health workers strike clocked 40 days today (Sunday). The strike is one of the biggest blows Nigerias health industry has suffered.

The strike was called by the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU), a body of all other health workers except doctors. It has left millions without care.

Since 2014, they have been asking government to increase their pay and improve their members working conditions among other demands.

Before the strike started, JOHESU warned that it will be a mega strike that will shut down not just federal health institutions but the states and local governments too; and they made good of their threat.

The impasse  now on its 40th day  has caused many deaths. Patients are currently passing through untold pain and their relatives are grumbling as both federal, state and local government health institutions have been brought to their knees.

The situation is even worse for pregnant women and nursing mothers in dire need of either post or ante-care. This is because essential staff, nurses and midwives  some of the most influential members of JOHESU  have all downed tools.

This is the most unprecedented strike in the history of the health sector because not only federal but both states and local governments joined for the first time, the National Vice Chairman of JOHESU, Ogbonna Chimela, said Sunday morning in a phone interview with PREMIUM TIMES.

The other ones (previous strikes) lingered for months but the state and LGAs did not join. This is very unprecedented; though its not the best but government made it so.

On whether the strike will be called off anytime soon Mr Chimela said, We have already crossed the Rubicon, so there is no going back. We cannot risk our lives and that of Nigerians and just suspend the strike without having any tangible thing. If we had gone this far we must have something substantial to show for these months that this strike lasted. Many lives have been lost.

PREMIUM TIMES takes you down the timeline on key happenings so far in the 40 days the strike has lasted:

April 17: JOHESU announces and commences nationwide indefinite strike in earnest.

April 17: Nigerian doctors through the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) say they will not join strike. They described JOHESU as illegal warning government against acceding to their demands.

April 18: Partial observance of the strike at tertiary hospitals in the Federal Capital Territory.

April 18: Nigerian government threatens to invoke the no work no pay rule rule if JOHESU persist in their strike.

April 21: JOHESU called a bluff of the federal governments threat to invoke the no work no pay rule rule.

April 23: Nigerian government sets up committee to reconsider the demands of the striking health workers.

April 26: PREMIUM TIMES predicts five things likely to happen in Nigerias health sector if JOHESU strike persists.

April 29: Nigerian government and JOHESU hold crucial meeting on the strike.

May 1: JOHESU counters governments claim that it has implemented 14 out of 15 of their demands.

May 5: Meeting between the union and the federal government deadlocked.

May 9: States and local government health workers join strike.

May 10: Nigerian doctors threaten to go on nationwide strike if government accedes to JOHESU demands.

May 13: After series of deadlocked meetings, JOHESU confirms an offer from government which they say they are considering. 

May 14: Striking health workers accused of incessant attacks on doctors and patients.

May 15: Health Minister, Isaac Adewole, direct all heads of medical institutions to provide adequate security for the working members of staff to prevent harassment and molestation by JOHESU members.

Prof. Isaac Adewole. Minister of Health

May 17: JOHESU attributes governments slow pace towards implementing its demands to the threat by doctors. The workers accused the health minister of posing a body language that militates against resolving the impasse.

May 18: JOHESU calls for immediate removal of Mr Adewole, the health minister accusing him of bias and a major barrier to the resolution of the ongoing nationwide strike.

May 24: Nigerian doctors oppose JOHESUs call for the sack of health minister.

May 25: Senate President Bukola Saraki meets with the Minister of Health, Minister of Labour and JOHESU leaders in a bid to end the ongoing strike.

Senate President, Bukola Saraki [Photo: Nigerian Pilot]

May 26: JOHESU confirms receiving an order of interim injunction from the National Industrial Court compelling it to immediately resume duties. The body however says strike will continue.
Kehinde Adebayo speaks boastfully of his traditional medical practice. His pride is rooted in the curious fact that Egosi and Odo-owa families seeking care for their pregnant women prefer him to the community health centres.

Most times I take three deliveries in a night, he told our correspondent. Ill handle one, my wife and eldest son will handle the two others.

Mr Adebayo, aged and popularly called Baba Apiri, is described by residents as a renowned herbalist who specialises in child delivery.

Handling child delivery without any licence or any formal training in obstetrics, Mr Adebayo does not use hand gloves, he said, not even after attending a health seminar reportedly organised by the Oke-Ero Local Government Area of Kwara State in which Egosi and Odo-owa communities are located.

Justifying non-use of hand gloves, the old herbalist said, There are times one needs to recite some incantations on the bare palm before touching the pregnant womens private parts.

So, in his own way, he exposes himself, the mother and the foetus or baby to risks of possible blood contamination that could have been prevented by hand gloves.

Apart from exposing himself to health risks, he also endangers his life alongside that of the pregnant woman and her baby as hand gloves are meant to prevent contamination of blood or body tissues.

Nevertheless, Mr Adebayo remains popular and well-patronised by residents who describe him as a renowned herbalist.

His popularity also grows due to the absence of what could have been a more professional alternative. The community health centres in Egosi and Odo-owa, like many in other parts of the country, are in deplorable conditions, lacking both human and material working resources.

Baba Apiris residence in Egosi town

But the state of the health centres in Egosi and Odo-owa has not made a hero in the old herbalist alone. There is also a heroine, a woman operating within the premises of Christ Apostolic Church in the town, just within a walking distance of one of the health centres. She is popularly called Mummy but her real name is Janet Oyelowo.

Mummy told PREMIUM TIMES she has received training in midwifery. She is also limited in terms of manpower and facilities. She handles child delivery alone, except with the assistance of a friend and all she has got in her pharmaceutical box are anti-malaria drugs.

When they come for deliveries like that, we test them for malaria parasite and we treat them, she said. Thats all.

But when there are complications, she said her patients would be transferred to the general hospital, some nine kilometres from her house.

By the Grace of God, we dont usually have many complications, she replied in response to a question on the referral statistics.

However, despite the dangerous gaps in the practices of Baba Apiri and mummy, the testimonies from residents of Egosi and Odo-Owa have been positive.

Morenikeji, a pregnant mother, explained how she gave birth to her current two children at Mrs Oyelowos residence without complications.

This pregnancy will also be delivered at Mummys house, she said, smiling as she touched her belly.

Mrs Janet at the church maternity in Odo-Owa  1

She and other residents spoke of the poor state of the health centres, and trust in Mummy, as reasons for not using them.

State Of Health Centres

During visits to four health centres in Oke-Ero local government, reports from the Community Health Officers (CHO) showed that most of the health centres had not recorded any child delivery for over three months.

Folashade Olokundu at Odo-Owa primary healthcare centre (PHC) pointed at the Church area when asked for the number of deliveries taken in the last three months.

Odo-Owa health centre

Thats where the pregnant women in this town visit. They go to the midwife (Mummy) over there.

It is the same situation at Egosi, where the old herbalist resides. The CHO in-charge of Egosi clinic, Matthew Ajolaogun, attested to the boom of the herbalists business at the expense of the clinic.

Theyve abandoned the clinic for the herbalists home close-by, he said.

However, a simple review shows the clinics are in deplorable conditions. There is lack of health personnel, water facility and clean toilets in the health centres.

Dusty room used for healthcare service in Egosi

The borehole outside is no longer functional. There is no water in the toilet, Mrs Olokundu said.

During our visit, early April, just one health officer and two health officers reported for duty at Odo-Owa and Egosi PHCs respectively.

Moreover, added to the absence of necessary equipment, the health facility at Egosi is unkempt. On a tour of the centre, it was discovered that the rooms were dusty and dirty as a result of uncleanliness on the part of the officers. That negated the neatness expected in a health facility.

Uncompleted Buildings Used As Health Centres

Kajola and Iloffa health centres, established a year ago, are products of the agitations of residents of both communities in Oke-Oro. These health posts commenced health care delivery on the finances of the communities.

One of the rooms used for child delivery in Kajola

Residents said they were promised by the Oke-Oro Local Government Area, through the health department, that government will take over the centres by sending health personnel and providing drugs.

None of those promises were kept.

Both health facilities are substandard in comparison to the minimum requirements set by National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHDA) in 2017.

The building used in Kajola is an uncompleted one  yet to be plastered, without ceilings, windows and doors. Nuibat Sulu, who is in-charge of the centre, complained of the unavailability of drugs and necessary facilities.

Even this uncompleted building is a rented one, Ms Sulu disclosed.

That of Iloffa was donated by the king of the town. The limitation to quality healthcare dispensation in Iloffa is the lack of necessary equipment. According to the CHO, Mayowa Agboola; The BP (blood pressure) apparatus is not okay and the only bed in the PHC was borrowed from the cottage hospital.

Bed furniture without mattress at Illofa health centre

The need for a good building and necessary medical equipment and facilities are what these health officers say will make their work better.

Health Director Speaks

At the Oke-Ero LGA, the health director, Motunrayo Ibrahim, blamed lack of finance for the poor state of the health centres in the logal government.

Mrs Ibrahim confirmed that none of the health centres has access to a good water source as well as basic medical facilities.

Like other local governments in the state, Oke-Ero is financially handicapped to respond to the needs in the health sector, the director said.

The health centres in Kajola and Iloffa have not been in a good condition because the government only supplied insufficient health officers and not medical equipment and facilities, she said.

Illofa health centre

Despite admitting the poor state of the health centres, she decried the activities of uncertified individuals, who parade themselves as birth attendants and handle child deliveries in their homes without a government permit.

She described people like Baba Apiri and Mummy as quacks who should be resisted by the communities.

Even with the governments efforts, it is left for the communities and residents to reject those quacks. Many patronise them and thats risky, she said.

On the claim of Baba Apiri of attending health seminars organised in the local government, Mrs Ibrahim denied such.

No health seminar has been organised for birth attendants, talk less of quacks by the government, she said.

On certification for willing traditional birth attendants, Mrs Ibrahim said, Such person will have to tender his/her certificate, go through a test and we will issue a license of operations.

Hope In The Way

The state of health centres in Oke-Oro is similar to those of other communities across Nigeria, investigations by PREMIUM TIMES have shown. Even some of the 109 health centres the federal government pledged to revitalise (one in each senatorial district) are still in bad situations.

To address some of these concerns, the National Assembly has, for the first time ever, included some funding for PHCs directly from the federal governments budget.

Although not included in the 2018 budget proposal by President Muhammadu Buhari, the lawmakers earmarked N57.15 billion for the basic health care provision fund as mandated by the National Health Act, a law passed in 2014 but which has not been fully implemented.

Although the budget is yet to be signed into law, the move has been commended by experts in the health sector.

For the first time, the Senate has put the Consolidated Health Care Fund on the budget. That one per cent will go into revamping the Primary Health Care system and the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, Francis Faduyile, the president of the Nigeria Medical Association said in an interview with PREMIUM TIMES.

Francis Adedayo Faduyile

A large part of the money is expected to go directly to many of the poorly funded and maintained health centres across the country.

This is monumental. It is one of the greatest things that can happen in Nigeria. We believe this will change the trajectory of the countrys health system, Mr Faduyile said.
Kajol unveils her wax statue at Madame Tussauds Singapore

Bollywood fans, prepare yourself! Kajol joined the IIFA Awards party at Madame Tussauds Singapore. Her figure is the newest addition to the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards Experience, an interactive zone where you can surround yourself with A-list Bollywood stars and experience stardom.

The Bollywood legend herself came to Singapore for a live side-by-side, where she unveiled her wax figure.

It is truly an honour to have my own wax figure here at Madame Tussauds Singapore. The entire experience from my sitting to the actual unveiling of the figure has been surreal. When I heard I would get my own figure in Madame Tussauds I was really thrilled. Now, seeing the figure in real life, the details are incredible, its like looking into a mirror, Said Kajol.

Acclaimed for detailed and lifelike creations, this process took 5 months for Madame Tussauds professional artists and sculptors to create a true-to-life representation of the Bollywood star.

The dress Kajols figure is wearing is donated by Prabal Gurung, the stunning dark blue gown that put her on the best dressed list across Indian publications during a red carpet walk in 2017.

It is an honour to welcome Kajol personally to our attraction for the unveiling of her wax figure. With so many of our visitors coming from India, we want to make the Bollywood experience one of the highlights when visiting Singapore. We received lots of requests for Kajols figure and we look forward to offering her fans the chance to share the stage with her, said Alex Ward, General Manager, Madame Tussauds Singapore.

Kajols figure joins other Bollywood stars including Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit and Ranbir Kapoor in the IIFA Awards Experience where you can re-live the glamour of the Bollywood awards ceremony.

Walk the green carpet, snap selfies and dance with your own back up dancers on the big screen. You can star on the cover of the IIFA Magazine and shine on stage where you receive your own award. Your time is now to take the spotlight! It doesnt stop, Madame Tussauds Singapore will continue to invest more for the India market in the following years.
A group of medical doctors has launched a mobile app aimed at reducing patient-waiting time in Nigerian hospitals.

Patients in public hospitals in the country spend an average of two hours before they are attended to by a doctor, according to a report.

The app, known as KompleteCare, can be accessed at the Google play store using a mobile phone. It is a collaboration between the Society for Family Physicians of Nigeria (SOFPON) and a healthcare company in Nigeria, Sevenz Healthcare.

The app was unveiled to the public on May 18 at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH), Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, by the Commissioner for Health in the state, Dominic Ukpong, to mark SOFPONs celebration of the 2018 World Family Doctors Day.

SOFPON said the app provides a meeting-point online between doctors and patients where consultation, examination, and drug prescription can take place, and thereby help to reduce the crowd of patients at public hospitals.

Doctors across different parts of the country are welcome to register and use the app and get paid for their services, the group said during its unveiling.

Youll have to fill in your MDCN number, it will be confirmed first before you are allowed to log in as a doctor. Theres a place for doctors, and theres a place also for the patient. The app will direct a patient on the doctor to meet  lets say a cardiologist.

In the future, the biggest hospital will be on your mobile phone, the group said.

Nene Andem, a consultant family physician at the Emmanuel Hospital, Eket, Akwa Ibom State, and the President of SOFPON, Uyo Zone, said she was excited about the innovation.

Doctors sometimes do consultation on phone, and they dont get paid for this, she said. With this app, doctors will now be paid for every single consultation they do. If we can get people to key into the app, it will reduce patient-waiting time in the hospitals.

The common challenge most patients would want to talk about if you ask them, is the waiting time; spending too much time in the hospital, says Daniel Okeke, a doctor at the Department of Family Medicine, UUTH.

They say if you go to most of the government-owned hospital, from the time they arrive, to when they have to pay to get their cards, waiting to get their card, waiting to pay money, waiting to see to see a nurse to take their vital signs  blood pressure, weight, temperature and all that  and waiting to see the doctor. You think that ends there! After waiting to see the doctor, you still have to wait again to get some drugs from the pharmacy. And if some investigations were ordered, you have to wait at the place where the results would be collected.

The thing in the mind of most Nigerian patients is that once you are going to a public hospital, youll have to clear your schedule for that day. You know when you are going, but you dont know when you are coming back, Mr Okeke said in Uyo during the 2018 World Family Doctors Day celebration.

The celebration also featured a lecture on how family physicians are leading the way in patient care, presented by Etiobong Etukumana, a consultant family physician and the Chairman, Medical and Dental Consultants Association of Nigeria (MDCAN), UUTH.
Less than three years into its existence, the 8th Senate has cemented itself in the sands of time  making and breaking good and bad records.

In March 2018, the chamber prided itself as the best, having passed 201 bills against 28, 25 and 65 of the 7th, 6th and 5th assemblies respectively.

On the other hand, the Senate will not be forgotten for its controversial election of principal officers, and for being the first to be invaded by thugs, who stole its mace, and one which dishes out suspension to members at the slightest offence.

Beyond these, the 8th Senate will go down memory lane as one characterised by several prosecutions.

Form the head, Senate President Bukola Saraki, to other senators, the lawmakers are known for frequenting court rooms, answering questions from anti-graft agencies and police invitations.

At least 13 of the 109 senators are currently being investigated or prosecuted.

All of them, including those facing prosecution, have denied wrongdoing.

Bukola Saraki

Until March when his trial was adjourned indefinitely, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, frequently visited the Code of Conduct Tribunal on charges of false asset declaration.

The adjournment, according to the Danladi Umar-led CCT, was to await the decision of Supreme Court on the appeal filed by Mr Saraki and the federal governments cross-appeal in respect of the case.

Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki

A week after, the Supreme Court also adjourned indefinitely hearing on the trial, much to the delight of Mr Saraki.

In the wake of his election as the Senate President in 2015, the two-term governor of Kwara State was accused of lying about his actual assets while he governed the state.

After several appearances by Mr Saraki, the CCT in June 2017 cleared him of the charges.

In reaction, the federal government approached the Appeal Court which ruled that Mr Saraki has a case to answer in three of the 18 charges. Consequently, the government re-arraigned Mr Saraki so he could answer questions on counts 4, 5 and 6 bothering on the purchase of House 17 A and B at Mc Donald Street, Ikoyi, Lagos.

The CCT as well as the Supreme Court are yet to convene. Mr Saraki has denied any wrongdoing.

Ike Ekweremadu

Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu

The Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, Mr Saraki and two others were at the centre of a forgery case initiated against them by some senators.

The two, including a former Clerk of the National Assembly, Salisu Maikasuwa, and his deputy, Benedict Efeturi, were accused of illegally altering the Senates Standing Rule used in electing them into office in June 2015.

The federal government, however, dropped the two-count charge against them in 2016; but Mr Ekweremadu still has something to worry about.

The federal government in March 2018 applied to the Federal High Court in Abuja for an order of temporary forfeiture of about 22 properties allegedly owned by him in Abuja, London, the United States and United Arab Emirates. Mr Ekweremadu has since said the move is politically motivated.

Dino Melaye

Senator Dino Melaye [Photo credit: Mr. Melayes Instagram handle]

The Kogi West senator is also in the midst of legal battles as he is accused of providing false information to the police and supplying arms to suspected criminals.

In Abuja, he is accused of attempted suicide and damaging government property, after he allegedly attempted to jump out of a moving police vehicle. He was later hospitalised.

A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory has adjourned his trial, indefinitely, on the basis of his medical condition.

Peter Nwaboshi

The Delta North senator was recently arraigned for an alleged fraud of N322 million by the EFCC. Mr Nwaoboshi was in court alongside two firms on charges bordering on conspiracy and money laundering.

The judge, Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court on April 25 ruled that the senator be remanded in prison. He got a bail two days after.

Buruji Kashamu

Ogun State senator, Buruji Kashamu [Photo Credit: CBS News]

In May 2015, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) laid a siege to Mr Kashamus residence in Lagos in a bid to arrest and send him to the U.S. to face drugs charges.

Mr Kashamu is wanted to face trial in the U.S. even though he has continued to deny this.

He refused to submit himself. Instead, he approached the Federal High Court to prohibit his arrest. His prayer was granted.

On May 4 however, the Lagos Division of the Court of Appeal nullified the ruling by the Federal High Court saying the senator is not above the law and should be arrested if there is a need, thus clearing the path to his possible extradition.

Again, the senator fired back saying he has no extradition case in court.

Ahmed Yarima

In 2016, the Zamfara West senator was arraigned by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on a 19-count charge of corruption.

The commission accused him of diverting part of the N1 billion project funds for the repair of collapsed Gusau Dam and resettlement of the victims of flood to other purposes.

The senator was, however, discharged in December 2017 on the basis that the plaintiff has declined to prove that the accused (Senator Yarima) had diverted the state funds.

David Mark

Senator David Mark

Former Senate President, David Mark, was questioned by the EFCC in December 2017 and again in January 2018 over receipt of illegal funds in the build-up to the 2015 elections.

He was grilled over alleged payment of N2 billion into the National Assembly account by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for distribution to senators.

Mr Mark has since denied receiving such fund but the 2015 campaign finance by the PDP has continued to be a subject of intense interrogation by law enforcement agencies.

Stella Oduah

Stella Oduah [Photo credit: African Examiner]

The Anambra North senator is also on the list of senators being questioned by the EFCC for alleged money laundering.

In February, she was questioned by the EFCC and got had her passport seized.

Mrs Oduah is being investigated for allegedly awarding dubious contracts worth N9.4 billion during her stint as Aviation Minister in the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

Specifically, she was accused of diverting N3.9 billion from the N9.4 billion meant for the installation of security devices at 22 airports.

She has publicly denied the allegations.

Danjuma Goje

Senator Danjuma Goje

The chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriations is currently facing a fraud charge filed against him by the EFCC at the Federal High Court in Gombe.

The senator and four others have been enmeshed in a six-year-old money laundering case preferred EFCC.

The EFCC alleged that Mr Goje, then Gombe State governor, had conspired with four officers of his administration to defraud the state of N25 billion via illegal acts, contrary to, and punishable under sections 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2011, as amended.

Abdullahi Adamu

Senator Abdullahi Adamu

Abdullahi Adamu, a former governor of Nasarawa State, was in 2010 arrested by the EFCC for allegedly misappropriating N15 billion alongside 18 others.

He was subsequently arraigned on a 149-count charge of fraud to the tune of N15 billion alongside his co-accused. The case is yet to be concluded

In February 2018, the EFCC arraigned Nuraini Adamu, a son of the senator, and one Felix Onyeabo Ojiako before judge, Farouq Lawal of the Kano State High Court on a four-count charge of conspiracy, forgery and obtaining money by false pretence.

Abdulaziz Nyako

Abdulaziz Nyako [Photo Credit: NASS website]

The senator, representing Adamawa Central, Abdulaziz Nyako, is the son of former Governor Murtala Nyako. The senator is facing trial on N29 billion fraud charge against him by EFCC.

He is being prosecuted alongside his father, and two others on a 37-count charge of criminal conspiracy, stealing, abuse of office and money-laundering.

Five companies that allegedly served as conduit pipes for the illegal diversion of the funds  Blue Opal Limited, Sebore Farms & Extension Limited, Pagoda Fortunes Limited, Tower Assets Management Limited and Crust Energy Limited, were equally charged before the court as the 5th to 9th defendants.

The case is still in court.

Joshua Dariye

Former Governor of Plateau state, Joshua Dariye.

The Plateau Central senator has been standing trial on a 23-count charge bordering on money laundering and diversion of state ecological funds to the tune of N1.2 billion since 2007.

The allegations were levelled against him by EFCC.

In April 2018, the EFCC re-arraigned Nanle Dariye, son of Mr Dariye, on a six-count amended charge of money laundering of about N1.5 billion. He was first arraigned in February.

The anti-graft agency alleged that the defendant, sometime in 2013, failed to report a cash transaction to the tune of about N1.5 billion which he allegedly received through the hotels account in one of the old generation banks.

It said that the amount was above the threshold of the N10 million permissible by law adding that the hotel was also not registered as Designated Non-Financial Institution, (DNFI).

Jonah Jang

File photo of Former Governor of Plateau, Sen Jonah Jang (M) being escorted by EFCC operatives during Jangs appearance at the high court for alleged case of corruption by the EFCC, in Jos on Wednesday (16/5/18). 02547/16/5/2018/ Sunday Adah/HB/BJO/NAN

The former Plateau Governor is being prosecuted by the anti-graft agency, EFCC.

Mr Jang, who is the serving senator representing Plateau North Senatorial District, was charged alongside a former cashier in the office of the Secretary to the State Government, Yusuf Pam. They are accused of diverting N6.3 billion belonging to the Plateau State Government while serving as governor of the state.

After spending one week in jail on the order of the court, Mr Jang was granted bail last week.

The judge presiding at the Plateau State High Court, Daniel Longji, said there would be accelerated hearing of the trial which he fixed for July 17, 18 and 19.
The Buhari administration on Sunday stepped up its attacks against former President Olusegun Obasanjo, accusing him of masterminding illegal ouster of at least five governors in the 2000s.

Garba Shehu, a presidential spokesperson, said in a Sunday evening essay to PREMIUM TIMES that Mr Obasanjos tenure, 1999-2007, represented the dark days of Nigerias democracy due to a slew of assaults on the constitution.

He argued that President Muhammadu Buhari has painstaking followed the Nigerian constitution since he assumed office in 2015.

Mr Shehu accused the former president of deploying federal machinery to remove ex-governors Joshua Dariye, Rashidi Ladoja, Peter Obi, Chris Ngige and Ayo Fayose from office. The politicians were governors of Plateau, Oyo, Anambra, Anambra and Ekiti, respectively.

When they ran the government at the centre, the opposition PDP showed aptitude in only one thing: the toppling of elected state governments using the police and secret service under their control, Mr Shehu said.

He gave account of how Mr Obasanjo allegedly perpetrated the alleged constitutional infractions.

A five-man legislature met at 6:00 am and impeached Governor Dariye in Plateau; 18 members out of 32 removed Governor Ladoja of Oyo from office; in Anambra, APGAs Governor Obi was equally impeached at 5:00 a.m. by members who did not meet the two-thirds required by the constitution.

His offence was that he refused to inflate the states budget. The lawmakers had reportedly met with representatives of the President in Asaba , Delta State and then accompanied to Awka by heavy security provided by the police Mobile Unit. The PDP President at that time had reportedly told Obi to forget re-election in 2007 if he did not join the PDP because he (the President) would not support a non-PDP member.

A former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi [Photo: Concise News]

In Ekiti, Governor Fayose in his first term faced allegations of financial corruption and murder. Following the failure to heed the instruction of the presidency to impeach only Fayose and spare the deputy, Madam Olujimi, now a senator, the PDP President declared that there was a breakdown of law and order in the state and declared a state of emergency.

He appointed Brig-Gen. Adetunji Olurin (rtd) as the sole administrator of the state on October 19, 2006. In an earlier incident in Anambra, it took an insider collaboration to thwart the unseating of Governor Ngige by a powerful thug sponsored by the PDP administration.

The parliament at the centre seized the law-making powers of the Rivers State House of Assembly as a way to save Governor Rotimi Amaechi, the then chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum from impeachment by the PDP presidency. Thank God for Buhari, none of these absurdities has happened under his watch but the PDP is indicating their boredom with his meticulous observance of the constitution by calling for a return to the old order, the spokesperson said.

Minister of Transport and Former Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi

Mr Shehu condemned the PDP, despite its own history, for having the effrontery to write to the UN with allegations of constitutional breaches against Mr Buhari.

I not for dry eyes, as said in our common parlance, what is it that would push this party to write a letter to the United Nations, laying false claims to constitutionality and alleging that democracy is presently under threat? Mr Shehu said.

Mr Shehus statement marks the latest attack in the escalating political feud between his principal and Mr Obasanjo. Last week, Mr Buhari accused Mr Obasanjo of squandering $16 billion earmarked for power projects without noticeable impact.

Mr Obasanjo fired back at the president, describing him as ignorant for accusing him over a matter for which he had been repeatedly cleared by several investigative panels.

The face-off stemmed from an open letter written by Mr Obasanjo in January, warning Mr Buhari not to run for re-election in 2019 or risk being disgraced out of office.

The president has rejected all calls for him to stand down in 2019 largely due to his failing health, including those from former military ruler Ibrahim Babangida. He had spent more than 172 days receiving medical treatment abroad, a record for any Nigerian president in history, according to the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, ICIR.

A spokesperson for Mr Obasanjo did not immediately return PREMIUM TIMES requests for comments.

The PDP dismissed Mr Shehus statement as a distraction that will end up working against his principals interest.

All these assaults and blame games on past leaders will not help them to win re-election in 2019, the opposition partys spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, told PREMIUM TIMES by telephone Sunday night.

He wondered when the Buhari administration suddenly woke up to the reality of alleged transgressions on the party of Mr Obasanjo, a man they had courted since 2015 when then-candidate Buhari first sought his support to win.

Mr Obasanjo supported Mr Buharis campaign in 2015, using several political attacks to weaken then-incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan.

FILE PHOTO: APC leaders pose for photo ops with former president Olusegun Obasanjo after a meeting prior to the 2015 elections

As at May 2017, what was their position on President Obasanjo? Mr Ologbondiyan asked rhetorically.

Mr Obasanjo left the PDP in 2014 and has continued to dissociate himself from the opposition party.

He cited Mr Buharis circumvention of National Assembly in the purchase of military aircraft earlier this year as one of the presidents blatant disregard for the Constitution.

President Buhari has acted in several ways that portray our democracy like a military regime, Mr Ologbondiyan said. He paid for the super tucanos without the approval of the National Assembly.

Only a few days ago, he boasted that if he had his way, he will lock all the politicians in jail, that is a statement that is clearly anti-democratic. In a democratic system, an accused person is innocent until proven guilty.
The African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) has commended the court judgment nullifying the suspension of a member of House of Representatives, Abdulmumin Jibrin.

The court also ordered that all the salaries due to him be paid for the period he was suspended.

AFRICMIL described the judgment handed down May 24 by Justice John Tsoho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, as the triumph of constitutional democracy and an enduring affirmation of the sanctity of the protection of whistleblowers.

In a statement, Chido Onumah, Coordinator of AFRICMIL, noted that, It is regrettable that the judgment is coming so late in the day, yet we are delighted that it vindicates good reason as it met the expectations of the teeming lovers and advocates of justice, fairness, equity, and transparent and accountable governance.

He said it was incontestable that Mr Jibrins disclosure of budget fraud in the lower arm of the National Assembly was a patriotic act of whistleblowing done in the interest of the public.

According to Mr Onumah, Every citizen is legally and morally obliged to report crime. Section 24(b) and (e) of the 1999 constitution as amended empower citizens to do so, and this is much more compelling in a society like Nigeria where rampant corruption at every facet of national life has been identified as the major reason Nigeria has remained under-developed.

Me Onumah expressed regret that despite repeated pledges of protecting whistleblowers by top government officials and political office holders, reprisals are routinely being visited upon whistleblowers by persons or groups desperate to cover up improper behaviour.

He recalled the cases of Ntia Thompson, an Assistant Director in the Directorate of Technical Cooperation in Africa (DTCA), an agency of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Murtala Ibrahim, an auditor at the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN); Aaron Kaase, Principal Administrative Officer at the Police Service Commission (PSC) and Joseph Akeju, Chief Lecturer in the department of accountancy, Yaba College of Technology.

According to Mr Onumah, All were punished for exposing fraud in their offices. Except Kaase who was suspended without pay, all others were sacked. Although Thompson and Kaase were recalled after many months, Ibrahim and Akeju are still battling to go back to their jobs.

Mr Jibrins case is the second after Mr Kaases that a court of competent jurisdiction will deliver judgment in favour of the protection of whistleblowers and the legitimacy of whistleblowing as a mechanism for enhancing good governance in the society.

Mr Onumah noted that the protection of whistleblowers from all forms of victimisation was important for the success of the whistleblower policy.

Unless people are assured of safety and protection, they will not find the courage to blow the whistle on misconduct, Mr Onumah said.

Although Mr Jibrin was suspended for 181 days, he served 231 days in suspension. His victory at the court came after 20 months of a winding legal battle.
The Northern Elders Forum and the Southern Elders Forum have decided to set up another group to be known as the Nigerian Elders Forum (NEF) to address challenges confronting the country.

Addressing journalists after a three and half hours closed door meeting on Saturday in Abuja, the spokesman of both groups, Banji Akintoye, said the forum when established will find a way to meet, study situations, provide solutions and make sure that the decisions have impact on the lives of the people.

He said the countrys elders are worried, that things are not well with our country. He added that a lot was happening in the nation that ordinarily should not happen.

Aside Mr Akintoye, other elders at the meeting were Yime Sen, Yinka Odumakin, Alfred Mulade, Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, Chris Anyanwu, Francis Doukpola, Chike Dike, Bello Suleiman, Ibrahim Lame and Bala Sani.

The meeting was also attended by Sam Nda-Isaiah; Idris Hayatudeen, Saidu Dansadau, Falalu Bello, Doyin Okupe, Yerima Shettima, Charles Nwekeaku, D. G Darah, Abdullahi Usman Toro, Rahila Gowon and Abdulrazaq Adamu among others.

The statement released by the group read in part:

We are elders, we are not active politicians. Most of us are not active politicians. We have come together because we are worried about the condition of our country. Things are not well with our country. A lot of things are happening in our country that ordinarily should not happen. Ours is a land of promise, a land well-endowed by nature with a lot of wealth but we are not using the wealth to enrich our people. Instead, we are going down, down and down in terms of prosperity and progress.

So, we have decided to work together  that is the most important thing because the problems are many. There is a general problem like the problems of ecology. The desert is moving South on upon us, upon our country and we are not doing anything about it. The ocean is moving in from the South, parts of Lagos already under sea level and we are not doing anything about it.

What we have decided is to set up, and this is the height of our decisions, to set up a Nigerian Elders Forum. The Nigerian Elders Forum that will establish its own means of meeting and study situation and provide solutions and make sure that the decisions have impact on the lives of our country. Those are the things we have decided today.

Pointing out some of the problems facing the nation, the statement said parts of the South and South-south has gone under sea.

There is the issue of erosion in the East, people now resort to killing each other and the nation lacks leadership. Parts of the South-south too already under the sea and we are not doing anything about it, and in the East, there is serious strange problem of gully erosion. Nobody seems to know what to do about it.

And then, economy itself, we have become a country that is longer productive because lack of productivity is the big problem now of our country, and we have to do something about it. We also have this huge problem of poor governance. It is no longer a question of a party, it is no longer a question of one party is doing better than the other, you can see now clearly, even though our political parties are rarely no longer political parties, they are just neighbours or combination of people who want to gather together and win elections and control the wealth of the country, the group added.

That is what it has become, and the quality of leadership has fallen so drastically that it is not possible to have any progress in the hands of such poor leadership and then now we have reached a point at which where we are actually killing one another. People burning around killing their countrymen and destroying their livelihoods.

So, we cannot go on like this, we elders of the country have decided that we cannot go on like this. We must change actions to change these things.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has asked President Muhammadu Buhari and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) not to address Nigerians on the occasion of the 2018 Democracy Day scheduled for Tuesday.

The PDP in a statement by its publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said in the last three years, such addresses had contained deceits, falsifications and unfulfilled promises.

Nigerians have become frustrated with these lies, said the party.

Democracy Day in Nigeria is usually celebrated yearly on May 29 to mark the restoration of democracy in May 1999 after decades of military interregnum.

Nigerian presidents usually use the occasion to enumerate the strides recorded in the democratic sojourn and achievements by their administrations.

But the oppositon party which lost to the ruling APC in 2015 advised Mr Buhari via its statement Sunday not to bother to use the occasion to feed Nigerians with lies over its percieved lack of achievements.

It said the Buhari Presidency and the APC since assuming power has only violated all tenets of democracy, and trampled on citizens rights.

The PDP said the APC should not be associated with democracy under any guise.

Indeed, this administration should not come close to the emblem of democracy, as such would be an unpardonable spat on the faces of millions of suppressed Nigerians and the graves of victims of extra-judicial executions under this administration, as catalogued by international bodies including, Transparency International (TI), Amnesty International (AI) and even the United States Department of State.

Where is democracy when government tends towards military fiat: where citizens are wantonly arrested, locked up and dehumanised just for expressing political opinions considered to be at variance with views held those in power?

Where is democracy when our National Assembly, the very bastion of our democracy, is under siege; where federal lawmakers are daily blackmailed, hounded, harassed, intimidated, detained and dehumanised; where strange elements invade the hallowed chambers of the Senate, threatened our senators and forcefully cart away the mace, yet nobody has been prosecuted?

Where is democracy when court judges are arrested in the middle of the night by agents of state; top government officials engage in actions and speeches that promote division, hatred and bloodletting; when journalists and media houses are being harassed and intimidated and our nation, in the last three years, ranking among the most hostile to free press?, the party asked.

However the PDP saluted the courage and resilience of Nigerians in the face of despotism, drive towards anarchy and totalitarianism.

The party called on Nigerians to use this years democracy celebration to reinforce commitment to rescue the nation and restore democratic rule.

We are collectively strengthened by the fact that this years Democracy Day signals the reinvigorating of that democratic march by the citizens to end APCs misrule and abuse of our rights.

Nigerians must therefore, use this years occasion to reinforce their commitment to rescue our nation by restoring democratic rule on the platform of the repositioned PDP, come 2019.
The embattled former spokesperson of the Peoples Democratic Party, Olisa Metuh, has described as worrisome the submissions of a Federal High Court judge, Okon Abang, regarding his (Metuhs) health and the disappearance of the defendants lawyer, Emeka Etiaba.

In a statement by the special assistant to Mr Metuh on Sunday, the forme spokesperson said Mr Abang was duly informed about Mr Etiabas reason for absenting himself from recent court sittings, as opposed to the submissions of the court.

The statement signed by the aide, Ishaya Maji, also denied the declaration by Mr Abang that Mr Metuhs fall, while approaching the dock on May, 21 resulted from his refusal to obey court orders.

Mr Metuh is facing trial on a seven-count charge of alleged diversion of N400 million from the office of the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki.

He is being tried alongside his company, Dextra Investment Limited.

Mr Metuh told the court, in 2016, that he was diagnosed with spinal cord injuries and required the leave of court to attend to his health condition.

Several attempts to get the courts approval to travel for his treatment, however failed.

On May 21, Mr Metuh who had appeared in court on a stretcher in February, fell while attempting to enter the dock at the start of hearing.

Following his fall, a medical doctor, working with the court examined the defendant and submitted that he required immediate evacuation to the hospital for treatment.

An enraged Mr Abang however queried the doctors submissions and attempted to proceed with the hearing of testimonies from a defence witness, when Mr Etiaba announced his decision to withdraw from the matter.

According to the senior advocate, his decision to recuse himself was informed by the reaction of Mr Abang to the fallen client.

I cannot remain in court and continue to defend a man whose medical condition I do not know. Whether he is dead or alive, Mr Etiaba said while explaining his reaction to the situation to journalists.

Mr Etiabas application for withdrawal was however refused by Mr Abang on the grounds that the decision was a ploy to delay the trial..

The court also ruled against a request by the defence lawyers to adjourn the matter till Mr Metuh is fit enough to return to trial.

After the ruling on Wednesday, Mr Etiaba did not appear in court on Thursday and Friday.

In a ruling on Friday, Mr Abang closed the case of the first defendant, on the grounds that Mr Etiaba was not in court to announce the appearance of other witnesses and that the lawyer failed to provide a reason for his absence.

In a statement on Sunday, however Mr Metuh said it was impossible for him to have made up facts about his medical condition, since he had been diagnosed of having the spinal cord complications 12 years before his trial began in 2016.

How can Mr Metuh be accused of feigning an illness he has been managing at the National Hospital, Abuja for the past 14 years? How can he be accused of disobeying an order of court when the judges directive to the registrar to inform him to sit down came only when he saw him struggling with the walker to negotiate into the dock? How can he be accused of deliberately staging the fall when he knows the severe consequences of such to his health? How can he be accused of turning the court into an accident scene because medical doctors from the court were attending to him?

For the records, it is not true that Mr Metuh jumped bail. It is also not true that he did not provide any reasonable explanation for his absence in court. It is equally untrue that his counsel, Emeka Etiaba, did not provide any reasonable explanation for his absence.

The truth of the matter is that the very next day after Mr Metuhs fall, his counsel, Emeka Etiaba, duly informed the court in open session that the medical team of the Federal High Court had taken him to the National Hospital for admission. It is pertinent to note that the court permitted the medical team to take him to hospital.

The explanation of Mr Metuhs whereabouts was further reinforced by a letter from the National Hospital duly annexed as exhibit in an affidavit of facts by his brother and duly filed before the court ruling on Wednesday morning.

According to the statement, Mr Etiaba had explained that he was traveling for a funeral ceremony.

On the issue of absence of counsel on Friday, his counsel Emeka Etiaba, had duly filed and registered an affidavit of facts on May 23 informing the court that he was bereaved and would not be in court on Friday, 25th May 2015 as he was billed to travel to Nnewi, Anambra state. This affidavit was also served on the prosecutor in the matter.

The statement further alleged that Mr Metuhs trial is being given a special attention by the federal government, under the All Progressives Congress.

The expose by Mr. Johnson Ojogbani, Special Assistant to the Acting Chairman of the EFCC, on Channels TV programme on Tuesday 22nd May, explained the reasons behind the desperation, misinformation and draconian tactics happening in his matter. It is our information that the media budget for this case by the EFCC is unprecedented.

The statement queried the language of the court and wondered if Mr Metuh will be privileged to have justice in the matter.

Did the judge take the evidence of the Federal High Court doctors who were called in by the court registrars to attend to him? Did the judge request from the federal high court doctors the result of their initial assessment including the initial blood pressure and status of his spine?

Indeed, what is the basis and evidence for the hurtful comments by the learned trial judge? The choice of words used by Justice Abang on Chief Metuh over his illness is saddening and truly worrisome. Will he get true justice in the light of all these?

The statement added that Mr Metuh remains unperturbed over the attacks on him.
The Registrar of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Ishaq Oloyede, has said Nigeria is dominated by certified thieves.

The don disclosed this while speaking at 61st Birthday Colloquium of the Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, in Osun on Sunday.

Mr Oloyede, who spoke on Functional Education as a Tool for National Development and a Gateway to Freedom said the countrys education is facing difficulties because of certified thieves at the helm of affairs.

He explained that the difference between the revenue his predecessors generated and that of his own showed clearly that corruption held sway in JAMB.

Nigeria is dominated by thieves at the helms of affairs, I mean certified thieves. Let me talk about JAMB for instance, since over forty years that JAMB has been established, the total money generated before we came in is N52 million

After we finished our examinations for 2017, we generated N9 billion, in which I returned the total sum of N7.8 million to the Federal Government. Members of the National Assembly marveled at this feat; they wondered how I came about the figure. For this year also, I have realised over N9 billion, he said.

Mr Oloyede also condemned social vices like cultism and prostitution thriving in tertiary institutions.

You dont need to use bomb to destroy a nation, just lower the quality of education and allow cheating by students in examinations. Education, being the art of acquisition and utilisation of knowledge is also an instrument in training individuals purposely to make them socially responsible.

Functional education must geared towards the liberation of humanity from poverty and misery. All in all, education must be functional before it is adaptable.

He charged Nigerians to ensure that students practice what they are taught as education is not only about the certificates but its functionality.
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed his administrations commitment to the protection of children.

The president stated this in his message to mark the Childrens Day, celebrated on May 27.

Mr Buharis statement was sent to PREMIUM TIMES by his media office.

Read his full statement below.

Today affords me another opportunity to re-affirm our administrations commitment to the protection of children, a day to reflect on our roles and responsibilities as Parents and Leaders towards our children, and also assessing how far we have fared in this regard.

As you may recall, one of the cardinal objectives of this administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this administration has recorded measurable success in the home grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand.

Our children are our future, and the initiatives that come from them give confidence that our country has a bright future.

I am always inspired and encouraged when I remember encounters I had with three of our young ones. When I was on medical vacation in 2017, three year old Maya Jammal recorded a prayer for my recovery, which went viral online.

Also, 10-year-old Aisha Aliyu Gebbi wrote a personal letter to me, describing herself as my biggest fan.

Nicole Benson, then 12-years-old, had contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to my campaign in 2015. The money was all saved up from her lunch and pocket allowance. There are millions of such children nationwide.

I am very impressed by what our children have been able to do, and what the future holds for them. That is one reason why we are committed to the school feeding programme, to prepare a future generation of physically and intellectually robust children. At the last count, over 8.2 million children in 24 states of the Federation are being given free meals daily. This happens in 45,000 schools round the country.

I therefore call on all stakeholders to support this programme to ensure that all the 36 states of the federation and FCT are covered. This will promote substantially higher enrolment levels in our schools.

Since its inception in May, 2015, this administration has also focused attention on addressing issues of child protection, participation and survival. In 2015, the campaign to end violence against children was launched which was commemorated in 2016. In November 2016, the Campaign to End Child Marriage was also launched to ensure that as many children as possible are able to fully enjoy their childhood and be protected from all the challenges associated with this phenomenon. These campaigns have been reinforced with sensitisation campaigns in some States of the Federation.

The theme for this years celebration Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility is an opportunity to promote the safety and security of our children. As a responsible Government, we are committed to ensuring that children are protected from violence and exploitation against them, and, that their environments are safe enough for them to pursue their educational attainments, discover their full potentials to grow into responsible citizens.

This administration has made giant strides in the protection of the Rights of the Nigerian Child and as a result of such efforts, Nigeria has been declared a Pathfinding Country on Ending Violence Against Children. This I believe is a collective achievement and I urge us to continue to build on the present momentum to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In our efforts to protect our children from abuse, exploitation and trafficking as well as provide safe, non-violent inclusive and effective learning environment in our schools, this administration has directed the management of all federal government colleges and advised all state owned schools across the country to provide adequate measures of safety and security of their students. I again call on all schools management committees at all levels of public and private institutions to take adequate security measures and put in place mechanisms for safety of children.

May I therefore call on the families, security agencies, traditional rulers, religious leaders, civil society organisations, human rights activists, and the society at large to rise up and take urgent and decisive actions to stem the unacceptable rising cases of violence against our children. We must ensure safety of our children in homes, schools, markets, worship centres, on the streets and everywhere at all times.

Furthermore let me use this medium to appeal to parents not to relent in their efforts to send their wards to school, especially the girl child as her education reduces infant and maternal mortality and prevents early and child marriages. It also increases literacy and reduces poverty. The saying that to educate a woman is to educate the nation is very apt in this regard.

Finally, while I appreciate the security agencies for their efforts so far, I urge them to redouble their efforts in protecting children from danger and violence in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Child Rights Acts, 2003.

Once again, happy Childrens Day.
The Police Command in Taraba on Saturday said it had killed one suspected kidnapper and arrested three members of his gang at Borno Bukuruku in Bali Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

David Akinremi, the State Commissioner of Police (CP), disclosed this to journalists in Jalingo.

He said the unidentified suspect was killed when the gang engaged the police in a shoot out at Borno Bukuruku forest.

A gang of suspected armed robbers/ kidnappers engaged a team of police operatives in a gun duel in their Borno Bukuruku forest hideout in Bali LGA, based on actionable intelligence received at about 10.00hrs.

In the process, one of them was gunned down by the superior firepower of our operatives while three others : Halilu Umaru, 35, Lawale Shehu, 22, Isah Abdullahi, 25, were arrested, Mr Akinremi said.

The commissioner said an Ak47 rifle with eight rounds of ammunition, criminal charms, an army camouflage and cutlasses were recovered from the suspects.

He urged members of the public to watch out for other members of the gang who escaped with gun shot injuries and report them to the police.

Mr Akinremi warned armed robbers, kidnappers and other criminals to steer clear from the state, saying the police would arrest and bring them to justice sooner or later.

(NAN)
Changing trends even in villages

Dr. Forqan Uddin Ahmed :

Change is a name of concept and idea which is related to things both in concrete and abstract form in nature. In this world, things are indestructible. After a short period or at the end of life everything in this world including human mankind is being vanished and destroyed. Again new things are formed and newly generated. This is a continuous process and through this process, we see some changes. These changes take place in different ways. We may mention two prominent factors, one is natural and the other is artificial. In artificial format we see different types of changes, namely- physical changes, chemical changes, analytical changes, synthetical changes, reformative changes and evolutionary changes etc. Again changes refer to shifting of one thing to another thing, shifting of one pattern to other, shifting of one step to another step. So the shift directs the motion of all things in the world. Again a change is concept towards modernism. And in consideration of time, most probably we are running the modern time.

In this modern world we are always facing competition of race and in the modern world everything is changing and going fast. Every country is in the race of development. Modernism started in the 19th century. We all are living in the modern age. But could modernism in true sense touch us or touch our country?

The answer would be affirmative. Yes, our country is in the line of modernism. Day by day our Bangladesh is changing. We are getting new things, new ideas and we are also sharing with world people with the concept of development like ICT. Even we are exchanging and contributing our resources in talent hunting around the world. After partition in 1947, only our divisional towns were under the purview of development privileges. Then in the decade of fifty, sixty and seventies, twenty districts headquarters could enjoy the modern development facilities. After independence of Bangladesh, 64 districts headquarters came under the umbrella of development in the decade of seventy, eighty and ninety's, After that in the 21st century in the first decade and middle of second decade almost all the upazilas and thanas came under the umbrella of development.

If we look to the past, particularly in the decade of sixty's when I was mere a boy, our villages were under dark even at daytime. It seemed to be dark because in every houses, there were big trees, deep jungles, bushy lands here and there. In my boyhood, I dare to walk through the pathway of ponds, ditches and cannels. Because the ponds and cannel sides were full of bushy plants and grasses. I remember a day, when I was passing bushy places and I happened to see hundreds of foxes and monkeys are moving in my path way. I was frightened and shouting with high voices for my rescue. And that time there was a communication problem, there was no transport and no good road. In rainy season, people were confined to thir own houses.

During the rainy season, people even could not move from one house to another house without the help of boat. When the rainy season is over or at the early stage of rainy seasons people had to walk miles after miles form one place to another place on foot. Because at the time, there where no broad highway carpeting road. So people had to suffer beyond measure. After a long walk, people were bodily tired. In this situation people had not plenty of foods and nutritious food.

The babies and children were deprived of getting nutrition and vitamins. So, they could not groom-up with their body fitness. They were like poor, ill-fated Asmany as depicted by poet Jasim uddin. At that time, the village people could not communicate with person who are living far in the country and even abroad. So, this was a picture of our villages that time. Today, the developmental waves are flowing in every places. If one is just out of his doors one can see many many stationary shops, mobile shops, mobile servecing centre. ICT centre and above all, one can see motor bykes. CNG bykes, ricksaw, bus, truck etc.

People can now easily load and unload their commodities. They can easily export and import their valuable items within a few hours and can easily move to work place, markets and relatives house. It is now much easier. Businessmen carry on their business, farmers can do their job, students can easily go to their schools and colleges. But in our time, all above mentioned things wern not so easy. Now villages are no more rural areas, they are almost nearer to urban. At present village people are very smart. They speak smartly. Village people are no more rustic. Rather they are stylish and fashionable. In our time, we were used to wear lungi, fotua and napkin in the neck.

Now the village people wear polished punjabi, pant, shirt etc. Boys and girls wear 3-quarter pants and modren ganji. There are changes in man's behavior. There are changes in life style. Even there are changes in the conditions of roads, markets and schools.

There are also changes in all cultural and social festivals. At present, there are changes in sprots arena also. Now village people are urban people are treated as town living people and enjoying all the facilities of urban life. But it is very alarming that we are filling up cannels, ponds and ditches. As a result, water is being logged and we become victim of falsh flood.

For this we suffer a lot. Nature becomes annoyed with us and fall us in troubles. But there is an alternative way which can save us form danger. In conclusions, we can say that we are passing modren times with a changing of time. And we are a advancing with courage and valour for a peaceful and stabled Bangladesh.


The Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Nicholas Okoh, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government to act fast to arrest the starvation in the land.

There is hunger in the land and the Federal Government should make haste to salvage the deplorable situation, Mr. Okoh said Sunday.

In his Presidential address to the Diocese of Abuja Synod held at Basilica of Grace Gudu, Abuja , Primate Okoh said apart from the languishing starvation among the workforce, the pensioners, who were suffering, needed to be remembered too.

He commended the Federal Government for the steps it took in responding to the cries of workers on their meager wages, saying: The economic realities of the present day makes this step an imperative.

He also said the widespread unemployment in the country should be tackled as a matter of priority.

 Government should expedite action in this direction so that our young people can make meaningful contribution to society and find fulfillment in their father-land, the bishop said.

On a strong note, he called on every Nigerian to be prepared for the 2019 General Election by ensuring that each eligible voter is duly registered. No amount of inconveniences you may face in the course of registering and obtaining your Permanent Voters Card (PVC) can be comparable to sitting on the fence.

For those seeking re- election, he said : We charge you all to look critically at the conditions in the country before presenting yourselves.

It will be a moral evil for any candidate to gain the confidence of the people, then after being elected into power, instead of improving the lots of the country, to turn round and start t o blame past governments. Nigerians are tired of retrogression and stagnancy. We need to move forward.

The Primate called on the government to do something urgent about the mindless killings going on in Nigeria.

Something drastic should be done to secure the lives and property of Nigerians, anywhere in the country, he said. Otherwise, if they are killed there will be nobody , to vote come 2019; and without the people, there cannot be any government.

Mr. Okoh commended the governments stand against same sex marriage.  it is a stand for the marriage and family institutions as God made them. It is a stand against satan and the work of darkness.
Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi on Sunday warned against a selective method of fighting corruption, if the government was desirous of a successful anti-corruption fight.

The governor also commended President Muhammadu Buharis commitment to the war on corruption, describing him as a man of integrity.

According to him, if the government desires to achieve overwhelming result in its fight against corruption, it must adopt inclusive approach rather than selective method.

The governor made this remark at a media chat to mark the occasion of the 2018 Democracy Day at the Government House, Abakaliki.

He added that such approach should also be devoid of any political undertone for the efforts to have a wide public acceptability.

The governor said Nigerians should laud the federal government for its determined effort in tackling the ugly monster in the country.

He noted that it was imperative for the Nigerian government to reduce corruption to its barest minimum in in order for the country to regain its pride of place among the comity of nations.

The governor, however, opined that proactive measure rather reactive measure, would give the nation the much desired result in its quest to reducing corruption to its barest minimum.

I recommend proactive measure for the fight against corruption. President Muhammadu Buharis ant-corruption fight is laudable; he means well and he is a man of integrity.

I support the call that those who had embezzled our money should be able to give account of it and we must have the fear of God in whatever we do, Mr Umahi said.

Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi

On his administrations achievement, Mr Umahi noted that various ministries, departments and agencies in the state had performed optimally.

He said his administration had focused mainly on people oriented programmes, especially in the area of empowerment, and the payment of hospital bills for indigent persons in the state among others.

(NAN)
Concerns are growing about the security situation at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, as some students allege some of their colleagues exhibit tendencies similar to those of cultists.

Cultism is believed to be a rarity on OAU campus, with the sustained consciousness and movement against the act, following the infamous July 10, 1999 killings of five students of the school, including then Students Union secretary general, George Iwilade.

However, many students of the university say cult-like actions such as harassment, bullying, open use of illicit drugs and flaunting of fraternal paraphernalia are now rampant on campus.

The students mentioned public places on campus where such acts are rampant as AngloMoz car park between male and female freshmen halls of residence, the halls of residence, New Buka and the academic area.

But the university says these are one-off cases and suggest they should not be regarded as cult activities.

Nevertheless, some students appear to believe the days of zero-cultism are over. The mindset over the years is that OAU is one of the most peaceful campuses in the country and every student has that confidence to walk at any time of the day and night, said a student, seeking not to be named for fear he could be attacked again.

While we are aware that they operate underground, they are becoming brutal these days. I was attacked at sport complex axis after I finished praying. Suddenly, I saw these two hefty men who asked that I give them my phone and wrist watch.

As someone who has stayed for more than two sessions on campus, I asked them if they were doing aro (sarcasm) and one of them slapped me, asked me to kneel down. They overpowered me and took away my phone and wristwatch. They, however, left a warning that I should never pass through where they saw me at late hours.

Another student, who identified himself as Opeyemi, alleged that the activities of the suspected cultists are more rampant in the halls of residence.

I stayed in Angola hall last semester as a fresh student and I witnessed several students at night smoking recklessly in the bush behind the last block of the hall, he said. They were seen countless times consuming hard drugs such as codeine and Tramadol. I went to the security unit to complain. I was asked to write a statement which I did but, unfortunately, nothing was done.

The most dangerous aspect of it is that some fresh students then (now in 200 level) even smoke in the rooms and often spray the odour with air fresher.

Speaking with our correspondent, a freshman Law student said: We are intimidated and harassed, threatened and molested. Last week, Faculty of Law Students Association organised a party for us and suddenly a guy with a yellow beret and yellow belt was misbehaving, posing threat to us. I told my friend I would not be attending the party because I recognised that he was putting on a beret that belongs to one of these cult groups.

Suddenly, the security van came to take him away. Just Wednesday, I heard some 200 level students beat up a fresher along Awolowo  ETF hall axis and dared him to report to anybody. They even collected his phone and threw it in the bush to punish him.

Students blame the situation on the absence of the Students Union, which had traditionally been responsible for security and mobilisation of its members against cultism. PREMIUM TIMES reported how the union was suspended last year by the university management due to the activities of some of its leaders.

While reacting, the schools chief security officer, Babatunde Oyatokun, confirmed receiving reports relating to concerns raised by the students who spoke with our correspondent. He, however, said the university would keep working to maintain its reputation for a peaceful campus and zero tolerance for cultism.

The issue of flying of colours particularly that of yellow beret was reported last week to be precise, he said. However, the guy in question was not our student, he was invited by one of our students to the campus. He is a student of Oduduwa University Ipetumodu, a private University here in Ife. So because of that we referred the case to police and asked them to investigate him.

We took his picture and declared him undesirable on our campus. So, that was the step taken by us. The student he followed in was seriously warned because he is a fresh student who we saw as one who does not know the custom of the school. So, we warned him against future occurrence.

He said there had only been one reported case of bullying or harassment.

Concerning bullying, well, the only information I have was that of a 200 level student that slapped a 100 level student and both of them are in my custody, I have obtained statements from both parties and anyone that is liable, the university has a template. There is an internal mechanism to handle such case. I have completed my report.

Stating further, he said: We are working tirelessly on students that may have tendency of taking hard drugs. Last week, we moved around all the chemists and pharmacies on campus to check if they are selling codeine or Tramadol. So, for now, we have not been able to lay hands on any and we are still working on it seriously. Our men are on patrol day and night with covert and overt surveillance.
The Oluwo of Iwo, Osun State, Abdurasheed Akanbi, on Saturday doned customary Igbo dress as he installed an Asiwaju of Igbo Assembly in his kingdom.

The monarch recently stirred controversy after he announced he would be taking a new title of Emir (of Yorubaland), a title commonly used for monarchs in the Hausa/Fulani kingdoms in Nigerias north. He said he was attracted by the unity and decorum among the northern monarchs, saying the same could not be said of his fellow Yoruba monarchs.

Then, his action was widely condemned among the Yoruba in Nigerias west.

At Saturdays ceremony, where he installed Martins Odumegwu the Asiwaju of Igbo Assembly, the moarch said he was motivated by the imperative of uniting Nigerias groups as a father to the nation. He asked his fellow monarchs to emulate him.

Im wearing Igwe dress to demonstrate my unrepentant insistence on the oneness of Nigeria as a father to the nation, he said. Nigerians should integrate through occasional multi-ethnic dresses. Other Obas need to adopt the system to promote unity.

He continued: The adoption of state of origin is a threat to our unity. Nigerians should be Nigerians in Nigeria. The certificate is divisive. As a Nigerian, you should be able to contest for elective positions anywhere in Nigeria. Ethnicity doesnt permit this. Traditional rulers have role to play. Im leading this and will continue.

Palace is a rallying point and general place for every Nigerian. It jumps the political, religious, ethnic and economic barriers. Everyone, irrespective of your location, should be able to approach any palace and make your request. Palace belongs to Nigerians, not a certain ethnic class.

Unlike mosque and church which Muslims and Christians have respective exclusive access to, palace should accommodate everyone whether you are Muslim or Christian, Yoruba, Hausa or Igbo.

Oluwo of Iwo, AbdulRasheed Akanbi in Igbo attire. Oluwo of Iwo, AbdulRasheed Akanbi in Igbo attire.

As fathers to the nation, we left no alternative than to make our palaces accessible to all Nigerians and be prompt in intervening in any brewing issue before escalating.
By: U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse

Contact

Center for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA)

Jade Her

***@centerforpublicpolicyanalysis.org Center for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA)Jade Her

End

-- As Memorial Day approaches, Lao and Hmong veterans of the Vietnam War in Laos are being honored at national ceremonies according to the Center for Public Policy Analysis (CPPA)."As Memorial Day approaches, Lao and Hmong veterans are being honored at national veterans ceremonies and events at Arlington National Cemetery, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the White House, the U.S. Congress and the Department of Veterans Affairs," said Philip Smith, director of the CPPA and National Liaison of the Lao Veterans of America (LVA). "Lao- and Hmong-American veterans' memorial ceremonies commemorating National Lao Hmong Veterans Recognition Day (May 14-15) are part of the events being held in Washington and nationwide."Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) honored Lao- and Hmong-American veterans who aided the U.S. during the Vietnam War at a wreath-laying ceremony before Arlington Cemetery's Lao Veterans Monument today. In remarks, Whitehouse offered a remembrance of the heroism of Hmong and Lao soldiers during the Vietnam War, which claimed tens of thousands of lives in Laos. Whitehouse was joined by several Lao and Hmong veterans and their families, including a large contingent from Rhode Island."We will always remember the bravery of those Hmong troops and their dedication to fight for democracy and to protect the lives of so many young Americans at war in Southeast Asia," said Whitehouse, whose father served as Ambassador to Laos during the Vietnam War and later joined the effort to recognize Lao- and Hmong-Americans' service.Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed into law Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Whitehouse's Hmong Veterans Service Recognition Act to allow the burial of naturalized Lao and Hmong veterans in U.S. veterans' cemeteries.The ceremony took place in front of a plaque dedicated to Hmong and Lao veterans. "It is a fitting honor for those brave combat veterans that they lie beside old comrades-in-arms, a way of keeping the promise inscribed on this memorial plaque, which pledges that the Hmong and Lao veterans' 'patriotic valor and loyalty in the defense of liberty and democracy will never be forgotten,'"Whitehouse added.The Lao Veterans of America (LVA) organized today's wreath laying. Members of the LVA include surviving Lao- and Hmong-American soldiers and airmen who served during the Vietnam War. The LVA is active in states around the country that are home to Lao and Hmong communities, including Rhode Island."Good morning, and thank you for inviting me to join you today in this hallowed place. We come together here with many memories," said U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse."As a young man, I lived with my father while he served as U.S. Ambassador to Laos. I came to know it as a heartbreakingly beautiful country, with lovely, kind people, into which our international contest with communism violently intruded."The goal of the U.S. in Laos at the time was to prevent North Vietnamese forces from using Laos as a supply line for attacks on South Vietnam, along what was known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail; and to prevent Laos itself from falling under Communist domination by the Pathet Lao forces."And so began a covert war in Laos, funded by the C.I.A., in which at least 35,000 Lao and Hmong perished."The legendary Hmong military leader, General Vang Pao, operated out of a base at Long Tieng in the mountains of Laos. He told the New York Times in 2008 that 'There were three missions that were very important that were given to us and to me ... One was stopping the flow of the North Vietnamese troops through the Ho Chi Minh Trail to go to the south through Laos. Second was to rescue any American pilots during the Vietnam War. Third, to protect the Americans that navigated the B-52s and the jets to bomb North Vietnam.'"After the war, thousands of displaced Hmong refugees were obliged to flee Laos. They fled into Thailand, to countries in Europe, and - in many cases - to the United States. My state of Rhode Island is proud to have had many settle and build their lives in our communities."The Hmong Veterans' Service Recognition Act passed into law this year, finally allowing naturalized Hmong- and Laotian-American veterans to be buried in U.S. national cemeteries. In particular, I want to thank my fellow Rhode Islander Philip Smith, of the Lao Veterans of America, for his determined advocacy on behalf of Hmong and Lao veterans."Twenty-one years ago, the Clinton Administration authorized a plaque to be placed at Arlington National Cemetery commemorating the valor of the Lao soldiers who aided American forces during the Vietnam War. It is a fitting honor for those brave combat veterans that they lie beside old comrades-in-arms, a way of keeping the promise inscribed on this memorial plaque, which pledges that the Hmong and Lao veterans' 'patriotic valor and loyalty in the defense of liberty and democracy will never be forgotten'..."It is with that sense of abiding gratitude that we gather today. We will always remember the bravery of those Hmong troops and their dedication to fight for democracy and to protect the lives of so many young Americans at war in Southeast Asia," Whitehouse concluded.
KELOWNA, BC, May 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Marapharm Ventures Inc. (CSE: MDM) (OTCQX: MRPHF) (FSE: 2M0) ("Marapharm" or the "Company") has been asked by OTC Markets to provide clarification regarding recent marketing activities.

On Tuesday May 22, 2018, the OTC contacted the Company regarding distributed promotional material. The Company entered into two investment awareness paid contracts, one on May 15, 2018, with Al and J Media, the other on May 20, 2018, with Link Media LLC, both of which are located on Wall Street, New York. The Company was not directly involved in the dissemination or payment of promotional material.

The material content of the news letters is a compilation of facts gathered from our website, previous news releases and public sources and was reviewed by the Company for accuracy prior to dissemination and distribution by the marketing companies. The Company does not condone material that was included that is speculative in nature and there is no guarantee of an increase in value whether stated as a monetary value or percentage increase in yield. On Tuesday May 22, 2018, there was a marked increase in volume traded.

The purpose of entering into these contracts is to provide consultation, strategic alliances, and introduction to media and advertising agencies. It is understood that contractors will utilize social media platforms, podcasts, newsletters, and advertising to disclose the progress which Marapharm is making with respect to its investment in the cannabis industry in the United States, the "Marapharm Story".

The Company is not aware of any third party, person or shareholder other than the aforementioned contractors, providing marketing at this time. Increased market activity is not the result of selling by any officers, directors or control persons. Insiders, all directors of the Company have exercised 500,000 stock options and purchased 1,734,104 units at $0.865 per unit of the Company in the last 90 days.

The following is a list of Companies engaged over the last 12 months to provide awareness services for the Company:

European Market: Bullvestor, Loud Media, Solar Properties Ltd. American Market: Al and J media, Clear Stock, GS Whitney, Market IQ, Link Media LLC, Pioneer Ventures Inc. Canadian Market: Hilltop Business Center Ltd. In House: Jason Shepherd (Investor Relations), Ikardia Ventures Inc. (creation of Marapharm TV) and CNW (News dissemination)

All of the above was paid cash on invoice or were issued shares at market value for their services, with the exception of Solar Properties Ltd., Pioneer Ventures Inc., and Hilltop Business Center, who were engaged in September 2016, on a contract at $0.73c per share. The second issuance of shares for their services to these companies was in February 2017, when the share price in the market had increased to $1.69c per share.

"We are at a culminating moment in the development of our Company and our role in this historical cannabis movement. We look forward to our engagement with these two successful firms who will share our progress with a much broader audience". Linda Sampson, CEO.

ABOUT MARAPHARM VENTURES INC.

www.marapharm.com

Marapharm is a publicly traded company investing in the medical and recreational cannabis space, since 2014. Marapharm has rapidly expanded to include having cultivation, production and dispensary locations in the key North American states of Washington, Nevada, and California, and are seeking expansion opportunities worldwide.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

Facebook: facebook.com/marapharm

Twitter: twitter.com/marapharm

Web Program: marapharm.tv

STOCK EXCHANGES:

Marapharm trades in Canada, ticker symbol MDM on the CSE, in the United States, ticker symbol MRPHF on the OTCQX, and in Europe, ticker symbol 2M0 on the FSE. Marapharm also trades on other recognized platforms in Europe including Stuttgart, Tradegate, L & S, Quotnx, Dusseldorf, Munich, and Berlin.

Neither the CSE, the FSE nor the OTCQX has approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. Neither the CSE, the FSE nor the OTCQX accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

MARIJUANA INDUSTRY INVOLVEMENT:

Canadian listings (CSE) will remain in good standing as long as they provide the disclosure that is rightly required by regulators and complying with applicable licensing requirements and the regulatory framework enacted by the applicable state in which they operate.

Marapharm owns marijuana licenses in California and Nevada. Marijuana is legal in each state however marijuana remains illegal under US federal law and the approach to enforcement of US federal law against marijuana is subject to change. Shareholders and investors need to be aware that adverse enforcement actions could affect their investments and that Marapharm's ability to access private and public capital could be affected and or could not be available to support continuing operations. Marapharm's business is conducted in a manner consistent with state law and is in compliance with licensing requirements.

Copies of licenses are posted on Marapharm's website. Marapharm has internal compliance procedures in place and has compliance focused attorneys engaged in jurisdictions to monitor changes in laws for compliance with US federal and state law on an ongoing basis. These law firms inform any necessary changes to our policies and procedures for compliance in Canada and the US.

FORWARD - LOOKING STATEMENTS:

Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward looking statements. The use of any of the words "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect", 'may", "will", "project", "should", 'believe", and similar expressions are intended to identify forward- looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward- looking statements are based on reasonable assumption but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and the forward-looking statements included in this news release should not be unduly relied upon.

SOURCE Marapharm Ventures Inc.

Related Links

www.marapharm.com


ROCKVILLE, Md., May 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- DrFirst Healthcare Innovations, Inc., the Canadian subsidiary of DrFirst, a leading provider of patient medication management solutions, announced that South Okanagan General Hospital in Oliver, British Columbia, has deployed MedHx, DrFirst's electronic patient medication history service, integrated within the hospital's MEDITECH Enterprise Health Record (EHR). MedHx allows physicians, nurses, and pharmacists to electronically retrieve patient medication histories from PharmaNet, British Columbia's province-wide prescription network, and download the information directly into MEDITECH, creating more complete medication histories for enhanced patient safety and streamlined workflows.

South Okanagan is part of British Columbia's Interior Health Authority, which has contracted with DrFirst to integrate MedHx with MEDITECH at 22 different hospitals. By integrating the PharmaNet drug information system and the MEDITECH EHR, MedHx delivers to clinicians the most comprehensive patient prescription and allergy histories available directly within the clinical workflow.

MedHx incorporates DrFirst's SmartSuite functionality (SmartSig, SmartAllergy and SmartDx) to intelligently analyze and translate free-text prescription information to further improve the quality of the data and the workflow associated with the medication reconciliation process. Drug data is validated and normalized using DrFirst technology, then sent to the MEDITECH EHR to automatically populate patient histories. With point-of-care access to vital drug dispensing details, physicians have more robust data available to them to drive well-informed prescribing decisions.

"The DrFirst and MEDITECH collaboration facilitates the delivery of safer, more timely care for patients," said Hoda Sayed-Friel, executive vice president, MEDITECH. "Through this integration, clinicians have a more comprehensive summary of the patient's medication information. The PharmaNet medication and allergy data is instantly available within existing clinical workflows, enabling physicians to more quickly and efficiently gather a holistic view of reconciled medication information."

MedHx reduces the time needed to manually research a patient's medication history by as much as 62 percent. As patients are admitted to the hospital, MedHx electronically retrieves patient medication histories from PharmaNet and feeds the data to MEDITECH. Since launching MedHx, South Okanagan clinicians query the medication profiles for 100 percent of patients entering the hospital, eliminating the need for time-consuming data entry and reconciliation, while simultaneously creating a more accurate medical record.

"By implementing the integrated MedHx and MEDITECH solution, Interior Health has demonstrated its commitment to reducing the risk of adverse drug events and improving quality care delivery," said G. Cameron Deemer, president of DrFirst. "We look forward to working with the other hospitals in the province to replicate South Okanagan's success and make vital medication histories easily accessible to clinicians. Both physicians and patients will benefit from more efficient workflows and more complete patient records."

Through the end of the year, Interior Health will integrate MedHx with existing MEDITECH EHRs at Royal Inland Hospital, Vernon Jubilee Hospital, Kelowna General Hospital and Penticton Regional Hospital. The balance of the hospitals will be implemented thereafter.

About PharmaNet

PharmaNet is the province-wide network that links all British Columbia pharmacies to a central data system. Every prescription dispensed in community pharmacies in B.C. is entered into PharmaNet. PharmaNet, administered by the Ministry of Health, was developed in consultation with health professionals and the public to improve prescription safety and support prescription claim processing. PharmaNet users include community pharmacies, hospital pharmacies, emergency departments, hospitals, community health practices, the College of Pharmacists of B.C. and the College of Physicians & Surgeons of B.C. For more information, please visit www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/health/health-drug-coverage/pharmacare-for-bc-residents/pharmanet.

About Interior Health Authority

Interior Health is the publicly funded healthcare provider in the Southern Interior area of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Interior Health was established as one of five geographically based health authorities in 2001 by the Government of British Columbia. It is responsible for ensuring publicly funded health services are provided to the 743,000 people of the Southern Interior, a large geographic area covering almost 215,000 square kilometres and includes larger cities such as Kelowna, Kamloops, Cranbrook, Penticton and Vernon, and a multitude of rural and remote communities. For more information, please visit www.interiorhealth.ca.

About MEDITECH

The next digital transformation of healthcare is underway, and MEDITECH is leading the charge with Expanse, the only full-scale EHR designed specifically for the post-Meaningful Use era. As a leading EHR vendor for over 45 years, MEDITECH's solutions have empowered 2,350+ customers across 22 different countries to provide higher quality care, with greater efficiency, to more people, at a lower cost. Today, our cutting-edge solutions are helping organizations to see healthcare through a new lens and navigate this virtual landscape with unparalleled vision and clarity. Whether your destination is clinical efficiency, analytical prowess, or financial success, MEDITECH's bold innovation, passion, and expertise will get you where you want to go. Visit ehr.meditech.com, our Newsroom and Blog, and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to start your journey today.

About DrFirst

DrFirst Healthcare Innovations, Inc., the Canadian subsidiary of DrFirst, the nation's leading provider of e-prescribing and medication management solutions, enables stakeholders across the healthcare industry to intelligently utilize comprehensive real-time data and connectivity to increase their patient safety ratings, efficiency and profitability. Today, more than 170,000 healthcare professionals and more than 60% of electronic health record vendors, depend on DrFirst's innovative software solutions to improve clinical workflows, expedite secure collaboration across a patient's care team and drive better health outcomes. The company's integrated technologies include its award-winning electronic prescribing platform, the most comprehensive medication history available, clinically specialized secure messaging, as well as patient medication adherence monitoring and benefits checking. In addition, DrFirst was the first to offer e-prescribing for controlled substances (EPCS), which is considered the industry standard for providers nationwide. For more information, please visit www.drfirst.com or connect with us @DrFirst.

DrFirst Media Contact:

Jenna Warner

Amendola Communications

480-664-8412 x 19

[email protected]

MEDITECH Media Contact:

Paul Berthiaume

Senior Manager, Marketing Communications

MEDITECH

781-774-5742

[email protected]

Liz Carroll

Manager, Public Relations and Media Relations

MEDITECH

781-774-3297

[email protected]

SOURCE DrFirst

Related Links

http://www.drfirst.com


Week 6 of Big 7 football is upon us With this being Week 6 of Valley high school football, the mid-point of the 2021/2022 season is upon us. While some teams have played one game more or less than others, depending on when they each had their bye weeks scheduled, going into this weekend, five
Kollam (Kerala) : Kollam (Kerala) May 19 (IANS) UAE-based Aries Group on Saturday announced it will use its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds to produce 1,000 regional films in the next five years under its "Project Indywood".

The project will be launched with the pooja of a film titled "Aickkarakonathe Bhishaguaranmaar" at Punalur near here on Sunday, said Aries Group Chairman and CEO Sohan Roy.

"'Aickkarakonathe Bhishaguaranmaar; will mark the launch of Project Indywood's ambitious plan to produce 1,000 regional movies in India in the next five years. Besides prominent actors from the industry, twenty talents discovered through the national-level auditions conducted by Indywood Talent Hunt will play important roles in the movie," he told media here.

Biju Majeed will direct the film, whose script is written by K. Shibu Raj. P.C. Lal will wield the camera and Biju Ram will compose the music for the film, which would be shot in Kerala and completed in one schedule.

Roy, a Kerala-born marine engineer-turned-film director, shot to international acclaim in 2011 with his film "DAM999" which was selected for the Oscar race that year in three categories - Original Song, Original Score and Best Picture.

Though "DAMA999", which tells the tale of a cracking dam built during colonial rule and how it impacts nine characters, failed to secure a place in the final nomination list of the 84th Academy Awards, it bagged two honorary awards at the Global Music Awards held at California.
Teesta treaty still a far cry

YESTERDAY, Bangladesh Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held a closed-door meeting for about an hour at a five-star hotel in Kolkata. Although they discussed a lot of issues such as education, trade and economic ties, the much anticipated Teesta water-sharing deal did not figure in this all important meeting, according to Indian media. Hasina returned home Saturday night, wrapping up her two-day official visit to West Bengal.

The Mathabhanga-Churni rivers, along with the Teesta, are among the 54 transboundary rivers shared by India and Bangladesh. Together, they form a part of the Brahmaputra-Ganga-Meghna (GBM) basin which occupies an area of 1.7 million kms across five countries, namely Bangladesh, India, China, Nepal and Bhutan and is home to 630 million people. Despite its sheer vastness, multiple riparians and huge population, the GBM basin is not subject to any comprehensive, multilateral water cooperation and management mechanisms. Instead, a number of formal and informal bilateral mechanisms have been established to jointly manage certain sub-basins.

The Indo-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) is one such mechanism established jointly by India and Bangladesh in 1972 to work "together in harnessing the rivers common to both the countries for the benefit of the peoples of the two countries". Since its very inception though, the JRC has been singularly focused on the Ganga River and rather unknowingly sowed the seeds of a fragmented outlook towards the larger river basin shared by India and Bangladesh.

But the key to this is Mamata Banerjee--without her support the central government won't unilaterally supply the Teesta water to Bangladesh. And no one so far has been able to move Mamata from her unyielding stance on the water sharing as it would affect her vote bank adversely. It is in India's interest that the Awami League government maintains power in the upcoming national elections of Bangladesh, against the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) which has vociferously criticised Sheikh Hasina and India over the non-signing of the Teesta agreement.

India can no longer pursue the tactic of offering more and more cooperation and aid in various areas to Bangladesh while hanging the Teesta issue because of domestic politics. Sooner or later, it will have to prioritise signing the agreement by getting Mamata to cooperate on sharing Teesta's waters with Bangladesh. But when it will happen, if at all, is still a guess.






Washington, May 22 : A former US Navy veteran, serving life in prison for killing Indian engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla and injuring two others at a bar in Kansas city in 2017, has pleaded guilty to hate crime charges.

Adam Purinton, 53, admitted on Monday that he fatally shot Kuchibhotla in February 2017 after confronting him and his co-worker Alok Madasani at Austins Bar & Grill in Olathe, the Kansas City Star reported.

Purinton pleaded guilty in US District Court in Kansas to three federal hate-crime charges saying that he targeted the men "because of their actual and perceived race, colour, religion and national origin".

American man Ian Grillot, was also wounded having tried to intervene.

Purinton called the Indian men "terrorists" and yelled "Get out of my country!", before proceeding with the shooting.

He was earlier jailed for 50 years without parole on state murder charges.

Federal prosecutors said Purinton targeted the two Indian nationals "because of their actual and perceived race, colour, religion and national origin".

Kuchibhotla's widow Sunayana Dumala did not attend the court hearing but later released a statement thanking federal prosecutors and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

"The change in the federal hate crime case against the murderer of my husband Srinu is a significant step to putting an end to hate crimes committed against people of colour and from different cultures... The actions of the court send a strong message that hate is never acceptable," she said.

As part of Monday's plea agreement in the federal case, prosecutors agreed to not seek death sentence for Purinton.

He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, which is the sentence that the prosecution and defence jointly requested. The judge set sentencing for July 2.

"Hate crimes are acts of evil. While we cannot ameliorate the irreparable harm to the victims and their families, we hope that securing this guilty plea brings them some measure of closure," Acting Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio said in a statement.

In March, Purinton pleaded guilty in Johnson County to a charge of first-degree murder as well as two counts of attempted first-degree murder for wounding Madasani and Grillot.

Earlier in May, a Johnson County judge sentenced him to life in prison.
New Delhi, May 23 : The Delhi government's Department for Welfare of Dalits, Tribals, and Minorities has been working with a vacancy of about 60 per cent and the central government is to be blamed for the staff crunch which is inhibiting the government's ability to deliver on its promises, says Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Minister Rajendra Pal Gautam.

"All departments in the Delhi government has staff shortage. There is shortage in the Health Department also. But in my departments the staff shortage is a little more," the minister said.

In Delhi, the Services Department which oversees the appointment of officers is under the ambit of central government appointed Lt. Governor, with whom the AAP government has been in a rocky relationship for the four years it has been in power.

In an interview with IANS, Gautam talked about the difficulties the AAP government faces and tussle for power between the Delhi government and the Lt. Governor, Anil Baijal.

The minister also said that the Social Welfare Department has been facing "approximately 48 per cent staff shortage".

Gautam said the BJP-led central government was "shooting from the shoulders" of Lt. Governor and other bureaucrats, and was "hell bent on stifling the Delhi government."

The staff shortage in the Social Welfare Department was emblematic about the larger tussle, he said. "I'm not able to do what I want to do as a minister because of the staff crunch," Gautam lamented.

"I had written to the LG about the vacant posts about six months back, but he has not replied yet," Gautam said and added that after writing twice to the Chief Secretary, the latter had promised to fill the vacancies.

"He has been promising for the past five months," he said.

The minister said that the Special Director's post in Social Welfare Department was lying vacant and also there was no fulltime Director, as the officer holds an additional charge of Department of Women and Child Development.

"People are not interested about SC/ST, Social Welfare, and DFSDC," the minister said.

According to an outcome report of the Delhi government tabled in the Assembly in March, the Department for Welfare of SC, ST, OBC, and Minorities was one of the worst performers with only 45 per cent of indicators of projects and schemes being "on track".

In January, shortage of pharmacists in Delhi government-run hospitals had become a flashpoint between the AAP government and Baijal, with the former blaming the Lt. Governor for the vacancy.

The AAP government had in the past also locked horns with the Lt. Governor over a range of government programmes including door-step delivery of services and Mohalla Clinics among others, as most schemes and programmes need approval from the Lt. Governor.

Earlier this month, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had termed a committee formed by the Lt. Governor to look into installation of CCTVs in the city as "unconstitutional" and declared it as "void".

The power tussle between the Delhi government and the centre has been going on ever since the AAP government came to power in Delhi, and in 2016, the Delhi High Court ordered that the Lt. Governor was the administrative head of the national capital.

The Delhi government challenged the order in the Supreme Court and in December 2017, the court reserved its verdict on whether the Centre or the Delhi government has the powers to administer the national capital.

(Nikhil M Babu can be reached at nikhil.b@ians.in)
New Delhi : For the past several winters, Delhi has drawn global attention for its life-threatening smog levels. This is attributed, in part, to the open burning of biomass residues like paddy straw and stubble in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana.

Ironically, while these residues can contribute to lethal levels of air pollution when burnt, they can in fact reduce air pollution if converted to biomass-based fuels. So, with a no-brainer solution to the capital's annual problem, what has held back its implementation?

The biofuels story so far in India has been pretty underwhelming, despite commendable efforts initiated by the government over the last decade and a half.

The Ethanol Blended Petrol Programme (EBP), launched in 2003, aimed at promoting five per cent blending of molasses-based ethanol with petrol. In 2008, the EBP further pushed the blending target to 10 per cent and allowed production from sugarcane juice as well.

The National Biodiesel Mission, formed by the Planning Commission in 2003, proposed a two-phase strategy for biodiesel production from jatropha seeds to achieve a 10 per cent blending mandate with diesel by 2012.

Despite underachieving these blending targets, in 2009, the National Biofuels Policy set another ambitious target of 20 per cent blending for both ethanol and biodiesel by 2017. Today, we stand at best at a national average of 2.5 per cent ethanol and 0.5 per cent biodiesel blends.

The failure to achieve blending targets can be attributed to myriad reasons. The primary cause is the lack of an efficient and reliable supply chain. Biomass, which typically refers to plants, crop residues and organic wastes, comes in varying sizes and shapes, making transportation unwieldy and difficult to standardise as a process.

The fact that the quality of biomass varies with the type of crop adds to the difficulty of standardisation. Most crops and their residues are available on a seasonal basis and cannot be stored for long because they will rot. Even though biofuels have the potential to be carbon neutral, this is rarely achieved. Untreated raw biomass has a medium-to-low energy density, so the energy requirement for handling, transportation and processing trumps the energy content in the fuel -- making it a net emitter of carbon dioxide.

The need of the hour is a technology that can convert and compress biomass into a lighter, energy-dense solid, with a low moisture content and higher resistance to weather conditions. Torrefaction, if implemented properly, can be an apt solution.

Torrefaction is the process of slow heating or roasting of biomass in limited oxygen, to degrade the hemicellulose (which is the component of biomass responsible for its fibrous and unwieldy nature). This process releases moisture and some of the more volatile gases, thereby reducing the mass and volume but retaining most of the energy content.

Torrefied biomass is easy to transport and has attributes similar to high quality coal-high energy content, low ash and moisture content and higher resistance to weather conditions. In fact, it has a significant advantage over high quality coal -- it is a clean and a renewable resource.

Torrefied biomass could also be a good option for producing methanol. The government, advised by NITI Aayog, is interested in exploring the possibility of using methanol as an alternative fuel in India. Globally, the well-established technologies for methanol production use either natural gas or coal as the starting point.

Considering that India does not have sufficient indigenous natural gas reserves and that coal is a greenhouse gas nightmare, torrefied biomass could be a promising resource option. It can directly gel with the existing coal-to-methanol technologies.

Torrefied biomass also has the potential to produce compressed natural gas (bio-CNG) and biodiesel much better than raw biomass, because of the improved supply chain and lowered carbon emissions. These fuels use crop residues and wastes as feedstock for torrefaction, thereby relieving us from the food-versus-fuel conundrum.

There is, however, a catch. While torrefaction is a proven technology at a pilot scale, there are no large-scale commercial units yet that deal with all types of biomass residues. This is due to the lack of supporting mechanisms, both financial and infrastructural.

If the government can prioritise the set-up of a torrefaction demonstration plant, it would encourage investors to help carry this technology forward to commercialisation. With a robust biomass supply chain based on decentralised torrefaction units, the subsequent steps in the biofuels production process could easily fall into place.

Creating a well-oiled biomass supply chain machinery will, in turn, create a demand for straw and stubble residues, making it more profitable for farmers to sell rather than burn them. The proposed strategy is in the interest of farmer welfare, critical to air quality improvement and could present a major success story for biofuels in India.

(Ramya Natarajan is Senior Research Engineer at the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy [CSTEP], a technology policy think tank. The views expressed are those of CSTEP. The author can be contacted at ramya.n@cstep.in)
New Delhi, May 24 : Stressing that there has not been any significant loss of its market share owing to the rise of Chinese smartphone brands in India, a top Samsung executive has said the company is well prepared to fend off challenges from its competitors.

"India being the second largest smartphone market and the fastest growing globally, we have extremely aggressive plans for the country," Mohandeep Singh, Senior Vice-President, Mobile Business, Samsung India, told IANS here.

Samsung became the leader in the Indian flagship smartphone market, garnering 49.2 per cent share in the first quarter of 2018, the German research firm GfK revealed last week.

In the full financial year (April 2017-March 2018), Samsung registered 55.2 per cent market share in the Rs 40,000 and above price segment, said GfK that reports final consumption of the devices and not only shipments.

In March alone, the South Korean giant registered a massive 58 per cent market share in the flagship segment.

But in the mid-range and budget segments, the Chinese brands seem to have outperformed Samsung.

According to the International Data Corporation's (IDC) "Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker" report, Xiaomi maintained its lead in the Indian smartphone market with 30.3 per cent market share in the first quarter of 2018, while Samsung came second with 25.1 per cent share.

Xiaomi maintained its lead in the market for the second quarter in a row, the report said.

"More than the competition, we are focused on the consumers because that is where we find the inspiration for the products that we want to launch in the country," Singh noted.

In an apparent move to counter the competitively-priced Chinese smartphone brands, Samsung this week launched four new smartphones in its Galaxy "A" and "J" series with "Infinity Display" -- a bezel-less screen for an immersive viewing experience - which are priced between Rs. 13,990 to Rs. 25,990.

The devices are packed with smart features such as "Chat Over Video" that facilitates an uninterrupted viewing experience while chatting, memory management and automatic duplicate remover to free up phone space, and the Samsung Mall app that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enhance the shopping experience of the users.

While these phones are aggressively priced, Singh said that Samsung is not solely focused on bringing down the prices of its devices to stay ahead in the competition.

"More than the price, the Indian consumer is now looking for the right value in the products," Singh said, adding that what was acceptable to the consumer three to four years ago in a smartphone no longer works.

The average selling price (ASP) of smartphones in India has increased over the years and it will continue to go up.

While the Indian consumers are price-sensitive, they are now ready to pay a premium if the features in the phones are to their liking.

"As long as you are doing the right thing for the consumer, you would continue to grow in the market quite irrespective of the competition. That's where our focus is - what is it that the consumer requires from us," Singh told IANS.

Samsung has five R&D centres in India -- two in Bengaluru and one each in Noida, New Delhi and Pune.

Last year, the South Korean tech giant announced an investment of Rs 4,915 crore in India to boost the capacity of the company's Noida plant, where it manufactures smartphones, refrigerators and flat panel televisions.

"India is a very important market for Samsung. We are heavily invested in this country - whether it is manufacturing or R&D.

"We are preparing ourselves from every aspect to be able to grow alongside India's mammoth smartphone market," he added.

"We are a market leader not only in the premium but across categories, across segments. We expect to continue this momentum," Singh stressed.

(Gokul Bhagabati can be contacted at gokul.b@ian.in)
New Delhi, May 24 : There's only one year more to go for the BJP-led regime before another test at the hustings. But is the country any nearer to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promised 'acche din' (good days)?

Four years ago, the country had voted the present regime to power on hopes of better days in all socio-economic-political spheres. But despite some strong structural reforms like GST, and gut-wrenching changes like demonetisation, the jury may still be out on how good it has been, according to economists and others experts.

Despite India's GDP growth of 7.2 per cent in the third quarter (October-December) of 2017-18, some economists feel that the demonetisation drive, avowedly taken to "cleanse the system" of black money, had ended up damaging the country's economy instead.

"Demonetisation was a terrible mistake by the government, for which the common people paid the price. It has reduced people's trust in the banking system, as they were denied their own money during the period of cash crunch. It takes so much time and work to build institutions and policies -- it is so much easier and faster to break things," Jayati Ghosh, Economics Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), told IANS.

The government decided to ban 1,000 rupee and 500-rupee notes on November 8, 2016, taking away 86 per cent of the total currency in circulation. "May be this move had served the government's purpose politically, but economically it was a bad one," Ghosh added.

Echoing similar views, Arun Kumar, former professor of economics at the JNU, told IANS that when the NDA government came in, the Indian economy was already on an upward trajectory. The quarter, in which the government took over, the growth climbed to eight per cent. In October 2016, India was the fastest growing economy in the world when China slowed down a bit.

"But then the government administered a shock to the system with demonetisation. It had a negative impact on the unorganised sector that comprise 45 per cent of production and 93 per cent of employment in the country. According to some estimation, 50-80 per cent of that got damaged," he said.

Kumar, who is now Chair-Professor with the Institute of Social Sciences, added: "Government did no survey at that time and hence no data is available. Even data from International Monetary Fund and World Bank, which rely on government data, do not show any estimates (on impact)."

After demonetisation, credit off-take in the country declined sharply. "Between November-December 2016, it was at historic low of 60 years. Investment into the country also took a big hit," he said.

However, Ranen Banerjee, Partner & Leader, Public Finance and Economics, at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has a different take on some of the benefits flowing from the action.

"Demonetisation had positive impact as far as digital payments were concerned. It shot up sharply during that period but came down subsequently. The level is still higher earlier. But demonetisation as a measure did not deliver all the results that it was supposed to deliver," Banerjee said.

The government's other major thrust, though, on Goods and Services Tax (GST) -- rolled out on July 1 last year, got better billing. Economists are hopeful that it will bring in beneficial changes once the hiccups are over. Banerjee says GST would change the entire landscape of tax compliance in the country by creating a multiplier effect. "GST was a bold move which is showing positive results," he added.

Ghosh, though, thinks GST goes against the grain of federalism. "A unified system is not so necessary in a federal structure -- for example, the US does not have it and still has a very modern economy. In a federal structure you have to allow states to have some money raising power. Further, GST implementation has been really bad."

Kumar said: "Introduction of GST has hit the unorganised sector badly. Even in Malaysia where GST was introduced in 2015-16 at 26 per cent, government decided to scrap it. The organised sector is rising at the expense of unorganised sector. Disparity is rising."

Industry chambers have by and large welcomed government initiatives, especially the decision on GST. "The overall economy is strong with GST having settled down and reforms firmly on the right path," Chandrajit Banerjee, Director-General of Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), told IANS.

Over the last four years, according to him, the government had systematically addressed major "pain points" for the economy such as ease of doing business, non-performing assets of banks, foreign direct investment rules, infrastructure construction and exit of failing enterprises.

"The government's mission-mode development campaigns have delivered notable results, adding to overall growth multipliers. The firm level and sectoral level numbers look promising for the next year in terms of orders booked and capacity utilisation," said CII's Banerjee.

Former economics professor at Indian Statistical Institute, Dipankar Dasgupta, who holds that the economy was yet to recover from the hit it took because of demonetisation, says that on GST he was hopeful that with time it will stabilise. "In the other countries where it was introduced there were teething problems too," he said.

The government also took up the job to cleanse bad loans of banks. It is pumping in Rs 2.11 lakh crore as capitalisation, spread over two years. But a number of banking scandals and rising non-performing assets (NPA) may have reduced the faith of people in the bank system, after the shock of demonetisation. "We have declining deposits in the banking system due to people's rising mistrust," says Ghosh. Dasgupta says recapitalisation should be followed with caution so that it does not widen the fiscal deficit.

The government, though, has got support in its effort to tackle the issue of NPAs. The bankruptcy law has put everyone on notice. "People are taking the issue of NPAs seriously trying to resolve it. Companies are opting for out of court settlement. Propensity to comply has increased as borrowers know that there will be consequences on not servicing a loan," Banerjee of PriceWaterhouseCoopers said.

Yet, overall the promise of the golden pot at the end of the five-year rainbow, as promised by Modi in his of speeches -- where he had painted the BJP rule in attractive hues -- has not materialised in four years. BJP's best salesman may have oversold the hope.

"I do not blame this government for not being able to deliver 'achhe din'. Which government since Independence has?" asks Dasgupta rhetorically.

(Aparajita Gupta can be contacted at aparajita.g@ians.in)
New Delhi : If Narendra Modi expected Karnataka to be the icing on the cake on the eve of the completion of his four years in office, he must be disappointed.

Yet, the setback in the southern state is only one of the several reverses which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has suffered in the recent past. These include a series of by-election defeats in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and UP, which have not been adequately compensated by the party's successes in the northeast. That's because electoral outcomes in the country's heartland have a greater salience than those in a region generally regarded as remote.

Considering that three more assembly elections are due in the next few months where the BJP is facing the anti-incumbency factor, it is obvious that Modi's fourth anniversary is not the happiest of occasions. Several things appear to have gone wrong for the Prime Minister and his party. Foremost among them is the general bleakness of the economic scene because of the paucity of jobs and the continuing agrarian distress.

But even more than the economic woes -- which have led to the blanking out of the phrase 'achhe din' (good days) from the saffron lexicon -- what may have hurt the government even more is an intimidating atmosphere generated by a political project of virtually remoulding Indian society by obliterating all the supposed ignominy which the country is said to have suffered during the 1,200 years of "slavery" under Muslim and British rule. Not surprisingly, the 60-odd years of Congress rule have been included in this period of "alien" governance.

Hence, the rewriting of history textbooks and the packing of autonomous academic institutions with people in tune with the ruling party's thinking. These have been accompanied by the veneration of the cow and the targeting of "suspected" beef-eaters.

It is this imposition of the saffron writ which made former Vice President Hamid Ansari say that the Muslims were living in fear and led to protests by writers, historians, film makers and others within the first 12 months of Modi's rule who returned the awards which they had once won.

Instead of analysing why so many distinguished people were expressing their disquiet, the government and the BJP chose to dismiss them as "manufactured protests", in Arun Jaitley's words, and the dissatisfaction of a section which has lost the privileges which it had enjoyed under the previous dispensation. Evidently, the BJP believed that it was on the right track -- in fact, the protests may have reinforced this self-perception -- and that there was no need for a rethink.

Little wonder that the government took no notice of the two open letters written to it by groups of retired civil servants and a third by more than 600 academics, including those in the US, Britain and Australia. While the bureaucrats expressed distress at the decline of "secular, democratic and liberal values", the educationists regretted that not enough was being done for the vulnerable groups.

There is little doubt that the government has taken a number of initiatives to reach out to these groups. In a way, these "small" measures have mitigated to some extent the effects of the faltering on the macroeconomic front.

Among these measures is the Jan Dhan Yojana relating to small savings by ordinary people via a large number of bank accounts. However, although nearly all the households are now said to have access to banks, the number of people with inactive accounts is embarrassingly high.

It is the same with cooking gas connections, where consumption has not kept pact with the higher number of households with such facilities. There have been similar shortfalls on the cleanliness (Swachh Bharat) and electrification programmes as well.

According to official figures, 72.6 million household toilets have been built since 2014 and there are now 366,000 defecation-free villages. But the absence of independent verification of these claims has led to the World Bank withholding a $1.5 billion loan for these rural programmes.

Similarly, the official assertion about cent per cent electrification of the country has generally been taken with a pinch of salt since government data shows that there are still 31 million households without power and that the percentage reaches 60 in UP, Jharkhand and Assam.

It is on the highways' front that visible progress has been made with the raising of the construction target to 45 km per day from 27 km. The employment potential of such infrastructure projects is also high. Since 100 per cent foreign investment is allowed in this sector, an estimated $82 billion is expected for it in the next four years.

But all these initiatives should really have been an add-on to an atmosphere of economic buoyancy which is absent. This has been noted by a pro-Modi economist, who has said that the people are yet to see their lives improve materially. Unless this perception changes with, say, an implementation of the Modicare programme of medical insurance in the next few months, the government will not be able to look forward to next year's general election with high hopes.

(Amulya Ganguli is a political analyst. He can be reached at amulyaganguli@gmail.com)
Abu Dhabi, May 25 : The UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention (Mohap) has asked people to put off unnecessary travel to Kerala where a Nipah virus (NiV) outbreak has claimed 10 lives and at least 40 others have been quarantined.

"The Mohap alerts the people travelling to Kerala to be aware of contracting the infection and advises them to postpone unnecessary travel till the situation is controlled," the Khaleej Times quoted a Ministry statement as saying on Thursday.

"The Ministry works with its strategic partners to assess the risk of importation of Nipah cases to the country and put the necessary control measures. Also, Mohap is in continuous coordination with the World Health Organisation (WHO) to implement the global recommendations," it added.

Dubai-based Emirates airlines said that they were monitoring the situation closely.

"With regards to preventive or other measures, we will take guidance from the WHO and other international bodies. At this time, there are no recommended actions for airlines," it said.

The WHO has not issued any specific advice to countries that have not been affected by the Nipah but has asked them to enhance the level of preparedness.

Among the advisories given, the world body has advised countries to enhance surveillance at healthcare facilities including at points of entry and give case definitions among healthcare workers.

It said that Nipah symptoms are not specific and include flu-like illness and hence can be confused with any respiratory illness.

Nipah was first detected in Malaysia in 1998, followed by Bangladesh in 2001 and annual outbreaks have occurred in that country since, with the disease also occurring periodically in eastern India, making it the third country.

The fourth country reporting Nipah virus infection is the Philippines.

The natural host of the virus are fruit bats. Human infections can result from contacts with infected pigs.

Also, humans become infected with Nipah as a result of consuming food products contaminated by secretions of infected fruit bats.

Human-to-human transmission has also been documented.
Chennai, May 25 : The death of 13 anti-Sterlite Copper protestors in the police firing in Tuticorin has worsened the situation, focussing the limelight on its parent company Vedanta's environmental violations.

Vedanta has said that it has followed the law at its copper smelter plant on pollution, but environmentalists and other activists point to major unresolved issues at Tuticorin. They also point to several other instances of violations in the past where Vedanta was involved.

"The protest and the killing of 13 persons in the police firing will make it difficult for the Sterlite Copper's smelter plant (owned by Vedanta Ltd) to function again," Nityanand Jayaraman, writer and social activist told IANS adding that "the death of 13 persons would not go in vain."

Others are seek permanent closure of the plant. "We have seen closure and reopening of the plant earlier. Till a permanent closure is announced, protests against the smelter plant would continue," S.Raja of the traders association youth wing in Tuticorin told IANS over phone.

Even Chief Minister K.Palaniswami has said that the government is against the functioning of the copper smelter plant. The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board has directed the plant not to commence production or operation without its consent. The power supply to the plant has been disconnected.

Activists and media reports say Vedanta has often overlooked the legal requirements in many cases. The Wire this week carried a story on how protests have dogged the company for several years. "From 2000 to 2010, the company's alumina and bauxite mining operations in Lanjigarh district and the Niyamgiri hills in Odisha sparked widespread protests and cemented Vedanta's reputation as an egregious polluter and offender of tribal and human rights," the news portal said.

During this ten-year-period, The Wire said, it had also given political contributions to the Congress and BJP -- donations that were held to be in violation of India's Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act by the Delhi high court.

The company's environmental violations very quickly proved impossible to ignore and drew sharp censure not just from local activists but also international investors and institutions. In 2007, Norway's state pension fund relinquished its holding in the company over what it described as "environmental and human rights violations", the portal said, adding that three years later, prominent investors such as the Church of England the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust also sold their stakes for similar reasons.

Its green clearance was pulled away by India's environment ministry in the same year for "violating forests laws in Orissa", it said.

To improve its public image, Vedanta has spent huge amount of money in its corporate social responsibility project and its boss, Anil Agarwal, is a strong supporter of Narendra Modi and his government, often going out its way to welcome projects launched by the government -- including associating itself with the 'Swachh Bharat' campaign with a group company helping to build 30,000 toilets.

It's campaign for a more benign outlook in media was also widely noted, and criticised. In 2016, the company's sponsorship of the Jaipur Literature Festival's edition in London sparked calls for a boycott campaign, according to The Wire. Over a hundred academics and writers launched a protest campaign and a "Boycott Vedanta JLF" London event, expressing "solidarity with the many communities suffering pollution, illness, oppression, displacement and poverty as a result of Vedanta's operations".

Back in Tuticorin, protestors say efforts are being made to suppress their voice totally. "The police firing seems to crush the anti-copper smelter plant protest as well as to act as a deterrent for other protests in Tamil Nadu," Raja said.

On Tuesday, situation turned for the worse when a huge procession against the Sterlite's copper smelter plant to mark the 100th day of protests were fired upon by police, after incidents of stone-throwing and torching of vehicles by the mob.

The police, who were said to have been outnumbered, resorted to firing resulting in the death of 11 persons. On Wednesday, in fresh firing one more person died and later one person succumbed to his injuries, bringing the death toll to 13.

When asked about the arson, Raja said: "It has to be probed. The people indulged in the arson could be anyone including those in favour of the smelter plant."

Following the protests and police firing, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) rejected the renewal of consent (for 2018-2023) to operate the first unit of the Sterlite Copper smelter unit in Tuticorin, as it said the establishment had not fulfilled the conditions laid down by it.

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court stayed the construction works of Vedanta's second copper smelter plant.

The company had planned to double its copper smelting capacity to 800,000 tpa but has failed to adequate answer several allegations of harm to locals from the pollution creating by its existing plant.

The company's plant has been mired in controversy for violation of pollution control norms and other issues, ever since the AIADMK government in early 1990s gave the permission for its construction, after several other Indian states denied the same on grounds of likely environmental damage.

In 2013, the Supreme Court had fined Sterlite Rs 100 crore for polluting the environment in Tuticorin.

According to social activist Jayaraman, the TNPCB and Tuticorin District Administration's analysis of 15 ground water samples in March 2018 showed that all the water sources were polluted and violated the Bureau of Indian Standards norms for drinking water parameters.

Jayaraman said levels of the neurotoxin heavy metal lead were found to be at far higher levels than what is considered safe for drinking water.

He said soon after the 100-day protest began, groundwater samples were taken by the officials from seven locations within the copper smelter plant premises and eight from the villages near the plant.

Jayaraman said the report came to light following queries under the Right to Information Act.

The Tuticorin District Administration, instead of warning the villagers against using the ground water based on the findings, kept the report under wrap, he said.

He also said, a 2008 study done by Tirunelveli Government Medical College found higher levels of musculoskeletal disorders among villagers living near the copper smelter plant.

Tamil Manthan, an anti-Sterlite Copper activist told IANS that people claimed higher incidence of cancer amongst residents near the smelter plant. According to Raja, over 550 new cancer cases were reported by the government hospital in Tuticorin.

One of the placard held by the protestors read: 'Cancer for us and Copper for you?'
New Delhi : Two mutually reinforcing images from last week may well define the next phase in national affairs. It is too early to call them game changers but they have considerable potential.

The most comprehensive array of opposition leaders, almost a record, who assembled in Bangaluru for H.D. Kumaraswamy's swearing in as Chief Minister of Karnataka, is significant because it happened despite the contradictions inherent between the various groups in that galaxy.

The occasion produced the man and he better be noticed: Kunwar Danish Ali, the Jamia Millia educated, JD-S spokesman, carried sufficient credibility on both sides to swiftly stitch together the Congress-JD-S alliance in the state. This became the platform on which stood India's non-BJP diversity. In stitching this extensive hem too, Danish Ali is being applauded by those who know.

Muslims in politics are either too weather beaten or "too Muslim" to navigate diversity. Danish Ali, in my view, is a political animal with a wide reach and one who keeps his faith intensely private. We should hear more about him should the Karnataka experiment remain intact.

The other iconic image was, quite curiously, of a book release. It must have been a few hours of grave national danger, because seldom has the well appointed auditorium of the Claridges hotel been more packed with spies, past and present. For its sheer audacity, Spy Chronicles, RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace, is by itself a thrilling title, but when the authorship comes out in sharp silhouette, the revelation takes one's breath away.

A.S. Dulat, former chief of RAW, and Gen. Asad Durrani, former head of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), have put their heads together and have, without compromising fidelity to their respective oaths of office, produced a 320-page document which must now onwards inform those in the subcontinent shaping policy on Kashmir and India-Pakistan relations.

The high-powered congregation in Bengaluru and the brave effort of the Dulat-Durrani duet, both respond to the same national quest - a softer more humane sub continent. Alas, a calmer India, on its own, divorced from the sub continent, is just not possible. It is, likewise, not possible for Pakistan. 1947 was both a blessing and a curse. We could define our separate nations according to our lights but we were also yoked together by geography from which proceed historical and sociological currents which flow forward but also regurgitate into the past.

The first concerted effort to wrench away from the subcontinental centre of gravity came from Pakistan's dictator, General Zia ul Haq. His push for Nizam-e-Mustafa invited nascent Islamophobia which has metastasized into the modern horror.

Just when fluctuations in Indo-Pakistan ties give way to a seemingly interminable hostility comes the Dulat-Durrani intervention, opening a ventilator in an otherwise suffocating hothouse.

What the book touches on is, in effect, the nub of the matter. Indo-Pakistan initiatives flounder on that ubiquitous document meant for the principal, say, the Prime Minister, marked "for eyes only". If the Deep State on both sides is the obstacle, why not allow spymasters on both sides to sort out the cobwebs which the principals cannot?

Leftovers from Partition are Kashmir, Pakistan, Hindu-Muslim tensions. If tense communal relations are a requirement for the politics of Hindu consolidation, it follows, as night follows the day, that Kashmir and Indo-Pakistan relations must simmer in perpetuity. They have been placed on auto by our own hands.

To obviate communalism as an essential requirement for electoral politics, it is essential that the motley political crowd on the podium in Bengaluru is regularized. Many societies called it a rainbow coalition.

Both, pre-requisite and a consequence of the Bengaluru experiment is precisely this: tone down social disharmony which communalism aggravates. This end is unachievable without the Dulat-Durrani initiative taking off. Social disharmony, it needs to be stressed, is the overarching malaise under which communalism is played. That is why one photograph that came out of the Bengaluru assembly is epochal - Sonia Gandhi leaning her head against Mayawati's.

It may be odd to remember Urdu poetry at this juncture but do indulge a line. The most graphic poet, Mir Anis, describes cosmic tumult in which two mutually hostile creatures come together in the face of common danger:

"Shaheen o kabk chhup gayey

Ekja mila ke sar"

(Facing danger, the falcon and the dove put their heads together in the thicket)

Considering that the Congress lost its deposit in the March by-elections in Uttar Pradesh's Phulpur and Gorakhpur constituencies, Sonia Gandhi would be seen to be in requirement of the BSP supremo, Mayawati's help. Mayawati may not have been the winner but it was with her help that Akhilesh Yadav's SP won the two seats.

In this situation what would one make of Congress Election Chief in Madhya Pradesh Digvijay Singh's statement from Bhopal. He dismissed any tie up with the BSP. Neither was Sonia's photograph with Mayawati an announcement of a tie up, nor does Digvijay Singh's reported statement scuttle it. This non-story is only a precursor to what is in store: political busy bodies will load a triangular situation - Congress, BSP, SP - with such heavy voltage speculation that some strand somewhere will snap. The process of coalition building will only be partly in the hands of the principals. To a large extent the process will be conditioned by the din surrounding it which will create misgivings all around as in rapid fire magazines.

The Dulat-Durrani initiative will be subjected to an even more severe ordeal by fire, at least upto 2019. The events of last week provide hope which will generate its opposite - the Pulley principle.

(A senior cmmenator on political and diplomatic affairs, Saeed Naqvi can be reached on saeednaqvi@hotmail.com . The views expressed are personal.)
New Delhi : The four years of the Narendra Modi government, marked by landmark reforms, have seen the complete transformation of the unorganised and opaque real estate sector into a regulated, transparent, affordable and consumer-friendly asset class.

Notwithstanding the global slowdown, Indian real estate's troubles have been self-created. The sector has been bogged down largely due to lack of regulation and transparency and inflated pricing, owing to speculative operations. Over the years, the foul play by a large number of realtors played havoc with the sector. It is in this backdrop that the government put the focus on undertaking reforms to address these fundamental issues plaguing the sector.

The government's reform and policy initiatives have been directed towards replacing the investor/speculator-driven model with consumer-centric model to ensure that residential property becomes affordable so that every Indian can have a shelter over his head. The results are there for everyone to see.

Property prices have dropped by 7-9 percent in the first quarter of the calendar year in key cities. The government's flagship mission, 'Housing for All', focusing on affordable and mid-segment housing, providing 6.5 per cent interest subsidy (up to Rs 2.67 lakh) under PMAY has been responsible for enhancing affordability. GST has also provided price relief by dismantling multiple taxation and zero tax on ready-to-move homes. All these pro-consumer reforms contributed to bring homes within the reach of the common people.

For long, hundreds of thousands of home buyers across India have been facing hardships due to large-scale project delays. Especially, over 20,000 home buyers in Noida have been under great stress fearing non-delivery of homes due to the developer -- Jaypee Infratech -- facing insolvency.

The government came to the rescue of home buyers by issuing an ordinance to amend IBC, putting home buyers at par with lenders, thereby paving the way for refund of their money. A large number of housing projects across India are stalled due to shortage of funds, especially as bank funding has been difficult to come. But the reformed and regulated real estate has led to inflow of huge foreign investment of $114 billion between 2015 and 2017, registering a 40 per cent increase in FDI recorded between 2011 and 2014.

Together with FDI, another avenue of developer funding through NBFCs has come as a lifeline for stalled projects, giving new hope to home buyers.

The Real Estate Regulation & Development Act (RERA) has come as a big saviour for property consumers. With its stringent preventive and punitive provisions, RERA has put an end to their exploitation by unscrupulous developers by making transactions fair, transparent and secure.

The reform-oriented government gave top priority to infrastructure development by setting up the Rs 40,000 crore National Investment & Infrastructure Fund.The high priority to highways, with record construction of 25 km per day, has given real estate a connectivity boost.

All the reforms and enabling policies have contributed to the revival of real estate. The worst-hit residential realty has seen a growth of 13 percent in FY18. The commercial real estate has already seen turnaround, with a CBRE report pointing to an all-time high absorption of 11msf during the first quarter of the year, 25 percent up from last year.

The realty revival has also been possible due to turnaround in the economy, with growth bouncing back in the second half of FY18. In the last four years (FY15-18), overall growth rate in the economy showed a modest upstick to 7.3 percent compared to average growth of 7.2 percent in FY11-14.

Though the short-term adverse effects of interruption caused by reforms like demonetisation, RERA & GST have been largely contained and real estate is on the revival path, the government needs to tackle various reform challenges to fast track this process. Notwithstanding GST contributing to ease of business and marked improvement in global Ease of Doing Business Index, there is a need to put single window mechanism in place to speed up projects.

Bringing real estate under GST to derive its full benefits, bringing down transaction costs by rationalising stamp duty and collector rates, according industry status to real estate to access cheap bank funding and effective and speedy implementation of RERA, Housing for All and Smart Cities Mission are the other challenges on hand. Nevertheless, reforms have provided a much needed spring board to real estate to transform into an attractive asset class with sustained growth.

(Vinod Behl is editor, Realty Plus, a leading real estate monthly. He can be reached at vbehl2008@gmail.com )
Make the roads and highways fit before Eid rushes

MOST of the major highways and district roads now have become nearly unusable with numerous potholes due to sub-standard construction. Besides, illegal occupation and ongoing maintenance work have left people worrying about their holidaymaking during the upcoming Eid-ul Fitr vacations. The dilapidated conditions of Dhaka-Tangail, Dhaka-Mymensingh, Dhaka- Chattogram and Joshore-Khulna highways have aggravated by rain recently. There is a widespread apprehension that upcoming Eid journeys could turn into a nightmare if the present situation continues. Bangladesh has recently upgraded to middle income country status and positioned itself in the orbit of development. However, the dilapidated roads and highways across the country tell a different story.

As per data, presently about 26 percent national and regional highways and district roads are in poor to very bad conditions, especially in Rajshahi, Khulna and Dhaka zones. Between November 2017 and January this year, 17,976.3km of RHD's total network of 21,481km has been surveyed, which showed that about 54 percent highways and roads are in good condition, 20 percent in fair, about 12 percent in poor, about six percent in bad and about nine percent in very bad condition.

Dhaka-Tangail-Bangabandhu Jamuna Bridge highway that connects 22 northern districts with the capital, Chattogram and Sylhet are now in a bad condition. The traffic goes at a snail's pace because of the potholes and under construction work of four lanes, creating gridlock for hours. Dhaka-Mymensingh highway is now a nightmare for the commuters. Ongoing construction of bus rapid transit on Gazipur-Airport road creates huge congestion, which worsens due to the keeping of construction materials on roads, illegal shops and parking. The Dhaka-Chattogram highway situation worsens due to potholes and incessant rainfall.

It's an open secret that, repair and up-gradation works of the busiest highways are mired by corruption and irregularities. Besides, sub-standard repairs would be affected in little rain and it could not take heavy pressure of vehicles. Obviously, it would create huge tailbacks.

The Ministry concerned has proved its ineptness beyond any doubt. We urge the government to take urgent measures to make the roads and highways fit for smooth communication before the journeys of Eid.
New Delhi, May 26 : The Central Board of Secondary Education's (CBSE) Class 12 result was declared on Saturday, with girls faring better than boys and also bagging the first six spots.

In the overall results, girls performed better than boys by 9.32 per cent, as the pass percentage for girls was 88.31, while it was 78.99 of boys, an official statement said.

The overall pass percentage has increased by about one per cent to 83.01, and all-India topper, Meghna Srivastava of Noida's Step By Step School, scored 499 of 500.

Also, 72,599 students scored more than 90 per cent and 12,737 students got more than 95 per cent.

Among different types of schools, Kendriya Vidyalayas fared better than others with a pass per cent of 97.78, closely followed by Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas with a pass per cent of 97.07.

Speaking to the media, Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar said: "I congratulate all those who have succeeded and I also want to congratulate those who could not succeed. They should not lose their heart, this is a temporary setback. They should do more efforts and succeed. This is my advice."

"I'm very happy about Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Vidyalayas, they have got 98 per cent result. Even government schools, and government-aided schools have scored more than the average results -- 85 per cent. It shows that the quality of government schools is improving and it is good news."

Of the 11,06,772 students who had appeared for the Class 12 examination held between March 5 and April 27, 9,18,763 students passed the examination.

Students of Trivandrum region topped with a pass per cent of 97.32, followed by Chennai with 93.87 per cent and Delhi 89 per cent.

The pass percentage of students in CBSE schools in other countries has increased to 94.94 from 92.02.
Dublin, May 26 : Ireland's Indian-origin Prime Minister Leo Varadkar on Saturday hailed his country's "quiet revolution" as early results in the country's historic abortion referendum pointed to a "resounding" vote for overturning the ban.

"The people have spoken. They have said we need a modern Constitution for a modern country," Varadkar said, after exit polls suggested a landslide vote in favour of reforming the law.

One exit poll released by Ireland's national broadcaster RTE after polling stations closed on Friday predicted that 69.4 per cent voted in favour of repealing the Eighth Amendment and 30.6 per cent "No".

Another by the Irish Times, 68 per cent voted in favour of ditching the prohibition.

A campaign to liberalise abortion gathered momentum in 2012 after 31-year-old Indian woman Savita Halappanavar died in a Galway hospital after she was refused an abortion during a miscarriage. For many, Halappanavar became the symbolic image to strive for change.

Varadkar, who campaigned in favour of liberalisation, said: "What we've seen is the culmination of a quiet revolution that's been taking place in Ireland over the past 20 years."

Irish voters "trust and respect women to make the right choices and decisions about their own health care", he added.

The Friday vote saw citizens effectively opt to either retain or repeal the Eighth Amendment of the country's Constitution, which prohibits terminations unless a mother's life is in danger.

A vote in favour of repeal paves the way for Irish Parliament to legislate for change which would see the introduction of a much more liberal regime. Varadkar said he hoped to have a new abortion law enacted by the end of 2018.

Counting began at 9.00 a.m and the confirmed result was expected by Saturday evening.

Following the exit polls, Ireland's pro-life "Save The 8th" campaign conceded defeat. The group said: "What Irish voters did yesterday is a tragedy of historic proportions... However, a wrong does not become right simply because a majority support it."

However, the "Together For Yes" organisation said: "This is a vote for dignity and decency."

"If exit polls are reflected in the official vote count later today, this will be a moment of profound change in Ireland's social history, a moment when the nation collectively stood up for women and for their healthcare, and voted for constitutional change," it said.

An electorate of more than 3.2 million were asked to cast their ballots, including thousands of Irish people living overseas who had made the journey home to vote. The Eighth Amendment was introduced via a referendum in 1983.

High turnout was seen across 6,500 polling stations in 40 constituencies across the republic. If the final turnout surpasses 60.52 per cent, it will be higher than Ireland's referendum on same-sex marriage, which passed in 2015. Turnout was over 70 per cent in some areas, RTE said.
Washington, May 27 : A team of officials from the US, headed by former US Ambassador to South Korea Sung Kim, on Sunday crossed into North Korea to talk about the preparations for a summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, media reported.

Sung Kim, an ex-nuclear negotiator, was summoned from his present posting as US Ambassador to the Philippines to talk with North's Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, the Washington Post reported.
New Delhi, May 27 : Non-profit organisation 'Feeding India on Sunday launched a vehicle that would distribute food to the poor and hungry on 24X7 basis in the city.

The vehicle named "Dilli ki Jaan" was unveiled in the presence of celebrity chef Manjit Gill, Corporate Chef of ITC Group, and MasterChef winner Ripu Daman Handa as around 150-strong crowd vowed to end hunger and food waste.

The vehicle, running on electric power, will collect excess food from restaurants, housing complexes and individuals and would distribute it to the needy. It will serve more than 800 meals a day.

It will carry a temperature controlled storage space to ensure food safety.

Feeding India founder Ankit Kawatra said that his organisation, which operates with around 8,500 volunteers in 65 cities of the country, aims to start similar vans in every zone to ensure that "all excess food is put to its right use by donating it to someone who needs it more".
New Delhi, May 27 : With the World Environment Day around the corner, the central government on Sunday launched a slew of activities for the day, ranging from nationwide clean-ups to ban on plastic after one-tme use across states, universities and national parks.

India is the official global host of the day -- also known as Eco Day -- this year on June 5. The day is celebrated since 1974 with a different theme every time.

"Celebrations in India for the World Environment Day are being executed on a large scale -- from 24 rivers and beach clean-ups to national parks and reserves going plastic-free.

"Tens of thousands of schools are also joining in a big way to become free of single-use plastic," a statement from the UN Environment quoted Harsh Vardhan, Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, as saying at the curtain raiser on Sunday.

The international body said that the celebrations will start on June 2 with an exhibition in New Delhi.

"Plenaries on plastic pollution, marine litter, new plastic economy, extended producer responsibility and other issues are being organised," the statement said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who during his monthly 'Mann ki Baat' radio address appealed to the people to shun plastic, will visit the exhibition on June 5.

"I appeal to everyone to understand the importance of this subject. Let us make sure that we don't use polythene and low-grade plastic as plastic pollution adversely impacts the nature, wildlife and even our health," Modi said on Sunday morning.

The World Environment Day was chosen by the United Nations Organisation in 1972.
Dubai, May 27 : Etihad Cargo, the cargo division of the United Arab Emirates' national carrier Etihad Airways, has launched its first humanitarian freighter missions in the Islamic month of Ramadan to India and Kazakhstan.

The Abu Dhabi government-controlled carrier said in a statement on Sunday that an Etihad Boeing 777 freighter aircraft departed Abu Dhabi to Almaty in Kazakhstan and then to Hyderabad in India, carrying special provisions to be distributed to those in need, reported Xinhua news agency.

The humanitarian missions are taking place throughout the year in collaboration with the Khalifa Foundation, the Red Crescent and His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Humanitarian & Scientific Foundation, said Etihad.
Tehran, May 28 : Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif will on Monday meet Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday to review the latest regional and global developments.

Zarif will also head a political and economic delegation seeking to expand comprehensive ties between the two countries, Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi told IRNA.

In February, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani visited New Delhi while nine agreements were signed to expand bilateral economic ties.

The two countries have friendly relations and significant trade ties in many areas, particularly in crude oil imports into India and diesel exports to Iran.

Iran is the second largest supplier of crude oil to India, supplying more than 425,000 barrels of oil per day, and India is one of the foreign investors in Iran's oil and gas industry.
The presidential election is the first to take place after the war's end. Juan Manuel Santos, who succeeded Mr Uribe as president, signed a peace accord with the FARC in 2016. The group disarmed last year. But the election is no celebration of peace, which has both disappointed Colombians and raised their expectations. Smaller armed groups have occupied some of the territory vacated by the FARC and cultivation of coca, over which they fight, has surged (see article). FARC members are now guaranteed seats in congress and face light punishment for their crimes. Mr Uribe was the peace accord's most prominent critic. His ally is the front-runner in part because many Colombians wanted Mr Santos to take a much tougher line with the FARC.

But peace has also opened the door to the candidacy of Mr Uribe's antithesis, Gustavo Petro, an ex-member of M19, another guerrilla group, and a former mayor of Bogota. Polls suggest he is running second to Mr Duque, making him the first left-wing politician with a serious chance of becoming president. By disarming the left, peace made the left capable of playing a role in politics, says Eduardo Pizano of the University of the Andes in Bogota.

Many Colombians find that terrifying. Mr Petro has in the past said nice things about Hugo Chavez, the late leader of next-door Venezuela, whose socialist regime is destroying its economy and democracy and driving thousands of refugees into Colombia. Investors look upon Mr Petro with utter fear, says an economist. That has bolstered Mr Duque, whose supporters accuse the left-wing candidate of plotting to bring Cuban-Venezuelan castrochavismo to Colombia.
In April 2004, as American troops in Iraq were fighting multiple insurgencies, U.S. officials announced a warrant for the arrest of Muqtada al-Sadr, a young, brash Shiite cleric who had bedeviled the Americans and their Iraqi allies. Paul Bremer, the top U.S. official in Baghdad at the time, declared Sadr an outlaw. President George W. Bush labeled him an enemy of the United States.

The warrant, which had been issued by an Iraqi judge months earlier, charged Sadr with instigating the April 2003 murder of a rival cleric, who was hacked to death in Najaf, Shiite Islam's holiest city. Sadr went underground, as his supporters fought U.S. troops for months in southern Iraq and in Shiite districts of Baghdad. For years afterward, Sadr inspired fear in the United States as a ruthless warlord-cleric. In 2006, a Newsweek cover branded him The Most Dangerous Man in Iraq.

On May 12, when Iraqis voted in the country's latest parliamentary elections 15 years after the U.S. invasion, a new image of Sadr emerged: a smiling cleric with a snowy beard, holding up his ink-stained index finger after casting his ballot in Najaf. In his left hand, he held a plastic Iraqi flag.

The contrast of these two images underscores the remarkable way Sadr has been able to reinvent himself over the past decadefrom a sectarian militia leader who oversaw the killings of thousands of Iraqis to a populist, nationalist anti-corruption crusader. Sadr's political alliancea mixture of Shiite Islamists, the Iraqi Communist Party, secular civil society activists, and Sunni business leadersunexpectedly won the parliamentary elections, securing the largest share, 54 seats, in Iraq's 329-seat Parliament. Sadr is still far short of the 165-seat majority needed to appoint a prime minister and form a government.
Amnesty-India slams Delhi for reluctance to give shelter to Rohingyas

Staff Reporter :

Amnesty International India has appreciated Dhaka for giving shelter to nearly a million Rohingya people from Myanmar, but criticised New Delhi for reluctance to take in 40,000 Rohingya refugees.In the context of the meeting between Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and India's PM Narendra Modi in Shantiniketan, in West Bengal, the Amnesty India urged both the heads of the government to address specific human rights concerns in their respective nations.

"It is the shared duty of both nations to ensure refugees in their countries to have support that is responsive to their needs," said Aakar Patel, Executive Director of Amnesty International India.

"Governments in both countries have a duty to protect them from harm, especially in the light of smear campaigns and widespread anti-refugee rhetoric."

The Amnesty official pointed out that as both the countries go to general elections within the next year, it is an opportune time for both leaders to reiterate their commitment to human rights.

"We urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to ensure their governments hold rigorous investigations into fatal and near-fatal targeted attacks on historically and socially marginalised communities, stated Aakar Patel.

He insisted that both the leaders should ensure that space for expressing dissent is not compromised. "This can be achieved when both countries have a free and independent press, where journalists are not intimidated, harassed and attacked, and repressive laws are not used to silence them," he added.

Dwelling on the Rohingya crisis, the Amnesty official regretted that while Bangladesh has been exemplary in opening its doors to nearly a million Rohingya refugees, India's reluctance to keep in 40,000 Rohingya refugees is disappointing.

"Indian authorities should follow suit by taking effective measures to protect Rohingya people escaping persecution and state violence," he said.


Lots of things get made in Connecticut. First on the list? Great careersThousands of strong, stable and successful companies make things in ConnecticutThey are modern, technology-based firms, employing the most advanced techniques and tools. They successfully compete domestically and globallyThese organizations have a common problem. They are aggressively seeking career-oriented, next-generation workers to fuel their growth. They pay well A first-year trainee might earn $60,000and rather than you paying for your education, many of them will pay for you to learn more, and thus earn more.  Joe Zwieble, President & Publisher of Hartford Business Journal

When it comes to a manufacturing careerthink innovation. Think technology. Think about the states expanding opportunities. The Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology (CCAT) is excited about manufacturing and proud to champion programs engaging Connecticuts future workforce.  Elliot Ginsberg, President & CEO, CCAT

Manufacturing is experiencing a resurgence in the U.S., and certainly in our state, due to rising costs overseas and better quality of production at home. As a result, the employment opportunity is growing with jobs that are more diverse and exciting as we witness the rise of automation and robotics in many sectorsThe old ways of making things are now advancing with fresh ideas, new technology, and state-of-the-art places to work.  Bonnie Del Conte, President, CONNSTEP Inc.

As I write this article, high school students from Torrington, Litchfield, Housatonic and Lewis Mills are touring Altek, BD, Fuel Cell and Seitz. This opportunity is possible because of the generosity of the companies involved, the realization that students need to see and experience the real world of manufacturing and the collaboration the Chamber developed with the Apprenticeship Program of the Connecticut Department of Labor.

This is precisely what we must do to engage students, businesses, educators and parents in the process of creating a much better awareness of what is available in Connecticut and better yet, northwest Connecticut. Our Chambers Manufacturing Coalition, School to Career Committee and Healthcare Council meet regularly to make the necessary connections with employers and job and career possibilities.

Especially intriguing in Who Makes ItA Guide to Stuff Made in Connecticut is the story about an injection molding technician who moved to Connecticut, knew nothing about manufacturing but Seitz took a chance on me. An opportunity fell into his lap and believe it or not, he works on the McDonalds smoothie machine made at Seitz.

This story is also inspiring. The gentleman woke up one morning and realized he wasnt happy at his job at a fast food restaurant. He quit, went to work for Technical Industries and in four years working hard, he learned on-the-job, continued his education and doubled his pay earning the unofficial title of the robot doctor.

They both are helping to produce stuff made in Connecticut. This is so very important to Connecticut and our economy. Hopefully, you will see the opportunities and encourage our future workforce to take advantage of them.

JoAnn Ryan is President & CEO of the NW CT Chamber of Commerce. You can reach her by email: joann@nwctchamberofcommerce.org or phone: 860-482-6586.
LOS ANGELES - Just before Christmas, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pulled up to the massive Richard J. Donovan Correctional Center, a California state prison complex in the desert outside San Diego that holds nearly 4,000 inmates. Kennedy was there to visit Sirhan B. Sirhan, the man convicted of killing his father, Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, nearly 50 years ago.

While his wife, actress Cheryl Hines, waited in the car, Robert Kennedy Jr. met with Sirhan for three hours, he revealed to The Washington Post last week. It was the culmination of months of research by Kennedy into the assassination, including speaking with witnesses and reading the autopsy and police reports.

"I got to a place where I had to see Sirhan," Kennedy said. He would not discuss the specifics of their conversation. But when it was over, Kennedy had joined those who believe there was a second gunman, and that it was not Sirhan who killed his father.

PHOTOS: Wild Instagram escapades of Kyra Kennedy, RFK Jr.'s daughter

"I went there because I was curious and disturbed by what I had seen in the evidence," said Kennedy, an environmental lawyer and the third oldest of his father's 11 children. "I was disturbed that the wrong person might have been convicted of killing my father. My father was the chief law enforcement officer in this country. I think it would have disturbed him if somebody was put in jail for a crime they didn't commit."

Kennedy, 64, said he doesn't know if his involvement in the case will change anything. But he now supports the call for a re-investigation of the assassination led by Paul Schrade, who also was shot in the head as he walked behind Kennedy in the pantry of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles but survived.

MORE CRIME MYSTERIES: Infamous Bay Area cold cases that remain unsolved

Kennedy was just 14 when he lost his father. Even now, people tell him how much Bobby Kennedy meant to them.

RFK's death - five years after his brother, President John F. Kennedy, was gunned down in Dallas and two months after civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was killed in Memphis - devastated a country already beset by chaos.

In 1968, the Vietnam War raged, American cities had erupted in riots after MLK's assassination and tensions between war protesters and supporters were growing uglier. Robert Kennedy's newly launched presidential bid had raised hopes that the New York Democrat and former attorney general could somehow unite a divided nation. The gunshots fired that June night changed all that.

Though Sirhan admitted at his trial in 1969 that he shot Kennedy, he claimed from the start that he had no memory of doing so. And midway through Sirhan's trial, prosecutors provided his lawyers with an autopsy report that launched five decades of controversy: Kennedy was shot four times at point-blank range from behind, including the fatal shot behind his ear. But Sirhan, a 24-year-old Palestinian immigrant, was standing in front of him.

Was there a second gunman? The debate rages to this day.

ALSO: Why Trump delayed release of secret JFK files

But the legal system has not entertained doubts. A jury convicted Sirhan of first-degree murder and sentenced him to death in 1969, which was commuted to a life term in 1972. Sirhan's appeals have been rejected at every level, as recently as 2016, even with the courts considering new evidence that has emerged over the years that as many as 13 shots were fired - Sirhan's gun held only eight bullets - and that Sirhan may have been subjected to coercive hypnosis, a real life "Manchurian candidate."

His case is closed. His lawyers are now launching a longshot bid to have the Inter-American Court of Human Rights hold an evidentiary hearing, while Schrade is hoping for a group such as the Innocence Project to take on the case. A spokesman for the Innocence Project said they do not discuss cases at the consideration stage.

In the final court rejection of Sirhan's appeals, U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew Wistrich ruled, "Even if the second shooter's bullet was the one that killed Senator Kennedy, [Sirhan] would be liable [for murder] as an aider and abettor." And if Sirhan was unaware of the second shooter, Wistrich wrote that the scenario of a second gunman who shot Kennedy "at close range with the same type of gun and ammunition as [Sirhan] was using, but managed to escape the crowded room without notice of almost any of the roomful of witnesses, lacks any evidentiary support."

- - -

On June 5, 1968, Kennedy had just won the California Democratic presidential primary and delivered a victory speech to a delirious crowd.

At 12:15 a.m., the 42-year-old candidate and Schrade left the celebration, walking through the hotel pantry en route to a news conference. Schrade was a regional director of the United Auto Workers who had helped Kennedy round up labor support, and Kennedy had singled him out for thanks in his victory speech moments earlier.

Schrade, now 93, still recalls the scene in the pantry vividly.

"He immediately started shaking hands" with kitchen workers, Schrade said of Kennedy. "The TV lights went on. I got hit. I didn't know I was hit. I was shaking violently, and I fell. Then Bob fell. I saw flashes and heard crackling. The crackling actually was all the other bullets being fired."

Witnesses reported that Kennedy said, "Is everybody OK? Is Paul all right?"

Kennedy was still conscious as his wife, Ethel, pregnant with their 11th child, rushed to his side. He lived for another day and died at 1:44 a.m. June 6, 1968.

Schrade was shot above the forehead but the bullet bounced off his skull. Four other people, including ABC news producer William Weisel, were also wounded. All survived.

Sirhan was captured immediately; he had a .22-caliber revolver in his hand. Karl Uecker, an Ambassador Hotel maitre d' who was escorting Kennedy through the pantry, testified that he grabbed Sirhan's wrist and pinned it down after two shots and that Sirhan continued to fire wildly while being held down, never getting close to Kennedy. An Ambassador waiter and a Kennedy aide also said they tackled Sirhan after two or three shots.

Several other witnesses also said he was not close enough to place the gun against Kennedy's back, where famed Los Angeles coroner Thomas Noguchi found powder burns on the senator's jacket and on his hair, indicating shots fired at close contact. These witnesses provided more proof for those who insist a second gunman was involved.

Both the Los Angeles District Attorney's office and the Los Angeles Police Department declined interviews on what they consider a closed case.

Schrade believes Sirhan shot him and the others who were wounded but that he did not kill Kennedy. Since 1974, Schrade has led the crusade to try to persuade authorities - the police, prosecutors, the feds, anyone - to reinvestigate the case and identify the second gunman.

"Yes, he did shoot me. Yes, he shot four other people and aimed at Kennedy," Schrade, said in an interview at his Laurel Canyon home. "The important thing is he did not shoot Robert Kennedy. Why didn't they go after the second gunman? They knew about him right away. They didn't want to know who it was. They wanted a quickie."

- - -

At trial, defense lawyer Grant Cooper made the decision not to contest the charge that Sirhan fired the fatal shot and instead tried to persuade the jury not to impose the death penalty by arguing Sirhan had "diminished capacity" and didn't know what he was doing. It is a standard tactic by attorneys in death penalty cases, but Cooper, who died in 1990, was widely criticized for not investigating the case before conceding guilt.

Sirhan is now 74 and approaching 50 years behind bars. After California's courts abolished the death penalty in 1972, he was first made eligible for parole in 1986 but has been rejected repeatedly.

In 2016, Schrade spoke on Sirhan's behalf at his parole hearing and apologized for not coming forward sooner to advocate for Sirhan's release and exoneration.

California inmates are not permitted to give media interviews, and Sirhan did not respond to a letter from The Post. But his brother, Munir Sirhan, said Sirhan still holds out hope of being released and that his defense team probably hurt his case more than helped it.

There's plenty of damning evidence against Sirhan. He confessed to the killing at trial, though he claims this was done on his attorney's instruction. He took hours of target practice with his pistol earlier in the day, and he took the gun into the Ambassador that night. He had been seen at a Kennedy speech at the Ambassador two days earlier. He had a newspaper clipping critical of Kennedy in his pocket and had written "RFK must die" in notebooks at home, though he said he didn't remember doing that. And he waited in the pantry for about 30 minutes, according to witnesses who said he asked if Kennedy would be coming through there.

But questions about the case arose almost immediately in Los Angeles, resulting in hearings and reinvestigations as early as 1971 by the district attorney, the police chief, the county board of supervisors and the county superior court. Many of them focused on the ballistics of the case, starting with Noguchi's finding that Kennedy had been shot from behind, which Sirhan's lawyer didn't raise in his defense.

In addition, lead crime scene investigator DeWayne Wolfer testified at trial that a bullet taken from Kennedy's body and bullets from two of the wounded victims all matched Sirhan's gun.

But other experts who examined the three bullets said they had markings from different guns and different bullet manufacturers. An internal police document concluded that "Kennedy and Weisel bullets not fired from same gun," (Weisel was the wounded ABC news producer) and "Kennedy bullet not fired from Sirhan's revolver."

This prompted a Los Angeles judge in 1975 to convene a panel of seven forensic experts, who examined the three bullets and refired Sirhan's gun. The panel said no match could be made between the three bullets, which appeared to be fired from the same gun, and Sirhan's revolver. They found Wolfer had done a sloppy job with the ballistics evidence and urged further investigation.

In addition, witnesses said bullet holes were found in the door frames of the Ambassador pantry, and photos showed investigators examining the holes in the hours after the shooting. Between the three bullets that hit Kennedy and the bullets that hit the five wounded victims, Wolfer had accounted for all eight of Sirhan's shots. Bullets in the doors would indicate a second gun. Wolfer later said the holes and the metal inside were not bullets, and the door frames were destroyed after trial.

Though Los Angeles authorities had promised transparency in the case, the police and prosecutors refused to release their files until 1988, producing a flood of new evidence for researchers.

Among the material was an audiotape, first unearthed by CNN journalist Brad Johnson, which had been inadvertently made by Polish journalist Stanislaw Pruszynski in the Ambassador ballroom, and turned over to police in 1969.

Pruszynski's microphone had been on the podium where Kennedy spoke, and TV footage shows him detaching it and moving toward the pantry as the shooting happens.

In 2005, audio engineer Philip Van Praag said the tape revealed that about 13 shots had been fired. He said he used technology similar to the ShotSpotter technology used by police to alert them to gunshots, and which differentiates gunshots from firecrackers or other loud bangs.

Van Praag said recently that different guns create different resonances and that he was able to establish that two guns were fired, that they fired in different directions, and that some of the shot "impulses" were so close together they couldn't have been fired by the same gun. He said he could not say "precisely" 13 shots but certainly more than the eight contained by Sirhan's gun.

"There were too many bullets," Robert Kennedy Jr. said. "You can't fire 13 shots out of an eight-shot gun."

British author Mel Ayton wrote "The Forgotten Terrorist," which posits that Sirhan killed Kennedy because he supported sending military firepower to Israel - the Sirhans were Christian Palestinians forced from their Jerusalem home by Israel in 1948. He said Van Praag had misinterpreted the Pruszynski tape and that other experts who examined it show only eight "spikes," one for each gunshot. Ayton also cited numerous eyewitnesses who said they heard at most eight shots.

Ayton and investigative reporter Dan Moldea, who also wrote a book about the assassination, argue that Sirhan's gun could have reached Kennedy's back. No witnesses saw the actual shots fired in the chaos of the pantry, and Moldea noted that Kennedy almost certainly turned and tried to protect himself after the first shot, which some said was preceded by Sirhan yelling, "Kennedy, you son of a bitch!"

"What were Kennedy's last words?" Moldea asked during an interview. "'How's Paul?' How would Kennedy know Paul had been injured if he had not been turned around. He turned around when Sirhan rushes towards him, yelling 'you son of a bitch Kennedy.' Kennedy's not going to just stand there. He turns his back defensively."

Moldea theorized that Schrade fell forward into Kennedy, pinning him against a table and pushing him into the muzzle of Sirhan's gun, enabling him to fire four contact shots into Kennedy. One shot went through his jacket without hitting Kennedy, one went into his back and stopped below his neck, one went through his armpit and one went into his brain.

But Robert F. Kennedy Jr. doesn't find those theories persuasive. "It's not only that nobody saw that," Kennedy said. "The people that were closest to [Sirhan], the people that disarmed him all said he never got near my father."

Schrade used an expletive to describe Moldea's explanation and said he fell backward when he was shot above his forehead.

Both Ayton and Moldea assisted the California attorney general's office in contesting Sirhan's final appeal, and the government's legal briefs cited the investigative work of both men.

Moldea had initially been a believer in the second-gunman theory, but after interviewing numerous police officers, witnesses and Sirhan, he concluded in his 1995 book, "The Killing of Robert F. Kennedy," that Sirhan acted alone. He cited as additional proof a comment Sirhan reportedly made to a defense investigator about Kennedy turning his head before Sirhan shot him, a comment Sirhan strongly denied making.

More recently, Sirhan's lawyers have explored whether he was hypnotized to begin shooting his gun when given a certain cue, even hiring a renowned expert in hypnosis from Harvard to meet with Sirhan.

Judge Wistrich was completely dismissive of any suggestion of hypnosis. Schrade said the various theories of conspiracy and hypnotic programming are of little interest to him.

"I'm interested in finding out how the prosecutor convicted Sirhan with no evidence, knowing there was a second gunman," Schrade said.

It was Schrade who persuaded Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to examine the evidence. "Once Schrade showed me the autopsy report," Kennedy said, "then I didn't feel like it was something I could just dismiss. Which is what I wanted to do."

Kennedy called Sirhan's trial "really a penalty hearing. It wasn't a real trial. At a full trial, they would have litigated his guilt or innocence. I think it's unfortunate that the case never went to a full trial because that would have compelled the press and prosecutors to focus on the glaring discrepancies in the narrative that Sirhan fired the shots that killed my father."

- - -

Kennedy is not afraid to express controversial views. Last year, he and actor Robert DeNiro held a press conference to argue that certain vaccines containing mercury are unsafe for some children. He said he is not opposed to all vaccines, but wants to make them safer.

Three of his sisters - former Maryland lieutenant governor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, human rights activist Kerry Kennedy and filmmaker Rory Kennedy - declined to discuss the assassination or the case against Sirhan. Kennedy understands why.

"I think that, for most of my family members," he said, "this is an issue that is still too painful to even talk about."

It's painful for him, too. Kennedy was asleep in his dorm at Georgetown Preparatory School in Bethesda, Maryland, on June 5, 1968, when a priest woke him and told there was a car waiting outside to take him to the family home, Hickory Hill, in McLean, Virginia. The priest didn't say why.

In his new memoir, "American Values: Lessons I Learned from My Family," Kennedy said his mother's secretary was waiting for him. "Jinx Hack told me my father had been shot, but I was still thinking he'd be okay. He was, after all, indestructible."

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his older sister Kathleen and brother Joe flew to Los Angeles on Vice President Hubert Humphrey's plane, Air Force Two.

At Good Samaritan Hospital, Kennedy wrote, his father's head was bandaged and his face was bruised. A priest had already delivered last rites. His mother was there.

"I sat down across the bed from her and took hold of his big wrestler's hand," he wrote. "I prayed and said goodbye to him, listening to the pumps that kept him breathing. Each of us children took turns sitting with him and praying opposite my mom.

"My dad died at 1:44 a.m., a few minutes after doctors removed his life support. My brother Joe came into the ward where all the children were lying down and told us, 'He's gone.' "

- - -

Part of a continuing series about events of the past that remain relevant.

---

Video Embed Code

Video: Sen. Robert Francis Kennedy (D-N.Y.) was shot and killed in 1968, while running for President. A convicted man is serving life in prison for the assassination, but 50 years later, doubts remain on who pulled the trigger.(Joyce Koh/The Washington Post)

Embed code:
Afghan and Pakistani security officials are meeting in Islamabad amid heightened tensions between the two neighbors.

Hanif Atmar, the Afghan presidents national security adviser, is holding talks with Pakistan's powerful army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa on May 27.

A statement from the Afghan presidential office on May 26 said the Afghan delegation was invited by Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to visit and discuss the security problems in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the region.

Afghanistan and the United States have been increasing pressure on Pakistan to take action against militants operating in the country.

Islamabad denies harboring militant groups, including the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network, which carry out attacks in Afghanistan.

Afghan and Pakistani officials are also expected to discuss a series of deadly border clashes in recent months along their disputed border.

In April, clashes broke out between Pakistani paramilitary troops and Afghan border police in three locations along the border, leaving several dead on both sides.

The two nations share a 2,500-kilometer border known as the Durand Line, which Pakistan considers to be an international border. Afghanistan rejects the colonial-era border that was created in 1893.

Based on reporting by Tolo News and Khaama
The ancient Iranian city of Kazeroon has withstood the test of time, but it might not survive a controversial municipal plan to carve it up.

Founded along a Sasanian-era trade route in the 5th century, well before Islam came to Persia, the southwestern city's future is now tied to a controversial proposal that would partition parts of the city and merge them into a new town, cutting Kazeroon off from historic landmarks and redistributing scarce water supplies in the arid area.

The plan, proposed by a local lawmaker and endorsed by Tehran, enraged many of Kazeroon's 140,000 residents, who had staged peaceful protests in recent months to air their frustrations. Last week, that anger boiled over when demonstrations turned violent, deadly, and against the government.

Iranian authorities say at least two protesters have been killed, dozens wounded -- reportedly including police -- and scores arrested since May 16, when clashes broke out between riot police and angry demonstrators.

In an attempt to defuse the tense situation, authorities announced on May 17 they had put the plan on hold, but confrontations between protesters and police have continued as local officials become embroiled in a blame game over responsibly for the unrest.

The Iranian government, which was on the receiving end of the May 16 demonstration, has been anxious to avoid a repeat of nationwide protests that took place in December. That month, tens of thousands of people in more than 100 cities and towns rallied against economic hardship and demanded greater social and political freedoms. At least 25 people were killed in the weeks-long rallies.

A Divided City

Sporadic, largely peaceful, protests have been staged in Kazeroon since Hossein Rezazadeh, a member of parliament who represents the city, earlier this year proposed dividing some districts of the city and merging them into a new town. Under the proposal, two of the citys districts -- Chinarshaheejan and Qaemeyyeh -- would be separated from Kazeroon, creating a new town named Koohchinar.

Protesters say the proposal would place Kazeroons two main historical sites, including the ancient town of Bishapur -- which was founded in the 3rd century and features a rare blend of Persian and Byzantine architecture -- within the boundaries of Koohchinar. It would also, they claim, unfairly divide scarce water resources between the two municipalities. The demarcation would also slash the budget for Kazeroon and government jobs in the city.

According to local media, Qaemeyyeh is Rezazadehs birthplace and he has personal motives in supporting the motion, which was endorsed by Tehran.

Descent Into Violence

State media reported on May 16 that protesters, allegedly responding to calls on social media to gather, set fire to a police station in Kazeroon.

Protesters told local media that they gathered in front of the police station to call for the release of relatives who had been arrested for participating in earlier protests. Protesters say the rally turned violent after police opened fire on the demonstrators.

The New York-based Center for Human Rights In Iran quoted local sources as saying that at least three people, not two as reported by Iranian authorities, were killed on May 16.

Videos on social media showed security forces firing tear gas at protesters. There were also photos of bodies and injured people. The authenticity of the images could not be verified by RFE/RL.

Protesters in Kazeroon also chanted antigovernment slogans. One video shows protesters in April turning the decades-old slogan Death to America on its head by chanting Our enemys right here; they lie and say its America!

In an attempt to de-escalate tensions, the Interior Ministry said any administrative changes in Kazeroon would take "people's concerns" into consideration and would address the existing plan's "deficiencies."

The ministry has also warned, however, that "whomever disturbs public peace and order will be firmly dealt with."

Protesters have demanded the plan be completely abandoned.

In the days since the May 16 protest, photos and video shared on social media have depicted a heavy presence of police and paramilitary forces across Kazeroon. Locals have complained that the city has lost access to the Internet.

Blame Game

The protests have ignited a bitter dispute between lawmaker Rezazadeh and Kazeroons Friday Prayer leader, mid-ranking cleric Mohammad Khorsand.

Khorsand fiercely opposes any changes to the boundaries of the city and initially supported the protesters.

Rezazadeh accused the local Friday Prayer leader of provoking people to rebellion. In remarks quoted by Iran's hard-line Tasnim news agency, he also denied that the proposed changes were his idea, insisting that "the plan to divide Kazeroon has been on the table for 25 years. The citys former lawmakers repeatedly promised to implement the plan but never fulfilled it."

Meanwhile, Bahram Parseinejad, a reformist lawmaker representing Shiraz -- the capital of Fars Province, where Kazroon is located -- said the real cause behind the recent rallies is peoples dissatisfaction with the management of the country.

The people of Kazeroon, he was quoted as saying by BBC Persian, were using the controversial proposal as an excuse to protest poverty, hardship, corruption, and unemployment.

"Like many other Iranians across the country," he added, "citizens of Kazeroon are also trying to force authorities to listen to their concerns and demands."
Afghanistan has launched the registration of candidates for long-delayed parliamentary and district elections scheduled for this year.

Gula Jan Badi Sayad, head of the Independent Election Commission, said at a news conference on May 26 that registration would be open until June 12.

The elections are set to be held on October 20, more than three years after parliament's original five-year term ended in 2015.

Candidates are required to collect the signatures of at least 1,000 supporters to register.

The elections have been threatened by deadly attacks on voter-registration centers.

At least 60 people were killed in April when a suicide bomber attacked a voter-registration center in the capital, Kabul, and there have been a series of attacks on centers across the country.

Sayad said some 3.2 million people had registered to vote so far, still well short of the potential electorate of 14 million but exceeding predictions that the violence would stop the registration process entirely.

Based on reporting by Reuters and 1TV
Four Russian soldiers have been killed in fighting in eastern Syria, Russia's Defense Ministry said, although a war monitor said the death toll was believed to be twice as high.

The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on May 27 that four Russian servicemen were killed in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor when "several mobile terrorist groups attacked Syrian government artillery at night."

The statement added that two Russian military advisers were killed on the spot. Five other personnel were injured and taken to a Russian military hospital. Two of them died from their wounds.

The ministry also said that 43 militants were killed in the same fighting.

The statement did not say exactly when or where the fighting occurred, although a war monitor said it may have taken place on May 23.

Russia's death toll was disputed by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which said nine Russian soldiers were killed on May 23 alongside at least 26 Syrian government soldiers in an attack in Deir Ezzor by Islamic State (IS) militants.

Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the London-based monitoring group, told AFP "several groups" of militants had attacked progovernment forces near the town of Mayadin and that some Russian nationals were with them at the time.

According to AFP, the Russian statement raised the official count of soldiers killed in Syria to 92.

The biggest number of casualties came in March when a transport plane crashed at Syrias Hmeimim airbase, killing all 39 people on board.

Russia has conducted a bombing campaign in Syria since September 2015, helping reverse the course of the nation's seven-year civil war in Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's favor.

Syrian rebel groups and militant organizations still control parts of northwestern and southwestern Syria, while a Kurdish-led alliance backed by the United States holds most of the northeast.

With reporting by Interfax, AFP, and Reuters
Former Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev might be reaping what he had sown when he was in the top office. Toward the end of his six-year term, he was outspoken and often his political opponents suffered legal setbacks.

Atambaev has been out of office since late November 2017 and, on May 17, parliament deputy Iskhak Masaliev of the Onuguu-Progress party proposed lifting immunity for former presidents. The idea received support from 87 of the 101 deputies present (Kyrgyzstans parliament has 120 seats).

The move comes as the investigation into missing funds for the Bishkek Thermal Power Plant (TPP) continues.

China provided Kyrgyzstan with a $386 million loan to overhaul and modernize the plant. The deal was signed during Chinese President Xi Jinpings visit to Kyrgyzstan in 2013. But an accident at the Bishkek TPP in late January 2018 -- the coldest period of the winter -- took the plant completely out of operation for several days.

A subsequent investigation, still in progress, has already determined millions of dollars from the loan were either misspent or vanished and the trail of the investigation is leading to Atambaev-era officials.

RFE/RL's media-relations manager, Muhammad Tahir, moderated a discussion on Atambaevs future and what moves against him could mean for Kyrgyzstans future.

Participating in the conversation from Bishkek, we had Edil Baisalov, political activist and noted political analyst and commentator as well as a former Kyrgyz official. From Washington we were joined by Erica Marat, associate professor and director of the Homeland Defense Fellowship Program at the College of International Security Affairs at the National Defense University and the author of numerous works on Central Asia. Kyrgyzstans domestic politics have always fascinated me, so I had some things to say also.

Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes.
The man who became rich overnight

Our Correspondent :

A councilor of Teknaf Municipality was killed in a reported shootout with the members of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), during an anti-narcotics drive in Noakhaliapara area besides Cox's Bazar-Teknaf Marine Drive Road on Saturday night.

The deceased, Ekramul Haque, 46, was elected councilor three times consecutively from ward no-3.

He was the former president of Teknaf upazila Jubo League, president of Teknaf Bus Station Businessmen's Association, and former convener of Teknaf Microbus Workers' Union. He was accused in a case filed over trading yaba pills in 2008, said police.

RAB sources said that Ekramul was on the list the home ministry's one of the top yaba smugglers. He became rich over night and has assets in Dhaka too. Around 12:30 am Saturday, RAB took position on the marine drive road on information that a consignment of yaba pills would be sent from Noakhaliapara to Cox's Bazar town, sources said.

Sensing presence of the law enforcers, the yaba smugglers opened fire at them.RAB fired back, in retaliation, forcing the smugglers to flee.

As the shootout ended, the body of a man was found there. The body was sent to Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital for an autopsy.

A pistol, a LG gun, bullets and yaba pills were recovered from the spot, police added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged to accelerate efforts to seek a World War II peace treaty and to reach an agreement over a disputed island chain.



"We believe it is important to patiently continue the search for a solution that would satisfy the interests of Russia and Japan and that would be accepted by the nations of both countries," Putin told a news conference following talks between the leaders in Moscow on May 26.

"Solving it is not easy, but we would like to end it within the lifetime of our generation," Abe said of the dispute over the island chain, which Tokyo calls the Northern Territories and Moscow calls the Southern Kuriles.

The Soviet Union occupied the islands at the end of World War II, forcing 17,000 Japanese inhabitants to leave, and the issue has spoiled relations between the two regional powers ever since.

Because of the dispute, a formal WWII peace treaty has yet to be signed between the two sides.

The two countries began discussing the island dispute in 1956. Abe's late father Shintaro Abe -- as a foreign minister -- at one time led the negotiations with Russia but died in 1991 without an agreement.

Japan has pushed to establish joint business projects on the islands as a way to gain momentum to resolve the dispute.

"The Japanese and the Russians will be able to reap the fruits of the joint work on the islands," Abe said. "If we cooperate, we can achieve great results that bring mutual benefit."

The two leaders agreed in December 2016 to start consultations on joint projects on the islands, but little progress has been made, although an agreement last June allowed Japanese citizens to travel to the islands to visit family graves.

Putin said Moscow would "assist" in allowing Japanese citizens to visit the islands -- a vow for which Abe said Tokyo was thankful.

Putin and Abe also attended the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2018 on May 25 and held talks with members of the Russian-Japanese business council as the two leaders looked for ways to boost economic cooperation.

The Kremlin said representatives of the two countries signed 11 bilateral agreements on the sidelines of the Putin-Abe meeting.

Officials said the leaders also discussed the North Korea crisis, with Putin calling on countries to show "restraint in order not to allow a new spike in confrontation and to keep the situation in the political and diplomatic field."

"Most important is for North Korea to carry out full and irreversible denuclearization," Abe said.

The comments come as uncertainty reigns over a potential summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Trump canceled a planned June 12 meeting but later suggested the summit could still take place, either at that date or later.

With reporting by AFP, AP, and Interfax


Russian state-owned energy giant Gazprom says it has signed a protocol with the Turkish government on the land-based part of the transit leg of the TurkStream gas pipeline.

Gazprom on May 26 said it had also agreed with Turkish firm Botas to end an arbitration dispute over the terms of gas supplies related to the project, which will bring Russian natural gas to Europe on a southern route that would bypass Ukraine.

Gazprom said the dispute with Botas would be settled out of court, but it did not provide details.



Until an agreement was reached, Ankara had had delayed issuing a permit to Gazprom to start building the land-based parts of the pipeline.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said earlier on May 26 that the two countries had reached a retroactive agreement for a 10.25 percent discount on the natural gas Ankara buys from Moscow.

Moscow froze talks on the $12 billion TurkStream project when Turkish-Russian relations plummeted after the downing of a Russian fighter jet on the Syrian border by Turkish forces in 2015.

At the time, Moscow imposed trade and travel sanctions against Turkey, and Russian and Turkish officials made personal attacks against each other.

But a letter of regret from Erdogan on the death of the plane's pilot led to a normalization of ties, and the two countries have attempted to improve relations in recent months.

The 910-kilometer TurkStream project is one of several major undersea pipeline projects the Kremlin has pushed in recent years in an effort to bypass older pipeline networks that transit through bitter rival Ukraine.

NordStream sends gas directly from Russia under the Baltic Sea to Germany, while a proposed South Stream was supposed to send Russian gas under the Black Sea to Bulgaria.

South Stream was shelved in 2014 after EU opposition and the crisis over Russias annexation of Ukraines Crimean Peninsula.

Turkey has also purchased S-400 air-defense missile systems from Russia -- a deal that has raised concern among Turkey's NATO partners over questions about its integration with Western defense systems and of Ankaras tightening of relations with Russia.

With reporting by Reuters and TASS
Russia has relocated up to 1 million people to the annexed Ukrainian region of Crimea, according to Mustafa Dzhemilev, the long-time leader of the Crimean Tatars and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko's envoy for Crimean Tatar affairs.

Dzhemilev told Ukrinform on May 27 that Moscow is bringing "large numbers" of people from various regions of Russia to Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.

"But this is held as a military secret because they know perfectly well that it is a crime," Dzhemilev said.

He estimated that the total number of Russians brought into the disputed region was between 850,000 and 1 million.

"Russia is now roughly repeating the same strategy that was used during the first occupation [of Crimea] under [Empress] Catherine [the Great]," he said. "At that time it wasn't possible to deport people since there were no railroads. So they simply created impossible living conditions for people in order to force them to migrate. As a result, Crimean Tatars very quickly became a minority people."

The Russian annexation of Crimea and Russian support for separatists in eastern Ukraine prompted the United States, the European Union, and others to impose targeted sanctions against selected Russian individuals and companies.
Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu

Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu today met his Russian counterpart Denis Manturov in St Petersburg and discussed ways to further promote trade and investments between the two countries. "India and Russia share strong trade and investment ties with more potential. We shall work together to strengthen our economic ties to create win-win for all," Prabhu said in a series of tweets. He said that businesses of both the countries have the immense untapped potential of cooperation in several areas including agriculture, defense, and logistics.

Russian counterpart Denis Manturov

Advertisement

The minister was on an official visit to Russia to participate in the St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) 2018. Prabhu also held discussions with a governor of Stavropol Vladimir Vladimirov, Russian minister for the development of far east Alexander Kozlov, and met delegations from different sectors. To promote trade, India wants Russia to explore opportunities for diamond trade here and use of national currencies for trade purposes in areas like pharmaceuticals, textiles, agricultural commodities and machinery and engineering products.

Stavropol Territory Governor Vladimir Vladimirov

According to government data, the bilateral trade between the countries increased to USD 7.5 billion in 2016-17 from USD 6.2 billion in the previous fiscal. But the trade is in the favor of Russia.
First prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today led the nation in paying tributes to first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru on his 54th death anniversary. Nehru, who was born on November 14, 1889, died on May 27, 1964. "Tributes to our first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his death anniversary," Modi said in a tweet.

PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi pays tribute to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his 54th death anniversary

Advertisement

Former president Pranab Mukherjee, former vice-president Hamid Ansari, and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi paid floral tributes to the departed leader at Shanti Van--Nehru's memorial on the banks of Yamuna here. Senior Congress leaders, including Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot, and Motilal Vora also paid tributes to the country's first prime minister. Devotional songs were played and an all-religion prayer meeting was organized at the memorial.
Former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf

Pakistan and India were on the path of peace and reconciliation under his regime, former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf has said while claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not an "advocate of peace talks". The former president and chief of All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) in an interview with Voice of America claimed that when he was in power, India and Pakistan were on the "path of reconciliation", but that is not the case anymore, the Express Tribune reported.

PM Modi, not an advocate of 'peace talks' with Pak: Musharraf

Advertisement

"At the time, I spoke to both the prime ministers, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh, they were both from different political parties but we wanted to move forward from the disputes, he said. The 74-year-old retired general, who is facing high treason charges, has been living in Dubai since last year when he was allowed to leave Pakistan for medical treatment. Musharraf claimed that a four-point initiation of peace was strategized by the former president and was put in implementation by the leadership of both countries.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee

The four points of contention included Siachen and Kashmir as well, he said. "We were working on my strategy because both sides wanted to have peace. This is not the case anymore. They want to undo us," he claimed. "Incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to enforce supremacy in India and isn't an advocate of peace talks," he alleged. He alleged that there exists an "inherent bias" towards India's treatment as both possess nuclear arms, but no questions are raised in India.

Advertisement

Manmohan Singh

"Nobody asks India to control their assets. Pakistan became a nuclear state because India posed an undeniable existential threat, he said. "The US should have stopped them, we have been loyal to them throughout, he said. He said that Pak-US relations have suffered quite a blow and are currently at "the lowest ebb". Answering a question as to why there are strenuous relations between the two countries, Musharraf said, "The US has supported India very openly from the Cold War era.

And now again, the US is aligning itself with India against Pakistan, this affects us directly. We would like the UN to examine India's role in Afghanistan. A one-sided approach to the problem is negative.
War inflicts $ 941 mln losses on Yemeni Red Sea Ports Corporation [27/May/2018] br>

SANAA, May 27 (Saba)- Yemeni Red Sea Ports Corporation revealed the size of the losses it has suffered since the beginning of Saudi-led coalition war on Yemen, which amounted to over 941.7 million dollars.



"The Corporation's losses since the beginning of the aggression until May, 2017 amounted to 621 million dollars, while the losses in this year amounted to more than 320.7 million dollars," said Yahya Sharaf al-Din, deputy chairman of the Red Sea Ports Corporation, at a press conference held on Saturday.



Over the past three years of the aggression war, the port of Hodeidah lost 60 per cent of its operational capacity, which caused paralyzing its work, Sharaf al-Din said.



The coalition imposed a further siege on the Yemeni people by holding relief vessels, oil tankers and commercial ships and preventing them from entering the port, he added.



He noted that only one ship arrived at the port of Hodeidah carrying 581 WFP-tracked containers, while another wheat ship arrived in coinciding with the visit of a team of human rights experts of the United Nations to the port.



Sharaf al-Din appealed to local and international organization to stand by the Yemeni people in the face of the aggression and siege, which doubled the human suffering of citizen.



He held the international community responsible for the consequences of continuing threats to the port by the aggression forces.



BA



Saba
Shootout toll now 93

Municipal councillor among 11 more killed: Over 6700 arrested, 5600 cases filed

Dhaka Metropolitan Police in an anti-narcotics drive arrested about one hundred people from city\'s Ganaktuli Sweeper Colony in a overnight drive and recovered huge drugs from the area yesterday

Staff Reporter :

Eleven more alleged drug peddlers, including a municipal councillor, were killed in "gunfights" in 11 districts early Sunday amid anti-narcotic drives of law enforcers across the country.

A total 15 policemen were reportedly injured in the gunfights.

The tally of alleged illegal drug traders killed in "shootouts" stood at 93, and arrested 6700 in more than 5600 cases since the special force began the anti-drug drive on May 4, said Police Headquarters.

In Cox's Bazar, suspected drug dealer Ekramul Haque, 46, also a councillor in Teknaf Municipality, was killed in a reported gunfight with Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) members.

Around 10,000 yaba tablets, a foreign pistol, a one shooter gun, six round bullets and five bullet shells were recovered from the spot, Ekramul was killed, RAB official said.

In Bagerhat, alleged drug peddler Mitul Biswas, 45, was killed in a reported gunfight with police at Chinguri-Mochondopur in Chitalmari upazila during the wee hours, said Anukul Bishwas, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Chitalmari Police Station.

Biswas was accused in 22 cases, including nine drugs cases, the OC said.

Police recovered 100 yaba tablets, 2-kg hemp, a shutter gun and two rounds of bullets from the spot.

In Kushtia, Halim Mondol, 35, a listed firearms and yaba peddler, died on the spot as his cohorts exchanged bullets with police during a gunfight in Housing area in Kushtia town around 2:45am, said Nasir Uddin, OC of Kushtia Model Police Station.

Four policemen were injured in the incident. Police recovered one shutter gun, one pipe gun, 3 bullets and 800 pieces of yaba tablets.

In Meherpur, a top drug peddler, Hafizul Islam, 45, was killed in a "gunfight" with police at Garabaria filed at about 1:30am, said Harendranath Sarker, OC of Gangni Police Station,.

Islam was accused in 12 drug cases which were filed with Gangni Police Station, the OC said.

In Jhenidah, suspected drug peddler Rafikul Islam alias Luton, 36, was killed in a "gunfight" between two groups of drug peddlers due to their internal feud on Jhenidah-Kushtia highway near Bordah-Jamalpur village around 1:00am, said Alamgir Hossain, OC of Shailakupa Police Station.

In Thakurgaon, Rafiqul Islam alias Taleban, 51, a suspected drug peddler, was killed in a "gunfight" with police in Nekmarad Durlavpur village of Ranishankoil upazila around 2:00am, our local correspondent reports quoting a press release issued by the district police.

In Chandpur, a suspected drug peddler Selim, 37, was killed in a reported gunfight with police in Hazaridone area on Chandpur-Matlab road in Matlab Dakshin upazila around 2:45am, police said.

Doctors at Matlab Health Complex declared Selim dead after he was rushed there with bullet wounds, said Kutub Uddin, officer-in-charge of Matlab Dakshin Police Station.

In Khulna, listed drug peddler Abul Kalam was killed in a reported gunfight with police in Dighalia upazila around 3:00am, Rahman, additional police superintendent, told our local correspondent.

In Mymensingh, an alleged drug pddler, Sanjoy, 25, was killed in a "gunfight" with police in Bolashpur Morakhola area in Mymensingh town around 1:30am, said Khandaker Shaker Ahmed, OC (Investigation) of Kotwali Police Station.

Two police constables-Humayun and Amir Hamza injured in the firing were treated at Mymensingh Police Lines Hospital, he said.

Police claimed to have recovered 100 grams heroin, 100 pieces of yaba tablets, four used bullets, two sharp weapons from the spot.

In Chattogram, suspected drug peddler Md Rihan Prakash, 27, son of Maliul Haque of Golabaria area under Muradpur union in Sitakunda upazila, was killed in a reported gunfight with police in Guliakhali Sandwip ferry ghat around 12:45am, UNB adds. Rihan was accused in eight cases.

In Noakhali, a suspected drug trader Hasan Mia, son of Hanif Mia of Banoai village in Sonaimuri upazila, was killed in a reported gunfight with police in Bogadia area around 3:00am. He was accused in 11 cases, said AKM Zahirul Islam, Additional Superintendent of Police in the district.

Police recovered an LG gun, seven rounds of bullets and 120 pieces of yaba tablets from the spot, he added.
One of the promising non-invasive brain therapeutic methods is the repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). During such a procedure, a magnetic coil is placed near the head of the patient and a magnetic pulse is transmitted to a specific damaged region of the brain.

This type of magnetic brain therapy has been deemed valuable in the treatment of a variety of psychiatric diseases, such as depression, as well as many disordered brain functionalities, including stroke, multiple sclerosis, and movement disorders. In some countries the treatment is even covered by health insurance packages.

One of the primary current challenges of this treatment is to enhance its efficiency by optimizing stimulation time scheduling (the timing of magnetic pulses).

In an article just published online in Frontiers in Neuroscience, Israeli physicists, together with a group of German neurologists, suggest that fewer stimulations of the brain are preferable, since neurons "get tired" when stimulated too fast, and subsequently cease to respond to brain stimulation therapy. Their theory contradicts intuition, which implies that faster and more intense training of our brain is a better therapeutic strategy.

Following a series of new experiments and advanced theoretical studies, the Israeli physicists, led by Prof. Ido Kanter, of the Department of Physics and Gonda (Goldschmied) Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center at Bar-Ilan University, have demonstrated that each neuron has a maximal firing rate that is much lower than previously assumed. Hence, when stimulated too fast, neuronal response failures occur. "Neurons are like people," said Prof. Kanter. "Stuttering occurs when we speak too fast, errors occur when we type too fast, and confusion emerges when we learn too fast."

The research was conducted in collaboration with a group of neurologists led by Prof. Dr. Walter Paulus, from the Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, University Medical Center Gottingen and his team, including Dr. Islam Halawa and Dr. Yuichiro Shirota.

"We evaluated a variety of existing rTMS scheduling protocols which offered conflicting results and no clear guideline for the temporal organization of brain stimulations," said Prof. Kanter. "Our findings suggest that slower rates of stimulation may be more effective in brain therapy, and we suggest that this method be adopted in order to maximize effective brain therapy."

"While modern computers are composed of very reliable elements, the brain is composed of unreliable elements, since neurons 'tire' and frequently fail to respond," added Prof. Kanter, following the previous work of his students Amir Goldental and Dr. Roni Vardi. This newly-discovered principle of neuronal activity was actually found to be advantageous, since it stabilizes brain activity and prevents hyperactivity.

rTMS equipment and trained therapists become more accurate and effective in the localization and real-time tracking of stimulation spots in the brain. However, without understanding how to optimize the stimulation scheduling, the efficiency of the therapy will remain limited. The proposed underlying mechanism "less is more" is one of the first guidelines toward improving this type of non-invasive therapy and exemplifies the necessity and the productivity of an interdisciplinary scientific effort to solve the puzzle of our brain.
An international team of scientists has created a tiny chemistry lab for a rover that will drill beneath the Martian surface looking for signs of past or present life. The toaster oven-sized lab, called the Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer or MOMA, is a key instrument on the ExoMars Rover, a joint mission between the European Space Agency and the Russian space agency Roscosmos, with a significant contribution to MOMA from NASA. It will be launched toward the Red Planet in July 2020.

"The ExoMars Rover's two-meter deep drill will provide MOMA with unique samples that may contain complex organic compounds preserved from an ancient era, when life might have gotten started on Mars," said MOMA Project Scientist Will Brinckerhoff of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Although the surface of Mars is inhospitable to known forms of life today, there is evidence that in the distant past, the Martian climate allowed the presence of liquid water -- an essential ingredient for life -- at the surface. This evidence includes features that resemble dry riverbeds and mineral deposits that only form in the presence of liquid water. NASA has sent rovers to Mars that have found additional signs of past habitable environments, such as the Opportunity and Curiosity rovers both currently exploring the Martian terrain.

The MOMA instrument will be capable of detecting a wide variety of organic molecules. Organic compounds are commonly associated with life, although they can be created by non-biological processes as well. Organic molecules contain carbon and hydrogen, and can include oxygen, nitrogen, and other elements. To find these molecules on Mars, the MOMA team had to take instruments that would normally occupy a couple of workbenches in a chemistry lab and shrink them down to roughly the size of a toaster oven so they would be practical to install on a rover.

While the instrument is complex, MOMA is built around a single, very small mass spectrometer that separates charged atoms and molecules by mass. The basic process for finding Martian organic compounds can be boiled down to two steps: separate organic molecules from the Martian rocks and sediments and give them an electric charge (ionized) so they can be detected and identified by the mass spectrometer. MOMA has two methods for distinguishing as many different kinds of organic molecules as possible. The first method uses an oven to heat a sample -- this baking process vaporizes the organic molecules and sends them to a thin column that separates mixtures of compounds into their individual constituents. The compounds sequentially pass into the mass spectrometer, where they are given an electric charge and sorted by mass using electric fields. Each type of molecule has a set of distinct mass-to-electric-charge ratios. The mass spectrometer instrument uses this pattern called a mass spectrum to identify the molecules.

Some larger organic molecules are fragile and would be broken apart during the high-temperature vaporization in the oven, so MOMA has a second method to find them: It zaps the sample with a laser. Since just a quick burst of laser light is used, it vaporizes some types of larger organic molecules without totally breaking them apart. The laser also gives these molecules an electric charge, so they are sent directly from the sample to the mass spectrometer to be sorted and identified.

Certain organic molecules have a property that could potentially be used as a strong hint that they were created by life: their handedness, or chirality. Some organic molecules used by life come in two varieties that are mirror images of each other, like your hands. On Earth, life uses all left-handed amino acids and all right-handed sugars to build larger molecules needed for life, like proteins from amino acids and DNA from sugars. Life based on right-handed amino acids (and left-handed sugars) could work, but a mix of right- and left-handed for either will not. This is because these molecules need to come together with the correct orientation, like puzzle pieces, to build other molecules necessary for life to function.

MOMA is capable of detecting the chirality of organic molecules. If it finds an organic molecule is primarily of the left-hand or right-hand variety (called "homochirality") that can be evidence that life produced the molecules, since non-biological processes tend to make an equal mix of varieties. This is known as a biosignature.

Mars rovers face another challenge when searching for evidence of life: Contamination. Earth is saturated with life, and scientists have to be very careful that the organic material they detect wasn't simply carried with the instrument from Earth. To ensure this, the MOMA team has taken great care to make sure that the instrument is as free as possible from terrestrial molecules that are signatures of life.

The ExoMars rover will be the first to explore deep beneath the surface, with a drill capable of taking samples from as deep as two meters (over six feet). This is important because Mars' thin atmosphere and spotty magnetic field offer insufficient protection from space radiation, which can gradually destroy organic molecules left exposed on the surface. However, Martian sediment is an effective shield, and the team expects to find greater abundances of organic molecules in samples from beneath the surface.

NASA Goddard is developing the mass spectrometer and electronics boxes for MOMA, while LATMOS (Laboratory for Atmospheres, Environments, and Space Observations), Guyancourt, France and Laboratoire Interuniversitaire des Systemes Atmospheriques (LISA or Interuniversity Laboratory of Atmospheric Systems) Paris, France, make MOMA's gas chromatograph, and the Max Plank Institute for Solar System Research, Gottingen, Germany and Laser Zentrum Hannover, Hannover, Germany, build the instrument's laser, ovens, and tapping (oven sealing) station.

MOMA recently completed both ESA and NASA pre-delivery reviews that cleared the path for the flight instrument to be delivered to the mission. On Wednesday, May 16, the MOMA mass spectrometer team gathered at Goddard to see off their one-of-a-kind science instrument on the first leg of its journey to Mars: delivery to Thales Alenia Space, in Turin, Italy, where it will be integrated into the rover's analytical laboratory drawer during upcoming mission-level activities this summer. Following subsequent higher-level rover and spacecraft-level integration activities in 2019, the ExoMars Rover is scheduled to launch to Mars in July, 2020 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Diverse neighbors. Health centers. Commuter trains. These community attributes, and other key factors, are linked to well-being and quality of life, according to Yale researchers.

In a new nationwide study of more than 300,000 adults, the Yale-led team found that people who live in communities that offer racial diversity, access to preventive health care, and public transportation, among other elements, are more likely to report high levels of well-being, the researchers said.

The study is published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Well-being -- defined as an individual's assessment of his or her health and quality of life -- is associated with longevity and better health outcomes. Research shows that well-being also varies by region.

To investigate correlations between community attributes and well-being, the Yale-led research team examined data on 77 characteristics of counties across the United States related to demographics, clinical care, social and economic factors, and the physical environment. They also analyzed findings from the Gallup-Sharecare Well-Being Index. The index measures Americans' perceptions of their daily life experiences, including their sense of purpose, financial security, relationships, and physical health.

Linking the well-being data to specific county characteristics, and using a step-wise process to eliminate redundancy, the researchers identified 12 attributes that were strongly and independently associated with well-being.

"We came up with attributes that explained a large portion of the variation we see in well-being," said first author and assistant professor medicine Brita Roy, M.D. "Several factors were related to income and education, which is expected. But we also found that attributes related to the community environment and the way people commute and variables related to health care were linked to well-being."

For example, living in a community with a higher percentage of black residents was associated with greater well-being for all. Access to preventive health care, such as mammography, and health centers were linked to well-being. Individuals in communities where they could commute to work by public transit or bicycle reported feelings of satisfaction and fulfillment, the researchers noted.

While the study did not prove a cause-and-effect relationship between community attributes and well-being, the correlations were significant, said the researchers. The findings suggest strategies for policymakers and public health experts who seek to enhance health and well-being in their communities, they said, noting that promoting diversity and better education, transportation, and primary care may make a difference.

"The results of this study represent a step forward in our understanding of how we may efficiently and effectively improve well-being through community-based action," said Carley Riley, M.D., co-author and assistant professor at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

"To improve the well-being of a community, you need to work across multiple sectors and fields, to include the economy and health care and urban planning and transportation," said Roy, who points to examples of communities in Richmond, CA, and Chittenden County, VT, that have taken this approach to health. "Working across different groups, in coalitions, has the greatest potential to improve health and quality of life."
Sharon Browning of the University of Washington and colleagues developed a method to estimate historical effective population size, which is the number of individuals who pass on their genes to the next generation, to reveal the shifting demographic history of U.S. populations during the last several thousand years. They report their findings in a new study published May 24th, 2018 in PLOS Genetics.

Many populations in the U.S. are mixed, with ancestry from Europe, Africa, and the Americas. By looking at genome-wide data from several hundred individuals from a population, scientists can learn not only the current effective population size, but also the sizes of the ancestral populations that once contributed their genes. In the current study, researchers developed a method for estimating past effective population size and used it to analzye data from nine populations enrolled in a Latino health study, and from African-American and European-American populations in Pittsburgh and Memphis. They estimate that overall effective population sizes dropped substantially after the start of European and African immigration, reaching a minimum around 12 generations ago, but rebounded a few generations later. Researchers investigated these population size reductions, also known as bottlenecks, and found that the smallest bottleneck occurred in Puerto Rico, where the effective size at one point fell to just one thousand people.

The differences in historical effective sizes between these populations can be useful for understanding why individual groups face different health and disease risks. They can also be useful for scientists in selecting populations that will be most useful for studies that identify the genes linked to specific diseases.

Sharon Browning adds: "Admixed populations in the Americas are like ropes constructed by braiding together several different fibers, with the fibers representing different ancestral population groups. The genetic composition of those different groups is overall very similar, but is different enough so that we can distinguish the genetic material from each ancestry group and study its properties, which tells us about the histories of those populations.

We found that around 100 generations ago, which is approximately several thousand years ago, the effective sizes of the ancestral European, African and indigenous American populations contributing to current-day American populations were around several tens of thousands of individuals each. We also found clear signatures of the effects of migration and colonization, with reduced effective population sizes around 12 generations ago, which is approximately 300 years ago."
Why they were not arrested before

Security officials said they have detained over 6,700 suspected drug dealers across the country in the governments ongoing zero tolerance crackdown on drugs.

The aggressive anti-narcotic campaign has also taken lives of nearly 100 suspected drug dealers so far.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said the deaths were caused in gunfights between the members of law-enforcement agencies and suspected drug dealers during raids, but human right groups called the killings as extrajudicuial.

Human right defenders also raised question over the sudden war on drugs saying why the government did not take such a violent campaign before to eradicate the drug menace.

The crackdown against the drug dealers is an ongoing process. The security agencies and narcotics department is carrying out the routine drive round the year, Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal told The New Nation yesterday.

The Home Minister claimed that they have arrested many drug dealers before the beginning of this crackdown. But media did not focused on the development properly.

Now, we are conducting raids in more organized manner based on a fresh list of drug dealers and drug lords prepared by the government agencies. Our forces have already showed tremendous successes in this regard. The drive will continue until all the drug lords and dealers have been captured, he added.

Kamal said they have intensified the drive following Prime Minister Sheikh Hasinas directive.

Weve contained militancy. Now weve taken an initiative to save the country from this drug menace, said Hasina.

She came up with the statement when her government was struggling to contain the drug menace specially yabaa mixture of caffeine and methamphetamine.

Security agencies are facing trouble to stop the drug from passing through Bangladeshs southeastern border from Myanmar, where much of it produced.

They, however, report seizing a record 40 million yaba pills in 2017, of an estimated 250-300 million that entered Bangladesh in a year.

Abdur Rahman Bodi, a lawmaker (Coxs Bazar- 4) of ruling Awami League, has long been accused of being the key actor in yaba trading from Myanmar through porous border in Teknaf.

The Narcotics Department listed his name as Drug Mafia few years back, but the government did not take action against him as he becomes influential inside the ruling party circle. Later it prepared a fresh list of drug lords and dealers dropping Bodis name.

We disapprove of the prevalence of drug in the country. But the way government agencies are combating drug trafficking is not acceptable. The crackdown on narcotics is bringing the rising number of deaths in so called shootout raising concern over human rights violation, said human right activist Sultana Kamal.

She said, Those are clearly extrajudicial killings. The government should immediately stop such killings to show respect to the Constitution, rule of law and human rights.




The 17-year-old Oakland high school senior first tried a Juul after a friend gave him one.

It looked like a computer gadget, but the sleek 4-inch device delivered puffs of sweet-flavored nicotine vapor anytime he wanted. It didnt set off smoke alarms or smell like cigarettes. It smelled of mango, mint or creme brulee.

Now, less than a year later, he hits a Juul dozens of times a day. He needs it, he says. At school, home, hanging out with friends.

He says he wants to quit. But when he goes without a hit for too long, he gets a headache and body aches. He gets irritable.

Ive tried nicotine gum, said the teen, who attends Bishop ODowd, a college-prep private school. Ive tried patches.

But he cant. And, he says, neither can many of his peers.

The graduating senior agreed to speak with The Chronicle about what he described as an addiction to nicotine on the condition he not be identified.

E-cigarettes are marketed as a safer alternative to combustible cigarettes, a tar-free way to wean off nicotine. The vaping industry, worth about $1.1 billion in sales annually and growing, includes a wide range of companies that say the products are not meant for youths or new users.

Yet health officials have been sounding the alarm over the escalating use of e-cigarettes, and especially Juuls, among young people for a few years. The products, they say, come in hundreds of fruit and candy flavors  mango, sweet tart, watermelon, caramel cappuccino  making them attractive to teens. More than 1 of every 4 high school seniors used a vaping device in 2017, according to a University of Michigan survey of 43,000 middle and high school students.

Last month, the Food and Drug Administration announced a plan to crack down on the sale of Juuls to youths and requested the San Francisco maker of the product, Juuls Labs, turn over documents related to the devices design, marketing and ingredients.

In an email, Juuls Lab officials said the company supports efforts to reduce the products access to youth and will work with school districts and law enforcement on prevention efforts in addition to adding a label on packaging that says, For alternative for adult smokers.

Students and educators say they noticed Juuls, which came onto the market in 2015, explode in popularity in schools this past year. While teen vaping has been on the rise over the last several years, Juuls appear to have ushered in a cultural phenomenon among teens, a trend fueled by the addictive power of nicotine, the ease of acquisition and the pull of peer pressure.

Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Teens bedazzle and personalize their Juuls, buying colorful and designer skins to cover the otherwise electronic-looking devices. They post videos and photos on social media, using Juul hashtags and showing how to sneak hits in class or perform vapor tricks, like blowing Os. They pass a Juul around from one freshman to the next at lunch. At parties, Juuls, which light up after a hit, are spun to form illuminated rainbow circles in the air.

Some young users wear shirts, hats and other products to show loyalty to the brand. They wear hoodies that allow for surreptitious hits through the drawstring.

And Juul users have their own vaping vernacular: zeroing, Juuling, party mode, Juul nation.

Unlike old-school cigarettes, vaping is a communal experience, bonding young people from across the high schools and hierarchies  drama kids, athletes, band geeks, musicians, the straight-A students and the class clowns.

Its not just a thing to do now, its a community; you do it, youre in it, said the student. I dont think Ive met a single person in the past six months that doesnt vape.

At Bishop ODowd, freshmen form huddles at lunch to pass one around, the student said. Seniors meet up after school at a cemetery to blow swirls of vapor into the sky. Hes heard middle school students are starting to do it too, meeting up in the big bathroom stalls, something confirmed by education officials and youth surveys.

Its like being in a club, he said.

You see a person with a Juul, and its, Oh, Juul gang, he said. Its almost like a way to relate to one another.

That sense of belonging can be a powerful pull, teens said, a symbol of coolness to combat adolescent angst.

At Dublin High School, Principal Maureen Byrne started seeing Juuls and other vaping products this academic year.

She keeps a box of the e-cigarettes confiscated from students to show to parents and teachers who previously had no idea that what they thought was a computer flash drive, a phone charger, or a flashlight is actually a Juul, or Suorin, or vape pen.

Photos by Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

And shes stepped up awareness campaigns to dispel the notion among students that the product is a harmless cigarette.

For whatever reason, it is definitely exploding this year, Byrne said. Its definitely pervasive and scary and disgusting.

School officials across the Bay Area say they have incorporated vaping into the health curriculum. In San Francisco, tobacco and e-cigarette prevention education is required in every grade starting in kindergarten.

In Pittsburg, vaping hasnt been a huge issue so far, district officials said, but prevention efforts are ongoing. At Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, students recently gave a peer presentation on the dangers of smoking and vaping, with a strong visual deterrent: a blackened pigs lung that had been infused with tar.

But vaping with Juuls is costly and appears to be popular in more privileged communities where youth can afford the $50 to buy a device and a starter pack of four nicotine-infused pods  each with about 200 pulls or the nicotine equivalent of a pack of cigarettes. Additional pod packs cost about $16.

At Bishop ODowd, Principal James Childs didnt directly address the apparent use of Juuling among his students, but said officials there keep tabs what children are doing.

We try to stay current on trends, remain watchful of the students, vocalize our expectations, and engage in education for our parents so that together, we promote health and wellness within our student body, he said.

At Oakland School of the Arts, one student said she had never seen a Juul until the beginning of this school year.

I started seeing this hard-drive type of thing and I didnt know what it was, she said. I started seeing them everywhere after that.

She said shes tried them a few times, adding the devices are prolific at parties where students from various Bay Area high schools pass them from partygoer to partygoer.

Its so kid friendly, its so scary to me, the teen said. Theyre making it attractive to people who are our age.

The founders of Juul Labs, James Monsees and Adam Bowen, say they developed the product to be a solution to a health crisis, offering combustible cigarette smokers a tar-free alternative.

Our companys mission is to eliminate cigarettes and help the more than one billion smokers worldwide switch to a true alternative, the company said when asked to comment for this report. We cannot be more emphatic on this point: No young person or non-nicotine user should ever try Juul.

Jessica Christian / The Chronicle

Given the popularity of the Juul, it appears a rash of new nicotine users, including the graduating senior from Bishop ODowd, have not heeded the warning. He says his habit is costing him up to $100 a month.

The company saw a 700 percent sales increase in 2017 and now controls more than half the $1.2 billion e-cigarette/vapor market, according to industry reports.

The surge of adolescent Juul users has resulted in an onslaught of media attention and cries from parents and policymakers to address the problem, restricting access to underage users and regulating the nicotine content.

The FDA, meanwhile, currently doesnt regulate the electronic cigarette market and doesnt plan to until 2022, although it is examining the sales of Juuls after receiving complaints from parents and teachers.

Separately, Juul Labs has committed to spending $30 million over the next three years on research as well as youth and parent education efforts, officials said. The company also has a secret shopper program to help enforce age verification at retail outlets.

Juul devices and pods are also available online through the companys website, requiring buyers to provide name, date of birth, address and last four digits of their Social Security number to verify they are legally able to purchase Juul products.

The Bishop ODowd student scoffed at the efforts to restrict access, saying teens can easily purchase Juuls and pods, despite Californias age requirement of 21 to purchase tobacco.

He and his friends, he said, have bought fake California or other state IDs online, sending $40 or $50 money transfers to Chinese counterfeiters. And its not hard to get around age verification online, he added.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

It is very easy to obtain any type of vape, he said.

So easy, that middle school students are buying them too.

At Petaluma Junior High School, administrators say theyve seen a slight increase in use at school this year, but they are also monitoring online activity where they see even more evidence of use. To combat the problem, theyve restricted access to certain bathrooms during lunch and breaks, said Principal Renee Semik.

We know that the students are doing this off campus, at home, on the weekends, based on their social media postings, she said. We also know that many of our students are purchasing these online or from other students who bought them online.

Many of these young students think Juuls or other vaping products are safe because they dont include include tar. But they do contain toxic ingredients, said Dr. Mark Rubinstein, UCSF professor of pediatrics.

These are not benign fruit-flavored products that you can just play with and use recreationaly, he said. We worry because when the younger kids use nicotine, or any drugs for that matter, we think it causes permanent changes to the developing brain.

Researchers are just starting to look at the long-term health impacts of e-cigarettes. The chemicals in them could be carcinogenic, especially when heated to levels required to produce vapor, Rubinstein said.

Juul pods include glycerol, propylene glycol, natural oils, extracts and flavor, nicotine and benzoic acid, company officials say, but not diacetyl, a potentially harmful chemical used in other vaping products for flavoring.

Rubinstein is also concerned about excessive use by young people, not only because they come in fun flavors like mango and popcorn  but they dont smell like smoke, so children can use them at home and school and therefore more frequently than they would regular cigarettes, he said.

I think this is going to increase the risk of nicotine addiction beyond combustible cigarettes, Rubinstein said.

Nicotine, an addictive drug, causes the body to release epinephrine, the fight or flight hormone, which could cause the head rush some describe when vaping or smoking.

On a typical day, the graduating senior from Oakland said he might take 40 hits off a Juul. He has perfected his technique to use it in class, inhaling from the easily concealed device and then holding the vapor in long enough to dissipate in his lungs so the teacher wont see it.

Thats called zeroing, he said.

But he hits his Juul a lot more if hes bored at home or during parties, he said, where nearly everyone is vaping.

Without it, the headaches and body aches hit, and then, thats all you kind of think about, he said.

While he was among the first to use a Juul among his classmates and friends, he said he cant think of anyone who doesnt have one or use one now.

Parents, he said, have no idea.

If your kids say they dont vape, he said, they vape.

Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker

What are e-cigarettes?

E-cigarettes come in many shapes and sizes. Most have a battery, a heating element, and a place to hold a liquid.

E-cigarettes produce an aerosol by heating a liquid that usually contains nicotine  the addictive drug in regular cigarettes, cigars and other tobacco products.

E-cigarettes are known by many different names. They are sometimes called e-cigs, e-hookahs, mods, vape pens, vapes, tank systems, and electronic nicotine delivery systems, or ENDS.

Some e-cigarettes are made to look like regular cigarettes, cigars, or pipes. Some resemble pens, USB sticks or other everyday items.

Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention
As Mexicos ambassador to the United States, Carlos Sada had a front row seat to then-candidate Donald Trumps blistering attacks on Mexico during his 2016 campaign. From the beginning, Trump made Mexico a target, infamously saying that the country was not sending their best and that they are not our friend.

Then there was the call for Mexico to pay for a border wall between the two countries. For a while, Sada thought it was all part of the campaign and that Trump would shift his approach once in office.

Unfortunately, he hasnt changed his rhetoric, said Sada, now Mexicos undersecretary for North America, overseeing the current ambassadors to the United States and Canada and the consulates across the countries. We never confronted somebody with (these) characteristics, a leader of this kind. It was very tough to swallow.

Sada, speaking with The Chronicle Friday during a stop in San Francisco to meet with leaders of consulates on the West Coast, said his government had two options: confront Trump directly or try to establish a relationship with those in the administration. After all, Sada said, Mexico and the United States have long been close partners, regardless of the administration. They chose the latter approach.

You cannot stop the whole machinery. You have to find people that understand the relationship, he said. We had to find out how to deal with the Trump administration. I think we are doing pretty well.

That doesnt mean there arent bumps along the road, as when Trump tweets something disparaging about Mexico or when recently, in a meeting with California sheriffs and immigration officials, he said, Mexico does nothing for us. Mexico talks, but they do nothing for us, especially at the border.

Its after these comments that Sada and Mexican diplomats reach out to high-ranking officials in the Trump administration in order for them to understand the efforts Mexico is doing are unique and that Mexico is investing effort and money on the border.

We know that from time to time theres going to be tweets, he said. We have to have in that sense a thick skin, in order to not really be affected by the tweets.

As the Trump administration focuses on the border, reports have indicated that theyve pushed Mexico to become a safe third country  forcing those who are fleeing Central America through Mexico to claim asylum there, instead of in the United States. Sada said the reports are simply noise.

We are not negotiating anything on the safe country, he said. The U.S. has one with Canada but thats another story.

Sada said his diplomats have noticed continuous fear among Mexicans in the U.S. and said the countrys officials are focused on trying to help them in whatever way possible, including increased support for immigration attorneys.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

I dont know, going back in history and time, when there was a situation where our people feel kind of defenseless or not protected enough, he said.

Whether tensions will rise between the two countries could rest on who wins the Mexican presidential election on July 1. The leading candidate, leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, has said that he would directly confront Trump for any disparaging comments and put him in his place. Polls have found that more than 80 percent of Mexicans view Trump unfavorably.

In the meantime, Sada and his fellow Mexican diplomats are keeping an eye on what Trump will say next.

We dont know what he is going to say tomorrow  nobody knows, he said. It could be a surprise.

Hamed Aleaziz is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: haleaziz@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @haleaziz
It was quite a display of power, politics and odd seatmates at the big Salesforce Tower opening celebration  one that says a lot about the citys love-hate relationship with tech.

Salesforce CEO billionaire Marc Benioff was on hand Tuesday to cut the ribbon  as was Mayor Mark Farrell, who is on leave from his tech investment company until his successor is chosen in the June special election.

All four of the major mayoral candidates were there as well, including Jane Kim and Mark Leno, who have been busy slamming tech billionaires, real estate giants and other wealthy special interests for ruining the city.

Also attending was Owen Thomas, CEO of Boston Properties, developer of Salesforce Tower and owner of the Embarcadero Center.

Two nights later, former state Sen. Leno took to the air with an ad that was broadcast simultaneously on seven local TV stations to tell viewers he would bring fundamental change to the city while opponent London Breed is backed by the same billionaires and real estate speculators who have controlled City Hall for years.

Still, just hours after hobnobbing at the Salesforce Tower opening, Leno was feted at a fundraiser hosted at the Sea Cliff home of downtown real estate magnate Clint Reilly. Coincidentally, Boston Properties had just spent $15,000 to help pay for a mailer by the tenant-friendly Affordable Housing Alliance promoting both Kim and Leno for mayor.

Breed supporters were out in force at the Salesforce celebration as well, with billionaire tech investor Ron Conway in the VIP section.

Matier & Ross/Courtesy CBS-5

Conway, who has become the symbol of big tech money in local politics, has been keeping a low profile when it comes to the mayoral race  although he has been quietly soliciting contributions for political action committees that are backing Breeds campaign.

Conways wife, Gayle Conway, has also personally funded a $200,000 television ad attacking candidate Kim because of her 2012 vote to keep Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi in office after he had admitted to bruising his wifes arm in a fight.

As for Leno rubbing elbows with the likes of Benioff, Boston Properties bigwigs and Reilly, campaign spokeswoman Zoe Kleinfeld said, Sen. Leno stands by his record of fighting on behalf of tenants and that any criticism of him doesnt hide the fact that billionaires and real estate speculators have now dumped over $1 million into this race on (Breeds) behalf.

Kim campaign spokeswoman Julie Edwards dismissed any attempt to link Kims appearance at the tower opening to Boston Properties contribution to an independent expenditure campaign on her behalf as silly and desperate on its face.

Jane works with everyone, but she also makes it very clear that billionaires should not get to pick our next mayor or run City Hall, Edwards said. And she doesnt support super PACs.

The fact is, Kim, Leno and, especially, Breed are all benefiting in varying degrees from PAC money.

Breed supporters have spent $962,000 to date in support of her mayoral run, with the biggest chuck  $658,149  coming from various donations being rolled through a committee administered by Firefighters Local 798.

Kim has benefited from $385,593 in positive ads and mailers from four PACs, including a $218,980 boost from the Service Employees International Union Local 1021. Other noteworthy contributions came from a pair of tech millionaires  $100,000 from Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg and $50,000 from Zendesk CEO Mikkel Svane  whose contributions to the Rose Pak Democratic Club have helped fund Chinese language radio, digital and print ads.

Leno has received a boost from six labor and tenant PACs for a total of $137,327  but is also being hit by $101,000 against him from a group called Voters for a Real Change that no one knows much about.

Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts.

But politics being politics, when the ribbon was cut on the new tower  symbol of all things tech in San Francisco  everyone was all smiles.

Award deal: Former Black Panthers leader Elaine Brown has agreed to settle her elder abuse lawsuit against Oakland Councilwoman Desley Brooks for far below the $4.3 million she was originally awarded at trial in December.

The original judgment provided the 74-year-old Brown with $3.4 million for pain and mental suffering and another $550,000 in punitive damages.

The city and Brooks asked for a retrial. The judge denied the appeal, but only on the condition that Brown agree to a reduced award of $1.2 million for pain and suffering, plus $75,000 in punitive damages to be paid by Brooks.

A May 8 court filing by Browns attorney Charles Bonner shows his client consented to the reduced award  on condition that Brooks and the city pay Bonners firm more than $1 million in attorney fees and other costs.

San Francisco Chronicle columnists Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross appear Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays. Matier can be seen on the KPIX-TV morning and evening news. He can also be heard on KCBS radio Monday through Friday at 7:50 a.m. and 5:50 p.m. Got a tip? Call (415) 777-8815, or email matierandross@ sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @matierandross
BNP pushes for greater political unity

BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday said the nation will not forgive the political parties if they fail to forge a national unity to restore democracy and peoples voting rights. No one is now safe in the country the way democracy and peoples rights have been snatched. Under the circumstance, if we (political parties) cant get united, the nation wont forgive us, he said. Speaking at an iftar party, the BNP leader further said, I would like to call upon all political parties and their leaders to create a national unity to protect democracy and peoples rights. Nagorik Oikya arranged the iftar party in honour of politicians at a city hotel. Fakhrul said the government imprisoned their chairperson Khaleda as it is afraid of her. He said the government is making a wrong plan to hold the next election keeping Khaleda out of the race. The next election will not be meaningful and acceptable if it is not held under a non-party government with the deployment of army. President of Bikalpa Dhara Prof AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury making people united and waking them up is the only way to get rid of the current situation. In an oblique reference to Khaleda Zias stay in jail despite obtaining bail from the Supreme Court, he said now the highest courts orders are being ignored. He said hundreds of people are still there in jail in political cases. How long it will continue. We cant tolerate it. People have started waking up and well remain with them. B Chowdhury said the party which will come to power in the future must stay away from corruption as people hate it. Weve tolerated corruption so much, but we wont tolerate it anymore. Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) President ASM Abdur Rob urged the people of all walks of life to get united against the governments misrule and corruption. Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna said the country has now turned into a dead valley as the government is trying to frighten people with its repressive acts and in the name of drives like anti-narcotics one. Under the circumstance, we should get united forgetting the conflicts and misunderstandings among us to protect the country, he added.

Awami League general secretary Obaidul was also invited to the iftar, but he did not join it.




The problems created by the cost and availability of child care in the Bay Area are profound. It is a significant contributor to an opportunity gap. The nonprofit group First 5 has found that just 44 percent of children are fully prepared to enter kindergarten. This is a crisis with social and economic consequences that merits a vigorous public-policy response.

Alameda County has found a way to do it right.

Measure A, on the June 5 ballot, would raise the county sales tax by a half cent to provide an anticipated 7,000 new scholarships to children in low-income families. The $140 million annual revenue from that tax would essentially double the funding available to child care in the county, according to Supervisor Wilma Chan, who has been a champion of the issue since her tenure in the state Assembly in the early 2000s.

I see this as an economic development strategy, Chan said.

The economic benefits of this measure would be direct and indirect. More parents, especially single ones, would be able to go to work or attend college. Thousands of families who cannot afford the full cost of child care are stuck on waiting lists. The increased subsidies would allow the county to require that child care workers be paid at least $15 an hour, which would reduce their reliance on public assistance programs.

But, perhaps most of all, this would give more young children in the county a chance to succeed from kindergarten and later life.

It really has to do with children and the future of Alameda County, said Angie Garling, the countys early childhood education administrator. This is really, really necessary to do.

The county approached it with a requisite sense of purpose and diligence. The plan is laid out in a 40-page report that is available online for voters to review. It resulted from 100 listening sessions throughout the county. The spending would be subject to annual audits and reviews by a citizens oversight committee.

Obviously, the same child care crisis exists throughout the region, but the contrast between the well-constructed Alameda County Measure A and San Franciscos more politically expedient Proposition C could not be more dramatic.

Shortcomings of the San Francisco plan, promoted by mayoral candidate Jane Kim, include its reliance on a volatile and narrow tax on commercial rents and its set-aside of 15 percent of its revenue to the general fund  a concession, Kim has admitted, to the San Francisco Labor Council. Those were among the reasons we have recommended rejection of Proposition C.

We have no such reservations with Alameda Countys Measure A. The proponents have done their homework, presented a thorough and credible plan, and are dedicating all of its revenue to its stated purpose: to improve the quality and availability of child care. We recommend its passage.

This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters.

About Measure A

The proposal was put on the June 5 ballot by a unanimous vote of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors

It would:

Increase the county sales tax by a half cent for the next 30 years. The total current sales tax burden ranges from 9.25 to 9.75 cents, depending on the city.

Generate about $140 million a year.

Require that child care workers be paid at least $15 an hour.

Provide scholarships for lower-income residents, defined as having an income of $71,064 or less for a family of four.

Increase training and professional development programs for providers.

Create a citizens advisory committee to annually review the spending of sales-tax funds, which would also be subject to an annual audit.
This story originally appeared on KCRA.com.

A Puerto Rican couple visiting California for their niece's wedding said they were unable to check into a Rancho Cordova Motel 6 because the front desk clerk didn't believe they had valid U.S. identification.

When Raul Villanueva presented his Puerto Rico driver's license late Wednesday night, the clerk told him, "Oh, you need a license from the United States," he said.

"I said, 'This is a license from the United States, that's Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is the United States.' She said, 'No, it isn't,'" Villanueva recalled.

Villanueva needed his ID in order to verify his reservation. The woman working at the front desk then asked for his and his wife's passports, which he reluctantly retrieved.

"She wouldn't take the passports after all," Villanueva said. "When I brought them she said, 'No, I won't take it. I won't take that.' So I said, 'OK, then give me my money back.'"

More for you REAL ID: What Californians need to know about new driver's licenses

The couple called Motel 6's corporate office Thursday and talked to a representative. The person apologized for the mistake and admitted Puerto Rican identification is on their list of accepted IDs.

"We sincerely apologize for this error and the inconvenience caused to the family," a Motel 6 spokesperson wrote in an email to KCRA.

On the company's website, it says, "All guests registering must be 18 years of age (19-21 years of age required at some locations) and must present photo identification upon check-in."

The policy doesn't state that ID needs to be from the U.S.

Following Hurricane Maria, the couple lived without power and running water for more than a month on the U.S. territory. They were looking forward to the wedding and vacation as a much-needed getaway.

"I came all the way here to have fun, to have a nice time with our family," Villanueva said. "And then, a thing like this thing happen."

The couple ended up staying the night with a relative. They still haven't received their money back from Motel 6.
The Golden Gate Bridge opened to traffic 81 years ago and instantly became one of the world's most recognizable structures.

To mark the birthday, we unearthed images from the construction, several of which have not been seen in years. Construction started Jan. 5, 1933, after authorization by the War Department, which owned the land on both sides of the strait. The first cars rolled over it on May 27, 1937.
The most expensive places to live California get all the attention with their sky-high home prices and staggering rent prices.

But what about the most affordable spots?

The financial technology company SmartAsset crunched numbers to develop a list of the cheapest cities to live in by developing an affordability index weighing property taxes, homeowners' insurance fees and mortgage payments relative to income.

Three of the cities are in the Central Valley less than a two-hour drive from San Francisco. The other seven locations are in Southern California's interior valleys known for their dry desert landscape and hot summer temperatures, including the No. 1 city on the list.

ALSO: Feast your eyes on the most expensive apartments in San Francisco

California City, in the Antelope Valley, is located 65 miles southwest of Death Valley National Park and boasts a population of about 14,000. The enclave covers a vast stretch of 203 square miles, it's the third largest city in the state by area and has loads of open space.

Homes in this SoCal spot known for the nearby Edwards Air Force Base go on the market for under $200,000 and condos for under $100,000. The the average annual mortgage payment is $4,262. In San Francisco that's monthly rent on a one-bedroom condo.

For the full list of the 10 most affordable places to live in California, scroll through the gallery above.
Eight years ago, before Chinas Xiaomi Corp. had sold a single smartphone, 56 of the earliest employees pulled together $11 million to invest in the startup. Rank-and-file workers dipped into savings and borrowed from parents. One receptionist tapped her dowry.

Today, theyre the Lucky 56. Xiaomi is one of the most successful smartphone makers in the world, and its prepping a blockbuster initial public offering. Their stake in the company may soon be worth $1 billion to $3 billion, depending on the stock sale. That works out to $36 million each at the midpoint.

The fortuitous decision began with workers like Li Weixing, an ex-Microsoft engineer who was employee No. 12. In 2010, staffers were working seven days a week out of a bare-bones Beijing office park to get the unknown mobile phone maker up and running. When word spread that Lei Jun and his co-founders were chipping in their own money for a venture financing round, Li and others wanted to join them.

Li, who helped create Xiaomis mobile operating system, had around $79,000 saved up. It wasnt enough to buy a house, so he asked if he could invest in Xiaomi instead, CEO Lei said in a March interview at Beijing headquarters. We said, we cant let only Weixing invest, so we let everyone in.

Some early Xiaomi employees were already wealthy, including Lei, who made his first fortune leading software developer Kingsoft Corp. and investing in Chinese startups. But many staffers in those days had to scrape together cash to participate. Li and others preferred investing in an effort they knew rather than the uncertain stock market. Now Li stands to make $10 million to $20 million, depending on Xiaomis IPO value.

It was employee No. 14, a receptionist now working in Xiaomis human resources office, who contributed her dowry of around $16,000 to $31,000. That stake could be worth $1 million to $8 million. Xiaomi declined to make her or other early employees available for interviews. Li declined to comment.

After a first surge of interest, Lei decided to cap rank-and-file investments at about $50,000 each to limit risk and stop employees from taking out loans to invest. The interest was overwhelming, but we put a cap on it because we worried, if everyone put in too much money, it would be very bad if the company failed, said co-founder Li Wanqiang in a March interview.

The group collectively stands to gain as much as $3 billion if Xiaomi floats 15 percent of the company at a $100 billion valuation when it goes public in Hong Kong this year, according to calculations based on Xiaomis prospectus.

Lei and his co-founders put in the heftiest amounts in that round and stand to make far more than the average. Five are poised to become newly minted billionaires, and Leis stake, accumulated over several investment rounds, could be worth $27 billion.

None of this was obvious in 2010, when Xiaomi was really just an idea in Lei Juns head, said Hans Tung, one of his earliest backers. Lei was a tech celebrity with 1 million follows on Weibo, Chinas answer to Twitter, but it was far from clear he could compete with Apple, Samsung and Huawei. He would host smoke-and-booze-filled meetings at Beijing hotels, showing up with bags of cell phones and gadgets for his friends to try.

But after Lei lured seven co-founders away from cushy jobs at Microsoft and Google in a matter of months, investment powerhouses Qiming Venture Partners, where Tung worked at the time, and Morningside decided to bet on him. They led fundraising rounds in late 2010 and early 2011 that valued the company at about $250 million. Thats when employees put in their $11 million. Now Xiaomi is the fourth-largest smartphone maker in the world and probably will be valued at more than 200 times that.

The investment firms are also expected to reap big returns in what is expected to be the biggest IPO since Alibaba Groups in 2014.

Lei Jun is the founder. He could afford all the capital. But why did he share with everyone? said Morningside co-founder Richard Liu. He has a vision and he can build up that strong belief and people are willing to take the huge risks.

Silicon Valley is known for its secret millionaires who were early joiners at companies. Among the more famous examples is Bonnie Brown, the massage therapist who bargained for stock options to accompany the $450 a week she was making at her part-time job at Google. She retired a millionaire after five years.

In China, such riches are virtually unknown. These employees already had enough risk working for a small, untested startup, said Tung. They turned out to be right.

Shelly Banjo and Gao Yuan are Bloomberg writers. Email: sbanjo@bloomberg.net, ygao199@bloomberg.net
61 dope party men held in city

About sixty alleged snatchers and members of dope party were arrested in special drive from city\'s separate areas by DB Police on Sunday.

BSS, Dhaka :

Detective police in separate raids arrested 61 ogyan party (dope gang)men from different parts of the capital with seductive tablets, injections and poisonous balm used in making people unconscious to loot them in the last 24 hours till Sunday morning.

"We arrested 61 ogyan party operatives from different parts of the capital and seized 92 pieces of lexotanil tablets, 40 luzicum seductive tablets and two canisters of poisonous balm from their possessions, " additional police commissioner Debdas Bhattacharjee told at a press briefing.

Detective Branch of police (DB) personnel arrested 32 dope gang operatives from Shyamoli, Jurain, Kamlapur and New Market and 29 others from Gulishtan, New Market and Shahbagh thana areas, he said.

The police officer requested the people particularly city dwellers to be cautious in taking and drinking something at roadside makeshift shops and hawkers as criminals in guise of hawkers and shop owners making people unconscious with mixing some seductive ingredient in different food items particularly ifter items and soft drink including green coconut.
The number of white-collar prosecutions is on track to hit a 20-year low under President Trump, after reaching a high in 2011 during the Barack Obama administration, according to a nonprofit research center that analyzes government data.

A total of 3,249 cases were brought during the first seven months of the U.S. governments 2018 fiscal year, which runs from October 2017 to April 2018, according to an analysis of government data by Syracuse Universitys Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, or TRAC.
UK parliament praises BD's growth, role of NGOs on Rohingya

UNB, Dhaka :

The relatively open civic space has played a major role in Bangladesh's successful economic growth and development, the UK parliament has said.

In a recent report on the UK's role in development of Bangladesh, the parliament also commended how the authorities and local communities in Bangladesh have pursued an open border policy for Rohingya people with generosity and compassion.

The report on UK's role in development in Bangladesh, Myanmar and the Rohingya crisis also praised how the local NGOs, including Brac, have helped the UK in making meaningful contributions to improve the current Rohingya situation, said a press release.

The UK government has continued to strengthen

efforts to persuade the international community to fully shoulder the responsibilities of the displaced Rohingya population, said a summary of the report available on the website of the UK parliament.

The UK parliament also recognised the recent graduation of Bangladesh into the lower-income status as a country, adding that it was a success story resulting from many years of sustained economic growth.

"There was a lot of energy and confidence in the people we met, the projects we visited and the places we travelled through," Brac said quoting the summary of the report.

The report that sought to review the performance of UKAID's contributions to Bangladesh particularly praised Brac, Bangladesh's homegrown development facility, now the biggest NGO in the world, and lauded the strategic partnership between the UK government's Department of International Development (DFID) and Brac.

It also said that the outcomes of the partnership between DFID and Brac in handling the Rohingya crisis and also in forwarding the overall development of Bangladesh should be "replicated where appropriate."

Earlier this year, Brac's Senior Director of Communication, Strategy and Empowerment, Asif Saleh, travelled to the UK to give evidence in person to the committee dealing with the report. Brac also submitted written evidence to help the committee with their inquiry, it said.
In Portland, Oregon, organizers of the Reparations Happy Hour invited black, brown and indigenous people to a bar and handed them $10 bills as they arrived, a small but symbolic gift mostly funded by white people who were asked not to attend.

Brown Hope, a local activist organization, wanted the event, which was held Monday, to be a space for people of color in a mostly white city to meet one another, discuss policy issues and plan potential action.

While it was far from the full-scale reparations sought by some as penance for the horrors of slavery and continuing racial injustice, Cameron Whitten, the 27-year-old activist who organized the event, said there was one similarity: It made attendees feel as if their pain were valued and understood.

It was only $10, but when I saw them I saw their eyes light up, he said. What I saw there was that people felt like they were finally seen.

Whitten said he hoped the event, in addition to building community, would call attention to reparations, the concept that black people should be financially compensated for the generations of trauma that preceded them.

The subject has been the source of spirited debate but has not attracted widespread support. In 2016, an Exclusive Point Taken-Marist Poll found 68 percent of Americans were opposed to reparations, including 81 percent of white people. Among black people, 58 percent supported it and 35 percent were opposed.

In 2014, writer Ta-Nehisi Coates made a case for reparations in The Atlantic, and The New York Times has published a variety of viewpoints on the topic.

Activists are pinning hopes on H.R. 40, a bill introduced in Congress in January 2017 that would study reparations proposals. It was introduced by Rep. John Conyers Jr., D-Mich., who left Congress in December amid harassment allegations.

Ron Daniels, the president of the Institute of the Black World 21st Century, a group that supports reparations, said they would be necessary for America to fully heal itself. Any efforts to bring attention to the idea, including a happy hour bearing that name in Portland, could help people organize around the issue, he said.

Hopefully out of that experience theres some education that takes place, Daniels said.

There was enough interest in the concept to fund occasional happy hours for the rest of the year, though they will be renamed to Reparations Power Hour out of concern that the happy hour label was unwelcoming to people who do not drink, Whitten said.

Anticipating some criticism, he noted that it was not meant to diminish the seriousness of reparations. Should anyone question why white people were not invited, he said, They show up by donating to make sure the event happens. More than 100 people, not all of them white, donated, he said.

White people, we have love for you, and were going to see you. We cant not see you, he said. Once a month were going to have these two special hours that we cannot get anywhere else.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
Yes, the decision belongs on the local level

No, no one should be able to dictate whether people wear masks

Vote

View Results
The female fin whale that washed ashore in Bolinas Tuesday was killed by a ship. It is the third whale found in the Bay Area this month that died due to human causes, scientists said.



The 58-foot whale died because of blunt force trauma consistent with vessel collision, according to 14 scientists from Marine Mammal Center and the California Academy of Science.



A necropsy performed Friday revealed broken ribs and severe tissue hemorrhaging, as well as fractured cervical vertebrae and a fractured skull, researchers said. The fin whale, an endangered species, was in a late stage of decomposition based on skin and internal tissue condition.



The carcass washed ashore between Brighton and Agate beaches in Bolinas and was reported to the center on Tuesday, according to researchers.



"To have a third whale wash ashore here in the San Francisco Bay Area as a result of negative human interaction is a really unfortunate event," Barbie Halaska, a researcher at the Marine Mammal Center, said in a statement.



A fin whale found offshore of Alameda County May 18 died because of a vessel collision, Marine Mammal Center officials said. A necropsy revealed fractures and dislocated vertebrae surrounded by massive hemorrhaging on both sides of the 45-foot juvenile female whale.



A 36-foot adult female gray whale carcass that washed ashore at Tennessee Valley Beach in Marin County, also on May 18, died because of severe entanglement, according to researchers.



The necropsy revealed linear lesions looped around the back of the neck and along both front flippers. The injuries are consistent with entanglement.



Ship strikes and entanglement in fishing gear are the leading causes of whale mortality, according to researchers. The number of ship strikes likely is underreported because the ship's crew may be unaware a strike occurred, Marine Mammal Center officials said.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
San Francisco Fire Department crews are on the scene of a one-alarm fire this morning at a homeless encampment on Mariposa Street near southbound Interstate Highway 280, fire officials said.



The blaze was first reported just before 6:05 a.m. The California Highway Patrol said its units were not yet at the scene as of 6:30 a.m.



No further information was immediately available.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)



Firefighters have contained a fire in a San Francisco neighborhood with no injuries and two dogs are safe and secure, fire officials said this afternoon.



The fire at 1805 Sunnydale Ave., which broke out around 1:30 p.m., has been contained, and two dogs associated with the building are fine, fire officials said on social media.



At present, fire officials don't know if anyone was displaced. The cause of the fire is under investigation, and the public is asked to avoid the area.



No further information is currently available.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
OAKLAND (BCN)



A former child psychologist was sentenced to 78 months in prison on Friday after pleading guilty of possessing child pornography, according to federal prosecutors.



Kenneth Allen Breslin, 69, of Berkeley, admitted to being in possession of more than 600 images and videos of child pornography at his Lafayette residence and former child psychology office in Orinda, prosecutors said.



The graphics contained "visual depictions of prepubescent children being subjected to sadistic content," prosecutors said in a news release.



"What's most disturbing about this particular case is that Breslin was in a position of public trust as a psychologist and had worked extensively with children in the past," special agent Ryan Spradlin said in a news release.



Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rodgers ordered Breslin to serve a 5-year supervised release period after his jail sentence, in addition to paying restitution of $85,000 to 13 victims in the case.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
PACIFICA (BCN)



One person was hospitalized with injuries from a fire that broke out in a Pacific home around noon today and has since been extinguished, fire officials said.



The person, described as an adult resident of the home at 1219 Aspen Drive, suffered smoke inhalation and minor burns while trying to fight the fire, according to fire officials.



Firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from the front of the single-story, split-level home, fire officials said. Using hose lines, the firefighters were able to confine the fire to the front living room area, though the rest of the home had smoke damage.



Firefighters stayed at the home for about two hours doing cleanup. No firefighters were injured.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
WATSONVILLE (BCN)



Police in Watsonville have arrested two suspects in connection with the stabbings of two victims during an altercation last week.



Jesus Salvatti, 32, and Fabian Ortega, 21, both of Watsonville, were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, according to the Watsonville Police Department.



On May 17, officers responded to a report of a fight in the 100 block of Kearney Street and located a man and a woman suffering from stab wounds.



Police said the investigation determined the woman's ex-boyfriend, identified as Salvatti, and another man, identified as Ortega, had attacked the man.



During the attack, the woman tried to intervene and was also stabbed.



On Thursday at around 8:20 a.m., detectives arrested Salvatti at his residence, and Ortega was arrested at his workplace at around 9:15 a.m.



Both suspects were booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail and were being held on $500,000 bail as of Friday night.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
NAPA (BCN)



A San Francisco man was arrested near BottleRock music festival after police responded to an armed robbery this afternoon in Napa.



The robbery was reported at 4:01 p.m. near Hagen Road at Silverado Trail, according to Napa police.



The victims told police that the suspects were fleeing in a Hyundai, and Napa County sheriff's deputies located the vehicle near Hagen Road and First Avenue.



Sheriff's deputies pursued the suspect's vehicle, which fled toward the Napa Valley Exposition Grounds where BottleRock festival was ongoing.



Two suspects exited the vehicle once they reached the festival grounds. One suspect was immediately arrested at the entrance near Third Street and another suspect was last seen outside the venue, police said.



William Carter, 27, was arrested for multiple offenses, including armed robbery, use of a firearm, conspiracy, evading, assault with a deadly weapon likely to cause injury and committing a felony while out on bail.



Police did not release identifying information for the second suspect.



The gates to BottleRock were closed during the investigation and later reopened. Festivalgoers said on social media that they waited up to an hour to enter the venue.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
SANAA, Yemen  Heavy fighting in Yemen between pro-government forces and Shiite rebels has killed more than 150 people in the last four days, Yemeni officials and witnesses said Sunday.

Government forces have been trying to seize rebel-held areas along the western coast, while an allied Saudi-led coalition has been targeting the rebels with air strikes in the northwestern Saada province, a rebel stronghold.

The advance is being waged by ground troops carrying sophisticated weapons, including shoulder-fired missiles, with air cover from the coalition, the officials said.

Security officials say a Saudi-led air strike near a gas station in the capital, Sanaa, killed four civilians Saturday and wounded 10 others.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, while the witnesses did so for fear of reprisals.

In March, an international rights group said fighting along Yemens west coast has displaced 100,000 people in recent months, mostly from the Red Sea port city of Hodeida. Amnesty International warned that the the worst could be yet to come.

The port is a vital lifeline for Yemens food and medical supplies. The coalition accuses the Houthis of using Hodeida and other ports to receive weapons and ammunition from Iran, which denies arming the rebels.

Yemen has been embroiled in a civil war pitting the coalition against the Iran-backed Houthis since March 2015. The coalition aims to restore the government of self-exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

The three-year stalemated war has killed more than 10,000 people and displaced more than 3 million. It has also damaged Yemens infrastructure, crippled its health system and pushed it to the brink of famine.

Ahmed Al-Haj is an Associated Press writer.
BERLIN  Supporters of the nationalist Alternative for Germany party marched through central Berlin to protest Chancellor Angela Merkels government Sunday and were kept away from a raft of counterdemonstrations by a heavy police presence.

Police said more than 5,000 people turned out for the demonstration organized by the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany, known by its German acronym AfD. A variety of counterprotests against the far right attracted more than 25,000 people, they said.

The AfD event opened with German flags, placards such as No Islam in Germany and chants of Merkel must go outside Berlins central train station. The partys supporters then marched to the landmark Brandenburg Gate. Opponents chanted Nazis out from the other side of the monument.

Some of the counterprotesters took to rafts on the Spree river, within sight of the train station. Groups organizing protests against AfD included artists and a coalition of Berlin music clubs hoping to blow away the party with loud techno beats.

About 2,000 police officers were in place to prevent clashes. The march concluded without significant unrest.

AfD won 12.6 percent of the vote to enter Germanys national parliament last year on anti-immigrant and anti-establishment sentiment. It is now the largest of four opposition parties after the countrys two biggest parties agreed to continue a centrist grand coalition under Merkel earlier this year.

Its march Sunday, an unusual move for a German political party, was headlined Germanys Future. An AfD regional leader, Andreas Kalbitz, proclaimed that this is a signal and argued that it shows AfD is the center of society.

In parliament, AfDs novice lawmakers have sometimes struggled to grasp basic procedures and stood out with blunt attacks on minorities, particularly Muslims, who made up the majority of the more than 1 million asylum-seekers to enter Germany in 2015 and 2016. Recent polls have put the partys support around the same level as in last years election.

Prominent AfD lawmaker Beatrix von Storch told Sundays demonstrators that the vital question for us is: freedom or Islamization?

Among the protesters was Silke Langmacker, an accountant, who carried a sign reading Taxpayers First.

We are here to stop the uncontrolled influx into the German welfare system, she said. The refugees must return to Syria and rebuild their country there.

Geir Moulson is an Associated Press writer.
ROME  Italys political landscape grew even shakier Sunday after the president refused to approve a proposed Cabinet minister with views critical of the euro currency and the premier-designate quit his bid to form a populist coalition government.

After being summoned to and emerging from the presidential palace, Premiere-Designate Giuseppe Conte did not say why he couldnt form what would have been Western Europes first populist government.

But Italian President Sergio Mattarella said minutes later he had refused to accept the nominee the euroskeptic League and 5-Star Movement parties had put forward as economy minister.

League leader Matteo Salvini in recent days had virtually given an ultimatum over the economy minister pick to Mattarella, whose duties as head of state include sanctioning a new Cabinet.

The president said he approved all of the other Cabinet picks, but rejected the coalition partners choice for the economy portfolio out of concern it would have a negative effect on financial markets and the Italian economy.

The economy ministry always constitutes an immediate message of trust or alarm for financial markets, Mattarella said, adding that he had asked for someone who was not supporting a position expressed more than once that could probably, or in fact inevitably, provoke Italys exit from the euro.

Mattarella said he was considering political party leaders request for another election.

The previous parliamentary election, held March 4, failed to produce a party with enough support to govern on its own. League leader Salvini and fellow euroskeptic Luigi Di Maio of the 5-Star Movement agreed this month to join their rival forces in a coalition to break the political impasse.

With neither of them willing to back the other as premier, however, they ended up tapping political novice Conte, a law professor at the University of Florence and a 5-Star supporter.

A presidential palace official, Ugo Zampetti, told reporters Sunday night that Conte has given back the mandate Mattarella gave him four days earlier to try to form a government.

While Conte held his final talks with the president, Salvini was telling right-wing supporters he had refused to submit to a presidential veto of his choice for economy minister, Paolo Savona.

Frances DEmilio is an Associated Press writer.
President Trump said Sunday a U.S. team was in North Korea to plan a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, raising expectations that the on-off-on meeting would indeed take place.

The State Department said earlier that a team was in Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the demilitarized zone, or DMZ, separating the North and South Korea. One can cross the border simply by stepping across a painted line, but moving beyond several footsteps into the North at Panmunjom would be rare for U.S. officials.

Trump withdrew from a planned June 12 Singapore summit with Kim last Thursday, but quickly announced that it could get back on track. His tweet Sunday, which offered praise for the longtime U.S. adversary, was the latest signal that his concerns about the Norths stance toward the summit had been allayed.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, he tweeted. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

South Koreas president, Moon Jae-in, on Sunday described his surprise meeting the day before with Kim in the Panmunjom truce village, saying Kim had committed to sitting down with Trump and to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tapped veteran American diplomat Sung Kim to handle pre-summit negotiations. On a separate but complementary track was the CIA team Pompeo set up last year when he headed the spy agency. And on a third track was a White House logistical group sent to Singapore on Sunday to prepare in case the summit takes place. It was led by Joe Hagin, White House deputy chief of staff for operations.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees. Moon said Sunday that the Norths disarmament could still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul dont differ over what complete denuclearization of the peninsula means.

Catherine Lucey, Matthew Lee, Hyung-Jin Kim and Foster Klug are Associated Press writers.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.

We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.

A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
A Sydney protest against slavery. Credit:Bibek Pradhan

The dual-citizenship fiasco and the febrile pre-election battle over tax cuts have been dominating politics, but there are brighter things emanating from the national capital. An element of the federal budget deserving of robust cross-party backing is a proposal to emulate Britain and the US in legislating to help reduce the shocking level of global slavery, most of which happens in our region.

The Coalition government is poised to introduce legislation to purge companies supply chains of slavery and counter other forms of exploitation, including orphanage tourism  where well-meaning people, including on many school tours, unwittingly feed the scourge by giving money and time to fake institutions.

Slavery is the worlds second-biggest illicit market, behind drugs; forced labour generates an estimated $US150 billion in profits each year. As many as 45 million children, women and men are treated as commodities (average price about $90). Two-thirds of this happens in our region, and across most forms of labour, particularly sex work, fishing, construction, hospitality and textiles. Six in 10 trafficking cases are for sexual exploitation.

The legislation will compel private companies to monitor and report on their supply chains. And it will, in what the government states is a world-first, impose similar requirements on the public sector through an annual audit of Commonwealth procurement.

Australias Modern Slavery Act comes after an investigation by the joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade. Most companies that appeared before the committee expressed supported for such legislation, although some want the mandatory reporting revenue threshold to be double the $50 million recommended in the report, tabled on the final sitting day last year. Some community agencies are concerned the legislation will not have sufficient sanctions.

It is better for the law to be tightened if need be, than for it to be unduly heavy-handed from the outset. However, a tick-the-box law will clearly not suffice; the law should have hefty regulatory consequences, otherwise the scheme becomes, in effect, voluntary, a problem that has emerged with the British law, passed three years ago. The recent budget included $3.6 million to establish an Anti-Slavery Business Engagement Unit in the Department of Home Affairs.

The world is waking up to slavery. France and the Netherlands are also formulating legislation. Perhaps the most effective sanction that will flow from such transparency will come from consumers. With people becoming more aware of, for example, the exploitation behind fast, cheap fashion, being named and shamed can be catastrophic for a business profiting in any way from slave labour.

The main target of the new law will be offshore exploitation, but it is also intended to help stem maltreatment of workers here. Backpackers are often underpaid for agricultural work, and the $170-billion franchise industry, where many students and immigrants are employed, has been shown to be riddled with wage fraud. The key is transparency, for the shame of being revealed to have slaves in a supply chain would be likely to create a costly backlash from consumers and shareholders. The government is to be commended for engineering this change, and we urge the Parliament to emphatically support a Modern Slavery Act.
Sleiman Tajjour, right, who pleaded guilty to mortgage fraud.

It was all in pursuit of the Australian dream.

Thats what Omar Juweinat, the lawyer for the boss of one of Australias most notorious bikie gangs, proffered to a magistrate after his client, Sleiman Tajjour, pleaded guilty to $1.34 million mortgage fraud.

The house was a suburban palace in Greystanes, in Sydneys west, that Tajjour had handpicked to live with his wife, Susan Nehme, and their two young children.

The ultimate goal in these circumstances was  to put a roof over the head of this gentlemans young family, Mr Juweinat said on Wednesday.
One person is dead and another is in a serious condition at Canberra Hospital after a head-on crash near the NSW Riverina town of Tumut on Sunday morning.

NSW Police said two vehicles collided on Gocup Road, about 10 kilometres north of Tumut, about 8.40am.

The driver of one vehicle died at the scene, while their passenger was airlifted to Canberra Hospital.

The driver of the other vehicle suffered non-life-threatening injuries and has been taken to Wagga Wagga Hospital for mandatory testing.

Police said Gocup Road was expected to remain closed in both directions between Tumut and the Hume Highway for several hours. Diversions were in place.
More than 50 boxes of Lego are among allegedly stolen goods seized by police at a unit in Queanbeyan on Sunday morning. Credit:NSW Police

Two men have been charged with several offences after police seized allegedly stolen property including more than 50 boxes of Lego from a home in Queanbeyan on Sunday morning.

Police also seized bicycles, power tools, jewellery and electronics when they executed a search warrant on the unit about 1.30am.

The men, aged 26 and 31, were refused police bail and are scheduled to face Queanbeyan Local Court on Monday.

The 26-year-old faces two charges relating to possession of stolen goods, two relating to outstanding warrants, and one of possession of house breaking implements.
A man has been charged after allegedly breaking into a Gold Coast home and masturbating in front of a woman on Friday.

Police will allege the 27-year-old man walked into a Scarborough Street unit at about 3pm and removed his clothes.

Police charged a 27-year-old man with performing 'indecent acts with intent to insult or offend'. Credit:Glenn Hunt

He then allegedly began masturbating in front of a 27-year-old female resident, who did not know the man.

Police said he ran from the scene partially naked when the woman called 000.
Dexus is progressing on its $1.4 billion redevelopment plan to unlock "the unrealised potential of the waterfront" in Brisbane.

The property group unveiled its plans to transform Eagle Street Pier, including building two towers, closing Eagle Street between Charlotte and Market streets and opening up the riverfront space, in March.

Dexus has proposed a redevelopment of Eagle Street Pier, including two new towers and up to 1.5 hectares of riverfront open space.

Dexuss head of office development Queensland, Matt Beasley, said the response to the companys announcement had been overwhelmingly positive.

Since the announcement weve been having both town hall sort of sessions with our customers in our buildings, the retailers, getting them up to speed on what the proposals are, what is the process moving forward and when we would be targeting to get that outcome, he said.
Cindy Palmer says she still believes she made the right decision to put her daughter Tiahleigh into foster care, despite being blamed for the schoolgirls death.

The 12-year-old was killed by her foster father Rick Thorburn in 2015, five years after she had been put in foster care.

On Friday, Thorburn was sentenced to life behind bars for the murder of the girl in October 2015.

Ms Palmer said she received death threats when her daughter's body was found on the banks of the Pimpama River, with people blaming her for Tiahleigh's death.
Australias minimum wage system is unique in the world. In reality, Australia has no single minimum wage, but thousands of minimum wages, set through the awards system. These can range in value from $18.29 an hour to as high as $165 an hour. One in five Australian workers have their pay set directly through the award system, which stipulates a multiplier to the minimum wage, depending on workers age, skill level, industry and location. Minimum award wages can range from as little as $18.29 an hour to as high as $165 an hour. Credit:Tanya Lake A further two in five workers have their pay set through a collective agreement with their employer, and the remaining two in five through an individual agreement with their employer.

What is not commonly appreciated is that minimum wage decisions ripple through all parts of the wage system, with many of these agreements made with reference to award rates. In reality, about 40 per cent of Australian workers see their pay move in near lockstep with changes to the minimum wage. Loading Economics textbooks, which assume a perfectly competitive market, have long preached the perils of setting a minimum wage too far above the market-clearing rate. Make labour too expensive, and employers will be less inclined to buy it. Increase the minimum wage too far, and employment will suffer.

However, if you  as many economists increasingly do  assume a market with features of monopsony  where one purchaser of labour has market power, such as a steel maker in a one steel plant town  then studies have found that increases in the minimum wage do not decease employment. A paper published this month by the Reserve Bank concludes that the international literature on impact of minimum wage on employment remains contentious. Despite a vast research effort, economists remain divided on the issue, James Bishop, a research economist at the Reserve, writes. In the US, which has a very different wage system to ours, the weight of evidence suggests the minimum wage has a small  or no - negative effect on employment, Bishop notes. Indeed, the US Congressional Budget Office adopts a central estimate that a 10 per cent increase in minimum wages decreases employment among affected workers by up to 1 per cent.

Evidence in Australia is harder to come by, given the complexity of our minimum wage structure. But Bishops research  the first of its kind in Australia  exploits this complexity in a novel way to produce some surprising insights. Every quarter, the Bureau of Statistics conducts a survey of wage changes in 18,000 jobs in around 3000 firms. Bishop lines this data up against decisions by Australias industrial empire during the decade from 1998 to 2008. Crucially - and unlike today  the umpire awarded flat dollar increases to all workers during this period. This delivered bigger percentage rises to workers on already lower rates. This was actually a deliberate move by the Howard government to encourage high-paid workers to get off awards and onto individual agreements.

The Rudd and Gillard governments shifted the system to reward all workers with the same percentage increase. This leaves a unique decade in which its possible to compare the impact on jobs of bigger and smaller percentage increases in minimum wages. Bishops conclusion? In a nutshell: I find no evidence that these small, incremental increases in award wages have an adverse effect on hours worked or the job destruction rate. If anything, he found the impact on hours worked and job longevity was slightly positive. Ring the bell! Round one for the unions!

But Bishop urges caution in interpreting his findings. First, his analysis excludes juniors, including trainees and apprentices, for statistical reasons. Young workers are often found to be most vulnerable to the adverse employment effects of minimum wage increases. Second, the study doesnt tell you the impact unanticipated and large minimum wage increases: There will always be some point at which a minimum wage adjustment will begin to reduce employment, Bishop warns. Third, the employer responses to wage changes were only captured in a six month window after increases. Longer term effects are not captured. And fourth, the study says little about the impact on the number of people in jobs. All it says is that minimum wage increases do not result in job positions which existed one day disappearing shortly after.
More than 120 people staying at an apartment block in Melbourne's CBD have been evacuated after a man let off fire hydrants on 18 floors, causing thousands of litres of water to flood the building.

MFB fire crews were called to the building on City Road in Southbank about 9.30pm and found water pouring out of the front entrance and occupants fleeing the building.

Firefighters found a man had maliciously opened all the fire hydrants, causing water to cascade through the apartment block.

The man had locked himself in a room and was "considered hostile". Victoria Police were called to deal with the man as firefighters worked to stop the deluge.
The Eastern Freeway will carry as many as 282,000 cars and trucks a day at its busiest time once the North East Link opens, almost 100,000 more vehicles than it currently carries, modelling commissioned by the state government says.

Many of the extra vehicles will be trucks, with heavy-vehicle traffic expected to rise by about 45 per cent on the Eastern Freeway after it is connected to the missing link in Melbournes ring road.

Morning traffic on the Eastern Freeway. Credit:Eddie Jim

Traffic on the Metropolitan Ring Road will also soar by as much as 61,000 vehicles a day at its eastern end, according to the traffic modelling conducted by transport planning consultancy Veitch Lister.

A government business case for the promised North East Link toll road through Melbournes north-eastern suburbs has found it will have a dramatic effect on travel times and traffic volume in the area.
Beijing: China's military announced on Sunday that it had dispatched warships to challenge two US Navy vessels that sailed through waters in the South China Sea that China claims as its own.

The Chinese confronted the US ships and warned them to leave, the Ministry of National Defence said in a statement posted on its website, but other details of the encounter were not immediately clear.

The US vessels  the Higgins, a destroyer, and the Antietam, a cruiser  passed within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, an archipelago in the northern part of the disputed waters of the South China Sea off the coast of Vietnam.

The chief spokesman for China's Ministry of National Defence, Senior Colonel Wu Qian, said that the United States "gravely violated Chinese sovereignty."
On July 17, 2014, a Russian Buk M1 TELAR, a launch unit for a deadly and technologically superior surface-to-air missile system fired a single missile at a commercial flight, flight MH17, which carried too many wives, husbands, parents, brothers and sisters and loved ones destined to die. Eighty children were on MH17.

Just before I left, the Joint Investigative Task-Force for MH17 made the bravest, most critical decision made by a nation state in the history of the sordid tale of Malaysian Airlines flight, MH17. The Dutch-led criminal investigation held a press conference and true to their real and powerful drive for justice they declared a truth that many have been waiting almost four years to hear.

I am on an airplane at 35,045 feet above the Atlantic. I am returning from Amsterdam to my home in the US. But my heart is still with my clients in Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and today most of all in the Netherlands.

They died alone and desperately afraid and the speeches and assurances of many politicians about supporting them and fighting for justice have been hollow. The JIT and the leadership of the Dutch has changed all of that. The missile was Russian. The missile left the Russian Army's 53 Missile Anti-Aircraft Brigade and was seen, photographed, videoed and witnessed across the Eastern Ukraine. The evidence is clear and overwhelming. On May 24, 2018, the Dutch and the JIT put an end to the charade. They spoke and declared that a Russian regular army military group carried the missile into the Ukraine and killed all of the innocents on MH-17 with efficient brute force over the sunflower fields of the Donbass. The investigation put up it's evidence. Many, many photographs, and videos used to fingerprint the TELAR 3x2 unit . The actual pieces of a spent Buk M1, 9M38 series Russian surface-to-air missile found among the wreckage of MH17. The geo-location of the route from Kursk to Torez.

The announcement was prefaced with a caution. The JIT has much more evidence. Much more particular evidence. But in a masterful political and legal presentation, the investigators said enough but did not telegraph their criminal case against the actors themselves. Russia, you are busted, but the JIT's best is yet to come.

Loading

However, the JIT is a combined police-legal entity. The real nation-states have not yet been heard from. It is time for them to stand.

Since May 2016, I have been pursuing justice for 33 family members in the European Court of Human Rights against the Russian Federation. We knew about the probable guilt of the Russian Army sometime ago. We could speak and be bold, we did not have a criminal burden of proof. Now the JIT has stated its conclusions and laid out powerful detailed evidence with the authority of a credible, investigative authority.
The vote repeals the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution  a 1983 measure that conferred equal rights on the fetus and the mother and banned abortion under almost all circumstances. Before the referendum, the government had pledged to pass legislation by the end of the year to allow unrestricted terminations up to 12 weeks if the amendment was set aside. The outcome signaled the end of an era in which thousands of women each year had been forced either to travel abroad or to buy pills illegally online to terminate their pregnancies, risking a 14-year jail sentence. The government has said that general practitioners  doctors who are the first port of call for patients  will be asked to provide abortions, although they will still be allowed to conscientiously object to terminations at their clinics. "Yes" campaign supporters react as the results of the votes are announced. Credit:AP The vote "now means I can do my job without the fear of going to jail," said Grainne McDermott, a doctor who works in intensive care in a Dublin hospital. McDermott described one case in which a mother whose life was in danger first had to follow a complex procedure involving hospital lawyers and other medical experts before obtaining abortion pills.

This was the day that the Irish people said "no more," Varadkar said after the results were announced outside Dublin Castle, a government complex where supporters of the "yes" vote gathered to celebrate. "No more doctors telling their patients there is nothing that can be done for them in their own country," he said. "No more lonely journeys across the Irish Sea. No more stigma. The veil of secrecy is lifted. No more isolation. The burden of shame is gone." The vote followed months of soul-searching in a country where the legacy of the Catholic Church remains powerful. It was the latest, and harshest, in a string of rejections of the church's authority in recent years. Loading The church lost much of its credibility in the wake of scandals involving pedophile priests and thousands of unwed mothers who were placed into servitude in Magdalene laundries or mental asylums as recently as the mid-1990s.

The church was, in fact, largely absent from the referendum campaign. Anti-abortion campaigners actively discouraged its participation, preferring to emphasize moral values and human rights rather than religion, possibly to avoid being tarnished by the church-related scandals. During the campaign, the Association of Catholic Priests urged its members not to preach politics from the pulpit. The guidance came after some priests had threatened their congregations that they would not be able to receive Communion if they voted "yes," according to people who attended the Masses. "This is devastating for the Roman Catholic hierarchy," said Gail McElroy, professor of politics at Trinity College Dublin. "It is the final nail in the coffin for them. They're no longer the pillar of society, and their hopes of re-establishing themselves are gone." The result caught most observers and voters off guard. In the final weeks leading up to the referendum, observers and pollsters had said that the gap between "yes" and "no" voters had narrowed significantly. "I'm very surprised," said Theresa Reidy, a professor of politics at the University College Cork who researches referendums.

"Yes" campaigners focused heavily on hard cases faced by women, such as rape or fetal abnormalities. The referendum result showed that many Irish voters agreed that women in those circumstances should be allowed a choice. For many opponents, abortion amounts to murder, while others worry Ireland is losing its identity as a Catholic country. "To those who voted no, I know today is not welcome," Varadkar said. "You may feel that the country has taken the wrong turn, is no longer a country you recognize. I would like to reassure you that Ireland is still the same country today as it was before, just a little more tolerant, open and respectful." For many supporters of legalising abortion, the result was an affirmation of their respect and acceptance by society. Ireland "is taking the proper steps to separate church and state and to move forward as a more progressive country," said Conor Flynn, a 22-year-old student. Una Mullally, a prominent campaigner for abortion rights, said the issue was more than just a medical procedure, but was about how women have been oppressed. "All of us have underestimated our country," she said before breaking down in tears. "I dreamed for people to think like this, but didn't believe it."
Former US President George H.W. Bush, 93, was taken to a hospital in Maine on Sunday after experiencing low blood pressure and fatigue, a family spokesman said on Twitter.

Bush, the oldest living former US president, will likely remain at Southern Maine Health Care for a few days for observation, said the spokesman, Jim McGrath.

"The former president is awake and alert, and not in any discomfort," McGrath wrote on Twitter.

Bush was hospitalised in Texas last month for treatment of an infection that spread to his blood, and stayed there for nearly two weeks. He was admitted to the hospital a day after he attended the funeral of his wife, Barbara, the former first lady who died on April 17. The couple had been married for 73 years.

On Saturday, Bush attended an American Legion event in Kennebunkport, Maine to mark the upcoming Memorial Day with military veterans and his former national security adviser Brent Scowcroft, according to a post on Bush's official Twitter feed.
Washington: The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee on Sunday called on voters to "throw the bums out" of Congress whom he has accused of trying to help President Donald Trump undermine the special counsel's Russia probe.

"The only thing that makes this possible is a Congress that is complicit," Representative Adam Schiff said on ABC News' "This Week," naming several conservative leaders in the Republican Party and accusing "a weak" Speaker Paul Ryan, of refusing to "stand up for the independence of the Justice Department."

Representative Adam Schiff, a California Democrat. Credit:Bloomberg

"As long as there's a majority in Congress that is willing to do this president's will and as long as we have a deeply unethical president, there's only one remedy," Schiff said.

Schiff's words come at the end of a week that pitted the White House against the Justice Department and left Republicans divided over concerns about the role that retired American professor and FBI source Stefan Halper played in the Russia investigation. They are also a clear sign that as Trump takes to Twitter to peddle his "spy" claims, top Democrats are eyeing the 2018 midterm elections as crucial not just for taking back the House of Representatives, but for defending the federal law enforcement agencies from what Schiff called a "pattern" of attacks.
Washington/Caracas: American missionary Joshua Holt, held by Venezuela without trial on weapons charges since 2016, returned home with his wife on Saturday after the South American country's socialist government unexpectedly released him.

They were being accompanied by US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, who met on Friday with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Corker's office said.

The freeing of the Mormon missionary from Utah came despite deepening US-Venezuelan tensions that in the last week saw tit-for-tat expulsions of diplomats, Washington's refusal to recognise the May 20 re-election of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, and the imposition of new US sanctions on Caracas.

Speaking at a news conference in Caracas, Communications Minister Jorge Rodriguez said Holt and his wife, Thamy, were freed as part of efforts by Maduro's government to maintain "respectful diplomatic relations" with Washington.
A New Zealand woman who drank her own urine to survive three days stranded and wounded in the desert says it tastes like bad, flat beer.

Claire Nelson, 36, was found with a shattered pelvis in Joshua Tree National Park by US Park Rangers four days after she fell and broke her pelvis on Tuesday.

Claire Nelson spent three days with a broken pelvis trapped in a US desert.

"Nobody could hear me scream. I would have died by the weekend. I cannot believe I am alive," Nelson tweeted from hospital after the ordeal.

Ms Nelson told Fairfax Media she had been hiking in Joshua Tree National Park. She climbed over boulders to get to the track below when she slipped down a sheer seven metre drop and landed on the ground below, shattering her pelvis.
The ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider is one of the machine's two big all-purpose detectors.

A few years from now, if a crew of physicists gets its way, a squat building will rise above the border between France and Switzerland. This warehouse-size annex will join a scientific facility so large it crosses national borders. And, if the researchers proposing the construction are correct, it just might find the missing pieces of the universe.

Separated by a few hundred vertical feet of bedrock granite from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the new building would contain a scientific instrument called the MATHUSLA device (Massive Timing Hodoscope for Ultra Stable Neutral Particles), named after the longest-living man in the Book of Genesis. Its job: to hunt for long-lived particles that the LHC can't detect itself.

There's something strange about the idea. The LHC is the biggest, baddest particle accelerator in the world: a 17-mile (27 kilometers) ring of superconducting magnets that, 11,245 times per second, flings a few thousand protons at one another at significant fractions of the speed of light and then, whenever anything interesting happens, records the result. [Beyond Higgs: 5 Other Particles That May Lurk in the Universe]

MATHUSLA's relationship to that enormous machine would resemble that of a harmless remora fish clinging to the side of a leviathan, sucking up stray flecks of wasted food that spill from the larger creature's open mouth. But some physicists think that through careful study of those flecks (in this case, stray, long-lived, high-energy particles flung through the walls of LHC), MATHUSLA will help solve a set of problems that the LHC has, to the increasing alarm of particle physicists, failed to conquer.

All that will happen, that is, if MATHUSLA's creators can find someone to pay for it.

Missing physics

The quantum universe right now is a puzzle with most of the pieces missing. Those pieces scientists have found and put together already  quarks, neutrinos, bosons, the muon and tau lepton, the photon and gluon, and, most famously, the Higgs boson  fit together to form a picture, called the Standard Model. But that picture is strangely shaped and full of holes and hints that there's more physics out there to be found.

One gap is the Higgs boson. As David Curtin, a professor at the University of Toronto and one of the originators of the MATHUSLA concept, explained, the Higgs just isn't as massive as quantum physics predicts it to be. So, the current model of the universe required a big, arbitrary-seeming "correction" in Higgs related equations.

Centuries of experience tell scientists that corrections like that usually stand in for things researchers just don't yet understand. Albert Einstein's cosmological constant was an example, an idea that he stuck into his theory of general relativity to account for what scientists later discovered were the effects of the expanding universe  something Einstein never suspected and later regretted not anticipating. [8 Ways You Can See Einstein's Theory of Relativity in Real Life]

Physicists, Curtin explained, suspect that the Higgs' strangely small mass implies that other, undetected particles are out there, influencing it. This and other strange cracks in reality  like all the missing, mysterious mass in the universe that scientists term dark matter  suggest that there's still lots of physics that physicists haven't yet seen.

The point of the LHC was to fill in those gaps in the universe's puzzle.

Jessie Shelton, a theoretical physicist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who helped edit a white paper pitching MATHUSLA, said that so far  with the important exception of the Higgs boson detection itself  the LHC has been a disappointment. The Higgs appeared, but ever since then, even after a series of upgrades to the machine, the hunt for new particles has turned up nothing.

That could be because humans have exhausted the supply of particles that we'll ever be able to detect. Or it could be that the LHC, perhaps because of problems with its detectors or because its beam is too weak, just isn't up to the task, she said.

"There's absolutely something new out there. Dark matter tells us that. Unfortunately, we don't have any guarantee that whatever's out there has to talk to us at rates that we can detect at the LHC," Shelton told Live Science

And as long as the LHC, with costs running into the tens of billions of dollars, fails to detect new physics beyond the Higgs, she said, it'll be hard to justify building any bigger detectors in the future. [Photos: The World's Largest Atom Smasher (LHC)]

"Right now, we need new ideas," she said.

The big new idea

Back in April, Shelton stood in front of a crowd of physicists at the big meeting of the American Physical Society (APS) in Columbus, Ohio, and argued that the LHC might have already created missing particles but might have been unable to detect them. That's because all of the LHC's sensors are calibrated to detect a specific kind of event:

An exotic particle appears in the high-energy collision of two protons. It decays a mind-bogglingly short time later into more-stable, less-exotic particles, which streak away in all directions in a starburst. Those particles pass through ionizing plates and flashing crystals surrounding the collider's beam, and their specific pattern offers physicists clues as to what kind of exotic particle they came from.

A display of a proton-proton collision taken in the LHCb detector in the early hours of May 9, 2016. (Image credit: LHCB)

The LHC could already pick up signatures of long-lived particles with some recalibration, Shelton said. Even a usually long-lived particle will sometimes decay quickly. And some long-lived particles may leave telltale signs in the sensors before decaying. Detecting them could be a matter of recalibrating the detectors and algorithms. Shelton called this plan using the LHC "off label." [What Is Quantum Mechanics]But perhaps, Shelton argued, the missing exotic particles don't decay as quickly as the LHC's designers hoped. Maybe speculative particles like "gluinos" and "composite dark glueballs" do exist and are appearing at the LHC but not decaying within its narrow tunnel. If a gluino, for example, can survive even a few fractions of a second longer than physicists expected, it could  moving at a significant fraction of light speed  pierce the walls of the collider, travel hundreds of yards through the solid granite burying the LHC, and make its way up into the French-Swiss sunshine before decaying somewhere alone in the forest. Its signature would, therefore, be far outside the LHC's capacity to detect. [Strange Quarks and Muons, Oh My! Nature's Tiniest Particles Dissected]

Still, these researchers think that the best hope for detecting long-lived particles lies in the woods on the French-Swiss border. MATHUSLA, essentially a 65-foot-tall (20 meters) warehouse full of particle detectors sitting on top of the LHC, would study particles that escaped the LHC entirely.

With a thick floor of granite separating the LHC beam from MATHUSLA, most of the roiling, radioactive chaos of the LHC would disappear. Only the comparatively rare pops of long-lived particles moving through the Earth and into the sensor chamber would need detecting.

"If an invisible particle comes up and decays, the visible particles [it decays into] will sort of splay against the ceiling," Curtin said. "The layers of [detectors] will see these tracks in exactly the same way as the trackers inside the LHC downstairs. But this [detector array] is much bigger, and can afford to be much slower."

The pitch

With fewer particles to detect in a bigger detection area, MATHUSLA could build very detailed pictures of exotic particles decaying inside it  as long as there really are exotic particles up there to detect.

"You're just waiting up there. Birds are chirping. And then, suddenly, there's a" Curtin made the rapid rat-a-tat sound of a machine gun, or in this case, perhaps, the charged particles flung from a decaying gluino.

Because of that slow pace and larger space, Curtin said, the electronics and engineering required for MATHUSLA are much simpler than those in the LHC itself.

"It's not cheap," he acknowledged. "But it's not crazy."

At the scale that he and his colleagues envision, it should come in at just a fraction of the cost of the multibillion-dollar LHC below  somewhere in the ballpark of $50 million, he said. MATHUSLA's designers hope that CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, which operates the LHC, will foot the bill. But they're also hopeful about grants from non-European countries, or perhaps individual rich people.

"[The LHC] could be making these things already," he said, yelling a bit, "We've paid the price to make 'em! We've paid the $10 billion for the collider! We're already making them  maybe, I mean, you know"

His voice drifted off for a moment, before he returned with, "How dumb would we feel if we just did not spend that extra dollar to make the detector to actually see what we made?!"

Shelton also said the LHC needs the extra detector. But she spelled out the concern bound up in that "maybe" and why she still thinks the project is justified.

"If we're being pessimistic, and we're going to say that maybe there's nothing there," she said, "I want to know that it's really not there and not missing just because we forgot to look."

Originally published on Live Science.
Astrobotic has 12 customers for its first lunar lander mission, and hope to win NASA contracts to fly the space agency's payloads on that and future missions.

PASADENA, Calif.  Companies that one competed for the Google Lunar X Prize now expect to fly their first lunar landers in the next two years to serve the needs of commercial and government customers, including NASA.

In presentations at the Space Tech Expo here May 24, four companies that, at one time, were vying for a $20 million grand prize for landing a commercial spacecraft on the moon now say they're motivated by what they see is a growing interest in lunar exploration and commercialization.

"It's really exciting to see that the moon's time has come," said Dan Hendrickson, vice president of business development for Astrobotic, a Pittsburgh-based company developing lunar landers. "We've been waiting for a moment like this one for some time and we're really excited and thrilled to be serving this new re-posture to the moon that the United States and many other countries around the world have engaged in." [The Google Lunar X Prize Teams in Photos]

That enthusiasm is bolstered by a shift in national space policy in the United States that has put a return to the moon on the path to eventual human missions to Mars. NASA has since unveiled plans for its Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, where the agency will buy payload space on small commercial lunar landers for carrying scientific instruments and other experiments.

"We hope to be selected and be part of that program," he said. While Astrobotic has 12 customers for its first lunar lander mission in 2020, ranging from the Mexican Space Agency to Arch Mission Foundation, which announced plans May 15 to fly a copy of Wikipedia on the lander, NASA is not yet a customer. "It's really a good news story for the industry and for the program."

Moon Express is also pressing ahead with its lunar lander missions, planning for its first mission in 2019, said Alain Berinstain, vice president of global development at the Florida-based company. Like Hendrickson, he praised NASA's lunar initiatives like CLPS. "It helps companies like ours move forward in a stable environment and really thrive," he said.

The company became a finalist for the Google Lunar X Prize after signing a contract in 2015 for several launches on Rocket Lab's Electron rocket. Berinstain said that contract is still in place, but he left the door open to using a different vehicle on the company's first mission.

"If our manifest requires a performance for the spacecraft that is beyond the Electron's, then we may need to use a different launch vehicle," he said. He did not specify any alternative vehicles under consideration. "We are committed to using the Electron for those missions where it makes sense."

Germany company PTScientists is hiring staff in preparation for its first lunar lander mission, scheduled to launch in late 2019. "We started 10 years ago as a group of scientists and engineers, six people," said Robert Boehme, founder and chief executive of PTScientists. The company is now up to 46 people, he said. "We've become quite a big team."

That mission is scheduled to go to the Taurus-Littrow region of the moon, near the Apollo 17 landing site. That mission is the first of several PTScientists has planned, including one in cooperation with the European Space agency later in the 2020s to test the ability to access and use water ice resources at the lunar poles.

PTScientists has been working in partnership with a number of major companies outside the space industry on its mission, from Audi to Vodaphone. The company, he said, is relying heavily on technologies developed elsewhere for the lander. "We basically just see ourselves as a system integrator," he said.

India's TeamIndus is working on a series of lunar lander missions as well for sending payloads to the moon inexpensively. "The key to creating this market is to bring the cost down by an order of magnitude. You have to think about exponential reductions in cost for this market to really come online," said Rahul Narayan, founder and chief executive of TeamIndus.

TeamIndus is planning an annual series of lunar lander missions, starting in mid-2019. The company has completed a set of tests on a qualification model of the lander, and Narayan said they were ready to develop flight hardware for the lander.

Those effort continue even though the Google Lunar X Prize has expired, with Google deciding not to renew its title sponsorship of the competition. The X Prize Foundation has continued the competition, but without a prize purse as it has not found a new sponsor to provide the prize purse.

Moon Express' Berinstain, though, argued that the competition's legacy lives on in the form of companies like his that are pursuing various customers for commercial landers. "It really helped get people's heads around the challenge of doing what we and others are trying to do," he said. "It helped get people thinking and moving and moving fast."

This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry.
When it comes to artificial intelligence, NASA and other space agencies are nowhere near building a "Terminator" in space. So, you can rest easy  Arnold Schwarzenegger isn't about to hunt you down because you're leading a rebellion against the machines.

Artificial intelligence is in its infancy, but scientists have used it to find alien planets, classify galaxies and create spacecraft capable of dodging debris. More uses will follow. But some critics, like SpaceX founder Elon Musk and the renowned physicist Stephen Hawking (recently deceased), have warned that artificial intelligence could be dangerous if left unchecked.

While AI is a popular theme in space exploration, its use (and misuse) has been discussed by several people in other applications as well. In 2015, Musk, Hawking and other science and tech leaders signed an open letter saying that artificial intelligence technology could generate a global arms race unless the United Nations steps in with a ban. The letter was issued by the Future of Life organization and presented at the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence that year in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Artificial intelligence is the focus of "AMC Visionaries: James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction" Episode 5, which airs Monday, May 28 during the two-hour finale at 9 p.m. EDT/PDT (8 p.m. CDT) as part of a two-hour season finale. [Move Over, R2-D2! NASA Already Has Plenty of Robots in Space]

"The key question for humanity today is whether to start a global AI arms race or to prevent it from starting. If any major military power pushes ahead with AI weapon development, a global arms race is virtually inevitable, and the end point of this technological trajectory is obvious: Autonomous weapons will become the Kalashnikovs of tomorrow," the letter read, referring to the automatic weapons.

Musk and Hawking also expressed concerns about AI separately. In 2014, Hawking said artificial intelligence might end up annihilating the human race. And just a few weeks ago, Musk mused in a documentary that AI research might create an "immortal dictator from which we could never escape".

Rogue AI is a popular theme in science fiction, ranging from the programs in "The Matrix" film series to the computer HAL in "2001: A Space Odyssey" to the Cylons in the 2004-09 reimagined version of "Battlestar Galactica." But scientists say that thinking of these machines as killer automatons is simplistic and not representative of reality.

Classifying exoplanets

There are many real-life uses of AI in astronomy. For instance, one team is using artificial intelligence  more precisely, "machine learning"  to recognize and classify exoplanets that are similar to rocky worlds in our own solar system, like Mars and Earth. The researchers on that team told Space.com they are using an artificial neural network, which behaves a bit like a human brain in the way individual neurons connect and how the network learns from experience by examining images and data to form conclusions.

This system can recognize what elements are in a planet's atmosphere by analyzing the light from the world's parent star passing through that atmosphere. From there, the system can find elements that might indicate the world is hospitable to life, such as oxygen or methane.

"For researchers, AI used in this way will make the classification of Earth-like exoplanets detected via space-based observatories easier," Christopher Bishop, a member of the team who is with the Center for Robotics and Neural Systems at the University of Plymouth in the United Kingdom, told Space.com in an email.

The use of deep learning isn't limited to planet hunting. While human volunteers on projects such as Galaxy Zoo help astronomers classify galaxies today, artificial intelligence is emerging as an alternative, said astrophysicist David Koo, an astronomer emeritus at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and astronomer emeritus at Lick Observatory. He recently co-authored a study (now on prepublishing site arXiv and accepted in The Astronomical Journal) in which researchers simulated galaxy formation and used that simulation to train an artificial neural network to classify galactic images from the Hubble Space Telescope.

"Human beings are good at recognizing complex images and being able to put them into categories, but the boundaries are always a little soft," Koo told Space.com. The advantages of a deep learning system are that, unlike humans, it doesn't get tired and it can grade consistently..

Going interstellar

Future interstellar spacecraft capabilities might include not only classification, but also navigation. NASA recently awarded a $330,000 early stage grant for autonomous spacecraft to dodge debris using technology employed in a competitor to Bitcoin. "I hope to develop technology that can recognize environmental threats and avoid them, as well as complete a number of tasks automatically," principal investigator Jin Wei Kocsis, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Akron in Ohio, said in a statement.

Interstellar robotic spacecraft, such as what Breakthrough Starshot wants to send to the nearby Alpha Centauri system, could be guided by AI to make decisions when separated from humanity by dramatic distances.

Bishop said he expects his planetary classification system would be more useful on an AI-equipped spacecraft than on a human-piloted vessel. "The first extraterrestrial exploration of exoplanets will most likely be achieved using robotic interstellar probes, since the problems of long-duration human spaceflight and their related engineering and propulsion challenges have still to be solved."

The worries concerning AI persist. But Bishop struck a more hopeful note, because he said human capabilities will remain unique no matter how powerful AI becomes. He said that AI is not conscious in the same sense that humans are; humans possess unique capabilities such as morality, self-reflection, creativity and even emotions such as love, hate and intuition. He pointed to science fiction as demonstrating a fear of humans "relinquishing control over their lives to a machine," but said there are many tasks that AI already performs.

"A lot of manufacturing tasks use AI in their processing, bypassing human operators. Credit scoring is done with intelligent algorithms. Whether you are given a loan by a bank or not can be depend on what a machine thinks about you. Stock market transactions can be done based on machine learning of trading patterns. Driverless cars use AI for guidance. Some kinds of warfare can be conducted with intelligent drones," he said.

This story was inspired by Episode 5 of "AMC Visionaries: James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction," which airs Monday at 9 p.m. EDT/PDT (8 p.m. CDT). A companion book is available on Amazon.com.

Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.




For the past six weeks Killing Eve viewers have been glued to their television or computer screens watching this sharp, well-written and complex cat and mouse game between MI6 Agent Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh) and the murderous Villanelle (Jodie Comer). The seventh episode of the series, "I Don't Want to Be Free", lights the fuse to what is sure to be an explosive season finale. This is the episode where all the pieces start falling into place, just not in the way we expected thanks to the brilliant mind of creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge. From the beginning she has thrown magnificent twists and turns into this story, keeping the suspense high while bringing television a new take on thriller television. She has created two of television's most unique adversaries in Eve and Villanelle with great story-telling and award-worthy acting from the show's stars.





In "I Don't Want to Be Free", both Eve and Villanelle go rogue, in their own unique ways. Firstly, after learning that their witness, Nadia, has been killed in prison, Eve defies Carolyn (Fiona Shaw), whom she catches coming into the hotel early in the morning wearing the same clothes as the night before. They learn about Nadia's death at a bizarre breakfast with Konstantin (Kim Bodnia), who also seems to be wearing the same clothes as the night before. Coincidence, don't bet on it! Carolyn then takes Eve to an underground bunker of sorts where Eve is surprised to see Kenny (Sean Delaney). When Eve begins questioning if possibly Villanelle got into the prison and killed Nadia, Carolyn oddly orders her and Kenny to go back to London, then she leaves to finish "some business". This is where Eve goes even more rogue than she has at any other time in the series. Sadly, Kenny has brought Eve evidence of a connection between his mother and Konstantin in the form of what Eve calls filthy love letters. There are nice moments in these scenes where Sandra Oh shows that Eve is not so totally obsessed with catching Villanelle that she doesn't see the effect this discovery about his mother has on Kenny. Her concern and empathy are genuine.Kenny also has found Anna (Susan Lynch), the woman whose husband Villanelle killed and was first sent to prison. On her visit with Anna, Eve discovers that the woman who knew Villanelle by her real name, Oksana, had more than a teacher-student relationship with the young woman. She shows Eve stacks of letters from Oksana to Anna, and the gifts she sent her. In an unsettling turn, Eve sees Oksana sent Anna expensive clothes and perfume much like Villanelle sent her. And, Anna is still strangely fascinated by Oksana and seems pleased to learn that the girl was not dead as first reported, and even wants to see her to tell her she forgives her for killing her husband. Eve warns her Oksana could be dangerous and that she should go stay with friends, but Anna has a warning of her own for Eve. She tells her that she is Oksana's type. Anna also shows Eve a mysterious gift, an expensive top-coat, that arrived recently that she now believes could be from Villanelle. Eve examines the coat and in the lining finds a package containing Villanelle's passport and credit card, which she proceeds to steal from Anna.Villanelle in the meantime survives an attempt to kill her in prison by the not so catatonic Inga. In fact, by fighting to survive she commits what might be her most gruesome murder of the series. Then she is mysteriously being transported from the prison and elaborate escape is executed to set her free. Jodie Comer is again masterful at showing Villanelle's disturbed side when she views the carnage and bodies left in the wake of her escape with this oh-so-pleased-with-herself smirk on her face. She is taken to a room where she meets the obnoxious Anton (Andrew Byron), who tells her he is her new handler, he has a new assignment for her and that they are holding her passport and credit card until she completes the mission. He also tells her that things are going to be different than they were with Konstantin. Like Oh's scene with Kenny, Comer's moment of concern for Konstantin show that there is still some humanity in her is a shining moment of the episode. However, Anton learns the hard way that Villanelle doesn't like being told what to do when she coldly kills him. She is then shocked to learn that her new target is Konstantin.Both women then get thrown curve balls in respective quests. In a great scene between Comer and Bodnia, who have shared great chemistry in this odd father-daughter like relationship in the series, Villanelle seems to let her guard down when she confronts Konstantin, by letting him take pills to kill himself instead of her usual messier methods. Konstantin appears to comply because Villanelle claims to be holding his wife and young daughter somewhere, then outsmarts Villanelle and escapes after beaning her with a log. She screams at him in frustration as he taunts her while making her escape.Eve has returned to the bunker where Kenny has managed to hack into the CCTV cameras at the prison and is excited when he finds the video of Villanelle, confirming her theory on Nadia's death. That excited turns to shock when they watch the video of Villanelle being taken into the visitor's area. Eve eagerly watches thinking she's about to see who it is who is really giving Villanelle her orders. She and Kenny are both stunned to learn that person is none other than Carolyn!The fuse is lit for what is sure to be fireworks in this weeks final episode of Season 1 of this amazing series,. Did you see this twist with Carolyn coming? Does Eve hold the key to Villanelle's escape (her passport and credit card) in exchange for saving a life? Discuss your thoughts and theories in the comments below.
Rome, Italy, May 26, 2018 (SPS) - The African ambassadors accredited to Italy on Tuesday celebrated Africa Day in the presence of the representative of the Polisario Front, Amih Omar, and prominent Italian and European personalities.



The Moroccan delegation led by its Ambassador in Rome tried to prevent the Sahrawi delegation from attending the event, which angered the ambassadors of the continent who refused Moroccan behavior, when the Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps in Rome, Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Congo, on behalf of all Ambassadors, expressed rejection to the disgraceful Moroccan behavior and confirmed the right of the Saharawi state as a founding member of the African Union to attend all the meetings organized by the continent, which was approved by all diplomats, prompting the Moroccan ambassador and his delegation to withdraw.



The celebrations, which honored the African leader Nelson Mandela, organized a photo exhibition at the Islamic Institute in Rome, and an exhibition of the customs and traditions of peoples, especially African dishes, where Sahrawi popular dishes were present in a pavilion devoted entirely to the Sahrawi state. (SPS)



062/SPS/TRA
The challenges they face can change with sometimes startling speed.

But whether the enemy is a long-established disease such as influenza, cancer or tuberculosis or are still emerging and evolving maladies, cadres of health professionals across the state  researchers, doctors and nurses alike  stand ready to carry on the fight.

Throughout Connecticuts long history, countless men and women have been involved in often-pioneering efforts to develop new treatments and/or medicines or to improve health care for people nearing death.

Some of the achievements  the development of the first neonatal intensive care unit, for instance  are stunning.

RELATED: SEE MORE FROM OUR TOP 50 PROJECT

Not surprisingly, many of the advances  both societal and medical  occurred at the Yale School of Medicine, which opened its doors in 1813.

In 1857, the school awarded a degree to its first African-American graduate, Cortlandt Van Rensselaer Creed.

But it wasn't until 1916 that women  in the persons of Louise Farnam, Helen May Scoville and Lillian Lydia Nye  were admitted to the school.

The school takes understandable pride in listing areas where it led the way: Yales historical contributions to medicine include the first X-ray performed in the United States, the first successful use of penicillin in America, the first use of cancer chemotherapy, and the introduction of fetal heart monitoring, natural childbirth and newborn rooming-in, its website says.

Yale doctors designed the first artificial heart pump and the first insulin infusion pump for diabetes, and it was here that the means of transmission of the polio virus was established, paving the way for the Salk vaccine. Lyme disease was identified by two Yale physicians in 1975.

Still more history was made at Yale in October 1960, when Dr. Louis Gluck opened the first neonatal intensive care unit for premature or under-strength newborn babies in the United States.

Gluck turned the standard practice  isolating newborns  on its head, by grouping them together in a large, open-space unit where their needs more easily could be met.

As late as the 1930s, many births took place at home with often tragic outcomes. By the 1940s, however, that pattern had changed and more and more births were taking place in hospitals.

But the risks for premature babies still were significant, largely because so-called preemies did not have fully developed lungs.

Doctors, especially in France, had begun advocating for changes in the way premature babies were treated.

In a July 2016, article, Elizabeth Payne traced advances in the treatment of premature infants.

Early incubators were developed in the latter part of the 19th century. But still many in the medical profession  and especially hospitals concerned about their cost  were slow to embrace incubators.

In an effort to prove their worth and encourage the wider use of incubators, French doctor Martin Courney took the highly unusual  and dramatic  step of displaying babies in incubators at Coney Island in 1903, Payne reports.

Similar demonstrations were featured at the 1939 Worlds Fair in Queens, N.Y.

Baby science

In was only in the post-war years when suddenly nearly everything seemed possible, that American hospitals began to more widely accept incubators.

But, Payne writes, even as hospitals created Special Care Baby Units, there still was concern about the risk of infection for premature newborns.

Here Gluck took the lead.

Working with a team at Yale, Gluck found regularly washing newborns  and requiring visitors to the special-care units to wash their hands  dramatically reduced the risk of infection.

Gluck then took a pioneering step by abolishing the existing model of isolating premature babies.

Instead, he grouped isolettes and incubators all in one room, Payne writes.

Doing so enabled caregivers to easily access and tend to the babies.

Those changes were tremendously impactful, said Dr. Mark R. Mercurio, chief of neonatal-perinatal medicine at Yale School of Medicine.

There was a phenomenal reduction in mortality rates, Mercurio said.

Continuing advances in the technology of respirators gave doctors another weapon to combat respiratory distress syndrome, Mercurio said.

Because they are not carried to term, premature babies cannot develop the alveoli, the tiny sacs that inflate when they breathe.

Surfactant, a chemical that stimulates the growth of the alveoli, is produced in the placenta in the late stages of pregnancy.

Fortunately, scientists have developed artificial surfactant, which now is administered to premature babies, Mercurio said.

Another of Glucks ideas has had a significant impact on the treatment of premature babies.

Throughout the 1940s and into the 1950s, premature babies were separated from their mothers, Mercurio said.

That was not a positive development for either the baby or the mother, he said.

Gluck pushed to keep them together.

In the ensuing years, the practice has further improved, to the benefit of both mother and the child, Mercurio said.

In January, Yale New Haven Childrens Hospital opened a new family-centered neonatal ICU that included couplet rooms, Mercurio noted. The unit can accommodate 68 babies, and was designed with room to make starting to breast feed easier, among other features.

Mothers and their babies remain together in the room as the baby receives care, Yale spokesman Mark DAntonio explained.

This unique model of care strengths the maternal-infant bond by fostering skin-to-skin contact supporting breastfeeding and further inducing healing, DAntonio said.

***

Other Connecticut residents also have left their mark on the development of medicine and health care.

Sherwin B. Nuland, for instance, served humanity in two roles, as a surgeon and as dean of the Yale School of Medicine.

Later in life he fused the two roles and began writing on medical issues for the general public.

Nuland achieved significant celebrity when, in 1994, he published How We Die, a sober, no-holds-barred explanation of death and dying that sold an astonishing 500,000 copies worldwide and won a National Book Award.

In an obituary published upon Nulands death in 2014, the New York Times wrote that he had sought to demythologize death , making it more familiar and therefore less frightening, so that the dying might approach decisions regarding their care with greater knowledge and more reasonable expectations.

The Times did not shrink from also describing the book as a criticism of a medical profession that saw death as an enemy to be engaged, frequently beyond the point of futility, adding Nuland had pointed a finger at himself for sometimes being guilty of the very thing he criticized.

Florence S. Wald also engaged with death as an advocate for bringing a measure of peace to the dying.

The Bronx-born Wald trained as a nurse, and after serving in the Army Signal Corps in World War II she returned to Yale, where she eventually became dean of the school nursing.

In 1963, according to her obituary in the Times, Wald attended a lecture given by Dame Cecily Saunders, an English woman who was preparing to open the first hospice facility in the world.

Wald immediately was taken with the idea of a facility where families could be actively involved in providing comfort and care for a dying person.

Wald eventually resigned from her post at Yale, went to South London where she trained with Saunders , and then returned to work toward creating a hospice facility in the U.S.

In 1970, a 44-patient facility opened in Branford.

As of 2014, there were more than 4,000 such facilities in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Further, a Hartford-born dentist, Horace Wells, was instrumental to finding a way to ameliorate the pain that marked so much of medicine into the 19th century.

Unfortunately, it did little to give him the peace he personally sought.

In the 1840s, Wells did extensive testing of various chemicals, including nitrous oxide and chloroform, as a way to reduce the pain in surgery.

His tests eventually overwhelmed him, however, causing him to become unbalanced, leading to his death by suicide. Wells is credited as the father of ether.

***

Connecticut styles itself the land of steady habits, but over the years it has often been a battlefield on issues involving contraception and birth control.

Hilda Crosby was an early soldier in those battles.

She grew up in Hartford, graduated from Wellesley College and earned a medical degree from Cornell University.

She then moved to China where she lived and worked for five years providing medical care for the Chinese until she was driven out by the expanding Japanese occupation in 1935.

Having seen the necessity for family planning in war-torn China, upon her return returned to Connecticut, Crosby was recruited to become director of a maternal health center by Katharine Houghton Hepburn, mother of actress Katharine Hepburn.

In 1936, Crosby married a fellow physician, Erland Myles Standish, and began raising a family even as she continued her work at the clinic until it was forced to close in 1940.

Crosby remained active in the continuing medical history of Connecticut until her death in 2005 at the age of 103.
Robert V. Stefanowski, a former corporate executive who is seeking the Republican nomination for governor without paying the usual respects to the party hierarchy, is leading in one way so far  advertising.

Stefanowski, of Madison, has spent a half-million dollars on television ads in the state.

David Stemerman, of Greenwich, who closed his multibillion-dollar hedge fund to make a similar run for Connecticut governor, has also made a six-figure commitment to television ads.

Political scientists say outsider Republicans like Stefanowski and Stemerman, with no name recognition or public record, have to work harder and spend their cash earlier.

First of all, they have to get on the ballot, said Gary L. Rose, chairman of the Department of Government, Politics and Global Studies at Sacred Heart University.

Neither candidate participated in the GOP nominating convention at Foxwoods Resort & Casino, but both were there, luring conventioneers with lavishly catered parties. Now they are spending on canvassers who can collect the 9,000 or so signatures each needs to petition onto the August primary ballot, as is Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti.

Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, former Trumbull first selectman Tim Herbst and Steve Obsitnik, a tech entrepreneur from Westport, earned spots on the ballot at the Republican convention and are waiting for their $1.25 million public-financing grants to be awarded before taking to TV.

Spending early and often

Stefanowski has been getting his name out since the end of January, according to public filing documents on the states major TV-station websites.

A former General Electric and UBS executive, he is making a concerted effort on Connecticut television and radio with help from a Virginia consultant with ties to President Donald Trumps 2016 victory.

Stemerman, at this point, is depending less on traditional broadcast-TV outlets and more on cable TV and digital ads.

His campaign has purchased time for at least 963 ads on Connecticuts top three TV affiliates, at a cost of $475,225, Hearst Connecticut Media has found.

You will be able to view his 30-second spot, in which he brags about his business prowess, on CBS Sunday Morning, on Channel 3, WFSB in Hartford. The one ad cost $975, along with 327 other spots totaling $270,550 that the political newcomer has contracted with WFSB in an effort to build the kind of name recognition traditional state politicians take years to accumulate.

During the week leading up to the Aug. 14 primary, Stefanowski will have 93 TV spots on WTNH News 8, at a cost of $25,800. In all, he has contracted 578 ads there, for $197,900. His 57 spots on Fox 61 have cost $6,775.

Voters like my plan to cut taxes and create jobs, spreading that message as the only candidate on broadcast TV has placed our campaign firmly in the lead by a four-to-one margin, Stefanowski said Friday.

For Stemerman, public filings with various state cable providers indicate contracts totaling about $138,000.

Were investing seriously in this race and are excited about giving voters a choice in August, a Stemerman spokesman said on Friday, adding there has also been a traditional-broadcast TV presence, but declining to confirm the campaigns advertising investment.

Documents on file with the State Elections Enforcement Commission indicate about $300,000 in media-related expenditures for the Stemerman campaign, including a $12,000 photo shoot and $13,600 for media training.

The cost of name recognition

These hundreds of thousands of dollars may be the least unknowns can do to get their names out before the public. It might also be a waste of money.

Stefanowskis certainly a first-mover in this race, but whether it translates into victory remains to be seen, said Richard Hanley, associate professor of journalism at Quinnipiac University.

Hanley said Stefanowskis monetary commitment  running outside the states voluntary public-financing program  allows him to purchase his own brand and tailor his message on traditional TV.

The ads are going wall-to-wall on local news, Hanley said. But at some point it becomes noise. He might be better off spending money on Uber rides to get voters to the polls.

Only about 120,000 voters, a quarter of the states registered Republicans, are likely to vote in the primary to determine the candidate for governor.

So far, Hanley said, he doesnt see any candidate, Democrat or Republican, generating much excitement, or interest.

I think it is very ordinary for an extraordinary time, with the state in fiscal crisis after fiscal crisis; the uncertainty of local property taxes, Hanley said. The candidates dont reflect energy. Theres nothing to grab peoples attention. The ads are ordinary and the issues are similar to those Republicans have been using to persuade people for generations.

Running outside the normal Republican realm, without acknowledging old-time party stalwarts, doesnt really give Stefanowski or Stemerman an advantage, Rose said.

Because of the states dire straits, people with concrete experience will have the edge, he said.

Meanwhile, the Republican Governors Association, anticipating that Connecticut will be in play this year, has booked $430,450 in TV ads for the three broadcast stations in late September, October and November.

They feel they can get a blue state into the red column, at least in the governors race, Hanley said. Thats part of their strategy of Statehouse to White House. 

kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT
A founding member of Boyzone has told of how he is haunted by the torture and murder of a French nanny because of a couples bizarre obsession with him.

Sabrina Kouider and Ouissem Medouni kept 21-year-old Sophie Lionnet imprisoned before burning her body on a bonfire over their warped fantasy that she was in league with music mogul Mark Walton.

Kouider, 35, and Medouni, 40, were convicted at the Old Bailey of murdering the woman, whose charred remains were found at their home near Wimbledon, south-west London.

In the weeks leading up to her death, the couple beat, starved and tortured her by dunking her head into water until she confessed.

'Haunted': Boyzone founding member Mark Walton

After they were found guilty, police released a chilling image showing gaunt-looking Miss Lionnet two days before her murder.

Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, Mr Walton described his anguish at the fate of the victim he never met.

The Mail reported that his eyes were red from crying when he spoke to them from his Hollywood home.

"When I saw that picture of Sophie and how scared and vulnerable and haunted she looks, and to think she was tortured because of me, that haunts me, he said.

Sophie Lionnet, who was tortured by her employers, two days before her death / PA

The poor girl was telling the truth. She never met me. And yet she paid with her life because of those psychopaths.

Mr Walton, who gave evidence at the trial, said that he previously never drank but now needs two glasses of wine to get to sleep at night.

He added: "I think of her every day.

He said he wanted her parents, who this week said their daughter's killers should be "burned at the stake", to "know I carry their daughter's picture with me everywhere."

Sabrina Kouider after being taken into police custody

"I will never forget her. We never met but I will always pray for her and her parents," he said.

Mother-of-two Kouider and her banker husband Medouni denied murder but were found guilty on Thursday of what was described as a "folie a deux", a shared psychosis.

Kouider, a fashion designer who once dated Mr Walton and claimed to have partied with US president Donald Trump, was dubbed wicked during the trial.

She reported Mr Walton to police more than 30 times over five years and insisted that he had used black magic against Miss Lionnet and falsely accused him of domestic abuse and of being a paedophile.

Convicted: Ouissem Medouni

However, Mr Walton, now a millionaire LA music producer, denied all the claims in court, explaining that he had not even been in the UK on days when Kouider accused him of carrying out the abuse.

Kouider teamed up with her on-off husband Medouni to interrogate Miss Lionnet, who she incorrectly claimed had been seduced by Walton's promises of fame.

Medouni told firefighters responding to reports of pungent smoke in September last year that he was burning a sheep.
M iddle class drug users should feel blame for fuelling the spate of fatal stabbings blighting London, the Justice Secretary has said.

David Gauke said those who take cocaine at dinner parties are responsible for fuelling the violence on the capitals streets.

Since the beginning of the year, at least 37 people have been stabbed to death amid more than 60 killed murders in London.

"People who do that have to recognise they are fuelling the industry that's resulting in the knife crimes, resulting in the difficulties we're having in prisons," Mr Gauke told Sky's Ridge on Sunday.

David Gauke said middle class drug users should 'feel a degree of guilty and responsibility' for London's stabbings / PA

"There's a responsibility for middle class people that take cocaine at a dinner party that when they see a story of a 15-year-old boy stabbed in Hackney (east London) they should feel a degree of guilt and responsibility."

Speaking to The Times this week, Mr Gauke said there had been a dramatic rise in the overall prison population in the UK, driven by "tougher and longer" sentences for serious crimes.

"Twenty-five years ago the population was 44,000. Today it's 84,000," he said.

Meanwhile, earlier this year it emerged that the London's murder rate had overtaken New York City's for the first time ever.

Figures revealed that there were more murders committed in the capital in February and March than there were in New York.

On Monday a man was stabbed to death in Upper Street, Islington as the city's knife-crime epidemic continued. He was named locally as Marcel Campbell, 20, a father-of-two who lived in Tottenham.
P olice are hunting a man who headbutted another man on Tower Bridge after being accidentally clipped by his umbrella.

The victim, aged in his 50s, was left shaken and suffered facial injuries in the assault at 8am on April 30.

City of London Police have now released CCTV footage of the incident, which took place on the west side of the central London bridge.

It shows the victim walking with a black umbrella in his hand to shield himself from the rain, while another man with a white bag over his shoulder walks quickly in the opposite direction.

The victim, aged in his 50s and from south east London, was left with facial injuries / City of London Police

As they pass, the victims umbrella appears to slightly clip the other man, who turns around in anger and says something.

He then quickly strides over to the victim and headbutts him, while forcefully pushing him in the chest at the same time.

The victim was pushed and headbutted after a brief exchange of words / City of London Police

After speaking to staff in the local area, investigating officers are now appealing for the publics help to locate the man in the CCTV.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or recognises the man is asked to call City of London Police on 0207 601 2222 or 101 quoting CAD 1475 of 30/4/18.
T heresa May is resisting calls from Tory MPs to take a stand on Northern Ireland's abortion laws after the Irish referendum.

Key ministers  including some within the Prime Ministers own Cabinet  have indicated their support for reform to resolve an "anomaly" within the British Isles.

Scores of MPs across the Commons have indicated they are prepared to act to rewrite the current legislation given the absence of a devolved administration in Stormont.

But Mrs Mays fragile administration depends on the support of the 10 Democratic Unionist Party MPs  who strongly oppose any reform to Northern Ireland's strict laws.

Ireland votes Yes to repeal strict abortion laws in referendum

Mrs May has not publicly commented on the result of the Irish vote, but Downing Street is understood to believe that any reform "is an issue for Northern Ireland".

"It shows one of the important reasons we need a functioning executive back up and running," a source said.

Pressure from within her own party could force the Prime Minister to act, with Education Minister Anne Milton suggesting she would back liberalisation if there was a free vote.

The current situation "does feel anomalous", she told ITV's Peston on Sunday.

Celebrations after Ireland's abortion vote 1 /14 Celebrations after Ireland's abortion vote REUTERS AP REUTERS Getty Images EPA PA EPA AFP/Getty Images EPA PA REUTERS PA REUTERS PA

Cabinet minister Penny Mordaunt  who is responsible for the women and equalities brief in Government  said the referendum signalled a "historic and great day for Ireland" and a "hopeful one for Northern Ireland".

"That hope must be met," she added.

Four former holders of the women and equalities role  Amber Rudd, Justine Greening, Nicky Morgan and Maria Miller  all back Ms Mordaunt in support for reform in Northern Ireland, the Sunday Times reported.

Labour MP Stella Creasy claimed more than 140 parliamentarians had already signalled support for an effort to change the law in Northern Ireland.

In a message to the DUP, she said the people of Northern Ireland "consistently support change" in the abortion law and it was "time to put them, not power in Westminster, first".

But DUP MP Ian Paisley said Northern Ireland "should not be bullied into accepting abortion on demand".

"The settled will of the people has been to afford protections to the unborn life and protect the life of the mother," he said.

Abortions are currently only legal in Northern Ireland if the life or mental health of the mother is at risk.
P olice had to escort an elderly woman on a mobility scooter off a major dual carriageway after she took a wrong turn in Essex.

The pensioner unknowingly turned on to the A12 at Marks Tey, forcing stunned drivers to swerve out of her way.

Essex Polices specialist firearms support unit was dispatched immediately after motorists spotted the woman driving towards Chelmsford in the left-hand lane at 8.30am on Thursday.

The officers created a rolling road block before escorting her to safety, causing delays to motorists travelling on the busy A-road in rush hour.

Essex Polices firearms support unit tweeted: Vulnerable female took wrong turn onto A12 at Marks Tey - the team had to put in a rolling road block and escort her to safety - sorry if you were slightly delayed.

Mobility scooters can normally travel up to 8mph and are advised to keep to the pavement if possible.

Essex Police said in a statement: "We were called to concerns for the welfare of a woman on a mobility scooter on the southbound A12 near Stanway at around 8.30am (Thursday, May 24).

"We located the woman and brought her off the road and ensured her safety.
A missing schoolgirl who left the UK on the EuroTunnel train is believed to have gone to Poland, police have said.

Serena Alexander-Benson was last seen by her father leaving their home in Wimbledon, south-west London, at around 7.50am on Friday.

A public appeal was shared widely on social media after the 13-year-old did not arrive at school that morning.

Police officers said the teenager left the country from Folkestone, in Kent, on Friday.

She is believed to have travelled in a car to Poland with a female friend of her mother, who lives in Poland.

A Met spokesman said: "Detectives are not releasing further details at this stage of the route Serena and the woman have taken, nor of how it has been established that they are in Poland, where Serena's mother lives.

"At this stage, the priority of officers is to confirm Serena's exact whereabouts and confirm that she is safe.

"Any potential offences will be considered in due course."
A London street artist and former secondary school teacher has unveiled his latest painting in a series celebrating the work of the capitals migrants.

Neequaye Dsane , who paints under the name Dreph, revealed the third part of his Migration series in Wardour Street, Soho, before embarking on a national tour with his work.

The stunning image depicts Fatima Najm, co-founder of human rights organisation Creatives Against Poverty.

Ms Najm has spent the last 11 years visiting marginalised communities in Asia, Africa and North America to teach comedy, theatre, art and music in a bid to combat the effects of conflict and trauma.

The campaigner, who moved to London from Pakistan, has been hailed an unsung heroine by Mr Dsane.

In London, Fatima sits on the education panel at the Princes Trust, advising the organisation on programs that inspire young people to unlock their potential. Ms Najm also works with grassroots Ngos to help refugees and asylum seekers acquire the skills they need to integrate into British society.

Street artists Neequaye Dsane paints in Brixton (Neequaye Dsane) / Neequaye Desane

Through his latest collection of street art Mr Dsane aims to tell the stories of first generation migrants who have made a home in the capital and embody the spirit of their community.

The mural of Fatima Najm is featured in Soho (Neequaye Dsane) / Nequaye Desane

Speaking about the inspiration behind the project, Mr Dsane, originally from Nottingham and of Ghanaian heritage, said: After Brexit, and with the national conversation around immigration, I have been inspired to show the human face, and tell the stories of individuals, from the communities that make up the UKs diverse immigrant population.

Neequaye Dsane paints under the name Dreph (Neequaye Dsane) / Neequaye Desane

Following the completion of his third piece, the artist will travel across the UK painting murals in the likes of Newcastle and Nottingham.

Working in partnership with Lambeths Migration Museum he will hold an open call-out for anyone who believes themselves, a friend or family member would be a suitable subject.

The first image painted as part of the project features Brixton Market stalwart Michael John.

An image of Michael John was painting next to Brixton Market (Neequaye Dsane/Dreph) / Nequaye Desane/Dreph

Mr John moved to London from Grenada in 1986 to join his pregnant partner.

He was handed the keys to the market by Lambeth Council in 2016.

The huge mural of Mr John is painted on a wall next to the entrance of Brixton Village.

An mural in Shoreditch features British-Morroccan artist Hassan Hajjaj (Neequaye Dsane) / Neequaye Desane

Mr Dsane praised his subjects commitment and generous spirit delivered through his work as caretaker of the market.

He said: Michael is an integral part of the market community and without him the market wouldnt function.

There has been a lot of change in Brixton, as there has been across the capital, in particular with many local residents angry with the gentrification of the area.

Michaels presence and sense of responsibility for the communitys wellbeing has been a constant throughout these changes and a reminder of the old Brixton.

Mr Dsanes second subject is British-Moroccan artist Hassan Hajjaj dubbed the Andy Warhol of Morocco.

Dreph: You Are Enough 1 /9 Dreph: You Are Enough Holly 'Holly was born and bred in East London, and at the age of 24 her wisdom is beyond her years, in part due to the time she spent working in a care home. She says her time there taught her that things and outer beauty eventually fade'. Commercial St, London E1 6BD Mimi 'She is an influencer. When I first met Mimi, what struck me was her youthful energy, free spirit and outlandish style.' Southey St, Penge SE20 7JD Mel 'I initially met Mel at a cultural event in the mid 90s. She is a beautiful soul whose spirit lights up any room.' St. Georges Walk, Croydon CR0 1YG Linett 'For over 26 years she has quietly influenced change within the UK education system helping staff and students achieve excellence in schools facing significant challenges.' Somerleyton Rd, Brixton, London SW9 Tracy 'My son's mother. After her studies she spent several years in Jamaica working for an NGO before returning to the UK to work for the probation service. She now works with youths who display harmful sexual behaviour' Fashion St, London E1 6PX Leyla 'Leyla is a psychotherapist specialising in supporting survivors of sexual abuse. She is a leading international campaigner on female genital mutilation (FGM) and her passion is to empower women and girls.' Wardour St, Soho, London W1F 8WG Mary 'She makes beautiful clothes with a keen eye for detail, and says her work is not motivated by financial gain but simply to make people happy in the smallest possible way when they wear her clothes.' Star Yard, Brick Lane, London E1 6PU Myvanwy 'Her view is that if everyone mentored one young person there would be dramatically lower incidents of youth suicide and knife crime.' Star Yard, Brick Lane, London E1 6PU Fungai 'Fungai was born in Zimbabwe and moved to the UK in 2007. Although she misses her homeland she doesnt take for granted the position she finds herself in.' High Rd, London N17 9JF

Mr Hajjajs portrait on Virginia Road, in Shoreditch, is close to his shop Larache.

The artists colourful photography mixing tradition and pop culture has been exhibited at the V&A, British Museum and Somerset House.

He was born in Larache, a harbour town in northern Morrocco, in 1961 before he moved to London aged 12 to join his father.

The artist told Mr Dsane he felt very much a foreigner as he grew up in the UK.

Mr Dsane said: He recalls it as being a tough time, where he was unable to speak English and was immersed in a new culture, in a time where London wasnt as cosmopolitan as it in today.

He eventually integrated into the growing west London migrant community where he honed his skills as an artist and fashion designer.

Mr Dsane previously adorned the capitals streets with portraits of inspiring black women for his You Are Enough Series.

Anyone wishing to nominate family or friends to feature in the Migration series is invited to a call out at the Migration Museum at 26 Lambeth High Street on June 9.
The annulment of the Iran nuclear deal framework could not be fended off by the visits or entreaties of Merkel, Macron or May. Donald Trump has refused to renew the agreement formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), removing the United States from the deal. In reality, it changes little for Washington, as the US never really removed any sanctions against Iran in 2015, and mutual trust has never risen above minimal levels. The American move, which was never surprising, arises from four fundamental factors, namely: the link (especially vis-a-vis electoral financing) between the Trump administration and the Israeli government of Netanyahu; the agreement between Mohammad bin Salman (MbS) and Donald Trump to acquire hundreds of billions of dollars worth of arms as well as investments in the United States; directly targeting European allies like Germany, France and England; and, finally, the wish to please the anti-Iranian hawks Trump surrounded himself with in his administration.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman are united against Iran and are now publicly cementing their alliance that has hitherto been shrouded in secrecy. The political rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Israel has been constant over the last 12 months, converging over anti-Iranian interests. Trumps anti-Iran tilt enjoys support from the Netanyahu and bin Salman clans, representing a 180-degree change in US policy direction away from the one forged through the nuclear agreements reached by the previous administration.

Saudi money and Israels political support (and neoconservative pressure within the United States) are factors important to the Trump administration, particularly as it is besieged by domestic politics and has to deal with the Mueller investigation that buzzes annoyingly around the president of the United States.

Trumps need to surround himself with the likes of Pompeo, Haspel and Bolton betrays an acquiescing desire to appease the deep state rather than fight it. Whatever fight might have been present in Donald Trump upon assuming his office has given way to a fruitful collaboration with the deep state. Donald Trump seems to have concluded that it is better to negotiate and find agreements with the deep state than to try, as he promised during his election campaign, to drain the swamp.

The decision on the JCPOA follows in the wake of other incendiary policies that can be labeled anti-Obama or pro-Israeli and pro-Saudi Arabia, and even anti-European. Washington has been struggling over several years with its medium-term strategic thinking, with decisions often being made suddenly on the basis of emotions or against the backdrop of a constant internal struggle between more or less conflicting elites.

The most recent example concerns the JCPOA, which seems to confirm a fairly evident trend over the last two years. Washington is starting to think first and foremost about America, focusing more on domestic matters rather than worrying about maintaining the liberal world order and sustaining the global status quo. Trump seems not to operate according to any particular logic or strategy  here renewing sanctions on Russia, there imposing trade tariffs on China, now breaking the agreement on the JCPOA, then bombing Syria, or even seeking an unprecedented rapprochement with North Korea. It is useless to search for any logical train of thought in all this, even less a grand strategy explaining Washingtons ultimate objectives. Policymakers in the US capital act on the basis of very short-term objective, namely: seeking to please Netanyahu and the moneybags that is MBS; punishing Russia; waving the specter of a trade war; asking allies to pay more for defense (NATO); or preventing European companies from working with important partners in Iran and even Russia (Nord Stream 2).

All this leads to a rifts even amongst European allies themselves, with France and England ready to bomb Syria and threaten Iran, while Germany and Italy oppose such moves on the basis of international law and the need for diplomacy.

With the undoing of the JCPOA and renewed sanctions on Russia, it seems that European countries finally intend to assert their own sovereignty by legislating against these harmful American actions. The European Parliament intends to adopt a new law that blocks the payment of fines to US authorities by any European company sanctioned for its relations with Tehran. Washington wants to force its European allies to choose between working with Tehran or Washington. It is mafia-like blackmail which even Brussels seems to have had a gutful of and intends to push back against with concrete actions. A similar situation in 1996 involving Brussels led Bill Clinton to suspend such destructive actions among allies in favor of diplomacy.

Trump seems to worry little about the medium- and long-term effects of his actions, seeming not to have any interest in harmonizing relations with allies, especially Merkels Germany, against which Washington has a negative trade balance only exceeded by Beijing. The only point of continuity between Obama and Trump concerns the objection to sabotaging Nord Stream 2 (the pipeline connecting Russia and Germany).

If the strategic thinking on Trumps part is non-existent and concerns only very short-term objectives linked to the image that he likes to project of himself (of a tough guy who keeps his electoral promises, such as that regarding the Iranian agreement), the practical effect is that of a strategy that makes little sense from an American point of view. Policy-makers in American think-tanks have seeded many of Trumps resulting actions, and the blame for the last fifteen years of failed policies can be laid at their feet. They are the true, if unintended, architects of the emerging multipolar world, and have inadvertently served to accelerate the ending of the American unipolar moment.

Once again, these policy-makers delude themselves into thinking that Trump's moves  placing sanctions on Russia, a reanimated and bellicose presence and attitude in the Middle East, and the breaking up of the JCPOA  are a great opportunity to achieve some strategic objectives that have been lost over the last few years.

The calculation of these strategists is wrong and the consequences are quite the opposite to those intended, yet these self-proclaimed experts, blinded by money from dozens of lobbies (the Israel-based lobbyists, for example), become the victims of their own propaganda, insisting on many strategies that directly harm US interests globally and in the Middle Eastern region in particular.

The policy-makers belonging to such think-tanks as the Brookings Institute or the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) are more than convinced that strong pressure placed on Iran will arrest the expansion of the Shia Crescent over the Middle East and Irans general influence over the region (from Tehran to Beirut via Baghdad and Damascus). The sanctions on Russia and Iran serve, in their mind, to block European energy independence that would otherwise be achieved through cooperating with both countries. The rediscovered bellicosity in the region tends to counter the Russian presence, even if only psychologically, and reaffirms Washington's willingness to remain committed to the region and defend its interests there (the Saudi dictatorship, above all, thanks to its pricing of oil in US dollars).

This last point is of enormous importance in terms of global strategy, and Saudi Arabia is a key partner in this regard, the American presence in the region, together with anti-Iranian policies, also serving to reassure the valuable Saudi ally, increasingly courted by Beijing through its petro-yuan convertible into gold.

Washington finds itself increasingly isolated in its economic and military policies. Merkel's visit to Russia reaffirms the desire to create an alternative axis to the one between Brussels and Washington. The victory in Italy of two parties strongly opposed to new wars and the annulment of the JCPOA, and especially the sanctions against Russia, serves to form a new alliance, accentuating internal divisions within Europe. Macron, Merkel and May are all grappling with a strong crisis of popularity at home, which does not aid them in their decision-making.

Exactly the same problems affect MbS, Trump, and Netanyahu in their respective countries. These leaders find themselves adopting aggressive policies in order to alleviate internal problems. They also struggle to find a common strategy, often displaying schizophrenic behavior that belies the fact that they are meant to be on the same side of the barricades in terms of the desired world order.

In direct contrast, China, Russia, Iran, and now India, are trying to respond to Western madness in a rational, moderate, and mutually beneficial way. And as a result, Europeans may perhaps begin to understand that the future lies not in piggybacking on Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United States. Trump seems to have offered the perfect occasion for European leaders to assert their sovereignty and start to move away from their traditional servility shown towards Washington.

While it is difficult to imagine a schism taking place overnight, the chances that Europes capitals will clash with Washington are no longer so remote, much to the pleasure of Moscow and Beijing, who aim to incorporate Europe into their mega-Eurasian project as the fourth major component after Asia, the Eurasian Union and the Middle East/Persian Gulf.
On May 22, the Yuri Dolgoruky Project 955 Borei-class strategic nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN)  a.k.a. boomer - launched four Bulava RSM-56 missiles from the White Sea within seconds of each other. The destination of the submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) was the Kura shooting range in the far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula. The test was a success. It was the first time four SLBMs were fired during a naval exercise and the first Bulava trial since June last year. All in all, about 30 tests have taken place since 2004.

The Borei-class boats will gradually replace Project 941 Akula-class and Project 667 BDRM Delfin class SSBNs to become the core of Russias sea strategic component of the nuclear triad at least till 2040. Today, there are three Borei-class submarines in active service. Five more are being built.

The Yury Dolgoruky is the lead ship. It joined the Navy in 2013. The SSBN carries 16 ballistic missiles. The forth submarine of the Borei class is to meet the 955A standard, with the number of missiles increased to 20 along with many other upgrades.

Anechoic coating to reduce its acoustic signature covers the boats hull. All the equipment is mounted on shock absorbers. Its widely believed that Russias Navy is the only one in the world to have submarines capable of evading US detection.

All the submarines sonars are integrated into a single automated digital system, which both locates targets and fulfills other functions, such as the search for ice openings and the measurement of its thickness. It can detect targets at a distance 50 percent greater than that of US Virginia-class vessels.

The SSBN has the following specifications: length: 170m, beam: 13,5m, draught: 10m, displacement: surfaced: 14,720t, submerged: 24,000t, depth: 450m, endurance: 100 days, crew: 107. A rescue chamber can accommodate all men aboard. The submarine is propelled by pump-jet propulsion. It is powered by the single water-cooled OK-650 nuclear reactor with a thermal capacity of 190 MW, providing a submerged speed of 29kt and a surfaced speed of 15kt.

In addition to 16 SLBMs, the Dolgorukys armament includes six RPK-2 Viyuga nuclear-tipped anti-submarine missiles launched through 533mm torpedo tubes and capable of striking enemy submarines at a distance of 45km. The vessel can be armed with cruise missiles.

The Bulava is a derivative of the ground-based Topol (SS-27) ICBM. Its cycle of development was not a bed of roses. There were difficulties on the way. Not all tests were a success but the May 22 training event showed the obstacles have been overcome by Russias shipbuilding industry and Navy.

The SLBM is a three-stage missile to use solid fuel for the first two stages and liquid fuel for the third one to make the missile more agile during warhead separation. The SLBM can be fired on the move or from under the Arctic ice. The trajectory is low enough to make the Bulava classify as a quasi-ballistic missile because it can perform maneuvers in flight or make unexpected changes in direction and range. Along with evasive maneuvers, the Bulava can deploy a variety of countermeasures and decoys making it resistant to missile-defense systems. The independently targetable re-entry vehicles are protected against both physical and electromagnetic-pulse damage.

The RSM-56 can withstand a nuclear blast at a range of 500m. An operational rage: up to 9,300 kilometers (about 5,770 miles). Circular error probable: 250-300 m. The missile has a length of 12.1m and diameter of 2.1m, launch weight: 36.8 t, throw-weight: 1,150 kg, length (in container): 12.1m.

The Borei-class SSBN with new Bulava missiles on board was listed by Business Insider UK as an incredible Russian weapon system. Its arrival makes possible the resumption of strategic patrols in southern latitudes after the interval of more than 20 years. The Bulava missiles were fired from a submerged submarine known as a very silent vessel. It could be on patrol anywhere in the World Ocean with potential adversary having no idea where it is. This element of Russias nuclear triad offers the best of modern technology to guarantee the inevitability of retaliation in case of attack as its impossible to destroy it in a first strike. Retribution is unavoidable with Bulava SLBMs immune to any imaginable missile defense. The May 22 salvo test demonstrated another technological breakthrough to greatly enhance Russias strategic nuclear deterrent.
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly on Sunday approved the KP-Fata merger bill, paving way for the merger of the Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (Fata) with the province.

The bill was passed with two-thirds majority a Constitutional prerequisite for the proposed merger. As many as 92 lawmakers voted in favour while seven MPAs used their votes against the bill.

Following the provincial assemblys approval, the landmark bill will bring the tribal borderlands, comprising seven agencies and six Frontier Regions, to the mainstream and they will be merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Tribal people will get representation in the KP Assembly through the amendment.

KP Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, while speaking in the assembly, asked the opponents of the bill to unite with those in favour. He said that the local bodies elections will be held in Fata this year, whereas the general elections will be held next year.

"During a meeting of the Fata Reforms Committee, Chief of Army Staff Gen Javed Qamar Bajwa had asked me to settle the issue of Fata once and for all," he told fellow lawmakers.

The chief minister made it clear that Shariah Nizam-e-Adl Regulation (SNAR) would not be touched under the bill.
A conservation agency has constructed what is believed to be the worlds longest cat-proof fence in central Australia to save native wildlife and vegetation ravaged by the feline predators.

Australia has the highest extinction rate in the world, while declining populations are affected by habitat loss as well as introduced creatures such as cats, foxes and rabbits going feral and killing native species across the vast continent.

The Australian Wildlife Conservancy this month finished building and electrifying the 44-kilometre (27-mile) long fence to create a predator-free area of almost 9,400 hectares (23,200 acres) some 350 kilometres northwest of Alice Springs.

"Australia does not have an effective strategy for controlling cats," AWC chief Attius Fleming told AFP.

"The only way we can save Australias most endangered animals is by establishing these massive feral cat-free areas using conservation fencing."

Fleming said as part of the project - which is funded by public and government donations - cats and other feral animals were being removed from the area, with threatened native mammals to be reintroduced next year.

The mammals set to be reintroduced in the area, which is owned by the AWC, include the western quoll, the numbat, the bilby and the central rock-rat.

The project will be extended in 2020 to cover a larger area of around 100,000 hectares, Fleming added.

Feral cats are believed to number between 10 and 20 million across Australia.

Cats were first introduced to Australia by British immigrants in the late 1700s as domestic pets, but some went wild and spread across the continent over the next 100 years.

Other causes of native species population declines and extinctions include feral foxes, climate change, fire and habitat destruction.
More than 100 east African migrants escaped from a camp in the Libyan town of Bani Walid where they were being held hostage and tortured, international agencies and local sources said on Saturday.

The migrants from Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia fled on Wednesday night to a mosque in the town where they were taken in by local associations and residents.

The hospital in Bani Walid said around 20 of them were being treated for injuries from torture.

According to Doctors Without Borders (MSF), in a statement quoting witnesses, 15 migrants were killed and 25 injured during the escape, but there was no immediate confirmation from local sources.

Some of those who escaped, mostly adolescents, told MSF rescue workers that they had been held by people traffickers for up to three years.

The medical charity said seven of those hospitalised had serious gunshot wounds.

This is another example of the ongoing horrors suffered by many migrants and refugees while transiting through Libya MSF said, adding that kidnapping for ransom remains a thriving business.

Bani Walid, 170 kilometres (110 miles) southeast of the Libyan capital Tripoli, is a transit point for migrants aiming to reach Europe by boat from the coast further north.

People traffickers and kidnappers run around 20 detention centres in the town, telephoning the migrants' families to deliver ransom demands.

Since the 2011 fall and killing of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi, Libya has become a key launchpad for migrants making desperate bids to reach Europe.

The conflict-riven country is regularly singled out for the exploitation and ill-treatment of migrants from sub-Saharan Africa.
Peace is a product of a positive mental attitude, while violence is the result of negative thinking.

Peace can be interpreted in many ways, but for art student Grace Fellows, peace and harmony shake hands like lifelong friends.

The 13-year-old Otumoetai resident last year entered her art piece into the Lion clubs annual peace poster contest.

Not only has she won the regional competition, but she has also been awarded a trophy as a winner of the national contest. Her work is now off to Chicago to be judged alongside other works worldwide.

Grace says to have her poster from New Zealand going up against kids from all over the world is unreal.

I painted a girl of different ethnicities representing our multi-cultural world, says Grace.

She is dressed in flags from around the world, meaning that we need to work together as one in harmony.

She is freeing a cage of doves around the world, showing that we need to have freedom to achieve peace and make the world a better place.

Otumoetai Lions Club coordinator Harry Kiriakdis says the art contest, which has be running for 31 years, invites young people worldwide from the ages of 11-13 to express their visions of peace through art.

Split into three divisions - regional, national and international - more than four million children from nearly 100 countries have participated.

Otumoetai Intermediate School has always been lovely to work with, giving us the opportunity to work with their art teachers and students, says Harry.

The district competition has been running for 18 years, and Otumoetai Intermediate School Art School has won 13 district competitions and six national competitions.

Its great to see what the students come up with, says Harry. To have Grace representing New Zealand is just amazing.
Since its inception over a decade ago, a number of countries have placed temporary bans on YouTube, usually due to objections over certain content. Joining this list is Egypt, which is about to block the video streaming site for a montha punishment for showing the controversial 2012 video The Innocence of Muslims.

The 14-minute clip, which a consultant said was a trailer for a full-length film that was only shown once at rented theatre in Hollywood, caused outrage in Arab and Muslim nations when it arrived on YouTube in 2012. The US-made video's portrayal of the Prophet Muhammad as a pedophile and buffoon resulted in anti-American protests around the world that resulted in injuries and even deaths.

Law experts said the government could not prosecute the films producers because of US freedom of speech laws.

In 2013, Egypts Ministry of Communications and Information Technology was ordered to block YouTube by a lower administrative court over the video, but the case had been stuck in the appeals process ever since.

Reuters reports that the ministry said at the time such action would disrupt Google's search engine and could incur potentially huge costs and job losses in Egypt. Now, the countrys top administrative court has ordered the month-long ban.

Pakistan was another country to ban YouTube as a result of the video. The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority ordered access blocked in 2012. The block wasnt officially lifted until 2016 when YouTube launched a local version of the site. Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Sudan also blocked the service over YouTubes failure to remove the clip.

Most of the videos anti-Islamic content was dubbed over the original cast's spoken lines. Those involved with the film have disavowed it.

The Egyptian ban is considered final and cannot be appealed. The ruling states that all links to the film also be blocked. As of Saturday afternoon, YouTube was still accessible in the countrys capital city, Cairo.
The Duque administration has been deliberately spreading false information aimeda at depicting Venezuela as "a real threat to the entire continent." | Read More
Jonathan Pie, the angry British TV reporter created by actor Tom Walker, has become a viral sensation online thanks to his erudite rants about the state of UK and world politics.

But if fans of Pie's blistering attacks attended his Melbourne show expecting he would turn his attention to the sorry state of Australia's parliamentary representatives, they may have been disappointed.

Pie freely admitted he knew nothing about Australian politics (it meant he didn't "have to rewrite the whole show" he confessed). But he wasn't entirely telling the truth. Although his early focus remained on UK politicians, he had done enough research to throw in a few lines about Bronwyn Bishop, the same-sex marriage plebiscite and the state of offshore detention centres.

It didn't really matter  when Western politics has become so partisan and driven by ideology, Pie's attacks on right-wing thinking translated easily to a local audience.

That said, after taking on the low-hanging fruit that is Donald Trump's Twitter feed, Pie reserved some of his most cutting remarks for left-wingers and the rise of political correctness. In a very funny segment involving his "Woke-A-Lator", he took on the rise of terms like "mansplaining" and "cultural appropriation".

The show climaxed with a segment that succinctly and scathingly summed up how mainstream and social media combine to convect outrage daily, using Pie's own show as an example. Although the Twitter reactions Pie displays to the outrage he has created are fake, he recently had his own real-world experience on this subject, after posting a video complaining about a comedian being charged with a hate crime over a tasteless joke.
Filling a niche between indie and large-scale commercial fare, it has made a point of focusing on artists over bells and whistles. And if, in the early days, that could mean rather spartan, concert-style productions, more recent shows have gone to town on choreography and costume, so theres more than enough to entertain the eye.

It has been 20 years since Jeanne Pratt founded The Production Company, and what a boon to musical theatre lovers it has proved.

You couldnt ask for a better vindication of the companys ethos than this marvellous production of Oklahoma! It stars the cream of our musical theatre talent  it is cast as well or better than a commercial version would be  and they bring this Rodgers and Hammerstein classic to life with infectious energy.

Bobby Fox and Robyn Nevin.

The acting is unusually fine. Robyn Nevin raises the bar as Auntie Eller: her leathery farming matriarch looks and sounds summoned from the heart of the Dust Bowl, and its a joy to watch her flicker between a gruff, hard-as-nails exterior and the wellspring of affection underneath.

True, Nevin can sing only as much as she needs to; the romantic leads are a different story.

From the moment he launches into Oh, What A Beautiful Morning, Simon Gleesons Curly sweeps us into the sunshine. His vocal strength and allure are matched by Anna OByrnes Laurey, and their feisty courtship swells into romance through glorious duet.
A CAMCORDER VIDEO CAPTURES THE SETTING OF THE STORY, AN ANTIQUE PADDLE WHEELER BOAT ON THE MOVE - THREE TIERS OF WHITE EDWARDIAN ...
Melbourne lawyer and property investor Joe Gersh is the latest addition to an otherwise ineffectual ABC board presiding over a decline of the national broadcaster.

Whether Gersh, whose experience is in backroom deal-making on behalf of wealthy clients, will add value to a lacklustre board remains to be seen.

New ABC board appointee Joe Gersh. Credit:Jesse Marlow

However, it is not overstating things to say the ABC finds itself in one of its most perilous moments in a political environment that could hardly be more hostile.

The government's decision to bend the knee to Pauline Hanson's One Nation and critics in the commercial media by instituting a Competitive Neutrality Inquiry is a case in point.
A 43-year-old Toronto father of two imprisoned in Parklea Correctional Facility killed himself in his cell four hours after his partner called to end their relationship.

In a recording of the telephone call, the man known only as PM threatened: "I'll neck myself ... I can't deal with it hey ... I can't deal with it." At the time, he wasn't known to be a suicide risk.

His "despair in custody was a tragedy", causing grief and loss to his family, said Deputy State Coroner Harriet Grahame in her findings.

One of the tragedies of PM's death was that hanging was "not an isolated incident", the coroner said.

Death by hanging accounted for eight of the 47 deaths in custody in NSW in 2017, finds the NSW government's annual report into deaths in custody and during police operations tabled in Parliament.
New York: If you think fixing Sydney's trains is tough, what about New York's?

The infrastructure has barely been updated since 1904, delays have soared by 200 per cent since 2012, the rats are reaching bubonic levels, only one in five stations is wheelchair accessible and, after a spate of derailments, tunnel fires and breakdowns, New York's governor Andrew Cuomo has declared the system to be in a "state of emergency".

But Andy Byford, the former chief operating officer of Sydney's trains, reckons he's landed his dream gig.

Andy Byford, the former chief operating officer of NSW Railcorp, is the new head of the New York transit system. Credit:Ian Willms/The New York Times

"I'd certainly describe it as the toughest job in world transport right now," the new president of the New York City Transit said. "But Ive always relished the big challenges."
Dr Tony Bartone.

Dr Tony Bartone has been elected the new president of the Australian Medical Association as the peak doctors' group prepares to wield its political influence ahead of a federal election and shore up its waning membership.

The Victorian GP and outgoing AMA vice president beat two other candidates: former AMA NSW branch president and Sydney immunologist Dr Brad Frankum, and former AMA Queensland president, obstetrician Dr Gino Pecoraro.

I am ready to lead the AMA at this critical time, Dr Bartone told delegates at their national conference in Canberra on Sunday.

He struck a more foreboding note than his opponents, telling voters its up to the AMA to defend our world class health system, but our health system is ailing.
Six in 10 trafficking cases involve sexual exploitation. The legislation, modelled on laws in Britain and the United States, will compel private companies to monitor and report on their supply chains. And it will, in what the government states is a world first, impose similar requirements on the public sector through an annual audit of Commonwealth procurement.

Slavery is the worlds second-biggest illicit market, behind drugs; forced labour generates an estimated US$150 billion ($200 billion) in profits each year. As many as 45 million children, women and men are treated as commodities (average price about $90). Two-thirds of this happens in our region, and across most forms of labour, particularly sex work, fishing, construction, hospitality and textiles.

The Coalition government is poised to introduce legislation to purge companies supply chains of slavery and counter other forms of exploitation including orphanage tourism  where well-meaning people, including on many school tours, unwittingly feed the scourge by giving money and time to fake institutions.

The ongoing dual-citizenship fiasco and the febrile pre-election battle over income and corporate tax cuts have been dominating politics, but there are brighter things emanating from the national capital.

Australias move to bring in a Modern Slavery Act comes after an investigation by Parliaments joint standing committee on foreign affairs, defence and trade. Most companies that appeared before the committee expressed support for such legislation, although some wanted the mandatory-reporting revenue threshold to be double the $50 million recommended in the report, tabled on the final sitting day last year. Some community agencies are concerned the legislation will not have sufficient sanctions.

It is better for the law to be tightened if need be than for it to be unduly heavy-handed from the outset. However, a tick the box law will clearly not suffice. The law should have hefty regulatory consequences, otherwise the scheme becomes, in effect, voluntary, a problem that has emerged with the British law, passed three years ago. The recent budget included $3.6 million to establish an anti-slavery business engagement unit in the Home Affairs Department.

The world is waking up to the horrific problem of modern slavery. France and the Netherlands are also working on legislation. Perhaps the most effective sanction that will flow from transparency will come from consumers. With people becoming more aware of, for example, the exploitation behind fast, cheap fashion, being named and shamed may be catastrophic for a business profiting in any way from slave labour.

The main target of the new law will be offshore exploitation, but it is also intended to help stem maltreatment of workers here. Backpackers are often underpaid for agricultural work, and the $170 billion franchise industry, where many students and immigrants are employed, has been shown to be riddled with wage fraud.

The key is transparency, for the shame of being revealed to have slaves in a supply chain would be likely to create a costly backlash from consumers and shareholders. The government is to be commended for engineering this change, and we urge the Parliament to emphatically support a Modern Slavery Act.
Victorian state schools with large numbers of students from outside their area will soon start rejecting families following changes that wind back parents' school choice.

Under new Education Department rules, schools will not be entitled to extra portable classrooms from next year if 50 per cent or more of their students do not live locally.

Divya Sharma says parents should have the right to send their children to the school of their choice Credit:Darrian Traynor

Turning away out-of-area families has been a long-running practice at zoned schools and now, other schools will start refusing enrolments on similar grounds.

The move is a departure from successive governments' mantra of families being able to choose the school of their choice, and is aimed at curbing the growth of large schools and encouraging students to attend their nearest school.
Melbournes E-Class tram manufacturer is in talks with the Victorian government to introduce cutting-edge technology to the network as the number of tram collisions with pedestrians and cars reaches a five-year high.

Bombardiers Obstacle Detection System for Trams, which alerts drivers before a potential collision, has already been adopted in four European cities  Frankfurt, Marseille, Berlin and Cologne.

Trams in Zurich, Brussels and Duisburg will also be equipped with the safety technology by next year.

The number of tram collisions with people and collisions with road vehicles are at their highest for the past five years, Transport Safety Victoria data shows.
Bottles were thrown at police after a 15th birthday party in Perth's northern suburbs descended into chaos on Saturday evening.

Police first attended the birthday party on Cassia Link at around 6.40pm after receiving reports of a number of juveniles drinking and creating a disturbance in the area.

Cassia Link, Banksia Grove. Credit:Google Maps

It's understood a notification about the party was posted to Facebook, and police estimated approximately 150 teenagers attended.

Police continued to observe the event, and said the decision was made with the host to shut down the party after officers spotted teenagers drinking alcohol and more partygoers continued to arrive at the Cassia Link home.
I commiserate with Millennials. They are a generation that is deeply pessimistic about their circumstances, with several predictions of doom hovering over them: escalating debt, growing nativism and populism, proliferating nuclear weapons, rising temperatures and of course the kicker  exploding population.

Predictions 50 years ago that a population explosion would result in disaster were proved wrong. Credit:Bloomberg

Hardly a day goes by without someone  a pundit, a professor, a politician  fretting and wailing that there are just too many people around these days.

Young people should cheer up. A good start would be to recognise that earlier doom-mongering predictions about population growth have not been fulfilled.

When I was born in 1971, there were roughly 3.76 billion people in the world. Today, there are roughly 7.63 billion people. Throughout the 1970s, several distinguished thinkers alleged that such a growth in global population would produce the collapse of civilisation. Unless we cut back - way back - doom would surely be nigh.
The best bang for your buck! This option enables you to purchase online 24/7 access and receive the Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday print edition at no additional cost * Print edition only available in our carrier delivery area. Allow up to 72 hours for delivery of your print edition to begin. Print edition not available for Day Pass option.
Barnaby Joyce is burning his credibility with Australian voters with every attempt he makes to explain the personal crisis that cost him his job.

The political outsider from regional NSW, the man who is writing a book about battlers in their weatherboard and iron houses, now embraces the ultimate insider tax trick  the family trust.

There is no better way for Joyce to tell ordinary Australians that he is no longer one of them.
In one of the state's most marginal seats, the Nationals leader and deputy premier, John Barilaro, addressed his party's youth wing with sobering statistics about life for young people in country NSW.

Youth suicide is 66 per cent higher in regional NSW than cities, ice addiction is at "epidemic levels with access to rehabilitation services few and far between" and unemployment forces young people to flee the country, he said.

"The net impact on our regional towns is immense, " Mr Barilaro told the NSW Young Nationals conference in Lismore on Saturday.

John Barilaro said his government needed to do more for young poplin country NSW. Credit:Jay Cronan

"Families lose their sons and daughters, grandparents miss watching their grandchildren grow up and the local town loses the very people it needs to sustain it in the future, who can maintain our values and make those houses into homes."
Bill and Chloe Shorten at the Victorian Labor state conference. Credit:Paul Jeffers

The Labor Party has avoided potentially difficult public discussion about offshore detention, live exports and changes to the date of Australia Day, moving votes on the issues behind closed doors.

Motions on all three subjects had been on the agenda for the Victorian Labor conference on Sunday, but were removed or deferred before debate.

The motion calling to change the Australia Day date from January 26 to May 9 was withdrawn before day two of the conference at Melbourne's Moonee Valley Racecourse.

Several other motions, including one to end offshore detention of asylum seekers, were deferred, avoiding a public internal debate on which the Coalition would have sought to capitalise.
Seoul: A team of US officials crossed into North Korea on Sunday for talks to prepare for a summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, as both sides press ahead with arrangements despite the question marks hanging over the meeting.

Sung Kim, a former US ambassador to South Korea and former nuclear negotiator with the North, has been called in from his posting as envoy to the Philippines to lead the preparations, according to a person familiar with the arrangements.

US officials crossed into North Korea to prepare for a summit between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, despite the question marks hanging over the meeting. Credit:AP

He crossed the line that separates the two Koreas to meet with Choe Son-hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister, who said last week that Pyongyang was "reconsidering" the talks. Kim and Choe know each other well - both were part of the delegations that negotiated the 2005 denuclearisation agreement through the six-party framework.

Kim is also joined by Allison Hooker, the Korea specialist on the National Security Council, and an official from the Defense Department. Randall Schriver, the assistant secretary of defense for East Asia and one of the officials who accompanied Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to Pyongyang earlier this month, is also in Seoul at the moment.
At the top right: "Federal is capitalised only when used as part of a proper noun."

The letter, dated May 3 and printed on White House stationery, was addressed to Yvonne Mason, 61, a former high school English teacher who retired in 2017 but hadn't quite left "grading-paper mode," she said on Sunday.

So when she received the letter in the mail, she pulled out her go-to purple pen and started making corrections. Then she snapped a picture, posted the letter on Facebook and mailed it back to the White House.

"It was a poorly worded missive," she said. "Poor writing is not something I abide. If someone is capable of doing better, then they should do better."

Mason, a Democrat who lives in Atlanta, had written to Trump to ask that he visit each family of those who died in the shooting that killed 17 people at a school in Parkland, Florida, in February.
Chukwudi Iwuji remembers being 10 years old in Ethiopia and falling in love with a film that no other kid would probably like: the movie version of Jean Anouilh's play Becket, starring Richard Burton and Peter O'Toole.

"Because the television was so bad," Iwuji remembers, "everyone would exchange movies. Becket landed in our home, and I was drawn to it for the performances and its power. That's not the kind of movie a 10 year old cares about."

Cut to a decade later at Yale University where Iwuji, an economics student, saw a poster for an upcoming production ofAnouilh's Becket and decided to audition. "I had Peter O'Toole in my mind," he says, "but the director ended up giving me the Richard Burton role." The rest, as they say, is history. "The head of undergrad saw it and offered me a scholarship to the conservatory in Wisconsin he was about to take over. And that began my professional acting career."

In the ensuing years, Iwuji  who was born and raised in Nigeria, moved to Ethiopia after his parents joined the United Nations, went to boarding school in England, and now resides in New York  has steadily risen through the ranks at theaters like the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Public. His classical resume on both sides of the Atlantic is unparalleled, filled with roles including Hamlet and Edgar and Henry VI, among many others. A breakout came earlier this spring in Bruce Norris's The Low Road at the Public Theater, where he played a slave with an unlikely past. He was recently awarded an Obie for his performance.

Now, Iwuji is conquering Othello for the Public's free Shakespeare in the Park season at the Delacorte Theatre. This will be his second time playing the role.

"But it feels like the first time," he says with a laugh. "It was the last role I did as an undergrad at Yale, but I literally cannot remember anything I did. Maybe that's just my psyche protecting me from what was probably an awful, ego-driven performance as a 20-year-old."

Even decades apart, he still didn't think he'd be coming back to Othello for a long time. "When I did Henry VI at the RSC, everyone would ask if I was ready for my Othello, and I remember thinking, 'Why does it have to be Othello?' There's a whole list before that: Hamlet and Coriolanus and Macbeth. There was a side of me that was resisting it in a weird way, and then, as you get older, you go, 'I want to do this.'"

Age helps the interpretation of the role. "You need to bring life into it," Iwuji adds. "You think of the aspects that are so Othello-y: the warrior, the lover, and the man, as opposed to the kid that I was when I played it then. If you try to play those things, you see an actor trying to play those things. They have to be part of the landscape of your face, of your soul, of your heart. You hope that you can bring that in through life experience."

Heather Lind and Chukwudi Iwuji rehearse the free Shakespeare in the Park production of Othello.

( Joan Marcus)

Iwuji didn't necessarily want to be an actor. At boarding school he was into sports, but would "always get in trouble because I would sneak out of my room to watch the Oscars." As early influences, beyond O'Toole and Burton, he cites Ian Richardson's performance as a manipulative member of parliament on the original British edition of House of Cards. For college, he was prepared to be on the Oxford-Cambridge track, but made a bet with his father to let him go to America if he got into an Ivy League university.

"I got into Yale, which was the most expensive bet my dad ever made in his life." He graduated with an economics degree, and then headed to the conservatory in Wisconsin. "It was very funny," he recalls. "I got a call [for an economics job] saying, 'Send us your resume and you have a job.' I remember telling the HR woman, 'Thank you very much, but I think I'm going to become an actor.' And there was a long pause before she went, 'You know, sir, good for you.' And that was it."

In the ensuing years, Iwuji has built a steady career all young actors dream of having. Before The Low Road, he had spent much of the 2016-17 season in London, working with director Ivo van Hove on both Hedda Gabler and a stage adaptation of the Visconti film Obsession. "My dream was to have a transatlantic career, in New York and London and Los Angeles, and I'm doing that. But my heartbeat right now is in New York. I have a place here, I'm engaged, and the Public has adopted me."

His vision for the title character in Othello, which begins performances May 29, lines up with the director Santiago-Hudson's: "We're returning this piece to the love story," Iwuji explains. "It is the tragedy of what could have been the single greatest love story ever, until someone destroys it. It's a lush, sensual, spiritual, dangerous, genuinely tragic production that we're going after. Touch wood that we pull it off."

Iwuji is quick to add that it's a beast of a role. "And it's really kicking my ass. But you want a role to kick you in the ass," he concludes. "They don't always do that, so when you find the one that does, it's worth going for."
Nutson's Weekly Automotive News Nuggets May 21-27, 2018: FCA Cruise-control Disaster And Jeep Recall; MAMA Spring Rally - Nissan And Lots Of Driving; Apple and VW Partnership; Gas Prices Up; China Drops Import Car Tariffs; Autonomous Cars Be Afraid Be Very Afraid; Posche Recall; Rivian A Go; NASCAR H of F Inductees; Big Racing Weekend







AUTO CENTRAL, CHICAGO - May 27 2018; Every Sunday Larry Nutson, Senior Editor and Chicago Car Guy along with fellow senior editors Steve Purdy and Thom Cannell from The Auto Channel Michigan Bureau, give you TACH's "take" on this past week's automotive news in easy to "catch up" news nuggets. For More search the past 25 year's millions of (Indexed By Google) pages of automotive news, automotive stories, articles, reviews, archived news residing in The Auto Channel Automotive News Library.

Hey Over the air TV viewers, you can now enjoy The Auto Channel TV Network "Free and Clear" on WHDT Channel 3 in Boston and on many local cable systems. All South Florida auto fans can continue to watch The Auto Channel TV Network on WHDT-TV Channel 9 in West Palm Beach as well as cable channel's 17 and 438, channel 9 Miami. WHDN launched its full schedule (including The Auto Channel)of broadcasting in the Naples-Fort Myers market on digital PSIP channel 9.1 channel, look for us On Roku, Hulu and on TUNAVISION.

Nutson's Automotive News Nuggets May 21-27, 2018

* During a media briefing that took place this week at the Midwest Automotive Media Association's (MAMA) Spring Rally in historic racing's Elkhart Lake Wisconsin's Road America, Nissan debuted the 2019 Altima Edition ONE to Midwest auto journalists including The Auto Channel's Chicago Car Guy Larry Nutson and Steve Purdy Bureau Chief of TACH's Michigan Bureau as well as Thom Cannell. We also got behind the wheel of many new vehicles ranging from the new Hyundai Kona to the $421,000 Roll-Royce Black Badge Wraith. Watch for our personal thoughts, opinion and observations in later publications.

* The latest in the Trump administration threats against the global auto industry is now an investigation into raising import tariffs on the grounds of national security. China, Japan and EU makers condemned the move. The move would hurt U.S. consumers as well as GM, Ford and FCA.

* The New York Times reports that Apple has signed a deal with Volkswagen to turn some of the carmakers new T6 Transporter vans into Apples self-driving shuttles for employees. At a lab near Turin, Italy, run by a Volkswagen subsidiary called Italdesign, the companies plan to remake Volkswagens T6 vans as electric self-driving shuttles, according to the NY Times article. The frame, wheels and chassis of the T6 vans will remain, but Apple is replacing many components, including the dashboard and seats, said people familiar with the project. Apple is also adding other computers, sensors and a large electric car battery, they said. The shuttles will ferry employees between two of Apples Silicon Valley campuses, and will include a driver behind the wheel to take control if needed, as well as an operator in the passengers seat tracking the vans performance.

* A tweet from Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk this week my have him in hot water with the National Labor Relations board. Musk suggested that if workers at the Fremont, CA plant organize under the UAW they will loose their stock options. At least that is the way it is being interpreted by regulators. Musk and Tesla have been accused of anti-union activities and abuses of their workforce over the past few years.

* Federal investigators confirmed that the self-driving Uber vehicle that killed an Arizona pedestrian did not stop because the system used to automatically apply brakes had been disabled. Uber said this is to avoid erratic behavior and instead relies on a human back-up driver, who in this case was (um) distracted. Meanwhile, Uber announced this week it has ended its self-driving program in Arizona after the fatal crash. Similar Uber research programs in Pennsylvania and California will continue but in a more limited form.

* Gasoline prices for this Memorial Day weekend have jumped to a national average of $2.96. Prices in the midwest are especially high due to short supply, with Chicago area prices averaging $3.29. Inspite of gasoline prices AAA says 36.6 million drivers will hit the road.

* Historically, we expect significantly higher fuel prices will be reflected in dealers showrooms as customers opt for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles. Not so this time. The Kelley Blue Book Current Events Panel released a study this week showing that 20% of respondents expect fuel prices to rise this year, but 60% report it is unlikely to affect their purchase decisions. The study found that purchase decisions for most respondents will be affected only when gasoline reaches $4/gallon.

* Chinese officials announced a drop in import tariffs on passenger vehicles from 25% to 15% along with a cut in tariffs on auto parts and components to 6%. That did not impress critics like Elon Musk and President Trump who continue to see Chinese trade practices as one-sided. Worries of a trade war between the U.S. and China, threatened by the Trump administration, have eased as both sides seem to be softening their positions.

* Fear of autonomous cars rises after high-profile fatalities, AAA survey finds. Consumer trust in self-driving cars has plummeted following high-profile roadway fatalities, with almost three-quarters of Americans now saying they are too afraid to ride in an autonomous vehicle. The fear factor reported by 73 percent of those polled last month was up 10 points from late 2017 and nearly erased gains from the 78 percent afraid of automated cars early last year. The biggest surge in anxiety comes from young adults, ages 20 to 37, with 64 percent now saying they're afraid to ride in a self-driving car, up from 49 percent at the end of last year. The so-called millennial generation had previously been the most accepting of the new technology.

* Fiat Chrysler Automobiles issued a recall this week for 4.8 million U.S. cars, SUVs, crossovers and pickups over a defect in the cruise control that could prevent the system's deactivation. The fix involves a software upgrade and owners are cautioned not to use the cruise control until taken care of. No crashes or injuries have been reported as result of the problem. Another half million vehicles are affected in Canada. Nearly a dozen models from 2014 to 2019 are involved.

* Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is also recalling more than 51,000 of its 2018 Jeep Cherokees because of a fire risk coming from fuel-supply tubes that could leak. The campaign is limited to Cherokees with a 2.4-liter engine and does not include the refreshed 2019 Jeep Cherokee.

* Long emergency stopping distances, difficult-to-use controls and a harsh ride stopped Teslas Model 3 electric car from getting a recommended buy rating from Consumer Reports. Consumer Reports says the car has exhilarating acceleration and handling. But testers were troubled by its 152-foot average stopping distance from 60 miles per hour in emergency braking tests. The distance was worse than any modern car Consumer Reports has tested and is about 7 feet longer than a Ford F-150 pickup truck. Tesla says its own tests found 60-to-zero braking distances averaging 133 feet. It also says it continually does software updates to improve factors such as stopping distance. The Model 3 is Teslas first attempt to appeal to mass-market buyers. The car that starts at $35,000 has been plagued by production delays.

* Porsche must recall almost 60,000 sport utility vehicles in Europe to fix manipulated diesel engines after the German auto industry regulator found software functions that are illegal. Inspections of Macan and Cayenne SUVs found they contained software that could reduce emissions controls for smog-inducing nitrogen oxide, the German transport ministry said in an emailed statement. Porsche, a unit of Volkswagen AG, confirmed it received notifications for the recall from the regulator this week. The recall, for 52,831 Macan 3.0-liter V6 and 6,755 Cayenne 4.2-liter V8 vehicles, marks the latest setback in VWs efforts to draw a line under the diesel-emissions scandal the worlds biggest carmaker has battled since September 2015. Last week, Porsches sister brand Audi suspended deliveries of the current A6 and A7 models, continuing a drip-feed of recalls that are a blow to the brands image.

* Startup Rivian Automotive has secured a $200 million loan to begin producing electric vehicles at the former Mitsubishi plant in Normal, Ill., by 2020. The Michigan-based company has yet to unveil a single vehicle design, but Rivian seeks to gear up for its initial models  a fully electric five-passenger pickup truck and seven-passenger SUV.

* Elected to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in voting by a panel of NASCAR officials, track owners, drivers, team owners and journalists were four-time champ Jeff Gordon, current team owners Jack Roush and Roger Penske and late drivers Alan Kulwicki and Davey Allison. They will be inducted Feb. 1 next year.

* Memorial Day weekend brings race fans joy with the Monaco Grand Prix F1, Indy 500 and the NASCAR Coca Cola 600. Have a safe and happy Memorial Day.
Zephyr Teachout. Photo: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Shortly after announcing that shes running for attorney general of New York, Zephyr Teachout has another bit of news to share: She also happens to be pregnant.

Teachout, 46, a constitutional law professor at Fordham, is due in October. She has a 22-year-old stepdaughter with husband Nick Juliusburger, but this will be her first time raising a baby. She told the Cut that she did consider her pregnancy when determining whether or not to run, but ultimately believes parenthood and being in power shouldnt be in conflict with each other for women any more than they are for men.

She pointed to the examples of congressional candidate Liuba Grechen Shirley, who fought to use campaign funds for child care, and Tammy Duckworth, who recently became the first sitting senator to give birth. As more women in their 30s and 40s run for office, were going to see a lot more women running while pregnant, Teachout said. Its inevitable and a cause for celebration.

Teachout, a progressive favorite who took on Andrew Cuomo in the 2014 gubernatorial primaries and ran for Congress in 2016, first indicated her interest in running for AG shortly after Eric Schneiderman resigned from office in early May. (Schneiderman, long considered a shoo-in for reelection, abruptly stepped down after four women came forward to allege violent physical abuse.) So far, all her competitors for the seat  New York public advocate Letitia James, and former Cuomo and Hillary Clinton aide Leecia Eve  are also women.

Teachouts top priorities include taking on the Trump administration, corruption on Wall Street and in real estate, and mass incarceration. She told the Cut that she also wants to fight the old boys network that plagues the state. For too long in New York weve had an old boys network where all the decisions are made by a bunch of guys and the scandals are covered up, she said. The corruption shuts out the voices of New Yorkers across the state and the sexual harassment and sexual assault shuts out and shuts down the voices of so many women in politics.

I do think were in a sea change moment and its really exciting to be part of that moment, Teachout added. We are changing what power looks like.
American Officials Cross Into North Korea to Prepare for Trump-Kim Summit

A group of American officials led by the former U.S. ambassador to South Korea crossed into North Korea on Sunday to discuss preparations for the historic meeting between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, according to The Washington Post.

The leader of the U.S. delegation, Sung Kim, was called from his assignment as an envoy to the Philippines. Sung Kim crossed into North Korea and met with the communist regimes vice foreign minister, Choe Son Hu. The pair had previously negotiated a denuclearization agreement in 2005.

The American team also included Allison Hooker, a Korea expert on the National Security Council, and an unnamed Department of Defense official.

Sung Kim was an ambassador to South Korea from 2011 to 2014. He then became a special representative of North Korea Policy.

The Americans are expected to continue the meetings on Monday and Tuesday with just over two weeks left until the planned June 12 summit in Singapore. The talks are being held at the Unification House, the same building where Kim Jong Un and South Korean president Moon Jae-in met on Saturday.

Kim told Moon that he is still committed to the meeting with Trump and to complete denuclearization.

We two leaders agreed the June 12 North Korea-U. S. summit must be successfully held, Moon said, according to the Post.

Kim Jong Uns willingness to hold the summit as scheduled is a tactical victory for Trump, who on Thursday pulled out of the meeting, citing combative rhetoric from Pyongyang.

After Trump pulled out, North Korea replied with a tempered statement indicating that it was still willing to meet. Shortly after, Trump revealed that talks between the two countries are continuing and that a summit may still take place as scheduled.

If all goes according to plan, Trump will become the first American president to meet a North Korean leader in person.

North Korea has already made several major concessions. Pyongyang released three American hostages, agreed to the goals of peace and complete denuclearization on the Korean peninsula, and destroyed its only known nuclear test site.

Trump acknowledged Kim for each concession but has maintained a commitment to continuing maximum pressure and sanctions until Pyongyang completely abandons its nuclear weapons program.

Watch Next:

Now Free, Americans Detained By North Korea Greeted by Trump
The motorcade of South Korean President Moon Jae-In drive past a checkpoint on the road connecting South and North Korea at the Unification Bridge, near the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating South and North Korea on April 27, 2018 in Paju, South Korea. (Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)

American Officials Cross Into North Korea to Prepare for Trump-Kim Summit

A group of American officials crossed into North Korea on Sunday to discuss preparations for the historic meeting between President Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un, according to President Donald Trump.

The leader of the U.S. delegation, Sung Kim, was called from his assignment as an envoy to the Philippines, according to the Washington Post. Sung Kim crossed into North Korea and met with the communist regimes Vice Foreign Minister Choe Son Hu. The pair had previously negotiated a denuclearization agreement in 2005.

The American team also included Allison Hooker, a Korea expert on the National Security Council, and an unnamed Department of Defense official. Sung Kim was an ambassador to South Korea from 2011 to 2014. He then became a special representative of North Korea Policy.

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, Trump wrote on Twitter on Sunday. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

The Americans are expected to continue the meetings on Monday and Tuesday with just over two weeks left until the planned June 12 summit in Singapore. The talks are being held at the Unification House, the same building where Kim Jong Un and South Korean president Moon Jae-in met on Saturday.

Kim told Moon that he is still committed to the meeting with Trump and to complete denuclearization.

We two leaders agreed the June 12 North Korea-U. S. summit must be successfully held, Moon said, according to the Post.

Kim Jong Uns willingness to hold the summit as scheduled is a tactical victory for Trump, who on Thursday pulled out of the meeting, citing combative rhetoric from Pyongyang.

After Trump pulled out, North Korea replied with a tempered statement indicating that it was still willing to meet. Shortly after, Trump revealed that talks between the two countries are continuing and that a summit may still take place as scheduled.

Trump would become the first American president to meet a North Korean leader in person.

North Korea has already made several major concessions. Pyongyang released three American hostages, agreed to the goals of peace on the Korean peninsula and complete denuclearization, and destroyed its only nuclear test site.

Trump acknowledged Kim for each concession but has maintained a commitment to continuing maximum pressure and sanctions until Pyongyang completely abandons its nuclear weapons program.
In 2017, the Chinese regime released a document titled Vision for Maritime Cooperation Under the Belt and Road Initiative. It included an idea for an Arctic link between China and Western Europe, complementing the regimes other plans to construct infrastructure and trade routes connecting the country with Central Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.

Chinas ambitions were further developed in a white paper released this January, which emphasized the importance of economic and scientific development in the Arctic strategy. And while there is global interest in Chinese investments in infrastructure, there is also growing concern.

Other players are concerned about Beijings strategic intent and whether the plans will be realized and deliver significant economic and strategic benefits to China or others. Nevertheless, Arctic nations are accounting for Chinas policy in their own schemes for future developments in the region.

The addition of a great northern route to Chinas One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative has prompted several assessments about Beijings intentions and its prospects for successfully developing a China-dominated Arctic pathway.

For instance, Heather Conley recently authored a report on the subject for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, an influential Washington-based think tank. The report concludes that China, which now describes itself as a near-Arctic power, would contribute to the development of the region.

Among the positive influences, she cites, are Chinese investments in the region in partnership with at least six countries, including the United States. In 2017, for example, China signed an agreement to invest in Alaskan LNG production.

Chinese Danger?

However, others worry that Chinas influence is not benign. As with the development of other routes in the OBOR, concerns include the possibility of debt traps, as was the case with Sri Lanka, which had to turn control of strategic ports over to Chinese state-owned companies after accumulating more than $1 billion in debt.

Other fears include growing Chinese political influence and strategic encroachment. Last year, for example, the Danish government repurchased a shuttered military base in Greenland that had been sold to a private buyer, out of fear that the Chinese regime might try to buy the facility.

Beijings demand for a more prominent role in Arctic governance has also unsettled the shaky equilibrium between nations in the region.

Polar cooperation has largely been directed through the Arctic Council. So far, the organization, which does not deal with security issues, has managed to balance the interests of its members.

Notably, acrimony with Russia over issues like Ukraine and Syria has not hurt the Arctic cooperation. A more assertive China introduces a new and potentially destabilizing dynamic. At the moment, China has observer status at the council.

Arctic Potential

Currently, there is too little activity to evaluate the impact of an Arctic Silk Road or Chinas true long-term intentions. In 2016, for example, there were only 19 commercial polar crossings. That same year, more than 75,000 commercial vessels transited the Strait of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia.

Nevertheless, the prospects for economic development in the Arctic are growing. Finland and Norway are considering building an Arctic railway between Norways ice-free port at Kirkenes and the city of Rovaniemi in Finland.

The railway could link to north-south development projects under the Three Seas Initiative (a forum of countries between the Adriatic, Black, and Baltic Seas), creating a new corridor for energy, economic development, and trade through Central Europe. This corridor could well link to a hub on Chinas Arctic route.

The United States, Canada, and the Nordic nations have responded to the potential of Chinese development in the Arctic with a mixture of openness to investment and caution against offering Beijing undue strategic leverage. Even Russia, which has also partnered with China on Arctic projects, has shown unease about seeing its dominance as a polar power leveraged or eclipsed by the Chinese.

Western Response

The West has offered no coherent response to the Chinese investments in polar regions and Beijings demand to play a larger role in Arctic governance. Yet, there are signs of change, as there are worries about its destabilizing impact on the global order.

The most significant element is shifting attitudes toward China in Western Europe. Even as Beijing seeks to expand commercial ties and investments, governments are increasingly wary of Chinese influence.

This is partly reflected by Europes growing interest in instituting processes similar to those used by the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS). Nordic governments are the most skeptical about China.

Even European Union representatives, in private conversations, press for more transatlantic deliberations and assessments of Chinas long-term goals. In contrast, the United Kingdom stands alone among major European powers in its reluctance to let go of the presumption that Chinas rise will be a benign influence on the continent.

Canada, a major Arctic power, takes its role and influence in the region seriously. However, it has yet to demonstrate any significant concern over Chinese polar activity. Canada claims sovereignty over proposed shipping routes mentioned in Beijings 2018 white paper.

The role the United States will play is pivotal but unclear. Last year, Washington completed its term as the chair of the Arctic Council. U.S. leadership, at the time, was indecisive.

The Obama administration seemed a bit out of step with the Nordic countries, which were more interested in sustainable development. The new U.S. administration has, so far, not established a clear direction for its Arctic policy.

It did recently complete an Indo-Pacific framework that addresses the OBOR overall. However, there is a lot on the administrations plate at the moment.

There were significant changes in the national security team, while several near-term priorities will demand the National Security Councils attention, especially North Korea and the July NATO summit. It is unlikely that we will see a decisive U.S. response to Chinas Arctic pathway proposal anytime soon, although it could be packaged into a potential deal on trade.

No Leadership, No Pressure

In the near term, the most likely scenario is that the West will fail to make a coordinated response to Chinas Arctic Silk Road. The United States will not provide decisive leadership, nor will other Arctic nations fully reconcile their desire for Chinese commercial investments and their national security concerns.

On the other hand, China is unlikely to make significant inroads by playing a more prominent role in the Arctic Council or influencing the behavior of the Nordic states, such as Iceland, Russia, or Canada. Still, there will likely be some piecemeal efforts foreshadowing a more structured national security response, including the expansion of CFIUS-like processes in Europe.

The United States will likely revamp its Unified Command Plan, shifting primary coordinating responsibility to the U.S. European Command to better harmonize Arctic security policies with NATO allies.

Canada will undoubtedly continue to object to NATO addressing the Arctic as a security issue. If and when China makes some definitive strides in the region, this attitude will change, as will the Arctics priority in the eyes of Western powers.

Dr. James Jay Carafano is the vice president for foreign and defense policy studies at the Heritage Foundation and director of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies. He is also an expert for Global Intelligence Services. This article was first published by GIS Online.
Former President George H.W. Bush Taken to Hospital

Former President George H.W. Bush, 93, was taken to a hospital in Maine on Sunday, May 27, after experiencing low blood pressure and fatigue, a family spokesman said on Twitter.

Bush, the oldest living former president, will likely remain at Southern Maine Health Care for a few days for observation, said the spokesman, Jim McGrath.

The former president is awake and alert, and not in any discomfort, McGrath wrote on Twitter.

President @GeorgeHWBush was taken to Southern Maine Health Care (@SMHCHealth) today after experiencing low blood pressure and fatigue. He will likely remain there for a few days for observation. The former president is awake and alert, and not in any discomfort.  Jim McGrath (@jgm41) May 27, 2018

Bush was hospitalized in Texas last month for treatment of an infection that spread to his blood, and stayed there for nearly two weeks. He was admitted to the hospital a day after he attended the funeral of his wife, Barbara, the former first lady who died on April 17. The couple had been married for 73 years.

On Saturday, Bush attended an American Legion event in Kennebunkport, Maine to mark the upcoming Memorial Day with military veterans and his former national security adviser Brent Scowcroft, according to a post on Bushs official Twitter feed.

Bush is the father of former Republican President George W. Bush, who served two terms from 2001 to 2009, and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who unsuccessfully sought the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.

By Daniel Wallis

Watch Next:

Why is Falun Gong persecuted?

Although its freely practiced in over 70 countries, doing this in China can lead to unlawful arrest, imprisonment, torture, or even death.
Retired Astronaut Alan Bean, 66, poses for a portrait in his spacesuit at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, U.S., in this undated photo. (Reuters/Stringer/File Photo)

Fourth Astronaut to Walk on Moon Dies at Age 86

American astronaut Alan Bean, who walked on the moon in 1969 during the Apollo 12 mission and commanded a crew on the Skylab space station in 1973 before giving up his career to become a full-time painter, died in Houston on Saturday, officials said.

Bean, 86, a former U.S. Navy test pilot who became one of only 12 people ever to set foot on the moon, died at Houston Methodist Hospital, his family said in a statement released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). He had fallen ill two weeks ago while travelling in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Alan was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew. He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly, said Leslie Bean, Beans wife of 40 years, in a statement. A native Texan, Alan died peacefully in Houston surrounded by those who loved him.

We're saddened by the passing of astronaut Alan Bean. The fourth person to walk on the Moon, he spent 10+ hours on the lunar surface during Apollo 12. Bean was spacecraft commander of Skylab Mission II & devoted his retirement to painting. Family release: https://t.co/bX8eXNQlSq pic.twitter.com/NJPQULjGlw  NASA (@NASA) May 26, 2018

Leaving his footprints on a region called the Ocean of Storms, Bean in November 1969 became the fourth man to walk on the moon as one of the astronauts on the second of NASAs lunar landing missions, Apollo 12.

For the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11s moon landing, Bean exhibited his paintings of lunar scenes at the Smithsonian Institutions National Air and Space Museum in Washington.

Beans lunar quest came just four months after American Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the moon in NASAs historic Apollo 11 mission in July 1969.

Bean served as lunar module pilot on Apollo 12. He and crew mate Pete Conrad explored the moons surface and conducted experiments while Richard Gordon orbited overhead in the command module, scouting landing sites for future moon missions.

I remember once looking back at Earth and starting to think, Gee, thats beautiful. Then I said to myself, Quit screwing off and go collect rocks. We figured reflection wasnt productive, Bean told People magazine in 1981.

We are saddened by the loss of Apollo 12 and Skylab astronaut Alan Bean. Here are some of our favorite memories with Bean from his visits to #NASAMarshall after Apollo 12 and before Skylab 3. Godspeed, Alan Bean. Ad astra. pic.twitter.com/XaGAWdli2k  NASA Marshall (@NASA_Marshall) May 26, 2018

The mission was a success, even though it started with a jolt. Shortly after liftoff, the rocket was struck by lightning but the crew was able to continue the three-day flight to the moon. Bean and Conrad spent more than 31 hours on the lunar surface, including more than seven hours working outside of the module.

In 1973, Bean commanded the second mission to Skylab, the first U.S. space station. Along with crew mates Owen Garriott and Jack Lousma, he spent 59 days in low-Earth orbit.

Bean later played a key role in preparing future astronauts, serving in that role until the first flight of the space shuttle in 1981. He even worked with Star Trek actress Nichelle Nichols on outreach efforts to prospective astronauts.

LIVE YOUR DREAM

His decision in 1981 to give up his NASA career to become a full-time artist surprised some of his colleagues.

You have to live your dream even if other people think its screwed up, Bean told a 2010 NASA oral history interview. About half the astronauts thought it was a midlife crisis or something. The other half, the ones that were more right-brain, thought it was a pretty good idea.

Bean remembered telling a senior NASA official named George Abbey the reason he was leaving the space agency.

I said, Im going to be an artist,' Bean recalled. If he hadnt had the window behind him, he would have gone over backwards.  His first comment: Can you earn a living at that?  I said, I dont know, but if I cant Im going to go to work at Jack in the Box (the fast-food hamburger chain).

Working at his home in Houston, Bean created paintings that focussed on the Apollo missions, with images of himself and other astronauts on the moon rendered with the authenticity in lighting and colour that only an eyewitness could provide. His paintings sold for tens of thousands of dollars apiece.

His former colleagues became admirers. Armstrong once said, Alan Bean and his astroartistry recreate the drama and excitement of mans exploration of the moon as only could be chronicled by one who has been there.

I think I would like to be remembered in the end as an astronaut and an artist, Bean told People. I think everyone can do more than one thing with his life.

Bean was born on March 15, 1932, in Wheeler, Texas, and grew up in Fort Worth. He aspired to become a pilot and started flight training at age 17. He earned a degree in aeronautical engineering at the University of Texas, then was commissioned as an officer in the Navy.

He trained as a Navy test pilot under Conrad, who years later during their astronaut days played a key role in getting Bean designated for the Apollo 11 mission.

The retired Navy captain lived with his wife, Leslie, in Houston. He had two children by a previous marriage.

By Will Dunham





Watch Next:

Trump Wants to Create a Space Force
South Korean President Moon Jae-in meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during their summit at the truce village of Panmunjom, North Korea, in this handout picture released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 27, 2018. (KCNA/via Reuters)

Kim Says Still Committed to Complete Denuclearization, Summit With Trump

Asks To Reschedule Inter-Korean Talks For June 1

SEOULNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and to a planned meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Sunday.

Moon, who returned to Seoul on Thursday morning after meeting Trump in Washington, told a news conference in Seoul that he delivered a message to Kim on Saturday of Trumps firm will to end the hostile relationship with North Korea and pursue bilateral economic cooperation given that North Korea commit complete denuclearization.

I told Chairman Kim that if he decides and put into practice a complete denuclearization, President Trump is willing for economic cooperation and ending hostile relations, Moon said.

Moon said that during the impromptu meeting with Kim on Saturday, they both expressed their wish for the North Korea-U.S. summit to be held successfully.

Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean peninsulas denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted, Moon said.

Moon also said that Kim reaffirmed his commitment to working towards a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

North Korean state-media KCNA said Kim and Moon agreed to hold high-level talks between their two nations on June 1 to take steps to quickly implement their efforts to denuclearize the peninsula.

The meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who met Kim twice in Pyongyang, told a Senate committee on May 24 that North Korea had not been responding to contact attempts in recent days.

Over the past many days, we have endeavored to do what Chairman Kim and I had agreed to put preparation teams together to begin to work for the summit and we had received no response to our inquiries to them, Pompeo said.

U.S. officials also said that the North Koreans had not showed up to a planned meeting in Singapore last week.

Weve not been able to conduct the preparations between our two teams that would be necessary to have a successful summit, Pompeo said.

In a letter to Kim on Thursday morning, Trump said he was cancelling the planned Singapore summit but remained open to dialogue. On Friday, Trump revealed that North Korea had sent a warm and productive statement and said that the planned June 12 summit may still happen as scheduled.

Very good news to receive the warm and productive statement from North Korea, Trump wrote on Twitter. We will soon see where it will lead, hopefully to long and enduring prosperity and peace. Only time (and talent) will tell!

Very good news to receive the warm and productive statement from North Korea. We will soon see where it will lead, hopefully to long and enduring prosperity and peace. Only time (and talent) will tell!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 25, 2018

Moon was also contacted on Friday by North Korea. Kim expressed hopes to meet for candid dialogue, reported Yonhap, to which Moon agreed.

A meeting was held because officials of both countries thought that meeting face-to-face would be better than a phone call, Moon said on Sunday.

The impromptu meeting on Saturday lasted two hours and was the second between the two sides, following the historic meeting on April 27 when the two Koreas said in the Panmunjom declaration that they would work toward a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

Video and a photo released by South Koreas presidential Blue House on Saturday showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the Norths building in the truce village, which lies in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)  the 2.5-mile wide buffer that runs along the heavily armed military border.

Previously, a second inter-Korean summit had been scheduled for May 16, but North Korea abruptly cancelled the planned talks citing provocation from the annual U.S.-South Korean military exercises in the south.

Moon is the only South Korean leader to have met a North Korean leader twice, both times in the DMZ, which is a symbol of the unending hostilities between the nations after the Korean War ended in 1953 in a truce, not a peace treaty.

On Saturday, Trump said that talks in preparation for the June 12 summit in Singapore are now progressing very well.

Were doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea, Trump said at the White House. Its moving along very nicely. So were looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasnt changed. So, well see what happens.

A White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the possible summit, a White House spokeswoman said on Saturday.

By Hyonhee Shin and Josh Smith. Additional reporting by The Epoch Times staff.

How state capitalism in hurting both the Chinese people and the communist states trade partners

WATCH: Death by ChinaHow America lost its Manufacturing Base
Syrian refugee children run in a tented settlement, in the town of Qab Elias, in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, March 13, 2018. (Reuters/Mohamed Azakir)

Lebanon Tells Syria Development Law Could Hinder Refugees Return

BEIRUTLebanon expressed concern to Syria on Saturday over a new law aimed at redeveloping areas devastated by seven years of war, saying the initiative could hinder the return of many Syrian refugees to their homeland.

Lebanese Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil wrote in a letter to his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moualem that the terms of Law 10 could make it difficult for refugees to prove property ownership, and in turn discourage some from returning.

The legislation came into effect last month as the army was on the brink of crushing the last insurgent enclaves near Damascus, consolidating President Bashar al-Assads grip over nearly all of western Syria.

It allows people to prove they own property in the areas chosen for redevelopment, and to claim compensation. But aid groups say the chaos of war means few will be able to do so in the time specified. The law has yet to be applied.

Bassil, whose country hosts more than a million Syrian refugees, voiced concern over the limited time frame given for refugees to prove possession of their properties.

The inability of the refugees to practically present what proves their possession (of their properties) during the given time limit might lead to them losing their properties and their sense of national identity, Bassil said in the letter, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

This would deprive them of one of the main incentives for their come return to Syria, he added, echoing comments earlier this week by Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri.

Hariri said the law tells thousands of Syrian families to stay in Lebanon by threatening them with property confiscation.

Bassil sent a similar letter to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, calling for action to protect the rights of Syrian refugees in maintaining their properties.

Watch Next:

Mother Jumps in to Help Nervous Daughter After She Freezes on Stage

Her mother, Shaye Washington, jumped in to join her on stage and starting singing the lyrics.
Mexico Detains Wife of Drug Baron Blamed for US Heroin Scourge

MEXICO CITYMexico has arrested the wife of Nemesio Oseguera, one of the countrys most wanted drug lords, officials said on Sunday.

Known as El Mencho, Oseguera is blamed for rising heroin shipments to the United States and waves of bloody executions.

Rosalinda Garcia was detained in the Guadalajara suburb of Zapopon in the Western state of Jalisco, three security officials told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

They declined to provide further details on the arrest of the wife of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel chief, who became Mexicos most wanted drug lord after Joaquin El Chapo Guzman was extradited to the United States last year to face trial.

The reasons for Garcias arrest were not immediately clear, but security officials called a media conference on Sunday.

In March, U.S. agents in Chicago named him the new public enemy No. 1 and blamed his gang for using extreme violence to expand their share of the heroin trade.

The Jalisco gang has challenged Guzmans Sinaloa cartel and other gangs in territories across Mexico over drug trafficking routes to the United States, fuelling part of a surge in murder rates to the highest on records going back 20 years.

Watch Next:

The Origins of Antifa
Australian flag flutters in front of the Great Hall of the People during a welcoming ceremony for Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in Beijing, China, April 14, 2016. (Reuters/Jason Lee/File Photo)

Pre-Election, Propaganda Message Circulated In Australian-Chinese Community

A digital message of a political nature is reportedly being circulated among ethnic Chinese community groups in Sydney.

The Epoch Times has been informed that the message, directed at Chinese in Australia, warns members in various Chinese community groups against appearing in public because Australian political parties were clearing out pro-Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members, it claimed.

The message reads:

Dear compatriots, We are issuing this special notice in the face of the Australian governments recent anti-Chinese position. In recent days, the Australian government and state parliaments have started targeting Chinese-friendly government officials for removal, as well as emphasizing anti-spy laws [sic]. Hence, we are reminding everyone, in the coming days, apart from working hard to ensure that the business, cultural, and tourism exchanges with Shandong Province continues, unless it is activities organized by the ACPPRC avoid participating in any gatherings that you are unsure about, because various powers are beginning to move in different ways, we hope everyone treats this seriously in this exceptional time. Thank you.

ACPPRC, or the Australian Council for the Promotion of Peaceful Reunification of China, is a Sydney-based organisation that is a front group for the United Front Work Department. The United Front Work Department is an arm of the CCP that is run from Chinese embassies around the world to create a united front for the CCPs propaganda warfare that is aimed at subverting and influencing elements in foreign societies to work on behalf of the Chinese regimes interests.

The message, which suggests that criticism of the CCP can only be attempts to stir up anti-Chinese sentiment, comes at a time when the Australia-China relationship has entered unchartered waters following Australia announcing that it was updating its espionage and foreign interference laws.

The Australian government announced in December 2017 that it was revising its foreign interference laws after questions were raised over significant political donations made to both the Liberal and Labor parties by certain wealthy individuals with links to the CCP.

The Australian Council for the Promotion of the Peaceful Reunification of China (ACPPRC) was classified as an agent of the Chinese state pic.twitter.com/CceqNurJNL  Ian Burns McCaslin (@IBMcCaslin) September 7, 2017

In preparation for the upcoming election, the Labor party has signaled that it may be reassessing the tenability of its members of parliament who have been seen as toeing the CCP line.

According to a report by The Australian, NSW Upper House Labor MP Ernest Wong was advised by NSW Labor general secretary Kaila Murnain last month that he was unlikely to gain the endorsement needed for a winnable spot on the March 2019 ballot papersa statement that Mr Wong later admitted to local Chinese media was true.

Vince Badalati , Dominic Sin and Mei Mei , local council candidates for George's river council Hurstville ward pic.twitter.com/TlfxCO619c  Ernest Wong (@ErnestWong19) August 12, 2017

Wong had been criticized in the Australian media for speaking out against the Labor partys official position on the South China Sea, instead supporting the CCPs position that Australia should not interfere regarding Chinas territorial claims in the region.

Wong also staunchly opposed Turnbulls proposed espionage and foreign interference bill, and was a former honorary advisor to the ACPPRC. He was responsible for facilitating lucrative relationships between NSW Labor Party politicians like Sam Dastyari and the wealthy president of ACPPRC, Australian-Chinese businessman Huang Xiangmo, according to the ABC.

But since Dastyaris shock resignation last year following the damaging media reports that he leaked sensitive intelligence information to Huang Xiangmo, as well as other actions deemed favorable to the CCP, everyone is watching political donations closely, making the money hard to get, and votes more important, Li Yuanhua, former associate professor of history at the Capital Normal University in Beijing who now resides in Australia, told The Epoch Times.

The Labor Partys cutting of ties with Wong may be a sign that the party does not want to be portrayed as a pro-CCP party in front of Australian citizens, as being pro-CCP does not attract voters and this is something that both Australian major parties are aware of, Li said.

Dont Be Fooled By Anti-China or Racist Labels

In response to the circulating messages, Li says that he does not believe there has been a recent rise in anti-Chinese sentiment.

What the Australian government opposes is the infiltration by the Chinese Communist Party, which in turn threatens Australias national security and disrupts Australian values; they do not oppose Chinese people.

Any country that threatens or encroaches on Australia in similar ways would be similarly opposed by Australia, Li said. This is not targeting any specific racial group or ethnicity.

In a challenge to the CCPs claims of racism by the Australian government, Li asked: Can the small minority who call Australia anti-China represent all Australian-Chinese people?

Many Australian-Chinese people are completely disinterested, they just want to live their own lives, he said.

Li added that the Chinese regime has historically used the anti-China label to incite Chinese peoples nationalist sentiment.

Australian Government to Rein In CCP Agents of Interference

Chen Yonglin, the former consul for political affairs in the Chinese consulate in Sydney who defected in 2005, told The Epoch Times that he believes Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his administrations push to update Australias espionage and foreign interference laws signals that Australia will no longer tolerate the CCPs attempts to dictate the loyalties of Chinese expats or friendly politicians.

In fact, Australia now perceives that the CCPs influence is starting to sway Australian policy, and the democratic system is losing its efficacy, so the government has taken appropriate protective measures, Chen said.

Most politicians of the two major parties appear to have reached a mutual understanding on the reality of CCP interference in Australian politics, and are taking a firm stance.

Earlier this month, Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop warned the CCP against threaten(ing) the ordinary operations of business as China continues to pressure Australian airline Qantas to stop naming Taiwan as a destination, reported news.com.au. Taiwan is a self-ruled island nation, but the Chinese regime claims it as part of its territory.

After years of being involved in infiltration operations himself before he defected, Chen said the recent events in the Australian political sphere are a significant warning to those still acting on the CCPs behalf, but Australians should continue to be vigilant.

The CCP has been expanding in Australia for over a decade; the infiltration in various government organizations, community groups, and academia is fairly deep-seated. Australia needs to do what Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had said  to stand up and defend our own national interests, Chen said.

Reporting by Nina Yan

Watch Next:

Australias China Experts Discuss Chinese Communist Party Infiltration in Australia

The conflicts between two different values systems, and the conflicts between the two political systems are issues that cannot be ignored.
Taiwanese Businessman Arrested for Spying on Behalf of China

In Taiwan, another businessman has been placed under investigation for conducting espionage for Chinathe second incident in a little over a month.

Lin Wei-lin, 39, a Taiwanese businessman who, after retiring from serving in Taiwans Marine Corps, started a mechatronics business in 2000 in Suzhou City, located in Jiangsu Province on the eastern coast of China. After years of working and living in China, Lin began to hold multiple positions in Chinas state-controlled organizations, including president of a Taiwanese Youth Businessmen Association in Wujiang District, Suzhou; and deputy director of a local Taiwan Compatriot Investment Enterprises Association.

On May 25, the Liberty Times, a Taiwan newspaper, reported that Lin had been placed under investigation under charges of violating Taiwans national security law. Prosecutors in Taoyuan City in northern Taiwan found evidence that he had acted as a spy for the Chinese regime.

Taiwanese authorities uncovered that Lin had intentionally approached his classmate from junior high school after learning that he was an investigator with a Taiwan intelligence agency. According to the Liberty Times, Lin tried to bribe his classmate and hinted that he could introduce his classmate to some friends in China. Additionally, Lin told him there were some job opportunities in China that could offer a one-time-fee of at least a million yuan (about $156,400). Ultimately, Lins classmate did not take the bait.

Taiwan is a self-ruled island with its own constitution, democratically elected government, and militaryestablished after the Kuomintang were defeated by the Chinese Communist Party during Chinas civil war, and fled to Taiwan. Beijing, on the other hand, considers Taiwan a renegade province that will one day be reunited with the mainland, with military force if necessary.

Over the years, China has tried to exert its influence through economic, political, and cultural means to coerce the Taiwanese public and government to embrace the idea of reunification with the mainland. Internationally, China has tried to diminish Taiwans global presence by engaging in dollar diplomacyenticing Taiwan allies to recognize only one China ruled from Beijing, by offering lucrative economic deals.

Lins case is not the first. Last month, Hung Chin-hsi, a Taiwanese businessman working in Macau, the former Portuguese colony now under Beijings sovereignty, was placed under investigation, reported the Liberty Times. He tried to lure an official working for the Investigation Bureau of Taiwans Ministry of Justice into working for the Chinese regime by offering him huge sums of money. A Taiwanese court suspected Hung of creating Chinese-regime-friendly associations in Taiwan.

The Taiwanese government is not the only target the Chinese regime tries to infiltrate.

On May 9, Jerry Chun Shing Lee, a former U.S. CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) official, is accused of gathering classified information intended to be passed on to the Chinese regime, and was indicted by a federal grand jury in Virginia earlier this month, reported Reuters.

In August 2014, Su Bin, a Chinese businessman who frequently traveled between China and the United States, was indicted in California. U.S. federal prosecutors alleged that Su hacked into computer systems of Boeing and other U.S. defense contractors, and stole confidential plans for military aircraft, according to Reuters.
President Trump in the Oval Office at the White House. (Courtesy of the White House)

Trump Makes Firing Federal Employees Easier, Cuts Taxpayer Expenses on Union Matters

President Donald Trump issued three executive orders on Friday, May 25, that make it easier to fire government employees and also reduces the government support for federal workers unions.

To empower our civil servants to best help others, the government must always operate more efficiently and more securely, Trump said in a statement.

The administration expects one of the orders will save the government $100 million a year when fully put in practice.

Based on one of the orders, poorly performing federal employees would now have one month to improve, instead of previous three to four, before they are reassigned, demoted, or fired.

It takes 6 months to 1 year to remove a tenured federal employee for poor performance, plus an average of 8 more months to resolve appeals. Tenured federal employees are also 44 times less likely to get fired or laid off than private sector workers, states a fact sheet on the new orders.

The order also encourages agencies to fire employees, not suspend them, in circumstances in which removal would be appropriate.

Tenured federal employees have stolen agency property, run personal businesses from work, and been arrested for using drugs during lunch breaks and not been fired, the fact-sheet states.

Agencies will also have to report disciplinary actions and management of poor performers to the Office of Personnel Management, which will release the data to public (without personal information).

The federal employee viewpoint survey has consistently found that less than one-third of federal employees believe that the government deals with poor performers effectively, the order states.

Elsewhere, it says: Failure to address unacceptable performance and misconduct undermines morale, burdens good performers with subpar colleagues, and inhibits the ability of executive agencies  to accomplish their missions.

Another order directs agencies to renegotiate union contracts to reduce by two thirds the time government workers spend working on union matters on taxpayer dime.

Employees will be required to spend at least 75 percent of their time working on their jobs, except in some limited cases of union work.

Unionized federal employees (excluding postal workers) spent over 3.6 million hours doing union work on taxpayer expense in 2016. Thats up from about 3.1 million in 2010. It means the government paid its employees almost $175 million for handling union matters in fiscal year 2016, according to an April report by the Office of Personnel Management.

Over 470 Veterans Affairs employees spend 100 percent of their duty hours working for a labor union instead of serving veterans. This includes 74 full-time nurses, the fact sheet states.

The executive order also prohibits employees from using their work hours to lobby the government or pursue union grievances against the government.

Moreover, union representatives wont be allowed to use government property or resources for free or at a discount.

Such property and resources include office or meeting space, reserved parking spaces, phones, computers, and computer systems, the order states.

The last order aims to shorten the time for bargaining of union contracts to less than a year.

Agencies pay for union negotiators salaries, so it hurts taxpayers when bargaining drags on for years. The salaries for union negotiators cost $16 million in 2016 alone, the fact-sheet states.

The union agreements will also be published online so that Americans can gauge for themselves whether they got a good deal.

Union representatives oppose the orders and are looking for ways to fight them, including through legal action, according to Government Executive, an online publication.

Watch Next:

Trump Wants to Create a Space Force
Trump Welcomes American Hostage Freed From Venezuela

President Donald Trump welcomed an American hostage released from Venezuela at the White House on Saturday.

Joshua Holt, a Utah man held hostage by the Venezuelan socialist government for almost two years, reunited with his family and met the president at the White House.

The gesture is an olive branch from Venezuelas socialist dictator, Nicolas Maduro, amid intensifying sanctions imposed by the United States. But the White House said on Saturday that releasing the hostage does not change the United States policy toward the regime.

The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution. The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement.

The regime must allow all Venezuelans and political parties to participate freely in new elections and the democratic process, Sanders added. It must release all political prisoners, and must accept desperately needed international humanitarian aid for Venezuelas dying citizens.

At the meeting with the Hold family, Trump pointed out that 17 hostages held abroad have been released during his term. Most recently, North Korea free three Americans ahead of Trumps summit with Kim Jong Un.

Youve gone through a lot, Trump told Holt, More than most people could endure.

Holt, 26, was a Mormon missionary, which led him to meet his future wife, Thamara Caleno, 27, a mother of two and also a Mormon. After meeting Caleno for the first time in the Dominican Republic, Holt traveled, on June 11, 2016, to Caracas, Venezuela, to marry her.

Yet, after a week-long honeymoon on the dreamy Margarita island, their life turned into a nightmare.

On June 30, police were conducting door-to-door searches in the crime-ridden Ciudad Caribia public housing complex, where Caleno lived. Holt was staying in her apartment and when the police came in around 6 a.m., he took out his phone and started recording them.

In his country, you cant search without a warrant, so he thought it was noteworthy, a witness, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Miami Herald. They confiscated his phone and took him away with other people.

Two hours later, some 30 masked officers came to the apartment complex. They hauled a large black bag up to the couples apartment as several neighbors watched. While some of the officers distracted Caleno, one of the officers went out of sight and then announced he found the black bag with weapons inside, the witness said. Venezuelan news then reported that two rifles, an AK-47 and an imitation AR-15, were recovered by police, along with a grenade.

The witness was convinced the couple was framed.

The only reason they have him is because hes a gringo, said the woman. I dont care what color his eyes are, what color his hair is, where his passport says hes fromhes innocent and his human rights are being violated.

She said Holt couldnt have bought the weapons since Calenos relatives were keeping a close eye on him. His Spanish wasnt great and they feared for him getting into trouble. Moreover, Calenos daughters, 5- and 8-years-old, stayed in the apartment. [I]f they had touched anything, it would have blown away three buildings, the witness said.

Holt and Caleno were reportedly detained in Caracas at the El Helicoide, a military and intelligence office building combined with a prison.

After a revolt broke out at the prison earlier in May, Holt barricaded himself in his cell and later managed to send a video and voice messages to the outside world.

Im calling on the people of America, I need your help to get me out of this place, Holt said in one message, according to Miami Herald. I have been begging my government for two years. They say they are doing things, but Im still here and now my life is being threatened. How long do I have to suffer here?

Sen. Hatch detailed the efforts to free the Holts, which were aided by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as well as Caleb McCarry, former official of the second Bush Administration with expertise on Venezuela.

Over the last two years Ive worked with two Presidential administrations, countless diplomatic contacts, ambassadors from all over the world, a network of contacts in Venezuela, and [Venezuelan] President Maduro himself, and I could not be more honored to be able to reunite Josh with his sweet, long-suffering family in Riverton, Hatch said.

President Donald Trump imposed additional sanctions on Venezuela on Monday, May 21, shortly after socialist dictator Maduro won an election that senior American administration officials called a sham.

Fourteen South American nations refused to recognize the May 20 election in Venezuela as legitimate, according to a Lima Group joint statement by Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Saint Lucia.

Ivan Pentchoukov contributed to this report.

Watch Next:

An Oasis of Calm in Londons Leicester Square

Wearing yellow costumes that glimmered in the sunshine, practitioners performed the slow-moving exercises of the practice in the bustling central London square.
Visitors pass in front of the ZTE booth at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, on February 26, 2018. (Sergio Perez/Reuters)

US Reaches Deal to Keep Chinas ZTE in Business, Says Congressional Aide

WASHINGTONThe Trump administration told lawmakers the U.S. government has reached a deal to put Chinese telecommunications firm ZTE back in business after it pays a significant fine and makes management changes, a senior congressional aide said on Friday.

U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to confirm the deal in a tweet late on May 25. I closed it down then let it reopen with high level security guarantees, change of management and board, must purchase U.S. parts and pay a $1.3 Billion fine.

The reported deal involving Chinas second-largest telecommunications equipment maker ran into resistance in Congress, where Democrats and Trumps fellow Republicans accused him of bending to pressure from Beijing to ease up on a company that U.S. intelligence officials have suggested poses a significant risk to U.S. national security.

In April, ZTE was banned from buying U.S. technology components because it broke terms of an agreement it signed for violating U.S. sanctions against Iran and North Korea.. After ZTE makes a series of changes, it would now be allowed to resume business with U.S. companies, including chipmaker Qualcomm.

The deal, earlier communicated to officials on Capitol Hill by the Commerce Department, requires ZTE to pay a substantial fine, place U.S. compliance officers at the company, and change its management team, the aide said.

The Commerce Department would then lift an order issued in April preventing ZTE from buying U.S. products. ZTE shut down most of its production after the ruling was announced.

Fox News said Trump told them on May 24 that he had negotiated the $1.3 billion fine with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in a phone call.

ZTE, which is publicly traded but whose largest shareholder is a Chinese state-owned enterprise, agreed last year to pay a nearly $900 million penalty and open its books to a U.S. monitor. The penalty was issued after the company was caught illegally shipping U.S. tech goods to Iran and North Korea, in an investigation dating to the Obama administration.

The company has lost over $3 billion on doing business with U.S. suppliers, since the April 15th ban, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Trump had previously floated a plan to fine ZTE up to $1.3 billion and shake up its management as his administration considered rolling back more severe penalties that have crippled the company.

Responding to news of the administrations deal with ZTE, Republican Senator Marco Rubio tweeted: Yes they have a deal in mind. It is a great deal  for #ZTE & China. #China crushes U.S. companies with no mercy & they use these telecom companies to spy & steal from us.

U.S. intelligence and U.S. law enforcement agencies have serious concerns that ZTE and other Chinese telecommunications firms use their equipment to gather intelligence on U.S. citizens.

The U.S. Department of Defense has also stopped selling ZTEs mobile phones and modems in stores on its military bases, citing potential security risks.

William Evanina, the acting director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, said at his May 15 confirmation hearing that he would not use a ZTE phone nor recommend that anyone in a sensitive position in government use one.

Chinese officials sought a pullback on ZTE as part of any broader deal to prevent a trade war between the worlds two biggest economies. U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is scheduled to visit China next week for another round of talks. White House legislative director Marc Short told PBS on May 25 that Ross would be making that announcement in the coming day of a resolution of the ZTE issue.

ZTE needs U.S. components for its mobile phones and network equipment. A 2016 report released by a Chinese regime-affiliated think tank found that ZTE purchased 53 percent of chips they used in making their products from American firms, worth $3.1 billion.

As part of the agreements ZTE made last year, it dismissed four senior employees.

Reuters reported earlier this week citing sources that a proposed trade deal with China would lift the ZTE ban. In return, China would eliminate tariffs on U.S. agriculture or agree to buy more farm products from the United States.

By David Shepardson and Karen Freifeld. Epoch Times staff member Annie Wu contributed to this report.
As Hinckley Yachts manager Peter Manion lowered a powerboat into Stamford Harbor on Wednesday morning at the Maine manufacturers new boatyard, he took a moment to reflect on Connecticuts move this month to cut taxes by more than half on new boat purchases.

Hinckley is hiring up in Stamford either way, but Manion says a rising tide of boat sales can only help things further.

Starting in July, Connecticut dealers will charge a 2.99 percent tax on the sales of boats, engines and trailers to transport them, down from the states standard 6.35 percent tax, and with boats sold for $100,000 or more having previously having been subject to a 7.75 percent levy.

Boat dealers and related industries had spent years arguing for the tax to be lowered, saying many buyers simply bought and berthed boats in neighboring Rhode Island and New York, costing them both sales commissions and revenue from services they provide during boating season.

The Connecticut General Assembly and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy finally reached concurrence this month, adding the tax break despite attaching a fiscal note that it could cost the state $2.3 million in revenue. Many in the industry believe that deficit will be more than made up by extra sales generated in Connecticut, as well as ancillary revenue from services provided by boatyards.

As a small concession in a big budget, the new tax has yet to get wide notice, but boat dealerships and brokers from Greenwich to Stonington are hopeful it will have a ripple effect starting in July.

Were not getting a lot of feedback on it yet, said Rick Delfosse, business manager with Rex Marine in South Norwalk. It comes out as a net positive, because (buyers) dont pay the sales tax, but they pay taxes on storage, fuel and other services.

Booming with boats

Testifying in February in support of a tax cut, the head of the Connecticut Marine Trades Association said 1,125 boats were sold in Connecticut last year, about 1,900 fewer than a decade prior. Last year, there were 2,300 fewer boats registered in Connecticut, with revenue down 9 percent.

This is not about the rich, stated Kathleen Burns, executive director of CMTA, which from its Essex office counts a membership base of more than 330 marinas, dealers, retailers and other entities. Only 10 of those boats were larger than 40 feet, (and) 574 were under 20 feet. In the Northeast, we are now the only state (that) lost boat registrations and saw declining sales  the only one. Its got to stop.

Tax considerations often come up in purchase discussions, according to John Herrmann, a Formula regional sales representative at the Indiana-based boat manufacturers showroom at Rex Marine  seldom as a deal breaker but certainly in the context of buyers looking for any possible savings on a major purchase.

Its a big deal, Herrmann said of Connecticuts revised tax rate. Its not a half-point you are talking about here.

Delfosse believes said his daughter is able to draw regular comparisons between the marine industries in Connecticut and Rhode Island, where she works in the marine industry in Newport.

People are going elsewhere, he said. You go up to Newport, the harbor is booming with boats.

Rex Marine is among the marinas that have created a boating club as a way to boost interest, with some 200 members availing themselves of 10 powerboats that can be reserved via a mobile app. The early returns have been encouraging, with Delfosse interested to see whether Connecticuts new tax rate will boost interest further.

Weve had two or three people leave the boating club to buy a boat, Delfosse said. The bigger boats are selling, but not a lot of millennials are coming into the marketplace, and thats what we are pushing  to try to get the millennials in.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman
A young venture capital firm based in Greenwich believes it has a big competitive advantage.

Founded in 2016 and launched last year, 1843 Capital  led by Tracy Chadwell and Alison Andrews Reyes  specializes in technology startups, but it differentiates itself primarily by looking to invest in companies with diverse leadership teams that include at least one woman, Chadwell said.

A growing pile of recent studies indicate both womens significance in helping startups succeed and the broad gap between the amount of venture capital dollars given to men versus women. Yet 1843 Capital is one of few firms taking advantage of that disparity, according to Matt McCooe, CEO of Connecticut Innovations, the state-backed venture fund.

Theres fairly compelling evidence that women make great CEOs and more diverse teams are more likely to have better outcomes, McCooe said. Ive only heard of maybe three funds that are female-focused, and at the end of the day, those funds are emerging because they get better returns than they would otherwise. Theyre capitalizing on a market opportunity. Tracy is set up to be successful.

Double bottom line

Though 1843 is in its infancy, its already gaining recognition with founding partner Chadwell accepting the Womens Business Advocate award last week at Moffly Medias annual Women in Business conference. Chadwell can frequently be found speaking at events discussing her work with 1843 and judging startup competitions.

It was six years ago that Chadwell began taking advantage of the untapped opportunity to target women-led startups. She launched a precursor to 1843 called Coyote Capital in 2015. Over the next two years, she brought on business parters and changed the name to 1843, which was inspired by Ada Lovelace, a 19th-century mathematician whos been called the first computer programmer. In 1843, Lovelace published a transcript that some have dubbed the first computer program.

The numerical name also pushes Chadwells firm to the top of alphabetized lists, she said.

Chadwell likes to describe her business strategy as achieving a double bottom line, because of the profitable deals she makes while fostering meaningful change.

There was a confluence of data validating my decision, she said in an interview.

In speaking events, Chadwell opens her presentations with studies including those published by PitchBook and First Round Capital that found women-led companies received between 2 and 3 percent of venture capital dollars in 2017 while startups with at least one female founder perform 63 percent better than those with only men.

Were going after female-founded tech companies because theres a market inefficiency, said Andrews Reyes, 1843s general partner. We have a preference for at least one female founder, because thats a success indicator. Women need to be part of that founding team. Were OK if people want to look at the data and still choose to look in the opposite direction. In the meantime, well zig while they zag. We feel like we have a unique capability with our experience and networks.

We need more Tracys

Chadwell provides the venture capital experience while Andrews Reyes contributes a career spent in engineering as well as building businesses. In 2013, she sold a cybersecurity company shed grown for seven years called Vigilant to Deloitte before founding Dezignable.com, which shes now handed over to her partner while remaining on its leadership board.

Together, the pair considers multiple business pitches every day, mostly in the realms of cybersecurity and what they call silvertech, or technology for people 50 or older. Andrews Reyes deep background in cybersecurity and e-commerce give her an edge in evaluating the potential of startups, she said. Cybercrime is in the news day in and day out, but to invest in the space, you have to understand the real value of tech companies and what theyre putting forth, she said. Theres so many companies out there, so theres a lot of overlap in what theyre doing.

Even when they choose against investing in companies, which is most of the time, Chadwell said she tries to help founders by giving advice or pointing them toward another venture capital firm.

Chadwells enthusiasm and consistent helpfulness played a role in why Wendi Burkhardt, the CEO of one of 1843s investments, wanted to work with her, Burkhardt said. Even two years ago, there wasnt a lot of conversation about technology for the aging. I teamed up with Tracy because I was grateful that she understood the landscape and realized what a huge market this is.

In 2015, Burkhardt co-founded Silvernest, a roommate-matching platform for older people. The Denver-based startup closed a seed fundraising round in 2017 that totaled more than $1 million. Among its investors was 1843 Capital.

Fundraising is a sales process; youre selling, Burkhardt said. What we need is more Tracys. We need more women in the ecosystem, because you buy from people who look like you. To date, shes been one of our most meaningful investors.

Contact the writer at mbennett@greenwichtime.com; Twitter @Macaela_
Mind the gap took on a whole different meaning for Rusty Westerholm and Christine Bighinatti, employees of the L.L.Bean store at Danbury Fair.

Instead of the phrase warning passengers to be careful boarding a train that will drop them off into the hustle and bustle of some urban destination, the gaps in questions were the beginning and ending points of a 98-mile hike through rugged terrain far from the comforts of home.

Westerholm, 27, and Bighinatti, 25, took part in the L.L.Bean AT Relay, an initiative of the outdoor company during which teams of employees will take turns to cover the entire famed Appalachian Trail. The Danbury duo hiked from Winding Stair Gap in North Carolina to Newfound Gap on the North Carolina/Tennessee border.

It was a wonderful opportunity that was presented to them, Gabby Aviles, manager of the Danbury, said. Its what Bean is all about. Im happy the company is doing this.

L.L.Bean, based in Freeport, Maine, and founded in 1912, is undertaking the initiative to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the National Trails System.

The teams of hikers are also partnering with the National Park Service and the Appalachian Trail Conservancy by photographing and collecting data at key points along the trail to assess how the landscape along the trail is changing.

The Appalachian Trail runs approximately 2,180 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maines Baxter State Park. Established in 1923, the trail winds through 14 states.

The first L.L.Bean team left Springer Mountain in mid-April. The last of 43 teams is expected to reach Katahdin in September. Westerholm and Bighinatti took the second leg of the hike, starting on April 25 and reaching their destination May 1.

When service is available along the trail, the hiker teams are sharing photographs and stories on social media with the hashtag #LLBeanATrelay.

The relay continues a long tradition of L.L.Bean supporting the trail through volunteerism and charitable giving to organizations that oversee the trail. Since 1980, the company has organized trips for employees to volunteer for a week in the northern Maine woods to keep an 18.5-mile section of the trail passable for the thousands of hikers who use it. In the past five years, L.L.Bean has donated more than $6 million toward conservation and land stewardship.

The Appalachian Trail is a national treasure and a tremendous resource for outdoor recreation, Janet Wyper, community relations manager for L.L.Bean, said. Weve had the privilege of helping maintain it for many years, and were delighted to send our employees out on the trail with a new task to help preserve it for current and future generations.

The employees taking part in the relay are paid for their time on the trail. L.L.Bean outfitted the employees with essential equipment, some of which they get to keep and some to get passed onto the next team.

Danburys duo

Westerholm and Bighinatti said their week in the North Carolina mountains went very smooth with no major arguments.

In some ways, they formed an unlikely pair. Bighinatti is an experienced hiker and thru-hiked the AT with a friend last year. She graduated from Western Connecticut State University and played for the softball team there. Westerholm, a Danbury native and WestConn graduate, had very limited hiking experience.

She was the ideal partner for me because she had the knowledge and I didnt, Westerholm said. We were becoming friends anyway and have a good working relationship. She knows all there is to know about hiking.

In one important way, however, they formed the perfect team.

Were both the shut-up-and-hike types, Westerholm said.

Bighinatti was braced for poor weather as that stretch brought lots of rain and unpredictability during her thru-hike last year. After two days of off-and-on rain, the Danbury team had five days of gorgeous weather, Bighinatti said.

The duo carried food for two days at a time and picked up replenishments at predetermined locations along the way. They subsisted on instant oatmeal, noodles, coffee, tuna, granola bars and candy.

Bighinatti shared her secret recipe of mac and cheese with instant potatoes and also introduced Westerholm to Ramen Bombs, or noodles with instant potatoes.

Once you get that hiker hunger one meal isnt enough, she said.

Westerholm said the experience made him more knowledgeable about the products at L.L.Bean. While he is not ready to take a year off and thru-hike the AT, he said he has a larger appreciation for hiking.

It was truly a sense of community, he said. Youd hike all day and be tired, but when you settled in for the night with others youd trade stories and tell jokes. Its really cool. I find myself just talking about the experience.

For Bighinatti, it was opportunity to share her passion for hiking and spread the word about responsibly enjoying the outdoors.

You want to make sure every place looks exactly the same as it did when you got there, she said. I loved going back and seeing that stretch again, and I loved being able to share my love of the outdoors with others through social media and the people we work with.

L.L.Bean in CT

Bighinatti will get another chance to share her hiking knowledge when she leads a walk along a nearby stretch of the AT through L.L.Beans Outdoor Discovery program. Starting at 10 a.m. on Saturday, June 2, the company will hold a hike at Bulls Bridge, a point of the AT in Kent.

L.L.Bean holds a variety of activities and educational courses through its Outdoor Discovery program. It recently moved its water activities from Lake Kenosia in Danbury to Glastonbury.

L.L.Bean has two stores in Connecticut, in Danbury and South Windsor, with one coming soon to New Haven. It also has an outlet store in Orange. The company has 39 stores in 17 states, mostly in the Northeast. The 220,000-square-foot retail store campus in Freeport, Maine, is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and attracts more than 3 million visitors a year.

The writer may be reached at cbosak@hearstmediact.com; 203-731-3338
In an industry that has been accused of lacking transparency in marketing, small brewers are looking to show customers they are independent of Big Beer.

This is the best time ever to be a beer lover in the history of our country. However, large global conglomerate breweries are having challenges ... and many of those brands are no longer growing, said Julia Herz, program director of the Brewers Association. That has led to larger companies either buying up local brewers that gain popularity or starting their own local businesses.

In response, the organization has developed the Independent Craft Brewer Seal, meant to verify a brewers authenticity. Since its introduction in June, brewers have been flocking to sign up for the credential, including in the buzzing Connecticut market that boasts more than 60 breweries statewide and counting.

More than 3,400 breweries have signed on for the seal nationwide, according to the Brewers Association. Use of the seal is free for qualified brewers.

The response has been incredible from brewers and the response has been incredible from beer lovers, Herz said.

Illusion of choice

American craft beer and local breweries have a growing foothold in the U.S. beer market, with well over 6,000 breweries nationwide in what is roughly a $68 billion industry, according to the Brewers Association.

Amid that growth, large-scale companies like Anheuser-Busch InBev and Heineken are taking a hit.

They are actually losing shares, so Big Beer is buying their way into the craft space by acquiring independent breweries and not putting their names on the beers they now own and purchased, Herz said. We call it illusion of choice, and its been referred to as craft washing.

For breweries to be able to use the newly created seal, they must be small and independent. Almost the entire brewery industry has adopted the seal since it was started last year, with more expected to follow.

Its a chance for beer lovers to have transparency and see and know that the beer that they are purchasing with that seal on it is an independent brewery in the United States, Herz said.

Connecticut beer

A number of Connecticut brewers are on board with using the seal, viewing it as a driver to move their market forward.

They are all small start-ups for the most part, unencumbered by corporate backing and Big Beer money, and that is really what this is about, said Peter Cowles, board member of Connecticuts Brewers Guild.

The craft beer scene has hit its stride in Connecticut since state law opened its doors to brewers in 2012.

Cowles said small brewers pride themselves on being independent and community-oriented, and the seal is one more way for them to show it.

Cowles, who is also founder and owner of Aspetuck Brew Labs in Bridgeport, quickly signed up for the brewers seal to support the growing independent movement. Its now featured on his packaging, front door and even the bumper of his car.

Once a brewer qualifies, the upside-down bottle logo can be displayed anywhere.

I think the seal has been a really great statement, Cowles said. The seal is about education and about being proud of being independent. Theres not a lot of transparency in this business.

Danbury-based brewer Scott Vallely sees the seal becoming a popular feature among Connecticut brewers, including his own Charter Oak Brewing Co.

He and his team have begun their process of applying for the seal and plan to add it to their redesigned packaging and within their new space on Shelter Rock Road.

As more brewers sign up for the seal, he said one of the biggest drivers will be added credibility. What that label does is pretty much confirms and endorses that indeed you are independent without justification or rationalization, he said.

Keeping it local

Whether beer lovers care where their favorite brews are coming from is debatable, but Kevin Fitzsimmons of the Hamden-based Elis Restaurant Group said a growing population of craft beer enthusiasts are leaning toward keeping things local.

Im a big beer guy, he said. I used to go to Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts to go to breweries. Now people are actually coming to us from out of state.

Fitzsimmons and his partners own several beer bars that carry local brews, which has become common for restaurants and package stores statewide.

The health of the states brewery market is complementary to other businesses, particularly bars, restaurants and food trucks, which are often stationed outside breweries. For some towns, breweries have become the local watering hole.

Fitzsimmons said consumer preferences are geared toward local brewers rather than Big Beer brands, which has turned the nations beer market upside-down, which in turn inspired the seals design.

If you know someone at the brewery, youre going to be drinking that beer, he said. Thats the way that local (businesses) should work.

jordan.grice@hearstmediact.com
It began, as so many plane debacles seem to, with strange sounds in the bathroom.

They were the noises of Jason Felix, one of the passengers on Wednesday's American Airlines flight out of Saint Croix, according to a FBI affidavit recounting events leading up to his arrest.

A flight attendant at the back of the plane could hear Felix rummaging around, opening and closing cabinets. When the attendant opened the door to check, Felix slammed it back shut and relocked it.

The passenger emerged some time later, in his "Unity" T-shirt, and cursed out the flight attendant as he made his way back to seat 17 B.

Another man had the aisle seat. He had been getting up each time Felix got up or sat down, listening each time Felix ordered a beer from the same attendant he insulted with slurs.

The man was a police officer in the U.S. Virgin Islands, he would later tell the FBI. He said he knew Felix there - or at least knew of him by reputation, which was apparently not good, and whatever had agitated him in the bathroom did not bode well for the rest of the flight.

Flight 1293 made good time from Saint Croix. It had been in the air about an hour when Felix pushed the button to summon the attendant and order another beer - and the attendant refused.

This time, the FBI agent wrote, Felix did not wait for his seatmate to let him out but climbed over the man's lap, swearing at the flight attendant and chasing after him to demand service.

"You need to please sit down. You're not drinking any more beers," the attendant said, as seen in another passenger's video. "We'll be there in an hour!"

But Felix kept arguing, waving his arms in the attendant's face. His neighbor was now standing, too, frowning at the back of Felix's head.

"Are you my bartender?" Felix asked.

"Yes, I'm your bartender," the attendant replied, and began to walk away.

He made it a few steps, the FBI agent wrote, then turned around to see Felix entangled with his seatmate. "They appeared to be hitting each other."

The man later reported that Felix spit blood at him, and tore off his plaid shirt. In video recorded by Bill Bolduc, from across the aisle, the two men are wrapped around each other while two other passengers attempt to pull them apart.

The passengers eventually push Felix back down into his seat, alternatively wrestling with him and attempting to soothe him while the pilot's voice comes over the speakers, asking everyone to fasten their seat belts.

"I'm gonna to kill you. I know you are a cop," Felix screamed at the man from the aisle seat, according to the FBI affidavit. He was so enraged that a flight attendant asked the officer to move to another seat, so the men couldn't see each other.

Even so, videos show Felix kept screaming insults.

"Chill out," said one of two passengers who had gotten up to hold him still, his arms wrapped around Felix in a bear hug.

"No, I don't want to chill," Felix said, his arms waving toward his former seatmate, his curses falling over each other. "That mother . . . run, see! . . . You run, you run!"

At some point, a flight attendant handed one of the passengers a pair of wrist restraints, though in the end they did not prove necessary. The flight crew and passengers managed to get him seated for the rest of the flight.

Bolduc, the video maker, told WSVN that Felix remained agitated for the remainder of the flight, though at least there were no more fights. He tried to order alcohol again, according to the FBI, and when served water, gave it to another passenger.

In Bolduc's final video, after landing in Miami, Felix has put on sunglasses and put back a hat he seemed to lose in the fight.

At least four police officers boarded the plane. Felix pulled out his ear buds, seemed to argue with them for a few seconds, but eventually let them escort him off the plane.

He was arrested and ordered to be held until a detention hearing on Tuesday, facing a charge of interfering with flight crew that carries up to a 20-year sentence.

His public defenders did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Public trust in government remains low. Only about one-quarter of Americans say they can trust the government in Washington to do what is right just about always (2%) or most of the time (22%), according to Pew Research Center. Since 2007, the share saying they can trust the government always or most of the time has not surpassed 30%. Do you trust the U.S. government?

You voted:
3 hours ago

Inflation Playbook: 3 Stocks to Consider Buying Now

Inflation and transitory are probably two words that investors are getting tired of hearing, yet its important to understand that this is what is moving markets following the pandemic. Every Consumer

Read Article
Prep Polls: Watertown among four area football teams rated along with Arlington's volleyball team

Four area football teams and one area volleyball team continue to be ranked this week in the South Dakota Prep Media polls.
LAVAL, QUE.The unions representing train operators and signalling workers at Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. have served the company with notice of a strike action.

The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers have told CP Rail they will be in a position to strike as of 10 p.m. ET Tuesday.

In a statement issued Saturday, the unions accused the company of refusing to negotiate seriously, after workers rejected its latest contract offer on Friday.

CP is offering more of the same contract language that workers just voted to reject a few hours ago, TCRC president Doug Finnson said in the statement.

The company clearly isnt serious about reaching a negotiated settlement and delivering on their promise to do right by their employees.

An IBEW representative quoted in the same statement said CP has continually changed directions during negotiations, giving no indication that a settlement was possible.

We have given CP every reasonable opportunity to negotiate and avoid a strike, but sadly that has led us nowhere, said Steve Martin, senior general chairman from IBEW System Council No. 11.

The unions said they are committed to working with federal mediators to reach a settlement, and they will remain at the bargaining table until the May 29 strike deadline and beyond.

In its own statement, CP said it has commenced its work stoppage contingency plan and will work toward a safe wind-down of operations.

CP will continue to meet with the TCRC and the IBEW in the hopes of reaching agreements that are in the best interests of the entire CP family, its customers, shareholders and the broader North American economy, the railway said.

Via Rail Canada, southern Ontario transit operator Metrolinx, and the BC Rapid Transit Co. have all said a strike at CP Rail would result in disruptions, although the unions said Saturday that commuter train services would not be affected by a Teamsters strike.

CP Rail train crews have engaged in two strikes in the past few years: In 2015, they ended a brief walkout and agreed to arbitration after the Harper government warned of back-to-work legislation; three years earlier, federal back-to-work legislation was enacted to end a 10-day strike.

About 3,000 members of the TCRC voted roughly 98 per cent against the companys most recent offer Friday. The IBEW, which represents some 360 signal and communications workers, voted about 97 per cent against the offer.

The results came after the federal government intervened last month to force union members to vote on the companys offer, ending mediated talks between the railway and the two unions. Union negotiators had recommended that their members reject the offer.
CALGARYA central part of the city now stands as symbol to encourage Calgarians to talk about reconciliation.

On Saturday, more than a year after Langevin Bridge was renamed to Reconciliation Bridge on maps, in city documents and online, a ceremony officially celebrated a new plaque for the bridge.

More than 150 people gathered on the north side of the bridge for a prayer circle before walking across together, led by young Indigenous flag bearers. In attendance were elders, traditional knowledge keepers and youth from Treaty 7 First Nations, the Metis Nation Region 3 and the Inuit community.

And in the public ceremony that followed, an emotional crowd listened to stories from Indigenous people, young and old.

I think its symbolic that the bridge brings us together again, said Cindy Provost, Indigenous strategic engagement officer for the Calgary Police Service. With all those stories from the past, but all of our new stories.

The 108-year-old bridge was named after Hector-Louis Langevin, who was one of the Fathers of Confederation, a cabinet minister and an architect of Canadas residential school system.

Swapping the name came after a push years ago during the Truth And Reconciliation Report talks and subsequent release in 2015. The report details the impact of Canadas residential school system, a process that was built to separate Indigenous children from their families and erode their culture.

Rod Hunter, a residential school survivor and former councillor in Morley, spoke to the crowd with sobering details of his experience. He wanted to underline the importance of renaming the bridge that spans the Bow River.

I thought for sure I wasnt going to make it out of that school, he said. What it means to me to rename that is something great for me because of what I went through and what many survivors went through, theres some still here, it means a great deal, it means thank you from our hearts for recognizing us, for reconciliation.

Mayor Naheed Nenshi said renaming the bridge was an important step for Calgary and Canadians.

We tried to be a beacon of light and hope in an often dark world, we tried, but we havent always succeeded, said Nenshi. And certainly our greatest failure as a nation, our greatest failure is failing to have included our Indigenous brothers and sisters in the prosperity of this place.

Read more:

Symbol of healing looking for permanent home in Calgary

Indigenous and Asian communities gather for cultural exchange

Gillian Steward: Reconciliation in rural Canada is still a long way off

Read more about:
CALGARYA committee helping crew members to unionize see Westjets strike saga as a sobering reminder that they need to act, and not be left behind, as the company preps to launch its low-cost carrier Swoop.

This week the threat of a pilot strike showed how vulnerable cabin crew members remain, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE)  the group currently working with WestJet flight attendants who want to form a union.

As pilots geared up for a possible strike, WestJet released a statement to the Star stating they didnt have any details on what might happen to cabin crew staff should a third-party strike happen.

But after the threat of a strike dissipated on Friday, CUPE released a statement standing behind the pilots and congratulating them for their determination.

The pilots proved this week that organizing for our rights is the best way for all WestJetters (including Cabin Crew) to move forward, read the statement. But this agreement for pilots also highlights the fact that Cabin Crew remain vulnerable. ALPA is standing up for WestJet pilots. No one is standing up for WestJet flight attendants.

The WestJet-CUPE Organizing Committee said they are very close to forming a union for flight attendants.

It is essential now that Cabin Crew dont get left behind when Swoop launches next month, read the statement. The best way to advance our working conditions and maintain our job security is to stand together and join CUPE, Canadas flight attendant union.

Westjet spokesperson Lauren Stewart said the company is working on a new agreement with cabin crew employees.

WestJet cabin crew members have an employee association which is currently working on an updated agreement with them, she said. We respect our employees right to choose their representation and believe that working directly with our employees is a better model.

WestJet and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) agreed to use final and binding arbitration on Friday, avoiding the strike that threatened the airlines operations. Pilots were legally allowed to launch a strike action last Saturday but committed not to disrupt passenger travel plans over the Victoria Day long weekend.

WestJet CEO Ed Sims said the company lost tens of millions of dollars over the uncertainty about a possible strike. He noted that the airline hopes to reach a deal with the union no later than the end of June.

With files from The Canadian Press.

Read more about:
HALIFAXWhen Dooma Wendschuh told his wife he was leaving the world of video games to develop a beer brewed from cannabis, she had some reservations.

My wife (said) I married a writer and I was so excited about that, and now youre telling me you want to become a drug dealer, Wendschuh said after his presentation on cannabis opportunities for brewers at the Canadian Brewing Awards and Conference in Halifax.

It was really hard. Making that jump was the hardest thing Ive done in my life and the past five years have probably taken several years off my life expectancy.

Wendschuh, who left a successful video game writing company that had worked on titles such as the Assassins Creed franchise, is the CEO of Province Brands of Canada which is developing a beer brewed from cannabis. The beer is brewed using waste product from cannabis growers, such as stalks and stems of the plants, and contains no alcohol.

The Ontario-based company is currently developing two different products. One is a non-alcoholic beer brewed from barley that is then infused with cannabis oil. The other is made completely from cannabis and its this new brewing technology that has Wendschuh the most excited.

If we can create something that is a true alternative to alcohol, you know, that could change the world in so many ways  to make that kind of change and to create something that could be healthier and safer but still convey a lot of the benefits of psychoactives, he said.

Thinking back in my own life, so many of the most memorable and most important experiences of my life involved some kind of a psychoactive substance. You know I never would have gotten married if I didnt have alcohol on the day I proposed to my wife. I would have chickened out. The champagne really helped ... I was so nervous.

He said the end goal is to create an alternative to alcohol that will still provide a similar experience in feeling, although that will take years of research and development. The current goal is to create something that will affect the consumer and leave their system in a similar amount of time as alcohol would.

Through alcohol you can relax, you can be more natural, you can build bonds with people that you cant normally build but its like a tradeoff because every time you do that youre sort of shortening your life expectancy, he said. And I would love for there to be a product which could give a lot of those benefits without so many of the harms.

The biggest challenge to that goal is the difference in how alcohol and cannabis are metabolized. When cannabis is eaten it takes a long time to take effect and can last for several hours. Province Brand is currently experimenting with accelerants to help create a similar uptake time to alcohol.

As it currently stands, the product contains six and a half milligrams of THC and has a total phytocannabinoid content of nine milligrams. Currently THC amount is the only phytocannabinoid being regulated by the government, something that worries Wendschuh.

There [are] 144 phytocannabinoids that can be found in a marijuana plant and some of those other ones could get you pretty rocked, he said.

The regulators arent seeing the full picture by only sort of paying attention to one of those compounds and people could take advantage and make something that only has six and a half milligrams [of THC] but actually had, you know, a whole bunch of some other non-THC compounds and maybe was really strong.

But dont be expecting to see the beer hitting the shelves at your local cannabis provider any time soon. Because the product is a consumable, it will not be initially covered by Bill C-45 that will legalize recreational cannabis in Canada this year. The federal government has announced that consumables will be legalized the following year, which is when Province Brands plans to launch its product.

The company obtained a license allowing them to work with cannabis and is planning to open a brewing facility in the near future to continue developing the product.

Wendschuh said that he thinks the cannabis industry could be the first step in what he calls a more sensible approach towards drug policy.

If we can start with cannabis, he said, we might realize that there are other substances that are less harmful than alcohol that we might want to legalize as well and give people opportunities, you know, to still enjoy the many benefits of psychoactives without doing so much harm to themselves.

Read more about:
HALIFAXNova Scotias police watchdog has identified the 24-year-old man who died after being shot by police in an incident this weekend.

Officers had been responding to a weapons complaint at a home in the Dartmouth community of Westphal just before 8 a.m. Saturday when the incident happened, RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jennifer Clarke said.

The man had been threatening to shoot another man. He fled to a wooded area when police arrived, Clarke said. While officers were trying to find him using a police dog, they were confronted by the man resulting in officers discharging their firearms.

The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene.

The investigation was handed over to the Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT), the agency that investigates serious incidents involving police in Nova Scotia.

On Sunday, SIRT director Felix Cacchione identified the man who died as Bradley Thomas Clattenburg of Truro.

A Facebook page for Bradley Clattenburg states he was working as a roofer, and had graduated from Nova Scotia Community College with a certificate in sheet-metal work.

Cacchione said SIRT will look into the circumstances surrounding the mans death, and added that the shooting took place near the Mariner Auctions building on Broom Road.

He added the agency is encouraging anyone who may have witnessed the incident to come forward.

With files from The Canadian Press

Read more about:
OTTAWAThere is money in the bank. Voters in the hopper. And from many angles, a spring in the step of many Conservatives these days.

One year of Andrew Scheer, observers say, has not exactly been flashy but he has done the Conservative Party some good.

Hes been steady, says Tim Powers, a conservative strategist and vice-chairman of Ottawa-based firm Summa Strategies. Youd probably give him a solid B or B plus.

Carl Vallee, a former press secretary for the government of Stephen Harper and now a partner in Montreal strategy firm Hatley, calls Scheer very, very constant.

Scheer, the 39-year-old, dimple-cheeked father of five, has spent a year fashioning himself as the everyman to Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus jet-setting millionaire ways. His advertising plays up the fact that while Trudeau grew up with a silver spoon or two, Scheer was raised in suburban Ottawa by middle-class parents who didnt even own a car.

Since Scheer took over as leader, the Conservative fundraising machine is back in full tilt. The last two quarters were the best the party has had since the 2015 election, and the Conservatives are outpacing the Liberals on the money front  by almost two dollars to one in the first three months of 2018.

The polls, while volatile and often hard to parse this far away from an actual vote, have still been favourable of late for the Conservatives, showing them tied with or in spitting distance of the Liberals. If nothing else, the polls serve as a shot of morale in the arm of the Tory caucus and help in the recruitment of candidates.

Theres certainly no mass panic at the moment, Powers said.

As a former speaker, Scheer is one of the most recognizable faces within the Ottawa bubble but outside of it, hes probably not the first name many people think of when asked to name a Tory politician. Vallee says in Quebec, Maxime Bernier is likely still the most well-known. In Ontario and Alberta, provincial Tory leaders Doug Ford and Jason Kenney are eating up more air time.

Powers said its not horrible if Ford or Kenney are getting more attention currently because they have elections to win before Scheer does. He says the big question mark for Scheer will come in August, when the Conservatives host their first policy convention since he took over as leader. It will also be about the one-year mark from the next election and Scheer has to use it to start to define himself and his version of conservatism.

Duane Bratt, a politics professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, said Scheers biggest problem may be that he is still not well known.

He says any polls favouring the Conservatives have more to do with people being annoyed with Trudeau than with Scheer. And while Scheer has criticized many Liberal policies there have been few alternatives put forward, including how hed handle the Trans Mountain pipeline or address climate change without a carbon price.

Powers notes that Scheer has easily had a better year than either Trudeau or new NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, but it hasnt been a year devoid of fires entirely.

The appearance or reality of ongoing discord between Scheer Conservatives and those who supported Bernier  Scheer barely beat him on the final ballot of the leadership  continues to float beneath the surface like the lava of a Hawaiian volcano, threatening to burst through at any moment.

Bernier himself caused an eruption when he published a teaser chapter from a coming book that said Scheer had won the leadership only thanks to the support of fake Conservatives in Quebec. They were people from the powerful dairy lobby, said Bernier, who joined the party only to vote against Bernier and his policy opposing supply management, which regulates production and pricing of milk, eggs and chicken.

After a raucous caucus meeting, Bernier suddenly announced he would put off publication of the entire book  initially scheduled for this fall  in order to fully back Scheer as party leader.

They both have found a way to work together, Vallee said.

Brad Trost, the Saskatchewan social conservative MP whose surprise fourth-place finish in the leadership gave him some initial clout to push the partys position, has mostly been sidelined after losing the nomination to run again in his riding.

However, his ongoing lawsuit against the party over accusations he gave out the partys membership list inappropriately is a simmering issue, and the social Conservatives who backed Trost and then shifted to Scheer may be a little restless in Trosts absence.

The biggest push Scheer has made of late is in Quebec. The second-most populous province has not been an easy road for the Tories since Brian Mulroney was prime minister, but Vallee says the collapse of support in Quebec for the NDP and the disintegrating Bloc Quebecois are opening the door to a two-horse federal race in 2019: Trudeau or Scheer.

Scheer has launched what he calls a listening tour in Quebec this spring, complete with a website listeningtoquebecers.ca, and he travelled to the province multiple times in May.

Vallee said there is a natural home for nationalist Quebecers in the Conservative Party of Canada, because many of their values are similar, particularly when it comes to fears about preserving language, heritage and history.

Read more about:
Each time Dawn Novak hears about another woman killed at the hands of a domestic partner, she is disturbed anew by a sentiment far too commonly expressed in the aftermath.

Always, what angers me a great deal is when I hear the sound bites of neighbours saying, Oh, who would have known? He was such a nice man.

Nice men dont murder their family, Novak said. And there are always red flags that were missed.

No domestic homicide just happens, she said.

This week, Novak will deliver the opening speech at a Toronto police conference on domestic homicides  part of the federal governments Victims and Survivors of Crime Week. Its a topic that event organizer Det. Ann-Marie Tupling says is too often pushed aside despite its tragic prevalence.

In giving the talk, Novak feels she is returning to ground zero.

Twelve years ago this month, her daughter Natalie, a 20-year-old from Bracebridge, was killed by her abuser and former boyfriend in her Toronto apartment.

Natalie, who was in Ryerson Universitys hospitality and tourism management program, was staying in the city to work over the summer.

Just before 3:30 a.m. on May 15, 2006, screams were heard coming from Novaks bedroom in a Chinatown home she rented with five other students. Summoned by multiple 911 calls, police and paramedics arrived to find she had been repeatedly stabbed and her throat slit in what one homicide cop described as a vicious attack.

In 2009, Novaks ex-boyfriend, Arssei Hindessa, was convicted of second-degree murder. Sentencing him to 18 years in prison before parole eligibility, Justice Anne Molloy called the murder extreme butchery, noting it had elements of planning and deliberation that edged on first-degree murder.

As research has repeatedly shown, there are typically many signs that put a domestic violence victim at a high risk of being killed. Red flags include a history of violence in the relationship, and whether a breakup has happened or is in the process.

In only one of the recent cases of domestic homicide, Ajax mother Krassimira Pejcinovski told her boss that her boyfriend, Cory Fenn, had been violent toward her and the couple were in the midst of a breakup. Weeks later, in March, she was killed alongside her teenage son and daughter. Fenn has been charged with three counts of second-degree murder.

Natalies case, too, had many signs that Novak now says were glaring. Without laying blame, she feels its important to acknowledge that signs were missed. Novak recalls noting a significant shift in Natalie, the summer before her death, that could have been a warning. Having always been confident, Natalie was suddenly unsure of herself, telling her mom she thought she was a loser.

I didnt know this person  I didnt know what had happened to her. And this was fairly early. There was a seven-month period to come that we would know nothing about, Novak said.

In the months before Natalies death, Hindessa had been convicted of assaulting her, and his probation order prohibited him from contacting her. In all, Novak said her daughter contacted police 18 times over a 17-month period before her death.

Read more:

New study explores extent of brain injuries in victims of domestic violence in Canada

Opinion | Bill C-75 reforms too little, too late to respond to domestic violence

Domestic violence prevention should start with communities, experts say

Among the problems was that when Hindessa was released, he had no fixed address and was unemployed  two things now better recognized as risk factors leading to domestic violence. Novak says that illustrates how supporting the perpetrators of violence, not only the victims, is key to prevention.

We have to mitigate what is going on with these offenders. Would the outcome have changed if hed had counselling? Novak wonders, adding that, while housing was ultimately arranged for Hindessa, it wasnt until several months into his probation and in the meantime hed pushed his way into her house by playing on guilt.

Natalie had also told one of her roommates that she did not want to be with Hindessa, then 30, describing him as too possessive and saying she wanted to date someone closer to her own age. The roommate would later tell investigators he heard Natalie yell Get off me right before her death.

We all sat with bits and pieces of a puzzle that we refused to take the courage to put together and look at, or we were too busy  or absolutely ignorant of the issues, Novak said.

Since her daughters death, Novak has dedicated herself to erasing that ignorance. Just months after the tragedy, she established the Natalie Novak Fund for the Education and Prevention of Relationship Violence, which has led her to speak to scores of groups ranging from young people to police officers to corrections and probation officials. She also authored a detailed analysis of her daughters death, which is now a case study in some Ontario police training facilities. Alongside her husband, Ed Novak, Dawn won the Ontario Attorney Generals Victim Services Award.

I speak to educate. I speak of the missed opportunities that took place in Natalies case, she said.

Wednesdays conference, however, will be the first time Novak speaks at a Toronto police event, which carries extra significance given that it was the police service involved in Natalies case. Stressing that she does not place blame on a single agency, Novak said she also wonders what might have happened if her daughter had dealt with an officer who was informed about trauma and violence.

Novak says she is convinced police are improving when it comes to supporting victims of domestic abuse  for instance, by showing a willingness to work with social agencies.

I see more openness. I see more willingness to listen. I see slow but positive changes, Novak said.

Tupling, the Toronto police domestic violence co-ordinator, said talking about intimate partner violence is as important as ever. Crime statistics across the city and province show these deaths are not decreasing, and she worries other issues have overtaken the publics attention.

Its not the talk right now, she said. We need to refresh peoples memories that this is still going on  This problem has not been solved.

Thats part of the rationale behind Tuplings one-day conference, held as continuing education for police, victims service organizations and others who work in the field or are affected by domestic violence.

Toronto police are also releasing a video called Make It Your Business, encouraging people to intervene if they know someone is being abused. Because it depicts a disturbing scene of violence, the video includes a warning to viewers.

As reported in the video, about 4,000 people are charged with domestic violence offences each year in Toronto, but police estimate that represents only a quarter of actual cases.

Among others slated to speak at Wednesdays conference is Toronto police Staff Sgt. Tam Bui, who will discuss the case of Bridget Takyi, a 27-year-old mother of two who in 2013 was viciously stabbed then burned by Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah, her ex-boyfriend and father of her children.

In that case, Owusu-Ansah had been charged with assault with a weapon and threatening death in relation to a previous attack on Takyi, but had been released on bail. He proceeded to stalk then kill her.

The law couldnt protect her from him before and Im scared it wont be able to protect all of us now, Takyis mother, Juliana Mensah, testified at Owusu-Ansahs 2015 sentencing hearing, when he was sent to prison with no chance of parole for 22 years.

As you can see from his history, he destroys what he cant have and my fear is that if he ever comes out and the kids reject him, he will kill them as well.

The devastating impact of domestic violence on families and friends of those killed is, in fact, the focus of Tuplings conference, called Ripple Effect. Its a theme Novak says is vital to discuss and understand.

In Natalies case, the cascading effect continues to this day, Novak said, as she continues her work to increase awareness about domestic violence and the threats of unhealthy relationships.

Natalies ripple is large. Natalies ripple is a wave, she said. Thousands of people now know her name, know the mistakes of her case, and what happened.
The homicide unit is investigating after a Toronto woman was found dead inside a home in East York early Saturday morning.

Police were called around 2:15 a.m. to a residence on Torrens Ave., in the area of OConnor Dr. and Pape Ave.

When officers arrived, they found the body of the victim with obvious signs of trauma, Det. Sgt. Mike Carbone told reporters. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

She has been identified as Rhoderie Estrada, 41, who was a resident of the home. Carbone said an autopsy will be performed on Sunday. Estrada is Torontos 33rd homicide victim this year.

Police believe the victim was killed between 10:30 p.m. on Friday and 2:15 a.m. on Saturday, when an unknown person entered the house through a side window, said Carbone.

No information on suspects has been released.

Investigators are appealing for witnesses who were in the area at the time, or saw something suspicious, to call the homicide unit or Crime Stoppers.

Note: This article has been corrected from a previous version that contained incorrect information about the time when police arrived at the residence on Saturday.
Thousands of visitors took advantage of the nice weather on the weekend and flocked to various buildings across the city for the annual Doors Open Toronto.

The annual event gives the public the unique opportunity to tour and explore more than 130 architecturally, historically, culturally and socially significant buildings in Toronto for free.

Doors Opens theme for this year was Film: The Great Romance, celebrating the citys film and television industry. The weekend festivities kicked off Friday with a free film screening at Ontario Place Cinesphere.

Numerous film and television studios, post-production houses, digital media studios, artist-run centres and film training schools were featured in this years event. City buildings and locations that have served as a backdrop for movies and TV were also part of the program.

The event included City Hall, recently a location for the TV series The Handmaids Tale. Visitors were given access to key locations, including the Mayors office, the 27th-floor observation deck, council chambers and the Green Roof.

Doors Open Toronto also included film screenings, exhibits and walking tours, musical performances. According to the city, the annual event has attracted more than two million visits to more than 700 different buildings in the city since 2000.
Chris Rices goal began with a casual remark from his stepmother.

Rice, who lives in Keswick, Ont., was talking on the phone with his dad in 2016. Scott was on speaker phone when Rices stepmom, chimed in with a strange comment.

Oh, so I hear youre going to dance at Kates wedding, she said, referring to his best friend from high school, Kate Jollymore, who was planning her wedding for the following year.

Its unclear how the rumour about Rice started, but his stepmother told him it was circulating in Bridgetown, N.S., where Rice grew up and where his dad still lived.

I told her thats crazy talk, Rice says. After all, everyone back home knew he was paralyzed from the chest down, a result of a diving accident in 2012.

But it got him thinking.

The accident that changed his life happened on a warm weekend afternoon at his moms backyard pool.

Rice had completed his first year of criminology studies at St. Thomas University in Fredericton, with thoughts of becoming a police officer. That summer he was visiting his mother in Keswick while working nearby to earn money for school.

His younger brother, Alex, had flown in from Nova Scotia and the two had spent the day at a music festival. They headed to their moms place, put on their shorts and jumped in the backyard pool to cool off.

He had helped build the pool. He knew it had only four feet of water.

Rice doesnt remember exactly what happened. But he dove in and landed on his head with his feet straight up in the air.

Did he slip on something or miscalculate his dive? Hes not sure to this day.

Afterwards, as he floated face down, he realized he couldnt move. Except for his arms  they were flapping wildly but he wasnt controlling them.

I had no sensation from the bottom of my chest down, Rice recalls. It was terrifying.

Plus his head was in the water. He started to panic.

His stepbrother, who was in the pool, rolled Rice over in the water.

Rice was later rushed to Southlake Regional Health Centre in Newmarket. Thats where an ER nurse delivered grim news to his mother and stepfather: he had crushed the front of his C7 vertebra at the base of the neck which sent a chunk of bone into his spinal cord.

His family was told it was quite possible hed never regain the use of his legs. He went on to recover significant use of his arms, but the injury caused lasting nerve damage to all four limbs.

Rice was shocked to hear the word quadriplegic.

Chris Rices accident happened June 23, 2012, less than two weeks after his 19th birthday.

He was rushed to surgery at Sunnybrook hospital, where doctors performed a C7 anterior corpectomy to decompress the spinal cord. They had to carefully remove the front part of the C7 vertebra and put in a titanium plate that was secured with four screws.

The plate, which Rice still has, acts as a bridge and provides structure, linking to other vertebra.

Our central nervous system is made up of the brain and spinal cord.

The spinal cord looks like a thick rope, cream in colour. It has nerves that send messages between the brain and our bodies. The vertebrae are the bones that form the spine and the tunnel that houses the cord.

I had no sensation from the bottom of my chest down. It was terrifying. Chris Rice

About two weeks after the procedure, Rice was transferred to the Toronto Rehabilitation Institutes Lyndhurst Centre in North York, which is part of a network of rehabilitation sciences centres in the city.

The hospitals mandate is to help people who have disabling injuries, illnesses or age-related conditions, live more active and independent lives.

Rice credits Lyndhurst and a number of people for helping him find the courage to persevere and strive to regain the use of his legs, long before there was a friends wedding to serve as added motivation.

Those people include his mother, Susan Abbott, who took time off work for three years to care for Rice; kinesiologists who pushed him with aggressive physiotherapy; and a peer support worker from Spinal Cord Injury Ontario, a non-profit group that assisted him.

Having the support is what got me ... from downward spiral after the injury, to initiating the switch to thinking about life not being over and finding ways to do things that I didnt think Id be able to do again, Rice says.

Spinal Cord Injury Ontario, which runs its central office in the Lyndhurst facility, provides a peer support service that has 120 volunteers. The service matches clients and staff who already have spinal cord injuries with people who are newly injured.

Thats how peer support worker Ivan Rendulic was paired with Rice, who in the first year after his accident was struggling with mental battles that were at least as taxing as the physical ones.

Laying in bed, nights are the worst, Rice says. Thats when youre the most vulnerable and you feel like you have no one to talk to. You cant really text your friends because its hard for them to understand.

He had troubling thoughts. Rice, single at the time of the accident, wondered who would be attracted to him given that he uses a wheelchair. And even if he found someone, would he be able to perform sexually? (He says he can, and he recently started dating someone.)

You have so many thoughts, he says. Ill never do certain things, Ill have no future, my life is basically over. Then you get into some very dark places, where you feel youre a burden to everyone around you. A burden to my family ... to the health-care system. And thats where suicidal thoughts creep in.

Rendulic, the peer support worker, listened and offered insights, assuring him the emotions he was going through were common.

I opened myself and shared all the good and bad experiences I had when I was an inpatient, says Rendulic, who now co-ordinates the peer support program.

Rendulic damaged his spinal cord in May 1994 when a tree fell on his lower back, leaving him paraplegic. He cannot use his legs. The incident happened while he was clear-cutting an area to build a retirement home for his father.

Rendulic, 47, struggled emotionally and physically after his injury but pushed and pushed through.

Hopefully I can help alleviate some pain people are feeling and help them transition to the other part of their lives they really want to get to, Rendulic says of his peer work.

In 2013, a year after Rices accident, he was determined to use his legs again. He started going to Walk it Off, a neurological rehabilitation facility in Newmarket. He would later be paired with kinesiologists who administer physiotherapy, such as Rebecca Wheeler.

When we first started working together, he really didnt have much function below his chest, Wheeler recalls, adding he had strong spasms in both his legs that prevented him from walking or standing.

He has used medications to help control the spasms. Meanwhile, Wheeler has taken him through a challenging physical program in which he has gone from using a harness for mobility, to a walker, to walking assisted by two people.

Chris Rice damaged his spinal cord in 2012 while diving into his mom's backyard pool in Keswick. He was told he'd likely never be able to use his legs again. He has proven doctors and nurses wrong. Here he takes steps with kinesiologist Rebecca Wheeler recently at Walk it Off, a neurological rehabilitation centre in Newmarket.

Rebecca Wheeler practised with Rice to get him ready for the big wedding dance. But it was more than a pas de deux.

The whole clinic looked forward to him accomplishing that task, the kinesiologist says. We were all very excited for him.

To get to the wedding, Rice drove for 21 hours, alone, to Nova Scotia in his Mazda 5 minivan, which he has modified to accommodate him. He can also get in and out of it on his own.

The night before the ceremony, he and Kate practised during the dress rehearsal.

The wedding was on June 23, 2017  the fifth anniversary of the accident.

The time had come. He wheeled up to the dance floor.

Rice got into an upright position while Scott, his dad, pulled the wheelchair backwards. Rice used his strength to raise himself with the help of his walker. His stepmom cast the walker aside.

He and Kate chose the song Green Eyes by Coldplay because of the line you are the rock upon which I stand. As he stood, Kate helped support him by gently holding him under his arms as the two softly swayed to the music.

I was shifting my weight from one leg to the other, lightly moving my hips side to side, Rice recalls. I was shaking from nerves  dancing in front of 200 people for the first time.

A minute or so into the song, couples paired up and joined them on the dance floor.

I was really proud of him, says Jollymore. Hes come such a long way.

The moment was powerful for Rice. It was also vindication.

It was a five-year journey to that point, he says. It was something I was repeatedly told Id never do.

These days Rice continues to live in Keswick with his mother, who says shes thrilled with everything he has accomplished since his accident.

He can do so much on his own, says Susan Abbott, who has returned to work full time.

Aside from a busy schedule of physiotherapy and exercise at a gym, he enjoys going to concerts and car races. He has even done the EdgeWalk high atop the CN Tower  they had me on a strap and leaned my wheelchair completely over the edge.

And within the last three months Wheeler has worked alone with him, helping him take more footsteps.

I face him. I walk backwards as he walks forward ... Im really just spotting him in case he gets tripped up on his toes or needs a break. Im mostly there for safety, she says. He can walk about 60 metres in this manner.

Chris Rice became a paraplegic after a horrible diving accident in his mom's pool in in 2012. He damaged his spinal cord but with encouragement and intense physiotherapy he has reached milestones, including this one, shot recently at Walk it Off, a neurological rehabilitation facility in Newmarket.

Overall, his level of motivation and determination has played a major role in Rices progress, Wheeler says.

He is constantly trying to better himself, which is why hes been so successful.

Rice also volunteers, including as a peer support mentor for Spinal Cord Injury Ontario, which he began doing in 2015.

When he speaks to others he doesnt try to force anything on anyone. He gently suggests ideas while listening and trying to be supportive.

If the subject of their recovery comes up he has to choose his words wisely, because not everyone with a spinal cord injury will have the success he has had.

Walking happens for some people, for some it doesnt, he says. You can get everything back, some or nothing.

Two years ago Chris Rice's step mom mentioned that she'd heard he planned to dance the following year at his best friend Kate's wedding in Nova Scotia. Rice, who was paralyzed below the chest after a diving accident in Keswick in 2012 thought the idea was crazy at first. But then he took it on as a challenge. Here he is dancing with Kate in June 2017.

Read more about:
It began, as so many plane debacles seem to, with strange sounds in the bathroom.

They were the noises of Jason Felix, one of the passengers on Wednesdays American Airlines flight out of Saint Croix, according to a FBI affidavit recounting events leading up to his arrest.

A flight attendant at the back of the plane could hear Felix rummaging around, opening and closing cabinets. When the attendant opened the door to check, Felix slammed it back shut and relocked it.

The passenger emerged some time later, in his Unity T-shirt, and cursed out the flight attendant as he made his way back to seat 17 B.

Another man had the aisle seat. He had been getting up each time Felix got up or sat down, listening each time Felix ordered a beer from the same attendant he insulted with slurs.

The man was a police officer in the U.S. Virgin Islands, he would later tell the FBI. He said he knew Felix there  or at least knew of him by reputation, which was apparently not good, and whatever had agitated him in the bathroom did not bode well for the rest of the flight.

Flight 1293 made good time from Saint Croix. It had been in the air about an hour when Felix pushed the button to summon the attendant and order another beer  and the attendant refused.

This time, the FBI agent wrote, Felix did not wait for his seatmate to let him out but climbed over the mans lap, swearing at the flight attendant and chasing after him to demand service.

You need to please sit down. Youre not drinking any more beers, the attendant said, as seen in another passengers video. Well be there in an hour!

But Felix kept arguing, waving his arms in the attendants face. His neighbor was now standing, too, frowning at the back of Felixs head.

Are you my bartender? Felix asked.

Yes, Im your bartender, the attendant replied, and began to walk away.

He made it a few steps, the FBI agent wrote, then turned around to see Felix entangled with his seatmate. They appeared to be hitting each other.

The man later reported that Felix spit blood at him, and tore off his plaid shirt. In video recorded by Bill Bolduc, from across the aisle, the two men are wrapped around each other while two other passengers attempt to pull them apart.

The passengers eventually push Felix back down into his seat, alternatively wrestling with him and attempting to soothe him while the pilots voice comes over the speakers, asking everyone to fasten their seat belts.

Im gonna to kill you. I know you are a cop, Felix screamed at the man from the aisle seat, according to the FBI affidavit. He was so enraged that a flight attendant asked the officer to move to another seat, so the men couldnt see each other.

Even so, videos show Felix kept screaming insults.

Chill out, said one of two passengers who had gotten up to hold him still, his arms wrapped around Felix in a bear hug.

No, I dont want to chill, Felix said, his arms waving toward his former seatmate, his curses falling over each other. That mother . . . run, see! . . . You run, you run!

At some point, a flight attendant handed one of the passengers a pair of wrist restraints, though in the end they did not prove necessary. The flight crew and passengers managed to get him seated for the rest of the flight.

Bolduc, the video maker, told WSVN that Felix remained agitated for the remainder of the flight, though at least there were no more fights. He tried to order alcohol again, according to the FBI, and when served water, gave it to another passenger.

In Bolducs final video, after landing in Miami, Felix has put on sunglasses and put back a hat he seemed to lose in the fight.

At least four police officers boarded the plane. Felix pulled out his ear buds, seemed to argue with them for a few seconds, but eventually let them escort him off the plane.

He was arrested and ordered to be held until a detention hearing on Tuesday, facing a charge of interfering with flight crew that carries up to a 20-year sentence.

His public defenders did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
BERLINSeveral thousand demonstrators from across Germany gathered in the capital Sunday for a rally organized by the far-right Alternative for Germany party, with anti-AfD protesters lining the route in central Berlin.

About 2,000 police officers provided security for the AfD.

The party estimated that about 5,000 had turned out for its event. Previously, the party said about 1,000 would attend.

Started as a euroskeptic party, the AfD got a boost in 2015 after Chancellor Angela Merkel announced an open-door policy to refugees fleeing places such as Syria and Afghanistan. The surge in foreigners stoked public concerns that helped the AfD enter the national parliament last year as the main opposition party.

But the partys success has also prompted a pushback from various groups under the umbrella organization Stop the Hate.

Thousands of counterdemonstrators lined the Spree River near the Reichstag building, the seat of the parliament, putting themselves along the path the AfD members were planning to take from Berlins central train station to the Brandenburg Gate.

The counterdemonstrators booed and whistled at the AfD supporters. Some also launched boats in the river to protest.

Leftist groups have also announced plans to blockade the AfD supporters movements.

Not to be outdone, representatives of Berlins night-life scene said they would also launch a parade of musical floats towards a site near to the gate.

Read more about:
WASHINGTONJoshua Holt, a Utah man who travelled to Venezuela in 2016 to marry a woman he met online but soon found himself jailed and later branded the CIAs top spy in Latin America, has been set free by the anti-American Maduro government.

He says he was overwhelmed with gratitude.

Holt and his wife, Thamara Caleno, arrived Saturday evening at Washington Dulles International Airport for a tearful reunion with his parents, Laurie and Jason Holt. A few hours later, President Donald Trump welcomed them to the White House.

Those two years, they were a very, very, very difficult two years, said an emotional Joshua Holt, sitting next to Trump in the Oval Office. Not really the great vacation that I was looking for. ... Im just so grateful for what you guys have done.

Read More:

Canada joins G7, EU in statement rejecting recent election of Venezuelas Maduro

More than 500 killed over 2 years in Venezuelan government anti-crime campaign: report

International outcry grows over disputed Venezuela vote

To Holt, Trump said: Youve gone through a lot. More than most people could endure.

The Utah mans mother, Laurie Holt, thanked Trump and the lawmakers for her sons safe return, adding: I also want to say thank you to President Maduro for releasing Josh and letting him come home.

Their release came one day after Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., held a surprise meeting in Caracas with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the Trump administration says runs a dictatorship and just won re-election in a sham vote.

Trump, in a tweet, described Holt as a hostage. The U.S. contended Holt was held on trumped-up charges.

Months of secret, back-channel talks between an aide to Corker, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and close allies of Maduro preceded their return. Yet Holts release had seemed unlikely even a week ago.

Joining Trump in the Oval Office were Corker, Utah Sens. Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee, and Utah Rep. Mia Love, all Republicans. The lawmakers thanked Trump for his support.

The White House learned from Corker on Friday of Holts impending release, according to a U.S. official who has closely followed Holts plight and spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the private talks.

Holt and his wife were reunited at the Caracas airport with her daughter from a previous relationship, and all three boarded a chartered flight to Washington. We are on our way home, Corker tweeted.

When he departed the Caracas airport earlier, Holt told The Associated Press that the ordeal had left him exhausted.

Venezuelas communications minister, Jorge Rodriguez, said their release was a goodwill gesture that followed months of dialogue between the Maduro government and U.S. lawmakers.

Were praying that this type of gesture ... will allow us to strengthen what weve always sought: dialogue, harmony, respect for our independence and respect for our sovereignty, he said.

Holt, now 26, set out for the South American country in June 2016 to marry a woman he met online while looking for Spanish-speaking Mormons who could help him improve his Spanish. He had planned to spend several months in Caracas that summer with his new wife and her two daughters, to secure their visas so they could move with him to the U.S.

Instead, the couple was arrested that June 30 at her familys apartment in a government housing complex on the outskirts of Caracas. Authorities accused him of stockpiling an assault rifle and grenades and suggested that his case was linked to other unspecified U.S. attempts to undermine Maduros rule amid deep economic and political turbulence.

They were held in a notorious Caracas prison, run by the secret police, that also is home to dozens of top Maduro opponents jailed during the past few years of political unrest in the country. Their trial was set to begin this month after repeated delays that led the Trump administration to question the motives for his detention.

Until Trumps tweet on Saturday, the U.S. had stopped short of publicly calling Holt a hostage.

Holts release looked unlikely a week ago, when he appeared in a clandestinely shot video railing against the Maduro government and saying his life was threatened in a prison riot. In retaliation, socialist party boss Diosdado Cabello, a powerful Maduro ally, said on state television that Holt was the CIAs top spy in Latin America.

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., spoke to Trump at length Friday night and later said the couples release will in no way change U.S. policy toward the dictatorship in Venezuela.

The White House press secretary issued a statement to that point Saturday night, saying policy was not changing even while thanking the government for releasing the Holts. The statement also called the recent elections illegitimate and urged the release of all political prisoners.

The Trump administration has threatened crippling oil sanctions on Venezuela for Maduros decision to go forward with the presidential election last week.

The U.S. government at first avoided ratcheting up public pressure on Venezuela in light of their already strained relations, but eventually raised Holts case with the highest levels of the Venezuelan government and decried his treatment in prison.

Corker was seen live on state TV on Friday shaking hands with Maduro and being greeted by first lady Cilia Flores as he entered the presidential palace. Corker left an hour later; neither the senator nor the president made any statements.

Laurie Holt worked feverishly to bring attention to her sons incarceration, hosting rallies and fundraisers and doing media interviews. She said her son has suffered numerous health problems in jail, including kidney stones and respiratory problems. He was depressed and lost so much weight that he dropped several pant sizes, she said.

In their statement, the Holt family said, We thank you for your collaboration during this time of anguish. We ask that you allow us to meet with our son and his wife before giving any interviews and statements. We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle.

Read more about:
SEOUL, KOREA, REPUBLIC OFU.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday a U.S. team was in North Korea to plan a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, raising expectations that the on-off-on meeting would indeed take place.

The State Department said earlier that a team was in Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the demilitarized zone, or DMZ, separating the North and South Korea. One can cross the border simply by stepping across a painted line, but moving beyond several footsteps into the North at Panmunjom would be rare for U.S. officials.

Trump withdrew from a planned June 12 Singapore summit with Kim last Thursday, but quickly announced that it could get back on track. His tweet Sunday afternoon, which offered praise for the longtime U.S. adversary, was the latest signal that his concerns about the Norths stance toward the summit had been allayed.

Read more:

Opinion | Mallick: Trumps fiery letter to North Korea reveals the child inside

Trump made a mess of North Korea talks, experts say

Opinion | Burman: The Korean summit may mean nothing, once Donald Trump gets involved

Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself, he tweeted. I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!

South Koreas president, Moon Jae-in, gave details about his surprise meeting Saturday with Kim in the Panmunjom truce village, saying Kim had committed to sitting down with Trump and to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tapped veteran American diplomat Sung Kim to handle pre-summit negotiations. On a separate but complementary track was the CIA team Pompeo set up last year when he headed the spy agency. And on a third track was a White House logistical group sent to Singapore on Sunday to prepare in case the summit takes place. It was led by Joe Hagin, White House deputy chief of staff for operations.

Kim, the U.S. ambassador to the Philippines, also served as ambassador to South Korea and was part of the U.S. negotiating team that last held substantive denuclearization talks with North Korea during the George W. Bush administration in 2005.

The Korean leaders second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles. But their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appeared to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the worlds most heavily armed border.

The talks, which Moon said Kim Jong Un requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back-and-forth. They allowed Moon to push for a U.S.-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Kim may see a meeting with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters Sunday that Kim again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, and that he told the South Korean leader hes willing to co-operate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful North Korea-U.S. summit.

Moon said he told Kim that Trump has a firm resolve to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic co-operation if Kim implements complete denuclearization.

What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations (with North Korea) and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearization, Moon said.

During the South Korea-U.S. summit, President Trump said the U.S. is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations (between the U.S. and North Korea) and help (the North) achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearization, he said.

Moon said North Korea and the United States will soon start working-level talks to prepare for the Kim-Trump summit. He said he expects the talks to go smoothly because Pyongyang and Washington both know what they want from each other.

Kim, in a dispatch issued by the Norths state-run news service earlier Sunday, expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-U.S. summit talks. During Saturdays inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to positively co-operate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-U.S. relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

They agreed to have their top officials meet again June 1. Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Saturdays Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have met for the second time in a month to discuss peace commitments they reached in their first summit and Kim's potential meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump.(The Associated Press)

Despite repeated references to denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

The North has previously used the term to demand the United States pull out its 28,500 troops in South Korea and withdraw its so-called nuclear umbrella security commitment to South Korea and Japan. The North hasnt openly repeated those same demands after Kims sudden outreach to Seoul and Washington.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees. Moon said Sunday that the Norths disarmament could be still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul dont differ over what complete denuclearization of the peninsula means.

Before he cancelled the summit, Trump did not rule out an incremental approach that would provide incentives along the way to the North.

Following an unusually provocative 2017 in which Kims engineers tested a purported thermonuclear warhead and three long-range missiles theoretically capable of striking mainland U.S. cities, the North Korean leader has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity in recent months. He has had the summits with Moon and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, as well as two meetings with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Read more about:
The Trump administration is laden with cruelty and incompetence and corruption, and U.S. President Donald Trumps actions degrade America, Chelsea Clinton said in an interview with a British media outlet.

The daughter of former president Bill Clinton and former senator and secretary of state Hillary Clinton discussed Trump in an interview with the Guardian while promoting her new book, She Persisted Around the World.

Chelsea Clinton briefly discussed Trumps planned visit to Britain in July.

Ive been to multiple protests since the election, she said. If I lived in Britain I would show up to protest, because I dont agree with what hes doing to degrade what it means to be an American.

Clinton said she believes that many of Trumps appointees were not qualified for their jobs.

Not only do I want an administration that isnt venal, corrupt and focused on making life harder for millions of Americans, I also want a competent administration, she said. So for me, the larger question is the collision of cruelty and incompetence and corruption that we see across the administration.

Read more:

Kim Jong Un remains committed to summit with Trump, South Korea says

First lady Melania Trump out of public view for 15 days  and counting

She said the administration not only mainstreamed hate, but mainlined it. And she blamed a rise in school bullying, as cited by the by the Southern Poverty Law Center, on an atmosphere created and encouraged by Trump.

Thousands of instances in schools across America, where children are citing the president as theyre demeaning a little girl, or theyre chanting Build a wall in an attempt to demean and degrade brown children, Clinton told the Guardian. I think those of us who have platforms ... have to say this is wrong and unacceptable, so we dont normalize it but try to detoxify what has been unleashed.

Clinton and Trump have clashed on social media in the past. Trump had his daughter, Ivanka, briefly stand in for him at a meeting of world leaders in Germany last year. When he drew criticism, he invoked Clinton on Twitter.

If Chelsea Clinton were asked to hold the seat for her mother, as her mother gave our country away, the Fake News would say CHELSEA FOR PRES! Trump tweeted.

Clintons response: Good morning Mr. President. It would never have occurred to my mother or my father to ask me. Were you giving our country away? Hoping not.

Clinton, who grew up in the national spotlight, is now 38. The married mother of two young children has previously worked for NBC and now serves as vice chair of the Clinton Foundation. She said the policy wreckage wrought by Trump can be fixed when Democrats regain control in Washington.

But I think we will still then have work to do on repairing the tone in our country, she said. The exposure of the real racist and sexist, homophobic, Islamophobic and anti-Semitic feeling which is on the rise in our country  a rot that has been exposed.

Read more about:
ST. PETERSBURG, FLA.The first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, Subtropical Storm Alberto, gained strength as it approached the northern Gulf Coast, emptying out beaches in Florida ahead of Memorial Day.

The storm disrupted long holiday weekend plans from Pensacola in the Florida Panhandle to Miami Beach on Floridas southeastern edge. Lifeguards posted red flags along the white sands of Pensacola Beach, where swimming and wading were banned amid high surf and dangerous conditions.

It also triggered mandatory evacuations of some small, sparsely populated Gulf Coast barrier islands in one Florida county. The Florida Division of Emergency Management said in a statement Sunday that a mandatory evacuation has been issued in Franklin County for all barrier islands there and those in the county living directly on the coast in mobile homes or in recreation vehicle parks.

Read more:

Millions of homes, businesses lose power as hurricane Irma batters Florida

Tropical Storm Philippe approaches Bahamas, southern Florida

Why Irma could hurt Florida a lot more than its last monster hurricane

Alberto got an early jump on the 2018 hurricane season, which doesnt officially start until June 1. The storm prompted Florida, Alabama and Mississippi to launch emergency preparations over the weekend amid expectations Alberto would reach land sometime Monday. Rough conditions were expected to roil the seas off the eastern and northern Gulf Coast region through Tuesday.

These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said in a statement.

Gusty showers were to begin lashing parts of Florida on Sunday, and authorities were warning of the possibility of flash flooding.

At 7:30 p.m. EDT Sunday, Alberto was centred about 315 kilometres west of Tampa and had maximum sustained winds of 100 km/h  up from 85 km/h earlier. Forecasters said Alberto has most recently taken a north-northwest track that would bring it over the northern Gulf of Mexico during the night and make landfall on or in the vicinity of the Florida Panhandle on Monday.

A subtropical storm like Alberto has a less defined and cooler centre than a tropical storm, and its strongest winds are found farther from its centre. Subtropical storms can develop into tropical storms, which in turn can strengthen into hurricanes. Forecasters cautioned that heavy rain and tropical storm conditions could reach the northern Gulf Coast well ahead of the centre of Alberto making landfall.

Meanwhile, the National Hurricane Center in Miami discontinued all storm surge warnings for most of the states peninsula. It said isolated tornadoes remained a threat in Florida in the coming hours.

Mark Bowen, the Bay County Emergency management director, said at a Sunday afternoon news conference that the concern isnt with storm surge due to the timing of landfall and the tides. He said Albertos biggest threat will be its heavy rains, with forecasts of anywhere from four to 10-30 centimetres of rain in some areas.

In Taylor County, there were voluntary evacuations for those in coastal zones and beach communities, mobile homes, RV parks and low-lying areas. In Gulf County, T.H. Stone Memorial St. Joseph Peninsula State Park began evacuations Sunday morning.

In Miami, organizers called off the sea portion of the Miami Beach Air & Sea Show on Sunday because of heavy rain and rough waters. And in the Tampa Bay area on the central Gulf Coast, cities offered sandbags for homeowners worried about floods. Live video from webcams posted in Clearwater and Destin showed half-empty beaches, and whitecaps roiled the normally placid Gulf waters.

The hurricane centre said Sunday that a tropical storm warning was in effect from Bonita Beach, Fla., to the Mississippi-Alabama border.

In Gulf Shores, Ala., webcams showed beaches starting to fill up as the storms track shifted slightly east away from the region, but red flags on the beach warned beachgoers to stay out of the rough water. Grant Brown, the citys public information officer, said they had already finished a number of preparations such as clearing culverts to prepare for big rains but Sunday had turned into a really nice day.

With conditions expected to worsen overnight, officials are encouraging people planning to check out Monday to give themselves extra time.

Jeffrey Medlin, meteorologist in charge at the National Weather Services Mobile office, warned that even after the storm moves north there will still be swells coming up from the south that could cause dangerous rip currents. Just because its nice and sunny after the storm passes, Medlin said, theres still a risk for swimmers.

People have drowned by going out to the water too soon, he said.

Read more about:
Thank God for Israel.

Not in a biblical sense  although for multitudes that too  but just for being. For enduring.

Even when it must be denounced for disproportionate use of lethal violence against civilian demonstrators, regardless of how calculatingly provoked and existentially threatening.

Israelis have yet to absorb the harsh strategic lessons learned by occupying NATO and American military forces in Afghanistan and Iraq: That they are responsible, despite rules of engagement, not only for casualties resulting from their own operations but also for civilian casualties inflicted, devoid of any duty to protect, by militants.

Killing of the innocent doesnt matter to the Taliban, as it didnt matter to Al Qaeda and ISIS.

Luring civilians to violent clashes at the Gaza-Israel fence  busing women and children to the no-go zone of 1,000 feet from the barrier  was deliberately tactical, victims exploited as martyrs and of course for Israel-vilifying international media coverage.

Touche to Hamas, organizers of dozens of suicide bombings in Israeli restaurants, hotels and buses over their three-decade history. Theyve bought themselves, with the blood of desperate Gazans living in a sewer strip of no-exit colony, a tick of boastful prestige. Collateral damage is insignificant.

Still. Israel is a sliver of democracy amidst a vast expanse of tyranny, theocracy, ham-fisted monarchy and endless squabble.

Always held to a higher standard, of course, morally and otherwise, endlessly the target of United Nations resolutions (45 at last count) since Israel was created in 1948  by the United Nations.

The same UN that has beggared Palestinians by entrenching their chronic displaced and impoverished status, hanging on pathetically to iron house keys, passed down through generations, for homes they and their descendants will never see again. Because a two-state solution, as has become increasingly obvious, is a cruel pipe-dream. The opiate of magical thinking.

History is littered with lost civilizations, the vanquished and the assimilated. The exceptional integrity of the Palestinian diaspora is a 20th-century invention. Just as Jews were scattered to the four corners of the world  beyond the pale  relentlessly persecuted and pogromed and gassed into near-extinction before Israel emerged from the ashes of the Second World War.

The countrys 70th anniversary was marked in Toronto on Sunday, with the 49th annual UJA Federations Walk  the worlds largest single-day Israel solidarity walk, according to organizers.

A year ago, Hamas dropped the destruction of Israel from its manifesto. Yet its loathing of the Jewish state hasnt changed, nor its attacks on Israel and Jews.

Last week, the modest Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas released a photograph of himself in a Ramallah hospital  the 83-year-old Fatah leader rumoured to be in declining health  reading a Palestinian newspaper prominently featuring an ugly anti-Semitic cartoon depicting a soldier snatching a babys bottle and feeding it poison.

This the same incompetent Abbas who a month ago delivered a rambling speech that suggested the root cause of the Holocaust was not so much Nazi genocidal hatred of Jews but the Jews themselves, specifically their social behaviour, adding he meant their social function related to banks and interest. So, baby-killers and, you know, controllers of the worlds finances  both age-old anti-Semitic canards.

A country that still hasnt been permitted to declare its own internationally recognized capital as Jerusalem. Every American president since the Jerusalem Embassy Act was passed by Congress in 1995 has paid lip service to the Holy City as Israels capital. Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel and it must remain undivided, President Barack Obama said in 2008. Yet every American president, every six months, has signed a waiver to keep the U.S. embassy in Tel Aviv, citing national security reasons.

That is, until President Donald Trump, who delivered on a campaign promise directed at his Christian evangelical base and moved the embassy to Jerusalem. Images of its triumphal opening on May 14 were horrifically juxtaposed with chaos at the Gaza-Israel fence  choking fumes from tear gas, Gazans cut down by sniper from Israel Defense Forces sniper fire, the siren wail of ambulances, triage at the wall.

Even a broken clock is right twice a day. And Trump got his one right, if for the wrong reasons and despite the global condemnation. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the U.S. Senate, called the move long overdue.

That monumental shift may have amplified the rage behind Mays bloody protests at the Gaza-Israel border. But it did not trigger them. Those demonstrations had been long in the planning and shepherding by Hamas, Gazas discredited and internationally isolated radical Islamist ruling regime. Nothing spontaneous about it.

What began with grassroots origins via activist posts on Facebook calling for people to demonstrate on the 70th anniversary of Israels birth  known to Palestinians as Nakba (catastrophe)  the Hamas-orchestrated protests led predictably to dying, some 150 civilians killed and thousands wounded over seven weeks, as Hamas envisioned it would. Deadliest mayhem in years. Sixty-two slain on the precise anniversary, May 14.

It is to Israels disrepute that all Gazans are viewed as being Hamas, women and children included, hence the countrys forces lashing out  firing  at the mishmash assembly of purported demarcation encroachers, with the exculpating argument advanced (as always since Hamas forcible takeover of Gaza in 2007) that Israel must use whatever means necessary to protect itself against security breaches at the fence and a potential oer the ramparts mass infiltration. The media estimate is that 40,000 Gazans participated in the peak May 14 demonstrations, burning tires, throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails across the fence. Not quite the picnic as some Gazans had described what they were expecting on that day. Patently absurd.

But why take your precious children to a protest everyone knew was reaching its climax, with immense casualties likely?

Removed as martyr, at least for the moment, is the eight-month-old baby girl who died on May 14, allegedly a tear gas victim. The Israelis killed her! the childs mother wailed to AFP. Until a Gazan doctor told Associated Press the baby may have died because of a pre-existing condition (a heart defect present at birth).

That death intensified global revulsion with Israel. But the Hamas-controlled Gaza Ministry of Health now says its awaiting autopsy results.

Interestingly, Hamas has also been all over the map with assertions about how many of the May 14 martyrs were actually Hamas militants and operatives, at first claiming 10 as their own, but a Hamas official later claiming 50. The IDF has identified two dozen as having terrorist affiliations.

In any event, the UN Human Rights Council has voted 29-2 to send an international war crimes probe into Gaza to investigate the border fence violence and what is now being called the May 14 Massacre. Of course it is. Israel condemned that resolution, pointing to the councils historical bias against Israel.

Keep this in mind: There were similar accusations of a massacre in 2002, when Israeli forces entered the Jenin refugee camp as part of a West Bank offensive, following a suicide bombing by Hamas that killed 29 people at a Passover seder in the seaside Israeli town of Netanya.

The UN, with access denied by Israel, launched an investigation, relying heavily on reports from human-rights groups notoriously hostile to Israel. To the dismay of many, perhaps the UN itself, the final report dismissed as unsubstantiated claims that soldiers had killed 500 Palestinians. In fact, 52 militants had been killed in the five-day pitched battle at the camp, and 23 Israeli soldiers. It was militants whod booby-trapped many of the buildings that soldiers entered, causing casualties to soldiers and civilians alike.

There was no massacre in Jenin. But it remains the stuff of anti-Israel lore, mythic.

Duelling narratives, then as now.

Rosie DiManno is a columnist based in Toronto covering sports and current affairs. Follow her on Twitter: @rdimanno

Read more about:
Last week, the Expert Panel on Immune Globulin Product Supply and Related Impacts in Canada released its report Protecting Access to Immune Globulins for Canadians, and as many public health advocates predicted, it failed to seriously consider the many concerns Canadians have with private, for-profit plasma collection.

When two of the four members of the panel come from the country leading the charge on paid plasma (the U.S.), one of whom has clear ties to the paid plasma industry, it is not surprising to see them repeat many of the flawed assumptions put forth by the commercial plasma industry.

The report takes paid plasma collection in Canada as a given, a fait accompli, despite the trend of provincial governments enacting legislation to prohibit it.

It also fails to make a convincing case for why partnership with the private sector is a necessary precondition to collecting more source plasma in Canada, ignoring the position of leading global health agencies, including the World Health Organization, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Society, and the European Blood Alliance  all of whom advocate for a 100 per cent voluntary blood donation system.

Canadian Blood Services (CBS), the public agency charged with the safety and security of blood and blood products in Canada, has also come out against paid plasma and has called for a moratorium on government support for commercial plasma activity.

The panel concludes that There is no compelling data to suggest that expansion of source plasma collection  whether with paid or unpaid donors  has negatively impacted the whole blood supply.

However, the concern is not that plasma donations will negatively impact the whole blood supply. The concern is that paid plasma donations will negatively impact voluntary donation levels of both blood and plasma.

CBS has already reported a drop in the most desirable age cohort for blood donors (17-24 years) at their Saskatoon clinic, which they attribute to the presence of a for-profit. Evidence from the U.S. and Hungary suggests a similar trend.

There is one thing the report got right: Canada needs to increase its plasma self-sufficiency. The best way to do that is to strengthen our public voluntary blood donation system.

Canada has never had a robust voluntary plasma collection system nor a comprehensive public education campaign on the life-saving merits of plasma. It is thus impossible to conclude that such a system will be incapable of meeting our plasma needs.

In Quebec, the public blood donation agency (Hema-Quebec) successfully implemented a strategy to increase voluntary plasma donation, nearly doubling the amount of plasma sent to fractionation. It did so by establishing new donation centres and initiating a public education campaign on the importance of both blood and plasma donation.

CBS has a proposal to expand the public voluntary donation system; this is by far the best way forward to ensure the security and public accountability of Canadas plasma supply.

Amanda Wilson, PhD, is the national director of policy and advocacy with the Canadian Health Coalition.

Read more about:
Something shifted in the Ontario election this week. Voters have realized that change, for the sake of change, needs intense scrutiny. Anger toward Kathleen Wynne and the Liberal Party is not enough to ensure a smart electoral outcome.

Many American voters felt anger in 2016 leading them to elect a spoiled, petulant bully of a president by a hairs breadth. The world must live with that result and the consequences of Donald Trumps incoherent and possibly perilous buffoonery, at least for the near future.

Similarly, many U.K. voters, when faced with a dangerously simple question about leaving the European Union, reacted in anger. Long simmering resentment about ceding British sovereignty, was ensnared in a factually misleading referendum campaign. They, too, narrowly voted to upend their way of life. Today, they find themselves lurching in unchartered waters.

Ontario voters hopefully are smarter. Voting is best done rationally with accurate facts. A strong examination of party leaders and their intent is necessary in these final days of the campaign.

Few would argue that Kathleen Wynne, who was elected by the general population for one mandate, lacks intelligence, energy and compassion.

Breaking ground twice, as the first female premier and as the first gay premier, she never failed to champion women, to push for diversity, and to care for those marginalized by society. She raised the minimum wage, made prescription drugs available to both young and old, and fought hard to take action on climate change while simultaneously promoting a smart business agenda.

Wynne inherited mistakes and she made mistakes herself, which she has admitted. A first class debater, even when she is on the ropes, look for her to hold her own in tonights debate at 6:30 p.m. on TVO.

Doug Ford was not supposed to be the leader of the Conservative Party. He was minding his own business when leader Patrick Brown fell on his sword of alleged sexual harassment complaints, inflated membership numbers and dodgy nomination battles.

Brown appears determined to drag the party through the mud with a proposed book and $8 million defamation suit against CTV. Witnesses will be called and accusations hurled. It will be nasty.

Meanwhile, Ford, like Trump, won by the narrowest of margins over his much more experienced female rival, Christine Elliott. Ford is now also alleged to be complicit in nomination violations. Additionally, he has had to manage the apparent theft of personal data from the 407 ETR by one of the partys candidates, who has since resigned.

Fords public persona has so far been uninspiring. Robotic in movement, his unblinking stare is unnerving while his refusal to engage meaningfully with journalists is deeply worrying.

Not only has he never been elected provincially, but as of this writing, he has not released a party platform, making it impossible to verify costs. The partys website is sparse but commits to reducing taxes for Ontario families.

Finally, there is Andrea Horwath, pleasant and upbeat in manner. A former Hamilton city councillor and community activist, she became leader in 2009 but somehow failed to emerge as a strong political figure.

In spite of her momentum and clear policies, including drug and dental care for all Ontarians, taking on student debt, and hiring more nurses, Horwaths campaign stumbled when a $1.4 billion mistake was found in her platform.

Quickly apologizing, she moved forward but then declared she would never order a striking union back to work, an understandable principle for an NDP leader, but one that can have crippling consequences for unsuspecting citizens. Just ask York University students, who were not able to return to their classrooms for two months while Horwath held up back-to-work legislation at Queens Park.

These waning campaign days will be noisy. Horwath will have to fight an attack by both the Liberals and the Conservatives. Ford will try to regain the upper hand. Wynne will fight for her political life.

Ignore the noise and emotion. Only you have the quiet democratic power to make your up your own mind. Stay calm. Carry on.

Penny Collenette is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Ottawa and was a senior director of the Prime Ministers Office for Jean Chretien.

Read more about:
Joseph Conrads Heart of Darknessor The Heart of Darkness, as it was known to its first readerswas first published as a serial in 1899, in the popular monthly Blackwoods Magazine. Few of that magazines subscribers could have foreseen the fame that Conrads story would eventually garner, or the fierce debates it would later provoke.

Already, in 1922, the American poet T.S. Eliot thought the book was zeitgeist-y enough to provide the epigraph for his epoch-defining poem, The Waste Landalthough another American poet, Ezra Pound, talked him out of using it.

The same thought occurred to Francis Ford Coppola more than 50 years later, when he used Conrads story as the framework for his phantasmagoric Vietnam War movie, Apocalypse Now. Echoes of Heart of Darkness can pop up almost anywhere: the chorus to a Gang of Four song, the title of a Simpsons episode, a scene in Peter Jacksons 2005 King Kong remake.

Consider one final Heart of Darkness allusion, from Mohsin Hamids 2017 Man Booker-shortlisted novel, Exit West. In the novels opening pages, a man with dark skin and dark, woolly hair appears in a Sydney bedroom, transported there by one of the mysterious portals that have appeared around the globe, connecting stable, prosperous countries with places that people need to escape from.

The door, as these wormholes are called, is a rectangle of complete darkness-the heart of darkness. This is a more complicated kind of Conrad reference. Here, heart of darkness is a shorthand for European stereotypes of Africa, which Conrads novel did its part to reinforce.

Hamids line plays on racist anxieties about immigration: the idea that certain places and peoples are primitive, exotic, dangerous. For contemporary readers and writers, these questions have become an unavoidable part of Conrads legacy, too.

Heart of Darkness is the story of an English seaman, Charles Marlow, who is hired by a Belgian company to captain a river steamer in the recently established Congo Free State. Almost as soon as he arrives in the Congo, Marlow begins to hear rumours about another company employee, Kurtz, who is stationed deep in the interior of the country, hundreds of miles up the Congo River.

The second half of the novelor novella, as its often labelledrelates Marlows journey upriver and his meeting with Kurtz. His health destroyed by years in the jungle, Kurtz dies on the journey back down to the coast, though not before Marlow has had a chance to glimpse the barren darkness of his heart. The coda to Marlows Congo story takes place in Europe: questioned by Kurtzs Intended about his last moments, Marlow decides to tell a comforting lie, rather than reveal the truth about his descent into madness.

Although Conrad never met anyone quite like Kurtz in the Congo, the structure of Marlows story is based closely on his experiences as mate and, temporarily, captain of the Roi des Belges, a Congo river steamer, in 1890. By this time, Conrad, born Jozef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski in the Russian-ruled part of Poland in 1857, had been a seaman for about 15 years, rising to the rank of master in the British merchant service. (The remains of the only sailing ship he ever commanded, the Otago, have ended up in Hobart, a rusted, half-submerged shell on the banks of the Derwent.)

Sick with fever and disenchanted with his colleagues and superiors, he broke his contract after only six months, and returned to London in early 1891. Three years and two ships later, Conrad retired from the sea and embarked on a career as a writer, publishing the novel that he had been working on since before he visited the Congo, Almayers Folly, in 1895. A second novel, An Outcast of the Islands, followed, along with several stories. Conrads second career was humming along when he finally set about transforming his Congo experience into fiction in 1898.

Heart of Darkness opens on a ship, but not one of the commercial vessels that feature in Conrads sea stories. Rather, its a private yacht, the Nellie, moored at Gravesend, about 20 miles east of the City of London. The five male friends gathered on board were once sailors, but everyone except Marlow has since changed careers, as Conrad himself had done.

Like sail, which was rapidly being displaced by steam-power, Marlow is introduced to us as an anachronism, still devoted to the profession his companions have left behind. When, amidst the gathering gloom, he begins to reminisce about his stint as a fresh-water sailor, his companions know they are in for one of his inconclusive experiences.

Setting the opening of Heart of Darkness on the Thames also allowed Conrad to foreshadow one of the novels central conceits: the lack of any absolute, essential difference between so-called civilized societies and so-called primitive ones. This, too, Marlow says, has been one of the dark places of the earth, imagining the impressions of an ancient Roman soldier, arriving in what was then a remote, desolate corner of the empire.

During the second half of the 19th century, spurious theories of racial superiority were used to legitimate empire-building, justifying European rule over native populations in places where they had no other obvious right to be. Marlow, however, is too cynical to accept this convenient fiction. The conquest of the earth, he says, was not the manifest destiny of European peoples; rather, it simply meant the taking it away from those who have a different complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves.

The idea that Africans and Europeans have more in common than the latter might care to admit recurs later, when Marlow describes observing tribal ceremonies on the banks of the river. Confronted with local villagers stamping and swaying, their eyes rolling, he is shaken by a feeling of remote kinship with this wild and passionate uproar.

Whereas most contemporary readers will be cheered by Marlows scepticism about the project of empire, this image of Congos indigenous inhabitants is more problematic. Going up that river, Marlow says, was like travelling back to the earliest beginnings of the world, and he accordingly sees the dancing figures as remnants of prehistoric man.

Heart of Darkness suggests that Europeans are not essentially more highly-evolved or enlightened than the people whose territories they invade. To this extent, it punctures one of the myths of imperialist race theory. But, as the critic Patrick Brantlinger has argued, it also portrays Congolese villagers as primitiveness personified, inhabitants of a land that time forgot.

Kurtz is shown as the ultimate proof of this kinship between enlightened Europeans and the savages they are supposed to be civilising. Kurtz had once written an idealistic report for an organisation called the International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs. When Marlow finds this manuscript among Kurtzs papers, however, it bears a hastily-scrawled addendum: Exterminate all the brutes! The Kurtz that Marlow finally encounters at the end of the novel has been consumed by the same forgotten and brutal instincts he once intended to suppress.

The European gone native on the fringes of empire was a stock trope, which Conrad himself had already explored elsewhere in his writing, but Heart of Darkness takes this cliche of imperial adventure fiction and sends it on an acid trip. The manic, emaciated Kurtz that Marlow finds at the Inner Station is straight out of the pages of late-Victorian neo-Gothic, more Bram Stoker or Sheridan Le Fanu than Henry Rider Haggard. The wilderness has possessed Kurtz, loved him, embraced him, got into his veins"it is no wonder that Marlow feels creepy all over just thinking about it.

Kurtzs famous last words are The horror! The horror! Horror is also the feeling that Kurtz and his monstrous jungle compound, with its decorative display of human heads, are supposed to evoke in the reader. Along with its various other generic affiliationsimperial romance, psychological novel, impressionist tour de forceHeart of Darkness is a horror story.

Conrads Kurtz also channels turn-of-the-century anxieties about mass media and mass politics. One of Kurtzs defining qualities in the novel is eloquence: Marlow refers to him repeatedly as A voice!, and his report on Savage Customs is written in a rhetorical, highfalutin style, short on practical details but long on sonorous abstractions. Marlow never discovers Kurtzs real profession, but he gets the impression that he was somehow connected with the presseither a journalist who could paint or a painter who wrote for the papers.

This seems to be confirmed when a Belgian journalist turns up in Antwerp after Kurtzs death, referring to him as his dear colleague and sniffing around for anything he can use as copy. Marlow fobs him off with the bombastic report, which the journalist accepts happily enough. For Conrad, implicitly, Kurtzs mendacious eloquence is just the kind of thing that unscrupulous popular newspapers like to print.

If Kurtzs colleague is to be believed, moreover, his peculiar gifts might also have found an outlet in populist politics: He would have been a splendid leader of an extreme party. Had he returned to Europe, that is, the same faculty that enabled Kurtz to impose his mad will on the tribespeople of the upper Congo might have found a wider audience.

Politically, Conrad tended to be on the right, and this image of Kurtz as an extremist demagogue expresses a habitual pessimism about mass democracyin 1899, still a relatively recent phenomenon. Nonetheless, in the light of the totalitarian regimes that emerged in Italy, Germany and Russia after 1918, Kurtzs combination of irresistible charisma with megalomaniacal brutality seems prescient.

These concerns about political populism also resonate with recent democratic processes in the US and the UK, among other places. Only Conrads emphasis on eloquence now seems quaint: as the 2016 US Presidential Election demonstrated, an absence of rhetorical flair is no handicap in the arena of contemporary populist debate.

Heart of Darkness contains a bitter critique of imperialism in the Congo, which Conrad condemns as rapacious and pitiless folly. The backlash against the systematic abuse and exploitation of Congos indigenous inhabitants did not really get underway until the first decade of the 20th century, so that the anti-imperialist theme was ahead of its time, if only by a few years. Nor does Conrad have any patience with complacent European beliefs about racial superiority.

Nonetheless, the novel also contains representations of Africans that would rightly be described as racist if they were written today. In particular, Conrad shows little interest in the experience of Marlows cannibal shipmates, who come across as exotic caricatures. It is images like these that led the Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe to denounce Conrad as a bloody racist, in an influential 1977 essay.

One response to this criticism is to argue, as Paul B. Armstrong does, that the lack of more rounded Congolese characters is the point. By sticking to Marlows limited perspective, Heart of Darkness gives an authentic portrayal of how people see other cultures. But this doesnt necessarily make the images themselves any less offensive.

If Achebe did not succeed in having Heart of Darkness struck from the canon, he did ensure that academics writing about the novel could no longer ignore the question of race. For Urmila Seshagiri, Heart of Darkness shows that race is not the stable, scientific category that many Victorians thought it was. This kind of argument shifts the debate in a different direction, away from the authors putative racism, and onto the novels complex portrayal of race itself.

Perhaps because he was himself an alien in Britain, whose first career had taken him to the farthest corners of the globe, Conrads novels and stories often seem more in tune with our globalized world than those of some of his contemporaries. An emigre at 16, Conrad experienced to a high degree the kind of dislocation that has become an increasingly typical modern condition. It is entirely appropriate, in more ways than one, for Hamid to allude to Conrad in a novel about global mobility.

The paradox of Heart of Darkness is that it seems at once so improbable and so necessary. It is impossible not to be astonished, when you think of it, that a Polish ex-sailor, writing in his third language, was ever in a position to author such a story, on such a subject. And yet, in another way, Conrads life seems more determined than most, in more direct contact with the great forces of history. It is from this point of view that Heart of Darkness seems necessary, even inevitable, the product of dark historical energies, which continue to shape our contemporary world.

John Attridge, Senior Lecturer in English, UNSW

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
Actor and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Priyanka Chopra sought to draw the world's attention to the plight of Myanmar's Rohingya refugees, as she met Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and lauded the country for its response to the massive humanitarian crisis.

Chopra, who arrived in Bangladesh on Monday on a four-day visit, also visited and met some of the displaced Rohingyas of Myanmar living in the refugee camps in Cox's Bazar, a town on the southeast coast of the country.

"The world should learn from Bangladesh," a spokesperson from the prime minister's office quoted Chopra as saying during her meeting with Hasina.

The prime minister's additional press secretary Nazrul Islam said the Bollywood star particularly praised Hasina for shouldering the burden of over a million "forcibly displaced" ethnic minority population of Myanmar during her courtesy visit at the premier's Gonobhaban residence this afternoon.

Chopra, 35, who visited the Rohingya camps for the second time, shared her comparative experience of interacting with the children there, saying over the months they overcame the trauma of violence they witnessed at their homeland, the official said.

"Earlier, when I visited the Rohingya camps I asked the children to draw a picture ... they drew pictures of arms, gunfire and mortar shell from roving helicopters.

"As I told them to do the same this time they drew pictures of sun, animals and nature," Chopra said, terming the change as a "testimony of their inside healing".

"And it was possible due to your motherly shelter and security," she told Hasina.

The prime minister's sister, Sheikh Rehana, and family members were present during the call on.

Chopra, however, feared the Rohingya children still were exposed to a hazardous situation in their camps.

On behalf of the UN's children emergency relief fund, she called upon the international community to extend all out support for the Rohingyas.

The Quantico star told Hasina that she was concerned about the possibility of a "generation loss" of a particular ethnicity as a large number of children have no access to education and passing their days roaming around.

"The children may go astray and even become extremists if they are deprived of the opportunity of having education," Chopra feared.

Hasina told Chopra that her government has given shelter to the Rohingyas solely on humanitarian ground as people of Bangladesh experienced the same situation in 1971.

Hasina also said that her government has been making efforts to give the Rohaingyas all support, but it was not possible alone for Bangladesh to mitigate their sufferings and UNICEF and other international agencies should come forward with more support.

According to the UN, the humanitarian crisis caused by escalating violence in Myanmar's Rakhine State has forced close to seven lakh Rohingyas to cross the border into Cox's Bazar.

Not only has the pace of arrivals since August last year till April this year has made this the fastest growing refugee crisis in the world, the concentration of refugees in Cox's Bazar is now amongst the densest in the world.
The adage that failures can teach many lessons seems quite...
Kairana constituency in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pardesh has virtually assumed the dimension of a strategic player in the run up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Kairana bypoll, slated for Monday, will also see a joint opposition taking on the ruling BJP.

Located around 630 km from capital city of Lucknow, the Lok Sabha constituency has five assembly segments namely Shamli, Thana Bhawan and Kairana in Shamli district, and Gangoh and Nakur in Saharanpur district. There are nearly 17 lakh voters in the constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

RLD party worker Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which the ruling party was being challenged by a joint opposition.

"This is the beauty of our democracy," he said.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the party's candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dal's (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

The opposition hopes that by consolidating anti-BJP votes, they will repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur bye-elections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat.

The withdrawal of candidature of Lok Dal candidate Kanwar Hasan from the fray and his joining of the RLD has only added to the opposition's confidence.

The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the opposition parties -- that the drubbing in the Gorakhpur and Phulpur bye-elections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.

"The results of the May 28 bypolls may set the tone and tenor for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," Rajesh Kumar Saini, manager of a hotel on the busy Shamli-Panipat road, said. .

Khan exuded confidence that "Kairana's daughter-in-law Tabassum Hasan will defeat Kairana's daughter (Mriganka Singh)."

The Yogi Adityanath-led state government has left no stone unturned in campaigning for the bypoll. He along with his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya campaigned in Saharanpur and Shamli.

Apart from them, the BJP has thrown in at least five state ministers into the 'fight for Kairana'. They include Dharam Singh Saini (minister of state for Ayush), Suresh Rana (sugarcane development minister), Anupama Jaiswal (basic education minister) Surya Pratap Shahi (agriculture minister) and Laxmi Narayan (religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, waqf and Haj minister).

Of these, Saini and Rana are MLAs from Nakur and Thana Bhawan assembly segments, respectively of the constituency. Jaiswal is the minister in charge of Shamli district, while Surya Pratap Shahi is the minister in charge of Saharanpur.

"Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary has been roped in since he hails from a farming background," a senior UP BJP leader said.

BJP MPs Sanjiv Baliyan, Raghav Lakhan Pal, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and Kanta Kardam have also actively campaigned for Mriganka Singh.

The SP and Congress, however, termed the line-up of UP ministers as a sign of "party jitters".

According to the locals, the major issues in this bypoll are law and order and the woes of sugarcane growers.

RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan had accused the BJP-led state government of resorting to divisive politics.

"Sugarcane growers in the region are feeling the maximum amount of pain, as no payments have been made to them by the state government," she told PTI, rejecting the official claim that the dues from sugar mills were being cleared.

The issue was also raised during an election meeting of state minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary, who said that the dues accumulated from the time of the past governments had been paid out, and the rest would be settled soon.

"In Uttar Pradesh, 10,828.59 lakh quintals of sugarcane were purchased by sugar mills from farmers during the BJP government in 2017-18, as compared to 6443.41 lakh quintals under the Samajawadi Party government in 2015-16. Similarly, Rs 21,186.56 crore payments were made during the BJP government in the state in 2017-18, in comparison to Rs 11,841.34 crore made during the SP government in 2015-16," BJP spokesperson Chandramohan said.

Divergent views also emerged on the reported 2016 exodus of Hindu families from Kairana.

"The area is adjacent to Panipat district in Haryana. The labourers (both Hindus and Muslims) from the area go to the neighbouring state to work in the industries there. They go in the morning and return in the evening," Hasan said while rejecting the claims of any such exodus.

The RLD leader said the locked houses, even of Muslims who had gone to Panipat for work, were photographed and used as a "propaganda".

"In Kairana, both Hindus and Muslims live in peace," she added.

BJP candidate Mriganka Singh, on the other hand, said, "The exodus of Hindu families from Kairana has stopped now. But hundreds of Hindu families had fled from Kairana out of fear and harassment before the 2017 UP Assembly elections".

Apart from Kairana, bypoll to Noorpur assembly constituency in the state will also be held on Monday.
Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy on Saturday said there are some "issues" on portfolio allocation with his party's coalition partner Congress but it is not something that will pull down the government.

He also said the expansion of his Cabinet would take place once state Congress leaders get an approval from their high command.

"..Portfolios have not been allocated. There are some issues regarding portfolios, but it is not an issue that will pull down the government...," Kumaraswamy told reporters in Bengaluru.

Responding to questions on portfolio allocation and demand for a farm loan waiver, he said, "I will try not to take up an issue as a prestige issue and try to solve a problem.. Otherwise I will see. I will not stick to this post, leaving my self esteem."

Parleys began between the Congress and the JD(S) on the issue of Cabinet expansion soon after Kumaraswamy proved his three-day-old government's majority on the floor of the Assembly yesterday.

Karnataka Congress leaders today left for New Delhi by a chartered plane to discuss with the high command the issues relating to Cabinet expansion and portfolio allocation.

According to sources, Kumaraswamy had met former chief minister and Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister Parameshwara and Congress general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K.C. Venugopal before they left for Delhi.

The chief minister also clarified that he would not be going to Delhi to meet Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi.

"State Congress leaders have to get approval from their central leadership, that's the reason they are going to Delhi today. Once they come back cabinet expansion will happen smoothly," he said.

It has already been decided that Congress would have 22 ministers and JDS 12 in the new cabinet.

Kumaraswamy hit out at state BJP leader B.S. Yeddurappa for his call to support the party's state-wide bandh call on Monday for alleged failure of the government in announcing farm loan waiver as promised by him earlier.

"I'm with you (people). I don't have any personal wish. I have become the chief minister not with a selfish motive...," he said, noting that there was "no question" of going back on his announcement earlier on farm loan waiver.

He said he had already spoken to Congress leaders on the issue of farm loan waiver as he had to take them into confidence.

"I should also understand the financial situation before taking the decision. I cannot do it alone," he added.
On the occasion of NDA government completing four years in office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated two high-profile highway projects which are expected to considerably reduce the traffic congestion and vehicular pollution in the national capital region.

Inaugurating the first phase of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway in Delhi the prime

minister travelled six kilometres in an open jeep on the highway before flying to Baghpat where he dedicated the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) to the nation.

Delhi-Meerut Expressway

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway, which is being built at a cost of Rs 841 crore, has vertical gardens with solar system on the Yamuna Bridge. This is the first bridge in the country and in the world that have vertical gardens with solar power system and drip irrigation. Beautiful lighting system has also been developed on the major structures.





A cycle track of 2.5 metre wide has also been constructed on both the sides of this expressway, which also has provision of 1.5 metre footpath on each side for pedestrians.





The first package of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway will provide a major relief to the commuters in Delhi-Noida and starts from Nizamuddin Bridge to UP Border having a 6 lane Expressway and 4+4 lane Highway.





Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Gadkari had said that on completion of the entire expressway the time to travel from Delhi to Meerut will reduce to 45 minutes from the present about 4-5 hours.





The scheduled time period for the construction of this project was 30 months whereas the project has been completed in 17 months.





Eastern Peripheral Expressway



The 135-km EPE, being built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore, has several unique features and is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting on every 500 metres on both sides and would showcase 36 national monuments and 40 fountains. The project has been completed in a record 500 days.





There are 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilo watt (4 MW).





The state-of-the-art road will have auto challans for over-speeding, as cameras will capture speed of vehicles, besides it will have provisions of tolling only for the distance travelled. The expressway has an iconic toll plaza at the entry point on Kundli side besides digital art gallery.





The expressway is equipped with smart and intelligent highway traffic management system (HTMS) and video incident detection system (VIDS) and will set a benchmark in highway construction by being environment-friendly with world-class safety features and smart/interactive infrastructure.





The foundation stone of the greenfield project was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 5, 2015.





Gadkari said 2.5 lakh trees have been planted here including transplant of 8-10 year old trees and drip irrigation provision has been done. It has consumed 11 lakh tonnes of cement, 1 lakh tonnes of steel, 3.6 crore cum earthwork and 1.2 cr cum fly-ash. The project has generated employment opportunities of about 50 lakh man-days and 9,375 manpower was deployed here.





A lot of traffic, outbound or non-destined for Delhi will be diverted. At least 50,000 vehicles going to Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan will be diverted, bringing down vehicular pollution.





The alignment of EPE starts near Kundli and passes through six parliamentary constituencies, viz Sonepat, Baghpat, Ghaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Palwal.





The fully access controlled six-lane expressway provides entry and exit designated interchanges only and has 406 structures of which 4 are major bridges, 46 minor bridges, 3 flyovers, 7 inter-changes, 221 underpasses and 8 road over bridges (ROBs).





The amenities include retail fuel outlets, rest rooms, motels, restaurants, shops etc. Some of the monuments' replicas pertain to Ashoka Lion, Ashoka Chakra, Konark Temple, Jalianwala Bagh, Gateway of India, Qutab Minar, Char Minar, Lal Quila, Kirti Stambh, India Gate, Hawa Mahal and Gujarat Carving.





The project had earlier faced resistance from farmers over land and other issues which have since been solved by giving higher compensation.





The Eastern and the Western Peripheral Expressways were planned in 2006 following the apex court's order to build a ring road outside the national capital for channelling the traffic not bound for Delhi.



With inpust from PTI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday remembered first prime minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and paid tribute to him on his 54th death anniversary.

Taking to Twitter, the Prime Minister said, "Tributes to our first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his death anniversary."

Tributes to our first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on his death anniversary.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 27, 2018

Meanwhile, Congress president Rahul Gandhi and former prime minister Manmohan Singh also paid their tributes to Nehru at the Raj Ghat memorial.

The first prime minister of India, Pandit Nehru died on May 27, 1964.

He became the prime minister on August 15, 1947, following an active role in the freedom struggle of the country.
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton might be willing to swap a life in politics to lead the world's largest social-networking company, a media report said.

On being asked by Attorney General Maura Healey, a democrat from Massachusetts, which company she would want to be the CEO of, Clinton didn't pause before quickly answering "Facebook", CNET reported on Friday.

"It's the biggest news platform in the world. Most people in our country get their news true or not from Facebook," Clinton was quoted as saying.

The former US presidential candidate was at Harvard on Friday receiving the Radcliffe Medal, which honours people who have "had a transformative impact on society".

Facebook is working to win back its users' trust following a series of recent controversies, including the Cambridge Analytica scandal, in which data from as many as 87 million Facebook users was improperly shared with the political consultancy.

In a bid to prevent foreign interference into elections, Facebook has also begun labelling all political and issue ads in the US -- including a "Paid for by" disclosure from the advertiser at the top of the advertisement.

Advertisers wanting to run ads with political content in the US will also need to verify their identity and location.
US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is still looking at a summit on June 12 in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and things are moving "very nicely" towards the meeting.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed. It's moving along pretty well, so we'll see what happens," Trump told reporters at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela.

His remarks came after the surprise meeting between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in in the demilitarized zone on Saturday during which the two leaders discussed the summit meeting with the US.

"I just want to mention we're doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea. Looks like it's going along very well," said the US president in response to questions from reporters.

"As you know there are meetings going on as we speak in a certain location which I won't name. Like the location, it's not so far away from here. And I think there's a lot of good will. I think people want to see if we can get the meeting and get something done," he said.

"If we got that done and if we can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, it would be a great thing for North Korea," Trump added. "It would be a great thing for South Korea, be great for Japan and great for the world great for the United States, great for China."

Trump said a lot of people are working on it. "It's moving along very nicely," he said.

When asked about the talks between Moon and Kim, the president replied, "the talks have gone very well."

On Thursday, Trump abruptly cancelled the proposed summit meeting with the North Korean leader on June 12 in Singapore and blamed Pyongyang's "tremendous anger" and "open hostility" for his dramatic decision.

He had described the cancellation of the summit as "a tremendous setback" for North Korea and warned that the US military is ready to act should Pyongyang take any "foolish and reckless" action.

But within 24 hours he said the meeting could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

Washington has made it clear it wants to see the "complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation" of the North. But Pyongyang has vowed it will never give up its nuclear deterrence until it feels safe from what it terms US aggression.

In April, Trump had stunned the world by accepting an invitation to meet Kim in an unprecedented sit-down.
Climate change is as real as it could get. But, can we all dream of a day when technology will step in and arrest it, the way it has solved many modern day issues? That is one of the main points that Mridula Ramesh raises in her book, The Climate Solution: India's Climate-Change Crisis And What We Can Do About It.

There is a story about Karan, a marginal farmer on the verge of giving up, when a small company opens a micro-warehouse near his farm. He stores his crop in it, and despite paying to do so, makes some money. He gets a receipt, and that helps him get a loan from a bank. That is technology to his rescue. Yet another company sells him power from a small solar panel mounted on his roof. Another one sets up a drip irrigation system. The place has become prosperous thanks to technology.

Innovations, as she rightly says, address market needs, which are created by some form of disruption. And a rapidly warming climate is probably the biggest disrption of our times. Yet the innovaiton and investment in technologies that could make India more climate resilient is small.

Will technology actually rescue people from the impact of climate change? Mridula describes her meeting with IIT-IIM graduates who she calls techno optimists. They believe technology will save the day!

Mridula takes the reader through the entire gamut of how it is already affecting us, and how it can get worse. But, very practically, and sensibly, the author wraps up the book with a checklist of actions that individuals, institutions and government need to take in order to build our resilience to climate change.

The book could possibly be just some of her thoughts on the subject. She is the founder of the Sundaram Climate Institute that focuses on waste and water solutions, is an angel investor in cleantech start-ups, teaches at the Great Lakes Institute of Management on climate change, and writes about it wherever she can. Above all, she lives that life, living in a net zero-waste home in Madurai.



Title:The Climate Solution: India's Climate-Change Crisis and What We Can Do About It

Author: Mridula Ramesh

Publisher: Hachette

Pages: 295

Price: Rs 550
Posted Sunday, May 27, 2018 2:00 pm

The way Marvin Hammond sees it, "if you're gonna play, you gotta pay."

That sums up the way Hammond, a retired carpenter from Wellington, feels about Gov. Eric Greitens and the controversies surrounding him. "I think hes already made an embarrassment of himself. Hes a public servant. Hes held to a higher standard."

Mary Covert disagrees. "They dont have any proof," Covert said, adding, "All of them have had affairs, (Bill) Clinton and all of them."

If you follow the news or spend time in certain social media circles, it seems like Missourians are riveted by the controversies surrounding the governor. It also may feel like there is little middle ground in the debate over whether Greitens should stay or go.

But is that really how the scandal is playing out throughout the state?

The Missourian wanted to find out. We partnered with the Missouri Press Association and reached out to residents in 18 communities. We gathered comments from about 240 people and ran into many more who we couldn't interview, because they knew little or nothing about the controversies.

This wasn't a scientific survey, just a chance to get some understanding of what people are saying, and how they're feeling. Most of the interviews were conducted May 7 to 11, before one of the criminal court cases involving the governor was dropped and before the special legislative session to consider impeachment began.

So what did we find?

Respondents were pretty much evenly split on whether Greitens should resign. About 40 percent of those we spoke with felt that it was too soon to consider impeachment, wanting to see the entire legal process play out first.

But only about a quarter of those we spoke to were willing to say that they stand by the governor, even though several of them said they supported him prior to the controversy.

With a few exceptions, we found that both anger and support for Greitens is spread throughout geographic areas. And many Missourians are either happy with or mad at the governor because of his positions on various issues that have nothing to do with the controversy, such as "right to work."

Lorry Myers of Centralia summarized some of the hesitancy that a lot of Missourians we spoke with said they are feeling.

"Were judging him on a mistake he made before he was the governor, so Ive been struggling with it a little bit," said Myers. "I wish that he hadnt made that mistake, but Im going to tell you what, if you start looking at every politician or every leader of a big company, or every movie star or people of prominence, they seem to think they have the free will to make choices like that, and that its OK."

Myers said Greitens "made a bad decision and hurt his family." As a result, "It compromises me a little bit and my trust in him. He would certainly have to earn it back."

'A little bit of everything'

There are two main issues plaguing the governor. He was initially charged with felony invasion of privacy for allegedly taking a semi-nude photo of a women, with whom he had a relationship, without her consent and transmitted it. That charge was dropped May 7, though a special prosecutor will determine whether to re-file charges.

The second charge accuses Greitens and his campaign of improperly using a donor list obtained from a nonprofit he founded that focused on veterans.

Lawmakers convened a House Special Investigative Committee that launched its own investigation. In addition to reporting more details about the affair, including allegations of nonconsensual sex, the committee has examined the campaign finance issues.

Many lawmakers have remained mum on their position on Greitens' fate; about 50 have taken no public stance at all. Some concede they are doing so because they don't believe their constituents want them to.

One theme that emerged from talking with a number of senators and representatives earlier this month is that they said they have not been receiving a lot of feedback from their constituents.

Many lawmakers appraisals of their constituencies reflect these findings.

Sen. Caleb Rowden, R-Columbia, said his constituents reactions have been a "pretty mixed bag. Some folks are pretty disgusted, some folks ... want to give him the benefit of the doubt. I think its a little bit of everything."

Sen. Bob Onder, R-Lake Saint Louis, said hes received "a handful" of phone calls and emails in support of Greitens, and "a handful in opposition, but not huge numbers either way."

Sen. Bill Eigel, R-Weldon Spring, also said hed heard mixed input.

Sen. Mike Cierpiot, R-Lees Summit, said in his district hes "heard both sides." He said he heard from people who "wanted (Greitens) impeached last week," and people who "still have a lot of support and trust with him."

"Im waiting to see what happens before I weigh in too heavy," Cierpiot said.

Rep. Nathan Beard, R-Sedalia, said his constituents reactions have been "all over the board."

"I think people are sort of still waiting for investigations to conclude," Beard said.

Multiple takes

Sharon Unterreiner of Perryville said Gov. Eric Greitens "ran as a law-and-order candidate, and he said 'Im here to make sure the law is for everybody and everybody needs to obey the law.' Suddenly its all about him and trying to cover this up. People commit misdeeds and I understand that, but when youre caught and you lie about it, its a problem."

In Centralia, Pam Cook believes legislators should wait for the legal system to complete its work before moving toward impeachment. "If hes doing a good job  why mess with him?" she said.

Besides, the "Democrats started all of this," Brian Beissenherz of Wellington told the Missourian. He believes that because of the accusations and investigation, Greitens "doesnt have a chance to do anything" for the state.

Some people didnt find fault in the fact that Greitens cheated on his wife  some compared Greitens to former presidents Bill Clinton and John Kennedy  but were more concerned with how he is executing his duties as governor.

For others, the controversy takes a backseat to anger over the governor's support of certain unrelated policies.

Hammond, who spent 30 years working with Carpenters Union 61, said he thinks Greitens should be impeached, and that his main bone to pick is over his support for the "right to work" campaign, which he said put his son out of a well-paid union job.

Chad Briggley, an autoworker, also from Wellington said, "him bringing 'right to work' to this state is one of the biggest offenses that happened to this state.

"That extramarital stuff, I dont care," Briggley said. "That happens all the time.

"Greitens is a bad word around here," Chris Crewse of Houston told the Missourian. "He promised to help the disabled, but he only helps the disabled veterans."

Others were concerned that the revelations of his affair, as well the accusations centered on campaign finance, are at odds with his platform as a candidate.

"He ran on family values, and he obviously was lying about that," said Don Bormann of Centralia.

Controversy's cost

One common theme expressed by many in the state had to do with a perception that the special investigation is a burden on taxpayers, and that the justice system should be allowed to run its course.

Laura Trybom felt that that going into a special session before a trial is jumping the gun.

Trybom, a bank manager, sat at Miss Kelly Joes bar in Oak Grove and said, "Its a big waste of money.

"Weve got crumbling bridges. Weve got problems with roads. Its going to cost the taxpayers a lot of money," Trybom said.

Others see it differently.

Harvey Million of Centralia said, "the legislature needs to either act on what its discovered or support him if hes found innocent. I dont think its premature to call for a special session, because theyre going to have to, like I said, either support him or remove him."

More than a third of those interviewed shared a sense that the governor deserves due process before the impeachment process begins.

Bob Trimble in Houston said, "everything now is guilty until proven innocent." If the court ruled against Greitens, Trimble said, he should resign, a sentiment held by many.

Rep. Mike Kelly R-Lamar, said of his constituents, "they dont have a problem impeaching the governor if hes done something wrong. They have a problem with not letting the process play out."

"I want to see whats there, and if hes found guilty I have no problem voting for impeachment," Kelly said.

Governor who?

Something else that was common across the state was the fact that some people contacted by the Missourian either knew little or nothing about the governor's situation, or didn't care very much.

Jennifer Medders of Osage Beach said, "I havent heard about this at all. If theyre investigating him, let them investigate him and see if they can find out if its true or not."

One person in Eldon who chose to remain anonymous told the Missourian, I dont know, I dont care," and another said referring to Greitens, "I dont know who this guy is."

A man in Glasgow summarized the ambivalence of many people we spoke with. All politicians are involved in some sort of scandal, he said.

"It's just a matter of if you catch them nor not."

Missourian reporters Daphne Psaledakis, Annika Merrilees, Kathryn Hardison, Suman Naishadham, Grigor Atanesian, Titus Wu, Stephanie Sandoval, Riley Newton and Kaitlin Washburn contributed to this report.

News organizations gathering comment included the Nodaway News Leader, Washington Missourian, Gasconade County Republican and The Weston Chronicle. Additional assistance was provided by the Missouri Press Association, Centralia Fireside Guard and the Montgomery Standard.

Interviews were conducted or questionnaires distributed in Washington, Montgomery City, Odessa, Wellington, Perryville, Osage Beach, Lake of the Ozarks, Eldon, Nodaway County, Weston, Fayette, Glasgow, Vienna, Centralia, Houston, Belle, Springfield, Sedalia and Licking.

Supervising editor is Mark Horvit, horvitm@missouri.edu.
Albany

Her family's hope for a better life brought sweet, beautiful Kathina Thomas to Albany. The city couldn't keep her safe.

About a year after her family emigrated from Guyana, the giggly girl who loved to dance and ride her bike was hit and killed by a stray bullet as she stood on the front steps of her First Street home. Kathina was 10 years old.

"Mommy, I got shot in the back," she said, before falling forward into her mother's arms.

The 2008 killing in West Hill shocked a city that, in many respects, had become inured to the violence in its most desperate neighborhoods. Kathina's death a decade ago was a mirror that forced Albany to look at what it had become. Residents didn't like what they saw.

Her death and the funeral that followed resulted in a public mourning that attracted hundreds of strangers who had never known the light in Kathina's eyes or her wide smile, who had never seen her holding her beloved teddy bear or heard her sing. The loss was also a private torment for those who loved her and knew her best.

"It put a toll on me," George Yhap, Kathina's brother, said on a recent morning. "I have a lot of guilty feelings."

When Kathina died on May 29, Yhap was a Albany High School senior preparing for a prom. In his last memory of his sister, they're fighting over an iPod, a normal brother and sister spat that, because it was followed by an abnormal tragedy, plays again and again in his head.

Today, Yhap is a 28-year-old real estate agent who lives in the South End with his mother, Shondell McAllister, who wasn't available to speak.

Yhap stressed that the family is doing well. He didn't want the public to think that their story is only about loss and grief or that their lives ended with the killing 10 years ago.

But he also spoke poignantly about how that stray bullet robbed him from being the big brother he was supposed to be, about living with the regret that comes with missed opportunities. He wishes he had just one good picture of himself with Kathina. He wishes he'd been given the chance to make up for the arguments they had.

Kathina remains a presence in his life, Yhap said. She kept him from following the temptations ever-present in the city's poor neighborhoods. He is sure Kathina is watching and wants to make her proud.

"She is my angel, for sure," Yhap said. "I talk to her through my prayers. I feel like she's protecting me."

Kathina died at about 8:20 on a warm evening when two groups of teenagers stared each other down before opening fire up and down the street. Jermayne Timmons, at the time just five years older than Kathina, was convicted of firing the shot that killed her. He remains in prison.

Yhap feels no anger toward Timmons or the other teens. What good would it do, he asked, to feel that way? How would it help to hate a person who was a product of his neighborhood's neglect?

"I do feel like he's also a victim," Yhap said. "I can't just walk around being angry."

But anger was a common reaction to Kathina's death, and afterward, shocked civic leaders promised her killing would be a catalyst for change. More attention would be directed toward preventing gun violence, they promised. The girl would not die in vain.

In many respects, they followed through. Groups like SNUG and Cure Violence did put try to curb the mayhem. With time, the police department changed too, directing its energy toward community policing and intercepting at-risk teens.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

Perhaps as a result, the city became safer. Consider that in the year Kathina died, there were 201 crimes committed with firearms in Albany. Last year, there were 121.

More Information Contact columnist Chris Churchill at 518-454-5442 or email cchurchill@timesunion.com See More Collapse

"It's not as bad as it used to be," said Beverly Padgett, an Arbor Hill resident who saw a dying Kathina lying on the ground and has since been active in anti-violence efforts. "I remind people of that all the time."

But does anybody doubt that Kathina's tragedy could be repeated today? Earlier this year, about a block from her old home, stray bullets hit a nursery school. Albany remains too violent. Too many of its children are still at risk.

The house at 445 First St. is boarded over now, another ghost staring at its neighborhood with vacant eyes. People pass by Kathina's stoop without thought of what happened there.

But the memory of that evening lingers - in the city's collective consciousness and in the minds of men like Sean Kum, a neighbor who remembers Kathina and can see where she bled to death from his front window.

"You can never forget it," Kum said. "A mother lost her daughter."

Yhap said the family would mark the anniversary of Kathina's death, but wasn't yet sure how. Perhaps there would be a get-together, he said. Certainly, he would visit her humble Graceland Cemetery grave, where Kathina's smiling face and Teddy bear are etched into her headstone.

He'll remember Kathina, and many others will, too. She's forever the innocent little girl who loved to sing and dance but was denied her future  the child with the spark in her eyes, until the city's violence took her light away.

cchurchill@timesunion.com  518-454-5442  @chris_churchill
Troy

The Veterans of Lansingburgh, Inc.'s 22nd annual Memorial Day Parade, "Honoring Those Who Paid the Ultimate Sacrifice," will step off at 11 a.m. Monday, May 28.

Grand marshal is Command Sgt. Maj. John Willsey, ret., an Army Iraq War veteran; honorary grand marshal is David Clum, a Navy Seabee and Vietnam veteran.

Willsey retired in 2011 as an active Guard/Reserve soldier after a 33-year career ranging from finance clerk to Command Sergeant Major.

A native of Troy, Willsey entered the Army in 1978, attended basic training at Fort Knox, Ky. and Advanced Individual Training at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Ind., where he earned his military occupational specialty as a finance specialist.

Throughout his career, he has served as finance clerk, squad leader, supply sergeant, platoon sergeant, Unit Ministry Team NCO, PSNCO, AGR Human Resources NCO, Chief Human Resources NCO G1, and ultimately Command Sergeant Major.

Willsey mobilized to Fort Drum in 2004 and returned from Operation Iraqi Freedom III, in Tikrit, Iraq in November 2005.

Throughout his career, he received numerous honors, including the Legion of Merit and the Bronze Star Medal, and he is a member of various military-related organizations.

He is married to the former Halina Hunzcak, has two children and is currently director of New York National Guard Family Programs at the Division of Military and Naval Affairs.

Also a Troy native, Clum joined the Navy in 1966 and was deployed for two combat tours in Vietnam, the first in DaNang and the second in Phu Bai. Discharged from the Navy in 1972 with the rank of CM2 E-5, Clum worked at the Watervliet Arsenal until retirement.

He received numerous military awards including the National Defense Service Medal and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

Several military/veteran groups are slated to march in the parade including: 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division color guard, "The Rakkasans"; 42nd Infantry Division, New York Army National Guard, color guard and vehicles; New Army National Guard Recruiting; Troy Detachment Marine Corps League; 1 Canadian Army Veterans Motorcycle Unit, Niagara Falls, Canada; Navy Seabee Veterans of America, Island X10; Lincoln & Welland Regiment, Canadian Army Reserves, St. Catherine's, Canada; Rensselaer County Honor A Deceased Veteran Committee; U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps (Mahan Division); Rensselaer County Veterans Service Agency; Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 8; Disabled American Veterans, Chapter 38; Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association Chapter 19-1; Veterans of Lansingburgh color guard, members, Veterans, Auxiliary and Sons of the Veterans of Lansingburgh floats.

Racing City Chorus, Troy High School marching band, Avant Garde Alumni Drumline, Capital District Youth Pipe Band, The Uncle Sam Chorus, New York State Corrections Emerald Society Pipe Band and Excelsior Drum Corps; will provide the music.

The Troy Police and Fire Departments, Speigletown District Volunteer Fire Company, Rensselaer County Sheriff's Office, and the Tri-State Emergency Team from Waterford will march.

Participating youth and civil groups are Lansingburgh Boys & Girls Club, 2018 Veterans of Lansingburgh Scholarship Winner Brian Gregware, a Lansingburgh High senior; Lansingburgh Girl Scouts; Troy Central Little League; Callanan Industries; Tri-City Valleycats and Brunswick Baptist Church.

At noon on Sunday, May 27, the Veterans will dedicate a granite marker at the Troy Housing Authority's veterans apartments on 115th Street and Second Avenue in honor of Specialist 4th Class Peter Guenette, a Troy native and Medal of Honor winner who died in Vietnam. Fort Campbell in Kentucky is sending a color guard from Guenette's unit, the 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, to participate in the ceremony.
CANTON - The motivation behind Tedra Cobb's first run for local office and her current bid for Congress is hard to miss.

Hearing the 50-year-old Democrat talk about the events that led her to challenge an incumbent county legislator in 2001 is eerily reminiscent of the Democratic critique that U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik doesn't act with her constituents in mind.

"I felt the person that I was running against didn't understand the challenges we were facing in the district," Cobb said.

She had that same sort of epiphany about Stefanik in May of last year, when the two-term incumbent voted for the American Health Care Act, a Republican alternative to Obamacare that eventually died in the U.S. Senate. Cobb believes the legislation could have been devastating for the region, costing people their health insurance and weakening the heath care industry.

"The parallel is the lack of representation," Cobb said. "She votes against our interest."

Having lived, worked and raised a family in the North Country for more than 30 years, Cobb feels she is in the best position to represent the people of the 21st Congressional District, a 12-county expanse across the Adirondacks. She describes the people she wants to represent as fiercely independent, but deeply committed to the well-being of their community.

Her political positions don't deviate much from the four other Democrats still vying to take on Stefanik in November. "I think we're very similar on issues," she said.

Where she stands out, in her opinion, is her resume and lived experiences.

While all the candidates advance environmentally friendly policies, Cobb said she is the only one who lived off the grid and touts her hybrid car.

All the candidates want to expand access to health care, but Cobb says she has a record of helping the uninsured access health services. She helped grow a community health agency that provided preventative screening and follow-up care.

After going back to school for a master's degree, Cobb launched her own firm that provides businesses with staff development and strategic planning services.



Political Experience

More Information This is another in a series of stories on some of the candidates seeking Capital Region-area congressional seats in the June 26 primary and November general election. See More Collapse

Cobb also stands out from her primary opponents because of her elected experience, which consists of two terms on the St. Lawrence County Legislature. She ran unopposed in her second bid and opted not to seek another four years because of a self-imposed term limit.

In her eight years as a county legislator, she said she learned skills that would make her a successful member of Congress.

As a member of the legislature she helped shepherd through a comprehensive ethics law that required a coalition of support. Cobb believes that same deliberative process is missing from Congress.

"I know that making good legislation takes time," she said.

Serving in elected office also made her realize the importance of constituent services, which she contends has been missing from Stefanik's approach. Even after leaving office, Cobb has tried to help connect people with the government services that they need.



The frontrunner?

By some of the objective measurements to handicap an election, Cobb appears to have the edge over the Democratic field.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

She collected the most signatures to get on the ballot and raised the most money among the current field, as of the spring filing deadline. Her campaign also touts their approximately 750 volunteers, which appears to be the most among the Democrats.

Bruce Gyory, a Democratic consultant not working on the race, said the lead in signatures and base of volunteers are the sign of a good campaign organization. This ground game, he said, will likely have a disproportionate affect on the primary results because the turnout will be so low.

"That get out the vote effort will be enhanced in value," Gyory said.

And unlike some of her Democratic competitors, Cobb collected her petitions with volunteers and didn't have to hire any staff. "A real sign of a good petition operation are those who don't have to pay," Gyory said.

Cobb said people are willing to get involved in her campaign because she asks for help and shares their passion for the district. "I've run a campaign before and that was a grassroots campaign run very similar to this," she said.

Gyory said fundraising figures could indicate who the perceived frontrunner is in the race, but stressed that they aren't always an indicator of who will win. He noted that Democrat Don Boyajian had actually raised more money than Cobb before he dropped out of the race to pursue an Assembly seat.

And without any public polling, the first clear sign of the frontrunner will come on June 26, when Democratic voters head to the polls to choose their candidates.

If she is able to emerge with the party's nomination, Cobb isn't worried about Democrats coming together for the general election. She said the tone of the race has been respectful and claimed the party establishment is largely staying on the sidelines until after voters have their say.

"I don't look at this primary as a negative. Look at the people who are mobilized," Cobb said.

David.Lombardo@timesunion.com  518.454.5427 - @Poozer87
PITTSTOWN  A Bennington, Vermont man was killed in a car versus motorcycle accident Saturday night on Route 7.

State Police said an accident involving a motorcycle and SUV happened near the intersection of Route 7 and Eycleshymer Road around 9 p.m. Saturday.

Police said the motorcycle being operated by David Emaish, 45, collided with the SUV being driven by Caroline Church, 74, of Brunswick. Emaish was pronounced dead at the scene, and Church was taken to Samaritan Hospital for undisclosed injuries.

The Pittstown Fire Department, Pittstown Ambulance, and Rensselaer County Sheriffs Department assisted State Police at the scene.

No tickets have been issued in the case, but the investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call State Police at 518-279-4427.

Sign up for The Knick  Get the latest news and some area history with our afternoon newsletter.

Emaish barely survived another crash four years ago, when he drove across someone's lawn in White Creek, Washington County and then was ejected from his Ford pickup truck. He was critically injured, and flown to Albany Medical Center Hospital for treatment.

In that June 2014 crash, State Police said they were investigating if alcohol was a factor in the accident. But it's unknown if charges were ever filed in that case.
ALBANY  A Colorado man was arrested Friday for trying to board a flight at Albany International Airport with a pistol that was not licensed in the state of New York, according to the Albany County Sheriff's Office.

Thomas E. Wilson, 26, of Manitou Springs, C.O. was taken into custody and charged with one count of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, Albany County Sheriff Craig D. Apple Sr. said.
Standard Chartered today announced the appointment of Shada El Borno as the regional head of Global Subsidiaries (GS) for the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan (MENAP) markets, and Head of GS for UAE.



In this role, El Borno will be responsible for managing the Banks GS business for MENAP and will also join the Global GS Management Team.



El Borno brings a wealth of experience to the position and has been with Standard Chartered for 22 years. She has held a number of senior roles at the Bank, most recently as the regional head of Business Management, Global Banking MENAP. She was also the head of Financial Institutions (FI) and the head of Client Coverage Group in the UAE.



Julian Wynter, chief executive officer, Standard Chartered, UAE said: We are pleased to announce El Bornos new role with our team at Standard Chartered. Her in-depth knowledge, experience and connectivity within the Bank, and the industry as a whole, will undoubtedly allow us to leverage our network across the region.



The UAE remains a key market for Standard Chartered and the largest single-country franchise in the region. We are confident that, in her new role, Shada will lead the team in providing comprehensive coverage for this important client segment.



In the new position, El Borno will work closely with the local country banking and GS heads, regional product and functional support partners and coverage teams to deliver the Banks MENAP and network capabilities to key corporate clients.



She will report into Mohamed Salama, country head Global Banking UAE for the local GS business; Sarmad Lone, regional head of GB, MENAP, for the overall MENAP GS business; and to Rob Snell, global head of Global Subsidiaries.



El Borno holds a Bachelors of Science degree in Accounting and Finance from the American College of Switzerland. She is Emirati and is fluent is fluent in English, French and Arabic.  TradeArabia News Service
When traveling, it's good to take in the nightlife, the food and the environment. New places can also offer products unique to the destination, like the following Hudson Valley independent shops.

One of the newer companies on this list to hit the Hudson Valley, Hartland on Hudson (aka Hartland Brooklyn, speaking to its home city) moved into its Leeds general store location in 2015. The hand-illustrated cards have a bespoke, cutesy quality. "Let's Move To The Mountains" card with cellophane-protected envelope: $5. hartlandonhudson.com.
One of the first automakers to launch a production hybrid  the Insight arrive in late 2000  Honda still has a lot of catching up to do in the all-electric market. Having focused on hydrogen tech and hybrids in recent years, the Japanese firm has only two EVs on offer: the brand-new Clarity Electric and the really old Fit EV, based on the second-gen hatchback that was discontinued in 2014. But Honda wants to change that really soon. It has already signed a global partnership with CATL, Chinas biggest battery maker, and more recently one with Nikkei, which will spawn a new all-electric Fit.

The goal is to drop a brand-new battery in the Fit, a mini car that currently available with gasoline and diesel engines only

According to Nikkei, the goal is to drop a brand-new battery in the Fit, a mini car that currently available with gasoline and diesel engines only. Theres no word on whether they will use the current Fit, which is almost five years old as of 2018, but production is set to start in 2020. This could mean that Nikkei and Honda will be waiting for the next-generation model. What we do know is that the companies aim for a 300-km range, which converts to 186 miles. The mileage is likely based on the Chinese standard, so it could be lower in European and American models.

Nikkei also said that the car will cost "slightly more than 2 million yen or $18,000," which is a really affordable sticker compared to whats available right now. The old Fit EV is a lease only vehicle in the U.S., but the Nissan Leaf, for instance, retails from $29,990, or as low as $22,490 after federal tax credits. Interestingly enough, Honda wants to build 100,000 per year, significantly more than other EVs aside from the Tesla Model 3.

Needless to say, if this project comes to fruition, we will finally get an affordable EV on the market. Automakers have been promising to lower costs for quite a few years now, but all-electric cars rarely go below the $30,000 mark. Government rebates often take them to around $25,000 or below, but not all countries have similar programs. An $18,000 electric vehicle would be a first and could finally start that EV revolution weve been waiting for.

References

Read our full review on the 2015 Honda Fit.

Read our full review on the 2019 Honda Insight.

Read more Honda news.

Source: Nikkei via Electrek
The year was 1981, Centenary Hall, St Marys College, Port of Spain.

On a Sunday in May a Chinese youth and his Afro-Trinidadian counterpart were on the halls stage behind their DJ set-up, the centre of attention for the pupils and other kids attending the annual Mayfair.
Forty-eight per cent of Middle East businesses cited fraud and corruption as the greatest risk to their company, followed by cyber attacks (38 per cent), according to the Global Fraud Survey conducted by professional services firm EY.



While 97 per cent of respondents agreed that it is important to demonstrate that their organization operates with integrity, 39 per cent still think that offering cash payments can be justified if they help a business survive an economic downturn.



Charles de Chermont, EY MENA Fraud Investigation & Dispute Services leader, said: The findings show that there is often a lag between the introduction of stronger anti-corruption laws and a change in behaviour. While new laws and regulations have been introduced and enforcement intensified, non-compliant behaviour still remains, though the Middle East is certainly tackling the issue.



This years survey found that 42 per cent of executives surveyed in the Middle East believe that corrupt practices still occur widely in business.



Businesses remain vulnerable to significant financial and reputational harm. Management teams must identify and address the root causes of such conduct in their organization. Compliance programs need to keep pace with the impact of rapid technological advancements and the increasingly complex risk environment on business operations, added de Chermont.



The report finds that individuals shirk responsibility; when asked who is held accountable for ensuring employee integrity, 50 per cent of respondents believe that integrity is the primary responsibility of either management or the board, and only 14 per cent feel that individuals should take primary responsibility for their organization behaving with integrity.



Organizations need to make it clear that acting with integrity is everyones responsibility. The pressing challenge for management and the board, therefore, is to build a robust culture of integrity and compliance in which employees do the right thing because its the right thing to do, and not just because a company code of conduct says they should. The encouraging news is that with todays advances in forensic data analytics, companies can use technology to detect fraud as they seek to improve compliance, explained de Chermont.



Global regulations that will affect Middle East



The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which came into force on May 25, requires all businesses to strengthen the protection of personal data of all EU citizens; the penalty for non-compliance is 20 million ($23.2 million), or 4 per cent of the worldwide annual revenue of the prior financial year, whichever is greater.



The introduction of GDPR is a major challenge for all organizations. Apart from the need to comply with laws, regulations, contracts and other agreements, embracing a GDPR-compliant approach ensures an organization protects personal data in an increasingly complex regulatory environment. It helps meet the expectations of stakeholders, especially in the light of increasing public awareness and concerns about data privacy in recent times, concluded de Chermont.  TradeArabia News Service
THE nine men who are currently serving life sentences for the murder and beheading in 1997 o
You can put a street address or a name of a hotel on your ESTA form - there is only room for one address/ hotel name.

You can edit your application re the street address AFTER it's been approved if you like but as others have said, the actual address does not seem to be an issue.

Make sure you use the official site as there are some sites out there that may look official but are not - the application should be around $US 14 each.

When you submit your application, take a screen shot or download it or print it so you have your application number.

Your application won't be approved until after you pay.

You won't necessarily be informed that the application has been approved - we applied towards the end of last week and checked the site 2 days later and it had been approved. I printed it out to take with me just in case the ship / checkin wants proof that we have permission to travel.
Hi Harpy1101,

In the event that you require emergency medical treatment, most insurers have a monetary threshold (usually treatment over $500-$1000) at which you are required to contact the insurer has soon as possible. At this point, they will liaise with the medical team to make sure you're getting the best care, but not incurring unnecessary expenses (expensive private suites, etc).

In the event that you are unresponsive and have been admitted to a private hospital, any family or friends who are aware of your condition should contact the insurer as soon as possible. If you are unresponsive and your emergency contacts have not been notified, then all you can do is contact the insurer/have the hospital contact them when you are no longer unresponsive.

Check the wording of your policy, and call your insurer if you aren't sure, but if you follow the rules in your PDS, they would be liable to pay your claim even if you ended up in a private hospital while unresponsive.

As a piece of advice - it's a good idea to carry your emergency contact information and a paper copy of your certificate of insurance on your person (like in your wallet) while travelling.

With respect to difficulties getting insurers to pay, you can check out the customer reviews on this site to get a sense of how they compare:
"We were planning to visit Scenic World, Katoomba Falls, Three Sisters and Echo Point on Day 1 & 2. Will that be possible?"

Notwithstanding the Blue Mountains is a very large region, you can visit all those particular places in one afternoon or morning. Echo Point is a 20-30 minute easy walk from Scenic World, passing Katoomba Cascades along the way, which are upstream from Katoomba Falls. There is a nice 20-minute walk down to the base of the first drop of Katoomba Falls from Cliff Drive near Scenic World, or you can get a bird's eye view of the falls from the Scenic Skyway - one of the rides at Scenic World.

I can also suggest visiting Echo Point at night - far less people and The Three sisters are lit up by spotlights. There is also a great walk from the base of the Three Sisters (down the Giant Stairway) to the base of Scenic World - 2-3 hours, from where you can ride the Scenic Railway back up to the top.

------------------------------------------------

"We also planned to visit Jenolan Caves on Day 3. We looked online and found a tour (CDC Tour) that can bring us from Katoomba to Jenolan, and return back at 5pm. Will it be safe/possible if we then travel back to Sydney on that same day?"

It is both perfectly safe and possible to catch a train back to Sydney after 5pm. If you don't wish to drive to Jenolan Caves, then a tour is your only option as there is no public transport there.

Most tours start from Sydney, which makes for a long day. CDC can be trusted. It is the only large coach service from Katoomba, the others are more expensive private (or small group) tours. You can find a list of them here - scroll down to "Alternate transport to Jenolan Caves":

_____________________________

Where are you staying? Are you keen bushwalkers?
-:- Message from Tripadvisor staff -:-

This topic has been closed to new posts due to inactivity. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one.

To review the Tripadvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html

We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.
What would be your advise for two days in New York.

What would be your advise for two days in New York.

We are heading of to New York this year we will land early afternoon on a Saturday and then leave early afternoon on the Tuesday. We are staying in Queens, hoping to get a tube from JFK to hotel.

We are looking at getting a two day new pass. Have already booked the World Observatory tickets. Are considering Rockfella Centre, Circle Line Cruise, Statue of Liberty, Empire State, Times Square, Bus tour possible the Ride, Eating at the Katz restaurant.

We definitely would like to include some shopping, this is our first time and we have a 16 year old with. Any advice will be received with thanks.
You definitely don't want to stay in San Jose. It's not really a very attractive city for the most part. A lot of families like the Arenal and Manuel Antonio areas. Tons to do in both places. If you have seven days you could do both. The Arenal area is lush and green, jungly. We've stayed at the Lost Iguana, Nayara, The Springs Resort, and the Arenal Observatory Lodge and have enjoyed all of them. Silencio del Campo is also popular. Ziplining at Sky Trek is great, you can raft with Rios Tropicales, and do hiking at the Mistico Hanging Bridges, volcano, and waterfall. The area is spread out so a lot of people like to have a car, but if you don't have one you can take taxis, and some hotels have a shuttle. Manuel Antonio has the beach. We love Tulemar Bungalows - a beach on site, good open air restaurants in walking distance, great service, pretty views. We even had a concierge assigned to us. You can see lots of wildlife in the area; the beach inside the national park is beautiful. There are some adventure activities here too. We like Manuel Antonio Expeditions for a guided tour of the park and the Damas mangrove tour. The Villa Vanilla spice tour is interesting if you have time and think your kids would enjoy it.
Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB), the largest Islamic bank in the UAE, has donated Dh15 million ($4.08 million) of Zakat money to Sharjah Charity International, said a report.



Abdul Razzaq Al Abdullah, head of Community Services Department at DIB, recently handed the donation cheque to Abdullah Saif bin Hindi, director of the Financial Department at the Sharjah Charity International, said a report in WAM.



Al Abdullah highlighted the desire of DIB to provide the bank's Zakat to regulated national charity associations and authorities, to fulfil the needs of those eligible to receive Zakat, especially during the holy month of Ramadan, and coinciding with the 'Year of Zayed'. He also noted that their donation is part of the banks efforts during Ramadan to support charity and humanitarian organisations.



In turn, bin Hindi thanked DIB and praised its humanitarian, charity and community roles, noting that his organisation will distribute Zakat to those who are in need, the report said.
Not everyone is comfortable traveling alone without a tour.

I find it exhilirating!! I can do my own research and ask for help when needed but basically plan where I want to go and when I want to go.

I have so far been to Japan alone twice. I am a senior woman who speaks a very few phrases of Japanese-I was not lonely and I found people to talk to throughout my trip. Some were Japanese citizens and some were other tourists.I prefer more comfort so I don't stay in hostels but I know lots of travelers of all ages use them.

Only go on a tour if you find one that allows lots of free time and not rush from town to town.
Welcome to the forum Danny, and congratulations on graduating.

What do you mean/want by fun beach day? Many outer resorts have kayaks, sup's, etc. Some include them in their price, others charge extra. Some have afternoon volleyball - staff vs guests. No beach parties like in the states.

Octopus and Mantaray Resorts offer swimming with manta rays. Manta ray also has shark diving.

Depending when you arrive Nadi from Sydney, you might have to overnight on the main island. Flights back to LAX late night, so shouldn't have to over night before returning home. Many outer island resorts are the only thing on the island. No roads, towns, or other resorts so no choice of restaurants/bars other than at the resort. Some have only one restaurant and bar. Resorts offer tours/activities both complimentary and those at an additional cost to keep you occupied or not.

Beqa, is known for diving with sharks: tiger, lemon, bull, etc. Coconut Grove Beach, Paradise Taveuni, and other resorts on Taveuni offer diving to Rainbow Reef known for spectacular diving. Nearby Matangi and Qamea (both small, and adults only popular with couples) have fabulous diving. Know Paradise has no beach at all in front of the resort. We knew that before going, so weren't disappointed. Getting to Taveuni and Qamea and require an additional 1 1/2 hour from Nadi to Taveuni.

Have a look their websites for accommodation types, tours/activities, transportation, prices and other information.

The resorts are very different. Which one depends on budget, and what you want to experience. Keep in mind it is impossible for a resort to have all your wants. Enjoy the research. It is have the fun, but can boggle the mind. :)
-:- Message from Tripadvisor staff -:-

Tripadvisor staff removed this post because it did not meet Tripadvisor's forum posting guidelines with prohibiting self-promotional advertising or solicitation.

We ask all of our members to keep their forum messages free of self-promoting advertisements or solicitation of any kind - members affiliated with any tourism-related business should not include commercial contact information or URLs in their forum messages.

To review the Tripadvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html

We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.
While I've felt very safe in Manhattan at night, I've seen some comments that some areas in the boroughs should be avoided.

I'm considering an event that would mean walking alone around midnight for about 10 minutes (to the subway) in East Williamburg. Specifically around Morgan and Johnson.

The images in Google maps look pretty desolate but not sure how old they are.

Thanks for any insight on this area!
Great stay, coming to an end as I head to Long Island for a few days.

First, the New York Edition was a great choice. Very good location, right across the street from Madison Square Park, close to the subway, nice neighborhood and nice rooms. I came in to celebrate my birthday and they upgraded me, had a chocolate mousse cake waiting in the room for me, and have given me a 2PM late checkout. I even had a nice view of the ESB from my room.

Thursday night, which I mentioned in a separate thread, I ate at Maialino and then had cocktails next door at Rose Bar in which Lady Gaga popped in and sang with the jazz band.

Friday I walked around Times Square before meeting up with a friend for lunch at Grand Banks. Not bad, though the boat tends to rock quite a bit and I do not recommend for people who might be a little queasy. I then got a tour of Battery Park and surroundings, including Brookfield Place (grabbed an outdoor beer overlooking the Hudson at Le District) and the Oculus. Had dinner at Minetta Tavern, with the obligatory and delicious Black Label Burger.

Saturday I walked the High Line and then went to the Whitney Art Museum. Nice exhibits and views. Walked around the Meatpacking District in the afternoon and then met my cousin for dinner at NougatineI have had much better tuna tartare at other J-G restaurants though the veal Milanese was good. Checked out the Time Warner Center from a distanceanyone who says malls are dead needs to come to NYC.
Re: What would be your advise for two days in New York.

5. Re: What would be your advise for two days in New York.

The issue with passes are 3-

1) They don't give you tickets, just vouchers that you have to redeem when you get to the venue. For venues with timed tickets, you could face a wait for the next available open timeslot or even find that tickets are sold out. (Aside - tickets for the Statue of Liberty Pedestal & Crown sell out incredibly quickly so you need to go to the official website statuecruises & check ASAP for availability.)

2) Passes use full price for ticket price comparison when lower priced options are available. For an example, the American Museum of Natural History vouchers are usually for basic admission only & those tickets are pay what you wish.

3) Passes included many things that are not all that desirable so you end up running from place to place trying to get the best bang for your buck instead of spending time where you really want to go.

If you must purchase an attraction package, find one that is a limited pick what you want pass rather than a see it all pass.
- Rapper Octopizzo taunted Kenyan youth to act against corruption cases in the country

- He warned them against complaining about the country's problems on social media

- He added the only time to act was now before all the scandals are swept under the carpet

Rapper Octopizzo became the latest celebrity to speak up on the shocking revelations of major corruption scandals in the country.

The celebrated rapper criticised netizens who only expressed their anger and grievances on social media platforms but do not make any actual step in resolving underlying issues.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

In a castigating tweet seen by TUKO.co.ke on Saturday, May 26, Octopizzo argued it was time Kenyan youth stopped tweeting about corruption and instead be courageous enough to start a revolution.

READ ALSO: Mwendesha bodaboda aaibishwa kwa kuyakodolea macho makalio ya vipusa

Rapper Octopizzo becomes the latest celebrity to speak up on the shocking revelations over corruption scandals in the country.Photo: Octopizzo/ Facebook.

READ ALSO: Stop pretending to be mad, you voted in thieves - Comedian Njugush to Kenyans

Octopizzo cautioned young people in the country that this was the only time they had to demand accountability before the storm settled and the dirt swept under the carpet.

The rapper's sentiments came after celebrated comedian Njugush castigated Kenyans for being furious over the corruption scandals yet it was the result of their poor choices of leaders during elections.

READ ALSO: William Ruto calls for swift action on NYS, NCPB scandals

In the hilarious video seen by TUKO.co.ke, on Friday, May 25, Njugush scolded Kenyans telling them to continue venting.

As reported by TUKO.co.ke, several National Youth Service (NYS) officials were on Sunday, May 20, suspended as probe into the alleged theft intensified.

Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Public Service Lillian Omollo refuted the claims boldly stating it was impossible for the cash to disappear from NYS under her tenure.

Outraged Kenyans went on to organise a demonstration in Nairobi to protest the ongoing corruption scandals in the country.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news

Champions league 2018: Liverpool vs Real Madrid match preview - on TUKO TV

Source: Tuko
- The Chief Justice said Kenya is not a failed state

- Maraga urged Kenyans not lose faith in president Uhuru

- The CJ said he was optimistic Uhuru will deal end corruption

-He said the judiciary was ready to slay the dargon of corruption

Chief Justice David Maraga has waded into the raging corruption debate following reports of massive looting of public resources saying he has faith Presdent Uhuru Kenyatta will address the matter.

Maraga pleaded with Kenyans to be patient with Uhuru even as the vice escalates to unbelievable levels.

While speaking during the Kenya in Diaspora Conference, in Dallas, Texas, Maraga called on Kenyans to bear with Uhuru as he was trying his best to combat the massive plunder of public resources, the Daily Nation reported.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

READ ALSO: Class 8 pupil killed, 21 injured as lightning strikes during sports event in Kakamega

Maraga urged Kenyans to be patient with Uhuru as he combats graft in the country. Photo: David Maraga/ Twitter

Maraga pleaded with Kenyans living abroad saying he was aware they were equally upset as their countrymen back home, but urged them not to lose hope.

READ ALSO: Wanaume watoa sababu 12 zinazowafanya kuwakimbilia wanawake walioolewa

President Uhuru Kenyatta has assured Kenyans that the government will deal with those involved in these vices and I believe him.

"Thats why Im asking you not give up on your country. This is the time to be patriotic, said Maraga.

Maraga opined Kenyans were bound to became skeptical about their leaders due to myriad corruption scandals, but exuded confidence the government is committed to curb graft in various institutions.

READ ALSO: UPDATE: Again! 7 dead in grisly Bungoma road accident involving PSV and cane tractor

I know that the challenges the country faces may sometimes easily lead to the false conclusion that Kenya is a failing and hopeless state. To the contrary, Kenya is a country of enormous progress, promise and hope," he said.

Maraga went on to disclose that Judiciary has put in place measures to deal with corruption and would remain steadfast in the fight against the vice.

The recent conviction of some formerly high ranking officials in the Nairobi County government is a clear manifestation of our resolve," he said.

READ ALSO: Police kill 3 dangerous gangsters in fierce Juja shootout

"Our democracy may be fragile, but it is growing and flourishing. Our institutions may be young, but they have been tested and they have endured he stated.

Self-declared National Resistance Movement (NRM) general Miguna Miguna sensationally termed Uhuru and his deputy William Ruto as the main thieves of public resources.

Elsewhere, Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen shocked Kenyans after admitting he was a victim of the KSh 1.9 billion scandal at the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB).

About a week ago, fresh probe initiated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and other agencies in 2017 lifted the lid on a KSh 10.5 billion heist in NYS.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news.

Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga: Full Speech at Harambee House - On Tuko TV

Source: Tuko
- The two political nemesis agreed to forget about their ugly past for the sake of unity

- Outoma lost to Ojaamong' in the disputed August 8 gubernatorial race in Busia County

- Khalwale and Oparanya also grabbed the opportunity to shake hands

Busia County Governor Sospeter Ojaamong' and his political nemesis Paul Otuoma have decided to put an end to their political tension and work together for the sake of unity in western Kenya.

Otuoma, who lost to Ojaamong' in the August 8 gubernatorial race, extended a hand to the Busia governor to signify the beginning of a new chapter.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

Former Funyula MP Paul Otuoma shakes hands with Busia Governor Sospeter Ojaamong during burial of Kakamega Governor Wycliffe's mother-in-law in Mungatsi. Photo: Busia County Government.

READ ALSO: Raila Junior ashambulia wanaomtaka babake kuzungumzia ufisadi nchini

"This is a true handshake which has come from the bottom of my heart. We should forget about the past and forge ahead," Otuoma said as he warmly shook hands with Ojaamong and as former prime minister Raila Odinga and other leaders watched in excitement during the burial of Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya's mother-in-law, Margaret Shiundu, on Saturday, May 26.

The former Funyula Member of Parliament, who was invited by Ojaamong to greet mourners, claimed he was asked to challenge Ojaamong's August 8 victory in court but decided to let it go despite having reservations on how the poll was conducted.

READ ALSO: Kalonzo, Mudavadi, Wetangula disown Raila's reconciliation talks with Uhuru

Ojaamong', on his part, joked it was a good thing that his opponent finally threw in the towel after running up and down in desperate attempts to nullify the Busia County gubernatorial election.

"Let me now concentrate on serving the people of Busia County without an iota of discrimination," Ojaamong' said.

Governor Oparanya, who also took the opportunity to shake hands with his rival, former Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale, lauded the reconciliation between Otuoma and Ojaamong' saying it was the best way to go.

READ ALSO: You've betrayed people who died fighting for you - Miguna blasts Raila after meeting Uhuru

Raila commended the four politicians for taking the bold step and helping advance the Harambee House unity deal in the western region.

"What I am against is the perceived Luhya unity. This is an exercise in futility. What we need are policies that can unite all Kenyans and bring numerous changes," Raila said.

The former prime minister emphasised his peace agreement with Uhuru will start bearing fruits soon.

"The 12-member committee we appointed will come with their recommendations which we shall adopt, contrary to skeptics that I am after a coalition government," he said.

READ ALSO: Kenyans mock Raila after his dramatic one-man swearing-in

Raila's visit to Busia came at a time when a section of politicians from the region were pushing for unity of the Luhya nation in what is widely perceived to be a desperate attempts to diffuse the ODM party leader's influence in the vote-rich bloc.

Amani National Congress (ANC) party leader Musalia Mudavadi and his Ford Kenya counterpart Moses Wetang'ula have been crisscrossing the region preaching the familiar Luhya unity gospel.

The two have also vowed to merge their parties into one in preparation for the 2022 political duel following a bitter fall-out with Raila's ODM party in the National Super Alliance (NASA) coalition.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news.

Meet Kenya's Strongest Man with the Strength of a Rhino (trailer)| Faces of Kenya - On Tuko TV

Source: Kenyan Breaking News
- The officer was suspected to have links with a car explosion that left over 20 people dead

- His wife found the body hanging from the frame of the bedroom door

- He was attached to the National Disaster management Unit but was later interdicted

A police officer who was charged in court on suspicion of having links with terrorists has committed suicide in his house in Shauri Moyo estate, Nairobi.

Constable Waiss Abdulaziz Mohammed was suspected to have links with a car explosion that left over 20 people dead.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

He was charged in court with participation in terrorism activities, membership to a terrorist group, promoting terrorism and being in possession of articles connected with terrorism.

READ ALSO: Raila Junior ashambulia wanaomtaka babake kuzungumzia ufisadi nchini

Constable Waiss Abdulaziz Mohammed was suspected to have links with a car explosion that left over 20 people dead. Photo: Lucky Omenda/TUKO

READ ALSO: Police shoot dead woman at City Park in case of mistaken identity

The officers wife, Agnes Muthoni Wanjiku said that she went to Shauri Moyo BAT police quarters and knocked on the door but there was no response.

She called him through his mobile phone but there was no response.

Since she had a spare key, she decided to open the door only to find his body hanging from the frame of the bedroom door, with a rope tied around his neck.

The scene was visited by OCS Shauri Moyo and his team. He had left behind a suicide note.

READ ALSO: Kenya Police commando collapses and dies in training

Wanjiku said she separated with the deceased officer two weeks ago and had come to check on him.

The officer was attached to the National Disaster management Unit (NDMU) at Vigilance House but was later interdicted when he was charged in court.

On June 28, 2017 four police officers, four school children and three adults perished in a road explosion while eight police officers died in Mandera when their vehicle attached Mandera Governor Ali Roba was blown off.

When he was arrested, he was found with gadgets used to liaise with the terrorism groups in the country and in Somalia.

They included a laptop, three sim cards and material used in radicalization of youth.

Story by Lucky Omenda, TUKO Correspondent.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news.

Gladys Wanga dares police officers to shoot her - on TUKO TV

Source: Tuko Newspaper
Russia has secured the rights to host the second edition of the Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit (GMIS), a pioneering cross-industry forum that aims to unify the world in shaping the future of manufacturing, to be held in 2019.



The announcement was made by the President of the Russian Fedration, Vladimir Putin, during his plenary session at the St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), alongside the President of France Emmanuel Macron, Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Vice President of the People's Republic of China Wang Qishan and IMF managing director Christine Lagarde, said a statement.



In his opening statement, Putin said: I urge everyone to participate in the second edition of the summit which will be held in the Ural region in the city of Yekaterinburg.



The focus will be on the use of advanced, promising technologies in the economy, industry and other spheres, he added.



The second edition of the summit in Russia will intensify the impact of innovation and Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies on the global manufacturing sector through the worldwide dissemination of knowledge, best practices, and standards, it said.



The summit, which will be staged in conjunction with the 10th International Industrial Fair (INNOPROM) that will be held in July 2019, promotes the development of a roadmap for the future of manufacturing across the world, with economic and social development at its core, it added.



The theme of the 2019 Summit in Russia - one of the worlds biggest manufacturing heartlands - will be 'nature-like technologies, otherwise known as biomimetic design and biomimicry, said a statement.



The science of mapping design challenges to the natural world to find innovative solutions has led to some of the worlds most important inventions. By using nature to inspire manufacturing innovations, the Summit will promote strategies and designs to deliver solutions that achieve sustainable industrial development, it said.



A joint initiative by the UAE and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the summit bridges the gap between manufacturers, governments and NGOs, technologists, and investors in harnessing the Fourth Industrial Revolutions transformation of manufacturing, to enable the regeneration of the global economy.



Uniting key stakeholders - including world leaders, industry CEOs, and specialist researchers and academics  the summit has placed manufacturing at the core of economic transformation and government policy-making, promoting it as a tool for global cooperation and collaboration, and is committed to ensuring the sector supports the objectives of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).



The first edition of the summit was held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, at the Paris Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi, UAE, in March 2017.



It brought together over 3,000 government, business, and civil society leaders from over 40 countries to advance manufacturing and industrial development globally, and to identify key trends and opportunities across the themes that can support the manufacturing sector of the future.



Its success led to numerous expressions of interest in hosting the summits events and initiatives. As a result, the Russian Federation signed a memorandum of understanding in November 2017 to support Russias official bid to host the 2019 edition of the Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit in Yekaterinburg, it said.



The summit will continue to build on the momentum created by its successful first edition. It will focus on how, in a world of disruptive change, the role of manufacturing has evolved into a global cornerstone of economic and social prosperity that can be maximised by channelling and capitalising on the transformative, regenerative opportunities that the Fourth Industrial Revolution presents. It will also aim to help steer the future of science, catalyse technological change, promote partnerships, and energise young people around the world to contribute to building stronger and more sustainable societies, communities, businesses, and economies.



During the second edition of the summit, a global audience of government and business leaders, as well as representatives of nongovernmental organizations, will engage in debates, sessions and workshops, and launch global initiatives designed to empower and inspire the next generation of manufacturing entrepreneurs, innovators and pioneers, it stated.  TradeArabia News Service
- The blacklisted companies failed to comply with set quality standards

- Some of them are said to be operating illegally from unknown locations

- Kebs now demands all bottlers must automate bottle filling and sealing

Not all bottled water are safe for drinking, the government has declared.

Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) revealed at least 157 water bottling companies had failed to comply with quality standards and were operating in the country illegally.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

The quality regulatory authority introduced new requirement that water bottling companies will now have to comply with when applying for permits and licenses. Photo: Readers' Digest.

READ ALSO: Raila Junior ashambulia wanaomtaka babake kuzungumzia ufisadi nchini

Reports seen by TUKO.co.ke on Sunday, May 27, indicated 426 water bottling companies were given clean bill of health while several others issued with show cause notice for failing to comply with the quality standards set by Kebs.

According to the Kebs's Managing Director Charles Ongwae, most of the illegal companies also did not have physical addresses and nobody knew where they were operating from.

READ ALSO: Matiangi trains his eye on illegal gambling dens

The said companies allegedly fill bottles with water from unknown sources and with total disregard to hygiene then sell the bottled water to unsuspecting consumers.

Others lie to consumers that their water was fetched from springs.

We are calling upon the firms operating illegally in the country to formalise their operations with Kebs. The law must be followed, Ongwae warned.

READ ALSO: Government de-registers organisations that dismissed Uhuru's win in repeat election

All the water bottling companies, Ongwae said, must now invest in automation of bottle filling and sealing to safeguard hygiene, failure to which they will not be issued with license.

The already exiting companies were given six months to comply with the new requirement.

New operators will have to put in place the automation system first before they receive license.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news.

Peter Pepe Interview: From a Conductor to 13.5 Million Business Owner - On Tuko TV

Source: Tuko
- Korir was added to a Nyeri WhatsApp group known to discuss corruption matters

- However, Korir was not happy with what he termed as 'disrespect' to Ruto

- Th youthful MP said he has no time for those not showing any respect to the deputy president

Lang'ata MP Nixon Korir's loose tongue has angered his Nyeri Town counterpart Ngunjiri Wambugu after he allegedly referred to residents of Nyeri as dogs.

According to Wambugu, Korir was added to a Nyeri WhatsApp group known as Rware Opinion Shapers to debate on matters related to the fresh corruption scandals rocking the government but instead of responding, he decided to call them barking dogs before exiting.

Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens

A screenshot of conversation between the two youthful MPs shared by Ngunjiri on Sunday, May 27, indicated Korir was not happy with what he termed as 'disrespecting' the Deputy President William Ruto.

READ ALSO: The first ever Kalenjin MP in Nairobi, Nixon Korir

Lang'ata MP Nixon Korir loose tongue has angered his Nyeri Town counterpart Ngunjiri Wambugu after he allegedly referred to residents of Nyeri as dogs on Sunday, May 27. Photo: Nixon Korir/Facebook.

READ ALSO: Raila Junior ashambulia wanaomtaka babake kuzungumzia ufisadi nchini

"Meanwhile my good friend and colleague MP from Langata was challenged on issues related to corruption on a Nyeri WhatsApp group (Rware Opinion Shapers) and rather than respond to them cordially he decided to call them barking dogs and then left," he posted.

The former University of Nairobi students' leader defended his action saying he has no time for those whom he claimed were not showing any respect to Ruto.

A screenshot of conversation between the two youthful MPs shared by Ngunjiri on Sunday, May 27, indicated Korir was not happy with what he termed as 'disrespecting' the Deputy President William Ruto.

On Friday, May 25, Ruto called for swift action against those named in two mega corruption scandals.

The KSh 1.9 billion National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) scam which came back to back with misappropriation and loss of KSh 10 billion at the National Youth Service (NYS) shook Kenyans to the core, prompting a proposal for nationwide anti-graft demonstrations.

READ ALSO: Fresh details on how NYS paid mysterious companies over KSh 1 billion emerge

In his Facebook post seen by TUKO.co.ke, the country's second in command urged investigating agencies and the judiciary not to relent in prosecution of graft suspects.

Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news.

Peter Pepe Interview: From a Conductor to 13.5 Million Business Owner - On Tuko TV

Source: Kenya Breaking News Today
The Trinity is considered one of the greatest holidays after Easter and Christmas. It is always celebrated on Sunday, eight weeks after Easter Sunday.

Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Holy Trinity is an important concept in most Christian teachings.

On this day, the most solemn and magnificent church services are performed. The floor in temples is covered with freshly mown grass, and the icons are decorated with tree branches. On the eve, on Saturday, Christians honor the memory of deceased relatives  it is called the Trinity Parents' Saturday. On Monday, the Holy Spirit Day is celebrated. The Trinity color is green as it symbolizes the eternal life and is the color of the Holy Spirit. Temples are decorated with green, and priests wear green.

In Ukraine, the church tradition of celebrating this holiday is tightly intertwined with pre-Christian beliefs. For Ukrainians, the Trinity has long been the most poetic holiday, closely associated with nature, the world of the living and the dead. The holiday is rich in all sorts of rituals, which are different in each region. The Trinity is the final farewell to spring and the approach of summer.
More than 5,000 tenders were analyzed in Russian public procurement as well as research and development activity at several Russian institutions.

Russia is returning to the Soviet-era development of a deadly Ebola-smallpox virus mix, according to a report by a Ukrainian delegation to NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

Ukrainian delegation head Iryna Friz presented the corresponding report highlighting research and development efforts of Russian experts in biological and chemical weapons at the meeting of the NATO PA Committee on the Civil Dimension of Security in Warsaw, according to the press service of the BPP faction.

"For at least the last three years, Russia has been conducting research on hemorrhagic fever viruses, in particular, Ebola and Marburg, claiming they are trying to develop vaccines. In fact, it's about their returning to a Soviet project of an Ebola and smallpox virus mix, which is confirmed by the analysis of more than 5,000 tenders in public procurement and scientific activity of several Russian institutions managed by the Russian defense ministry. At the same time, another research organization has been actively ordering and conducting studies indicating development of new military-type poisonous substances with nerve gas properties. The corresponding report was handed over to the Alliance's Headquarters," Friz said.

Read alsoPoisoned ex-Ukraine leader warns of Russia's "medieval policy"The Deputy believes that, taking into account the recent report by Lord Jopling (UK), it is necessary to also brief NATO PA members on the report focusing on the issue of chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction. "I do not exclude the prospect of this aspect being included in Lord Jopling's final report as another threat in the framework of Russia's hybrid efforts against other states," added Friz.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Lord Jopling presented at NATO PA a report titled "2018  Countering Russia's Hybrid Threats: An Update" providing a systemic analysis of a wide spectrum of hybrid threats coming from Russia. "The report presents rather clearly a map of the hybrid war Russia is waging against Ukraine as well as the means to counter the threat with NATO help," Friz wrote.

She also recalled Lord Jopling's call for the Western countries to do their utmost to strip Russian plutocrats of opportunities to hide their dirty money in the West.
Russia's moves in Crimea and the Sea of Azov are becoming increasingly provocative. The JIT probe into an MH17 crash gave Australia and the Netherlands an impetus to form their position. PM Groysman held talks in Brussels. Emmanuel Macron did not live up to general hopes during a St. Petersburg visit. In Italy, a Eurosceptic government is being formed. Hungary once again tried to use NATO to exert more pressure on Ukraine. Johannes Hahn sees no reason for abolishing the visa-free regime for Ukraine. Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid visited Donbas.

Russia has taken a course toward aggravating its aggressive intentions against Ukraine. Military equipment, ammunition and fuel are being transferred to the occupied Donbas, while artillery shellings by militants are being intensified. Crimean Tatars Server Mustafayev and Edem Smailov were arrested in Crimea, while a Kurultay delegate Asan Egiz was brutally beaten. Russian security services continue establishing in the occupied peninsula a harsh policing regime, slamming down on any manifestations of discontent. In the Sea of Azov, Russian border guards are detaining ships heading to Ukrainian ports, therefore demonstrating their right to dictate navigation conditions in the region.

Such aggressive actions are logically correlated with a recent statement by Vladimir Putin, who in fact called a "terrorist" a Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Sentsov, who is continuing his hunger strike in a distant penal colony in Russia. The Russian president habitually tried to shift accents, asking the French journalist why he cares about Sentsov's fate and not about that of Kirill Vyshinsky, detained in Kyiv. The Russian leader does have skills to evade answers to unpleasant questions; however, the latest developments reduce his space for maneuvers.

A Joint Investigation Team probing the MH1 crash revealed its findings that the Boeing 777 had been shot down in July 2014 by a missile launched from the Buk anti-aircraft system assigned to the 53rd Brigade of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. This fact prompted governments of Australia and the Netherlands to formally accuse Russia of downing MH17 and demand compensation for the relatives of the victims. Putin said he did not trust the findings as the JIT included no investigators from Russia. He seems to have forgotten that the tragedy occurred in the Ukrainian sky and that they were no Russian citizens on board the downed aircraft.

The struggle around the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline construction remains an important element of the hybrid confrontation on the European continent. Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman flew to Brussels where he tried to convince persuade European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council Head Donald Tusk that the Ukrainian GTS remains reliable and it that it is expedient to maintain Ukraine's gas transit status. Meanwhile, EC Vice President Maros Sefovic has called for the resumption of trilateral talks on gas transit between the EU, Ukraine and Russia. U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine talks, Kurt Volker, stressed that the Nord Stream 2 project is not economically viable and does not create new opportunities for the European Union, at the same time putting Ukraine in an even more vulnerable position.

This week, the U.S. reminded the world community that it remains a global leader: Donald Trump canceled the earlier announced summit with Kim Jong Un, apparently deciding not to spoil the North Korean leader with possible advances even the DPRK destroyed its nuclear testing ground. Emmanuel Macron during his visit to St. Petersburg did not publicly raise sensitive problems in the EU-Russia relations, which Vladimir Putin did not fail to use in his favor. The Russian president exploited the very presence of his French counterpart to broadcast a set of messages Putin believes important. Together with the formation of the new government in Italy by the League and Five Stars Movement parties, who have been openly advocating the need to lift Russia sanctions, Macron's stance could spur the Kremlin to more intensive actions in their foreign policy.

Following another anti-Ukrainian claim by Hungarian PM Viktor Orban, official Budapest appealed to NATO to change the Alliance's policy toward Ukraine. At the same time, Orban's team are sure that amending Article 7 of the Ukrainian education law is quite capable of turning Hungary's anger into mercy. Fortunately, NATO is rather skeptical about Hungary's initiatives. By the way, European Commissioner Johannes Hahn, who visited Kyiv, said he saw no risks of suspending a visa-free travel for Ukrainians across the EU.

Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid became the first foreign leader to visit Donbas, since 2014. The head of the Baltic country demonstrated that in the modern world it is not the scope of powers that is important, but the political will and readiness to get first-hand information about what is happening in the area where Europe's largest conflict over the past 20 years is ongoing.

Yevgeny Magda, Institute of World Policy

If you see a spelling error on our site, select it and press Ctrl+Enter
The top diplomat believes the head of the Alliance has all necessary instruments in this regard.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Jacek Czaputowicz believes NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg should intervene in the situation where Hungary is trying to block Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration.

"I think it is a family dispute," Czaputowicz said, referring to a Hungary-Ukraine row over the national minority language clause in Ukraine's newly-adopted education law, according to Polsatnews.

"One needs to study the problem and propose a solution (...) that will dispel any doubts," told a spring session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly held hosted by the Polish Parliament.

"Perhaps the third party would be helpful here  e.g. NATO Secretary General, I think he has some tools to resolve the issue," he added.

Read alsoStoltenberg says Hungary "highly-valued Ally," Ukraine - "partner" and "victim" of Russian aggressionHe added that he had already discussed the issue with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto.

"I hope that all these doubts will be resolved and there will be no obstacles before the formal meeting of this Commission, because, as I said, our goal should be to maintain territorial unity, sovereignty, independence of Ukraine," said the head of Polish diplomacy.

The position of Budapest was also criticized by delegates from Lithuania and Canada.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Hungary in April 2018 for the third time blocked the NATO-Ukraine Commission meeting.

Earlier, Hungarian foreign minister Peter Szijjarto demanded that Ukraine amend its education law and delay its implementation until 2023, otherwise he said Hungary would be blocking all meetings important to Ukraine at the EU and NATO levels.
Ukraine's Joint Forces destroyed an enemy observation post and liquidated four militants.

Over the past day, May 26, Russian-occupation troops violated ceasefire in eastern Ukraine 28 times, the Joint Forces Operation HQ reports.

A Ukrainian soldier was killed in action over the past day while another four troops were wounded, the press service wrote on Facebook.

Hostilities remained intense in the Luhansk, Donetsk and Mariupol directions. Militants opened fire twice from heavy weapons.

The HQ also reported enemy provocations in the areas of Krymske and Novotoshkivske (Luhansk region) where mortaring Ukrainian positions endangered civilians.

Read alsoAnother enemy drone downed by Ukraine's Joint Forces in Donbas (Photo)According to an intelligence report, the reaction strike by Joint Forces destroyed the command and observation post of the enemy's "battalion of the 4th separate motor rifle brigade."

The invaders suffered losses as the report claims four militants were liquidated in the strike and another five  wounded.

Hostilities have been ongoing throughout the day in the areas of Luhanske, Yuzhne, Krasnohorivka, Kamenka, and Shyrokyne.

Two Ukrainian servicemen were reported absent without leave in Luhansk region. Law enforcers are currently searching for them. Earlier, the "LPR" terrorist organization claimed they had detained two "deserters" from the 14th separate mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine who tried to cross the gray zone.
Another serviceman is seriously wounded, the report says.

Two operatives of the SBU Security Service's Alpha task force were killed in an artillery shelling during a mission in Luhansk region as part of the government's Joint Forces.

Another operative is reported to have been seriously injured, according to SBU Press Secretary Olena Hitlianska.

"With regret, the Security Service of Ukraine reports a tragic incident in Luhansk region. During a combat mission, a group of SBU operatives involved in the Joint Forces Operation came under artillery fire. Two servicemen of the Alpha Spec-Ops Center were killed, while another one was seriously wounded. The SBU expresses its condolences to the families and friends of the fallen Lieutenant Colonel Ruslan Mulyar and Ensign Yuriy Zhuravlev," the spokesperson wrote.

As UNIAN reported, over the past day, militants shelled positions of the Joint Forces 28 times, killing one Ukrainian soldier and wounding another four troops.
Dutch wreckage analysis left no doubt that a Russian Buk shot down MH17.

Analyst John R. Schindler says his recommendation for a new, third-party inquiry into the 2010 Smolensk air crash, which killed 99 people and decapitated the Polish government, upset some people.

Moreover, the notion that Putin's forces would blow up an airliner, without regard for innocent life, is anything but far-fetched. They've already done it. I am referring, of course, to the shootdown of Malaysian Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) over eastern Ukraine, an active warzone at the time, on July 17, 2014, killing all 299 passengers and crew aboard the doomed Boeing 777, he wrote in an op-ed for Observer.

Most of them died a horrific death when a missile exploded at the aircraft's nose as it cruised at 33,000 feet. This explosion killed the pilots instantly and led to the rapid break-up of the Boeing, its pieces falling in flames six miles to earth. Wreckage and mangled bodies were scattered over a 20-square-mile area in the war-torn Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.

Dutch nationals made up two-thirds of the dead, 196 persons, so the Netherlands took the lead in the investigation, which published its findings in October 2015. Based on exhaustive examination of the wreckage and all available information, the Dutch report concluded that the Boeing 777 had been taken down by a surface-to-air missile of Russian origin, specifically the 9K37, called Buk (beech tree in Russian). Termed SA-11 by NATO, this is a self-propelled weapons system that provides air defense coverage to Russian ground forceswhich was why a Buk was in eastern Ukraine that fateful day, since Putins Kremlin had invaded Donetsk earlier that year.

Read alsoSome 270 relatives of Dutch MH17 victims to sue Russia in ECHR

Dutch wreckage analysis left no doubt that a Russian Buk shot down MH17. Shrapnel which could only have come from that system was found in the wreckage and embedded in the bodies of the pilots, who were shredded when the missile exploded just outside their cockpit. No bona fide aviation experts have dissented from Dutch conclusions regarding what brought the Boeing downor whose missile it was. Although debate continues about why a Russian air defense unit illegally positioned inside Ukraine's borders brought down a civilian airlinerwas it an intentional act or a terrible accident?that the Russian military was the responsible party is not up for debate in the reality-based community.

For their part, the Kremlin and its propagandists for nearly four years now have played their customary fact-free games of spies and lies, claiming that the gruesome end of MH17 was caused by Ukraine somehow, despite there being zero evidence to back up that assertion. It is an established fact that the missile which killed 299 innocent people was fired by a Russian weapons system located in an area under Russian military occupation that day. No amount of Muscovite disinformation can change that awful reality.

This tragedy is back in the news this week because Dutch investigators have announced that the Russian military's 53rd Air Defense Missile Brigade was the outfit which shot down MH17. Normally based in Kursk, not far from the border with Ukraine, that brigade was known to have deployed subunits in eastern Ukraine in 2014, so this conclusion is no surprise to anyone who watches Kremlin military news closely. Today, the foreign ministers of the Netherlands and Australia upped the ante, issuing a joint statement holding Russia responsible for this atrocityAustralia lost 27 citizens in the crashand Western countries are already signing on to this conclusion, with Germany taking the lead. Predictably, the Kremlin is pushing back, implying that it is the victim of a nefarious smear campaign, but there is now so much evidence of Moscow's guilt in the public domain that the usual Russian disinformation tricks are no longer working in the West outside the ranks of confirmed Putinphiles.

Read alsoMH17 downing: Media shed light on involvement of Russian Colonel

Open-source intelligence analysts have piled on this week as well, with the amateur sleuths at Bellingcat issuing a detailed report which confirms that the 53rd Air Defense Missile was the unit to blame here, while fingering (with some mainstream media help) a senior Russian military intelligence (GRU) officer named Oleg Ivannikov, codenamed Orion, as a key person of interest in the shootdown. Bellingcat's report includes an impressive amount of detail, some gained from sources in Russia, about Ivannikov's troubling background as a Russian spy specializing in dirty work.

This is well-done open-source intelligence, but there's not really much front-page news here. GRU's involvement in the MH17 shootdown was known almost immediately, while within weeks of the catastrophe, Ukrainian intelligence was releasing signals intelligence (SIGINT) intercepts to the public which left no doubt that the Russian military was behind the shootdown. Moreover, investigative journalists in Germany within a few months of the disaster solidly fingered the 53rd Brigade as the culpable Russian military unit. While it's good news that Western governments are finally holding Moscow to account for this terrible atrocity, there's more than a bit of cheek in proclaiming long-ago reported information as breaking.

Then there's the awkward fact that our Intelligence Community has known the full, terrible story of the MH17 shootdown from practically the moment it happened. Thanks to American acumen in SIGINT and satellite imagery, spies in Washington within mere days of the disaster knew who did itand how the nightmare unfolded. As reported by The Washington Post only five days after the crash, American intelligence knew that the Kremlin was lying about its innocence in this sordid affair. The Obama White House authorized a limited release of intelligence information, based on "sensors that traced the path of the missile, shrapnel markings on the downed aircraft, voiceprint analysis of separatists claiming credit for the strike, and a flood of photos and other data from social-media sites" as the Post put it, to rebut Kremlin disinformation about the incident.

However, this was a tiny fraction of what our Intelligence Community knew about MH17. As three IC officials have confirmed to me, Washington possessed damning information about the shootdown, including SIGINT which left no doubt that the Russian militaryspecifically the 53rd Air Defense Missile Brigadedowned the airliner. Detailed, top-secret intelligence from the National Security Agency, which the White House was briefed on within a couple days of the disaster, told the tale. Nevertheless, the Obama administration elected to sit on this bombshell, allowing dishonest Kremlin narratives to gain traction as the public tried to ascertain what exactly had happened to the doomed jetliner.
At least four Russian servicemen, including two military advisers, were killed in Syria after they were shelled by militants, the Russian defense ministry said Sunday.

Several groups of militants attacked the Syrian army's artillery battery in the province of Deir al-Zour at night, killing two Russian military advisers on the spot and wounding another five soldiers, the ministry said.

The injured were immediately taken to a Russian military hospital, but two of them died there, it said, according to Xinhua.

The Syrian and Russian troops fought the militants for about one hour and killed 43 militants and destroyed six cross-country vehicles armed with large-caliber weapons, according to the ministry.

Read alsoTwo Russian pilots die in military helicopter crash in Syria: agenciesRussia has been participating in the fight against the Islamic State and insurgent groups in Syria since September 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Russian servicemen and military facilities in Syria have been attacked by militants several times, causing a number of deaths.
The Dubai International Financial Centres Dispute Resolution Authority (DRA) has partnered with the University of Oxfords China Centre on the legal certainty, protection and contract enforcement needed for investors to participate in Chinas $5 trillion Belt and Road Initiative.



The accord will focus on ways to protect large-scale investments through linking China and the worlds court systems, and on enabling legal, judicial and arbitral systems to keep pace with the opportunities created by the BRI and other ventures.



Through joint projects, such as research and reports, the collaboration aims to enhance understanding of the legal and regulatory challenges faced by businesses and courts in the 70 or so BRI countries, and to pave the way for effective dispute resolution and enforcement of court judgments along BRIs trade routes.



Speaking at the signing event at the University of Oxford, Chief Justice of the DIFC Courts and head of the DRA, Dr Michael Hwang, sketched out the changing landscape of international enforcement for court judgments and arbitral awards within the BRI, and the recently announced international commercial courts to be set up in Beijing, Xian and Shenzhen.



Hwang urged BRI countries to seek knowledge of each others procedures and, where possible, to collaborate through memorandum agreements on express recognition and enforcement of judgments.



As investment flows into the BRI region, it becomes ever-more urgent to find practical solutions to enable contracting parties to solve complex commercial conflicts. In particular, BRI countries need to find ways in which judgments and awards issued from each BRI country or territory can be enforced in other BRI countries, and gathering such knowledge is only the first step hopefully to legal convergence of some degree within the BRI region.



A 2016 survey by Lexis Nexis and the China Institute of Corporate and Legal Affairs reported that half of respondent Chinese firms engaged on BRI deals face legal challenges. To date, projects worth an estimated $350 billion have been financed, mainly by Chinese development banks. To encourage foreign investment, robust dispute resolution systems and transnational enforcement mechanisms must be in place to foster investor confidence and legal certainty.



Enforceability of judgments across multiple judicial systems, and guarantees that money can be collected after winning a case in a foreign court, are critical enablers of international commerce. As one of the worlds leading commercial courts, operating in the English-language and using common law principles for over ten years, DIFC Courts has a unique track record of fast-track connectivity and technology-enabled dispute resolution, such as virtual courts.



We are joining forces with the University of Oxford to look at practical solutions for the future of dispute resolution for one of the worlds most ambitious projects. As goods and services travel across the world along the BRI, they will seamlessly cross borders  so we shall need a seamless legal platform, based on legal convergence, that can start to do the same, Hwang said.



This aim can partly be fulfilled by the near-universality of the New York Convention for recognition and enforcement of international arbitral awards, but the ideal legal platform should also include a robust regime of enforceable court judgments outside the boundaries of the issuing court. The answer is to make sure that when a dispute is resolved, court systems can deliver a judgment that can be executed across the full extent of the belt and road. Building up connectivity and enforceability will remove many of the roadblocks that could threaten the success of the Belt and Road Initiative.



Professor Rana Mitter, director of China Centre University of Oxford, said: We are pleased to sign this important memorandum with DIFC Courts. The opportunities of the Belt and Road Initiative are substantial, but so are the potential legal complexities and risks. I am confident that our work alongside DIFC Courts will make an essential contribution to enabling and safeguarding both Chinese and international commercial interests as this remarkable initiative evolves and matures.



Rawdha Al Otaiba, deputy head of Mission, UAE Embassy, UK, said: The signing today between DIFC Courts and the University of Oxford reflects yet again the growing role Dubai plays in international trade and its commitment to legal excellence as an advanced and secure jurisdiction from which to conduct commercial activity on a global scale.  TradeArabia News Service
(@FahadShabbir)

SIALKOT, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th May, 2018 ) ::The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested 10 Pakistanis, who were deported from Turkey and Greece, upon their arrival at Sialkot International Airport.

Senior FIA officials said on Sunday that some human-traffickers and their agents had sent these Pakistanis to Turkey and Greece illegally. The FIA sent the accused behind the bars after registering cases against them. APP/ir/rsd
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Washington: Pakistan's Ambassador-designate To The United States (us) Ali Jahangir Siddiqui Is Expected To Arrive In The Us On May 28 And Will Take Charge As New Pakistani Envoy To The Us On May 29 (tuesday).

Jahangir Is Traveling To Washington Along With His Family On His New Diplomatic Passport. Pm Abbasi Recently Appointed Ali Jahangir As Ambassador To The Us, (Pakistan Point news - 27th May, 2018) Ali Jahangir Siddiqui is expected to arrive in the US on May 28 and will take charge as new Pakistani envoy to the US on May 29 (Tuesday).

Jahangir is traveling to Washington along with his family on his new diplomatic passport. PM Abbasi recently appointed Ali Jahangir as ambassador to the US, a decision which received flak due to Ali's inexperience and the personal basis of the PM's decision.

The new US ambassador has also been summoned by the National Accountability Court (NAB) in a corruption case involving embezzlement of Rs55 billion.

It is pertinent to mention here that Ali Jahangir is due to take up his new position merely two days before the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government completes its five-year term in power.

He will succeed Aizaz Chaudhry who has been serving as Pakistan's envoy to the US until his retirement last month. Siddiqui, who holds a BA in Economics from Cornell University, US, is the son of the famous banker and businessman Jahangir Siddiqui.

He has served as director of Airblue airlines, Lucky Cement, Azgard Nine along with several other companies. In 2014, he was honoured as a Young Global Leader by World Economic Forum. Besides, he has also served as member of the Privatisation Commission, the Private Sector Advisory board of the Planning Commission, the Sindh Board of Investment, and as member of the Community Development Board of the Government of Sindh.
KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th May, 2018 ) :PPP government in Sindh, almost near completion to its term, has announced to establish a Youth Development Commission and a Venture Capital Fund for bulging population of youngsters.

Provincial Minister for youth affairs, Abid Hussain Bhayo addressing the launching ceremony of the province's first ever youth policy said Pakistan People's Party (PPP) headed by a young and charismatic leader and with sizable number of young members is fully conscious of the needs of youngsters.

"Five percent seats will also be reserved for young people in local bodies," he said mentioning that youth will be involved in decision-making at the municipal and provincial levels while community-service and volunteerism would also be promoted.

Through youth-led campaigns, inter-faith harmony will be encouraged, said the minister for youth affairs. He on the occasion also announced that student unions will be revived and remodeled under the newly announced policy so as to promote pro-peace, women-friendly and student-centered activities on campus.

Bhayo claimed that seriousness of the PPP government in formulating the policy could be well gauged from the fact that technical support of reputable organizations was procured for its formulation.

The minister thanked NGO Bargad and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) along with Oxfam, RHRN and Civil Society Programme (CSSP) for the needed assistance. He also expressed his gratitude to a number of other civil society, youth organizations and government bodies for spearheading the effort with specific reference to take-on board youth leaders from across the province.

Bhayo reiterated that government being cognizant of the fast growing number of youngsters in the province as well as the country was therefore working towards radical changes that would transform their potential into a driver of growth for the province.

Secretary for Youth Affairs Department, Dr Niaz Ali Abbasi on the occasion referred to Sindh e-Rozgar scheme that was aimed at creating job opportunities for youth without any formal education. Efforts were said to be also underway to encourage youth entrepreneurship through training at incubation centers, market linkages and partnership with educational institutions.

The event was also addressed by Bargad Executive Director Sabiha Shaheen who claimed that a comprehensive framework has been developed for social, economic and political empowerment of the youngsters.

The activist mentioned that over 5000 youth participated in the consultative process related to policy formulation, between 2012 to 2015 and that it was in light of their suggestions and needs. "There was a clear roadmap, time-bound strategies, quantified targets and potential partners," she said.

Oxfam Country Director Mohammed Qazilbash said that harnessing the energy and strength of young women and men to become active citizens is core to Oxfam's goal of transformational change. Young people in Sindh, he said face multiple forms of inequality and grapple with challenges inherited from previous generations.

This policy ensures youth have the necessary skills and opportunities to define the future for themselves and their province, said Qazilbash. The ceremony was also addressed by Dr. Kaiser Bengali, Noor Muhammad Bajeer, Chief Executive Officer of Civil Society Program (CSSP), National Coordinator for RHRN, Faisal Shabbir and Abdul Bari, a representative of youth. APP/rh/pas/
(@rukhshanmir)

VIENTIANE, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th May, 2018 ) :The Lao government will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with four construction companies from Laos and China to carry out a survey, feasibility study and detailed design of the Vientiane-Pakxe Expressway.

According to Vientiane Times online newspaper on Sunday, the Ministry of Public Works and Transport will sign the MOU on behalf of the Lao government, the coordinator of the expressway project Bounyavath Nilaxay told local media on Friday.

The companies are scheduled to begin work this year and will spend one year on the assignments after signing contracts with the ministry. The participating companies are Phousy Construction and Development Public Company, Douangchaleun Development Group, China Yunnan Sunny Road and Bridge Company and the China Road and Bridge Cooperation Company.

The 585-km expressway from the Lao capital Vientiane to southern Champassak province will have four lanes, with a total carriageway width of 23 meters. Bounyavath said the project will be under the Build-Operate-Transfer model.

The road will be built to specifications laid down under Asean Expressway Standard Grade 1 and will be able to carry loads of up to 11 tonnes per axle. The Lao government believes the expressway will help the nation connect with the region, with the aim of turning the land-locked country into a transport hub.

At present it takes about 10 hours by car to travel from Vientiane to Pakxe. When the expressway is built, travel time could be reduced to less than seven hours.
Colombians go to the polls on Sunday, to chose a new President in the post Civil War era. James Blears reports the two main Candidate are polar left- right opposites.

By James Blears

The front runner in Colombia's Presidential Election, with about forty percent support in the polls, is Ivan Duque of the Democratic Center Party. A lawyer by trade and a protoge of former President Alvaro Uribe, he's calling for tax cuts, wants to boost the oil and mining industries and he's determined to alter as well as toughen the Peace agreement by jailing Guerrila leaders for war crimes.

Trailing by about ten percent in the polls is Gustavo Petro of the left leaning Humane Party. A former urban guerrila and an ex Mayor of Bogota, he's pledging to end Colombia's dependence of fossil fuels by boosting agriculatural production via radical land reform. He agrees with the peace accord which ended five decades of strife and division and doesn't want to change or amend it.

If no Candidate gains more than 50 percent of the vote in round one, then there will be a runoff on June 17th.
An explosion of an artillery shell in Afghanistan's eastern Nangarhar province killed or wounded 11 members of one family, most of them children. The ordnance reportedly had been left behind unexploded after a fierce firefight between Afghan security forces and Taliban militants in the area. The family claims neither the Afghan government nor the international community has offered them any assistance. Zabihullah Ghazi reports.
Twenty-six-year-old Joshua Holt had been a prisoner in Venezuela since the summer of 2016, but on Saturday he told U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House that he was overwhelmed with gratitude for those who had worked for his release.

Trump said Holt had been incredibly brave.

Holt and his Venezuelan wife, Thamara Candelo, arrived in the U.S. Saturday accompanied by Senator Bob Corker, who helped negotiate their release.

Holt, a former Mormon missionary, had traveled to Venezuela in June 2016 to marry Candelo. Police arrested the couple after finding an assault rifle and grenades during a raid on a housing complex where the couple lived. The couple has denied the charge of concealing weapons.

Senator Orrin Hatch, who represents Holts home state of Utah posted on Twitter:



Hatch also thanked Corker, the U.S. Senate foreign relations committee chairman, who met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Friday in Caracas, Venezuelas capital, to secure the couples release.

The White House press secretarys office released a statement late Saturday, saying Holts release does not change United States policy. It said, The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution. The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate. The statement called for new elections and the democratic process, the release of all political prisoners and the acceptance of desperately needed international humanitarian aid for Venezuelas dying citizens.

Very glad that Josh Holt is now back home with his family  where he has always belonged, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence wrote in a tweet. Sanctions continue until democracy returns to Venezuela.

Maduro won a second six-year term in office May 20 in an election that the U.S. and other countries have described as a sham after several rivals were prohibited from running.



After his victory, Maduro expelled the two most senior U.S. diplomats for allegedly conspiring to sabotage the election by pushing opposition parties to boycott the election.

Despite the expulsion of the American diplomats, the Venezuelan government has been seeking ways to avoid the threat of harsh U.S. oil sanctions that could further cripple the countrys ailing economy.

A spokesman for Maduro described the release of the couple as a gesture aimed at improving diplomatic relations with the United States.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement Saturday, U.S. policy toward Venezuela remains unchanged. The United States stands steadfast in support of the Venezuelan people and their efforts to return to democracy.
Spanish rescuers have plucked nearly 550 migrants from the Mediterranean Sea trying to make the dangerous crossing from North Africa in small rickety boats.

Officials say the migrants packed about 17 separate vessels -- three of which sank because of their poor condition.

There are no reports of any casualties.

Spanish authorities say most of those rescued over the past two days came from North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.

Spain is becoming the leading destination for migrants trying to reach the European Union to escape war, terrorism and poverty at home.

Italy is still the most popular stop because Italian islands are fairly close to the North African coast.

But Italy has started to crack down harder on illegal migration while Greece, another popular stop, houses many arrivals in dangerously overcrowded camps before giving them a chance to apply for asylum. Those who are rejected are sent to Turkey under a deal worked out by the European Union.
The worlds largest cat-proof fence has been completed in central Australia. The mammoth project creates a 94-square-kilometer sanctuary for endangered marsupials.

The 44-kilometer-long fence surrounds the largest cat-free area on mainland Australia. It creates a haven for native animals that have been devastated by feral cats, northwest of Alice Springs.

It is not only the worlds largest cat-proof fence but also part of the most extensive feral cat eradication program anywhere.

Predators out, marsupials in

The plan is to use Aboriginal rangers to remove all feral pests from the large enclosure by the end of this year and then re-introduce threatened marsupials, including the rufous hare-wallaby, the bilby and golden bandicoot.

Josef Schofield from the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, which owns the site, says it will give vulnerable native species the chance to thrive once again.

The project is a threatened species reintroduction project, he said. We are aiming at eradicating feral animals, predators particularly  cats and foxes  from a large landscape. We will be working with local Indigenous communities to achieve that eradication. We will be then reintroducing a whole range of Australian endangered mammal species that have disappeared from this landscape completely.

High extinction rate

Cats and foxes are one of the main reasons Australia has the worst mammal extinction rate in the world.

It is estimated that feral cats kill 1 million birds in Australia every day and have caused the extinction of 20 native species.

Fences to repel rabbits and wild dogs have been built in other parts of the country.

Australia has a terrible history of importing animals, plants and fish that have caused immense ecological damage.

In 1935, about 100 cane toads were brought in from Hawaii to help sugar cane farmers combat a destructive beetle. Some estimates put the current cane toad population in Australia at 200 million. Their powerful toxins have killed huge numbers of native animals.

Australia also has large numbers of feral camels, pigs, rabbits, goats and water buffaloes.
Colombia's contentious but peaceful presidential election appears headed for a runoff between a leftist former rebel and a conservative who wants to rewrite the peace deal with the rebels.

With nearly all the votes counted, conservative former Senator Ivan Duque is expected to finish far out in front with 39 percent, followed by left-wing Gustavo Petro with 25 percent.

But no candidate will finish with the 50 percent needed to avoid a June 17 runoff.

Election officials say the voting was "normal" with a high turnout in some of the larger cities.

Sunday's election was the first since Colombia signed a peace deal with Marxist FARC rebels in 2016. The agreement put an official end to more than 50 years of a guerilla uprising that killed more than 220,000 people.

The former rebels have given up their weapons and FARC has transformed itself into a political party, looking for seats in congress.

The right-leaning Duque campaigned on promises to rewrite the peace agreement with FARC, calling it too lenient. He says former guerilla commanders belong in jail, not congress.

Duque is also pro-business, promising to cut corporate taxes as one way to stimulate the economy.

Petro is a former member of the defunct M19 rebel group and a supporter of the peace deal with FARC.

His promises to overhaul the economy, redistribute wealth and steer Colombia away from fossil fuels to renewable energy have endeared himself to the working class but shaken up the elite.

Petro will be the first genuine leftist candidate to make it to the second round of a Colombian presidential election.

The new president will succeed Juan Manuel Santos, who won a Nobel Peace Prize for the deal with FARC.
Dubai Investments, a leading, diversified company, is installing the first-of-its-kind coloured Kromatix panels for a kindergarten building by Dubai Municipality in Al Twar, Dubai, through its joint venture entity Emirates Insolaire.



The building will be the first in the UAE to have a coloured solar facade, designed and executed by Emirates Insolaire. The building facade totals 2,000 sq m. As part of its commitment to UAEs sustainability mission, Dubai Investments has provided a total of 800 KromatixTMactive and passive panels.



The attractive facade of the kindergarten is accentuated with solar panels by Emirates Insolaire in different colours, including green, blue, white, orange and red, which offer the building a never-seen-before, colourful aesthetic look.



With the Kromatix panels, the kindergarten fulfils the criteria to be certified as a LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) building.



Khalid Bin Kalban, managing director and CEO of Dubai Investments, said: Dubai Investments is committed to collaborate with Dubai Municipality to implement sustainable projects in Dubai. This is part of the companys pledge to support the UAE Vision 2021 towards a sustainable future. The kindergarten is the first of many projects that Dubai Investments and Emirates Insolaire are working with Dubai Municipality.



He added: Through Emirates Insolaire, Dubai Investments expects to play a pivotal role in the solar sector growth in a big way across Dubai, the UAE and the region.



Marwan Abdulla Al Mohammed, director of general Projects Department at Dubai Municipality, said: Dubai Municipality supports the leaderships sustainability commitment in every aspect of its operations, from sustainable urban planning to green buildings. The kindergarten project with photovoltaic, coloured solar panels from Dubai Investments is a major step forward in this journey and part of the endeavour to pursue a more sustainable development model.



Rafic Hanbali, managing partner of Emirates Insolaire, said: The company has considered as a priority to address schools and universities all over the world. This is part of the objective to help students understand and consider solar energy as part of their lives from a very young age, the way children today experience Information Technology as part of their lives. Kromatix constitutes the skin of the buildings where the children spend their learning days. Emirates Insolaire has so far completed six educational buildings across the world and others are on the way.



The project mirrors the surging demand for solar panel technology across the region and globe. According to an analysis by Frost and Sullivan, the GCC countries are expected to increase their installed solar capacity 50-fold between 2015 and 2025.  TradeArabia News Service
English-speaking Cameroonians are burying 30 members of their community who were killed Thursday in the northwestern town of Pinyin. The government has not issued a statement but residents say the military stormed a local hotel, claiming some people had been taken hostage by suspected armed separatists fighting for the Independence of the English-speaking regions of Cameroon. The residents say the military then killed everyone they saw.



Hundreds mourn their dead and seek to identify corpses being removed by villagers from a local inn in Cameroon's northwestern town of Pinyin. Among them is 54-year-old Angelica Muluh who has just identified the body of her 24-year- old son.



She said she does not understand what has befallen them that their children are being killed like flies. She said she has allowed everything into the hands of God who alone will judge and punish all evil doers, but that she knows her son did not commit any crime to be killed at his young age.

Achiri Jonas, an elder in Menka, one of the villages that make up Pinyin, said the 27 corpses they have counted should be buried immediately so they do not decompose and cause health problems to the villagers.



"These corpses have to be transferred to their various homes. Both girls and boys," said Jonas.



Some residents said on Thursday, May 23, a group of five boys forcefully occupied the Star inn in Menka, claiming to be fighting for the independence of the English-speaking from the French- speaking regions of Cameroon and started kidnapping people, stealing, extorting, looting and harassing locals. They said Cameroon military invaded the premises and gunned down every one they saw.

In a news release circulated on social media, Cameroon military spokesperson Colonel Didier Badjeck said the people he describes as terrorists were killed after they had engaged in a fire fight with the military.



Violence broke out in the English-speaking north west and south west regions of Cameroon in November 2016 when a strike by English-speaking lawyers and teachers against what they described a marginalization by the French-speaking majority in the bilingual country degenerated into calls for secession. In November 2017, president Paul Biya declared war on the separatists calling them terrorists.
Italy's would-be coalition parties turned up the pressure on President Sergio Mattarella on Saturday to endorse their euroskeptic pick as economy minister, saying the only other option might be a new election.

Mattarella has held up formation of a government, which would end more than 80 days of political deadlock, over concern about the desire of the far-right League and anti-establishment 5-Star Movement to make economist Paolo Savona, 81, economy minister.

Savona has been a vocal critic of the euro and the European Union, but he has distinguished credentials, including in a former role as an industry minister.

Formally, Prime Minister-designate Giuseppe Conte presents his cabinet to the president, who must endorse it. Conte, a little-known law professor with no political experience, met the president on Friday without resolving the

deadlock.

"I hope no one has already decided 'no,' " League leader Matteo Salvini shouted to supporters in northern Italy. "Either the government gets off the ground and starts working in the coming hours, or we might as well go back to elections."

Later, 5-Star leader Luigi Di Maio said he expected there to be a decision on whether the president would back the government within 24 hours.

5-Star also defended Savona's nomination. "It is a political choice. ... Blocking a ministerial choice is beyond [the president's] role," Alessandro Di Battista, a top 5-Star politician, said.

Mattarella has not spoken publicly about Savona, but through his aides he has made it clear he does not want an anti-euro economy minister and that he would not accept the "diktat" of the parties.

Jittery markets

Savona's criticism of the euro and German economic policy has further spooked markets already concerned about the future government's willingness to rein in the massive debt, worth 1.3 times the country's annual output.

The League and 5-Star have said Savona should not be judged on his opinions, but on his credentials. Savona has had high-level experience at the Bank of Italy, in government as industry minister in 1993-94, and with employers lobby Confindustria.

On his new Facebook page, Conte said he had received best wishes for his government in a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron.

European Commissioner for Economic Affairs Pierre Moscovici was not hostile when asked about Savona in an interview with France's Europe1 radio, saying he would work with whomever Italy named.

"Italians decide their own government," Moscovici said. "Italy is and should remain a country at the heart of the eurozone. ... What worries me is the debt, which must be contained."

The prospect of Italy's government going on a spending spree on promised tax cuts and welfare benefits roiled markets last week.

On Friday, the closely watched gap between the Italian and German 10-year bond yields, seen as a measure of political risk for the eurozone, was at its widest in four years at 215 basis points.

The chance that the new government will weaken public finances and roll back a 2011 pension reform prompted Moody's to say  after markets had closed Friday  that it might downgrade the country's sovereign debt rating.

Moody's has a Baa2 long-term rating with a negative outlook on Italy. A downgrade to Baa3 would take the country's debt to just one notch above junk.

Despite the recent surge, Italian yields are well below the peaks they reached during the eurozone crisis of 2011-12, thanks mainly to the shield provided by the European Central Bank's bond-buying program.
A flood of lawsuits over LGBT rights is making its way through courts and will continue, no matter the outcome in the Supreme Courts highly anticipated decision in the case of a Colorado baker who would not create a wedding cake for a same-sex couple.

Courts are engaged in two broad types of cases on this issue, weighing whether sex discrimination laws apply to LGBT people and also whether businesses can assert religious objections to avoid complying with anti-discrimination measures in serving customers, hiring and firing employees, providing health care and placing children with foster or adoptive parents.

The outcome of baker Jack Phillips fight at the Supreme Court could indicate how willing the justices are to carve out exceptions to anti-discrimination laws; thats something the court has refused to do in the areas of race and sex.

The result was hard to predict based on arguments in December. But however the justices rule, it wont be their last word on the topic.

Boost from Trump

Religious conservatives have gotten a big boost from the Trump administration, which has taken a more restrictive view of LGBT rights and intervened on their side in several cases, including Phillips.

There is a constellation of hugely significant cases that are likely to be heard by the court in the near future and those are going to significantly shape the legal landscape going forward, said Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Several legal disputes are pending over wedding services, similar to the Phillips case. Video producers, graphic artists and florists are among business owners who say they oppose same-sex marriage on religious grounds and dont want to participate in same-sex weddings. They live in the 21 states that have anti-discrimination laws that specifically include gay and lesbian people.

In California and Texas, courts are dealing with lawsuits over the refusal of hospitals, citing religious beliefs, to perform hysterectomies on people transitioning from female to male. In Michigan, the American Civil Liberties Union filed suit against the states practice of allowing faith-based child placement agencies to reject same-sex couples.

Stark differences

Advocates of both sides see the essence of these cases in starkly different terms.

What the religious right is asking for is a new rule specific to same-sex couples that would not only affect same-sex couples but also carve a hole in nondiscrimination laws that could affect all communities, said Camilla Taylor, director of constitutional litigation at Lambda Legal, which supports civil rights for LGBT people.

Jim Campbell of the Christian public interest law firm Alliance Defending Freedom said the cases will determine whether people like Jack Phillips who believe marriage is the union of a man and a woman, that they too have a legitimate place in public life. Or does he have to hide or ignore those beliefs when hes participating in the public square? ADF represents Phillips at the Supreme Court.

Civil rights complaints

The other category of cases concerns protections for LGBT people under civil rights law. One case expected to reach the court this summer involves a Michigan funeral home that fired an employee who disclosed that she was transitioning from male to female and dressed as a woman.

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the firing constituted sex discrimination under federal civil rights law. That court is one of several that have applied anti-sex discrimination provisions to transgender people, but the Supreme Court has yet to take up a case.

The funeral home argues in part that Congress was not thinking about transgender people when it included sex discrimination in Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. A trial judge had ruled for the funeral home, saying it was entitled to a religious exemption from the civil rights law.

Congress has not weighed in to say sex includes gender identity. We should certainly make sure thats a conscious choice of Congress and not just the overexpansion of the law by courts, Campbell said. ADF also represents the funeral home.

In just the past week, two federal courts ruled in favor of transgender students who want to use school facilities that correspond to their sexual identity. Those cases turn on whether the prohibition on sex discrimination in education applies to transgender people. Appeals in both cases are possible.

In the past 13 months, federal appeals courts in Chicago and New York also have ruled that gay and lesbian employees are entitled to protection from discrimination under Title VII. Those courts overruled earlier decisions. Title VII does not specifically mention sexual orientation, but the courts said it was covered under the ban on sex bias.

Trump changes course

The Obama administration had supported treating LGBT discrimination claims as sex discrimination, but the Trump administration has changed course. In the New York case, for instance, the Trump administration filed a legal brief arguing that Title VII was not intended to provide protections to gay workers. It also withdrew Obama-era guidance to educators to treat claims of transgender students as sex discrimination.

There is no appeal pending or expected on the sexual orientation issue, and there is no guarantee that the court will take up the funeral homes appeal over transgender discrimination.

Changes on the court

The trend in the lower courts has been in favor of extending civil rights protections to LGBT employees and students. Their prospects at the Supreme Court may be harder to discern, not least because its unclear whether the courts composition will change soon.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, 81, has been the subject of retirement speculation, though he has not indicated he is planning to retire. When Justice Stephen Breyer turns 80 in August, he will join Kennedy and Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, 85, as octogenarians on the bench.

If President Donald Trump were to replace any of those justices, the court probably would be much less receptive to LGBT rights. Even the landmark gay marriage ruling in 2015 that Kennedy wrote was a 5-4 decision.

Were very concerned about the composition of the federal bench. Under the Trump administration, weve seen a number of federal nominees who have been ideologues, who have taken positions about the very right to exist of LGBT people that is simply inconsistent with fitness to serve as a federal judge, Taylor of Lambda Legal said.

The ADFs Campbell said even with the current justices, he holds out some hope that the court would not extend anti-discrimination protections.

Justice Kennedy has undoubtedly been the person who has decided the major LGBT cases, but to my knowledge he hasnt weighed in some of these other issues, he said.
Saudi Arabia and Russia are discussing raising OPEC and non-OPEC oil production by about 1 million barrels a day, sources said, weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump complained about artificially high prices.

Riyadh and Moscow are prepared to ease output cuts to calm consumer worries about supply adequacy, their energy ministers said Friday, with Saudi Arabias Khalid al-Falih adding that any such move would be gradual so as not to shock the market.

Raising production would ease 17 months of strict supply curbs amid concerns that a price rally has gone too far, with oil hitting its highest since late 2014 at $80.50 a barrel this month.

Trump tweeted last month that OPEC had artificially boosted oil prices.

A need to respond

We were in the meeting in Jeddah, when we read the tweet, OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said, referring to a meeting in Saudi Arabia April 20.

I think I was prodded by his excellency Khalid Al-Falih that probably there was a need for us to respond. We in OPEC always pride ourselves as friends of the United States, Barkindo told a panel with the Saudi and Russian energy ministers in St. Petersburg at Russias main economic forum.

OPEC officials said by the need to respond Barkindo was referring to a tweet he sent the same day, rather than the need to act.

Hitting agreed level

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies led by Russia have agreed to curb output by about 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) through 2018 to reduce global stocks, but the inventory overhang is now near OPECs target.

In April, pact participants cut production by 52 percent more than required, with falling output from crisis-hit Venezuela helping OPEC deliver a bigger reduction than intended.

Sources familiar with the matter said an increase of about 1 million bpd would lower compliance to 100 percent of the agreed level.

Barkindo also said it was not unusual for the United States to put pressure on OPEC as some U.S. energy secretaries had asked the producer group to help lower prices in the past.

Oil prices fell more than 2 percent toward $77 a barrel Friday as Saudi Arabia and Russia said they were ready to ease supply curbs.

Near target

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said current cuts were in reality 2.7 million bpd because of a drop in Venezuelan production, somewhere around 1 million bpd higher than the initially agreed reductions.

Novak declined to say, however, whether OPEC and Russia would decide to boost output by 1 million bpd at their next meeting in June.

The moment is coming when we should consider assessing ways to exit the deal very seriously and gradually ease quotas on output cuts, Novak said in televised comments.

Initial talks are being led by the energy ministers of OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia and Russia at St. Petersburg this week, along with their counterpart from the United Arab Emirates, which holds the OPEC presidency this year, the sources said. OPEC and non-OPEC ministers meet in Vienna on June 22-23, and the final decision will be taken there.

Compliance at record high

Current discussions are aimed at relaxing record-high compliance with the production cuts, the sources said, in an effort to cool the market after oil hit $80 a barrel.

China has also raised concerns about whether enough oil is being pumped, according to a Saudi statement issued after Energy Minister Falih called Chinas energy chief on Friday to discuss cooperation between their countries and to review the oil market.

Nur Bekri, administrator of Chinas National Energy Administration, told Falih he hopes Saudi Arabia can take further substantial actions to guarantee adequate supply in the crude oil market, the Saudi Energy Ministry statement said.

While Russia and OPEC benefit from higher oil prices, up almost 20 percent since the end of last year, their voluntary output cuts have opened the door to other producers, such as the U.S. shale sector, to ramp up production and gain market share.

The final production number is not set yet as dividing up the extra barrels among deal participants could be tricky, the sources said.

The talks now are to bring compliance down to the 100 percent level, more for OPEC rather than for non-OPEC, one source said.

Rally concerns

OPEC may decide to raise oil output as soon as June because of worries over Iranian and Venezuelan supply and after Washington raised concerns the oil rally was going too far, OPEC and oil industry sources told Reuters on Tuesday.

However, it is unclear which countries have the capacity to raise output and fill any supply gap other than Gulf oil producers, led by Saudi Arabia, and Russia, the sources said.

Only a few members have the capability to increase production, so implementation will be complicated, one OPEC source said.

So far, OPEC had said it saw no need to ease output restrictions despite concerns among consuming nations that the price rally could undermine demand.

The rapid decline in oil inventories and worries about supplies after the U.S. decision to withdraw from the international nuclear deal with Iran, as well as Venezuelas collapsing output, were behind the change in OPECs thinking.
The Palestinian Health Ministry says three Palestinians were killed Sunday by Israeli tank fire in the southern Gaza Strip.



The militant group Islamic Jihad claimed the three as members.



Israel's military confirmed the strike, saying the tank fire came after its troops detonated an explosive device that had been placed near the border fence.



Israel said in a statement: "The charge was placed last night near the border fence in the southern Gaza Strip in attempt to harm forces operating in the area and was neutralized this morning by IDF [Israeli Defense Forces] troops."



The defense forces tweeted "No injuries to IDF soldiers were reported. In response, an IDF tank targeted a military observation post in the southern Gaza Strip."



At least 118 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the Gaza Strip since mass protests and clashes broke out in March.
Russian democracy hit a grim milestone this week when Evgeny Roizman, the independent-minded mayor of Russias fourth largest city of Yekaterinburg, resigned from his post in protest.

The mayors frustration was understandable: He was being forced to oversee a vote by local lawmakers to formally abolish elections to the post he had campaigned for and - against all odds - won as an opposition candidate back in 2013.

"Since I was elected by the city's residents, I defend the interests of the city's residents, said Roizman, in announcing his resignation. I will not take part in this under any circumstances.

With that, Yekaterinburg joined the growing ranks of Russian cities where direct elections have been replaced by Kremlin-endorsed appointees into positions of power - further winnowing opportunities, critics say, for Russians to take part in an already restrictive political life at the grassroots level.

'Managed democracy'

In Yekaterinburg, the decision to cancel direct elections had a key backer in the regions Kremlin-backed governor, Yevgeny Kuivashev. Future mayors will now be chosen by the legislature from a list drawn up by lawmakers - a move Kuivashev insists will save the city money and streamline governance.

But, in reality, the mayorship had already been stripped to a mostly ceremonial post, with key decision-making power ceded to a "city manager" - also appointed by Kuivashevs pliant legislature.

Welcome to Russia President Vladimir Putins so-called managed democracy - a loosely defined system that preserves the outlines of democratic traditions while meticulously avoiding the unpredictable results popular elections can deliver.

Kremlin supporters argue the managed system of elections and appointees reflects Russians desire to simply get things done.

The legislatures that approves appointees, they note, are popularly elected officials. They also argue that the ability to choose "city managers" allows skilled personnel to handle complicated public infrastructure issues that plague Russian regions and that few politicians know much about.

Moreover, proponents of the city managers point out ineffective appointees can be quickly replaced, unlike mayors who must be voted out of office.

Opponents argue the Kremlins real goal is to strip the country of political alternatives who challenge the Kremlins influence on regional politics.

People dont even know who these lawmakers are, says Fyodor Krasheninnikov, a political analyst based in Yekaterinburg. But everybody - even cities across Russia - knew Roizman was the mayor of Yekaterinburg.

Krasheninnikov argues Roizman was driven from office largely because of his popular reputation as a politician who viewed Yekaterinburgs problems through the eyes of a local - a far cry from grey functionaries imported by the Kremlin to oversee affairs.

Putin destroyed popular politics in Russia. It doesn't exist on purpose, he says. Because what if suddenly there arose figures opposed to the Kremlin? There shouldnt be anyone popular in power at any level. Only Putin.

Planted the seeds

Indeed, the demise of Yekaterinburgs mayoral elections have seeds in Putins rise to power some 18 years prior.

Where Putins predecessor, Boris Yeltsin, once famously told Russias regions to take as much sovereignty as you can swallow, Putin took the reins of power, promising to restore Moscows authority over the countrys far-flung provinces under what he called the power vertical.

Since then, the Russian leader has taken multiple steps to put that vision into practice.

In 2005, Putin abolished the election of governors in favor of Kremlin appointees. (Subsequent changes now allow regions to elect governors, albeit with the Kremlin carefully filtering the list of candidates, including a bid by Roizman to run for the governorship of Sverdlovsk Oblast in 2017).

That same year, the Kremlin began gutting mayoral races in favor of "city managers" and other handpicked appointees approved by pliant local legislatures.



Today, every single one of Russias 85 governors is loyal to the Kremlin. Fewer than 10 Russian cities still hold direct mayoral elections. Even among those that do, the vast majority of elected mayors carefully toe the Kremlin line.

Yekaterinburgs Roizman - a maverick politician who criticized Putins recent reelection as undemocratic and has allied himself with opposition leader Alexei Navalny - was the last lone exception.

Not just in Russia

While pro-democracy advocates criticize the practice in Russia, the concept of unelected managers appointed to oversee affairs is not without precedent in the West.

Smaller American cities have occasionally experimented with the practice when faced with financial or other crises. Among larger cities, Detroit recently was led by a governor-appointed emergency manager to help guide the city out of bankruptcy. The move - temporary and, ultimately, successful - was initially challenged by locals as an assault on home rule.

Still, Yekaterinburg analyst Krasheninnikov argues therein lies a key difference.

They try and sell us this idea that this is an American tradition and these managers are specialists who can fix all our problems, he says. In reality, theyre just people convenient to the authorities.
Talks regarding the planned June 12 U.S.-North Korea summit in Singapore are still on track and members of the U.S. administration are working to iron out the details, President Donald Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Saturday evening.

The talks are going very, very well, Trump said.

I think people want to see if we can get the meeting and get something done. We got that done and we can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, that would be a great thing for North Korea, it would be a great thing for South Korea, it would be great for Japan, it would be great for the world, it would be great for the United States, it would be great for China. A lot of people are working on it. Its moving along very nicely, Trump said.

North, South leaders meet

In North Korea, state media reported Saturday night that its North Korean leader Kim Jong Uns fixed will that a summit with the U.S. president in Singapore should go ahead.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in met Saturday afternoon with the North Korean leader near the two Koreas heavily militarized border.

The leaders exchanged views on how to prepare for the Norths possible summit with Trump, the South Korean presidential office said.

After the meeting, South Koreas President Moon was upbeat.

It was like an ordinary encounter between friends, he said of his Saturday meeting with Kim Jong Un.

Moon said the North Korean leader remains committed to denuclearization.

Whats uncertain for Kim is not his intention to denuclearize, but the U.S. stance in hostile relations with North Korea and whether the U.S. can really secure and guarantee his regime, Moon said.

Hopes for successful summit

The two leaders reiterated hopes for a successful North Korea-U.S. summit after Trump abruptly canceled a meeting between the two countries planned for June 12 in Singapore. Trump cited hostile comments from top North Korean officials as his reason for scrapping the meeting, as well as concern about the countrys commitment to giving up its nuclear weapons.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Saturday in a statement, The White House pre-advance team for Singapore will leave as scheduled in order to prepare should the summit take place. Politico magazine reported earlier that an advance team of 30 White House and State Department officials were preparing to depart later this weekend.

Kim thanked Moon for much effort made by him toward the summit, and said he hoped to improve relations with Washington and establish mechanism for permanent and durable peace.

Leaders of North and South Korea also agreed to meet frequently, the Norths KCNA agency added.


South Korean President Moon Jae-in said he urged North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to directly engage with Washington to salvage the June 12 nuclear summit with the U.S., when the two leaders held a surprise second inter-Korean summit Saturday.

I emphasized that the two sides must directly communicate in order to eradicate any misunderstandings, and preliminary talks through working-level negotiations on key agendas are necessary, said President Moon at a press briefing in Seoul Sunday.

Security concerns

North Korea requested the meeting between Kim and Moon after U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday canceled the Singapore summit. Trump said his decision was based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed by North Korea officials recently over U.S. demands that Pyongyang follow the Libya denuclearization model.

North Korea sees that model for rapid and complete denuclearization as a threat to the Kim governments security, since Libyan leader Moammar Ghadafi was later overthrown and killed by his own people, with support from a multinational military coalition that included the U.S.

Pyongyang has called for a more incremental process that links concessions to partial nuclear reductions and postpones complete denuclearization until the Norths security demands are met.

Moon met with Kim on the North side of the inter-Korean border, in the same village of Panmunjom where the two leaders held a summit in April. At that meeting, on the south side of the border, the two leaders jointly declared their support for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

On Saturday Moon said Kim reaffirmed his commitment to end his countrys nuclear weapons program, but shared his key concern that the U.S. would work to destabilize his rule despite any security guarantees it offers.

What is uncertain for Chairman Kim Jong Un is not his willingness for denuclearization, but he has concerns over whether North Korea can trust the fact that Washington will end its hostile relations, and guarantee the security of the regime if North Korea does denuclearize, Moon said.

Trump has said Kim would be both secure in his rule and rich, as the U.S. and other countries would offer substantial economic aid and investment.

Summit planning

Pyongyang has taken a conciliatory tone in response to the cancellation of the summit. KCNA, North Koreas official state news agency, reported Sunday that that Kim Jong Un expressed his fixed will to hold the summit with President Trump and thanked President Moon for acting as a mediator to reconcile the differences between North Korea and the U.S.

President Moon also emphasized that North Korea demonstrated its strong intentions by unilaterally suspending nuclear and missile tests since November of last year and demolishing the Punggye-ri nuclear test site last week.

President Trump Saturday suggested that the canceled Singapore summit with North Korea could happen after all. He told reporters that working level talks with Pyongyang are going very, very well.

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement Saturday, The White House pre-advance team for Singapore will leave as scheduled in order to prepare should the summit take place.

Inter-Korean relations

Moon and Kim also agreed to hold high-level talks June 1 and accelerate cooperation efforts, including holding military talks to ease border tensions, and continue planning for a reunion in August for families that have been separated by the division of Korea at the end of World War II.

This renewed show of unity and friendship comes after North Korea seemed to express its anger at the U.S. by punishing South Korea, in canceling recent working level inter-Korean talks and temporarily banning South Korean journalists from covering the nuclear site closing.

Pyongyang also recently pulled out of a joint North-South taekwondo exhibition that was to be performed in St. Peters Square in Vatican City this week in front of dignitaries including Pope Francis.

North Korea cited the U.S.-South Korea military drills as the source of the renewed tensions with Seoul and Washington. Pyongyang demanded an end to these joint exercises that it says are rehearsals for invasion. However Kim Jong Un earlier indicated that neither the joint drills, nor the U.S. military presence on the Korean Peninsula would not be an obstacle toward improving inter-Korean relations or in reaching a denuclearization deal with the U.S.

Lee Yoon-jee in Seoul contributed to this report.
A suicide bomber has detonated his explosives-laden mini truck near an army base in southern Afghanistan, killing at least eight soldiers and wounding around a dozen more.

A provincial government spokesman while confirming the casualties to VOA said the early Sunday attack occurred in the volatile Nad Ali district of Helmand province.

The Taliban swiftly took responsibility for carrying out the bombing. An insurgent spokesman claimed the powerful blast killed and wounded more than 100 Afghan security personnel, though Taliban casualty tolls are often inflated.

Helmand is a major poppy producing region, and most of the districts are controlled or contested by the Taliban.

Afghan officials said Sundays deadly blast took pace in an area government forces recently freed from insurgent control.

Taliban battlefield attacks and bombings are said to have killed hundreds of Afghans security forces since the beginning of this month, and the group has also overrun new territory.

The Afghan government, in a recent briefing to parliamentarians on the deteriorating national security, confirmed that in the first week of May insurgent attacks killed 252 security personnel and injured more than 400 others.
A high-level Afghan delegation held a daylong official visit to neighboring Pakistan Sunday to discuss bilateral matters, border management and regional security.

Afghan National Security Adviser Haneef Atmar led a team of top security officials, including the countrys interior minister and heads of the army and the intelligence agency.

The visitors held discussions with Pakistani National Security Adviser Nasser Janjua after landing in Islamabad.

Janjuas office said in a brief statement both sides reiterated their resolve to work jointly on issues related to bilateral ties and security.

The Afghan delegation also met with Pakistans military chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Islamabad and Kabul earlier this month put into operation a new bilateral engagement framework called the Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) for eliminating terrorism and achieving peace, stability, prosperity and development of the people of the two countries.

Atamar tweeted Sunday that his delegation planned to hold detailed discussions on the implementation of APAPPS.

Mutual allegations of supporting militant attacks against each other have long dogged relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The two sides, however, have acknowledged that recent high-level contacts between their civilian and security officials are easing mutual tensions.
Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of General Dynamics, said it will bring its comprehensive fleet of aircraft including the G280, G500, G550 and G650ER to Geneva for the 2018 European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (Ebace).

Demonstrating its maturity and capability, the all-new, fully outfitted Gulfstream G600 has landed in Geneva  marking its European debut, said a statement from Gulfstream.

The aircraft flew from Savannah, Georgia in US to Geneva on Gulfstream's dedicated supply of a renewable-fuel blend and set a city-pair record, connecting the two cities in just seven hours and 49 minutes at an average speed of Mach 0.90, it stated.

A major player in the global aviation sector, the US-based Gulfstream designs, develops, manufactures, markets, services and supports the worlds most technologically advanced business-jet aircraft.

The company has produced more than 2,800 aircraft for customers around the world since 1958.-TradeArabia News Service
A truckers protest over diesel prices in Brazil that is hurting supplies of fuel, food and medicines continued for the sixth day Saturday despite President Michel Temer's order for the military to clear blocked roads the day before.

Major cities declared a state of emergency as gas stations and airports ran out of fuel, supermarket shelves went bare and hospitals said they were running out of supplies.

Public transport and trash collection were reduced or halted across the country, and prices for some food items jumped.

The government said there were fewer blockades on major highways across the country on Saturday compared with Friday.

However, the main entity representing truckers, ABCAM, said it had not changed its position that the protests would be called off only after federal taxes on diesel had been scrapped.

Later Saturday, federal forces and police appeared to be gaining an edge on clearing some roads. They were escorting convoys with fuel and other products in some areas in the country, including the airport in the capital, Brasilia.

Negotiators for several trucker groups initially agreed Thursday to suspend the protests as the government promised to subsidize and stabilize diesel prices, which may cost 5 billion reais ($1.4 billion) this year.

But truckers say they want a definitive solution, and that they will end the protest only when a decision to eliminate federal diesel taxes is published in the official gazette.

Some business sectors that depend on daily supplies were suffering.

Lack of animal feed may cause the deaths of 1 billion birds and 20 million hogs, Brazilian meat group ABPA said, adding that more than 150 poultry and pork processing plants had indefinitely suspended production.

Brazil's sugar industry, the world's largest, is slowly halting cane harvest operations as machines ran out of fuel.

Blockades continue to prevent trucks from entering the port of Santos, Latin America's largest, and oilseeds crushing group Abiove said soy exports would halt Saturday if truckers did not allow access to major ports.

Auto production, which contributes about a quarter of Brazil's industrial output, ground to a halt Friday.

Authorities said even after roads were completely cleared, it would still take several days to normalize supplies.
U.S. President Donald Trump "adamantly' wants to answer questions in the criminal investigation of his 2016 campaign's links with Russia, but one of his lawyers says he remains skeptical about allowing Trump to face prosecutors' queries about whether he obstructed justice by trying to thwart the probe.

Trump lawyer, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, told CNN on Sunday that special counsel Robert Mueller wants to question the president about two key topics: possible collusion with Russia in the months before the election and whether he sought as president to block the investigation by firing FBI director James Comey while he was heading the Russia probe before Mueller was appointed to take over.

"The collusion part we're pretty comfortable about because there has been none," Giuliani said. "The obstruction part I'm not as comfortable with. I'm not. The president's fine with it. He's innocent. I'm not comfortable because it's a matter of interpretation, not just hard and fast, true and not true."

Giuliani added that "if you interpret his comment about firing Comey ... if you interpret that as obstructing the investigation, as opposed to removing a guy who's doing a bad job .... if you see it as obstructing the investigation, then you can say it's obstruction."

Giuliani said the president's legal team is worried that Trump could be trapped into perjury  the criminal offense of lying under oath  in answering prosecutors' questions about his reasoning for firing Comey. Initially, the White House said Trump ousted Comey because he allegedly mishandled the FBI's investigation into the use of a private email server by Trump's 2016 opponent, Democrat Hillary Clinton, while she was the U.S. secretary of state from 2009 to 2013.

Within days, however, Trump told NBC that he was going to fire Comey in any event and was thinking of "this Russia thing" when he ousted him because he thought it was a phony investigation used by Democrats to explain Clinton's upset loss.

Whatever the misgivings of Trump's lawyers about letting him face prosecutors' questions, Giuliani said, "He's adamantly wanting to do it."

But Giuliani said that ultimately the decision of whether Trump meets with Mueller's team depends on "how comfortable we are in them being open-minded" and believing that prosecutors had not decided in advance that Trump was complicit in wrong-doing.

Asked how he was "so sure" there had not been any collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian interests, Giuliani, a one-time prosecutor, said, "Fifty years of investigative experience tells me they don't have a darn thing."

Giuliani said that when he was part of the campaign, "No one knew about Russia, nobody talked about Russia."

Trump has often assailed the investigation and did so again Sunday, calling it a "phony Russia Collusion Wiitch Hunt," and a "Rigged Investigation!"

Giuliani has said in recent days that ultimately there won't be any criminal charges brought against Trump, in keeping with long-standing Justice Department guidelines that a sitting president cannot be charged. But Giuliani said, based on what Mueller concludes about Trump's actions, Congress could eventually face a decision whether to impeach Trump, leading to a Senate trial on whether he should be removed from office.

The Trump lawyer said that any sit-down with Mueller's prosecutors would not occur until after the still-possible June 12 summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore.
Suspense is high in Washington as to whether a planned nuclear summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will take place next month. VOAs Michael Bowman reports, Trumps messaging has shifted day-to-day, from canceling the historic encounter to suggesting behind-the-scenes movement to get it back on track.
U.S. and North Korean officials met at the demilitarized zone Sunday to talk about a possible summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jung Un.

After calling off the talks Thursday, Trump said the June 12 summit in Singapore may very well take place as scheduled.

"I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen," Trump tweeted Sunday.

"U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, and former ambassador to South Korea, Sung Kim is leading the U.S. delegation at the preparation talks. Reports say the meetings are expected to last until Tuesday.

"We can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, that would be a great thing for North Korea, it would be a great thing for South Korea, it would be great for Japan, it would be great for the world, it would be great for the United States, it would be great for China. A lot of people are working on it. It's moving along very nicely," Trump said.

It is not exactly clear what made Trump change his mind about wanting to meet with Kim just a day after he called off their talks.

Trump was angered over the North's insult of Vice President Mike Pence and its threat to use nuclear force. Pence remarked last week that North Korea could wind up like Libya -- a country mired in chaos since it gave up its nuclear ambitions and saw its longtime dictator killed.



Watch related video by VOA's Michael Bowman:

But Trump said Friday everybody plays games, and noted North Korea's "warm and productive" reaction to his letter to Kim, canceling their talks.

North Korean state media has reported on Kim's "fixed will" that a summit with Trump should go ahead.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in met Saturday with North Korean leader Kim near the two Koreas' heavily militarized border.

The leaders exchanged views on how to prepare for the North's possible summit with Trump, the South Korean presidential office said.



After the meeting, South Korea's President Moon was upbeat.

"It was like an ordinary encounter between friends," he said of his Saturday meeting with Kim Jong Un.

Moon said the North Korean leader remains committed to denuclearization.

"What's uncertain for Kim is not his intention to denuclearize, but the U.S. stance in hostile relations with North Korea and whether the U.S. can really secure and guarantee his regime," Moon said.

Kim thanked Moon "for much effort made by him" towards the summit, and said he hoped to improve relations with Washington and "establish mechanism for permanent and durable peace."

Leaders of North and South Korea also agreed to "meet frequently," the North's KCNA agency added.

White House correspondent Steve Herman contributed to this report.
Two U.S. Navy warships sailed near South China Sea islands claimed by China on Sunday, two U.S. officials told Reuters, in a move that drew condemnation from Beijing as President Donald Trump seeks its continued cooperation on North Korea.

The operation was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijing's efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters.

While this operation had been planned months in advance, and similar operations have become routine, it comes at a particularly sensitive time and just days after the Pentagon uninvited China from a major U.S.-hosted naval drill.

The U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Higgins guided-missile destroyer and the Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors.

The U.S. military vessels carried out maneuvering operations near Tree, Lincoln, Triton and Woody islands in the Paracels, one of the officials said.

'Freedom of navigation'

Critics of the operations, known as a "freedom of navigation," have said that they have little impact on Chinese behavior and are largely symbolic.

The U.S. military has a long-standing position that its operations are carried out throughout the world, including in areas claimed by allies, and that they are separate from political considerations.

Satellite photographs taken on May 12 showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at Woody Island.

Earlier this month, China's air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs in the South China Sea as part of a training exercise in the region, triggering concern from Vietnam and the Philippines.

Routine

The U.S. military did not directly comment on Sunday's operation, but said U.S. forces operate in the region daily.

"We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future," U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

China's Defense Ministry expressed its anger, saying it had sent ships and aircraft to warn the U.S. warships to leave, saying they had entered the country's territorial waters without permission.

The move "contravened Chinese and relevant international law, seriously infringed upon Chinese sovereignty (and) harmed strategic mutual trust between the two militaries," it said. In a separate statement, China's Foreign Ministry urged the United States to stop such actions.

"China will continue to take all necessary measures to defend the country's sovereignty and security," it added, without elaborating.

Contested sea

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region.

In March, a U.S. Navy destroyer carried out a "freedom of navigation" operation close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands.

Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, "Cold War" terms.

China's claims in the South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

The United States has said it would like to see more international participation in freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea.
Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Alliance presidential candidate, Nelson Chamisa, says he is not losing sleep over reports that the Zimbabwe Defence Forces wont allow him to become the president of Zimbabwe if he beats President Emmerson Mnangagwa in the forthcoming poll.

Chamisa told thousands of people, who attended an MDC Alliance election campaign rally in Beitbridge on Saturday, that he will become the president through the ballot box and not the barrel of the gun.

Im not losing sleep over remarks by a government official that the army wont allow me to become president if I win the presidential election, he said.

Chamisa has been attracting large crowds at MDC Alliance rallies nationwide.

Deputy finance minister Terrance Mukupe recently told people attending a Zanu PF election campaign meeting that the Zimbabwe Defence Forces did not wrestle power from former president Robert Mugabe to hand it over to what he called an immature politician like Nelson Chamisa.

Mukuke is now distancing himself from his own remarks after he was rebuked by the ruling party, which claims that the country will this year hold free, fair and credible elections unlike in the past under the Mugabe regime.

Another senior Zanu PF official, Josiah Hungwe, made similar remarks recently.

The West imposed targeted sanctions on Mugabe and his inner circle following allegations of election rigging and human rights violations.

Meanwhile, a leader of the National War Veterans Association Victor Matematanda says Mugabe should be punished before he dies for Gukurahundi atrocities of the 1980s.

Matematanda, who made these remarks while addressing Zanu PF supporters, said Mnangagwa should not be accused of participating in the killing of an estimated 20,000 people in Matabeleland and the Midlands provinces by the North Korean-trained Fifth Brigade.

Mugabe deployed the militia claiming that the regions, which were Zapu strongholds, were supporting dissidents that wanted to topple his government.
Zimbabwes ruling party wants re-admit expelled former war veterans leader Jabulani Sibanda, who was dumped by Zanu Pf for calling out former president Robert Mugabes wife, Grace, for attempting what he described as a bedroom coup.

The Zanu PF Youth League says Sibanda was right as Mrs. Mugabe was blocked by the Zimbabwe Defence Forces when she made some moves to succeed the former Zimbabwean leader, who was toppled in a defacto military coup last November.

The state-controlled Herald newspaper quoted one of the Youth League leaders, Archie Chiponda, as saying that Sibanda was the first to point out Mrs. Mugabes moves in 2014.

Chiponda told the newspaper that  I think it was Jabu who first drew attention to what was happening and likened the situation prevailing then to a bedroom coup. I think in some instances he has been vindicated, hence when you find a loyal dedicated cadre like him, you dont need to think twice about bringing him back.

We will write to our representative body to say as Bulawayo province youth league, this is our resolution. We will pass it to our national executive leaders because we have faith in their capability and they will pass the message to the national leadership.

War veterans of the 1960s liberation struggle are also calling on the ruling Zanu PF party to re-admit Sibanda, who is accused of allegedly spearheading a violent election campaign for the ruling party in 2008 in some parts of the country.

Sibanda has denied any wrongdoing saying his campaigns were not violent.

There was no comment from the ruling party and Sibanda was unreachable on his mobile phone.

Mugabe was forced to resign after the Zimbabwe Defence Forces seized all key state institutions leading to nationwide protests and a parliamentary motion to impeach the former president.

The former Zimbabwean strongman insists that he was toppled in military coup though the government claims that he threw in the towel when he was under pressure from his own people who staged protests urging him to step down.

The Southern African Development Community, African Union and others have indicated that Mugabe was forced by his own people to leave office. They claim that the military had a constitutional right to intervene to restore order in the country.
Please enable cookies on your web browser in order to continue.

The new European data protection law requires us to inform you of the following before you use our website:

We use cookies and other technologies to customize your experience, perform analytics and deliver personalized advertising on our sites, apps and newsletters and across the Internet based on your interests. By clicking I agree below, you consent to the use by us and our third-party partners of cookies and data gathered from your use of our platforms. See our Privacy Policy and Third Party Partners to learn more about the use of data and your rights. You also agree to our Terms of Service.
The total contribution of travel and tourism to UAEs GDP was Dh154.1 billion ($41.9 billion), reflecting 11.3 per cent of the countrys GDP in 2017 and is forecast to rise by 4.9 per cent in 2018, said a top government official.



Mohammed Khamis Al Mheiri, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Economy and Advisor to the Minister for Tourism Affairs, was speaking at the 108th meeting of the Executive Council of the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) held recently in San Sebastian, Spain, reported Emirates news agency Wam.



The UAE is the current Chairman of the UNWTO Commission for the Middle East, CME. Al Mheiri, also Special Advisor to the Secretary-General of the UNWTO, said the UAE maintains a good working relationship with the UNWTO, particularly in the area of sharing expertise and programmes.



The 109th, 110th and 111th sessions of the UNWTO Executive Council will take place in Bahrain, Azerbaijan and Russia, respectively.



The Under-Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, who took office in January 2018, said the UNWTO will focus on five pillars for the period 2018-2019: innovation and the digital transformation; investments and entrepreneurship; education and employment; safe, secure and seamless travel; and social, cultural and environmental sustainability.



In order to address new tourism challenges and trends, and improve the business environment for the sector, the organisation will pay special attention to scaling up innovation and digitalisation in the sector. This will lead to the creation of new job and business opportunities, an increase of investments in tourism, and enhanced competitiveness and sustainability for the sector.
250518IRC AWARENESS SUCCESSFUL

New Dawn FM News

The Public awareness by the Office of the Internal Revenue Commission in Port Moresby held this morning in Buka was a success according to the Officer who ran the program.

MS KONIO VAI Assistant Commissioner Finance and Admin told New Dawn FM after the awareness that they did imparted the changes at the IRC to the Business Community that attended the awareness at the Kuri Village Resort.

She said that the purpose of the awareness was to inform taxpayers and the general public of the changes in the modes of payment that will apply from June 2018.

As of June first, 2018 IRC will no longer accept personal or company cheques but will accept payments through EFTPOS, Electronic Fund Transfer, Direct Deposit, Bank Transfer or by Bank Cheque.

She said this will speed up the process of payments and making it easy for all parties.

MS. VAI also said that in the past the IRC has been dealing with too many bounced cheques and this was time consuming.

She said that the attendance was good but she would have wanted more people to attend this awareness.

The team will travel to KIMBE from BUKA.



Ends


Cathay Pacific Group has announced changes to its rewards programme, Asia Miles, offering customers more points on the vast majority of their flights and more access to redemption bookings.



Cathay Pacific chief customer and commercial officer Paul Loo said the changes demonstrate the airlines commitment to recognising and rewarding loyal members.



We have been listening to our customers and have been looking at ways to show how much we value their ardent loyalty to Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon, he said. As Asia Miles airline partners, we want to ensure these changes enable our customers to redeem flight awards more easily. When our customers fly with us, we hope their travel experiences are enjoyable, rewarding and memorable.



The following programme enhancements, which are in response to members feedback, will come into effect from June 22.



Earn more miles when flying



Customers will earn more Asia Miles on a vast majority (80 per cent) of the airlines tickets, including those to popular destinations such as Shanghai, Osaka and London. Customers will earn Asia Miles based on a combination of cabin class, fare class and distance zone.



For tickets issued before June 22 for travel on or after this date, members will be credited with the higher number of Asia Miles, irrespective of the changes.



As an example, customers travelling from Hong Kong to Sydney in Economy Class (S, N, Q) will earn over twice as many Asia Miles as they did previously, while customers flying to London in First Class (F, A) will see their miles earned increased by nearly 30 per cent.



Greater redemption seat access and experiences



The airline is increasing the number of seats available for customers to redeem by 20 per cent or more. Customers will also enjoy greater flexibility in how they redeem flights, with options to suit individual travel needs and priorities.



Customers will be able to redeem all Economy Class tickets with fewer or the same miles. For instance, a round-trip redemption booking to Singapore will require a third fewer Asia Miles than it did before the change.



Some premium class flight awards, especially on longer routes, will require more miles to redeem. However, this should be looked at in tandem with customers increased Asia Miles earning potential. For example, with customers travelling to and from London in First Class (F, A) earning nearly 30 per cent more miles (additional 5,330 miles per round trip), it will require almost three fewer trips to earn the number of miles for an award return ticket on the same route in the same class.



All flight awards will be set as one-way to allow even more flexibility, so that customers can fly to and from a destination in different cabin classes.



Moreover, customers will at the same time benefit from a more straightforward and seamless booking experience with a new and streamlined online flight award booking system.



These changes to Asia Miles are in addition to recent Marco Polo Club programme enhancements, which have seen members earn more club points on Cathay Pacific and Cathay Dragon flights across all distance zones in selected fare classes, as well as the threshold to maintain Green membership reduced. - TradeArabia News Service
Fifty Western Australians were prevented from travelling overseas in the first nine months of this financial year due to outstanding child support debts, new Department of Human Services figures have revealed.

The figures, released on Sunday, showed WA's 50 departure prohibition orders were part of a nationwide record 358 travel bans for unpaid child support  more than one a day.

A record number of parents were prevented from leaving the country because of child support debts. Credit:Peter Braig

Unpaid child support is growing problem, with figures already eclipsing 333 bans recorded in 2016-17 and 191 bans in 2015-16.

The bans mean parents are stopped at the gate of airports and given an ultimatum of either paying their outstanding debt or not leaving the country.
WESTPORT  Oscar-winning Hollywood movie producer Harvey Weinstein is taking a leave of absence from his own company after an explosive expose on decades of sexual harassment against women, from employees to actress Ashley Judd.

The revelations came Thursday in a story published in The New York Times. Weinstein owns a home in Westport.

At this time there is nothing for Westport police to investigate because we have received no complaints of this nature, Lt. Jillian Cabana said.

Cabana said the department will not investigate unless a complaint is filed.

Weinstein owns two adjacent properties on Beachside Avenue - one assessed at $8.5 million and the other, $7.1 million. One of those Beachside Avenue houses was on the market in 2016, but had no takers.

Weinstein, a prominent Democratic fundraiser, held a fundraiser for President Barack Obama in 2012 that raised $2 million. The star-studded event featured celebrities Anne Hathaway, Jim Naughton, Joanne Woodward, Aaron Sorkin, and Anna Wintour.

On Oct. 2, Weinstein sold a house on Minute Man Hill for $1.65 million; the listing price was $1,795,000. Weinstein purchased the house for $825,000 in October 1995. The four-bedroom house has 3,049-square feet of living space.

The New York Times story includes interviews with current and former employees from Weinsteins businesses, Miramax and the Weinstein Company, as well as film industry workers.

The article includes first person accounts of Weinstein's alleged conduct, including from Judd, who recounts an incident from two decades ago in which she said she was asked to meet Weinstein in his hotel room. Weinstein greeted her wearing a bathrobe and asked her if she would give him a massage or watch him shower, the paper reported.

Women have been talking about Harvey amongst ourselves for a long time, and it's simply beyond time to have the conversation publicly, Judd told the Times.

Weinstein has been accused of sexual harassment and unwanted physical contact and reportedly reached at least eight settlements with women. One of them was identified as Rose McGowan, the actress who was only 23 when the incident occurred in 1997.

McGowan, who has spoken out in the past about rape and harassment issues, also tweeted Thursday. She did not name anyone, but said that anyone who does business with (blank space) is complicit.

Women fight on. And to the men out there, stand up. We need you as allies, she wrote

Nevertheless Weinstein's attorney Charles J. Harder said in a statement that the story is saturated with false and defamatory statements about Harvey Weinstein.

We sent the Times the facts and evidence, but they ignored it and rushed to publish, Harder said. He did not respond to questions about what specific allegations Weinstein was contesting.

Weinstein apologized Thursday and announced he will take a leave of absence from his businesses. In a statement responding to the Times article, Weinstein wrote he will now focus his anger towards combating the NRA and its leader, Wayne LaPierre, as well as President Trump.

I appreciate the way I've behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it, Weinstein said in a statement. Though I'm trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.

His statement did not address any specific incidents.

Weinstein had a powerful perch in Hollywood for three decades, and was known for producing films like Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare in Love, for which he won an Oscar.

He has also launched the careers of numerous actresses and directors and executed extremely successful Oscar campaigns with his company Miramax, which he ran with his brother Bob Weinstein. In 2005, they launched a new production company, The Weinstein Co.

Known for his angry outbursts, his often aggressive tactics were chronicled in the Peter Biskind book Down and Dirty Pictures.

Weinstein has been married to designer Georgina Chapman since 2007, they have two children together. He has three children from his previous marriage.

In Weinstein's lengthy statement, in which he quotes a Jay-Z lyric about being a better man for his children, he references coming of age in the 60s and 70s when, all the rules about behavior and workplaces were different.

I want a second chance in the community but I know I've got work to do to earn it, he wrote.

Weinstein quickly became a trending topic on Twitter. Lena Dunham wrote that the women, who chose to speak about their experience of harassment by Harvey Weinstein deserve our awe. It's not fun or easy. It's brave.

The Weinstein Company has in recent years suffered from a string of executive exits, mounting lawsuits and increasingly hectic distribution decisions.

In 2016, the company didn't receive a best-picture nomination for the first time since 2008. Weinstein returned to the category with Lion at this year's Oscars, but his preeminence as an Academy Awards heavyweight has undeniably waned.

Money problems have plagued the company intermittently since 2009, when it entered bankruptcy. But last year, The Weinstein Company continually shuffled release dates and delayed films amid reports that it was too cash-strapped to put a full slate of films into theaters. Some 50 staffers were let go last year.

Movies like The Founder and Tulip Fever were juggled over numerous release date shifts.

After The Founder, with Michael Keaton, was released in January along with the Matthew McConaughey-led Gold, the co-financier of The Founder, FilmNation, sued The Weinstein Company for $15 million, alleging Weinstein violated the non-compete clause of their agreement.

The Weinstein Company had a modest hit this summer with the acclaimed thriller Wind River. The $11 million film has made $33 million. But the company's fall season awards hopeful The Current War, with Benedict Cumberbatch, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival to withering reviews.

Contact svaughan@hearstmediact.com

Staff Writer Michael P. Mayko and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
More than three years have passed since Lydia Daniels last saw or spoke to her son.

This article was published 27/5/2018 (1234 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More than three years have passed since Lydia Daniels last saw or spoke to her son.

And while she holds onto hope he will one day return home, she has also prepared herself for the possibility that the boy she loves so very much is gone forever.

SUPPLIED PHOTO Lydia Daniels, whose son Colten Pratt went missing in 2014, says the pain grows worse every day.

"I have to take things day-by-day, but it gets harder and harder as time passes," Daniels said, speaking by phone from the Long Plain First Nation school where she teaches kindergarten.

"I miss my son more and more and Im starting to realize that its possible that something has happened to him," she said. "Now that it has been over three-and-a-half years I am starting to accept the fact that he might not be with us in this world.

"I always keep that little bit of hope alive that he is out there somewhere because one of the hardest things to do is to accept that your own child may be gone."

'I can't even imagine this continuing for years and years and years. I need answers'  Lydia Daniels

Daniels hasnt seen or heard from her son since November 2014. No matter what happened to Colten, Daniels hopes she gets answers so she can put an end to the thoughts that constantly race through her head.

"The hardest thing is not knowing because that is when you start to think about different scenarios and you create scenarios," Daniels said. "I like to keep my thoughts positive, but there are those days when you hear that a body has been found or remains were recovered and your heart just sinks.

"Its torture, its torture of the mind."

That torture started on the evening of Nov. 6, 2014, a night when then 26-year-old Pratt was hanging out at the Marlborough Hotel at 331 Smith St. in downtown Winnipeg.

That evening is the last time anyone who knows Pratt saw him or spoke to him.

WAYNE GLOWACKI / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Lydia Daniels holds a photograph of her missing son Colten Pratt beside her son Catlin Daniels and daughter Jocelyn Pratt Thursday. Lydia wakes up every day hoping for a break in the case, but to date theres been no trace of Pratt, a 26-year-old who disappeared shortly after he moved to Winnipeg looking for work last year. Katie May story Wayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press Nov. 5 2015

"I cant even imagine this continuing for years and years and years," Daniels said, choking back tears. "I need answers."

At the time Pratt went missing Daniels said her son, an Indigenous, two-spirited man, was living in Winnipeg and looking for work while volunteering for several different organizations.

She said she spoke to him not long before he went missing, and there were no signs that he had any plans to take off.

"He was looking for work and volunteering and he was talking about the future," Daniels said. "There was no sense he would just run off. He had plans for his life."

According to Winnipeg police, Pratt was at the Marlborough Hotel the evening of Nov. 6, 2014, and is believed to have been at a bus shelter at the corner of Main Street and Redwood Avenue the following morning.

"Investigators have since acquired video footage of a male believed to be the missing person in and around the bus shelter between 12:20 a.m. and 1:45 a.m. on the morning of Nov. 7, 2014," police said in a November 2017 news release.

"During this time period it is believed that he had an encounter with at least two individuals at this location. Winnipeg Police are requesting that anyone who recalls seeing activity at this location or has further information regarding these events contacts police."

SUPPLIED PHOTO Lydia Daniels placed a picture of her son Colten Pratt and a necktie at the bus shelter in Winnipeg where police believe he was last seen.

Police say the Colten Pratt missing persons case continues to be an open and active investigation.

Pratt is described as 5-10, and weighing about 160 pounds, with short brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a brown plaid jacket and blue jeans.

"Currently no evidence has been obtained that would lead investigators to believe that Pratts disappearance was the result of a criminal offence," a Winnipeg Police Service spokesperson said in a recent email.

Daniels said at the time he went missing, her son was hanging out "with a new group of friends". She said she did not know the people she believes were with him at the hotel before he disappeared.

She claims the police investigation has since ruled out some of the people she was suspicious of after her sons disappearance.

Colten Pratt, who went missing in Nov. of 2014.

"Colten was a very social person, just out being the social butterfly that he was," she said. "I know he was hanging out with a new group of people and I said, You be careful, I am worried about you. The last thing he said to me was I know."

Daniels has done what she can to keep attention on her sons case, but also to put attention on the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous men, an issue she believes does not get the attention that it should.

One of the things Daniels has done is start an awareness campaign in which she and others affix neckties to various locations, spotlighting the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous men and boys in Canada.

One of the places she has left a necktie is the same bus shelter where police say they believe her son was seen the morning of Nov. 7, 2014.

SUPPLIED PHOTO Colten Pratt, who went missing in Nov. of 2014 is seen in this photo.

"We wanted to honour Colten and we also wanted to get that conversation going about missing and murdered men and boys," Daniels said. "I believe it is a huge task to address this, but it is a necessary task."

"A great job has been done of bringing the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls forward, but we dont yet have that with men and boys."

According to statistics released in 2015, Indigenous men account for approximately 71 per cent of Indigenous homicide victims in Canada.

Despite those high numbers, missing and murdered Indigenous men and boys have not become a major national conversation or a political issue the way that missing and murdered Indigenous women have.

Rob Innes, a professor of Indigenous studies at the University of Saskatchewan said he believes men, more often than women, keep their own issues to themselves.

"Indigenous womens organizations and Indigenous women have worked tirelessly for over 15 years to ensure the public knows about the level of missing and murdered women," Innes said.

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Lydia Pratt (left) looks at a photo of her son displayed on a monitor during a press conference at the Police HQ the day before the third anniversary of when her son Colten Pratt went missing. She attended the press conference with Jacqueline Daniels (right), Coltens Pratts aunt.

"The fact that Indigenous women have had to deal with a high level of domestic assaults, sexualized violence, and other violence including murder at the hands of men including Indigenous men has meant that Indigenous women have been working on dealing with issues of addictions and violence, including their own and those around them for many years.

"Indigenous men have not, to any great extent, dealt with issues of addictions, violence, and other dysfunction until very recently. In addition, Indigenous men have not had an advocate to raise the issue of violence they have encountered."

It is believed Colten Pratt was last seen early in the morning of Nov. 7, 2014, in and around a bus shelter located at the corner of Main Street and Redwood Avenue.

Innes said he believes the recent prominence of the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women is one of the only reasons the issue of missing and murdered men is also becoming a topic of conversation, although not at the same level as it is with women.

Daniels hopes her son is not remembered simply as a missing man or statistic.

She said one of her most cherished memories of her son is how he treated and cared for his big sister Jocelyn, who lives with Down syndrome.

"She was so very close to Colten and it is really difficult to explain to her what is going on and to explain that her brother is gone," Daniels said.

"She misses him so much. Colten had a special place in his heart for his sister, and he was so good with her. He loved her so much."

A documentary, My Boy, telling the story of Coltens life, was recently produced by Code Breaker Films.

"It talks about what I have been going through, but also really shows who Colten was, so people know hes not just another Indigenous man who went missing but that he has a story," Daniels said.

Daniels said all she can now do is live her life and hope that one day she gets her answers so the torture in her own mind will finally end.

SUPPLIED PHOTO Colten Pratt and his mom Lydia Daniels are seen in this graduation photo taken in 2009.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

"I am asking anyone who knows anything to reach into their minds and reach into their hearts and come forward," Daniels said.

"Its been three-and-a-half years and I have to move forward with my life, but we will never stop looking for Colten.

"Were always holding onto hope, its all we can keep holding onto, and well never let go."

Dave Baxter is a freelance reporter, photographer and editor who writes about Manitoba crimes for the Sunday Special.

crimefilesmanitoba@gmail.com

Twitter:@davebbbaxter
BRANDON  When Nafla al-Mousa saw the smoke wafting through the open windows of her familys first-floor corner apartment last weekend, her first instinct was to close them.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 27/5/2018 (1233 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRANDON  When Nafla al-Mousa saw the smoke wafting through the open windows of her familys first-floor corner apartment last weekend, her first instinct was to close them.

She was almost in shock, unable to believe it was happening again, she said in an interview, days after a series of fires destroyed one building and damaged others in downtown Brandon.

Nafla and her husband, Abdul Salam al-Mousa, are no strangers to hardship.

The couple escaped civil war in Syria in 2012 with their three boys: Imran, Noor and Kamal. They had to walk three hours before arriving in Jordan, Abdul Salam recalled, carrying bags, suitcases, backpacks, and their youngest son.

The last year, while living in Jordan, the familys two-bedroom house burned to the ground due to an electrical fire, Nafla said. It was during Ramadan, around the same time of year as now.

"The feeling was so odd," Nafla said through Arabic interpreter Ed Zreim. "It was the last thing ever we thought we would see here, because thats exactly what happened back when we were in Jordan. I started crying."

Abdul Salam wasnt home when the fire started May 19 at Christies Office Plus, he said, but got a phone call from his oldest son telling him theyd been evacuated from their nearby apartment building, Massey Manor.

TIM SMITH/THE BRANDON SUN Workers with Ben Wiebe Construction work on cleanup along the roof of Massey Manor on Tuesday. The building was damaged during a huge fire in downtown Brandon last weekend.

By the time Abdul Salam got to their neighbourhood, police had blocked access to the area.

"I couldnt go through, so I was just standing there watching the fire take place," Abdul Salam said. "I was conversing with (my family) on the phone, but I wanted to take them someplace safe, but the smoke was so heavy we decided to stay where we were.

"It was such a difficult moment. We were there for four hours, but didnt feel the time go by because we were staring at the (Christies) building, with the anticipation of when the fire was going to reach the apartment."

Being closer to the Christies building, Nafla said she could hear small explosions coming from inside as it burned.

"It brought back ugly memories of the explosions of the civil war back home," Nafla said. "I was screaming uncontrollably once and a while.

"The whole trip between Syria and Jordan, how long and awful it was, this (fire) experience was more painful," she said.

"The anxiety: there was hope and then there was none," Abdul Salam added. "When I saw the firemen trying to put the fire out I felt like I wanted to be there to help, but it was impossible."

Meanwhile, Abdul Salam said he is thankful for everyone who has helped in his familys time of need.

TIM SMITH/THE BRANDON SUN The ruins of Christie's Office Plus, the Brandon Boxing Club and Collyer's Sales and Service and Massey Manor, all on Pacific Avenue, are surrounded by fence on Tuesday as cleanup takes place.

"The support weve been getting from the community has been overwhelming. Overall, (the fire) affected all parts of the community," he said. "Looking at everyone around here, its almost like a large extended family. Theyre all going through the same thing."

The couple is most thankful to have back their daughters hearing aides, Abdul Salam said. An employee from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. retrieved them from the apartment when the family wasn't allowed inside.

"It was one of the most valuable pieces in the house for us because when (our daughter) cant hear, she gets disillusioned and doesnt know whats going on. It gets her ungrounded," Abdul Salam said.

Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

A week later, the family is eager to return to a normal life.

The boys have returned to school, Abdul Salam said, adding how grateful he is the bus picks them up at the hotel they currently call home.

The children are still upset about the fire, Nafla said, but swimming in the hotel swimming pool has been a welcome distraction.

"The most important thing is that no one was injured. Belongings can be replaced, life goes on," Abdul Salam said. "When we left Syria, we were safe. When we left Jordan, we were safe.

"Its the same in Canada, were safe."

 Brandon Sun
Our portfolio of high quality UK commercial property is focused on London Offices and Retail around the UK. We own or manage a portfolio valued at A13.7bn (British Land share: A10.3bn) as at 30 September 2020 making us one of Europe's largest listed real estate investment companies. Our strategy is to provide places which meet the needs of our customers and respond to changing lifestyles - Places People Prefer. We do this by creating great environments both inside and outside our buildings and use our scale and placemaking skills to enhance and enliven them. This expands their appeal to a broader range of occupiers, creating enduring demand and driving sustainable, long term performance. Our Offices portfolio comprises three office-led campuses in central London as well as high quality standalone buildings and accounts for 65% of our portfolio. Our Retail portfolio is focused on retail parks and shopping centres, and accounts for 31% of our portfolio. Increasingly our focus is on providing a mix of uses and this is most evident at Canada Water, our 53 acre redevelopment opportunity where we have plans to create a new neighbourhood for London. Sustainability is embedded throughout our business. Our places, which are designed to meet high sustainability standards, become part of local communities, provide opportunities for skills development and employment and promote wellbeing. In April 2016 British Land received the Queen's Award for Enterprise: Sustainable Development, the UK's highest accolade for business success for economic, social and environmental achievements over a period of five years.

Read More
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, a diversified financial institution, provides various financial products and services to personal, business, public sector, and institutional clients in Canada, the United States, and internationally. The company operates through four strategic business units: Canadian Personal and Business Banking; Canadian Commercial Banking and Wealth Management; U.S. Commercial Banking and Wealth Management; and Capital Markets. The company offers chequing, savings, and business accounts; mortgages; loans, lines of credit, student lines of credit, and business and agriculture loans; investment and insurance services; and credit cards, as well as overdraft protection services. It also provides day-to-day banking, borrowing and credit, investing and wealth, specialty, and international services; correspondent banking and online foreign exchange services; and cash management services. The company serves its customers through its banking centers, as well as direct, mobile, and remote channels. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce was founded in 1867 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

Read More
The following companies are subsidiares of The Sherwin-Williams: Acquire Sourcing LLC, CTS National Corporation, Comex North America Inc., Compania Sherwin-Williams S.A. de C.V., Contract Transportation Systems Co., Dongguan Lilly Paint Industries Ltd, Duron, EPS (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., EPS B.V., Geocel Holdings, Geocel Limited, Guangdong Valspar Paints Manufacturing Co Ltd., Inver East Med S.A., Inver France SAS, Inver GmbH, Inver Industrial Coating SRL, Inver Polska Spoka Z O.O, Inver Spa, Invercolor Bologna Srl, Invercolor Ltd, Invercolor Roma Srl, Invercolor Torino Srl, Invercolor Toscana Srl, Isocoat Tintas e Vernizes Ltda, Isva Vernici Srl, Leighs Paints, M.A. Bruder & Sons, Omega Specialty Products & Services LLC, Oy Sherwin-Williams Finland Ab, PT Sherwin-Williams Indonesia, PT Valspar Indonesia, Paint Sundry Brands, Pinturas Condor S.A., Pinturas Industriales S.A., Piton Paints Limited, Plasti-Kote Co. Inc., Plasti-kote Limited, Productos Quimicos y Pinturas S.A. de C.V., Quest Automotive Products UK Limited, Quetzal Pinturas S.A. de C.V., Ronseal (Ireland) Limited, SWIMC LLC, SWIPCO  Sherwin Williams do Brasil Propriedade Intelectual Ltda, Sherwin Williams Colombia S.A.S., Sherwin-Williams (Australia) Pty. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Belize) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (Caribbean) N.V., Sherwin-Williams (Ireland) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Sherwin-Williams (Nantong) Coatings Technology Co. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Nantong) Company Limited, Sherwin-Williams (S) Pte. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Shanghai) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Sherwin-Williams (Vietnam) Limited, Sherwin-Williams (West Indies) Limited, Sherwin-Williams Argentina I.y C.S.A., Sherwin-Williams Aruba VBA, Sherwin-Williams Automotive Mexico S.de R.L.de C.V., Sherwin-Williams Balkan S.R.L., Sherwin-Williams Bel Unitary Enterprise, Sherwin-Williams Benelux NV, Sherwin-Williams Canada Inc., Sherwin-Williams Cayman Islands Limited, Sherwin-Williams Chile S.A., Sherwin-Williams Coatings India Private Limited, Sherwin-Williams Coatings S.a r.l., Sherwin-Williams Czech Republic spol. s r.o, Sherwin-Williams Denmark A/S, Sherwin-Williams Deutschland GmbH, Sherwin-Williams Diversified Brands Limited, Sherwin-Williams France Finishes SAS, Sherwin-Williams Italy S.r.l., Sherwin-Williams Norway AS, Sherwin-Williams Paints Limited Liability Company, Sherwin-Williams Peru S.R.L., Sherwin-Williams Pinturas de Venezuela S.A., Sherwin-Williams Poland Sp. z o.o, Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings, Sherwin-Williams Realty Holdings Inc., Sherwin-Williams Services (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Sherwin-Williams Spain Coatings S.L., Sherwin-Williams Sweden AB, Sherwin-Williams UK Coatings Limited, Sherwin-Williams do Brasil Industria e Comercio Ltda., Spanyc Paints Joint Stock Company, Syntema I Vaggeryd AB, Taiwan Valspar Co. Ltd., The Sherwin-Williams Acceptance Corporation, The Sherwin-Williams Headquarters Company, The Sherwin-Williams Manufacturing Company, The Sherwin-Williams US Licensing Company, The Valspar (Asia) Corporation Limited, The Valspar (Australia) Corporation Pty. Ltd., The Valspar (Finland) Corporation Oy, The Valspar (France) Corporation S.A.S., The Valspar (France) Research Corporation SAS, The Valspar (Malaysia) Corporation Sdn Bhd, The Valspar (Nantes) Corporation S.A.S., The Valspar (Singapore) Corporation Pte. Ltd, The Valspar (South Africa) Corporation (Pty) Ltd, The Valspar (Spain) Corporation S.R.L., The Valspar (Switzerland) Corporation AG, The Valspar (Thailand) Corporation Ltd., The Valspar (UK) Corporation Limited, The Valspar (Vietnam) Corporation Ltd., The Valspar Corporation, The Valspar Corporation Limitada, UAB Sherwin-Williams Baltic, Valspar (India) Coatings Corporation Private Limited, Valspar (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd., Valspar (Uruguay) Corporation S.A., Valspar (WPC) Pty Ltd, Valspar Aries Coatings S. de R.L. de C.V., Valspar Automotive (UK) Corporation Limited, Valspar Automotive Australia Pty Limited, Valspar B.V., Valspar Coatings (Guangdong) Co. Ltd., Valspar Coatings (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Valspar Coatings (Tianjin) Co. Ltd, Valspar D.o.o Beograd, Valspar Industries (Ireland) Ltd., Valspar Industries (Italy) S.r.l., Valspar Industries GmbH, Valspar LLC, Valspar Mexicana S.A. de C.V., Valspar Paint (Australia) Pty Ltd, Valspar Paint (NZ) Limited, Valspar Powder Coatings Limited, Valspar Rock Company Limited (Japan), Valspar Specialty Paints LLC, and ZAO Sherwin-Williams.
The following companies are subsidiares of Sysco: 2234829 Alberta ULC, 2234842 Alberta ULC, A. M. Briggs Inc., A.M. Briggs, Almacen Fiscal Frionet Caldera S.A., Almacen Fiscal Frionet Limon S.A., Appert's Foodservice, Arnotts (Fruit) Limited, Asian Foods, Bahamas Food Holdings Limited, Bahamas Food Services Limited, Brake Bros, Brake Bros Foodservice Ireland Limited, Brake Bros. Foodservice Limited, Brake Bros. Holding I Limited, Brake Bros. Ltd., Brakes Foodservice NI Limited, Buchy Food Service, Buckhead Beef Co., Buckhead Meat & Seafood of Houston Inc., Buckhead Meat Company, Buckhead Meat Midwest Inc., Buckhead Meat of Dallas Inc., Buckhead Meat of Denver Inc., Buckhead Meat of San Antonio LP, Buzztable Inc., CAKE Corporation, Central Seafood Co., Christys Wine & Spirits Limited, Clafra Aktiebolag, Colorado Boxed Beef Co - Specialty meat-cutting division, Corporacion Frionet Sociedad Anonima, Crossgar Foodservice, Crossgar Foodservice Limited, Crown I Enterprises Inc., Cucina Acquisitions (UK) Limited, Cucina Finance (UK) Limited, Cucina French Holdings Limited, Cucina Fresh Finance Limited, Cucina Fresh Investments Limited, Cucina Lux Investments Limited, Curleys Quality Foods Limited (Third Party), Davigel Belgilux S.A., Davigel Espana S.A., Desert Meats & Provisions, Distagro, Doerle Food Service, Doughtie's Foods Inc., Dust Bowl City LLC, Eko Fagel Fisk o mittemellan AB, Enclave Insurance Company, Enclave Parkway Association Inc., Enclave Properties LLC, European Imports, European Imports Inc., Figg Inc., Freedman Meats, Freedman Meats Inc., Freedman-KB Inc., Fresh Direct (UK) Limited, Fresh Direct Group Limited, Fresh Direct Limited, Fresh Holdings Limited, FreshPoint, FreshPoint Arizona Inc., FreshPoint Atlanta Inc., FreshPoint California Inc., FreshPoint Central California Inc., FreshPoint Central Florida Inc., FreshPoint Connecticut LLC, FreshPoint Dallas Inc., FreshPoint Denver Inc., FreshPoint Hawaii LLC, FreshPoint Inc., FreshPoint Las Vegas Inc., FreshPoint North Carolina Inc., FreshPoint North Florida Inc., FreshPoint Oklahoma City LLC, FreshPoint Pompano Real Estate LLC, FreshPoint Puerto Rico LLC, FreshPoint San Francisco Inc., FreshPoint South Florida Inc., FreshPoint South Texas Inc., FreshPoint Southern California Inc., FreshPoint Tomato LLC, FreshPoint Vancouver Ltd., Freshfayre Limited, Fruktservice i Helsingborg AB, GHS Classic Drinks Limited, Gilchrist & Soames Inc., Gilchrist & Soames UK Limited, Guest Packaging LLC, Guest Supply, Guest Supply Asia Limited, Guest Supply Singapore Pte. Ltd., International Food Group, Isakssons Frukt & Gront AB, J & M Wholesale Meats, J. Kings Food Service Professionals, J. Kings Food Service Professionals Inc., Kent Frozen Foods, Les Ateliers Du Gout, Liquid Assets Limited, M&J Seafood Holdings Limited, M&J Seafood Limited, Manchester Mills LLC, Mayca Autoservicio S.A., Mayca Distribuidores S.A., Menigo Foodservice AB, Mitshim Etatu Supply LP, Newport Meat Company, Newport Meat Northern California Inc., Newport Meat Pacific Northwest Inc., Newport Meat Southern California Inc., Newport Meat of Nevada Inc., North Star Holding Corporation, North Star Seafood, North Star Seafood Acquisition Corporation, North Star Seafood LLC, PFS de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Palisades Ranch Inc., Pallas Foods, Pallas Foods Farm Fresh Unlimited Company, Pallas Foods Unlimited Company, Pauleys Produce Limited, Promotora del Servicios S.A. de C.V., Restaurangakdemien AB, Restaurant of Tomorrow Inc., Rohan Viandes Elaboration SAS, SMS Bermuda Holdings, SMS GPC International Limited, SMS GPC International Resources Limited, SMS Global Holdings S.a.r.l., SMS International Resources Ireland Unlimited Company, SMS Lux Holdings LLC, SOTF LLC, SYY Netherlands C.V., SYY Panama S. de R.L., Serca Foodservice, Servicestyckarna I Johannes AB, Servicios Ameriserve S.A. de C.V., Shenzhen Guest Supply Trading Co. Limited, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) Bianchi Montegut, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) De Boiseau, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) De Garcelles, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) J.D. Lanjouan, Societe Civile Immobiliere (SCI) Le Dauphin, Specialty Meat Holdings LLC, Stockflag Limited, Stockholms Fiskauktion AB, Supplies on the Fly, Sysco Albany LLC, Sysco Asian Foods Inc., Sysco Atlanta LLC, Sysco Autoservicio S.A., Sysco Baltimore LLC, Sysco Baraboo LLC, Sysco Bermuda Partners L.P., Sysco Boston LLC, Sysco Canada Holdings S.a.r.l., Sysco Canada Inc., Sysco Central Alabama LLC, Sysco Central California Inc., Sysco Central Florida Inc., Sysco Central Illinois Inc., Sysco Central Pennsylvania LLC, Sysco Charlotte LLC, Sysco Chicago Inc., Sysco Cincinnati LLC, Sysco Cleveland Inc., Sysco Columbia LLC, Sysco Connecticut LLC, Sysco Corporation, Sysco Corporation Director's Deferred Compensation Plan Trust, Sysco Corporation Employee's 401(k) Plan Trust, Sysco Corporation Executive Deferred Compensation Plan Trust, Sysco Corporation Good Government Committee Inc., Sysco Corporation Retirement Trust, Sysco Corporation Supplemental Executive Retirement Trust, Sysco Corporation Supplemental Unemployment Benefits Plan Trust, Sysco Detroit LLC, Sysco Disaster Relief Foundation Inc., Sysco EI VI S. s.r.l., Sysco EU II S.a.r.l., Sysco EU III S.a.r.l., Sysco EU IV Capital Unlimited Company, Sysco EU IV S. s.r.l.., Sysco EU V S. s.r.l., Sysco Eastern Maryland LLC, Sysco Eastern Wisconsin LLC, Sysco Foundation Inc., Sysco France Holding SAS, Sysco France SAS, Sysco George Town II LLC, Sysco George Town Limited S. s.r.l.., Sysco Global Finance LLC, Sysco Global Finance LLP, Sysco Global Holdings B.V., Sysco Global Resources LLC, Sysco Global Services LLC, Sysco Grand Cayman Company, Sysco Grand Cayman II Company, Sysco Grand Cayman III Company, Sysco Grand Rapids LLC, Sysco Guernsey Limited, Sysco Guest Supply Canada Inc., Sysco Guest Supply Europe Goods Wholesalers LLC, Sysco Guest Supply Europe Limited, Sysco Guest Supply LLC, Sysco Gulf Coast LLC, Sysco Hampton Roads Inc., Sysco Hawaii Inc., Sysco Holdings II LLC, Sysco Holdings LLC, Sysco Indianapolis LLC, Sysco International Food Group Inc., Sysco International Inc., Sysco Iowa Inc., Sysco Jackson LLC, Sysco Jacksonville Inc., Sysco Kansas City Inc., Sysco Knoxville LLC, Sysco Labs Europe Limited, Sysco Labs Pvt. Ltd., Sysco Leasing LLC, Sysco Lincoln Inc., Sysco Lincoln Transportation Company Inc., Sysco Long Island LLC, Sysco Los Angeles Inc., Sysco Louisville Inc., Sysco Memphis LLC, Sysco Merchandising and Supply Chain Services Canada Inc., Sysco Merchandising and Supply Chain Services Inc., Sysco Metro New York LLC, Sysco Minnesota Inc., Sysco Montana Inc., Sysco Nashville LLC, Sysco Netherlands Partners LLC, Sysco North Central Florida Inc., Sysco North Dakota Inc., Sysco Northern New England Inc., Sysco Philadelphia LLC, Sysco Pittsburgh LLC, Sysco Portland Inc., Sysco Raleigh LLC, Sysco Resources Services LLC, Sysco Riverside Inc., Sysco Sacramento Inc., Sysco San Diego Inc., Sysco San Francisco Inc., Sysco Seattle Inc., Sysco South Florida Inc., Sysco Southeast Florida LLC, Sysco Spain Holdings SLU, Sysco Spokane Inc., Sysco St. Louis LLC, Sysco Syracuse LLC, Sysco Technologies Cayman Ltd., Sysco Technologies LLC, Sysco UK Holdings Limited, Sysco UK Limited, Sysco UK Partners LLP, Sysco USA I Inc., Sysco USA II LLC, Sysco USA III LLC, Sysco Ventura Inc., Sysco Ventures Inc., Sysco Virginia LLC, Sysco West Coast Florida Inc., Sysco Western Minnesota Inc., The SYGMA Network Inc., Upsys, Victua SAS, Walker Foods Inc., Waugh Foods, and Wild Harvest Limited.
When Prince William jets off to Israel next month, he will make history as the first official visitor from the royal family to the country.

But he will create headlines of a different sort if he follows the lead of some of his ancestors  and gets some ink!

In 1862, Queen Victorias eldest son, Prince Albert Edward (the future Edward VII), visited Jerusalem as part of a five-month tour of Egypt and the Ottoman Empire. Then, in 1882, two of his sons, Prince Albert Victor and his brother George (the future George V), followed in their fathers footsteps and visited the Holy Land  and like their dad, got a tattoo on their arms depicting five crosses and the three crowns of Jerusalem.

According to Bicom, a U.K.-based organization which acts to promote awareness of Israel and the Middle East in the United Kingdom, the tattoos were given by the Razzouk family, Coptic Christians specializing in tattoos who came to Jerusalem in 1750 from Egypt. And they still have a parlor in Jerusalems Old City, meaning William, 35, could pop in and get one!

RELATED VIDEO: New Dad Prince William Appears to Nod Off During Anzac Day Service

The link with Coptic Christians and the current royal family is more obvious than any chance meeting in a tattoo store. Williams father, Prince Charles, has supported the welfare of persecuted Christians including those from the Coptic church in some areas of the Middle East, making it the focus of his Easter address. And the Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of London Anba Angaelos led some of the prayers at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle last Saturday.

Kensington Place announced on Thursday that William, 35, will tour Jordan, Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories next month. His trip begins on June 24 in Amman, and includes stops in Tel Aviv and Ramallah before concluding in Jerusalem on June 28.

Cant get enough of PEOPLEs Royals coverage? Sign up for our newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more!

Williams visit marks the first time a member of the royal family has traveled to Israel on official business. Prince Phillip went in 1994 for a Yad Vashem ceremony honoring his mother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, who saved Jews during the Holocaust by opening the doors of her palace in Greece. In 2016, Prince Charles attended the funeral of former President Shimon Peres.

The high-profile visit was at the request of Her Majestys government and has been welcomed by the Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian authorities, Kensington Palace said in a statement.
Photo credit: Getty Images

From Cosmopolitan

In an unexpected landslide and overwhelming victory for women, Ireland voted to repeal its abortion ban, which has long been one of the strictest in the world. The New York Times reports the vote marks a strike against "generations of conservative patriarchy" and the Roman Catholic Church.

"What we have seen today really is a culmination of a quiet revolution thats been taking place in Ireland for the past 10 or 20 years,' Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said at a counting center in Dublin before the results were released. "The people have spoken and the people have said: We want a modern constitution for a modern country, and that we trust women and that we respect them to make the right decisions and the right choices about their own health care."

The vote Friday was to repeal the Eighth Amendment of Ireland's Constitution, which is a measure established in the early '80s and banned abortion under almost all circumstances. Under the Eighth Amendment's reign, countless Irish women were forced to leave the country or buy illegal pregnancy-ending drugs online. Women risked a 14-year jail sentence for breaking the terms set by the ban.

Doctors will now be able to provide abortions in Ireland, though they'll still be able to "conscientiously object to termination" at their clinics if they choose.

Story continues

In the months leading up to the vote, women from Ireland shared stories of pregnancies they were forced to carry to term and extreme measures they were forced to take as a result of the ban. As Broadly recently reported, women from Ireland who were living abroad were so dedicated to repealing the Eighth Amendment that many of them flew home to vote.

Flowers and messages left at a mural for Savita Halappanavar, who died in 2012 after she was refused an abortion pic.twitter.com/eXGqN7vOoq - Eleanor Barlow (@EleanorBarlow) May 26, 2018

Summarizing what many women in Ireland felt Saturday as the results were announced, Una Mullally, a prominent campaigner for abortion rights, told the New York Times the vote was met with ecstatic disbelief.

"All of us have underestimated our country," Mullally told the Times, crying. "I dreamed for people to think like this, but didnt believe it."



Follow Hannah on Twitter.

You Might Also Like
Photo: Getty Images

Since she burst onto the scene two years ago, everyone seems to feel they must share an opinion on whether Millie Bobby Brown is too grown up or being treated as too much of a grownup. The Stranger Things actress is in love with boyfriend Jacob Sartorius, and she doesnt care who thinks 14 is too young for that. Thats what we think shes saying with every post she shares of herself and the pop star, particularly this latest of the two of them kissing on the beach.

Moonlight w him, Brown captioned the beautiful Instagram photo.

moonlight w him A post shared by MBB (@milliebobbybrown) on May 26, 2018 at 9:22pm PDT

Well, not just with him, we have to assume. Someone was taking that photo, right? Unless: 1) Brown really has some of Elevens superpowers and can take a selfie like this from afar, or 2) they set a timer on a camera, the way people did in the good old days before smartphones, and this is a very staged romantic moment.

Thats not the question a lot of viewers had when they came across this post. Instead, they were back to wondering if shes too young to be kissing a boy so intimately.

Omg yall arent even 15 yet why yall kissing (I realize Millie has too because of the show) but still, @katyburkholderr wrote.

You are acting like you are a grown woman, @satisfying.koalas said. Dont waste your childhood. I feel sad for u. U wont be a normal adult person in the future.

Even Ariana Grande seemed to be in on this pearl-clutching, writing, I wasnt even allowed to leave my house til I was 20.

On second reading, however, we think Grandes just being satirical, poking fun at all the haters. Considering that the public is already making comments questioning the wisdom of her new romance with Pete Davidson, Grande knows a thing or two about seeing her love life become a topic of public debate.

Fans were quick to identify with Browns perspective too.

While Im not a huge fan of the ship I just gotta say that as a teenager myself, we kiss people, @izz.potter wrote. We have boyfriends and kiss them. Its no big secret. Shes a teen. For those who are saying that shes wasting her childhood, shes not. Shes moving onto another stage in her life from young child to a teen and then to an adult. But I dont see how shes acting like an adult by kissing her teenage boyfriend.

Story continues

Some are upset by the photo because back in April there were rumors that Sartorius had cheated on Brown, and the actress deleted all her previous photos of him. By April 16, all was well with the two, as she shared another super-cute pic of them together, without comment.

A post shared by MBB (@milliebobbybrown) on Apr 16, 2018 at 10:24am PDT

The debate over whether Brown and Sartoriuss relationship is appropriate began back in January, spurred on by other cute Instagram interactions. At the time, adolescent, child, and family psychologist Barbara Greenberg told Yahoo Lifestyle that everything looked perfectly healthy about their young love.

It seems like this young man is age-appropriate, Greenberg says. From what Ive seen, their comments back and forth seem to be kind and affectionate.

At least one other of Browns famous Instagram followers, Hailey Baldwin, still agrees with that assessment. She commented on Saturday: Ugh yall are CUTE!

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.




Yaounde (AFP) - Twenty-two people have been killed in clashes with the army in Cameroon, an opposition MP said Saturday, in the latest violence to hit the restive northwest, where separatists from the English-speaking minority are fighting for greater autonomy.

The identity of those killed was not immediately clear, with the army describing them as "terrorists" and villagers saying they were criminals.

The clashes come after the US ambassador to Cameroon accused government forces earlier this month of carrying out targeted killings and other abuses in the fight against the independence-seeking militants.

"Twenty-two people were killed Friday in Menka during a confrontation... (between the army and) a group of people that were presented as criminals," said Nji Tumasang, a member of the English-speaking opposition Social Democratic Front (SDF) in Santa, the area in which the town of Menka is located.

Violence between insurgents and government forces has occurred almost daily in the region since a political crisis escalated in late 2016.

An army official confirmed the incident, speaking of "several neutralised terrorists".

"A group of terrorists was reported in Menka" and the military intervened to surround the hotel where they were, army spokesman Colonel Didier Badjeck said on Facebook.

He added that a "watchman alerted (the occupants of the hotel) which gave rise to long exchanges of fire lasting several minutes".

Several weapons and ammunition had been seized, he added.

An SDF delegation led by leader John Fru Ndi visited Menka on Saturday, Tumasang said.

"The people in the village confirmed that there was an exchange of fire, and some bodies were found in the motel rooms," Tumasang said.

"In the village, people do not think they were separatists, but rather criminals", he said.

He added that families in Menka had told him that 18 people were also killed on Thursday. The bodies of eight young men had been found, according to witnesses.

Story continues

The presence of a large English-speaking minority -- about a fifth of Cameroon's population of 22 million -- dates back to the colonial period.

It was once a German colony and was divided between Britain and France after World War I.

In 1960, the French part gained independence, becoming Cameroon, and the following year, the British-ruled Southern Cameroons was amalgamated into it, becoming the Northwest and Southwest Regions.

For years, resentment built among anglophones, fostered by perceived marginalisation in education, the judiciary and the economy at the hands of the French-speaking majority.

Demands for greater autonomy were rejected by 85-year-old President Paul Biya, in power for more than 35 years, leading to an escalation that saw the declaration of the self-described "Republic of Ambazonia" in October last year.
Beirut (AFP) - At least 26 Syrian regime forces and nine Russian fighters were killed in an Islamic State group attack earlier this week in Syria's eastern desert, a monitor said Sunday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the jihadists had targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in Deir Ezzor province on Wednesday.

"There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

The Russian military is backing Syria's army with air strikes and troops, but there are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground.

The defence ministry in Moscow said Sunday four Russian servicemen had been killed in clashes with militants in Deir Ezzor.

It did not give a date or precise location, but the Observatory said it was the same incident as the IS attack near Mayadeen.

Two of the servicemen were "military advisors commanding the Syrian artillery" and were killed on the spot, the defence ministry said.

It said two more Russian soldiers died later in a Russian military hospital following the fighting. Three other troops were wounded.

The ministry said the fighting lasted around an hour and left 43 militants dead.
A 30-year-old, New York man, who was ordered to move out of his parents' home by a judge, has now been offered a job.

Villa Italian Kitchen offered Michael Rotondo a job on social media, saying "it's tough out there," particularly for millennials.

We're offering you a store-level gig, complete with extensive training to get you up to speed, at any one of our 250 locations worldwide, the restaurant posted on its Facebook page.

At Villa, we feel for millennials, across the board. Its tough out there. With that said hey Michael, we're offering... Posted by Villa Italian Kitchen on Thursday, May 24, 2018

Mark and Christina Rotondo had been trying for months to evict their unemployed son, who they say refused to pay rent or contribute to the household.

Rotondos parents took him to court Tuesday to evict him from the 1,920 square-foot home in upstate New York.

New York State Supreme Court Judge Donald Greenwood sided with the parents. Rotondo called the ruling an attack.

Rotondos parents gave him $1,100 to find a new home but he said he spent the money on "other things."

Villa Italian Kitchen is now even offering Rotondo a bonus to start.

"We heard your parents offered you $1,100 to get out. Well do you one better. Literally, one. Offer from us is on the table for $1,101 to come join our team. Consider it a signing bonus. We gotchu, bud," they wrote.

RELATED STORIES

Judge Evicted 100-Year-Old Woman From Apartment For Being Loud and Messy

Oprah's Ex-Stepmom Evicted From Her Home

14-Month-Old Gets 'Evicted' in Family's Adorable Pregnancy Announcement

Related Articles:
Sanaa (AFP) - A woman was among four people killed in an air strike that hit a petrol station in Yemen's rebel-held capital late Saturday, medical sources said.

Eleven people were wounded in the air strike on Sanaa, they said.

Witnesses said it took place just before sunset as people prepared to break the dawn-to-dusk Islamic fast of Ramadan.

It was not immediately clear who had carried out the strike.

Saudi Arabia, which leads a military coalition that has been fighting the Huthi rebels since 2015 to shore up the internationally recognised government, is active almost daily in Yemen.

Earlier Saturday, Riyadh reported that two soldiers from its national guard had been killed in fighting against the Huthis along the kingdom's southern border with Yemen.

The official SPA news agency did not provide details on when or how they died.

The report came as coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki said Saudi air defences had intercepted and destroyed a Huthi drone that targeted the international airport of the southern city of Abha.

An examination of the debris showed the drone was manufactured by Iran and used by the Huthi rebels, Maliki said in a statement late Saturday cited by the SPA.

The Saudi-led coalition launched a military intervention in Yemen in 2015 after the Iran-allied Huthis expelled pro-government forces from Sanaa and went on to seize swathes of the country.

The conflict has left nearly 10,000 people dead, tens of thousands wounded, and millions on the brink of famine in what the United Nations has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

In addition, more than 2,200 others have died from cholera and millions are on the verge of famine in what the United Nations says is the world's gravest humanitarian crisis.

Mark Lowcock, the United Nation's humanitarian affairs chief, said Thursday that "some 8.4 million people are severely food insecure and at risk of starvation" in Yemen.

"If conditions do not improve, a further 10 million people will fall into this category by the end of the year," he warned.
Algiers (AFP) - An Algerian blogger has appealed against a 10-year prison term, his lawyer said on Sunday, after global rights groups condemned the severity of the sentence.

Merzoug Touati was convicted on Thursday of providing intelligence to "agents of a foreign power" likely to damage Algeria, by a court in Bejaia, east of Algiers.

The 30-year-old blogger submitted his appeal the following day and was feeling "optimistic", his lawyer Boubakeur Esseddik Hamaili said.

"I have seen my client, he is doing well and is a tower of strength. He proclaims his innocence as he has done nothing but exercise his rights guaranteed by the constitution," the lawyer added.

Touati has been in prison since his arrest in January 2017, over an online video interview with an Israeli foreign ministry spokesman and a Facebook post in which he called for protests against a new financial law.

During his trial the court dropped three additional charges including incitement against the state, which his lawyer said carries the death sentence.

The 10-year jail term was described us "utterly shocking" by Amnesty International, which said Touati had been convicted "solely for expressing his peaceful opinion online".

Reporters Without Borders condemned the sentence as "disproportionate and unjustified" and said a social network post should not lead to imprisonment.

Prosecutors had called for the blogger to be given a life sentence, while his lawyer urged the court to throw out the charges.

Hamaili did not confirm when his client's appeal would be heard in court.
An American Airlines passenger who was denied alcohol on a flight launched into a screaming tirade involving spit and blood, according to the FBI - and now faces the possibly of up to 20 years in prison.

Jason Felix was flying from St Croix to Miami on AA flight 1293 when the incident occurred, according to an FBI affidavit. The bureau and local police are investigating the matter, with Mr Felix having been for attempting to interfere with a flight crew. A fellow passenger caught part of the argument on camera.

Approximately one hour into the flight, Mr Felix rang the flight attendant to purchase beer. The flight attendant refused after he had been spotted by that flight attendant allegedly rummaging around the back of plane opening and closing cabinets in the rear bathroom earlier in the flight. He had slammed the door shut and locked it when a flight attendant approached to ask if he was all right. When he emerged from the bathroom, he appeared agitated and was cursing at the attendant all the way back to his seat, 17B.

A man who had the aisle seat - with Mr Felix in the middle - later told authorities he knew Mr Felix from his work as a police officer in the US Virgin Islands and his reputation was not a good one.

Once the flight attendant denied Mr Felix a beer, the FBI affidavit says he climbed over his seatmate and began chasing after the flight attendant, screaming obscenities.

You need to please sit down. Youre not drinking any more beers. Well be there in an hour, the attendent told Mr Felix.

Are you my bartender? Mr Felix is said to have asked the attendant, to which they replied yes, as he walked away.

The flight attendant then turned around to see Mr Felix and his seatmate appearing to hit each other in the narrow aisle. Other passengers attempted to pull the two men apart, video footage showed.

They were eventually able to get Mr Felix back into his seat, but not before - according to his seatmate - Mr Felix had spit blood and torn his shirt

Story continues

The FBI affidavit said Mr Felix yelled: Im going to kill you. I know you are a cop.

Fellow passengers continued to try and calm Mr Felix down, but the insults and foul language directed at the other man, who by this point had been asked to change seats, continued.

Flight attendants offered Mr Felix water, but he gave it to another passenger, according to the Bill Bolduc, who filmed the incident.

Four police officers boarded the plane in Miami and escorted the unruly passenger into the airport where he was arrested. The interfering with a flight crew charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years in jail.

His detention hearing is on Tuesday in Florida. It is unclear if Mr Felix is a US citizen.
An American imprisoned in Venezuela since 2016 has been released and is headed back to Washington after pressure from the U.S. government, President Donald Trump said.

Good news about the release of the American hostage from Venezuela. Should be landing in D.C. this evening and be in the White House, with his family, at about 7:00 P.M., Trump said on Twitter. The great people of Utah will be very happy!

Joshua Holts release, which hadnt been previously reported, came less than a day after Republican Senator Bob Corker met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas.

Good news about the release of the American hostage from Venezuela. Should be landing in D.C. this evening and be in the White House, with his family, at about 7:00 P.M. The great people of Utah will be very happy!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

Maduro was shown shaking hands with Corker in images broadcast on state TV from the presidential palace, which said the two were strengthening international relationships, without offering more details.

Corker then walked out alongside Carabobo State Governor Rafael Lacava, whos said to have visited Washington earlier in the year to discuss the release of Holt, a former Mormon missionary arrested in Caracas about 18 months ago, after he traveled there to marry his Venezuelan girlfriend.

Humanitarian Grounds

After being sworn in for a second six-year term this week, Maduro called for the release of some detained prisoners, without naming anyone specifically. Holt, whos being held in the El Helicoide intelligence agency prison on weapons charges his family says are false, published a Facebook video earlier this month pleading for help and claiming his life was in danger.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said this month that a senior department official had urged Holts release on humanitarian grounds.

Story continues

Corkers fellow Republican, Marco Rubio, lashed out at the Tennessee lawmaker on Friday for meeting with Maduro.

Any U.S. Senator can meet with whoever they want. But no matter how many senators dictator Nicolas Maduro gets to meet with him, U.S. sanctions will go away when Maduro leaves and democracy returns, Rubio said on Twitter.

The Florida senator is a longtime critic of Corker, whos chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to which Rubio also belongs. Corkers office didnt respond to requests for comment. Rubio was more conciliatory after word of Holts release, tweeting that his UNCONDITIONAL release was long overdue.
An afternoon march against President Emmanuel Macron's pro-business reforms had a lower turnout than expected - AP

Far-Left parties and unions led tens of thousands of protesters who marched against Emmanuel Macrons reforms in cities across France on Saturday a day after the president suggested he could be close to victory in a public battle over his reform agenda.

Rail and hospital workers, civil servants, students, community groups protesting against police violence and pro-Palestinian activists took part in the Human Tide against Macron.

However, with the turnouts of the marches lower than expected, comments on Friday by Mr Macron about the long-running strikes over his liberalisation programme appeared to have been justified.

In a TV interview, Mr Macron said neither demonstrations nor strikes that have disrupted France for the past seven weeks would deter him from pushing through his overhaul of state railways, which he said was nearing completion.

The president said during his visit to Russia that the protests "won't stop" his progress. "I won't preside in light of the polls or demonstrations, because we have done too much of that," (in the past) he said.

Demonstrators hold placard depicting French President Emmanuel Macron as a monarch and reading 'Restoration of the monarchy' Credit: JACQUES DEMARTHON/ AFP

He claimed: "We have reached the end of the process."

He appears closer to victory after the government proposed on Friday to take over three-quarters of the 41 billion debt of the SNCF national rail company.

Two unions welcomed the offer and said they would decide soon whether it justifies calling an end to the stoppages, although the CGT vowed to fight on. Edouard Philippe, the prime minister, said the transfer of more than 32 billion of debt was conditional on reforms taking place.

Jean-Francois Amadieu, an academic specialised in industrial relations, said: The rail strike appears to have almost run its course, noting that the protests were smaller than previous demonstrations. Rail strike turnout has fallen to only 14 per cent of workers.

Mr Macron has yielded no ground on key reforms, which include opening French rail to competition and ending early retirement and other rail workers perks for future recruits.

Story continues

The president has staked his credibility on the rail reforms, which are backed by public opinion.

He said he would also press ahead with public-sector cuts and the introduction of stricter university admissions requirements.

With turnout lower than organisers had hoped, Gerard Collomb, the interior minister said: People may have been deterred from participating by the fear of violence.

As the Paris march got under way, police arrested 35 people, most for carrying batons or stones. More than 1,200 officers were deployed and seven were slightly injured when dozens of Black Bloc anarchists hurled bottles and stones at security forces.

Police responded with tear gas and used water cannons to quell similar disturbances in the western city of Nantes.

Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the radical Left France Unbowed party, urged cheering supporters in Marseille to form the popular front that the people need.

Mr Melenchon, seen as the chief opponent of Mr Macrons centrist government, condemned billions given away in tax breaks for the rich, which he said could have been spent on hospitals.

Philippe Martinez, leader of the hard-Left CGT union, said he regretted the absence of more moderate unions.
Rose McGowan, one the first women to accuse Harvey Weinstein of rape, said she was shocked after the disgraced movie producer was arrested in New York City on multiple criminal charges Friday.

I have to admit, I didnt think I would see the day that he would have handcuffs on him, she told ABC News. I have a visceral need for him to have handcuffs on.

Weinstein turned himself into police on charges of rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse and sexual misconduct related to interactions him with two women, according to the New York Police Department. His attorney, Benjamin Brafman, said Weinstein plans to plead not guilty to all the charges. Weinstein has denied all allegations nonconsensual sex through his lawyers.

Reporting on sexual assault and harassment complaints against Weinstein by The New York Times and The New Yorker last fall prompted a deluge of sexual abuse allegations from more than 75 women, including McGowan, Gwyneth Paltrow, Salma Hayek, Angelina Jolie and Ashley Judd.

McGowan, who reached a settlement with Weinstein in 1997 after an encounter with him in a hotel room, said publicly last October that he had raped her. On Friday, she tweeted: We got you, Harvey Weinstein, we got you.

We got you, Harvey Weinstein, we got you  rose mcgowan (@rosemcgowan) May 25, 2018

Speaking on ABC, McGowan said she wanted Weinstein in jail.

Justice would be, for him, to just simply go poof, preferably behind bars, McGowan said. Because we were sentenced to a prison. We were sentenced to years of it before anybody believed us. We had our lives stolen, we had our careers stolen.

McGowan also stopped by Megyn Kelly Today about 90 minutes after Weinsteins arrest to speak on how it felt to see him in handcuffs.

To see him in cuffs on the way out, whether he smiled or not, is a very good feeling, she said. I actually didnt believe this day would come.
250518OBEC WILL RUN TRAINING FOR ENROLMENT AGENTS

New Dawn FM News

Office of the Bougainville Electoral Commissioner (OBEC) will be running a training for all enrolment agents that will update the common roll for the Buka urban Community Government and the Kokopau urban Community Government next Monday May 28th, 2018.

The Public scrutiny training will be held at the OBEC Office in Buka town between 1pm and 3pm Bougainville Time.

This is to complete the Community Government Elections held last year that did not include the urban community governments of Kokopau, Buka, Arawa and Buin which required an electoral roll to conduct the elections.

The message from the office of the Electoral Commissioner also called on Public servants and people working in Buka town to enrol at the Obec ICT Office Matanhei building ground floor.

New Dawn FM understands that the Office of the Bougainville Electoral Commissioner these elections for the Urban Community Government to conduct plus By-elections for seats that have vacancies at the Bougainville House of Representatives.

These seats are the HALIA seat left vacant by the former ABG Vice President PATRICK NISIRA who resigned to stand for the PNG National Election in 2017.

The seat for TAONITA TEOP left vacant when the former member died.

The Kongara seat was also left vacant when the former member DOMINIC ITTA resigned to also contest in the last PNG National Elections.

Office of the Bougainville electoral Commission has been waiting for funds to complete these by- elections and also the preparation for the Referendum Common Roll.



Ends


Paul R. Pillar

Security, Americas

The already existing arsenal of nuclear weapons in North Korea presents greater challenges than Muammar Qaddafis nascent nuclear program.

It's Time to Explain the 'Libya Model'

It will take some time to piece together the strange story of the U.S.-North Korean summit that has been on, then off, then maybe on again. President Trump laid down a smokescreen by speaking, including in his letter announcing his cancellation of the meeting, as if it were the North Korean side that bailed out. Trump referred in his letter to the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement. Are we supposed to believe that the administration really was taken aback by hostile rhetoric from North Korea? Hostile rhetoric has long been one of that countrys principal exports, along with coal. Kim Jong-un has not even returned to calling Trump a dotard, although Trump in his letter returned to boasting about how his nuclear force is much bigger than Kims.

Second thoughts about proceeding with the meeting had been percolating in the administration, amid the major uncertainties about whether there was any basis for a meaningful agreement on nuclear matters. Still in doubt is what part of the story is Donald Trump, what part involves other figures in his administration, and how much they are even pulling in the same direction. One plausible theory of why the Libya model was originally raised by John Bolton, who is smart enough to know that any such reference would rile the North Koreans, is that the uber-hawk was sabotaging the diplomacy to increase the chance of a military attack. But then Vice President Mike Pence made his own reference to Libya. A plausible interpretation of Pences remark is that it was calculated to elicit just the sort of comeback it did (from North Koreas deputy foreign minister), which would sound hostile and angry enough to serve as a rationale for cancelling a meeting that Trump had come to regret he had accepted.

Story continues

Libyas experience does indeed weigh heavily on the thinking of North Korean officials, who have taken explicit notice of that experience, as a disincentive to reaching any deals with the United States about dismantling weapons programs. Muammar el-Qaddafis eventual reward for negotiating away all his unconventional weapons programs was to be murdered in a ditch.

There are other respects, however, in which the Libya model helps to explain the collapse of the North Korea diplomatic initiative. This part of the explanation concerns how the Trump administration is not following that modelthe good part of that model, the part in which Libya was induced to give up its unconventional weapons programs, not the later part about the killing in the ditch.

The Libya story concerned more than just nuclear and other unconventional weapons programs. A greater focus for much of that story was terrorism. International sanctions on Libya that the United Nations Security Council imposed were linked to a specific demand: the surrender for trial of the two Libyan government employees who perpetrated the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, killing 270 persons. Once Qaddafi surrendered the two, he said to the United States through an intermediary, Lets talk. Turning over the Pan Am 103 suspects was the start of what the Libyan leader saw as a major turnaround in his policies, leading, he hoped, to an end to his pariah status.

This contact led to U.S.-Libyan talks, very closely held at the time and only later revealed publicly, beginning in 1999 during Bill Clintons administration. This was the start of a long and careful process of each side feeling out the other to discern its true intentions. The United States needed to determine whether Qaddafi was serious about turning over a new leaf. It assessed that he was. On terrorism, a Libyan regime that had been a big a part of the problem for many years could become part of the solution. Qaddafi regime was a target of some for the same radical Islamist groups that also were counterterrorist concerns of the United States.

The Libyan-U.S. rapprochement continued at a careful and measured pace. Expanding the agenda to weapons programs introduced new complications. It was only after four years of off-and-on negotiations that the United States (then under the George W. Bush administration), Britain, and Libya announced an agreement. The agreement accomplished everything the Western powers could have hoped for with regard to the Qaddafi regime opening up and giving up its nuclear and other unconventional weapons programs.

That diplomacy succeeded in large part because it was everything that the Trump approach toward North Korea has not been. The Libyan diplomacy involved careful preparation and assessment before any contacts or even any agreements to meet. Once meetings began, the process was not allowed to get ahead of careful appraisal of the other sides intentions and whether the bargaining space would permit an agreement. The most important diplomacy was conducted out of sight, with even the fact of it kept secret. Demands were kept realistic in terms of what the evidence indicated would be acceptable to the other side. The diplomacy was sustained over a long time, through two different U.S. administrations of different parties.

There are several reasons for why the initiative on North Korea might collapse. And the already existing arsenal of nuclear weapons in North Korea presents greater challenges than Qaddafis nascent nuclear program. But a major reason for failure is how Trump has addressed the problem: impulsively and unilaterally, without adequate assessment and preparation, and evidently without a well-founded idea of what sort of agreement is feasible. He approaches the problem in a manner less designed to advance international security quietly than to make a public show out of how he supposedly is a better deal-maker than his predecessorswhile trashing their accomplishments, flummoxing important allies, and damaging U.S. credibility in the process.

Paul R. Pillar is a contributing editor at the National Interest and the author of Why America Misunderstands the World.

Image: Pro-government Libyan forces, who are backed by locals, are seen silhouetted during clashes in the streets with the Shura Council of Libyan Revolutionaries, an alliance of former anti-Gaddafi rebels, who have joined forces with the Islamist group Ansar al-Sharia, in Benghazi December 28, 2014. REUTERS/Esam Omran Al-Fetori

Read full article
When the news broke that Harvey Weinstein would be surrendering himself on rape and sexual assault charges, I didnt have a reaction. As I spoke with others for whom the ground was shaking I realized my feeling was that a sexual predator being legally accountable for criminal behavior is and should be normal, routine and not particularly newsworthy. And I also understood why it is thunderous news.

In fact, both reactions ring true. The criminal justice system should function efficiently and swiftly, apprehending and punishing any and all sexual predators, whatever their social status and power quotient. And in this moment, in this era, that a powerful man who thrived and flourished in a culture of impunity was arrested and charged is resoundingly significant. It is a watershed event, an irreversible pivot away from tacit and explicit license to exploit to a ground of firmer boundaries and clarity about intolerable behavior no longer being tolerated.

I was hopeful Harvey would plead guilty, that his surrender was volitional, so that in addition to carving out a singular position of disgrace, he could come forward as the predator who walks out of shame onto a new path of humility, introspection, accountability and amends, thereby leading our men and country in the necessary and inexorable of trajectory of restorative justice. It seems that Harvey, though, will not be the person to do that, as he is pleading not guilty and still maintains, in the face of so many accusations that all sex was consensual. Denial can stand for I dont even know I am lying, and it appears that is where Harvey still lives.

So as these current steps of justice in New York City unfold, and the system does its necessary and important thing, we still wait for an accused who can and will embody what the #metoo movement and our society needs and wants: someone who can navigate the duality of having aggressed and address their abuse of power with culpability and integrity. Restorative justice is also dual; in order for survivor-victims and society to embrace and restore the reformed, the reformed must have been genuinely transformed, shedding layers of toxic masculinity, exiting the denial/apology tour and standing in a new and collective space where both the person is and the narrative are made whole and unified.
Confederate cannon balls plunged into the brick walls of Fort Sumter at the outset of the Civil War, forcing Union troops to surrender. A century and a half later, surging storm waters are now the modern threat to the South Carolina national monument. Storm-swollen seas can flood the coastal garrison, at times forcing the National Park Service to shut it down.

More than 100 National Park Service sites are located either on or near the coast. With global sea levels rising at an accelerating pace, spurred on by human-caused climate change, it's more important than ever that the service understands how storm surges and rising seas will impact historical sites like Sumter.

The conservation agency, however, lacked useful projections showing how these factors could inundate vulnerable lands, both in the near and distant future. So, when a visiting climate scientist, Maria Caffrey, proposed such a project, the Park Service accepted, and in 2013 the research began.

SEE ALSO: Park Service to raise fees in 117 parks, but that still won't solve its looming problem

Five years later, the Park Service published the 90-page study to the backpages of its website with no known promotion of the work. The Union of Concerned Scientists spotted the study's publication last Friday, noting that there was "no easy way to find it unless you know where to look."

While a Park Service spokesperson explained via email that, once published, the report had been sent to park managers, it wasn't clear if the agency planned on publicizing the findings on a larger scale.

It was also unclear if the study would be published at all, and if so, in what form. After Caffrey's initial report was handed in, government officials censored out phrases relating to human-induced climate change in revisions and pushed the publication of the study back repeatedly, she said. The Center for Investigative Reporting, which acquired some 2,000 pages of revision, exposed the censored language and published the revisions on the organization's Reveal website in April.

Story continues

While the Park Service finally published an uncensored version last week, the events illustrate how government interests can infringe upon the scientific integrity of new research, especially in the realm of climate change. As Caffrey notes, the removal of particular language in the study came from inside the government, not scientists outside the agency.

"The alterations came from people way beyond the coauthors," Caffrey, now a research associate at the University of Colorado Boulder, said in an interview.

What the study says about climate change

The study, "Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge Projections for the National Park Service," projects sea level rise in the years 2030, 2050, and 2100 for 118 park sites, as well as storm surge projections for 97 of them.

Simulated flooding caused by a hypothetical hurricane striking Theodore Roosevelt Island in Washington DC.

Image: National Park Service

The study found that there are coastal parks  like Wright Brothers National Memorial located on a strip of sandy island off of North Carolina  that may be relatively comfortable today but are likely to become vulnerable to future sea level rise and storm surge.

"Wright Brothers might not be in serious danger right now, but when you factor in sea level rise and storm surge, it becomes a much more serious issue," said Caffrey.

During the revision process, a park official (or officials) crossed out different references to "human activities" and "anthropogenic" (meaning originating from human activity) from language discussing the influences of climate change, according to Reveal's reporting.

But in the final published version, these words were back.

"We were pleased to see it underscore that park structures were at risk from anthropogenic climate change," Sarah Barmeyer, the senior director of Conservation Programs for the National Parks Conservation Association, said in an interview.

The Park Service said that it backs the final version of the report published to the site, and that the agency often works through disagreements on recommended revisions to scientific reports.

"The National Park Service is confident in the quality and accuracy of the science behind the sea level rise and storm surge projections presented in the report," a park spokesperson said in a statement.

After seeing the report, Barmeyer called it "really significant," noting that the Park Service manages and protects 10 percent of U.S. coastlines. In 2017, three separate major hurricanes damaged and closed a variety of these coastal parks.

"National parks are on the direct front lines of sea level rise," she said. "Sea level rise and storm surges will keep happening in these places  forts, lighthouses, and historic sites."

"Were going to be losing some of these iconic features."

Liberty Island National Monument was closed for 9 months after incurring damage from Hurricane Sandy.

Image: National Park Service

The Park Service maintains the exposed Reveal documents were released as the study's authors and agency were working towards a consensus about the report's language.

Just over a week after the documents were made public, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, who oversees the Park Service, told a House Appropriations subcommittee in April that the Interior Department would not interfere with any scientific study.

"If its a scientific report, Im not going to change a comma," Zinke said.

A pretty conservative climate report

While some government officials in either the Park Service or the Trump Administration  which is outwardly antagonistic to notions that humans have contributed to global warming  may have been displeased with aspects of Caffrey's report, Caffrey emphasized the flooding projections were actually pretty conservative.

To simulate how much sea levels might rise in the near and distant futures, Caffrey and her team used projections from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a United Nations organization tasked with researching the societal effects of warming temperatures and rising seas.

Their climate reports are subject to a lengthy scientific review process, though some researchers consider their climate change projections to be a bit moderate, perhaps not fully accounting for potentially momentous events like the accelerating melting of the massive West Antarctic ice sheets.

According to the report, the IPCC estimates that without reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, global average sea levels will rise between around 1.3 feet to just over 2 feet (0.4 meters to .63 meter) by 2100.

"The numbers may be conservative, but that is the bare minimum," Caffrey said.

"The IPCC is an incredible source," she added. "We wanted a source that has gone through rigorous peer review and has widespread acceptance."

NASA uses satellites to measure the average global sea level rise happening each year.

Image: NASA

Caffrey's team took the IPCC's sea level rise projections and plugged them into the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's SLOSH model, which the agency uses to simulate storm surges and flooding into coastlines. Caffrey and her team then created maps and simulations to give these numbers some realistic context.

"Getting a report out there is very important right now," said Barmeyer, who proceeded to list a number of park sites that were closed by storm damage in 2017. This included Everglades National Park's Gulf Coast Visitor Center, which was destroyed by Hurricane Irma, and millions in damage to the moat walls of the Civil War-era Fort Jefferson.

"National parks really are living laboratories for studying the effects of sea level rise and storm surge," said Barmeyer.

Caffrey's report may have been the first such study for the Park Service, but it's unclear whether she'll be involved in future storm projections for the conservation agency.

"The way things have gone with the reports, I dont know how well that would be received from me," said Caffrey. "I don't know what my future will be with this right now."

"It's something Im wrestling with."
A Hizbollah flag flutters at a watchtower near the Lebanon-Syria border - AP

The United States is trying to curb the increasing Iranian influence in the Middle East and is taking its fight to Lebanon through Tehrans main proxy  Hizbollah.

As part of wider US strategy, the recent sanctions imposed on Iran and its non-state actors will give Lebanese officials a major headache in forming a new government.

The US has been imposing sanctions on the militant group for decades. However, a new wave last week appears to be more serious about targeting the group's top leadership as well as businessmen and companies that Washington says are funding the group that has sent troops to Syria to bolster Bashar al-Assads regime.

And they come weeks after US President Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal.

After holding parliamentary elections earlier this month in Lebanon, a new cabinet is set to be formed. On Thursday, Saad Hariri, the outgoing and incoming prime minister, was given the green light to form and lead the new government.

A French UN peacekeepers Leclerc tank passes a billboard showing Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, left, and Hizbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, right, on the road of the southern village of Borj Qalaway in Lebanon Credit: AP

But Mr Hariri will have to tread a fine line in forming a new government by proving to the West and Gulf allies that Hizbollah does not control the countrys major decisions. Saudi Arabia has previously accused Lebanon of providing political cover to the group.

On the other hand, Hizbollah has to be represented in some capacity since it represents a significant sect and part of the countrys makeup. Lebanon is ruled by the 1989 Taif Accord that ended the 1975-90 civil war and called for equality between Muslims and Christians.

Now in a stronger position after this months election, Hizbollah and its allies are expected to form a greater part of the government.

This is Mr Hariris third time being called on to form a government, and he has been an outspoken critic of Iran and Hizbollah. But he noted that his hand is extended to all political [parties] in our country for cooperation to achieve ... a state thats sovereign, free and independent.

While Hizbollah traditionally was granted minor ministerial portfolios, Hassan Nasrallah, the groups leader, said that this was no longer acceptable. This caught the attention of world powers and perhaps influenced the timing of the sanctions.

Story continues

On Monday, Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, told Iran that it should halt its support of Hizbollah. His exact words in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee were: "We will track down Iranian operatives and their Hizbollah proxies operating around the world and crush them.

A diplomatic source in Beirut told The Telegraph that the timing of the sanctions was no mistake.

Saudi Royal Palace shows French President Emmanuel Macron (C) and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (R) posing next to Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri during an official dinner at The Elysee Palace Credit: AFP

They said the US's decision to impose sanctions was taken before the election, but announced as Lebanon's politicians began their discussion on the government's make-up.

"Now its up to them to show that Hizbollah does not in fact control the policy decisions of the country, the source said.

So which ministries are potentially available for arguably Irans strongest non-state militia?

The ministries of defense, interior, foreign affairs and finance are the four key portfolios highly sought after. They require communication and travel with foreign countries, which makes them just about out of the question for Hizbollah with the new sanctions.

The group had two ministries in the outgoing government  industry and youth and sports. Similar ministries are expected to be granted while theres a slight possibility that a bigger ministry could be substituted in.

Mohanad Hage Ali of the Carnegie Middle East Centre in Beirut believes the sanctions would make it difficult for Hizbollah to draw on independence and get any sensitive [government portfolios].

Mr Hage Ali noted that Lebanon has been careful in the past not to miss any opportunities to convince the Americans and Congress to make sure any sanctions are specific and target certain individuals.

Mike Pompeo Iran demands

Because of the past trends by Lebanon, Hizbollah could be limited in its choices.

Its widely expected for another 30-member cabinet to be formed meaning that 15 ministers will be Christian and 15 Muslim. Shia, Sunni and Druze will divide the 15 Muslim ministers among themselves. This will leave Hizbollah and Amal with most likely two and three ministers respectively.

The finance ministry looks to be retained by the Shia sect, but by Amal.

Nasrallah has spoken of his ambition for a ministry of planning, which doesnt exist but could be formed and granted to his party. The other possible ministry would be the Public Works and Transport Ministry. This would arguably be the biggest ministry given to Hizbollah since their participation in any government.

But Thursdays fresh sanctions by Washington on airlines for transporting weapons, fighters and money to Iranian proxies in Syria and Lebanon could make it difficult for foreign acceptance of Hizbollah controlling the ministry.

The ministry oversees the countrys flag carrier, Middle East Airlines, and Lebanons Central Bank controls 99 percent of MEAs shares.

As Mr Trump jostles with Iran, Beirut will need to play its cards right if it hopes to continue receiving military aid and support for a stable Lebanon.
A Border Patrol agent fatally shot Claudia Patricia Gomez Gonzales, an indigenous woman from Guatemala, while responding to reports of illegal activity in Rio Bravo, Texas. (Photo: JOHAN ORDONEZ via Getty Images)

U.S. immigration authorities have altered their account of the Border Patrols recent fatal shooting of Claudia Patricia Gomez Gonzales, a 20-year-old woman who had traveled from Guatemala to Texas to help pay for her education.

After the shooting on Wednesday, Customs and Border Protection released a statement saying a lone Border Patrol agent was responding to a report of illegal activity near a culvert in Rio Bravo, Texas, when he came under attack by multiple subjects using blunt objects.

The agent fired at least one round from his service issued firearm, fatally wounding one of the assailants, the statement read, referring to Gomez Gonzales, a Maya-Mam indigenous woman.

Two days later, the agency canceled a scheduled news conference about the shooting and instead released a new statement with a different version of events, according to CNN.

The new statement, issued Friday, had no mention of blunt objects and claimed the agent ordered a group of immigrants to get on the ground, but they ignored his commands and instead rushed him.

The second statement also referred to Gomez Gonzales as one member of the group instead of assailant, the term the agency used on Wednesday.

Customs and Border Protection did not immediately return HuffPosts request for comment on its two different accounts of the shooting.

Familiares y vecinos de Claudia Patricia Gomez Gonzales fallecida en Laredo Texas, se encuentran consternados en su vivienda en el caserio Los Alonzo, en San Juan Ostuncalco, Quetzaltenango. Via: Jaime Soc. pic.twitter.com/V1fFUSaskZ  Emisoras Unidas (@EmisorasUnidas) May 25, 2018

News of Gomez Gonzales death spread after a video of the shootings aftermath, filmed by local resident Marta Martinez, was uploaded to Facebook and received more than 4.7 million views.

Martinez, who lives next to an empty lot where the shooting took place, told CBS News affiliate KENS 5 that she heard gunfire and began filming what she saw.

Story continues

In Martinez video, paramedics can be seen performing chest compressions on the victim. Martinez can also be heard asking the immigration officials, Why did you shoot at the girl? You killed her!

Gomez Gonzales reportedly graduated from a program in forensic accounting in 2016. Her mother Lidia Gonzales told a local news channel that their family is poor, so her daughter went to the U.S. to look for a job to further her education, according to a translation by The Guardian.

She told me she wanted to keep studying at university but we dont have the money, Gonzales said. Were poor and there are no jobs here. Thats why she traveled to the U.S. But they killed her. Immigration killed her.

The FBI and the Texas Rangers are investigating the incident with assistance from CBPs Office of Professional Responsibility. The agent who shot Gomez Gonzales is on administrative leave.

Spokesmen for CBP and the FBI declined CNNs request for comment on the shooting, citing the pending investigations.

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
The USS Higgins was one of two vessels carrying out routine and regular operations according to the US Pacific Fleet: Getty

China has reacted angrily after two US warships sailed near the disputed Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, describing the move as a provocation and accusing America of committing a serious infringement of the countrys sovereignty.

A statement issued by the defence ministry said Chinese vessels and aircraft warned American ships to leave because they had entered its territorial waters in the South China Sea, through which nearly $5 trillion in ship-borne trade flows, without permission. The move contravened Chinese and relevant international law, seriously infringed upon Chinese sovereignty [and] harmed strategic mutual trust between the two militaries, it said.

It described the Chinese militarys resolve to defend the countrys sovereignty as unswerving.

US officials told Reuters the USS Higgins, a guided-missile destroyer, and the USS Antietam, a guided-missile cruiser, came within 12 nautical miles of the Paracel Islands  a string of islets, reefs, and shoals  over which China has had territorial disputes with neighbouring countries.

The operation was the latest attempt by US President Donald Trumps administration to counter what Washington sees as Beijings efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters. The move comes just days after the president cancelled a 12 June summit in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, a relationship in which China has a vested interest.

North Korea relies on China, one of its handful of allies, for trade in essentials like fuel, seafood, textiles and financial services. Mr Kim and Chinese President Xi Jinping have met several times, the latest meeting taking place in China.

The South China dispute also puts further strain on US-China ties amid a trade dispute between the worlds two largest economies. Mr Trump has said he wants to reduce Washingtons trade deficit with Beijing and make the relationship more reciprocal.

Story continues

Joshua Kurlantzick, a senior fellow for Southeast Asia at the Council for Foreign Relations, told The Independent previously that while the US and other southeast Asian nations want to preserve freedom of navigation in the hugely important body of water that accounts for nearly one-third of maritime global trade, China is looking to increase its control over several small islands, some of them man-made.

Satellite photographs taken on 12 May showed China appeared to have deployed truck-mounted surface-to-air missiles or anti-ship cruise missiles at one particular outpost, Woody Island, and earlier this month, Chinas air force landed bombers on disputed islands and reefs as part of a training exercise in the region. It triggered concern from Vietnam and the Philippines, who do not think China has territorial rights that far into what they consider international waters.

China has been developing on the reefs and atolls despite a ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, which had said there was no legal basis for Chinas maritime claims that extended approximately 1,000 miles beyond its shore to waters abutting Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Vietnam.

Critics of the military operations, known as a freedom of navigation, have said they have little impact on Chinese behaviour and are largely symbolic.

The US military has a long-standing position that its operations are carried out throughout the world, including in areas claimed by allies, and that they are separate from political considerations.

The US military did not directly comment on Sundays operation, but said US forces operate in the region on a daily basis. We conduct routine and regular Freedom of Navigation Operations (FONOPs), as we have done in the past and will continue to do in the future, the US Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

Pentagon officials have long complained that China has not been candid enough about its rapid military build-up and using South China Sea islands to gather intelligence in the region.

In March, a US Navy destroyer carried out a freedom of navigation operation close to Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands.

Chinese officials have accused Washington of viewing their country in suspicious, cold war terms. The US has said it would like to see more international participation in freedom-of-navigation operations in the South China Sea.

However, experts have said Chinas economic power in the region has stopped many countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) from further provoking Beijing. However, Vietnam has stood up publicly to China in the dispute, particularly after the Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte appeared to take a softer stance on the matter.

Video: US Withdraws China's Invite to RIMPAC Military Drills

For more news videos visit Yahoo View.

Additional reporting by agencies
By Christian Shepherd and Michael Martina BEIJING (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's cancellation of a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un threatens further strain on U.S.-China ties amid a trade dispute that had been intertwined with Beijing's pressure on isolated Pyongyang. The United States and China are also increasingly at odds in the disputed South China Sea. The Pentagon this week withdrew an invitation for China to take part in a major naval exercise in Hawaii, and Beijing has ramped up pressure on self-ruled Taiwan, armed by Washington but claimed by Beijing. Trump on Thursday released a letter to Kim announcing his withdrawal from the planned June 12 meeting in Singapore, which would have been the first between leaders of the two countries. Although Chinese state media called for continued engagement between Washington and Pyongyang, Trump's move could mark a split between China and the United States over how to deal with North Korea and its nuclear weapons, experts said. It also risks adding fuel to simmering trade tensions, just days after China and the United States pulled back from the brink of a full-blown trade war. "Definitely there are people in the U.S. who want to use this as an excuse for their efforts to push the relationship in the direction of confrontation," said Jia Qingguo, dean of the School of International Studies at China's Peking University, referring to the collapse of the Trump-Kim summit. "This is one of the lowest points in the relationship since the normalization of relations between the two countries," he added. China's foreign ministry on Friday said the government would keep encouraging the United States and North Korea to have direct talks, describing such communication as having a "pivotal" role in denuclearisation. "Rest assured, China will continue, in our own way, to carry out U.S.-North Korea work, so as to promote the resumption of the dialogue process on the peninsula," ministry spokesman Lu Kang told reporters. CHINA ALIGNED WITH KIM China has long viewed North Korea as a useful buffer between it and U.S. forces in South Korea. The two also have deep emotional ties; Chinese troops fought side-by-side with North Korea in the 1950-53 Korean War. But in recent years, relations between China and North Korea had nosedived to the point of a near diplomatic freeze, as Beijing signed on to ever-stricter United Nations sanctions over Pyongyang's nuclear and ballistic missile programs. China's willingness to keep up pressure on its neighbor may now wane. Even with the summit's collapse, China must continue to improve ties with North Korea given Kim's pledge not to carry out nuclear and missile tests, China's widely read state-run Global Times tabloid said in an editorial on Friday. A military conflict on the peninsula might see refugees flood over China's long border with North Korea, or even drag it into confrontation with the United States - both scenarios Beijing would like to avoid. "China actually has played the role of hidden guarantor for the North Korea-United States summit, so China will continue to promote this meeting," Sun Xingjie, an expert on North Korea at the Jilin University, said in comments to the People's Daily Overseas Edition, an official Communist Party paper. "If they cannot come to the negotiating table, then they will enter the battlefield," Sun said. Trump last week hinted that he partly blames China for how summit preparations went awry, saying President Xi Jinping might be "influencing" Kim after the North Korean leader made two visits to China in quick succession. But Chinese experts said Xi would not have sabotaged the meeting, given China's deep interest in reducing tensions on the peninsula. "If the summit is canceled, China is the one that faces great increase of uncertainty," said Shi Yinhong, an international relations expert at Renmin University in Beijing who has advised the government on diplomatic issues. Renewed friendly ties between China and North Korea would make Beijing more closely aligned with Pyongyang and nervous about Washington, Shi said. "A return by Trump to maximum pressure and military and economic threat brings a significant problem" for China. TRADE DEAL UNCERTAINTY Meanwhile, Trump also cast uncertainty over progress in trade talks, saying Wednesday that Washington would seek a new "structure" for the deal and a new direction for talks with Beijing, days after the two had taken conciliatory stances. U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross will visit China from June 2 to 4. "China does not link trade and North Korea because that will make things more complicated," said Ruan Zongze, a former diplomat now with the China Institute of International Studies, a think tank linked to China's foreign ministry. Some analysts had suggested, however, that China was using its leverage on North Korea, and Trump's perceived desire for a successful summit with Kim, to blunt the sharpest edges of U.S. trade threats. Tu Xinquan, dean of the China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, said the summit's collapse added to uncertainty in U.S.-China trade relations. "Even before this announcement, Trump's attitude on trade with China had changed a bit," he said. "I am a little pessimistic about this trade deal." A souring of relations could see a tougher line from Washington on other issues deemed sensitive in Beijing, analysts say. This week, the United States uninvited China from a major U.S. naval drill in response to what it sees as Beijing's militarization of the disputed South China Sea, drawing a sharp response from China. Disagreements have also flared over what China calls its most sensitive political issue, its claim on Taiwan, after Trump in March signed legislation encouraging U.S. officials to visit Taiwan to meet their Taiwanese counterparts. Taiwan's diplomatic isolation has grown, however, as Burkina Faso on Thursday cut official ties with Taipei. It was the second nation to do so in a month, dropping the number of Taiwan's formal allies to 18. On Friday, a pair of Chinese bombers flew around the island. Taiwan's air force scrambled aircraft, which accompanied and monitored the Chinese bombers, the island's defense ministry said. (Reporting by Christian Shepherd and Michael Martina; Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Tony Munroe and Gerry Doyle)
Juan Manuel Santos, the president of Colombia, has announced his country is to join Nato, on the eve of the vote to elect his successor - AFP or licensors

Colombia will become the first country in Latin America to join Nato as a "global partner", the outgoing president announced on the eve of the first presidential elections since its bloody civil war came to an end.

Juan Manuel Santos, who signed a peace deal with the left-wing Farc guerrillas in 2016, ending the longest-running civil conflict in the western hemisphere and winning the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts, made the announcement on Friday night.

Colombia will join next week as a "global partner", Mr Santos said, which means it will not necessarily have to take part in military action but will be fully accredited in Brussels.

But the announcement came as the peace process, on which he staked his presidency, hangs in the balance.

Mr Santos cannot run for a third term, and the current front-runner for Sunday's election is Right-winger Ivan Duque, who has sharply criticised the deal for giving too much ground to the Farc.

Juan Manuel Santos meets Theresa May in London, in November 2016

Hand-picked by Mr Santos's rival and presidential predecessor, Alvaro Uribe, Mr Duque, a 41-year-old lawyer and financial consultant from a prominent political family in Antioquia, has said he would alter the peace agreement if he is elected.

While legally the deal cannot simply be torn up by a new government, it can be effectively slow waked to failure by blocking legislation needed to fully implement the agreement.

People gather in Bogota, at the main Bolivar Square, on September 26, 2016, to celebrate the historic peace agreement between the Colombian government and Farc

Mr Duque faces a strong challenge in the elections from the Left-wing candidate, Gustavo Petro, a well-known former rebel from the M-19 group who has a track record in congress and as the mayor of Bogota.

The other three candidates are more centrist, and all are seasoned politicians: German Vargas Lleras toward the centre-right, and Sergio Fajardo and Humberto de la Calle  chief negotiator of the Farc peace deal - toward the centre-left.

Polls suggest that no one candidate will win outright on Sunday, in which case a run-off will be held on June 17.

Story continues

Colombia joining Nato as a partner country will mean it will cooperate on global security areas like cyber and maritime security, terrorism and links to organised crime.

Alvaro Uribe, president of Colombia from 2002-10, has emerged as one of the fiercest critics of the peace deal, and has chosen Ivan Duque as his successor

"Colombia benefits a lot from being an active part of the international community, said Mr Santos, announcing the move, which had been agreed last year, on national television.

Many of the problems we face are increasingly global and need the support and collaboration of other countries for their solution."

Other global partners include Afghanistan, Australia, Iraq, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mongolia, New Zealand and Pakistan.
DUBAI (Reuters) - A detained British-Iranian aid worker sentenced to five years in jail in Iran is to face a second trial on new security charges, the semi-official Tasnim news agency on Saturday quoted Tehran Revolutionary Court's head Musa Ghazanfarabadi as saying.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was arrested in April 2016 at a Tehran airport as she was heading back to Britain with her two-year-old daughter after a family visit.

She was convicted of plotting to overthrow Irans clerical establishment, a charge denied by her family and the Foundation, a charity organisation that is independent of Thomson Reuters and operates independently of Reuters News.

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson discussed Zaghari-Ratcliffes case with Iranian officials after flying to Tehran in December to try to seek her release.

"Ghazanfarabadi said the charge against Zaghari in the new case is security-related but did not say whether it was espionage or another charge," Tasnim reported.

"Zaghari is to present an attorney and then the court will convene," Ghazanfarabadi said.

Reuters was unable to determine the identity of the lawyer. Asked for comment by Reuters, Britain's Foreign Office said on Saturday that it would not provide a commentary on "every twist and turn".

Her husband Richard Ratcliffe said it was not clear what the latest charges involved.

"To go back a week, she had met with the judge ... who said there would be a charge of spreading propaganda against the regime, that's a very mild form of security charge so hopefully it's just that," he told BBC TV.

In a statement on Monday, the Thomson Reuters Foundation said it totally rejected "the renewed accusations that Nazanin is guilty of spreading propaganda" and said it continued to assert her full innocence.

In response to an urgent question in parliament on Tuesday about her situation, British Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt said Prime Minister Theresa May had raised all consular cases with President Hassan Rouhani in a call earlier this month. He did not provide further details.

Story continues

He also said the British ambassador in Tehran had spoken to Zaghari-Ratcliffe last Sunday.

"We remain of the assessment that a private, rather than public approach is most likely to result in progress in Nazanin's case and ultimately, her release, which is all any of us want," he said.

Iran does not recognize dual citizenship, which limits the access foreign embassies have to their dual citizens held there.

Irans Revolutionary Guards have arrested at least 30 dual nationals during the past two years, mostly on spying charges, according to lawyers, diplomats and relatives, Reuters reported in November.

According to former prisoners, families of current ones and diplomats, in some cases the detainees are kept to be used for a prisoner exchange with Western countries. Iran denies the accusation.

(Reporting by Dubai newsroom,; Additional reporting by Michael Holden in London; Editing by Stephen Powell and Richard Balmforth)
Surprise!

A service dog delivered eight puppies at a departure gate in Tampa International Airport Friday.

Diane Van Atter said her 2-year-old golden retriever, Ellie, went into labor unexpectedly as they were waiting to board a flight home to Philadelphia.

She had no signs of labor, Van Atter told InsideEdition.com. She was going up to people and saying hello.

The service dog went into labor right as gate agents called for boarding.

All of sudden, she started shaking and her tail went up. I saw little feet coming out, Van Atter said.

Ellie, who was pregnant with eight puppies, gave birth one-by-one with the puppies dad, Nugget, right by her side.

Van Atter, who owns both dogs, said people from all over came to help, and thankfully she had packed towels just in case. The Tampa Fire Department also showed up to assist.

All eight puppies and mom are doing well. The puppies arent allowed to fly for another eight weeks so Van Atter said she will drive home with them.

Its absolutely something I will never forget and the airport will never forget, she added.

RELATED STORIES

Mama Chihuahua Breaks World Record After Giving Birth to 11 Puppies

Firefighters Rescue Puppies From Gutter Only to Find They Were Actually Foxes

Police Chase 2 Puppies on a Phoenix Highway in the Cutest Pursuit Ever

Related Articles:
People walk past a television news screen showing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un (right) and US president Donald Trump at a railway station in Seoul (file photo): JUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images

Donald Trump has said a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was likely to go ahead, a day after he announced the summit was cancelled.

The president said in a tweet that Washington was having productive talks with Pyongyang about reinstating the meeting on 12 June in Singapore.

Mr Trumps back-and-forth over the plan has given ammunition to critics who argue the administration is in chaos and caused anxiety to South Korea, which brokered the talks between Washington and North Korea.

A report by Politico claimed an advance team of 30 White House and State Department officials was preparing to leave for Singapore later this weekend.

Mr Trump said in a Twitter post late on Friday: We are having very productive talks about reinstating the summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th, and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date.

The leader had earlier indicated the summit could be salvaged after welcoming a conciliatory statement from North Korea saying it remained open to discussions.

It was a very nice statement they put out, Mr Trump told reporters at the White House. Well see what happens  it could even be the 12th.

Were talking to them now. They very much want to do it. Wed like to do it."

Fridays tweet, which further brightened prospects of the US-North Korean meeting, came just a day after Mr Trump cancelled it, citing Pyongyangs open hostility.

Seoul was apparently caught off-guard by Mr Trumps decision to cancel the Singapore meeting, with President Moon Jae-in saying the decision was very regrettable". He urged the two nations to resolve their differences through more direct and closer dialogue between their leaders.

The nation expressed cautious relief about indications the meeting could go ahead. We see it as fortunate that the embers of dialogue between North Korea and the United States werent fully extinguished and are coming alive again, Seouls presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said in a statement. We are carefully watching the developments.

Story continues

If the meeting takes place, it will be the first between a serving US president and a North Korean leader after years of tension over Pyongyangs nuclear weapons program.

Announcement of the meeting this month followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over North Koreas development of missiles capable of reaching the US.

Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this report
By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA BORDER (Reuters) - Dozens of Palestinians demonstrating at the Gaza border were injured by Israeli gunfire and tear gas on Friday, as the latest round of protests drew several thousand participants to the frontier. Dubbed the March of Return, the protests were launched on March 30 to demand the right of return for Palestinian refugees and their descendants to family lands or homes lost to Israel during its founding in a 1948 war. Protests along the border reached a peak on May 14 when Gaza medical sources said at least 60 Palestinians were killed by Israeli gunfire. The violence has tapered off since but there are still sporadic flare-ups. Since the border protests began, 113 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire, Gaza medical officials said. Most of the participants on Friday kept their distance and remained about 800 meters from the fence. Dozens of youths, however, advanced to around 300 meters distance and burned tires at one protest spot. East of Gaza City some youths came right up to the fence and tried to pull it apart. Israeli troops fired tear gas and live rounds. Soldiers also fired at kites with flaming tails to try to bring them down before they landed in Israeli farmland and set crops alight. Gaza health ministry officials said at least 109 protesters were hurt. Medics said at least 10 were wounded by live rounds. Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh and the group's Gaza leader, Yehya Al-Sinwar, joined separate protest encampments raising cheers from the assembled crowds. "The marches of return are not over. They may be smaller but we are continuing," said Ali, a participant who masked his face with his t-shirt at a protest east of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. Protesters dispersed as dusk fell to prepare to break their daytime fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Gaza has been controlled since 2007 by the Islamist group Hamas. Israel and Egypt, citing security concerns, maintain a de facto blockade on Gaza, which has reduced its economy to a state of collapse. Israel has blamed Hamas for provoking the violence. "Theyre pushing civilians  women, children  into the line of fire with a view of getting casualties. We try to minimize casualties. They're trying to incur casualties in order to put pressure on Israel, which is horrible," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told CBS News last week. Salah al-Bardaweel, a Hamas official in Gaza, told a Palestinian television channel that the majority of those killed on May 14 were Hamas members. (Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, Writing by Ori Lewis)
The Hague (AFP) - The Netherlands and Australia are holding Russia "accountable" for the 2014 downing of flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, Dutch officials said Friday, in a move likely to lead to legal action.

The two countries "hold Russia responsible for its part in the downing" of the Malaysia Airlines flight, the Dutch government said in a statement.

The two countries may now move towards submitting the complex dossier to an international judge or organisation, it added.

The move came a day after investigators concluded that the Russian-made BUK missile which smashed into the plane in mid-air on July 17, 2014 came from a Russian military brigade in Kursk.

All 298 people on board the flight en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur were killed. Most were Dutch, but there were 17 nationalities including Australian on board.

"The downing of flight MH17 caused unimaginable suffering," said Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok a day after the latest findings from the Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) probing the disaster.

"On the basis of the JIT's conclusions, the Netherlands and Australia are now convinced that Russia is responsible for the deployment of the BUK installation that was used to down MH17," he added.

"The government is now taking the next step by formally holding Russia accountable."

The government said state liability was invoked in cases where nations violate international law, but warned it was a "complex legal process and there are several ways to do this."

"This is the legal avenue that the Netherlands and Australia have now chosen to pursue," the statement added.

Moscow has rejected Thursday's accusations, saying no such weapon had ever crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border.

The Russian foreign ministry denounced what it called an attempt to "discredit Russia in the eyes of the international community".

But investigators, who painstaking recreated the BUK missile system's route from Kursk across the border into rebel-held eastern Ukraine, said they stood by their findings.

Story continues

The Joint Investigation Team "has come to the conclusion that the BUK-TELAR that shot down MH17 came from 53rd Anti-aircraft Missile Brigade based in Kursk in Russia," top Dutch investigator Wilbert Paulissen said.

"The 53rd Brigade forms part of the Russian armed forces," he told reporters Thursday.

Investigation officials have not yet said who actually fired the missile after it arrived in rebel-held territory in eastern Ukraine, stressing that the investigation continues.
By Stephanie van den Berg THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Interim findings released this week by prosecutors investigating the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 point to Russian involvement, the Dutch foreign minister said on Friday. The findings "point to direct involvement of Russia," Stef Blok said on his way into a crisis meeting of the Dutch Cabinet over the matter. His words are the strongest to date by a Dutch politician linking Russia to the incident. MH17 was shot down over rebel-held territory in Eastern Ukraine in 2014, killing all 298 aboard. Russia has denied any involvement. Investigators on Thursday said the missile that shot down the plane was fired from a missile launcher in Russia's 53rd Anti-Aircraft Brigade, but stopped short of saying who actually fired the fatal shot. (Reporting by Toby Sterling, editing by Larry King)
By Padraic Halpin and Conor Humphries

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland has voted by a landslide to liberalise its highly restrictive abortion laws in a referendum that its prime minister called the culmination of a "quiet revolution" in what was one of Europe's most socially conservative countries.

Voters in the once deeply Catholic nation backed the change by two-to-one, a far higher margin than any opinion poll in the run up to the vote had predicted, and allows the government to bring in legislation by the end of the year.

"It's incredible. For all the years and years and years we've been trying to look after women and not been able to look after women, this means everything," said Mary Higgins, obstetrician and Together For Yes campaigner.

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who campaigned to repeal the laws, had called the vote a once-in-a-generation chance and voters responded by turning out in droves. A turnout of 64 percent was one of the highest for a referendum.

All but one of Ireland's 40 constituencies voted "Yes" and contributed to the 66 percent that carried the proposal, almost an exact reversal of the 1983 referendum result that inserted the ban into the constitution.

"What we see is the culmination of a quiet revolution that has been taking place in Ireland over the last couple of decades," Varadkar, who became Ireland's first openly gay prime minister last year, told journalists in Dublin.

The outcome is the latest milestone on a path of change for a country which only legalised divorce by a razor thin majority in 1995 before becoming the first in the world to adopt gay marriage by popular vote three years ago.

"For him (his son), it's a different Ireland that we're moving onto. It's an Ireland that is more tolerant, more inclusive and where he can be whatever he wants without fear of recrimination," said Colm O'Riain, a 44-year-old teacher with his son Ruarai, who was born 14 weeks premature in November.

Story continues

ASTONISHING MARGIN

Anti-abortion activists conceded defeat early on Saturday as their opponents expressed astonishment at the scale of their victory. Lawmakers who campaigned for a "No" vote said they would not seek to block the government's legislation.

"What Irish voters did yesterday is a tragedy of historic proportions," the Save The 8th group said. "However, a wrong does not become a right simply because a majority support it."

Voters were asked to scrap the constitutional amendment, which gives an unborn child and its mother equal rights to life. The consequent prohibition on abortion was partly lifted in 2013 for cases where the mother's life was in danger.

The largest newspaper, the Irish Independent described the result as "a massive moment in Ireland's social history".

Campaigners for change, wearing "Repeal" jumpers and "Yes" badges, gathered at count centres, many in tears and hugging each other. Others sang songs in the sunshine outside the main Dublin results centre as they awaited the official result.

The large crowd cheered Varadkar as he took to the stage to thank them for "trusting women and respecting their choices".

"Yes" campaigners had argued that with over 3,000 women travelling to Britain each year for terminations - a right enshrined in a 1992 referendum - and others ordering pills illegally online, abortion was already a reality in Ireland.

Reform in Ireland also raised the prospect that women in Northern Ireland, where abortion is still illegal, may start travelling south of the border.

The leaders of Sinn Fein, the province's largest Irish nationalist party that also has a large presence in the Irish republic, held up a sign on stage saying "The North is next."

MIDDLE GROUND

No social issue has divided Ireland's 4.8 million people as sharply as abortion, which was pushed up the political agenda by the death in 2012 of a 31-year-old Indian immigrant from a septic miscarriage after she was refused a termination.

Campaigners left flowers and candles at a large mural of the woman, Savita Halappanavar, in central Dublin. Her parents in India were quoted by the Irish Times newspaper as thanking their "brothers and sisters" in Ireland and requesting the new law be called "Savita's law".

Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney said he believed a middle ground of around 40 percent of voters had decided en masse to allow women and doctors rather than lawmakers and lawyers to decide whether a termination was justified.

The vote divided political parties, saw the once-mighty Catholic Church take a back seat, with the campaign defined by women on both sides publicly describing their personal experiences of terminations.

Although not on the ballot paper, the "No" camp sought to seize on government plans to allow abortions with no restriction up to 12 weeks into a pregnancy if the referendum is carried, calling it a step too far for most voters.

Save The 8th spokesman McGuirk appealed for tolerance and respect from "those who find themselves in the majority now".

Jim Wells, a member of Northern Ireland's socially conservative Democratic Unionist Party, said that after the vote Northern Ireland and Malta were the only parts of Europe where the unborn child was properly protected.

"It is inevitable that the abortion industry based in Great Britain will set up clinics in border towns," he said. "The outcome of the referendum is an extremely worrying development for the protection of the unborn child in Northern Ireland."

GRAPHIC: http://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/rngs/IRELAND-ABORTION/010070860L4/index.html

(Additional reporting by Graham Fahy and Emily Roe in Dublin; Amanda Ferguson in Belfast and Michael Holden in London; Editing by Alison Williams and Richard Balmforth)
Nairobi (AFP) - Heroic freedom fighter or iron-fisted dictator, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki's divisive rule over the Horn of Africa nation is as strong as ever, over two decades since taking power.

But his rule has been challenged by the monthly flood of refugees from Eritrea, with many of the thousands heading towards Europe, the third-largest number of those risking the dangerous sea crossing.

Authoritarian and austere, 69-year old Isaias led one of Africa's most remarkable rebel armies in a bitter 30-year struggle against a far larger Ethiopian army, backed first by the United States, then the Soviet Union.

At independence in 1993 he became the country's first -- and so far only -- president, but his increasingly iron-fisted and paranoid rule is driving thousands to flee every month, contributing to the world refugee crisis.

Eritrea was once held up as a beacon of hope for Africa by Western governments, and Isaias was hailed as a "renaissance leader" by then US President Bill Clinton.

But attitudes changed sharply as Marxist-inspired Isaias tightened control of the one-party state run by his People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ) and as he began backing regional rebels, including accusations of supporting the Somalia-based Al-Qaeda affiliate, the Shebab.

Born in 1946 in Asmara into an Orthodox Christian family, Isaias moved to the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa to study engineering but, aged 20, left to join a fledgling separatist rebel movement fighting for Eritrean independence.

- 'Isolated and mercurial' -

Tall, handsome and with a fearsome temper, Isaias rose through the ranks to command a well-organised movement whose guerrillas dug a warren of bunkers to hold out against Ethiopian fighter jets.

The rebels finally liberated Asmara in 1991, followed by an overwhelming vote for independence in a referendum two years later.

But Eritrea's dream of freedom turned sour. Between 1998-2000 Eritrea fought a renewed border war with Ethiopia that left at least 80,000 dead.

Story continues

An international court awarded the flashpoint frontier town of Badme to Eritrea, but the Ethiopians have refused to withdraw, fuelling long-running tensions that drove Isaias to ship guns to regional rebels to needle Ethiopia.

Partly because of criticism of his handling of the war, Isaias launched a brutal purge in September 2001, arresting 11 top party figures -- close colleagues from the independence struggle -- and forcing a wave of others to flee.

He brooks no criticism, shrugging off international condemnation, including for throwing out a United Nations peacekeeping mission and expelling international aid agencies in a draconian policy of self-reliance.

Isaias has closed all independent media and jailed critical journalists. Eritrea dropped below North Korea as the world's worst nation for press freedom, according to rights group Reporters Without Borders.

- Religious minorities jailed -

Religious minorities including evangelical Christian sects are jailed in grim conditions -- often locked in shipping container prisons in baking heat -- because Isaias believes they are a foreign plot to foment divisions in a nation officially split equally between Islam and Christianity.

A keen admirer of Mao Zedong after training in China during the chaos of the Cultural Revolution, he still plays "a mean game of ping pong", according to US diplomatic cables, although his once close ties to Beijing have waned in recent years.

Isaias, who like most Eritreans is known by his first name, shunned the cult of personality beloved by other African strongmen. His portrait is not on the country's banknotes and is rarely seen outside official buildings.

Indeed, Isaias once would take regular evening strolls down the streets of the mountain capital Asmara with its elegant Italian-era colonial architecture, popping into smoky bars for a drink, apparently keen to cultivate a "man of the people" image.

However, in recent years the "isolated and mercurial... unhinged dictator" -- as leaked US diplomatic cables describe him -- has became increasingly paranoid, fearing assassination attempts which he said were backed by the US spy agency, the CIA.

His popularity slumped in the tightly restricted country, where the young are conscripted into mass national service that can last for decades, and where military police prowl the streets to round up those skipping the army service.

Together, open-ended conscription and state repression have driven thousands to flee despite a shoot-to-kill policy by border patrols, with families of those left behind risking being punished by crippling fines or imprisonment.

As the economy has stagnated, rumours have grown of Isaias's heavy drinking, furious temper and shouting fits aimed at cowed officials.

Although nominally under civilian rule, Eritrea under Isaias has been carved up into zones of control by army generals, who run flourishing networks of corrupt businesses and cream off lucrative profits.

But with opposition figures jailed and government media warning of a constant threat of Ethiopian attack, many feel there seems little alternative to the unelected president, still viewed by some as a hero of the independence war.
Alan Bean, the fourth person ever to walk on the moon, died on Saturday at age 86, NASA announced on behalf of his family.

Bean, a former U.S. Navy test pilot who was part of NASAs third-ever group of astronauts, twice flew to space. His first voyage, in 1969, was as the lunar module pilot on Apollo 12, which made NASAs second moon landing. During that trip, Bean became the fourth man to walk on the moon, after Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and his commander, Charles Pete Conrad.

Bean returned to space in 1973, as the commander of NASAs second crewed flight to the U.S. first space station, Skylab.

The astronautwho, after retiring from NASA in 1981, devoted himself to creating an artistic record of humanitys first exploration of another world, according to NASAs statementfell ill while traveling in Indiana two weeks ago. He died Saturday at Houston Methodist Hospital.

Bean is survived by his wife, sister and two children from a prior marriage. His wife of 40 years, Leslie Bean, said in the statement that, Alan was the strongest and kindest man I ever knew. He was the love of my life and I miss him dearly. A native Texan, Alan died peacefully in Houston surrounded by those who loved him.

John Young, another noted NASA astronaut and the ninth man to walk on the moon, also died this year. He was 87 when he died in January.
Photo credit: 

From Popular Mechanics

The FBI has issued a dire warning to everyone who has a router in their home. The Internet Crime Complaint Center sent a rare Public Service Announcement declaring: "Foreign cyber actors have compromised hundreds of thousands of home and office routers and other networked devices worldwide."

The hackers are using VPNFilter malware to target small office and home office routers, the FBI said. "VPNFilter is able to render small office and home office routers inoperable," the FBI warns. "The malware can potentially also collect information passing through the router. Detection and analysis of the malwares network activity is complicated by its use of encryption."

The feds recommends "any owner of small office and home office routers reboot the devices to temporarily disrupt the malware and aid the potential identification of infected devices." They also advise to consider disabling remote management settings on devices, use encryption, upgrade firmer and choose new and different passwords, which is pretty much best practice anyway.

The IC3, formerly known as the Internet Fraud Complaint Center was renamed in October 2003 to include this kind of attack. Their stated mission "is to provide the public with a reliable and convenient reporting mechanism to submit information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation concerning suspected Internet-facilitated criminal activity and to develop effective alliances with law enforcement and industry partners."

Today, that means telling you to reboot your router, so hop to it.

You Might Also Like
Flint native Jada Coleman decided to step up when she watched a Netflix documentary about her own city and felt it only told just part of the story.

It talked about the crime and poverty, the scandalous water crisis, and the way the city police force was responding. But it said little about its people, how they were suffering, and even less about the way residents were working to help each other when confronted by official deceit and failure. She had to do something.

It started with the 24-year-old graphic design student designing and selling T-shirts, with the intention of raising both awareness and funds. Less than three months later, her activist group 810H2O  810 is the phone code for east Michigan  is helping organise the citys young people, and her T-shirts are being snapped up by people across the country.

Even now, the vast majority of people in the city say they will only drink bottled water (Andrew Buncombe)

Four years after the Michigan citys water supply was unintentionally poisoned, the events covered up and the physical and psychological health of its residents shaken to the core, Jada and her younger sister, Jallyah, are among dozens of ordinary people still fighting to provide that most very basic of needs  safe drinking water.

I got the idea after Flint Town appeared on Netflix and I started watching it, and I was thinking it was just focussed on all the negativity, Jada said, sitting outside her uncles house in Flints North End. I wanted to find a way to show the positive things were trying to do. That was when we started the 810H2O movement.

After the the states Republican governor Rick Snyder announced last month he had concluded the tap water was safe and he was stopping the supply of free bottled water, church groups and volunteers have been scrambling to fill the gap. The city government, which is also trying to start its own distribution, is considering suing the governor.

The activists include military veterans looking out for other former soldiers, mothers whose own family was poisoned by the lead, and amateur comedians doing standup charity nights. LeeAnn Walters, who helped reveal the danger of the citys water and the cover-up by authorities, recently received the Goldman Environmental Prize, an award that recognises grassroots activism.

Story continues

The state is not being transparent and neither is the city of Flint, said Ms Walters, referring to various claims being made about the waters suitability for consumption.

The mother-of-four who educated herself about water safety and sought the help of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official Miguel del Toral, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineer Marc Edwards, to reveal what was going on. For three consecutive weeks in 2015, she worked almost without pause, to obtain more than 800 water samples from each the citys zip codes, and showed many of them contained levels of toxins that exceeded what is officially classified as hazardous waste.

Of Mr Snyders decision to end the water supply, she added: I asked why the state had taken away bottled water. I asked that question.

Harm

Flints water became poisoned in 2014 when officials switched the citys water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River, which is 19 times more corrosive, according to researchers from Virginia Tech. At the time, the citys management was under state control and the step was taken to save money.

Almost immediately afterwards, people reported their water having a foul smell and being discoloured. Residents experienced rashes and hair loss. Estimates suggest up to 12,000 children were exposed to dangerous levels of lead.

The city was also struck by an outbreak of Legionnaires disease, which affected 87 people and killed 12 of them. The city received a state and federal aid package of $450m. Fifteen former and current state and city officials have been charged with criminal offences, ranging from willful neglect of duty to manslaughter.

Jassmine McBride was among more than 80 people who contracted Legionnaires disease  12 of them fatally (Andrew Buncombe )

Jassmine McBride came very close to becoming the 13th person to die from Legionnaires.

In August 2014, the young woman, who has diabetes, was in hospital for a check-up when doctors detected that her oxygen levels were very low. Eventually, she was rushed into the Emergency Room, where she had to be resuscitated. Her family was told she had Legionnaires disease, which experts believe was linked to the both the presence of metals in the water and an insufficient amount of chlorine, which is typically added to water as a disinfectant. She had to stay in hospital until Christmas.

Today the 28-year-old, who used to dance and sing with her church, spends her days in the familys small house on a street of decaying or abandoned properties in the North End. She has crutches but struggles to walk more than a few yards, and uses an oxygen tank because both of her lungs were permanently damaged. She requires regular dialysis.

I cant work, I cant do any of the normal things I used to do, she said. The family said the area had become more dangerous and felt less hospitable over the past decade.

Theres nothing for the children and people to do, so people look the other way or take a different path, she said, a reference to the areas reputation for high crime. At night, they hear the crack of gunshots.

While Flints lead problems have received widespread coverage, corrosive water can also release other metals, such as iron, which both promotes the growth of bacteria, including Legionella pneumophila, which causes a severe and dangerous form of pneumonia, but also inactivates chlorine, which is added to the water supply as a disinfectant.

Nick Lyon, the former Michigan Department of Health and Human Services director, is being tried for involuntary manslaughter in connection with the Legionnaires deaths. Preliminary hearings into the accusations are currently taking place in the city of Flushing.

He has denied any criminal wrongdoing, through his lawyers, and presented his own expert witnesses, who have testified that at least two victims probably died of other causes.

They set a narrative when this started, and I said This is not just about lead, said Art Woodsen, a 50-year-old US Army veteran, who helps deliver water to other former servicemen. Its about Legionnaires, copper, and carcinogens in the water.

He added: A lot of attention has been focused on the kids, but they poisoned everyone.

Is the water safe?

When Mr Snyder announced on 6 April that Michigan was ending its supply of water to Flint, he claimed the scientific data now proves the water system is stable and the need for bottled water has ended.

We will now focus even more of our efforts on continuing with the health, education and economic development assistance needed to help move Flint forward, he claimed,

Karen Weaver, the towns mayor, said when she complained and asked him to continue it at least until work to complete all the citys pipelines have been replaced, she was told to get over it, a claim denied by the governors spokesperson.

Ms Weaver said she was only told of the governors decision hours before it was announced, a claim some activists have disputed. She said she was now considering suing the governors office.

The mayor said she believed the water provided to peoples taps was safe, if they made use of a filter. Yet she said she encouraged people to get it tested, either by the city government or a private tester, if they had doubts.

A spokeswoman for Mr Snyders office said the provision of free bottled water had continued seven months longer than it was legally obligated to, since two consecutive six-month monitoring periods showed the citys water system was in compliance with the federal standards.

The state continues to fund free water filters and filter replacement cartridges for all residents, even those who have already had their service lines replaced, said the spokeswoman.

Yet, activists have criticised Mr Snyders move to terminate the free water, something exacerbated by the states decision to allow Nestle to double the amount of water it pumps from a spring in the north of the state to 400 gallons per minute. The company, which pays a fee of just $200 each year to the state for the water it pumps, is to provide 100,000 bottles to Flint each week for free distribution.

The National Resources Defence Council, an environmental group, said the people of Flint deserved better.

Cyndi Roper, the NRDCs senior advocate for Michigan, said results of tests carried out by Susan Masten from Michigan State University, part of the settlement of lawsuits by residents, could only reveal so much, as they were only designed to test for lead and copper levels, not other contaminants. She said that while lead levels appeared to have fallen, these results do not show that water in Flint generally is safe or unsafe.

Lashaya Darisaw is running for the state legislature (Andrew Buncombe )

She added: No amount of lead in drinking water is safe.

Given all that, the fact the residents of Flint should still feel the need for bottled water is entirely understandable. The governor may say the tap water is safe, the citys mayor may say it is safe if people use the filters provided, but very few people believe them.

Indeed, during three days in the city, only two people out of several dozen interviewed by The Independent said they drank tap water. One of them, Ms Weaver, was the mayor.

For the vast majority, it seems, part of daily life now involves obtaining bottled water, either buying it or collecting it from the groups still providing it.

Even when they leave the city, or even go out of the state, many are reluctant to drink from a tap, something they pass on strongly to their children.

Me, I most definitely dont drink the water. I dont trust the people in office, said Tom Norman, a landscaper, who was filling up his pick-up truck with petrol in the North End.

If I went to Atlanta, I would still be hesitant to drink the water. Im not saying theres anything wrong with the water. I just feel I cant trust anything.

Church groups

Floyd Burns moved to Flint from Alabama in the early 1960s, a time when well-paying jobs in the auto industry were easy to find. He spent 43 years with General Motors, which was founded in Flint in 1908 and which, at the peak of the citys fortunes, employed as many as 80,000 people.

From 1931 to 2007, GM was the largest car manufacturer in the world and was credited with turning Flint into a prosperous, thriving city of 200,000, the embodiment of the middle class American dream.

Those days are long gone, along with the vast majority of the manufacturing jobs. The most recent census suggested that, in a city that is 57 per cent black, 37 per cent white, 4 per cent Latino and 4 per cent of mixed race, at least 41 per cent of residents live below the federal poverty level.

When the state decided the city's water was safe to drink and ended the supply of free bottled, volunteers stepped in with donated water (Andrew Buncombe)

For the past four years, the now retired Mr Burns has been among the volunteers distributing water at the First Trinity Baptist Church. After Mr Snyder stopped the supply of free bottles, the church is one of just a handful of places that provide them, able to do so because of donations from across the country.

He said even if the water was safe  he said he had been drinking bottled water for 15 years  the authorities faced a huge challenge in trying to win back credibility in the eyes of citizens.

People dont have the trust because they let them drink the bad water for so long, he said, loading cases of water in the rear of peoples vehicles. Its going to take a lot.

One of those stocking up was Robert Person, who had arrived in a battered pick-up with two friends. All complained about the tap water being too toxic to even wash with. It causes bumps on the skin, said a middle-aged woman in the passenger seat. It makes your skin feel like an alligators.

Nobody is laughing

Lashaya Darisaw wants to bring about change by getting elected to the state legislature. The political organiser and mother of 13-year-old daughter is running her own grassroots campaign and trying to raise awareness through social media and organising protests.

People tell me I am providing a voice for the voiceless, but I disagree, she said. I am showing people how to have a voice.

Earlier this year, Ms Darisaw led a protest inside the state legislature in Lansing, video footage of which went viral. People go to the Capitol all the time, but we decided to have a protest inside the chamber, she said, sitting at her kitchen table.

She said winning back peoples trust would take a long time. Eventually, they will trust the faucet, but no time soon. Right now its boil it, filter it, boil it again.

Because she realises the trust deficit crosses generations, she is encouraging her teenage daughter, Tiara, to be an activist herself and educate her friends about what is happening in their city.

Im starting a programme about how to pick elected officials, said the teenager, recalling how the water from the citys taps ran brown at the height of the crisis. People are not going to trust the government.

Four years after the water crisis began, many in Flint feel the world has forgotten them, the media moved on to other stories.

Many were grateful their situation was thrust back into the spotlight by the American comedian Michelle Wolf, who performed at the annual White House Correspondents Association dinner earlier this year in Washington.

Each year, the group hires a comic to poke fun at the White House, the president and at the media themselves. The president usually attends, though Donald Trump has twice declined. This year, Ms Wolf received criticism from some for her comments about White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders who attended the event. Ms Wolf said Ms Sanders is frequently accused of not being entirely honest with the media.

I actually really like Sarah. I think shes very resourceful. She burns facts, and then she uses that ash to create a perfect smoky eye. Like maybe shes born with it, maybe its lies. Its probably lies, she said.

Yet in this city, if people heard about Ms Wolfs routine, it was because of her final line, which was most definitely not a joke: Flint still doesnt have clean water. Ms Walters, the winner of the Goldman Environmental Prize, said residents appreciated what she did. People in Flint were so proud of her trying to shine light on the problem.
Paris (AFP) - Half-man, half-beast, the tall African statues dominate a busy gallery in Paris' Quai Branly museum. But few of the visitors are aware they are looking at what might be considered stolen goods.

The three imposing wooden carvings were plundered by French troops in 1892 from the kingdom of Dahomey -- modern-day Benin.

"I came here to learn about how these objects were intended to be used, more than how they were brought here," said Michael Fanning, a student from New Orleans, peering up at the statues.

"But it does make me think we should give them back to whoever made them."

From London to Berlin, Europe's museums are packed with hundreds of thousands of colonial-era items. Increasingly, they are facing the awkward question of whether they should be there at all.

The "Scramble for Africa", as Europe's 19th-century land grab came to be known, brought with it a clamour for trinkets from conquered territories, so exotic to the eyes of the colonisers.

Bought, bartered and in some cases simply stolen by soldiers, missionaries and anthropologists, they ended up in museums and private collections all over Europe.

The controversy is hardly new, nor does it concern Africa alone.

Star lawyer Amal Clooney, wife of Hollywood actor George, has advised Athens on its bid to reclaim the Parthenon marbles, vast sculptures which have been in Britain since the 1800s.

The massive Koh-i-Noor diamond, part of Britain's crown jewels and claimed by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan, is another spectacular example.

But in Africa, a speech by French President Emmanuel Macron has spurred hope that things may be about to change.

"Africa's heritage cannot just be in European private collections and museums," Macron said in Burkina Faso in November.

He charged two experts with working out how to give African artefacts back within five years, prompting speculation that museums across Europe could be pressured to follow suit.

Story continues

"Suffice to say that he'll have made European curators quake in their boots," said Pascal Blanchard, a historian of French colonialism.

- Tangle of problems -

French art historian Benedicte Savoy, one of the experts appointed by Macron along with Senegalese writer Felwine Sarr, described her new job as "a hell of a challenge".

Museums have long wrestled with a tangle of legal and ethical problems concerning who really "owns" such objects.

Even in well-documented cases of pillaging, the law often prevents countries from giving them back.

Last year France flatly refused Benin's bid to reclaim its treasures, saying they were exempt from seizure as state property.

European conservationists have also raised practical concerns, worrying artefacts could be stolen or handled improperly if given to inexperienced museums in politically unstable countries.

Blanchard said countries like Nigeria, with well-established museums, had "all the ingredients for solid restitution claims".

But others as poor as Chad "do not currently have the museums and cultural heritage services capable of restoring and displaying these objects", he said.

- 'These objects belong to us' -

Yet many African officials say these treasures should be at home, attracting tourists and boosting national pride.

Few cases inspire more outrage than the Benin bronzes, hundreds of exquisite metal plaques seized in 1897 by British troops from the Kingdom of Benin, in modern-day Nigeria.

Most are now in the British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

For Crusoe Osagie, spokesman for the governor of Nigeria's Edo State, it is simply wrong that his children must go to Britain or Germany to see their heritage in a glass-fronted cabinet.

"These objects belong to us and were forcefully denied to our possession," he told AFP.

As for suggestions that Africans might not look after such objects, he finds the idea insulting.

"It's like asking me how to look after my child," he said. "We are ready to look after them with great care."

- Echoes of Nazi looting -

Some colonial-era artefacts have been handed back over the years on an ad hoc basis, and UN cultural agency UNESCO has mediated successfully in several disputes since the 1970s.

European and US museums have also been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 seeking a solution for the Benin bronzes, but with few results.

The idea of loaning the bronzes, as well as Ethiopian items displayed in Britain, has been floated, but some African officials are affronted by the suggestion of "borrowing" what they see as their own property.

For want of better solutions, many museums are simply trying to approach the issue more sensitively.

German museums have taken a lead -- mindful of their previous experience with Jewish-owned artworks looted by the Nazis.

At Berlin's new Humboldt Forum, labels are set to include details of how colonial-era items came to be in the collection.

And Hamburg's MKG museum is running an exhibition which focuses not so much on its three Benin bronzes, but the fact that they were looted.

Its curator Silke Reuther said visitors appreciate the museum's honesty.

"We are not afraid to show something which is not a beautiful story," she said.
Qamishli (Syria) (AFP) - Hundreds demonstrated in Syria's northeastern city of Qamishli on Saturday, in response to a call by Kurdish authorities for global protests against Turkey's military presence in the flashpoint Afrin region.

Turkish forces and allied Syrian rebels seized the northwest Afrin region from Kurdish fighters in March, after a two-month military offensive that prompted tens of thousands of people to flee.

Since then, thousands of people displaced from other parts of Syria -- notably the Eastern Ghouta suburb of Damascus -- have been resettled in the emptied city.

Syria's Kurds, who have built up their own autonomous administrations in the chaos of the country's seven-year war, say that amounts to demographic change.

On Saturday, men and women marched through the Kurdish-controlled city of Qamishli to protest Turkey's military presence.

They waved the yellow, green, and red flag that represents Kurdish part of Syria, as well as signs that read: "No to Turkish occupation."

"Leave, leave, Erdogan! Killer, killer, Erdogan!" many chanted, in reference to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Ghassan Juli, a 38-year-old resident of Qamishli, described the Afrin developments as a "disaster."

"Our people were forced out, and fighters from other areas were brought to live there," he said.

Her head wrapped in a shawl that matched the Kurdish flag, Bahia Hassan said Afrin's original residents were afraid to return because of fears of abduction or worse.

"Enough killing, enough kidnapping our boys! Enough killing women and children. We won't accept this," said the 45-year-old.

Syria's Kurds control swathes of the country's north, and many of those who fled to Afrin escaped into nearby Kurdish-held territory.

Around 135,000 stayed in the Afrin region, more than a third of them in the urban centre that shares the same name, according to the United Nations.

Since war broke out in 2011, half of Syria's population has been displaced, including more than five million outside the country and another six million internally.
A top Iranian Revolutionary Guards official responded to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's recent policy speech targeting Iran's presence in Iraq and Syria, arguing it was the U.S. that was unwelcome.

Brigadier General Yadollah Javani, the lieutenant commander for the elite force's political affairs wing, said that Pompeo's remarks "indicate that he has been sleeping over the past 40 years and is unaware of what has happened during these years in the world and the region." The newly appointed top U.S. diplomat devoted his first major foreign policy speech on Monday to condemning the Shiite Muslim revolutionary government that has led Iran since toppling a pro-West monarchy in 1979 and has expanded the country's foothold in the region.

"Iran has been present in Iraq and Syria at the invitation of the legitimate governments of these countries, and sided with the regional nations based on the common interests of the countries," Javani told Iran's semiofficial Tasnim News Agency.

Trending: Amazon Saves 'The Expanse,' Jeff Bezos Calls Sci-fi Series 'Extraordinary'

"If anyone should leave the region, it would be the meddlesome U.S., which has done nothing but damaging the region during these years," he continued.

RTS1R4HK

Aboud Hamam/Reuters

Pompeo accused Iran on Monday of supporting U.S.-designated terrorist organizations such as Lebanese Shiite Muslim movement Hezbollah and jihadi Sunni Muslim organizations like Al-Qaeda, the Palestinian Hamas and Afghan Taliban. He vowed to unleash "the strongest sanctions in history" against Tehran just weeks after President Donald Trump announced the U.S. withdrawal from a 2015 nuclear deal that is still supported by Iran as well as China, France, Germany, Russia and the U.K.

Story continues

Iran has routinely denied offering direct support to foreign militias, but it is closely aligned to Hezbollah and, to a lesser extent, Hamas, which also enjoys assistance from Iran's top regional rival Saudi Arabia. Iran's backing for Hezbollah and other Shiite Muslim groups across Iraq and Syria have contributed to the defeat of the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), but it has also stirred local resentment against the U.S., which is actively battling the jihadis in both countries as well.

Don't miss: Peter King Compares NFL Players Kneeling During National Anthem to Giving Nazi Salute

Related: Iran Goes Against Russia, Says It's Staying in Syria as U.S. Military Threatens 'New Actions'

Iran enjoys close relations with both the Iraqi and Syrian governments. Syria was a staunch supporter of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution that ousted the shah, who had already been once reinstalled by a CIA coup in 1953, and the two remained allies when Iraqi President Saddam Hussein took on Iran in 1980. After the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003, Iran established strong ties with the newly installed Shiite Muslim leadership in Baghdad.

However, the U.S. war in Iraq also gave rise to an ultraconservative Sunni Muslim insurgency that ultimately spawned ISIS, which claimed up to half of Iraq and Syria in 2014. As Iran mobilized allied fighters to assist Iraqi and Syrian troops taking on the jihadis, the U.S. gathered an international coalition to begin bombing ISIS in Iraq, where the government welcomed U.S. intervention, and in Syria, where the U.S. had backed rebels trying to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

As the Syrian opposition grew increasingly jihadi in nature, the U.S. mostly abandoned support and switched its focus to a largely Kurdish formation called the Syrian Democratic Forces. The Syrian Democratic Forces have fought both alongside and against pro-Assad fighters, but generally work outside the framework of the central government as they advocate for greater Kurdish autonomy. Iran and Russia's backing for Assad, however, has helped him reclaim most of the territories lost in the wake of the 2011 insurgency, save for those in the hands of the Syrian Democratic Forces.

Most popular: Subtropical Storm Alberto Path Update: Florida Gov. Rick Scott Declares State of Emergency As 'Severe' Weather Nears

GettyImages-871352036

GEORGE OURFALIAN/AFP/Getty Images

Iran's growing influence in the region is not only opposed by the U.S. but its top Middle Eastern allies, Israel and Saudi Arabia, as well. The two countries were the few international voices in support of Trump's decision to abandon the nuclear accords with Iran, and they have called on Washington to double down on its anti-Iran campaign.

The U.S. military has targeted pro-Syrian government forcesincluding Russians and potentially Iraniansin Syria, but has claimed that every attack came in response to a provocation. Israel has reportedly been behind a years-long campaign of mostly unclaimed airstrikes that has become increasingly public as it targeted Iranian and pro-Iran positions with greater frequency.

Trump expressed his desire to leave Syria in April, but recent escalations have led his military officials and advisers to push back. The U.S. became increasingly entrenched as it targeted Syrian government positions over chemical weapons allegations and threats by Turkey against U.S.-backed Kurdish forces in northern Syria. Iran, meanwhile, argued it would not leave unless asked to do so by the Syrian government, even after fellow Assad ally Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested last week that all foreign forces should eventually leave Syria.

In Iraq, this month's elections produced a surprise victory for a candidate opposed to both U.S. and Iranian interference in local affairs. Popular Shiite Muslim cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has led militias against both the U.S. military and ISIS, and his coalition's win could threaten the 15-year U.S. military presence in the country. On Tuesday, a U.S.-led coalition spokesman asserted that "we are here by the request of the Iraqi government," adding that "whenever we will be told by the Iraqi government that we will have to leave, the politicians of our nations will take the right decision."

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Ireland has decided to repeal the eighth amendment of the constitution in a vote on Friday that called hundreds of expats home to participate in the historic referendum.

The referendum on repealing the eighth amendment, which equalled the right of life of a fetus to the right to life of the mother and effectively banned abortions, proved a more divisive issue than same-sex marriage, put to Irish voters in 2015. Few expected to repeat, much less to outdo, its landslide 62.1 percent result for yes. But as results of the abortion referendum were announced on Saturday afternoon, 66.4 percent supported the "yes" side, and only 33.6 percent of voters voted for "no," falling only slightly below exit polls that first suggested a 69 percent support for repealing the amendment.

Participation in the referendum was 64.13% of eligible voters, higher than the landmark popular vote held in the country in 2015 on marriage equality, which saw 60 percent participation.

Trending: California's Messy Primaries Could Foretell Disaster for Democrats Trying to Win Back the House

Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who last year became the first openly gay prime minister in Ireland and supported the "yes" side, praised the result. "What we've seen is the culmination of a quiet revolution that's been taking place in Ireland over the past 20 years," he said.

Some Irish expats went to great lengths to take part in the vote. Michelle Sweeney made a last-minute decision to dig in her savings account and book a ticket from Vancouver to Dublin.

"I didn't think I would be able to go home to vote with work and other commitments," she told Newsweek. "But the morning of May 22 I just closed my eyes and booked a flight home for that afternoon probably clearing out my savings account. 15 hours later I was home and I've been canvassing since," she added.

A video of Sweeney surprising her mother ("priceless," she wrote) was viewed more than 110,000 times on Twitter. She voted "yes."

Story continues

Don't miss: Rudy Giuliani: Trump Won't Fire People To End Russia Probe Because It's 'Too Watergate'

"I love my country and from what I have experienced so does the rest of the world but I am ashamed of its past and how we have treated women," she said. She added: "I hope that when my visa expires in October, I can come back to a more compassionate and progressive Ireland."

05_25_Ireland_Referendum

Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

What is the Eighth Amendment?

The Eighth Amendment was introduced via popular vote in 1983 to protect "the right to life of the unborn," giving it equal status to the rights of the mother, effectively prohibiting abortion in all circumstances. At the time, the Irish General Attorney Peter Sutherland warned that the amendment was "ambiguous and unclear" and would lead to legal confusion.

Indeed, in the past 35 years the amendment has been the subject of a series of Supreme Court battles and a 1992 referendum in which voters agreed a woman could travel outside of Ireland to terminate a pregnancy and had a right to receive information about accessing abortion services abroad.

Most popular: Who Will Win Colombia's Presidential Elections? What You Need to Know About The Battles To Come

What did the referendum propose?

Repealing the eighth amendment gives give lawmakers the power to create laws regulating the termination of pregnancy. The amendment itself will be replaced with a clause stating that Provision may be made by law for the regulation of termination of pregnancy.

What happens next?

The Irish government next plans to legislate for abortion-on-demand up to 12 weeks into the pregnancy. Between 12 and 24 weeks, abortion will only be allowed if the fetus is not likely to survive in any case, or if the woman's life or health are at serious risk. After 24 weeks, abortion will only be permitted if the fetus develops a fatal abnormality. Anti-abortion groups already used their concession statement on Saturday morning to vow to fight every practical legislation step in this plan.

The similarly stringent ban on abortion in Northern Ireland, a constituent part of the UK rather than the Republic of Ireland, remains in place, and pro-choice advocates have already marked it as their next target. "It must not be forgotten that us women in Northern Ireland are still persecuted by a Victorian-era abortion ban," Grainne Teggart, Northern Ireland Campaigns Manager for Amnesty International, said in a press release. Its hypocritical, degrading and insulting to Northern Irish women that we are forced to travel for vital healthcare services but cannot access them at home.

The UK Government can no longer turn a blind eye and deny us equality. We cannot be left behind in a corner of the UK and on the island of Ireland as second-class citizens.

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Its official, and by a landslide: The people of Ireland have voted to repeal the eighth amendment of its constitution, which currently says an unborn child has an equal right to life as the woman carrying it, effectively placing a total ban on abortion.

With 37 out of 40 constituencies reporting as this article was published, 67.3 percent of Irish citizens voted for the repeal, and 32.7 percent againstwith just one remaining constituency, Donegal, expected to vote "no.".

Abortion has been illegal in Ireland since 1861. In 1983, this was written into the country's constitution with the passage of the eight amendment, which reads: The State acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right. This effectually outlaws abortion completely, including in situations of rape, incest, and if the fetus a woman is carrying has a fatal condition.

According to the most recent data from U.K. Department of Health, more than 170,000 Irish women are estimated to have traveled to the U.K. and the Netherlands for abortions since 1980. It's also estimated that, every day, nine women make the journey from Ireland to the U.K. to have a legal abortion. Then, there are those who either choose to or must stay home, as not all can afford flights, hotels, lost wages, and childcare while awayan estimated 1,500 women each year take abortion tablets without any medical supervision; if they're found in possession of said pills, they could face jail time for up to 14 years.

But the Ireland of today is a very different place than the Ireland of 1983, says Glamours editor-in-chief, Samantha Barry, who's a native of Cork

To Americans it might sound like we're slow to adopt cultural norms you're accustomed to, but progress has been made: In 1985 the Irish government approved the sale of contraceptives, divorce became legal in 1995 following another referendum, and Ireland is now the European hub of some of the largest and most innovative tech companies in the world, including Google and Facebook, she wrote ahead of the repeal. Our current political leader, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, is the gay son of Indian immigrants!

Story continues

When news of the repeal vote broke, Varadkar posted about it on his Twitter account: Fantastic crowds at Dublin Castle. Remarkable day. A quiet revolution has taken place, a great act of democracy, he wrote.

In light of this historic referendum, many Irish ex-pats have traveled home to vote. (Unlike the United States, voting by mail or absentee ballot is not an option for Irish folks living outside the country.) One woman, Elaine Arnold, told Glamour she spent over $1,500 Australian dollars to travel from Sydney to her hometown of Dublin to do so; another Irish native, Sorcha Lowry, used her credit card and her only vacation days at a new job in New York, where she currently lives, to make sure she voted "yes" to the repeal.

The minute the date was announced for the referendum, I booked my flights, Lowry told Glamour. I have to be part of it. Not turning up would essentially be a 'no' vote, so I have to do my bit.

Though after 35 years in effect, the people of Ireland have voted to repeal the eight amendment, abortion won't be available overnightrather, it will be replaced by a clause that reads: Provision may be made by law for the regulation of termination of pregnancy.

But it seems like that provision is coming: According to Sky News' senior political correspondent, Ireland's health minister, Simon Harris, said on Saturday he'll ask for formal approval to turn a draft of abortion law into "full text."

Meanwhile, the Guardian reports that Varadkar hopes that laws allowing abortions in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy will be in place by the end of this year.

Related Stories:
Yes campaigners hug one another as the count in the Irish referendum on the 8th amendment concerning the country's abortion laws takes place at the RDS centre - Getty Images Europe

Irelands prime minister hailed the "quiet revolution which delivered an overwhelming victory in favour of repealing its strict abortion laws on Saturday in a poll that marked voters' steady drift away from the grip of the country's conservative Catholic roots.

The country voted 67 per cent in favour of reform and 33 per cent against in a landslide victory for the pro-choice Yes campaign.

"We have seen the culmination of a quiet revolution that's been taking place in Ireland over 20 years," Mr Varadkar said, as he waited for the votes to be counted in Dublin.

"It's been a great exercise in democracy and the people have said we want a modern constitution for a modern country, and that we trust women to take the right decisions about their own healthcare."

Even Ireland's rural and conservative areas backed reform, with County Roscommon and the town of Longford returning Yes votes.

The majority of Irish voters have backed changing the country's abortion law

Support for reform was so widespread that the No campaign conceded defeat several hours before the referendum count was finished.

"The people of Ireland weighed it in the balance and it came down on one side. I obviously would have preferred if they had come down on the other," John McGuirk, communications director for the "Save the 8th" campaign, said on Saturday.

Dr Peter Boylan, a leading member of the Yes campaign and former Master of the National Maternity Hospital, said they were "relieved and vindicated."

Thousands forced abroad for terminations

Since it was passed in 1983, an estimated 170,000 Irish women have had to travel to England for terminations. Those who have the procedure done illegally at home risk up to 14 years in prison.

However, the pro-life No campaign has warned that the government's alternative, unrestricted access to abortion up to 12 weeks, is "too extreme."

Story continues

Young and old packed the streets of Dublin on Friday as they lined up to cast their vote following a tense and divisive campaign which has forced the country to grapple with its deeply held Catholic convictions.

One of the victims of Ireland's abortion policies referenced by the Yes campaign was Savita Halappanavar, died in hospital in Galway aged 31 when she was refused an abortion during a miscarriage.

Her husband, Praveen Halappanavar, said she repeatedly asked for a termination but was refused because there was a foetal heartbeat.

Irish PM urged reform

President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina cast their votes in Dublin on Friday morning.

Around two hours later Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar, a vocal advocate for repeal, voted in the city. "I always get a little buzz from voting, it just feels like it is democracy in action," Mr Varadkar said after emerging from the polling station at Castleknock.

"Not taking anything for granted of course, but quietly confident - there's been good turnout across the country so far and hoping for a Yes vote tomorrow.

"Obviously, I would be encouraging everyone to come out and vote, a high turnout would be to the advantage of the yes campaign."

He urged voters not to be distracted by the sunny weather and exercise their democratic right.

Yes campaigners hug one another as the count in the Irish referendum on the 8th amendment concerning the country's abortion laws takes place at the RDS centre

#HomeToVote campaign boosted turnout

For several days at Dublin airport, activists had gathered in the arrivals lounge, clapping and cheering as they greeted Irish expats returning from as far away as Los Angeles, Hanoi and Nairobi to cast their vote.

One group of well-wishers held large welcome home banner. Another unfurled a sign which said: Thank you for making the journey so other women dont have to.

Tara Flynn, a 48-year-old Yes voter, who had to fly to the Netherlands for an abortion 11 years ago, said: Its a vote to say, I dont send you away anymore," referring to women who are forced to go abroad for terminations.

Since Thursday, fleets of cars driven by volunteers have been ferrying voters from the airport to polling stations across the country.

Many used social media to offer lifts, with Molly OCathain posting a photograph on Twitter of her car with a sign in the window that read Repeal Mobile".

Over 3,000 Irish women have UK abortions per year

What happens next?

In a No vote scenario, nothing would have changed. But the Yes victory means the eighth amendment will be repealed.

Then, Irish lawmakers will get to work transferring the government's proposals into law.

Mr Varadkar has urged lawmakers to vote through the new legislation, whichever way they voted in the campaign.
Ireland has voted to repeal the Eighth Amendment of its constitution, two major exit polls are projecting. The vote, if confirmed by official results, would pave the way for the lifting of one of the strictest abortion laws in the world.

An Irish Times exit poll of about 4,000 voters by Ipsos/MRBI shows that 68% voted Yes to repealing the Eighth Amendment, which guarantees a mother and her unborn fetus an equal right to life. An estimated 32% said No, according to the poll. RTEs exit poll showed a similar split on the vote, with an estimated 69.4% voting Yes and 30.6% voting No, according to the exit poll.

RTE exit poll on the Eighth Amendment projects: Yes 69.4% No 30.6%  RTE News (@rtenews) May 25, 2018

Thousands of Irish citizens living overseas traveled home to vote in the referendum, which did not have a postal vote option. More than 100,000 people were added to the voting register in the run-up to the vote, compared to 65,000 new entries before the countrys 2015 referendum which legalized same-sex marriage.

Abortion is currently only legal in Ireland in cases where the mothers life is at risk, and remains illegal in cases of rape, incest or fetal abnormality. The Eighth Amendment had prevented any further relaxation of the ban.

If the results are confirmed, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar will now likely introduce legislation to allow abortion up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, and further in cases where the mothers life is at risk.

Varadkar, who supported the Yes campaign, said on Thursday that the referendum, announced in September 2017, was a once in a generation decision and was unlikely to be re-run for another 35 years.

Opinion polls in the run up to the vote had shown a majority for the Yes campaign, but high numbers of undecided voters lead many to believe the result would be far closer than the same-sex marriage referendum, which passed with a 62% majority. Ireland has long been one of Europes most socially conservative countries, and contraception was only fully legalized in 1985, while divorce was banned until 1995. The declining influence of the Catholic Church, which was instrumental in seeing the Eighth Amendment introduced via referendum in 1983, is one explanation for todays result.

Story continues

Campaigning by pro- and anti-abortion groups has ramped up in recent weeks, dominating the news cycle in Ireland.

Throughout the campaign, supporters of the Yes side argued that the ban does not prevent abortions but forces women to travel to the U.K.  at an average rate of nine a day  to terminate unwanted pregnancies They also pointed out that no one under the age of 50 had had the opportunity to vote on abortion law, despite it remaining a high profile issue in public debate for decades, particularly since the 2012 case of Savita Halappanavar, who died from sepsis after doctors in a Galway hospital refused to terminate her pregnancy when she was miscarrying.

Anti-abortion activists on the No side said the Eighth Amendment had saved thousands of lives and focused in particular on preventing the abortion of fetuses with genetic abnormalities. Disability rights campaigners and others, including Varadkar, criticized the No sides use of images of children with Down Syndrome on posters as wrong.
Photo: Getty Images

On a long holiday weekend, we often turn to celebrities Twitter and Instagram accounts to escape vicariously to their fabulous beach houses and gourmet barbecues. This weekend, however, some of our go-to sharers are instead calling our attention to the scary plight of the children whom immigration officials have separated from their families at the border. Actors, models, and other famous people have joined their voices with others asking #WhereAretheChildren, referring to the almost 1,500 children the Department of Health and Human Services may have misplaced in the process.

Are we really such monsters?! Jessica Chastain exclaimed, with a link to an MSNBC story about missing children as young as 18 months old.

Alyssa Milano called for her followers to take action, writing, Call 1-866-DHS-2-ICE and ask them #WhereAreTheChildren?

I dont understand how anyone could work for @ICEgov. ICEs policy of separating children from their families under the Trump administration is not only un-American, its inhumane. Call 1-866-DHS-2-ICE and ask them #WhereAreTheChildren?  Alyssa Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) May 26, 2018

Wowthis is horrifying and flat out sick, Zendaya wrote on Saturday, retweeting Shaun Kings post.

Wowthis is horrifying and flat out sick. https://t.co/ienJIAcQII  Zendaya (@Zendaya) May 26, 2018

Sophia Bush had passionate words about the issue.

Story continues

This is disgusting, the One Tree Hill alum wrote.

This is disgusting. This is a stain on America. This is not who we are. And given that Trumps agencies have LOST more than 1,470 CHILDREN since this barbaric practice began, there can be NO EXCUSE made as to what purpose this policy serves. Horrific. https://t.co/qq73NGyArL  Sophia Bush (@SophiaBush) May 25, 2018

Many others used their feeds to shine more light on this news.

Shameful. Unfathomable. Disgraceful. 1,475 children. Lost. Why isnt this the biggest news story in America??? Kumail Nanjiani asked.

Shameful. Unfathomable. Disgraceful. 1,475 children. Lost. Why isnt this the biggest news story in America??? https://t.co/JbK8n1wYcj  Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) May 25, 2018

There were some, like Rowan Blanchard and Lena Dunham, who took to retweeting stories about the childrens plight.

Chrissy Teigen took aim at both the Trump administrations policy and the New York Times Maggie Haberman in one stinging tweet.

If you said lies instead of demonstrable falsehoods (although I applaud this blend of simultaneous trump ass kissing and Twitter trolling) you could have spelled out both morning and including  sorry, making the best of character usage is one of my passions. Now Im out. https://t.co/vdRQGHEBAJ  christine teigen (@chrissyteigen) May 26, 2018

Julianne Moore called for people to sign the ACLUs petition to stop immigration officials from abusing immigrant children.

Im fighting to stop U.S. Customs and Border Protection from abusing immigrant children. Will you join me? https://t.co/UgILrYI6w6  Julianne Moore (@_juliannemoore) May 26, 2018

Scott Wagner, the acting assistant secretary for the Administration for Children and Families (part of the Department of Health and Human Services), reportedly told a Senate subcommittee that between October and December 2017, his department checked on 7,635 unaccompanied children that had been sent to live with sponsors after their parents were detained. The department was unable to determine with certainty the whereabouts of 1,475 children. Another 28 had run away.

Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day.




By Rozanna Latiff KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysian police said on Friday that cash worth 114 million ringgit ($28.6 million) and over 400 luxury handbags were seized from several apartments as part of an anti-graft probe into a state fund founded by former prime minister Najib Razak. Najib's home, and the apartments of a son, and a daughter were among a dozen properties searched since May 18, Amar Singh, the head of commercial crime division, told a news conference. Since his defeat in an election on May 9, Najib has been barred from leaving the country by the new government, which has reopened an investigation into billions of dollars missing from 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). At one empty apartment, officers found 35 bags stuffed with cash valued at 114 million ringgit. The banknotes were in 26 currencies, though the largest amounts were in ringgit and Singapore dollars. "We have sat together with bank officials to tally and estimate the total cash seized," Singh said. Singh said the empty apartment in Pavillion Residences, in the Bukit Bintang neighborhood of Kuala Lumpur, did not belong to any of Najib's family members. He declined to name the owner. Police also found 284 boxes of handbags in the apartment, and a further 150 handbags were seized from the home of Najib's daughter, Nooryana Najwa, along with various shoes, including baby shoes. Singh said most of the bags appeared to be a Hermes brand. "We have had discussions with Hermes, and we will take pictures and send them to Paris to verify their authenticity and their value," Singh said. Nooryana, better known as Gina, married a nephew of Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev's three years ago. Singh did not say what was found at the home of Najib's son Ashman. Experts were being brought in to value the jewelry, watches and other luxury items seized during the raid. Singh said half a million ringgit, excluding foreign currency, was found at Najib's home. Najib concluded giving a statement to anti-graft agents on Thursday that was related to transactions of $10.6 million into his bank account that investigators had traced to a former unit of 1MDB. Najib, who led the country for almost a decade, has consistently denied any wrongdoing, having explained three years ago that $680 million transferred into his account had been a donation from an unnamed Saudi royal. In a separate development, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said in a tweet that he had asked tax authorities to investigate financier Low Taek Jho and his family as part of the 1MDB probe. Commonly referred to as Jho Low, the high-living 36-year-old was close to Najib's family. His whereabouts are unknown. He has previously denied any wrongdoing, but the U.S. Department of Justice is seeking to seize his assets, including a $250 million superyacht that the department says was purchased with funds "stolen and embezzled" from 1MDB. Malaysia's new government pledged on Friday to honor all payments on debt arising from 1MDB. It has estimated that government guarantees covered 38 billion ringgit ($9.54 billion) of 1MDB's debt at the end of 2017. "We will honor those even though we are not happy with 1MDB, but we have to honor our international obligations," Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said. "I think this will reassure the markets that this government knows what it is doing". PARTY WANTS ITS MONEY BACK Late on Thursday, Najib's defeated United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) asked police to return to the party money seized during the raids, describing it as campaign contributions and party funding left over after the election. UMNO said the funds were in the process of being transferred to the party's new leadership when they were seized. "As such, UMNO seeks to recover these funds and requests the police to release these funds and return them to the party after completion of all due process and investigations by the relevant authorities," the party said. Out of power for the first time since independence six decades ago, UMNO said it needed the money to recover from its defeat. "UMNO is in the process of rebuilding and the return of our party funds will help in this process," the statement said. Najib quit as president of UMNO a day after the election, and was replaced by his deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. The new government is led by 92-year-old Mahathir Mohamad, a former prime minister and UMNO leader who joined the opposition to defeat his erstwhile protege after becoming convinced of his corruption. UMNO has long been known for its 'money politics', as the party has built its support among ethnic Malays through a system of patronage. The UMNO statement noted that Mahathir had handed back 1.2 billion ringgit ($301 million) to the party and its 3 million members when he stepped down as party president in 2003. (Additional reporting by Joseph Sipalan and Liz Lee; Writing by Simon Cameron-Moore; Editing by Darren Schuettler)
Matthew Pottinger has been identified as the senior White House official quoted in a report from The New York Times about President Donald Trumps proposedand then canceled meeting with North Korea leader Kim Jong Un. Trump previously accused the newspaper of making up the quote and using "phony sources."

The newspaper's story, published Friday, was about a deep rift within the White House regarding the presidents canceled summit on June 12, during which he was going to meet with the North Korean leader. In a series of tweets, Trump attempted to discredit the newspaper and said no such source or internal friction existed.

Trump wrote: The Failing @nytimes quotes 'a senior White House official,' who doesnt exist, as saying 'even if the meeting were reinstated, holding it on June 12 would be impossible, given the lack of time and the amount of planning needed.' WRONG AGAIN! Use real people, not phony sources.

Trending: Tropical Storm Alberto Update: Where Is Storm Going And When Will It Hit?

He followed that up with another repudiation of the newspaper's reporting.

Reporters from various news outlets quickly pushed back against Trump's claims, saying they too heard the official make the remark. Several hours later, a video and audio recording taken last Thursday of Pottinger giving reporters the quote in a background press briefing started circulating widely on Twitter, after it was first shared by journalist Yashar Ali.

Don't miss: Michelle Wolf Hits Sarah Huckabee Sanders Again, Slamming Her 'Ugly Personality'

In the clip, White House deputy press secretary Raj Singh introduces Pottinger to reporters in the White House press briefing room.

"This briefings gonna be on background, off camera, not for broadcast," Singh tells the pool of reporters. "Pottinger here can be referred to as a senior White House official. He is deputy assistant to the president for Asia.

Story continues

Pottinger then makes the remark that was quoted in The New York Times.

Pottinger is a former reporter for The Wall Street Journal, where he covered China. He left the news industry and joined the U.S. Marines in 2005, according to a biography in the Council on Foreign Relations. In 2017, the 43-year-old former intelligence officer was picked by the Trump administration to oversee Asian affairs in the U.S. National Security Council.

Most popular: George H.W. Bush Hospitalized for 'Low Blood Pressure' and 'Fatigue,' According to Spokesman

In a 2006 interview with ABC News, Pottinger spoke about leaving behind journalism in favor of military work.

"I would come home, and you didn't feel coming home to the United States from abroad that we were a country at war," Pottinger said of his decision to enlist. "I was surprised by that  and that disturbed me. It gave me a sense that we were being a little bit too complacent."

Pottinger, who won several reporting awards for his coverage of Asia, went on to become a decorated military official. According to the Council on Foreign Relations, he received a Bronze Star Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Combat Action Ribbon and the 2009 Lieutenant Colonel Michael Kuszewski award for Marine Corps Intelligence Officer of the Year.

Trumps Saturday tweet storm isnt the first time his administration has pushed back on a quote reportedly given by Pottinger. In February, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders slammed a news story in which Pottinger said a strike on North Korea would be a smart political move.

Never happened. Pottinger is a Marine who served in two wars and doesnt take military action lightly, she tweeted. Cant believe @WSJ reporter didnt reach out for a comment before repeating such a reckless accusation.

GettyImages-903906908

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
The Hague (AFP) - International investigators this week concluded that a Malaysia Airlines flight that crashed in war-torn Ukraine in 2014 had been struck by a missile that came from a Russian military brigade.

But Russia denies any responsiblity for the mid-air destruction of flight MH17, which killed all 298 people on board.

Here is a recap of the main developments.

- Crash, first accusations -

On July 17, 2014 the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 -- en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur -- crashes in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region where pro-Russian separatist rebels are battling Ukraine forces.

Dutch nationals account for two-thirds of the dead, along with about 30 Australians and 30 Malaysians, with many victims having dual nationalities.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko calls it a "terrorist act".

Pro-Russian rebels in the area claim the airliner was shot down by a Ukrainian military jet. Russian President Vladimir Putin says Ukraine "bears responsibility".

The following day US president Barack Obama says a missile fired from separatist-held territory was to blame and the rebels would not have been able to hit the airliner without Russian support.

- Investigation -

The Netherlands leads teams of international investigators to retrieve body parts, probe the cause of the incident and eventually prosecute those responsible.

The Dutch Safety Board (OVV) is charged with looking into the exact cause of the crash.

In September 2014 a first report released by the OVV says MH17 broke apart mid-air after being hit by numerous high-speed objects.

In July 2015 Russia vetoes a UN Security Council resolution that seeks to set up a special tribunal to prosecute those responsible. The resolution had been drafted by Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine.

In August investigators say they have identified seven large fragments "probably" from a BUK surface-air-missile system, which is possessed by both Moscow and Kiev.

Story continues

In October investigators conclude the plane was shot down by a missile fired from eastern Ukraine and which exploded "outside the airplane against the left-hand side of the cockpit," Dutch Safety Board chairman Tjibbe Joustra says.

"This warhead fits the kind of missile that is installed in the BUK surface-to-air missile system," he notes, adding that given the fighting in the area, "there was sufficient reason for the Ukrainian authorities to close the air space above the eastern part of their country."

- Missile 'irrefutable' -

In September 2016 Dutch-led investigators say they have "irrefutable evidence" that a BUK missile was used in the incident and that it "came from the territory of the Russian Federation".

They pinpoint for the first time that the device was fired from a field in a part of eastern Ukraine then controlled by pro-Russian separatists. But they cannot say who gave the orders and launched the weapon.

An accident, sabotage from within the plane or an attack by a military aircraft are definitively ruled out.

Moscow describes the inquiry as "biased" and "politically motivated".

- Russia 'responsible' -

On May 24, 2018 investigators say, in another first, that the missile originated from a Russian military brigade based in Kursk.

This is after the investigating team had painstakingly recreated the route taken by a missile convoy from Kursk towards the border into Ukraine using videos and photos.

They also identify two key suspects after obtaining wire-tapped conversations before and after the plane was shot out of the sky.

The following day, The Netherlands and Australia say they hold Russia responsible "for its share of the downing" of the flight.

Moscow's responds that the "gratuitous accusations are an attempt to discredit our nation in the eyes of the international community".
Rabat (AFP) - More than a month after its launch, an unprecedented boycott campaign in Morocco against three well-known brands has revived criticism against links between the country's business and political elite.

Spreading like wildfire across social media, the campaign is targeting Afriquia service stations, Sidi Ali water and Danone milk -- leaders in their sectors -- and calling for a drop in prices.

Despite brand communication efforts to curb the campaign, AFP saw its popularity in cafes, shops and deserted Afriquia petrol stations in several Moroccan cities.

Some 57 percent of Moroccans are actively engaged in the boycott, according to a survey of 3,575 mostly middle class Moroccans published this week in the country's L'Economiste newspaper.

The Afriquia group belongs to billionaire Aziz Akhannouch, the richest man in Morocco, minister of agriculture since 2007 and head of the National Rally of Independents (NRI) technocrat political party.

The boycott carries "a symbolic message from the middle class" against the marriage between political power and big business, political analyst Aziz Chahir told AFP.

Ahmed Bouz, another political analyst, said the campaign shows "awareness of the need to separate politics from business".

- 'Conflicts of interest' -

The Moroccan press frequently covered conflict of interest throughout the 2000s, placing a sharp focus on the royal family and the National Investment Company -- since transformed into a holding company and renamed Al Mada.

The enrichment of the country's ruling elite resurfaced in 2011 as the popular revolts of the Arab Spring swept across the region.

Consitutional reform that year fuelled hopes for change, but the current government -- formed in 2017 by the Islamist PJD party -- brought in more technocrats and businessmen, along with accusations of conflict of interest.

Moroccan media and activists accuse Trade Minister Moulay Hafid Elalamy -- who heads one of the country's largest conglomerates -- of helping to pass a favourable tax provision for the transfer of his Saham insurance company to South African giant Sanlam.

Story continues

Elalamy says he has complied with the law and asked for an inquiry into the transaction to prove his innocence.

"Nothing in the law prohibits businessmen from holding government positions," Abdelali Benamour, head of Morocco's Competition Council, told AFP.

Fouad Abdelmoumen of Transparency Moroc said: "The state has not put in place mechanisms that define conflicts of interest and that contain excesses."

Excessive profits in big business -- especially fuel distributors like Afriquia -- has also stoked anger among Moroccans.

A mid-May parliamentary report on the evolution of fuel prices since their liberalisation in 2015 caused an uproar.

The final version of the report -- its most glaring figures redacted -- put the sector's profit margins above $1.5 billion (1.3 billion euros).

The alliance between business and politics appeared again in headlines Tuesday, when Salaheddine Mezouar -- former finance minister, trade minister and head of the NRI -- was elected head of Morocco's private business sector.
Managua (AFP) - Hundreds of protesters dug in around Nicaragua on Saturday, blocking roads as at least eight more people were killed in a 24-hour period.

Unrest has resumed since week-long church-mediated talks between the government and opposition to quell a month of violence broke down late on Wednesday.

Hundreds of demonstrators in the north, center and south of the Central American nation were blocking highways on Saturday, demanding Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, stand down.

Since protests began on April 18 at least 83 people have been killed and more than 860 wounded, police and rights activists say.

Four people were killed on Friday, and another four by mid-day Saturday, police and family members said.

Ortega, a former Sandinista guerrilla who first ruled between 1979 and 1990 before returning as president 11 years ago, had kept power by maintaining leftist rhetoric while ensuring an accommodation with powerful private industry and keeping up trade with the United States.

But demonstrators have voiced frustration over corruption, the autocratic style of Ortega and Murillo, limited options to change the country's politics in elections, and the president's control over Congress, the courts, the military and the electoral board.

The Organization of American States has called for Ortega to call early elections, an issue which became the biggest stumbling block in dialogue.

Foreign Minister Denis Moncada said an early ballot would mean "dismantling constitutional order and the democratically elected government."

Before protests broke out, an OAS team had been trying to mediate in a process aimed at bringing about new elections, as well as electoral reforms.

Ortega and Murillo were elected in November 2016 for a term that ends in January 2022.
North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un may no longer get the unprecedented face-to-face meeting with President Donald Trump he wantedand that may just work out in his favor.

Experts from 38 North, a North Korea monitoring group newly affiliated with the Washington-based Stimson Center, said Friday that they were skeptical the dialogue would get back on track, and even if it did, Kim has left himself options. 38 North founder and Stimson Center senior fellow Joel Wit said North Korea has emerged from the recent hiccough "in a very good spot."

"They have a plan B and its in place, a plan B for the summit failing or even President Trump acting in a willful way and then withdrawing from the summit. Theyre in a good spot with the Chinese, with the Russians, with the South Koreans, and I think the administration really doesnt understand the situation if it thinks it can reinstate a maximum pressure campaign," Wit said Friday during a media conference call.

Trending: Who Is Matthew Pottinger? Audio of White House Official Debunks Trump's "Phony" Attack on The New York Times

Trump has since softened his tone after abruptly canceling what would be the first-ever summit between a sitting U.S. president and North Korean ruler, set to take place June 12 in Singapore. Trump was apparently flattered by an unusually diplomatic North Korean response to his decision, which came after hardliners such as National Security Adviser John Bolton and Vice President Mike Pence suggested Kim's survival depended on him giving up nuclear weapons. Trump, however, has yet to definitively re-commit to the meeting.

RTX5N7IV

Damir Sagolj/Reuters

Story continues

In a manner that's become typical of the Trump administration, the president's choice to call off the summit Thursday was about as surprising as his decision to accept it. Plans for the historic get-together developed over months of intensive, rare direct diplomacy between North Korea and its longtime rival, U.S.-backed South Korea. After meeting directly with Kim, a team of South Korean President Moon Jae-in's top security officials flew straight to Washington on March 8.

That night, South Korean national security chief Chung Eui-yong announced in front of the White House that Kim had invited Trumpa man with whom he had swapped violent and nuclear-fueled threats throughout 2017to sit down with him and talk peace. Trump not only accepted; he said he would oblige his foe by the end of May. The date was later set to June 12 as the Republican leader began to moderate expectations by saying he would walk away from the meeting if efforts to convince North Korea to abandon the nuclear weapons it considered crucial to its survival proved "fruitless."

Related: Why Did Kim Jong Un Go to China? This Is North Koreas Plan to Divide and Conquer U.S. and Its Top Rival in Asia

Don't miss: American Airlines Passenger Arrested For Cursing And Punching Other Passengers After He Was Denied More Drinks

At the time, Kim and Trump both felt they had scored a diplomatic victory. Riding high, Kim embarked on his debut foreign trip later that month to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, who some experts said felt sidelined by the sudden overture between the U.S. and North Korea. China is North Korea's greatest traditional ally, having supplied waves of communist forces during the 1950s Korean War that set the stage for North Korea's current anti-U.S. sentiments.

Unlike his father and grandfather, Kim has not readily embraced his Chinese neighbor and waited six years before visiting. In those years, Kim had purged a number of his father's elites, some of whomincluding his uncle Jang Song Thaekhad close ties to Beijing. The message sent by Kim seeing Xi only after securing talks with Trump was clear, as was the symbolism behind Kim making history by crossing into South Korea to talk to Moon last month.

RTX5XZBO

2018 INTER-KOREAN SUMMIT PREPARATION COMMITTEE/REUTERS

"Kims plan B has been pretty obvious in the run-up to the summit. Plan B has been 'Im finally going to go to China and meet Xi Jinping, not once but twice,' and plan B has been 'Okay, well have a summit with the South Koreans, well raise their expectations for the future, and Im sure theres been a lot of outreach to the Russians as well," Wit said.

"So, Kim has created sort of a cushion for failure, that if the U.S. backs away, the Chinese and Russians will be behind him. Theyre not going to back new sanctions unless Kim does something really extreme. And the South Koreans are going to be moving closer to the North Koreans in trying to salvage the process," he added.

Most popular: Twitter Down and Not Working For Users Saturday

Related: Will U.S. Go to War with North Korea? Trump Says 'Our Military Is Ready' After Calling Off Kim Jong Un Talks

China and Russia have so far supported U.S.-led sanctions at the United Nations Security Council, agreeing that North Korea should not be allowed to wield nuclear weapons. The two powers, however, have also found major common ground in opposing an expanding U.S. presence in the Asia-Pacific and have greatly expanded their military, political and economic relationships in what the West has largely perceived as a challenge to its own dominance.

While even Russia and China's current combined military might likely fell far flat from that of the U.S., the two nations have taken advantage of U.S. decisions unpopular with the international community, such as Trump's decision to withdraw from the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement, of which Moscow and Beijing are both signatories. Russia and China have similarly expressed disappointment in Trump's letter of cancelation, which reportedly blindsided even South Korea.

In fact, Trump's letter was released just two days after Moon spoke with the president in Washington. When Moon found out about the cancelation, he told reporters he was "very perplexed by the situation." South Korea's relationship with the U.S. has been as robust as they come in terms of Washington's presence in Asia. On the Asia Power Index released earlier this month by the Lowy Institute, South Korea ranked seventh out of 25 regional players and third in defense networks, trailing only the U.S. and Australia.

These defense networks have alienated it from a rapidly-rising China, wholike Russiaremains critical of advanced U.S.-built missile defense systems such as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea. Moon, seen as moderate compared to his conservative predecessor, also expressed skepticism toward the high-tech defense system as he came to office. As more South Koreans than ever warm up to the idea of repairing a peninsula divided by the world's most heavily fortified border, the U.S. may be in danger of losing its appeal.

"[The North Koreans] dont have to have this summit now, because their plan B is working. They do have good relations. Theyve repaired a lot of relations with China. Theyre building better relations with Russia," Jenny Town, 38 North managing editor and research analyst at the Stimson Center, said during Friday's call.

"You know, the South KoreansI saw the news this morningI think the South Koreans are saying, too, they want to keep moving forward on the Panmunjom Declaration, and trying to fulfill those commitments, as well. So, the 'odd man out' now is the U.S.," she added.

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Analyst: bold but risky talks result of Trump temper tantrum



Opinion: Who knew North Korean diplomacy was so hard?

The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, met his South Korean counterpart on Saturday, two days after Donald Trump cancelled a planned summit with Kim.

Moon Jae-in crossed into the north at the border village of Panmunjom, where the two met for the first time in April, the South Korean presidents office said. The two leaders discussed the US-North Korea summit, as well as implementing the joint statement released at the end of their earlier meeting.

The surprise meeting highlighted Moons efforts to get the historic US-North Korea talks back on track, and showed inter-Korea relations are in a far better state than those between Washington and Pyongyang.

The Norths state-run KCNA news agency said the two leaders agreed to meet frequently in the future to make dialogue brisk and pool wisdom and efforts, expressing their stand to make joint efforts for the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

Specifically, Moon and Kim will hold high-level talks on Friday, the agency added.

Seouls presidential Blue House said in a statement: They exchanged views and discussed ways to implement the Panmunjom Declaration [on improving inter-Korean ties] and to ensure a successful US North Korea summit.

On Friday, Trump made a partial climbdown, saying the summit could still be held in Singapore on 12 June if conditions are right. On Saturday, press secretary Sarah Sanders said White House staffers and state department officials would still travel to Singapore for a logistics meeting, in order to prepare should the summit take place.

In a pair of angry tweets, Trump said there was ZERO disagreement within his administration about North Korea but if there was it wouldnt matter. He also disputed a report in the New York Times about the issue, claiming the senior White House official citied in the story doesnt exist.

Story continues

Reporters from outlets including the Times pushed back, noting that the quote to which Trump appeared to be objecting was from a background briefing on North Korea that was fully sanctioned by the White House.

Moon Jae-in  must keep his people safe from war. Each of Trumps whims shakes the walls of the Blue House Adam Mount, Federation of American Scientists

Trump has faced fierce criticism over his inconsistency as a partner in the high-stakes talks. Adam Mount, director of the Defense Posture Project at the Federation of American Scientists, said on Saturday Moons bold but risky meeting with Kim was a clear demonstration of how dangerous Trumps temper tantrum was.

When Kim Jong-un was allowed to split the negotiations into separate tracks with Trump and Moon, he gained leverage over both, Mount wrote on Twitter. Moon was sitting too alone at the table today, without the full weight of the United States.

Trump says everybody plays games, Mount added, referring to Trumps response when asked about North Koreas posture on Friday. Moon Jae-in is not playing a game: he must keep his people safe from war. Each of Trumps whims shakes the walls of the Blue House.

Photos released by the South Korean presidential office showed the two leaders embracing, shaking hands and holding intimate talks, accompanied by a single aide each. Moon was expected to announce further details on Sunday.

In their first summit in April, Kim and Moon announced vague aspirations for a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and peace, which Seoul tried to sell as a breakthrough to set up the summit with Trump. But relations chilled as North Korea canceled a high-level meeting over South Koreas military exercises with the US.

The South was caught off guard by Trumps abrupt cancellation of the Singapore summit, citing hostility in recent North Korean comments. Moon said Trumps decision left him perplexed and was very regrettable and urged Washington and Pyongyang to establish more direct and closer dialogue between their leaders.

Trumps behaviour has fanned fears in South Korea regarding a rival intent on driving a wedge between Washington and Seoul and a US president who thinks less of a traditional alliance than his predecessors. The decision to pull out of the summit came just days after Trump hosted Moon in a White House meeting where he cast doubts on the Singapore summit and offered no support for inter-Korean progress.

In his letter to Kim cancelling the summit, Trump objected to a statement from senior diplomat Choe Son Hui, who referred to vice-president Mike Pence as a political dummy and said it was up to the Americans whether they would meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown.

North Korea issued an unusually restrained response, saying it was still willing to sit for talks with the US at any time, (in) any format.

The first meeting would not solve all, but solving even one at a time in a phased way would make the relations get better rather than making them get worse, vice-foreign minister Kim Kye Gwan said in a statement carried by Pyongyangs official Korean Central News Agency.

A TV screen shows Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong-un. Photograph: Ahn Young-joon/AP

Notably, the statement did not appear in Saturdays edition of Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece of the ruling party. The newspaper focused on Kims visit to Wonsan to inspect a beachfront tourist complex.

Analysts say Kims outreach after nuclear and missile tests in 2017 indicates he is eager for sanctions relief and international legitimacy. Earlier this month, Kim released three US citizens. This week, Pyongyang invited international journalists to observe what it claimed was the dismantling of its only known nuclear test site. The regime has also declared that it no longer needs to conduct tests.

There is also skepticism whether Kim will ever agree to relinquish his nuclear weapons, which analysts believe he sees as his only guarantee of survival. Comments in state media indicate Kim sees any meeting with Trump as a negotiation between nuclear states. The North has said it will not participate if it is pressured to give up its arsenal.

In Washington, a cadre of Trumps most fervent Republican supporters in Congress have nominated the president for a Nobel peace prize. The Trump administration also issued an official but widely mocked summit commemorative coin, featuring profiles of Trump and Kim against the backdrop of their countries flags.
The movie theater used to be a place to escape to when you just needed a darkened, air-conditioned room to plop down in for a couple of hours. Its now facing some tough competition from your darkened, air-conditioned living room. For those who cant be moved to sweat their way to a theater, theres a full slate of Netflix original movies hitting the small screen this season.

From zombie survival thrillers to quaint British period pieces, heres whats new on Netflix this summeradding to an already packed slate of summer movie releases.

Cargo (May 18)

In this emotional zombie survival movie based on a critically acclaimed short film, Martin Freeman plays the infected father of an infant daughter who forges unexpected connections while trying to protect her in the wilderness.

Ibiza (May 25)

Three girlfriends  played by Loves Gillian Jacobs, 2 Dope Queens Phoebe Robinson and Saturday Night Live alum Vanessa Bayer  travel to the Spanish island known for electronic- dance-music-fueled parties and soon find themselves on the hunt for an elusive DJ.

Daniel Doheny in Alex Strangelove

Alex Strangelove (June 8)

In a new comedy from the writer-director of The Skeleton Twins, a teenager is preparing to lose his virginity to his girlfriend when his sexual identity becomes confused by the introduction of a handsome stranger.

Set It Up (June 15)

Two frazzled, overworked assistants (Zoe Deutch and Glen Powell) try to set up their demanding bosses, played by Taye Diggs and Lucy Liu, in an effort to get them off their backs.

The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter (July 6)

Josh Brolin flexes his comedic muscles, alongside Vice Principals Danny McBride, as a hunter setting out to bond with his son over a pastime thats far from a shared interest.

Graduates (July 20)

David Spade and Nat Faxon (Friends From College) star in this comedy about two recent college grads whose argument about which dudes dad would win in a fight leads to the upending of a number of lives.

Like Father (Aug. 3)

Story continues

Kristen Bell and Kelsey Grammer team up as an estranged father-daughter duo on a Caribbean cruise originally intended to be her honeymoon.

Michael Pena and Lizzy Caplan in Extinction

Extinction (Aug. 10)

Michael Pena and Lizzy Caplan star in a sci-fi thriller about a father trying to save his family when the planet is invaded by a band of not-so-friendly outsiders.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society (Aug. 10)

Based on the 2008 novel of the same name, this historical drama sees Lily James as a writer who travels to a small British island and embeds with a quirky local club after World War II.

Lana Condor in To All the Boys I've Loved Before

To All the Boys Ive Loved Before (Aug. 17)

In this adaptation of Jenny Hans young-adult novel, a teenager (X-Men: Apocalypses Lana Condor) is mortified to find that all of the secret love letters shes written have been mysteriously delivered.
Utah Senator Orrin Hatch announced he has secured the long-awaited release of a Joshua and Thamy Holt from a Venezuela prison on Saturday. The married couple were arrested in 2016 over allegations they illegally stockpiled weaponsclaims the pair and their throngs of supporters have long denied.

"Im pleased to announce that after two years of hard work, weve secured the release of Josh and Thamy Holt, who are now on their way home to the United States from Venezuela," Hatch said in a statement.

He continued, "Over the last two years Ive worked with two Presidential administrations, countless diplomatic contacts, ambassadors from all over the world, a network of contacts in Venezuela, and President Maduro himself, and I could not be more honored to be able to reunite Josh with his sweet, long-suffering family in Riverton."

Trending: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Thinks Sirhan Did Not Fire Shots That Killed Father

He also credited Senator Bob Corker and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee with helping secure the release of the pair. His family released a statement later on Saturday, asking that the married couple are given time to adjust and reunite with loved ones.

"We thank you for your collaboration during this time of anguish," the family said in a statement. "We ask that you allow us to meet with our son and his wife before giving any interviews and statements. We are grateful to all who participated in this miracle."

Earlier on Saturday, President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter that a U.S. hostage was on the cusp of release, although he did not mention Holt by name. The hostage, he said, would be visiting the White House that evening.

"Good news about the release of the American hostage from Venezuela," Trump wrote. "Should be landing in D.C. this evening and be in the White House, with his family, at about 7:00 P.M. The great people of Utah will be very happy!"

Don't miss: Donald Trump Says 'Young And Beautiful' People's Lives Are Being Ruined By Russia Probe

Story continues

Only last week, Josh Holt wrote that he feared for his life and begged the United States to secure his release. In June 2016, the Utah native flew to Venezuela to marry Thamy, with whom he had been in a long-distance relationship. The pair were arrested days later on allegations that they stockpiled guns and explosives.

"Help me please united states, how long do I have to suffer unjustly in this place?," The Utah native wrote. "They want to kill me and paint the walls with my blood. I am a political prisoner and they won't let me free. They won't give me a true trial."

He also wrote that "people here are dying" and that he wasn't a "political pawn."

Most popular: Shrieking Woman Escorted off Flight After Hitting Passengers With Bible

"I just want to live happy with my wife and children," he wrote. "I have NEVER done anything wrong in my life. Please help me!!

Hatch previously pressured Venezuela president Nicolas Maduro to release the pair, arguing in an open letter that it could help soothe relations with the U.S.

"President Maduro has an opportunity to change his countrys course with the release of Josh and Thamy on humanitarian grounds," he wrote. "This action would be a historic step in opening the channels of communication between our two countries."

josh and thamy

Free Joshua Holt Facebook

This story is developing. Check back for updates.

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas could leave hospital soon after a week of treatment for pneumonia, a source close to him said on Sunday.

The hospital director however said no date had been set for his discharge.

A Palestinian official and a medical source earlier said Abbas could be released from hospital on Sunday afternoon.

But the source close to him said later doctors were still considering whether the 83-year-old's condition would allow for it.

His release Sunday "is not confirmed", the source told AFP.

"It could be today or tomorrow (Monday). Most likely tomorrow," the source added, on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity surrounding Abbas's hospitalisation.

Hospital director Saeed Sarahneh told official Palestinian news agency WAFA that Abbas's health was rapidly improving, but that no date was set for his discharge.

Abbas was admitted on May 20 to the Istishari Arab Hospital near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank with complications following an ear operation, including high fever.

Officials have since confirmed he was being treated for pneumonia.

His extended hospitalisation has led to widespread speculation over his condition, particularly with no successor publicly in line for the Palestinian presidency.

Pictures and video of Abbas walking around the wards and reading a newspaper were published last Monday, in an apparent bid to calm rumours that his condition was more serious than reported.

In February, he underwent what were described as routine medical tests in the United States.

Abbas won a four-year term as president in 2005, but he has since remained in office without further elections.

Abbas argues the split between his Fatah party and Islamist movement Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has made elections politically impossible.

A moderate, he has been involved in decades of negotiations with Israel but is unpopular among Palestinians, with the majority wanting him to step down.
The Parkland students are continuing to advocate for gun control, one issue at a time, and their efforts are creating real change. The latest proof of that is Publix, a supermarket chain found based in the southeastern United States.

After boycotts and protests on Friday, the grocery store has publicly announced it will stop making political contributions, including those for Florida gubernatorial candidate and proudly vocal "NRA sellout" Adam Putnam. It's all thanks to Parkland'sDavid Hogg and his peers, who spearheaded a protest against the chain with a successful "die-in" at one of the store's locations.

SEE ALSO: Parkland activists had breakfast with the Waffle House hero and they were all thrilled

"Anyone who supports an NRA sellout is an NRA sellout," Hogg tweeted on Tuesday in his call to arms to boycott Publix.

Anyone who supports an NRA sellout is an NRA sellout. That is why I am calling on everyone to stop shopping at Publix until they pull their endorsement of Putnam publicly. Publix is supporting the inaction after pulse, strozier, Douglas, liberty city. Dont support an NRA sellout  David Hogg (@davidhogg111) May 23, 2018

Just a few days later on May 25, students  in partnership with an organization birthed out of the Parkland shooting, Change The Ref  led the protests in Coral Springs, Florida inside and outside the store, with chalk outlines in the parking lot to commemorate the lives lost during the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Early this morning @davidhogg111 teamed up with @ChangeTheRef to create an art instillation outside of @publix in protest of the corporation and their support of Adam Putnam. 17 chalk outlines in multiple parking spots were drawn and wrapped in caution tape. #msd #neveragain pic.twitter.com/043cC2o6kA  Emilee McGovern (@EmileeRose) May 25, 2018

Inside, people staged a "die-in," lying on the floor of two local Publix stores on Friday. Additionally, Hogg put out a call for 12-minute die-in's to occur in various locations that afternoon as well.

Story continues

Together we can do anything. Together the young people will win by choosing love. pic.twitter.com/TRrfTJL2Wb  David Hogg (@davidhogg111) May 26, 2018

Guacs parents Manuel and Patricia lied down together at die in  protest to Publixs contributions to pro-NRA Adam Putnams campaign #ChangeTheRef #MarchForOurLives #parklandstrong pic.twitter.com/dYZSd6u9M7  Change the Ref (@ChangeTheRef) May 25, 2018

The action worked, and Publix released a statement announcing that its donations to political candidates would cease.

"We regret that our contributions have led to a divide in our community," the statement read, according to Tampa Bay Times. "We did not intend to put our associates and the customers they serve in the middle of a political debate. At the same time, we remain committed to maintaining a welcoming shopping experience for our customers. We would never knowingly disappoint our customers or the communities we serve."

The corporation and its leaders have donated $670,000 to Putnam specifically over three years, as reported by Tampa Bay Times. Hogg is also asking Publix to donate $1 million to the Stoneman Douglas Victims fund, though it's not clear if that's going to happen.

I call on @Publix to donate double the money they gave to Putman to the Stoneman Douglas Victims fund, $1,000,000. And never support an A rated NRA politician again.  David Hogg (@davidhogg111) May 24, 2018
Los Angeles (AFP) - Nova -- young, black, and a member of Los Angeles's homeless population -- is sick of looking feminine and wants a part-shaved, mainly dreadlocked hairstyle that can appear a little more manly when the occasion demands.

Mainstream hairdressers are often inadequate, unable to let Nova express a complex gender identity that falls outside of the traditional binary male-female classification.

Nova has come to Project Q, a mobile salon offering free haircuts to homeless "genderqueer" people across Los Angeles, as well as crucial support or advice on combating bullying and developing self-esteem.

"Not a lot of barbers will want to work with someone that they perceive as a woman, to cut their hair short, because they don't know what they're doing," said 31-year-old Madin Lopez, Project Q's founder.

"They try to leave it more feminine and try to make it pretty (around) the face."

Project Q's customers, like Lopez, mainly classify themselves as genderqueer or "non-binary" -- meaning their gender identities are not exclusively masculine or feminine.

Like many in the community, they prefer people to refer to them using gender-neutral pronouns -- typically "they," "them" and "their."

For black members of the LGBTQ community, finding a hairdresser who understands both their hair type and what they are looking for can pose a much greater challenge than for white people.

Nova, who lives in a homeless shelter, says they want to be able to feel "like a princess" on certain days but, on others, put on chest-flattening gear for a more masculine look.

In a caravan equipped with a large mirror, a swivel chair and a collection of brushes, scissors and razors, Lopez goes to work, guiding an electric razor to a background soundtrack of R&B.

- 'Resistance' -

A paying customer could easily be asked to shell out upwards of $700 for the complex cut Nova wants, but Lopez works free-of-charge and the equipment is covered by donations.

Story continues

"I look at Nova and I see myself. I've been in their shoes. I've been someone that didn't have a place to stay," says the softly-spoken Lopez, face broadening into a smile.

The stylist, who looks studious in circular-framed glasses, hair partly shaved, part cropped short, sees self-maintenance as a form of "resistance."

"Preservation is key to the longevity of our cause, our activism. I use hair as a form of activism," the crimper says.

Lopez's goal is to be a role model for these young people, the kind of mentor figure that the hairdresser never had as a youngster.

When Lopez was 13, their parents beat them, unable to accept their child's "queer" identity. One day, a teacher noticed Lopez had marks around their ears and the teenager was put in foster care.

"Sometimes it would take two to three weeks for me to even leave my room. And then I got my hair done, one of those times, and... something clicked. I just changed. I felt better about myself," Lopez explains.

Before long the budding stylist was cutting schoolmates' hair in return for bus tickets, something to eat or tampons.

High school was a breeding ground for violence, however -- Lopez even recalls having friends suffer gunshot wounds -- prompting a move to hairdressing school.

- 'You're going to hell' -

Life remains difficult for LGBTQ youth, despite advancements like the legalization of same-sex marriage, and doubly so for those in minority racial groups.

"We're still fighting bathroom laws," Lopez says -- a reference to the ongoing controversy in the United States over access to gender-neutral and women's restrooms for trans people who identify as female.

Meanwhile, frequent headlines about black youth being killed by police and homophobic attacks such as the 2016 Pulse nightclub massacre only add to the suffocating sense of unease.

"They are killing black men and they're killing gays, and I'm black and I'm gay. So you feel like a target and it's terrifying," Lopez tells AFP.

Another pressure, Lopez says, is the powerful influence of Christian evangelists in black communities, who are often intolerant of minority gender identity and sexuality.

It was a bitter lesson that Lopez learned upon marrying a woman.

"The night before my wedding my dad called and said, 'You're going to hell. I don't want to ever see you again,'" Lopez recalls.

Many non-binary young people rejected by their families end up on the streets, a situation exacerbated by California's chronic housing shortage.

For Nova, Lopez's hair salon is not merely a place for haircuts, but a sanctuary from the realities of a world that can be harsh for people whose identity is not considered the norm.

"It makes my life so much easier, especially going through my transition, especially when I have questions that I don't know how to answer myself," Nova tells AFP.

"And having that person that you can connect with, because they understand what you're going through, is very vital. And I feel like... they are literally saving life."
ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia was ready for dialogue with the United States, but that a proposed summit between him and U.S. President Donald Trump was not working out for now and was beset by problems. Trump said in March that the two leaders would meet soon, but since then already poor ties between Washington and Moscow have deteriorated further over the conflict in Syria and the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Britain. Speaking alongside French President Emmanuel Macron at an economic forum in St Petersburg, Putin said issues surrounding Iran, North Korea and fears of an arms race made it all the more important to hold a U.S.-Russia summit. "We are ready for dialogue with Trump," Putin told the forum. "(But) for now it's not working out. Many problems are arising." Putin praised Trump for fulfilling his pre-election promises in the United States, but made it clear he did not agree with his decision to pull Washington out of the Iran nuclear deal. However, Putin said Trump had not closed the door to talks on the issue or a new agreement with Iran, and said it was important for everyone concerned to keep talking. "All is not yet lost," said Putin. (Reporting by Denis Pinchuk; Writing by Tom Balmforth/Andrew Osborn; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
Russian President Vladimir Putin said to state media that he would step down from his position in 2024 after his current term. Russian law prohibits him from seeking a third consecutive term.

Putins future, however, remains an open question.

Putin previously served as president, but did not relinquish power when he left. After serving two terms as president, Putin moved to become Prime Minister in 2008 and then returned to being president in 2012.

Trending: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Thinks Sirhan Did Not Fire Shots That Killed Father

I have always strictly abided by and abide by the constitution of the Russian Federation, said Putin, according to Reuters. In the constitution, its clearly written that nobody can serve more than two terms in a row ... I intend to abide by this rule.

GettyImages-962424190

Grigory Dukor/AFP/GETTY

Putin, 65, won his fourth term in office in March by a landslide, garnering over 75 percent of the vote.

Don't miss: Donald Trump Says 'Young And Beautiful' People's Lives Are Being Ruined By Russia Probe

The comments were made at an economic forum in the Russian city of St. Petersburg. The meeting gathered other heads of states to Russia, and President Donald Trump loomed large over the proceedings.

French President Emmanuel Macron lamented Trumps decision to pull out of an international climate agreement and to tear up a nuclear deal with Iran, according to The New York Times.

Putin also criticized Trumps maneuvering out of the Iran nuclear deal.

Most popular: Shrieking Woman Escorted off Flight After Hitting Passengers With Bible

We cant sort things out with North Korea. Do we want another problem on the same scale? asked Putin according to the Independent.

On Saturday, Putin criticized the ongoing U.S. investigations into the possibility of ties between Russia and the Trump campaign during the 2016 election.

Story continues

We are hostages to this internal strife in the United States, said Putin, according to USA Today. I hope that it will end some day and the objective need for the development of Russian-American relationships will prevail.

Putin also criticized sanctions levied against his country  put in place for the Russian annexation of Crimea and meddling in the U.S. election.

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Nearly 1,500 children taken from the U.S.-Mexico border and placed into the care of a government agency have been lost. (Photo: Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The government program meant to place unaccompanied children taken from the U.S.-Mexico border into the care of a parent or sponsor admitted last month it lost nearly 1,500 of them.

And it said it isnt responsible for finding them either.

Senate testimony that was released last month but came to light more recently details how the Office of Refugee Resettlement  part of the Department of Health and Human Services  was unable to determine with certainty the whereabouts of 1,475 [children]. That was according to Steve Wagner, acting assistant secretary with the Administration for Children and Families.

The ORR was tasked between October and December 2017 with checking on the welfare of the more than 7,000 children supposedly placed into the homes of a sponsor or guardian. Along with the nearly 1,500 missing children, an additional 28 ran away and 52 were living with someone other than their initial sponsor, according to the testimony.

But Wagner also said that the ORR is not legally responsible for children after they are released from ORR care and handed over to a sponsor. In 2017 alone, more than 40,000 children were taken from the U.S.-Mexico border by the Department of Homeland Security and handed over to the ORR.

This is as horrific a policy as Ive seen in 25-plus years doing civil rights work, Lee Gelernt, an attorney with the ACLUs Immigrant Rights Project, told HuffPost. No child should be sent to these government facilities if they dont have to be, especially with all these problems in the ORR system.

One of those problems includes a terrifying 2014 mistake in which the ORR released several minors to human traffickers.

And what happens when a child cant be located by the ORR? Nothing, if the system continues to stay in place.

Wagner said he would be taking a fresh look at whether the office should have more responsibility to protect the children it takes and gives away. But he also clarified to the subcommittee that if the office were to more rigorously keep track of the immigrant kids, the ORR would need a significant expansion of the current program structure and an increase in resources.

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
A retired high school English teacher made headlines for her excoriation of what she described as a stylistically appalling letter that she received from the White House.

The letter, signed by President Donald Trump, would barely have received a passing grade if a high schooler had written it, Yvonne Mason, who retired last year after a 17-year teaching career in South Carolina, told The Greenville News last week.

If it had been written in middle school, Id give it a C or C-plus, Mason said. If it had been written in high school, Id give it a D.

The veteran teacher shared an image of the letter  covered with corrections shed made in purple ink  on Facebook earlier this month.

Have yall tried grammar and style check? Mason wrote at the top of the document. OMG this is WRONG! she wrote elsewhere, pointing out a capitalization error.

Mason said at the time that shed be mailing the letter back to Trump.

Mason told the Greenville newspaper she received the letter from the White House after penning a note to the president beseeching him to meet individually with families of the victims of Februarys Parkland, Florida, high school shooting.

She acknowledged that the letter  which did not specifically address her suggestion but touched on school safety and gun violence more generally  was likely written by a staff member and not the president himself.

Still, Mason said she expected more from a letter from the White House.

When you get letters from the highest level of government, you expect them to be at least mechanically correct, she said.

Former Mauldin High School English teacher Yvonne Mason corrected a letter she received from President Trump and sent it back to the White House. https://t.co/WIKY3FqlX9  Paolo Patronimic (@patronimic) May 27, 2018

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
President Donald Trumps lawyer flatly admitted that the White House is waging a fierce information campaign against special counsel Robert Mueller and his investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

The aim: to delegitimize the probe in the eyes of voters and lawmakers in Congress.

Rudy Giuliani, asked about the near-daily attacks on the probe, said on CNNs State of the Union Sunday, They are giving us the material. I couldnt do it if I didnt have the material. ... It is for public opinion.

Because eventually, the decision here is going to be: impeach, [or] not impeach, he continued. Members of Congress, Democrats and Republicans, are going to be informed a lot by their constituents. So our jury ... is the American people. And the American people ... Republicans largely, independents pretty substantially, and even Democrats now question the legitimacy of it.

Trump in recent days has ratcheted up his attacks against the Russia investigation, the Justice Department and the FBI. He has claimed that the FBI had infiltrated and spied on his 2016 presidential campaign when the agency reportedly used an informant to make contact with Trump campaign advisers who allegedly had suspicious contacts linked to Russia. He also demanded the Justice Department investigate the accusations and turn over any relevant documents to Congress.

Meanwhile, Democrats who attended a classified briefing about the informant with top DOJ officials last week said they saw no evidence to support any allegation that the FBI or any intelligence agency placed a spy in the Trump campaign. Top Republicans who also attended the briefing have remained silent, however.

Asked Sunday by CNNs Dana Bash whether he believed the Russia probe is legitimate, Giuliani said, Not anymore.

I did when I came in, but now I see Spygate, Giuliani said, using Trumps preferred term for describing revelations that an FBI informant made contact with two of his campaign advisers as part of the investigation into Russias meddling.

Story continues

I know 50 years of investigatory experience tells me they dont have a darn thing because they wouldve used it already and they wouldnt be off on collusion, they wouldnt be off on Manafort, they wouldnt be off on Cohen, Giuliani added.

Watch the full clip below:

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Beirut (AFP) - Russian fighters were among dozens of pro-government forces killed in eastern Syria this week in a deadly wave of attacks by Islamic State group jihadists, Moscow and a monitor said Sunday.

After the collapse of its so-called "caliphate" last year, IS now only holds tiny pockets of Syria, mainly in the vast desert stretching to its eastern border.

This week, the jihadists ramped up their hit-and-run attacks on regime positions there, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor.

The deadliest was on Wednesday, when IS targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian fighters near the town of Mayadeen in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor.

"There were 35 pro-government forces killed, including at least nine Russians. Some of those Russian nationals were government troops, but not all of them," said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

The remaining 26 were all Syrian forces, he told AFP.

A steadfast ally of President Bashar al-Assad, Moscow has helped his army recapture swathes of territory since 2015 by providing air strikes and ground troops.

There are also widespread reports of private Russian mercenaries on the ground.

Moscow's defence ministry said Sunday four of its servicemen were killed in clashes in Deir Ezzor.

Two were military advisers supporting Syrian artillery operations and died immediately, and another two died of their wounds in a Russian-operated military hospital in Syria.

Three others were wounded.

- IS claims attack -

Russia did not specify when, where, or whether IS was involved, but it appeared to be the same incident as the IS attack reported near Mayadeen.

The jihadist group itself claimed it attacked regime forces in eastern Syria on Wednesday.

The assault was the largest in series of IS guerilla raids on regime positions this week.

On Tuesday, 26 regime forces were killed in a surprise IS attack in desert areas of the neighbouring province of Homs, according to the Observatory.

Story continues

And a pair of IS assaults between Saturday night and Sunday morning killed at least 11 pro-regime forces in Deir Ezzor.

"The latest attack brings to 76 the number of Syrian troops and allied Iranian and Russian forces killed since the escalation," Abdel Rahman said Sunday.

He said the uptick came the day after the last IS fighters were bussed out of southern parts of Syria's capital Damascus, including the ravaged Palestinian camp of Yarmuk, in a negotiated withdrawal.

Many headed towards the Badiya, the stretch of Syrian desert extending from Homs province through Deir Ezzor to the eastern border with Iraq.

The Observatory said the evacuated fighters were actively involved in the recent attacks.

"IS is trying to take the initiative and show it can still threaten the regime and its allies despite the losses it suffered in other areas," said Abdel Rahman.

Government positions in the Badiya make for an easy target: they are few and far between, so reinforcements take a long time to arrive.

- 'Hinder' army -

Russian-backed Syrian troops hold the western half of Deir Ezzor province, which is divided diagonally by the Euphrates River. US-backed fighters hold the east bank.

The river is meant to serve as a de-confliction line to prevent the two sides from clashing as they pursue separate assaults against IS.

A Syrian military source based in the east told AFP that Assad's troops had cleared large parts of territory from IS, which was now lashing out.

"Daesh wants to hinder the army's combing operations in the Badiya by waging these intermittent attacks," said the source, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

It confirmed Russian military advisers were present during Wednesday's attack and were among those killed.

Russia's government officially acknowledges that 92 soldiers have been killed in Syria, although some estimate the number is even higher.

The highest casualties were in March, when a transport plane crashed at Hmeimim airbase where Moscow's airforce is based, killing all 39 people on board.

On Sunday, a local Russian newspaper in the Siberian city of Chita reported on the funerals of four soldiers it said were killed in Syria on May 23.

The international group Conflict Intelligence Team said up to six Russian soldiers could have been killed in the attack, quoting social media reports of a funeral for a Russian soldier that took place in the Western Russian city of Smolensk this week.
Frankfurt am Main (AFP) - Seven firefighters were injured in efforts to put out a massive blaze at Germany's largest amusement park, police said Sunday, as it reopened to visitors despite extensive damage to some areas.

The fire at Europa-Park started early Saturday evening in a storage facility before engulfing the Pirates of Batavia boat ride, completely destroying the attraction.

It took some 250 firefighters until the next morning to extinguish the inferno, which sent huge columns of black smoke into the air.

Dramatic images of the raging fire were widely captured by visitors to the theme park in Rust, southwestern Germany and shared on social media.

Some 25,000 people had to be evacuated from the park, but none suffered any injuries.

The local Offenburg police said in a statement that the blaze had left seven firefighters "lightly injured", without giving details.

All of them were able to leave hospital after receiving medical attention.

Europa-park opened its doors as normal on Sunday, although large sections of the Dutch and Scandinavian-themed areas remain closed because of fire damage.

Europa-park's chief executive Michael Mack tweeted his thanks for the rescue services, saying Saturday had been "a sad day" for the park.

The cause of the fire is still unknown. Police said some firefighters remained at the scene to carry out damping down operations and secure the area to allow experts to assess the damage.

Founded in 1975, Europa-Park is Europe's second-most popular amusement park after Disneyland, attracting some 5.7 million visitors last year.
By Hyonhee Shin and Lesley Wroughton SEOUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday a U.S. team had arrived in North Korea to prepare for a proposed summit between him and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which Trump pulled out of last week before reconsidering. Earlier, the U.S. State Department said U.S. and North Korean officials had met at Panmunjom, a village in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that runs along the heavily armed border between North and South Korea. "Our United States team has arrived in North Korea to make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself," Trump wrote on Twitter, in Washington's first confirmation that U.S. officials had entered North Korea for the talks. "I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!" Trump added. In addition to those talks, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said a "pre-advance team" left for Singapore - where the summit has been expected to take place - on Sunday morning to work on logistics. Earlier on Sunday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said he and North Korea's Kim had agreed during a surprise meeting on Saturday that the North Korea-U.S. summit must be held. The weekend talks were the latest twist in a week of diplomatic ups and downs over the prospects for an unprecedented U.S.-North Korea summit, and the strongest sign yet that the two Koreas' leaders are trying to keep the meeting on track. North Korea has faced years of economic sanctions over its nuclear and missile programs since it conducted its first nuclear test in 2006. For graphic on nuclear testing site click https://tmsnrt.rs/2wGynpf For graphic on nuclear North Korea click https://tmsnrt.rs/2Kql12i The United States has struggled to slow the isolated country's weapons programs, which have become a security priority for Washington given Pyongyang's promise to develop a nuclear-tipped missile capable of hitting the U.S. mainland. A U.S. official told Reuters that Sung Kim, the former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, would lead an American delegation to meet North Korean officials at the border. Pentagon official Randall Schriver was part of the U.S. team, the official said. The Washington Post first reported that the team, which also included Allison Hooker, the Korea expert on the White House National Security Council, met with Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister. The Post said the talks at the border would continue on Monday and Tuesday at Tongilgak, the North's building in Panmunjom, where the truce suspending the 1950-53 Korean War was signed. In their meeting on Saturday, Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete" denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to a planned summit with Trump, Moon told reporters in Seoul. "Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean Peninsula's denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted," Moon said. Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what denuclearization means and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences. The United States has demanded the "complete, verifiable, and irreversible" dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Pyongyang has rejected unilateral disarmament and has always couched its language in terms of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. In previous, failed talks, North Korea said it could consider giving up its arsenal if Washington removed its troops from South Korea and withdrew its so-called nuclear umbrella of deterrence from South Korea and Japan. North Korea has tested dozens of missiles of various types in the past two years, including one launch of its largest-ever intercontinental ballistic missile, which is theoretically capable of hitting anywhere in the United States, on Nov. 29. MISTRUST ON BOTH SIDES American officials are skeptical that Kim will ever fully abandon his nuclear arsenal. Moon said North Korea was not convinced it could trust security guarantees from the United States. "However, during the U.S.-South Korea summit, President Trump clearly emphasized that we may see not only the end of hostile relations but also economic cooperation if North Korea denuclearizes," Moon said. Moon met Trump in Washington on Tuesday in an effort to keep the U.S.-North Korea summit on track. A senior South Korean official said later the two Koreas were discussing a possible non-aggression pledge and the start of peace treaty talks as a way of addressing Pyongyang's security concerns before U.S.-North Korean negotiations. A statement from North Korea's state news agency, KCNA, said Kim expressed "his fixed will" on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned. Trump on Thursday scrapped the summit after repeated threats by North Korea to pull out over what it saw as confrontational remarks by U.S. officials demanding unilateral disarmament. On May 16, North Korea criticized U.S. national security adviser John Bolton, who had called for North Korea to quickly give up its nuclear arsenal in a deal that would mirror Libya's abandonment of its program for weapons of mass destruction. Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was deposed and killed by NATO-backed militants in 2011 after halting his nascent nuclear program. Trump dismissed the so-called Libya model. Sanders, his spokeswoman, told Fox News on May 15: "This is the President Trump model. Hes going to run this the way he sees fit." Kim had requested a meeting with Moon to clarify what the "Trump model" meant, Yonhap news agency of South Korea reported, citing an unidentified foreign affairs source. Kim and Trump's initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over the North's nuclear program. Trump said on Saturday he was still looking at a June 12 summit in Singapore and that talks were going well. (Reporting by Hyonhee Shin in Seoul and Lesley Wroughton in Washington; Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick, Katanga Johnson, Doina Chiacu in Washington, Josh Smith, Soyoung Kim, Choonsik Yoo and Jeongmin Kim in Seoul and Ben Blanchard and Elias Glenn in Beijing; Writing by Doina Chiacu and Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Frances Kerry and Peter Cooney)
Rome (AFP) - The political standoff in Italy continued on Saturday over President Sergio Mattarella's refusal to approve the eurosceptic coalition's choice for economy minister.

Three days after being appointed by Mattarella as prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, 53, has still not been able to form a government.

Writing on Facebook late on Friday, League chief Matteo Salvini, who insists on naming the noted eurosceptic Paolo Savona, 81, as economy minister, was blunt.

"I am really very angry," he raged.

The far-right leader doubled down on Saturday, tweeting images of cartoons in German media lampooning Italy, writing: "The newspapers and German politicians insult us: Italian beggars, idlers, tax evaders, freeloaders and ungrateful.

"And we should choose an economy minister that suits them? No thanks!"

Salvini reiterated his position later on Saturday after a meeting with party leaders, saying "the League has already taken enough backwards steps".

He added that he would give Conte the list of ministers the League wants on Saturday night.

Salvini had nominated Conte for the premiership with the support of Five Star leader Luigi Di Maio, but officially it is the head of state and the premier alone who appoint ministers.

And according to the Italian press, Mattarella will not bend for two reasons: to avoid isolating Italy in Europe and to protect the role of the president.

Conte met the president late on Friday to report "informally" on the discussions, but without presenting his final list of ministers.

Far from convinced of Conte's authority over the political heavyweights who will compose his team, Mattarella -- elected by a parliament which at the time was dominated by the centre-left -- wants Italy to respect its European commitments.

But Salvini, 45, emboldened by the March 4 election, does not intend to give up either, reportedly to the point that he is willing to "blow everything up" and return to the voters.

Story continues

- Nervy markets -

As guarantor of internationaltreaties, Mattarella has been more discrete since the standoff began on Thursday.

But he was clear in denouncing the "unacceptability of diktats towards the prime minister and president" by political parties.

The centre-left Democratic Party of former premier Matteo Renzi, however, did not pull its punches.

"You are playing around at the expense of the country just to defend your miserable interests," party leader Maurizio Martina said in remarks addressed to Salvini on Saturday.

There was no meeting scheduled for Saturday between Conte and the leaders of the League and Five Star, nor was there any indication that a solution could be found over the weekend.

Conte did however receive the support of French President Emmanuel Macron during a phone call on Saturday.

Macron gave the new Italian premier his best wishes for forming a government and said he would like to meet soon, Conte said on Facebook.

The impasse has already started to make financial markets nervous, with the Milan Stock Exchange closing down 1.54 percent on Friday.

The difference in yield on Italian 10-year sovereign bonds compared to Germany's reached 217 points Friday afternoon -- the highest level since December 2013 -- before dropping slightly to 206 points at close.

Friday appeared to start positively, with Conte writing on his new Facebook page that his meeting with Di Maio and Salvini was "very profitable".

"The ministers I will be proposing will be politicians," he said.

But the exercise proved more complicated than expected for the little-known lawyer chosen by Five Star and the League because neither agreed to give the other the prime minister position.
By Gina Cherelus (Reuters) - Florida, Alabama and Mississippi declared states of emergency on Saturday as Subtropical Storm Alberto drove north toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, threatening to bring heavy rainfall and flooding to the coastal states by Monday. The first named Atlantic storm of 2018 is expected to intensify and bring wind speeds of up to 65 miles per hour (40 km/h) to the northern Gulf Coast when it approaches on the Memorial Day holiday on Monday, the National Weather Service (NWS) said in its latest advisory. A tropical storm warning has been issued for the Mississippi/Alabama border to the Aucilla River in Florida. Rainfall totals of between 5 and 10 inches (13-25 cm), with up to 15 inches, are possible from eastern Louisiana to Mississippi, Alabama, western Tennessee and the western Florida panhandle, the NWS said. All 67 Florida counties were issued the emergency notice to give state and local governments enough time and resources to prepare, Florida Governor Rick Scott said in a statement. "As we continue to monitor Subtropical Storm Alberto's northward path toward Florida, it is critically important that all Florida counties have every available resource to keep families safe and prepare for the torrential rain and severe flooding this storm will bring," Scott said. His Mississippi and Alabama counterparts also declared states of emergency, citing the threat of coastal and inland flooding from storm rains. Alabama Governor Kay Ivey issued a state of emergency covering 40 counties beginning at 6 a.m. on Sunday. "Whether you're a resident of this state or just visiting, you need to stay updated on this evolving tropical system," Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant said in a statement. "I ask everyone to please make final preparations to your family emergency plan, especially those that live in mobile homes and low-lying areas." On Saturday evening, the storm was located about 95 miles (153 km) north of the western tip of Cuba and 275 miles (440 km) southwest of the Dry Tortugas, which is almost 70 miles (113 km) west of Key West, Florida, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC). Alberto, which spun up days before the formal start of the 2018 hurricane season, was moving north at about 13 mph (20 km/h) with maximum sustained winds near 40 mph, and higher gusts, on Saturday, the NWS said. Gradual strengthening is forecast until the system reaches the northern Gulf Coast. Alberto's projected storm track has shifted eastward since Friday, lessening its threat to the active oil production areas in the Gulf of Mexico. Royal Dutch Shell plc and Exxon Mobil evacuated some personnel from offshore Gulf oil facilities on Friday. (Reporting by Gina Cherelus in New York; Additional reporting by Gary McWilliams in Houston; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien, Marguerita Choy and Paul Tait)
New York Citys parks in 1978 Boys on Coney Island Beach. (Photograph by Paul Hosefros/NYC Parks Photo Archive/Caters News)

These fascinating photographs offer a colorful glimpse into the history of New York Citys parks, after nearly 3,000 slides were discovered while an official was cleaning out an office.

Forty years ago, New York Citys newspapers went on strike for nearly three months. Parks Commissioner Gordon Davis hired eight temporarily out-of-work New York Times photographers  Neal Boenzi, Joyce Dopkeen, D. Gorton, Eddie Hausner, Paul Hosefros, Robert Klein, Larry Morris and Gary Settle  to document the citys parks.

Sixty-five of those images, capturing scenes across the city between August and November 1978, are currently on display at an exhibition dedicated to the find.

Jonathan Kuhn, director of art and antiquities for the New York City Parks Department, said: I first learned of the slides in mid-October of 2017 and immediately decided to do an exhibition.

The show is not just about nostalgia. What differentiated these images were that they were from a very condensed period of time.

Im interested in the use of parks and bringing people together.

They show that parks will never be irrelevant. (Caters News/New York City Parks Dept.)

1978: The NYC Parks/New York Times Photo Project exhibition is on view at the Arsenal Gallery in Central Park until June 14.

See more news-related photo galleries and follow us on Yahoo News Photo Twitter and Tumblr.
U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft assigned to the 100th Fighter Squadron prepare to refuel during Red Flag-Alaska 13-3 over the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex Aug. 19, 2013.

Kris Osborn

Security,

And that is a really big deal.

The U.S. Military's Ships, Tanks, Aircraft and Drones Are Getting AI

The Pentagon is making a massive push to accelerate the application of artificial intelligence to ships, tanks, aircraft, drones, weapons and large networks as part of a sweeping strategy to more quickly harness and integrate the latest innovations.

Many forms of AI are already well-underway with US military combat systems, yet new technologies and applications are emerging so quickly that Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan has directed the immediate creation of a new Joint Artificial Intelligence Center.

The Deputy Secretary of Defense directed the DoD Chief Information Officer to standup the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center in order to enable teams across DoD to swiftly deliver new AI-enabled capabilities and effectively experiment with new operating concepts in support of DoD's military missions and business functions." DoD spokeswoman Heather Babb told Warrior Maven.

Pentagon officials intend for the new effort to connect otherwise disparate AI developments across the services. The key concept, naturally, is to capitalize upon the newest and most efficient kinds of autonomy, automation and specific ways in which AI can develop for the long term -- yet also have an immediate impact upon current military operations.

Recommended: Air War: Stealth F-22 Raptor vs. F-14 Tomcat (That Iran Still Flies)

Recommended: A New Report Reveals Why There Won't Be Any 'New' F-22 Raptors

Recommended: How an Old F-15 Might Kill Russias New Stealth Fighter

AI performs a wide range of functions not purely restricted to conventional notions of IT or cyberspace; computer algorithms are increasingly able to almost instantaneously access vast pools of data, compare and organize information and perform automated procedural and analytical functions for human decision-makers in a role of command and control. While AI can of course massively expedite data consolidation, cloud migration and various kinds much-needed cybersecurity functions, it is increasingly being applied more broadly across weapons systems, large platforms and combat networks as well.

Story continues

Rapid data-base access, organizing information and performing high-volume procedural functions are all decided advantages of AI applications. Algorithms, for example, are increasingly able to scan, view and organize ISR input such as images or video  to identify points of combat relevance of potential interest to a commander.

AI enabled technology can perform these kinds of procedural functions exponentially faster than humans can, massively shortening the crucial decision-making timeframe for combat decision makers. At the same time, many experts, developers and military leaders recognize that the certain problem-solving faculties and subjective determinations unique to human cognition - are still indispensable to decision making in war.

For this reason, advanced AI relies upon what developers refer to as human-machine interface or easing the cognitive burden wherein humans function in a command and control capacity while computer automation rapidly performs a range of key procedural functions.

AI & IT

This AI-driven phenomenon is of particular relevance when it comes to data systems, IT as a whole and advances in cybersecurity. For instance, Air Force developers are using advanced computer automation to replicate human behavior online  for the specific purpose of luring and tracking potential intruders. Also, AI can be used to perform real-time analytics on incoming traffic potentially containing malware, viruses or any kind of attempted intrusion. If the source, characteristics or discernable pattern of an attempted intrusion are identified quickly, cyber defenders are better positioned to respond.

When high-volume, redundant tasks are performed through computer automation, humans are freed up to expend energy pursuing a wider range of interpretive or conceptual work.

For example, the Army is working with a private firm called NCI to establish a certification of worthiness for a specific AI-enabled program designed to streamline a number of key tasks.

The NCI-developed program enables account creation, account deletion, background checks and other kind of high-volume data analysis.

You can log into 10 different websites simultaneously, rather than having a person do that. A machine can go through and gather all the information for a person, Brad Mascho Chief AI Officer, NCI, told Warrior Maven in an interview. Humans can focus on higher priority threats.

At the same time, big data analytics can quickly present new challenges for a variety of key reasons; a larger data flow can make it difficult for servers to flex as needed to accommodate rapid jumps in data coming through. Therefore, AI-empowered algorithms such as those engineered by NCI are needed to organize incoming data and identify anomalies or potential intrusions.

There is also a growing need for more real-time monitoring of activity on a message bus, because standard analytics methods based on probability and statistical probability often detect intrusions after the fact and are not always reliable or 100-percent accurate, cybersecurity experts and analysts explain.

AI & Navy Ships

The Navy is taking technical steps to expand AI and cyber harden its growing ship-based ocean combat network, called Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services (CANES).

CANES is being installed on carriers, amphibious assault ships, destroyers and submarines, and the service has completed at least 50 CANES systems and has more in production, Navy developers said.

Upgraded CANES, which relies upon hardened cyber and IT connectivity along with radio and other communications technologies, is being specifically configured to increase automation - and perform more and more analytical functions without needing human intervention. It is one of many emerging technologies now being heavily fortified by new algorithms enabling artificial intelligence, senior Navy leaders told Warrior Maven.

Surface ships such as the Littoral Combat Ship, rely upon a host of interwoven technologies intended to share key data in real time - such as threat and targeting information, radar signal processing and fire control systems. CANES connectivity, and AI-informed analysis, can be fundamental to the operation of these systems, which often rely upon fast interpretation of sensor, targeting or ISR data to inform potentially lethal decisions.

The LCS, in particular, draws upon interconnected surface and anti-submarine mission packages engineered to use a host of ship systems in coordination with one another. These include ship-mounted guns and missiles along with helicopters, drones such as the Fire Scout and various sonar systems - the kinds of things potentially enhanced by AI analysis.

Navy developers say increasing cybersecurity, mission scope and overall resiliency on the CANES networks depends on using a common engineering approach with routers, satcom networks, servers and computing functions.

Increased computer automation also performs a large function on the Navys emerging Ford-Class aircraft carriers. The new carriers use advanced algorithms to perform diagnostics and other on-board maintenance and procedural tasks independently. This, Navy developers say, allows the service to reduce its crew size by as many as 900 sailors per carrier and save up to $4 billion dollars over the life of a ship.

AI & Cyber Defense

Algorithms calling upon advanced AI are being used to quickly access vast pools of data to perform real-time analytics designed to detect patterns and anomalies associated with malware.

Every day, the Defense Department thwarts an estimated 36 million e-mails containing malware, viruses and phishing schemes from hackers, terrorists and foreign adversaries trying to gain unauthorized access to military systems, Babb told Warrior Maven earlier this year.

One particular technique, now being developed by CISCO systems, seeks to address a particular irony or cybersecurity paradox; namely, while much DoD network traffic is encrypted for additional safety, encryption can also make it more difficult for cyber defenders to see hidden malware in the traffic.

CISCO is now prototyping new detection methods as part of an effort to introduce their technology to the US military services.

We have the ability to read and detect malware in encrypted web traffic. Even though the data is encrypted there is still a pattern to malware, Kelly Jones, Systems Engineer for CISCO Navy programs, told Warrior Maven.

AI & Large Combat Platforms, Tanks & Fighter Jets

Real-time analytics, informed by AI, has already had much success with both Army and Air Force Conditioned-Based Maintenance initiatives. The Army used IBMs Watson computer to perform real-time analytics on sensor information from Stryker vehicles and tactical trucks.

Drawing upon seemingly limitless databases of historical data, Watson was able to analyze information related to potential engine failures and other key vehicular systems. Properly identifying when a given combat-vehicle system might malfunction or need repairs helps both combat and logistical operations. Furthermore, the Army-IBM Stryker proof of principle exercise was able to wirelessly transmit sensor data, enabling AI to compare new information gathered against a historical database in seconds.

The Army is also working with IBM to test AI-enabled autonomy kits on tactical trucks designed to enable much greater degrees of autonomous navigation.

Advanced computer algorithms, enhanced in some instances through machine learning, enable systems such as Watson to instantly draw upon vast volumes of historical data as a way to expedite analysis of key mechanical indicators. Real-time analytics, drawing upon documented pools of established data through computer automation, can integrate otherwise disconnected sensors and other on-board vehicle systems.

We identified some of the challenges in how you harmonize sensor data that is delivered from different solutions. Kevin Aven, partner and co-account lead, Army and Marine Corps, IBM Global Business Services, told Warrior Maven in an interview earlier this year.

Watson, for example, can take unstructured information from maintenance manuals, reports, safety materials, vehicle history information and other vehicle technologies  and use AI to analyze data and draw informed conclusions of great significance to military operators, Aven explained.

When created, IBM stated that, "more than 100 different techniques are used to analyze natural language, identify sources, find and generate hypotheses, find and score evidence, and merge and rank hypotheses," according to IBM Systems and Technology.

Working with a firm called C3IoT, the Air Force is doing something similar with F-16s. On board avionics and other technologies are monitored and analyzed using AI-enabled computers to discern when repairs or replacement parts are needed.

Applications of AI are also credited with enabling the F-35s sensor fusion technology which uses computer algorithms to autonomously gather and organize a wide-range of sensor data for the pilot.

It goes without saying that targeting data is of critical importance when it comes to mechanized ground warfare. With this in mind, Army combat vehicle developers are prototyping AI-enabled sensors intended to combine sensor information essential to identifying targets. If long-range EO/IR or thermal imaging sensors are able to both collect and organize combat data, vehicle crews can attack enemy targets much more quickly.

Some near-term applications, senior officials with the Army Research Laboratory say, include increased air and ground drone autonomy. It is an example of an area where AI is already having a large impact and is anticipated to figure prominently over the long-term as well.

We know there is going to be unmanned systems for the future, and we want to look at unmanned systems and working with teams of manned systems. This involves AI-enabled machine learning in high priority areas we know are going to be long term as well as near term applications, Karl Kappra, Chief of the Office of Strategy Management for the Army Research Lab, told Warrior Maven in an interview. We also know we are going to be operating in complex environments, including electromagnetic and cyber areas.

For instance, Kappra explained that sensor-equipped micro-autonomous drones could be programed with advanced algorithms to send back combat-relevant images or provide attacking forces with key interior dimensions to a target location.

We are looking at micro-electrical mechanical systems and image-based systems to fly through a building autonomously and show you where walls and threats are inside the buildings, Kappra said.

Also, Army combat vehicle developers consistently emphasize manned-unmanned teaming with wing man drone robots operating in tandem with manned vehicles to carry ammunition, test enemy defenses, identify targets and potentially fire weapons. Some senior Army weapons and technology developers have said that most future combat vehicles will be engineered with some level of autonomous ability or manned-unmanned teaming technology.

Warfare, Ethics & AI

Interestingly, debates about the future of AI, especially when it comes to autonomy, continues to spark significant controversy. Current Pentagon doctrine specifies that there must always be a human-in-the-loop when it comes to making decisions about the use of lethal force. However, the technology enabling an autonomous system to track, acquire and destroy a target by itself without needing human intervention  is already here.

In a previous interview with Warrior Maven, an Air Force scientist made the point that the current doctrine is of course related to offensive strikes of any kind, however there may be some instances where weapons are used autonomously in a purely defensive fashion. For instance, AI-enabled interceptors could be programmed to knock out incoming enemy missile attacks  without themselves destroying anything other than an approaching enemy weapon. In this instance, AI could serve an enormously valuable defensive function by performing intercepts exponentially faster than having a human decision maker involved.

Naturally, this kind of technology raises ethical questions, and some have made the point that even though the US military may intend to maintain a certain ethical stance  there is of course substantial concern that potential adversaries will not do the same.

Also, while often heralded as the future of warfare and technology, AI does have some limitations. For example, problems presented in combat, less-discernable nuances informing certain decisions, determining causation and the analysis of a range of different interwoven variables  are arguably things best performed by the human mind.

Many things in warfare, naturally, are often a complex byproduct of a range of more subjectively determined factors  impacted by concepts, personalities, individual psychology, historical nuances and larger sociological phenomena. This naturally raises the question as to how much even the most advanced computer programs could account for these and other somewhat less tangible factors.

This first appeared in Warrior Maven here.

Read full article
Voters in Ireland headed to the polls on Friday to decide whether the country should repeal its restrictive abortion laws. Among those casting their ballots were thousands of Irish citizens living in other parts of the world who traveled back to Ireland for the landmark vote.

They chronicled their journeys on social media using the hashtag #HomeToVote, sharing thousands of powerful and poignant stories.

Most of those using the hashtag were planning to vote yes to repeal the eighth amendment  Irelands near-total ban on abortion that only makes exceptions to save the life of the mother.

Some people covered relatively short distances from England, Scotland and parts of Europe, while others crossed oceans and continents to journey from places like Los Angeles, Tokyo and Sao Paulo.

Look at the amazing footage from Dublin Airport last night of the #HometoVote people returning. This vote can change Ireland into a more caring, compassionate place #together2vote #Together4Yes pic.twitter.com/06Aj7QM8uc  Together for Yes (@Together4yes) May 25, 2018

All the way from Sweden to Kerry, a 12 hour journey to cross a big fat YES on the ballot paper #HometoVote #repealthe8th pic.twitter.com/psC2utM3K5  Nora (@tea_and_biccies) May 23, 2018

Just started the first leg of my journey #hometovote. Taking a night bus to Tokyo, where I will fly out tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully, I can find something fun to do while eagerly awaiting my chance to help #RepealTheEighth on Friday. pic.twitter.com/DpDeZziKzv  Matthew Corbally (@Corballicious) May 22, 2018

The eighth amendment has been in place since 1983, granting fetuses and pregnant women the same rights. The campaign to repeal the amendment has been ongoing since its inception. This latest effort came about after 31-year-old Savita Halappanavar died from a septic miscarriage in 2012 after being denied an abortion at a Galway hospital.

Story continues

As Ireland goes #hometovote to #RepealThe8th today, please remember Savita Halappanavar who died of sepsis after being denied an abortion for a pregnancy even after doctors said miscarriage was inevitable. Her death was a catalyst for this referendum. She was 31. pic.twitter.com/EcZm95xrEl  Charlotte Morabito (@MorabitoCM) May 25, 2018

A recent survey showed 56 percent of Irish voters said they were planning to vote yes to repeal the amendment, but the gap has steadily narrowed in recent weeks, perhaps due to a no campaign funded in part by American anti-abortion groups.

Some of those traveling back to Ireland to vote yes recalled undertaking trips in the other direction to seek reproductive services in other countries.

All the # hometovote celebrating feels like a response to all the silent, secret journeys that went the other way, one Twitter user wrote.

#hometovote Madeira  Dublin. What an emotional feeling it is to be travelling home on the eve of Irish history - armed with a vote, a voice I did not have at age 19 when I had to travel to a clinic overseas. Let's do this Ireland  #togetherforyes #repealthe8th #homeforyes pic.twitter.com/FSrulHfvrk  Bawdy Fox (@bawdyfox) May 24, 2018

Travelling home from the very airport I found myself in nearly 9yrs ago on a very sad journey. Im hopeful this is not going to be a sad journey and compassion and sense will prevail #together4yes #hometovote @TFMRIRE  Ruth Bowie (@rlbowie) May 24, 2018

All the #hometovote celebrating feels like a response to all the silent, secret journeys that went the other way. Whatever the outcome of the referendum, the silence is broken.  Jane Casey (@JaneCaseyAuthor) May 24, 2018

Some people tweeted donation offers to pay for flights, while others said they had received help from complete strangers so they could travel home. Many also offered travelers free transport from the airport.

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

I am in Dublin all day tomorrow for anyone #hometovote that needs a lift to get to where you need to. Just need to be back in the Naul by 8:30pm. Airport pick ups are fine. #voteyes  Des Bishop  (@Desbishop) May 24, 2018

Just landed in Dublin and picked up my rental car. If you or anyone you know needs a lift to a polling station hit me up. I can't promise I can get to everyone but I'll do my best. #liftsforrepeal #togetherforyes #repealthe8th #hometovote #votermotor #motorvoter pic.twitter.com/qNs9ocEaB1  Mark O' Brien (@oaksmokeandbbq) May 25, 2018

A number of people used the opportunity to surprise friends and family back home.

Last minute flight from Vancouver to London: $1500

Length of journey: 15 hours

Repealing the 8th: priceless.

Me mas's reacrion: also priceless. #HomeToVote #abroadforyes pic.twitter.com/G11cjh11c2  Vancouver Kilo (@Kilo53908733) May 25, 2018

My dad sent my sister a text this week saying he will vote on her behalf since she can't get home to vote.

Little do either of my parents know I'm sitting in the airport waiting for her flight to arrive. #hometovote #Mna4Ta #Together4Yes #men4yes #Repealthe8th  Avril Hayden  (@AvvyEire) May 24, 2018

As of midday on Friday, the voter turnout was higher than it was at the same time period during Irelands same-sex marriage referendum and its most recent general election, BBC reported. The polls are scheduled to close at 10 p.m. local time.

Related Coverage

Dublin Divided: Tensions Swell In Irish Capital Ahead Of Historic Abortion Referendum

Ireland's Historic Vote On Legalizing Abortion Is Haunted By Trump And Brexit

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
James Jay Carafano

Security, Middle East

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo addresses reporters during the Department Press Briefing at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on May 22, 2018.

The strategy for Iran is a counter-punch strategy that looks to knock the pins out from under the elements of Iranian power.

Top 3 Takeaways from Pompeos New Deal for Iran

Mike Pompeos first formal speech as Secretary of State can best be described a diplomatic body slam on the Iranian regime.

He not only declared the Iran Deal as dead as the Wicked Witch of the West. He laid out the follow-up U.S. strategy to deal with the regimes nuclear ambitions and destabilizing actions in the region.

Its true that the speech included a long list of complaints about the deal and Iranian behavior that we have heard from Trump before. But Pompeo put three new elements of U.S. policy on the table.

No More Mr. Nice Guy

In addition to talking about sanctions, Pompeo signaled a number of other initiatives the United States will undertake, from counter-proliferation measures to going after surrogates. This is different and more ambitious than the maximum pressure strategy the United States imposed against the DPRK regime.

The strategy the United States imposed against North Korea is primarily designed to protect America and its allies against a nuclear threat with a combination of missile defense, nuclear deterrence, conventional deterrence and sanctioning. The strategy for Iran is a counter-punch strategy that looks to knock the pins out from under the elements of Iranian power.

Its more than just isolation. Its more like whittling down to size.

What makes this scary for the Iranian regime is that there is every prospect the United States can pull this off. There is plenty of punch in the counter-punch strategy.

Certainly, the United States can gut Tehrans access to Western cash. Europeans can chatter all they want about preserving the deal. The truth is, European and American companies are already bailing. And the Iranian economy looks to be in virtual free-fall.

In public, European officials may continue to bash the president, appeasing Trump-haters over there and over here. In private, they know Iran is a problem for them too, and they have little option but to work with the United States. In the Middle East, countries are lining up to join the anti-Tehran cause.

Story continues

The regime is also over-stretched with dwindling cash reserves. Meanwhile, the U.S. military is getting stronger with a new infusion of cash, while the administration has stabilized its overseas commitments. As long as it keeps doing about the same with more and more ready resources, Irans position in the region gets worse, not better.

To cap it all off, Iran doesnt have much more gas to throw on the fire. Nor are China and Russia likely to be much more help than they have already beenwhich is far from enough to take the pressure off Tehran.

Diplomacy is Back on the Table.

Unfortunately for Iran, the U.S. strategy is not all muscle and no brain. Diplomacy has a crucial role in the news strategy. Trump has been insisting that, in every competition hes in, he always offers the other side an off-ramp. But getting on the off-ramp comes at steep price.

Thats why Pompeo said that if we do a deal, its going to be real deala treaty. Thats news. That has not been a policy before. Its news not only for Tehran, but also for Pyongyang. After all, after saying a treaty is good for a real deal with Iran, it is inconceivable that the United States will do a deal with North Korea based on a handshake.

The prospects for serious diplomacy are a serious challenge to a regime that his deeply fragmented over what to do next. The factions within the national leadership dont agree on where to go from here. The odds of Iran coming up with a diplomatic strategy of its own are about as likely as the comeback of disco.

No Regime Change, Thank You Very Much.

Pompeo talked a lot about the Iranian people and the horrendous human-rights abuses in Iran. He described how in the end the United States would also always support the Iranian people. But he also basically said the Iranian regime is the Iranian peoples problem. They, not the United States or the international community, have to hold the regime accountable.

Given that, the regime is already feeling a lot of internal unrest that puts the powers that be in a very difficult place. Authoritarian regimes are great internal repression. They are also good at focusing the states efforts on external enemies. They are not very good at doing both at the same time. Faced with unrest at home and pressure from abroad, the regime faces the worst of all possible situations.

Next Move

While the changes announced by Pompeo mean big problems for Tehran, dont expect the regime to be meeting the secretarys one dozen demands any time soon. What is more likely is that as the regime feels the pressure of being overstretched, it will dial back its aggressive foreign policy.

Furthermore, it will likely put its nuclear program on hiatus. The best course of action would simply be wait Trump out. Maybe Mueller will get him. Maybe Trump will get distracted by another shiny foreign-policy object. Maybe he wont get re-elected. The smart Iranian play would be to play it smart.

If, on the other hand, Iran doubles down on aggression, the regime risks making its conditions worselike a wild animal struggling in quicksand, it would only sink faster. More bad behavior will only accelerate how quickly others will work with the United States against the Iranian regime.

From Trumps perspective, a quiet Iran that is not accelerating its pursuit of the bomb and not destabilizing the Middle East is good enough. Thats a deal the United States might tacitly accept.

Who knowsmaybe someday, acting in its own best interests, Iran will want to take Pompeos New Deal. Then somebody really will deserve a Nobel Prize.

A Heritage Foundation vice president, James Jay Carafano directs the think tanks research on national security and foreign affairs.

Image: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo addresses reporters during the Department Press Briefing at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on May 22, 2018. Flickr / U.S. Department of State

Read full article
Paris (AFP) - Europe's museums are full of items taken from Africa during colonisation, but many other objects on their shelves also carry an uncomfortable history.

Here are five examples of historic artefacts which have caused bitter ownership spats between nations:

- Benin bronzes -

So intricate that some Europeans of the day did not believe they could have been made by supposedly "primitive" Africans, thousands of these plaques were plundered from the Kingdom of Benin by British troops in 1897.

The British ransacked what is now Benin City in Nigeria, torching it and stripping it of its artwork in revenge for a massacre of their troops.

Showing scenes of court life, the "bronzes" date back to the 16th and 17th centuries and are in fact mostly made of brass.

Brisk trade scattered them around Europe, and today the biggest collections are in London's British Museum and the Ethnological Museum of Berlin.

European and US museums have been meeting with Nigerian officials since 2007 but have thus far struggled to find a solution.

Last year, museums floated the idea of a permanent loan, but "many issues remain, not least whether or not a loan is agreeable to the Nigerian authorities", according to the British Museum.

- Royal treasures of Abomey -

Like the British, French colonial troops also pillaged objects from conquered African lands which were considered the spoils of war.

They returned from the 1892 capture of Abomey, capital of the Dahomey kingdom in modern-day Benin, with a wealth of thrones, royal sceptres and statues.

Benin's government says an estimated 4,500-6,000 royal items remain in France, including in private collections. The finest are in the Quai Branly museum in Paris.

France last year refused to return the artefacts but appears set to re-examine the issue after President Emmanuel Macron said Europe needed to return Africa's heritage.

- Elgin marbles -

This superb collection of ancient marble sculptures once stood at the Parthenon temple overlooking Athens, but have been in Britain since the 1800s -- much to the chagrin of the Greek government.

Story continues

British officials have argued Lord Elgin removed them with the permission of Greece's then Ottoman rulers, and that the British Museum has protected them from the ravages of time.

The museum refused a UNESCO offer to mediate in the dispute in 2015, saying the sculptures were its inalienable property and on display "for the benefit of the world public".

- Nefertiti bust -

With her high cheek bones and elegant long neck, this bust of the famed ancient Egyptian queen became an icon of feminine beauty.

Sculpted around 1340 BC, it was discovered by German archaeologists in 1912 and is today displayed in Berlin's Neues Museum.

Egyptian authorities have sought it back for decades. German officials have argued that it was obtained legally and is too fragile to be transported.

- Koh-i-Noor diamond -

Thanks to a murky history this giant diamond, on display at the Tower of London along with other British crown jewels, has been claimed over the years by India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan.

It changed hands between elites on the sub-continent for more than two centuries before being ceded to Queen Victoria when Britain annexed the Punjab in 1849.

Despite being one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, it initially failed to impress Britons who went to see it on display in London.

Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, ordered it re-polished -- shrinking it by a half, but giving it a brilliant dazzle.

Even critics who argue it was taken by force have struggled to determine which country would hold the best claim to it.
Its on! Its off! Its on again! Press reports about Donald Trumps relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un are starting to resemble tabloid coverage of Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez. All the dramaplus nuclear weapons!

In the latest twist, Trump now says his June 12 summit with Kim in Singapore, which he canceled abruptly via petulant letter, might happen after all. One sign that the dialogue with North Korea is back on track: Kim held an unexpected meeting with South Korean president Moon Jae-in on the north side of the Demilitarized Zone today.

The U.S. president continues to suggest that he doesnt think he can get a denuclearization agreement from Kim without the cooperation of Chinese president Xi Jinping. So for now, the fact that a North Korea deal remains in play means that Trumps trade war with China remains on hold and Trump remains committed to his promise to Xi to undo Commerce Department sanctions that would put Chinese telecommunications manufacturer ZTE Corp. out of business.

For Trump, the stakes are high. Throughout his presidency he has disregarded traditional distinctions between commerce, diplomatic principle and national security, and suggested that hell do whatever it takes to make America great again. In his dealings with other nations, everything is negotiable. If that approach proves successful with North Korea, Trump may well collect that Nobel Peace Prize hes suggested he deserves. The risk is that, in declaring that hell go easy on China on trade issues in exchange for Xis support for a nuclear pact with Kim, he may come away empty-handed on both fronts. Indeed, a flurry of articles and analyses this week argue that Trump has been played by Xi and Kim. (Sample some of the premature pontifications here, here, here, here and here.)

Meanwhile Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is headed back to Beijing on June 2-4 for further trade talks. Much of the discussion is expected to focus on Chinas plans to reduce its trade surplus with the U.S. by ramping up purchases of American agriculture and energy products. But Ross has stressed that hell also focus on Chinese industrial policies the U.S. considers to be unfair. Among the most contentious of those policies is Xis Made in China 2025 initiative, which doles out state subsidies for semiconductors, robotics, artificial intelligence and other key technologies China deems critical to the continued development of its economy.

Story continues

Zheng Yongnian, director of the East Asia Institute at the National University of Singapore, argues in an essay published in the Washington Post this week that the White House is foolish to demand modifications to Made in China 2025 because Xi will never accept them. He faults U.S. officials for making the program out to be part of some larger Chinese bid for world domination. But he also criticizes Xi for techno-nationalismtrying wrap the flag around a collection of mundane initiatives aimed at upgrading Chinas domestic economy.

Lorand Laskai, a research fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, suggests Zhengs take on Made in China downplays Beijings true ambitions. Laskai argues the aim of the program is not so much to join the ranks of hi-tech economies like Germany, the United States, South Korea, and Japan, as much as replace them altogether. Made in China 2025 calls for achieving self-sufficiency through technology substitution while becoming a manufacturing superpower that dominates the global market in critical high-tech industries. That could be a problem for countries that rely on exporting high-tech products or the global supply chain for high-tech components.

Implicit in most of the analyses Ive seen about Made in Chinawhether by U.S. officials demanding that it is unfair and must be dismantled or Chinese analysts insisting that the program is vital to Chinas future and therefore non-negotiableis the shared assumption that the programs will perform as advertised. Im not convinced.

I started my journalism career in Tokyo back in the days when many Americans were gripped with fear that industrial policies crafted by technocrats in Japans trade and finance ministries would enable the Japanese economy to overtake the United States. We all know how that movie ended. The claim that governments can raise overall productivity over the long run through investments in infrastructure, higher education and basic research makes perfect sense to me. The notion that in advanced sectors like AI and semiconductors, China can magically leapfrog the United States through protectionism, state subsidies, and granting monopolies to state-owned enterprises? Not so much.

Will Trump and Kim really meet in Singapore? Will the U.S.-China trade truce hold? And how stridently will Secretary Ross object to Made in China on his visit to Beijing? As President Trump likes to say: Well see what happens.

CEO Daily takes a break on Monday in honor of Memorial Day. Enjoy your weekend!

Trade and Economy

Car trouble. On May 22, China said it would cut import tariffs on passenger cars from 25% to 15%, effective July 1. Tesla immediately slashed $14,000 off the price tag of its Model S and Model X cars in China, hoping to make greater inroads on the worlds largest market for EVs. But on May 23 Trump launched an investigation into whether America should raise its own auto import tariffs, for national security reasons. Bloomberg

Canada says China cant. Canada has blocked the takeover of the Aecon Group by state-owned China Communications Construction Company on national security grounds. Members of Canadas opposition party had raised concerns about Aecons access to government contracts and what details they might reveal to the Chinese state. Chinas foreign ministry responded that it hoped Canada could abandon its prejudices and provide a level playing field. The New York Times

House rules. The Trump administration announced it was considering a plan that would require ZTE to accept American-appointed compliance officers onto its management team in place of suffering economic sanctions. That was a day after the House of Representatives passed a bill banning government agencies from using ZTE tech and prohibiting the Department of Defense from renewing contracts with companies that work with ZTE. Wall Street Journal

To market, to market. Foxconn Industrial Internet, a subsidiary of the group most famous for manufacturing iPhones, hopes to raise $4.26 billion in an IPO in Shanghai. The flotation will be mainland Chinas largest IPO in three years, valuing the company at about $43 billion (almost as large as its parent company). Meanwhile, reports emerged that Didi Chuxing is planning a Hong Kong IPO during the second half of the year. Reuters

Politics and Policy

Go forth and multiply. China relaxed its One Child Policy in 2015, allowing families to have up to two children. The birthrate increased by approximately 8% the following year but slumped 3.5% last year. Now central authorities are mulling scrapping family planning all together, allowing couples to choose the size of their own brood. The new model has been dubbed independent fertility. Bloomberg

The PLA cant play. The United States cancelled Chinas invite to participate in a naval training exercise known as RIMPAC, citing the latters continued militarization of disputed territories in the South China Sea. Last week, China landed air force bombers on one of the disputed islands. A China official described the move as very unconstructive. Financial Times

Throwing shade. Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Australian counterpart, Julie Bishop, that Australia needs to remove its tinted glasses and start viewing Chinas development in a positive light. The relationship between the two nations soured last year when Australian officials accused China of meddling in its domestic politics. AFR

More Orwellian nonsense. Japanese chain Muji was fined $31,000 by Beijing for listing Taiwan as a country on some of its packaging. Beijing has been increasing pressure on companies and countries to accept the One China rhetoric and cut ties with Taiwan. This week, Burkina Faso also broke off relations with Taiwan, just four weeks after the Dominican Republic did the same. Bloomberg

In Case You Missed It

IDG Capital fires manager in China after sexual messages posted online Reuters

The sonic attack in China was probably clumsy ultrasonic eavesdropping Quartz

Chinese doctor jailed for calling traditional medicine poison issues apology The Guardian

The Chinese athletes warming up for the Gay Games Sixth Tone

Qualcomm opening an AI lab in Beijing, joining hands with Baidus PaddlePaddle TechNode

An app that matches sugar daddies and sugar babies is suddenly Chinas hottest social network Quartz

China jails insurer PICCs ex-president for corruption Reuters

Tech and Innovation

Plucked from the crowd. Police in China have used facial recognition technology to apprehend fugitives at three separate Jacky Cheung concerts over the last two months. The Cantopop icon, nicknamed God of Songs, is now being dubbed The Nemesis of Fugitives. The latest arrest occurred last Sunday. The suspect is wanted in relation to a case of fraud, dating back to 2015. The Wall Street Journal

Freshman funding. China has approved a new private university in Hangzhou, the hometown of tech giant Aliababa, called Westlake University. The school will focus on advanced scientific research and will primarily accept doctoral candidates. Westlake has already attracted staff from prestigious American universities as well as funding from Tencents Pony Ma and Wandas Wang Jianlin. Founder Shi Yigong envisions that in 15 years, the university will be on par with Caltech. Caixin Global

No credit, no ticket. Chinas social credit system has blocked over 15 million travel attempts, state media reports. The system collects data to evaluate an individuals social mores and then issues punishments if they arent up to scratch. A typical punishment is preventing the undesirable from boarding trains or planes. One senior official argued the system doesnt go far enough and should bankrupt discredited citizens. Global Times

The dark side. China has ambitions to become a leading space power by 2030. It took another step towards that goal early this week, launching a relay satellite that could be used to communicate between Earth and a lunar probe. The satellite would allow for a probe to land on the dark side of the moon for the first time in history. The Guardian

This edition of CEO Daily was edited by Eamon Barrett. Find previous editions here, and sign up for other Fortune newsletters here.
Roger Stone wanted Hillary Clinton-related emails from Wikileaks founder, Julian Assange, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Stone reportedly asked radio personality Randy Credico for "any State or HRC e-mail from August 10 to August 30--particularly on August 20, 2011."

Credico told the Journal that he "got tired" of Stone "bothering" him, and told Stone that had passed along the message to Assange.

Roger Stone, a longtime confidant and former campaign advisor to Donald Trump , sought information from Wikileaks founder Julian Assange about Hillary Clinton , according to emails viewed by the Wall Street Journal .



Stone reached out to Randy Credico, a radio personality who had interviewed Assange, in an email on Sept. 18, 2016 and asked him to contact the Wikileaks founder.

"Please ask Assange for any State or HRC e-mail from August 10 to August 30--particularly on August 20, 2011," Stone wrote, according to the Journal. He had no formal role with Mr. Trump's campaign at the time.

Stone wanted emails from Wikileaks about Clinton's alleged role in disrupting a supposed Libyan peace deal in 2011 when she was secretary of state, according to the Journal.



After a back-and-forth over email, Credico told the Journal that he "got tired" of Stone "bothering" him, and told Stone that he had passed along the message to Assange.

Both Stone and Credico told the newspaper they never had special access to Wikileaks' material.

Rep. Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat of the House Intelligence Committee, said that the emails between the two men had not been provided as part of the committee's probe of Russian election meddling, the Journal reported.

The omission, Schiff said, "would mean that his testimony was either deliberately incomplete or deliberately false."

Roger Stone told CNBC in an email that Schiff's statement was "typical bullshiff."

"The e-mails fall outside the scope of their request," Stone added. "My attorney will respond for the record."

Story continues

Stone's lawyer, Grant Smith, told the Journal that the emails were "not encompassed within the scope of the committee's request." He did not immediately provide comment to CNBC.

Stone was interviewed by the House committee in September. Credico was subpoenaed by the committee in November to testify before the committee. He could not be reached for comment.

Credico tweet

A representative for Rep. Devin Nunes, the Republican chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on the report.

Read the full report on Stone's emails with Credico from the Wall Street Journal .





More From CNBC


A Spanish prosecutor who has spearheaded investigations into Russian organised crime said wiretapped conversations involving a pro-Putin oligarch who met with Donald Trump Jr. had been sent to the FBI.

In remarks reported by Yahoo News, Jose Grinda told the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington, that Spanish police had wiretapped conversations between Alexander Torshin, a deputy governor of Russias Central Bank, and convicted money launderer and mafia boss Alexander Romanov.

Donald Trump Jr.

REUTERS/Leah Millis

Trending: Memorial Day: Hundreds of Graves in an Illinois Cemetery Were Defaced With Swastikas

Just a few months ago, the wiretaps of these telephone conversations were given to the FBI, Grinda said in response to a question from the outlet.

Torshin, who has forged close links with the National Rifle Association (NRA), spoke with Trump Jr., president Trumps eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., during a meeting of gun rights lobby groups in May 2016.

Asked if he was concerned about Torshins meetings with Donald Trump Jr. and other American political figures, Grinda replied: Mr. Trumps son should be concerned.

Torshin formed extensive links with Republican lawmakers during the 2016 election, reportedly attempting and failing to set up a meeting between then-presidential candidate Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin.

Don't miss: Chelsea Clinton: Donald Trump Degrades What it Means to be an American'

The Russian has come under scrutiny by lawmakers over alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, and was recently placed on a list of sanctioned individuals by the U.S. state department.

He is under investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller for allegedly funnelling millions into the NRA, which allegedly spent them on Trump's election campaign.

Story continues

The Mueller probe is also reportedly investigating a June 2016 Trump Tower meeting between Trump Jr. and a Kremlin-linked lawyer offering "dirt" on Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton.

Grinda led the Troika investigation into money laundering in Spain by a Moscow mafia syndicate linked to Russian government officials.

Most popular: The Many Faces of Spain

In 2016 a Spanish judge issued an arrest warrant for 20 Russians allegedly implicated in the racket, including members of Putins inner circle. Romanov was convicted of money laundering by a Spanish court that year.

Torshin came under investigation by the probe in 2013, with Spains federal police agency Guardia Civil wiretapping conversations he had with Romanov. Spanish police were poised to arrest Torshin during a planned 2013 visit to Mallorca, but the oligarch cancelled his visit.

Torshin was never charged in connection with the probe, and has denied allegations of wrongdoing.

Trump Jr.s lawyer, Alan S. Furtefas, has not responded to a request for comment from Newsweek.

This article was first written by Newsweek

More from Newsweek
Washington (AFP) - A top lawyer for Donald Trump on Sunday resumed the president's all-out attack on the investigation into possible collusion with Russia as being "illegitimate," while acknowledging a concerted effort to turn public opinion against the probe.

The comments from former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani came as Trump lashed out again at what he called "the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt."

For months, Trump has attacked the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller as politically motivated and without foundation.

His latest line of attack, which Giuliani emphasized, was the assertion that a confidential FBI informant, who met with some Trump campaign advisers in 2016 while the bureau was investigating their possible Russia contacts, was a "spy" intent on subverting the Trump campaign.

Those meetings took place during the Obama administration.

Asked on "Fox News Sunday" what was wrong with the FBI "trying to figure out what Russia was up to," Giuliani replied: "Nothing wrong with the government doing that. Everything wrong with the government spying on a candidate of the opposition party."

"That's a Watergate, spygate."

- 'The FBI's job' -

"I'm not saying Mueller is illegitimate," he said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I'm saying the basis on which he was appointed was illegitimate."

Democrats have pushed back hard at the attacks on the Mueller inquiry, which began several months after the informant's involvement. They said it had already produced real results.

Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, tweeted: "I hate repeating myself Mr. President, but let me remind you again: Special Counsel Muellers investigation has either indicted or secured guilty pleas from 19 people and three companies  that we know of."

And a Republican senator, Marco Rubio of Florida, told CBS that while spying on a political campaign would be wrong, "if there are people operating in this country trying to influence American politics on behalf of a foreign power, it is the FBI's job to investigate."

Story continues

But what Democrats describe as a blunt and concerted effort by the president to delegitimize the Mueller inquiry may be having an effect, to judge by recent polls.

A Monmouth University poll released early this month said the number of Americans who favor Mueller's probe continuing had dropped from 60 percent in March to 54 percent.

Other polls show many Americans are unaware of the indictments and guilty pleas secured by Mueller's team.

Giuliani effectively admitted that the frequent attacks on the probe were designed to influence public opinion and take the air out of any push for impeachment.

- 'It's for public opinion' -

"Of course we have to do it," he said on CNN.

"It's for public opinion," he added. "Because eventually the decision here is going to be impeach or not impeach... And so our jury -- and it should be -- is the American people."

Giuliani on Sunday said Trump was "adamant" about wanting to sit down with Mueller to answer questions. But, he added, "that depends on how comfortable we are with them having an open mind."

The timing of any such interview was being heavily influenced by the possible Trump summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, he said.

Giuliani also said Trump had no intention of firing people to force an end to the Mueller inquiry. That, he said, would draw comparisons to President Richard Nixon's handling of the Watergate scandal.
President Donald Trump on Sunday lamented the lives devastated by special counsel Robert Muellers investigation into Russias interference in the 2016 presidential election.

In his latest attempt to discredit the federal probe, Trump tweeted that the young and beautiful lives allegedly destroyed by the Russia Collusion Witch Hunt had journeyed to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes.

They went back home in tatters! he tweeted.

Whos going to give back the young and beautiful lives (and others) that have been devastated and destroyed by the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt? They journeyed down to Washington, D.C., with stars in their eyes and wanting to help our nation...They went back home in tatters!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 27, 2018

Its unclear who Trump was referring to in his tweet, though at least 19 people have been charged in Muellers investigation, which began in May 2017.

Michael Flynn, 59, who served as Trumps national security adviser for a month before his ouster, was the first person inside the presidents administration to be indicted in the probe. He pleaded guilty in December to lying to the FBI about his contacts with the Russian government.

Paul Manafort, 69, a former Trump campaign chairman, has been indicted on multiple criminal charges, including conspiring to launder money and bank fraud. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Several other Trump associates, including Rick Gates, 46, a former deputy chairman of Trumps campaign, and George Papadopoulos, 30, a former Trump campaign adviser, have pleaded guilty to charges related to the probe and have agreed to cooperate with Mueller.

Trump has repeatedly tried to undermine Muellers investigation, tweeting May 20 that real Americans should get tough on the probe.

Still, the majority of Americans have said they support the probe into possible collusion between Trumps 2016 presidential campaign and Russia, according to a poll conducted in April by The Washington Post and ABC News.

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Very productive talks are ongoing between the US and North Korea about a possible summit in June, Donald Trump has said (Picture: AP)

Very productive talks are underway between the US and North Korea over reinstating a summit in June, Donald Trump has said.

If successful, the summit with leader Kim Jong Un will likely take place in Singapore on June 12, the US President said.

Writing in a tweet, Mr Trump added that if necessary the summit could be extended beyond that date.

We are having very productive talks with North Korea about reinstating the Summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

The tweet comes after the historic summit was called into question when Mr Trump pulled out on Thursday after talks deteriorated.

On Thursday, White House officials said he had left the door open with a letter to Kim Jong Un that pointed the finger at tremendous anger and open hostility by Pyongyang but also urged the North Korean leader to call him.

MORE: UKIP planning big Brexit party when Britain leaves the EU and it will cost the taxpayer thousands

MORE: Romanian is now second most common non-British nationality in the UK

On Friday, North Korea issued a statement saying it was still willing to give the US time and opportunities to reconsider talks at any time, at any format.

Mr Trump tweeted that the statement was very good news and told reporters that were talking to them now.

Talks  Donald Trump pulled out of the summit last week (Picture: Getty)

Mr Trump hasnt revealed details about talks with North Korea, but US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis described the back-and-forth as the usual give and take and said: The diplomats are still at work on the summit, possibility of a summit, so that is very good news.

A previously planned trip by White House aides to Singapore this weekend to work on logistics for the trip remained on schedule, said two White House officials.

Story continues

South Koreas government has reportedly said in a statement released on Saturday that it is relieved about revived talks for a summit.

Office in Seoul said North and South Korean leaders are meeting again at a border village to discuss the US-North Korean summit.
(Photo: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)

President Donald Trump attacked The New York Times in a tweet Saturday, claiming the paper made up a senior White House official for its story about the canceled North Korea summit. The official, a member of Trumps National Security Council, actually does exist and led a briefing at the White House on Thursday for reporters.

The White House even provided its own transcript of the briefing that Trump essentially dismissed as fake news.

As is often the case on such background briefings, the official asked not to be identified by name and instead be referred to as a senior White House official, according to several witnesses who saw the briefing in person or listened to it over the phone.

But, after his own official provided the briefing, Trump complained that the Times story referred to a White House official who doesnt exist.

Use real people, not phony sources, he wrote.

The Failing @nytimes quotes a senior White House official, who doesnt exist, as saying even if the meeting were reinstated, holding it on June 12 would be impossible, given the lack of time and the amount of planning needed. WRONG AGAIN! Use real people, not phony sources.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

Several news outlets responding to Trumps tweet named the official and some even posted audio of the briefing he provided. Trump did not correct his tweet, nor apologize. The tweet was still live Saturday night.

The Times reported the official said that relaunching the now-canceled North Korea summit on the originally scheduled date would be impossible. The official didnt use that word, but indicated that there was far too much preparation required to make a June 12 meeting possible.

Theres a certain amount of actual dialogue that needs to take place at the working level with your counterparts to ensure that the agenda is clear ... and June 12 is in 10 minutes, and its going to be  you know, said the official, according to the White House transcript.

Story continues

Journalists were irritated:

The president of the United States is now claiming that his own White House briefings are fake news and that an official his White House put in the briefing room "doesn't exist." https://t.co/ozT6QMhEsM  Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) May 26, 2018

For those keeping track >>> A first even in annals of Trump admin: president claiming own staff gave fake and nonexistent briefing.  Susan Glasser (@sbg1) May 26, 2018

Respected news organizations don't make up sources. This is someone who works for you, Mr. President. https://t.co/J7S8lMj8Wa  Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) May 26, 2018

I was there. This was a background briefing given by a senior administration official in the briefing room! POTUS either has no idea what his own administration is doing, has lost his mind, doesn't care, all of the above and is such a liar he can't remember the last lie he told. https://t.co/0SOcLd3218  Brian J. Karem (@BrianKarem) May 26, 2018

I was on this briefing call with a (very real) senior WH official, and at one point got disconnected. When I got back on, it said there were 240+ people on the line.



That's a lot of people to make up a phony official "who doesn't exist." https://t.co/YZzN21UdYa  Vera Bergengruen (@VeraMBergen) May 26, 2018

I mean, every reporter on the call knows who this official was, and this official exists. And we all heard the official say it. https://t.co/iEiTEpHeyb  Mike Warren (@MichaelRWarren) May 26, 2018

I think we can agree that when you send out an official to conduct a background briefing, then not only deny that the official said something but also deny that the official even exists, you have blown up the terms of said briefing. https://t.co/qqVfbqNaTh  Robert Draper (@DraperRobert) May 26, 2018

This is a good example of why, at pretty much every background briefing, you'll hear an AP reporter ask why it's being held on background/why it's not on record. https://t.co/EYkrUszieZ  Jill Colvin (@colvinj) May 26, 2018

The WH argument when POTUS contradicts official line is typically Well we gave you the best info we had at the time. But here POTUS said the official doesnt exist and NYT made it up  thats demonstrably false. Will WH admit that? I highly doubt it.  Matthew Nussbaum (@MatthewNussbaum) May 26, 2018

Its a lie. Say LIE.  TW Polk (@twpolk) May 26, 2018

Trump told two demonstrable falsehoods this AM, one about his administrations policy of separating undocumented immigrant kids inclu infants from their parents, which he tried to claim wasnt his own policy. The other was falsely claiming his own aide didnt give a bg briefing.  Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) May 26, 2018

Also on HuffPost

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
President Donald Trump has bashed the Democrats for a hugely controversial policy created by his own administration: separating undocumented immigrant children from their parents.

He urged Americans in a Saturday morning tweet to put pressure on the Democrats to end the horrible law that separates children from there [sic] parents.

Put pressure on the Democrats to end the horrible law that separates children from there parents once they cross the Border into the U.S. Catch and Release, Lottery and Chain must also go with it and we MUST continue building the WALL! DEMOCRATS ARE PROTECTING MS-13 THUGS.  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 26, 2018

Despite what Trump tweeted, there is no law requiring children to be separated from their parents. The separation policy was adopted by his own administration. It was underscored in a speech in early May by Attorney General Jeff Sessions (in the video above).

No law requires this  separating parents and children is your administrations choice.



Hundreds of kids as young as 18 months are in danger of suffering lifelong trauma.



We wont let you shift the blame or use families as bargaining chips for your wall. #EndFamilySeparation https://t.co/ixRFgPgCq6  ACLU (@ACLU) May 26, 2018

The policy has been hit with a firestorm of criticism, with some even comparing the increasing dehumanization of immigrants in America as similar to the ugly atmosphere in Germany before the Holocaust.

The Holocaust did not end with people being called subhuman, constantly compared to criminals, put into yellow markers with children torn from the the arms of screaming mothers..



But it did start there.#WhereAreTheChildren  Mikel Jollett (@Mikel_Jollett) May 26, 2018

Even in the shameful internment of Americans of Japanese ancestry in the wake of Pearl Harbor, the US Government didnt rip families apart.  Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) May 26, 2018

this cant be who we are becoming https://t.co/Q8RfTdHVO5  Henry Winkler (@hwinkler4real) May 26, 2018

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) took first lady Melania Trump to task in light of her new Be Best mission for children. Separating toddlers from parents is definitely not a Be Best policy, he tweeted. Are you going to do anything about it?

Story continues

Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

Dear @FLOTUS: Separating toddlers from parents is definitely not a #BeBest policy. Are you going to do anything about it?



No one can take your #BeBest children's agenda seriously when your husband's policy rips kids from their parents and loses track of the children. https://t.co/IQTSrvTVP4  Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) May 26, 2018

In chilling Senate testimony last month, a Health and Human Services official said the government was unable to locate nearly 1,500 children who had been released from its custody. Steve Wagner, acting assistant secretary with the Administration for Children and Families of HHS, insisted that the federal agency is not legally responsible for children once theyre handed over to a sponsor.

What is more shameful than forcibly separating, in America, parents from infant children at the border? And then, losing track of those children?  Preet Bharara (@PreetBharara) May 26, 2018

Until recently, families that illegally crossed the Mexican border together generally faced civil deportation proceedings. But as of May, the Trump administration is sending all parents to jails run by the U.S. Marshals Service. Because migrant children cannot be held in jails, they are placed elsewhere by the HHS Office of Refugee Resettlement. Before the Trump administration, the office handled children who crossed the border alone.

White House chief of staff John Kelly, who called the harsh new policy a technique and a tough deterrent, explained earlier this month to NPR: Theyll be sent to foster care  or whatever. But the big point is they elected to come illegally into the United States.



CORRECTION: A previous version of this story identified Ted Lieu as a U.S. senator. He is a U.S. representative.

Also on HuffPost

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
By Phil Stewart and Matt Spetalnick WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. efforts to sustain and possibly intensify its "maximum pressure" campaign on North Korea are entering a perilous phase as a potential breakdown in diplomacy with Pyongyang raises fears that China may loosen its enforcement of international sanctions. With the fate of a summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in limbo, U.S. officials have suggested Washington may pursue fresh sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear program even though key players such as China and South Korea may be reluctant to participate. Another way for the United States and its allies to increase pressure on North Korea could be to step up efforts to intercept ships suspected of violating international trade restrictions on Pyongyang. One U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said more countries are interested in joining that initiative. Such moves would be designed to reinforce to Kim that he faces more potential economic pain, especially if he takes any provocative action after Trump on Thursday abruptly canceled their planned June 12 summit in Singapore. Trump held out the possibility on Friday that the summit could still take place. His administration may be wary of acting precipitously on new sanctions while efforts are under way to salvage the meeting, aimed at forging a denuclearisation deal with North Korea that could defuse tensions dating to the 1950s on the Korean Peninsula. Trump last year launched what his administration has called a "maximum pressure" campaign against North Korea combining the toughest-ever U.S. and international economic sanctions with diplomatic actions and the Republican president's military threats and preparations. With the summit in doubt, a big challenge for the United States is that China, North Korea's main trading partner and the linchpin for sanctions enforcement, is increasingly at odds with Trump over how to deal with Pyongyang. Even before scrubbing the summit, Trump urged China to maintain tight sanctions, writing on Twitter that "the word is that recently the Border has become much more porous." Analysts have seen China's willingness to pressure North Korea as waning at a time when Beijing already is engaged in a trade dispute with Washington. "China is already de-coupling," said Lee Seong-hyon, research fellow at South Korea's Sejong Institute think tank. "A high-level North Korean delegation just completed an 11-day economic tour of China's industrial cities." 'WATCHING CLOSELY' A senior White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said China had given assurances it would keep up sanctions enforcement on North Korea. "We'll be watching closely to ensure that they do," the official added. With no summit, the Trump administration would face the question of how much further it wants to go with its "maximum pressure" campaign. Pyongyang has been targeted in three U.S.-led United Nations sanctions resolutions since Trump took office last year. "The goal here is to achieve maximum pressure," the White House official said. "We're still short of that." While China would almost certainly block any U.S. attempt to win passage of more U.N. sanctions, the United States still has at its disposal further unilateral measures such as imposing its own new sanctions on North Korean officials and entities or additional Chinese companies that do business with Pyongyang. Kim's two meetings in recent weeks with Chinese President Xi Jinping also have signaled warming ties that could make it harder for China to join with the United States in taking a harder line. U.S. officials believe sanctions played a major role in leading North Korea to turn to diplomacy after years of missile and nuclear weapons tests. North Korea has said it did so because it had achieved its nuclear arms ambitions and wanted now to focus on economic development in the poor, isolated country. While Trump's summit cancellation caused anxiety for U.S. ally South Korea, Seoul is expected to keep enforcing existing sanctions. But South Korea could be wary of joining any new U.S. measures that might damage its own delicate diplomatic engagement with the North. "If China and South Korea go wobbly and the world goes wobbly on the maximum pressure campaign, you're putting Trump in a box, and that's the worst possible thing you could do right now," Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham told Fox News. The Trump administration has sought to convince allies that any weakening of sanctions pressure would harm diplomatic prospects for resolving the crisis and increase chances for military options to address North Korea's pursuit of a nuclear missile capable of striking the continental United States. Seoul already was looking at ways to relax economic pressure on Pyongyang, although a senior South Korean official said, "We can't and won't do anything that may loosen sanctions on our own, breaking away from the international community." (Additional reporting by Idrees Ali, Doina Chiacu and Lesley Wroughton in Washington, Michelle Nichols at the United Nations, Josh Smith and Hyonhee Shin in Seoul; Editing by Mary Milliken and Will Dunham)
By David Shepardson and Karen Freifeld

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Trump administration told lawmakers the U.S. government has reached a deal to put Chinese telecommunications company ZTE Corp <000063.SZ> <0763.HK> back in business after it pays a significant fine and makes management changes, a senior congressional aide said on Friday.

U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to confirm the deal in a tweet late on Friday. "I closed it down then let it reopen with high level security guarantees, change of management and board, must purchase U.S. parts and pay a $1.3 Billion fine."

The reported deal involving Chinas second-largest telecommunications equipment maker ran into immediate resistance in Congress, where Democrats and Trump's fellow Republicans accused him of bending to pressure from Beijing to ease up on a company that U.S. intelligence officials have suggested poses a significant risk to U.S. national security.

ZTE was banned in April from buying U.S. technology components for seven years for breaking an agreement reached after it violated U.S. sanctions against Iran and North Korea.. After ZTE makes a series of changes it would now be allowed to resume business with U.S. companies, including chipmaker Qualcomm Inc <QCOM.O>.

The deal, earlier communicated to officials on Capitol Hill by the Commerce Department, requires ZTE to pay a substantial fine, place U.S. compliance officers at the company and change its management team, the aide said.

The Commerce Department would then lift an order issued in April preventing ZTE from buying U.S. products. ZTE shut down most of its production after the ruling was announced.

Fox News said Trump told them on Thursday that he had negotiated the $1.3 billion fine with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a phone call.

ZTE, which is publicly traded but whose largest shareholder is a Chinese state-owned enterprise, agreed last year to pay a nearly $900 million penalty and open its books to a U.S. monitor. The penalty stemmed from for breaking an agreement after it was caught illegally shipping U.S. goods to Iran and North Korea, in an investigation dating to the Obama administration.

Story continues

The company has lost over $3 billion since the April 15th ban on doing business with U.S. suppliers, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Trump on Tuesday floated a plan to fine ZTE up to $1.3 billion and shake up its management as his administration considered rolling back more severe penalties that have crippled the company.

Responding to news of the administration's deal with ZTE, Republican Senator Marco Rubio tweeted: "Yes they have a deal in mind. It is a great deal ... for #ZTE & China. #China crushes U.S. companies with no mercy & they use these telecomm companies to spy & steal from us."

Rubio, as well as Democratic Senators Chuck Schumer and Chris Van Hollen, said Congress should act to stop Trump from letting ZTE get back into business. "If the administration goes through with this reported deal, President Trump would be helping make China great again," Schumer said Friday on Twitter. "Would be a huge victory for President Xi, and a dramatic retreat by Pres Trump. Both parties in Congress should come together to stop this deal in its tracks."

U.S. intelligence and U.S. law enforcement agencies have serious concerns that ZTE and other Chinese telecommunications firms use their equipment to gather intelligence on U.S. citizens.

The U.S. Department of Defense has also stopped selling ZTEs mobile phones and modems in stores on its military bases, citing potential security risks.

William Evanina, the acting director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, said at his May 15 confirmation hearing that he would not use a ZTE phone nor recommend that anyone in a sensitive position in government use one.

Chinese officials sought a pullback on ZTE as part of any broader deal to prevent a trade war between the world's two biggest economies. U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is scheduled to visit China next week for another round of talks. White House legislative director Marc Short told PBS Friday that Ross "would be making that announcement in the coming day" of a resolution of the ZTE issue.

ZTE needs U.S. components for its mobile phones and network equipment. U.S. companies provide an estimated 25 percent to 30 percent of components in ZTE's equipment.

As part of the agreements ZTE made last year it dismissed four senior employees.

Shares of ZTE's U.S. suppliers traded higher on Friday. Optical networking equipment maker Acacia Communications Inc <ACIA.O>, which got 30 percent of 2017 revenue from ZTE, rose 4.4 percent. Optical component company Oclaro Inc <OCLR.O>, which received 18 percent of its fiscal 2017 revenue from ZTE, rose 2.7 percent.

Reuters reported earlier this week citing sources that a proposed trade deal with China would lift the ZTE ban. In return, China would eliminate tariffs on U.S. agriculture or agree to buy more farm products from the United States.

(Reporting by Roberta Rampton and Doina Chiacu; Additional reporting by Jonathan Landay; Writing by Chris Sanders; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli, Tom Brown and Diane Craft)
The recent developments on the Gaza border lead to a grim political conclusion: The experiment called the disengagement failed.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Gaza isnt controlled by the Palestinian Authority, as the supporters of the disengagementmyself includedexpected. Gaza was basically handed over to Hamas, which failed to establish a civilian government there. Instead, it established a wild military regime seeking conflicts and lacking any civilian goals. Israel, for its part, tried to rid itself of Gaza, suffocate it and hand it over to Egyptian responsibility.

At the end of the day, neither option was implemented: Gaza is stuck in our throats, today more than ever. The conflict isnt over. It has worsened, and it likely wont end on its own.

The experiment called the disengagement failed (Photo: Roni Shitzer)

The disengagement wasnt an initiative of the peace camp; it was the personal initiative of late Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. On paper, it seemed like the right solutionthe beginning of a process to end the occupation. Thats how it was presented by Sharon too.

But immediately after Israel pulled out of there, it turned out the strip wouldnt be like Singaporebut rather like Benghazi. The Hamas militias had no interest in an organized transfer of the production and real estate assets Israel had left behind. They preferred to build training camps in greenhouses than grow tomatoes there. And the PA vanished from the area. That sealed the enclaves fate.

The economic, social and security situation in Gaza has deteriorated in the years that have passed since the disengagement: Thousands of Gazans have been killed in three wars against Israel, tens of thousands have been wounded, and an unknown number have died due to lack of water, electricity and basic medical services. On the Israeli side, many soldiers and civilians have been killed, communities have been damaged and billions have been invested in fortification and in protecting the border.

Our siege worsened the crisis in the strip but didnt create it. It was created by the fact that the Gazans fate was placedor rather desertedin the hands of a cruel, violent, illegal and incompetent Islamic terror organization, which was unprepared to rule as a responsible government. Nevertheless, many Israelis, including senior IDF officers, saw it as the lesser of two evils. So did many European and Arab politicians, who didnt lift a finger to loosen its grip.

Now, tens of thousands of Gazans are protesting under slogans that not a single Israeli can accept or identify with. Theyre not protesting against the occupation, against the siege or against the US Embassys move to Jerusalem, as the Western media are wrongly reporting; they are protesting against the actual existence of a Jewish state. And we are responding with cruel live fire. We are firing without crying. They are dying without crying. They have nothing to lose apart from a miserable and hopeless existence. Its a terrible reality. And the hatred is breaking new records.

Last week's riots on the Gaza border. A protest against the existence of a Jewish state (Photo: EPA)

Looking back, the disengagement was a mistake. I admit I was wrong to support it, although I had my reservations. Had Israel remained in Gaza, the economic gap between the Palestinians in the strip and the Palestinians in the West Bank would have been narrowed, and a solution would have been found for the transfer of goods and people between Gaza and Hebron. The PA would have maintained its ruleand would have even grown stronger. Tens of thousands of Gazans would be working in Israel, as they did in the past, and the level of violence would have dropped.

What now? Israel wont reoccupy Gaza, but Israel can serve as a critical element in jumpstarting an international move to free the strip of Hamas and restore the PA's rule. We must, therefore, turn to the Arab League and the European Union countries immediately and call for a comprehensive initiative that would include ending the siege, disarming Hamas, opening the crossings between Gaza and Egypt and bringing the PA back to the strip as the only legitimate government.

Because as long as Israel continues the siege, as long as Hamas continues the terror regime, as long as Egypt remains indifferent and the PA keeps enjoying the bloodshed, no one will be willing to invest the billions of dollars needed to reconstruct Gazacritical investments which will open a window of hope for the strips residents, slightly ease their despair and cool the boiling atmosphere. The vicious circle of bloodshed wont stop turning on its own. On the contrary, its rounds will only hasten and become more frequentand more disastrous.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un reaffirmed his commitment to complete denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and to a planned meeting with US President Donald Trump, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Sunday.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



In Washington, US President Donald Trump signaled that preparations for a June 12 summit with Kim were going ahead, despite having called off the meeting last week.

Moon and Kim agreed at a surprise meeting on Saturday that the possible North Korea-US summit must be held, Moon told a news conference in Seoul.

Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean peninsulas denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted, Moon said.

Trump and Kim. Will they meet? (Photo: EPA)

The meeting was the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs surrounding the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the two Korean leaders are trying to keep the on-again off-again meeting on track.

A statement from North Koreas state news agency KCNA said Kim expressed his fixed will on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Moon, who returned to Seoul on Thursday morning after meeting Trump in Washington in a bid to keep the high-stakes US-North Korea summit on track, said he delivered a message of Trumps firm resolve to end the hostile relationship with North Korea and pursue bilateral economic cooperation.

In a letter to Kim on Thursday, Trump had said he was cancelling the planned Singapore summit, citing North Koreas open hostility.

But on Saturday, Trump said he was still looking at a June 12 date for a summit in Singapore, adding that talks were progressing very well.

Were doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea, Trump said at the White House. Its moving along very nicely. So were looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasnt changed. So, well see what happens.

A White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the possible summit, a White House spokeswoman said on Saturday.

Denuclearization differences

While maintaining that Kim is committed to denuclearization, Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what that means, and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

Even though they share the same resolve, there need to be discussions regarding the roadmap for how to make it happen, and that process could be tough, he said, declining to define complete denuclearization.

Kim and Moon's meeting, Saturday (Photo: EPA)

The Trump administration has demanded that North Korea completely and irreversibly shutter its nuclear weapons program. Kim and Trumps initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over the program.

American officials are skeptical that Kim will ever fully abandon his nuclear arsenal, and Moon said North Korea is not yet convinced it can trust security guarantees from the United States.

However, during the US-South Korea summit, President Trump clearly emphasized that we may see not only the end of hostile relations but also economic cooperation if North Korea denuclearizes, Moon said. I urge North Korea and the US to confirm each others will by sharing their problems with each other and communicating directly.

A senior South Korean official later said that the two Koreas are discussing a possible non-aggression pledge and the start of peace treaty talks as a way of addressing Pyongyangs security concerns ahead of US-North Korean negotiations.

'Better than a phone call'

Moon said he held Saturdays impromptu summitthe second summit between the two sides in a monthafter Kim asked for a meeting without any formality.

A meeting was held because officials of both countries thought that meeting face-to-face would be better than a phone call, Moon said, noting that the summit was in line with previous agreements for the two leaders to meet more often.

(: AFP )

Their talks at the Panmunjom border village, which South Korean officials said lasted two hours, came after their April 27 meeting, the first inter-Korean summit in more than a decade that was also held at the same venue. At that meeting, they declared they would work toward a nuclear-free Korean peninsula and a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War.

The KCNA statement said Kim and Moon agreed to hold high-level talks between their two nations on June 1, and to take steps to quickly implement their efforts to denuclearize the peninsula. KCNA said the leaders also agreed to meet frequently.

The agency said the two leaders had reached a satisfactory consensus and expressed their stand to make joint efforts for the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.

Video and a photo released by South Koreas presidential Blue House on Saturday showed Kim hugging Moon and kissing him on the cheek three times as he saw Moon off after their meeting at Tongilgak, the Norths building in the truce village, which lies in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)the 2.5-mile (4 km) wide buffer that runs along the heavily armed military border.
Paramedical workers across the country, including physical therapists, nutritionists, speech therapists, occupational therapists, dentists, genetic counselors,and art and crafts therapists, went on strike at 7 am Sunday.

Some 5,000 hospitals and clinics' workers went on strike in protest of the severe shortage in workers in the paramedical sector which harms them and the quality of service to the public, according to the workers.

The strike will take place Sunday, and later on it will be decided whether to extend it.
IDF tanks fired at an observation post in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources reported Sunday morning, about 12 hours after the Israeli army struck targets in a Hamas military complex in retaliation to a Palestinian infiltration into Israel earlier Saturday.
IDF tanks fired at an observation post in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday morning. According to Palestinian sources, two peoplelikely members of the Palestinian Islamic Jihadwere killed in the strike, and one person was seriously wounded.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said the shells were fired in response to an explosive device planted near the border fence on Saturday evening and hidden in a cutting tool.

Explosive device neutralized on Gaza border (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit)

The explosive charge exploded as it was being neutralized by a robot. There were no reports of injuries among the IDF forces. The attacked observation post overlooks the area where the device was planted and detonated.

An Islamic Jihad source said following the strike, "We know how to respond to this dangerous Israeli escalation, and we have a right to do so."

Explosive device neutralized by IDF robot (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) (:  ")

X

On Saturday night, the Israeli army struck targets in a Hamas military complex in retaliation to a Palestinian infiltration into Israel earlier Saturday.

Repeated attempts to damage Israeli security infrastructures near the border under cover of protests organized by Hamas may have also served as backdrop for Saturday night's strike.

explosive device hidden in a cutting tool (Photo: IDF Spokpeserson's Unit)

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said in a statement that it "gravely considers continued daily attempts by the Hamas terror group to damage security infrastructures in Israel, while threatening the safety of both soldiers and civilians, and is determined to continuing to defend Israel's citizens."

The army then added its usual refrain, that "Hamas was solely responsible for all goings-on in the Gaza Strip and will face the ramifications of the terroristic activities carried out from Gaza against Israel's citizens and its sovereignty."

Hamas footage of the Palestinians' infiltration

X

The infiltration incident mentioned in the IDF's comment took place earlier Saturday, when four Palestinians crossed the security fence in the southern Gaza Strip and infiltrated Israeli territory, where they lit a Molotov cocktail as part of the "March of Return" protests.

An IDF force that spotted them arrived and fired warning shots. The IDF initially reported that the suspects burned a tire on Israeli land, but later recanted the claim.

Apart from the incendiary bottle, it was reported the suspects left a tent in the field bearing the writing, "March of Return. Returning to the lands of Palestine." It was further communicated the entire incident lasted less than a minute.

Several days ago, Israeli jets attacked a Hamas terror tunnel in the northern strip. Two additional targets belonging to the Gaza-ruling terror group's naval force were also hit.

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said the strike came in retaliation to an infiltration by Gazans into Israel the previous day, and in light of "continued attempts to fly drones and kites into Israel for the purposes of terrorism and arson."
Israeli and Palestinian vineyards were vandalized in the West Bank over the weekend in two separate incidents that took place within less than 24 hours.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



A resident of the Palestinian village of Bani Na'im in Mount Hebron discovered that his olive grove had been damaged on Saturday morning and filed a complaint with the Judea and Samaria District Police.

GraffitI reading, "Stop the agricultural terror, we'll get to you everywhere," was spray-painted nearby.

Grapevines damaged in Shilo (Photo: TPS)

On Sunday morning, a resident of the settlement of Shilo in the Binyamin region reported heavy damage to hundreds of his grapevines.

The entire area, from Judea through Binyamin to northern Samaria, has been suffering from "agricultural terror" for quite a long time now. So far, not a single suspect has been arrested by the Judea and Samaria District Police.

The vandals usually use burning tires or Molotov cocktails to burn agricultural land or cut off trees with knives.

Zvi Struck, who owns one of the vineyards damaged in Shilo, said: "I arrived at the vineyard this morning and saw that some 100 young grapevines had been uprooted. They were simply pulled out of the ground. We searched the area and discovered that some 1,000 mature trees had been vandalized in the adjacent vineyard, causing damage worth hundreds of thousands of shekels.

"These incidents keep repeating themselves, and no one is apprehended. It's a difficult and frustrating feeling. They have to understand that this is terrorism for all intents and purposes and treat it accordingly."
On April 13, a new era of combat commenced as part of the ongoing conflict between Israel and residents of the Gaza Strip'. Several incendiary kites flown into Israel, under the auspices of the violent riots on the Gaza border fence, caused a fire in the kibbutz of Nahal Oz.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Since then, the "aerial terror offensive" against the Gaza border communities has continued with greater vigor, including some 300 incendiary kites flown into Israel's territory, 100 fires and more than 3,000 acres of wheat destroyed, causing millions of shekels worth of damage to the farmers of the area.

Incendiary kites destroying wheat fields

The Eshkol and Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Councils' communities and farmlands under attack include Kissufim and Be'eri forests, Kibbutzim Nir Oz, Kerem Shalom, Sufa, Kfar Aza, Sa'ad, Mefalsim, Erez, and Gevim.

Incendiary kites cause fires across Gaza border communities

X

The Eshkol and Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Councils' communities and farmlands under attack include Kissufim and Be'eri forests, Kibbutzim Nir Oz, Kerem Shalom, Sufa, Kfar Aza, Sa'ad, Mefalsim, Erez, and Gevim.

The modus operandi has been the same in all the incidents causing fires: During the Gaza border riots, terrorists attached Molotov cocktails and other incendiary objects to kites and flew them into Israel.

Terror kites being assembled in Gaza (Photo: AFP)

Hundreds of drones were developed and purchased within several days by the IDF to aid intercept the incendiary kites.

Incendiary kite cause fire in Be'eri forest

The Defense Ministry's Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure (Maf'at) managed to provide within several days new operational solutions assembled on existing drones and on those which are being currently developed by the "Aeronautics" security industry, such as the "Pegasus 120."

"Pegasus 120" can carry up to 75 Kg, and was tested for the purpose of carrying cargo supplies, ammunition and fuel to forces maneuvering deep inside the enemy's territory as part of the Northern Command's military exercise last year.

Drone meant to intercept incendiary kites

Nevertheless, it seems the incendiary kites phenomenon is growing stronger. Last Wednesday, several kites flown into Israel caused serious fires across the Gaza border communities.

Drone intercepting incendiary kites

X

The Gaza border communities' farmers are dealing on a daily basis with putting out fires instead of taking care of their harvest. Recently, they decided to hold the harvest earlier than planned so the wheat wouldn't be destroyed by fires caused by the kites.

"We are frustrated with the situation, it has become real terror. We are coping with this phenomenon on a daily basis," one of the farmers said.

"When a fire breaks out, we don't wait for the firefighting forces and use our own equipment (to put out the fire) otherwise the wheat would be completely destroyed and entire fields would disappear," he explained.

"The right thing is to collaborate with the firefighting forces, but without our efforts the damage would have been much more severe," he added.

Kites terror causes entire wheat field to be destroyed (Photo: AFP)

Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon visited the western Negev communities two weeks ago and said, "Those who fly incendiary kites must be treated with the same severity as those who launch rockets into Israel."

Kahlon was accompanied by a property tax representative during his visit and promised that farmers would be compensated for the damages caused to their wheat fields.

In addition, the region authorities' heads have sent messages demanding the government to compensate them for their damaged "down to last shekel."

They have also asked for the matter to be among IDF's top priorities.

The fight against the relatively new threat consists of both offensive and defensive actions by the IDF including aerial attack of Hamas's posts as retaliation to launching incendiary kites into Israel.

The IDF's Spokesperson's Unit said after one of the retaliatory attacks, "The IDF will continue to fight against terror above and below the ground.

"The IDF considers the Hamas terror organization as solely responsible for what is happening in Gaza and outside of it," the statement added.
Growing US pressure on Lebanon's Iranian-backed Hezbollah group, including a new wave of sanctions targeting its top leadership, may hamper the formation of a new government that caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri was overwhelmingly chosen to form on Thursday.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Hariri's aim is to quickly recreate a national unity government that incorporates Hezbollah members to implement reforms and deal with a crippling and growing national debt, but might come under increasing pressure from the US and its Arab allies to shun the militant group which says it wants to play a bigger role in the future Cabinet.

After a day of consultations between President Michel Aoun and the country's 128 legislators, 111 named Hariri as their choice to form a new Cabinet while the rest, including Hezbollah's bloc and some of its allies, did not give a name. Hariri's nomination comes after this month's parliament elections in which Hezbollah, along with its political allies, significantly increased their presence in the legislature.

Hariri. 'I am open to all elements and never closed the door in front of anyone' (Photo: AFP)

"The least we should expect is huge complications over the formation of the Cabinet," said Nabil Bou Monsef, deputy editor-in-chief of the leading daily An-Nahar. He said Lebanon is again in the heart of the US-Iran conflict and this will lead to "complications over the government that will be caused by conditions and counter conditions."

Despite soaring regional tensions, Hariri appeared optimistic after he was named to form the Cabinet.

"I extend my hand to all political elements. We should work together to achieve what the Lebanese people are looking for," Hariri told reporters.

Asked if there will be a veto on Hezbollah's participation, Hariri said "I only heard that from the Lebanese media. This is the first time I hear it." Hariri added: "I am open to all elements and never closed the door in front of anyone."

Hezbollah, which has 13 seats in the 128-member legislature, did not name its own candidate for the premiership as it has done in the pastsignaling it will likely go along with Hariri's re-appointment despite tense relations between the Iran-allied Shiite group and the Western-backed Hariri.

A UN-backed tribunal has indicted five Hezbollah members in the 2005 assassination of Hariri's father and former premier Rafik Hariri. Hezbollah denies the charges.

"We have confirmed our readiness to take part in the next government and to deal positively with whomever is named by the majority," Mohammed Raad, who heads Hezbollah's bloc in parliament, said after meeting Aoun.

Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah. Senior organization official says Saudis 'can't prevent Hezbollah from holding important portfolios in the government'

Naming Hariri came amid concerns in Lebanon that a new wave of sanctions by the US and its Arab allies against Hezbollah would delay Hariri's formation of the Cabinet.

The increasing pressures by the US and its Arab allies on Hezbollah come amid rising tensions in the region following President Donald Trump's decision earlier this month to withdraw Washington from the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and the militant group's gains in the May 6, parliamentary elections.

On Monday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Tehran should end its support of Hezbollah, Iran's most powerful arm in the region.

"We will track down Iranian operatives and their Hezbollah proxies operating around the world and crush them," Pompeo said.

The US has been imposing sanctions on the militant group for decade. However, a new wave last week appears to be more serious about targeting the group's top leadership as well as businessmen and companies that Washington says are funding the group that is heavily involved in Syria's seven-year war, providing strong military backing for President Bashar Assad's forces.

The sanctions reflect the battle between the US and its allies against Iran, which has expanded its influence in the Arab world in recent years. Tehran enjoys wide influence in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen and last year opened a land corridor from its border through Iraq and Syria all the way to the Mediterranean.

On May 16, the US and the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council that includes Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman imposed sanctions on 10 top Hezbollah officials including its leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, his deputy Naim Kassem and top officials Hashem Safieddine, Ibrahim Aim al-Sayyed, Hussein Khalil and Mohammed Yazbek.

A day later, Washington imposed sanctions on businessman Mohammed Ibrahim Bazzi and Hezbollah's representative in Iran, Abdullah Safieddine, as well as several companies in Europe, Africa and Lebanon saying they launder money for the group.

The six GCC countries and the US consider Hezbollah a terrorist organization while the European Union only labels its military wing as a terrorist group.

"This action highlights the duplicity and disgraceful conduct of Hezbollah and its Iranian backers. Despite Nasrallah's claims, Hezbollah uses financiers like Bazzi who are tied to drug dealers, and who launder money to fund terrorism," said Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin in a statement.

"The savage and depraved acts of one of Hezbollah's most prominent financiers cannot be tolerated. This Administration will expose and disrupt Hezbollah and Iranian terror networks at every turn, including those with ties to the Central Bank of Iran," he said.

Hezbollah supporers celebrate election results (Photo: Reuters)

Hariri said earlier this week that the sanctions will not hinder the formation of a new Cabinet but on the contrary might accelerate it.

On Sunday, outgoing cabinet minister Marwan Hamadeh, a Hariri ally, said that sanctions on Hezbollah would "hamper the formation of the government."

Senior Hezbollah official Nabil Kaouk said Saudi Arabia does not want his group to be represented in the government, adding that the coming days will prove that the kingdom "is weak and cannot prevent Hezbollah from holding important portfolios in the government."

A Saudi envoy said during a visit to Lebanon over the weekend that the kingdom does not interfere in the country's internal politics and supports the stability of Lebanon.

Hezbollah's allies are strongly standing behind the organization's representation in the new Cabinet.

"The party should be represented in the new government. This is not negotiable," said Foreign Minister Gibran Bassil, who heads the Free Patriotic Movement that has the largest bloc in parliament, about Hezbollah.
Welfare and Social Services Minister Haim Katz spoke Sunday before joining the government meeting about the State Attorney's Office's intention to indict him with bribery and the involvement of business Moti Ben-Ari.

"I've been serving as a MK for 20 years, and today I'm the welfare and social services minister. I've legislated more than 180 bills for the benefit the population's weaker sectors," he said.

"Moti Ben-Ari has been a close friend of mine for decades," Katz added.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday during the weekly cabinet meeting that "the battle against Iran has not ended yet.

"We are acting to prevent the Iranians from achieving nuclear weapon, entrancement in Syria and transferring armament to Lebanon," the premier added.

"We have the right to act in self-defense and prevent Iran from producing nuclear weapon," Netanyahu went on to say.
A leading Jewish organization has criticized the Vatican's decision to move World War II-era Cardinal August Hlond along the path to possible sainthood, saying the Polish primate was "extremely" hostile to Jews and failed to condemn a 1946 pogrom.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



In a letter to top Vatican officials released Wednesday, the American Jewish Committee said it was "profoundly" concerned that Pope Francis approved a decree recognizing Hlond's "heroic virtues," the first main step in the sainthood process.

AJC's director of interreligious affairs, Rabbi David Rosen, cited a 1936 pastoral letter Hlond wrote in which he urged Poles to stay away from the "harmful moral influence of Jews" and to boycott Jewish media.

Pope Francis' decree that Hlond lived a life of heroic virtue came after investigators compiled a full study of his life, writings and works to determine their theological soundness (Photo: Reuters)

"It is a fact that the Jews are fighting against the Catholic Church, persisting in free thinking, and are the vanguard of godlessness, Bolshevism and subversion," Hlond wrote in the letter, which frequently has been cited as evidence of the Catholic Church's institutional anti-Semitism prior to the modernizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s.

Hlond, who was highest ranking church official in Poland during 1926-48, remains highly respected in the overwhelmingly Catholic country for having kept the faith strong and protected the church's independence during the German Nazi occupation and the first years of post-war communism.

His initiatives safeguarded Poland's Church from the kind of persecution and subjugation that took place in nearby nations.

While living in exile during World War II, Hlond used his influence and personal contacts to speak to the world about Poland's plight under Nazi occupation. When the Germans arrested him, he refused an offer to form a collaborative government.

His devotion to Catholic faith laid the foundations for the emergence of such key figures in Poland's church as Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski and Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, who became Pope John Paul II, now a saint.

Francis' decree that Hlond lived a life of heroic virtue came after investigators compiled a full study of his life, writings and works to determine their theological soundness. The Vatican must still confirm a miracle attributed to his intercession for him to be beatified, and a second one for him to be made a saint.
A hangar, two hardened aircraft shelters (HAS), and likely a convoy of vehicles or a weapons cache as well, were the targets attacked in the Dabaa military airfield in the Syrian province of Homs on Thursday evening, according to satellite images.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Hezbollah attributed the airstrike to Israel and said "it was the biggest attack by the Israel Air Force since the missile night," referring to the night of May 10, when the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force fired 32 missiles at military posts in the Golan Heights, before Israel's crushing retaliation.

Targets of Dabaa strike (Photo: Google Earth)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the regional developments at the state of Sunday's weekly cabinet meeting, threatening both Iran and Lebanon.

"The regime in Tehran is the main factor undermining stability in the Middle East, and the battle against its aggression hasn't ended," the prime minister said. "We are working to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. At the same time, we are working to stop the transfer of lethal weapons from Syria to Lebanon or their production in Lebanon. All these weapons are directed against State of Israel and we have the right, as part of the right to self-defense, to prevent its production or transfer."

Images from the Sentinel-2 satellite documented the targets hit in the strike on the Syria airbase. According to an analysis conducted by Ronen Solomon of the Intelli Times blog, three targets were bombed inside the base, including a cargo hangar and two hardened aircraft shelters, in which missiles and mobile antiaircraft missiles can also be stationed. The Syrian war monitoring organization reported over the weekend that the attacked base housed Hezbollah operatives and weapon depots, and Hezbollah's Al-Akhbar newspaper said several targets had been hit in the airbase.

The images indicate that one of the bombed targets may have been a convoy of vehicles or a weapons cache, in light of signs of a fire in the area that was hit. According to Arab media reports, Israel attacked an aid shipment that had arrived from Iran, on the backdrop of estimates that the airfield served as an access point from Iran to Syria and likely to Lebanon too, in light of its proximity to the Lebanon-Syria border.

The airfield area in Homs (Photo: AFP)

The images show that the airbase underwent construction and expansion works recently, including the creation of the cargo hangar. According to Syrian opposition sources, the construction work was carried out by the Iranians. Air defense trenches may have been built near one of the hangars.

On Friday, in a speech marking the "victory celebration day," 18 years after the IDF's withdrawal from Lebanon, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah accused Israel of attacking Syria from Lebanese territory.

A website affiliated with the Syrian opposition reported in the past that the Assad regime had begun converting the Dabaa airfield, located about 30 kilometers west of the city of Homs, into a "civilian" airport with the help of Iranian elements. The regime's goal, according to the report, was to provide an alternative airport to the international airport in Damascus, which was subject to nonstop attacks by the rebels organizations.

The airfield was to be used to receive supplies crucial for the regime's survival from its allies in Moscow and Tehran. At the start of the civil war, Syrian opposition forces took over the airfield and the nearby areas, but several years later it was reoccupied by the Assad army and its partners.
Coalition Chairman David Amsalem (Likud) submitted a new bill last Wednesday, proposing that the State Attorney's Office will not be able to appeal incarceration sentences of up to 10 years given on criminal offenses such as bribery, fraud, breach of trust and property offenses.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Amsalem justified the bill, saying that "a moral country shouldn't persecute citizens who were given light punishments."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Coalition Chairman David Amsalem (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

MK Amsalem proposes to determine that the right to appeal criminal offenses' verdicts will be only given to the defendant.

"The state, which is the one that prosecutes with criminal offenses, will have a limited and restricted ability to appeal unusual and severe cases whose sentence is the death penalty or more than 10 years in prison... The state's right to appeal will be restricted since as a prosecutor it is extremely powerful in comparison to the defendant, both in resources and authorities given to it by the law," Amsalem explained.

According to the bill, research performed in Israel shows the prosecution controls the legal procedure and the state's chances to succeed appealing criminal cases are very high in comparison the defendant's chances.

"Conviction rates are particularly high in Israel (in accordance with the state's resources in comparison to the ones of the defendant)," the bill stated.

Amsalem says another reason to limit the state's right to appeal stems from the "double risk" principle according to which a person cannot be put at risk of an additional procedure after the previous one on the same matter had ended.

"One can consider the end of the first proceeding in which the court 'has spoken' and came to a judicial decision as a turning point from which the defendant cannot be put at double risk, excluding unusual cases," the coalition chairman went on to say.

Amsalem's proposal provoked the opposition's criticism. Meretz Chairwoman Tamar Zandberg said, "The obsessive coalition's occupation with the law enforcement authorities, in order to protect a prime minister who is up to his neck with criminal investigations, is a disgrace to the Israeli democracy.

Meretz Caieman Tamar Zandberg (Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)

"For this political agenda, they (the coalition) are prepared to pass a bill restricting the State Attorney's Office's ability to appeal severe offense such as sexual harassment," she went on to say.

Yesh Atid lawkaer Karin Elharar described the bill as "another personal bill meant to serve the prime minister.

"It is regretful that instead of thinking of legislation that regulates the rights of the public, serious efforts are being made to enact laws that benefit MKs and Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu in particular," she

said.

"This bill embarrasses the Knesset, lacks legal logic and serves no use to the public," she concluded.

MK Yoel Hasson, chairman of the Zionist Union faction, said "David Amsalem is responsible for Netanyahu's custom-made bills.

"Amsalem is Netanyahu's personal messenger who sacrifices himself to enable the prime minister to keep avoiding a decision regarding his legal matters. This is not the way an MK should behave," he went on to say.

"Amsalem is an example of a government looking out only for its own survival, and it should go home," he determined.
A policeman documented slapping a suspect in the predominantly Bedouin city of Rahat last week was questioned under caution Sunday at the Justice Ministry's Police Internal Investigations Department.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



The policeman told his investigators he had acted as expected from a police officer in such an incident. At the end of his interrogation, he was suspended from the police station for several days.

The documentation shows the policeman slapping a cuffed and subdued Arab detainee held by several fellow policeman. The attack took place on Friday after the detainee, along with two others, fled from officers before attacking them and calling a mob to their aid.

Two officers who were wounded by the mob were released from the hospital Saturday. Doctors say they suffered bruises that will prevent them from returning to duty for several days. Two suspects were arrested.

The Rahat clash, Friday

During a routine inspection of a driver's license and registration, police officers noticed his driver's license expired last year, the police said in a statement. A quarrel than broke out, and after officers attempted to arrest the driver, healong with the two passengersbolted from the scene, veering recklessly into traffic and speeding off.

Policemen gave chase, keeping pace with the wild driver until he stopped at the side of a main road in the city. The three then stepped out of the vehicle carrying clubs and called onto nearby citizens to attack the officers.

The policemen, who engaged the three, began being pelted by rocks, with dozens of nearby onlookers forming a mob.

Footage of the incident

X

Video footage of the incident showed one cop using excessive and unnecessary force, beating a cuffed and submissive detainee across his head on their way to the patrol vehicle. A picture taken at the scene showed the same detainee laying cuffed and bloodied on the ground.

The detainee's cousin, Mahdi Abu Siam, said: "It happened on the way home. They started beating him up, arguing with him. After they beat the hell out of him, they cocked their weapon. What's that all about? Is he a terrorist? Why do you cock your weapon in front of a person? This isn't the first time they kill someone here in our city."

According to Abu Siam, the detainee suffers from mental issues, and although is relatives informed the police about it, they kept beating him up. "The police are responsible for all the violence. They were both cuffed and they were both beaten up while they were cuffed."

The alleged police brutality from another angle (:   )

X

The police offered the following response: "Unfortunately, too often, we encounter rioters who raise their hand on policemen engaged in legal enforcement activity. This time, it was an enforcement activity against traffic criminals, and the suspects tried to flee the police. When they were arrested, they threw stones and clubs at them. The suspects attacked the policeman and were forcibly arrested.

"For the record, we will never accept a situation in which policeman are attacked and we will exercise zero tolerance against anyone who raises his hand on a policeman, regardless of the criminal's descent or religion."
Construction of a world-first marine barrier on the northern Gaza Strip border commenced Sunday by the Defense Ministry, with dozens of tons of building materal being hauled to Zikim Beach by heavy-duty vehicles.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



The barrier will be erected on top of a breakwater constructed between Zikim Beach and Gaza Beach, and is designed to serve as an "impregnable breakwater" that will be built to withstand hostile weather conditions at sea and to serve both beach goers and Israel's defense establishment for years to come.

It is expected to be fully completed by the end of the year.

Construction of the naval barrier (Photo: Defense Ministry)

The obstacle will consist of three components: an underwater level, topped by a layer of stone and a barbed wire fence along the crest. The entire barricade itself will be surrounded by another fortified fence.

The decision to erect the naval barricade was made after a terrorist cell managed to infiltrate into Israel by sea from the strip during Operation Protective Edge in 2014.

Since the operation, an underwater sensor system has been spread along the maritime border with the northern Gaza Strip, enabling the IDF to spot divers and swimmers in the area. It is tested every few weeks by army exercises and experiments that improve its capabilities.

The threat of breaches from the coastal enclave, which is controlled by the Hamas terror group, has increased recently with mounting tensions between Hamas and Israel over the bloody events on the Gaza border, which saw protesters, many of them Hamas operatives , lose their lives while attempting to breach the border's security fence in protest of Israel's blockade of the strip.

(Photo: Defense Ministry)

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman said the barrier would deny Hamas the "strategic capability" of using the sea to infiltrate Israel.

"Today we began setting up a sea barrier, the only one of its kind in the world, which will block the possibility of infiltration from Gaza to Israel via the sea," Liberman said in a statement. "This is an additional setback for Hamas, which has lost another strategic capability that it has invested massive amounts in developing. We will continue to protect the citizens of Israel with might and sophistication."

In recent years, Hamas has invested tens of millions of shekels in its naval force, consisting on hundreds of naval commandos, who train frequently on the beaches of the Gaza Strip and are equipped with advanced diving equipment.

Like Israel's navy, Hamas also drew conclusions from the events of Operation Protective Edge with regard to its commando force and developed a combat doctrine designed to try to circumvent the IDF's underwater detection systems.

(Photo: Defense Ministry)

Through the maritime border, Hamas can reach the coast of Ashkelon from where it can attack nearby strategic sites, such as the Yam Tethys gas rig and the Rutenberg Power Station, and potentially cripple Israel's infrastructure.

The new naval barrier will in fact continue the 64-kilometer underground barrier along the Gaza Strip border, from the Einav settlement to the Kerem Shalom border crossing.
Ivan Zaytsev was the hero once again as Italy brilliantly ended their Serbia hoodoo and maintained their 100% VNL record with a thumping straight sets win (25-21 25-18 25-16).Wing spiker Zaytsev racked up an incredible , tournament high 32 points against Brazil on Friday and he was back in the swing against Serbia, scoring 17 points (including three aces) as the Italians beat their Balkan rivals for the first time since 2015.Fellow wing spiker Osmany Juantorena (12 points) was another hero for Gianlorenzo Blengini's men.This win means on-song Italy have now won three from three in this inaugural VNL campaign while extending their unbeaten record to an impressive seven games.It's the first time they have maintain such a streak since September 2015 and now head into second week matches in Argentina against Canada and Iran with great confidence.For Serbia , however, this crushing loss on home turf compounded a difficult start to the tournament - Saturday's win over Germany was preceded by a straight-sets loss against Brazil on Friday. Only Marko Ivovic (seven spikes) and Alexsandar Atanasijevic (seven spikes and one block) emerged with any credit.With matches in Sofia against hosts Bulgaria and a strong Russian side, it promises to be another testing set of matches for Serbia.While the first set was tight, the second saw Italy run away comprehensively and drain the confidence out of the Serbs who simply found Zaytsev's spiking too hot to handle.His serving also caused problems - he reached speeds of 134 kph - and although the error count was high with the Italians producing 23 to Serbia's 24, the quality of Blengini's side was there for all to see.On this evidence, the Italians are looking good for a seriously deep run and be pushing for glory over the next few weeks.
The challenges facing Iran, including looming intensified sanctions set to be imposed by the United States, and Israels endless pressure on Tehran to withdraw its forces from war-torn Syria, are now augmented with dissent on the domestic front.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



The suffering of almost dily defeats of the Houthi rebels in Yemen, supported by Tehran, in the battle against Saudi Arabia and the Arab coalition are contributing to the further deterioration in Iran's domestic and international standing.

Protests in Iran

X

The latest weight to have been heaped onto Irans shoulders comes in the form of a sever fuel shortage stemming from protests staged by truck drivers and young citizens incensed over the governments intention to divide a part of the country into two sections.

The protest has resulted in deaths and hundreds of people and of wounded as well as people going missing. Angry citizens have taken to social media, which is currently rife with calls to expand the protests against the increasingly beleaguered regime.

Campaign calling Iranian Revolutionary Guards terrorists

The online campaign which appears to have been gathering momentum in recent days calls on citizens to flood the streets in a bid to overthrow the ayatollah-run government.

Leaders of the protest, the vast majority of whom are young people, have nicknamed the Iranian Revolutionary Guards as terrorists and called on the world to incorporate the state-run corps into the list of terror organizations.

The leaders of the dissent have been joined by truck and bus drivers in 177 cities stretching across the Islamic republic, disgruntled by the poor salaries and difficult employment conditions. The drivers presence has contributed to picking up the pace of the protests sweeping the country.

Truck drivers on strike

Further intensifying what threatens to become a nationwide movement, owners of shops and shopping malls have also entered the fray by closing up.

One of the key factors that has served as a catalyst to the simmering discord is the waste of state funds on activities in foreign countries and the sowing of terror and war in the Middle East.

Citizens are also voicing their anger over the heavy hand taken by the security services against citizens, and the killing of civilians, especially women. A prominent feature of the online campaign has been the publication of pictures of women who have been killed by the regime over the last 40 years.

Pictures of some of the women have been paraded through the streets in some instances during protests.

Other notable aspects of the protests have included a spike in support for the female opposition leader Maryam Rajavi, who heads the People's Mujahedin of Iran which was established in 1965 to topple the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was eventually overthrown in the 1979 Revolution.

Rajavis movement now stands at the forefront of the battle to bring down the current Shiite regime. Her brother was arrested for alleged collaboration with Israel during the period before the revolution and was defined as a political prisoner. Flags bearing the symbol of her organization were also displayed at recent protests and have permeated social media forum in the country.

Shopping malls closed

The demonstrations are rarely mentioned in the countrys official media, however, which instead continues to focus reports on the regimes economic and foreign activities.

Two weeks ago, a protest in the city of Kazerun turned particularly violent, with participants recounting stories of dozens of deaths and significant destruction while official state media reported of two deaths only.

A spokesman from the Iranian Justice Ministry said that the security forces will push back with determination against the protesters, who could, according to him, be exploited by the US and other enemies to topple the regime. He also added that the protesters are part of the the psychological warfare being waged by the US against Iran.
The Be'er Sheva District Court rejected the appeal of two detainees suspected of attacking policemen at Friday's incident in Rahat.

A police representative revealed new details of the incident and said that one of the suspects had picked up rocks with the intention of throwing them at the policemen and shouted "Itbah al Yahud" (slaughter the Jews).
US officials crossed into North Korea on Sunday to hold talks on preparations for a possible summit, a US newspaper reported, as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed his commitment to meet with US President Donald Trump.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Both Pyongyang and Washington are pressing ahead on plans for a summit after Trump pulled out of the proposed June 12 meeting on Thursday, only to reconsider the decision the next day.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said earlier that he and North Korea's Kim had agreed during a surprise meeting on Saturday that the possible North Korea-US summit must be held.

President Trump talks about potential summit with North Korea

X

The weekend meetings were the latest dramatic turn in a week of diplomatic ups and downs over the prospects for an unprecedented summit between the United States and North Korea, and the strongest sign yet that the leaders of the two Koreas are trying to keep the meeting on track.

The Washington Post, citing a person familiar with the arrangements, said Sung Kim, a former US ambassador to South Korea and former nuclear negotiator with the North, was leading the preparations on the US side.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in (L) and Kim Jong Un (Photo: EPA)

The American diplomat crossed into North Korean territory with Allison Hooker, the Korea expert on the White House National Security Council, as well as a Defense Department official, the Post said. They met with Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice foreign minister, the Post said.

A US official confirmed to Reuters there were plans for Sung Kim, who currently is US ambassador to the Philippines, to lead an American delegation to meet North Korean officials on the border this weekend for summit preparations in the event that the Singapore meeting goes ahead.

Pentagon official Randall Schriver was part of the US team for talks at the border on the summit agenda, the official said. However, the official did not know whether the US representatives were in place.

The Post said the meetings were expected to continue on Monday and Tuesday.

The White House did not immediately comment on the planning talks in the region.

In their Saturday meeting, Kim reaffirmed his commitment to "complete" denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to a planned meeting with Trump, Moon said.

(: AFP )

"Chairman Kim and I have agreed that the June 12 summit should be held successfully, and that our quest for the Korean Peninsula's denuclearization and a perpetual peace regime should not be halted," Moon said.

Moon acknowledged Pyongyang and Washington may have differing expectations of what denuclearization means and he urged both sides to hold working-level talks to resolve their differences.

The United States has demanded the "complete, verifiable, and irreversible" dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Pyongyang has rejected unilateral disarmament and has always couched its language in terms of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

In previous, failed talks, North Korea said it could consider giving up its arsenal if Washington removed its troops from South Korea and withdrew its so-called nuclear umbrella of deterrence from South Korea and Japan.

MISTRUST ON BOTH SIDES

American officials are skeptical that Kim will ever fully abandon his nuclear arsenal, and Moon said North Korea is not convinced it can trust security guarantees from the United States.

"However, during the US-South Korea summit, President Trump clearly emphasized that we may see not only the end of hostile relations but also economic cooperation if North Korea denuclearizes," Moon said.

Moon returned to Seoul on Thursday morning after meeting Trump in Washington in an effort to keep the US-North Korea summit on track.

A senior South Korean official said later the two Koreas were discussing a possible non-aggression pledge and the start of peace treaty talks as a way of addressing Pyongyang's security concerns before US-North Korean negotiations.

A statement from North Korea's state news agency KCNA said Kim expressed "his fixed will" on the possibility of meeting Trump as previously planned.

Kim and Trump's initial decision to meet followed months of war threats and insults between the leaders over the North's nuclear program.

'DOING VERY WELL'

Trump said on Saturday he was still looking at a June 12 date for a summit in Singapore and that talks were progressing well.

"We're doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea," Trump said at the White House. "It's moving along very nicely. So we're looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed. So, we'll see what happens."

A White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the possible summit, a White House spokeswoman said on Saturday.

President Trump and Kim Jong Un (Photo: EPA)

Trump cited North Korea's "open hostility" in a letter to Kim on Thursday cancelling the planned Singapore summit.

That decision followed repeated threats by North Korea to pull out over what it saw as confrontational remarks by US officials demanding unilateral disarmament.

North Korea had sharply criticized suggestions by Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, and Vice President Mike Pence that it could share the fate of Libya if it did not swiftly surrender its nuclear arsenal. Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was deposed and killed by NATO-backed militants in 2011 after halting his nascent nuclear program.

North Korea's vice foreign minister called remarks by Pence about North Korea stupid and suggested the two countries could either meet for a summit or for a nuclear showdown.
The situation along the Gazan-Israeli border may have simmered down for now, but Gaza remains an economic failure, and the hopelessness and frustration of Gazans remains a powder keg that can explode into armed conflict at any time.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Let me be clear. Israel is not at fault for this situation, but our image on the international stage is being compromised by the situation and the periodic eruption of violence.

In just the past decade, Israel has fought three armed conflicts in Gaza, and cities in southern and central Israel have come under Gazan rocket fire repeatedly. That is not a normal situation.

Riots on Gaza border (Photo: EPA)

Some commentators hold that Israel can live with and manage such a dynamic in the long run. But accepting this unstable status quo is not the only option. We must consider new solutions.

Not doing so would beget a reality in which Israelis constantly have to wonder when the next round in Gaza will take place. That is not to say that Israel must needlessly expose itself to a bad plan, but that wisdom and morality require us always to weigh the alternatives to war.

In mainstream Israeli discourse, two options are discussed: 1) Managing the situation, or 2) toppling Hamas and reconquering Gaza.

As a former commander of the IDFs Gaza Division, I understand why Israel is reluctant to move back into Gaza. Unlike the current generation of IDF commanders operating along the Gazan border, I commanded soldiers deep inside Gaza.

We patrolled refugee camps such as Jabaliya and Khan Younis, and had to deal with violence ranging from rock throwing youths, to masked gunmen, to terrorists planting explosives against troops and civilians. But my interaction with Gazans went beyond the military dimension, and included a frank dialogue with civilians, giving me a glimpse into their lives.

And what I learned is that living in Gaza is a disaster. Raising a family in such a place, where sewage flows between homes, where the blood of slaughtered animals runs down streets, where there is no economic development, is a study in hopelessness.

Gaza is in essence a hermit state, with unemployment today at 44%, soaring to 61% among youth. According to the World Bank, 34% of Gazans live in poverty, surviving on less than two dollars a day. There are 5,555 Palestinians living on every square kilometer of Gaza. 95% percent of underground water reserves are polluted, and 97% of Gazan families buy their water from private vendors, at high prices.

The time has come to put forth a new initiative: the establishment of a Palestinian state in Gaza and an adjoining section of the northern Sinai Peninsula. Such a state would enable economic growth along an expanded coastline and offer Gazans new hope, acting as a modern-day Marshall Plan. With the assistance of regional states and the international community, the Gazan powder keg can be made less explosive.

A Gaza-Sinai state could only develop, however, with Egyptian support. Egypt would gain muchincluding regional stature and significant momentum to stamp out the threat it faces from ISIS, through the jobs and hope which development of the area would deliver, as well as through much needed international economic and military aid.

Hamas could be tempted to go along with this initiative as well, since it would address a major pressure point on its rule, the failure to deliver economic solutions for the Gazan population.

I have brought this plan before political leaders in the US and witnessed their receptiveness, providing an indication of its potential. The right policy makers are open to the idea.

(Photo: IDF's Spokesperson's Unit )

A Gaza-Sinai state stands a better chance of success than the current model of seeking to create a Palestinian state in the West Bank; a proposal that has drifted out of reach for many reasons, not the least of which is the Middle Easts chronic instability. With the risk of a West Bank state falling under the control of armed Islamists who would use it to fire on Israels population centers, it is not something I can endorse. Should it come to armed conflict in the south however, a state in Gaza-Sinai can be more easily defended against.

It is possible to find a realistic solution to the desperation of the people of Gaza. This desperation is not of Israels making, but it is our problem nonetheless. We must try to find a long-term arrangement that yields a better future for the people of Gaza, the region, and the people of Israel.
Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit recently sent an ultimatum to the defense teams representing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus wife, Sara, warning that he would indict her if a settlement out of court was not reached with the prosecution over her role in what is known as the Residences affair.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Reports that surfaced on Israeli television earlier on Sunday said that Mandelblit has already to arraign Mrs. Netanyahu for fraudulently accepting services under aggravated circumstances, despite attempts by her defense attorneys to convince him not to indict her

Last month, her defense attorneys held discussions with the Jerusalem Districts Attorneys Office in an attempt to hammer out a settlement outside court.

Mandelblit made the settlement dependent on the fulfillment of two conditions: First, Mrs. Netanyahu would be required to pay back into the states coffers a specified amount of the hundreds of thousands of shekels she allegedly fraudulently used under aggravated circumstances in the case.

Sara Netanyahu (Photo: MCT)

Second, only then would discussion on a legal settlement be held according to which Mrs. Netanyahu would be required to confess to some of the allegations against her, or take responsibility for her actions in order to avoid standing trial.

Channel 2 news reported that Mrs. Netanyahu would be required to pay a minimum of NIS 200,000, while her defense teams said that she was prepared to pay NIS 50,000.

With the impasse that ensued as a result of the discrepancy, Mandelblit intervened, instructing the two sides to reach an agreement in the coming days.

Mrs. Netanyahus attorneys reportedly had a difficult at the beginning of May convincing Mandelblit and State Attorney Shay Nitzan and their legal teams not to indict her on a corruption probe known as the "Residences affair. on condition that she pay a fine instead.

Until the attorney general reaches a decision on whether to indict the premier's wife, both parties will attempt to bring the investigation into her alleged impropriety surrounding her conduct at the prime minister's official residence to an end, with an admission to most of the details in the draft indictment and a sizeable fine paid to the state's coffers. However, Mrs. Netanyahu will not accept responsibility for the offenses.



On 2 May, 2018 Mrs. Netanyahus legal team headed by Attorney Jacob Weinroth visited the Attorney Generals office in an attempt to persuade the heads of the prosecution teams not to serve an indictment against their client.

The defense teams justified their request on legal grounds: Mrs. Netanyahu had no awareness she may have been committing criminal offenses," they said.

She had placed her trust with the finance and administration officials of the Prime Minister's Residence and Prime Minister's Office, they claimed, and did not delve deeply into the details of how her orders were being carried out.

It is for that reason, they argued, that she had committed no offenses and did not encourage anyone to commit them a crime. In addition, since Mrs. Netanyahu is not a public servant, she was not aware of the regulations limiting her in ordering meals from restaurants and chefs, they claimed.

Lastly, Netanyahu's attorneys claimed that since she was not a public servant, Mrs. Netanyahu could not be charged with fraud and breach of trust.

At the end of the two parties' discussion, it came to light that the prime minister's wife could still bring the affair to a close before going to court through a "conditional settlement," in which Mrs. Netanyahu will admit the details of the indictment, but not her culpability. She will also accept, according to the settlement, a punishment such as a fine, a suspended sentence or community service.

A senior legal official clarified that, "The draft indictment against Sara Netanyahu was prepared with a heavy heart, but it was supported by evidence and it was detailed. There is also a state witness against her, (former Prime Minister's Residence caretaker) Meni Naftali, who can testify and corroborate evidence.

"The affair cannot end without ramifications," the official added, "and it's inconceivable for Mrs. Netanyahu to wriggle out of the matter without accepting responsibility for her actions."

AG Avichai Mandelblit (Photo: EPA)

Attorney General Mandelblit announced last September he was considering indicting Sara Netanyahu for fraudulently obtaining benefits under aggravated circumstances, fraud and breach of trust on the meal orders investigation.

According to suspicion, from the beginning of September 2010 at the latest and until March 2013, Sara Netanyahu acted in conjunction with former deputy director-general of the Prime Minister's Office Ezra Saidoff, to create a false impression according to which no cook was employed at the prime minister's official residence in Jerusalem.

The pair allegedly colluded to circumvent regulations that stated that if no cook was employed at the official residence, "prepared cooked food could be ordered to the residence according to need."

In so doing, the pair supposedly sought to obtain state financing both for employing the cooks working at the residence and for ordering ready made meals and chefs to cook at the residence.

Funding for hundreds of meals from chefs and restaurants was thus allegedly obtained, costing the public NIS 359,000.
Deputy Attorney General Raz Nizri, hinted Sunday at the possibility of incorporating into one case several separate probes involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying "everything depends on the circumstances, it is impossible to know."

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



Making his remarks during a speech at the 18th conference of the Israel Bar Association in Eilat, Nizri stressed that "news items regarding the investigations are released daily or weekly. We are aware of the need to make a quick decision.

"Currently, two cases that are in the hands of the Prosecutor for Taxes and Finance are expected to be transferred to the State Attorney's Office," he said. The deputy attorney general also added that "part of Case 4000 (the Bezeq-Walla affair) projects on other cases as well."





PM Netanyahu is possibly facing multimple indictments (Photo: Reuters)

Aware of segments of the population who are eager to see a decision made in a hurried fashion, Nizri insisted that the appropriate amount of time would be taken on the matter.

"I can say that serious work has been done by all the relevant elements. I know that there are elements that are in a hurry, but we are unable to work according to the law of the streets, but rather according to the rules of evidence. We cannot satisfy the pace of the media, he said.

Raz Nizri (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg)

Earlier, Ynet revealed that Nir Hefetz, former media adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, did not only provide for police information regarding cases 1000 (the gifts affair ), 2000 (the Netanyahu-Mozes affair) and 4000 (the Bezeq affair), but police investigators asked Hefetz for evidence on his knowledge on the events surrounding the placing of metal detectors on the Temple Mount and the diplomatic crisis with Jordan following the shooting of the security guard at the Israeli Embassy in Amman.

They also carried out additional investigations, and possibly involved other investigative bodies.

Hefetz claimed that the prime minister acted on these issues under the pressure of his son and his wife, contrary to the opinion of security officials.

Nir Hefetz (Photo: Reuters)

The same claims were published three months ago after the signing of an agreement with the state witness. Then, after applying significant pressure on the man who was once a close confidant of the Netanyahu family, Hefetz explained to the investigators the decision-making process regarding security incidents.

"The decisions made at the Prime Minister's House are bizarre," Hefetz was quoted as saying. "The security echelons would make a decision, but then Yair would scream at him and Sarah would make a scene and he would give in."

After the statements by Hefetz were published, some argued that the details he raised were unrelated to a criminal matter, and therefore did not concern the police at all. However, it now turns out that events at the Prime Minister's Residence on Jerusalem's Balfour Street certainly were of major interest to the interrogators.
The state informed the High Court of Justice (HCJ) Sunday that it would grant temporary residency status to some 300 Sudanese migrants from the Darfur region, the Nuba Mountains and Blue Nile region who are eligible for it.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



In response to an appeal filed on the matter, the state said that the status would be granted within 30 days.

After discussions and an examination of the matter, it was decided that as a first step, 300 Sudanese from the Darfur region will be granted A5 status for humanitarian reasons, the statement read.

An A5 temporary residency visa can be granted by Israel in certain circumstances to a person seeking to reside in the country while he or she is not a student (A2), has not come to Israel as a religious delegate to work in a religious institution (A3), or is not the family member of a person who holds an A2 or A3 visa (A4). It is similar to a refugee status visa.

The states decision was submitted in response to appeals to the HCJ which demanded that Sudanese nationals in Israel be granted the visa. The state also added that the total figure of A5 visas granted to the Sudanese people who fled the Darfur regions ethnic cleansing would be 500.

In June 2017, the state said that it would grant temporary residency status to 200 out of 8,000 refugees from Darfur who have been waiting years for a decision to be made on their request for asylum.

It was also noted in the statement that the A5 visa is only valid for one year, with the option of extending it at the end of every year for a total of four years. Moreover, asylum seekers who receive the visa are entitled to social benefits and an Israeli identity card.

This is another stage which is part of a framework for the formulation of an overall policy of the State of Israel regarding the population of infiltrators and asylum seekers who are residing in Israel, the statement continued.

Within the framework of formulating an overall policy, the respondents are currently continuing to examine alternatives for dealing with the issue of infiltrators and asylum seekers in Israel in order to formulate an updated policy, it went on. Furthermore, among other things, an assessment of the picture of the situation in Sudan and its significance is underway.

The asylum seekers, who fled the ethnic cleansing in Sudan's Darfur region, petitioned the Tel Aviv District Court citing extremely long waiting periodssometimes reaching three yearsfor an answer from the Population and Immigration Authority on their asylum request.

Israel has been dragging its feet for years on responding to asylum requests filed by some 8,000 refugees from western Sudan, despite the fact that the department dealing with asylum seekers in the Population and Immigration Authority determined they should be granted refugee status.
Border Police officers opened fire on a woman who they suspected aimed to harm them near Yekutiel Adam Street in Jerusalem.

Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter



The paramilitary soldiers said their suspicion was aroused after the woman started slowly approaching them, who was wearing a Burqa, which they feared may be concealing a weapon or an explosive device.

After the woman failed to heed their calls to stop, the security forces opened fire, aiming at her legs.

Video footage of the incident

X

Video footage of the incident shows the officers, stepping slowly backwards with weapons drawn and pointed directly at her, shouting in Arabic for the woman to stop while she keeps walking steadily towards them.

Several seconds later, a single gunshot is heard, and the woman is seen collapsing to the ground.

Moment of the shooting

The woman was evacuated in moderate condition to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in the capital. No weapon was found in her possession.

An investigation into the incident has been opened.
The Education Ministry froze tours of 50 schools scheduled to take place Monday in the Negev, following forecast of storms and floods in the area.

The Meteorological Service warned against trips to the area and recommended canceling them altogether, but the Education Ministry refused, saying, "Rain is no reason to cancel a trip."
US President Donald Trump says a US team is in North Korea to "make arrangements for the Summit between Kim Jong Un and myself."

Trump tweeted Sunday that North Korea "has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day."

The president added, "It will happen!" though his exact meaning was not clear.

The State Department said earlier Sunday that a team was in Panmunjom, which straddles the border inside the demilitarized zone, or DMZ. One can cross the border simply by stepping across a painted line. But moving beyond several footsteps into the North at Panmunjom would be rare for US officials.

Trump withdrew from the planned June 12 Singapore summit with Kim several days ago, but quickly announced that it could get back on track.
News

Washington, DC - Secretary Pompeo spoke by phone today with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. Secretary Pompeo and President Santos discussed the fraudulent elections held May 20 in Venezuela and the importance of standing together as democratic nations in support of the Venezuelan people and the restoration of their democracy.

The Secretary recognized Colombias great compassion for Venezuelans fleeing this man-made crisis and highlighted the commitment of the United States to support Colombias efforts in this regard. They discussed the situation at the Hidroituango Dam in Antioquia department and Secretary Pompeo noted U.S. support as this matter proceeds.
Arizona News

Yuma, Arizona - Our Revolution announced its endorsement of the Arizona statewide ballot measure, the Stop Political Dirty Money Amendment. If passed, it would require all individual or non-profit spending over $10,000 to disclose the original source of the contribution and any intermediary sources. In addition, it would also mandate public disclosure of all contributors who give $2,500 or more to influence elections in a two-year election cycle, regardless of whether their contributions passed through any intermediaries.

Our Revolution is proud to support this groundbreaking constitutional amendment, said Our Revolution Board Chair, Larry Cohen. The democratic process our country is built upon is jeopardized by the lack of transparency that comes with undisclosed political contributions. For too long special interests have had unfair influence in the state legislative process with little disclosure or accountability. By passing this amendment the people of Arizona will know who is contributing to their elections and will better be able to hold their elected officials accountable."

The measure is also endorsed by Our Revolution local groups across the state including, Our Revolution East Valley, Our Revolution West Valley, Our Revolution Phoenix, Our Revolution Tempe, Our Revolution Yuma, and Our Revolution Valley of the Sun.

Our Revolution supports progressive champions at every level of government. By supporting candidates up and down the ballot, we are aiming to transform American politics to make our political and economic systems responsive to the needs of working families.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced a State Grand Jury indicted Hans Burnett for allegedly altering drinking water bacteria test results. Burnett, a foreman at the City of Cottonwood Water Testing Laboratory, is accused of changing test results submitted to state regulators to replace positive results for bacterial contamination with negative results.

Burnett is facing felony charges of Fraudulent Schemes & Practices and Forgery. From 2015 to 2016, Burnett allegedly instructed subordinate employees to modify the test results and paperwork associated with drinking water compliance samples in Cottonwood. The altered results were submitted to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality as part of the City of Cottonwood's drinking water compliance obligations. Coliform is a type of bacteria that should be tested for on a regular basis to comply with state drinking water quality rules and regulations.

The Arizona Department of Health Services submitted this case to the Attorney General's Office.

Assistant Attorney General Adam J. Schwartz is prosecuting this case.

All defendants are presumed innocent unless convicted in a court of law.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - Attorney General Mark Brnovich Thursday filed a Petition for Special Action asking the Arizona Supreme Court to declare the City of Tempe is violating state law when it improperly gives a tax break to private developments. State law was amended in 2010 to prohibit such tax breaks.

The City of Tempe needs to be held accountable for not following state law, said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. Deals like this unfairly shift the tax burden to other hardworking taxpayers. I am asking the Supreme Court to act to prohibit future illegal use of these old tax rates that were rejected by our legislature 8 years ago.

On January 2, 2018, Representative Vince Leach submitted a formal SB 1487 request for an investigation into the City of Tempes use of property tax breaks. Rep. Leach claimed property tax schemes provided by Tempe were contrary to the state's government property lease excise tax (GPLET) statutes. GPLETs are levied in lieu of property taxes when local governments lease publicly owned property to private businesses. A GPLET allows cities to exempt private developments from paying property taxes in favor of potentially lower excise taxes.

The Arizona Attorney Generals Office investigation concluded that one of the GPLET deals offered by Tempe and identified by Rep. Leach may violate state law by improperly using a lower GPLET rate that was mostly eliminated by the Arizona Legislature in 2010. State lawmakers amended the GPLET statute to stop perceived abuses.

By law, the Attorney General is required to file a Petition for Special Action at the Arizona Supreme Court if a 1487 investigation concludes a local government has adopted an ordinance that may violate state law or the Arizona Constitution.

AG Brnovich is asking the Supreme Court to end Tempes prohibited tax loophole scheme, which reduces the tax revenue flowing from leased property to the citys schools, Maricopa County, the Maricopa County Community College District, and the State of Arizona. An Arizona Supreme Court ruling is important because the Attorney Generals Office recently learned of two additional development agreements approved by Tempe that are set to impose the prohibited tax rate. The deals are moving forward despite the Attorney Generals SB 1487 investigative report and warnings given to Tempe concerning its likely violation of state law.
Arizona News

Phoenix, Arizona - A joint U.S. Customs and Border Protection - National Guard UH-72 helicopter aircrew conducted the first Operation Guardian Support aviation mission, this past Thursday (May17) over the Tucson Sector area of operations.

Three Missouri Guard aviators and one Border Patrol agent conducted aerial reconnaissance in support of Border Patrol agents on the ground.

During their first operational flight, agents requested aerial support from the National Guard aviation unit. Agents on patrol attempted to conduct a vehicle stop after observing five subjects enter a sedan from the desert. The driver of the vehicle did not stop and led agents on a pursuit east of Ajo, Arizona.

Border Patrol agents stopped the vehicle and a foot chase ensued. The joint aircrew tracked and located the fleeing suspects from the air and guided ground units to their location.

Agents are returning to law enforcement activities along the border as soldiers and airmen fill support and administration roles sending agents back to the border.

Additional aviation assets are expected to arrive soon from states around the country, increasing the aviation schedule and overflight coverage for agents on the ground, and providing real-world experience for National Guard aviators and their crews.
Border News

Amado, Arizona - Nogales Station Border Patrol agents assigned to the Interstate 19 immigration checkpoint near Amado, arrested three United States citizens and four illegal aliens, connected to two separate human smuggling attempts.

When agents referred the female driver of a Chevrolet Malibu to the secondary inspection area, the driver attempted to flee from awaiting agents.

Agents encountered the vehicle several miles from the checkpoint in a field, after the driver lost control and left the roadway.

The driver, a 31-year-old Tucson woman, fled on foot from the vehicle and was arrested a short time later when she was found by agents. The woman was taken to a local hospital for minor injuries sustained during the stop, and was treated and released into Border Patrol custody.

While securing the vehicle, an assisting canine unit alerted to an odor trained to detect, coming from the vehicle. Agents discovered two men, a Guatemalan national, 22, and a Mexican national, 22, inside the trunk. Neither of the men were injured during the stop.

Another incident occurred earlier in the day, when agents working the primary inspection lane referred the occupants of a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu to secondary inspection. Agents questioned the four persons inside the vehicle, and discovered two Phoenix women, ages 37 and 39, were smuggling two men from Mexico, ages 24 and 22.

In both cases, vehicles and the arrested subjects were taken to the Nogales Station for further processing.
Border News

Andrade, California - Border Patrol agents assigned to the Yuma Border Patrol Station arrested a Mexican national with prior criminal convictions of indecent exposure and molestation of a child under 18, late Saturday.

At approximately 8 p.m. on Saturday, agents arrested Luis Robles-Gonzalez, a 55-year-old Mexican national, near the Colorado River just east of the Andrade, California Port of Entry after he illegally entered the United States.

During processing, agents identified the individual as an aggravated felon previously deported for failing to register as a sex offender in Santa Rosa, California. Gonzalez was also convicted of indecent exposure and molestation of a child under 18. He was last removed from the United Stated through the San Luis, Arizona Port of Entry on May 12. During additional questioning, Gonzalez admitted that he was attempting to travel to San Francisco, California to live and work.

Gonzalez will be charged with re-entry after deportation as an aggravated felon.
Latest News

Washington, DC - The United States thanks the Maduro regime for releasing the unjustly detained United States citizen, Joshua Holt, and his Venezuelan wife.

The release of Joshua Holt does not change United States policy. The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution. The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate. The regime must allow all Venezuelans and political parties to participate freely in new elections and the democratic process. It must release all political prisoners, and must accept desperately needed international humanitarian aid for Venezuelas dying citizens.

As demonstrated by the Presidents Executive Order of May 21, the United States will continue to use all available tools and options to pressure the Maduro regime to abide by democratic norms, and will continue to build a broad international coalition of like-minded partners who want to see the return of democracy to the people of Venezuela.
Yuma News

Yuma, Arizona - Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents assigned to the Interstate-8 Immigration Checkpoint apprehended three United States citizens after they fled from the secondary inspection area in a stolen vehicle Sunday.

At approximately 11:45 p.m. on Sunday, Wellton Station agents sent a 1993 Honda Hatchback to the secondary inspection area of the checkpoint for further inspection. The vehicle instead fled the checkpoint at a high-rate of speed.

One hour later, agents discovered the abandoned vehicle near Avenue 25 E. Agents conducted a search of the area and apprehended all three individuals.

Record checks on the vehicle revealed it as stolen out of Oregon. All three individuals were turned over to the Yuma County Sheriffs Office.
She has been named Ghanas official Slay Queen, and actress Nana Akua Addo is climbing the Avant-Garde stairs to fashion icon history.

From wearing outfits better than your favorite hiphop rapper to leaving fans shocked at red carpet events, the fashionista is steadily catching the eye of fashion critics locally and internationally.

In 2017 alone, Nana Akua Addo shut down events with her stunning gowns alone and it like she is not about to slow down in 2018 either.

Nana Akua Addo

READ ALSO: 11 female Ghanaian celebs and the powerful cars they drive

YEN.com.gh brings you five time times Nana Akua gave us all a lesson in Fashion 101:

1. When she went all black at the Ghana Women of the Year. The head wrap is so fabulous, now we all want one.

2. Talk about looking chic on a sunny day. That pose alone is worth of a runway.

3. Nana Akua never fails with her all black choices and this stunning outfit is totally drool-worthy.

4. Of course there that time when she wore this drool-worthy red dress just because, you know, shes a stunner.

5. Nothing says splash of color like a very vibrant yellow and Nana Akua glowed so much in this dress, we had to take a couple of seats back.

Nana Akua has already raised the bar for red carpet divas and it looks like its about to get even higher.

READ ALSO: From Kente cloth to formal black, Afia Schwar's top five looks this week are a must see

Ghana trends: Joy FM blasted over Royal Wedding; Mahama plans comeback in 2020:

YEN is building a platform where Ghanaians can share local news and own experiences with each other. Witnessing an incident? Want to tell about a local problem? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Send us a message via YENs official Facebook page

Source: Yen
- MP for Ningo Prampram, Sam George, has dared the Director-General of the CID to arrest A Plus

- This relates to the fact that her voice was doctored in a tape

- A Plus allegedly accused her of 'protecting' two top government officials

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Ningo-Prampram, Sam George, has dared the Director-General of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), Maame Yaa Tiwaa Addo-Danquah, to arrest musician and political activist, A Plus.

According to a report by zionfelix.net, the MP stated that the CID boss is free to arrest A Plus, if she has proof that her voice was doctored in a tape last year.

Speaking on TV Africas Breakfast Live, he added that the police chief should, as a matter of urgency, arrest A Plus for falsely representing her.

A Plus

READ ALSO: Another nurse caught in an 'Atopa' tape?

He however added that she cannot do so because the voice on the tape in question is hers and not for anyone else.

It will be recalled that the current Director  General of the CID, who was then the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), was accused by A Plus for covering corruption allegations for the two Deputy Chiefs of Staff, Francis Asenso-Boakye and Samuel Abu Jinapor, during the investigations.

She however threatened to take him on, as she claimed that she did nothing of that sort.

Sam George went on to say that some people in within the government influenced the investigations and as such, it came to a stop, without arriving at the true answers.

READ ALSO: Akrobeto gives Bawumia a crucial piece of advice in a video and it is about Samira

Ghana Trends: Ken Ofori Atta Wins African Finance Minister of the Year Award | Yen.com.gh:

We are looking for unique stories and photos about developments happening in your area. Get in touch with YEN on Facebook or Instagram

Source: Yen.com.gh
- He says governments tend to waste their first two years in power.

- The evangelist has asked for a 6-year term for political parties.

Rev. Dr. Lawrence Tetteh does not think the four year term given to presidents is enough. The founder of the World Miracle Outreach is among a number of prominent individuals preaching this point of view.

This comes in the wake of Kwadaso MP, Dr. Kwadwo Nuamah's calls for the presidential termto be extended. Dr Tetteh believes four years is too little a time for a president to implement developmental policies.

READ ALSO: Letter circulating alleging students refusal to write exams at Kintampo college of health

Speaking to GhanaWeb, Dr Tetteh explained:

My biggest challenge is that the four-year span for the leadership is not enough. This is Ghana. This is Africa. This is not Europe where we have all the systems and everything in place that there is continuity.

The evangelist was specific in suggesting that a six year term was enough for any given party in power. He believed that such an amount of time would better suit the Ghanaian system of partisan politics.

Rev Dr. Lawrence Tetteh

For him, the problem had to do with the constant change of staff at different levels of government. He mentioned that things were unlike that in Europe or the US.

When government changes hand in Europe, in America or in Asia, the staff in the ministries do not change hands. The staff at the presidency do not change hands, the staff at the prime ministers office do not change hands. Staff at the Parliament do not change hands. But in this part of the world we live in, everything changes. So let us give our leadership six years at least to be able to formulate, settle down and put things together.

READ ALSO: Kweku Baako says Kwesi Nyantakyi was misinterpreted

In his submission, he mentioned that parties that gain power in our part of the world tend to "waste" the first two years in constituting the administration. For him the third year is only for campaigning while everything is rushed in the fourth.

Dr. Tetteh is known as both an outspoken and a controversial religious leader. His suggestion on presidential term limits might yet be another of his pronouncements that will generate debate.

Ghana Trends: Ken Ofori Atta Wins African Finance Minister of the Year Award | Yen.com.gh:

Do you have amazing and critical stories for us to read? Reach out to us on Facebook and Instagram.

Source: Yen
The head pastor and founder of the Word Vision Chapel International, Prophet Alex Twum, has has disclosed that he would gleefully welcome controversial dancehall artiste, Shatta Wale to minister to his church members.

According to the 'Man of God, he sees nothing wrong if a secular musician wants to use his God-given gift to minister in the church.

Prophet Alex Twum

READ ALSO: Nana McBrown makes passionate appeal to Shatta Wale and Shatta Michy

Corroborating a recent statement made by popular secular musician, Kurl Songx that before taking to hiplife, he was praises and worship leader at Grace Aflame Chapel Ghana in Adabraka, Accra.

But after going secular music, some of his church members give him weird look anytime he picks the microphone to minister in church.

However, Prophet Twum speaking to Accra-based Zylofon FM indicated that it is rude for believers to act in such manner towards secular artistes who come to church.

If Shatta Wale comes to tell me God has touched his heart to sing a worship song, Ill be so glad and allow him to minister to Gods people. Prophet Ale Twum revealed.

To him, it is no ones business to judge secular artistes, since nobody is righteous on this earth. Prophet Twum revealed that Kurl Songx attended one of the churchs services and allowed him to perform to the members.

READ ALSO: Top radio presenter reveals how a beautiful woman made him cry for 3-weeks without work

The prophet further labelled Men of God fond of rebuking non-religious members of their church as immature and are rather not helping to shape the life of the artistes.

The Bible says we shouldnt judge so I cant speak against the talent of any secular artiste. Most of the songs by these artistes inspire so many people because of the words in it. I dont know why some Pastors will prevent such people from attending their church

When you read 1 Corinthians, it talks about the gifts from God. If Kojo Antwi should lead a worship in my church and goes ahead to compose his love songs, I see nothing wrong with it, he said.

Prophet Twum further added that, If a pastor tells a member who does secular music not to help the church with his or talents, then that pastor isnt matured enough. Were all learning and theres no one perfect so such pastors should be very careful".

READ ALSO: 'Angry' Rawlings opens 'wild fire' on John Mahama, Kufuor

Ghana Trends: Joy FM Editor blasted over Royal Wedding, Mahama plans comeback in 2020

Yen.com.gh is building a platform where Ghanaians can share local news and own experiences with each other. Witnessing an incident? Want to tell about a local problem? Know someone who is extremely talented and needs recognition? Your stories and photos are always welcome. Message us on Facebook.

Source: Yen
Taylor Sander showcased his all-round skills and the wing spiker's 17 points lead the USA to a 3-0 (25-20, 26-24, 25-18) victory over China and a 3-0 sweep of their first round matches in the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Nations League.China worked hard across the first two sets but when the Americans staved off one set point in the second, and then won it thanks to an audacious Sander ace, the visitors switched into overdrive.Backing Sander's heroics up was opposite spiker Benjamin Patch with 14 points, and wing spiker Torey Defalco's 13 that included four blocks.The world rankings - number two for the USA compared to number 20 for China - had been quickly forgotten as the home side rose to the occasion. They pressured the Americans all through the first set and again in the second.But the USA leaned heavily on their superior experience in the third to break free and breathe easy. It was opposite spiker Chuan Jiang with 15 points who shone brightly for the locals, along with middle blocker Rao Shuhan (seven points.Much of China's play - in both opening matches of this first round - had centred around the 23-year-old Chuan whose 23 points against Argentina were almost a third of China's total of 75 in that match while he contributed a team and match-high 17 points in the loss to Bulgaria.Chuan was again a pillar for the Chinese but facing the Americans was always going to prove a different test entirely. The USA don't give much away, not with the pincer-like probing of libero Erik Shoji's serves and their formidable presence at net.The USA now take that 3-0 record (and moved to a 14-3 overall mark against China) into the second round in Goiania, Brazil, from June 1, while China can be happy enough with a record of 1-2, given their world ranking, and will next head to Lodz, Poland, for their next round of matches, beginning on the same day.
After meeting Chinese leaders in Beijing, German Chancellor Angela Merkel visited Shenzhen, a city that has led China's reform and opening-up. This is Merkel's first China visit since her reelection and her 11th since becoming German chancellor.

As Global Times writes in an article "China-Germany ties should transcend ideological and geopolitical barriers", Germany and Europe hold high hopes for Merkel's visit, expecting her meeting with Chinese leaders could deliver a joint response on the fragile Iran nuclear deal and on how to tackle the challenges presented by Washington on trade issues. The Trump administration's recent announcement that it is withdrawing from the Iran deal and its decision to relocate the US Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem have shocked the Europe. Germany is also bearing the brunt of Washington's hard-line trade policy. Merkel needs Beijing's support.

Merkel's meeting with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang were fruitful as both sides reached broad consensus. But upgrading China-Germany relations so that both sides can jointly face global challenges and benefit from diplomacy is not easy.

First, Germany and China share huge common interests. Bilateral trade is increasing at a fast pace. In the past decade, German exports to China quadrupled and trade volume has doubled, reaching over $200 billion in 2017. China is German automakers' largest market and good performance in an expanding Chinese market is crucial to maintaining robust growth in the German economy.

However, a common bottleneck that involves difference in politics and values exists between Germany and China. Germany sees itself as part of the Western system. Apart from challenging Beijing on human rights issues, Berlin remains vigilant toward the Chinese model. Germany wants to deepen cooperation with China to boost its economy but remains concerned that the process could further help China's rise and give the Chinese model an advantage in competition with the West.

In terms of trade, Berlin is pleased to see Washington exert pressure on Beijing in intellectual property protection and market access, but wishes to gain Beijing's support on safeguarding free trade and multilateralism.

Germany needs to transcend traditional concepts and squarely face the new reality of international politics and economic progress in the age of globalization. The world is no longer divided into camps, and intertwined interests and stances have become ever more common.

China-Germany ties must make a greater breakthrough in transcending ideological and geopolitical barriers. Western values should not be the glass ceiling between China-Germany relations and their cooperation needs to break free from the Cold War mentality.
Saudi Arabia stopped supporting higher oil prices after Donald Trump said higher prices will not be accepted. The worlds largest oil exporter was said to have planned to move oil prices up to $100 a barrel but now appears to have decided that prices should not move higher than $80 a barrel.

As Breitbart writes in an article "Trumps Tweet Got Saudi Arabia to Drop the Price of Oil", oil prices fell Friday, sending shares of oil producers and refiners lower and airline shares higher after Saudi Oil Minister Khalid al-Falih said his country shared the anxiety of his customers over the rising price of oil. He went on to announce that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries would likely boost its output in the second half of the year.

All this follows a April 20th tweet from President Trump decrying the artificially Very High price of oil. "Looks like OPEC is at it again. With record amounts of Oil all over the place, including the fully loaded ships at sea, Oil prices are artificially Very High! No good and will not be accepted!" he wrote on Twitter.

Trump is one of the few politicians in Washington, D.C. who has exhibited an understanding of how global oil prices are set. The Saudis do not sell at spot prices like the rest of the worlds oil producers. Instead, they post their prices to refiners and then fill all orders at the set price. The rest of the world buys all the oil available at spot prices, then buys the rest of what it needs from the Saudis at the fixed price. As a result, the supply of Saudi oil grows or shrinks in response to demand at the fixed price. This makes them, more or less, the price setter or swing supplier of oil.

If the Saudis want the price of oil to fall, they simply set their own price below the current market levels. This pushes down the spot price because refiners will not bid much above the Saudi fixed price. When the Saudis decide world prices are at the right level, they simply post prices near that level.

Trump understands that too high of an oil price, particularly during the summer driving months, acts as a tax on U.S. consumers. It forces U.S. households to spend more of their income on gasoline, and ultimately results in demand leakage across the economy as U.S. income is diverted to foreign oil suppliers. This effect has been somewhat ameliorated by the shale oil boom, which means that a greater share of energy spending stays inside the U.S. Whats more, higher oil prices canover a long enough time periodencourage investment in U.S. extraction, which adds to the U.S. economy.

But Trump wants robust economic growth now and does not want to see a spike in oil prices undermine the stimulus provided by his tax cuts. So he used twitter to send a message to Saudi Arabia and now the Saudis have responded by bringing down the price of oil.

The tweet moved the Saudis, Bob McNally, founder of consultant Rapidan Energy Group LLC in Washington and a former White House oil official, told Bloomberg. The message was delivered loud and clear to Saudi Arabia.

Of course, the Saudis want the world oil market to operate smoothly. They try to keep the other oil producing nations apprised of their plans, which keeps any resentment of the Saudi price-setting role at a minimum and actually means that the Saudis do not actually have to push around oil prices all that much. Their OPEC partners do it for them by adjusting their own supplies in anticipation of Saudi pricing. People often describe OPEC as a price-setting oligopoly, but it is more like a communication forum where the monopoly price setter tells its price taking partners what to expect.

The closest example to this is probably the Federal Reserves rate targeting. Officially, the Federal Reserve does not fix the price of overnight borrowing. Instead, it targets a rate and promises to intervene in the market by supplying or withdrawing bank reserves to keep the price near target. But, in practice, the Fed does not have to intervene all that often.

Al-Falihs comments about rising oil supplies came after meeting with Russias top oil official in St. Petersburg, where he likely explained the Saudi plans in advance. The Russians know very well the Saudis set the priceand at this point have little incentive to attempt to convince the Saudis to abandon their plans to go along with Trumps desire to halt price hikes. The pain of falling prices will be eased as more demand shifts to Russia and other suppliers as a result of chaos in Venezuela and the return of sanctions on Iran.
Georgia marks the 100th anniversary since the creation First Republic of Georgia today, Agenda.ge reported.

The Government of Georgia has organized more than 100 events abroad to specially mark the date. More than 100 start-ups, Georgian and international organisations are involved in organising events.

The presidents of six countries: Armenia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia, as well as the president of the European Commission will attend festivities in Tbilisi.

Parliament Speakers of Estonia, Moldova and Ukraine, Foreign Minister of France, Vice-Prime Ministers of Belarus and Romania, Vice-parliament Speaker of the Czech Republic have also arrived in Georgia to celebrate the day.

Members of the Georgian diaspora, offspring of the leaders of the First Republic of Georgia have also come to their homeland to mark the Independence Day.

The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG) existed from May 1918 to February 1921 and was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia.

The DRG was created after the collapse of the Russian Empire that began with the Russian Revolution of 1917.

Facing permanent internal and external problems, the young state was unable to withstand invasion by the Russian Red Army, and collapsed between February and March 1921 and became a Soviet republic.
Four Russian servicemen have been killed in Syria as a result of shelling by militants, the Russian Defense Ministry said, Sputnik reports.

"Several groups of terrorists attacked an artillery battery of the Syrian government forces at night in the Syrian province of Deir ez-Zor. Two Russian military advisers, who directed the fire of the Syrian artillery, were killed on the spot. Five more servicemen were injured and were taken to the hospital immediately," the ministry said.

Two servicemen later died in hospital.
Russian state energy giant Gazprom and the Turkish government have reached a deal on the construction of the land-based part of the Turkish Stream branch that will bring Russian gas to European consumers, RT reports.

The parties signed a protocol that would allow the construction, which was stalled by a legal rift over gas prices, to go forward. Gazprom and Turkeys state-owned BOTAS struck an agreement detailing the terms and conditions of the works, the Russian company said in a statement. It noted that the deal allows to move to practical steps for the implementation of the project.

The works will be carried out by a joint venture called TurkAkim Gaz Tasima AS. It will be owned by Gazprom and BOTAS in equal shares, Gazprom said.
The development of Viet Nams automobile industry depends a great deal on its supporting industry, which needs to be developed comprehensively.  VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY  The development of Viet Nams automobile industry depends a great deal on its supporting industry, which needs to be developed comprehensively, experts have said.

Speaking at a conference in HCM City on Thursday, Pham Tuan Anh, deputy director of the Ministry of Industry and Trades industrial department, said there are only around 300 manufacturers of car components out of the 12,000 supporting industry companies in Viet Nam.

Around 90 per cent of the 300 are foreign businesses, he said.

In the case of large vehicles, they are able to meet around 55 per cent of the component demand, but manufacturers of smaller cars have to rely heavily on part imports since they can only source around 10 per cent locally, he said.

The domestic companies mostly make simple components such as doors, wheels and wires, yet they are modest in terms of quality and variety and use inefficient machinery and production techniques, he said.

With their production size often being small, their prices are not very competitive either and so car manufacturers usually opt to buy from foreign-owned companies or import, he said.

Since the demand for vehicles in Viet Nam is still relatively low, large international components makers are not interested in investing in the country, he said.

Dr Truong Thi Chi Binh, director of the Supporting Industry Enterprises Development Centre, said with components costing more in Viet Nam, the cost of manufacturing vehicles is higher here than in most other ASEAN member countries.

The industry aims by 2020 to meet 35 per cent of local demand and achieve exports of US$4 billion. By 2035 it hopes to increase them to 65 per cent and $10 billion.

The speakers at the conference said the Government should focus on supporting these companies, help them invest in better technologies, provide more training and encourage them to acquire international quality certificates.

It should also help component and auto manufacturers link up and form partnerships, they said.

The supporting industry is very important for the development of the automobile industry, and there is a lot more that the Government can do to facilitate their growth, Phan ang Tuat of the Ministry of Industry and Trade said.  VNS
HA NOI  Vietnamese stocks are forecast to stay on a downward trend this week due to caution among investors and accelerated selling pressure from foreigners, analysts said.

The benchmark VN Index on the HCM Stock Exchange (HOSE) dropped 2.23 per cent on Friday, or 22 points, to end at 963.90 points, totalling a weekly loss of 7.37 per cent.

The VN-Index hit its lowest level since the beginning of the year while the HNX Index on the Ha Noi Stock Exchange lost 2.21 per cent to close at 114.49 points on Friday.

The northern market index fell a total 5.6 per cent in the week.

An average of 194.1 million shares were traded in each of the five trading sessions last week, worth VND5.3 trillion (US$232.4 million).

Daily average trading figures last week decreased by 21 per cent in volume and 52 per cent in value compared to the previous week.

According to ang Thanh The, strategic director of KB Securities Co, if temporarily excluding the transactions volume of Vingroup VIC, the current largest stock by market capitalisation, foreign investors have changed from net buyers to net sellers since April.

Obviously, this trend has not seemed to stop and completely contrasting with the situation in 2017 and the first quarter of 2018, The told tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn.

Therefore, there are grounds to conclude that selling pressure from the foreign traders on the key stocks will keep occuring next week, and thus the bearish trend of the market will continue, he added.

In addition, market liquidity from the beginning of May has fallen sharply compared to the average figure of the period from 2014 to present, even lower when compared with the first quarter of 2018.

This week, markets will likely remain gloomy and the bearish trend will increase stronger and even spread to small- and mid-cap stocks, The said.

At present, net selling pressure of foreign investors is still very strong and steady, said Nguyen Trung Du, senior expert at VNDirect Securities Co (VNDS).

The recovery of the market last week was still weak, with just one rebounding session. Therefore, the downward trend is inevitable most stocks and will be oversold, Du told tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn.

According to Nguyen Ngoc Lan, senior analyst at Agribank Securities Co (Agriseco), the downtrend of the market is developing and there is no sign of a reversal. The short-term market is expected to remain negative.

Foreign investors are still accelerating selling, which seriously affects investors, leading to caution among domestic investors, Lan said.

Investors were quite vulnerable with many failing short-term bottom catches and the markets quick fall. Investors will keep a close watch on market fluctuations, adopting a wait-and-watch approach with little capital injection.

In addition, many large-cap stocks still have too high valuations and there is still plenty of room for them to fall due to the recent strong increase, she said.

There has also been a lot of negative news related to geo-politics or large listed companies, therefore, investors are more reserved, Lan said. VNS
Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung meets with Minister of Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop on May 27 before attending a ceremony to inaugurate the Cao Lanh Bridge in the southern province of ong Thap.  VNA/VNS Photo Nguyen Van Tri

ONG THAP  The Australian Government considers Viet Nam one of its key partners in the Asia-Pacific region, Minister of Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop has said.

Bishop made the remark at her meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung on May 27 before attending a ceremony to inaugurate the Cao Lanh Bridge in the southern province of ong Thap.

She spoke highly of Viet Nams achievements in promoting socio-economic development, expanding foreign relations and boosting international integration.

She emphasised the importance of the upgrading of bilateral ties to a Strategic Partnership, affirming that Australia will closely work with Viet Nam to realise the contents agreed in the Joint Statement on the Establishment of the Viet Nam-Australia Strategic Partnership and fulfill objectives set in the Viet Nam-Australia Plan of Action 2016-19.

Deputy PM Dung suggested the Foreign Ministries of the two nations hasten relevant ministries and agencies to implement co-operation plans to develop the newly established Strategic Partnership strongly and effectively.

He applauded the ministries plan to organise the first ministerial-level meeting on the occasion, which will kick off a series of newly-formed co-operation mechanisms and frameworks between the two countries.

He also valued Australia continuing to give official development assistance (ODA) priority to Viet Nam in the 2018-19 fiscal year, confirming that Australias ODA will be used effectively and practically for the countrys socio-economic development.

He proposed Australia continue assisting Viet Nam in the fields of infrastructure, agricultural and rural development, climate change adaptation, and human resources development.

Regarding bilateral collaboration at regional and international forums, the two sides appreciated the fine coordination between Viet Nam and Australia at the forums, especially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the East Asia Summit (EAS), the Asia-Pacific Cooperation (APEC), the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), and the United Nations.

Minister Bishop affirmed that Australia continues its current positive and consistent stance on the East Sea issue and stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the East Sea, addressing disputes by peaceful measures on the basis of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

She reiterated her countrys support for Viet Nam in its bid to become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for 2020-21, saying that Australia is willing to share its experience in assuming this position for the 2013-14 tenure.

Deputy PM Dung informed his guest that Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc sent an invitation to his Australian counterpart Malcolm Turnbull to visit Viet Nam and attend the World Economic Forum on ASEAN in September this year. He added that Viet Nam attaches importance to this meeting and wishes to welcome the Australian PM at the event.  VNS
HCM CITY  National Assembly (NA) Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan visited and extended congratulations to some Buddhist establishments in HCM City on May 27 ahead of Lord Buddhas 2,562nd birthday.

Visiting Chairman of the Viet Nam Buddhist Sangha (VBS)s Executive Council, Most Venerable Thich Thien Nhon and Buddhist monks, nuns and followers at Office II of the VBS, she hailed the enormous contributions by Vietnamese Buddhists to national development throughout history.

The VBS has taken part in a number of activities benefiting religion and life while encouraging Buddhists nationwide to have good faith, adhere to the States laws, fulfill citizens obligations, actively take part in charitable work, and contribute to poverty reduction.

She affirmed that the Party and State always respect and ensure peoples right to freedom of belief and religion, care for the socio-economic development of religious communities, and create favourable conditions for followers and dignitaries of different religious, including Buddhism, to practice their religions authentically and fulfill the obligations of a citizen.

Appreciating the Party and State leaders attention, Most Venerable Thich Thien Nhon said the VBS has been complying with Lord Buddhas teachings to become a religion with humane values that is attached to humankind and generates good values for peoples lives.

Over nearly two millennia, Vietnamese Buddhism has continually been standing by the country and has become an integral part of the nations history, he noted.

He pledged that the VBS will continue encouraging Buddhists to follow the States Constitution and law as well as the VBS policies and regulations, thus helping to develop Vietnamese Buddhism sustainably and contributing to national development.

Also on May 27, NA Chairwoman Ngan visited the Executive Council of the Viet Nam Pure Land Buddhist Associations Central Committee.

Talking to head of the association Nguyen Phuong Hieu, dignitaries, followers and members of the organisation, she spoke highly of their religious practices along with provision of free medical examinations and medicine and care for disadvantaged people, which have helped to build a more altruistic society.

She applauded their efforts to join people nationwide to take great strides for Viet Nam and improve the countrys stature in the international arena. She asked the Viet Nam Pure Land Buddhist Association to continue charitable work to help with national development.

Hieu said all dignitaries, followers and members of the association always trust the States guidelines and policies on religions and beliefs. They have focused on their religious practices and strived to carry out charitable activities and develop the association.

The Executive Council will continue promoting their followers adherence to the law and the organisations rules, along with charitable work, thereby helping to bring peace and happiness to all people, he added.

On May 26, Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh also visited and sent congratulations on Lord Buddhas birthday to Buddhists at Lam Son, Thien Minh and Bao Quoc pagodas in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue.  VNS
Living Gospel Equality Now: Loving in the Heart of God: Association of Roman Catholic Women Priests
ONG THAP  The 2.01km-long cable-stayed Cao Lanh Bridge linking Cao Lanh City and Lap Vo District in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of ong Thap officially opened to traffic on May 27.

The bridge spanning Tien River is located 0.8km from the Cao Lanh ferry terminal and 35km from the My Thuan Bridge.

It sits 37.5m above the river and is 24.5m in width. Its 123.4m-high main towers with H-shaped columns are considered an important landmark in the area.

The maximum speed on the bridge will be 80kph. With four lanes for motorised vehicles and two for non-motorised ones, it is equipped with safety monitoring and surveillance camera systems.

Construction of a 21.45km-long interconnecting road linking Cao Lanh and Vam Cong bridges through Cao Lanh City, and Cao Lanh and Lap Vo districts in ong Thap Province, has also been completed.

Along with Can Tho Bridge, Vam Cong Bridge, which has not opened yet, is now the second to cross the Hau River, linking ong Thap Provinces Lap Vo District and Thot Not District in Can Tho City.

The interconnecting road is 20.6m wide, offering four lanes for motorised vehicles and another two for non-motorised ones, with a maximum speed of 80kph.

The opening ceremony was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, Minister of Transport Nguyen Van The, ADB Country Director Eric Sidgwick, and leaders and officials of the province, relevant agencies, and many local residents.

Deputy Prime Minister Trinh inh Dung (left) and Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop have informal following the official opening of the Cao Lanh friendship bridge.  Photo baochinhphu.vn

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Deputy PM

Dung

noted that the Cao Lanh Bridge and interconnecting road is one of several sub-projects of the Central Mekong Delta Region Connectivity Project.

This transport project has a great importance to the socio-economic development of ong Thap Province in particular and the Mekong Delta in general, he said.

Its total cost of about VN7.5 trillion (US$330 million) was sourced from Australian Governments non-refundable aid, as well as a loan from the Asia Development Bank and the Vietnamese Governments counterpart capital.

Cao Lanh Bridge will stand as an enduring symbol of Australia and Viet Nams ties, marking our 45th anniversary of relations and the signing of our new strategic partnership, said Australian FM Bishop.

She said that, in the years ahead, the bridge would be a crucial driver for development and help better connect the region, as well as support economic growth and food security.

Previously, Australia also offered non-refundable aid to help build the My Thuan Bridge connecting Tien Giang and Vinh Long provinces, which opened in 2000.

The Cao Lanh Bridge and interconnecting road project was completed by the investor, Cuu Long Corporation for Investment, Development and Project Management of Infrastructure (Cuu Long CIPM), with design consultancy services and construction supervision from CDM SMITH Inc (US), WSP (Finland), and Yooshin Engineering Cooperation (South Korea).

The project is expected to reduce the travelling time between HCM City and Can Tho City, as well as the provinces of An Giang, ong Thap and Kien Giang.

It will create favourable conditions for trade activities between the deltas provinces and southern economic hubs whereas local residents will no longer have to catch a ferry to cross the river.

Construction of the Cao Lanh Bridge began in October 2013 and its final segments were joined last September. Originally scheduled to open to traffic within 43 months, the bridge opening was delayed for a number of unspecified reasons.  VNS
past daily news Sep 13 (1) Sep 09 (15) Sep 06 (12) Sep 04 (10) Sep 03 (10) Aug 31 (17) Aug 29 (14) Aug 26 (13) Aug 22 (11) Aug 21 (12) Aug 19 (21) Aug 14 (6) Aug 13 (10) Aug 10 (10) Aug 08 (9) Aug 07 (10) Aug 06 (10) Aug 05 (8) Aug 03 (8) Aug 02 (7) Aug 01 (7) Jul 31 (14) Jul 29 (1) Jul 27 (7) Jul 25 (5) Jul 24 (10) Jul 22 (11) Jul 19 (16) Jul 17 (6) Jul 16 (10) Jul 15 (13) Jul 12 (7) Jul 11 (5) Jul 10 (8) Jul 08 (8) Jul 07 (3) Jul 06 (5) Jul 05 (8) Jul 04 (11) Jul 03 (8) Jul 02 (7) Jul 01 (5) Jun 30 (8) Jun 28 (7) Jun 27 (8) Jun 26 (7) Jun 25 (8) Jun 24 (6) Jun 23 (6) Jun 22 (9) Jun 20 (5) Jun 19 (9) Jun 18 (8) Jun 15 (9) Jun 13 (13) Jun 11 (11) Jun 09 (19) Jun 06 (10) Jun 04 (10) Jun 03 (8) Jun 01 (6) May 31 (5) May 30 (5) May 29 (6) May 28 (7) May 27 (7) May 26 (6) May 25 (4) May 23 (6) May 22 (6) May 21 (4) May 20 (7) May 19 (9) May 18 (4) May 17 (6) May 16 (5) May 15 (7) May 14 (3) May 13 (3) May 12 (9) May 10 (3) May 09 (7) May 08 (4) May 07 (3) May 06 (5) May 05 (8) May 03 (9) May 02 (1) May 01 (5) Apr 30 (8) Apr 29 (5) Apr 28 (4) Apr 27 (7) Apr 26 (12) Apr 25 (4) Apr 24 (8) Apr 23 (7) Apr 22 (5) Apr 21 (3) Apr 20 (1) Apr 19 (5) Apr 18 (3) Apr 17 (6) Apr 16 (6) Apr 15 (5) Apr 14 (2) Apr 13 (4) Apr 12 (2) Apr 11 (4) Apr 10 (3) Apr 09 (3) Apr 08 (3) Apr 07 (5) Apr 06 (3) Apr 05 (10) Apr 04 (2) Apr 03 (3) Apr 02 (9) Apr 01 (7) Mar 31 (10) Mar 30 (6) Mar 29 (7) Mar 28 (5) Mar 27 (3) Mar 26 (10) Mar 25 (4) Mar 24 (5) Mar 23 (10) Mar 22 (6) Mar 21 (5) Mar 20 (11) Mar 19 (8) Mar 18 (5) Mar 17 (4) Mar 16 (11) Mar 15 (10) Mar 14 (7) Mar 13 (7) Mar 12 (5) Mar 11 (3) Mar 10 (3) Mar 09 (5) Mar 08 (6) Mar 07 (8) Mar 06 (6) Mar 05 (12) Mar 04 (6) Mar 03 (8) Mar 02 (6) Mar 01 (8) Feb 28 (7) Feb 27 (5) Feb 26 (6) Feb 25 (7) Feb 24 (3) Feb 23 (6) Feb 22 (4) Feb 21 (3) Feb 20 (1) Feb 19 (6) Feb 18 (4) Feb 17 (4) Feb 16 (2) Feb 15 (5) Feb 14 (3) Feb 13 (6) Feb 12 (6) Feb 11 (4) Feb 10 (6) Feb 09 (6) Feb 08 (4) Feb 07 (6) Feb 06 (4) Feb 05 (2) Feb 04 (3) Feb 03 (5) Feb 02 (1) Feb 01 (4) Jan 31 (8) Jan 30 (2) Jan 29 (4) Jan 28 (1) Jan 27 (4) Jan 26 (7) Jan 25 (4) Jan 23 (4) Jan 22 (8) Jan 21 (2) Jan 20 (2) Jan 19 (3) Jan 18 (4) Jan 17 (2) Jan 16 (7) Jan 15 (6) Jan 14 (4) Jan 13 (6) Jan 12 (5) Jan 11 (4) Jan 10 (5) Jan 09 (4) Jan 08 (5) Jan 07 (4) Jan 05 (5) Jan 04 (4) Jan 03 (3) Jan 02 (2) Jan 01 (1) Dec 31 (5) Dec 29 (4) Dec 28 (5) Dec 26 (3) Dec 25 (2) Dec 24 (3) Dec 23 (2) Dec 22 (4) Dec 21 (4) Dec 20 (3) Dec 19 (3) Dec 18 (2) Dec 17 (1) Dec 16 (4) Dec 15 (2) Dec 14 (3) Dec 13 (7) Dec 12 (5) Dec 11 (4) Dec 10 (3) Dec 09 (2) Dec 08 (2) Dec 07 (4) Dec 06 (4) Dec 05 (1) Dec 04 (5) Dec 03 (3) Dec 02 (5) Dec 01 (6) Nov 30 (5) Nov 29 (10) Nov 28 (6) Nov 27 (2) Nov 26 (3) Nov 24 (2) Nov 23 (5) Nov 22 (4) Nov 21 (3) Nov 20 (6) Nov 19 (2) Nov 18 (5) Nov 17 (5) Nov 16 (3) Nov 15 (2) Nov 14 (3) Nov 13 (3) Nov 12 (2) Nov 11 (4) Nov 10 (5) Nov 09 (4) Nov 08 (5) Nov 07 (5) Nov 06 (5) Nov 05 (4) Nov 04 (5) Nov 02 (4) Nov 01 (4) Oct 31 (9) Oct 30 (9) Oct 29 (3) Oct 28 (2) Oct 27 (6) Oct 26 (6) Oct 25 (6) Oct 24 (3) Oct 23 (6) Oct 22 (4) Oct 20 (3) Oct 19 (6) Oct 18 (5) Oct 17 (5) Oct 16 (4) Oct 15 (5) Oct 14 (2) Oct 13 (4) Oct 12 (7) Oct 11 (5) Oct 10 (4) Oct 09 (5) Oct 08 (10) Oct 07 (1) Oct 06 (10) Oct 05 (6) Oct 04 (8) Oct 03 (3) Oct 02 (4) Oct 01 (6) Sep 30 (5) Sep 29 (1) Sep 28 (6) Sep 27 (6) Sep 26 (5) Sep 25 (3) Sep 24 (6) Sep 23 (5) Sep 22 (7) Sep 21 (6) Sep 20 (6) Sep 19 (5) Sep 18 (3) Sep 17 (5) Sep 16 (5) Sep 15 (5) Sep 14 (6) Sep 13 (4) Sep 12 (5) Sep 11 (7) Sep 10 (6) Sep 09 (5) Sep 08 (3) Sep 07 (4) Sep 06 (8) Sep 05 (6) Sep 04 (7) Sep 03 (3) Sep 02 (4) Sep 01 (5) Aug 31 (8) Aug 30 (6) Aug 29 (6) Aug 28 (6) Aug 27 (1) Aug 26 (4) Aug 25 (3) Aug 24 (7) Aug 23 (4) Aug 22 (4) Aug 21 (4) Aug 20 (7) Aug 18 (5) Aug 17 (8) Aug 16 (8) Aug 15 (4) Aug 14 (6) Aug 13 (5) Aug 12 (4) Aug 11 (2) Aug 10 (5) Aug 09 (4) Aug 08 (8) Aug 07 (4) Aug 06 (3) Aug 05 (4) Aug 04 (4) Aug 03 (10) Aug 02 (9) Aug 01 (8) Jul 31 (1) Jul 30 (3) Jul 29 (2) Jul 28 (11) Jul 27 (10) Jul 26 (10) Jul 25 (7) Jul 24 (5) Jul 23 (3) Jul 22 (2) Jul 21 (7) Jul 20 (10) Jul 19 (8) Jul 18 (7) Jul 17 (1) Jul 16 (10) Jul 14 (7) Jul 13 (6) Jul 12 (11) Jul 11 (7) Jul 10 (5) Jul 09 (6) Jul 08 (5) Jul 07 (8) Jul 06 (4) Jul 05 (6) Jul 04 (6) Jul 03 (7) Jul 02 (6) Jul 01 (2) Jun 30 (7) Jun 29 (7) Jun 28 (5) Jun 27 (8) Jun 26 (5) Jun 25 (6) Jun 23 (4) Jun 22 (4) Jun 21 (5) Jun 20 (8) Jun 18 (2) Jun 17 (3) Jun 16 (4) Jun 15 (3) Jun 14 (7) Jun 13 (4) Jun 12 (7) Jun 11 (3) Jun 10 (2) Jun 09 (8) Jun 08 (8) Jun 07 (8) Jun 06 (10) Jun 05 (14) Jun 04 (6) Jun 03 (6) Jun 02 (8) Jun 01 (6) May 31 (7) May 30 (2) May 29 (7) May 28 (7) May 27 (2) May 26 (4) May 25 (5) May 24 (4) May 23 (5) May 22 (5) May 21 (5) May 20 (3) May 19 (10) May 18 (6) May 17 (3) May 16 (6) May 15 (2) May 14 (3) May 13 (5) May 11 (1) May 10 (5) May 09 (3) May 08 (4) May 07 (2) May 06 (4) May 05 (6) May 04 (5) May 03 (5) May 02 (1) May 01 (6) Apr 30 (6) Apr 29 (7) Apr 28 (8) Apr 27 (9) Apr 26 (14) Apr 25 (6) Apr 24 (6) Apr 23 (7) Apr 22 (1) Apr 21 (8) Apr 20 (3) Apr 19 (6) Apr 18 (4) Apr 17 (7) Apr 16 (1) Apr 15 (8) Apr 14 (1) Apr 13 (7) Apr 12 (10) Apr 11 (7) Apr 10 (2) Apr 09 (2) Apr 08 (4) Apr 07 (3) Apr 06 (6) Apr 05 (6) Apr 04 (9) Apr 03 (4) Apr 02 (5) Apr 01 (2) Mar 31 (5) Mar 30 (4) Mar 29 (8) Mar 28 (5) Mar 27 (9) Mar 26 (4) Mar 25 (5) Mar 24 (11) Mar 23 (10) Mar 22 (9) Mar 21 (10) Mar 20 (11) Mar 19 (5) Mar 18 (7) Mar 17 (3) Mar 16 (7) Mar 15 (6) Mar 14 (6) Mar 13 (9) Mar 12 (6) Mar 11 (3) Mar 10 (3) Mar 09 (5) Mar 08 (6) Mar 07 (13) Mar 06 (6) Mar 05 (3) Mar 04 (7) Mar 03 (4) Mar 02 (5) Mar 01 (6) Feb 28 (6) Feb 27 (4) Feb 26 (5) Feb 25 (6) Feb 24 (6) Feb 23 (9) Feb 22 (6) Feb 21 (7) Feb 20 (8) Feb 19 (6) Feb 18 (3) Feb 17 (4) Feb 16 (6) Feb 15 (5) Feb 14 (7) Feb 13 (5) Feb 12 (3) Feb 11 (4) Feb 10 (5) Feb 09 (9) Feb 08 (8) Feb 07 (7) Feb 06 (10) Feb 05 (7) Feb 04 (2) Feb 03 (8) Feb 02 (7) Feb 01 (5) Jan 31 (4) Jan 30 (4) Jan 29 (7) Jan 28 (3) Jan 27 (7) Jan 26 (8) Jan 25 (6) Jan 24 (6) Jan 23 (5) Jan 22 (4) Jan 21 (6) Jan 20 (8) Jan 19 (6) Jan 18 (8) Jan 17 (12) Jan 16 (5) Jan 15 (4) Jan 14 (8) Jan 12 (6) Jan 11 (6) Jan 10 (7) Jan 09 (4) Jan 08 (6) Jan 07 (4) Jan 06 (6) Jan 05 (9) Jan 04 (9) Jan 03 (4) Jan 02 (6) Jan 01 (8) Dec 31 (2) Dec 30 (1) Dec 29 (5) Dec 28 (4) Dec 27 (8) Dec 26 (4) Dec 24 (5) Dec 23 (7) Dec 22 (12) Dec 21 (4) Dec 20 (7) Dec 19 (3) Dec 18 (5) Dec 17 (3) Dec 16 (1) Dec 15 (7) Dec 14 (10) Dec 13 (7) Dec 12 (12) Dec 10 (3) Dec 09 (6) Dec 08 (7) Dec 07 (12) Dec 06 (6) Dec 05 (13) Dec 04 (6) Dec 02 (8) Dec 01 (8) Nov 30 (6) Nov 29 (7) Nov 28 (7) Nov 27 (4) Nov 26 (8) Nov 24 (2) Nov 23 (5) Nov 22 (11) Nov 21 (7) Nov 20 (3) Nov 19 (10) Nov 18 (7) Nov 17 (6) Nov 16 (11) Nov 15 (10) Nov 14 (7) Nov 13 (3) Nov 12 (5) Nov 11 (12) Nov 10 (4) Nov 09 (14) Nov 08 (10) Nov 07 (11) Nov 06 (8) Nov 05 (5) Nov 04 (11) Nov 03 (9) Nov 02 (10) Nov 01 (8) Oct 31 (12) Oct 30 (5) Oct 29 (5) Oct 28 (5) Oct 27 (11) Oct 26 (13) Oct 25 (9) Oct 24 (10) Oct 23 (8) Oct 22 (5) Oct 21 (11) Oct 20 (8) Oct 19 (6) Oct 18 (5) Oct 17 (5) Oct 16 (6) Oct 15 (4) Oct 14 (9) Oct 13 (10) Oct 12 (11) Oct 11 (9) Oct 10 (10) Oct 09 (7) Oct 08 (5) Oct 07 (10) Oct 06 (9) Oct 05 (14) Oct 04 (9) Oct 03 (12) Oct 02 (4) Oct 01 (9) Sep 30 (5) Sep 29 (7) Sep 28 (13) Sep 27 (10) Sep 26 (11) Sep 25 (3) Sep 24 (9) Sep 23 (7) Sep 22 (10) Sep 21 (12) Sep 20 (12) Sep 19 (4) Sep 18 (5) Sep 17 (7) Sep 16 (11) Sep 15 (8) Sep 14 (5) Sep 13 (8) Sep 12 (8) Sep 11 (6) Sep 10 (10) Sep 09 (5) Sep 08 (9) Sep 07 (8) Sep 06 (11) Sep 05 (2) Sep 04 (8) Sep 03 (2) Sep 02 (6) Sep 01 (9) Aug 31 (9) Aug 30 (7) Aug 29 (9) Aug 28 (4) Aug 27 (8) Aug 26 (6) Aug 25 (5) Aug 24 (8) Aug 23 (4) Aug 22 (5) Aug 21 (2) Aug 20 (4) Aug 19 (6) Aug 18 (4) Aug 17 (4) Aug 16 (6) Aug 15 (3) Aug 14 (4) Aug 13 (7) Aug 12 (6) Aug 11 (3) Aug 10 (5) Aug 09 (8) Aug 08 (9) Aug 07 (7) Aug 06 (7) Aug 05 (7) Aug 04 (7) Aug 03 (11) Aug 02 (6) Aug 01 (9) Jul 31 (11) Jul 28 (7) Jul 27 (11) Jul 26 (5) Jul 25 (5) Jul 24 (1) Jul 22 (3) Jul 21 (2) Jul 20 (9) Jul 19 (8) Jul 18 (6) Jul 17 (7) Jul 15 (4) Jul 14 (2) Jul 13 (6) Jul 12 (10) Jul 11 (11) Jul 10 (2) Jul 09 (3) Jul 08 (5) Jul 07 (5) Jul 06 (6) Jul 05 (3) Jul 04 (6) Jul 03 (5) Jul 02 (3) Jun 30 (8) Jun 29 (5) Jun 28 (6) Jun 27 (4) Jun 26 (4) Jun 25 (1) Jun 24 (5) Jun 23 (11) Jun 21 (5) Jun 20 (5) Jun 19 (7) Jun 17 (4) Jun 16 (7) Jun 15 (4) Jun 14 (6) Jun 13 (4) Jun 12 (4) Jun 11 (6) Jun 10 (6) Jun 09 (8) Jun 08 (6) Jun 07 (8) Jun 06 (7) Jun 05 (5) Jun 04 (7) Jun 03 (1) Jun 02 (9) Jun 01 (5) May 31 (8) May 30 (7) May 29 (5) May 28 (5) May 27 (4) May 26 (4) May 25 (4) May 24 (3) May 23 (5) May 22 (2) May 21 (3) May 20 (7) May 19 (11) May 18 (1) May 17 (7) May 16 (3) May 15 (4) May 14 (3) May 13 (4) May 12 (4) May 11 (11) May 10 (2) May 09 (6) May 08 (6) May 07 (2) May 06 (3) May 05 (4) May 04 (5) May 03 (8) May 02 (4) May 01 (4) Apr 30 (6) Apr 29 (13) Apr 28 (5) Apr 27 (7) Apr 26 (5) Apr 25 (5) Apr 24 (2) Apr 23 (7) Apr 22 (9) Apr 21 (11) Apr 20 (2) Apr 19 (2) Apr 18 (5) Apr 17 (5) Apr 16 (6) Apr 14 (5) Apr 13 (2) Apr 12 (9) Apr 11 (10) Apr 10 (6) Apr 09 (5) Apr 08 (3) Apr 07 (10) Apr 06 (7) Apr 05 (7) Apr 04 (7) Apr 03 (9) Mar 31 (12) Mar 30 (9) Mar 29 (7) Mar 28 (4) Mar 27 (3) Mar 26 (6) Mar 25 (3) Mar 24 (8) Mar 23 (7) Mar 22 (4) Mar 21 (10) Mar 20 (6) Mar 19 (6) Mar 17 (7) Mar 16 (11) Mar 15 (6) Mar 14 (9) Mar 13 (4) Mar 12 (6) Mar 10 (3) Mar 09 (9) Mar 08 (10) Mar 07 (4) Mar 06 (5) Mar 05 (3) Mar 04 (2) Mar 03 (4) Mar 02 (5) Mar 01 (5) Feb 28 (3) Feb 27 (8) Feb 26 (9) Feb 24 (11) Feb 23 (8) Feb 22 (9) Feb 21 (8) Feb 20 (7) Feb 19 (4) Feb 18 (9) Feb 17 (6) Feb 16 (5) Feb 15 (7) Feb 14 (11) Feb 13 (2) Feb 12 (5) Feb 11 (5) Feb 10 (3) Feb 09 (10) Feb 08 (9) Feb 07 (9) Feb 06 (2) Feb 05 (9) Feb 03 (7) Feb 02 (5) Feb 01 (7) Jan 31 (4) Jan 30 (5) Jan 29 (6) Jan 28 (5) Jan 27 (2) Jan 26 (7) Jan 25 (7) Jan 24 (8) Jan 23 (4) Jan 22 (14) Jan 20 (8) Jan 19 (10) Jan 18 (11) Jan 17 (9) Jan 16 (5) Jan 15 (3) Jan 14 (9) Jan 13 (6) Jan 12 (7) Jan 11 (7) Jan 10 (2) Jan 09 (7) Jan 08 (6) Jan 07 (10) Jan 06 (8) Jan 05 (7) Jan 04 (9) Jan 03 (8) Jan 02 (5) Jan 01 (14) Dec 30 (13) Dec 29 (13) Dec 28 (9) Dec 27 (5) Dec 26 (4) Dec 25 (7) Dec 24 (4) Dec 23 (5) Dec 22 (4) Dec 21 (8) Dec 20 (3) Dec 19 (8) Dec 18 (9) Dec 16 (8) Dec 15 (5) Dec 14 (5) Dec 13 (8) Dec 12 (4) Dec 11 (17) Dec 09 (8) Dec 08 (5) Dec 07 (10) Dec 06 (12) Dec 05 (6) Dec 04 (8) Dec 02 (6) Dec 01 (7) Nov 30 (9) Nov 29 (6) Nov 28 (11) Nov 27 (6) Nov 26 (15) Nov 24 (7) Nov 23 (15) Nov 22 (9) Nov 21 (6) Nov 20 (11) Nov 18 (11) Nov 17 (13) Nov 16 (8) Nov 15 (13) Nov 14 (7) Nov 13 (7) Nov 12 (3) Nov 11 (13) Nov 10 (13) Nov 09 (6) Nov 08 (9) Nov 07 (6) Nov 06 (4) Nov 05 (12) Nov 04 (8) Nov 03 (9) Nov 02 (8) Nov 01 (6) Oct 31 (10) Oct 30 (8) Oct 29 (3) Oct 28 (8) Oct 27 (15) Oct 26 (10) Oct 25 (10) Oct 24 (13) Oct 23 (9) Oct 21 (8) Oct 20 (13) Oct 19 (6) Oct 18 (11) Oct 17 (8) Oct 16 (14) Oct 14 (9) Oct 13 (11) Oct 12 (9) Oct 11 (13) Oct 10 (7) Oct 09 (15) Oct 07 (7) Oct 06 (11) Oct 05 (18) Oct 04 (14) Oct 03 (1) Oct 02 (10) Sep 30 (11) Sep 29 (11) Sep 28 (11) Sep 27 (15) Sep 26 (7) Sep 24 (9) Sep 23 (11) Sep 22 (7) Sep 21 (17) Sep 20 (20) Sep 19 (4) Sep 18 (11) Sep 16 (10) Sep 15 (12) Sep 14 (9) Sep 13 (12) Sep 12 (14) Sep 11 (4) Sep 10 (8) Sep 09 (9) Sep 08 (5) Sep 07 (13) Sep 06 (15) Sep 05 (8) Sep 04 (11) Sep 03 (10) Sep 02 (12) Sep 01 (12) Aug 31 (14) Aug 30 (14) Aug 29 (8) Aug 28 (8) Aug 27 (9) Aug 26 (12) Aug 25 (6) Aug 24 (8) Aug 23 (12) Aug 22 (6) Aug 21 (5) Aug 20 (6) Aug 19 (9) Aug 18 (4) Aug 17 (7) Aug 16 (11) Aug 15 (2) Aug 14 (12) Aug 12 (15) Aug 11 (11) Aug 10 (6) Aug 09 (7) Aug 08 (3) Aug 07 (4) Aug 06 (5) Aug 05 (7) Aug 04 (7) Aug 03 (4) Aug 02 (5) Aug 01 (5) Jul 31 (7) Jul 30 (5) Jul 29 (9) Jul 28 (8) Jul 27 (8) Jul 26 (7) Jul 25 (6) Jul 23 (8) Jul 22 (6) Jul 21 (5) Jul 20 (9) Jul 19 (5) Jul 18 (15) Jul 15 (14) Jul 14 (5) Jul 13 (6) Jul 12 (12) Jul 11 (8) Jul 10 (3) Jul 09 (11) Jul 08 (8) Jul 07 (7) Jul 06 (10) Jul 05 (4) Jul 04 (4) Jul 03 (5) Jul 02 (7) Jul 01 (8) Jun 30 (7) Jun 29 (10) Jun 28 (8) Jun 27 (4) Jun 26 (5) Jun 25 (4) Jun 24 (2) Jun 23 (11) Jun 22 (5) Jun 21 (7) Jun 20 (3) Jun 19 (7) Jun 18 (10) Jun 17 (11) Jun 16 (5) Jun 15 (5) Jun 14 (7) Jun 13 (14) Jun 11 (6) Jun 10 (8) Jun 09 (9) Jun 08 (11) Jun 07 (14) Jun 06 (16) Jun 03 (8) Jun 02 (12) Jun 01 (5) May 31 (7) May 30 (15) May 28 (7) May 27 (5) May 26 (21) May 25 (14) May 24 (10) May 23 (7) May 22 (8) May 21 (11) May 20 (5) May 19 (4) May 18 (10) May 17 (11) May 16 (5) May 15 (6) May 14 (7) May 13 (12) May 12 (10) May 11 (7) May 10 (13) May 09 (4) May 08 (7) May 07 (3) May 06 (6) May 05 (9) May 04 (14) May 03 (7) May 02 (10) May 01 (10) Apr 30 (6) Apr 29 (9) Apr 28 (5) Apr 27 (9) Apr 26 (8) Apr 25 (8) Apr 24 (6) Apr 23 (14) Apr 22 (16) Apr 21 (11) Apr 20 (7) Apr 19 (16) Apr 18 (8) Apr 17 (7) Apr 16 (10) Apr 15 (8) Apr 14 (5) Apr 13 (11) Apr 12 (10) Apr 11 (8) Apr 10 (12) Apr 09 (5) Apr 08 (13) Apr 07 (9) Apr 06 (11) Apr 05 (15) Apr 04 (7) Apr 03 (15) Apr 02 (5) Apr 01 (11) Mar 31 (12) Mar 30 (10) Mar 29 (8) Mar 28 (7) Mar 27 (12) Mar 26 (8) Mar 25 (8) Mar 24 (7) Mar 23 (15) Mar 22 (17) Mar 21 (9) Mar 20 (8) Mar 19 (4) Mar 18 (16) Mar 17 (8) Mar 16 (19) Mar 15 (13) Mar 14 (7) Mar 13 (20) Mar 11 (5) Mar 10 (11) Mar 09 (13) Mar 08 (13) Mar 07 (7) Mar 06 (6) Mar 05 (9) Mar 04 (10) Mar 03 (16) Mar 02 (16) Mar 01 (13) Feb 29 (8) Feb 28 (6) Feb 27 (16) Feb 26 (10) Feb 25 (6) Feb 24 (12) Feb 23 (14) Feb 22 (9) Feb 21 (11) Feb 20 (8) Feb 19 (12) Feb 18 (12) Feb 17 (11) Feb 16 (8) Feb 15 (9) Feb 14 (7) Feb 13 (10) Feb 12 (11) Feb 11 (13) Feb 10 (5) Feb 09 (6) Feb 08 (4) Feb 07 (9) Feb 06 (13) Feb 05 (10) Feb 04 (11) Feb 03 (7) Feb 02 (19) Jan 31 (21) Jan 29 (11) Jan 28 (10) Jan 27 (13) Jan 26 (7) Jan 25 (5) Jan 24 (2) Jan 23 (8) Jan 22 (13) Jan 21 (11) Jan 20 (9) Jan 19 (13) Jan 18 (4) Jan 17 (11) Jan 15 (7) Jan 14 (13) Jan 13 (9) Jan 12 (9) Jan 11 (5) Jan 10 (8) Jan 09 (7) Jan 08 (7) Jan 07 (6) Jan 06 (11) Jan 05 (7) Jan 04 (7) Jan 03 (3) Jan 02 (8) Jan 01 (5) Dec 31 (10) Dec 30 (9) Dec 29 (7) Dec 28 (9) Dec 27 (4) Dec 26 (1) Dec 25 (5) Dec 24 (6) Dec 23 (6) Dec 22 (7) Dec 21 (6) Dec 20 (7) Dec 19 (13) Dec 18 (16) Dec 17 (10) Dec 16 (13) Dec 15 (11) Dec 14 (8) Dec 13 (4) Dec 12 (9) Dec 11 (10) Dec 10 (12) Dec 09 (10) Dec 08 (13) Dec 07 (7) Dec 06 (12) Dec 05 (8) Dec 04 (11) Dec 03 (12) Dec 02 (16) Dec 01 (14) Nov 30 (10) Nov 29 (11) Nov 28 (15) Nov 27 (16) Nov 26 (11) Nov 25 (9) Nov 24 (13) Nov 23 (10) Nov 22 (1) Nov 21 (7) Nov 20 (12) Nov 19 (10) Nov 18 (11) Nov 17 (11) Nov 16 (10) Nov 15 (3) Nov 14 (10) Nov 13 (14) Nov 12 (8) Nov 11 (13) Nov 10 (10) Nov 09 (6) Nov 08 (9) Nov 07 (11) Nov 06 (12) Nov 05 (17) Nov 04 (12) Nov 03 (11) Nov 02 (5) Nov 01 (12) Oct 31 (11) Oct 30 (11) Oct 29 (10) Oct 28 (18) Oct 27 (16) Oct 26 (11) Oct 25 (9) Oct 24 (12) Oct 23 (11) Oct 22 (14) Oct 21 (12) Oct 20 (17) Oct 19 (12) Oct 18 (13) Oct 17 (15) Oct 16 (14) Oct 15 (10) Oct 14 (16) Oct 13 (12) Oct 12 (13) Oct 11 (8) Oct 10 (12) Oct 09 (21) Oct 08 (22) Oct 07 (19) Oct 06 (18) Oct 05 (6) Oct 04 (17) Oct 03 (13) Oct 02 (14) Oct 01 (13) Sep 30 (14) Sep 29 (15) Sep 28 (12) Sep 27 (11) Sep 26 (15) Sep 25 (13) Sep 24 (9) Sep 23 (10) Sep 22 (12) Sep 21 (8) Sep 20 (4) Sep 19 (12) Sep 18 (12) Sep 17 (16) Sep 16 (21) Sep 15 (14) Sep 14 (7) Sep 13 (5) Sep 12 (10) Sep 11 (16) Sep 10 (7) Sep 09 (8) Sep 08 (10) Sep 07 (7) Sep 06 (5) Sep 05 (8) Sep 04 (9) Sep 03 (8) Sep 02 (11) Sep 01 (10) Aug 31 (4) Aug 30 (6) Aug 29 (1) Aug 28 (10) Aug 27 (8) Aug 26 (8) Aug 25 (14) Aug 24 (4) Aug 23 (3) Aug 22 (5) Aug 21 (13) Aug 20 (9) Aug 19 (13) Aug 18 (3) Aug 17 (3) Aug 16 (3) Aug 15 (6) Aug 14 (8) Aug 13 (7) Aug 12 (12) Aug 11 (9) Aug 10 (8) Aug 09 (14) Aug 08 (6) Aug 07 (1) Aug 06 (4) Aug 05 (8) Aug 04 (6) Aug 03 (6) Aug 02 (2) Aug 01 (6) Jul 31 (6) Jul 30 (3) Jul 29 (6) Jul 28 (8) Jul 27 (7) Jul 25 (4) Jul 24 (6) Jul 23 (5) Jul 22 (3) Jul 21 (7) Jul 20 (5) Jul 18 (6) Jul 17 (5) Jul 16 (4) Jul 15 (9) Jul 14 (2) Jul 13 (8) Jul 12 (1) Jul 11 (5) Jul 10 (8) Jul 09 (3) Jul 08 (3) Jul 07 (13) Jul 05 (2) Jul 04 (5) Jul 03 (6) Jul 02 (6) Jul 01 (7) Jun 30 (7) Jun 29 (3) Jun 28 (1) Jun 27 (4) Jun 26 (7) Jun 25 (4) Jun 24 (6) Jun 23 (9) Jun 22 (4) Jun 21 (3) Jun 19 (4) Jun 18 (7) Jun 17 (7) Jun 16 (7) Jun 15 (11) Jun 12 (6) Jun 11 (3) Jun 10 (10) Jun 09 (3) Jun 08 (3) Jun 07 (4) Jun 06 (2) Jun 05 (9) Jun 04 (8) Jun 03 (9) Jun 02 (6) Jun 01 (4) May 30 (7) May 29 (9) May 28 (13) May 26 (8) May 25 (5) May 24 (2) May 23 (8) May 22 (9) May 21 (7) May 20 (4) May 19 (6) May 18 (7) May 17 (8) May 15 (9) May 14 (5) May 13 (8) May 12 (6) May 11 (6) May 09 (7) May 08 (6) May 07 (11) May 06 (7) May 05 (4) May 04 (11) May 03 (5) May 02 (4) May 01 (9) Apr 30 (6) Apr 29 (4) Apr 28 (9) Apr 27 (4) Apr 26 (3) Apr 25 (5) Apr 24 (3) Apr 23 (10) Apr 22 (8) Apr 21 (9) Apr 20 (3) Apr 19 (4) Apr 18 (8) Apr 17 (7) Apr 16 (4) Apr 15 (6) Apr 14 (8) Apr 13 (3) Apr 12 (6) Apr 10 (2) Apr 09 (4) Apr 08 (5) Apr 07 (5) Apr 06 (2) Apr 05 (2) Apr 04 (5) Apr 03 (7) Apr 02 (7) Apr 01 (12) Mar 31 (12) Mar 30 (3) Mar 29 (1) Mar 28 (2) Mar 27 (6) Mar 26 (2) Mar 25 (5) Mar 24 (4) Mar 23 (7) Mar 22 (4) Mar 21 (6) Mar 20 (9) Mar 19 (9) Mar 18 (8) Mar 17 (9) Mar 16 (7) Mar 15 (11) Mar 13 (5) Mar 12 (12) Mar 11 (9) Mar 10 (12) Mar 09 (4) Mar 08 (5) Mar 07 (5) Mar 06 (5) Mar 05 (5) Mar 04 (6) Mar 03 (11) Mar 02 (5) Mar 01 (8) Feb 27 (9) Feb 26 (9) Feb 25 (8) Feb 24 (6) Feb 23 (4) Feb 22 (3) Feb 21 (6) Feb 20 (3) Feb 19 (10) Feb 18 (9) Feb 17 (7) Feb 16 (5) Feb 15 (2) Feb 14 (8) Feb 13 (12) Feb 12 (8) Feb 11 (10) Feb 10 (7) Feb 09 (6) Feb 08 (3) Feb 07 (2) Feb 06 (7) Feb 05 (4) Feb 04 (11) Feb 03 (5) Feb 02 (7) Feb 01 (4) Jan 31 (5) Jan 30 (8) Jan 29 (12) Jan 28 (6) Jan 27 (8) Jan 26 (13) Jan 24 (8) Jan 23 (12) Jan 22 (8) Jan 21 (10) Jan 20 (8) Jan 19 (6) Jan 18 (9) Jan 17 (6) Jan 16 (4) Jan 15 (11) Jan 14 (4) Jan 13 (6) Jan 12 (7) Jan 11 (6) Jan 10 (2) Jan 09 (6) Jan 08 (5) Jan 07 (6) Jan 06 (4) Jan 05 (4) Jan 04 (3) Jan 03 (6) Jan 02 (2) Jan 01 (3) Dec 31 (6) Dec 30 (4) Dec 29 (6) Dec 28 (4) Dec 27 (4) Dec 26 (2) Dec 25 (3) Dec 24 (5) Dec 23 (7) Dec 22 (5) Dec 21 (4) Dec 20 (4) Dec 19 (5) Dec 18 (8) Dec 17 (5) Dec 16 (9) Dec 15 (7) Dec 14 (3) Dec 13 (10) Dec 12 (10) Dec 11 (9) Dec 10 (10) Dec 09 (11) Dec 08 (5) Dec 07 (5) Dec 06 (6) Dec 05 (9) Dec 04 (3) Dec 03 (8) Dec 02 (10) Dec 01 (6) Nov 30 (1) Nov 29 (3) Nov 28 (9) Nov 27 (3) Nov 26 (7) Nov 25 (12) Nov 24 (3) Nov 23 (8) Nov 22 (4) Nov 21 (3) Nov 20 (12) Nov 19 (6) Nov 18 (10) Nov 17 (12) Nov 16 (5) Nov 15 (5) Nov 14 (12) Nov 13 (3) Nov 12 (7) Nov 11 (8) Nov 10 (7) Nov 09 (6) Nov 08 (5) Nov 07 (5) Nov 06 (6) Nov 05 (12) Nov 04 (9) Nov 03 (6) Nov 02 (14) Nov 01 (3) Oct 31 (6) Oct 30 (7) Oct 29 (9) Oct 28 (9) Oct 27 (3) Oct 26 (6) Oct 25 (9) Oct 24 (8) Oct 23 (4) Oct 22 (3) Oct 21 (4) Oct 20 (2) Oct 19 (11) Oct 17 (6) Oct 16 (7) Oct 15 (7) Oct 14 (8) Oct 13 (5) Oct 12 (8) Oct 11 (6) Oct 10 (5) Oct 09 (11) Oct 08 (10) Oct 07 (8) Oct 06 (3) Oct 05 (7) Oct 04 (8) Oct 03 (3) Oct 02 (10) Oct 01 (3) Sep 30 (7) Sep 29 (6) Sep 28 (5) Sep 27 (8) Sep 26 (11) Sep 25 (11) Sep 24 (15) Sep 23 (8) Sep 22 (9) Sep 21 (4) Sep 20 (8) Sep 19 (9) Sep 18 (10) Sep 17 (10) Sep 16 (5) Sep 15 (5) Sep 14 (7) Sep 13 (5) Sep 12 (5) Sep 11 (8) Sep 10 (6) Sep 09 (7) Sep 08 (5) Sep 07 (2) Sep 06 (4) Sep 05 (7) Sep 04 (11) Sep 03 (7) Sep 02 (7) Sep 01 (2) Aug 31 (3) Aug 30 (1) Aug 29 (10) Aug 28 (5) Aug 27 (4) Aug 26 (10) Aug 25 (6) Aug 24 (9) Aug 22 (11) Aug 21 (8) Aug 20 (12) Aug 19 (8) Aug 18 (4) Aug 17 (4) Aug 16 (3) Aug 15 (6) Aug 14 (4) Aug 13 (7) Aug 12 (8) Aug 11 (7) Aug 10 (12) Aug 08 (5) Aug 07 (6) Aug 06 (6) Aug 05 (8) Aug 04 (5) Aug 03 (4) Aug 01 (7) Jul 31 (6) Jul 30 (12) Jul 29 (4) Jul 28 (5) Jul 27 (7) Jul 25 (7) Jul 24 (8) Jul 23 (8) Jul 22 (3) Jul 21 (8) Jul 20 (6) Jul 19 (3) Jul 18 (8) Jul 17 (2) Jul 16 (7) Jul 15 (6) Jul 14 (9) Jul 13 (10) Jul 11 (9) Jul 10 (8) Jul 09 (3) Jul 08 (7) Jul 07 (7) Jul 06 (7) Jul 05 (10) Jul 04 (4) Jul 03 (6) Jul 02 (6) Jul 01 (8) Jun 30 (5) Jun 29 (6) Jun 28 (1) Jun 27 (15) Jun 26 (10) Jun 25 (9) Jun 24 (16) Jun 23 (6) Jun 22 (12) Jun 20 (6) Jun 19 (8) Jun 18 (10) Jun 17 (6) Jun 16 (7) Jun 15 (5) Jun 14 (5) Jun 13 (13) Jun 12 (7) Jun 11 (14) Jun 10 (3) Jun 09 (2) Jun 08 (2) Jun 07 (7) Jun 06 (16) Jun 05 (7) Jun 04 (18) Jun 03 (12) Jun 02 (8) May 31 (3) May 30 (6) May 29 (6) May 28 (7) May 27 (4) May 26 (4) May 25 (6) May 23 (4) May 22 (8) May 21 (5) May 20 (6) May 19 (2) May 18 (9) May 17 (1) May 16 (5) May 15 (5) May 14 (7) May 13 (7) May 12 (7) May 11 (4) May 10 (4) May 09 (5) May 08 (10) May 07 (4) May 06 (13) May 05 (4) May 04 (10) May 02 (2) May 01 (5) Apr 30 (9) Apr 29 (6) Apr 28 (3) Apr 27 (4) Apr 26 (9) Apr 25 (9) Apr 24 (7) Apr 23 (11) Apr 22 (7) Apr 21 (3) Apr 20 (10) Apr 19 (6) Apr 18 (5) Apr 17 (6) Apr 16 (6) Apr 15 (7) Apr 14 (11) Apr 13 (4) Apr 12 (5) Apr 11 (9) Apr 10 (4) Apr 09 (6) Apr 08 (6) Apr 07 (3) Apr 06 (6) Apr 05 (10) Apr 03 (9) Apr 02 (9) Apr 01 (12) Mar 31 (4) Mar 30 (9) Mar 29 (10) Mar 28 (7) Mar 27 (8) Mar 26 (8) Mar 25 (15) Mar 24 (11) Mar 23 (8) Mar 22 (7) Mar 21 (14) Mar 20 (6) Mar 19 (11) Mar 18 (11) Mar 17 (12) Mar 16 (8) Mar 15 (8) Mar 14 (13) Mar 13 (8) Mar 12 (10) Mar 11 (8) Mar 10 (7) Mar 09 (3) Mar 08 (12) Mar 07 (15) Mar 06 (16) Mar 05 (9) Mar 04 (6) Mar 03 (12) Mar 02 (20) Feb 28 (11) Feb 27 (8) Feb 26 (11) Feb 25 (6) Feb 24 (14) Feb 23 (5) Feb 22 (6) Feb 21 (8) Feb 20 (11) Feb 19 (7) Feb 18 (4) Feb 17 (8) Feb 16 (11) Feb 15 (3) Feb 14 (10) Feb 13 (4) Feb 12 (10) Feb 11 (7) Feb 10 (7) Feb 09 (4) Feb 08 (6) Feb 07 (5) Feb 06 (4) Feb 05 (10) Feb 04 (5) Feb 03 (4) Feb 02 (4) Feb 01 (3) Jan 31 (3) Jan 30 (5) Jan 29 (2) Jan 28 (6) Jan 27 (3) Jan 26 (2) Jan 25 (5) Jan 24 (7) Jan 23 (4) Jan 22 (4) Jan 21 (5) Jan 20 (5) Jan 19 (6) Jan 18 (7) Jan 17 (6) Jan 16 (4) Jan 15 (3) Jan 14 (5) Jan 13 (4) Jan 12 (5) Jan 11 (3) Jan 10 (5) Jan 09 (6) Jan 08 (6) Jan 07 (3) Jan 06 (1) Jan 05 (4) Jan 04 (5) Jan 03 (3) Jan 02 (6) Jan 01 (2) Dec 31 (6) Dec 30 (1) Dec 29 (5) Dec 27 (1) Dec 26 (2) Dec 25 (4) Dec 24 (8) Dec 23 (2) Dec 22 (1) Dec 20 (3) Dec 19 (8) Dec 18 (3) Dec 17 (4) Dec 16 (3) Dec 15 (3) Dec 14 (3) Dec 13 (3) Dec 12 (4) Dec 11 (4) Dec 10 (7) Dec 09 (5) Dec 08 (2) Dec 07 (5) Dec 06 (6) Dec 05 (10) Dec 04 (9) Dec 03 (4) Dec 02 (2) Dec 01 (8) Nov 29 (5) Nov 28 (7) Nov 27 (5) Nov 26 (9) Nov 25 (3) Nov 24 (5) Nov 23 (6) Nov 22 (5) Nov 21 (12) Nov 20 (12) Nov 19 (10) Nov 18 (4) Nov 17 (3) Nov 16 (8) Nov 15 (7) Nov 14 (7) Nov 13 (6) Nov 12 (12) Nov 11 (6) Nov 10 (3) Nov 09 (4) Nov 08 (10) Nov 07 (5) Nov 06 (5) Nov 05 (9) Nov 04 (4) Nov 03 (4) Nov 02 (3) Nov 01 (3) Oct 31 (10) Oct 30 (4) Oct 29 (11) Oct 28 (3) Oct 27 (7) Oct 26 (7) Oct 25 (6) Oct 24 (7) Oct 23 (11) Oct 22 (2) Oct 21 (7) Oct 20 (4) Oct 19 (6) Oct 18 (7) Oct 17 (5) Oct 16 (8) Oct 15 (5) Oct 14 (5) Oct 13 (3) Oct 12 (7) Oct 11 (20) Oct 10 (2) Oct 09 (4) Oct 08 (21) Oct 07 (20) Oct 06 (34) Oct 04 (24) Oct 03 (21) Oct 02 (3) Oct 01 (7) Sep 30 (3) Sep 29 (5) Sep 28 (6) Sep 27 (5) Sep 26 (6) Sep 25 (5) Sep 24 (2) Sep 23 (8) Sep 22 (4) Sep 21 (3) Sep 20 (9) Sep 19 (11) Sep 18 (5) Sep 17 (7) Sep 16 (6) Sep 15 (3) Sep 14 (7) Sep 13 (8) Sep 12 (11) Sep 11 (7) Sep 10 (6) Sep 09 (5) Sep 08 (3) Sep 07 (6) Sep 06 (10) Sep 05 (7) Sep 04 (7) Sep 03 (5) Sep 02 (4) Sep 01 (8) Aug 31 (5) Aug 30 (7) Aug 29 (10) Aug 28 (7) Aug 27 (6) Aug 26 (6) Aug 25 (3) Aug 24 (8) Aug 23 (6) Aug 22 (6) Aug 21 (8) Aug 20 (8) Aug 19 (4) Aug 18 (2) Aug 17 (5) Aug 16 (7) Aug 15 (4) Aug 14 (3) Aug 13 (4) Aug 12 (6) Aug 11 (6) Aug 10 (4) Aug 09 (8) Aug 08 (6) Aug 07 (4) Aug 06 (6) Aug 05 (4) Aug 04 (12) Aug 03 (3) Aug 02 (4) Aug 01 (10) Jul 31 (3) Jul 30 (7) Jul 29 (3) Jul 28 (6) Jul 27 (4) Jul 26 (5) Jul 25 (4) Jul 24 (7) Jul 23 (10) Jul 22 (8) Jul 21 (5) Jul 20 (4) Jul 19 (7) Jul 18 (9) Jul 17 (10) Jul 16 (11) Jul 15 (5) Jul 13 (5) Jul 12 (9) Jul 11 (11) Jul 10 (12) Jul 09 (6) Jul 08 (5) Jul 07 (8) Jul 06 (9) Jul 05 (10) Jul 04 (8) Jul 03 (10) Jul 02 (12) Jul 01 (8) Jun 30 (5) Jun 29 (6) Jun 28 (23) Jun 27 (18) Jun 26 (12) Jun 25 (14) Jun 24 (15) Jun 23 (11) Jun 22 (11) Jun 21 (15) Jun 20 (9) Jun 19 (8) Jun 18 (11) Jun 17 (7) Jun 16 (6) Jun 15 (6) Jun 14 (6) Jun 13 (5) Jun 12 (6) Jun 11 (9) Jun 10 (10) Jun 09 (9) Jun 08 (6) Jun 07 (2) Jun 06 (6) Jun 05 (4) Jun 04 (3) Jun 03 (4) Jun 02 (3) Jun 01 (6) May 31 (3) May 30 (5) May 29 (8) May 28 (7) May 27 (2) May 26 (2) May 25 (8) May 24 (7) May 23 (6) May 22 (9) May 21 (6) May 20 (5) May 19 (6) May 18 (9) May 17 (10) May 16 (11) May 15 (5) May 14 (11) May 13 (6) May 12 (7) May 11 (7) May 10 (5) May 09 (3) May 08 (10) May 07 (8) May 06 (11) May 05 (5) May 04 (9) May 03 (3) May 02 (2) May 01 (5) Apr 30 (5) Apr 29 (8) Apr 28 (6) Apr 27 (4) Apr 26 (9) Apr 25 (11) Apr 24 (4) Apr 23 (11) Apr 22 (7) Apr 21 (5) Apr 20 (7) Apr 19 (10) Apr 18 (8) Apr 17 (10) Apr 16 (8) Apr 15 (4) Apr 14 (5) Apr 13 (7) Apr 12 (11) Apr 11 (6) Apr 10 (7) Apr 09 (6) Apr 08 (3) Apr 07 (3) Apr 06 (9) Apr 05 (10) Apr 04 (7) Apr 03 (2) Apr 02 (6) Apr 01 (4) Mar 31 (3) Mar 30 (4) Mar 29 (3) Mar 28 (5) Mar 27 (10) Mar 26 (5) Mar 25 (4) Mar 24 (5) Mar 23 (7) Mar 22 (6) Mar 21 (9) Mar 20 (5) Mar 19 (5) Mar 18 (9) Mar 17 (2) Mar 16 (8) Mar 15 (10) Mar 14 (9) Mar 13 (10) Mar 12 (10) Mar 11 (2) Mar 10 (1) Mar 09 (6) Mar 08 (4) Mar 07 (4) Mar 06 (3) Mar 05 (3) Mar 04 (7) Mar 03 (6) Mar 02 (8) Mar 01 (9) Feb 28 (6) Feb 27 (3) Feb 26 (8) Feb 25 (7) Feb 24 (3) Feb 23 (4) Feb 22 (4) Feb 21 (7) Feb 20 (4) Feb 19 (4) Feb 18 (2) Feb 17 (1) Feb 16 (6) Feb 15 (6) Feb 14 (5) Feb 13 (4) Feb 12 (7) Feb 11 (2) Feb 10 (2) Feb 09 (5) Feb 08 (5) Feb 07 (9) Feb 06 (4) Feb 05 (9) Feb 04 (3) Feb 03 (3) Feb 02 (10) Feb 01 (9) Jan 31 (5) Jan 30 (8) Jan 29 (5) Jan 28 (3) Jan 27 (4) Jan 26 (5) Jan 25 (6) Jan 24 (5) Jan 23 (4) Jan 22 (8) Jan 21 (3) Jan 20 (3) Jan 19 (7) Jan 18 (3) Jan 17 (6) Jan 16 (8) Jan 15 (7) Jan 14 (9) Jan 13 (1) Jan 12 (7) Jan 11 (1) Jan 10 (3) Jan 09 (3) Jan 08 (5) Jan 07 (4) Jan 06 (2) Jan 05 (3) Jan 04 (5) Jan 03 (4) Jan 02 (4) Jan 01 (4) Dec 31 (3) Dec 30 (4) Dec 29 (5) Dec 28 (8) Dec 27 (4) Dec 26 (4) Dec 25 (2) Dec 24 (4) Dec 23 (4) Dec 22 (7) Dec 21 (5) Dec 20 (3) Dec 19 (4) Dec 18 (6) Dec 17 (4) Dec 16 (5) Dec 15 (5) Dec 14 (8) Dec 13 (3) Dec 12 (6) Dec 11 (8) Dec 10 (5) Dec 09 (4) Dec 08 (4) Dec 07 (7) Dec 06 (7) Dec 05 (6) Dec 04 (6) Dec 03 (7) Dec 02 (1) Dec 01 (6) Nov 30 (2) Nov 29 (8) Nov 28 (16) Nov 27 (7) Nov 26 (5) Nov 25 (2) Nov 24 (6) Nov 23 (5) Nov 22 (5) Nov 21 (5) Nov 20 (15) Nov 19 (8) Nov 18 (2) Nov 17 (3) Nov 16 (5) Nov 15 (7) Nov 14 (6) Nov 13 (9) Nov 12 (7) Nov 11 (8) Nov 10 (3) Nov 09 (5) Nov 08 (8) Nov 07 (9) Nov 06 (9) Nov 05 (1) Nov 04 (4) Nov 03 (8) Nov 02 (6) Nov 01 (3) Oct 31 (6) Oct 30 (7) Oct 29 (3) Oct 28 (3) Oct 27 (4) Oct 26 (4) Oct 25 (8) Oct 24 (4) Oct 23 (1) Oct 22 (6) Oct 21 (1) Oct 20 (8) Oct 19 (6) Oct 18 (10) Oct 17 (6) Oct 16 (15) Oct 15 (4) Oct 14 (5) Oct 13 (3) Oct 12 (9) Oct 11 (7) Oct 10 (1) Oct 09 (5) Oct 08 (7) Oct 07 (3) Oct 06 (8) Oct 05 (5) Oct 04 (3) Oct 03 (7) Oct 02 (6) Oct 01 (6) Sep 30 (8) Sep 29 (6) Sep 28 (13) Sep 27 (10) Sep 26 (8) Sep 25 (8) Sep 24 (8) Sep 23 (3) Sep 22 (7) Sep 21 (9) Sep 20 (7) Sep 19 (8) Sep 18 (4) Sep 17 (3) Sep 16 (4) Sep 15 (8) Sep 14 (5) Sep 13 (7) Sep 12 (7) Sep 11 (9) Sep 10 (4) Sep 09 (10) Sep 08 (4) Sep 07 (12) Sep 06 (13) Sep 05 (15) Sep 04 (5) Sep 03 (4) Sep 02 (6) Sep 01 (9) Aug 31 (7) Aug 30 (6) Aug 29 (8) Aug 28 (11) Aug 27 (2) Aug 26 (6) Aug 25 (15) Aug 24 (6) Aug 23 (8) Aug 22 (5) Aug 21 (6) Aug 20 (7) Aug 19 (2) Aug 18 (5) Aug 17 (5) Aug 16 (11) Aug 15 (4) Aug 14 (6) Aug 13 (9) Aug 12 (4) Aug 11 (5) Aug 10 (6) Aug 09 (5) Aug 08 (7) Aug 07 (9) Aug 06 (4) Aug 05 (4) Aug 04 (4) Aug 03 (8) Aug 02 (9) Aug 01 (10) Jul 31 (11) Jul 30 (4) Jul 29 (3) Jul 28 (11) Jul 27 (4) Jul 26 (7) Jul 25 (7) Jul 24 (4) Jul 23 (8) Jul 22 (5) Jul 21 (4) Jul 20 (10) Jul 19 (6) Jul 18 (9) Jul 17 (6) Jul 16 (7) Jul 15 (6) Jul 14 (4) Jul 13 (7) Jul 12 (8) Jul 11 (6) Jul 10 (14) Jul 09 (6) Jul 08 (5) Jul 07 (4) Jul 06 (9) Jul 05 (8) Jul 04 (5) Jul 03 (8) Jul 02 (5) Jul 01 (5) Jun 30 (6) Jun 29 (3) Jun 28 (3) Jun 27 (4) Jun 26 (8) Jun 25 (3) Jun 24 (5) Jun 23 (14) Jun 22 (11) Jun 21 (5) Jun 20 (8) Jun 19 (7) Jun 18 (4) Jun 17 (3) Jun 16 (12) Jun 15 (12) Jun 14 (10) Jun 13 (10) Jun 12 (9) Jun 11 (6) Jun 10 (12) Jun 09 (4) Jun 08 (3) Jun 07 (12) Jun 06 (6) Jun 05 (7) Jun 04 (6) Jun 03 (3) Jun 02 (4) Jun 01 (8) May 31 (4) May 30 (3) May 29 (8) May 28 (7) May 27 (4) May 26 (3) May 25 (5) May 24 (9) May 23 (16) May 22 (12) May 21 (11) May 20 (7) May 19 (10) May 18 (8) May 17 (8) May 16 (10) May 15 (8) May 14 (5) May 13 (1) May 12 (6) May 11 (9) May 10 (9) May 09 (10) May 08 (9) May 07 (6) May 06 (5) May 05 (7) May 04 (10) May 03 (7) May 02 (9) May 01 (10) Apr 30 (4) Apr 29 (9) Apr 28 (12) Apr 27 (9) Apr 26 (4) Apr 25 (5) Apr 24 (9) Apr 23 (4) Apr 22 (7) Apr 21 (8) Apr 20 (9) Apr 19 (6) Apr 18 (4) Apr 17 (2) Apr 16 (4) Apr 15 (10) Apr 14 (7) Apr 13 (5) Apr 12 (7) Apr 11 (7) Apr 10 (7) Apr 09 (6) Apr 08 (7) Apr 07 (10) Apr 06 (8) Apr 05 (8) Apr 04 (9) Apr 03 (6) Apr 02 (4) Apr 01 (4) Mar 31 (11) Mar 30 (12) Mar 29 (16) Mar 28 (8) Mar 27 (10) Mar 26 (12) Mar 25 (6) Mar 24 (9) Mar 23 (3) Mar 22 (12) Mar 21 (12) Mar 20 (14) Mar 19 (8) Mar 18 (7) Mar 17 (8) Mar 16 (4) Mar 15 (10) Mar 14 (9) Mar 13 (9) Mar 12 (6) Mar 11 (5) Mar 10 (13) Mar 09 (8) Mar 08 (10) Mar 07 (12) Mar 06 (6) Mar 05 (4) Mar 04 (2) Mar 03 (3) Mar 02 (12) Mar 01 (8) Feb 29 (11) Feb 28 (5) Feb 27 (3) Feb 26 (13) Feb 25 (10) Feb 24 (13) Feb 23 (10) Feb 22 (9) Feb 21 (18) Feb 20 (6) Feb 19 (7) Feb 18 (9) Feb 17 (5) Feb 16 (9) Feb 15 (7) Feb 14 (6) Feb 13 (5) Feb 12 (6) Feb 11 (4) Feb 10 (8) Feb 09 (5) Feb 08 (8) Feb 07 (10) Feb 06 (7) Feb 05 (7) Feb 04 (5) Feb 03 (11) Feb 02 (4) Feb 01 (3) Jan 31 (12) Jan 30 (7) Jan 29 (7) Jan 28 (7) Jan 27 (12) Jan 26 (7) Jan 25 (11) Jan 24 (4) Jan 23 (6) Jan 22 (8) Jan 21 (12) Jan 20 (11) Jan 19 (6) Jan 18 (6) Jan 17 (11) Jan 16 (9) Jan 15 (4) Jan 14 (3) Jan 13 (6) Jan 12 (9) Jan 11 (9) Jan 10 (10) Jan 09 (5) Jan 08 (10) Jan 07 (5) Jan 06 (6) Jan 05 (8) Jan 04 (5) Jan 03 (8) Jan 02 (7) Jan 01 (7) Dec 31 (10) Dec 30 (11) Dec 29 (6) Dec 28 (5) Dec 27 (10) Dec 26 (4) Dec 25 (5) Dec 24 (7) Dec 23 (2) Dec 22 (9) Dec 21 (8) Dec 20 (8) Dec 19 (5) Dec 18 (1) Dec 17 (5) Dec 16 (6) Dec 15 (5) Dec 14 (13) Dec 13 (8) Dec 12 (7) Dec 11 (9) Dec 10 (12) Dec 09 (7) Dec 08 (11) Dec 07 (9) Dec 06 (11) Dec 05 (10) Dec 04 (6) Dec 03 (8) Dec 02 (6) Dec 01 (14) Nov 30 (7) Nov 29 (8) Nov 28 (8) Nov 27 (6) Nov 26 (9) Nov 25 (10) Nov 24 (12) Nov 23 (10) Nov 22 (10) Nov 21 (10) Nov 20 (4) Nov 19 (4) Nov 18 (8) Nov 17 (9) Nov 16 (9) Nov 15 (12) Nov 14 (6) Nov 13 (9) Nov 12 (3) Nov 11 (9) Nov 10 (10) Nov 09 (10) Nov 08 (7) Nov 07 (8) Nov 06 (10) Nov 05 (8) Nov 04 (7) Nov 03 (10) Nov 02 (11) Nov 01 (10) Oct 31 (5) Oct 30 (8) Oct 29 (8) Oct 28 (8) Oct 27 (11) Oct 26 (6) Oct 25 (9) Oct 24 (10) Oct 23 (5) Oct 22 (14) Oct 21 (10) Oct 20 (8) Oct 19 (11) Oct 18 (13) Oct 17 (7) Oct 16 (6) Oct 15 (9) Oct 14 (7) Oct 13 (12) Oct 12 (13) Oct 11 (9) Oct 10 (8) Oct 09 (9) Oct 08 (7) Oct 07 (12) Oct 06 (8) Oct 05 (13) Oct 04 (11) Oct 03 (7) Oct 02 (5) Oct 01 (14) Sep 30 (12) Sep 29 (12) Sep 28 (11) Sep 27 (11) Sep 26 (7) Sep 25 (10) Sep 24 (3) Sep 23 (7) Sep 22 (8) Sep 21 (8) Sep 20 (8) Sep 19 (7) Sep 18 (5) Sep 17 (14) Sep 16 (7) Sep 15 (11) Sep 14 (13) Sep 13 (11) Sep 12 (9) Sep 11 (5) Sep 10 (4) Sep 09 (13) Sep 08 (11) Sep 07 (11) Sep 06 (16) Sep 05 (1) Sep 04 (10) Sep 03 (8) Sep 02 (8) Sep 01 (7) Aug 31 (1) Aug 30 (6) Aug 29 (2) Aug 28 (3) Aug 27 (6) Aug 26 (8) Aug 25 (5) Aug 24 (5) Aug 23 (6) Aug 22 (7) Aug 21 (6) Aug 20 (4) Aug 19 (9) Aug 18 (7) Aug 17 (7) Aug 16 (10) Aug 15 (2) Aug 14 (5) Aug 13 (5) Aug 12 (10) Aug 11 (5) Aug 10 (4) Aug 09 (8) Aug 08 (3) Aug 07 (5) Aug 06 (12) Aug 05 (5) Aug 04 (7) Aug 03 (6) Aug 02 (7) Aug 01 (14) Jul 31 (7) Jul 30 (7) Jul 29 (13) Jul 28 (10) Jul 27 (6) Jul 26 (7) Jul 25 (7) Jul 24 (4) Jul 23 (12) Jul 22 (14) Jul 21 (6) Jul 20 (9) Jul 19 (12) Jul 18 (9) Jul 17 (4) Jul 16 (6) Jul 15 (8) Jul 14 (15) Jul 13 (8) Jul 12 (10) Jul 11 (6) Jul 10 (6) Jul 09 (6) Jul 08 (6) Jul 07 (9) Jul 06 (15) Jul 05 (6) Jul 04 (10) Jul 03 (6) Jul 02 (6) Jul 01 (11) Jun 30 (7) Jun 29 (4) Jun 28 (8) Jun 27 (8) Jun 26 (5) Jun 25 (11) Jun 24 (9) Jun 23 (10) Jun 22 (8) Jun 21 (8) Jun 20 (6) Jun 19 (5) Jun 18 (15) Jun 17 (8) Jun 16 (13) Jun 15 (15) Jun 14 (11) Jun 13 (6) Jun 12 (15) Jun 11 (7) Jun 10 (7) Jun 09 (18) Jun 08 (20) Jun 07 (17) Jun 06 (9) Jun 05 (9) Jun 04 (12) Jun 03 (13) Jun 02 (14) Jun 01 (8) May 31 (13) May 30 (8) May 29 (6) May 28 (8) May 27 (17) May 26 (8) May 25 (13) May 24 (12) May 23 (9) May 22 (4) May 21 (4) May 20 (11) May 19 (14) May 18 (6) May 17 (10) May 16 (4) May 15 (5) May 14 (28) May 12 (9) May 11 (17) May 10 (15) May 09 (12) May 08 (5) May 07 (4) May 06 (10) May 05 (8) May 04 (10) May 03 (5) May 02 (6) May 01 (8) Apr 30 (8) Apr 29 (12) Apr 28 (6) Apr 27 (11) Apr 26 (12) Apr 25 (6) Apr 24 (3) Apr 23 (5) Apr 22 (10) Apr 21 (19) Apr 20 (13) Apr 19 (11) Apr 18 (11) Apr 17 (5) Apr 16 (12) Apr 15 (11) Apr 14 (17) Apr 13 (6) Apr 12 (16) Apr 11 (10) Apr 10 (1) Apr 09 (18) Apr 08 (14) Apr 07 (6) Apr 06 (10) Apr 05 (21) Apr 04 (12) Apr 03 (4) Apr 02 (13) Apr 01 (8) Mar 31 (10) Mar 30 (11) Mar 29 (10) Mar 28 (8) Mar 27 (6) Mar 26 (12) Mar 25 (15) Mar 24 (10) Mar 23 (12) Mar 22 (12) Mar 21 (8) Mar 20 (4) Mar 19 (11) Mar 18 (7) Mar 17 (7) Mar 16 (9) Mar 15 (10) Mar 14 (4) Mar 13 (2) Mar 12 (14) Mar 11 (13) Mar 10 (7) Mar 09 (9) Mar 08 (17) Mar 07 (5) Mar 06 (7) Mar 05 (13) Mar 04 (10) Mar 03 (14) Mar 02 (12) Mar 01 (18) Feb 28 (8) Feb 27 (2) Feb 26 (9) Feb 25 (13) Feb 24 (17) Feb 23 (13) Feb 22 (12) Feb 21 (11) Feb 20 (11) Feb 19 (16) Feb 18 (17) Feb 17 (15) Feb 16 (15) Feb 15 (15) Feb 14 (10) Feb 13 (8) Feb 12 (10) Feb 11 (15) Feb 10 (11) Feb 09 (13) Feb 08 (10) Feb 07 (9) Feb 06 (6) Feb 05 (15) Feb 04 (15) Feb 03 (11) Feb 02 (14) Feb 01 (15) Jan 31 (11) Jan 30 (9) Jan 29 (19) Jan 28 (9) Jan 27 (9) Jan 26 (16) Jan 25 (19) Jan 24 (17) Jan 23 (8) Jan 22 (15) Jan 21 (9) Jan 20 (11) Jan 19 (7) Jan 18 (9) Jan 17 (6) Jan 16 (7) Jan 15 (12) Jan 14 (9) Jan 13 (14) Jan 12 (11) Jan 11 (13) Jan 10 (8) Jan 09 (8) Jan 08 (20) Jan 07 (11) Jan 06 (11) Jan 05 (8) Jan 04 (14) Jan 03 (6) Jan 02 (7) Jan 01 (7) Dec 31 (14) Dec 30 (15) Dec 29 (7) Dec 28 (10) Dec 27 (4) Dec 26 (3) Dec 25 (11) Dec 24 (9) Dec 23 (9) Dec 22 (15) Dec 21 (12) Dec 20 (11) Dec 19 (4) Dec 18 (16) Dec 17 (6) Dec 16 (12) Dec 15 (14) Dec 14 (11) Dec 13 (10) Dec 12 (6) Dec 11 (10) Dec 10 (17) Dec 09 (11) Dec 08 (12) Dec 07 (16) Dec 06 (11) Dec 05 (5) Dec 04 (12) Dec 03 (15) Dec 02 (15) Dec 01 (12) Nov 30 (16) Nov 29 (7) Nov 28 (11) Nov 27 (13) Nov 26 (13) Nov 25 (16) Nov 24 (15) Nov 23 (10) Nov 22 (10) Nov 21 (4) Nov 20 (8) Nov 19 (9) Nov 18 (16) Nov 17 (11) Nov 16 (11) Nov 15 (10) Nov 14 (9) Nov 13 (6) Nov 12 (10) Nov 11 (12) Nov 10 (15) Nov 09 (9) Nov 08 (10) Nov 07 (6) Nov 06 (7) Nov 05 (12) Nov 04 (14) Nov 03 (10) Nov 02 (13) Nov 01 (9) Oct 31 (9) Oct 30 (11) Oct 29 (18) Oct 28 (13) Oct 27 (23) Oct 26 (12) Oct 25 (14) Oct 24 (20) Oct 22 (18) Oct 21 (18) Oct 20 (19) Oct 19 (12) Oct 18 (11) Oct 17 (5) Oct 16 (18) Oct 15 (8) Oct 14 (11) Oct 13 (9) Oct 12 (13) Oct 11 (6) Oct 10 (7) Oct 09 (27) Oct 08 (14) Oct 07 (10) Oct 06 (9) Oct 05 (7) Oct 04 (10) Oct 03 (6) Oct 02 (9) Oct 01 (13) Sep 30 (12) Sep 29 (13) Sep 28 (8) Sep 27 (9) Sep 26 (8) Sep 25 (14) Sep 24 (4) Sep 23 (14) Sep 22 (20) Sep 21 (11) Sep 20 (6) Sep 19 (9) Sep 18 (14) Sep 17 (8) Sep 16 (17) Sep 15 (6) Sep 14 (11) Sep 13 (9) Sep 12 (4) Sep 11 (7) Sep 10 (14) Sep 09 (12) Sep 08 (17) Sep 07 (12) Sep 06 (13) Sep 05 (9) Sep 04 (20) Sep 03 (16) Sep 02 (16) Sep 01 (10) Aug 31 (13) Aug 30 (4) Aug 29 (9) Aug 28 (6) Aug 27 (8) Aug 26 (11) Aug 25 (10) Aug 24 (14) Aug 23 (12) Aug 22 (13) Aug 21 (10) Aug 20 (13) Aug 19 (15) Aug 18 (8) Aug 17 (10) Aug 16 (8) Aug 15 (3) Aug 14 (11) Aug 13 (12) Aug 12 (15) Aug 11 (10) Aug 10 (17) Aug 09 (6) Aug 08 (13) Aug 07 (11) Aug 06 (13) Aug 05 (11) Aug 04 (11) Aug 03 (10) Aug 02 (7) Aug 01 (6) Jul 31 (10) Jul 30 (21) Jul 29 (14) Jul 28 (13) Jul 27 (16) Jul 26 (10) Jul 25 (15) Jul 24 (17) Jul 23 (15) Jul 22 (15) Jul 21 (19) Jul 20 (17) Jul 19 (9) Jul 18 (7) Jul 17 (26) Jul 16 (18) Jul 15 (20) Jul 14 (16) Jul 13 (19) Jul 12 (11) Jul 11 (5) Jul 10 (13) Jul 09 (11) Jul 08 (8) Jul 07 (12) Jul 06 (16) Jul 05 (9) Jul 04 (5) Jul 03 (15) Jul 02 (11) Jul 01 (14) Jun 30 (13) Jun 29 (19) Jun 28 (8) Jun 27 (9) Jun 26 (16) Jun 25 (22) Jun 24 (17) Jun 23 (11) Jun 22 (15) Jun 21 (14) Jun 20 (8) Jun 19 (17) Jun 18 (10) Jun 17 (10) Jun 16 (17) Jun 15 (13) Jun 14 (14) Jun 13 (4) Jun 12 (13) Jun 11 (15) Jun 10 (25) Jun 09 (10) Jun 08 (23) Jun 07 (14) Jun 06 (20) Jun 05 (10) Jun 04 (11) Jun 03 (12) Jun 02 (21) Jun 01 (14) May 31 (10) May 30 (14) May 29 (8) May 28 (23) May 27 (20) May 26 (16) May 25 (13) May 24 (12) May 23 (10) May 22 (18) May 21 (14) May 20 (12) May 19 (18) May 18 (14) May 17 (13) May 16 (4) May 15 (7) May 14 (16) May 13 (13) May 12 (8) May 11 (18) May 10 (8) May 09 (7) May 08 (13) May 07 (11) May 06 (15) May 05 (18) May 04 (17) May 03 (7) May 02 (5) May 01 (11) Apr 30 (19) Apr 29 (21) Apr 28 (18) Apr 27 (16) Apr 26 (8) Apr 25 (11) Apr 24 (9) Apr 23 (20) Apr 22 (23) Apr 21 (5) Apr 20 (16) Apr 19 (13) Apr 18 (6) Apr 17 (6) Apr 16 (16) Apr 15 (18) Apr 14 (13) Apr 13 (14) Apr 12 (9) Apr 11 (3) Apr 10 (16) Apr 09 (14) Apr 08 (12) Apr 07 (18) Apr 06 (7) Apr 05 (11) Apr 04 (9) Apr 03 (19) Apr 02 (17) Apr 01 (16) Mar 31 (16) Mar 30 (22) Mar 29 (16) Mar 28 (16) Mar 27 (19) Mar 26 (31) Mar 25 (25) Mar 24 (26) Mar 23 (27) Mar 22 (22) Mar 21 (22) Mar 20 (13) Mar 19 (21) Mar 18 (20) Mar 17 (24) Mar 16 (18) Mar 15 (9) Mar 14 (9) Mar 13 (29) Mar 12 (15) Mar 11 (11) Mar 10 (11) Mar 09 (20) Mar 08 (12) Mar 07 (6) Mar 06 (21) Mar 05 (22) Mar 04 (19) Mar 03 (9) Mar 02 (20) Mar 01 (11) Feb 28 (11) Feb 27 (27) Feb 26 (15) Feb 25 (18) Feb 24 (17) Feb 23 (19) Feb 22 (24) Feb 21 (10) Feb 20 (14) Feb 19 (25) Feb 18 (16) Feb 17 (19) Feb 16 (23) Feb 15 (8) Feb 14 (11) Feb 13 (25) Feb 12 (16) Feb 11 (12) Feb 10 (18) Feb 09 (12) Feb 08 (14) Feb 07 (8) Feb 06 (27) Feb 05 (28) Feb 04 (24) Feb 03 (17) Feb 02 (20) Feb 01 (23) Jan 31 (16) Jan 30 (20) Jan 29 (26) Jan 28 (17) Jan 27 (21) Jan 26 (24) Jan 25 (16) Jan 24 (14) Jan 23 (16) Jan 22 (17) Jan 21 (19) Jan 20 (21) Jan 19 (17) Jan 18 (13) Jan 17 (14) Jan 16 (10) Jan 15 (21) Jan 14 (16) Jan 13 (19) Jan 12 (30) Jan 11 (14) Jan 10 (11) Jan 09 (8) Jan 08 (23) Jan 07 (13) Jan 06 (21) Jan 05 (15) Jan 04 (18) Jan 03 (9) Jan 02 (12) Jan 01 (15) Dec 31 (18) Dec 30 (7) Dec 29 (13) Dec 28 (11) Dec 27 (8) Dec 26 (6) Dec 25 (8) Dec 24 (28) Dec 23 (12) Dec 22 (12) Dec 21 (17) Dec 20 (19) Dec 19 (19) Dec 18 (22) Dec 17 (24) Dec 16 (17) Dec 15 (29) Dec 14 (22) Dec 13 (12) Dec 12 (22) Dec 11 (24) Dec 10 (25) Dec 09 (18) Dec 08 (15) Dec 07 (21) Dec 06 (24) Dec 05 (30) Dec 04 (28) Dec 03 (26) Dec 02 (22) Dec 01 (33) Nov 30 (23) Nov 29 (9) Nov 28 (18) Nov 27 (25) Nov 26 (17) Nov 25 (23) Nov 24 (27) Nov 23 (12) Nov 22 (10) Nov 21 (15) Nov 20 (23) Nov 19 (23) Nov 18 (24) Nov 17 (21) Nov 16 (20) Nov 15 (13) Nov 14 (15) Nov 13 (27) Nov 12 (23) Nov 11 (19) Nov 10 (21) Nov 09 (13) Nov 08 (16) Nov 07 (16) Nov 06 (32) Nov 05 (24) Nov 04 (20) Nov 03 (29) Nov 02 (12) Nov 01 (15) Oct 31 (20) Oct 30 (22) Oct 29 (27) Oct 28 (20) Oct 27 (23) Oct 26 (21) Oct 25 (15) Oct 24 (23) Oct 23 (26) Oct 22 (27) Oct 21 (28) Oct 20 (24) Oct 19 (13) Oct 18 (9) Oct 17 (30) Oct 16 (8) Oct 15 (20) Oct 14 (14) Oct 13 (17) Oct 12 (16) Oct 11 (8) Oct 10 (19) Oct 09 (22) Oct 08 (16) Oct 07 (18) Oct 06 (23) Oct 05 (7) Oct 04 (15) Oct 03 (21) Oct 02 (17) Oct 01 (22) Sep 30 (25) Sep 29 (20) Sep 28 (17) Sep 27 (13) Sep 26 (20) Sep 25 (15) Sep 24 (24) Sep 23 (23) Sep 22 (18) Sep 21 (20) Sep 20 (11) Sep 19 (24) Sep 18 (25) Sep 17 (25) Sep 16 (19) Sep 15 (21) Sep 14 (15) Sep 13 (10) Sep 12 (23) Sep 11 (23) Sep 10 (25) Sep 09 (25) Sep 08 (17) Sep 07 (3) Sep 06 (17) Sep 05 (14) Sep 04 (24) Sep 03 (16) Sep 02 (11) Sep 01 (19) Aug 31 (20) Aug 30 (11) Aug 29 (24) Aug 28 (24) Aug 27 (16) Aug 26 (26) Aug 25 (21) Aug 24 (15) Aug 23 (19) Aug 22 (15) Aug 21 (25) Aug 20 (27) Aug 19 (19) Aug 18 (24) Aug 17 (14) Aug 16 (10) Aug 15 (15) Aug 14 (16) Aug 13 (21) Aug 12 (30) Aug 11 (19) Aug 10 (8) Aug 09 (12) Aug 08 (17) Aug 07 (21) Aug 06 (26) Aug 05 (23) Aug 04 (21) Aug 03 (12) Aug 02 (7) Aug 01 (19) Jul 31 (21) Jul 30 (25) Jul 29 (29) Jul 28 (23) Jul 27 (17) Jul 26 (11) Jul 25 (21) Jul 24 (14) Jul 23 (15) Jul 22 (19) Jul 21 (15) Jul 20 (9) Jul 19 (10) Jul 18 (15) Jul 17 (22) Jul 16 (18) Jul 15 (21) Jul 14 (20) Jul 13 (7) Jul 12 (9) Jul 11 (29) Jul 10 (19) Jul 09 (17) Jul 08 (26) Jul 07 (21) Jul 06 (18) Jul 05 (14) Jul 04 (20) Jul 03 (17) Jul 02 (24) Jul 01 (23) Jun 30 (23) Jun 29 (18) Jun 28 (16) Jun 27 (16) Jun 26 (17) Jun 25 (23) Jun 24 (32) Jun 23 (29) Jun 22 (8) Jun 21 (17) Jun 20 (25) Jun 19 (28) Jun 18 (19) Jun 17 (25) Jun 16 (23) Jun 15 (9) Jun 14 (11) Jun 13 (14) Jun 12 (22) Jun 11 (19) Jun 10 (17) Jun 09 (15) Jun 08 (16) Jun 07 (7) Jun 06 (29) Jun 05 (27) Jun 04 (24) Jun 03 (22) Jun 02 (22) Jun 01 (13) May 31 (9) May 30 (26) May 29 (19) May 28 (15) May 27 (15) May 26 (23) May 25 (13) May 24 (12) May 23 (24) May 22 (13) May 21 (21) May 20 (18) May 19 (16) May 18 (7) May 17 (12) May 16 (25) May 15 (24) May 14 (23) May 13 (19) May 12 (17) May 11 (8) May 10 (6) May 09 (14) May 08 (21) May 07 (26) May 06 (14) May 05 (14) May 04 (3) May 03 (3) May 02 (24) May 01 (13) Apr 30 (15) Apr 29 (24) Apr 28 (24) Apr 27 (11) Apr 26 (8) Apr 25 (13) Apr 24 (27) Apr 23 (15) Apr 22 (21) Apr 21 (19) Apr 20 (17) Apr 19 (8) Apr 18 (20) Apr 17 (27) Apr 16 (27) Apr 15 (21) Apr 14 (8) Apr 13 (8) Apr 12 (7) Apr 11 (7) Apr 10 (22) Apr 09 (15) Apr 08 (15) Apr 07 (17) Apr 06 (14) Apr 05 (5) Apr 04 (12) Apr 03 (19) Apr 02 (17) Apr 01 (19) Mar 31 (25) Mar 30 (13) Mar 29 (9) Mar 28 (16) Mar 27 (23) Mar 26 (22) Mar 25 (17) Mar 24 (25) Mar 23 (16) Mar 22 (13) Mar 21 (24) Mar 20 (27) Mar 19 (20) Mar 18 (24) Mar 17 (17) Mar 16 (11) Mar 15 (6) Mar 14 (20) Mar 13 (28) Mar 12 (30) Mar 11 (20) Mar 10 (21) Mar 09 (12) Mar 08 (8) Mar 07 (17) Mar 06 (20) Mar 05 (19) Mar 04 (15) Mar 03 (17) Mar 02 (8) Mar 01 (12) Feb 28 (16) Feb 27 (17) Feb 26 (8) Feb 25 (23) Feb 24 (15) Feb 23 (8) Feb 22 (10) Feb 21 (24) Feb 20 (14) Feb 19 (24) Feb 18 (19) Feb 17 (27) Feb 16 (13) Feb 15 (11) Feb 14 (15) Feb 13 (13) Feb 12 (13) Feb 11 (21) Feb 10 (16) Feb 09 (15) Feb 08 (10) Feb 07 (17) Feb 06 (21) Feb 05 (17) Feb 04 (14) Feb 03 (23) Feb 02 (5) Feb 01 (8) Jan 31 (17) Jan 30 (22) Jan 29 (23) Jan 28 (10) Jan 27 (24) Jan 26 (12) Jan 25 (9) Jan 24 (12) Jan 23 (19) Jan 22 (19) Jan 21 (14) Jan 20 (21) Jan 19 (12) Jan 18 (8) Jan 17 (20) Jan 16 (14) Jan 15 (23) Jan 14 (8) Jan 13 (20) Jan 12 (9) Jan 11 (7) Jan 10 (18) Jan 09 (11) Jan 08 (18) Jan 07 (13) Jan 06 (12) Jan 05 (12) Jan 04 (11) Jan 03 (10) Jan 02 (9) Jan 01 (9) Dec 31 (12) Dec 30 (11) Dec 29 (6) Dec 28 (9) Dec 27 (13) Dec 26 (15) Dec 25 (8) Dec 24 (6) Dec 23 (8) Dec 22 (5) Dec 21 (6) Dec 20 (14) Dec 19 (17) Dec 18 (14) Dec 17 (14) Dec 16 (13) Dec 15 (9) Dec 14 (9) Dec 13 (11) Dec 12 (16) Dec 11 (18) Dec 10 (4) Dec 09 (24) Dec 08 (11) Dec 07 (19) Dec 06 (6) Dec 05 (26) Dec 04 (15) Dec 03 (20) Dec 02 (17) Dec 01 (11) Nov 30 (10) Nov 29 (18) Nov 28 (21) Nov 27 (10) Nov 26 (22) Nov 25 (16) Nov 24 (12) Nov 23 (8) Nov 22 (18) Nov 21 (9) Nov 20 (17) Nov 19 (16) Nov 18 (16) Nov 17 (5) Nov 16 (9) Nov 15 (21) Nov 14 (17) Nov 13 (20) Nov 12 (16) Nov 11 (13) Nov 10 (9) Nov 09 (10) Nov 08 (16) Nov 07 (15) Nov 06 (18) Nov 05 (19) Nov 04 (16) Nov 03 (11) Nov 02 (5) Nov 01 (17) Oct 31 (17) Oct 30 (21) Oct 29 (9) Oct 28 (16) Oct 27 (6) Oct 26 (6) Oct 25 (16) Oct 24 (18) Oct 23 (14) Oct 22 (17) Oct 21 (10) Oct 20 (6) Oct 19 (8) Oct 18 (11) Oct 17 (12) Oct 16 (14) Oct 15 (19) Oct 14 (15) Oct 13 (11) Oct 12 (9) Oct 11 (10) Oct 10 (23) Oct 09 (13) Oct 08 (15) Oct 07 (20) Oct 06 (13) Oct 05 (4) Oct 04 (16) Oct 03 (17) Oct 02 (17) Oct 01 (20) Sep 30 (17) Sep 29 (9) Sep 28 (8) Sep 27 (14) Sep 26 (20) Sep 25 (19) Sep 24 (13) Sep 23 (11) Sep 22 (9) Sep 21 (5) Sep 20 (8) Sep 19 (21) Sep 18 (12) Sep 17 (20) Sep 16 (16) Sep 15 (10) Sep 14 (6) Sep 13 (18) Sep 12 (14) Sep 11 (24) Sep 10 (17) Sep 09 (16) Sep 08 (16) Sep 07 (10) Sep 06 (20) Sep 05 (13) Sep 04 (23) Sep 03 (14) Sep 02 (12) Sep 01 (11) Aug 31 (11) Aug 30 (13) Aug 29 (18) Aug 28 (14) Aug 27 (21) Aug 26 (10) Aug 25 (8) Aug 24 (10) Aug 23 (17) Aug 22 (15) Aug 21 (14) Aug 20 (20) Aug 19 (20) Aug 18 (7) Aug 17 (9) Aug 16 (11) Aug 15 (12) Aug 14 (14) Aug 13 (19) Aug 12 (14) Aug 11 (6) Aug 10 (12) Aug 09 (7) Aug 08 (18) Aug 07 (16) Aug 06 (16) Aug 05 (20) Aug 04 (12) Aug 03 (8) Aug 02 (12) Aug 01 (14) Jul 31 (16) Jul 30 (16) Jul 29 (11) Jul 28 (8) Jul 27 (9) Jul 26 (17) Jul 25 (20) Jul 24 (17) Jul 23 (11) Jul 22 (18) Jul 21 (7) Jul 20 (10) Jul 19 (14) Jul 18 (11) Jul 17 (15) Jul 16 (12) Jul 15 (10) Jul 14 (8) Jul 13 (8) Jul 12 (17) Jul 11 (18) Jul 10 (16) Jul 09 (13) Jul 08 (10) Jul 07 (12) Jul 06 (8) Jul 05 (16) Jul 04 (14) Jul 03 (17) Jul 02 (13) Jul 01 (16) Jun 30 (19) Jun 29 (7) Jun 28 (19) Jun 27 (21) Jun 26 (27) Jun 25 (23) Jun 24 (23) Jun 23 (12) Jun 22 (9) Jun 21 (18) Jun 20 (15) Jun 19 (24) Jun 18 (21) Jun 17 (13) Jun 16 (9) Jun 15 (9) Jun 14 (18) Jun 13 (24) Jun 12 (18) Jun 11 (23) Jun 10 (25) Jun 09 (24) Jun 08 (27) Jun 07 (5) Jun 06 (25) Jun 05 (30) Jun 04 (23) Jun 03 (22) Jun 02 (16) Jun 01 (17) May 31 (18) May 30 (19) May 29 (17) May 28 (23) May 27 (15) May 26 (10) May 25 (19) May 24 (16) May 23 (16) May 22 (27) May 21 (20) May 20 (26) May 19 (6) May 18 (8) May 17 (20) May 16 (8) May 15 (18) May 14 (5) May 13 (21) May 12 (9) May 11 (8) May 10 (12) May 09 (18) May 08 (11) May 07 (27) May 06 (12) May 05 (16) May 04 (19) May 03 (14) May 02 (18) May 01 (18) Apr 30 (25) Apr 29 (27) Apr 28 (11) Apr 27 (10) Apr 26 (18) Apr 25 (10) Apr 24 (29) Apr 23 (29) Apr 22 (14) Apr 21 (15) Apr 20 (20) Apr 19 (22) Apr 18 (16) Apr 17 (32) Apr 16 (12) Apr 15 (21) Apr 14 (21) Apr 13 (15) Apr 12 (13) Apr 11 (14) Apr 10 (16) Apr 09 (20) Apr 08 (36) Apr 07 (22) Apr 06 (11) Apr 05 (28) Apr 04 (20) Apr 03 (29) Apr 02 (32) Apr 01 (18) Mar 31 (12) Mar 30 (9) Mar 29 (15) Mar 28 (22) Mar 27 (24) Mar 26 (17) Mar 25 (17) Mar 24 (13) Mar 23 (5) Mar 22 (12) Mar 21 (15) Mar 20 (18) Mar 19 (19) Mar 18 (16) Mar 17 (10) Mar 16 (6) Mar 15 (18) Mar 14 (24) Mar 13 (18) Mar 12 (18) Mar 11 (17) Mar 10 (13) Mar 09 (12) Mar 08 (18) Mar 07 (25) Mar 06 (16) Mar 05 (16) Mar 04 (22) Mar 03 (17) Mar 02 (6) Mar 01 (23) Feb 29 (19) Feb 28 (25) Feb 27 (26) Feb 26 (23) Feb 25 (12) Feb 24 (13) Feb 23 (15) Feb 22 (26) Feb 21 (31) Feb 20 (12) Feb 19 (21) Feb 18 (15) Feb 17 (10) Feb 16 (15) Feb 15 (19) Feb 14 (15) Feb 13 (25) Feb 12 (20) Feb 11 (9) Feb 10 (7) Feb 09 (28) Feb 08 (20) Feb 07 (22) Feb 06 (20) Feb 05 (19) Feb 04 (14) Feb 03 (16) Feb 02 (28) Feb 01 (37) Jan 31 (27) Jan 30 (31) Jan 29 (18) Jan 28 (14) Jan 27 (10) Jan 26 (18) Jan 25 (26) Jan 24 (34) Jan 23 (21) Jan 22 (21) Jan 21 (18) Jan 20 (18) Jan 19 (18) Jan 18 (26) Jan 17 (24) Jan 16 (23) Jan 15 (30) Jan 14 (20) Jan 13 (18) Jan 12 (24) Jan 11 (11) Jan 10 (23) Jan 09 (22) Jan 08 (17) Jan 07 (17) Jan 06 (9) Jan 05 (18) Jan 04 (15) Jan 03 (19) Jan 02 (14) Jan 01 (6) Dec 31 (12) Dec 30 (4) Dec 29 (15) Dec 28 (11) Dec 27 (7) Dec 26 (10) Dec 25 (16) Dec 24 (13) Dec 23 (16) Dec 22 (11) Dec 21 (26) Dec 20 (28) Dec 19 (14) Dec 18 (25) Dec 17 (23) Dec 16 (19) Dec 15 (22) Dec 14 (38) Dec 13 (26) Dec 12 (25) Dec 11 (27) Dec 10 (31) Dec 09 (15) Dec 08 (30) Dec 07 (31) Dec 06 (27) Dec 05 (38) Dec 04 (25) Dec 03 (27) Dec 02 (15) Dec 01 (36) Nov 30 (23) Nov 29 (17) Nov 28 (23) Nov 27 (13) Nov 26 (16) Nov 25 (14) Nov 24 (18) Nov 23 (21) Nov 22 (21) Nov 21 (24) Nov 20 (20) Nov 19 (23) Nov 18 (17) Nov 17 (17) Nov 16 (34) Nov 15 (25) Nov 14 (17) Nov 13 (21) Nov 12 (18) Nov 11 (9) Nov 10 (15) Nov 09 (9) Nov 08 (9) Nov 07 (12) Nov 06 (8) Nov 05 (4) Oct 29 (1) Oct 01 (1) Jul 29 (1) May 11 (1) Jul 11 (1)
Lil' John Ownbey of Cleveland, Tn., slipped past neighbor Riley Hickman of Ooltewah Saturday at North Alabama Speedway for the $4,000 Super Late Model victory at the Florence (Ala.) area dirt track.

He put his # J0 sponsored "Sam's Restaurant Equipment, Frazier Property Rentals, Karsch Boutique, Orr Bros. Construction, Powell Motorsports, Stealth Racing Carburetor, CarSmart, WP Racing Shocks, James Mowery Motorsports, and M&S Motors" Phantom Race Engines powered Longhorn racecar in a Southern All Star series Victory Lane for the first time in his racing career.

Hickman, followed by S.A.S points leader Jay Scott, rounded out the Top 3.

"I saw Riley go high in turn two positioning himself to pass lapped traffic and knew my opening would be on the bottom of the track." stated Ownbey to announcer Dewayne Keith in Victory Lane.

The event drew 23 SLM's and packed the paperclip styled dirt oval with Memorial Day Weekend race fans. Ownbey makes the sixth different winner in as many races this year with the series.

Next stop for the tour is June 16 at Tennessee's Smoky Mountain Speedway in Maryville for a $5,000 to win event


Update on the CEOL Matter before the Chilean Courts

Sydney, May 28, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Further to its previous announcements, on 8 March 2018 and 3 April 2018, Lithium Power International Limited ( ASX:LPI ) ( OTCMKTS:LTHHF ) ("LPI" or "the Company") provides this response to media reports on the licensing matter currently before the Chilean courts.The case relates to the awarding of a CEOL (Lithium Special Operation Contract) to exploit lithium to the state-owned copper company, Codelco, immediately prior to the change of Chile's government on 11 March 2018. The CEOL covers the entire Maricunga Salar, including properties owned by LPI's joint venture entity Minera Salar Blanco SA ("MSB").CEOL's, however, only apply to concessions licensed under the "new" mining code and therefore only cover MSB's Litio concessions. All of MSB's other concessions were issued under the "old pre-1979" mining code and are not affected.Within the legal process before the Chilean Appeals Court (Amparo Economico), MSB requested the Chilean Constitutional Court (Tribunal Constitucional de Chile) to rule on the constitutional legality of an article being used by Codelco in their defense at the Appeals Court.The Constitutional Court advised on 23 May 2018 that the issue was not a constitutional matter and they could not make a ruling. The matter was referred to the Appeals Court.The legal process will continue in the Appeals Court as originally lodged.It is important to note that the Chilean Nuclear Commission (CCHEN), designated by Chilean law to preside over lithium production, in March 2018, awarded MSB a permit without any further requirements to produce and commercialise lithium products from its old mining code concessions on Maricunga Salar for 30 years.The legal action has had no effect on the Maricunga project's development schedule. MSB continues to finalise the Definitive Feasibility Study before year's end 2018 and also the submission of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).About Lithium Power International Ltd

Lithium Power International Limited (ASX:LPI) is a pure-play lithium explorer and developer, focusing on developing and fast-tracking to production the high-grade Maricunga lithium brine project in Chile.

LPI has a well-known performing technical team with the experience to take the Maricunga project all the way through the development stages to production.

The regions that LPI is currently focused on are:

1. Maricunga JV (Chile) - Located within the "Lithium Triangle", Maricunga is Chile's highest grade and most advanced lithium project outside the Salar de Atacama. The project lies 170 km northeast of Copiapo and 250 km from the port of Caldera.

2. Pilbara (Western Australia) - LPI has three granted exploration tenements covering 203 km2 in the Pilbara region of northern Western Australia. The largest granted exploration tenement is the Pilgangoora tenement which is 2-3 km west of the Pilbara Minerals (ASX:PLS) and Altura Mining (ASX:AJM) lithium deposits.

3. Greenbushes (Western Australia) - LPI has two granted exploration tenements covering 400 km2 in the Greenbushes area of southern Western Australia. The tenements are adjacent to the world's largest hard rock lithium mine owned and operated by Tianqi/Talison.

4. Centenario (Argentina) - Through its Argentinian subsidiary, Lithium Power holds a total of seven granted tenements in the Centenario lithium brine salar within the Salta province of the Puna Plateau. In total, the seven granted tenements cover an area of 68.46 km2.

With the exception of the Maricunga JV, all tenements are 100% owned by LPI or LPSA (including rights to the Centenario tenements).
Roger Stone, a longtime associate of President Donald Trump's, tried to get information related to Hillary Clinton from WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange through a mutual acquaintance during the 2016 presidential campaign, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing emails it reviewed.

The Journal reported Stone sent a message to New York radio personality Randy Credico in September 2016 requesting he ask Assange for any emails that the newspaper described as "related to Mrs. Clinton's alleged role in disrupting a purported Libyan peace deal in 2011" while serving as President Barack Obama's secretary of state.

The news raises questions about Stone's statements to the House Intelligence Committee last year as part of that panel's probe into Russian interference in the presidential election, in which he said he had just "wanted confirmation" that Assange had information about Clinton, the Journal reported, citing part of the transcript that was made public.

The newspaper's report comes after special counsel Robert Mueller recently subpoenaed two of Stone's associates. The Journal reported last month that Mueller is looking into potential ties between Stone, WikiLeaks and Assange, citing an individual familiar with the matter.

Stone said last week on NBC's "Meet the Press" that neither he nor his lawyer has had any contact with the special counsel's office.

Credico, who had interviewed Assange weeks earlier, replied to Stone that WikiLeaks would have the information on its website if such documentation existed, the Journal reported, to which Stone responded, "Why do we assume WikiLeaks has released everything they have ???"

In a separate email, Credico told Stone he needed a "little bit of time," saying Assange might appear on his show the next day. Credico added hours later, "That batch probably coming out in the next drop. ... I can't ask them favors every other day. I asked one of his lawyers ... they have major legal headaches riggt (sic) now .. relax."

Credico told the Journal in an interview that although he told Stone he had passed on the message, he never actually conveyed the request to Assange or his lawyers; rather, he only said that he had because he "got tired" of Stone "bothering" him and owed Stone a favor for helping get Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson on his show.

CNN has reached out to Stone for comment. Stone told the Journal that Credico "provided nothing" to him and WikiLeaks never handed anything over.

"I never had possession or access to any Clinton emails or records," Stone told the newspaper in a text message.

Rep. Adam Schiff, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told the newspaper that the emails in question were not given to congressional investigators.

In remarks to reporters after he spoke to the committee, Stone said he had a "frank exchange" with lawmakers and "answered all of the questions."

Stone told the Journal that his testimony was "complete and accurate."

Stone's lawyer, Grant Smith, told the Journal that the emails were not provided to lawmakers because they were "not encompassed within the scope of the committee's request." Smith referred CNN to his comment to the Journal.

WikiLeaks and a Clinton spokesperson did not respond to the Journal's requests for comment.
Palmdale, CALIF. - A California man has been accused of smuggling a Byzantine-era mosaic out of war-torn Syria and hiring artists to restore it in order to sell it.

On Wednesday, the US Attorney's office for the Central District of California filed an asset forfeiture complaint seeking to retain possession of the mosaic, which is already in the government's custody. The complaint names Mohamad Yassin Alcharihi of Palmdale, California, and says he illegally smuggled the mosaic into the US.

According to the complaint, the FBI has been investigating Alcharihi since 2015 for his alleged involvement in smuggling looted items from war-ravaged countries, including Syria. Alcharihi -- who has not been charged with a crime -- is a Syrian national who became a US citizen in early 2010, the complaint says.

When Alcharihi had a company import the mosaic, he misrepresented the contents of the shipment, the complaint alleges, and also lied about the country of origin of the items inside. He allegedly told the shipping company, two artists who were hired to restore the piece and federal agents that he had bought the mosaic in Turkey.

Federal agents seized the mosaic in March 2016, the complaint says, and an expert subsequently determined it was from the Byzantine Period "and was consistent with the iconography of mosaics found in Syria, in particular in and around the city of Idlib, Syria."

After reviewing pictures of the mosaic, prior to the FBI seizure, the expert determined the style of the mosaic was "similar to the style of the Roman Empire possibly from 3rd to 4th Century AD," the complaint states.

The 1-ton mosaic is 18 feet long and 8 feet high, according to the complaint, and depicts characters from Roman mythology.

During the investigation agents found evidence Alcharihi had illegally imported the mosaic using fraudulent documents and knowingly concealed it in his home. Both are violations of federal law.

CNN was unable to reach Alcharihi for comment.

For years the US has endeavored to work with foreign countries to reduce the illegal trafficking of artifacts and antiquities taken from states devastated by war, citing the potential strain on foreign relations and the concerns of the archaeological community.

The policy has become of increased import in recent years in regards to Syria, where archaeologists and scholars have struggled to preserve ancient works of art after the reign of ISIS.

In 2015, ISIS militants allegedly destroyed ancient cultural artifacts when it took control of the Syrian city of Palmyra, including one that dated back to the second century.

But experts don't believe ISIS is doing much of the reselling. It's likely gangs that are looting the artifacts to put them on the market, though Spanish police earlier this year arrested two men accused of smuggling art looted from Libya by ISIS-affiliated groups.

The-CNN-Wire
PARADISE, Calif. - Many in the community of Paradise came out to distribute hundreds of flags to the Paradise Cemetery Dates.

The cemetery dates back to pre-civil war times, there are 13 civil war veterans buried there, three of them from the Confederacy.

Placing flags on Veterans graves on Sunday is important to many including Wayne Noel, a member of the Paradise Disabled American Veterans.

I enjoy being out here and doing something for my country Im not into the military no more, I have been for a long time, but it's still my duty to put this thing up for people to see. If you forget your past you aint got no future, Noel said.

Eighteen-year-old private first class Steven Joseph Walberg from Paradise died in operation enduring freedom in Baghdad.

Organizers say his father attends Mondays Memorial Day ceremony year after year.

It starts at 10 a.m. and everyone is invited.
HAPPY VALLEY, Calif. - Action News Now reporter Elizabeth Zelidon, as well as Spencer Joseph, were one of many "local celebrities" that competed in a Strawberry pie eating contest at Happy Valley on Saturday.

Numerous people attended the decades-long "Strawberry Festival," this event is held every year by the community.

The festival continues until Sunday.

For information on how to attend click here.
HONOLULU (AP) - The Latest on the eruption of Kilauea volcano on Hawaii's Big Island (all times local):

3 p.m.

Hawaii County officials say the number of structures lava has destroyed on the Big Island is now 82.

County Managing Director Wil Okabe told The Associated Press Friday that the number includes about 37 homes. He says officials used property records to determine which structures are homes because it can be difficult to tell from aerial surveys.

The Kilauea volcano has been erupting for three weeks, spewing lava from cracks that emerged in neighborhoods and sending ash sky-high from its summit. Earthquakes also have been occurring.

About 2,000 people were ordered to evacuate from the rural communities where the lava fissures opened.

___

2:25 p.m.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center says a magnitude-4.4 earthquake near the summit of an erupting volcano on Hawaii's Big Island isn't large enough to create a tsunami.

The agency says the island doesn't face a tsunami threat after the temblor struck around 12:44 p.m. Friday. County officials have warned of aftershocks.

The Kilauea volcano has been erupting for three weeks, spewing lava from cracks that emerged in neighborhoods and sending ash sky-high from its summit. Earthquakes also have been occurring.

___

12:55 p.m.

Tourism officials say Hawaii's Big Island has lost about $3 million for May, June and July as major cruise lines have canceled planned stops because of an erupting volcano.

Ross Birch of the island's tourism board says Norwegian Cruise Lines will resume visits to Kona on the west side of the island May 30 but skip Hilo on the east side, roughly 30 miles (48 kilometers) from the Kilauea volcano.

Scientists say explosive eruptions are occurring daily and lava is flowing from several cracks in the ground.

U.S. Geological Survey scientist Wendy Stovall said Friday that the summit is shooting out a plume of water vapor and ash.

The National Weather Service expects trade winds to slow over the weekend, creating hazardous air quality and decreased visibility. Volcanic gases, pollution and ash may increase along with sulfur dioxide levels downwind of lava fissures.

___

8 a.m.

Authorities say an eruption at the summit of a volcano on Hawaii's Big Island has sent an ash cloud about 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) into the air.

Those living in communities southwest of the Kilauea volcano are warned that wind might carry ash their way after the eruption Thursday night.

U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist Mike Poland says small ash explosions are coming from the summit intermittently as lava keeps flowing into the ocean.

Lava also is spewing from fissures in the Leilani Estates subdivision, which has been evacuated for three weeks. About 2,000 people have fled their homes.

Officials say nearly 50 structures, including dozens of houses, have been destroyed since fissures began opening up in backyards on May 3.

(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
China will soon establish its first industrial base for the development of two-dimensional barcodes, or QR codes, as companies rush to tap opportunities created by the widespread technology.

View of a gallery featuring 400 QR codes in a shopping mall in Nanjing city, east China's Jiangsu province, May 9, 2018. [File photo: IC]

The China Electronics Chamber of Commerce (CECC) has signed agreements with Lianhuashan eco-tourism resort and the northeastern branch of Beijing E-hualu Information Technology Company to build the project in Changchun, capital city of northeast China's Jilin Province.

With total investment of 3 billion yuan (around 470 million U.S. dollars), the project will contain a blue-ray storage data center, a scientific research area, an experience zone, and an incubator.

From mobile payment to shared bikes and messaging apps, QR codes are widely used in China and have made everyday life more convenient.

The industrial complex will focus on standardization, sales, R&D and QR code services, and it will help promote China's domestic system globally, said Zhang Chao, executive director of the China Registration & Certification Center of Two-dimensional Code, which plans to build similar bases across the country.

The center is a third-party public institution established by the CECC and the China Quality Certification Center.
https://www.aish.com/ci/s/Prince-Harrys-Namesake-the-Duke-of-Sussex.html

The first Duke of Sussex championed the rights of the underdogs and downtrodden in Britain and beyond, including the Jews.

When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wed, they received new names; Queen Elizabeth II bestowed the titles of Duke and Duchess of Sussex on the royal pair. Harry is the first Duke of Sussex since 1843, when Augustus Frederick, the first Duke of Sussex, died. Though hes little known today, the former Duke of Sussex was incredibly brave: an aristocrat who did away with royal traditions and championed the rights of Britains minorities. He was also a warm friend to Britains Jews.

Born in 1773, Augustus Frederick was the ninth child of Britains King George III and his sixth son. That meant that legally, he was required to gain his fathers approval to marry, something that is still required for everyone in line for the British throne until the sixth heir. Instead of asking the king, Augustus Frederick rebelled, traveling to Rome to marry Lady Augusta Murray there in 1793, when he was 20. King George refused to give consent and the marriage was never recognized.

Prince Augustus Frederick, the Duke of Sussex

When the pair annulled their marriage in 1801, it seems King George III wanted to reward Augustus Frederick and granted him the title Duke of Sussex. If George hoped to keep his son in line, however, he was bound to be sorely disappointed.

Augustus Frederick, now the Duke of Sussex, became a radical, championing the rights of the underdogs and downtrodden in Britain and beyond. He fought to abolish the slave trade and championed rights for Britains Catholics. And one of his greatest causes was pushing for greater rights for Britains Jews.

Jews faced numerous restrictions in mid-19th Century England, including bans on serving in Parliament. The first Jew elected to Britains Parliament was Lionel Nathan de Rothschild, a prominent Jewish philanthropist, banker and politician. At a time when Jews faced intense suspicion and werent widely accepted by the upper echelons of British Society, the Duke of Sussex became friends with Lionel Nathan de Rothschild, and was a staunch supporter in the face of prejudice and anti-Semitism.

Rothschild was elected to parliament in 1847 but was not allowed to take his seat unless hed remove his hat and swear a Christian oath. He refused, and his seat sat empty for over a decade, despite the fact that Rothschild was re-elected four times. The Duke of Sussex and some other liberal-minded British figures urged the government to amend the rules, to no avail. Finally, after over a decade of lobbying the Jewish Relief Act of 1858 allowed Jews to sit in Parliament without taking a Christian oath.

Duke Augustus Frederick also befriended another Jew living in London, the Italian-born Moses Montefiore. For a nobleman of the Dukes social position, it was a surprising friendship.

Originally apprenticed to a company that sold tea and groceries, Moses Montefiore eventually rose to become one of 12 Jew brokers working in the City of London. After amassing a fortune, he retired in 1824, became Orthodox, and devoted himself entirely to charitable giving. He supported Jews in pre-state Israel, visiting seven times, and travelled to Russia, Morocco and Romania to plead with the rulers in those nations to ease their intense persecution of their countries Jews. With his Italian accent and the head covering he always wore, Montefiore must have looked eccentric in Britain. When he travelled, Montefiore would bring a shochet, or ritual slaughterer, with him to prepare kosher food, and he built a synagogue on the grounds of his country house.

Queen Victoria gave Montefiore an aristocratic title in 1846 in recognition of his work on behalf of the Jews. At the time, despite Montefiores eccentric-seeming lifestyle and appearances, the Duke of Sussex was delighted, telling friends that Montefiores recognition was one of the things I have worked for all my life.

The Dukes ties with British Jews went beyond the eyebrow-raising fact that he associated with and was friends with Jews. He supported the Jews Hospital in the East End of London, which served Jews who arrived in Britain from Europe and who were often desperately poor. These refugees were poor, foreign, often with a feeble command of the English language. To assist them was virtually unthinkable for a British nobleman, yet Duke Augustus Frederick eagerly embraced this cause, becoming a patron of the Jews Hospital and Orphan Asylum in 1815. (The charity continues to serve Britains Jews. Renamed Norwood, today it provides residential and day programs for vulnerable members of the Jewish community.)

The Duke of Sussex seems to have been at home with Jews, perhaps enjoying a measure of close friendship and acceptance that he never received from his own royal family. He collected an extensive library, including 51 books in Hebrew. His most impressive volume was a 14th Century Hebrew Bible, which was sold to the British Museum after his death. Contemporaries noted that the Duke owned a black kippah which he would don in Jewish environments and whenever he spent time with his dear friend Moses Montefiore.

Unsurprisingly, Duke Augustus Fredericks embrace of Jewish community and his championing of other liberal causes didnt go down well with his peers, and he became estranged from much of his royal family. When he married for a second time, wedding Lady Cecilia Underwood in 1831, his family snubbed him once again, refusing to accept Cecilia as a royal. The First Duke of Sussex passed away in 1843, beloved by Britains burgeoning Jewish community.

As Harry and Meghan, the new Duke and Duchess of Sussex, settle into their role, lets hope theyre guided by the example of Duke Augustus Frederick, who wasnt afraid of going against tradition and protocol and embraced and defended the beleaguered Jewish community of his time.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 27)  The timetable of Boracay's rehabilitation is right on track, according to the Environment Secretary.

Asked on Saturday if the rehabilitation efforts on Boracay Island would take longer than six months, Secretary Roy Cimatu answered: "Hindi na. Mukha yatang...baka mauna pa tayo."

[Translation: It won't. It looks like we'll be ahead of schedule.]

Cimatu offered this clarification after the excavation of 26 illegal pipelines leading to the shoreline from 16 establishments.

"'Yung mga nahukay ninyong mga tubo na papunta sa beach ay galing sa mga establishment na may dalang bacteria na galing sa dumi ng tao [The buried pipes you excavated are from establishments and they carry bacteria from human waste]," he said

Cimatu related soldiers were enlisted to help clear the illegal pipelines.

"Definitely, kung hindi natin nagawa ito, I am very sure na magpoproblema later on," he said.

[Translation: Definitely, if we didn't fix this, I am very sure we would have a problem later on.]

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources earlier said that Boracay rehab efforts may take longer than the allotted six months.

Boracay has been closed to tourists since April 26 at President Rodrigo Duterte's order. He said the shutdown will be up to six months, or until October.

Duterte called the world-famous tourist destination "a cesspool," and threatened to shut it down permanently if its pollution problem went unsolved.

"Lack of information"

A group of business owners in the island, the Boracay Foundation, Inc. (BFI), released on Saturday a statement calling out the government for failing to give out timely, relevant information about the rehabilitation efforts on the island.

"We would like to request the concerned agencies to update us on the status of their work, timelines, upcoming plans, and hindrances if any that would cause delay to their projects," the statement said.

The group said a month into the rehab efforts, there was neither a central source of information nor a place to ask questions, including official dates.

"Currently, community members and the private sector hear updates only through local media, and not directly from the source agency," BFI said.

The foundation also scored the "very minimal assistance" to workers affected by the island's six-month closure.

"We want to know if budget for the entire rehabilitation including support to the displaced workers are not just in the pipeline, but are now easily available and that rehabilitation construction works will be done 24/7," BFI said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 27)  The government and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) are set to sign an interim peace agreement, which could lead to peace talks between both sides.

This, according to a statement released Saturday by NDFP chief political consultant, Jose Maria Sison.

As initially agreed, President Rodrigo Duterte was set to attend the signing of the interim peace agreement. However, Sison said the government side "backed out and offered" Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to represent Duterte.

The NDFP suggested to hold the signing in Hanoi as alternative venue, considering Duterte's heavy work.

"But Duterte has insisted that the meeting be in the Philippines," Sison said.

He said the reasons why he could not return to the Philippines prematurely include:

A mutual agreement that peace negotiations be held in a foreign neutral venue.

Being in the country would put him and the entire peace negotiations "in the pocket of Duterte and his mercy."

Peace negotiations would be put at risk should any saboteur abduct or harm any NDFP panelist or consultant.

The government has yet to comment on Sison's statement.

Sison earlier said that he would return to the Philippines but only when certain conditions are met.

Among Sison's conditions  a signed ceasefire deal, amnesty for political prisoners, and a signed Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms. He also wanted an assurance on his safety.
At BSDA 2018, the Black Sea Defense & Aerospace exhibition, the Romanian ministry of Defense has presented the main armored and combat vehicles in service with the Romanian armed forces. Currently, the Romanian army is around 43,000 military personnel.



TR-85M1 main battle tank at BSDA 2018, the Black Sea Defense & Aerospace exhibition in Bucharest, Romania. May 16, 2018. (Picture source Army Recognition)

The Romanian Land Forces have overhauled their equipment in recent years, and are today a modern army with multiple NATO capabilities. They are participating in a peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan, together with the other NATO countries.



The main combat units of the Romanian army are the 2nd Infantry Division Getica, and the 4th Infantry Division Gemina. Until 2015 the Romanian land forces fielded a third division, namely the 1st Division Dacia. Before June 2008, the 1st and 4th divisions were known as the 1st Territorial Army Corps and the 4th Territorial Army Corps and in turn they used to be called the 1st Army and 4th Army prior to 2000. However, due to their personnel having been reduced considerably in order to reach compatibility with NATO standards they were renamed and reorganized as divisions. In 2010, the Joint HQ command was renamed as 2nd Infantry Division Getica and received units from the 1st and the 4th Infantry divisions.

Current combat vehicles in service with the Romanian army include main battle tanks with 54 TR-85M1, 104 TR-85 and 260 T-55. The backbone of the armoured infantry units is the MLI-84 , a local-made IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) based on the Soviet-made BMP-1.

The TR-85 is a Romanian-made Main Battle Tank (MBT) design, based on the Soviet-made T-55 but with many improvements as a new suspension system and a new German diesel engine. The TR-85 M1 is an upgraded version of the TR-85 designed and built in Romania in the 1970s using German chassis technology but retaining some features of the Soviet-made T-54/T-55 MBT. The upgraded TR-85M1 MBT has a number of improvements including additional passive armour over the turret front and new all-electric gun control and stabilisation system.



Piranha IIIC of Romanian army at BSDA 2018, the Black Sea Defense & Aerospace exhibition in Bucharest, Romania. May 16, 2018. (Picture source army Recognition)

Romanian army also has different types of wheeled armoured vehicles including the 390 TAB-71, 153 TAB-77, 69 TAB Zimbru, and 377 TABC-79. The TAB is a family of wheeled armoured vehicle personnel carrier designed and manufactured in Romania based on Soviet-made wheeled APC as the BTR-70 and BRDM-2.



The Romanian Land Forces ordered about 100 US Army M1114 Humvees, that were delivered to the military police in December 2006. Romanian army has 50 Spanish-made 4x4 tactical vehicles URO VAMTAC.

To meet an Urgent Operational Requirement (UOR), Romania placed a contract with MOWAG of Switzerland for a total of 31 Piranha III (88) armored vehicles with deliveries running from 2007 through to 2008. In January 2017, General Dynamics European Land Systems has received a contract from the Romanian Armed Forces to supply a fifth batch of additional Piranha III 88 wheeled armoured vehicles to the army.



LAROM 160mm MLRS of Romanian army at BSDA 2018, the Black Sea Defense & Aerospace exhibition in Bucharest, Romania. May 16, 2018. (Picture source army Recognition)

For artillery and air defense units, main military equipment in service are the LAROM and the Gepard a German-made self-propelled anti-aircraft guns. It consists essentially of a modified Leopard 1 MBT fitted with a power-operated two-man turret armed with twin 35 mm Oerlikon Contraves 35 mm cannon, tracking radar on the turret front and surveillance radar on the turret rear.

The LAROM 160 is Multiple Launcher Rocket System (MLRS) jointly developed between Aerostar of Romania and Israel Military Industries. The Larom 160 mm MLRS is equipped with one two launch pod containers. Each container holds 13 LAR Mk IV rockets or 20 GRAD rockets. It can fire standard 122 mm rockets, as well as and advanced 160 mm rocket, with a firing range between 20 and 45 km.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 27)  The government's top lawyer denied involvement in his family business obtaining over 39 million worth of contracts in government.

Solicitor General Jose Calida in a statement on Saturday claimed he had resigned as President and Chairman of his family-owned security agency, Vigilant Investigative and Security Agency Inc. (Vigilant), prior to assuming office.

He referred to documents that surfaced revealing signed deals between Vigilant and the National Parks Development Committee (NPDC) on January 31, 2018 for the maintenance of Paco Park and Rizal Park in Manila.

Calida said he complied with rules under Republic Act (RA) 6713, which states that a public official should "resign from his position in any private business enterprise within 30 days from his assumption of office."

"There is no conflict of interest. The contracts between Vigilant and the NPDC did not require the approval of the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG). Also the OSG does not regulate, supervise or license security agencies like Vigilant," the statement said.

The contracts were signed by Calida's wife, incumbent Vigilant president and chair Milagros Calida. The first contract, worth 10 million was signed in 2017. While the second contract in 2018 was worth 29 million.

The agreements state that Vigilant will have the following responsibilities:

Maintaining peace and order in Rizal Park and Paco Park in Manila;

Protecting facilities and installations of the NPDC against robbery, arson etc;

Protecting park visitors;

Protecting employees of NPDC

The documents surfaced after a private citizen filed a graft complaint against the SolGen, which supposedly showed his ownership of 60 percent of Vigilant's capital stock.

The citizen said Calida's involvement in the company was "a clear conflict of interest."

Calida, however, denied this, as shown in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth when he assumed office.

READ: SolGen urged to bare SALNs

He added all government contracts were the result of public bidding "in which Vigilant submitted the lowest responsive bid in accordance with the Procurement Act (RA 8184)."
No trip to Croatia is complete without exploring one of its 1,000 islands, offering a wide range of experiences.

Croatia is by no means a large country but it has so much to offer that it is only fair to explore it as slowly as one can. Roughly divided between continental Croatia and the Adriatic Coast, the most spectacular parts of the country are on Dalmatia. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, stretching from island of Rab in the north to the Bay of Kotor in the south. Seventy-nine islands (and about 500 islets) run parallel to the coast, the largest is in Dalmatia, Pag and Hvar. The largest city is Split, followed by Zadar, Dubrovnik and Sibenik. Bound by the stunning Adriatic Sea on one side, and the Dinaric mountains on the other, this area has everything you can possibly ask for on a holiday: gorgeous beaches, towns with a very rich history going back to the Roman times, great nightlife, and stunning fresh seafood.

Krka National Park.

It is hard to talk about the Adriatic Coast in Croatia and not start with Dubrovnik or Ragusa as it was called in antiquity. The city was a long standing rival of Venice when City States ruled the roost in Medieval and pre-Renaissance Europe. The Pile Gate is the traditional entry point to this city that retains its heritage. If you happen to be a fan of the TV adaption of George R.R. Martins Game of Thrones, you would know that Kings Landing is Dubrovnik with just a few cosmetic changes. Walking the walls of Dubrovnik is the essential activity when in the city. If you like physical activity, I would advise you to go for a sea kayaking tour in a three-hour journey around Lokrum island. Its a great way to workout while exploring your destination from a totally different perspective. You can drive up the coast from Dubrovnik and stop by Makarska.

Makarska Street.

Travellers often overlook Makarska, and head straight for the islands, but the Makarska Riviera on the mainland coast, between Split and Dubrovnik, is home to some of the countrys loveliest beaches. Running from Brela in the north to Gradac in the south, the Riviera is 38 miles long and centres on Makarska. Makarska itself is built around a deep sheltered bay, and backed by the dramatic rocky heights of Mount Biokovo. Biokovos sea-facing slopes are crisscrossed by well-marked trails, so besides swimming in the deep turquoise Adriatic, its possible to get in some hiking or mountain biking as well.

Sibenik Cathedral.

Up the coast from Makarska is Split  the second-largest city of Croatia and the largest city of the region of Dalmatia. Home to Diocletians Palace, built for the Roman emperor in 305 CE, the city was founded as the Greek colony of Aspalathos. It became a prominent settlement around 650 CE when it succeeded the ancient capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia, Salona. While the Old Town is not huge, the Diocletians Palace itself is impressive and the streets around it seem straight out a medieval movie. Well, to be clear, the whole old town is part of the Palace, so were technically talking about a huge fortress here. If possible, allow yourself to sit on the staircase in the Peristil (the main square) and take it all in. Where else can you have a drink or a meal completely surrounded by Roman ruins?!

Sibenik Market Place

No trip to Croatia is complete without exploring one of its 1,000 islands, offering a wide range of experiences. Choosing which island to visit, highly depends on your travel goals: if you seek clubbing and drinking, head to Hvar, known as the fashionable and party island. If you are more interested in watersports, Brac is a great choice for parasailing and windsurfing. You will not want to miss the Zlatni Rat beach, as well as other stunning coves and bays in the island. For organic food and drinks (including wines), head to Vis or Korcula. The Kornati or Mljet archipelagos are best known for their unspoiled nature. If you keep traveling up the coast from Split after visiting the islands, you will get to Sibenik. While Dubrovnik and Split have become well-known tourism destinations, other pearls of Croatias beautiful Dalmatian Coast remain off all but the most-intrepid travellers radars. One such secret is Sibenik. How many cities do you know of that boast not one but two UNESCO World Heritage Sites, The Cathedral of St. James and the fortress of St. Nicholas, both Game of Thrones locations.

Diocletian Palace Northern Wall

Less than 15 km away from Sibenik is the Krka National Park. It is one of the major national parks in Croatia. It hosts unchanged natural views, lots of hiking trails and an impressive set of waterfalls. Krka is also more interactive: you can actually swim in the (cold) waters near the main waterfalls! For us the last stop on this coastal journey was Zadar. It is a city on Croatias Dalmatian coast, is known for the Roman and Venetian ruins of its peninsular old town. There are several Venetian gates in the city walls. Surrounding the Roman-era Forum is 11th-century St. Marys Convent, with art dating to the 8th century. Theres also the 12th-century St. Anastasias Cathedral and the round, 9th-century pre-Romanesque Church of St. Donatus. On the western end of the coastline of Zadar (Riva), youll find the Sea Organ (Morske orgulje). Its an unusual seaside audio installation shaped into the form of several marble steps that descend into the Adriatic. Just a few steps away, the Sun Salutation installation is a circle of LEDs and photovoltaic cells that come alive at night to create the most colorful sunset. These two experiences make Zadar worth a visit like the rest of Dalmatia.

Krka National Park.Makarska Street.Sibenik Cathedral.Sibenik Market PlaceDiocletian Palace Northern Wall
There is a demand from airlines for inclusion of Aviation Turbine Fuel in the new indirect tax regime.

Pitching for inclusion of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, Union Minister Suresh Prabhu said the move will help cut the cost as airlines would get input tax credit.

New Delhi: Pitching for inclusion of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, Union Minister Suresh Prabhu said the move will help cut the cost as airlines would get input tax credit.

"We are very keen. I am pursuing this with the GST Council that it (ATF) is brought under the purview of the GST, then off course (we can get) input tax credit and as a result of which, cost of aviation will go down," Civil Aviation Minister Prabhu told PTI.

There is a demand from airlines for inclusion of Aviation Turbine Fuel in the new indirect tax regime. Civil Aviation Secretary R N Choubey too has recently stated that the matter will be taken up with the finance ministry as jet fuel prices have risen 40 per cent since January, 2017.

Airlines could expect an annual relief of up to Rs 5,000 crore by way of input tax credit if the ATF is brought under the Goods and Services Tax. The move could cushion them from the burden of increased jet fuel prices, besides providing relief to customers.

During a presentation made by the airlines, they are understood to have maintained that the Centre could earn more than what it gets at present from ATF.
Sarbh has also been involved in a web series called Made in Heaven, which was shot in New Delhi and is based on wedding planners.

Actor Jim Sarbh got in the limelight soon after the release of Padmavaat for his portrayal of Malik Kafur, and much recently for his rape joke.

A video of the actor went viral where he is seen cracking a rape joke, for which he was slammed by the Twitterati. However, the actor is now calm and is looking forward to his Bollywood as well as international ventures.

I did a Hollywood film with Michael Winterbottom which also stars Dev Patel and Radhika Apte. Another was Beneath the Sea of Lights with Oscar-nominated actor Barkhad Abdi in Dubai for director Neel Kumar, says the actor.

Sarbh has also been involved in a web series called Made in Heaven, which was shot in New Delhi and is based on wedding planners. The series stars Zachary Coffin among others, he adds.

But when asked about his role in the upcoming Sanjay Dutt biopic, Sanju, he prefers to keep mum. Sarbh is rumoured to be playing the role of Salman Khan. Well, I cannot talk about that movie. You will have to wait for it, he signs off.

Sanskriti Media
Weinstein's career saw a sudden downfall last October following an expose by The New York Times and New Yorker magazine.

New York: Harvey Weinstein, who was arrested and arraigned on charges that he raped one woman and forced another to perform oral sex on him, has been released on USD 1 million bail.

According to USA Today, the disgraced Hollywood producer also agreed to wear a GPS tracker and to surrender his passport after turning himself in to police on Friday.

Weinstein was carrying three books, including Todd Purdum's "Something Wonderful: Rodgers and Hammerstein's Broadway Revolution," as he got out of a black SUV and walked past the swarm of TV cameras and reporters and through the front door of the New York Police Department's First Precinct in Manhattan yesterday.

His is defense attorney Benjamin Brafman told reporters that Weinstein would enter a not guilty plea.

"Mr Weinstein has always maintained that he has never engaged in non-consensual sexual behavior with anyone. Nothing about today's proceedings changes Mr Weinstein's position. He has entered a plea of not guilty and fully expects to be exonerated," Brafman was quoted as saying in the US media.

"We intend to move very quickly to dismiss these charges. We believe that they are constitutionally flawed. We believe that they are not factually supported by the evidence, and we believe that at the end of the process Mr Weinstein will be exonerated," Brafman, one of US' renowned criminal defense attorneys, told reporters outside the courthouse.

More than 100 women, including prominent Hollywood celebrities such as Gywneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Ashley Judd, Uma Thurman and Asia Argento, have publicly accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct, including rape with some allegations dating back to decades.

Weinstein's career saw a sudden downfall last October following an expose by The New York Times and New Yorker magazine.

The criminal sex act charge against Weinstein stems from an encounter with Lucia Evans, who told The New Yorker and then investigators from the Manhattan district attorney's office that Hollywood producer forced her to perform oral sex on him during what she thought would be a casting meeting. The victim in the rape case has not been publicly identified.
'The negotiations for the missile deal have been concluded. The financial component has been finalised,' official said.

The official said both Russia and India are likely to announce the deal before an annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in October. (Photo: AP)

New Delhi: India has concluded price negotiations with Russia for a nearly Rs 40,000 crore deal to procure S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems for the Indian Air Force, officials said.

They said the two countries are now trying to find a way out to evade the provisions of a US law that seeks to punish countries and entities engaged in transactions with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

"The negotiations for the missile deal have been concluded. The financial component has been finalised," a top official involved in the negotiations for the deal with Russia told PTI.

The official said both Russia and India are likely to announce the deal before an annual summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin in October.

Two other officials said both sides are now looking at ways to insulate the deal from the sanctions announced by the US against Russia under its Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

The issue is understood to have figured during PM Modi's informal talks with Vladimir Putin in Sochi last week.

There has been mounting concerns in India over the US sanctions against Russian defence majors including Rosoboron export as billions of dollars of military purchases may be impacted because of the punitive measure.

The US had announced sanctions against Russia under the stringent law for its alleged meddling in the American presidential election in 2016.

CAATSA, which came into effect in January, mandates the Donald Trump administration to punish entities engaging in significant transaction with the defence or intelligence establishment of Russia.

US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis last month appealed to the Congress to urgently provide India the national security waiver, saying imposing sanctions under CAATSA for the S-400 air defence missile deal would only hit the US.

India wants to procure the long-range missile systems to tighten its air defence mechanism, particularly along the nearly 4,000-km-long India-China border.

In 2016, India and Russia had signed an agreement on the 'Triumf' interceptor-based missile system which can destroy incoming hostile aircraft, missiles and even drones at ranges of up to 400 km. S-400 is known as Russia's most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system.

China was the first foreign buyer to seal a government-to-government deal with Russia in 2014 to procure the lethal missile system and Moscow has already started delivery of unknown number of the S-400 missile systems to Beijing.

The S-400 is an upgraded version of the S-300 systems. The missile system, manufactured by Almaz-Antey, has been in service in Russia since 2007.
Kairana constituency has virtually assumed dimension of a strategic player in the run up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

There are nearly 17 lakh voters in Kairana constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters. (Photo: PTI)

Kairana (Uttar Pradesh): Kairana constituency in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh has virtually assumed the dimension of a strategic player in the run up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Kairana bypoll, slated for Monday, will also see a joint opposition taking on the ruling BJP.

Located around 630 kilometres from capital city of Lucknow, the Lok Sabha constituency has five assembly segments namely Shamli, Thana Bhawan and Kairana in Shamli district, and Gangoh and Nakur in Saharanpur district.

There are nearly 17 lakh voters in the constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

RLD party worker Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which the ruling party was being challenged by a joint opposition. "This is the beauty of our democracy," he said.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the party's candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dal's (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).

The opposition hopes that by consolidating anti-BJP votes, they will repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat. The withdrawal of candidature of Lok Dal candidate Kanwar Hasan from the fray and his joining of the RLD has only added to the opposition's confidence.

The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the opposition parties -- that the drubbing in the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.

"The results of the May 28 bypolls may set the tone and tenor for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," Rajesh Kumar Saini, manager of a hotel on the busy Shamli-Panipat road, said.

Khan exuded confidence that "Kairana's daughter-in-law Tabassum Hasan will defeat Kairana's daughter (Mriganka Singh)."

The Yogi Adityanath-led state government has left no stone unturned in campaigning for the bypoll. He along with his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya campaigned in Saharanpur and Shamli.

Apart from them, the BJP has thrown in at least five state ministers into the 'fight for Kairana'. They include Dharam Singh Saini (minister of state for Ayush), Suresh Rana (sugarcane development minister), Anupama Jaiswal (basic education minister) Surya Pratap Shahi (agriculture minister) and Laxmi Narayan (religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, waqf and Haj minister).

Of these, Saini and Rana are MLAs from Nakur and Thana Bhawan assembly segments, respectively of the constituency. Jaiswal is the minister in charge of Shamli district, while Surya Pratap Shahi is the minister in charge of Saharanpur.

"Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary has been roped in since he hails from a farming background," a senior UP BJP leader said.

BJP MPs Sanjiv Baliyan, Raghav Lakhan Pal, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and Kanta Kardam have also actively campaigned for Mriganka Singh.

The SP and Congress, however, termed the line-up of UP ministers as a sign of "party jitters".

According to the locals, the major issues in this bypoll are law and order and the woes of sugarcane growers.

RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan had accused the BJP-led state government of resorting to divisive politics.

"Sugarcane growers in the region are feeling the maximum amount of pain, as no payments have been made to them by the state government," she told news agency PTI, rejecting the official claim that the dues from sugar mills were being cleared.
The SP has already been talking of Mr Akhilesh Yadav being projected as the face of the Opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019.

Lucknow: In a move that may create a friction between the fledgling alliance between Samajwadi Party (SP) and BSP, the BSP leaders from across India want their president Mayawati to be projected as a prime ministerial candidate for next years Lok Sabha elections.

The SP has already been talking of Mr Akhilesh Yadav being projected as the face of the Opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019.

BSP leaders from several states, who attended a party meeting here on Saturday, said that the projection of Ms Mayawati as prime ministerial candidate would unite Dalits across the country.

The leaders, however, were stopped from passing a resolution to this effect. We were told that it is still too early to make such a move, said a party functionary.

The BSP, however, is not in a mood to rush into disclosing its strategy and would prefer to take baby steps on this though its leaders have been promoting the proposal on the social media.

A BSP leader from Tamil Nadu, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told this correspondent, Ms Mayawati is the only leader with a pan-India presence. The BSP has a presence in almost every state and no other party can claim to have this. As an administrator too, Ms Mayawati has proved her mettle as UP chief minister.

The BSP feels that the proposal would not be opposed by SP that has already said that Mr Akhilesh Yadav would confine himself to state politics and Ms Mayawati could move to national politics. However, Mr Yadav apparently had a change of heart recently when he said that Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav could be an apt candidate for the prime ministers post in 2019.

Interestingly, both Ms Mayawati and Mr Akhilesh Yadav are now making a conscious effort to build bridges with other Opposition leaders as was immensely evident at the swearing in ceremony of Karnataka chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy.

Samajwadi leaders, meanwhile, are wary of talking about the proposal. It is too early to say anything on one leader being named as a prime ministerial candidate.
Gandhi took to Twitter and alleged that Modi struggled with complex issues and had a short attention span.

New Delhi: As the NDA government observed its fourth anniversary on Saturday, Congress president Rahul Gandhi led the main Opposition party in launching an all-out attack, disparaging the Modi government for its failures and for betraying the people.

Mr Gandhi took to Twitter and alleged that Mr Modi struggled with complex issues and had a short attention span. He also gave grades to the BJP-led NDA government in a mock report card of the Prime Minister in which the Congress chief gave F grade to the Modi government for agriculture, foreign policy and job creation, and A+ to the Prime Minister for slogan creation and self-promotion.

4 year Report Card. Agriculture: F, Foreign Policy: F, Fuel Prices: F, Job Creation: F, Slogan Creation: A+, Self Promotion: A+, Yoga: B-. Remarks: Master communicator; struggles with complex issues; short attention span, Mr Gandhi said on Twitter.

Releasing a booklet titled India betrayed on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of the Modi government, Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot and Randeep Surjewala said an atmosphere of fear and hatred has been created under the NDA rule.

People now know that Modi-Amit Shah duo is harmful for country. Four years of the Modi government can be defined in four terms  treachery, trickery, revenge and lies, AICC communications in-charge Mr Surjewala said.

Former Union minister Kapil Sibal said, People of the country want the next Prime Minister to be not only kaamdar (one who works) but also jimmedar (responsible) and imandar (honest), who is not a jumlawar (one who makes hollow promises).

Rajya Sabha member Abhishek Manu Singhvi hit out at the NDAs four-year celebrations. Are these four years meant for celebration or was there a betrayal of the people? If the occasion is to celebrate the jumlas (gimmickry) of the Betrayal Janata Party, then everyone is celebrating, he said.

Referring to alleged atrocities against dalits, tribals, minorities and women, Mr Azad, Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, said, Nobody is safe in India under the BJP government. Everyone is getting sleepless nights.

Atmosphere of fear, hatred and violence was created in the last four years of the Modi government, AICC general secretary Ashok Gehlot said at the joint press conference.

The Congress released the India betrayed booklet both in English and Hindi and posed 40 questions to the Prime Minister.

They also released and showed a short-film describing the prevailing atmosphere in the country. Mahila Congress chief Sushmita Dev said women in the country no longer feel safe under the Modi dispensation.
People have put their seal of approval on NDA by bringing the BJP to power in 20 states: Modi

PM Modi on Saturday hailed good governance as an all-round development for the country on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of the BJP-led government at the Centre. (Photo: ANI/Twitter)

Cuttack/New Delhi: Launching celebrations of the NDA governments fourth year in power at the Centre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday underlined its pro-poor credentials and claimed that commitment and clarity have replaced confusion, votebank politics and anarchy in governance that was visible under the UPA.

Taking pride in giving a scam-free government in the past four years, Mr Modi virtually launched the BJPs Lok Sabha campaign at a rally in Cuttack by listing his teams achievements that have taken the country from despair to hope and cornering the Opposition parties over corruption and their bid to destabilise his government. In Delhi, BJP chief Amit Shah also presented a report card of the Modi government and said 2019 elections will be Modi versus Modi hatao brigade. Mr Modi said that the NDA governments commitment to fight corruption has started worrying many. Three thousand raids were conducted by various agencies and undeclared income to the tune of `73,000 crore was unearthed. Tough rules against black money have sent shivers down the spines of many who have come on one platform, Mr Modi said in an oblique reference to the Opposition parties which are grouping against the NDA.

He said that the NDA government is moving on the correct path and the people have put their seal of approval on it by bringing the BJP to power in 20 states.

The country is moving towards sushasan (good governance) from kushasan (bad governance) and towards jandhan (public money) from kaladhan (black money). The people can now see that the NDA government is working with the motto sabka sath, sabka vikas, he said.

The Prime Minister said the days of confusion in governance have ended. The goverment doesnt fear taking big decisions and it doesnt miss taking big decisions. When a government is not confused but is committed, it can take hard decisions said Mr Modi, hinting that the governments determination had led to a robust foreign policy and the Indian Army conducting surgical strikes against Pakistan.

He credited his governments clarity and commitment for reforms like the goods and services tax (GST) and opening of bank accounts for the poor.

Comparing his government with the UPA, Mr Modi said, Who can forget the scams worth lakhs of crores that embarrassed India abroad? During UPA regime, the Congress party used to run the govt through remote control.

He also lashed out at the UPA for pursuing vote bank politics that ruined the country. The Prime Minister said that vote bank politics forced governments to deliver benefits to select people, leaving behind adivasis, dalits and the poor without gas and electricity connections, roads, clean toilets and bank accounts. This was not sabka saath, sabka vikas.

The Prime Minister reiterated the NDA governments commitment to welfare of the poor. It is a government whose President, Vice President and Pradhan Sevak, all have lived in poverty, he said

He also took an indirect swipe at Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi saying that they were trying to perpetuate dynastic rule.

Some people born with the golden spoons are trying to perpetuate dynastic rule in the country. They always wanted power for their own protection and growth, he said.

In a tweet earlier, Mr Modi said, Over the last four years, development had become a vibrant mass movement, with every citizen feeling involved in Indias growth trajectory. 125 crore Indians are taking India to great heights.

Earlier, BJP president Amit Shah hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the most hardworking Prime Minister that the country has ever seen and projected the next Lok Sabha elections as a contest between Mr Modis efforts to remove corruption and poverty and the Oppositions single-point agenda of Modi hatao,

This is something new I am seeing and the Opposition seems to have decided to continue with this tactic till the 2019 polls... Its one-point agenda is Modi hatao (replace Modi) while the BJP and Mr Modi want to remove disorder, corruption and poverty to usher in stability and development, Mr Shah said.

Asserting that people are standing behing Mr Modi like a rock, Mr Shah listed out the achievements of the Modi government and said governments various schemes benefited nearly 22 crore people.

Taking a dig at former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Mr Shah said that Mr Modi does not need to seek anybodys permission before taking a decision.

He also said that Mr Gandhis bid to be the next Prime Minister has not been supported by his own party leaders, let alone other Opposition leaders.

Union finance minister Arun Jaitley said the Prime Minister created transparent systems through legislative and institutional changes which have given this country scam-free governance and unlike the UPA.
Second infiltration bid in nine days foiled; security op remains underway.

The home ministry officials had after the Ramzan ceasefire announcement made it clear that it does not apply on those attempting to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir from across the border and that the security forces would retaliate also if and when attacked by militants in the hinterland. (Representational image)

Srinagar: The Army on Saturday said that it foiled an infiltration bid on the Line of Control (LoC) after killing five militants in a gunfight in Tanghdar area of frontier Kupwara district.

Four terrorists were killed while attempting to infiltrate own side this morning. The operation is still underway, defense spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said. He later during the day said that a fifth militant has been killingwas killed, raising the toll to five. Infiltration bid has been eliminated in Tangdhar sector. Four terrorists have been killed while attempting to infiltrate early today (Saturday) morning. Operations is in progress, the spokesman said in a brief statement to media. Later, he said, another terrorist has been killed in Tangdhar encounter.

He said earlier that the Pakistani troops had violated the November 2003 ceasefire understanding by resorting to small and medium arms firing on the de facto border in the area.

This is the second such incident reported from Kupwara after the Centre on May 16 announced a conditional ceasefire with militants and halting of counterinsurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir during the Muslim fasting month of Ramzan. In earlier clash, three militants were shot dead by the Armys 15 Rashtriya Rifles in Brinjal woods near Shah Nagar Jat Gali (pass) in Handwara area of Kupwara soon after they reported infiltration on May 18.

The home ministry officials had after the Ramzan ceasefire announcement made it clear that it does not apply on those attempting to infiltrate into Jammu and Kashmir from across the border and that the security forces would retaliate also if and when attacked by militants in the hinterland.

Army Chief, General Bipin Rawat, who was in the Kashmir Valley on Friday to review the security situation ahead of the annual Amarnath yatra, had said the counterinsurgency operations suspended to create an atmosphere of peace during Ramzan. He hinted that the conditional ceasefire may be extended beyond Ramzan if situation on ground remained peaceful.

We suspended the operations to give people an atmosphere of peace and I believe people are happy. If things continue the way they are today we may think of continuing with non-initiation of combat operations, he said. He, however, hastened to add If militant activities continue, we cannot do so.

While speaking to reporters after inaugurating the digital education program at Army Goodwill Public School at Pahalgam, he had also said that Pakistan should stop sending militants to Jammu and Kashmir if it wants peace in the region. We want peace and Pakistan has to reciprocate which it can do by desisting from pushing infiltrators into Jammu and Kashmir,  he had said.

Replying a question on the recent flare up along the border with Pakistan, Gen. Rawat said, We want peace on the borders but as you know Pakistan continuously violates the ceasefire that causes loss of life and property. In such case, we have to retaliate.
Next PM should be kaamdar, jimmedar and imandar, says Sibal.

Bhubaneswar: Senior Congress leader and former Union minister Kapil Sibal on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the Narendra Modi government by dubbing it as Facebook and WhatsApp government sans any credible performances.

The performance of the Narendra Modi government is limited to WhatsApp and Facebook only. It has failed on all fronts. No tangible progresses have been made to address the agrarian crisis the country faces now and the growing unemployment problem, Mr Sibal said.

Hitting out at Mr Modi for his naamdar (dynast) barb, Congress leader Kapil Sibal said the people of the country want the next Prime Minister to be kaamdar, jimmedar and imandar who is not in the habit of making hollow promises.

People of the country want the next prime minister to be not only kaamdar (one who works) but also jimmedar (responsible) and imandar (honest) who is not a jumlawar (one who makes hollow promises), Sibal told reporters here.

He was referring to the naamdar barb by Modi apparently targeted at Congress president Rahul Gandhi during his campaign in the Karnataka Assembly election.

Dubbing the NDA government as a non-performer, Mr Sibal said it said its promise of achchhe din or good days never materialised and the country was rather pushed to numerous problems.

The veteran Congress leader accused the NDA government of working against the interest of the poor and helping multinational entities like Paytm, Amazon and Uber.

The Modi government has never cared for the common people. It has always worked for multinational firms like Paytm, Amazon and Uber. The development of the country has come to a standstill because of its faulty economic policies, he observed.

Raising the issue of petrol prices, Mr Sibal said the UPA government, despite falling price of against US dollar, had kept it under Rs 76 per litre. Now the price has touched Rs 85 per litre, he added.
Shiv Sena MLA Amit Ghoda alleged that 'distribution of cash to the voters to bribe them to vote for BJP candidate' was going on.

Those distributing the cash were caught by Shiv Sena workers, and a flying squad of the Election Commission had conducted a spot inspection. (Photo: File)

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Saturday wrote to the Election Commission (EC) accusing the BJP of trying to "bribe" voters ahead of the May 28 by-election for Palghar Lok Sabha constituency.

In the letter to the EC, Shiv Sena MLA Amit Ghoda alleged that "distribution of cash to the voters to bribe them to vote for BJP candidate" was going on.

Those distributing the cash were caught by Shiv Sena workers, and a flying squad of the Election Commission had conducted a panch-nama (spot inspection), he said.

It was "gross violation of election code of conduct" and therefore the BJP candidate (Rajendra Gavit) should be disqualified, the letter said.

The BJP spokesperson was not immediately available for comments. Both parties have run an acrimonious campaign for the by-poll, levelling accusations at each other.
According to the survey, the Congress has gained nearly 15 percent vote share over the BJP in the state.

New Delhi: While the Mood of the Nation survey indicated that the Congress was rapidly gaining its vote share in Madhya Pradesh, the state chief minister, Mr Shivraj Singh Chouhan not merely exuded confidence of returning to power but also denied speculations of him being shifted to the Centre after the state Assembly elections later this year. Speaking exclusively to this newspaper, Mr Chauhan claimed that so far the party high command has not given any indication of him being shifted to the Centre. On Congress president Rahul Gandhis proposed visit to various religious places in Madhya Pradesh, the chief minister observed that there was a difference between showing off and genuine faith.

For him, there is no soft or hard Hindutva. Hindutva is Hindutva. People know everything. This drama of going to temples to garner votes will not help the Congress president or his party, Mr Chouhan said.

On Mr Gandhis proposed visit to Mandsaur on June 6, the first anniversary of the death of farmers in police firing is an attempt to disturb the atmosphere in the state, Mr Chouhan felt that this was Congress attempt to create disturbance in the state.

According to Mr Chouhan, the farmers unrest at Mandsaur was mainly due to fall in prices and government has taken adequate mesures to financially compensate the farmers. Congress was again trying to disturb the peace and incite violence in the state, he said.

He also spoke about factionalism in the state Congress saying that while a section of Congress was rooting for Jyotiraditya Scindia the other wants Kamal Nath to be the chief ministerial candidate. Let them sort out their own differences only then they can think about dislodging me, he told this newspaper.

The Mood of the Nation survey had claimed that if the Assembly elections in the state were held at this juncture the Congress party would win comfortably. According to the survey, the Congress has gained nearly 15 percent vote share over the BJP in the state.

Refusing to comment on the survey reports, Mr Chouhan said that he was not interested in commenting on any survey but people will vote to form a BJP government in the state. he said; If there is anti incumbency against anyone (MLA) on a seat, party will act accordingly, he explained.

Taking a jibe on much talked about Opposition unity after Karnataka assembly polls, Mr Chouhan said that first of all Congress must unite its state unit before trying to form a Grand Alliance.
The book, edited by senior Congress leader A. Gopanna, was launched by former President Mukherjee and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

New Delhi: In a politically significant message, former vice-president Hamid Ansari, speaking at the launch of a book on Indias first PM Jawaharlal Nehru, said on Sunday that some inventors were trying to rewrite history, but they are not going to succeed as history cannot be changed. Speaking at the same event, former President Pranab Mukherjee said comments and observations on Nehru could never come to an end. The history of modern India is closely associated and rather integrated with a few personalities. Jawaharlal Nehru is one of them. It is not because he was the first Prime Minister or because, till today, he is the longest-serving Prime Minister of 17 years, from August 15, 1947 to May 27, 1964, Mr Mukherjee said.

The book, edited by senior Congress leader A. Gopanna, was launched by former President Mukherjee and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Mr Ansari went on to add: History is history. It has to be read. You can draw lessons from it, you can draw encouragement from it or you can just read it as a college student preparing for term examinations. History cannot be changed. His comments assume significance as the NDA-led Central government is often accused of rewriting history by the Opposition parties.

The former President said: Fifty-four years ago on this day, we lost him. It is because he is truly the architect of the modern, democratic setup in India. He added that it was Nehru who built up all the necessary institutions to support the countrys democratic structure.

Paying tribute to Pandit Nehru on his 54th death anniversary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his monthly Mann ki Baat radio address: Today is May 27, the death anniversary of the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehruji. I render my pranam to Panditji. Memories of this month are also linked with Veer Savarkar.

Former president Pranab Mukherjee, former vice-president Hamid Ansari and Congress president Rahul Gandhi paid floral tributes to the departed leader at Shanti Van, Nehrus memorial on the banks of the Yamuna. Senior Congress leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ashok Gehlot and Motilal Vora also paid tribute to the countrys first PM. Devotional songs were played and an all-religion prayer meeting held at the memorial.
The meeting is most likely to be held on June 4-5, sources said.

Bengaluru/New Delhi: Five days after he was sworn in as Karnataka chief minister along with his deputy G. Parameshwar of the Congress, Mr H.D. Kumaraswamy is yet to get a full-fledged Cabinet. The process is now likely to drag on for another week due to differences over portfolio allocation, with both parties insisting on the finance portfolio, and the fact that Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia, UPA chairperson, are leaving Sunday night for the United States for Mrs Gandhis health checkup. With talks on Cabinet formation and portfolio allotment being held in New Delhi between the top leaders of the two coalition partners, JD(S) and Congress, any decision on this will be taken only after their return. The meeting is most likely to be held on June 4-5, sources said.

Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, former CM Siddaramaiah dropped enough hints that the portfolio allocation would be carried out only after Rahul Gandhi and Mrs Gandhi return from the US. We could not discuss the matter of allocation of portfolios with the Congress president. Once he returns, we will discuss with him again. It may not take a week... maybe three-four days will be required, he told reporters in Delhi.

There are no grave differences between us (Congress) and the JD(S), but surely there are differences which we will hammer out; then we will take the formal approval of Mrs Gandhi and Mr Gandhi once they return from the US, he said.

Sources in the Congress said the two were at loggerheads over plum portfolios like finance, home, public works department, power, irrigation and urban development (Bengaluru development). The sources said the Congress was insisting on the finance portfolio, saying in previous coalition governments in the state in 2004-06 (JDS-Congress) and in 2006-07 (JDS-BJP), the portfolio had gone to those who held the deputy CMs post.

In response to a question, Mr Siddaramaiah said the issue of whether the JD(S) should have a full five-year term of CM for itself or share it with the Congress on the basis of a 30:30 month formula, was still open for discussion. Although we have not discussed this, we will take it up possibly in the next round of discussions, he said, adding the party had not taken any final decision on who should be inducted into the Cabinet.

Chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy, who will travel to New Delhi on Monday to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other Union ministers, said in Bengaluru on Sunday evening that he was at the mercy of the Congress as his party had not got a full mandate from the people of Karnataka. He reiterated a farm loan waiver was his priority as he had promised, and he would resign if he failed to fulfill it. However, he reminded people that the JD(S) did not get an absolute majority, which meant he and his party had been rejected by the electorate.

The people of the state rejected me and our party. I had sought an absolute majority. I have heard the statements of farm leaders too and how much they supported me, he said. Mine is not an independent government. I had requested the people to give me a mandate that prevents me from succumbing to any pressure other than you. But today I am at the mercy of the Congress. I am not under the pressure of the 6.5 crore people of the state, he added. His remarks came in the wake of the BJPs call for a statewide bandh on Monday, demanding immediate waiver of farm loans, as promised by the JD(S) in their election manifesto.

On Saturday, the chief minister had admitted there were some issues over the allocation of portfolios with the coalition partner.

It is learnt that the Congress is firm on getting finance and the JD(S) is equally determined to keep the portfolio for itself, though it is flexible on other portfolios. Sources said the Congress is apprehensive about the future of some of their populist programmes, which had helped them overcome anti-incumbency in the polls, under a finance minister of the JD(S) and feels it might affect their prospect in the 2019 parliamentary elections. Besides, to streamline fiscal discipline, the JD(S) might bring in certain reforms that may not be in the Congress best interests, the sources added.
'The Congress is in the opposition. It cannot do much. But the BJP will definitely not come to power in 2019,' Naidu said.

'The TDP has in the past played a key role in forming governments. It has the power to change the political narrative in the country. We won't step back,' Naidu said. (Photo: File)

Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he is a campaign PM who has failed to deliver on promises and said the BJP would definitely not come to power in 2019. Inaugurating Mahanadu, the TDP's annual conclave here, he said the Telugu Desam Party played a key role in forming governments in the past and had the power to change the political narrative in the country, hinting that it would tie-up with like-minded parties to stop the BJP's juggernaut in 2019.

The Congress is in the opposition. It cannot do much. But the BJP will definitely not come to power in 2019, he said.

Naidu said the BJP coming to power in 2019 was a distant dream and Prime Minister Narendra was a campaign PM, who gives slogans only, and has failed to deliver on promises. The party president said the TDP was key in forming the United Front government in 1996.

The TDP has in the past played a key role in forming governments. It has the power to change the political narrative in the country. We won't step back, Naidu said.

He said the TDP withdrew support from the NDA government as the Centre had reneged on its promise to grant Andhra Pradesh Special Category status and to implement the AP Reorganisation Act.

Naidu accused the BJP of betraying the people of Andhra Pradesh and trying to create law and order problems in the state in collusion with the YSRCP. During Mahanadu, the TDP would adopt resolutions against the economic decisions taken by the Centre "without proper thinking, their improper implementation, failure of the Goods and Services Tax and demonetisation, and about people losing faith in the banking system" Srinivasa Rao, the officer on special duty to the chief minister, had said earlier.

The party would pass a resolution against the Centre's "non-cooperation and non-fulfilment" of assurances made in the Rajya Sabha regarding the special category status and the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, he had said.

At the conclave, detailed discussions would be held on the Centre's "betrayal and conspiracy politics".

Andhra Pradesh has been seeking special category status on the grounds that it is at a disadvantage, especially because of the loss of capital Hyderabad to Telangana.

When erstwhile Andhra Pradesh was being bifurcated in 2014, then prime minister Manmohan Singh, during a discussion on the AP Reorganisation Bill, had said, "Special category status will be extended to the successor state of Andhra Pradesh for a period of five years.

But the BJP, which came to power at the Centre a few months later, has been saying that the 14th Finance Commission does not provide for such treatment to Andhra Pradesh. The TDP had in March withdrawn support from the NDA government over the Centre's refusal to grant special category status to the state.

Naidu and his party have in the past accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of reneging on his election promise made in 2014 to accord special category status to Andhra Pradesh. Naidu had earlier said that after the state's bifurcation, it was given a "raw deal".
Earlier this month, India advocated Irans right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy post the pullout of the US from the Iran nuclear deal.

New Delhi: Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif is to undertake a significant day-long visit to India on Monday wherein he will hold talks with external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj. The visit holds importance, given the recent developments on the US pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal and Indias strategic interests on Chabahar port there which it is developing. Just earlier this month, while avoiding any criticism of the United States under President Trump which had walked out of the Iran nuclear deal, Indiain a tight rope walk had said Irans right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy should be respected.

New Delhi had also advocated resolution of the issue through constructive dialogue. India is developing the Chabahar port in Iran and therefore has strategic interests in the Islamic country.

The Iran nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), was inked in 2015 that had then paved the way for lifting of US sanctions on Iran that had severely affected the Iranian economy.

According to foreign media reports, Iran  which had in 2015 reached a pact with the five permanent member nations of the UN Security Council (US, UK, Russia, France and China) and Germany  had then agreed to significantly slash its stores of centrifuges, enriched uranium and heavy-water, all key components for nuclear weapons.

This had enabled Iran to pursue its nuclear programme for peaceful purposes without any global opposition. The United States  under then President Barack

Mr Obama  had pushed for the deal strongly three years ago. But with President Trump announcing the pull-out, the stage is set for re-imposition of US sanctions on Iran.
Researchers studies data of awareness about obesity over the last twelve years worldwide.

Washington: Google search data shows that weight loss searches have increased over time while those on obesity have decreased.

The research, conducted by European Association for the Study of Obesity, suggests a normalisation of obesity in society.

Dr Aditya S. Pawar and colleagues studied data of awareness about obesity over the last twelve years worldwide. They used Google Trends which is based on the number of times worldwide the terms 'Obesity', 'Weight loss 'and 'Obese' were searched for using Google between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2017.

The program assigns a reference value of 100 for the point of maximum popularity among the search terms, and provides relative monthly scores for all terms, which were termed relative interest scores (RIS).

The results found that the for the search term 'obesity', the mean RIS consistently decreased with each quartile. While the search term 'weight loss' RIS consistently increased with time.

The term 'weight loss' appeared to be especially popular during the month of January and its median RIS for January (n=12months) as compared to other months (n=122 months) was higher during the entire study period (88 vs 72), a result which was statistically significant. The RIS for term 'obese' did not change significantly over the study period.

Dr Pawar concluded, "Despite an increase in the prevalence of obesity, its popularity on the internet continues to decrease with time as reflected by the RIS score, which may suggest 'normalisation' of obesity in our society. Reassuringly however, the frequency of the search term 'weight loss' has increased significantly overtime, with significant interest in January every year."

The study was presented at European Congress on Obesity in Vienna, Austria.
The idea of sexual orientation being a choice is one of the strongest misconceptions that activists face.

Sweet Maria is seen during the 2010 Queer Pride March in Thiruvananthapuram. The TG person was murdered in 2012 but the police did not bother to take it as a crime against a transgender. Media shied away from making a mention of her gender identity.

Thiruvananthapuram: The picture of Sweet Maria, wearing a sombrero hat and a bright rainbow dress, splashed on most newspapers during the states first queer pride march in 2010. Yet, when this prominent transgender activist was murdered in 2012, several media houses shied away from making even a mention of her gender identity.

The police did not slot Maria as a victim of transphobia though her friends suspect so. But the fact is the very act of blacking out of the news itself is seen as a form of transphobia.

Though there is difference in the media approach towards transgenders after Kerala announced its TG policy in 2015, mainstream society continues to isolate, denigrate and even unleash physical violence on TG persons. It was in February that a transgender person was brutally beaten up in Valiathura in Thiruvanan-thapuram district, but messages circulated on social media justified the violence, calling her a kidnapper dressed in sari. There are numerous examples of TG atrocities but they are often go unnoticed.

This week, a lesbian couple in Kozhikode, Gargi Harithakam and Naseema, suddenly found themselves on the street house hunting. They were told by their house owner that he would not have offered his house to them had he known that they were lesbians. Gargi took to Facebook, saying how despite the social privileges she was born into, she and her partner were facing social exclusion, even though everyone has an equal right to choose their partner. Her family also was not supportive of her relationship, according to her FB post.

Acceptance, not just awareness, from parents and family of people from LGBTQIA+ community is extremely important, says P.K. Prijith, founder, Queerythm. Surya, a member of the state TG Justice Board, says that the fact that the acceptance is not some benevolence but a right, should be drilled into people during prenatal and premarital counselling.

But many feel that awareness alone might not help.

The state has a policy which recognises trangender persons, says Queerala founder Jijo Kuriakose. However, it has not translated into act or rules. If a transgender person faces an assault, a verbal abuse or a discrimination of any kind, in a public space or inside an institution, there is no clarity on what action can be taken against it. Moreover, even if there are rules, it has to be ensured that they are implemented. For example, in colleges, if the UGC anti-ragging policy, which is a Sexual Orient-ation and Gender Identity (SOGI) inclusive policy, is implemented, people can submit their complaints. But it is not being implemented.

Heres an example. A transgender student of a college in Thiruva nantha puram told DC that her collegemates talk disrespectfully about her gender identity but she would not complain as she is afraid that no action will be taken. Another: when hooligans launched an attack on a member of the state TG cell, it was revealed to the attackers that their victim was a transman. The information only worked to increase the intensity of the attack.

These incidents show the need for clear laws deterring discrimination on sexual and gender minorities. It might be worthwhile to remember that the SC/ST Atrocities Act came into being only in 1979, three and a half decades after independence. For, atrocities on Dalits were on the rise, even though India claimed to be moving forward.

Almost all LGBTQIA organisations are pushing for an amendment of IPC 377, which criminalises all homosexual acts. Maya Krishnan, a lawyer, says that the law belongs to an era when society was guided by Victorian morals. Recently a writ petition seeking the Supreme Court to reconsider its 2013 verdict re-criminalising IPC 377 was referred to a Constitution bench.
Indigenous cultures in the continent have thrived for thousands of years.

New Delhi: Across the United States, an effort is continually made to preserve and share the storied and often tragic history of Native Americans in North America.

Indigenous cultures in the continent have thrived for thousands of years, and visitors have the opportunity to learn about them by viewing exhibits, visiting living history museums, attending events, exploring ancient sites and talking with Native Americans.

Here are some premier places and events in the United States where you can experience Native American culture like nowhere else:

1. Cherokee Heritage Center, Tahlequah, Oklahoma

In the foothills of Oklahoma's Ozark Mountains lies the 18-hectare Cherokee Heritage Center, dedicated to preserving the culture and artifacts of the Cherokee tribe. Walk through Diligwa, a living history exhibit that depicts a 1710 Cherokee village and allows visitors to experience craft-making demonstrations, storytelling and daily life of the early 18th century. Next, visit the center's representation of a late 19th-century rural Cherokee village, Adams Corner. Don't miss the Trail of Tears exhibit, which delves into the forced removal of Cherokees from their ancestral lands in the 1830s to what is now present-day Oklahoma. The center also offers cultural classes that promote traditional Cherokee arts, such as pottery and basketry, and holds annual art shows featuring traditional and contemporary Cherokee works.

2. United Tribes International Powwow, Bismarck, North Dakota

Hundreds of Native Americans from more than 70 tribes from all over the U.S. gather for the United Tribes International Powwow in the Lone Star Arena at United Tribes Technical College in Bismarck, North Dakota. For nearly 50 years, the monumental three-day event has brought thousands of visitors to the Great Plains to experience unique cultures of indigenous communities.

The U.S. was originally populated by native tribes that claimed their own territories and developed cultures and traditions. Historically, tribes set aside differences to join in a "powwow," or gathering, where they celebrated, competed and found common ground. The International Powwow continues this custom every September, highlighting native traditions in dancing, drumming, singing, and arts and crafts from area tribes such as the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians, Standing Rock Dakota-Lakota, Yavapai-Apache Nation and Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate.

3. Blackfeet Heritage Center, Browning , Montana

In the open land on the Indian reservation, as you walk into the Lodgepole Gallery and Tipi Village, you get a warm welcome. The gallery exhibits pieces such as crafts and drums that are made out of elk and bison hide, which can also be purchased as gifts. In Blackfeet, you can enjoy cultural history tours to historical sites around the reservation. At night, you can enjoy traditional Blackfeet Indian cuisine and sleep in a tipi. This is a truly authentic place to experience Native American life, including the rich culture, history and customs.

Out of all the stories shared here, one thing in particular will stay in your mind deeply. It was about how the native Americans respected the animals - their healing power, the instinct and predictions of things. The Native Americans would name themselves after animal names out of sheer reverence.

After learning about Native American history and culture in Montana, you will feel like having learned about USA in a true sense. The knowledge and experience visitors receive at this heritage center will be a precious treasure in their hearts forever.

4. Gathering of Nations, Albuquerque, New Mexico

The annual "Gathering of Nations" in Albuquerque, New Mexico, attracts thousands of indigenous people representing hundreds of tribes. The multiday event's festivities celebrate and promote Native American cultural heritage. Highlights include traditional song, dance and drumming competitions, which feature over 3,000 performers representing more than 500 North American tribes. Attendees can also buy paintings, jewelry and pottery from more than 800 Native American artisans, and eat traditional foods like fry bread, deep-fried quick bread served with honey or taco toppings.

5. Hidden Cave and Grimes point, Nevada

If you're interested in petroglyphs (Creating images by carving on rocks) in the slightest, be sure to swing by Grimes Point Prehistoric Rock Art Site, located off Highway 50, Nevada. It was here, Native Americans left their footprint in time.

This fascinating historic site was first visited by Native Americans a mindboggling 8,000 years ago or more. Archaeologists studying Grimes Point were able to uncover remnants of these prehistoric people, including bits of bone and shell, a stone scraper tool, bits of tule and matting and of course the most obvious: many petroglyphs scrawled across boulders in the area.

While touring Grimes Point Prehistoric Rock Art Site, visitors can get a first-rate view of these captivating samples along a short, self-guided interpretive trail. Brochures are provided at the site, which includes information about the trailheads and grounds in general.
The man took girl to deserted place on outskirts of village, raped her, then dropped her near village.

The police managed to identify the accused on the basis of inputs given by local informers. (Representational Image)

Pune: A 42-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly kidnapping and raping an 11-year-old girl in Baramati taluka of Pune district, police said on May 27.

The alleged incident occurred near a village last evening when the man allegedly accosted the girl who had gone to buy groceries and forced her to sit on his bicycle.

"The man took the girl to a deserted place on the outskirts of the village and allegedly raped her. He then dropped her near the village," said a Pune Rural police officer.

Meanwhile, as the girl didn't return to her house, her family members and villagers launched a search to trace her. They spotted her at around 11 PM, the officer said.

"After the girl narrated the incident, a manhunt was launched to trace the man," he said, adding that the police secured CCTV footage of the area from where the girl was kidnapped, but it was unclear. However, the police managed to identify the accused on the basis of inputs given by local informers.

"Police obtained the mobile phone number of the man. He was called by an undercover woman police constable who asked him to meet at a particular place, following which he was arrested," the officer said.

The accused has been arrested under relevant sections of the IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The accused, whose name is withheld, is married and is a resident of a neighbouring village.
We are checking how did he manage to get the pass.

Swapan Majhi, a resident of Hooghly district, had managed to climb up to the dais to present a portrait of Rabindranath Tagore to the prime minister. (Representational image)

Santiniketan : The police have released a man, who was detained on Friday for breaching the security cordon of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an event at the Visva Bharati University campus, after a thorough investigation, a senior officer said on Saturday.

Swapan Majhi, a resident of Hooghly district, had managed to climb up to the dais to present a portrait of Rabindranath Tagore to the prime minister. He was detained by the police. Later, a team of police and central agencies questioned him. We checked his credentials. He had somehow managed to get a pass for the convocation ceremony (of the university), Superintendent of Police (SP), Birbhum, Sudhir Kumar, said.

We are checking how did he manage to get the pass. We have released him after questioning, another senior police officer said.

As Modi was about to leave the venue after the convocation ceremony on Friday, the man had suddenly climbed up to the dais to give him the portrait. The prime minister had taken the portrait and handed it over to his securitymen.

The Special Protection Group (SPG) personnel had caught hold of the man and removed him from the dais. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had left the dais by then.  PTI

Multi-layered security arrangements were put in place in Santiniketan in view of the visit of the high-profile dignitaries, including West Bengal Governor K N Tripathi.

I have seen the incident, I was present on the dais then. I dont know the man, the officiating Vice-Chancellor of Visva Bharati University, Sabujkali Sen, had said on Friday.
Banerjee pointed out that it was a privilege to confer Ms Hasina with D. Litt degree from Kazi Nazrul University.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee talks to the media after meet prime minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina at a city hotel on Saturday. (Photo: Asian AgeE)

Kolkata: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee has described her meeting with Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed as positive after discussing a host of issues on cultural, education and trade relations with her on Saturday evening with a talk on Teeta treaty being bypassed tacitly.

She parried a question on whether the water-sharing agreement, for which speculation was rife in the diplomatic circles, came up for discussion with her.

The crucial meeting took place for nearly an hour at a hotel in Alipore where Ms Hasina stayed during her two-day visit to the state.

Ms Banerjee reached the hotel in the evening. Sources revealed that it was a close-door meeting between the two leaders. The Bangladesh PM returned to her country at night after the meeting with the Trinamul Congress supremo.

After the meeting Ms Banerjee said, The meeting was positive. West Bengal shares close relations with Bangladesh. Several issues were discussed as we share the same relation, culture and tradition. Issues like strengthening the Indo-Bangla relations were featured in the meeting apart from how to boost trade relations which will benefit both sides. We discussed on various issues that include education, business and others.

She stressed that no political and geographical boundary could create a difference between West Bengal and Bangladesh as both are on the same page.

Speaking about her long relationship with the Bangladesh PM Ms Banerjee elaborated, We love each other. I have known Hasinaji, Rehanaji and their family members for more than 25 years. We want them to come here again.

The chief minister informed that the the Bangladesh PM expressed her interest for setting up Bangabandhu Museum in memory of her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahaman in the city. She said her father stayed at a house at Shakespeare Sarani. She requested us for setting up the museum in Bangabandhus name which we will do.

At present the address houses Sri Aurobindo Ashram. We want to locate the museum there if the Bangladesh government allows it, she added.

Ms Banerjee pointed out that it was a privilege to confer Ms Hasina with D. Litt degree from Kazi Nazrul University.

Both the sides enjoy a cordial relationship. We are prepared to work with each other on every issue, she noted.
Bangladesh PM has vowed to work closely with India, protect the young generation from terrorism.

Kolkata: Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed on Saturday urged India and other neighbouring countries for cooperation to protect the young generation from the clutches of terrorism in the South East Asia and for development of the sub-continent. She also vowed to work together with India.

Upholding communal harmony and equal rights Ms Hasina underlined that Bangladesh would follow the path of secularism higlighted by famous poet Kazi Nazrul Islam in his poetry. She was delivering her address after she was conferred honorary D.Lit by Kazi Nazrul University (KNU) during its annual convocation at Asansol in Burdwan West on the last day of her two-day visit to India.

Except West Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee neither West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee nor West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi, who were in the list of the invitees, was present at the programme however. Noting their absence Ms Hasina informed that she saw Mr Tripathi had not been keeping well since Friday.

She however, did not forget to express her gratitude to him and the chief minister also for setting up the university after the name of the national poet of Bangladesh and awarding her the honorary degree from the same academic institution on the occasion of his 119th birth anniversary.

The Bangladesh PM said, We always want the people of this sub-continent to lead a good life. We want our young generation to remain safe from violence, killings, terrorism, extremism and drugs in the world. We want them to build their life in a positive, meaningful and progressive way. This is our prayer. I appeal for cooperation from our neighbouring countries in this context.

Reiterating her call for return of around 11 lakhs of Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh to Myanmar she elaborated, We do not think about our country: Bangladesh only while planning development. We think of this sub continent. We want to make this sub-continent free of poverty and hunger and turn it into a developed and rich one. We had many problems with our neighbours. We have resolved many of them and have been sorting out others.

The Bangladesh PM added, But instead of thinking about the problems only we have to focus our thinking on how to undertake the welfare of human beings and create a suitable environment for the people to live in this sub continent. Today bangladesh is marching ahead. Our country has grown to become a developing nation from less-developed nation left by the Father of our Nation: Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahaman.

Comparing the two countries with each other Ms Hasina pointed out that Bangladesh was not lucky inititally like India where the rule of democracy has been prevailing always. She complained that democracy faced crisis in Bangladesh during the rule of military-junta which had pushed back the country for nearly 21 years altogether in its history.

She mentioned, We want our country to progress despite having limited resources. We have succeeded to reduce poverty level while undertaking massive development works to change the fortune of the people. At present our literacy rate has crossed 72 per cent. We are neighbours. And being neighbours our aim is to continue to work together.

Referring to the passing out students of KNU the Bangladesh PM told them, I wish you will place humanity above all while making progress in your careers. Nazrul was inspired by secular thoughts. We are building Bangladesh in line of his thoughts. Secularism is intertwined of our idealism and policy where everyone enjoys equal rights irrespective of religion, cast and creed. I hope you will work in that direction in your life also.
With digging of these pools, around 6000 hectares of land will get 'protected irrigation', raising hopes of better rabi crop.

A farm pool or pond is dug out to harvest rainwater and store it for future use. (Photo File)

Mumbai: The construction of over 6,000 'farm pools' by cultivators to meet the irrigation demand in Maharashtra's drought-prone Yavatmal has set an example for other districts.

With the digging of these pools, around 6,000 hectares of land will get "protected irrigation", raising hopes of a better rabi crop, an official said.

A farm pool or pond is dug out to harvest rainwater and store it for future use. Since the inception of the state government's ambitious 'farm pool on demand' scheme two years back, the farmers in this district, located in the Vidarbha region, have constructed 6,200 farm pools, the official said.

Agriculture is the principal occupation in Yavatmal, which had earlier been in the news over a spate of farmer suicides. The district is spread over an area of13,51,966 hectares, of which 9,60,500 hectares is under crop production.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the rainfall in the state has decreased in the past few years, thus adversely affecting the crop production in dryland areas. When the state government started the 'farm pool on demand' scheme in February 2016, a target of 4,500 farm pools was given to Yavatmal, he told PTI.

"The area under rabi and summer crops shrunk sharply due to mere 66 per cent of the average rainfall during the kharif season in 2017," he said. The absorption of more rainwater under the ground was needed to help farmers in increasing the agricultural production. Thus, a proper co-ordination was maintained between revenue and agriculture departments for creating the farm pools, he said. Meetings were organised at the tehsil level and officials explained the scheme's significance to farmers, Fadnavis said.

Since the subsidy amount under the scheme was to be credited to farmers' bank accounts, contractors were unwilling to work, district guardian minister Madan Yerawar said. The Yavatmal administration then stepped in and brought about a coordination between farmers and machine- holders (to dig the pools), he said.

"We guaranteed that farmers will pay the bills to machine-holders after the money gets credited to their accounts. Hence, contractors also agreed to get involved in the work," said Yerawar, who is the Minister of State for Tourism.

However, executing the farm pool work in a scattered manner increased the expenditure due to unnecessary movement of machinery from one place to another. "To overcome this difficulty, farmers were encouraged to create farm pools in a cluster manner," he said.

Yavatmal Collector Rajesh Deshmukh said 10,518 farmers in the district applied online for the scheme, and 8,355 applications were found to be technically eligible. "Out of these, the construction of around 6,200 farm pools has been completed in about six months," he said. "Due to the completion of these farm pools, 6,000 hectares of land will be covered under protected irrigation which will result in better rabi crop," the collector said. The farmers who dig farm pools will be preferred for silk farming, he said, adding that they will also be extended benefits of the diesel engine and electric pumps.

The administration has been instructed to provide protected drip irrigation sets to farmers under the 'Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojna' (the Prime Minister's Agricultural Irrigation Scheme), Deshmukh added.
While rejecting the ABA, the court had considered a statement given by the co-accused in the said crime.

Mumbai: The Bombay high court has rejected the anticipatory bail application of Kailash Patil, the mastermind behind the illegal excavation of sand in the Diva creek at Bhiwandi near Thane. While rejecting the ABA, the court had considered a statement given by the co-accused in the said crime.

According to prosecution on December 29, 2017, additional circle officer, Bhiwandi region has lodged FIR in Narpoli police station that he along with Tehsildar Mukesh Patil received specific information that some persons are illegally excavating the sand from the creek of Dive to Kasheli belt by using sucking pumps and directed the subordinate officer and their teams to verify this information. Accordingly officers went the said spot at 6 am on December 29, 2017 and found that certain persons were illegally excavating sand. Officers had accosted 14 people and seized their machinery.

Arrested accused disclosed that they were working for Wasim Khan, Manoj Patil and Omkar Patil. After arresting accused Wasim Khan he disclosed name of Kailash patil. He further said Patil used to give him Rs 600 per brass for excavating sand.

Patils lawyer argued that except the statement of the Khan there is no other material on record to implead him in the present crime.

The court while rejecting the ABA noted that for further investigation police can rely on the statement of co-accused but acceptance of the statement will be decided at the time of case in the trial court.
The borders of neighbouring districts and states like Gujarat, will also see heavy security presence till the results are declared.

Mumbai: The state has called in police personnel from Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Raigad, Ratnagiri and a few other districts in a bid to beef up security arrangements for the tightly-contested Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll to be held on Monday. Platoons of the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) will also be deployed at polling stations identified as sensitive across the six assembly election centres in the state. The borders of neighbouring districts and states like Gujarat, will also see heavy security presence till the results are declared.

Officials said that the security presence would be seen on the polling day and the cover will continue at the counting stations till Thursday, when the results will be declared. All sub-divisional police officers have been appointed as nodal officers. Police personnel from Thane rural, the Mumbai Railway Police, Marol and Khandala police training schools and other commissionerates have also been called in.

The SRPF and CISF will be deployed at the sensitive locations and the polling stations. Flying squads, videography squads and vigilance teams have also been formed. At least 44 spots have been identified along the border with Gujarat where police teams will be deployed, said Hemant Katkar, Palghar police spokesperson.

On Friday, Dahanu police arrested 12 persons with `1.8 lakh while they were paying `1,500 to each villager in Ranshet, asking them to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party. On Sunday, the Boisar police arrested one Sadanand Pimple and seized liquor worth `63,296 during the order of prohibition in the area ahead of the polls. The police have booked Pimple and are questioning him.

Senior police officers held a awareness session for the police personnel through a conference call to inform them about their role during polling.

No. of policemen

The policemen from neighbouring police commissionerates and the Palghar police, include three deputy commissioners, 10 police inspectors, 21 inspectors, 196 assistant inspectors, 3,100 policemen, 500 newly inducted police constables, 652 Home Guards. Specialized forces include four companies of the SRPF. Two companies of CISF will assist them.
TRS chief minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao did come to Bengaluru to meet the Gowdas but he did not join the unity rally for this reason.

What does the gathering of the Opposition leaders in Bengaluru to celebrate the alliance of the Janata Dal(S) with the Congress signify? What is driving them to this unity and will this last for another 12 months when India goes to elections?

Lets examine this. First take a look at the leaders who decided not to come to Bengaluru. Naveen Patnaik has his own faction of the Janata Dal in Odisha. In the 2014 Assembly elections, his party had got 43 per cent voteshare. The BJPs voteshare was 18 per cent and the Congress was 25 per cent. This explains why Mr Patnaik was not present. For him, the Congress is an equal threat as the BJP, if not bigger. This equation may change in future and it is easy to see why  by next year, it will be the BJP that will be at Mr Patnaiks heels. But there is no need for him to close his options at the moment and hes doing the smart thing in waiting. He has allied with the BJP before. It makes no sense for him to link up with Rahul Gandhi now before the issue of 2019 is decided.

In Telangana, the leader of the Opposition is a Congressman. It is likely that this will continue into the general election. The BJP is not the force in the state that the Congress is, and to some extent continues to be. Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao did come to Bengaluru to meet the Gowdas but he did not join the unity rally for this reason.

Now lets take a look at those people who came for unity rally. The electorate of Bihar is quite fragmented. In their defeat of the BJP in 2015, the former mahagathbandhan of Lalu Yadav, Nitish Kumar and the Congress secured over 40 per cent of the votes. The two Janata Dals, the main components of the alliance, got about the same voteshare. Nitishs Janata Dal(U) later went with the BJP while Lalus Janata Dal stayed with the Congress.

No party can dominate Bihar on its own and so it makes sense for the two Janata Dals to stay inside alliances. The Nitish-BJP alliance is stronger on paper and there is no option for the Lalu Yadav family but to look for help elsewhere. This explains their enthusiasm for nationwide unity against the BJP.

In Uttar Pradesh, in the last Assembly elections, the votes were split in the following way. The BJP had 41 per cent voteshare, SP 28 per cent and BSP 22 per cent voteshare. The SP won a majority in 2012 with 29 per cent voteshare and so it has held on to it. Its just that after Narendra Modi moved to the Centre, the BJP has become much bigger in the state.

Mayawati and the Yadavs compete mainly for power in the state. They are lucky that there is no Assembly election in 2019. This makes it easier for them to attempt unity against the BJP, a unity that will most likely collapse when it comes to sharing power in the state. But for now their OBC-Muslim-dalit alliance looks powerful.

Vote transfers, of course, do not work in such a simple fashion. Psephologist Dorab Sopariwala has long said that coalitions in India work because coalitions are also coalitions of caste. But many of these parties have become desperate and do not want to spend decades in the Opposition.

In Bengal, which has 42 Lok Sabha seats, the Left has collapsed and the Congress has been made irrelevant. The BJP has become the Opposition and TMC leader Mamata Banerjee has no problem joining an alliance that opposes Mr Modi.

In Maharashtra, like in Bengal, the Congress split but NCP leader Sharad Pawar has not been able to dominate the party entirely as Ms Banerjee has. The coming together of the NCP and the Congress could be problematic for the BJP. The BJP votebank is not as solid in Maharashtra as it is in northern India. The party got only 27 per cent of the total votes in the last Assembly (it did not contest all seats) but came close to a majority.

The other three parties, including the Shiv Sena, all got about 18 per cent each. After two decades of uneasy partnerships, produced mainly because ideologically they are almost identical, the NCP and the Congress are likely to fight 2019 together without a problem.

In Andhra Pradesh, the principal Opposition is YSR Congress Party led by Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy. Like in Bengal, the Congress has been taken over by a charismatic local leader and its infrastructure and leadership has been captured. For TDP leader chief minister Chandrababu Naidu it makes sense to keep his options open because his local threat is not only from the BJP.

The BJP strategy will be to make sure it does not antagonise those parties that are not a part of this alliance, like the Tamilian parties especially, who will be open to a post-poll alliance.

For the Congress, it has become necessary to make alliances but this is not easy to deliver at the local level.

A recent poll showed that the Congress was ahead of the BJP in Rajasthan and, more surprisingly, Madhya Pradesh, a state the BJP has governed for 15 straight years. In MP, the BSP won only four seats in 2013 (down 3) but it held on to over 6 per cent of the votes.

An alliance with that party will not be easy to drive for the Congress central leadership here because the state leaders will be reluctant to concede too much in a time when they sense victory. But an alliance with the BSP in MP could stop the BJPs unbeaten run before it touches two full decades. It will take great maturity from the Gandhis to be able to pull such alliances off. But if they do it, 2019 will be a very interesting election for all of us to observe, no matter which party we support.
Google and Microsofts Bing could be made to pay for showing snippets of news articles.

The measure, which is not yet final, would allow press publishers to ask search engines to pay them for showing their articles for up to one year after publication. (Photo: AP)

Search engines like Google and Microsofts Bing could be made to pay for showing snippets of news articles under draft copyright rules endorsed by European Union ambassadors on Friday.

The measure, which is not yet final, would allow press publishers to ask search engines to pay them for showing their articles for up to one year after publication. The original proposal from the European Commission had foreseen giving publishers the right to ask for payment for up to 20 years.

The EU copyright reform package would also force websites like YouTube to seek a licence from rightsholders for displaying their content, for example, a music video, or prevent it from being accessible.

News publishers have had an acrimonious relationship with the likes of Google in the past, whom they blame for revenue and readership declines. Google has tried to remedy that by establishing the Digital News Initiative which funds publishers digital projects.

The tech industry says measures like snippet taxes do not lead to greater remuneration for the media as search engines channel millions of clicks to news sites enabling them to make money via online advertising. But news publishers cheered Fridays agreement, calling it a decisive step in the right direction.

We remain confident that policymakers will continue showing support for an exclusive right to underpin investment in the free and democratic European press, said News Media Europe (NME), the European Newspaper Publishers Association, the European Publishers Council and the European Magazine Media Association.

Thomson Reuters is a member of the European Publishers Council. The tech industry said the agreement would hurt internet users and the digital sector.

The new so-called neighbouring right for press publishers will extend to the smallest extracts of text, despite overwhelming stakeholder opposition and irrefutable evidence that this right does not increase remuneration for press publishers nor contribute to quality journalism in Europe, said EDiMA, which represents Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Twitter, among others.

Spain and Germany introduced similar laws in the past, causing Google News to pull out of Spain and Germanys biggest news publisher Axel Springer to scrap a bid to block Google from running snippets of articles from its newspapers following a plunge in traffic.

The copyright reform proposals would also affect the music industry, which has waged a campaign against YouTube whom they accuse of making money off their content without remunerating them properly.

YouTube said it paid the music industry over $1 billion in 2016 from ad revenue alone and allows artists to make money from fan-uploaded music content. Following Fridays agreement, member states will have to negotiate a final copyright reform deal with the European Parliament, which has not yet agreed its position.
The EU GDPR is forcing companies to be more attentive to how they handle user data with severe penalties for breaching their privacy rights.

Privacy advocates have hailed the new law as a model for personal data protection in the internet era. But opponents say the new rules are overly burdensome and have warned of costly business disruption.

Major US media outlets including the LA Times and Chicago Tribune were forced to shutter their websites in parts of Europe on Friday following the rollout of stringent new privacy regulations by the European Union.

The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect on Friday, forcing companies to be more attentive to how they handle customer data with severe penalties for breaching consumers privacy rights.

Privacy advocates have hailed the new law as a model for personal data protection in the internet era. But opponents say the new rules are overly burdensome and have warned of costly business disruption.

By mid-morning, European readers trying to access the websites of media outlets owned by the US Tronc publishing group were greeted by a message saying they were unavailable in most European countries.

The message did not explicitly name the reason for the problem but included GDPR in the redirected web page address. Tronc, headquartered in Chicago, owns some of Americas biggest newspapers, including the LA Times, Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News and Baltimore Sun.

We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to the EU market, said the error message displayed in response to attempts to access the LA Times website in London and Brussels.

We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Hi all.

I just want to check the pricing structure as the government website explanation is not clear to me.

I plan to go down the route of applying for a potential marriage visa then after we are married on shore apply for the spousal visa.

am I understanding correctly that the application fee is $7000 AUD for the PMV visa then when I apply for the spousal visa it is a futher $1100 approx AUD?



Thanks all.
Hi everyone! I have some questions that I hope you might be able to help me with. I met my husband here in Australia and when I met him, he was on the skilled visa route (485 and stuff) so he was on route to get PR without me. However, we recently got married a few months ago and now we are thinking about which path he should take to get PR. Should he continue on the skills path or the marriage path? The marriage one is more expensive, but he could apply for PR sooner. Any thoughts or suggestions?
Contributing columnist Jose Gaspar is a news anchor/reporter for Telemundo Bakersfield and KGET. Email him at elcompa29@gmail.com. The views expressed here are his own.
A blog about life under, and resisting, a dictatorship
What has he done? How has it affected you?

I looked so forward to Obama doing what he promised, and in the end that's where me and the rest of the hard working people that pay for their own shit got it...In the end.

Trump is funny! And certainly unorthodox when it comes to politics, but do you think WWIII will break out any time soon? Jesus, they did the same thing with Obama. "Be afraid, be very afraid".

Sorry, I don't buy any of it.
He's Misstra Know It All

Stevie Wonder



He's a man

With a plan

Got a counterfeit dollar in his hand

He's Misstra know-it-all



Playin' hard

Talkin' fast

Makin' sure that he won't be the last

He's Misstra know-it-all



Makes a deal

With a smile

Knowin' all the time that his lie's a mile

He's Misstra know-it-all



Must be seen

There's no doubt

He's the coolest one with the biggest mouth

He's Misstra know-it-all



When you tell him he's livin' fast

He will say what do you know

If you had my kind of cash

You'd have more than one place to go



Any place

He will play

His only concern is how much you'll pay

He's Misstra know-it-all



If he shakes

On a bet

He's the kind of dude that won't pay his debt

He's Misstra know-it-all



When you say that he's living wrong

He'll tell you he knows he's livin' right

And you'd be a stronger man

If you took Misstra know-it-all's advice oh oh



He's a man

With a plan

Got a counterfeit dollar in his hand

He's Misstra know-it-all



Take my word

Please beware

Of a man that just don't give a care no

He's Misstra know-it-all (look out he's coming)

Grabbed Stevie Wonder's album, 'cause I'd heard "Living for the City" on XM I think. I'd sorta forgotten this song was on itStevie, the prophet.Guess who??


A representational photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): Armies of India and Nepal will carry out a two-week long military exercise begining Wednesday in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh region with an aim to deepen counter-terror cooperation.



The Indian Army said the 'Surya Kiran' exercise is expected to enhance the level of defence cooperation between the two militaries.



It said the focus of the exercise will be to enhance cooperation in conducting counter-terrorism operations in mountainous terrain.



Around 300 soldiers from Nepal and equal numbers from India are expected to participate in the exercise.



"Indian and Nepal Army would be sharing their experiences gained during the conduct of various counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations," the Army said in a statement on Thursday.



"The joint military exercise will enhance the level of defence cooperation which will further strengthen the bilateral relations between the two nations," it said.



The exercise is taking place nearly three weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Himalayan nation during which both the countries decided to boost their cooperation in a range of areas including defence and security.




An internet imagery.

WASHINGTON (PTI): The US House of Representatives has passed a whopping USD 717 billion annual defence spending bill for the fiscal 2019, which among other things seeks to bolster defence ties with India and greater American commitment in the strategic Indo-Pacific region in view of the challenges being posed by China.



The National Defence Authorisation Bill or NDAA-2019, was passed by the House of Representatives by 351-66 votes. It now needs to be passed by the Senate, before it can be sent to the White House for the President Donald Trump to sign it into law.



"In the Indo-Pacific region, the United States faces a near-term, belligerent threat armed with nuclear weapons and also a longer-term strategic competitor," said Congressman Mac Thornberry, Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.



"In fact, four of the five key security challenges - China, Russia, North Korea, and terrorism - reside in the PACOM area of responsibility. Critical to meeting all of the challenges in the region is our relationship with our allies and also with countries with whom we share interests," he said.



The USD 717 billion bill seeks renaming US Pacific Command as Indo-Pacific Command. It seeks a better defence relationship with India.



The NDAA bolsters the Department of Defence's efforts to plan for and provide the necessary forces, military infrastructure, logistics capabilities, and bilateral and multilateral training in the region through the Indo-Pacific Stability Initiative.



It invests in critical military capabilities to deter aggression and respond rapidly to crisis and supports strong missile defense systems to counter North Korea's nuclear and missile programs, including the DoD's development of new capabilities and efforts to provide for a layered defense of the homeland.



NDAA renames US Pacific Command to US Indo-Pacific Command to emphasise the Commands' responsibility across the Pacific and Indian Oceans and requires the Department of Defense to conduct a study on the operational requirements needed for language expertise in Korean, Chinese Mandarin and Russian and a plan to address any shortfalls.



To counter aggression in the region, NDAA requires the Administration to construct a whole-of-government strategy to address China's activities.



It requires as assessment and planned responses to address activities by the Chinese Communist Party to include the use of political influence, information operations, use of intelligence networks, economic and military tools, and cyber activities and a US strategic communication plan to counter Chinese influence.



It also highlights China's provocative military, maritime and air activities in the Indo-Pacific region by requiring a quarterly report to Congress that may be disseminated to allies and partners.



NDAA modifies the Southeast Asia Maritime Security Initiative by renaming it Indo-Pacific Maritime Security Initiative.



It would include India as a covered country and allow for the inclusion of additional countries in the Indo-Pacific region.



In an accompanying report, the House said the US should continue to "develop and deploy robust missile defense" in the Indo-Pacific region.



It allows the Pentagon to conduct missile defence exercises in the Indo-Pacific region with US regional allies and partners to improve interoperability, it said.



Supporting quadrilateral cooperation among the United States, Japan, Australia and India, NDAA said Secretary of Defense may conduct a quadrilateral naval military exercise with these countries.



NDAA also adds new reporting requirement on India-US defense relationship.



It now would include a description of the progress on enabling agreements between the US and India, any limitations that hinder or slow progress, measures to improve interoperability and actions India is taking or the Secretary of Defense or the Secretary of State believe India should take, to advance the relationship with the United States.



Authorising USD 700 million as Coalition Support Fund to Pakistan, NDAA as passed by the House says that not more than USD 350.0 million may be provided until the Secretary of Defense certified that Islamabad is taking demonstrable steps against the Haqqani terror group.



It also required the Defense Secretary to submit a report to the congressional defense committees not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act describing the manner in which the Department provides assistance to Pakistan.


Capacity: 2,036 Concert starts: 8pm Address of venue: Roland Rainer Platz 1, 1150 Wien, Austria. MAP Website: www.stadthalle.com COMMENTS When Nick Mason made comments in Italy about heading out to small venues, to play early Pink Floyd songs, few took the remarks seriously. As unlikely as it seemed, Nick was entirely truthful and in the initial announcement a set of four shows in London were announced for his new band. Due to the critical success of those shows, held in small venues in Camden and Putney, a full European tour has been announced with this date one part of this. Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets brings together some familiar names, all great musicians: joining Nick are Gary Kemp and Lee Harris on guitars, Guy Pratt on bass, and Dom Beken on keyboards. Kemp is best known for his work with Spandau Ballet, Harris as having played guitar with The Blockheads (Ian Dury's band), Pratt needs no introduction, and Beken is principally known for his work with The Orb, and Transit Kings (with Pratt). The band will be playing early Pink Floyd songs. This is a unique opportunity to experience Pink Floyd's celebrated and significant early body of work played live including songs from albums 'The Piper At The Gates of Dawn' and 'A Saucerful Of Secrets'. The regular sale of tickets started on FRIDAY, MAY 25th at 9am (UK time), via oeticket.com. SET LIST - highlight the following with your mouse to read...

MAIN SET: Interstellar Overdrive, Astronomy Domine, Lucifer Sam, Fearless, Obscured By Clouds, When You're In, Arnold Layne, Vegetable Man, If/Atom Heart Mother/If Reprise, The Nile Song, Green Is The Colour, Let There Be More Light, Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun, See Emily Play, Bike, One Of These Days.

ENCORE: A Saucerful Of Secrets, Point Me At The Sky. WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD! Do not read on if you don't want surprises to be spoilt, regarding what the band played! Vienna's Stadthalle - a lovely venue - was the site of another great performance by the band, which was very well received. For this latest show on the tour, during his initial thanks and welcome to the audience, Nick said: "Now, as I hope you all know by now, we are not the Australian Roger Waters, or the Danish David Gilmours, we are Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets. That was Interstellar Overdrive, which you might have heard if you've seen Doctor Strange... We're determined to have a good night out, and hope you are too!" Later, in the band introductions, Dom Beken's birthday was marked by Nick, which resulted in an impromptu singing of Happy Birthday from the audience! The band now travel to Milan in Italy for the show there tomorrow, as the mainland Europe leg of this European tour winds to a conclusion - finishing with six dates in the England and Scotland. We'd love to know from those attending how they felt the concert went. How was the show for you, if you were one of the fortunate ones to attend? Let us know what YOU thought! YOUR HELP NEEDED! We want to cover Nick's concerts the best we can, to share the experience with everyone, especially those who won't be able to attend the shows. We'd love to see ANY pictures, tickets scans, reviews, newspaper reports, and anything else you come across for this show - we look forward to hearing from you!
Capacity: 5,060 Concert starts: 8pm Address of venue: Hoffnigstrasse 1, 8600 Dubendorf, Switzerland. MAP Website: www.samsunghall.ch COMMENTS When Nick Mason made comments in Italy about heading out to small venues, to play early Pink Floyd songs, few took the remarks seriously. As unlikely as it seemed, Nick was entirely truthful and in the initial announcement a set of four shows in London were announced for his new band. Due to the critical success of those shows, held in small venues in Camden and Putney, a full European tour has been announced with this date one part of this. Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets brings together some familiar names, all great musicians: joining Nick are Gary Kemp and Lee Harris on guitars, Guy Pratt on bass, and Dom Beken on keyboards. Kemp is best known for his work with Spandau Ballet, Harris as having played guitar with The Blockheads (Ian Dury's band), Pratt needs no introduction, and Beken is principally known for his work with The Orb, and Transit Kings (with Pratt). The band will be playing early Pink Floyd songs. This is a unique opportunity to experience Pink Floyd's celebrated and significant early body of work played live including songs from albums 'The Piper At The Gates of Dawn' and 'A Saucerful Of Secrets'. The regular sale of tickets started on FRIDAY, MAY 25th at 9am (UK time), via Ticketcorner.ch. SET LIST - highlight the following with your mouse to read...

MAIN SET: Interstellar Overdrive, Astronomy Domine, Lucifer Sam, Fearless, Obscured By Clouds, When You're In, Arnold Layne, Vegetable Man, If/Atom Heart Mother/If Reprise, The Nile Song, Green Is The Colour, Let There Be More Light, Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun, See Emily Play, Bike, One Of These Days.

ENCORE: A Saucerful Of Secrets, Point Me At The Sky. WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD! Do not read on if you don't want surprises to be spoilt, regarding what the band played! The final mainland Europe show, being held in this modern hall (which opened last year) For this latest show on the tour, during his customary initial thanks and welcome to the audience, Nick said: "Well, contrary to certain rumours, we are not the Australian Roger Waters, nor indeed the New Zealand David Gilmours, or indeed the Chipping Norton Bananaramas! [Band and crowd laughing] We are Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets. [Big cheer] We're very happy to be here, it's the last night of the continental part of our tour, and we do really hope that we will be allowed back in eventually, after Brexit. Anyway, we're looking forward to this evening, and I hope you have as much fun as we do." The band's enjoyment and togetherness comes across clearly in the performance - it is a joy to hear the music performed like this, and it is definitely not a show to miss! The tour now travels to the UK for the final six concerts of the tour. The first night is in Portsmouth on the south coast - the last time Nick played there was January 1972, when the Floyd played the entirety of (the early version of) The Dark Side Of The Moon for the first time in public... We'd love to know from those attending how they felt the concert went. How was the show for you, if you were one of the fortunate ones to attend? Let us know what YOU thought! YOUR HELP NEEDED! We want to cover Nick's concerts the best we can, to share the experience with everyone, especially those who won't be able to attend the shows. We'd love to see ANY pictures, tickets scans, reviews, newspaper reports, and anything else you come across for this show - we look forward to hearing from you!
TICKET SCAN TO GO HERE Capacity: 4,500 Concert starts: 8pm Address of venue: Julius Thomsens Plads 1, 1925 Frederiksberg, Copenhagen. MAP Website: forumcopenhagen.dk COMMENTS When Nick Mason made comments in Italy about heading out to small venues, to play early Pink Floyd songs, few took the remarks seriously. As unlikely as it seemed, Nick was entirely truthful and in the initial announcement a set of four shows in London were announced for his new band. Due to the critical success of those shows, held in small venues in Camden and Putney, a full European tour has been announced with this date one part of this. Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets brings together some familiar names, all great musicians: joining Nick are Gary Kemp and Lee Harris on guitars, Guy Pratt on bass, and Dom Beken on keyboards. Kemp is best known for his work with Spandau Ballet, Harris as having played guitar with The Blockheads (Ian Dury's band), Pratt needs no introduction, and Beken is principally known for his work with The Orb, and Transit Kings (with Pratt). The band will be playing early Pink Floyd songs. This is a unique opportunity to experience Pink Floyd's celebrated and significant early body of work played live including songs from albums 'The Piper At The Gates of Dawn' and 'A Saucerful Of Secrets'. The regular sale of tickets started on FRIDAY, MAY 25th at 9am (UK time), via Ticketmaster.dk. SET LIST - highlight the following with your mouse to read...

MAIN SET: Interstellar Overdrive, Astronomy Domine, Lucifer Sam, Fearless, Obscured By Clouds, When You're In, Arnold Layne, Vegetable Man, If/Atom Heart Mother/If Reprise, The Nile Song, Green Is The Colour, Let There Be More Light, Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun, See Emily Play, Bike, One Of These Days.

ENCORE: A Saucerful Of Secrets, Point Me At The Sky. WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD! Do not read on if you don't want surprises to be spoilt, regarding what the band played! From one Swedish city to another! The band flew down from Stockholm to Copenhagen on the day of the show at the Forum Black Box - a modern venue to counterpoint the historic Cirkus which was host to the opening concert of the tour, last night. During his initial thanks and welcome to the audience in Copenhagen, Nick said "As you may know, we are not the Australian Roger Waters, and we are also not the Indonesian David Gilmour. We are Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets! I think the only thing for me to say, is that I'm having more fun now than at almost any other time in my musical career..." Certainly that sense of fun and enjoyment comes across so clearly in the performances. Definitely a show to catch if you can! The set list went unchanged, and we expect this to remain constant throughout the run of concerts. Initial reports are glowing about the performance; the band now travel a few hundred miles to Rostock in Germany for night three. We'd love to know from those attending how they felt the concert went. How was the show for you, if you were one of the fortunate ones to attend? Let us know what YOU thought! YOUR HELP NEEDED! We want to cover Nick's concerts the best we can, to share the experience with everyone, especially those who won't be able to attend the shows. We'd love to see ANY pictures, tickets scans, reviews, newspaper reports, and anything else you come across for this show - we look forward to hearing from you!
TICKET SCAN TO GO HERE Capacity: 1,200 Concert starts: 8pm Address of venue: 54 Rue de Hollerich, 1741 Luxembourg. MAP Website: www.atelier.lu COMMENTS When Nick Mason made comments in Italy about heading out to small venues, to play early Pink Floyd songs, few took the remarks seriously. As unlikely as it seemed, Nick was entirely truthful and in the initial announcement a set of four shows in London were announced for his new band. Due to the critical success of those shows, held in small venues in Camden and Putney, a full European tour has been announced with this date one part of this. Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets brings together some familiar names, all great musicians: joining Nick are Gary Kemp and Lee Harris on guitars, Guy Pratt on bass, and Dom Beken on keyboards. Kemp is best known for his work with Spandau Ballet, Harris as having played guitar with The Blockheads (Ian Dury's band), Pratt needs no introduction, and Beken is principally known for his work with The Orb, and Transit Kings (with Pratt). The band will be playing early Pink Floyd songs. This is a unique opportunity to experience Pink Floyd's celebrated and significant early body of work played live including songs from albums 'The Piper At The Gates of Dawn' and 'A Saucerful Of Secrets'. The regular sale of tickets started on FRIDAY, MAY 25th at 9am (UK time), via atelier.lu. SET LIST - highlight the following with your mouse to read...

MAIN SET: Interstellar Overdrive, Astronomy Domine, Lucifer Sam, Fearless, Obscured By Clouds, When You're In, Arnold Layne, Vegetable Man, If/Atom Heart Mother/If Reprise, The Nile Song, Green Is The Colour, Let There Be More Light, Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun, See Emily Play, Bike, One Of These Days.

ENCORE: A Saucerful Of Secrets, Point Me At The Sky. WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD! Do not read on if you don't want surprises to be spoilt, regarding what the band played! Luxembourg has been starved of Pink Floyd over the years - as far as we can tell, it is the first time that a member of the band has performed there! That pent up energy, held like a genie in a bottle all these years, was released as the Luxembourgers seemed determined to be seen as the best audience of the tour. Marking a first was the crowd singing along with A Saucerful Of Secrets, much to the band's surprise and delight! For this latest show on the tour, during his initial thanks and welcome to the audience, Nick said (to huge cheers from the crowd): "As I'm fond of pointing out, we are not the People's Republic of David Gilmour, or the Australian Roger Waters or anything else; we are Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets! We're very happy to be here, and we're hoping that you're going to enjoy listening as much as we enjoy playing." Certainly that sense of fun and enjoyment comes across so clearly in the performances. Definitely a show to catch if you can! In an aside, Nick made mention of the different nature of the venue - all standing. "We walked into this venue and said 'This is great!' We've been doing theatres - really nice - but there's something about one room that's just one big mosh pit - no golden tickets!" Again, this went down very well with the crowd, as did the mention that the band all voted 'Remain' in the Brexit referendum! The band now travel to Paris for the show there on Monday. We'd love to know from those attending how they felt the concert went. How was the show for you, if you were one of the fortunate ones to attend? Let us know what YOU thought! CONCERT REVIEW and PICTURES by BD CONTRIBUTOR, Julien Piscione Den Atelier is a concert hall of Luxembourg-city, in the district of Hollerich. This old Renault garage was transformed into a concert hall during the summer of 1995. This place has a reduced capacity and allows you to see the artists with a great closeness. No better way to see Nick Mason and his Saucerful Of Secrets! The concert was sold out a few weeks ago. A good atmosphere came from this crowd. Nick Mason's arrival allowed everybody to applaud this discreet hero of Pink Floyd. The concert was tremendous. A moment of psychedelic poetry. The atmosphere in the crowd was great. Many of the old and great pieces of Pink Floyd were played. I do not want to reveal the list of songs but I did not notice a single piece recording for The Dark Side Of The Moon or beyond. Thus it is really the first part of the Pink Floyd era that was honoured. I especially noted the piece A Saucerful Of Secrets which was sang by the public. A shivering and timeless moment. Thanks to Nick Mason and his band. YOUR HELP NEEDED! We want to cover Nick's concerts the best we can, to share the experience with everyone, especially those who won't be able to attend the shows. We'd love to see ANY pictures, tickets scans, reviews, newspaper reports, and anything else you come across for this show - we look forward to hearing from you!
LOWER MAKEFIELD >> Fire roared through a 2008 Subaru making for a dramatic scene behind Station 80 in Lower Makefield Friday night As a column of thick gray and black smoke billowed into the night sky, a crowd of several hundred onlookers were feeling the heat during a Fire Prevention Open House hosted by the Yardley-Makefield Fire Company. A lot...
Dear Reader,

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.



As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.



Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.



Digital Editor
Lower price erosion in the current fiscal year is expected to help Sun Pharma, Indias largest drugmaker, to post a gradual improvement in sales from its US business. Analysts estimate that price erosion for the generic space, which was at 13-15 per cent last year, is expected to come down to about 8-10 per cent in FY19.

While the company, which derives 35 per cent of its consolidated sales from the US market, reported a 3 per cent fall over the year-ago quarter, on a sequential basis the US sales grew 12 per cent. The improvement, first in at least four quarters, was on ...
Durgabai Deshmukh South Campus and Sir Vishweshwaraiah Moti Bagh stations on the Delhi Metro did not carry the name of the two personalities in the original plan and they were rechristened on the recommendations of a panel, which had suggested renaming of eight other names on the network, according to sources.

Durgabai Deshmukh South Campus station, named after the freedom fighter, social worker and educationist, is a part of the corridor inaugurated in mid-March, and Sir Vishweshwaraiah Moti Bagh station, expected to open soon, intends to fortify the legacy of the legendary engineer-scholar.

Both places are among the 10 stations whose names were changed following recommendations of the committee set up for reanaming metro stations, the sources said.

"The other stations include Tughlakabad (changed to Tughlakabad Station), Okhla (to Harkesh Nagar Okhla), Badarpur (to Badarpur Border) on Violet Line; Okhla-Phase III (to Okhla NSIC) on Magenta Line and Ghevra (Ghevra Metro Station) on Green Line," a source told PTI.

On the proposed corridor from Dwarka-Dhansa bus stand, two stations were renamed after the panel's recommendations - Municipal Corporation (to Najafgarh) and Najafgarh Depot Station (to Nangli).

The changes were approved by the Delhi government, the sources said, adding that the original plan of the Majlis Park-South Campus corridor of only mentioned the two stations as South Campus and Moti Bagh stations.

Deshmukh was instrumental in setting up the Sri Venkateswara College, a part of the Delhi University's South Campus. The station is located in the vicinity of the college. The rechristening, in a nod to her legacy, was done prior to the opening of the Pink Line corridor.

Incidentally, the two stations are the first ones on the network to have been named after personalities, and Durgabai Deshmukh South Campus is the first metro station to carry the name of a female luminary.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has also renamed some of its stations as part of its co-branding policy. As many as 41 stations have been taken up under the policy and many have been co-branded while others are in pipeline, the sources said.

Three stations on the Kalkaji Mandir-Janakpuri West corridor on Magenta Line - set to be inaugurated tomorrow - have been included in the co-branding exercise - IIT, Greater Kailalsh and Terminal 1-IGI Airport.
The cost of prosecuting terror attacks mastermind and banned Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) head, Hafiz Saeed, is too great, says former ISI chief Asad Durrani.

"If you prosecute Saeed, the first reaction will be: it's on India's behalf, you're hounding him, he's innocent, etc. The political cost is big, now," he says.

Durrani, 77, mentions this in a new book in which he features in conversation with former RAW chief A S Dulat and the two discuss topics including everything related to India- ties: the surgical strikes, Kulbhushan Jadhav, Nawaz Sharif, Kashmir and

When Dulat asks him, what is Saeed's value to Pakistan, Durrani replies, "The cost of prosecuting him is too great."



Saeed, who carries a $10 million American bounty for his role in terror activities, was under house arrest from January to November last year.

The JuD is believed to be the front organisation for the banned (LeT) which is responsible for carrying out the attacks in 2008 in which 166 people, including six Americans, were killed.

Saeed was declared a global terrorist by the US and the UN after the strikes and was put under house arrest in November 2008 but freed by a court some months later.

"He was taken to the courts though they had nothing (new) against him. It is still possible that he was detained to let the storm blow over. In six months, he could come out," writes Durrani about Saeed's detention.

In the book, published by HarperCollins India, Dulat and Durrani are in conversation with Aditya Sinha.

On asked by Dulat if Saeed's house arrest was choreographed, Durrani says, "What's new, as far as is concerned, is more evidence available? One would expect that there's an arrangement with

Asked if there were any positive implications for Indo-Pak relations from Saeed's house arrest, he says, "There are very few positives on the India- front right now. But this can provide breathing space to a country that is constantly under pressure."



Meanwhile, Pakistan's powerful Army has accused Durrani of 'violating' the military code of conduct and has summoned him tomorrow seeking clarification over his book "The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace".

Durrani mentions in the book that Mumbai remains the only incident in which he decided that he would be available to any Indian and Pakistani channel to say that whoever has done this, be it state-sponsored, ISI-sponsored, military-sponsored, should be caught hold of and punished.

"It's not only about those 168 people dead, four days of carnage, etc. At the time could ill afford its eastern front caught in a war. There were enough problems in the West and within the country. I don't know who did it, but there were questions that named an ISI major. It created difficulties for us," he says.

On reports that Headley collaborated with Saeed, he says, people can go ahead and investigate as all these stories have floated around.

"For eight years, both of us have advocated joint investigation, joint trial, intelligence sharing, get on with the anti- mechanism, etc, for the simple reason that we can't do anything until and unless this is resolved. Till then, Hafiz Saeed, ISI, Jaish-e-Mohammed: it's possible they had nothing to do with it, that there's a third or fourth or fifth party involved," he says.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid his tribute to Pandit Jawarharlal Nehru on the death anniversary of India's first prime minister during his Mann Ki Baat address. He also paid his tribute to Veer Savarkar saying that it was Savarkar who called the 1857 sepoy mutiny the First War of Independence. "The month of May is associated with a historic event in 1857.

While many preferred to call it only a Mutiny or a Sepoy Mutiny, it was Veer Savarkar who called it the First War of Independence. I pay my tributes to the great Veer Savarkar," he said. Here are ...
We thank the Permanent Mission of Brazil and other organisers for highlighting this aspect of Southern legacy that is relatively little known here at the United Nations. We appreciate all the other speakers and panelists who are taking part in this enriching discussion.

This is a useful opportunity to remember and acknowledge the historic contribution of women, especially from the South, in creating this remarkable multilateral forum of the United Nations. When we look back at the time of the origins of the United Nations, we must remind ourselves that this was the time when many of the ...
Earlier this year, the NIIF kick started its funding activity with global operator of marine and inland terminals DP World by creating a platform for investing up to USD 3 billion in ports and logistics. "We are now discussing a fund in NIIF which is more for the strategic investment," a top finance ministry official told PTI. When asked about by when the fund would come into existence, the official said, discussions ...

Dear Reader,

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.



As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.



Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.



Digital Editor
RBI Governor will appear before a parliamentary panel on June 12, of which former prime minister is a member, to brief them about and mounting non-performing assets (NPAs).

Patel will talk about the conditions of nationalised in view of rising NPAs and the future course of action to tackle bank frauds.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on is headed by senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily and has members from almost all major political parties.

Members of the panel said the governor of the central bank will also answer queries on a spate of banking scams unearthed in the last few months.

The committee was earlier briefed by Financial Services Secretary on the queries related to the banking sector.

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, who is a member of the committee, is likely to attend the meeting on June 12.

Patel had recently said that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) did not have adequate powers to deal with public sector

We would like to know what kind of powers the RBI governor needs, a member said, adding that regulation is an important part and that is why the governor has been called.
At least four Russian servicemen were killed in Syria after they were shelled by militants, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed on Sunday.

"Two Russian military advisers, who controlled fire of the Syrian battery, died at the scene. Five other Russian military were wounded and immediately taken to a Russian military hospital. The military doctors had been fighting for the life of two wounded servicemen, but they did not manage to save them," Russian news agency TASS, quoted the ministry, as saying.

The fighting occurred in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor.

"During the fighting, which lasted for nearly an hour, the military destroyed 43 terrorists and six all-terrain vehicles with large-caliber armaments installed on them," the ministry added.

Russia has been participating in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) and insurgent groups in Syria since September 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Syrian rebel groups and militant organizations still control parts of northwestern and southwestern Syria, while a Kurdish-led alliance backed by the United States holds most of the northeast.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid media reports suggesting a high death rate of newborns at the G.K. General Hospital in Bhuj, Gujarat, its medical director has rejected this charge, saying hospital authorities are cooperating with a state government-appointed panel in the matter.

Dr. Gyaneshwar Rao, Medical Director of G.K. Hospital, said, "Comprehensive data reflecting the mortality trends have been shared with the Gujarat health ministry. The (hospital) authorities are cooperating with a three-member government-appointment panel and are looking into the matter."

The hospital authorities, in a statement, termed the report of the death of seven infants on May 21 as false. It asserted that only one infant suffering from viral infection had passed away in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of the hospital on May 21.

It was further informed that many patients admitted to the hospital are referred cases and develop further complications while on their way to the hospital, which results in a higher mortality rate at the hospital.

According to hospital statistics, the average mortality rate over the last year has dropped from 21 percent to 14 percent, while the average number of patients successfully discharged has risen from 68 percent to 79 percent.

G.K. Hospital's NICU is run under the program of Sick New-Born Care Unit (SNCU) and has the UNICEF as a technical partner. Data is validated by experts located in Gujarat capital Gandhinagar.

The mortality rate in the region is linked to the massive geography of the Kutch district, the largest district in India.

A large section of infants admitted to the hospital comprise those with fatal health issues such as malnourishment, premature birth, neonatal jaundice, etc. Despite this, the infant mortality rate of the hospital is one of the lowest amongst district hospitals of Gujarat.

In the past year, out of 33,284 paediatric patients treated in the hospital, 1,080 have been treated in the NICU.

According to public health experts, the Newborn Mortality Rate in any given hospital is highly variable depending on the number of complicated patients admitted in them.

If a hospital is getting very complicated cases, its mortality rate will be higher. Generally, 10 to 20 percent mortality is average under such circumstances, experts have said.

It has been revealed that the average occupancy of NICU is around 80 percent.

"The G.K. General Hospital has sufficient supplies of all drugs on the Essential Drugs List and provides the same to the patients free of cost. The hospital began functioning with 10 beds in the NICU, while today, it has a 30-bed NICU," said Dr. Rao.

The hospital further clarified that the NICU is functioning under the Department of Pediatrics headed by Dr. Hasmukh Chauhan with 31 years of experience and he is supported by a team of experienced doctors.

Managed by the Gujarat Adani Institute of Medical Sciences (GAIMS), the administration has taken notable measures in stepping up health care at the hospital. This has led to a remarkable improvement in patient care.

In 2013-14, 200-250 outdoor patients and 100 indoor patients were treated at the hospital. Today, the number of indoor patients has risen to an average of 350 and OPD has increased to an average of 1200 per day.

A dedicated team of consultant and resident doctors are available at the hospital. The infrastructure and equipment at the hospital have also been upgraded over time.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Afghanistan National Security Advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar is set to visit Pakistan on Sunday.

High-level representatives of the Afghan Army are to accompany him on the invitation of Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi.

Atmar is scheduled to meet Pakistani Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa. The aim of the meeting would be to discuss regional security and bilateral relations of the neighboring countries, according to Geo News.

Last month, Abbasi visited Kabul on the invitation of Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani. The two leaders then promised to work together on regional security.

Ghani and Abbasi discussed how both the countries can work together on peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan, counter-terrorism, return of Afghan refugees, bilateral trade and regional connectivity.

Abbasi announced a gift of 40 thousand tons of wheat for the Afghan people and waiver of additional regulatory duty on Afghan export to Pakistan.

The two sides also discussed exchanging of civilian prisoners during the meeting.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Popular Bollywood celebrities like Farhan Akhtar, Vidya Balan and Chetan Bhagat have heaped praise on Sikh police officer, who saved a Muslim man from allegedly being mob lynched.

A video of the cop, Gagandeep Singh is doing the rounds on social media, with people hailing his bravery.

While people on Twitter applauded Singh's act and his commitment towards his work, the Bollywood stars have called him the 'real hero.'

"We are quick to condemn those who take a life, but we must be quicker to commend those who save one. #hero #GagandeepSingh," Farhan tweeted.

Actress Vidya Balan called Gagandeep a "true Indian".

Author Chetan Bhagat wrote: "The Sikh police officer who saved the Muslim man. I don't care who's in power. That's the India I want and ever will want. Even if I am the only one left wanting it."

Talking to the micro-blogging site, actress Aditi Rao Hydari wrote: "So true... there is hope! #Hero #GagandeepSingh."

Actor Sidharth Malhotra tweeted: "Being a good example is the best form of service. #hero #Gagandeep."

In the video being circulated over social media, Singh was seen surrounded by the crowd, who were attacking the Muslim man, who was found with a Hindu girl at a temple in Uttarakhand's Ramnagar.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Baloch National Movement held a protest demonstration in Germany's Gottingen against five simultaneous underground nuclear tests conducted by the Pakistan Government in Chagai area of Balochistan in 1998.

According to the demonstrators, the people in Balochistan are suffering its after effects even after two decades.

Chagai-I was Pakistan's first public test of nuclear weapons. Its timing was a direct response to India's second nuclear tests, on 11 and 13 May 1998.

By testing nuclear devices, Pakistan became the seventh nation to publicly test nuclear weapons.

Pakistan's second nuclear test, Chagai-II, followed on 30 May 1998.

According to the reports, in 1998, on a clear and bright day in the Chagai district, Pakistan carried out a series of nuclear tests.

Pakistan's chief scientific officer is reported to have said "All praise be to Allah" and pushed the button, causing the mountain to shake in a vast explosion.

People have resorted to the usage of Twitter and used #NukeAftermathInBalochistan to highlight it.

"@BNMovement_ activists held a protest in #Gottingen #Germany to highlight impacts of #Pakistani #Nuclear Radiation in #Chagi area of #Balochistan. #NukeAftermathInBalochistan #NoToPakistaniNukes," tweeted one user.

"Baloch National Movement protest in Gottengon Germany against Pakistani nuclear tests in Balochistan," a Twitter handle, which goes by the name Current Balochistan, posted.

"It's disgusting. The Unite Nation and other human rights organizations have taken the oath of silence on nuclear tests of Pakistan in occupied Balochistan after which hundreds of the deadly diseases emerged in the region," another Twitter user wrote on the micro blogging site.

.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Sunday that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not give importance to Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut, who recently made a derogatory remark against the chief minister.

"We never give importance to a person like Sanjay Raut. The media gives him importance. The whole country knows who has an ego," Chief Minister Fadnavis said.

Raut, who is Shiv Sena's Rajya Sabha MP, yesterday said the Maharashtra Chief Minister was "arrogant", and said, "Even a dog starts considering himself a tiger after coming to power."

The tussle between the two started after Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray released a video of Fadnavis, wherein the state chief is accused of asking BJP workers to use all possible means to win the Palghar Lok Sabha seat, which will go to polls on May 28.

Thackeray released the audio clip while addressing a rally yesterday night in the poll-bound Palghar.

However, the BJP had alleged that the clip has been tampered with and that it would make public its unedited version.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Fadnavis also expressed concern over the continuous hike in the fuel prices in the country.

"Current fuel prices are high in the country due to higher rates in international markets. But now, the centre along with every state government is trying to find a solution, so that fuel could be available at cheaper prices," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh on Sunday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will not forge an alliance with any party for the forthcoming state assembly polls.

"Dashanan ke bhale dus sir ho jayein, unke liye Ek Ram kaafi rehta hai (Ravan can have ten heads but one Ram in enough for all of them)," Singh told the media here when questioned about allying with any other party ahead of Chhattisgarh assembly elections.

Raman Singh last year completed 14 years in office. He is the longest-serving BJP Chief Minister in the country.

The election in Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls are slated for later this year.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New chromosome study can lead to personalised counseling of pregnant women, claims a team of researchers.

Fetuses with a so-called new balanced chromosomal aberration have a higher risk of developing brain disorders such as autism and mental retardation than previously anticipated. According to a study conducted by the University of Copenhagen, the risk is 20 percent for fetuses with these types of aberrations.

These chromosomal aberrations are seen in the fetus in one out of 2,000 pregnant women. Until now, when such an aberration has been found, the medical doctors have told the pregnant woman that the fetus' risk of developing congenital malformations is 6-9 percent.

"We have identified all the people who, as fetuses, were diagnosed with such a chromosomal aberration in Denmark, and we can see that they more often have developed a disease. The previous study, which found a risk of 6-9 percent, mainly looked at congenital malformations and did not include neurocognitive diseases such as autism and mental retardation, which often emerge at a later stage. We have therefore been unaware of the extent of the total risk", said one of the authors of the study, Iben Bache.

'We call these aberrations balanced chromosomal rearrangements because all the genetic material is still there. There is neither a loss nor a gain of genetic material. The problem is that parts of the genetic material have been exchanged, and that might have caused disruption of an important gene', said Bache.

The study was the largest systematic survey of these rare chromosomal aberrations in fetuses, and it also evaluated the methods that can be used for examining them. These chromosomal abnormalities are diagnosed through chorionic villus sampling or amniocentesis by classical chromosomal analysis, where the genetic material is examined in a microscope.

This method has been used for the last 40 years, and it is still the method used in most pregnancies globally. However, in Danish hospitals, the method is increasingly being replaced with another method, chromosomal microarray, which exclusively tests for loss and gain of the genetic material.

Chromosomal microarray therefore cannot discover the rare balanced aberrations studied here. In contrast, the study reveals that modern genome sequencing in most cases will be able not only to detect these balanced chromosomal aberrations but also show whether genes have been damaged.

The researchers carefully examined the Danish records to find everyone born with a de novo balanced chromosomal aberration since 1975. Each time they found a person with the aberration, they established a control group of five individuals with normal chromosomes, who had been born more or less at the same time by a mother of the same age.

The researchers then visited the majority of the persons to do a examination and collect blood samples for modern genetic analyses. By comparing the data of the group with the chromosomal aberrations and the control group, the researchers found two-three times higher risk of developing a neurocognitive disorder in the group with the chromosomal aberrations.

In addition, the researchers found that the new whole-genome sequencing techniques are much better than any other techniques at assessing the health effect of a balanced chromosomal aberration. This is the conclusion after almost identical assessments made by two independent research groups, including a group from the Harvard Medical School.

"We have not known which analyses to use to discriminate the fetuses that will be healthy from those that will eventually develop disorders. Our study shows that by using the new sequencing technologies we can, in fact, discriminate in a number of cases. This may greatly affect the diagnosing and counseling of pregnant women carrying fetuses with this specific type of chromosomal aberration in the future," said Bache.

The study appears in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump on Saturday talking about his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said, "We're looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed."

This comes after South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a surprise meeting with Kim where the latter assured that he was still committed to denuclearization.

Today, President Moon said that talks will be held between the US and North Korea very soon.

As reported by CNN, Trump said there was a lot of goodwill for the meeting. A lot of people are working on it and it is moving along very nicely, he added.

On May 24, Trump abruptly cancelled the much awaited US-North Korea summit, scheduled for June 12. He blamed the 'hostility' and anger displayed by North Korea regarding the US-South Korea Max military drills and raised concern about the country's commitment to giving up its nuclear weapons.

On Saturday, South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon also said, Trump and Kim are expected to meet soon.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
An Egyptian high court has approved a month ban on video-sharing site YouTube on Saturday, over a video that is believed to denigrate the Prophet Mohammad.

The ruling is considered final and cannot be appealed.

Mohamed Hamid Salem, an Egyptian lawyer filed a lawsuit against YouTube for publishing the low-budget 13-minute video.

The video, which was made in California with private funding, had provoked a wave of anti-American unrest in Egypt and other Muslim countries when it appeared in 2012.

Salem said the ruling also orders that all links that broadcast the film be blocked.

In February 2013, a local court ordered the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to block YouTube for a month for the same reason, according to Anadolu Agency.

The ministry then said it would be difficult to enforce the ruling as it would eventually lead to disrupting Google's Internet search engine which could incur huge costs and job losses in Egypt.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
North Korea on Sunday slammed US reports which said N Korea is seeking economic assistance from the United States in return for denuclearisation.

The incumbent Workers' Party's official newspaper Rodong Sinmun said that Fox News TV, CBS and CNN were as impudent as to make rubbish that if North Korea meets the requirements of the U.S., it can get 'large-scale non-governmental economic aid,'" Yonhap quoted.

Agitated North claims that it is the US that asked for Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)-U.S. talks first and as far as the economic aid is concerned, the DPRK has never asked for it.

This newspaper controversy came after the U.S. President Donald Trump cancelled the meeting with North Korean Supreme leader Kim Jong-Un scheduled for June 12 in Singapore. Trump later changed his statement saying, the summit would go ahead as planned.

On Saturday, looking at the urgency of the matter, Kim held a summit with President Moon Jae-in at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom.

According to Moon, Kim was concerned if he could trust the U.S. with the security of its regime in return for denuclearisation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Several political leaders and general public in Gilgit-Baltistan have raised concern over the promulgation of Gilgit Baltistan Order, 2018 replacing the Gilgit Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order of 2009.

Gilgit-Baltistan Order, 2018, which essentially seizes the powers of Gilgit Baltistan Council and entrusts Prime Minister of Pakistan with indisputable authorities vis-a-vis Gilgit- Baltistan, was officially promulgated on May 21.

The unilateral decision has drawn the disappointment and ire of civilians and political leaders cutting across party lines, alike.

All have categorically condemned the decision citing it discriminatory, authoritative and suppressive in nature. They have also termed it devastating to the future of Gilgit-Baltistan.

The lawmakers have alleged that the order that boasts of empowering the people of the region by giving them unprecedented liberty to exercise their fundamental rights across the country is, in reality, another document of deceit and falsehood, designed tactfully to further suppress the beleaguered the indigenous people of the occupied territory.

"This has happened for the first time in the history of Gilgit-Baltistan that all MLAs cutting across party lines have come together for an issue. People ask as to why this didn't happen in 2009? That time the situation was not same when GESA (Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order 2009) was promulgated then each party had individually pointed out the flaws in the act. Today also, the situation is same and we are watching wrong transpiring before us. Government is doing what is beneficial for it (not us). We believe, if the 2018 ordinance comes into force then Gilgit-Baltistan will never be able to rise," said a member Gilgit Baltistan Legislative Assembly.

Another member of the Gilgit Baltistan Legislative Assembly said that the government should reconsider the amendment.

"When we had met them (the drafting committee), majority of us had proposed few demands (in the benefit of Gilgit-Baltistan) and we were promised their fulfillment. We were also promised that time that we would be given a fair representation in the parliament. However, they bypassed it in the final draft. We would like that to be reconsidered and we also want that agreement which was presented in the Gilgit-Baltistan assembly to be incorporated with the final draft," the leader added.

Meanwhile, another leader said that the "devious amendment will give exceptional rights to the people of the other parts of the country which could further exacerbate the issue of demographic change in the country."

"Islamabad, which have disregarded the constitution of the country and has resorted to extreme measures in dealing with the people of Gilgit Baltistan claims that the order will provide greater empowerment so as to bring Gilgit- Baltistan at par with other provinces. However, the region has been denied any extraordinary right that is enjoyed by other four provinces of the country. In fact, through a devious amendment describing the citizenship, it has given exceptional rights to the people of the other parts of the country which could further exacerbate the issue of demographic change in the country," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday lashed out at the Congress and other opposition parties for joining hands with an aim to 'break' the ruling the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 'act as obstacles in development' of the country.

"Those who worship a family can never worship democracy. They even deny the courage of the Indian Army for conducting the surgical strike. When international agencies praised India, then also they ran behind them to take a stand," Prime Minister Modi said here while inaugurating the Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal (KGP) expressway, also known as the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE).

Further taking on the Congress, Prime Minister Modi said: "Congress makes a joke out of whatever work is done for the poor Dalits and backward classes. They create obstacles in the development work and even treat that with disrespect. They think creating toilets for women is a joke, 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan' is a joke, providing free LPG connections is a joke, making bank accounts is a joke."

"The ones who have been in dynasty think everything is a joke. Never knew they would oppose India and put the development at stake just for the sake of opposing Modi. For them, their family is the country, for me, my country is my family," he added.

The Prime Minister further said that the Centre has spent more than Rs three lakh crore on new highways in last four years.

"Four years ago, only 12 kilometres a day were formed. Today about 27 kilometres of highways are being constructed, Through 'Make in India' campaign, manufacturing has received a boost. As a result, now there are 120 mobile phone manufacturing factories in India as compared to only two, four years ago," Prime Minister Modi said.

"Infrastructure does not differentiate on the basis caste, creed, religion and economic status. After agriculture, more employment opportunities arise in Medium and Small Enterprises (MSMEs). For this, both state and Centre are working together. For example, UP's Yogi Adiyanath govt has undertaken the 'One District, One Product' initiative," he added.

"Congress' UPA government could connect only connect 59 panchayats with optical fibers. In the same time, we have done it for more than 1 lakh villages. How work is done, my nation is experiencing it right now," he said, amid loud cheers from his supporters.

The Prime Minister also accused the opposition of doing the " of appeasement".

At the inaugural ceremony, Prime Minister Modi was joined by Uttar Pradesh and Haryana Chief Ministers Yogi Adityanath and Manohar Lal Khattar.

The 135-km EPE is India's first smart and green highway and is built at a cost of Rs. 11,000 crore. It is also the country's first highway to be lit by solar power and at every 500 metres, the arrangement of rainwater harvesting has been done on both sides of the expressway.

Before inaugurating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway, PM Modi also kickstarted the first phase of the Delhi-Meerut expressway, which stretches from Nizamuddin Bridge in Delhi to Delhi-UP Border.

The14-lane highway will reduce the travel time between the two cities to only 45 minutes from the present four to five hours.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Regional parties together will win the 2019 General Elections said Andhra Pradesh (AP) Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday.

"In 2019, regional parties will rule. All regional parties are coming together to defeat BJP. In 2019, BJP will taste defeat. It gave false promise but could not deliver anything. Conspiracies are going on to create tension in the state. But we won't let them happen," he said.

Continuing his attack on the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, he said, "Modi rule is full of pompous campaign, no action. Modi is speaking big but doing nothing. I supported demonetization thinking it would be good for the economy. But because of Centre, banks are going insolvent. People have lost faith in banking system. We never saw such currency shortage."

"Special status is our right. But Centre is showing discrimination against us. Why? The BJP led centre is doing injustice to AP. The had retracted the money released for backward districts. Why won't you give special status to AP? Even Telangana supported SCS to us. I took up Dharma Porata Deeksha only for the sake of the state benefit. We are not asking impossible or illegal things. We are asking only those which are due to the state. When we are asking for our rights, they are provoking some (opposition) on us," he added.

"GST is causing much burden on the poor. Small traders are suffering with GST. Centre is playing dirty Centre is neglecting agriculture. They said to implement Swaminathan commission recommendations, but they forgot. They are not paying MSPs to crops," he said.

Claiming that the Telugu people had given them a chance with the thought that they had the capacity to develop a 'Navyandhra' (New-Andhra), he said, "In future also victory will be ours only. Let us go ahead with the spirit and inspiration of NTR. The TDP has total 70 lakhs devoted and disciplined workers. 60 lakhs in AP, 10 lakhs in Telangana. Our party is based on the tireless efforts and relentless sacrifices of cadre."

Citing the injustice dished out to his state to be the reason he broke alliance with the Democratic Alliance (NDA), he said, "We have come out of the NDA as a response to the injustice done to the state. There is no need to worry or be afraid. Let us step ahead with self respect and self confidence with the spirit of NTR."

"Our government only could effectively implement welfare schemes. YSR's rule was full of scams. We gave utmost priority to welfare activities. 24000 farmers committed suicides during 10 year Congress rule. We could resolve current shortage problem within 3 months of coming to power. We will not increase power tariff in future," he added.

He also pledged to make Amravati a world-class city.

"With my efforts Hyderabad grew to become a great city. People of Telangana are enjoying that fruit. I am happy for that. We will develop Amaravati, Visakhapatnam and Tirupati in AP. Will develop Amaravati as a city in the world's top 5. With the Pattiseema project, we have interlinked Godavari and Krishna rivers. Now Polavaram project works are going on at fast pace," he said.

A massive bike rally was held from Naidu's residence in Amaravati to the venue here.

Naidu also paid floral tributes to the late NT Ramarao at the beginning of the Mahanadu event.

Chandrababu also inaugurated a Development for Women Children in Rural Areas (WCRA) bazaar set up at the Mahanadu premises. He also inaugurated a blood donation camp. Party workers who donated blood would be given certificates.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A farmer died here on Sunday while protesting against the non-payment of sugarcane dues, causing an outrage among fellow agitating farmers on the day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to hold a rally in the district.

Sugarcane farmers have been holding protests against the government for various demands, most significant of which was the lack of clearance of dues. Farmers continued the protest indefinitely when the demands were not fulfilled. Even in the blazing heat, the farmers are protesting.

The health of the farmer in question, Udayavir, whose health started deteriorating rapidly, passed away early today.

His death enraged the protesters, who did not let the authorities move the body of the deceased.

Continued protests saw two more farmers getting admitted to the hospital, as their health had also deteriorated.

"Since the last five-six days, these farmers have been protesting. Their demands include several essentials, most importantly clearance of their sugarcane dues. One of the farmers has expired, but police officials are all busy (due to the rally).... It is a shame really," said Arun Tomar, one of the representatives of the farmers.

"When we received the information (about the death), we immediately came here and upon checking, found that there was no pulse...The reason of death can only be assessed after post-mortem," said Dr. Rajiv Tyagi, who checked Udayavir.

In the wake of the incidents, Samajwadi Party chief, Akhilesh Yadav took a potshot at Prime Minister Modi's rally in the area, saying, "Baghpat, Meerut Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor ke log jaante hain ki kitna kisanon ka bakaya hai ganne ka. Road show se ganne ka jo bakaya paisa hai woh toh milna nahi hai. SC ne order diya tab sadak (Eastern Peripheral Expressway) ka inauguration hua (The people of Baghpat, Meerut Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor know how much they are owed for their sugarcane. Holding road shows will not get them their money. Only after the Supreme Court ordered did they inaugurate the Eastern Peripheral Expressway)."

However, in the rally, Prime Minister Modi said, "I want to assure all the sugarcane farmers here that the government is sensitive towards their issues and is working to resolve all the problems.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao on Sunday expressed his grief over the demise of noted Telugu film actor and producer Madala Ranga Rao while undergoing treatment in private hospital in Hyderabad.

The chief minister remembered him as the person who produced several pictures with social consciousness and also inspired many. He conveyed his condolences to the bereaved family members.

Ranga Rao also widely known as "Red Star" for his revolutionary movies, passed away on Sunday

Ranga Rao had received the prestigious Golden Nandi award from the then Andhra Pradesh government for his film 'Yuvatharam Kadilindhi'.

Various political leaders have condoled the demise of Ranga Rao.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
'Doctor is the second God' proverb truly describes this doctor from Pune, who treats homeless and beggars free of cost.

Dr Abhijeet Sonawane starts his day by visiting shrines and religious places and treating the elderly and physically challenged homeless people, who beg to survive.

Moreover, he not only looks after the needy but also admits those in critical conditions to the government hospitals, taking care of all of their expenses.

Speaking to ANI, Sonawane said, "These elderly people are generally the ones who have been abandoned by their families and have no option but to beg. I not only do their check up but also give them free medicines which I carry with me. I do this from 10 am to 3 pm from Monday to Saturday."

For these needy people, Sonawane is now like a family member, who has been helping them for almost two years now. He also has a trust named 'Soham Trust' which helps in executing this initiative.

"This is my way of giving back to the society. While treating these people I build a rapport with them and then try to convince them to quit begging and do some kind of work. I also assure them of my support in all forms," said Sonawane.

Calling himself 'Doctor for beggars', Sonawane has set an example for others to emulate.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon on Saturday said, US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un are expected to meet soon.

He said this in the meeting with British veterans of the Korean War and South Korean resident in the British capital en route to Ireland.

"After the beginning of this year, the circumstances of the Korean Peninsula have dramatically shifted," Yonhap quoted Lee as saying. The peninsula has "welcomed in a good chance to permanently bring in a more lasting peace," he added.

About the meeting between President of S Korea Moon Jae-in and Kim, Lee said it could have been about Kim's and Trump's much-awaited summit and on expediting the implementation of the Panmunjom declaration.

He concluded by talking about how hopeful and optimistic he is for the successful hosting of the Trump-Kim summit set for June 12 in Singapore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Due to the problem of water scarcity in the Madhya Pradesh's Katni district, the locals have to collect water coming down from a temple in the mountains.

"We collect water coming down from a temple in the mountains, which takes a lot of time. There are several bees at that place as well. It is very difficult," a local said.

The management has promised water tankers for storage within two days.

"There is problem of water scarcity in the village as it is a plateau. Still, we have arranged water but they couldn't receive it because of electricity problem. We will provide them tankers for water storage within two days," said Pradip Singh, chief executive officer of Janpad Panchayat Rithi.

Meanwhile, in the Damoh district, the girls of government hostel have to travel four kilometers daily to use the toilet, due to water scarcity.

The girls of the government hostel travel every day with their school teacher and other maids with buckets to use the toilet.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At least 23 persons were killed and over 1.66 lakh persons were affected due to heavy monsoon rains in Sri Lanka in the past 10 days, official figures indicated on Sunday.

Over 75,013 of the affected people have been evacuated from flooded areas whereas 13 persons have been reported missing, the country's Disaster Management Centre said.

The displaced have been put up in 339 camps and shelters.

Rain and strong winds have lashed around 20 districts, especially in the southern half of the country, for more than a week now, Efe news reported.

At least 1,359 members of the armed forces have been deployed in rescue operations across the country, and another 6,264 are on standby, the centre said.

Every year, Sri Lanka experiences heavy rain during the monsoon.

In June last year, monsoon rain and cyclone Mora had caused at least 212 deaths. As many as 79 persons were reported missing.

--IANS

mag/tsb/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At least four Russian servicemen, including two military advisers, were killed in Syria after they were shelled by militants, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Sunday.

Several groups of militants attacked the Syrian army's artillery battery in the province of Deir al-Zour on Saturday night, killing two Russian military advisers on the spot and wounding another five soldiers.

The injured were immediately taken to a Russian military hospital, but two of them died there, Xinhua news agency reported, citing the Russian Defence Ministry.

The Syrian and Russian troops fought the militants for about one hour and killed 43 militants and destroyed six cross-country vehicles armed with large-calibre weapons, according to the ministry.

Russia has been participating in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) and insurgent groups in Syria since September 2015 at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

--IANS

mag/pgh/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The AAP on Sunday said it had extended support to the protests proposed by two farmer unions in June in Rajasthan to demand loan waiver and cost plus 50 per cent profit based on the Swaminathan Committee recommendations.

"The 'Kisan Mahapanchayat', backed by 69 farmer organisations, and the 'Aam Kisan Union', supported by 103 organisations, will hold protests from June 1 to 10, during which farmers in Rajasthan will not participate in agriculture-related work but sell their produce from their homes instead of markets," said AAP leader Ashish Khetan.

"The farmer organisations had sought Aam Aadmi Party support. So, all our party workers will participate in the proposed protests," he said.

"The farmers are demanding that people living in urban area should come to their villages to buy farm products," the AAP leader added.

Om Jangu, a farmer leader from Rajasthan, said: "Water from Indira Canal, which is distributed in nine districts of the state, is used for drinking also but is contaminated. Wastewater from factories is discharged into the canal.

"The Prime Minister is talking about celebrating the World Environment Day on June 5, but he can't see what water we are being supplied for drinking."

Jangu also said that the country is importing sugar and pulses but doesn't have money to pay its own farmers.

--IANS

nks/tsb/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Afghanistan's National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar arrived in Pakistan on Sunday for talks with senior civil and military leaders on security issues, Pakistani and Afghan officials said.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi invited the Afghan security adviser for further discussions on issues he had talked about with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul last month, Xinhua reported.

Atmar is scheduled to hold official talks with his Pakistani counterpart Nasir Janjua and will also meet Pakistan's Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

This is the first high level visit by a senior Afghan official after Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed on a comprehensive bilateral mechanism for dialogue on key areas.

Both sides have operationalised five working groups under the Afghanistan Pakistan Action Plan for Solidarity and efforts are underway to implement its seven key principles that also include their commitments to take action against fugitive and irreconcilable elements.

--IANS

ahm/

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
British defence contractors selling arms to Israel has reached a record level, new figures revealed on Sunday.

Figures from the Campaign Against Arms Trade revealed that last year the UK issued 221 million pounds ($294 million) worth of arms licences to defence companies exporting to Israel, reports the Guardian.

This made Israel the UK's eighth largest market for UK arms companies, a huge increase on the previous year's figure of 86 million pounds, a substantial rise from the 20 million pounds worth of arms licensed in 2015.

In total, over the past five years, Israel has bought more than 350 million pounds worth of UK military hardware.

Licences issued to UK defence contractors exporting to Israel last year include those for targeting equipment, small arms ammunition, missiles, weapon sights and sniper rifles.

In 2016 the UK issued licences for anti-armour ammunition, gun mountings, components for air-to-air missiles, targeting equipment, components for assault rifles, components for grenade-launchers and anti-riot shields.

The revelation comes just days after it was confirmed that Prince William will represent the UK government on a visit to Israel next month, the Guardian reported.

"After the appallingly excessive response of the Israeli security forces at the Gaza border, tensions in the occupied Palestinian territories are likely to be close to boiling point when Prince William makes this historic visit," said Kerry Moscogiuri, Amnesty International UK's Campaigns Director.

--IANS

ksk

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress on Sunday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the death of a protesting farmer a day before his rally in Uttar Pradesh's Baghpat, noting that he did not speak about the incident during his speech nor visit the farmers family.

The attack came a day before the crucial by-election in Kairana parliamentary constituency in Uttar Pradesh where a united Opposition is taking on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Kairana is over 50 km away from Baghpat.

"The sugarcane farmers of Uttar Pradesh are thinking that the Prime Minister, who is taking credit for UPA schemes, wades through their farms in a road show but does not pay attention to them. Unfortunately, farmers like Udayveer, who gave away their life while fighting for their rights cannot even think of this (of Prime Minister paying attention)," Congress President Rahul Gandhi said in a tweets.

Udayveer, a sugarcane farmer, died on Saturday during a protest at Baghpat's Baraut tehsil over pending cane dues and power tariff hike.

Congress leader Shaktisinh Gohil said Modi did not utter a word about the farmer's death during his speech and "should have shown some sensitivity".

"A farmer died due to policies of the BJP government.. Modiji should have gone to his home. He should have at least found this time," he said.

Noting Modi had told sugarcane farmers before the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls that their arrears will be paid in 14 days, Gohil said that leave alone 14 days or months, so much time has elapsed that the farmers' condition had worsened, while the arrears have risen from Rs 5,000 crore to Rs 12,000 crore during the BJP rule.

Referring to Modi inaugurating the 135-km Eastern Peripheral Expressway and the first phase of Delhi-Meerut Expressway, Gohil said the two projects had been conceptualised and fast-tracked during the Congress-led UPA government.

Accusing Modi of vote bank round-the-clock, he said there is a "moral code of conduct" in elections" but "Modi and morals cannot go together."

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said: "Udayveer lost his life during protest of sugarcane farmers. Modi and (Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi) Adityanath, who came to power on promise of clearing dues of farmers in 14 days have forgotten that dues of Rs 12,224 crore are pending and electricity bill has been raised by Rs 1,600 per month."

--IANS

ps-mg/vd

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress on Sunday appointed former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy as General Secretary in charge of Andhra Pradesh, replacing Digvijaya Singh, while Gaurav Gogoi is the new in charge of West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar.

The changes were made by Congress President Rahul Gandhi and have come into force with immediate effect.

Reacting to his new responsibility, Chandy said: "I was appointed due to my vast experience and I am confident of bringing back Congress to Andhra Pradesh."

A party release, announcing the change, said that the "party appreciates the hard work and contribution of Digvijaya Singh, who will be stepping down from his responsibility as AICC General Secretary in charge of Andhra Pradesh".

The former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister, who was last year removed as General Secretary in charge of Telangana, and divested of the charge of Goa and Karnataka where he was replaced by A. Chella Kumar and K.C. Venugopal respectively, is expected to play a bigger role in the party's preparations for the assembly elections in his home state later this year.

The party statement commended the contribution of C.P. Joshi, who was so far in charge of West Bengal and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

--IANS

ps/vd/him/

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
If you happen to visit San Francisco, and walk down its Burritt Alley, your attention may be drawn to a plaque, marking the approximate spot where "Miles Archer, partner of Sam Spade, was done in by Brigid O'Shaughnessy. A particularly lurid crime? It was -- in an epoch-marking work of a different kind of crime fiction.

The struggle between good and evil, or order and chaos -- represented in literature through crime fiction -- began with absolute heroes and villains before the ambiguities and complexities of post-First World War life, and new patterns of crime demanded a change in their depiction.

In the forefront was an ex-private detective-turned-writer, with less than half-a-dozen novels from little over a decade in his over six-decade-long turbulent life, but still having wide-ranging cultural impact -- of which the plaque is just one example.

Dashiell Hammett (1894-1961), whose 124th birth anniversary falls on Sunday (May 27), may be more famous amid hardcore aficionados of hardboiled crime, of which he was a pioneer, but his significance is certainly not limited to it.

The prevalence of lurid, but realistic crime usually with elaborate cover-up attempts, or a town with a dark secret -- which an outside protagonist, sent there to investigate, discerns and deals with, or a character who does not let his personal or moral beliefs interfere with his work can be credited to him.

These motifs are not confined to literature, but can also be seen in a range of iconic films from Akira Kurosawa's "Yojimbo" and Coen Brothers's "Miller's Crossing".

But Hammett's most prominent contribution was the self-confident, wise-cracking, and unsentimental but still honourable Sam Spade, who is tarnished but not too much and can resist femme fatales -- who not became the archetypical American private detective, but also inspired a raft of print and reel -- and real-life -- characters.

And Spade did this through just one book - "The Maltese Falcon" (1930) -- and its 1941 film adaptation starring quintessential 'Tough Guy' Humphrey Bogart.

That was the crowning achievement of Hammett -- whose fame rests on five novels -- of which "Red Harvest" (1929), and "The Dain Curse" (1930) were both assembled from four inter-connected stories each out of the 36 featuring the nameless short, heavy and balding but tough "The Continental Op" (the other stories are available in anthologies) and then the Spade book.

Then there is "The Glass Key" (1934), a volatile mix of crime and politics, and finally "The Thin Man" (1934), starring ex-detective Nick Charles, who gets pulled back in the field, with his glamorous socialite wife, Nora, to help him. After this, Hammett had severe writer's block and just managed one play in the rest of his life.

But while Hammett's life -- becoming a Pinkerton detective, his contacting tuberculosis, leaving his family to write -- initially for pulp magazines, his wide knowledge, his love affairs (especially with playwright Lilian Hellman, his companion till the end), his World War II service, his Communist leanings (which led him to be blacklisted and serve a prison term), can be found in the introductions to any good edition of his works (especially Vintage Crime's Black Lizard or Hachette UK's Orion imprints), it is his art that is key.

His gifted contemporary -- and successor Raymond Chandler of 'Philip Marlowe' fame -- puts it best, saying Hammett "took murder out of the Venetian vase and dropped it into the alley".

"Hammett gave murder back to the kind of people that commit it for reasons, not just to provide a corpse; and with the means at hand, not with hand-wrought duelling pistols, curare, and tropical fish. He put these people down on paper as they are, and he made them talk and think in the language they customarily used for these purposes. He had style, but his audience didn't know it, because it was in a language not supposed to be capable of such refinements...," he said in his 1950 essay "The Simple Art of Murder".

This is obvious across Hammett's work -- be it the descriptions: "...Her body was erect and high-breasted, her legs long, her hands and feet narrow. She wore two shades of blue that had been selected because of her eyes..." (Brigid), or action: "'Stop, you idiot!' I bawled at her. Her face laughed over her shoulder at me. She walked without haste to the door, her short skirt of gray flannel shaping itself to the calf of each gray wool-stockinged leg as its mate stepped forward. Sweat greased the gun in my hand.. And I put a bullet in the calf of her leg." ('The Continental Op').

And there is the crisper dialogue: "He went like that," Spade said, "like a fist when you open your hand" or as Nick holds: "She keeps trying and you've got to be careful or you'll find yourself believing her, not because she seems to be telling the truth, but simply because you're tired of disbelieving her."

If you read Hammett's books and see the films, you'll find it hard to spot differences - in plot and dialogue especially. How many writers can claim that?

(Vikas Datta is an Associate Editor at IANS. The views expressed are personal. He can be contacted at vikas.d@ians.in)

--IANS

vd/vm

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump has revived hopes for a planned summit with North korean leader Kim Jong-un by announcing that "we're looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed", the media reported on Sunday.

Trump made the remarks late Saturday at the Oval Office here after his South Korean counterpart

Moon Jae-in delivered his first public comments following his surprise meeting with the North Korean leader earlier on Saturday, saying Kim was still committed to denuclearization and was still willing to meet the American leader. reports CNN.

Saturday's inter-Korean summit was held on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a border village that sits directly on the Military Demarcation Line that divides the two Koreas.

The first Moon-Kim summit was held on the South Korean side of Panmunjom on April 27.

On Thursday, Trump abruptly cancelled the highly-anticipated US-North Korea summit, scheduled for June 12, citing hostile comments from top North Korean officials and concern about the country's commitment to giving up its nuclear weapons.

Trump said there was a "lot of goodwill" for the meeting.

"A lot of people are working on it. It's moving along very nicely," he told reporters on Saturday night.

In a tweet on Friday, Trump had said "very productive talks" were continuing on the North Korean summit.

"We are having very productive talks with North Korea about reinstating the Summit which, if it does happen, will likely remain in Singapore on the same date, June 12th., and, if necessary, will be extended beyond that date," Trump wrote.

--IANS

ksk

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
England could get more national parks after Environment Secretary Michael Gove announced that he was launching a review into the country's natural landscapes.

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Gove said "the time is right" for a review, nearly 70 years on from the creation of the first national areas, reports the BBC.

It will consider whether to expand England's network of parks as well as areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONB).

England has 10 national parks - the Broads, Dartmoor, Exmoor, the Lake District, the New Forest, Northumberland, the North York Moors, the Peak District, the South Downs and the Yorkshire Dales.

The first national parks to be created were the Peak District, Lake District, Snowdonia and Dartmoor in 1951.

There are two in Scotland - Cairngorms; and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs - and three in Wales: the Brecon Beacons, Pembrokeshire Coast, and Snowdonia.

The country also has 34 AONBs - including the Chilterns, the Cotswolds and the Isle of Wight.

Gove has appointed former government aide and journalist Julian Glover to carry out the review, the BBC reported.

"The creation of national parks almost 70 years ago changed the way we view our precious landscapes - helping us all access and enjoy our natural world, Gove wrote.

"We want to make sure they are not only conserved, but enhanced for the next generation."

Margaret Paren, chairwoman of National Parks England said the announcement was "very much welcome" and the organisation intends to "to play a full part".

National parks are areas specifically protected because of their countryside, wildlife and cultural heritage and are funded by central government.

--IANS

ksk

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Etihad Cargo, the cargo division of the United Arab Emirates' national carrier Etihad Airways, has launched its first humanitarian freighter missions in the Islamic month of Ramadan to India and Kazakhstan.

The Abu Dhabi government-controlled carrier said in a statement on Sunday that an Etihad Boeing 777 freighter aircraft departed Abu Dhabi to Almaty in Kazakhstan and then to Hyderabad in India, carrying special provisions to be distributed to those in need, reported Xinhua news agency.

The humanitarian missions are taking place throughout the year in collaboration with the Khalifa Foundation, the Red Crescent and His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Humanitarian & Scientific Foundation, said Etihad.

--IANS

him/vd

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Google has rewarded a Uruguayan teenager a "bug bounty" of more than $36,000 for disclosing a severe security flaw.

Ezequiel Pereira's sporadic poking around has finally paid off in a big way: Google just awarded the Uruguayan teenager $36,337 for finding a vulnerability that would have allowed him to make changes to internal company systems, CNBC reported on Saturday.

"I found something almost immediately that was worth $500 and it just felt so amazing. So I decided to just keep trying ever since then," Pereira was quoted as saying by CNBC.

"It feels really good - I'm glad that I found something that was so important," he added.

Although, Pereira found the bug earlier this year, he only just got permission to write about how he discovered it this week, after Google confirmed that it had fixed the issue, the report said.

It marks Pereira's fifth accepted bug, but it's by far his most lucrative.

Pereira was about a month shy of 17 when he first got paid for exposing a Google security flaw through its bug bounty programme.

Pereira got his first computer when he was 10, took an initial programming class when he was 11 and then spent years teaching himself different coding languages and techniques.

In 2016, Google flew him to its California headquarters after he won a coding contest.

--IANS

vc/vd

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Veteran actor Anupam Kher says he never scored more than 38 per cent marks, but still his father "celebrated" his failures, which thereby liberated him from the fear of getting less marks.

Anupam shared this on Twitter when he congratulated 17-year-old Meghna Srivastava for topping the CBSE Class 12 results scoring 499 out of 500, and a scribe pointed out how applauding those with "70-80 per cent marks should be equally celebrated".

The actor then clarified: "My friend, I celebrate people who fail too. Because for me failure is an event. Never a person. But that doesn't stop me from applauding somebody who gets 99.6 per cent marks."

When the scribe pointed out that the tweet was in general as "this is the time when people who fail or get lesser marks need support the most", Anupam wrote: "I agree. By the way I never got more than 38 per cent marks. Marks are important but parents shouldn't stress their children so much that they fear getting less marks.

"It is psychologically damaging. My father always celebrated my failures and in the process liberated me from this fear."

-*-

Bhandarkar's Dehradun diaries

On a visit to Dehradun, filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar not just met the Uttarakhand chief minister, but also visited some students and went to a single screen theatre.

During the meeting with Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, Bhandarkar discussed the possibility of promoting Uttarakhand as a film shooting destination.

He also met students of St Joseph's Academy.

Of visiting the single screen theatre, Bhandarkar tweeted: "Visited oldest Single Screen theatre of Dehradun, Prabhat Talkies, which is standing tall since 1947. Met the owner, a passionate exhibitor and film enthusiast Deepak Nagalia, It's sad to know that this theatre is on the verge of closure."

--IANS

rb/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India on Sunday summoned Pakistan Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah and lodged a strong protest over Islamabad's order on Gilgit Baltistan which is a part of Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

"The Deputy High Commissioner of Pakistan to India was summoned today and a strong protest was made against Government of Pakistan's so-called 'Gilgit Baltistan Order 2018'," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

"It was clearly conveyed that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

"Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation," it added.

Pakistan Prime Minister Khaqan Abbasi on Sunday announced enforcement of a reform package for Gilgit Baltistan which was greeted with pandemonium and a shouting match in the local assembly as members vehemently protested.

The Pakistan national parliament passed a constitutional amendment bill taking away powers of President in respect of tribal areas to empower its people, Abbasi said referring to the 31st constitutional amendment.

The External Affairs Ministry further conveyed to Pakistan through its Deputy High Commissioner that "such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of the state of Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan occupied territories for the past seven decades".

"Government of India's consistent position in the matter is reflected in the resolution passed by the Parliament in 1994 by consensus," the statement said.

--IANS

ab/vd

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reaffirmed his willingness to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula and hold a summit with US President Donald Trump, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Sunday.

"Chairman Kim Jong-un has once again clearly expressed his commitment to the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula following his pledge in the Panmunjom Declaration and expressed his willingness to end the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North Korea-US summit," Moon said of his latest summit with the North Korean leader held on Saturday.

"We both agreed the June 12 North Korea-US summit must be successfully held," Yonhap News Agency quoted Moon as saying here.

Saturday's inter-Korean summit was held on the North Korean side of Panmunjom, a border village that sits directly on the Military Demarcation Line that divides the two Koreas.

The first Moon-Kim summit was held on the South Korean side of Panmunjom on April 27.

Trump on Thursday called off his scheduled summit with Kim, citing the North's tremendous anger and open hostility, only to suggest later the meeting would go ahead as planned.

"While explaining the outcome of my summit with U.S. President Trump held last week, I relayed the message that President Trump is firmly willing to end his country's hostile relationship with North Korea and enhance economic cooperation should Chairman Kim make a decision on complete denuclearization and implements it," Moon said.

He said his surprise meeting with Kim came at a suggestion from the North Korean leader, who on Friday expressed hope to meet for candid dialogue.

"Also, as both Chairman Kim and President Trump sincerely wish for the success of the North-US summit, I stressed the need for the two sides to remove any misunderstanding through direct communication and to hold enough dialogue on agenda issues that need to be addressed at their summit," President Moon said, adding, "Chairman Kim also agreed".

Moon noted his meeting with the North Korean leader may help revive the Trump-Kim summit but said the fate of the historic summit will largely depend on direct dialogue between the two countries, reports Yonhap News Agency.

"All the efforts I am making now are aimed at improving the South-North Korea relationship on one hand, but on the other hand, they are also aimed at holding the North Korea-US summit that is absolutely needed to improve the South-North ties.

"I believe whether the June 12 North Korea-US summit will be disrupted or succeed depends on how successfully (the North and the US) complete their working-level negotiations," he said.

Meanwhile, Trump said late Saturday that the June 12 summit was still a possibility.

--IANS

ksk

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Luxury car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz India on Sunday rolled-out its 100,000th car -- an E-Class sedan -- for the Indian market from its manufacturing facility at Chakan, near Pune.

"With the growing demand of Mercedes-Benz products, a spiralling aspiration among young successful Indians, our extensive and expanding local portfolio, combined with an unparalleled network and innovations in customer service; we are positive that the next production milestone will be attained even earlier," said Roland Folger, Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India.

The company was the first luxury automotive brand to enter the Indian market in 1994. The "W 124 E-Class" was the first luxury car in India's modern era which rolled out of the assembly plant of Mercedes-Benz India in Pimpri, Pune.

Presently, Mercedes-Benz India's production facility is based in Chakan near Pune. It has been set up with an investment of more than Rs 1,000 crore.

--IANS

rv/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday mounted a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he survives only on publicity.

A day after the Modi government completed four years in office, NDA's former ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief described it as a "government of more talk less action".

Addressing the 34th 'Mahanadu' or annual conclave of his party, which began here, he also predicted that regional parties will come to power after the next general elections and that his party will play a crucial role in national

It is the first TDP conclave after the party pulled out of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government in March over the Centre's refusal to accord special category status to the state.

The TDP leader slammed the Modi government, saying none of its populist slogans like 'Make in India', 'Startup India' and 'Standup India' yielded the desired results.

"Has anybody benefited from Modi's schemes?" asked the TDP leader in his inaugural address at the three-day meet.

He said demonetisation destroyed the Indian banking system and people had to run around the banks to get their own hard-earned money. He alleged that the Goods and Services Tax imposed a burden on the common man.

Naidu said people lost confidence in the banking system due to scams. "According to a survey there is 61 per cent corruption in the central government. What is your answer?" he asked his audience.

He reminded the BJP of its poll promise to implement the Swaminathan Commission report to bail out the agricultural sector.

Naidu remarked that BJP's claim of being a party with a difference is ridiculous as its leaders were caught red-handed while trying to buy MLAs in Karnataka.

The Andhra Chief Minister said that Modi faced a public protest in Tamil Nadu for interfering in the state's by using the Cauvery water dispute as an excuse.

The Chief Minister also alleged that the central government is taking revenge on Andhra Pradesh for demanding fulfilment of the commitments made by the then government when Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated to carve out Telangana state.

Naidu also claimed that the Modi government tried to take over Tirupati temple under this conspiracy. He warned that anybody resorting to such a move will have to pay a heavy price.

Declaring that a special category status is the right of Andhra Pradesh, Naidu said he would not to rest till this was achieved.

Naidu predicted that regional parties would form the government at the Centre after the 2019 general elections. Amid loud cheers from his party cadres, he said the BJP's dream of retaining power will remain unfulfilled.

The TDP chief told the delegates that their party will retain power in the state and play a key role in national also.

Stating that the TDP has 70 lakh workers, he said only it could build a new Andhra Pradesh and bring a change in national politics.

Party delegates from both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are attending the conclave, which will pass 34 resolutions on various issues. The key political resolution will be adopted on the last day.

--IANS

ms/tsb/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
North Korea on Sunday confirmed that its top leader Kim Jong Un met with President of South Korea Moon Jae-in on Saturday.

The meeting was held at the northern side of the demarcation line between the two sides, Xinhua reported.

"Panmunjom, the historical land which had once come under global spotlights as a symbol of peace for making a new start of the north-south relations and opening up a new era of reconciliation and unity, witnessed the significant meeting between the top leaders of the north and the south once again after 29 days," media reports said.

Honor guards of the Korean People's Army lined up at the Thongil House to receive Moon while Kim warmly greeted and exchanged greetings with him.

The two top leaders were so pleased to have a historic meeting once again at the historic place after the lapse of one month, and warmly shook their hands with each other.

Moon wrote on the visitors' book of the Thongil House in memory of his visit to the north side area: "Peace and Prosperity of the Korean Peninsula, together with Chairman Kim Jong Un of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea."

The two leaders made "in-depth exchanges of opinions to tackle the matters which should be resolved to quickly carry out the Panmunjom Declaration" signed on April 27 by them to realize denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and achieve regional peace, stability and prosperity.

They also talked about "the matters the north and the south are now faced with, and the one of successfully holding the North Korea-US summit.

--IANS

qd

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A total of 66.4 per cent of voters voted to scrap the present anti-abortion laws in Ireland in a referendum, according to the final results announced by a returning officer here on Saturday.

A total of 33.6 per cent of voters chose to retain the present abortion laws, or widely known as the Eighth Amendment among locals, that virtually ban abortions in the country, said the returning officer Barry Ryan.

Ryan declared the above results of the referendum in front of a large cheering crowd of people gathering at a central count center at Dublin Castle, a main government complex in the Irish capital of Dublin, Xinhua reported.

According to Ryan, nearly 3.37 million voters were registered for the referendum and 64.1 per cent of them turned out in Friday's voting with some 6,000 votes declared invalid.

The turnout of the referendum was one of the highest in any referendums ever held in Ireland and this indicated how important the abortion issue meant for the Irish people.

The referendum received an overwhelming victory in almost all the 40 constituencies across the country except in Donegal, a constituency in the country's northwest, with 51.9 per cent of voters voting against repealing the Eighth Amendment.

Dublin ranked in the first place in terms of Yes vote for ending the constitutional ban in the country with a Yes vote of 75.5 per cent, followed by the eastern region of Leinster (66.6 per cent), the southwest region of Munster (63.3 per cent), and the midwest and northwest regions of Connacht and Ulster (57.5 per cent), according to the official results of the referendum.

A breakdown of the voting results indicated that the more developed a region, the higher it has the Yes vote.

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said the referendum marked a culmination of "a quite revolution" which has taken place in the country over the last few decades.

--IANS

qd

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday remembered Hindutva proponent Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, hailing him as a prominent champion of the 1857 uprising as the First War of Independence and not a revolt or mutiny.

"This was the very month (May) in 1857, when Indians had displayed their strength against the British. In many parts of the country, our youth and farmers demonstrated their bravery whilst standing up against the injustice.

"... it was Veer Savarkar who boldly expostulated that whatever happened in 1857 was not a revolt but was indeed the First War of Independence," Modi said in the 44th edition of his monthly radio programme, Mann ki Baat.

Born on May 28, 1883, Savarkar -- who remained President of the Hindu Mahasabha -- coined the term 'Hindutva' to create a collective Hindu identity as an essence of the country.

"It is also an amazing coincidence that the month, which witnessed the first struggle for Independence, was the one in which Veer Savarkar ji was born.

"Savarkar ji's personality was full of special qualities -- he was a worshipper of both weapons or 'shastra' and knowledge or 'shaastras'," the Prime Minister said, adding that Savarkar was also a poet and a social reformer who always emphasised on goodwill and unity.

Savarkar was arrested in 1910 for anti-imperialist activities and sent to cellular jail in Andaman and Nicobar Island for life. He was finally released in 1924. He wrote four mercy petitions in all during his jail term, and once out worked for the consolidation of Hindu identity.

Modi also spoke of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's account about Savarkar, where he had said Savarkar meant brilliance, sacrifice, penance, substance, logic, youth, arrow and a sword.

Even though Modi spoke extensively about Savarkar, he paid tribute in just one sentence to India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, on his 54th death anniversary.

"My dear countrymen, today is May 27, the death anniversary of the first Prime Minister of (independent) India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru ji. I render my 'pranam' to Pandit ji," he said.

--IANS

vn/tsb/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea filed by 38 families living in bonded labour in Madhubani district of Bihar, seeking direction for grant of ownership and possession of agricultural land for their rehabilitation.

The 101 victims of the "Kamiya" bonded labour system -- who have been exploited in multi-generational agricultural labour for several years -- approached the court, seeking direction to the Madhubani District Magistrate to grant ownership and possession of land to them, in compliance with the Patna NHRC order of September 12, 2017.

Advocate Anitha Shenoy, filing the plea on behalf of the labourers last week, also sought issuance of guidelines for the proper implementation of the Central Sector Scheme for Rehabilitation of Bonded Labourer-2016.

She contended the scheme makes a provision for grant of agriculture land and housing for the rehabilitation of released bonded labourers, and the authorities are duty bound to implement the scheme.

A bench of Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice Navin Sinha posted the case in July.

The plea said a complaint was made before the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in November 2014 by a social welfare organisation on behalf of the petitioners, alleging that over 38 families (101 persons) were being exploited for agricultural labour under an illegal bonded labour system by their respective employers.

A team set up by the NRHC for spot inquiry, which submitted its report on January 28, 2015, outlined the wretched condition of the families.

The NHRC on January 30 passed an order directing the District Magistrate of Madhubani to issue lease certificate to all the labourers, to ensure they were paid their back wages and given due compensation, and to extend towards them all the benefits of the Social Welfare Schemes to which they were entitled.

The District Magistrate in February 2015 submitted a report before the NHRC, stating that proceedings had been initiated and action taken against the employers.

In March, the official submitted that land had been allotted to all the 38 families for construction of their houses and possession handed over, and necessary entries in the revenue records of their ownership had been made.

However, on July 21, 2017, in a public hearing before NHRC, Patna, the labourers made submissions that they had still not been granted possession of land.

On September 12, last year the NHRC ordered the District Magistrate to grant land to the 101 rescued labourers within eight weeks.

The labourers' plea in the top court said the period of eight weeks has long since expired on November 8, 2017, and the District Magistrate has still failed to allot and grant possession of land, despite the petitioners having made repeated representations.

The petition said the district administration and the state of Bihar have failed in their duty to protect the fundamental rights of the petitioners by allowing them to be exploited as bonded labourers over decades.

Under the "Kamiya system", there is an economic compulsion on labourers to continue working in exploitative conditions for their employers due to advances received by them or their forefathers.

These labourers have their freedom of movement restricted, are often paid no wages apart from meagre rations, are made to work for oppressively long hours and are from very backward communities, said the plea.

--IANS

gt/him/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday mocked Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, saying the latter had supported demonetisation but was now questioning it, and soon he will describe demonetisation as the biggest scam of India.

A day after Nitish Kumar questioned the benefits of the much-hyped demonetisation move to the common people and slammed banks that allegedly helped the rich and powerful to manage their cash following the central government's November 8, 2016 move, Tejashwi Yadav, the Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, said: "Our beloved Nitish Chacha took another sharp U-turn."

Tejashwi Yadav, the former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister tweeted: "He (Nitish Kumar) supported demonetisation but is now questioning it. He is always years behind in understanding the issues, difficulties and demands of common people. Don't be surprised if he calls demonetisation the biggest scam of India."

Nitish Kumar on Saturday surprised not only his ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders here but his own party leaders when he questioned the benefits of demonetisation.

"I was supporter of demonetisation... but how many people benefited from it? Some powerful people shifted their cash from one place to another," the Bihar Chief Minister said at a meeting with bank officials here.

It is for the first time that Nitish Kumar, who is also the president of the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) -- a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally -- has questioned the demonetisation move of the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

Incidentally, Nitish Kumar's utterances against the December 2016 demonetisation move came on a day when the BJP was celebrating completion of four years of the Modi government at the Centre.

After the Chief Minister expressed his reservations about the benefits of demonetisation, senior BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who was also present, downplayed his statement, saying: "Nitish Kumar has been a supporter of demonetisation."

In 2016, Kumar, then part of the Grand Alliance of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Congress, had supported demonetisation, while RJD chief Lalu Prasad had opposed the move.

--IANS

ik/pgh/bg

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump welcomed Josh Holt, an American who had been held as a prisoner in Venezuela since 2016, upon his arrival here after being released, the media reported.

"You've gone through a lot, more than most people could endure," the President said to Holt as the two were seated side-by-side in the Oval Office late Saturday night.

"I'm just overwhelmed with gratitude for you guys for everything that you've done," Holt said in response, adding that it had been a "very, very difficult two years", reports CNN.

Holt, a Utah native, arrived at the White House with his wife, Thamy, who had also been imprisoned, shortly after flying back from Venezuela earlier on Saturday.

After the flight landed, Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, who said earlier in the day that his office helped secure Holt's release, posted a video to Twitter showing Holt reuniting with his family.

In his remarks from the White House, Trump also took the opportunity to highlight the release of other Americans held prisoner abroad, including the recent release of three Americans who had been detained by North Korea.

"You were a tough one, I have to tell you, that was a tough situation," the President said to Holt, adding that he is "very proud" of the administration's overall track record.

Holt travelled to Venezuela in June 2016 to marry Venezuelan Thamara Caleno, reports CNN.

He was arrested shortly afterward and accused by the Venezuelan government of stockpiling weapons and attempting to destabilise the government, according to The Washington Post.

Holt was held for nearly two years without standing trial.

Holt and his wife were freed overnight and released to the US Embassy in Caracas, according to Foro Penal, a human rights organization of lawyers and others who assist political prisoners in Venezuela.

The couple was joined by Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee as they flew back to the US on Saturday afternoon.

Holt's release comes more than a week after he posted videos to Facebook during a prison riot, pleading for help from Americans and the US government.

--IANS

ksk

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At a time when the India-Pakistan border is crackling with persistent gunfire with mounting casualties on both sides, former Indian intelligence chief A.S. Dulat has floated a disruptive proposal - invite Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa for a dialogue to reduce tension and talk peace.

Dulat said General Bajwa was making all the "right noises", referring to his April remarks that disputes, including Kashmir, between India and Pakistan can be solved only through peace talks.

"We should invite General Bajwa, the army chief. He has been talking peace and also a lot of our frustration in our dialogue with Pakistan is because we feel frustrated by the armed forces or what we call the 'deep state' -- the ISI or the army. Therefore, why not talk to the army chief directly? He is talking reasonably now. Why not invite the army chief, just an idea," Dulat told IANS in an interview at his south Delhi residence.

India has maintained that it will talk only to the elected civilian leadership in Pakistan and has shunned talking to the Pakistani military, which however controls key decision-making on foreign policy - particularly with respect to India - and security in the Pakistani establishment.

Dulat served as chief of India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the country's external intelligence agency, from 1999 to 2000 and was a close aide of then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Kashmir affairs from 2001 to 2004.

He has participated in a somewhat unique book of dialogues, "The Spy Chronicles - RAW ISI And The Illusion Of Peace" with his once rival, former Pakistani spy chief Lt. Gen. Asad Durrani (retd).

The book throws light on Kashmir, and a missed opportunity for peace; Hafiz Saeed and 26/11; Kulbhushan Jadhav; surgical strikes; the deal for Osama bin Laden; how the US and Russia feature in the India-Pakistan relationship; and how terror undermines the two countries' attempts at talks.

Dulat, who has previously authored "Kashmir: The Vajpayee Years", said "not talking to Pakistan is a sort of a handicap" more so at a time when geo-political landscape was witnessing a new churn.

"There is a lot happening in the world around us and they are all taking interest in this particular region. The Americans have a big interest in Pakistan and in Afghanistan.

"Likewise now, the Chinese, the Russians and the Iranians have all developed interest and we need to take note of that and in that, I think, not talking to Pakistan will not help," he said.

But is it wise to extend an invitation to the Pakistani army chief, particularly at this juncture when ceasefire violations across the frontier have killed scores of civilians and over 40,000 residents were forced to flee their homes from the border areas in Jammu?

"Isn't it more reason that we should talk," Dulat asked, adding: "You are presuming that all these cease-fire violations happen only from the Pakistani side and only our people are suffering.

"There is a their side of the story also, it can't be one-sided. If there is firing from one side, the Army or the BSF is bound to respond."

Dulat, who served in Kashmir as the Joint Director of the Intelligence Bureau from 1988 to 1990, maintained that "there is no military solution" to the seven-decade old conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and triggered two wars (1948 and 1965) and a prolonged military skirmish (1999) between the two nuclear-armed powers.

"There is only so much that the army can do; after that it is time for the politicians to play their part," he said.

The former spymaster also noted that there was no space for big-brotherly attitude in bilateral relations, suggesting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should revisit his hardline stance against Pakistan.

"The trouble with Modi is, because India is a big country (there is no doubt about it), we want things on our terms but bilateral relationships do not work in this way. We should not ask 'isme mere liye kya hai' (What does it hold for us?)

"Once you start talking to Kashmiris, there is a lot for you. You should try this and see what all is in store for you."

He said most things in the Modi government were related to elections but still expressed a "feeling" of a breakthrough on Kashmir before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections that are due in May.

"Somewhere I have a feeling that something will happen. It's just a feeling. I am not in government. But I have a feeling."

(Sarwar Kashani and Saket Suman can be contacted at sarwar.k@ians.in and saket.s@ians.in)

--IANS

sar-ss/vm/tb

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif will on Monday meet Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday to review the latest regional and global developments.

Zarif will also head a political and economic delegation seeking to expand comprehensive ties between the two countries, Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi told IRNA.

In February, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani visited New Delhi while nine agreements were signed to expand bilateral economic ties.

The two countries have friendly relations and significant trade ties in many areas, particularly in crude oil imports into India and diesel exports to Iran.

Iran is the second largest supplier of crude oil to India, supplying more than 425,000 barrels of oil per day, and India is one of the foreign investors in Iran's oil and gas industry.

--IANS

ahm/

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
This is with reference to Modi in Santiniketan (May 26). It is pleasing to know that Santiniketan was the venue of the latest meeting between the Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh, which coincided with the annual convocation of Visva-Bharati University.

Rabindranath Tagore, the creator of this institution, is revered in both countries not only for his literary and cultural contribution or that he was the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature, but for his vast humanism which transcended the boundaries of state and language. To Jawaharlal Nehru, he wrote in a poetic ...
The Election Commission has deployed 10 companies of Central forces, besides a large contingent of state armed forces, to ensure free, fair and peaceful by-election tomorrow at the Maheshtala Assembly constituency, a top official said today.

Maheshtala falls under South 24 Paganas district of West Bengal, where 2,48,855 voters are eligible to exercise their franchise tomorrow.

"Altogether, 10 companies of Central forces have been deployed, besides a large contingent of state armed forces, to ensure the election is free, fair and peaceful," Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in West Bengal Aariz Aftab told PTI.

He said 1,415 polling personnel have already reached their respective polling booths and have begun route march and area domination in different sensitive and hyper sensitive pockets. Polling will be held in 283 booths under 211 polling premises.

The All India Trinamool Congress, the BJP and the CPI(M) are contesting the bypolls. The Congress is not in the fray.

Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) and Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) will be used in all polling booths, the CEO said, adding the VVPATs would provide feedback to voters.

The bypoll will begin at 7 am and continue till 6 pm, the CEO said, adding videography of the polling process and webcasting have also been arranged.

Counting of votes will be held on May 31 from 8 am, he said.

The AITMC has fielded Dulal Das, the husband of late party MLA Kasturi Das whose death has necessitated the by-poll, while the BJP, which is trying to emerge as the main challenger to the AITMC, has nominated Sujit Ghsosh, a former joint director of the CBI.

The Left Front, on the other hand, has given ticket to Prabhat Chowdhury, a local.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Twenty-one public sector banks



(PSBs) have incurred losses totalling Rs 25,775 crore due to banking frauds in the financial year 2017-18, a Right to Information reply has stated.

The Punjab National Bank (PNB) had incurred the highest loss of Rs 6461.13 crore due to different cases of fraud during the fiscal that ended on March 31 this year, Chandrasekhar Gaud, who had filed the RTI with the Reserve Bank of India, told PTI today.

He added that the reply, which was sent to him on May 15, did not specify details of any particular case of banking fraud.

One of the biggest banking frauds, allegedly involving diamond merchants Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi and PNB officials, is being currently investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The investigating agency has filed two charge sheets in the special CBI court in Mumbai in connection with the Rs 12,636 crore PNB scam.

The RTI reply stated that the State Bank of India had, during this period, incurred losses of Rs 2390.75 crore due to various cases of banking fraud.

In the given period, the Bank of India had incurred a loss of Rs 2,224.86 crore, Bank of Baroda's losses stood at Rs 1,928.25 crore, Allahabad Bank at Rs 1,520.37 crore, Andhra Bank at Rs 1,303.30 crore and Uco Bank at Rs 1,224.64 crore.

The RTI reply informed that the IDBI Bank incurred losses of Rs 1,116.53 crore, Union Bank of India had losses of Rs 1,095.84 crore, Central Bank of India of Rs 1,084.50 crore, Bank of Maharashtra of Rs 1,029.23 crore and Indian Overseas Bank had incurred a loss of Rs 1,015.79 crore.

The RBI has clarified in the RTI that only those cases of fraud, involving a sum of over Rs 1 lakh, were included in the list.

It, however, did not disclose the numbers of cases or the nature of fraud.

Other banks, as per the RTI, that faced losses due to fraud during this period were Corporation Bank with a loss of Rs 970.89 crore, United Bank of India with Rs 880.53 crore, Oriental Bank of Commerce with Rs 650.28 crore and Syndicate Bank with Rs 455.05 crore.

Canara Bank at Rs 190.77 crore, Punjab and Sind Bank at Rs 90.01 crore, Dena Bank at Rs 89.25 crore, Vijaya Bank at Rs 28.58 crore and Indian Bank at Rs 24.23-crore made up the rest of the list provided by RBI as part of its RTI reply.

Economist Jayantilal Bhandari, commenting on the RTI, said that the condition of 21 PSBs of the country was "extremely worrisome" due to banking fraud.

Bhandari said, "With regard to fraud cases, the banks are not only facing huge economic losses, but the prospects of giving new loans by them in the future are also affected adversely. This situation is obviously not good for the economy.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At least 26 Syrian regime forces and nine Russian fighters were killed in an Islamic State group attack earlier this week in Syria's eastern desert, a monitor said today.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the jihadists had targeted a group of Syrian and allied Russian troops in Deir Ezzor province on Wednesday.

Russia's defence ministry said today four Russian servicemen had been killed in an incident in Deir Ezzor but did not give a date.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A high-level Afghan security delegation today arrived in Pakistan for talks on bilateral security and defence issues.

Afghan National Security Advisor Mohammad Hanif Atmar is leading the delegation which also includes the Afghan army chief, intelligence chief, and Interior Minister Wais Barmak.

Government sources said the Afghan delegation met National Security Advisor Nasser Khan Janjua here and discussed various issues.

The delegation will meet other civilian and military officials to discuss the way forward for cooperation against militants who carry out attacks in both countries.

It will also visit the army headquarters in Rawalpindi for in-depth delegation-level talks on border security and the Afghan peace process.

This is the first high-level visit from Afghanistan in two years after relations slightly improved due to launching of Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) earlier this year.

The two sides are meeting regularly under APAPPS to strengthen cooperation and address each other's concerns, according to officials.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress leader Ahmed Patel today sought to know from the Lok Sabha secretariat the status of resignations of BJP MPs from Karnataka -- B S Yeddyurappa and B Sreeramulu -- after their election to the state legislature.

Patel said that while their resignations were accepted immediately, the Lok Sabha website did not show the seats represented by them as vacant.

It's been over a week since 2 BJP MPs resigned from their Lok Sabha membership to take part in Karnataka assembly proceedings. Their resignation was accepted instantly but Lok Sabha website still doesn't reflect correct number of vacancies. Can Secretariat clarify what is status? he asked in a tweet.

Uploading a screenshot of Lok Sabha website showing a list of the vacant constituencies as on 12 pm May 27, he said, "It doesn't reflect resignations of 2 BJP MP's which was accepted on 17th May, 2018 (sic).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A woman was among four people killed in an air strike that hit a petrol station in Yemen's rebel-held capital, medical sources said.

Eleven people were wounded in the air strike on Sanaa, they said. Witnesses said it took place just before sunset as people prepared to break the dawn-to-dusk Islamic fast of Ramadan.

It was not immediately clear who had carried out the strike.

Saudi Arabia, which leads a military coalition that has been fighting the Huthi rebels since 2015 to shore up the internationally recognised government, is active almost daily in Yemen.

Earlier yesterday, Riyadh reported that two soldiers from its national guard had been killed in fighting against the Huthis along the kingdom's southern border with Yemen.

The official SPA agency did not provide details on when or how they died.

The report came as coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki said Saudi air defences had intercepted and destroyed a Huthi drone that targeted the international airport of the southern city of Abha.

An examination of the debris showed the drone was manufactured by Iran and used by the Huthi rebels, Maliki said in a statement late Saturday cited by the SPA.

The Saudi-led coalition launched a military intervention in Yemen in 2015 after the Iran-allied Huthis expelled pro-government forces from Sanaa and went on to seize swathes of the country.

The conflict has left nearly 10,000 people dead, tens of thousands wounded, and millions on the brink of famine in what the United Nations has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

In addition, more than 2,200 others have died from cholera and millions are on the verge of famine in what the United Nations says is the world's gravest humanitarian crisis.

Mark Lowcock, the United Nation's humanitarian affairs chief, said Thursday that "some 8.4 million people are severely food insecure and at risk of starvation" in Yemen.

"If conditions do not improve, a further 10 million people will fall into this category by the end of the year," he warned.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav today gave laptop computers to students of various boards who have topped the Class 10 and 12 examinations in the state, and criticised the ruling BJP for not felicitating them yet.

Yadav congratulated Kirti Singh, Arisha Pathak, Sonam Yadav, Balbir Yadav, Saumya Singh, Almas and Aditi for their academic performance at an event in the state capital Lucknow.

"We are fulfilling our promise to give laptops to meritorious students. We want to remind the BJP that they had made a promise in their 'Sankalp Patra' to give the students laptops and free data but the promise was not fulfilled," he said.

The Samajwadi Party president termed the BJP "anti-youth" for not honouring the students until now.

"The BJP has forgotten all promises made to the people," Yadav said.

"The BJP government has turned a blind eye towards farmers, youngsters, poor labourers and traders. People are so much agitated with the BJP that in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections they will forget the BJP, which forgets its promises. People will give a befitting reply to the party," he said.

Terming the BJP a "dhokebaaj" party, he accused the saffron party of deceiving farmers, traders and the poor.

"Youngsters are losing jobs. Non-payment of dues to farmers has resulted in they resorting to protests, and a farmer died in Baghpat," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistan's ambassador-designate to the US Ali Jahangir Siddiqui will take charge of his post this week.

Siddiqui, son of Karachi-based businessman and banker Jahangir Siddiqui, will take over from Aizaz Chaudhry on May 29.

The Foreign Office has informed the Pakistan Embassy in Washington regarding Siddiqui taking charge as the country's top envoy.

His tenure as ambassador will start just days before the end of the current government on May 31.

Siddiqui had earlier served Prime Minister Abbasi as a special assistant, advising the prime minister on economic and business matters.

He served as chairman of JS Bank and JS Private Equity and at several key positions in private sector before joining the government.

His appointment as the ambassador has been a cause of much controversy in the country as opposition parties accused the prime minister of appointing his "business partner's son" as the top envoy to the US.

The government defended the appointment by saying that Siddiqui has vast experience in business sector that will come handy to forge close relations with the US.

Siddiqui holds a BA in economics from the Cornell University and is also believed to have links with President Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

He faces the daunting task of improving the relations between US and Pakistan which have been strained since US President Donald Trump accused Pakistan of "lies and deceit" and criticised Islamabad for providing safe havens to terror groups.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Amid hectic lobbying for ministerial berths in the coming cabinet expansion in Karnataka, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the matter of allocation of portfolios could be decided in the next three to four days.

He said the issue of allocation of portfolios could not be discussed with Congress president Rahul Gandhi as he would be travelling abroad.

"We could not discuss the matter of allocation of portfolios with Congress President Rahul Gandhi. Once he returns, we will discuss with him again. It will not take a week... Maybe three-four days will be required," he told reporters in Delhi.

According to sources, the meeting in Delhi to decide on the portfolio allocation has been postponed for a week as Sonia Gandhi is travelling abroad with her son tonight for health check-up.

"The meeting is most likely to be held on June 4-5," they had said.

Siddaramaiah, who is in the national capital, held talks with ministerial aspirants there.

The former Chief Minister, however,set aside speculations that there was confusions on allocation of portfolios.

Meanwhile many MLAs aspiring for a cabinet berth have camped in New Delhi with their supporters.

Hirekerur MLA B C Patil, one such ticket aspirant, told reporters there it was in the interest of the party and the administration to make him a minister.

Patil is in Delhi along with former speaker K B Koliwad, former ministers Shivanna, Rudrappa, Manohar Tahsildar, former MLA Khadri and Srinivas Mane.

He said he had met Congress general secretary and Karnataka in charge K C Venugopal.

"We requested them and they (Congress high command) have assured us they will consider it. We will be meeting deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara and former chief minister Siddaramaiah," Patil added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy today said he was at the 'mercy' of Congress and not the 6.5 crore people of Karnataka as his government had not received the full mandate which his party had sought in the assembly elections.

Ahead of his Delhi visit to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other union ministers, he reiterated that farm loan waiver was his priority as he had promised and he would resign if he failed to fulfill it.

However, he reminded people that JD(S) did not get an absolute majority, which meant he and his party were rejected by the electorate.

"The people of the state rejected me and our party. I had sought an absolute majority. I have heard the statements of farm leaders too and how much they supported me," he said



"Mine is not an independent government. I had requested the people to give me a mandate that prevents me from succumbing to any pressure other than you. But today I am at the mercy of the Congress. I am not under the pressure of the 6.5 crore people of the state," Kumaraswamy said.

The Chief Minister said he has certain compulsions as a politician. However, he has absolutely clarity on the issue of farm loan waivers, he said.

Slamming BJP and other farmers' leaders, he said there was no need for any farmers' association to pressurise him (on farm loan waiver).

"I am one step ahead of you to work for the farmers. You need not have to ask me for my resignation over farm loan waiver.

"If I fail to do that then I myself will resign from the post. Farm loan waiver is my priority. Can't you wait for a week? Even the cabinet has not been formed yet," he added.

Kumaraswamy urged farmers not to take the extreme step of committing suicide and to wait for a week as he was in the process of finding a way out to waive loans, not just of cooperative societies,but also nationalised banks.

His remarks came in the wake of BJP's call for a state-wide bandh tomorrow, demanding immediate waiver of farm loans, as promised by the JD(S) in their manifesto.

BJP state president had on May 25 announced a state-wide bandh on May 28 if farm loans worth Rs 53,000 crore were not waived by then.

JD(S) leadership has been saying they have to seek the consent of its coalition partner Congress before taking any decision.

To a question on the Congress demand that the finance portfolio be given to it, he said it was quite natural for them to ask it as some in the party believed they could deliver better.

He brushed aside talk of a tussle between the two coalition partners over distribution of portfolios.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The motor vehicles department here has warned bus and autorickshaw owners of strict action if they decline hospital staff a ride fearing Nipah virus.

After Lini Puthuserry, a nurse of Perambra taluk hospital, died of Nipah virus after contracting it from some patients being treated there, autorickshaws and buses were reportedly refusing to transport the hospital staff.

Perambra is the epicentre of the virus outbreak, which has claimed 12 lives in the state so far.

Taking a serious view of issue, Deputy Transport Commissioner Mohammed Najeeb directed the Kohzikode regional transport officer to take steps to ensure that patients, bystanders and hospital staff are not put to any inconvenience.

The recommended action includes cancellation of permits of the vehicles.

According to sources, action will be taken against bus owners and employees if they failed to comply with the directive.

Meanwhile, Perambra Taluk Hospital sources said now things are slowing improving for them and they are not being isolated.

Infact, autorickshaws were plying with flex boards stating that they were prepared to give rides to hospital staff and patients round the clock.

After Lini's death, the hospital staff, especially nurses, were in a state of shock and they had been counselled by doctors of Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, the source told PTI.

State Labour Minister T P Ramakrishnan, along with CPI(M) activists, visited various homes in Perambra and informed the people that there was no need to panic, but they need to be alert. Pamphlets were also distributed.

A Union Health Ministry advisory has said that Nipah virus, which commonly affects animals such as bats, pigs, dogs, and horses, can spread to humans, causing serious illness.

Spread of the virus to humans may occur after close contact with other Nipah-infected people, infected bats, or infected pigs.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
: A 52-year old beggar was allegedly beaten to death and three others were injured after a mob attacked them in Chandrayangutta here suspecting them to be members of a child kidnapping gang over rumours on social media.

The man and three others were begging in the area when some youth pelted stones at them and beat them up around midnight, Chandrayangutta police inspector Y Prakash Reddy said.

He said police personnel rushed to the spot on receiving information and rescued them. The four men were later hospitalised.

"Chandraiah, a native of Mahabubnagar district, who was among the injured people, died undergoing treatment in the early hours of today. Based on video footage of the incident around 35 persons have been taken into custody," the inspector said adding a case of murder has been registered against them.

The inspector also said the deceased was posing as a transgender while seeking alms.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Zone) V Satyanarayana said fake videos were circulated on social media showing chopping off the legs and hands of children.

On May 22, a 42-year old man was beaten to death by a group of villagers after they caught hold of him from a mango farm on suspicion of being a thief in Chengal village under Bheemgal police station limits of Nizamabad district.

In a similar incident reported also on May 22, an autorickshaw driver was beaten to death by a group of villagers in Jiyapally village under Bibinagar police station limits near here.

The accused in both the cases were arrested.

On May 24, a Councillor and two others were arrested for allegedly beating up and injuring a 27-year old mentally challenged man over rumours that he was a "thief" at Badangpet near here.

Terming the killings as unfortunate, the Telangana DGP has appealed to the public not to believe social media rumours on kidnappers and burglars and said they were all false.

Warning general public not to take law into their hands and cause harm to innocent individuals, the Telangana Police chief further said stern action would be initiated against those spreading false and forwarding such false messages on social media.

Apart from the two killings, there have been reports about groups of people beating up individuals in some more parts of the state, after suspecting them to be members of criminal gangs.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor today claimed the BJP was not interested in introducing the much talked about Women's Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha, and asserted it will be passed immediately if his party comes to power.

"The Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha during UPA's tenure. The BJP supported it too. So, they can just introduce it in the Lok Sabha and pass it within a minute. They have the numbers as well," Tharoor said at a function here.

The Women's Reservation Bill seeks to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in Parliament and state legislatures. Tharoor said the ruling party was engaged in lip-service only and has no intention to introduce the bill.

"They fear to give away one-third of their seats to women representatives. But the Congress has the pledge that we will pass it immediately if we come to the power," Tharoor said in his lecture on "New India: Blueprint for the Progressive Indian".

The award-winning writer-politician slammed the Narendra Modi-led central government over a number of developments during the last four years.

"He (Modi) talks about 'New India', but I am concerned about the reality on ground which tells us a different story. What the reality today of 'New India' is that narrow-minded majoritarian is dividing us," he added.

Referring to the Kathua and Unnao rape incidents, Tharoor said violence against women and children have been on rise during the last four years across the country.

"Due to the economic misrule of four years, the GDP fell by 2.2 per cent. Demonetisation was a bad idea and badly implemented. GST was a good idea, but badly implemented. These have given all the pains, but no gain," he added.

The former Union minister said that while cases of farmers suicide are going on unabated, the fall in GDP has resulted the sharpest fall in the manufacturing sector.

"The government has produced a grand total of 18 lakh jobs in the four years against eight crore promised....We have to focus on the needs of the young India. As per an ILO estimate, India will have 165 million people in 18-23 years of age by 2020 as against 120 million in China. We need to train this manpower," he added.

Accusing the BJP of polarising the society for electoral gains, the former UN diplomat said Hinduism is about acceptance and India cannot be reduced into "Hindi, Hindu, Hindutva and Hindustan".

"We want unity, they want uniformity. We want consensus they want conformity. The 'New India' should be of hope. Our 'New India' should certainly shine and must shine for all," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BJP today urged people, traders and farmers to spontaneously observe a bandh on May 28 against Karnataka government's 'failure' to fulfill its poll promise of waiving farm loan within 24 hours of assuming office.

The party said the people of Karnataka, especially farmers, had relied on the government to fulfill its election promise, which did not happen.

"People, traders and farmers to spontaneously observe a bandh tomorrow,' it said.

"This is not the first time the government has failed to keep up its words. Earlier, during the coalition government, JD(S) did not transfer power to BJP as promised after being in power for 20 months," the party said in a press release.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Kumaraswamy slammed BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa for building pressure on him by announcing a state wide bandh by the party tomorrow.

I know how you (Yeddyurappa) served the state twice as chief minister.

Give us your suggestion. I will implement it. I dont need your of agitation," he said.

Security has been tightened across Karnataka in the wake of bandh call given by the BJP.

Police said instructions have been given to top officials in all districts to deal firmly with people forcibly closing shops, schools, colleges, government offices and other commercial establishments.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Centre has moved the Delhi High Court against a CIC order asking it to inform whether IAS officer Ashok Khemka, known for cancelling Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra's alleged illegal land deal in Gurgaon, was considered for the post of joint secretary in the Centre.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) in its plea has also challenged a single judge's order upholding the January 2017 decision of the Central Information Commission (CIC).

The CIC in its order had directed DoPT to disclose whether the name of Khemka, an IAS officer of 1991 batch of the Haryana state cadre, was placed before the Civil Services Board (CSB) for deputation as joint secretary to Government of India under the Central Staffing Scheme of 2014.

The matter is expected to be heard by a bench of Justices S Ravindra Bhat and A K Chawla in July.

The appeal by the DoPT, moved through advocates Rahul Sharma and C K Bhatt, has claimed that the information sought by Khemka, also known for the numerous times he has been transferred, was exempted from the ambit of the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

The plea also claimed that the information sought is held in fiduciary capacity by the DoPT and therefore, cannot be provided under the RTI Act.

However, this line of argument had not been accepted by the single judge, Justice Vibhu Bakhru, who last year had said that if the DoPT's stand was accepted then any information held by any public authority would be exempted.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A local court here rejected Trinamool Congress leader Arabul Islam's bail prayer today and remanded him to judicial custody for 12 days till June 8.

Islam, a district-level leader of the TMC and a former MLA, was arrested in the early hours of May 12 on the orders of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

He was charged with murder in connection with the killing of a supporter of an independent candidate of the recently-concluded Panchayat polls in West Bengal.

On the same day, Islam was produced before the Baruipur Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate's court and he was remanded to police custody for 10 days till May 22.

But the police could not produce Islam on May 22, since the arrested TMC leader was unwell and was admitted to a state-run hospital.

He was produced before the SDJM's court at Baruipur today.

The court rejected his bail prayer and remanded him to Judicial Custody for 12 days till June 8.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Digital transformation in the tech sector is increasing the demand for professionals with specific skills in areas like cybersecurity, cloud and data analytics and these verticals will add more than 5 million positions worldwide by 2027, says a survey.

According to a survey by market intelligence firm IDC sponsored by Cisco, there is a significant skill shortage for many of these roles and thus prospects are strong for IT professionals with specific skills and certifications.

The "most significant roles as per the survey report span various IT functions like data management/analytics, cybersecurity, IT infrastructure, software/applications development and digital transformation.

Region-wise, Asia Pacific will gain 2.9 million 'most significant' positions in the next decade, while North America will gain 1.2 million such positions and Latin America 0.6 million positions.

"Digital transformation is driving the industry and creating demand for new roles. The economic opportunities are huge for individuals looking to further their IT careers or begin them. This research provides a roadmap of where the jobs are and will be in the future," said Cushing Anderson, program vice president IDC.

The report further noted that some of the most difficult to fill positions include network/system administration, social media manager/administrator, web developer, mobile application developer, database architect, system analyst, data engineer and business intelligence architect developer.

To be ready for these roles, IT professionals should drive their own careers by getting certified in areas organisations are looking for, the report said, adding that seven out of 10 organisations leverage IT certifications when hiring or promoting.

IDC conducted a global survey of IT hiring managers, examining nearly 2 million IT job postings for requested skills. This survey uncovered the IT roles that are both in demand and strategically important to organizations' success, both in the near and long term.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Digvijaya Singh was no longer a Congress general secretary, with party president Rahul Gandhi today divesting him of the charge of party affairs in Andhra Pradesh.

Singh, a former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, was earlier removed as the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in charge of Goa, Karnataka and Telangana.

The Congress president appointed former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy as the AICC general secretary in charge of Andhra Pradesh, in place of Singh, according to a party statement.

Singh's role as AICC in-charge of Goa came in for criticism when the party failed to stake its claim for government formation and lost out to the BJP despite emerging as the single-largest party.

Seventy-one-year-old Singh was recently appointed the chairman of the Congress's coordination committee for Madhya Pradesh, which goes to polls in a few months.

Besides Chandy, the Congress president appointed party spokesperson Gaurav Gogoi as the party's in-charge of West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, replacing AICC general secretary C P Joshi.

Gogoi is the son of former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi.

The party appreciates the hard work and contribution of Digvijaya Singh, who will be stepping down from his responsibility as AICC general secretary in-charge of Andhra Pradesh, a statement from party general secretary (organisation) Ashok Gehlot said.

He also said that the party appreciates the hard work and contribution of C P Joshi, who would be stepping down from his responsibility as AICC general secretary in-charge of West Bengal and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

The changes will be enforced with immediate effect, the party said.

Today's changes are part of Rahul Gandhi's efforts to restructure the Congress party by bringing in some new and young faces and infuse fresh energy in the party's ranks ever since he took over command in December last.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Terrorism deprives thousands of children of in Jammu and Kashmir and the Indian Army has set up special schools to address this problem.

Now, the quality of at these institutions in J&K is all set for a digital leap with the introduction of a digital solutions learning programme.

The programme was inaugurated by Chief of Army Staff General Bipin Rawat at Army Goodwill Schools, Pahalgam, at a function held late Friday evening, and attended by GOC Northern Command Lt. General Anil Bhatt with senior officials from the State Department, civil administration and other senior police functionaries.

At least 1,600 students and hundreds of staff at Army Goodwill Schools (AGS) will benefit from Phase I of the programme, facilitated by a non-profit NGO 'Extramarks Education Foundation (EEF)' headed by founder Atul Kulshreshtha and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL), according to a release issued by organisers.

EEF and PGCIL will equip all the army classrooms with digital hardware, provide state-of-the-art digital solutions, and train faculty.

In subsequent phases, a balance of 46 Army Goodwill Schools will also be brought in to the programme. The programme will run in AGS Pahalgam, Ziran, Uri, Margund and at AGS Pinewood School, Hamirpur in Poonch.

Army Goodwill Schools were established by the Indian Army in all the three regions, Ladakh, Kashmir and Jammu where children did not have access to education or the schools were dysfunctional.

"The credit for augmenting education in areas affected by turbulence goes to the Indian Army for their inclusive approach," said Atul Kulshreshtha, Founder and Chairman of Extramarks.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) today said it has established 194,000 small and medium projects across the nation and provided job opportunities to over 14.75 lakh people at their doorsteps during the last four years of the government.

The commission said that through the Prime Minister Generation Programme (PMEGP), a flagship scheme of the Government of India for which is the nodal agency, the Centre has been encouraging the village industry.

Chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena said that in financial year 2016-17, the and village industries products saw record sales worth Rs 520 billion and in the year 2017-18, it was expected to cross the Rs 650 billion figure.

"Undoubtedly, it was the vision of Prime Minister Modi to digitalise the scheme to bring transparency and efficiency along with putting a stern check on any discrepancies or middlemanship in the finalisation and disbursement of funds to the beneficiaries," Saxena said.

"Ever since KVIC's IT team developed an in-house portal in 2016, we saw a quantum jump in the number of applicants. As a result, we disbursed the margin money subsidy of Rs 47.35 billion during this span of four years, which is some sort of landmark in the implementation of government scheme," he said.

Saxena said it was "really sad" that from Independence till the year 2014, the growth of and village industries sector could not even touch the double digits and the highest growth rate recorded in the sector was only eight per cent during the span of 65 years.

"In the last four years, i.e. from 2014-15 to 2017-18, the has successfully established 1,93,818 small and medium projects across the nation from sleepy hamlets to bigger cities providing job opportunities to 14,75,888 persons at their doorsteps," he said.
Former union minister and rebel BJP leader Yashwant Sinha today said the events that unfolded in Karnataka post the fractured mandate could be a rehearsal of the 2019 elections in the event of a minority government being sworn in.

Addressing a gathering at a seminar on 'the threats to democracy and Constitution', he said the Centre was setting a wrong precedence by not allowing the motion of no-confidence to be tabled in Parliament, citing disruption of the house by the AIADMK, "which has a cozy relationship with the BJP.'



He said if a minority government comes in power tomorrow and the President gives 15 days time to prove its majority, then disruption can become a ground to extend it further.

"The most important role of the Lok Sabha to my mind is to determine for the people of the country whether the government of the day enjoys the majority or not. Everything else follows."



"Now, the motion of no confidence is tabled.Day after day at 12 noon the Speaker will say I have received so many motions of no-confidence but because of disruptions, I cannot count 50 members in this house and therefore I am not taking it up.... Adjourned," said Sinha.

He said if a minority government is sworn in after the next Lok Sabha elections and the President tells it to seek a vote of confidence in 15 days and within this period, whenever the motion comes up, the house is disrupted, then it cannot be taken up.

"Then Parliament will adjourn and the government will continue," he said.

He foresaw further dangers if a Speaker was favourable to the ruling party, "who can even say that the vote of confidence has been passed in din and there was noise."



However, the Speaker can claim there were more ayes heard than nays and hence the vote of confidence was passed,he said.

"If somebody has to subvert the Constitution and do this, what is our recourse? Let me tell you what happens inside the house cannot be challenged even in a court of law and the government gets six more months to do. This is what they were trying to do here (in Karnataka)," he said.

Explaining the 'dangers' to democracy, he said a government without a mandate in the national election can still claim it has it.

He also highlighted how various institutions in India are facing a threat under the NDA regime.

Sinha said never had Supreme Court judges held press conference, saying that democracy was under threat.

He said the dismissal of 20 Aam Aadmi Party MLAs by the chief election commissioner on the last day of his service and then their restoration by the Delhi High Court pointed to the 'misuse' of the institution.

He flayed the BJP's statement that a stable government was necessary for development of the nation.

"If a stable government means dictatorship, then we should never have a stable government, Sinha said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A former US missionary and his wife, who were held without trial in Venezuela for two years on espionage charge, returned home today to a welcome at the White House by President Donald Trump and American senators.

Joshua Holt, 26, and his Venezuelan wife Thamy thanked Trump and his administration for ensuring their release after "very, very, very difficult two years" and helping "a normal person" like him.

Holt was arrested from Caracas in June 2016 on espionage charge while he was in the country for his wedding to his Venezuela-born wife. However, he never faced a trial.

Speaking with his parents, wife, daughter present inside the Oval Room along with Trump and other senior officials, Holt said he was "overwhelmed with gratitude".

"Not really the great vacation I was looking for. But we're still together," Holt, wearing a blue suit, light blue shirt and red, navy and blue striped tie, paired with loafers, said.

On their turn to speak, his parents Jason and Laurie expressed gratitude to the government, while his mother also thanked Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for letting her son come home.

The US President had invited the couple to his office for a meeting after Senator Bob Corker, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, who travelled to Venezuela a day earlier and brought them back.

"I just want to welcome you to the Oval Office. Welcome you to the White House. It's really special to have you both. You've gone through a lot. You've gone through a lot. A lot more than people can endure," Trump said welcoming Holt and Thamy to the White House.

Corker described the coming home of the hostages as "quite an experience."



Trump said as many as 17 prisoners have been released during his tenure and negotiation were on to secure the release of others.

"So we've had 17 prisoners released during the Trump administration. Most people don't know that. And we have others coming. We're in the midst of some very big negotiations to get others out," he said.

Trump mentioned Pastor Andrew Brunson, an American prisoner in Turkey.

"They say he's a spy but he's not a spy," Trump said, assuring help to Brunson.

In a statement, Senator Marco Rubio said Holt was an innocent hostage being held by the Maduro regime.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the couple was unjustly imprisoned in Venezuela and said the development will not change US policy towards the South American country.

"US policy toward Venezuela remains unchanged. The United States stands steadfast in support of the Venezuelan people and their efforts to return to democracy," he said.

Later, the White House also said that the release of Holt does not change its policy with regard to Venezuela.

"The release of Joshua Holt does not change United States policy. The Maduro regime must call free, fair, and transparent elections, consistent with its constitution. The election process that occurred on May 20 was illegitimate," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today targetted the bickering ally Shiv Sena for "not acknowledging" the "achievements" of Narendra Modi government in the last four years.

"In the last four years, the NDA has achieved a lot. If someone does not want to acknowledge it, we cannot help," Fadnavis told reporters at a press conference which was part of the BJP's nationwide campaign to highlight achievements of the Central government which completed four years in power.

Responding to a query on whether the credit for the NDA's "successful stint" goes to the BJP alone or to the entire NDA, the chief minister said, "If someone (Shiv Sena) pretends to be sleeping, you cannot wake up such person".

Maharashtra is a major beneficiary of several Central schemes ranging from irrigation to crop insurance to infrastructure development, he said.

"Maharashtra has reported creation of eight lakh jobs in seven months alone, as per the Employees Provident Fund Organisation's report. Compared to this, Tamil Nadu has (created) four lakh (jobs) and Gujarat even less than that. It means that Maharashtra has created more number of jobs than Tamil Nadu and Gujarat together," he said.

Fadnavis said the incident like Doklam crisis underscored that the country is being led by a strong prime minister.

"Modiji stopped China (from advancing in Doklam) and gave a message that we are a strong nation," the CM said.

BJP state unit president Raosaheb Danve also held a press conference in Aurangabad, located 325 kms away from here, over the fourth anniversary of the NDA government.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
After Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat may witness a "violent confrontation" between the state administration and villagers over the issue of lignite mining by the Gujarat Power Corporation Limited (GPCL) at Bhavnagar, warn farmer leaders.

Since April 1, when the GPCL claimed possession of around 1,414 hectares of land in 12 villages of Ghogha and Bhavnagar talukas, protests are taking place in the area.

"Gujarat is sitting on a live volcano. Not only the farmers, but the entire rural Gujarat is crying. We are part of the ongoing movement in Bhavnagar. The Kheru samaj of farmers is very strong. They are the ones spearheading the struggle and we are with them," All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) leader Atul Anjan said.

"The state government should realise that the situation in Gujarat is not very different from the one in Tuticorin. If the government handles the situation like Tuticorin, then the state would have to face the fire," he added.

According to a state government notification, GPCL had acquired land in Badi, Hoidad, Malekvadar, Padva, Khadsaliya, Thalsar, Lakhanka, Thordi, Rampara, Surka and Aalampar villages of Ghogha and Bhavnagar rural talukas in 1997. But the villagers are yet to give up possession of the said land till date.

Farmers allege that the government is completely ignoring the land acquisition law, while acquiring their land for lignite mining.

"According to the Land Acquisition Act-2013, if a land acquired for any purpose is not utilised within five years, then it has to be given back to the owner or farmers. No state government, including the one in Gujarat, is following the Act. Now the farmers of Bhavnagar are demanding that their land should remain with them as it was not utilised," AIKS leader Hannan Mollah said.

Even though the government claims to have given compensation to the farmers, the farmers allege that many of them were forced to part with their land.

"The compensation given by the government to farmers is not adequate and not all the farmers were given the compensation. The farmers have given in writing that those who took compensation were under pressure. The price of the land has gone up by 700 per cent," Anjan said.

The farmers' leaders also accused the BJP-led government at the Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being hand-in-gloves with corporates and ignoring the plight of the farming community.

The BJP government in the state and the Modi regime at the Centre had given land belonging to farmers to corporates at throwaway prices and this was the reality of the Gujarat model, they alleged.

The leaders also pointed out that how the governments were ignoring the environmental hazards to "appease" the corporates in setting up plants.

"The ministry is just a rubber stamp. Those in the PMO make a proposal for the corporates and get the stamp of the ministry, ignoring the hazard the plant would cause to people and the environment," Mollah said.

The farmer leaders warn that taking a cue from the Tuticorin incident, the farmers will intensify their struggle in Gujarat too.

However, they also hope that the Tuticorin incident may force the state government to negotiate to calm down the "massive discontent"within the farming community.

In Tuticorin district of Tamil Nadu, a protest against a copper plant turned violent last week, resulting in the killing of 13 people in police firing.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistan former spy chief Lieutenant General (retd) Asad Durrani today expressed dismay at his "own people" after facing severe backlash over his recent book that landed him in controversy.

Durrani, who headed the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency from August 1990 till March 1992, along with Indian former RAW chief A S Daulat has published 'The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace' in India.

Pakistan's powerful army had summoned Durrani to seek his explanation over a book he co-authored with Dulat, accusing him of 'violating' the military code of conduct.

Durrani was also targeted by some retired senior army officers on different TV talk shows.

Lt Gen retired Abdul Qayyum and Maj Gen retired Ijaz Awan questioned the motive behind releasing the book on internet.

Durrani took to Twitter to express his sense of sadness the way he was treated in the wake of publication of the book.

"I am saddened by the allegations made on me by my own people. I have served Pakistan all along putting my life at risk. People who live life for others selflessly never get respect they deserve & instead those who do all wrongs for their own benefits are treated like King," he said.

He did not explain who he meant by "my own people" but it apparently might refer towards men in arms.

Earlier in army said in a statement said that Durrani was being called in General Headquarters (GHQ) on May 28 and he "will be asked to explain his position on views attributed to him in book Spy Chronicles'".

"Attribution taken as violation of Military Code of Conduct applicable on all serving and retired military personnel," according to a statement.

Durrani was apparently summoned after ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif demanded an urgent meeting of the high-powered National Security Committee (NSC) to discuss a recent book co-authored by a former spy chiefs of Pakistan and India.

Also, former chairman Senate Raza Rabbani and prominent leader of Pakistan Peoples Party criticised the joint book by rival spy chiefs and said if it was written by a civilian, he would have been branded as traitor.

"Had a politician done the same thing he would have been labelled a traitor," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Russia's defence ministry today said four Russian soldiers were killed by militant fire in Syria's eastern Deir Ezzor province.

"Four Russian servicemen were killed by militant fire in the Syrian Arab Republic," the defence ministry said in a statement carried by agencies.

It added five other Russian soldiers were wounded during the incident which took place when "several mobile terrorist groups attacked Syrian government artillery at night.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Infra majors GMR and GVK among other firms are in the race for Operations and Maintenance (O&M) contract of Clark International Airport (CIA) in Philippines.

According to an official release from Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) of Philippines, a Pre-Bid Conference was held on May 21, at the Mind Museum Auditorium in Taguig city, which was attended by prospective bidders.

A total of 30 firms attended the Pre-Bid Conference, BCDA said.

Clark International Airport, formerly known as the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport, is about 100 km from the capital Manila.

A GMR group company along with its partner, Manila-based Megawide was in December last year awarded the USD 250 million Clark International Airport EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) contract in the southeast Asian nation.

The EPC project scope involves design, construction, testing and commissioning of a new terminal with a capacity of eight million passengers per annum.

"State-owned Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), in partnership with the Department of Transportation (DOTr), began the selection process for the Operations and Maintenance (O&M) of Clark International Airport (CIA) in Pampanga.

"Among those that procured bid documents for the airport's O&M include Megawide-GMR Consortium, Metro Pacific Investment Corporation (MPIC), Filinvest Development Corporation, GVK Airport Developers Ltd., and Groupe ADP," the BCDA release said.

BCDA President and CEO Vivencio Dizon said, the Philippines government intends to partner with a world-class international airport operator for the O&M, which is expected to be awarded by August 30.

Bid submission is scheduled on July 20 to be followed by a post-qualification on August 7. The target for awarding of O&M Contract is on August 30, 2018, it said.

The Clark International Airport, which is envisioned to be the next major gateway in the country, is the first hybrid infrastructure project under the Duterte administration.

CIA serves various destinations locally and internationally with 332 domestic flights weekly and 158 international flights weekly. The number of flights dramatically increased in 2018, with a 122 percent increase or 7,600 flights in 2018 as compared from 3,400 in 2017.

GMR operates Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad in India and Mactan Cebu International Airport in Phillippines.

It is developing a Greenfield Airport at Mopa in North Goa.

The GVK Group, which operates Mumbai International airport had earlier said it signed a Management Services Agreement with PT Angkasa Pura I (Persero) for Commercial and Operations Development of I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, Bali in Indonesia.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Guinea's new prime minister Ibrahima Kassory Fofana has unveiled his government without making major changes to the cabinet of his predecessor who quit after deadly protests over local elections, state media reported today.

While the defence, foreign affairs and justice ministers remain in their posts, the economy portfolio has been handed to newcomer Mamadi Camara, Guinea's ex-ambassador to South Africa, according to a decree read out on state media.

At his official nomination on May 24, Fofana had acknowledged the current "difficult relationships with certain social and political partners".

An economist by training, Fofana replaced Mamady Youla who resigned on May 17 following demonstrations against the results of February local elections, which were won by the ruling party.

Opposition leaders had decried the vote -- the first of its kind since a military dictatorship ended a decade ago -- as unfair and fraudulent. At least a dozen people were killed in the violence.

President Alpha Conde had promised a "great ministerial reshuffle" to quell the unrest and brought in Fofana, a former political opponent turned ally.

"We will judge Prime Minister Kassory Fofana on his actions," said opposition leader Cellou Dalein Diallo last week.

"Will it be his mission to reinforce bad practices, namely corruption, impunity, injustice and encourage electoral fraud, by following the government line of Alpha Conde?" Parliamentary elections are scheduled for September despite the opposition's rejection of the local ballot results.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
BJP leaders and workers today staged a protest outside the Congress headquarters here demanding an apology from the opposition party over its MLA Virji Thummar's "indecent" comments against BJP Gujarat unit president Jitu Vaghani's mother.

Thummar had allegedly told a gathering of Patidar community at Moti Malvan village in Surendranagar district yesterday that Jitu Vaghani, a Patidar, was not born from "womb of a Patidar."



He had reportedly said the language used by Vaghani in response to an invitation extended by Hardik Patel-led PAAS (Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti) to the BJP MLAs to attend the event showed that Vaghani's "mother was not a Patidar".

BJP leaders and workers demanded that Thummar be removed from the party over his speech.

Raising slogans like "Maafi maange, maafi maange, Congress maafi maange (Congress should apologise)", the saffron workers burnt an effigy of Thummar today amid heavy police bandobast.

"The Congress should apologise because its MLA (Thummar) resorted to cheap and used cheap words against our state party president and insulted his mother," said state vice-president I K Jadeja.

Chief Minister Vijay Rupani also sought an apology from the Congress.

"The Congress as well as Virjibhai (Thummar) both should apologise. This shows Congress' cheap mentality," he told reporters.

When contacted, Congress state unit president Amit Chavda said, "BJP workers themselves indulge in free use of such words...and now to hide their own mistakes, they are blaming others".

"(Thummar's) anger is natural as the members of the ruling party did not join a community event," he said while referring to the PAAS event.

"It's not proper to attack someone at personal level, but if it is a community event, then people's anger is evident," he said.

Addressing a gathering at the "Patidar Nyay Mahapanchayat" event, where Hardik called for revival of the reservation stir, Thummar had come down heavily on the BJP over none of its MLAs attending the programme despite invitation.

"BJP MLAs from Patidar community were also invited to the programme, but looking at the kind of words uttered by Vaghani, it appears your (Vaghani's) mother is not Patidar. You should not have used such words...Were you born from the womb of a Patidar?" he had said.

Several Congress MLAs had participated in the event.

Commenting on Hardik's "invitation-cum-warning", Vaghani had dubbed the quota leader a "pawn of Congress" and accused him of adopting such tactics to "remain in the limelight.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Delhi High Court has sought a status report from the North Delhi Municipal Corporation on a PIL seeking demolition of an alleged unauthorised construction in the premises of a private school here.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar also questioned the NGO for filing the petition and asked who was "instigating" it.

"Who is instigating you to file this petition? You will lose your credibility. Don't come irrationally," the bench said.

Harkrishan Das Nijhawan, the general secretary of NGO Paardarshita Welfare Foundation, claimed that the private school was indulging in commercial activity and it had allowed a bank to function from the premises.

The bench observed that nowadays, especially after the murder of a seven-year-old boy in Ryan International School in Gurgaon, schools do not allow outsiders to enter.

"Have you gone inside the school. You say the school premises are being used for commercial purpose. Nowadays no school allows any outsider to enter, especially after the Ryan school incident. The bank and ATM may be for school's own purpose," it said.

The court was hearing the plea which has sought demolition of the alleged unauthorised construction in the private school in Rajendra Nagar here.

The area comes under the jurisdiction of the North MCD and the court sought a status report in this regard from the civic body.

Besides, the North MCD, the petition has made the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, the bank and the school management as parties.

The NGO said it lodged a complaint in January with the senior officials of the civic body about alleged unauthorised construction in the school premises.

The petition also sought a direction to the authorities to lodge an FIR against Karol Bagh zone officials and the school management.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Nashik police have arrested two persons and allegedly seized narcotics including 4,500 grams of MD drug, worth crores of rupees in the international market.

The arrest of Mumbai-based Arvind Kumar (32)and Harishchandra Pant (24) followed the arrest of five persons last week.

While Kumar holds a master's degree in organic chemistry and has worked in pharmaceutical firms, Pant is a 2nd year BSc student, police commissioner Ravindra Kumar Singhal said yesterday.

Both were remanded in police custody by a local court till June 1, Singhal added.

Arvind Kumar and Pant had set up a laboratory at Kumar's house at Boisar near Mumbai where they allegedly synthesised drugs, the commissioner said.

Last week, city police arrested Ranjit More (35), Pankaj Dunde (31), Nitin Malode (32), all residents of Nashik; and Salim Southiya (30) and Saifulla Sheikh (23), residents of Nagpada (Mumbai), and allegedly seized drugs worth Rs 1.24 crore from them.

Their interrogation revealed that they were allegedly procuring drugs from Arvind Kumar, who was absconding.

On Thursday, a team of Nashik police arrested Arvind Kumar from Uttar Pradesh.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Aamir Khan believes he is not a natural actor



and unlike others has to work his way through a performance to reach the perfect pitch.

The actor says he has a sense of what a good performance entails but it takes him a while to embody the character.

"When I see actors like Naseer (Nasseruddin Shah), Om Puri ji, Raghubir Yadav, Dilip Kumar sahab, Amitabh Bachchan ji and Zaira Wasim, I feel they are a powerhouse. When they give their shot, there is so much belief in them and it comes out very naturally and effortlessly.

"I don't feel that I have that gift. I feel I have to work myself up to that level, it will take a bit of effort to reach to that level," Aamir said in a group interview.

The actor, who has completed 30 years in the film industry, says he fights through his doubts and does not mind going through multiple rehearsals if it can better the performance.

Citing the example of "Dangal", Aamir said it took Wasim just a week to pick up the Haryanavi accent, whereas he struggled for four months to learn it.

"I am not a natural (actor). When I start my first reading I feel I am very bad, like when the reading of 'Lagaan' was happening I was like director Ashutosh Gowariker shouldn't drop me as other actors like Raghubir ji are doing good. My first reading is always pathetic and I start working on it."



But the 53-year-old star believes his biggest strength lies in the fact that he is "not scared to fail".

"I don't mind doing bad rehearsals again and again to finally discover where I am supposed to pitch. I have a good sense of performance. Everyone is not a born actor but in my case I can sense what a good performance is and I work my way there."



Aamir explained his process of acting, saying the performance becomes richer when it is "layered".

"Often how we behave is not how we are feeling. In a performance, if I show I am hurt so that will be a superficial level of performance, the other way is 'I am hurt but I don't show it and you are realise it.

"Acting is like layers... I feel my strength lies in my ability to understand that this character is going through a phase and how many layers I need to add to make it look good."



The actor says he would not call himself a method actor as he has not studied acting.

"I have my own method, my own way to finally arrive at what I am now."



Besides acting, a lot of young actors today focus on taking dance and action classes before entering in the movies and Aamir says these skills are important to enhance the overall performance.

"All this is very much part of getting ready to be an actor. Perhaps learning dancing, singing, fight or horse riding or anything is just a skill which if you have acquired in your training, it will come in good help."



He says he needs time to rehearse, especially learn his lines beforehand.

"Sanjay Dutt has photographic memory. You give him three pages, and he will look at them and keep the paper and will be ready. I don't have photographic memory, I take time.

"I do rehearsals for three to four months before a film (shoot). I rehearse with the director, then I do rehearsals alone. That's when I memorise my lines so that when I am on the set, I'll be ready. It should be your lines and not the writer's line. I write lines as well."



After working for 30 years, Aamir says it feels like yesterday he entered the industry.

"... When I look back, (I think) good quality performances ended up building a goodwill for me overtime. When you are consistent, only then you are able to build faith.

"I cannot claim I tried to do that but I did try to satisfy myself as a creative person and that ending up in building trust between me and my audience.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India today launched its second to cash in on the burgeoning Chinese software market which remained elusive despite the presence of top Indian firms.

The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) has established one more Digital Collaborative Opportunities Plaza (SIDCOP) platform in China in an effort to provide market access to Indian IT firms in the huge Chinese market, the NASSCOM said.

Agreements worth RMB 36 million (about USD six million) were signed between Indian service providers and Chinese customers at the launch of the corridor by China's Guiyang Municipal government and the NASSCOM, a NASSCOM official said.

The pilot projects launched on the SIDCOP platform would be executed over the next year, a NASSCOM statement said.

Last December, the NASSCOM established its first SIDCOP platform in the Chinese port city of Dalian, which is India's first IT hub in China.

India's top IT firms have a big presence in China, specially multi-nationals and IT Corridor at Dalian which are expected to provide a gateway for the Indian IT-small and medium-sized enterprises.

The Dalian IT corridor was formally launched few days ago.

While Dalian corridor's focus was on IOT (Internet of Things), the Guiyang corridor will focus on Big Data, Gagan Sabharwal, Senior Director, Global Trade Development NASSCOM, told PTI.

The platform in Guiyang intends to create online and offline presence to promote a "co-create culture" between two large neighbours in the Big Data space, he said.

Speaking at the launch of the Guiyang IT corridor, India's Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale said the corridor which visualises collaboration between member companies of the NASSCOM and the Guiyang city authorities is aimed at setting up local offices and assisting companies from Guiyang to establish software and IT units in India.

An Indian company named 'Zeta-V' will establish an Artificial Intelligence enabled platform for SIDCOP to bring together the IT requirements of Chinese companies, particularly in Guiyang, and Indian companies which have solutions to offer, Bambawale said.

"In this way, we will be marrying together the requirements of Chinese companies with the capabilities of Indian IT service providers. We visualise that these initiatives will give a big impetus to cooperation between India and China in the IT-enabled services sector," he said.

Referring to last month's informal summit between Prime Minister and Chinese President Xi Jinping, the envoy said, "India-China relations are progressing well, particularly after the Informal Summit".

"The two leaders decided to meet at an informal summit so that they could have candid, free and open discussions with each other aimed at enhancing strategic communication between them," he said.

The two leaders spoke with each other for almost 10 hours at Wuhan and discussed their goals and objectives for their countries, how they viewed the fast-changing situation and in this context how they would like to see India-China bilateral ties developing over the coming months.

"As a result of these unprecedented discussions between the leaders of India and China, they were able to reach consensus on over-arching and strategic issues. It is now left for the rest of us to take their vision forward," he said.

"As a result of the successful talks between President Xi and Prime Minister Modi at Wuhan, we now have a political environment in which India-China business and commercial ties can expand rapidly," he said



For India, getting access to China's IT market, valued at over USD 493 billion in 2013 by the Ministry of Industry and of China, is important to address the massive trade deficit which has now spiralled to over USD 51 billion. The Chinese IT market grew exponentially since then.

India has been demanding China to provide market access to Indian IT and pharmaceutical firms for several years to reduce bilateral trade deficit.

The two corridors, which were started in collaboration with China's provincial governments, are expected to provide the much-needed big opening for Indian IT firms, Sabharwal said.

Considering the potential, Bambawale made a strong case for Indian IT presence in China.

"As you all know, India is a world leader in the area of and IT enabled services with annual revenue of over USD 164 billion and exports of over USD 120 billion," he said in his address.

"Our IT companies have a presence in more than 70 countries in the world, generating employment for up to 12 million people worldwide. In China, Indian IT companies are present in 10 cities around the country, with a total work-force of around 25,000 employees. However, we believe that the potential for Indian companies to cooperate with China is huge and needs more work and efforts," he said.

Sabharwal said in addition to the Dalian and Guiyang, the NASSCOM is in touch with four other provinces including Wuhan to work out new IT corridors based on local needs.

He said negotiations were on with some of the Chinese firms to sign up with big Indian IT firms.

"If that works out it could provide a big opening," he said.
India today summoned Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah over Islamabad's so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, and told him that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country's forcible occupation has no legal basis.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said it conveyed to Shah that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Through its order on Gilgit-Baltistan on May 21, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region.

Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order.

"Any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under forcible and illegal occupation of Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever, and is completely unacceptable. Instead of seeking to alter the status of the occupied territories, Pakistan should immediately vacate all areas under its illegal occupation," the MEA said.

The ministry said it was also conveyed to the Pakistani deputy envoy that such actions can neither hide the illegal occupation of part of Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistan nor the grave human rights violations, exploitation and denial of freedom to the people residing in Pakistan-occupied territories.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje today said India's credibility in the world has increased under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and people's dreams have been fulfilled by his government.

Raje exuded confidence that the BJP would win the upcoming Assembly election and the 2019-Lok Sabha polls under Modi's leadership.

"In the last four years, the BJP-led NDA government has worked to fulfil the dreams and aspirations of the people. India's credibility in the world has increased under the leadership of Modi," she said at a press conference here.

Congratulating Modi on the completion of four years in office, she said the prime minister gave a clean and corruption free government which is focused on the agenda of development.

"FDI increased in the country and efforts were made to bring underprivileged sections to the mainstream. The SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act was also strengthened," Raje said.

Highlighting the outcome of various schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jan Awas Yojana, Ujjwala Yojana, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan among others, Raje said effective implementation of the schemes has changed the lives of the people and pushed development.

On the rise of fuel prices, she said the Centre is deliberating on the issue to find out a solution.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Around 195 files including documents relating to relations between India and Sri Lanka at the peak of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) led civil war have been destroyed by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), sparking concern among archivists and researchers.

While the FCO said any destruction decision would have been taken based on the country's records policy, experts believe the loss of the files means there is no record of an important period of history.

Britain's MI5 and the Secret Air Service (SAS) had reportedly advised Sri Lanka's security forces during the LTTE crisis between 1978 and 1980.

"Two of the documents they destroyed were called 'Sri Lanka/India relations' from 1979 and 1980," said journalist and researcher Phil Miller, who discovered the files were missing as part of a freedom of information request.

The documents are expected to have had references to India's relations with the island nation, including the work of the Indian Peace-keeping Force (IPKF) during the period.

"Removing or destroying historical records from public custody at the National Archives hurts all of us and is an illegal act," said Vairamuttu Varadakumar, founder of the Tamil Information Centre, registered as an independent community-based non-profit organisation in 1981 with a mission to empower Tamil-speaking people to improve their quality of life through access to knowledge and other projects.

"It appears that the Foreign Office's action is designed to cover up the involvement of the SAS and MI5 in the training of Sri Lankan security forces that might be potentially embarrassing to Her Majesty's government," he said.

"We find recently that there has been an increasing interest in the history, politics and human rights of the Tamil speaking people of Sri Lanka among researchers, particularly among the younger generation. National archives, libraries and documentation centres are places of memories," he added.

Varadakumar also claims that Indian authorities had seized documents that belonged to the Tamil Information Centre back in 1987.

"The Tamil Information Centre had two branches, one in Madras and one in Madurai from 1984 until 1987. The Indian authorities asked us to close them down saying that a peace accord has been signed between the government of Sri Lanka and India and they would help us transport the materials to Trincomalee and set up an archive there, which did not happen," claimed Varadakumar, a Tamil from northern Sri Lanka based in London.

The centre fears that the destruction of FCO files adds to the loss of information, which dates back to the burning of the Jaffna Library by the Sri Lankan army in 1981, which housed palm-leaf manuscripts and ancient documents, and the destruction of the Jaffna Museum in 1989.

The FCO kept a list of file titles, showing that the destroyed papers would have covered a range of important subjects, from security cooperation and arms sales, to foreign aid and requests for political asylum in the UK.

An FCO spokesperson said: "The FCO, as with all government departments, reviews all its files in line with the requirements of the Public Records Act before making a decision on permanent preservation.

"The FCO's recommendations for the preservation or destruction of records take place under the guidance and supervision of the National Archives. FCO decisions are informed by the National Archive's records collection policy and existing FCO policy.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Sikh truck driver, who was fatally wounded after being shot at two weeks ago in Ohio, has succumbed to his injuries, with prosecutors saying they will seek a murder charge against the 20-year-old accused in the case.

Jaspreet Singh, 32, of Monroe, Ohio died of injuries he sustained when he was shot at by Broderick Malik Jones Roberts on the night of May 12, a report in the Journal said.

Following the incident, Roberts had been indicted for aggravated robbery, felonious assault and possessing weapons under disability for allegedly firing at Singh.

Since Singh died of his injuries, prosecutors said they will now seek a murder indictment against the accused.

According to a Hamilton Police report, the victim suffered a gunshot wound to the upper torso. Singh died on May 21, said Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser.

As per court documents, Roberts allegedly shot Singh "while he sat in his vehicle".

The police report added that Roberts' attorney David Washington entered a not guilty plea on his client's behalf but acknowledged a murder indictment is expected next week.

A native of India, Singh had been living in the US for about eight years.

Advocacy group The Sikh Coalition said no immediate evidence has been released to suggest that any bias was involved in the tragic accident.

The group's legal team has been in contact with relevant authorities in Cincinnati and continues to monitor the case. "Our prayers remain with his family during this very difficult time," it said in a Facebook post.

Judge Jennifer McElfresh has set a bond of USD 1 million, substantially increasing it from the initial amount of USD 1,25,000 in Hamilton Municipal Court. Roberts is scheduled to be back in court on May 31.

Manjinder Singh, a friend of Singh, said the victim was a devoted father and husband, leaving behind four young children.

"He was very well known and well liked in the Sikh community," Manjinder said, noting that his friend helped manage area stores but was recently employed as a truck driver.

He was an active at the Guru Nanak Society in the area, he said.

"It is just senseless," said Manjinder Singh, adding that "there is no way he would have engaged in any type of wrong activity. He would have just walked away".

Roberts has a criminal history and was sent to prison in 2016 after pleading guilty to trespass, unlawful restraint and assault, according to Butler County court records.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With the arrest of two people, UP Special Task Force (STF) busted an inter-state drug racket in Kanpur and seized 83 kg of cannabis worth Rs 1.6 crore, an official said.

Acting on a tip-off that a gang operating in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar, Assam and Chhattisgarh was quite active in Kanpur, the STF laid a trap and arrested two people from Naubasta area of Kanpur, he said.

The accused were identified as Manoj Soni and Ramsiromani Kushwah, both residents of Madhya Pradesh.

The police also seized 83 kg of cannabis worth Rs 1.6 crore from their possession, the official added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Jammu and Kashmir Police has a new task at hand -- identify the 'keypad jehadis' who spew venom on social networking sites to try and create a law and order situation in the state by spreading on the Internet rumours or giving communal colour to any event.

The police has registered cases against five twitter handles and filed complaints with service providers against such misleading posts on Facebook and WhatsApp so that necessary action is taken at the earliest, officials have said.

The officials said a communication had been sent to the micro-blogging site for providing details of the twitter handles so that punitive action could be initiated at the earliest as it would help in reining in what is called 'keypad jehadis'.

Police has laid special emphasis on monitoring the social networking websites and also various groups created on messaging services like WhatsApp, Telegram and similar such tools available on the Internet, they said.

The idea behind the crackdown on 'keypad jehadis' was to ensure that police could concentrate more on nabbing or eliminating terrorists with real guns rather than those who wage war against the state machinery using keypads.

The officials said that post-2016, the misinformation campaign from some groups in Kashmir as well as in Jammu was at its peak with each party trying to project an incident for their political goals which had a potential of pushing the state to communal clashes.

They said the new battleground and a new battle is far removed from the conventional weaponry and the conventional fighting zones of the narrow streets and forests where new age jehadis use computers and smartphones to wage war from just about anywhere in the Valley or outside, well entrenched inside their homes or out on the streets, from a nearby caf or even just a convenient roadside.

"We have passed on several complaints to the Computer Emergency Response Team-India (CERT-IN) for blocking several pages on Facebook and Twitter," said officials, adding that many SIM cards which were used to spread canards on messaging services like WhatsApp have been blocked with the help of the service provider.

The immediate worry for security agencies is the forthcoming two-month long Amarnath Yatra, beginning last week of next month, and they fear that anyone, while just sitting from the confines of a home, can plant fake in one of the thousand chat groups and the entire state can plunge into communal violence, the officials said.

They claimed there have been instances when fake pictures of desecration of shrines are circulated by a particular community and all of sudden there is an outrage when no such incident had taken place.

Similarly, in the Valley, false about firing and subsequent killing of civilians was circulated in an attempt to create unrest in other parts of Kashmir. However, timely action saved the day for the police and it was ensured that the culprits were booked.

There have also been instances of circulation of photo-shopped pictures of ordinary civilians as militants whereas the unknown victim would have been attending his daily duties. "We had many such cases including the one in Ganderbal where picture of a shopkeeper was circulated with an assault rifle as having joined a militant group."



"On inquiry we found that he was selling his groceries and one of his business rivals had played the mischief. A case was registered under relevant sections of Information and Technology act and the accused was arrested," a senior police official said.

"It is a virtual battleground where a bloody war is fought, but with words. However, this has an impact on the young minds," the officer said.

The social chat groups are active not just in Jammu and Kashmir. They are seeing participation from youngsters in the national capital, rest of the country and abroad as well.

In the Valley, social media access had been controlled to a large extent after authorities clamped down on over two dozen websites but the problem in Jammu and other parts of the country continues.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
constituency in the politically crucial state of Uttar Pardesh has virtually assumed the dimension of a strategic player in the run up to the 2019 elections.

The bypoll, slated on Monday, will also see a joint opposition taking on the ruling

Located around 630 km from capital city of Lucknow, the constituency has five assembly segments namely Shamli, Thana Bhawan and in Shamli district, and Gangoh and Nakur in Saharanpur district. There are nearly 17 lakh voters in the constituency with a significant number of Muslims, Jats and Dalit voters.

RLD party worker Abdul Hakeem Khan said he had never seen an election in which the ruling party was being challenged by a joint opposition.

"This is the beauty of our democracy," he said.

The constituency fell vacant after the death of MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the party's candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dal's (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party.

The opposition hopes that by consolidating anti- votes, they will repeat the success of the and Phulpur bye-elections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat.

The withdrawal of candidature of Lok Dal candidate Kanwar Hasan from the fray and his joining of the RLD has only added to the opposition's confidence.

The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the opposition parties -- that the drubbing in the and Phulpur bye-elections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.

"The results of the May 28 bypolls may set the tone and tenor for the 2019 elections," Rajesh Kumar Saini, manager of a hotel on the busy Shamli-Panipat road, said.

Khan exuded confidence that "Kairana's daughter-in-law Tabassum Hasan will defeat Kairana's daughter (Mriganka Singh)."



The Yogi Adityanath-led state government has left no stone unturned in campaigning for the bypoll. He along with his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya campaigned in Saharanpur and Shamli.

Apart from them, the BJP has thrown in at least five state ministers into the 'fight for Kairana'. They include Dharam Singh Saini (minister of state for Ayush), Suresh Rana (sugarcane development minister), Anupama Jaiswal (basic education minister) Surya Pratap Shahi (agriculture minister) and Laxmi Narayan (religious affairs, culture, minority welfare, waqf and Haj minister).

Of these, Saini and Rana are MLAs from Nakur and Thana Bhawan assembly segments, respectively of the constituency. Jaiswal is the minister in charge of Shamli district, while Surya Pratap Shahi is the minister in charge of Saharanpur.

"Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary has been roped in since he hails from a farming background," a senior UP BJP leader said.

BJP MPs Sanjiv Baliyan, Raghav Lakhan Pal, Vijay Pal Singh Tomar and Kanta Kardam have also actively campaigned for Mriganka Singh.

The and Congress, however, termed the line-up of UP ministers as a sign of "party jitters".

According to the locals, the major issues in this bypoll are law and order and the woes of sugarcane growers.

RLD candidate Tabassum Hasan had accused the BJP-led state government of resorting to divisive politics.

"Sugarcane growers in the region are feeling the maximum amount of pain, as no payments have been made to them by the state government," she told PTI, rejecting the official claim that the dues from sugar mills were being cleared.

The issue was also raised during an election meeting of state minister Laxmi Narayan Chaudhary, who said that the dues accumulated from the time of the past governments had been paid out, and the rest would be settled soon.

"In Uttar Pradesh, 10,828.59 lakh quintals of sugarcane were purchased by sugar mills from farmers during the BJP government in 2017-18, as compared to 6443.41 lakh quintals under the Samajawadi Party government in 2015-16. Similarly, Rs 21,186.56 crore payments were made during the BJP government in the state in 2017-18, in comparison to Rs 11,841.34 crore made during the government in 2015-16," BJP spokesperson Chandramohan said.

Divergent views also emerged on the reported 2016 exodus of Hindu families from Kairana.

"The area is adjacent to Panipat district in Haryana. The labourers (both and Muslims) from the area go to the neighbouring state to work in the industries there. They go in the morning and return in the evening," Hasan said while rejecting the claims of any such exodus.

The RLD leader said the locked houses, even of who had gone to Panipat for work, were photographed and used as a "propaganda".

"In Kairana, both and live in peace," she added.

BJP candidate Mriganka Singh, on the other hand, said, "The exodus of Hindu families from Kairana has stopped now. But hundreds of Hindu families had fled from Kairana out of fear and harassment before the 2017 UP Assembly elections".

Apart from Kairana, bypoll to Noorpur assembly constituency in the state will also be held tomorrow.
Police stations in Kerala will soon have trained child welfare officers to deal with crime cases against children.

The state police has taken the significant decision in the wake of increasing incidents of atrocities and harassment against children.

The move would also help to strengthen the force's ongoing mission to make police stations 'child-friendly'.

State DGP, Loknath Behera said special training would be imparted to police personnel to deal with the cases related to children.

"For this, a woman constable will be deployed as child welfare officer in each police station," he said while speaking in a workshop organised by the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights here yesterday.

Crime Branch IG, S Sreejith said instructions had been given to take immediate action in cases coming under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO).

The Commission's acting chairperson, C J Antony said the society has the moral responsibility to ensure the protection of children.

Other Commission members also took part in the panel discussion.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A woman from Thrissur in Kerala, who was allegedly kept in the custody of a person in the city by her mother to end her relationship with a Muslim man back home, has been set free by a court here.

The 24-year-old woman had uploaded a video on social media on May 1, alleging that she had been kept under house arrest by her mother for the last two years and locked up in a house belonging to a Sangh Parivar leader.

She was freed and allowed to reunite with the relatives of her deceased father in Thrissur by the order of the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court here on May 25.

The court said it was pertinent to note that there was no dispute that the victim was an adult and that she could not be detained in any counselling centre, as provided under law.

"As per the settled principle of law, any woman who has attained adulthood is at liberty to go anywhere, and she cannot be detained under the care and custody of anybody including their parents," the order said.

On the request of the police and the victim, the court also agreed to transfer the case to Kerala as she was abducted from there.

"It is clear that earlier several incidents took place within the jurisdiction of the Guruvayoor police station (in Thrissur) and later the victim and her boyfriend came to Mangaluru and a case was registered.

"Therefore, if the entire case is transferred to the Guruvayoor police station, no hardship will be caused to the accused, as she is also a resident of Guruvayoor jurisdiction," said the order.

With the woman's video explaining her plight of having allegedly been locked up in the house of an RSS leader here as her mother objected to her relationship with the Muslim man going viral, police had registered an FIR at the city women's police station here and arrested the accused.

Both the woman and her mother were then produced before the court.

The court had granted bail to the accused and sent the woman to a counselling centre here after her mother submitted medical certificates to prove that she was mentally challenged.

The woman has now sought appointment with Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and DGP Loknath Behra this week, A Rajasimhan, the lawyer who appeared for the woman, said.

A fresh complaint would be filed there against her mother and the other accused in the case, including the mother's paramour, the abductors, members of RSS and VHP, the doctor and the hospital in Kerala, which allegedly colluded with the mother to prove the woman was mentally challenged, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Senior AAP leader Sukhpal



Singh Khaira was today stopped by the police from reaching a a spot close to a sugar factory of Congress leader Rana Gurjit, with Chief Minister Amarinder Singh accusing him of trying "trespass" into the factory in Batala.

According to some reports, residents of Buttar Sivian village were angry with a nearby sugar mill for allegedly discharging nauseating blackish waste into a drain close by.

The mill, however, has denied the allegation.

Khaira said that he wanted to inspect the drain, but was stopped along the way.

Today's incident came close on the heels of a large number of fish found dead in the Beas on May 17 after molasses from another sugar factory leaked into the river in Punjab's Beas town, about 40 km from Amritsar.

Khaira, who had vociferously raised the issue of spillage of molasses into the Beas River, today claimed that the police were under political pressure and had not allowed him to visit the spot in Batala.

A police officer told Khaira that they apprehend that his marching to the spot may affect peace in the area. On being disallowed, Khaira raised slogans against the Congress government.

"I only have to visit a particular spot and tell the people of Punjab about the situation as I see it. We are not here to break any law," Khaira said while asking the police to let him proceed.

"Rather than stopping me today, the Amarinder Singh government should have woken up after the recent catastrophic molasses leakage incident. I was going there (Batala) in a peaceful manner, I did not break any law. The issue is of vital public interest, how could they stop me," Khaira said about the police action.

He said, "As the Leader of Opposition, it is my moral responsibility to check if the sugar factory is polluting water in the area. People approached me complaining that that they were facing a lot of problems."



"Media reports also highlighted the issue... I have decided that wherever people of Punjab inform me that ground water is being polluted by a sugar mill or a distillery or a paper mill or any industry, I will go there and inspect it," the AAP leader said.

However, the chief minister warned that any attempt by the Aam Aadmi Party leader to take law in his hands would be dealt with according to law.

Accusing Khaira of indulging in cheap ahead of the Shahkot Assembly bypoll tomorrow, Amarinder Singh said, "It is obvious that AAP leaders had not learnt their lessons from their series of ignominious electoral defeats not just in Punjab but across the country."



"Khaira's trespass bid amounted to sheer violation of the law, with the potential to trigger violence," the chief minister said in a statement, adding neither the police nor his government would allow anyone to indulge in such "criminal actions to promote their vested political interests".

AAP has a history of resorting to theatrics in the run-up to any election and Khaira's act had exposed his party's desperation "in the face of their imminent wipe-out in the Shahkot bypoll", Amarinder Singh said.

Asserting that as the leader of the opposition, it was Kahira's responsibility to uphold the law and not defy it, the chief minister said, "Khaira has behaved extremely irresponsibly with his shameless act."



"Unfortunately, the AAP has always promoted a culture of lawlessness which every party leader had emulated and continued to follow, refusing to acknowledge that such acts inevitably backfired on them," Amarinder Singh alleged.

Reacting to the chief minister's statement, Khaira tweeted, "If raising the issue of contaminated water leading to cancer n hepatitis is an attempt to gain publicity @capt_amarinder then so be it, Ill continue this struggle to its logical end-khaira (sic).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
As South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held a surprise two-hour meeting, the mainstream US media said that the two leaders are trying to salvage the June 12 Singapore summit that was abruptly cancelled by President Donald Trump.

Moon and Kim met yesterday in the Panmunjom village of the demilitarized zone. This was the second meeting between the two leaders in less than a month and the fourth ever between the leaders of the two countries.

They met two days after Trump abruptly cancelled the summit with the North Korean leader on June 12 in Singapore and blamed Pyongyang's "tremendous anger" and "open hostility" for his dramatic decision.

"The rapidly arranged meeting between the two countries reflects how urgently the two leaders are trying to salvage the US-North Korea summit, originally scheduled for June 12 in Singapore," The Washington Post said.

The meeting is "the latest attempt by the two Korean leaders to keep recent engagement efforts on track," The Wall Street Journal said.

After the meeting, Moon today said in Seoul that Kim had reaffirmed his commitment to the "complete denuclearization" of the Korean Peninsula.

According to him, Kim looks forward to meeting Trump on June 12.

"The measured response to the cancellation, and the extraordinary diplomatic scramble that followed, was a strong reminder, analysts said, that Kim not only wants a diplomatic deal with the United States. He may need one," The New York Times said.

"North Korea can still survive under sanctions, especially if China helps it," Shin Beom-chul, a senior fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul, told the daily.

"But as long as sanctions are there, Kim Jong-un can never deliver the kind of rapid economic growth he has promised for his people," he was quoted as saying.

Yesterday's summit showed that Kim and Moon are "both eager to keep the diplomatic momentum going despite recent setbacks", Markus Bell, a lecturer in Korean and Japanese studies at the University of Sheffield in the UK, was quoted as saying by The Wall Street Journal.

"Donald Trump has been flip-flopping on whether he's going to get involved and move forward on a summit, and he's given the window for North Korea to look like the levelheaded, rational actor," Bell was quoted as saying.

In another sign that the summit is back again, the White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the White House advance team is now heading to Singapore for the preparations of the meeting.

"The White House pre-advance team for Singapore will leave as scheduled in order to prepare should the summit take place," she said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Congress leader G A Mir said today that the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru had inspired the people of Kashmir to be a part of India.

The Jammu and Kashmir unit president of the Congress was addressing a party convention organised to mark the 54th death anniversary of the first prime minister.

Nehru, who was born on November 14, 1889, died on May 27, 1964.

It was the leadership of Gandhi-Nehru which inspired the people of Kashmir and their leadership to reject the two nation theory of (Pakistan founder Muhammad Ali) Jinnah and decide to seal their fate with a secular India, Mir said here.

In an apparent dig at the BJP, he said those criticising Nehru on the Kashmir issue were either unaware of the historical role played by him or doing so because of their political compulsions.

They are doing a great disservice to the nation and the great leader who deserved the tributes for bringing Kashmir closer to the idea of India and ultimately accede to it, he said.

Mir exhorted the party cadres to remain steadfast on the basic principles of secularism, socialism and unity in diversity as a fundamental ideology of the Congress.

Taking a dig at the PDP-BJP coalition government in the state, he said the two diametrically opposite forces betrayed their electorate when they entered into a power-sharing arrangement devoid of any ideological meeting point.

It is the reason that this government is responsible for creating social disharmony and political uncertainty in the state rather than cementing the bonds of unity and peace, he said.

Mir cautioned the people against the designs of communal and divisive forces and vested political interests who were trying to create wedge in the society in order to achieve their political goal.

The result of it (doing on sensitive issues) is that the situation in the state continues to deteriorate, which is a matter of great concern, he said.

He said the Congress was the only secular and unifying force in the state, which had always strengthened secularism and would continue to safeguard the secular fabric of the country and the state.

He said his party would never compromise with the communal forces in the state for the sake of power.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A man in Maharashtra has transformed 1,100 rural schools in Dhule district by replacing blackboards with digital projectors and introducing Internet in the institutes through public participation.

Impressed by this, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has decided to analyze the impact of his work and on the basis of it, the panel will make recommendations to the central and state government.

Thirty-six-year-old Harshal Vibhandik did engineering from Mumbai and MBA from the US. He returned to India after working in the USA for few years with an aim to transform schools in his native Dhule district.

"I got this idea of digitisation of schools when I was working in the USA," Vibhandik said.

He used to organise 'Prerna Sabha' (inspiration conference) in villages and collected donations from people to provide computers and projectors to schools in tribal-dominated areas.

"Slowly people grew interest in the 'Prerna Sabha' and villagers also took part in it with much enthusiasm," Vibhandik said.

More than 1,100 schools have been transformed in the Dhule district through this initiative, Vibhandik said.

NCPCR member Priyank Kanungo said, "The commission wants to analyze how through public participation schools in rural areas can be digitised at less expenses."



"We want such initiatives in others parts of the country also," he said.

Kanungo said the NCPCR will analyze the impact of the work at 55 schools of the 1,103 schools transformed by the efforts of Vibhandik.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 25-year-old man and his nephew were buried alive under a 10-feet-high sand mound in Badi Baadiya village of Bundi district, police said today.

The incident occurred last evening when Shyam Kahar and Shivraj Kahar (16) were sitting in a forest under the shadow of a sand mound to save themselves from the scorching heat, SHO at Gendoli police station Sampat Singh said.

The victims were immediately rushed to a community health centre (CHC) from where they were referred to the Bundi district hospital.

"The two were taken to the district hospital, where doctors declared them brought dead," Singh said, adding that their bodies were later handed over to their family members after postmortem.

The police have registered a case under section 174 of the CrPC, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 45-year-old villager was today hacked to death allegedly by Naxals on suspicion of being a "police informer"in Chhattisgarh's Sukma district, police said.

The victim, Vanjami Sukda, was attacked in his field near Punpalli village under Dornapal police station limits this afternoon, a senior police official told PTI.

A group of naxals reached Sukda's farmland adjacent to a hill, around 3 kms away from Punpalli, and attacked him with sharp-edged weapons.

"They slit his throat which resulted into his death," he said.

After getting information about the incident, a police team rushed to the spot and brought the body to Dornapal for postmortem, he said.

A Maoist pamphlet was recovered from the spot in which the deceased was accused of being a police informer, the official said.

He clarified that Sukda had never worked with police.

"Recently, villagers in the region held a meeting and took a pledge to not allow naxal activities in their villages which might have frustrated ultras and they might have committed this act to create an atmosphere of fear. A combing operation was launched in the area to nab ultras," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Militants tonight attacked an Army camp in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, but there was no loss of life, police said.

Some unknown militants fired upon the camp of 50 Rashtriya Rifles at Kakapora in south Kashmir district tonight, a policeofficial said.

He said the fire was retaliated by the Army personnel.

No loss of life or injury has been reported, the official said, adding that further details are awaited.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In perhaps the first-of-its-kind case in Uttar Pradesh, probe agencies today said they have detected transactions of over Rs 8 lakhs in a crypto-currency (bitcoin) account, that was mentioned in the alleged extortion messages received by 22 MLAs of the state recently.

The state lawmakers, most of them from the ruling BJP, recently claimed to have received text or WhatsApp messages asking them to pay Rs 10 lakh in bitcoin otherwise their families will be eliminated.

"During the probe, a crypto-currency (bitcoin) account, mentioned in the threat messages to legislators, has been detected. Transactions of 1.60368338 bitcoins (Rs 8.16 lakh) were done in this account. And the entire amount was later transferred to some other account," STF sources said here today.

"A total of six transactions, between 6.46 PM on May 2 and 4 AM on May 18, were done in the crypto-currency e-wallet during which bitcoin was received and sent through different e-wallets. One transaction each was done on May 2, 3, 4, and 18 and two transactions on May 17," they said.

The matter came to the fore when the MLAs complained about receiving threat messages asking them to pay Rs 10 lakhs through bitcoins, they said.

The sources said probe agencies are investigating as to who did all these transactions.

After Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took note of the matter, an SIT was constituted on May 23 to probe the high-profile matter.

The state police is suspecting the handiwork of "professional hackers" behind this to create panic and has issued an advisory to the people not to be scared.

"An advisory has been issued across the state asking all not to get panicked over such messages," DIG (Law and Order) Pravin Kumar said.

"Prima facie, it appears to be the handiwork of some mischief makers," he said, adding that the SIT constituted to go into the matter was already working on it.

In all the messages, the sender has given out his name as Ali Budesh Bhai from Dubai, a reference to a gangster once linked to the now Pakistan-based Dawood Ibrahim.

The MLAs who got the messages include Veer Vikram Singh (Meeranpur Katra in Shahjahanpur), Manvendra Singh (Dadraul in Shahjahanpur), Prem Prakash Pandey (Tarabganj in Gonda), Vinay Kumar Dwivedi (Mehnam in Gonda), Vinod Katiyar (Bhognipur in Kanpur), Shahshank Trivedi (Mahauli in Sitapur) and Anita Rajput (Debai in Bulandshahr), Dhirendra Bahadur Singh (Sareni-Raebareli).

The opposition had also attacked the Adityanath government over the issue.

"No one is secure under the present regime. The MLAs are being threatened of dire consequences," Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav had said. "There is no law and order in the state."



Congress spokesman Arun Prakash levelled similar charges, saying the threats to legislators "expose the tall claims of the BJP government".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister said today that Prime Minister was a "campaign PM...who has failed to deliver on promises" and the BJP would "definitely" not remain in power after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Naidu said the too won't be able to form the next government on its own and stressed that regional parties have "able and capable leaders" who will play important roles after the polls.

His remarks came a few days after he shared stage with the leaders of several regional parties at the swearing-in of H D Kumaraswamy as chief minister of the Congress-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka after a bitterly-fought election that threw up a hung verdict.

Inaugurating Mahanadu, the TDP's annual conclave in Vijayawada, the chief said his party has played important roles in forming governments in the past and had the power to change the narrative in the country, hinting that it could tie-up with like-minded parties to stop the BJP.

Naidu said the was a key player in the formation the United Front government in 1996.

"The has in the past played a key role in forming governments. It has the power to change the political narrative in the country. We won't step back," Naidu said.

He said is a "campaign prime minister, who gives slogans only, but has failed to deliver on promises".

"The BJP will definitely not come to power in 2019. The BJP forming government again is a distant dream," Naidu said.

On allegations of EVM manipulation during elections, he said thorough discussions should be held on the use of "electronic voting machines to ensure fair elections".

Naidu said the withdrew support from the NDA government as the Centre had reneged on its promise to grant the special category status to Andhra Pradesh and failed to implement the AP Reorganisation Act.

He alleged that the saffron party was resorting to "revenge politics" and using institutions such as the CBI and the ED to put pressure on those who do not follow its line.

He accused the BJP of betraying the people of Andhra and trying to create law and order problems in collusion with the YSR Party of Jaganmohan Reddy.

He said the BJP government had promised a special package for backward districts of Andhra on the lines of Bundelkhand region. But, Naidu alleged, the BJP cheated the people.

"The BJP government credited Rs 500 million each for seven backward districts of AP and after some time it debited the amount. This is how it cheated the people of the state," he said.

Andhra Pradesh has been seeking special status on the grounds that it is at a disadvantage, especially because of the loss of capital to newly-formed Telangana.

When the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh was being bifurcated in 2014, then Prime Minister said: "Special category status will be extended to the successor state of Andhra Pradesh for a period of five years".

But the BJP, which came to power a few months later, said the 14th Finance Commission doesn't provide for such treatment to Andhra Pradesh.

In March, the TDP withdrew from the NDA government over the Centre's refusal to grant special status to the state.

Naidu and his party have in the past accused of reneging on his 2014 election promise to accord special status to Andhra Pradesh.

During Mahanadu, the TDP would adopt resolutions against the economic decisions taken by the Centre "without proper thinking, their improper implementation, failure of the and demonetisation, and about people losing faith in the banking system" Srinivasa Rao, the officer on special duty to the chief minister, said.

The party would pass a resolution against the Centre's "non-cooperation and non-fulfillment" of assurances made in the Rajya Sabha regarding the special category status and the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, he said.

At the conclave, detailed discussions would be held on the Centre's "betrayal and conspiracy politics".
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said today that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a "campaign PM who has failed to deliver on promises" and the BJP would "definitely" not remain in power after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

Naidu said the Congress too won't be able to form the next government on its own and stressed that regional parties had "able and capable leaders" who would play important roles after the polls.

His remarks came a few days after he shared the stage with leaders of several regional parties at the swearing-in of H D Kumaraswamy as chief minister of the Congress-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka after a bitterly fought election that threw up a hung verdict.

Inaugurating 'Mahanadu', the TDP's annual conclave in Vijayawada, the Telugu Desam Party chief said his party had played important roles in forming governments in the past and had the power to change the narrative in the country, hinting that it could tie-up with like-minded parties to stop the BJP's juggernaut.

Naidu said the TDP was a key player in the formation of the United Front government in 1996.

"The TDP has in the past played a key role in forming governments. It has the power to change the political narrative in the country. We won't step back," Naidu said.

He said Modi was a "campaign prime minister, who gives slogans only but has failed to deliver on promises".

"The BJP will definitely not come to power in 2019. The BJP forming government again is a distant dream," Naidu said.

On allegations of EVM manipulation during elections, he said thorough discussions should be held on the use of "electronic voting machines to ensure fair elections".

Naidu said the TDP withdrew support from the NDA government as the Centre had reneged on its promise to grant the special category status to Andhra Pradesh and failed to implement the AP Reorganisation Act.

He alleged that the saffron party was resorting to "revenge politics" and using institutions such as the CBI and the ED to pressure those who do not follow its line.

The BJP was trying to enter southern India through the back door. It wanted to grab power and was least concerned about development, Naidu alleged.

The Andhra Pradesh chief minister, who had welcomed demonetisation and the GST earlier, said that the note ban and the new tax regime caused a lot of trouble to the common man due to their improper implementation.

"The Modi government decided to demonetise high-value currency notes. I thought it would curb corruption. But, as a result of their actions, banks have been insolvent, frauds have increased, and people are losing faith in the banking system," he claimed.

Naidu said there was a sense of "insecurity among minority communities" under the Modi government and that it should answer why it was "targeting a particular community".

The TDP president accused the BJP of betraying the people of Andhra and trying to create law and order problems in collusion with the YSR Congress Party of Jaganmohan Reddy.

He said the BJP government had promised a special package for backward districts of Andhra Pradesh on the lines of the Bundelkhand region. But, Naidu alleged, the BJP cheated the people.

"The BJP government credited Rs 50 crore each for seven backward districts of AP and after some time it debited the amount. This is how it cheated the people of the state," he said.

Andhra Pradesh has been seeking special status on the grounds that it is at a disadvantage, especially because of the loss of capital Hyderabad to newly formed Telangana.

When the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh was being bifurcated in 2014, then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said: "Special category status will be extended to the successor state of Andhra Pradesh for a period of five years".

But the BJP, which came to power a few months later, said the 14th Finance Commission doesn't provide for such treatment to Andhra Pradesh.

In March, the TDP pulled out of the NDA government over the Centre's refusal to grant special status to the state.

Naidu and his party have in the past accused Modi of reneging on his 2014 election promise to accord special status to Andhra Pradesh.

During 'Mahanadu', the TDP would adopt resolutions against the economic decisions taken by the Centre "without proper thinking, their improper implementation, failure of the Goods and Services Tax and demonetisation, and about people losing faith in the banking system" Srinivasa Rao, the officer on special duty to the chief minister, said.

The party would pass a resolution against the Centre's "non-cooperation and non-fulfillment" of assurances made in the Rajya Sabha regarding the special category status and the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, he said.

At the conclave, detailed discussions would be held on the Centre's "betrayal and conspiracy politics".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Kim Jong Un believes a summit with US President Donald Trump will be a landmark opportunity to end decades of confrontation, South Korea's President Moon Jae-in said today following his surprise meeting with the North Korean leader.

"He (Kim) also expressed his intention to put an end to the history of war and confrontation through the success of the North-US summit and to cooperate for peace and prosperity," Moon told reporters, adding both he and Kim agreed to meet or talk in person "if necessary".

Moon and Kim held a surprise summit in the Demilitarised Zone separating their two nations on Saturday in a scramble to save a slated June 12 summit between North Korea and the United States in the city-state of Singapore.

Trump rattled the region on Thursday by cancelling his meeting with Kim, citing "open hostility" from Pyongyang.

But within 24 hours he reversed course, saying it could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

During his two hour meeting with Kim, Moon said he urged both Washington and Pyongyang "to remove misunderstandings through direct communication and to have sufficient dialogue in advance through working-level negotiations on the agendas to be agreed upon at the summit".

"Chairman Kim agreed on that," he added. Moon said the Pyongyang regime reaffirmed its commitment to give up its nuclear weapons but had its own security concerns if it took that step. "Kim stressed again that he had a firm determination towards complete denuclearisation," the South Korean president added.

"The thing he was uncertain about was not denuclearisation but concerns on whether he could trust that the US would end its hostile policy and guarantee the security of his regime when the North denuclearises itself.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The fourth meeting of the Niti Aayog's Governing Council will be held on June 16 and deliberate on the development agenda for 'New India 2022', vice chairman of the think tank Rajiv Kumar said today.

The Council, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, may also discuss plans for celebrations to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

The apex body of Niti Aayog, the Council includes all chief ministers as also the members of the government think tank.

"Topmost on the agenda will be our strategy for 'New India at 75', which NITI Aayog has prepared. The draft will be presented to chief ministers for their approval. Then there will be also discussion on aspirational districts," Kumar told PTI.

"We may also include something on celebration of Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary. It must be done cooperatively and every body must be on board and that will be vision of India," he said.

Niti Aayog has been working on the strategy document or development agenda for 'New India 2022' for a while. Earlier, it had planned to come out with three documents a three-year action agenda, seven-year medium term strategy paper and a 15-year vision document.

The Aayog, in a presentation last year, had said the foundation for freedom from six problems poverty, dirt, corruption, terrorism, casteism and communalism will be laid by 2022 when India celebrates 75 years of independence.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi today urged Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to pressurise the Centre on according special category status to Bihar, failing which he should resign.

"Nitish Kumar should raise with the Centre the issue of getting special category status for Bihar. He should threaten the central government on the issue by giving it an ultimatum of 1-2 months," Manjhi told reporters here.

He added that if the Centre did not accede to Nitish's demand, then he should resign, Manjhi, who is Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) national president, said.

Bihar cannot develop unless the state is granted special category status and the country too cannot make much progress without Bihar's development, Manjhi said while stating that even Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also of the same opinion but he did not do anything concrete on it.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The government will not allow "fly-by-night" data mining firms to improperly harvest social media data of Indian citizens, Law and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said.

In an interview to PTI, he said that while the government is supportive of the social media, it will not allow abuse of the platform nor "irresponsible traffic in data commerce".

The government has already slapped notices to the controversial, UK-based data mining firm Cambridge Analytica for improperly obtaining information from tens of millions of Facebook users globally, including in India and is awaiting its response.

...no fly-by-night operator will now be able to play with data. I am all for campaigning on social media and these platforms but you cannot play with the (user) consent," Prasad said.

The comments assume significance in the run up to general elections slated next year.

Cambridge Analytica, a data-mining firm embroiled in a scandal purportedly over its work for US President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, is alleged to have improperly obtained information from tens of millions of Facebook users to develop political ads.

India, in March, slapped a notice on Cambridge Analytica to explain if it was engaged in improperly harvesting Facebook data of Indian citizens. The second notice was sent last month.

The company has since begun insolvency proceedings in the UK and also filed for bankruptcy in the US after losing "virtually all" customers and suppliers.

"India has sent out a very clear and firm message to these data companies that you cannot take the country lightly... I am very firm, we hold our democratic credentials very strongly," said Prasad.

The IT ministry will wait for Cambridge Analytica to respond to the second notice, Prasad said, adding that a final view in the matter will be taken once the reply comes in.

Earlier this month, Facebook responded to government's latest notice over alleged data breach, outlining in detail the "changes made" to protect users information.

But Cambridge Analytica announced its closure in a statement on its website and claimed it had been "vilified" for activities that are legal and considered a standard component of online advertising.

Indian officials familiar with the line of questioning and notices sent in the data leak matter have said that Cambridge Analytica had recently indicated to the IT ministry that it intends to send response to the government latest notice.

Government officials had also maintained that the shutting down of Cambridge will not impact its ongoing probe as the liability of the company existed prior to the closure announcement.

Stating that he wants India to become a hub of data analysis, Prasad said that such aspirations will have to be strictly balanced with adequate safeguards for data protection and respect for user consent.

"I want India to become a centre of data analysis but we are very clear that the element of consent has to be given due regard...to have a robust balance between a need for data analysis and the need to protect the right of individual data owners," he added.

India is already penning stronger data protection laws and a 10-member committee formed last year under the chairmanship of Justice B N Srikrishna (former Supreme Court judge) to give shape to the new data protection framework, is widely expected to finalize it views by next month.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
"Our daughter's soul is now consoled," the parents of a woman who died of complications in 2012 after being denied abortion by doctors in Ireland said today, a day after the country voted to repeal its stringent abortion laws in a landmark referendum.

"It is a landslide opinion in favour of repeal of the abortion laws that has supported our cause," Savita's father Andanappa Yalagi told PTI here.

One of the key cases influencing the debate on abortion in Ireland was that of dentist Savita Praveen Halappanavar, who died of sepsis in the Galway University hospital after being denied an abortion during a protracted miscarriage in 2012.

The 31-year-old woman's death had triggered a massive debate in that country over the issue of life-saving abortions.

Hailing the result of the referendum, Akkamahadevi, Savita's mother said, "It is also a win for Kitty Holland who took up the mission and created awareness among the Irish people on the unnatural law."



Kitty Holland is a journalist with the Irish times, who broke the story of Savitha's death.

Holland had come all the way to India and met Yalagi family here in 2013, before penning a book titled 'Savita - The tragedy that shook a nation.

The couple said the new law would enable women to opt for abortion in emergency cases, which would save their lives.

A vote in favour of repeal paves the way for the Irish Parliament to legislate for a change which would see the introduction of a much more liberal regime.

The Catholic church in Ireland had strongly opposed repealing the law.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Pakistani national was detained today by the Border Security Force (BSF) when he tried to enter the country through the international border



in Gujarat's Kutch district, an official said.

Three SIM cards and two mobile phones were recovered from his possession, the BSF official said.

The man, in his early thirties, identified himself as Raju, he said.

He tried to enter Kutch district from neighbouring Sindh province in Pakistan early this morning when a BSF patrol team caught him, the official said, adding that he tried to cross over through a patch in an unfenced area between border pillars 1085 and 1090.

"The man was being questioned. The BSF would later hand him over to the local Khavda police for further action," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a historic move, Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly today overwhelmingly approved a landmark bill, paving the way for the merger of the restive tribal region along the Afghan border with the northwestern province, bringing an end to a 150-year-old British-era arrangement.

The bill to merge Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) amends several Articles of the Constitution including Article 1 that defines the territory of Pakistani federation.

The semi-autonomous tribal region was created by British colonizer as a buffer zone to avoid direct conflict with Afghanistan.

The Assembly approved the KP-Fata merger bill, paving way for the merger of the FATA with the province, Dawn reported.

The bill will bring the tribal borderlands, comprising seven agencies and six Frontier Regions, to the mainstream and they will be merged with KP, it said.

Tribal people will get representation in the Assembly through the amendment, the report said.

The bill was passed with two-thirds majority, a Constitutional prerequisite for the proposed merger. As many as 92 lawmakers voted in favour while seven member of the provincial assembly used their votes against the bill.

Provincial Chief Minister Pervez Khattak said that local body elections will be held in FATA this year, whereas the general elections will be held next year.

"During a meeting of the FATA Reforms Committee, Chief of Army Staff Gen Javed Qamar Bajwa had asked me to settle the issue of FATA once and for all," he told fellow lawmakers.

Even though the bill had been passed by both houses of the parliament, Article 239(4) of the Constitution says that the president cannot assent a constitutional amendment bill which affects geographical boundaries of a province without approval by the assembly of that province, the report said.

The session was convened only to give its approval to the historic bill that would erase the colonial-era division between tribal areas and the province.

The semi-autonomous tribal region consists of seven districts - Bajaur, Khyber, Kurram, Mohmand, North Waziristan, Orakzai and South Waziristan - which stretch along the border with Afghanistan, and became known in the world due to presence of militants who fled the porous border after US forces invaded Afghanistan post-9/11.

These seven districts are home to some eight million residents, mainly ethnic Pashtuns.

Pakistan forces launched repeated military operation to clear the area of rebels and dismantle their hideouts which were used to launch attack in the country and Afghanistan.

Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser presided over the session which started late due to protests outside the assembly, the report said.

KP Law Minister Imtiaz Shahid tabled the bill amid ruckus as the lawmakers associated with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazal (JUI-F) as well as disgruntled Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf members chanted slogans to register their protests, the report added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Pakistan today claimed it was forced to test nuclear weapons two decades ago due to hostile posturing by India.

Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal issued a statement on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the May 28, 1998 nuclear tests, while insisting that the testing of atomic bombs by India eliminated chances of a nuclear weapons-free South Asia.

Pakistan was forced to take that decision as a response, in self-defence, to the nuclear tests and accompanying hostile posturing by its neighbour. These developments unfortunately put an end to the prospect for keeping South Asia free of nuclear weapons - an objective which Pakistan had actively pursued, he said, hinting at India.

India conducted a series of five nuclear bomb test explosions at the Pokhran in May, 1998, which was soon followed by Pakistan's tests.

The spokesman said that despite the nuclear testing, Pakistan remained steadfast in its commitment to non-proliferation and global peace and strategic stability and demonstrated utmost restraint and responsibility in the stewardship of its nuclear capability since 1998.

It is committed to the principle of credible minimum deterrence and has persistently sought deterrence stability in the region, he said.

Faisal also said that this objective has driven Pakistan to offer and conclude several confidence building measures (CBMs) in the nuclear and conventional domains, including the 2004 Pakistan-India Joint Statement which recognised the respective nuclear capabilities of the two countries as a factor for stability.

He said that as one of the most affected countries due to the impact of climate change, Pakistan plans to increase its nuclear power generation capacity to 40,000 MW by 2050, as a clean and cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel.

Pakistan has consistently signaled its willingness to consider further measures for risk reduction and avoidance of arms race in the region, according to the spokesman.

He also said that Pakistan was confident of its ability to deny space for any misadventure against the backdrop of rapidly expanding nuclear and conventional forces in its neighbourhood and pursuit of aggressive security doctrines and developing force postures.

The nuclearisation of the Indian Ocean and canesterisation of ballistic missiles in our neighbourhood should be a matter of concern for the international community as well, since these developments have extra-regional ramifications, he said.

He said Pakistan while recognising its responsibilities, had developed over the years a robust command and control system led by the National Command Authority, and effective nuclear safety and security regimes and export controls.

He said Pakistan looked forward to expanding the scope of its international collaboration in nuclear power generation for meeting the legitimate socio-economic development needs of its people.

As a country with advanced nuclear technology, Pakistan seeks to play its role as a mainstream partner in the global non-proliferation regime, he said.

He said Pakistan had expressed desire to join the multilateral export control regimes and already applied for participation in the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) based on non-discriminatory criteria applicable in a fair manner to all non-NPT states.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dutch Day is part of the activities to mark 45th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between Vietnam and the Netherlands. (Photo: VNA)



The event, held by the Dutch Embassy and Consulate General in Vietnam in collaboration with the municipal People Committee, is part of the activities to mark 45th anniversary of the diplomatic ties between Vietnam and the Netherlands (April 9th).

It featured a wide range of activities, including Bike Ride, photo exhibition, book exhibition, and information exchange on studying in the Netherlands, among others.

At the event, Vice Chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee Ho Ky Minh said that the Dutch Day will help enhance friendship and cooperation between Da Nang and Dutch localities, making contributions to fostering the bilateral ties between the two countries.

According to Dutch Consul-General in Ho Chi Minh City Carel Richter, the Dutch Day will continue its journey to Da Lat city in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong in June, the northern port city of Hai Phong in September and the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho in November, focusing on agriculture, maritime and climate change, respectively.

The events will serve as venues for businesses of both sides to meet and seek cooperative opportunities, he said./.
Pakistan today rejected India's protests over Islamabad's latest move relating to administrative authority over the Gilgit-Baltistan region.

Pakistan cabinet recently approved Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018 which was also endorsed by the assembly for the region. Through its order on Gilgit-Baltistan on May 21, Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the region. Civil rights groups in Pakistan have criticised the order.

The order is seen as Islamabad's efforts towards incorporating the disputed region as its fifth province.

India today summoned Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah in New Delhi and lodged a strong protest over Islamabad's latest move, saying any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under its "forcible and illegal occupation" has no legal basis



In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it conveyed to Shah that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947



Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman in a statement claimed that the "Jammu and Kashmir was disputed territory".

"Pakistan categorically rejects India's protest against the Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018 and its claim over Jammu & Kashmir as an 'integral part' of India. Everything from history to law to morality to the situation on the ground belies India's spurious claim, the spokesman said.

"These resolutions, pledging the right to self-determination to the people of Kashmir, were accepted by India, Pakistan and the international community," he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today said he had submitted the original audio clip, in which he is heard exhorting the BJP workers to win the Palghar Lok Sabha bypoll using "saam, daam, dand, bhed" (negotiation, money, punishment and division), to the Election Commission (EC).

The audio clip is at the centre of a row between the BJP and parties like the Shiv Sena, Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which have condemned the language and the aggressive tone of Fadnavis in it.

Voting for the bypoll will be held tomorrow.

Speaking to reporters at the BJP's Dadar office, Fadnavis said he had submitted the original audio clip to the EC and demanded action against those who had allegedly edited it for political gains.

"I have sent the original clip to the EC and requested them to verify it with the clip they have received from other political parties. The EC can take action against me, but I would request it to take action against those who, on purpose, edited the clip for political gains.

"It is a 14-minute clip and if you go through it, the truth will come out," he said.

Earlier in the day, state Congress general secretary and spokesperson Sachin Sawant lodged a complaint over the audio clip with the returning officer for the bypoll.

Hitting out at Fadnavis, Sawant said, "EC officials should probe the words of Fadnavis as he is claiming to use the law enforcement agencies, money, divisive tactics and muscle power in the Palghar bypoll. The EC should probe what exactly did Fadnavis mean when he talked about the use of muscle and money power."



The Congress leader told reporters that he had submitted the audio clip in a pen drive to the EC officials.

Accusing the chief minister of resorting to "dadagiri", he alleged that BJP workers were guilty of poll code violations as they had put up illegal hoardings and distributed money in the run-up to the bypoll.

Sawant alleged that Fadnavis had broken the Model Code of Conduct for elections on earlier occasions as well, but there was no "satisfactory" action against him.

"People are wondering whether the EC is working under pressure from the BJP government," he said.

Leaders of the Bahujan Vikas Aghadi, a contender in the Palghar bypoll, also accompanied Sawant when he met the EC officials to lodge the complaint against the chief minister.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Patanjali Ayurveda has raised its bid to acquire Ruchi Soya and had made the revised offer to the Committee of Creditors (CoC) for the debt ridden company, sources said.

The latest bid is around 30 per cent higher than that of the Adani group, which is also in the race to acquire the company with its offer of around Rs 3,300 crore, the sources said.

The new offer was made after the representatives of Baba Ramdev-led Patanjali group met the CoC of Ruchi Soya, said a sources, adding that they had asked the group to sweeten the offer.

Patanjali has also assured the lenders that it would invest extra capital required to revive the company.

Haridwar-based Patanjali group had emerged as the front runner with a bid of over Rs 4,000 crore to acquire Ruchi Soya.

The CoC of the company is meeting tomorrow and may finalise the bids.

When contacted, Patanjali spokesperson S K Tijarawala said: "Tomorrow CoC is meeting and we are waiting for the outcome."



Patanjali and Adani apart, Wilmar, Emami Agrotech and Godrej Agrovet have also put in bids to acquire Ruchi Soya.

Patanjali Ayurveda already has a tie-up with the Indore-based Ruchi Soya for edible oil refining and packaging.

Ruchi Soya, facing the insolvency proceedings, has a total debt of about Rs 12,000 crore. The company has many manufacturing plants and its leading brands include Nutrela, Mahakosh, Sunrich, Ruchi Star and Ruchi Gold.

Earlier, Patanjali spokesperson had said that the company has bid for Ruchi Soya as it aims to be a major player in edible oil segment, particularly soybean oil. It also wants to work for farmers benefit.

In December 2017, Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd entered into the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) and Shailendra Ajmera was appointed to act as interim resolution Professional (IRP).

The appointment was made by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on the application of the creditors Standard Chartered Bank and DBS Bank Ltd, under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

Adani Wilmar sells edible oils under Fortune brand.

Emami Agrotech is the edible oil and bio-diesel arm of Emami Group of Companies, the Rs 100 billion, business conglomerate based in Kolkata. It has diverse business interests in segments such as production and distribution of edible oil, specialty fats and bio-diesel.

Godrej Agrovet, part of Godrej group, is into animal feed, crop protection, oil palm, dairy, poultry and processed foods.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the first phase of the Rs 7,500-crore Delhi-Meerut Expressway that will reduce the travel time considerably.

Modi, after inaugurating the 14-lane highway spanning Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi to UP Gate, rode in an open car, waving at crowds gathered on either sides of the highway.

Road Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari too rode in a separate open car alongside Modi.

The roadshow started from Nizamuddin bridge, the start of the about 9-km first leg of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway. After a 6-km travel on the stretch, he flew to Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh to inaugurate the country's first smart and green highway, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway.

The first phase of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway costed Rs 842 crore on building the 9-km stretch of 14-lane highway, according to an advertisement released by the government on the project.

The Delhi-Meerut Expressway, which will have dedicated bicycle tracks on the nearly 28-km stretch between Delhi and Dasna, will cut travel time between Delhi and Meerut to 45 minutes from two-and-half hour now. The total length of the project is 82 km, of which the first 27.74 kms will be 14-laned, while the rest will be 6-lane expressway.

The expressway will do away with 31 traffic signals on the Delhi-Meerut road, the busiest highway in the region, and make it signal free.

Modi had in December 2015 laid the foundation stone of the Delhi-Meerut Expressway to be built at a cost of Rs 7,566 crore.

The project is being built in four segments -- Nizamuddin Bridge to UP Border, UP Border to Dasna, Dasna to Hapur and Hapur to Meerut.

Besides, six-laning of 22 km long Dasna-Hapur section of NH 24 will cost Rs 1,122 crore.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the Digital Art Gallery of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) at the toll plaza in Jakhauli village in this district of Haryana.

At the main entrance of Gallery, Modi viewed the map of Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal (KGP) Expressway (Eastern Peripheral Expressway) and saw how the KGP and Kundli-Manesar-Palwal would change the picture of national capital Delhi and National Capita Region (NCR) area, an official release said.

Later, he went around the Digital Art Gallery where he was informed in detail about the journey right from the beginning of construction work of KGP Express way till its completion by using 3D technique.

These included acquisition of land for the Expressway, redressal of grievances related to farmers, beginning of ground work on the Expressway, strategy for the timely completion of work, technique used in the construction work, use of solar energy, plantation and benefits of the Expressway for the people of Delhi and other areas,



the release said.

Secretary of Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Yudhvir Singh Malik, apprised the Prime Minister of the construction of the Highway which has been completed in record 500 days as against the time limit of 910 days.

The Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal (KGP) Expressway (Eastern Peripheral Expressway) has been constructed by NHAI and is expected to ease the traffic congestion in Delhi.

This is the country's first access control highway and the vehicle would be charged toll on the basis of distance covered, the release quoting Malik said.

He said that arrangement of rain water harvesting has been made at every 500 meters on the both sides of this six-lane 135 km long Highway.

The entire Highway is powered by solar energy, he added.

The 36 famous monuments depicting India's rich culture and heritage such as India Gate, Gateway of India, Ashoka Pillar have been set up on both sides of this expressway.

Eighteen displays have been prepared in the gallery in which all information concerning the construction of the Highway has been incorporated.

The Prime Minister congratulated NHAI and engineers, officers, employees and workers engaged in the construction of Highway for their outstanding work, the release added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Asserting that infrastructure is a key priority for his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today that Rs 3 lakh crore has been spent on laying a network of 28,000 km of highways.

Highways, railways, airways and I-ways have been the focus of the government, he said.

Highways construction has reached 27-km a day from mere 12-km a day during the Congress regime, while last year 10 crore people undertook air journeys, he said.

Modi was addressing a public rally here after dedicating the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (EPE) to the nation. The 135 km EPE has been built at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore in 500 days.

He said that apart from Rs 5 lakh crore provision for Bharatmala for highways, a provision of Rs 14 lakh crore was made in the budget to strengthen agriculture related infrastructure.

He further said that during the Congress regime optical fibre network was laid in only 59 gram panchayats, whereas the NDA within 4 years has laid the network in one lakh gram panchayats.

Modi said the government is sensitive to the plight of sugarcane farmers and adequate steps are being taken to provide proper prices for their crop.

While talking about social justice, Modi said his government is committed to the protection of dalits and has constituted special courts for fast-track hearing of cases of atrocities.

He said that under the Yogi government, criminals in UP are now surrendering themselves and pledging not to indulge in illegal acts.

In the field of women empowerment, said that toilets built under Swachh Bharat Mission, and LPG connections under Ujjwala Yojana are making the lives of women easier. He said that out of 13 crore loans given under Mudra Yojana, more than 75 per cent have been given to women entrepreneurs.

About the Ganga cleaning programme, Modi said more than 200 projects worth Rs 21,000 crore for have been taken up.

Taking a jibe at Congress, Modi said it had betrayed people and played politics to create a crisis of confidence whether related to EVMs or other critical issues.

In his about 50 minute-speech, the Prime Minister also mentioned the steps taken for Scheduled Castes and Other Backward Castes.

Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari said, the expressway will reduce 27 per cent pollution and ease 41 per cent traffic jam.

Gadkari said the Delhi-Meerut expressway will be completed by next March and reduce the travel time between the two cities to 40 minutes.

A lot of traffic, outbound or non-destined for Delhi will be diverted, he has said, adding that at least 50,000 vehicles will be diverted.

The alignment of EPE starts near Kundli and passes through six Parliamentary Constituencies -- Sonepat, Bagpat, Gaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Palwal.

Gadkari also announced that Delhi-Saharanpur Highway will be built on EPE pattern and foundation stone of the Rs 7,000 crore Dwarka Expressway will be launched soon by the Prime Minister.

Besides, he announced the Rs 45,000 crore Delhi-Mumbai project on a new alignment, which will save Rs 16,000 crore on land acquisition.

EPE is India's first highway to be lit by solar power besides provisions of rain water harvesting every 500 metre on both sides. It also showcases 36 national monuments and 40 fountains.

There are 8 solar power plants on this expressway having a capacity of 4000-kilo watt (4 MW).

The state-of-the-art road has auto challan system for over-speeding, as cameras will capture speed of vehicles besides having provisions of tolling only for the distance travelled. The expressway has an iconic toll plaza at the entry point on Kundli side besides digital art gallery.

It is also equipped with smart and intelligent highway traffic management system (HTMS) and video incident detection system (VIDS) and is environment-friendly with world-class safety features and smart/ interactive infrastructure.

The foundation stone of the greenfield project was laid by Modi on November 5, 2015.

About 2.5 lakh trees have been planted alongside the expressways including transplant of 8-10 year old trees with drip irrigation system for plantation.

The fully access controlled six-lane expressway provides entry and exit designated interchanges only. It has 406 structures of which 4 are major bridges, 46 minor bridges, 3 flyovers, 7 inter-changes and 221 underpasses.

The Supreme Court on May 10 had directed the NHAI to throw open the Eastern Peripheral Expressway for the public by May 31, asking why were they "waiting" for its inauguration by the Prime Minister.

The apex court had said if the 135-km expressway is not inaugurated on or before May 31, it should be thrown open for the public to ease congestion.

The Eastern and the Western Peripheral Expressways were planned in 2006 following the apex court's order to build a ring road outside the national capital.

Before inaugurating EPE, the PM launched the 14 lane, access controlled, Phase-I of the Rs 5,000 crore Delhi-Meerut Expressway, stretching from Nizamuddin Bridge to Delhi-UP Border.

The 14 lane expressway stretches 8.716 km and has been completed in a record 18 months as against scheduled 30 months.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With the NDA dispensation completing four years in office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with beneficiaries of central schemes while BJP chief Amit Shah will lead a mass outreach programme on the government's achievements, the party said today.

Modi will interact with the beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjawala Yojna and the Mudra Yojna through video conference tomorrow and the day after, a statement, issued by the BJP's media head Anil Baluni, said.

As part of the 'Sampark for Samarthan' (contact for support) drive, right from Shah downwards, every member of the BJP will contact at least 10 people, it said.

Shah would contact at least 50 people, the statement said.

On the occasion of his government's fourth anniversary, the prime minister had yesterday launched a survey on his app, asking people to rate the performance of the BJP-led dispensation at the Centre and MPs and MLAs in their constituencies.

"It is your voice that counts! Tell me what you feel about the working of the central government, its initiatives and the development work in your constituency. Take part in this survey on the NaMo app," Modi had tweeted.

This was being done to gauge the people's views about the government, respective states and constituencies, according to official sources.

The survey assumes significance as the BJP prepares for the Lok Sabha polls, which are due in less than a year.

The Narendra Modi App has been a connectivity platform of choice for the prime minister who has often interacted with the people as well as his party's functionaries through it, the sources said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Political parties are out of the purview of the RTI Act, the has said in an order which is contrary to the Central Information Commission's directive bringing six parties under the transparency law.

The poll panel statement, which may prove to be controversial, came while deciding the appeal of an RTI applicant seeking to know donations collected by six parties who were brought under the ambit of the transparency law by the CIC in June 2013.

"Requisite information is not available in the Commission. This is related to political parties and they are out of purview of the RTI. They may submit information of donation/amount collected through by Electoral bonds in their contribution report for the financial year 2017-18 in the ECI for which the due date is September 30, 2018," the appeal order citing comment of the Central Public Information Officer has said.

Pune-based Vihar Dhurve had sought to know through RTI the details of donations collected by the six parties-- the BJP, Congress, BSP, NCP, and CPM -- and the through newly introduced electoral bonds.

The First Appellate Authority in the K F Wilfred, the Senior Principal Secretary in poll panel, wrote in the order that he agrees with the view taken by the CPIO.

Six out of seven political parties--the BJP, Congress, BSP, NCP, and CPM--for which information was sought by the applicant were brought under the ambit of the RTI Act by a full bench of the commission on June 3, 2013.

The order has not been challenged in the higher courts but the political parties have refused to entertain the RTI applications directed at them. Several activists have approached the on the grounds of non-compliance of the CIC order and the matter is pending.

When it comes to the RTI Act, the is the only appellate authority which may declare a body as public authority if it is convinced that the organisation fits into the criteria for being under the

"When the has declared six national political parties as public authority, the cannot take a position contrary to that unless the order of the CIC has been overturned by the or High Courts. The order of EC has no merit," former Chief Information Commissioner A N Tiwari told

Venkatesh Nayak, a noted activist on RTI matters, said the public information officer of the election commission has exceeded his limits in giving this order.

"The June 2013 order of the CIC bringing six national political parties under the RTI Act remains in force even if the political parties do not obey it. It has not been stayed or set aside by any court. Therefore, as far as national political parties are concerned they are squarely covered under the RTI Act," Nayak said.

He added that all the information about state and national parties fall under the RTI Act which is held by the Election Commission of and the CPIO is bound to make disclosure about them rather than taking position that these political parties are out of purview of the RTI Act.

When contacted over phone about the controversial statement in the order, Wilfred said he meant that not all political parties are covered under the RTI Act.

But when asked that the RTI appeal pertained to the six political parties which are under the RTI Act, as per the CIC order, he did not give any explanation except to say that the DoPT has issued an order that when an RTI plea pertains to multiple public authorities, it is not compulsory to transfer the question to them.

However, the order signed by him does not mention this.

He had, however, transferred a question related to meeting held with political parties on the issue of electoral bonds to the

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Bengali superstar Prosenjit Chatterjee is set to produce several new feature film projects to dish out content-rich films to the audience.

The actor had produced four Bengali feature films in the past.

The upcoming projects will be 'Uranchandi', 'Mahalaya', 'Das Da', 'Kolkata Company', 'Abar Asitechhe' and an unnamed one, Chatterjee told reporters here last week.

All these films will be made by young directors, the actor said.

"More than a producer I would love to be considered as a creative person.

"We all want to take the Bengali audience to the theatres. It is possible only if we make films which are rich in content, backed up by good direction and production. We will not compromise on these factors," he said.

'Uranchandi' is a road movie focussing on three women representing different generations.

'Mahalaya' is based on a controversy surrounding Bengal's 'Mahisasuramardini' programme aired on radio, to mark the advent of 'Devi Paksha' during Durga Puja.

The programme that was broadcast in 1976 had Uttam Kumar's voiceover in place of Biredrakrishna Bhadra. It led to a controversy and the original 'Mahisasurmardini' broadcast had to be brought back which will come up in the film.

These two films have already been shot and scheduled for release in coming days, Chatterjee said.

Among the other projects - 'Das Da' will be a supernatural rom com (romantic comedy) while 'Kolkata Company', based on a real life incident in the metropolis, will be made on the lines of 'Sarkar' and 'God Father', Chatterjee said.

To a question if he would only act under his own banner in future, Prosenjit said, "No no. I will continue to work with different directors and producers in the same way.

"My decision to produce a number of films has rather been prompted by the reason to give a platform to the pool of talented film makers in Bengal. There are very few big production houses in Bengali industry to back good contents."



Chatterjee, whose recent Bengali flicks 'Dristhikone' and 'Mayurakshi' got critical acclaims, said he was happy with the success of some recent movies in bringing back the audience to theatres, and the trend should be sustained.

Chatterjee's Nideas Creations and Productions Pvt Ltd had earlier produced feature films like 'Tin Yari Katha', 'Bapi Bari Jaa', 'Force' and 'Sankhachil', the last two being joint collaborations with two other production houses.

He had also helmed films for television and had forayed into daily soap production eight years ago with'Gaaner Oparey'.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Several people have been injured in Pakistan in clashes between police and protesters during a demonstration against the so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order, media reports said today.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has seized more authority from the local council to deal with the affairs of the disputed region through the Gilgit-Baltistan Order 2018 which was passed on May 21.

The order is seen as Islamabad's efforts towards incorporating the disputed region as its fifth province.

Police fired tear gas shells and resorted to aerial firing in Gilgit yesterday to stop protesters approaching towards Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly for a scheduled sit-in against the newly introduced order, The Express Tribune reported.

Politicians, cutting across party lines, held protest rallies across Gilgit-Baltistan demanding constitutional rights for the region.

The Gilgit-Baltistan government has promulgated the Gilgit-Baltistan Order-2018, which replaced the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order of 2009.

However, the new order has failed to impress local politicians who announced region-wide protests.

We will continue our sit-in outside the assembly till this package is revoked and we are given constitutional rights, said Awami Action Committee (AAC) Chairman Sultan Raees.

Civil rights groups in Pakistan have also criticised the order.

In New Delhi, Pakistan's Deputy High Commissioner Syed Haider Shah was summoned over Islamabad's so-called Gilgit-Baltistan order.

He was told by India that any action to alter the status of any part of the territory under his country's forcible occupation has no legal basis.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said it conveyed to Shah that the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called 'Gilgit-Baltistan' areas, is an integral part of India by virtue of its accession in 1947.

Pakistan has bifurcated occupied Kashmir into two administrative parts - Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Gilgit-Baltistan was treated as a separate geographical entity by Pakistan untill now.

Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh are the four provinces of Pakistan.

A Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Abbasi on Tuesday, was informed that Gilgit-Baltistan Council will be retained as advisory body towards the functions of the Federal Government.

China's controversial USD 50 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) passes through the disputed region.

It is believed that China's concerns about the unsettled status of Gilgit-Baltistan prompted Pakistan to change its status.

Dawn reported that under the new order, all powers exercised by the Gilgit Baltistan council, including passing legislation regarding mineral, hydropower and tourism sectors, have been shifted to the Gilgit-Baltistan Assembly.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President Tran Dai Quang grants an interview to Japanese media (Photo: VNA)



President Tran Dai Quang expressed the belief in an interview granted to Japanese media including NHK broadcasting organisation, Kyodo News, Jiji Press and Nikkei newspaper in Hanoi on May 25, ahead of his State-level visit to Japan from May 29th to June 2nd.

The President said he was glad to lead a high-level Vietnamese delegation to Japan on the occasion of the 45th founding anniversary of the two countries diplomatic ties.

The visit is expected to take the bilateral extensive strategic partnership into a new period of development, contributing to prosperity in each country and to peace, cooperation and development in Asia and beyond, he said.

President Quang said during the visit, the first State-level visit made by Quang as President of Vietnam, he is scheduled to meet the Japanese Emperor and Empress and hold talks with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. He will also have meetings with Japanese top legislators, politicians, economists, scientists and cultural workers to discuss directions and major measures to increase political trust and boost cooperation in trade, investment, development cooperation, defence, security, culture, and people-to-people exchanges.

He added that the two sides will talk about coordination at regional and international forums and issues of mutual concerns, especially as Vietnam will be the coordinating country for ASEAN-Japan relations in 2018-2021.

The Vietnamese President highlighted Vietnam-Japan long-standing connection in history, culture and trade, which dated back to the 15th century when the trade port of Hoi An in Vietnam welcomed the first Japanese merchant ships. The Japanese street in Hoi An then was a major trade centre connecting Japan with other countries in Southeast Asia.

After the establishment of diplomatic ties in September 1973, the bilateral friendship and cooperation have developed strongly in all realms, especially after the elevation of ties to an extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia in March 2014, President Quang said.

Politically, the two countries have reached mutual trust through regular meetings of high-ranking officials. In 2017 alone there were five high-level visits between the two countries, including the first historical visit to Vietnam by the Japanese Emperor and Empress. The same year, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visited Vietnam twice while Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan Oshima Tadamori visited Vietnam after 15 years. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also paid an official visit to Japan in June.

Economically, Japan is a leading partner of Vietnam, the largest provider of official development assistance (ODA), and the fourth biggest trade partner of Vietnam.

Last year, Japan became the top foreign investor in Vietnam with a record investment capital of over USD9.1 billion, four times over the figure in 2016.

At present, more than 2,500 Japanese businesses, including most major corporations of Japan, are investing in Vietnam.

Japans ODA capital has been effectively used in building infrastructure, developing high technology, clean agriculture, climate change adaptation, and poverty reduction, which makes significant contributions to Vietnams socio-economic development.

Bilateral cooperation in other fields such as defence, security, culture, education-training, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges has been continuously reinforced and expanded.

Thirty-seven pairs of localities of Vietnam and Japan have signed cooperation agreements.

In 2017, Japan ranked third in the number of tourists to Vietnam. The Vietnamese culture festival in Japan and the cherry blossom festival in Vietnam have become annual much-awaited events for the two peoples.

Vietnam and Japan also closely cooperate at regional and international forums such as the United Nations, ASEAN , Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, and Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).

Particularly, the two countries worked together for the success of the APEC Year 2017 in Vietnam, the 25th APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Da Nang, and jointly pushed ahead negotiations to reach the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

According to President Tran Dai Quang, the thriving economic ties between Vietnam and Japan have brought about practical benefits to people of the two countries.

To better utilise potential and strengths of each other, the two sides should enhance economic connectivity through promoting trade and investment, and work together to effectively implement the Vietnam-Japan economic partnership agreement, he said.

The leader called for joint efforts to double trade and investment value in 2020 as compared with 2014, facilitate the market access of each others farm produce and seafood and effectively implement the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative in order to improve investment environment and promote Japanese investment inflows in Vietnam, especially in high-tech, infrastructure and energy sectors, thus maintaining Japans position as the No. 1 foreign investor in Vietnam.

He said the two countries should join hands in realising action plans for the six key industries selected under Vietnams industrialisation strategy within the Vietnam-Japan cooperation framework by 2020 with a vision towards 2030, which are automobile and auto spare parts, farming machines, agro-fishery product processing, shipbuilding, electronics, environmental industry and energy saving.

Vietnam also hopes for Japans active cooperation in developing the support industry in the country, President Quang said, calling on the country to maintain its official development assistance to Vietnam, particularly in infrastructure construction, high-quality human resources development, climate change response, environmental protection, economic management capacity improvement, the implementation of large-scale projects, economic reform and sustainable development.

We wish that Japan considers Vietnam a priority partner of the Partnership for Quality Infrastructure programme worth USD200 billion and the Mekong-Japan Connectivity Initiative worth USD6.8 billion, he said.

Vietnam also looks for enhanced partnerships with Japan in the areas of the two countries demands and potential like high-tech agriculture, health care, culture, education and cooperation between localities.

President Quang said along with the sound development of bilateral relationship, Vietnam Japan cooperation at regional and international forums, especially in major cooperative mechanisms like the UN, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and the ASEAN Plus has been tightened, significantly contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world at large.

The two sides have actively promoted trade liberalisation, while closely coordinating with each other to push ahead the negotiations and signing of the CPTPP agreement, and negotiations of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Vietnam supports Japan in playing an active role and contributing to regional peace, stability and development, he said.

He noted that the two sides have regularly discussed regional and international issues of shared concern and supported each others bids to run for seats at UN agencies and other international organisations.

The two countries have also shared viewpoints and coordinated to help address issues relating to cooperation, development and security in the region, including the East Sea issue, denuclearization on the Korean peninsula and the Indo-Pacific initiative.

Both sides stressed the significance of ensuring peace, security, safety and freedom of aviation and navigation in the East Sea, resolving disputes by peaceful measures and in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, fully and effectively implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) in 2002 and working towards a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).

As the coordinating country for the ASEAN-Japan relationship from August 2018-Agust 2021, Vietnam wishes that the two countries will continue to cooperate at regional and international forums, especially within the ASEAN-Japan cooperation framework, further contributing to peace, security, stability and prosperity in the region and the world as well, the leader noted.

The CPTPP, signed by 11 countries in Santiago, Chile on March 8 this year, delivers a common message of the member states who support regional economic linkage, President Quang said, adding that free trade and economic integration will continue to be a mainstream trend in the Asia-Pacific.

He said Vietnams joining in CPTPP reflects the countrys strong and consistent commitment to continued renovation, deep economic integration, participation in forming cooperative mechanisms and economic linkages, and contributions to regional and global peace, cooperation and development. As a new-generation and comprehensive deal, the pact will provide a new driving force for Vietnam in restructuring its economy, expanding exports and luring more high-tech investments, he noted.

The President said Vietnam and other CPTPP members welcome other countries to join the CPTPP and the extension of the participation will be considered after the deal enters into force.

He added that Vietnam needs technical support from Japan to fully and effectively carry out the deal.

On measures to foster bilateral cooperation in the fields of people-to-people exchanges, President Quang said that as the numbers of Vietnamese and Japanese visited the other countries are increasing rapidly, the two countries should pay due attention to communication activities on each others culture and regulations.

Currently, there are some 250,000 Vietnamese people in Japan, tripling the number five years ago. Of the figure, 200,000 are apprentices and students. Meanwhile, there are some 16,000 Japanese working and running business in Vietnam.

Japan is the third largest source of tourists to Vietnam with 800,000 arrivals in 2017. In addition, Japan also welcomed more than 300,000 Vietnamese in the year.

People-to-people exchanges have deepened mutual understanding and trust, laying a firm foundation for the Vietnam-Japan friendship to grow in the coming time.

I believe that with concerted efforts from both nations, the Vietnamese people community in Japan and the Japanese people community in Vietnam will continue to be a bridge for the Vietnam-Japan friendship for benefits of the two peoples, and for regional and global peace, stability and prosperity, President Quang said at the end of the interview./.
The public works department of the Delhi government will finally execute the AAP dispensation's ambitious plan to provide free Wi-Fi in the national capital, days after its senior officer expressed "inability" to implement the scheme citing "lack of expertise".

The development comes after a top official asked PWD Engineer-in-Chief Rakesh Kumar Agrawal to go ahead with the project.

A cabinet note has also been prepared to execute the free Wi-Fi plan in the city.

Free Wi-Fi at public places across the city was one of Aam Aadmi Party's key poll promises.

During his budget speech in the Delhi Assembly in March, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had said that the Wi-Fi project, which was earlier with the information and technology (IT) department, was given to the PWD to expedite the work.

However, the officer in-charge of the project had recently conveyed to senior officials of the department that the project should actually be executed by the information technology department as the PWD "lacks expertise" in carrying out such projects, sources said.

"It has now been cleared that the PWD will execute the Wi-Fi project. A top PWD official has asked the engineer-in-chief to go ahead with the project. A cabinet note regarding the implementation of the project has been prepared," said a senior official, who did not wish to be named.

In its 2018-19 budget, the Delhi government has allocated Rs 100 crore to provide Wi-Fi facility, even though the government did not mention a time-line for the completion of the project.

In February this year, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said that the AAP government was working on three to four models for implementing the project.

As the AAP formed its government in Delhi, the project was initially assigned to the Dialogue and Development Commission (DDC) of Delhi chaired by the chief minister.

In March 2016, the DDC had started first free Wi-Fi facility on a three-month pilot basis in Sant Nagar market in north Delhi's Burari.

Thereafter, the ruling dispensation had promised that over 500 locations across east Delhi would be made high-speed Wi-Fi zones by December, 2016, but there was no progress.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Andhra Pradesh minister Kalava Srinivasulu said today that the TDP would not accept Congress chief Rahul Gandhi as the prime ministerial candidate of a "united front" in case it comes into being before the 2019 polls.

Srinivasulu said the TDP never had any equation with the Congress and the two parties would never join hands.

"We are 100 per cent clear that the prime minister will not be from the BJP or the Congress. Rahul Gandhi will not be the prime ministerial face of a united front in case such an alternative comes into being with the support of the Congress," he said.

The remarks came days after TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu shared stage with leaders of several regional parties at the swearing-in of H D Kumaraswamy as the CM of the Congress-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka.

"After the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, regional parties will play a major role at the Centre. The TDP will decide who will be the next prime minister," he said in response to a question from reporters on the sidelines of Mahanadu, a three-day annual conclave of the Telugu Desam Party.

The Congress "indiscriminately" divided the Telugu state, the minister for information and public relations minister said. "It did injustice to Andhra Pradesh. The same thing is happening under the BJP government."



Andhra Pradesh has been seeking special category status from the Centra on the grounds that it is at a disadvantage, especially after the loss of capital Hyderabad to Telangana.

In March, the TDP withdrew from the NDA government over the Centre's refusal to grant special status to the state.

Asked why the TDP did not pull out of the NDA government for four years, he said: "We did not withdraw the support earlier because we were dependent on the Centre. The state would have suffered a lot had we done that. We waited for fours years for the central government to make good on its promises to Andhra Pradesh."



Asked if Naidu could be projected as the prime ministerial candidate of the "third front", which a few regional parties have been mooting for some time as an alternative to the Congress and the BJP, the minister said: "Chandrababu Naidu has ruled himself out of the prime ministerial race, but the TDP will play the kingmaker.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today indicated the government's readiness to review its decision to allow civilian access to all roads in military cantonments across the country.

Army officials and their families have apparently expressed strong reservations against the decision to reopen all roads in cantonments to civilians, citing security concerns.

A country-wide signature campaign against the government decision has been launched by wives of Army officers. They say they would meet the defence minister urging her to reverse the cantonment board decision.

"Welcome to meet me. Shall hear them with an open mind," Sitharaman today tweeted, referring to the campaign by wives of Army officers.

The Defence Ministry decided to allow civilian access to the roads in 62 cantonments after Sitharaman held a meeting with a group of MPs and elected office-bearers of cantonment boards.

The MPs and elected officials of cantonment boards had strongly pitched to allow civilians unhindered access to the roads.

Sitharaman reviewed the matter with Chief of Army Staff General Bipin Rawat, Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra and Defence Ministry officials, a ministry statement said last week.

The ministry had said that it was decided that a simplified detailed standard operating procedure will soon be issued to address the needs of the local public and the military establishment.

However, families of Army officers feel the decision may expose the cantonments to security risks as military bases have recently been targeted by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir and other areas.

"The decision will weaken security of the cantonments. The government must review it," said a family member of an Army official here on condition of anonymity.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
South Korean President Moon Jae-in said today that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un committed in their surprise meeting to sitting down with President Donald Trump and to a "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."



The Korean leaders' second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles, but their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appears to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the world's most heavily armed border.

At the White House, Trump said negotiations over a potential June 12 summit with Kim that he had earlier canceled were "going along very well."



Trump told reporters that they are still considering Singapore as the venue for their talks. He said there is a "lot of good will," and that denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula would be "a great thing."The Koreas' talks, which Moon said Kim requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back-and-forth. They allowed Moon to push for a US-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Kim may see the sit-down with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters Sunday that Kim "again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," and that he told the South Korean leader he's willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful North Korea-US summit.

Moon said he told Kim that Trump has a "firm resolve" to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic cooperation if Kim implements "complete denuclearization."



"What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations (with North Korea) and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearization," Moon said.

"During the South Korea-US summit, President Trump said the US is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations (between the US and North Korea) and help (the North) achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearization," he said.

Moon said North Korea and the United States will soon start working-level talks to prepare for the Kim-Trump summit. He said he expects the talks to go smoothly because Pyongyang and Washington both know what they want from each other.

Kim, in a telling line from a dispatch issued by the North's state-run service earlier Sunday, "expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-US summit talks." During Saturday's inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to "positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-US relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent and durable peace."



They agreed to have their top officials meet again June 1. Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Saturday's Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting. Despite repeated references to "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

The North has previously used the term to demand the United States pull out its 28,500 troops in South Korea and withdraw its so-called "nuclear umbrella" security commitment to South Korea and Japan. The North hasn't openly repeated those same demands after Kim's sudden outreach to Seoul and Washington.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees. Moon said Sunday that the North's disarmament could be still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul don't differ over what "complete denuclearization" of the peninsula means.

Moon, who brokered the summit between Washington and Pyongyang, likely used Saturday's meeting to confirm Kim's willingness to enter nuclear negotiations with Trump and clarify what steps Kim has in mind in the process of denuclearization, said Hong Min, a senior analyst at Seoul's Korea Institute for National Unification.

"While Washington and Pyongyang have expressed their hopes for a summit through published statements, Moon has to step up as the mediator because the surest way to set the meeting in stone would be an official confirmation of intent between heads of states," Hong said.

Some US officials have talked about a comprehensive one-shot deal in which North Korea fully eliminates its nukes first and receives rewards later. But Kim, through two summits with Chinese President Xi Jinping in March and May, has called for a phased and synchronized process in which every action he takes is met with a reciprocal reward from the United States.

Before he canceled the summit, Trump did not rule out an incremental approach that would provide incentives along the way to the North.

Following an unusually provocative 2017 in which his engineers tested a purported thermonuclear warhead and three long-range missiles theoretically capable of striking mainland US cities, Kim has engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity in recent months. In addition to his summits with Moon and Xi, Kim also has had two meetings with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Sunday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un committed in their surprise meeting to sitting down with President Donald Trump and to a "complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."



The Korean leaders' second summit in a month saw bear hugs and broad smiles, but their quickly arranged meeting Saturday appears to highlight a sense of urgency on both sides of the world's most heavily armed border.

At the White House, Trump said negotiations over a potential June 12 summit with Kim that he had earlier canceled were "going along very well." Trump told reporters that they are still considering Singapore as the venue for their talks.

He said there is a "lot of good will," and that denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula would be "a great thing." The Koreas' talks, which Moon said Kim requested, capped a whirlwind 24 hours of diplomatic back-and-forth.

They allowed Moon to push for a U.S.-North Korean summit that he sees as the best way to ease animosity that had some fearing a war last year.

Kim may see the sit-down with Trump as necessary to easing pressure from crushing sanctions and to winning security assurances in a region surrounded by enemies.

Moon told reporters Sunday that Kim "again made clear his commitment to a complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," and that he told the South Korean leader he's willing to cooperate to end confrontation and work toward peace for the sake of the successful North Korea-US summit.

Moon said he told Kim that Trump has a "firm resolve" to end hostile relations with North Korea and initiate economic cooperation if Kim implements "complete denuclearization."



"What Kim is unclear about is that he has concerns about whether his country can surely trust the United States over its promise to end hostile relations (with North Korea) and provide a security guarantee if they do denuclearization," Moon said.

"During the South Korea-U.S. summit, President Trump said the U.S. is willing to clearly put an end to hostile relations (between the U.S. and North Korea) and help (the North) achieve economic prosperity if North Korea conducts denuclearization," he said.

Moon said North Korea and the United States will soon start working-level talks to prepare for the Kim-Trump summit. He said he expects the talks to go smoothly because Pyongyang and Washington both know what they want from each other.

Kim, in a telling line from a dispatch issued by the North's state-run service earlier Sunday, "expressed his fixed will on the historic (North Korea)-U.S. summit talks."



During yesterday's inter-Korean summit, the Korean leaders agreed to "positively cooperate with each other as ever to improve (North Korea)-U.S. relations and establish (a) mechanism for permanent and durable peace." They agreed to have their top officials meet again June 1.

Moon said military generals and Red Cross officials from the Koreas will also meet separately to discuss how to ease military tensions and resume reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War.

Yesterday's Korean summit came hours after South Korea expressed relief over revived talks for a Trump-Kim meeting.

Despite repeated references to "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" by the North, it remains unclear whether Kim will ever agree to fully abandon his nuclear arsenal.

The North has previously used the term to demand the United States pull out its 28,500 troops in South Korea and withdraw its so-called "nuclear umbrella" security commitment to South Korea and Japan. The North hasn't openly repeated those same demands after Kim's sudden outreach to Seoul and Washington.

Moon has insisted Kim can be persuaded to abandon his nuclear facilities, materials and bombs in a verifiable and irreversible way in exchange for credible security and economic guarantees.

Moon said today that the North's disarmament could be still be a difficult process even if Pyongyang, Washington and Seoul don't differ over what "complete denuclearization" of the peninsula means.

Moon, who brokered the summit between Washington and Pyongyang, likely used Saturday's meeting to confirm Kim's willingness to enter nuclear negotiations with Trump and clarify what steps Kim has in mind in the process of denuclearization, said Hong Min, a senior analyst at Seoul's Korea Institute for National Unification.

"While Washington and Pyongyang have expressed their hopes for a summit through published statements, Moon has to step up as the mediator because the surest way to set the meeting in stone would be an official confirmation of intent between heads of states," Hong said.

Some US officials have talked about a comprehensive one-shot deal in which North Korea fully eliminates its nukes first and receives rewards later.

But Kim, through two summits with Chinese President Xi Jinping in March and May, has called for a phased and synchronized process in which every action he takes is met with a reciprocal reward from the United States.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The ministry of New and Renewable Energy has appointed Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) as the nodal agency for setting up 2,500 MW of inter-state transmission system-connected (ISTS) power projects on a build, own operate (BOO) basis across the country, paving the way for the nodal agency to float bids for such projects.

The recent circular appointing SECI as the implementing agency, comes days after the ministry issued the National Wind-Solar Hybrid Policy.

"The objective of the scheme is to facilitate installation of new hybrid projects at prices discovered through transparent bidding process," the government said in the notification.

As the nodal implementing agency for such projects, SECI will now be inviting e-bids followed by e-reverse auction.

The company will sign power purchase agreement with the bidders for 25 years.

As per the notification, the eligible capacity for bidding will be a minimum 200 MW and maximum of 500 MW, with a project capacity of at least 50 MW at one project site.

The government has set a target of 175 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2022.

India so far has an installed capacity of 20 GW of wind-solar hybrid power projects.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
With disposable income in India growing, self-drive holidays are gaining popularity and are expected to grow 35 per cent annually, giving people freedom to explore offbeat destinations, say experts.

"The liberty to stop anywhere for meals or sightseeing empowers travellers," FCM Travel Solutions - Indian subsidiary of Flight Centre Travel Group, Australia, Managing Director Rakshit Desai told PTI here.

It also adds a new perspective to the whole self-exploration experience, which is overlooked in group tours with fixed itineraries. Besides, it gives travellers freedom to explore off-beat locations as per their interest, he added.

He said, his company has witnessed 35 per cent year-on-year growth in the self-drive segment. "We are confident this trend going to increase from here."



Most travellers prefer picturesque or adventurous routes in the country like the coastal belts in the Konkan and hill stations such as Shimla and Manali in the north, especially during summers, he said.

"Internationally, most of our Indian travellers prefer the US, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Spain and Ireland," he added.

Young travellers, in age group of 25-35 years age group, are keen to opt for flexible travel lifestyle and have desire for experiential travel, he said.

"We see huge opportunity in this and expect a potential of double-digit growth in this segment," he added.

Echoing a similar view, Head of Self-Drive 365 at Cox and Kings, Debolin Sen, said, this segment is likely to grow by 15-20 per cent till 2022, as new highways and expressways have given people an avenue to drive around in their cars and experience the local flavour and enjoy the landscape.

"Self-drive holidays is very popular overseas. In fact, Indians who travel to overseas destinations opt for self-drive vacations in New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland among others. In India, it is still in its infancy," he added.

Initially, a lot of youngsters opt self-drive within the country and then graduate to longer holidays overseas.

So, 25-30 year-old travellers are the main target segment in the domestic market, while 30-50 year-old travellers opt for self-drive overseas with a bit of experience, he added.

Expedia India Marketing Head, Brand, Manmeet Ahluwalia said the increased preference for road trips is due to decent GPS navigation systems, proliferation of internet connectivity and good roads.

"It is also gaining popularity in the metro cities as the best weekend gateway option," he added.

Experiential travellers, mostly professionally qualified ones who have already explored India, move to exploring international destinations in Europe, Australia and the US through self-drive, he said.

"People look for destinations which allow left side driving- which is the same as India like New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Ireland, Maldives, Scotland and South Africa," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Punjab Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu visited the Thatheras or craftsmen of hand-made brass and copper utensils here today and announced a corpus of Rs 10 lakh for the revival of this dying art.

Accompanied by Amritsar Deputy Commissioner Kamaldeep Singh Sangha and others, the minister for local bodies, tourism and culture went through the narrow streets of traditional bazaars where the craftsmen make these utensils and assured whole hearted support to them.

"It is a matter of pride that this is the only Indian craft form to find place in the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. These people are our pride and I promise that this government of stands by them and will never let this art fade away," he said.

Sidhu said, "I have announced a fund of Rs 10 lakh for them and we will also provide a shop to them in the city to showcase their utensils. Money will never be a dearth for them and as soon as more funds are required, we will provide it."



He promised that their products will be showcased at the world level.

Sidhu praised the role of Punjab Tourism Director Shiv Dular Singh and students of Enactus Shri Ram College of Commerce in uplifting the 'Thathera' community of Jandiala Guru by making their art form better suited to contemporary needs under 'Project Virasat'.

The project, a joint initiative of Amritsar district administration and Enactus Shri Ram College of Commerce, to uplift the lives of underprivileged communities through different social entrepreneurship projects.

Amritsar Deputy Commissioner Kamaldeep Singh Sangha said this craft flourished during the reign of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, but due to competition from aluminium products as well as low-cost factory-made utensils, it has become an increasingly difficult task for the Thatheras to earn a good living.

The District Administration of Amritsar, in collaboration with Enactus Shri Ram College of Commerce, conducted extensive surveys and comprehensive research to find out the problems faced by the community.

After assessing the problems faced by the Thatheras, the administration along with Enactus Shri Ram College of Commerce helped them come up with better designs and launch aggressive marketing of their products.

Under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar, Punjab Thathera Art Legacy was formed.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Six militants, involved in the killing of a Brigadier of Pakistan's spy agency ISI and several deadly blasts, were shot dead during an encounter with the security forces in Punjab, a media report said today.

According to the Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD), the suspects were also involved in the blast near the residence-cum-office of Punjab province Chief Minister Shahbaz Shari last year that claimed 26 lives including eight policemen.

The CTD had tracked the militants near Gujrat in Punjab where a gunbattle broke out between them, Geo reported.

The suspects, eight or nine in number, had opened fire on the CTD team. The team killed six suspects in retaliatory fire, while three of them managed to escape, an official said.

A CTD spokesperson said the suspects were involved in the killing of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) Brigadier Zahoor Fazal Qadri and his brother in Sargodha in 2004.

Those killed in the shootout have been identified as Abdul Muqeem, Faisal, Usman, Azeem, Rauf and Sohaib, whose name was included in the red book, according to the report.

Suicide bombing vests, hand grenades and ammunition were recovered from them, the official said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Spain's maritime rescue service said today it had rescued 408 migrants who were attempting the perilous crossing of the Mediterranean Sea from north Africa this weekend.

The service said its rescue boats intercepted 115 migrants travelling in five small boats in the Strait of Gibraltar today, a day after it pulled 293 migrants from nine vessels.

The maritime service is tracking three other boats carrying "a significant number of migrants" in the Alboran Sea east of the Strait of Gibraltar, a maritime rescue service spokesman told AFP.

Spain is the third busiest gateway for migrants arriving in Europe, still far behind Italy but catching up fast with Greece.

Many Africans undertaking the long route to Europe are choosing to avoid crossing danger-ridden Libya to get to Italy along the so-called central Mediterranean route, choosing instead to get there via Morocco and Spain.

According to the International Organisation for Migration, more than 22,400 people arrived in Spain by sea last year, nearly triple the number for 2016. Some 223 people died along the way.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga (centre) thanks the Asian-Pacific countries for approving Vietnams nomination. (Photo: VTV)



Under the chair of head of the Samoa Mission to the United Nations Ambassador Aliioaiga Feturi Elsaia, who is the groups chairman for May, the 54-member group agreed to nominate Vietnam as its only candidate for the position.

The voting will be held by the UN General Assembly in June, 2019.

At the meeting, Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga, Head of Vietnams Permanent Mission to the United Nations, thanked the Asian-Pacific countries for approving Vietnams nomination.

She affirmed that Vietnam will do its utmost to deserve the trust of its international friends, expressing her hope that Vietnam will receive further support from those same countries.

The nomination is a vivid illustration of Vietnams prestige among regional nations and it will create favourable conditions for Vietnam to mobilise support from countries in other regions.

The Asia-Pacific Group is among five regional groups at the UN./.
The stage is set for bypolls to four seats, including the politically-crucial in Uttar Pradesh, and 10 assembly constituencies spread across 10 states on Monday.

Besides in western Uttar Pradesh, by-election will be held in Bhandara-Gondiya and Palghar parliamentary constituencies in Maharashtra, and seat.

The bypoll will see a joint opposition taking on the ruling BJP.



The constituency fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh is now the party's candidate for the bypoll. She is fighting Rashtriya Lok Dal's (RLD) Tabassum Hasan, who is supported by the Congress, and the



The opposition hopes that by consolidating anti-BJP votes, they will repeat the success of the Gorakhpur and Phulpur by-elections, where the ruling party suffered an unexpected defeat.



The ruling BJP, on the other hand, is making extra efforts to retain the seat to try and send a strong message to voters, party cadres as well as the opposition parties  that the drubbing in the Gorakhpur and Phulpur bye-elections was an aberration, and that it was still strong in western UP.



All four major parties in  the Congress, BJP , and the NCP  have pulled out all stops for the Lok Sabha bypolls as the outcome is likely to have a bearing on their future course.



The has fielded late BJP MP Chintaman Wanaga's son Shriniwas Wanaga in Palghar, much to the dislike of the BJP which has in-turn nominated deserter Rajendra Gavit.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Kavinder Gupta today asked the separatists to respond positively to the Centre's offer of dialogue so that peace and normalcy is restored in the state.

We have provided them an opportunity of talks and now they have to see how to proceed further. They should avail this opportunity, Gupta told reporters on the sidelines of a party event here.

Lauding the Centre, the senior BJP leader said it had taken a very good decision on completion of four years of the NDA government's rule.

Now an opportunity has provided to them (separatists) If they do not come forward, the people of Kashmir should also understand that they are not their well wishers, Gupta said.

He said it was a big decision of the government and needed to be availed to pave way for the restoration of peace and normalcy in the state.

To another question, Gupta said the border residents were not upset with BJP and assured there demands would be met.

"They are not angry with the BJP. I have visited them and their demands would be met, he said adding the centre has already sanctioned Rs 415 crore for construction of bunkers along the International border and Line of Control in the state.

The border residents are satisfied with the BJP government, he said dismissing as opposition propaganda that they were angry with the ruling party, both at the centre and the state.

It is unfortunate that they indulge in even on borders," Gupta said slamming political rivals.

Earlier, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, speaking at a programme to mark four years of the NDA government in New Delhi, told a TV channel that the Centre was ready to talk to the Hurriyat Conference if they were ready for a dialogue.

If Hurriyat is ready to talk, we have no problem, we are ready to talk to anyone. Even if Pakistan comes for a dialogue, we are ready for it," Singh had said.

State BJP president Ravinder Raina said BJP would not compromise on safety, integrity and sovereignty of the nation.

We will not fire the first bullet (on borders), but will rain countless bullets if need arises, he said pledging to take back the "areas illegally occupied by Pakistan".

Raina claimed that the next chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir would be from his party owing to dedicated workers.

India has risen to the level that every country looks towards the country for assistance. China had to take its steps back after confrontation at border. India has revolutionised its defence sector and the day is not far when India will be the biggest arms exporter in the world, he said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Tata Trusts has joined hands with the government to help it in development initiatives in eight worst Naxal-affected districts in Chhattisgarh, which were covered under the "transformation of aspirational" districts programme.

The Home Ministry officials said the Tata Trusts, the philanthropic organisation started by the promoters of the Tata group, has signed an MoU with the government to provide technical and human resource assistance to the special development programme launched by the NITI Aayog.

As per the pact, the Tata Trusts will help the government in conducting surveys and providing ground level and technical support in raising the living standards of citizens and ensuring inclusive growth for all,a home ministry official said.

The eight worst Naxal-hit districts, which were chosen for the programme and would be helped by the Tata Trusts are Rajnandgaon, Kanker, Bastar, Bijapur, Kondagaon, Dantewada, Narayanpur and Sukma.

Two more districts of Chhattisgarh are also part of the programme and one of them is partially affected by the Maoists menace.

The Tata Trusts own two-third of the stock holding of Tata Sons, the apex company of the 100 billion dollars salt-to-software conglomerate.

The Memorandum of Understanding with the Tata Trusts will facilitate placing of development fellows at district and state levels to assist district collectors and district administrations in extracting optimum benefits, the official said.

In addition, Special Central Assistance Scheme -- Rs 33 crore per district per annum -- has been approved by the home ministry for filling critical gaps in public infrastructure and for services of emergent nature.

Resources are also available in the form of District Mineral Funds and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds, another official said.

Use of a large number of women in self help groups for taking lead in development and diversification of forest based livelihood activities have also been encouraged.

Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January, the 'Transformation of Aspirational Districts' programme aims to quickly and effectively transform some of the most underdeveloped districts of the country.

Over 100 districts from across the country were chosen to implement the ambitious programme.

The programme focusses closely on improving people's ability to participate fully in the burgeoning economy.

Health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion and skill development and basic infrastructure are the programme's core areas of focus.

It envisages the rapid development of the selected districts on the basis of a composite index based on health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion and skill development and basis infrastructure.

The focus is to bring these indicators in the selected districts at par with the better performing districts in the country.

The Tata Trusts is amongst India's oldest, non-sectarian philanthropic organisations. The wealth that accrues from this asset supports an assortment of causes, institutions and individuals in a wide variety of areas.

In this manner, the profits that the Tata companies earn go back many times over to the communities they operate in. These funds have been deployed towards a whole range of community development programmes across the country, for over a 100 years now.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Tamil Nadu Government today doubled the solatium to families of the 13 people killed in police firing last week during anti-Sterlite plant protests, from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.

The solatium for those seriously injured has also been increased to Rs five lakh from Rs three lakh and for those with minor injuries, to Rs 1.50 lakh from Rs one lakh.

An official release quoting Chief Minister K Palaniswami said he issued the orders to increase the solatium (from the earlier amounts announced on May 22) after considering requests to the government from various sections and to the Commission of Inquiry probing the violence.

The months long protests demanding closure of UK-based Vedanta Ltd, Sterlite-Copper Smelting plant over pollution concerns turned violent last week, prompting police to open fire, killing 13 persons.

The state government constituted a Commission of Inquiry, headed by retired Madras High Court Judge Aruna Jagadeesan, to probe the violence.

Meanwhile, DGP T K Rajendran today termed the incidents of violence as 'very unfortunate' and said suitable action would be taken once the Commission of Inquiry submits its report.

Speaking to reporters after visiting families of the deceased and injured at a government hospital in Tuticorin district, he said the public and traders were "cooperating" to maintain peace and added that deployment of police personnel would be gradually reduced after assessing the situation.

He said internet service in the district would be restored from midnight.

The Opposition DMK had sought resignation of the Chief Minister and DGP for alleged failure to maintain law and order in the district.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Japanese auto major Toyota plans to increase local content of Baleno and Vitara Brezza models which it will receive from compatriot Suzuki for selling in India under their partnership to make them price competitive, a senior company official has said.

The likely changes to be brought in the two models "are still under work-in-progress and how the final products gets rolled out will be known over the course of time", Toyota Kirloskar Motor Vice President Atsushi Oki told PTI.

He added: "Toyota will further boost their outlook on components localisation in support to 'Make in India' initiative, to achieve cost effectiveness," he said when asked how costly the two models under Toyota badge would be when compared to what Maruti Suzuki is already selling in India.

"We understand the price sensitivity of Indian market. We will continue to keep up the price momentum in these directions. Further details are under discussion at this point in time."



When asked by when TKM will start selling Vitara Brezza and Baleno in India, he said the details of each model such as the schedule of the start of supply will be considered at a later stage.

In March this year, in continuation of their partnership discussions that kicked off in 2017, Suzuki agreed to supply premium hatchback Baleno and compact SUV Vitara Brezza to Toyota, while Toyota will supply sedan Corolla to Suzuki.

The two companies agreed last week to expand the scope of their collaboration and discuss new joint projects in the fields of technological development, vehicle production, and market development.

Under the agreement, Toyota Kirloskar Motor would manufacture models developed by Suzuki for sale in India through their respective brand networks.

Moreover, the two firms are looking at cooperation in exports of models developed by Suzuki, including those produced by Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) -- the Indian arm of Toyota, from India to Africa and other markets through their global sales networks.

In February 2017, Toyota and Suzuki had concluded a memorandum towards business partnership and since then, they have been exploring concrete projects for collaboration in areas including environmental technology, safety technology, information technology, and the mutual supply of products and components.

Subsequently, in November 2017 the companies announced an MoU to consider a cooperative structure for introducing battery electric vehicles in India around 2020.

Oki said the alliance is an all new beginning of relationships, a platform for new learning for each other and a new approach to leveraging strengths.

"From a long-term perspective, this partnership is the first step to explore more opportunities to collaborate in various areas including environmental technology, safety technology, information technology and mutual vehicle supply, to enhance market competitiveness and build an ever better mobility, to cater to the growing expectations of the changing markets by offering wider range of products and services for the benefit of the consumers at large," he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Tripura government has set August 15 as the deadline to phase out plastic carry bags, state minister Sudip Roy Barman said.

The government, as part of the 'Himalayan Cleanup' programme, urged people to replace their plastic bags with biodegradable ones.

The Himalayan Cleanup campaign has been launched by a Delhi-based organization in 12 mountain states in the country to end plastic pollution in the hilly areas.

Barman, the state science, technology and minister, said the initiative will go a long way in restoring ecological balance.

"Plastic waste damages marine life, contaminates soil and clogs drains. The department is taking measures to free the state of plastic bags by August 15," Barman told reporters after launching the drive here.

People have to realize that plastic is not biodegradable and burning it could only produce harmful gases, the minister stated.

"Random plastic use for packing food items and groceries has to be stopped. If necessary, the government will consult an expert agency to find out alternatives," he added.

Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb has recently asked the Agartala Municipal Corporation (AMC) to construct at least 500-metre road with plastic waste as a measure to curb platic pollution.

He also asked the AMC to start door-to-door garbage collection in all parts of the municipal area.

Explaining the root of the problem, Barman said, "Raids and seizures can't end the use of plastic. If production is not stopped, the problem will not be solved. Awareness is the only solution."



Earlier in 2015, the erstwhile Left Front government had imposed a total ban on production, use and sale of plastic bags for carrying items.

"The plastic ban, imposed during Left rule, was just paperwork. We want to implement it in the truest spirit We have asked the Railways and transport companies to forbid plastic carry bags," the minister added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A top lawyer for Donald Trump today resumed the president's all-out attack on the investigation into possible collusion with Russia as being "illegitimate," while acknowledging a concerted effort to turn public opinion against the probe.

The comments from former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani came as Trump lashed out again at what he called "the phony Russia Collusion Witch Hunt." For months, Trump has attacked the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller as politically motivated and without foundation.

His latest line of attack, which Giuliani emphasized, was the assertion that a confidential FBI informant, who met with some Trump campaign advisers in 2016 while the bureau was investigating their possible Russia contacts, was a "spy" intent on subverting the Trump campaign.

Those meetings took place during the Obama administration.

Asked on "Fox Sunday" what was wrong with the FBI "trying to figure out what Russia was up to," Giuliani replied: "Nothing wrong with the government doing that. Everything wrong with the government spying on a candidate of the opposition party." "That's a Watergate, spygate."



"I'm not saying Mueller is illegitimate," he said on CNN's "State of the Union." "I'm saying the basis on which he was appointed was illegitimate." Democrats have pushed back hard at the attacks on the Mueller inquiry, which began several months after the informant's involvement. They said it had already produced real results.

Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, tweeted: "I hate repeating myself President, but let me remind you again: Special Counsel Mueller's investigation has either indicted or secured guilty pleas from 19 people and three companies - that we know of."



And a Republican senator, Marco Rubio of Florida, told CBS that while spying on a political campaign would be wrong, "if there are people operating in this country trying to influence American on behalf of a foreign power, it is the FBI's job to investigate."But what Democrats describe as a blunt and concerted effort by the president to delegitimize the Mueller inquiry may be having an effect, to judge by recent polls.

A Monmouth University poll released early this month said the number of Americans who favor Mueller's probe continuing had dropped from 60 percent in March to 54 percent.

Other polls show many Americans are unaware of the indictments and guilty pleas secured by Mueller's team.

Giuliani effectively admitted that the frequent attacks on the probe were designed to influence public opinion and take the air out of any push for impeachment.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump said today that he is still looking at a summit on June 12 in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and things are moving "very nicely" towards the meeting.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. That hasn't changed. It's moving along pretty well, so we'll see what happens," Trump told reporters at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela.

His remarks came after the surprise meeting between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in in the demilitarized zone on Saturday during which the two leaders discussed the summit meeting with the US.

"I just want to mention we're doing very well in terms of the summit with North Korea. Looks like it's going along very well," said the US president in response to questions from reporters.

"As you know there are meetings going on as we speak in a certain location which I won't name. Like the location, it's not so far away from here. And I think there's a lot of good will. I think people want to see if we can get the meeting and get something done," he said.

"If we got that done and if we can be successful in the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, it would be a great thing for North Korea," Trump added. "It would be a great thing for South Korea, be great for Japan and great for the world great for the United States, great for China."



Trump said a lot of people are working on it. "It's moving along very nicely," he said.

When asked about the talks between Moon and Kim, the president replied, "the talks have gone very well."



On Thursday, Trump abruptly cancelled the proposed summit meeting with the North Korean leader on June 12 in Singapore and blamed Pyongyang's "tremendous anger" and "open hostility" for his dramatic decision.

He had described the cancellation of the summit as "a tremendous setback" for North Korea and warned that the US military is ready to act should Pyongyang take any "foolish and reckless" action.

But within 24 hours he said the meeting could still go ahead after productive talks were held with North Korean officials.

Washington has made it clear it wants to see the "complete, verifiable and irreversible denuclearisation" of the North. But Pyongyang has vowed it will never give up its nuclear deterrence until it feels safe from what it terms US aggression.

In April, Trump had stunned the world by accepting an invitation to meet Kim in an unprecedented sit-down.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump sees "brilliant potential" in North Korea, he tweeted today, continuing an upbeat tone about a planned summit with the North's leader Kim Jong Un.

"I truly believe North Korea has brilliant potential and will be a great economic and financial Nation one day. Kim Jong Un agrees with me on this. It will happen!," said Trump, who on Thursday had cancelled his June 12 meeting with Kim in Singapore, before reversing course within 24 hours.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
US President Donald Trump said today that things are moving "very nicely" towards a summit on June 12 in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

"It's moving along very nicely," Trump said at the White House during a meeting with a US prisoner freed by Venezuela.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed".

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At the working session (Photo: VNA)



She made the evaluation at a meeting with the Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Health Minister Le Quang Cuong on the sidelines of the 71st World Health Assembly (WHA) held in Geneva, Switzerland, from May 21st-26th.

The Director lauded Vietnam for applying quickly and effectively new technologies to fight tuberculosis in a short span of time.

She recgonised Vietnam as an example in implementing the WHOs strategy to end the global TB epidemic.

Vietnam has also been realising contents in the Moscow Declaration to End TB adopted at the first WHO Global Ministerial Conference in Russia in November 2017.

WHO also appreciated the countrys sharing of its experience in fighting TB, such as its hosting of a policy dialogue on accelerating actions to prevent TB and multi-drug-resistant TB in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) region in August 2017.

WHO recognised the contributions of Director of the Central Lung Hospital Nguyen Viet Nhung, Manager of the National TB Control Programme, for his active participation in strategic advisory councils, guidelines development and research orientations of the WHO for many years.

The organisation asked the Vietnamese government and Ministry of Health to attend the first-ever high-level meeting of the United Nations on ending TB slated for New York in September this year.

TB remains the leading cause of fatality in the world, leading to the deaths of nearly 2 million people every year, particularly drug-resistant TB has threatened global health.

In Vietnam, the WHO estimates that there are nearly 130,000 new cases of TB diagnosed each year, resulting in some 16,000 deaths in the Southeast Asian country in 2015.

Vietnam ranked 16h among 30 countries with the highest number of TB patients globally. It also ranked 13th among 30 countries with the biggest burden of multi drug-resistant TB in the world.

The country is a leading nation in terms of TB prevention efforts. The rate of successful treatment for multi drug resistant TB in Vietnam is over 70 percent, much higher than the worlds rate of 54 percent.

Thanks to early detection and effective treatment, TB-related deaths reduced 3,000 cases during 2015-2016. The country has set a target to cut 30 percent of TB infection cases and 40 percent of TB deaths during 2015-2020./.
Israeli tank fire at an Islamic Jihad observation post killed two Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip today, the enclave's health ministry and sources from the militant movement said.

The ministry identified those killed as Hussein al-Amour, 25, and Abdul Haleem al-Naqa, 28.

The incident happened east of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, a ministry spokesman said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
At least two traffic policemen were killed today in an attack by gunmen in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan, police said.

The gunmen targeted the policemen in the Sarki Road area of provincial capital Quetta.

A police official said that both attackers were also killed in the retaliatory firing by police, while four civilians present in the area were injured in the cross-firing.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Quetta Abdul Razzak Cheema visited the site of attack and condemned that incident.

He also asked the people of the province to help police in the fight against militancy.

"I appeal the citizens to inform us about any suspicious activity like this," he said.

Nobody claimed responsibility but Islamists extremists and Baloch nationalist militants are active in the province and often target security forces.

There have been more than 100 targeted attacks on police officials in Quetta since 2013, according to Aitzaz Goraya, DIG of the counterterrorism department of Baluchistan's police.

In 37 of these incidents, police officials were attacked near their houses; lone policemen were hit in 38 attacks while they were either travelling or performing their duties and in 26 incidents the victims were off-duty.

Senior police officials say that militants seem to either specifically target officers who have been pursuing operations against them or they launch counter-attacks immediately after a senior militant commander is arrested or killed.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Britain's security services are preparing for the release of a Pakistani-origin radical Islamist imam from jail later this year, fearing heightened community tensions.

UK-born Anjem Choudary who was jailed at the Old Bailey court in London in September 2016 for radical preaching and urging Muslims to support the terrorist group Islamic State (ISIS), is expected to be released on licence, or under surveillance, in October.

The 51-year-old is reportedly being held in a "separation centre" at Her Majesty's Prison (HMP) Frankland in County Durham, with the release expected at the half-way mark of his five-and-a-half-year prison sentence.

"It is likely to encourage some of his followers to become more vocal and defiant in their extremist behaviour," 'The Sunday Times' quoted a Scotland Yard source as saying.

"The police are watching far-right and Islamist networks around the country, and we're reassuring the Muslim community that we're taking pre-emptive steps to clamp down on disorder," the source said.

A government official told the newspaper the licence conditions had not been decided but were likely to be tough: "He'll certainly be watched day and night by the security services."



Choudary, who led the Islamist group Al Muhajiroun until it was proscribed by the government in 2010, was accused of pledging an oath of allegiance to the ISIS leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

In his sentencing remarks, Justice Holroyde described Choudary as "dangerous" and "more calculating" than his fellow Islamist Mohammed Rahman, who was also jailed for five-and-a-half years for supporting ISIS.

Among Choudary's many UK followers is Indian-origin ISIS fighter, Siddhartha Dhar, dubbed as "Jihadi Sid" by the UK media, who went on to become one of the senior commanders of the terror group in Syria.

The British Hindu who converted to Islam and adopted the name Abu Rumaysah, had skipped police bail in the UK to travel to Syria with his wife and young children in 2014.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Investigations into the alleged money-laundering case against journalist Upendra Rai has taken the probe agencies by surprise as they claimed to have recovered call data records of a senior ED official, an IAS officer earlier posted in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, besides confidential communication between Singapore-based Indian High Commission and a former ED chief, officials said here.

The recoveries also included income tax assessment orders of various companies and Suspicious Transaction Reports (STRs) of nearly 140 companies generated by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) after a joint CBI-ED searches on Rai and his associates.

The probe agencies along with the Income Tax Department conducted fresh searches in Gurgaon, Kolkata and Mumbai over the week against a number of people including few tax department officials on the basis of these disclosures.

The agencies have seized, during the first round of searches at the premises of Rai and his associates, a confidential communication between the Indian High Commission in Singapore and former ED Director Rajan Katoch in connection with a case related to industrialist Naveen Jindal, the officials said.

A letter written by Jindal to Katoch in 2015 has also been recovered from the cache apart from a secret inquiry report of foreign assets and a note shared by a Special Director of the ED in the backdrop of the Singaporean FIU taking umbrage on the leakage of its shared information in the Indian media.

The officials told PTI that documents pertaining to four IT assessment orders against Mumbai-based companies have been recovered from the premises of Sanjay Snehi, an associate of Rai who is being probed in the case.

Among other seizures made from the premises of Snehi are CDRs of a senior Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer investigating the Supreme Court monitored Aircel-Maxis case, that of an IAS officer who served as a Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, of a journalist owning an Hindi portal and those of Rai's wife Rachna, among others.

All of these are suspected to have been sourced by Rai some years back, a senior official said.

The searches had more surprise for the officials when the sleuths recovered a confidential note of 2010 of an ex-ED Additional Director, now a senior officer in the Delhi Police, to the then CBI Director "complaining" about the activities of Rai.

"The highly classified letter is recovered from a man who himself is the subject of discussion and question in the note. A full enquiry is on to find as to how this document was leaked to Rai," the official said.

Documents related to a disproportionate assets case charge sheet filed by the CBI against former Noida Chief Engineer Yadav Singh have also been seized by the probe agencies after raids on Rai and his associates Snehi, Rahul Sharma and others early this month.

Among the other sensitive documents in raids against Rai is a 2015 ED complaint filed against meat exporter Moin Qureshi and others.

Qureshi is being probed by the ED, the IT department and the CBI for alleged tax evasion and money laundering after his purported dubious links with former CBI Director A P Singh came to the fore.

A total of 140 STRs, generated by the Financial Intelligence Unit to check dubious, black money and terror-financing linked transactions in the country's economic channels, have also been seized from a pen drive found at Rai's premises as part of these recoveries.

The highly sensitive and confidential STRs, of the period between 2015-16, are largely connected to those firms which are being probed by various agencies for trade-based money laundering, black money generation and export/import frauds, including one related to the son of a former chief minister.

The agencies are now probing at least 14 accounts in the name of Rai, his family and company in various banks in Delhi, eight luxury cars like Audi, Mercedes, Honda and Innova and three firms linked to him --



Ms Upendra Rai and Associates, Ms Clear Water Solution and Ms Brandbird Marketing Services.

The agencies have found that Rai owns two flats in the upscale GK-I locality in the national capital, one flat each at the Hailey Road in Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Nashik (Maharashtra), and two in Lucknow in the his and his family's name. The ED may attach them under the PMLA.

Three id cards issued by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) in the name of Rai have also been recovered and are being investigated, even as the journalist is being probed for allegedly using a fake Aerodrome Entry Pass (AEP) to enter sensitive areas of "all" the airports in the country.

Some email questionnaires sent by Rai and his associates to business groups and other individuals is also under the scanner, the official said.

A number of mobile phones and hard disks of Rai and his associates have been sent for forensic examination by the probe agencies which is expected to reveal more information about Rai's links and contacts with government officials and politicians, he said.

The ED and the CBI are probing Rai under criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the Prevention of Corruption Act respectively.

He is at present in judicial custody after the CBI arrested him on charges of alleged extortion and manipulation of an Income Tax Department case against a Mumbai-bound businessman.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Union home ministry today claimed there has been "visible improvement" in the security scenario in the country since the Narendra Modi government assumed office four years ago.

This was made possible due to sustained action against terrorists and negotiations with extremists groups which abide by the Constitution, it said.

In a booklet, Country First, released a day after the completion of four years of the Modi government, the ministry said special initiatives have been taken to accelerate development in Left-Wing Extremism-hit areas, the northeastern region, Jammu and Kashmir, along the international borders and the coastal areas.

There has been visible improvement in the security scenario due to adoption of a multi-pronged strategy in the last 48 months that include sustained action against terrorists, extremists and insurgents, the booklet claimed.

"The government is negotiating with those extremist groups which abide by the Constitution," it said.

The ministry said there has been 63 per cent decline in insurgency incidents in the northeast, 83 per cent reduction in civilian deaths and 40 per cent decrease in security forces casualty in the region.

The geographical spread of the LWE-hit areas has been reduced from 76 districts in 2013 to 58 in 2018 while there has been 36.6 per cent reduction in incidents of violence in these areas and 55.5 per cent reduction in deaths, it said.

The booklet said 619 terrorists were neutralisedin Jammu and Kashmir between 2014-17 in comparison to 471 killed between 2010-13.

However, there was no mention in the booklet about the incidents of violence and casualties of civilians and security personnel in the last four years in Jammu and Kashmir.

According to the data given by Union Minister of State for Home Hansraj Gangaram Ahir in the Lok Sabha on February 6 this year, 201 security personnel and 72 civilians were killed in terrorist violence in J&K between 2015-17.

Ahir had said there were 342 incidents of violence in J&K in 2017 alone in which 80 security personnel were killed.

The minister had also said 572 civilians lost their lives and 199 security forces personnel were killed in violence perpetrated by Naxals between 2015-17.

The booklet said 113sympathisers of the dreaded terror groupISIS were arrested by the central and state agencies by working in tandem in last four years.

The ISIS and Ansar-ul-Ummah (AUU) were declared terrorist organisations and Mumbai-based NGO Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) was declared an unlawful association for its alleged links with terror activities, it said.

The ministry claimed the backbone of the Indian Mujahideen has been broken with courts awarding capital punishment to five operatives of theoutfit who were convicted for carrying out blasts in Dilsukhnagar, Hyderabad in 2013.

Several top leaders of the United National Liberation Front of Manipur has been awarded rigorous imprisonment of up to 7-10 years for criminal conspiracy to wage war while 12 people were chargesheeted by the NIA in connection with terror-funding cases in J&K, it said.

Eighteen activists of the banned terrorist organisation SIMI, including its top leadership, were sentenced to seven years rigorous imprisonment by courts for giving terror training in Kerala, the booklet said.

The security forces also curbed flow of funds to Naxalites, insurgents, separatists and terror groups through effective measures and a web-enabled software operationalised for online maintenance of records of seizures and recoveries of fake Indian currency notes, it said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The still-grieving father of Savita Halappanavar, the 31-year-old Indian dentist who died of sepsis in 2012 after being denied an abortion during a miscarriage, has welcomed the result of Ireland's landmark referendum to overturn the abortion ban, saying "we have got justice for Savita".

Savita's death was a catalyst for the movement to repeal the eighth amendment, paving the way for new legislation to allow for the termination of pregnancies in the predominantly Catholic country.

The Eighth Amendment grants an equal right to life to the mother and unborn, is now set to be replaced. In the referendum held on Friday and results announced last night, people in Ireland voted overwhelmingly to overturn the abortion ban by 66.4 per cent to 33.6 per cent. Hundreds of People chanted Savita's name soon after the outcome of the referendum was announced.

Ireland's Indian-origin Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, who campaigned in favour of liberalisation, said it was "a historic day for Ireland," and that a "quiet revolution" had taken place.

Varadkar told people at Dublin Castle that the result showed the Irish public "trust and respect women to make their own decision and choices."



Reacting to the outcome of the referendum, Andanappa Yalagi, Savita's father said he was "very happy".

Yalagi said: "We've got justice for Savita, and what happened to her will not happen to any other family now.

"I have no words to express my gratitude to the people of Ireland at this historic moment," he said.

He said Savita's death had devastated the family.

"It's still very emotional after five years. I think about her every day," he said.

An independent inquiry into Savita's treatment found there had been an "over-emphasis on the need not to intervene until the foetal heart had stopped", as well as poor patient monitoring and risk assessment. It strongly recommended that the Irish parliament consider changing the law, and "any necessary constitutional change".

Savita's husband, Praveen Halappanavar had said that he and his wife had repeatedly asked for the pregnancy to be terminated after her admission to hospital, but they had been told: This is a Catholic country".

Meanwhile, the Irish Times reported that the Irish Cabinet will on Tuesday consider a request from the Minister for Health to draft the Heads of a Bill to implement the decision of the people.

Health Minister Simon Harris said he expected it be published by the summer recess and passed by the end of the year. There is a strong mandate to implement the decision of the people as soon as possible, the minister added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A woman had the right to know the remuneration of her husband, the Madhya Pradesh High Court has observed.

A High Court bench of Justices SK Seth and Nandita Dubey made the observation while hearing the petition of Sunita Jain who had sought a higher maintenance amount from her estranged husband claiming that he was a senior officer with state-run BSNL.

Counsel for the petitioner, KC Ghildiyal, said Sunita Jain had pleaded that her estranged husband, Pawan Kumar Jain, was a senior officer of the BSNL and was drawing a high salary while she was being given a monthly maintenance of just Rs 7,000 per month.

After a trial court rejected Sunita's plea that her husband produce his pay slip, she had filed a Right to Information plea to get his salary details.

The issue reached the Central Information Commission, which, in an order dated July 27, 2007, asked the Central Public Information Officer of BSNL to furnish the details of Pawan Kumar Jain's monthly remuneration, Ghildiyal said.

The husband, however, challenged the CIC order before a single bench of the MP high court which set aside the CIC order in March 2015.

Ghildiyal said that Sunita Jain then moved the double bench of the high court which observed that a wife was entitled to know the remuneration of her husband.

The HC bench of Justices SK Seth and Nandita Dubey stated that the wife couldn't be denied this information by considering her a third party.

While setting aside the single bench order, the double bench, in an order on May 15, allowed the writ appeal and upheld the CIC order.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Former Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Pravin Togadia today said that he would launch a new party on June 24.

Speaking to reporters here, Togadia flayed the Narendra Modi government and accused it of going back on its promises and failing to meet people's aspirations.

He rated the Modi government's performance as "minus 25 per cent" and called the PM's foreign policy as "poor".

Togadia said that "selling big dreams was not enough", adding that nation-building was based on "truth of work that has to be seen on the ground".

He said that a huge number of people, associated with the RSS and the BJP, are "baffled" and "upset" as the Modi government is not seen doing anything in "ideological, socio-political and economic issues and was also making U-turns in some instances".

"It had hurt those people who are following the Hindutva ideology," Togadia claimed.

He demanded that the government pass a law in the Parliament to pave the way for the construction of a Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

He also demanded a ban on cow slaughter, repeal of Article 370 that conferred special status to Jammu and Kashmir, and implementation of a Uniform Civil Code.

Speaking about farmers, he said that the government should give them a minimum support price which is 50 per cent more than the cost of production.

He said that the government's crop insurance scheme had failed as compensation was given to just eight per cent farmers who had filed claims.

He criticised the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor project and said that the money to be invested in it should be used to upgrade the safety aspects of the railways so as to benefit 25 crore passengers.

Togadia had quit the VHP on April 14 this year after former Himachal Pradesh governor V S Kokje defeated his nominee Raghav Reddy in an election in Gurgaon for the post of VHP International president.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A 46-year-old woman was allegedly abducted by unidentified persons in Dombivli who robbed her and abandoned her letter, the district police said today.

Senior police inspector V M Pawar of Dombivli police station said that on May 25, the complainant, who was out for shopping, saw a woman who appeared to be pregnant and who had covered her mouth with a scarf.

The woman, sitting on the ground, was asking for help to climb into a rickshaw.

When the complainant tried to help her, two men arrived on the spot, and they pushed the complainant into the rickshaw, she told police.

One of the men pressed a handkerchief on her mouth, which made her lose consciousness, the complainant said.

When she regained consciousness a couple of hours later, she realised that she was in Kalyan, and her belongings including cash, worth Rs 9,500, were missing, she told police.

She lodged a complaint with Dombivli police yesterday.

A case under IPC section 363 (kidnapping) was registered against unidentified persons, police said.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with former French President Francois Hollande at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, May 25, 2018. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)

BEIJING, May 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping said Friday that he had full confidence in the prospects for China-France ties.

Xi made the remarks when meeting with former French President Francois Hollande at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing.

"We paid visits to each other's country during your presidency and forged the China-France comprehensive strategic partnership, which has served as the sound foundation for the long-term development of bilateral ties,"said Xi.

"I have full confidence in the prospects for the China-France ties," he said, stressing that China and France reached broad consensus on expanding bilateral and multilateral cooperation during President Emmanuel Macron's state visit to China in January.

The international situation has undergone profound and complicated changes, while countries are becoming more interdependent and no country can stand aloof, said Xi.

China is willing to work with France to enhance strategic coordination, stick to multilateralism, jointly address global challenges and promote world economic growth as well as facilitation and liberalization of trade and investment, so as to help safeguard a world order that should be peaceful, stable, open and inclusive, he said.

China stands ready to enhance cooperation with the European Union, he added.

Hollande said he was glad that he had made efforts to enhance France-China ties during his presidency and injected impetus into the comprehensive strategic partnership.

Saying that he cherished his friendship with Xi, Hollande spoke highly of China's active role in international affairs under the leadership of Xi, especially China's important contribution to the Paris agreement on climate change.

He said he was happy to see the momentum of strategic cooperation between France and China can continue and be enhanced under the current circumstances, as this is conducive to multilateralism and resolving international and regional issues via dialogue and cooperation.

[ Editor: zyq ]
Notice for the Postmedia Network

This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
BEIJING, May 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday called for enhanced international exchange and cooperation in the development of the big data industry.

Xi made the remarks in a congratulatory letter to the China International Big Data Industry Expo 2018, which opened Saturday in Guiyang, capital city of southwest China's Guizhou Province.

The rapid development of new-generation information technologies such as Internet, big data, and artificial intelligence has brought significant and far-reaching impact on social and economic development, state governance, social management, and people's life in all countries, Xi said.

He said countries need to increase communication and cooperation to seize the opportunities in the big data sector, promote its healthy development and handle challenges such as data security and cyberspace governance.

China attaches great importance to the development of big data, Xi said.

With the vision of innovative, coordinated, green, and open development that is for everyone, China is implementing a national big data strategy centered on building the country's strength in cyberspace and nurturing a digital China and smart society, which will aid the transition of the country's economy from high-speed growth to high-quality development, Xi said.

The Chinese president said he expects expo attendees to exchange views and pool wisdom in order to promote the big data sector's innovative development to benefit all people and facilitate the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.

[ Editor: zyq ]
Photo: VETS Canada

For the third year, hundreds of volunteers across Canada will walk the streets in 21 cities, including Kelowna, looking for homeless veterans.

The annual Coast to Coast Tour of Duty, organized by Veterans Emergency Transition Services, will take place June 9 in cities from St. John's to Victoria.

The purpose of the walk is to raise awareness about veterans' homelessness and to identify those veterans who are currently living on the streets.

Last years event allowed us to identify 17 homeless and/or in-crisis veterans, and we received many more referrals for emergency assistance after the fact, due to the events publicity, said Jim Lowther, VETS Canada co-founder and president.

VETS Canada is a national charity that looks to address the needs of homeless and in-crisis veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP.

One of the things that sets VETS Canada apart from other veteran initiatives is that we dont wait for those in crisis to come to us. Our volunteers literally hit the streets, boots on the ground, in their local communities in search of veterans who need our help, said Lowther. The Tour of Duty is just that, but on a national scale.

Anyone interested in helping with the walk can RSVP by emailing [email protected].
Photo: Contributed

Join our wine writer, Allison Markin, every week for a wine review complete with food and music pairings. Featuring Okanagan and Canadian wines, with an occasional international bottle, Castanet celebrates the bottles of our Valley and the diversity of the Canadian wine industry and influences from around the world. For current availability and pricing, consult the winery. Unless indicated, international selections are generally available at government liquor stores or private wine shops.

Wine: Organic Riesling, 2017

Winery: Summerhill Pyramid Winery, Kelowna

Why drink it? Leaders in the organic movement, especially in their vineyards and culinary treats both in the wine shop and on their Sunset Organic Bistro menu, a visit to Summerhill can be described by many as quirky and unexpected, like this organic Riesling. If youre used to a drier, stony type of Riesling, the sweetness of this one will make you sit up and take notice. Honeyed apple flavours, you might describe this as a very fruit-forward white wine, with low acidity. Worth a visit to one of Canadas most visited wineries to try alongside other white wines in the winerys portfolio and find your favourite.

Price: $22

Pair with: The unexpected sweetness in this wine will pair well with dishes that have a slightly sweet note, think honey ham, or a platter of fresh fruit grilled on the BBQ with a honey glaze, roasted hazelnuts or almonds, and a couple of soft local cheeses to share.

Music pairing: Pyramid by Radiohead

Have a wine to suggest? Email Allison at [email protected]
Photo: Facebook

One person is dead after a collision between a train and pedestrians in Chilliwack Saturday evening.

The victim was apparently in a wheelchair or scooter that got stuck on the tracks.

About 5:30 p.m., RCMP responded to the scene on the 9000 block of Broadway Street.

Officers arrived to find one person dead and a second with non-life-threatening injuries, who was taken to hospital by paramedics.

One witness told CTV she saw two women trying to get someone off the tracks after a wheelchair or scooter became stuck. They were unable to get the person free, and jumped out of the way as the westbound train approached.

One of the women was struck in the arm.

Police had the area surrounding the rail crossing cordoned off late Saturday as they investigated the scene.

They are urging anyone with information to contact Chilliwack RCMP at 604-792-4611 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).

 with files from CTV Vancouver
The agency will coordinate with the Canadian International Trade Tribunal (CITT) to investigate whether or not the products are being sold at unfair and/or subsidized prices in Canada.

The investigation will examine the cold-rolled steel commonly used in the production and manufacture of a range of goods including household appliances, drums, tubing, furniture, and strapping. Cold-rolled steel used for automobile production is not the subject of the investigation.

On May 18, Canada also began an anti-dumping investigation into sucker rods from China.

Currently, there are 99 special import measures in force in Canada, covering a wide variety of industrial and consumer products, from steel products to refined sugar.

In 2017, the steel industry created jobs for more than 23,000 workers in Canada and contributed CAD 4.2 billion (over US$3.2 billion) to the national economy.
Photo: Twitter

When Tsawout First Nation Chief Harvey Underwood looks up at the stars, he knows his community has a place among them.

That's because floating in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter is a newly discovered minor planet that bears his community's name.

"Our name means, 'houses on the hill.' Now our planet is 'houses in the universe,' I guess," said Underwood from his home on Vancouver Island.

Astronomer David Balam presented a plaque to the First Nation marking the official naming of the asteroid Tsawout at a meeting of the International Astronomical Union in Victoria last week.

Balam said he discovered the two-kilometre wide astronomical object in 2007.

But he said the official process for naming takes between five and 20 years, and involves intricate mapping of the minor planet's orbit. It also requires approval from both the union and the Minor Planet Centre, a worldwide organization in charge of collecting and publishing observational data for minor planets.

Minor planets, or asteroids, are chunks of rock left over from the formation of the solar system, Balam said. Tsawout is one among millions orbiting in the asteroid belt.

Balam said he spends a lot of his time looking up through a telescope at the observatory on Little Saanich Mountain, documenting small planets.

"I'm trying to answer a scientific question. This isn't, how old is the universe and where do we come from. It's a bit more fundamental. It is: Is that thing going to hit the Earth?" Balam said.

Balam said Tsawout is the 49th minor planet he has named. Others bear the names of Canadian astronomers, institutions  including his alma mater, the University of Victoria  and people in his life.

"This is about the only feasible way I can see in the near future that we're going to populate the solar system with Canadians, eh?" he said.

He chose the Tsawout because of a personal connection  his family homestead was on a nearby island and he says his family has links to both the Tsawout and Haida First Nations.

"It's very much like immortality," he said. "This planet will have your name forever and for as long as the human race exists."
Photo: Contributed

A young man is dead following a crash early Sunday morning in Vancouver.

Vancouver Police are investigating the incident that took place on Cambie Street just after 3 a.m.



The 25-year-old pedestrian was struck by a northbound SUV between W 19th and 20th Avenue. The Vancouver man was rushed to hospital but died of his injuries.



The driver of the SUV is a 39-year-old woman from Richmond. She was not injured and is cooperating with police. Driver impairment does not appear to be a factor in the crash.



This is Vancouvers fourth fatal pedestrian collision in 2018.



Officers from VPDs Collision Investigation Unit would like to speak with anyone who witnessed the collision or who may have been driving in the area at about 3 a.m. and has dash-cam footage.

Anyone with information is asked to call 604-717-3012.
Photo: The Canadian Press A spill response boat secures a boom around the bulk carrier cargo ship MV Marathassa after a bunker fuel spill on Burrard Inlet in Vancouver, B.C., on April 9, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson says the city has filed a federal court claim against the owner of a vessel that spilled fuel into English Bay in 2015, as part of the city's continuing effort to get compensation for its response efforts.

Robertson says three years after the MV Marathassa spilled 2,700 litres of bunker fuel into the bay, the city still hasn't been compensated for about $550,000 it spent on response efforts.

Robertson says Vancouver has sought repayment through the federal governments Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund, but has only been promised compensation for 27 per cent of its costs  something Robertson called "totally unacceptable.

"It's ridiculous that it's taken over three years now fighting for our costs to be covered by an oil spill in our harbour," Robertson told reporters gathered at Sunset Beach in Vancouver on Sunday.

The city's claim against the ship owners  filed last month but announced on Sunday  calls for damages, interest and court costs related to the spill.

Robertson said the city's difficulty in getting paid back for what he described as a "relatively small oil spill" shows there aren't enough measures in place to protect coastal communities against more major spills.

He said the costs and impacts of a potential diluted bitumen spill from the increased tanker traffic that would come with the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain pipeline expansion has not been meaningfully addressed by the federal government.

Robertson said the Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund was set up by the federal government to act in the interest of communities like Vancouver, but is failing to do so.

"It clearly does not do that, does not deliver the results. This speaks to the greater concern we have with Kinder Morgan and oil tankers," he said.

Transport Canada, which oversees spill response, could not immediately be reached for comment.

The claim's statements have not been proven in court.
As part of the activities to celebrate the 17th anniversary of the formation and development of the VWEC, the event was attended by Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh, former Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan, and President of the Vietnam Women's Union Nguyen Thi Thu Ha, VCCI Chairman Vu Tien Loc and VWEC Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Tuyet Minh.

Speaking at the forum, Vice President Thinh praised the efforts of female Vietnamese entrepreneurs over the years, while affirming that the Party and State always highly appreciate the contribution of the business community, including female entrepreneurs, to the cause of national construction and development.

Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh praised the efforts of female Vietnamese entrepreneurs over the years.

She said that in the context of the 4th Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0), Vietnamese businesses in general, and female entrepreneurs in particular, face many challenges to adapt to the digital economy. The State President suggested that women entrepreneurs constantly learn and improve their knowledge and skills in approaching, applying and investing in technology innovation in production and business, to increase the performance of their businesses.

On this occasion, the VWEC held a ceremony to announce the top ten ASEAN business women in 2018 and presented gifts to the Vietnam Childrens Fund.
Dao Thuc is the only traditional puppetry village in the city to serve tourists in a professional way. Whenever guests request, including groups of guests of only two or three, the guild still performs dozens of performances. The puppetry village is also a favorite picnic destination of many schools in Hanoi. At each performance, each artisan can receive a remuneration of VND 90,000.

The breakthrough of the Dao Thuc puppetry village began more than ten years ago. At that time many young people in the village had left the village to work elsewhere. Like the other young people, Nguyen The Nghi also worked and had a very successful business. However, after meeting with many people, he became more worried about the development of the puppet village, as each year Dao Thuc village had only a few shows.

In early 2000, Vietnam was welcoming more and more foreign tourists. Water puppetry is a Vietnamese cultural specialty, and Nghi thought of serving guests to increase the income for artisans. Nghi and a number of other young people proposed a number of ideas to the elderly artisans. At first, they faced many difficulties in introducing puppetry through travel companies, and building the puppetry as a local tourism product, but they were not discouraged.

Realising that the internet is a highly effective advertising tool, the troupes young members decided to take full advantage. They made a website and the site provides readers with information about Vietnamese water puppetry in general and Dao Thuc villages puppetry in particular, as well as contact information for those who are interested in the art form. The young members have also promoted the image of their village through Facebook. These internet tools have helped popularise the village and have contributed to realising its long-term target: increased tourism. As a result, more and more tourists are visiting Dao to enjoy puppetry.

With his love and responsibility for water puppetry and his home town, Nghi decided to return to the village and chose to work in the field of life insurance, earning a living whilst also contributing to Dao Thuc village.

Due to an accident at an early age, Nguyen The Nghi's index finger is unable to move. The accident made him unable to become a skilled performer. However, along with the ability to organise business and foreign affairs, he has the ability to host programmes and perform cheo singing, making the event livelier. In 2016, Nguyen The Nghi was elected as head of the Dao Thuc water puppetry troupe. Nowadays, Dao Thuc is not only more professional in performing, but also in discovering tourism. At the village, tourists can experience numerous activities, such as visiting the manipulation room (space behind the shade in water puppetry), making puppets, and buying souvenirs of wood puppets and bamboo sculpture art.

Talking about his work, head of the Dao Thuc water puppetry troupe, Nguyen The Nghi said previously, I never thought I would be responsible for the puppetry guild; I went out to do business and then returned home, just because I think, I was born and grew up in the village, so no matter how rich I am in life, I wanted to contribute something for my village.
Some 80,000 supporters reveled in their team's third straight Champions League triumph on Saturday night after watching Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1 in the final in Kiev on large TV screens set up at Real's Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
Under the chair of head of the Samoa Mission to the United Nations Ambassador Aliioaiga Feturi Elsaia, who is the groups chairman for May, the 54-member group agreed to nominate Vietnam as its only candidate for the position.

The voting will be held by the UN General Assembly in June, 2019.

At the meeting, Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga, Head of Vietnams Permanent Mission to the United Nations, thanked the Asian-Pacific countries for approving Vietnams nomination.

She affirmed that Vietnam will do its utmost to deserve the trust of its international friends, expressing her hope that Vietnam will receive further support from those same countries.

The nomination is a vivid illustration of Vietnams prestige among regional nations and it will create favourable conditions for Vietnam to mobilise support from countries in other regions.

The Asia-Pacific Group is among five regional groups at the UN.
OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo said Friday that talks about easing production cuts were prompted by a sharply critical tweet by Trump on April 20. In it, Trump said: "Looks like OPEC is at it again. With record amounts of Oil all over the place, including the fully loaded ships at sea, Oil prices are artificially Very High! No good and will not be accepted!"
Dyer told the Tribune that Hybels called her to his hotel suite on a trip to Sweden in 1998, unexpectedly kissed her and suggested they could lead Willow Creek together. She has shared her story with an elder, in hopes the church will demand answers from Hybels. She has asked them not to contact people who can corroborate her story as part of an internal inquiry because she does not trust that process. She has declined to participate in the conciliation process, saying she would like to see an independent investigation.
Thats the plot of Nobodys Home, the opening show of this years Physical Festival Chicago, running June 1-9 at Stage 773. The show, inspired by Homer and presented by Theatre Temoin and Grafted Cede, is the perfect example of what physical theater tries to accomplish. According to the festival, there are three elements to physical theater: theres the contemporary aspect  which responds specifically to the current moment  then, a visual element that concerns itself with a heightened sense of atmosphere and expanded use of images. The third part is the physical part of the show, which maniupulates the body as the foundational textual source.
The shooting happened about 11:55 p.m. near the intersection of Chicago and Noble avenues. Someone in a black SUV fired shots at a gold SUV, which had bullet holes and remained on Noble Avenue just south of Chicago Avenue after the attack.
How can you criticize an organization that youve never physically been to OR that youve never even talked to the Executive Director or any of the team, Rhymefests statement continued. And lastly, I actually knew and was mentored by Dr. Donda West personally, and have met with and spoke to hundreds of her students and mentees who not only support the work that we are doing in Chicago, but compel it.
Then he grabbed a pair of socks the store sells and made a tourniquet, tying it around a young mans ankle where he could see clear entry and exit wounds. He propped the leg up to stop it from bleeding. He said he recognized the man from the neighborhood.
There's plenty of damning evidence against Sirhan. He confessed to the killing at trial, though he claims this was done on his attorney's instruction. He took hours of target practice with his pistol earlier in the day, and he took the gun into the Ambassador that night. He had been seen at a Kennedy speech at the Ambassador two days earlier. He had a newspaper clipping critical of Kennedy in his pocket and had written "RFK must die" in notebooks at home, though he said he didn't remember doing that. And he waited in the pantry for about 30 minutes, according to witnesses who said he asked if Kennedy would be coming through there.
Since Donald Trump has become president, he has spent most of his time publicly attacking our government, including the intelligence community, the military, the judiciary, the EPA, public education, past administrations, and many in his own Cabinet and White House staff. Why on earth would the Russians feel the need to continue their efforts to meddle, when our own president is doing their work for them?
Market mechanisms have lifted many out of poverty. They have also left millions behind as a result of unrestrained greed, excessive materialism and massive inequality. The Tribune editorial has nothing to say about that. The Catholic Church does. It is unswerving in its conviction that we must make sure our markets build an economy for all and do not accelerate injustice and grave inequity. In this time of globalization and dominant and often unaccountable financial institutions, we need to bring together technical knowledge and human wisdom. In Catholic thought, moral principles must guide the market. Protecting human life and dignity comes before the unlimited pursuit of profit. This is a vital and timely message for a divided world  and Chicago.
During his stay, the Governor-General attended talks with President Tran Dai Quang, and meetings with Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Chairwoman of the National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan, and Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City Peoples Committee Nguyen Thanh Phong. He visited the level-2 field hospital No. 1, based at the Military Hospital 175 in Ho Chi Minh City.

At the meetings, both sides expressed their delight over the sound and effective development of bilateral ties. They agreed to continue with activities to mark the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties and raise two peoples awareness of the value of Vietnam-Australia relations.

Regarding the orientation for the strategic partnership in the coming time, they reached consensus on consolidating political trust and strategic faith through enhancing delegation exchanges, improving the efficiency of existing bilateral cooperative mechanisms, while setting up new cooperative frameworks like an economic partnership, agricultural partnership, innovative partnership, and meetings at foreign ministerial level.

They laid stress on the efforts to deepen core cooperative sectors: security-defence, economy-trade, science-technology, education-training and development assistance, saying that they will serve as levers to boost collaboration in other potential fields.

Both sides will create favourable conditions for their airlines to expand operations of direct flights between big cities and encourage citizens to become involved in the Vietnam-Australia Work and Holiday programme.

They affirmed to support each other at regional and international forums, especially at the UN, ASEAN, and mechanisms led by ASEAN. They pledged to coordinate stances regarding the East Sea issue and cooperate closely to implement the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
This is important, as honoring those who have died is why we have Memorial Day and to show how important freedom is  which is something that is taken so much for granted, Toma said. I was at a ceremony in Aurora earlier this week, where 35 graduating students were recognized for signing up for military service to our country and for them to make that commitment is phenomenal. Youve got to hug them while they are here, because you dont know if theyll come back.
According to Cooks presentation to the District 161 board, which the Daily Southtown obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, such a move would lower class sizes and increase opportunities for District 161 students, and ease Lincoln-Ways financial burdens, lower its debt, give it an influx of capital, reduce the need for Tax Anticipation Warrants and eliminate the burden of maintaining a closed building.
Highland Park's 150th in 2019: Getting into Gear: Archivist Nancy Webster and HP-150 Archives, History and Lakefront Chair Catherine Lambrecht offer ideas about how Highland Park residents can make a contribution. It can be as personal as an oral history, loan or donation of an object or document. More than trinkets or pretty objets dart, artifacts can illustrate an era, movements and innovation as lives change in the home, the community, the work place and en route. They want to gather papers and objects illustrating a keystone event or element that built the Highland Park Community of the 21st century. 7 p.m. Wednesday, Highland Park Public Library, 494 Laurel Ave., Highland Park, free, 847-432-7090.
A question for the person who keeps referring to President Trump as "Donny Bone Spurs": Tell us, please, about your military service. Did you even serve? Tell us about Barack Obama's. Tell us about Bill Clinton's. Like millions of young men during the Vietnam War, President Trump sought and obtained legitimate deferments. I myself had several before I was finally drafted. Some of us even fled to Canada. You liberals applauded those guys, but now you criticize the president. I'm appalled that the News-Sun publishes your idiotic epithet for our president. They certainly would never have printed such a phony, derogatory comment about President Obama.
"Rocket and mortar attacks were common at her base in Chu Lai. In a letter home, she wrote of one attack, 'We got all the patients under the beds that we could and put mattresses over the ones in traction,'" Dzieglowicz said. "Very interesting place, but hardly anyone is scared. It is just like part of the job."
Romania held on Saturday the regional preliminary round of the 11th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign Secondary Students in Sibiu, with Daniel Deacu winning the Grand Prize.

"Learn Chinese, double your world" is the theme of this year's edition and 17 students were chosen from the four Confucius Institutes in Bucharest, Brasov, Cluj-Napoca and Sibiu to compete in the finals in Sibiu, a central city of the country, after local preliminaries.

After fierce competition, Daniel Deacu from Ciprian Porumbescu Art School in Suceava, northeastern Romania, won the Grand Prize of the competition and will represent Romania in the global "Chinese Bridge" competition in China.

Karina-Georgiana Visan from Gheorghe Lazar Secondary School in Bucharest took the first prize in the contest and will travel to Beijing to watch the final competition.

Deacu, who studied Chinese for four years, is also an enthusiast of traditional Chinese painting. He said that he insists on learning Chinese because of Chinese painting, and the more he studies the language, the better he understands the Chinese painting. He hoped to go to college in China, to learn more Chinese language and culture, and of course, painting.

"Besides the regular competing processes of 'Chinese keynote speech,' 'Knowledge on China' and 'Talent show,' 'Chinese national costume show' and 'Traditional Touhu game,' or throwing arrows into a distant pot, were added in the competition for the first time to add more fun and arouse more interest," Wang Jiong, Chinese director of the Confucius Institute of Lucian Blaga University in Sibiu, told Xinhua.

Caliman Petra from Stefan Barsanescu Middle School in Bucharest and Valu Kriszta from the Gheorghe Sincai Middle School in Baia Mare, northwestern Romania, won the "Best Style Award" in the costume show, while Horobeanu Georgiana-Diana from I. C. Bratianu National School in Mioceni won the prize of the "Top Shooter Award" in the Touhu game.

During the competition, all the audiences enjoyed an excellent visual feast full of Chinese elements performed by well-prepared competitors, including Chinese dances, classical music, brush painting, allegro and shadow puppetry. The whole competition was continuously full of warm applause and cheers.

Sponsored by Hanban, the competition in Romania was co-organized by Confucius Institute at Lucian Blanca University of Sibiu and the Chinese Embassy in Romania, with Stefan Firu, general inspector at School Inspectorate of Sibiu County attending the event.

Constantin Oprean, Romanian director of the Confucius Institute in Sibiu, pointed out at the event that all the participants are winners, as they have entered the world of profound Chinese culture and civilization. He also expressed his gratitude to Chinese teachers and volunteers of the Confucius Institutes who have carefully trained the contestants. He hoped that the student representing Romania to China will show high level in competition in Beijing.

"The 'Chinese Bridge' proficiency competition for foreign secondary school students has been successfully held in Romania for 10 years since 2008," said Wang, stressing that the competition not only attracts more and more Romanian outstanding middle school students to participate in, but also draws attentions of more and more people to Chinese learning in Romania. The "Chinese Bridge" has become a stage for students to demonstrate the achievements of Chinese learning, as well as a solid link for promoting the friendly exchanges between China and Romania.
You are here: Business

Chinese researchers are developing a satellite navigation system to assist the development of unmanned vehicles.





The low orbit Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) is developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.





The system is based on a low orbit micro-nano satellite that was launched together with the fourth Fengyun-III meteorological satellite in November 2017.





The low orbit navigation satellite can conduct high accuracy positioning down to the centimeter level in five minutes.





High-accuracy positioning on the ocean and across remote mountainous areas will be helped by the low orbit SBAS, which can also act as ground observation stations.





The SBAS is considered the best choice for unmanned vehicles, since it has the advantages of lower costs and global coverage.





The low orbit SBAS is also expected to be applied in agricultural drones and landslide monitoring.
You are here: China

Chinese Vice Premier Hu Chunhua on Saturday called for more technological innovation to modernize the country's agricultural sector.

Hu, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during an inspection tour to the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.





Agricultural tech innovation should be treated as the core in agricultural and rural development, and favorable policies should be made to support it, Hu said.





The evaluation mechanism for scientific research in the agricultural sector should be improved so that research achievements can be better applied, he said.
A new composite material developed by a group of Chinese researchers has proved highly effective in cleaning water contaminated by organics.





During the past month, the composite material, a mixture of black titania and three-dimensional (3D) tubular graphene, was used to clean a 40,000-square-meter area of water in east China's Shanghai, Anhui, and Jiangsu as part of a pilot scheme.





Excessive organics, such as ammonia and nitrogen, can consume a large amount of oxygen in the water and generate stinky substances that kill aquatic life. Without human intervention, sunlight can naturally degrade organics to water and carbon dioxide, but the process requires months to years, depending on different degrees of pollution.





Results of the trial showed that the material, which accelerates the process, can significantly improve water quality within two weeks, said Huang Fuqiang, chief researcher at the Shanghai Institute of Ceramics of Chinese Academy of Sciences.





Black titania serves as an efficient visible-light catalyst, while the 3D graphene can "catch" organics, Huang said.





The material was used in two parks in Shanghai, where lakes suffered excessive organics caused by the accumulation of fallen leaves. Residents often complained about dead fish floating on the lakes.





Monitoring data showed indexes such as chemical oxygen demand, ammonia and nitrogen levels, and phosphorus levels improved seven days after use.





Excessive organics can also be caused by discharge of wastewater generated by families and agricultural and industrial production.
Encouraged by the apparent success of provocative diplomacy against North Korea, the U.S. administration is trying to apply the same strategy towards Iran. The punch line is to impose crippling economic sanctions and wait until the opponent ducks.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a policy address at the Heritage Foundation outlined the new policy towards Iran. It is a follow up of the announcement by President Donald Trump earlier this month to withdraw from the nuclear agreement of 2015.

Pompeo read out a list of at least 12 conditions to rewrite the agreement. The focus is not just on the nuclear issue but extends far beyond its scope to include issues linked with the regional security calculations. Clearly, now the emphasis is not just to curtail Iran's nuclear ambitions but also to force it to change policies towards the region.

For example, Pompeo demanded that Iran should withdraw all forces under its command from Syria, and end support of the Houthi militias. It should also respect the sovereignty of Iraq and disband proxy armed groups in that country. Iran has also been asked to release all foreign hostages and stop the alleged support for terrorist groups the region.

Other demands like asking Tehran to come clean on all previous nuclear activities and grant complete access to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) experts are old and are also addressed to a greater extent in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

But the ultimatum to pull out its resources from Syria is new and the objective is to address the concerns of U.S. allies in the region.

Iran has successfully created a strategic corridor extending to Lebanon through Syria. It is upsetting for its rivals as it provides Iran with a vantage position to put a half girdle around Saudi Arabia on the one hand and threaten Israel from multiple points on the other hand. The situation becomes further untenable to America's allies if we add Yemen and Qatar to Iran's sphere of influence.

Pompeo's list of demands is nuclear "plus" in nature. Iran is being asked to change its behavior under new rules of game, or prepare for the "strongest sanctions in history." Pompeo also warned that Iran would be battling to keep its economy going once the sanctions were effective.

The tone of speech at the Heritage Foundation was threatening and intrusive. Things have changed in Washington after Rex Tillerson who was relieved of the job due to an unwillingness to fall in line with Trump and follow his new policy towards Iran.

It would have been difficult for any sovereign country to accede to such demands, which ask for complete surrender without a fight. Neither was it expected from Iran to acquiesce to them. Foreign Minister Javad Zarif rejected them. He tweeted that the U.S. was "regressing to old habits" and it was "imprisoned by delusions [and] failed policies."

Now the U.S. administration is expected to start the process to re-impose sanctions which were lifted after the nuclear deal was signed. According to experts, the sanctions cannot become operational at once as they are subject to three-month and six-month wind-down periods.

It will not be easy to win international support on new sanctions. The deal was not just between the U.S. and Iran but the U.K., France, China and Russia -- plus Germany were also part of it. All of them have criticized Trump's decision to scuttle it.

It is likely that these countries will abide by the agreement even without the United States, which will make it impossible to use the UN forum to impose sanctions. Some of the biggest companies from these countries are also doing business with Tehran. A big question looms over how they can just abandon the agreements or investment plans.

Iran is also one of the largest oil and gas producers with buyers like China, India and several other Asian and European nations. How can America force China or even India to stop oil purchases? Hence, it will not be easy to enforce the toughest embargoes.

Trump is trying to appease regional allies, especially Israel, by using the nuclear issue as a cover. The U.S. long term objective seems to be to force the leadership of Iran to make drastic changes in its security and foreign policies or bring about regime change.

Iran must be weakened to achieve either of the objectives. The easiest way at this stage is by putting economic pressure and squeezing the space around it. But the easiest may not be easy as there is a lot of difference between Iran and North Korea.

Sajjad Malik is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/SajjadMalik.htm

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.
President Tran Dai Quang expressed the belief in an interview granted to Japanese media, including NHK broadcasting organisation, Kyodo News, Jiji Press and Nikkei newspaper, in Hanoi on May 25, ahead of his State-level visit to Japan from May 29 to June 2.

The President said he was glad to lead a high-level Vietnamese delegation to Japan on the occasion of the 45th founding anniversary of the two countries diplomatic ties.

The visit is expected to help bring the bilateral extensive strategic partnership into a new period of development, contributing to prosperity in each country and to peace, cooperation and development in Asia and beyond, he said.

President Quang said that, during the visit, the first State-level visit made by President Tran Dai Quang as President of Vietnam, he is scheduled to meet the Japanese Emperor and Empress and hold talks with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. He will also have meetings with senior Japanese legislators, politicians, economists, scientists and cultural workers to discuss the directions and major measures to increase their political trust and boost cooperation in trade, investment, development cooperation, defence, security, culture, and people-to-people exchanges.

He added that the two sides will discuss their coordination at regional and international forums and issues of mutual concerns, especially as Vietnam will be the coordinating country for ASEAN-Japan relations in 2018-2021.

The Vietnamese President highlighted the long-standing Vietnam-Japan connection in history, culture and trade, which dates back to the 15th century when the trade port of Hoi An in Vietnam welcomed the first Japanese merchant ships. The Japanese street in Hoi An at that time was a major trade centre connecting Japan with other countries in Southeast Asia.

After the establishment of diplomatic ties in September 1973, the bilateral friendship and cooperation have developed strongly in all realms, especially after the elevation of the ties to an extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia in March 2014, President Quang said.

Politically, the two countries have reached mutual trust through regular meetings of high-ranking officials. In 2017 alone there were five high-level visits between the two countries, including the first historical visit to Vietnam by the Japanese Emperor and Empress. The same year, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe also visited Vietnam twice, while Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan Oshima Tadamori visited Vietnam after 15 years. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc also paid an official visit to Japan in June.

Economically, Japan is a leading partner of Vietnam, the largest provider of official development assistance (ODA), and the fourth biggest trade partner of Vietnam.

Last year, Japan became the top foreign investor in Vietnam with a record investment capital of over US$ 9.1 billion, four times that of the figure in 2016.

At present, more than 2,500 Japanese businesses, including most major corporations of Japan, are investing in Vietnam.

Japans ODA capital has been effectively used in building infrastructure, developing high technology, clean agriculture, climate change adaptation, and poverty reduction, making significant contributions to Vietnams socio-economic development.

Bilateral cooperation in other fields, such as defence, security, culture, education-training, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges, have been continuously reinforced and expanded.

Thirty-seven pairs of localities of Vietnam and Japan have signed cooperation agreements.

In 2017, Japan ranked third in the number of tourists to Vietnam. The Vietnamese culture festival in Japan and the cherry blossom festival in Vietnam have become much-awaited annual events for the two peoples.

Vietnam and Japan also closely cooperate at regional and international forums such as the United Nations, ASEAN+, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, and Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM).

Particularly, the two countries worked together for the success of the APEC Year 2017 in Vietnam, the 25th APEC Economic Leaders Meeting in Da Nang, and jointly pushed ahead negotiations to reach the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

According to President Tran Dai Quang, the thriving economic ties between Vietnam and Japan have brought about practical benefits to the people of both countries.

To better utilise the potential and strengths of each other, the two sides should enhance their economic connectivity through promoting trade and investment, and work together to effectively implement the Vietnam-Japan economic partnership agreement, he said.

The leader called for joint efforts to double the trade and investment value in 2020 as compared with 2014, facilitate the market access of each others farm produce and seafood, and effectively implement the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative, in order to improve the investment environment and promote Japanese investment inflows into Vietnam, especially in high-tech, infrastructure and the energy sectors, thus maintaining Japans position as the No. 1 foreign investor in Vietnam.

He said the two countries should join hands in realising the action plans for the six key industries selected under Vietnams industrialisation strategy within the Vietnam-Japan cooperation framework by 2020 with a vision towards 2030, which are automobile and auto spare parts, farming machines, agro-fishery product processing, shipbuilding, electronics, environmental industry and energy saving.

Vietnam also hopes for Japans active cooperation in developing the support industry in the country, President Quang said, calling on the country to maintain its official development assistance to Vietnam, particularly in infrastructure construction, high-quality human resources development, climate change response, environmental protection, as well as economic management capacity improvement, the implementation of large-scale projects, economic reform and sustainable development.

We hope that Japan considers Vietnam as a priority partner of the Partnership for Quality Infrastructure programme worth US$ 200 billion and the Mekong-Japan Connectivity Initiative worth US$ 6.8 billion, he said.

Vietnam also seeks enhanced partnerships with Japan in the areas of the two countries demands and potential such as high-tech agriculture, health care, culture, education and cooperation between localities.

President Quang said that, along with the sound development of their bilateral relationship, the Vietnam Japan cooperation at regional and international forums, especially in major cooperative mechanisms, such as the UN, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and the ASEAN Plus, has been tightened, significantly contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world at large.

The two sides have actively promoted trade liberalisation, while closely coordinating with each other to push ahead the negotiations and signing of the CPTPP agreement, and the negotiations of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

Vietnam supports Japan in playing an active role and contributing to regional peace, stability and development, he said.

He noted that the two sides have regularly discussed regional and international issues of shared concern and supported each others bids to run for seats at UN agencies and other international organisations.

The two countries have also shared viewpoints and coordinated to help address issues relating to cooperation, development and security in the region, including the East Sea issue, denuclearization on the Korean peninsula and the Indo-Pacific initiative.

Both sides stressed the significance of ensuring peace, security, safety and freedom of aviation and navigation in the East Sea, resolving disputes by peaceful measures and in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, while fully and effectively implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) in 2002 and working towards a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC).

As the coordinating country for the ASEAN-Japan relationship from August 2018-Agust 2021, Vietnam wishes that the two countries will continue to cooperate at regional and international forums, especially within the ASEAN-Japan cooperation framework, further contributing to peace, security, stability and prosperity in the region and the world as a whole, the leader noted.

The CPTPP, signed by 11 countries in Santiago, Chile, on March 8 this year, delivers a common message of the member states that support regional economic links, President Quang said, adding that free trade and economic integration will continue to be a mainstream trend in the Asia-Pacific region.

He said Vietnam joining the CPTPP reflects the countrys strong and consistent commitment to continued renovation, deep economic integration, the participation in forming cooperative mechanisms and economic links, and contributions to regional and global peace, cooperation and development. As a new-generation and comprehensive deal, the pact will provide a new driving force for Vietnam in restructuring its economy, expanding exports and luring more high-tech investments, he noted.

The President said Vietnam and the other CPTPP members welcome other countries to join the CPTPP and the extension of the participation will be considered after the deal enters into force.

He added that Vietnam needs technical support from Japan to fully and effectively carry out the deal.

On the measures to foster bilateral cooperation in the field of people-to-people exchanges, President Quang said that, as the numbers of Vietnamese and Japanese that are visiting the other countries are increasing rapidly, the two countries should pay due attention to communication activities on each others culture and regulations.

Currently, there are some 250,000 Vietnamese people in Japan, tripling the number of five years ago. Of the figure, 200,000 are apprentices and students. Meanwhile, there are some 16,000 Japanese working and running business in Vietnam.

Japan is the third largest source of tourists to Vietnam with 800,000 arrivals in 2017. In addition, Japan also welcomed more than 300,000 Vietnamese in the year.

People-to-people exchanges have deepened mutual understanding and trust, laying a firm foundation for the Vietnam-Japan friendship to grow in the future.

I believe that with the concerted efforts from both nations, the Vietnamese people community in Japan and the Japanese people community in Vietnam will continue to be serve as a bridge for the Vietnam-Japan friendship for the benefit of the two peoples, and for regional and global peace, stability and prosperity, President Quang said at the end of the interview.
You are here: Travel

 Flash

Photo taken on May 26, 2018 shows a night view of the Qianhai area in Qingdao, a coastal city in east China's Shandong Province which will host a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization next month. [Photo/Xinhua]
 Flash

China and Burkina Faso on Saturday announced the resumption of diplomatic ties in a joint communique signed by Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister Alpha Barry in Beijing.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Burkina Faso's Foreign Minister Alpha Barry sign a joint communique to resume diplomatic relations between China and Burkina Faso, in Beijing, capital of China, May 26, 2018. [Photo/Xinhua]

The communique said the resumption of the ties was in line with the interests and wishes of the people in the two countries.

The two governments agree to develop friendly relations based on the principles of mutual respect of sovereignty and territorial integrity, non-aggression, non-interference in each other's internal affairs, equality, mutual benefit and peaceful coexistence, the communique said.

The government of Burkina Faso recognizes that there is but one China in the world, that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China, and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory.

The government of Burkina Faso promises it will have neither official relations nor official exchanges with Taiwan, it said.

The African nation announced a decision to sever its "diplomatic" relationship with Taiwan on Thursday.

At a press briefing after the meeting on Saturday, Wang Yi said China highly commended the government of Burkina Faso for making a right political decision.

According to Wang, the two sides agreed to enhance political trust and forge ahead friendly exchanges and cooperation in various fields to bring substantial benefits to the people of the two countries.

Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomes Burkina Faso's President Roch Marc Christian Kabore to attend the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation to be held in September and President Kabore has expressed his expectation for the summit, said Wang.

He said the resumption of China-Burkina Faso ties signified a step forward to a goal that all African nations will join in the big family of friendly cooperation between China and Africa.

Both China and Africa long for early realization of this goal, he said.

"Only one African country has not established diplomatic relations with China and we sincerely hope that this country could soon join in the China-Africa family of friendship," he said.
 Flash

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is looking at the Singapore summit with Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), on June 12.

"We're looking at June 12 in Singapore. It hasn't changed," Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that talks were progressing well.

"We're doing very well in terms of the summit. It's moving along very nicely," he said.

Trump canceled the scheduled meeting on Thursday, saying that it will not happen "based on the tremendous anger and open hostility" displayed in the DPRK's most recent statements.

However, he reversed course just one day after the announcement. Both sides wanted the meeting to happen and it could still go ahead after productive talks, he said.

A White House spokeswoman said on Saturday that a White House team will leave as scheduled for Singapore this weekend to prepare for the Trump-Kim talks.

Just hours earlier, the DPRK's official Korean Central News Agency said Kim expressed his "fixed will" to hold the summit when meeting with South Korean President Moon Jae-in Saturday at the truce village Panmunjom.

During the second meeting within a month on the northern side of the demarcation line of Panmunjom, Kim promised to further push forward the peace process on the Korean Peninsula by working for the goal of denuclearization and improving inter-Korean ties.

Pyongyang suspended the high-level talks with South Korea on May 16 in view of recent provocative acts such as the joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea.
You are here: World

 Flash









The second giant panda born in Malaysia made her first public appearance at the national zoo here on Saturday.







The four-month-old cub made her debut on a small platform set inside a room, in front of media cameras outside a glass window.





Her black-and-white fur is fully grown with the typical black eyes.





The female giant panda now weighs 9 kg and is in good health, said Zoo officials.





She will be meeting the public daily inside the room before joining her parents in the open display area in two to three months' time.





Bai Tian, Chinese ambassador to Malaysia, said he expects the baby giant panda to be another envoy to promote friendship between China and Malaysia. He also suggested to hold a online campaign to name the cub.





The baby panda, born in January, is the second offspring of her parents Xing Xing and Liang Liang who arrived in Malaysia in 2014. Their first-born, Nuan Nuan, who is also a female, returned to China in November last year after turning two-year-old.
The two leaders made the commitment at their separate receptions for Vo Van Thuong, Politburo member, Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and head of its Commission for Information and Education, who is on a working visit to Egypt from May 23-27.

They affirmed that Vietnam is a friend and trusted partner of Egypt in Southeast Asia. They hoped the two countries relations will help boost Egypts ties with the region.

Egypt is speeding up the implementation of memoranda of understanding and agreements it signed with Vietnam, and willing to create all favourable conditions for Vietnamese investors, they stated.

They also suggested both sides intensify collaboration in tourism, culture and people-to-people exchange.

For his part, Thuong briefed the hosts on Vietnams socio-economic situation and its outstanding achievements in more than 30 years of renewal.

He confirmed that Vietnam always bears in mind the support of Egypt for its past struggle for national liberation and current national building and development.

He expressed his belief that with strong political determination of the two countries leaders and legitimate aspirations of their people, Vietnam and Egypt will maintain close coordination and support at regional and international forums for the interests of the people and for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

The Vietnamese official also had meetings with leaders of the Egyptian Communist Party and the Socialist Party of Egypt, during which he affirmed that Vietnam is always a loyal friend and a reliable partner of other countries.

In his meetings with Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry and Minister of Communications and Information Technology Yasser El-Kady, Thuong said that Vietnam attaches importance to strengthening its relations with Egypt and appreciates the countrys role in the Non-Aligned Movement as well as its efforts to maintain peace and stability in the Middle East.

The Egyptian side expressed hope to learn from Vietnams experience in developing fisheries, rice cultivation and ship building, and enhance cooperation in information technology and communications, cyber security, software manufacturing, renewable energy, education and culture.

Leaving Egypt, the Vietnamese Party delegation will have a working visit to Greece.